Happy New Year!

Hey y'all!

The adventures here in Albuquerque are still just as good as always! Sister C and I are killin it out here! Still have lots to work on, but it's cool to see all the improvement :)

This last Sunday we had an adventure... part way through Sacrament the fire alarm went off!! (and that morning our smoke alarm went off. just because it was expired, but it really wasn't our day). We all jumped and just kind of looked at bishop like, "do we leave? Is the spirit going to protect us, or do we run?" haha so he got up and said we should all evacuate. It was the most organized evacuation I’ve ever seen. We all gathered right outside the building, and sister C and I started singing Christmas hymns, and everyone joined us. It was so cool! (ps- Sister C can sing too! so, we sing all the time together!) Eventually we were all able to go back into church and finish our meeting. It was quite the day. 

For Christmas, it was SO good to see family! We spent the morning at a members house having brunch and Skyping home. Then we visited several members and investigators. It was a way busy, awesome day. Our apartment didn't get cleaned up for days though with the mess we made! haha the memebrs and everyone took SUPER good care of us. We had plenty of gifts to open on Christmas, and more candy and food than we ever knew what to do with. We still have a ton, and we've given away more than we have left. It’s pretty insane really. We’re going shopping today with Christmas money, and everything has just been really great :)

We attended a baptism on Saturday, and had our investigator, D there. It was such a spiritual, wonderful experience. She said that her heart really was touched, and she's not sure when, but she does want to get baptized. 

We spent some time this week as well doing some rescuing of sisters that were struggling. It’s sometimes hard as a leader because you never know best how to help... you feel kind of helpless sometimes, because they are hurting because of their decisions and there's nothing really that you can do to help their immediate situation. But I have grown so grateful for the spirit during those times of need, as well as for the priesthood and it's worthy holders. 

Anyway, remember this wonderful chance that we have to make new goals. Set smart goals, and work hard to achieve them. It is always so worth it to look back and see how far you have come. But there is no growth in comfort, and no comfort in growth. Love y'all!!

Love,

Sister Brown

P.S. (email chain between Sister Brown and her Mom)

Sister Brown: "...... and nervous about transfers."

Mom: "Nervous about transfers?  I guess that will always happen, but I thought you'd be used to the idea now."

Sister Brown: "Mom, I seriously want you to picture the idea of moving every six weeks. Or maybe, you might not be moving. And you don't get to pick who you are going to be living with. You could stay the same, or things could change. You might have one weekend to say goodbye to everyone you love and move to who knows where with who knows who... or you could get left alone. And right now, there is your president, and 3 elders planning that decision in an office all week. It makes me nervous every. time. "

We sure love her.

Christmas time is coming

Well, no epic crashes this week, but we had a pretty awesome week!

Last  pday consisted of washing and waxing our car to prepare for inspections this weekend.  And when we washed and waxed our car, really I mean that we went to a car wash, and then we mostly let the Elders wax our car, and I just "waxed off"  ;)  But then we played a cool game of chair soccer.  It was super fun!

We taught more lessons this week, which feels really good.  We're finally really figuring out how to work with the ward and everything...it's awesome.  Getting everything organized with new ways to get members out is splendid.  We went to the mission office a couple times ths week to run some errands and that was a blast.  The office ladies are a few more of my favorite people on this planet.  : )  We had exchanges again too...they always throw me off a little.  But this time I was in my own area, doing my own thing, and it was a blast.  :)  We are so blessed with the sisters we have.

We went to a "choirside" this week.  So, there was a choir from somewhere in the area.  I miss performing sometimes.  But there was also a bell choir there, and they were AWESOME!  Seriously so cool.  : )  I think I want to join one one day.  haha

ALL day Saturday was a zone conference.  It was a blast.  Elder Foster of the Seventy came and spoke to us.  I got to see all sorts of missionary friends, which is the best ever.  And get super spiritually fed, which is the super best ever too.  : )

Oh also, Sister C's. aunt lives in ABQ.  She leaves us little notes and things when we aren't home.  I haven't met her yet, but shes' super sweet.  : )

Then last night a family we are working with, we went over and helped them decorate theri tree and things.  We made a popcorn and cranberry garland, set up and decorated the tree, and then had hot chocolate and had a ton of un!  I love Christmas.  : )

Hope that y'all are getting ready for the season and having a super good time!  I love y'all a ton.  Remember the reason for the season.  Merry CHRISTmas!!!!  Love you!

Love,
Sister Brown

Sometimes everything in your life gets flipped upside down

Business as usual here in the ABQ. We tried to plan on Monday... but due to visiting sisters and running errands and more meetings... it didn't happen. So that of course threw off our week a little. Tuesday was p-day... so basically, a more stressful day than I would like, but not unbearable. 

Wednesday is when the party really started. Haha. So Tuesday night some sister came over and we started an exchange. I went to their area, and it was a lot of fun. I actually really love being able to go and teach and train, as well as learn a lot from the different sisters in their areas. So I was with this sister in the area, and..... I was in a bike area. We spent the better part of the day inside doing training and planning. But it was when we finally went outside that things got crazy. IT was SUPER cold and SUPER windy this week. (Lots of snow starting Thursday.... and this morning was only 10*). So you can maybe imagine what it's like to bike several miles to houses that you're not sure if they're even going to want you there. It’s freezing, we're in skirts, and we're dying. At one point I realized that I wore the wrong shoes... the gear slipped a little, and my shoe went flying! So I parked the bike and went to save my shoe from traffic. I of course parked my bike in front of the one car that wanted to pull into the driveway. THEN, we were riding, and as the other sister tried to go from gravel to sidewalk.... she crashed. In an attempt to not run into her, I slammed on my break. And then, not being an experienced biker, I only hit the brake for my front tire...... you can see what happened next. I had a small wire fence to one side of me, and like 4 lanes of traffic on the other side. As I unhooked myself from the fence, a car stopped and asked if we were okay. I cut my thumb pretty bad, but that was all I could see. We got right back on and kept riding! haha I later found bruises all over my legs and arms.... but I figure, you can't be a true missionary until you've gotten into at least one bike accident right? Haha

