Wk 16- Amo na, gali??

Sister Smoot, Sister Sinema, Sister Smoot

I came down with a high fever yesterday and I'm just trying to get over it right now. I woke up not feeling good and i kept getting cold then really hot and i couldn't focus during church. but i guess it's like the dangy fever twin- I was told by our mission nurse sister chin- it's something which you get from mosquitos here but we just told her symptoms so i took like 2 cold (freezing) showers and layed by the fan forever. anyways my temperature when i got home from church yesterday was 103 with the little throw away thermometer my companion had and then it went down after i slept and showered once. Then after when the medicine wore off we checked it again cuz i wasn't feeling good. Again it was 104 and sister chin said to shower and drink water and take more medicine because if it didn't go down in 30 minutes i would have gone to the er. but then it went down and this morning it's gone from 98 and 99 (our zone leaders got us a real thermometer and i got a blessing after church so i'm doing better and i just need to stay cool and good :) i'll be ok though!! :) i just feel like i'm getting over being sick. If i stay on ibuprofen it stays down. :)

Anyways, so to answer your questions. The shirts are perfect :) thank you!! maybe bug spray?? I've been getting eaten alive by bugs and now it's not just all over my legs it's getting on my arms but maybe not because it may be better by the time that gets here but make sure Lacey has some because all americans get eaten alive when they come. :) mine are really bad though! and maybe a thermometer would be nice too and ibuprofen i don't know if they have it here but i definitely will check and let you know next week. :) I'm getting use to the bugs here. cockroaches still scare me and little lizards i'm use to but mosquitos i could do without :) The food is really good! They eat everything and cook everything here with garlic and onion and a lot of soy sauce. My companion always cooks with garlic and onion and i really like it! So everything i make that she's taught me how i make also with garlic and onion :) it's very good!! :) My companion is awesome!! :) it will be sad when i have to leave her :( but it's ok! it's God's will with whatever happens! :) I don't really know what to say. The houses are just different then here i don't really know how to explain them, but similar! My ward is awesome!! My companion said it's one of the best wards here. It's different, but very good :) I've been called many things here. I've been called barbie (which makes no sense but ok) and i've been called guapa a lot. We will walk down the street and everyone just looks at you. We say maayong hapon or gabi (good afternoon or evening) to almost everyone! It's really nice! I get treated pretty well here, don't worry :) I also walk into BRGY's sometimes and all the kids come grab our hands it's really cute! And if I focus on one i can understand what they are saying :) haha anyways

This week we had Johnpaul as well as Charlie bear their testimonies at FHE and we did a faith thing with a banana (if you remind me when i get home it's a cool lesson) but i taught the lesson because my companion made me. It was very short and in Ilonggo, but it was good :) 

On tuesday i saw ashley again when we planned for our zone activity today! we are going to sinema's :) i'm excited!!  we had exchanges. I was with Sister Portugal, she's a sister training leader and it was a cool and different experience being with a Philippine but it was fun! :) We also saw a viewing (they go for like a week here before the funeral) and it was just in their house in the main room. It was different but we went in and told them about the plan of salvation. Sister Portugal was just like lets go! so we did! It was sad, but kind of cool and we are going to visit them again after the funeral tomorrow. 

REYBOY WAS BAPTIZED ON SATURDAY! :) It was so cool! He was so happy!! :) I'm so happy for him! He's clean!! :) He was confirmed on Sunday also and it's cool how they just glow!! :) I'm so happy and excited for him!! :) But Sunday was rough too... i just know i went home from church and slept a lot. Got a blessing from Elder Anderson (a couple) and they brought the 2 office elders with them, Elder Pulsipher and Elder Cheney. It was very nice of them to come and give me a blessing. :) Anyways! That's been my week! :) 

Thanks for everything and your support in being here!! :) Palangga ko kamo!! (I love you all)

Love, Sister Smoot

Wk 15- GALIT!!! :) (means like "light bulb" or "oh duh" like you just realized something)

Area: Bacolod 1st Ward
Companion: Sister Sanders

Monday we had sister training leaders stay with us and that was fun! :) 

Tuesday, we had a lesson that we taught the Arsenio family! Sister Emerin (16 years old) she was having a really hard time at school because she can't see. She said she'd been praying for years to be able to see and do better in school. I told her that Heavenly Father doesn't always answer prayers the way she wants and it's incredible it was like a light bulb for her. She realized something she hadn't before. She also told the young women yesterday that she wanted to be baptized!! :) 

