July...you know what the means...

This week FLEW BY SO FAST!...oh wait...I say that every week!  And this week I really don't know what to say because it feels like I really just wrote yesterday!  Pretty much this will sum up my week for you:

-Exchanges in Cedar Rapids 1st Ward!...their goal was to find a family.  We were able to find 3 potential solid families!  MIRACLES!

-We pulled weeds with the elders and ward mission leader at the church.

-We pulled weeds at a part-members house.

-We ate Jimmy Johns 3 times!  (Their Unwiches are my new favorite thing!)

-We painted old ladies nails.

-We taught the most prepared African man I have met.  Fred.  He thought we were Jehovah's Witnesses, just moved from Texas, and loved church yesterday!

-We found out one of our ward missionaries is in love with one of our investigators...last week it was one of our investigators was in love with one of the ward missionaries... haha.

-A pregnant African lady opened her door just in her towel....

-We got soaked in a storm. twice.

-We were taken to dinner by a Mexican man.  His mom is a less-active member and was going to have us over, but got stuck at work...so her son took us out for some delicious Mexican food. 

-Yesterday was the longest church block of my life.....

-We had 2 dinners yesterday!  :)  Gyros with lamb, and navajo tacos! yum!

-We had a movie night last night and watched Legacy as we got ready for bed.

-Oh yeah!  I ran 12.5 miles from Wednesday-Saturday! :)  

Well sorry that update isn't too exciting!  I was reminded of how amazing it is that I have the opportunity to serve the Lord at this time.  Alma 26 sums up how I feel about my mission.  SO GRATEFUL FOR IT!  :) Have a great week everyone!  

Love Always,

Sister Natalia Alston

this is what we look like during tornado warnings...camping out in the basement! 

Hey! I know her! 

my new African style, haha

pretty even when it's flooding! 

we love corn! 

dyeing in the mane...

it's growing fast! 

my beautiful companion 

Mixed up Meds

hahaha....well, I guess I should probably begin by explaining why the subject of this week is what it is!... "Mixed up Meds".  Yesterday, right before sacrament meeting, I asked a member for some IB profen because my back was acting up and I forgot mine.  She gets out her bottle of aleve and gives me two blue pills.  I go out and take them, turn around and she says, "oh, crap!...did you already take them?!"  welp...haha... I accidentally took 2 Benadryl instead of 2 IB Profen!  Woops!...Needless to say, I didn't have much pain the rest of the day, and was quite loopy and tired! However, I had to stay awake for 2nd hour because it was the first day of teaching the member-missionary class!...that was a hoot!  Poor Sister Hill had to carry most of it, because my brain was pretty much turned off!  haha.  Luckily, the Lord let me stay mostly alert to finish the class...then I don't really remember anything after that.  haha.  We came home after the block, ate some food, then I sat down for one second and Sister Hill asked it I was okay to go out; which...yeah...I always think I'm okay to go out. haha.  I think I said, "I'm trying to decide..."  then got up and laid down on my bed and the next think I knew I woke up at 8:30 PM, changed my clothes somehow, and didn't get up again until 6:30this morning!  yep...life of the party that's for sure!  I felt so bad!...and it's still in my system so studies this morning were quite interesting and Sister Hill keeps laughing at some of things I do and say...man... I hate Benadryl....

To be honest, I'm not even really sure what happened the rest of the week!  haha... but I'll list some of the highlights that I do remember!  

MONDAY:  We were able to teach Loretta and Adrianna, a mother and daughter that just moved here from Colorado and who have never gone to church, but would like to build their relationships with God and with each other.  They have been through so much, I know the gospel will help them with everything!  They are a family of 6, and we are hoping to teach the whole family tonight!  :)  

TUESDAY:  We spent the morning trying to hunt down a few less-actives, and end up finding one at a retirement community thing...Sis. Knight...hahaha... boy, she's a talker!  I don't really know what all we talked about, but it was funny!  I can't wait to be an old lady who can say anything and it doesn't matter!  Michele texted us and asked if we could come help her clean again, because her family was coming in Wednesday and she was in panic mode!  

WEDNESDAY:  was supposed to be P-Day, but because we used our P-Day Friday to go to the temple, we didn't have a P-Day this week...however, when we go over to Sister Birdwell's to help her clean she says, "we are not cleaning today, I don't feel like cleaning...I need some R and R"...and we played Farkel with her instead.  haha. She is so funny.  

