March 3

Hello over there!

Things are going pretty well.  Been super tired but pulling though.  Had a massive headache yesterday but it is gone this morning.  Yay!  Does the backyard look like a tornado went though?  Our room will when I have to go through everything and pack.  Anyways, miracles are happening all over.  We had a few of them yesterday.  

1. A kid came to church all by himself.  He had his brother drop him off from Holister, ID all the way to Filer because he "knew it was right."

2. The Elders in Jerome knocked on this old guys door at 9pm Saturday night.  He wasn't interested but needed help moving his neighbor (a single lady) down to Filer by 2pm the next day.  They called the Elders down here who called us.  She's ours now!  Wahahaha!!!!

3. In 20 minutes we had 10 men and some of their families help move someone in on Sunday afternoon.  

4. The lady we helped move in felt the spirit as we moved her in and the ward mission leader dedicated her home.  

5. An investigator we have been trying to meet with for the past month showed up for the move even though it was in the other ward we cover and no one invited him!  His ex-wife was the lady's friend.  

6. A woman we have been teaching wants to be baptized but is scared what her parents will say.  He husband bore his testimony and was crying through the prayer.  It will happen.  :)

Life is good.  I may have to sleep for a long time when I get home BTWs.  :)  And I got some SUPER AWESOME stamps!!!  You shall see!  I just watched a really good Mormon Message called Bullying: Stop It.  http://www.mormonchannel.org/video/mormon-messages?v=3267475157001&cid=HPWE030514340&im=true  Anyways, that's what I get to watch while my companion takes 2 hours to email.  We get to go to Mongolian Grill called Genghis Khan for lunch today.  The sign has been saying Coming Soon since I got to this side of the mission a year ago.  It finally opened last week.  Another miracle!!!!  :O

Sister Nettles

Feb 24

A Voice From the Dust (*cough*cough*)

I love you all.  Things are going CRAZY fast.  My MTC companion is now home.  She was still in the Boise Mission so they are on the original schedule.  O.o  Why am I so old?  Doing crazy things this last month.  I am going to make a dirt angel and ride in a horse and buggy.  I jumped on a trampoline today!  In the Farnsworth's front yard.  Made me happy.  We did three exchanges last week.  I was in Mountain Home, Jerome and back in Filer.  Good times.  They are like legal sleepovers. But we do get A LOT done, including 2 hours of paper work.  I felt like Hawkeye making Roy Mustang do it.  Good times.  The mission is flying by.  I have 24 days left.  On Wednesday I will officially be 17 months.  What is this madness?  I think we might have one more baptism before I go home.  HOPEFULLY!!!!!  There are a lot of people that are ready aside from still trying to quit smoking or finish their probation.  They even asked if they could pay tithing before they were baptized.  :O  Who normally asks that?  Prepared people that's who.  I get to drive the 12-seater transfer van this week!  Going to be exciting.  Sister Dodds is going to take lots of pictures and I am going to drive like a granny.  She is going to LOVE having to back that sucker up.  

I keep seeing Sam's name pop up in the Area Books: Meridian, Jerome, Filer, everywhere!  I think I really did just steal his mission out from under him.  :)  Life is good and flying like a squirrel.  Just to warn you I am going to sleep a long time when I get home.  Aint no rest for the wicked...  Hope you are all still alive and well.  

Sister Nettles

Feb 18

Dearest Family etc...

I love you all!  Things are going great.  We have 18 progressing investigators and 3 of them have baptismal dates.  So much work to do!  We are starting our crazy exchange schedule today.  It is going to be fun!  3 back to back to back this week, one next week, three back to back to back the week after and the last week of them just 2 back to back.  Yay!  No sleep~!!!  I may sleep for the first three days I'm home.  Just warning you...  There has been lots of snow and rain the past two weeks.  People have been fasting for it.  Apparently fasting works.  Who knew eh?  Fasting also got 10 investigators to church this Sunday.  Yay!  Our schedules are jam packed and we are working on a lot of goals including eating healthy and loosing weight.  This will be an intense last transfer.  Thank you for the Canadian goodness!  Only have a flakie left.  And one box of Smarties.  Sooo good.  Now that the temptation is gone I can be good again!  Hope all is doing well and Emily gets better.  She has a letter coming!  =:O  Also, I had to buy a carry-on because I did not come out with one.  It's charged to the credit card just so you know.  ($70)  :)  It's supper useful for exchanges that are more than one night.  Trying to de-junk a little as well but I need that last bag.  Life is good over here and starting to explode.  With AWESOMENESS!!!  Have to go to District Meeting now, then drive to Mountain Home 1.5 hours away for the first exchange.  Road Trip!!!!!

