It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year...

Well, it has come and gone, but Merry Christmas to everyone!! (And an early happy new year!) I just want to start out by saying that being a missionary during Christmas is literally an amazing experience. Yes, it is hard to be away from friends and family and traditions and everything, but I have absolutely LOVED being a missionary this December. Let me tell you a little bit of what it was like...
We started off the week with an amazing Christmas conference! It was the whole west side of the mission, and we all met in Sevilla. We started off with a talent show and it was so fun to listen and watch all of the missionaries share their talents. All of the Hermanas from 2 of the 5 zones that were there got together and we sang Hallelujah (like the one from Shrek) but changed the lyrics of each verse to talk about the birth of Christ from the point of view of Mary, the Angels, the Shepherds,the Nephites, and people in the world today. I LOVED IT. For me, there is nothing more powerful in inviting the Spirit than music. After that, all 100ish of us walked over to Carrefour (basically like a Walmart) and sang Christmas hymns right in the front of the store... I never knew you could feel the Spirit so strong in a place like that, but you can, and it was AWESOME!!
We then returned to the church and proceeded to hear the testimonies of the missionaries who are going home this transfer. My sweet comp was one of them along with 4 others and it was amazing to hear their testimonies and advice. There were a couple things that I really loved that they shared. The first was about talents... One of the elders reminded us that we are all different, so we all have different talents. And while some people have the talent to be missionaries, others don't. BUT it doesn't even matter because the Lord wants us here and if we TRUST IN HIM then He will help us and guide us regardless of our talent. I love that because honestly this is hard work and sometimes I don't feel very good at it but that the Lord will help me if I trust him.
The second thing I loved was that missionary work is for NOW. It is for me and it is for you and it is for here and now. It isn't for when you receive a mission call, it isn't for when you aren't afraid. It's not for your next area or with a different companion or when it's not so cold outside. We are all missionaries and we have the responsibility to share this wonderful gospel now! So my invitation to y'all is to find someway to be a missionary this week - it is simple. Share a Mormon message with someone or talk about what we belief, be an example to someone or invite a friend to church! Just try it and I promise you will love it and see blessings from it.
So something cool about Christmas here is that the biggest celebration is the 24th... Noche Buena. And on this night families get together and have a huge dinner at like 9, 10, 11 o'Clock at night!! We spent it with Flor and Augustine, two of the members here in our rama. Okay, something you need to know about Spain is that these people eat A LOT. Those of you who have ever eaten with me know that I have a petty healthy appetite but man, it ain't nothin compared to these people. I literally felt like I could have just rolled all the way home! But let's be real, it was awesome.
I have tried a lot of new foods this week....
* Raw salmon with mayo
* Langostinos - basically huge shrimp that you have to pull the heads
off before you eat
* Yucca
* Some sort of turkey/other meat that was.... Interesting...
* Yucca
* Turrón
* Alfajores - a yummy Peruvian cookies
Some were better than others but for the most part, I liked it all!!
So Christmas morning, our president let us sleep in one hour which was super nice of him. But it was such a tranquilo day. I wrote some letters and we went with the elders to eat with our branch president and his family. And then I Skyped with my family!! ❤️❤️ I can't even describe the joy that was for me. And I sure am grateful that families are eternal because man, do I love mine. It was such a wonderful day...
But I think one of the greatest parts of my Christmas Day this year was that I finished reading the Book of Mormon. I started reading it again when I entered the MTC and then finished it on Christmas. Brothers and Sisters, friends and family, whoever it is that might read this, I testify to you that The Book of Mormon is true. It is the word of God, it testifies of Christ and it helps us draw closer to Christ. Whether you are suffering physically, spiritually, emotionally, mentally, no matter what you are going through, I promise that it will help you. This book applies to every person individually if you let it. I wish I could just look every single one of you in the eyes and convince you of this. But I can't. So.... I want to invite you all to read the Book of Mormon. If you have read it before, read it again. If you've never read it, just do it! And you will be able to see blessings in your life like never before.
Also, I just want to share a verse that I read in my studies this week.... Ether 6:9 - And they did sing praises unto the Lord; yea, the brother of Jared did sing praises unto the Lord, and he did thank and praise the Lord all the day long; and when the night came, they did not cease to praise the Lord.
I love being a missionary. I love the Book of Mormon and this gospel. Most of all, I love my Savior Jesus Christ. I'm so grateful for this opportunity to be a missionary and share his message of love with all of the people here in Spain. I hope that we all turn to him and focus on him during this Christmas season and every season of our lives. That we find ways to praise Him in all that we do and never cease to praise the Lord.
Thank you everyone for your support, prayers and sweet cards of encouragement! Much love to you all!

