Life in the QC

Well, hey! Salut to all of my lovers, family, and friends, and a big old bises to go around! Aaah! How is everyone doing? I miss everyone so much that it hurts. The warm weather is making me a trunky fiend! Seriously. Summer brings back all kinds of good vibes and memories of my youth, walking around in tank tops (GASP!) during my rebellious days and texting up my chicas to spend a night at the club instead of diligently attending to my Personal Progress. My GOODNESS, how the tables have turned! Don't worry, come August of next year and I will be back to my ways. ;) Ha ha I TEASE! Sister Cutler is way cooler than the wanna-be-hipster princess I left behind. Still. You best believe I will be hitting up those Young Single Adult Ward firesides and dances and break the fasts like my life depended on it. And it will. I'm getting wrinkly and fat out here and I will need ALL of the ward socials I can get to find my eternal love before I become completely undesirable. 

Anyway... some thoughts I had mulling around in there. BUT! Missionary life is completely fabulous right now! We had an amazing week, and I am FINALLY starting to find my way around here. French comprehension went out the window though... Now I just smile and nod and hope that people don't think I'm incompetent. Ha ha... boy do I have them fooled! But no, the people out here in the QC are incredibly polite and friendly for the most part, and we are teaching AMAZING people. Honestly, I can't complain. Okay, plus it doesn't hurt that I have a STELLAR companion that makes every minute of the day a party. But a good, gospel preaching party, don't worry. 

This week we did a BLITTTTZZZ in our area (sorry, that is the coolest missionary word and it needs to be spelled out in tween text messaging language). That meant that I got to show our Sister Training Leader around an area that I STILL cannot make sense of. GOOD TIMES! We drove out to a member's house for a dinner appointment in the evening, and I was brought to tears by how beautiful Quebec is. Seriously. There are forests EVERYWHERE, and I cannot even begin to describe the joy I felt as I took in the majestic scene around me with my hipster-ized hymns playing softly in the background. Such a delight! In that moment I knew without a doubt that Heavenly Father sent me to the Quebec mission for a reason. He really does know each of His children so well, and this beautiful moment in nature was my witness that He knew exactly where I would feel the happiest as a missionary. Such a blessing.

Alright, so I'm waxing very spiritual right now. That's what nearly five months of a mission will do to you! Anyway. This week I also taught a lesson in Spanish! No joke! Okay, it went like this. So we have a Colombian family that we're teaching right now, and the first time we taught them I just sat there and smiled, said holla or something like that and let Sister Orozco take it from there. Well, this week that would NOT fly with her. We're doing companionship study and she's like, "OKAY. I am NOT teaching this lesson by myself!" And I'm like, "Ohhhh yes you are. My call was in French, not Spanish, little seniorita." Well, she didn't care. So in the course of the morning I learned how to teach "The Gospel Blesses Families" in espanol! Be sooo proud of me! Ha ha it was NBD. I just read a part in Spanish and then said some other things that I can't remember. But that is the gift of tongues right there, I tell you! Psh. Gosh, send me to my South American mission already. Next transfer they're TOTES going to be putting me in a Spanish Ward. Just you wait. 

So there's this fabulous Haitian woman in the ward who invited us over for dinner on Saturday night. She is honestly the craziest, foxiest woman I have ever met. She was just chatting with us right when we're about to share a spiritual thought, and all of the sudden I hear her throw out a "gros mot," or as they would say in my mother tongue, a swear word. And I'm like, "Did you just use the p-word?" (French speakers will know which one I'm referring to). And she just sits back and starts cackling, thinking that as a sister missionary learning French I wouldn't notice her casually slip in some French swears. And I'm like, girl, please. Do you KNOW who my brother is? Well, we think it will end there and we all have a good laugh. THEN she starts listing all of the English swear words she knows. No, not just listing. SHOUTING them. At the top of her lungs. And my companion and me, being the highly immature people that we are, laughed ourselves to tears. After a good five minutes, we tried to get back to our spiritual thought. Halfway through the scripture I remembered her little swear fest and just lost it all over again. Ha ha sooo embarrassing. I'm the most immature missionary on the planet. Still, it made for a good story. I highly approve of this area. :)

In case you can't tell, I am completely in love with Quebec City! The ward is phenomenal, the members feed me way more than they should, and pounds and Pot de Chinois and Poutine and Tarte a sucre reign supreme out here. Seriously, missionary work is the best. Anyway, I hope you are all doing well and enjoying life! I am going to hide myself away in the apartment now for the rest of the day because it's St. Jean-Baptiste Day, aka Quebeckers going crazy and boozin it up and making the streets dangerous for missionaries. So have a wonderful week! Don't do anything I wouldn't do! And remember... every member a missionary! The Church is true! Choose the Right! Nourish and strengthen! 

