Lots of Growth - December 14, 2009

Hey mom! I am glad that your week was so good and that you received the call from Elder Hunt, yes you were right. I haven’t gotten the Christmas package yet but I think that I will probably get it on the 18 because that is transfer day which I am happy because I will get the package but sad because we are losing so many missionaries. Sister Clave and I are the only ones not transferring and I'm so sad because they are pulling out the missionaries in Sister Smiths area! So that means that she will be leaving even though she should still be here for two more transfers! Ahh. It is okay though because it is the work of the Lord and we will get the Elders in the Paete area which is exciting and the ward will not split so that is good! I will get to go to every baptism that the Elders have too and they will have some because we have already prepared some people for them! yay! Our baptism didn’t go through. Jonabeth is the girl but she is getting baptized in two weeks she had to go to Manila because of a death in the family but she is so excited. The work is progressing. We met a family who are members of the Church but haven’t been in years! We were not where we had planned for that day and we actually didn’t know where we were going. But I know that the Lord knew where we needed to go and he lead us to that family, the young adult girl and her brother both cried when we shared a lesson with them and then the boy was able to come to Church on Sunday! I'm excited for them to come back to the Church! We also had two really good appointments but I couldn’t really understand or express myself the way I wanted and I knew that they were asking really good questions and the spirit was so strong I know that they felt the truthfulness of our message. We also had a really good experience at Sis. Susa's house! We shared about the law of chastity and she agreed with it. Then we asked about her reading and she said that she hadn’t read from the Book of Mormon but she was reading the pamphlets we gave to her and she read about the plan of salvation and that after this life we can live with are Father in Heaven and Savior in a state of happiness and rest, she started to cry and I know she knows that the Church is true she is just having a hard time because her husband won't listen to the missionaries and she wants to change her life but he doesn’t and she is so great and so sweet. She wants to be baptized but is scared because her husband isn’t changing with her but I know that the Lord will give her help! She is so awesome. I shared my testimony about the plan of salvation and about finding happiness in this life too and she cried more and of course I cried! And then I hugged her after and told her I love her! She is awesome please pray for her! She is in Paete so we might ask the president if we can finish teaching her because I don’t think she would feel comfortable with the Elders but if it has to be the Elders I know that all will work out how the lord wants it!

The Church is so true, the Lord is guiding this work and helping  me to say things! I know that I had the spirit with me and I am glad that I was able to share that with her and to bring that spirit even if I can't always understand. The work is going great! I'm struggling everyday in Tagalog but I think it is because the Lord wants to give me so many blessings and wants me to show my faith first!

Thank you for all your support tell everyone I love them! I can’t wait to talk to everyone! I will have sis. Agras phone on the 26th so that you can call me. I'm so excited! That will work just fine :)

Well we are at a slow internet place so next week I will download more pictures and will write about what some of them are. There is a picture with me and a senior couple and those are the Hunts! They are awesome! The one with president is of the Santa Cruz zone but there are three zones at the conference. Well I hope you have another good week thank you for everything! Tell Danielle I love her and am so happy for the two of them, they are so cute together! Tell her she needs to send me pictures after things slow down! Give her a hug for me. Thank you! I love you all so much and hope that life just keeps getting better everyday. I hope everyone that is sick will get better soon!

Oh and I was looking at an old Ensign in our apartment and it was talking about the Church in Nicaragua! It made me think of Michael please just tell him that I love him and am so grateful for his example of a great missionary and I know he worked hard and I just love him!

Well I love you all! until next week!

mahal kita!

Sister Andreasen

A Call From The Philippines - December 10, 2009

I received a call from the Philippines the other night...it was from Elder Hunt a senior missionary serving in the Philippines.  He said he wanted to tell me how much they loved having Bethany in the mission.  He said that she is healthy, working hard, doing great and loved by all.  He told me that he thought she was a wonderful young woman.  When I told him that she has been a missionary all her life, sharing the gospel at work, at school and with everyone that would listen he said that he could tell that she loved being a missionary.  He told Bethany that he was going to call and she wrote a message for him to read to us.  Needless to say this was a treasured phone call and one that I won't forget.  When he read the note I just started to cry because it was just so Bethany.  His phone call was so thoughtful and I am so grateful for Bethany's service to the Lord.  What a blessing she is to our family.  So thank you Bethany for your goodness, your smile and your desire to serve.  The light of Christ is in your eyes.  And thank you to kind brothers and sisters who care enough to take the time to call and lift a mom who misses her girl.

Going Forward with the Work - December 7, 2009

This week I don’t have a lot of time because I was able to down load the pictures on Walgreens but it takes forever! I don’t have a lot to say about the week because we had a lot of conferences so we were gone from our area a lot. But the conferences were really good so that was nice. Oh and I can see pictures on Walgreens so if you want to randomly download some of the family and the kids. The first conference was just for our zone, which is the Santa Cruz zone, and we talked about numbers and concerns and had a workshop. The other one was a Christmas party thing we went with Pres. Anderson and we had talks and lunch and games and a gift exchange. It was way fun! But it lasted all day so we didn’t do any work that day :( so I have good news.

First- this one starts out as bad news. My first baptism- Ronnie, we thought he wasn’t going to be able to get baptized the day we planed for because he couldn’t remember the last time he had coffee and they have to wait 30 days. So we were so sad and canceled his interview with the district leader. Then we were talking to him and said you really need to remember when you last had coffee because it is going to change you baptismal date. Then he said I can’t remember but it was when Sis. Hanks was here which is the sister before me and I had been in the Philippines for 30 days! Yeah! so he was able to get baptized on the planed day. He is 18 and he was super excited! It was so cute, he was baptized by a recent convert that goes teaching with us and it was just awesome.  
If I have enough time to send all my pictures today and you see the ones of the baptism Ronnie is the one closest to me and Francis is the one who baptized him and he is closer to Sister Clave. He bore his testimony after and I understood a lot of it because it was short and simple but it was great and so sweet! The spirit was so strong I loved it!

Two- this is a little bit sad but mostly happy for me. They are splitting our area! We have so many referrals they are bring in Elders to Peate, which is a part of my area, and our area will now be smaller. So I have to give up some members and some investigators that I love and I'm sad about that, but I am super excited because the work is growing and it is amazing!!!!! I’m so happy that will happen on transfer day, which is the 18th.

So I hope everything is okay with Paul and the Browns! And that everything else is going well at home! I love you all so much!

About Christmas I was going to give you some options but if you can call me that works out great! My mission president talked to us about it and he said we can call whenever we want that week so you decided what will be better when everyone can be there and everything like that Christmas the day before or the day after whatever works best for you! Just let me know so that I can have the phone that I need to get. I will just use a members phone so I will get the number and send it next week. Just let me know when your calling (in my time) it is up to you! Really I want everyone to be there and be able to talk and I can do it whenever. I can also talk for as long as we want! Pres. just said don’t stay on the phone because you can but have good converse with everyone. He said you can’t put a time limit on family! He is so awesome! Next week I will give you the number and if I don’t get all the pictures I will do that too. I love you! Sorry I don’t have a lot more to say but I have do get these pictures going.

