PHOTOS!

Not sure the story behind all of these photos, they all came fast and furious in one email after the arrival to Peru CCM (MTC.)
I sort of know the story behind this one...I think this girl must be "Charlotte." A new elder arrived from Georgia and has a girlfriend named Charlotte. Matthew and the other guys stole her picture and put their pictures in the frame. They were totally trying to loosen up this new missionary and finally helped this poor guy that it's ok to have fun at the MTC.
***Mom's story (she knows the real story):
Story of Charlotte. One of the elders took a picture of himself (it may have been Matthew, unclear on this) in the same pose as Charlotte and they printed and replaced it in the frame. The tie is from Charlotte and it was the only one the elder would wear. Matthew's guys stole CHarlottes picture and the tie. The elder came banging on their door demanding his picture as they knew he would. They told him he could have Charlotte and his precious tie back if he would sing a hymn for them. He relented, let his anger go and sang the song. They rewarded him with the picture, tie and a box of Jr. Mints. They all laughed, broke the ice and the new elder went away friends.

Somehow I can't think that passing gas or urinating in the bathroom is an issue for the sisters.
Matthew's "guns" are bigger than everyone elses.
Love those smiles!
Temple Trip -Provo Temple.
Elder Pro is the fourth from the right. Apparently he is the short guy in the group.

Welcome to PERU!
Peru CCM
Looks like a great way to start the stay at the CCM!


Oh no, our poor boy had to get a new "do" due to some recent lice outbreaks at the Peru CCM. For a boy so particular of his hair, this is a bummer. He doesn't look too thrilled either does he?
Uber-short.



Hard to believe our Elder is on the opposite side of the earth. Best of luck!

Jen's First Handwritten Letter

Dear Jen,

The week has gone great. I am learning a lot. I am enjoying it. Kinda. I'm having a hard time getting over my life at home. I don't miss it but I would rather be working there than here but I'm sure that that will go away eventually. I am starting to learn the language. I can understand it and speak it very little. (Something illegible written here. ?) It will come. Tell the kids I love them lots and that I miss them a ton. Tell Jaiden that this really is an amazing place and he has to come. I think I should take him up camping sometime when I get back. We'll have man time. About fast Sunday, it was bad. The classes weren't good, the speakers weren't good, and after fasting all that time, we got a little hard piece of meat and fake cold potatoes. It really was a bummer and a let down. I leave to Peru on Wednesday so I probably won't get another hand written letter out to anyone so that's why I am sending everyone a personal one. First off, thank you so much for the package and the fudge. It all tastes so good and my carry on bag is packed for Peru with good American candy. Tell Makynlee and Tessa I loved their pictures. They are such good artists. Tell BriAnna to stay away from all them crazy teenage boys I once was. I'm no longer there to keep an eye out for you guys. She's a good girl though. I did get a dearelder from Cody but I need an email address so I can write him. Well Jen, I love you lots. Thank you so much for all your love and support. Love Elder Profaizer.

