Week Seventeen

Feliz Navidad!!

It was so great to hear everyone's voices yesterday. It truly was the greatest Christmas gift I could have. It was even more than just being able to speak and be understood it was being able to feel your love and support. I hope that you know how much I love my Savior and this time of year to think of him. It's great to hear that everyone is doing well and I hope all those are recovering from sickness do so soon. I really wish I could have tasted that amazing turkey and stuffing but I know there will be plenty of time for that in this life.

So for those who might have dozed off during my phone call I'll recap quickly my Christmas in Bell Ville, Argentina.

Friday night we had a nativity at the ward activity that included new members and investigators which we do every Wednesday night. It went really well, and was a great spiritual reminder for everyone. We had a pot luck and I had the weirdest food yet of this super moist sweet cake roll filled with tuna, mayo and green olives. No bueno, I got it down and grabbed the next closest empanada to wash down the taste.

Saturday we went to the Plaza in the middle of town and sang Christmas hymns. It was me, Hna Tejada, Hna Barascotto, Hno Hugo and Hna Cordoba. We had Santa hats and Hna Karina was dressed in a santa suit with sunglasses handing out candy and Book of Mormons. We wanted to do the contacting but the others couldn't sing so mostly it was me and Hna Tejada singing a duet. Yikes!

Then we had a baptism of Elena and Enzo. Both of them were such amazing miracles and I feel so blessed to see the missionary work press forward in this city. It was special too because the less active sister of Elena bore her testimony and the parents of Enzo came and could feel the powerful spirit of the baptism. It was such a great Christmas gift to feel the joy of helping people come unto their Savior.

We then went to Hna Elenas and talked with her for a bit then off to the Cordobas to celebrate Christmas. Here they welcome the Christmas kind of like New years. We had a delicious meal and then at midnight everyone goes out and lights off fireworks. One of the Elders dressed up like Santa and climbed up on the roof to drop presents down. They gave me and Hna Tejada mate cups which is a special drink of Argentina that as missionaries we can't drink but the members can. Then out of no where we had this huge foam fight with these cans that Hna Cordoba bought. Super fun. Then it was off to bed. It seriously felt like the fourth of July/New Years Eve, not Christmas - but it was great none the less!

The phone call on Sunday was great and I'm super excited to hear that Mel and Kevin are engaged! So happy for them, it's been a long time waiting. I'll be sending my maid of honor speech in the mail. lol

I have to go buy groceries before the store closes. I'm still unable to upload photos but I'll keep trying. I hope everyone is well.

All my Love and Prayers,

Hna Potrie

Week Sixteen!

Feliz Navidad!!!!!

Im so glad you guys could get together for Christmas. I'll admit I've been thinking about home a bit lately and I pray that you all feel of my love and that you all travel safely and have lots of fun together and eat lots of delicious food. I have no idea what will be on the menu here. We are eating with the Familia Cordoba and I imagine the house will be packed with people. And all of Hna Laura's food is delicious maybe it's a name thing all Laura's are good cooks. I'll be calling from 5-6pm Cordoba time which I think is 5 hours ahead so it'll be right around 12 so make sure to get home soon I guess.

We've been singing Christmas hymns like crazy with people in hopes of reminding them about the Savior. We're also singing in the plaza which is a park in the middle of town on the 24th which should be fun and singing at the hospital and for the kids who receive free food every day in the poor part of town. The lady who runs that place is such an amazing example of service and giving all that she has. The people here who sometimes have so little have the biggest hearts and give the most.

The mission is a constant roller coaster of emotions. It's humbling to struggle with the language and constantly need that help of my companion and the Savior. It's sad when we teach people and see them changing and growing and then they just change their minds. It's also the sweetest joy to see people follow the Savior and be baptized and see it change their lives. Or to help less active members remember why the gospel is important. We really have had miracles. Last week we made the goal to find one person to baptize before the new year. So we made a list of people who have come to church but won't commit. On Saturday we worked with one eternal investigator of 2 years Elena and the four of us the elders, Hna Tejada and me talked with her and bore testimony of how it could change her life. I didn't say much but at the end I was able to bear testimony and I felt the spirit so strongly I knew that God loves her and wants her to change and feel the peace of the atonement in her life. My Spanish was weak but the power of the Spirit was with me even when I felt so unworthy to have it that day. At the end of the lesson she offered the most humble sincere prayer I've ever heard her say. Then on Sunday I was really bummed when she didn't show up at church, but during lunch we got a phone call from Elena and she wanted us to come as soon as we could. We had no idea what was up but headed over with the Elders and even when we were in I couldn't understand everything she was saying but then I felt the spirit and I know she received a very sacred answer to her prayers. She's going to be baptized on the 24!!! And I'm so happy. This work is the Lords and I am so blessed to merely be His servant.

