Transfer Thirteen Week One

Dear Family,

This is kinda crazy. This will be the last email that I send to you. It is a little weird.

This week was a really good week. We aren't really teaching anyone, but we are still enjoying our work.

We picked up Sister Jones on Tuesday and have truly had a great time with her. We have been doing something called a living Christmas Card. It is really great. We go and sing to people on their door, and then we go in their home and read from Luke 2. It is really wonderful.

We also had our Christmas Party this week. We got a cute Christmas Picture with Santa and had the fun time of introducing Sister Jones to all the members. It was really good.

Things have been going well. We have been able to just have a great time. It has been very enjoyable. We are just doing the work and really focusing.

As the time has come closer to end I have really been able to recognize all the joy I have had.

I know that this is the true Gospel of Jesus Christ.

I know that this is where I am supposed to be, but now, I know that I need to move on to the next chapter. I know this is where God needs me.

I love you all so much!! Have a great week!

Transfer Twelve Week Five

Dear Family,

This week was the last week of the transfer! We had a 5 week transfer because of the Holidays. It is crazy how fast time is flying!

With only 10 days till Christmas, we have been helping a lot of people with Christmas. It has been really fun.

This week we were working with the Police Department. Every year for the past 17 years the police department has collected toys from the city and then gets names of families and the ages of the kids from all the different schools. We then got to help with the fun part. :) In a garage they have all the toys. It is there that we were able to "shop" for the kids. It was so much fun! I enjoyed looking at all the toys and knowing that the ones that I was picking out would make a child have a happy Christmas. It also helped with remembering the Spirit of Christmas.

Things are going well. We are working and hoping that things go smoother and faster with the Holidays. We already have tons of plans for the next couple of weeks, so it is going to be great!

I love you all so much!! Remember that He is the Gift. Christ is the only true gift that we can have.

Love you! Have a great week!

Pictures from Sister Knuth

One of the sweet members in Chaylee's area texted us several pictures of Chaylee and her companion from the last few months.  We are so grateful for all of the wonderful members who have taken such good care of our missionary!

Making Christmas Sugar Cookies with the Knuth Family

Bowling with the Swalley's

Transfer Day

Bowling

Chaylee and Sister Edgley

Transfer Twelve Week Four

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good week. We have done lots of service for members. :) It has been fun. We have put up Christmas trees, and light, and have brought the holidays into the season. It has really been a lot of fun helping the members. Helps me feel like I am there helping my own family. I have learned that I am not very good at putting lights on a tree... That one I will end up needing help with :)

We had exchanges this week, so I went to another ward for a day. It was so much fun! We were able to talk to a lot of people, and then invite all the people we talked to to the other ward's Christmas party. It was really fun. Helped me realize that I need to have more excitement about missionary work. It will all work out. We were also able to teach a family that spoke English as their second language and Spanish as their first. So they knew both and could understand us. We talked about Christmas, and what it means. To help the kids understand, I split the word Christmas apart. I put it into Christ mas. Which in Spanish means 'more Christ'. That is what Christmas is all about. Putting more Christ into our lives and remembering Him. It is really amazing!

We went to a Christmas open house this week, and had some amazing Mexican food, and were able to chat with a lot of our less active members and then a lot of non members that we are trying to work with. It is all going really well :) We are building up that relationship with those around us and really working with them so they will understand and build their faith that they already have in Christ. It is amazing!!

Christmas is a special year full of service and strengthening others. It is amazing to be able to go to church and to feel the love there. So many people are about loving others, which is amazing!

I hope you all have a wonderful week! I love you so much! You are all in my prayers!!

I love you!

Transfer Twelve Week Three

Dear Family,

This week was pretty good. Had a wonderful time this thanksgiving, and I have realized how blessed I am.  

It is truly one of the best times of the year! Being able to spend Thanksgiving with wonderful families is truly wonderful! We were able to have it with some of our favorite families. The Troncales, and the Flinders. It was amazing!! We had dinner with lots of non members both times and enjoyed ourselves.

We are working with some less actives. We haven't found any investigators yet, but it is still truly amazing to see the work of the Lord everyday. We saw this less active and she was wonderful! There are a lot of single older ladies in our ward, who are just home alone all day. We are going to be working with them to come back to church and to feel that Spirit of Christ again. It is wonderful!

We have helped lots of members set of for Thanksgiving and also for Christmas! It is wonderful!! I love helping the members. It reminds me of helping you all at Christmas time. It is great!!

Things are going well. We are improving everyday on our work and how things are going. We are doing well. We are both focused and are both working hard to the end.

There are times when life gets a little distracting but it is still wonderful to be a missionary!! To be able to feel the Spirit of the Lord with us, is one of my favorite things!!

This coming week will be amazing!! We have been told that the Church is doing a Christmas initiative. It is called He is the Gift. It is a wonderful video about Christ and Christmas. If you can, go to the website! It is a wonderful missionary tool, and is amazing!!

I love you all so much!!

Here is the website:

christmas.mormon.org

Love you!!

Transfer Twelve Week Two

Dear Family,

This week was a good one. We have had a lot of referrals given to us, so we have spent the time to contact those. We have also been working really hard on doing birthday cards. It is actually really fun to do and deliver those :) I enjoy it :)

We have also done a lot of service for the ward members. We have been helping a lot of them get their homes ready for the holidays. Cleaning, setting up decorations, just getting things really for people to stay in town, and also for those who are leaving town :) It is fun :)

This ward is really amazing!! There are a few families that want us over for dinner on Thanksgiving! It is going to be great!! We have also decided that we are going to be doing as much service as we can. We are  going to be making thank you cards for everyone and really just enjoying things :)

This week I got some fun mail!! I got a thanksgiving package from the family, and in it, was the bridesmaid dress!! It is so cute!! I also have some really cute pictures of Sister Edgley and me :)

Chaylee and Sister Edgley

Chaylee in her bridesmaids dress for her sisters wedding (which will occur the day after she gets back)

I love you all so much!! Thank you for everything that you do!! Have a wonderful week!!

Happy Thanksgiving!! Remember that the greatest thing that we have, is family!

I love you all!!

Transfer Twelve Week One

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one. We have a Zone Conference and were able to learn about conversion. I learned that there are a lot of missionaries that I am serving with who were once less active. Because of home teachers, and visiting teachers, friends that cared, they came back. They are now totally active and able to have that Spirit with them. It is amazing to see the conversions process. To be able to look through the Scriptures and to see the many different stories about it and then to also know that they are all alike. They all follow the same pattern. They have trial, and at one point they "Cry" unto the Lord. They pray, pour out their entire hearts to God. Then they are converted. It can happen at one point, but for me, it has happened over time. Each time I cry unto the Lord I know that I am being converted more and more. Conversion is not just a one time thing. It happens continuously. Continuous conversion. It happens. It is the way to find peace. Reach out to those that are struggling, those that have troubles, and help them cry unto the Lord. Help them see that they are not alone. That no matter what happens, what anyone tells them. God loves them. They are never alone. There will come peace. It is here. Just cry unto the Lord.

It was a slower week. We didn't teach a lot of lessons, but we are building up the relationships with the less actives in the ward. We are becoming their friends and doing all that we can to serve them.

I have learned a lot about Charity, the pure Love of God. It is amazing to be able to feel that love and to help others see it. There are those that doubt themselves, but they need to realize that they are doing well. That even though they are struggling, they are succeeding. You can't know joy, without sadness. You cant have peace, without experiencing the trouble. It will all come. It is all there. Darkness would not exist, unless we had the light. There is opposition in all things, that way we can be grateful for the good. Stronger from our trials, because even though they are hard, they make us stronger.