Letter from Elder Profaizer

***note: this was carefully edited for easy reading. Enjoy the growing testimony of our missionary!

Hello everyone:) This is elder Profaizer reporting from the Provo MTC for the last time ever!!! whoop whoop!! I am leaving to Peru on Wednesday morning and I am SO excited this week as been so very successful. I'm still struggling with the language and stuff but that is fine I'm finally use to the food and am feeling much better. I was able to stay healthy through a lot of my district being sick thanks to a lot of vitamin C. This week we got our progressive investigator Fidel to get baptized even though they are just characters played by the teachers they are 100% in character of someone that they taught on their mission so its not easy to convert them. It was our 4th lesson and it was going pretty badly. At first I couldn't speak the language so I just listen and pick out the words I can and at the end it was quiet and I just got the Spirit with me and I bore my testimony in Spanish it was broken but the Spirit was there to convey my message and the truthfulness of it. When I got done testifying of it, mi compñaro asked if he would attend a baptism with us so he could know what it was like and he just straight up said, "well.... when is my baptism?" And I felt so accomplished cuz b4 that the lesson was going so bad. It was such an awesome experience. I've never had the Lord and Spirit with me so much. I'm so in love with this all. It's tough and the food seems to get worse every day. I'm so sick of chicken burgers. but its alright just a little bit longer and it's beans and rice ha-ha yay!!!!!!!! not..... but hey everyone that sent me packages. THANK YOU SO SO SO MUCH my whole carry-on suitcase has so much candy and American jerky in it for Peru. Those packages and pics from the kids were so great thank you so so so so much it means so much to me, you all are so great. All of you have personal letters coming in the mail after I finish them after this.
So the MTC on the 4th of July....... hahaha mom no we do not get the day off are u joking? LOL.. 9 hrs of class and all that still. Saturday we did get to stay up past 1030 and go out and watch the byu stadium fireworks. Too bad I could hear the Brady Paisley concert. I miss country music so much. I really don't miss my phone although i would like to be in contact with people a little more but the phone was easy to leave for me. I just miss good old country music and working at Allreds.
Next week I'm sure I will have MUCHO MAS Information por usted on the Peru MTC. (p.s that was a little bit of Spanish haha)
Yó sa qúe y la iglasia de jesucristo de los santos de los últimos días is la veda iglasia. ( i know that the church of jesus christ of latter day saints is the true chuch) im not sure the spelling on veda but it meant true. I love you all so much you are all giving me so much strength through your prayers thank you so much. I love you:)
Love your son, brother, friend, your missionary, Love, Elder Profaizer:)

Our boy, the missionary!

Top Row Elders - O Born, Tomson, Christenson, Profaizer, Anderson, Ashcroft, Connoly
Bottom Row Elders - Morray, Martell, Johnson, Shipley, Whitney
Elders - Anderson, Whitney, Johnson, Profaizer

A Mom's Thoughts

Matthew has been gone now a little over two weeks and it is really starting to sink in. Two weeks is nothing but it has felt like an eternity. I find myself clicking to my e-mail several times on Friday waiting for a letter. We were very happy to find a hand written letter in the mail a few days ago. I never thought that chicken scratches could look so good! He is loving his time in the MTC except for sitting in class for 10 hrs a day. He is super excited to be heading for Peru next Wed. One thought that I want to include in our blog is his comments about city kids. Matthew has always been frustrated with city kids that don't have a brain in their heads when it comes to mechanics. He loves to tinker and destroy then build and always has since he was a very little boy. In his letter, he stated that he was sick of the city kids cause there was no one that had a clue how to talk "cars". He is hungry to talk cars and fixing things. I have assured him that he will have plenty of opportunity to help families get their old junkers running or to pound nails in families homes. I think he will thrive when he gets to Ecuador and sees the needs that he can help with. He loves, absolutely loves, hard work and he will have lots of opportunity to put that to work. My heart is full and very tender as I write with the pride only a mother can feel for this fine young man and his desire to serve the Lord. Mom

Future Missionary

Ever since Matthew got his call he has inspired many little nephews that this is the path they will follow. I don't know if Matthew knows how much influence he has on these boys lives. Sunday they talked about missionary work in Primary. Parker was so excited because he has both an uncle and grandparents out on a mission. He was so excited to get a missionary badge and wore it proudly.Then he wrote Matthew a letter. We will be sending this to him when he gets to Peru.
I am so grateful that Matthew has made this decision and is worthy to serve a mission. He has touched many lives by his example. Not just the people in Ecuador but the family and friends here at home as well.

Kim

Powerful Deep Thoughts...

