I'm so THANKFUL for

pregnant bellies
gingerbread houses to ring in Christmas time
pomegranate cranberry salad goodness
cute little girls
knives
sister-in-laws!
"Want to play poo with me"
chad having a girlfriend!

Our Amazing Sister-

My beautiful family, As Thanksgiving approaches I truly feel so grateful for the billions of blessings the Lord has been so kind to bestow upon me. Among the top of that list is, of course, my family and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This year I'll be surrounded by one of those things, but quite far away from the other :o( I hope you all don't forget me. I'll definitely be thinking about you all, but not too much- I don't want to get homesick! It should be a good day. We are going to start it off with a zone turkey bowl, do some visits, and eat dinner with one of the greatest families, the Romo family. I promised my investigator Mark that I would sacrifice something to help support him sacrificing cigarettes (he has been smoking since he was 12 and is now 45!). I decided to completly sacrifice desserts and sweets until his baptism day, which is set for Dec. 23. Sooo, looks like no pie this year! It will be a one and only Thanksgiving like that I'm sure, but if it helps him kick his bad habit of smokig, it will be so worth it! Plus, it'll hopefully help me to drop a few pounds, since I come home in exactly 3 months from tommorrow! One more motivation to stick to this goal! I'm grateful this week for the fact that the Paredes family came to church!! Yesterday was truly probably one of the greatest days of my mission, and that added to the joy. It all started when we invited the Holt family to go over to an appointment with us at the Paredes home. They have a 13 year old daughter, Alexie, who is a lot like their daughter Violet. So we brought them over and they hit it off. Alexie invited Violet to young womens and that's what did it. Vanessa took both Violet and Alma down to the church and ended up staying with them and all of them felt so comfortable and loved it. Can I just say how extremely grateful I am for members who do their fellowshipping? Here we have been working with them for over 2 months and have invited them to church every week, but with no results. Finally, a member invites them and reaches out to them a little and that was all it took! I am so grateful for them and for the Holy Ghost that inspired us to invite them to come with us. All 4 of them seemed to really like church- Vanessa especially. She is such an amazing woman and seriously is already Mormon, just without the covenants. To make the day even better, Vanessa, Violet, and Alma came to a baptism that night with us! One of our friends in the single's ward, Rosie, got baptized and it was a very neat baptism. Rosie is what you would call an emotional person and was sobbing the entire baptism, at times she was even crying quite loudly. I know it was because of the Spirit, but Violet and Alma (who are 13 and 11) found it a bit wierd. I don't really blame them- it was a bit wired, but she was just so happy! The Spirit was almost tangible though and Vanessa got teared up. Hopefully that was will bring her closer to entering those waters herself.I'm really sad because it's pretty certain that I'll be transfered next week and won't get to teach that wonderful family anymore. The cool thing about this mission though is that I'll still get to come to the baptism, as long as it's before Feb, which I'm sure it will be. The wonderful Olivares family is also beginning to progess again and I'll really miss being able to teach them. There are certain families that you really form a special bond with and such a deep love, and