Xoxo Hermana Hauber

Chistmas Eve with two of the members, Augustine and Flor

My cute comp and I after the Christmas conference

Christmas Day with our branch president and his fam!

P Day fun today. We walked around the alcazaba with the elders

Badajoz!

Merry Christmas!

(No group email this week, here are the highlights from the family email!)

Hey hey!
Yay! I bet the Hauber house is a happy one with no more worry about school or crying children. Or crying parents! Haha. There definitely is a learning curve with the new companion but all is well and I'm super happy she is here in Badajoz. I miss Hermana Watson a ton, but change is good and allows for grow and becoming better!
Borja and Ytala are doing well, we have started over doing the charlas with them and are trying to find ways to help them read everyday. This is what they struggle with. But they also told us hey are planning and thinking of a date to get married.... Yahoo!!! I'm so pumped for them.
AAAHHHH THE GAME!! It sounds like it was a good game, though bummer we lost. Who is the new coach going to be, do we know yet? Also, we would have five turnovers. Lame. That's awesome!! Let me k is what you think of the new Star Wars. (:
So for Christmas it is tradition to have a big cena(dinner) on the 24th. And these people eat dinner at like 9 or 10 at night! So we will be with a member, Flor, for that and then the next day we will go for the big meal at like 2 with our branch president and his wife and their son and her mother. I'm excited. Also.... I can't wait to SKYPE!! My favorite thing about Spain so far.... Probably the food. Let's be real - I love food. But I have met some amazing people too! Lots that aren't actually from Spain. Haha. Something I do not like is the tobacco. It. Is. Everywhere. Blech.
I love you guys and this here are going well. Thank you for everything! Merry Christmas!
Love  Hermana Hauber (:

I ate a snail...

This is a hot dog with ketchup, mayo, pineapple, condensed milk,
potato chips, and an egg. Its HEAVEN

My new district! Make sure to watch the video online!

PS- what she has written on the whiteboard is the title of the new Christmas message from the Church, "A Savior is Born" or in Spanish, "Ha Nacido un Salvador" 
Watch it in Spanish here and English here!

Short and Sweet

Hey y'all!
So this week we had transfers and I got a new companion!! Her name is Hermana Dueñas and she is from Bountiful, Utah. This is her last transfer in the mission so lucky me, I get to suck up all of her knowledge and experience right before she goes home. (: It has been a hard week but here is a quote that I found that I love!!
President Thomas S. Monson has said: “This great cause … will continue to go forth, changing and blessing lives. … No force in the entire world can stop the work of God. Despite what comes, this great cause will go forward.”
I know that this is true. We are members of the church of Jesus Christ and the work we do in sharing the gospel is the will of the Lord. And it will continue to go forward because He is on our side and He will help us.
I love you all and hope all is well at home!
Xoxo Hermana Hauber

So this was from my first day in Malaga... We took a picture
with my CCM comp and her trainer and my trainer. Well,
my new comp was her trainer! So I now have this super
cool photo of me and my first three companions
that we took at the end of September!

Badajoz.... Round 3!!