I have been having a lot of deep thoughts roll around in my head as of late (trust me it's scary in there!) I don't know if it's because of this whole new mission experience or dad's job loss or grandpa dying. I think it's a combination of everything together. It's all had me reflecting on a talk I heard Andy Horton give on his "After Graduation" CD. I happen to own a copy of the book and am now so grateful I have it. He talks about the concept of "time" and uses a few scriptural references to back it up (Abraham 3:4 and 2Peter 3:8.) It's still an unknown for sure but I think the whole idea behind it is very powerful and I thought I'd share it here. We have heard that 1,000 years for us here on earth is equal to about a day in the Lord's time. Bro. Horton did that math and figured out a few things:
*42 earth years is 1 hour Lord's time
*1 earth year is 1.44 minutes of Lord's time
*1 day is .24 seconds
*1 Hour is .01 seconds
You get the idea right? So if we lived to the average life expectancy age of 75 then we leave this earth a mere 1 hour and 48 minutes old. Not much in the GRAND scheme of things eh? He did some other calculations that I think are so fascinating:
*You will be 26 minutes old when you graduate HS
*HS lasts 5.76 minutes
*You will be a teenager for 10.08 minutes
*You will spend less than 15 seconds in the MTC
*A 2 year mission lasts 2 minutes and 53 seconds.
*Not serving a mission will last forever.
*The most important thing that any member of the church ever does in this world, which is to "marry the right person, in the right place, by the right authority" will take about .01 seconds.
*You can earn a 4 year college degree in about 6 minutes, 10-12 minutes if you want to be a doctor or lawyer.

Brother Horton goes on to quote Elder Robert D. Hales, "There is a time and season for all of our decisions. Make sure you make decisions in the proper time and season. All of these life-altering decisions will be made in a very busy, relatively short period during your 20's...the decade of decision." He goes on to say, "Many of the decisions you make or don't make will have eternal consequences."


Brother Horton shared this, "If 2 thousand years to us is only two days to the Lord, then it was just over 2 days ago that our Lord and Savior "suffered so much pain, indescribable anguish, and overpowering torture for our sake. It was only 2 days ago that He suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane, where He took upon Himself all the sins of all other mortals which caused Him to tremble because of pain, and to bleed at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit. Since the Atonement was so recent to the Savior and Heavenly Father, we can be sure that they can truly relate to the temptations, trials, pains, and pressures we experience daily. Maybe this will increase our faith as we pray each day and night that they will "ease our burdens which are put upon our shoulders" so that we will know "of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions" (Mosiah 24:14)."

President Brigham Young once stated, "It was revealed to me in the commencement of the Church, that the Church would spread, prosper, grow, and extend, and that in proportion to the spread of the gospel among the nations of the world so would the power of Satan rise." This is an exciting and yet terrifying statement. I hope we are all worthy of the task ahead of us as we raise the kids we have. After all, we only get roughly 1 hour and 48 minutes (unless you are a Profaizer or Hendricks and you might get a few added minutes.) LOL!

Flat Matt Adventures Begin!

Meet Flat Matt. Everyone knows the story about Flat Stanley who gets squished by a bulletin board while he sleeps. He is then able to fit in an envelope and can be mailed and travel the world. We have our own family version of Flat Stanely...Meet Flat Matt. He will be joining our family adventures over the next two years while Elder Profaizer is serving the Lord in Ecuador. Just a little something fun the family is doing to stay happy and excited while Matthew is gone.

Flat Matt's first big holiday since leaving two weeks ago, was a trip to the Brigham City fireworks for the 4th of July.
Lounging with BriAnna and Jaiden while waiting for the show begins. Flat Matt isn't a big conversationalist but he is sure is cute and he gets a LOT of comments wherever he goes. Mom tried to get him to tell them where he wanted to eat for dinner on the way to Brigham but oddly- he had no opinion. Go figure.At the park with some of the fam. Mom, Jaiden, BriAnna, Flat Matt, Dad and Daryl.
Such a handsome addition to the group. He certainly attracted a lot of attention.
Tessa and Makynlee, ready to watch the fireworks with Uncle Flat Matt.

This is going to be a fun few years as we watch all the places Flat Matt goes while real Matthew is in Ecuador. Stay tuned...Flat Matt will be going to the cabin in Island Park, see Kim when she delivers her new baby and help Tam move in to their new house. We really don't think Flat Matt will visit the Crook house as Daryl is too big a brat and likes to cause a heart attack by moving him around and scaring me. We'll see what happens with that.