both these families are like that for me- I love them so much! It makes my heart hurt just thinking about leaving this ward- I have been here 7 1/2 months and feel at home here. It seems like things finally are really picking up in our area too and then I'll have to leave :o( But, I'm sure I'll love my new area just as much. I'm grateful for my sweet angel recent converts, Emily, Daniel, and Lesley. They are doing so stinkin good! Emily and Daniel were baptized in June and are still so strong, even though neither one of them have parents who are members. Yesterday we got to the church at 9 am and ran into Emily- Her mother dropped her off and she came to church all by herself! This is normal for her every week. What 8 year old does that? I know I sure wouldn't have when I was 8! She is such a stalwart and just amazes me. Daniel also amazes me. He and his 8 year old sister Mayeli were the first speakers yesterday in the Spanish ward's primary program. I was so proud of them- my babies! They have progressed so much, despite their hard life at home. Lesley also was in the primary program and her family has become active again, thanks to her desire to come to church every week. I feel sooo blessed to have met so many angel children here on my mission. Considereing pretty much all the baptisms I have had on my mission have been children, sometimes I feel like I haven't had much success as a missionary. But times like yesterday when I see them and how much they really get the gospel and how pure they are, I know that I have made a difference. Although they are children now, they will one day grow up and have families of their own and bring many into the gospel. I am grateful that I will get to see Brock get baptized before I leave this area. He will be baptized this Sunday and has become such a good friend to me. He is 22 and has completly changed his life. I am so impressed by him and his committment to give up so much and follow the Savior. He is really excited to get baptized, as am I. Sometimes I wonder if he's dissappointed to have sisters teaching him instead of elders, but yesterday in the middle of sacrament he leaned over and whispered, "I'm really going to miss you two" (he's moving to Arizona here soon). It made me feel really happy. I am so grateful that the Lord is in charge of this work and has put so many amazing people in my path to help me to be stronger and more determined to be better. I feel so honored to be teaching these people and am treasuring every moment. I am grateful for my inspired leaders and wonderful companion, Sister LaBarge. Thursday was interviews and I was feeling a tad down (I had just gotten a letter and found out Lance is getting married Dec. 20- exactly 2 months before I get home! I really am grateful though that it's not me marrying him and that I won't even have to worry about him when I get home- what a blessing !) Anyways, between that and other things like feeling like I am a lousy missionary and that I haven't helped anyone in these 15 months, etc. etc., they just seemed to say the exact right thing to me to lift my spirits. I feel so grateful and blessed that the Lord uses other people to comfort and show His love to His children. He is so wonderful! I love Him and my Savior so very much. WOW! I really am such a blessed girl! I may not have everything, but I sure have a whole lot! The Lord is so good even though I really don't deserve it. It reminds me of Dad "Bendiciones cuenta y veras..." I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and take time to reflect on how good the Lord is to each of us- "Rejoice in your blessings" as Nephi puts it. I love you so much! - Hermana Crosby

