Totally “Fort Worth” It!

Pre-mission beauty!
Hermana Kelsey 17:2 -email-
Dearest family,
HOW ARE YOUUUU?! (said like Nacho Libre says to Ramses) I’m doing good here in  Denton. This week was good. We found a really cool new investigator this week. I’ll tell you more about him in a minute.
So this week on:
Monday: We had a pretty good p-day, but then the evening was kind of crazy. We ended up being late to dinner, because the elders were taking too long at Walmart. Then we were late leaving dinner, because we were late getting there. Then we were late to pick up our exchange, and when we finally got a hold of her, she had to go to the hospital because her dad was sick. So we ended up having a weird night, and we only taught one of our investigators. But anyway, I guess that is the life of a missionary. :/
Tuesday: We were tracting these mobile homes, and we went to knock on one of the doors. As we were standing there waiting for the person to answer the door I saw something unusual hanging from their roof. It was a huge banana spider!! It was porbably the size of a golf ball! And it wasn’t even as big as a normal banana spider. It was crazy. When the guy answered the door I asked him if he knew that it was there, and he said. He kept it there to eat the grasshoppers. Also Elder A. was on exchange with Elder T., who is from the Marshall Island, and we ate dinner with the P’s. Hermana P. gave us chili pequin which are like these super tiny, but very strong peppers. We dared Elder T. to eat one, so he did. It was like when I ate one all over again. He was asking for milk, and bread, and whatever else to try to calm the fire. Ha ha. It was so funny! But only because I have been there, and now I am on the other side, watching instead of suffering.
Wednesday: We had a super good district meeting about our studies. We rated our studies that we had had that morning on a scale of 1 to 10. I rated mine a 6. So my goal now is to get a higher number on the scale everyday in my personal studies. Sometimes, I just get to the point where I am loving it, and I don’t want to stop, and then my time is up. I can’t wait till after the mission when I will get to study what I want to study, and not what we have to study. 🙂
Thursday: We tried to help a member of the YSA ward here move stuff from her house, but it didn’t end up working out. We were disappointed because we LOVE service so much! But for reals! We also set 2 baptismal dates! They are with a couple named F. and B. They have 3 kids, two of them are named after themselves, and the youngest is named J. They are such a cute little family.
Friday: We had another sister, Sister M., with us for most of the day. Her companion Sister K., went to a meeting in H. (<3), and so she stayed with us. It was pretty fun. She is a really funny sister. She actually met me on my first morning her in Texas. And now she is going to be going home in like 4 1/2 weeks. :s Weird! I also got probably 30 mosquito bites on my legs. We had to teach a lesson to J. (our cool new investigator) outside, because we couldn’t go into his house, and we were out there for a while at the worst time of day (in the evening right before we are supposed to go home). 🙁
Saturday: Almost all of our plans we had set had to change, because we didn’t have enough miles to get ourselves to our appointments. But we had some emergency help and rides from some of the members, so it worked out okay, and we were able to get done what we needed to. We also taught J. again. He is super receptive, and he understands a lot of what we teach.
Sunday: J. came to church!!!!! It was amazing! That almost never happens. But he showed up and he met a lot of the members which was really cool. He loved sacrament meeting, and how people got up and shared their testimonies (because it was fast and testimony meeting). But something not so cool that happened was that in gospel principles, some of the recent converts were making some comments about other religions, and he didn’t like that very much. 🙁 We told him that the gospel, and the things we teach are perfect, but the members of the church are most certainly not perfect. That’s why we are all here, because we want to improve ourselves. He told us he still wants to learn, so that is good. 🙂
Mom: Wow, did you do anything fun in while you were in Vegas? I remember when I lived in St. George I took two little like day trips to Vegas, one with Julie and Jennifer and Amanda to check out the Planet Beach that was down there. We got to do some of the spa treatments and then we ate lunch at The Cheescake Factory. The other was just one Amanda and I decided to do. We went to the mall and “shopped” (I didn’t really have any money). It was pretty fun, but I don’t think I would want to have an extended stay there. Sister V. (my last comp) took a trip to Vegas like a few weeks before she entered teh MTC. But she didn’t do anything crazy. They actually went to the temple there! 🙂 Ha ha. Funny the difference between what some people do in Vegas and what others do in Vegas. 🙂
Woohoo! Congratulations, Mom! I’m glad you got yourself some new daycare kids. The Lord sure does bless us. 🙂 I’m glad you are getting more stuff going on with you job. 🙂
Mom, can we feed the missionaries when I come home?! Please please please!!! I want to be able to help the missioanries any way I can, because I know what they need, and that any little thing you can do helps a ton. 🙂
Dad: I’m glad you had fun at your convention thingy. I hope you learned lots of good stuff to help you be better at your job, and to have huge amounts of success! 🙂
That’s kind of funny that things have been dry there, because it has been super humid here. I feel like I’m going to have some adjusting to do when I get back home. It’s going to be cold and dry, instead of hot and humid.
Emmy: I wrote you a letter last p-day, so you should have gotten a letter from me as well. 🙂 But I will write back to you today.
Anyways, I love all of you lots! Tell Flexy not to get too trunky! 🙂
Love, Kelsey
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX

Howzit-Elder Flexy!

