1 January 2013

Family!

Wow! What a bitter sweet day!  This past week has been filled with a roller-coaster of emotions. Thank you for your emails.  After our skype on Christmas day, Sister Watson skyped her family and then we had dinner with the Bishop's family.  The family gave us nerf guns for Christmas which was sweet.  We drove back to Parma and opened our Christmas presents (Christmas Eve) and were so grateful for the many gifts.  Thanks everyone!

Tuesday, was Christmas day, and Sister Bake - a sister in our Ward - picked us up to have breakfast at her home.  During breakfast she asked us what we'd like to do that morning so we asked if she could take us to the Owyhee Dam because everyone talks about how beautiful it is but we've never had the mileage to drive and see it.  She drove us there and it was such a beautiful sight and the trip was awesome.  Later, Sister Bake dropped us home where I was able to organize a lot of stuff.  I put all my letters in a box to get them ready to mail home and while I was doing that, it started snowing!!!!  A white Christmas!  We had tried to visit some people despite the snow, but Sister Watson wasn't feeling confident about driving in the snow because she has never driven in snow before (not to mention that our car started slipping all over the road), so I suggested that she pull over and that we were turn around and go home.  I could just hear my mum's voice in my head saying, "Why didn't you just go home if it was unsafe!" So, I heeded that advice and home we went.  We ended up calling the family where we were having Christmas dinner and they were kind enough to come and pick us up.  This family is less active and they are amazing because they made room in their home on Christmas day to have the missionaries over for dinner which I thought was sweet. After dinner they dropped us home and we called it a night.

Wednesday, we were off to the Temple and we were praying that the weather was kind and the roads were clear as we had a 40 mile drive to meet up with the Elders who were taking us on to the Temple.  We got on the road early so we'd have enough time in case of any surprises but our prayers were answered, the roads were clear and we made it to the Elders home and they drove us to the Temple.  It was so awesome to be in the Temple and President and Sister Cannon were in our endowment session.   After the Temple we finally arrived back in Parma in time for our dinner appointment, then we went and visited with a few families.  Oh, I took the box of letters to the Post Office to see how much they would cost to send home and they said it would cost $96.00USD!  I thought, "That is ridiculous!"  I took my box of letters home with me.

Thursday, we did weekly planning and during our meeting, it all hit me!  I lay on the floor in our apartment and almost felt an overwhelming sense of despair come over me and I said to my companion, "I just can't do this!  I just can't go any further!" And then I heard the spirit say, "You're not alone, I am here to carry your burdens!"  I started to cry because I realized their and then that the pain and sorrow I was feeling was because my mission will soon come to an end and I could not handle it.  I felt the love of the Savior right their in my room because I know he has carried me through my whole mission.  I decided to go back to bed and woke up a much happier person.   We left the house at noon and didn't return home until 9:00 p.m.  We got to see Brad that night and he has committed to baptism on January 18th!  That is so exciting!  He is definitely our Christmas miracle. 

Friday we had my last District meeting, followed by a few visits and then Barb and Tana from Meridian came by and took us to dinner.  It was the last time I would see them both before I leave so they had come to say hi and bye!  I will miss seeing them.  That night when we arrived home I was talking to the lady that we live with about my overwhelming feeling of sadness to see my mission come to and end and she said, "You just have to remember that you have a very excited mother at the other end who is anxious to see you!"  Honestly, just thinking about the family is what is going to get me through this last week.

Saturday was good. We went to Subway for lunch and this sweet old man that was their payed for our lunch and as we walked over to the drink station he informed us of the drinks that had caffein in them and those that didn't.  He was so sweet.  Well, so as to not upset him, I put Sprite in my cup, then after he left the restaurant, I went and poured out my drink and put Diet coke in my cup. Sad aye? But I really wanted some Diet coke.  Anyway's, then we stopped and visited a lot of people and then we went to the Zone Leader's baptism.  It was a neat experience. Then we were off to Vale for the night.

Sunday we spoke in Church and I cried through my talk.  I think we were all crying.  This one brethren thanked me for making him cry.  Haha!  Then we had dinnner with a less active family, then we visited Art, followed by a visit to Michelle and Amber.  When we got home,  we were in the middle of planning for the week and doing other stuff and the Assistants called to inform me that my final interview with President Cannon will be at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, January 4 2013.  They then relayed to me the proceedings of the whole week and after I hung up the phone I looked at my companion and said, "I'm going to cry again!  Everything is just happening too quickly now!  Fortunately, I managed to hold it together and got ready for bed and then picked up my Book of Mormon and just sat and read it until I felt at peace.  Trust me, it has been one very emotional week.

Today, I am doing some retail therapy!  I know this week is going to fly by and before I know it, I will be giving you all a big hug at the airport. I am so, so, so, grateful for everyone who has supported me, prayed for me and watched over me while I have been a missionary. Not just my family, but all those who have been on this journey with me and read my emails and written letters and sent packages.  Thank you so much, because I have felt of all your prayers, all your love and all your support and I am very sad to finish my mission.  But,  I am also very excited to see all those I love again.  I know this Church is true and there is nothing more important that I could have done with my life in these past 18 months then to serve a mission.  I have truly come to know my Savior and the sacrifices he has made for me.  He is my Master and I will follow him and one day be counted as his friend.  I love the Book of Mormon and I know that it literally changes lives.  I know that prayers are answered and I know the spirit is real and guides us if we so desire his guidance!  I am so grateful that I am apart of a Forever family.  I will see you all real soon. Take care, Sister Chadderton xoxo

25 December 2012

Family!

Don't worry, I will try and keep this email short considering I will talk to you in a few short hours.   Eeekkkk!  Bytheway, the time is passing slowly!  Anyway's, this week has been good.  Quick recap.

Monday was filled with shopping - mostly for myself.  I bought a few things for other people as well.  We headed up to Vale that night and had an awesome dinner appointment.  They were a lovely family and the husband who is not a member was really nice.   Also, we contacted a referral and she said she wouldn't join the church but we could practice our lessons on her. I thought, "Heck yes we will "practice" our lessons on you and let the spirit do the rest. That night I called home to set up Skype calls.

Tuesday we helped at the bakery, and then we helped some less active girls make Christmas treats like, chocolate dipped pretzels and caramels.  It was a lot of fun. Then we had dinner with a family in one of our Ward's, then we went to see the Mosuer's but turns out his wife was going into labor so we didn't want to hold them up and called it a night.  We were exhausted and in bed early.

Wednesday we were up early and I was off to Meridian for exchanges with Sister Hamilton who is part Tongan/ Samoan but raised in Salt Lake City.  It was so good to be back in Meridian.  I got to see alot of the people that were baptized and it was so neat seeing how strong their testimonies have grown or to hear stories of how their faith has helped them to overcome certain trials and challenges. It was awesome.

Thursday morning I woke up sick. Yeah, me and my sicknesses. It was ridiculous.  I dragged myself out and we managed to see a few people and that night we had our Mission Christmas gathering.  It was a talent show and my Zone did a Idaho Boise Mission,  "12 days of Christmas" countdown and we acted out skits and stuff.  I was a good sport and participated. Then we had dinner but because I was still feeling sick I didnt eat a thing and just drank alot of water.  After dinner we had an awesome Christmas devotional where we watched almost every Mormon message about Christmas.  Some of the foreign missionaries shared their Christmas traditions so that was cool.  We also got some mail and packages and stuff but one of my packages went missing.  The senior missionary couple had called me a week ago telling me that I had a fed-ex package at the mission office so I said to just keep it there and I would get it at the Christmas gathering.  Well, turns out that night it was no where to be found.  I don't even know who it was from but I hope whoever took off with my package enjoys it because they must have needed it more then me.  It was good to go home after the gathering.

