FAMILIA!! :) How was your Christmas? :) It was so good to see y'all on Skype even though y'all were all a blur hahaha and you were looking up my nose half the time lol! Sorry about that! It was so funny because I told our district leader before I called, just watch and see my family will be arguing about something the first 2 minutes I call, so when it happened I was like look and he was busting up the whole time lol... he is the only one who could understand English so it's all good lol he got a good laugh out of it!! So what did y'all do after I called?? Tell Granny and Steph thanks for coming to talk to me and sorry I couldn't talk to them much :/ And so how was the engagement of Greg and Nicole? I was waiting for photos... haha y'all probably don't have a signal at Grandma's house so I will let that pass as your excuse for not writing me today haha :p oh and ask them if they received my card for Christmas I sent to them? And please take care of all my baptism photos, photos with companions and all the photos I have sent... I am going to take my card to a place today to see if they can restore my lost photos.. I pray they can because I want to send you the pictures of the baptism of Matheus and Alex at the beach.

So my Christmas day I talked with you all :), rode on the bus for 3 hours, took pictures in a park and near the beach with my companion, went to the hospital to visit people with cards and sweets the people in our group made but there were only 3 people there...( its a lot different than hospitals in the US, but it was sad to not have  a lot of people to visit but at the same time I am glad there weren't many people in the hospital on Christmas) and then we taught some lessons, watched a Christmas church film and ate lots of food and slept :) So it was a pretty good day! :) Much different then Christmas with all of you but still was a great day to reflect on my purpose here and the day Christ was born. 

Things have been pretty good here :) We had 4 investigators at church yesterday :) and all seats in our small little building were filled :) One of our investigators is an 11 year old boy and he is so cute and he loves the Book of Mormon, his Mom can't read so each night he reads a little for her :) aww I just want to squeeze him... he has much more faith than I had at 11 years old! Oh so you wanna hear something pretty amazing!!?? :) I know you do! haha So our mission baptized 183 people this month of December!! That is so crazy!! Our goal as a mission for January is 282 people!! The church is growing and it is such a blessing to see and to get to be a small part of the work that is happening here in Brazil! :) We are hoping for the baptism of our investigator Fatima this Sunday so pray for us that things will work out :) Well I hope you all have a wonderful New Year and make lots of goals!! I know I am haha... nothing like a fresh new start!! :) Well tell everyone hello for me!! :) Love and miss you all lots and lots but am so grateful to be here and to grow in countless ways!! :) oh and we can watch the fireworks here at midnight from our back porch hahaha this is good news for us lol- festa!! :) Take care! :)

Sister Mattei :)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!! :):) 

So sad news I think trying to upload pics I might have lost all my photos from my mission!! I want to cry... but I am keeping calm... I will check on my camera later... but this is why I do not like sending photos.... so any photo you have from my mission please save it and keep them somewhere safe and make sure they are saved!! I had pics I wanted to send you from our baptism we had yesterday :( Alex was baptized!! :) He was so happy and we were too!! I wasn't sure if he was going to be able to be baptized this week because he works so much and it was hard to schedule a baptismal interview but it all worked out well :) he had his interview yesterday morning and was baptized after church :) After the interview he was like so can I be baptized today?? And we were like yep and he was super happy!! We had the baptism at the ocean again!! It is so amazing to see how people change with the gospel and just how much happiness they have after baptism!! :) His smile afterwards just made my day!! Many times I wish I could remember my baptism better!!

I don't have much time today but I wanted to tell you about the baptism at least and I will be talking to you in 2 days so I will explain everything going on here on Wednesday! :) I am so excited to talk to you all!! :) Tell Meagan congrats!! I loved the pictures of their engagement and of the Murder Mystery Party!! Looked like it was a real good time!! I miss the feeling of Christmas at home and just how festive everything is with the decorations and just the holiday spirit. I love it here but Paracuru is a bit different for the holidays!! Well love you all lots!! Thanks for all you do for me! Miss you and I will be talking to you soon!! :):) Keep the Christmas spirit!! :) MERRY CHRISTMAS!! :)

Muito amor,

Sister Mattei :)

