Drive By Shooting

My dearest family,

So today we had transfers. I really thought that I was going to be staying in Anaheim with sister Longoria but she got transfered out.

Sister Minert is my new companion  and she came out the same time as hermana Longoria. Eric did you ever meet her in the MTC? Sister Henrie got her visa on Wednesday and is on her way to Spain right now. 

This week was great and super busy. Our area just grew a lot because the borders changed and I guess we have many of the Elders investigators now. We have been teaching the _______ family and they are doing really well. The dad really wants his whole family to listen to us and always has them come in when we come over. We have been very blessed to be able to teach a lot of families recently. 

This week we had zone meeting which was so good!  The assistants basically just talked about how we can help the missionaries and this mission. They also focused a lot on teaching families and working with the members in the ward. I am excited for this transfer and for the exchanges that I will get to go on with the sisters. We didn't have any new Spanish sisters come in this transfer but there were a bunch of English ones. It is so cool that so many sisters are coming out now! 

Well this week we had a ward activity that the missionaries were in charge of. The Elders did the lesson and we did the activity. We couldn't think of anything to do and didn't have much time at all and somehow we decided to play balloon volleyball with the families. I was worried that it wouldn't turn out, but they ended up loving it. It was sooo funny to watch! We had about 10 balloons and all of the members were really getting into it. I wish I got it on video because it was so funny!! 

Last night we went to a street that most of our investigators live on, and I guess right before we got there, someone drove by and was shooting at the apartments. There were a bunch of kids and teens outside, but luckily I don't think anyone ended up getting hurt. There were police everywhere and everyone told us to get out of there because they thought the guys might come back. As we were driving away we heard some more shots which was scary but I really hope everyone was OK  That's the street that all the interesting crazy stuff happens on... too bad we are teaching so many people there...haha! But no worries we are safe!  I love being here and know that this is the Lords work. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and am so grateful for the Atonement in my life. Thanks for everything, love you all! :)

That is soooo amazing to hear that Kelsey is going on a mission!!!!! I can't stop smiling because I am so happy for her. It is such a life changing experience and she is absolutely going to love it! She will make an amazing missionary too. I can't wait to hear where she is going!! :) Also, Christina and Erica Marley are going too!! That is so awesome!!!! That's pretty cool that Christy and her husband are moving into our ward. They are going to love Bend! :) Mom, fast tract sounds good. I think that would be smart to do. I bet I could get a little job there too and work before I go. Also that's funny that you got Just Dance. We are totally doing that together when I get home. :) You are going to be my companion and I am going to follow you everywhere. I hope that's OK with you. :) Sister Poulson is staying with us tonight and she leaves the mission to go home tomorrow morning. Sister Breitenstein is here on more transfer and she is companions with a 65 year old lady this transfer who only speaks Spanish  Cool huh? They didn't want to close the area because there are so many sisters coming next transfer so they just had her come in for a little bit. Well, that's about all the news this week! Love you! :)

It Takes All Kinds

Hola familia!

So we couldn't email this Monday because the library was closed. We have had a busy week and haven't found time to email until now, and it is going to have to be quick because we have a lot to do tonight.

Anyways, we've had a good week and things are starting to pick up again. We are teaching a couple of families right now and both of them committed to coming to church on Sunday. The lessons seemed to go well and I am looking forward to teaching them again. 

We met some crazy people this week... there was this drunk guy who was convinced I was Mexican... I've never heard that one before! My companions were laughing pretty hard. The guy started talking about crazy stuff after that and wouldn't let us leave. I told him that we had to go a few different times but he kept talking and was getting super intense so we had to just walk away. We met this other lady told us that we are aliens from another planet and that the world already ended and we are just here to leave a mark. She said that she was going to pray that angels would come share a message with us, and then we shared a quick messege with her, and then she was going on about how we were the angels... she also said that one time she turned into a light and saved people... and a lot of other stuff. It was interesting.. I hear some weird things out here! Haha!

Tonight we are going on Exchanges. Sister Poulson is coming here with me and both of my companions are going to Orange. I'm excited to spend a little bit of time with her before she goes home from the mission in a couple of weeks. This week we had the sisters meeting which was all about training. There are so many sisters coming in soon that most of the sisters in the mission will be training, and President wants to get everyone as prepared as possible. I am excited for all of the new sisters. 

That is so awesome that Alexa got her mission call to Peru! She is going to love the mission and will be a great missonary! :)

Sorry I didn't have a lot of time. Thanks for your emails. Love you all so much! Keep up the good work Eric! :)

Filling Up on Sin Tacos

My dearest family,

Last week we played soccer for the zone activity which was a ton of fun!! My companion ended up hurting her knee though and hasn't been able to walk a lot this week. She is doing a lot better now. We went on an exchange and had a sister from another trio come stay with Sister Budge while sister Poulson and I went out to our lessons. 