Wednesday, we had zone training! :) Sat right by Ashley :) haha so much fun! also got the package from her!! Thank you so much momma :) i love it!! :) I also got a letter from  Jessie and Elder Pulispher who brought in the mail had put a letter from matt in my hymn book in the page we were going to sing for the opening song haha :) I found it then :) It was funny! But we had a very good training and are very focused on our vision here and I can see it start happening with us and the baptisms we have scheduled!! :)

Thursday, Reyboy had his baptismal interview because of some things that came up from his past, but he is still good to be baptized on the 13!! He truly is incredible!! So strong and spiritual! always invites people to our lessons and is always with us! :) 

Friday, HAPPY FOURTH!!! :) we went crazy and wore red, white and blue :) hahahaha i didn't have much but i found what i could :) It was a good day! We taught reyboy again with stephani then we walked to another appointment and reyboy came with us! haha and we ended up in a brgy that was flooded with water and up to our knees! I have pictures.. but i already tried to upload them and it didn't work it failed so i'll print off pictures and send them... i guess it's just not suppose to happen sorry!! But the house we ended up in was Grezel's house and our investigators are turning into missionaries!! Marlon has taught her how to pray and is helping her (she's 12) come to church and stuff!! It's so cool!! Marlon is scheduled for August 3rd. We also had Reyboy with us and he taught her all about Joseph Smith and before he was having a really hard time grasping it! We had to teach him a few times it was incredible!!! 

Saturday, Johnpaul smoked his last cigarette!!! And he's still doing good!! so happy for him and excited for him to be bapitized on August 3rd also!! :) We also had the spirit hit us strong in BRGY 20 teaching them all this night. It's truly incredible being a missionary and seeing these people change! I love them all!! :) 

Sunday, Reyboy bore his testimony in sacrament meeting!! He's getting baptized saturday! He also brought a whole bunch a little kids from BRGY 27 with him to church haha. It's awesome to see how much and how happy people are when they let the gospel in their life!! Reyboy also fasted because we taught him about fasting and donated fast offerings with our help!! It was incredible!! I love being a missionary!!

Well it's been a good week!! I love you all!! :) :) Palangga ko kamo gid!! :):)

Palangga, Sister Smoot :)

Wk 14- KAMUSTA KAMO?! :)

 Sister Smoot & Sister Smoot! 

(Ashley & Jenna are in the same zone!)

Bacolod, Bacolod North, and Cadiz Zones

Pamilya!! :)

I love you all!! :) ok so to answer your questions mom :) I am doing good drinking only the filtered water :) It's not too hard getting filtered water. Sometimes I don't drink enough and I get really light headed, but I'm doing good!! Brgy is like an address place that is somtimes huge and has multiple houses here and we just have to go ask around. It's really hard to explain. Addresses are hard and different here. 

My hiligaynon is getting better I think.. Well I don't think but my companion said it's getting a ton better! :) So that's good! I can understand better then I can speak but I know I have the gift of interpretation and am getting the gift of tongues. It's truly crazy! 

I haven't gotten my package from Ashley but I probably will tomorrow. I got your other package on wednesday! It's so awesome! Thank you! My favorite food and candy! I love the sugar free carmel nib things! And everything else that was in it!! Thank you thank you thank you!! The shirt is super cute too :) and perfect style for here!! I don't have anything like it! thank you again! :)

I think i'm good :) maybe the refill things just next time you send a package with yellow and orange :) you sent the other colors that I love! And I don't have purple in my pencil yet so i'm excited for that! but no rush for those! I'm not even close to being out! So just in a few months :) Don't send too big of packages mom! It's expensive!! 

Running... I don't do it everyday but I am doing the card things and running up and down the stairs which makes me super sore and it makes it difficult to kneel which I have to do a lot during each day haha but it's awesome! i hope i'm staying in shape, but at houses people give us bread for a pamahaw (snack) it's also the word for breakfast, but yeah then we need to eat that, but me and my companion eat mangos and bananas everyday with energen and water or milk! We love it!! :) haha it's so good!!

