03/14/2012

K I have to be quick cause I just lost my whole email just erased and I have like 2 min. First off, Tawn you still haven't told me about how Daniel proposed. not okay! I espero now the story! What could you possibly be doing that is more important than emailing me? Also, Britt you are having a baby! Bear your pics are the highlight of my week, mom can you write me a handwritten letter? Sometimes I pray to receive one from you. is that weird? I just miss you. And prayer like works. Like really well

This week was amazing slash really hard, but I don't have time to write about it all . One of our investigators that has my heart and we spend like every other day with him and he has come to church every single week, every single baptism and activity, dropped us. Well it was a mutual drop, it was just hard. He doesn't have intenetions to ever be baptized :( But lots of amazing things happened, we met the most incredible people. I talked with mom on the phone! It was crazy, she was an inbound call and she said her name was Pattie and she is a widow and she feels so bad because her daughter is in college and feels the need to stay with her and all this stuff. I was like MOM!? I told her about you and it was the biggest tender mercy because I was able to comfort her and let her know how much her daughter loved her and how much the gospel would bless her in her life :) She said the name mormon kept coming to her mind so she called. We also got a chat of a woman who was praying for answers and she had a dream of her going to mormon.org chat. I have kept contact through the phone and she is getting baptized in a couple weeks and is so happy. I am sending her a dress cause she doesn't have one, all of our investigators are so poor it is breaking me heart. Many literally don't have money for food. The majority of the people we teach left their families in Mexico Chiappas for 6 - 10 years to work for their families. They leave everything and struggle finding work and have big families and literally cross the desert on foot to get here. My year and a half is nothing in comparison. Well, I am out of time. mom write me handwritten :), Tawn tell your story. PS I found out my leave of absence was invalid and maybe lost my scholarship. ps I love you all. Oh and please let me know about coming to pick up, it's super inportant that I let them know for sure cause flight plans go out this month for thos going home in July. Now that I have lost my scholarship possibly I might  be able to stay until Aug, what day is the wedding? k LOVE YOU! Just had transfers too, love you!

3/7/2012

Sooo Britt just got back from Puerto Rico and is pregnant, Tawn is getting married, Bear has a babe and is a nurse. I just have to repeat that over and over cause it just blows my mind!!!! AHHH! How are the wedding plans?! I want little details so I can be part, liiike where/ um WHEN and what food you are having, also very important question.

Tawn I am like da best wedding planner evur so you should just hire me. I'll send you pics of Stephanie's wedding to see what we were able to gather with our 0$ budget. jaja! and I just kept thinking, aww tawn is planning her wedding and I don't get to be there :( I will just live vicariously through planning stephanie's! It actually was great, Lots of nonmebers came and we got there info, we had a lot of help from the ward and had tons of food and latin music and decorations, it was una fiestote. Next day (Sunday) was her BAPTISM! I have to send you pics you will just die to see how much she glows! and just a couple short hours later was Miguel's, Jorge's and a little boy's baptism whose dad just got baptized the week before. Oh my... I don't think I have ever felt the spirit so strong in muh life. We were singing "I believe in Christ" and the spirit was already tangible in the room and then in walks 5 people all in white. My heart couldn't handle it. Miguel has such a huge pedasote of my heart and he just looked so.. complete, and full of gozo. He is the one whose wife left him with his two daughters and has had it so hard, but immediately accepted everything and could cope with his desfaios through the gospel. Jorge could not stop smiling, I felt hopeless for a while with him cause we would try so hard to gethim to church and he worked Sundays, but NOW he's got his priorities straight :) The little boy I only taught him and his dad in the VC one time, but they have an incredible story. The little boy was going to have to get his leg amputated or he would die when he was young (sounds familiar?) the dad is super intelligent, a lawyer and was extremely wealthy and had just lost everything, had never really known God. He held him up in the air and told God he knew He could heal him, and would commit his life to Him after. He was healed and his leg is now perfect, but he went to another church and became super involved. WHen I gave him his tour they themed it on authority, he seemed very iffy and the elder promised him that he would get his answer the next day at church in the sacrament. He went to his OTHER church, took the sacrament, and felt his answer. He was in the wrong church, got up and left and 3 weeks to the day later was baptized. and his son last week. SO point of the story is God is so good! and The gospel is so true! We have met a lot of other really prepared people, and our greatest desire a super awesome family that we are teaching tonight, and a couple others. I love you all so much you have no no no idea. On the 5th I was thinking about Rachel and that all of you were probably together. Although I was sad not to be there, it made me happy to thin abouty it :) I can't wait to see my lil babes Declan and Luke and hopefully like help with tawn's wedding if it is not within the next 4-5 months???!!! I LOVE YOU SO! MOM how is mitt romney!!?? You are beautiful, I was looking at a pic of you today thinking that. IN my prayers. love you da most

