Too Much Fun in One Week

May 31, 2016

Hello everyone!!

Yes, I am emailing on a Tuesday. Because of the holiday yesterday, the library was closed! But man, I felt like I had a crazy week! So much happened!

I'll just start with last Monday. So, after I emailed last week, a couple sisters came over to our apartment and we made chocolate/caramel covered pretzels. Then, since our apartment complex has a movie theater, we took our pretzels there and watch approved church movies. It was the bomb!! Except... I may have eaten too many and threw up some pretzels. I can never eat pretzels again now, but its fine.

Tuesday, we were on shift at the Trail Center ALL DAY, from 9-9. It was actually way fun :) I took an interesting tour.. It was an FLDS family. If I don't want to sugar coat it, they were straight up polygamist. It was only the siblings though. The boys were decked out like cowboys, and the girls had their braids, skirts, and sketchers. All in all, it was a good tour. We were able to testify of the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith together! There were a few awkward moments though.. Like at the end when one of the guys told me that I'll find out soon enough that they are right, "it's only a matter of time". Then, another guy told me he was 18, but his sister pulled me aside and told me he lied and that he was really 32. Interesting tour. All God's children.

We went on a Trail Center field trip this week! It was so fun. We all hopped in Senior couples' cars and drove around Nebraska and Iowa. We stopped at cool church history sites and learned a lot! It was a fun day.

This week we were able to find a really awesome woman. We were tracting, and when she opened her door she listened very intently to the message of the Restoration. Afterwards, she informed us that she has been looking for a church for her family and asked for the address. We were able to get her phone number and we are meeting with her this week. Her name is Corrine. :) It was such a miracle!

Yesterday for Memorial Day, we had a party with the sisters in the mission! We had a BBQ and played some sand volleyball. It was so fun. :) I love all of the sisters I serve with.

I feel like a lot more happened this week, I just can't remember all of it!! Anyways, I love you all so much. Thanks for always showing me your love and support. It means a lot to me. I hope you have a great week!!

Love,
Sister Hutchison

Pretzel Partayy

Field Trip

we tried to do a jumping picture, but I like the candid one better

I am a true Husker 

I forgot this picture! Some photographer came into the trail center and took pictures of us this week. :)

7 Months??? Whaaaaat

May 23, 2016

Hello Family and Friends!!

Wow, another week that has gone by so quick. It needs to slow down so I can savor every moment of this wonderful mission!!!!

Where do I begin with the week I have had... I'll start with Tuesday!! So, Tuesday was super fun. It was Zone Conference, which is always such a special/spiritually uplifting experience. I love being gathered with so many missionaries, and being able to learn and grow together. Not to mention, I love hearing from President and Sister Gardner. They are always so close to the spirit, and say exactly what I need to hear. I was able to say the closing prayer, as well. After Zone Conference, we had the MISSION OLYMPICS. It was so dang fun. It is definitely a way to get the missionaries active, but it sure works. There were many different things we could do. I think I mentioned a few months ago how we had the mission Olympics, but that was just the try-outs. This was the real thing. I actually won something, though! I won the push-up competition! I did 45. I got a medal and everything. It was so fun. The rest of the day, President kept referring to me as "Sister Push-Ups".

I hit my 7 month mark this week!!! That is weird, right?? It is crazy to think that I will be home in less than a year. That will go by so fast! Of course, the Nebrasquad had to get a 7 month picture. I am not going to lie, the people in the apartment were having a fiesta (literally. I couldn't understand any of the Spanish they were yelling, nor the music they were playing) so I look very tired in that picture. But, all is well.

I am still liking my new area! I am getting used to it now, which is good! It is a weird feeling being in a new area. It felt like I was a brand new missionary again! But I am starting to create relationships with the members now, and getting the flow of the work ethic. It seriously just feels like I am in a Utah ward, so it is great. :)

The work is going fantastic. I was finally able to meet our busy investigator this week. She is so cute! So is probably mid-20's and is crazy beautiful. It makes me want to barf because she is so pretty. But, it is okay!! She used to be a member, but her records were lost so she probably has to get baptized again. Her husband is not a member, though. So we are working with them! She wants her family to be sealed, so hopefully things will start progressing more. Their names are Mandi and Adam. Keep them in your prayers! :)

Well, I forgot the paper I wrote on that has everything I wanted to share with you this week. So, hopefully I will remember it next week. But today, a couple other sisters are coming to our complex because we have a movie theater! So, we are going to watch a pioneer movie, write letters, and eat chocolate covered strawberries and pizza.I love you all so much. I hope you have a great week! :)

Love,
Sister Missy Hutchison

Hail Storms and parades!

