Hola Familia!!!

This week has been full of miracles!! Ok actually the last couple of days but still, MIRACLES!!!!! 

First off me and Hermana Vaamonde have been having a hard time having investigators that are progressing. We have a lot of investigators but they don't read or have not prayed and it is incredibly frustrating!! Well for the past 2 weeks Hermana Vaamonde and I have been praying for the opportunity to find a family and one day after a prayer I said that we need to find a family of 6........ well...... WE FOUND A FAMILY OF 6!!!!!!!!! A milagro or WHAT?!?!?!?! and they are amazing!! It is a woman, her boyfriend and her 4 daughters. One of the daughters, S________, attended general conference and we didn't even know it! Well her sisters are now interested in the church! They attended church yesterday and loved it! They all have a baptism date for the 16 of November!!! SO COOL!!! The family name is L__________ and they are great!!!

And yesterday we received a new ward mission leader, a recent convert of 11 months, 20 years old and has a great desire to work with us!! We are really excited about this!! His name is A________. He investigated the church about 1 year ago. He was in jail a few years ago and while he was their he read the Book of Mormon and came to know that it was true. He and his girlfriend (now his wife)  were baptized and have plans to go to the temple and have their family sealed! They are awesome and I have a good feeling that the work here is going to move even faster!!

Yesterday we had another miracle! We went to a different recent convert family last night. The family consists of the mom and her two kids, C_________ and S__________! Well when we got to the house the mom was extremely sick and asked if we could contact the Bishop for a blessing of health. While we waited for the Bishop to get there we taught them and their cousin A_________, who is not a member. He is very interested! He said that he wants his cousin, C____________, to baptize him!!!! WOOT WOOT!!! This is so great!!

The Ward here is absolutely amazing!! It's a small ward but I believe that because if the small chapel and the small amount of active members has made this ward a Family!! There is a lot of reactivation here but it is all good!! Sunday meetings are backwards here. Releif society first, Sunday School then last is Sacrament meeting. But this is normal for me because this is like Cochran. The youth are amazing!!!! We work with them a lot!! We take them out with us to lessons and they love it as well!!!

No luck on finding an apartment. Still on the hunt. We are looking for any apatrment we can find!!

Haha no have not got my package. It takes 2 months for a package to get here, so not sure when I will get it ;) but thank you!! I really don't want you to worry about sending me packages! 

CONNER IS A STUD!!!!!!! Now he can finally smile and show his teeth!!!! This is FANTASTIC!!!!!! haha! Don't worry dude, I bet you will get your duck soon!!!! 4.0!!! THAT IS SO GREAT!! I think I only got 2 4.0 in Junior High!!!! Great job!!! SUPER PROUD OF YOU!!!!!!!

Lets see... What is conner going to be for halloween????? Mary poppins? Mickey Mouse? My Missing "Blue Barbie"? A MISSIONARY????? I think that you should be a missionary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Because that is the best!!!!! hahaha

I have bought 3 pairs of Toms. They range from price. One pair was 38 pesos and another was 60 pesos but they are within this price range!! They have a lot of cute ones here but the ploblem is that I have the foot of "bigfoot" entonces it is hard to find the cute ones in my size!

I have had such an uplift this week in my studies, I have felt a different desire.... a better one! I am starting to see and experience what other missionaries call "forgetting yourself, and get to work". I know that this work I the work of the Lord and that it is all about saving souls!!!

Missing you lots and Loving you even more!!!

Love you long time!!!

Hermana Creason

MAMA MIA!!!!!!

How's it goin?!?!? This week has gone by so fast!! I can't believe that I have been serving with Hermana Vaamonde for 2 weeks!! Crazy!! I LOVE this sister! She is awesome!!! We laugh a lot because I don't understand a lot so our communication has ruslted to my limited vocabulary, hand signs, sounds  and drawings! Lets just say we laugh a lot! This week has been good but it has also been really rough! Yesterday for example, ALL of our appointments fell through and we knock a bunch of doors, contacted in the street, tried to visit members but NO ONE talked to us! We didn't teach ANYONE!! it was hard, but Hermana Vaamonde is so great and as we walked back to the house, she made us make a list of all the good things that happened! The list kept growing and growing and we no longer feel sad of depressed about it! I also got a letter from Hermana Mortensen and she gave me advise that I really needed to hear!! She talked about how we can feel the joy in our work! It is so true!! This is the Lord's WORK! It's never going to be depressing as long as you do HIS work!!