I am so excited to call home and hear everyone's voices. I love you all and pray for you always. And you should know as a missionary that's a lot 'cause we pray all day. I know it's hard during the holidays but I know His love and comfort are with you and there's nothing I could ask for more. I'll talk to you on Sunday!!!!!!!!

Love Hna Potrie

Week Fifteen

Hola,

Sounds like you had a big staff party this year mom. I'm glad your business is doing well. As Christmas gets closer I think of your pumpkin pie more and more and the delicious baking. They love fruit bread and like dry cookies here. They are pretty good cause I'm not very picky. The Christmas conference was great. We had to get up at 3AM to catch a bus to Cordoba which was 3 hours away. Plus like usual we were late getting out the door so we had to run a little bit and it was still hot, so I felt like I had just taken another shower after my first one that morning. We talked about missionary work of course at the conference. It was great to see other missionaries and talk to a few of the ones that flew in with me and realize they have the same struggles and realize it's totally normal. President Salas dressed up as santa for us and handed out packages. I got the one from you. I might have opened it. Ooops! It was the one with the stuff from dad to. Thanks so much for the shampoo and reeses puffs, anything peanut butter is heavenly because it doesn't exist here. Plus our fridge finally works so I could have reeses puffs with real cold milk it was a miracle of Christmas!!!! The other packages will get here I'm not sure when I'll get them though. But honestly the thing about Christmas I look forward to most this year is just talking with my family.

Oh, I also finally got mail so I got your dear elder mom. You can send letters that way cause they are free and it doesn't matter how long it takes because mail is grouped together till we get it anyways. Oh and tell Auntie Deb thanks for all the letters and jokes.

The missionary work here is a mixture of contacting people on the street and then stopping by, asking the members for referrals, working with less actives and rarely knocking doors. We had the baptism of Osualdo this week. We were a bit nervous because of his smoking problem but he is finding strength in the Lord. He is such a great guy and I loved seeing him sit there in his white shirt and tie and receive the Holy Ghost and see the peace enter his life.

The people here are a variety of classes. There are different sections of town of income status. We generally work in both. I've seen houses with pools and houses that are two rooms and dirt floors but I love them all. The people are all very welcoming and even though they have little, they give everything.

As far as groceries go things are a little more expensive here. Like a liter of pop is 10 pesos which is a lot of pesos but it's 4 or 3 pesos to a dollar so it's not bad when you think it that way. and They don't have dimes, nickles or pennies so we don't have a lot of change which I like. We receive plenty of money every month for our needs. I make sure to spend it wisely. My bike was having issues this week but we got it fixed by this old guy who runs the shop out of his garage. He rides his motorcycle with viking horns but is a really great guy and the best deal for fixing bikes. You can tell he does it cause he loves it.

Things about Argentina, hmmm I still don't understand the driving here people just honk or flash their lights at an intersection which is interesting. Plus I've seen all sorts of people riding mopeds, dirt bikes or anything with a motor that runs and has two wheels really. Or we see people riding through town on horse and buggy very interesting. hahahaha

Anyways I should get going. I hope all is well with everyone. My thoughts and prayers are with you always.

Love Hna Potrie

Week Fourteen

Hey there,

Can you believe it's almost been 3 months!!!!!!! Time is just flying by. I feel like the saying in nursing school of "long days and short weeks" applies to the mission. We work hard to make the most of everyday and by the end we are always exhausted. Today we don't get a full Pday because we have the Christmas mission conference on Thursday this week so we just get the morning today to email and buy groceries and then back to work.

