Happy Thanksgiving

Well folks its that time again... Another Thanksgiving away from my mom's great homecooking. But sometimes you have to sacrifice the good for something better. I never thought I would say that but I know I must put the Lord's work first. My companion and I have been seeing so many miracles I dont even know where to begin. We have been really trying to just talk to everyone. The other day we found this stack of papers from 06 to 09 where people had once upon a tme ordered things online. So my companion and I said well what the Hay why not check on them. It's a shot in the dark but at one point in time they were interested in hearing the message. So Sister Lin and I went to check on one guy and low and behold he didnt live there anymore (it was from 2006) but we met a guy and asked if we could share a message with him. He let us right in. For some reason we always try to share a message but something kept telling me to set a return appt and leave. So we did. On the way out I told Sister Lin how strong the impression was that I got for us to leave. We both thought it was a little wierd but we just followed it. On the way to our car something hit me again and said lets walk to our next appointment. It wasnt to far but we hadnt originally planned to walk but we headed there on foot. So as we were walking we started to cross over this McDonalds parking lot. In doing so we crossed paths with this girl who appeared pregnant (but thats never a question you want to ask unless 100% sure) and she was pushing a heavy kid in a stroller. She looked like she was struggling a bit. We started talking to her and helped her push her stroller almost all the way home. She was phenomenal!!! She is 24 yrs old from El Salvador originally, but grew up her. Her name is Aleyda. As we were talking to her it was sooo evident that she needed the Gospel as everyone does of course. And not only did she need it but she was ready to receive it. We were on our way to an appt so we set up a time to come back that same night after some appointments that we had. When we went back that night she was so excited to see us, as were we. We taught her and then set a time to come back the next day. Needless to say we have taught her everyday since then. We commited her to come to church on saturday and she agreed. after our dinner appt we got an Voicemail from her saying something came upa nd she couldnt make but we could stop by and talk to her about it if we wanted to. When we got there she said she had just put her last diaper on her son and she didnt know how she was going to get more and how she could make it to church. We then asked her two questions "what size diapers does he wear and is that the only thing keeping you from coming to church?" She answered us we didnt say anything else we got up made a trip to walmart got her some diapers and a few other things headed back and she was in tears. Aleyda came to church on Sunday and loved it. Satan was not going to win that battle. She is sooo excited to keep learning and embrace the gospel and it's teaching we are so excited to continue teaching her. I love this work. Miracles like this make it so easy to do. It's worth it. When you see the blessings and the friuts of your labor, it's impossible to not work harder and harder. I love it. So I know my mothers Thanksgiving food will fill me up really well but these memories will fill me up for a lifetime. I will always reflect upon them and they will continue to strenghten my testimony of the truthfullness of this Gospel. I love you all and i love this work... HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!

Well people great things are happening in my area. We just had a baptism this week for a beautiful girl name Christina she has been investigating the church for 10 years and we started teaching her and we thank the missionaries that came before us that planted so many seeds. It was wonderful. She is a recovering alcoholic and completely changed because of the Gospel. It's just like Alma 5 when Alma asked "Have you spiritually been born of God? Have you received Him in your countenances?" It is amazing she truly has received God in her countenance. She has changed so much and she was so ready. We love her so much and have thoroughly enjoyed teaching her. We have been seeing so many miracles in this area it's unreal. I can not say enough when you are obedient the Lord will bless you. He is just waiting and wanting to bless us.
On another note I dont know how many football fans we have out there but I wanted to share something else really cool. We have the NFL Player Todd Heap in our ward and my companion and I went to go visit him and his wife. He was out of town playing a game but we got to meet her and she is PHENOMENAL. Talk about people who have not let their lives define them. Sister Heap is so awesome. She is at home a lot with the kids by herself and they still EVERY SINGLE NIGHT have family prayer and scripture reading and they have Family Home Evening every Tuesday. I love them so much. Saturday night we had Trunk or Treat at the church and it was so cool. Todd Heap... but we know him as Brother Heap came too since it was his Byweek. He is sooo awesome. They are so down to earth and still are just a normal family. We asked if we could take a picture with him and he was like of course. He said it almost as if he was like "I'm just a normal person but sure" He is sooo HUMBLE! Man i just love it. I love the example that they are. Pretty much everyone knows they are Mormon and they are just such good people. Well enough of me babbling just know that i love you all and will still be working my face off here in Maryland because... YA know thats what i do! I love you all!!! Here are some pics from the Trunk or treat... Brother Jorgensen was dressed as the Old Spice guy from the commercials.... so funny. The only reasom why i thought it was funny because i actually saw the commercial at wal mart the other day.. And my fried chicken is becoming so big here in MD that i may have to open my own BIS-NESS!!!

