*insert clever subject that you think is best here*

Well we aren't the only sisters anymore..... 

Elder Green, Elder G, and Elder Eells all left. 

Now we have Elder Bingham, Sister Kendall, and Sister May.

It will be fun.

(Marin and mom chewed me out for not talking in depth about people so I'm doing that) [In my defense, I didn't chew her out, I just asked that she share some more about people and less about food. :) -leslie]

(I think I will just go down the list of people so sorry if it gets boring but then you know who everyone is)

We got to see Bro Anthony again! I wish that we were able to visit him more often but because he is single and he is a he, we can't. We have to bring a female member with us or a couple and that can be uber hard sometimes. 

He is very sweet and inspiring. He always has great insight, for example: he said "Choose humanity before honor."

He is so sweet! His signature departure is "come back day or night. You will be welcome!" He totally means it too. 

I wish that all of you can meet him because he is just the coolest man ever. Remember how I told you he is from Trinidad. Well then he moved to New York and met his wife (who recently passed away, like right before we got here) then when he was 85 he was baptized. He is now 91 and he is trying to get to the temple to do the work for his family and also be sealed to his wife. I hope and pray that he does because none of his family were members and he is the only one who CAN do the work, but unfortunately his health is really bad and we are afraid that once the summer heat comes he wouldn't be able to go anymore. 

The same day that we met with him we saw William and Almedia. If I haven't told you, William is Almedia's nephew who is here for work. He works at one of the many chemical plants here. Almedia is a member but pretty much she went to church like twice after she was baptized. They are the sweetest though. They always watch out for us.

Dakota, I think I have kind of told you guys about him. He is a member's daughter's boyfriend. He is 18 and joining the Marines. He is super respectful and he is finally opening up to us and will actually give us honest answers. SUPER EXCITED!!!!

Olivia is still doing awesome! Still has amazing questions. We have to take things really slow with her though. She is 21 and she has the cutest baby girl ever. Her name is Madison and we are pretty much best buds now. She likes to take our tags and then climb all over us. 

Kelsey, I don't know if I talked about Kelsey but she is doing well with the lessons. She is retaining everything. She likes to tell me all about Veggie Tales.

Bro and Sis Redford- they are super! Bro Redford is the ward mission leader and it is really funny because he LOVES to make fun of people, especially Elder Blair and his Paisley ties. Anyway he has a really dry sense of humor so you never know how to take it. He is also super funny because he is kind of a grump. He has good reason, he just recovered from having cancer and now the cemo has left him deaf. 

He and his wife are super great!

Bro and Sis Smith- Brother Smith is on the Bishopric and we eat with them a lot. Sis Smith is pretty much the coolest also. We love to talk to her. They are awesome. 

(I am running out of time)

Bro and Sis Nash- Brother Nash is also in the Bishopric and he and his wife take us out to eat weekly. Bro. Nash likes to make fun of us and try to push our buttons. It is super funny.

We have an awesome ward!!

This is Sister Conder on the train tracks. I think it is a super cool pic.

My weekly email (she's going to have to work on her titles . . .)

I know that all of you have probably been moping around just waiting for me to come out with my email, so here it is. 

It has been awhile but don't worry I am still alive. I haven't been eaten by an alligator yet. 

Well on the 11th we had Zone Conference! That was fun! I got to meet everyone in the Monroe Zone. I also got to participate in exchanges with the Sister Training Leaders, so I got to teach some people in Louisiana. Let me tell you, I hope that I get to serve there some time because the people there are awesome and way nice. 

 On the 13th because nothing note worthy happened on the 12th, we went to Smackover. Yes there is a town called Smackover. 

Anyway we helped some members with their yard work. We picked up sticks and pinecones and put them in a pile. 

We visited William and Almedia with Bro. and Sis Loggins and that was amazing! William and Bro. Loggins talked a lot about scouts. 

Oh by the way, William is Almedia's nephew who is living with her for the time so he can work. He is looking for a positive change in his life because he was had a hard couple of years full of regret and bad things. He is the sweetest man though. He has a love for the scriptures and he has been reading the Book of Mormon every night after the Bible. 