Tell everyone that asked about me hello and I love them all! :) just tell everyone I say hello :) We are so blessed to know the people we do :) And I'm so blessed to have the family that I do! :)

To answer dad's questions haha... sige means okay :) The language is doing good! It's sometimes difficult but I think it's slowly getting better! I hear it's a good 6 or 7 months before you actually get the language but I'm getting better and short conversations with people and acting things out sometimes :) or having my companion translate for me or them :) haha Yes! I got my package wednesday and should get the one from ashley tomorrow :) haha I haven't seen ashley since zone conference but I might see her tomorrow i don't know! because she's in my zone our zone has their district meetings all at the same church :) We listened to the broadcast at zone conference! So cool!! We do have to wait as they said, until they say it's our time for our mission to use the online tools and stuff but hopefully by next year is what we were told :)

SAKIT!!!!! (anytime someones sick or something hurts) DAD!!! AGAY!! (ouch) I hope your hand and elbow are okay!! :) I love you!! :) You're amazing!! :) haha 

Well, This week for me.... 

Monday, we had FHE at Marlin's :) We did a lesson about repentance and becoming clean with water, food coloring, and bleach :) it was kinda cool :) haha and we played some fun games! I'll try to send some pictures and videos of that and some talents they did when they lost :) haha but i don't know if it will work. 

Tuesday, i don't really remember and i didn't write much in my journal about it :) oops!! 

Wednesday, We had zone conference!! When I saw Ashley she made me start crying! What is this smoot gene?? it's ok though all is well! And I can't write her, but hopefully i see her every once in a while :) We watched the broadcast and learned a lot of President and his wife!! It was very good!! :) I found out Sister Lopez and her mom and grandma were all born on August 10th! cool huh!! :) 

Thursday, We were led by the spirit to go to Gretchel's (a less active) and had an incredible lesson and committed a few of her neighbors to baptism :) Love them all they are so sweet! I also had my first experience with a huge spider!! They said it wasn't that big, but trust me it was big!! I took some pictures of it, so i'll see if i can send those. :)

Friday, It's cool how the spirit works!! We were walking down the street and people are so nice here!! I accidently stepped in a puddle and splashed sister sanders oops! and it's like black water our legs get dirty here when it's rainy, but this kind sister offered some water to wash it off and we gave her a pamphlet :) it was cool! haha

Saturday morning, we had a very spiritual lesson and we ended getting the Rassmasons (don't know if that is how you spell it but they are a couple missionary here) to come with us to an appointment, because we needed a babae (girl) to be with us to teach these 2 brothers. It was incredible!! The one we hadn't taught before teared up and asked how he can find out if our church is true after we told about the restoration and about Joseph Smith! It was so cool!! :)

Sunday, Happy Birthday Matt!! :) It was fifth sunday so it was combined we taught some lessons and went home. Sister Sanders was having a rough time after one lesson we taught at the church. She got a blessing and let me just say the Priesthood is so powerful! It's incredible!! Always be worthy when you hold the priesthood! It's powerful and it's awesome! Charlie also got the priesthood!! :) and is ordained to the office of a priest!! yay!! :)

Monday, HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUSTIN!! :):) Love you!! :)

Wk 13- Maayong Gabi!! :) (that's good evening)

Ok so this week has been good!! ASHLEY IS IN MY ZONE!! I haven't seen her yet but I'll see her on Wednesday at Zone Conference. :) and I haven't gotten my package yet.. I'm not sure where it's at or what she did with it. I haven't gotten any packages yet... but it may just take longer. Sige, so I will try the day by day thing again :)

Monday was p day, but that night my lola came!! (grandma) my nanay's nanay!! or trainer's trainer :) haha Her name is sister Maputi which means white in hiligaynon so we put on her tags and took pictures :) haha because we are white! :) It's really funny when we see other American's here. But sister maputi went home and because we are so close she stayed and worked with us monday night then left the next morning. :)

Tuesday, Bishop Pioquinto and his wife worked with us! And I learned that they have different words in Hiligaynon if the rice is cooked, if it's not cooked and if it's overcooked. There may be a few more too and I wrote them down and still need to memorize those ones. :) haha 

Wednesday, I went to the hospital with my companion to visit Marlin and her son, Kurt, who has pneumonia. Different experience but good :) It's incredible seeing these people and their faith through things :) I love it!

Thursday... I can't remember much my days blend together... 

Friday, We went to teach a family out of our area that is a family of sisters, but now there's sisters there instead of elders, so i think they will now take them :) Sad, because they are so sweet, We only visited them twice. Hopefully they progress because they would be incredible!! They would still be in our ward. We have instead of two sisters and two elders in our ward we have 5 sisters. The other sisters are a trio now. There are 2 trainees from Ashley's batch in the trio. So crazy how many sisters are here! 20 sisters came on Wednesday!! 

