16 November 2015 - "The South isn't a place, its a state of mind."

We got to go to the Baton Rouge Temple on Saturday! It was so fantastic! There is no better place to go. It is literally heaven on earth. It filled my mind with peace and settled all my stress. Stress which came after we packed a recent converts glass china from her grandma..... Oh man pray it doesn't break! It was really scary. I have decided after packing 4 china closets... that china just isnt my thing especially when its someone else's most prized and protected items. haha I love being a missionary yall it really is so fun. We have been doing more service lately which is just so incredible. The more time we send with southern people the more I realize how the South really is a state of mind. We met with a lady name Darlene a couple weeks ago and she taught Sister Widdison how to knit. I already knew how but it was a good refresher. Anyways she has been dying for us to come and participate in the knitting club that she is in. So we went it was on Louisiana College campus and it was really fun! Quite hilarious! Probably 10 woman ages 40 and older were there. We knitted and ate. The Elders called in the middle of it and I answered. It went like this Me:"Hey its Sister Kerr" 

E.Floyd:"Hey its Elder Floyd, When are we doing coordination?... What is that in the background?.... Where are yall?"

Me:"We are at a knitting convention"

E.Floyd:"Did I just hear a bunch of cackling old woman?"

Me:"Yes you did."

E.Floyd:"Ummm... yall can just call us back later."

Sister Lanning and I started up this really fun game of charades as a way to teach all the commandments. We talk about them all then you grab one from the bag and act it out. We played it with Drew this week and with a little girl named Annaston who both have dates to be baptized! Yay! People love games down here! It is always a hoot. It makes me realize how important it is that we keep the commandments. The more I learn about them the more I realize they have a purpose they aren't just placed there for no reason. Speaking of which I want to make a shout out to the one and only Shan Heath, a member from the McComb branch who moved to Utah the day I left McComb. She has been smoke free for 3 months! She emailed me this morning to testify that she truly feels better! I love this gospel and I love when people recognize all that it entitles too! God promises blessings with every commandment. Study the commandments yall know them like the back of your hand because we have all covenanted with God that we would keep them! I love yall so much and I hope yall have a great week. 

Love Sister Kerr

Knitting Fiasco!

Mission Leadership Council Picture!

We went in search of a less active. Pop took us in his jeep because he said her driveway is pretty muddy. Pretty muddy.... doesnt even start to cover what it was. It was insane. Lets just say God blessed me but Pop and Sister Widdison ended up COVERED in manure scented mud.

9 November 2015 - Glorious Day, Amen.

Yall would be so proud of me... I have been doing Insanity every morning this week. I feel so good but soooo sore haha. The kittens eyes opened this week! 

I am just so having the most amazing time of my life. The Elders had a baptism this week, Keiyanu. He is 18 and they started teaching him when I moved here to Alexandria. So we got to know him pretty good and went over had visited him and his girlfriend, Alexis. She is already a member so she was so excited when he decided to be baptized. But anyways the Elders asked if I would speak on the Holy Ghost at his baptism. It was such a special opportunity and it went so smoothly! When it finished Elder Floyd said "I know God answers prayers!" Haha we all just laughed because it was so hectic preparing for that baptism. We had Drew come to the baptism. She is the one who's husband is returning to activity and she is investigating. The thing she loved the most was how it wasnt a huge production. She loved how it was just a humble event that was so spiritual and focused completely on Keiyanu. We had such an incredible lesson with just Drew at her house on the Word of Wisdom and the Law of Chastity. Then later in the week we had a lesson with her and Tyler at the BIshop's house. We taught her about the Gospel of Jesus Christ in doing so we committed her to be baptized on December 5th 2015. It was one of the most spiritual moments I've experienced. As she began to accept joyful tears streamed down her face. We then turned to her loving husband and committed him to prepare to baptize her on that date. He also with tears in his eyes accepted. The Gospel changes people including missionaries! It was so spectacular! Makes all the heartache and disappointment worth it! She came to church this week too. President Hansen taught us this week about the importance of having a spiritual experience at church every week. Which as a missionary is actually incredibly hard because you are so worried about everyone else having a grand experience that you don't focus on the purpose of attending church. So this week I had probably the best and most edifying time at church! As I focused on my Savior and I and felt changes taking place in me I knew that Drew sitting next to me could feel it to as she read the scriptures over my shoulder. It was just so special. So next Sunday focus on the really meaning of the Sacrament and the real meaning of the Savior!

          Then we took an incredible leap with Joseph as we taught him the next commandment that he struggles with. But as he opened up the spirit filled the room and he looked at us with tear filled eyes and told us that he knew what he needed to do! It is amazing how with the spirit commandments become something we want to do rather than a restriction. It is just so great how much God expects of us it is the only thing that is going to get us to grow! :)

God Bless, Sister Kerr

Elder Floyd balancing like a champ.

Bowling!

#Jesus.... spray paint, not window paint.

I forgot my rain coat that night. -_-

Only one of Shadrach's eyes have opened haha

Me, Sister Widdison, Drew and Tyler at the Baptism.

Irma with her Halloween Face on!

Pops with his Halloween teeth in!

Helped pop prep his meat for the smoker at like 7:20 in the morning. We were on exchanges and this was after an intense Insanity workout... Thats right Ive been doing insanity.

