Ames - October 15, 2012

So this week was a super great week, it seems like every week that goes by gets better and better :)

We were able to meet with one of our investigators at least 7 times this week! mainly because he fell down and got hurt and so now we go over there and check up on him quite regularly because he doesnt have any family here in tucson. Its really cool because he totaly understands that we are desiples of christ. Real neat. Last night when we went over he said, "Red, (Thats me) I prayed like you told me about the mormon church. I started crying man, like a baby. It was so warm like god was holding me in his wings."... Things like that make the mission. we are ready to extend a baptismal invitation to him this week and he told us that he is going to work as hard as he can to be well enough to come to church on sunday. Love the guy so much.

Transfers are this next week. Crazy that another one has already gone by. it seems like it just started. Kyle and i will hit 18 months next transfer, 3/4th of the misson is over.

 Today for pday we went hiking! it was pretty fun, i drank water like a camel though and of course i ran out before we were done. super hot here. it was pretty fun though. ill send some pictures :)

Im super tired and sundburnded, (Mom wont be happy :) ) So ill finish here.

Love you lots!

Elder Ettinger

 

Kyle - October 15, 2012

Dear Family,

 

Thanks for all the emails and support! Lots of fun reading the weekly emails.

 

So i gotta start off with a funny story.

Last friday we came to the library to make a copy of my drivers license, to send with my voting packet. And i totally left my license in the copy machine! I didnt notice that it was gone until last night, i was lucky to be able to come here this morning to email, and i asked a man to look for it in the lost and found. It was there!! Win!

I didnt think anyone would have use taking it with them, so i wasnt nervous about getting it back.

 

Second cool thing, on the way to the library today, i totally was talking with one of our investigators, and set a baptism date with them over the phone! pretty cool experience ha

The date is set for Nov 10th. Now i hope to be able to stay again this next transfer. But who knows. the church is true no matter what happens.

 

Mom, i am not happy that my funds are getting close to that limit again, i am really trying harder to not spend my home funds. Can you send me my total balance of my savings account? you know, the one that had my money from work. Im curious what it is at. But just send that to me in a seperate email, i dont want to make ames jealous...ha love you ames!!

 

I love doing service projects! its so fun!

This last weekend we were able to help our non-member friends again with mowing there lawn, and we got to till up there garden with a sweet tiller machine! Way fun!

 

Elder Bowler came through the mission this past friday and saturday.

He took us out to lunch when he got here, and we went with him while he ran a couple errands. We went to a tool store, and i bought a "pencil Torch" which is like a blow torch that does a 2000 degree flame, but its small and handheld! super legit.

Bowler bought a bunch of tools for his shop and what not at home, he says that he is working alot, and having a good time.

He told me that lindsley miller met him in his ward, and asked if he knew me, since we were in the same mission. He said "Yea i know kyle ettinger, we were companions" ha I thought that was pretty cool.

 

Our meeting with elder C. Scott Grow was really awesome!! He focused on the importance of less active lessons, and asking the less actives for refferals, because it really is the in active members, that have made friends with the non members around them.

We all know that active members hardly ever make friends with non members. So i thought that was pretty awesome.

Hope all is going well at home, and in NC maren!!

Everyone keep being happy and having fun!

Dad, good luck on your big ol paper!! Get that thing wrapped up alright?

Thanks for everyones love and support! it means alot!

Love, Elder Kyle Ettinger

 

Ames - October 9, 2012

So totaly loving being a missionary, this is the greatest work of all time!

Congratulations to mom and dad for finishing the marathon. I tried having a memeber in the ward text mom friday night but apparently you dont have the same number anymore or maybe i just dont remember it anymore i dont know haha so i had them text dad instead. I think its fun. There were a couple people running from the tortolita ward, ill have to ask them at church on sundee how they did. I, like kyle and maren, really missed being there for marathon day. its was so much fun riding the course on our bikes as a kid. Maren and mom will remember the last one that the three of us rode that i drank waaaaayyyy too much water (Nothing new there i was and still am a camel haha) and "Up-Chucked" it all at the top of one of the bigger hill climbs haha. good times. How did the old bearded guy with the brown shirt do? or what about the guy that takes a stroller every year? love it!

I really enjoyed confrence, we got to watch it at the stake center, with a couple members, and with an investigator! Loads of really good information and quotes. I really liked the talk about asking a missionary. after the session we were making up more things you should ask a missionary about: "Would you like to save your soul? ask a missionary" "Would you like to have your weeds pulled? ask a missionary" "Would you like to cook dinner for someone? ask the missionaries" "Would you like your roof redone? ask a missionary" haha it was fun. On sundee night we went and contacted a referal that we have had for a few weeks now but we have never been able to catch them home. We met with him and introduced ourselfs and instantly we had a gospel conversation going. He is ready to hear the gospel. We talked with him for about an hour and a half that evening and we are going to be going back this next sunday to continue teaching. Also this last week, we were tracting and we knocked into a lady that came to church two weeks ago to the primary program and she just loved it! so she said she would talk to her husband about having us over this next week! super cool, and they already have friends in the ward! And to add some icing to the cake, on our way to emailing today we got a call from a member of a diffrent ward that talked with a former investigator that is in our boundaries that wants to start meeting with the missionaries again :) We are working harder than ever and we are seeing the miracles rollin it. Love the mission.

