Happy Thanksgiving- Nov 24

Note from blog editor: I know this is out of order, I was missing the letter from this week and just got it, so here it is...

Happy Thanksgiving FAM BAM!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful turkey day!! And stuffed your faces full of yummy treats and pies and ice cream and stuffing and potatos and anything else you would like to eat!!! Because we sure did!

We are at 2 different people's home ha! One at the Daines in the afternoon which was delicious! Their family is crazy so I felt right at home Ha pour sister Feng on the other hand couldn't wait to get out of there because she felt so out of place. They were all talking at once and quoting random movies and just literally being crazy! haha Then in the afternoon since we didn't have any appointments and we were asked to not knock on peoples door and pross we then had the brilliant Idea to go ask people if we could rake their lawns haha yeah... not so brilliant people just looked at us weird and told us no. So that was a flop. But we tried. But that night we had ANOTHER thanksgiving dinner at the Adams families house. Which was amazing. They have 2 little girls 4 and 2 and they are so cute!! We ate food and then since we didn't have anything else that we could do that night we "served" them by helping them decorate their house for Christmas since they just moved in and needed help! Oh my goodness it was so much fun!! We listened to Christmas music and decorated the tree and sang and laughed. So needed!! I loved it! Then we ended our night by picking up a turkey and dropping it off to a family in need! They were so thankful for it and I was happy to help!

Ok my favorite miracle from this week Happened yesterday! Her name is Danielle (she doesn't live in our area but it's ok) she was broken down on the side of the road because her car ran out of gas. We drove up behind her and put on our hazards and asked if she needed help, she told us her predicament and we told her to get in our car and we would help fix it. We told her we were missionaries and what we did, and she was so intrigued, she wanted us to come and talk with her daughter because she was having a rough time because her dad was in Jail for life. (WHAT?!) a bunch of her family members were diagnosed with cancer and some of them had passed away recently. I asked Danielle how she was coping with everything happening and she just got quite. So I told her about the book of Mormon and the hope that she could find from reading it and talking to the missionaries, it was really cool to see the glimmer of hope catch in her eyes. Once we finally got the car all figured out we exchanged information and the gave us the BIGGEST hugs ever! I know she was an answer to my prayers that day and God placed her there for us to find and come in contact with!

I know that this church is true! I am thankful for my Savior and for his example to me. That if I stop for a second and slow down and look around there are so many people on the side waiting for someone to help. We could have been like every other car that passed her that night but we stopped. Her prayer was answered as well as mine. God answers our prayers through helping other people and forgetting about ourselves. I am thankful to be serving a mission, it's tough I am not going to lie, but that one miracle made my whole week worth it.

I love you guys so very much! You are all an inspiration to me! Have an amazing week and I will catch ya on the flip side!

Love,

Sister Stones

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas- Dec 17

so... sorry I didn't actually write a letter to everyone last week, my time ran out at the library and so I couldn't write haha. Sad day! But it's ok I am alive and well and it has been a crazy week!

HEYO fam bam!

How is everyone doing this fine Christmas season?! I hope everyone is taking advantage of having the Temple right next to you and going every night! Oh my goodness I didn't realize just HOW much I loved the temple lights until not getting to do all the time. Lucky enough the DC temple does decorate for Christmas with lights but I have to say Mesa beats it :) maybe because it's just "home". We did get to go to the temple lights Tuesday with a Less active and he LOVED it. Hehe his name is Peter. He is a sweet quite older man and we had such a great time!

Christmas coming up can you believe it!? It's amazing! and then New years?! WHAT? seriously it is flying by! We had our half mission devotional last monday and Elder Packer came and spoke with us which was a lot of fun I sang a musical number and it was really cool! Then on friday we had our Full Mission Christmas Party! Which was a blast! We had a talent show and me and some of the other sister sang "Far, Far Away..." and it was awesome!! Sister Berg Beat boxed and we all busted out and sang hahaha it was legit and everyone loved it!