I don't know if I have mentioned this, but Sister Poulson is the new coordinating sister, so we go on a lot of exchanges again like I did when I first got here. This week I had one of the craziest exchanges of my mission. Sister Poulson left, and two sisters came with Sister Budge and I, so there were four of us. All three of them are being trained, which made it a very interesting day. They were all at different parts in the training program so it was kind of crazy. 

Eric, Sister Longoria was one of the sisters that came with us. (She was in the MTC with Eric) She told me to tell you hi. Anyway, setting up the Christmas tree last week at the Bowens was a lot of fun. They fed us dinner and shared a message for family home evening. It was a nice relaxing evening. Brother ______ got confirmed on Sunday. He is doing so well!

We are still teaching his friend but he didn't come to church again like he said he was going to. He had us send missionaries to his family in Mexico which was awesome. ______ has also been inviting his other friends to listen to us. He is the best missionary! 

We had a couple of lessons with him this week and every time we go over there he tries to feed us. Well we had just eaten before we went over there and we kept telling him that, but he made us food anyway. He asked us what we ate before, and a accidentally said tacos de pecado (sin), when I meant to say tacos de pescado (fish)... He thought that was so funny. Oops. I was sooo full after his meal though! We have decided that we shouldn't eat too much before we go over to his house now, because he always feeds us more.

We went to the Christmas devotional last night which was good. I'm grateful to be out here and love it! Thanks Aunt Angie and Uncle Byron for the package. You didn't need to do that! I love and miss you all so much!

Mom, I don't really have a pic. Sorry. Plus it's super rainy here right now and doesn't really look like California.I could try to get one though but you probably need it this week..? I don't know.

Mom, that cute little jacket is perfect and it fits really well! If it was any bigger it would be too big, You did a really good job! I love it so much! Thank youuu!!! :) You didn't have to get me that. Thanks so much!!!!! :) I will have to send you a picture soon with it. :) Love you!!!

Ok, so there has been something on my mind a lot lately. I keep thinking about how I need to do something with Spanish after my mission. I was wondering if I could major in child development and minor in Spanish and still get my associates. I don't really know how that all works or it could even do that, but I keep having the thought like I need to do something in school with Spanish. Well let me know what you think or if you know how that could even work. It's just something that I keep thinking about.

Love you all so much. Thanks for the Birthday letters and package.

Talk to you in 22 days! :D

It Was Really Cool She Was Able to Recognize That Feeling

Recent Baptism

My dearest family,

Thanks for the emails and happy birthdays! There is no better way to spend a birthday then being out here on the mission. It is such a blessing to be out here. This week was so great, and we have seen so many miracles happening in our area. 

_______ got baptized after church yesterday and the spirit was so strong. He has been asking us to sing for his baptism, and so my companions and I sang how great thou art for the musical number. It has been amazing seeing the changes in his life. He is one of the most humble people I have ever met, and has such a desire to share the gospel with his friends. We are teaching his friend _______ now, and during the first vision he teared up and told us that he felt a big warmth in his chest. Hermana Budge extended the baptism invite and he accepted a baptism date for the 15th of December! He didn't come to church or ______'s baptism like he said he was going to and we haven't been able to talk with him yet to see why.

I am excited to be teaching him. He also said that his brother might be interested in learning too so we are going to follow up on that the next time with visit with him. 

Also _______'s mom is planning on getting baptized December 2nd. She hasn't had any coffee for an entire week, so she is doing so well and has been coming to church every Sunday too! I'm glad the other sisters are taking care of her.

My Thanksgiving was great! We went to President Tuckers house and had turkey, potatoes, and lots of other good food. It was really nice.

This week we went on exchanges. Sister Poulson went to Garden Grove, and an English speaking sister came here with sister Budge and I. It was a great exchange! 

We had a dinner appointment with a lady in our ward and she had family members over. Her family members started asking us about the church and turned off the TV so that we could teach them. They asked us all kinds of questions and it went on for about 10 or 15 min, and then the lady in our ward walked in and got mad at them. They were already members and thought that they were being so funny acting like they weren't. I will admit, they did a really good job and it was pretty funny. They said we passed the test so I guess that's a good thing. Then they gave us a referral of a friend from work so it was all worth it. 

A couple of them were actually from Guatemala, so they fed us Guatemalan food. I was thinking about Eric the whole time. They thought that it was really cool that my brother was there. 

District During a Recent P Day

Also at the beginning of the week we were walking on the street after an appointment and started talking to a family. We made an appointment with them and they seemed like they really wanted us to come back. Well we had the appointment with them yesterday, but the dad couldn't come so we scheduled another time that would be good for all of them. We taught the mom still, and it was a really cool experience. We were explaining the spirit and that it testifies of truth and talking about how it feels, and how she would receive answers. When we were explaining it to her she said, "Oh, I know how that feels, I felt that way the first time you talked to us on the street." It was really cool that she was able to recognize that feeling. It is really hard to find a whole family here to teach so I am really looking forward to working with them. 

