"Cuidense Mucho!"

November 21, 2009 - Hey Blessed Family, Happy Thanksgiving!!! We don’t celebrate Thanksgiving down here in Peru, but I think we are going to order Papa John’s Pizza on Thursday and call it a Holiday. :) Is Chase going to dress up as a turkey this year? :) Go have a ton of fun with the rest of the family, eat tons of good food, and enjoy my second Thanksgiving in the Mission… Wahoo!!! The last one in the Mission. Well, in reality, every day is that last day of that day in the Mission now… Today was such a good day. It was so enjoyable. We left early from the Offices and went to President’s house. We talked for a second while his wife and daughter were getting ready and then we all headed off in President’s car to go to Pachacamac. It is an old part of Peru that is an ancient ruin, and it is in the Peru Lima South Mission, which means it is a little ways away. It had a Sun Temple, a storage room, a pyramid, a dungeon, and many other cool things all made out of old rock and cement. It was interesting to learn a little more about the history of Peru and see some of the sights. We then traveled right next door where they were having a Peruvian Horse Show. It was interesting to watch how they made their horses walk and pick out which horse was going to be judged as the best one. We, the Office Crew and the Pérez Family, had a nice, relaxing morning enjoying a beautiful day watching part of the Peruvian culture. It was so enjoyable and I felt so spoiled to be with President and his family. It is always fun to spend P-Days with him. We then went to the restaurant, La Bistecca, and had a very delicious lunch for my companion’s Birthday, which is the 24th. We ate until we were stuffed and sang “Happy Birthday” to my companion. In La Bistecca, they have a huge chocolate fountain and tons of goodies to dip in it. It is so good, and I told President and everyone that we have a small chocolate fountain at home and that my brothers would just die if they were to go there and see that chocolate fountain. The best part about the restaurant is that it is a buffet, which means you eat all you want. It was so good, and it was the perfect way to end a great day with the Pérez Family. Last Saturday, the sweet Canches Family threw me and Elder Sandoval a surprise Birthday Party. He has finally been able to leave the house so they wanted to celebrate our Birthdays together. We got to their house and it was decorated with balloons and streamers, and was set up for a fun family get-together. I sang “Abide With Me ‘Tis Eventide” and my companion shared a spiritual thought. Little Estrellita sang us a special Birthday song and it was so sweet to hear her voice. Her dad Calín was crying by the end of the song. (Her dad has my name in the Spanish version! Isn’t that cool?) Gladys, her mom, was also in tears. It was a special moment. We then ate a delicious dinner and they had made us a scrumptious tres leche Birthday cake. It was a very fun night spent with a very special family. :)Martha is the greatest ever!!! On Sunday, we dropped by to pick her up so we could go to Church together, but she wasn’t there. We assumed that she had already left and gone to the Church, but when we entered, she wasn’t there, and I started to worry. Sacrament Meeting started. We sang the opening hymn, the opening prayer was said, and I was losing more and more hope of her being able to make it. Just at that moment, I saw her walk by one of the windows and my heart almost jumped out of my chest because I was so excited to see her. I immediately stood up and ran to the door to help her enter and make herself comfortable. She stayed for all three meetings of Church. She absolutely loved it and couldn’t get enough of it. She immediately felt welcomed and she didn’t want to leave. I love her to death. So now, all she has to do is attend Church tomorrow and she is qualified to be baptized. I am so excited!!! Keep praying for her because she is praying for you guys. She always tells me that she constantly has a prayer in her heart for me and for my family…that means you!!! :) She is so sweet and is one more person you have to meet… Guess what? Our fridge is now working and I bought some milk today. So I am now going to be able to enjoy cereal and goodies even more. If I need anything else, I will let you know. The 19th, I hit a year anniversary of being in Peru. A year ago that day, I was flying in a plane to Peru and you guys were in the Temple meeting the “Kitty, Kitty” guy. :) Can you believe that that much time has passed? Nathan White also hit a year in the Mission on the 19th. :) I ordered the Spanish