Loving my new area!

So I was transferred to the Cottonwood Stake so I am still in good ol
Salt Lake City! But I am in a different zone than before so I will be
working around different missionaries. My new companion is Sister
Kayla Talbert. She is from San Antonio Texas and she is super cute and
nice. We get along VERY well! She is quieter so I talk way more than I
should but she is a great listener and we both had hard times last
transfer so we are excited to be together!! I think we were friends in
the pre-existence just like Sister Unrast and I!!
So we are working with a lot of people here! Here are a few of the main ones:
M**** is a little 9-year old! (Insert joke about sister missionaries
baptizing the 9 year olds!) And she was on date to be baptized on the
6th of December but when I got here and met her Sister Talbert and I
both felt like she should be baptized sooner. So we prayed about it
and asked her a few days ago if she would be baptized on November 22nd
and she and her parents agreed!!! AHHH! She is so cute. Her parents
and older brother are less-active and they are all working on going to
church.
H******* is a sweet less-active that has had a crazy past and we are
going to start teaching her the lessons and help her gain a testimony.
A** is another less-active whose husband (but now they're seperated)
is against the church is working on coming back to church as well.
J*** is a sweet investigator. His wife and him were recently married
and have 1 son together, another on the way and she has 2 from a
previous marriage. The wife and her 2 sons are all baptized and J***
is taking the lessons. But he doesn't feel a desire to be baptized.
This week for Halloween we had a mission-wide activity. We got to go
to the Salt Lake City temple and do an endowment session as a mission!
It was the coolest thing to see everyone dressed in white. It reminded
me of what heaven will look like (except obviously much bigger and my
family will be there!!) Then we got done around 7:30 and went back to
the mission office for chili dinner and a talent show...long story
short, we didn't get home until 11:00!!!!!!!!!!!!! For those of you
who don't know, this is very late for a missionary. So we are still
recouping from our late night! Hahaa but daylight savings did give us
an extra hour of sleep yesterday so hallelujah!
Life is crazy but so  worth it. Even thought I was transferred again I
know that this is where I am supposed to be. I love this area and the
people here. I love being a missionary and constantly having the
spirit work through me. This gospel has blessed my life more than
anything else. I hope everyone I love has a great week and that you
read the scriptures and pray to your Father in Heaven. He loves you
and wants to help you. I LOVE YOU ALL! Have a great week :)


Love, Sister Lauren Dodd

For those wanting to send packages or letters for this area please send them to the mission home address:

Sister Lauren Ashley Dodd 
Utah Salt Lake City East Mission 
3487 S 1300 E West Entrance 
Salt Lake City, Utah 84106

Sister Brown and I had toasts to our transfer. We would take turns
saying something we were grateful for. I had chocolate milk and she
had San Pellegrino (which reminded me of Nathan!!)

Sister Can, Sister Stout, Sister Brown and I went to birthday lunch on
Tuesday afternoon right before transfers!

We went to the F*******'s (the sweetest members) house for a Halloween
themed dinner and we had soup in pumpkin-looking bread bowls, goblin
toes (barbeque wienies), vampire teeth (apples with almond pieces),
witches fingers (carrots with almonds), and salad and these were the
cute desserts!