It has been amazing watching the miracles happening in this area and seeing the hand of the Lord in this work. I am a different person for being here and am so grateful for this opportunity. 

Well, the rest of my birthday will be great! I am pretty sure we are planning on going to the duck pond and having turtle races later today with the zone, and also playing soccer which is always the best! Usually we would be teaching or tracting on Monday nights but tonight President and Sister Bowen invited the three of us over to help them decorate their Christmas tree. It should be fun. :) 

Also, thank you Kara for the package! You really did not need to do that. I loved it! :
) Miss you so much! We haven't gotten mail since last week, so mom I haven't gotten your package yet but we are getting mail later today, so thank you! :) Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUNT KAREN! I love you tons! :) Hope it's a great one! Have a great week!

Eric, I loved the pictures!! Keep up the good work. I am so proud of you!! :)

Staying in Orange!

Sister Layton with a young man who clearly has exceptional taste

Hello my dearest family,

Sorry to hear that Obama won. That is too bad. Eric, your letters make me laugh!! 

Well, ready to hear where I am going for transfers?! I am staying here in the City of Orange again!! Wahoo! :) That will make it at least 9 months here. 

Sister Poulson and I are training the new sister together. Her name is sister Budge and she comes in tomorrow. We will be picking her up at Four. I am really excited! 

We went to the training meeting this week at Presidents house and learned a lot about how we can be good trainers. We will be starting the 12 week program with her which means two hours of companionship study instead of one. I think she is from Utah somewhere near Salt Lake City. I am looking forward to getting to know her this week. 

Well, funny thing that happened this week. Remember how I told you guys I'm never going to get pulled over? Well, I didn't know you could get pulled over on foot. Haha! We were on a street where the crosswalk was far down and so we waited until there weren't any cars and ran across. Then I looked over and this motorcycle cop comes around the corner and put his lights on, he said, "Stop right there girls!" Then he said you girls don't speak Spanish so you don't have an excuse for not reading the signs. I should have started speaking Spanish and acted like I didn't understand him, but I didn't think of that until after. Oh well. I guess we wont be J-walking anymore. 

Well this week we had zone conference and Elder Kopischke from the Seventy spoke. It was about 6 hours long but it was so great! President and Sister Bowen spoke as well. :) 

As for [Brother X], he told us that he was going to come to church no matter what again this week and didn't show up. :( We even called him before and he said that he coming. We still haven't talked to him about why he didn't come but it was so sad! 

The District on P Day

Last night we knocked into a former investigator and he told us to come in and talk to both him and his daughter. We made a return appointment and he said that he was going to have his wife and son come as well. He has been to church before and said he liked it.

It is always hard to find a whole family to teach here so I am excited to come back and teach them. 

Well, not much more happened this week. I love you all! Have a great week! :) Oh one more thing, HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD! :) Oh yeah, and I taught my companion how to do the rubix cube and so we are probably doing it in the talent show for the ward party this week.

Curtis that is awesome that you got to go shooting! You look different and older. :'( Remember I said not to change.

(We no sooner received Briana's letter than we got another quick note from Eric, who is leaving the Guatemalan MTC tomorrow morning. He said this:

Hmmmm well good job getting pulled over Briana. That´s pretty great. Did you get a ticket or anything or just a warning? Apparently all the cops here are corrupt and they don´t ever pay attention to stuff like that so I should be safe. I probably jay walk all I want! Pretty cool. Well I don´t even know if they have crosswalks here. Well it´s great here with or without crosswalks. Oh yeah apparently pedestrians here have no rights like in the states so You just have to hope you aren´t hit by a truck or something. That wouldn´t be very fun at all.) 

(Later in the day, we got a second email.)

You get two emails today, Happy anniversary!!!

Well, my companions computer wasn't working earlier and so she didn't get to email. So here we are again. I forgot to tell you about those pictures that I sent earlier. We went to a huge trampoline gym for our P day activity last week. They had a big foam pool that you could jump into from the trampolines and other random stuff. The last picture was the P day before when we carved pumpkins and played soccer. As you can see, I wasn't in the picture. It was because I was out playing soccer.

It was so fun! We always have the best zone activities. Today we went to the Book store because my companion needed something there. We had gift cards from a member for a restaurant right next to it. We thought that we would go use them since we were in the area. Well, before we got inside this guy ran out of the restaurant and said "Hey sisters!

My boss wants to buy you lunch." We went in there are they were having a big business meeting. It turns out that most of them were LDS except for a couple and then they were all trying to convince the others to listen to us. He bought us lunch and then they had to go. One of the guys there said that his brother is in Eric's mission but I forgot to ask his name. There was also a guy who's girlfriend lives in Bend but the name wasn't familiar. When I was in the Bookstore the girl working there said that she just got home from her mission in Arizona and it was the same mission as my friend. Well it turns out that she knew him and was in his same district for a transfer. Such a small world! Hmm..

