Sisters in Whipple??!!!

 Hi friends! This week was crazy! So many great things happened! I'm loving my companion and area! It's beautiful here. I love it so much!! 

HIGHLIGHTS:

• AREA! My new area is amazing! It's called Whipple Creek! It used to be a zone leader area and they used to cover two wards! The ward has been wanting missionaries who can focus only on their ward so we're excited we get to do that! We also are the first sisters that get to serve here! The ward has only been a ward for about a year and everyone is amazing! They are all so excited to have sisters and are so welcoming to us! We are so excited to get to know the ward better and become friends with them all! This area has a tonnnnn of nice houses! While driving to our bishop's house we passed a house with a mini golf course in their yard! It was crazy! It's also BEAUTIFUL here! It's a lot less city and a lot more country!
• COMPANION! My new companion is so sweet! Her name is Sister Jacobson and she's just adorable! She's from Delta, Utah and was on the Delta high school drill team so we talk about drill a lot! We also get told by everyone that we look like sisters which is fun! 
• TIM! Tim is so cool! The Elders found him before they left and he's so prepared! He had a baptismal date years ago and it fell through for who knows what reason. We stopped by his house and gave him a church card with the Because of Him video on it and he was so excited about it! We texted him Saturday night to see if he could come to church and he said he wants to but doesn't have a ride! We texted our amazing ward mission leader and he pulled through and brought Tim to church! We were soooo excited!!! And he loved church! It was so awesome! We are bringing him to a small ward FHE tonight and he is super excited! He will definitely get baptized soon! 
• FINDING! With pink washing an area and not having any dots in our app for the first couple days, we have done a TON of finding! This is definitely super exhausting but we had found 5 potentials in the last 5 days! It's been so exciting! We're hopeful to have some more progressing friends in the next little while! Keep them in your prayers!
• MEALS! Before I left Walnut Grove we were able to have 2 member meals and our favorite kids in the ward were at both! The Draeger family as well as the grandparents live in the ward and they both fed us so we got to hang out with all 5 Draeger boys 2 days in a row! They are so adorable and I miss them so much already! We also got to have dinner with Elder and Sister Holbrook and some other missionaries yesterday! For dessert, the missionaries who ate at Elder and Sister Hillebrant's also came over so we all could have dessert together! It was so much fun! I love being around other missionaries! 
• ROOMMATES! In our apartment we have 4 sisters and it's SO FUN! We have me and Sister Tuitupou and both of our trainees, Sister Jacobson and Sister Ralphs! We all have so much fun together and I love living with more missionaries!

LOWLIGHTS:

• LEAVING WALNUT GROVE! I am SO SAD to not be in Walnut Grove! I built so many relationships and I am so sad to leave so many people I love! I'm also so sad to leave Sister Larsen and Sister Bowen and I miss them both like crazy! Whipple Creek is amazing but Walnut Grove will always have a special place in my heart!
• FINDING! Finding gets to be a highlight and a lowlight because even though we've seen some awesome miracles from it, it also can be really draining and exhausting at times! Sometimes every door you knock will say no or see you through the window and wave you away. It can be really discouraging at times but I'm so thankful for the miracles we have been able to see! 

SPIRITUAL THOUGHT:

Yesterday in our Sunday night devotional, a missionary said "Christ makes my boulders into flowers" and this really stuck with me! Sometimes, things in our lives feel like boulders. They are heavy and tough and feel as though they are immovable, but when we turn to Christ to help us, he makes them light and beautiful! Being a missionary is hard! But I have been able to see that when I turn to Christ, things become so much easier. I definitely couldn't do this without Him by my side always! I encourage you all to turn to Christ when you experience boulders so that He can help you turn them into flowers! 

I love you all and miss you all tons! Have the best week ever!!!

-Sister Stringham