My week in Pics

Soo, first off I need to apologize for being a lame blogger, but I promise that this one should make up for all the 5-second lame ones posts past few weeks.

Turns out being a trainer is hard, and sometimes I just get tired, I think it has to do with that whole "being a normal person" thing... go figure.

So, the past few p-days, we've been painting at a member's work, it's like Color Me Mine, but on crack (am I allowed to say that on my mission blog? ...oops). It started out as the white, then the black and the last picture is when it's all finished!  I must say I'm super proud of it! 

Also yess, I realize that this was probably the biggest souvenir I could have chosen, but when I started looking and saw this one, I fell in love... so what can I say. 

Also we stopped by the office on my way home to show them our finished products and within minutes I found mine a home! She'll be hanging out in the senior missionary couple's house for the next year looking all majestic. They are the best and I'm sooo greatful not to lug her around.

We just got transfer calls, and I'm staying here this transfer finishing hna Petersen's training! My 4th transfer here and my only area on the mission -- wooo GAZCUE SISTA 4 LYFE!!  But really, Hna Prestwich (my 1st trainer) has been here her whole mission (5 transfers/8ish months) and she's just now leaving for her new area where she'll be sister training leader! Crazy stuff, I will miss her tons!

This is Wendy -- She is a member that we have been working with who has just started coming back to church. She teases me that I've chosen her as my replacement mom here, ridiculouss... But she really is amazing 27ish and takes care of her younger brother Ismael (11) and son, Naibin, plus school and work!  I don't know how she does it. 

Naibin and Ismael are super rad and remind me tons of porter. We had a sweet noche de hogar with them about following the prophet and ended playing "Don't eat Pete" also known as "No come pedro".

I absolutely love her!

She's already offered up her house for when we come back to visit, and is hilarious --  I'm pretty sure she does more for me than I could ever do for her.  

Rad braid Wendy gave me!

We went out and explored the area for our p-day, Hna Loughlin and her new companion came to visit

 Picture with my 2 trainers! 

 The sun was so bright, we just gave up on opening our eyes (1st one is candid). 

I love their guts, it will be weird living in the house without either of them there!

Rad package Molly sent! Can we just talk about how hipster this is? I'm not sure that I have the authority to make a call on this, but I'm pretty sure I have the best, most supportive friends in the world... but I'm just gunna make it anyways:)  Thanks lovely!

Also had a meeting with all the sisters in my district.

Love being reunited with my district of girls, all of which are so far away!

 (Hna Walker is missing because she got knocked out with a good old case of Denghue (sp?) and was in the hospital, but talked to her today and she's out and feeling muchh better, that stuff is gnarly)

Hermana Prestwich is leaving me! The night she got the call, it was raining and we decided we wanted to go out and get soaked... but then it decided to stop... sooo we shook our guanabana tree and it did the trick:) I will miss her tons.

Also pay no attention to how gnarly my skin has gotten here; 

turns out sun and sweat and stress aren't a great look for me.

Here's one of us all cleaned up for church on Sunday!

 deserted gua gua

All the Hermana's in the mission right now

link to video :-)

(from sue)

Kenzie sent a letter this week talking about a woman she has been teaching about the gospel -- she said this woman's grown daughter is a member of the church already, and is in an "I'm a Mormon" video.  She told me I should google it cuz it shows a lot of the D.R. Thought you might like to see it too!

Here's the link:  Soy Mormona doctora y madre dedicada

(don't forget to turn on the closed captioning if you don't speak espanol :-)

A couple "Firsts" (and I survived!)

Doing well, super busy, learning how to do things better than I have before and not get stuck in ruts!

Set my first baptismal date, and taught the Preach My Gospel class in our ward for the first time, in spanish, with the mission president there (talk about nerve racking). But I survived and all is well. 

Hermana Petersen is learning soo much so quickly and we had a really good week of lessons. Will try to do better at documenting life and stories to share with you all! 

Love you all, you're in my thoughts and prayers.

Read your scriptures, pray, be good, put your Heavenly Father first, and everything will fall into place. 

until next week

hna coe

Walking to a meeting with Hna Prestwich,;

can't believe just 2 transfers ago she was my trainer & now we are both trainers,

seems like years ago.

Awesome :-)

 This week we met the coolest man and his wife! 

As a hobby he makes these awesome little houses. 

The last time we went I asked if I could take a picture of them, I thought Porter would absolutely love it. 

He just uses all different types of little wood and makes it up as he goes along! 

He told hma Petersen and I that we can each choose one when we finish our missions.

It never ceases to amaze me the awesome people we get to meet out here, and the opportunity that we get to have sharing this gospel and the joy that comes from it!

I've fallen in love :-)

So, it's official!!

I have fallen in love with my mission this week :-)

And honestly, I'm not 100% sure why, because nothing too crazy happened. 

We did survive our first "tormento" (tropical storm). It was absolutely pouring for about 6 hours, and my feet were prunes by the time we got back inside!  Got a call to head in a bit early, but stopped by a member's house on the way back.  She was explaining what a tropical storm was to me, turns out it's a real thing (it's the stage that can escalate into a hurricane if situations are right), not just a storm on a island... how was I supposed to know? Learn something new every day.

Also I have a new best friend in our ward (church congregation). She's 6, and she has decided to sit with me every Sunday so that she can draw me pictures and play games with the paperclips in my planner & the magnet from my name tag!  She is quite the artist - I'll definitely have to attach some pictures of her artwork next week.

Plus, on a day that I was frustrated last week, someone casually handed me a flower as they walked past me, and it was beautiful!  Also kind of funny, because the person never slowed down or said anything or even made eye contact with me if I remember correctly.  Just held out his hand with the flower, walking past us in the opposite direction on the sidewalk.  Super casual flower hand-off that absolutely made my day. My companion could not stop cracking up. Tender mercies come in the most ridiculous ways!

I wish I had more time, but my computer time's basically up. I'll try to pre-write my post next week so I can get more across. But basically the moral of my post this week is that this area, and this mission, have stolen my heart.  It snuck up on me, but sunday night, as I was getting ready for bed and I thought, woah, I love it here, I love this mission and these people. I've created my own little nook and I don't think I even really realized it. 

 It's a funny thing when you realize your heart can love and live

in so many different places and people, 

and yet there is always more to give.

Hope all is well with you wherever you are, and whoever you are! I hope that you've found your own place to belong and love and live, and if not I hope that you can find it.

hna coe

1- inside during our first tropical storm!

We got a call from our district leader saying we should head home, we got a ride but Hna Taylor, and her companions were soaked!

2- Rosa, our awesome neighbor, and us- (minus Hna Erekson)