Oh and I had my first baptisms this week. It was two girls Angela and Margareta. They are two adopted girls into a member family so they had been waiting for the right time and it finally happened. Sadly, I didn't have much part in teaching them just setting up the baptism really. They are great girls though and I feel so much love for them. When we were going over the baptismal service plan it got really awkward when it came to who would go first but I just tried to let them know how much love I feel from our Heavenly Father for them and that we are just there to help them come unto Christ. We also have another baptism planned for next week. He was an investigator about a year ago and then lost interest but a rccent heart attack has given him a different perspective on life and he wants to be baptized. I really enjoy teaching him with another member Hno Hugo, they are very funny helpful guys. Hno Hugo reminds me of dad a little, great missionary for the ward always inviting everyone he knows and he's only been a member for 2 years. That's what I love about the members here - they realize how important missionary work is and are always sharing it with their friends. They are great examples to me.

We also found two families the Mendoza family and I can't remember the last name of the other. They both seem so prepared to hear the gospel. The Mendoza family is so full of love and unity as a family. I really hope they can see how the gospel can bless their family.

Things are also changing a bit as we got a set of elders in Bell Ville this week as well. I know it will take some adjustment but together I think we can really help move the work along. I also loved testimony meeting yesterday. The members were lining up after the first one and we went way over time. A testimony that hit me the most was the testimony of a recent member who is deaf. She went up with her husband and she signed while he translated. She has so much courage and such a strong testimony. I feel like learning a language has taught me a lot about being grateful for the ability to speak freely.

As to your questions I'm not sure exactly how big this city is but we bike all over it. It's probably a 40 min bike ride from one side to the other. The heat hasn't seemed as bad this week so maybe I'm adjusting. It's still cooling off at night though which is good. But it doesn't turn down the music playing out side in the town square thing. I think they were celebrating something for the last three days here but only in the evening.

The people here are usually fairly willing to talk about religion. Most are evangelist or Catholic because that's how they were raised but they don't go to church. And yes I'm taking my vitamins. I realize the diet here is lacking a few things but I'm so grateful for the food that I have. My Spanish is improving everyday and I'm learning to have patience. As I struggle with the language though I realize more and more the importance of the language of the spirit because although I can't understand all the words they say I can learn to feel what they are saying. It's mentally exhausting though to focus so hard all day on translating and understanding.

We spent a lot of time handing out invitations to less active members about the Christmas devotional. We werentt allowed to watch it though because it started at 10pm and we needed to be in the apartment. The Branch President said we could watch it at his place on a Pday though. I'm glad you´ll get to spend pre Christmas with Ammon, Tyanna and Sharla. I remember going up there last year and how excited Tacey was. This year will no doubt be just as good. I'm not sure what kind of food they eat here for Christmas but I'm sure it will be delicious. I haven't had anything that I don't like or that's really strange, it's all just very Italian. They do some really good BBQ meat though. Yummm!

I should go. But I love you and pray for you always. I pray that you can finish the pies in time and enjoy a good break for Christmas. I've been reading a bit in Jesus the Christ about his birth and life and it's such a great time of year to think of him and the blessings that come from his birth.

Love Hna Potrie

Week Thirteen

Hola

I'm sorry it's late and I don't have much time. It was a holiday here today and the internet cafe was closed. So we played soccer with the elders in our district. It was gringos (3) vs the latinos (2) it was pretty even. Mostly because I think the elders were scared they would hurt me or touch me. We ride our bikes everyday and just about everywhere because it's faster and helps us stay on time for appointments. I wish I could send you a picture. I got a new basket on it this week for my bag and if you saw the seat you would understand how my butt feels about the bike.

About the work, sadly the one family we were teaching has stopped because one of the sons that supports them doesn't like the mormons and lives in a different city. We're doing a lot of work with the inactives in the area to trying to figure out why they stopped and to help them relearn what they once knew. Sunday was great as the primary did their presentation. Although I didn't know the words in Spanish I felt the Spirit so strongly as the sang and read. They were so cute and it was great for those parents who are less active or non members.

I try to keep a journal of who we teach and how it went. It's hard to find the time because I'm exhausted when we get home and we usually eat something then too because all our dinner appointments are lunch appointments because that's the big meal and then most people siesta. So they usually have dinner around 9 but we have to be back be 9-930 so we eat on our own. As for your question if I eat lot's of fruits and veggies, not so much - mostly bananas and oranges and potatoes. It's tricky at the moment because our fridge is being fixed so everything we buy has to be out. It should be fixed by this week sometime. Who knows.

