They will have extra room in their cupboards!

Hello family!!

Thanks for the Halloween package! And for all the Halloween cards I got! And thanks for all the cute Halloween pictures! It's been such a good week! I've just been so full of joy this week. It really helps me finish strong and forget that I don't have too much time left.

HALLOWEEN
We got to go to our Ward fall festival/Halloween party from 11-1 on Saturday. It was SO awesome!! We had 10 investigators there and a lot of less actives that we invited! Goodness it was a happy time. After the awesome party, we went and did an APF with the elders in our district and we passed out candy with Mormon.org cards taped to the candy as well as handed out pamphlets and talked to people about the Book of Mormon. It was really good! We then went to the Rakestraws again which you will read about in the next paragraph! And then we had to be home at 6:30 so we pretty much caught up with life when we were home but writing in our journals and cleaning and eating dinner and such.

A FAMILY!!!
Okay so when I was on an exchange in Ossining a couple weeks ago, the sisters introduced me to their neighbor (the Rakestraws) who was moving to Brewster, ny which is my area. So we found out when and then planned to meet her at her house and unpack the truck. The Ossining sisters and elders helped them pack up in Ossining on Friday and then we got our Ward mission leader as well as the Portuguese elders to come and help and we moved them in on Fridaynight, it was fast and easy. They were SO grateful for the help. They said they were in dire need and they prayed and then the missionaries came into the picture, and not just in Ossining but here too. It's a little family. Bridget and Ricky are the parents and then they have a 4 year old girl named Emery and a 2 year old boy named Reese. They are the most loving cutest family ever.
So the next day they went back for another load and we helped them unload for like 30 minutes or so since we had to be home by 6:30.
The kids have been going to a day care in Ossining that is run by a member who is the most awesome member missionary and talks to everyone about the gospel. She invited the Rakestraws to stake conference 2 weeks ago and guess what. Apparently THEY WENT! It was the first time they ever went to our church. Our stake president, President Checketts, met them at stake conference and started talking to them. Ricky told president Checketts that he had been having health problems with his heart. President Checketts told Ricky that he would give him a priesthood blessing this upcoming week and told him to fast. We didn't know all of this until this last Sunday as sister Standage and I were sitting in ward council and president Checketts peeped his head in and started talking about this family. We got all excited and told him that we actually knew them already and helped them unpack the previous day!!
Then on Monday we went back at 5:30 and we brought them pizza because we felt they needed it since last time they were too busy they didn't even eat. We told them before hand that we were going to bring it and they said they would reimburse us. Well we brought the pizza (just two so it wasn't expensive) and when we got there she asked if she could reimburse us and we said no and she said "ya I thought you would say that, so I bought you a pie" and she gave us this huge fresh apple pie which was actually really good, we had a slice then gave the rest to the elders haha. Anywayy back to the story. So we had planned to just help them unpack more but we prayed before that we would be able to teach them as well. We didn't want it to be like "let us serve you so that we can baptize you" though. Well as soon as we sat down to eat pizza with Bridget and the kids, Ricky got off the phone with his doctor and sighed because his heart rate was really high that day at a random time. He told us that he was suppose to be blessed on Sunday by president Checketts but he woke up and ate and then remember that he was suppose to be fasting and then he couldn't find the box with his suit in it so he couldn't. Well that led to asking them about stake conference and over the course of the next 20 minutes or so they asked us questions and we taught them the restoration because all their questions were answered in the restoration. It was the coolest lesson ever. Bridget wants her husband to lead them in religion and she said that he is the one that got them to stake conference and she loved that. They talked about how this church feels right and true and like it came from God to them at the Perfect time. They want religion in their life and when they wake up on Sunday's and aren't at church it makes them sad. Their only hold back is that we have an "extra book" so we explained the Book of Mormon and gave them one with some scriptures to read after reading from it with them. We go back tomorrow and they are feeding us this time and we are going to see how the Book of Mormon reading is going and invite them to be baptized on December 5th! They are so prepared. It is truly incredible. They are the most prepared family I have ever met my entire mission. If I didn't stay in this area, I wouldn't have been able to teach them. I love them and I am so excited for them to get sealed in the temple!
Oh funny story, while unpacking them we unpacked their wine, coffee, tea and hookah and she was so embarrassed...so at least we know what to talk about for the word of wisdom lesson coming up hahaha. Hey, soon they will have extra room in their cupboards!! What a plus.
Oh yea, it was so cute. After dinner and the lesson before we started helping unpack Emery said her little prayer to us that she learned at her catholic school. It was the Lord's Prayer or a version of it, but it was SO cute. And then when we went to say a prayer with them before they left, the Spirit was so strong. It was probably my favorite prayer I have said on my mission. Haha, it was so cool though! And we all help hands even though I don't think they normally do that cuz Emery was so confused but they wanted to so we did. It was cute. Wow what a great week it has been with the Rakestraw family! And then while unpacking the kids kept asking for pamphlets of their own so we gave one a plan of salvation pamphlet and the other a gospel of Jesus Christ pamphlet, so now they have all three! Haha it was a good move :)

