Feliz Navidad!

Hola familia!

Feliz Navidad! I hope Christmas was good for everyone, it sounds like it was fun. I loved getting to talk on Skype, that was for sure the highlight for me. Everyone looks happy! I had a fantastic week. It wasn't that great number wise for the work because it is hard to see people on major holidays, but it was really fun for us. 

 

My sisters took this photo of us Skyping.

We spent Christmas Eve with the Sanchez family. Hna Sanchez is from Mexico but her husband is Ecuadorian but born and raised in the U.S. so they are pretty Americanized. They made some yummy lasagna. Can't complain! She made a really yummy drink called punche though... ooooh it was so good. We also watched "It's a Wonderful Life"... Not completely sure if that's allowed,but when we asked our district leader he said "when in Rome..." hahaha. It was a fun night. It was fun sharing the message about Christ and his birth and sharing the commit to always remember him. 

 

 

I got lots of big fun Christmas packages at the Mission Conference. Muchas gracias!

Christmas we had district meetings. We all took one present to open with the district and Sister Rogers made some yummy chocolate muffins. After district meetings we had a zone activity. We had a white elephant party. I took a do-rag that we found in the apartment, it was a hit. After we just had some snacks and had fun chatting together. I am in a zone of some FUN missionaries. The Koreans were excited to give out gangam style socks. It was hilarious. We all made Elder Kang do the gangam style dance. It is hilarious how perfectly he does it. I have a video of it. We had lots of fun. After, we got to go to the Cedillo's home to Skype. We were so grateful for their kindness. Their family has done so much for us this year. They will be hitting their year anniversary of their baptism in January, I'm excited! We gave Hno Cedillo the book Jesus the Christ in Spanish. He LOVED it. He read it all night while we were Skyping. We were very excited to give it to him. They soak up the gospel like sponges. 

 

My district! Sister Rogers, Sister Shearer, Elder Nuckolls, Elder Cuevas, Sister Orton, and me. I Love Them!

 

I got a package from the Hardys. THANKS!!

Our Ward hooked us up for Christmas. West New York is the BEST!

 

Present from my bestest friend, McKaela...errr I mean Hermana Guymon.

Our "fireplacde" on Christmas Eve.

Thursday, we got to go to the Manhattan temple. That was such a fun experience. It was fun to finally get to go to NYC after looking at it for 4 months. NYC is so cool! I can't wait to go back and do tourist kind of stuff and shop around. We were there from 9am to 6pm though, so it was a pretty huge chunk of the day. We got some hot dogs and gyros from the street vendors right out side of the temple. We had a rule that we couldn't go into any of the stores, but we could buy food from the street vendors. 

 

I finally made it to NYC!! After looking at it from across the Hudson for 4 months. So much fun!

 

THERE IT IS! Such a neat temple.

 We walked all the way through New York to get there and we walked through central park, too. It was a fun trip with the BEST finish line.

We got Hot Dogs and Gyros from the stands outside the temple. Very Yummy.

 

I always see these two buildings. It was neat to be right outside. Very pretty.

 

Broadway!! And the Korean. (He's one of the Korean Elders.)

EW...apparently a huge deal in NYC right now. We proudly represented Christ with our nametags and our Books of Mormon.

 

So cool!

 

Time Square is so huge. So much fun! I loved ever second of being in NYC. I can't wait to go back!

Well, other than that, the work just went on this week. We did what we could, but it was hard. We had a lot of set lessons going into the week, but a lot of them ended up juking us. And our investigator who was on date for the 5th said that now he wants to finish the Book of Mormon before he gets baptized. Hes being stubborn, he knows the Book of Mormon is true and that the church is true, hell get baptized soon, he reads every night and he's in the middle of Alma, but I'm just frustrated that I won't see it. Oh, well, I'll always count him as mine in my heart. 

Love you all, thanks for all of the Christmas wishes!! Happy New Year!! Talk to you next week... oooh and Next week I'll get to tell you if I'm getting transferred! or even more terrifying... If I'm training. woohoo. 

bye!

-Sister Clark

Long Overdue Pictures!!

You can see almost all of our area from this view outside Ana Ruth's Window.  She lives at the very bottom street of the area we cover.

Sister Houghton and Sister Dorneles. I went on exchanges with them and they are so much fun.Sister Dorneles just finished her mission and is back in Brazil now. She had her hot seat the other day and had some hilarious mission stories. I can't wait to my hot seat...In a year. Crazy.

 

For Julie. YES, this is a real Carlo's Bakery cake. Are you Jealous?

 

 Baptism of this cute girl that we taught. Hername is Melissa. She doesn't count as a baptism for us though, because she's 8...Darn. I love her and her family so much, though.

