Week 38 (12/23/13)

THis week was awesome! Finally we are able to do work! This opening thing is not as much fun as teaching people ya know? BUt..... it's got to be done. SO there ya go! I love teaching though man....

We had our Christmas COnference.... ON THE BEACH... Siesta Keys, rated one of the nicest beach's in the WORLD.... maybe the US. But since I don't actually know we'll just keep it at world. 

I'm SOOOOO excited for Christmas! SO excited! I can't wait to talk to my family! That's all I really care about! DOn't worry, we're being taken care of here! Even though it's a new ward we have been invited to so many people's houses! It's great! 

Also, I forgot to mention that I'm serving in Sarasota Springs FLorida.... weird eh? 

I have calluses on my knees. This is not a joke. Weird right?! Hardwood floors will do that too you. Lot's of praying. And it always works! Always. I love prayer! I have such a strong testimony of it! ;) 

We have a member who owns Texas Roadhouse and we get to eat there for free whenever we want! Yep. Dream come true. 

I love this gospel. SO MUCH. SO MUCH! I can't deny it's true! At all! This time of year has made me realize how much family means around the holiday's. But it's been amazing to really just have a completely Christ centered Christmas though :) I love it. 

I love the work. 

Keep it hastening. 

Thank you for all the amazing support and love! I can feel all of your prayers! 

Love you all! 

Love, Sister Calder ;) 

President Cusick and Us

Sand Angels

White Christmas

Week 37 (12/16/13)

Crazy news! I'm back with my trainer Sister Andersen! AH! At transfers we were sitting next to each other and both of us still weren't getting called up! Then... there was no more English Sisters. So we thought we'd be in a Zebra! Nope! When  he said we were together I said, "wait, you know we've been together right?" then President said- "well, was it broken?"

So there ya go! He doesn't fix not broken things! But we've been having SO MUCH FUN! And we're so excited to work with this bran new ward!

We are serving in University Park ward! It's officially been a ward for 1 month! They pulled people from 3 different wards! This does not happen in Utah... it's been a little crazy compiling info! The ward is STELLAR though! I seriously love it so much! There are so many unique cool people here! People in the circus... a par-olympian... a biker girl.... a real life actor! 

It's so cool!

I can't even describe how amazing our first ward counsel was! I was blown away by this bran new ward and bishop! They really get this hastening the work! It was so amazing to see! I have never felt the spirit so strong in a ward counsel before! 

I've realized this week that sometimes you have personal experiences, and you don't have to share them! Let's just say, I was at a mission low, and now I'm at the highest high!!!!!!! :) and I couldn't be happier! 

"Few experiences compare to the joy of helping others learn and live the gospel."

That's truth right there!

I love it! :) 

Our WML rocks hard core. He got me SO pumped! 

I love you all! 

Merry Christmas! 

Do the work!

Love, Sister Calder ;) the one in Florida... the other one is a lot cooler.... in the Philippines ;)

Week 36 (12/9/13)

This week we learned to laugh. A lot. Hahahaha we talked about "Come what may and LOVE it" in DM and we just made a goal to laugh at everything. It's been working out really well haha :) everything is hilarious and fun.

I am being transferred. I dunno why, and it's been really hard for me to accept. It caught me completely off guard (like the girls camp song). But, I guess I am needed somewhere else! Which is crazy to think because I love it here so much. I think I have a problem with change eh?

I love Sister Beck so much! We've gotten along so well and have really done some awesome work here! Our members called us the dynamic duo! They are kind of upset.... one of my favorite people here is a 9 year old named Maggie. We're best friends. She came into sacrament meeting just balling and we hugged for a while. That made it real, and it stunk :( huuuhhhh. Who knows where I'll go. I'll find out tomorrow.

Ernie got in a car accident this week. It actually was a miracle. We had been having a really off and kind of frustrating day. Then our ZL's text us and tell us that we have to go and take a survey that we had forgotten to take. We don't have a key to our family history library so after 30 minutes and a bunch of miles we were so frustrated cuz the GPS was leading us to a fake library we decided to just use the miles to go all the way up to the Lakeland Library. We did and in the middle of taking the survey we get a call from Ernie... he was in an ambulance and told us that he's been hit by a car. We were able to call him and meet him at the library which was literally a mile from where we were. His wife Ashley was at work and wouldn't be able to get there till a little bit later. So we went there and got there right after he arrived in the ambulance. Sister Beck sang to him as he got a shot and he said that it comforted him so much to have us there because no one else could get there till a lot later.