Oi!! :) So I am glad to hear y'all are keeping busy but sorry you have been a bit stressed with all the stuff to get done during the Christmas holidays! Plus it is cold there... it is definitely not cold here but I do miss the snow! I enjoyed reading you and Dad's emails to me... they were very encouraging and brought tears to my eyes so thanks for the uplifting words and just supporting me in all that I do :) This week was really good!! We had Christmas Conference with all the missionaries so it was nice to see everyone again and we had a talent show and yummy food!! :) It was just nice to feel the spirit of Christmas and have music playing because in Paracuru people aren't very festive and there aren't many decorations :( This week was a little harder though because we lost 2 days with Conference and meetings so our numbers were lower than usual and only 2 investigators were at church! Our investigator Alex is so great and I think he will be ready for baptism really soon maybe this Sunday or the next... but he understands the importance of church and that is something that a lot of people lack... even our members show up super late sometimes and our group is so small so it looks bad and then our investigators think it's fine to show up late too... the members here need to be better united because they all nit pick at each other and it just makes it harder for us but things are getting better and I love everyone here, I just wish I knew how exactly to unite everyone and make the situation better!

So yesterday was so awesome, after church Alex asked if we could teach him, and we had an appoinment for Tuesday so I was like can you not meet up on Tue. now and he was like no I still can but I want you guys to teach me today too... he is so awesome and is so willing to study and learn :) and then Matheus was with us in the lesson too ( our recent convert) and we all watched a film about faith in Christ and after he said I have felt the spirit 2 times already today; at church and during this film... I was so happy to hear that :) Made my day!! We have an awesome member we found about 3 weeks ago and she is so great with helping us teach people and giving us references! Seriously any friends you have, help the missionaries out and give them references, it really makes such a difference :) and they will really appreciate it!! Seriously even Granny and Pop Pop! I think they should at least give them one shot :) Well I don't have much time left but I hope you all keep the spirit of Christmas even when times are difficult and y'all are stressed out!! I will definitely be missing you all on Christmas day but I am so grateful for the experiences I am having and how I am growing!! I won't lie, it can be hard at times but the blessings make up for the trials!! Always remember to pray :) and that He is always listening, whether it be something big or small, he is always there! :) Well LOVE YOU LOTS!! :) SMILE!! :) For today is another day! :)

Muito amor,

Sister Mattei :)

OI!! :) So I hope all is well! I didn't receive an email from you guys so that is a little worrying!! Hope y'all had a wonderful week!! It is crazy that Christmas is just around the corner! :) So yesterday our investigator, Matheus was baptized before church and then confirmed during sacrament meeting!! :) He is 17 and he accepted the gospel super fast Only had 2 times at church and then this week he was baptized!! :) He was baptized in the ocean! It is a neat experience at the beach but I won't lie it is definitely a little irreverent with them having to jump over tons of waves and then when trying to perform the baptism and a wave takes them down... but he was baptized:) and he was super excited!! :) Church yesterday was good; we had 47 people in our little apartment! :) But our President of the group and his wife speak every week and so it looks like he is a pastor... I understand we don't have a ton of members but our recent converts should give talks too and other members are annoyed... we need our small group to be united so stuff like this can be super difficult at times!! This week was good though! We had lots of good lessons and found some people that really seem interested! Paracuru is small so people know who we are now! 

People will stop us sometimes and try to talk to me in English and it is the weirdest thing to switch from Portuguese to English! Missions are pretty funny when it comes down to the people you meet at times! A guy the other day asked if we were angels haha but he was being serious lol, and then people will just walk up to us and shake our hand and then leave haha... It has been such a great experience and a journey!! :) I love getting to meet new people and a new culture :) at times I miss certain things from home but I have really been humbled and seen miracles happen! I have learned a lot about myself and have strengthened my relationship with Heavenly Father  :) He has helped me through the hard times and has let me see all the blessings and miracles that are happening around me! Well I don't have a ton of time today! This week we have Christmas Conference! :) So we will all have a festa and unite together this week with President and all the missionaries here! We will lose 2 days of work though so it will be hard to make up for those days this week!! But tudo bem!! :) It will be a great week!! :) I hope y'all are safe and are enjoying the Christmas season and serving others!! :) Love and miss y'all like crazy! :) but am enjoying my adventure here!! :) Better enjoy it while I can because time flies in the mission!! 

