Welp I already have a hole in the sole of my shoe... Sign of a good missionary or crappy shoes? hmmm you decide. ;)

We had cleaning inspections last week... it was intense. I don't think Ive cleaned so meticulously in my life haha we made a 39.75 out of 40 because of a piece of tape on the wall.... -_-

We have a mission goal to reach 235 baptisms before July 1. That means we have like 90 more to go. So if every companionship gets 1, we'll be good. We got one already so we're on top of it! ;) President Cook said, "There's no reason this zone shouldn't be leading the mission." Challenge accepted! ;D

I went on my first 24 hour exchange. It was fun I learned so much! I helped Hermana W teach English class that was interesting haha

We had a trainers/greenie meeting with Pres Cook. He had called me a few days before to give the opening prayer. I was so nervous! But I did it and President and my trainer were beaming from ear to ear. President complimented my prayer and said my Spanish has come a long way! Made me feel great!

Now to the best news! A was baptized on May 4 and confirmed on May 5! It was the best thing ever! He was so excited. Saturday morning when we finished our run by running up a hill for A' baptism shouting "Hoorah for Israel! Hoorah!" hahaha seriously the most thrilling thing ever. Who needs skydiving when you can run up a hill for a baptism?! ;) Nothing better than studying while listening to the water running in the font. When A got there he immediately ran and gave us both big hugs. He had the biggest smile on his face. My heart was so full!! We prayed all morning that his inactive father would come to the baptism because he wasn't there for any of the lessons. He came! I have never known that I could love this much. My heart is full of charity for everyone I come in contact with. As representatives of Jesus Christ we get this amazing opportunity to feel a small portion of that pure love that He has for our brothers and sisters. Nothing could make me happier than this!

On May 4 we had a Cinco de Mayo party at the church! I ate really weird Mexi food again. This time it was corn on a stick with Mayonaise, Parmesan cheese, and hot sauce. Weird....

We've been doing so much inactive work. It reminds me of the scripture 3 Nephi 18:32. We went to visit A on Saturday, the one who has been a member all her life but her papers are lost so she has to get rebaptized. Well we show up and her sister J and her family are there too who are inactive that we can never find home. We taught both families about coming to Christ, becoming perfected through Him and how we can do that. We mentioned church and invited them all to church.  J's husband was there who fell away from the church and got rebaptized in a different church, he was listening to our message and even looked up the BOM scripture on his phone! Miracle! And we set up a return appt with J!

Sunday so many inactives came to church! It was amazing! We had 2 investigators there and 11 inactives. ELEVEN! Woo hoo!! I know if we hadn't stopped by to see A the night before her and her family and her sister's family wouldn't have been there. I love how God works with us!

Sunday night we got to see our miracle family! A, M, and E! I love them!! Annnnnd it was the first time I took the lead in the Restoration in Spanish! Which means I started the lesson with an overview, taught the first point and transitioned for my trainer to teach the 2nd point. We taught point to point and I got to recite the First Vision to this family. The spirit was strong! Hma Schwegler asked A how she felt right at that moment and she said I feel good and just started crying. She talked about all she was feeling and I told her that was the Holy Ghost touching her heart. We invited them to be baptized and they all nodded. E, the 16 year old asked about the difference of our baptisms so we reminded him of the authority we talked about. It was an amazing experience. I felt so good that I was able to teach half of this lesson in another language! When did I learn Spanish?! :p I know I messed up a few words and tenses but I witness how the Spirit made up the difference. It doesn't matter what I say, what matters is that I have a testimony of this restored gospel and if I open my mouth to share it, the Holy Ghost with testify to their hearts and minds that it's true! 

We met a girl who has gone to church all her life but was never baptized. She had not so great experiences with the church but she said we could come back. We came back with a Spanish BOM for her boyfriend/father of her 2 yr old boy. She said she talked to him about coming to church on Sunday and will read in the BOM with him. YAY!

Oh yeah, I turn 21 tomorrow. Woo? Just another day in the life of a missionary! ;)

The work is hard. It's tiring. It's frustrating. People have their agency. It's hard. But it's so worth it when you see a child enter the waters of baptism, when you watch someone experience the Holy Ghost for the first time, when you pray more for the people you teach than for yourself, when you rely on God for everything you do. This is why it's worth it. We are closer to Christ than we've ever been and we help others come unto Christ for the first time or for the first time in a very long time. I love this work. I wouldn't want to do anything else. I know why I'm here and I know this church is true. My testimony is strengthened every single day. This is the most important work I will ever do beside raising a righteous family one day. I love it!!!! :D