One Year Celebration! :D

Well, I'm TRYING to get some pictures sent. . .but I had a good week this week! 

 

I can't believe I've been a missionary for a year. . .that's just nutso haha I DO feel the growth that I've experienced and the changes that have made me a better person and if I keep working at it will continue to help me become the person my Heavenly Father needs me to be <3 Haha ugh I've been trying to get one dumb pic sent for 20 minutes and it's just not working. . .but here it's tradition to burn a shirt once you've hit your year mark (it was a white one I've had since I was like 14 so I think it's time had come. . .) but it was way funny :) I also had a cool experience this week where we were out contacting and came across a lady from Tahiti and she only spoke English and I tried my best to remember how to talk in English!! Haha I NEVER thought I'd forget, and obviously I haven't cuz I can write it just fine, but making English come out of my mouth was proven to be more difficult than I thought!!! I felt way silly, but it was a cool experience nevertheless :) and my comp was like "Now I know what it feels like to be you. . ." haha so yeah :) 

I also gave a talk in church yesterday about Charity and everyone told me thank you and that it was good. They also told me they were impressed with how well i speak (they all think I'm brand new to the mission cuz that's what happens when your a "yankee" - you're new everywhere you go haha but I'm used to it ;) but it was good I learned a lot. I'm seriously so grateful for all your support and all the love I feel from you all :) Oh and yesterday in the combined Relief Society/Priesthood meeting Bishop used a Lord of the Rings analogy and I was one of the only ones who understood what he was talking about and it was SO good!! He was talking about being careful with the little snares Satan has put out in the world that seem harmless or even good but can really mess you up in the long run (too much time on the internet, remodeling homes and new cars every year. . .) which he compared to the Ring, which I think we've talked about that before. . .but yeah it was cool and made me think of you all <3 

Well, I'm outta time. I'll see if I can get a picture sent!! I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!! Have a great week ok and smile a ton and make the most of every precious beautiful minute our Heavenly Father has given us <3 I LOVE YOU 

xoxoxo 

Your Larissa

Christmas in March!

I've got less than a minute haha but I needed to thank you all for the packages!!! I recieved one big one from the Ward for Christmas which was a treat :) THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! Also I got Beth's birthday card :) Thank you!! I'm gonna write you next week Beth ok?? And I got the white shirts mom :) LOVE THEM! But your letter was the best part :) I LOVE YOU ALL!!! Aaron, I'm not sure how big your package was, but I still haven't gotten anything, I'll let you know when i do :) 

Have a great week! 

I LOVE YOU!!! 

xoxoxo 

Larissa

Spanish Sleep Talking

¡¡¡¡¡¡¡HOLA!!!! ¡¿Como estan todos?!

I'm doing good :) We had a bit of a rough week but also a really awesome one haha We had a Conference and an area 70 from Argentina came and spoke and it was so great! He talked a lot about things we could do to help our investigators really change and the bigest thing was that we need to apply the Atonement to our own lives and always teach repentance. The Savior ALWAYS taught repentance to everyone he ever taught and we have to remember that it needs to be the center of our lives. That's definitely something that has come to mean so much more to me during this past year, because I understand that by not changing and by not using this amazing gift my brother Jesus Christ gave me, I'm not showing Him my love, and worse it's like I'm ignoring that He even suffered for me (that's not quite the words I want but I can't think of them in English haha) but it's So important that we give all we can to living the way He has asked. I feel very repetitive sometimes when I write you all about the things I'm learning, but it truely is because if we have a true love of God, we will be exactly obedient to all He's asked us to do, and I have a true and real testimony of that truth <3

I've gotta go, but my title is because anyone who really knows me knows I talk a TON in my sleep. . .and well I talk in Spanish while I?m sleeping now haha I started dreming in Spanish about 5ish months ago, but yeah haha my poor comp doesn't sleep well, but apparently I'm very entertaing during the night haha

WELL! Gotta go!!! I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!! Have an awesome week ok? Smile, Laugh, Share Love and be a little better than you were last week :)

CHAO!!!

