April 22, 2013

Well I forgot to take notes this week so it will probably be a small email. First off we have 3 people ready for baptism next week. Two are Fernando and Omar who are the cousins who play soccer with us. They are super solid and are asking God to help them be ready for their baptism in every one of their prayers. The other is a 10 year old girl whose mom is a member but works on Sunday. The girl, Yasmin, is really cool and wants to be baptized as well. The work is progressing and we were able to get 4 investigators to church this Sunday! I am truly finding the joy and happiness in seeing others change for the better. I love my time out here and wouldn't change anything.

Nothing too funny happened this week except that I have been riding a bike most of the time and the one I borrowed is crappy and the helmet is gay too. I should take some pictures but I am soooo forgetful, sorry.

Thanks for the support and emails!

Elder Allen

This was his birthday week

April 8th, 2013

Well I had a wonderful birthday out here and am no longer a teenager. I guess I should act more mature or something. Well I got plenty of presents and loved everything I got! I got myself a cool Fossil watch and I think it is sweet. I wouldn't have wanted to spend this birthday anywhere else! I miss you all but like I always say I would rather be out here right now.

 

General Conference was awesome and I really enjoyed it. It is funny how once you like something it goes by faster than usual and that is how it was this weekend, I learned a lot and can't wait to teach what I learned to the investigators I have.

 

We have a lot of work going on and are always busy. I have started to get compliments on my Spanish which gives me more confidence as well. I love being able to communicate with people who before I wouldn't have been able too. I really want to try and find a job where I can use my Spanish when I get home.

 

Today we are going to a huge trampoline place where it is just a bunch of trampolines and you can play dodge ball and stuff. It is called Sky Zone and I am super excited about it!

 

Other than  that nothing else big has happened this week. I miss you all and thank you for writing me while I am out here!

 

Elder Allen

April 15th, 2013

Well there are a few notes for this week:

We had an investigator named Fernando who is 16 and is on date to be baptized the 28th of this month and he brought his cousin Omar to a lesson and we taught them both and Omar said he would be baptized with Fernando and I am really excited for all the success we get to be apart of!

I am really behind on writing letters and plan on doing it sometime soon but I probably can't do it today because we are so busy.

I don't have too much time so I am going to be brief

I will have to bike to save miles

I got to hang out with Elder Baltazar this week

There are lots of horses here

I hit 8 months today

We are halfway through  the transfer already

I plan on sending my memory card soon

 Anyway I love you all and hope to write more next week!

Elder Allen

Last weeks email

In My New Area!

Well it has been a week here in Jurupa and I am loving it! Elder Laparra is a really cool dude. He has been out for about 17 months and knows a lot. I am so excited to learn from him and we are already becoming really good friends. He was a ladies man back home in Arizona. He moved here from Guatemala when he was 8 and doesn't have any problems speaking Spanish. The area is really cool too and the families here are cool. I am excited to get to know the ward better and to be able to grow to love them like I did with the ward back in Moreno Valley. My Spanish has come really far. Ever since I got here I haven't had any problems trying to say what I need to say and I love being able to participate in conversations too.

 

My Birthday is tomorrow too! I am going to be 20! I can't believe how fast the time is going by for me. I feel like I just went to Utah and was eating Subway with Brother Rasmussen right before he took me to the MTC. I am loving it here and I know that is why the time is going so fast.

 

I loved the Easter package and all the eggs I got too! I got a package from Nick and AJ and a card from Shannon and Arron for my birthday too but I plan on opening them tomorrow. Thanks a ton for all the mail, I love it!

 

I am also serving with Elder Baltazar who was in my MTC district and I love seeing him because I remember all the awesome times we had in the MTC. We could just hang out all day!

 

Elder Laparra and I were sick on Thursday and Friday. He was puking and stuff and I was able to hold it down but felt awful. It only lasted about 24 hrs each but he gave it to me right when he was overcoming it. We are OK now but I hate being sick becasue we can't work our best. This week we are going to tear it up though!

 

Now that I am on insulin I have been gaining a little weight I am now at like 195 but I am trying to battle back!! I need to get my exercise in or I am easily going back over the 200 mark!

 

I am going to try and send more pictures but there isn't too many on there so I hope to take some more and maybe send it next week.

 

I need some glucose tablets to keep in my back pack so I don't just chow down on candy. I now have juice for when I am home so that is good.

 

That is all I have written down so I thank everyone who is helping me while I am out here and I really appreciate all the behind the scenes labor that goes on back home. I love you all and can't wait to see you in 17 months even though I wish it was longer than that!

 

Elder Allen

Some fun pictures of Elder Allen

This was funny!

Then I got this one next!

Leaving Moreno Valley...

Off to Jurupa Zone!

Well I am getting transferred to Jurupa and will be covering the south side of the zone. Elder Dial, my trainer, served in this area and I think it will be pretty fun! My new companion is Elder Laparra. Everyone except 4  in my zone here that I know is leaving too and I am excited for my new area and sad at the same time. I love my ward here. They are awesome and love missionary work. I hope my new ward will love to work too. I have some packing to finish up with today and then I am leaving at 4. I will be living in just a 2 man apartment and we don't have a washer and dryer so I think we will be paying for laundry or doing it at a members home. This will be my first time being transferred in my mission and I am looking forward to it!

 

We also had a baptism yesterday and one of our 10 year-old investigators got baptized (Janice)and her 8 year old brother (James)and another 8 year old boy in the ward (Benjamin). I actually baptized Benjamin because I taught him twice with Elder Dial and no one in the family could do it. It was a great experience and the baptism was awesome! The spirit was super strong there! Baptisms are the BEST!

