General Conference!!!

Hello family and friends!

Ok, Im gonna get the news out of the way so you dont worry! 

I am fine. Tuesday morning we got a call from President saying that Hna Perez was going to be transferred to another area. I didnt think my prayers would be answered so fast! Thank goodness. So by noon we were in Viña, exchanging companions. Hna Perez went to Quilpué Centro with an ex-Sister Training Leader. And I got a new companion! Her name is Hermana Call, and YES she is gringa! And she is from COLORADO! Colorado Springs. She's 22 and has 13 months in the mission. :) She went to BYU Idaho but recently transferred to BYU and will go there when she gets back from the mish! She loves Harry Potter and She's the Man, and 17 Again, and all of my favorites. We have had an awesome week, and General Conference just topped it all off! :)

Last Monday was a horrible day, but after emailing you guys, I felt a lot better. And what made it even better was that Cinthia Gallegos and Milsy came to El Plan to go shopping with us! They bought me new shoes cuz they couldnt stand me wearing those old ones anymore. haha. And we also went out for ice cream. Milsy even skipped school to make my day better! Do I have the best convert and returned less active? Yes, I do. I am so grateful for them and for all the love they give me when I am so far from home. They were an answer to many prayers. :)

This week I have seen how much my Heavenly Father loves me. SO MUCH. Sometimes I am just ignorant, and sometimes I just take it for granted. But I really am grateful and I recognize all that He has given me. I am so blessed.

OH! And also, just so you guys dont worry, the tsunami was in the north of Chile. The sirens went off in all the coasts of Chile, and we heard them go off Tuesday night, but we are absolutely fine up here in Playa Ancha - a wave would never reach here. An earthquake could reach here though, so we are prepared for that. :) 

So, as for the work this week - we found a TON of new investigators and its been lots of fun with Hna Call. We finally got a hold of Oriana from the Solis Castro family - we got to teach her the basics again - the Book of Mormon. We also found an antiguo investigator, Ricardo, who has read each of the BoM, Bible, D&C, Pearl of Great Price, Jesus the Christ, etc more than 6 times! He KNOWS its all true but he says that he is not worthy enough to get baptized. Numberless missionaries have tried to get him to see why he needs to get baptized - and we are the next to come! Its really sad how he thinks so low of himself... he really is such a great person.

We also got serenaded in the street by a dude who composes music and lyrics about aliens. Resisting laughter was one of the most difficult things I have ever done. 

Oh! And I threw up. Just because we got like 3 Onces given to us and then we had to book it up a steep hill, and there was a lot of other stressful things going on. But despite all of that, it was a good night, and I got a blessing from my zone leader. I am so very grateful for the Priesthood and for the love that God has for me (and for all of you!).

When we were in Valpo for the General Conference, we did some contacting inbetween sessions. I saw a colectivo from Recreo and stopped to talk and we contacted him and he told me that he remembered me from Recreo! (I used to wave to all the colectivos passing by.) And he said, "All of us colectivo drivers from Recreo really miss you! You need to come back to Recreo!" Wow - that was more than 6 months ago! I love Recreo.

And now for the best part - General Conference. I got to watch everything (including the Women's conference) in English, with all the other gringos. We had lots of fun and were blown away by the talks. They were absolutely amazing. I went into Conference weekend with a list of questions and doubts - and came out with every question and doubt answered. Pure miracles, let me tell you. 

Some of my favorite talks were by Eyring, Holland (the Kracken), Andersen, Uchtdorf, Bednar, Perry, Monson, and Corbridge.

I like this quote from Holland: "YES IT IS WORTH IT." and "Defend your beliefs with courtesy and compassion, but DEFEND THEM! Take heart - Christlike love can change the world!" "WWJD will not always bring a popular response." And from Uchtdort: There is one thing we can do to take away bitterness in our life: Gratitude."

Really, all of the talks were absolutely amazing and inspired. I wish I had hours to converse everything that I learned. :)

I hope you guys all enjoyed Conference - Im excited to reread the talks when they come out in the Liahona. :)

Thank you for all your prayers and all your love - it means so much to me, and I know that God listens.

I love you all so much!

Hermana Amy Schrader

SIGH

Hello family and friends -

What an insane week.

I honestly don't have much to say. 

Well, as for the missionary work, we have some new investigators, which is good. Marcela, my recent convert, gave the closing prayer in Sacrament Meeting yesterday! I was so proud. She was so nervous. :) She is a very strong woman! 

Brandon, Milsy's brother, told us that he was interested in getting baptized! We were so happy, and so was he, so we started to talk a little bit about it. My companion got a little ahead of the game and he got scared off. :( So now he's back to square 1 and does't believe in God. Sigh.

Everytime we try to leave that house, little Vania grabs my bag and runs upstairs with it so I can't leave. hahaha. So cute.