I don't know what else happened this week. Have any of the cousins put in their mission papers yet? When will Michael and Dallin leave again?

LOVE YOU ALL. :)

Getting Past the Bottleneck

At the Recent Baptism

My dearest family,

I have so much to tell you this week. It has been amazing! [Sister X] got baptized on Thursday and it was one of the best baptisms I have been to. She shared her testimony at the end and it was so powerful. She is the 18 year old that Sister Schofield and I taught last transfer with her mom. Her mom is planning on getting baptized the 25th of this month! I am so happy for them. 

Also, more great news, [Brother X] CAME TO CHURCH! We were walking down his street last Monday and he chased us down to tell us how sorry he was that he couldn't make it. His nephew passed away that morning and he went to be with family. He loved church though and said that he is looking forward to coming again next week. Everyone in the ward was so welcoming. He was even participating in the classes. 

Last week we had a lesson with him and his friend walked in the house. [Brother X] stopped the lesson and said to his friend, "When can you meet with these missionaries?" His friend told him the day that he would be available and then [Brother X] said, "okay, and what time works best for you?" He set up a time to meet with us and then [Brother X] asked him for his phone number and his information so that we could teach him. It was awesome! He is already a great missionary. We had the lesson later in the week with his friend and he sat in. At the end of the lesson we invited his friend to be baptized. He seemed unsure and said he didn't know yet. Then [Brother X] jumped in and said, "Mira. Las hermanas no han ensenado la importancia  del bautiso en su salvacion" (Look. The Sisters haven't taught you about the importance of baptism in your salvation.) Haha! It was so awesome! Then his friend said okay but he needed more time. [Brother X] is planning on getting baptized on the 11th of this month, so in a week! Everything has happened so fast that we might move it back a week to make sure he is ready, but we are going to meet with him tonight and see how he feels about it. I love teaching him and seeing the changes in his life! 

We are also teaching a guy named [Brother X]. He is so funny! We had a really powerful lesson with him a few nights ago about the plan of salvation and he seemed to really understand it. He didn't come to church though but we are still going to work with him. He accepted the baptism invite but not a date. He said he wants to read and learn more first. Halloween was great.

President and his wife invited my companion and I to come to their house and pass out candy to all of the kids. It was so much fun! The kids were so cute. We had our ward halloween party this week which was also fun. I love the little kids in our ward! 

Sisters Layton and Poulson

This week we had another sisters meeting. President was telling us about how much the missionary work is growing now that the age is lowered. He said that they have had so many new people who have turned in their papers since the announcement that they would already be able to open 60 new missions. That is amazing! 

We are going to be getting a lot of new missionaries in our mission and president said that a lot of them would be sisters. Do you know if any of the cousins have turned in their papers? 

This week we have a member of the 70 coming for our zone conference which should be awesome! Also, this weekend is transfers so we will see if I say here or not. I hope so!!! Transfer week always makes me nervous because I love this area and ward. 

Anyway, I hope all is well for you guys! Eric, keep up the good work! I can't wait until you are out in the field! :) Love you all!

I Like This Room, I Can Feel the Spirit in Here

 Hola mi familia!

Last Tuesday after I emailed we went to the temple. I love it there and was very grateful to have the chance to go! After the temple our district went to the park for the rest of our P-day to feed the ducks.

No Turtle Races

We started feeding them, and a bunch of turtles would swim up to eat the bread. We caught some of the turtles and were going to have turtle races but we ran out of bread so they stopped coming. It was lots of fun! 

This week we were on a street headed to a lesson and the guy had just gotten home from work and was cleaning up so they asked us to come back in 15 minutes. We decided to go find some of the potentials that lived on that same street. As we started walking towards one of their houses a lady ran over to us and said,

"Wait! Are you Mormons?"

We said yes, and she told us that she has been looking for us. She used to meet with the missionaries, and would go to church all the time but moved and lost contact with them. She said that she couldn't find missionaries anywhere and so she went to many different churches but none of them were the same. She was really excited that she found us and wants to start coming back. Well this week we found out that she has to move again, and wants the missionaries to come visit her there. Also, when we were teaching her I had a random thought that she looked like one of my old investigators so I asked if they were related, and she said that it was her mom! Haha crazy! It was cool to be able to meet her and see the desire that she had to learn and come to church. 

Making Caramel Apples

This week we also taught [Brother X] a few more times. We had a lesson about the Sabbath Day and he told us that he was going to come to church and that he knew he needed to. Well, sadly he didn't show up. He said he was out of town and got back too late to come. It was really sad though because this is the third week in a row that he said he would come but then didn't. We have been praying a lot for him and I hope we can help him see the importance of church. 