Until next time,

Sis Cut

Quebec...QUOI?!

Ca va biaaanng, famille? Aah! How are you all doing? I feel like I have literally dropped off the face of the earth. This was probably the longest week of my life, but I am in LOVE with this new area! Quebec City is a DREAM! I have a car! And a hottie companion! And all of the EFY music I could ever ask for! Things are looking up. I hope everyone is doing just fabulous and enjoying their lovely summer days. Any news on the home front? First of all I would just like to say... HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to the most stellar papa bear in the WORLD! I would just like everyone to know that my dad is brilliant, poetic, soulful, transcendent, and oh so charming. I LOVE YOU DAD! I hope everyone had a great Father's Day. I really wish I could have been there to share in the love. Shout out to dads everywhere!

Alright, so let me tell you about my insane week! Leaving my sweet Montreal was HARD. I never thought I would get so emotional about leaving an area, but I put my blood, sweat, and tears into that place. On Tuesday I had my final lesson with my dearest and favorite investigator Vince. He is doing SO well. I had to leave him with the Word of Wisdom lesson. Definitely my least favorite lesson, but he took it so well and is incredibly motivated to give up smoking and other habits. That was a truly rewarding experience for me. I have watched this man come such a long way in the past few months, so I suppose it was a good way to go. Still, he cried, I cried, Sister Varela cried. Imagine a big, gruff Italian man getting choked up saying goodbye to a sister missionary. And THAT is why I love my mission. So many miracles out here! I can't complain.

Wednesday morning came and one of my fave sisters, Sister Balanos, made me apple banana pancakes before my departure. We sang French hymns all morning and got all emotional, I said goodbye to our mansion and to memories of an awful landlord and an unruly toilet, and then I was off! Said goodbye to my fab district at transfers, got Sister Varela with her cute new greenie (SO PROUD!) and then I was whisked away onto a bus with seven other elders. Uhhh... can you say PARTAY for Sister Cutler?! Ha ha j-play. None of that. I sat by an elder that I suspect has a crush on me. He says, "Sister Cutler, how does it feel to not have a companion right now?" And I coyly turned to him and said, "What are you talking about, Elder? You're my companion right now." You should have seen how red he turned! Ha ha. Priceless. I've still got it! It was a pleasant drive though. I heard his life story. Twice. For three hours, but hey, the scenery was BEAUTIFUL! Quebec really is a gorgeous province. 

And now here I am in Quebec City! My companion is Sister Orozco, and she is GORGEOUS, and a GEM, and seriously SUCH a riot! We've had more laughing attacks than I can count. Seriously, this girl is awesome. I am so blessed, dang it! I'm still adjusting to this area, and she has been SO patient with me. And um... I don't speak French. I thought I did, but I don't. Okay, scratch that. I can speak un peu de French. But I do NOT speak URN PEUR DER FRANCAAAAIIZZE. BAH! Quebecois. What is this madness? I'm adjusting, but ohhh so slowly. 

This last week was tons of fun! It was Sister Orozco's 21st birthday on Friday, so we went bar hopping!!! Just kidding. We went door hopping. Knocked for like three hours straight. Happy Birthday to you, Sister Orozco! ;) Ha ha don't worry, I treat my compies well. I took her out to get Thai food for dinner, so I'd say it was a decent 21st birthday. She really is such a delight, so we made it a fun day regardless. We met a 50 year old man in his underwear in the hallway of his apartment building, which gave us a good laugh. He wasn't interested in the gospel. Mostly just us. Still, it was proof that God has a sense of humor and knew what would give Sister Orozco a good laugh on her birthday! Lolz. On Sunday I went to my first French ward, and WOW. What a difference! I am in love with my ward already though. I just sat there taking in all of the French, finally feeling like I'm in a French speaking mission. Such a magical experience. My French comprehension just went out the window though... PRAY FOR ME!

