Oh so THIS is what allergies feel like

Ola todo Mundo!!!

So I´d like to start out with a little story. I have never had an allergic reaction to anything so I didn´t recognize what was happening to my body. But everyone kept looking at the overgrown bug bites on my legs and the swelling sore on my face and said "voce tem uma allergia?" aka you are allergic. I just shrugged it off like no its not a big deal, I just have some zits and bug bites. But apparently when they swell up and fill with liquid you should do something about it ha ha. So my companion finally called the mission doctor for me. He said to go buy hidro cortizone and betametasona (whatever that is) ha ha apperently these things are really expensive here in Brazil (mom I have had to use my card) anyways my legs are going to have so wicked scars but they are doing much better.

So, I saw a prehistoric bird this week, it didn´t try to eat me like all the bugs do but i´m fairly certain it was jurassic (spell check) It was seriously like the size of a large dog.

We are teaching this awesome family, like for reals they are soooo golden!!! I love them so much and I want them to be baptised SOOOO bad. The parents need to be married first so that may take some time but Ilza (the mom) said that she was going to get started on the paper work like right now. ha ha they are soooo awesome. We offered a preisthood blessing of comfort and they accepted. Afterwards Ilza asked why it felt like she was on fire. I started crying of course and struggled in portuguese to explain the fruits of the holy ghost. They are SOOOO ready for the water its not even a joke.

I seriously love being unique. I don´t want to say that I´m like really pretty or anything but I really think I must be because everyone stares at me like I´m from outter space....ha ha Maybe it´s the big giant red sore on my face. Ha ha nah.....couldn´t be. But a little girl stopped me on the street and said "voce é bonita" ha ha it was dark but I thanked her anyways.

uhhh.....I am a fubeca...this means lazy missionary skash rule breaker. ha ha some families that we have been teaching live REALLY far away and We got stranded the other night. It was too dangerous to walk home and the busses stop after a certain hour. we have to be in our house by 9 every night or 9:30 if we are teaching a lesson. it was 9:45. ha ha we called an investigator who has a car and my comp was like "I just need a woman to come with you" it was really funny. They struggle with money so we also offered to pay for gas blaa blaa...as we were sitting on the curb waiting for them a member couple pulled up on a scooter and motorcycle. oh no....nope, I don´t do 2-wheels....no. no. no. ha ha they handed me a helmet and i got on. THis is only breaking like 50 rules at this point. you can say bye bye holy ghost at this point. ha ha anyways I didn´t realize that riding a motorcycle was even in the handbook but it is!!! Anyways It turns out the motorcycle isn´t even thiers and they weren´t going to have it that night but thy decided to take it home for a friend of theirs for some odd reason...goodness Heavenly Father works in mysterious ways.

Anyways I love you all sooo much. stay awesome!!!

XOXOXOXOXOXxox

Sister Ottley

I´m like really tired.....

So to start things off....I would LOVE some photos....yea like the kind that have your faces in them!!!! ha ha People ALWAYS ask me if I have pictures of my family and what not, however the answer is always no. SO mom, I know you don´t like them but I would LOVE LOVE LOVE a copy of the pic we took at gmas and gpas a couple july´s ago. Or SOMETHING with you and dad.....ok ANYTHING really......

Uh, Jacob exists!!! YES I am talking about Jacob from Twilight. He lives a couple blocks from me and tries to eat my comp and I when we walk by. We tried to teach his owner but she was busy.....sweeping......the yard? I don´t understand Portugues still..... ha ha I keep looking every time we walk by to see if he turns into a good looking native american....hasn´t happened yet.

So we are teaching this super nice old guy. I just love old people.....they have no Idea what is going on but they love visiters so they ALWAYS let us in. Anyways he pulls out these wicked old pamphlets of the restoration and the plan of savation.....from the year 2000!!!!!! holy moly the church has definetly improved their materials since then.

Imagine this: calm night (*well as calm as night begs in Brazil) I´m sleeping. Dreaming somthing ridiculous I´m sure. and all of a sudden I am julted awake by the laugh of my companion......I look over and she is still sleeping.....yea she is nuts....ha ha this has happened a couple times now. I´m not really sure what she is dreaming but it sounds fun...ha ha....I just want to sleep...

Apparently everyone here LOVES Obama.....I don´t know why exactly and no-one can explain it to me either and they doin´t understand my reaction when they tell me how awesome he is....ha ha but each time I tell someone I am from Washington State they ask if I live by the White House or if I know Obama.....I started lying....ha ha so I am now neighbors to Obama and kick it with his wife on the weekends when she is in town.

