Queen of the flowers!

 Hermana Rios (a member she loves) and Hermana Wandell

First my notes

We watched a movie called fireproof with a family and like half of them were crying.

Birthday in a week, not all that excited...

So all the college students ask me to do their English homework for them...

We had a talent night this week. I did magic tricks, sang with my mouth closed and told jokes. My comp whistled. (anyone besides me really surprised she didn't just sing?I keep telling her she needs to share that amazing talent she has)

Surprise I don’t have changes... and neither does my comp... 

The good news is that Astudillo has changes! But he is going to be my zone leader!! (: Thank you Heavenly Father!!  (one of her friends she has made in the mission that she is just certain they will be friends their whole lives) That means we will be in the same zone for both of our birthday´s!

THEY HAVE MAMON CHINO IN UTAH?????????????????? I think I just died and went to heaven!!!! You bite or cut the outside and eat the inside but not the seed. Yes I have tried it all. 

I got the ties and everything was still wrapped. 

Luckiest elders ever... Seriously I miss your food.

Dear Abby, bahahahaha!! A milk dud!!! I like it!! I miss you! I love you! Love Lyssa! 

We have one investigator who is more positive than the rest. Her son is the 2nd counselor to the branch president (I love their family so much, they are awesome!) the only thing is she is catholic. She knows the church is different and she has felt the spirit, she knows it’s true, I think she just is afraid to admit it. Change is not an easy thing.

I have index cards until the end of June. 

Pictures. We walked past and they started saying "vote for me for queen of the flowers" They are members!

Hna. Bonilla and Hna. Wandell

Camila

Hermana's Rios and Wandell

I miss you. Please pray for us. 

I love you bye

OBDC and FAMILY HISTORY WORK!!!

So last night we had a conference in the stake center that was broadcast from Guatemala. Elder Amado said that as kids we learn the alphabet as ABCD but we should learn it as OBDC (o be de ce - obedece means obey) haha I liked it.

I am feeling better but I have to blow my nose every 10 minutes... it feels like I am drowning...

yes I know Hna. Scott she is great! :), yes I have see Hna. Curtis, she is training this change! (I asked about 2 sisters she was in the MTC with)

This week someone came and talked to us about family history and told us the coolest stuff!! He told us that people on the other side of the veil who have passed away can have permission to visit their family members during important times in their lives. And that we as missionaries can ask Heavenly Father to give permission to the ancestors or family members of our investigators to help them make their decision. And he gave us a bunch of examples of this. He also said that it is extremely common to see the people you are doing the work for when you are in the temple and that we have concourses of angels protecting us (especially as missionaries)

Long story short, DO FAMILY HISTORY WORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Today we are watching the best two years and sleeping because we are both exhausted haha.

Dear Alyssa,

What do you call a cow that doesn't give milk? (a milk dud)

What asks no questions must be answered? (a doorbell)

Why did the robot eat a lightbulb? (he wanted a light snack)

Alyssa, did you know that I at the party at Saturday we went to that I got a kazoo. love you Alyssa and I really really miss you. And I really hope you like my jokes, love Alyssa from Abby.

Dear Abby,

I don’t know the answer to any of those questions.... I am so happy you got a cazoo and I love and miss you too!!

No pictures this week, sorry.

Did you know that the Panamanians are either extremely fantastically amazing cooks or they can’t cook at all. Luckily the majority are the first.

Thanks for all the birthday presents. I loved them all!! haha I couldn’t wait.... (yes her birthday isn't for 2 more weeks!, she still doesn't have the pictures from everyone, those are in transit but should still make it! So here are a few of those pictures since she didn't give us any this week, I will put more on next week and on her Bday as well)

President Darrell and Adam

(We sure are going to miss you but I know how lucky those Aussie Missionaries and their mom's are to have you and Maryann! See you in 3!)

Emily (Alyssa's sister from another mother)

Garreth

(THE best attorney around, trust me I know and I will give you his #!)

Robert and Elizabeth

(Alyssa's German brother and sister)

Richard

(he is like 7' tall so it's hard to get a whole picture of him)

Kenzie and Sharon

(her other sister from another mother and my bff my whole life, yes that is 29 years and then I quit counting lol)

I love you I love you I love you! Thank you for everything and hug my Abby for me!! 

