The good, the great and the UGLY

what up bakersfield????? is it hot yet cause its still hot here. i dont really know how hot, everyday is starting to feel the same just hot. but lifes good, im a missionary how can i complain. i cant believe that Zack is home it feels like he just left. its definitely true about what he said about the mission helping you grow up. i can already tell that i have changed so much. i cant really describe the transition i went through but the Spirit. i have never felt it so stong in my life. im glad i get to have this feeling for the rest of my mission and the rest of my life. i cant wait til Blake and Kyle and Brock get to have this experience. how are their papers going? have we started the guessing game yet? cause my guess is theyre all coming to Paraguay. That would be sick!!!! but highly unlikely. that a bummer Logans sick is he done with basketball yet? Creo que si. let me know how the season went logan. how many slamma jammas you get? speaking of tomahawk jams that game must have been sick. the only thing i really miss watching is Basketball games. more specifically Lakers and of course the year i cant watch theyre going to win the ship. what ever. just tivo it for me dad, k thanks. and thanks again for the updates. like Half the zone are laker fans and every tuesday before zone meeting we have a little laker fan meeting and i fill everyone in on the latest Kobe domination. Well another week flew by again. i cant believe how fast everythings going. im almost done with my 2nd change. (Febuary 26 is changes) and im pretty sure that im going to be receiving a new companion. ill probably still be in the same area and he will leave. but i dont think im ready to go anyways so estoy tranquilo. big events that happened this week were... oh one is the mother of Chistofer (he is 9 years old) finally agreed to let him get baptized. -GOOD- it has been a struggle, she was baptized almost 15 years ago but only comes to church about once every couple years. we have been visting them for a solid month now and have never really made any progress. But christofer keeps wanting to come to church so we keep teaching him. But there was always a barrier in our teaching cause they dont really understand Spanish. the kids all speak Guarani and understand a little spanish, the mom can get by with her spanish but perfers Guarani. So we werent really having the greatest lessons with them. But as time went on and we simplified our lessons (a lot!!) we could tell that they were becoming more and more open to us. and one day my comp started talking to Christofer in Jopara and asked him, well more told him that it was his turn to get baptized and he excitedly agreed. so this Saturday we will be having a baptism for Christofer Troche. GREAT!!!the first one for this area in over 6 months, and it will also be my first baptism in Paraguay. and 2nd ever, after my favorite little sister Melanie. Other big news we had 8, yes 8!! investigators in church this week. mission high for me. one of which was Carlos who is the one with the bad leg and he is also getting baptized next week. im way stoked for him. i can really tell that he is gaining a testimony. its such an awesome experience to be able to be apart of these peoples lives and see their transformations into better people. i love being in paraguay and i love being a missionary. PS my comp has this rash called Fuego de San Antonio on his back that started as a little pimple that has now spread into three big quarter size warts so we went to the doctor who said that it is going to spread to his stomach and then the rest of his body. but it just itches really bad and it will go away in about a 3 weeks. ha i feel really bad for him. i really hope its not contagious. i really really hope its not contagious. please pray for him and also pray that its not contagious UGLY

Last Sunday my two sweet boys finished their Eagles. I should say my three boys because Marc worked harder than the boys. It was a great evening and I am happy that I will never have to nag them again about their Eagle. I know they will appreciate having earned it down the road but Mason threatened me with DEATH if I posted it in the school newspaper. I guess being a boy scout isn't the "cool" thing to do. I am grateful they do things even if they are just being obedient. I decided an Eagle Scout rank is worth the fight. I am however giving up on forcing him to go to Church Prom. That one isn't worth the fight.
Missionary Mail is coming tommorrow. That way I will have two posts in one week.

The Church is true and the Book is blue.