Alrighty well here's whats going on. The mission field is stinking sweet. So many miracles happening its unreal. I absolutely love it. My comps are great, I'm great, the work is great. We are pretty much teaching the whole state of Maryland. I mean Mandarin-Chinese, Spanish, English, Samoan... Tell me who we can't teach. Ahhh its so great. So much culture under one roof. We have had some amazing opportunities to share the Gospel and The Lord just keeps blessing us. Obedience is key in the work and you get no where without it. Ahh I love it.
I have been thinking a lot lately. I mean I come home in 5 months or so and around this time ever so often you start to think about what in the world you're going to do when you get home AND... I've finally got it!! (DRUM ROLL PLEASE).
Well here it goes. For all the people who will be traveling outside of the U.S. and into Baltimore I will be teaching Baltimorian as a Second Language. I feel that there is a lot of money in this. I can make all the materials myself and since we're in Baltimore so much I think I will record them so people learning Baltimorian can get a real feel of the language. Some of the Language Program will include vocabulary such as the following:

Me'in- Today I gotta Me'In (meeting) in Baltimore.
Sir'in- I wanna go but I'm not sure if its at a Sir'in (certain) time.
Dairy- Where is he? Dairy (there he) is.
Doug- I was trying to get some sleep but the doug (dog) has been barking all night.
Warsh- Are you gonna to warsh (wash) the dishes.
Dellus- Oh so you a Dellus Cowboys fan?
Dent- I thought she did it but she dent. (didn't)
Troof- I dont lie.. I'm telling you the troof. (truth)

This is just a little bit of Baltimorian for Dummies... Since i have gotten a copyright feel free to use these things when traveling to Baltimore and please people... Dont forget your passport.
Anyway, I love you and hope all is well. Talk to you all soon!

Well hello all...
I have some pretty quick updates for you. So here goes nothing. Umm, I'm absolutely loving my new area. We live with members of the church and they are amazing. Sister Powell is deaf but is what they call an expert in the ability to read lips. She can hear a little with her hearing aids but mostly she just reads your lips. Its so awesome. I find that at times, now, when I'm talking to someone i want them to look at me because im afraid they cant hear me its pretty funny. I also am trying to learn how to read lips better. Its a pretty cool art ot have. She told me her and her sisters have full conversations with no sound just moving their lips. Oh and she talks by the way. I know when i say deaf people think she cant talk either. Well anyhow its just really cool and she doesnt speak sign language at all. Brother Powell her husband is also phenomenal. He is in the Bishopric at the singles ward. We dont cover the singles ward, just the family ward. So those are the members we live with.
Oh so now I am in a a trio. Which means I now have 2 companions that im with 24 hours of the day 7 days a week. This is the only thing I can honestly say that if you are in one youre blessed and if you never are in one you are blessed. It is very very difficult but the experience is amazing nonetheless. The Lord has so many opportunities to show you how to improve. I think i said this last time but if not I'll say it again. My one companion Sister Lin is from Taiwan and my other companion is Sister Baice is from Samoa. If you have been following my blog that name should look familiar. Sister Baice and I served together last transfer and had a great time. Now the Lord has saw fit to give it another shot. It's a blessing when you have the opportunity to get a second shot at a companionship no matter how great it was. And our transfer was great. We are all learning and growing a lot. I appreciate this time the Lord has given me to be better and improve. We are embracing being together, however, it was do to a series of unfortunate events. Sister Baice's companion decided to go home early because the mission is a little difficult. Ok, i understate... the mission is REALLY difficult. I know this work at times can be discouraging but I also know the Savior felt the same way. I always ask myself am I better than He. "[He suffered] temptations and pain of body, hunger thirst and fatigue even more than man can suffer except it be unto death." I know surely I can do this with His help. It is very difficult but I know that I need to be here. I love this work. I hope that you all pray for the missionaries in the field and those that are preparing to serve the Lord that they will be protected, that Satan will not have power over them. It is difficult enough to go out and even more difficult to stay. Pray for those you love. Satan is working double time when he knows you are preparing to armor up and go to battle. Let us always be mindful that he has angels too, and boy would they love to devour us!
I enjoyed General Conference yesterday and Saturday. I know the leaders of the Church are inspired of God. I feel like Elder Holland when he said "no ones mission has meant as much to them as mine did to me." I'm not serving a mission for me. I'm serving for my family back home, for my future husband and children. I'm serving for those who have never heard of "The Gospel of Jesus Christ." Again, I quote Paul "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ." I am so blessed to be a member of His Church to be able to learn and grow. I love The many blessings i receive because of my faithfulness and diligence even though I fall short far too OFTEN of His glory. I love you all and watch General Conference if you havent already.
Go to www.lds.org