version of the Bible and it finally arrived this week. I was so excited. It is the new 2009 translation of the English Bible, and it was finally released in September. It is beautiful and it makes me want to read the Bible so I am way excited. :) I talked to Elder Atkinson and told him that we moved a little closer to Bingham and that he might be my neighbor now. We drew out a map of what we could remember and we came to the conclusion that we are now in the same Stake, maybe in the same Ward, but for sure in the same Stake. Try looking his family up and let me know… Go Riverton Silverwolves!!! Chase, I told you that you would be the STAR!!! I know you are the Show Stopper and that you make everyone crack up just like you always do. You are the coolest stud in the house. Go Johnny Depp!!! Did you all get to see Landon? Did you talk to Whitley and DeLaney? Let me know all about them. Dallis, I also had a dream about being a Returned Missionary. I don’t remember anything that really happened in the dream, but I know that I was at home and that my closet only had white shirts, ties, and Church pants… :) I don’t know if it’s a good thing, but we are already dreaming about the RM Life. Dallis, I totally agree. We are going to be inseparable!!! I can’t wait to see you and all of the family and just hang out. Quinn Family Part—November 3, 2010!!! Family, I love you so much!!! I hope the house gets started this week. I love you so much. Take care. Cuídense mucho. I love you forever!!! Love, Coco

"I love reading the Scriptures"

November 14, 2009 -
Hey Beautiful Family, It was a perfect day to go to the Temple. The sun was shining bright, there were not many clouds in the sky, and I got a little sun burnt. It was a splendid day to travel and see the pretty parts of Lima. The Session went great. I enjoyed it a lot. I love just being able to enter in a place of peace where your worries are put aside for a second. I absolutely love going to the Temple. Today was even more special because there was an old guy taking his Endowments out that sat right in front of me. He must have been 70-years-old and was just barely getting his Endowments. It was a great sight to see, that it doesn’t matter at what age a person comes to know the Gospel; all that matters is that they get to know it. It made me feel very thankful that I have grown up in the Church and that I get to enjoy being a member for a longer amount of time… :) We can never take for granted the many blessings that we have received as a family for being members of the Church and enjoying the comfort that the Plan of Salvation gives us. I am so thankful that we have this knowledge, and I am thankful that we are going to be an Eternal Family. Right now they are renovating our meeting house so we are meeting in another one and our schedule is from 2:00pm to 5:00pm. It isn’t a horrible time schedule because there is no air-conditioning so it gets really hot. But I also like it because there is more time to get things ready for Church and get investigators to go to Church. This is only going to be for six weeks and then we are going back to our old meeting house, but it is going to appear as a newly-built chapel. We are going to have benches and everything is going to be new. I am way excited. I am so glad that you all enjoyed Landon’s Homecoming. He was already excited to see you guys three weeks before he left. And all of the Elders’ families that you met are families of Elders that I know. Elder Evans was a really good friend that I made when I was in Collique. He was finishing his Mission and I had just barely hit three months. He talked to me a lot and we had a lot of fun hanging out in the nighttime talking and enjoying some midnight mac and cheese… I told you that High School Musical would be the perfect gift for Landon. I’m sure that he has secretly watched them many times already. He can’t resist it. He is now addicted, just like the rest of us down here in the Offices. Not a day goes by that we don’t randomly all break out singing a High School Musical song. I love it. I had a really lucky Friday the 13th. I got out and taught a couple lessons; President took us to lunch at Chili’s; and I got to come home knowing that the next day was P-Day. I had a really relaxing and enjoyable Friday the 13th. I can’t even tell you how happy I am. Good news... we have found a future missionary who is now able to accompany me every day so I was able to leave with him yesterday, and I will be leaving with him every day starting Monday. I am way excited. Even better news is that I found another lady that is like Yolanda from Iquitos. Her name