winter is coming...

Winter is around the corner. We've started to get out our tights and beanies! I'm not going to lie.. I'm really excited for winter on the east coast.. Bring on the cold!! 

This week has been awesome though.. I feel like the craziest things that happen during the week happen from saturday to sunday morning.

One of my favorite things to do is (after we have made our rounds picking everybody up for church) is to watch our investigators and recent converts walk into the chapel. Yesterday was fun. We went and picked up Diana and her brother Gabriel and then swung by to pick up a less active Ariana. They are 11, 12, and 13 and Diana and Ariana have become best friends!! It's really fun to be teaching them because I forgot a little bit about what it was like to be that age. What matters. Whats fun. What make sense and what doesn't. So we walked with them to church, got up to the building and Nestor walked up at the same time. The miracle that we met last week on our way to go pick up the kids. We all walked in the church together and they and Sister all went and sat down together. Then in walks Carlos (investigator), and Veronica (recent convert), Olivia (less active) with her non member daughter that we have been working with, Marylin. Diego walked in, first week with his white shirt and tie, all ready to receive the priesthood that day! I looked up and Eddy (less active) waved to me from the front right bench, ready to pass the sacrament instead of playing in his soccer game that day. Jairo (investigator) and the sisters we are working with Andrea and Angela came! 

It's an overwhelming feeling. Last week in Sunday school the teacher asked me what the biggest blessing about serving a mission was.. my response was that we were able to see people change their lives. There is no other experience than watching somebody completely change the path their life is on. 

The best comment I heard yesterday came from Diego. He went to go give Emily a hug (his last one before she was getting set apart to be a missionary) and he started to joke around with me about if he served a mission in Madagascar. We were laughing about that and how crazy the mission would be and then I told him it was actually a real misison. I knew two people that served there, and then one of the members asked him if he was preparing to serve a mission and he just got his little smile on his face and said, yea I think so!! 

Every time he talks about going on a mission I just can't contain my excitement. Every time Diana talks about how excited she is for her baptism I just can't believe what a little miracle she is. These people change and teach me more than they know!!

Well it's onward and upward from here!

Hermana Schwendiman 

Baptism of the Elders.  Our little gang of young single adults. 4 of the 5 have been baptized in the past year.  It's all about the friends we have!

We were at Veronica's and all of a sudden Gabriel was GONE!!  This is where we found him. 

After one of our lessons with Diana (left) and Ariana (right).  We have so much fun with them!!  and we're all photogenic… ha ha