Sister Mattei :)

Oi Familia :)

 

Tudo bem!! :) So I am glad to hear that you all had a great Thanksgiving and got to visit with family and friends :) I definitely missed having mashed potatoes and eating all the yummy food and just visiting with family! Thanksgiving Day was Zone Conference for us, it was good and I definitely learned a lot and how to be a better missionary and teach more effectively. Sometimes it is hard to train when I feel I barely know what I am doing in some situations. It has definitely been a humbling experience! I like having responsibility but it can be a bit stressful at times, I can't imagine being a zone leader or assistant because they have more stress. Right now we have really high goals so it is a bit frustrating at times, they want us to have lessons of 15 to 18 minutes and have 30 or more new people each week. It is hard to find the time for 30 new people and to focus on our progressing investigators at the same time. We are hoping to set a day for marriage for our investigators this week because last week was difficult to talk with them. Matheus, our investigator wants to be baptized on Sunday but we need to talk with his parents first and it is hard to find them in the house. He is 17 so we need permission. They don't know much about the church but are very active  in the Catholic religion so pray that his parents will allow him to be baptized. Also this week we switched churches so we have a house that is a little bigger :) We need more chairs at church but we also need more investigators to come. So many people say they will come and then only 3 people show up :( and I don't know how many times we should to teach someone if they wont attend church...

Training has really been a great experience and I have  learned a lot and I love my companion!! But I am so happy I still have Sister Twitchell here with me to talk with when times are stressful and we just need to sit down and have  a good conversation and laugh a bit :) I love our investigators but I just wish some of them would act and give church a try! Acting and showing our Faith is the only way we will receive an answer. We need to show God that we truly have a desire to know these things for ourselves. Just pray for us that we will find more people that are truly interested. We have one lady Amanda and I love her and her husband! She is reading so much of the Book of Mormon and is truly interested! Her Husband Auton gave me homework to translate one of his work papers in English for him for a presentation haha good luck for me lol!! They are so awesome though! So the other day we were walking and a man was just peeing on the road in front of everyone, I am glad he was turned around... oh sometimes I just have to laugh at the things we see.. every day is a new adventure!! I truly love my experiences here, whether it be an easy or a hard day, I am learning and growing so much! Oh and I ate a huge steak the other day, I wanted to throw up it was so chewy... but with Faith anything is possible :) haha!! Well I have no time but I love you all so much!! I sent some pics in the mail and a card!! :) I will send a present for dad soon :) Thanks for all you do for me! You are all in my prayers! I Love you so much!! :) and miss you! I will talk to y'all soon on the phone :)

Muito amor,

Sister Mattei :)- that crazy child of yours :)