is Martha, and I absolutely love going to her because I always know that she is ready with questions because she has already read everything that we leave for her to read, and she is just so excited to see me every time that I go. She is so ready to get baptized. All I have to do is just answer her questions because she understands everything, and then just finish up the other basic points she needs to know about the Church. We have set her baptismal date as the 28th of November and we know she can be baptized that day. The only thing she has to do is attend Church tomorrow and next week and she will be ready. Please pray for her to be able to attend and that everything will work out. I have been asking Heavenly Father every day and night to bless me with this baptism. She is one of the sweetest people I have ever met. Every time I converse with her, we are both on the verge of tears, but we never start crying. It is just because we connect so well, and I love her to death. I can’t let her go. This week when I wasn’t able to get to my area, I called her up to tell her so. Phone calls with her are really sweet. If I am not able to make it, she sincerely tells me not to leave her and not to lose her. She says that she wants it so badly. Like I said…God prepared her before I met her. So, please don’t forget Martha in your prayers. I had a very good week because I opened my eyes to a lot of things in the scriptures. There are so many hidden things in the scriptures. I now understand what it means to dive into the scriptures and study them. There are too many things to learn and so little time to read. I am now an addict to reading the scriptures. I love reading. I love reading the scriptures. I love it. Chase, good luck in Les Mis this week. I know that you are going to be the Star. Say “Hi” to Whitley and Delaney for me. Let them know that I still think about them and miss them a ton. Break a Legend this week. You’re going to do great!!! Dallis, I’m glad that life is going good and that you are enjoying the Nintendo. Keep the list updated. We have a huge Marathon waiting for us in 2010!!! :) Mom and Dad, thanks for the tender hearts that you both have. Know that all the hugs from Landon were sent with love from me. I made sure to give him tons of hugs to give away. I love him to death. Dad, you can’t listen to that song anymore. I love it and miss it too. Just keep going strong. I’ll be home in no time. I can’t believe Davey is already finishing. That is going to be such a fun day for all of you to go and see him. It has been so nice knowing that my cousin is in the Mission at the same time as I am. It gives me strength and keeps me going. Family, I love you to death. Don’t forget that you are always in my prayers and that I will never forget about you. I love you forever. Love, Colyn

"I love being a Missionary"

November 7, 2009 - Hey Fabulous Family, What a great day it was at Gamarra. I found some really cool things. The best news about this week is that my companion is okay. These three months that we’ve been suffering through were all worth it. Thank you for all of the prayers in Elder Sandoval’s behalf. We went to the hospital on Thursday, but the doctor wasn’t there so we went back yesterday. They took the band off of his foot, which was the most pain that Elder Sandoval had to go through. He said that it felt like the doctor was ripping the skin right off of his leg and foot. He was almost crying because it hurt so bad, and he was making the funniest faces. We both had moments where we were laughing because the pain was very humorous. :) But he’s okay; the bone sealed together. The x-ray doesn’t look like it, but just like skin leaves a scar, so does bone. He has a scar where the bone has sealed together. The doctor told him that he should start to put pressure on his foot, slowly but surely, taking one crutch away, and then being able to walk without crutches. The doctor said that he should be able to walk pretty good in a week’s time. We are all happy for this good news. Elder Sandoval is thankful that he is going to finally be able to leave and teach, just as I am too. I want to start having some baptisms again… During this time of suffering and being basically locked up, I have learned and realized many things, not all of which can be said, but it is written in my journal. Like I have said before, I learned that there is a reason for everything. My companion and I have become closer in our relationship. We get along much better than we did before. I also learned that staying in the house is not a good idea in the mission. It is always better to be out teaching