Feliz Dia de San Valentin

The valentine photos are for the missionaries in our district haha We are going to print them and and hand them out as valentines hahaha so great. My companion is full of fun ideas we are always doing fun different things, like we made a cake for an investigator's b-day - Thanks for the idea mom!! Hahaha

Dear family,

This week was good. It started out as last P day some guy gave me a note with his facebook name and he like called me beautiful hahaha and he gave me a chocolate. So funny- my companion and I laughed sooooo hard. It was super funny because that day I didn't have any makeup on and I seriously looked super bad.

But Monday night was awesome!!! We went to do a family night with an inactive family only the dad is not a member. We played a board game that explains the plan of salvation. It was sooo fun. We were laughing and we created a really good relationship with the family. Then after the game I turned to my companion and said we need to invite him to be baptized. We were both scared and didn't want to but we started talking about what we have to do on the earth so that we can live in the celestial kingdom with our families. Then it lead into baptism.  And I invited him.  I was sooooo scared. hahaha But then he had a little concern because he prepared to be baptized before but it didn't feel right.  So then my companion remembered this scripture in D&C that explains that he probably wasn't ready then but he is ready now. He agreed and accepted the date to be baptized 7 de March!!! Woot woot! We were so happy. The Spirit was so strong and he even said the closing prayer which is super hard to get your investigators to say the closing prayer! Hahaha After the lesson my companion and I were like running and laughing and screaming and freaking out. We were so happy.  I don't know if I have ever been so happy in my whole life. Maybe I have but I was just soooooo happy. Words can't even explain what I was feeling.

Then Saturday for our other baptism it was so crazy. That morning we were supposed to leave to clean the font for the bautismo.  Then our toilet clogged again and poop, straight poo flooded all over the floor. It was so gross. We seriously were living in this gross barn for like 3 days. It stunk so bad. We couldn't even shower because this nasty water. My companion and I, we were so mad.  We were like, "I hate Argentina." hahaha When in the heck would you have poop and maggots coming up from your floor? So we were dealing with that Saturday morning. Then we ran to the church and the cute elders were cleaning the font for us. Then we had a conference with the district and then the baptism. It started at 7 and none of the members were there and I was so stressed. But 15 min later all the people started to come. That is how Argentina is- always so relaxed, never on time. It is so annoying haha. Church will like start late too. Then my companion and I sang 'I Like to Look for Rainbows' in Spanish at the baptism and we had 2 members give a talk. And the font was like freezing because there was no hot water. When the little girl Nicole went in the water she like took a deep breath. It was so cute.  She got out of the water and we like gave her her towel. She was so cute!!! I love her so much. Then her mom came and helped her change into her clothes. hahaha the baptisms here are so different. So much more relaxed. She like came in shorts and tank top. hahaha No fancy white dress haha. My comp and I gave her a BofM with pictures and she told us she wants to be a missionary when she grows up! It was so great. 

So the poop problem--so Saturday night after the baptism a ton of poop came out of the drain. It stunk soooo bad. So we go outside to get help from the neighbors who live really close to us. He was trying to fix his drain and he came into our apt and he was like wooow That is bad. And he like fixed it. He said that the roots from the trees get in the pipes and clog the toilets every 3 months!!!  So he like fixed it and my companion and I are just sitting outside at like 12 at night while he fixed our bathroom and he even disinfected it and everything. So nice! 

But yeah that is about all I have time for! But this week we had to drop a ton of investigators because they are not progressing so pray that we can find new investigators. 

Love you all. Hahaha and Mom your lesson, you will be great. Saturday night we got a phone call from the zone leader and he said we have to teach Sunday School the next morning. We didn't have any time to prepare and we just got up there and taught the class. So crazy. As a missionary you just teach on the spot all the time. The language is coming.  I am not stressed about it at all.  I am able to get the idea of what is going on.  I can talk- it is so great. I just hope that I am not too relaxed about the language that when I get a companion that only speaks Spanish I will realize I really don't know the language. hhaha No, the language is coming. I am just amazed how it is just coming!!! It is so great. Anyways, love you. Have a great week.  I am way over my time limit right now!