Love you all,

Sister Nettles

Feb 10

Hello yet again!

My new area is awesome!  Covering two wards in Filer where the members love us and we have lots of people to teach.  Still need to go through the dregs of the suitcases so I can put them away and make room for exchanges.  My companion Sister Dodds is so much fun.  Even though she makes me get up at 5:45 everyday except Sunday to drive to the church and run/exercise in the mornings.  SO TIRED!!!!!  We cover the sisters in Jerome and Mountain Home.  The farthest ones away.  Goodie for miles.  No problems so far but the transfer is just starting out...  

Cool stuff from this week.  It was snowing so we had to go take pictures in the snow.  This poor lady ate it trying to get into a building so we helped her.  We got to go shovel her walks and invite her to learn.  She said no.  Sad day.  We have an investigator we are teaching who wanted to do something nice for someone!  She works at a kids clothing store.  There is another family we are teaching who has 4 little girls who really need clothes.  She goes though her own little girls' clothes and buys some other new clothes to give to this family: 2 bags worth.  They all fit perfectly even though we didn't tell her exact sizes.  Even the shoes! Miracle.  Also, we had a church tour for this new family that just moved in with the Curry family.  The Barkel's (new move-ins) and the Currys (non-members) are all investigating.  When we were on the church tour we were describing YW's and the Plan of Salvation that was on the wall in the primary room and we could all feel the spirit really strong.  Then a member mom pops in because she and her family were playing basketball in the gym and asks if the investigators have any teenage kids.  The have a 16yr old girl named Jaden.  They called Jaden up and invited her to the Stake Dance.  Jaden has had a rough life and dropped out of High School last month because of the kids, but last week moved here to Idaho.  Because of the dance and going to church with the youth she is now going to enroll in High School again!  YAY!!!!  :D  Miracles abound.  

This week we have one exchange with other Sister Training Leaders.  It's a new thing so it should be fun and we will be happy guinea pigs.  :)  Next week is when the exchange madness commences.  There will normally be one of us and another sister in our area except the first Mountain Home exchange because it's so far away.  Fun stuff: I will be driving the 12 seater transfer van.  We will drive up the night before, spent the night up there.  In the morning we will pick up 5 sets of missionaries and bring them down to Twin for a meeting.  That evening drive them all back and do a double exchange since we will both be up there.  Then then next day drive the van back.  :)  There are going to be some interesting pictures.  

We have had snow and rain all last week.  Today is clear.  Hopefully we will get more this week and then be good when I have to do the driving.  Be good out there in the real world!!!

Love,

Sister Nettles

Feb 3

Dearest Family Dear:

So it is transfer week again.  I am being moved to Filer for my last 6 weeks with Sister Dodds (Asian from NY) training her to be a new Sister Training Leader.  She is an amazing worker.  Exciting.  We will be covering 2 wards and will be over 5 sets of sisters this time instead of 7.  Yay!  They are all in Mt Home and Jerome though so not very close to our area.  :(  But I still love them.  :)  I love being a Sister Training Leader.  You get to know the other sisters so much better, and you get a car!  :D  

I love you all!

Sister Nettles

Jan 27

I am officially old.  I got my pre-trunks this week: a paper where I had to declare if I am flying home or being picked up.  :(  Ancient.  

