Happy Thanksgiving

My Last view of Longmont!

I'm going to miss it!

Happy Thanksgiving week!

Hope you're all getting excited for Thanksgiving! It's such a great time of year to reflect on the blessings we have and give thanks for them. That is so awesome you guys are having the sisters over! :) Make sure they feel at home...and let them share a message with you! Hermana Cropper and I will be going to the Bench family's home for Thanksgiving. They are a really nice family in the ward so it should be really fun...and we're bringing pie:)

Man it really stinks in here...the Boulder Library computer section is so smelly! I think a lot of homeless people come here and watch youtube videos on the computers. A lot of people in Boulder find it unnecessary to shower themselves...such a nice combination of body odor and smoke..yummy.

Anyway, this week was basically the first week of winter here. It started snowing and temperatures have dropped! I got a coat at Nordstrom Rack but they didn't have my size so it's coming in the mail...hopefully it gets here soon but in the mean while this crazy lady we tracted into gave me this coat and poofy hat...I didn't want to take it but she insisted. She actually took the poofy hat and put it on my head for me....probably have head lice now but hey I guess I'm warm.

OH...we moved out of Donna's. We are moving in with the Terry's in the beginning of December so we thought we were staying at Donna's until then but another family volunteered to house us for about two weeks so we moved in with them. They live in a tiny apartment but they are out of town for a week so we have the place to ourselves for now. They don't have beds for us but we are sleeping on some big love sacs they have...I wake up stuck in the middle of it every morning (haha sister missionary tacos). It's great. It will be nice once we are in with the Terry's. They are empty nesters and have a spacious house. Not that I don't love sharing a bathroom with Donna or sleeping on love sacs :) (Donna is a great lady and we actually kind of miss living there) hahaha Hermana Cropper lived there for 3 1/2 months so she has some great memories. 

Anyway we had yet another great week! We had this woman named Eva that contancted us to meet with us but she has a crazy work schedule and could never do it. So we FINALLY got to meet with her this week and it was AMAZING! She actually sent us a text that said.."Mira hermana yo quiero ser bautisada tu que dises?"...We were like...ummm "CLARO QUE SI!!!" Anyway so we met with her twice this week and she is progressing amazingly! We set her with a baptismal date for Dec.14! The only problem is that with her work schedule she works on Sunday's alot. We prayed so hard for a miracle this week for her to get work off for Sunday and come to church...and guess who came to church!!! :) She couldn't stay for Relief Society but she came for Sacrament and Sunday School! The Lord is preparing people all around us to here the gospel! Just gotta find em!

Well that's it for this week. Thanks for all the love and support. Everybody have a fantastic Thanksgiving! Love you all!

Love, Hermana England  

PS. So sorry to hear about Chandler. I hope everyone is taking it okay and feeling the comfort of the Holy Ghost. Just like you said Dad I know Chandler has a work to do on the other side of the veil. We will all miss him. His family and friends are in my prayers.

PSS. Guess what I think we can skype for Christmas! :) And Davis said he could too right? We need to set this up so we can skype at the same time! I'm so excited to see you guys and talk to you! Christmas is going to be great!

PSSS . I think my camera is broken...I tried turning it on after it was in my bag when we were outside tracting for three hours. I thought is wasn't working because it was frozen or something but after we warmed it up it is still not working. I'll see what I can do to get it fixed.

Looking for a coat @ the mall...

I think I found the one I want! 

Our Love Sacs that we slept on and

a pic with the Hansons

We Are Going To Be Doing A Lot Of Tracting And Contacting

Me and my new companion...

Hermana Cropper!

Hello Fam,

Wow this week has been a strange one. It's weird how different each area is! Boulder is SOOO different from Longmont! Where to start, where to start...

Well my new companion's name is Hermana Cropper. She is super nice and came out with Hermana Snow so she is one transfer younger than me. So congratulations Hispanics of Boulder...you have to put up with our awesome Spanish skills. hahaha But she is awesome! She has only been with one companion in the field so far, her trainer. But she really wasn't trained at all. The first day we were together we were setting weekly goals and for total lessons taught she said...umm how about 4?....I was like, oh dear we got some work to do. But now that I am showing her how things really are, she is so willing to work. So it's going to be an awesome transfer.