Friday was District meeting, then we had appointments all afternoon.  One of our appointments was with a recent convert who seemed to be struggling. The poor guy suffers from PTSD and was in a bit of a lull that day.  We tried to bring the spirit into his day to help uplift him and by the time we left he was smiling so that was good.  That night we went to see Brad and Shannon and I took Brad his shoes.  I put the Christmas package under their tree and then we taught our lesson and then I asked if he had any other questions and he said, "Whats in the present?"  I told him he would have to wait and see but gave up and he ended up opening it right there and I am so glad he did because I got to see the joy on his face. He was so ecstatic with his new track shoes. He said he needed to test them out to see how fast he could run in them so in the pitch black he runs out the door and then runs back inside and says, "Wow! I can run so fast in these shoes!"  It was the neatest experience.  If only I could buy every kid a present that makes them that happy.  Then we went to the Chapel and met with Bishop for a bit then Patsy arrived to have her Temple recommend interview because she was going to the Temple to do baptisms the next day.

Saturday, we were up early to go with Patsy to the Temple.  We couldn't do baptisms but we took our family file names and Patsy was able to do the baptisms for us. Then we came home and got ready for the rest of our day.  We went and saw Viola again and she asked if we had any literature that we could leave with her so I gave her my Conference Ensign and shared the talk entitled,  "Consider the Blessings" by President Monson.  Then we drove to Nyssa and tried visiting with some people but no one was home.  We stopped for lunch, then we headed up to Vale because one of the Ward's was having their Christmas party.  It was good and before the party, we visited with an elderly couple who gave us stockings and we started talking about the Second Coming because low and behold, the world did not end! The Christmas party was great, we have stockings under our tree now and we called it a night.

Sunday was church, church, church, and we listened to a return missionary give his homecoming talk. It was a really good talk then we had an appointment with a member and she fed us lunch and gave us Christmas presents, so we took them home and they're under the tree too.  We saw Art and the spirit was there but he seemed a little different and he didn't go to church. We saw Debbie and Cleta who are recent converts and had dinner with them and they gave us presents too.  So much kindness.  Then they gave us a ride home. Overall a good end to the week.

Today after emailing we're heading to the bakery and then we get to Skype! It's P-Day but we're not getting much of a P-Day.  I'm way too excited to Skype!  Well, I'll see you all in a few hours.  Love you lots.  Sister Chadderton xoxo

18 December 2012

Hey Family!

Oh my goodness, do I have stories for you this week.  Also just to confirm - I will be Skyping home on my Christmas Eve which will be your Christmas day.  I will call you this week to confirm.  It will be around my 3:00 p.m.  It has been quite the week and I am glad you received my travel itinerary in the post.  After emailing last week I called the Mission Office and Sister Olsen said she had already posted the itinerary.  Yay!

Monday we did some shopping (I have banned myself from buying any more presents for the niece and nephews).  I  may have gone a little overboard!  Anyway, after mum's suggestion to help someone in need to have a good Christmas before we could spend our Christmas money I was thinking, and thinking, and thinking, and I had so many names come to mind of less fortunate people that I could help, but I decided to make it a matter of prayer and let the Lord help me know who needed the most help this Christmas. Well, that night we went to contact a referral and we met this 9 year old boy named Bradley. We call him Brad. Think of Ricky at 9 years of age and thats what this kid reminds me of.  So, of course it broke my heart seeing this boy wearing the oldest pair of shoes.  Literally, they were probably being held together by a thread.  Brad has such a sweet spirit and as we started teaching him, he just soaked up the lesson.  Brad is who I am going to help this Christmas.  I was talking to his mum and I know they have no money and they live in a trailer and I know if they had money they would be buying him lego or something so I'm going to buy him some new shoes!  And because he reminds me of my brother, I'm pretty sure I already have a soft spot already for him.  After our lesson we rushed up to Vale where we had a late dinner appointment and also stayed the night.

Tuesday we had District meeting - we found out Monday night that our meeting was moved to Tuesday - so we were off to Ontario to attend that.  After the meeting we drove back to Parma and visited with a few people, then we met with the Mosuer family.  This family had called us on Monday night to set up an appointment to meet with them.  They are not LDS and recently lost a 4 year old boy. We met with them on Tuesday night and it was such a neat experience.  We testified of God's love and how families can be together forever.  They want to start taking the lessons and they were at church on Sunday so that was awesome! It was a really good end to the night. It's going to be so hard to leave here, especially when you are able to help people understand God's love. That's something I am going to miss the most.

Wednesday we went to the Family History Center because our Mission President said he was watching Elder Russell M Nelson's talk where Elder Nelson says, "If anyone wants help with Family History they should, "Ask the missionaries!""  So, he thought to himself, "My missionaries need to know about family history!"  President has given us permission to research a family name and take it to the temple and do the work for them.   We went to the family history center and I found 28 names that all need their ordinances done so I printed them off and the youth are going to the temple this week so they should be able to help with the names and then I can do the rest when I come home.  It was a cool way to spend the morning. Then we went and met with a lady by the name of Vanessa who is less active but is trying to come back to church. She really sounded like she needed our help so it was another good visit and we were able to teach her about Christ once again.  I think at this time of the year that is really the most important message that people need to hear - how much God loves them.  That night we went and helped at one of our Ward's Christmas parties then we saw Patsy and helped her put up her Christmas decorations. The night ended well and I finally told Patsy that I would be leaving to go home soon and she wasnt happy :( but its okay.

Thursday we went to Vale and helped in the bakery which was awesome and everyone kept talking about how sad it will be when I go home. Anyway's, that night we were in Owyhee and we got to see my little friend Brad.  We also taught a few less active members and then we saw Shelby and had our last lesson with her. She's doing great. It is awesome to see the progress she is making and I can't believe how quickly Thursday went by.

Friday is a different story.  So I had been having shooting pains in my lower abdomen all week but I just thought it was cramps. Well, on Friday I literally could not move.  I would lie down and it would hurt, I would get up and it would hurt and I was thinking, "This is ridiculous!" So,  I just rested for a bit, then decided I needed a blessing.  We called the Elders and they came and gave me a blessing.  I wasn't feeling 100% but after the blessing we went and visited a few people and we were at this one ladies house and she said, "What's wrong with you?"  I think she could see I was in pain, so I told her and she said that she would call the doctor and get me in, and me being the stubborn me was trying to AVOID going to the doctor's because I really thought it was just bad cramps. Well, I called the nurse who says she will call the doctor so we go down to the doctors, only to find out that I have a bladder infection. Great!  So, he gives me 2 different pills - an antibiotic and then one for the pain.  I take them, and then we go on with our night because we still had to help out at two more Ward Christmas parties.  Oh, bytheway, the doctor is LDS and he is in one of the Ward's we attend. This is an important part of the story. So Friday ended okay with me feeling a little better and not in as much pain.

Saturday morning I wake up and I feel really good and then I look in the mirror and my face is swollen. Think the movie, "Hitch" where he's sucking back Benadryl because of his allergic reaction to fish - yes, very similar swelling.  It was scary.  My companion has her own health issues with bad eyes and she's still in bed so I go running out of the bathroom and into her room and I said to her, "Does my face look swollen?"  She's like, "Oh my goodness, YES!".  So, I knew if a blind person could see that my face was swollen then it definitely was swollen.  So, I look through the Ward directory for the doctors number because being Saturday his office is closed.  I call him and I think I probably woke him up and explained that my face is swollen, and he said it was an allergic reaction to the medication so to stop taking it and he would send in another prescription to a different pharmacy. The only pharmacy open on Saturday's was in Parma and it didn't open until 9:00 a.m. so we had to wait until then.  So, here we are at home waiting and hoping my swelling goes down.  Finally, it does go down enough to where it doesn't look scary any more and we go to the pharmacy and who would've thought, but the pharmacist and his assistant are LDS too. They fill the prescription and we tell them what happened because I guess to them my face looked normal enough and they said, "Sister's, are you going to be doing visits today?"  We said we will be. They then gave us the name of their neighbor, Viola who they said we should go visit. So we take the name, take the medicine and head home. BTW I didn't have to pay for the doctors visit or the medicine everyone else paid for me - miracle! I take the medicine and by midday I am feeling a whole lot better and my face has mostly returned to normal except it is now this bright red color. I look like I've been sunburnt and the burning was heating from the inside out.  I decided to put some make up on and then we went out.  We tried visiting a few people and no one was home.  We still had Viola's name and address so we visited with her and turns out she wants the lessons as well.  So, out of a bad situation our silver lining was definitely Viola.  She is confined to a wheelchair because she has bad arthritis, but she is doing okay nonetheless.  We talked about Jesus Christ and the strength that he gives to us and she totally agreed with us. That night we went to Middleton to a baptism of someone that Sister Watson had started teaching back in Middleton.   It was fun and then we had a Christmas party and then we came home because my face was still burning up. I took some Benadryl which is supposed to help with allergies then I went to bed.