Oh one other thing I will have to tell Sister Smiths mom to go on missionary moms because I love Sister Smith. She and her companion stayed over at our apartment the other night because they live farther away from where we were going the next morning so we had a sleepover haha. It was funny and we made smores and Sister Smith talked to me about the struggles of Tagalog. haha I’m not the only one having a hard time. I just need to put my trust in the Lord he will guide me all the way! The work is amazing and the Church is true! I love it!

One more thing, I committed my first investigator to baptism and he accepted! yay! But he is in Peate so the Elders will just have to make sure it goes through! I will let you know.

So I love you! take care and thank you for all your love and support!

until next week!

Love, Sister Andreasen

Another Amazing Week! - November 30, 2009

I am happy to report that this week we still had good numbers for church - 19! So that is good! We set four more baptismal dates we have one this Friday, Ronnie Basuel. His sister Jen was baptized before I got here. She is great but I guess Ronnie was secretly listening to all her lessons and his sisters caught him reading the Book of Mormon!  When I first met him he didn’t say much but now he is opening up more and he is really excited for his baptism on the 5th! Me too! He even went teaching with the ward missionaries on Sunday! We had a Family Home Evening at a member’s house and we had I think 5 of our youth investigators there! We are having another one tonight in Peate, last night it was in Pakil. We are also teaching Aerol and Erica. They are so cute Aerol is only 13 and pretty much takes care of about 5 siblings! He is so sweet! We taught them and they live up this little hill and it was raining, which is so weird it being the Philippines and everything (haha). Anyway he held my hand the whole way down the hill so I didn’t fall it was so sweet! And I would have fallen if he wasn’t helping me!  There is so much mud here it is "winter" and they don’t get snow they get winter mud! I fell once but it wasn’t bad. The youth that were teaching with us thought I was going to cry.  They are all so funny! So Sis. Gaseja isn’t going to get baptized on the 19th but Rodel is. I think she is still hoping that her husband will come back and is waiting but I don’t know. She says it is because of her youngest kids. But Rodel is coming to church and he is a good example for his mom. Then her cousin who is a little bit older than Rodel her name is Jonabeth is getting baptized on the 12! We then have baptisms planned for the 26 of December and the 7th of Jan! I'm so excited! We are also working to get one sister to set a baptismal date Sis. Susa (that is her first name) she knows its true but says she wants to study more. I think she doesn’t want to make the change because her husband dosen't want to listen to the lessons. So we are just working to help her have faith. I told her something I realized in the MTC. I was 8 when I got baptized and although I grew up going to church and I knew it was true I didn’t fully understand and know the doctrine but I have learned and I love the choice that I made and I know I made that choice because I had faith and felt in my heart it was true.  I just told her that if she feels that it is true she should take that step of faith and be baptized and the Lord will help her in her trials and will help her learn more. So we are working on that one. We are teaching so many new people each day it is hard for me to keep track I really wish we could go on splits but I don’t know how to teach very well and so I need to stay with Sis. Clave. But the Lord will help us!

The other night I was having a hard day we had so much to do and I am always tired! But we just keep going, I just got upset with myself because I just want to help these people and I cant understand them a lot and I can’t express everything I think and feel. So I was frustrated. We didn’t have a lot of time for morning study because we had so many appointments for the day and we had a Family Home Evening and Sis. Clave told me the night before at 9:30 that I was teaching the lesson. I got really nervous and I had no idea what these youth needed to hear and I couldn’t really go over the words I wanted to in Tagalog. So I was having a hard day and we were walking to the Family Home Evening and we had picked up our investigators and were walking. I said a quick prayer because I was so nervous and I just asked for more faith and help to know that I'm not the one teaching I don’t need to be worried! I know that but you know me I like to worry so I just said that prayer in my heart and then Erica grabbed my hand as we were walking and I knew that that was the answer it was a simple thing but I realized that the Lord is always holding our hand and there to help us we just have to be willing to realize it and not push it away out of fear! I said another prayer in my heart after that and walked holding Erica’s hand to the Family Home Evening! She is so cute! Then I gave my lesson and I was more nervous because the youth aren’t afraid to laugh at me. But the Lord helped me say the things I needed to say and I stumbled through some parts and of course Sister Clave helped me with words but for the most part the Lord was helping me all the way! I am a worrier to a fault and I have realized here that I need to rely on the Lord and know that if I am doing what I should he will help me and strengthen me. I did say something funny and the youth laughed but so did I. I knew it was wrong and then I corrected it but the Lord had helped calm me so much that I knew the youth weren’t laughing at me to make fun of me but just because sometimes it is funny to hear. I undertsood through the help of the lord and He is helping me to see so much that I am not teaching at all it is Him.  The spirit teaches not me and when I rely on it I can say what needs to be said. I am so grateful for that.

I still struggle with Tagalog everyday and I can’t wait to understand these people! But for now I just rely on the Lord to help me say and understand what he needs. We went to a members house the other day to help him understand what he needs to do because he will be teaching the new member lessons to one of our recent converts and so we helped him and he feed us. He said that I seem to be doing well and that gave me a lot of comfort he says that this area gets a lot of new missionaries and he said that you can usually tell that they are struggling but he said it doesn’t seem like I'm struggling which I felt so good about because I am but others shouldn’t know that.  I am here to help them not the other way around they are helping me so much and I know the Lord is helping me and so I just try to show how happy I am to be here and how much I love them even when the language is hard and I don’t understand them.

One Nanay in the ward tries to talk to me all the time and she talks so fast and I have no idea what she is saying and I feel bad but just have to laugh after because I just smile at her haha. Sometimes I feel like Marvin from finding Nemo "its like there trying to speak to me I know it" I say that in my head and just laugh when I can’t do anything else. Not out loud and not in their faces but I just try to stay positive! Because I would just go crazy if I didn’t. That is another reason I love Sister Clave we learn to laugh at things and just enjoy the time even though we have so many people to teach and no time and we are always tired we just smile and say we can do it!

Our numbers are not normal for the Philippines! We have high numbers. The APs talked to us and said that we are the example for the San Pablo Mission!  It is crazy! The Lord really wants me to stretch myself and learn how to do things faster because we have to teach teach teach! work work work! But it makes the days go by so fast I cant believe it! I have almost been here for a month! Wow! It is crazy!

I love it! Everyone is so kind and our members are so helpful that is why we have such high numbers! But I'm just excited because so many people want to hear the message and even if they all don’t get baptized at least they are able to hear a little bit of the word of God and a seed will be planted and maybe some other time they will want to know more and come unto the fold of God! So as long as we just keep teaching the Lord will help the people!