and working, getting people to know the true Church of Jesus Christ, and bringing their souls unto salvation. I thought you’d just like to know that everything turned out fine; my companion doesn’t need an operation, and he will not be going home. We are very happy. :) Other good news: I have gotten skinnier. I am much skinnier than when I was in Iquitos. My belt now fits me good, and I don’t look as chubby in my face, neck, or any other part. I feel much healthier and happier. I was so worried seven months ago that I was going to come home a little bit more chubby, but now I see that there is hope. :) For Christmas I want a huge box full of all sorts of candy… We’re talking: Starburst, Skittles, Butterfingers, Watchamacallit, Rollos, Sweettarts [hard and squeeze kind :)], Laffy Taffy, Junior Mints, Milkyway, Tootsie Rolls, Sour Watermelons, Nerds (for my compi), Beef Jerky, and everything else that you know I like. I just want to satisfy the midnight crave. Oh, and don’t forget about orange sticks in my stocking. It’s tradition for me and Dad to receive them. :) Thanks. A package of good gingerbread men would be accepted. Chase, Go Senior Class Officers!!! You are the most creative and spunky kid alive. I am so glad that you are enjoying your time at school. I really want to thank you again for being in High School Musical with me. There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t remember a moment of HSM and the superstar my brother was out there belting on the stage. You’re the greatest Chase. Know that I love you. Dallis, Congratulations on the 4.0!!! That is so awesome! “That’s right, following right in his oldest brother’s footsteps… Oh yeah.” :) Just kidding. But that really is amazing. I told you not to worry about Algebra 2. Just don’t forget about what I have said about prayer. Our Heavenly Father already knows what we need. All we have to do is ask and then do our part as well. I know that he heard and answered our prayers. :) Great job in the tournament as well. Oh man, how I miss baseball. I haven’t seen a baseball diamond in more than a year. I have not seen a single one down here in Peru. Like Utah is full of baseball fields, all of Peru is full of places to play soccer. Everything is soccer; but there is nothing like picking up a glove and a ball, and going out on the diamond to play a double-header championship game. I miss it so much. We have to play when I get home. Keep the glove warmed up. I love you Dallis. Mom, last week was a miracle. I honestly could not believe that we sent the e-mails at the same time. I thought the exact same thing…it was a tender mercy. I can’t even put into words how I felt, but I felt as if we were in the same room, just not being able to hear or see each other. It was an amazing and very comforting feeling, and I am thankful that Heavenly Father gave us that moment. It fortified my strength as well. We are going to make it. “Anything’s possible.” The Mission is possible. I just can’t wait to be able to share a really hard laugh with you. It is going to be the best moment ever. Dad, like I have said before… Thank you so much for the tender heart that you have. If you can call me and Mom crybabies, then we can also call you one. I love you Crybaby. I really do love you. 50 miles is a long way to go without being able to hold back the tears. I know that Dixie Rock was a really spur of the moment decision, and even though you were already in your pajamas and ready to go to bed, I didn’t want to miss the fun and special moment of taking my awesome Dad on a fun spontaneous trip to a place he had never been before. I will never forget that moment, nor will I forget that trip. And you know that I would do it all over again in less than a heartbeat. Like I said, “Just plan the vacation, and I’m there.” I really miss St. George. I have so many memories of living there and being with a really good group of friends. Dixie Rock was one of my favorite places to go, at sunrise, sunset, and in the nighttime. I especially love the nighttime because you can see the whole St. George city lit up, and the Temple stands out as well. It is a beautiful part of this world. I can’t wait to see it again… Dad, just know that I love you to death. Family, I love you so much. Know that everything is going fine and that the Mission is great. I love being a Missionary. It is a great feeling to wake up every day and put the nametag on that says I am a representative of Jesus Christ. I love it. Keep going strong and don’t forget that I love you. You are the best family in the world. Love you forever!!!Love, Colyn

"I made it over the Hump!!!"