Sunday morning I woke and my face had a bad rash developing on it. It wasnt swollen luckily but it had the beginning signs of a rash. Well, we were speaking in church that day so there was no way I could stay in bed so I did my hair, put some make up on to try and hide the rash and went to Church. Our talks were good and I really felt the spirit. Then we visited several people in Nyssa. We met some really nice less active people.  It's so interesting how that happens but we had some really good visits. Then we came home and got organized for Monday. After I washed my make up off my face, I could see the rash a lot more and so where it was red and inflamed, I now have an awesome rash.

My skin was so dry this morning and it was really irritating me so I called the doctor but no answer.  My companion gave me some lotion which helped calm my skin.  So, today I am sporting an awesome rash on my face, but no big deal because I won't let that stop me from doing missionary work.  SO, heads up family, I may come home a mess - bladder infection, rash, the flu, who knows what else - but at least you will know that I worked hard in the last few weeks of my mission.  Anyway's, today is shopping day and we are off to Meridian where I'm going to do the last bits of shopping that I need/want before coming home then no more shopping for me (at least that's the goal) but I'm excited for shopping.  Have a great week and I will talk to you all sometime this week and see you all this time next week on Skype. Merry Christmas.  Love Sister Chadderton xoxo

11 December 2012

Family!

Oh thank you for all your emails!  I so appreciate them.  I had an explosion of emails today so that was awesome!  Well, I have a few things to update you on and this past week has been rewarding, coupled with challenges.  Monday night after P-Day we went to Vale and had dinner with a less active family.  It was good and we really got to know the family better and shared a Christmas message before leaving.  We went to visit a recent convert by the name of Stephanie.  She has had a few struggles and I could see how her faith enables her to pull through her trials.  She is amazing.

Tuesday we did service and helped with quilt squares again. I kid you not, I will know all about quilting by the time I get home. The ladies here amaze me with their quilting knowledge and skills.  After quilting, we headed back to Parma and visited with a few people. That night we visited with Shelby and Taylor.  Taylor is Shelby's fellow-shipper and she had been to Salt Lake City and had run into Sister N and had pictures taken.  It was so neat to hear about her conversation with Sister N.  It was so hilarious that it made me miss my sisters but I am grateful I will get to see Sister N soon.

Wednesday we went up to Vale and helped in the bakery. Actually funny story, around 10:00 a.m. and we leave the house as we have about four people on our list to visit.  We tried visiting them all and nobody was home - like no one!  So, I get back in the car, check the phone and we have a text from Laurie that reads, "I could sure use your girls help today if you aren't busy!"  Well, I quietly thought to myself, no wonder we couldn't find anyone at home because we need to be at the bakery. So, off we went to the bakery and it was great.  We stopped in Nyssa and visited some people and then saw another less active family in Parma.  The dad in Parma was so sad when he heard that I would soon be finishing my mission.  He was a professor of criminal justice so whenever we visit he often talks politics and educates me a little more I guess and I would educate him about the gospel.  He said no one else will be interested in listening to him talk about politics like I am.  He told me that I had to go and see him before I leave, so I will definitely do that.   That night we were supposed to see Lori and Kyle but we were running a bit late from dinner - thats another story!  Well, we arrived at Lori's and Kyle's truck isn't out the front like usual.  Alarm bells start sounding off in my head!  I figured just because we are late, he must be late too!  Lori opens the door and says, "Oh, yeah, Kyle won't be coming tonight, but come in!"  We go in and she tells us she broke off the engagement because she found out he wasn't being very truthful with her.  It was heartbreaking.  She was our link to him but now he will probably continue the discussions in Caldwell where he lives if he even wants to continue them.  Heart broken! There goes our White Christmas.  But, I understood Lori completely and she had to look out for her and her family so it wasn't her fault.  We tried to offer comfort where we could and then we left.  Hard blow to not only lose a baptismal date but an entire investigator!

Thursday was good. We did weekly planning then we went out and taught, taught, taught!  One of our investigators gave me some elk meat, so now I have elk meat in my freezer - I don't know when I will have time to cook and eat it, but it was so kind of her.  That night we had dinner with Patsy and it was good to see her.  She is doing great and is definitely finding her place in the church and you could feel the spirit in her home.

Friday we were off to Baker City for Zone Meeting.  We had three Elder's in the back with us.  Zone meeting was good, except their was this one part where they had told us things we needed to do before January so I asked a question about it and the Elder conducting said, "Why do you care you won't be here!"  Anyway's, moving on,  I thought dang thats a depressing thought.  They gave us these calenders for the rest of the transfer and they put when my last P-Day was and when I go home and I thought, "Oh no, it's all happening too soon!"  So, seems like the Elder's are trunky enough for me.  They always tell me how many days I have left and it can be a bit ridiculous. That night we went to Vale and tried contacting a referral but she wasn't home, then we had dinner with a pre-missionaries mum and she made the best Salmon!  So good. Then we went to the Roman's home where we stayed the night and the little girls painted our nails. It was so cute.

Saturday was our adventure day! And when I say adventure I mean adventure. The Bishop wanted us to visit this less active in the Ward but he lived two hours from Vale in a very remote and isolated area. The Young Women's President was the mother of this less active and so she drove us out to her son's home.  We were in a truck and it's an hours on the highway and then another hour on windy, dirt roads!  By the time we got there I was not in a hurry for the trip back. We visited with the family and it was really neat because they said they hadn't met missionaries before. They fed us lunch then the kids showed us their horses and cattle and then we headed home.  Well, by this time it was snowing because we were so high up in the mountains and the son suggested to his mum that we take a different way home instead of the way we came.  Oh, goodness we were all holding on for dear life on parts of the trip because it was cliff faced and snowy which meant the roads were slick and the truck wasn't even making it up some parts of the road.  I was praying some much needed prayers and the Lord got us out of the dirt roads and back onto the highway.  We still had an hours trip to make to get back to Vale but I was glad we were out of those dirt roads. I had never been so glad to see Vale!  The ranch they lived on was BEAUTIFUL!  But completely isolated and I can say I was literally out in the middle of no where!!!!! Then we drove to Nyssa and had dinner with a family then went to the community lights parade where people made floats and we got to see some of our less active and recent converts, then we tried to contact another referral but she wasn't home so we called it a night and drove home to write our talks as we were speaking in two sacrament meetings tomorrow.

Sunday was great!  Our first speaking assignment was at Parma 2nd Ward and I was asked to speak about Temples.  I shared three experiences that have taught me three important lessons about Temples.  I will have to share my talk with you when I get home but everyone was either crying or laughing with me.  It was quite emotional knowing that I won't be here for much longer. The second talk was in the Nyssa 1st Ward and we were asked to share some missionary experiences so we did and again they were either laughing or crying with me.  Overall, it was an emotional day.  We broke our fast and had lunch, then went and helped Amber and Michelle decorate their Christmas tree and put up Christmas decorations around the house and then we went and saw Art who is progressing nicely.  That night we attended a Christmas Fireside and their  was a lovely spirit at the fireside, then we went to see how Lori was doing before going home.  What a week!

Today, I am grateful for P-Day.  And I am grateful for my Christmas money.  I will think about who I can help have a better Christmas, because while I've been emailing alot of different names are going through my head but I will pray about it and decide. So, thanks again parents and family for your emails.  Have an awesome week. Less than a month to go now! Love you all. Sister Chadderton xoxo 

4 December 2012

Hey Family,

Thanks for the emails. Can you beleive a whole week has gone by and the time is passing by quickly.  It's been a busy, busy, busy week but a great week. I will start at the beginning and try and recount all the happenings of this past week.

Monday was P-Day and that was fun. We finished P-Day early because I went to the sealing and President Cannon had asked me to offset it by taking time out of my P-Day so we did. Then we went to Vale and had dinner with a family that lived in a very remote place.  There were dirt roads that seemed to go on forever.  I was so glad that we were staying in Vale that night so after dinner we tried visiting a few people but it was quite dark and creepy along these dirt roads so we decided to try a couple of homes but no one seemed to answer the door so we ended up calling it a night and headed to the Roman families home where we were staying the night. 