What a great way to celebrate the birth of our great nation!

Beware the hand written letters.

So Matthew sent mom and Dad some great pics of him and his roommates and the other guys going to the same mission with a hand written letter. I read his emails and I do admit he has grown so much. Yet somehow his handwriting looks worse than any humans I have ever seen. lol I hope mom scans it and puts it on here. It really does look like chicken scratches. Poor Matthew maybe his spanish writing will be better. :(

July 1, 2011

This is the email Mom and Dad got today. Wow, the spelling is horrific and it totally makes me want to cry but considering he gets a whopping 30 minutes to spill all his thoughts, it could be worse. I got the go-ahead to post this on the blog. Can everyone just feel the excitement?

"Dear Family!!
so its my first P-day wow its been great. i woke up at 6:30 prayed and went back to sleep till 8;15 its nice to get a little more rest. we are inbetween doing laundry right now so its time to write to everyone well its kinda hard to email everyone seperate so i am compiling all the letters into one long letter. and mom can forward it to everone.
well i got my travel itenerary yesterday WOOOOOO im so stoked we fly out aty 11:00 july 13 to Atlanta, then to lima puru from there. im so happy i cant even sayYES!!! sorry for the sloppy spelling i dont have alot of time so i have to hurry.
First off THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE PACKAGE i loved it!!! and the pictures were awesome. im so happy you sent me some. and of my truck and car haha that made me way happy:) Feel free to send as many more as u want. Beef jerky would be awesome:)
I saw elizabeth the other day and we said hi and she told me and my comp about the choir so we went to that and it was awesome the director is SOOO funny. he is just like Brian Reagen. i also saw Kelsy Facer coming right in and welcomed her to the greatest place on earth. minus 10hrs a day in class haha but the spanish.......... hmmmm its comeing slowly but surely. it is just like being 5 again trying to learn how to read but this time i have to speak it too. and i suck with grammer and all that i know how to say like 30 things and thats it. not enought at all to know even half of whats going on but im able to pick out certain words and get the just of what ppl are saying. well my comp got moved up to intermediat so i got put with the 2 other guys from my room so we are a trio and its awesome Elder Whitney and Elder Anderson are great they know some spanish and are helpin me so much. im right in that spot inbetween spanish and english so i cant speek or write full english or spansh im always spelling english words in spanish its funny sometime like we were talkin about jesus christ and i automaticly was like who is that because jesus christ is JesuChristo it sounds like HesoCresto so thats messing me up everywhere haha oh well
the MTC is great the food here is good i guess haha untill the food leaves your bodyi got SO MUCH GAS haha its way funny cuz everyone does haha. jaiden the food tasts good tho so dont worry when u come u will love it. i eat like 3 or 4 plates of food a meal and at least 4 diet cokes per meal. its GREAT.
Dad
That box undermy bed is just filled with keep sakes and the heavyness is just a huge bag with thousads of pennys i have never cashed in for like 5 years. dont cash them in tho im just collectin them till im old. i should have alot buy then. jsut put in on a shelf up outta the way so kids dont get in it.
I have seen Elder Barton in the MTC several times and talked wit him. he is doing well it seems like.
My branch Pres says that Dear elder is the best way. to send me letters so please keep doing that becaause then i dont wast my 30 mins reading i can just write so thats very helpful.
Nieces and Nephews this is for you. GO ON MISSIONS they are great and also please send me stuff pictures, notes, anything. when our districk leader comes in with mail it is the happiest time of my day so please send lots it makes me so happy. i miss you all so much i expect bug hugs and kisses when i get home ok!!
To the rest of you the same applys. i love letters haha and packages;) the suger is limited here so that kinda sucks i eat more fruit then i ever have. I love you all so much!!!!!! thank you for all your great support:) hope to hear from you soon.
Loe Elder Profaizer"

LETTER!!

