07/07/15 From Sister Packard

Lets start with the fact that she's stinkin funny. And she hates her crazy curly hair. And every companion so far has taught her something to make her more "girly". I told her I'd teach her how to spit, and that was about all I could do for her.

Wednesday we went to the Nevins and shot whipped cream into each others mouths by spraying a blob on our fists then launching it into the air. It was fun!

Thursday was transfer day so we drove to Charleston and got Sister Campbell set up with her new little missionary, said goodbye to the departing missionaries, and then Sister Sorensen and I got going. Once again no one will meet with us and we're struggling to find new investigators.

Friday I had a bit of a non-functioning day. That was fun for Sister Sorensen..........I had hoped to go a little bit longer before letting her see that side of me, but, what can ya do? We're working together. And I have no doubts we're together for a reason. It's cuz she makes me laugh.

Saturday was a Holiday! There was a parade downtown that was pretty cool. They threw out so much candy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We were having a lesson with Pam when her Visiting Teacher called on accident, butt dial. But she came and picked up Pam for the parade as well. It was perfect for her. She might be getting surgery this week and it's making her nervous so it was exactly what she needed. We had dinner with the Nevins and used some cheapo sparklers. It was fun! Then we walked to the local park. It was gross to get hit with the wall of sunscreen and sweat. There were so many people. Three fields jam packed. And it was humid and hot! But everything was free. Free ice-cream, snow cones, cotton candy, hot dogs, etc. We found the shortest lines and got us some snow cones. We had to be home before the big fireworks started. But our neighbor had some VERY illegal fireworks we watched from our front porch. And they went off all night.

Sunday was a very special day for me. I fasted with a very specific question in mind and got a very specific answer. I love Sacrament meeting. We're continuing to explore and meet new people. We're continuing to find people who are ok with us coming back, but whenever we can find them...........UGH! No new investigators this week. But it'll get better. It always does.

-Sister Packard

Best:

1. Free snow cones.

2. President's interviews.

3. A patient companion.

Worst:

1. My patient companion is a cleaner. Like, throw away everything in the house cleaner. Even food............so my patience did not match hers. We'll find a balance :) I like stuff, options is a better word.

07/01/15 I Ate Squirrel!!

Wow. This past transfer flew by. Sister Kirkby is a wonderful missionary and she will be an amazing trainer. As we focused on becoming full purpose missionaries we were able to consistently reach our goal of 20 or more lessons a week. Training has brought so many blessings to the Ripley area.
As I have come to understand my purpose as a trainer, it has helped me become a more effective/responsible missionary and help our investigators come unto Christ. In the Instruction for Trainer packet it states, “Your purpose as a trainer is to help your Companion understand and live the principles described in Preach My Gospel.” The blessings that come from understanding your purpose as a trainer are endless. I have learned so much from Sister Kirkby and from my Heavenly Father!

This week was crazy! So many things happened!

- I ate squirrel! It was disgusting. I also ate a fried Oreo! It was the best waste of calories ever!  

- A tornado hit our little town. I may or may not have freaked out a little bit! Haha. It didn't do a lot of damage but it did uproot a lot of trees.

- Sister Kirkby and I attended a viewing with a women from our Branch. We had no idea who had died and we were in our T-shirts. It was embarrassing.

- I got to see a llama! I was pretty excited! It wasn't an alpaca but it will do!

- I am getting transferred to Taeys Valley West Virginia! My new companion will be Sister Packard!

I am going to miss Ripley so much! But I cant wait for the new adventure! Have a great week!

Love,

Sister Sorensen

5/17/15 Lost Dog!!

I love animals! The little creatures have a special place in my heart. All growing up, I had pets and enjoyed watching my neighbors pets. Never ever ever have I ever lost a pet. Until this past week.