So one of the American Elders is sick he got something from the water and he was in the hospital over night but I think he is doing better now, it just made me more aware of what I eat and drink. But don’t worry I just drink water from our house and we have these really awesome filters every missionary apt does I will show you when I send pics next week. I have my pics but I'm not sure if I can go to walgreens.com or not so I will see and if so then I will send them next week. I will talk to pres. this week and ask him! I got your package thank you so much! It has already been great! Although all the Elders that were around were disappointed because there wasn’t any food!  They said what kind of package is that haha. I said a great one! Hairspray! Baby powder, face wipes! Yes! They just laughed at me and called me a girl. Thanks for sending stuff for Sister Clave she will love that. I thought of some more things that you can send I know you already sent the other package so if you don’t send this stuff for a while I understand because its expensive don’t worry! But if you could send me another pillowcase. We had sheets in the MTC and so I didn’t realize until now that my set of green sheets that I have don’t have the pillowcase with them so I only have one. Then the other thing is going to be a little hard to explain they are like socks but you cant see them when you wear flats. They just go over your toes a little bit and don’t go up any further they are light more like nylon material. They would be great! I think it would help my feet! I think it is just that there is so much moister and we walk a lot! But I don’t usually get blisters anymore I have a tiny one right now but its okay!

Thank you for all your encouragement. Tell Danielle I love her and I want an announcement and pics!!!!!!  And tell her I wish I could have been there but I'm so happy to be here! Tell them both that I love them and wish them all the best! Tell Jill congrats! I'm so happy for her she will be in my prayers! Thank you for the pics of Sister Lapana it also had other Elders in my district at the MTC! It was great! The Ensign is amazing! I'm so excited to try and find time to fit it in.

So I'm sorry about my spelling and everything I am trying to type fast and get everything in and I think I am forgetting how to spell and speak in English I'm in a phase of forgetting English and not knowing Tagalog!  Sorry! I couldn’t spell to begin with! Ahh.  I hope you understand! I love you all so much! Thank you for all your love and care and everyone else who thinks to ask about me tell them I love them! I love the story about the kids and that Lizzy can say my name! Yay!!!!! I love them all give them hugs and kisses for me!!! I love you so much!!!!

Love,

Sister Andreasen

An Amazing Week - November 23, 2009

It is so great to hear from you each week! I don’t think about it till pday and then I get way excited that I will be hearing from you!

I love the story you used in seminary that was great! This week was such an amazing week for numbers! I couldn’t believe it we had more service for relief goods and people came to the church and we also had many members give us referrals! So this week we had 40 referrals and contacted 20 of them it was amazing! We have so many new investigators we can hardly keep track! We were worried about the investigators because they weren’t coming to church and so Sis. Clave and I had a fast and it was amazing to see what happened! We had 25 investigators at church on Sunday!!!!!!! Wow! The members didn’t know what to do because there weren’t enough seats and we had to change the gospel principles room because we had too many people there! The Lord truly does bless His missionaries! I am feeling it everyday!

We are also getting in to homes we haven’t gotten in before! When the sister before me was in this area one lady wouldn’t let us teach her. It is one of our member’s moms. John Mark is his name, but she wants us to teach her family and even had us over for lunch! It was so sweet! We contacted a man named Rebert and he said we could come back and teach him but then he had to take care of his brother’s children and so he and his wife set another appointment with us and they asked if they could feed us too! We hadn’t even taught them yet!

Then another member of the church Clement we went to see him and his mom also had us eat with them and wants to be taught! It is amazing the doors that are opening! The Lord is really leading our work and providing away for us to find so many people!

The members are a big part of that! Help the missionaries! It is so important we have so many member referrals! Then they come with us to teach them too! They are so awesome! We almost always have youth and young adults that want to help us! They come with us when we teach and bear strong testimonies and a lot of them are resent converts and or preparing for a mission!

The lord is truly helping us!

Sis. Gaseja the women I was talking about before was able to come to church and she stayed for all three hours it was great! We are hoping that she will be baptized with her son on the 19 of Dec. she knows its true and I know that being a member of the church will just bless her and help her to grow. It will also help her with her temporal needs I know it!

The people here are so humble yet so ready to give! They love so willingly and they are so kind to the missionaries! All the little kids always say hi to us and run up to shake our hands and bless us! They are so cute!

I still am not very good at Tagalog but I can feel the Lord giving me so much help during our lessons I know that he loves me and he loves those we teach he wants them to hear the truth and when I rely on him and don’t worry about the fact that I am not the best in Tagalog he always gives me help and I can feel the spirit and I know he is working through me to help these people here in the Philippines! The work is amazing and the Church is true! We have a Savior who lives and loves us and I know he knows each person personally! He knows every struggle and every worry and is just waiting for us to act in faith so that he can help us! As we trust in him and do what we should he will lead and guide us every step of the way. That is still something I need to work on because I know I am weak and I know I can’t do it alone, sometimes I worry because I am weak but that is when I struggle the most so I just put my trust in the Lord and work! Then He leads me and helps me.

I am still working on getting used to the food and I am trying to help my companion with cooking, but she is just so much better than me. Haha. I am also trying to get used to all the bugs and it is all right. Lamen and Lemuel are still in our apartment (those are the mice, yes two! they have new names because they are not good!) The jeepneys are getting more normal for me and I don’t really mind riding them. I don’t like the tricycles! But it’s okay. My clothes are fine I sweat a lot but I think I might get a couple cool dresses made for me sometime. I don’t know how to do that though. Haha. I am fine though it is funny some days are worse than others which I knew would happen but I seem to be more hot inside then out. If they don’t have a fan it is way hot in the houses.

The Philippines is an amazing place I love it here! I don’t even know how to explain how much I love the people. The Lord is allowing me to feel endless love for these people and it is great! I will always love the Philippines! They are all so sweet! I struggle with Tagalog but I am getting a lot of help from my companion and the girls that going teaching with us a lot!

It is so great to hear from you all I love you so much! I am glad everything is going well it is good to hear about what Kristy, Heather, Michael and their families are doing. I love to hear about the kids too! I'm so excited Elaina had her baby! Tell them I say congrats and I can’t wait for pics!!!! Thank you so much! Give him a kiss for me. I see a lot of pregnant ladies here and they are all so cute! The kids are so cute and I just want to hug them and hold them so bad! Everyone’s eyes here are brown, so they think my eyes are so beautiful! But the little kids eyes always remind me of my nieces and nephews and all their brown eyes! I love it!

I hope grandma is doing well! I am eating more seafood here so when I come home I will want to be more adventurous at Red Lobster haha. Tell grandma and grandpa thank you for all their help and support! I love them so much!

Thank you for supporting me in every way! My companion hasn’t received a letter from home except one telling her about the bad things her mom is doing! I know she worries about her family and I know that they aren’t very supportive and it makes me sad. But it also gives me an even greater sense of appreciation for all that you have done for me and continue to do for me thank you for all your support financially and spiritually!!!!! You have given me so much strength in my life and everyday I thank my Father in Heaven for giving me parents that support and love me and that have lead they way for me to follow and that have made correct choices so that we can be together forever! Thank you I love you and am so excited that I can say we are a forever family!!!!!!!! I love you!!!!!