I got my first letter from Matthew yesterday! A lot of what he told me he already said in the e-mail but I'll just reiterate most of what he said again. He said that he is doing great! Again he said that it's kinda hard going from working to sitting in tons of class all day. His companion's name is Elder Johnson and he is from L.A. He said that he is really great and knows a lot of Spanish. He is helping Matthew a lot but he says he still doesn't know a thing. He's confident though that with the Lord's help, he'll be able to learn. He said that Elder Johnson is very much a rule person but that he is already learning to love that because they are getting everywhere on time and things are running more smoothly. Well that is pretty much it! Just thought I'd share with all of you. I hope that everything is going well with all of you. You are all so great and I've loved getting to know you. I've already told Jen and Gayle this, but after we left on Sunday, my parents just could not stop talking about what a great family you are and how great it was to meet all of you and I completely agree. Thanks for being so friendly and welcoming. I love you all!

Love, Sarah

First Letter

Today was a great day. Dad and I received our first letter from Elder Profaizer. He is absolutely loving his mission experience so far. He says the food is great and they even have Diet Coke. He told us that we had no reason to be sad because he is so happy. My heart is so much lighter today. He is going to make an incredible missionary. He passes on his love to everyone.

MTC DAY

I will never forget this day as long as I live. The energy on the MTC campus was palpable. There was no doubt we were in the right place at the right time. Young missionaries were everywhere calling out WELCOME ELDER and YOUR GOING TO LOVE THE MTC. The big smile on Matthew's face made the whole thing so exciting. I am one proud Mom. Thank you, son for being worthy to serve the Lord on a mission and Thank you for being such a wonderful son.

Jen's Thoughts

Going to Matthew's setting apart was truly a great experience. I have never been a part of anything like this before and it was so amazing. This whole thing has been amazing. I just can't think of another word that truly describes it. I am so thankful to have been able to be there for all of it. His blessing was wonderful and really encouraged him to study study study. To be humble, patient, obedient to the rules and to study some more. After it was over, the Stake President informed him that he was then a missionary and that he had to always have a companion which was dad. I think Dad got a little choked up about that, I know I did.

We took Jaiden with us and then asked his thoughts on the way home. He had one word....awesome. He's right, it was so cool. I know without a doubt that this whole experience has made an impact on Jaiden's young life. I hope and pray that someday he will do that for Cade who will then do that for Parker, etc. Each boy in this family needs to set an example for the next in line. I pray with all my heart Jaiden will never consider another option and that he will serve his Heavenly Father on a mission.

I have been thinking about what a mission means to me. I don't believe every young man needs to have read the Book of Mormon dozens of times. I don't believe he needs a stellar testimony. I don't believe it's about "what you know" but rather "what you hope to learn" while you are away. I believe the mission field is where all of that comes together and you are able to grow your testimony while growing up at the same time. I think a mission is simply about having faith that you are willing to try and ask when you need help. Asking the Lord when you are scared or nervous or even discouraged...that's what it's all about. In the mean time if you are doing all that you can, the Lord will step in and place people in the path who are ready to hear the Gospel. I think of a mission as a big process. Growing your own testimony which in turn will bring others to the Gospel.

I have a testimony of my Savior, Jesus Christ. I am so thankful for his ultimate sacrifice he paid for each of us. I will never be perfect but I don't have to be. I just have to try. That's the message Matthew will be sharing with the people in Ecuador. Come Unto Him. It's just so simple.

The Big Day-For Real!

