What to Expect When You Are Expecting

IT IS A GIRL!!!!!! yes folks I am going to be a mom here on the mission! I am getting a brand new missionary this week and I will be training her in the ancient art of missionary work! I am so excited!! And I am finally staying in an area! yay!! I love Portimão so much and I am so excited to have a brand new missionary here with me! This transfer is going to bring SO many miracles I cannot wait. So right now I am in Faro with Sister Jumua from Mozambique. We are waiting to pick up her new comp from the bus and guess who her new comp is... SISTER CULLIMORE! My 2nd trainer! Wahoo! I am so stoked to talk to her and see how things were in Povóa when she left! So ya I will be here with them in a triple for 3 days then Thursday morning like mesmo morning I am going to Lisbon to pick up SISTER STEAGULL! I have no idea anything about her yet just her name so stay tuned next week to find out more!

This week though we had a great week! It was so cool! We are still teaching that family and they are really receiving the gospel well! I love there kids, Ariana and Eddie! They are so awesome Arianan always wants us to play with her and not talk about chruch stuff. She always says "just really quick lets play" haha I love that family! Also we found this way awesome lady named Elidia! She is from Argentina! She is so great and she loves having us over for tea and to talk about the church! She is super great and I think she has lots of potential! I love the people here so much! It like makes my heart hurt even thinking about ever leaving! Good thing I have at least 6 more weeks here and probably more! YAY!!!! I love seeing the miracles on the mission! This week we did a mission fast and prayed for lots of things very specifically. The next day we taught more lessons and had more plans work out then I have had on my mission so far! It was so amazing! I love it so much when we can see the Lords hand in our lives!

My advise from the week comes from the beloved Sister Baugh! Last night in her frantic packing night mare she looked at me, eyes spinning and hands in the air and goes, "WHY MUST I HORD THINGS?" So my dear sweet friends and family please do not keep things that should not be kept. It makes life much easier in the long run! I love Sister Baugh so much! She really did teach me so much about being a missionary. I will miss her and the funny things that she would say all the time!

Fica Bem Y'all!
Love you!
Sister Bakker!

Some awesome sisters serving in the Algarve Zone. Left to right they are sisters Jumua, Lybbert, Brundage, Hillam, Bakker, Baugh, and Sister Jeffers in front.

S Bakker and the Stucki's

Water Polo Balls and Stray Animals

Hey there fam!

I am only going to say this once so listen very close. If you see a water polo ball on the road. LEAVE IT ALONE! Yes, we were walking down my 3rd favorite road in our area, Rua de Capo Verde, when I saw a water polo ball in a car. Well me being me I stopped to look at it just for a minute. Well while stopped looking into this car a cat walked up to us. Meowed a big old meow and then we watched as it threw up who knows what. Ya that was nasty. If only we had not stopped to look at a stupid little water polo ball we would have never seen this sad little balding cat throw up.

This week on the mission was great! We did not have time to work for all of Monday or half of Tuesday cuase we had to go to Lisbon for residency but we decided to set our goals the same as last week and even had some that were higher and we were able to meet almost all of them and we got really close with the rest. It really is so cool to see that when you really put your shoulder to the wheel and give your all the Lord that he will bless you. Even with less time that normal we were able to see great miracles this week!

If there is anything that I have learned this transfer it is that sometimes things get really really hard but in the end it is all worth it. We have trials for a reason. Our Heavenly Father knows what we can handle and He knows what it is that we need to grow and to become better. These last 6 weeks have really taught me a lot! I am so grateful for the things that Sister Baugh has taught me and for this area! I love the mission and I love our Heavenly Father! We really are so blessed! I love you all! Thank you for all the love and support!


Stay away from stray animals please, Good things never come from them. Love always

Sister Bakker

The Aliens are Coming

Missionaries serving in the Algarve Zone

Preparation day at Ponto de Piedade

It's segunda-feira again!

Wow time really does fly when you are having fun! This week on the mission was great! We worked so hard and got a ton of new people to teach including a family!!! yay!!! They are so cool! They are from Capo Verde! After the first lesson we asked them if they would be baptized and the dad looked at us with what I am convinced were tears, the spirit booming through the room, and said, "what do I need to do to prepare?" Man it really is moments like that that make all the hard times and all the crazy moments worth it! That family is such a blessing and I love them so much!