We had a meeting with our new mission leader, Hno Gallegos, and he's awesome. We are an unstoppable team for sure. :)

Other than all that, there are some huge problems going on with my comp. And all I can say about it is that I called President and we had interviews with him yesterday. I dont know if she is going to be transferred to another area, or if she is going to go home. It will all be decided by President. SIGH. For that very reason, this week has been stressful, I haven't slept well, and I am sick to my stomach. But honestly, Ill be fine, because I trust President. He will make the best decision. 

I didnt really want to leave the email on that note - lol so please don't worry about me! 

Quote for the week: "The truth will set you free."

Love you all so much! Enjoy your week! 

Hermana Amy Schrader

Special Dates

Hello family and friends!

Well, you may be wondering why I put the title, "Special Dates." Haha just because there were a lot of important dates this week that passed or that were set. Like, for example, I passed my 15 month mark on Wednesday! Also, we put a SEALING date with our new converts, the Espinosa family! Their goal is March 16, 2015 to be sealed in the temple!!! How cool is that?! Im so happy. Also, we set a baptismal date with Sebastian! We will be working toward April 13th with him! He is super excited to go to General Conference - this guy is awesome.

We had an awesome zone conference with President Kahnlein this week! He came to Edwards and was just with our zone for a day. We learned a TON and had lunch with him and his wife, and it was exactly what we all needed. I love President! We also had a "practice" for emergencies, because there have been a lot of "temblores" lately, which is technically an earthquake but suuper tiny so they just call it a tremble. There are lots going on up in the north of Chile, and down here in Valpo we have felt maybe 3. But I love the temblores! Theyre super exciting! Not lookin forward to any earthquakes, but we are prepared just in case! :) haha

Funny things that happened this week: 6 year old Vania always holds on to me when we go to their house, and never lets me go. Cinthis (her mom) asked why she liked me so much and she said, "Oh, she just has that special touch." haha She wants me to come live with them forever.. but I dont think i could deal with being so far from my family for so long! haha. Also, we met with a less active named Lila that spent some years with the Evangelical church - her prayer to end the lesson was about 10 minutes long and every other word she said was "Papito mío" "Mi Dios TODOpoderoso!" and "Dios mío de la gloria". Haha we had trouble not bursting out in laughter (cuz thats super disrespectful!) But at least we can say it was entertaining... :)

We had English classes this week that one of the gringo elders teaches - it was tons of fun! Man, we have the best Elders. 

We also have a new branch mission leader! I dont remember if I already mentioned this last week - but he is the branch president that just got released and is now our mission leader, and he really has some good plans for our missionary work. We are super excited to work with him! He is inspiring.

We also found a new less active family, and missionaries havent visited them for 10 YEARS. They must have gotten lost inbetween the area limits and no one has found them. But Im glad we finally did because they are an awesome family and really need our help! Yessss

Other than all that it was a little bit of a difficult week haha. There are always the high points and the low points, but we gotta stay positive, right? Focus on the happy times? Heck yes, thats what Im all about. :) "Everyday's a good day to have a good day!" :)

For the thought of the day, I like this quote, "The Lord wouldnt ask it of us if we couldn't do it." The mission is hard, LIFE is hard, but it's not impossible. God wouldn't give us trials we wouldnt be able to overcome. He knows our hearts, our capability, and most importantly, our potential. We only fail if our trails do not make us stronger in the end. And trust me - EVERYONE has trials - you're not alone. Its the only way we will become our best selves, what God wants us to be. :) 

So, everyone, "Speak TRUTH even if your voice shakes." :)

Love you all! Have a great week! Miss you!

Hermana Amy Schrader

P.S. - me and my comp :)

New Comp!!

Heyyy everyone :)

SO if you're all wondering what the big news is - cambios did happen, and I am still in my area - which is now called Levarte - but I have a new companion! My old companion, Hermana Oliva, went to Aguasanta - right next to Recreo! It's really close by. And my new companion is Hermana Pérez! We were in the same zone for almost 5 months! She was in Aguasanta when I was in Recreo! So in the cambios meeting when they called our names together, we looked at each other like, YES! haha. Well, just a bit about her -´ she is from El Salvador, shes 20 (today is her birthday!), she has 10 months in the mission, and she likes to laugh. :) So we are gonna tear it up here in Levarte! 

Other news:  Marcela and Natalia (Espinosa) got confirmed yesterday! It went super well, they are so involved in the church - going to activities and meetings and stuff like that. :) ITs funny cuz Marcela is pregnant (did I mention that?) and is due June 4th- the day AFTER I leave. haha. But hey, maybe he'll be early.

We also got a new branch mission leader - the ex-branch president - Presidente Gallegos! He's really cool, so we are going to have a lot of success with him. :) 

Milsy, my convert and bff in Chile, is totally awesome and brought a friend to church! And she was so excited to introduce me to her. :) Shes so cool.

