"Big Al's Gutting Services"

Well I couldn't believe that some of this stuff happened this week. This week has been pretty dang long, but at the same time I can't believe it is over... So MONDAY WAS SO FUN! So we left a little early after emailing and went to the Chornis' (members in the ward) to prepare some turkeys. This was a REALLY cool experience for me and I am opening a business when I get home called, "Big Al's Gutting Services". It was fun. Here is the process...
1. Walk the turkey out of the pen
2. put twine around the head and stuff it in a bucket
3. Brady came over with his sword and chopped the head, which made the turkey reflexes go nuts and blood was squirting everywhere.
4. Put the turkey in scalding water

5. Pluck
6. Gut! Including: Intestines, gizzard, heart, liver, lungs, voice box thing, stomach, then you get to hammer its neck off.

It was just a good learning experience and now I am ready for Armageddon. You are welcome Mom and Dad.

That night we traveled to Stockton for Exchanges! Obviously I was PUMPED to see Sister Valgardson again, and it was a lot of fun to see her again. Then the next day I figured out we would be on exchanges together along with Sister Anderson! We were pumped.

So good to see Sister Valgardson!

We went to Delta College to just get some street contacting in and I am still not super good at this because there isn't that much of it in the little town of Ione. But it was my turn to approach and start the conversation. We go up to this guy and I say hi and he doesn't hear because he has ear plugs in. Well I bend down and get myself in his view and wave, he takes his ear plugs out and says hi. Well moral is that he invited us to sit down on the bench and we just start talking about the Gospel, give him a Book of Mormon and #princeofpeace card and set a return appointment with him. HE WAS AWESOME! Then that night we knocked doors after dinner in this area and found two other potential investigators! YAYYAYAYA!

The Kicker Krew

District Meeting was changed to Wednesday so we had all day on Thursday in our area. After District Meeting we went to meet Mike and Jan. We had a really nice uplifting conversation and covered a lot of ground. After we went back to Jackson to do some training on the computer and figured out that they are BARELY out of our ward boundaries and have to give them to the Jackson Elders... Bummer but at least they are getting taught right?

THANKSGIVING!!! Thanksgiving was hard. Not gonna lie. I was missing my family traditions, we were supposed to be tracting and a lot of the people that answered the door were cooking and not really wanting to hear what we had to say. So that was a little hard, but then we had Lunch/dinner and that was fun, and YUMMY! Then we left to go make a cake for our investigator that wasn't really having a Thanksgiving... She made my whole day and I was just so happy after we left there.

Then GUESS WHAT we got to play VOLLEYBALL!! ON THANKSGIVING! That was so fun. This group of people came to play basketball so we invited them to play Volleyball with us and it was just a hoot. Apparently there was a ton of less actives and some non members there and after (as usual) we shared a message including THE NEW #LIGHTTHEWORLD VIDEO! It was awesome! So thanksgiving started off hard, but ended AMAZING! I really challenge all of you to take the #lighttheworld video to your heart. Share it with everyone and as many people as you can. It is amazing.

Transfers are next week! So make the most of this time, right!?

HOPE THANKSGIVING WAS AMAZING FOR EVERYONE!

Sister Hansen

Email me at: anhansen@myldsmail.net

Honestly SO Blessed!

Last week we were able to teach 14 Member lessons right? Well you know that we have been blessed because this week we have found...
Rex - (Potential Investigator) we street contacted him and we got to share like the whole restoration with him, Joseph Smith vision and everything, he has a Book of Mormon and we extended the challenge for him to read it.

Decorating cookies at Activity Day's with the primary girls!

Kim - (Investigator) I have felt that we needed to go to this area that I don't even know if it has been tracted before... So Friday morning we head up, this hill was nuts, like walking bikes nuts steep... we knocked the doors until we got to the top, we usually don't knock on doors that are open (haha) so we started turning around and SHE walks out. I flip back around and excitedly say "HELLO!" I think I scared her a bit (oh well). She came over to her fence and began talking with us, she told us she had just come out of prison and that she is really trying to fix her life up. She asked if we were Jehovah's Witnesses and we said NOPE... (thank goodness). She also asked if we were a cult... also no (THANK GOODNESS). We go on and talk about bits and pieces of every discussion.She invites us and and we had a really nice talk (she kinda has the gift of gab) but we love her! She said that it is amazing that we made our way up there, she said when she saw us she had a super warm feeling, and told us she wants us to come back. We gave her a Book of Mormon and told her we would be back.