Yes Yesterday was La Dia de la MAMA!! entonces...... Felicidades MAMA!!! haha (Mother's Day).

Yes Argentina Celebrates Halloween but I don't think it is how we celebrate it. Speaking of Halloween, is Conner dressing up this year? or is he too "cool" to dress up this year?? hahahahaha Why would you ask if the celebrate Thanksgiving here?? Thanksgiving is when the pilgrims landed in NORTH America.... I am in SOUTH America!!! hahahaha no I don't believe that they celebrate Thanksgiving!! haha

Hermana Vamonde has been serving for 12 months. Her and her family are converts of 6 years. They were contacted in the street and were taught for 6 month before their baptism. She is fantastic!!! She is always happy and enthusiastic!! I am learning the language so fast.... but not fast enough!! haha! I am forgetting words in English but the problem is I don't even know the words in Spanish entonces, I feel like sometimes I don't have a language!!! haha and yesterday was fast Sunday and simpre Hermana Vamonde says "tango hambre".(i am hungry)  And I was hungry and just for fun I wrote her a little note that said "Tango HOMBRE" she saw the note and flipped!!! I didn't understand why she then laughed and explained that hAmbre is hunger, hOmbre is MEN!!! so acording to my spanish.... I have Men!!! haha!!!!!!

YES I heard from the M______________ family! They sent me a picture of them and I literally started crying!!! I miss them so much!!! E___________ is due in November and I can't wait to see a picture of them with baby N___________!!!! Can't wait to see them again!!!!

This week we had a milagro!!! Do you remember when I talked about a man and a woman in one of my letters with Hermana Mortensen. G_____________? Well a few months ago M_____________ had a dream that the Book of mMormon was true but G_________ didn't believe it. They are not married so she couldn't get baptized. Well we got a call from the Mother of G_________ and she said that G_________ told them that he wants to be baptized!!!!!! We later talked to him and he said that he feels bad about his past actions and he wants a better life for his family, but he would not set a date for baptism! He said that right now he wants to be baptized for his family and not for himself, he said that he wants to be baptized for him self, that is when we can set a date!!! 

Thanks for the package!! So This is how letters work here. I don't need international stamps. YOU need international stamps. I just need regular US stamps because the best way for me to send letters is through the church. I give my letters to my district leader with the US stamp and he later gives it to the mission office. The mission office puts all the letters in a big black bag and sends the bag to Salt Lake then after that they take all the letters out of the bag and sends them to the houses. So I need UNITED STATES STAMPS! and if you want to send me a letter, it is through the mission office because I don't have a mailbox here!!

I hope you understnad this.... haha

Well I think that is all for this week! I am loving every day here! Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity to be a missionary!! I know the Lord will help you becuase you are helping me help his work!! The is a lot of "help" going around!!! hahahaha

LOVE YOU LONG TIME!!!!!

Hermana Creaoson

HOLA!!!!!

Lots to talk about today!!! But I guess I could answer your 15 questions!!! Haha!! No it's all good!

My companions name is Hermana Vaamonde. She is from Uruguay and is fantastic!! She doesn't know any English so our communication has resulted to my limited vocabulary, hand signs and drawings on sticky notes! haha we have not had any difficulties! I really like her! Comunication is hard but I see how possible it is. She always says that I think people don't understand me but I actually make perfect sense! She also says that I am going to be training the next transfer!!!! I don't think I'm ready for that!!! I have come to know that the gift of tongues is real and that it is through Faith in Jesus Christ!! I have come to know Spanish so much more this past week! I guess I am not as limited as I thought I think! 