The mouse that we caught during our companionship study...Ew.

WARNING!! This is a bit graphic...but here's another one of our mouse friends :)

First HUGE snow. Yes, we had to go outside and work even though it was blizzarding outside. Not one of my favorite things.

Once upon a time..We drove through the Lincoln Tunnel on accident. AHHHHH!

The big city through the window.

Bahahahahahaha. My two favorite Mexicans. Merry Christmas!

Sister Orton and me at Jingle with the Jeppsons.

Jingle with the Jeppsons!

Point to Santa!

Our Mission Conference

 

Elder Cuevas with his Christmas Box...

Sister Schaefer, Elder Wilcox and me. 

Elder Wilcox is the best friend of Elder Quackenbush, our friend from our MTC District.

Seester Schaefer and me. I miss her! It's fun to see how much we have both grown since the MTC.

THANK YOU!!!

Feliz Navidad

Hola mi familia y mis amigos!! Feliz Navidad!!

 

Can you all believe that it is Christmas already!! Wow, time FLIES!!! I am having the time of my life here in New Jersey. Christmas is absolutely wonderful when you are in the service of the Lord. It is a huge blessing and an honor to wear his name.

 

I am running short on time, but I have a few experiences that I would like to share with you all.

 

First, Friday, we had the all mission Christmas conferences. I'm sure as you all know by now, being with all the missionaries is one of my favorite things in the world. I have a testimony of missionary work. I LOVE MISSIONARIES. We had a special fireside by Alex Boye. If you don't know who that is, go look him up on Mormon.org. He might even be on the front page. But he is from London, and he has an incredible story and an incredible singing voice. He sings with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, you may have noticed him, he might be the only black man in the choir. Not sure. But he also has some CDs out, which of course, all of the missionaries own his CDs, so he is basically the biggest celebrity we could possibly meet. He also happens to be the Son in Law of President Jeppson, which is why we were lucky enough to have him come to our mission. The New Jersey Morristown Mission is the best mission out there, I'm pretty sure. :) It was a very good meeting, I was very inspired by the messages and the music that were shared. At the end of the meeting, all of the Christmas packages for the missionaries were distributed. We were talking to Sister Woodruff and she said there was 526 packages and hundreds of letters delivered to the mission home this month. AYE CARRUMBA. That's a lot of mail, folks. I got 3 packages. Thank you so much family. I really appreciate it. I can't wait to open them on Christmas day.

 

The funny story for this week: We drove to mission conference with Sister Shearer and Sister Rogers. They had an exchange that day, so Sister Rogers brought Sister Houser home for the day. Sister Houser was driving and she has never been in our area, around the Hudson. Missionaries who work around here know that you have to be VERY careful when driving in this area because it is easy to accidentally get onto the road for the Lincoln Tunnel or the Washington Bridge, which lead into Manhattan. Well, the GPS was off a couple of hundred yards, and we weren't being extra careful, so we ended up missing the exit into West New York, which happens to be the last exit before the Lincoln tunnel.... SO we were stuck on the road, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel, with no way of turning back... We all had mini heart attacks and we said a little prayer and then called some of the senior couples to see if they could give us directions for how to get back through the Lincoln Tunnel once we arrived in Manhattan. It was so crazy! BUT SO FUN!! I have never been to Manhattan before. It is so beautiful. The road was crazy though and it was insane trying to get back to New Jersey with none of us having any clue how to maneuver the Manhattan streets and the GPS taking us strange places, but we ended up back into New Jersey safely... it was only about a 1 hour detour. hahaha so fun.

 

Also, we caught 2 more mice. yay!!

 

Ok, I have so many pictures, but once again, we are over on email time.... so hopefully next week!! GAAHHHH sorry! I really want to do better with my email time. hahaha.

 

Well, Love you all. Have a very merry Christmas and REMEMBER HIM ALWAYS.

 

-Sister Clark

I Am An Arizona Girl

Something that I have learned this week: I am an Arizona girl. This humid cold is NO BUENO. It chills to the bone. So I learned my lesson, I'm ready to be transferred to a driving area :) haha, nahhhh, I love West New York.

 

I do not have very much time, my Pday has been cut a little bit short again :( I don't think we have had a regular pday this whole transfer, which is kind of tiring, but oh well. It's Christmas time and life still goes on, so I can't complain. It was a great week, I've got to quickly share some of the highlights.

