And even more rain...

Selfie
Amalia gave us her cigarettes!
KID DAY! All of the other pictures are from this activity.

Well, this week has gone by pretty fast. We had a lot of progress with our investigators this week and we are working toward the baptism this Saturday! Update on Amalia! We were able to visit her this week! We had a super powerful lesson with her. She told us she believes Joseph Smith is a prophet and that is why she accepted the Word of Wisdom! We asked her to stop smoking and she gave us her cigarettes right on the spot! We gave her the program from the church to help her stop smoking and she is very excited. She hasn't stopped completely, but she is smoking a lot less and progressing really well. Yay! Maria is the one that wants to get baptized this Saturday! It is a little sad, because her husband, Pablo, isn't listening very much and isn't ready to be baptized this Saturday. But Maria wants to get baptized, sí or sí, so we are going to help her. She will have her interview today and we will go from there! Wish her luck! Pray for her!

We had a super cute activity this week! Here in Argentina, they celebrate Kid Day. But they celebrate big. We had this super huge activity where all the little kids dressed up and all the adults as well! We dressed up as princesses with wands. But by the end of the night, we had given our crowns away to some cute little girls. We had lots of less actives at the activity and Maria came with her little kids! It was adorable and every time we feel closer to the ward. It is super fun. :)

It has been raining a ton, but thankfully, nothing has happened to us. We are safe and sound. None of the members in our ward got flooded, but many many people did. It is hard to watch the people suffering, but there are so many people that are helping. I am grateful for the service they are giving and I know that they will be blessed. That was my week! Have a great one!

Love,
Hermana Wood

PS we are in Rosario right now because Hermana Christiansen and I are going to go to the Monument here in Rosario!!!! Pictures to come next week!!!

RAIN!!!!!!!!

It has rained SO much this week! I honestly can't believe how much it has rained. There are so many houses that have flooded and so many people that have had to been evacuated. Gratefully, we are doing okay. My umbrella broke, so I bought a new one today. Hermana Christiansen's umbrella got stolen, so she bought a new one too. Not a lot of people came to church on Sunday, because everyone that needs to walk to church couldn't make it through the rain. Maria and Pablo's house didn't flood, but every where around it is flooded, so they didn't come to church. But they told us they were all ready to come and really want to! I hope they can continue to progress and reach their baptism date!

We had interviews with President this week. We had them as a companionship, not individual. We talked about all the goals we have for this month and how we are going to get them. He talked to us a lot about vision, goals, and then plans. You need to start with the vision. What do you want to accomplish in general? Where do you want to get to? And then you make specific goals. How you are going to accomplish the vision. Finally, you make the plan of how you are going to accomplish the goals. It is so important to plan ahead and not just shoot and hope for the best. Heavenly Father is a God of order. He does everything for a reason. I know that this is how He wants us to plan and progress, and I'm glad I am learning this now in my mission.

Like this:
VISION
1.

GOALS
1.
2.
3.

PLANS
1A.
1B.
2A.
2B.
3A.
3B.

The other thing that is important to remember is WHY we do the things we do. For example, in Alma 43:9, it talks about the purpose for why the Nephites were fighting. I only have a book of mormon in spanish, so I'll just write it in spanish. It says, "Ahora bien, el propósito de los nefitas era proteger sus tierras y sus casas, sus esposas y sus hijos, para preservarlos de las manos de sus enemigos; y también preservar sus derechos y sus privilegios, sí, y también su libertad, para poder adorar a Dios según sus deseos." We do these things to protect our families and our freedoms from this world that is going a little crazy. We need to plan now for the future because Satan is working ever harder. I know that we need to be strong and ready to fight for the things we believe in. The gospel gives us the eternal vision necessary to progress. The prophets help us make the goals. Our personal study and prayer allows us to know the plan, the how, in order to accomplish all we need to do. Jesus is what makes it possible. We just need to keep moving forward. No matter what the problem is, we can know the answer. Heavenly Father will always answer our prayers. I know this is His work and we are just instruments in His hands. I am where I am supposed to be and everything I am learning will help me in the future. I love you all!

Love,
Hermana Wood

Good week!

