hey there family and friends!

Wow Britt, haha. all of the stories i hear from mom about you and Sam make me laugh because if i remember correctly it is like the exact same stories of you guys before you left. :) Sam would be sleeping on the floor at our house hahaha. oh, and kudos for the beautiful catch. I don't remember seeing any pictures of this one before but she is very beautiful. Just remember the extending commitment pattern you learned so well hahaha. Anyways. I'm so super happy for you big bro. i looked up la marida on the map book and it is like 15 minutes away from my area but unfortunately it is like 5 minutes out of the mission. well anyways that is super exciting. way to go boy!

alrighty well, this week has been kinda longer and we have had a pretty good week with two baptismal dates. one is working on sundays though so we invited her to fast and pray for the courage to ask for sundays off and i hope it works out. the other one is going to a surgery so it will be a little while before he gets to church but we are doing pretty good so far. We have been teaching a TON lately too which is good but it also means more road blocks/doubts we are having to help people overcome. it has really taken the second mile of my skills and stamina. The best thing about it though is that it is totally worth it. I truly love the people we are teaching so it isn't a lot i am asked to do. A few days ago we got a bit of rain so it was nice..... well after it stopped haha.

Today we went to the temple and it was early. like 7:30 session. but that means we woke up at like 5:00 to get ready. Me, Elder Casper and 2 other missionaries had a cool opportunity to do temple sealings and it was pretty cool. afterwords we went and ate at subway and then we played football till just now. today has been a pretty sweet day. oh, except like 30 minutes ago i was running and kinda ran into a fence hahaha. but nothing stops a missionary from his football. :)  this upcoming week we are trying to go to the stake building in downtown so i can see all the people from my old area and that should be cool. Then sunday we still haven't decided where to go haha. but we will find out eventually.

well, that is all from here. it is warming up here about high 70's again and i am starting to get a nice golden brown haha. it will only get warmer.

I hope you all have a swell week and I love you all!

Elder Channing Winterrose

PS. thanks for the letter britton! it was Great.

Heyy Familia como estan??

 Pues yo creo que si usteded no pueden leer esto, entonces esta bien. uds. van a tener sam a ayudarles. haha.

Well this week has been pretty good. i have definitely witnessed the blessings of being more obedient and It is making my mission a lot easier. as expected this week i have been feeling just a little more trunkie than the usual. I think it may have something to do with the fact that britton got home. It is all good though because that just will give me the extra motivation to keep working even harder to keep my mind on the work.

Our hard work has definately been paying off. the week before last we had 17 new investigators and like 6 new progressing ones. it is nice to finally see the fruits of my labor coming forth. we have been doing really great finding lately and it is nice to have full days now with like 3 to 6 appts a day. I am definately very dependent on my planner and i think that without it i would be sooo lost haha. I know the area like nobodys business tho so it is nice to be able to just say, "oh, appointment fell through, Backup fell through, I know the next 3 people we can try right around here."  it helps a lot to have knowlege haha. it is kinda like what it is like with the plan of salvation. with the comfort of knowing where we are going next we can have a little more peace in our lives. :) well, this week we had a rather different finding opportunity. we worked hard on last thursday and when we got home and started our planning at like 9:00 we got a call from a recent convert down the street who said. hey, i got someone for you to teach RIGHT NOW. ... so we were like okay, how about tomorrow? and she said, we are on our way now. .. so , long story short she brought by a friend from work who had a ton of good questions and we talked a little outside our house and set up a return appointment. It was like one of those mini miracles when we do our part and god just puts them in our path. or even better he sends them to us! :) that was pretty cool. well that was my highlight of the week.

so I think i am going to open a bike shop when i get home because i feel like i am running one lately haha. I have been getting orders left and right to help fix bikes and it is really cool. i love serving people and learning new things! just the other day our neighboring elders called me up and needed to fix a spoke. so i took the bike and an old rim from our garage and we went to the bike shop.. when we walked in the owner lady, who is super nice, told me that their mechanic had a pulled back muscle and couldnt work today. soo i said, that's okay all i need is a sprocket remover and a chain whip. She got the biggest smile and said to the mechanic. " we can trust them, they're missionaries!" and I had seen them use it before so i did it myself and I got the whole thing fixed for free which would have been like 20 bucks. It was nice to use my talents!

So this week i wrecked my bike like twice, but just little ones. one, i came around a corner and some kids on their fixies were on the wrong side of the road and i had to slam on the brakes. i almost stopped, but like right before i stopped the bike kinda hopped me over the handle bars... and another time i got stuck in a dumb crack and did the same thing. The nice thing tho is my seat is the same height as the handle bars so i never have the problem of hitting them. i kinda just leap frog them. This bike has been a sweet deal for finding it for free. It is fast and simple. and best, I don't get laughed at by the high schoolers cause it's a fixie! :)

anyways, So the Big news this week! Britton Got home! i had a weird dream where i was home and he walked down into the living room and was like as skinny as me but taller and in REGULAR CLOTHES and i was like super excited but i was also like hey! lets go hang out! but then he was like " sorry dude, your on a mission!" and i realized i was in my whites and it kinda sucked haha.  but that's okay, when i get home i will do all the fun stuff with him again!

well, i am super happy for all of you and i miss you a lot! remember to keep your eyes open for the opportunities to share the gospel even if you don't think they will except! It is our job to share the gospel, not to decide who or who doesn't need it. so please, abre su boca.