Larissa :) <3

Gringa Fea :)

It's been another amazing week on the mission!  :)

The work here is TOUGH haha we knock doors almost all day and talk with a lot of grumpy people, but it's been fun to have Hermana Martinez who helps me to always keep a smile on my face! We've been working hard trying to find some new people who are ready to accept to gospel, we have on investigator named Rosa who has been to church a couple times and loves it. She was Evengelist (there's a lot here) but she didn't like all the yelling haha she thinks The Church of Jesus Christ is much more peaceful which helps her feel comfortable. We are planning her baptism for the end of this month! Two other investigators we have who are just wonderful, Carina and Rodrigo, have been to church lots but Carina is pregnant and got sick Saturday night so she couldn't go to church, but when we called so told us she was reading the Liahona and her scriptures in bed! She wants to get baptized but she still needs to get married, so we're working on that one :)

Random things this week. . .I may have my first out of country experience. . .my head started itching on like Friday and all my comps told me I probably have lice and I was like no way!! But they looked and never found an adult but apparently I have the babies haha I dunno. . .it doesn't itch right now, it's like off and on. . .so I might have lice, but you're all still required to LOVE ME ok?! haha but don't worry I'll get it taken care of when I feel like a reliable source has diagnosed me haha Oh and the title of this email is the nickname on of the Hermanas (Valenzuela) gave me. . .sometimes its a good thing and sometimes it's a bad thing I guess haha I do love my house mates and it's been way fun this past week :) I had to stay at home with Hna Valenzuela one day because she has a lot of pain and can't work some days so we switch staying at home so that her companion can get out and work a little bit, but it was awesome getting to know her better!! She's crazy, but I love her :)

I had a really spiritual week this week :) It was full of ups and downs, as the mission is haha but I had several very obvious answers to prayers that confirmed to me that I really do have a Father in Heaven who loves me. These experiences, as small as they were, helped me realize something. I've never really loved Him like He's asked me too. I often made excuses for not living the way I knew He wanted me to. I did things I wanted instead of putting in first priority those things He has promised me will make me happy. That's what the world wants us to believe, that we know better. BUT IT?S LIES!! Haha we can never find happiness doing what we WANT. We will only feel real joy and happiness when we live our lives putting our love for God very very first. I feel like I've said things like this before, but I guess my testimony of this concept gets deeper and deeper every week and I am so grateful, because I know that here in the mission it's easy to recognize that, I'm using every minute of my time now to serve Him, but when I get home, I'll have my testimony put to the test., I'll have to prioritze my life the way He has taught me too. I know I never succeeded at that before, but I'm grateful for the real love I feel for my Heavenly Father, and I have a lot of hope and faith that that love will carry me through when it's time for me to get back to life :) So, my invitation to you all is to look at your life and find those things that you could do to show your love for God :) I know with all my heart it will bring SO much happiness and joy <3 

I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH!!!! Have a great week ok?! 
LOVE YOU!!!!

Locura! :)

Or in other words Craziness :) but you all better enjoy this english stuff while you can cuz I'm probably gonna forget here soon! haha just kidding i don't think i'll ever forget. . .and my comps want to learn English. There's only been a couple times when i had something to say, like a phrase or something, in English and i couldn't cuz they didn't understand, but I'm always able to explain it, so that's good! It's been fun, and especailly since I have a pretty good handle on Spanish now so I can express myself and all that good stuff. It's funny being companions with a latina because all the houses we go to people just expect I don't know how to talk or what they are saying, but I just smile and start talking and then they look all surprised and it's a good feeling haha ( yeah I've gotta be careful of pride now) haha just kidding, but it's been cool, 

I LOVE our ward. It's an actual Ward, so there are a lot of members and they are all so great! We spent a lot of time giving service scraping paint off the walls of one of the members houses so they can paint. I think we did that when we first moved to our house in Hillrose cuz I had random flash backs remembering how much fun i thought it was to scrape paint haha We have a few investigators, but we knock doors a whole lot, which has been interesting haha I've meet a TON of people, a lot of who don't believe in God or have opinions about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter'day Saints that are way skewed. . .but I've enjoyed that we've been able to have conversations with these people and help some of them to at least think about a different point of view. It's a testimony that things and people really can change and we should always seek out learning and growing :) 