We also had intercambios (exchanges) this week, and I stayed in my sector with Hna Zimmerman again, and it was awesome cuz we did service - HUGE piles of wood that we carried down a million flights of stairs. For 2 hours. By the end, we were dying and super sore, but all the neighbors were smiling and offering us water and thanking us - we were planting some good seeds to baptize the whole street! haha. But yeah, it was a lot of fun. 

This week we have a zone conference with President, and itll be great.

Our investigators that we are focusing on this week are Brandon Silva, Eldrans and Sebastian, and the Solis Castro family. :) 

Well, its getting colder here in Chile (noooooo!) and we are pullin out the coats and gloves. Didnt think fall would come so quickly, but here it is. :( 

Haha but I had a great week and learned a ton, and hope you guys did the same. 

Yesterday we learned a lot about the Sacrament, and it really is a special time, the most special of all the meetings in the church. If theres any way you can improve the time you spend during the Sacrament, do it! I will too. 

Have a great week!

Love you all,

Hermana Amy Schrader

BAPTISMS!!!

Family and Friends!

I just had the most incredible week!

We worked the whole week preparing the Espinosa family! And they got baptized!!!!! Marcela and Natalia! They are so adorable and I love them so much! They feel so happy and light and full of love and understanding and they are just such an example to their family! 

The baptism was beautiful - we were running around like chickens with their head cut off - but the font water was the perfect temperature and everything worked out! I was the only one to realize that the Elder who baptized Natalia raised his left arm instead of his right - so I had to tell someone to tell the witnesses and then we told the Elder to do it over again right, and it was perfect! It all worked out, we sang a special number, and MAN it was incredible. We went to their house after the baptism for a birthday party (it was Natalias 12th birthday!) and hearing their testimonies....was incredible.

We had lots of awesome things happen this week, and im so sorry that i dont have time to write! But I PROMISE to write more next week!

LOVE YOU ALL and thanks for everything. :)

HErmana Amy Schrader

1 Year in Chile!

Hello!

I just completed 1 year in Chile on the 26th of February. :) Yayyy! 

This week they changed the limits of our branch for the missionaries. We lost all of Porvenir Bajo (the dangerous part) and they gave it to the Elders, and then gave us a chunk of Cerro Alegre, and also of Gran Bretaña. Woohoo! New land to cover.

We had an awesome week this week! The sad part was that Solis Castro was on vacation and havent gotten back yet. BUT we found new investigators and new less actives, and its been a great week. WE found this old couple that are sooo adorable and actually read what we gave them in the street of the Book of Mormon! We just thought the whole time, If we could only help them get to the temple! Ah that would be so cute. So thats our goal with them. 

We found a new inactive, who wants her sons to have the gospel now, so we are teaching her sons!
We had an encounter with some Jehovahs Witnesses, but it went over well.

Church yesterday was AWESOME! Wanna know why? Cuz President Kahnlein was there, and we got a new branch president, AND our new family came to church!

This family is a blessing and a miracle for us - the Espinoza family. They went to church down in Edwards and the Elders met once with them and set a baptismal date for the mom and daughter, who are nonmembers. The dad is a less active who just decided to bring his family to church after like 12 years of being inactive! So then, since the limits of our proselyting areas just got changed, the family became OURS to teach!!! They are getting baptized this Sunday, right before trasnfers! CAn you believe it?! It is an answer to our prayers and all our hard work. I knowww so much that God loves us and wants to bless us and knows our hearts so deeply. This is what we have been waiting for, and praying for, and working for. I know that this family was waiting for us, and that it was meant to be this way! Everything happens for a reason, and God knows all the reasons. I am so grateful for this miracle family!

And I am so excited for this upcoming week. Lets just pray that everything goes smoothly! Yes? YES! 

Thank you soooo much for all your love and support. I love you guys and will see you later!

Miss you all!

Hermana Amy Schrader

The Big Branch

Hello Everyone :)

Happy ... end of February! Cant believe it's almost March... This is madness. Speaking of madness, how's basketball lookin for this year? Anyone know who's gonna win? :) 

Well I had a great week. Me and my comp just had so much fun. Last Monday we went on a tour of Valparaíso with Mariana (a member) and two less active young women! We got to see the sights, and lots of tourists, and art, and old buildings and prisons...and the ocean! It was gorgeous. We also went down an "ascensor". Super old and super fun!

We have also been teaching the Solis Castro family a lot, and they are progressing! They need a little more time than we thought to receive their own testimonies... but slow progress is still progress. And I love that family to pieces!

We had intercambios (exchanges?) this week, and I went to my old area, Placilla, again! I was with Hermana Siler, who is the sweetest person ever, who's from Logan, Utah. We got to be up in the Laguna area, which is almost exactly like the USA except that they speak Spanish. The neighborhood was gorgeous and full of green grass and golden retrievers. :) My paradise. We then got lost in a ditch and emerged into a construction site with thorns all over our clothes - but it was an adventure that we laughed about and will never forget. :) I learned so much and I am so glad for that opportunity to be with Hermana Siler for a day! I have so many goals for the rest of my mission and theyre gonna happen.