Tell Carma Morgan that I got her letter and I’m not a flake, I just don’t have much time to write. Tell her thank you for the letter and for her support and that I love and miss her.

So I am going to tell you all the fruits that you are missing out on: Guaba, Guanabana, Guayaba, Maracuya, Cacao, Mamon Chino, Marañon and there are more but I forgot the list at home. Wikipedia is my source for the following bits of info: (if you don't care about exotic fruit, skip all the red but I thought it was interesting.

"Guaba" 

The seeds are covered with sweet white powder. The pulp covering the seeds is lightly fibrous and sweet, and rich in minerals; it is edible in the raw state. Inga species, most notably Inga edulis (commonly known as "ice-cream-bean" or, in Spanish, "guama" or "guaba" or "paterna") the name derives from the fact that those of I. edulis resembles vanilla ice cream in flavour.

Guanabana aka soursop

The flavour has been described as a combination of strawberry and pineapple, with sour citrus flavour notes contrasting with an underlying creamy flavour reminiscent of coconut or banana.

Guayaba aka guava

Maracuya aka passionfruit

Several distinct varieties of passion fruit with clearly differing exterior appearances exist. The bright yellow variety is also known as the Golden Passion Fruit, The dark purple edulis variety is smaller than a lemon, though it is less acidic than the yellow passion fruit, and has a richer aroma and flavour.

"Cacao"

The cocoa bean, also cacao bean or simply cocoa or cacao, is the dried and fully fermented fattybean of Theobroma cacao, from which cocoa solids and cocoa butter are extracted. They are the basis of chocolate, as well as many Mesoamerican foods such as mole sauce and tejate.

A cocoa pod (fruit) has a rough and leathery rind about 3 cm (1.2 in) thick (this varies with the origin and variety of pod). It is filled with sweet, mucilaginous pulp (called 'baba de cacao' in South America) enclosing 30 to 50 large seeds that are fairly soft and white to a pale lavender color. While seeds are usually white, they become violet or reddish brown during the drying process. The exception is rare varieties of white cacao, in which the seeds remain white. 

Mamon Chino aka rambutan

The flesh exposed when the outer skin is peeled off is sweet and sour, slightly grape-like and gummy to the taste. In Panama and Costa Rican Spanish, it is known as mamón chino. The leathery skin is reddish (rarely orange or yellow), and covered with fleshy pliable spines, hence the name rambutan, derived from the Malay word rambut, which means hairs. The fruit flesh, which is actually the aril, is translucent, whitish or very pale pink, with a sweet, mildly acidic flavor very reminiscent of grapes.

Rambutans are a non-climacteric fruit—that is, they ripen only on the tree.

Marañon

The fruit of the cashew tree is an accessory fruit. What appears to be the fruit is an oval or pear-shaped structure. Called the cashew apple, better known in Central America as marañón, it ripens into a yellow and/or red structure about 5–11 cm long. It is edible, and has a strong "sweet" smell and a sweet taste. The pulp of the cashew apple is very juicy, but the skin is fragile, making it unsuitable for transport. In Latin America, a fruit drink is made from the cashew apple pulp which has a very refreshing taste and tropical flavor that can be described as having notes of mango, raw green pepper, and just a little hint of grapefruit-like citrus.

The true fruit of the cashew tree is a kidney or boxing-glove shaped drupe that grows at the end of the cashew apple. The drupe develops first on the tree, and then the pedicel expands to become the cashew apple. Within the true fruit is a single seed, the cashew nut. Although a nut in the culinary sense, in the botanical sense the nut of the cashew is a seed. 

Chao for now!!
Love, Hermana Wandell

The greatest Mother's Day Surprise Ever and Her Testimony

Alyssa in Panama, Courtney in Kentucky and Abby in Utah

I hope everyone is having a great week and Happy Belated Mother’s Day to all the mom’s out there. I truly hope you had a wonderful day. Since Alyssa’s email is not very long this week I am going to share with you Alyssa’s testimony but first I have to tell you about the best mother's day surprise ever... I got the BEST surprise ever in what was probably the greatest sacrament meeting ever! The bishop got up and announced that usually they have a couple of great speakers on Mother's day talk about mom's but today was going to be a little different. They had 9 speakers who were more than qualified to speak on mom's. And then he announced who the speakers were and named off each one of the missionaries in our ward. Our bishopric had taken the time to write to each of the missionaries and ask them to write a tribute to their mom and bare their testimony. They were all read in sacrament meeting! I had no idea., this was truly one of the best surprises of my life. I am not sure whose fantastic idea that was but this missionary mom is truly grateful!!! 

