"Being a on a mission is like being on the front row of a miracle show!"

The start to this week was simply magical and the days that followed were even better. 

On Monday, Sister Young invited some of the Sisters to go to The Cheesecake Factory for lunch to celebrate her birthday and then we headed over to the mall. I ordered my chicken madeira and red velvet cheesecake and felt like I was home for a bit. It was amazing! And the mall... man. I love shopping way too much. It's a problem.

On Tuesday I went on exchanges with Sister Brower and, boy, did we see miracles. None of our appointments fell through and every person we tried answered their door. That never happens! So, personally, I was a bit shocked. But in the best possible way.

On Thursday, we never stopped! We went to appointment after appointment and saw miracle after miracle. One miracle was when one of our appointments fell through with a less active member. But because they cancelled, we were able to see another less active member and her granddaughter who is now a new investigator! Heavenly Father definitely knows what he's doing. Later in the day, we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner (thanks, mom!). When we walked in, the girl at the front desk looked at us and asked, "Is that book good? Is that the play?" and pointed to the Book of Mormon that Sister Durrant was holding. We told her "No, this is the real thing!" The she said "Oh, well is it good?" We had a good laugh about it. And we enjoyed some great steak, so overall it was a great night!

Saturday and Sunday were insane! With school getting out and it being Memorial Day weekend, we had a lot of people come in who were traveling all over the place for an early summer vacation. We pretty much had tours one after another throughout the day which was tiring, but great! We love it when it's busy because we want people to see how awesome this place really is. Because, let's be real, I get to serve in the best mission on earth. (I know that every missionary says that. But that's just because that haven't been here.) Each day I walk into the Trail Center and just feel so blessed that I get to serve my Heavenly Father and Savior here. 

I hope that you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend and I want to say Happy Birthday to my Grandma Cookie! I love you! Have a great rest of the week!

 Not ordering cheesecake at The Cheesecake Factory is against the Word of Wisdom, right?

 The gang at lunch. So. Good.

 Because you have to try on hats at the mall.

 TEXAS ROADHOUSE! Goodness, I love that place.

We reached our 100 day mark! Yay us!

Christmas in May?

The weeks keep going by so quickly! Time really is such a different concept out here. 

On Monday, Sister Murphy and I decided to celebrate our "3 month anniversary" by watching Legacy. It's the only romance that I will be able to see for the next 15 months, so I was definitely ok with it. During the rest of the week, I learned how crazy May is here at the Trail Center. We have school tours with at least 50-100 kids come in almost every day. It really is so fun to be able to show kids around and help them learn more about Nebraska's history. But most of the time, they know more than I do! So that's kind of embarrassing. Oh, well.

So since we are only able to listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Sister Durrant and I only have 3 CD's that we can listen to. There is one that is kind of weird and puts us to sleep which is not a good idea when we are driving. The other one we have listened to about 137 times (that is not an exaggeration). And the third is the Mo-Tab Christmas CD with David Archuleta that I brought from home. On Wednesday, we gave up and put in the Christmas CD. And it was the best decision we ever made. So yes, we are listening to Christmas music in May. #yomo (You Only Mission Once)

Friday was a day FULL of miracles! In the morning at the Trail Center, I was able to take the cutest little British man and his daughter and grandson on tour. He shared some very inspiring spiritual experiences with me and taught me a lot. Later that night when Sister Durrant and I were leaving after dinner, we closed the garage and, for some reason, the left side wouldn't close all of the way. We lifted it back up and saw that the hinges were completely broken. We had no idea what to do because Bob and Lucy were out of town for the weekend, and we are definitely not handy-men, so we were freaking out a little bit. As we stood there for a second, we saw a couple walking across the street and Sister Durrant asked if they could help us. We found out that they live down the street from us and their names are Blake and Kris. Blake ran home to get some tools and helped us be able to at least get the door closed all of the way. They were so nice! We ended up bringing them brownies on Saturday to thank them for helping us, and they ended up inviting us in and we totally had a lesson with them! It was awesome. The Lord works in such mysterious ways.

I can't wait to see what is the come in this next week. I hope the rest of you have a great one! I love you all!

 We got a new exhibit downstairs at the Trail Center. They are banners of Christ's life and they are GORGEOUS. 

 This is what happens when we have time after eating lunch: 15 minute naps.

 New discovery: I think I'm allergic to cats. But only my one eye?

 The Barlows are heading home to Utah. We will all miss you so much!

 Happy Birthday, Sister Young!

Sometimes, We Dress Up Like Pioneers.

This week was full of temple and friend visits, pioneers & my mama!!

On Monday, Sister Durrant and I went over to Boys Town with Lucy (we live with her and her husband, Bob). I didn't know anything about Boys Town before I went over there, so I was so excited to learn more about it. I was fascinated! It was interesting to see the history of the school and see why and how it came to be. It also made me grateful for the life that I have been given and that I have the opportunity to be out here serving and helping others. It also made me want to see the movie! Definitely on my list for when I get home. Also, Boys Town is the home of the world's largest ball of stamps. You bet I got a picture with that thing!

