What a week!

On Sunday, I said goodbye to Sister Lifferth as she headed off to Brazil, and I was with Hermana Gonzalez until transfers on Tuesday. She lives in my old apartment in Marysville, so it was fun going back there and seeing the place again! We also had an amazing lesson with one of their investigators, Tomas. I didn't understand a single word of it, but the spirit was SO strong. And he prayed in Spanish, sincerely wanting to know if it's true. Good things are in store for Tomas and I'm excited to hear about him later.

TRANSFER TUESDAY

We went down to the mission office, and Hermana Gonzalez and I are both training so we just hung out through all of transfers, saying hi to our missionary friends. Then everyone left and we met the new missionaries and were eventually assigned! I am with Sister Johnson from Utah! We got back late so we didn't get to do much besides eat dinner and meet the ward mission leader.

Wednesday was Zone Meeting! I love meetings with other missionaries because the spirit is always so strong! Zone meetings are the best. Missionaries are the best. Missions are the best!

Friday at the Food Bank! I invite everyone to go volunteer at the local food bank. It's so much fun!

Charles got baptized on Saturday! We spent the morning filling the font, and the program went really well! I was pleasantly surprised with the speakers and was worried about making sure everything went according to plan, and it did! And now Charles is baptized! He's 9 and his family is completely active, so no one is sure how he turned 9 without being baptized, but we got to work with him and now we're happy for him and his family

Hope all is well! Thank you for your love and support!

Sister Tennant

Some of us trainers and our new babies! Me, Sister Johnson, Sister De Arman, Sister Rodda, Sister Perkinson, Sister Barletta

Charles' baptism!

 Tulip Festival and Conference

 

Last Monday the Sisters and us went to the Tulip Festival in Mount Vernon! Tulips for as far as you can see! It is so beautiful, especially with the bright colors contrasting with the grey sky. Heavenly Father's creations are so wonderful and I'm so grateful we got to go see them!

Allergies hit me hard this week with a sore throat and I'm super congested, so it was hard to talk for a couple days, but we made it work! Silly allergies can't slow me down!

On Thursday, we had another sister with us for the day. Sister Rodda's companion went home so she's 3 packing with the Sister Training Leaders, and they had MLC so she came with us for the day. It was so fun! I love her so it was great having her as our third companion for the day :)

We also had a super powerful and spiritual lesson with a less active man. The rest of his family is active, and he finally agreed to meet with us. Now he's on his way back to activity! I love getting to help bring people back into the gospel and remember the testimonies they have.

Thursday night was leadership calls, and guess what. I'm training! Again. My first baby is now on her way to Brazil, and I will get a brand new missionary tomorrow!

So Friday we had trainer's training at the mission office. Sister Wikstrom is a Sister Training Leader again so she was there, along with her other trainee, Sister Ludvigson. So that was fun having all of us there together.

The highlight of the week though was General Conference!! I love hearing the words of the living prophet and apostles and other leaders of His Church. What a blessing it is to get to hear from them. I invite everyone to listen and watch on lds.org!

And Sunday after Conference, I had to say goodbye to Sister Lifferth. Her visa came and she is now on her way to preach the gospel in Brazil. She will do great things there and I am so thankful for the time I had to serve with her.

Goodbyes are hard, so thank goodness these relationships can continue on after our missions and we will see each other again someday!

I will still be in Arlington, and I am excited to meet my new companion tomorrow!

Love, Sister Tennant

 

Some of our Zone in between sessions of conference!

This mission is the hardest thing I have ever done. I am the most stressed I have ever been. But I am SO HAPPY all the time

Sister Ludvigson, me, Sister Lifferth, Sister Solosko

Tulip Festival in Mount Vernon!

P Day last week

Sister Ludvigson and I are training! And Sister Wikstrom is a Sister Training Leader so we all got to be at the trainer's training on Friday! Sister Wikstrom trained both of us, so it was a Momma and her two babies!

 

Another great week!