Alex and other Elders at an Orphanage in Swaziland.
Elder Flexy 24:4 -email-
Mama,
well this week has been great still working hard. i’m working on my zulu testimony its coming kancani kancani(little by little) and we are working hard i will be leaving with about ten people committed to baptism. but i wont get to see any of them bummer but thats ok some sow some reap. anyway not much to say i bought some suvouniers however you spell that word. anyway i’ll take care of the money don’t worry. anyway love you see you next week!!!!!
Love Elder Flexy
ps yes i will email you on monday!
Baba,
wow dad your gonna have a similar story of success as those you told me right. anyway keep up the good work dad. will see you next week.
Love Elder Flexy
M,
love you sis. miss you
Love Elder Flexy

Sunday Best!

          Challenges, difficulties, questions, doubts—these are part of our mortality. But we are not alone. As disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, we have enormous spiritual reservoirs of light and truth available to us. Fear and faith cannot coexist in our hearts at the same time. In our days of difficulty, we choose the road of faith. Jesus said, “Be not afraid, only believe” (Mark 5:36).

-Neil L. Andersen

Hope your Sunday was the Best! Love, Joy

Neo the Chicken, Bat, Tootsie!

This is Neo.

He is a cute litte “Min Pin”, short for Miniature Pinscher.

He belongs to my friend Julie. He came to stay at Aunt Joy’s for a week while his mommy went on vacation. When Julie first got Neo, he had his tail docked, but his ears were not cropped. He also has skinny legs, like a chicken. So for years Julie called him a “chicken (because of his legs), bat (because of the ears) dog”. Then he got older and chubby, like a little tootsie roll.

Now he is a “Chicken, Bat, Tootsie!”

One other funny (or not) thing about Neo is that he is a really stinky dog. When I say stinky, I mean gassy. I have never been around a dog like this. When you’re in the same room with him, all of a sudden, the stinkiest most rotten egg smell, enters the room. If you say his name, he gets a sheepish look on his face.

He really should be called, “Chicken, Bat, Tootsie, Stenchy!

The Train Whistle in the Closet.

For some time now, there has been a mysterious whistle sound coming from the closet in our office. Our office is also home to our scrapbooks and school boxes, the mementoes we’ve saved from the growing up years.

In the closet, in one of the boxes (I think) is a toy or something that makes a sound at random times. We would love to locate the sound and see what it is, but the sound is so random and so short, that by the time we race to the closet to hear where it is, it is done. Needless to say, it is still there and may be there until we go through the closet. For now, we just get a kick out of it.

Totally “Fort Worth” It!