Oh my goodness....I never thought June 22 would ever come! I am NOT anxious to get him gone, I am anxious for this adventure to begin. I will SO miss Matthew but wow, I am so thankful for him and his willingness to serve. We live in a time where fewer and fewer missionaries are serving. Healthy 19 year boys are choosing not to serve and yet the need for missionaries is the greatest it has been in the history of the world. Not that long ago, men with families would leave for several years to do this. Talk about a HUGE sacrifice. It's only 2 years and yet so many boys just can't pull themselves together and sacrifice a little. Not every boy is worthy anymore either and it's just sad. The fire of missionary work has took hold at our house and I am so excited to see what this experience means for Jaiden. Matthew may not have the strongest testimony yet but he has the fire of faith. He will go, He will do!
Luggage packed, weighed and ready to go!One last goodbye to the Lovell-Littles.
Goodbye to the Crook Crazies (note-Jaiden was having a bad morning, hence the disgruntled look)
Family photo time. Not sure why he thought we needed to hold him. All of a sudden he was jumping in our arms! Hillarious!
At the MTC!!!!!!! He's really there!
Hip Hip Hooray! I'm finally here!
On the legendary corner. Too bad they took down the MTC signs. Bummer. 4 sisters, 1 brother and a couple of parents.
Dad and Mom...looking a little teary.
Jen and her favorite little brother.
A Dad and his only boy.Tam
Baby Sister with Baby Brother.
Oh I love this boy! I am so going to miss having him around.
A little good luck rub for baby Lovell. The only physical contact he'll have until this kid is 2!
Super sweet. Mom is going to miss him so much but we are SO thankful he is going and not staying home. Truly a bittersweet moment.

One last photo in Utah from us! Good luck Bro...we love you!
Pulling up to station #25. Unload that luggage! Funny that the guy with the broken arm took the heaviest suitcase.
Good bye!
And he's gone.

And Jen is finally weepy after this awesome day. The tears just waited until tonight. I'm not even all that sad just teary and excited to get some weekly news and see what's going on and experience this adventure vicariously through Matthew.

Unexpected Meetings

When we actually got to Provo, we pulled up to have brunch at IHOP. What a fun place to have our last meal together. We made Matthew pose outside for a picture but it wasn't long before we realized we weren't the only ones doing it....lots of other missionaries had the exact same idea.

We went inside and was immediately greeted by another missionary who was headed to the MTC for a mission to Mexico. We were led back by the hostess to the back corner of the restaurant where there were 3 other missionaries and families eating as well. One excited young Elder told us he was headed to Ecuador Guayaquil South too! Interestingly enough, his mother grew up there, right where her son was going! He was going to be among his own family. How fun would that be? His mother shared a lot of neat information about the city of Guayaquil and Matthew got SO excited. Apparently he will likely live in a house he will share with 6-8 missionaries and they will have a maid. There will be no bikes or cars, just their own two feet. She said that at one time Ecuador had more members than the state of Utah. There are many many members and they will take very good care of our brother. She said there are a lot of very poor yet very humble people there. Matthew will do so good there. I have no doubt he is going exactly where Heavenly Father wants him to be.
Elder Barton- I'm sure these two will bump into each other again real soon!

So Long FAREWELL

The farewell today was fabulous! Matthew had an amazing turnout. The church was filled to capacity and more. All of our family was there, along with Kaye and Joe, Sarah and a big chunk of her family along with a lot of other friends. Matthew paid a wonderful tribute to Dad. He had all of us laughing, especially as he closed his talk with "I'm headed to the Ecuador Guayaquil South Mission and I'll see you all in two years (about to sit down) AMEN." I can't wait to hear that Homecoming talk in two years...what a different young man he will be. I am excited to hear his testimony grow and see his love for the people of Ecuador.

For Mom's birthday and Father's Day, Kim, Tam, Matthew and I opted to give Mom and Dad this life sized (or slightly larger) cardboard cutout of Matthew.
It's totally perfect that he put the greasy Allred's t-shirt on!A little creepy to see both together.
Matthew, Pseudo Matthew, Mom and Dad
Pseudo Uncle Matthew and a few of the kids. Parker, Taegen, Lexi, Makynlee and Tessa.
All the nieces and nephews love their Uncle Matthew!

Official Missionary Photos

Elder Profaizer...one handsome young man!

I Love to See the Temple, I'm Going There TODAY!

What an amazingly beautiful and sunny (which is RARE this month) to go to the temple! Mom, Dad, Matthew, Kim, Damian, Tam, Craig, Daryl and I were all able to go to the Logan temple together. It was a great day. One more step in the direction of Ecuador!

Congrats Mom and Dad...19 years in the making! You done good! This signifies the fact that they have been fabulous parents.