So Wednesday while I was gone, Sister J got a phone call from president. There was a sister down south that went home early, and so she was needed as a companion in El Paso the next day. I got home, and we were up LATE packing. then all day Thursday was MLC (our big leadership meeting), and then running back to pick up Sister J and taking her back to the mission home to catch her ride south. It was SO hard to say goodbye, but she's doing great things down there already :) AND, Sister C and I are tearing it up here in Albuquerque!

Friday and Saturday were more of the same. Meetings, we attended a baptism, had a lot of fun, did a lot of planning. Friday night we went to another stake's Christmas party. It was a nativity display, local artwork, and a performance of Handel’s Messiah. It was fabulous! And then Saturday night we had our ward Christmas party... nativities, and then some readings, and congregational singing. It was great :)

Sunday we contacted a referral for a lady named Jackie. As it seems with many others, her life is crazy tough. sometimes I’m super shocked when people tell me about their lives... it's amazing to me the way that Satan works to destroy families and ruin lives spiritually and physically, emotionally... everything. Anyways, Jackie is really great, and we are seeing her again this weekend. 

The baptism that we had originally planned for this weekend on the 14th got pushed to the 4th. 

Everyone else is moving along just wonderfully. I am SO excited for Christmas and really getting a cool chance to focus on the reason for the season this year. 

Love y'all so darn much!!

Love,

Sister Brown

Thanksgiving week

Hey friends!!
So this last week was super good!  Tuesday, Sister J and I spent the better part of the day finishing transfers, and then cleaning our apartment.  It got a little out of hand ;)  We went to go pick up our new companion, Sister C.  So, Sis. C is 6'1", and fabulous!  She's an absolute doll, and I love having her here.  This is her 4th transfer (so been out about 5 months), and I actually took her contacting on her first day in the field!  Quite honestly, when I found out I was going to be in a trio again, I cried.  I was so upset with Heavenly Father.  I loved both of my last companions, but I didn't love being in a trio.  Well, this week I repented for not trusting Him more.  The 3 of us are best friends.   : )  We teach super well together, and we have a blast!

Sis. J is still having a lot of super bad migraines.  Usually she's a super hero and just works through them.  sometimes we stay inside and let her rest up a little.  Those headaches are pretty brutal.  but when we're in, it's another chance to clean a little, get to know each other better, and study more.  Being a missionary is boss.   :)

So it was kind of a slow week as far as lessons go.  We taught a few lessons, but it's tough with the holidays.  Lots of people out of town and such.  We taught Ashley and Tony, and Saturday Ashley also came to a baptism.  It was awesome.  :)  I think one of may favorite parts ever about being a missionary, is to see people change.  I met Ashley for the first time a few months ago, and since then I can really see a change in her household.  I can feel the spirit there, and see how excited she is to learn and grow.  She has hung a really beautiful picture of Christ in her home, and when i mentioned to her that I noticed and appreciated the change, she got a little teary.  It was the sweetest thing of my life.  : )

Thanksgiving was super fun!  We did some planning and such that morning, and then we spent some time with Amber and Phil.  I made the mashed potatoes, and everything was SO good.  : )  They even were awesome, and accommodated when we asked if we could bring another investigator with us to dinner who didn't have a place.  Phil even went and picked him up, and then we all had dinner.  Oh, it was one of THE funnest times of my life :)  We played games for a little bit after and just had a ton of fun.  Then we dropped by a couple members houses that evening and had pie and chatted.  Good times.  : )

President said no Black Friday shopping (bummer!), so I guess we had to change our Friday plans.  Because of transfers, 50% of our district is new.  I am SO stoked for the new zone.  Oh my heavens, we had so much fun.  They are all easy to talk to and get along with, and basically just awesome.  Friday night we had a tender mercy.  We have learned that Sister J. has a one-on-one connection with God when it comes to food.  Seriously, she'll pray for food, and she always gets it!  Well, we got to this house and Sis. J thought she was going to get sick.  She said a little prayer to have something else for dinner.  The sister went to check the dinner, and after even 2 hours, she said that it still wasn't ready, so we should probably order Church's Chicken.  No way, right?!  I swear my comp has a gift.

We went to a baby shower for a neighbor on Sunday too.  Lots of fun things.  :)

Love y'all!!  Keep working hard, and have a fabulous week!

Love,
Sister Brown

Last week of the transfer.

Holy moly this transfer has been one of THE longest of my LIFE! It has been such a good one. Full of a lot of laughs and good times. But I guess you can't always have the good without the bad right? One of those that I really loved, and I’m really glad is finally over. 

Transfer News: I'm staying another one! Sister Johnson is staying with me and we will be getting another third companion, and Sister Chatwin is headed out. That is kind of sad... but now I will still be able to say that I have had as many companions as I have had transfers. 7 for 7!

This week was long and good. We found two new people to teach! German- his family has been investigating for a while. Well, rather they investigated some while he was a kid. His dad is lds, and his brother got baptized last weekend. His boss referred us to him, and he is SO prepared. We shared the first vision with him, and when Sister J finished reciting it, he smiled super big through the whole thing, and kind of laughed. Then at the end, he just smiled and said, "how can you sit so still while you say that?!" you could watch him fill with the spirit, and be so excited about the gospel. He's 22, and has the best Mexican accent. Seriously can't wait to keep teaching him!