I know this to be true. I know that God is there for us. I know that even though there are trials, there is always joy in the end. We will always have someone to turn to. I know that this is the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. I know that as I apply is all to me own life, that I will have peace. The gospel is simple: faith, repentance, baptism, the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end. It is there. We just have to follow the path. I know, that this is the way.

I love you all so much!! I hope you have a wonderful week!! You are in my prayers, and my heart. Never forget that you are not alone. You will never be alone.

Love you!

Transfer Eleven Week Six

Dear Family,

This week was an okay week. We had to pass off our investigators over to the elders this week. That made it a little difficult. It was sad passing off Destiny and Angel, but we feel that this would be the right thing. It is all going to go well.

We were not able to do much other teaching. We have met with a lot of our members, and a few less actives, which is really nice :)  I love getting to know the people in my areas :) Sister Edgley has gotten pretty sick this week, but she is all better now!! Which is really good, because we have a busy week ahead of us :)

With that we lost our most progressing investigators. It is okay though. This is a new transfer and it means a new time to change, kinda like a repentance process :) Time to take away the old and bring in the new.

Sister Edgley and I are both staying, which is amazing!! I am so happy to be able to work with her again. I  have really enjoyed getting to know her. It is really exciting to be able to serve with her. She is such a sweetheart and we get along great. It is pretty amazing!!

I hope you all have a wonderful week!! Love you tons!! You are in my prayers!!

Oh, by the way. Not getting transferred. I should be here until I go home in a couple of months.

Love you!!

Transfer Eleven Week Five

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one. We did a lot of service and really helped people get things ready for Halloween and then taken down. We have just been making sure that all is going well with our members and supporting them whenever they need it.

We were not able to meet with any of our investigators this week, but we will the coming week!! We still have a baptism set up for Angel and Destiny and are excited for that! It is all going to be wonderful!!

Things are working out great and are progressing!

Chaylee and her companion, she got a new haircut!

This week we had Halloween. We ended up staying in our apartment and doing planning but it was really nice. That morning we went and cleaned a pool!! I have a new talent now :) We also did some yard work. We did find out though that the winds have totally ruined the work we did, so we are going to go back over and take care of it.

Things are really going great. It is getting colder though. Now my cold is like 72 degrees and I am freezing!! I am in a spot of trouble for when I go home. We do have major winds though. It is kinda fun. :)

It actually feels like winter now :)

I love you all so much!! Have a wonderful week!!! Stay Safe, and remember that you are children of God!!

Love you,
Sister Randall

Transfer Eleven Week Five

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one.  :) It has been fun to do all of the Halloween activities. We had our Halloween party this past week, and it turned out great!! There were tons of people there and it was just awesome!!

This week we also had a really fun lesson with Destiny and Angel. It is always fun to teach them. We had to talk about the Law of Chastity this week, which was a little weird. It is hard to teach that to a 12 yr old and a 14 yr old. We did it though. Angel is 12 and was really funny about it. He compared chastity to fishing. He said that we are the fish, and when we get caught on one hook, to not ever leave that one for another one. It was a pretty good analogy. We let that one be :) It helped him understand and that is what matters :) It was fun to listen to him teach us the Law of Chastity in his own words. I have really enjoyed teaching them and just spending time with them :)

Holiday's are really fun. We always have a party to invite everyone too. It is great!!

I am loving this work! It truly is God's work, and things are going marvelous!! I love it!!

I love you all so much!! Next month are transfers and a baptism!!

I love you! Stay safe ans have a happy Halloween!!

Transfer Eleven Week Three

Dear Family,

This week was a crazy one. We received 8 referrals and wanted to contact all of them, so that is what we did.

It went well. We are starting to work with a lot of them and the others we have to get back into their homes. :) It was good though. We are excited to start working with them.

We have also been working with a lot of the members. We are trying to get everyone more excited about missionary work and try and tackle the fears that some people have because of it. It is going well and we are able to get to know a lot of the people.

This week we also had an adventure. We ended up spending 18 1/2 hours in the ER. I had some abdominal pain and had to go get it checked out. I am doing okay though. They didn't find out anything wrong, and all of the tests that they did came back with a negative. I am not worrying about it too much. :) I am doing well  :) Being there that long, meant that we missed Elder Evans. I was uber bummed about that. Luckily we have some amazing elders, and are going to be learning what they learned during out meeting :)

All in all this week was good. We worked with more deaf kids, and I am learning a lot. I have a lot of gospel terms down, which is fun. :)

Things are going well. Sister Edgley and I are still getting along amazing and are just having a good time :) It is exciting :)

I love you all so much! I hope you have a wonderful week!

Transfer Eleven Week Two

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good week! I love being with Sister Edgley and am having a wonderful time with her!! She is truly an amazing sister!!

We are doing a lot. We are teaching Destiny and Angel. They were supposed to be baptized on October 25th, but sadly they said that they weren't ready yet. They want to have stronger testimonies and want to be more ready. I know though that that was okay. They have decided to set the goal as November 8th for their baptism. It should go well, so we are progressing towards that. It will be good. It is always so fun to go over and teach them. I enjoy it a lot!

We are also teaching some deaf kids. Because Sister Edgley is deaf, she signs. Because of that we get to travel around the mission and teach deaf kids. It is really exciting to be able to watch her sign and to kinda understand what is being said. I am learning a little bit, but I still don't know everything. Eventually I will become better :)

We had an amazing ward activity this past weekend! It was a Latin Festival, so many of the Latin people in our stake came together, and there was amazing food, and wonderful dancing. It really was a party and was tons of fun!

We have kinda adopted a cat. He belongs to the person who lives in the apartment under us. We have named him Steve. He is so cute!! He is a black cat and is just adorable :) It is fun :) It is helping Sister Edgley a lot too. She has a cat back home, and when she is sad she goes and pets Steve. It is really cute. Steve is an outdoor cat and I never pet him. Sister Edgley does though. It is fun :)

I am so grateful to be a missionary. It is crazy to think that this time last year, I was doing the same thing :) Emailing my wonderful family, and preaching the gospel. It is so exciting to be able to do this work and to help people come closer to Christ.

This coming week there is going to be a mission tour. We have Elder Evans coming to our mission, and are going to be able to meet with him on Friday. It is going to be so exciting!!

Thank you all so much for everything that you do! I am so grateful for your prayers, and your support.

I love you all so much!! Have a wonderful week!!

Transfer Eleven Week One

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good with. With transfers happening things were a little different.