What the heck Hannnah wrote me!!! I am like dying!!! 

Engaged. I am happy for her.  This is so weird!  Life is just going on without me!!!!

First Conference

Well shoot this week was good. Went by super fast. The time is just flying by. I had my first conference with the zone this Friday. It was good. Kinda long at times because for me to understand things I have to focus really hard, so it was really easy for me to zone out. That is because we would just sit there for 5 hours listening in straight Spanish. So if we are going to be honest, I totally might have let my mind wander a few times... ooops :)

So when President was talking, for some reason my mind started to wander about what I would say if I had to share my testimony right now.... Then, OF COURSE guess what happened! Yeah President said, "Hermana Bailey will you come and share you testimony about being a consecrated missionary! I felt like my heart fell into my stomach! I started to sweat a ton and I almost started to cry right then! I was like, "OH gosh!!!! Here we go."  President then asked a few other missionaries and then it was time for me to go up there. I stood there for probably 10 seconds (which felt like eternity).  I was holding back my tears and trying to know what to say and then trying to say it in Spanish. I was so scared. It is one thing to testify in a lesson with 5 people, but in front of all these experienced missionaries just seemed like the death of me. Oh and to have President listening just seemed that much worse.  I just started to talk and then I would pause and think about what I was going to say next. Mom, you remember how you said missionaries always stop and pause before they say something?  Yep That is me now!!! So Awesome! You really rely on the Spirit so much here.  After I was done,  the cute Hermana Leader came up to me and said, "You're so cute, I felt the Spirit!" ( hahaha I don't know if that means they had no idea what I was saying or what but I did my best).

But Hermana Parris was there. She is so great.  (my comp from MTC) She said my Spanish is so good. She said "You're like fluente." hahaha Yay! That is great even though I am not even close to fluent. It is the weirdest thing. There are times I feel like I've got this language down to a T and then there are other times and I have no idea what is going on.... Then in the conference we did a practice teaching. President came and listened to my companion and me.  It was so scary.  hahah He would stop and say "okay what can you do here?" and then he would say "Pull up the scripture from King Benjamin and..." Oh gosh I was like, in my head, "where the heck is that scripture?"... so embarrassing. And my companion like froze and she left me there hanging.  So then I had to ask "where is that scripture?" I felt so dumb. So now I have a new goal: memorize more scriptures. Dad, that is what you can teach in your mission prep class: scripture stories and how to apply it to the investigators and have them memorize scriptures or scripture references. One other thing is teach them how to forget themselves in the work. That is really hard for me. In the middle of the day I get so tired and I just want to take a nap.  But YOU CAN'T.   It is only 15 more months but I just want to take a nap sometimes hahah!

So the other day we were walking to Filli Dei, a town about 1 hour away and my companion and I saw this huge bug!!!! It was as big as a mouse or bigger.  I am not even lying and then there were like 15 little ones just like it and they were the size of a beetle. They were black with red stripes. I think the name is monte cabillo! Then they started to chase my companion. It was so scary. Then we ran away and then we told our investigators about it and they're like "your lucky. If you would have gotten bit you would have to go to the hospital."  

Then we were teaching this lesson to this new investigator and her house had tons of mosquitoes ugh. So now I have like 15 bites all over and they itch sooo bad! 

Then the other day I was walking and I saw parrots! They are so pretty! And they are everywhere.  I have no idea why I didn't notice them before. I am just starting to notice all this stuff about Argentina. It is so crazy. One of our investigators lives on a farm and they have this weird looking bird. It is like as big as a crane but it is white and black with pink eyes! But it is not a flamingo. So Crazy. 

I have my first baptism on Saturday!!!! Hazah!! Super pumped! All is well here. Love you! I made a voice recording and I will try to send it. 

We went shopping today and I bought a cute skirt and pants that are straight Argentine. Super great!! 

Love you all.

Hermana Bailey 

3 Months

Woot Woot! I hit my 3 month mark the other day. Crazy the time is going by so fast. 