THURSDAY:  We didn't have to go to transfers!  Sister Hill is staying here with me!  Weird to think my "daughter" is killing me off...haha.  I brought her into this world, and she is taking me out!  It was an interesting day that's for sure!  We were finally able to see a less-active that we had been trying to get in contact with for weeks, heard her conversion story and boy she is amazing!  She's from micronesia, was a seminary teacher there, and just has a hard time coming to church because she wants to come as a family but her husband doesn't want to come with her.  We go to the library for our mormon.org time and end up getting locked in because of a tornado warning...end up seeing a potential that we had met a couple weeks before at walmart who just moved from Provo so that was cool!  And we were also able to finally see the Drueggar's again, and they fed us delicious chili!  We were supposed to go hiking with them today, but with the weather and me on drugs...it's going to have to wait until next week!  

FRIDAY:  We taught Virgil the restoration, and he was so receptive!  Oh yeah...Monday night we had introduced him to the restoration and invited him to baptism while standing on his front porch.  haha.  Then Firday, he gladly accepted the baptismal date of July 26th and loved all three hours of church yesterday!  After church he told us his spirit feels refreshed...yep!...that's how it's supposed to feel!  He is excited to continue learning and studying and looking forward to his baptism.  

SATURDAY:  Helped one of the Clinton Sister's investigators move...dad I'm grateful for your good genetics of packing skills...we had to play tetris packing everything into the truck.  Oh, and I tried to climb a tree.  haha... the job got done quickly with Sister Hill and I and 4 elders!  GO TEAMWORK!  Also... We stopped by to see Wisline, an investigator from Haiti who speaks very little English.  We tried to teach her about the Book of Mormon, and ended up guiding her to the mormon.org en francais... so hopefully she is able to understand a little more with that help, and we are bringing a member that speaks French next time... that's when I sure with I had the gift of tongues.  I know a little French, but not enough... :(  but that's okay!  We do what we can! :)  

Another week has come and gone... and only a few more to go.  I am constantly amazed at how the Lord's work is progressing and how blessed I am to be a part of it.  I know He is aware of each one of us, and that we are all here to help each other come back to Him.  I love you all so much and am so grateful for all you continue to do for me.  

Love Always,

Sister Natalia Alston

When in doubt, laugh it out!

I have to say, this week was the most entertaining, humorous week...probably of my life!  AND SO MUCH HAPPENED!  The adventures began last Monday, when we decided to mix things up for P-Day and actually go somewhere different!... there is an awesome Czech and Slovak Museum downtown Cedar Rapids, so we thought we would go "czech" it out!  haha...Ever since going to Kosovo, I have this fascination with history and love learning about other cultures and so this was so fun!  I am grateful I live here in America (at least most of the time) where we don't have to deal with anything like what other countries have.

The fun continued on Tuesday, when every single one of our appointments fell through, even service!  haha... however, we ended up doing different service for Michele!  When we got there, she had this giant bag of clothes she was going through to find some church clothes...well...it turned into a giant fashion show for the 3 of us.  Layer upon layer of hideous dresses and skirts and jackets.  *See photos attached*  ...and come to find out, the coffee pot was playing dress-up too and it was a toaster that day!  haha.... Okay fine, you probably would have had to have been there for it to be so comical; but it was so much fun!  We did end up getting a lot of work done too, cleaning her kitchen cabinets and helping her make cards.  Very therapeutic!  :)  We ended up having a great day, and were led to find many potentials everywhere we went!  

Wednesday started out not so great, when our recent convert texted and asked if we wouldn't come over that morning, or for awhile because she doesn't want to be a part of the church at the moment.  Yeah...not such a good way to start off the day...but it happens I guess!  We just had to respect her agency, tell her we love her, and pray for ways to help her anyway we can!...we still aren't too sure what happened, but it'll be okay.  We just kept on going throughout our day, and made the best of it!  It's amazing how when we just keep going, things just work out!  We had an amazing lesson with Michele at Sister Perry's home.  For the past couple weeks, we have been going over our personal testimonies and what we know to be true, and how we can come closer to our Father in Heaven.  It has been neat to really think back on how I have gained my testimony and think of ways I can continue to develop that testimony.  If you haven't for awhile, I would suggest doing the same yourself!  Write down what you know to be true, how you came to know they were true, and what you can do to strengthen that knowledge and testimony.  And return and report. ;)  

Thursday we had an amazing district meeting.  I was reminded of how great this calling is that I have as a missionary...not just right now, but for the rest of my life!  We all promised people before we came to earth that we would find them on earth and help them feel of the Lord's love and help them learn of the gospel.  I know this is true, and I know it is true for all of us!  Who did you promise to find, lift up, and help?  

