Mushaboom

"Helping the kids out of their coats, but wait the babies haven't been born. I'm unpacking the bags and setting up, I´m planting lilacs and buttercups, but in the meantime I've got it hard second-floor living without a yard." -Feist

Hola lovely blog readers! This week has been a SUPER LOCO one! 

Its bad but this week I have really missed grass...and spring flowers. I live on the second floor of our house/apartment thing and we don't have a yard.

Anyways/entonces, first of all on Friday I experienced my first earthquake! OH JOY! I was sitting eating breakfast when all of the sudden my companion says "ES TEMBLANDO!" and I sat thinking what holiday is that?! Because the way she said it sounded like how you would say "Oh, its Christmas, and I totally forgot!" So then she heads for the door and says, "VEN HERMANA VEN" So I'm thinking "Oh, there's something in the street she wants to go see", so I get up and start walking then I loose my balance and feel really dizzy, and my companion says "ESTO HERMANA ESTO!", and I'm thinking "How does she know I feel sick?", and this sickness is really weird because my stomach feels fine but my head is not happy. Then one of the hermanas we live with says, "VENGAN HERMANAS VENGAN!", and I continue to think, "Oh, there must be something in the street", but that is when I saw the rest of the family in the doorway and one of the little girls crying.  Then the house swayed HUGE and I was like, "OOOOOH! Earthquake." The members here keep laughing at me when my companion tells them the story. I have to admit it is pretty funny. The thing was because I was  totally ignorant to the situation at first, I was calm and not scared. BLESSING! It was actually kind of fun. I hate to admit it, but it was a bit like a ride at an amusment park, just a high stakes ride. LOL. So, now my companion and I have a joke its called ¡FELIZ TEMBLANDO!, which means Happy trembling! I guess every year around Easter there is an earthquake.  Some of the members think it has something to do with the earth remembering Christ. Who knows.  LOL. But in 1985 they had a really bad one!  Here is a link to the wiki page...I hope it shows up in English for y'all:   http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terremoto_de_M%C3%A9xico_de_1985  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1985_Mexico_City_earthquake)

Second, it rained buckets this week!  FUN!  But for two days I was completely soaked! I have also eaten crepes EVERY night this week except Tuesday. I love crepes with nutella! There are some members here who have a crepe shop and they let us missionaries eat for free, we also drink milshakes and I always get Oreo NOM NOM NOM DELICIOSO! Funny thing, here in México Dora teaches English. Nice.

On Saterday I spent ALL DAY painting a house, it sucked because the walls of the house were rough and gravely and it took FOREVER to paint. I also got to paint part of the roof that was fun and scary!  

Sunday was a bit sad because here in Mexico City, they don't celebrate Pascua or in English, Easter. So I was really bummed, and really missed mini and normal Cadbury eggs. Next year someone awesome please send me Easter candy! 

This week was really special, too, because well....I HAD MY FIRST BAPTISM! YAY! FIESTA! It was yesterday, it was put together in about an hour but it was great and you could really feel the Spirit. Missionary work is amazing, and I love watching the Gospel touch peoples hearts, and changes them. 

Well I hope y'all are doing well love ya tons! Hermana Shingleton

Oh, and P.S. FELIZ TEMBLANDO! 

Roll With The Punches And Everything's OK

Well as always life is not ever normal as a missionary. I have been trying to learn to roll with the punches. There is a song By Lenka called roll with the punches that I love its basically my life. A very smart lady I once knew once talked about how as humans we cant be stiff like oaks we need to be like willows, firm but willing to bend when the wind blows so that we dont break. 

Another song by Lenka that I'm living by is Everything's OK. Christ gives me hope everyday, life is tough and sometimes Ill be honest all I want is to go home, but I pray everyday and I receive the strength I need. 

This last week we had interveiws with the President and he had me go to the doctor because I have been sick a ton off and on. So we went to the temple where the doctor that speaks English is! Sad thing, she said I had an infection in my stomach, but I don't know if I believe that, but for three days I could not eat chocolate, dairy, and pop. OK.. so what was I supposed to eat? I have no clue. 

We then got to frolick about the AMAZING visitors center for a while. SO MUCH FUN SO COOL! Then we went to the distribution center, and got some stuff yay! 

Well, also this week, our shower broke and we couldn't use it. To fix it they had to cut/dig a huge hole in it. Nice... There was dirt and dust everywhere it took forever to clean. 

Its funny people here have a hard time saying Shingleton. So one of my investigators call me Hermana Jinggumbells and the elders in my district call me Shingwungwongchung. HAHAHA! Its crazy.

This is mostly for my sister "I like tortillas, I like tortillas, I like em more, I like em more, tortillas are my entire world! Yes I ADORE torillas here!

I have had to sing play guitar for a few people this week, aaa scary! But it feels good to sing again. One sister was all like Oh you sing with the voice of an angel! WOW, thanks. Its funny I have been helping teach an English class and this week they learned the song Rolling in the deep by Adele for pronunciation practice. HAHA Sweet! 