Tuesday we got up, went to the bakery to visit Laurie and Duane and then we went to Seminary. The Seminary teacher is the Relief Society President and she invited us along. It was great and everyone had a thousand questions about New Zealand.  We travelled back to Nyssa after class and saw several people and all good visits.  We met a lot of widow's in our area this past week. That night there was a Relief Society Christmas dinner that we attended then we had a lesson with Lori and Kyle. It was a really good lesson and Kyle still hasn't received an answer to prayer about his baptism date. He knows he needs to be baptized but no date has stood out to him.  We committed him to continue to pray about a date and to continue to read the Book of Mormon.

Wednesday we were in Parma all day.  This was where we met most of the widows.  There are quite a few people who are lonely during the holiday season so we try to go and visit them and see if we can be of service or do anything for them.  It was a really good day because we met a lot of ladies in the Ward. No one really wanted us to do service they just needed someone to talk to so that was awesome too.  Can you believe it rained all day.  It was miserable :( That night we went to visit a less active lady whose husband had not long passed away and we had a really good visit with her. Hopefully she will start coming back to church soon.

Thursday was weekly planning and that  was good. Then we waxed our car because at Zone conference we were all asked to wax our cars so now I know how to wax my car. It looks so shiny. Then we went to Owyhee, had dinner with a family who had a few exchange students from Korea and China, and then we saw Shelby and had a really good lesson with her where we talked mostly about the Prophet Joseph Smith. Then we headed home. Long day but good day!

Friday we had District meeting and we have a whole new district.  A few Elder's I was in the MTC with are in my District and I think it makes them a little trunky knowing that I'm going home soon.  We drove up to Vale again and we felt strongly that we should visit Maggie and Kea - mother and daughter. They aren't LDS but we drove to see them and the Lord's hand was evident in our visit.  We visited for a while and that was exactly where we needed to be. The Ward Mission Leader had asked us to visit a few other people so we went to dinner first, then we visited everyone that we could find home and then we headed out to the Roman's and stayed their again.  We are planning to stay in Vale on Monday's and Friday nights now because it's about 40 miles from Parma to Vale and it's safer and easier to stay the night instead of driving home.

Saturday was awesome! It was, "Super Saturday" at the Church Building where we did some Christmas crafts and you are going to love what I made Mum! I made my craft especially for you and I am going to cart it all the way home!  Everyone said it looked really pretty.  After our craft morning, we went and helped at the bakery because it was open on Saturday, then we went to a 8 year old's baptism where we were asked to speak.  We visited with a few people after and while we were sitting in our last appointment and I was struggling to stay awake. Goodness me,  I felt so bad because I kept yawning so I had to wrap up the lesson quickly and get myself out of there.  I got in the car and said to my companion, "I'm wasted and I almost feel like falling asleep!"  We ended up going home because my companion said she was just as exhausetd.

It was Fast Sunday and we were planning on going to Owyhee to attend church, but as I was getting ready the spirit said, "GO TO PARMA for church!"  Owyhee Ward starts at 10:00 a.m. and Parma starts at 9:00 a.m. and I hadn't finished getting ready.  I checked the clock and it was 8:44 a.m. so I told my companion that we were going to attend church in Parma of which we arrived just before Sacrament started. There are two Wards in Parma so we attended both.  Here's a cool fasting story. So, my companion and I have been fasting for opportunites to Find, Teach, and Baptize people. Yesterday, there was a non member at church who turns out to be a waitress from a restaurant in town that I've eaten at a couple of times. I didn't realize she wasn't a member because her husband is.  That is the answer to our fast, we have found a new investigator.  Our WML said he had someone new he wanted us to start teaching so our fasting to find someone to teach was answered, then right after church we had a lesson with Lori and Kyle and this time Kyle had received an answer to when he should be baptized. He said he prayed and the number 14 came to mind, and he said that he knew that was his answer. He took it to mean 14 days from that night, however you have to be WOW free for 2 weeks and he hadn't stopped chewing tobacco until a a few days ago so we checked the calender and made the suggestion of being baptized on December 14th?  He was happy with that so Kyle's baptism is set for December 14th.  I am so excited!  He will be our White Christmas.  Like last year, if we have a baptism it constitutes as a White Christmas so that was an answer to our fasting to have a baptism.  See family, fasting really does work.  Overall, it was a great Sabbath day. We also got to watch the First Presidency Christmas Devotional and it was awesome. I loved President Eyring's talk about making sure we're giving lasting gifts this year, something that will build faith not just meaningless gifts, and then President Uchtdorf talked about being a good receiver and gift giver and having a more child like attitude towards Christmas instead of being so expectant. Then President Monson's talk was amazing too.  I won't tell you about it, so watch it if you get the chance to because it's a great way to start the Christmas season.  I hope you are all doing well. I will keep praying for you and yes I received my Christmas package it is still nicely wrapped under the christmas tree. By the way my address is: 

1003 N Pioneer Way

Parma, ID, 83660

so you can still send all my mail there instead of the Mission office because I will get it quicker. I love you family. Glad Michel and Gem's wedding was great. Hope your doing good and see you all in a little over a month. Take care, Sister Chadderton xoxo

27 November 2012

Family!

Oh, do I have a lot to catch you up on. This past week has been awesome and it makes my heart happy and I will tell you all about it, but I will start back at Monday.

So, after I emailed you we went and played volleyball and I was getting a little frustrated with the Elder's on my team.  During the game they kept jumping in front of me to hit the ball, almost as if they thought I didn't know how to play the game so I wasn't getting much of a turn and decided to sit down and write my weekly letter to Sister N (Cola) instead.  After writing my letter, the spirit said, "Call the mission office and see if they have your itinerary yet!" So I did, and they had my flight schedule. So, I said to the lady in travel, "All I want to know is if I have a lay over in SLC please?"  She said I did and I about jumped out of my skin!!!!!!!! I arrive in SLC at 12:55 p.m. on January 5 2013 and depart  at like 5.:55 p.m. to LA.  I have a 5 hour layover!  Oh the best news ever!  I was on a big HIGH after receiving that news so I made a BIG sign and sent it to Cola telling her I have a layover.  Apparently, I get home at like 8:00 a.m. on January 7th, but I haven't got the actual details in my hand so I'm not 100% sure.  But I was so happy about the layover.  This kind of news truly gave me the energy boost I needed to get through my week, let alone through the rest of my mission.  That night we had dinner in Vale, then we headed back to Parma and called it a night. 

The next day was Zone Conference, and it was a special, "Thanksgiving" Zone conference.  We learnt a lot about Elder Bednar's talk entitled, "Converted unto the Lord" and honestly, that talk is the epitomy of why I am on my mission.  At the end of the conference all the departing missionaries were invited to share their testimonies so I had to bear my testimony and I just bawled through it. Goodness me, I just cried.  The spirit was so strong and it was awesome.  I talked a little about how before coming on a mission I had a testimony, but I wasn't truly converted to the Lord until I served my mission.  It has brought about the conversion that I know I needed.  After conference I took some pictures and then we rushed home to a dinner appointment, then that night we had a lesson with Patsy.

Wednesday we had interviews with our Mission President and our last District meeting.  One of the Elders had a brithday so we got him a cake. Interviews were good and President pretty much said I would be staying in Nyssa this transfer, so that was fine because it was what I was hoping.  After transfers we had dinner with this huge family because everyone's families come into town for Thanksgiving so that was neat to have a lot of people in the one room. Then we called it a night.

Thursday was Thanksgiving and we went to a families home in Owyhee for dinner, then we went up to Vale and had another Thanksgiving dinner.  Honestly, I was surprised that no one talks about what they are grateful for at these dinners.  It was a little sad :( so when we left a message, I shared with everyone about how before we would have Thanksgiving dinner we would go around the room and take turns at sharing what we were grateful for.  Anyway, we drove home and watched a movie as a companionship, then we called it a night. It was a first, "No contact day" where we had to respect not going to people's homes because they had family over.