Well, I guess I'm going to wrap this little slice of news up by telling you all how much I love you! Thank you for the continued prayers and support. I definitely feel it. I hope everyone is doing sooo great! I hope you all had a fabulous week and will have an even better week this week! Wow, time is just cruising by! I love you all and miss you so much it hurts! Big bises! LOVES!

Love,

Sis Cut

Away from Montreal

Hello, kindreds and friends! How is my favorite crew doing? I can't even BEGIN to describe how much I miss everyone! So first of all, let's start off with the big news. I'm being TRANSFERRED! To Quebec City!!! Nervous does not even begin to describe how I'm feeling about all of this. For the last four months I've been living the dream in Montreal, and as of Saturday night I've been moping around and driving my poor companion crazy! Ha ha President Cannon called and said I had been in Montreal long enough. I beg to differ, but it's whatever. I'm sooo thrilled for my companion though, because she's going to be getting a new baby greenie to train and I'm going to become a grandma! I'm torn but the fact that I have to leave behind some amazing investigators and ward members, but I'm leaving the area that Sister Cantu and I opened so long ago in the bitter winter in good hands. And now it's away to Quebec City! Land of really hard French and devoutly Catholic French-Canadians. PRAY FOR ME! Ha ha. My new companion will be Sister Orozco, who coincidentally was Sister Varela's companion in the MTC, trained by none other than Sister Landeen, MY MTC companion! Small world! I'll have some big shoes to fill in that area. 

So this week was FAB-U-LOUS! I had my first baptism this week and it could not have been more perfect. We baptized a nine-year-old boy in the ward whose Mom recently started coming back to church after nine years. He is the sweetest and most brilliant kid. It was a wonderful day for everyone. I'm really proud of his decision, and I couldn't help but feel a little emotional realizing that I won't be able to see my little baby Lily get baptized. My companion and I sang the "I like to look for rainbows" song, which was by far my favorite as a kid. Very tender. Overall a wonderful day! 

After the baptism we went out on a "date" with my favorite investigator Vince. We went and got Thai food and the most amazing pie from a place called Rockaberry's. He really is such a delight. We had a good heart to heart with him about all of the changes he needs to make in his life. His story is an interesting one, and he has come such a long way since the day I knocked his door. I'm really sad to be leaving him, and he was very distraught all throughout sacrament meeting when I told him I was going. He has a good heart. You get very attached to people out here because you see them the way God sees them. Every time I feel like I'm not good enough because of my mistakes, I think of the way God sees all of His children, how He feels about the people we're teaching. That is a huge comfort. I love the perspective the mission gives you.

In other news... we had a contact-a-thon this week! It was the worst day of my life haha. Accosting people on the streets and on the metros ALL day! What a nightmare. I'm pretty sure the city of Montreal will want to ban missionaries after what we put everyone through. It was a fun day though. We knocked on a 90 year old Greek woman's door and got stuck in her house for a full hour. And she only spoke Greek. Ha ha I honestly had no idea what to do with myself. I was also hit on by a beautiful Tunisian man... sigh. I'm a missionary! I'm a missionary! If it's meant to be, I'll find him after the mission, right? I also got to drive a car for the first time since I left on my mission. WHAT A TRIP! I went on splits with the Sister Training Leader and she doesn't know how to drive, so I got to wreak havoc in Montreal with my driving skills. That will NEVER happen again. Ha ha I thought I was going to die! There may or may not be a dent in the side of her car now, but that's for me to know and for the new mission president to never find out... ;)

This morning we went to the Botanical Gardens for my last P-Day in Montreal. Sooooo gorgeous! We went with my FAVORITE young couple in the ward. Aaah. I'm going to miss them so much. They really are so wonderful and my mission would not be the same without them. I long for the day that I can visit Montreal as a non-missionary and finally get the chance to hold their beautiful baby... sigh... one day. Mission rules are tough! I will miss the Montreal ward so much! This weekend has definitely been bitter-sweet. Plenty of tears, but it's time for me to move on to a new place and stretch myself. Quebec City will be quite the adventure!

Well, I hope everyone has a fabulous week! HUGE SHOUT OUT to Jake and K.Lani this week! Congratulations on the big day! I hope everything goes well and that your wedding is FABULOUS! I have the invite hanging up above my desk and I am just soooo thrilled! Beautiful couple. Beautiful future babies. Can't wait! So sad I can't be there, but I'll be thinking about you all day! Anyway, I hope that summer is treating everyone well and that you are all soaking up the beautiful summer days! I know I am. Peace and blessings! Love you and miss you all! The next time you hear from me I will be a true Quebecoise... can't wait!