Sister Bullen got transferred and I stayed. This is the first time that I have stayed in an area while my companion has left. It is a little crazy. This meant that we took the time on Monday and Tuesday to say goodbye to all the members that we could. It helped me get to know the area though, which was good. I know some of it but it was just nice to be able to get to know it better :)

On Wednesday Sister Edgley came!! She is amazing!! She was born deaf but has partial hearing in her right ear. She has a hearing aid and that helps her. She is also really good at reading lips. She is such a sweetheart :) Her last companion served in this ward for 10 months, so she knew a lot more about it than I did. It was fun. She is very outgoing and is just wonderful. :) She is from Kaysville, UT. Don't we have family from there?? She is just a sweetheart!! She signs, so we are going all over the mission to go and teach these kids. It is amazing!! She is teaching me how to sign and we are actually using it. It is funny in the car though. I drive so her left ear is facing towards me. This means that a lot of the time she can't hear me. I have started waving my hand in front of her face to get her attention when I want to talk. It is kinda funny. Otherwise, I just touch her arm and make sure that she is looking at me. It is working out wonderfully :) I am really loving serving with her :)

I have met lots of members and have started building more relationships with them. It is fun to see the connections that I have in all the different wards I am serving in. So many members know each other. It is exciting :)

We are trying to do new things and to really make this ward our own. There are things that we are going to be applying from the different missionaries that we have served with and from the different areas. It is really fun to be able to really be in control of how to do things. It is a tad stressful but Sister Edgley is truly wonderful :)

We haven't been able to meet with our investigators, but we will. We are planning on meeting with them this week, so it should be good :)

Conference was amazing!! I love being able to listen to the Prophet and Apostles. It is wonderful to hear their council and to know what they would have us know :) I enjoy it a lot :)

Well, I love you all!! I hope you have a wonderful week!! Love you!! <3 <3 You are in my prayers :)

Transfer Ten Week Six

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one. We were able to get a lot done :)

Oh, Transfer week!! I found out that for the first time on my mission that I am going to be staying while my companion leaves. Sister Bullen is going to Banning and I am getting Sister Edgely. It should be good :)

I am going to have to summarizes it because I forgot my planner again.. I really need to get better at doing that...

We were able to work with our investigators Angel, Destiny, and Bernice. They are progressing well! It is so exciting to work with wonderful children!! They have a cousin that lives with them and he is thinking of taking the lessons too!! It is just amazing!! I love working with them!! Destiny and Angel are still progressing towards their October 25th baptismal date. It is the same day as the trunk or treat so we are going to be working on that in the morning. It should be exciting :) It is just amazing to see the faith of this children of God progressing!! I love it!!!

The other work is going well too. We are really working with recent converts and less active members. We have a few that need some work, so we are doing that :)

It was kinda exciting this week. We got to do something that hasn't happened before. We got to watch a movie!!!  :) It is called "Meet the Mormons". It is a documentary of 6 Mormon families around the world!! It is amazing!! It doesn't preach the gospel at all, but lets others know that we are normal!! It is great!! It comes out October 10th, and I encourage everyone that can to go and see it opening night!! It is truly an amazing movie!! It will make you laugh, and cry. :) It is just wonderful!! That was fun. We got to gather as 2 zones of missionaries and see it before it even came out. It was something the First Presidency has us do :) I wasn't complaining. It was great!!

This coming week is conference!! This past weekend we were able to watch the General Women's broadcast. It was amazing!! I got a lot about temple work and making those covenants with God from it. It was so good!! I am excited to one day go and make more covenants in the temple. It is going to be wonderful!! I am also really excited this coming week for General Conference. We have been talking a lot with out members about King Benjamin. In Mosiah 2 and 3. Just how when they were preparing for conference they came with questions and made sacrifices. They prepared themselves.

That is something I ask all of you to do. Prepare yourself for conference. Come with a question, and you will receive an answer. Whether is it a work or a phrase or an entire talk, there will be an answer for you.

 I love you all so much!! I hope you have a wonderful week!! <3 <3 <3

Transfer Ten Week Four

Dear Family,

It is amazing how fast time is flying by when you are having fun and very busy :) It has been a really good week this week. Different, but really good :)

Monday - Did the normal P-day stuff. It was good. We had dinner with members and that is always fun. I enjoy getting to know the different families and strengthening them. It is exciting :)

Tuesday - We had zone meeting, then exchanges!! I went to the Oleander ward with Sister Hope. It was fun to go experience another ward and see who they are teaching. I always enjoy going and helping with what I can. We do exchanges now from afternoon to afternoon. It is different, but it makes the time go by faster. It is exciting :)

Wednesday - We had exchanges then switched back. Sister Hope and I had some really bad peanut butter, so we were very sick to our stomachs. We still went out and contacted a few people. It was good. That afternoon Sister Bullen and I went and saw one of the less actives in the ward. She has really bad health problems, so she cant come to church, so we go by and try and strengthen her as much as possible. They are also now taking the sacrament to her. It is good. :) Then we had to come home. I ended up taking a nap and praying that my stomach got better. We then went out and did more work. We had dinner with a great family and then we offered to help her with her new business, so we got to sign up for service :)

Thursday - We had weekly planning. It has actually been going well. Still not my favorite thing, but it is getting better. It helps to have a companion that focuses and enjoys doing it :) We had 2 member present lessons today!! Which is always exciting. It is always fun to meet with out investigators. We are teaching a family, well, the children of a family. They are 18, 16, 14, and 12. It is fun. They are wonderful kids. The 16 year old was baptized in Riverside, but lives in Fontana, and she wants all of her family to become members. It is exciting to see the effect of the Spirit in that home. It is amazing and a lot of fun to strengthen families :) I enjoy it a lot :)

Friday - Day of service!! We went to go and help the Dalton's. We had dinner with them on Wednesday and they needed some help. They are starting up their own business. They have created a nail polish remover that doesn't have acetone in it and is better for your nails. It isn't toxic and they put essential oils into it. It is amazing!! We helped them shred papers to fill the boxes, put labels on bottle, then fill and cap the bottles. It was so much fun!! It is always exciting to go and serve the people around us. I enjoy it a lot :) They were also stressing and worrying. They are putting their product in a show in Utah, so they needed to get everything to their brother in Vegas by tonight. It was a little crazy for a bit, but we ended up getting it all taken care of. It was fun :)

Saturday - We did more service!! We went to the Fontana Police Department and helped them set up for a safety fair. It was exciting :) I am almost pro at putting easy ups now. We were wearing our skirts and dresses and the elders were in their white shirts and slacks. It was great. Everyone was calling us elders and sisters, which was good. There were tons of non members there and we just had a blast helping them set up :) I enjoyed it a lot. We were also able to talk to some of our recent converts and help them strengthen their testimonies today. It was exciting :)

Sunday - Church!! It was good. We had an investigator there, which is always exciting :) We then got to go and teach a member present lesson for dinner and just had a good time. We got to meet a less active family and make two contacts with going to deliver birthday cards :) We also have some service opportunities to do and met some really good people.

It is so exciting to be a missionary. I am so blessed to be doing this work, and to be with the people that I am with. Sister Bullen is amazing and we get along great! I am so blessed!! Thank you so much for all of your support.

(Sister Randall on her birthday in July)

I love you all so much!! Have a wonderful week!!!! <3 <3 <3

Remember that God is always there. You are never alone. :)

Transfer Ten Week Three

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one. I forgot my planner, so we are going totally by memory today. We will see how this goes :)

Monday - We had half p-day!! We got all of our laundry done, and the normal things. I wrote 3 letters, which was pretty amazing :) We didn't do our email though because it was labor day. While I was in school I loved those holidays, but now when it means having the library closed, it just messes things up :P It was pretty good :) That night we had a little labor day celebration. We went to a members home and had a BBQ, and just talked. There was a couple non members so we took time to get to know them. I really enjoyed it :) We also went to the park that night to write some cards. While we were there, we had a lady walk up to us. We started talking about the parks in Fontana with her. She asked us where we were from and we started talking. We ended up talking about missions. She thought that mom and dad were on a mission in Saudi and I said no but that I was. We talked a lot about God. We found out that her grandparents were baptized and when she was visiting them when she was younger she saw Joseph Smith in the bible. It was really cool to talk with her. :) It was a productive day, and was a lot of fun.

