WINTER IS HERE!

Winter officially came last week.

It doesn't get above 60 degrees and in the morning when we leave, which is around 11 it's 35 degrees...brrr! I definitely will be investing in some warm winter clothes and layering. It has been raining every night as well, so we wake up and it's all foggy and misty-it's kinda creepy! I also found out that I need "REAL" rain boots, normal boots are just not cutting it. If it starts raining during the day or while were tracting, my feet are soaked and freezing! The other night we had some "baby mama drama" with one of our investigators and we stood outside in the rain for about 5 min. Needless to say, when we got back in the car I could ring my hair out with water. It was fun!

This week has been great though, kind of a rollercoaster, but it ended really well. Keri one of our investigators currently just became homeless because she won’t give up her dog. Its silly. She has assisted living available for her, but they wont allow pets and she would kill herself before she let her dog go. Our bishop tried talking to her, she received a blessing and sis. ikey and I even took her hot cocoa. Then yesterday a sweet miracle happened a one of our ward missionaries offered keri a place to sleep at night-AND- she showed up at church without us even calling her :D She says she has been a Mormon her whole life and is so thankful she is finding the truth. We feel like she needs to get her life in order a little bit more and then hopefully she can get baptized.

We also ran into another family tracting named the, Sanvigs. He is a single dad with an 11yr. old girl and a 14 yr. old boy and his wife died of breast cancer a couple years ago. Instantly for some reason I felt this strong connection with this family. He was very willing to meet with us when we first met him and set up an appt. to teach the first lesson. We came to find out that some people knew him in our ward and were his neighbors a few years back. SCORE! We showed up at his house and he made the sisters a pizza to eat for dinner. I knew I loved this family!!! We taught the first lesson and the spirit was so strong. Brother Lusk one of his friends that came with us who is a member bore a powerful witness of how the Gospel can bless your life. It was amazing, I had to hold back my tears. The daughter Olivia was eating it up. I just pray that they were able to recognize the feeling they to were having. I know this family has so much potential. I have never felt so much love for a family before and have had only met with them one time. Hopefully we can meet again this week and make progress and get them to church. Pray for the Sanvigs, they need this soooo much.

There are so many great people here in Olympia. There is a family named the, Brashers. I call them g-ma and g-pa. There in there 70's and are the cutest old couple ever. (besides my grandparents). When we are having a bad day we go to there house and they sweeten us right back up. They have massage sofa chairs that I love to sit in and their house is always SO warm. Brother Brasher is not a member, but he still loves when we have gospel conversations. He even came to church yesterday. He is huge into Football, so whenever a big game is on he lets us know just in case we wanted to "stop by" ha-ha :D

Sister Eichenmiller and I are doing great. She is a great missionary and a very powerful silent teacher. Yesterday she said I was so "authoritative" haha. I said me? no way! I blamed my dad for that one. She said it is a good thing though. Our investigator Kerri also calls me Miss America. I hate it and I think she knows I hate it. But Sis. Ikey and I balance each other out very well. She is quiet and powerful and I am bold and get strait to the point. I love it.

What else.....

Oh I almost forgot. I met one of our RC (recent converts) the first time this week. His name is Daniel. He is amazing. I am determined to meet with him once a week because he is my spiritual therapist. He is so smart. He blows my mind with the deep doctrine we discuss. We got deep into 1 Nephi 8 about Lehi's dream and the tree of life. How many times have I read that story??? A billion AND I have never noticed things that he pointed out to me. He also taught me a very noteworthy lesson. He said, "if we are comfortable we are dead". The people who are "comfortable" in a spiritual sense are not progressing, therefore, they are dead. Our soul and our spirit is really who we are inside. If we are not going through trails, happiness and sorrow we are not allowing ourselves to progress. Pres. Uchtodorf said, "We comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable". So when we go through hard time in our lives, just think...I'm alive!!! I am growing and being molded into the person our Heavenly Father know we can become.

My testimony has grown so much already. I love this work, it is the best work we can be engaged in.

I miss you all so very much and hope you have a great week!

Love you,

Lakyn