Friday, Sister Davis was kind enough to drive us down to Nauvoo to go to the temple!  It was so amazing, as always!  It was crazy to think that last year about this time, Sister Hill and I were at the temple cleaning it!  haha... it was nice to do a session with her.  :)  I LOVE THE TEMPLE!  Coming back into the dressing room, Sherstin and Shari were sitting there waiting for us!  AAAHHH what a great surprise to see Shari again!  :)  I can't believe it's already been a month since I saw her last!  But seriously, it was so great to get a "mom" hug.  And I get a real mom hug in 6 weeks!  CRAZYYYYY!!!!!!!!!  Anyways... after the temple, we were able to drive and find the old Nauvoo cemetary, where our grandpa William Casper is burried.  We weren't sure his tombstone would be readable, but it was!  It was so cool to finally find him and feel a connection with him.  I love how Heavenly Father let Sister Hill and I serve together again, and be able to serve here where our ancestor is burried! It was a wonderful day.  

Okay now for the fun part...had to save the best for last! SATURDAY is all a blur.. haha.  Luckily, we had all day planned with original plans and back-up plans, because we ended up using ALL of our back-up plans!  I'll just list and talk about all the craziness of Saturday:

- We had found a recent convert/part member family last week that had moved here from Nebraska so we go and follow up with them and end up finding out that their daughter and her family are also moving here and are also a recent convert/part member family!  They are from Micronesia, and I love them.  As we were finishing talking, Sister Hill asks, "Do you have a pet rat?"  I was really confused...apparently she had seen a giant rat roaming around the kitchen and didn't know how to tell them... but nope! They didn't have a pet rat...we were kind of freaking out inside...

- We go see Wisline and Cime her husband was finally home.  They let us right in and we were finally able to teach him!  Well actually, he pretty much taught us the restoration!  As we talked about the great apostasy and how many churches formed and people became confused, he talked about how this is exactly where he is.  He has been trying to find a church, but everywhere he goes just doesn't feel right. "They say the are God's church, but they do not do what God says to do"... he then goes on about how you have to read the bible and pray to know what God wants you to do... well...thanks Cime!  Perfect transition into the First Vision, to which he replies that he wants to take the time to learn more, to study, and to share this with everyone he knows!  He thanked us for bringing him this simple knowledge and how true it was...HE IS AWESOME!  

So next Saturday we might be teaching a room full of people from Haiti because Cime wants us to... haha.  WAIT, not done yet... we get up to leave and I go over to see what Wisline is cooking in the kitchen and to tell her goodbye...I get over to her and THERE IS A GOAT HEAD she is shaving with a knife in the sink... A FULL ON GOAT HEAD, eyeballs, horns, and all...in her hands!...and the guts are on the counter next to her!  welp...that' a first!  Instead of being totally grossed out, I found out how she cooks it!  It was quite exciting!  So all the while we were teaching Cime and having this awesome lesson with him in the living room, Wisline was fixing a fine supper of goat head.  :D  no...we did not stay for supper... and were quite grateful they did not ask us to stay.  haha. 

-Joe, Joe, Joe..... Joe has been meeting with sisters on and off for awhile now.  He tried dropping us for the first 45 minutes of our lesson, then told us to teach him.  We kind of ended up being very bold with him...and he told me I was "spunky".  At the end, he goes inside and comes back out with something in his hands and tells us, I've never done this before, but you two are very special to me, and proceeds to give us a framed picture of him from when he was back in highschool...about 45 years ago... haha.  We just about lost it...  so now, we have a beautiful vintage picture of Joe we can keep forever!  ..that would be a first as well!  