Tuesday - We had district meeting. We made cinnamon rolls for it and had those. It was a really good meeting. We were able to do an amazing roll play. It is always so exciting to be doing one of those and feel the Spirit. It was really neat. Then we got to come and email. It was fun to talk with people :) I like emailing :) Then we went and saw some of our people we are teaching. I don't remember all the details. The days blur into one sometimes. :)

Wednesday - We did service!! We helped one of out ward members clean her home. She was sick all week last week, and it didn't get done, so we came over and helped her out. It looked so good when we were done!! I love cleaning and seeing a difference in the before and after :) It is fun for me :) I don't remember much else.. Oops. I really need to remember my planner...

Thursday - We did weekly planning!! It was really good. We were able to figure out some of the people we wanted to see this coming week and did a really good job planning. That night we went to one of our recent converts/investigators home. We were going to try and teach a lesson but ended up doing service. I now know how to clean a pool!!! It was one of those above ground ones, and we drained all the water out of it. They hadn't cleaned it in a while and it turned green, so we cleaned it for them :) Well, with them :) it was a lot of fun. Then we got ice cream. Their grandma has an ice cream truck and gave us permission to get an ice cream for free, it was fun :) We did get to share a spiritual thought, which is always nice :)

Friday - We Went and visited people. We tried doing service for people and we worked with them. It was fun. That night we were hoping to get missionaries to go do service at a high school football game, but alas, it didn't happen. We ended up seeing some of our non members and working with them. It was really good. :)

Saturday - I had a baptism!! Not in Fontana though. Kristen, my investigator in Redlands, got baptized!! I was able to go and see that. It was a lot of fun to go and see her be baptized. Sister Bullen was with our recent convert and then still did missionary work in our area. It was fun for the sister she was with. We then tried seeing some people, and were working with them. We wrote birthday cards and delivered them. We had an amazing dinner!! It was with a family that the parents are both return missionaries. It was a lot of fun to talk with them about their missions and the experiences they had. I enjoyed it a lot. We found out that night that our less active family is moving. They are going to be out of the house that they are staying in by Wednesday. It is really sad. The kids don't want to leave Fontana, but the mom is struggling with being here. It will be really hard.

Sunday - Church!!! It is always so good :) We had our meeting at the church at 8:30, then church at 11. We then had dinner with our ward mission leader and stopped by some of our people.

This week was a really good week. I am excited to see what it going to happen this coming week!!!

I love you all so much!! Have a wonderful week!! You are all in my prayers!!!

Transfer Ten Week Two

Dear Family and Loved Ones,

This week was a pretty good week!! It was full of some interesting things :)

Monday - It was P-day!! It was also Sister Bullen's birthday, so we went shopping :) She got some new clothes, and so did I! It is nice to have new clothes, after a year you tend to need some new ones. So I got a few things, and will be able to last the rest of my mission, and later! It is nice :) We also went to a members home for a Family Home Evening, and our second dinner. :) It was a lot of fun. We celebrated Sister Bullen's birthday with them, and just had a good time. We played this game called Bluff. It is like balderdash, and was a lot of fun! Definitely some laughs were in it :)

Tuesday - We had our first district meeting. It is really different. My entire district is in the same ward. There are 3 sets of missionaries here!! How crazy is that?!? It is fun too :) It does mean some coordinating, but we are doing really well with that. It has been exciting to get things done :) We had a Relief Society Pool party, so we sat on the side of the pool, away form the water, while the sisters sat there with there feet in, and they swam. It was fun. I was able to meet a lot of the sisters that I didn't know, so it was really good :) We also helped a less active member paint her toddlers bed today :) We were changing it from white to pink :) it was fun :) We have also picked up a new investigator!! Her name is Destiny, and she is 14. She is such a sweetheart!! We met her, because her sister is a convert. She got baptized in Riverside at her Aunts house a couple of months ago. She decided that she wanted Destiny to be baptized, so we have been meeting with her! It has been exciting. She is quiet, but amazing!! Teaching her is amazing!!

Wednesday - We did a lot of service!! We helped one of our ward members who was sick clean her kitchen and then we helped one of our investigators move! It was a ton of work, but so much fun!! I actually like helping people move. I am pretty good at it, if I do say so myself :) It is fun :)

Thursday - We did more service!! We were only going to stay for a little bit, but they ended up needing more help. We were still helping our investigator move from one home to another. We had to do that, then our phone broke, so we had to go to Highland to get a new one. It is going to be really different when I am not able to go to the office and just get a new phone. That is gonna have to take some getting used too... After that, we went back to help move, then had dinner, taught Destiny again, and just had a good time! Tonight we had a funny moment. Sister Bullen was showing me that when you put whipped cream in you hand, you have then throw the whipped cream in the air by make a lifting motion, then stopping one arm at the elbow or the arm with the whipped cream in it, then it goes in the air, and you can catch it with your mouth... if you can... It was so much fun!!! She was funny to watch. You can end up getting it all over your face if you don't catch it.  :) It was funny. I said I would do it, just not then.... It was a good day :)

Friday - We did more service!! We helped one of our members organize her book closet, it was fun. :) I liked seeing all the books that she had, that I used to read/get read to when I was little. It brought back a lot of memories :) That was fun :) Then we did our weekly planning!! Yay!! It was good to get that done. I was also able to try the whip cream thing :) it was so much fun!! The first couple of times I missed and caught it with my hand, the 3rd time I accidentally threw it too hard, so it got on the ceiling.. Luckily the apartment has short ceilings :) I did clean it up. I used disinfectant wipes too :) so it is all good. Then the 4th time I caught it!! It was so fun!! I enjoyed it a lot :) We have it on video too :)

Saturday - More service!! We helped one of our members unpack some of their boxes. They had a huge flood in their kitchen, so we helped them get things back to where they were supposed to go. It was fun :) I got to know them a lot better :)

Sunday - Church!! YAY!! It was so good!! I enjoy so many things about church :) It is always nice to partake of the sacrament :)

So, this week was full of service!! It was so much fun too!!

I hope you all have a wonderful week!! I love you all so much!!! 

Hair Cut

I did, and I cut it again :) Not the best pictures in the world, but it works :) 

Transfer Ten Week One

Dear Family,

Double digits!!! I have been able to accomplish so much on my mission!! It is go exciting to see the growth in myself and in those around me! It is amazing what the Lord is doing for those I am teaching and in my family and loved ones!! Christ is truly the Son of God and is there to help all of us, no matter what we are going through. It is wonderful!!! The Atonement is truly the best gift we could all ever receive!! It is amazing!!!

Now to my week :) It was transfers and I got moved, so we did a lot of getting to know.

Monday -  I had a semi normal P-day and then at about 3 we left Redlands for Fontana!! It was then that I surprised my new companion!!! She wasn't told that I would be coming, but it all worked out :) We only had to wait for a few minutes and then things were wonderful :) We had dinner and that was about it. We went and said goodbye/hello to the members that the other Sisters wanted to see. It was a little different. I haven't been there when someone else was saying goodbye, so it was odd, but was good. I got to meet the people that I needed too.

Tuesday - We still went to say goodbye to the members for the other sister. She was having a hard time with it. She really loved this area but is needed where she is going. It was also hard for her to say goodbye and it is always hard. She will do well though. So we packed and saw people. It was good. I met some fun members, but still don't remember a lot of their names. That happens though. I did get to meet some people that we are teaching. It is fun to meet everyone and see how they are doing. :)

Wednesday - It was my first really full day. I was able to fully unpack and get things ready that I needed to do. It was good. :) We also went and taught some investigators!! I really enjoy watching these people progress, and watching how they react to the teaching of Christ. There are so many that are ready to go, and excited for the time we get to teach! There is a lot of teaching in this area and a lot of people to see. It is way fun!!

