Štasny Rok

Hello family! 

It was soo good to see you the other day. I sure am grateful for technology and all the geniuses out there who create things like skype. Christmas day came and went real fast. It was so warm that day too. The sun was shining and it felt like it was the middle of April. It didn't even feel like Christmas. Ha until a couple days ago when it finally snowed and turned to -4.3 degrees C which is like -teens in F I think. 

The day after Christmas they have what is called "Boxing Day" It is a legit holiday where everyone stays inside and they box up all of their christmas decorations or so we assume. On this holiday President advised us to hit the streets and sing some carols and contact the few souls that are roaming the streets. It was freeeezzzingg. We sang mostly to the pigeons and the few czechs that braved the cold weather with us. ha ha It was fun though. We were able to plant a few seeds in those we did talk with. 

On sunday one of our Recent converets named Lukas showed up to church and stayed all three hours. This was a christmas miracle. The sisters met with him about twice a week last transfer and he would always say he would come to church but then would always come up with an excuse for his absence. We called him Saturday night but he didn't answer so we weren't really expecting him to show up, but then there he was! We visited him after church and he told us how he sees a difference when he comes and when he doesn't. His friend Martin is back from America and they live next to each other. So we are hoping that Martin being back will help get Lukas to church each week andd also help him work towards getting the Melchezidek Priesthood. 

Our investigator Pavel Jelenek will be getting baptized this coming Saturday! We had a really good lesson with him last night with a couple of members in the branch. They were able to share experiences of how the Gospel has helped shape their lives and how it's not about being perfect before baptism or even after baptism. It was an awesome lesson and I think it helped Pavel ease his nerves. 

Well that's it for now! Have a great week! 

Love you all so much. Thank you for all that you do for me! 

Sestra Fred

Christmas is Here

Ahoj Ahoj Ahoj!

So we had Christmas training yesterday and that is why I didn't write. Sorry that I didn't inform you of that last week! Training was great. We talked about some of the Traditions here in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Sister Smith is one of the Sister-Training Leaders and she was in charge of presenting one of the traditions. So the one that we did was called lodicek aka boats. So what you do is you crack the walnut, clean it out and then we took little circle candles and carved them down into smaller circles so that they fit nice and snug into the shell of the walnut. Then you light the candle and stick the walnut "lodicek" into the water with the others. Depending on how the different boats react to one another is what your fortune for the next year will be. For example, if you're boat touches another boat you will have the fortune of having good friends. Another one is whichever boat's candle stays on the longest will have a long and useful life. There are some less fortunate fortunes as well that we will save for another day. haha

I came to UH at an exciting time. They had been preparing for their Christmas concert and they take it real serious. They have an AWESOME choir here though! Dad you would love singing with them. :) Elder Earle, our district leader and I were the new missionaries that came into the area this transfer and when we went to our first practice with them last thursday the choir director, Sister Kresnickova, who says it how it is kicked Elder Earle out of the Choir because he can't sing that great. ha ha I'm not sure how I made the cut, but I did and I had to privelage of singing with them on Sunday. Every year they have this Christmas Koncert in a concert hall and the place was filled! Every seat in the house was filled. President McConkie came and played a piece on the violin while one of the sisters from the ward played on the piano. It was beautiful.

As for Christmas, we will be going to the hospital to visit with some of the sick there and then we'll be skyping from the church. My hour starts at 5:00 my time. Soo 9:00 your time. Thanks for sending the skype information. I am so excited to see all of your faces! I hope that you have had the chance to watch "He is the Gift" We have been sharing that with anyone and everyone. I'm so grateful for the Christmas season and for the true meaning behind Christmas which is our Savior Jesus Christ. I hope that all of you find joy in Him! 

Love you so much. and I'll see you soon! 

Sestra Fredrickson

Úherské Hradiště

Ahoj ahoj ahoj!

So we had transfers this week and... I have been sent to a new home! I am now in a town called Úherske Hradiště. I have only been here for a few hours, but by the looks of it and what my new companion Sister Smith has told me it is a quaint little town with only 20,000 people. So smaller then goold old Springville. UH is on the East side of the Czech Republic. It is as close as you can get to Slovakia. Sister Smith is from Logan, Utah and has been in the country for a year now. She is so smiley and fun. She reminds me a lotttt of Sister Marchbanks.This is God's gift to me for his joke that he played on me back in the MTC when he decided to not send me to Washington to serve. ;) It was hard to say goodbye to C-Bud, especially the Mestanovi family. That family has my heart. It is exciting though because Sister Scerra will be follow up training Sister Holland, my companion from the MTC. The work is hastening there so much, and I am looking forward to hearing about all the progress they make together.  But I am looking forward to the new adventures here in UH!

Jana and Lucinka's baptism was perfect. They were confirmed on Sunday and Jana Cried. Our goal for their family is to get Jirka the dad and the son Daniel baptized this coming transfer so they can all go to the temple in the spring with the Branch!

As for the Christmas skype call! We will be calling at 5:00 P.M. our time. So that will be what? Like... 9 in the morning your time. So please send me the skype name next week so I can have that to call you with! YAY! I am looking forward to itttt! 

Okay, so Sister Scerra and I attempted to make the "best white bread in the world" We baked it for our final dinner with the district and I was so proud of it because It look and smelled so good. But when we went to cut into it, it was completely raw and hadn't cooked all the way through. hahahah Soooo that's that. I might need to wait to perfect the bread making skills until I get home. It was a good attempt though! 

Be sure to watch "He is the Gift". Soo amazing! Remember Christ this Christmas season. 

Until next week!

Love you oodles!