This week I had a couple of cool experiences. The first one was a couple of days ago. I went on exchanges to Anaheim hills and they had their Halloween party that night. They had members in all of the classrooms handing out candy to all of the kids. The kids were all really excited and running around. There was one room off to the side that had a church video playing and it was a lot quieter. A boy who was probably about 5 or 6 years old walked in and sat on the chair for about 15 minutes while the rest of the kids were running around getting candy. Then he stood up and walked over to us and said, "I like this room, I can feel the spirit in here." That was so amazing to me that this little boy could recognize the spirit, and that he liked being there because he could feel it. 

Another experience that I had was last night. There was a member in our ward who was in the hospital. Her husband who is not a member, couldn't be there with her for most of the time because of work. We went to visit her and started singing hymns with her. During on of the last songs, her husband walked in the room and started to tear up. I know that he was able to feel the spirit. 

Yesterday was the wards primary program. Remember how Curtis used to sing really loud...Well there was a girl in the ward who reminded me of that. It was so cute!! I love those kids! The primary program is always my favorite!

The Cute Snake

This coming week we have the Halloween party for our ward. Its going to be after Halloween, but that's normal for my ward. haha! At the Halloween party when I was on exchanges there was a lady with a huge snake and she let me hold it for a while. It was so cute. It kinda freaked me out though when it's head started coming closer to my face. I think I want a pet snake when I get home (or probably not).

So yeah, exchanges were fun. I am super grateful to be speaking Spanish and to be in my area. We went tracting in Anaheim hills and it was really sad! It is a very rich area and the people were not very nice. At least here the people are super nice and talk to us even if they don't want anything to do with our message.  Anyways, that's about it for this week.

Eric! That's so awesome that you are the AP! I can't wait until you are out in the field! You are going to love it! Sounds like your Spanish is coming along really well! You probably will pass me up soon! :) Good luck!! You are always in my prayers! :) Love you all! :)

Investigators Helping Investigators

A Cali Sunset

So today we get to go to the temple and I am really excited! 

Eric, is there a temple close to where you're at in Guatemala? Also I don't know if I already told you this or not but keep an eye out for Hermana Andreason once you are out of the MTC. She was one of my companions in the MTC and I think she is in your same mission. 

This week we did a lot of finding again. We have been visiting part members families and have a lesson with one of them tonight. We visited [x] again this week. He is doing really well and seems to be really understanding the message and making changes in his life, but he hasn't come to church! He always says that hes going to come, and the last two Sundays we called in the morning and he said that he was sick. We are planning on teaching him the Sabbath day this week, so I hope he comes this next Sunday. [x] tells us that he has had dreams where he is with us in our congregation, and he knows he's supposed to come but he still hasn't. 

We also ran into one of our former investigators this week named [x], and he is probably the funniest person I have ever met! We couldn't stop laughing. He talks like a gangster and says the funniest things! He said he was going to find his Book of Mormon, so we might stop by again to see how he's doing later this week. 

Last night we went to visit [x], a less active member who we used to teach. He was baptized in Mexico when he was 12 and only went to church for a year and then he stopped going. We have invited him to church many times but he never wants to come. We were talking to him at his doorstep and this guy named [x], who we used to teach walked by. He is friends with [x] and so he came and started talking to us. We asked [x] if he still has his Book of Mormon and he told us that he is just going to read the Bible. Before we said anything [x] started explaining all about the Book of Mormon and how important it was, and telling [x] about when Christ came to the Americas. He started quoting scriptures and sharing his testimony.

Hermanas Schofield y Layton at Angel Stadium in Anaheim

It was awesome! He remembers so much! We ended up being able to make another appointment with [x], and [x] is going to try to come. It was a cool experience. 

This week our Mission President's wife called my companion and I to come help write names on the back of all of her pictures for the photo albums, and so we went to the mission home and hung out with president and his wife for a couple of hours. It was a fun way to use our service hours for the week! :) We are probably going to go over again soon to finish up. 

Well I think that's about all that happened this week. Thanks for all the letters and support everyone!!!! Love you all! :)

Have a great week!!!!!!!!!

Love, Me

The Best Decision I Have Ever Made

Sisters Layton and Schofield

That's so awesome that Eric was in my same zone!! Best teachers in the MTC! I cannot believe that he is headed to Guatemala. We have people in our ward from there and they were very excited when I told them that my brother was going. He will love it. I heard that there are really big spiders... that's why he went there and not me! :)

Ok, so this week has been crazy. I thought for sure that I was leaving this area because we knew that there were going to be changes with all of the spanish sisters. We got transfer calls Saturday night and they are actually splitting my area in half and I am taking the north half and Sister Breitenstein and her companion are taking the south half. I think I will just plan on staying here my whole mission! :) I was really sad at the thought that I might have to leave. We will have 4 sisters in our district now! That never happens. The half of my area that I will be working in has some good potential and most of our investigators are there, but the other half has our most progressing family. I'm glad that I will still get to see them at church but will miss teaching them. I know that sister Breitenstein will take care of them though. :) 

Anaheim, California Mission Sisters

Sister Schofield is going back to Anaheim and my new companion is sister Poulson. I am so sad that I was only companions with sister Schofield for one transfer. It was definitely my favorite transfer of the mission so far. I learned so much from her. Sister Poulson will be great too though. She is from Colorado and is going to BYU. Her major is history teaching. She came out with sister Breitenstein, so only has three transfers left. 

