January 30, 2017 GOOOO FREDERICIA!!!

Kære Familie,

We had such a great week! Elder Erickson is running me all over Taastrup and I'm doing my best to keep up :) Elder Erickson is a really happy guy! He is from Ogden, Utah and loves hunting, guns(shooting and making), ranching, horseriding, wrestling, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He is really strong and a really hard worker. He started his mission exactly a year after me. He is awesome.

We are working with a lot of really great people thanks to the efforts of missionaries before me. We are doing all we can to help them follow Christ. We really preached a lot this week! Funny side story. We were visiting a cool member in our area and I got bit by his ferret. Who owns a ferret? Also why are ferrets cute? It was too bad we didn't become better friends. Maybe next time. 

The real highlight of the week was on Saturday. I got the chance to travel back to Fredericia to see H--- be baptized!!! :) I was lucky enough to baptize her! In October Elder Gardner and I knocked on this nice lady's door and over the past months she has come so much closer to Christ! Elder Gardner and I taught her and he moved right after we set a baptismal date. Elder Howes and I kept working with her and so when I left she was all ready to go. She is awesome! She has three kids. That is the third baptism in Fredericia in 4 months. GO FREDERICIA!!! We have been very very blessed. I'm very thankful for my time there. It is something special to see such brave people choose to make steps that Heavenly Father wants them to take.

I love you guys! It is great to hear that you all have it good :) I sure have it good over here!

Knus

Ældste McBride

H--- on her baptism day with AEldste McBride & AEldste Gardner

With AEldste Howes

With the whole Fredericia crew!

Armored for fighting ferrets

Some handsome missionaries

January 23, 2017 Lucky Number 7

Kære Familie,

I'm writing you today from my 7th area sitting next to my 13th companion. This morning I got on a train from Fredericia and rode it all the way to Copenhagen. My new area is part of the greater Copenhagen area and my ward covers the entire city. I'm really excited! My new companion is Elder Erickson. He came on his mission exactly a year after me and is a powerhouse. He will be a really strong last comp! Our area is called Taastrup and it is the only time I've ever really served in the Copenhagen area. It will be cool to experience the big city! 

My last week in Fredericia went ok. I think I kind of know how you guys feel being stuck inside. I sure hope Ike is feeling better! Elder Howes had the flu so we had to stay inside for almost 5 days straight and then take it easy the last few days before i moved. It wasn't the exact way I wanted to end the busiest area of my mission but we got the most important stuff done! I'll be traveling back there on Saturday for a baptism. That is going to be really special :) There really is not very much to do stuck inside as a missionary. 

My transfer was really easy. I got rid of a lot of stuff during my time in Fredericia so it didn't take me very long to pack. I think I set the world record for unpacking. It took about 30 minutes. I have gotten really good at moving over the past couple years! We are going to work really well here. It will be weird going from a 6 month area to a 6 week area but it will be really fun. Time is flying really fast. 

That is so cool that Cole will be a teacher next week! Good for him :) You should let him take school off when I come home! I love you guys have a good week :)

Med Kærlig Hilsen

Ældste McBride

January 16, 2017 We went to Copenhagen again!

Kære Familie,

I sure hope Ike is feeling better! That doesn't look fun at all. Someday mom I'm actually going to see this barn place where you work that I've heard so much about.

This week was great! On Tuesday I was on splits with Elder Gardner in Fredericia. It was just like old times. Everything swings our way when we are together. Also this week I ended up eating kebab three days in a row from the same place. Kebab is pretty good but I'm not sure about 3 days in a row good. 

