16 January 2022
VOLUME 10 – NUMBER 435
Children at California Adventure
Gloria
This week was so fun because I spent a whole week with siblings. Endia, London, Ashton, Monte, Isaac, Kai, and I all went to California and visited Disneyland. It was very fun.
When we arrived in California, we went to the beach, relaxed and ate donuts for breakfast. Then we went to the store and some of us got treats for the parks. Afterwards, we went to the park and had bagel sandwiches for lunch. Then we went to the beach to play in the water or in the sand. Most of us stayed in the sand and played Spike Ball.
When it was time for us to check in to the hotel. We unloaded all our stuff out of the car into the room. We all went swimming and watched the movie Coco while we swam.
On Tuesday we went to Disneyland and went on a lot of rides. The first one was Indiana Jones and that was really fun. Then we ate lunch that was made at the hotel, so we didn't spend a lot of money. Also, Star Wars land was really cool and fun.
On Wednesday, we went to California Adventure, and it was so awesome! When we were in the line for Spiderman, the ride stopped working, so we ate our lunch in line. We finally left and went on other rides. I loved the tower and California Screamin’.
On Thursday, we took a break and went swimming and relaxed. We also went to the temple in Los Angeles after we ate dinner with Jen at her new apartment. Friday, we went back to Disneyland and did some more rides.
Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland
London
I am so grateful for fun adventures. Life can get monotonous, and it always help to have something fun to look forward to. Endia's idea to go to Disneyland with some of the younger kiddos was seriously such a blessing! It was surreal being in Disneyland and going on all the fun rides.
Spending time with my siblings was also one of the highlights. We had so much fun in the lines, and we got to goof around and tease each other... all the good stuff. I loved just having fun and feeling like a kid again, so this trip was perfect. Life is hard sometimes, but fun is one of the best cures I know of J! I also loved visiting Jen and James while we were out there!
Children at the beach in California
Monte
Disneyland is finally here! We left home on Sunday night and started the ten-hour drive. After we drove for a while London pulled over onto a dirt road. We all got out (except for London) and did star tipping. Kai didn't believe it would work, but after a few tries, Endia got him to tip. It was so much fun.
After we got in the car, I went right to sleep. I slept most of the way. I remember a traffic jam, but that's pretty much it. Once we reached California, we went to the beach. We went to the beach because we couldn't check into our hotel until 4:00pm.
The next day we started our adventure at Disneyland. We went to Disneyland first, California adventure the next day, took a break day, and then Disneyland again on the final day.
Galaxy’s Edge (Star Wars land) was so cool! It felt like we were in a movie or something. We were able to fly the Millennium Falcon a few times (it was one of the rides). Avengers Campus was super cool too, we got to see Spiderman fly through the air, and we saw some of the Guardians of the Galaxy. I bought some cool looking web shooters.
I think our favorite ride was Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout, but we just called it the tower, because a lot of us couldn't remember the name. The last thing I'll talk about is Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. It was the coolest ride EVER! Even the line is interactive, you get in a spaceship, and it takes you to a star destroyer, then you escape from the first order. It was insane. Well, the adventures continued, but I don't think I can fit them all in this newsletter.
Endia and Monte on Grizzly Rapids
Yarima
Okay, I have a little catching up to do, so I hope you’ll let me go back a few weeks! Back in December, Selvin and I went to the Luminaria event at Thanksgiving point. It was so beautiful and very well put together.
The light show was pretty awesome as well. It was nice to walk through the Light of the World garden. I was able to remember the stories as we walked through and at this time of year to especially remember Jesus Christ and the sacrifice he made for us.
Last month I also met baby Mateo! Congratulations to Natalie and Nate on the newest addition to your family. Also, I just have to say that Remi loves the snow, she always wants to be outside running around in it.
Aura and girls at Rio Tinto stadium
Remi also met a new friend at the park. She is a black golden doodle, and they love to play with each other. Remi and Willow meet up two or three times a week to hang out and play.
The day after Christmas Aura invited us to go to the lights at the Rio Tinto stadium. There were activities for the kids, and we played a few games. We also had a great time at the Hill home on Christmas playing games and being with everyone!
Just after the new year, I helped my mom make tamales to sell. Selena also spent some time over at my house. This week I visited Natalie and the kids. Her friend brought over some puppies, and we played with them. Selvin also had a soccer game this weekend and their team won the tournament.
Work has been hard lately because we have been quarantined for several weeks due to the rise of COVID on campus. We haven’t been able to do much, and the ladies have not been able to go home on visits, so they are angry and bored!
Maria at Yarima’s house making tamales
Christian
School has been going pretty good. We started on the 7th. I have 10 classes, but half are ACT prep classes which I don't have to finish until August. Another class that I have is art history which is learning about different types of art and architecture throughout history, it's been a fun class so far.