Love,

Sister Cutler

Adventures of Claudia and Haseem

Hello, my little angels! How is everyone doing in #merica? Are you all having barbecues and picnics without me? Gosh, summer makes me TRUUUUUNKY! And this unbearably hot weather makes me miss the good old days at DT pool with family and friends. Ugh. #childhood #nostalgia. Alright. Enough with the #hashtags. I hope you all had a great week! Things are getting crazy over here in my neck of the woods. The Jazz Festival should be starting this month, along with a million other random summer festivities. Here's to praying I won't get transferred out of Montreal next week! Things are just about to get good!

Okay, so this week compy and I had some pretty fantastic adventures. We walked so much that by the end of each day it looked like I had elephantitis. Then again, maybe my swollen feet and ankles are a side effect of Nutella overdosing, but I'm going to just go ahead and claim that it's because I'm walking my fanny off out here, eh? Anyway. Today I'd like to fill you in on a little slice of drama I like to call, "The Forbidden Romance of Claudia and Haseem." (Sorry, I've read waaaay too many romance novels.) This all started about five weeks ago before Sister Foniciello left. One afternoon I get this giddy call from a 70 year old woman who is an eternal less active. On a good day with Claudia she'll sit perched in her bed with pillows and cry, "Show me where to put the needle, Sista Cutlaaaa! I want to die with MERCYYYYY!" And she'll wail and moan and I'll just sit there reading her scriptures to no avail. And that's on a good day. So imagine my surprise when she tells me that all of my prayers are finally working, because, "Ohhhh girlll, God has sent me a new little angelll!" So I took Sister Varela to see my sweet little Claudia the next week. Are you ready for a miracle? In just one week a woman who was completely bed-ridden and on the verge of dying from a crippling disease she calls "the numbness" was suddenly flitting around the house in a new, glossy black wig and bright red lipstick. What do you think of that? Miracles all around! She informed me that a 50 year old man responded to her ad on craigstlist for a caretaker, and he was "the best thing since honky tonk and hillbilly music!" I was DYING to meet said gentleman. So I'm thinking, oh, cute middle aged man that is helping Claudia around the house. Imagine my surprise when in walks a tall, dark, handsome, shy, and mysterious rogue who couldn't possibly be more than thirty. This beautiful, beautiful man's name is Haseem. I was started to get suspicious of Claudia, but I let it go. The next week I go back Claudia is all in a tizzy, giggling and smacking me repeatedly when I walked in, not saying a word but squealing and hanging onto me with delight, pointing to her beloved Haseem. She quickly ushers us into her room and shyly asks, "Girlll, do you find him attractive?" And I'm like, "Claudia...um... do you... LIKE Haseem?" And she just sits back cackling and nodding her head "YES" so hard that her wig nearly slipped off. And I'm like, Oh boy. There's a COUGAR in Cote-St-Luc! She's climbin in your windows, snatchin your people up. So hide your kids, hide your wife, and hide your husband. I thought nothing would come of her little crush until the NEXT week I go back and find out that he has been writing her bizarre love letters. Like, seriously? Who IS this guy? He refers to her as his "little hillbilly girl." LOL. Soooo sketch, but I'm thinking, "Hey Claudia deserves to have true love as much as the next 70 year old woman." So imagine my despair when I get an emergency phone call the next week because "the numbness" has taken a hold of her again. Turns out Haseem was leaving her. Emergency, my elephantitis-ridden foot! For the better part of an afternoon we sat there while she cried and dictated her final letter to Haseem, screaming, "YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO MAKE ME STOP LOVING YOU, SIR!" Apparently he's leaving her because she's been telling everyone he's schizophrenic, which she claims isn't true but I know for a fact IS true because for the past month she has been telling me that he IS a schizophrenic. And I'm thinking, "Why the heck do you want him to stay with you if you think he's crazy?" Anyway. That's the bizarre love triangle of Sister Cutler and Claudia and Haseem. Ha ha just kidding. I'm merely a spectator. But if he wasn't schizophrenic and in love with a 70 year old woman and if I wasn't a sister missionary, things would be different. ;)

This week was really great! Lots of drama, so I was happy. Perverts still perving, but we're used to it. The best pervert moment of the week:

Pervert: Yooooooo. How you doin, gorgeous?