 

Here is some other notes I wrote down:

 

Someone check out NAET (Nambudripad's Allergy Elimination Technique). A member gave me a pamphlet on it and apparently they have cured diabetes, CP, and a bunch of other diseases. It sounds like a hoax but I guess its worth looking up.

 

Now this cure for diabetes is a little more believable. I got some of these little beetles called chineese weevils from some members here. Apparently if you eat these beetles without chewing them, meaning alive, starting at 1 the first day, 2 the second day and so on up to 70 the 70th day and then work all the way back down for a span on 140 days you will then be cured! So I am growing some right now in a little cage and need to know if I should start pounding fistfuls of beetles yet.

 

I got the package that was sent and just in time because I just ran out of honey and the body wash and shampoo will really come in handy.

 

I also got the nail polish that tastes bad to stop biting fingernails and it works! It tastes awful! I also havent bit my nails this whole past week!

 

Insulin has been fun. My sugar levels have been really good and the shots haven't been bad at all.

 

Well I am loving my mission and can't wait to go to my new area! I love you all!

 

Elder Allen

Elder Allen on P-day

 Planking

 Th gang who went with him!

He is flying! 

 I bet he was so excited when he saw this critter!

 Looks like he had a great day hanging out in the Mts!

For All of you who miss seeing these LIPS!

Week of March 11th

 Well we had Zone Development Meeting ZDM and got some news about some things! First off the transfer of June 18th the missions are changing! We will be losing the Redlands, Yucaipa, Yucca Valley, Palm Desert, and Murrieta zones! That is 5 zones and we will only have 7 left. The interesting thing though is that we are pretty sure that missionaries will be taken from our mission and put into other missions. We will only know for sure the sooner we get to that transfer but there is the possibility that I could get called to new mission! I want to stay here though because The California Riverside Mission is the best mission in the world!

 

More big news...We will now be able to email all family, priesthood leaders, recent converts, and friends! That means I need Collin and Josh's email!

 

That was the big news!

 

Some quick notes from the week is we were at an investigators house and the hermana made herself some lunch and was eating during our lesson. Now you know how I abslolutley despise smaking lips, chewing with your mouth open, and chewing loudly. Well she had shrimp with the shell on and she would eat them shell and all! And she chewed with her mouth open and it was sooooo loud!! I about punched the wall behind me because it was soooo irritating.

 

Another funny story is we saw this super tall lady in a white and blue jogging suit and she looked mishappen or something and when we drove closer it was a DUDE!!! he had a wig on and make up and it was so gross!!!!!

 

I got the package and loved everything inside except a couple of the fruit cups exploded and I had to wash everything but other than that is was good! Thanks for all the food!

 

Hey Mama can I get a couple names for the temple from our family so I can go through the temple for them?

 

I think that was all. This transfer only has 2 more weeks in it and I think I might leave but a lot is going to happen and anything can happen really. Well I miss you all and hope you can email me!

 

Elder Allen

A sunset in California! 

(in the church parking lot)

A view of 

Moreno Valley

 Blue Skies in Moreno Valley!

Week of March 4th

Well nothing too crazy or weird happened this week. We put a few people on date but they exercise their free agency and don't come to church so we have to push their date back! We should be having a couple of baptisms coming up that I am super excited for and will love to see them progress in the gospel. We also taught some less actives and set some goals with them to get the priesthood to baptize their daughter who is 8 years old and to eventually go to the temple also! They seem excited but they didn't come to church too.  Even though everything doesn't go like I want it, I can still find the joy in this work that keeps me going and I love it!

 

I got the package with the almonds and flat bottom ties in it! I love all the ties! I am wearing one right now! So did you just find these ties all at once by going to wauseon and napoleon goodwills? I am accumulating lots of ties now lol! I also am glad to have my duffel bag for exchanges!

 

I just ate all my eggs and since we just got our money I can go buy some! I am so excited to have food!!!!

 

My Spanish is deffinitly getting better. It doesn't seem like much of an obstacle as much but I still need tons of improvement! I bore my testimony in spanish during fast and testimony meeting this Sunday too. I love being able to communicate with all these people now!

 

Other than that, that is all I have written down. I miss you all and can't wait to see my family on Mother's Day!

 

Elder Allen

Elder Allen's new haircut.  I never cut it that short before.

Elder Allen is getting buff!  Ethan you better watch out! No candy in his Easter Basket!

Well this week has been incredibly busy! Since we are doing 4 missionaries worth of work we have our days planned out 2 days before! We have lessons every hour and have a lot of solid investigators. We had 7 investigators come to church and even got a less active family there too. I don't really like doing less active work but it was so cool to see them at church! Our chapel was pretty full too!

 

There was one crazy thing that happened this week. We found out that our mission boundaries are going to be affected by the Redlands and Carlsbad missions. They opened 3 new missions here in California out of the 58 that were announced and so there might be a probability that missionaries from the Riverside mission will be called to a different mission. The Lord is hastening his work and it is so cool to be out here to see it happening!

 

We had a baptism yesterday! It was a 9 year old boy that the other Elders were teaching. We just had to set up the interview and the baptism so it wasn't really Elder Prieto and I's baptism but it counts for the area! The work here in Moreno Valley is growing and I am pretty sure March will be full of baptisms!

 

 We got bunk beds!!! We have soooo much room for ACTIVITIES!!!!!! we also got memory foam pads for our beds and I have been sleeping the best yet while on my mission! I am on the top bunk and it reminds me of my loft bed too! I love Bunk Beds!!! (I already fell off once though)

 

 We got to go to the temple this Friday too and I loved this visit! I felt the spirit very strong and always have a great time there. We ate at 5 Guys afterwards and it was really good. They have the best drink machines ever!!

Well that is all I had down for the week. Thanks for all the support! I miss every one!

Elder Allen