Dear Family,

Thanks for all that you guys do for me. I think that Elder Lowe and I will really enjoy this Christmas.  We will probably just be hanging around the apartment for most of the day, so it will be fun to have some treats to munch on and things like that. Thanks for sending him some things as well. I am very appreciative that you think about my companions as well. I will make sure that I open the package as soon as it comes. Hopefully it will be here soon.

It sounds like you had a very fun Christmas party. One thing that I have been thinking a lot about lately is your homemade wassail. For some reason that has sounded good. Hopefully I can find a replacement kind of cider or something that might be OK. I liked the soup idea. It sounds like a lot of fun, and everyone gets their pick. I can't believe how big the family is getting. I am so excited to see everyone. How in the world is Braxton taller than me now. I am going to be surrounded when I come home. I will just have to get used to it I guess. As far as I know I haven't grown any on my mission, and I think that I am done. At least I didn't grow out of my mission clothes. That would have been very bad. And now, I can buy stuff that is a little nicer since I won't grow out of it. It will hopefully last longer.

There are going to be so many new additions to the family when I get home. It is going to be great. I am so happy to hear that things have been going so well.  Hopefully, I will get to see the babies before they get too big. I am also happy to hear that everything went so well, and that everyone enjoyed the party.

Rylee is going to seem so much older when I see her. I hope that Zak is still small enough that I can recognize him.

Speaking of Christmas Programs, I got to sing in the one that the Richmond Ward put on this Christmas. That was a lot of fun. I sang Bass in all but one of the songs, and then when just the men sang I got to sing the tenor part. I truly hope that you guys have a very good holiday.

I am very excited for the Christmas call. I will call you guys around 7:30 PM your time Christmas Eve to set up a time for Christmas. I can't wait to talk to you all and hear everyone’s voices (even though I get to talk to you all personally in a few weeks). Actually, I wanted to remind you that you need to set up an appointment for me to meet with President Schmutz on the night of the 11th of January so that I can be released. Especially, since I have to go to school the next day.

It makes me feel really good to know that everyone is so excited to see me. I can't wait until I get to see you all off the plane. It will be a lot of fun to get to talk to everyone face to face and catch up.  Hopefully it all goes very well. I am also excited to see all of the extended family, or the Welcome Wagon. It is going to be fun! Tell grandma that I will be excited to see her. Also tell Aunt Trudy that I got her Dear Elder Package, and tell her thank you for me.

The party here was a lot of fun. We actually got to attend two different Christmas Parties. We had the Christmas Ward party on the 11th of December, and that was a lot of fun. Out here, they didn't have "Yummy Potatoes", they actually made these quartered red potatoes that were cooked in some steam cooker. They had some rosemary seasoning on it. They were pretty good. We also had a Christmas Conference where half of the mission got together, and we had some fun. We watched a couple of Church Christmas movies, we played some games, and we also had some talks and testimonies.  That was a lot of fun!

Thanks again for all that you do. For preparing everything for me to return home, and for all the love that you show me. I am very excited to talk to you on Christmas, and to see you in a few weeks. Take care and stay safe. I love you all very much.

Love,

Elder Savage

      Elder Colton Savage

     1610 N.  B St.

     Richmond, IN  47374

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