For unto us a child is born!

Hello everyone! it was a good week of service! Holidays can be rough for finding but the Lord was merciful and filled our days with opportunities to light our little corner of Florida! I can't believe it's Christmas Eve. It just started to really feel like Christmas today. And tomorrow I get to talk to my FAMILY!!!!!! YAYAYAYAYAYAYA. I miss them bunches and bunches. It's going to be a good day.

Highlights!! (Gifts from Heavenly Father)

~We got to paint this ladies house. And let me tell you I love painting it's so relaxing and satisfying. So that was a nice little blessing. Plus we got to help this young mom out getting her house prepped for Christmas.

~We did a lot of sorting at the Education foundation. We organized and sorted through 17 huge boxes and it felt awesome.

~Alex had his baptismal interview so he'll be getting baptized Saturday!!! We're so excited! There is such a sweet spirit with him and we're so grateful we get to help their amazing family get one step closer to becoming eternal.

~Less of a highlight... We tried to baptisms with Marilyn... but we were 15 minutes late and the temple people didn't wait for us so we missed all of it... :( But we got to help her do family history and are going to get her some family names so we can go again!

~We went caroling as a district on Saturday night and it was the best!! We caroled to members and nonmembers alike and everyone was so excited to see us. We stopped by the Stake President and they were having a party so they let us in and gave us pie and hot chocolate. It was awesome! We made some people cry and gave everyone our cards. Our district is the best. Hands down.

~We had a Christmas Devotional with our half of the mission on Friday where they had lots of musical numbers and a big testimony meeting and it was amazing. We have some incredible missionaires in our mission. Their testimonies were powerful. And it dumbfounded me how there are missionaries all over the world with that much spirirual power. Wow this gospel is so true.

~We found a cool family to teach! We've been working through the members for a couple weeks. First they invited them to the Ward Christmas party and they enjoyed it. Then we had them invite the family to Dinner when we were also coming. Then they invited them to the Christmas Sacrament meeting today and we asked if we could come to their home sometimes and share a message with them and they said yes!! So we're really excited. They have 4 girls. They're going to fit in so nicely. 

~We did more caroling with some members and we stopped by another couple we are teaching and they came a long with us! So they also have a lot of potential.

~Our special sacrament meeting was.... special... lol. It was slightly unorganized so there were some road bumps and bishop got up to speak at the end but it wasn't the end yet. So he sat down. And then they forgot to choose a closing hymn so Bishop made an executive decision... But I got to Sing O Holy Night on request of the Stake Patriarch... and when he asks you to do something... you do it. And it was much better this time now that I wasn't sick. Shoutout to Sister Casey my page turner!! (She likes to get recognition too, couldn't do it without you boo!) 

~Also another non-highlight.. Our cute Ron who was supposed to be a temple worker one day totally got anti-ed and bashed us hardcore.. He wouldn't stop texting us... But oh well that's missionary work.

Merry Christmas everyone!! I hope you have the best day ever! I love you all! Remember to give a gift to our Savior this year. "The greatest gift we could give to the Lord at Christmas, or at any other time, is to keep ourselves unspotted from the world, worthy to attend His holy temple. And His gift to us will be the peace of knowing that we are prepared to meet Him, whenever that time comes." President Russell M. Nelson.

What will the agnostics do?...go make crafts!

My subject line today comes to you from our dear Marilyn. She previously identified as agnostic and also thinks the majority of the world is agnostic. She's a nut haha. We showed her the "Dare to be a Mormon" video where President Monson is in the Navy and all of the different religions get divided into different camps. And afterwards she goes, "all of the agnostics would've been standing there still and would've been like.. what do we do? Let's go make crafts!" But she said it in a British accent which made it funnier and we were just dying. Also earlier in the week she told us she only had 3 days left of being agnostic and we're like "Marilyn, you wouldn't have passed your interview if you were agnostic" Good times.

Highlights of the week!!

~Marilyn was baptized!! It was so special. She wanted to be baptized in a dress which we had because it was cuter... it was also pretty sheer... but all was well. In the lesson we had the day before we asked her to bear her testimony for us and all she said was "I know this is true because it makes me happy" Super simple, so powerful. I got the chills. Her parents came to support her and they really liked the service. She felt very welcomed and the spirit was so strong. 

~We had Zone Conference which I had to do the musical number and give a breakout session training while my voice sounded like a man. I got a sore throat a few days before and although it wasn't painful anymore it was pretty raspy. Plus I was congested and couldn't hear... But President Clark thought it was awesome so that's all that mattered. Our training was on bearing testimony in the first contact and it was awesome. I love the different dynamics of the groups of missionaries. I'm always so impressed watching them roleplay and listening to their testimonies.

~ We had the ward Christmas party which was a blast! I was the background pianist for when they read the Nativity. All of the little girls were in love with baby Jesus. I seriously love our ward so much. They feel just like family and they show us so much love. I honestly could stay here forever.

~ We taught the coolest guy named Ron. The minute we met him we felt the spirit super strong. After talking to him for a little bit I thought to myself "this guy needs to be a temple worker" He taught at a Lutheran School for many years and has kinda drifted away from their teachings but still has a super strong testiomony. He was really excited about our message and the Book of Mormon. There are some doctrinal issues that he mentioned... but once he receives a confirmation from the spirit it won't be a problem.

~We've been so busy that we haven't been able to do hardly any finding this week... but the one time we did we had a cool experience. We had like 20 minutes and we decided to track down that guy that randomly showed up at the church a few weeks ago. He answered the door and told us his father had passed away yesterday. This week I'd been studying how the Atonement helps us overcome physical death and my daily goal was to testify of the Plan of Salvation every chance I got. So we asked if we could say a prayer with their family and the spirit was very strong. I felt like we were truly instruments in God's hands. 

