Another Week Has Flown By

Hello my family! This week went by so fast I can’t believe it. Sister
Earl and I got our flu shots. Mine left a huge bruise on my arm or
Sister Earl beats me I don’t know which haha. No I am kidding she is
an angel. Really she is, I love being her companion because she has a
corky sense of humor. Picture my friends Zoe and Carolyn in one
person and that is Sister Earl.

We went to see Bill and Beverly this week and taught them about the
temple. Beverly has been rockin’ the family history lately. She has
so many family names! Her and Bill will be going to the temple on
February 9th. They have asked Sister Earl and I to be baptized for
their sisters. We are very excited for that. They are both solid and
love coming to church, studying and praying together, and growing in
the gospel!

Jim is doing great! We had two lessons with him this week. We invited
him to be baptized but he is nervous to commit to a date because he
doesn’t feel ready. So Jim is praying to receive confirmation on his
baptismal date. Whatever he decides to do that is okay- I am just
glad he is taking this very seriously and knows the significance of
the ordinance of baptism and the covenants it entails. So many people
rush to get baptized and fall through the cracks and end up being less
active so I am glad Jim is so genuine about it. Every time we teach
him he does something funny when he greets us and the Yearsleys at the
door. This week he was wearing nice clothes and Homer Simpson
slippers. Jim cracks us up all the time. He is an amazing person so
we are just trying to help him feel that he is ready to be baptized.

We had a shift at the Whitmer Farm from 9 to 5 on Wednesday and then
site meeting at the Whitmer Farm there too so we were there ALL DAY
LONG. It was nice to see all the sisters in our mission though that
night. Sister Park is my friend from Korea and she and I dance
together- it’s pretty awesome. Usually it is salsa dancing or the
waltz but this week is was Michael Jackson moves. She even did the
Michael Jackson, “WOOOO!” once we got outside ahahaha. I love Sister
Park.
Thursday we went and had dinner at Mary’s house. We hadn’t seen her
in a while and were really worried about her but she is doing okay.
Just going through some hard things with her family and such. But we
shared a talk from conference with her and that really helped. She
made this really yummy shrimp pasta stuff and then we had our usual
desert with her… pumpkin ice cream. MMM!

We had interviews with President this week and that was really good.
He let me know that we have 10 sister missionaries coming in March and
from those he will determine who the cast trainers will be. So I will
either move in February to get into my new area and prepare to get a
trainee or I will be flush training in March! I asked President about
it and he said he has no idea what he will do. But that is okay! I am
just along for the ride! Whatever the Lord needs or asks of me I am
willing to do it.

This week we got permission to watch “Emma Smith My Story”. Sister
Earl ordered it online and it came to us in two days! So we watched it
for our less active and recent convert movie night. That movie is so
amazing… Emma Smith endured so much it’s insane. Anyone who bashes on
Emma needs to be kicked in the face because she was the epitome of
pressing forward with faith. I hope I can live up to be half the
woman she was.

Ambrose took us out to dinner with the Waterloo sisters this week. It
was fun! We went to Magee’s Diner. We all love that place- he is the
sweetest old man and we are like granddaughters to him. I just wish he
would read the Book of Mormon and get baptized! One day, one day. The
Searles are our site director and wife and they were working at the
Whitmer Farm that night so they came in and joined us at our table so
it was Ambrose and 4 sisters and a senior couple all around him haha.

Yesterday Sister Earl and I had some neat experiences of being at the
right place at the right time. We really were led by the Spirit to
know who needed us and when because we had no set appointments. One
of the people we visited actually said, “You sisters always have such
great timing. I don’t get it!” Haha it is the Spirit of the Lord! He
gets us to where He wants us and needs us to be. I love the feeling
of being an instrument in the hands of the Lord to do His work. I
love being a missionary! I never want it to end. I can’t believe I
am over half way over with my mission and I am turning 22 this week.
It’s weird. Well I love you all very much and pray for you each day.
XOXO

Love, Sister Adams

Hello my family!

I hope all is well in Mesa town! Everything here is good. It hasn't been too cold here mostly in the 30s and 40s again this week, but I guess this week it's going to drop to subzero temperatures... whoa yikes. (Bewitched) Elder Perkins in my district gave me an Arizona Highways calendar this week and it made me miss that promised land. Enjoy the warm sunshine for me this week. I have noticed that my hair is getting really dark lately. I think it is the lack of days the sun shines here. Plus if it even does decide to come out it never gets very high in the sky.