Sestra Fredrickson

Blessings Continue to Rain Down

Hello my sweet family!

I sure have a lot to update you all on due to my lack of writing last week! haha so here it goes...

So first off we had our Christmas concert last sunday which was great. We had a really good turn out and it was fun getting into the Christmas spirit. For Thanksgiving we had a usual proselyting day and then celebrated last monday with the Elders and the senior couple in our district. Sister Scerra and I made some real tastey mashed potatoes and homemade pumpkin soup, which is one of Sister Scerra's family traditions. We had a great meal together and talked about some of the family traditions that we have. I bragged about Grandma Inez's rolls for days!

While JAKIE was being baptized this past Saturday so was our sweet Vasyl! I was thinking about Jake the whole day. I am so proud of you!  Our Ukrainian teenager got baptized in Prague on saturday and then was confirmed in our little branch on Sunday. Ivan who did all the translating for us over skype was the one who baptized and confirmed him. They are like brothers now. haha they are really fun to watch interact with eachother. Vasyl has such an incredible conversion story. From the time that he started meeting with us back in the beginning of October to now he hasn't missed a week of church, and he only missed ONE lesson. Keep in mind that this kid can speak little to no Czech. I have gained a stronger testimony of the power of the spirit in this work. It really is the Holy Ghost who does the converting, not us. Yesterday was special in the sense that we had Vasyl's confirmation as well as fast and testimony meeting. We had a lot of miracles in that meeting. Jana the mother of our recent convert Romana and who will be baptized this Wednesday got up and bore her testimony ALL ON HER OWN! She went on up to the pulpit and owned it! She gave the most beautiful testimony of how she knows that God lives and that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer and how the Gospel has helped her find peace in her life. The best part was when she sat back down Romana embraced her with open arms and gave her big hug. It has been so amazing to watch how their relationship as Mother and daughter has evolved from one that was really rough around the edges to one that has smoothed out. They are the best and we are so excited for Jana and Lucinka to be baptized on Wednesday. Keep them in your prayers! Another miracle was Ivan, who has been a member since April ish bore his testimony for the first time and IN CZECH. and Czech isn't even his first language or second for that matter and he did it perfectly! It was pretty awesome a sucessful sabbath day it was.

Well, it is the last week of transfers. I can't believe that I have already been here for 2 months. It sure has gone by super fast. Czech's don't mess around and started setting up for Christmas long before thanksgiving because they don't celebrate it here. The Namesti is decked out with a big tree and lots of little "Elf workshops" They also have ponies and a Carosel which reminded me of Jade and the Crowley boys. I got my Christmas package a couple weeks ago! Thank you thank you thank you! I am excited to see what surprises Santa has for me this year. Next week I will be able to let you know when we will be skyping. We just have to wait for transfers to see whether or not I will be staying in C-Bud or if I will be going somewhere else! 

I want to thank all of you for you love and support and espeically your prayers and letters and emails. I know that I am not the best at responding, but know just know that I am seeing them and appreciate them!

Also, Shout out to Mason Michael! I hope you had the best birthday little buddy. #5 right?? Can't believe you are all grown up! Keep being good for mommy and daddy!

Love you love you love you.

Ta ta for now!

Sestra Fredrickson

December is Here!

Wow can you believe that it is already December? Because I cannot!

We had a bit of a wild week.

So Jana Mestanova, Romana's mother, had a bit of a freak out and decided that she didn't want to be baptized anymore and that we weren't invited to the home anymore as well. 

We were a bit concerned, but due to Jana's track record she tends to flip flop so we weren't totally surprised when by the middle of the week we were back over at their home teaching them and they also participated and performed in our Christmas koncert that we had yesterday. hah 

Jana played the guitar while Romana and her brother Daniel sang. It was awesome! 

So, Jana is back on date with Lucinka the granddaughter. 

Daniel won't be getting baptized yet because he joined a band so he is never home to hear the lessons. ha 

We will get him eventually. 

Romana is doing awesome. Her character has changed from night and day. 

You are going to hate me, but we are having Thanksgiving dinner today and we got cut short on email time. 

All is well! 

Sorry for the horrible email. 

I will try to shoot one off later today! 

Sestra Fred

Zima has arrived in the Czech Republic

Ahoj!

Alright well, this past week the winter cold has officially set in. Elder Boyce informed us as we were walking to the building one day that it was a whole 2 degrees! hahaha luckily we have been very blessed to have lessons upon lessons filling up our schedules so we don't have to spend too much time outside contacting. We do walk everywhere though and have some district contacting blocks 3 times a week so we do spend a fair amount of time where the cold bites our noses. ha MOM--There was a winter coat that was left at the apartment that I am taking advantage of! It is a little worn out, but it will do this winter. :)

This past week was a pretty good one. I gave my first talk in church yesterday! yay! I kept it simple--introduced myself, bore my testimony about my mission and shared the scripture in Psalms that's on my mission plaque. I love those verses. I love thinking of God as our sun and our shield. There is great power in that anaolgy. If we remember that and let God into our lives He can protect us from anything!
...

Which includes all of Sister Scerra's admirers here in C-Bud. We ordered pizza one night last week and had it delivered to our home. We know the pizza delievery guy and he totally tried kissing Sister Scerra. Luckily she has cat like reflexes and he was only able to catch her cheek. hahah Then we met a man named Maroslav in the park contacting. He was there selling health insurance so we talked to him a little about Word of Wisdom. He set up for a meeting with us yesterday and as we started to set expectations on why he chose to meet with us he expressed that he was more interested in Sister Scerra then our message. hah just some funnies from the week. Now on to more serious matters...