Then Dennis was our other find. He was another referral. He's an older Gentleman, super cool guy. It's been way cold and windy and snowy here, so when we knocked on his door, he let us right in! He knew who we were, and we taught a first lesson right there! Left him with a BOM, and he said he would get baptized when he knew that things were true :)

The Begay boys are going to get baptized on December 14th! :) PLUS, the whole family showed up to church yesterday. That is a huge step, and we are so super excited :) That family is going through a lot right now, but they are troopers! We dropped in a couple days ago, to say hi. (Like I said, people take pity on sisters in the cold snow and wind). So we talked for a little bit, and then she made us the best hot chocolate, and we helped her kids make cake. Sister J broke a plate into one of the cakes when we were helping with dishes. Good thing sister Begay likes us right? ;)

We had a PPI on Thursday too! It’s supposed to stand for Personal Priesthood Interview. But, while some people did have interview for RS, we had Pizza Pie and Ice cream, and our neighbors came that we invited! It was a blast :)

Amber and Phil, doing awesome! Phil got a job! So we're working around his hours as well now. Hopefully he or amber won't have to work Sundays very often, but we are SO happy that they have work. They really are seeing more blessings from tithing and coming to church. It’s so cool :) We had a really fun dinner with them a few days ago. 

Then also dinner last night? Oh my heavens it was THE best thing of my life. There are these brothers in our ward, Jimmy and Terry. They are probably in their 50's, but slightly handicapped. They go to members in the ward and invite themselves over for dinner, and then they LOVE to sing. BUT, they don't know all the words. So last night we had dinner with the Dodds (one of my favorite families!), and the brothers came over for dinner too. Oh man, we sang hymn after hymn. They love the 'spirit of god'. The lyrics end up going, "the spirit of God, the church is true! The church is true, do what the prophet says....... the spirit of God!" or something along those lines. Oh my heavens I love them. We have it all set up for April 9th to sing the whole book with them in the park. We’re going to take pictures for them to scrapbook. (And, they informed me that April 9th is a Wednesday... they're genius too!) I have not laughed so much at a dinner in my whole existence. Seriously, it was SO much fun. We just teased each other all night :) 

So, not too many lessons this week. We are really enjoying the snow... well, I am at least. Having a lot of fun otherwise. Nervous for transfers tomorrow, but all will be well :) hope y'all are doing great! Keep going strong, and stay warm! Love y'all!

Love,

Sister Brown :)

Sick and sick

Well, quite honestly, not much to report this week.  My comps have not been feeling quite 100%, so we've spent a lot of time indoors.  But in a way, it's almost a blessing.  That gives me a lot of time to get some phone calls and texts completed, clean, and to catch up on my Book of Mormon reading.  :)  This week I read Alma 43 through 3 Nephi 10.  All the war chapters.  And you know?   Through all the fighting, there is a lot to learn!  The main thing that I got from those chapters, is to remember to turn to you Heavenly Father.  Seriously.  Those who turn to God, win the war.  They may lose a few battles, but He will always give us the answers we need to ultimately succeed.  Always.  I also learned about the matchless power of God.  He cares so much about us, but there is nothing we can do that will amount to Him.  He wants to bless us, and he can do all, but he expects us to do our part.  To turn to Him, to follow His commandments, and to serve.

We had to push a lot of our dates.  Dante and his brother are now moved to December 14th because they are gong to be out of town and such.  Cameron still doesn't have permission from parents to take lessons.  Amber and Phil are working so hard to be ready.  no new date yet, but they are progressing and doing really well.  :)  Then there are a handful of other people that we are teaching, but it's kind of hit and miss whether or not we teach them weekly.

I need to brag on our ward for just half a sec.  We have THE coolest ward on the planet!!  Every Wednesday we have 2-4 women that volunteer to go out with us.  So while one sister babysits all the kids, the other 3 go out with us on splits.  So we divide and conquer.  three times the work done in the same 2 hours.  it is seriously the bomb.  (These same ladies are the ones that leave church early to help a sister that is sick, even when Satan is attacking other pieces of their lives.  I hope to be as selfless and courageous as these women one day.)  Well, last week we did this split, and Sis. C and I were able to go and visit teach a woman that is really struggling.  We stayed for three hours to keep her company and help her clean her apartment and get shelves and things set up.  Her complex was actually supposed to be gated as well and we made it in without a code.  It was a super big blessing, because then while I stayed there, my companions were able to go and visit a lot of other people, and then teach Dante and his family.  Member missionary work really is where it's at!

Well, that's about it for this week.  Keep working hard!  I love ya'll so much!  Remember who ya are, and remember to be grateful.  We were challenged this week in church to write a list of 100 things that we are grateful for.  I'm going to work on min this week.  :)

Love,
Sister Brown : )

Stolen bike racks, mystery dinners, exchanges, and missing tags

Basically it's been a crazy week :)

Tuesday- exchanges. I stayed in the area, and we had an awesome day :) We taught a lesson to Jennifer. It went really well and I came up with a super awesome analogy for the restoration. But she was kind of falling asleep through it. Good times :)

Wednesday was planning day. We went on splits... so just me and a sister from the ward went out. That was kind of an adventure. Feels almost a tiny bit rebellious to go out without your companions haha.