Me: What do you want?

Pervert: So like, ughhhh... how many husbands do you have? Huh huh huh...

Me: Oh man, like ten.

Pervert: Whoa... like seriously?

Me: No, you idiot. If that's how polygamy worked I would have disbanded to the FLDS church LOOOOONG ago.

Ha ha I crack myself up. But my street smarts are improving! (I hope, anyway.) I hope everyone is doing well though! It sounds like summer is lifting everyone's spirits. We got caught in a torrential down-pour on the way home the other night, which was fantastic. Sister Varela and I ran through the rain singing, "Coming Clean" by Hillary Duff. Good times! I will definitely send pictures. Anyway, I hope you all have a great week! I am loving every single minute out here in this beautiful city! Missions are so fantastic. I wouldn't have it any other way right now! I love you all and miss you even more! Have a glorious week! 

Love,

S-Cut

The Apocalypse

Hello, loved ones! How is everybody doing? I'm missing you all terribly over here in rainy Montreal. This week felt like the end of days. There was an earthquake that I'm going to claim I could feel, and as a result the water supply for the whole city was tainted. I'm blaming the Mafia though and not some tiny earthquake for the fact that I had to pay two dollars for the last bottle of crappy Dasani water at the store. Oh well, at least I survived! Anyway, I hope everyone has a pleasant Memorial Day! I'm sad I can't visit graves with family today, but I'm thinking of you all. To start things off, I would just like to give a HUGE SHOUT OUT to Grammy Nelson for sending me the most delightful package! It's a good thing I don't have a car out here, because I'm pretty sure I ate ten pounds of candy this weekend. Oh well, c'est la vie! Nevertheless, THANK YOU! Also, SHOUT OUT to my favorite Aunt Shannon for sending me my FAVE cereal! Sweet heavens. My companion was like, "Candy, for breakfast?" And I was like, "It's not candy, it's Reese's Puff Cereal!" Ha ha, je l'aime! Childhood flashbacks abounded this week. I literally cried tears of joy I was so happy. So THANK YOU! I feel so loved this week. 

So my life is pretty much crazy right now. Ha ha I don't think you would belieb half the things that happen to me out here. And to be honest, you would probably fear for my safety if I divulged some of the creepy encounters I've had, but I'll tell you some of my favorites. My number one was getting serenaded in the metros by a filthy homeless man on crack. He says to me, "Has anyone ever told you that you're beautiful?" And I was like, "No, never." And then he just jumps up and yells, "WHAT?!" screams a few profanities, and then proceeds to sing, "You... are.. so beautiful.... to meeee!" I cannot even begin to tell you how happy and embarrassed that made me. He then grabbed my hand and pulled me WAY too close. I was like... "Uhhh... I have to get off at this stop... and he's like, "Not before I give you a kiss!" Aaaand before any of you start to worry, he kissed my hand and let me free. So fabulous. That day I was grateful for hand sanitizer, to be sure. 

Last night we found another gem. Compy and I were out street contacting when we ran into a friendly Jewish man. He just kept saying, "Wow, you girls sure are beautiful. Why don't you have boyfriends?" And I was thinking, "Aside from the fact that I'm like the ICE QUEEN of the universe and a bra burning feminist, that's a very good question." LOL. He's going to set me up with his 30 year old son who's a lawyer. I kid you not, this offer was legit. He showed me pics and everything. I'm seriously STOKED! He told us we would make terrific wives. My eyes rolled so far into the back of my head that I thought they would get stuck there. Still, every Mormon girl's DREAM is to hear that, so I feel fulfilled. Ha ha in all honesty, I really did find this old man quite charming. At least he wasn't yelling profanities at us or telling us we were brain washed, schizophrenic, Bible hugging Jehovah's Witnesses (all of which I heard this week), so I'm totally game to marry his man treat Jewish lawyer son. 

