Keukenhof and Allergies

Hello Family!

It is always so good to hear from you all! It sounds like Jamie is loving BYU-I apartment-style. Hearing about how busy the play keeps you all reminds me of junior high. Ahh, those were the days of craziness!
Thanks for the member missionary info, it is really helpful. We are working really hard right now to involve the members in our missionary work, which is really having a huge impact on our success in our areas.
As for the mother's day call, they still haven't told us anything about when we will coordinate that. I do know that you will have to call me from there. I hear most families use skype because it is so expensive otherwise.
Today was a super special p-day. We went to Keukenhof, which is a huge tulip garden/fields here in NL. It is one of the main tourist attractions, and it is absolutely gorgeous! You'll have to look up some pictures online. We drove up as a district and spent a few hours walking around. It was so peaceful and beautiful. I am turning into such a flower person. Tulips have always been my favorites, and now I am just obsessed with them! They really are one of the wonderously beautiful creations of our Heavenly Father. We'll have to plant some next year so I don't get too lonesome when I have to come home. Which reminds me-- My mission is like a third over! The year countdown begins in just a few weeks. It is hard to believe, the time just flies!
With the miraculously beautiful spring comes some interesting challenges. We stop wearing 2 pairs of leggings under our skirts, which is quite liberating, but also very tricky on the bike if you can imagine :) Also, I have suddenly developed very mild allergies to something that grows around our apartment-- my eyes itched like crazy for like a week straight! Luckily, its not too bad, and now I just sneeze a little more than usual.
We will have a baptism this week for Albertina, one of my very favorite investigators. She is a great woman and is ready to make this covenant with the Lord. I'll have to let you know how it goes.
Oh, before I forget, I finally ran into that second cousin of mine Elder Rindlsbach (that is definitely not spelled right... wooops!). We were at Keukenhof, and another district was there and suddenly an elder came up to me and was like "hey, we're second cousins!" I was so excited. I've been looking for him at every zone conference and all that stuff, and we have just somehow never connected, but today we finally did, and it was a lot of fun. He seems like a good man and from what I've heard, he's a great missionary. He's serving in Delft right now with an elder from my district in the MTC.
Life as a missionary is great! We are facing some really hard challenges being new missionaries, but we have lots of support from the ward and our district, which makes it all just fabulous. We are seeing miracles every day and we are having a great time. Missionary life is tiring though! After going non-stop for 6 months, you start noticing how much it wears on your body. I have lost like all of my flexibility because our muscles are always really tight, which makes stretching in the mornings a really funny experience.
Well family, I love you all! Seeing so many families here in and out of the church just helps me to better appreciate how awesome our family is and how grateful I am for covenant keeping parents and righteous siblings. There is nothing in this world that can compare with the blessings that come from a righteous family. Thank you for being the kind of parents and sisters you are. It helps me so much!

Ik hou van jullie!
Zuster Gulliver