We had our last Mission Correlation meeting with Hermano Encina - LOVE THAT GUY! And with our Elders (Pichinte and Ault). We shared stories and food like usual and talked about our investigators. I will really miss that guy! He is now technically in the Quebrada Verde branch, so we will have to get a new mission leader in our Levarte branch.

Yesterday, we saw the big boom of the double branch! Church was packed with people happy and smiling - so obedient to the call to join branches. There were also less actives that came! I was very impressed. I love my branch!

We are working on finding new investigators a lot, because the ones we have currently are continuing to progress or fizzling out. Like Veronica and Lydia. They let us in when we want, but...they dont do anything else, and are not receptive at all. :( Maybe in the future.

Can I just say how much I love my convert? Milsy? She is the coolest convert anyone could ever have. She goes to everything and is so happy and just....amazing. I love her so much! We are BFFs. :)

Well, its been a good week. And another good week is ahead - that's what we pray for. :) I hope you all have a good week too! 

Quote for the week:

"I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I must go until He comes, give until I drop, preach until ALL know, and work until He stops me. And when He returns for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me. My banner will be clear. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ."  That goes along really well with Romans 1:16. :)

Love you all! Have a great week!

Hermana Amy Schrader

District Conference Suprizes

Heyy everyone! Family and friends!

We had a District Conference this weekend, and our district, of Playa Ancha, which is not big enough to be a stake, is being condensed to help the growth of our branches! SO - big news. They are taking out a section of our boundaries and putting them with Quebrada Verde! BUT they are adding ALL of Gran Bretaña to Miramar, and renaming it Levarte. So we will have 3 sets of missionaries in our branch! And we went from 5 branches into 3. Because there are 4000 members in Playa Ancha, but only 300 are active. Sad, right? Time to help the vineyard grow, right? So many promises were made to our district, and we know miracles will happen! So excited for this change!

What else.... oh! I lost my camera!!! Well, I didnt lose it. It was stolen from me. As I was getting on the bus, someone unzipped my bag and stole my camera. I was super mad at first, mostly cuz I felt stupid for not noticing when he stole it. But ... there was nothing I could do, apparently it happens to everyone - especially American girls. So. Maybe Ill buy a cheap one for my last 4ish months. :( Idk.  Why do people have to steal? :(

Anyway - big successes with the Solis Castro family! They are progressing like crazy! We watched the Joseph Smith movie and they have a strong testimony. Jocelyn received what we think is an answer, and she told us everything. We are so excited for them! We know they will be baptized! They are too amazing not to!

And.... Cecilia is progressing too! 

Too bad I dont have any more time to write... Im sorry! When I get home Ill be telling my stories for weeks - you're all welcome to my house for storytime. :)

BUT Happy VAlentine's Day! Hope you all had a good one, and that you all have a good week!

LOVE YOU ALL!

Hermana Amy Schrader

Interesting Week

Hello everyone,

FIRST OF ALL - Happy Birthday Mom!!!! Youre the best mom in the world. I love you so much and dont know what i would do without you. I miss your hugs and your comforting words. I cant wait to see you and hug you again! I love so much!

Well, this week was interesting. It had its good moments, but for the most part... well, let's just say it was a low week. First of all, the Broncos lost the Superbowl. haha I wasn't too upset cuz I didnt get to see any of the games and this year I obviously wasn't into it at all. Nobody watches football here. Anyway, my zone leader is a Seahawks fan and he was sooo happy last Monday when he found out. He had fun rubbing it in my face. haha. I honestly didnt mind, especially since it was his birthday!

But back to the mission - some of our investigators have hit some ruts. Manuel, for one, is not progressing at all and doesn't keep his commitments :(  so we probably won't pass by as much. The same with Melissa. We had a lesson with her last night and she has some trouble with the 10 Commandments, and she told us she doesnt feel prepared for baptism. We got to the bottom of it all, and understood. She also was not keeping any commitments and isnt willing to change just yet. But Im sure she'll get baptized in the future. Its just not her time. But we also will be passing by every once in a while.

Veronica and Lydia are... so-so. We are not going to drop them, but we are going to work extra hard for them. They are an amazing family but in some things aren't willing to change either. We will see what happens with them.

We passed by Leticia! She was sad that we hadn't gone to see her in a while (we were surprised she remembered). It was great to see her again, even though nothing has changed.

Alright. Enough of this sad news. Here's the good stuff!

The SOLIS-CASTRO family CAME TO CHURCH! All 3 hours. Jocelyn, Oriana, and Sebastian! They were super calm and listened intently to everything. They were lucky cuz this Sunday, the youth of the branch gave their testimonies on EFY!!! Their testimonies were super powerful and really brought the spirit in Sacrament meeting.

Javier also came! He was super touched by the testimonies of the youth, and really enjoyed the Sacrament meeting. It was great to see him, and it's great to see him progress, even if it's not in the ward he belongs. One day it'll happen, and it will be such a great day! But for now, its fantastic to see him come and listen and feel the spirit.