This week was full of so many crazy adventures.  But I feel like the problem is that I need to work harder. Why does everyone tell me I need to not work harder. It drives me crazy!!!!!!!!!!!! I just don't want to be lazy. So Any advise? Do you think I should work so hard at least with the language? Because I study when I am eating breakfast and when I am cleaning my clothes.  I don't know,  I just feel so so anxious all the time so I am trying to be more relaxed but it is hard because I am not a relaxed person.  I swear a new person tells me everyday that I need to be relaxed.  I am not even kidding -a different person everyday.  I am like, "you don't even know me and your telling me to relax." It is super frustrating because I feel like I am trying soooooo hard to keep my cool and not go at the fast working pace that I want to go and even when I am trying my very best people still tell me to calm down. It is so frustrating. 

This week we saw so many miracles. My favorite was when we were walking to Filli dei. It is a little town in the middle of no where and it takes 1 hour to get there. We had to go there 2 times this week because we have a little girl who is going to get baptized on 7 Feb. So we have to teach her all the lessons before then. So when we were walking in like 100 degree weather this car pulled over and offered us a ride. It was so nice. Then when we were walking home, our investigator drove by and gave us a ride. It was awesome. We got two rides in one day. Then another crazy thing happened. We were walking to visit these people and we went to knock on this really big house and when we got to the door then 10 big dogs ran over to us and jumped on us. I felt teeth try to bite my arm but it didn't! Then the lady comes over and says "oh my gosh, you are so lucky the dog didn't bite you!!!" My companion and I are convinced that there were angels protecting us. Then this crazy lady took us to some temple and it was so crazy. We couldn't get away and she was like making us pray to the sun and I was trying not to laugh and my companion was like singing because this lady was making her sing. Then we finally got out of their temple... Oh ya and the lady said that Jesus was sitting on this red chair in the temple. It was soooooo weird.  

I am out of time. Love you all. Dad,  tell the mission prep class to read their scriptures and attend church and to get their testimonies really strong now. Because the mission is not fun and games like they probably think it is! But you can tell the class that the mission is fun because you are always helping others and you are filled with the Spirit all the time. That is the kind of joy you feel in the mission.  Not adventure fun, although there are crazy things you will see in the mission. It is all about the Lord. 

Love,

Hermana Bailey

I am out of time. Tell Katie I am soooooo sorry for not writing her on her birthday but I love her and can't believe she is 25?

Love you alll

Spanish!!!!!

Happy New Year!

My New Companion

Our Apartment

Oh I love my new companion!!!!!!

Sooo this week was quite interesting. I was really nervous at first because I didn't think I would be able to teach my trainer our area. I was going to need to call our investigators and take her everywhere and plan our days and plan what we were going to teach. Yeah that was a lot of pressure, especially for me still being in training-and not knowing Spanish... Well sooo many miracles. I don't even know how to explain it. I can talk in Spanish. I am not perfect and there are times I have no idea what is going on but I can teach in the lessons and I can actually have conversations with people. It is soooo great. Every night I am just sooo full of gratitude. hahaha It is kinda hard to keep studying a ton because my companion speaks English and most of the people in my zone speak English and I feel like most of the time I can teach in our lessons so my desire to study has kinda died.  hahaha Obviously I still study and I am still trying to learn the language but it has gotten so much better. I actually have an idea what is going on now. Oh and I was able to talk to people on the phone this week. With my other companion I could not understand anything anyone was saying on the phone but I can actually understand people! Ahhh it is so exciting. 

It is kinda interesting... SO I love my companion. She is laid back and always tells me to calm down.  I swear I get told at least once or twice a day to calm down. I don't know what I need to learn from all these laid back companions but I am just trying to be teachable, because I know that I am supposed to learn something about being more laid back.  My companion said that I was exactly what she needed. She said I am so obedient and receptive to the promptings of the Spirit. She said  "shoot, this girl is training me!" hahaha That made me smile. 