October 31, 2009 -

Hey Lovely Family,
"I made it over the HUMP!!!" Thanks for the cute package. I absolutely love the picture of you guys with the camel. You all look so great.... I also love the stuffed camel with the homemade cape. I am going to sleep with it every night so I can always be reminded that I made it over the hump and that my special family is supporting me in everything that I do. I feel a little strange passing the year mark. It means that what I have already done, I just have to do over again. I have already survived a year without television, movies, video games, music, full-out singing, dancing, card games, board games, and everything else that I love; so one more year is possible. In the beginning, I never would have thought that I could go so much time without doing the things that I love, but I have done it, and I know that the Lord has blessed me for it. I can't believe that one year passed so fast. This next year is just going to fly by. Honestly, I feel more comfortable now because I am now even more certain that I can endure to the end because I have now made it to the half-way point. It feels FANTASTIC!!! I have so many emotions, but it is really hard to put them into words. Just know that I am happy and healthy, and enjoying this special time in the mission. :) So... Happy One Year! And... Happy Halloween!!! Not many decorations are going on down here, but I have seen some people selling masks and Halloween candies in the streets. I'm going to see what happens in the nighttime because I think it's going to be a huge Peruvian Fiesta. (Insert in the nighttime: There were some kids dressed up as vampires, witches, wolves, and Pippy-Longstocking, and some were just carrying around devil tridents and pumpkin bags, but no one was giving out candy. It's not a hugely celebrated day down here.) So what is everyone dressed up as? I'm dressed up as a missionary; Dallis-baseball player; Dad and Mom-matching cheerleaders; and Chase-a Jabbawockee (whatever that is...) I hope you had a lot of fun making those interesting costumes. I had fun picking out a tie to match my missionary outfit.... :) It's fun being a missionary for Halloween. Are you ready to put up Christmas tomorrow? I want you to enjoy Christmas just as much as we do when we are all together. We are going to put a Christmas tree up here in the Offices, and I am already putting up some Christmas decorations and pictures that I have colored to make my room have a Christmas mood. I love Christmas time and I want to have it around for as much time as possible. I don't know if we'll get the Office decorated tomorrow, but I'm going to get the decorations up as soon as possible. :)
Guess what? I did it. I got my letters sent off to my converts. :) I feel great. I sent all of them a little note asking them for their names, their birth dates, their addresses, their phone numbers, and all of the information they can give me. I also sent them pictures and asked them to send me pictures of their family. I can't wait to start receiving response letters. I also received a card from Jose Carlos Sandoval Hidalgo, who was one of my best friends in Iquitos. If you remember my Mom and Dad from Iquitos (Letty and Leo); we were teaching Rosa who is Jose's aunt and Letty's sister. Jose baptized Rosa and we became the best of friends.
Things that happened this week: The Office was renovated. By that I mean that there were guys working her all day every day for three days this week. They repainted some walls, refinished the wood on all of the desks and counters, cleaned the glass and windows, washed the computer chairs, washed the carpet floors, and many other little jobs. The Office looks great, but because they were here working, I couldn't get a lot of my Personal Secretary stuff done so I've got a little more work to get done next week. I took advantage of the time not working to improve my study. I got a lot of studying done and I feel great.
I still miss Landon, but I still have his fun companion here Elder Santiago. He is from Guatemala and is so cool. He is just a good, fun friend that is always there to talk to and agree with. I wrestle him, I sing High School Musical with him, I make jokes with him, and we all get along with him really well. He keeps my spirits up. I love him to death. So I am getting along well. I didn't leave at all this week, but I got to study the scriptures, supervise the workers and I did some printing off of some Christmas decorations. So everything is okay. We are going in on Thursday this week to have a check-up on Elder Sandoval's foot. If it isn't healing still, then he will most likely have surgery, and the recuperation will be a longer time period. Surgery will mean that he'll have to go home. Pray for him so that everything goes okay, that his leg is healing, and that he won't have to have surgery. No missionary wants to go home.