I'm glad you enjoyed your trip. the food sounds amazing and if Sharla still has that job in 15 months I would so go. Although living here has definitely been changing my view of how blessed I am. And how much I just took for granted.

I know you're getting ready for Christmas and that's so exciting I pray that like always, you all try to reach out to those in need and give because we are so abundantly blessed. I wish I could give to the people here but we have rules about doing things certain ways.

Thank you so much so your love and prayers. They have been such a support when I feel the weight of this calling. But I know my Savior is with me lifting me up as I strive to do this work. I know that it will all be worth it if I can even help bring one person unto Christ. No matter how much I struggle with the language I feel so much love from Heavenly Father for these people and I wish they could feel that.

My love and prayers are with you always,

Hna Potrie

Week Eleven

Hola!

So ya about the town not being on a map, I blame it on my horrible spelling and tired brain that day - the city is Bell Ville. So try looking that one up. It's in the south part of the mission and is about 3 hours from the mission home which means we only get real mail about every once a month or so but I'm sure they'll make sure we have our Christmas packages, so I will get the mail just not as often.

Well the weather this week has been a great mixture of things. On Thursday it was 33 and very hot riding the bikes felt good because the wind would blow. We wear a lot of layers though with trying to stay modest on the bike we always have shorts underneath. People always give us funny looks though. Then on Saturday and Sunday it rained like crazy. We had to ride out to Enzo's house who is a young investigator. He lives on a dirt road and so you can imagine what the rain did to that. I couldn't help but bust up laughing at the situation of pouring down rain, soaked/covered in mud. I wish one of us had our cameras on us.

I'm super grateful for the water bottle they gave us so I can drink the water freely and not worry about getting sick. Plus we often are offered pop at the members houses. I thought Americans drank a lot of pop but the people here do a pretty good job. The food here is actually amazing. Very European. A lot of the members serve pasta and my favorite is the fresh gnocchi with creamy tomato sauce. And there is usually fresh baked bread from the baker. Our fridge is also having issues right now so we have bought facturas which are fresh puff pastry with cream, or jam filling. We eat them cause they are cheap and delicious and the croissants are really good as well. Don't worry, I don't eat them much. We live in an apartment which they call a pension. It's really nice and central to everything.

I'm understanding more Spanish everyday. The hardest part of lessons is trying to figure out what they are saying so I can try to say something. Hna Tejada is good at helping include me. I'm learning each day how to better follow the spirit. We are working hard to get to know the members in the area and the inactives. I love the Cordoba family who are recent converts. I have practiced teaching the lessons to them a couple times. They are very funny and always try to help me with my Spanish. They are very animated when they talk which helps me understand. And for lunch yesterday we helped Hna Laura Cordoba make gnocchi. They were so good. I hear she makes the best.

It's humbling every day to have to rely fully upon the Lord for everything. Even when it seems to literally just pour down on us, I feel the Savior by my side helping me carry on. It's incredible. I know He lives and I want to share that with everyone. No matter what burden we carry, He knows how to help and is always willing.

My prayers and thoughts are with all of you.

Love Hna Potrie

Week 10

Hola!

I'm finally out in the real world - Argentina and I can't believe it. I love it!

Well I guess a quick recap of how I got here is in order. We left the MTC at 6am on Friday and took a flight to Georgia. Then the next flight was to Buenos Aires, Argentina. That means 12 hours on a plane. Long time to try and sleep. Then in Buenos Aires we were driven by different people to the domestic airport for our flight to Cordoba which left at 5:30pm. So we had our first meal there in the airport of pizza. Which was very good and different than the American pizza.

Once in Cordoba we finally met President and Hna Salas and took a taxi to the mission home. I think our taxi driver thought he was a race car driver. Anyways we had a meeting/dinner of empanadas (they are little pockets of amazingness) then I met my compañera Hna Tejada and we were off to our area at 11pm. Hna Tejada is from El Salvador, is a Dr, she's 31, has an amazing testimony and is in her last couple months of the mission. She also speaks English because her family lives in NY. I also hope her patience is good because my Spanish is not good.

So We took a bus which was the most comfortable thing I had slept on for the last few days and we traveled from 12:30-4am. So then we got to the apt and we crashed in our beds. Because 6:30 was coming early. Surprisingly though the town was still up and awake I could hear the taxis driving around with their music blaring.

