I got a Dr. Pepper!!!!!

Hello everyone!

I hope everyone had a good week!. I was a good week for me.

So, Monday was a super-good p-day. We started the day off with going to play wallyball(volleyball with walls. It´s sick), where I did just ok. But it was fun anyways. Then Elder North and I went to go find a
new grocery store that´s supposed to be cheaper than the huge ones around town...and we found it! It´s called Que Barrato(How cheap), and it was pretty cool. I like it a lot....mainly because I found Dr. Pepper there! I was soooo stoked. It´s been six months since I´ve had one, and it tasted soo good!

But then we went back home where my comp Elder Hull was feeling pretty sick, so we stayed in the apartment for the rest of the night, which sucked because we had a family home evening that we missed out on. Then the next night in our English class, we had ten people! That´s a lot because we usually only have three or four people show up, so we were super stoked to teach that many people. Then Wednesday and Thursday were just normal days. On Friday, we had exchanges with my District Leader(They usually happen every other week so that he has a chance to work with each of us.) And things started off hectic. We got a  call at seven twenty in the morning from my Zone Leaders saying that I had to go to Migrations....and that I had to be there in ten minutes(it´s a fifteen minute taxi drive). Plus, I was about to shower. So, that meant a very crazy morning. We hurried as fast as we could to get there...but we weren´t on time, at all. But I still made it in. Then Migrations took until noon..mainly because of the lines, which were very long. Then, I spent the day(again) climbing the highest hill in Cochabamba teaching lessons, which went pretty well. Then Saturday.....well, not to freak you guys out or anything, there was supposed to be a 9.0 earthquake in Cochabamba. And, tons of people(lots of preachers in town) were claiming last Saturday to be the end of the world. Well, needless to say, nothing happended, and I´m ok. Sunday was a great day as well! We had two of our best investigators finally make it to church! We are so excited! Two more and they can be baptized. We´re hoping it happens. Also, we had District Blitz, where all of the district work in a area to help find more people to teach. It was in my area, and we ended up with three more news. So, that´s about it for the week.

Dad- Hope you have a great week, and good luck on the job search!

Mom- Glad you had a good ALC conference. Can´t wait to hear from you next week!

Aly- Just relax and enjoy your time now.....good luck on the job search!

Emi- Have a great week!


That´s all for now, folks!

AEA

Elder Craig

And so it begins.....Cambio nº 4!

Well, hello everyone(Everyone:"Hello, Elder!")

I hope everyone had a fantastic week, because mine was pretty good!

Well, this week started off with a good P-day, but it was kinda bittersweet. This was the last day for us to see a bunch of the members of the zone who were being shipped out to other areas, namely my district and zone leaders, and one of the members of my group that´s been with me forever, so it was sad to see them go. Luckily, I´ll see most of them at the temple this week. Then, one of the members of the ward invited us over for lunch, and she made me my favorite Bolivian dish for my birthday. It´s called Pique Macho. It´s a traditional Bolivian dish that starts with a base of steak fries, then pilled on top with ground beef, sausage, onions, a spicy pepper called coto, and topped off with ketchup and mayo. It sounds like a heart attack, because it is.....but it´s really good. So, be ready to have some when I come home. :) 

So, then we had English class the next night, and it was better than usual, because we had people actually show up( We haven´t had anyone for the past few weeks, which sucked.) So, one other crazy thing that happened is that my companion and I have a goal of finding 12 new people to teach every week, and this week the doors were not opening up....so, needless to say, we were totally freaked out that we were not going to reach our goal. But, luckily, and patiently, we were able to reach the goal and not feel so stressed out. Then on Friday night, we had our bi-weekly "Noche Misional" or Missionary Night. What happens is that members of the ward, and investigators come to the church, and we play a couple of games, then give a spiritual message. This week was about  forgiving others. It was really cool, and well attended. And then on Sunday, we had the coolest thing happen. We have a reactivated member, and she´s married to this die-hard catholic man who wants nothing to do with the Church....¡and he came to church! It was so cool! The member was so excited, and she was telling me and my companion to invite him to Sunday school, and then to get a cita(which we got!) to teach him the Gospel. It´s really cool, and I hope good things come from it.

Dad- Have a great week. Hope you get super muddy mountain biking! Good luck with the doc appointment, too.