The Castillo family, who are very less active, came as well! Marcela has been getting more active lately and got called to be a Relief Society teacher! So her husband and children came to support her, and they haven't been in years. So it was awesome! We got to be there for her setting apart.

As I said before, the youth this week went to EFY (in Spanish, PFJ) and all came back with veeery high spirits and stronger testimonies! We went to visit Milsy, who was dead tired from the trip and couldnt stay awake, but she has changed so much. Its such a miracle to see a girl who just got baptized, who went to the temple a week after her baptism, and who went to EFY a couple months later! She is progressing like wildfire, and her testimony is incredible. I am so proud! haha.

Well, as we all know very well, we learn with our trials and become happier when theyre over. I know that it's true - that our trials are for our good, that we progress and become more like Christ when we are faced with difficulty. I am so grateful for the power of prayer, and for the solace of having a best friend there to talk to in every situation.

Let's hope this will be a successful week!

Thank you for all of your prayers, support, and love.

I love you all so much!

Hermana Amy Schrader

"Don't just walk in the light. BE the light."

Cambios Again

Hey everyone!

No time to write this week. But big stuff that happened: There was a fire next to the house we were having a branch mission meeting in. It was crazy! But everyones ok.

Cambios are this Wednesday! Dont know what to expect....we´ll see.

I taught the class this week at our District MEeting on personal revelation. It went super well!

ME and Hna Oliva taught the Relief Society lesson yesterday. Went well too!

Everyone thinks Hna Oliva is leaving... hmm... we will see.

Veronica and Lydia need more time, we continue to work with them, as well as the many other investigators here. I LOVE THEM ALL!

And I love you all too!

I promise Ill write more next week.

Sorry!

Love you,

Hermana Amy Schrader

Lucky Number 13

Hi everyone!
I hope you all had a great week.

Its been suuper sunny here! And hot! But the wind is still goin strong, unfortunately. haha.

Last PDay we went to the Cemetary and got to see the memorial for Omner Pratt, the son of Parley P. Pratt (first missionary in Chile), and Omner died here in Valparaiso. We had a little activity and took pics and read his story. IT was cool! We are the legacy of his missionary work in Chile!

Cambios are next Wednesday, and Im super nervous to hear the changes! I feel like Im gonna stay here but with a new companion. We shall see. Oh, and I passed my 13 month mark yesterday.

Man, we are working so hard with these investigators!!! Melissa was looking promising but lost her fecha cuz she was too tired to go to church. I know she will be baptized in the future, and its all in the Lord's timing. She is amazing and so loving. We of course are continuing to work with her. Lydia came to church on Sunday with her nephew Dilan! Veronica couldnt come cuz she was sick, but they are looking the most promising of all. :) Pray for them! :)

We had an amazing lesson with the Solis-Castro family, and the Spirit was so strong. We taught them the Plan of Salvation, and Jocelyn asked, "If I got baptized in the catholic church, could I still be baptized in yours?" Whereas before, she was suuper against changing. But we explained everything to her, and it actually turns out that she's had a couple dreams that she connects with our visits, and she feels like this is the truth. She is amazing and so spiritual! A very special person. We are so excited to work more with her. Hopefully theyll go to church this week!

We had a cool experience this week when Hna Oliva left her super expensive Americanino coat down in the quebrada (um...like..a valley type trench...i dont know how to explain it. its just super dangerous, ok? :) ) And so we went back when it was getting dark to get it back, but it was gone. Probably in the first 5 minutes of it being there, its so sketchy down there. So we asked around the area but nobody had seen it. Then we talked to this middle aged guy named Juan and asked him, and he put his head down and said, "I know who took it." He told us to go deeper into the quebrada to a guy named Eduardo. Then he saw our faces, and said, "Wait a second, Ill lock up my house and come with." So he came with us to this house that was suuuper flaite (gangster) and sketchy, where a group of gangsters were and asked for the coat. They were very nice and saw that we were missionaries and said, "Eduardo took it, he lives deeper in the quebrada. Ricardo!" Then a little 12 yr old comes out of the house and takes us to Eduardo's house and a guy on the other side of a fence down in the quebrada just throws the coat over the fence, and we walk away. And Juan and Ricardo are angels and Hna Oliva was so grateful! And we are now teaching Juan. haha.

But yeah. Dramatic story, eh?

That was pretty much my week. Quote for today: "They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." -Jesus.

We all make mistakes and we all need help. The Church is not for perfect people. Its to perfect the people. :)

Never lose patience! With yourself, and others. :)

Love you all!

Hermana Amy Schrader

Progress!

Hey everyone!

I hope you all had an awesome week this week, cuz I sure did!

We had Zone Conference, and it was INCREDIBLE. All about missionary work and the Atonement and how we all have to go through our own "Gethsemani" to get to Salvation.

We had interviews with President! Man, he is amazing. He gave me a blessing, and I am sooo grateful for him and for the Priesthood.

