Hello on another beautiful P-day - I wish you could see the smile on my face just thinking about you all reading this :)

Dearest family!
Hello on another beautiful P-day - I wish you could see the smile on my face just thinking about you all reading this :) You all crack me up. Your letters are like unto a delicious hot glazed paczek (donut thing) filled with warm, runny chocolate. Spencer, It was great to here from you kid. I love you and miss you so much. I have a picture with you wearing that super rad red and white beanie in my scriptures and I sometimes just look at it and remember how amazing you are. I love you kid. I miss you all the time too and know that I pray for you and thing about you always. I loved you wrote about the purchasing of the TV- it seems pretty accurate ha Dad had a feel we needed a new 52 inch plasma screen tv hahaha I laughed out loud when I read that. That is so ridokulous father, what has gotten into you ;) I love it so much. And you played video games on it ha. I so look forward to that when i come home. Mama, thank you so much for the letters. They were amazing and I greatly anticipate the packages! I got one from Grandma and Grandpa Cohen and it was great! So nice of them, we our thoroughly enjoying it :) Mom, i love your spiritual insights so much, thank you, they are amazing. Sarah, thank you for the letter. So good, I look forward to your letters every monday so much. I'm so proud of you :) Annie, I love you so much and hope to hear from you soon, thank you for the little note :)
That is so great you all are serving so much for Christmas. It is the best feeling ever- I always love that feeling. When you help someone for the better, it's priceless. Just last night, we had to call a man in the ward who is from the Congo, Africa. He bore his testimony in church about how fast the church is growin gin the Congo and he was very excited, except not everyone in Church shared his enthusiasm necessarily. Anyways, we called him and said that we really enjoyed his testimony and are excited for him. He laughed so heartily and was so pleased, he made us feel like a million bucks, just for a simple, "Thank you so much for your Testimony." It's amazing what a little bit of kindness can do. I'm proud of you, my family, for that. :)
This week has been a beautiful one. It started out really tough and the first couple of days ended with zero's - no new investigators, no meetings- kind of frustrating. But we really wanted to do better and I know the Lord has blessed us for that. We took numbers last night from our entire district and discovered that we essentially achieved the District Standard of Excellence, minus a baptism. And a baptism is a thing that can't be rushed exactly, so we were quite pleased and thankful with the blessings we recieved. We're trying to achieve it everyweek now and that way, when someone is Baptized, we will have it :)
Speaking of Baptisms, three people got baptized on Saturday and Elder McRae and I had the chance of accompanying one of our Investigators, Tomek (Toe- meck), to the Baptism. Tomek first met with the missionaries a year ago, with Elder Whipple. Who is my Zone Leader now. He is what some might say an Eternal Investigator, and in this whole year he has not once been to Church. But we know that he really does want to learn. He is intruiged by the Church, not because it's simply interesting but because he knows it's true. So he came to this baptism at the Warsaw 1 chapel. It was beautiful. There was a talk given by a missionary who taught the woman being baptized, and Tomek was riveted the entire time. When the actual baptism happened, I swear I saw him cry. We happened to be on the same tramwaj home and he was in such a good mood it was amazing. He set up with us for another meeting right then and it is only a matter of time until he is baptized. :)
Earlier this week we had a meeting with Edyta scheduled. It was scheduled for 17:00 and at 17:20, she was still not at the church and we were worried. If Edtya was ever late at all, she would always call or at least text as she was running to the door. But today, nothing. We texted her and called and didn;t hear anything until the next day when she texted us and said she couldn't explain why she couldnt' make it, but said that we could meet on Sunday. We were concerned, but had hope all woudl be ok. She came to Church on Sunday with a big smile on and she completely enjoyed it. She apologized to us at least 8 times at church and I think we finally convinced her that it was really just fine :) She is amazing. One thing about the Baptism that I mentioned earlier is that the lady baptized gave such an amazing testimony at the End. It was full of conviction and truth. I think Edyta is developing that Testimony. She needs to read more of the BOM, but I know she knows this is true. Just like Tomek, who can't let go of the missionaries after an entire year, even after a time of the missionaries trying to let go of him. These people know there is something different. And i love to tell them what it is :)
We met some really cool people this week- I have hope for several of them. We have tons of meetings planned which is SO GOOD! So pray that they all go through :) The Christmas party at the Engbjerg's is this Friday and then the Ward christmas party is on Saturday. Yah baby :)
Dad, I think I did just discover food ha. I don't know what happened. I'm making a recipe book of all the delicious things i've made and will make. It'll be LIFE CHANGING. Ha :P I want to take pictures of all the city, and I will, but I think I need a new camera. I know your probably horrified to read that, but mine sucks up battery wicked fast and is a sharp pain in my behind. So maybe I'll send it home and purchase one out here? I think it's worth it to have really good pictures to send home...what do you think? Let me know and I'll make whatever it is work :) There is so much to photograph though. I feel like I really know Warsaw now. Like when you come pick me up in an all too short time, I wil be able to show you the GREATEST places in Warszawa (Varshava) :) It is beautiful here. I do hope to see a new city soon, but honestly, I love it here so much. It's home in Poland. It's all I know lol.
Life really is good here :) It's getting colder and colder, but it really is enjoyable. I stay plenty warm- I look forward to the warm socks though lol that is for sure. My beanie is rad and keeps me warm. It gets dark SO early though. Yesterday the sun was setting at 14:30. That is early my friends. People are still pretty willing to talk though, unless it's snowing or raining, which we haven't had much of either lately so :)
Today, just barely we went to the Zoo here in Warsaw. And now I look forward to the San Diego Zoo a lot lol. It was crazy that they even had a Zoo here. The San Diego zoo makes this place look like a Prison. It's kinda sad actually. Props to the San Diego Zoo animal lovers for giving them good places to live ha.
O! Irina's son. Is addicted to video games and she;s really been worrying about that. She took him to a Psychologist yesterday. Elder McRae and I winced when we heard that, but hopefully it went ok. We're trying to get him a Guitar from Brat Herman and then get him addicted to playing the Guitar and being awesome instead of Video games.I think itll work. He's such a nice kid. We're still working with Irina, she;s so hard to meet with cos she's got such a tight schedule. but this week we should be meeting with her so she can get Baptized the 22 or 23 of this month! :)
Ok, last thing- and than I will wrap it up. Brat Herman told Elder Fuller on a lesson that he has talked with his daughter in the last 5weeks more, than in the past 2 years, "all because Elder Rushton played Death Cab for Cutie on the guitar" :P When we went to Brat Herman's house, we found out he had translated I Will Follow YOu Into the Dark into Polish! How cool is that?!??! Ha :) He really is one amazing man and I love him so much.
Ok family. I will let you go now. I love you so darn much and I know that you all are doing amazingly. I look forward to Christmas Day so much and look forward to next monday as well. Have an amazing week, play some video games for me on the big screen :P :P and yes. Kocham was. I love you all.
- your red headed missionary. Michael.

P.s. To call on Christmas day- you all have to call my cell phone lol. So the Number is 048-022-665-300-821. I think that should just work? I'll double check it of course. So for now that is the number, but if it needs to change I'll tell you before Christmas :)

p.s.s. Elder McRae and I are going to make Funnel Cake right now!!! :P