Wherein Maelynn Gets Her Bag Fixed!

March 26, 2018

(Responding about news that our neighbor's son had his baby)
What the? Since when were they pregnant? "Since 9 months ago Maelynn" - wow thanks. I feel so out of the loop sometimes.

So about school... I honestly have absolutely no idea what I'm supposed to do. I'm like a lost puppy when it comes to the internet and college, and Ingles!

So this week was pretty tranquila.  We had interviews with presidente, and he's sending me home...in like 3 months!  Haha.

And we had an 'actividad de rescate' (rescue mission), and then a Stake family history activity where we watched COCO again.  Ah man, I love that movie! I've seen it 3 times now, and it's not gettin' old.  Have you guys seen it? I just gotta know if in English, do they sing in Spanish or if all the songs are translated too?  Because I just have a feeling they're better in Spanish!

     This is my poor bag getting fixed....again. dang thing, I really need a new one, but I'm hoping it holds up just a little while longer! 

We LOVE flowers! 

This is Maria. She got baptized last year. She's 91! 

Crazy about our fruit :)))

Wherein Landen Becomes a Facebook Missionary!

March 26, 2018

      (About Facebook) ... It doesn't seem like they have a ton of blocks up, but they actually do. I already un-followed all of you (ha) but so I don't see any of you guys' stuff at all. Neither can I message you guys or anything like that. But I can communicate with investigators and members and share invites to church things and post Churchy pictures or scriptures or what not, but I'm not allowed to do anything that doesn't fulfill my purpose to invite others to come unto Christ. So like if you're going to tag me in pictures or anything -  if you could please make sure that they are appropriate to the calling I have of God,  I would appreciate it. If not, I'll just hide it off my wall anyways (haha- again).

Lol maelynn, sorry about having to think about college stuff, that sucks.

Also super cool about Brian getting home. There was an Elder here in Cali that knew him when they were in the MTC together - His name was Elder Patterson, super cool guy/missionary who went home six weeks early and got engaged within those six weeks, lol,  Clocks' ticking now for Brian, tell him to get on it.

We had a super good week out here in Hemet. We found a cool family that we have started teaching named the famila Enriques. They are awesome. The dad talks a lot, but they are interested in the message and all are already reading from the Book of Mormon! So it should be cool to see what plans God has for them. We are working hard together every day, Elder moon and I.  He's a super good missionary with a very strong testimony. Both of us are improving a ton with our Spanish together and seeing miracles from Heaven above - every day!️

Thank you all for your strong prayers of support and love. They are felt, and they make a difference. I testify of that. 

Love you all! Tell me how Conference goes for you guys! I'm super excited for it! Two new apostles!! (Bets on Patrick Kearon) (lol thats apostate tho, God gets to pick those!)

Have a super great week!

Elder Bailey

Wherein Landen Gets a Truck and a Farm-ish area!

March 19, 2018

     Sounds like things are all good back home.  But why did you guys choose to start the game night thing without any of us there though? That's mean. Good job staying in shape dad. The only way to get rid of the pain is to either stop doing jujitsu, or do jujitsu even harder. so, well done on sticking to it. 

      Things are super good out here in Hemet. It reminds me a lot of Idaho, that is to say that there is nothing out here but crazy people!  (At least that was impression number one. It is super farm country out here. Not a lot of new construction, the roads are super beat up and the city has tried to fix them over the years in the cheapest ways possible (so a lot like IF) and our area is fetching huge! We cover all of San Jacinto, Homeland, Winchester and down past Diamond Valley Lake (I know none of you know what any of the means, but if you want to look it up, now you can) so that's why we have the truck, cause it's mega country and a super huge area. It's also like a very outcast part of the mission. Nobody from the mission ever comes out this way for anything, so we are just kinda thrown out here and told to baptize... and that's exactly what we plan on doing!