Well, here's to another week! My companion was really sick for a couple days, so we weren't able to work as much as we wanted, but we still visited lots of people and they are progressing a lot!

The people that are progressing the most are Maria and Pablo. They are adorable. We talked a lot with them about the plan of salvation and why we are here on the earth. Background story. Maria has 8 siblings. Her parents and 7 of her siblings are members of the church. A year ago, her parents went to the temple in Buenos Aires and got sealed together and to 6 of her siblings. Maria and Pablo went with them to the temple. Although they couldn't go in the temple, they loved the feeling they had outside the temple. They told us they both have the goal to go to the temple and be sealed as an eternal family with their three children. It was adorable to hear them both say that. I know that families can live together forever! Maria was able to come to church with two of her kids, but Pablo couldn't because his pants weren't dry because they washed them the day before...but he promised us he will come next week. :) We had a good lesson with Mica! She told us she loves the feelings she has when we are talking with her and she is learning about the gospel. However, she said it is hard to motivate herself when we aren't there. So we are trying to help her bring the spirit into her life by reading and praying and coming to church. I hope that she will be able to find the desire and really progress! Her boyfriend, Lucas, is now coming to church all the time, so I hope he will be a good influence on her.

Honestly, we weren't able to do much else this week because my companion couldn't leave her bed. But I learned a lot this week. I read about 200 pages from the book of mormon and I read a lot of Jesus the Christ and Preach my Gospel. I know that this is the true church and it has been restored to this time just for us. I know that Jesus is my brother and my Savior. He loves me and only wants the best for me. I hope you all have a great week!

Love,
Hermana Wood

NOS QUEDAMOS

p-day especial para las hermanas

Cousin "IT" She does it better than me...because she has WAY more hair than me. ;)

Inside of the house

Well....something completely crazy happened this week. Hermana Christiansen and I both stayed here in Acevedo! We were both completely sure that one of us would leave and we were telling all the members and investigators that one of us would leave...but then we both ended up staying for another transfer! Haha, we are super excited to be together! Obviously there is more we need to do here together, so we are going to do it!

We had a crazy week! On Tuesday, we went to Rosario and had a special p-day for the hermanas! There are only 36 of us in the misssion now. It was awesome to get to see some of my old companions and meet new people! I feel really old in the mission. We learned that we shouldn't compare ourselves and we are all special daughters of God. Sometimes that is hard in the mission because you look at all the great things the other hermanas are doing...but you need to remember tha God has a special plan for you and you are learning exactly what He wants you to learn. I don't know if you all remember Claudia from Cañada, but Hermana Cerna told me that she is pregnant! How crazy! I miss all the people in Cañada so much!

Then on Wednesday, we painted a house for a member family! It was lots of fun and it turned out really nice. :)

We had some super great lessons this week. We are aiming to have lots of baptisms this transfer because all of our people are progressing well and I really feel like lots of them can make it to baptism this transfer.

The first one was with Amalia. She is amazing! She was basically testifying to us about the family and how important it is to have a close family and to defend the family in this crazy world. We read 2 Nephi 31 with her and we started reading one verse each..but she just kept reading and reading. Then she apologized, but she said she just couldn't stop because she loves reading the Book of Mormon. She is awesome! We are also trying to help her stop smoking. It it awesome.

Maria is doing great! She is all moved and everything is a lot calmer. We programmed her for August 22 and she asked us..."Can't I get baptized sooner?" We want her to come to church a couple more times, but I am sure she will get baptized. I have never had someone that wants to get baptized as much as she does. We also found this man named Ignacio! We talked to him the other day, but we were able to have a lesson with him this week. He is awesome. He has a daughter, but she doesn't live with him because he is separated. The elders passed for him before and he remembers a lot from what they said. He really wants to change his life. In the first lesson, we told him that if he could be baptized by someone who holds the priesthood authority of God, he would see changes in his life. He quickly agreed and accepted a baptism date as well. Super exciting!

We had 13 less actives at church this week! I don't know why, but in all my areas I have had lots of less actives that come to church. I feel like they are more important because they have already made special covenants with their Heavenly Father and they need to keep them. It is super awesome to be a missionary! I love you all!