On Wednesday we traveled to Copenhagen for a special meeting the next day with President and Sister O'Bryant. It was the My Plan Meeting. It is where the missionaries departing the next transfer sit and talk with the mission President and his wife and talk about lots of things: Changes you've seen on your mission, the importance of finishing strong in the last tranfer, how to adjust back to home life without resetting to pre-mission life, how to keep growing spiritually, etc. Other topics included dating and marriage advice as well as career advice. President O'Bryant gave us a lot of tips on what characteristics to look for in a wife and how to use skills we've developed on our missions to provide for our future families. So we covered a lot and then were invited to without becoming trunky or making those around us trunky to really start thinking and planning for our futures. After that unique meeting we ate pizza and then crossed the street to the temple. The temple has to be the best place in the whole world just to sit and gather your thoughts. 

Ironically I've had way to much time to think about all of that because Elder Howes has been sick the past couple days and we've been stuck inside. Thats right I missed church for the first time since I became a missionary I think. It has been really boring being stuck inside but at least I'm not sick like Elder Howes, poor guy. I haven't started feeling gross or anything so I'm pretty sure I didn't get infected. I have however run out of things to do in the apartment. It has been tough to keep myself entertained but I'm doing my best. 

Well I love you guys. Transfers are next week and President has dropped a lot of hints that I'm on my way to my last area. Area 7 Comp 13! I'll let you know what happens :)

Med Kærlig Hilsen 

Ældste McBride

A gnome I befriended

A castle in a city called Kolding in our area.

Me aka King Benjamin up in a tower. 

January 9, 2017 TILLYKKE MED FØDSELSDAGEN

Kære Familie,

Happy Birthday Cole!!! Tillykke med fødselsdagen :) I can't believe you are so old. And cool too! What the heck? I was a lot of things when I was 14 but cool was definitely not one of them! Keep it up and don't forget to be a nice guy. The world needs a bunch more nice guys!

This week was really cold! Not like really really cold but I'm a baby when it comes to cold weather! I survived though and we put together a pretty good week. I became buddies with a man from Eritrea in Africa. He doesn't speak danish and only "small english" but because we're both christians language doesn't matter. He called me his "christian friend"! Being a christian is pretty cool because it lets you make friends with people all over the world. There is a lot of power in Christ's name.

There are some days where I am tired and cold but I don't have too much too complain about. The work here in Fredericia is going amazingly and I have to be the most spoiled missionary in the mission, I have been in a car since the beginning of last march! #blessed 

We had another lesson with my pal H--- this week (I sent home a pic holding her turtle the other week) and it went great. After we had talked about what we had planned on I asked if she had time to read a chapter of the book of Mormon. She said ya and I started to open to where I thought she was around the end of 2 Nephi like page 130 or something. She responded with "I guess we can read that again" and I said "What do you mean isn't this where you're at?" "No" she replied matter of factly "I finished the whole thing." "WHAT??" I almost shouted. "Ya didn't I tell you?" she calmly answered. For the record she had not told me that! It was really funny! We're looking forward to her baptism end of January or early February!

I love you family! Hope all goes well with Isaac. He's tough he'll handle it!

MKH

Ældste McBride

January 2, 2017 2017 Is Off With a Bang!

Kære Familie,

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

I can't believe 2016 is over! Where does the time go? What an amazing year! I can't really describe what this year has meant to me. Here in Denmark people go crazy with fireworks. Here you can set buy and shoot off some really big fireworks! Much bigger than back home. Instead of people going to a fireworks show the whole city kind of just becomes one for the night. The steady rumble of explosions started in the afternoon and kept building until midnight. 

At midnight Elder Howes and I stood in our slippers, wrapped in our blankets, out on our teeny tiny balcony. Everywhere we looked there were flashes of light and explosions of bright colors! A full 180 degree panoramic view of fireworks. The same thing was happening on the other side of the apartment too. We sat there watching fireworks for a long time, cheering in the new year. At some point every flash of light was a memory from the past year.  I remembered days and places and people. Different adventures and events.  Victories and lessons learned. It was so cool.  Every bang made me remember something new.  To list them all off would take way too long.  Too many treasures, experiences and friends, that I love. This was such an incredible year and out there on that balcony was the perfect way to end it!  I am so proud of the progress I've made and the progress I've seen in others. Progression really is contagious.  I'm so grateful for Jesus Christ and the Gospel and the church.  Nothing else in the world is this helpful!