Blog Post:
Well, well well I totally forgot to tell you all about other things in my area. So I am serving with a companion who also is a convert she has only been in the church for 5 years and guess what?!?!?! SHE'S FROM TAIWAN!! Oh man it's so sweet. I love it to death. We learn so much from each other. One thing i have learned is that I can not learn Madarin-Chinese. Yeaaa, it's definitely impossible my friends. I am loving this area though. The people are amazing and the ward is soooo diverse. I mean we have Chinese, African, Tawainese, Indonesian, AHHH I LOVE THIS WARD!!!! Everyone is soooo ready to help and do the work it's phenomenal. I wish i could stay here the rest of my mission. Which isn't too much to ask since i only have 5 months left and I have stayed in each area ive served in for 6 months. Understanding that LITERALLY everyone around you is your brother or sister is amazing. There is no option of talking to people you just open your mouth.. is it scary? You bet your bottom it is!!! But oh my goodness do I love it. I just think of what my sister would always tell me when she wanted to ask my mom some outrageous question "well the worst she can say is no." HAHA its the same out here i mean the worse people can tell you is no among some other things but nothing you want ot dwell on. HAHA. President let us all see what date we have scheduled to go home and i almost died i realized i only have 5 Months left and I don't feel like I'm even remotely close to finishing the work the Lord has put me in charge of. But I know at the end of my mission if i serve diligently and faithfully I will receive a confirmation that "the work is done." I will be happy to be amongst family and friends again and be able to continue to be a light to those around me. This work is amazing. Next week i will send more miracles. This week I am pressed for time. But know that I'm happy, this work is true and I love you all!!!