Thursday - We had weekly planning!! That is always way nice to have. It was good to be able to talk about what was going on the the area and making goals for this coming week. It is honestly amazing to see the progression!! We also picked up a new investigator today! She is an older lady named Barabra. She is so sweet!! She already has a testimony of the Book of Mormon!! It is amazing!! We also went and saw some of the sisters with the Relief Society. It is good for us to go out with the Sisters to help with their Visiting Teaching because then I get to know them!! It is fun :)

Friday - We saw people, you know, the usual. We also taught an amazing Plan of Salvation lesson today!! It is amazing to teach with Sister Bullen!! She is wonderful!! I love it!! :D  We are able to really connect with each other. I am really good at covering the doctrine in a lesson, and Sister Bullen is really good at teaching the people!! It is wonderful!! We really complement each other!! Today, Sister Bullen also got attacked by a Pit Bull. She was dropping off a birthday card, and the dog didn't like her in his territory, so he bit her. He got her leg pretty good, but she is doing great!! We went to the doctor and she got some antibiotics, which is good, so she wont get an infection. She is doing really well though!! She is such a  trooper!! :)

Saturday - We went and did service!! There are a lot of older women in the ward that have really bad health problems, so we go over and help them clean their homes :) It is honestly really fun to do. To be able to go and help these women is amazing!! I love it!! We also saw some other people and had dinner with an amazing family!! It is amazing to meet all of these wonderful families who are totally ready to do missionary work!! Love it!! :)

Sunday - We had church!! It was so good and honestly a little crazy. We had a lot of less actives there and visitors there that needed to be shown around. We were running crazy!! But is was the best kind of crazy!! Loved it!! :) We also went and met some more families. There are a lot of wonderful people in this ward, and it is amazing to get to know them!!

I still miss my other areas, but I know that this is where I need to be. Sister Bullen is amazing! She is from Arizona, and is 22 today!! :) She went to school at Dixie College, and is just wonderful!! We get along great, and are having a wonderful time!!

I love you all so much!! I hope you have an amazing week!!! Stay strong, and remember to follow the Spirit, and say your prayers!!

Love you!!!

Transfer Nine Week Six

Dear Family,

I am getting transferred!!! Again :P I am going to Fontana to serve in the Baseline ward with Sister Bullen. I have lived with Sister Bullen before and she is a sweetheart!! It is going to be fun :) This will be my 6th area with my 8th companion. :) Heavenly Father is really preparing my with change :)

This week was a slower week. Sister Morgan had a lot of departing missionary things, so I was out of my area a lot. It was good though. Things are going well :)

We had a lot of people to see but it just didn't work out quite right. It was good though, it meant putting a lot of trust in the Lord and in His plans. Things ended up working out well.

We did lots of service. I went to a farm to help weed while Sister Morgan went to the Temple and lunch with President and the other departing missionaries. I really realized that I am not a farm girl. I am totally a city girl. So weeding a farm was a little difficult. It was okay though, I did learn a lot from it. Like perseverance and that crickets can get huge!! They also can be a really pretty green color :) Watermelon plants look like weeds, but are really fuzzy and soft :) Also, when dirt dries you get a really funny tan line. :) Just some little lessons that I learned :)

We also did service for the Women of Faith. It is at the stake center but it is put on by the InterFaith Council. It is a group of people from all the different religions in the Redlands area. It is really cool. So they have put together different projects that anyone can do that help out in the community. It is really neat. This week I used my quilting skills that I learned from Mom and cut a bunch of flannel squares for the NICU at Loma Linda Hospital. It was fun to be able to be of service and use skills that I have learned. It was really fulfilling :)

This week we also made treats for some of the members in our ward. It is really fun to to that!! It helps them know that we love them and that we think and care for them. It always puts a smile on my face. It is also way fun to be able to fun to the doors and back. Sister Morgan said that she loves watching me run back to the car. She said that I always have a smile on my face. :) It is tons of fun though :)

This transfer went by so fast!! It is crazy to think that my time on my mission is coming to an end. I still have till December though!! It is a lot of fun!! I am excited to see what adventures that I will have the rest of my mission :) Everything is going to be wonderful!!

I have met some truly wonderful members here!! I am going to miss all of them, and look forward to when I get to see them again. So many have touched my life, and have helped me through a lot of things. I love them all so much! It is sad to leave, but fun to see what is next.

I love you all so much!! I hope you have a wonderful week!!

Transfer Nine Week Five

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one. We have done lots of service and have really been working with the ward.

Monday was the normal day. We did our usual: email, wash car, shop, write letters, nap. It was good. A member brought us dinner from Cafe Rio, such a good place!! I love it so much!! Then we went out and delivered cookies. They were starting to make our car smell sickly sweet. It was good though :) It was fun to do a doorbell ditch, while still doing missionary work. I enjoyed that a lot :)

Tuesday we had our last district meeting for the transfer. It was good. We talked about the new member lessons that we are implementing and really getting things to work out. We also talked a lot about studies and how to make them better. It was awesome!! Then we wrote cards and really focused on trying to help the members feel our love :) It is fun to do  :) We had dinner tonight at an all you can eat seafood buffet. It was actually really good! I got to see how to eat crab. They also had orange chicken and normal food that I would eat. It was really good. Something that I wasn't expecting to have in Redlands.

Wednesday we did more teaching and working things out. It was good. :) Spent time going to out members and just encouraging them. We taught a lesson to Kristen and are helping her get closer and closer to baptism!! Tonight we had dinner at the ward picnic!! That was a lot of fun! We really got to know the ward and really just kinda be with them. It was great!!!

Thursday was MLC, so Sister Morgan was in a meeting for most of the day. It was good. I was on exchanges with another sister. We went and tried to visit some people that we needed to visit, then we went and did service at Redlands Family Services. It is actually a lot of fun. Something that I enjoy a lot :) Then we delivered cards and we went on splits. It was good! I got to know a family that I didn't know and it was awesome!!

Friday we did weekly planning with the Sisters from the Mill Creek ward. Sister Morgan had to go there for exchanges, so she brought me. It was good. Fun to help them out. We then went and helped our Relief Society President in her kindergarten classroom. She needed help setting it all up and getting things ready for when school starts, so we were there to help her :) It was a lot of fun to help her do the things that she needed to get done :)

Saturday we did more service!! We went and helped our recent converts move from one really pretty house to another really pretty house. It was good. It was a lot of work, but I enjoyed it a lot! We also had lunch with some members and really had a good time there. This ward is really easy so to get along with. I enjoy it a lot!! We went and made invitations for the baptism that we have on the 16th of August, it was a lot of work, but they turned out great!!! Then we had dinner with another member family and had a good time there too!! This ward really is easy to get along with :) I enjoy it a lot!!!

Sunday was church :) Always a good day :) It was also Sister Morgan's departing devotional, so she did that, and I went with the Mill Creek sisters for the evening. it was all a really good day :)

I love you all so much!! Everything is truly going wonderful!! Have a great week!!!