~Today we got to entertain like 3 children during sacrament meeting. It's honestly my favorite thing to play with the kids. I keep toys in my bag for that purpose. And now all of the ward kids idolize us. After all of the meetings the kids will always come up to us and hug us and show us things and want to take us places. I love it. We feel kinda like super heroes.

~So our zone was recruited to sing a number for our stake Christmas music devotional and I was enlisted to direct it and lemme tell ya I have never been more stressed. We showed up at the church to practice and they guy they got to accompany us was Brazilian and mostly spoke Portuguese. He was super talented but wasn't playing the accompaniment. He was kinda doing some fancy improvising thing to O come O come Emmanuel. I just stood there and I was like "I have no idea how to direct this" but the spirit directed and we just went for it and it was half decent. And those that don't read music had no idea. I sang O Holy Night and it went well! I didn't cough so I'm proud of myself. And all of the cute Hispanic people kept coming up to me and saying "congratulations" ....for having a good voice I guess? It was cute.

So it was a great week!!! I love this Christmas season. How are you all going to light the community this week?!? We're going to be helping with a toy drive it's going to be great!

Desperate Investigators S1E3 Remington Apartments

Our subject line comes from the reality TV show that Sister Casey and I are creating for the kinda ratchet apartment complex that we're teaching people at. That's where Jan and Lisa live and we've met a couple other crazy friends and we just got a referral the other day and guess where he lives? Remington apartments. And he messaged us and was like we'll have to meet at the pavillion there's a lot of drama at this complex. And we're like "oh Ron we know all about Susan" in our heads. it's so funny. Anyways so we know exactly how the pilot episode is going to go and it's TOO GOOD PEOPLE. soo good.

Anywho.. it's been another amazing week at the creek! It's now officially December holy cow!! Some highlights for you!

~Alex Breton who is the husband of a member is now on date for December 29th! We had such a powerful lesson on the Gospel of Jesus Christ and when his wife was praying to help us set a date with him she started crying and expressing gratitude for his decision. It was amazing. I love the gospel so much!! And he's going to be getting baptized the same day as his 8 year old nephew. When we asked him if that date was ok he was like "yeah well if that's easier for everyone to be there, and we can save on water and everything. If he wants it to be his day though we can move it the week earlier or later it doesn't matter." We were just beaming the whole time.

~We took Marilyn on a temple tour and she loved it! She kept telling everyone she was getting baptized but she does it in the cutest way. She keeps saying "I decided I want to stay" She is a completely different person now. It's amazing. She'll be baptized on Saturday!! Woowoo! 

~ Light the World is now a thing and it's my favorite!! It's so easy to talk to people about it and everyone is so friendly and accepting. We've only gone out a few times but we've met some really cool people from it.

~One of those occasions Sister Casey and I decided to pray and see where the spirit was guiding us and we looked at the map and we chose dots in the exact same neighborhood! It's taken me a second to figure out the whole finding by the spirit thing, but it's super cool and we met Janet who wants us to help her with her decorating. 

~For the day of Service we met up with this awesome lady Sister Fiengo and we made spagetti and meatballs for homeless people. Not at any shelter or anything we just drove the streets and gave it to anyone we saw. It was kinda fun going homeless people hunting? ahh... 

~I went on exchanges with my homegirl Sister Fehrenbacker from the MTC. it was her first exchange ever and it was a blast! We got to go visit Rosie who we both served around and Rosie was ecstatic to see us! She's so funny. It was a good day!

~So not a highlight.... but everytime I have to sing at an event or anything.. I always get sick before... So this week I'm singing at Zone Conference, Marilyn's Baptism, The ward Christmas party and the Stake music devotional and I get a sore throat! Ugh.... I think it's the Lord trying to remind me that it was him that gave me the voice and I need to be humble about it. So I'm just chugging water, repenting and taking my vitamins hoping that I'm better tomorrow. It's not too bad.. but it could be better. 

~Also our ward council is hilarious. Oh my it's good to be in there so I can know how to maybe like lead an auxillary one day... but yeah I just get a kick out of these adults just being so sassy. 

Everyone go check out Light the World!! It's amazing and when we can all unite together we can see miracles!!! Love you all and let me know how you're serving and any cool miracle stories. Matthew 5:25.

I love you mucho mucho...gobble gobble

Where did my subject line come from you may ask? You guessed it! From a very long voicemail we recieved from our crazy member Rosie who is in a rest home. She called us on Thanksgiving and left like a 3 minute voicemail about how much she loved us and what food she wanted us to bring her and a random song that she sang to us. Pretty sure she was heavily medicated. But she's a hoot and we love her. And we definitely visited her because her son doesn't ever... :(

Anyways.. It was a good week! I was kinda nervous about it because literally everyone we were teaching was out of town or busy because of the Holidays. And so we had a lot of free time.. But somehow the Lord filled it! And it was nice because when people called us asking for help we were able to. I hope that's what I can be like when I get home. Ready to drop anything to help out. So we did a ton of service! And I was well taken care of for Thanksgiving. It wasn't quite like home but it was nice to be able to minister to others instead of to myself. But I still definitely ate a lot of food so don't worry I still treated myself. ;)

Highlights!

~We did lots of "heart attacking" at nights because it is always hard to go finding when it's dark and we couldn't get appointments. So we cut out a ton of hearts and stuck them on the doors of investigators and member families. It was super fun. We did J-, L-, and F- all at the same time and so we'd knock and run then do the next one and knock and run. Fred came out and thought it was hilarious and he watched us do Jan's. They loved it. 