Love, sister Andreasen

Working Hard and Trying to Adjust - November 16, 2009

Hello Family!

 So next week I think I will be sending email addresses, can you forward my emails to the people that I give you addresses for?

So I loved your last letter it is so good to hear from you I really needed it! Last week was a big trial! It is hard to readjust but I am doing great with the Lords help. The days are hot and some days get long but pmg says that diligence is work even if you are tired and I am doing just that! It is the hardest work I have every done. When I come home at night I am so tired because we have walked a lot, it has been hot, and I have been trying so hard to learn Tagalog.

I am speaking it all the time and am trying to do more. It is the hardest on pdays because that is when we see the other elders from America. But it is okay because my companion is helping me so much. We always do some type of reading from pmg or the scriptures in Tagalog. It is awesome. Tagalog is hard. Haha. But I love it and I cant wait to learn it more so that I can help the people here.

Speaking of here. Sorry I realized I didn’t tell you about my area after I was off the comp. I am in Pakil! I love it here! It is a big area and it is a little of both to answer the question about city or rural. I love the people in my area they are all so kind we have a dinner apt on Tuesday with a family we haven’t even taught yet we met this guy while tracting and he said to come back so we did and then they couldn’t have a lesson to be honest I'm not sure why but we set up an apt and they said they would feed us! They are so sweet!

One lady we are teaching is Marites Gaseja! She is my favorite so far! She has such a strong testimony and she reads the Book of Mormon and she writes her feelings and thoughts and she always writes about what we talk to her about. She has three kids under the age of 10 and their dad left her about a year ago she is still hoping he will come back. We want her to be baptized but she hasn’t been to church because in order to support her family she has to work on Sundays. We are working on helping her with that so she can come to church and be baptized! She said she will do all she can to come and if they don’t have food she will have to work harder! She is so sweet and I know that as she puts her faith in the Lord he will provide a way for her to come to church and support her family.

We are teaching a lot of people they are so amazing they are all so nice and patient with me as I stumble through my teachings! I can feel the spirit and that is the most important thing. We have a lot of people who we are teaching that are reading the BoM and keeping commitments except the commitment to go to church! Which is the most important so that is what we are focusing on now.

One sister we teach is named Susa she is very kind and she has two cute children, she is progressing well but she doesn’t want to go to church because her husband doesn’t want to come. He isn’t listening to the lessons but we went over the other night and he listened to us and after we had a family home evening! It was great!

The members in the Pakil branch are so sweet! They always want to help and the youth and ysa are so close they have activities together. They are really involved in missionary work. I wish I could have really good conversations with all of them but they aren’t because I'll start to talk to them and then I wont know what they are saying. Haha. But they are amazing. Maryanne and Laiza May are sisters who are 15 and 13 they are recent converts and come teach with us a lot. Also John Mark and Francis come sometimes! It is really nice to have their strong testimonies and to be able to see them grown because they were just recently baptized. Especially Francis because he was just baptized right before I got here.

They are all so great! They like to laugh at me and usually it is funny but sometimes it is hard because I want so badly to talk to them. I am still adjusting but it is going well. Once I have the language down I will be able to do so much more. But I am actually picking out things I want to buy for food find streets and remembering people so that is good!

The food is good and bad! Everyone said it is the best. I have found that some things are good and somethings are not! Haha. I love bananas! And then my companion is helping me to make food. I also just tried this root plant I'm not sure what it is called but it was really good! I have also had some fish, which was all right, and some muscles, which were really good! The food is really good when it has the right seasoning on it but when it is plain it isn’t so good. My companion always tells me that I don’t eat a lot but I'm just not as hungry here. Everyone tries to make me eat more. Haha.

Well today we climbed this mountain and when I say mountain I mean a mountain! Really! It was one of the hardest things that I have ever done physically! I can’t believe I even made it I will show you pics some time. They are really expensive though so I don’t know how much money is in my account and I haven’t been able to go to an atm but I think it is all in pesos anyway so I wouldn't really know. So can you check on that please I'm just a little worried? You know me haha. Not really worried but I just want to make sure I don’t have only $5 in there. Which if I do something is wrong. Haha. Anywoo, enough about money!

The mountain we climbed was beautiful I could see my whole area! It was amazing! Then we had lunch as a district!

Who are amazing! The elders in our district are so nice and they always help me with my Tagalog. The American elders always make me feel better too because they help me know I'm not the only one having a hard time with Tagalog.

I'm learning more. It is easier to understand some things now. I just do my best. Thank you for the package that will be great! I'm going to ask my mission president’s wife is I can leave the wood stuff I get you at their house until I leave, missionaries leave stuff there a lot. So then I won't have to worry about carrying it all around San Pablo with me.

I will have to send you a copy of our mission song it is pinaka-the best! Haha that just means the best it is Taglish I thought it was just something said in the mtc but the Filipinos say it too!

Our area has milk; it is one of the few because it is hard to keep things cold here so they don't have a lot of milk. I got some and it is so good! I don’t know why it is so different here but I like it!

My companion helps me know what I should and shouldn’t get. When I am a little worried about food I ask her what her last companion (an American) had or did so that I know for sure. Haha. I had the chance to try some chicken feet, head, intestines, or blood but I past. Haha. I figure if I really need to have any of that stuff it will just be at a member’s house and then I will have to eat it. Oh and mom, don’t worry most of the stuff isn’t straight blood! It is mixed with milk and made into a type of sauce. It isn’t against the wow or members couldn’t have it and missionaries do. It’s approved. However that doesn’t mean I am going to have any!!!!!!! Trust me! Only if I absolutely have to. Which I think won’t happen. So we tracted this one family who is way far up this mountain and I was struggling, but today was worse and I know I will feel it even more tomorrow! ahhh! Haha! It will be crazy!

So we have meetings in our apt. They are called CIOA meetings, yes that stands for critters in our apt. meetings. The other night we had a cockroach, a lizard, a spider, and a mouse. The mouse has made our home his we need to buy a mouse trap today on our way home. We named him Moroni for the time being. Haha. We just have to laugh! "The church is still true!" "Yes it is" has become the phase of me and my companion!

I love the Philippines it is hard but it is amazing and I know that I am helping the Lord even on days when I feel like I'm just making it harder to teach I know the Lord is helping me and I know that he is allowing me to feel how much he truly does love his children here in the Philippines! I love them all so much! The children are so cute! I love them. I wish I could just give then all big hugs! They like to shake our hands and bless me. I will show you what I mean by that when I come home, yep you have to wait that long. Haha. The people are great they are why I'm here! I'm just trying to help them with all that they need because I love them!