Hey, Hey, Hey!!! whats going on. well im still in Paraguay and life is...feliz. OH also i received my first real letter today. well theyre all real letters but i got my real stamped letter today from Grandma and Grandpa. i was really excited it sounds like they are doing really great. ill try to get a letter off to them sometime soon. i just dont have a ton of time. but tell them thanks a ton and i love them. or just sent them this letter.
well im toasting like a bacon cheese out here. (name that movie mason or logan) the heat is incredible. i have never sweat ed so much in my life, and Urmstons know how to sweat. but it should rain again in the next couple of days and that will cool it down. last friday it rained all day it was awesome. the streets were like rivers and my comp and i went on the roof and played for a little bit. we counted it as companion study, but after we saw the lighting for the third time we bounced out right quick. um also the lady that owned the store below us passed away. that was kinda sad she was really nice and always had the kinda of soda i like. they took everything out of the store and and had a little funeral for her. it lasted like a day and a half. they didnt sleep they all just sat there and talked and ate.there were probably about 500 people that came thought to give their condolences (i think thats what it is called ¿si o no?) and more then have spoke portuguese so that was fun to hear. i think im going to learn that after spanish and guarani. but anyways the whole thing was actually a pretty pleasant event. We also went to a wedding this week. it was of the daughter of a member. it was really really small, but they were way happy. the reason they got married was the daughter was living with the man for a while and was embarrassed about coming back to church because well the werent married. but she is going to start going to church again and so is her husband and now were teaching him the lesson and then he is going to get baptized. how awesome is that. im way pumped for them. but i think my favorite thing that happened this week was Carlos came to church. Gimpy leg and all. i dont know if i told you about him yet. So i will... he is 15 years old. and he was living with his dad in some small city out side of Encarnacion. but about three months ago he got in a moto accident and broke his leg in 3 parts. it was pretty bad. so he moved here, to Cuidad del Este. cause we have a better medical care (well its not really better its just that we have it) and mostly cause his mom lives here and she is taking care of him while he is recovering. she is a member and her new husband is also a member. they are both solid and help so much in the lessons normally we just bring the pamplets and they teach the lessons its awesome. all we have to do is bear our testimonies and thats like my favorite thing to do in the whole wide world so BONUS. so all he needed to do is hobble to church one more time and then hobble into the baptismal font. He is way excited and really likes hanging out with the young men and the young women in the branch. mostly the young women but what never works for him. A wise man by the name of Jesse Orullian once told me long ago, the best way to get someone to church is flirt to convert. well i gotta go eat my weight at Godfathers Pizza right now. (mason bet you dont know that one) well actually its Pizza Hut but its still all you can eat pizza for 5 bucks so im not complaining. ps thank you nicole for your letters i miss you like crazy and your talia stories crack me up. i sent you a letter in the package home. love you keep me updated on the latest Talia quotes and the movements of Tristan. ps otro vez. thanks chelsea for the dear elders i sent you a letter a while ago i hope you got it let me know. also tell blake if i dont get a letter with in the next 2 weeks i wont ever scream at people pumping their gas at 7-11 ever again. haha that was so fun. love you. mason i told you happy birthday in the letter i sent home but just realized that you not going to get it for a while so happy birthday and one of the jerseys are for you and the others are for whoever they fit. k peace homie. hope the ankles better pssssss if any one else wants to write me please do i love getting letters and i would love to hear from you.

To feel the Holy Spirit, to listen and to pray

I was wandering through blogland and came upon these pictures. I was overcome with emotion and knew I needed to share my feelings?(Mostly so I will remember how I feel right now.)
In Jordan's letter last week he said they were leaving his black market town at 1 in the morning to travel to the Asuncion Temple. He was so excited about this opportunity. I was filled with gratitude that he understands the importance of attending the temple. While he was in the MTC his favorite part of Pday was walking over to the Provo Temple with his district. It made my heart sing and even do some flip flops when he shared that with me. As a mother I have always tried to express how much I love the Temple and the bessings that come through temple attendance. When that love is shared by your children, it is truly one of the sweetest joys I have ever known.
Yesterday I was able to go to the temple in Fresno. It brought back tender memories of going with Courtney last month. I pulled my temple dress out and pinned to it still, was a little lavendar escort label. I felt grateful all over again for the journey that Courtney took that led her to a temple marriage. I am grateful for the joys that come as I mother my children and know that I need to cherish the joys more and let the other "stuff" just float by. I have wonderful children and I don't tell them often enough how proud of them I am of their good choices. I am enjoying the journey today and writing it down so I will remember, on those days that I think I should have let someone else have these children, that the Lord truly is in charge and I have angels attending and watching over my children. Thank you to Kathy McKeon for opening my eyes to all the wonder of temple attendance.