~ While we were teaching M-at the church this guy came up to the windows and started looking inside... it was kinda weird so we went over and asked how we could help him. He said he was looking for a church and we're like " you found the right one!!" We told him a little bit about it and he said that he wanted to come! He didn't. But we have his address so we're going to hunt him down LOL. I've never had that happen so it was good.

~ I was feeling a little discouraged because we hadn't been able to find some people to teach recently but we had a cool story! This teenager we met a few weeks ago messaged us from a passalong card we gave him. He didn't really say what he wanted but he eventually said he'd be open to learning more and we set up an appointment with him and then he brought a friend! They were so cool! Both in high school. They already have a church but they really liked the message we shared and at the end we asked them what it would mean if this church was true and Stephen said "well I guess I would have to be Mormon." So we're super pumped about it. Guess what street Cameron lives on? Latter-day court. Go figure.

~We got to deliver turkeys to some less fortunate families so that was really fun. We went to a former investigator family and a less active member.

~ I'm super grateful that my mom made me learn to play the piano when I was younger because I get enlisted a lot. I have recently been accompanying the ward choir and it's actually a blast. I also acquired a keyboard so I can practice and play some songs after hours. Oh how I missed playing!! One of the little boys in the ward who's like 11 is so cute! He told me "Sister Grant, I think if they gave awards for being the best piano player, it would be you." Awwww. I think he kinda has a crush on me but it's adorable.  

~ We made little Thanksgiving cards and gave it to people in the rest home to brighten their day just a little bit more. They were all very sweet.

~ We had a Thanksgiving breakfast with our district and then had district meeting outside. It's still in the upper 70's here and it's Beautiful!!! Almost a little too hot haha..

~We were able to teach A- this week and he's getting closer to baptism. We talked a ton about eternal families. His wife is a member and she really wants to be sealed in the temple. And that's something he wants too. He's just a little intimidated by all of the responsibility. But he's getting there. 

I wanted to share some things that I'm grateful for today. I mean I could go on for pages but the most important things:

1. The Atonement of Jesus Christ. It is so central to everything in this world and everything that our gospel is about. It has gotten me through many, MANY hard days and helped me overcome weaknesses and I'm eternally grateful for that.

2. My FAMILY because they are amazing and show so much love for me even this far away. I'm especially grateful for eternal families.

3. I'm grateful I chose to serve a proselyting mission instead of a performing arts mission. Even though it would've been amazing to be in Nauvoo, I know I wouldn't have been able to meet all the amazing people I've met here and helped so many in their journey back to Christ. It really sucks some days, but I know that it's worth it. 

4. I'm grateful for technology. I would literally die without it. Some times I think we take it for granted. I can not imagine being a missionary without technology and I give major props to all that are.

5. Florida!!! Ugh this is the promised land. It is literally paradise. Ok the summer was rough but now we're moving into the most beautiful time of the year. I'm so lucky.

Put some South in your mouth!!

Hello everyone!! It's been a week. Yeet. Some days missionary work just gets ya, ya know? Sometimes I forget that we came to earth to experience hard things. But it's a sign of growth, and I probably needed it because Heavenly Father had been spoiling us lately..

Before anyone freaks out and wonders what on earth happened... it wasn't even that bad we just had multiple days in a row where literally EVERYONE and their dog cancelled on us. And we weren't super sure where we were supposed to go and we had some SUPER awkward contacts and no one wanted the gospel... ahh... such is missionary life though. I know poor me. Naw I'm good it was just a little hiccup.

Highlights though!! 

~We did not get yelled at by anyone.. mostly.. this one lady was kinda salty but for a good reason.

~We had some bomb FHE's with members that didn't cancel so that was fun. We're slowly building a children army of cute Primary kids that love us.

~We did the activity for Young Women's. We did "missionary minute-to-win-it" It was a blast and the girls had a good time!

~ We had a good district meeting with a pizza lunch. Props to Elder Bowden for saving the Dominoes his mom sent him.

~ We got J- and L- on date for January 19th!!! That was definitely the biggest highlight!!! they are so cute and funny! L- talks like a smoker and Jan has a New Yorker accent but they're homies and they just love us. I think we've been adopted as their granddaughters. And their friend Fred who introduced us might baptize them if we can help him work up the confidence!

~ We taught M- twice this week and she's coming a long!!! We had some super cool youth come with us to teach and they're getting pumped about missionary work.

~ We went down to the quirkiest restaurant owned by a member in this little town at the very bottom of our area that we never get to called Kenansville. It's only got like one restaurant and maybe 2 gas stations. And a hotel that apparently Elvis stayed at. Go figure. Anyways we ate at the one restaurant owned by the members and she asked if she could "fix us up a plate" And I had the most Southern meal of my life. For appetizers, Fried green tomatoes, swamp cabbage, coleslaw, cheese grits and hush puppies and for the main course: catfish, shrimp, turtle, gator and frog legs!!! I have never eaten a frog before!!! It still looks like a frog. It was insane. It was super tasty though and it was quite the experience.

~We helped out in primary yesterday and I have never seen anyone be so excited to see us! It was the most adorable thing ever. Ugh I love kids. We felt like celebrities. It's just a nametag, people haha.

dog walking paid off!!!

Hello what a week. It just keeps flying by so fast.... I just realized that I've been in Canoe Creek for a month now and it only feels like a week. Super weird... But the Lord is raining down his blessin's on us!!! Our teaching pool has gone from 2-9 since we've been here so it's like quadrupled! Not hard to do when you only have 2 people but still we couldn't be more pleased. And the ward is finally... finally starting to get behind us. So the work is just chugging right a long. Lets talk about some highlights.

