A week full of work, and Christmas!

Hello Family!

Here is what my week looked like. On Monday we ran around like crazy to get some Christmas shopping done, and boy was it CRAZY! Now many of you know I love movies so the best way to explain how it is here during Christmas is to relate it to the movie "Mall Cop". The stores here are so busy just like that mall! Also, the part where everyone in the mall starts freaking out and running around like crazy because the mall is being taken over, well that is what it was like here in Catarman before the Typhoon. Then the mall is all of the sudden vacant. Just was just like Catarman. Nobody in sight! Basta, we had a great lesson that night with Katrina and Jay. We talked about the Book of Mormon and how Joseph Smith translated it. They were really receptive and the spirit was awesome :) We are also teaching a sweet 10 year old boy named Fritz and he is going to be baptized this Saturday! Woohoo! Our first baptism! I can't wait! :) We taught the 10 commandments on Tuesday and focused on Keeping the Sabbath Day Holy. He's a little slow, and it's hard to keep his attention so I had to keep going over it to help him understand. The good thing was that every time my waray waray got better because I was learning new words. Plus he finally understood, so that was good.

I also had the opportunity this week to Skype my beautiful family!! Aw the best day ever! It was so much fun to talk to you, and to see all of your faces! Including my dog Gracie! ;) We then spent Christmas day visiting a ton of members in the ward which was really fun. We spend most of our Christmas with the Gundaya family. I love them! They were so sweet to let us celebrate Christmas with them! They had rented a Karaoke machine (Karaoke is HUGE here) and so we got to enjoy some great, and not so great, performances ;)

Friday we were able to have 5 lessons. We taught the Sarmiento family by surprise because they were taking a break from building their home (which is looking great) and they really wanted us to share a message with them. Could they be any more amazing?! We shared Ether 12:27 and Sister Skey talked about how we all have weaknesses and that through the Lord they can become strengths. I talked about how we all have hard times and trials that we go through, but through prayer we receive peace, comfort, and help because Heavenly Father wants to help us. They kept telling us thank you and that they aren't rich in money or things but they are rich in blessings because we shared a message that helped them to continue through this hard time. I love that I am an instrument in the Lords hands to help not only those who haven't heard the gospel, but those who are members of the church that need some help during a hard time in their lives.

Another great thing that happened this week was we found and investigator FAMILY! Yay! It's a common thing here in the Philippines to not get married, but to have a family and so many of our investigators don't count as families because they aren't yet married. But this sweet couple is! And they have 2 girls and a boy, ages 9, 8, and 2. They are so receptive and I can't wait to see what Heavenly Father has in store for them! We have been praying for a family to teach for a month and through patience and diligence we were able to find one!

I hope you all had a great Christmas just like I did! I can't believe it's almost 2015!! Where has the time gone?! I love you all!

Love,
Sister Wilde

Here are a few more pics from Mission Tour last week!

On our way to the Christmas Party!

This is Cha Cha and Index. I love them!

I got a beautiful set of sheets for the gift exchange!

Christmas Eve in our cute PJ's! Mom keeping the Christmas Eve pajama tradition alive in the Philippines!

I love the 3 Filipinas I live with!

Christmas at the Gundayas!

And the cutest little girl ever!

Brother and Sister Sarmiento fixing the roof of their home.

They are so sweet!!!

Here is a little part of our area

Okay mom, here is our apartment

This is the back area of where we live

Our whole area is currently flooded. Super gross.

These last two pictures were taken this morning!

We had to travel to Bobon for our Zone Activity!