Email 1/13/14

My dear and wonderful family!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You will never guess what I learned yesterday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My companion Sister Steinagel is related to Ezra Taft Benson. He is her great Uncle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was flabbergasted when I found that out. It was so funny because she had no idea why until I told here that my uncle was related to him. It is such a small world. Well my Companion is from Kansas. She has been on her mission for about 9 months. And she is wonderful!!!!!!! She is so kind and sweet and the ward just absolutely loves her!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She was here before I got here. This area is beautiful and I already knew some of the members so it has been a really good welcome!!!!!! One of the members asked me if I had a relative serve her a bit ago. I showed her a picture of Kevin and she said that he looked familiar. It is crazy I wonder how many of his areas I have actually been in. I know for sure that he was in stoke but now I wonder about the other areas.

We had a baptism on Saturday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was the biggest turn out I have ever seen for a single baptism so far on my mission. It was absolutely wonderful!!!!! It was so good to see the support that the ward and her less active family gave her. I am really going to love this ward I can just feel it. There are already some people that I know I am here for them and they have no idea what is coming!!!!!!! I can just feel that this is going to be a great area!!!!!!

Brother Beeston seems to be doing alright!!!! He is out of the hospital and we were able to go and see him before I left. He has had problems before. He has to be careful because he developed a chest cold and they didn't want it to turn into pneumonia. But other then that I believe that He is doing better. I didn't skype from there house but I was there before I skyped.

We have not had snow yet and I am beginning to wonder if we are going to have some this year at all.

Crazy Socks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am sure that He is on cloud 9!!!!!!!!! Which car is he driving????? And I can definitely believe that she is having a hard time with letting him drive. Just tell him to be careful and to not take after his sisters!!!!!!!! That would not be a good thing!!!!!!

So I have decided that I am just going to spend time with family for a little while and think about school later. I just have a feeling that I just need to be with the family. Is that alright????? If not then I can definitely start looking into schools when I get home or right before I get home. Just let me know your thoughts!!!!! And I want your honest opinion Please!!!

It has gone by really fast. And I may not see all of the changes in myself that you have seen but I have seen a few and I am happy with them. I am so grateful to this mission for saving my life the way it has. And I know that it is making me stronger then I thought it ever would. I have been able to change into what I was designed to become. I am beginning to understand who I am and why I am here. And what I am to do with my life. (that one is still completely up in the air. I have completely no Idea what to do with my future career.) Hopefully it will come.

I love you all and am so grateful for all that you do for me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love you tons

Love

Sister Ballantyne