Saturday, oh well I learned that sometimes people just shower in the open the night before. That's all I will say. I also learned how incredible the spirit is and how much it truly helps people understand and grasp what we are teaching them. We have Raffy back and he hadn't remembered much from the Restoration when we taught him, but now he actually understands what a prophet is and who Joseph Smith is! It was incredible when it just clicked!! I love the spirit! And I know that only through the spirit that can happen! :) We also had taught a family and the dad was drunk when he came home. It was a different lesson then I've ever taught. He liked to talk a lot. :) Wonderful family though!! I love them to death!! 

Sunday, oh wow!! Sunday!! We had 12 investigators at church!! It was crazy!! And 305 attendance which is a record. Each week, it keeps growing. We barely have room in there and last week we tried to open the back but the kids go play in the gym, so i'm not sure what's going to happen, but it keeps growing each week!! :) They don't have an overflow here like they do at home. We also have Reyboy who is an incredible missionary!! We didn't even count the 9 little boys in the 12 investigators that he brought to church. He's not even a member yet, but he's incredible!! He's still trying to realize the testimony he has, but I know that he will and he has changed so much!! We also have JohnPaul who I am starting to see just glow as he lets the gospel into his life and slowly does less and less cigarettes each day!!

This is so the true church and I am so grateful for it!! :) I am so happy I am a missionary!! I love it so much!! I love helping the people here!! Oh and last night we taught a lesson to BRGY 20 (which JohnPaul is there) and we had sister Marlin's house full of people. The spirit was so strong!! I understood most of what my companion was saying and it was a really random lesson, we can't really remember what we said, but I know we were guided by the spirit to say whatever we did and I know it will help them, if they listen to what they felt! I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!! :)

I love you family!! Thank you for all that you do for me!! :) I truly am grateful for each an every one of you and to be Sister Smoot is wonderful!! Can't wait to see the other Sister Smoot!! :)

Love me, Sister Jenna Smoot :)

Wk 12- wow!! what a week! :)

Family!!

(Jenna is answering quite a few questions we asked, so I thought I'd better put the questions in so it made sense!)

*noticed you had training this week? (the mission president posts pics on facebook!)- but you were missing in some of the pics? were you late?!:

 haha the training we were right on time for.. but then i had to go to the bathroom... we got told to go to a gate that the ap's always go through and they wouldn't let us through so we had to walk like clear around and it was kind of funny :) president's clock on his wall is like 10 minutes ahead. but they started while i was in the bathroom :) I wasn't hiding from the camera... we smiled for some pictures :) 

At the training, we just talked about our vision and cleared up some rules, because they've been changing so much. We also talked about how we can make our studies better and companionship studies better. :) He also wants us to step up because they're are a whole lot of missionaries coming in and we will be done training after this next transfer! That scares me, but I know the lord will do whatever he needs to with me and I will be able to handle it! He just said that to scare us a little I think. But It is transfer week, so that's crazy! I've already been here as long as I was in the MTC!! Time seems to fly but still feels like forever! It's a weird feeling! 

*We had to put down our horse JJ this week- we've had him for almost 15 years!:

I am so happy JJ is free from his pain!! He's incredible and I know dad did the right thing for him :) I'm proud of him! We will all miss him but he will be with us again one day :) I'm grateful to have been able to have him as a horse! :) He's incredible!! And when I get home dad, I want to learn better how to saddle up horses and stuff sige? :) How's Princess doing?? and how's Dolly and Dusty? and April?? I love that we have animals and they are in the conditions they are in! :) Animal's here, usually stray but they aren't in the best conditions. They look better than the one picture we were shown for the most part, but they still are sad. I love them though! 

JADE!!! YOU HIT A HOMERUN!!! SOO PROUD OF YOU!!! AHHH!!! :) YAY!!! GO JADERS!!! (that was me cheering when you hit it) I LOVE YOU!! :) and Tayton got a job before jade? haha that's funny :) but cool!! That's awesome!! :) 

Anyways, my weeks been good!! This week I feel like me and my companion have been straight led by the spirit!! It's incredible!! We found a less active yesterday and found out missionaries haven't taught him in 3 years! I don't even know what all to tell you! All I know is that if you are exactly obedient and do your best to be the best you can be, miracles seriously do happen and I love it!! :) it's incredible!! :) 

