H***Y GOT BAPTIZED!!!!! It was incredible. H***y is my first
investigator that I was able to find and teach all the lessons to and
see baptized! It was so amazing. The spirit was there during the whole
service. H***y's brother, R**y, who just got baptized last year was
able to baptize him. And their dad, who is not a member, was able to
come to the baptism. MIRACLES ERRYDAY!!!!
C****r is great. Every time we go he says "THOMAS S MONSON IS THE
PROPHET!" hahaa. He likes to prove to us that he is learning and
retaining what we teach him! Hahaa. So cute! We taught him about
eternal marriage last week so we asked him this week if he remembered
and he said "that's when you're stuck with someone forever"....pretty
much!!
This week was really good. Sister Talbert and I always have fun
together! We ate dinner at a members house and his wife was telling us
about how he puts his own words into church Hymns (it reminded me of
when mom sings the wrong words!!! hahhaaa). She said "today he sang
'Come, come ye saints, no TOILET PAPER HERE' "!!!!! HAHHAAA. (**"no
toil nor labor fear"). She then informed us how vital it is that we
marry a man who can make us laugh. We pretty much get marriage advice
at every dinner. (Sounds familiar...DAD!!!)
Mission life is wonderful. I see miracles every day. I see my Savior's
Atonement impact my life every day. I am so blessed. HAVE A GREAT
WEEK!

Sis Talbert, H***y, H***y's dad, and me!

The Butterfield's and H***y

The Forsberg's and H***y

Happy 2015!!!

HAPPY 2015!!! WAHOOOO!
I can't believe I've been on my mission for 7 months. So many miracles!!


I finally got my Grandma's letter with all the notes that my
family wrote to me at Thanksgiving!!!!! It seriously made me cry
reading through all of your notes. I LOVE MY CUTE FAMILY!!!!!

C****R IS ON DATE TO BE BAPTIZED ON FEBRUARY 7TH!! When we went over
this week he said, "Did I tell you that I am getting baptized on
February 7th?" HAHAHAAA, NO! He didn't! We are so excited. And his
sweet less-active parents are being super supportive. Every
missionaries dream.

Our sweet less-active H*****r is having surgery his week on her mouth
and she asked us for a priesthood blessing. It was so powerful and
sweet. I know that priesthood blessings are dependent on our faith and
she has a lot of faith!

H***y is still solid. He is getting baptized THIS SATURDAY. AHHHHHHHH!
He is awesome. He is in Alma 51. If you want to know if the church is
true: READ THE BOOK OF MORMON. H***y is progressing because he is
reading the Book of Mormon and following the invitations that we
extend to him.

We had exchanges on Saturday so I got to spend a whole day with cute
Sister Hatch in her area, the Big Cottonwood stake! We met a member
that had "Salty Dog" written on his car....I don't know if I have been
on a mission too long to know what that means or if it is an inside
joke but I thought it was funny! And we had a lesson with a
less-active in her area and her 3 cute little grandkids. They are 4, 5
and 7 and they are these little boys with cute chubby cheeks and they
all have their ears pierced! Hahaaaa. One of the little boys said the
prayer and he asked Heavenly Father to help him to color inside the
lines. SO CUTE!
This week was good. I am constantly reminded of my blessings. I am
blessed with the gospel, I have a supportive and loving family and
friends, and I am a missionary.
Have a great week!!!!

Add caption

My District!

This train room was amazing. It reminded me of my Grandpa Davis' love
for trains.

Cute Sister Hatch!!!! <3

A week late...sorry!!

Birthday shoutout to my mama whose birthday is January 3rd! She is my
role model. She is the hardest worker ever, she shows ME patience, she
loves me love and she has dealt with me for 21 years so that is proof
of her hard work, patience and love!!! Hahaaa.

So Christmas as a missionary is pretty sweet. I got to see so many
different traditions and lots of people let us in to talk about Jesus.
It was cool. Also I have lots of people to thank for Christmas gifts
and thinking about Sister Talbert and I this Christmas!

The Nelsons gave us a ton of healthy food!
The Nashs gave us scone mix, lotion, gloves and chap stick and let us
come to thier house on Christmas and skype!
The Butterfields gave us blankets, gift cards and chocolate!
The Banks gave us trail mix, lotion, pajamas, scarves, leather gloves,
and moisturizer, and church art books.
The Forsbergs gave us pajamas, robes, socks, skirts, and stockings
full of candy! And Danica made us henna shirts!
Also thank you to the Biesingers, Bartons, Madsens, Stecks, Hansens,
Robbs, Steadmans, and Martinez's!!!!

Also I had some deliveries from my last areas!
Lynda Tierney gave me a watch, cheetah sunglasses and a gift card!
Sister James gave Sister Talbert and I scarves and a gift card
And sweet Linda from my first area came a brought me a quilt of the
Christmas story that she made for me!!!!