She too is a leader like Hermana Mortensen. We get along great! She is so much fun! She is always singing! I love it! When we walk from appointment to appointment, sitting in the bus, or exercising in the morning, she is always singing! haha it's been great!

Friday we had interviews with Prestident Lavrino. It was just what I needed! I Think that I have had a lot of self confidence issues plus the mission shoves your weaknesses in your face. President Lavrino told me that he thinks that I have a great job to do here! He said that many missionaries are going to look to me for guidance.... This was also said in my setting apart.... He also said that he doesn't know why both of my companions have been leaders in the mission but he said that you have the opportunity to assist your companions being a leader. Because every week my compaions has to go to another sisters area and I stay in mine and a different sister comes here. He said that this is an opportunity to train as well...... not sure how I feel about that! haha  I look at it as an opportunity to grow and learn.

I can't believe that I have 11 months left!!!! that is crazy!!! After this transfer I will be half way!! I found out that my last day is September 9 2014.... I figured out that I have been serving for 31 weeks and I have 41 left!!!!! AHHHHHHH!!! where is the time going?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?!?!?!? Stephan comes home in DEC!! wow!! that is nuts!!! I will be home before we all know it!!!!!

We had stake conference yesterday and to our dissapointment NO INVESTIGATORS CAME!!!! Ugh it felt like such a defeat yesterday!! We were so bummed but we found out that one of our investigators ended up going to general conference and we didn't even know it!! cool right!!

Well I am just as clumsy as ever! Yesterday we were crossing the street and I totally biffed it! I scraped my knee really bad! It doesn't look pretty! haha! But in the result we went to a near by members house and they totally went first aid on me! The wife is a member but the husband is not. The husband has attended church with her for 9 years but he does not believe in the Preisthood or in Joseph Smith. But we took this opportunity to teach them! I think it went well but who knows?

We found out that President Lavrino wants another companionship of sisters here because Palpala is so big! entoses we are on the look for a new apartment!! YAY!!!!!!! The apartment we have is a complete FAIL!! Hermana Vaamonde says this all the time!! "FAIL FAIL FAIL!! our house is a FAIL!" haha it will be nice to have more missionaries here!!!

Now to your many questions! haha

Food here is different! Not sure I like it yet... some things are really good but some things I just don't care for. One thing that I don't really like here is millinessa de carne. It is like country fried steak but it has a lot of fat on it.... not my favorite.... French fries (Papas Fritas) is sold here like icecream. Tang (like cool aid), Fanta and pan (bread) is served at every meal. Breakfast for me is yogurt, but the yogurt here is more like a drink, it's not solid. We eat with members some days and the days we don't we cook in the apartment. 

We pay cash for the buses and taxis. It is from the church card. We don't use our cards here. At the begining of the month, we take out all our money for the month.

Lots of stores here! But mostly it is like stores that people just start by themselves.... There are a lot of them!!! 

I LOVE THE FUNNY STORIES!!! I laughed so hard at the "only child" Well I guess because Conner is an only child there is no need for me! haha SO FUNNY!!!

Wow conner! What a calling!!! I am sure you will do great in it!! Be sure to tell me how duck shooting goes!!!

WOULD YOU SEND THE PACKAGE ALREADY?!?!?! hahahaha! For a month now you have talked about a package and I have gotten all excited! and you have not even sent it yet!!!!! haha naw it's all good! I don't think I need anything! Maybe a jar of Peanut Butter??? no se! OH I need american stamps to send letters!! 

Well that is about it for this week!! Hopefully I will have more to say next week! Keep us in your prayers!! We really need a baptism here!!!!!

LOVE YOU LONG TIME!!!!!!

Hermana Creason

HOLA FAMILIA!!!!