This week we went to go help a recent convert in our ward pack up some of his stuff so he can move and it was a disaster. He has SO MUCH STUFF. His house is falling apart... literally it is falling apart... he has fallen through his floor twice so we are trying to help him get out of there and his social worker is doing nothing at all to help. Craziness. So yeah that was fun. We ended up having our van full of stuff for Salvation Army. Then we had to trash some of his stuff but he doesn’t have trash pick-up so we called Ambrose. I don’t know if I told you about Ambrose yet… maybe I have. He is this older man who has been investigating for years and years (eternagator) but he just loves to feed and help the missionaries. So we called him and of course he comes to the rescue and we load up the back of his truck with trash so we can go dump it. I feel like we didn’t even put a dent in it either so we are going to recruit people to come help us next time because the elders and us can’t do it all. Afterward Sister Andrew in our ward had us over for hot chocolate. That was so nice because I thought my fingers were going to freeze off from working outside.

We’ve had some great lessons with Jim this week! And he has been to church three weeks in a row. He is progressing well and learning so much. He told us he knows it is all true :) Sister Earl and I are going to help him set a date to be baptized tomorrow and we are excited for him.

This week we had Rand Packer come to our mission. He is the author of “A Lion and a Lamb” and the grandson of Willard and Rebecca Bean. He did a presentation for our site meeting that was so cool! He showed us tons of pictures of the sites and Palmyra area from the early 1900s. I didn’t have my copy of the book with me and I was sad because I wanted him to sign it. Well yesterday after church we were working here at the Whitmer Farm and guess who came down to get a tour? …Brother and Sister Packer and their son! I got to take them on tour here at the Whit and it was such a cool experience. The Spirit here at the Whitmer Farm is so powerful I can’t get over it! And I live here! Brother Packer ended up signing my book before he left. YAY!

I went to the temple this week and it was so great. We went to be there for Brother House in our ward. He has been baptized a year and was so ready to go through. Sister Earl and I started teaching him temple prep but then the Breinholts took over because we just didn’t have time. So much work to do! It was such a neat experience to be there with the Fayette Ward and all the missionaries who taught him. We got to the temple early so we went walking in the Sacred Grove for a while. I sat down and did a little personal study there on a bench and it was a really profound experience for me. I love that I can go to the Sacred Grove to find peace and get answers… not very many people can do that so I feel very fortunate.

I know that what Joseph said happened in the Sacred Grove really did happen. I know it like I know my heart beats. I know that because of the sacred events that happened at these sites that the Church of Jesus Christ is on the earth in these last days and that the fullness of the gospel has been restored. I love that I get to teach these things to people and share my testimony so often. It’s all true!

Love, Sister Adams

Doin' The Work in the Mama Van

Helloooooo family! Thank you for the letters you have been sending me. I love it! They always make me laugh and I need to laugh here and there. Guess what!? I got to take three tours this week. So awesome. I forgot how much I love showing people around the historic sites. I can't wait for spring break time so that the sites pick back up. Yes, we still drive the van.. I don't know if I told you this but we named the van "Isabella" and when she gets feisty she is "Izzy". Haha the Waterloo sisters got a Chevy Cruz... sooo jealous. I love that car. But Sister Earl and I are super fly in the big mama van- as always.

This week Sister Earl and I have still been busy, we got to see almost everyone we needed too finally... now that we have Sister Raines and Sister Szuch in Waterloo our work load is possible and not as overwhelming. We prayed they would come here and I am definitely grateful the Lord answered that prayer. We went and saw Sister Woodward this week. She is this old lady who is in the Geneva hospital and she is a hoot and a half! We got there and she likes to be called "Sister Woody" and she told us, "I am grumpy today, no I am just sassy… no I am just mean." Haha she has therapy she hates and some medications that make her say funny things so she gave us a good laugh.

