February 27, 2012

Hello everyone!

It was soo great to talk to my family on Tuesday from the airport, i'm so sorry it couldn't be longer. I wish I could have talked for hours. I will be able to get emails and read them from you all every week so keep me updated on everything back at home. I also have an address you can write me at and post on my blog. It's 2209 Lake cove way Seabrook, Texas 77586. We live with a member family and they are sooo great! I love them already. They have a huge house and we live in a gated community right across the street from a bay. We also live about 2 minutes from the beach! It's awesome. The sad thing about our area is that I have been in some of the most poverty-ish houses I've ever been in, and I've also been in the nicest houses. I can't believe how diverse it is here. Our ward area covers about 40 minutes. We drive most of the time, but this next week we will be taking our bikes out too. By the way dad, EVERYONE in the mission was sooo jealous of my bike when I got it! Haha they love it! So thank you sooo much! Also mom thank you for the Camera! I forgot to tell you over the phone how much I love it! :)

I'm SOOOOO excited for Kailey and her team! Keep me updated on everything.

Also tell Debbie thank you so much for her emails! I need her address so I can write her back! She is an amazing lady and I look up to her so much.

I'll start off with the airplane ride. I ended up sitting right by a evangelical guy that was HUGE and had a moustache. We talked for the first 1.5 hours about just life and his fam and then I knew I had to bring up the gospel when he talked about how rough his sons life is right now and how he wants to get it straightend out for him. So we talked for the next 1.5 hours about our beliefs. His wife and daughters are members and he has taken lessons from the missionaries but he doesn't agree with some things. I hope our discussion will help. He seemed to listen to what I had to say!

The first day I was here in the field we went over to a less active families house and they have 4 young kids under the age of 12. I thought of mom when I was sitting there because these cute little mexican kids wanted so badly to watch the church videos we had to show them and to learn more about Jesus. Even the 3 year old. The parents don't come to church but we told them to come yesterday.... they ended up not coming, but the kids wanted to so badly that they brought them and they sat by us. Kids have a great influence on families and they can set the example! I thought that was neat! I wish mom would come down here to help us teach the kids!

We have 6 people with baptism dates for March! The work is really progressing here! I extended my first baptismal invitation on Thursday and Jose accepted... on his conditions of needing to learn more. He is 17 years old and is super smart! He has questions that I didn't even have till like a year ago! haha I just hope he isn't researching our church online at anti sites. We tried giving him the mormon.org website so he can look stuff up there Oh! And this man named Jody is getting baptized on Saturday. His daughters and wife got baptized last October and when the missionaries started going over there he would just sit in the corner and never participate, but now his faith is growing lots! It's so hard for him to commit to pay tithing because he doesn't have a job and is low on money, but we promised him the Lords blessings if he commits. I told him to fast and pray about it and he would get his answer. He said he is really on the fence about it but he accepted my invitation.

Oh! My trainers name is Sister Atterton. She is from Pleasant Grove! She is awesome and is really patient and loving. I got lucky to have a great companion to train me. I definetly feel overwhelmed with all that I am trying to learn and teach, but she understands! It's hard staying side by side with someone 24/7 literally. The only time we aren't together is when we are going to the bathroom. haha So I use the bathroom lots... ;)

The members here feed us every night, and to be honest it's not like I thought (yet) I don't get overfed which is great! So I'm not getting fat. We workout every morning for 30 minutes and I use that time wisely. The Chamberlins (the members we live with) have an elyptical so I use that and then do abs and squats. Bro. Chamberlin is a ER doctor and he is a surgeon general (I think) for NASA. NASA is right by us too so next monday we get to go tour there. We all had to get background checks done. haha

The members in the ward are really nice and I didn't realize how much they move the missionary work onward. We try to get a member to go with us to every investigator appointment so that they can have a friend to talk to at church. It's nice to have an extra person there with us too to help us teach and answer questions. We usually have 3-4 appointments a day and when we aren't teaching we go OYM (open your mouth) to people around town. That is how we find people to teach. We don't really knock doors here. Also we go visit less actives or recent converts pretty often.

Sorry this email is so scattered I'm trying so share everything I can!

Oh so this one day this week we went to a really sketchy neighborhood where there were all these drunk people and I was so scared. They were yelling and me and my comp. and saying "come over here, we all need the lords word." We both just walked away very quickly because we didn't have a good feeling about it. Oh man I am not going to lie, I get soo scared here at night because we are never in the nice parts of the area at night. We always end up in the ghetto. And I think I am more scared becaues EVERY SINGLE TIME we leave a members house, or an investigators, we are told... Now you sisters be really careful out there. It's not safe. :/ So keep us in your prayers. I just hope I don't go to Downtown houston cause that is worse I hear.

I miss you all lots, especially at nights. I hope all is going well and I hope you all had fun with all the birthdays this month! I think of you often and pray for you daily! Keep me updated on everything!

I LOVE YOU!!!!!

Erianne