~We've been eating dinner with this returning member who likes to have us over a lot. Like she fed us twice last week. She's a little crazy but I really like her. She's one of those people who would probably be in a sit-com. But anyways her husband isn't a member but she said he's been warming up to the church lately. We'd met him once before but didn't push him to anything, just friendly. And on Monday he came out of his office for a break and she turns to him and says "Hey... would you want to take the missionary lessons?" And he just goes "Sure" and boom we're gonna teach him now.

~Tuesday we had a pumpin Zone Conference and got really psyched to be missionaries. I came with a few questions and many of the trainings focused on those exact things which was really cool. I felt like my prayers were answered and God was listening to me. 

~We had our combined ward Trunk-or-Treat and it was a blast. President nixed our Elders costume so we decided to just get some dollar store crowns and be the "daughters of a King" that we are! We even dressed up our trunk... not that you could see it because it was dark. But we passed out candy and pamphlets so hopefully those get passed out to others who need them. Some kids were really excited about the pamphlet just saying.

~Halloween was an interesting day... You'd think it would be a great day to knock because everyone will open the door? Well then they figure out you're not trick-or-treaters and then they get mad at you.. ahhh.... That was awful.

~Thursday we taught J- again and she brought her friend L- with her. They are quite the duo. They both have New York accents and have definitely lived on the wrong side of the tracks but I love them! They are so cute and funny and very humble. They accepted everything we told them and wanted more. The spirit was very strong and they said they could see the light in our eyes. We asked J-n if she had thought more about baptism and L- turns to her and says "J- we should do that!" So they are praying about a date. 

~We also had an ice cream farewell for Elder Gallup! He's going back to the land of potatoes because of a neck injury... :( 

~ We had 5 appointments on Thursday and it was kinda nice to be busy again hahaha.

~So we've been walking our neighbor J-'s dog a few days out of the week when she works late and can't come home to let him out. So we feel kinda like we have a dog! We've become pretty tight with J- and yesterday she texted us and asked if we wanted to come over to talk. So we did and she really opened up to us about some things that she was going through and how she just wanted to find Joy. We went into testifying about how the gospel has brought us joy and we know it could do the same for her. It was so cool because it wasn't just like another contact, like J- is our friend and we wanted her to find happiness because we love her. I almost kinda felt like I wasn't a missionary and like I was just having a conversation and I can see how nerve-wracking it can be. But she told us we could teach her and it was the most rewarding thing ever!!!! It's been a slow process but it was very natural and showed me how sharing the gospel with your friends can be. So we're super stoked to teach her! 

The church is true, the book is blue, God loves you!! (I love you all too more than words can say)

It's a fantastic week in Canoe Creek

I said that last night while accounting and I thought I was a genius so I decided to make it my weekly title... LOLOLOL... I think I'm funny sometimes. But it really has been a great week and the Lord is blessing us so much and I'm eternally grateful. Oh my goodness the church is so true everyone. Wow we were feeling kind of discouraged getting into it but it turned out fantastic. I need to just start trusting the Lord by now. Like, I know he's got everything in control and it will all be fine I just get stressed. But.. God's got this... he doesn't even need me. I'm just here for the ride. This is his work and I just get the wonderful role of being the instrument in his hands. I probably need more faith haha. But don't we all? It's the first principle of the gospel but it's also the most important one.


 Highlights of the Week!

~It's been in the 70's and I'm definitely a Florida girl... because now it's cold.... Every time without fail when we walk outside we're like... ooh it's chilly.

~Sister Casey and I wanted to be Elders for Halloween... But President said no.. Like we can already wear slacks and a tie is like almost a scarf... Yeah but we still dressed up for fun... I think we look good..

~Well Tuesday was not a good day for me but it was a good learning experience. I've been working on using my spiritual gifts and my daily goals on Tuesday was dilligence. I strive to be a hard worker at all times and many of my companions comment on that ability. Well on Tuesday I got sick. I've never been sick on my mission up to this point. But lets just say my stomach was not happy... or the rest of my intestines... I'm not sure if it was food poisoning or what but I felt like crap. And I could not work hard. I ended up getting a fever and was super achy and just not having it. And we like only had dinner plans that day so it was going to be a long day of finding. But you know what? I gave my best. Despite my circumstances I didn't give in. Did I take a nap? yeah twice. Did I eat only mashed potatoes and drink juice? Yes. But I gave it my all. And even though I was sitting on the couch you better believe I phone contacted everyone I could. I updated areabook. I wanted to show God I could. I didn't push myself but I gave Him what I could and said "ok you do the rest" It was a really good day in learning the balance and that it is ok to take care of myself and not to doubt that I know my limits.

~Also on Tuesday we talked to this super awesome lady while she was walking her dog and she just opened up to us about her husband's death 2 months prior. We testified to her of eternal marriage and how families could be together forever. The spirit was so strong and I know she felt it. I felt my grandfathers' spirits testifying through me and it added to my testimony of the Plan of Salvation.

~ On Wednesday we had service at the Education Foundation and I love it because I actually feel useful haha. We packed like 62 backpacks full of school supplies to be shipped off to teachers who have limited resources. It was awesome and I'm so grateful to contribute to the career field that I want to be a part of one day.

~We found this super cool less active mom with 2 non-member kids. She said that she'd been thinking about how the missionaries hadn't been by in a while and then we showed up and she took it as her sign she needed to get back with it. So we're hoping to bring them all back to the church! I've never had kids be so excited when they opened the door. It was adorable.

~Saturday was amazing! Everyone we talked to was so friendly. We were introduced to a former investigator by a member we read the Book of Mormon with everyweek and she showed up and wants to meet again and get baptized! So that was awesome. We weren't sure what would come of our reading the Book of Mormon with him because he's pretty solid already... but it's leading to awesome opportunites.