For Christmas I would just like pics of the family and letters! A little money would be nice so I can buy some things here. Right now I am in the wood carving area so that is why I ask about all the wood stuff because this is where you get it. Umm some other things that I would like, Ziploc bags if they have some that are bigger than the two normal that would be great from my journal because it is bigger than the big size and I don’t want it to get messed up if it gets wet. Some sweet things. My companion wants to try stuff just anything you can think of. She had me try these things like vanilla wafers and she really likes them so if you could send some vanilla wafers. Then some cds of music; Hilary Weeks and maybe some children’s choirs if you have any (my companion likes them) bug spray, and if its not to heavy little candies that I can give to the little kids here.

Well I have to go I love you all so so much! take care!

I know the Church is true and it gives us so much strength! I am thankful for it and for you! I love you all so much!!!!!

Until next week!

Mahal kita, sister Andreasen

In the Philippines - November 9, 2009

Hey Family,

Well I am here. The plane ride was very long and I slept a little but it was not comfy and it wasn’t a good sleep at all. It’s okay though! It was so weird being on an Asian flight everything is in another language. I actually did really well I didn’t even cry that much when we left.

We didn’t take a bus to the mission home Pres. Anderson and Sister Anderson came to pick us up and I spent two nights in the mission home! It was so nice! They let us go to bed early and I just had some time to myself to think. The traffic here is crazy! On the way to the mission home I was thinking wow, I thought LA was bad! Everyone just pushes through and its nuts! So it was nice to stay in the mission home and the mission president talked to us about what he wants for the mission and things like that.

After I got in to the field I didn’t like that we stayed at his house! It is a false reality! I cried my first night in my apartment I know shocker! But I just had a really hard time thinking that I am actually here and I have no idea how to do anything! It is okay though! I have the best trainer in the world she is Filipino and she speaks English very well! She is such a big help! I don’t even know what food to buy or how to cook it. She is helping me. I had to get shampoo because my shampoo was too heavy for the plane. But everything here comes in individual packages. It is so funny, the dish soap, shampoo everything. So I got some of that.

I have been thinking a lot these past few days and everything is very crazy! I have no idea were to even start! Oh by the way my companions name is Sis. Clave! She is wonderful! So I don’t know Tagalog! Haha! I just have to smile and laugh about things because I have no idea what I am doing. A mission is not easy, I want so badly to share the gospel with these people and I can’t because I can’t speak but Sis. Clave is helping me with the language and she has me teach a principle or she has me bear my testimony! The MTC is nothing like the mission field! I think that in the MTC they were preparing me to serve a mission in the states! I can’t even explain how different life is here. We ride in a jeepney everywhere I will send pictures as soon as I can. It is kind of like a bus and we just jump in the back. It's crazy they smush so many people on them too! My area has a lot of flooding. Not my apt. or anything like that, but we helped with giving food for service on Friday.

Everyone says that I am beautiful here. I think I look so bad and everyone calls me maganda! It is kind of nice but besides that and a few other words I can't tell what they are saying! They talk so fast and so softly! Plus they are all mumblers. Anywoo, it is crazy but Sis. Clave again is the best and she speaks slowly and clearly and is helping me learn so much! I never want to leave her! She has made food for me and it is really good. However I have not eaten very much I don’t feel like eating here! I don’t know why. I do but I'm never hungry. I think it is the heat. Oh and I have like a zillion blisters because after I got off the plane my feet were swollen! My shoes don’t fit, Sis. Anderson said it happened to her too, I just need to wait for them to go down.

It is weird because I am so quiet here! I want to talk more and I try to do what they taught me in the MTC but then I have no idea what people are saying back to me so I cant just talk all the time right now but I'm trying my hardest.

So funny story. We went to a baptism for another area in our zone and Sis. Clave didn’t have her money so she asked if we could go back to the apt. I said oh I have money. But I didn’t know that two of our ward missionaries were coming too and that we pay for them so we didn’t have money to get back. Then when we were about to head home (getting some money from the elders) I went to get my flashlight and it didn’t work. Can you please send batteries? Oh and baby powder, and Tums- the wintergreen flavor. They are used as calcium and I like those ones. That would be great. I haven’t had any stomach problems YET! but I haven’t eaten much either. I am drinking a lot of water. There are filters in every apt. It’s really nice! I have a shower and a toilet and t.p.! yes it is amazing but only in the apt. the church building does sometimes.

So a cockroach crawled into my shoe! Yeah it wouldn’t have been too bad except... I was wearing them!!!! Yeah it took everything in me not to scream! haha! but Sister Clave and I always say this when crazy or bad things happen "the church is still true" ... "yes, it is" I love it!

So the people here are soo sooo nice! Whoever said that is right I just don’t know what they are saying. They are so humble, the humblest of living conditions it is crazy! I am so blessed! I can’t believe it sometimes. A lot of the moms are single that we have met. It is so sad! The dogs are pretty sad to see too! You can see their skin and it’s all pink and nasty it is so sad. We aren’t a loud to touch them or any animal! I wouldn’t want to though. People just start going to the bathroom on the street and people here don’t wash their hands. Kids sometimes run around naked. I feel so bad because their rice fields here are all flooded! I just want to help the people so much we are so lucky to live in America and I think about that all the time.

This has been the best experience of my life! It is crazy! I know that it is only going to get better!

It is really hard but it will be wonderful! I know that the language will come and I just have to be patient! It is so hard but I love it! Oh and it is so beautiful here!

Besides all that I am doing great mom! It is hard! I won’t lie to you and I am struggling but the lord has given me so many blessings and I have seen his hand in this work if it was easy it wouldn’t be worth it! I am learning so much and I know that I will be a much different person when I get home - for the better! I know the Lord needs me here and I’m not sure why yet but I do love it! I love the people and I just want to serve them! They make me smile and the kids are so cute! People like to laugh at me when I talk because it is funny but I know they like that I am trying to speak Tagalog! Also they always talk about me when I walk by but I don’t know what they are saying. They are so amazing! I know I’m supposed to be here! I’m so lost and confused but I know that I am where I’m supposed to be right now! My heart will always be with my home and I love you all so much so don’t be sad. I just mean that I was always supposed to come here and I’m finally here! Here for the Lord and here for the people!

I can’t even believe how much I love it here even though I have no idea what I am doing!

So I don’t know what else to write. There is so much that I know I am forgetting so ask questions. I don’t have to wear nylons but I am right now because it feels better in my shoes because of the blisters.

Anywoo. I love it, I will hopefully be able to send pics and explain more about the Philippines with the pics but for now it is all just so crazy! We were teaching a new investigator and he is so awesome! He wouldn’t talk or come out of his house for like 5 years and then when the gospel was taught to him he changed; it was great! His testimony is so strong and he talks a lot, I couldn’t understand it all but the spirit was amazing! I also have been able to teach many investigators and they are all so strong especially the youth! You would love it mom! They are so awesome they are ready and go out with the missionaries it is awesome! I love the people they have humbled me so much! It is great! I love it here but I’m struggling to adjust. It will come it is just completely different I truly understand the meaning of foreign!