Thursday was MLC all day, and Friday morning was meetings. Friday afternoon I left my comps to tend the area while I went on an exchange. That was a serious adventure. I was in a biking area for the day, and so not prepared for such. I borrowed a bike from another sister, and just about DIED. The area was flat, and on our bike ride to the first house, I didn't think I was going to make it. And I was super confused, because I had been in a bike area a couple weeks previous with a lot of hills, and didn't have this much of a problem. Well, in coming back from the first house, I asked if we could walk our bikes and just talk for a little bit. Well, a man came out and said hi. We started talking, and turns out he own his own bike shop in his house! Thank heavens for tender mercies from the lord! We stopped and chatted, and he noticed that my front wheel was practically falling off of my bike! So he tightened that up, and then also realigned my tires and filled them with air. Then adjust all of our seats. It was SUCH a blessing. The bike ride home was easy peasy :) BUT, on said bike ride home, we were running late for dinner, and it was getting dark. My purse was across my shoulder, and knocked off my name tag. It was a little embarrassing to show up to dinner with no identity. But then dinner was with this super cute grandparent couple. We got there, and she said we were having mystery dinner. (Made my tummy squirm a little. I was nervous). But, there were 5 of us missionaries. 2 Elders and 3 Sisters. We were assigned numbers, and then the couple dressed up as western ranchers. We had to order what we wanted for each of our 4 courses for dinner, but we didn't know what it was we were ordering. We could order things like 'fence posts' or a 'tumbling tumble weed', or an 'okie-dokie dress'. But we didn't know what anything was! It was a total gamble if you were even going to get silverware! we laughed so much, and had a TON of fun :) I got silverware the first course, and was lucky enough to get my dressing and salad in the same course, but I got dessert half way through, and didn't get a drink till the last course. It was a blast :)

Then Saturday I was gone all day again on an exchange. Lots of little miracles in that area. It's pretty neat when the spirit brings to your mind a personal study you had 4 months previous, and the man you're teaching prays for the first time with the missionaries. Good things happening :)

Sunday.... lots of meetings. Sister Chatwin and I sang a musical number in church. A different rendition of the 13th article of faith. It was really pretty. But half way through, sister S sneezed! We just kept going like nothing happened, but it took all my will power to not laugh!!

Then that night we took the sisters to their DL to get a blessing, and then we were going to go to the ZL's to drop off the bike rack we had been borrowing. When we got out from the blessing, the bike rack that had been attached to the trunk of our car was hanging off, only half way attached! We were not in the safest place of town, so we were kind of freaking. Sister S told me to quickly get in the car and start it while she put the bike rack away and we could leave. As I’m starting the car, she yells... "You! Behind the car! Go away!" and screams! Terrified, thinking my comps are getting kidnapped, I jump out of the car and run to the rescue, only to see our ZL's laughing and coming out from behind a different car!! I was almost mad, but I was laughing to hard. It was so funny, and we needed a good release :) *missionaries behind the scenes*

They switched our schedule too. So instead of pdays on Monday, and planning on Thursday. We planned on Monday, and have pdays on Tuesday. It’s really weird right now, but I think it will help throughout the end of the week. 

We are teaching a few more families now :) it's fantastic! If all goes well... we have a couple people that should be getting baptized the Saturday before thanksgiving. And then transfers are that Tuesday, the 25th! Crazy how time flies!

Keep working hard y'all! Love you so much, and pray for you always. Keep looking for tender mercies and the hand of the Lord in your lives daily. 

Love,

Sister Brown

Hump Month

Well, I hit 8 months in a few days.  The mission has gone by SUPER fast until about this last month, and now it's dragging.  but, we concluded that it's because I'm almost half way.  So I just gotta make it to month 9, and then it's all downhill from there right?

Besides things being slow, the work is going well, lots of blessings this week.

Last Sunday, we had a couple of YW bring a friend to us, Cameron, and say he wanted to take the missionary discussions!  We taught him for the first time on Saturday, and it went super well!  With him, we have 2 people on date for November 23.  Right before the next transfer.  It's going to be the bomb!

This work really is so cool, and so much fun.  :)  I am SO grateful to be out here, working on baptizing the world :)  The work really is hastening.

Funny story, we were sitting in a park at a table having a meeting with a couple of zone leaders.  Anyways, we were just talking.  Pretty soon, from behind us, this guy yells, "Y'all look really weird sitting there just so ya know..."  It was SO funny.  Then Sister J goes, "Weirder than some tough guy walking two chihuahua's."  It was SO funny!!  I loved it!  Reminded me how much we really do stand out.  And for some reason, people don't mind telling missionaries how it is  I might actually miss that when I come home.  haha

Halloween was good.  We were told that we didn't need to come in early or anything.  BUT, we had planning to do, and we live in a sketch part of town.  So we went to dinner and had a mini party, and then came back to plan.  It was fun. : )

Something that I'm working on, is likening the scriptures unto me.  This weeks supplication, was Alma 38.  When you read, just plug in your name, the places you are or will go.  It's so cool to watch the scriptures come more to life when you really apply them.

Hope all is well back home!  Keep workin hard.  Love y'all SO much!!

Love,
Sister Brown

And it Begins....

Well, we started exchanges this last week. It’s kind of nice being in a trio, because then you have two people in the area, and so you don't have to worry about missing too much. That’s a blessing.

We have found a few more families to teach this week! It’s amazing the people that are coming through! Really.... it's pretty incredible. We feel so blessed!! And this last week, we taught a ton! It feels so good to be out a lot more :) we had 9 lessons with members with us, 5 without, and 2 more with less actives. It’s so nice to be working, and staying pretty busy. 

