Semana 48!!!

Another week!! and let me tell you a GREAT week!!!

We were at Thalis house a lot this week re teaching her all the lessons and man she is so excited. Everyday she counts down önly 8 more days, only 7 more days!!" its the cutest thing! She's got her baptism all planned out and I have NEVER seen someone so ready to be baptized. She knows this is going to change her life and we sure do too.

We also threw Olmarilis a surprise birthday party after one of Thalis lessons!! Olma is the Young Womens President and she was SO surprised!!! 

The jovenes and us went to a school for a service project and we painted a library!! it was alot of work and was a huge library but it was super fun do have the youth from the church involved!! 

Also there is a HUGE festival going on here in Aibonito called the Festical of the Flowers!! So we have had so so so many people here in our little town and we aren't use to it!! Its really fun though!! Puerto Ricans ALWAYS want to know why the two little blonde girls are on the island! So usually, the vendors will call us over to their booths, we talk to them for a bit, and usually they give us something from their booth to eat! Its so fun and we have been able to meet SO many people!!!

Love you all and i hope you have a GREAT 4th of JULY!!!! 

Limes

Festival of flowers

Life of the party 

Tan line keep getting better

Olma Surprise 

Cake

Painting the library

Puerto Rico

Painting the library with the youth

Semana 47!!!

HOLY COW THIS WEEK WAS CRAZY AND FULL OF MIRACLES!

Monday night we met up with thali, and she asked us about baptism! It was such a cool experience that we could testify to her about baptism and we told her to pray about a date and she came to mutual on Wednesday and told us that the 7th of July she will be getting baptized!!! So we will be over there alot this week re going over all the lessons with her cause its been a minute!!!! We are so excited for her!!!

Tuesday we went to our appointment with Anangeli and told her we were going to start from the beginning! So we taught her L1 and it was super awesome! The spirit was so strong! She promised to read and pray about the book of Mormon! We left and I got into the car and Hermana Schaerrer was backing me from outside the car (missionary rule) and she comes to get in the car and has a weird look on her face... and says... "Hermana i think we killed Anangelis daughters bunny..." and i was like WHAT!!! and turns out it was sleeping under the tire when we backed up and no one saw it... so we ran it over with the car by accident. We parked the car and ran back up and anageli heard us and came out and we hermana schaerrer yells " "WE KILLED YOUR BUNNY" she looked at the poor little thing smashed on the drive way and stared laughing uncontrollably. Apparently she hated that bunny and it was sick and needed to die. But, she didn't want her daughter to know so we put it in a garbage bag, put it in the back of our car and took it home to bury it behind our house. But don't worry, we have another appointment with Anangeli tomorrow and he daughter thinks that her bunny ran away!

So that was the crazy story for the week, we felt so bad the whole week but it was an accident and everyone knows that!! 

but yeah the work here is picking up and I love every single minute aibonito has the most special place in my heart!!! 

love you all have a great week!!

Dead bunny :(

District

Courtney and Shaerrer

Mutual

Semana 46!!!

Well this week was a crazy one!! 

On tuesday we went on a wild goose chase trying to find this ladys (named Dayanara) house to give her the book of mormon that she requested!!! It was way way way in the boonies and all we had was a MAILBOX number.... but we didnt give up! We knew we were in the right area, we just could NOT find the house... so we got out and walked.  We tried to call her but didnt have any signal so we continued to walk up a huge hill, and we got service!1 and called her! We started to explain where we were and she was like... "why can  hear you so well??"and all of a sudden we heard "HOLA!!!"we had literally walked right up to the back of her house! it was a miracle!! We gave her the book of mormon and shared the restoration with her, she listened so intently and it was a really big miracle.  She commited to read it and we will be going back this week to follow up! It was really cool because she's a single mom of 3 kids, one has autism, and we were able to promise that she wouldn't feel so alone all the time!! 

On wednesday we had mutual and it was super fun! Thali, the daughter of the part member family that just got married came up to me and said she wants to meet with us and talk about baptism and what she should do to prepare!!! she initally was waiting to get babtized with her mom but she now is going to do it and set the example!! Shes so excited and so are we!!!! We have an appointment with her tonight! 

On Thursday we were on exchanges, I was with Hermana Cantu and we went to visit Anangeli to ask her straight up is these lessons and gospel is something she wants!! So we bore out testimonies and told her how this would bless her life and she was like Ïve been separated from God for the past few months and im done, i know i need to do my part!!! so yes, lets do this!" So we will be working with anangeli alot more too!!! 

On friday we visited a less active couple and invited them to come to church! We have done this a million times with them and they always say theyll come but never do.... BUT on sunday they showed up!!! it was the cherry on top of a great week!!! We also had a big fathers day lunch after and it was awesome!!

Hope you all had a great fathers day and week! and have a great week this week!

heres pictures of the father day lunch, us and the special man that llives by us, and a bunch of puertorican food:)

Our Household

Food

More Food

And more Food!!!

Semana 45!!!