This week I also taught my first gypsy! that was quit the experience. He was a little crazy but he came to church and listened to the first lesson very closely and told us that he would read the Book of Mormon, then today we were on the train coming back to our area from Ponto do Piedade and he called us. and goes "hello missionaries, I read the book and I want to be baptized." he is really funny and I don't think he really understands why he wants to be baptized but none the less we gave him to the elders and who knows maybe he will leave his life behind and really be baptized here in a year.

This week really was another great week on the mission! Everyday that I am here I love it even more and never want to leave. I am so so grateful for this opportunity to be on a mission serving my Heavenly Father. I know with all my heart that the really is the true church restored to the earth today and that Joseph Smith really did see God the Father and His son Jesus Cristo. I love this gospel and I love all of you!

My advise this week comes from a man that we met from Bulgaria, "one day all the aliens will leave the earth and the wars will stop. but until then we all need to be really good people so that they don't have any power over our heads." Well there may not be aliens here but it is true that we all need to be really really good people everyday and always doing what is right so that the devil has no power over us. Love you all!

Love
Sister Bakker!

EU FALO GATO. #blessing‏

Well Hello there yet again family!

This week in the land of the Algarve we saw something quit odd this week. There was one day when there were just the normal people. You know Artur in his usual spot and Gilbeto in his. The old lady in her window as usual and the normal crew was chillin at Continent (the grocery store). You know all the normal people. Then the next day something happened. The city... changed. All of a sudden there were lots of people that we did not know and we would try to talk to them and they did not know Portuguese. All these strange people had shorts and funny hats there were even the few with socks and sandals. Yes, you guessed it. Portimao has been taken over by tourists. It was amazing! No joke in one day it went from a dead everyone knows everyone city to wow there are so many strange people here! haha it was quite the scene!! I like it a lot, the tourists really stick out so we know who lives here and who doesn't.

Also this week we had dinner with the couple, the Hectors. He is from England and she is Portuguese and they had us over and we had the best food I have eaten yet on the mission I think! I don't know what it was but it was good! Also the same day we found a family that lives ON THE BEACH. yup so we now have a reason to go to that amazing beach at least once a week. My life is so hard. haha. But ya other than that there is not a lot to report! I love the mission and I love seeing the way people look at us when we try to speak to them in broken Portuguese about Christ! I love the work and I love this area and I love my companion!

My advise for the week comes from a personal experience. We were trying to get into this predio and this big old fat cat would not move so we could not open the door. Well I looked at my comp and in the little Portuguese I have I told her... Nao Problemo, Falo Gato. in English no problem I speak cat. So I looked at that big old cat and meowed my best at it to please move because we are missionaries and the people that lived there needed us. Well what do you know the big old cat got up and moved. So my advise to you all this week is to learn the sacred and ancient language of the cat. you never know when you might need it!

love you all! Sister Bakker OUT!

Today I took a selfie‏

A funny sign



the Beach!  Pria Da Rocha
Paradise!

I am so happy it is not even funny!

Sister Baugh

Well Hello there family!

This week on the mission! Man we saw some true miracles! I think that I worked harder in the last week than I have in my whole life! and I loved every moment of it! The mission is the best! Like everything that happens really just makes you so happy! All the bad stuff makes all the good stuff that much better so then when bad things happen it makes you happy because you understand that the good stuff really is just that good... It is very very strange how it works. But man I LOVE MISSIONARY WORK! Everyday here on the mission is a true blessing and I am so grateful to be here serving the people in Portimao! This week we didn't really do anything huge that should be reported but just know that every single day was like the best day of my life!

I don't know if I have told you about the storks here. But well there are these HUGE storks that makes these huge nests on top of like anything tall and skinny and pole like. They are really cool! I always half expect them to be carrying babies around to people here. Ok, sorry that was just some random info I thought you might like to know.

So one thing that I really learned this week is that obedience brings blessings. We made a goal this week to really be exactly obedient and man, ever single thing that we did this week was like 100000000000 times better than last week. I know that it really did come from being obedient! The lord really is with us when we do our part and when he knows that we are doing all we can! It is so great the promised blesssings that we can receive when we really do put in our all.

