NEW POST FOR ZACH

I have updated Zach's mission site. Check it out.

I will also get my blog updated in the next few days!! I promise!!!

LEFT HANDERS BEWARE!!

Zach's latest email is posted on his mission site. Find out why I titled this what I did???

New Email

Once again it is time to check Elder Collins mission site. Don't forget if you would like to send him a note, he gets them easiest from "dearelder.com" Select Ghana-Cape Coast mission and his name and he gets them a few weeks later on Tuesdays. This is also the easiest way for you and it is FREE!! Thanks for your prayers and support for our son.

Check Elder Collins Mission Site for New letter

This is not a picture from Zach. I just hated putting a post and no pic!!!

Happy Birthday to my oldest son!!

Happy Birthday to you my Bryan!! 22 years and I can still see you as a little boy!! I know you may think that is strange but one day you will understand. I am so proud of you and the maturity you have shown. You are a joy to your dad and I. I can't believe you are living as an "only child" right now. I always tease you that you will be Sarah's problem soon but I'm just kidding. I will miss you. I love you. Sorry I missed your big day. Sounds like your sisters filled in well for me!!

Who is that handsome Elder???

Maybe I should go to Africa and walk everywhere!!! Oh wait, I am in Africa. Yep I am in Johannesburg visiting my in-laws, Donnie couldn't come so I came in his place. I am having a blast seeing new and different things. I wish Zach wasn't 3000 miles away, but they wouldn't let me see him anyway. Keep an eye out for upcoming post of my trip. Back to Elder Collins. He has lost weight and is even more handsome than when he left. Ghana seems to be a wonderful place for him!!!

Elder Collins March 16,2008 email

Please go to Zach's mission site listed on the right of this blog to read his latest letter.

New Updates from our Elder in Ghana

Ok so I re-sent the email from last week. and about Isaiah that will be one of the last things I study so don’t look to me but man I study and it just feels like there isn’t enough time to study everything I need to!! But I'm doing my best and we are keeping busy. Transfers are this Thursday so next week we will see if I’m still here!! So have you sent the package yet?? And as for mail... I got one written letter from mom and Kristi and one dearelder thing from mom, Liz, and Kristi. So tell people if they sent something I still haven’t gotten it. So we had three people baptized this week and we got about 7 more with a baptismal date set so the work is good!! So last week I told ya'll about some people this week I’ll share some fun and some spiritual things. So fun!!! Well first this isn’t really fun but it would be funny if yall tried it. I challenge yall to wash your clothes by hand for a week and just see what fun it is!! LOL ok so I found burgers in Ghana!! At the cape coast castle there is a restaurant and we go there every Pday now to get burgers and fries. Now it is nothing like a burger at home but it will do for now. Then I’m sending my card home this week or next with about 260 pictures. Today we went to a place named " Kakun national park", and in the park you can take a tour and go on these rope bridges. Now the bridges are 45 meters high and about 50 meters long. There were 7 of them and I took a few pictures of that. It was crazy our whole district went to it. Ok so for spiritual. First I am repenting of this and I will do it everyday now but I have been really bad about writing in my journal, so sorry... but just something I’m noticing as I teach I don’t even really think as I teach. When I am teaching I say something that is totally new to me and I have to write it down. But I just think that is cool so I guess that is teaching by the spirit!! But the work is awesome and there is nothing I would rather be doing!! Ill talk to yall next week. Oh and I wouldn’t mind a few questions every week so I can have something to write about

Hey everyone, so to answer the?’s really quick. First no I only use the plunger for my clothes but I only use it at first to mix the detergent in then it’s all hands!! The weather is hot and humid all day every day and I have yet to see a drop of rain! JeNece asked if I have any girls that want to "kiss" me or want me. And the answer is YES, I have 3 "wives"!!! lol so three women want to marry me and take them back to America but no worries I told them no and that I got a girl at home. But I don’t, so I lied but I think God will forgive that one...lol. She also asked about the people and about baptisms, and that is what I’ll write alot about today.So the time here passes kind of quick but everyone says the first transfers are the slowest, so the mission is going to fly. Also we are very, very busy. We teach about 30 lessons a week (this week was 35) and we walk about 8-12 miles per day!!!! so far we have had 2 baptisms and this Saturday we have 3 more, and we get about 5-10 new investigators a week. So we are very busy!!!!Ok so last week I said something about a pope and a prophet. So first the "pope". Ok so he is not the real pope but his name is Benedict and he is a guy that went to school for years about religion so he is very smart. It is hard to talk to him for less than an hour at a time. But he has been taught all the lessons now and we are baptizing the "pope" on Saturday. Ok now for the prophet!!! Ok so this man is a Pentecostal "prophet". And he really thinks he is called of god. So he came to our area to try to talk to the Pentecost churches in the area and he stayed at a member's home that is right next to us. So we taught him quite a few times and told him all about Joseph Smith, plan of salvation, and the gospel of Jesus Christ. And he believes almost everything and he said the book of Mormon is one the best books he has ever read but he still thinks he is a prophet!!! He thinks that Joseph Smith is just one of his fellow prophets. He also took a book of Mormon for his wife and paster...lol. But a seed has been planted and we did what we could so we’ll see..So those are the two big people we have been talking to and I’ll write about the two other guys we are baptizing this week next Monday.So that is how it is here. Make sure Ethan learns my name and remembers me!!!Love elder Collins