One thing that seems to be a huge theme in my head latley is that Family is AMAZING and such a gift! I thank my Father in Heavan for my awesome family. Well Love yall! Hermana Shingleton

What is Reality?

Being on a mission is really weird, your flipped inside out and upside down, its kind of like falling down a rabbit hole. Your past life doesn't feel like it happened like a strange dream or the memory of a different person the somehow got into your head. It almost makes you dizzy, like, "Whoa! That was me?  No." And then the present zips past and is frozen all at the same time, you feel stuck in a moment and then all of a sudden you wake up a month later. Then the future doesn't seem like it will ever happen and then you realize its really close. AAAH! Talk about confusing! Its like magic.

This week I got to help teach an English class, that was cool! I love teaching anything! I also taught the first lesson to a girl in Spanglish, that was amazing! I felt so free like "YES I CAN DO THIS!" You could feel the Spirit so strong! YAY! 

I also discovered while being here that American tortillas are terrible and a total disgrace! I really like tortillas here. I also love MANGOES! But they have to be the completely orange little ones. they are amazing I eat one everyday. YUM! 

Want to try something very Mexican? Yogurt, jello cubes, and fruit, like bananas, mangoes, cantaloupe, watermelon, etc. YUM! Crepes are also a big thing here, Nutella, strawberries, and sweetened condensed milk yum! There is a soda here called jarritoes I think you can get in Walmart in the States the orange is the best!

This week was my companions birthday! YAY! I love birthdays! The district was sneaky and got her a cake, it was good and then we discovered it was mocha...nice! lol. Sad. 

I miss nature here, it is totally a city, the first week I felt like suffocating, I miss open space with trees and grass. Sigh. C'est la vie. 

The last three days I have been super sick. It made me really miss my mom. Ugh. I hate being sick and here its awful because i often have to work through it. YUCK!

Wasn't conference great! I learned so much! 

Random, I saw a Volkswagen van painted like the Mystery machine.SWEET! Mexico is full of surprises! 

Love y'all! 

Hermana Shingleton

Please pray for all the missionaries in the field.  This work is hard and we need all the help we can get! 

Please Bring Honor to Us All

This week has been crazy! So wow where to begin? 

My companion and I were talking the other day and we randomly started singing the song "Please bring honor" from Mulan. So in the end we realized a mission is kind of like Mulan, you represent two sets of people Christ(the church) and your family. You go out with your family praying you serve well, you train hard, you fight hard, and hopefully you return with honor. You are a different person, and you return with "gifts" your name tag, torn worn scriptures, etc. Don't y'all just love my metaphors? teehee. 

Random thing I love about Mexico... there is always music playing somewhere and very often its American. MWHAHAHA! 

Everyday I wake up and go what the heck I'm a missionary! AAAAH! It doesnt feel real, I am used to watching missionaries and thinking wow, thats cool, and now its me. CRAZY! 

Speaking of the word crazy, the family I live with just got a dog and they named it Crazy. 

For FHE this week all the missionaries in my district went to the house of a member family, we ended up playing movie charades and this one elder did Nacho Libre it was EPIC because he is Mexican. SWEET! 

Everyday I also feel like a hobbit because, well, Mexican's don't eat dinner and breakfast is a very different affair. Its like what about breackfast, second breakfast, levensies, tea, lunch, dinner, supper...? I always get soooo hungry in the evening, but lunch is huge, soup, main course with salad, fruit, dessert. WOW! It's often hard to eat everything. 

Another cool thing that happened this week, we were in the institute building and someone people were in this one class room and somebody was playing piano and then I realized I knew the song they were playing. My companion and I wen into the room and asked if they would play the song again so I could sing it. They said sure. It was Someone like you by Adele, I sang it and everyone was flabbergasted. People here love Adele. FUN!

Last but SO not least; the other day a sister in the ward came up to my companion and I in the street and said " Hermana Shingleton, I feel that you have a message you need to share with me and my granddaughter. will you and you companion come over later and have a lesson with us?" AAAAAAAH! I had no clue what to do. Of course we agreed to come by, but AAAH! What did I have to share with this family. I started to pray to be able to know what to share with these people. I ended up teaching about prayer, families, and charity. By the middle both this sister and my companion were in tears, and I almost was. The sister ended up telling me that what I said was exactly what she needed to hear, and would I talk to her son who wants to get baptized but doesnt want to marry his girl friend that he lives with and has kids with. I was like ok, but again aaah! So if I end up talking to him ever I'll write about it. I love this particular family its just the grandma and the granddaughter. The little girl is the same age as my sister Abbi. She is super cute and funny. 

Anyway there is a good look into my week. Love y'all! Hermana Shingleton XOXOX

I Like Trains and Bailar Bailar!

Hola dear blog readers!

First of all if you get the above references you are a winner! 

