Category Archives: Sister Emily-Out on a WIM! (West Indies Mission)

Six Years!!!

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It’s been another year of blogging!!! 

It’s been SIX years!!!

Let’s see…what has happened in this last year? 

I became a Grandma for the second time to the cutest “Lil’ Dude.”

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I got a new job,

welcomed home my sweet missionary and “Bonus Baby”,

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 and moved to a new home after 18 years in our old home.

photo (24)It has been a very busy year!

I feel so blessed and life is full.

I haven’t been super good at posting:(, but I do love sharing fun stories and pictures and things about myself and my life. I hope you have enjoyed coming to visit and I hope you’ll come again! Leave a comment if you’d like, that way I’ll know you where here. 

I keep blogging a long mainly so my family has a history of “US”. Here’s a great quote that explains how I feel:

“Every family has keepsakes. Families collect furniture, books, porcelain, and other valuable things, then pass them on to their posterity. Such beautiful keepsakes remind us of loved ones now gone and turn our minds to loved ones unborn. They form a bridge between family past and family future.

Every family has other, more valuable, keepsakes. These include genealogies, family stories, historical accounts, and traditions. These eternal keepsakes also form a bridge between past and future and bind generations together in ways that no other keepsake can.”-Dennis B. Neuenschwander

Please visit again!

Love, Joy

Hug Me, First!!!

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My famous “picking up our missionaries” sign!

When we go to the airport to pick up our missionaries, I always have a sign like this…

“Hug Me, First! Oh & Welcome Home!”

You would be amazed if I told you how many hugs I have gotten from complete strangers holding this sign. It might be fun to just go to the airport and get hugs for fun!!! People landing at the airport seem to always want someone there to welcome them home or here for a visit.

I am so glad I had a sign that said, “Hug Me, First!” and to receive all those hugs!

Out on a WIM #81

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#81

Hey Fam!!!

Thanks for the email and the updates! I am glad to hear that all is going well.
I am doing really great. I am actually happy!!! There was only one time this week that it hit me that I am leaving. And cried so stinkin hard. I think it freaked Sister W. and Sister S. out because they have never seen me cry or sad or anything… I feel kind of numb to it all. It is similar to how I felt when I left on my mission, I couldn’t quite wrap my head around it.
I have been like really antsy it’s kind of hilarious. We will be studying and suddenly I just start pacing around the house… I am doing good though! I am excited to see you all and give you big hugs of course!!
So this week was a bit wild. We were doing lots of Skyping. I skyped three sets of sisters and we had a fireside in our branch this week and so that went really well. A lot of our efforts were spent in service and doing wonderful duties. It was a good week. A little stressful.
On Sunday and at the activity we are having a few potential priesthood holders that have been so solid in keeping commitments and coming to church. It’s amazing. The Lord is blessing us.
As for Sister W. and Sister S., they are doing so well. I got to observe a little bit more this week and let them take the reigns… THEY DID AWESOME!! I have no worries about them taking over the area. I am grateful to have had them as my best friends to finish out my mission and they have been most supportive with my wild emotions and sadness.
Anyway I will tell you everything in a few days. Just so you know I am probably going to talk about my mission and things I learned forever and a day. So bear with me please 🙂
I am so grateful for this time that I have had to serve a full time mission. It has been challenging and pushed me out of my comfort zone. It has blessed me. I have been inspired and led by the sprit time after time. I love my Father in Heaven and I can now say I truly have Him for my closest friend and rely on Him and want Him to be able to trust me with anything He wants done. I have learned so much and I could never express it words to the fullest.
I am so grateful for your support and examples to me and the things you have helped me with. You are always so patient and loving. Thanks for raising me right!
Ummm… I am getting some little things for each of you and I am going to take a little bit more money out today! I hope that is ok. I will have a little surprise for you all.
Wow. I can’t believe this is my last email home as a missionary. I will see you in a few days. I sure love you with all my heart. Don’t forget Gale (Emily’s Pillow Pet) and a coat! Also I would die of happiness if you had pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and fresh salsa at home! That is all. I love you so much. Can’t wait to see you and cry and rejoice with you!
Love, Sister Emily ………… I will miss being called Sister.. It makes my heart hurt just a little. Anyway! See you soon.