“I want to share my testimony that I KNOW THIS CHURCH IS TRUE!! I know that Jesus Christ lives and he is my savior and that through him we all have the opportunity to return to live with Him and our Father in Heaven. I know that the Book of Mormon really is the key stone of our religion, and just as Joseph Smith said, there is no other book on earth in which we can become closer to God than this book. It contains the fullness of the gospel and the answer to all of life’s problems. I know that Joseph Smith was a prophet and he restored this amazing gospel. I know that President Monson is the living prophet today and that he and his apostles are the servants of the Lord. I know this is the only true church and I am so grateful for the opportunity I have been given to preach to the people here in Panamá. How amazing is our God? He loved us so much that he gave us this earth, this life, and most importantly His son! I share these things in the name of the only begotten son, even Jesus Christ, Amen.”

Hermana Wandell

 In the Metro

On a Hike

Here is her email this week:

Dear Alyssa I am really really happy that I got to Skype with you. Did you know that I am really excited to Skype with you again on Christmas, I will probably scream. On Wednesday I am going to go to bed at 9:00. Did you know Mom loves what I gave her for Mother's day and from you and Courtney too. She said this was the best Mother's Day of her whole life! I think I colored her some pretty good pictures. Bye Alyssa, I love you more than most! I love you, Love Abby

Dear Abby, did you know that I was super excited to talk to you too?? I will laugh if you scream on Christmas! I am so glad that you colored mom some really good pictures. Tell her I love her and give her a great big hug for me! I love you more than most!! Love Alyssa!!

I am going to pick up my packages today, so we will find out what got to me and yeah. So I am kind of a terrible daughter and forgot to tell you Happy Mothers day... sooo uhhh Hey Mom! Happy Mom day!! A. says hello and happy mom day too.

I don’t have tonsilitis, I went to the doctor this morning. I have a cold and allergies so they gave me some medicine.  

We are going to the temple tomorrow. I will be fine, talking to you guys made me feel better.

Yes I liked the poem and the index card as well. (Abby and I sent her a poem comparing hump day to a camel and a stuffed camel, it was quite cute!)

Daniela. is 19, she is awesome, she is one of my good friends here.

Pictures: cute little girl named Camila in the branch,  and the picture from when we went hiking.

Camila

Hermana's Lopez. and Wandell

Thanks for everything. Sorry I didn’t write much, I forgot to take notes this week. I am glad I got to talk to you guys yesterday. Thanks for all the love and support from everyone back home. I love you I love you I love you!!

Hug my Abby for me! Chao for now!

Love Hermana Wandell

Mother’s Day Skype Session

We were able to Skype with Alyssa on Sunday for about 1 hour. I am so grateful for the technology that makes this possible. We truly lived in a blessed day and age. Here are the questions we asked and the answers:

Q. Did your Birthday package come?

A. I believe so, at least I know there is a package at the mission  office for me.

Q. How big is your church?

A. It is a regular sized chapel.

Q. Does your companion speak English?

A. No

Q. What is the best Non-American thing you have eaten?

A. Patacones and fried chicken. (she started to explain to me what plantains were and I told her I knew because they sell them in the store here, let’s just say she is pretty excited!! And then she told me that the fried chicken in Panama is different than here)

Q. What is the worst thing you have eaten?

A. cow lung but I didn’t actually eat it

Q. How big is your current area?

A. About as big as up to 1300 East. (from my house that is about 10 blocks or probably a little over a mile square)

Q. How long has your comp. been out?

 A.14 Mo.

Q. Are you in a ward or branch?

A. Branch

Q. Do they have ward’s in Panama?

A. Yes there are some, President told us that there are 50K members in Panama but only 10K are active, we have a lot of work to do!