On Tuesday we were street contacting downtown and this guy stopped and asked if we were sisters. We both turned and said "Yeah!" and he said, "Twins?" Haha wrong kind of sisters, but Sister Lifferth and I do look a lot alike!

Wednesday we were on exchanges! It was Sister Lifferth's first exchanges, so she was super nervous, but she did great! Our sister training leaders are on Whidbey Island so Sister Lifferth got to go be an islander for the day :) And I was with Sister Perkinson. I replaced her in Port Gardner and we've always been friends, so it was fun getting to serve with her! While exchanges used to be scary, they are a lot of fun now that I've done them so many times!

Friday, we got to go to a baptism! John in Armar got baptized. SIs Lawson and I taught him the first lesson one of our last days there, and the spirit was so strong so we knew great things were in store for him. The elders taught him after we left, and now he's baptized! Since I taught him last transfer, I had permission to go to his baptism, and we had an investigator there too who is now super excited for his baptism in a couple weeks. It was great to see some old friends from Armar!

And Saturday was the Women's Broadcast! Can I just say how excited I am for General Conference? Conference is the most exciting thing and I love it so much! I loved the messages all about families and how we can strengthen our families. I invite everyone to read or reread The Family: A Proclamation to the World!

Also, this week a new video called Because He Lives was released. Everyone should go watch it right now! It is super powerful and amazing!

Love, Sister Tennant

 

The Buttars, a cute senior couple serving here, just left for home, and it was Sister Buttars' signature to give out loaves of banana bread. Over their 18 months, she made over 3,300 loaves and gave them to everyone. This is the last bit of my last Sister Buttars bread! Thank you Sister Buttars!

Courtney

John

Matthew

Reunion with Armar! John, a guy we found one of our last nights there, got baptized this week so we got to go!

 

Jesse and Sister Bartsch at the Elder Oaks fireside last Saturday

Another great week!

Last Wednesday, the Stillaguamish sisters and us went bowling! We went to this cute old school bowling alley in downtown Arlington. We're not sure who won since we had to keep score ourselves and none of us know how! Haha it was still super fun

Wednesday we had district meeting and Sister Lifferth and I got to instruct on how to help people become truly converted to the gospel. One thing I love about training is getting to see her grow! She's become quite the fantastic missionary and is so willing to do whatever is asked of her

Friday we volunteered at the food bank, and since we're running low on miles for the month, we walked there! It was only about a mile and a half away, and the fresh air is so nice! It did start raining on our way home though

Saturday was definitely the highlight of my week. Elder Dallin H. Oaks came and spoke to us! We had a special fireside for investigators, recent converts, and recently reactivated members. Elder Oaks, Elder Craig A. Cardon (who came to speak in December), and Elder Christensen (the Area/Regional representative?) came too. There were so many people from my last wards that I got to see! I love being a missionary and all the happy reunions! To be surrounded by so many people you love is just the best thing in the world.

Moroni 1:2 says "For behold, their wars are exceedingly fierce among themselves; and because of their hatred they put to death every Nephite that will not deny the Christ." And the beginning of verse 3, "And I, Moroni, will not deny the Christ."

I, Sister Tennant, will not deny the Christ. I love that I get to stand as a representative of Him every day and constantly bear my testimony of Him!

Love, Sister Tennant

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wednesday we had zone meeting again! It was probably the best zone meeting I've had thus far. We were asked to think of our favorite scripture hero and it was really powerful getting to hear everyone's testimonies of who they look up to.

We have a limited number of miles we're allowed to drive each month, and we are over where we should be, so Sis Lifferth and I went on a "car fast" and walked everywhere on Thursday! It turned out to be a lot of fun, even though we were exhausted at the end of the day. We even got 2 new investigators that day!

Sister Lifferth is a visa waiter for Brazil, and on Tuesday, her visa came! So she'll be off to Brazil April 6th. I'll miss her but I am so excited for her! We talk about Brazil all the time and I know she will do great things there!

Sunday we got to help teach Mission Prep! We talked about all the things we've learned from our missions and how we have changed. It was really neat to get to bear testimony like that. I am so thankful to be a missionary.