OUR UKRAINIAN IS GETTING BAPTIZED THIS SATURDAY! 

Vasyl is getting dunked and we are so excited for him. He has been a bit of a tease and a typical 17 year old punk the past couple weeks, but he passed his interview and is ready to make this next step in his life. And! Get this. While we thought that only his dad was a member, it turns out that his mom is too! But he at the last second added his mom as a member to his baptismal interview record, so we have made the hypothesis that Vasyl and his mom started investigating at the same time and she just recently got baptized and that's why he never said anything to us and wrote it on the record last second. That is by no means the real story, just ours. haha we will be asking him about it next time we see him. But if that is the case, then it means that they have been investigating the church together from a far distance and it also means that they get to be an eternal family! It's incredible. Love our Vasyl. More on him and the baptism next week!

Sister Scerra pointed out to me how one way Satan likes to disturb the peace while contacting people and it is through phones. We had a couple instances this past week where the conversation started out bleh, but then the spirit was brought in and they were feeling it when their stinkin' phone goes off. She told me to start keeping count. Ha

Looks like all is well back home! When did Grace decide to play basketball?? Ha I missed that info. I'm glad she did though! I bet she's killin it. The houses are finished too! Yip-ee! Excited for you Crowley's and Freddies that will be moving in to those soon. :)

Shout out to Lauren Pilcher real quick: CONGRATS ON THE MISSION CALL LO. I am so proud of you!!! Love you to pieces!

Welp, that's all for now! Have a happy week, being grateful for all that God gives us!

I am thankful for all of you and the examples and testimonies that you all have a radiate. Keep sharing those with everyone around you.

Loving you from the Czech side of the world:)

Dokud Pristi Tyden!

Sestra Fred

"You can either choose right, choose wrong, or choose to do nothing about it."

Power of Example

Ahoj my sweet family! 

Guess what another week has come and gone. An exciting one it has been!

Okay soooo Romana Měštanova, our recent convert's entire family have all decided that they want to be baptized! Her Mother (Jana), Father (Jirka), brother (Daniel), niece (Lucinka) and then she has her two kids Romanka and Daniček. The past couple of weeks they have all been coming to the activities that we have weekly like english, family home evening, and game night. We had a senior couple come this past Saturday and give us a little presentation on temples and the Měštanovi all came and then told us afterward that they all want to be baptized the last saturday of the transfer! We were STOKED!!!! Jirka (dad) hasn't quite decided that he wants to, but we have decided Jana wears the pants in the relationship and once she gets baptized, Jirka will follow suit. hahah but seriously, this is a christmas miracle! I am completely convinced of the power of example. Romana set the stage for her family and really paved the way for them to follow her example of following the example of Jesus Christ. All it takes is one and Romana was that one for her family. Ahhh it's great! We weill be teaching them lots in the upcoming weeks to get them ready for baptism by the 13th of December! The Měštanovi are fabulous and it has been amazing for me to watch how the Gospel has really impacted and changed their lives. They call me Sestra "Fran" hahah it's pretty funny. Czechs here have a pretty hard time pronouncing Fredrickson. 

Our Ukrainian Investigator Vasyl is also on date for baptism. His date is for next Friday! 

The Elders also have about 2-3 on date for baptism so if all goes well we will have 10 baptisms between the two companionships here in our little town of Ceske Budejovice! It is miraculous. The Lord is hastening the work! 

So today we got to go on a vylet (a trip) with the Elders to a castle called "Hluboka" It was soooooo COOOLLLLL. So unreal! It was a replica of Bowzers castle in Mario Kart combined with the Beauty and the Beast. ha We toured the grounds and then for about 4 dollars we got to go on a tour of some of the castle rooms. The family that lived in the Hluboka Zamek were obsessed with hunting, so there were deer heads EVERYWHERE. Everywhere inside and everywhere outside!!! The ones outside though are made out of cement or whatever and just have the real antlers. ha Its something else. I took some pics, but we don't have enough time again today. I'm so sorry, be patient with me. pictures will come sooner or later! haha Also, today was a very important holiday for the Czech Republic. It marks the anniversary of the "Velvet Revolution" I don't want to butcher the history so I am going to suggest that you go look that one up on google. ha but the city was a ghost town today. Everyone was inside enjoying their day off to remember those who sacraficed so much to gain freedom from communism.

We have been very busy teaching and planning for our upcoming concert. We sing a loottttt. Sestra Scerra has been so gracious to help train my vocals. Ha our concert will be more christmas based but we are doing it the last Sunday of November so we can catch more people and families to come. Once December hits everyone and their dog are busy busy preparing for Christmas. It should be good! :)

Alright that's all I got time for today! Looks like all of you are doing so good! Glad to hear the mail arrived. :) Thank you for all of your love and support. Keep being great and know that you are in my prayers! 

Dokud pristi tydenn. 

S Laskou

Sestra Fredrickson 

Beauty All Around

Ahoj ahoj ahoj!

Wow, can I just say that I am theeee absolute most LUCKIEST missionary in the entire world! I have not even hit my month mark yet and I have gotten to be a part of so many amazing things, including a baptism. We had Romana Mestanova's baptism this pastSaturday. There was quite a bit of holding our breath until Saturday though. Romana had the addiction of smoking and in order for her to make her baptismal date she had no "whoops days" to work with. So we were over there every day checking up on her and we had to lay down the law for her family and ask them to not smoke in the house and around Romana. We even took away all of their cigarettes and ashtrays. ha ha. Sister Scerra and I don't mess around. We had a scare Thursday night with Romana... She had gone to take her little girl to the doctor and when we went for our appointment she wasn't there. Jana Romana's mother, was highly concerned and was convinced that Romana hadn't come home because she had gone to smoke or drink. So, Sister Scerra and I treked alllll over C-Bud to find Romana. We checked the Doctor, places that she use to go drink at and we couldn't find her ANYHWERE. After searching and praying, we finally got a phone call from her. She had gone to visit some family in a place called the Mijes so all was well. But while she was there, she was offered coffee, alcohol anddd cigarettes but she didn't accept any of it! She is solid! 

