WOW!

SO MANY EMAILS TO READ! Lol!

It was so good to hear from you all on christmas!!!! It was a great day here of games and relaxation and focusing on Christ. It truly was wonderful! Im sorry for being so blubbery on the phone lol i just stay so busy here, that hearing your voices made it sort of fresh that i left! It was great to hear from you!!!

This week has been pretty normal! My investigator (teacher) is getting baptized this saturday and the lessons with him are SO STRONG! I got to teach about the temple this week and shared an experience of grandma passing and got to bear testimony that I know i would see her again and that through the temples, we are forever families. So that rocks.

I love hearing about all of your ch ristmas fun and seeing all of the pictures! You girls are literally such babes!! 

I cant believe its my last pday. Holy cow i leave in a week. Its insane!

I am learning so much each and everyday and am so excited to go and so terrified lol! The MTC is wonderful and I have LOVED my time here!! The next time you hear from me, I will be in LONDRINA, BRASIL! CRAZY!

I had mr cheneys email a hand written letter home, i hope you got it. I bore my testimony in portuguese on it so watch for that!

I love you all so much! Busy as ever! Lol

-Sister Penni

PDAY!!

Hello Family!!

How are you all doing?! I am happy to report that I am no longer coughing my lungs out and am feeling much better! This week we taught, a lot! It has been a week of ups and downs but I am doing well! Portuguese is coming along i hope. Lol we went to the temple again today which rocks!!! I have done the final part of the endowment in portuguese twice now and I had a cool experience today.

They needed people to go in portuguese because there was only one english worker so I was the only american who said I would try in portuguese and so I did. They were so patient and kind with me and I understood most of what I was saying. Afterwards, my old companion came up and told me that after I was finished, the worker told the head worker that I spoke portuguese perfectly and she was so impressed, so that was nice to here! It is easy to get discouraged sometimes because I want to be a good missionary so bad but I dont know how to be in portuguese.

PROSELYTING! We went proselyting this week and it was a rush! We handed out 6 copies of the book of mormon to people we had to go meet on the streets ourselves. I did all six and had really long conversations with each person. It was so insane to be outside and to literally be doing missionary work. Sau Paulo is massive and smelly and awesome and the people are so open to weird young women with black nametags trying to talk to them! It was amazing. I know for a fact that there were atleast 2 women prepared to meet me and my companion that day. There is no way my broken portuguese could have convinced them to do anything.

The MTC is still great and I cant believe I am in my fourth week here. The MTC is a time warp. I have been here for 2 hours and 2 years all at once.

i have so many cool stories but so little time! I love you all so much and miss you more than you know. Honestly.

I am happy and healthy!

Love, Sister Penni

It's PDay again!

Its P Day again!!!! This week flew by but also felt like pday was a month ago. I swear the CTM is a time warp. 

I got a new companion this week. She was a visa waiter in provo so I am no longer in a trio but I have the same district and stuff, her name is sister roushar and she rocks.

Portuguese is really coming along! I teach lessons without scripts in portuguese and all my teachers tell me they are astounded by my language which isnt to brag but it feels nice when you feel down about it. We went ot the campinas brasil temple today and it was beautiful and amazing!

I play piano literally non stop here. One of the president's wives found out I play and I play all hymns for the CTM and have already performed 3 musical numbers with people singing lol. So yes, they know I play.

I dont even know what to say!!! I wanna hear how everything is going! 

I recited the first vision in portuguese to my investigator this week and the spirit was just so stinking strong. I wish you could have been there! 

I unfortunately have been pretty sick this week. It started with a sore throat and now its a headache, sore throat, cough, and runny nose, but I am doing good. I take medicine and i think i am on the tail end of it. If it doesn]t get better, ill get a blessing dont worry.

Spiritual Experience I had this week- They came in around 9pm to our districts classroom and told me my new companion was coming and i was SHOCKED. my district leader turned to me and said that when he gave me a blessing, he was told i would get a new companion but was immediately prompted not to say anything. Holy cow. The priesthood is so true and real. So that was pretty amazing.