John - (Investigator?) Came out of his house before we even knocked, he was carrying tires up to his truck and he told us not to pick them up because it will get our dresses dirty. I don't even blink and go pick up the tires. When we get to the truck he turns around and sees me carrying the tire and he is like "oh umm thanks". We tell him who we are and what we teach and he said he is actually interested but they are headed out the door, he told us to come back this next Saturday.

Sharing some scriptures

Beverly - (Potential Investigator) We were knocking on doors to an apartment building I didn't even know existed (also in the area that I don't think has been tracted in some time) she opened the door and straight away invited us in. She talked about her husband and how he has been going to a different church, and then we just talked. We tried to talk about what we teach but she also has the gift of gab as well. Super sweet lady though. We will be back, we gave her our number and told her to call if she ever needs anything.

With the Elders having Root Beer Floats

Mike + Jan - (Referral/Potential Investigator) A Brother in our ward, gave us this referral after Mike spoke at the cub scouts activity about "Divine Intervention" We called him and he said, I have been waiting for you to call! We were so excited.

This week has been full of miracles. Truly no effort is wasted, hard work pays off, and 100% blessed, AND I FINISHED THE BOOK OF MORMON! I was so excited because now I get to start over!
I feel so overjoyed. The mission has been hard because we haven't had many people to teach. Once we focused on just teaching the lessons and gaining the trust of the members even more, the blessings came pouring in. My email finally sounds like a mission. I am so grateful for this opportunity. Last week Heavenly Father was preparing US to meet all these people.

PUPPIES!

Sunday was so amazing and the spirit was VIVID. While we were sitting in Relief Society our teacher decided to have a panel discussion and invited 4 converts (including herself) to talk about and answer questions. Well moral of the story and recent convert of about a year now, broke into tears and told us that she feel so lost but she knows it is the right thing. She is having a hard time right now, then the rest of the class was, advice and how we can help her. It was SO powerful, the spirit and the love that was felt in that room. I guess I was overwhelmed because I had a complete break down. Sister Bishop (seriously one of my favorite ladies) came up to me and just hugged me until I calmed down a bit. She really helped at that moment. I was so worked up.

Crazy cat lady

All in all this week was amazing with a lot of emotions. I would like to end with a Scripture I came across the other day...
Moroni 8:3
"I am mindful of you always in my prayers, continually praying unto God the Father in the name of his Holy Child, Jesus, that he, through his infinite goodness and grace, will keep you through the endurance of faith on his name to the end."

Ok well I have to go! We are going to prepare turkeys and then use their insides to go fishing at a members house! So next weeks pictures should be fun! Love you so very much and hope everything is going well! LOOOOOVE YOU LOVE YOU LOVE YOU!!

LOVE YOU ALL!
Sister Hansen

LAMANITES!

WOWOWOW What a weeeeeekk! Tuesday we got to go to the PRESTON CASTLE and do service and DANG that place is creepy even when it isn't decorated with halloween stuff. The lady that we were helping out gave us a little tour of the grounds and a little bit inside. It is a super cool historical place. Some areas in the castle are EXTREMELY off limits to the public because they would not be able to hold people's weight. This place is OLD, but EXTREMELY interesting. Definitely a go to place after the mish.

Also that night we had dinner with a Recent Convert who works as a psychologist at the prison and she told us that one of her inmates got a hold of a Book of Mormon and started reading it, she said a couple days later she saw him and he said "Doctor Smith, all these guys *pointing at everyone*.... LAMANITES!" She was so excited because he actually read it! I thought it was hilarious because it is sorta true! But it was also awesome.