Pamela is a less active member we are working with and she is a sweetheart. She smokes and Sister Earl and I smell terrible when we get out of her appointments but she is now reading the Book of Mormon on her own. She feels now that God is trying to reach her and she wants to be closer to Him. I almost jumped for joy! I love it when people desire to do the right things, to be close to their Father in Heaven and then they DO something about it! So wonderful. We are still teaching Jim, would not suprise me if he gets baptized soon. He has been to church twice in a row now! And he stayed for all three meetings! Haha it was so funny because when we asked him if he was going to come to church this week he said he would come with bells on... well he shows up and Sister Earl and I go to shake his hand and he whips out this bell and starts to ring it! Haha we laughed so hard that he actually did it. Little do we know but President and Sister Christianson came through the back door of the building and were walking down the hall and saw him do it. Sister Christianson said, "Oh he must have told you he was coming with bells on!" haha they got a kick out of that. I was so happy to see President and Sister Christianson! They brought the new senior office sisters to church where the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was organized. Their names are Sister Harris and Sister Allred. Sister Harris is actually Sister Christianson's sister! It was fun to meet them too. President and Sister Christianson also got to meet Jim and Lea and Bill & Beverly! It was fun seeing him get to know the people we work with so often.

Lea is back to school is Olean... Sister Earl and I really didn't want to say goodbye but it was time for her to go back to her studies and get back in the swing of things. What is up with my recent converts leaving me for college!? Haha that's okay... Lea and I have such a bond it is hilarious. We both feel like we have known each other for so much longer than just a month or so. She will be back to Fayette Ward to visit often though she said so that's good.

So the guy who saved us from the snow filled ditch with the Breinholts... well remember how I told you the story on Skype how Sister Earl and I found him after we prayed? Well his name is Phil and he and his wife came to have dinner with us at the Seneca Lake Girls Camp last night! It was so cool! Sister Breinholt made a beautiful meal and they came and stayed for two hours. They are evangelical priests and so we asked them about their ministry and they asked about our missionary work and how our church is set up and the restoration and everything! They walked away each with a Book of Mormon, pamphlets, and a Mormon Tabernacle Choir CD. They told us they were excited to read it. So cool! At first I thought it would be a little awkward, but it wasn't at all! I loved the Spirit that filled the room when Sister Earl and I told them about the work that we do and why we left behind so much to come out here. I shared a spiritual thought with them and Phil got really teary eyed and could not stop talking about what I taught them from the scriptures. He said it was neat because it added onto the very thing he preached about in his church that morning. That was quite the experience and one I will never forget.

So that was pretty much my week! I am so happy and loving the work I do each and every day. I know that it is true and that is changes and improves lives. It is just amazing that as I do the Lord’s work to see how He is changing and improving me in the process. It has been hard at times, but the most rewarding thing is to see that change in others and that change in me. D&C 24: 7 “For thou shalt devote all thy service to Zion; and in this thou shalt have strength.”

I love you all mucho mucho mucho! Xoxoxox –Sister Adams

Transfers + PICTURES!!!!!!

Hi everyone! Transfers are tomorrow and guess what?! WE ARE GETTING ROOMMATES! Finally! Sister Earl and I have been in over our heads taking care of two areas. Sister Raines is flush training in Waterloo. We don't know which one of the new sisters she will be training, but she arrives to New York today! So exciting. New Years was awesome. We had a huge sisters sleep over here at the girls camp. I made a legit snowman and we tubed in the snow all day. It was a blast.

This week Sister Earl and I have been just holding our breath until Lea's baptism... So many things went wrong in her life this week. But we know that was just the adversary just trying to stop her. And he almost succeeded but Lea just plowed through like a champ. The baptism was wonderful. Even though Lea's family didn't come, the whole Masino Family was there. They traveled from Buffalo and Rochester to be there for her. I'm sure Elder Masino is so happy too. He had his first baptism the day his dad baptized Lea. We had a good turn out for her to let her know that she has a ward family. So many of the senior couples came from Palmyra too! We took Lea to all the historic sites in Palmyra the day before she was baptized and she met a bunch of them and they all wanted to be there. We had such a sweet experience with her in the Sacred Grove... it was amazing to get to take her around those sacred places to feel the power of the truthfulness of the events that occurred there. It was freezing cold though. We were trekking in the 2 feet of snow at the Smith Farm... it looked like the arctic and the snow drifts from the wind were brutal. But that didn't matter because we still had a special spiritual experience. Lea's baptism was beautiful. She went through so much to be baptized and she was so strong. God has great things in store for her and her posterity.

