A few weeks ago I was asked to give a talk in sacrament meeting reporting on Erika and how she is doing on her mission.  So last week I gave this talk... 

I am pretty excited to talk about Erika and her mission.  She is serving in the Ohio Cincinnati Mission and loving it.

Erika is an awesome letter writer and email writer, which I am grateful for.  Her letters are fun to read.  She has alway been a very happy girl and that happy spirit is touching a lot of people.  She is learning a lot and growing in the gospel.  Some things you don't realize you will gain from a mission until you are serving and one of those things we can see is that her mission is helping to heal her heart  and many gospel principles she is learning at a whole new level.  I think most of you know, but for those that don't, her hero and older brother Cole passes away from cancer just over a year ago.  In one of her letters from the MTC she explained how she gained a better understanding of prayer... 

(from her letter) "I am so grateful for the gospel and I na so excited to her it with others.  In class the other day I came across something that I had to tell you about.  We looked up prayer in the bible dictionary and a certain sentence stood out to me, it says, "The object of prayer in's to change the will of God".  As I was thinking about it I think that when I was praying for Cole at the end that's exactly what I was doing.  I was trying to change Gods will even though I knew he wanted it a different way.  I had been thinking a lot about Cole that day and realized that I might have been a little upset at God for not answering my prayers.  So I really needed that that day."

She has been able to relate to a lot of people because of this experience with Cole and even though it is hard for her to talk about she shares it often and people open up to her.  In one of Cole's blessings it said his experience would help a lot of people, we are seeing the realization of that blessing.

Another thing she learned and shred with us... she said, "On Wednesday we had a new missionary training meeting in the mission home so I got to see most of the missionaries from the MTC which was pretty awesome.  I learned a lot and it was really awesome.  The first thing that came out of the presidents mouth was what I had been praying about for the last 2 weeks.  It was an amazing experience.  He also said something else that I thought would be really awesome to share with your all.  He said, " The miracle is always at the other side of the trial.  If you give up half way through you won't see the miracles."  I have never thought about it like that.  We get blessings all the time but we don't see miracles without a trial.  We have a lot of people that that we are working with right now that want to see their life change and they want to become closer to God by they aren't willing to change anything.  They ant to see the miracles because they are going through some trials but they are giving up half way through so they can't see them yet.  "  I really needed to hear that the week I got that email.  It is wonderful how the Lord is aware of each of us and our needs.  

She also has told us of her love of the Book of Mormon and how much she is learning.  In a letter she wrote, "I have learned a lot about the Book of Mormon.  The only advice I have is 1. When you read a chapter think how that applies to you and how does that chapter bring you closer to God. 2.  Just like when you go to general conference with a question in your heart and you get more out of it, go to church with a question as well. 3.  It's kind of like the first one but, ask your self, what are you doing each day to bring yourself closer to God?"   I have loved how what she is learning and applying in her life is helping our family become stronger also!  She is a great example to sand we love and miss her.

Serving a state side mission she has not had to eat any super crazy stuff....yet, but one experience she told us about was somewhat of a challenge.  She told us,  "A bad memory I had this week was I ate a brownie from a less active and there were spiders all over my plate but I ate it anyway because she is the sweetest old lady and I couldn't tell her or it would break her heart.  It was nasty!  I never want to eat another brownie!!!  Then she goes on to say... "Also we went to visit an investigator after dark and she got so mad at us.  She told us that we shouldn't be in the neighborhood after dark because it is really scary.  She told us never to come at night because a few weeks ago she was out at night and got beat up.  Mom don't worry about me by the way.  But there have been a few people tell us not to go to certain neighborhoods after dark.  Oh and the other day, I have to tell you, It was snowing so we went out shoveling the widows in our wards driveways.  We parked at this beer market and when I was getting the shovel out of the car this dude in the car beside me rolled his window down and said, "Hey Girl!"  I was ignoring him because I felt so awkward.  He said it about 5 times before I looked at him and then he said, "Waz your name girl?"  I said SISTER LOVELL.  Then he got quiet and said,  "Oh sister?"  Then he drove off and yelled, "God Bless."  It was super funny and super awkward."

"We found a new investigator this week named Stanley and he is hopefully getting baptized this next month.  He is super awesome and has a great spirit.  He just got rid of his cancer and he is so excited to become closer to the Lord because that is what has helped him through.  I am excited to teach him more because I can tell he is going to be an amazing member.  When I first taught him I could see him working in the the,pale and being there as people first walk in because he has the greatest smile.  I am excited for him."