To say the least, it was quite the week. There was a lot of opposition in preparing Romana for her baptism, but she made it and the smile on her face after she came up out of the water was priceless. Afterward she said her heart was beating so fast, and had me feel it. Ha she is just incredible. She is an example to me of courage, diligence, and just pure faith. We are hoping that her family will follow her example and choose to accept the gospel as well.

Our Ukrainian gator is on date to be baptized in two weeks so if things go well we will be having another baptism! Keep him and our other investigators in your prayers for us!

Here are some fun little facts about our life here in C-Bud. 

We have about a 20 minute walk to the church building. Mom we walk along cobble stones the entire way. :)

We jog in a park almost every morning along the river and it is beautiful. Big tall trees with orange leaves. It's great. Everyday I am in awe of the beauty here. It has even warmed up a bit too which has been so nice! 

I have clipped my toe nails all by myself TWO TIMES now. Dad you should be so proud of me. hahahah

Grocery shopping is a trip. First you have to buy your own grocery sacks and then you have to bag all your groceries yourself. It is a race to the finish line every time. It can be quite stressful sometimes! haha usually I just put everything back into the basket and go over to the side table they have to pack up all the goods. They don't have any chocolate chips or marshmallows here. 

Mommy tell LuAnn that I wear her coat EVERY DAY! I love that thing. It has been such a blessing to have. The pockets are perfect. They are big so I can carry my slovnik and other items around that I need easy access to. It's great. ha 

Okay, so one night this past week we were walking out to the Namesti to find the Zmolkovi who were going to give us a ride home and there was a car that looked very similar to theirs so we went to hop in and when we opened the doors it was definitely not the Zmolkovi. hahahahaa Sister Scerra was just like uhhh.... Pardon and then left. haha It was hysterical.  Don't worry though, we did eventually find the Zmolkovi at the other end of the road. ha! 

We have an English conversation class that we teach that I really enjoy! Clarkie I know you taught some English on your mission and we need some topic ideas!

Something that I am really trying to work on is following the promptings of the spirit. While contacting this past week, I had a feeling to talk to this woman but kind of ignored it and passed her. I had the feeling again and said to S. Scerra I think we should talk to that lady. So we turned around and tracked her down and although she didn't have any interest in what we had to say I still followed the prompting. Something that I am learning is that sometimes the promptings we get to do things aren't going to produce extravagant results every time. It is a test that Heavenly Father is giving us to act on our faith to follow the promptings even when they don't result in anything. As we practice doing so, we will be ready to act when Heavenly Father really needs us to. I think that when we are practicing and learning how to follow the spirit we are also builiding our trust with Heavenly Father.

I love you my family. Thank you for all of your support and prayers. I feel them throughout the week and they help me to keep pushing forward! I hope that you all have a great week. Jake's Baptism is happening soon I would imagine! Ahhhh I am sooo excited for him!! Love you Jake!

That is all for now! Dokud pristi tyden. :)

Láska Vždy,

Sestra Fred 

Quote of the week:

"God loves you because of who God IS. Not because of anything you did or didn't do. 

Dinner at the Elders'

October Zone Training 

Miracles in C-Bud

Dobry Den!

Another week come and gone eh? A lot of neat miracles we had this week! 

Our sweet Romana has gone 4 days now without a cigarett and we announced her baptism at church yesterday to the branch! We are all anxiously looking forward toSaturday see her enter the waters of baptism. She came to church yesterday alllll by herself and at NINE in the morning. Romana is a gem. 

So there is this older lady named Olina. Olina is great. She loves the gospel, loves us missionaries, but she hadn't been to church in foreverrrrr. UNTIL. Sestra Scerra and I went over this past week and read a talk with her about Sacrament being a renewal for the Soul that was just given in Conference. We told her that she needed to come or she would continue to feel in down in the dumps. And, well just like that she agreed, on one condition. That we all wear black. Hahah and she came yesterday and we were all matching. 

It was Fast and Testimony meeting so naturally I got up there and gave a simple czech testimony. :)

We had a full house again which was great!

We had zone conference this past week, and the focus was on families. We contact once a week on Family History and it has made me want to know more about my own family! I don't have a whole lot of extra time to go looking, soooo Mom, Dad, Gma woman, could you pull together a few stories from our ancestors for me and send them to me?? That would be awesome! I am so fascinated with it! One day we will be able to meet all of those who have past before us and be with them forever. And in the meantime we can learn from them and the life experiences they had while on Earth! I am so grateful for the knowledge of eternal families.

When is the big day for Jake Crowley's Baptism??? I am so excited for you Jakie!

Hope Jade had a good Birthday as well!

Can you believe that it is already November?? Before you know it we'll be skyping at Christmas! Wowzers!

Alright I am so sorry, but I have to run. And I still haven't figured out how to send pictures.... ahaha so next week I promise!

Love you all so much!

Laska Vzdy,

Sestra Fredrickson

"Put Him first"

Ceské Budějovice

AHOY AHOY AHOY

Hello my sweet family! How is everyone doing? Before I forget I want to give a birthday shoutout to JADE ALEXA FRED! Happy birthday my cute niece. I can not believe she is 2 years old already. Seems just like yesterday she was born. Jakie's birthday is coming up too and it's the big EIGHT! Woot woot. Angela did you get the little package I sent to him??