He's ok! He got hit on his bike... he bikes with us sometimes and says that he always prayes that he will get his and not us. So he says that it's an answer to his prayers... SAD! He's just my adopted dad. I love him so much. It was really hard to say goodbye. He even called right after we'd said goodbye and told me I needed to come back cuz I stole his heart haha ;) I love him and Ashley. He says I'm his adopted daughter. :) I love it.

Anyways. Miracle that we were right there by the hospital for some crazy reason. It was great!

I have facebook now... Sister-Nicole Calder... but I cannot add people from home. So please don't be mad if you see it and I dont' add you. It's really strict...

I love this work SO MUCH! I'm going to miss Lakeland/Mulberry so much and all the amazing member here!

Better things are ahead...

I love you all!

Love, Sister Calder :) 

Ernie(adopted Dad)

Maggie-I love her so much

Sister Beck and Me

Week 35 (12/2/13)

Well my dad's birthday was on Saturday. Let's just say, I have the best companion in the world. In the whole entire world. That's no joke. She's amazing. She made it really special and fun for me ;) she wrote a sign that said "Happy Birthday Dad" and put little birthday flags over the apartment. I was thinking that I'd be a hard day, but really, she made it awesome!  That same day we had an amazing lesson with Felicia! She is SO happy! She can just see how this gospel is changing her life and she loves it! Her kids can see it and so can she. She reads the Book of Mormon every single night! GAH! This gospel changes lives. I love it. The same day later we studied with Ernie (my fave person and adopted redneck dad out here) and ate dinner with a LA and her family. Perfect birthday gift to my dad :) he loved it I'm sure. AND it just so happens that a member gave us some German chocolate cake the night before. So we ate that right up while we sang and blew out candles for my dad :) It was the best ever. My comp rocks. :) We even sang his favorite song "I stand all amazed" for our comp study that morning. She was so thoughtful :)

I'll keep going spiritual so you can read the HILARIOUS stuff later on. :>

This week has really taught me humility. We met someone who was recently raped. It really really made me so grateful for my safety as a missionary and just my life in general. I was moping that morning cuz I did not want to get up early. Pathetic. I know. But my family knows, I am not a morning person and being exhausted every day all day doesn't help my monster-ness. I've just realized how amazing our lives are having the gospel. We've just delt with a lot of depressed people lately... so you realize how great it is.

BUT! The mission is so HAPPY. So happy. I love it. So much. SO much. I am the happiest I have EVER been! I love this gospel. Love it. This week was just full of laughter and funness....

I ran into a sliding glass door. Hard. I bounced... hahahaha it was hilarious. My companion was rolling... literally.... and the Elders were as well. hahaha It was a little painful but so funny! I was running in to get my camera (we were having a fire outside) and the door was open before, and in my defense really really clean... so there ya go. My knee is a tiny bit bruise and my head should have been bruised but I don't bruise ya know? All I remember is falling on the ground cuz I was laughing so hard. apparently everyone that was there is telling everyone. One of the Elders gators asked me about it on Sunday! What the!? Hahaha it was like a movie. Especially the bounce part. I knocked the sliding glass door off it's hinges...

Thanksgiving rocked. We only went to 4 dinners. But only ate at 2. So it was great! My comp ran in the turkey trot 10k. I decided to watch haha.

Going to a baby shower is 10 times more awkward as a missionary. FYI.

We rescued a really weird sizing dog.... that we saw while biking. It was SUPER freaky! After calling animal control and thinking it was dead we left... but Christ would have done it so we felt good about it..... it was dark. But we were on the Lakeland side, not the Mulberry side. So it was ok....

Another dog story. My comp got attacked by a pitt bull. No joke! It came darting at us while we were biking. It was attacking her tire trying to get to her! If she would have stopped it would have attacked her for sure! The Lord looks out for his missionaries and the prayers really work! I have seen this and I totally know it was because of the spirit and prayers that she is not banged up right now really bad! It was such an angry dog holy cow! Luckily Ernie was riding with us and calmly told her to just keep riding. She said it was exactly like the still small voice. So cool holy cows. Where I was in this? Yeah... I dunno. It was a blur. Good thing it wasn't me being attacked!

I love you all so much!

Don't forget-

#hastenthework

Love, Sister Calder :)