A hard thing is that my new companion speaks Spanish, but she doesn't speak as well as my last companion.  And there are times in the lessons when she doesn't know a word and the investigators can't understand us and then the Spirit leaves. Ughh The first couple of days I was sooooo frustrated with this.  But from this experience I am trying to teach more and my companion relies on me more than my other companion. So I think that is a reason I am with her- to learn that I can do things and to start to be that missionary I imagine myself being. 

I love my companion. We hardly ever talk in Spanish so that is a problem because then I don't learn as much. But we get along great and we laugh all the time. We put our beds together hahaha! So we sleep in one big bed!  Oh and yay! She plays the piano, so I don't have to play in church anymore. 

There is a new missionary in the mission and I can see how he is struggling and it made me remember my first week in the mission.  I feel like he is way ahead of where I was but I am so grateful I am past that point. Yay! I am not the new newbee! 

Oh and my companion likes to cook! She makes the best food. We made this really good banana bread today! So fun. 

Hahaha so yesterday we were in a lesson and  there was this way nasty sick dog that was dying in our investigator's yard. The lady was trying to get the dog out of the yard but it wouldn't leave because it was really really sick. So my companion Hermana Miller and I tried to get it out of the yard but it wouldn't move.  No one wanted to touch this dog because it was soooo gross. So I grabbed this cloth and picked up this sick dog and the lady and my companion were all freaking out and I took the dog out of their yard. Then the lady started yelling "Throw the cloth, throw the cloth hahaha because it had the germ from the dog. It was sooo funny I wish you could have seen it. I just picked up this dying dog and my companion and this lady were laughing and laughing. So funny. 

Spiritual experience- so many this week. But my 2 favorites:  My companion and I had a lesson at one of our investigator's house but I could not remember where or how to get to their house. We started walking down the wrong road and I just said a prayer.  I had a feeling to turn around and so I just started to walk and it was like God was picking up my feet and taking me to where we needed to go. My feet weren't physically picked up obviously,  but I walked right to their house. So cool. Then we were teaching a lesson to one of our inactive members and I had a feeling to share a scripture that I read in personal study but I could not remember where it was. I just opened my scriptures and I opened to the exact scripture! So amazing.  I see miracles everyday - so amazing. I am really enjoying my mission. I still have moments when I am frustrated or when I just want to go home but I am loving what I am doing and the language is sooo much better!!!! 

Serenity,  that is so great you are being a missionary. Keep it up. Maybe you guys should tell the missionaries to visit them.

Dallas!!! Oh MY GOSH that is SOOOO AWESOME! How is Bridger? I miss knowing what is going on with the family. Tell them to write me. I got a letter from Sissy and a dear elder from Tyson, a way old one, it was like from my first week in the MTC, and then I got a letter from Aaron Connell's Mom.. But nothing from you Mom hmmm weird. 

Brayden you got your permit! Sweet. You're so big I can't handle it.

Love you all and miss you tons. I hope my letters make sense. If not, tell me so I will write slower and I will read what I write and make sure it makes sense. Because I don't reread what I write. 

Love,

Hermana Bailey

New Companion

Wooot Woot!! Yay!!! I got a Gringa for a companion!!!!! Ahhhh this week was full of so many miracles. I wish I could call you on the phone and tell you.  Anyways, okay so... I have been with Hermana Guzman for 6 weeks. The whole time I thought I would be with Hermana Guzman for 12 weeks.  A few people would say things like, "no Hermana is going to leave 6 weeks in." But nooo we were almost certain she was going to finish training me. 