Transfer Nine Week Four

Dear Family,

This week was a really good one :)

Monday -  It was a normal day :) Had good things happen. Saw some less actives, and delivered cards. It was good :)

Tuesday - We had zone meeting!! Learned some pretty awesome things that we are gonna start doing with the members in out ward, and get them to do missionary work!! It is also something that I can start doing when I am home!! It is amazing to see how things are going!! We found out that our mission is doing really well with baptizing. It is pretty awesome to watch our mission grow :)

Wednesday - We did service!! Went to the family services place and helped them take inventory on all their school supplies. It was really fun. We also got our car back!!! YAY!!!! We had a rental for 5 days and then got our car. It is really nice to have ours back :) We also went on ward visits today, and I was able to meet some people that I didn't know, which was nice :)

Thursday - We had weekly planning and did more service!! It is always really awesome to work for others and help them do what they need. It was really nice :) We taught Kristy! Well, kinda. We went over there and we talked a lot about needing to stop smoking. She totally committed to it and it went really well. It was fun to meet with her :)

Friday - Met with some members and then we went on a field trip! Had to go to Anaheim for a doctors appointment, and it was a lot of fun!! President Van Cott drove us and it was really good to get to know him better. He used to buy the property for Wonder Bread, so he drove around there. It kinda felt like riding in the car with dad or grandpa having them tell us about what they did in areas and showing us them. It was really neat.

Saturday - We went to a ward members home and made cookies!! It was really good service. We had a fun time getting to know them. We made the cookies to take to those that we know are having a hard time and those that just need some encouragement. We are also taking them to people that we don't really know :) It is cool :) We also taught Kristy!! She is progressing awesome!! She is still struggling with overcoming smoking, but is doing great!! We had a member there and they clicked!! Everything that Kristy had been feeling, our member had too!! The member is a convert and it was amazing!! Such a great lesson!!!

Sunday - Fast Sunday!! It was good. We met with a recent convert family today and we also had dinner at a members home, who invited some other recent converts to dinner. It was really good to help them build relationships with those around them. :)

That was our week!! It rained!!! It was fun to have the storms. It did mean having a  spider the size of a quarter in our home though... that wasn't fun... luckily there are some awesome members who come and save the day when we need them too :)

It was awesome!! I hope you all have a great week too!! Love you!!!

Transfer Nine Week Three

Dear Family and Friends,

This week has been a good one, with lots of happy experiences :)

Monday - It was P-day, and my Birthday!! :D It was a fun day. I was able to talk to the family and then we went shopping, got Coldstone, it was really yummy, and then did the normal house things. We did laundry and I wrote letters and stuff :) That night was tons of fun! We had dinner with the Pratt Family. They are an amazing family!! They also made my birthday extra special :) When we got there they had decorated the table and chairs with birthday decorations and they also made a cake!!! :) It was so pretty!! It was just the girls, so we had a wonderful evening :) They are an older family and their daughter makes wedding cakes, so it was really really pretty :) I am going to post pictures :) That night we also went to a retirement facility, and had a family home evening with the older people there :) It was really special and sweet. I enjoyed it a lot :)

Tuesday - We had district meeting, and did our normal things. It was a really good day. That night, our dinner had forgotten about us so she didn't have any food. It was okay though, the Pratt's had given me a Subway gift card, so we got subway to eat for dinner :) It was good. We also taught the Price family. We read 3 Nephi 17. It was amazing!! They loved how Christ prayed for the people and how He wept. It is amazing to feel the love in this chapter. He cares for all of us and weeps for all of us. It is really special.

Wednesday - We lost our car!! We were going to go drop Sister Hetrick (two week missionary) off at the mission office and when we went to start the car it wouldn't start... So, after some juggling with ways to get to the mission office we finally showed up, just almost 1 hour late, but we were there! Our car had to get towed to the dealership to get fixed, and so we walked the rest of the day. It was a little crazy. We also were able to go to the temple and preform a little service project. There was a sister missionary serving in the Rancho mission who got to have a really wonderful experience. Her dad was baptized about a year ago and they are from Florida. Well, they had gotten special permission to come all the way to California and be sealed as a family together. It was really neat. We were asked to sit with the non-member Grandmother and just be there if she had any questions. It was really nice to just sit in the temple and feel the love of the Savior and be there for that family. It was very special. After wards we went to Kristy's home and taught her and Jay the Gospel of Jesus Christ. My testimony grows every time I teach that lesson. It was really wonderful :)

Gift from Mom and Dad sent through ward members

Thursday - We had weekly planning and then did exchanges. I went to Beaumont and spent from 2:00 on Thursday to 2:00 on Friday there. It was good. It made me realize that I am exactly where I needed to be. I am where I will feel the most comfortable. It was really nice. It was fun to be there. We didn't teach a lot but it was good to just see how other missionaries do things :)

Friday - After we exchanged back we still didn't have a car. We did find out though that if we didn't have our car fixed that Toyota would pay for a rental car for us. It was very sweet of them :) We did a lot of situation everything and just reviewing what we learned from the exchange.

Saturday - We got a rental car!! YAY!! It is a very beautiful 2014 Toyota Corolla. It is amazing!! I have decided that I will never ever drive as nice of a car as I have on my mission. I am preparing myself for when I get back home :P We are also helping Kristy stop smoking, so we went and dropped off candy and cinnamon gum to help her with that. It  was really good. We were able to talk with her and see how she is doing. We had written sticky notes with scriptures on them and we posted them all over her home. Well, she decided that she was going to read them (that was the point of them) and that she was going to write on the back of them what she learned from them. It is amazing!! She is an amazing investigator!!

Sunday - We had church and did the normal things. It was good :) We also had an amazing lesson with one of our recent converts!! It was wonderful!!

This week was a good one. I am so grateful for what Heavenly Father has given me and for the opportunity I have to be a missionary, and to learn so much. It is amazing!!

I love you all so much!! Have a wonderful week!!

Transfer Nine Week Two

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one. We had lots of different experiences that were lots of fun :)

Monday - P-day!! Woot woot!! We did the normal, then had a really fun dinner with members :) It was good to talk about missionary work, and about what they can do to just be better friends to those around them. It was really good :) I did get a lot of letters written, and Sister Morgan and Sister Hetrick both got a 3 hour nap. it was good :)

Tuesday - It was a crazy day! We had district meeting, and we talked a lot about the missionary purpose. It was a really good district meeting. I learned that I need to recommit myself to all of this. It will be good though. I am excited for what is to come!! It will be good :) We also had dinner with a recent convert :) She made us amazing homemade pizza!! It was way good! We had pepperoni, and we had a chicken pesto pizza. They were amazing!! :) It was great!!

Wednesday - We did service for a non-member. We are helping her go through all of her old papers and sorting them. It was good :) We also picked up a new investigator!!! It was amazing!! We went over to teach Kristy and Jay, and when we got there Kristy had another friend, Nicole, there :) Nicole also wants to learn more about the gospel, so we are going to teach her!! It was so exciting!!! :) We also had a birthday dinner!! Sister Hetrick celebrated her 18th birthday with us, and we let the family that we were eating with know :) It was fun to have that with her :)

Thursday - We did weekly planning, and 4 hours of service!! :) After weekly planning we went to Redland's family services. It is a place where they get clothes and food, and then distribute them to those who need them and who don't have enough. Think DI and Bishop store house combined :) It was really good to help out. We organized clothes, hangers, and just cleaned up the place for when they opened :) It was really good. We are going there on a weekly basis to help them out :)

Friday - We spent time preparing for the baptism on Saturday!! It was a birthday of one of our members, so we went and took him a cupcake. He is an older man who has dementia. He is really sweet though :) It was good to be with him. He enjoyed the cupcake, then shared one of his birthday treats with us :) He had gotten an edible arrangement and wanted to share with us. It was really sweet :) We also taught a recent convert and a returning less active. It was fun :) We were able to help them all with the gospel and strengthen them spiritually :) It was nice :)