Then my amazing family:
Sarah: Thank you for the socks, bracelet and pictures! I sounds
conceited but I can't stop looking at us!! Hahaaa
Bret and Karen: Thanks for the cd's and the cute Christmas card!
Amanda Liman: Thank you for the chocolate advent calendar. It was yummy!!!
Aunt Karen and Thompson family: Thank you for the scarves and family
Christmas card! Jayden is so cute.
Grandma Davis: Thank you for the outfit! I love it!!!
Grandma and Papa Dodd: my dark chocolate pomegranate, a scarf, a super
cute sweater and a headwrap. THANK YOU! I love it all.
Kamee: Thank you for the scarf, earrings, lotion and a watch. Thank
you. So cute...as usual.
Mom, Dad, Nate and Boo: Thank you for the leggings, pajamas, lotion,
watch, outfits, hot chocolate and stocking! It was the best.
And thank you to Mom's friend who sent me a cosmetic bag...I LOVE IT!

As you can see....I am SO blessed. Thank you for making my Christmas
away from home wonderful!
Christmas day: We went to a recent convert's house and had breakfast!
They made french toast which reminded me of home (except it wasn't
stuffed mom). Then we dropped by Jose's house and wished them a Merry
Christmas. Then we went the the Nash's home and I got to SKYPE MY
FAMILY! It was the best Christmas present. Then we had lunch at the
Kesler's. Then we went and visited the Nelsons. Then we went back to
the Nelson's for dinner and we did a giant puzzle together and we sang
Christmas songs around the piano! Then we finished our Christmas day
at the Forsbergs. It was a magical day filled with people that I love.
I hope everyone's Christmas celebrations were centered around thoughts
and messages of our Savior. This Christmas season was a testament to
me that He is indeed the reason for the season. I love Jesus Christ! I
love being a missionary!

H***y is still on date to be baptized on January 10th. He is AMAZING.
He is already half way through reading Alma in the Book of Mormon.

G***f and his family were evacuated but we will hopefully be able to
stay in contact with them and they told us they were going to meet
with missionaries in their temporary apartment.

C****r and his family had a good Christmas and although we weren't
able to have a lesson this week we did stop by because C*****'s mom
asked us to come by and braid her hair! Hahahaa. (She just had
shoulder surgery so it isn't that weird!!)

Mission life is always good. Everyone have a happy and safe New Years
Eve celebration. 2015 holllllllllaaaaa!!!!

Merry Christmas!!

So the cool thing about serving in Utah is that there are general
authorities around every corner. At our stake conference last week
ELDER DALLIN H. OAKS (mom, I'm sure you can sense my enthusiasm), an
apostle, spoke and shook my hand! He asked where I was from and turns
out he used to live in Joliet and was a branch president there! Crazy!
Then this past Friday at our mission devotional, ELDER JEFFREY R.
HOLLAND spoke to us! He shook each of the missionaries hands and
afterwards told us he did an individual interview when he shook our
hands and looked into our eyes.....so I have bad news. Just kidding of
course I passed! Strict obedience ladies and gentlemen. ;)
Long story short, serving in Utah is awesome! We have been being given
Christmas presents left and right. It really is such a blessing to
have so many people who want to take care of us. I am so thankful. I
am so grateful that I am going to be able to skype with my family in
THREE DAYS! I am not as thankful that they will see how fat I've
gotten! Hahaaa. If you want to give the missionaries presents for
Christmas, get them sweaters or blankets, or a watch or HAND SOAP!
Everyone uses hand soap! Hahaaa.
I am thankful also for the wonderful Christmas season! During the
CHRISTmas season people enjoy hearing of Jesus Christ. He truly is the
reason for the season. People that would usually not listen to our
message have their hearts softened during this time. I love my Savior!
Jeffrey R. Holland told us that "When God wants something done he
sends a baby". He wants us to return to live with him so he sent Jesus
Christ as a baby to the most humble circumstances. And thus begins the
Christmas story...
H***y is wonderful! He is already in Mosiah. The Book of Mormon is the
key to knowing if this church is true and he is reading it. Miracle.
C****r is so funny. For the last month when he offers the prayer he
mentions something about Santa bringing him everything that he asked
for. It is so cute that none of us have had the courage to break it to
him that just because he prays for Santa to bring him everything...it
doesn't mean that it's gonna happen! Hahaa
G***f and his family are really coming closer. G***f mentioned the
other day about how since he's been meeting with us he has seen the
blessings in his life.
Sister Talbert and I are still getting along! And she hasn't gotten
sick of me YET! HAhaaa...when I read that to her she said..."not that
you know of!"
I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas. May the joy and happiness of
the Christmas season be in our hearts all year round. LOVE YOU!