"Oi"

Wed, 14 Nov 2007

Hello My dear family of mine! Well it was another week and I was really excited for this week because it was my first week to really work in the area and see what I have to work with. Well after a week of working I was really excited for Sunday becuase we had more than 10 people to
bring to church and 3 families that said they would go. Well, Sunday morning came and nobody went. One family is a really special family that we will continue working with. When I got here, 3 of the 5 kids had just got baptized that Sunday. The mom has gone 3 times to church and wants to be baptized and so this Sunday the whole family was going to go to church with us. Well on Saturday night, the dad's cousin got hit by a car and had to be hospitalized in Natal and so he went with him to the hospital. From what we heard yesturday he might have died, we dont
know yet but we'll pass there today to see how we can help. It is sad, but the dad was really excited to come to church but this happened, but this Sunday for sure he will go. All the other people didnt go and just werent at home. Each area is so different. There in Campina Grande we didnt ever have a ton of people that said they would go to church, but those that said they would go went on Sunday. Here is totally different, people say they will go and then forget on Sunday, so Ive been thinking and we will start trying a few new things. We already found a few people that seem to be really interested in going on Sunday so we'll see what happens.
Dad said that it seems like I am the 'emergency transfer missionary '. Well I guess you could say that. The first time I was emergency transferred was because there was a problem with the finances on the mission so the secretary had to return and so I took his spot there in Currais Novos. The second time was because a missionary broke a rule and he was released from being a zone leader and I took his place. This time was because there were 5 missionaries that stayed for 30 more days on the mission (They wanted to stay longer but they were only allowed 30
days) and so when they went home there were a lot of changes. But anyway, The work here is going good and I am learning a lot. There is always a lot of stress but I have learned that there is always a reason to be stressed, but we can choose how to react. Being stressed out just makes the work harder and a lot less rewarding. But when we enjoy every moment, even the hard times, then we will be a lot happier and we will have more success. As a missionary there is always the stress of trying to follow the spirit, but if we get so stressed out trying to follow the
spirit there is no way we will be able to feel the soft promptings of the spirit.
Yesterday we had an interesting expirience. We received a referral from the 2nd stake counselor of a 28 year old woman and she hás already gone to church 5 times. So we marked her baptism for this Sunday and she accepted. Well we went yesturdya to teach more and prepare her for this Sunday and when we got there she said that she was already decided
that she wouldnt be baptized this Sunday. Well we talked with her and we came to the conclusion that she really didnt have the desire to be baptised. But something kept prompting to keep teaching and talking to her. I thought, its been 35 minutes and we are exactly where we were when we started, I am wasting the Lord's time. But then came the prompting, talk about the Law of Chastity. I thought, thats ridiculous, she doesnt even want to be baptized, why should I talk about a commandment that she has to keep that she probably wont want to keep. But i felt it again and so we started teaching the law of chastity. Well it turns out she has a boyfriend and so we talked about how serious these things are. She looked at us and said, 'You mean that I cant be baptized until I keep this commandment? " We talked about how a person has to keep the commandments to be baptized. She almost started crying and for a minute I thought that she would say that it was to hard and she didnt want to be baptized, But, she showed how she really wanted to keep the commandments and so we talked about fasting. She said that she would fast and so we started a fast with her. She became really happy and really
excited about her baptism this Sunday. It is interensting how things work. She talked about 3 or 4 things of why she didnt want to be baptized but none of them were the real reason why. Just following the spirit, we found out what was really holding her back. The lesson lasted over an
hour but I felt really good when I left and felt that the Lord really wants her to be baptized, if not I would have left after 30 minutes.
Well, other than this, everything is great. Today was transfers but luckily I dont have to pack my bags again. Elder Almiro and I will stay together. He only hás 2 transfers left so it looks like I will be his last companion. It would be good, He is an awesome guy and we have fun joking around but also it is good teaching with him because the spirit is always strong. I still cant believe that it is already November. Where did 2007 go? It flew by. Well, whether I like it or not, time just goes by faster and faster and I dont have any control over it, that is why we need to take advantage of today. Speaking of today, were gonna play some soccer at the church. It is the saddest looking field ever. It is sand but full of weeks and rocks and the goals are sad looking, but it is still way fun. I think for lunch today we are going to make some cuzcuz with eggs and hot dogs. MMMMM. I'll bring some Cuzcuz and when I get back everyone will have to try it. It is interensting, made out of corn, but still pretty dang good. I dont know if I wrote that it is Mango season here. It is great. Everyday we find mangos in front of our house and we make mango juice and we eat mangos and make mangosandwiches and anything else you can do with mangos. Well, I gotta go. I love you all and thanks for the letters. Keep me updated and send pictures!
Elder Crosby