That's awesome about Michael's mission call! I love how many missionaries are coming out lately! He will do great! 

Mom, did you go to the women's conference? If not, you should watch it! I am getting really excited for conferences coming up this next weekend. I am grateful that we can listen to our living prophet and apostles. We taught Pati about Prophets this week and she thought it was really cool. She said she want's to come watch!

It is so amazing seeing the change in her from the time we started teaching. She is so great! Our new ward mission leader has been so great and helpful with the missionary work! He is getting the ward excited about doing missionary work. I am looking forward to this new transfer and am so grateful to be out here!

Cooling off with the district on a P day

Dad you said in your letter that you wondered about all of the things I'm not telling you like anything negative. Haha... There honestly not much to say and really nothing to complain about. The language is hard but it's okay because I always have a companion if I get stuck. The hardest part of the mission is watching people not accept the message and not keep their commitments, but there are others who do accept and do keep their commitments and that is one of the most amazing things to see out here! Another thing that is hard is saying goodbyes to my companions, but hey, I'll see them all again so what is there to be sad about? Haha. Don't worry I'm not hiding anything negative. 

I love the mission more than anything. It is the best decision I have ever made coming out here. I know I am supposed to be here. I cannot believe that in a few days I am at my halfway mark. Crazy! Make the time slow down!! :/ Anyway, I have to go. Love you all so much! Tell Michael congrats for me. Oh and also tell Matthew congrats for his baptism. I don't know if I said that before but I meant too. I am proud of him. 

Have a great week!

She's Still Not Married - Really

I love reading Eric's emails and think it is so cool that we get to share this experience together. I can't wait until we are both out in the field at the same time! It is crazy that he leaves the MTC so soon. The rest of the mission will only get better. :) 

This has been such a busy week. My companion is sure teaching me how to work hard, shes the best! Transfers are next Monday and I have a feeling that I might be leaving this area, especially because I have been here my whole mission. I am still the youngest Spanish speaking sister in our mission but we have two new ones that are finally coming next week.

This week we had many great lessons. We are teaching xxxx, and she talked her mom into listening to us too. Both of them are great! Her mom changed her work schedule so that she can come to church on Sundays. We hadn't even asked her to do that yet and she did it on her own. They both want to be baptized and were talking about it once we left and xxxx's little brother who is 9 heard them. He asked his mom if he can be baptized too. He is planning on coming to the lessons from now on so that they can all prepare together. I love seeing the people we are working with progress and change and seeing how happy it makes them. I think one of my favorite parts of the mission is being able to see the change when people accept the gospel into their lives. 

We had another great lesson with one of our single adults. Her sister who is 20 sat in the lesson with us and it went really well. They didn't see the importance of baptism again since they have already been baptized into the xxxx church. She has received an answer and knows that the Book of Mormon is true though. We have explained the restoration and the authority many times, but this time basically told them straight out that the xxxx church doesn't have the authority to baptize. We asked them to pray to know if they should be baptized again into this church. We have never been so bold, but I think they finally understood and agreed to pray about it. They both want to come to church on Sunday, and said that what they have learned from us makes more since than the xxxx church. I just hope they really do pray about and come to church because I know that they will feel different here. 

A couple of nights ago we were talking to people as we were on our way back to the car. We started talking to three guys standing outside and taught them a quick lesson. After, one of the guys looked at me and he was talking really fast. I thought he asked, "Are you married?" But he really said, "Do you believe in marriage?" I said "no". Lets just say it was really awkward and I am thankful for a companion who fixed what I said! Haha! 

Eric I'm glad you liked the package. I'm so proud of you!

Anyway, time to go play soccer with my zone! Woo! Have a great week! Love you all so much! :)

The Power of the Spirit

I loved reading Eric's email. He is going to be an amazing missionary!

That is cool that Brother Snyder is one of his teachers. Brother Snyder would come in our class a lot and help us out. He is an amazing teacher. Eric is lucky to have him! I can't believe that my little brother is on his mission. I am so excited for everything that he will experience! I know that I say this a lot, but the mission is life changing and there is no where I would rather be. I am glad that Eric seems to be loving it as much as I am. :) 

This week was another great one. We had one of the most amazing lessons that I've had yet on my mission. We talked about the Plan of Salvation with a family and the daughter (18 years old) had really good questions. After the lesson we asked them how they felt, and the mom didn't say much but then the daughter started sharing her testimony. She talked about how she knew that the Book of Mormon was true and was so grateful that we were sharing this with her. She told us that she had the feeling and that she knew it was the spirit because she felt really warm and peaceful. She said she knew that it was an answer to her prayers. Before we left we invited them to church and the mom said she didn't know if they could come but then the daughter said, "no mom, I have a feeling that we need to go."