Out on a WIM #80

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EmilyA

#80

Hi fam. I am on an iPad at the senior couples house right now… We all know how tech friendly I am not.. So.. Needless to say this email will definitely not be my longest email…

Thanks for the email!! I was dead cereal about bringing gale to the airport, but I am glad it made you laugh. I am sorry you are not feeling well.
So this week was marvelous!!! We are having so much success it is insane!! We got to have four of our investigators at church which is a miracle. S. is being baptized in a couple of weeks. She made a huge sacrifice in walking way far to get to church that is how I know she has truly had a change of heart.. She would never do that before.. We also had three potential priesthood holders come and they all participated and it was an ideal perfect day 🙂 we are teaching great families and finding lots of prepared people by the Lord. It is amazing, I am so excited every day as we go out and teach!
Hey I will finish emailing you after we eat thanksgiving lunch.. Oh by the way. We now have a senior couple!!
Never mind I am almost out of time.
Anyway all is well. I am so happy and can’t quite wrap my head around what is going to happen soon so I am not as sad as I thought I would be.. I am loving life and my babies. Sister W. and Sister S. are amazing . Oh Sister W. says her family reads my emails from your blog so here is a shout out to her family… Hey W. family I love your daughter she is awesome. I have heard lots about you, all good things. Love you W. family!!
Anyway that is all I can manage to type… It is hard to do it on this iPad..
I am so grateful for you all and for the gospel in my life. Those are the number one things I am thankful for is my fam and my Father in Heaven and my Savior. I love being a missionary and will be one until the day I die and even still after that 🙂
I wish I could write more but just know that I love you and am excited to see ya when I see you!!!
Stay excellent!!
Love, Sister Emily!

Out on a WIM #79

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CuteEmily

#79

Hello to my absolute favorite people in the entire universe and ting.

How are you all?? For true it sounds like all is going well 🙂
Oh sorry I messed up on your age. #fail
ONLY TWO EMAILS LEFT!!?? Oh my stars! I need to get packing.. I am way excited to give you all big huge hugs and all. It still has not hit me yet. Maybe when I am in our house it’ll finally hit me.
I am glad to hear that you had a great birthday!
Ok so this week. I left my babies. They ran the area for most of the week.
Tuesday me and the Zone Leaders left and went to Trinidad! It was so wild. Last time I was there was a year and a half ago when I was just a little crouton. No seriously though.
I got to see so many sisters that I love and we had a Sisters Meeting with the STL’s and future ones. We taught the new ones and they asked us questions and it was a great meeting. We had a devotional and dinner that night. And then all of Wednesday from six in the morning until eleven at night we had straight spiritual feasting. It was a lot to take in and I loved it.
I was so happy to see all of the people there that I love and adore. And I always feel like I am learning so much..
When we got home I felt really tired and I had a head ache.. I thought it would just pass but I ended up feeling really bad and getting sick so I was out for a couple of days. I slept for hours and hours which is when I know that I am sick because otherwise I am always going a 100 miles an hour and always staying busy. So after much rest one of the Elders gave me a blessing. It was a sweet blessing. And I told Heavenly Father that by the next day I was setting a goal to feel 90%. And according to my faith it happened!! I started to get better quickly and it was amazing. Truly a miracle. So I am doing better now.
This week all together we set 5 baptismal dates!!!! 5 Righteous sons of God are willing to take that step. We are seeing such awesome things happen here. We have now three families that we are working with and lots of future priesthood holders.. It is so wonderful! The Lord is blessing us ever so much.
The Assistants called me on Saturday night with a situation with one of the sisters that needs to be fixed. And they told me that I was the only one they trusted to do it. But really I won’t be the one fixing the problem. It is the Lord. So what I did was I fasted and prayed and practised and counciled with a few trust worthy missionaries and I know I can do this. It feels difficult for me. But through the Father all things are possible. It was a blessing the time this came.. Because I was trying to get better from being sick when they called. Suddenly I felt so enabled. I felt like I had strength more than mine. I have felt that so much being an STL! It’s a cool feeling to allow the Lord to work through you.
So this was my week in a nutshell! It was a good week. I have learned a ton! As usual!
Anyway Mama I am excited to give you a big squish! Thanks for all your support and love. When I get home I would like you to please bring Gale in the car. Also I would really love it if at home there were some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and fresh salsa…… Not to be picky or anything. Just throwing it out there. Haha I am such a goob. And also I would like my bed comforter in the car because I have a feeling I am going to be REALLY cold. Since right now here I sit in the Library shivering because of air conditioning….. I am insane I know.
Dad: I love your teary eyes and the cute wrinkles you have to the sides of your eyes. You are such a gentle spirit! I can’t wait to see you and mama and the fam! I hope all is well. I love you and will see you just now.
Kels: I hope you read the story I told about being enabled by the Lord. The more responsility he gives us the more strength he gives us as well. It is really quite amazing. I know that the Lord trusts you and knows that you’ll do your best even though you are busy. You will be fine. And I can come and help you the best I can! I am glad to hear that you are still a concertaholic and I hope you did my dance moves at the Black Keys concert… just sayin. Anyway hey thanks for the trunky reminder! It still has not worked yet. But I sure am excited to see your face. I love your stinkin guts.
Al: That is way cool!! I will try to make some friends of girls who you think are cute when I get home. I am going to be a matchmaker. I hope that Bishop will let that be my calling!
I love you all! Have a great week. See you just now.
Love, Sister Emily