Holidays are so much different on a mission. I keep hearing how people
are going home for Christmas or how some people are travelling and I
hear of lots of Christmas traditions! I am excited for everyone to be
with their families for the holidays. I am glad that my beautiful
trainer Sister Unrast is now safely back at home. She was one of my
greatest gifts. I am glad that my sister Kamee will be able to go home
for the holidays and spend time with our wonderful family. I am glad
that my beautiful friend Christine Zamudio will become Hermana Zamudio
tonight. My heart is overjoyed this Christmas season. I find great joy
being a missionary and testifying every day of the life of my Savior.
I love the Christmas season. I love the lights, the smells, the
traditions, the music, the love, the family time. I love the birth and
great gift of Jesus Christ: the reason for the season!!!

This week on my mission was very difficult. I got the heartbreaking
news that my sweet Princess had to be put to sleep this week. My heart
aches thinking that I will not be able to see her when I skype home to
my family. I feel like my family is incomplete without her. When I go
home next year she will not greet me. She will not be laying on my
bed. I will not be able to take her on walks. My heart is sad but I
know I will see her again. Pets can't make mistakes so I know I will
see her in heaven. I know this seems weirdly sentimental for a dog but
I loved her very much. My Princess had the type of love that was
unconditional and perfect just like my Heavenly Father. Okay....I'm
done being a sob but I wanted everyone to know that I loved my dog and
I will miss her very much.

As if Princess wasn't hard enough, our sweet 97 year old investigator
Hazel passed away on Friday morning. She went peacefully and is now
reunited with her husband!

On a happier note, we put our investigator H***y on date to be
baptized on January 10th! Wahooo! We are so excited for him.

This week was great. We have an exciting week ahead of us! We get to
go to the Salt Lake City temple tomorrow for the 8 o clock session!
Then on Wednesday we have zone conference. Then Friday we have a
mission devotional. Busy busy busy. I love being a missionary and
seeing miracles every day!

Love you all!

We got to go to temple square this week with the B***s! (a recent
convert and his family!) I FINALLY GOT TO SEE THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS!

Obviously I was a slacker last week and I didn't send pictures...silly
me! Who wants to look at a blog without pictures?! NO ONE! So I will
be better.
So....transfers are tomorrow and you know my history with being moved
around...well guess what?! (drum roll please!) I'M STAYING WITH SISTER
TALBERT IN THE COTTONWOOD STAKE! I am really excited. We added
TWO new investigators!
L**y is a sweet 15 year old girl that has grown up around the church
but has a few different feelings than the things we believe in and she
"doesn't believe in organized religion". But she is super cute and
wants to learn more :)
G***f grew up in Utah and has studied pretty much every religion ever!
So he asks very insightful questions that the spirit definitely has to
help us answer! Hahaa. His wife is less-active and they have 3 boys
and they are going to start joining G***f for our lessons!
H***y was a media referral. He is 22 and he had thyroid cancer and
just recently got it removed. He has lived in Utah for 2 years and his
brother is a member and he wants to be baptized.....GOLDEN! He came to
the Christmas devotional last night that we watched at a members
house. Afterwards we began talking and suddenly we were teaching the
Restoration and we invited him to be baptized! He said yes once he
finds out that the Book of Mormon is true! We are so excited!
C****r is our sweet little 8 year old investigator. His parents are
both less-active and his mom is very supportive of his desire to be
baptized...his dad needs the spirit to soften his heart just a little
:) But they are really wonderful and we had a great lesson this week
about repentance! (How do you teach repentance to a 9 year old you may
ask?...it was fun!)
AHH! It was just such a good week. I am so blessed to be a missionary
and to be staying in my area! And....I have been on a mission for 6
months this week!!!!!! 1/3 done. 2/3 to get done. #blessed
#HeIsTheGift #IcantbelieveImusinghashtags #lame

One of our cute less actives R***e!

So I love the Christmas season (duh!) and a family in one of our wards
(the F*******'s) take care of us! They gave us little trees to set up
in our apartment!

A poster I made for one of our ward's Christmas party!

Utah can put anything on a leaf of ice burg lettuce and call it a
salad....they called this an "appetizer salad"! Hahaahaahaa

HAPPY BELATED THANKSGIVING! Hahaa. Thanksgiving was fun house hopping!
We ate lots of food. We ate with one of our ward mission leaders and
there was a member of the 70 there, Elder Golden, from south Africa.
Then we ate with a less-active and his family! There was like 40
people there...it was like home! (except a lot more old people!) Then
we ate with our recent convert Jose and his family...mexicans know how
to make Thanksgiving! Hahahaaa.
So transfers are next week and I feel like I am going to stay but
we'll see! You know how much the Lord loves to move me around! Sister
Unrast (my trainer) goes home next week! Crazy! We got our first
Christmas invitation!
I wish I had funny stories to tell or exciting things to share but I
don't! I PROMISE I STILL HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR! Hahaaa.
I am so blessed and I thank my Heavenly Father for those blessings. I
hope everyone prays to Him. I hope that everyone will build a
relationship with him. We taught the young men of one of our wards
yesterday and we watched this little video....everyone should watch
it! It's so good!

https://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2010-07-040-they-that-are-wise?lang=eng

I LOVE YOU ALL! Have a great week.