November 9, 2015: Week 41. What?

So I just ahve a little cold right now. But I've had it for like two weeks! And yesterday I thought I was getting over it and ended up with a fever. Yes, Sister Kindt did leave me. She had been in the area 7 and a half months so it was time for a change. She's moving up to the big city! Sister Frank came down with me. She was in my district first transfer, but I didn't get to know her that well at that time. Some things about Sister Frank: -She has a HUGE heart. always thinking of others -She's from Hawaii but she's lived all over the world! -She's got this crazy infectious loud laugh that I LOVE -She is teaching my how to play the piano because she is SO good. -She's been out a year now I love her so much. Surprisingly, I know the area better than I thought I would and we are both feeling like we are getting great work done! We are also helping some of our members build a pig sty... Never thought I'd be doing that! I don't feel like a lot has changed this week. We have one investigator that is doing great. She comes to church, she's had all the lessons and everything. We're just waiting for her to get a marriage lisence. That's a problem here for a lot of people. I think they are expensive or something and so a lot of people just don't get them... I know she wants to get it, but they're pretty poor and her daughter needs surgery soon, so it's been hard for them. We just keep praying for her! Some super Armenian things: -they say if you put chili powder in your hair that it will grow faster. -they say that when a woman is about to have a baby, if she steals an egg from her mother and eats it, her baby will have dimples. (so my mom is a thief) -they say if you eat straight kiwi for two weeks you will be able to see 100% -they say if you eat honey and melon at the same time you will be poisoned -they say if you eat a lot of sweet potatoes you will have twins That's all I got. Just a heads up, next week Eler and Sister Kacher, from the Area Presidency, are coming to do a meeting with us on monday. So I won't be emailing until tuesday next week. Thank you all for your support. I am so happy here. Jesus Christ lives! He is our Savior and best friend! His Gospel is the way to happiness now and for eternity! He loves all His children no matter what. He made EVERYTHING possible for us. And He is calling us all to come unto Him and find peace. "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life." John 8:12 The world is getting dark. We can all see that. But when we focus on Christ, we don't feel that darkness. His light and love is is stronger, greater, and more abiding than all the works of darkness. In everything we do, let's focus on Him. He will light our way and carry our load. Through Him, we are all enough. համբուրում եմ, քույր Blanchard

Sunset and Ararat! 

Guys, yesterday was my hump day. Half way done. Yikes!

I broke the faucet and got water everywhere. 

November 2, 2015

So we are doing half transfers! We had no idea. President called us on Sunday to say Sister Kindt is leaving tuesday... We're sad, but it was time for her to go. She has been here forever. Hopefully I don't get too lost here!!! This week has been so so good! We've been a little under the weather, but besides that it's been awesome. And being sick has honestly taught me an important lesson. I've been ponderizing mosiah 4:19 this week. "For behold, are we not all beggars? Do we not all depend upon the same Being, even God, for all the substance which we have, for both food and raiment, and for gold, and for silver, and for all the riches which we have of every kind?" I've been asking God in my prayers this week to bless me with health and energy to serve His children. And then I would continue the day complaining about how tired I was, how cold I was, how bad my head hurt... And I realized that I was praying to the Lord to help me so I could help others and I needed to trust that He would take care of me and quit worrying about myself. Here I am crying about feeling bad and Sister Kindt is also sick. Why not help her? Is she not also a beggar unto God? Aren't other people's problems as important, if not more important than mine? This realization changed my heart. I'm looking out more easily and with more faith. In other news, we had 91 members at church this week!!!! It was so cool! We are really cracking down on the ward list business/ less-active hunting and it's been going super well! I was so excited with all the great people we saw at church this week! I really love less active work. Helping people remember their conversion has become really special to me. We called one of our investigators this week. Her husband said he sent her away for a vacation for ten days without a phone... Kinda weird. And then we heard from some neighbors that she''s still here... We're confused because she has a baptismal date, is reading, and loves having us over. I don't know why they would say that. So we're probably just gonna go over and see them one day. I don't know! I also hit my NINE MONTH mark this week!!!!! What the heck... Other fun news... hmm... We still have cockroaches in our house like crazy... and now we have some weird larva/worm things on our ceiling... I never thought I would live in a place like this before... We dressed up as tatiks (grandmas) for Halloween. No one really knows what Halloween is here. So we were wearing these vest things. And people would come up to us and say "you know, only tatiks wear those..." Yeah, we know. haha. we also learned how to make gata!! It's this dessert thing that is basically a bunch of butter and sugar, so basically a bunch of perfection and happiness. That's all I got folks! Love you all, Sister Blanchard

The tatik life. 

Studying by the heater because of winter. 

And we're coming up now on Armenia's majestic Mount Ararat. You'll recognize this as the landing spot of Noah's Ark at the time of the Great Flood. 

Gata!