Alright so let me fill you in on a little bit of what my new life in Czech is like.

It is basically freezing here and somehow the season of fall was completely skipped over. haha. The sun did come out yesterday though and that was a happy moment for me. I have had quite a few ''firsts'' in the 10 days or so that i have been here. I have eaten lots of yummy foods like fried cheese, svičková, Indian curry, and halušky. Sestra Scerra is teaching me how to cook lots of good stuff! She is amazing. I am so lucky and grateful to have her as my trainer. We have started to settle in somewhat and are getting to know each other better which makes for a good time. We bond over cooking, running, and just trying to get everything done that we need to throughout the day!

Czech's looovvveeee their dogs. haha it's a little ridiculous. The czech's also do the double wink instead of a one eyed wink. So the first week I was here I kept noticing that Sestra Scerra would do that and I thought it was just some weird twitch thing. hahahahahah I finally was told about the Czech wink at training last week. She laughed. ha too good.

We have AMAZING investigators right now. Seriously we are so lucky. We are working with a boy named Vasyl. He is Ukrainian, doesn't speak any english or czech so we do skype lessons with him with a member in Prague that speaks Ukrainian. It is amazing to me that depsite the language barrier Vasyl keeps on coming back. Talk about a miracle.

Romana is another one of our investiagotors whose baptism will be in 2 weeks if all goes well! She came to church yesterday with her little boy Daniceck, who is adorable. Romana is awesome. She has overcome a lot and has a very sweet spirit about her.

We are teaching two others, Pavel and Radek. They are studs. Radek is kind of being a pansy and won't get baptized because he still lives at home (he is 26) and his parents don't approve. But he is trying to find a place to live, so hopefully he will so he can do what he needs to do! And Pavel has some family issuses with his wife and her not wanting any church influence on their daughter. Awesome guy though. During lessons he will stop to make sure that I know what is going on and then will tell S. Scerra to translate for me. All of our gators are so patient with me. I love them!

We had the primary program yesterday in church! I got to relive the glory days and be a part of the program since there are only 3 kids in our little branch. It was so fun. I even memorized my part. :) hahah We had a full house yesterday at church too. It was sweet. The members here are incredible. They are so strong and have been serving faithfully for a long time. Tonight we have our branch Halloween party! We have a lot of our gators coming with family and friends so it should be hoppin!

We had a singing display on one of the busiest streets here and I went out contacting by myself. It was one of the scariest, hardest things I have ever done. But knowing that I have Christ by myside as I try my best to serve scary things like contacting by myself with no idea what the people are saying back to me isn't all that bad. I know that God is aware of each of our needs and I know he knows our hearts and hears our prayers. Everyday I am learning to rely on Him more.

It's time for me to scadadle. I hope that you all have a happy, awesome week! Give everyone my love!

Láska Vždy,

Sestra Fredrickson

P.s. I will send Some pictures next week! Don't have enough time today!

P.s.s. I LOVE YOU FAMILY 

P.S.S.S. keep being stellar 

Week ONE From Czech

AHOY RODINU

Alright, Here is the deal, I took all my time (which wasn't a whole lot) to read all of your emails, so now I only have 5 minutes to write you back. haha so here this will be a quick summary of my first week in the beautiful country of Czech. 

We finally arrived safely Tuesday evening and our first Czech meal was McCee Dee's. Chicken nuggets from there have never tasted so good. haha.

My new companion is the one and only Sestra Scerra. She is from LA, Californina, has graduated from college in journalism and creative writing. She is a convert to the church and the only member in her family. She is a POWER HOUSE. From the minute that I got here we have been teaching NON-STOP. One thing that I have already learned and will continue to learn from her is how to work HARD. 

We are in the city of České Budéjovice. It is beautiful here. The Namesti (town square) is unreal. They say that during Christmas it is something else so naturally I am looking forward to that!

The work here is moving right along. I have fallen into a little tiny branch that is seeing a lot a miracles happening. Sestra Scerra and I are teaching about 4 or 5 people right now and 3 of them have a baptismal date. I love the people. They are so kind and so patient with me. The first day here we taught a couple lessons and in their prayers they prayed for me and that I will learn and understand the language. It was so sweet. 

I am exhausted. I fall asleep in lessons sometimes, but they say that's normal for the first bit so no worries. I can't understand a whole lot, and I feel overwhelmed at times. But luckily for me I have a great trainer and with time the language will come. They talk so fast here!

Sorry it is so short... I have to go.  We had training today and so we didn't get the full hour and half to email. Next week I will be able to give you a more thorough update. :)

I love you all so much! Have a great week and know that I miss you and think about you often! 

Keep on smiling! 

Sestra Fredrickson

"You matter." 

A Safe Arrival

Dear Missionary Family

This morning Sister Fredrickson  met her companion – Sister Scerra. Attached are some pictures for you to enjoy.

They are serving in the town of České Budějovice.  It is approximately 2 hours directly south of Prague by train.

There are 2 Elders and a Senior Couple serving with them in their District.

P-Day is next Monday.  Sister Fredrickson will contact you then to share her adventures. 

Sestra Judy Munro

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Czech/Slovak Mission

Executive Secretary

PS: Don’t you love their matching sweaters. J

Jokes on Us.

Ahoy familia, sooooo I have some news for all of you. Turns out that Heavenly Father has a little change of plans for us. Our Visa's didn't come through so we have all been reassigned to different areas. And you will NEVER believe where I have been assigned to..... Wait for it, wait for it....