Q. How many people are in your district/zone?

A. 6,( 4 Hermanas and 2 Elders) in the District and 28 in the zone

Q. Do you sleep well?

A. for the most part, but not when it’s really hot, I usually use the fan

Q. Where do you shop for groceries?

A. at a Chino

Q. What is the most interesting pet somebody has had?

A. Monkeys or a Macaw

Q. How many lunch dinner appointments do you have every week?

A. Everyday lunch and dinner

Q. What do you usually eat for breakfast?

A. Just whatever we have. A lot of fruit. (Then she went on to tell me about all this wonderful fruit they have that we don’t have and she told me all of their names but I couldn’t spell them to write them down. But she was really excited to tell me about some fruit that is really good that is where cashews come from, and that she was really excited to learn that is how cashews grew because she did not know that they grew on trees)

It's Hump Day!!!!

Since today is “hump” day, 9 months down, 9 months to go, I just wanted to tell everyone how much their love and support has meant to me and to Alyssa. We love each and everyone of you and cannot thank you enough!!

Hermana's Bonilla and Wandell

 okay notes first.

So Delores sent me this book that is awesome and I  saw that they have it in Spanish so I was wondering if you could send me 3 copies of it. It is called El libro de Bolsillo Para Misioneros por Adrian P. Call Jr.  and buy one for you in English cause its awesome!! It’s the pocket reference book for missionaries.

Can you send me a new journal? (Delores, she has no idea it’s probably already in Panamá in her Birthday package!:)

We did divisions this week with Hna. Lopez (one of my favorites) because she was in my area before and my comp was in the area where she is now so they switched so they could say hi to people. Also we did divisions with Hna. Pula and her comp because my comp had to go to the doctor.

So I think I have tonsilitis... because they are always swollen but seriously always.

Election day was yesterday and someone named Juan Carlos Varela won. All the missionaries in the country were under house arrest. They told us we had to be inside at 2 pm because of precautions with the elections. 

So Mother’s day at somewhere between 2 or 3 o'clock here. 

Q. First off how is your cough? You are not getting pneumonia are you? I sure hope not.

(please say there are pictures, please say there are pictures)

        My cough is still coughing.. and yes there are pictures.

Q. Did I tell you about the lady that called me that ran into you at the temple that was from Utah? She said they went to the temple and ran into some missionaries so they had lunch with you and she said you gave her my phone #. I couldn't even begin to tell her how much I appreciated her calling me. 

A. Yeah and did that lady tell you that she gave me 15 bucks too? And I tried to give it back and she refused so I bought treats for all the missionaries!

Q. Did you like Frozen?

A. I loved Frozen but Tangled is still my favorite.

Q. Does your hair feel really short? Everytime I cut a few inches off mine it feels like a foot.

    It really doesn’t feel like I cut my hair until I try to put it in a bun..

So yes on Tuesday you can open those other things. I just wanted you to have something specific to open that day so it isn't just another day in the mission. Let me know what you think of it. 

      Confession time.. I opened it this morning and I love it!! Hahahahaha its cause we will be busy tomorrow and I wanted to be able to say thank you today! haha.

WOOO HOOO HOT DANG CARISSA AND AARON ARENT MOVING!! Not gonna lie, I was pretty sad when you told me that. I am excited about everything you just told me ;)

Alyssa, did you know that my hair turned red but it’s ok now we washed it and it came out.(she slept on that hot pink round pillow of yours and I think the sweat from her head and they dye in the pillow got into her hair) I am really excited for Sunday. I can't wait Alyssa and I can't wait to see you, Love, Abby to Alyssa.

Dear Abby, what was it like to have pink hair for a day? I bet your dad loved that! ... haha anyways I can’t wait to talk to you on Sunday!! I love you!! Love Lyssa!

Ok guess what, guess whose birthday is the same day as yours? Jill Kipp!! Kipp's mom!! pretty cool huh?

I already knew that that was her birthday. Haha. (ok I guess I was the excited one LOL)

Thanks for everything!  Pray that we will find someone who will actually want to progress and get baptized.

                                                                          Hermana Bonilla, Aracely and Alyssa

Alex getting papaya for them

Alyssa and Arlynn

Daniela and Alyssa

the little bridge in their area

I love you I love you I love you! Chao for now and hug my Abby!! talk to you soon!!