Miracles do happen! - 1/19/15

Hey family!

What an amazing week! It was full of miracles!

MICHAEL WAS BAPTIZED AND CONFIRMED!!!! We have been trying so hard to have this happen and it finally did this weekend! It was a huge miracle for us. Blaine (his dad) texted us on Tuesday night asking if Michael could be baptized this weekend. Craziest text we've ever gotten. We started getting everything planned and had the baptism on Saturday and the confirmation on Sunday. It was a beautiful baptism and confirmation. His grandparents, aunt, uncle, and mom were able to come. Michael looked so happy! I have absolutely loved teaching him. Teaching kids is one of my favorites. He is a great kid and so smart. I am so proud of him and I know that our Heavenly Father is as well!

Other great things happened this week. 

-We had an FHE with Victoria. She is starting to progress a tiny bit more. 

-We had a great lesson with Travis about the Sabbath.

-Richie isn't scared of the Isaiah chapters! He also loved the lesson on temples and family history work. He is the greatest.

-I tried Buffalo. It is seriously so good. Like I think I'm converted to it.

-We taught the Bedolla family again and they made us torta. Sooo yummy.

-We saw the Shausters a few times. We even went to Nana and Grampy's house. Pretty much the coolest house in the world. Nana is such a great artist. 

-There were 32 people in the branch. It keeps growing!

We also learned that we will now be covering Jackson in Spanish work. We have the entire Teton valley AND Jackson. I have no idea how we're going to stay under miles. We will spend 1-2 days in Jackson every week now. Hopefully things will go well. This is a "test transfer" to see if President should put Spanish missionaries up there. Should be lots of fun getting to know Jackson!

I know that our Heavenly Father loves us. He knows exactly when things are going to happen and need to happen. We just need to trust in Him and His timing. I also know that the Book of Mormon can answer any question we might have. I saw that confirmed this week. I love being here and I love serving God and my Savior, Jesus Christ. 

I hope everyone has a great week! Remember that Heavenly Father is listening and answering your prayers! Love y'all!

Hermana Clay

Ya tengo una Biblia - 1/12/15

Hey family!

This week was awesome! We were able to teach a bunch of lessons. In fact, the most I've ever taught in one week. It was full of little miracles.

On Monday, we went to Idaho Falls for a sisters lunch at the Lusk's! It was so much fun! And so great to see everyone. 

Tuesday, we did some contacting. One guy, Enrique, was super nice. But, when we brought up the Book of Mormon, he told us, "I already have a Bible." We continued to try to explain what the Book of Mormon is and how it can bring us closer to God, but he continued to tell us the same thing. It was interesting because that morning we were studying in 2 Nephi 29. It was pretty much a modern day version of that chapter. 

We also taught Travis about how the Bible and Book of Mormon support each other. It was a super cool lesson to study and teach. The Book of Mormon enhances the Bible. It does not contradict it. We should study from both. Anyway, the lesson went well and he committed to read from the New Testament and Book of Mormon!

On Wednesday, we taught Richie at Bishop Marshall's house. Those two click. It was a great lesson. Richie is already in 2 Nephi! So awesome. Who would've thought that a guy that didn't believe in God is now through the 1st book of the Book of Mormon and enjoying it! Heavenly Father definitely has prepared him. 

We had a lesson with Victoria twice. She dropped her baptismal date which was sad. But, she still wants to be baptized and is working towards it. 

I think I have mentioned these people before, but there is a family that comes to English class every Sunday. This week, they finally agreed to have us come to their home to teach them! It was great. I love that family. We have a return appointment this week. 

We had FHE with the Shauster's on Saturday. I love that family! We had homemade pizza which was delicious, had a lesson, and then played Apples to Apples! Such a fun night! 

On Sunday, I played my violin in Tetonia 2nd ward. I'm so grateful that I have my violin with me. It definitely has come in handy! We also had 27 people in the branch! Such an improvement from last week.

We got transfer calls this week. Sister Honeycutt and I will stay together. I'm grateful that I get to be here at least one more transfer!

That's about it for this week! Hope you all are doing well! Miss and love you tons! Thanks for all that you do for me! Have an awesome week!

Hermana Clay

Picture: You can't really see him, but this puppy was so tiny and cute!

Como pajamas - 1/5/15

Hey family!