RANDOM STORIES
1. Sooo we knew it was daylight savings but when our alarm on our phone went off at 6:25 we woke up and we're just laying In bed talking for a bit and saying "nooo I don't want to wake up" then When it was just about 6:30 I had the thought to check the other clocks so I checked my iPad and it turns out our phone didn't change on its own and it was really 5:30! So we got to go back to sleep :)
2. We had MLC last week and then Tomorrow is and extended MLC again because someone from the missionary department is coming to our mission. Our mission is popular I guess. Haha
3. So we had a really interesting but awesome Sacrament meeting. This guy named Michael got up to share his testimony very first. He is such a sweet man. He is a little special but so awesome. He's a recent convert as well. He signs up for all the service things without fail and signs up to clean the church every week. Well he got up there and he had written a talk on the priesthood to give. He started giving this talk. It had scriptures and quote and all this stuff. After about 10 minutes the 1st counselor had to get up and help him close. Rather than making it awkward he just got up and put his arm around him and asked him a few questions such as "how does the priesthood make you feel?" "Why does it make you feel that way?" "How did you come to know this church is true?" "How do you feel about your baptism?" And like 5 more. Michael told us that he wrote that talk because he feels ready to receive the priesthood and he has been working hard for it. It was so tender. Well when the counselor told him that he is on the list to receive it soon he got this hugeee smile on his face and looked at everyone in the audience and was just like "really??" He just glowed. It was so awesome. It made me really think about what a blessing it is to have the priesthood. It's not just something you get when you turn 12. Or 18 and preparing for a mission. It means so much more. It's a huge blessing.

This week we have hopes to set baptism dates with 5 other investigators for December 12th so we will see if that works out! :)

STUDIES:
I am in Moroni now! I love Moroni because he didn't think he would be writing any of it, so it just goes to show how important it is. I read chapters 1-5 today. I can't imagine the Book of Mormon without these important chapters! While reading in the institute manual i found this quote I love by Henry B. Eyring.
“Start with remembering Him. You will remember what you know and what you love. The Savior gave us the scriptures, paid for by prophets at a price we cannot measure, so that we could know Him. Lose yourself in them. Decide now to read more, and more effectively than you have ever done before”
The scriptures are the best! I love it! Today we can decide to read and study them more and better than ever before. Don't decide tomorrow, decide today, they are important! I love the Book of Mormon so much, I am so grateful I have been able to really understand it so much more on my mission. We are so lucky to have it. The gospel is true!
Have a fabulous week! I love you all! Don't forget to keep the Rakestraws in your prayers, I feel so good about them! Xoxo

Love,
Sister Tanner <3

Sister Standage and I with our Halloween bags!

amazing fall leaves 

And just like that...you blink and the leaves are gone! AhhWinter is coming!

MLC with my favorites (we all came out together)

All the packages MY COMPANION gets in a week!

This is Pip Hippen.  She is Kiki for Halloween from (Kiki's Delivery Service)  I told her that was my nickname at home and it made her love her costume much more, especially because  a lot of the kids have never heard of that show before. 

Sister Muth and her mom with dementia. I love her mom!

The Wells.  Sister Wells was a witch and Serah was Urcela and Jordon was a pirate!

Sister Muth was a pile of fall leaves!