Saturday -  It was our pioneer day celebration!!! We went to the park and had breakfast with the Stake, then just spent time there. We were able to see our recent converts and I was able to see those that I hadn't seen in a long time!! It was so good!!! I got to see Kellie and Tyler again. It was amazing!! I missed them so much, so it was way good to see them :) We then went and got ready for our baptism!!! It was fun to do that. It was stressful, so I was glad when it was over, but it was also really, really nice. :) Something that was spiritual and we had a good time :) We also had waffles for dinner :) Breakfast for dinner really is the best thing ever!! It was wonderful :)

Sunday - It was church!! We also wrote cards and delivered them. Then we had a really interesting dinner... I have never eaten anything like it before.... Now, let's think. What is a land animal that has a had shell. It curls into a ball when it is scared... have you guessed it yet?? If not, let me tell you... Armadillo!! Yup, I had armadillo for dinner :) It was actually pretty good. Sweeter that pulled pork, which we also had. And it was saltier. It was really good :) I actually really enjoyed it :) We also had a recent convert lesson. All of our lessons in church were about pioneers. So, we decided to help our convert with that. She didn't quite understand what a pioneer was, so we watched the Restoration movie with her. It was amazing!!! I love the new one that we have. It was amazing!! She really understood why we have pioneers and learned more about Joseph Smith. It was really good :)

The pictures are of our armadillo :) 

This week was good :) Stressful with the baptism, but really rewarding :)

I love you all so much!! I hope you have a wonderful week!!

Transfer Nine Week One

Dear Family,

This week was actually a really good one :)

Monday - It was P-day!! We found out we were getting transferred, so that day was spent doing lots and lots of other things than the normal ones. We emailed, washed the car, shopped and packed. It was fun. I was able to get all of my stuff mostly done, which was nice. It was hard to pack, but I have done it a lot so it wasn't too bad :) We then started to say goodbye to the ward members. It meant lots of driving and a lot of coordinating for us. It was good though. We were able to have dinner with the Cotton's, so that was fun :) It was just a great day! We really got to see the ones that we have come to love. It was good :)

Tuesday - We had Zone Meeting and went over what President wants us to know. It was good. Got to know what to do at transfers and just went over missionary stuff. It was good :) We also said goodbye to more people. It was a pretty crazy day for us, but a really good one :) We have been blessed to be able to see the people that we do love. It was nice :)

Wednesday - We woke up early, finished packing, getting ready for the day and then dropping off the last minute things before we left. It was a little crazy, but a good day :) We then went to the office for transfers. Took us about 1 hour to get there, then we had to find the people we needed and head to our new areas. It was a little crazy though. The car that I was supposed to take to get Sister Morgan was supposed to go somewhere else. It was crazy!!! Long story short, I ended up not getting to my area or my companion until about 11. Then, we didn't have a car and Sister Morgan has a broken toe... It was a little crazy. Also, we are in a trio!! They do something really neat here. They do mini-missions. So, we have a two week missionary. :) It is fun :) She is just about to turn 18 and is a sweetheart. It is enjoyable :) Kinda different. It is amazing what just 2 years does between people. I feel so grown up. It is funny :) We had dinner with the Hall's that night, who are awesome. They are one of the families that I knew before. It is weird to be back in an area that I have already served in. Just kinda different. :) That night we were at the church, so I got to see some of the people that I served with in the Singles Ward. It was fun. I am just seeing people that I used to see all the time now :) It is fun :)

Thursday - TODAY WAS AMAZING!!!! I honestly had a happy day, which was great!! :D We had weekly planning, which actually went well. We then went and did service. The mission is now doing a service thing, where we have to do 10 hours of service a day. It is fun :) So, we did that. We went and marked scripture mastery in Book of Mormons. We were just doing it and then were told where they are going. One of the prisons here in the area have requested Mormon Bibles. It is fun :) I knew that missionary work happened in prisons, but it was fun to see how much the work of the Lord is progressing. It was exciting to hear. Well, then we had a killer lesson!! It was amazing!! We are teaching two investigators. Kristy and Jay. They live together, but aren't together. More like roommates. It is a different situation. But it works :) Well, we had members there and it was truly amazing!!! It was so good to teach!! The Spirit was so strong and it was just amazing!!! I came out of there basically on a Spiritual High :) It was awesome!! I haven't been able to feel that good in a long time, it was great!!! We then had a very rushed dinner with the Papworth's, who are fun :) There are some amazing people here :) Very kind :) We then had splits with the members. I was able to go and get to know a couple of the members. It was awesome!!! There really are some great people here!!! That night, President called. I wasn't expecting a call, but he just wanted to see how I was doing. It was really sweet :)  He was calling to just check up on me and make sure that all was going well. :) It was cool :)

Friday - We were able to go and write cards for members!! That is another thing that we do now. We go and write cards to the members to invite them to things and to just say thank you :) It is pretty awesome :) Then we did service for this Indian lady. She was so sweet!! She needed help organizing things and so we were there to help her :) It was fun :) Then we went and taught Callie. She is an investigator who is getting baptized the 19th of July!! It is pretty awesome!!! We have to finish teaching her the lessons and then we are just going to keep going and see how it all goes :) It is pretty cool :)

Saturday - We went and made cards at a park and got more organized. It was a good thing to do. Then we went and made baptismal invites. It was good, and exciting to go :) I enjoyed it a lot :) We also taught Kristy and Jay again. It was a good lesson, not quite as bomb as the first one, but still a good lesson :) It was another good day :)

Sunday -  It was church!! We had a good Sunday :) We had church, and Kristy and Jay both came. We also went and had dinner with a great family :) Everything is just going really really well :) it was good :)

This week was good :) I am excited to be here :)

Sister Morgan is my companion, and she has 5 weeks left of her mission. She is a sweetheart, and just wonderful :) She has been in the Prospect Park Ward for 1 year. Which is a really really long time, but it is fun for her :) It is just exciting :) I am happy to be here and to work with her again :) Something that I have enjoyed :)

I love you all so much!! I hope you have a great week!!!!

Transfer Eight Week Six

Dear Family and Friends,

This week was good. We have done a lot of less active work, and have seen lots of families that we care about!! :)

Monday - We did our normal p-day routine. Just did the things we needed to do for the rest of the week, which was good :) We had dinner with the Matthews, which are a great family!! They have 3 girls and one baby boy :) it is fun to have dinner with them :) We then went and met with the Bagley's at Wendy's, and spent a little time talking with them before they left for a trip :) That was fun :) Then we went to the Ricketson's, and spent some time there strengthening them and helping them to have the Spirit :) It was good :)

Tuesday - We had district meeting and learned more about how to get investigators to church. It is still a big struggle but if we can start convincing them correctly they should come :) It is all about following the Spirit on that one :) Then we saw the Ricketson's and taught their daughter and son the Restoration. It was fun :) We are working on teaching more simply :) It should be good :)

Wednesday - We met with Michelle and helped strengthen her. She was going through a hard time, so we helped her with that :) She is really sweet, so it was good :) We also tried to see some others but that didn't happen. It was good though :) We had dinner with the Rees family and they are amazing!! They have done so much for me and it has been great working with them :) It is good :) Then we met with the Verduzco family and taught them the Restoration. Or rather their son taught and we asked questions :) It was good :) Then we went and saw the Gonzalez family. They are a family that has all girls in the house :) Kinda reminds me of home :) It was fun to talk with them and to help them :) Had a good time :)