Happy 2015! This week was awesome! Again, I don't have a lot of time, so I'll make this quick.

We had a lesson with Richie and Bishop Marshall came. They totally clicked. It was great. We taught about prayer and the importance of it. It was an awesome lesson!

New Years! It was another all-day P-day. We went to the stake center and had a nerf gun fight. So much fun. Then, we watched movies. I also tried bear. It was pretty good. Pretty greasy though, too.

We had an amazing lesson with the Markegards! It was an emotional one. I see that family in the temple one day! We are going to work really hard to have Travis be baptized this month. Your prayers for him and his family would definitely help!

We also taught Victoria. Lollie came with us and shared her conversion story. Victoria is totally excited for her baptism, but she's not sure if she believes in God. Uhh...yeah. So we've got a lot of work to do this week.

Sunday was full of church. It was great to hear others testimonies. The branch is now going to meet in the chapel for sacrament. It was awesome to be. Not so awesome that only one family was there. It felt pretty empty in that big room. We taught English class as well. I love the family that comes! We will hopefully have a lesson with them sometime this week.

I have studied a lot from the Book of Mormon this week. I love that book! Many times, my prayers are answered through it. I love being able to testify of it as well.

Gotta go! Love you lots and lots! Happy birthday to Joe this week!

Hermana Clay

Picture 1: The beautiful Tetons :)

Picture 2: Snow. It is almost passed my boots in some areas. Ridiculous

Talking With You 12/29/14

Hey Family!

It was SO great talking to some of you on Christmas! I wish I could have talked to all of you! I hope that everyone's Christmas was full of wonderful memories!

Again, we don't have a lot of time, so I'll get right to what happened this week.

We taught Victoria twice. The last lesson was awesome. We taught about prayer and she said the closing one! Hooray! It's taken a lot of work to get her to do that. 

We made a billion and one cookies for everyone here. Seriously. 5 batches. It was insane. But it was fun to take them to everyone and wish them a merry Christmas.

Christmas Eve! We went to St. Anthony to watch movies (How to Train Your Dragon 1&2) with our zone. Before we left, some of us had a huge snowball fight. It was great.

Christmas Day! Sister Willes and Rodriguez came! That was the best. Shaylee came and woke us up and we went to open presents with their family. Something that impressed me was that before they could go over to the tree, they had to have family prayer. So awesome. We then had breakfast with them. We pretty much just hung out the rest of the day and skyped. Later, we went to the Shauster's for dinner and games. It was a wonderful day! 

We finally found Thalia at home again and we washed all her dishes.

Travis came for all 3 hours of church! And Michael did too! The night before, we taught Michael about tithing. We gave him $1.50 in change and asked him to bring his tithing to church so we could help him fill out a slip. He was so cute and brought it and went to give it to the clerk. I love him! 

There was a stake musical fireside Sunday night. I had called Margarita and invited her to come. Her family has been coming to our English class for the past couple of weeks. We had to rush in because we got to the fireside late. When it was done I looked over and there she was with her family! It was such a great surprise! 

This week was great! I am so very grateful to be here. I love the people and I love the work! I can't believe that it's almost 2015! So insane. Hope that you all have a wonderful New Year! And happy birthday to Amy! Love you!

Hermana Clay

Picture 1: Just a few of the cookies. 

Picture 2: You can pretty much only see Elder Pridmore, but this is after the fight

Picture 3: Christmas morning. The Kearsley's were so awesome and got us presents. Flour and sugar were some of them.

Picture 4: My favorites.

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Merry Christmas - 12/22/14

Hi Family!

We don't have a whole bunch of time today, so here's a recap:

We taught Victoria and Gary! They are so great. And they BOTH came to church on Sunday! Hooray!

Sister Honeycutt and I got sick. Not fun. But, we're almost better!

We visited Melissa again and she just keeps surprising me. We also had a member with us who turned out to be perfect for her. Yay for Amuleks!

We went to deliver gifts with Santa to a few families in the branch. So much fun!

We had another lesson with Richie again. He is awesome! We walked in and he was like, "Hey, I look like you guys now!" He had gotten a case for his Bible and Book of Mormon. So funny. We taught about repentance and all went well!

