The weeks literally FLY by!

Hello all!!

I honestly don't know how this happens, but every Sunday night I think to myself....WHERE HAS THIS WEEK GONE?! In such a wonderful way though! :) I love every minute and the language is coming and I feel so very blessed to have this opportunity!!

I have a confession to make..... So normally I write down things from the week in my planner that I want to share....but this week I didn't write a single one.... So we're goin' from memory here, and that's a little sketchy for those of you that know I have a horrible memory. :) Tehehe whoops. :P

SO this week was amazing. We have had great success, and I have learned SOOO much from Hna Matias. She is an angel. :) I love how Heavenly Father knows exactly what we need when we need it even if we don't know it ourselves... If that makes any sense. :) We're working a lot with the ward to get things in order a bit more. We finally split the sector (which apparently has been a rule since March, but no one split this ward so we've just been working in the whole thing...) It is a little hard cause we can't visit the members in the other half of the sector anymore...but it'll be good to get to know other people as well. :) When you split a sector, you split all the members, the converts, the places where you tract, etc. So hopefully that can maybe clear things up a little bit....?

Saturday was kinda a crazy day. It started out so peacefully, everything for the baptism was in order, etc, but then 4 o'clock rolled around and things went crazy... The Elders were supposed to meet Hno Delgado at the chapel, but he didn't show up so they started to fill up the font and then went for another appointment. So Hna Matias called them to see how things were and they said they were great and not to worry. So she asked where they were and they said in an appointment, but they were supposed to be at the chapel with the font filling up.... Anywho we all but ran to the chapel, and the font was about 6 inches full and it takes about 2 hours to fill and by now it was 5 and we had an hour before it started and it was super dirty and such. Anywho needless to say I panicked a little and started talking in English and Hna Matias just looked at me...and smiled. Poor girl. Sometimes I forget where I am and that she doesn't speak English. :P So we cleaned things up and got the font filled and things were great. :) It literally was a miracle though because the font started filling super fast, which has never happened. :) Miracles I tell you. Every single day.
Pia was so excited and we were so excited for her. She had a school thing on Sunday, so unfortunately she couldn't be confirmed this Sunday, but next Sunday she will be. And she literally is counting the days. :) She is so great. :) We also had 4 investigators that could attend the baptism, so that was wonderful! Fabiola, her pololo Jorge, Julieta, and her pololo Hernan came. We found out this week that Jorge lives with Fabiola. Which is a problemo that we'll have to resolve.... But Hna Matias overheard Fabiola tell Jorge after Pia got baptized that she felt so good and wanted to be baptized too!! SO that's this week's goal: get them married, baptized, and to the temple. :) Prayers on your behalf would be so greatly appreciated. :) Otherwise, we're still finding investigators, and I'll keep you updated with that next week! :)

Okay! More on Hna Matias! She is from Huanuco, Peru and has 2 younger siblings, and of course her parents. :) They are all members, and her grandparents as well. They were the first ones to join in their family, so yes I just realized I should ask her how they met the missionaries. :) More on that next week. :) (Huanuco is close to Lima for all you that had no idea, like me. :)) This is her first time being sr comp, but she's doing great with that and we have no problems and get along so great and laugh and talk lots, which is wonderful practice for me. :)

Dad!! GUESS WHAT WE FOUND OUT?! So with our empanada lady...she and her husband are members that were baptized 15ish years ago, but of course are not active because of work on Sundays, so we're going to visit them and see what we can do to get them to church again. :) That was very exciting. :) We asked for a list of all the members in our ward on Sunday, so we can start visiting all of them for references and reactivation and such...and 31 pages of people later.... :) We're going to be very busy. :) I'm guessing that about 20 or more of those pages are less active members... Referencias!!! :D It should be good. :)

I´d better be going for now, but I love you all TONS and thank you for your constant prayers and encouragement. I appreciate it all so much. :) I know this church is true and that we are so very blessed to be alive in these the Latter Days. I know that Joseph Smith is a prophet. I have the wonderful opportunity to testify of that every single day. I know that President Monson is a prophet of God. I also know that Jesus Christ died for all of us, because He loves each one of us so very dearly. How very blessed we are to have this gospel in our lives.

