First Week In Colorado

Hey Yall!

I can't believe I have been in the field for A WEEK! It's so crazy! So much has happened since I got here! Mom, to answer some of your questions...We do see Dave and Liz everyday but mostly in passing. In the morning we see them alot because we eat breakfast in the kitchen and do our studies. They are so great! They have kids but they are all grown and out of the house. And one of their sons died on his mission! So sad! I think that's why they love housing the missionaries. They had a couple of Elder companionships before us. Last week we discovered that we all LOVE sushi...except Hermana Hill has never tried it...So they are going to take us next Saturday. But we usually dont eat with them. Our schedules are never the same. Although they did make us breakfast on saturday which was awesome!

We do all of our emailing at the Library. We are not allowed to use members computers. But the Library is only like 5 min. away so its all good. oh and I can print out emails so you can have people email me. But dont always email becasue it costs money to print things out and I dont want to do it too much. Oh and send mail and packages directly to mission office. They forward it on to us. They dont want family and friends to send directly to the memebers homes. And dont forget that packages you have to send first class or priorty mail or else I wont get it for like a month or untill next transfer or something.

We get fed by members EVERY night! I didnt know that they did that untill i got here. Man they feed us good! I am going to get so fat! The english speaking members feed us most the time and they always have amazing meals with desert...Its awesome...yet terrible....Im gonna be huge!..."why dont you go on a diet....because I like to eat is that such a crime!?"...story of my life right now. And when the spanish speaking families feed us its also pretty good, with the exception of some random things...like we had cooked cactus last night....no bueno. haha but the rest of the meal was good...however I was having a hard time eating because we had already gone to a dinner apointment...eaten ALOT...then went and visited the Chico family (cactus people) Who insisted that we eat!...So we said oh no no we already ate...but they INSISTED...so we said ok just a little please...and they bring a HUGE plate of meat (alot of meat!) , beans, rice, salsa, corn tortillas, and cactus...alot of cactus...We were SOO full after! And I felt like they would have been offended if we didnt finish. I still had a little cactus on my plate at the end but I could hold down no more. haha

Anyway we had an awesome week! We taught some really powerful lessons. I contributed alot more in the english lessons that the spanish ones...but hey, I try. I seem to undertand alittle bit more spanish each leasson so that is good. However I struggle speaking it ALOT! I am trying hard but its super frusterating! I wish I could be my normal self in spanish ya know..In spanish lessons I want to add my input or joke with them or share an experience but I cant put the words together. Ugh I cant even tell you how frustrating it is. However I pray all the time that I will beable to get the imortant things across and communicate enough that they know that I care for them. And I Think that is defilitely happening. So I cant complain. I just have to be patient and trust in the Lord! He always comes through!:)We had 4 investigators at church on sunday!!! Awesome right?! I know! haha Its was great....although I guess tecnically only 3 because one of them is an excomunicated member who we are teaching again, and they dont count them as an "investigator"...lame...he is totally investigating! And if...I mean WHEN he gets baptized again it dosnt count as a baptism for us...also lame...but hey its ok because Im not doing it for the numbers Im doing it because we care about him! And he knows its true so its only a matter of time.:) Im excited!

All of our investigators are so great! Alot of them have crazy hard lives! And I am amazed at their desire to live the gospel. Its incredible!

We also visit alot of less active members which I have found is SO imortant! We were visiting a less active woman in our ward named Julie. Julie had an extremely difficult upbringing. Her parents got devorced and her mom remarried and had a buch more kids with her new husband...and in their religeon they told her she was damed because she wasnt really a part of their family. Later in life her sister got into some hard drugs and ended up dying. Her ex-husband was abusive. And a few years ago she was struck by lightning and she still suffers from the effects of the lighting strike. It is hard for her to walk and she has tremmers. So as you can see she has a hard life. I have realized that even though she is a member of the church she needs our help and visits SO much. She is an incredible woman. I look at my life and realize I have NOTHING to complain about. I have been so incredibly blessed and I am sooo greatful. I know that is a HUGE part thanks to you Mom and Dad! Thankyou so much for rasing me in the gospel. For teaching me everything I know! I owe everything to you!...And utimately my father in Heaven! I thank him everyday for such an incredible family! I am blessed beyond belief! Serving a mission has allowed me to help and boost those people like Julie who need help or just need a friend! It is such a privilege!

Anyway Hermana Hill and I are having some good times out here. Betty Sutton, an older woman in our ward, had us for dinner and she took us out to this mexican resturant. Since my birthday is next monday they told them we were celebrating so they brought a huge sombraro out and sang to us and gave us icecream! It was so funny! I took pictures. Sister Sutton's husband passed away a few years ago and durring dinner she was telling us how the bishop wanted to set her up with someone. So she proceded to tell us...and i quote..."I cant get married again, I cant have sex again, I cant deal with that"....Hermana Hill and I just burst into laughter hahah Sister Sutton was already laughing. hahah we were like....uhhhhhhhh....ummmm...(Fat Amay quote) hahaha It was so awkward. Oh sister Sutton!

Then the next day we went to visit this spanish couple that lives in a trailer park that we had a referal for. We parked the car behind their triler...It was BRIGHT purple! Like a big bright purple trailer. And they saw us through their back window so we said hi. Come to find out they are not home but the people we are talking to are their house guests. We asked them if they wanted to her our message and they did...but hey felt uncomfortable inviting us into someone elses house....SOoo...we taught a whole first lesson through this tiny window! It was soo funny! We could barley her them because their trailor is by a busy streat. AND there was like a table of something infront of the wondow on the inside of the trailor so they were leaning over the table the whole time! hahah We laughed so hard when we got back in the car! But they were really listening! And that is a true testiment that the spirit is real because dispite all those things we could still feel the spirit! hahah good times good times!

Well I love you all! hope you have great week!

THE CHURCH IS TURE!

Love, Hermana England