Oh my goodness so many faith promoting stories are you all ready for this. I have had the most action packed week it has been so awesome. I just LOVE this work!
Ok, so I'm going to take you all back to my first day in the field. When I got off the plane at BWI airport I thought you know what I'm going to talk to the first person I see. So i turn to my right and there is this little African lady beside me and I say "Hey how are you." And she smiles very friendly and says "Oh i'm just great how about you?" (in her beautiful Ghanan accent) and I say "well, im great. and you know what I'm a missionary from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We help people strengthen their faith in our Savior Jesus Christ. Have you seen missionaries like us before?" (as I point to all the missionaries I'm with.) She looks at me and politely says "Oh yes, I am a member of the same church." I point to my nametag making sure she understood me and she I said "this church the Church of Jesus Christ...". She goes "oh yes baby, i just got back from General Conference in Utah." So now I'm thinking out of all the people I could've picked I picked someone who already belongs to the Church and somehow missed that we got off the same flight. WOW. Well later on about 10 minutes after she had told me how she was introduced to the church in Ghana and then moved here and joined she told me she was living in the Jones Falls Ward. Her name is Sister Mensah. I told her I would come look for her if I ever served there. Well when I was serving in Susquehanna Ward guess who I met? Sister Mensah's son. He is hilarious!!! I just love them so much. When I met him i said you know about 9 months ago when i came out i met a lady named Sister Mensah from the Jones Falls Ward would you happen to be related to her and he said "OH YEAAA THATS MY MOM!" I was so excited i got to talk to her and we spoke briefly about the day we met. It was awesome. Small world huh.
Well next story this week i was transferred to the Cockeysville Area and it is just awesome. I love every minute of it. Yesterday my first Sunday here, I was sitting in the chapel during Sacrament when all of I sudden I needed to go to the restroom i thought I'll just wait until this is over no big deal. Then something told me "GO NOW" so I say fine. I walk outside and in the foyer was sitting Sister Mensah! We embraced like we were old friends i mean we practically are, right? I am now in the Jones Falls Ward!!! It has been almost a year since i met her at the airport on October 7th. I love her. Our spirits connected.
Ok next story, haha.
My last week in Susquehanna i kinda felt like I was leaving and for some reason I just started praying to receive a media referral. A good solid media referral. I didn't for some reason tell my companion but I wanted one so bad. Just someone to come to us and tell us that they were interested in hearing the message of the Restored Gospel. Well it didn't come. I didn't lose hope but boy did i want that media referral. So the next day i get a phone call from my last companion in the Susquhanna ward saying they received a media referral and not only that but that it was from one of the apostles for his granddaughter!!! How crazy is that! Now which apostle isn't important but i tell you when you pray to our Father in Heaven He's just ready to give i love it. He is so amazing. Now am i saying that because she is the daughter of an apostle her soul is more important. No not at all but I just thought that was really cool. And i love how President Utchdorf said "we can no more measure the worth of a soul anymore than we can measure the span of the universe." I butchered that but you get the point. We are all important. I love this work.
One last story for this week. I'll make it short.
A few months ago i was on exhanges here in Cockeysville with another sister and we were walking through some apartments and we saw two Asian guys walking not together so i ran up to one and my companion the other and began to talk to them. Their english was not that great but I know he felt the spirit just as much as I did. I asked him where he was from, what his name was, if he went to church and so on and so forth. He told me he is from China and has never heard about Jesus Christ. He said "I want my kids to believe, but me i can not believe." Well i was only in the area a day and Mr. Yang and I probably were never going to see each other again so I shared my testimony of how important the Savior is in our lives, gave him a pass along card and invited him to church. This past Sunday right before I got transferred to Jones Falls Ward I saw Mr. Yang and Mrs. Yang. I saw them become Brother and Sister Yang. They were baptized last week and had not missed a Sunday since the week i talked to him on the street. They are doing great and were confirmed yesterday in church.
All i want to say is THIS WORK IS TRUE PEOPLE!!! I see miracles every single say. This is truly the work of angels. We are the Lord's Hands. We love Him and He loves us. It's great. Well i guess thats enough stories. I LOVE YOU ALL and i hope this makes up for all the short stories i write. Sorry for all the typos too I had to write this really fast.

My my my, time is just flying to no end. I don't even understand. Each week gets shorter and shorter where is the time going. I don't even get it. Well so many lessons learned this week. I love this work and I am so blessed to be able to be a part of it. I feel each and everyday the Lord has truly opened my eyes to so many things. We have been teaching a lady named Odilia and it has been amazing. Teaching her the Restored Gospel and how to read all at the same time. It's beautiful! She came to church on Sunday and it was amazing it was as if she had finally come home. I know that that's true. We taught her last Friday and my companion spilled the beans that I may be getting transferred this week and Odilia was quiet for a second and then began to cry. She couldn't understand. She just didn't understand how we can come into her life and then just leave. She was devastated, but we got through it. Our spirits have truly connected. She has told us many things that have lifted us up and made us feel like we are just the best. After her lessons the Lord tends to humble us a lot when we get back into the real world where people don't want to listen, but it is definitely needed. He knows me too well i think. I have learned from Odilia the beauty of obedience. She strives each and everyday to be better to truly understand what it is that Gos wants her to do. I love it. I am indeed getting transferred but its of course about that time since I have been in this ward for 6 months. I figure i have mayyybbeee two areas left on my mission before its time to come home. My companion thinks its awesome to tell me that i only have 1 maybe 2 zone conferences left on my mission. I am sad to be leaving we have learned a lot from each other as you do with all your companions and i really do love her. I will try to update more pics but that doesnt seem to happen to often. Well i want you all to know that i love you and i love the work. I will talk to you all soon and post my new address next week.