 

My favorite event of the week - I have to give you the setting: We are in a bedroom with a round table. We sit on opposite sides all bundled in up in our blankets with a little space heater evenly between us and the door closed to keep in the warmth. We always start with a Christmas song, then we read 3 pages out of the missionary handbook. Then we share what we learned in personal study and we pick things to share with the appointments we have for the day. So, we sing a song, then we start to read out of the handbook. I'm reading and sister Orton is just listening, were both very tired and not very awake yet, then all of a sudden in the middle of my reading we hear this "SNAP - eep eep eep eep".... I look up from the handbook, then sister Orton looks at me and we are just like "oh no, that was not what I just think it was!" We knew exactly what it was... The sound of a mouse trap and a dying mouse's last breaths. We keep looking at each other terrified and so grossed out. Then we look at the door.... We have to decide who is going to take care of it... It is my turn because she disposed of the last mouse. We go out and it was the mousetrap under the stove... sure enough, there is a little mouse in there... SQUIRMING AROUND. Nope not dead yet. ew ew ew. So we pick it up, and toss it in a garbage bag, then run outside to toss it in the garbage can... then returned to our studies. Life is NEVER boring around here.

 

One of our investigators is getting VERY ready for baptism, FINALLY! He attended a baptism of one of the ninas de la iglesia last Saturday and he felt the spirit really strong. He has a baptism date for 5 de enero. In order to be baptized you have to come to church 3 times. He has come 2, but he needs to get work off on Sunday and it has been very hard for him to talk to his boss to ask him for this day off, but he has been asking us to pray for him. It is very close, I can feel it. I'm so happy.

 

Saturday it SNOWED LIKE CRAZY!!! President ordered a no driving day, but of course that didnt effect us, so we got dressed in our big coats and boots and gloves and hats and we headed out in the blizzard. We were definitely guided that day. The Lord blesses you when you make sacrifices to do his work, we were blessed with 4 lessons that day, then a BIRTHDAY PARTY! It was sister suarez birthday that day and she said she wanted to spend it with the missionaries so she brought her family and her cake to the church and a couple of her friends from the ward came and all of the missionaries and we had cake..... and not just cake... Are you ready for this Julie? cake from CARLOS BAKERY!! It was very yummy :)

 

On Sunday we got a call early in the morning from the bishop letting us know that church was cancelled because of the storm... SO we started our normal studies then the elders called and said that they would be holding the sacrament at the chapel for those who did not get the message... So we got ready really fast and headed down there... There were about 10 members and us 6 missionaries, so it was very small.... and then we realized that no one brought bread for the sacrament, so an hermano ran home and brought back these huge bagels... Then we begin and the elders only ripped the bagels into fourths or something, because it took about 3 bites to get my little piece down... hahahah such a funny day. I loved it. It was nice.

 

Later that night was the Spanish fireside for the members put on by the mission. It was really neat. All of the Spanish missionaries in the mission came and all of the Spanish members were invited, so it was quite the event. We spent the Pday last week practicing all the Christmas songs we were going to sing. Some of the elders and sisters had parts telling the Christmas story, then we would all sing. All the Elders and Sisters were on the stand. The church was full and the spirit was strong. Missionaries bring the BEST spirit. I loved every second of it. It ended at about 8 and everyone stayed chatting until 8:45. It was neat to see all of the elders and sisters running to go see members and investigators in their old areas that they hadn't seen in a long time. In every area there is always those families that you love so much, it was so cool to see how that never leaves, even when you leave your area. We had a couple of families in my area come too, it was fun to see the other missionaries that have taught them talk to them also. Then since we have to be in at 9 and some missionaries had a 2 hour drive home, we had some sisters sleep over in our apartment, which is only about 15 minutes away from the Union City chapel. We had Sisters Jorgenson and Daniels, it was fun to get to know some other sisters.

 

Well, that's all I have time for this week. I love you and thank you for everything. Have a great week!!

 

-Sister Clark

First Week of Transfer 3 Down!!

The first week of transfer 3 down!! And I am so glad that it is over. It wasn't bad, actually it was very good. There was a lot of change though, and I am not a huge fan of change. Luckily it was all good change.

 

At 6 o'clock pm last Monday, when P-day ended, it really started to sink in that Sister Martin was going to leave me, and I'm not going to lie, it terrified me. The rest of that night wasn't really that great, it really just made me sad. Then Tuesday came, we had our last studies and lunch together and the rest of time that day was packing all of Sis Martin's stuff up so we could head to transfer conference, which started at 3. We had to find a ride to transfer conference, which is kind of a hard thing because you have to make room for all of the stuff that you pack... so we ended up having to split between two cars. Sister Martin and half of her stuff rode with the Emerson sisters, sisters Ward and Paight, and I rode with Sisters Varble and Rogers along with the other half of sister Martin's stuff. IT IS SO CRAZY TO PACK ALL OF YOUR STUFF INTO A LITTLE CAR! There was six of us sisters in 2 cars and 3 of the sisters were getting transferred... I think that is about 6 or 7 suit cases and a bunch of boxes. Needless to say, we were SQUISHED in the little cars. The cool thing though, Sister Varble, Sister Ward, and Sister Martin were all 3 called to be sister training leaders the Sunday before, so they were waaayyy excited. It was cool that they were all from zone 1 too. Just goes to show how awesome my zone is. 