May 16, 2016

Hello Family and Friends!

It was a pretty good week this week. It is crazy how quickly it went by. I can't believe it is already Monday again!!

Apparently it was on National News.. But yes, there was a huge hail storm this week. It woke us up at 3 in the morning because it was so loud. It even flooded out apartment, which was not fun. There were fans going on the carpet all week and now it just smells like mildew every time we walk in. It's pretty nasty. We are buying incents today at the store! Really though, when we looked out of the window, it looked like it had just snowed because there was so much hail. It was scary! So many cars are dented and so many roofs were damaged. If you didn't hear about it, you should look it up! I took a pretty solid video of it, so I guess I will have to show you it in a year.

A lot of you have brought up the pictures of Florence Days! So let me tell you about it! Every year they have a big parade and lots of carnival rides and stuff to celebrate the city of Florence. Florence is where the Trail Center is, and where Winter Quarters actually was (before they named it Florence), so.. We totally were able to participate in the parade! It was so fun. I felt like I was a cheerleader again in the 4th of July parade (minus the dancing and the cheer uniform, and adding the ballet flats and a heavy pioneer dress). Yes, I have blisters and my face is sunburnt. Afterwards, there was a concert in the park that the missionaries put on. We all sang pioneer songs, and simple church songs. Not too many people were there, but the ones that were are all meeting with missionaries now. It was a neat experience.

I helped a woman clean her bedroom this week. Wow... Mom and Dad, I have learned my lesson. I am never going to have a messy room again. It was terrifying. Later, while we were sharing a message with her, I noticed a black little bug crawling up my arm. I just about threw up. Cleanliness=Happiness. So, there is my awkward/gross story for the week.

On a more spiritual note, I was able to give a talk in church yesterday. The bishop called me and asked me a few days prior, and said it would be a good opportunity for the ward to get to know me! He asked me to speak on temples. As I was pondering what to say, I decided to read the conference talk called "See Yourself in the Temple". It is by Elder Cook, and it is so good. I noticed he used the phrase of "Saviors on Mount Zion" when he talked about temple work. I decided to base my talk off of that. When we are doing temple work, we are literally being Saviors on Mount Zion for all of those who are in the spirit world. Temple work is the way we can help others receive eternal happiness. It is the biggest act of service we can do. I learned a lot as I prepared for my talk.

I hope you all have a fantastic week! I love and miss you. You are all in my prayers :) I love this gospel, and it truly does bless and change lives. I see it happening every day :)

Love,
Sister Missy Hutchison

A car with a cool bumper sticker.

Sister Chappell and I decided to try on an incredibly big pioneer dress.. We wanted to wear it to the parade to show that God loves all of his people, but it didn't work out.

Some of the sisters getting ready for the parade :)

Rockbrook-Bennington!

May 9, 2016

Hello Family and Friends!!!

Wow, what a crazy week I have had!! It was so fun talking to most of you yesterday. Oh my goodness, it lit up my whole week being able to see the faces of the family that I love so much. :)

Since I FaceTimed yesterday, most of you already know about my week! But, I am going to tell you about it again anyways. So! Transfers were this week!! Crazy, right?? I did, indeed, get transferred. I am now in Bennington Nebraska, in the Bennington Ward (go figure!!). It is seriously so nice here. I love it! I feel like I am in Draper, near the temple! Everyone has such nice houses and it is just full of beautiful neighborhoods. I am actually by tons of cornfields, so I am stoked!! My apartment complex even has a gym, sooo.. I'm gonna be getting pretty buff soon. Be ready for it.

I met a lot of the ward yesterday and church. They are all so sweet. This is such a missionary-minded ward, so I am very excited about it. Everyone was so welcoming. I received so many hugs yesterday haha!

My companion's name is Sister Firth, and she is awesome. :) She is so sweet! She actually came out the same time as my last companion, and it from the same place! They are very different though, haha. I am excited for my new adventure in Bennington!

Although I am very happy about transfers, it was so hard to say goodbye to certain ward members in Rockbrook.. Especially Courtney. We probably hugged and cried for a good 10 minutes. It was so sad!!!!!!!! She later texted me and told me that she named her new fish "Missy", so I guess that makes up for it a little bit. But, the best of all was when I walked out the door and I heard her say "I owe you millions". That is why I am here on a mission. I am here to bring the gospel into the lives of those who are prepared. It was amazing truly seeing the change in Courtney and her family as the gospel has been brought into their lives.