02/29/2012

WHOAH!!!!!!!!!! I CAN NOT BELIEVE TAWNEE IS ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

that makes me feel weird. BUT SO EXCITED for her :::::::::)))))))) CONGRATS BABY SISTER!!!!!!!! I am only upsetted by the fact that well, I got NO DETAILS! I demand them asap! PORFA! I  must hear how dis all went down!! Ans Britt is back from PUERTO RICO! I need deets about that too! And how she is having a baby and how bear has a little grown man son now?! Remember how I still can't fathom that? I love them so much :) And MOM a new missionary came in that looks just like you and it made me miss you so much :( uygh I miss you. But I love you so. And I LOVE the political updates you know I die to hear  them every week!

I pray for Mitt all the time. whoa... TAWN IS ENGAGED.ps tawn that ring is tTO DIE FOR. I LOVE IT SO MUCH STOP BEING CUTE AND ADULT.

this week was great! My sister got engaged. And my other sister was in Puerto Rico and my other one had a baby and is a nurse and I love my mom the most ever. And Dayna is in WA with curt, super fun. I miss you all. That's about it...

oh and this is gonna be the best weekend ever. Stephanie is getting married Sat so she can be baptized SUN! So tawn that makes us both planning a wedding right now. It's like super stressful, very exciting

:) Then my sweet Miguel and Jorge are getting baptized Sunday!!! I can't put into words how much these people mean to me. You will see when you meet them. They have all of my heart. Miguel is the definition of golden and despite his wife and 2 daughters leaving him he turned to God and was crying sharing his testimony yesterday.

People can just feel this is the truth. We visited a woman named Melissa on our exchange like 2 months ago, and because it was an exchange they never really went back. We knocked their door looking for someone else and ended up teaching like 7 people in their house. 2 were superr strong in their religion and just bashed us and we left feeling "Why did we feel like we needed to go there?" there was a woman just chilling in the back who listened to it all and felt really good about what we shared.  She ran out the door yesterday saying "SISTERS! I have been looking and waiting for you!" I need that book, I am so lost and looking for truth, I am so confused, please help me. She has been such a miracle. Her and her husband (well bf, planning another wedding!) literally almost left each other because this church they are in are splitting them apart instead of helping them grow closer. She has had such a hard life and those couple min we were in that house, she knew what we shared was true. It was miraculous. That also happened with a man Arcenio this past weekend. taught in housefull of 5 people and he just  took it all in, came to church the next day and said "You have a new hermano in the church!" We invited him right then to be baptized and he said, "of course"- these are real people with real challenges and I can't even tell you what a thrill it is to see them change their lives for the gospel. Many of them are literally going hungry and have NOTHING, they all leave their families, cross the desert on foot, come to america to work, share a tiny apartment with 10 people and barely can afford to eat. Then they know when they hear the message why they are there. I have been so blind my whole life to how ready people are. ugh it's just the best

I love you so much, think about you all de tym. Please keep having super exciting lives and getting engaged and having babies. I MISS YOU SOOO!!!!