So on Sunday we woke up at 6:30 and got ready because we had a few people to see before church. We walked everywhere which isn't bad because it's a small-ish city called Bell Cella. I met a new member family that I love. There are three kids plus one niece adopted sort of and the grandma lives right next door. They fed us lunch after church it was delicious chicken bread, potatoes and empandas plus jello. As we walked to their house one of the daughters was teaching me Spanish words and I would teach her English. She would laugh when I couldn't pronounce something right. Hahaha like the word for glass in Español was very difficult for me. Oh I also introduced my self in Sacrament and I was very nervous. It was just a tiny little branch but I just bore my testimony.

The rest of the day we tried to visit people we knew were interested. I mostly just nodded and smiled because they speak very quickly and the accent is different. It was great to be out working though. My companion is great and works very hard to make the most of our time here. It's crazy how prepared these people are to hear the gospel. Oh and did I mention that we have bikes? Hahahaha ya we haven't ridden them because I think one is broken but that should be interesting in a skirt. I'm also getting used to how they greet each other here with the cheek kiss. We only do that with other women though as sisters not the men. Oh and there are dogs everywhere especially in the lower income sections of town. Mom you would love it. The weather is warm here but it cools off at night which is nice. The buildings, like you said are interesting lots of old looking buildings with old furnishings but with the technology of cell phones and T.V. is interesting. But I love the people even though I can hardly understand them. I wish my Spanish would be good ahora (now) but I know I need to be patient and just try my hardest and the Lord will help me beyond my own ability. Honestly I know it's a miracle that I can speak this much for only 2 months of learning.

Oh and I don't know if sending it through pouch is best because the one thing President said is that it needs a customs sticker if it comes through regular mail. But I don't know do what ever you think is best oh and packages need the phone number if they are being sent to the mission home (03543) 420-699. Oh and don't worry about the foot thing. I sprained my foot just barely in the MTC but it's feeling a lot better and the boot is just to help the healing time. Hope everyone is well.

Love Hna Potrie

Week Nine

Hola!

So how to survive week 10 in the MTC or (CCM) is always interesting. This week was fine because we've just kept to our normal teaching schedule. We are getting antsy though. verytime in the cafeteria when a page comes on we all hope our names are called. It's tricky for us because if the visas get here today we leave tomorrow but we won't know till at least noon. So do we pack do we not? It's tricky. I JUST WANT TO KNOW!!!! If we don't go tomorrow the next tentative date is Monday. But I'm not getting too excited till we have those travel plans. I will get to call home once I get the final plans too, It'll just be one of those quick 5 min calls. But once in the airport I can call for a bit longer.

So exciting things around here. Hmmm they put up Christmas lights but they have yet to turn them on. My and my companions took family Christmas pictures in front of a tree and they are pretty awesome. I'll probably send them home as my Christmas card. I had to give a talk in Spanish in sacrament the other week. I didn't do so well because I was super nervous but it will get better. Sacrament is a little nerve racking because they always pick two missionaries to speak on the weekly assigned topic but they pick them once the meeting has started so you sit there panicking each time. Okay maybe it's not that bad but it's still not my favorite thing. Oh but cool thing we got to do real service other than cleaning toilets here. We counted tongue depressors into groups of 80 and put them in boxes to go to church headquarters for when the next disaster hits.We also sorted paint stir sticks which they use for splints. It was a lot better then sitting in class for two hours.

Who is the Burnham girl that moved in? I don't have a picture of just me and my name tag but I can take one and email it to you once I'm in Argentina. Also the other girl moved out of our room last week she was just there for a week while doing visitor center training. Oh tell Naomi congrats and that I hope to speak Spanish with her when I come back.

We still work hard to prepare for the mission field by practicing teaching Spanish and doing contacting. My Spanish still has a long way to come but I know it'll come. So many people make it through this and I know I can to. I know that the Lord has blessed me to learn the language so quickly I can't believe how far it's come even though I still grammatically sound like a little child all the time. It's coming. Well I should go, I'll let you know when I know what the plans are.

All my love and prayers, Hna Potrie

Week Eight

Hola!