Thursday - It was a normal working day instead of weekly planning. We did service for a member, by helping her organize her craft room. She had a ton of stuff, so it was fun :) She does stampin up, so she had that stuff too. It was fun to see what she had, that mommy has or did have. It was exciting :) We also taught the Ricketson's the Plan of Salvation. It was good. We had a hard time teaching it simply, but it was good :) Then we had dinner at a less active home. We are the first missionaries to be invited to their home for dinner, so that was good!! We had shrimp that was wrapped in bacon and cheese, then we had steak (which was amazing) green beans, mushrooms and eggplant. It was a good meal. I tried things that I hadn't really had before, so that was good :) Turns out I like mushrooms and eggplant, if it is cooked correctly :) It was good :)

Friday - It was the Fourth of July!! Yay!! We spent the morning doing service, then the rest of the day until dinner either in the apartment, or at urgent care. I had a cold all week and started to get a lot of sinus pressure, so we were doing things to help with that, then I started wheezing, and that wasn't going away, so we went to urgent care. I am okay, now I have antibiotics and an inhaler in case I need it. Then we had dinner at the Ricketson's and then where in by 6 and did weekly Planning. It was a good day :) Had some hard things, but still good :)

Saturday - We tried seeing people and taking care of the things we had to do because of the ward split. We saw the Rees family and spent some time with them :) It was fun. Exciting to be with her and talk with her :) She is amazing!! Then we had dinner with the Verduzco's and had ribs, and baked potatoes :) It was good :) Then we went to the Ricketson's and taught another lesson to the kids. We also found out that night about transfers. Which was good, because then we could tell people on Sunday. Fun stuff :)

Sunday - We had to go to all 3 wards. But luckily they were each only 1 hour :) it was good. Found out who the new bishopric was and how things get to start rolling. We spent the time in between talking and letting people know that we were getting transferred. It was good. Hard to say that we were leaving to some families and it will be hard to go, but this is God's plan :) Then we had dinner with the Schneider's, and let them know that we were leaving. We also saw the Sterling's. They are an amazing family!! She is a strong sister and has helped us a lot on our missions. She gives great advice and is a sweetheart :) It was good to be with her :)

If you haven't guessed, I am being transferred. I am going to Redlands, to serve in the Prospect Park ward with Sister Morgan. It will be fun, and I am excited!! It is hard to leave those I have been with, but it will be good.

The desert is my second longest area, so that will be hard. I will forever remember it here. it was a great place to serve, and wonderful people to serve with. :)

I hope you all have a great week!! I love you all so much!!! <3 

Transfer Eight Week Five

Dear Family,

This week was a pretty good one. We were trying new things, and are working on applying lessons that we have learned.

Monday - We had P-day. We went to a less actives home, and did our laundry there, and just relaxed at her home :) It was nice not to have to stress so much. We had dinner with her too, so that was good :) That night we met with the Bagley's who just got home from a trip to Nauvoo. It was amazing to hear what they learned. :)

Tuesday - We had District meeting, and that went well. We talked a lot about how to plan. I have been struggling with that, and so it was good to ask questions on it :) I learned a lot and finally know how to really plan :) We also had interviews with President Van Cott, and we talked a lot. He is going to be helping me with a few things. We talked about trying harder to not spend so much time with members. We have set the goal to only spend 15-30 mins at members homes. It will be challenging, but it will be good :) We had dinner with a great sister named Sister Bailey and she is awesome!! Love her!!!

Wednesday - We taught a lesson in the morning. It was with the Acosta family who it less active, but we decided to work with them. We found out that their 13 year old daughter isn't a member, so guess who picked up a new investigator :) That's right, we did!! It was great!! We also taught our other investigator that day, and is was amazing! It was nice to get some work in :)

Thursday - we had weekly planning, and then worked on getting area maps. We are trying to split our area into smaller area's so that we could walk a  little bit more and not waste miles. It was good. we had dinner with a great family. They made burgers, potato salad, and watermelon with smoothies. Then for dessert we had ice cream sundae's :) It was good :) We also had a lesson with a less active in our ward. She also gave us a bunch of stuff :) They had coupons and tons of housekeeping stuff and gave us a bunch. It was good :)

Friday - We saw a less active Sister and are going to be trying to visit with her weekly. We also decided to write cards to all of the auxiliaries in our wards. Just thank you's for all that they have done it was good :) We then had a lesson with Sister Bailey and watched the Joseph Smith - Prophet of the Restoration movie with her. We had to leave a little early, but it was still good :)

Saturday - We were on exchanges. That was rough but good. I had the other Sister take the lead in a lot of things. So that was fun :) It was a long day though. We also found out today that our wards are splitting. They are breaking the Bermuda Dunes ward and the Santa Rosa ward in half, both of them, and creating an entirely new ward. It is crazy!! So right at this moment, I am covering 3 wards. The Bermuda Dunes Ward, the Santa Rosa Ward, and the Shadow Hills Ward. It was/is crazy!!!

Sunday - We had Stake conference again. It was good. they talked a lot about adversity and how to overcome it. It was good. They shared an essay written by a boy. It was really good, and titled "The Room". You should all get online and read it. It is amazing!!! We have decided though that we are going to have to do a lot of repair work. The wards are both really sad because of the split. This week we are going to be working on getting them excited for the change and what this means. We are hoping that it gets better. It is exciting for us :)

Next week is transfers! I hope everyone has a great week!!! I love you all so much! You are in my prayers!!

Oh this is cool :)

(\    /)
 (=+=)       <== It is a bunny!!!

Transfer Eight Week Four

Dear Family,

This week was pretty good. I don't really remember all that truly happened, so bear with me :)

Monday - We had our normal P-day routine, and tried to get everything done. We also had an appointment with Michelle, who is a recent convert, and talked to her about scripture study, and how important it is to study your scriptures daily. It was really neat :)

Tuesday - Had district meeting, and learned all the things that we need to do as missionaries. Sometimes I like it, and sometimes I don't. It is all good though :) We also went and walked around a park with less actives that we are meeting with. It was a lot of fun :)

Wednesday - Made lots of phone calls, and were really trying hard to get things done. We were able to meet with Carlos again, and strengthen him more. It was good :) We also had a meeting with the Correnti's. It was just a good day.

Thursday - We had weekly planning, and worked on getting that done quickly. It was good. Once that was done, we went and helped with the wedding of our Bishop's oldest daughter. We helped with setting up lights, and then went to help cook treats at a non-members home. We also had a Relief Society activity that night on temples, and made temple bracelets. They are just beaded bracelets that have a clip on them so that when you go through an endowment session you can clip the name you have to your wrist and not have to worry about losing it. I am excited to use it :) We then worked more on the wedding prep.

Friday - We were on exchanges today. We also saw lots and lots of people!! It is amazing the miracles that happen on exchanges. We were able to teach 6 lessons today, which hasn't happened in months. It was great! We also got a new investigator!! It was amazing! Her name is Sister Bales and she wants the peace that the gospel can bring. :) It is exciting!!

Saturday - We did service today!! We helped a recent convert family clean windows and prepare their house just in case they were going to move. It was fun to help them. We also had dinner with the Correnti's at IHOP, which was fun :) It was a good day.

Sunday - It was the Sabbath!! We were able to go to church. It was good. Sister Kelly gave a talk in the Santa Rosa ward, so I was in Bermuda Dunes today. It was great though, Sister Ricketson came to church!! She hasn't been in months and it was so good to have her there!! She said that she is going to be coming more often!! It is awesome!! We met with her that night, she wants to go back to the temple and is going to get there. She said that she wants the happiness again. She also said that she was reading her scriptures daily, even with out us asking her to. It is great!!

That was my week. Nothing extremely exciting, but doing what the Lord has asked, and getting things done as he would have them done :) It was fun.

I hope you all have a great week!! I love you!!!