What a week!!!!!‏

Dear Ones:
WOW!!!!! What a week. I know it has been a long time since I wrote and I am sorry for the delay.
This past week was a very busy one. We have been preparing for our final examinations and telling the Chinese students about Christmas. Christmas is a hard subject, because we cannot tell them the real reason we celebrate Christmas. However, we sure have had fun with a cheesy old Santa Claus suit left by former BYU teachers....I have taken it to my classes and chose a boy in each class to wear it during the class - they love it. The Chinese love to dress up as much as I do....I have taught all my classes to sing "Jingle Bells" and they love singing. I even had one class that realized they would not get a Christmas lesson because of final examinations, arrange for a classroom and had me come and teach the Christmas lesson to them!!!! They were so cute and excited to learn of Christmas. I could just feel the excitement. I am having so much fun with these delightful people.
This week started with me making a breakfast of French Toast for four of my students - Kaye, Dawn, Paula and Ellen. They were so hungry, they finished off an entire loaf of bread.... I wonder how such small girls can eat so much food. They were so excited to see our "Smells of Christmas" book and they read it twice and loved it.
On Monday afternoon, Jim, one of my class monitors, stopped by and ask questions about how to be a better English speaking Doctor. He realizes that he needs to be much more aggressive and he wanted to know how to do that.... All these students want to be Americanized but I fear they will be so. If they do become Americanized, they will loose that Chinese finesse and charm. How do I tell them that? They are wonderful just as they are!
Tonight we went over to Ocean University and met with the Salmons, and the Taylors and had dinner and then went to another great concert. What a wonderful night full of beautiful music.
This season is such an emotional time for me - I am so homesick. I hear that Cedar City has alot of snow and I just love the snow, especially at Christmas time. I know that I will survive though. Sweet Lesa has sent us "Twelve Days of Christmas" gifts. We are to open a present every day until Christmas. She went to alot of trouble and expense to make our Christmas a merry one this year and we sure appreciate her efforts. She is one girl that knows what the true spirit of Christmas is. Thank you Lesa Noel.
Lesa was born on December 21 and she has always been a special girl who loves Christmas. I remember the morning she was born, and looking out the hospital window, at the snow falling. I had a new Christmas "baby doll" that Christmas, with a curl on top of her head!!!! She has always brought such joy to Rog and I and we have always been so proud of her. Thank you Lesa and Darren for making our Christmas so joyous and unforgettable this year. Your efforts are so appreciated!!!
We are supposed to have more real cold weather for the next few days and we hear that there may even be snow on Sunday!
It is late and I am so tired tonight, so I will close for now.
Much Love, Mom