4th of July1 Week 19 1/2!!!

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!! Hi everyone how are you?! I’m sorry I didn’t respond to emails on Monday, the mission changed our Preparation Day to today!

This week and a half was really awesome! I celebrated my 19th birthday!! I recieved so many packages and emails and messages, it was so amazing!! I also got to call my family and talk to them!! On the call, I opened all of the packages I got and wow there was a lot! Thank you all so much for the love and support you showed me! If you don’t get a thank you message from me today, your package/card is probably still in Broomall in the mission office! I have some funny pictures of the little toys I got sent for my birthday, but know that there is a lot more little toys and bubbles and candy that is not seen haha, I hope you guys enjoy!

To celebrate my birthday, Elder Warden and I went to the Inhof’s house for dinner! They gave us orange chicken and apple pie!! It was so good, and they even put a candle in my pie and sang to me!

Then the next night, we went to the Ortiz family’s house for dinner, and they wanted to celebrate with me too! So they got me an Oreo ice cream cake and sang too!!

Then, I went home and made a cookie cake! For those of you that don’t know I love cookie cake, and my parents sent me the pan and frosting and ingredients to make one!! It turned out really good and theres pictures of the final masterpiece!

So the update on the work is.. its going. There is definetly a lull in the work right now. Elder Warden and I have been working every day to contact all of the people we have been teaching, but its been pretty unsuccessful. We have had to drop quite a few people unfortunately just because we can’t get back in contact with them.

Good news though, my Spanish has been improving a lot! I can say quite a bit, and I have been focusing now on pronunciation and grammar to sound more native. I see the gift of tounges so much in the past few weeks. Every day it seems like I pick up a new word or understand a phrase or something small like that.

Okay so Elder Warden are going to be here in Reading until August something.. and we have been desprate to find new ways to have fun haha.. So if you see the pictures and say “what the heck are they doing..?” Just know we are trying to have fun in our little bits of free time haha.

Okay here is some stuff coming up!

Tonight to celebrate the Fourth of July we are going to stop by less active members and Investigators and wish them a happy fourth. I cannnot wait to be in the city and listen to the fireworks!! (We have been hearing them for days, and the people here dont use little wimpy sparklers. They use quarter sticks of freaking Dynamite!!)

Next week we are hoping to go to the Philadelphia Temple!! So its likely that our P-Day will be moved to Wednesday the 10th or even Friday the 12th! So if I don’t message you on Monday thats why!

Well thats my weekly email yall! I love you guys so much, I hope you have a fantastic Forth of July and stay safe! I really do appreciate all of the thought and love that went into my birthday. I have a really incredible family and friend group that a lot of missionaries don’t have. You guys are one of my biggest blessings, and I know that you will be blessed for your support to the Lord’s work.

-Elder Petty