Hermana in Houston: March 2014

3.31.2014

Week 13: Three months!

Hi loves!

Tomorrow is my 3 MONTH MARK! Ahh!

Hermana Hoj was transferred to Louetta, so she is still in our stake and we were able to see her the other night! I miss her SO much!

Right after she left I was promoted to front seat and put in charge of the phone (and I thought talking to Hispanics in person was hard...) and then two days later they made me DESIGNATED DRIVER! Ahh! I absolutely love driving! Not being carsick to the point of death every day is such a blessing! And I finally feel like I am really contributing to the companionship. I love, love, love it!

Ahh, it was such a good week. There are these beautiful wildflowers springing up everywhere and the weather is so nice.

Everyone in the ward who doesn't call me Barbie has started calling me "Hermana Pepino" because they think McOmber sounds like "cucumber." hahah It is so great. I LOVE OUR WARD. It is so different from an English ward, but the people here are so wonderful. I never want to leave!

Friday night was the wedding reception of this cute couple in our ward, Ana and David. Ana was found, taught, and baptized in the span of 11 days by missionaries who lived in our same apartment three years ago, she herself served a mission, and then came home and just got married! AND THE MISSIONARY WHO BAPTIZED HER WAS THE PHOTOGRAPHER FOR HER WEDDING!!!!! AHHHH!!!!! Talk about a dream come true! I was dying. Their reception was so much fun and we were able to spend some really good time getting to know the ward better, the youth better, and we even got three new investigators!

Saturday was the General Women's Meeting, and may I just say... wow. What an amazing meeting! I felt the Spirit so strongly, and I loved that they focused on covenants. We drove half an hour to our stake center and there were 200 + hispanic women and missionaries gathered together. It was so neat! They set aside a little room for us to watch it in English (thank heavens) and it was so much fun.

We went to try to visit Hermana R this week, but a man opened the door. He said, "Ohh! I know you! You're the girls from the library!" Hermana Burnham had given him a card a couple weeks ago and he remembered us! He was so nice and wanted to know all about the church. He said, "Here's my number so we can meet up somewhere and you can teach me! Ohh, and what is the address of your church, I want to come on Sunday!" WHAT!!?!?!? MIRACLE.

There were so many funnies this week:

We were watching a movie about Adam and Eve with a family for Noche de Hogar (FHE), when Satan came on the screen and their little boy screamed, "OBAMA!"

We were walking down the street and passed a cop and his K9 german shepherd drug who had pulled someone over and were searching their car. As he's handcuffing these crazy people he looks at us and says, "Y'all have your work cut out for you." The crazies laughed histerically so I said, "Looks like you do, too." He laughed so hard and said we could call him if we ever needed help.

Every Wednesday we go to Chiptole for dinner and as I was ordering all of the workers were talking about me in Spanish. So I finished ordering in Spanish. :) They looked at me, and then looked at my tag and the one at the register was like, "$#!+, you speak Spanish??" They were so embarrassed. haha BOOM!

I was cleaning and organizing our car and apartment, when I found an unmarked cd in the glove compartment. We decided to pop it in and see what it was... Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, hard rock. We had a lot of fun demolishing that cd.

I love you all and miss you all so much!

I would love to hear from you!

GET EXCITED FOR CONFERENCE!!!

Hermana McOmber

Sister Holly Fullmer and I at the library writing home

Wild bunnies at our apartment complex

Flautas - one of my favorite dishes here

Noche de Hogar (FHE) with the Hales family. Sister Hale was in the CCM and went to BYU Provo -

we are best friends now!

We ordered the same dresses online - in many of the same colors and patterns.

We have to stagger when we wear them!

Transfer time - going to miss Hermana Hoj!

Elders Abadillo and Gutirrez at transfers

We were a great trio!

Front seat and phone!

Many houses have gates around the front doors

that make tracting difficult

CD we had fun destroying

Funny funny mailboxes here in Texas!

Ana's wedding reception

Missionary problems!

I get to drive!

Just as many churches in TX as in UT

All Hermanas of our Spanish Stake at

the General Women's Meeting

Hermana Jensen (on the right-my first companion!)

with Hermana Cotch (Montana Brian's best friend!)