The Crazy Life of a Missionary

Date: Thu, 15 Nov 2007

Hola a todos! Since Monday was a holiday we didn't get to email so I appoligize- I know you are all always waiting by your computer to read my action-packed emails! hehe! Life has been crazy, like it always is as a missionary. I look back at this week and can't really pin-point what
has happened, but it's been crazy. Time goes by so fast- me mata!
Sunday we finally had the baptism of Lesley Lechuga and the best part was that her dad got to baptize her! They have been less-active and there have been some things that we've had to put off her baptism, but on Sunday she and her dad dressed in white and entered into those beautiful waters. It was nice. Brock is still scheduled for baptism on the 25th and is really
excited. He hasn't smoked a single cigarette since we taught the W.O.W a week and a half ago and I feel like a proud parent! Last night we taught the law of chasity and between the word of wisdom and that one, we assured him the hardest were out of the way (he is a 22 year old single man), so he is still feeling good. The ward has been great at getting involved, which is the greatest blessing and such a huge relief for a missionary. Man, when I get home I am going to be the best little fellow-shipper in the world I've decided!
It's hard to believe that this transfer is coming to an end here soon. We started out with a ton of investigators, but have sifted though a lot and now don't really have much. Aaa- story of the life of a missionary! We spend about 90% of our time looking and searching for those who want the gospel, and the other 10% actually teaching people who progress. Somehow though, I still love it. Knocking doors is always entertaining, but not the most productive way to find investigators. I
especially find all the excuses we get very comical. We constantly hear "oh, I'm so busy", "I have to pick my kids up from school", "another ocassion". Today we got "uh, I have to go to the bathroom" , "I'm breast-feeding", and "I'm not dressed". I wonder how silly they'll feel at the
judgement bar when they remember how they turned away servants of the Lord with their lame-o excuses! We keep on going though!
This week I came up with an idea that we're going to try to find more investigators. We went and bought gloves and we are going to pick a street and pick up trash on that whole street and then the next day we are going to knock it. Of course people will notice 2 white girls in skirts picking up trash and hopefully they'll think "wow, what nice girls" and want to listen to our message when we knock on their doors the next day! That's the goal- we'll see how it goes! Any other ideas from my RM brothers?
Well, that's about it I would say. It has been surprisingly hot here during the days- like in the 80's. I don't understand this weather! It is really dark early in the evening now too thanks to daylight savings time. If we go knocking at 6pm it is so dark and people say "why are you out SO LATE? " I'm having fun though and still loving this area and this work. I like what Reed said about stress because I have been feeling stressed lately. I've been feeling stressed trying to listen to the Holy Ghost and it's true- when you're stressed you can't hear it. Also, when we're stressed it is because we're trusting more in ourselves then the Lord. He really is there and lightens our burdens and eases our stress, we just have to let Him. I love the stories from the Book of Mormon in the end of Alma. They are war chapters, but really do show how the Lord delivers His people when they are obedient and put their trust in Him. He always has and he always will! Anyways, Love you lots and will write more on Monday!
Besitos, Hermana Crosby

Lisa's team presentation for school!

For school the 18 of us are in teams. I am part of Mesa b team. We call our selves the Mesa "B"omb Shells!! For our emergency management class we were to visit a dental office and evaluate there emergency protocol, write a paper on proper preparedness, prevention and protocol that should be carried out. We also had to come up with a creative way to demonstrate management of an emergency. So our group decided to do make a short film (I edited for the 1st time ever) we were three super cowgirls that come to the rescue after a girl faints in the dental office. We thought we were so darn funny. We also spent some time making a game the tooth toss where we had the rest of the class answer questions and if the got it right they got to throw the bean bag. kina fun interactive. We gave our presentation on Thurday and I am crossing my fingers that our teacher liked our style!! The video was taking to long to upload. i'll try again later

Reed at Zone Conference

Reed got transferred!