     Elder moon is super cool.  He just barely finished his training (which is the first 12 weeks in the field) and he has been here in Hemet for his whole mission so far, which is good cause he knows the ward pretty well. He's still pretty young so Spanish and missionary work is still a work in progress, but that's okay cause now we just get to learn how to do everything together. I've only been to one Sunday, so I don't know the ward super duper well yet, but they all seem pretty nice. It's a pretty good sized ward that has just enough room to grow a ton with me and Elder Moon working it!

     That's basically it for this week. I didn't get a pic of the outside of the truck, but I'll send one of us from the inside for your viewing pleasure.

Love you all un monton!

Elder Bailey

Wherein Maelynn Hikes Tepoztlan yet AGAIN!

March 19, 2018

     Today we went to.....Tepoztlan again. Woohoo! I'm pretty sure I've made a mission record, because I have now done this hike a total of 5 times! 

And it's so exhausting! It's been a good p-day and a good week and this week is going to be even better - yay! 

Exciting to hear how well moms new job is going and dad, trust me, I'm gonna be sore with you for a while too after hiking today. And basically the whole mission has been an exhausting work out, but for some reason I still gain weight, makes no sense. 

Seth, tell me all about choir tour, what part of Cali did you go to? Who's still in choir that I would know?

Sadie, let me know how Gem State goes and send pics!

Landen, you're not even serving a real mission any more what the? a 2017 truck and a smart phone? come on, is that really necessary now?

More pics: 

 Just sharing the gospel and selling tamales...

hammocking with our friend Vic :)

So, y'all will remember that a several months ago, I trained Hermana Garcia right? Well sadly she recently found out that her meniscus or something in her knee is torn and she has to get surgery, which means, she has to go home. which really sucks. super bad! 

But she wants to come back out after she recovers from the surgery so that's what we'll hope for! 

Piñas...

Well, hope its a good week for everyone. 

Love ya' lots

Maelynn

Wherein Maelynn Gets a Mustache again!

March 12, 2018

     Congrats on baptizing the Ruiz family, Landen. That's seriously the greatest feeling! And also the feeling of having to leave an area that you've been in for a long time is a mix of a lot of emotions, it's almost like leaving home again, its sad, but also really exciting to get to know another area and people and a companion! 

 This week we got to see Fernando follow his wife's example and get baptized! It was a really neat little service. (only about 6 members came), but the Spirit was definitely there.  

     My comp and I sang a musical number - and can I just say how fun it is to sing with someone who knows how to sing? I could actually sing the alto line for the first time in over a year, and it felt soooo good!  A member told us we could make a CD - lol.

   I can't believe you're gonna have a car and a smart phone - that's nuts, Landen.

Mom and Dad - it sounds like its been a good week. And a crazy week. A lot of crazy stuff happening lately! Prayer is important!! 

How's the weather up there? Still getting snow? I'm literally roasting down here!

Love,

Maelynn

Wherein Landen Says Farewell to Moreno Valley!

March 12, 2018

     How did Seth do at scholastic tournament? The team is a ton bigger this year then they were when I was there. And they made shirts...cool!

(Responding to this picture I sent to the kids of their friend wrestling their little brothers)...

Sounds like things are going well back home, I honestly didn't recognize Dan Whiting at all in that photo. I straight thought to myself: "Who is that strange character laying on my little brothers in my living room?" ...but then I read the caption so we's good!

{From Maelynn: I literally had the exact same thought, Landen..."Who is that stranger on top of my little brothers?" Lol. "Hi Dan".}

     Its been a pretty wet last week here in MoVal. Yup, you heard right, it was my last week in MoVal (Moreno Valley). I'm getting transferred! After 6 months here in the Barrio Nuevo, president finally decided it was time for me to leave.  So I'm going to Hemet!  And as would be supposed, an upgrade of missionary materials is in order: This Friday come the smartphones. And in my new area I'm leaving behind the bicycles, and picking up a 2017 bright white Toyota Tacoma. (pics to come when I get there.) 

     But now the more important part of the week. As I said, it was wet. And not only because it rained on us like three times, but also because we got to help the Ruiz family follow the path of the Savior and be baptized!