Sooo I took everyone's advise to make learning the language my only goal right now. Well, knowing me, I took that, I guess you could say, to the extreme.  In the streets I would always be asking my companion questions.  I would always have my dictionary out I was not paying attention to people around me.  I was so focused on words in Spanish that I wasn't enjoying the mission, the people or really anything. My companion was getting frustrated with my endless questions and me making the same mistakes and what seemed like me making no progress. Thursday was way hard.  I felt soooo discouraged. Not only was I not understanding the language,  but I felt that our companionship was having struggles.  That night I talked to my companion and I told her I felt like I was annoying her..... Well she looked at me and gave me this lecture- in obvious, straight Spanish. I could understand her perfectly! It was crazy. In the lecture she told me that I need to be focusing on all parts of the mission. She said, "I know you miss your family but you need to put your whole heart in the work. And be patient with the language." She said "You are always studying the language.  Like tonight for example there was a huge wind storm and you were still reading in your dictionary." She said, "Do you think that stuff is going to stay in your brain?" She said, "No, because you weren't completely focused on what you were studying. There is a time and place for everything. When we are in the streets you need to be aware of our area and be ready to listen to the Spirit."  So after she said all this I took her advise. But I just wanted to cry because I felt like my whole soul was fighting against what she was saying because I want to learn to speak the language so bad and I feel like why not practice in the streets. So I prayed.  I just cried and told my Father in Heaven my problems. I told him that I want to learn this language so bad and I am willing to do whatever it takes. I wanted to explain that other people say that I should dedicate my whole heart into learning the language. But when I was praying I could not remember those words at all. I was trying to remember but I couldn't.  I decided that maybe it was a sign that I need to focus on other things too. Then I finally remembered the words "put your whole heart into learning this language". I was like oh yeah... and so I was about to ask my Father in Heaven if that is what I needed to do. But then once again I could not for the life of me remember those words. I was so confused. I am learning a big part of prayer is listening. I am not putting in a grocery list order I am asking for help and when I ask for help I have to be willing to act on what the Lord wants me to do. So the next day I decided that I would focus on other things as well as the language. And I spoke so much better and I understand so much more. I don't know if my story makes sense but I believe that I was supposed to learn from my companion to relax and not to take things so seriously. But to enjoy every moment. I am always in a rush. You all know that I rush on the phone and everything.  When I relax I speak so much better. Kinda weird because I am so used to wanting to give it my all, but I learned I need to give my all in all aspects of the mission.  I am so grateful for the things I learned from my companion. She seriously is amazing. I am soo sad that she is leaving but I KNOW that this new companion is exactly what I need.  

She is Hermana Miller. She is from Canada (she doesn't know Winnipeg).  She has been in the mission for  1 year. She is super nice. I am so grateful for a Gringa because she is going to be able to help me understand the rules of Spanish! Yay! Lots of people tell me that I have a great accent and that it is almost perfect.  I just need to practice grammar hahaha. And this new companion can help me with grammar. I am a little nervous because I have to teach this new companion our area-where people live, everyone's names and uhhh I don't really know our area very well... So I am really relying on the Lord to help me remember everything I need to remember. But It is seriously a miracle the things I do remember. I remember the first day I could say anyone's name. The names are different here too.  I feel like learning names is like learning another language too.  But I remember names!  I have no idea how, but I do.  Miracle!!!

Oh and guess what? One of our investigators came to church. Yay! Baptism on Jan 31 hopefully. She has to come 2 more times. So exciting. 

Serenity you got your ears pierced!!!! Soooo cute! Were you scared?

Hope,  I love your shoes!! We are twins. 

I love you all. What did Kami quote in her talk from my letters?  

Well out of time. Uhhh time is just flying by. I can't believe I am to my 3rd companion!! Love you all. The language is so much better- still not good but sooooooo much better. Thanks for your prayers. 

Love  Hermana Bailey

PS I am glad Cookie didn't die I was so sad

2015!!!

Dear Family,

I continue to pray for you all. Thank you for fasting for me. I am doing so much better. I am understanding so much more. Obviously not everything but I am understanding a lot more. Lots of people tell me my Spanish is better and they say they can understand me! Yay!! People can understand me!! I am still nowhere close to being fluent, but people can understand me. 

My New Years Eve was one to remember. My companion and I got to go to a member's house. They made some way fancy food. It was chicken with egg inside or something, I don't really know but it was soooo good. I will try and send pictures if I have time. We listened to music from Argentina and it was so fun. I just felt so grateful for the opportunity I have to be in Argentina. The next day the whole town was shut down. No people worked so all the missionaries got together and played futbol. We play soccer all the time. Too bad I didn't play soccer in high school. We occassionally will play basketball. It is so much more fun to play basketball because I am better at basketball. Hahaha and I am not so good at soccer. The missionaries call me Brittany because there is a really good basketball player in the USA and her name is Brittany. After we went and got ice cream I was telling one of the elders about my struggles with the language and he told me to memorize music. That will help and plus it is more fun than studying other things so I think I will try that. 