You write emails like me mom, just one big paragraph. So ya the travel plans have been changed. Kinda bummed because there was a rumor that Pres Holland is going there this weekend to do a mission conference. But oh well. I'm sure I shocked you when I called but once we get our other plans I will get another call home to let you know. Plus while I'm in the airport during layovers I can call home as well. So let me know when you plan on going up to Vanderhoof so I can call the right phone as plans are in the air. That's cool you got a new elder from the MTC. He was totally here at the same time as me and that's crazy. I met one Elder Flexhog who was from Calgary to to Vancouver mission Spanish speaking. Oh and thanks for the package of cookies last week mom. Last week there was lots of packages for our district because everyone thought we were leaving. Oh and thanks for mailing that letter can you do me a bigger favor though and call her and tell her to dear elder me if she has time before I leave the MTC. Gracias.

So from now until we get our travel plans we are going to keeping doing classes like normal. We still learn Spanish and keep practicing teaching. My gospel vocabulary grows everyday but I need to start working on my normal words as well. Last Sunday we got to hear from Sister Elaine S Dalton. She gave an amazing talk and shared some personal stories and scriptures that have helped her through life. She is such an amazing woman. One thing she taught was don't quit in the middle of a hill. It was so great. It's also been amazing to talk with our teachers about the people they role play for us and to teach and find out what really happened or who they are to our teachers.

I have no idea when they'll be letting us leave and if they'll wait for all of our visas to send us as we each get them we don't really know. After a couple extra weeks though I don't know what they will do. I've heard of some people getting reassigned to a mission in the US till the visa comes. But I doubt that will happen, I just think there wasn't enough time for visas to come through with meeting with the consolate only a week ago.

How was everyones Halloween? Some elders switched name tags but that's as crazy as it got here. One of my favorite things here is singing in the choir every week. The director is super funny and entertaining to work with. Plus never have I been so out numbered by male voices in a choir. It's way cool.

Well I should get going. I can't wait to leave but I'm so grateful for the extra time to learn.My love and prayers are with you.

Love Hna Potrie

Week Seven

Hola

I got my travel plans!!!! We leave next Thursday at 11 am and fly to Atlanta, Georgia. We have a lay over from 11- 4:40 and then it's off to Buenos Aries, Argentina!!!!! From there, we think we take a bus to Cordoba. Not sure exactly, but there will be someone there from the church to help us out - plus we have a group of about 12 going. Yesterday the Argentine Consolate came and signed visas for all the Americans. I had to go because of my companions and was bummed that I had to miss gym for it. But she was really nice and took our questions for about an hour and shared as much as she could about her country. She mentioned that Cordoba has the nicest Spanish and a really good chocolate bar with dulce de leche in it. We're all super excited to be going, but nervous because our Spanish still needs a lot of work. We've gotten very used to our teachers Hna Andrade and Hno Richards and can understand them really well but other people speak and it sounds like a different language. It'll come though and the fastest way to learn is to just be immersed in it. We had another sister move into our room which is kind of weird but it's only for a week. Thanks so much for sending the bag I love it! Plus I love wonder bars and mini eggs, good call mama. We've had some interesting learning experiences this week of really being guided by the spirit and then other moments of breaking the trust of our investigators. It's a learning process and I'm glad those bad moments have happened here in practice and not out there. I'm super excited to just get to Argentina and be with the people.I hope everything is going well.

Love Hna Potrie

Week Six

Hola,

I don't have much tiempo (time) so I'll try to hurry. Me and my companions are all healthy and well which helps us work hard and study. And don't worry I'm enjoying the yummy fresh pineapple everyday. The fall colors are beautiful here too. We've been watching them come down the mountains. Sounds like the pie business is booming which is always good to hear. And yes our teacher is with us the whole time Hno Richards and he speaks with the accent. We should be finding out in the next couple days our travel plans for Argentina. All of our district will go together plus some other districts going to Argentina. My Spanish is still not that great and it will be interesting once I step off that plane and fully into Spanish. And we actually apply all the Spanish we learn to help teach our practice investigators right now so we are definitely applying them to the investigators. And yes Sister Beck is the general RS president. This week we got to hear from Elder Richard G. Scott. He talked about personal revelation and it was amazing. I learn something everyday about personal revelation. Oh and "mas o minos" means "more or less". My time is short today but thanks for the emails. I'm doing great and know that I pray for you all daily.

Love Hna Potrie

Week Five

Hola!