Isaac
I have decided to start re-reading the Harry Potters because I never finished them, and they are super good. I am on the third book right now and I am trying to get to the fifth book before I buy the next Dragonwatch book, Dragonwatch and the Titan Games. It has been super cool to take some time to read books.
Natalie, Luis, Yarima, and Selena
Alex
Me, Veidi, the three littles, Selena, Christian, and Vanessa stayed home with Mom and Dad while Gloria, Monte, Isaac, and Kai went to Disneyland with London, Endia and Ashton.
Veidi
I helped Mom give Juno a bath. He had a lot of knots and it was hard to brush out, so Mom tried to cut the really big ones.
Children in Galaxy’s Edge at Disneyland
Ashton
Disneyland was beyond fun, and we made some great memories while we were down in California. It was the second week of school, so it was a little weird to take a break right after starting, but it was absolutely worth it. Driving there and back seemed pretty short, and I think that's because Endia, London, and I were able to switch off and only drove about three or four hours each.
One of my favorite things about the hotel was the continental breakfast! We had some good laughs. London broke the waffle batter dispenser, we drank some watered-down juice, Kai learned what a cornbread muffin was, and it was just awesome!
Another really funny memory. Gloria got the GREAT idea to pull a prank on Endia and London while they were shopping. We left the parking space and moved to a different spot where we could see them, but they wouldn't be able to see us. When we saw them come out, I did a countdown from five, and right before I finished, they called, and it was go-time!
Children at Disneyland Castle
We told them we thought they said to drop off the kids at the hotel and to come back and get them after that (our hotel was probably 20 minutes away). They were completely convinced! Then we finally revealed ourselves and pulled up to see them standing alone in the vacant parking space we left. It was awesome!
Visiting with Jennifer was really fun too! She told us about the Cali life, and we got to play with James a bunch, and he was just so adorable the whole time!
The whole week was great. We did a lot of games with each other in the lines of the rides, and it was really funny to see other people in the line copy us, and start doing games of their own rather than just waiting for the ride. Awesome week!
Children playing on beach in California
Caleb
Dad asked me a couple questions, so here goes. My companion is from Sandy, Utah. He just reached is one-year mark. We work in Los Angeles, which is the big city in this area, but not one of the biggest cites in Chile. Our area goes from here all the way to the border of Argentina! So maybe if we got lucky, we could have a foot in Argentina one of these days!
It’s summer here right now, so the weather is nice. It’s very pretty here. The food is super normal. The campo is where you'll probably find a lot more Chile-specific culture, but haven’t been out there yet. Something I love about Chile is how the people are usually very open to just talk. I don't know if that's always true or just a blessing of being a missionary where people will just open up to you a lot more naturally.
These seem like the fastest months in my life. I know that I'm out here serving my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He and his work are the most important thought, cause, idea, on earth, and that's NOT just for missionaries! It's absolutely 100% true for EVERY person in the world. I know it with all of my heart!
Caleb on the roof of his apartment building
Please do what it takes to make Him the center of your life, and all else WILL fall into place! If you have Christ as your focus, all will happen better than you could have ever planned or imagined. I would bet my life on it. Read these J: 3 Nephi 13:31-33, and Ether 12:6!
Also, we don't fully get what we have! The Book of Mormon is the most true and powerful book on the earth! Read it every day, Please! If you don't know if it's true, read it, and pray to God with faith and He will answer you. If you know that it's true, but it's still hard to read it, that's still understandable, because Satan hates it when we allow that power to be in our life, so he is going to tempt you to not read it. Don't listen.
God’s voice is in the scriptures. We need his voice and power in our lives today, and every single day of our lives! I love the joy and power I feel as I read from this amazing, sacred, and even fun book. I feel like wisdom is just gushing out of every single word! I know the Book of Mormon is true! I love you guys!
Streets of Caleb’s area (Los Angeles, Chile)
Braden & Brooke
This week has been a struggle for Ellie when it comes to naps and bedtime. It was especially hard one night when Ellie had been crying for about an hour after we put her in her crib. We were so excited when she finally laid down and went to sleep!
A couple of hours later, a car with a super loud engine kept driving by our apartment. When the obnoxiously loud car finally left, we could hear Ellie crying. We tried to just let her cry it out, but after an hour or so, we started to get desperate because we had church at 8:30am the next day.
We ended up letting her sleep in our bed since that was the only way we could get her to stop crying. She was the only one who really got any sleep that night because she kept us up with her constant tossing and turning. We were all pretty tired at church the next day but thank goodness for Sunday naps…for us anyway. Ellie still refuses to nap!
Sad Ellie refusing to take a nap