BEST WEEK EVER

I just want everyone to know before I start telling about my week, that my family is the best family in the whole wide world. Thanks for making my birthday so special. It was by far the best birthday I've ever had and its all because of my family. I love you guys so much. Also Andy and Kenora were baptized....so everything was absolutely perfect.

So this week was my favorite week in the mission field. On Wednesday 33 new missionaries came into the mission and 14 of them were Sisters. Its amazing to see how the work is moving along. I love it. Also my zone finally got another set of sisters! Thank goodness!! The Elders are great but I'm really happy about having another set of sisters in my district. But it was also really sad to say goodbye to the people in my district and my zone that were being transferred or going home, we all got so close this past transfer. This past transfer has definitely been my favorite so far SO many good memories. So this past week we tried to see Andy and Kenora everyday before their baptism this past Sunday and everyday I got more and more excited for them. They are some of the best people I know and I've been so blessed to be able to teach them.

Also this past Wednesday I went to one of my favorite members homes and we're just having a good time eating dinner when all of a sudden they pull out a birthday cake and start singing to me! I was so shocked because I didn't tell anyone about my birthday but it honestly made me SO happy. Then on Thursday another member called us and wanted us over for lunch to celebrate my birthday.....by this time I asked Sister B. if she was telling everyone about my b-day and she just said no....so at this point I still have no idea how people know about my b-day coming up.

 Friday we were pretty busy teaching different lessons......which is great. Being busy in the mission field makes time fly by and I love teaching people. Also another lady in the ward who is less-active invited us over for lunch and she also made me a birthday cake! (Birthday Cake # 2!! Her and her husband also got me the prettiest necklace and she told me "Thank you for always coming over and bringing the spirit, you have soften my husbands heart so much and we will never forget you." Her husband is not a member and has never liked missionaries but he's warmed up to us :)  so it was just a really great day and then that night Andy and Kenora took us out to dinner which was so sweet of them.

Saturday the whole zone went down to SikSika to help with the flood but me and Sister B. had too many lessons that day so we just stayed in Calgary. Also Andy and Kenora had their baptism interview that day so we wanted to be there for them. Throughout the whole day I kept getting phone calls from members singing me happy birthday! It was so nice of them but again I was so confused how everyone knew about it. Also the Elders were so sweet and called and sang me happy birthday and then got me a spiderman balloon that said "Happy Birthday" in French hahaha that night when we went to a members house for dinner the first thing she did was give me a huge hug and said "This is from your mom." She then went on to tell me how my sweet momma had been in contact with people from the ward and how the whole ward was secretly planning all these birthday parties for me! Apparently it was all over the ward facebook page.....so thank you mom for being the best mom ever and contacting all these people who made my birthday so special. It was perfect. I also loved the birthday package that you sent me. She also made me a birthday cake with a little surprise in it...which definitely reminded me of home and all the birthday cakes I had when I was little. (birthday cake # 3!)

The next day Sunday was Andy and Kenoras baptism!! The whole day my heart was filled with love and gratitude. Their baptism was at 4 and everything was perfect. Over 60 people came for their baptism. The ward showed so much support, which I'm so grateful for. The whole thing was so special....one of the missionaries that first started teaching Andy and Kenora a year ago flew up from Utah to baptize Kenora and also the man that first introduced them to the church over a year ago was there as well. I gave a talk on the Holy Ghost....I'm not sure how much they got out of it because I was so emotional hahaha but the spirit was there and it was so strong. After the baptism Andy and Kenora came up to me and said "We feel so happy, we feel so good." I couldn't have asked for anything better.

Also that night the members the were feeding us dinner made me a birthday cake hahaha birthday cake #4!!.....I never need to eat cake again. 

Just to let you all know going on a mission is the best decision I've ever made. I'm so grateful to be out here. I'm so grateful to see people coming unto Christ. It makes me so happy.

I love you family. I hope you have a great week as well. Thanks for everything!

Love

Sister M.

A Canola field by Sarah's apartment 

Sarah's Zone on their last P-Day before transfers 

 Birthday Cake #1

Birthday Cake #2 

Birthday Cake #3 

Andy & Kenora's Baptism 

Birthday Cake #4 

"Lately I've been waking up at 5 am!...I have no idea why, but I've been loving it because I just sit on a big comfy chair in the living room and watch the sunrise as I read my scriptures. Heavenly Father has created such a beautiful world for us to live in."