Out on a WIM #78

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#78

Greetings one and all. How is everyone doing?? I sincerely hope that everything is going well. It sounds like it is!!

I hope you enjoyed your birthday email 🙂
Ok so I am glad to hear about Jullian’s blessing and that Riley did it!!! That is amazing. Brings tears to my eyes to see how great my brother is doing. He has had a crazy road.
Sounds like this week was eventful! So was mine!
Funny story of the week: So this week it was way rainy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We got soaked!! Anyway we went to visit one of our investigators and she was having a yelling fight with one of the neighbours (no big deal) (just the usual) Anyway so they are like screaming at each other and saying words that I will not speak of to you… Haha! ANYWAY so as these two ladies are having a sassy Caribbean fight… Her kids were standing by us while we were slipping around this hill by her house. The little boy was standing by me and we are trying to distract them since their mom was being a dingleberry. Meanwhile the little boy slips and grabs unto me… Or should I say my stretchy skirt and pulls it down along with him. So here I am skirtless in the middle of a fiasco with these ladies… Hahahaha Also all the neighbors gathered around to see what the matter was. It was hilarious! So I started laughing pulled up my skirt and we walked away. End of story.
Right now I am learning (with the Help of Sister W) to play my favorite hymn “sweet hour of prayer” on the piano! Hopefully I will have that down for when I get home 🙂
On Tuesday we had a skype meeting with all the trainers and leaders all throughout the mission. That went really well. He made some jokes about me surviving training two missionaries!!
Something that has been a struggle this week is trying to help people to understand things and not have so many distractions during the lessons. Sometimes I feel like I am teaching as best I can while also relying on the spirit and people are still not getting things!!!! Or are hardening their hearts. It is difficult. I hope I am a good child to my Father in Heaven.
Tonight we are doing a couple of FHE’s with families!
There have been many tender mercies this week (as always) And I know my Father is looking out for me and he strengthens me.
We got S. and another investigator to church!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ( I hope Janny doesn’t slap me for all the exclamation points….) But we were so happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It made my whole week. It went really well.
Anyway I am now organizing and doing all I can to help the sisters prepare.Tomorrow I will be leaving for Trini for a few days and that’ll be a good opportunity for them to practice relying upon themselves and the Lord. I know they will do wonderful!!!! I really love them very much and they impress me. Anyway that is all for this week.
Have a great week and I love you all very much!!!
Love, Sister Emily

Out on a WIM #77

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#77

Ok so the title of the email…… FUNNY STORY! Sister W. one of my comps is super funny and can do a Relief Society General Presidency voice and she was say short bold statements of doctrine from PMG in that voice and I tried to use that line in a lesson and all I could think about was her saying it all funny so we all started to giggle… ANYWAY!!!