On Wednesday, we had Zone Training and Thursday I was able to have my first interview with President Weston. It went really well! We are all going to miss him so much and you could tell that he was sad as well. But he and Sister Weston will always hold a special place in our hearts. They are both amazing.

On Friday, everybody was mad at me. Not really, but it was only because I got to go to the temple again! Because I was emergency transferred, I was able to go to the temple with my old zone before I left, and then it was my new zone's turn this week. I got so lucky with that one! Heavenly Father definitely knows how to bless me. I absolutely love the temple and have the opportunity to partake of the spirit that is there. It is unlike anywhere else on earth. I would go every day if I could!

Story time: On Wednesday, I came into the Trail Center in the afternoon and the Sisters told me that somebody who knew me came in earlier that morning. They said they left a note for me and when I read it, it was from Tim Johnson! Oh, how I love the Johnson family. He said that he was here for work and stopped by. I was so sad to miss him! Then on Friday, I came into the Trail Center after the temple and received another note, but this time from Alexa. I missed her too! I was so upset. But hopefully I'll be able to catch them on their way home.

Saturday was Florence Days! AKA: the day when we got to dress up and pretend to be pioneers for a day. Pretty sure some people thought we were polygamists. Awkward, But we got to walk in the parade that they have and  pull handcarts. Afterwards, I was able to do a dance with some other Sisters during a little play that the Trail Center put on about the pioneers. It was such a fun day! I was exhausted by the end, though. Man, I am so out of shape!

Sunday was Mother's Day. Not only did we get muffins and juice in Relief Society, but also, I GOT TO TALK TO MY FAMILY! It was so so good to see them all. It felt so natural to see my parent's and sister's faces and talk with them. I miss them all so much but I am so happy to be here where the Lord needs me. After skyping with my parents and my little sis, Sister Durrant and I made dinner for Lucy. I feel so blessed to have her as my mission mom! She's the greatest. We then had family night with her and Bob and played a game of Tenzi which is a dice game that is SO FUN. Family, take note. You all would love it.  It was a busy week, but a great one nonetheless.

I hope that you all had a good week. Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms out there! I love you all! 

 Worlds Biggest Ball of Stamps selfie.

 ​"She's not heavy, she's my Sister!"

 The Omaha Zone! Goodness, they're cool.

 Sister Durrant didn't get the joke.

 To answer your question, no. Only the five of us on the left are sister wives.

JAZZ HANDS!

We're three months old! How did that happen??

We Be Ballin'

How is it even possible that I am going into my ninth week in the field? Time is going by so quickly! It's starting to freak me out a little bit.

Monday was one for the books. We began the day by going to Walmart and we actually ran into Sister Weston, our mission president's wife. She told us that seeing us was a miracle because she was over at Sam's Club earlier and was talking to the "girl who sells the pillows" and she said that she wanted to talk with missionaries! So Sister Weston asked if we would go over there and you can't really say "no" to Sister Weston, so we walked into Sam's Club looking for a girl selling pillows. Don't worry, we found her! But her boss was standing right next to her which made things really awkward. After her boss unsuccessfully tried selling us Bamboo pillows (which are actually really cool!), we tried to talk to Karissa about her chat with Sister Weston. But with her boss right there, I don't know how successful we were. We ended up giving (more like throwing) her a Book a Mormon with our phone number and we booked it out of there. It was just an awkward situation. We're just praying that she calls us back!

Later, we got together as Trail Center sisters and played a very competitive basketball game tournament. It was legit. We got shirts and everything! And even though I'm a wee bit vertically challenged, I actually had a lot of fun! I don't know if I have ever played a real game of basketball ever in my life, but I tried my best. And we ended up all having a blast together!

I spent the rest of the week trying to get to know the people here in my new area. I miss Kanesville dearly. The people there are so incredible. But Eagle Run has been good to me so far. I've been able to meet and get to know a lot of great people! One of them being Tatiana. She is a young woman who is a single mom and has three very young children. She has been investigating the church for a few years and is set for baptism on May 16. Last week, Sister Durrant was kind of worried that she might not want it enough. But that same day, Tatiana texted us and asked "Do you think I'm going to be ready to be baptized on May 16? Do you think that you could quiz me to make sure that I am ready?" Miracles! She has been working so hard this past week and I would say that she is totally ready. I am so excited for her!

This week we were also able to get ready for the Florence Days parade on May 9. Every year, the Sisters at the Trail Center dress up as pioneers and walk in the parade. So cool, right?! After the parade, we are going to be putting on a play about the pioneers and a few of us get to do a little dance number. I'm pretty pumped about it. It's going to be so much fun! Stay tuned for pictures of the event next week.

I hope the rest of you have a great rest of your week. I love you all!

 We know we're cool.

 When somebody had their name on their back, you don't mess.

 I was pretty excited when I found this. I love you Sister Slater!

We're weirdos. But we're the coolest weirdos you'll ever meet.