The news of the week is that Veronica and Lydia, our "fechas" came to church! And they LOVED it! They said its different from any other chruch theyve ever been to. Her granddaughter Monserrat got loose during sacrament meeting and went to sit up on the stand with the Branch President, who gave her some candy, cleaned her mouth with a tissue, and let her sit there with him. So. Adorable.

They are coming back next week and are loving this journey. So am I!

WE met a suuuuper cool inactive named Leo, who is an RM and has like 3 different degrees. He is also a Zumba professor. What a cool guy! In the first 5 minutes of knowing him, he looks at Hna Oliva and says, "You have the face of a Chilean southerner." And then he looked at me and said, "And you're not from Utah." Anyway, no idea how he knew but he's pretty darn cool.

Leticia officially has Alzheimers and we are dropping her, but we will pass by every once in a while. She is such a love!

Javier came to our branch yesterday! Love that guy! (In a very missionary way, dont worry.)

We had another baptismal date for this guy named Manuel, but he didnt come to church so he lost his date. :( His family is a little bit anti mormon.

We got to witness our Elders giving a blessing of health to our less actives - it was so spiritual and amazing, and that family has sooo much faith. its amazing.

Hmmmm thats all I got time for this week! Im sorry! Stay tuned for next week. Its gonna be awesome.

I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH! Enjoy your week!

Miss you!

Hermanita Amy Schrader

P.S. My condolences to my Aunt Kim for her father in law, Nelson Brinkerhoff. He is in such a happier place now. :) I love you!

Let the Games Begin - 2014

Heyyyy people!

Happy New Year! It is now 2014! Crazzyyyyy. On New Years Eve we went to have dinner with an investigator family - Solis-Castro! We had dinner and talked and told stories and had a very awesome and very spiritual New Years dinner. And then at 11 we went home to watch the fireworks! But we couldnt see from our window, so we got permission and got on the roof. I ripped my pants on a nail getting up, but hey, it was worth it! There was no ladder to climb up, so we hopped onto the trash can and some abandoned 2x4s and got up there somehow! The view was suuuper awesome and we saw the fireworks! They were AWESOME! They went allll the way up the coast, from Laguna Verde to Playa Ancha to Recreo to Viña to Reñaca to Concón to Quintero! And they went on for half an hour! The end was really nice - the finale. It looked like modern warfare! It was flashing lights and big booms - like a strobe light but with lightning... it was cool. :)

So remember last New Years, when I was in the MTC and my first memories of 2013 were my roommates throwing up? Heyyyy it happened again! I hope we dont start a tradition here. My comp had some kind of stomach flu and those are my first memories of 2014 (besides the fireworks).

We had intercambios this week! It was awesome, cuz I got to be with Hna Zimmerman again! But here in Miramar! Man, that girl is awesome. We had a great time and learned a TON! We also put 2 baptismal dates with Verónica and Lydia of the family Ulloa-Lira. Baptismal date for the 26th! Woo! We also found some suuuper old less actives who are so adorable and say that the door is always open to us. They are getting a blessing of health today for the grandpa's leg.

With my normal comp, Hna Oliva, we also found 6 new investigators, and one of them is named Ninoska. We found her in a miraculous way. We were walking up a street looking for a less active in house number 205. While looking for the house, a girl passed us. And man, we almost contacted her, but we didnt! So then we go ask some neighbors where number 205 was and one said, "i dont know, ask 2 houses down, number 223." So we asked someone else across the street and he said, "Ask across the street - number 223." So we were like, ok. So we are heading toward number 223, and the girl that we had passed earlier enters into number 223! So we stop her and talk to her and it turns out shes like practically golden! haha she is so cool. We are excited to return.

Yesterday we had Branch Council, and since it was fast Sunday and we were all starving, the Branch President brought some chips and cookies for the meeting after church. haha. Awesome. The meeting was really good too! We planned for 2014 and got some new member lists. Jackpot!

Well, this week we have interviews with President Kahnlein in our apartment! Woo! It's gonna be an awesome week. :)

Here is the quote of the week: "Not forgiving is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die." Our job as children of God is to forgive EVERYONE, no matter what. The only person that has the right to condemn someone else is God. And its the perfect way to start a new year -  with resolutions to forgive, forget, change, and become better. :)

I love you all! So much! Have a great week!

Love,

Hermana Amy Schrader

Happy New Year! Feliz Año Nuevo!

HOLA!

I hope you all had the best Christmas ever! Happy New YEar! 

I got to talk to my family on Christmas and it was the best Christmas present ever! Man, I have th best family in the world. :)

ON Christmas eve we had dinner with a family - turkey and music and eggnog and empanadas and alfajores. Loved it!

All day Chrsitmas Eve and Christmas we were running from house to house sharing the story of Christs birth and singing Christmas carols! Its was really quite lovely to help people feel the Christmas spirit adn see them smile.

