Week #9 - August 27th, 2017 - "OCEAN GETS BAPTIZED!"

Pinky promises is how we got Ocean to come
 to church her first time!

KIA ORA!

Okay, so this week was sooooo goood! Ocean, the very first person I ever met and starting teaching here in NZ was baptized and confirmed this weekend! It's so special seeing someone truly accept the gospel and enter the waters of baptism!! I'm grateful I'm able to be just a little part of her conversion! I also met Elder Stevensen and his wife!! So cool! There's 10 of us VC sisters and we sang to him. haha Never thought I would be singing to an Apostle of the Lord! We also had a fireside last night with heaps of missionaries who brought theIr investigators at the VC! We had to sing at that toO! haha I never got the memo that singing was part of being at the VC.. hopefully

Ocean!

I'll sound somewhat good when I get home.. jokes probs not! Okay but this fireside was so cool! The speakers shared their conversion stories and the Spirit was so strong with the music, speakers, missionaries and their investigators, the beautiful statute of Christ and the temple in the background! 

This week I also had my very first dinner appointment at the Tuioti family from Samoa! They're the best, they invited us over every Wednesday from now on.. so Sister Howard and I started going on runs every morning which is sick cause we watch the sunrise each morning now! Oh my goodness it is soooo gorgeous!  we also did some gardening for a family which was so nice to be out in the sun/rain and not have to wear a dress! We also had a lesson with one of our investigators at the new Church

Elder Taka the sicket Maori baptized ocean!

History Museum!! It is so COOL! Everyone needs to go sometime! My district is also so sick! I made everyone play Pukana. haha It was so fun! Well I LOVE YOU ALL HEAPS! You are all amazing! Oh and I am so happy that Grandma is doing good and her surgery went well! All the VC sisters have been praying for her and I know that Heavenly Father is so aware of each and every one of us and will truly answer your prayers! ofa lahi atu

arohanui, xo

sister sughroue

ps. my zone leader, Elder Tukuafu knows Sione really good!! and Sister Howard and I had a little luau to celebrate her 6 month mark haha we grilled pineapple and made kalua pork so yum!

Elder Taka

A little Luau to celebrate
Sister Howard's 6 month mark!

Kahula Pork and Grilled Pineapple!

Week #8 - August 20th, 2017 - I LOVE YOU ALL HEAPS!

Sister Tauhiro my fav tahitian <3

Kia Ora!

Happy early birthday to the hottest babe around and best sister in the world! Everyone give LIndsey some love haha) This week was so good! The hike we went on last Monday was so gorgeous!! IT was so nice to leave the VC and my area cause I feel like I'm in a bubble, but this hike was sick! I'm for sure coming back to New Zealand so I can actually see this beautiful island!! So this week we had zone conference! There's a couple of Palangis and the rest are Poly! I love them so much. They are the happiest most loving people. During conference President Cummings talked about the Holy Ghost and we watched a clip from Elder Bednar. He talked about how promptings from the Holy Ghost aren't always easy to recognize all the time, because God TRUSTS us in our decisions. I think it's so important to TRUST Him but to always remember that He wants to trust you. You can build that trust by doing the little things, the SIMPLE little things.

Anyways this week I was able to meet some cool people. A Maori man came into the VC wanting holy water. We told him we didn't have any but he kept asking so I just went to the back and got him a cup of water. haha He then sprinkled the water on his two little sons. He told us his devotion to his sons and how he wants them to be safe and watched over. He talked about his strong connection to the sea and that he wanted to bless his kids in the sea but he felt like coming to the Temple for some reason as they were passing it. Sister Howard and I prayed with his family and talked about the Maori -  Church History and gave him a Book of Mormon. He was so

BEAUTIFUL HIKE

grateful and told us he's been looking for something to read to his sons at night. It's so true that Heavenly Father sends prepared people to missionaries, especially at the VC. 

This week we were also able to get 3 new investig​​​​tors and had 6 of our investigators at church! Ocean is 18 and is getting baptized this Saturday! I'm so happy for her!! She's been meeting with the missionaries for over a year and is finally getting baptized!! Lots of good things are happening here in New Zealand! The assistants also brought us chocolate one night cause they made Sister Howard cry. hahaha And at zone conference a couple of elders did a

Chayce (our kiwi homie!)
and sister howard!

haka for an elder who leaves this transfer, it was so cool! They told me they'll do one for me sometime! And I also now have a Tongan sister. Her name is Tui and she has the cutest 2 year old daughter, Elaine. She was at the VC all week and taught me heaps of Tongan! 

I LOVE YOU ALL HEAPS! Remember to always look for the good in everything and everyone and to have a desire to learn from the scriptures!

arohanui, xo

sister sughroue

My Tongan Sister Tui and Elaine <33

SUCH A BEAUTIFUL HIKE!

