Transferred!!!! and a new winter.... a cold one.

I feel like this week, the pictures will have to make up for the lack of words. I am so happy right now. I am leaving Cusco to train in Puno and open a brand new sector. They haven`t had hermanas there before.

Guess what that means. I will be with Hna. Rasmussen in the same district! she is my sister leader :) (my MTC companion) 

I am so full of happy, I can hardly stand it. I am so ready to ROCK these last 5 months and baptize the heck out of people. With my new mission daughter! I am so excited to train again. This time I actually feel like I know what I`m doing, so I won`t be all stressed out again. 

We went to Saqsayhuaman again today. I went a while ago, but this time was more fun because it was with people I love. I love all the hermanas in this zone. I`m going to miss them, but I`m SO excited to be with Hna. Rasmussen and a new daughter. 

I love my mission, and I`m so excited to get to work all day every day again. I`ve missed that. 

You all make me smile.

Love, Hermana Allred

1-- it rained a lot this week.

2-- waiting for our ward mission leader to open the door. 

3-- i shrunk. haha joke. The door is just too big. 

1-- comp and i

2-- look closely. there are lots of dogs. they were charging us, so we ran away.

3-- the incredible view. 

1-- Me, my granddaughter, and daughter

2-- glove shot

3-- they say that if you run up these stairs without stopping, you will have lots of luck. that`s probably why I got a transfer :). I ran up those things like Rocky. I have a video, but i don`t know how to send it. 

1-- my last bit of Cusco before heading to Lake Titicaca

2-- cristo blanco and saqsayhuaman

3-- entering into the tunnels

4-- spelunking

1-- the door leading to the coolest cave I`ve ever seen.

2-- I really love her. 

3-- we got a little hipster in the cave by saqsayhuaman. the lighting was cool.

1-- cave

2-- got yer hands in yer pockets, beanie falling off, awkward posture, big glasses, and something plaid. Must be a hipster. 

3-- VOGUE ha. joke. 

sweating in the jungle. ew

1&2-- I just realized you couldn´t see batman in that picture. These ones are better.

Dearest people in my life. This week was a good one. We had 0 for all of our numbers this week. EVERY number haha. But, as I learned in my first transfer, as long as we are helping the other hermanas, it doesn´t matter what our numbers are. 

Quillabamba (key-uh-bomb-uh) was as hot as ever. I got to work with Hna. Ugarte, Irvine, and Rasmussen. It was so nice to speak english for a little bit. (i´m the only gringo in the house. 5 latinas) I love those girls so much, and I learned so much from them. The mission is hard, especially the first couple transfers, and I´m glad I got to be there to help. 

We also get to go to the doctor a lot for a girl that has bronchitis or soemthing. They still dont´know what it is, so we´ll be going more this week. We know that hospital way too well. 

I´ve been studying the bible like a mad woman lately. I started in Ephesians last  sunday, and I read all the way to the end of revelations. I skipped around a lot because it doesn´t really matter what order you read it in. I found so many scriptures for the work of salvation. Motivation for less actives, missionaries, families that have problems. I am learning a lot about how to respect people God has called. I have been having a really hard time with that, but God continues to teach me more every day. I love him for that. 

I love my mission, and I´m sorry I don´t tell you guys more stories. I feel like so much happens, and pday is always so rushed. SORRY. 

I´ll try to write a better email next week.

Love, Hermana Allred

1-- Hna Ugarte and I

2-- my lovely companion. I love her so much. 

3-- Hna. Irvine working out with a batman figurine as motivation.

1-- Hermana Rasmussen and I (the new one, not my MTC companion) they look alike, no?

2-- all the hermanas in Quillabamba branch

3-- my sweet companion and hna. Rasmussen

4-- the terminal in Quillabamba. this is how we roll on back to Cusco

1-- My sweetheart batman OBSESSED Hna. Irvine. We are in the same group (we both go home in October)

2-- Birthday dinner with Sister Morales at CHILI´S!!!

3-- Playin skip bo with my comp. We got stuck with 4 1´s for a good 10 mintues. Have I mentioned that I love her SO much?

4-- leftover NY steak and potatoes and skip bo. First steak in a year. I LOVE CUSCO

1-- Addict

2-- Del Rio and a bunch of other hermanas came to go to Machu Picchu, and Del Rio was telling one of her classic stories to everyone haha. I missed her lil mexican face. 

3-- Hna. Quezada´s cinderella shoes. haha. 

Pascua y semana Santa

well, this week was full of work. I loved every minute of it. I go home in exactly 6 months, and I was thinking... I need to make the most of it. I have 6 months left, and the rest of my life to think about what I did with it. Soooo I`m kicking myself into gear to have absolutely no regrets when I go home.

We had a record number of lessons this week, and we have 5 new investigators, who are ALL from part member families. We are working really well together, and we`re starting to get more involved with the members, not just less actives. We made a goal to know where every member lives, and so far, we`ve seen a lot of miracles come from it. references who are ready to be baptized already--- that never happens. Members are the key to success, so all you members, HELP THE MISSIONARIES. invite them to your house for a Family Night and invite a less active, or non member friend. Just get involved. we can`t do anything without the members. 