Well when I arrived here on Tuesday I assumed we would sit down for a bit so Hermana Cropper could bring me up to speed on their investigators and everything. So I start asking her questions in the car ride to Boulder about who they are teaching and everything. And she's like...well we actually don't have any investigators. I thought she just meant they didn't have any investigators that are progressing or something so then I asked..okay well tell me about who you are teaching. And she says...well we're not really teaching anyone right now. So I was like...okay well have you guys been looking for people to teach? And she said...No my old companion didn't believe in tracting. Oh boy...so I was like...Okay well we have to find them so we are going to be doing alot of tracting and contacting! And she was like...Oh okay ya ya let's do it! haha So basically we started from scratch. So on Tuesday, our first day, Hermana Cropper took me to an apartment complex to contact a referal but she wasn''t home, so I was like...okay let's tract this whole apartment complex! Hermana Cropper looked at me like I was crazy...but agreed. We had 8 lessons that day. 7 of which were from tracting this apartment complex. Boo ya! Hermana Cropper couldn't believe it. haha So we continued to work hard the rest of the week and now we have 8 new investigators, one of which came to church, 5 less active families we are visiting, and TONS of potential investigators. It's going to be a tough road rebuilding the area (we only have one active family in the Spanish group) but we have a great start!

We reached 20 lessons (the standard of excellence) and they haven't reached that in this area in months and months! Anyway the investigator that came to church, his name is Ernesto and he is awesome! He requested missionaries to come to his house on mormon.org. And we are now teaching him. He will be baptized...just wait :) more dets to come about him.

Anyway we are living with a member of the church. Her name is Donna Downing. I don't even know how to describe the experience of living with Donna. It is truly undescribable...but I will try....Here it goes. First some background on Donna...Her husband passed away last year and she lives alone (other than us) and she has some super weird pictures of him all over the house...strange pictures...hilarous but so strange. She is pretty disabled. She has severe arthritis so one of her hands is really really small and she can't use it. And she also only has one leg. She lives in an electric wheel chair. She does wear a fake leg but she doesn't ever walk she just wheels. Her house has two bedrooms, one hers and one ours. We have bunk beds and our beds take up most of the room. We share an extrememly small bathroom with Donna which has no door...just an extemely thin curtain that is probably short enough to see the person when they sit on the toilet. And everyone in the little house can hear you when your in there...pretty much a no privacy zone in her house. She has one special needs son named Micheal who lives in a home but he stays at the house during the weekend. Micheal really likes to hug people...especailly sister missionaries. Oh and sorry if this is too much info but sometimes Donna with her disablities misses...the toilet...like poop smears on the seat...it's nice...usually we go to the rec center or a gas stantion to go to the bathroom before we go home. Taking a shower is just a treat. haha It's an experience. Oh and the funniest part is that Donna playes one of those second life computer games...Like Dwight on the office. She is on it all day! And she DJ's at one of their on line chatroom dance room thing every night from 7-9. She always says...oh my shift is starting. haha Its pretty hilarious...she gets mad if you call it a game...it's social networking. We are probably moving out soon. Good news is I will be able to take a shower without risking disease, bad news is we will have less entertaining Donna things to laugh at. She is hilarious. 

Well that's about it for this week. Hope everything is going well at home. You all sound super busy!...Not cool that you guys are going to Hawaii with out me....I told you all that you had to stay home this Christmas...so rude. haha Just kidding you guys will be brown and I will be pasty! Jealous!

OH and the dreadlock thing is so true...I've seen so many this week.

Te quiero mucho!

Love, Hermana England

Donna and me!

One of Donna's many cats

(None of which are real)

This one lives in front of the T.V. 

with the remotes...

Michael chattin it up!

And the whole family - I DO love how

happy they are!  