I couldn't help looking forward to 2017 as well.  It will be a year of transitions. A year of new adventures!  I'm excited! 

I love you guys so much I'm always happy to read about what is happening back at home! You're the best! :)

MKH

Ældste McBride

December 26, 2016 Og et godt nyt år!

Kære Familie,

It was so awesome to see you guys yesterday! It seems like you're all doing so well! I can't believe Cole is a cool 8th grader, I was definitely not cool in 8th grade! 

I had an awesome christmas too! I'll tell the story through pictures :)

On Thursday we had zone conference! It was great! We had a training and then a lot of Christmas songs and we read the Christmas story. We ate really good food and also watched Finding Dory. It was a lot of fun! Despite almost half of the missionaries presents being stolen everyone was in really good spirits. Our mission is stacked with great misisonaries :) We did however get a visit from Santa Claus. This year it was Elder Ericksen, the missionary I trained! I have almost never laughed harder. He was perfect for that role! (see first 2 pics)

I was lucky and got my package which meant we had some sweet apartment decorations! We put up the giant tree of high 5s and got in the Christmas spirit. I even did my best to look like a Russian missionary with my cool new hat. We've been blessed with weather in the mid 40s for the past few weeks which is nice! Denmark isn't quite as cold as everyone thinks! I thought my package was hilarious though thank you guys so much! :) (next two pics)

The next two pictures are on Christmas Eve. We had presents under an itty bitty Christmas tree at the Molbeks apartment. They are a great family! On Christmas Eve it is tradition in Denmark to eat what is called Ris Alamande or rice pudding with whip cream, chopped almonds, and cherry sauce. It tastes amazing. In the pot they put one whole non chopped almond in and whoever finds that one gets a gift. There was accidentally two almonds in there this year so Daniel and I both won. Funny enough I also won last year! I guess I'm pretty good at eating a ton of dessert :) (pics 5 and 6)

On Christmas we were with the Bornemann Family! Thomas and Marie are the parents with Jessica, Joshua, and Emily their kids. I gave Emily the slingshot screaming monkey thing for Christmas. She loved it :) That family is great! My family is also great! I got to see you guys. Looking good ;) I love you and miss you! See you soon :) (Pics 7 and 8)

Merry Christmas,

Ældste McBride

December 19, 2016 Glædelig Jul

Kære Familie,

Hey that is so cool that you guys got to try Æbleskiver!! That is very classic Danish Christmas. I ate a ton last year but we haven't gotten quite so much this year. I'm glad you got a tiny little taste of Danish Christmas. I'm going to make you this dessert called Ris alamande someday. That stuff is good! I think I should be able to skype at 4 but if I can't I'll let you know before.

I had a pretty good week this week. I was with a temporary for about 10 days and things went great! Today I'm picking up my new companion Elder Howes, almost 20 months after we entered the MTC together. He's traveling all the way from the island of Bornholm so he'll probably be exhausted by the time he gets over here. It will be fun and weird to be with someone from my own group! The last time I was with someone who had been in the mission equal or longer than me was August 2015. That is a long time ago! 

Elder Fairbanks and I had a good week! We had a lot to do but eveything went well. We met a Mexican man out late one night and had a first meeting with him yesterday. He is only the 2nd person from mexico I have met on my entire mission! My spanish was pretty rusty unfortunately so we just spoke english. He's a really good guy! Another big highlight was that we got to go to Århus to see the missionary christmas concert! We drove up and picked up Elder Gardner and his companion on the way to. It was like a christmas road trip! It was so fun!

I'm looking forward to seeing you all next sunday!! Sorry I couldn't figure out any presents to send. oops! I love you! 

Glædelig Jul

Ældste McBride