Super duper excited for the Tucson Arizona Temple!!!! we watched the first session in the stake center and it was our whole zone of missionaries and then a few other members and when President Monson announced the temple there was quite a bit of fist pumping going on haha. after we all settled down we realized that no one heard where the other temple was going haha. The members are super stoked. Im sad  that i wont be around for when it finishes but im definatly going to come down for it :)

Thank you all for your prayers and for your encouragement. Its getting very real that we wont be out here much longer.

Much Love!

Elder Ettinger

Kyle - October 9, 2012

Dear Family,

 

As you have probably realized, we are allowed to email for a short time today, because of the holiday yesterday! its so lame that all of the holidays land on a monday!

 

Mom and dad! i am so excited and happy that you both did really well in the marathon! mom i am so so so proud of you for finishing your first race!! I can honestly say that reading your marathon report has been the most i have ever missed you my whole mission! I wish i could've been there to cheer you on! I am so happy mom! i Love you so much! Good job! So happy right now!

 

General conference this past weekend was probably my favorite of all the conferences i have ever watched! Very awesome talks given in this one.

My companion and i were helping a family move saturday morning, so we missed the first hour of the first session. So we did miss the news of the mission age change, but as soon as we got to the church to watch the conference, three other missionaries came running up to us to tell us the crazy news! Pretty exciting stuff!

Elder Koyle and i have been chattin about it. and we are hoping to see some 18 year old Elders and 19 year old Sisters be assigned to our mission before we are heading home. However, getting deep into the works of the mission, if alot more sisters come out on missions, that means more car areas for the sisters, and alot more bike areas for the Elders. hope i am home before that happens ha. I like to be in a car.

 

Thats cool that Jimmy is on a mission in Salt lake. I cant believe he is already out on a mission! people grow up super fast! How old is trevor now?

Elder bowler is coming to our mission this next weekend! He Is going to stop by and take us out to lunch or something. Pretty excited to see him again.

 

 

Sounds like everything is going pretty well at home! Thats nuts that mom pulled out a big ol yam out of the garden this last week! Crazy stuff!

I cant believe that we only have like 12 more days in this transfer! this has for sure been the fastest of my mission! My companion is just the bomb!!

Thanks for the emails and the support! you guys are all awesome!

Have a great week and always be safe!

Love, Elder Kyle Ettinger

p.s..did anyone see warren jeffs or "Totally awesome computers" guy in the Tab choir this conference?

Hope that brings back some good memories! ha

 

 

 

Kyle - October 1, 2012

Dear Family,

 

Hey there everyone! Man seem like the time keeps going by! and everyone in life is still busy as ever!

I just want to thank everyone for all of there love and support! i would'nt be having as much fun, be as motivated if i didnt have the love of my family! I continue to hear stories of missionaries hardly ever hearing from there family, and it makes me so upset!! i am just so blessed to have such a great family that cares about me alot!! much obliged!

 

The past couple days, since i emailed last wednesday have been pretty good.

We were able to do two different service projects. One was cleaning up a front yard, and cutting down a bunch of dead limbs on a tree. The other was mowing and weedeating a yard! my favorite! and at that same house we got to pull out a big willow tree with a tractor and a truck! super fun stuff!

Because elder koyle worked on a farm, and did landscaping type work as well. We talk about how we miss mowing grass and running tactors. It was a fun reminder of what i will be able to do when i get back on the golf course at home.

Funny story, our zoneleaders called us last night really late, and had us drive down to one of the other missionary appartments because we were closest to them. They werent answering there phone or texts, and they hadnt reported numbers yet, so they were worried that they werent home/dead ya know?

Well we went down there, banged on the door, and found that they were there, already sleeping, before they reported there numbers ha. It was kind of funny.

 

Thanks again for everyones love and support!

i am really excited for general conference this week!

Love you all,

Elder kyle Ettinger

Ames - October 1, 2012

This last week has been a pretty good one, we were able to meet with our investigator a couple times and he is super super prepared to recieve the gospel, way cool. We talked to him about bringing members with us to future appointments and he was ok with it so im thinking that will help him want to come to church and it will keep our lessons a  bit more focused. Im really excited about it :)

For Pday this morning we went and played some frisbee Golf again, the big pond that was there last time recided quite a bit so we could play a bunch more holes, but then one of the holes went through a mesquito breeding ground and so we decided to call it a day and go get some breakfast at ihop haha it was a good choice. This afternoon we are going to hit up a two dollar bowling place. way stoked.

We had two babies blessed in church yesterday, it was fun, both of them were actualy cute babys too haha. you know how most babys are really not cute but everyone is obligated to say theat they are anyways haha. It got me thinking that i want to read what my baby blessing said. Im pretty sure mom wrote it down in our journals. if this is the case i would like a copy either on paper or just in an email would be fine too.

The Voter registration lady called me the other day because she was procssesing my forms and i put 3/16/12 for my birthday... whoops. We got it all squared away though and i should be reciving an early ballot so i dont even have to go to the correct voting place. i better get one of those fun stickers though or I'll be mad.

Good luck to our Marathon runners! There are at least two people from my ward here in tortolita that will be going up to the STG marathon. ha. ill tell them to say hello to you all when they run by!

Love you all mucho!

Elder Ettinger