I want to close with part of her testimony and then  quote from Pres. Uchtdorf...  "The mission has really changed me.  I have already learned so much.  I have grown and I am so glad I made the choice to come.  I was questioning my decision at first but I wouldn't trade the experiences I have had already for the world."

She is such a great missionary and so eager to teach the gospel!!  You probably can't tell how proud I am of her.   The scripture she chose to put on her missionary plaque is Alma 29: 9-10... ( I read it in the talk but I'll let you look it up  :)  It is also part of her testimony.  

Pres. Uchtdorf said, " As you lose yourself in there service of others, you discover your own life and your own happiness."  I can see this happening in Erika's life and in turn it is strengthening our family as well.  I feel so blessed to have the gospel in my life and for Erika's willingness to share the gospel with those people she has the privilege of teaching in Ohio. 

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen

Rylee's 1st Birthday! (Kjerstin and Kurtis's daughter)

A few pictures of recent events!

Aspen's 2nd Birthday!

Sophie and Rylee are getting so big.  

Daniel and Kaitlyn enjoying the snow.

Erika's Mission Farewell Dinner

Siblings at the MTC.  Erika is now in Ohio doing great!!

It has been longer then I thought....

I want you all to know I survived last semester and feel pretty good about the grades I received and feel even better about the knowledge I gained.  Life was pretty busy then and I thought I could relax a bit but something always seems to fill up the time.  We decided to add onto our house and that was a crazy project but we are very near the end and are very pleased with how it turned out.  There are so many amazingly talented people that made our house look great.  I am so glad that I do not have to make any more decisions.  My family will attest that I do NOT like making decisions!  But we all survived.    

Erika is doing well in Ohio!  She is having amazing experiences and learning so much.  She has had great companions.  Erika is one that gets along with everyone.  She has a way of making people smile and to see the happy side of life.  We are so proud of her!  I miss her like crazy but this past year has given me a different perspective.  She has a return home date that I look forward to, we get to email her every week and she writes great letters to us and we get to see her (Skype) on Mother's Day and Christmas!!  If only we could Skype Cole in heaven....      Even though it was hard to drop her off at the MTC I was excited for the mission experiences she was going to have, and is now having!

Some of you may wonder how we are doing as time passes with out Cole here physically.  Some times are still very hard.  Daren and I were talking last night and I was telling him I still feel like my world has been turned up side down.  I'm still trying to adjust to this "new normal".  It is just so hard when it is such a big change to what  one would expect.  We all have our lives planned out to a certain extent and when there is a big change in our plans its hard to "recalculate" our course so to speak.  The important thing to remember is that the ending is still the same, our goals have not changed but probably become more intensely sought after.  I have felt a stronger desire to understand God's plan.  Understand and trust in the atonement and plan of salvation and to truly believe in what they mean.  I can honestly say, and I have probably said this before, that the gospel is what brings peace and comfort.  I try hard not to fall into the trap of wondering about the why's and the what if's... what if he was diagnosed sooner.  Why didn't I know, as his mother, that something was wrong?  He should be here playing with his daughter, hugging his wife and making us laugh and smile.    I want to hear him play his guitar and sing to Aspen, Taleena and all his family.  I even miss the mini heart attacks he'd give us because that guy had no fear and the list goes on and on.  Daren and Daniel will be going bear hunting this year and it won't be the same not having Cole there.  But I KNOW that in time we will be with him again because of a loving Heavenly Father and our Savior Jesus Christ that made eternal life and eternal families possible.  Oh how blessed we are!

One of the many memories is the summer, right before they moved back to Cedar, Erika and Kaity had a dance competition at Lagoon.  Taleena, Aspen and Cole were able to come and watch them.  Taleena and Aspen left after the competition to go spend some time with family.  Cole stayed and plaed with us.  We went on most of the rides and he scared Daniel to death when we all went on the ride the shoots you up a tower, I think it's called "lift off".  He kept telling Daniel that his harness was not locked and we were all pretty nervous.  But the picture that I hope I always have in my memory is when we were all running through the park to get one last ride in.  I was behind the pack a was able to see them all running.  Cole was running too, with a limp but running!  It seemed like things had come full cycle from having  a healthy boy to seeing him start to limp, then in a wheel chair unable to walk, then back to a bad limp, to a slight limp to running and healthly again.  That's how I remember Cole.  Back to running, enjoying life and taking us on another adventure.
I love you Cole.  You are always here with me and I know I will see you again some day.