If any of you would like to send Zach a letter the easiest way is to go to "dearelder.com" and select Ghana Cape Coast mission, to Zachary Collins. They send them to the mission home and they distribute them to the Elders. I am sure he would love to get mail!!

Our Little Genius!!!

Meet Mr. Ethan Thomas Clifford.

At 15 months he can climb up on a slide and go down in various ways. (He can even pose when asked to!) He can also play the game at Cracker Barrel. How many of you can do well at that game???? He is an endless source of joy for me and for our whole family! He brightens a gloomy day. Grandkids are the BEST!!

Meet Our Star Volleyball Player!!!

Yep you guessed it, Tiffany Collins Harper. This is her 3rd year playing volleyball with her school, Norton Elementary. They, sad to say, have not done very well. But JeNece, Ethan and I are always there. JeNece and I take score each week. It is fun to watch. This week they played Grayson Elementary and Norton only had 6 players to their 9 players. Whew, I thought we were in REAL trouble. (That means losing disgracefully, like 2 to 25) We WON, yep. WON the first game, it went into overtime, and was 30-28. Awesome!! GOOOO Norton Bears!! Then we lost the next two, but they were respectable losses. We really enjoy watching Tiff play, she is getting pretty good! I miss all the ballgames we used to attend. (Did I just say that????)

Elder Collins Email 2/25/08

THis is Zach and his MTC companion

This is Zach and his group at the MTC THis is how he washes his clothes. Can you tell what he is holding?? (plunger)
Ghana Temple

Here is the email he sent plus some pictures he was able to upload for us.

OK so i had write this huge letter then i lost it so know i got to start all over. OK so its about time they updated the plaques!! and jimmy!! and to the P.S. no not my area but there are areas that are just villages!!(I asked him if it was as 3rd world as we thought) and bout the microwave. this is what my kitchen has in it- a fridge, a toaster, a sink, and a two burners little thing. so no microwave which really stinks big time. and about letters i have only got the first one from u and k... OK some fun stuff... so far since i got in the field i have eaten goat, lamb, cow(duh), and best of all DOG..lol.. its not that bad.then we have gone to the cape coast castle and i got a lot of pictures to it but the computers here r really slow at uploading so i will probably upload my pictures to a CD and then mail the card to ya'll so maybe send me a few CDs if u can.and i got all the stuff for everyone still here b/c i didn't have any money but know i got my pin number so i will send it when ever i get time. but to explain what goes to who. the heads are for the different houses( including Bryan's future one) and the big one is for you and dad. then the other stuff is for your b-day mom.then just funny we were at a restaurant the other day and there was a cat there in it. and before we ate someone took the cat to the back so we don't know what happened to it but i think it was fine i hope. so i don't have a lot of time so i guess next time i will tell you about the people. just to say a little something to make ya'll interested i taught a prophet and we are baptizing a pope...lol so yea its crazy mom i bore my testimony to dad on his e-mail so if you want to see it just ask him.ill talk to ya'll in a week. Love Elder Collins

I KNOW YOU ARE ALL WONDERING WHAT HAS HAPPENED!

This is what happened: I have been meaning to sit down and blog and just haven't taken the time. So tonight Donnie was suppose to take me out to dinner and he just wanted to take a little nap first, no biggie, he was up really early this morning and then had alot to do today. So I was just going to post one thing and he kept sleeping and I kept blogging. The more I post the more things I think about to post! No wonder you guys blog so much, it can be addicting! I read several other bloggers sites and just got all excited to give each of you a little bit to read! Now I am going to wake him up because I am starving!!