For the last P Day Activity in Longmont

Zone (best zone in the mission) We

had a sock/flour war. Such great times!

I miss Longmont so much! 

Last pic as companions :(

Saying Goodbye to Longmont

Hermana Snow and I enjoying our last

few days together! Man I'm going to miss

this girl!

Hermana Snow and I were always asked if

we were sister so natually we had to do a photo

shoot at the Twin Sisters Drive street sign!

I love her!  Mi Hermanita!

Pics with the Nelson's - we're going to

miss living with them! Dave and Liz are the best!

So sad handing over my key to them.

Liz made blankets for us...she is amazing!

Me with the Chico family. Probably my favorite

family in the Spanish group. I'm going to

miss them so much!

Last lesson with the Anguianos. Love them so much!

Kate (one of the twins) started bawling before

I left...so sad! Going to miss them!

Me with the Moreno girls

Last lesson and dinner with Bertina.  I have

grown to love her and her family so much!

She was the hardest gooddbye! I'm going to miss teaching

her but even more I'm going to miss learning from her!

Her faith is amazing. Before I left she said to me...

"You have come into my life and changed it! Now there

are more people out there like me who need to find

Jesus and learn this Gospel, so as much as 

we want to keep you here, we have to let you go

so you can find them." 

(Of course we were both bawling)

Bring It On

We found THE CUTEST vintage shop named Serendipity!

We went on P-Day and stayed for like two hours - 

They had so many vintage blow dryers

and brushes and hand mirrors!

Ahhh - I just wanted it all!  So much fun!

Hey yall,

So this last weekend was super hard. I found out I'm getting transferred :( I am heart broken. Literally my heart is aching.

When we found out on Saturday I was completely crushed! I don't know how I am going to leave my investigators and the ward here. I have grown to love all of them so much! So many things were going perfect! Just in our last meeting, Bertina said she feels ready to plan her baptism, and she asked if she and Larry could go to the court house to get married! Our investigator Arturo is getting baptized on the 30th of this month. Alejandro is making friends with everyone in the ward and is finally reading in the Book of Mormon! So many things have been happening that is making it so hard for me to leave! I was really struggling with this so I decided to fast yesterday for our investigators to continue to progress when I am gone, and also to feel peace in my heart about being transferred. It was amazing! The whole day was great. I had to say goodbye to the ward which I thought was going to rip my heart out, but it didn't. It was still hard but I felt this peace that everything was going to be okay. Even saying goodbye to the less actives and investigators we visited yesterday...I felt that peace. I know that Heavenly Father will care for his children here in Longmont. It still makes me sad to think that I won't be here to see everything happen, but I know it will be okay. The Lord will always do the best thing for us.

I was also thinking back to when I decided to go on a mission...I remember at church one week singing the song, "I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go." Those words have given me comfort the past few days...I came on this mission to do what the Lord wanted...not what I wanted. I told him that I would go where he wanted me to go. Even if it meant giving up a lot of things at home. Well this is exactly the same...except harder! haha This week I recommitted to the Lord that I will go where he wants me to go. I am no longer needed in Longmont and even though it literally breaks my heart to leave I know that I need to go. I know that the Lord will make sure that our investigators are taken care of. Even though I can't see why right now I know I am needed elsewhere and I feel peace in my heart about it.

So....as to where I am going...drum roll please...I will be going to Boulder Colorado! It's going to be interesting! Pretty much everyone at church yesterday asked where I would be going and these are some of the responses I got...6 people told me that two years ago Boulder Colorado was rated the least religious place in the US (Provo, UT being the most) Quite a few people asked me if I knew yoga and or could play the bongos. One lady told me that a general authority once said that if it weren't for the saints there that Boulder would be taken from the face of the earth (Don't know if I believe it...it's Sister Thompson...she's dramatic) and one person told me that if anyone with dreadlocks offers me anything to just say NO. Hahaha and you know what I say to all of that....Bring it on!!! If any of this stuff is true then all the more reason they need us there! I have so much faith that we can make Boulder Colorado the second least religious place in the US!...or better yet the MOST religious....watch out Cougs Boulder is takin over Provo! haha But really...one lady told me to not expect a lot there....and you know what. No. If the Lord is sending us missionaries there then there is obviously a work to be done. I will expect miracles! I have learned this transfer that miracles happen everyday! And a lot of the times the miracles depend on our faith...and dang it my faith is going to take Boulder by storm.....and I like dreadlocks. Maybe I'll dread my hair to fit in more...pictures to come!