So first thing first.....I'm staying in Chestermere! I'll be here for Andy and Kenora's baptism!! Its funny because when I first got here I told  myself how I did not want to be in this area for 6 months......it seemed like forever and if you remember I wasn't really loving my mission at the beginning. And then last night I was starting to get worried thinking I might be transferred, but I'm not! I love Chestermere and I'm glad I get to be here for 6 months, I feel like me and Sister B. still have a lot to do. So this past week we've spent a lot of time trying to find new people to teach and its been a struggle that's for sure. I feel like my patience has been lacking this past week, we came into contact with a lot of people who did not have anything nice to say to me and Sister B. and it just makes me so frustrated. These people do not know what they are missing out on. We were back in High River on Thursday helping with the flood and even though its one of the most disgusting things I have ever done, its been so rewarding. One of my favorite things is just talking to the people who lived in the home and trying to comfort them. I met this incredibly funny lady named Micky....she is this older lady who LOVES karaoke and she was super happy when she found out her karaoke machine was not damaged in the flood. We had a nice little visit and she was just so grateful for us coming to help her. We also went to a less-active couples home that night for a lesson and we had a lesson on prayer, and how God is always there. The lady got super emotional and told us how earlier that day she realized for the first time in a long time that God has been answering her prayers. I am so glad the spirit was there for that lesson. The next day we had a lesson with Andy and Kenora on the Word of Wisdom....when we started teaching them they interrupted and said how they were talking a few weeks ago and they both decided on their own to live the word of wisdom and they just forgot to mention it to us. They have SO much faith! Heavenly Father has been preparing them for such a long time and I feel so incredibly blessed to be teaching them. Every time I leave from teaching them a lesson my testimony is strengthened. Even when they don't fully understand something they just use their faith and apply it to their lives. Thats what everyone should do, in the scriptures it says "experiment upon my words." Heavenly Father wants us to just try it and live the commandments and He will then bless us. My bishopric called me Saturday night and asked me to give a talk. I used to be so nervous preparing talks and giving them but I think I'm getting over that fear pretty quickly. I spoke on how we need to center our lives on Christ, when we do that we find inner peace and hope. We also help those around us by being a good example. The best examples are those who are Christlike and behind every good example is an action. Are your actions representing Christ? We also went out to the reservation yesterday (SikSika) and helped clean out basements there because they were hit by the flood as well but haven't recieved a lot of help. We cleaned out 3 basements yesterday.....shoveling mud out, ripping off drywall, and ripping the studs out. I was soooo tired by the end of the day and it wasn't just physically tired but I was emotionally drained. I think I'm going to be tired for the next 13 months hahaha. Its good though, I wouldn't change a thing. So this week should be exciting! We're going to keep preparing Andy and Kenora and hopefully try and find some new people to teach. Byron and Corrina want to throw me and birthday bbq so I'm excited about that. Just so you are aware I told Byron and Corrina that they are more then welcome to come to Utah and stay with you guys :) and Andy and Kenora as well. I wish so badly that you can meet all the amazing people I'm meeting.

 

Also I forgot my camera today so I can't email you pictures. I was going to email you a picture of a canola field because they are BEAUTIFUL. I love driving out to Chestermere or Langdon and seeing all the pretty fields. So just google Canola Field in Alberta. They are lovely.

Canada is lovely. The people are lovely. Life is good.

 

I love you all SO much!! Never forget it.

 

Love

Sister M.

Hello friends and family!!

How is everyone back home doing?? I sure do miss all of you so much but sorry I LOVE my mission so much so you'll just have to wait like 13 more months hahaha anyways this week was CRAZY! We got the lovely chance of helping down in High River with the flooding. We put on our rubber boots and our masks but I don't think we had any idea what we were getting ourselves into. On Wednesday we helped with 2 houses, the first one wasn't too bad but the 2nd one was pretty bad. We walked down into a cold dark basement that was filled with water and started cleaning things out. We found lovely surprises of dead moldy mice and lots and lots of mud. The lady was so appreciative of us helping that it made everything worth it. It was a long day though, we left our apartment at 6:10 in the morning and didn't get back until 7 that night. The next day we got to do it again! But this time the house was way worse than the houses the day before. We went down into the basement and there was mud and water up to our knees. The water had acutally reached the ceiling of the basement at one point so all of the insulation had fallen out of the ceiling and the drywall was falling everywhere. I went into food storage and even with a mask on it was the worst thing I've ever smelt everything was moldy and disgusting. Also the sewer pipes broke so we weren't just swimming around in mud.......hahahahaha disgusting! But really soo gross. We got buckets and shovels and started cleaning things out. It took all day and we didn't get everything done. Again the people were so appreciative. Its been a really good thing for the missionaries, there's already been multiple stories I've heard of people saying they want to learn more about the church because of the nice people that helped them clean out their basements. It was such a humbling experience helping these people clean out their stuff and having to help them throw it all away. They had such great attitudes saying that there things were just things and that they were just grateful for their family. It makes your realize really what's important. The rest of the week I was so sore from helping hahaha but we taught some great lessons and Andy and Kenora got married on Sunday!!!!!!! BEST DAY EVER! They just had the bishop marry them but they really wanted me and Sister B. to be there for them. I was so happy to see them get married. Now they can get baptized! And long story short they're not getting baptized on the 14th anymore but on the 21st....I'm really hoping I don't get transferred and that I can be here for their baptism. They mean so much to me and have gotten so close to them. They pulled me aside on Sunday and said "Sister Martin you better be coming to our sealing in one year." OF COURSE!! Nothing would make me happier. The gospel blesses families sooooooooo much. Never forget that. This week we'll just continue teaching them and helping them prepare. We're also going back down to High River to help so that should be fun! It really is the most disgusting thing I've ever done but I had a smile on my face the whole time....well maybe not the whole time but 90% of it. Charity never faileth. Never forget that either. Also something that I've really learned this week is to just be yourself. We've all been blessed with talents and different abilities so use them! For the first part of my mission I was so hard on myself because I felt like I had to fit this "missionary mold" but then I just realized that was stupid and that I just needed to be me....or a better version of myself. This past week I had multiple people tell me thank you for being "real" and for not trying to be someone I'm not. It was such a tender mercy to hear that. So lesson learned...be yourself.

