2 weeks! MOTHER'S DAY

I have made it two weeks here! Each day passes by so slowly here but somehow I’ve been here two weeks already. Some days I feel like I have been here for months and others just a couple days. This morning was mother’s day so we gave Esther the bag my mom made for her and a mother’s day card. I put on my new African dress and went to church in Asamong. The branch is tiny. We meet in a run down old building with about 75 chairs set up even though the ward membership is around 30 including the babies. I walked in to the calming sound of hymns. Something about the familiarity and routine of church made it so special. Today we watched the Sunday Morning session of General Conference. The translator spoke over each speaker but if I listened close enough I could hear it all in English. After Uchtdorf’s talk the power went out so the branch president improvised and gave a lesson on Elder’s and High Priest’s duties. He taught in Twi for about 20 minutes before the power went on and we continued the session. After church we walked back to Mama Doris’ house and ate yams and bean stew. We then had our meeting until it turned into story time for 4 hours. We talked about so many things. It was nice to enjoy the other girls company and take a break from work and the frustrations that come along with living in Africa. It began to thunder so we walked to the station so we didn’t have a repeat of last week’s experience of running in the rain. I got to talk to my family around 8. It was amazing hearing their voices. My parents are busier than ever trying to keep up with Katie and Steven’s schedules. Katie is excited about going to prom with her friend soon and poor Steven has to get ACL surgery that takes him out of LAX for the year. He’s tough so I’m sure he’ll bounce back faster than expected. It was hard to say goodbye to them because I just wanted to talk all night long. I’m excited to share more of my stories once I’m home and show everyone what an awesome place Ghana is.

Also HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Here’s to the most amazing person I know, my mom. I don’t know what I would do without my mom. She is one amazing super woman. She is patient, creative, kind, caring, and full of love. She always thinks of the little things and is always the practical one. She has the ability to see things from a different perspective and be reasonable. She has dedicated her whole life to serving others and taught her kids to do the same. She is hands down the most creative woman you’ll ever meet. With a pile of random material I can guarantee you she can have some sort of game or craft concocted in no time. Every Saturday night as kids we would have a co-op where parents would trade off watching all of the kids while the other parents went out on a date. Our house was always the favorite because my mom would have the best snacks and coolest games to play. I don’t think I realized how much work my mom put into these Saturday nights until much later. On one rainy day she put a plastic bin full of rice and threw in toys and measuring cups which kept us occupied for hours. My mom also was amazing at cooking every single night. We rarely went out because my mom always had something ready for us so we could eat our family dinners. Even recently my mom was the biggest help getting me ready for my trip to Africa. She helped me day after day with my one million errands. She is also the most thoughtful person and collected letters and notes from friends and family and compiled a scrapbook for me to take. It has notes from my elementary teachers and old friends all wishing me luck in Ghana. I have read it so many times already. Her family means more than anything to her and she always made sure we spent enough time together. I don’t remember hearing my mom even complain once about how much work it is to be a mother. She definitely makes it look easy. I don’t think I thank her enough for the hard work and sacrifices she made to raise four kids. I love you mom! Thank you for everything you do and continue to do for me! Love you!

XOXO Ama