Well I love you all! I’m sorry I didn’t get to say I love you to Heather before the phones cut out! I love you all you have helped me so much through out my whole life and really are a strength in the field! Please write! It won’t get to me for a while but please write I can’t wait to hear from you! I love you all so much! It is crazy! Tell everyone I love them. I love you all, I will tell you more next week after my first full week. I love you all!

Last Letter From The MTC - November 2, 2009

Hey Family! Last letter in the MTC I am freaking out a little bit but it is a good freaking out. I love you and I will call you from the airport. I think I will most likely call from LAX so it will be later in the evening, I will call home and then your cell if that doesn’t work. I was hoping Kristy and the kids could come by I understand if it is too late a notice. I might call Heather too but I will have to get her number from you. I love you and have a lot to tell you. This week has been crazy just trying to get everything done and get prepared. I don’t feel nearly as prepared as I should be but I know the lord will help me because I am doing His work! I am so excited to get out in the field but I will truly miss the MTC! It has been such an amazing experience! I will miss my companions and I will miss my district this is the last time I will see a lot of them for at least two years maybe longer! Probably longer.

So do you have any tips for me? You can think about that for when I call. I really can’t believe I’m leaving it is going to be so strange. We had a class on Saturday were we said good-bye to our teachers and I cried so surprising. I know. But they showed us pictures and it was really neat! But Bro Itri showed us spiders! ahhh! Oh well I will get used to it and the Lord will help me!

So I think it is funny that the Redmond boys didn’t like the MTC though I can see why but I have heard that just within the last two years it has changed a lot! You learn a lot more and you do a lot more! Plus all the guys are excited to go and can’t wait, and I feel the same it’s just that girls get more attached than boys. I will miss my nice showers, I take a nice one after this email and I can’t wait it will be the last in a year and a half. But I heard they have some toilets and some toilet paper so that is cool I think I will have to use my hand sometimes but not all the time which I'm happy to hear!

The food seems interesting. Haha. But Bro Itri showed us some of his apartments and they look pretty nice plus I'm a sister so I think I will be okay. I think I was thinking worse then it really is. There is a cool water bottle here that I might buy at the bookstore it comes with enough filters for two years and you can’t drink from it when the filter is done. It is expensive though but I think it will be a good investment. I know I have the other one but I hope I will be drinking a lot more water than that.

How is everything at home? How are the kids with school? How is the school? How is work? How is Michael’s house? I figure that you can just be prepared to tell me all this stuff when we talk.

So I don’t know what else to say except I love you. Think of stories you want to know for when I call sorry I don’t have the time I think I gave it to you in the last email I was going to bring my flight plans but we didn’t go by the room before we came to write. So I hope I put the times down. We leave here at 4:30 I think we actually get to lax around 9 so maybe I will call if I have time in salt lake and then see what is best for you. I love you! I will be sending a package today some clothes and some other stuff you can just put it in my room it is not important because I don’t need it in the Philippines. I might but some stuff on the top for you but then you will just have to open it and get that, maybe some pics and stuff.

Well I will be talking to you later on today maybe tomorrow if that works out better I will see in Salt Lake! I love you all I'm excited! I can’t believe it! Well if you see or talk to anyone tell them to now send anything to the field. I am not sure if you can still use dear elder when i'm in the Philippines I hope so but I don’t know email to you I’m sure is fine we will see about others.

Well family I know this letter wasn’t much I am sure they will get better as I actually talk to people and experience new things in the field! Philippines here I come! Yay! Mom don’t worry the Lord will help me and provide a way just always remember that! I love you all!

Mahal kita!

Sister Andreasen

Travel Plans, Yeah! October 26, 2009

Wow! Okay so I have a week left today and you know me I'm freaking out! Haha. Anywoo so I got my flight plans! I leave Salt Lake at 8:25 pm and then leave LAX at 11:25pm then I got to Taiwan and I will be there on the fourth of November weird then we leave there at 9:30 am and get to manila at 11:45 am then I take a bus all the way to San Pablo which should be fun :/ haha. 

Goodbye MTC and Provo Temple

I am traveling with almost all the missionaries in three districts, the manila missionaries leave before us but we meet back up in Taiwan. It’s three districts so I think that is about 36 people. I have 4 missionaries that I am "travel leader" for, I just have numbers and call incase of a problem, they are the San Pablo Elders I sent a pic you should get it soon. They are way nice and said they would watch over me. So I have to assign companions and Elder Muller and Elder Hansen will be my companions to the trip to the Philippines because it is by mission then and I’m the only sister. 

San Pablo Missionaries

Elders Hansen, Muller, Johnson and Harris

So we learned a lot about luggage and I’m a little worried. Delta might charge $50 for the second bag and my carryon can only be 15 pounds on Eva which is from LA on. So I might have to send a lot of stuff home I’m not sure how I’m going to work that out. Any tips? Well I know it will be crazy but we will make it! Yay! I can’t believe I’m leaving.

I know it’s a huge shocker but I have already cried about it like 3 times haha. It’s good cry. Just excited and I’m going to miss everyone from the MTC but it will be great and I am excited to get teaching!

Thank you for everything that you have done for me and continue to do for me I love you and thank my Heavenly Father for you each day!

The spirit at the MTC is strong and I will miss that but I have learned so much here about myself and about life and about the gospel. I just want to improve everyday and come closer to the lord and do what he would have me do.

My Desk at the MTC

So I’m glad you enjoyed TOFW I was confused about what that was for a second haha. I love the joke about Michael McLean’s son! haha! I miss you all. It made me laugh so hard! Really! haha. Oh and Kenneth Cope! I’m so jealous! You know that’s my favorite song! I love it! That is funny that he reminded you of dad. I miss him. The other day one of the "senior" couples I put that in " " because your not old! But I told the wife your shoes are cute and the husband said oh thank you! It reminded me of dad because that is something cute and cheesie he would do! haha. I love you dad!

So cute about the kids and their programs! I love it! So I sent pics of Kevin and Adam and I forgot to send the doubles I have of Kevin and some of the missionaries in his district. I wanted to send it but then I thought they moved so it would be silly I don’t know. haha.

Anyhoo life at the MTC is fun and crazy! And I don’t know how I’m going to leave and I just know that the Lord will have to strengthen me because I cant talk to the Filipinos without his help! It will be amazing!

The Classic Picture at the Map

So I don’t have a lot of time because we have more to do today then ever we have one last p-day but that is the day we leave! I’m just trying to study hard and get prepared.

Sometime will you send me an English copy of the general Conf. Ensign? I know you will have to send it to the Philippines and I’m sorry but I think the only ones we get are the Tagalog ones I will see and let you know if that changes.

So I’m really excited!!!!! That is kinda my life right now at the MTC.

Oh we are hosting again this Wed! So last time and its nuts we also get roommates but it will be for about 5 days. But that is going to be nuts because we are used to a room of three and we will all be packing! It will work out though I’m excited because it is a group of three like us!