Love,
Hermana Wood :)

Where did this year go?

When we got to our house, there was a picture of the Virgin Mary outside our house, so we took it out and put in Jesus. :)

This is Toby. He is our neighbor's dog. He is so fat and so short and so cute. He is the best!

My shoes at one year....my shoes are invicible. ;)

One year!

Super awesome graffiti! Barrio Acevedo!

I don't know if you can see it...but that house is round. It's like a sphere. There is a whole street completely full of these houses! They are awesome!

I honestly can't believe what I am about to type. I have been in the mission for 1 year!!!!!!!! It has gone by so fast. I can't believe that I only have 6 more months to be here, teaching people, learning, growing, preaching the gospel, sharing my testimony every day of my Savior. But honestly, what I have learned is that the mission is just a training for the rest of my life. A missionary that really learned how to be a representative of Jesus Christ will never stop sharing the gospel. There are people all around us that are waiting to hear the sweet message of the restoration of the gospel. I know that we have the truth and that we can always share the gospel with everyone. :)

First off, we were able to teach Cintia and Mica! They are amazing girls! When we started the lesson, they both had lots of questions because they both read the pamphlet and the introduction of the Book of Mormon! They really want to learn more and we were able to help them understand more about prayer and the importance of Jesus Christ in our lives. We invited them to church, but they weren't able to come. :( However, Lucas, one of the less active sons, came to church!! We are helping all of them, and I am super grateful to know them.

Maria moved this week and lives a lot closer now, so we are going to be able to teach her a lot easier. Carmelo and Susana are becoming really distant, and it is sad. We had a really strong lesson with them this week and invited them both to pray again about the Book of Mormon so that they can remember why they are trying to make this change in their lives.

We have been trying to find lots of new people. We found a few new people that we are going to visit this week, Lorena, Gregorio, Ignacio, and Elva. A while ago, some elders passed by this kid named Hugo, so we decided to pass by him yesterday. We got there, and he quickly invited us in. We got to know him and his mom, Yolanda. They are super great and Yolanda told us that she really feels like God sent us to her door. I am excited to teach them!

I am excited for tomorrow because we are going to have a 'special' p-day for all the hermanas in the mission! I am so excited to see everyone and to have lots of fun! Next week also is transfers. We have no idea who is going to leave and who is going to stay because Hermana Christiansen and I have the exact same time here in Acevedo and in the mission....so this week will get super interesting. :) I hope you all have a great week!

Love,>br> Hermana Wood :)

Have Noche de Hogar!! (Family Night)

Our House

This week has gone by so fast! It goes so much faster when you have lots of activites planned and have lots of people to teach!

In this area, Hermana Christiansen and I have been focusing on having lots of Noches de Hogar! That is family night. We have had noche de hogar with active members, part member families, less actives, and investigators! I love feeling the spirit with the families and helping them progress as a family, not individually. Heavenly Father's plan is not that each of us individually makes it to the celestial kingdom...His plan is that the FAMILIES make it to the celestial kingdom, dressed with all the covenants and ordinances necessary that are only found in the temple. When you have this perspective, it makes it a lot easier to help others and love them. All you want for them is to progress. We have about 3 or 4 noches de hogar every week.

This week, we had an awesome noche de hogar with the Familia Vega. They are an active family, but they are struggling to do the little things, like praying and reading the scriptures every night. We shared 3 Nephi 4:10. It talks about how the nephites won the battles. I would write it down...but I only have my spanish scriptures, so not many people would understand it. Basically it talks about putting God before everything and you will go with the strength of God into battle. I know that the scriptures are for us and every single scripture can be applied to our lives.

We also had a noche de hogar with the Familia Fusco and the Familia Bonavita. The familia Bonavita is trying to come back to church and the familia Fusco is their friend that is helping them. This noche de hogar was super fun because we talked about how to share the gospel. Our mission president gave us the great idea to teach the members how to be missionaries! We teach them the mission lessons and help them practice. It is lots of fun and I love hearing the testimonies of all the members. It is awesome!