Good news! Our other investigator Jim, who is afraid to come to church (or any church function really) came to Lea's baptism!!!! I was so glad. Then at the end of the baptism he told us that he wanted to see the other half of the story so he CAME TO CHURCH to see Lea's confirmation. AHHH! yeah.. I can't even tell you how full of eternal joy my heart was. My heart was just pounding and tears running down my cheeks. Elder Breinholt did the confirmation and the blessings that were pronounced upon her head were amazing. I am just so full of gratitude that I get to be a missionary-- to be a part of and witness Heavenly Father's children turn back to Him, repent, and receive ordinances and make covenants with Him. It is just a beautiful thing! The Gospel of Jesus Christ is true! I know it.

I finished the Book of Mormon and so now I am reading through the New Testament. Yesterday I was reading in Matthew chapter 8 and of all the miracles Christ performs to heal these people. As I read the story of the leper who is healed at the beginning of the chapter my mind kept drawing the parallel between the story and repentance. Are we not all lepers? Do we not all need cleansing from the Savior? All of the many miracles He performed during His ministry were a type for what He still continues to do for us today through His Atonement. Through Jesus Christ we can be cleansed from our sins. We can have our hearts healed. We can forgive others and forgive ourselves and know that everything will be okay. We can be spiritually "raised from the dead." We can cast our all doubt and fear and have faith in our future. I could go on and on! Just like Christ did for the leper, if we come to Him and show Him our faith in Him, he will say to each and every one of us, "I will; be thou clean." (Matt 8: 2-3)

I know that the Atonement of Jesus Christ is real... everything that we can't make right ourselves will be made right through the atonement. "I do know that Christ shall come (has come) among the children of men, to take upon him the transgressions of his people, and that he shall (did) atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken it." (Alma 34:8) "And I would not that ye think that I know of myself--not of the temporal but of the spiritual, not of the carnal mind but of God." ( Alma 36:4) This is my testimony.

I love you all very much. You are the best family in the world. You lift me up when I am down and you make me laugh right when I need it. Thank you for being perfect for me :) Heavenly Father sent me to the right place :)

Love, Sister Adams


Christmas corner: like my roaring fire I drew?

In the ditch

Sideways in the ditch

Our devotional in the Log Home at the Whitmer Farm on Christmas Eve with the Yearsleys

Opening Christmas! Slippers and mangos, yes!!

My cute pj's that I love so much.

My cute new necklace that I wear every day!

Christmas Morning Snow

Girls Camp House!

The Breinholts at the Seneca Lake Girls Camp

Sister Missionary's New Year's party - tubing train!

At the Smith Farm with Lea!

Book of Mormon publication site

Crazy weird sisters on the Hill Cumorah!

Lea's baptism! With Brother Masino!

Skype Was AWESOME!

Okay I just have to start off by telling all of you how fun it was to Skype and see your faces and to see Keri's Baby Audrey belly! I almost cried it was so awesome. I wish I could have talked for longer but I needed to get back and focus on the work here that the Lord has called me to do.  Thank you for all of your love and support.  I need it. After I talked with all of you on Christmas we got to watch a Disney movie for Christmas.  We watched "Brave".  It was so good! Such a cute movie. Have you been getting my emails? I looked on my blog and they are not on there.  If you need me to send them again I can.. I hope they are getting to you because I haven't had time to sit down and write a letter.  I haven't had time to do much of anything extra lately so I am sorry for that. Working two areas is starting to wear on us. There are so many people who need us to bring the gospel to them it is ridiculous. We never have opportunities to find investigators because we are working with so many people.  We have 5 investigators and about 15 less active members and recent converts to see each week.  So we are booked. Then add shifts at the sites on top of that and it gets pretty crazy.  Bishop Egan wants us to be in every members home too teaching them lessons and stuff.  Sometimes I wish there were more than 24 hours in a day so we can accomplish everything.  When we get two more sisters down here that will help because we've had double the load while Sister Earl and I are down here by ourselves. 

Yes we did get SNOW!! About 20-22 inches this week. We get a lot here between the lakes.  I had my first white Christmas! But that was just the beginning to the snow storms.  Now I know what they mean when they say, "walking in a winter wonderland." Don't worry Mom, I am getting snow boots right after I send this email.  Haha I have been walking through almost two feet of snow with my little wimpy AZ boots.  I've survived though, it really isn't that bad.  It is going to get down into the single digits here this week so I am going to get some thermals and stuff like that so I can layer up.  Sister Earl just laughs at me discovering things about living in the snow.  Elder Breinholt bought some tractor tubes for us to go play out in it today.  There are some good powdery hills out here at the girls camp. 