 Transfer conference was THE GREATEST! I can't even explain how much I love transfer conference. There is something really neat about being in a chapel filled with missionaries. The spirit is incredible, I wish you could all experience it. Sisters Varble, Rogers and I arrived at conference right on time, about 15 minutes before it started. We sat right on the front row. The other car was late though, they took a wrong turn or something so they didn't get there until president had already started announcing the transfers. We started with the usual prayer and hymn then the first thing we do is welcome all of the new missionaries. There was around 20 new missionaries this transfer and they were all sitting there on the stand with their trainers so that everyone could see them. It was so weird being down on the ground this time, because I remember being there on the stand sitting by sister Martin. I was so terrified. All the new missionaries introduce themselves then they go and sit down on the side of the chapel. THEN President Jeppson begins announcing the transfers. It's such a fun moment. He goes through every zone and announces your names and where you'll be transferred too. You stand up and wave at your new companion across the room while everyone oohs and ahhhs. LOOOVE IT. This time President Jeppson started from zone 10, and I'm in zone 1, so of course I was one of the very last. BUUUT, Sister Martin got transferred to Elizabeth with Sister Willis. My new companions name is Sister Orton, she came from Morristown. She came out with Sister Martin, so she has been here for a while. After that, all the departing missionaries sing and bear their testimonies. That is super cool too. 

When the meeting ended we all scramble out and move everything between cars. This time though, it was dark and it was POURING RAIN. It really was quite a sight to see all of us running around the parking lot in the rain. It took about another hour just to get all of our stuff moved between cars. We couldn't ride back in the cars we came in because Sister Ward is now in a trio for a couple of weeks, so she had two new companions so there was no room for all of the stuff of an extra person. We luckily got a ride home with the Kays, the senior couple in our zone. They're so funny. I love the senior couples. It took us about another hour to get back and when we got back it was about 7:30, and it was still pouring rain, so we just stayed home and unpacked a little bit. 

Wednesday was mine and Sister Orton's first day together, and of course it rained all day! It was a good day though. We had district meeting in Emerson, which is always nice. I love district meeting. I am really happy that Elder Cuevas is still my district leader, too. He is a spectacular elder. Then we went and saw some of my favorite members and we went and saw Monica, our investigator. They all LOVE Sister Orton. She really is so great, she teaches me so much and I am really excited for this transfer!!

Thanksgiving was a really fun day. We got up, had personal study, then we got picked up at 9:20 so that we could go to the turkey bowl. We met with zones 1 and 2 at a big park so that we could all play football and soccer together. It was way fun, but SO STINKIN COLD. But I LOVE being with other missionaries. Missionaries are the best. We finished up around 1 o'clock and got home around 2. We finished our companion and language study, then we were expecting to be picked up by a member for Thanksgiving dinner, but she ended up being about an hour and a half late, because she is an absolute angel and she had so many people coming over to her house. We went to the Suarez house for thanksgiving. They are not in our area, but they were in our ward and she asked President Jeppson for permission to have us over. She had her whole family over, and a woman in our ward and a couple of kids in the ward who didn't have anywhere to go because their mom is in the hospital. It was a lot of people, but there was a lot of food and it was very tasty. We just kind of hung around after that. She showed us around her house and she showed us all of her plans for painting. I had a good time. After that we went home, did our nightly planning and went to bed. 

For the rest of the week we just worked. Work work work. It feels good to work though. It was a week that was a little bit short on  numbers, but it was still a good week. This week should be good too. Since there is a new missionary here, we made appointments with all the ward members who live in our area. We should be getting some good dinners this week and I'm super excited. We also had some really good lessons with our investigators. They, too, love Sister Orton. She really is a really good missionary and she is VERY funny and very good with people. It is awesome how the Lord knows exactly who to send where. I know she will be able to help our area progress a lot during this transfer.

ALSO!!! We get to go to the temple this month! I'm not sure when yet, but I'm so excited to be able to go! And of course I am so excited that I will get to skype my family this month too. So many things to be grateful for! This transfer really is loaded with so many fun things. 3 Holidays!! 

Well, I love you all and I hope you have a good week. I'll talk to you next Monday!

-Sister Clark

p.s. Sorry, I totally failed at taking pictures this week... Maybe next week.