VALENTINES DAY AT NORTON ELEMENTARY

I went to Tiffany's school to help her with all the valentine activities. It was wild!!! I decided it was a smart thing I did not become a Kindergarten teacher!! It takes lots of patience. The bottom pic is Kelly, she is in the class room next to Tiff, this is their third year teaching side by side and they have a good time. This year they moved from 2nd grade to K. I think they are crazy but they seem to love it. They have adorable children. We started the day making a valentine mouse, they had to cut, yes cut with scissors, 4 or 5 hearts and glue them at certain places, and then add whiskers, etc.. are you getting the picture!! Some of those mice you wouldn't have recognized!! Then we moved on to decorating heart sugar cookies. Yep, another mess. Best of all was giving out the valentines. THe kids were so excited to give them to their friends they just couldn't stand it. We had to help them because most of them couldn't read the names. To end the day and try to quiet them down a little Tiffany read in a chapter book that they love, I think it is a Juney B. Jones book, anyway, one little guy was glued to her side and she finally told him he needed to sit down because she was getting hot, she kept reading and he decided he would cool her off and got a piece of paper and began to fan her. I busted up laughing, and then she did and then all the kids wanted to fan her. It was so funny. The greatest part of the day was as they were leaving they all hug her bye and then look at me, who they don't know very well and hug me too. Watching them and seeing their innocence and love helps me understand why Jesus loves little children and admonishes us to be "like them."

Here they are! My 5:50 am seminary kids

A year after we moved to Georgia I was asked to teach Seminary. I taught for 5 years before I was asked to do something else. Then two years later they ask me to do it again. I was shocked and nervous. I know what all it requires and that made it hard to say yes, but I did. These are my kids: 1st pic: (L to R) Kelsey, Kelli, Ashley, Steven
2nd pic: Christopher, Amanda, Aubrey, Matt
3rd pic: Mandy, Jeremy, Stephen, Kylie
I was missing: Jonathan, Andres, Josh, Brittanie
We are studying the Old Testament and we start at 5:50 am (they don't all get here then, but several do) It is a sacrifice for them but I promise them all the time that the payoff is fantastic, they just can't see it yet. I still remember my days in seminary and I hope years from now they do to!! Some of my favorite stories that we have done are: David, Esther and Job, so far. Look them up, find all the ways they apply to us today!!

THESE ARE A FEW OF MY FAVORITE THINGS!!!

SUNDAY DINNERS

I love them! Almost every Sunday our whole family comes over and we cook and eat together.

It is chaotic at times, loud, crazy, etc.. and I couldn't be happier!! Sure we argue sometimes but I really feel like these dinners hold us together and keep our bond growing. Family is everything to me and all of them being together is my "Favorite Thing"! This particular sunday was a new recipe we tried, it seemed to go over pretty well. You can probably tell we max out the table, it isn't quite as crowded as usual since we are missing Zach. We need a bigger table and dining room! (hint to Donnie) I want my family to know I appreciate the sacrifices they make to be here sometimes, they get out in rain storms, give up valuable study time, sleep time, and money for gas. I know they will be blessed for it!!

I love each of you very much. (note Sarah in the pic, they may not be married yet, soon, but she is part of our family already)

MY FANTASTIC DAUGHTERS!!

Yes, I have the best daughters in the world!! For my birthday they made one of my favorites, Monterey Chicken (we took pictures and I can't find them) they also did my favorite veggie, carrots. They did my next favorite dessert, chocolate chip cookie cake, because my favorite, chocolate layer dessert, we had last week. I just sat and visited with them while they worked. For birthdays in our family I always have their favorite meal and dessert so the girls make sure the same happens for me. I know that Donnie is as grateful for them as I am because he is off the hook! My family went together and got me a camera, of course I was throwing big hints around. It is wonderful, now I can take pictures and download them and blog away, all by myself!! I had a great day!

Our Missionary Son has found the Internet!!!

