5-23-2011

"We are in Lushnje today hanging out with the other elders because one of the Elders here got transfered up North to Shkoder so we are eating lunch and playing sports with them today. It's a beautiful day for soccer so hopefully we will find some kids around town to come and get a game going with us. This week has been strange. We've been inside a little because of the voting problems and also my comp. has been sick and struggling with horrible allergies so when we do go out its only for about 3 hours before i look at him and his eyes are puffed up and he can't breath because the allergies. I feel bad for the kid but he's a hard worker and insists on going out so it's cool. We are starting up english class tomorrow and i hope we get a good turn out. It will be interesting. My comp. and I will be staying in Fier until July when i leave so i'm excited to be with him again for another transfer. We also had an investigator accept a baptism date so we will be working hard with him to be prepared to be baptized. We also have been getting tons of referrals from members so hopefully some of those people will be ready to learn more about the gospel. I find that here we have had a lot of first lessons but it's hard to get people to continue to meet with us for weeks at a time. It's frustrating but there is a time and place for everyone to learn so i don't let it get to me, well most the time at least =)."

5-9-2011

"Things here are good though. Yesterday wasn't as bad as we thought it would be. I guess there were a hand full of people killed and beat up but it's weird because i guess that's normal around election time here. I was shocked to here people were shot but our Albanian neighbor acted like it was no big deal. I hope with time Albania will figure its self out and get better. Today everyone finds out who won and i'm nervous to see if Berisha wins again because he it seems like a lot of people want Rama to win. People say that Berisha cheats to win and i can see why with all the crap i see and here about within the government. Today it's rainy and we have no big plans for today. We have a family visit tonight and hopefully i lesson with a new investigator which i'm looking forward to...."

4-25-2011

" I really like Fier and my comp. and I get along great. I loved talking to you last week as well. It will be nice to talk on mothers day. I got your packages and we had an awesome easter party on friday. Tons of members that i've never seen before were there and i had a blast playing games with kids and dancing around with everyone. There were some people who taught us a traditional folk dance and it was pretty fun. We also had a few investigators come and they had a blast as well. It was nice because a few of the members there age started talking to them right away and they were all laughing and having a good time. A few also came to church yesterday and said they have a desire to be baptized so i'm really excited about the work here and the people i'm teaching are awesome. I've been blessed my whole mission by awesome people to teach and it makes the work so much fun. Today we are going to a members house and she is going to show me how to make stuffed peppers and some other traditional food so hopefully i can cook a little when i get home. It's really simple food with not a whole lot of spices used but simple is good for me. We are starting up English course this week and we should have a pretty good turn out. A lot of people have been asking us if we're going to start one so i'm excited to start one up."

4-18-2011

"This week has flown by for me. We were in Tirana for 2 days because of some training and i was able to visit some families there and we stayed at my old house with one of my old companions so it was a blast. We played chess and some card games all night. It was hard to stay awake the next day for training =). It was a really good training though because it gave all the new elders and chance to work on the language, since it was in Albanian, and i learned a lot as well. Every time i train i have flash back to when i was new and ya you're right i always think wow, i was once that horrible. I honestly don't know how i got where i'm at. I'm not the greatest by far but i'm still able to communicate and show my personality in a different language so i'm happy. We have been trying to do a lot of less active work since i've been here. There are tons of families that don't come to church and we have been working with one of the really strong members here in Fier and trying to visit them. These next coming up weeks we should be even busier with visits and trying to get some people back to church. We should be starting up an English course in the next month or so. The other Elders don't want to do it so i decided to open up one myself so it will be nice once that starts up. My comp. doesn't like running so i'm stuck to jump roping inside the house. We're going to play soccer this Saturday which i'm excited for and then either this week or next week we will have an easter party"

4-11-2011

"It has been beautiful here in Fier. It's a little further south so it's a little hotter than Tirana. We are going to a small town called Lushnje today and hanging out with a group of Elders. A few times every transfer we're allowed to go outside our area and go on a district trip. I think we might go to Barat this transfer and one other historical site about an hour away or so. My comp. is pretty cool. His name is McCullam and it's funny because Albanians can't say it at all =). He is from Utah of course =), but he is really cool and i'm excited to work with him. I will be with him for at least 7 weeks and then i might get a new comp, but who knows. He likes sports but he's not a big runner but i'm hopping i can convince him to come because there i a member here that loves to run and wants to go with us every morning. We aren't the first missionaries here because there is another companionship but we are in a different house and different area that just go reopened so we don't have any work so we will be busy tracting and talking with people on the streets. That's what i've been doing my whole mission but we will be doing it even more since we don't have meeting with people. There are some awesome members here!! We are neighbors with a family called Mellaraj and they are amazing! We went over there last night and had a great time getting to know one another. I felt so bad for my new comp. because he was lost but every new missionary is like that. It's nice to be able to sit back and laugh a little because i know it's all part of the experience of learning a new language. I remember when i was like him and i don't know how i ever got to the point that i am at now. We also went to lunch at a different families house and she fed us so much! I couldn't eat anymore i was so full. We had chili, beans, stuffed peppers with rice and ground beef in them, a Greek salad and another traditional dish. Yeah i know i was very thankful. I guess she cooks like that every Sunday for us. It's the Gjika family and they are the strongest family here in Fier. To say the least i am very excited to serve here in Fier. There are also unfortunately many many inactive families but i am excited to work with them and build relationships with them and help them come back to church. It will be a fun and exciting last 3 months"

4-4-2011

"So i got a huge surprise this week for transfers. I got moved out of Tirana again!! lol. It was crazy. I will be going to Fier and i will be training again. This is my 3rd kid that i'll train. I guess Pres. thought i did good the first 2 times so i will be doing it again. I'm excited for it. I will open i new area in Fier so we have no investigators and i dont know anybody there,lol. I have met a family that lives there and they are amazing so at least i know one family. The branch has about 10-15 people at church every week and it's a pretty small place i believe. You could probably look and see exactly how many people live there and some photos. I don't know why but i am really excited to go and finish my last 3 months there."

3-28-2011

"On Saturday we played basketball, don't worry im ok and didnt get hurt =). This week we will be playing soccer on Thursday. We also have transfer calls on Saturday so i'll find out if i'm training again.

The work here in 3rd branch has been picking up a lot since i first got here. We were able to get 7 lessons this week and this week we have a few lesson with some contacts that we talked to on the road. I hope it goes well. I also got asked to start teaching second hour at church for the youth so that's kinda cool. All the kids are combined and most of them are the ones we take out to play sports once a week and they all like me so it should be fun to teach them. Other than that not to much is going on here. English class is going well and time just seems to be flying by. I have mixed emotions about leaving this place. I'm gonna miss a lot of people here and i just worry about them and hope that they will all be ok."