Then we got serious and had a devotional and President Riggs spoke on the savior and the spirit was so strong. I can't even begin to describe and explain my love and appreciation for my savior. My understanding of the atonement has grown exponentially and I have only been out here for a couple months. I have no idea what it will be like in a year! All I know is I am eternally grateful for my savior and his sacrifice, so that I can make mistakes and learn and grow and change. It's amazing to me, and I love him.

We also had a wonderful baptism this Saturday! Andrew Schmidt got baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder-Day Saints!! He was so happy and we were so happy! The service ran so smoothly and we didn't even do anything! It was all the ward! They came together and there was such a great turn out! I loved feeling the support and really feeling like a family!

Then today we went into DC because sister Feng had never been and really wanted to. So we took the metro in, walked around the "Mall", and the natural history museum and then came back. So not as cool as a missionary hahaha. I did though have a lot of fun sharing the gospel while we were there!! Right off the metro a man handed me a free map so I handed him a free mormon.org card and a card for the temple lights in DC. And then going into the Natural History Museum I was talking to the guard checking my bag and he said he wanted to go to the temple lights that he had never been and that 2 guys told him about it. I told him he needed to call those 2 guys back and have them teach him and that he should go to the lights as well. IT was awesome! haha I loved that so much! I LOVE sharing the gospel! I love just talking to people about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and I love that I get to!! :)

It's weird because Sister Rozsa goes home tomorrow... I am going to miss her SO much! She is the most amazing missionary ever and I am so grateful that I was able to be trained by her! She has influenced my life in the best way possible! But the weird part is that she is going home. I feel like this is what I've been doing for forever and don't want to imagine doing anything else. I am just grateful that I am still in the beginning of my mission. I still have a while to work my buns off. To "waste and wear" out my life as a servant of the Lord! Full time! I didn't know I loved it so much until going into DC and feeling "normal" for a moment. I didn't like it. haha.

I love you all! I seriously can't believe I am on a mission haha but I wouldn't want it any other way! You are all amazing and I can't wait to hear what fun shenanigans you do for Christmas and New Years! If I can't write next week than MERRY CHRISTMAS!! :)

LOVE ALWAYS,

Sister Stones

Happy December- Dec 3

Hello everyone!!

Oh my goodness gracious I can't believe it is December already! What?!?! My mind is blown. I am pretty sure I just got off the airplane to the MTC and It is now almost Christmas! seriously mind=blown!

I hope everyone is doing well and have had a wonderful week! Keep up the good work! I am so thankful for this Christmas Season! Today it was 70 degrees out! Talk about the greatest welcoming the Christmas season ever, it's been in the 40's lately so let's just say I have shouted "hello" to the sun quite a few times, and we are driving with our windows down! Love everything about it!

I don't know if I have talked about Andrew before, but he is doing wonderful!! He is getting baptized on December 15th and he is so excited! He has been searching for a church for a while and when we asked him what it meant to him to be baptized he said, I finally have found a place where I can call home. He is so great! Young guy married with a 2 year old. His wife is a member but had gone really inactive because they didn't ever talk about religion, so it has been really fun to see her come our of her shell as well the more we talk with them both! She will pull our her scriptures and read right along with us and will participate in the lessons it's really cool. I've loved getting to know both of them!

We had stake conference which was so amazing!! This stake is amazing!! So this whole hurricane Sandy fiasco that has been going on in New York, this stake had hundreds of people over the Thanksgiving weekend go and help clean up, and they are putting together another crew of people to go this weekend! They are so inspiring! They drop everything to help others and I want to be just like that when I get home. It has been amazing to work really closely with the members I love them a lot!

And then we got to watch the First Presidency's Christmas Devotional last night! I.loved.it. seriously. SO inspiring! Those men are so insightful and speak in such a way that you can't help but want to repent and change and be better! Man. If you didn't get to watch it I would suggest it! Go to LDS.org and click on the Christmas Devotional you wont regret it!

I love this gospel and I am so blessed to have such an amazing support group back home. Thank you for all of your prayers and well wishes thrown this way, they have been felt and appreciated!