This week's email is a little shorter than usual, because I honestly don't know exactly what to say since I talked with you all yesterday! I am grateful for the gospel, and the influence it has. I am grateful to be a missionary. It truly has changed me for the better, and I love doing the Lord's work!!

Love,
Sister Missy  Hutchison

saying goodbye to Courtney :(

me and Sister Firth!

Sis. Chappell and I took this hilarious woman on tour, and she gave us maple syrup from her factory.

My new area! 

#Cornado

May 2, 2016

Hey Family and Friends!!

This week was another INSANE week. I felt like I couldn't breath half of the time, but it is okay because it went by quickly, and now I get to email all of you again!! :)

One reason it was so crazy, was because we did 4 (technically 5) service projects.. They were all great! Us and the Zone Leaders helped at the food pantry! We filled boxes full of beans, which was as exciting as it sounds, haha. It was fun, though! The food pantry workers were so grateful! We were there for about 3 hours. My special job was to make boxes. My hands were so dry afterwards! We also did a park clean-up with our zone. It was good! We just walked around, looking like juvenile delinquents, picking up trash. :) We helped clean the Florence Mill this week with a few of the Trail Center Sisters! It was so neat, and very historical. We were able to see a few of the original beams put up by the pioneers at Winter Quarters. The last service project we did was we helped a couple in our ward move. It took a couple days... That's why I said we technically did 5 service projects. They have a lot of stuff.. As we left, the woman we helped started to cry, telling us how grateful she was for all of our help. I love the feelings we receive as we serve others.

We totally had a tornado this week!!! We live like 2 minutes away from the mission office, so a senior couple called us when the sirens went off, and told us just to go there. So we hungout with office senior couples for a couple hours. It was so fun! The tornado was probably 3 miles away from us, and it eventually did touch the ground. But, it wasn't a bad one so no one was hurt. That's a blessing! :) Other than that, the weather has been okay! It rains like every day, but I am excited for it to get ever more green here than it already is. It is beautiful!

I feel like this week's email is really short! Whenever we weren't at the Trail Center, we were doing service, so I don't have much to tell you! Transfers are this week, and we find out about everything tomorrow. So, we will see what happens! I was told by my Sister Training Leader that "There is a very good chance you'll get transferred", so we'll have to see! God works in mysterious ways. If he wants me in Rockbrook for 6 more weeks, then there must be work I still have to do here. :) Which is fine, I LOVE ROCKBROOK.

I love you all! I am excited to Skype with my family is a week. :) Make sure the dog is nice and groomed for the camera. I miss Charlie.. And my family.. :) You're in my prayers. Have a good week!

Love,
Sister Missy Hutchison

a cool mural (is that how you spell it?) in Florence. S/O to the Tragedy at Winter Quarters statue.

All of the missionaries in the Rockbrook ward! :) (minus the senior couple)

6 Months?? Cray.

April 25, 2016

Hello Fam and Friends!!!

This week was a pretty good week. I felt like it was crazy, and I barely had time to breath. We probably had a total of 5 hours in our area total this week. Lots of service projects, and shifts at the Trail Center. But, Heavenly Father always makes up the difference for us :)

First things first... I HAVE BEEN OUT 6 MONTHS. Isn't that so weird?? 1/3 of my mission is past! (well, kinda.. my release date is May 17th, 2017). These past 6 months have gone by crazy fast. It needs to slow down, because I love it too much. It is so cool to look back and see how I have grown. It makes me excited for the rest of my mission, because I know I will grow even more. Guys, missions are the best. Go on one.

Like I said, we didn't have much time in our area this week. We had a super fun service project though!! The Zone went and helped paint this woman's house, and fix up her yard. Her house was white, and now it is bright blue! We were outside for like 5 hours, but it was about 80 degrees with a light breeze, so it was perfect weather for service outside. I even got a sunburn!! I have never been more excited for a sunburn more in my life. It is turning tan now, and I am stoked. It may only be on one arm, and I may have an awkward farmers tan, but I feel so alive.