Halloween is around the corner... and we are asked to go out. So, we will probably be attending a party for an investigator or the apartment complex or something :)

We have been teaching Max and Sandra SUPER slow because they have a really hard time remembering just about anything that we teach them... but this week they actually remembered most of what we taught them! We use a lot of pictures and object lessons, but we're so glad that everything is FINALLY falling together. They have the marriage license, but no date to get married yet. Anyways... hopefully they will get married next week, due to Audrianna's birthday this week :)

I gained a testimony this week of planning, and timing. We plan each night what we are going to do the next day, and write it all out in our planner. I had it explained to me once, that we are kind of telling God where we are going to be. So, if we tell God that we are going to be at a certain place at 3:00, we should be there, and not mix things up during the day unless prompted to do otherwise. So one day, we went to go see a few people. The main people weren't there, so we went to backups. After the backups, we had a little time, and sister j felt like we needed to go and visit another person in the area. They weren't home either.... so we went to the person we were supposed to visit at that time, Jennifer (another investigator). Anyways, we chatted with her for about 5 mins, set an appointment, and then turned around to go somewhere else. We heard from behind us, "are you the Mormon girls?!" Confused, we turned around. There was a lady we didn't know, but had apparently met with sisters earlier that year. SO, we went to talk with her, and asked if we could help with anything. She was helping another neighbor with a yard sale, so we offered to help. The timing was PERFECT for us to go and help them move things and set up. God's timing should be ours, because his is perfect. 

Another cool story... a member was driving one night and was going to grab some dinner, and in her rearview mirror saw a family on the road struggling. She felt prompted to go say hi, so she offered to help them. They were in a really rough spot, so she helped them buy dinner and find a place for the night. Well, she offered for him to learn about the church to help his life. He met with the bishop on Tuesday, and we met with him a couple times. He has a lot of WOW (Word of Wisdom Doctrine and Covenants Section 89) problems, his wife too. so hopefully we can help them turn their lives’ around :) the best part is seeing the hope come into their eyes as they realize what Christ can do for them, and they start to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I want so badly to help this family stay together and really change. Another cool thing is that the Bishop actually saw this particular family a few days prior, and had the impression that he would meet them one day. So cool :)

Another adventure: we met a cool black family this week. They’re 'crazy southern Baptists’ as they say. SO fun to talk with, and remind me of home :) haha

Anyways, things are awesome here. Just working hard, and hoping to find lots of souls to bring to Christ. If we look, there are SO many miracles around us all the time. Just look :)

Love y'all so much!

Love,

Sister Brown

Long week, and good times

SO, I'm in a trio now.  We call ourselves the tremendous trio, or the powerhouse trio.  We get work done!  haha.  I was super nervous actually, be we are having a blast!  Probably too much fun, to be honest.  :)  But really, we are all so stoked about being missionaries, we work hard.  Since having Sister J. with us, we have found new people, like, almost doubled our lessons per week, and all sorts of things.  It's basically the best!!

Little about Sister J...she's crazy.  In a good way.  She can eat just about any peper and not even flinch.  She finally gets a little caught up at the habanero, but no big deal, right?  Heavens.  We laugh a lot, and have to work extra hard to stay on task, but I love her to death.

We've gone out to eat like...3 times this week.  there goes my diet!  (jk...it's practically impossible to diet as a missionary.  But still..)

As per usual, planning doesn't get done on Thursdays like it's supposed to.  We just end up doing a lot of bonding and sharing feelings and talking, and eventually getting around to talking about our investigators.  But seriously, good things are happening anyways.  Our district is super awesome, and we're all way good friends.

All the investigators are doing pretty great.  :)  We went to a wedding on Saturday for a RC.  That was a blast!  (And, may have made me a bit trunky...).  Anyways, Max and Sandra FINALLY were able to get a marriage license.  So, we're waiting for them to set a time when their family is in town, and then we will get them married, and baptized soon!! AHH!!!

(Sorry my mind is going at 90 miles an hour.  did I tell you that Christi got baptized?!  SO EXCITED!!)  (love your Christi  :)

Amber and Phil and gang are doing great.  And our other families for the most part.  We still can't find a couple...lol but things are good.  The 3 of us teach like a boss.  : )

We had the Ward Halloween party on Friday, and that was an absolute blast.  : )  Chili cook off, games, and super fun things like that.  We dressed up as candy corn.  : )  Cute right? haha.  We had a few investigators there too.  SUCH a blast.  The thing about a New Mexican Chili cook off...there is Green Chile involved.  So it's HOT, and so good.  But, I made a fool of myself eating a doughnut off a string, and gathered candy.  and I was proud of all the adults that actually dressed up!

Kylie and her companions dressed up as a Candy Corn....Get it?

Miracles for this week!  We were out with a member, and she mentioned about some other member friends that had become really good friends with a lady, Laura.  So...even though this might have been a little creepy, we just went over and introduced ourselves.  She is SO sweet, and is married with 2 kids.  Her member friends always joke that they're going to "dunk her" and get her baptized.  But she talked to us, and said that she kind of wants to learn about it, and asked us for information so we can have lunch and talk.  SO COOL.