 

I hope you're all having a great week! I bet you're all jealous that you can't clean out muddy basements!

 

 

Love you all!!

 

Sister M.

Andy and Kenora's Wedding

Happy Canada Day

So yup I celebrated Canada day yesterday and it was great!.....kind of.....I wish we could have watched fireworks but they started too late and we had to go to bed. But this week has been so good! My investigators Andy and Kenora are doing great!! I love teaching them, they're just soaking in the scriptures right now which makes me so happy. They should be getting married this Sunday and baptized on the 14th!! If everything continues to go well. They're so sweet and it makes me so happy to see them making this life changing decision that will bless them so much. I'm just picturing their sweet family getting sealed in a year and it fills me with joy. I'm hoping I can go to the temple with them in a year. As well as Byron and Corrina. I've just grown to love these people so much I can't even describe it! We had interviews this past week and it's always nice to meet with President and let him know how everything is going. He's such a great person and he gave me a lot of great advice on how to be a better missionary.

Everything is going really good right now. Obviously I have my down days where I get super frustrated with myself or with people we're teaching because they're not progressing but then I think of all the blessings in my life, here on the mission and back home. I'm so blessed. How did I get so lucky?? I'm so blessed to have such an amazing family.

So its been superrrrr hot lately and then I think back home its probably 20 degrees hotter! I'm just better in the cold hahaha today I woke up and said I want snow! Who says that?? Apparently me....thank goodness there's snow here for 9 months of the year.

I also had to go to a meeting this past week with all the trainers which was great! Because sisters that came out with me are training and I LOVE them. Seriously I feel like I've known them for years even though we only spent 12 days together in the MTC. It just boosted me right up to see them all.

Me and Sister B. are doing great. We seriously have SO much fun together. I'm so grateful she puts up with all my strange quirks BUT she almost gave me a heart attack the other night. I woke up at and looked at the time and it was 1:45 in the morning and the fan in our room was going so it was super loud and dark but I looked out into our living room and saw someone walking around and I literally thought someone had broken into our apartment! I had never been so scared! I went to go wake up Sister B but she wasn't in bed so then I realized it was her! hahaha we were laughing for a little while and didn't get a good nights sleep....oh well. Thank goodness no one broke in though.

So on Sunday I sang "Oh Canada" loud and proud it was actually really fun. I love Canada. And then since Canada Day was on P-day we just did our normal things of grocery shopping, cleaning the apartment...etc...etc. But we did go to the church and play dodge ball with the Elders....which I'm AWFUL at. but it was fun and then I was walking out of the church and the Elders threw a huge bucket of water at me.....which turned into a huge water fight and it was really fun. and then some members invited us over for a bbq. I'm going to miss our 4th of July fun with the neighbors back home though. Tell everyone hi for me!!

I'm doing really bad at this email thing lately. People need to ask me more questions and then I'll have more to say......but I will say this. MY BIRTHDAY IS COMING UP AND I WANT BIRTHDAY LETTERS. ok I think I said that clear enough. thank you. thank you. I love you all and hope you have a great week!!

Love

Sister M.

 Chestermere Lake

Sister Estrada and Sister Martin 

Friends from the MTC 

Sarah got to see her old companion, Sister Sagers 

Celebrating Canada Day with a Maple Leaf Cake

Cleaning out basements in High River, Alberta from the flooding.