Things are heating up!

Yello Family,

So this week has been pretty toasty. It has reached about 90 degrees this week and there is no AC in Washington...good thing we have fans and our car has AC. 

We had Zone Conference on Wednesday! It was so great! During the conference President Rasmussen started by handing out Safe Guard for Technology booklets...We were starting to get excited and President just said don't get your hopes up because I am just going to crush them! We aren't getting iPads and he doesn't know when that will happen. But the booklet is wonderful and is a great tool to know how to use technology for good and not becoming addicted to it. He also gave the analogy about a toddler and a staircase. "If we put the gate up the child will be protected from the stairs. However, what happens when the gate isn't there and the child doesn't know how to go up or down the stairs? They will fall." He wants to focus on teaching us how to use technology now so then when we go home we won't fall back in to old habits or be addicted and misuse technology. He also used that analogy with Elders and Sisters relationships. 

 

He told us to study the Beware of Pride talk by President Benson. I was grateful grandma sent me the church news on the mission president seminar because the main thing President talked about was Teaching Repentance and we watched Bishop Waddell's talk.

 

A family in the ward made Cafe Rio this week! They told me that they went to the grand opening in Kent so I am so pumped that there are 2 now! Hopefully the odds will be in my favor! 

So on Wednesday night after daily planning we got a text from Sister Willits saying they were at our door to drop some groceries off. They sure did! I have never seen so much food for two people before. We couldn't thank them enough. Sister Hollingsworth and I won't have to go to the store for the rest of the transfer due to the Amazon pantry box and the Willits supply. 

I also went on exchanges this week to South Hill. The Sister I was with is going home at the end of the transfer. Towards the end of the exchange we were turning into the church and she hit a small pole that we didn't see. It was rough for her because she had never gotten into an accident before and this was going to be her last day driving because her companion is driving the rest of the transfer because she will be taking over the area. I felt so bad for her but we called the mission office and Elder Young that is in charge of the cars just laughed and said we will get it taken care of. 

TIM WENT TO TEMPLE SQUARE!!! He took a lot of pictures and went to the visitors center. He told us that he didn't feel the spirit! Don't know if that is true or not but he said that everyone he talked to on the square said that they knew the Book of Mormon was true. We talked about it with him and told him about General Conference and gave him President Monson's talk to look up. When we said a prayer at the end of the lesson he said he was speechless and Sister Hollingsworth and I knew he felt the spirit. He says he still doesn't believe in God but his heart is softening. 

 

Isaac came to church and stayed all 3 hours, Brother Whitman came. The Whitmans are moving so we have been helping organize and pack. We also are still reading the Book of Mormon with them. Cody was at church also. He is having a hard time so we are focusing on loving him and his mom and helping them read and pray. 

Also will you tell Elizabeth (our cousin) thank you for the letter! I also got G'ma's package so thank you. We haven't gotten to use the kid stuff you sent but we will this week - Tate, Riley, and Isaac were out of town but they are back now. 

At choir practice today Sister Roberts who left the MTC for medical reasons was there. She came back out this transfer. Sister Tayco was also there so it was a little reunion. I love those Sisters! 

This week I have been studying the talk What If Love Were Our Only Motive by Russell T. Osguthrope - I LOVE IT!!! 

Tell Elder Wynder I love him and am happy he is home! I love and pray for you all. Thank you for everything! 

Much Love,

Sister Wynder 

Here are some pictures - she sent some of these last week and I somehow missed them in between a couple of e-mails.

Sister Wynder, Sister Roberts, Sister Tayco

Summer in Sumner

Highlights of this week:

There are so many blackberries and produce growing all over the place here. While we are contacting we have been eating a lot of blackberries - you would love them mom. We also met some super nice Lutherans that hooked us up with apples and pears from their trees. I also have been blessed with the love of watermelon! We volunteer at the food bank each week and we have gotten watermelon a few times - I am obsessed! So this week was a produce overload! 