Caught a frog!

Best "Break the Fast" ever!

We bought girl scout cookies from actual Girl Scouts!

3.24.2014

Week 12: First Transfer

Hi friends and family!

MY FIRST TRANSFER IN THE FIELD IS OVER! Ahh!

11 more to go!

I love being a missionary. Love, love, love it.

I love being a Spanish speaking missionary! These people are so special! Ahh, I love them so much. I always have such a good time talking to them and eating with them and teaching them. It is such a blast!

I finished D&C and the Pearl of Great Price this week! Now finally back to the Book of Mormon! I'm so glad I took that month to read the other standard works, I learned SO MUCH, and my testimony was solidified. I would highly encourage it.

We got to go to the Houston Temple on Wednesday! It felt so good to be back in the temple! I wasn't able to go in the CCM because the Mexico City Temple is under construction (I tried to tell them that a sinking foundation wasn't going to keep me out, but I couldn't figure out how to conjugate it). That day we fasted as a district to be able to find the people in this area who are prepared for the message, and it was the hardest fast I have EVER done. BUT the blessings were immediate. Such a neat experience.

The next night I got really, really, really sick after eating at a member's house (extreme carsickness there, mountain of food, extreme carsickness back.... yikes), and Hermana Hoj did too, so Friday we had a sick day. We watched all of the districts and cleaned the house. We got a knock on our door and the other Hermanas in our district had come an hour early to a district meeting that was cancelled because we went to the temple, and couldn't leave for five hours until their ride came(biking missionaries with a twisted ankle)... it was a long afternoon. We made them lunch (quite a feat considering the fact that we were sick and they have 209387498423 allergies... ha), and we listened to them do their companion study and language study, and then they went out and sung himnos on our balcony for over an hour (aspiring opera singers). After the sweet sisters' ride came, we went to the grocery store to get jello so we could finally eat. And then we came home and watched the Testaments and bawled our eyes out. haha

THANK YOU FOR MY 1/2 BIRTHDAY PACKAGE! Best surprise ever!! I absolutely loved it! Mail is literally the best thing in the world.

Saturday was such a good day. We went and helped a Hermana in the ward move, and even though none of the men in the ward came to help us, the elders eventually came and rescued us (with Hermana Hoj and I not feeling well, plus my dislocated collarbone, I almost passed out at the thought of moving all of this woman's huge furniture. hahah)

Then we were walking to the apartments of one of our investigators and we ran into Sabaloos! She was so excited to see us she started shouting and clapping and hugging us. haha I LOVE HER. She brought us in and made us another Pakistani feast... right after we had just eaten lunch. rough. haha She had some of her new neighbors over, they are from India and I had given them a pass along card last week!

Then we were at the house of a potential investigator and she set a return appointment, and as we were walking away, a man had pulled up in his car in the driveway and called out to us, "Mormones?" It turns out that he is a former investigator that my companions have been looking for for twelve weeks!!!!! AHHHH!!!! MIRACLE.

And then we went to the homecoming party for Bishop's son. Let me tell you, Argentinians know how to party! So many people, so much food, music, dancing... it was the most fun I have had in such a long time! His homecoming talk the next morning was so great, and it was fun to see the chapel totally filled.

We got the call last night... Hermana Hoj is being transferred. Heart: broken.

Funny of the week:

When Brian, the RM, asked me for my number yesterday. I literally froze. ...until I realized he meant "our" number because he wants to come teach lessons with us. hahaha

I love you all so much!

Thank you for your love and support!

Miss you!

Te amo muchisimo!

Hermana McOmber

Awesome family! The mother told the son not to touch me right before the picture was taken. HAHA!

This is for you Nick! Everything is big in Texas!

Caught a lizard!

At the hospital where we teach English

First Trip to the Houston Temple!

Went to teach at a members home and her baby was getting a haircut. So cute!!!

A little homesick today...so wearing my two Utah necklaces!

Love the beautiful BlueBells!

Huge palaces two minutes away from the trailer parks. Amazing!

Texas is BEAUTIFUL!

The kids all love getting Spanish CTR rings!

"E" is my favorite boy!

There is so much pollen here!