Love Elder Winterrose

hey family! 

i cant believe Britton is already on his way home! i wonder if it will be weird when he gets there and realizes how quiet it will be without me haha. well, this week has been pretty crazy. getting a new companion is always different because everybody has their own vibe and own way of doing things. Elder Panta is very effective.  its his first time as a senior companion, yet he recognizes im not his trainee, have been out over 6 months in the field, and how i know what i am doing. so far my hard work and diligence hasn't given him reason to complain. Right now I think we'll get to the point where we love being each others companions. :)

so, I really like all of the success we are getting and i think it is really driving me to continue working hard, which is nice. I have been doing way better in my studies because i have been better about having them planned out the night before and having a schedule set for them. like read 30 min and work on my lesson plans or study pmg for the next 30.

Well, I think this week i should open up a bike shop, because after going there at least every other day I know everything to fix and the tools for it. haha, i broke a spoke and got it fixed for like 5 bucks when the guy quoted me about $15. and now i got the spoke wrench for another time. then today another missionary broke his and i saved him like 7 bucks and his bike is back up and running. one thing i could use though, if Ryan has one lying around, is a CO2 pump.  i remember him offering me one a while back and it would be sweet if i could get one from him.

well, so far anything else has been the same stuff different week. Well, i love you all and thank you for the support.

Take care!

Elder Winterrose

well, another week and i think winter is just about over here. yesterday hit like 80 and with the humidity it feels even hotter. it is back to sunny southern California again. one thing i am starting to realize is it really is the part of the mission farthest from the ocean and that means less of that cool ocean breeze and more unbearable heat. I hope i am outta here by July haha. 

so, we had transfers here the last week and Elder Shumway left for Compton so i will be praying for him haha. Meanwhile i stayed here in Bell Gardens and am loving it here. I got a new companion named Elder Carlos Panta.  He is originally from Guiaquil Ecuador so his Spanish is great and also he spent the last 9 years in Brazil so he is fluent in Portuguese. pretty cool, my second trilingual companion! He is a really hard worker and is helping me to be more organized because he is really good at that. So far we have found like 2 new people and we have a lot of work to do with a long list of potentials to visit. it is nice having a real game plan. i have been learning a lot more Spanish being with a native even for just half a week. i am excited to really improve. it is kinda nice too because he is still like learning English so he messes up some times and so at least he knows how it feels when i speak Spanish haha. :)

lately i have felt pretty good. i haven't gotten any letters for quite a while but it's like it doesn't really bother me anymore. more like a delightful surprise when it happens rather than a disappointment when it doesn't. :) sooo yeah. this week has been crazy being in charge of plans and kinda playing as host for him cause he is new to the area. it is really fun though. sometimes we will head out from the apartment and i will let him take the lead just to see where he goes. then when we have gone like 4 blocks in the wrong direction i will ask him where he we are going and he will say... i thought we were going to this place... and i will respond pointing in the right direction. haha. he is learning really quick though and i think it is helping him out. 

the other day i borrowed some goop off from our nice member neighbor and cleaned my fixie. it looks almost brand new. i took off all the stickers and cleaned it till my fingers were sore. I get a bunch of nice comments from the fixie gangs when we ride by. :) I will throw in a picture. 

Besides that not a lot of new. just the same old stuff different day. I did lose my bike lock though. i gave it back to the missionary i was borrowing it from so i think i may need to buy a new one... mom do you think you could get me one or send me money? 

well that is all for today, i am glad you guys are stoked for britt to come home. He deserves a HERO's Welcome. I love him to death. :) I love all of you and keep up the good work back at home as well. Even if it isn't 85 degrees and sunny. :)

Pues, gracias por todos los oraciones,

Les quiero.

Elder Winterrose

Hey, I found this cute puppy at a member's house.  It is the first actual purebred pug I have ever seen in LA and it's name is Chata which literally means smashed face - hahaha.

okay, well family and friends i had a crazy week where i think i learned the true meaning of work and sacrifice... we just had a baptism last week which was pretty darn cool but it left us with one downside; after looking at the "investigators" we had, we realized none of them were really progressing. so we are doing a LOT of finding activities, one of which is tracting. to be honest it wasn't a skill i had really honed until just recently. my last area we did a ton of work through the members and we were always receiving referrals from them. even too many at times to keep up with. so goes the saying you don't know what you got till it's gone. now, without the pouring out of referrals, it is tough working. we have had a little success with the streets around our appointments and near our casita but still no really good leads. :/ bummer time. our zone just got like crazy switched up too. both of our zone leaders got dropped and now they have a new one and a bunch of other crazy stuff. i think the missionaries around here might not have been being exactly obedient....  tough stuff. I'm just glad I'm not a part of it. It is hard enough to do the work, i don't see how people can be working effectively and not be getting the blessings of obedience. cause for me it is super busy stuff speaking of all that. i have been trying harder to stay focused in the mornings. it was never my forte... ahh, so it has been a super fun and busy week. the crazy people we run into definitely make up for the people who don't feel like salvation is cool. :) in fact the other day we ran into a bum after tracting and gave him a Libro de Mormon. he said he was excited to read it and we were outside our house. so i also ran in and grabbed a shirt i didn't want anymore and passed it down to him haha. :) that all made me feel good. well, i remembered my camera today so i hope you all like the pictures i got! Love Elder Channing Winterrose