Oh by the way, we are living at the girls camp now.... yeah they built a new pavilion down at the Whitmer Farm and they hit our pipe line and now it's leaking and then the cold weather is freezing the water that leaks out.  So they are trying to fix it before it ruins the new pavilion.  So they shut off our water. We've been here with the Breinholts since Thursday. They are using the old well water right now at the Whitmer, but it is not safe to drink.  So the Breinholts told us to just stay here with them.  We think they just want us to stay :) hopefully the water problem will get fixed soon so we can go back home though.  Yesterday at church they had to use bottled water for the sacrament and everything.  OH and the water heater here at the girls camp broke too. So we've been taking cold cold cold showers.  Definitely wakes you up in the morning!

This week has been a hard one. One of our investigators committed suicide.  It was really hard on Sister Earl and I... but the Lord got us through.  We had 6 appointments after we found out on Friday and we couldn't just cancel them.  So we prayed and pulled it together and went to work.  It was the best thing we could have done.  We taught and shared our testimonies and felt the Spirit and it comforted us.   We got home to the girls camp at 9 pm and who was here?  President Christianson.  We just fell to pieces we felt so loved and looked after.  He had over an hour drive in the snow storms to get here and then get back home to Rochester.  He talked with us and gave us blessings and it helped so much.  We felt bad he had such a long drive and a late night, but he told us he knew he needed to be here. I am so grateful for a mission president who is willing to do anything to help his missionaries. 

Good news is that Lea has a baptismal date! She is for sure getting baptized on the 5th of January.  She text us on Friday right after we found out about the suicide and said she didn't think she could get baptized. Yeah, two big things at once I almost had a heart attack. But we met with her on Friday and Saturday with the Masinos and talked with her about it and continued teaching her.  She decided to get baptized on the 12th but we didn't want her to wait another week- she is ready.  So we asked her to pray about the 5th and she said she would.  I gave her a hug when she came to church yesterday and the first thing she said, "I've decided on the 5th, I prayed and got my answer and I know I am supposed to be baptized that day." I may have jumped up and down a few times. I am so excited for Lea. She is so prepared and is the definition of "the elect".  NOW, we have found out that Elder Masino in Chile is having his first baptism of his mission on the 5th! Isn't that so cool!  Heavenly Father just works things out.  I have seen His hand in this work more than ever. 

I know that God knows each and everyone of us personally. They way the world measures the worth of a soul is very different from the way Heavenly Father does.  The worth of EVERY soul is great in the sight of God.  I love the Lord and I love being one of His servants in the vineyard! I love you my family and hope you have a HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

Love, Sister Alexandra Adams

Winter Adventures Have Begun

Merry Christmas Eve!  I just got off the phone with you, Mom, to set up the time to Skype.  I am so excited! Thank you for the pictures that you emailed me I love getting to see you guys. I sent a package last Monday with a little gift in there for you  and Erika and Dad.  I hope it got there okay and everything. This past week so many crazy things have happened. I'll start with the mellow stuff so you have to read through the email to get to the good stuff. Ha ha :)

Last Monday night we had a family home evening event at the Smith Farm.  We caroled from the log home, down Stafford road to the frame home. In the log home Elder and Sister Fuller was there reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" (no beer involved this time.. haha) and then Elder and Sister Poulson were in the frame home reading Luke 2.  It was such a neat thing.  (The Poulsons are from Ephraim and they have the old freezer that was in the old malt shop! I told them that my Nane Sue and Papa John ran that shop for a while- they thought that was pretty cool.) Then In the barn the elders were there playing old fashioned games that the Smith Family would have played. We caroled back to the welcome center and had cookies and hot cocoa.  It was so amazing to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ at a place where he appeared. The Spirit there that night was a sweet one.  AND I got to see Sister Butters and Lindsay and Bishop and Sister Wildey and Danae and all the people I love from the Lyons Ward. I was so happy especially to see Lindsay. She is doing so good. 