 

What a week!! It was a crazy one but it was a blast!! Today is transfers and I don't have my companion yet so I don't have any info but I do know that she is from Uruguay!!! AHHHHHH!!! My new companion is a Latina!!! Hermana Mortensen said that she is amazing and that we are going to have a lot of success!! But I am so nervouse because I am so afraid that our communication is going to be really hard. Hermana Mortensen comforted me and said that the first two weeks may be hard but you are going to learn the language so fast because that is all you are able to speak! There is no more Spanglish for me! ;)

 

We dropped Hermana Mortensen off this morning at the terminal (like a big bus station) and she traveled to the mission home today!! She leaves for the U.S. tomorrow night!!! The past 6 weeks have gone by so fast!!!! I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to work with Hermana Mortensen! It will be so lucky if I become a missionary like her!! She is FANFREAKIN FANTASTIC WITH 2 SNAPS AND A SMILE!!!! I love her and will miss her terribly!!

 

Right now I am waiting for my new companion in Jujuy. I am with a member named J__________ and she is awesome!! I love working with her. She is the one that knows English! I have had a blast with her today! She said that she needs a husband so if you know of anyone that wants to marry a Argentine, let me know!! haha P.S. Tina Turner is nothing compared to her!! (haha sorry, inside Joke!)

 

Because I am in Jujuy I dont have my cord to send pictures again this week! So sorry! I feel so bad that you have gone 3 weeks with out pictures!! But I can describe it for ya!

 

I love argentina! I know that this is my calling because I just feel like I belong here!! It is spring right now so it's that awkward time of needing a jacket one day, the next is a coat, then the next day you have sweat dripping down your back!! haha it has been interesting! It is really dry in Palpala. Palpala is also really big and we cover a lot of areas. We ride the bus every day and travel in taxis every once in a while. We walk a ton!! My legs will be able to take on anything after my mission here!! haha. Lots of dirt roads but that doesn't bother me. There are mountains near by so it makes me feel a little closer to home. Also a ton of dogs! Like stray dogs and it is like they can smell Los Estados Unidos on me! They don't like me very much! haha but I am tough and I just yell at them to leave! The people here are the best! Their hearts are so open and willing to learn! Life here is different and I have realized how much I have taken for granted! Today J__________ told me that her dream is to ride a roller coaster! And I have taken for granted that Lagoon is so close! It has helped me put things into perspective!! We have an oven and a stove top but we don't use the oven very much.. Hermana Mortensen would make fantastic banana bread in the oven! But other than that not much. Have not found peanut butter. Hermana Mortensen said that I will never find it in this mission. The stores are not big enough or a major chain,so I will never find peanut butter here :( Or Maple....

 

CONFERENCE WAS AMAZING!!! I was able to see all 4 sessions! It was as a stake and I had the beautiful opportunity to listen in English. Hermana Mortensen said that I am very lucky because her first conference she didn't have that opportunity! I loved every talk!! The thing about it is before my mission only a few talks would stand out to me because I could only relate to a few of them, but on a mission, every talk relates to me because I teach these principles to everyone else! It's really magnified on the mission! Sadly we only had 1 investigator attend 1 session. But it was a good one for him! I think my favorite talk was Elder Uchdorf. It was like Golden for so many missionaries because honestly, who would want to join this church. Only people who search and find the truth! It was great!! I also really loved Elder Scotts! But he is my favorite always!!

 

I want you to know that you letters are always perfect and I love them dearly but I think what I want to hear more about is maybe funny things that happen. Conner doing something that made you laugh, dad making a silly mistake. Things like that! But I understand that things like that don't always happen but when they do, let me know! Also maybe in the next letter I may need some encouragement because I don't know what this week is going to bring me with my language!

 

Speaking of my language, I can see it improving each and every day!! I can say so much more than I could in the MTC, which want not much to begin with.... haha. but I am watching the Hand of the Lord in my life and the Spirit carry my poor vocabulary touch others hearts for the better! I know that the Gift of Tongues is real and that it is a gift that I treasure!!

 

I love you all so dearly!!! I can't beleive that I have served 5 transfers and only have 7 left!!! after this transfer, I am Half way!!!!! AHHHHHHHH!!!

 

Love you much and miss you more!!

Hermana Creason