Speaking of lies.......I also know Justin Beiber.....He and I are way tight....ha ha everyone here is OBSESSED with him and they always want to know if he and I are friends, again, I lie. Yep, bestest besties.

Ahhhh!!!!!!! It is soooo true that we sometimes cannot see the fruit of our labors. I was transferred out of Catu and 2 of the boys we had been teaching got baptised last week!!!! soooo awesome!!! I about died when Sister Bezerra told me, I´m sad I wasnt there but sooooo happy they are on their way into the kingdom of god!!!

So I will never again complain about a zit.....I got a couple on my chin and due to nervousness or frustration or whatever I picked at them.....guess what happened!!!! My face EXPLODED!!!! like for reals. I guess it got infected or something because wow I look like 2-face....no joke. I made a little girl cry at church.....she ran away from me screaming. I wanted to cry too. I think it might have something to do with the fact that I eat popcorn like everyday. But I can´t help it it is like the only thing I have here that I recognise....ha ha ha but I´m putting neosporin on it and hoping that it heals soon.....

uh....I really don´t like this whole language barrier thing. My companion apparently told me something super important about the shower and I thought I understood however, I did not.....I broke it.......ha ha COLD SHOWERS AGAIN!!!! woo hoo!!! ha ha oh well...maybe someday when I speak Portugues I will write instructions on the shower wall for the next American....I still don´t know what I did wrong.

So, I was craving brownies.....we don´t have brownie mix here in Brazil so I decided I would make some from scratch....we have flour, sugar, baking powder, vanilla, salt, butter, eggs.....what am I missing????? oh yea, Chocolate....well I have a little peatun Butter...hmmm...actually that soulds WAY good...I shall make peanut butter brownies!!! ha ha ha what a joke, I can´t cook in America WITH measuring cups why would I think I could cook in Brazil without!!!???!?! ha ha My peanut butter brownies aren´t bad...they aren´t good either though....ha ha I don´t know what I´m gonna do when I am married and have to cook for reals.

Darn It all if these 19 year old elders don´t know what they are doing afterall. We had district meeting yesterday and guess what....in a lesson THAT night we used the training we recieved. I started to cry when I realized once again that this work really really isn´t ours at all...it is ALL about our father in Heaven!!! he really does know what we all need and how we can recieve it!!!

So, I love you all a lot a lot a lot!!!! I hope all is well there in the states!!! I LOVE mail, so feel free to EMAIL me ANYTIME!!!!

ps I have not recieved any packages yet, the post is way slow.....I´ll keep you posted.

Love you all!!!

XOXOXOXOX

Sister Ottley

This is the frog that tried to eat my companion and I

I can´t believe I forgot to explain the FROG!!!!!

Ha ha My comp and I were walking home one night and Sister Piola grabbed my arm and jumped back screaming. I of course screamed as well not knowing what was going on. I assumed somthing awful was happening. It was not. when I saw what she was screaming about I about peed my pants laughing. There was THIS HUGE FROG on the sidewalk....I almost stepped on him. ha ha ha ha There was some old guy sitting outside his house and he was laughing at us. I was laughing and I just had to take a photo.

Sorry this weeks email is so scattered. I love you all!!! XOXOXOXO

Mereidht < yup I don´t use it enough I have forgotten how to spell my name. ha ha ha ha ha

Sister Turner and I have the same birthday!!!! we are sooo cool!!!

my peanut butter brownie thing....?

Don´t worry i am still alive!!!

Thank you all for all the birthday wishes!!! I really really
appreciate it!!!!! I love you all sooo much and the encouragement is
just what i need!!!

I have not recieved any packages but I will let you know when I do.

So WE are teaching this amazing woman and all I want to teach her is
the plan of Salvation. I know that as soon as she hears it she is
gonna jump into the water!!! But everytime we go to teach it the
spirit takes us in another direction. I guess we just need time to
better prepare for the lesson since it is so important. Anyways, her
name is Ninha and she has a daughter with cerebral palsey and her
husband died recently. she is sooo amazing!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY STACEY COOPER!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMBER!!!!!

Darwin, I forgot to thank you for helping my parental units with the
Mother´s Day Phone call.. So thank you!!!!!! ha ha it was really
awesome to talk to them so I really appreciate you setting that up for
them.

So, I have a new mother. Momma Mandy, you have not been replaced.
Neither has momma Stokes or Momma Baker. I just love this lady. She
needs to be baptised but the crasy face made a deal with herself that
she wouldn´t join any church until her son stopped using drugs.
great, well we are working with the son and possibly he´ll be baptised
on the 3rd of june.....5th/; oh I don´t know...the first weekend in
june whatever date that is. ANYWAYS everytime I go to her house she
feeds me bolo.....bolo is portuguese for cake. Cake is SOOOOOO
good!!!! I love it soooo much and for some reason cake is just so
much tastier when it is made from scratch!!! ha ha anyways I just
love my little Maria....by the way everyone is named Maria.