Until next week!!!

Love,
Hermana Tuft
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Hello Fam Bam!

It sounds like you all are doing so great!! I loved hearing about the weekend up in Cache Valley, with the Family Reunion, and boating, and Juanito Bandito! I am so looking forward to seeing that when I get home. :D And the Mister Party Pooper Pants made me laugh so hard. :) He stole it from me, I'm telling you... :P AND SPENCER SINCE STINKIN' WHEN DID YOU GET YOUR BRACES OFF SPEAKING OF MISTER STINKER PANTS!!!!! I saw that picture and about freaked....CAUSE YOUR BRACES ARE GONE WHAT IN THE WORLD!!! So there you go my little freak out moment over email. :P I would love to hear about Timberline, and Lindsay about your escapades in Idaho & your whole nose ordeal (glad to hear it's healing well), and how was Washington, Kyle and Jess??? :) That's so exciting that graduation is coming up as well! :) Also Lindsay, do not worry. It took me forever to get up on the surfboard too, when I went last summer with the Schmidts, so it must run in the family. :) So fun though. :)  (Although Spencer didn't get his braces off...)

I love you all so much and I honestly can't say that enough. I wish I could give you all a great big HUG every single day, but alas that will have to wait a few more months/yearish. :) I love it here. Every day has it's ups and downs, and the language is coming slowly but surely, but at the end of the day when you look back, there is no place I'd rather be and nothing I'd rather be doing. It was crazy to hear that Elder Coats stopped by the house, because it was honestly last week that I saw him... I'm glad he's doing well and adjusting to "life" okay. :) He was SO scared to go home after being here for so long... I hope I won't be "scared," but it will definitely be a little bit of an adjustment. Not much, but a little. :)

I love you!!! I hope all is well, and don't forget to keep laughing and loving life! :D All my love from Chile,
Kristen
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¡¡Hola Papito y Mamita!!

¿Como estaíspo? :) I love you both. Hope you know that. :D I was reading last night in my journal from 2 months ago, and 2 months ago today was when I saw Mom in the temple! :) How the time flies. :) I wish I could respond to all of the happenings there, but I have about no time left! Needless to say, I promise I read your letters and it's usually once more throughout the week. :) So please never write less, because I hate talking to missionaries here and them saying, "Oh the letters will get shorter. Just wait, in a few months it'll be a couple paragraphs." :( So I honestly want to thank you both so much for writing all that you do. I love that you both tell your sides of the stories too, so please continue like you are... :) I know it takes some time, but I appreciate all of it so much. Thank you. :D

So with the money situation! I have yet to use my personal card, because we have a mission one that we take our monthly money out of, but there are some momentos that I want to buy to bring home, so I'll use some of my personal money for that. Nothing too fancy, but everyone tells me that things here in Arica are SO much cheaper than everywhere else in the mission... The regulator pills were the bowel pills Mom sent. :) My health is great, but sometimes it's nice to have that as well. :) I hate this whole eating so much food stuff... That is my continued problem, but all is well and I'm exercising every morning, and with Hna Matias we started going running. :) So thank heavens for that. :)

I've got to run, but my thoughts this week with my studying the Atonement and Faith was this: In Alma 34: 8-10 and 15-18 explained things so well... The Zoramites didn't believe, so they had no access to the Atonement. (Interesting that your lesson was on exactly where I'm reading, Mom!) It says, "He that exercises no faith unto repentance is exposed to the whole law of the demands of justice." We just have to exercise our faith to access the Atonement. I have more thoughts written down on that, but that's what I wanted to share! :)

Got to run!! Please tell Patti, Aunt Steph, and Megan thanks for their letters and I printed them off, but I don't have time this week to write them back!! :( Mainly just Megan I feel really bad about, because last week she wrote after I wrote home, and this week I didn't have time. :( Tell her how much I love and appreciate her letters every week though, and that Audrey is growing SOOO fast!!! She's the most adorable little girl ever. :)

I love you both so very very much. Thank you for your love, I don't think I could say that enough ¡¡¡¡¡¡¡LES AMO MUCHHHHOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Love your little Chilena,
Kristen :)