Her prayer at the end of the lesson was also very powerful. The spirit was really strong in the room and the daughter recognized it. The mom and dad didn't want to take her on Sunday and so we found a ride for her and she came to church! We haven't had the chance to talk with her much about it after but we have an appointment with her tomorrow.  

We had another investigator come to church who is also 18. We are teaching her and her mom, but her mom never comes to church because she works Sundays. She stayed after to watch a baptism and she told me that she thought it was neat. She says that she likes coming to this church because it's different then any other church shes been to. She says that she feels different here. It so cool to watch people change as they accept the gospel in their lives. 

This week we had zone conference and this coming week we have another sisters meeting. I'm looking forward to it. :) Also, our recent convert just had her baby!!! It's her 4th boy. We are going to go visit her tonight and see the little baby! :)

OK, I made it up. Curtis is definitely tanner than me. I can't get tan! Ha ha. I don't burn either it's weird.  Last week we found out that the bike ride was 14 miles. It was such a good work out. The Elders rode their bikes back so they went twice as long as we did. We got spoiled and had members drive us home. :) 

Love you all so much! :)

El Dia de Hispanidad

Today has been crazy so I don't have a lot of time. We left at 8 this morning and went on a bike ride with our zone. We rode to Newport beach! It took a long time and was a good work out. It was a ton of fun, but I am going to be really sore tomorrow! 

We stopped for lunch and I met a lady whose daughter is in Italy on her mission. That is so awesome that Dallin got called there! He is going to do great. I can wait to hear where Michael goes! I can't believe that Eric is leaving so soon. I know he is going to do so awesome! 

This week there was a huge stake activity called el Dia de Hispanidad. They do it every year and a ton of people come. They had food, activities, and dancing. It was really cool to see the Mexican culture! I love the people here. We brought investigators and the members brought friends. We set up a missionary booth and just went around talking to people all day. It was really weird not having our usual missionary day. 

Tomorrow is zone conference. We are going to have a big service activity in the morning painting fences and then going to a church building for the conference. I always look forward to the zone conferences. As for our investigators, they are doing well. We are passing some of them to the singles ward Elders soon and this week we are really going to focus on finding more people to teach. Our mission leader has some really good plans to help us out, and get the ward more involved. 

Our area is like 3 times the size of the Elders, and they have been planning on splitting it up and bringing two more missionaries in our area. That would help us out a lot so that we would be spending less time driving across our area to appointments. 

I don't have much time left, but I am so grateful to be out here serving a mission. It is a life changing experience and I really love every minute of it. I am learning so much from the people and from my companion. There are hard days when no one wants to talk to us, or days when I have a hard time with the language, but I have really never been happier and wouldn't change this experience for anything. 

I know that the Church of Jesus Christ has been restored to the earth and that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God. I know that we have a living prophet today to guide us. I have seen so many blessings in my life and in the lives of those who accept the Gospel and am so grateful to share it with others. I know that Jesus Christ is our Savior and that through him we can be forgiven of the mistakes we have made in this life. I love the gospel, and I love being a missionary! Thanks for all of the support from everyone. I love you all! :)

She Came!

Dearest family,

We had a another great week our here in California! :) We have started teaching a friend of one of our members this week. We love member missionaries! She has problems with depression right now and really wants to change her life around. The hardest commitment that we have with our investigators is getting them to church. We invited her, and she came! We were really excited. We have an appointment with her again tonight, so we will see if she has been keeping her other commitments like reading and praying. 

This weekend was pretty crazy, El Obispo called me Saturday night and asked me to give a talk the next morning since it was the 5th Sunday. Did you have a missionary Sunday in your ward too? Two of the Elders spoke as well. I was nervous when I was preparing because I didn't have a lot of time and it was in Spanish, but it actually went well. He asked me to speak about loving the people who I serve. I talked about the story in the Book of Mormon of Ammon serving the king and how the king had a change of heart. I also talked about our Savior who was the perfect example of loving and serving the people, and I shared some personal experiences. We also got to teach the young women too! We spoke about missionary work and hopefully got them excited to share the gospel with their friends. 

Last Monday night we were tracting and we found this guy who said he had been praying for someone to come tell him what to do with his life. We taught the first lesson about the restoration of the Gospel and he started to tear up. We explained to him that feelings that he was having were the spirit testifying that these things were true. He told us that he was going to read the Book of Mormon in one week and was so excited. He kept saying that this was an answer to his prayers. We are worried though because he doesn't have a lot of time to meet with us at all, and he told us that the people he's living with are very Catholic and do not want him looking into another church. He said he couldn't meet for our last appointment, but rescheduled for this Saturday. We are praying that he will remember this feelings that he had. I know that he felt the spirit, but at the same time I know that Satan is working on him too.  I know that the Gospel will change his life for the better if he lets it. I am so grateful to be out here doing this work. I am so blessed to have the knowledge I do about the Gospel. I love being a missionary!!