Sounds like the pie business is rolling forth like crazy and Thanksgiving was enjoyable. What did the wedding cake look like? I'm glad to hear you are actually training the dog. I hope he's enjoying sleeping outside too. In my district we have 4 Elders and 3 Hermanas. From that group 5 of us are going to Cordoba on Nov 3 and 2 are going to Rossario on Nov 7. Which is sad because we are all super close. We calculated it and I've spent over 600 hours together as a companionship and the amazing thing is we actually get along. All the leaders always ask us how were doing and are shocked when we have nothing to complain about. I mean of course learning the language is hard but we're all in the same boat and just turn to the Lord more each day and press on.

My companion got sick on Sunday so we were again in our room studying for a long time. It's hard to focus in there for that long but I'm glad she was able to get some sleep and is feeling better. Sad news though we found out we're not actually allowed to listen to music at all while here at the MTC so our study music has stopped. It's hard but we're trying to be obedient. We also got to hear from Sister Beck this week and she is amazing. I had no idea she grew up in the mission home in Brazil and played missionary dress up all the time. She loves missionary work and shared the importance of bringing people unto the fullness of the gospel in the temple.

They finally turned the heat on in the building which is a huge blessing. It was cold not gonna lie. It tried snowing here last week and since then the mountains have been covered in snow all around us. I can't believe when I leave in a few weeks I'll be going to full blazing summer. My Spanish is coming along mas o minos. Well I should get going hope all is well with everyone.

Love Hermana Potrie

Week Four

Happy Thanksgiving!

I know it's a few days early but better early than late. Sounds like you're all getting together for a delicious turkey meal I can just imagine it. All the fall decorations half eaten on the table, mound of stuffing that everyone will take, the smell of delicious pumpkin and of course someone trying to snitch food before it's all ready. Oh wait that's usually me so I guess someone else will have to step up for me! Any takers? I can also see Mom crying as we all go around and say what we're thankful for. I guess I can't say Frank the turkey this year cause I won't be eating him. So I guess I actually have to come up with a real one. So I guess I would say (someone make sure mom has a tissue) I'm grateful to know I am exactly where I'm supposed to be. That even though it's hard to be away at times I know the Lord is blessing me and watching over all of you. I hope you guys have a wonderful time together.

It finally feels like fall here. The last couple days have been rainy and cold and it feels like fall. Once the fog lifts I wouldn't be surprised to see snow on the mountains. Oh and I LOVED conference! It was so amazing we all just stay here and watch it in the gym. There were so many good talks given. I really loved Barbara Thompson's talk and I can't wait to get the Ensign and read it all. Spanish is still coming a long. From day to day it doesn't seem to get much better but looking back to my first day I know it's improving. We do this language study program on the computer called TALL and it's really helpful but also really funny because the headphones are huge things with mics on them and I feel like I'm working for NASA. It's a great program to practice speaking and grammar. Some days we try to go all day in Spanish but we never make it. We usually talk a lot less and speak more in Spanglish than anything. I also love that we discovered the Youth site so we can listen to Church music while listening. It makes me super happy to just listen to music.

Well my time is up, happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Love Hna Potrie

Week Three

Hola!

Como estan?

I can't believe it's another week gone. So an update about what's been going on in the last week. Well my companion Hna Adair got a cold and so me and Hna Tourtillott got a lot more study time in our room. We might have gone a little crazy a couple of times from being cooped up. We discovered the pull up bar that exists in our hallway and now attempt everyday to do one. Maybe by the end of the 5 more weeks we'll get one each. I feel like my teaching is getting slightly better as I'm learning to speak from my heart and speak around the words I don't know. I'm always being humbled about how much I need the Holy Ghost to teach. We do this thing called TRC where we teach members that speak Spanish and we just practice Spanish and try to teach them a basic principle. This week was revelation through prayer and was a great experience. As members it's important to always to be receiving revelation and nourishing our testimonies. Yesterday we had to say good bye to 4 Elders in our class that left for the MTC in the Dominican Republic. We're super sad to see them leave because we've become like family but I know those Elders will do amazing things their testimonies are all rocks. Our class is so small now we only have 4 Elders and 3 Hermanas and we're all going to Argentina. One of our teachers Hno Richards served in Cordoba and promised to speak in the accent now that it's only us left. He demonstrated how they talk in the capitol of Cordoba and it's very sing song hard to understand.