Then...on Saturday, Hermana Christiansen got really sick and we didn't leave all day. So...I finished the Book of Mormon..again. :) The biggest thing I learned is that miracles come through faith. There are miracles everywhere. Honestly, if a person has faith in Jesus, miracle will happen. I know that if we can have faith, the miracle will come. I have seen so many miracles here on my mission, and I know that if I can keep the faith, they will continue to come.

After church yesterday, we had a noche de hogar with the Familia Branchini. They were less active as well, but now they are coming to church. However, they have two old sons that don't live at home anymore and aren't coming to church. They were there Sunday, so we were able to have the noche de hogar with them. They also both brought their girlfriends, who aren't members. Best noche de hogar ever! We taught the restoration and both of the girlfriends accepted the invitation to be baptized! I love when God puts amazing people in our path. The cutest thing was when Hermano Branchini said to his sons, "And you can both prepare so that you will be able to baptize your girlfriends!" So cute! I hope that we can help all of them progress.

Also, this week was independence day here in Argentina! 9 de Julio! We had a super big primary activity in the stake and Carmelo, Susana, and Maria all came with all their little kids. It was so great to see them there! Everyone is doing super awesome and I love the growth that is happening here! All of the members are becoming more involved and happier to help with the Lord's work. I love being a missionary and I am super excited to see what else happens! I love you all!

Love,
Hermana Wood

Be Strong!

Happy 4th of July from Argentina!

Oh, I totally forgot what we did this morning! We went with the other hermanas and we ate waffles!!! And smoothies!!! It was absolutely delicious and lots of fun!

The Relief Society celebrated my birthday!

Susana, Estefania, and Mailen

And we 'milked' an alfajor. That means that you suck milk through the alfajor. It didn't work very well, but it was delicious.

This week we were able to work a lot and we found lots of people that we haven't seen in while! We were able to find Susana AND Carmelo! It was super great to see them. Carmelo is pretty stressed out about work and money and things like that, so he was a little distant...but I hope that we can help him. Susana is doing well! She is reading and praying every day. She always loves to listen and learn more about the gospel. They are still waiting to have more money to start the papers to get married, so it is just a waiting game. It is hard, but I know we just have to put it in the hands of the Lord and He will make everything right.

We found Amalia!! It has been forever. She was super sick, she was in bed for 15 days straight. However, that gave her a LOT of free time, and she started reading the Book of Mormon! She is about half way done. We taught her about the plan of salvation, and she loved it. Her husband passed away about 3 years ago, and she found a lot of peace to know that her husband is okay and that she will see him again. I was able to share my testimony of the plan of salvation because I know that I will see my grandpa again and that we will be a family forever. I love teaching her because she accepts everything so easily. It's like she already knew it. I love it. :)

Silvina had her baby! So we are finally going to be able to teach her this week.

And Maria. First off, we were able to talk to her and with her husband and her husband wants to be baptized as well! We are excited for them to progress bother. But..Satan works so hard. When the investigator makes the decision and truly wants to be baptized with a date and everything, he starts working. First off, we were going to have a family night with her and her cute family this week, but her little baby got a bad ear infection, so they couldn't leave. Then Sunday in the morning..her dad had two heart attacks and passed out twice. They took him really fast to the hospital and they started helping him. They think he has a clogged artery. They told us it was super scary and obviously that is the reason they didn't come to church. It is very difficult.

On a fun note, we did lots of other stuff this week! We helped paint a house! It was lots of fun. We also had divisions this week. I was with Hermana Robinson. We came to our area so that we could use the bikes...but she is about as tall as I am and she didn't reach the pedals on Hermana Christiansen's bike...so we walked. I actually felt pretty good! What a blessing! I hope that everything will keep getting better and I will be able to walk normal. That will be a great day. We also had the 4th of July! Haha, we actually had to stay in the pench in the afternoon because there was a soccer game. Argentina vs. Chile. But...Argentina lost. So..that was kind of bummer. They went into penalties and everything. Maybe some day we will beat them. ;) The relief society also had a fun activity and they celebrated all the birthdays of the people in June! So they celebrated my birthday! That was awesome!

And good luck to all my friends that are ending their mission this week! I literally can't believe it has been two years! You are all awesome!

Love,
Hermana Wood :)