Love and miss you all

Sister Tennant

For real. Washington is so pretty

 

Rain!! The first time it's really rained since Sister Lifferth has been here

 

 

 

 

What a week!

We are finally getting adjusted to the new area and our new investigators. Sister Lifferth is doing great and is a fantastic missionary!

On Wednesday we had interviews with President. I love him so much and I'm so thankful to have him as our mission president! Interviews were really great and we talked about faith and hope and how the English language is not detailed enough for there to be a difference between the two. It was a great meeting!

We also volunteered at the food bank again! I love the foodbank!

Friday we had new missionary training at the mission office with all the new missionaries and trainers. It was good and helped both of us as trainer and trainee. And I saw Sister Wikstrom again :)

Saturday was our ward talent show! It was a lot of fun to get to go help set up and watch that. We did leave during the worldly skits and what not, but it was still fun to get to meet and get to know more of our ward.

Saturday was church and Sister Lifferth and I both spoke! That was a good experience. I enjoy speaking in Sacrament. And we had another Come See For Yourself Fireside down in Lynnwood. Some people from my last ward were there, so it was great to see all them again. And one of our investigators from there is getting baptized! I only actually met him once (a few days before transfers) but he came up to me and thanked me for all Sister Lawson and I did for him and he asked if I can come to his baptism, so hopefully I'll be able to go!

Arlington is great and we have such a wonderful ward. We have been so greatly blessed!

Love, Sister Tennant

 

 

Beautiful Arlington!

My eyes do this weird super excited crazy looking thing, but this is Sister Cram and I love her so much!

It's Sprintime!

Sis. Lifferth

Sis Wikstrom at the Fireside

 

I am in Arlington Washington, in the Arlington ward! It's just north of Marysville and my YSA ward covered this ward so it's been cool getting to meet some of my friends' parents and families from the family ward. If that makes sense?

So I went Everett, Marysville, and now Arlington. I keep moving north a city at a time so next stop should be Mount Vernon!

Weekly Update from     3/2 15

I completely forgot to type out a weekly update! 

So, Sunday after Sister Lawson left, I was with Sister Soloska until transfers on Tuesday.  We had fun together but most  Monday and Tuesday morning I was packing and deep cleaning the apartment.  And Monday at FHE, I said goodbye to the Armar Ward.  I think a piece of my heart will always be in Armar YSA.

Then transfers were on Tuesday!  We packed everything into the car and headed down to Mill Creek.  Since I’m training, I didn’t find out right away who my new companion would be, but I found out I’m in the Arlington Ward!  And it’s fun because I now live in the same apartment complex as Sister Solesko and her new companion!  (They’re in the Stillaguomish Ward).

Sister Wikstrom is training again, so we stuck together through transfers and met all the new missionaries.  Then when it was time to assign trainers and companions, all us trainers sat on the right side of the chapel and the new missionaries on the left, and one at a time President Bonham called our names and we met in the middle.  And I am with Sister Lifferth from Kaysville, Utah!  She was originally assigned to Brazil, so every day we get to study Portuguese. It’s a lot of fun!

Since we’re both brand new to the area, we’ve been meeting as many people as we can this week.  We have a nice group of investigators, and a couple of unbaptized children preparing to be baptized!  The ward is great, the Bishop is great, and it is so beautiful here!

I must’ve done something fantastic in the pre-mortal life to have been lucky enough to come to  Washington on my mission!

D& C 15:6 says, “And now , behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father.”

I  am so thankful to be a missionary and to get to bring souls unto Christ.  I can’t wait for the big reunion in Heaven with all the people who have touched my life and made such a big impact on me.

Love, Sister Tennant

Our District

We had to get the perfect picture with Ryland

Stuart and Blake

Packing up the whole apartment. And our megabed.

Smores! Thank you Heiners!

Both of our last Sundays with the ward. A large portion of the ward stopped between 2nd and 3rd hour to take a picture with us!

Right before our sad and tearful goodbye :(

Our friends Deep and Jasmin

Jesse

New companion Sister Lifferth!