We also had a church tour with Dakota and the Lightsys. 

Dakota is Sis. Lightsy's daughter's boyfriend who is joining the Marines. He is super respectful and calls me Ma'am. I hate it, but oh well. Everyone calls everyone ma'am down here. 

Anyway Dakota is great and we have had some other opportunities to teach him more. He asks really great questions and he seems to really want to know for himself and not for the sake of his girlfriend.

Okay so sorry for last P-day and for not sending an email that day but it was very busy. We had a lunch appointment with some members at noon and then the Magnolia elders came down and we had a district p-day. 

We also started teaching a girl named Kelsey, her mom is a member and wants her to be baptized. Kelsey is autistic and has to be taught the lessons with a lot of visual aids and object lessons but she has been retaining everything very well. 

On the 20th we help the Loggins finish their front yard. This time the Elders were there too. It was so much fun! 

Transfers are today and that is why I am emailing on Tuesday. We are losing 3 of our awesome Elders, Magnolia is being "pink-washed" which means that sisters are coming in. 

Oh I ate an acorn. They are disgusting and suggest never to do it. Acorns are friends not food. Let the squirrels have them.

This is probably my favorite picture of the district. I'm sad that I am not in it. 

Elder Gutierrez, Elder Eells, Elder Blair, Elder Green, and Sister Conder.

​I found out how to do b&w on my camera. :]

and fisheye effect.

and blurry background. 

I have been messing around with my camera lately.....

I have a beard.               

This is Jewelacia and Sister Conder. 

She is a firecracker. Crazy child. That is Sherry Russel, she is a recent convert who we have been working with.

Text from member in Smackover, AR

20 February 2016
Since I didn't receive an email from Markee last week, what a pleasant surprise on Saturday to receive this picture

And we proceeded to have the following text conversation

One happy mama here!

Hand written letters are best

Since Markee didn't write a nice, newsy email today I thought I would just post excerpts from her hand written letter to me.  She talks more about who they are teaching and there is nothing about food in this one. :D

Mom,

Sister Greenhalgh is from Texas, Sister Anderson is from Washington State, Elders Crawford and Sanders are from Nevada and Elder Ledbetter is from Utah, Magna, I think.  Sisters G and A are both 19 and Elders C and S are 18 and I think Elder L is 20 or 19.

I have been chatting with Sister G over email and snail mail.  Well, I am sure you know this already but McKenna [O’Connor] isn’t my trainer.  I don’t think I have even seen her. 

Sister Conder is truly awesome.  I am grateful that she is my trainer and my first companion in the field.  I’ve learned so much from her.

The South is great!  I love all the trees!  The bugs suck though; they are way bigger and more evil.  I saw a bumblebee the other day and it was the size of one of those half dollar coins!  I got bit by something.  I have 7 bites all over my legs.  I got some insect repellant and Benadryl.  The people here are soooo talkative.  They can pretty much talk all day if you let them.

I haven’t started saying “y’all” yet.  I’m hanging on!

We bike mostly on back roads where there is less craziness and we have lights and helmets.  [in response to my concern about her biking on the roads and not being road savvy on a bike]

It has already been a month!  That is crazy! I’m glad you went to the temple.  I can’t go . . . L  It is too far out of mission boundaries.

The work here is going well.  We have a few investigators that we are excited about.  There is Olivia.  She is a single mom who is my age.  It was awesome, we tracted into her and she hesitantly let us in back.  As we started teaching her we saw her entire countenance change.  At our second visit she was just so happy.  She admitted that at first she didn’t want to let us in, but then she felt like we could answer her questions.  It’s so great because a lot of her beliefs match up with the gospel.  Then there is William, he lives with his aunt, Almedia Henderson, who is a less active recent convert.  So we found him through her.  He, like Olivia, has great questions and a lot of his beliefs match up with ours.  He is super awesome and sweet.  He just loves and understands what we say, which is amazing!