Wow Thursday Dani comes home! Man our family will only have 1 missionary again! That is crazy! These are the last 4 days that we will ever have 2 missionaries at the same time ever again! Man it has been such a great blessing to serve at the same time as Dani! She is a great missionary and I know that our family was truly blessed through her service in Ohio!

Well as always I love you all! My advise for the week is to brush your teeth. I have seen a whole lot of people here that have like 1 or 2 teeth or that are like totally nasty. So please do yourself a favor and brush your teeth every morning and night and I will do the same!
Love you all!!

Sister Bakker

p.s. We went to the beach today. Ya it is the most amazing thing in the whole world. Please refer to the pics and just know that they do not do it justice.... also I gave in and took selfies. I am so ashamed but I did what had to be done...

Shameless selfie... at least one of them

this is me saying OLA FAMILIA BAKKER

This is the moment I decided I am never leaving.

2nd Happiest Place on Earth

A family in Povoa taht I loved, their daughter wants to serve a mission one day!

Lyssa and S Nelsen

Cool cliff light house look out in our area with S Baugh

Hello from the 2nd happiest place on earth (sorry nothing can take the place of Disneyland),

This week in Portimão was amazing! I love it here so much! The work is just like soooo ready to go I cannot even handle it! It is crazy I feel like I get home at night sad because we cannot stay out longer to talk to more people and when we wake up I cannot wait to study and then leave so that we can try to help more people! Man this week I have really really fallen in love with missionary work! I never ever want to stop! And this area! Man no joke it is like heaven on earth! Yes it is cold but it is so beautiful! We live like 5 mins from the beach! And we have like the most beautiful areas here! Ahhh I wish that you could all see what I get to see everyday here! It is so amazing!

So one thing about the Algarve that I love is that it is famous for oranges! We had to take a train the other day to zone meeting and the whole way was like orange fields! soooo cool! Also they taste like heaven like take the best orange you have ever had and times it by 10... ya it is that good.

Also at zone meeting I walked in and guess who I saw.... BEN DOXEY! Haha that was super weird! He is great! He goes home at the end of this transfer so Andrew you will have to look him up and talk to him he is super cool and told me to tell you all hi! Also that girl that Auddy knew and had me email, Sister Brundage is in my zone too. I LOVE HER! Man she is so great! I love my zone and my area so much! The Algarve is so great!

This is my little update for the week! I am doing great! I hope that you are all doing great too! Hope you are getting stoked to see Dani! Love you all!

My advice of the week comes from the best dad in the world, he told me to go to bed smiling and wake up smiling and do all you can during the day to keep that same smile! This is my advice for all you! Love you!

Sister Bakker!

Lyssa and S Brundage after Zone Meeting

Randomly there are 2 horses in a field in the middle of the city

Someone skinned 3 cats and had them hanging outside

Oh hey there NOT POVOA...‏

Sup Fam!

Magical things are happening here in Portugal, for starters I got transfered...again. Packed all my stuff up last night and this morning got on a train and went to Sete Rio from there I got on a bus and chilled on the bus for like 3 hours until I got to my new area! DRUM ROLL PLEASE....I am now in the beautiful city of Portomao! Which is in the algarve, or for all you folks who also dont know where that is, I am in the way way south. By the ocean! yay ocean! Yup leave it to me to have 3 areas in 3 transfers! My new companion is great her name is sister Baugh! She is a convert of 2 years from Virginia! She is super cool! We are going to have a blast together!

As far as my week went, well it was another GREAT week on the mission! I hit 4 months yesterday. That is kind of strange. I feel like it has been a lot less time than that and also a lot more time than that. Funny how it all works. Saying goodbye to Povoa was really sad I liked it there a lot! What was weird is that my comp stayed so she has 4 transfers there (6 months) and I had 1. Strange. Ohhh the mission! But this week we got to see Sandra get the gift of the Holy Ghost. Man that was so great!

Forest Gump said it best, "life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what your goin to get." This my friends I can testify is true. We did not know that the day we stopped Sandra on the street she would let us into her house. When I woke up yesterday morning I did not think that the next day I would be somewhere completely different. Life tends to throw you some pretty crazy stuff but man the great adventures that come from it all are totally worth it!

Love you!
Sister Bakker