Another great week!!! This week we had an Hermanas Conference with all the Hermanas on the island!! it was so so so fun to see everyone!! the topic was GRACE and holy cow I did not understand grace before!! There were so many wonderful talks about how we need to use the grace of christ more fully! Yes we need to do our best, but what we cant do HE will make up the rest! Also he has already paid for our sins and sadness and everything!!! we just have to LET HIM!!!! His grace is sufficient to help us through everything, he doesnt just help us at the end when we have already done everything we can but he HELPS US THROUGH! 

A quote i really loved from Brad Wilcox about grace is:

The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can live after we die but that we can live more abundantly (see John 10:10). The miracle of the Atonement is not just that we can be cleansed and consoled but that we can be transformed (see Romans 8). Scriptures make it clear that no unclean thing can dwell with God (see Alma 40:26), but no unchanged thing will even want to.

I invite you all to use the Atonement of jesus christ and his grace more fully this week and LET him help you!!!  

if anyone is interested in the talk by brad wilcox, his grace is sufficient, here is the link!! :

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2013/09/his-grace-is-sufficient?lang=eng

Sister Smart with Hermana's at Confernce

Courtney and Hermana's

Cake, Cake,Cake :)

Painting :)

Semana 44!!!

Wow another week!! Well good news my head is healing super super well! This week was full of contacting and trying to find people to teach! Carlos is still progressing really well and is on track to be baptized the 29th of june! We are excited for him and are hoping he continues to progress!!

I don't have alot of time but I love you all and thanks for the support!! have a great week!

Remember you always have at least ONE person on your side and thats the savior!!:)

My Head

Food

Hermana Shaerrer

Semana 43!!! Aibionito

So this week was so amazing!!! the part member family that we have been working with got married!!! We are so so so happy for them and we are now going to start working towards a baptismal date with them!! 

Story time!! so... we were at the reception eating and waiting for them to cut the cake, I literally could not wait to eat some cake! I don't even know why... but I couldn't!! They finally announced that they were going to cut the cake! We all got up and went to the dance floor where they were cutting the cake, while they were cutting the cake I twirled into my companion and went for a dip... but ended up tripping and falling into the cement pillar that was in the center fo the room to keep the ceiling up... I smacked my head right on the corner of that cement pillar... got up and played it off like it was nothing! Soon after I was for sure I had a huge goose egg or something so I went to feel it and just felt blood! I split my head open and didnt even know it!! hahah, we played it off and when we got home cleaned it up and braided a tiny cornrow to pull the skin together!!! Lol, so thats the funny story for this week.  The couple who got married brought us cake last night since i didn't get to eat cake at the wedding!! 

But they're married and all is well!!

We also taught some cool lessons this week and this guy named carlos who we have been teaching is on date to be baptized june 22nd!! we are super excited for him! 

That is all I can think of!! Have a great week!

OH AND Hermana Schaerrer and I will be staying here in Aibonito another transfer!!!:)

Happy Wedding Day

Wedding Day

Wedding Love

Wedding party

Ouch

Aibionito little girl

Mutual Activity

Companion learning

Semana 42!!! Aibonito

This week was a great one!  My companion is still adjusting to the mission life and she had a tough couple of days but shes adjusting! but! we did have quite a few experiences, we were heading to an appointment, and when we got there they cancelled, so we started to walk around and saw this lady on her porch, we walked up and asked if we could sing her a song,  we sang and then taught her the restoration and she just LISTENED the whole time and after she was like "entonces este libro es equal a la biblia?!" (so this book is just like the bible?!) and we were like YES!!! and then she held it up to her chest and said "this is precious to me becuase its something I didn't know before!!!!" it was an awesome experience! Then we tried to set up an appointment for 3 days later and she said no that she wanted more time to actually read it!! 

I will never get tired of this work, seeing peoples life change when they find out about the restoration of the church of jesus christ on the earth is PRICELESS!!! 

Then yesterday we were heading to visit a reference, we called at his house a couple times, and no one was home.... we still had a couple of hours before it was time to go home so we were thinking about what to do, and we didn't feel like we should leave, so we kept walking up the street and hit a T in the road, we looked to the left and there was a HUGE dog... so of course we turned to the right, we came up to this beautiful house with the MOST beautiful garden ever!!! And I saw this lady working in her garden, we walked over and all i said was "HOLA!! su casa es muy bonital!!!" (hey! your house is really pretty!!") and she said "entren!!!" (enter) so we entered and she showed us around her house and we got to know her, and turns out her closest son just died this last january and her husband works late nights at the bakery, and she has been super lonely. And last night while working in the garden she said a prayer to God saying "please help me and don't let me pass another night lonely"  And then 1 minute later we walked up around the corner and called for her to come over!  We shared part of the plan of salvation with her and told her how she doesnt need to be sad about her son, because she will see him again!! She was so so happy and loved the message and told us we had to come back!! It was a sweet miracle for her and for us and i know we were put there in that exact moment to help her!!! 

Also one of the people we are teaching mixed up a sweet pepper with one of the hottest peppers grown here in PR and gave it to me:) Luckily I like spicy food... but it was literally the most spicy thing I have ever ate in my life... but I'm alive and well and HAPPY!!! 

Love you all talk to you next week!!!

Waterfall hike

District hike

Even in a cave :)

Our investigator 

Puerto Rico Food!!