Then there is Deon.  He was an investigator that the sisters before were teaching.  He was actually about to be baptized even, but then his father died and he found out his wife was cheating on him.  Satan is just working HARD on him, but still he is so eager to know more.  He is a minister at his church so he knows the Bible really well but he loves the Book of Mormon.  Actually a lot of people here do.  Also he has the cutest little boy ever!  First day we met him . . . and every day we visit them he puckers his little lips and waits for kisses. It is pretty much the cutest thing ever!

The members here are awesome.  A lot of them are super supportive and helpful.  We haven’t exactly had a normal Sunday yet so . . .

Yes, we are both new to the area.  Sister Conder was in New Boston before.  Both of the sisters before left and we came in.  Both of the sisters before left and we came in, we call that white-washing an area.  Anyway, one sister was just done and the other had to go home for gall bladder surgery.  Apparently gall bladder issues are a thing in this mission.  Don’t worry I am taking care of myself.

How is everything at home?  Are Dad and Peter and Erik alive?  Tell them to write or email me.

No news is good news, I guess

Here was Markee's brief email to me yesterday:

It is pouring here! RAIN FOR DAYS! 

Well anyway I'm sorry to inform you that I won't be able to email you a long email today. There are a million things a need to do and I'm already late. I am so sorry. I had a great week and I promise to tell you all about it next Monday just kidding Tuesday because of transfers.!

I love you so much!!

*sigh*

People here are trying to make me fat . . .

So on Monday last week after emailing we went to the church where we met up with the Elders in our district. We played basketball together. Well I tried to shoot hoops while they were all cooling off after playing REAL basketball, and Elder Green pretty much played piano the whole time. That took up most of our day. 

When we got back to our apartment we had just enough time to freshen up before going to the Smith's for dinner. Brother and Sister Smith are pretty much solid. 

Brother Smith is in the Bishopric and Sister Smith is in the Stake young women's presidency. They just sent their youngest boy off to the MTC. Grant is serving in Taiwan and will be in the MTC for 9 WEEKS! I loved the MTC but that is way too long. 

Sister Smith made chicken soup and rosemary bread (which is pretty much my favorite stuff in the world!) and then she made this super delicious cake! She calls it "dump" cake because you pretty much just dump all the ingredients into a pan. 

She also sent us home with the left overs so we had left over delicious cake and soup for days!

On Wednesday for DM we went to Magnolia, which is only a 30 min drive but it felt like it took 2 hours. At DM we practiced door approaches and Sister Conder and I made Valentines for the Elders so we handed them out to them. 

They pretty much love us because we have made them cookies, mended their ripped clothes, and made them Valentines. Yeah, we are pretty much the best.

Oh my goodness, on Thursday we went to lunch with Sister Pepper. So when she came to pick us up she gave us both a $5 bill and a page of coupons for Burger King. She told us to pick out what we wanted to eat for lunch, then at Burger King she pulled up her laptop and started showing us videos of past Elders burning their ties and shirts. (which we aren't supposed to do anymore but it happens anyway)

Then Sister Pepper wanted to show us her house. 

So we drove our [car?] there. 

She lives pretty far away but she has a nice little set up.

To get to her home you turn down a skinny little dirt road that is pretty well hidden by the thick trees. You drive down that to the end, there is her cute little house that she made herself. 

She got so excited to tell us about everything.

Especially her water. She has her own water pump which she had tested and they told her to start bottling it so she did. She gave us some of her water too.

2 whole liters of it. 

Yep, she is pretty crazy. She also wants to give us some Venison soup she made the other day.

I don't remember if I told you guys about Angela but she is someone that we tracted into. Apparently the other sisters visited her a lot but never taught her or gave her a BoM. Anyway we went over to her house Thursday night. She was so sweet she invited us right in and FED us. 

That doesn't happen.

Also she told us that we could stop by anytime and that she could be our personal hair-cutter.

I love this woman she is amazing!

The next day we went to the Redford's for dinner. Brother Redford is an amazing cook! He made Eggplant Parmesan and Eclairs. Oh my gosh, they were so delicious!

Then the day after that we went and visited Lou Craig and pretty much spent the entire day with her. She is pretty awesome, and she practically knows everyone!

