Centennial 13

Christmas

We made the person in-charge of our cars a Christmas card

For FHE [Family Home Evening] we made cookies.  Toby [the ward mission leader] had this idea of delivering cookies to everyone on the "part member families and prospective elders list" before Christmas.  We did not quite make it so his new goal is New Years. Sister Webster and I made some ugly sweater cookies.  They turned out pretty cool.  

We volunteer at this place called Hope. It is a food pantry and a thrift store.  This week they had us help them get ready for their Christmas lunch.  They were having a Christmas lunch for the homeless.   On Wednesday we spent two hours washing the potatoes.  On Saturday we spent an hour stabbing potatoes.  The lady in charge said she would laugh if we ended up having baked potatoes that night for dinner. We also helped them set up and get ready.  

I gave a training this week on recognizing the Spirit.  I made everyone watch the light the world video then we all went around and shared how it made us feel and what our favorite part was.  I was going to do more and talk about how what everyone said they felt is the Spirit.  I did not really have time because going around took longer then planned because the district was twice as big as usual.  We had combined two of them for the day.  

This week we started teaching this lady named Ashley.  The Orchard Elders had been teaching her husband then they moved.  The Orchard Elders thought they moved to the Littleton Ward so the Littleton Elders were teaching her.  They realized last week that it was actually our area.  That is how we found Ashley.  She was on date for the 14 of January but she did not come to church so we will have to push it back a little.  

On Friday night we went Christmas Caroling with the entire Sabey family.  They live in a neighborhood by a referral that we had never been able to contact.  The family was like well let's go try them.  This time they answered and we actually got to meet them.  They are still okay if we come back so that is great.  

On Christmas Eve the Older Sabey family invited us over.  We all talked about what we are grateful for.  We also read the story in Luke about Christs birth.  The family that we had dinner with does this Polish meal every year.  It was super good.  I do not remember what everything was called.  

A few weeks ago we met this man on the street.  He was a refugee and could not speak much English.  We ended up inviting him to church.  He said he would come on Christmas.  We had not heard from him so we figured that we would just stop by and see if he still wanted to come.  He was still willing to come.  Toby picked him up and sat by him.  Toby ended up finding the book of Mormon in his language so that made him happy.  A less-active family also came which was exciting.  The youth came up and asked if he could meet the Young Men's president so he could start coming to activities.  

On Christmas we went to the older Sabey's for dinner.  That made it three days in a row contact with them.  They are fantastic.  I also got to Skype my family which was glorious.  

We saw a fire truck

Centennial 12

Ariel Got Married :)

That was definitely the highlight of the week.  I am very grateful that I was able to get permission to go.  I had to find a way to make it a missionary opportunity.  Luckily the fiance's family was not members so that worked.  One problem, they only spoke Spanish.  I tried though.  

I also went to the dentist this week which is always a blast.  I found out I chipped a tooth and that is why it was turning brown.  Phew it was not a cavity I am still cavity free *fist pump* 

The elders accidentally went tracting in our area.  They found someone of course though.  I feel like people are starting to think we don't do anything because we never find people or end up teaching lessons but other people always are finding.  Anyway the guy is super cool and sounded interested; we have another lesson with him this week so we will see what happens.  

It snowed this week and got to the negatives in the same day.  Since there was snow we were not allowed to drive, but we had to be out and working, so that was cold.  I am still alive and have all of my fingers.  

Another day we felt prompted to go visit a potential investigator.  We arrived at a very interesting time.  At first we could not find the house so we started just walking around the neighborhood.  We ended up close to a house and every one was dressed like they were from the 70's. We looked at each other and we were like, "no, it wouldn't be." It was.  We found the house we wanted to find.  

 

The Rice's dog killed one of their chickens while we were there.  That was exciting.  She had killed eleven other chickens and there where two left now there is one.  There dog is thirsty for chicken blood.  She like, hopped the fence and everything. 

 We took a picture with all of our crazy socks. 

All of the presents that we got for salvation army(they were 8000 short of their goal for the year so they asked for help)

Our tree

Centennial 11

  

#SoLongCornerstonePark and back again

Brother Lathen (the ward mission leader in Bowles Grove) was kind enough to let us borrow a Christmas tree.  When we were picking it up the Lathens got a call from their neighbor.  She was wondering if we could help this guy move.  I recognized the name of the guy and realized it was the name of one of the Elder's investigators.  He was moving into our ward and we called the Elders so they could also help him.  He just cannot escape the LDS missionaries ;)

Wednesday it snowed which was fun.  We also got to go to the temple which was super nice.  When we got back from the temple we shoveled Sister Smith's (the lady with live with) drive way.  That night it was the Relief Society Christmas Dinner.  That was fun. Sister Webster sang a song.