MY NEW CITY!!! I am in Camacari and it is sooooo amazing!!!! The
ward is REALLY excited about missionary work. WE got 10....yup count
them 10....referrals from members last sunday!!!! are you kidding
me!!! that is soooo awesome!!!! and every 3rd sunday sacrament
meeting is dedicated to missionary work. returned missionaries, us,
ward missionaries, or the bishop will talk about missionary work!!! I
AM SOOO EXCITED!!!! the church is really gonna be stregnthened here
in Bahia and when it is THEY WILL GET A TEMPLE!!!! AHHHH!!!!!

So Brazil is WEIRD!!!!! Kids run around completely NAKED!!! ha ha ha
ha I love it because that is all I want to do. WE were walking past
this park the other day (yea this city is a little nicer...there are
parks...) and there were kids "swimming" in the fountain. ha ha so
funny i just wanted to jump in and splash around with them until I saw
the cloudy brown water.....then I just walked past laughing to myself.

My companion made me pancakes......well that is what she called them.
ha ha ha haha I was really really really excited because I kinda miss
convincing dad to make me waffles or pancakes. So I got all excited
then, she started cooking beef...like for tacos....ha ha haha
apparently pancakes here are a strange pancake like item filled with
meet and vegetables ketchup and mayonaise.....interesting no? ha ha I
guess I will just have to wait until I get home for the real deal and
It will be worth it anyways be cause I´ll have chocolate chips
too!!!!!

So there are some really amazing recent converts here in the ward who
I love they are twins and soooo funny. We went to teach their mom who
isn~t a member but reads the book of mormon faithfully....(we just
havent figured out what is missing yet) anyways one of the twins had
pink eye well I am assuming it was some form of pink eye. now I am
paranoyed that I will get it too.......ha ha oh well.

SO!!! I have a GREAT GREAT Idea for a youg womens Activity!!!!!
WRITE MISSIONARIES!!!! specifically the sister brand. :) I really
love getting letters I didn´t realize how much I did until I got one
the other day and about died. ha ha

Mom, ford motor company? are you kidding me? why would I know that?

Adam, just find Kristy Simpkins and marry her. ha ha she just got
back from this mission here and is really sweet. ha ha I am kidding
but my mom told me you were being chased. ha ha

yes I am still playing the piano, yes I still have to fight for elbow
space because of small children and yes it is still a broken organ.
my new apartment is crappy just like the last one and the mold in the
photos is everywhere....ha ha i can´t really get away from it.

I am really gald to hear everyone talking about going to the temple,
it really is an amazing place!!!

Who can guess who said this!!!!!
"Look to the temple of the lord as the great symbol of your membership.
It is the deepest desire of my heart to have everymember of the Church
Worthy to enter the Temple."

Anyways I am still working hard. Still Alive and still loving this
country!!! I honestly don´t know why I love it so much. It is filthy,
smelly and ful of disgusting bugs. ha ha but I told some random lady
at the fruit store that I was probably just going to stay here. she
laughed at me....I don´t know if it was because I can´t speak
Portuguese or te factthat I was trying to eat an orange (which are
green here by the way) and the juice was dripping down my face. ha ha
anyways I love you all SOOOO much!!!! XOXOXOXOXOXO stay awesome!!!!


LOVE LOVE LOVELOVE

Sister Ottley

My view in Catu, not bad eh?

My New Companion!!!

Sister Bezerra, Jonathas and me!!!

Sister Bezerra, Jonathas and me!!! FIRST BAPTISM!!!!! Catu

Meredith and a Turtle!!!

me and a turtle!!!!!!! at an investigators house in Catu, so awesome

Catu

Oh rapaz!!!!

TRANSFERS!!!!!!

Okay I now give you permisison to google Catu, the only reason I didn´t want anyone to was because I didn´t want you to worry because it really is a safe place BUT an Elder Died there. BUT I HAVE BEEN TRANSFERRED!!!!! I am now in Camacari 1 with Sister Piola.

She has been in the Mission for 1 transfer......yep thats right that means I have been out longer than her counting the MTC. BUT!!!!! she is brazilian and speaks the language. I Love her. Although I think I´m gonna have an issue with the whole she can´t tell time thing. ha ha it´s gonna be great!!!

No bug stories this week BUT I saw my first dead body!!! WHAT!?!?!?!?!?