She bought us food. Well she lives right by this place called Old Fashioned and she puts everything the missionaries eat there on her tab. She owns the land that the building sits on so she can do that!

On Sunday we visited the Novacheks, they are members. They are pretty much my favorite. They are so funny. Also they GAVE me a typewriter. A FREAKING TYPEWRITER! [note from Leslie - Markee and Marin have been wanting an old fashioned typewriter forever.  This is a very exciting thing for Markee] 

After that amazing visit we went to the Smith's again. They made us dinner. Also they may have had the Superbowl on while we were there and I may have watched parts of it. Like the half time show... 

I know I'm so Apostate. But hey, I did talk to Sister Smith for most of the time and then we helped clean up.

Me and Sister C super close up.

​Me and Sister C not so close up. (That is Sis Pepper's house)

These are Sister Pepper's Christmas decorations.

This is me and Sister Pepper's dog, who pretty much loves me.

This is my district. Sister Conder, Elder G, me, Elder Green, Elder Blair, and Elder Eells.

Elder G's last name is too hard to spell so yeah...

This week we were quarantined

Be jealous. :) it is February and it is 70 degrees.

So this week we tracted into a woman named Angela. She invited us in immediately and she was super friendly. It turned out that she used to live in Utah and her husband is from Utah. Also it turned out that the other sisters would stop by at her house all the time and talk to her. 

But they never gave her a Book of Mormon. 

So when we offered her one she was so excited about it! 

Also Angela's laugh sounds like the girl's in Wax Museum. It was freaky.

On the 27th we woke up an hour earlier so that we could go to Rustin. In Rustin Pres. Olson and Sister Olson came and we had interviews with them. After interviews my district played basketball. Sister Conder is the best at shooting hoops! She totally destroyed the Elders! 

​Here is Sister Conder beating the elders in a game of PIG

 Pres. Olson also showed off some of his skill. He is really good at it too. 

I wonder how a game of PIG would go between Sis. Conder and Pres. Olson.....

I want to see that.

After we left the Rustin Stake Center (which by the way is the cutest little building ever! The Primary room is the cutest! It is a big round room where they would have Sharing time and then there were about 7 or 8 or more little rooms branching off of the big room for class.) we went to a Mongolian Bar-B-Q place to eat. It was a chinese buffet. 

It was pretty good and we had a lot of fun with the district. 

On the  28th Sister Conder woke up feeling ill so we took that morning really slow. When she was feeling up to it we walked to the church had the Elders gave her a priesthood blessing. They were nice enough to let us borrow the car for a little bit so Sis. Conder wouldn't have to walk to where we were going to tract and our afternoon appointment with Mable. 

After that we went back to the apartment and Sis. Conder took a nap and I started writing letters while I waited for her to wake up. 

I let her sleep until the last possible moment, but it wasn't long before we had to walk to the Henderson's. 

That took us an hour.

But we had a very good lesson of the Plan of Salvation. 

After our lesson we went with the Nash's to dinner. We went to a place called Flying Burger. I tried catfish. It wasn't bad....

Then they took us to the Creamery for frozen yogurt. 

I like the Nash's. They are awesome.

On the 29th, Sis. Conder was way sick so we pretty much stayed in the apartment all day. The only time we left was to go get her antibiotics from Walgreens. 

On the 30th, Sister Conder said she felt better so we went out tracting then we went to the Redford's for a service project. 

I got eaten alive by mosquitoes....they are nasty little buggers. 

The Redford's also had dinner for us. They are so awesome. 

Also it was my Monthaversary. 

The 31st Sister Conder was feeling worse again but we had to go to church because we were both speaking in Sacrament meeting. After church Sis. Conder took a nap and I finished writing letters. 

That lasted for 5 hours and then we went to the Singleton's for Breakfast for Dinner. 

Today Sis. Conder said she felt better. I hope she does because I have felt really bad. :(

These are the Singleton boys. Grey and Samuel

Here is me in front of a giant house

​Sis. Conder and I were matching on Sunday. We didn't plan it.