Date: Wed, 07 Nov 2007
Hello everybody! Well I didnt write last week because I was sitting on a bus from 8:00 in the morning until 7:00 at night. Yes, I was emergency transferred yet again. Im not gonna lie, I was totally bummed. Things were just perfect there in Campina Grande. Everything was going great and we had great people that were progressing and were baptized. I received a call on Tuesday and Wednesday morning I was on the bus. It was sad to leave everybody. There are many people that I will never forget that I met there in Campina Grande. We were preparing some people for their baptism and they were all baptized (from what I heard). There was Maciel and Mesaque, two of the smartest people I have ever taught that will help the church a lot. Then there was Matheus and Mairon, 12 and 9 years old that have a brother preparing to serve a mission. And also Carol, that is Arthur’s sister. From what I heard they were all baptized. I was sad that I wasn’t there to see their baptisms but I was happy to hear that they were all baptized.
Well, I am sure you are all wondering where I am now, traveling for 10 hours on the bus. Well I am in Rio Grande de Norte (the state) in a town called Mossoro. It is the hottest part of the mission and right now is the hottest part of the year so its pretty hot here. When I got here and our teaching group was pretty weak. We just have 1 girl, Aline that is 12 years old that will be baptized this Sunday. So last week was crazy. I was emergency transferred, and I got here at 7:00 on Wednesday and Thursday morning we left to go to Natal because Friday morning early we had to be in Joao Pessoa for a meeting with the zone leaders. So I arrived Wednesday, Left Thursday early, got in Natal, worked with the zone leaders in Felipe Camarao on Thursday, and Friday was the meeting the zone leaders, and we got home 1:00 AM on Saturday. Thursday was really cool because I got to work in an area that I already passed and I got to see a couple people that I baptized that are firm still. We ate dinner at Maria and Francisco’s house I was really excited to see them. I talked about the temple and they said that they are preparing for February (1 year after the baptism).
So finally Saturday I got to work in the area and see what there was to work with. We ended up only having 1 person at church, but we did some contacts and it looks like we have some possibilities. I am with Elder Almiro and it has been really good so far. He was in Campina Grande with me 2 months ago and He is a really good missionary and we get along great. This week we have been teaching and trying to find more people for our teaching group. Elder Almiro baptized a 34 year old guy, Febronio, that is just really excited about the church. He gave a reference of a family that is really special; Cleber and Dauciclei. We will work with them and hopefully they will be baptized next month. Anyway, the work is good and I am excited to be here in Mossoro. It is hot but there are a lot of people here to be baptized. We are working in an area called Nova Vida. The Stake President wants to open a branch here because its far from the church and there are a lot of members here. There is a bus that picks up the members every Sunday so that’s nice. We are trying to focus on men and families so that this branch is possible here. I am excited but at the same time I am sad and miss Campina Grande. I always think I will stay in one place for a while but who knows. I have learned to expect the unexpected. Anyway, I am doing great, just enjoying the sun here (and there is lots of it) and getting a good missionary tan. Well, This is pretty short this week because it is a rebuilding time for the teaching group. Sorry I didn’t email last week. Oh, Just a quick story. I was doing a division with Elder Moller and we taught a guy from the Assembly of God and I asked him after talking about the book of Mormon that when he received an answer if he would follow the answer from god. And he came back with a question for me, that If God showed me that the Assembly of God was the true church, If I would follow. I said that if God showed me, I would follow. But then I asked him how I could know if his church is true. He responded, because of the Bible. I told him that we have the Bible. He sat there stunned for a few moments and didn’t respond. Then I felt the spirit testifying to me the blessing of having a proof that that the church is true. I don’t have to believe in the pastor or the bishop but I know for myself. The Book of Mormon is really a proof that the church is true. I bore testimony to him that I knew that book was true, not because others told me but because I asked God. Other churches don’t have a proof. We do, and what a blessing this proof is in our lives. I felt in that moment gratitude for the Book of Mormon that I never felt before. We went back after and he read a little but didn’t pray. He said that if he prayed and asked God he would be doubting “the answer he already received”. It is sad to see people that are fooled, that are blinded because they don’t want to ask God with faith. Well I love you all. I am grateful for the Gospel in our lives and for the truth of the Gospel. Christ lives and he is our Savior.

Elder Crosby

Our kids' first Trick o Treatin experience

So here's some pics of our chunky monkey and our little Bob the Builder (which Kaemon picked out himself). I thought for sure he was going to be Lightning McQueen. He was pretty dang cute doing the trick or treat thing. At first he was shy, then he'd say "Trick or Tweet" really loud followed by "Happy Halloween". Sometimes he'd forget what to say when I asked him "what do you say?" and he'd say "please" instead. He lasted about an hour. We went to Coronado Island for our candy collecting adventure. Sorry all costume contest participants. There's no one who can compare with Milea's monkey outfit! Don't you think it would've been cool if Tami and Milea could've went partying together?!

costume 2

Well, my RM Emily talked me into going to Rock'n R Ranch for the big YSA halloween party. I had Lab last night till 9 so didn't have much time to prep. so sweet wig eh? I'm not gonna lie, the thought crossed my mind to dress up as.......guess....... yep Derick!! ha hahaaa! but instead we were professional tennis players. yeah! it was last min but still fun. NO one recognized me with the shades and wig. this isn't the best photo. darn it. I should not win, that is with this costume, but my africa one was pretty stink'n RAD! Happy Halloween! PS I look retarded!