~We met 3 other families that day who wanted to learn more about our gospel and the Book of Mormon who all had surprising religious backgrounds... (Catholic and Muslim) We just felt like Heavenly Father was opening the floodgates and that the Creek will be overflowing soon.

~Sunday we read this case study about this sister missionary who did some bomb member missionary work in a ward that was struggling and Sister Casey and I just got mega inspired and instead of me normally being overwhelmed by those kinds of things we decided to get to action by messaging a few families and seeing if we could come by and visit them. One family said we could and we talked to them about setting missionary work goals and we made a plan to invite their neighbors over for dinner that we will also casually be at. So we can introduce them in a subtle way. So that was also really exciting because I've never had a family so willing. Afterwards the teenage daughter messaged us and said that she had someone she wanted to share the gospel with, but wasn't sure how and wanted help. So we were just in awe. 

This is a blessed area and even though we kind of have had a trial of our faith, things are picking up and their going to get even better. I'm trying to have faith. Faith is super scary sometimes. I read something super interesting today though.. Just like faith is believing in something you can't see, fear is also believing in something you can't see. And if you have to choose... Faith is much better to have than fear. Plus faith is from God and Fear is from Satan.. so if that enlightens your choice. Plus faith leads to miracles and who doesn't want that?? 2 Timothy 1: 7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind."

double rainbows over St. Cloud

HIghlights from the week!

~ We had President interviews and President Clark is a homie as always. He always makes me feel good about myself and gives me a good pep talk.

~ We had a blast at service. Heather the coordinator loves us and lets us have whatever we want so I've gotten lots of good supplies and decorations. She also played some really good nostalgic music from the civilian days and that was a tender mercy.

~ We had exchanges on Thursday and I got to experience trio life! It's super fun! 3 times the ideas, energy and testimonies. I loved being with Sister Andrus and Skrilloff. We just knocked doors all day but it was a party and a half. It really tested my contacting skills because it's been a second since I've talked to older people...

~We taught M- this week and addressed some concerns she had about what her friends and family thought about the church. We asked her that if no one had any opinions if she'd join the church and she said yes so we got her on date! It was a really nice blessing after a longish week.

~ To top it off, we went outside and it was raining and sunny and there was the most vibrant double rainbow we'd ever seen. We felt the Lord was confirming our efforts so we stopped to dance in it for a bit.

~We had a pizza party at our clubhouse and we wanted to see if we could find some cool people. Like everyone that lives in our complex is Hispanic and were speaking spanish... But there was this one couple standing by the wall so we struck up a conversation and ended up talking to them for an hour! It was so natural and conversational it was a party. They invited us over to meet their puppy and we invited them to church! We taught them points from like all of the lessons and they were really digging it. They were a little hesitant on being taught but we hope that they think about it.

~S- almost broke up with us because she thought we were going to fast... But we told her we would go at her pace and she was ok with that. She's really so solid. She does everything we ask and has such a sincere desire to know God. We know she'll come around. 

~F- got BAPTIZED!!! It was such a good day! He was beaming. The spirit was so strong. He just expressed so much gratitude for the gospel in his life. It's so incredible to see people change. And to know that this is just the beginning. I'm so excited for him to get the priesthood and go to the temple and eventually have an eternal family. This gospel is so true.

I've also had some killer personal studies on God's love. Holy cow he loves us so much and if you don't know that, Ask him!! So much of Conference is focused on love and if you look for it, you can figure out exactly how God loves you. I challenge you all to look through all the talks and take notes on the power of God's love.

Get your own gift of the Holy Ghost!

I've never pinkwashed before but Sister Casey said that it's the best pinkwash she's had. (for those that don't know.. pinkwash is when you're both new in an area that previously had Elders) The ward is super psyched about it. Our meal calendar filled right up hahaha... so it's been good so far. We have a lot of work to do... because they were only teaching like 2 people... so we're kinda working from the bottom up. But we're hopeful!

Hilights of the week!

~We went mini golfing with the college park homies as our last hurrah and I held an alligator!! It was a party and a half!! 

~ Our apartment is the best apartment I've ever had. 2 bathrooms. Natural lighting. 2 couches. it's lacking dishes and pans but hey it looks cute.

~ The Lord has actually filled our schedule. Because the Elders neglected to weekly plan before we came so we had zero plans in our schedule... Thankfully our Ward mission leader is the best ever and gave us lots of awesome names and everyone that we've contacted has been home. Miracles. 

~ The Cute Japanese lady S-i that we're teaching prayed for the first time! We taught her twice last week. She has a less-active husband and he doesn't really speak Japanese and she doesn't really speak English. And Her in-laws are Hispanic. The member we bring speaks all 3 so I hardly know what's going on the whole time.. but She's super awesome and keeping commitments. She's gonna get baptized sometime.

~The other girl we're teaching M- is also pretty solid. She has a learning disability so she kinda struggles with comprehension of the gospel but she's super consistent and has come to church for like 3 months. She really wants to know if it's true and if it is she wants to be baptized in December. So we'll see what happens.

~We saw a chincilla and it was adorable.

~ I turned 21!!! Woooo.... So now I get to drink... Raspberry Lemonade... And sparkling cider... yeah. Gotta love me some non-alcoholic beverages.. But it was good. I made crepes for me and Sister Casey and then we weekly planned. Yay. And the cute Hermanas brought me a candy bar and a card. And I got nice emails from people. Then Chris, Warren and Blake from my last area came down and took us to dinner! It was the best. Such a good day. We came home and watched church videos and Sister Casey painted my nails. 