This is his mission president. (Notice Zach's hair!)
1st "real" email from Zach

I live in a kind of apartment on the outskirts of town it is an ok place there are 4 elders in the place me 2 other Americans and an south African which comes from jo'burg. eating is good I don’t have as big of an appetite here but I think that’s just because I'm not used to the food yet but we eat rice a lot and I like the local dish called fu-fu( we get it at restaurants) and we eat a lot of spaghetti. We only get 100 cedi a month which is about $105 dollars so money is tight. I hand wash all my clothes and we do it an interesting way but you will see in the pictures. My bed is too small for my body and yes I sleep in a mosquito net (I got pictures of all of this). Yes I take my doxy every day and I haven't got malaria yet!! My companion elder Johnson is very nice and is a good missionary. And we walk everywhere!!! We walk an average of about 8-10 miles a day and I now know why I need the hankies (we sweat alot!!!!!) I got to perform the baptism this past Saturday and it was pretty dang cool!! And something I figured out the other day is that most elders are out for 730 days but I got 731 because of leap year...lol.but I’m out of time so send this to everyone and tell them I love them and if there are questions unanswered just ask but ill talk to ya'll next week. Elder Collins!!!!!!
Feb. 18
hey so yea i let a kid in the mtc cut my hair with my little trimmer!!! and i lost 10 pounds in the MTC but now i dont know because we dont eat very healthy out in the field..lol.. but i think im just losing muscle :( but o well. so in my mission it is probably over 50% Americans so i probably will have more american companions. so i did get the first letter from you and Kristi during the week( k's was long..lol) but thats all i got so far but i get mail on Tuesdays . yea i can only e-mail family. we get 1 hour on the internet. I dont know the number of people we are teaching but it's a lot. well in my area we we can't really contact because my area is a university but its all good. church is pretty much the same out here so. tell ryan and austin i said hey.ok so i will do the pictures next week and i will try to remember my pin but idk and my card expires like july of '09.ok so some things that i would like to have.- speghetti and rice sauce/spice packets( thats all we eat)- quacker oatmeal little packets( a lot there isnt really anything good for breakfast here)-power bars-mashed potatoes and gravy packets-pictures- family( have none) and friends ( K!, jenny, liz, etc)-shoe soles( the dr.scholles shoes soles stink i need reg ones.)- if dad could do this i need as much info on these religions as quick as possible- cathelic,presby, muslem-candy-starbursts thats it for now and im out of time so tell everyone i love them and i write some more experiences next week if you dont have any more ? loveelder collins

My Baby boy is in Ghana!!

This is Zach's first picture in Ghana!! Can you find him?? You get two guesses!! ha ha!! This is his MTC group. The couple on the left are the new MTC president. The couple on the left are the old MTC president. He looks happy and that makes me happy. I will update you a little on the week of his leaving. We took him to every eating place he even thought he might like before he left. He actually was sick of eating out by wed. We did alot of last minute running to get odds and ends he needed and I cried a bit at times. My other kids said I was "spontaneously combusting" Zach and I would be in the car and he would be jabbering away (not often for him) and I would start thinking "this won't happen for a couple of years" and yep... the tears would start. I couldn't help it. Wednesday I woke up with my stomach in knots, knowing this was his last day at home. I did my best to get through the day. That evening we went to the Cheesecake factory, it was awesome. It was a nice evening together. Around 8:45 the Stake president came over to set him apart. Yeah, you guessed it I was doing all I could to not fall apart. He received a beautiful blessing. Our Stake president is kinda new and doesn't know Zach and yet said things about him that only someone who spent time with him would know. He told him his call to Ghana was because of the choices he had made in his life, that it was a very special call that few US boys get. (look at the picture, only 2 this transfer). Zach was a little leery when he blessed him that he would have no long term problems from his service in Africa, Zach wanted to know about the short term illnesses!! So we finally went to bed that night with Zach all packed up. Tiffany and Ryan spent the night so that Tiff could go to the airport with us. At the ticket counter we incurred a slight problem and Salt Lake fixed it quickly, but while we were standing there a lady at the counter next to us tapped me and said I am praying for you. I am a mom who has sent her boys off to serve and I know how hard it is. OK, I bet you can't ever guess what I did??? Yep cried once again. The ticket lady looked at Donnie, me and Tiff and said I will give you one gate pass to walk with him, I looked at Donnie with such a desperate look what could he do but say "it's hers". Come on he has teased me for years that Zach is my baby, so of course it should be mine. I wanted to tell him so many things before he got on that airplane and I couldn't get any of them out. I am so proud of him for being so willing to go serve this mission. He has never faltered or questioned going. He was actually so excited I don't think he even thought about the fact that he wouldn't see us for 2 years. Donnie said at some point he will probably feel a little homesick. I'm not so sure! It was the greatest, saddest day for me. His room is so clean and so empty. We got to talk to him for just a short time on Friday from the MTC. He sounded great. Now we are waiting to hear from him again. Moms, I would say prepare yourself, but I don't think it is possible! ( the website with the picture is: ghanagazette.blogspot.com)

Thanks goes to Gretchen!!

Wow, props to Gretchen for adding pictures to my blog!! Is she good or what. As soon as I get some more pics from her I will add them also. Go to her blogspot to see some good ones of the gang at our house this weekend. I want to do a blurb on each one of us, but I want a picture to go with it, soooo keep watching for the greatest blogspot to hit the internet!! Talk to you soon. Oh yes, she also added the vote for what I should be called, please VOTE I need help!!!