Tuesday nights is when Fayette Ward has there ward scripture study so instead of meeting at the church we came down to the Seneca Lake Girls camp.  Sister Breinholt made cookies and wasil and we caroled and had a Christmas scripture study here at the main house at the camp.  It was so awesome.  I am really starting to love the Fayette Ward. I love our little posse that comes to scripture study each week. Mary came and she shared her testimony. It was so beautiful and powerful. Lea, our new investigator came too! She loved it.

We had the Christmas Zone Conference with President and Sister Christianson on Wednesday.  It was a spirit filled day and my heart was truly touched. We had a training on how we can learn to be a missionary like Jesus Christ was. Being a missionary is rough at times, but it is so worth it.  I decided that whenever I feel discouraged or rejected that I am going to be grateful. Grateful that I get to feel a tiny fraction of an ounce that the Perfect Missionary experienced in His life, ministry, and atonement He performed- because it brings me closer to Him.

Thursday was also a special day. We got to go to the temple and do a session at the same time Logan Graham went through for his first time. I was so thankful that it worked out and that Logan wanted me to be there.  Sister Graham hugged me twice after the session- once for Logan and once for her haha. I love their family so much. Logan is going to be a rock star of a missionary. Brother Graham came and waited in the lobby with Laurissa and Jake.  So I got to see them when we got out.  Laurissa feel into my arms and started sobbing and then it made me tear up. She is such a special girl and it was very obvious that we miss each other.  It was nice to see the Grahams (my mission family) while I am away from my own family this time of year. 

So here is the funny part of the week.  Have you ever been stuck in a ditch full of snow? Well... Sister Earl and I have! Hahah oh my goodness it was insane.  So we had some pretty intense snow storms here and we really needed to get to the Seneca Lake Girls Camp to make cinnamon rolls with Sister Breinholt to take to our investigators, less active members, and recent converts for Christmas. So Sister Earl was driving very carefully and slowly down the back roads to get to the girls camp.  The snow drifts were crazy and at times there was complete white out. So we get down by the lake almost to the camp and at this point Sister Earl is getting a little more comfortable so we were going like 20 mph and all the sudden this huge branch is in the middle of the road.  So she slammed on her brakes, veered around the branch, off of the black top, and then when we started to slip she over corrected and we slid directly into the snow bank.  All the sudden Sister Earl was up in the air, I was near the snowy ground, all of the stuff in our van was on my side of the car, and our van was sideways! So many people stopped and checked on us and kept telling us we would need a tow truck to get out. So we called Elder and Sister Breinholt and before we know it they are coming down the road in their mid-sized SUV. Now, this is how cool the Breinholts are:  Immediately Elder Breinholt attaches a rope to our bike rack and his car and Sister Breinholt jumps in the ditch and has powder up to her waste and starts digging us out. Luckily another man stopped to help too so he and Sister Breinholt start pushing the front of our car and Elder Breinholt pushes the gas and pulls us out backwards onto the road! Elder and Sister Breinholt get the coolest senior couple award hands down. Sister Earl and I jumped out of the car and hugged them we were so grateful they got us out. (I maybe cried a little because I was scared) and Sister Breinholt goes, "oooh our little Arizona bunny".  There was no damage to the van, the cinnamon rolls got made and were delivered and everything was just fine! Heavenly Father was really looking out for us because it could have been a lot worse. 

Yesterday we taught Lea the Plan of Salvation after church and invited her to be baptized on January 5th and she was really hesitant because she didn't want to disappoint her family. We delivered some cinnamon rolls to Lea and her family last night and met her mom.  Her family is not really too fond of the fact she wants to be baptized. We talked with her and her mom in their living room for like 20 minutes!  It was awesome! We told her why we came on missions and what we do to help people come closer to Christ. The Spirit filled the room as we were explaining this to her and she relaxed and smiled and ended up giving us hugs when we left their house! Sister Earl and I got in the van to drive home and we started screaming it went so good.  Then we are headed down the road and Lea texts us and says, "Thank you so much for stopping by I think that really helped :) and I've decided that I'm ready to be baptized. I told my mom that I am going to be baptized before I go back to school." Well you should have heard the screams in the van after that. We were on cloud 9! So so happy!  We stopped at Brother and Sister Masino's house on the way home and told them all that had happened and they were ecstatic.  They are so excited to tell their son, Elder Masino who is serving in Chili, that his girlfriend will be baptized in a few weeks! He will find out tomorrow when he Skypes home :)  That is probably the highlight of my week. I love missionary work so much. I know that it is the work of God and He is working miracles. 