Hermana Kelsey 17:1 -email-
Dear family,
How are all of you?!?! This week has been good. It seems to be going by even faster than usual. I honestly don’t know how that is even possible, but that’s the way it seems. Things are still good here in D. I turned 16 months in the mission on Saturday, and to celebrate Sister M. and I bought luchedor masks at the pulga (flea market)! They are pretty legit if I do say so myself! 🙂 🙂 We look like Nacho Libre only cooler! 🙂
Some things that happened this week:
Tuesday: We went to go see a kind of investigator in the hospital. She got walking pneumonia, so we decided to go visit her there. It wasn’t too bad. Normally I have troubles being in hospitals because I just feel sad and weird in there, but it was not so bad this time.
Wednesday: We taught this girl named E. the restoration of the gospel, and she was super cool. She told us she got chills when we said the First Vision. She is actually really involved in her church, but we are thinking her and her family are going to go places. We are super excited for them. We also met Elder K.’s new missionary. He is a native! His name is Elder A. He was born in Guadalajara, but he lives in Georgia. He’s pretty cool. They get along swimmingly, so that is good too.
Sunday: I climbed through a member’s window to unlock the door, because she accidentally locked herself out of her house. It was fun. It reminded me of the time we got locked out of our house, and I was super little, but I climbed through the window and unlocked the door for everyone else. I don’t know if you remember that, but I do. Ha ha. Good times! 🙂
Well, I guess it’s been kind of a boring week, so that is all I have to report.
Mom: Okay so first, WOW!!! Elder H. is going to Chicago!?! Wooo! That is so exciting. I don’t know how he had the self control to wait that long to open it though! Anway, tell him congratulations! He’ll love it. I’ll have to write him some letters and stuff after I get home. That is so awesome. That is also really cool that he read the Book of Mormon.
That is fun you went to a party with Janet. How did she like it? I miss relief society activities. We usually don’t get to go, because we don’t really have very many women investigators right now, and we only get to go if we have an investigator there.
Ha ha. That’s so funny that you did the tooth fairy again, because I remember getting a picture of you as the tooth fairy from last year and you said that it was the last year. 😛 Anyway, that is fun. I’m miss having Founder’s day. That is one my favorite holidays.
Dad: Ha ha. I love trips on a shoe string. 🙂 I bet that will be fun. I’m glad y’all enjoyed founder’s day. That was always one of the things I loved the most growing up. But anyway, I hope everything else is good. Sorry, I took to long writing to mom and now I am out of time almost (and I still have to write to president). :/ But be good, and continue working hard. You’re AWESOME! 🙂
Emmy: I am really going to write you a real letter today, because I still have a little bit of time left for p-day, just not on this computer.
Okay, well, I love you all lots! Do good things and be good people. Yo se que esta iglesia es verdadera! 🙂
besitos y abrazos,
Kelsey
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Howzit-Elder Flexy!

Elder Flexy 24:3 -email-

Mama,
Colin is going to Chicago!!!! YA BABY!!! wow wow wow that is so legit tell him congrats for me. things are happening holy cow and coming home in the middle of it all. this week has been great we are working hard…. i have to, so my mind doesn’t wander to… home… jk but ya when we are out working i’m super focused but at the boarding its tough. haha well i’m glad to hear all the news we just went to Ushaka Marine world it was super cool we saw sharks and turtles and lots of things like that it was super cool. well today i’m email in the same email shop i used my first pday on mission its kinda nice to remember its been a long time.well not much else to say time is almost up plus i’m a much better speaker than typer so that will be good. love you
Love Elder Flexy
Baba,
your going to vegas!! wow thats so cool. ya that’s too bad Bryce got hurt… well some people just don’t realize they are a old man… just like you with your lumber jacking!! haha jk ya i always brag to the other guys about how my dad is the best and that he is good at every sport. i probably shouldn’t but i do. anyway love you
Love Elder Flexy
M,
my little sister parties???? and she goes to the gym too???? wow my sis is growing up. so are these parties Halo parties or Heroscape parties?? hahahahahahahahaha jk wow thats so good to hear life is good here i’m finishing strong. love you sis
Love Elder Flexy

Sunday Best!

“To dig a straight furrow, the plowman needs to keep his eyes on a fixed point ahead of him.  That keeps him on a true course.  If, however, he happens to look back to see where he has been, his chances of straying are increased.  The results are crooked and irregular furrows. . . . Fix your attention on your . . . goal[s] and never look back on your earlier problems. . . . If our energies are focused not behind us but ahead of us—on eternal life and the joy of salvation—we assuredly will obtain it” (The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter, p. 66).
Hope your Sunday was the Best! Love, Joy

Two Cents: Why’s?

D. is six.

On a daily basis, D. asks me “Why” about this or that, many times through out the day.

I know he knows the answer most the time, because the things he asks about are obvious, or something we’ve talked about before.

One day D. kept asking “why?” I would say, “why do you think? Think about it.” Then he would give me the answer and I would say, “That’s right! I knew you knew it! Good job!”

I told him,

“Someday when you know the answers to all the ‘why’s’, then you’ll be ‘wise.'”

He just smiled.

Totally “Fort Worth” It!