Sister Kirkby and I had just arrive at a less actives house for dinner Saturday evening. We ran up the steps anticipating the scrumptious meal that waited inside for us. As we approached the door we heard an old man yell," Come on in but don't let the dogs out." I slowly opened the door and saw 4 excited fluffy pups fly towards the door. I immediately threw my hands down and my butt flew into poor Sister Kirkbys face. The next few seconds were are all blur. Sister Kirkby was shoving me in the door, the words "don't let the dogs out" were still being yelled at us, and I was practically crawling on the floor trying to make sure the dogs stayed in. In the chaos the most unspeakable thing happened. One of the dogs ran through my legs then out the door. Before I could say a word Sister Kirkby shut the door and was walking up the stairs. She had no idea a dog had escaped! I was in complete shock! How in the world was I going to fix this horrendous problem! I grabbed Sister Kirkby by the shoulder and told her we needed to take our shoes off. She gave me her"okay but your really weird" face and followed me back down the stairs. Our less active yelled at us and told us there was no need to take off our shoes because every square inch of the place had either been peed or vomited on. " We let a dog out," I whispered to Sister Kirkby! I watched as the color drained out of her face and her mouth hit the floor. " What are we going to do?"she whispered back. I shrugged my shoulders as we both ran back up the stairs and sat down. Images of a dead dog started to exploded in my mind when my amazing companion ask our host if we could grab" our phone" from the car. I have never been so grateful for a dumb phone! We quickly walked back down the stairs and outside. There was no trace of a dog anywhere. Ugh. My stomach dropped. I had lost this man's baby and was going to get the special privilege of telling him that "snowball" was out in the world somewhere smooched. I said a quick prayer and looked around the other side of the house. Miracles are real! I saw the dog by a bush and ran towards him. I scooped the obese dog up and tossed him to Sister Kirkby. We slowly opened the door and threw the dog back into the house. As we casually walked back up the steps it took every fiber of my being not to bust out laughing. We sat down and had a wonderful dinner!

Haha. Oh my goodness. Sister Kirkby and I had a hoot this week. We met a women who had 5 pet squirrels and 4 baby bunnies. 2 of the 5 squirrels were new babies that had lost their mom in a lumber accident. Baby squirrels are ugly little things. They look like hairless mice. But Sister Kirkby and I enjoyed looking at them.

Sister Kirkby and I found a new family this week. They just got married and are super elect. They are so prepared and ready for the message of the Restoration. We are super excited to see them progress.

This Sunday is going to be crazy. Sister Kirkby and I are both speaking in sacrament meeting, teaching gospel principles class, and teaching the lesson in Relief Society. Hahaha . My mind feels like its going to explode. Wish us luck.

Sister Sorensen

From Ashley's Companion (Sister Kirkby)

Sister Kirkby likes to take car selfies.

I told Sister S that my email home this week was about her, and she was like "At least send it to my mom" So i did :) You have an incredible daughter, and thanks for teaching her all she knows, because her influence in my life will change me forever. 

Sorry I don't have anything too exciting to report on for this week. It was just kind of a normal, every day missionary kind of week with teaching and finding and learning. Sister Sorensen is still just the greatest ever, and I love her more and more every day.

A few fun facts about my trainer:

1. She is a vegetarian

2. She has an adopted little brother

3. She loves cats, and wants to take them all home with us.

4.She likes to be the big sister, which makes me a little crazy ;)

5. She is the PERFECT trainer for me

Yesterday was Mothers Day, so HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all you amazing moms out there. Being a mom isn't easy, and so you get the gold star for doing what you do. I got to talk to my family last night, and it was so great to see them all! Jainna and Vannah are already growing up too fast (okay maybe not... it's been a month) and I miss my best friend (aka Hannah) like crazy. I loved talking with my mom, and answering all her questions, and after we got off the Skype call, all I could do is think about how I could just sit there and talk to all of them for hours. Oh how I miss them!

God gave us families to help us become what he wants us to be.

I love you all!

Love, Sister Kirkby

Toe to toe and tan line to tan line:)

Yup, another car selfie!!

Make a wish!

Making a new friend.

Rain Rain Go Away! 4/27/2015

This week was wonderful. I am so blessed to be serving here in Ripley.Miracles are happen everyday. Sister Kirkby is the perfect trainee! She knows that obedience is the key to our success!

Sister Kirkby and I were really focused on finding this week so we decided to tract a road in a little town called Cottageville. The next day we drove our Equinox up to Cottageville and by the time we reached out destination the weather had dramatically changed! It was pouring rain! Buckets and buckets of water was falling from the sky! We parked the car and started to second guess our decision but deep down we knew we had made those plans for a reason so we hopped out of our warm car and started walking. I don't know why we brought our umbrellas because they really didn't help us stay dry much. We knocked and knocked and knocked but no one let us in. I'm not going to lie I was a little aggravated but we kept walking. By the end of the night we had picked up two potential investigators but they both were not super interested. We drove home in our sloppy wet cloths and started to plan for the next day when the phone rang. It was Carlos a man Sister Lopp and I invited to learn over 4 weeks ago. Sister Kirkby and I had tried to contact him but we couldn't reach him. Carlos told us that he had been super busy but he really wanted to meet with us on Monday to hear our message! Crazy awesome!!!!! Faith brings miracles! We are so excited to teach Carlos tonight!

I love you and hope your week is full of faith and miracles! Work hard, pray hard!

Sister Sorensen