Hola amigos y familia!
Warning: this email may or may not be extremely long and full of rambling, so read on if you please, or... Well don't if you don't please. (;
This past week has been full of ups and downs but has been awesome (every week is pretty sure), many hard moments, but even more beautiful moments. I don't even know where to start, but here goes....
So one of our investigators, Borja, is awesome and so is his girlfriend and we had this super cool conversation with them about our Savior and the grace we r eceive from His atonement.. Ytala had asked a question, and it turned into one of the most powerful conversations I have ever had. We talked about about our savior Jesus Christ, and how Thanks to him, we can become like our father in heaven. The grace that he gives us and the price he paid was for you and me. His love for us is infinite and eternal. I love that we have been able to share this message with them and with everyone through the new Christmas video of the church.... If you haven't watched it, go watch it.... And I love hearing testimony of His love and His life!
We also had an amazing zone conference in Sevilla on Friday and we had an area seventy come to visit - Elder Leimer, from Frankfurt, Germany! It was my first conference and I loved it!! We talked about the importance of bringing our investigators to church, and how we need toinvite all to repent. We also talked about the kinds of servants we are going to be, and how we can better apply the teaching in preach my gospel to the Lords work. Something that I thought a lot about during the conference was JOY. THERE IS JOY IN THE WORK AND I HAVE JOY IN MY SAVIOR. The spirit at the conference was tangible and I learned so much!!
We received transfer calls Saturday morning, and this one came from the voice of our dear mission president. I will be staying in Badajoz for another transfer with a new companion, Hermana Dueñas!! And my sweet comp Hermana Watson is being transferred. Honestly, it is so bittersweet. I'm so excited for her to go meet and teach new people and I'm excited for change, but I'm super sad to see her go. But I know this is all on the Lord's time and in his way.
Just to close I want to share this quote with y'all.... I found it as I was studying humility.... “Humble and meek properly suggest virtues, not weaknesses. They suggest a consistent mildness of temper and an absence of wrath and passion. … It is not servile submissiveness. It is not cowed nor frightened. … “How does one get humble? To me, one must constantly be reminded of his dependence. On whom dependent? On the Lord. How remind one’s self? By real, constant, worshipful, grateful prayer” (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, ed. Edward L. Kimball [1982], 232–33).

I love you all and am so grateful for your support and love and constant prayers!
Xoxoxo Hermana Hauber

4/5 Hermanas from my CCM group at the zone conference!

Intercambios with the SHE's!

This is Sarita. We eat with her every first Sunday
and her food is BUENISIMO

Cute Christmas fair today!

CHRISTMAS!!!

This is Lourdes and her family. Members <3 heart emoticon heart emoti

Happy Thanksgiving!

(No group email from Hermana Hauber this week but here are some highlights from the family email. She also sent a lot of photos, including some of her district having a Spanish Thanksgiving!)

Que tal back home?? I hope everything is going well. Happy late Thanksgiving also! I have seen the new Christmas video and we are excited to start using it in lessons and such!
Good news!! I finally bought a winter coat today!! I also bought some warmer tights. The only thing I lack is boots, but that will have to wait because I didn´t find any today. But that's okay. I´m also realizing the beauty of scarves and I am so glad that I brought so many with me!! They definitely are helping to keep me warm.
It sounds like you guys had a wonderful weekend with yummy food, pretty music and good family experiences. I love it. Here it is starting to feel like Christmas! They have decorated all of Badajoz with lights and there is Christmas music playing on Calle Menacho where we walk a lot. It is so fun. Christmas is in 3 1/2 weeks and we will get to skype!! woohoo!! I´m glad you were able to figure out the skype so you can here my very american sounding spanish in a couple weeks.... haha. All jokes. But not really. (;
We had a good thanksgiving here! we went up to Caceres and had lots of yummy food, including a broccoli salad that I LOVED: mom, dad, you guys should be so proud of me. hahaha.
Alex - Thank you so much for your contacting advice. Honestly, that is one of the hardest things for me to do out here just because I hate stopping in the street and it is super scary. But I´m getting practice and I definitely will try some of the things that you told me about. It´s dumb because half of the people here are either old guys who are creepers or old women who are very catholic and the other half always have prisa. which means they´re in a hurry. But I know that there will be some people who are ready, we just have to work hard to find them!! Thank you a million for your help.
I love you guys and hope you have a great week! I will talk to you soon!! Love you!!
xoxoxo Hermana Hauber

Hermana Watson and Hermana Redd and I last P-day!

My district at Thanksgiving!

I still love nightgowns and now she does too!
And her mom sent us socks so we shared (:

Cool Things

Hey so I just had some cool thoughts this week that I wanted to share with y'all. (:

So on Sunday we had the primary program in church where all the cute little niños get up and bear their testimonies and sing their little hearts out and share scriptures and stuff and it was awesome! Our little primary of ten did a beautiful job. I also had the opportunity to play piano for them. With this I had a couple thoughts. First of all, how beautiful and pure the testimony of a child is. The spirit you feel when a little kid tells you how they know their Savior lives is truly amazing. Also, we have talents to share them! I love piano, but have never played for others, mostly just for me. But here, I have learned real fast how to play in meetings and songs I've never seen and I love being able to share that talent!!