The WASHINGTON VANCOUVER mission!!! MEGAN MARCHBANKS I AM COMING FOR YOU BEST FRIEND!!!!! We came in from dinner tonight to read our "new calls" When I read it I screamed for joy because I am going to the same mission as Meggie, and then shortly after I cried knowing that I won't be going to Czech on Monday. 

Sestra Clark and I both got assigned together, which is a blessing because I could not navigate an airport on my own. Here are the NEW travel plans: 

We report to the travel office at 3:35 a.m. Tuesday morning. Our flight departs at 8:35 a.m. I think that we will prolly call home between 6-7 a.m. So be awake for me! :) 

I'm not really sure how to feel right now. To be honest I feel weird, but I know that God doesn't do coincidence and that Washington, Vancouver is where He needs me to be right now. Those Cesky's aren't quite ready for us yet. ;) hahah Who knew that I would get such an incredible opportunity to receive TWO mission calls! How lucky am I! 

All is well. I am happy and healthy! I love you all and will talk to you soon! 

Laska Vzdy,

    Sestra Fred

Week of "Lasts"

AHOY RODINÝ A KAMARADÝ!!!

I better begin by giving the BEST little sister in the whole wide world a big SWEET SIXTEEN birthday shoutout!!! NAROZENINY Boo boo!! I hope the day is as sweet as they come! :) Now stop growing up okay? LOVE YOU.

Okay, wow. My week of lasts here at the MTC has been full of so much excitement! Let's begin with General Conference. Not too many people get to have the experience of watching 10 hours of conference goodness in hard plastic chairs at the MTC, but guess what? I did!!! And it was pure bliss. haha Sooooo much spiritual nourishment in two days! I went into conference with a few different questions, and all of them were answered by the words that were spoken the speakers as well as by the spirit to me personally. I could go on for days with all my notes and thoughts, but for time sake I will just give you one thought I loved most. D. Todd Christofferson ( which I came to the conclusion that he reminds me of good ol' Rusty Shaw. ha! )  talked a lot about moral agency. He said, "Take responsibility and go to work, so God has something to help us with." I loved that because if we are not doing our part to be anxiously engaged in the gospel, school, anything then there really isn't anything that Heavenly Father can do to help us progress and reach the divine potential that he sees in us and wants SO badly for us to reach. Loved that. I have always loved General Conference, but Sister Marchbanks is right, as a missionary it is like Christmas weekend X 10000000. It was the perfect way to end my MTC journey and the spiritual boost I needed going into the field... 

That is right, I am flying away from the land Deseret to my new home on Monday! YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYA. We got our flight plans a week ago and we have been all giddy since. We leave at 7:00 a.m. Monday morning from the MTC. We fly from SLC to Dallas/Fortworth, Texas, from Texas to LONDON, ENGLAND and from England to our beloved PRAGUE. Our flight leaves SLC at 12:15 on Monday. I am not exactlyy sure what time we will be calling home.. We will get checked in and everything taken care of before we do so I am going to say between 8:30-10:00. Mom, Dad, Mary Grace make sure you are home! And I will try to call the rest of you too. :) Send me your numbers in a quick email and I will check itSunday and write them down. Can't wait to hear all of your beautiful voices! It has been too long! 

After 9 weeks of being here, we finally were given the chance to host. It was so fun! I got to host 3 Sisters. One going to Argentina, Jamaica, and North Carolina (hollllaaaa.) They were great, and will be great missionaries. The sister going to Argentina and her family were having a cry fest at the curbside dropping her off. I almost joined in with them. Hahaha such a bittersweet day. 

Sestra Holland and I had the opportunity to demonstrate "How to Begin Teaching" aka HTBT to groups of new missionaries that came in last night. It is a section in Preach My Gospel about, get ready, How to Begin Teaching. hahahah It was a lot of fun, and we actually got a lot out of it and were able to recognize as a companionship things that we can improve on to better utilize HTBT into our lessons. I will definitely miss having my Sestra "Holls" by my side every hour of the day. I have loved the past two months getting to know and work with her!

Well, I am out of time for this week. I love you my family and friends! Thank you for all of the love and support. I know my savior lives! I know he hears our prayers and answers them inHis time.

Have a fantastic week and I will be talking to you for reals soon! :)

Láska Vždy,

Sestra Fred

Jumping for joy and the gift of flight plans. hehe 

​This is Sestra Donaldson. She started teaching us when Bratr Thompson left 2 weeks ago. She is the cutest thing ever. It was so nice having a Sister to relate to and ask advice! 

Time is Winding Down

Dobry Den Rodiny!

What a week! Honestly, I can't even really remember what happened this past week, so you're going to have to bear with me as I try to rack my memory!

We had our last lesson with Bratr Thompson last Thursday night. He would always come with his 44 oz Mountain Dew to class (he had hard time staying awake just as much as we do sometimes haha) so we decided to have a Caffeine free Mountain Dew toast at the end of class with him. It was hands down the best moment here at the MTC. Bratr Mullen captured the moment perfectly. I'll be sure to send it with this email. I cried the hardest I have in awhile when I shook Bratr T's hand for the last time.Literally, BIG crocodile tears. Sestra Clark, Starsi Needham and I were the only ones to bawl like babies. haha He is like our MTC Dad. He was with us from the beginning! He bore beautiful testimony to us that night and gave us an analogy of "Stepping out of the River." He talked about how missionaries tend to have one foot in the river (the world) and one foot out (in the mission field) when they are serving. He reminded us that this short time of our lives is time that we can have to focus on the Gospel and Christ and His work without the world and its demands pressing down on us. He promised us that the sooner we take both feet out of the river and truly be in the now of today and our missions that that is when Heavenly Father can begin making us into what He wants us to be. It was so powerful and something that really helped me to remember why I am here as a missionary and that the only way I am going to come unto Christ and help others do the same is if I allow Heavenly Father to mold me into the Sestra Fredrickson He needs and wants me to be. Love Bratr T. He has had a huge impact on my life. Until we meet again!

