Hello Fam!

We had another great week full of miracles. It’s interesting how we learn so much everyday from what happens. We had a family home evening night on Wed that turned out really fun! it was with all the people that are new converts and some investigators as well. Maria brought this little neighbor friend who has been struggling a lot with her health. We were able to teach her on Friday. She lives with her mom and sister and just barely started going back to high school. She told us after that she wants to change her life and start over new. So we are working with her now. On Friday we had divisions with the Hermanas from good ol Ituzaingo 4 and Hermana Duarte (from Paraguay) came here again with me! We met up with a lady and her daughter from Sunday last week. She came to church afterwards asking for food so we got her information and put a time with her to meet in the church cause she lives where Lucas does he can’t go with us anymore cause he has been working a lot and getting ready for his mission! Anyways we met up with her on Friday and gave her a tour of the church. We taught her the restoration and how god always answers prayers. She commented when her kids were younger she use to beat them all the time she said she was a horrible mom, she said that one day she hopes to have all five of her kids in front of her to ask forgiveness. I felt so bad for her.You could just feel the regret through her voice and see it deep in her face.

On Saturday we did a little service painting a hospital here in Haedo! Then we went over and had a barbeque with the familia Escobar... the ones we found last week. They came to church on Sunday three of their kids want to get baptized!
We are working with the parents. The mom almost didn’t come cause she was sick in the morning but in the end she came with her husband! My goal is to cut his ponytail off before I leave from Ramos! haha. I need to be more careful cutting hair cause now its lice season. President Benton told us this transfer is going to be short cause Elder Anderson is coming here to speak with all the mission presidents.. we were kinda of sad to hear that we won't be together for long! Next week we have general conference and then the next is our dia de diez!
Well I love you all and hope you are all doing great!

Hola la familia Hoobb! as Alejandro would say without any teeth.. haha

This week was amazing to start off with, we have been working with some great people here. On Thursday we were walking down a street in our area when this lady came up to us and asked us for directions in Ramos Mejia cause she had been before with a friend. She said she had tried to find it on her own but never could so we gave her the direction and told her we could pass by the next day and that this Saturday there was an activity for the primary so she said she would talk with her kids.
The next day we went and ate with a family Hna Salerno, the primary president- side note with them... they use to live in Ogden with the Westergards in Far West! small world! She was telling us that we needed to tell her for sure how many kids that weren't members were coming to the activity. So we decided we would visit the woman on Friday. We went and met her four kids and taught them all together the plan of salvation... after she wanted us to come back later to meet her husband.. so we did! she and the kids came to the activity on Saturday and loved it!!! She was telling us she has been looking for where she needs to be with god and that she wants the same for her family. She saw how blessed her friend was that had brought her to church so she knew quite a bit already about some things! Tomorrow night we have a family home evening with them!

We have another guy that came a long time to church. He just showed up one Sunday cause the elders contacted him at the bus stop. He said he had an uncle who was a member. We set up a time to meet with him but he never came... we didn't have his address or cel. but two weeks ago we found him at the bus stop again and got his number so we have been teaching him as well! He has such great questions about life and what he needs to do to draw closer to our father in heaven!

This week really was amazing. I am so happy I'm working with Hermana Godfrey! She will be finishing the mission in December! hahaha. I dont know if I said she is from Pennsylvania and was studying music before... she did a lot in opera shows and all that good stuff! It reminds me of our opera night in Logan! ahaha.
It is crazy how this week went by so fast. We are all preparing for the general conference and getting plans ready for Oct 10, 2010. the president wants every ward to have a baptism that day in our mission!! UN DIA DE DIEZ!!!!!
Well I love you all and hope you have a great week!!!!

Sept. 13

Hola Mi Porteña Familia!

Soooo we had a great weekend! Hermana Isla and I! We ended off the week with baptizing Enrique a family friend of the familia Cardozo! Alejandro baptized him! President Benton and his wife came to our ward and spoke! I am so grateful for the president and his wife here in the mission. He has a great love and spirit for missionary work! We truly are the best mission in the world!

This week we did some haircutting... i lost my shears awhile ago as well so Enrique gave me some that he had! how nice! They are from Brasil. i cut this guys hair that used to be famous in bike riding. His nick name was the Black David, his name is Dario David. He has had a rough life but is trying to fix things up.

Hermana Isla went off to her house today and I have my new comp with me! Hermana Godfrey! she is amazing! She served with hermana Lopez! I'm really excited to start this transfer with her.

It's been warming up a little more. We had some rainy days this last week! We are focusing more on referrals from the members. especially here in Ramos with the familia Cardozo and other recent converts to the church. It's crazy how time flies by.. I love to read the letters of Sam.. it brings tears to my eyes. When I think of what a great example he is for me. Well i love you all and have a great week! Remember who you are and read your scriptures every single day!

La Familia!

