Happy Birthday Lindsi!!!

Honestly after almost a year of being on a mission, I still do not know how to accurately describe a week haha.

We have seen some ups this week, and we have definitely seen some downs. funny how a mission does that right? Tuesday we had an incredible zone conference in Budapest. It was all about repentence, and how if we want to have our investigators use, and understand the atonement, WE ourselves need to use, and understand the atonement. I think if the only reason I went on a mission was to more fully understand the atonement, then that is enough for me.I have learned that I am not perfect. I am so thankful for the opportunity to say "I blew it" and to humbly turn to my father in heaven and ask for his help. 

We were able to meet with the most AMAZING investigator this week. The story is that we were tracting last week in this house, and I just did not feel right. I weirdly felt like we were just wasting our time, which was weird because we were doing exactly what we were supposed to be doing.

I had the impression to just go to another building, or just get out of the building, I do not know! we started walking toward another set of 10 storeys and it was right by this investigator Nora's house. I decided to try calling her ( we had literally been trying to get in contact with her every week for the last 3 months) so I felt like I should call her, AND SHE ANSWERED, set up, and our lesson was amazing. We talked about pray and how God's plan is so much better than our plans. She just cried, and told us that we really helped her.

We found 2 investigators this week, a mom and a daughter and they are just sooooooo cool you guys! We taught them the Plan of Salvation and were able to answer so many of their questions with the simple plan. I love this amazing gospel. 

Aaaalssoo we are so excited! One of the members in the branch named Oliver is 17, and his Mom wants to get baptized!!!! She is going to be baptized on February 18. She is just the cutest woman in the whole world, and watching her go through this change, and being able to teach her has been the coolest thing. I am so thankful to be apart of the Lord's work here in Hungary. 

Yay for the work growing a little bit, Veszprém was definitely strugglin..  haha yay for bodza flavored fanta and dark chocolate too. Life is great you guys. 

sok szeretettel, 

S MONAYYYY

1.  Any chance you are going to Budapest this week so you can hopefully get your birthday package?

I dont think so :( but thats okay I can get it at transfers!!

2.  What are you pday plans today?
just a chill pday haha grocery shop, go out to eat, email, nothing too exciting!

3.  I have been talking with Jensen Nover's mom on facebook.  We are going to figure out a time that we can go to lunch and talk about our amazing girls!!

that sounds incredible

4.  Any meals with members this week?

Yes yes we went to Erzsi nénis house, and she is just the most perfect thing in the whole world. she made us some almás süti, rántót Hús, krumpli, saláta. best day best day! 

5.  How goes the running?
my companion lets me go every other day, so life is great. :)

6.  Where are the Elder's in your district from?

Thomas is from california, Sajto is from Brazil

7.  Do Hungarians celebrate Valentine's Day?

haha honestly i have no clue!

8.  Have you ever had a companion that snores?

not yet hála jó istennek
9.  Do you and Jensen like the same kind of food?

yes!

10.  Did you know that you make a BEAUTIFUL 20 year old woman!!!

hey hey hey thanks!!

Na, Szavaztok!

Wow wow wow today we got to go for an adventure hike up Tihany with a member, and I had once again, another one of those, "Wow, i am like, way too blessed to be here on a mission, to have my amazing companion, district, country, and family back at home, all at the same time" moments. For real you guys it is such a blessing to be out here as a missionary.

The work here in Veszprém is just trying its very best haha. We did though, have one of our way cool investigators come and stay for all of church (can i get a hooooraaaah?) 

I also have just gained such a huge testimony that the Lord is at the head of this church, and he really is directing the work out here. This Sunday we had another amazing experience. We once again were praying where we should tract, whom we should visit, what we should do, and we got the feeling to just start walking to the bus stop. On our way there we"just so happened" to run into one of our investigators, and he ended up walking us to our tracting destination. I just know that we are nothing without the power and inspiration that we recieve from our Heavenly Father. HE directs this work. 

"A bird may land on your head, but it doesn't have to build its next there"

You know, I have been thinking a lot about this little phrase this week. I have been thinking a lot about how every single person in this world has a trial. All of us have our struggles. but it is 100 percent our choice what we make out of those experiences. Whether we let them take us down, let them control our lives, or whether we choose to learn lessons from them, we choose to change, to mold into the person our Heavenly Father wants us to become. A bird may land on our heads, but it is 100 percent our choice the outcome. 

