Cats and Dogs!

Well it's been another great week as Elder Bradshaw and I are getting more familiar with the area and the people. 

Last week for P-day we went up to Yakima and played some sports with our zone. It was super fun meeting new people and getting some true exercise out. I also got a haircut that day at a nearby Salon academy. The great thing about this place was that they give elders haircuts for free. The only unfortunate thing is it's in Yakima, a 45 minute drive from Sunnyside, and we won't be going up there every week. So we'll have to find an alternative or wait a few weeks. 

This week as you know was also Halloween. We had to be back in the apartment by 6pm, so Elder Bradshaw decided I would just watch the District the whole night. Even when some kids knocked on our door, I couldn't answer it. Other than that it was fun seeing people dress up and decorate their houses. 

Dogs, dogs, dogs. Man they are just about everywhere, and it's not even the big ones. It's the small little Wiener dogs and the Chihuahua that are the worst. You all know me with dogs, I don't do very well, but that's one thing I'm working on. Yes, I know they're most likely not going to hurt me, but some of them I feel like they will. Haha. With that being said, I have grown to love cats. They don't bark or bite, they're just there and will leave you alone. 

We've have had some great diners this past week as well. We sill haven't had an authentic Mexican meal, but I would say pretty close. I'm not even sure what authentic Mexican food really is. We've had dinner with members of our branch every single night which has been great getting to know them more personally. Although it is pretty tough to communicate with them because the listening to Spanish here is really different to the Spanish in the MTC. They speak a whole lot faster and it just sounds like a blur of words put together. It will also be tougher learning Spanish because you really never know if they speak English or Spanish. So sometimes we teach lessons in English, some in Spanish, it just depends on the age of the person. Younger people speak English and the older usually speak Spanish is what I've noticed. But I know my ability to speak and understand will improve with time. 

Elder Bradshaw and I are doing pretty well together and have definitely gotten to know each other better this past week. There are a few things he does that annoys me, but I'd expect that from every companion I get. One funny story that made me crackup was when were pulling up to this one house around 8:30 at night. It was super dark and I couldn't tell what the house number was. As I was helping him backup the car, he told me he didn't need my help, kinda of in a frustrated way. Then he asked me what the house number was. Well we were about 50 feet away from the house and I just could not tell. After he asked me again in a frustrating way, I told him, "I don't know, I don't have night vision". That may seem not very funny written out like that, but just imagine me saying that in a sarcastic way. It was pretty funny. Other than that we are working well together and trying our best. Sometimes I feel like the Senior Companion, only being a couple weeks out. 

There is a family we are teaching called the Ruiz family. The dad speaks Spanish and the mom speaks English and Spanish, but the kids speak English for the most part. They are a pretty cool family and one you can always count on being home at night. haha. We have a baptismal date for the dad on the 1st of December. Hopefully he can prepare himself for that day along with our help, but a super cool family. 

Well that pretty much wraps up this week. We are trying to get someone to fix our refrigerator because only the freezer works and pretty much all the stuff has gone bad. We will see about that today. 

Love you all very much. Thanks for you letters and awesome packages. Please be safe and have fun. I will be uploading pictures in the drive throughout the day, so make sure to look at those.

Elder Nissinen