Chile was hopping at night on Christmas eve! apparently Santa comes at midnight, and everyone opens presents right then! There was music and lights and dancing. It was pretty cool.

My comps birthday is the day after Christmas, so she got extra presents! haha so that was fun.

Its been really hot here lately!  love it.

A super inactive came to church! Milsy's grandma! She came! She was soooo happy to be there. Our prayers were answered and we love that family so much!

We had a big huge spiritual lesson with all the recent converts this week. We watched a video and sang and talked and shared our testimonies. It was lovely.

We have some new investigators (13 this week!), including a Jehovahs Witness. She is adorable. One of the investigators is a Catholic named Marcela, and she is amazing! she is also absolutely in love with the USA, which is cool cuz most of the time i just hear how much people dont like it. So it was really fun listening to her and how much she wants to visit and stuff.

This week is New YEARS!! We are gonna have dinner with an investigator family - Solis-Castro - and then go to our pension at 11 to watch the fireworks from our roof! So excited!

Anyway, the quote i have for this week is from Elder Uchtdorf, which can be compared with Moses chapter 1. "Compared to God, man is nothing. Yet we are everything to God."

It is so true. I know God loves me - I am His princess. And He loves all of you too. You are His princes and princesses. Remember that! :)

LOVE YOU ALL! Miss you!

HErmana Amy Schrader

Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! Feliz Navidad!

Heyyy everyone!

Merry Christmas this Wednesday!!!!!!! I am so excited! I get to call home and see my fam!!! Woohooo! Me and Hna Oliva also set the goals for the "perfect week", which is super difficult, but we're gonna do it as a gift for Christ! For Christmas!

So. As you can see, I did not have cambios this past week! Cambios were Wednesday and we are both staying here! Until January 29th. :) We are gonna tear it up. :)

Cuz we found 2 more families! That's three new families! And they're alll awesome!!!

We had a ward Christmas dinner Saturday night, and we (including the Elders) had lots of investigators! Leticia came, and the Elders gave her a blessing so she'll get better, and also that she will remember more! Apparently Alzheimers runs in her family, and we've been seeing evidences of that lately. So the blessing was awesome!

The mom of the new family (Family Solis-Castro), Oriana, came too! She and Leticia got along really well, and she loved the dinner! Melissa and Jericó came, although Jericó left early to work. But Melissa and her two little sons, Joseph and Renato, staying the whole time! They got to participate in the Nativity that the Primary put on! They were a little horse and a little cow, and they were so adorable! The Primary gave presents to all the little kids, and our little investigators got some too! We had an awesome time, talking with everyone, listening to music, eating food...it was awesome!

Brandon also came, who is the brother of Milsy. Milsy is fully involved in everything now, especially with the YW. She is raising money with them to go to EFY! Brandon is progressing too because he used to not believe in anything. But he told us (grudgingly) that he now believes in some kind of force that helps people make better decisions for their lives. And we were like, "Brandon...its the Spirit..." And he was like, "No, let's not put a name on it. Its just some kind of force." haha this kid is hilarious. But hey! He's progressing!

Oh! And this week, on Thursday, I hit my year mark! I got an email from President saying, Thank you for all your hard work this year, keep it up! So that was cool.

This week me and Hna Oliva put on a puppet show (with the help of Jericó) for Melissa and her two little sons. We totally taught the Restoration that way, and it was awesome! Everyone understood, and everyone loved it!

A member gave us a little baby Christmas tree for our apartment. It's so cute. We set it up, and at the bottom, we put pics of our families. The members have been giving us little gifts too, so we open them, then rewrap them and put them under the tree. haha.

SO! This Christmas - the plan is that on Christmas Eve, we have Christmas dinner with the Gallegos family. We are also going to call on Christmas from the Silva family's house. :) It's gonna be a hot week - a sunny Christmas. We call Valparaíso the City of Eternal Christmas, because we are surrounded by hills lit up with lights - that looks like a Christmas tree! It's beautiful.

It's gonna be an awesome week! I hope you all enjoy your Christmas!

And remember the reason for the season - the birth of Christ! Find some souls to give to him! :) haha

I am so grateful for the birth of Christ, because without His condescension, God's plan would be foiled.

Rejoice! The Lord is born. :)
And he was born for YOU.

Love you all!!!!!! Miss you!

Love,

Hermana Amy Schrader

Year Mark Approaching...

Hey everyone!

My year mark is this Thursday. And cambios are Wednesday! We shall see what happens! I think we are both staying, tho.

Well, Leticia came to church! But she is super forgetful...its weird. We are working slower with her.

We found a family! Theyre AWESOME! We are gonna have an FHE with them this week!

We had a zone conference this week! A Christmas zone conference! We got gifts! I got a flash drive from my secret santa, and the mission gave us a Book of Mormon, and the challenge is to read it 4 times this year! Its on. im so doing it.

