Its officially Christmas time people!!

Its officially Christmas time people!! Frohe Weinachten!!!  We had our first snow fall yesterday that actually stuck to the ground and it was gorgeous!!! I am really getting excited for Christmas!!  The smell of everyone using their wooden stoves to heat up their houses, smelling the chesnuts roasting (literally they have that at the Christmas Market downtown!!), and the white on the ground just makes it more Christmasy!  I love it!!  On our way to the church the elders started throwing snowballs at each other haha some things you just can't change in boys haha but it was the perfect snow to build a snowman!  Wait... Check the elders did that too outside the church building before the members came :)  What brings so much joy when when this time of year rolls around?  It comes everytime Decemeber begins and I never could put my finger on it.  The sound of the Christmas Hymns and Carols are music to the ears and makes us just want to sing "Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow" or "Jingle Bells."  Which reminds me!  We had a Family Home Evening with a member family in the ward and since her husband works late every night she usually has to do it without him, so she asked us to come and join them.  We get to her house, which is the cutest thing in the world because she has basically built it and designed it herself, and she had laid out pillows and blankets on the ground because we were having a picnic right next to her wood burning stove :)  And not only that but she had all kinds of musical instruments scattered around too that included a guitar, tamberines, maracas, and drums.  We opened singing "Little Town of Bethlehem" and we gave a spirital thought about how important it is to have a sturdy foundation and testimony of Jesus Christ or else whirlwinds of stress and unknown events could bring us down :) Helaman 5:12!  Then we sang Jingle Bells using the instruments around us and had a prayer by her little daughter that melted my heart :)  We then ate abend Brot and chatted a little bit before she kicked us out so she could put the little ones in bed.  It was amazing to be a part of that family just for one night.  It was so simple but yet so powerful and we really felt like we helped them feel the spirit, but I am so grateful for their love for us and willingness to have us over.  I felt like part of the family and for that, I am grateful :)  I can't believe how fast time goes.  On Friday I passed my 1 year marker!! I am pretty sure I was stretching on the floor before attempting Yoga since it was way too cold to go outside to exercise, and Sister Sprouse came in and yelled, "Happy 1 Year!!" Later that day I read my journal entry from a year ago, my first day in the MTC and it was inspiring to see how excited I was about being a missionary.  Everything was so new and I had no idea what awaited for me in the future!  I still can't believe that I have been out for that long and I still have those moments of "Wow, I can't believe that I am in Germany.  Wow, I can't believe that I am a missionary."  I am so grateful for it and I am excited to see what the Lord has in store for me for the next 6 months :)  Tschüß!  Liebe, Sister Tuschling!