Sister Hall and I had a cool experience at the Trail Center this week!! Our goal at the TC was to testify of eternal families on tour. We took this cute couple on tour, and found out they weren't members. They told us they were going to be married in August, so it gave us the perfect opportunity to testify of eternal families!! They were asking so many of the right questions, and it was obvious that they were prepared. Towards the end of the tour, the girl even asked about the Angel on top of the temple. We were able to testify of The Book of Mormon, and they both wanted a copy. Sister Hall then invited them to have missionaries teach them more in their homes, and they agreed. To end our tour, we took them out to the cemetery, because of the sweet spirit that was there. On the way there, I received the impression to invite them to be baptized. I was kind of nervous, but as we were walking back I knew I had to do it. So, we stopped and I asked them what it would mean to them if this was true. They said it would mean everything. I then invited them to be baptized once they received that witness for themselves that it was true. They accepted with a smile :) We were kind of bummed because they aren't in our area, but it was still such a spiritually rewarding tour. Then, the next day, the Bascoms (a senior couple from the TC) called us and told us they took people on tour that wanted to meet with missionaries, and they were in OUR area! So what goes around comes around. :) Heavenly Father blessed us! I love the Trail Center with all of my heart. It is so obvious every single day that I am where I am supposed to be.

We had Stake Conference this week, and it sounds like you did too! :) It also sounds like we had about the same theme. Going to the temple, and recognizing revelation. It was so good :) Courtney took us with her! I love her!! During one of the talks, she turned to me and said "this makes me uncomfortable when I'm not able to take the sacrament.." She's so cute, I can't even handle it. Transfers are next Wednesday, and if I happen to get transferred, leaving Courtney will be the most painful thing in the world.

Well, that's about all I have for you this week. I hope all is well :) I miss you all, but I know I need to be here. :) It is so clear to me every day that this is the Lord's work, and I need to be His instrument.

Love,
Sister Missy Hutchison

We found a stray dog.. It literally smelled like a cow. But don't worry, we found its owner.

me and some sisters got together for lunch. We played the "Ha" game. It is too hard and awkward to explain, so I'll just tell you the objective. The first person who laughs loses. We all lost.

6 MONTHS

Volleyball, Old Men, and Service!

April 18, 2016

Hello Family and Friends!

I will just start out saying straight up that I am going to be sending a lot of pictures. So, be ready :)

This week was another good one here in NE! :) I feel like I say that every week, but hey, when you are doing the Lords work, it will ALWAYS be a good week!!

I feel like I don't have too much to say, though. I can just start with last Monday! Last Monday we had an "Omaha Sisters" activity! All of the sisters serving in Omaha met at the institute building, and we had lunch, sand volleyball, air hockey, a pool table, and just lots of lots of fun. I love having such great relationships with all of the Sisters here! It is like a cheer team, with less bruises and drama. :)

We did service this week at a Food Pantry! It was so much fun! We were able to pack bags of lunch for less-fortunate children. It is such a cool thing that they do. They make these lunch bags, and secretly put them in kid's backpacks before they leave for the weekend, because they know they probably wont have a lot of food at home.

We had interviews with President Gardner this week. I love that man so much. He is truly such a great person, and manages to make every missionary feel like absolute gold! Whenever I talk to him, the spirit always testifies to me that I am meant to be here, and he is meant to be my mission president!

I got hit on by an old man this week. It was one of the creepiest experiences ever. We were doing service at a retirement home, and this old man without a leg, who looked very nice, asked Sister Hall and I to come talk to him. We went over there and he asked us what we were doing there, and we told him we were there for service. He looked at me and asked me if I thought he was attractive, and I just said with a smile "Well, sir, you are too old for me" and he proceeded to tell me that he was 29 years old (by the way, he's probably like in his 80's). I just laughed and said "Okay, whatever you say!" Then he kept asking me if I have ever "smoked the good stuff" and "drank the good stuff". I told him no, and he asked why! I thought it was a good missionary moment! So I told him about the Word of Wisdom, and how those things aren't good for our bodies. I wont go into detail about the other things he said, but lets just say it was along the lines of sneaking out and going through his window in the middle of the night to try the "good stuff". The conversation then ended very abruptly. I wanted to throw up a little bit. (A lot).

That is about all of the excitement that this week had to offer for me! We met with a lot of less-active members this week, so that was good. :) I love the spirit you feel as these less-active members realize how much the gospel has blessed them, and want to come back. It is a testimony builder to me about how lucky we are to have so many churches nearby, and be in good health to go. Don't take advantage of it. :)

Oh! The outside of the Trail Center is beautiful and very Springy!! So, of course we got pictures, we are girls!!

Love you all! I hope you have an amazing week. :) You are in my prayers.

Love,
Sister Missy Hutchison

Dramatic volleyball picture. Very professional. Look at 'dat form.

Me and Sister Young :)

Me and a few sisters at the Trail Center :)

Me and Sister Chappell. We kind of matched.. So we thought we would get a picture.

The 3 blonde, crimpy haired girls, trying to be creative but it failed.