Our investigators are Rosa, Daiana and Karina with her son Rodrigo, I know them the best and they are so great! They've been to church 2 times and Karina already knows a lot about the gospel because of her sister or something like that. . .she wants to be baptized but her and her boyfriends aren't married, but we're working on that one! They are SUCH a cute family but the Dad works a lot so we don't get to see him much. I've only met the other two one time, but they are great too! I'll be sure to tell more next time :) 

Apparently my comp looks at me during the day more than Hna Boyce because she's found 2 grey hairs since we've been together :( I'm getting old aparently!!! haha  I've been enjoying the latin food too, we order empanadas and the other hermana make mexican, chilean and honduranian (haha yeah idk..:) Food and it's sooo good :) I'm loving it!! Well, I gotta get going! i love you all sooo much!! Smile lots and share your light :) That's what this journey through life is all about :)  

LOVE YOU ALL SO VERY MUCH!!!!!

VILLA FLORESTA!! y Latinas :)

Haha yep! I'm no longer in mi querida area White :( but it's in really good hands, so i'm not worried, just know I'm gonna miss it a whole lot! It's all I've ever known of the mission here, and really right now i just feel like I'm on companion exchanges or something. . .but I feel like come wednesday or thursday I'll have a good cry, i already let my companion know and she assured me she'll have some ice cream waiting for me :) Her name is Hermana Martinez! She's from Honduras and has 9 months in the mission, but just 3 here in Argentina. She served 6 in Honduras and the change was hard she said , but she's a real hard worker and I know we're gonna get a lot of work done and grow a TON spiritually :) She's 19 too! But she turns 20 here in a couple weeks which will be fun :) We live with 2 other Hermanas (this apartment is a LOT bigger haha but still chiquito haha) Hermana Valenzuela (who lived with Hermana Vincent and Harris before so she knew me through them haha) who is from Chile and Hermana Zurita from Mexico :) I'M FINALLY GONNA LEARN HOW TO SPEAK SPANISH!! Haha obviously I know a little, but I'm excited I'll learn all the little words and stuff outside of just church vocabulary, and they are excited to learn a little english too :) They are all WAY nice and caring, as it's been proved to me here to be a very very correct stereo type of latin americans :) I'm super excited for this transfer, I feel like we're all gonna be super good friends and have a lot of fun! 

So, my area is called Villa Floresta, at this point I'm not sure what that's supposed to mean, but I'll figure it out before next week :) I'm in the same Stake that White is in so here in the next couple weeks at General Conference I'll hopefully be able to see everyone from there :) Since I'm in an area so close I didn't have the fun times in the terminal like I did waiting for Hna Harris, but I did get to go because Hna Boyce had to wait for her companion to get there and saw some of my mission buddies. Oh, i forgot to mention I'm the oldest missionary in our house and that is a WAY wierd feeling. . .makes me realize how short this time really is and I really do need to make sure I'm giving this amazing work my all every single minute. I read in Mark this morning Ch. 13 which is Christ talking about the second coming, and in the end he talks about how we need to WATCH! We can't relax or think it's ok to take a break for a day or two, NO. We have to always be pushing ourselves to be better, always on the brink of feeling like we are gonna break, but we won't because we've got the help of our older brother Jesus Christ <3 The things that are the most simple (pray, reading our scriptures, going to church, FHE) help us remember and stay watchful until He comes again <3 So, just keep doing the things God needs you to do and being wonderful and smiling and being the best you can every single day :) That's how we are truly happy :) I love you all sooo much! Hope you have a good week, and as of right now I don't know a lot about the area, so I'll be sure to write about that next week :) 

LOVE YOU!!!!