Let me start off by talking about the Metro; the Metro is the most insane thing ever! It´s the Mexican Subway. In the mornings and evenings people pile in like sardines, so many people that you are squashed up against eachother and your arms are glued to your chest. Its hot and aweful. This week my companion and I had to go to the mission home and to get there you have to take the metro. The first train came and my companion started to get on and there was no room for me and then the doors started to close so I had to physically pull her out. Later we missed our stop because we were packed in so tightly we could not get off. AAAAAH! 

My mom likes Zumba, and it just so happens that Zumba well dance of any kind is really big here. My family has this Zumba video game back home, and when it starts up it goes "bailar, bailar" Well I found out that the word for dance here is bailar. HAHA so it says "dance, dance" in English. 

Also on the subject of dance my stake here held a Relif Society activity where the sisters in each ward performed a traditional dance in native costumes. It was really fun to watch and my ward danced the best. 

This week I also watched people eat chicken feet! EWWWW! I dont think I could eat that! I think I would throw up. One hermana even ate parts of the bone yuk! 

The other day I was walking down the street and I relized a few things; I was feeling kinda down about my language skills and then I relized even though I may not speak well I speak Spanish! CRAZY! People around me dont speak/understand English so I am forced to speak in Spanish. YAY! The other thing is that I love Mexico! Its hard here and waaaay different from the States but I love it. 

Another good thing is that I am not as sick anymore. YAY! 

A couple weeks ago I learned the word for guinea pig in Spanish because guinea pigs are a popular pet here. The word is cuyo. Well the other day I was reading the first vision when I came across this "Cuyo fulgor no admiten..." AAAH guinea pigs in the first vision! I told my companion and she busted up. I know it actually in this instance means "whose" but it was still funny. Any way love yall! Until next week! 

Hermana Shingleton

Adventure is Out There!

Hola my wonderful blog readers! I hope everyone is happy and healthy! 

Life here in Mexico continues to be full of surprises! Here are a few random things about Mexico City

People drive crazy, you can basically go as fast as you want, nice. Oh and seat belts are non existent in most cars, whoopie! I actually kind of like riding in a car here, it´s strange.

Dogs hang out on the rooftops, it´s kinda scary as your walking down a street and suddenly hear barking above you.

Fruit here is incredible, bananas are my favorite! Tortas are my new favorite Mexican food. They are mix between panini and sub sandwiches and usually have some kind of guacamole on them. YUM! I also love these cookies called "Sponch" they are a cookie with marshmallow, coconut, and strawberry jam stuff. 

Today I went to a HUGE mall, and went bowling. It was great. My sister would die if she saw this place! Afterwards we went and ate at Chili´s it was good to eat American food. Oh and we went to DQ. YAY! It was really nice to spend part of my day in civilization. 

Last week I had to do my laundry by hand, crazy huh?! Lucky for us this week one of the hermanas in the ward let us use her washer this week, but we still had to hang the clothes out to dry. 

I LOVE the people here, they are for the most part really nice, it´s just frustrating because I don´t fully understand them yet. 

Let me say this though I am super SUPER glad to be an American! America is a wonderful place. 

Yesterday an American hermana told me that on the front of a dollar bill there is one letter for every month of an elders mission and on the back there are 18 letters in  "federal reserve note" so for every month of your mission you color in a letter. Dollar are useless here and I happened to have one so yeah I started filling them in. I can´t believe I have almost been on my mission for two months! AAAAA! How did that happen!? 

I miss home a TON! But am finding things I like about here. 

I have become something of a sanitary freak in my house, I really don´t want to get sick! So I bleach all my dishes and the bathroom. And haha I use Fabuloso for the floor. Thanks boss for helping me get used to the stuff. 

Also this last week we ran out of gas for hot water in the shower, so we had to use a livestock water heater to heat up water in buckets and then use a bowl to dump water on ourselves. Life is a huge adventure. Also my dear blog friends you can still use dearelelder to write me! YAY!

Well Love y'all! Bye!

Narnia

Hey everyone! This week has been crazy, and by far the craziest, herdest one of my life! 

I am in Mexico! AAAA HOW DID THIS HAPPEN! It´s pretty interesting here.

Here is something I have been thinking about all week: 

Going on a mission is like stepping through the wardrobe into Narnia you are a child when you come, you are filled with excitment and wonder. Then you discover that you have a work to do, and people to serve. You have to step up the plate, fight battles, and help the Lion save people. You learn and grow imensley. And by the end you are strong and you know with "Aslan´s" help you can do anything. Then when you return home, you are changed, you are still you but different. It´s like my branch president said in the MTC quoting C.S. Lewis "Once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen of Narnia." or "Once a missionary, always a missionary." 

I don´t have a ton of time but just know that I am alive. I am learning the language pretty well. I have been sick off and on ugg. My companion Hermana S is awesome! I got a guitar, yay! Oh, and I ate pig skin...interesting. Love y'all! 

Hermana Shingleton