So some exciting news for the week is I was made Sister Training Leader of the Zone this past week. I think it was Friday that President Melville spoke with me and asked me to serve in this calling. I get to make sure all of my sister's in the zone are doing good and being obedient and following the rules and such. Mostly, I just get to love them! I love it. It gives me the opportunity to think about someone else instead of myself. My co-Sister Training Leader is Sestra Birkeland who is one of my Czech sister's so it's fun being about to work with her! With the calling I have been learning the lesson of how important it is to be an example and the power the comes from being an example. As missionaries we have a huge target on us. We are unique, and different, and some people would say that we are weird too. Ha. People are CONSTANTLY watching us! One thing that President Melville said in one of our leadership meetings was that we have such a great zone because of the past examples that have been set by missionaries that preceded us. Examples can effect "generations!" Wow! When I heard that, it made me realize how important it is to think before you speak or act.

We got to skype with a member in Czech on Tuesday! All four of us sisters tagged teamed the skype date with a Sestra by the name of Alexandria. She is 20 years old and is actually from Russia but is going to school in Praha. She is adorable. It was so fun being able to speak with her, even though I didn't know what she was saying half of the time. hahah we made her giggle at our Czech speaking abilities. Skyping with her made me realize that there are actually real people in Czech who are just going about living their lives. It's not some fantasy place with fictional characters. We are racing time to the finish line of our MTC adventure and I feel like time is winning! 

We should get our travel plans this Saturday! So Mom and Dad I will email you details about that next week. :) Can you believe I am going to Czech in a week fromMONDAY?! How insane! I am so excited I can hardly stand it.

Also! Sestra Holland and I set a baptismal date with our investigator Martin yesterday! I was the one who got to ask him if he would follow the Saviors example and be baptized. The spirit was so strong in our lesson and as I asked him to be baptized. It is definitely something special to watch a person grow and come closer to Christ and accept to follow Him. We will teach Martin the commandments tonight so say a little prayer for him and us to have the spirit! 

We also taught a new gator yesterday named Ales. We went from having a spiritual high with Martin, to a very spiritual low with Ales. Ah how does that happen? We were not as prepared as we could have been, which I think was the biggest problem. I am learning that to be able to teach by the Spirit, which is the key to conversion, you have to be prepared. 

I had the opportunity to fast again on Sunday because of General Conference this weekend. I just want to bear you my testimony of the spirit of Fasting. There is power that comes from fasting. I know that fasting can help us receive answers and strength from the Lord, if we fast with sincerity and meekness. Love, love, love fasting. 

Thank you for sending all the pictures Mom and Dad! Mary goose you looked absolutely STUNNING at Homecoming! Stop growing up! Jade seems to still be her funny little self. I love it. And I am so glad that Bubby is finally being fun for Angie! hahaha ahhh I miss being around kids! Epecially my synovecy and neteř!

Family. You are amazing. I love you all so much. Thanks for being so great, and thanks for being mine!

Love you oodles and oodles. Until next week!

Láska Vždy,

Sestra Fredrickson 

P.s. I decided I want to start doing a quote of the week. So here it is!

Quote of the Week: "Let go, and let God" 

District Last Picture 

 Mullen - Thompson - Knapp - This photo describes them all perfectly.

 Our Mt. Dewer toast - Long live our ginger ucitel

Sestra Clark and I sulking together

Sestra Holland hair party - Rapunzel 

18 DAYS AND COUNTING

Ahoy, ahoy, ahoy!

I leave in 18 days. EIGHTEEN DAYS!!!! It is an incredible feeling. I am SO stoked, and so nervous at the same time. Today we got an email from one of the Sisters that works in the mission office that was information about what our first couple of days will be like when we get there and don't worry, the first day we get to take a walk around Prague and go into the "Old Town" and have dinner with President McConkie and his wife/family and the Slovak missionaries. Haha be jealous. ;)

This past week was pretty jammed packed with some super awesome things. 

Jeden: I forgot to mention this last week, but when I was sick the Starší in my district gave me a priesthood blessing. It was a really neat and special experience for me. I am so grateful for the priesthood and for the power that is in it. They also gave one to Sestra Holland this past week. Our Starší are the best. 

Dva: The Ogden temple dedication was sooo cool. I hope all of you got to watch it. We sat at the very back/top of the auditorium which was so prime. Watching all of the missionaries wave their white handkerchiefs while saying the Hosanna shout is something that I will never forget. I loved the words that were spoken by the prophet, "Love the temple. Appreciate the temple. Attend the temple." And I don't know if any of you caught it, but.. us Czech/Slovak missionaries totally got a shout out from President Monson himself when he mentioned Olega and Jiri who are from the Czech Republic and had a great appreciation for the temple. No big deal. Ha it was awesome though, all of us did a little gasp when he said that. 

Tři: We got to hear from ANOTHER APOSTLE! Two weeks in a row! Can you believe that?! We are so lucky. I am totally convinced that I chose the perfect time to serve because by the time I leave I will have gotten to experience 2 devotionals where apostles spoke, a temple dedication, and General Conference all in the MTC. Wow, it is great and I love it! 

Anywayyy, we got to hear from M. Russell Ballard this week. He is such a stud. He talked a lot about setting goals. He said, "Life is a process of setting goals. Make it a point to set a wise, sensible, attainable goal as needed hourly, minutely, and secondly." How awesome is that? 