We had our last district meeting of the transfer on Thursday.  We played Book of Mormon trivia which was super fun.  It was kind of hard but super fun.  The Sisters ended up winning by a lot.  We volunteered at the Bridle shop which was fun.  It is kind of a weird place for missionaries to volunteer but whatever. 

Friday we had mission tour.  That was fun Elder Grow from the Quorum of the Seventy came and talked to all of us. He talked about setting realistic goals.  If a goal for baptism is zero that is okay because if there is no way we will reach it that week then why make it anything else.  If our goal is zero then we know we can always reach it.  His point was also to have a higher goal later in the transfer that we have been working towards.  If the other weeks are lower that is okay.  I also said the closing prayer at the mission tour that was exciting.

Saturday it was the ward Christmas breakfast.  The Primary put on a super cute program.  They gave everyone ornaments at the end so now we have two ornaments on our little tree.  Santa also came which was fun.  I got the transfer news call and I was going to Meeker, so over the mountain. 

It was stake conference this weekend most of it focused on missionary work which was cool.  Elder Driscoll came and spoke at that.  The stake president talked a lot about hope and how faith can lead us to hope which can lead us to charity.  I got the call after church from President Gifford that there was an emergency.  I was like, "oh no! what happened?"  He said that he had to go pick up a sister from over the mountain (my "new" companion) so I was no longer going to Meeker, but would stay in Cornerstone Park.  :)

Centennial 10

When You Can Quote the Sheep You Know it's Baaaaaad

[I think this is the video Ana is referring to in this letter]

This week has been a roller coaster.  

Tuesday we taught a lady.  Her daughter is a member and she feels like there is something else in our church but just is not sure what.  She knows a lot about the bible and asks a lot of questions.  It is really good and you can tell she really wants to know.  It was a super good lesson and the member that was with us asked if we could come back the next day.  The member we brought also knows a lot from the bible and they ended up getting a long really well because of it.  Wednesday we went back and she had made lunch for us. We had another super great lesson.  She said she knew the church was true and she wanted to get baptized.  Then Thursday we got a text that she was moving back to Utah on Saturday.  We were a little worried because she had met with missionaries in the past and said they just didn't work and she liked to meet with us because she feels like she got farther and that the member had helped answer a lot of questions.  We stopped to say good bye and she told us she has already looked into meeting with missionaries where she is moving.  She will miss us a lot.  She has a meeting set up with one of the apostles in Utah because he is in her daughter's stake and wants to meet her. We figured "well I guess that one of the apostles we can trust with helping answer her questions." 

The other Family with the Less-Active mom.  On Tuesday the son decided that he was going to be baptized on the 17th and we were like "yay!"  He super loved church and had been reading his scriptures.  Saturday he came with us to a baptism and was even more excited.  Then Yesterday we got a text from his mom saying that he is now living with his dad. Basically he moved.

It is the curse of Cornerstone Park as soon as some one starts progressing then they get evicted or move.

This week for mutual everyone shared their favorite Mormon Message/church video.  One of the youths was the old old nativity video.  Sister Webster and I could quote the sheep which is kind of sad.  

Last week we got our windshield fixed and so the thing that tracked our driving got moved around a lot.  The guy that was fixing it when he was done told us the the box thing kept screaming at him.  We had to call the people to see if they could clear Sister Webster's crazy driving record because she did not roll the car a bunch.  

Thursday I gave a training in district meeting.  I was telling my companion that I have given one every transfer and she was like, "wow I think I have only given three my entire mission."  I gave it on eternal families and most of the things I could find also had to do with eternal marriage.  Apparently that is a really weird topic to give a training on.  I guess I really need to learn about it then.  

Sister Davies and I went on an exchange again which is always a party.  It is fun to be able to see your trainer again.

I learned why the Family does the lights that bright.  He told us the he puts the nativity scene in the center and all the light comes out from around it.  Then a member told us it was because there was this girl in the ward that was dying from cancer who loved his Christmas lights.  He promised her that he would make them so bright she could see them from heaven.  I feel like that could just be a story that spread around or it could be real but either way it is super cute.