~ J- got baptized!! It was the best day. I got to see my people, J- was hilarious oh my goodness. She was so self conscious about how she looked in all the pictures and she's just posing the whole time. She's the most valley-girl Floridian I know... She kills me... So all of our pictures are her Tyra Banksing it. Too good. She had a really powerful experience after she was baptized she just looked different. I've never seen anyone literally glow. But her demeanor was different. She was less stressed and more joyful. She said that it was way better than she'd anticipated.. And afterwards during the Holy Ghost talk the person that was speaking gave her little gifts that represent the Holy Ghost and one was a blanket. And I got to hold it for a little bit and I was joking that I didn't want to give it back and Jessica is like "get your own gift of the holy ghost." She's a riot. She's gonna make a good member. 

Life is good. God is better. Keep me posted on all your lives because I'm just going to assume most of you are dead hahaha. Love you all!!

We proselyted a sorority...

I'm the saddest ever... I'm leaving College Park the promised land.... *Crying* I love this place with my whole heart. And the work was popping. Like crazy. I can't talk about it a lot or I get salty but I'm trying to trust the Lord and his servants and move forward to faith. I guess it's kind of a good thing that he thinks that I'm ready for another challenge? That hopefully I've accomplished my work here? I know that my life was touched forever by these people and I hope in a small way I did the same. But at least I'll be back! J-a is getting baptized on Saturday right in time for my birthday! Best present ever!! So I'll be back and we'll get to go to the temple with her.

This week was definitely very bomb. The schedule was filled and we just really enjoyed our last week together. General Conference was incredible. I loved the focus on overcoming trials and the Plan of Salvation. So many phrases were targeted just for me and gave me the courage to move on to this next portion of my mission. We have to keep an eternal perspective in all things but sometimes I just get caught up in the moment. But Conference was definitely refreshing. On a mission, it is one of the few events that we live for. You get to crave the gospel after awhile. Conference was amazing. 

Highlights of the week!

~J-a, F-, and T- all came to Conference and chilled with the homies. We had snacks and pillows and blankets. It was a party. College Park ward represented! 

~J-a had her baptismal interview and she passed!! So now I have a wonderful reason to come back on Saturday! 

~Sister Russell and I had some extra time so we decided to pray and see what we felt like and we felt impressed to get out and walk. Down Greek Park.... haha.. so we saw these sorority girls outside painting this poster and we stopped to talk to them. They were super sweet and we had a good discussion about religion! They said they were still trying to figure themselves out... But we gave them candy and a passalong card. They had a good contact with the church. Success!

~F- shared his testimony with us of how the gospel has made him a better person haha! It was adorable. He's made so much progress and is so welcomed by the ward. When Elder Uctdorf was talking about how we need investigators in the church he was just beeming. 

~ J-a is so proud to be getting baptized. She's been telling all of her 50 year old friends to come. Hahaha she's friends with all of these moms. It's hilarious. 

~KT fell in love with Elder McDonald and that was hilarious. She asked if it was her new missionary in her cute Asian accent. She said she'd dump her boyfriend if it was LOL.

~We taught an incredible Plan of Salvation lesson to J- and G-. They're dating and god's plan just resonated with them. It is my favorite thing ever to see it just click in someones mind. It is a testimony builder to me that the premortal existence is so real. 

~ We had a pancake party for M&M's and we had this random guy from our phone contacts show up. We just invited a bunch of random people and he came and loved it! They will be teaching him next week. 

~B- and T- are loving the Book of Mormon. Tyra told us she wants to visit the temple as soon as she can... We are so sad we won't be able to go with her.... one day.. 

Oh man I don't want to go.... but God has a plan and I'm trying to trust him in the best way I can. I love you all!! Tell me what your favorite talk from conference was and why!

An interesting week

This week has been an interesting one for sure! I remember very little about it but it was an emotional rollercoaster as usual. We did not have tables this week which was an adjustment. I can't decide if I missed it or not. I did not miss being in the heat but I missed talking to hundreds of chill people. We had lots of teaching to replace it though which was a blessing. We were a little worried starting the week off but the Lord filled our time like he always does. 

Some cool highlights for the week! 

~ We met some real life nuns! They were from New York and we had a joyous sister reunion.

~We had an awesome time at service this week. I love all of the old ladies at Hope Chest they are the sweetest ever. And I found a lit leather jacket that I would wear at another stage of my life.

~ Friday we had a very full packed day and it was a blessing. We hit our record with 7 appointments in one day. It was kinda nice we were so busy that we couldn't be stressed lol. But it was a really good day we ended it exhausted but satisfied.

~Saturday was a trip... Oh boy it was like the opposite of Friday. But I probably learned the most that day out of all the days that week. I learned how real the Atonement is for me. I learned what it feels like to be forgiven. I learned that there is more than one way to do missionary work. I learned that I need to accept myself where I am and look forward with faith to the things I'm not yet but that I'm becoming. Wow Heavenly Father is so kind a loving. I've never felt more pain or more joy. I know I wouldn't have that experience anywhere else so I'm very grateful to be where I am right now. I won't go into details but just know that God is so good and so merciful.

~Sunday was a regional YSA sacrament meeting and it was a blast! There were so many YSA and it was so spiritual. We had Elder Patrick from the seventy and he is one of the most charitable men I've ever heard. I learned so much from him and how he interacted with the YSA. And we had a bomb meal afterwards and just had the best time. Ugh I love this area with all my soul. It definitely made up for Friday. That just shows how much God loves his children and if we're willing to trust all things will work together for our good. We also were introduced to the coolest person by the Wetherbee Elders who wants to be a part of our ward and get baptized. So blessings!

Would you like a glass of water...from our air conditioner?