I also got to see my last comp! Hna Paicely! She told me some news from Recreo: they dropped the Rojas family. Alejandro, my convert, passed away. But my old investigator, Oriana, the wife of Alejandro, got baptized this week! I was so happy to find that out. :)

We had an RS dinner this week and played games - it was super fun!

We made peanut butter cookies for the mission coordination meeting, and the mission leader and the Elders ate all of them! haha.

We talked to some suuuper less actives and it was crazy! A long story...one for when I get home I guess, it would take too long! And I have no time. :( so youll just have to wait! lol

I have decorated like 4 Christmas trees so far... love it!

I got to watch the Christmas devotional - it was in Spanish. But the music was amazing as well - especially Away in a Manger, with the flute solos. :)

But yeah...

I get to talk to my family next week! Im so excited!

And thats all I have time to say...I promise to write a longer email next week!

LOVE YOU ALL!

Hermana Amy Schrader

Christmas is Coming!

Hey everyone!

Its been a crazy week! Lots of running around Playa Ancha, and lots of wind. But I love this area. I am learning so much!

I have less than 6 months left in the mission - time goes so fast! Sometimes it feels like its so slow, but for the most part - it goes fast! And it goes fast when you're having fun and learning! Let me tell you - I am having fun AND learning. A lot. I heard a quote in sacrament meeting yesterday that said, "Progress is a sign of true repentance." Every week we try to be a little better, and progress is all I see. :)

BUT Leticia didnt come to church. :(  We will have to move her baptismal date or talk to President. We shall see!

But it was cool that one of our investigators went to Antofagasta and got baptized there by her son! So it was great to have her back home and see how much her face glows now. She is a new person! Its incredible. :) Her name is Dina.

We had a birthday party-family home evening-lesson with Francisco and Patricio, the new converts! It was so fun! And they even came with us to visit a less active. :)

Cambios are next Wednesday, the 18th - I think we will both stay, but we shall see!

Tomorrow we have a Christmas Multiple Zone Conference in Avenida Argentina, Valpo... we get to sing a Christmas song as a zone and have a white elephant party! A member of the area 70 is coming, I think, so that will be cool! I look forward to it!
We had FHE this week with the Silva family, and we watched the Other Side of Heaven. They had never seen it! ANd they loved it! It got Milsy a little more excited about missionary work, which is the lesson that we taught. :)

WE taught a lady named Doris, who really needs the gospel and already loves it. We are gonna work more with her and see how it goes!

And today a cool thing happened - we found the nonmember father of a missionary in our ward! He is serving in Argentina and the whole ward has been writing letters to him! And we randomly found his dad on the micro today! We are gonna tell the Elders to visit him! Cuz he's not in our area. But it was so cool that we sat right next to him on the bus.

Christmas is coming, people! I hear Christmas music everywhere, and the trees are up, with blinking lights! Valparaíso is a Christmas tree itself - seeing the view of the hills from Playa Ancha, all lit up...its beautiful! But the weather is getting warmer...its super weird! haha
But anyway, I know that this Church is true with all my heart. All i want is for people to know that same thing, but it gives me a hope and a knowledge for the future. And I know that everything will be ok in the end when we are on the Lord's side.

Enjoy the preparations for Christmas!

I love you all!

LOVE ALWAYS

Hermana Amy Schrader

No Thanksgiving Here

Hey everyone!

Hope you all had an awesome Thanksgiving! Thanksgiving doesnt exist here so we did pretty much nothing for it! We just bought a little pastry and halved it at night. haha. But I did give thanks for all my blessings! And I have so much to be grateful for! My family and friends, the gospel, my mission, um this list is gonna be way too long so ima stop there.

But anyway, last P-Day we had a district activity and got to watch the Best 2 Years! Its so much funnier when youre on a misson! I love that movie.

Congratulations to Camille for getting into Wind Symphony!

We had Intercambios this week and guess where I went?! PLACILLA! I saw all my old friends and the members, and the security guard of my apartment! It was awesome! We stopped by the chapel for a bit, and we walked into the room of the YW who were having mutual and right when we opened the door, all of them ran toward me and gave me a hug, squealing! It was beautiful!

Back to Miramar - we helped a less active decorate for Christmas! Well....I did. I was the only one tall enough to reach the tree and the ceiling. But it was super fun! Even though they made comments like, "Hey Get the ladder! Oh wait, shes right here!"

We set a baptismal date with Leticia! For December 15th! Woohoo! All thanks to the member that came with us to the lesson. So grateful for her! Leticia didnt want to get baptized but we all bore our testimonies and she must have felt something, because she asked to be baptized this Sunday! Miracle! But we told her we'd have to help her prepare! So she came to church yesterday, ready adn waiting for us. Shes awesome!

Im having a great time and learning lots! My life is being changed one day at a time and I love it! Dont worry, Im not gonna come back a different person. Ill just come back as a better version of me!

Sorry I dont have much time to write today, but it's going to be an amazing week.

I love this area!

I LOVE YOU ALL!!!

Hermana Amy SChrader