I love you all very much and I am so excited to see your faces tomorrow! Merry Merry Christmas :)

Love, Sister Adams 

Skype? Yes or No?

Family! I want to Skype with you guys for Christmas so let me know if that is a possibility. I can always just call too though so no big deal. I would just need to know the account to call when the time comes. I'll call or Skype around 11 or noon your time, but we'll see. Still one more p-day until Christmas. 

This week was wonderful! I am finally getting a hang of everything and everyone. Two areas to take care of has been quite the task, but Sister Earl and I are still alive, well, and working hard! It's great. We got Bill and Beverly going on their family history and they are LOVING it. Mary is having a hard go with things lately, but her testimony is solid.  She is such a great person and we are doing all we can to keep her knowledge of the gospel growing. 

Sister Earl and I are driving a new van! Haha total soccer mom style. But it will be nice when we finally get two more sisters to take over Waterloo. The doors open at the push of a button and everything. Super fly. 

We got to go to the temple this week with the Brienholts again! We did initiatory and it was so neat.  The little old ladies at the temple stayed late, even after the temple should have been closed, to finish all the names. Between Sister Brienholt, Sister Earl, and I we finished 30 names. It was amazing and a sweet experience to be a part of. I love being inside the temple. The peace and joy felt there is something that cannot be described.  I am thankful for the priesthood that connects us with heaven and the sacred ordinances that allow us to return to our Heavenly Father and Savior, Jesus Christ, as forever families. 

There is a man we are teaching in Waterloo. His name is Jim and he is older and lives by himself with his dog, Jay.  I love going and teaching him because he likes the fact that I am bold haha. The Yearsleys are the senior couple who live next door to us that take care of the Whitmer Farm and they came with us on a team-up.  The Spirit was so strong and Jim told us that he knows it is all true. He is just trying to find the courage to take action. He is SO CLOSE! Ah I can hardly wait for him to be baptized. It will happen. The Yearsleys were perfect to take with us because they just connect with Jim.  He and Elder Yearsley have the same sense of humor and really get along great. I really appreciate these senior couples that come out and help us to bring people to the truth. 

We have a new investigator! Lea is a 19 year old girl who is back home in Seneca Falls for Christmas from college.  Her boyfriend is the son of a really great couple in the ward, the Masinos. Elder Masino, her boyfriend, is in the MTC right now getting ready to go to Chili. She talked with him a little before he left about what he believes and why he was going on a mission.  She said it really touched her heart and she felt something special as he explained it to her. So he left on his mission and she started meeting with missionaries while she was away at college. Well, I guess the elders teaching her were not obedient at all and never had lessons planned for her and stood her up a few times. (Yeah... not okay)  So Elder Masino sent us Lea's information from the MTC with a sister who just arrived in our mission.  He said that the elders were just not cutting it and to have sisters teach her and she lives in our area! So we contacted her and hit it off right away. She is the sweetest girl ever and she really wants to be baptized. The only thing holding her back is her family is really upset about her wanting to join the Church. I feel so blessed to be able to teach Lea. She told us that Sister Earl and I were an answer to her prayers and that she really feels the Spirit with us, more than ever before. I am excited to get her going and progressing more quickly so she can be baptized. 

Two less-active members we are helping right now, Greg and Jinny, are brother and sister.  This week their sister died in a horrible car accident. Sister Earl and I went to the funeral today to support them. It has been a little hard talking with them about it, because it takes me back to when I lost my brother. It hurts my heart to see them going through the same thing. But I know that the Lord sent me here to this area, before this even happened because He knew I would be able to help Greg and Jinny with my experience and my testimony. Losing a sibling so suddenly is really hard... but because of the knowledge that I have, coping with it is possible.  Sister Earl and I are meeting with them often to keep them close to the gospel and to the church. We will get them through this because we have Christ on our side to help them along. 

I am so grateful for my Savior and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. He is everything to me, because without Him I would have no chance, no hope in returning to where I belong with each and every member of my family. I love this time of year that we get to celebrate His birth and His life. I love you all and I'm excited to talk to you on Christmas day. 

Love, Sister Adams