Holy Cow what a crazy week! So crazy we only got to do our companionship study like 1.5 days out of the week... and one day I didn't get to eat lunch... Who has time when you're teaching the children of God? Haha... ha... ha... I could use a nap. In reality I am definitely very tired but I know I'm where I'm supposed to be doing the best thing I could be doing anywhere. I've already seen tremendous blessing for myself personally and for my family and I know I could never obtain them any other way. It's not a sacrifice if it's not hard. And Sacrifices bring forth the blessings of heaven. Let's talk about some highlights shall we?

~We taught a bomb FHE lesson on Monday about missionary work. We had members pretend to share the gospel with celebrities in random scenarios. The ward got super into it and it was really fun. At one point a missionary companionship was telling Taylor Swift how to get over her breakup by coming to Christ in Spanish! It was quite the night.

~We had the coolest guy come to tables named E--. His parents are super strict and he feels like he has to hide his religion addiction. He just loves Christ so much and wants to desperately find the right church but his parents would much rather prefer it if he were an alcoholic or did drugs. He gave us the best pep talk for being at tables. He literally ministered to me. I needed that.

~We had exchanges this week and Sister Andrus got to experience college life. It was overwhelming. But we slayed it and talked to so many people. For her, getting someone to smile is a success and I want to have that attitude. We may have accidentally left a member at UCF with our tabling stuff on accident... and we had to go back.. oops..

~ We had zone conference on Thursday which was much needed! It was very focused on member work and a lot that was said are things we're already trying to establish in our ward. Plus our new bishop is phenomenal and super on board with missionary stuff.

~Friday we took a road trip to Deland for Sister Russell's doctor appointment. It felt like Palm Bay. *tears*

~We heart attacked one of our member Homies. He does a ton for us so we wanted to make him feel appreciated.

~Oh yeah our AC got clogged and started leaking all over the place. So we had to go in with tablespoons to try and get the water out. There was soooo much water! Literally cups full.

I got a unique chance to minister to my companion last night. Sister Russell really struggles with her hip and occasionally it flares up really bad. I wasn't sure what to do but I tried everything I could. We were up later than usual and all that I could really do to assist in anyway was just be there for her and rub her back. Over the course of my mission there have been TONS of people who have been willing to minister to me. People have saved my life and I always feel guilty because they are so good and generous and I'll never be that person. I've been asking the Lord how I can give back or what I even have to offer. But last night as I rubbed her back I just thought "in a small way this is my moment to give back" I could've gone to bed, I could've felt like maybe she wasn't appreciating it. But that's not the point of service. Service isn't for a thank you. And that's something I've always struggled with. But last night I just sat there content to be of service in whatever way I could. In Gospel Principles our lesson was on service and I kept reflecting on how no matter what I do, my acts of kindness will never repay Christ for what he's done for me. But it can show my appreciation. 

"And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God" 

Go out and serve someone today. What are you waiting for?

A guy with a weed whacker tried to sell us a $200 cigar

Another one down! It has been a pretty good week, very busy and chaotic. We took a little break on P Day and got pedicures with Emily from the ward. It was such a nice change of pace. Our schedule is literally packed to the brim. We barely have time to study and eat lunch or dinner. We are teaching lots of first lessons and continuing to see miracles. We have three people we are preparing to be baptized in the next few months. E--, F--, and J---. E-has some complication with work so he had to push his date back. But wow, it is such a beautiful thing to see these people coming to know their Savior. F-- is a referral from elders nearby and he is wanting to get baptized in 2 weeks! We told him if he wants to get baptized then he has to come to church every Sunday until then, obviously after too. He showed up yesterday! Hopefully everything will work out! Miracles happen when you work hard!

Tables as usually this week, we tried a Book of Mormon experience that didn't go too well... but it was worth the shot. We have some ideas, so hopefully those will be better. Had a meeting with our zone on Thursday where Sister Russell and I gave a fire training on Preach My Gospel chapter 3. We used the stories of David and Goliath to emphasize how having faith in 5 smooth stones, can help defeat the Goliaths in missionary work. We wanted to convey how even though Preach My Gospel is simple in its teaching, it is powerful if you have the faith sufficient. And just like David has 5 stones, we have 5 lessons. 

WE GOT TO GO TO THE TEMPLE ON FRIDAY AND OH MY HECK I LOVE THE TEMPLE! It is a pure haven from the world around me. So much peace is found there. Chris, Warren, Emily, Tori, and Alex came with us. Warren, Chris, and Alex did the session with us, and then we did baptisms after with Emily and Tori. What a beautiful day with beautiful people. I needed it so bad. I cried the majority of the time and then I cried when we had to leave but it was good to be home for a minute. The last time I had my entire family together was in the temple for my own endowment. And I probably won't ever be able to have that again until the celestial kingdom. It was nice to be that close to heaven. 

Afterwards we got BurgerFi after and it is delightful. If you come to Florida find a BurgerFi. It is to die for. 

On Sunday night there was a Worldwide YSA Devotional, a lot to do about the new book Saints. We went to Alex's apartment with a group of members to watch it. It started at 8 PM, so we got there in the dark. It is a sketchier area of Orlando and we had to park a little ways away and members came to walk with us. As soon as they told us how the neighborhood wasn't the best on our walk to the house, an old man walks down from a driveway, no shoes in craggy clothes, holding a weed wacker in one hand, and in the other a box. He yelled, "WANNA KNOW WHAT I JUST GOT FOR $20?!" We hesitated, but then he continued to yell, "REAL CUBAN CIGARS AND I'M GOING TO SELL THEM FOR $200" he proceeded to try to sell us Cuban Cigars.... just look down and keep walking. I giggled after thinking about how I'll probably never see that scenario again in my life.

Love crazy Orlando and all the crazies that come with it. Another busy week coming up where we will barely have a second to breath but what more could I ask for?!