I got a blessing from one of the elders and it was a nice blessing. It was really a miracle how that all came to play. I had wanted to ask for a blessing but I knew I would cry hahaha so I avoided asking for a blessing. Then my companion out of the blue asked for a blessing.  Afterward I asked for a blessing and the elder gave it in English--so nice. I felt in the blessing that I just need to have more faith.  I have been given the gift of tongues now I just need to believe that I can do this. In the blessing the elder said you will be able to teach the language better than you can even imagine.  Is that true or what because I can't even imagine speaking right now. But all I can do is try my best and the Lord will provide a way. 

The biggest thing I am struggling with now is to really focus when people are talking. When I focus really hard I can understand what people are saying. But it is really really hard to focus hard 100 percent of the time. So that is what I am working on now. I just hope the language will get to a point where I don't have to focus so hard to understand what people are saying. Because it is really draining. 

Wow So many miracles.... I will look for words in my dictionary while walking in the streets and I open up right to the word sometimes. Cool huh? Little things like that all the time. Oh and the other day we were visiting people and I had the feeling to go visit one of our less actives but we weren't supposed to visit him until 8 that night. I asked my companion if we could go visit him and we did and he was home! It was a miracle because he wasn't home the whole week before. The Lord is in the details of our lives.  I am really seeing that in the mission. 

My talk went great! I pretty much just read the paper but that is okay. People came up to me and said it was great! Hehehe yay! Oh and one of the elders gave me a hymn book made easy. Yay miracle. Now I can play the hymns better.  It is crazy that you guys are cold right now because I am so hot. What is 30 C in Fahrenheit?  I have no idea how far we walk but we walk for 5 hours a day if you take out the lessons, so lots. It isn't that hard though. The mission is more emotionally hard than I thought it would be but physically it is easier. But maybe If I get a companion who works harder then I will think the physical is harder haha. 

Love you all,  I am doing so much better. I will pray for you all.  Talk to you again in 6 days.

Love Hermana Bailey! 

Last Letter in 2014

Dear Family,

After our phone call for Christmas, I was feeling great. I felt like I could take on this mission like no big deal! But then of course the next day the language was really discouraging again. But I prayed a ton and the next day was much better. I was able to feel that my patience is growing- which is a huge miracle. 

Anyways, Dad thanks for your letter. I need to remember to forget myself. Hahahaha it is so hard. When you said I’d work all day you weren’t kidding.  We just work from morning to night... This is a small struggle. So I am trying to forget myself and realize it is only for 18 months! Well 16 now:) hahaha 

I love you all so much. Talking to you on skype was the best thing ever.

Cool story!-- So my companion said in Mexico they only have 1 kind of garment and it is the cotton kind. She asked if she could buy a pair from me.  I, being selfish, told her no.  I need mine because I need them to last my whole mission right.... Well after noticing that she needs garments way bad I decided I would give her my best pair for Christmas. So I did. She was super happy and then later that night she skyped her family.  She told her mom and her mom said she was worried about her garment situation and was praying that her daughter would get some garments.  She (my companion) needed garments way bad. So I was able to answer my companion’s mom’s prayers! How cool is that? It is comforting that I am able to help make a small difference.

The other day I was feeling super bad about the language and we were in a lesson and my companion said the Spirit told her to ask me a question and share it with our investigator... I don’t know if my story really helped my investigator. But just knowing that the Spirit told my companion to have me say something meant a ton to me because it shows that God knows I am here and wants to use me as a tool in His hands. I don’t know, I just loved that. 

Anyways, I love you all so much and I am soooo grateful for our family. We are so blessed. 

Love Hermana Bailey

 My goal this week is to forget myself and my wants!!! It’s my last week in 2014. I need to enjoy it:)