This week... well a fire truck was outside of BRGY 20 and I found out their electricity doesn't shut off here if something goes wrong... that's why we always have to unplug everything when it's not being used. Anyways, it led us to contact a referral we had received who was taught before but it's been a while. It's also kinda crazy the different things people think about our religion, but it's awesome to help them really understand! :) I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY!! :)

*She sent home her ipod because her mission president doesn't allow them, I asked if she missed music, if she wanted any sheet music, or if she could ever hear the song that Candace wrote that she sang before she left:

I do miss music, but i know we aren't suppose to have it for a reason, if we were, it wouldn't be against the rules for it. We get use to it. Sometimes, since my companion is also a singer, we will sing around the apartment, but then we always sing songs we shouldn't so we start singing oh Babylon oh babylon we bid the farewell! Because we are only suppose to sing hymns :) Which I have shared the words of those songs with my comp and am super sad i can't sing them :( but i don't know! I would love to hear the song, but i don't know how!  I may be able to get permission to hear it, because I want to really bad!! Maybe different arrangements of hymns would be good sheet music?? 

*Do you eat 3 meals a day? by yourselves? or with others?:

Most the time it's by ourselves and yes we do eat 3 meals a day. Somedays we will eat dinner late, but no we usually schedule it in and come home and eat or eat at someones house, but it's only been a few times that we eat at someone's house. Now we have a new family, the Analucas family, that everytime we go there we eat something. Last night we were going to just eat dinner late, but we ended up eating at their house they fed us isdo (fish), but i can't remember the ilonggo name for it but it's milk fish!! :) It was really good!! it had little bones but it tasted like chicken a little but super good!! and they were helping me eat with my hands, that with rice and soy sauce is huge here!! Super good!! OH!! I LOVE THE FOOD! :) Don't worry.. I eat enough :) I'm trying not to eat too much :) They always offer us pamahaw (snack). always!! and yes i do better somedays with water and healthiness, but other days are rough. it just depends :) I promise I'm good though!! :)

*Do you use your converter (since she sent home her blow dryer, curling iron, etc):

The converter i use to plug in my camera and that's it and it's only sometimes.. but my companion doesn't use one she took a chance plugged in her camera and it didn't do anything... but i'm a little scared too..

*Ashley (Jenna's cousin) gets to the same mission this week! Will you be able to see her?:

My guess is I won't see her... but I don't know for a fact... It's very strict here I'm scared to ask anything. 

*Do you still go running every day? How does the heat affect you?:

The running is good... I want to go a lot more than my companion does. She doesn't like running at all. It's not bad when we do cuz we don't go far and it's ok while you're running, but when you stop I start sweating so I start like swimming in my sweat, but we usually just hurry and take turns in the shower so it's not bad. 

*you have 3 beds in your bedroom? Do you have a closet?:

I sleep on the bottom bunk... haha My comp sleeps on the mattress on the big bed.. don't ask me why there's an extra mattress... it was like that when i got here. I think they may have used it on the floor once for departing missionaries then just threw it up on the bed?? but i don't know. We just have little cupboard like things for our closets i'll take a picture next time :)

*you walk everywhere? What stores do you have close?:

. we just walk to where we need to go it's not too bad :) I don't know.. we don't go to that many stores. We go to lopues which is groceries and clothes and everything else and upstairs they have bowling which we have done :) it's fun! 

Well! I hope i answered your questions!! That took a while! haha :) I love you!!! :)

Love, Sister Smoot

Sister Smoot sent pictures :)

Sister Smoot sent a letter with a stack of printed pictures.  I scanned them in so that everyone could see them. I'm glad we don't have to do laundry like she is doing. :)

Japorm, Charlie, and Sis. Smoot

Sis Sanders, Sis Smoot, and Charlie - First Baptism

We got fruit

First time doing laundry

Where we eat!

Our bedroom

Sis Smoot, Laura, Sis Sanders - We worked with Laura & still do sometimes - She's in our ward and is 19, and a member of our Stake Presidency's daughter.  She's working on her mission papers.

We went to drop off Laura one night and they invited us to eat dinner. Laura took the picture.

Kaylee sent a greenie package - loved the masks!

My first meal in Bacolod - Pancit
(We were wondering why the 7-up  wasn't clear)

Bucket Showers outside the Pres. house - Elders use these

Eggs in a nest in the Pres. backyard.

Going to Bacolod - Sis Smoot, Sis Sefetti, and Sis Roos

Trees - love them!