Man...I can't believe that all, and so much more, happened in just one day!  Sorry to take up so long...but hey, I rarely journal so I need something to look back and remember things from!  ...sorry again uncle Dan! haha.  Anyways, I am so grateful I am here serving the Lord at this time.  I'm grateful he has allowed me to continue stretching and growing and becoming who he needs me to become.  I know Heavenly Father is there, that He loved us all so much and wants us to be happy...and I know that happiness comes from living the gospel.  

I LOVE YOU ALL and hope you have a marvelous week.  

Love Always,

Sister Natalia Alston   

It's amazing Sister Hill and I are serving together again, and got to see where our grandpa was buried! 

We got our names on the "faces of freedom" wall!! 

2263! Do those numbers look familiar? haha

Don't worry we left him a little flower and mushroom! 

This is what coordination over the phone looks like at 9:45 at night when we want to go to bed.

hahaha...our investigator Joe told us we were very special to him and gave us a picture of him in high school...precious...oh, he also told me I was "spunky" haven't heard that one before ; )

so so so cool! 

Neat experience...we finally went and saw grandpa Casper!!

Temple with Sister Davis! 

It was dress up day at Michele's! 

Look Ma...this is the outfit I will be coming home in! 

Trying to be hipster??? 

The Cedar Rapids district...we are the only sisters. Its weird, but great! 

Waiting to go to the temple...

hospital visit for Elder Swenson...poor guy. He had pneumonia and had to stay in the hospital for 3 days! 

There were mushrooms on this ornament!!!

Yes, that would be me putting on a puppet show for Sister Hill..haha

 This is a wedding dress...perfect ain't it?

We went to the Czech and Slovak museum.  It was so so cool. Made me miss Kosovo.

This baptismal font is interesting...not quite sure how people fit it : )

June is Here...again...

It's the last full week of yet another transfer!  I can't believe it!  This week has been crazy full of meetings with it being the first of the month.  Instead of going through day by day this week, since the majority of it was spent in meetings...I figured I would share what I learned.  

Sitting through the same trainings 3 times (MLC, and 2 ZTMs) really drills the information into me.  The spirit was so strong as we discussed Repentance and the importance of BECOMING who the Savior needs us to become.  We should always be striving to strengthen our relationship with Him, and I am forever grateful for the relationship I have built with Him...for if it weren't for the experiences I have had here on my mission, I don't think I would have such a strong faith in Him.  I am grateful I can now say I know my Savior, and I know my Father in Heaven...and I know they know me.  18 months ago, I couldn't have said that. 

We were able to listen to part of a talk given by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, and he spoke about how his mission meant absolutely everything to him.  I am grateful I get to say that same thing.  I'm eternally grateful my Father in Heaven called me to serve in the vineyard at this time.  No, it hasn't been easy at all...but I have been molded into more of the woman I need to be and been able to figure out what is most important in life.  

We continue to find those who are prepared by the Lord to accept the gospel.  I know the Lord is truly hastening His work at this time, and I am grateful I have been a part of that hastening!...and can't wait to continue being a part of it!  

Love Always,

Sister Natalia Alston  

May Miracles (June 2, 2014)

Another week has come and gone, and here we are again!...and only a few more to go!  CRAZY SAUCE!!!  This week was chuck-full of miracles, it was amazing!  You already heard about the 11 year old Brody who asked if he could be baptized with his mom Saturday...that was just the start of the incredible week here in Cedar Rapids!  

Tuesday:  after emailing in Mt. Vernon last week, we spent the rest of the day finding!  We drove out to a little town called Solon and met so many prepared people for the sisters to teach!  It was so neat to just walk around the tiny country town and talk to everyone.  They were all, okay mostly, so nice and welcoming!  All but 2 doors we knocked on welcomed us back, but 2 really stood out to me.  As we were walking down the street, we saw a family playing outside.  By the time we got back around to where there house was, they were inside.  We knock, and a lady and her daughter opens the door.  She explains that they had just moved in, knows a little about the church, and would love to learn more and come!  ...she was on the phone or would have let us in, but the sisters will be teaching her soon!  On the other side of town; which let's face it, is the next street over ;)  we met a man and his 2 girls, introduce ourselves and he says..."well, sometimes they call me Brother Brian!" haha... he was funny.  He asked us if we were upset when we got our call and it said 'Iowa'...he knew quite a bit about the church but said the sisters could stop by anytime.  I love nice people!  