Friday morning we were up early and off to the Temple as a District.  We took some Elders in our car and headed to Boise. It was awesome being back in the Temple and the ladies name that I took through on the endowment session was, "Wiri" and I sat their thinking, "Oh, thats like baby Ra-Wiri" so it was cool.  The session rooms are tiny but it was great being back in the Temple.  On the way home we stopped at Deseret Book Store because some of the Elders needed to purchase a few items and they were having a Black Friday sale.  I just had to buy some books.  Did I mention I'm bringing home a few church books.   I can't read them on my mission but I'm dying to read them when I get home, so I just have them sitting in my suitcases waiting until I get home because I figured its cheaper to buy them now then ship them to NZ, so all you book lovers I think you will like the books I'm bringing home. That night we were up in Vale, where we went to the Care Center, then visited Tina and a few other people before driving back to Parma.  While we were driving home the phone rang and it was transfer calls and I will definitely be in Nyssa and my new companion will be Sister Watson!  The same companion I had in Middleton. Yay!  It's going to be great. Your prayers were answered Dad and I am so excited to work hard to the end. I have been praying to know what I can do to keep working hard this last transfer and I know that Sister Watson will help me work hard until the very end.

Saturday! Oh, Saturday was amazing!  Sister Armstrong packed that morning, then we had lunch with one of our Relief Society Presidents and then another sister, Sister Baker picked us up and we were off to the Temple to attend the Earl families endowment session followed by their sealing. Oh my goodness family what an experience!  Sister Westover had also come and the session was great and Brother and Sister Earl truly looked at peace.   We had the sealing session after and when the children were bought into the sealing room I just bawled my eyes out.  Here is this family that a year ago did not even have the gospel in their lives and now they are kneeling at the alter about to be sealed for eternity. Oh goodness, true happiness in their eyes and I know those children will never forget how they felt.  I got to be with Sister Westover and we were both crying and just reminiscing about our first lesson with the Earl's and now to witness their sealing was the icing on the cake.  It was magical and it sure helped strengthen my testimony and conversion about temple sealing's and the importance of keeping our temple covenants.  It was just an amazing experience.  What a sight!  A whole family dressed in white.

Sunday was great. We attended 2 Wards and then had several appointments and then drove home.  Sister Armstrong finished packing and then it was bed time.  So, this morning we were up bright and early and at 8:00 a.m. I picked up Sister Watson.  It's going to be an awesome transfer. I cannot believe how quickly the time is passing, but I am excited for the future. People keep asking me what I'm going to do once I get home and I just tell them, "I'm going to work hard and put my degree to good use!" Anyway's family, its been an awesome week and I'm very excited for the weeks ahead. Have a great week and Mum, I sent you a letter earlier this week so look out for it.  Love you all. Take care, Sister Chadderton. 

Picture 1- Sister Schoepf & Sister Chadderton

Picture 2 - Sister Chadderton, Sister Cline & Sister Huffman

Picture 3 - Canadian sisters & Me - the sister in pink knows Sister N from the Square

Picture 4-5 The wonderful Earl family on their special day of being endowed and sealed with Sister Westover and I.

20 November 2012

Hey Family,

Thanks so much for the emails.  We get transfer calls this week so no news as yet.  Please keep my companion and I in your prayers as we learn what is causing my companion to become emotional.  She is the best and I love her. 

I don't have a lot of time to email so I'm sorry if this is email feels kind of rushed.  P-Day last Monday was awesome and all the sisters got together and had sushi, played volleyball and later headed home. That night my companion and I visited a couple of families and left some spiritual thoughts with them before calling it a night.

Tuesday we did some service with the Relief Society where we helped cut out quilt squares. That was fun and then we went and had lunch, did some more service, and then went and visited some people before going to dinner. Dinner was awesome and after dinner we had a few lessons to teach.  One of our lesson's was with Patsy and Lariann and it was an awesome lesson and the spirit was strong.  Patsy shared with us that she received an invitation to the Temple dedication so that was very special to her.  She was in need of some food supplies and her electricity is about to be cut off so after we left I called Bishop and told him she needed assistance and he said he would take care of it.

Wednesday we were at the bakery and helped out there, then we drove back to Parma and stopped in at a members home and while we were there the sister said, "Sister's, I've been meaning to talk to you.  My fiancé wants to be baptized, how can I make that happen?"  Wow!  That was the best news ever, so we organized to return that evening to teach him.  We went back and met Kyle and sure enough he had felt such an overwhelming feeling in the Temple that he decided he needed to change his life and be baptized.  He didn't set an actual baptismal date that night, but he is definitely  praying about it. 

Thursday we had District meeting, then after the meeting I suggested to my companion that it would be nice if we could buy Patsy a dress to wear to the Dedication because we both knew she didn't have money for one.  We went to one store and such a blessing, we found the perfect dress for her and bought it.  We drove back to Parma for a few appointments, and then we headed to Owyhee for dinner and then a lesson with Shelby.  After the lesson we dropped by to see Patsy and gave her the new dress and she was very emotional.  She loved the dress but she also said some of the ladies from the Relief Society had come around the day before and filled her cupboards and  freezer with food from their own food storage.  Truly humbling actually. So she was very happy.  I was so grateful to Bishop.

Friday we did weekly planning, then we headed to Vale where we attended a Seminary type class.  It was a little different because we didn't do what we were supposed to do.  Not sure what happened there.  We then went to a Care Centre and did some service for the elderly ladies, then we helped set up for a Ward activity.  It was  called a, "Harvest dinner" and it was really cool because we met and talked to a lot of sisters whose husbands are not members.  We stayed in Vale that night.

Saturday we went and helped our Ward Mission Leader brand some calves. Oh my goodness, I wasn't cut out for this so I sat back with the children because these calves were bucking all over the place  and I did not want to get injured.  It was a crazy but a neat experience. Then we drove back to Parma.  

The next part of my email is quite sensitive to me and my companion but I'm including it to help you appreciate and recognize just how stressful missionary work can be and the toll it can have on individuals.   After arriving home from our calf branding activity, I was sitting on the couch waiting for my companion to finish in the bathroom so I could change and then we would go out and do some work.  Well, my companion comes out of the bathroom and sits down and starts eating her lunch and I sensed something wasn't right so I went into where she was eating and she was very emotional.  I asked her what was wrong but she just kept crying, and didn't say a thing. She just sucked back the tears and wouldn't talk.  So, I finished my lunch then went and got ready and by the time I got done she seemed to have calmed down. She still wouldn't talk or tell me what was wrong.  She much preferred to change the subject.  Anyway's I told her she probably needed to take a nap so she did and I occupied myself.  Anyway's, while she was napping there was a knock at the door and guess who it was?  My old companion Sister Schoepf had come to surprise us!  She had brought some other return missionaries with her that used to serve in the Boise Mission.  It was so cool catching up.  Later that day, my companion was feeling a little better after her nap so we went and watched the Youth Cultural Celebration and then came home and went to bed.  

Sunday morning we got up early and drove to Boise to attend the Temple Dedication.  It was so awesome! Honestly, so neat and Elder Bednar was the visiting apostle with President Thomas S. Monson.  The talks were awesome and after the dedication we headed home to have lunch before the next session started.  On the way home I tried to make conversation with my companion but she didn't want to talk much.  She was sitting there crying. We get home and she locks herself in the bathroom for 30 minutes and in my head I'm thinking, "Okay somethings seriously wrong here!"  I talked to the lady that we live with as she used to be a nurse but she was at a loss. Then my companion came out of the bathroom and she was standing over her lunch still crying.  I looked at her and tried asking her again as to what was wrong.  She looked at me and continued to cry, so I walked over and gave her a big hug and she just cried and cried and cried. I had no idea what to do so I called President Cannon, only to realize that he was probably in the Temple waiting for the next session to start. I called a few other people but no answer. My companion kept saying that even she didn't know what was wrong with her or why she was crying.  I called the mission nurse and told her about my companion and she managed to talk with her on the phone and get some yes or no answers out of her.  I knew we needed to get to Boise to meet up with President Cannon as I didn't know what else to do.  But, I wasn't sure if my companion was up for the trip to Boise. She said she was, so we got our stuff together and went to Boise.  President Cannon called and told us to meet him at the Mission home so Sister Anderson and Sister Bishaw took us to the Mission home and we had dinner with the Cannon's while my companion interviewed with President.  Then I talked to President after and asked him what I should do, and he said to just love her. He said we could stay in Boise that night and she would see a counselor on P-Day. So we we were in Boise last night and she has an appointment with the counselor today so please keep her and I in your prayers as I am worried about her.  President Cannon said he will see us again on Wednesday so we are taking things a day at a time. 