So, there is a member in Catu who we visit alot because her husband and kids aren´t members. Her mother (96) died this week. wow. uhhh......How do you say Oh, I´m really sorry about that in Portugues? yea so she wanted me and my comp to come to the funeral. alright....why not I say. I´´ll tell you why not!!!! because Brazileans are NUTS thats why not!!! so they don´t have like a regular service....oh no....They take the poor deceased corps home....yes HOME!!! and have it on display in their house with flowers and candles and giant crusifixs (i´m not sure how to pluralize that) and they put chairs around the dead body so you can sit and stare at her. Weird right? no service. no programs. just starrin at a dead person. it´s great. ha ha ha ha ha ha so I was thouroughly creeped out and I hope to NEVER see another dead body again thank you very much. Did you know that when you´re dead you don´t breath? yea weird.

Okay so I have to go sorry this is short BUT I have to go to like 3 lessons and I don´t know where I am ha ha I love it!!!!

I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!!

WRITE ME!!!!

XOXOXOXOXOX

Sorry but this might be short

CRAZY!!!

OKay Mom, calm down. You WILL be able to talk to me. You have two options. I will try to get on SKYPE at 10:00AM your time. This probably won´t work because Brazilleans are insane and they have issues with technology. AND, I know that you will be travelling OR in church. SOOOOO Option 2 witch is the less appealing and fun option but probably better for us is you can call me at 5:00PM Washington time. I don´t know what that means so maybe google and figure out how to call Brazil before you try. I cannot call you, so if it doesn´t work it doesn´t work. Uh, my companion also has to do her calls and stuff too so, we have to be prompt. Im only allowed 45 minutes.

So undates on this week. Portuguese Sucks. Ha ha I try super hard, but I guess it´s just not hard enough. My companion speaks with one accent and a lisp and everyone else speaks with a different accent. SO when my companion teaches me to say something one way the members and investigators are saying it another way. This is really annoying and frusterating but it´s just one of the trials I have to deal with. I´m learning more and more each day. They family that we were teaching that is having financial struggles fell. Sadly, we are probably going to have to drop them. They aren´t keeping commitments and its not fair to the people of Catu who ARE ready for the gosple.

WE HAD A BAPTISM!!!! His name is Jonathas. He is 14, and awesome. His family was invited to church by some friends and we taught him 3 times and baptised him the following sunday. oh man he is so ooo great. His parent´s aren´t married so we have to wait for them to get married before we can baptise them too.

So, I´m probably going to be transferred next week. this is the last week of the transfer and we´re getting 5 new sisters in the mish and there are only 10 sisters here already (1 of which is going home). 4 of these sisters are training (my companion included) and they plus one other will be training again this next week. This is insane because there are only 4 options for my next companion they´ve all only been in this mission 1 transfer. 1 was reassigned like me for 4 months in texas. So I´m pretty sure her portuguese is just a little better than mine. Another is sister Turner from my MTC trifecta so her Portuguese is awesome too....and the other 2 are these INSANE Brazillean sisters. ha ha this is going to be interesting.

I was going to try and send pictures BUT I am an idiot as usual and forgot my camera cord. NEXT week, and I´ll try to take some more pictures anyways, the one´s I hve are hideous. My hair is not cute in Brazil, lets just say sweat plus humidity equals frizz. ha ha But I honestly don´t even care, it´s weird at home I would not have let this kind of thing go un carred for but on the mission it´s not about me. This people need the word more than I need cute hair (and lets not mention the breakouts).

I love you all sooo much, thank you soooo much for the prayeers and words of support. You have no idea how much each and everyone of you mean to me. I get your emails and I am soooo excited to hear about your lives. I pray for each of you every day and I know that you are praying for me becuase when I´m walking up these mountains that these nut cases like to call streets I can feel the hand of the lord pulling me up to the top.

Please send my love to President Hammond and Sister Hammond as well. Tell Tom I´m glad his Walker isn´t boring and I love him too.

So coose coose ( I have NO idea how to spell things so that is the phonetic spelling) is this weird substance which is made with corn. I honestly don´t know how else to describe it to you other than it is weird. Anyways you eat it with butter and fried eggs. One of our investigators made it for us last night so I could try it and I´m pretty sure I´m going to explode....still. she filled my plate with this HEAPING serving and I ate and ate and ate and it didn´t go away. goodness, it´s not like I´m skinny, I don´t LOOK like I need to eat but these people love you feed me. ha ha and Cevada is nasty, don´t drink it.

Anyways this is my life. We are busy, I am tired, I wear really really ugly sandals. and I don´t think I smell very pretty but hey neither does anyone else SOOO....life is good.

I love love love you all!!!!

XOXOXOXO

Sister Ottley