STAKE CONFERENCE, OLD FRIENDS, AND A SILLY COCKROACH

Hola Familia!!

First off ... BYU football definitely deserves a SHOUT OUT from Piura!! That is so sick!! And #19 in the polls ... man life is just too great. And Mom ... I am so happy to hear your birthday was SUPERB!! And good 'ole Mi Ranchito ... oh man I miss that food. So thrilled to hear it was GREAT!!! You deserve it mama! And LOGAN!!! I love that guy so much ... tell him I say "Hi!"

So here are a few highlights from the week:

1. "Nothing funny happened this week" ... so that phrase was said from my comp five minutes before we came to get on the internet. It was true ... until one minute after she said that. I was putting my feet into my shoes before leaving, felt something inside (thinking it was a piece of paper or something) and what do you know ... A COCKROACH jumps out!!! This guy was HUGE!!!!!!! I DIED ... screamed my head off ... and then we both just died laughing. THAT wins for the highlight of the week. #PiuraLife

2. I had my District Meeting by phone this week. My comp was sick and we couldn’t find a member to do splits. Sooooo … the hilarious and super nice elders called me while my comp rested. They asked me to give the spiritual thought and it just ended up being HILARIOUS! Definitely was entertaining.

3. Favorite Peruvian food right now: Polla a la Brasa. French Fries and Chicken. Mmmmm mmmmm good!

4. They say that a huge rain flood is coming to Piura in these next few months. Would be such an adventure because we would have to travel in handmade boats and only eat Top Ramen every day ... okay maybe not that bad ... but it seriously is going to be crazy if it happens! It's called EL NINO!

5. And last but not least ... I HAVE ONE YEAR DOWN!!! Time flies when you are having fun. #Iamgoingtomissthisplace

This week was an adventure for my comp and I ... mainly because we are trying to help my poor comp get better. The poor thing has been sick these last few weeks and we are hoping that this week she starts feeling better with the medicine. I feel so bad because she just got here and is already sick! Pray for her please!! But she sure is a trooper.

But our week was filled with a few activities that sure made it interesting! First off, we had a Family Home Evening Night with a less-active family. We thought "Let's make it extra fun and make AMERICAN FOOD". So we made tacos (we miss real Mexican food) and cookie dough. The tacos turned out great with guacamole, crazy hot peppers (teared up every time I ate one), meat, tomatoes, and onions. The cookie dough, started out as normal circles and ended up looking like a flat cake. But it still TASTED GOOD! Ha ... it was really fun! Then we shared a Mormon message and just had a great night with their family.

Also, it was Stake Conference this week ... which means ... I SAW ALL OF MY FRIENDS FROM LOS ALGARROBOS! I sure do miss those wonderful people. Familia Castro, Ximena (my 6 year old best friend), and my pencionista (her son goes on his mission in one week to Colombia). It was just the best! Also ... Leandro came to Stake Conference! It is a one hour bus ride to our Stake Center and it was such a blessing seeing him and his soon-to-be wife walk in together. He loved it too! And wore his white shirt and tie! Also, an investigator that we use to teach came! His wife, Adria, is a member who always comes with us to preach the gospel. Manuel, her husband, has only come to church a few times and has never had any interest ... but this week he came! We stopped by later that night to see what he thought and HE LOVED IT. We ended up sharing a quick message with him and he now is willing to listen to us. I will keep you updated, but it honestly was a miracle because we have not been able to find many new investigators these last few weeks. Blessing from above. Woot woot!

Also, the President and his wife spoke in Stake Conference this week and man they are just incredible. President shared the store about Peter and how he steps out of his boat to walk on water to Jesus. He explained how that was such an act of faith! And then he asked, what are we doing now to "step out of our boats" and exercise faith? We get so comfortable in our everyday lives and at times just need to take that step of faith. Stepping out of our boats, and either sharing the gospel, being a little more obedient to the commandments, or doing something more to follow our Savior! What are we doing today to step out of our boats and exercise faith? Hope that makes sense ... but man it was a great talk!

I love you all so, so, so much! Tell Ben and Will hi from me and that I am so proud of them for finishing strong! Have an incredible week!

This church is true. I just know it!!

Xoxo, Hermana Shumway

My 6 year old bestie Ximena, with her Mom and Grandma -- I love them so much!!!