How are you all?? Sounds like you all had a pretty normal week! I am excited to see the new car!
Thanks for those Halloween pictures!! They are so cute!!!!!!
I will try and get you all something cool from here.
So anyway this week was crazy! I am yet again teaching another of my posterity to drive on the crazy roads here. It is intense.
Honestly this week was a little difficult for me. In the sense that a lot of the people that have been progressing in the past and doing SO AWESOME are falling by the wayside because of their agency. Bob Sagget. Agency is so useful yet sometimes saddens me.
The Sisters are picking up on things quickly. I attempted to send them off on splits by themselves but our apts fell through…. But for the time they did have by themselves they did well! Next week I will be leaving to go to Trinidad for a STL and ZL big meeting with President M. and the AP’s so that’ll be cool and a good opportunity for them to learn and grow by themselves.
On the bright side of things! We are finding a lot of really cool people!
We also have met some really hysterical and wildly inappropriate drunk people….. SO. We will keep being careful.
This week we met this family and they are meant to be a mormon family!!!!!!!!! They are awesome. They are going to be great!!!
Anyway honestly that’s about all to super report on this week. Just still going strong and doing our best. I love my trainees they are amazing and teach me so much.
I had my last fast and testimony meeting as a missionary yesterday. I was a little emotional not going to lie. But I pulled together. These next few weeks I may be a little sad but life goes on right>?!!?
Welp. I love you all so very much and I thank you for all you do for me 🙂
Love, Sister Emily

Out on a WIM #76

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#76

Hello to my most awesome family 🙂

How in the stink are you all???
Sounds like all is going well!
I am glad that you found a car! And that is hilarious about Harrison. (I do love my calling in Primary. The kids are all so darling and fun! One Sunday little Harrison was having his first experience in Primary. His first day as a Sunbeam. Whoever was doing sharing time asked a general question and Harrison raised his cute little hand and said, “Jesus!” with a little lisp. He continued to raise his hand with the same answer several more times. I thought it was so cute and true! Jesus is the answer to everything! The children are wonderful!) You see the sister missionaries at home now??? We never saw them when I was there!! Tell them I say hello!
Thanks for each of you and sharing all that you are doing. I am glad to hear that everything is just gravy!
As for me. This past week has by far been one of the most wild and busy weeks ever. Earlier in the week we had been getting everything ready for the sisters to leave. And on Wednesday my two new trainees came in! I will send a picture 🙂
This week was great! We worked really hard and saw lots of success…… I am glad to be in my area and able to do my best here without having to leave all the time. The new Sisters are great. (sister S. and Sister W.) from Utah and Canada!
I looked for ways to teach them and also looked for ways to put them out of their comfort zone (in a loving way of course) Haha one lesson I went and sat off to the side and hand washed some ladies laundry while I had them teach her and learn together! They did well. It was fun to hear them teach. They are learning quick! And they must because I only have a few weeks to teach them everything!!!! Holy cats! It is a lot of fun and I love them a lot. I still can’t believe I only have a few weeks left.
 Something hilarious is my daughters (trainees) are trying to prep me for real life so last night for training we were role playing and I was helping them contact and then they wanted to do a real life role play with me. Having me role play how to flirt and talk to a boy!!! Hahahaha! We laughed pretty hard. I think I will be fine.
I also decided that I am not going to be a dingleberry about coming home. I keep pushing away the thought and now I realize it will make me really sad when I get home if I do that. So in a more healthy way I have started setting goals and making plans for how I will be a missionary at home! And don’t worry all of you I am excited to come and see you. It will be an adjustment! And I will cry a lot. I already do. But I am doing my best to prep for it now. But I am loving my last transfer as a missionary. Everything is going well and working my tail off. We have people we are helping to be baptized! That will be great.
Anyway I have so many things to fill out for all of my mission ending things so my email will be a little shorter. If you have any questions about the sisters or anything let me know.
If you have any suggestions for me on finishing up out here let me know 🙂
I stinkin love being a missionary! It is marvelous 🙂
Thanks for all your love mama and daddy!!! I love you both. SO much! Can’t wait to see you 🙂
Love you all!
Love, Sister Emily