Good-bye Hermana Hoj...I have loved being one of your companions!

3.18.2014

Week 11: One month in Texas!

(See's Candies opened up in our local grocery store! - feels like home!)

Hi friends and family!

I love you all so much and hope you had a good week! I miss you all so much! Please know that I think of you and pray for you.

First order of business...

SPENCER IS GOING TO LONDON ENGLAND! AHH!

(my "little" brother has been called to serve in the England London mission)

So jealous! A foreign mission speaking English in one of the most incredible cities on earth? Doesn't get any better than that, ladies and gents! Except maybe Houston Texas. :)

Something I love about my mission is that we have missionaries here from France, Tonga, Chile, Guatemala, Peru, and many other countries! I loved seeing Polynesian missionaries at the CCM as well, how funny would it be to see a giant Poly in a suit knock on your door and talk to you about Jesus Christ in Spanish?? haha! I love our church.

One month in Texas! Loving it!

I finished the Bible this week! January 13th - March 13th! Now on to D&C! As a missionary you wish you could study all day long, you wish you could just learn it all!

I was having a really hard time Thursday, Friday, and Saturday remembering Nationals two years ago. I never could have imagined that I would be here on a mission in Houston Texas. NEVER. Now I can see how Heavenly Father prepared me for this, put me in a position where I could serve, and how perfect His timing is. What a blessing! It is absolutely indescribable to know that He loves me enough to be so involved in my life and give me experiences that "will be for my good." I have been able to meet people here that I connect with, who have seen missionaries for years, but listen to me specifically. I can see my testimony, strengthened immensely through the last two years, touch their hearts - physically see it in their eyes. What I say matters to them! And they are changing their lives according to it! To have been strengthened and brought to this place where I can be a conduit of God's love for these people, to bring them to their Savior, is so special. I will always be grateful that I was found worthy to serve a mission, that I was prepared by my loving Heavenly Father to serve, and that I was sent to these specific people.

In "Let Us Think Straight" by M. Russell Ballard he says, "No one can defend our Savior with any more persuasion or power than you, the daughters of God can, you who have such inner strength and conviction. The power of a converted woman's voice is immeasurable, and the Church needs your voices now more than ever."

That, and finding my New Year's Resolutions from last year, helped me get through this week. Seeing those resolutions and remembering how I felt like they were so unattainable, I laughed because they are things I do every single day as a missionary without even thinking about it. I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY.

The work has been so slow and so hard, but with our new investigators and with continued faith and effort we are seeing so many miracles!

We spoke in Sacrament Meeting yesterday! I was so nervous! We all stood at the pulpit and took turns, and I went first speaking on the topic of faith. I worked so hard to prepare it and practice it, and I felt so good when I finished! The bishop got up after us and was so impressed with my Spanish he kept talking about it, like, "Can you believe she's only been here a month??" Everyone in the ward made an effort to come up and tell me I did a good job! The very best feeling though, was sitting on the stand and seeing three menos activo families, a recent convert, AND an investigator walk in! AHH! Miracle, miracle, miracle!

Some funnies from this week:

The fact that I feel like the Mentalist when I tract. Looking for bright houses, lawn ornaments, mops on the porch, "la voz" newspapers in bushes, virgin mary shrines, and everything else. And then when you are in their house, trying to see pictures and anything that will help you connect the gospel to their life. hahah It's so great.

"Tengo algo en mi ojo hoy!" -Hermana Hoj to the tune "There is Sunshine In My Soul Today" ("I have something in my eye today", instead of "I have joy in my soul today"). haha

"Why watch a novela when you can live one?" - one of our menos activos, ay ay ay

We took turns reading The Living Christ with one of our menos activos Jazmine, and her little boy grabbed it and said, "MY turn! Dice (it says), lkasjdfl;kasdflkja;lkdfj SPIDER MAN ;laksdjf;lieu r;liwuqoknwc,.xz PETER PARKERa;lskdj f;oaiweurlzksdf AMEN." We were dying. hahaha

I love you all SO MUCH! Thank you for your love and support!

Send me your addresses in an email so I can write you!

Para Siempre Dios Este Con Vos

Hermana McOmber