Bishop called and said that a lady had called looking for some financial assistance, and info about the church.  She is one of the coolest black ladies I have ever met.  She already has a darn awesome testimony, and an open mind.  I think I learned more from her in our first visit than we taught her haha.  (She refers to the Holy Ghost ans her "gentleman."  I love it.  :)

THEN, we have a cute young couple that lives in our complex.  We had become friends, and they were kind of investigators, but we didn't teach them a whole lot.  We tried to go back once, and they weren't home.  Well, we were out with a member, and even though we had another list of people we could see, their name came to my heart and mind.  I just thought that we needed to go and see Samantha and Jeremy.   So we did.  Well, we got there, and no answer.  Bummer.  BUT, as we knocked a second time and were just waiting, up come Samantha up the steps to the apt!  She said that they had moved, but there was  alight on in her apartment, but she knew that she hadn't left any on, so she randomly just came to check if someone had broken in.  No one had, but that light being on meant that we ran into her at JUST the perfect time.  She took us to the new apartment, and we were able to meet her other roommate, Kate.  We laugh, and talked, and taught a short lesson, and we are going back tonight.  In Sister Chatwin's words, "If that was any more perfect timing, we would have met her in the font!"  hahaha

God works in mysterious ways my friends.  : )

Love y'all!  I hope you have a fantastic week!!  Work hard, and know that God is near when you reach for Him.  : )

Love,
Sister Brown

ps-random story...There was a kid at dinner that was telling a story about his brother.  He goes, "You know my dad's son?  Well he...."  and finished the story.  It was SO funny.  He looks a little like and reminds me a LOT of Ethan.  He kicked my butt in a game of Sorry.  Cute kiddo.  : )

missionary work at it's finest

Isn’t it funny how time works? The temple was only a week ago... and it feels like an eternity away. But then at the same time, I’m amazed at how fast time flies.

TRANSFERS: I’m not moving!! Staying right here in Zion, or as some like to call it, the Canyon Heights Ward. (Seriously, my first day the bishop welcomed me to Zion haha) anyways, Sister Chatwin and I are both staying, and we got a third companion! Sister Johnson that we came out with is our new third companion :) it's going to be super crazy, but an absolute adventure. You know... nothing new :)

Anyways, this week has been more of the same. Teaching who we can... doing our best to improve. Busy busy busy. Sisters, members, investigators, companion being sick, mission stress, etc. Just another week in the life of Sister Brown I guess. We spent some time at the hospital for sister Chatwin to get blood work done... We thought she might have a thyroid problem, but that's a negative. Not sure what's making her so tired all the time. And she's getting over a cold.

If you could send out some extra prayers for Amber and Phil and their family it would be appreciated. I won't go into detail, but I know that they could use it. Thanks y'all :)

Lots of planning this week... when we have time. It’s been a while since we have found new people, but overall the lessons we are teaching are going well. We’ll be going to a wedding for a RC this weekend. And if everything goes well we will be attending a wedding for max and Sandra too! That will be super fun :)

Cool story: we got a letter saying that our car needed to go in for a check on a recall. So we made an appointment, and dropped it off Wednesday morning. We ran into the guy that contracts to sell the cars to the mission, so we got to help drive I brand new Chevy Cruise. That was fun :) AND, last week was balloon fiesta. So. Cool. I’m totally going to come back one day and go to the field. BUT, it's way awesome to watch all the balloons in the sky. Anyways, we came back, and our car still wasn't ready. So, we hung out at burger king to study. While there, we talked to people, naturally. We talked to one crazy lady. Super fun, and ended up being in our area, so we'll hopefully see her again soon! Then later, I waited while sister Chatwin went to the bathroom. A man who had been sitting there approached me, and talked to me about Romney, and Mormon's, and his experience when he went to Utah to take a picture of the eclipse and ended up staying at a lds home. HE was really impressed...we ended up getting his information, and sent missionaries over, and left him with a card. God truly leads those that are prepared :)

Another story.... our apartment is kind of getting infested with cockroaches. It’s super gross. Hopefully they're going to spray today. Again. But a few nights ago, we came home, and I screamed cause I found like, 3-4 BIG ones, and a handful of little ones all over our kitchen. So. Nasty. We’re bleaching everything, and we spent a couple hours cleaning everything out and vacuuming up all the dead bugs. *shudder*. It’s an adventure for sure!

Love y'all so much. Hope that your week is fantastic :)

Love,

Sister Brown

So I got to go to the temple...

And now I don't have any time to talk to anyone  So Anyways, this really will be short and sweet.
This week was fabulous.  SO busy.  Sometimes I feel like it's hard to find time to even do missionary work, because we're doing so many other things.  We had exchanges from Tuesday afternoon to Wednesday.  Our last for the transfer!  Finally!  I stayed in the area with Sister Rosa...and we ended up spending the majority of the day in the ER with a member that really needed someone with her last minute.  It was the craziest, and most blessed day of my life.  We ended up with LDS doctors, and everything I think is getting better.
We had MLC on Thursday (one of the BEST meetings I have ever attended.  It's just the leadership of the mission, and I really love it.  : )  And then we had zone training of Friday, and conference on Saturday and Sunday.  Monday we went to the Temple as missionaries, and it was the best day of my life.  The session was so spiritual, and we spent 2 hours that afternoon helping to clean the temple.  Then our group of 8 missionaries that helped clean went to chick-fil-a.  I could not have been a happier Sister Missionary.  : )

And a midst all of that adventure, we did teach a few lessons.  : )  Though our WML has been out of town for what feel like forever, so that's been crazy.

And transfers are next week.  I'm pretty sure I'm staying put.  I'm praying so at least.  But, I guess ya never know.

Anyways, love y'all a ton!  Have an awesome week!

Love,
Sister Brown

Well, it's the last day of September.

Do you know what that means? That means I have less than a year until I come home.

Yikes.