This week Sister Eppel and I spoke in Stake Conference.  We were even broadcast to another building.  Sister Beard, the less active lady we live with, came and watched us speak!  :D  Miracle.  President and Sister Curtis also spoke after us.  I asked if we brought shame to the mission and they said "no" so I think we did okay.  :)  Sister Beard spoke to President Curtis and said she was happy to have Sister Eppel and I there, and he said she may not have me as long as she thinks she might...  so I may be getting transferred my last transfer.  It feels like I might now.  We get the call on Sunday and are moved on Feb 5th.  We shall see.

We did a lot of planning yesterday and paper work.  I have been the walking area book so we started to actually write stuff down, seeing as I may be moving.  Been in this area since October 2nd.    Lots of catching up to do.  :)  

Love you all,

Sister Ancient

Jan 21

I love you all!!!  

Chocolate/ candy fast is still going strong.  It ends Feb 1st.  DON'T EAT MY FLAKIES!!!!!  need them...  My hair just decided to behave it's self for the past couple months.  Mission Miracle!!!  I use Garnie Fructice Sleek and Shine conditioner and it works wonders.  Even if I can't spell it... I think I may be in Twin till the end but have a different companion.  :(  I love Sister Eppel.  The trio is still stickin.  Sister Eppel has officially been sick for a week this morning.  She taught 1 lesson last week.  Poor Sister Eppel.  We have been doing splits with other sister missionaries so we work in both areas while one watches Sister Eppel sleep. Killer on miles but worked out.  Hope it will be gone in the morning.  

Been doing a ton of exchanges.   SO, funny story.  We went to see Sister Davidson and Pili when they got back from the ER.  We don't have a GPS anymore, the people we borrowed it from needed it back.  (The car symbol was an X-Wing!  I was an X-Wing pilot!)  I had been to the member's house they were staying in once before so I thought I was at the right place.  It was me Sister Ramsey and Sister Gass.  We go up and knock on the door.  I assumed it was the right house they were sick on the couch so I didn't want them to have to get up.  So I just open the door and walk in.  There are two big dogs I didn't remember but I don't trust my memory in all things, so I just hold them back by the collar so they don't get out and this dude with tattoos and a beanie walks out of one of the rooms and asks what we were doing.  I declared that we were "here to attack the Sister's, are they downstairs?"  "There is no basement in this house."  "Oh..."  Turns out it was next door.  I was one house off...   We promptly left and found the right house.  Needless to say my companions were laughing their heads off when we got outside.  Sister Ramsey was laughing so hard she was drooling!  Good times...  So, yeah.  I have officially trespassed.  Oops.  I was surprised our tires weren't slashed when we left the sister's real house.  

Well, I love you!

Sister Nettles

Jan 13

Another week gone.  According to mission years I am 68.  Old and decrepit.  :)  So crazy week this week.  We are now a trio.  It is Sister Eppel and I and now also Sister Gass.  Good old emergency transfer.  There have now been 5 sister emergency transfers in the past week.  And Sister Eppel is throwing up sick this morning.  So life is excellent!  A lot of the sisters have been getting sick this transfer.  At least 4 had to go to the ER.  One was throwing up blood.  :O  They are all doing better now.  Sister Curtis even goes over and sits with them while they are sick and takes care of them.  Like an awesome mother that I used to know.  :D  They think it was crazy food poisoning.  Being a Sister Training Leader is intense. So many sisters are having problems with their companions.  It will be okay though.  I love them all, so I just hug them as they cry on exchanges and help them to problem solve so things will get better.   

Sister Gass has been out 9 weeks now.  Came from Burley.  From California.  20 years old.  The rest of this transfer is going to be interesting.  Her old companion is now training a Tongan sister that came into the field last week.  The MTC got confused.  It happens I guess.  :)  It must be run by humans or something.  

We got 5 new investigators this week!  Two are from Micronesia, and a man in our family ward just happened to serve his mission there and is fluent in Chuukese.  Miracles baby!  We are doing a lent type of thing on top of the fast we did to find new investigators this month.  I gave up candy and chocolate for the rest of the transfer.  I have been strong since we started on Tuesday.  It's working!!!  :O  Not even drinking hot chocolate...  It's for the GG, the Greater Good.  ;)  

Love,

Sister Nettles