Hermana Conger. . .your Larissa :)

PS haha the boys asked me at Christmas what's the weirdest thing I've eaten and i didn't really have a good answer. . .well that was because I was just eating what I was given and didn't really ask a lot of questions! Haha found out one of the thing I eat is a sausage casing filled with blood and cooked up. . .it's actually really good haha I also had Kidneys yesterday, didn't think those were very good haha and. . .I think there was another one but I can't remember haha but there ya go :) 

LOVE YOU ALL!!!!! xoxoxoxo

Time Flies When You're Havin' Fun!

Aint that the truth?!  :) 

Seriously, this week has just a flown by and me and Hna Boyce and loving the work and Argentina. Yeah it gets frustrating, but how can we be down when we are douing the work of the Lord all day every single day and we see MIRACLES every single day :) I should be better about telling you all the little things that happen throughout my weeks, but I AM writting a lot of things down. I write down 3 miracles everyday and I can't wait to go through all my planners and journal and tell you all about them.

We've been working really hard this week to find the people here who are prepared, and after knocking these doors for 6 months I have my moments where I feel like "ok I've knocked this door at least twice and I'm pretty positive both times it got shut in my face. . ." but Hermana Boyce just keeps reminding me that there is a reason we're here in White right now and that we have to knock door in the ridiculously hot sunshine when everyone is sleeping, which I need ♥ We've been so darn happy this week and we've had SO many people STOP us in the street to ask us who we are and what we do because we are finally together radiating the light of this gospel and it truly is the most happy feeling I've ever had in my life. (Falling in love was pretty darn happy times too, but this type of happiness is different and we all know that ♥) :)

I'm so grateful that I'm learning that when we put complete trust and faith in Heavenly Father and His plan for our lives and don't doubt it, even for one second, that's when the real happiness is able to illuminate our lives completely and fully ♥ It's hard sometime to sacrifice what we think is best, what we want, or what seems to be the right path for something that difficult and hard to face, but Heavenly Father knows what will makes us grow so that we can experience the happiness that lies within His gospel and plan. The most simple way to to stop thining about ourselves. Mom is an incredible example of this and I know it's a principle she lives by and always taught me it's what I've gotta do to be happy :) 

Alright I've gotta get going!! You all have a BEAUTIFUL week and smile and laugh and serve our Heavenly Father :)

 LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!! 

Round 5 in White! :)

Haha yep! Here we go again!! I can't believe I will have been here in Argentina for 6 months in just a little over a week. . .and all in this tiny little place we call White haha but it's ok. I love the people and it'll be much easier to comunicate with all my friends here if they are all in one place! Everyone was really happy that I didn't head out haha even though I was feeling ready for a change, but me and Hermana Boyce are gonna change somethings up and have fun!

We got to work a day in Bahia so that was a fun change of pace! We meet a lot of nice people, but we also got a whole lot more doors slammed in our face haha but it was a good time! Also, the Zone Leaders came out and worked in White for a day and they found a bunch of people! I feel bad cuz most of them don't wanna talk to us, they mighta been the type that just like Elders haha but they also vistited one of our investigators Maria, whose been coming to church a lot, and set a baptism date with her! That was cool :) We've got some work to do to get her ready but I'm so happy she's wanting to take this step now!!

I also gave my first talk in church yesterday haha that was fun! I was all stuffed up and was afriad I was gonna just cough the whole time but I didn't and it went well! Hna Boyce also spoke and did SO well! Sometimes it seems like she's been here longer than me the way that girl is picking up the language :) I spoke on a talk given in the last Conference by Elder Dyches I believe is his name about how we can be purified through Faith in Christ.

I think I've mentioned it a whole lot more times than once that I learn more and more about realy faith every single day out here! I'm grateful I'm having all these crazy experiences and missing all of you so much and I have to use my faith every day. I know when all this is said and done if I just keep working hard and trying to convert myself to Christ, I'm gonna be ready for the crazy beautiful path of life my Heavenly Fathers got prepared for me :)

Welp, that's it for today!! Hope you all have a fantastic week!
Love you all so much!!

Fotos!

Haha because I turned 9 months I had my mission baby 

Feliz. . . .TODO!! Haha Yeah, it's been awhile!