So there is a man in our ward that wanted to work on his home teaching list. He tried a couple of years ago, and all 4 families were inactive, and didn't want visits. But, said that they would be willing to accept a message in the mail. So, that's what he did. Well, our ward is doing a big focus on filling the empty chairs, and finding the one. So, this brother talked to us, and gave us the names of these individuals. one of which I had visited once, and knew that she had come to church a couple times, and wanted to become active! He was so surprised and excited! So we scheduled an appointment with her, and brought him with. It was perfect. When he introduced himself, the first thing she said was, "no way! It’s a pleasure to meet you! Thank you for those messages every month!" it was awesome :)

Quote from that night:

Sister Chatwin: So Corhior is what they call an anti-Christ

Woman: that's what I call Wal-Mart!

It was so funny! I love old ladies :)

This week has been really wonderful, as I hope yours has been. We did a lot of running around to help sisters. I actually finished weekly planning in one day, for the first time in probably, 2 months or so. Since I became an STL... that has been nearly an impossible feat. We are working on putting together a couple of white boards to keep our apartment and area more organized. It’s taken a lot of time, but i'm excited :)

On Wednesday I left the area to go on exchanges, and that was a blast :) we spent the morning at the beehive house- an old folk home. And it was so much fun! Wechatted with the cook, then sang and gave a short lesson to the 4 bodies there, only 2 of which could hear and respond. One of those two just wanted to sing us the song about black birds being bake din a pie. It was a blast :)

All the investigators are doing great. Again..... We are planning on seeing Emilio and his family tonight, and Cullen and his family tomorrow night. Fingers crossed. We really want to help them progress! This week kind of slowed down as far as people progressing... but I think this week we are going to try and step it up a notch. Or something..... We just have all of these people that are planning on getting baptized, but aren't progressing fully, because they are not reading, or didn't make it to church, or something. So, we're going to fix that this week I hope :)

Another adventure: Thursday night we were supposed to have dinner with a lady in our ward. Another old lady. (That always means adventure!) haha anyways, we heard stories from sister that had been there before, that this dinner was not generally a super positive experience. (House is just generally gross because of animals and things like that), and so eating the food wasn't the greatest experience because of the atmosphere. Admittedly it didn't smell that great. BUT, expecting the worst, we went. And we were surprised to have a lovely meal! Spaghetti, salad, breadsticks, pie... and all was edible and delicious actually. AND, she makes jewelry, and let us bring home a piece :) I was so excited! I ended up picking a beautiful little ring, that has a small green stone, and a small reddish stone (I think it's a garnet?). Anyways, I picked it because it's my NM chili ring. red or green? ;)

Friday after District Meeting, we always go to lunch. Well, we picked Panda Express. When we got there, there happened to be a member of the church there (I’m still not sure if any of the missionaries knew him) but he waited, and bought lunch for all of us. The total came to about $80. I can't tell you how amazed and grateful we all were for him to do that for us. It was great :)

Saturday we planned all day. And I rested. It was lovely :) then we went to the Relief Society Broadcast. There was a dinner before, and then the broadcast was wonderful. We had a new investigator there, and it was so cool to see her make friends, and ask questions, and really feel the spirit.  Then after the broadcast, we had to run over to another building for another missionary fireside. And that was super wonderful :) we got to hear from elder Richards, who helped put together PMG. And I got to see a lot of my old missionary friends. That was the greatest! The friends you make on your mission seriously become some of the closest people in your life.

And this Saturday, we get to help clean the temple. And Next Monday we get to finally go to the temple, AND it's conference weekend!

I’m so excited.

One day in my studies this week, I was reading in Alma 5:60-

"And now I say unto you that the good shepherd doth call after you; and if you will hearken unto his voice he will bring you into his fold, and ye are his sheep; and he commandeth you that ye suffer no ravenous wolf to enter among you, that ye may not be destroyed."

Anyways, I just thought it was interesting that he used the word suffer. Like, it's a choice that we let in that wolf or not. We need to watch our flock (yourself, your family, church, etc.) and never let a weak point come so that the ravenous wolf (Satan, or sin) can come in. He is ready and waiting, circling relentlessly. We can never let down our guard, and suffer for the wolves to enter in. We must grasp and hold tightly to the iron rod; not just walk next to it. And then remember that we always have a shepherd to turn to. Our Savior is always there to comfort and guide us. Don't be afraid to turn to your shepherd for help. Live so you will know his voice, and always follow Him.

Well, I hope y'all have an excellent week!! Work hard, and find reasons to smile! Love you!

Love,

Sister Brown

Holy Moly

Hey all!

So, short on time again.  The kids are going to come in and take over the computers here in a sec...so we'll see how much I can fit in.

This week was excellent overall.  Everyone is doing really great.  :)  Well, everyone that we taught, that is.  We still haven't really been able to get a hold of Emilio and his family, or Cullen and his family.  Work and such, I guess.

But Max and Sandra met with Bishop last week, and are still planning on getting baptized with their little girl on October 26th, and getting married on the 12th!  So that's super exciting.  :)  Hopefully all of that will follow through like we want!  We are going to have an FHE  with them tonight at a member's, so I'm excited for that.

Amber and Phil made it to church yesterday with their family.  We had a lot of fun at a lesson last night...the secret is out of the bag.  Well, two secrets.  That I'm super jumpy and Halloween is Not my favorite holiday..  And they know my first name now.  Which...makes us feel closer somehow?  haha anyways, things are pretty good there.

Christina has been kind of difficult to get a hold of the lst couple of days too.  she still wasn't able to make it to church but we are teaching her tonight as well.  And we have a member that has been fellow shipping her and that is absolutely awesome.  : )

We had Zone Conference on Thursday!  I always love meetings like that.  We had a clothing swap, where the sisters can all bring and take whatever clothing they want.  I didn't grab anything this time, but we got to the meeting around 6:45 am to help set up, and do car inspections.  Then we were at the meeting until...like 4:15 or so.  It was great, and I learned all sorts of fun things!