Well I hope everyone is doing well. I should be sending a letter out to Kristy and Heather before I leave I just sent one to grandma. And then Jill and Tom get one too. Thank you for the package by the way it was nice! Haha shared with my comps.

Oh and everyone loves Grandma Andreasen because she sent a huge box of cookies and I couldn’t possibly eat them by myself so I shared and everyone loved them and so did I thank you grandma love you!

So I don’t know what else you want to know I wish I could tell you more about what I’m learning but time is short and I am trying to get as much info in as possible.

Thank you for the towel I rushed to send that email in the last seconds I had because I thought you were going to order them as a set. Haha. I didn’t know if they would make it so I hurried sorry if it was commanding. I love you! Thank you for the towel I appreciate it! I think I’m sending my pink one home because it is way heavy and takes up a lot of room. I will send you a letter that is in Tagalog before I leave or at least from Salt Lake or LA. I love you all so much! Ask everything you want to know before I leave in the next letter because I don’t know how long it will be before I write you an email. I can write one more next Monday so just let me know everything before than! I love you!

Pagmamahal,

Sister Bethany Andreasen!

Following the Spirit October 19, 2009

Kamusta!

  How is everything? It is so good to get letters from everyone I love it! It really does make my day! So things here have been so great! The Lord truly does know what we need and helps us to grow and lifts us back up when we fall. I was struggling with the language and with my companions but everything is much better now! I just said a lot of prayers and I talked with them and the Lord will help you do anything! He helped me know what to say and everything is wonderful it will be sad to leave them! Yeah that is coming so soon! It is crazy! It doesn’t seem like in two weeks I will be leaving! It is crazy! I get my flight plans on Thursday so I will tell you what the plan is next Monday!

So we hosted and it was so funny! We get to help all the new missionaries! I didn’t get any pics though :( but good news! We get to do it again this wed! Yay! So we have 6 new sisters in our zone! Yay! And some of the new elders are going to San Pablo! One is really nice his name is Elder Davis.

So I loved what you put in from Kennedy's mom! That is great! What is her last name again? Oh and I know Sister Adams she is in the other zone but we still see each other a lot because it is all Tagalog. She told me her mom wrote her about me before I got your letter she really liked my quote.

That is exciting to hear about Jose! I wish that I was able to write him I didn’t know his mom worked at the school or I would have asked for his address. Well I can see him when I get home. haha. anywoo, let me know how he is doing and tell him I say hi.

So the T.A. this week was good! It was the first lesson and the guy, Tyler was really nice, he had been home from his mission for 10 years so he was older and really helpful! I am doing better with the language I still struggle but I know that the Lord will help me!

So I got to go to the R.C. the call center on Sat. and Sun., and I have to people that I am going to call back on, Marva on Sat. and Jinny on Sun.! I am so excited! They are way nice I sent Marva a Book of Mormon and was trying to get on to jinny but she didn’t have time to talk because she was going to work.

So I love the end notes of my letter about things that the kids did! I love it!!!!!! Keep sending those! Plus I loved their letters! Thank you so much for the packages you have sent! They have all been really helpful and I love them!

Don’t worry about the skirt. If you don’t finish it its okay! You don’t need to send anything else but if you see a nice dress that might work that would be good. Because I only have one and I love the dress! But if not no worries! Really! If you do end up sending something will you send Aussie hairspray it is the scrunching spray and I realized it works great from doing my hair quickly! But it might be expensive to send because of weight so don’t worry about it if it is too much!

I love you all! Last weeks package was great! Pictures, letters, and stuff I needed! Amazing!

Dad thank you so much for you letter and the wonderful things you taught me! I love you so much! Thank you for always being the best dad in the world! I really do appreciate it! You are the closest thing I have to Heavenly Father in this life and I am so blessed to have my Dad! Be you!!!!! I love you so much and am thankful for you every day of my life! I will always be your baby! My dads little girl! Thank you for the song too!!!!

Mom, thank you for always inspiring me to do and be better! Thank you for always being the great example of a daughter of God and showing me how I should live my life! I look up to you so much and hope that one day I might be as wonderful as you, know as much as you, and have the spirit that you have! Thank you for teaching me and letting me feel of that spirit! You have always helped me to understand more and to be there to answer my questions! Thank you! I love you so much I am blessed to have the most wonderful parents a girl could ask for! You have done so much for me and I hope that all I do makes you proud!

I love you!

Thank you grandma Beverly for your letters! I didn’t know you were in dc! I love you and sorry but I just got the post card so I haven’t been able to read it yet. But I love you and am so blessed to have your love! Thank you so much!

Grandma Andreasen sent me another package full of goodies! I’ll lose all the weight I have gained when I get to the Philippines! But they look really good and it is a huge package so my district will love it too! haha! I love you all!

So I don’t have a lot of time but if sent Jolene a letter and a Book of Mormon and I hope that it touches her I just got a letter today but haven’t read it so I will let you know next week! Tell Jill (if you have a hair party) haha that I love her and love their family! I think it is time for them all to come back to church! I hope! So we will see!

I love you all so much! I know that the Lord needs me here and I am so blessed to have that honor! alam ko na totoo ang ebanghelo ni jesucritso! Alam ko na totoo ang aklat ni mormon! Alam ko na pamilya walang hanggang! I love you all so much, the church is true! Sorry that testimony is so simple! But it is true I will write more later I am running out of time! I love you all so much give the kids kisses and hugs!

Kamusta Pamaliya! (How are you Family) October 12, 2009

So I have been doing much better this past week.  It has been really good, I talked to my teacher Sister Hawkes and I also talked to my companions so everything is better.   Sorry to worry you, I was just getting down on myself and lacking faith, which is not good.  I still don’t feel I am at the place I want to be with the language but I don’t know if that will come while I’m at the MTC.  I just know that the Lord will help ne and that I can do anything he needs me to do as I work hard and trust in Him!  Thank you for the scriptures mom I love those ones!

This week has just been fun; Elder Staples has been so out of it and has been saying really weird things.  He said his mom got the pics and liked them a lot that was really estig! (Meaning cool haha).  So you should keep talking to her because that is fun and I won’t know what is going on with him and Elder Taylor in about three weeks!  Ahhhhh can you believe it!  I only have three more weeks at the MTC!  I have so many emotions going on, it is pretty crazy!  I’m excited and scared out of my mind haha.  I’m just staying focused and trying to learn as much as I can because it flies by.

Elder Adams Sister Andreasen and Elder Fox

 I got pics with Elders Weichers, Fox and Adams I should be sending those soon!  I’m excited, they are so cute!  Elder Weichers left last week and Elder Adams left today and Elder Fox leaves next week! Not fair haha!

Elder Weichers and Sister Andreasen

 
It’s okay because the Philippines will be amazing and I know that is where the Lord needs me.  Because I know he needs me there I know He will help me in all that I do so I don’t need to worry.  Haha, you know me I just worry but I’m just leaning on the Lord for a lot of help!