We saw Michael and tentatively set his baptismal date for the 30th. They're not sure it can happen because they want his grandparents to be there. Everyone pray that this baptism will go through!

Sunday was a crazy day. I played with a choir for 2 sacrament meetings. Then, there was a fireside in Rexburg that I played at. It was a lot of fun. The best part about it all was that we were able to have dinner with the Gee's and then the Lusk's came to the fireside! I got to see my two favorite couples! Such a blessing. During the fireside, I felt so much love for my Savior. On the night He was born, the angel told the shepherds, "Fear not". I know that as we come to Jesus Christ we have no reason to fear. He is full of love and mercy.

That's all I got. I'll send some pictures to make up for no detail. I'm super excited to Skype with y'all! Merry Christmas and talk to you in a few days!

Hermana Clay

Picture 1: Spud with his bling

Picture 2: The Shauster's gave us decorations for our car!

Picture 3: One of the families with Santa

Picture 4: My favorite Lusks!

So many fiestas - 12/15/14

Hey family!

What a busy week it has been. We had a bunch of ward parties which were so much fun. The best part about them all was that a nonmember (or several) were at each of them. Hooray!

Monday was the Tetonia 1st ward's Christmas party. Victoria came! She even came 2 hours early to help set up. She's so awesome. We were able to visit with her and her husband on Saturday night as well. Turns out that her husband is a member. He was super nice and we're excited to keep working with them.

Tuesday was Tetonia 2nd's party. And guess who came? Melissa and Matt! That was SUCH a shocker to us. Melissa wasn't comfortable coming on a church tour when no one is around, but she was comfortable coming to a party with the whole ward there. Haha but it was really great. They were able to meet lots of people and I think they enjoyed it.

We saw Richie and again it was a great lesson. It's like teaching a baby; he really doesn't know anything about God, Christ, or religion. We watched "Finding Faith in Christ" which I think helped him understand more who Christ is and what He did. He has been reading and praying. He's just awesome.

We also were able to visit Julia. She is so sweet! We set a baptismal date with her, but we may need to move it so that her mom can be there. The only big challenge we have with her is that she needs to get married. Pray that her boyfriend will agree to it.

Friday was Zone Conference! It was awesome! They talked a lot about "He is the Gift" and how we need to discover and embrace it ourselves before we can share it powerfully. I was able to play my violin lots of times during that, which is always fun. 

Victor 3rd's party was Saturday morning. Travis was there with his family! They're some of my favorites. We taught him on Sunday as well. We taught about tithing and fast offerings. I am so glad that the Elders Quorum president was there to be able to share his testimony about it! It was powerful!

The Spainsh branch's party was Saturday night. Oh it was wonderful. And super yummy. We had tamales and pozole. Yessss. Some people that almost got baptized but then didn't came. This was the first time I met them. We're hoping that they will be open to meeting with us sometime.

On Sunday, I was able to play in a Sacrament meeting for Driggs 1st ward. We also helped in English class again and the people that come said that they would like to meet with us! Woohoo!

That's about it for this week. Happy birthday to Kam and Car this week! Can't believe how old everyone is now. Love you all lots! Don't forget to share "He is the Gift"!

Hermana Clay

Picture 1: Sister Honeycutt!

Picture 2: Probably one of the greatest parts of going to zone conference. Love Sister Caballero!

Transfers! - 12/8/14

Hey family!

This week was crazy and full of meetings. We weren't able to get a ton of teaching in because of that. BUT, it was still a great week!

Monday: P-day. Then, FHE with the Shausters! They invited one of there friends to come as well. He is a less active that is starting to come back to church. He told us that the reason he wants to come back is because of Joie's example. She would always talk to him about church and about how excited she was to get baptized. This is what caused him to want to come back. So cool! That family are such great missionaries!

Tuesday: Last full day with Sister Willes :( It was crazy busy. We were able to go say goodbye to a few people. Sister Willes definitely has become a favorite around here and they all miss her!

Wednesday: Transfer day. Sister Honeycutt is my new companion! She is great. She is from North Carolina (what are the odds?) and is the youngest of 8. I think she really enjoyed her MTC experience and is excited to be out in real life. She has a super strong testimony and I'm excited to work with her! We had a lesson with Richie that night when we got back into town. We taught the first half of the Plan of Salvation, which went really well. Brother and Sister Green were there and they were total Amuleks! It was awesome. Best part of the night was probably when Sister Seton accidentally threw her phone at Sister Green's face. Good times.