02/22/2012

OH MY! Megan is engaged!!!?? JAJA I am SO THRILLED! And it appears to be coming super soon with TAWN. AHHH! And Britt is in Puerto RICO!? WHAT!? Jealous. And she is having baby !!!! And he is okay!!!? and Bear is a mother!!!?? (that is still news/shocking/exciting to me) I bought da lil boys some things today I will have to get them in da mail. And mother I am calling your friend again tomorrow :) I have been away from the VC for almost a week which is super weird? You are the best missionary ever! And You should go meet Mitt Romney please. Don't worry the election won't be done when I get home so we can put up signs together like last time :) AND HAPPY 90TH GRANDMA!!! Tell her I love her so so much and I am so happy she .. is.. 90

Great week! I got the stomach flu on Friday and for some reason it lasted 5 days and haven't been able to eat anything or I would throw it up. Super fun. Especially cause I got to keep being a missionary through it all. Our area is doing to well to like rest so we just kept going which actually ended up working out okay. Cause we met some super ready people. Arcenio, who before we even mentioned the name Joseph Smith said, "Joseph Smith was an inspired prophet of God" and that "We need to ba baptized by immersion and authority like Christ was" - Believe it or not he is not a member, yet... Also a man named Santos who somehow got the number of the mission office and called cause he wanted us to come teach him. He accepted a baptismal date immediately but we might struggle with the fact that he helps people across the border (?) - (Maybe take that part out) - but he has been searching and he just loves the message. Luis prayed in Why I believe in front of the hundreds of people and it was lovely. He was thrilled on Sunday when he got confirmed and with the biggest smile said "I'm going to pay my tithing!" - Andres called and has been seeing 70-100 patients a day in Columbia but still finds a way to get to every baptism and church and read the entire Book of mormon in like 3 weeks. He is gold. Stephanie is SO EXCITED she is getting married and we are stressfully planning the wedding so she can be baptized the next day :) We went to the zoo with our zone in the city today and I saw an animal that reminded me of tawnee. It's my new fav. I am out of time, but I love you all mo den you know! I think about you all way too much. But you motivate me to be good :) <3 uuuuuuu Ps whitney houston died? And I misunderstood planking. What else is new Babylon? PS mom the christus is for YOU! And I am getting you all one when you get here I jsut couodn't afford to send them all! LOVE YOU! Sorry no time!

02/16/2012

FAMILLIAA!!! <3 Feliz dia de amor y amistdad!!!!!!!! was it goo? What'd you all do? I totally forgot. And we like made appointments with our investiagtors that are getting married (will explain later) and they were all dressed up and we naively asked what the occasion was. ja woops. But I feel like all this talk about la boda de Tawnee is a dream or something and couldn't possibly be real but I think maybe it is!??!! AHHH. How weird!!! But in such a good exciting way! And Luke and Declan have my heart already. I love them so much. I am worried about Declan he is in my prayers... And mom I love you you're the best, Did you get to meet mitt or what!? I have been dying to hear! You are his bniggest fan, than me.

AMAZING WEEK. God is so so good to us. First off, Renee was baptized on Sunday :::)) It was incredible. I was unaware I was speaking but they announced that I was (?) SO I just made one up on the spot? BUT it was miraculous, he has been in my prayers incessantly cause he is not only 29 and just out of open heart surgery, he also can't work and is literally going hungry possibly homeless, and the worst is he is extremely depressed. It broke my heart every time we meet with him. The day we found him he just looked so hungry for the gospel and I was confused why he wasn't being filled by it. He shared his testimony at his baptism and said that, "SOY feliz" not estoy pero SOY feliz. It was so beautiful cause it was at his baptism when he finally was full and happy :) and I love him so much it just overjoyed me as wellllll:::::::))))) Also, my whole mission I have had 2 dreams, plan a wedding, and baptise a family. Stephanie is the novia of a less active recently active member (they are 19) they have the cutest lil babe ever after Declan and Luke. We were SO NERVOUS to teach them the law of chastity while their little child was running around, but we prayed really hard and did it. Their commitment was like.. to get married... which is kind of asking a lot of 2 19 year olds. But not only were they like "yeah" but they moved their wedding up to March 3rd like it was nothing so she can get baptized the 4th!!!! And oh my, you had to be there. The little baby started clapping his hands and laughing so hard in joy when they agreed to be married. They are going to be the happiest little family ever and will be able to be sealed in the temple next year :) Now the whole less active family is striving to enter. So we are putting on the wedding for her with the ward and it's just thrilling and stressful but wonderful! She is so excited for her baptism too she tells everyoen! 2 other miracles and then I am done I promise, my very first upperbox at festival came into the VC last night and ran and hugged me and said, "SISTER ALLEN I AM GETTING BAPTIZED SATURDAY AND I HAVE NEVER BEEN HAPPIER IN MY LIFE!" It took me a moment to recognize her cause she looked physically different, just so full of light. She would not stop smiling the whole night. I remember being super nervous to invite her to meet missionaries cause her boyfriend was kjind of avoiding it. but yay! A few people I met from festival have come back to announce the wonderful news and por fin we can see the fruits of our labor at Christmas. This is the best work ever. if I can even call it work. it's so fun and happy. I love it. I love you all so so much and pray for you incessantly. Your exciting lives blow me away. But I so happy for you all :) MWUAH