Friday was planning all day.  And helping sisters and such.  We did a couple of exchanges this week.  Those are a little hard to just not be with your comp, or in your area so frequently, but overall it's way fun.  ; )  Again, learned lots of good things.  I went on a Spanish exchange.  I didn't know what was being said or going on at all most of the day.  But I learned some Spanish, so that's pretty fun!  I also got a hug from an old man.  it's always a little strange when that happens.  lol.

There was one night where I just wasn't sure what I was going to do with myself.  Things had been kind of hard...just emotionally and everything.  Anyways, I needed some kind of break and release.  So we ended up just buying some treats at the gas station across the street, and relaxing for about 4 mins.  I think I went a little overboard with the caffeine and treats, but I emotionally needed a break so I could actually focus.  It was good to just be weird for a night lol.

It rained a lot again.  We had a couple good storms...last night it just came out of no where, and hailed and it was awesome.  : )  I'm SO glad that it cooled down so much.

Anyways, that's about it for this week.  Love y'all bunches!  Keep working hard, and remember to always be happy!

Love,
Sister Brown

It's raining again

Well, this week was fabulous! It rained. A lot. Apparently it's because the state fair is here, and it always rains when the fair comes. Or at least that's the word on the street.

Amber and Phil and family- we didn't get to meet with them this week. Amber is working crazy hours still... so it's tough to ever get over there. And they were sick this weekend so they weren't at church... BUT other than that they are well, and we're still preparing for baptism this November :)

Emilio and Nichole... work is also busy, so we haven't seen them in like 2 weeks. Bummer deal.

Max and Sandra came to church again this week! (This time without their dog). They stayed for all 3 hours and seemed to like it a lot. They also had an interview with bishop about what to do to get ready for marriage and baptism in a few weeks :) so things are progressing.

Christina... SUPER AWESOME!! We went and taught the restoration, and things went super well. When I say her kids are crazy, I mean, literally climbing walls and hanging from ceilings, and running and screaming. Out. Of. Control. But we taught the restoration using a cup object lesson. They got to help, and it went pretty well. But the little one was still screaming the whole time. Well, when we got to telling the story of the first vision, suddenly the room was silent. For the entire story the room was quiet. The spirit filled the room, and it was incredible. At the end of the lesson, we all talked about how we loved being there, and how they loved having us there. They’re going to get baptized on Oct. 13 :)

Dolly is doing great! Again, progressing slowly. Some things just go way over her head and what she is used to. So she's not on date yet, but I know she will get baptized one day :) I love teaching her. She is so genuine and just way cool.

  

We didn't teach really very many lessons this week. A lot of people were sick/busy. But I think this next week will be great!!

I had a few adventures this week though!

1. So this was actually last week and I forgot. But we had a member out with us, and we were going to go visit a family, but they cancelled last minute. So we still went out with the member, and asked if she had anyone she wanted/needed to visit. We went to a lady's house that had been on her mind. When Wanda opened the door, she practically fell into sister Dodd’s arms. We walked her back to the couch, and after 30 mins or so of trying to find a pulse and keep her conscious, we called 911. Then after they got there and evaluated things, they were bringing her out to the gurney and her face was drooping. I had just watched someone have a stroke!! It was a miracle that we were even there to help. It was amazing

(ps- she's okay now)

2. A couple nights ago, it had been storming, and we were stressed, and so it took us a while to fall asleep anyways. We were both kind of restless. Then, at about 4:10 in the morning, we could hear alarms going off. Sure enough, the fire alarm for our building was going off!! We didn't smell smoke, so we grabbed shoes and sweatshirts, and I grabbed the phone and my BOM, and we walked outside. What was most alarming... was that no one else was leaving the building. But either way, we stayed outside. We walked off a little ways, and sat in the Laundromat for a bit... soon the fire department showed up. They inspected things, and then eventually came over to us and asked if we had a phone. I called the office emergency line and left a message saying that there wasn't a fire, but the firemen were there and the alarms wouldn't stop. So we got clearance from the firemen (that were much too happy for 4am) to go back to bed and try to sleep, and sorry that they couldn't turn off the alarm. We were so tired on Sunday let me tell you.

But I think my favorite parts of the week were the little things. Visiting all the sisters. Watching max and Sandra try not to fall asleep during the opening hymn. Coloring on white boards. Lots of rain.

Oh and last night we were the speakers for a single adult fireside 30+. (I never knew how much I LOVE public speaking! ...what?) Anyways, we taught about the joy in service and missionary work. It went really well :)

And I had SO many insights in my studies this week! I think my favorite was when I was studying Jacob this morning. In chapter 4:14, it's talking about how the people look over the simpleness of the word they have already been given, and desire more. Well, God tells them, "That’s not a very good idea". But they think they know best and ask for things that are more complicated. I think we do this a lot. We think we know best for our situation, and ask God for specific things, not just for what's best. And eventually God will say, "Fine. Let's see how you think things should be done." And usually, we fall on our faces, and then have to go back and say, "God, you were right." that's if we learned our lesson that is. Sometimes it becomes a vicious cycle.

Doesn't God have some awesome parenting skills? No wonder he is our Heavenly Father.

Have a fantastic week!!! Love y'all so much!!!

Love,

Sister Brown

PS- if you have a favorite conference talk, I am in need of talks to study! Just give the link or the name. Thanks!

******* If you post your favorite conference talk in the comments I will get that to her. ********