Anyways, like I said please keep us in your prayers.  I know that when trials come it can affect the work but I have to keep reminding myself that the work will still be there and right now the Lord needs me to take care of my companion.  I am in this companionship for a reason and I want to learn what I can do to help her.  I love you family.  Have an awesome week. I will let you know next week about transfers. Take care, Sister Chadderton xoxo

13 November 2012

Family!

Thank you for the pictures of Brooke (Wifey) & Lehi's wedding.  I'm so glad she got the video I sent her and I'm glad you guys liked it.  I was sitting in my room this one particular night and I had a bit of time before I had to be in bed so I thought to myself, "If I'm going to make a video to send to Brooke for her wedding, I need to do it right now!"  Well, I tried hard to think of something really awesome to say, and nothing came to me except the scripture that I shared in the video. So, that was honestly the thought process that went through my head.  I'm glad you all enjoyed it and I'm sorry if I made you cry as I didnt mean for that to happen.  The pictures are awesome. Thank you!  Oh, I loved my surprise pictures in the mail today of baby Rawiri.  They came at a much needed time, and yes baby Rawiri is so, so, cute!  Gosh, I can't wait to give him smooches!!!!  Haha!

Well, the Open House tours are finished now and it has been another LONG, but good week.  I will start at the beginning.  Monday was P-Day and after P-Day we stopped in at a store in Nyssa before heading home to clean and do laundry etc.  I had left the phone in the car so when we got back to the car we had a missed call from our Mission President, President Cannon.  I called him back and learnt that he wanted to invite me to Zone Leader council the next day.  Keep in mind that only Elder's attend Zone leader council so I was a little surprised to be invited and President said I should bring my companion and it would be from 9:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.  Well, we were scheduled to work at the temple during that time frame so we made some calls and changed things around so we could be in attendance at zone leader council.   P-Day was almost over and it was a good day.  We had gone bowling with the Elders and the first game we played I came third and the second game my arm was tired and I probably came third last.  It was fun!  We had a dinner appointment in Vale that night and then we had to drive to Boise. I needed to talk to a few of the sisters before going to zone leader council.  It was a lot of driving and I was so ready for bed after that trip!

Tuesday was great.  We walked into zone leader council at 9:30 a.m. (on the dot) and none of the zone leaders were aware that the Sisters were coming. So we walk into the room and it's dead quiet.  I chuckled a little to myself, then I looked at the AP's because they knew we were coming and we asked them where  they wanted us to sit and they had saved seats for us next to our Zone leaders.  It was such an awesome meeting, very spiritual and it turns out that I actually knew alot of the zone leaders so it wasn't as awkward as I thought it would be.  I was able to bear my testimony about the Priesthood and how cool it was to learn what Zone leaders do because I know my brother had been to zone leader council meetings, so I know I can share this experience with him one day. The leaders in the missions really do try their best.  It was a great spiritual boost.   After the meeting President Cannon wanted to know what we thought about the meeting because he said there is going to be an increase of Sister missionaries and he wanted them to play a leadership role in meetings like zone leader council.   We told him it was great.  

Well, after the meeting Brother Pine came by and took us to dinner because he was up from Shoshone and it was great to catch up with him.   Following dinner we rushed back to Owyhee as we had a lesson with Shelby.   We taught her the lesson and witnessed a miracle that night.  She came into the lesson with a migraine.  Poor thing, she didn't seem like she was able to concentrate but we went ahead and had the opening prayer and then I turned to her to start the lesson and you could just see she had this glazed over look in her eyes - that look you have when your head is pounding - and I kept thinking of you mum and how you wouldn't want to be around people when you have a migraine.  Anyway, the spirit whispered to me to ask her if she would like a blessing.   So, I stopped and asked Shelby if she would like a priesthood blessing.  She said yes and it was awesome because we had three worthy priesthood holders in the room who were able to give her a blessing.  Our Ward Mission Leader commented that when his wife gets a migraine she just has to let them wear off.  Well, they gave her a blessing and after the blessing we started the lesson. We taught about tithing and fasting and we had one more principle to teach and the Ward Mission Leader asked Shelby how she was feeling and she said, "Oh my migraine is completely gone.  It left the minute you pronounced a blessing on me."  Within myself I thought, "Yeah! That is the power of the priesthood in action!"  We finished the lesson and Shelby was just glowing.  It was evident to me that the Lord cared enough for Shelby that he wanted to help her gain trust in the priesthood.  We headed home and the lady we live with was watching the Elections and she told us who won and I told myself that I can't think about it or worry about it.   If the Lord wanted it another way it would have been another way.  

Wednesday we were back at the Temple all day because we had been at ZLC the previous day and we didn't get our temple shifts in, we swapped and worked all day at the temple. That night we stayed in Boise.  I have another experience to share.  During the Open House we get asked alot of questions and someone was asking about the brides room and I was listening to this one lady explaining that the person who designed the brides room was told to make it look like a room fit for a Princess!  She said his instructions were to make sure the brides room looked like and felt like a place Princesses would live because on their wedding day that's exactly how our Heavenly Father wants them to feel.  And I thought that was so awesome because the new brides room is incredibly beautiful and its a testament to me of how special we are to our Heavenly Father because the men don't get a grooms room. I thought that was pretty neat.  That night we stayed in Boise.

Thursday morning we did another shift at the Temple then drove back to Nyssa to teach a lesson to Saul who is preparing for baptism.  It was an

awesome lesson but after we left his place we got a text from him saying he didn't want to meet anymore and that he didn't want to be baptized.  It's so

sad because the spirit was evident in our lesson and we tried talking to him about it but he didn't change his mind.   Well, things like that happen in the life of a missionary - you get a new investigator and then you lose one. That night we had set up to have Shelby's baptismal interview and it was awesome. She had passed and we were excited for her.  We called it a night and drove home.

Friday we had Zone meeting which is where the Zone Leaders train us on everything they've learnt at ZLC.  Our ZL's said we were going to go to Baker City for Zone meeting and they said it was about a fifteen minute drive, so we had three Elder's in our car and set out on this journey.  Turned out it

was 71 miles away and their is a time zone change, so even though we left at 9:30 a.m. and arrived at 9:45 a.m.  because of the time zone change, normally it would take us over an hour to drive.  It was awesome and now I can say I've seen a bit of Oregon.  The meeting was good and because of the time difference we had to rush back to make it to our shift at the Temple that night.  So, needless to say we spent a lot of time in the car this day. The Temple was good and we stayed in Boise that night.

Saturday morning we worked at the Temple and a few of my friends said they would be coming to the Open House so I kept an eye out for them but couldn't find them, so we had to leave because we had to fill the font for our baptism at 4:00 p.m.  We arrived at the church building and filled the font, and organized for Morgan's baptism.  It was such an awesome baptism and her grandpa baptized her.  Following the baptism, we had a little time to grab some dinner and then headed back to the chapel to get ready for Shelby's baptism.  Honestly,  Shelby is awesome! She is 19 years of age and has incredible faith that could literally move mountains. Her baptism was awesome and it is so exciting to see how the gospel changes a person's life for good.  We made sure we locked up the Stake Center and then it was home time.

Sunday was Fast & Testimony meeting because we had had Stake Conference the week before.  It was a good day and we attended Shelby's confirmation then headed off to another Ward to watch Tina's confirmation (Tina got baptized last week but had to wait to be confirmed) because of Stake Conference.  Then we drove to Vale to attend church with Duane and Laurie and then had appointments lined up for the rest of the night.  We broke our fast in the car as we drove from Vale to Nyssa and I had a snicker bar and some corn chips because we just didn't have time for dinner. But the Lord filled our stomach's so I wasn't hungry.  I will probably make up for it today.  Anyway, our appointments were great and then it was home time!