Since we are teaching a lot of kids, we have been doing object lessons. This week we did the "Stacking Cups" - worked great. I am looking forward to whatever you sent to help teaching kids. 

We have been parking our car and walking around more. It is great because we have been able to meet a lot more people. It is starting to feel like fall here - high 60s and rainy. So much for summer but I don't mind because I got my vitamin D! 

This weekend was awesome! We had the Northwest Women's Devotional. It was broadcast from Bellevue. Speaking were the area seventies and the 1st counselors of the Primary, Young Womens, and Relief Society General Presidencies. I was filled with the spirit. So powerful, I loved it. All the talks were wonderful. Elder Murray talked about how his favorite song is the Hokie Pokie and how we need to "put our whole self" in the gospel. The other topics included... being a peacemaker, pressing forward, participating in the work of salvation, and that angels are all around us guiding and helping us. I loved it!!!! 

I took a lot of notes and after the conference I was writing in my journal/reflecting. I had such a strong impression of what things I need to continue when I get home and standards for my future family. I always knew that I wanted to be a mom but my DESIRE to be a mom grew. I know that one of my future responsibilities is to raise children in righteousness. 

I am grateful for you mom as well as both Grandmas and aunts that have been amazing examples and influences in my life. 

Blessings of fast offerings are real. I paid fast offerings at USU but never much before because I lived at home. However since paying fast offerings on my mission I have seen so many blessings. For example, Sister Hollingsworth and I both gave the envelopes to the bishop at the beginning of sacrament and at the end of Relief Society Sister Willits told us that she would like to buy our groceries this week. I love the Willits. They are an awesome missionary family. Her sons are RMs and all of them help teach or are willing to have lessons in their homes - They are great. 

Also this week some hooligans walked across our car while we were at a lesson and left a dent in the hood. It was small but a lady in the neighborhood saw them do it and called the cops and reported it. So we were grateful for her. 

At church yesterday we had our new investigator Isaac, who is 13, come. We didn't think he was going to because he told us he had family stuff so when we saw him walk in Sister Hollingsworth and I got so pumped. He also met the Bishop and the young mens 1st counselor. He told everyone that next week we was going to be there for all 3 hours!!! 

 

Much Love,

Sister Wynder 

I encourage you to read "AlwaysRemember Him" - by Elder Gong! 

Mason's Blog 

I am taking my Vitamin D . . .

This week was hot and sunny. I think it got up to about 90, but now it is down to 70s again.

Brother Whitman has been out of town a lot this month. However, he is doing better at reading, praying, and coming to church more than his wife that is a member. The three boys are so cute. The mom said they could get baptized!

This week we taught a lady that has been addicted to drugs for about 21 years. I wish g'ma and g'pa could have come to the lesson. The ARPs are in my ward but they were unavailable to come. We have the 12 step book so I looked through that. We had a return appointment set up but she didn't show. 

We got more salsa and jam again from Gramma Conine. 

We are teaching Tim the atheist and he is going to a convention for work and is driving through Utah so I was telling him the places he should stop by...TEMPLE SQUARE! He had never seen or heard about temples before. So he said he would see if they take that route but he might go walk around the square. 

Our investigators are struggling with keeping commitments. We try so many different ways to help them and they just don't want to read anything or come to church. 

Have I told you about Sam? He is a single dad from Puerto Rico. We have taught him a few lessons, but he stands us up every time we schedule a lesson at a members home. That happened again on Saturday. So Sunday we showed up to his house about an hour before church and told him a member was going to pick him up. He said okay I will be ready, But then he didn't answer the door when he came. So we might have to drop him because he hasn't been progressing and we met him the second week I got here. 

So with the three boys we are teaching - this week we taught them about baptism. When were were about to leave I asked Riley when he gets to get baptized 

Riley "when"

Me "when you turn 8" - he turns 8 in October

Riley "Yes"

Tate (10 yr old in other room) "SO I MISSED OUT?" 

I felt bad, but after we explained to him that he can get baptized he was happy about that. It was funny. 

 LOVE YOU ALL! 

Mason's Blog