Week #7 - August 13th, 2017 - Learning rugby from lil boys!

Daily walk across the bridge :)

KIA ORA!

Aww how is everyone?! So today we did our cleaning and grocery shopping and are going to Bridal Veil Falls to hike later! I'll send pics of the hike next week!! Anyways I'm so jealous the fam went wake boarding!! I miss the river and the beach so bad but I'm all goods cause NZ has my heart! I loved all the pics you guys sent me! 

Okay so this week was a lil rough. I've gotten no sleep cause I've been a lil sick but this week was still so good! I LOVE my area. We never ride bikes cause walking allows us to meet so many people. The other day we taught an Indian man on the street and then he asked for us take a selfie with him haha good times.. we also ran into a lady from Columbia and she invited us over to teach her.. she spoke no English so her 12 year old son was translating everything. haha She said she really

 Sister Tauhiro from Tahiti -  she's my favorite haha

wanted to cook for us and wanted to come to church on Sunday, then on Sunday she told us she didn't want to come to church and cancelled our next lesson. haha I honestly think it's because she finally understood that we were missionaries haha good times! 

I also love the VC! I truly get the best of both worlds. The spirit in the VC is so strong and there is something so special about serving right next to the temple! So many people come to just sit and ponder cause the spirit here is so powerful. There's a 24 year old Samoan guy who comes and sits outside the temple before his rugby games to gain spiritual strength. I thought this was pretty cool cause gaining spiritual strength isn't thought of too often but is so important! But the VC is great, everyone should make a trip to NZ and go to the temple here! 

Just a lil windy

I'm also getting the lil boys to teach me rugby when they come to the VC. Anyways a family from Tonga came in the other day so i started talking to them in Tongan and they were impressed.lol I only know a few phrases but hey I'm getting there. On Thursday I went on exchanges with Sister Gurney who used to play soccer for BYU-H and is from Utah! Everyone here is so relieved when I tell them I'm from California not Utah. But Sister Gurney and I visited a family who was just sealed in the temple, we taught their grandma whose from Fiji and she was so happy and wanted her own Book of Mormon! She goes back to Fiji sometime this week and is going to hopefully meet with the missionaries there! she lives in a village by the temple and wants to go inside one day! I'm excited and happy for her, shes the cutest lil old Fijian grandma!

Me and my fav place

Well my favorite thing so far as a missionary is when our investigators pray out loud. Each one of their prayers is so powerful and they always say something that I know Heavenly Father wants and needs me to hear! Anyways I love NZ and the people! <3 Here's a qu\ote from one of Elder Hollands talks "don't doubt the Lords ability to give you something better than what you already had" I love this cause it's so true! If we don't put our trust in the Lord then we're holding ourselves back from something so great, that He planned for us. TRUST HIM! I hope this email was better haha I got told to step it up.. thanks mom lol. I love you all heaps and pray for you all! remember to share the LIGHT of Christ always!

AROHANUI, XO

sister sughroue

Cool lil shacks

Week #6 - August 6th, 2017 - Awesome week full of blessings!

Future home;) Everything is so green!!!!

Kio Ora!! 

This week was so awesome and full of blessings!! We had 6 investigators come to church yesterday and 2 of them are 18 year old girls who are getting baptized in August and September!! They both want to serve missions!! It's so amazing to see your investigators at church and filled with so much joy and love! One of the sisters we're teaching is from Fiji and she's Indian! She's the best haha and hard to understand because her English is super broken but she came up to us after relief society and said shes coming every week to church now!! This gospel is truly for everyone! I'm in the Tuhikarmea ward and I love it! During sacrament meeting almost everyone who got up and shared their testimony talked about how thankful they

My lil' Tongan friend, Malachi - teaches me Tongan!

are for the missionaries who shared the gospel with them, so it was nice to hear what an impact we missionaries truly make. 

In the VC (Vistior Centre), Sister Howard and I taught a lady from Samoa and prayed for her in Samoan which was pretty cool! A group of the cutest kids from Niue came in and they were so funny! Each day, especially on the weekends we meet people from all over the pacific islands, it's pretty sweet! And online teaching is really cool too! We are the only VC open for about 5 hours and we get chats from all over the world! This week I had such a cool experience teaching a guy from the Philippines and another one from South Africa! I am truly blessed that I get to share this beautiful gospel as a missionary in New Zealand! I LOVE YOU ALL! Read

 Breakfast! our friend Chayce brings us fresh kiwis!

D&C 88:40 and embrace the truth! And here's one of my new favorite quotes: "being happy does not always mean being without hardship, sometimes it means just the opposite" xo

arohanui, sister sughroue 

ps I'm moving to New Zealand it's the most beautiful place ever and aoteroa means land of the long white cloud! 

pss I'm also trying to learn tongan from all the little kids and im doing pretty good ;)

Always dancing!

Haircut Time!