Hermana Kelsey 16:4 -email-
Dearest family!
This has been a great week!!! We had been struggling for a while trying to find new investigators. We lost a lot of the people we had been teaching, and no one would sit down and have a lesson with us. But then we prayed and fasted a lot, and worked really hard, and the Lord blessed us with 8 new investigators, and we have set baptismal dates with 4 of them! Wooo! It’s been awesome. We are so thankful for the success we are seeing here, and that our labors are bringing forth good fruits.
So we got transfer calls today. Sister M. and I are staying here in D. together. Elder A., one of the missionaries serving in Denton with us, is getting transferred, and his companion Elder K., is going to be trainging a new missionary. Other than that I don’t really know what is going on with the rest of the zone. But I am excited, because I love when new missionaries come in. They are just so eager and willing to do whatever, even though they don’t really know what is going on. 🙂 Plus, you get to influence them for good in the beginning of their mission. I’m not gonna lie though, I’m a little bit jealous, because I kind of want to train, and now I won’t get to, because they have to train for two transfers now, and I only have two transfers left. 🙁 But I guess it’s not what the Lord wants.
Other than that things are just dandy here.
Monday: We had a p-day activity were we went bowling. I didn’t bowl, but it was still pretty fun. We got to spent time with all the other missionaries in our zone, which we don’t get to do very often. We usually only see them like once a week if that.
Tuesday: We talked to a lady named A., who goes to some Christian church, and she was telling us all these things about the rapture and some chips I guess they are going to start putting in to people (like in their hand or their forehead or something). Have you heard anything about that? I’ve never heard that before, but we don’t have any access to the outside world, so that’s not really surprising. Anyway, so she told us about all this stuff, and then as we were walking away, she yelled to us really loud, “Whatever you do, don’t take the chip!!” It was so funny. I’m not really sure why she felt like she needed to tell us that, but it was just funny that she yelled after us to let us know.
Wednesday: Nothing really to tell you.
Thursday: Sister M. and I went to court, because Sister M. got a speeding ticket at the beginning of last transfer. It was super long and boring. It was crazy the people that were there from all different walks of life, and they all had diffferent stories and different things going on in their lives. It made me miss people watching a little bit. We never have time to do that anymore, and sometimes I feel like I’m too busy to enjoy the small moments I used to. But the thing is as well, that the small moments I used to enjoy have now been replaced by other small moments that bring just as much joy. Like when someone prays for the first time, or when someone keeps their commitments. 🙂 Also, we found and taught 4 of our new investigators! One of them is a girl named E. We found her, because we actually had an appointment with her mom, but her mom was busy so we taught her instead. She is basically golden! And we set a bap. date with her for the 14th of July.
Friday: We had a ward party for Father’s day. It was pretty fun. It was cowboy themed and they had country music playing (which I wasn’t enjoying, but I heard :)), and it reminded me of my daddy, and it made me miss him. But then I was okay. I didn’t really get too sad or anything, I just realized how much I miss seeing my daddy, and hugging him, and that he is a really great guy! 🙂 I have seen a lot of examples of bad fathers on my mission, and I’m glad to say that none of them are anything like my dad. 🙂
Saturday: We found two of our investigators today as well. We are super stoked, because they are a family of 5 (well the parents and their 3 kids). I think only one of them is old enough to get baptized, but that’s what we are looking for now, is families. So we are exctied about that.
Sunday: E. came to church! We just met her this week! It was a miracle. She really liked it a lot. We also taught her later in the evening, and there was all kinds of crazy drama going on at her house, but she told us that she wants a better life for her and her son, and that she doesn’t want to be involved with all the bad stuff of the world.
Mom: Ha ha. Yeah, I’m totally okay with you going to Bear Lake without me. I am in no shape to be going anywhere in a swimsuit, so I’m glad I at least get like 6 months before siwmsuit season comes around again, so I can get myself in shape. 🙂
Ahhhh! Please write me a letter when you find out where Colin is going! Okay!?! 🙂 I’m soooo excited!
I’m glad you got to go the temple in Logan. Sister M. and I are going to see if we can go to the Dallas temple sometime this transfer. 🙂
That’s awesome that Kimi got married. 🙂 Tell her congratulations for me. Oh, weddings! Are you going to be a basket case at my wedding, Ma? Because I think I’m gonna be pretty chill, but then that means that someone else has to be the one freaking out. 🙂
To: Dad
Happy Father’s Day!!!!
(sorry, I forgot to write it last week, so this is late, but I thought about you a lot yesterday)
Everything is good here. I’m glad you get to go and open the trailer in Bear Lake. That sounds like it’ll be fun. I honestly only miss things like that when it is super hot outside, and we see people in the pool swimming, and it looks so refreshing and nice. But other than that I can still wait to do those things for another little while. Anyway, I just want to tell you how much I love you, and how much I appreciate the sacrifices you are making to help me be here as a missionary. You are an AWESOME dad! Take care and enjoy your week. 🙂
Emmysaurus Rex: Have fun at Bear Lake!!!!! Write me a letter int he car ride up!!  🙂 🙂 🙂 Love you!!!
Gotta go now! Be good!
Love, Kelsey XOxXOoXoXOxOXooXOxOXXoXO