Today is Veteran's Day in the States and we're having a "Sister's P-Day" which means all the sisters are getting together before the transfer ends and before we get split up again.  It should be good.  I met a guy from NZ and his name is Gee Crichton and he owns a Sushi shop here in Idaho and he said he would hook us up if we went to his shop so we're going to go their today for lunch.  It should be good.  Well family, I love you all and I'm glad you had a good week. The church really is true and don't forget to keep studying the Conference talks!  I'm very excited for my Christmas package and I will try hard not to open it until Christmas.  Have a great week.  Take care, Sister Chadderton xoxo

  Picture 1 - Morgan with her grandpa who baptized her.

  Picture 2 - Sister Armstrong, Morgan and me!

  Picture 3 - Sister Hamilton from SLC (born in Samoa), Sister Tonu'u from American Samoa, me!

  Picture 4 - Sister Hamilton, Sister Tonu'u and me!

  Picture 5 - My Zone!

  Picture 6 - The three Elder's squashed in the back of our car driving to Baker City for ZL meeting!

  Picture 7 - Sister Armstrong, Shelby, me!

  Picture 8 - Close up shot of Sister Armstrong, Shelby & me!

6 November 2012

Family!

Wow!  The children just get cuter and cuter.  That's crazy to hear that Baby Rawiri has already been blessed too!  Well done! I will try and print his blessing off and read it again. This past week has been super busy.  Seems like it wasn't as busy as last week but maybe I'm a little more relaxed.  We had miracles happen this week.  Here it goes:

Monday was P-Day and that night we went up to Vale as Tina and Morgan were having their baptismal interviews today and they both passed. It is such a good feeling when they pass the interview stage. Then we drove home because we had to drive to Boise for the Temple early the next morning.

So, Tuesday morning we're off to Boise and the Temple was awesome. I had a good amount of questions from visitors and a lot of the questions were to do with the structure of the Temple which was interesting.  Some of the questions included, "How big is the temple? Why does the Church spend so much money on Temples? Where did the chandeliers come from?  Where did the granite come from?" and so forth.  It is our goal that after we answer the questions we always try and turn the conversation into a gospel related topic or principle.  We can't really proselyte so instead we bear testimony and hope the spirit touches them so they will want to learn more.  After the temple we drove home and did our personal and companionship studies and I learnt something during my studies.  I have been praying for understanding to see how I can help my companion and how I can have more charity towards her and during companionship studies I was able to see what my role needed to be in helping my companion and so far its going good.  We're still not as united as I would like but miracles happen so I know everything will work out. That afternoon we called a referral that we had received.  He had recently attended a Temple Open House and had some questions so I was able to answer those questions for him over the phone. I tried to get him to meet with us but he wasn't committing and said if he ever needed anything he would call us. That was okay too. After the phone call we had dinner, then we went to stop by and visit Angie and Blake who are not members of the Church.  Blake is probably about 12-ish and Angie is his mum and we were talking to them about the gospel and Blake was close by playing on the computer and he turns around and says, "Yeah, I really want to be LDS because it's the best church ever!"  His mum remained silent, so we are going to visit again to see how we can make that happen for Blake.  It was cool to hear what this 12 year old thinks about the church, "It's the best church ever!"  That's amazing.

Wednesday morning we did our studies, then we walked to visit an elderly lady who isn't LDS but we talked with her about her experience going through the Temple Open House. It was pretty special. And she said she wanted to take her children to the Open House so I am excited to see what happens there.  Some of the elderly ladies just want company and sometimes its really hard to know who wants the gospel and who just wants someone to talk to.   We were off to the Open House after because we were working from 1:00 p.m.- 9:00 p.m.  It is Halloween day today so, can I just say that the Open House did not present a flurry of people.  It was dead.  Nobody was coming so a couple of sisters and I went over to the Temple and took some pictures, then the shift change happened and we were still there.  We ended up finding the person in charge and we asked if some of us could be sent home. Probably for the whole 8 hours that we were there today only about 15 people came into the cultural hall.  So, when I say dead it was dead quiet!   We were free to go and left about 8:00 p.m. where we went to the Boise sisters apartment and played scripture games.  It's funny the little games we play to entertain ourselves.  Definitely, "No Harry Potter movie allowed in this mission!" Haha.  But Halloween was super uneventful and we didn't even have candy which was a good thing I guess!

Thursday morning we were back at the Temple and after the Temple we went to Cafe Rio to eat.  Mum, you have got to put Cafe Rio on your list of places to eat at when you visit America again!   You will love it!  I think I should open one in NZ.   After Cafe Rio we drove home, did our studies, then we went to visit a recent convert who has a less active wife. It was pretty special because this recent convert  just received his endowements and is excited to go back to the temple. Then we had dinner, then we went to teach a lesson that our Ward Mission Leader had set up for us.  There were some people in the Ward who have a mutual friend and this friend wanted the lessons. The Ward Mission Leader suggested we teach lesson one which is on the Restoration and that we commit her to baptism.  We didn't even know the person's name or anything, so we get to the lesson and meet the friends of this lady and before we even sit down the spirit says to me, "You're going to teach lesson 3" which is the Doctrine of Christ.  And I'm thinking okay, well my companion needs to know this because she's planning on teaching lesson one.  Anyway, the ladies name is Shelby and she attended a Temple Open House and she said the spirit was telling her while in the Temple that she needed to repent and be baptized.  She was raised in the LDS church but was never baptized.  Her dad is less active and her mum is non member.  So, we start our lesson by teaching about faith and repentance and the spirit is strong and its awesome and then we teach about baptism and we invite her to be baptized and she accepts! Then the spirit prompts me to say, "We invite you to be baptized at your soonest convenience... Satan will try and stop this baptism so we invite you to be baptized as soon as you can." Pretty much something along those lines came out of my mouth, and she said, "Well, I've been thinking about November 17th which is the Saturday before the Temple is dedicated!"  I knew within myself, that that was going to be a tough one to pull off because the Cultural celebration was that very night.  I also knew that she wouldn't be able to be confirmed until the following week so we shared that information with her and she said, "Well, what about November 10th?"  We all agreed to November 10th being her baptism date.  Honestly, she is so ready for baptism. And it was funny because the reason I realized later why I was prompted to teach lesson 3 was because she said at the beginning of the lesson, "I know all about Joseph Smith so please don't teach me about Joseph Smith."  A lot of people say that.  It was a huge tender mercy. We also ended up teaching her the Word of Wisdom and the Law of Chastity that night.  By the end of the lesson I was mentally exhausted but so happy that we were able to teach and testify again. The Lord's tender mercies are surreal. 

Friday we had District meeting and it was good, then we went to Vale to see Duane and Laurie and we listened as they shared a miracle that happened to them.  Laurie had had a mammogram and she received a phone call to say that she had a questionable spot show up on the mammogram and she needed to go in and have an X-ray done.  So, for her, the first thing that comes to mind is breast cancer and so she was worried.   Duane was a little upset by this because he had a sister that died of breast cancer and so they get in the car, go to a members house and ask for a  blessing.  Laurie said once she got the blessing she just felt this feeling of peace come over her.  The next morning she went for her X-ray and they told her that it was a lymph node instead not a spot so everything was fine.  She attributed it to the blessing and the prayers so that was a really cool experience that strengthened them regarding the priesthood.  Laurie will be baptized eventually but she wants Duane to do it and he is currently unable to at the moment.  But, given a bit more time and it will happen.  After seeing them we drove to Nyssa and filled the font and got ready for Tina's baptism.  It was a good baptism and she felt the spirit and bore her testimony.  It was great.  Needless to say, when we got home that night we crashed into our beds.  It was awesome!