Wednesday:  back-to-back exchanges, but luckily the Cedar Rapids 1st ward sisters came to join us in our area as soon as we returned from Mt. Vernon!  Honestly, I was a bit nervous, because I'm still trying to get used to this area and figure out where everything is!...BUT...It ended up being a spectacular day!  We started off the exchange with great studies, then Sister Murphy and I got to go teach Melissa!  Sister Browne, a member in the ward, came with us and we had a great lesson!  Planned on talking about the doctrine of Christ, but ended up talking about how Heavenly Father gives us weaknesses so we are humble and learn to rely on Him.  It was a very cool lesson.  Melissa has been through so much, and has given up so much to change her life completely around so she can be baptized.  The gospel is such an amazing things, and I am so grateful I've been able to see it change so many lives, and see it change my own life as well!  As we were driving to lunch, a lady who we had tried to get in contact with (who was a media referral) called us back and asked if we could come over that afternoon.  We were able to go over and talk with her about the plan of salvation.  She had just lost her husband at the beginning of the month, and was really struggling. Her daughter, who is a member in Arkansas, referred us to her.  She is so amazing!  I know she has been prepared to receive the gospel.  It was so cool, because she said she had been studying the bible and just couldn't find the answers she was looking for, and asked where she could read in the Book of Mormon about the Plan of Salvation.  We were able to direct her straight to Alma 40 and other passages to read, and she was so excited!  The elders were also able to come give her a blessing which was very neat for her to experience.  We are excited to continue teaching her!...when we asked if we could come back and share more with her, she said, "yes, please do!!!  I need this, and I need you!"  We had a couple hours to find and check up on potentials, and ended up finding so many new people who asked us to come back.  One man, Cime, from Haiti, told us to please come back and teach his family.  We were able to share the restoration with another couple on their doorstep and they thought it was so neat, and that they like what we are doing.  (Now if only we didn't have the language barrier!!!)  ...but I guess with the spirit, there really is no language barrier!  After finding for awhile, we felt like we were needed somewhere else, so we go and try to see a less-active who we hadn't been able to contact...and SHE WAS HOME!!!... we found out her husband had been taught before, but the sisters stopped coming, and he wants to be baptized!  So hopefully we can help him do that!  ...the rest of exchanges went just as amazing, all day it was so amazing to be lead by the spirit and end up exactly where we needed to be.

Thursday:  We helped at a blood drive, got to wear jeans!...had district meeting, then were invited to dinner at a member's neighbor's house!... Evie and Dennis are awesome!  They had met the sisters a couple weeks before I got here, then Thursday we were finally able to meet with them again. We had an amazing lesson on the Restoration, and the spirit was so strong!  After reading Joseph Smith's first vision, Dennis starts talking about how his prayers have been answered throughout his life.  It was so cool to see the spirit work within them!  Also... Evie decided that since she never had kids, they are adopting sister Hill and I.. haha.  I'm starting to get confused as to who I belong to anymore!  Just kidding.  

Saturday:  THE PERFECT MISSIONARY DAY!!!  To sum it all up, we found one new investigator, had 2 baptisms, had 4 non-members at the baptism, ate dinner with a part-member family, and did service for a member who is trying to quit smoking!  IT WAS AMAZING!  Seriously, that is THE PERFECT DAY as a missionary!  ...we even got to wear jeans again! haha.  Melissa and Brody's baptism was so spiritual.  They both had a great experience, and both shared their testimonies yesterday in Sacrament meeting!  They are incredible, and will do amazing things!  I am so grateful Heavenly Father allowed me to work with them, and be able to witness such a miracle!  

I've been thinking a lot lately about who we are as children of God.  We have such divine potential that we don't realize...and most likely won't realize until we get there!  On earth, we receive many blessings for who we were before.  After this life, we will receive the blessing for who we are and what we did on earth.  I look forward to the day when I get to kneel at my Savior's feet and thank Him for all he has done for me, for the knowledge he has given me, for the comfort and strength he gives me each and every day.  I know He lives.  I know He loves us.

Thank you all for your love, and constant prayers and support.  It means the world to me.  

Love Always,

Sister Natalia Alston      

Exchanges 

Melissa and Brody got baptized! 

so happy! 

Brody wanted to play basketball in his jumpsuit..haha love him!