Christmas Zone Activities and Program

The week before Christmas we went to each Zone and did a special activity and program with the missionaries for Christmas.  We played broom hockey with the whole Zone for a couple of hours.  Everyone enjoyed this fun and rigorous activity. We played outside on the courts at the buildings.  Then everyone changed back into their missionary clothes and we had a nice meal with decorations and everything!  We then had a special Christmas program and teachings from President Haws and we sang Christmas songs to celebrate the Nativity.  After the program we had some fun exchanging "white elephant" gifts.  It was a lot of fun to see what the missionaries came up with; some things from their apartments, some made things, some purchased small things- all had a great time. Below are pictures from all the Zones and it is a wide variety, to show the various activities we did with all the missionaries.

The Zapata and Tenosique Zones met at the
Palenque building, we began by playing 
broom hockey

President Haws explains the rules and
keeps things moving along

Elders waiting for their turn to go in. Elder Thaller,
Pedroza, Thompson and Perez

Elder's Jenkins, Moreno, Cuellar and
others get their food at the buffet

Zapata and Tenosique Zones

Zapata and Tenosique Zones

The Zapata and
Tenosique Zones enjoy the
Christmas meal!

Minatitlan and Acayucan Zones had
a rainy- but not cold day.
They played on!

Minatitlan Zone - Elder Wood played
even though all he had was his
missionary clothes

Everyone in the Minatitlan and Acayucan Zones!

The Coatzacoalcos Zone- we took a picture
before the broom hockey began!

Our three youngest children joined us for the
Holidays, they came and helped and played
at the Zone Conferences. Sam, Emily and Seth!

A Christmas feast, Elders in the
Coatzacoalcos Zone

The Hermanas with our family and the
Zone Leaders from Coatzacoalcos Zone

The Gaviotas and Cardenas Zones
read along as President Haws reads
and talks about the Birth of our Savior

Elders Martinez, Falcon, Rivera and
Vizcaino looking festive!

The Carmen Zone taking a break and
cooling off after broom hockey

The Carmen Zone Hermana's are excited for
gourmet pizza

The Carmen Zone -Hermana's each get a
"white elephant" gift

The Carmen Zone Elders enjoy
the feast

The Carmen Zone Elders are ready to open
the gifts!

Hermana Guzman received more
smiles to add to her own

Elder Carneiro made everyone smile
with his gift. He is a Zone Leader,
we told him to use the gift appropriately

The Carmen Zone with Presidente y
Hermana Haws

The Haws kids helping again!

The Villahermosa Zone - the dinner is ready
and waiting while the missionaries change
back to missionary clothing from broom hockey

Hermana Scholes, in the Villahermosa
Zone, unwraps the  Christmas gift that each
missionary received from us, so that
everyone could see it.  They received a
custom Temple Recommend holder,
with a photo of the Villahermosa Temple
on one side and a photo of the giant
Olmeca head, that is here in Villa, on the
other side. It was imprinted with our
favorite phrase - "se esfuerza al maximo"!

The Elders in the Villahermosa
Zone watch while their gift is
unwrapped