So ZONE CONFERENCE WAS SO GREAT. It was so good to see... EVERYONE. Yes. So the training and conference was with half the mission but then the lunch after was EVERYONE IN THE MISSION. We got to see, our whole MTC district again, Sister Valgardson, Sister Rose, Elder Stock, Elder Lamm, and ALL 5 PEOPLE FROM DAVIS HIGH IN ONE MISSION. Crazy stuff ok.

All 5 of us are from Davis High!

It was such a good meeting about pushing the new "Light the World" initiative. Which I am super pumped about. I hope you all will use that in your missionary work back home. It is a super easy way to not only share the Gospel but do good in this world. Start early and then NEVER stop.

Thursday was a super busy day and we are grateful for it. We got to teach a mini lesson to a Non- Member. It was just in our morning routine and I just thought we would stop by and she let us in and we chatted and left her with Philippians 4:6-7. We challenged her to live in thanksgiving daily and we told her we would be back to watch the Light the World video with her when it comes out. She accepted. It is crazy because that is someone is a family of focus that we have been trying to contact and it went so well. When we got home from the rest of the morning tracting we got a call from Sister Palmer, SHE WAS COMING TO SPEND TIME WITH US. We were opening companion study and she joined us and it went really well and she had great input and so forth. Then she attended our District Meeting and everyone was very surprised that she showed up. Elder Morley (District Leader) prepared a REALLY great District meeting and we all left very uplifted. THEN, We taught three lessons in member homes that night which is AWESOME!

Friday night we went to the Roberts for dinner and let me just tell you this family is out of control, but in the best way possible. At the dinner table we all spontaneously broke out and sang every word to "Sisters" from White Christmas and it made everything great.

SATURDAY WAS SO FUN we had a service project in Jackson and it was a wood splitting activity and it was really successful. A lot of people came and a lot of wood was cut. We then figured out later that we were not supposed to use hatchets... but for the most part I was just using a wood splitting maul... so I think it's ok.

So for the most part, this week was amazing! We got 14 MEMBER LESSONS THIS WEEK!


HOPE YOU HAVE AN AMAZING WEEK!!
love you!!
Sister Hansen

New companion is: Sister Draper!

Well I am going to start off with saying that it was a very emotional transfer. Sister Valgardson and I because Best Friends and it was very hard to see her leave the people of Ione and even harder to see the people of Ione say goodbye to someone that has completely changed their lives. But it is time for others to have their lives changed by a complete angel. Stockton WATCH OUT!

Had to break her in, SISTER DRAPER AND I JUMPING FOR JOY!

As for me in Ione, Tuesday morning/afternoon I figured out who my new companion is! Sister Draper!! She is from San Ramon California (which is about an hour and a half away from here).

Cantrells from Sister Valgardsen's farewell tour

Ok anyway, so this week has been crazy, Daylight savings, rain, cold, re-meeting everyone. It has been super fun for me to bring her around town and to introduce her to the ward and other things that we do here. Yes the work is slow but we have started making appointments with the members to teach the missionary discussions in their homes and having them pretend they are investigators. It has helped so much getting the practice and then feedback from the members. We have already improved so much! I LOVE MORMONS! The day after Sister Draper got here our ward had a talent/variety show and they asked us really last minute to do something, so we sang a hymn and YES Sister Draper can sing! Woohoo! She is shy right now but she is warming up and YOU ALL KNOW ME!! I AM NOT SHY AT ALL!! WOOWOWOWOWOWOWOW. Maybe I'll learn to chill from her, MAYBE NOT.

Johnsons from Sister Valgardsen's farewell tour

Throughout this week, I have already been able to feel a change in my heart, I just want to keep improving and learning and setting that good example for Sister Draper. I have REALLY found comfort in the Book of Mormon and prayer. I know that whatever I am feeling, nervous, scared, sick, stressed, excited, happy, etc. that I can always find that comfort through the primary answers that we have learned out whole lives --read the scriptures and pray.

Fowlers... Some of them

Dang I know that this Gospel is true and there is NO WHERE else I would rather be then here. I am so excited to keep on this journey and I love Ione so much!

Ending again with my favorite quote from Bethany Hamilton... "I don't need easy, I just need possible."


Love ya all

dinner after the adult session!