12/8-12/14

The Tehachapi District

Hello my favorites!

Wow, time is going by so fast, it is so crazy!

This week was so great, we had so many service opportunities and lots of great experiences.

Tuesday-- We helped clean all of Sister Quiroz's windows and helped her set up her Christmas tree. She is a widow in the ward and needed some extra help. She is probably one of my favorite old ladies. So hilarious and the sweetest soul. :) We went to Sister Jespersen's candy shop and picked up some candy canes she let us use for our new and brilliant idea-- Carol Tracting! hahaha it is basically caroling to the member's neighbors and friends and giving them a candy cane with a He is the Gift or Joy to the World pass along card on them and telling them about those videos. We tested this idea out Tuesday evening and it worked MIRACLES! We split into two groups because there were so many of us and one of the friends we visited said we could come back and show them the Joy to the World video! His name is Buck and he is awesome.

Wednesday-- We were a little early to our dinner appointment at the Goodrick's so we knocked on their neighbors door and met a girl named Crystal! She said she would watch the He is the Gift video and that we could come back and talk to her about it! We went caroling with the Warings to their friends and neighbors and that was fun!

Thursday-- We delivered a Book of Mormon to a member that wanted to share it with her good friend! :) She was pretty nervous about it, but she told us on Saturday that her friend totally accepted it and thanked her for giving her one! We planned most of the day for the upcoming week and then went caroling with the Ramirez's! It was so good!! We went to the Bishop's house and then him and his wife joined us and we sang to one of their neighbors! It was so awesome. Then we were walking up to the Evan's house and a car pulled up next to us, it was Brother Goodrick! We asked him if he wanted to join us and he did! He got out and told us he had a drum in his back seat, so we told him to bring it hahahaha! We were walking up there long and steep driveway all singing the Drummer boy song to the beat of his drum and it was the funniest thing ever! I was dying, it was glorious and just perfect! The Evan's thought it was hilarious too and were really touched that we would come caroling to them :) I also stepped in some nasty dog poo cause it was dark... so we had an adventure finding things to get that off of my boot (which we did, and it all worked out great hahaha) and then I lost my hymn book somehow, so after we were done caroling we had to play detective and figure out where I had left it... I felt like a mess that night, but it turned out to be really fun and adventurous! :) And I found my hymn book so all is well haha.

Friday-- The Carter's (a couple that lives near Tehachapi that used to be missionaries in the Bakes mission) invited the sisters in the district to go out to lunch with them for a Christmas lunch celebration! It ended up being Sister Khumaryan's birthday so it was super fun! :) 

We went over to Sister Quiroz's house and mopped her floors in our skirts cause we didn't have time to change in between things! She was so happy that her floors were finally getting mopped. :) Love that woman! We talked to Crystal again and gave her a Book of Mormon and it went super well! We have a return appointment with her again this upcoming week so that is awesome! We also had an AWESOME, flat out amazing lesson with Porsha! My favorite human, she is 35ish and lives alone and totally went to seminary all throughout high school but was pretty defiant about things then. She was eating up EVERYTHING she read in 3 Nephi about Christ visiting the America's and about the Restoration of the Gospel and the Priesthood! It was amazing! :) Best thing ever. That night we went over to the other Sister's apartment and made some birthday cupcakes and the gingerbread house that you sent Mom for Sister Khumaryan's birthday! She was so happy and it was her first time making a gingerbread house so it was super fun! :) 

Saturday-- It was our ward's Christmas party breakfast thing and it turned out super fun! One of our member's brought Buck, their friend that we caroled to and we set up an appointment to talk to him Sunday! After the breakfast we went and moved some food storage for someone who is moving to a different house in the ward. It was A LOT of boxes of cans and stuff but it was so much fun! It was raining a tiny bit, so it was an adventure in all of the mud and everything haha but it was fun! Right after that we went to the Brunner's new house and started to help them paint! The Ramirez's came with us and we got a lot finished! We went caroling with the Sebra family that night (they had us over for Thanksgiving) and we did their whole entire street! We met some pretty awesome people! They are pretty new in the ward, so they had fun getting to know their neighbors more. :) So many awesome opportunities for sharing the gospel!

Sunday-- Church was great! Jeff came! :) and then we went to the Millers and we watched the Joy to the World video with them and talked to them about some questions Robert had, so it was super awesome! I'm going to miss them so much, they are like our grandparents. :)

We went to Buck's with the Ramirez's and it was a pretty great lesson! They bore their testimonies about the Book of Mormon and we talked a little bit more about what it talks about and what it is and Buck seemed pretty interested! He is an old cowboy and loves horses. He is awesome :)

Well, this week was awesome and it was so great to be able to do so much service and caroling! Remember, "The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear." :) Haha I love all of you and hope you have a wonderful time getting ready for Christmas and keeping in mind the true meaning of the season! Love this work and being a missionary so much! :)

Love you all to pieces,

Sister Loar

xoxo

PS: I'm getting transferred tomorrow to Bishop, CA, so it is super sad leaving this area and the people. I am excited for experiences the Lord has in store for me and for the people I will meet!