April 27 - It's been a GREAT first week! :)

Day 1-Tuesday: ¡Hola de Perú! Wow this has been a day. First thing I learned in Perú is no, I don`t know as much Spanish as I had hoped. The second thing I learned is that there are no rules or laws when it comes to driving, so you better wear a seatbelt and pray that you live. It is so hot here, and it is WAY more humid than good ol Wyoming. So I touched down in Peru around 10:40 p.m. and by the time I got out of customs and immigration, it was midnight. Then I got to the CCM around 12:30 and was in bed around 1:00 a.m. It has been such a long night full of little miracles, like knowing people on the plane,or people helping me find where to go because they just returned home from Lima. On the flight to Denver, I sat by the cheer coach of Green River and got to talk to him about Peru because he got back a week ago. And then on the flight to Miami, I found a Micheli that I got to talk to and take a couple pictures with. It was a good day of traveling!

Day 2-Wednesday: Today was very long. Tonight we actually get to go to sleep at 9:30 p.m. and I am so grateful!  My compañera is Hermana Richardson and I like her a lot, she´s super fun to be around! Our day was jam packed full of classes and with a lot less sleep than normal, it´s been very long. We rarely got any down time, which is nice because it helped me think a lot less about my family. I feel very different than everyone else, I´m super white, I have blue/green eyes, and my eyelashes are way too long for this. I met my mission Presidente today and his wife Hermana Moore, and she is so awesome she just took us in and gave us hugs and just loved us. Which was so great. For breakfast we ate eggs, ham, bread, and some yogurt. For lunch we ate arroz con pollo, chicken soup, potatoes, and bread. For dinner we are arroz con pollo, bread, a dessert, some ice cream, a fruit called granadia, and we got to eat with President and Hermana Moore. The food was so good, and I am so grateful for this gospel and the opportunity that I have to be here in Peru. I am so grateful to my family and for all of their support. I feel their much needed prayers today.

Day 3-Thursday: So today we woke up and got ready and music played in the hallway as we went back and forth from our rooms to the bathrooms. After we got ready, we went and ate breakfast and we had pancakes this morning! They were delicious. After breakfast we went and had lots and lots of classes on doctrine and a ton of classes on Spanish. For lunch we had arroz con pollo and had some granadias and had some ice cream and it was all delicious. After lunch we went to another class for 2 ½ hours and then had physical activity! We played fútbol and my compañera and I ran some laps around the fútbol field. It´s nice running at sea level! Its only our second day of classes and we already stopped doing our hair. I got the chance to talk to some of the nativa sisters and they actually understood me and we had a good conversation and it was awesome! In 2 days my Spanish has improved so much it´s crazy, but I´m so glad that I had my background in Spanish before I came here. I´d be dying. We met our first investigador this night and his name is Stalin. We got to teach him about the restoration, profetas, and the libro de mormón. Yesterday, although it was fun for me, it was very hard on my companion who has had no Spanish background. I had to really feel the spririt to give her comfort and support and words of encouragement. A little after class she started to be really hard on herself and I had to find the patience to help her calm down and get through this hard time.

Day 4-Friday: What a day. Today, we got to teach our investidgador Stalin. The gift of tongues is so real. Before the lesson, my compañera and I said a prayer that even though we didn´t know Spanish that we would be able to teach by the spirit and have the gift of tongues to be with us. We got to the door and my comañera bless her heart drew a blank and so I had to pick up and I honestly just took off. I understood everything he said and was able to respond quickly and effectively. It was like my brain turned off English and went right into only Spanish. It was the most amazing experience of my life. Our investigador is so awesome and he is so interested in el libro de mormón and I just had the best opportunity to give him the lesson and I am so glad that my brain turned off English and that Heavenly Father was kind enough to give me the gift of tongues while we were in teaching him. However, after the lesson was so hard. We walked out of his house and my companion just broke down crying and I felt so bad because she didn´t understand what was happening and I just prayed that Heavenly Father would send me someone who could help her the best and out walked Hermana Moore. My heart was so grateful. Hermana Moore took my comañera and comforted and helped her so much it was amazing, I am so  blessed to have them both around me. I just want to testify that the gift of tongues is real and that teaching by the spirit is the most amazing feeling.

Day 5-Saturday: So I have been having some drama with my compañera because she doesn´t want to be here in the CCM and she hates the Spanish language. Which is frustrating because I want to be fluent by the time that I leave but she refuses to speak Spanish with me. I have been trying to be the best compañera that she needs and have been trying to have as much patience as my body can possibly hold for her. It was so sad for me to hear that she wants to go home. So when I heard that I went and said a prayer and multiple prayers that I would be able to have the Spirit inside of me that through me he may be able to comfort her, and he did as much as he possibly could. I tried also so hard to convince her to stay but she just kept saying she didn´t want to stay. My heart is so heavy, I think I need to talk to  Hermana Moore about what is going on so she may be able to help her more than I can. Today overall was good, just some compañera drama, but all is possible to those who believe. And I believe that she will be able to make it through Satan´s trial right now, and that she will be able to stay and make it to the field. Pray for her and pray for us.

Day 6-Sunday:  Today was AMAZING. There was such a strong spirit that was present today in sacrament meeting and I just love everyone in our district and in our zone. This is everyone in our district: Hna. Richardson, Me Hna. Springer, Hna. O´Brien Elder Boelter, Elder Fincher Elder Epenesa, Elder Avery Elder Murri, Elder Moore  And in our zone we have the other district combined with us. In their district they have: Hna. Blackmore, Hna. Boww, Hna. Oliveros Elder Walker, Elder Siliouna, Elder Souza And all of us together is just so fun! But honestly we had meetings after meetings after meetings today and it was like we had all jumped into a swimming pool but the water was the spirit. It was so amazing, I love all of our leaders.

Day 7-Monday:
So everything with my comañera is so much better now! I went to Hna. Moore and she went straight to President Moore, and he came up to us and asked us how everything went and so it was amazing. He called her to his office and gave her a blessing and it is so amazing to be able to see the Spirit work inside of people. She came back out of the office an entirely different person. So we have had arroz con pollo every meal. Lunch and dinner every day. It hasn´t been terrible but I definitely have to get used to it. Oh, and potatoes. In all different shapes, sizes, and forms. Potatoes. But I haven´t gotten sick yet and it has been good! We go to class all day every day and I actually enjoy it a lot! I had a talk with Hna. Blackmore and she is so amazing and honestly is like my twin. We both dance, have hurt backs, have moved a lot, and are going to Peru for our missions! She´s so amazing and she just talked me through having troubles with my comp. and it was so nice to talk to someone who reminds me a lot of Bree. Heavenly Father is so mindful of us and He loves us so much. It has been so amazing! I love being a missionary here in the CCM in Peru, it has been such a spiritual changing experience so far.

Just a few of the pictures Shylo sent us!