week three:

Hola querida familia!!!!

Guess what?! It was an AWESOME week!! I can honestly say that I have really come to love it here now!! I am so happy.

Weather: It feels like california! mostly overcast but the sun usually comes out in the afternoons, and its always like 70. sooooo nice, it makes my heart happy. Sometimes I walk around outside and close my eyesd and pretend im at Newport beach, and it totally feels like it!!!! except the 98% humidity...no bueno. But its so green here and there are lots of cool plants and trees everywhere and i swear there are always birds. weird birds making bird sounds all day long. I feel like im in the jungle or something.

Comida!: OKAY. I actually LOVE the food here at the CCM! Its always some sort of chicken or meat with a differernt sauce. soooo good. and no beans, but RICE. Rice at all times and in all things and in all places. For EVERY MEAL. But dont worry, i stopped eating it hhaha. K but GUESS WHAT. they have this fruit here called a granadilla and if you guys saw what it looked like inside you would NOT BELEIVE that i EAT IT!!!!! You smash it on the table and bang it open and then the inside looks like dirty toenails covered in boogers. Or fish eggs or something. i was so afraid of it at first but now I eat one every meal! haha. Yall would be proud of me. :)

Miracle moment:

At church on sundays, they randomly pick 4 missionaries in sacrament meeting to go up and give a 2-3 minute talk in spanish. Guess who was called on this week??? haha yep! It was me, Hermana G. :)  They call 4 names and then right then and there without warning, you gotta go up and give a talk in spanish. I had prepared a few sentences just in case I had happened to get called on, so i had a little prepared which was good. So i walk up and i had already been balling so my eyes are all wet and i couldnt see anything so im like cleaning my glasses as i walked up ha!! SO I read the sentences I had prepared and read a scripture, but then I started thinking of other things I wanted to say. And let me tell you. I had one of the coolest experiences I have had here yet...I just felt the spirit with me so strong and I felt like I could just speak what i wanted to say, and I remembered the words that I needed and I wasnt even looking at anything written down!!! In a language that was soo foreifgn to me just 2 weeks before. I bore testimony of my love for the Savior. That we can live again with Him, with our Heavenly Father, and with our families. and that that is why I am here in Peru, to share this most comforting knowledge with His children here!!! I seriously cannot explain the power of the spirit that was with me in that moment, it was so so so cool. Apparently the gift of tongues is a real thing!!!

Funnies:

-Okay so I want you all to know how much I LOVE my companions. I seriosuly prayed so hard before i got here to be blessed with good companions and to learn from them and love them. And the Lord seriously made it happen for us! Hermana Haupt especially. Every day we find something new to lauigh about and I love it!!! We arehaving so much fun here!!! and Hermana Shumway is great too, she is literally the most caring and kindhearted girl i have ever met. She is more quiet and reserved but her heart is golden. Seriously...and youu guys thought i was spiritual...not compared to her!!!!! But anyway, our district is just a hoot. I really love themn soooooo much and we have allbecome so much closer and seriously the funniest things happen and me and mi hermanas just die laughing in our little corner of the classroom, its Hilarious.

-K so I fell off the bed one night. actually it happened twice but the 2nd time i was climbing up to the top biunk and it just so happened to be right as Hermana Gonzales was in the room (mission presidents wife) hahahah and I lost my balance and fell off backwards onto my feet and then onto my bum!! We were all dying laughing soooo hard!!! And hermana gonzales just look ed at me like i was CRAY CRAY. Im like I lost my balance!!!! Shes like *lost your balance?? you lost your MIND!!* hahahahaha she thinks im looney.

- Last night I played a prank on one of my maestras, hna. chacon. She is awesome. We went into another classroom to meet with her but before she came in, I snuck out the window!!!! hahahahaha Then when she came in i wasnt there and then she went loking for me in the other clasrrom... but i wasnt there either. So she comes back around aand I had climbed back in the window and I was just chillin in there. Shes like *WHAT.??* in her little spanish accent hahaha i thought it was so dang funny!!!

-K so today after the temple (which was GREAT), Mi y mi hermanas got to go on a special trip to the MALL with Hermana Gonzalez!!!! Long story short but Hna Haupt ripped her toenail off and so we had to find better shoes for her. So we all got to go out to the mall and it was so american and so fun!!! and afterwards for lunch..... BURGER KING!! hahahahha it was the best meal of my life, i never enjoyed an american hamburger so much. and they played a taylor swift song and a coldplay song in there, i loved it! haha!!! So it was a fun little girls day with sassy Hermana Gonzalez. (She kindof reminds me of Grandma Omi!!! hahahahaha shes so blunt. it was a way good time. We took a selfie with her at burger king, ill try to send it.)

Highlights:

Just feeling happier here in general and I love it and thank my Heavenly Father every day. There are still challenges but my faith is getting stronger and I am feeling the spirit so much so that makes everything worth it. I crave scripture stufy more than ever. Reading the Book of Mormon is strengthening my testimony of Christ more that it ever has, it is so so so amazing. I love feeling my testimony grow, especially about Jospeh Smith and the Book of Mormon. I am learning so much about the church and its really cool. I didnt realize there was so much more to understand.

-whenever we have extra time, a bunch of us go to the piano and just sing. We sing our favorite church songs. I KNOW it sounds SO cheesy missionary. But I kid you not, the spirit that I alwawys feel when we do that is sooo powerful. I can hardly think of a time when ive felt the spirit more clear or strong or powerful than when we sing together as misionaries. Especially the EFY medley song (As sisters in zion, we are as the armiy of helaman..) Ther eis a very real power in the room EVERY TIME. It is the coooest thing i have ever felt! I always used to feel the spirit during that song but now that we are actually here, actually real missionaries, set apart and called to go and do the Lords work and be his servants and to be sitting there together singing about it, oh my gosh it is soooo awesome. It  is so relatable to us now. *We are as the army of Helaman. We have been taught in our youth. And we will be the Lords missionaries to bring the world His truth.* aHHHHH I get chills every single time. I which I could explain the feeling or bring you all here to just feel that feeling just for a minute. so you know what i am talking about. It is seriously the coolest thing and I know Heavenly Father loves his misionaries, It makes me feel sooo special! So that is always a real highlight and maybe the best part of my week. Especailly on sundays when we have extra time. Everyone looks forward to it.

Well gang, thanks for tuning in. Ive reached my HALF WAY MARK at the CCM!!! Everyone said it would fly by, and at first i didnt beleive anyone who said that haha!! But now, it really is going by so so fast and its crazy to think ill be going out an teaching people in 3 short weeks. I pray for you all every day. Thanks for your love ,i feel so much strength from you and your prayers back home.

Fav quote from this week: *The tag doesnt make the missionary...its the Spirit inside that makes the missionary.*

Keep praying, keep beleiving. It will all be worth it in the end.

PRAYERS ARE ANSWERED!!! I know that.

love you guys! take it from me, The church is true!!! and its so so so important.

paz y amor

Hermana G. :)

me and my comps and sassy little Hermana gonzalez on our burger king outing!!! hahaha it was so hilarious. I really am happy and LOVE my compnaions. we are seriously ALWAYS laughing about something. Esp. Hermana Haupt!!! She is a good mix between Zoe and Romney. Shes awesome.

my cute district. love love love these girls and boys.