čtyří: I have officially memorized "My Purpose" and the First Vision in Czech. I learned the First Vision in a little less than a week. It was quite the feat for me. haha I can testify to you that if you really put your mind to something or anything and have the determination and desire to get it done, YOU CAN DO IT. I also discovered my favoriteCzech word. It is švagrova. It means sister-in-law, which is totally serendipitous because I have the BEST švagrovy in the world and I will get to use it all the time when I am talking about my family to people in Czech! hahahah it really is the funnest word to say. Go look it up on google translate and try it out for yourself. 

Pět: The new Croatian/Slovenian/Bulgarians arrived yesterday! They are all so cute and frazzled. Haha I remember being like that my first couple weeks. Oh how great it is to be considered "the old ones" now. Watching the last Croatians and Slovenians leave on Monday kind of put into perspective for us that the day will come when we will actually get/have to leave the MTC. Haha most days I just feel like I am at like a spiritual EFY camp and I'll come home when I'm done here. Too funny. 

šest: One of our teachers, Bratr Thompson, is leaving us today. :( He got offered a full-time position at his other job and his time here was almost up anyway so he is moving onto the next chapter of his life. Last night we had our last lesson with our investigator Honza who Bratr Thompson acted as and it was so so sad. When we finished our lesson on having desire and determination to gain a testimony of the gospel he promised us he would put in the work he needs to to come unto Christ and he then he says, looking down at the ground, "Ja jsem šmutný" which means I am sad. He didn't want to "move" as much as we didn't want him to. It was the saddest thing ever. I do not like goodbyes! Love Honza. Love Bratr Thompson. We all got him some funny going away cards that I'm sure he'll get a kick out of. 

I got the Bubba/Luann and Angela package! I also got one from Susie Smith this week. You are all saints. Thank you SO much for sending those things to me! 

I am so grateful for ALL of you! You are in my prayers daily! 

I am so thankful for this Gospel, and for the opportunity I have to share it with the world. I know my savior lives!

Have a fantasticcc week!!! 

Láska Vzdý,

Sestra Fred

P.s. I get to hear your voices in 2 1/2 weeks!!!!! :)

P.p.s. Take lots of pictures of Boo boo this weekend!! Her first High school dance... Dad. How has this happened??? She is not old enough!

P.p.p.s. The Fredrickson and Crowley houses are coming along nicely aren't they!? Can't wait to see them be finished!! 

P.p.p.p.s. Tell "THE MIND" congrats on tying the knot! Carly Ann, You looked STUNNING in the pic dad sent me! 

P.p.p.p.p.s. Miss you my family! Love you oodles.

 ​Our last night with the Croatian/Slovenian Sisters. Sestra Vukuopera's double fist pump says it all. hahah love these Sestry!

​We are all wearing Sestra Clark's skirts. haha she is always so good share her clothes with us.

Temple walk in the rain with Sestra Holland. 

We found Elder Niu - MTC Temple walk. 

Week 5 - SMRT Tyden

Hiiiiiiii familyyyy! 

Sounds like there has been a lot of hustle and bustle going on this past week. I am sooo thankful to hear that Whitney and the baby are okay. I am grateful to my Heavenly Father who is taking care of all of you while I am away. He truly is so kind and merciful to all of us and blesses us beyond measure. It's been a bit of a rough week for me and my district. I titled this email "Smrt Tyden" because it kind of really has been a "Death Week" for us. I along with one of the Elders caught the nasty plague that's been going around here. Achy body, pounding headaches, and I have easily gone through 3 boxes of tissues all by myself. Ha ha. Fortunately, I am feeling MUCH, much better now! But, my poor companion and one of my teachers caught the plague from me I think.. Such a sad state of affairs. Hopefully we can all get better soon! 

Other than being sick, it was a wonderful week. We had a pretty neat experienceTuesday night at our devotional. We were graced with the presence of Elder Richard G. Scott. I can't even begin to describe to you the feeling in the room as he entered the room Tuesday night. I was nearly 20 feet away from an apostle, AN APOSTLE. He spoke to us missionaries about prayer and what was cool was that it was broadcast to ALL of the MTC's around the world. So sick. He opened his talk with, "Don't just serve your mission, have a BLAST." Haha he is seriously the best. He had a lot of good insights on prayer. Some of the things that stuck out to me were it's so important for us to ask in faith AND confidence and then PROCEED with confidence. Another thing that was so huge to me is that Heavenly Father will answer us in our own individual ways to help us meet our own individual challenges in they way He thinks best. Sometimes we aren't always going to get the answer WE want or think is best for us, but Heavenly Father knows. He knows us better than anyone on Earth does. When you pray, make sure you are asking the right questions. Strive to align your will with His -- His is alwaysbetter! 

Prayer is such a gift. Take advantage of it! Take time to really talk, and laugh, and weep with Heavenly Father. He wants to do all of those things with you! 

I have three and a half more weeks here at the MTC. Woof. The time ticking! 

Have a great week! I miss and love you all! 

Láska Vždy,

Sestra Fred

 ​Most of our zone. Oh how nice it is to feel the sand between our toes! 

 ​We celebrated our 1 month anniversary with some delicious muffins that Sarsi Cook's mom sent to us. Happy 1 month to us!

 ​Best people. I am beyond blessed to have them.  

​A little laundry lovin'

This picture was sent to Leon by a lady named Connie who gives shots at the MTC.

Her cousin's grand daughter is at the MTC and goes to see her each week.  Jenn and her companion went with her this week and Connie sent this picture over.