I have finally eaten alligator!!!!!

Wowza kazowza what a week! They just keep flying by so fast. I can't believe transfer 5 is over... Good news! My lovely Sister Russell is sticking around for another transfer so we can party hard for another 6 weeks preaching the gospel and baptizing everyone! It's gonna be good. We hit our goal of having 3 people on date for baptism with 2 more hopefully in the upcoming weeks. We've worked hard and the Lord has blessed us. We did not have a baptism yesterday but the goal gave us and the ward the spark we needed to get the work moving forward, so ultimately it was very successful. A ton happened this week so I'll do my best to keep it brief and exciting.

~One word. Tabling. Oh my goodness it is extreme. Imagine 65,000 people. It's 93 degrees and there are 15 other tables. You're trying to proclaim the restored gospel of Jesus Christ but klondike bars are more appealing to 20-somethings. It's a little crazy. But we had Popsicles and Popcorn so we didn't come empty handed to this rodeo. We met some super cool people and got multiple return appointments with them. One guy messaged us and that never happens! Miracles.

~ Because of the craziness of figuring out how to table we have had zero time to clean. We get home and we just collapse. So our car and apartment was a disaster. Guess what happened this week? Random car and apartment checks!! We weren't notified about either! So at 8:00 in the morning my companion is in the bathroom and I get a knock on the door and the housing inspectors are here... oh boy..

~We saved someone's life on Thursday! We were driving home and there's this guy convulsing on the side of the road... We freaked out and pulled into the parking lot of a restaurant and call 911. This dude was definitely trippin on something. Luckily some other people stopped too and the police came and an ambulance and it was intense. But we got to do some major seed planting! 

~ We went and got to eat gator tail with our neighbor S-- and his family. Let me tell you, S-- is a hoot. He is the funniest guy I've ever met and he was SO excited to take us. We've been planning it for weeks. We went to this random little dive called Black Hammock right on Lake Jessup which is infested with like 10,000 alligators or something.. So those things are fresh! It was super good! We did our best to have gospel conversations but S-- got a little tipsy..haha...ha.. He said he also wants to take us with his family to Disney World and he was so upset when we said we couldn't go. One day! One day...

~ We met J-- from the Avalon park Elders who wants to be baptized. She is hilarious! She has some family who are members and has wanted to find her purpose in life and something that can be consistent for her. She's already read the entire first book of Nephi. She's also struggling with her manager at work. So when we asked if she'd been praying she's like "yeah.. that he gets hit by a bus" Lol!! The Elders sugested that she should try singing something when she starts to feel upset and she says "like what? Oops I did it again?" We couldn't take it. it was so funny. 

I'm so excited to see what this transfer has in store! I'm mostly excited to see the progress of these wonderful people. God is so good. I've also come to learn that in YSA you're not only here for non- members but for the members as well. This is a critical time in their lives too and if we can make them feel valued and strenghten their testimony we can help them be the leaders of the church they need to be one day. It always means so much when members tell us they appreciate us or write sweet notes. It gives me confidence knowing that even if we don't have 15 baptisms that we are still impacting people's lives. We are all helping each other on the road back home to our loving Heavenly Father. Reach out to someone today and make them feel valued! Thanks for making me feel valued!

We pushed a car in dresses...

Hello!! It's been a rather interesting week! Lots of stuff happened. Good stuff and weird stuff a like! Here are some highlights!

~ There was this guy who got stranded in the road so we got out and helped him push his car through an intersection haha! Well Ok... the guy and Sister Russell pushed the car... I turned the steering wheel. I know I'm a wimp. But we got his phone number!

~We took A- on a temple tour this week! It was very spiritual and we're hoping it gets him closer to recieving his answer. He's so close! He's praying about September 23rd. Send some extra prayers his way.

~We had 2 general authorities come to our zone conference this week. Elder Costa and Carpenter of the 70. They focused a lot on member missionary work which we're going to integrate! We've already started meeting with members and set personal, future family, and missionary goals with them. YSA is hard to get referrals but we are getting names and hopefully we'll get there soon.

~ We met some interesting characters at the gas station while we were visiting N-. There was a guy buying plastic wrap to wrap up drugs and Sister Russell told him that as a representative of Christ she was telling him that was a bad idea and then I gave him a card and told him to call us if he needs more Jesus in his life. Then while I was telling N- about the Book of Mormon this drunk guy comes in who was a prosecuting lawyer and starts going crazy and starts telling her weird things about the Book of Mormon. Afterwards we realized that Satan is super real. 

~ We also got N- on date for baptism on October 14th. She introduced us to her mom who was super excited to meet us and we taught them both the restoration and she told her mom that she was going to get baptized and we chose a date!! She is incredible we're so excited!! 

~ We had some pretty inspired knocking on Friday. An appointment flaked on us so Sister Russell was like "let's knock doors" and we never knock doors but the first door we knocked ended up being former investigators who wanted to learn about eternal families and the other people we talked to were non-active members who would also like the missionaries to visit. After that we decided we had talked to those we needed to talk to and moved on. The Lord definitely led us to his children! 

~Sister Russell let another lizard into the apartment. I made her catch it by herself this time. 

So some good things are happening! This week is going to get super crazy!! School is back in session and there will be 65,000 children of God on campus who need to know about his restored gospel! It's going to be crazy. Send some extra prayers our way that we won't get too stressed and that we'll be able to be led to the elect who are ready for his gospel. 

I want to challenge everyone to set some goals this week! Goals are a principle of heaven and help us achieve our full potential.

1. Personal goal to strenghten your relationship with God

2. Family goal, for your current or future family

3. Missionary goal to strengthen others and help invite someone to Christ