Thursday: Zone training. We also taught Melissa. I don't know if y'all remember, but she is the one that has a super anti-Mormon family. I was so impressed though when we got there. She let us in and then grabbed a notebook, her Bible, and her Book of Mormon. She had questions written down ready to ask us. It was awesome! She is really trying to figure what is right for her. The Victor 3rd Relief Society Christmas party was also that night. It was beautiful! And Joie's mom came, so that was a plus. 

Friday: Follow-up training meeting in Idaho Falls. We were able to see Richie again to finish up the Plan of Salvation. It went super great again. He really doesn't know much about God and religion so we've really had to simplify things. It has been nice because I have been able to focus more on the basic, fundamental doctrines. 

Saturday: Kearlsey Craft Fair. Holy cow. Every year, the Kearlsey's hold a Craft Fair at their shop. We went out to go see it and it was absolutely amazing! I wish I had pictures to show you. You'll all just have to come to Driggs next year. We saw Michael, finally. We are going to push back his baptismal date in hopes of his dad preparing himself to baptize Michael. I think this will be better in the long run. 

Sunday: There has been a woman that has been coming to church for the past 3 weeks. Yesterday we were finally able to have a lesson with her! Her name is Victoria. She is pretty young and recently married. She is sooo sweet and super nice! After church was over, we did a church tour with her. She said she was drawn to the church because of the people. She is trying to figure out what she believes in. As we went through, we asked her how she thinks she might feel when she comes to know that these things are true (or something along those lines). She said that she would "just know". We explained a little bit about the Spirit and what it feels like. At the end of the tour we read 3 Nephi 11, when Christ comes to the Americas. It was powerful. After bearing our testimonies she said, "I may not feel it yet, but I can tell that you two feel it, and that helps a lot." She accepted the invitation to be baptized and we will be working with her to prepare her for the 27th of this month. She is amazing and so prepared! There were a lot of miracles that happened during that lesson and I am so grateful for the guidance of the Spirit. 

Sorry for such the long email. My camera is messed up, so I have no pictures with Sister Honeycutt. I'll send a few from Sister Willes. Hope you all have a wonderful week! Love you tons! 

Hermana Clay

Picture 1: Sorry it's blurry. But Boo's face is too perfect.

He is the Gift - 12/01/14

Hey family!

Crazy week. We received transfer calls :( Sister Willes is going to Idaho Falls to be a STL and I will be training a new missionary again! It has been so much fun with Sister Willes and I have learned a lot from her. But, I'm excited for this new assignment. I'll find out tomorrow who I am training!

We saw the Shauster's a few times this week. My favorite family! We made a "thankful tree" for Thanksgiving. It turned out really cute and they even framed it. 

We met with Julia, who is the daughter of Pablo and Rosa. She is super sweet and has been praying about church and things. She seems super prepared. We have another appointment with her this week. 

We also met with Richie. We taught a lesson about Heavenly Father and who He is and how we can get to know Him. It went really well and he was willing to start praying. The only bummer is that he now has to work every Sunday, which messes up our baptismal date. But, I know that in Heavenly Father's time, he will be baptized.

Thursday was Thanksgiving! Hope y'alls day was full of fun times and yummy food. We were able to make a family lots of delicious food (thanks Mom and Dad!) and deliver it that morning. Service is the best. Afterwards, we were at a member's home for most of the day and then we went to visit the Shauster's. It was a good day.

We were in Idaho Falls for most of the day on Friday. I was able to stay in the Visitors Center for awhile. That was awesome! The Crockett's let me take some people around. It felt like home. They have a new display for "He is the Gift". If you haven't seen the video yet, go watch it! And go explore their new website. It's super great. 

We finally got to see the Markegard family again! I love them. They fed us dinner and then we had a lesson. We read in the Book of Mormon and watched the new video. Travis is SO ready for baptism. I just wish he could see that!

Yesterday, I played in the Spanish branch and in the Driggs 3rd ward. This month is going to be crazy with violin performances. 

Love you all! Have a super great week! Amy (or Mom), send lots of pictures of new baby Joy ;)

Hermana Clay

Victor Idaho - Beautiful! 

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