We get new batches of americans pretty much every week which is cool and I am making lots of friends. I am so excited for this pday and miss you all so much.

Mr cheneys rocks. Cookies rock. Letters are so fun. Send me letters!

I love you all so much! I wish I could write more.

Love,

Sister Penni

first ten days

*new pictures!! click on the 'photos' tab!*

I can not possibly tell you about everything because I literally never
stop doing stuff, but I will try and answer some questions. I don't
know if I will have time for a group email to everyone who wants my
updates this week but feel free to share some of this. I have 2
companions, sister davies and sister mish. From colorado and maryland.
I flew in with about 12 or 13 missionaries from atlanta to sao paulo.
Portuguese is so strange but I am feeling good. I have learned so much
this past week I think my head permanently hurts lol. The food is
surprisingly delicious and it is always warm here. Always sticky. Sao
Paulo summed up in one word would be skyscrapers.

 The CTM is great, my instructors are great, my portuguese will be great i hope. The first
few days I really struggled because, well, its just hard. I was not
expecting it to be this hard, but I also didn~t expect to feel so much
help from Heavenly Father. Please tell everyone I love them and I
think about you all all day every day. My name is just sister penni
because they in brazil, they don~t want us to be confused with the
nuns who are hermana or irma. So, sister penni it is. I have 3
brazilian roommates with my companionship and they are amazing. So
humble, loving, and patient. I have already taught 2 investigators a
few times and we are starting a new one tomorrow. Obviously my pday is
friday. I was worried you would all worry when I didn~t write for a
week. I can]t upload pictures at the CTM but across the street I can
go to Mr. Cheney~s and send pictures so I will try to do that today.
Also, you can go online and order packages through mr. cheneys and
email letters and they will deliver in a few days or less. I want
updats! How is everything going? 

I am healthy, adjusting, and happy. I finally feel like Im getting the hang of things a little bit. We went
to the sau paulo temple this morning and it was amazing. Just what  I
needed. I can bear my testimony in portuguese, pray, and talk with
most people. Still so far from ready though. I just want you all to
know that these first few days I felt so inadequate, unqualified, and
terrified and a sister missionary shared the story of enoch with me
and just testified that ^the lord qualifies who he calls.] I feel your
prayers. I know for a fact that your faith in prayer is giving me the
strength to make it just one more day. I miss you all more than words
can express but I know that we will be glad we did this. 

Man, I just don't know what else to say! I am doing well.
Pushing through. And I am so well taken care of here. Please continue
praying and continue to stay strong in the gospel. It's the best thing
we have. My district is made up of 4 elders and us 3 sisters and we
laugh and talk and get along great. I love you all! Please email me! I
will try and send pictures this week, if not next week. Talk with you
so soon! I will try and plan out a group email of updates for next
week. Love you all so much.

 Love, Sister Penni

Bom Dia!

Hello family!

I have just a few minutes to let you know I am in the MTC safe and with two other sisters as my companions. We all traveled in a group of about 12 missionaries from Georgia to Sao Paulo.

The mtc is pretty cool (but not cool temp wise). My hair is like grease lightning and frizzy...not cute.

Im not sure when my pday is but i would expect you could hear from me early next week.

For the first time in recorded history, the nametags were not delivered today so we are the first to ever not have them when we arrived at the MTC...also the power went out in the airport which was the beginning of quite an adventure.

It just dawned on me that it is tomorrow. Even though I left the US today...or yesterday...Ím not sure whats even going on anymore lol.

Please pray for me and my companions.

I love you all!

Sister Penni

the journey begins!

Megan was set apart as a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints last night! We are so grateful for the amazing example and leader President Leptich has been to our entire family. Megan received a beautiful and special blessing from him. Such a wonderful experience. :)

We miss her already, but we are so proud of her. She is officially on her way to Brazil!