This week was so, so great! We had the CUTEST girl from the Chinese branch serve with us as a mini missionary for four days. Such a gem! She made us sushi and bought us Chinese food from a sketch Chinese restaurant by our house. We were in heaven! I wouldn't mind keeping her around. ;) We also got to take her to zone conference this week, which to a missionary is seriously better than Christmas. In the morning Sister Cannon met us all for breakfast at a charming cafe. We're pretty decadent here in the CMM. :) I ordered the most heavenly raspberry sorbet. And you know me, I just loooove eating sorbet. Needless to say, zone conference was paradise for Sister Cutler. I got to make up for a month of elderless P-Days and flirt to my heart's content, so I'd say it was a success. Oh yeah, and the trainings were pretty great too. ;)

We had a challenging week, often getting caught in the rain, but coming home drenched, exhausted, and sketched out by metro urchans telling you that they're Jesus makes you feel like a true missionary. We had so many tender mercies this week though, so I feel truly blessed. Yesterday my favorite French family in the ward invited us over for Sunday gauffres, so I had my fill of Nutella and happy French chatter that I could only understand when their sweet girls said, "One Direction" or "Zane" or "Justin Bieber."

So far V-Day has been FABULOUS! Sister Varella and I went to walk around Old Montreal and Old Port today. The sun is finally out and I got to get my tourist on! We got maple ice cream and had a ball taking pictures. Now we're going to go home and hopefully do some much needed relaxing. I love you all SOOOOO much! I hope everyone is having a glorious day! Enjoy summer/spring/whatever you're having! Big hugs!

Love,

Sister Syl

The Week That Was

Bonjourrr! Hello lovers and friends! Did you miss me? Now, before you get yourselves all worked up, let me just dispel any rumors that I was abducted by a group of tall, dark, and scruffy maple syrup guzzling hockey players in the metro. Actually, maybe I'll just stick to that story... the alternative is not nearly as glamorous. Truth be told, last P-Day I was stranded in my apartment with a sick greenie, a couple boxes of Mac & Cheese, and a copy of Legacy to keep me entertained. PARTAY! I actually did manage though in the midst of all of this to smuggle four elders into our apartment, so I'd say my "elderless" P-Day was still a success! Scandalous, I know. Ha ha no, my sweet little compy needed a blessing, and they ended up leaving their man stink behind for the rest of the day, so it wasn't as exciting as it sounds. I hope everyone had a great couple of weeks! Mother's Day was a dream... talking to my family gave me a new lease on life. Seriously, the best.

So this week was hoppin. I honestly don't even know where to begin or what would even interest people because I feel like I live on a different planet! Aaah. Okay, so first of all, I had a premonition. A few nights ago I woke from the strangest dream. The following morning as I was "exercising" I  told compy that I had a dream that I was pregnant, and I was like, "Seriously, what am I supposed to make of this?" And she's like, "You have GOT to be kidding me... my companion is losing it." Well, it turns out I'm more in tune with things than people give me credit for. I'm having a baby! Ha ha I tease, I tease. But later that day I found out that we're getting a mini missionary this week! So I'm taking that as a sign from the universe. Pretty cool, eh? We have a cute girl from the Chinese branch coming to serve with us for the next few days. Wish me luck! We're excited.

In other news, I am currently teaching a Jehovah's Witness who is Greek and gorgeous but TOTALLY off limits. For several reasons, obviously. But it's still fun, nevertheless. My investigators are seriously the coolest people! This week my fave investigator bought us Italian food, and last week he rented Million Dollar Baby, Taken, and Mercy for us to watch. I was so heartbroken when I had to tell him that this was WAY off limits. But then I was like, "What on earth made you think we would want to watch Taken anyway?" And he's like, "I was trying to send you girls a message so that you would stop going on the metros and going to dangerous areas at night." Ha ha. Like that'll ever happen. I live and BREATHE the soft stench of the metros! Wouldn't have it any other way. Yesterday Sister Varela and I were harassed by a couple of guys when we were out after dark, but they were obviously high and obviously in need of the gospel. He told me he wanted me to be his personal mentor. Lately we've been running into men who want to meet with either me alone or Sister Varela alone, and to be honest, I'm tired of all the dates. I am seriously going to have no patience for dating once I get home if it keeps on being this way.

Other than that, our week went soooo well! We met and exceeded some of our goals, so today we're treating ourselves to frozen yogurt. I haven't had frozen yogurt since I left Utah, so I'm out of my mind excited. Normally I managed to get free frozen yogurt a few times a week back home when I went on dates, so now I'm going to have to pay for myself. New experiences happening everyday out here, that's for sure. Ha ha last Saturday we also got to go party at the mission home for Phillipino family home evening. MY FAVE! Phillipinos are obviously my favorite people out here. This morning I also decided to do service for P-day. The Mormons and the Jews and the HIndus in the area teamed up for an Inter-Faith Eco-Action project for Victoria Day, so I spent the better part of the morning picking up cigarette butts and saving them for later. Can't wait! Ha ha but really, this community is the best. I can't get enough of the diversity out here! I'm loving every minute with this crazy bunch.