Saturday we got up and headed off to the Temple early where we worked from 9:00 a.m.- 3:00 p.m.  Unlike Wednesday,  IT WAS SO BUSY!  Lines upon lines of people were at the Open House.   It was amazing!  I had tons of opportunities to answer questions and at one point of the day I had an entire church congregation surrounding me and throwing question after question at me.  There were probably 30 people around me and I kept thinking, "I need a companion!  Where's my companion?"  But the Lord strengthened me and helped me to answer all their questions.  We get a few cynical people who ask questions about how expensive the Temple looks but we are able to testify of how much more money we spend on humanitarian aid then we do on Temples.  It's awesome helping people to realize that we actually take care of the poor and needy and we don't just spend money on building Temples.  After the Temple we rushed back to dinner and then we had the first session of Stake Conference that night and one of the Counsellor's in the Stake Presidency came up to us and said, "Sister's are you ready to speak?" In my head I was like, "He's joking right?"  But I blurted out,  "Yes of course, we're always ready!" And he said, "Okay good!"  It was all in good humor until he invited us to sit on the stand and my heart dropped and I thought, "Is he for real?"  Turned out he just wanted us to sit on the stand. It was a great Conference with a huge emphasis on Senior couples serving missions.

Sunday was the second session of Stake Conference and it was a broadcast from Salt Lake City where Elder Quentin L. Cook spoke to us mostly about missionary work.  Some statistics they shared was that they were use to receive up to 600 applications a week from people who want to serve a mission, now they are receiving about 6000 applications a week.  It's incredible the response to the call to serve.   After conference that night, we visited with Art and he has changed.  His room/ house is almost his small chapel and it looks really cool.  We then visited some less active members and then did our weekly planning.

Overall, a really good week filled with miracles.  We have two baptisms this coming week and it's the last week of the Open House so its going to be busy.  Have fun at Brooke's wedding.  I did send her something but I don't know if she will use it at the wedding.  Give her a big hug for me please and give the children hugs and kisses too. Love you all and have a great week.  Sister Chadderton xoxo

   

   Picture 1 - Sister Tonuu and I

   Picture 2 - Me holding a picture of the Boise Temple

   Picture 3 - Me holding a picture of the Salt Lake City Temple (for you Sister N)

   Picture 4 - Me, Tina and Sister Armstrong at Tina's baptism

   Picture 5 - Me and Sister Armstrong

   Picture 6 - Me out the front of the Boise Temple

30 October 2012

Family! 

Oh my goodness,  I just want to stare at the pictures of Baby Rawiri all day!  He is so handsome and cute!  I was so happy when I got the text from President Cannon and he actually forwarded me Mum's email so that was the best!  CONGRATULATIONS!!! AHHH!!!! I just want to sit and hold him.  Good thing he will still be a little guy when I see him in just over 8 weeks (don't worry I'm not trunky!).  That is just awesome.  "Good work team!  Go team go!" I say, "Team" because I know each of you played a pivotal role in the whole birthing experience such as watching children, offering support, and then babies arrival.  I love you family!  Well, my week was no where near as exciting as yours, but I will write a quick version of it so you can all go back and admire the baby for me please.  Oh, make sure he gets big kisses from Aunty Jenna!!!!!   Glad you have the blanket.  Bytheway, I love the name - Rawiri Tuileto'a Savaiinaea - so perfect.  Good job Hina and Joe.  You have beautiful children.

Okay so quick re-cap of the week:

Monday was P-Day, we emailed and then went to play games with the Elders and during our activity we get a phone call saying we need to be in Boise by 6:00 p.m. for a meeting which I was asked to conduct with all the Sister's regarding the Open House.  It's around noon at this point so we finish playing indoor soccer and about 1:30 p.m. we eat lunch then  look at a few shops.  I just wanted to find a Ross Store because I knew they would have my boots, so we decided to drive to Boise a little early and shop at the Ross Store there. Well, we get to Boise, go in to Ross's and, "I FIND BOOTS!"  Yay!  They are brown in color and lined and just perfect.  The best part is they were only $24.99 - bargain aye! They were originally $59.99 so that was a blessing!  With boots in hand, we head off to the Mission office and Sister Anderson and I meet with President Cannon to organize the meeting with the Sisters.  We finish the meeting with the Sister's at 7:30 p.m. and by this time we really should be driving home, getting some sleep and then getting up and driving back to Boise for our morning shift at the Temple.  We ended up staying the night in Boise but, we hadn't really packed an over night bag so luckily I was able to borrow some of the other Sister missionaries clothes and stuff.  It was great.

Tuesday, we worked at the Temple and after our shift we drove back to Parma to clean our apartment because Elder Haleck of the Seventy was doing Mission Tour and apartment inspections so we cleaned up then went out to dinner.  When we got home that night we did a lot of organizing for the new week ahead because we knew we would be all over the place.

Wednesday we had an appointment first thing in the morning with a lady named Tristan who likes to converse but doesn't really want to have the lessons, so we are re-thinking what to do with her.  After our visit with Tristan we drove back to the Temple.  We worked from 1:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. because half the Sister's had Mission Tour and weren't able to work.  It was a great day and we received four referrals for our area so that was exciting.  I was helping the office staff get organized too and on Wednesday night we stayed in Boise.

Thursday we got up and arrived at the Temple by 8:30 a.m. and worked their until 11:30 a.m. after which we headed to our Mission Tour and we were supposed to be there by noon but it took us a little longer then expected so we got there dead on 12:30 p.m. - just as it was starting.   I learnt that Elder O. Vincent Haleck was a Mission President in Samoa before he was  called to be a General Authority, so that was really cool.  He and his wife spoke to us and it was awesome.  They had a way of helping us truly understand the need to continually leave commitments but not just with our investigators but also for ourselves because there is always room for improvement.   I was then asked to stay behind after the meeting so I could interview with Elder Haleck so that was a cool surprise.  I got to interview with him only to find out that he does a lot of corresponding with the Area Office in NZ.  He said next time he corresponds with the NZ office he would say hi to my dad.  He knows Elder Wakolo too (can't remember if I spelt that right) - really well - so that was cool too.  He gave me some good advice for after my Mission and it was just a really cool interview.  He is so normal! That night we were off to dinner and then we went and contacted our referrals only to find out they were all LDS who had put themselves down as referrals. So that was interesting.

Friday, and first thing this morning we helped out at the bakery because we hadn't seen Duane or Laurie all week and then we went to District meeting and then to Boise. We worked at the Temple from 5:00 p.m. until 9:00 p.m. and it was funny because I was just taking a break and eating something in the kitchen when the phone sounded that we had a text message and I checked it and low and behold it was the news of my little nephew, so that was exciting!!!!! That night we stayed in Boise.

Saturday we worked from 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. - when I say work, I mean we are answering people's questions, helping them feel the spirit, entering comment cards into a spreadsheet or entering referrals into this, "Referral Manager" system that the church has.  It was great but for some reason I wasn't feeling well all day so I decided to stay in the Mission Office most of the day helping out with more administrative work.  After we finished at the Temple we drove to Nyssa, had dinner, then went to a birthday party where we met lots of non-members and it was great.  Then we drove to Vale and stayed the night there because we needed to be at Ward Council the next morning.  So, it seems like we hadn't been home since early Friday morning.  It was a long weekend!

Sunday, one of the Ward's held their Sacrament Primary Presentation which was cool and then we had Ward Council, then we were asked to participate in another Primary Presentation so that was cool too.  We had another Ward Council, then we saw Laurie and Duane and got to know their situation.  That was interesting.  Then we went to Nyssa to meet with a man named Art who is waiting for First Presidency approval to be baptized.  He is an awesome, nice, old Mexican man. Then we went and contacted a couple of our LDS referrals and two were home and they were less active girls about 22 years of age who needed help getting back to church.  It was so cool to see that they genuinely wanted to change their lives. So we had a good lesson with them. Then we travelled home and got to have a bite to eat for dinner then we went to see Patsy and found that she needed our help with a few issues.   We got home by 9:30 p.m.  Breath!  So needless to say not a lot of down time of late.  I know without a doubt the Lord is giving me strength beyond my own to keep my head straight.  I know I have so much I am trying to remember and not forget that sometimes I think my mind is going to explode.  But, I am so grateful that the Lord is on my side.  Anyway's, still the best news of the week is the arrival of Baby Rawiri!!!!!!  YAY! And yes,  I want a Chadderton ring please.  Sign me up!  

Well, family I love you all.  Take good care of my new nephew.  I have so much love for him already.  They are the cutest baby pictures in the whole world. I am going to try and save them to a USB and print some off. Hehe!  Love you all and thanks for all the emails.  Thanks Uncle Rick for the email and when I get home you will have to take me hunting to find a Red stag!   Sister Chadderton xoxo