     It was a pretty crazy and stressful baptism. The mom has been planning on getting baptized on this date for like the past 2 weeks. But her daughter Allison we decided together on a date to get baptized on Thursday.  We got parental permission from her father on Friday. She was interviewed on Saturday.  And she got baptized on Sunday! 

     The service worked out super well.  A member fellow-shipper gave the talk, and another fellowshiping family sang a great musical number.  Everything thing worked out super great. I had the privilege of baptizing the mom, and Elder Moloney baptized Allison. It was the best last day in an area I probably could have possibly had. We have been teaching this family ever since I first got transferred to this area, and after six months of teaching they finally made it to the true Redil of Dios (Fold of God)!

     Thank you all for your prayers of love and support in behalf of this family. They worked and helped out un monton (a ton). It was actually super cool, cause it was on the year anniversary that I got to baptize the Ruiz family... :)

     I'm super definitely going to miss this ward though...and my bike... and my comp... and all of the people we've taught. They let me share my testimony in sacrament meeting yesterday to say goodbye and it was just so sweet looking out into the congregation that has been my family for the past six months, seeing Rafael, the Ruiz family, and even though Marcos didn't make it yesterday (cause his wife was giving birth),  I imagined he was there too, and all of the other members that I visited or went out with or had dinners with. I'm definitely going to miss this ward, but I'm also about to fall in love with another ward in Hemet. So I'm on to bigger and better and shinier things.  But I hope all of you guys are already planning on a pit stop in little Moreno Valley the next time we go on a family trip through California :)

     That's basically it for this week, but I love you all and I'll let you know about my new comp (his name is Elder Moon, btw) and my new area next week!

- Elder Bailey

Wherein Landen Goes to The Temple With A New Convert

March 5, 2018

     Wow Mom, I think that is the longest email you have ever sent us mom. Those regional conferences that they are doing are pretty cool. They did one here for the west and northwest regional areas of the US. and it was the same thing, like 30 minutes of local stuff, then 90 from Salt Lake. Elder Christofferson spoke at ours as well as another 70 and then one of the sisters in one of the presidencies - the one that is from Argentina who spoke in the Christmas devo. 

     They all spoke super well. It was a while back so I don't remember it super well, but they basically talked about how the way to salvation and exaltation is a simple 3 + 1 process. Three things to do every day (pray, read scriptures, and serve someone else) and 1 thing to do every week (renew covenants through the sacrament). Pretty cool stuff that helped our investigators that showed up a ton.

     We didn't really do anything much this week, worked hard, and battled with challenges like my comp being sick, and it raining on us while were biking, but we still had a great week!

     We went to the temple again this week! But not as missionaries, we went with Rafael!!!  It was super fun and cool because we had helped him to find his own family names and we were able to go with him and some members to do baptisms for his wife, parents, and grandparents. There was a ward of young women doing baptisms there at the same time so we just had one of the young women there do the female names that he had. And he just started bawling when he saw his late wife getting baptized (by proxy). It was a super spiritual experience - So cool to see his family getting even closer to being eternal.  Very cool experience, we have pictures, but I didn't bring them with me to the library, so you'll probs get those next week. 

Love you allllllll!  Btw cool stuff coming up that you'll hear about next week, love you Byyyyee!

Elder Landen Bailey

p.s. Tell Seth good luck on scholastic competition/

p.p.s. I want pics of the oompaloompa

p.p.p.s.  I don't think there is any correlation between not having to buy a phone and when we'll be going back, from the sounds of it, it's still a ways out.  But sounds good.

Wherein Maelynn Writes Us in 12 Pictures!

March 5, 2018

This week was gooooood. Realllly good.

So good, I'll just show you in pictures!

Citlali and Fernando got married! yayyyyy por finnnnnn!

Citlali got baptized! 

Citlali's little girl Victoria....

Little kids giving me chubby cheeks continues....

frozen bananas (you dont know what your missing out on mom)

Playing a game in an FHE called "pecas"  :)

Multi-zone conference 

Some weird flowers we found in the street . . . go Mexico!