You hear those stories time and time again about people being in the depths of the most unimagineable trials, yet they are so strong, and so bright through them. It is a choice you guys. It is a choice to use the atonement every day, it is a choice to turn on our knees to our Heavenly Father, and tell him that we cannot do this alone, and it is also a choice to get up afterwards, and do what has been asked of us, and through that, it is a choice to learn, to soften our hearts, and to learn what we need to learn. 

for real i love, and am just so grateful for you all. thank you for the support, and your emails, and your kind words. 

sok sok sok szeretettel,

Swenson Nővér 

1.  Pday activity today?

One of the members (and my favorite human in the world) took us to this amazing hike at Tihany and it was probably once again, the prettiest thing i have seen with my own two eyes

2.  What did you have for dinner last night?

I made a lovely dinner of stir fry for Jensen and me.

3.  Are you running shoes holding up?

actually, yes! they are incredible! 

4.  Do you ever teach like relief society or Sunday School in your branch?

yes we do like every single week! not usual relief society, but sunday school yes for sure

5.  Do you interact very often with senior couples?

there are non in veszprém so no :( i would LOVE to serve with a senior couple though!!
6.  What are you studying now during your personal study time?

I have been going through the last conference and my notes again. its crazy how the apostles just know exactly what to say for every situation

7.  Dreaming in Hungarian yet?

absolutely! 

8.  I loved the pictures you put on the idrive of recipes.  Keep it up!!!

haha hungarian food is so good its ridiculous

9.  What time do Hungarians usually eat dinner?

probably about 4 cause that is when its already dark haha

10.

Love you with all my heart.  Every little bit of it...all the valves, chambers, SA nodes and everything!!

ahhh dont tempt me with that medical lingo. i miss it SO much. but i love you moreee!

Kellemes Ünnepeket és a boldog új évet kívánok! "I wish you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year!"

Well you could say this new years was nothing different from the usual one I would have at home. New years I usually always am in bed at 9:30, with ear plugs in. It is really how I prefer to spend my holiday seasons you know?

Haha but this week was crazy. Kinda actually a really tough one for me and Sister Jensen. The work here in Veszprém is just really really slow, and it is sometimes super hard.  We have been praying like crazy to find someone, anyone haha  that we can help here in Veszprém. I know that there are people here prepared to hear our message, we just need to know where to find them. I was thinking, and praying about where we should tract yesterday, and I had the feeling to try tracting in this part of our area that I had never been to before. We followed this prompting and made our way over to the area. As we were tracting, this 25 year old ish guy walked by with his dog, and we decided to stop and talk to him. We gave him the usual "hey we are missionaries..." and he resonds in perfect english "are you guys the Mormons?"He told us about how he talked with missionaries a year ago, and how every day he watches a mormon family from Idaho on youtube, and how he really realizes how happy they are, and how they have something different about them. We ended up walking with him to this stunning park, talking about the gospel, and life. He was honestly just so prepared.We were talking about our missions, and why we are here in Hungary, and he literally said this sentence to us "So if i was to join your church, would it be too late for me to go on a mission?" like what?! Who on earth is just that prepared? I just want to testify that Heavenly Father hears, and answers our prayers. He will give us those answers, and those promptings every time, we just need to act on it. 

Sok sok sok szeretettel, 

Swenson Nővér 

1.  Pday activity today?

Balaton!!!

2.  Did you come up with a birthday list?

yes!! 

   - Burts bees chapstick (not the colored kind, but just like a whole pack of even the vanilla bean kind that you sent would be amazing)

  - Bare mineral foundation (i mean im not sure about the color, but just go with erin and do whatever hers is? haha)

  - peanut butter haha

  - ahh nothing else i feel like you have given me way too much with christmas and everything haha so i am just so fine over here!

3.  Did you get your "open before Christmas" package?

 not yet but new missionary training is on wednesday!

4.  Does your skin feel dry there?

yes haha totally

5.  Quick... funny companion story...

hahahaha okay this is probably only funny for me and sister jensen, but the other day we were trying to catch a bus, and we rounded the corner and saw our bus almost leaving, so we have this 100 meter sprint that we had to do, but the problem was we had SUCH a strong head wind, so we were just trying our hardest running, but literally not even moving and i have never laughed harder in my entire life than when me made it to the bus 

6.  So how big is your apartment? One bedroom?

yes yes it is! one bedroom, like a living room thing, and a kitchen! then a skinny hallway with a bathroom and a shower room!

7.  What do Hungarians do for New Year's Eve?

get wasssstteed

8.  Do they have pizza in Hungary?

yes! but it is a little bit different. they put just whatever they want on pizza haha 

9.  Is the Vezprem a touristy town?

uhm i dont actually really know how to answer that! not really, but maybe a little bit by like the castle and such?