Well! I was on for a few minutes this morning but then the internet stopped working so we went to a different place and all the internet in White was out apparently haha but we're up and running now! and it saved a few sentences of the novel I wrote this morning haha so I'll try and get a good long e-mail written :) 

(here begins update from this morning haha) 

I know I'm a looser and I haven't written for awhile! Sorry I'm becoming a stranger!! Don't want that!!! So, I'm gonna give you some update on my Argentina life :) First of all, all this celebrating they do down here is wild haha WAY to wild for this time of year in my opinon. Fireworks all over the place and really loud noises haha also the members here are funny cuz they bring in the new year with sparkling juice like we have, but they also have BEER but without alcohol. . .yeah I tried it. It was NASTY haha so, I think I've officailly ruled out ever drinking ;) It has been a crazy but good couple of weeks. 

My companion has been battling with her body, but this week we were able to get out and are working hard. (End of update from this morning haha) But yeah, seeing as how this could be my last wek in good ole White I'm gonna give it all I've got! We've got such amazing people we're talking too, they all have such great faith in Jesus Christ <3 Oh other crazy random things these argentinans do with their fiesta time is we ate (with the Familia Antunez, this picture I attached) lechon, which is Pig cooked on a spit haha I tried sending the picture this morning but it didn't work haha sorry, you'll see it some day! Also, I tried pig intestine! I'll save the juicy details for when I can tell it in person, but lets just say I'm not a fan haha. Something else kinda cool they do at this time of year is "los Reyes Magos" or the wise men, come and bring girfts of candy haha it's like a parade and then if they are good they get something from the reyes the next morning too. I dunno, I think it might be something I'll have to do with my kiddos (whatcha think babe?? ;) so yeah, that was cool to see. 

Some other random high lights, this week our District came and worked in White, which is 4 other companionships, and that was way fun haha all of them loved the members that they met and the spirit was so strong with so many missionaries in such a small place :) it was way cool. Oh other note on of the other hermanas who I was living with had to go home for health problems and they sent the other one to be in a trio in a different area, so it's just me and Hna Boyce. It's nice having space and air to breath again haha it's so much cooler there as well so that's great too, but I do miss my Peruanas. I don´t think I talked a lot about them but I needed them these past couple transfers and being there for Hna Carpio (the one who ended up needing to go home) gave me an up close look at what my Aaron had to go through, so I was grateful I could be there for her <3 

The District 

La Familia

The Zone

welp, I know there's other things to update you all on but I can't remember. I'm doing good at writting in my journal and in all of my planners I write things that happened that day so that when I get home I'll have helpers when I tell you all the crazy things I've been up to down here! I've been thinking a lot and reading a lot about Faith and it really is so fundamental here in this life. 

Faith is hard. It's not easy to put our confidence in things we can't see, and have no physical proof, out side of scriptures and the feelsçings we recieve from the spirit, but our faith is what HAS to be strong and carry us through the times when it feels like we can't so any more. I read a talk this morning that talked about victims of an earthquakeand how the church was prepared to help the people when the time was needed, and that our testimony if the same. We have to build our faith by keeping the commandments and living the principles of the gospel so that when the time comes our faith is ready to take on the challenge that Heavenly Father knows we're prepared to face in order to help us grow. 

I hope I make at least a little sense, but I feel so blessed because I have this time where things that are hard are thrown at me almost every single day and I know that things that are MUCH harder are coming later in life. . .this time now that I'm learning to do the Lord's will even when I really don't want to, are helping me see that it's ALWAYS the best option. Even though maybe it hurts sometimes, in the end, He will make everything work out for the best for us. I am so grateful to be gaining a testimony of that truth right now <3 Thank you all so much for your prayers, letters and support :) I can't believe how many friends and family that I have looking out for me and thinking about me. I am so truly blessed and I am LOVING my time here in Argentina :) Yeah, it's hard, but it's SO worth it :) Vale la pena, como dicimos acá :) 

Have a great week everyone! I love you so much!!!

Larissa