02/08/2012

GRACIAS POR ESCRIBIRME::)) sorry I am so high maintenance, I just kind of love you all so much I get super worried? Like I had nightmares this past week but no I can breathe that I know you are all goooo' :) Oh my. I love you all and I also had 2 dreams (some may say I dream about home too much) about the lil babes and I already love them so much and feel lie I know them. Cause they could talk in my dreams. I miss them. And Superbowl I couldn't help but think of our crazy Mexican fiestas and Grandma and Mom trying to find some solace. and beautifully enough the baptism of our wonderful Mexican man LUIS! and Nadia who reminds me SO MUICH of Lindsey! It's cool cause both of the baptisms on Sunday were results of what happened in our intercambio. We knocked Nadia's house and they set a return appt and it was an inactive family who reactivated so the daughter was baptized. and OH MY you all know my love for Luis ya. He was GLOWING!!!!!!!! It unbelievable. He kept saying Allen Allen it's today! (everyone calls me allen  its funny) he just hangs out at the Vistor's center inviting everyone to be baptized like him. He came to the VC while we were on shift and started calling his friend and he threw the phone at me and said "here talk to him! (aka share the gospel) - his friend accepted the missionaries because of the change he has seen in Luis. Then this family that we taught in Garret Park showed up to the VC that same night, they said they refused to let the new elders in jaja and just came to the VC to be taught, Luis just testified to them and got the dad to accept partially a baptismal date for the 4th, I was incapable of that. AHANDTHEBESTPART! Andres drove for 2 hours and then wandered for 2 hours to see the temple before he left to Columbia. He was glowing!!! He just got baptized the day before and confirmed since he is leaving. It was the most incredible conversation of my life. He is truly an elect of God, he has spent his whole entire life serving in third world countries as a doctor without getting paid (his service just covers his expenses for being there) and his dad is a diplomat of Spain! He has such potential to be a huge asset to the church and effective instrument in the hands of the Lord. And all from a 20 sec conversation at festival. He immediately knew it was true. The best part was that he is doing his family history and he wants me to do his mother's temple work when I am done in July. I was so taken back and honored at the request. I love these people way too much. We found a miracle man who as we were seeking a potential, he was parked outside and he rolled down his window and called us over, he said he had to get out of the house who was strange considering he was only 4 houses away (clearly guided there!) we invited him to church and the next day he actually showed up and stayed for the baptism! And He LOVES the message he calls us like every day to ask about what he will need to do when  he is a member. Then Stephanie, the girlfriend of a member and the sweetest girl you will ever meet (also reminds me of Lindsey?) came to church and the baptism and the boyfriend's mom said, "your next" and she said "yeah"- and accepted a date for the 4th. THEN there was a man who we met and I guess didn't set a return appointment with him so he got on the internet, looked up the mission office number, and called to tell us to come by Monday night. PEOPLE ARE SO PREPARED! Sorry am I so overwhelming with my jambled stories? I will calm down. I just can't get over thesde awesome prepared people and how strategic God is! It's great. I love you all and wish you happiness n luuuv y paz. PS The date is the 18th! de Julio. Are you really all coming?! WHHAAA!? oh my goodness. these people will all be able to be real to you then! You will die they are so great! I can't wait to meet my little babes and see you all! I literally can't imagine it... I will faint maybe. Love  you. AND MOM I am SO THRILLED to call your friend! I prayed you would have missionary experiences! I don't know the sister you talked to super well but I kept following her around asking about your conversation it was funny. But she is the sweetest girl ever. Like you, okay bye love you 