Out on a WIM #75

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Emily10-15-2014

#75

Hello! It was good to get your email and hear that all is well!

I hope you find success as you look for a new car and try and decide what to with your job. It is wild to think that even later in life you still have to make decisions…. I have been thinking a lot about my Father in Heaven wants me to do and realized that most often Heavenly Father trusts us enough to make our own decisions. I am sure you’ll know what to do Mama!
To answer your questions: I did have a wonderful week. This was the first week this transfer that I have been able to stay in my area and be wholeheartedly here, without traveling and being so focused on everyone else. We worked really hard and saw many miracles with all three of us working together. I am glad to be in my area more. President M. called another STL to take care of St. Lucia and Barbados so I wouldn’t have an overload of responsiblities with my new companions that are coming. I am still with Sister W. and Zuster C. They really are my best friends. They will be leaving on Wednesdayand also my trainees will be coming then too. We have been doing a lot of goodbyes for my sisters and I am doing my best to prepare myself to train two peole at once!!! I am way excited! What a good learning opportunity. I love Heavenly Father very much and I want to make sure that I will always be willing to do WHATEVER he asks me to do. I know he is actively engaged in my life, I have seen it and I know he strengthens me for my callings.
I am not sure where my new comps are from but their names are Sister W. and Sister S.!! They just sound adorable! I cannot wait to meet them and help them to learn! I don’t know any details about them yet though…
We met this golden young woman named T.! She is awesome and we are teaching her and her family (ish) You will rarely see a standard family in the West Indies. It’s mostly a jumbled house of cousins, brothers, maybe a mom. But we are teaching her and her cousins! It is wonderful. We also are teaching the man that President M. taught with us and reffered us to. We set a bap date with him. Also we started to teach another family and we are meeting tons of people and still working with the members!
I fasted yesterday and it was a  very spiritual fast. They all are good. But this one was special. I love the power in sacrifice and prayer.
Our area is doing really well and we are working hard. I will be glad to be really in charge of the area this next transfer because most of the time it was just my Sisters here this t-fer.
Something I am learning a lot right now is Training rather than doing. So often we are taught to do and so we are so eager to do that. But in the branches here and in all situations in life the best way to do it is to give them an example and then aid them in doing.
I am way excited for these coming few weeks and I am trying my best to be a little more trunky. I have to force myself to start thinking about those things so that I am not a total nut and sob story when I get home. I really will miss being a missionary. I feel like I completely am starting to get it down 100% and I am about done!!! Ah!! I swear that is how it always goes… Hahaha! Oh well what can ya do? Do any of you have ideas of what to do when I get home? When I get home I will do lots of job hunting. I have acquired an even stronger drive since I have been out here so I am determined to find what will be best.
This week I am really grateful for the spirit in my life and the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost. He has such a huge role in the Lords work. I know that Heavenly Father answers our prayers. I know he does. And sometimes we expect promtings to be more clear. We need to have a greater trust in Heavenly Father because he has an infinite trust in us.
Anyway!!! Sorry I always end up just typing out all my thoughts! This week was great and I will let you know how all is going next week! You all are amazing!!!!!!!! And I love you!
Take it easay.
Love always, Sister Emily