Challenge: Pray this week to find someone to share the gospel with, or talk about the Christmas season and how happy you are you can learn in church how to live together as a family for eternity. It isn't hard and really is the BEST gift you could give this season! Reach out and support! The gospel has been restored and everyone needs to know! I love you all so much! and can't wait for another amazing week of sharing and spreading the love!

Love you all

Sister Stones

Thanksgiving Season- Nov 19

My heart is so full right now from all the love I have felt this season. It is hard being away from home, and I will be honest I am a little homesick, but really I am so blessed to be able to have such an amazing support group. I have been born into the best family and I don't know why I got so lucky. You are all such amazing examples to me and I can't wait to be able to be like each one of you someday. You just ooze the gospel and I just soke it up. Getting your letters, however boring you think your lives are just brings the biggest smile to my face, the people in the library probably think I am crazy!!

I can't believe it is almost Thanksgiving!! We taught a lesson last monday night at our investigator Andrews House (he's getting baptized December 8th!!) and he made a HUGE thanksgiving dinner! It was delicious, and on thrusday we will be going to a members house to celebrate! The area is a lot different from my other area but honestly the ward and the people are just as great! We are looking high and low for new peole to teach so that has been challenging, but it has been good. I have definitely seen the Lords hand in our lives. Sister Feng is so great! She is a convert to the church of 4 years and is from China. She has had a hard life and is such an example to me. She is on a mission in a foreign land speaking a foreign language and she is stuck with me. haha ;) We are definitly learning patience. Which is so great because it's a christlike quality I have been wanting to develop for a while now, what better time to develop it than early on in the mission.

We are teaching such wonderful people and I am so blessed to be in an area that will cause me to stretch and grow.

I love my Savior so very much! I am grateful for this thanksgiving season.

I am thankful to me a missionary in the greatest place.

I am thankful for a patient companion

I am thankful for my strong family, that I get to be attatched to for eternity

I am grateful for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is has brought me so much strength and hope and excitement!

I am eternally grateful for my Savior Jesus Christ and his Sacrafice for me. So that I can change and grow and be a different person each day!

I love you all so much and I hope you have an AMAZINGA THANKSGIVING!!! And I can't wait to hear more fun stories next monday!

Love you love you love you!

Sister Stones

Holidays Stink as a Missionary Nov. 13

Seriously I have like point 2 seconds to write this letter before the computer at the library kicks me off!!

Ok fun news!!

I GOT TRANSFERRED! I am now in Herndon ward in Oakton Stake with Sister Feng [she's from China!] (address still the s We have had so much fun these last couple of days and have been working hard! I am SO excited for this transfer we are striving to be exactly obedient so we are hoping to see many miracles! I don't have too much to say today one because I am going to get booted and two because we are just getting started! But we are working hard and having fun. haha she is teaching me Chinese but I can't ever remember anything. haha she taught me how to say Heavenly Father, and I was saying it all the way to an appointment and then we got their knocked on the door and I looked at her and smiled, and said "say it again?" hahaha Heavenly Father knew I wouldn't be very good anywhere besides speaking English! haha

We have some wonderful people that we are teaching! One ladies name is Christy. She has a baptism date set and we are just finishing teaching her the Commandments. She is so sweet and so great! She made us dinner the other night and yeah... she is just wonderful! Oh the ward is wonderful too! It is a big family ward with lots of youth and it is just really great fun!! I do however feel that my mind might explode with all the new information being shoved into it! ha So many new names and information, but Heavenly Father helps a lot and keeps everyone all organized! I've caught on quicker than I thought I would. And we are in a car. SO I get to ask questions about everyone and about Sister Feng. She keeps me on my toes and always on track and it is awesome! We will be talking and then she will stop and say "this has nothing to do with the gospel. New topic." hahahaha I love it! Seriously, it keeps me remembering why I am here and what I am doing. She is an amazing missionary and I can't wait to learn so much from her!

Ok well I love you all!! Keep up the great work! I know that their are people in your lives that are looking for the gospel but don't know where to look! :) Give 'em help by opening up your mouths :) I love you all so very much!!!

Love

Sister Stones!