Family, everything is going fine. I am doing great. I HIT A YEAR!!! The countdown has begun... I don't like watching the time, but it is always good to know that it is passing. I hope everything is going great at home. I can't wait for the new house to get started and I hope that everything turns out all right. Don't forget to decorate full-out for Christmas. Enjoy Christmas and know that the best Christmas present will be the phone call home from the Studmuffin Missionary who is serving in Peru. Haphy Halloveen! I wuf ju! (That's "Happy Halloween!" and "I love you!" said when I have a shampoo bottle stuck to my lip. ;) I love you guys. Take care until next week. Love you forever.
Love, Coco.

"He will do it for one more"

October 24, 2009 - Familia Quinn, Do you know what today is?... It's the One-Year Anniversary of "High School Musical 3: Senior Year!" Can you believe that one year ago, we were all seated at the District in a Movie Theatre at midnight ready to watch the movie be released. I can't believe that much time has passed. We were all getting ready for my Farewell, I was freaking out about my talk, and we were all kind of in a weird mood. And now look where we are... All of us in good conditions, happy, enjoying life, and just waiting for one more year to pass. You know what they say... the second year passes by a whole lot faster than the first. That sounds great to me. I think it's because we are all used to it now. I'm definitely not as homesick as I used to be; the boys are back in school; Mom's keeping busy with the house, homework, kids, and a husband; and Dad's busy getting a house approved, built, and furnished. It's good that we are all just working hard. It keeps our minds distracted and keeps the time passing by. I think we are all in awe that a whole year has passed by. The second one is just going to fly by. So get ready, cause here it comes....
So my Best Friend left this week. I had tears in my eyes before I could even give Elder Rich a goodbye hug. He is a really special friend to have. He kept me laughing, protected me, and helped me learn so many things. I'm really going to miss seeing him every day and just enjoying the small moments that make life the greatest. His e-mails to the Office let us know that he has been so blessed as a Missionary, and that his life as a Returned Missionary is great because of the service he gave for two years. I'm pretty sure he'll be coming back in December. I'll most likely still be working here in the Offices so I'll be able to see him and talk to him as Landon. (That sounds really weird.) I can't wait for you guys to see him. Tell him "Hi" and "Thanks" from me.
Changes were this week and everything went perfect. There were tons of Missionaries that had Changes. It was fun to see all of their faces and the smiles they had, all excited for the new Change to start. I am way excited as well. I think I am now accustomed to what I have to do as Personal Secretary. So this Change is going to be more organized and less stressful. I am really excited to start working on a new Change again. :) The new Missionaries all look great and look like they are going to be leaders in the Mission. It is so fun to see the excitement that the new Missionaries have as they enter into the Mission Field. It just brings a new fresh spirit to the Mission. I would never go back to being a New Missionary again, but I absolutely love the energy they bring to the work.
I did a lot of cleaning this week because I like living in a clean, up-kept house. Slowly, but surely, the house is getting more and more organized and cleaner. If I'm going to be living here for a while, I don't want to have to put up with dust and bugs and other things that don't make it very comfortable. I'm used to it, but if I can make the living conditions better...why not?
Excellent News... I got a package this week! :) I was so excited. I received the paper that said I had a package in the Post office on Monday, but we weren't able to go to the Post office until yesterday. All that matters is that I got it! Thank you for everything!!!!
There is a tradition that the Peruvians have during the whole month of October. They make a special cookie called Turron. It is like a thick sugar cookie with lots of caramel and sprinkles. They are pretty good, but you do get sick of them. They make them all October long as the tradition of the month.
Family, we've made it to the year. Just keep going strong and we'll pass this year in no time. I'm going to put myself to work so that the time passes fast. I know that Heavenly Father is blessing us beyond what we could have ever dreamed of. I know that He is our Father in Heaven and that He really does love us. I am thankful to Him, for taking me in His arms for one whole year, and I know that He will do it for one more. Family, you are my inspiration and my life. I love you guys so much and miss you even more. Know that I have you in my mind and heart every day, and that you are never forgotten in my prayers. I love you. Take care and go cheer on BYU!!!
I love you!!!
Love you forever, Coco