Oh one thing fun that happened this week is we walk to the temple every Sunday and one of the elders was standing on the railing of a fountain, I was just about to tell him that he should get down (he is in our zone so it wouldn’t have been weird) but right as I was about to say something he started to slip and fell into the fountain.  It was sad but it was funny too and he laughed so it’s okay.  I think everyday is spiritual, you just learn something new all the time, and it’s great.  Oh, we watch movies Sunday nights I watched the Testaments again last night, I cry every time, it is so good.  It’s fun I really like the Joseph Smith movie as well and I have been able to watch Legacy and Mountain of the Lord, it is nice.

Oh, I think I forgot to tell you!  So, the people we teach on Thursdays in the Teaching Appointments are all just people who come in.  Well, last Thursday we got to teach Brother Murray!  Our old teacher!  Yeah!!  It was so fun!  Sister hawkes gave him to us (the sisters) it was awesome.  Elder Taylor and Elder Staples weren’t to happy with us though hahaha!  We all just love him so much!  So we have three districts in our zone and every district got a new district leader so now Elder Goodson is our district leader not Elder Hopkins it is weird but just change, just to keep you posted.  Also some of the other districts had to make companion changes because companions weren’t getting along.  Sad!  No one in our district because we are pinika-the best!  Haha really that is saying the best the best but it is just a taglish phrase used at the MTC.

MTC District

Oh, I took a picture with some of the San Pablo Elders from a different district and so I will send that.

Bethany With

San Pablo Elders

I miss you all so much!  Randomly we will see little kids at the temple or just visitors of MTC workers and I want to go give them hugs because I miss the kids but every time I look at one I think wow, how did I get so lucky to have the cutest nieces and nephews in the world!!!  Talaga! That means really!!! They are kaibig-ibig, adorable!  I was talking about family last week.   So yes, I talked about all of you it was wonderful!

We taught in Tagalog and I was super terrified, but it went well, I will be glad to know that my companion will know a lot more than me, not to say that I won’t talk, just to know that she will help me understand the people we teach.  I just hope she speaks English too!

I was excited to get a letter from Heather and Kristy this week! I have missed them so much and am glad to hear from them, I am going to try and send something out to them.  I also didn’t know that Kristy and Wyatt had the swine flu I just thought they were sick; I am glad that is gone!  (Kristy, I loved the pig comment!  I burst out laughing, it was pretty fun) although I am at the MTC and it seems things that aren’t that funny are always more funny here.  But it was funny.

Tell me what the kids are saying!  I would love to hear cute quotes from them and know what is going on with them.  Especially as Lizzy starts talking more that is so crazy she will be so big when I get home!  Show all the kids pictures of me so they don’t forget!!!

Grandma thank you for always writing me!  I know I haven’t been the best at individual letters but thank you for yours!  I do love them.  I was thinking you could also add just a little bit of your family history on  to the bottom of your letters that would be fun!  Not a lot because I don’t have a lot of time but it would be fun to read that when I get your letters.  I’m glad that you were able to see Fred!  I meant to have you tell him hi and that I love him!  I hope he had a nice trip and I’m glad that you all had a good time with him.

Well, I need to do laundry and get some other stuff done!  I love you all.  Oh, mom would you send me information about the Philippines?  I’m not scared I already know and it would be great to know a little bit more!  It’s so sad!  Oh, Michael how is the house?  Hope all is well!

I love you all and will write more next week, have a great week remember to share the gospel and invite others to come unto Christ!!!

Mahal ko kayo!

Sister Andreasen

Faith to Meet Challenges - October 5, 2009

Okay so this has been a crazy week!  I only have about a month left at the MTC and I don't think it is even close to enough time to learn everything I would like to know.
I'm not going to lie, I am having a hard time with the language and it is a little frustrating!  But don't worry I am staying positive and know that the Lord will bless me.  Elder Holland has a quote in PMG that says everyone speaks one language and that is the language of the spirit so as long as I keep studying and putting my faith in the Lord I will be able to do whatever He needs me to do!
I am having a hard time with my cops this week.  Not that I don't love them and think they are amazing but they like to talk about Polynesian things a lot and I don't really know anything.  Sister Betts learns the language really fast because her family would speak around her so even though she doesn't know it she has heard it and so I can't really study with them and it has just been a challenge.  But I'm working through it. I love them all!  It's like having three companions because Sister Tui is still here because of  her passport problems so it's a little weird but I am doing okay, just pushing through.  We are Tagalog only now!!!!!  Ahhhhh.  That is what we are teaching in this week and I will just say it is going to be a very short lesson.  I'm nervous about only Tagalog but excited because even though it will be hard it will be helpful and I will learn more.
So the Philippines is doing pretty bad right now!  I'm so worried for them!  It is mostly Manila and Quezon City, but I think San Pablo was hit a little bit too.  I know everything will be okay though!  The Church is already helping we heard that in conference and we are all praying everyday at the MTC!
Speaking of Conference, it was amazing, it focused so much on listening to the spirit and that is so important!  Because we can't do anything alone but with the spirit we have a power with us!  It's amazing!  Elder Holland's talk was so good! So Powerful!  I also liked the member of the seventy after him Elder Nielson I think, he talked about missionary work and it was amazing!  The Church is so true and this life is not going to be easy, it will be hard but it will be worth it and we can have so much joy through the hard time if we stay close to the Lord and the truth of the Gospel.  They also talked a lot about every day things we have to live the gospel every day, pray, study the scriptures, just remain close to the spirit and everything will be okay and we can endure joyfully to the end!  So President Eyring is also one of my favorites because he is so emotional just like me and he shares his feelings and he loves the sisters, he is so full of humility too!  He is Amazing!  I love him!  Sister Beck, wow, she had a lot she wanted to share, I think she was glad to talk to the women and tell them to keep priorities in line!  I love it!  The gospel is so important and sharing the gospel and giving that service and love!  Oh, I think one of my favorite lines was "she was a relief society woman"!  That is awesome and I love it!  Okay so I got over the young women to relief society transition but I always felt like they never talked about it and I know that some young girl was listening to that talk and was so happy!
Kevin...I mean Elder Fox is so cute!  I have seen him and  it has been so hard not to give him a big hug!

Bethany With Elder Fox and His Companion

With the food I think I'm okay, maybe I could get some fiber or something I don't know.  I have been sick the last couple days not a big deal just a nasty cold, it's been going around.  I think it is because they made me get a flu shot haha!  Anywhoo, I wasn't taking my vitamins  because when I first got here I was taking the sleeping pill and I think the combo of that and the vitamins in the morning was not good, but I have started again.
Well, I have to go clean my clothes and the computer  is going to kick me off soon!
Mahal ko kayo!!!! (I love you all)
I can't wait to see pics from home and get letters from everyone.  If you write a letter (this is to anyone) I will write back! :) it might take a little bit.  Sorry Jill and Michael I haven't written to you yet.  Tell grandma (both) that they should be getting a letter soon!  I love you all!  Next time I will write some more Tagalog  All my love,
Sister Andreasen