Eric, thats awesome that your going to the temple soon! It's the best! Curty, stop getting tan. I am trying to get tanner than you but I don't think its working. And that's sweet that you got to play the bugle, you're a stud. Mom, thanks for the package. I got it last Monday after we emailed so I couldn't thank you for it yet, but it was the best!!! Oh, and I haven't heard about the gang riots. Oh dad, you should get a www.mormon.org profile. It's a good way to share your testimony, help others with questions that they have about the church and be a missionary. Mom you can too if you want. 

Love you all so much! :) 

Bye bye.

It Really Is Life Changing

At a Ward Party

Hola familia!!

This has been such a crazy day and week. I do not have much time to email but I will try to get everything in. We moved into our new apt this Friday and it is in a different complex as before. I feel really spoiled as a missionary because it is very nice. I am happy to be away from the cockroaches! 

We have a gym but are still waiting on permission from the president to see if we can use it. It would be really nice though. They have a computer room, so now we dont have to drive half way accross our area to email.. and they let us print for free! woo! So dad I didnt have time to read your email but I printed it out so that I can read it today! 

We also have a washer and dryer in our appartment which saves us so much time. I love it. But who knows I could easily get transfered soon and have to move again. Haha. 

The first night that we moved into our apt. the fire alarm went off in the compex and we went outside with about 100 other people and just waited and watched firemen run around the building to make sure everything was ok. I think someone might have just pulled the alarm though cause there wasnt a fire. We were thankful that our apt didn't burn down the first day we got there! This Sunday we taught Relief Society. It went well, but it was a very different lesson than the ones we are used to teaching. We talked about missonary work. :) 

Our investigators are doing well but it is so hard getting them to church. We are trying to find out more ways to help them. This week I have started reading Jesus el Cristo. I know that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world.

Sister Layton with kids in the Ward

He knows absolutely everything we are going through and understands us. It is amazing that we can be forgiven when we make mistakes. I am so grateful for the opportunity to be out here serving my Heavenly Father. There is nothing else I would rather be doing. I am so excited for Eric and all of the cousins who are preparing to go soon, it really is life changing and I love every single minute of it. 

I wish I had time to write more today but we have to go. Next week I should have more time but it might be early in the day. Oh, and tell Curtis that when we went over for a dinner appointment there were a few little kids there and I saw a rubix cube on the couch. I did it and the girl freaked out. I thought of Curtis cause he has been asking me if I have been able to do it to any kids yet. :) I love you all! :) :):) :) :)

~Hermana Layton

I Feel Him Helping Me Each Day of My Mission

Hermanas Layton y Breitenstein

Hola familia!

Today was transfers and has been a crazy day. Sorry if I don't have as much time to write. Hermana Vilches went back to English speaking and I am with Hermana Breitenstein again. I am so excited!
This week we had exchanges. For the first one I stayed in our area and another Spanish speaking sister came with me. I spent another day in Newport Beach in an English speaking area and was able to go to a baptism with her. I love the feeling of watching someone get baptized, it always reminds me of when I was baptized, and makes me want to be so much better. It was at the chapel right by the temple, so afterwards we were able to walk around the temple with one of her investigators. It has been fun to be able to see different areas in the mission, but I am glad that I won't need to do exchanges every week now. They are fun, but can be stressful.

Did you know that missionaries in Cali all drive Mercedes?

Last week our investigator was able to get baptized on Tuesday and confirmed on Sunday. She was the same one that just got married. She is so amazing and such a great example to her family and friends! Her husband still doesn't want anything to do with the missionaries but he likes to come to the ward activities. Their family always helps us out and always bring different friends to the ward activities. They are great!

I am happy to be staying in this area. I just love the people here. I know that this is where I am supposed to be. I know that Heavenly Father knows each person that we are working with individually and He knows me individually as well. I feel Him helping me each day of my mission, and I know that I would not be getting very far without Him. I love the Gospel and love being a missionary! :)

When you're from Oregon, pumping gas is a new experience

That's so cool that Ariel got her mission call. She will do great! That is also awesome that she will be in the MTC with her brother. OK, I am not saying this to take your guess, but I was just telling my companion in the car ride over here that I was going to change my guess to Germany before I read that that is what you were thinking. That's where I think Eric will go. Haha... and for the states... Kentucky?

And to answer Grandma's question, we get letters on Mondays after we email, during our zone activity. And actually anytime we see our zone leaders they can give us our mail. They are in our district so we see them quite a bit. Wednesdays are district meetings so we get mail those days for sure too.
Mom and dad, thank you so much for the package. I got home from an exchange after a long week and when I saw it, it just made my day. Mom I love the outfit of course. :) Curtis always has the best letters. Love him so much. I pray for you always. Eric, the mission is the best thing that has ever happened to me and you are going to love it! :)