We didn`t have to leave our sector even once this week. MIRACLE. I did go on splits with my granddaughter (hermana nelson is training her... sooo she`s my granddaughter of the mission). She is so sweet, and has so much excitement for this work. It`s so fun to see the new missionaries work. They are so excited! I hope that doesn`t wear off. 

I am working harder than I have in a long time, which helps me stay distracted, and not get homesick. 

funny story:

we were thinking about moving to live with a member family, so we asked our landlord how long the contract is for, and he said 1 year, and seemed kinda startled. we decided we like having 3 hot showers and a big kitchen, so we`re not moving. but The next day, he ordered us 2 pizzas, and bought plants for the patio. Then asked us if everything was okay. He does not want us to leave haha. I mean, we are the best renters he`s ever going to have, haha. But seriously, he loves us. in a not weird way. 

Then someone tried to break into the apartment, so he had someone come change all the locks and reinforce them. I`m not scared because I don`t really have anything that he could steal that I care about that much. Just my scriptures and my pictures from the mission. I thought I`d use it as a teaching opportunity, so I put a sticky note on the landlord`s door that says "1 thesalonians 5:2.... GET READY!" (that`s the scripture that says The lord will come as a thief in the night.) haha. We just gave him a bible the other day, so I`m sure he`ll get a good laugh. 

ONE YEAR in the mission. can you believe that? I was in portland for 9 months, but that felt like an eternity. It`s going by so fast. 6 months left. can`t belive it. 

1-- we tracted in matching llama sweaters. 

2-- wall of pictures. I need more. 

3-- I forgot to take my 9 month picture, so here it is. 1 year... I`m WAY overdue haha. That is a frozen peruvian ding dong in my hand. 

4-- Easter morning, I accidentally knocked down a ceramic thing of Jesus and a sheep. all the hermanas in the house made dumb jokes about how he`ll be resurrected... nope. it`s a statue. It`s pretty broken. 

That one time I will NEVER eat cheese dip again

Last pday, I bought a jar of El Paso cheese dip, all the way from the UNITED states. it was expensive, but I wanted it, so I bought it. (i´m working on that character flaw).

I ate half of it, then put it in my food drawer, and left on a trip for 2 days. We worked in our sector for a day, ate in a few investigators houses. I wasn´t hungry, but when we got home, I remembered I still had cheese dip waiting in my lil drawer next to my endless supply of popcorn kernels. Opened that sucker up, and ate a few chips before going to bed. 

Happy as a clam, went to bed. 

Then, oh my word, my body woke me up 4 hours later, and spit that cheese dip right back out the way it came. I had no idea why. I was thinking "oh maybe it was that weird drink that guy gave us without a name, or the chicken-type thing from that lady..." I spent the next day throwing up my entire stomach, and feeling like dying. 

When I finally felt good enough to eat chips and cheese dip, you know what I did? I went to eat cheese dip. Opened that sucker up, and what did I see? MOLD! that´s what I saw. Do you know what is in cheese? milk. Do you know what goes bad really fast if you don´t put it in the fridge? MILK! I straight up ate moldy cheese on a chip. And I almost did it a second time. 

Of all the things that could make me sick in PERU, I got sick from expensive american cheese dip. I´m adding that to the list of things I can´t eat because I got sick once. Bananas, cheese dip. please... please don´t ever make me sick from steak, bacon, or nutella. It´s all I have left!

anyways, I´m pretty sure I could have talked about more missionary things in this letter, but my stomach still hates me and it´s all I can think about. 

I get to be in a trio with hna. Nelson today because her companion is going to lima for her papers. WHOOOOT! I love having her in my zone. 

Dad, I heard dust in the wind in a taxi and thought of you. It wasn´t the Kansas version, but I still smiled and remembered how much mom hated that song. WE ARE NOT DUST! haha. 

I love you all and am happy that there´s a YOU (every one of you)

Love love love, HErmana Allred

1-- Fountain on Av. del Sol

2-- same fountain

3-- Dad... this is how much pistascios cost here. DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH MONEY THAT IS??? I´ll eat them when I get home. 

4-- another night in the hospital. still beautiful.

1-- The pension´s house/hostal in Ollantaytambo, and some random lil cat that probably has fleas. 

2-- the view of the ruins from the patio

3-- spiderweb close up

1-- Awkward family photo on the coolest couches in peru. 

2-- another awkward selfie. I just liked the light, and my comp was busy in the background taking pictures of leaves and cats. 

3-- my hilarious mexican friend who also lived in Arizona and went to MOUNTAIN VIEW HIGH SCHOOL! the arizona one. 

1-- this one is for Isaac Pratte

2-- PERU. go ahead. frame it. 

3-- my poor comp stresed out hugging her stress book. She had to stay inside while I threw up cheese dip.