Anyway other than that things are going amazing! Bertina like I said is talking really seriously about marriage with Larry...who I don't know if I told you but is definitely not her brother. hahah and She also quite drinking coffee!! One week off baby! I am amazed at her faith!...and she works in Boulder so let us all join in prayer that her work is in my area!! Arturo our investigator that is getting baptized this month came to an 8 year old baptism to see what it was like...he came in a little late and barely missed the baptism :( but he saw the confirmation and I really think he felt the spirit...even though he probably didn't understand what was going on because it was in English. haha Anyway things are great!

Like I said I am so sad to leave Longmont but I know the work here will continue! And know that I am leaving my first area I guess I am officially not a greeny...boo ya! 

Well that's all for this week. Hope everything is going great at home! Thanks for all the emails! Love hearing from all of you!

Love, Hermana England

Love all the vintage hair dryers!

Creepy little animal scarves....

pretty sure they are real little creatures!

Mexican twins book we found...

we crack ourselves up :)

Love this store! - So much fun stuff!

Vintage globe - "Where are you from?'

That's it!

Some day I am going to bring you back to this store!

Halloween!

Ward Halloween Party!

We were in charge of the

"Guess The Grewsomne Object" booth

It was a hit! 

candy corn- vampire teeth

sliced almonds - witches nails

spaghetti - guts

peeled grapes - eyeballs

ends of hot dogs - goblin toes

shriveled oranges - shrunken heads

 Brother Erickson was Captain Moroni

(He is awesome!  He kind of reminds me of Dalt)

Franz and Chelsey Anderson as Barbie and Ken!

(They won the costume contest - Love them!)

Jessie as an army man

Our neighbor two doors over has this observatory

thing in his yard with a huge telescope inside...

he had an observatory open house on Halloween night - 

so we went over and checked it out.  It was pretty

awesome and we finally learned his name because

before this we would just call him telescope man!

Hermana Mararita Taylor - She does our food calendar!

We love her so much!

 Sister Betty Sutton took us to Tres Margantas!

One of our crazy investigators has this HUGE

Santa Maria in front of her house...

I don't know why but we find it hilarious!

They are everywhere...so many lessons open with a

prayer to the Santa Maria...

Oh...bless them!

God Is A God Of Miracles

Our Pumpkins...

Faith, Repentance, Baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost

Hola mi familia!

Wow it was good to hear from you this week! I love reading your emails. It reminds me that I'm not in this alone. I have a whole team behind me! :) Thank you so much! I love you guys! I can't even believe this is the last week of the transfer! Ahh I hate transfers, they make me sooo nervous! I really hope I stay here in Longmont with Hermana Snow! Keep your fingers crossed! I would be heart broken if I had to leave my investigators here. I love them so much!

So there is a lot going on here. We just had stake conference where Elder Robert C. Gay was here by assignment! Him and Pres. and Sister Brown were at our stake conference. The whole adult session was only on missionary work!! It was amazing! The whole stake was a little chastised by Elder Gay...but in a good way! I hope the members take it seriously and get involved because we can't do it with out them! Seriously we can't do this with out the members! Anyway, we are also hearing from Elder Gay at a mission tour with him on Tuesday. That is basically a zone conference but more awesome because a general authority is there. I'm so excited! Elder Gay gave one of our Tuesday night devotionals when I was in the MTC so it was so cool to shake his hand and thank him for all the incredible inspiration he has given me in my mission. Man his words are powerful! I'm so excited for Tuesday!!! 