Well I hope you are all excited for conference cause I sure am. I know the Lord will truly answer our questions through the words of the Prophets.

All my love and prayers,
Hna Potrie

Week Two

Hey there,

As far as life at the MTC things are busy. We study the Spanish language a lot so we can better teach people the gospel. And we study Preach My Gospel and the Book of Mormon a lot. Coolest thing ever we had Russell M Nelson from the Quorum of the 12 come and speak to us on Tuesday for devotional. Which is crazy because last week we had M Russell Ballard and the week before that they had Jeffery R Holland which I missed by a day. But still three weeks in a row for Apostles is pretty unheard of. We had a feeling something was up though because we each got a early edition of the new Ensign this month and it is all about the Book of Mormon and were told to read it before the Devotional and bring it with us. Elder Nelson spent the whole time teaching about the Book of Mormon. So not only do we have this amazing ensign we have the words of the Apostle to testify and teach us. He shared all sorts of information and I wish I could give it all too you. But please get your hands on that ensign it's amazing!!!!! That Book is one of the greatest tools as a missionary but it's also one of the greatest ways to come unto Christ and we can all benefit from reading daily from it. If you haven't read from it recently please pick it up and treasure the words that are written there and ask your Heavenly Father to receive that witness again.

To answer your questions mom we usually get gym time once a day except Sunday and P day. I usually like to run and play volleyball seeing as how us sisters aren't allowed to play soccer (futbol) with the elders. As far as favorite foods probably all the fresh fruit at breakfast or just all day. Or on Wed when the new missionaries come and we get BYU creamery ice cream. Oh and no I haven't see the Dow's grandson there is a lot of us here. They told us one day but I can't remember. Anyways I should run thanks for all your love and prayers. Know that I pray for you in Spanish daily my prayers might not be elaborate in Espanol but they come from my corazon.

Love Hna Potrie

Week One

Hey there,

I can't believe it's been a whole week here. I feel like we have long days and short weeks. It's been such an amazing experience thus far. The Spirit is so strong here. We describe it like a little oil lamp burning in us all the time on this campus and then there moments when it becomes an inferno and over whelms us. There have been many of those inferno moments while here. Sunday was an amazing day. In relief society the teacher shared her experience with learning a language for her mission and how she struggled, which is something I easily relate to. And she said how she constantly asked for the gift of tongues and thought that it would be more instant but than she thought about it and realized that she was being blessed with a different language the language of the spirit. Which is so true heavenly father knows my Spanish isn't great but he knows that if I can testify that I will allow the spirit to carry my words.

Oh and guess what we got to hear from Elder M Russel Ballard on Tuesday! He gave a great talk about remembering to teach simple truths. He was so awesome. It was such a surprise though because just the week before they had Elder Holland come speak. Afterwards we had a testimony meeting as a district which is made up of 11 of us 8 elders and 3 hermanas. 7 of us are going to Argentina and 4 are leaving early for the Dominican Republic. I seriously love all of them though. The testimony meeting was so great and full of such strong testimonies. Me and the other Hermanas are just so grateful that we got such amazing elders. They all have such great stories, testimonies and strengths.

My favorite thing we do as Hermanas to relieve stress is laugh. Hna Tourtillott is hillarious which makes me laugh which makes both of them laugh more it's a great combination. Just imagine me laughing and then saying si,he,he,he,he it's pretty funny. Well my time is up and I have to go but love you all lots and hope everything is going great.

Love Hna Potrie

The time has finally come for me to start packing my bags to get on a plane that will take me on one of life's greatest adventures. I'm excited beyond belief and would be lying if I didn't say a bit nervous for the unknown. I know this gospel can bring so much happiness and peace into peoples lives and I'm so excited to share that. And to share their experiences as they learn to pray and come to know their Heavenly Father and Savior. Just like in my farewell talk I know it will take a lot of faith and the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. I'm still in awe of how I got to this point and the many blessings that I've been given. I know that I have the love and support of so many who have helped me grow and although I will miss them at times I know that their strength and examples will help me through. I pray that I will be able to serve the Lord with everything that I have and help others come unto Christ.

Oh and just incase your wondering about the details my wonderful sister Sharla has agreed to help out and post emails from my mission on here so that you can read and skim the wonderful adventures of Hermana Potrie!