Elder Stagg on the plane - I gave him my pillow and he was gone

Elder Vanwagoner on the plane

Elders - Manilla to Bacolod

Our hotel in Manilla - We each got our own bed

TV in Manilla hotel

Heading to the hotel in Manilla- I rode shotgun!

My MTC Comp - Met back up in Tokyo

Sisters - Manilla to Bacolod

We are in Tokyo!

We went the wrong way, so we went back :)

We went through this hall at the airport, it was sweet

My travel group - Elder Vanwagoner, Elder Stagg, Sis Smoot, and Sis Sefetti

On the plane - Sis Smoot and Sis Safetti

Wk 11- another week in the field!! :)

Family!! :)

The mission is a roller coaster but it is truly rewarding!! I love it so much!! :) 

Monday... We had a family home evening with a soon to be returned less active sister and her 2 kids. We also had 2 sister training leaders because we live so close to where everyone meets at the church so they stayed with us monday night before their training on tuesday which was fun. It was different having Philippino sisters with us but it was fun! :) 

I can't remember every day but that was a different day :) haha Raffy one of our investigators that was really interested suddenly moved to Manilla a couple days ago, so that was kind of a sudden change. But we taught a few more first lessons and just trying to progress our investigators and do our best to be obedient! :) it's incredible the little blessings we are blessed with everyday and the miracles we see in people. Rayboy is a new investigator. We've taught him twice now and he went to a YSA activity on fridayand came to church early on sunday!! Which is incredible! Usually investigators don't come until the 2nd or 3rd hour (philippino time is worst then mormon standard time) but sacrament meeting is last here in our ward. but Rayboy came early for church and he shared about something we did in gospel principles and is just so happy! After he came up and asked when he could be baptized. Sister Sanders told him a date, but we would need to teach him more to make sure and then she asked why he wanted to be baptized and he said because this church is different. He's someone who hasn't had the best life and wasn't doing the best things and now he wants to change! It's incredible seeing the people who are truly ready for the gospel and how they just get put into our path for us to find them. He's 19 years old and already has incredible faith. (we did ask him to be baptized before but he was kind of confused but he said he would if he found out it was true... this was before sunday) 

Anyways, i hope that made sense! but it has been a good kinda weird but good week :) Missionary work is truly incredible! It's incredible how your faith can work!! :) If you have faith and pray anything is possible with Heavenly Father if it is his will. He has a plan for all of us and I know he will be there for each and every one of you if you just turn to him! He is there to comfort you and he is your father. I honestly didn't realize how close he truly is until I ended up on a mission. He loves each of us!

The food here is actually really good, we don't eat out much, but when we do i really like it! It's a lot of meat and rice, and now i crave it sometimes. I love it so much! :) Me and my companion mainly make chicken and we've made mashed potatoes by hand this week (legit ones) and they were really good!! Sister Sanders is really good at making up things! Let me tell you! But she makes philippino dishes for me without the rice. She makes Sinigong (veggies which are different here and either chicken or pork usually chicken for us with a sinigong mix), Adobo, and Chicken Tinolaand. (not how you spell them, but they are good) They pretty much all have different veggies with meat of some sort i get them all mixed up but they are all delicious! 

My house i just live with my companion. It's just a one bedroom apartment and it's got 2 desks for study a table to eat and a little kitchen. It's just like an apartment. I sent some pictures home of our bedroom and table i think, but not everything... I'm in our bathroom when you get the pictures when i'm doing laundry. It's really cute! it has a locked gate and our door is locked so it's pretty safe where we are at and we are upstairs in back last apartment and the only other people upstairs are the owners they are super sweet and no they aren't members if you were wondering. 

And my Hiligaynon is slowly coming. Sometimes it will click and sometimes it struggles, but i can speak english sometimes too just depends on who it is and how much english they know. They tend to know english more if they went or go to school because they have books and learn in english and sometimes tagalog, but it will come :) i keep getting told that i'm doing very well and i just need to study and keep having faith that it will come :)

I don't know if i'll see ashley she will be at our church because that's where they go their first day, but i can't go there just to see her. I think it's against the rules, but we'll see i'll let you know, because it is like down the street from our apartment. 

Here's our Elders in our districts names... Johnson, Pulsipher, Dulalia, Gonzala, Mifflin, Dy. 

I hope i answered all your questions!! I love you all!! :) Keeping being the best you can be and never forget to turn to the Lord!! :)

Love, Sister Smoot