I hope everyone is doing well and having a glorious week! Soak up the sun or rain or whatever it is you're having! Go watch The Great Gatsby or Star Trek in my honor. I will try to remain happy with The Joseph Smith Movie or The Testaments. Mmmm... love me some steamy Nephite! If anyone wants to send me the Emma Smith movie, I will love you forever. God bless you all! Sending all of my love and joy your way!

Love,

Sylvia

The Lusty Month of May

It's May... it's May... the LLLUSTY month of May! Tee hee! Hello everyone! My dearest, dearest family and friends! How the heck is everyone? Wow. I seriously think this was the longest week of my life! So much has happened. One minute it was winter, the next it was spring, and now suddenly it's summer! Serious mood swings with the weather out here. Montreal is PMSing worse than a poser punk rock group right now, but I looove it! The days are gorgeous and I am slowly but surely turning into a leathery old lobster. Tres, tres chic! I hope you are all enjoying very fine weather. Soak up the sun! #cherylcrow

So this week was ever so hectic, but I've totally got my groove on again. Last P-Day was SUCH A FUN DAY! Seeing as P-Day has now become a "girls only" club, Sister Foniciello and I decided to shed some Nutella and hike Mont Royal with a couple of my favorite chicas on the mission. Oh my, it was GORGEOUS! I desperately needed to be out in nature for a change after this long winter. Montreal is seriously the coolest. Who can say "let's go downtown for a hike?" In the middle of the city? Montreal is my place, I tell you. I miss my canyons and mountains like you wouldn't believe, but Montreal hasn't let me down just yet. After the hike I was able to see my favorite cousin Joe and his girlfriend. (Sorry cousins, maybe if you come to Montreal and take me to get Vietnamese food you can be added to the favorites list too.) It was seriously CRAZY to see someone I knew from my former life! Definitely brought me to tears, but let's not talk about what a huge baby I've become on my mission. Anyway. It was tons of fun, so SHOUT OUT to Joe and Priscilla for showing my companion and me a good time in Montreal!

Things got a little sad later in the week as I said farewell to my little fledgling Sister Foniciello. I'm going to miss my honey bunches baby cakes, but she has amazing things in store for her in Quebec! My new little greenie is Sister Varela from Riverton, UT, and she is absolutely phenomenal! Ha, she's probably teaching me more than I'm teaching her. I am so blessed! I took her for her first poutine this week, so she is now fully initiated into the CMM. I also took her for her first metro contacting experience soon after, and I would say it went quite well. We were talking to these adorable Chinese girls about sushi... I mean.. about the gospel... in the metro, and what do you think happened? No, they didn't agree to come to church. But! This girl just reaches into her bag and gives us a whole tray of sushi! Like, seriously? Who does that? And on the metro, no less. So not going to lie, I'd say my companion had a fabulous first day here in Montreal. 

Yesterday I had a creeper-ific experience at church. Some elders in the ward have a new investigator that really digs sister missionaries. He's quite the character, and quite too middle-aged for me as well. However, he was bold enough to ask me if I had a fiancé waiting for me back home, to which I was like, "Uhhh... should I lie and say that I do just so we can end this awkward conversation before it gets started?" But of course I told the truth, because, well, I'm a missionary. And then he started talking about how he would love to date me if he ever joined the church, that he already had five kids but that he wanted to start over and have a new family with a young wife. And I was like... "That's okay. I'd rather live in a cat infested shack. Thanks though!" Ha ha. Too, too funny. I love when awkward stuff like that happens.

Well, I hope everyone had a great week! We are killing it out here and working our bootays off! Seriously, my new companion is tons of fun. I'm excited to see what the next few weeks bring! We're just bible bashing around with TJs (Jehovah's Witnesses) and loving every minute in this crazy town! Also, SHOUT OUT to my girl Stiners! I hope your birthday was fabulous! You are so, so loved. I hope you're reading this... but if not, someone tell her HAPPY 20th for me! Anyway, I hope everyone is doing so great! Peace and blessing to you all! Enjoy the spring. Big loves and big kisses! 

Love,

Sylvia