SE HIZO BOLITA!!!!

Well family!!! How in the heck are all of you!  I am doing really really really great!  Because we finally had a baptism here!!! yay!!! It really is a miracle.  So we are happy.  OH I almost forgot!

TAYLOR!!! Happy birth-a-day to you!!!! happy birth-a-day to you!!!! happy birth-a-day dear Tay-a-lor!!!! Happy birth-a-day tooooooo youuuuuuu!    (I like the way dad always sings happy birthday... you have to sing it like he does when you read that to her) But Taylor I can`t believe that you are 20... you all are growing up so fast... I don`t know what I am going to do when I get home!!! I can`t believe it!  All the nieces that I don`t know are walking... When I left Alice and Adalynn couldn`t even really talk....  So a lot has changed since I left.  

Well this week we had an awesome week... But I feel like I have never recuperated from last Monday night when I arranged everything for my companion`s birthday. Well Monday night after we got back at around 9:00 p.m. we planned the next day and then I called our District Leader and gave him our little report.  After that I "got ready for bed" and I stayed at my desk "writing in my journal" and so did my companion... I then realized at about 10:15 that she wasn`t going to bed... So I told her I was tired and that we should have companionship prayer... We had prayer and then as I went to my bed she stayed at her desk..... 

My Companion and I celebrating her birthday (on our p-day) by wearing Jerseys
from competing Soccer Teams.  AND eating at
MCDonalds!!!  American Food!! 

Well I stayed in bed trying not to go to sleep because I had balloons to blow up and things to put out on her desk.  She didn`t quit writing in her journal until 11:10.  So when she finally came to bed and started breathing heavily I was soooooooooooooooooo tired!!!! I blew up the balloons in the dark and as silently as I possibly could... Which is no easy task and I wrote her a little letter and arranged some things that I had bought and made for her on her desk.  And I went to bed.  -_____-  

When the alarm clock rang it rang a little too soon for me but my companion was really really happy.  I had also arranged  to have a little lesson with a few investigators that we have but in reality it was more like a little birthday party.  They served us dinner and we sang happy birthday.  Here in South America they first sing the happy birthday song in Spanish and then they sing the song in English... (I know I find that kind of weird too) But when they all sing in English it goes something like this, "Heppi berthdey tuu yui" someone always pipes in "tu yui tu yui" and their accents while they sing just make me laugh super hard.  It is really fun.  

THE cake with the magical Frosting!!

But the funniest part about the night was that little cake.  So I guess that our investigators forgot to buy candles and the lights go out all the time here so there is always one ancient candle stashed in the kitchen cupboards somewhere. Well I don`t know what happened to the candle but when they brought out a giant pink crooked candle on top of that little chocolate cake we all burst out laughing. It was really funny. And after we all sang there is an
other tradition that the birthday kid has to take a bite out of the cake so I took the liberty of shoving the cake in my companion`s face... But it must have been some magical frosting because it didn`t stick to my companion`s face... She just made a dent in the cake.  It was hilarious... You kind of had to be there... But my companion had THE BEST birthday.  

Well some other news.... We had a baptism por fin!!!! (finally) It really was a miracle.  Well we have been visiting this guy named Fernando.  He is about 42 years old and the missionaries have been visiting him for about five years... Well when we went to visit him we found out that this guy has a huge fear of his family so that is why he never has gotten baptized.  

Well we have only taught him for about two weeks and we finally found a teaching record on this guy--but it was incomplete. (future missionaries always update your area book!)  The two companionships that took the time to write two lines on this guy said the same thing that we had found, the missionaries taught him for about three weeks until he said he didn`t know how to tell his family about his baptism, so the  missionaries stopped teaching him.  Well we prepared him for an interview and the day before the interview I was asking what the Sabbath day was and things like that to see if he needed some refreshing when I asked him about tithing he said he was paying his tithing... Uhhhhh what??? This guy pays tithing???  

I then testified to Fernando that paying tithing is much harder than making the decision to be baptized.  We told him that he didn`t have to be afraid and that he could do it.  He looked like he was about to cry.  It was a good lesson.  The next day at our interview he came out of the interview with his eyes wide open like he was scared to death and then Elder Randall then said, "Hermanas, Fernando is ready to be baptized--tomorrow!"  Well trying to contain our excitement, we congratulated him and started making calls to organize everything.

Well this is where the story gets good... (If you have endured through this entire email... I congratulate you!)  The baptism went really well until Fernando stepped into the water.  The man who was baptizing him is named Carlos and it was his first time baptizing anyone... so I was a little bit nervous about everything.  As he finished the prayer and we all said amen opening our eyes to see the ordinance performed we saw Hermano Fernando crouch down into a cannon ball position instead of working with Carlos and laying down peacefully in  the water like he should have. Well the two witnesses calmly informed Fernando that he had to lean back while Carlos holds him up.  So the prayer was said again and we all opened our eyes to another spectacle.   Fernando then leaped back plugging his nose and practically jumping at the same time splashing water everywhere and poor Carlos practically threw his hands up!!  

Brother Fernando (on my left) and Brother Carlos (on his left)
before the wrestling match!

Well four more times and i just felt more and more nervous the whole time seeing that these two were not able to get it done.  It was so hilarious that I almost burst out laughing... My companion then said in my ear, "porque se hizo bolita"   why is he forming himself into a ball? After about 3 more times the bishop came up and closed the curtain and then he took about four brethren back to help them out.  During those 15 minutes with the curtain closed we just heard splashing and splashing and more splashing.  

When they opened the curtains again we saw that Fernando seemed a little tired and then I noticed that ANOTHER brother was in the water with them to help with this baptism.  When the prayer was said again we opened our eyes with anticipation to see Fernando lean back with the help of Hermano Carlos.  Then the other brother who was in the water t suddenly pushed Fernando into the water so that his whole body went under.  It was so dramatic... But every time my companion and I even think about that baptism we can`t help but burst out laughing.      Ohhh good times!!!!! 

Well i gtg love you all so much!!!!

Love Hermana Welch #1 (jess)