I'm glad you all had a good Halloween! I loved the pics you sent mom! :) Cute costumes everyone! Loved em all! bummed I didn't see one of dad as George Washington again...that was awesome! My Halloween was also so much fun! I'll send off some pics this week. We had to be in by 6, but Dave and Liz signed up for dinner so we ate with them and carved pumpkins :) Unfortunately Liz was out of town but it was fun with Dave...just wait to see how awesome our pumpkins are! :)

Man it is hard to hear about Chandler! I hope his family has been feeling the comfort from our prayers! I have been praying for Chandler and his family all week. I know that miracles are possible! We actually witnessed one this week! I'll tell you a little bit about it...So we have been continuing to meet with Bertina. She is progressing really well! We re-brought up chastity and she actually did understand when we first taught her! haha so we talked about her and Larry and she said they have been talking about marriage!! So anyway we planned our next meeting with her and for some reason we really felt like we needed to bring a member. Our next visit was on a Wednesday night and Rocio Nelson (a woman in the Spanish group) had previously told us that Wednesday nights were terrible for her...but we felt like we should ask her anyway so we did. Her response was so quick...she said Yes! That works out perfect!...Miracle already! So we brought Rocio to the lesson, planning to teach the word of wisdom. We got there and just started chatting with her. She seemed like she had been having a really hard week so we were just letting her talk and open up about it...She told us how a while ago she found a lump in her breast and It has been growing extremely rapidly. Bertina works in health care and she used to do hospice for this woman who was dying of cancer and she said her lump felt exactly the same as hers and grew just as rapidly. So she went in and got it checked out, the doctors said that they couldn't tell exactly what it was until they ran further tests but it did not look good. So her appointment to run the tests was the next day and she was extremely nervous. We asked her if she would like a priesthood blessing. Rocio was able to explain to her what a priesthood blessing is and how powerful they are. Rocio also explained that she had been through similar situations and the blessings and power of baptism and the holy ghost really helped her through it! It was so powerful! Bertina wanted the priesthood blessing so Rocio was able to call her husband and he was able to get there quickly with another member of the ward to give her a blessing. The blessing was simple and powerful! The room was filled with the spirit. Bertina had tears running down her face during the blessing. And after she said she had never felt that way before. Rocio and the men left and we had one last prayer with Bertina. Then we left...waiting to hear the news the next day. We got a text from Bertina the next day that said this..."Did my exam and everything is good! Thankyou! I know it was all the blessing from God and it was his hand over me at the time Thank you! Please let sister Rocio know."...We knew that a miracle had happened! The power of the priesthood is real. God is a God of miracles! Keep the faith! Chandler can do this!

I have been a witness of many miracles like this on my mission. With our investigator Mariana we were able to give her a priesthood blessing and allow her to feel the peace and truthfulness of the gospel. Mariana passed away. But through this she was able to feel of that power of God and her family is now receiving the fullness of the gospel! Bertina was healed and she is now receiving the fullness of the gospel. Both are miracles. One may be harder than the other but they are both Miracles! If there is one thing I have learned on my mission it is that the will of God doesn't always make sense to us, but it is always the right way. Have faith. Miracles will happen. We have the infinite power of the Atonement available to us. And with that we can align our will with the Fathers. Bodies can be healed and hearts can be healed. Have faith. With God everything is possible!

My prayers will continue to be with them. And everyone else at home who is going through a hard time. Just remember that simple message of our Savior Jesus Christ. I love that quote from Elder Holland that says..."Some blessings come soon, some come late, and some don't come till Heaven, but for those who embrace the gospel of Jesus Christ they come."

I love you all so much! Mom, Dad, sibs, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends...all of you. I am so grateful for you! I feel your love!

Love, Hermana England

Having fun with stuff from Hermana Snow's

Halloween package...

(pretty sure the sign doesn't make gramatical

sense..."Baptized Sir" - haha)

More pics of our awesome pumpkins

Faith, Repentance, Baptism, 

The Gift of The Holy Ghost and Endure to the End!