Mom- Glad to hear you´re super busy with work! Have an amazing week!

Aly- You should try going to bed early...lol. I know you can do it!

Good luck with the job search!

Emi- Have fun with your band stuff this week! Enjoy it while you can.

P.S. I want a pic of you in your work uniform!

That´s all for now

AEA

Elder Craig

The Day After ... My Birthday!

Why hello familia and friends!

I hope everyone had a fantastic week! This was a really good week, and not just because I got to talk with my family!

My companion and I spent monday playing soccer with our zone versus another zone. It was sick. We lost but it was fun anyways. I was the only defender too for most of the game, so I was running ALL OVER the field. I was exhausted afterwards. On Tuesday we found a awesome new couple to teach that seem really interested in the Gospel. Then later that night, we had a Family Home Evening with a family of less actives, and it was SO COOL! We taught a lesson on the difference between the talents we´re given and spiritual gifts. Then we played a game with dice called Snake Eyes, which was awesome. Then we finished the night with cheap Bolivian ice cream. It was a really good night.

Wednesday was just a boring, normal day. Thursday was disappointing too, but we did get a surprise call that morning....we had migration at 8:30am(We got the call at 7:30am)! So we practically ran to the middle of the city to go to what we found out was to get our blood drawn.  That was a nice surprise to start the day. Then practically nothing that day. But Friday was a huge turn around. We found 7 new people to teach on Friday! That was so awesome! Friday, nothing happened. But Saturday was a exciting day....We were double-booked with lessons, and we had a baptism to go to(the elders that we live with had a baptism). Most of the lessons went through, but the funny thing happened when we were heading to our lessons. To get to a certain part of our area, we have to pass a gas station. And these gas stations are full-serve, so they gave these skimpy dressed girls that put gas in the cars. Well, two of these girls started WHISTLING at me and my companion. Yup. So, it was pretty awkward to pass by again to head to the capilla. And Sunday, my birthday, was an awesome day. I went to church, then got to talk to my family, then my companions surprised me with cake(no pics)...then my pensionista(the member who feeds us) also had a cake! It was an awesome birthday!

Thanks for all the birthday wishes!

AEA

Elder Craig

Six Months!

(This letter was sent May 2)
Hello family and friends!!!!!

Hope everyone had a fantastic week. Mine was ok....well, it was still
good, but not the best.

First thing...I complete SIX MONTHS tomorrow! That´s absolutely crazy!
I cannot believe it. It has flown by....but there´s still so much
left. So, it´s totally weird. Also, only six days until my birthday!
I´m totally excited! I can´t believe that I´m turning 20 years
old....I feel old! Hahaha.

Well, this week wasn´t totally exciting. Monday was a pretty boring
day because we had nothing to do because our zone leaders let us down
again by telling us that we were going to have soccer...and it didn´t
happen. The rest of the week we were just working. Wednesday was sweet
because we found three new people to teach, and that´s awesome. One of
our goals as a companionship is to find at least twelve new people to
teach every week, and that´s been something that we´ve been pretty
good at. And it´s not just a numbers thing. We´ve found out that the
more people we find, the more we´re going to end up actually teaching,
so it´s pretty sweet to see how the Lord prepares people for us to
find. Also, we had splits with the district leader again, so I went
and worked in the highest point in the entire city for a day. It was
TOUGH! But, the view was amazing(I´ll have pics next week). And the
split went well.

Things here are becoming a little bittersweet. We found out this week
that two of our investigator families(one of which are our best
investigators that we have) are moving out of our area. So, my
companion and I are sad about that. Also, there´s a good chance that
I´m leaving the area next week(we find out the changes this sunday- my
birthday!), so I´m pretty sad. I love my area and the people in it.
I´ve seen so many live change for the better, and it´s going to be
tough to leave them if I do this next week. But, as the prophet Joshua
says in Joshua, to keep relying on the Lord for strength, and move on.


Dad- Hope you have a good week! You should send me pics of the dummy downhill.

Mom- Thanks for your email! I´m glad to hear all is well at home. Love you!!!

Aly- Hey! I can´t believe that you graduate this week! That´s nuts!
And I only have a year of college under my belt.... oh well. Send me
plenty of pics!

Emi- Glad to know you´re doing well. Have an awesome week!

Have a good one!

AEA

Elder Craig