O-key-day! soooo this week was pretty crazy. we got some rain this week. literally a gift from above in a place like this. you can kinda see the stars a little better after it rains! still not great, but better nonetheless. it was just for a moment, but it made it easier to breathe the next day haha.

oh, so Friday night at like 7 someone got shot like 2 a block from our house! super crazy right??? yeah, i still think it is quieter than downtown... that would happen like once a week.

idk what it is, maybe my knowledge of how hard it is to shoot a gun if you don't have a lot of practice, or just my general crazy lifestyle, but i feel pretty safe when crazy stuff goes down and i usually know what to do. i attribute it to having been through some kinda sticky situations already. anyways so that was kinda crazy. i didn't get to see the aftermath or anything, but they did have the entire street block shut down with crime scene tape and cop cars. not something you see back in Richland. haha. so that was our Friday.

then Saturday we finally got to go to the Visitors Center and it was super amazing. the family we are teaching are awesome. :) its a mom, dad, and two boys. the older one was old enough to be baptized on Sunday too! it was an awesome experience. one more to the scoreboard. i love being on the winning team!

so the baptism almost went down without a hitch. Elder R was the one to do the actual ordinance but i think his Portuguese might have confused his Spanish a little, so after about 5 dunks we were in the clear hahaha. :) that's always fun. then right after that Elder Shumway and i did the missionary moment and the family's little toddler decided he would go looking for his big brother.  He walked up to the front and kinda popped the curtain and didn't see him in the font. I think he was very confused at this point. so shumway went on and the little guy came over and kinda did that thing that kids do to get your attention. he comes up and bear hugs my leg and tried to pull me down to his level haha.  so then he goes over to shumway and does the same thing. then he came back to me and started hitting me to get my attention and by this point everybody is doing there best to not laugh and to pay attention, but then he hit me and made it count.  That got a bunch of people cracking up. then his dad came and got him. it was a very memorable moment haha. :) so that was our Sunday and now we are starting the next week and we are kinda at a loss for a teaching pool cause nobody was really eligible for baptism or progressing so we definitely got our work cut out for us.

well, i love all of you so much and i hope all is going well in the Tri.

Les Quiero bastante.

Elder Channing Winterrose

Aye mamma usted ya tenia la oportunidad para averiguar si papa conoce el hermano Shannon? de su trabajo o algo asi?

(Note from Mom - I didn't know what he was saying here, so I used an online Spanish to English translator.  I don't think it worked very well...  Here are the three options is suggested:

1. Aye mamma you already had the opportunity to find out if Pope known brother Shannon?
2. Aye mamma you already had the opportunity to find out if pope knows the brother Shannon?
3. Aye mamma you already had the opportunity to find out if the brother knows potato Shannon?)

Hey!

well at our apartment lately we have started the hobby of growing a weed....... haha. it has started the rainy season and we have a weed the same height as our mail box already! i think it's a dandelion. i must have a green thumb. the other day i noticed it and thought it was a small tree.

alrighty! first things first, i did get the package! thanks for the pump, it works great and the cookies are amazing. :) the wrapping ribbon/ construction tape stuff is a nice decoration for our door. it keeps the competition away haha. oh so this last week was kinda exciting! Tuesday we went on splits and i went to the other area with the district leader Elder Shannon and it was really fun. he is super nice and it is nice to talk about the Tri-Cities and reminisce with someone who knows what I'm talking about. by the way, no big deal or anything but Elder Shannon's dad does the exact same thing dad does at work. i told him what dad did and he told me all about how his dad does the exact same thing but for a private contractor and he does it for like Spain and other countries. it is way cool. he said he works like right by WSU tri cities. you might even know him! they are in Kennewick east stake.  anyways, so the next morning i wasn't feeling good and i got up and had to use the bathroom. because my stomach hurt a lot. after sitting on there for a while elder Shannon woke up and i told him i wasn't feeling so hot. then i took a shower to hopefully clear my head and help me out. after the shower i walked to the living room to ask if he had any meds i got that specific feeling you get right before you throw up. so the rest of the day we spent sick. oh, and when we called shumway he had the same thing so we had a fun little sick day. besides that the rest of the week has just been same old stuff. just been trying to get the energy back to get back to business.

Oh, i almost forgot, i think i have one of those meteorites grandpa gave me in my rock collection. it's black with little craters and the size of a quarter. i don't know if it is still floating around though...

well, i have a lot to do today and i wanna tell you all i love you all!

thanks for all of your support and prayers!

les quiero mucho,

Elder Winterrose

PS hey, my pal christian says hi.. .