Also, I have thought a lot this week about Nephi and his brethren. Our zone leaders challenged us to focus on contacting and receiving futures this week, and to be honest, this is something that is really hard for both my companion and I. We set a high high goal to reach of futures we wanted to receive and although we didn't reach it, we definitely improved from weeks past, which is encouraging. I have discovered that I love having conversations with people in the streets and getting to know them and sharing this wonderful gospel with them, but it is oh so hard to initiate it and to stop people or approach people.

As I have struggled with this all week long, I have definitely seen the Lord's hand and felt the guidance and encouragement of his spirit with me. However, I also have seen that in order to receive this, I have to be willing and ready and WANT to do those things I know I should do. I have pondered a lot on Nephi and his brethren. They were all asked to do the same things and they all experienced trials together during their travels in the wilderness. However, the difference in their experiences was in their attitude, their faith, their willingness and trust in the Lord in doing those things that were asked of them. I love in 1 Nephi 2:19 where the Lord tells Nephi... "Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart."

So Nephi was blessed because of his faith, diligence and humility in doing God's will. Man, is it hard to have these three things every moment of every day. I know I won't be perfect at it, but my goal is to be a Nephi. To work as he did and to be blessed and trusted by the Lord as he was so that someday, when I finish my mission, and when I finish my time on this earth and I stand before God, he will tell me similar words.... "Blessed art thou, Amber, because of thy faith, for though hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart."

I love being here on the mission. It is worth the cold, tired, hungry times we are walking around, the times when nobody wants to stop and listen to us and the times people straight up reject us. I know that I'm making a difference. I'm serving the Lord and trying to do His will as I share the gospel with the people of Spain. Is is His work and I know He has a plan for me and for every single one of his children.

Anyways. I love you all and hope you have a great thanksgiving! Always remember to be grateful and look for the little blessings God gives us each and every day. 

Xoxoxo Hermana Hauber 

Us and the Badajoz elders before P day! We went to some castles
 and this cool museum and to a river!

These little figures are made entirely from PAPER!!! #amazed

The Plaza del Toros in Olivenza, one of the oldest in Spain!

Transfer Dos en Badajoz!

It almost rhymes but that's okay.... Well, I'm in Badajoz with my trainer for another transfer!! It will be a short 4 week transfer because of Christmas but good things are going to be happening!! A couple exciting things happened this week!
We received Elders here in  Badajoz!! I'm very excited and I know it will make the work better and stronger and move it right along. We did have to split our area though which was kinda sad but at least it is only one branch so we still see everyone on Sunday's!!
Also, because this transfer is only 4 weeks, our zone leaders have this plan to focus on our key indicators. So this week we are contacting to receive futures! This terrifies me. I love talking and having conversations with people about the gospel, but it scares me to approach them and like initiate it ya know? So this week I will be learning how to do that and how to open my mouth! Time to put my talking skills to good use!!
Also, the branch here welcomed home a missionary who had been serving in Barcelona! We had a big welcome activity and it was so fun to see everyone so happy. It literally is just like one. If giant family here and I love it.
So one of our investigators this week asked us about the priesthood and about the difference between men and women, etc. we explained to her that marriage is between a man and a woman and that they both need each other for support and to become more like our Father in Heaven and our Savior. We talked about the responsibility of being a mother and also the purpose of the priesthood to bless others. I have just been pondering on this s lot because there are so many things in this world telling us otherwise. I am so grateful for my parents and for all they do for me, for my mother and for my father!! So my invitation to y'all is to tell your parents how much you love them his week!! Parents make the world go round. Anyways. Badajoz is wonderful and I love the people here and the opportunity I have to be a missionary!
Love you all!
Xoxo Hermana Hauber

Literally we are 10 minutes from Portugal...
so we (our cute district) visited the border!

So much happiness... The new elders here in Badajoz and
the newly- returned home elder!