We were able to contact a reference from the stake. Her daughter had sent an email to a member in the other ward to send the missionaries over to her house because her daughter lives in Ireland with her family. She lived in Utah for a year and a half cause her daughter was living there! During her time there she had gone to the ceremony of Gordon B Hinckley and attended church there too. She knows quite a bit about the church. She came on Sunday with us to church, she is really special! The other lady Mary came as well.. the one that came last week! We had Sara there as well, and a friend of the family Cardozo. He will be baptized next week! Beatriz used to attend another church with him but he was looking for more, so he came two weeks ago with the family and said he found what he was looking for. Something that he couldn't find in the other churches! Alejandro will be baptizing him!! They have been sharing the gospel with a lot of their friends and families.. haha, that is the power of true conversion when they have the desire to share it with others! It was a very special Sunday with all the testimonies we heard. I love the people i am surrounded by. Their examples for me and the help they offer to the work of the lord, all united to do what we are suppose to do to have happiness!
We had a crazy week full of rain until Sunday. it was bright and beautiful!
Sometimes our lives are like that. We will have storms and days that are just horrible.. haha. but our savior is our light. and when we put hope and trust in him and the atonement then we can find the true happiness, the warmth to our soul. I love you all and am so grateful for all that you do. no matter how far I am from you all I have the comfort that you are working hard so that we may enjoy the life after! Have a great week and be good!

How exciting sam left!

We had an exciting and interesting week yet again... it is always an adventure in my life.. especially this transfer. haha. We had some little problems with our water at the beginning of the week and we were locked out of our apartment cause the guy from the offices to fix it had our keys. We had divisions with the Hermanas from Ado Bonzi. I was there with Hermana Claros! We visited a lady they were teaching, made pancakes (well really crepes but they call them panqueques) then we spent two hours washing all of her dishes. In the end we were able to set a baptismal date for her! haha its always through charity that we can warm the heart. Then on Saturday we had a talent show in the ward it was really fun! There were skits from the movie night at the roxbury, then two bands from members here, and we sang two primary songs with one of the members that plays the guitar! There was a friend of Lucas that came who we have taught in the past. He is about Jake's age and has a hard life. speaking of Lucas, he received the melchezdic priesthood last week.

We had a funny thing happen on Sunday. We share our building with the ward Ciudadela and they have their sacrament at the last and ours is first. Alejandro and Beatriz brought a friend from Ciudadela that stayed with us during the block and then we thought we would pass his address to the elders afterwards. When we went to talk to them they had someone for us! They said a lady came for the last block, it ended up being Mary, the lady that her daughter was a member, we met her last week!! We hadn't been able to contact her during the week cause she had changed her work schedule.... but she came on all her own. haha so we had switched investigators for the day with Ciudadela.

My little companion is doing great! She is a little shy but she works really hard and is always helping. I really do appreciate her! We have our fun moments everyday, and the language has improved a lot... but there is always room to improve right?

Well i love you all and hope the best with this new year of school, it's always refreshing to start over new. We just recently shared with Sara about the Sabbath day. The importance of partaking of the sacrament and how we can really apply the atonement in our lives. What refreshing hope it gives to each of us individually to be clean and renew our covenants. Have a great week!

1- me and Hermana Isla!
2- Andres with his ctr ring
3- Alejandro painted this picture ahahaha
4- the baptism of Nahuel and Andres

Wow - End of August

Hola mi familia!!!
Today it has been 11 months since I have left and how time goes by so fast! We had some adventures this week and found some great new people! We received one from the stake president, a lady who had a daughter that was a member but she passed away a couple years ago from cancer. So that's all we knew about her that she had interest in the church. so we went to visit her on Saturday and she explained this to us, that she recently had a dream that her daughter was unhappy with the mom. and wanted her to change something in her life. so the mom began to pray to one of the her santos in the catholic church, but she explained to us she didn't feel good during her prayer so she stopped. Then came one day she felt really depressed and sad. Her other daughter called to see how she was and she explained how she was and the daughter told her ¨mom! you need to contact the mormon church!¨ she recently talked to a member and wanted her mom to learn more as well. We were able to explain to her the plan of salvation and that the church of christ has been restored! It was amazing how strong the spirit was.

OH and i received the package from the Parslow fam! Most of it is gone already! hahaha. we ate the mac and cheese the other day and the idaho potatoes! it was delish! we are going to open on the ramen noodles... I never thought I would miss them but its nice to have a little taste of home. haha. It was really nice of them to send it! Give Leslie a big hug for me!

Sara is progressing really well! She bought a cute little dress for her daughter to come to church on Sunday! She loves that they talk a lot about the family in the church. Last week we ate at our apartment for lunch and I shut the door without the keys! The door knobs here are different, they dont have a handle to open from the outside so you always have to have your keys to open the door no matter if it's locked or not. I locked ourselves out of the apartment... we called a locksmith later that night to come rescue us. haha. I never fail to show that I am just human.. this morning as well we had a little problem with water everywhere on the floor... good thing we only have tiled floors.

Sunday was so amazing to see Alejandro bless the sacrament and to watch Nahuel pass it around. I am blessed to be here and see their progress. I wish I could just bring them all to Utah and live with us.... its a blessing to be a part in the lives of these people. and how important it is to have the spirit! Sometims you wonder if the people really listen to you or if they understand. It reminds me of the talk by Elder Anderson from general conference in April commented how the son of Alma remembered what his father had said and how Enos remembered the words of his father talking about a savior! The sacred name of our savior contains much power and the importance to talk about Christ! We must always be anxious to share what we feel and know! thank you for all!
I love you!!