01/19/2012- Sorry this is out of order- I missed one :)

FAMILY!!!! We have this new weird email thing and I can't respond directly to you all. Also it's weird and it won't show me emails from other people. So if anyone who reads this has emailed me and I haven't responded, don't be offended. So you can choose what to put in the mass email and what not. It doesn't  matter to me. Bear I literally had my jaw dropped looking at pics of the cutest little man I have eer seen on the face of this planet. Like/... is he for real? I have no words to describe how in love with him I in. I can't imagine how you feel. URH I am so jeal you get to hang out with him all the time! AAND BRITT!!! YOUR LIL BABE IS A BIG BABE NOW!!!!! He is getting so big and looks like a real huiman being in your pics!!! Are you just dying of excitement!? He's gonna be such a little stud like Luke I CAN'T WAIT TO MEET HIM!!! And ALSO WHAT ON EARTH WHY DID YOU SEND ME THE MOST CREATIVE THOUGHTFUL PACKAGE IN THE WORLD??!!! My roommates and everyone were just in awe at how thoughtful and cute it was. I can't start to express my gratitude into words. I mostly feel guilty that I still haven't had even a moment to shop for you all persoinally. Expect SUPER AWESOME gifts when I get home and have time to shop for you all. Seriously... why are you guys so good. i feel bad. I love you. So much

This week has been unreal. Like... UNREAL... I will just give you some updates. Maria, the mother of recent convert Ana, got baptized on Sunday. And ohhh myyyy it was so incredible. She actually has parkisisnsnsns (?) and... kinda doesnt have much time left.. I remember stressing out about it a lot one week, not wanting her to get baptized if she didn't really have a full understanding of what she was doing. Then I had this dream ( I am so latina!) I was her, and there is a lot to it, but I realize this is not about me! SO she got a special interview and was baptized in a chair and even though she is SOWEAK and can barely walk, she was GLOWING after. And her little granddaughter who just got baptized gave the talk and it was honestly the most spirit filled hour of my mission. Her non member sons came and are now meeting with the missionaries in their area. It was really stressful though cause the water and chair and everything had to be PERFECT or something .. not good.. could have happened. I was hypervhenalating the whole time. But it was beautiful. Andrew, the doctor from Spain who was simply FASCINATED by the short 20 sec message of the restoration while I was holding the "end of line" sign at festival, finally found a phone to call me at and waited for my call back for 2 HOURS cause he juist had to hear more! (he is going to Columbia Feb 8 ad thus doesn't have a phone) - his whole life he has spent travelling around the world doing medical service and just wanting to find the path God wanted him to be on, we have been emailing back and forth and I can't really teach him much over email so i just send him reading assignments. He said that is life suddenly has so much light to it, and that he has never in his life been so happy. It shows how little we actually do and the converting power is through the scriptures and the Spirit. He said, "Sister... I want to enter the temple one day, and I want to be baptized before I leave to Columbia" - AHHH! He is so great! I sent the missionaries the very next morning and he will be able to do so and have this happiness forever and ever and ever.Que mas. OH LUIS! the amazing miracle from festival!!! AHH he is getting baptized Feb 5th and calls be every single day at  the VC just to tell me how happy he is. It is incredible cause although it just sounds like "oh this person is getting baptized" it is SO MUCH MORE!!! They just have been seeking truth their entire lives and you see a legitimate PHYSICAL difference in them through the process of conversion, They feel REAL HAPPINESS. And the last man, Jose, who came to the VC claimed I said "something wonderful is going to happen to you soon" ( which is weird cause I don't remember nor can I see myself saying that?) came back and said that "At that point I didn't know, but I just got baptized today, and I had to come here and tell you". Oh my... this literally all just happeneding YESTERDAY!!! The stories are endless. Sorry I overwhlem you with them. I just... ugh, I have no words. God is just so GOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ahh. Okay... I love you all mroe than you know. Please keep being awesome and having awesome lives and success