Oi familia!! :) Glad to hear things are well with the family!! It will be sad not having Thanksgiving this year but it is all good!! :) Honestly, it slipped my mind until y'all said something about it!! I hope it will be a great day and I will be missing all the yummy food!! I already do miss food!! I miss my Taco Bell runs every week, more like every day lol... People don't even know what Taco Bell is here hahha que isso?? But to answer some of your questions Dad. We are still in the same area, so I am in the same house and everything... the weather is hot and it is only getting hotter but at night the weather is perfect... we spend our days working and proselyting from 1pm until 9 pm at night! Our area is safe but there are lots and lots of tourists during this time of the year so we have to be more careful! I have even found some people who speak English lol... but yes I feel very comfortable walking around... occasionally they have scorpions- young guys... and they whistle and make weird sounds when we walk by... or they try to speak in English which is pretty funny... but our area is very tranquilo and safe.... we walk everywhere but take a bus for district meeting and for other meetings we sometimes have because we are 1 and a half hours from Fortaleza... to answer Thomas's question we don't have air conditioning in our house but we have fans :) It is very humid but the wind makes it possible to walk around and not die!! :)  I am going to miss the snow and the feeling of Christmas in the states... it will be much different but awesome :) And so the people here are usually Catholic or Evangelical... the Evangelical people are usually a bit more open minded to hear us but everyone is very sweet... sometimes in lessons though I think the investigators talk more than we do hahahaha... people definitely like to talk and tell stories here... and sometimes the stories are strange haha! The other day we knocked on a door and a 18 year old boy came to the door only in like tight little panties and my companion started laughing and I was trying to present ourselves and say we were missionaries but I couldn't talk because Sister Daniele was laughing so much I started busting up laughing and tried speaking 3 times... I took a few deep breaths and apologized and then finally set a day to return and visit his family but his dog ran out the house and he was just running around in the street chasing his dog in these tight little undies hahaha... oh I love the people here... so funny and so open about things sometimes lol... Oh and so I will be in this area for 6 months or more.. Since I am training, I will train my companion for 3 more months here in Paracuru and I hope by then my accent will be better, it already is, but still needs some work lol. So i don't have a ton of time but I hope I have answered most of your questions! :) We have some great people in success here and I am hoping a family will be baptized in 2 weeks! Then this boy Matheus, is awesome!! Seriously he is already reading the Book of Mormon a ton and has a testimony! I can already see him as a missionary and I told him that! He is 17 though and his parents aren't very fond of the church so we will talk to them this week about baptism.. I am praying and fasting things will go well!! :) Well no more time but I will have more to say next week and photos hopefully! Plus I am sending a letter today with photos :)( Have a great week!! :) Love you!! :)

 

Sister Mattei :)

Tudo bem!! :) So it still sounds like everyone is keeping busy with school, the holidays, traveling and what not!! :)  So about this week!! So when I found out I would train I literally felt sick the first couple of days because I was so nervous and could not eat! I lost 4 pounds in a week! And to answer your question Dad, I haven't really gained or lost weight, besides that circumstance. I think I am about the same size and I hope to return the same size lol... if I keep eating all the cakes they have here and all the food they serve at lunch, y'all might not recognize me when I return haha. So the big news :) My new companion is Sister Daniele! :) She is from Argentina, and is very sweet! Sister Twitchell's companion is Sister Galarza and she is from Argentina as well! :) We have Spanish, Engish and Portuguese in our house haha! Training has actually been a lot better than I thought! We are having tons of great lessons, and meeting lots of new people and I have more confidence in my teaching now. I still have a lot more to learn but I can teach lessons fine and I understand the majority of what the people say so I can actually respond and ask questions to their needs. The gift of tongues really is real and even the old people we have taught are understanding me now. They have to pay closer attention because of my accent but it is a miracle because no one is asking me to repeat myself during lessons... plus I can see the difference in my speech in lessons and then when were just walking and talking casually... I am much more fluent while teaching, oh how I love the spirit :) 

So on Sunday I gave a talk at church, it was alright, it is a bit crowded and we have no microphone so I think it was difficult for people to hear but we have investigators there so that was awesome!! :) It is so difficult to get people to come to church, and our mission is very big on numbers, I know numbers are important but it is the quality that counts and if we are working hard and trying our best. And I know we are working hard and being obedient! My companion can speak Portuguese well, Spanish is very similar, sometimes it is hard for me to understand her accent but we talk quite a bit and she comes from a group of 25 members in Argentina so she is used to the small amount of people! So this week we are teaching the brothers of a member, Rogelson, that we found a couple weeks back. Rogelson is 16 and he has 2 younger brothers that aren't baptized. He was baptized in Fortaleza. We also found a great family that is married and everything. In lessons, it is the best feeling ever when you can truly see a persons eyes change when you say something and it is like something marvelous just clicked in their head and their eyes just glow!! That happened with a woman this week we were teaching! So food Dad, I like to eat some of the cakes here and I like rice and beans, we eat it like every day!! :) I don't have much time left, but things are good and my first week training has been good! :) It is a bit stressful at times because I have a lot of responsibility in a country I am still trying to get to know, but tudo bem! The Lord is blessing me and helping me a ton so I a super grateful!! :) I have lots to learn... but that is why I am here!! Remember to always have faith and patience during the hard times!! :) LOVE Y'ALL LOTS :)

Sister Mattei :)