2 November 2015 - Labor and Delivery Sisters.

This has been the longest week of my mission! But possibly one of the funniest and best! So we had kitties! On Tuesday morning Pop made gravy and I made biscuits. I went out to pet Smores because I do every morning. She is getting friendlier and friendlier. I was petting her and decided to pick her up, this was a giant step for mankind beacause she hates people. So I lifted her up slow and cuddled her, she didnt love it but she didnt hate it so it was a huge deal. I set her down and went in to check on the biscuits. I looked down and noticed I had blood all over my shirt. I got a little panicked so I went back out to check on her and she had a little kitten tail hanging out! It was so intense I sat down next to her and started petting her and calming her down. I asked Pop if he had an old towel for her to have her babies on or if she would just have them on the porch rug. I said the word rug and Pop says "Girl, she aint havin those kittens on my living room rug!" My response "No, Pop the porch rug! Do you care if she has them on the porch rug?" Pop "Oh no, I dont mind I'll just power wash it." So that was that. We coached her through all her pushing episodes and out came two perfect kitties. Then about half an hour later two more came out. We needed to be there but also couldn't skip our studies for the morning so we grabbed the Ipad and listened to conference talks while cuddling our Smores and her freshly soggy squirmy off spring. Sister Widdison had asked me just the day before what my favorite Bible story was. I told her it was hands down the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego. It's found in Daniel 3 and its so good! So after a long discussion we decided we loved it even more than we did when we started our study of it. So when it came down to naming the kittens... done. Easy, Shadrach, Meshach, Abed-nego and David. We let the Elders name the last one and he is the runt of the litter and also white. They decided to name him David like from the story of David and Goliath because he is just a little guy but he is tough! He actually couldn't figure out how to eat so after some help he figured it out. We thought he would die for sure. But then after just a couple days Smores got injured and couldnt make it back to her box to feed them. It was so stormy out so Sister Widdison and I bundled and headed into the storm calling for her. We found her but we had to leave to a wedding of one of our less actives. It was a Halloween wedding and literally probably the most southern thing I have ever seen. It was held in a double wide trailer that was just big and open, one room. All plywood. They covered the walls with black garbage bags and fake spider webs and then everyone was dressed up. It was so hot and humid the cheese on the sandwichs was dripping off.... Yall cant even imagine... I kid you not I imagined it for weeks and my anticipation was off. Haha it was so fun and the Bride and Groom had a blast. They prided themselves with how southern it was! After the wedding we went straight home because we had to be in by 6:30 on Halloween which worked out because we had to find our cat! We found her under the house and she could't walk she had screwed up her foot and it was as swollen and as big as a rabbits foot! Pop joked about cutting it off and making it into a key chain for us.... Believe you me we were not pleased with his comments. But everything is all better now! I feel like Sister Widdison and I are now prepared for parenthood. 

         Anyways we still found plenty of time to do missionary stuff! We had an awesome lesson with Drew and her husband Tyler. It went so good and we read the Book of Mormon with them. Drew said that she has tried to read it before but never got very far because she couldn't understand it. But she said since we were all reading it together it makes tons more sense! I am so glad we have the opportunity to work with her. It just made me realize how different my life would be without the BofM and she made a comment about how she has such a desire to change now that she is learning things. 

        We had a really good lesson with Joseph and Michelle over here at Pop and Ms. Robin's house. We talked about the gospel of Jesus Christ and it was incredible because Ms. Robin shared her experience with us about the day she was baptized and it moved her to tears. It is just so special to be able to make covenants with God to help us improve. We must ENDURE and it will all be worth it! There was so much more that happened this week but those were the 4 biggest ones, Kittens, Wedding, Drew and Joseph. I love yall so much.

Oh wait one more funny story for the road, it has been so rainy lately its constantly flooding so we have been doing a lot of work from home. So we were calling random people from our area book and this was the phone conversation

Me: "Hello its the sister missionaries!"

Indian guy: "Who?"

Me: "The sister Missionaries you met with back in May!"

Indian guy: "What country are you calling from??"

Me: "Uh... the United States.."

Indian Guy: "I think you have the wrong number..."

Me: "Oh... Ok... God Bless!"

Love ya

Sister Kerr

The wedding.

Shadrach, Meshach Abed-nego and David

I saw this willow tree and it made me think of my sisters. I love yall so much and how close we are. Sending you my love!

Trunk or Treat we decorated the Elders truck and were true Louisianians.

Smores and I

These are my babies

Gagging from the blood on my shirt

26 October 2015 - Everything is flowing like melted butter.

We had a really good week! On p-day I found out that I have some relatives here on the mission haha I am 4th cousins with Elder Armstrong and 4th cousins twice removed with Elder Mayer and 10th cousins with Elder Jones. Oh my heavens its the funniest thing ever. But pretty dang awesome too. So some updates about my people back in McComb is that Brother Joe blessed the sacrament, which makes my heart literally the happiest I have ever been in my life. It was seriously a moment of pure bliss when I found out. I love the priesthood so much! Ms. Renee got into some anti Mormon stuff about African Americans and so then she told the sisters that she is done meeting with them :( I was so distraught when I found out I just didn't know what to do. I prayed and prayed but in the middle of my personal study the spirit told me to write her a letter. So I thought "ok I'll do that later." But the longer I waited the stronger the urge got. So I wrote her a letter. I got a call from the McComb sisters and they said that Ms. Renee called them and told them that she got a letter from me and is ready to start meeting with the sisters again!!! It is so amazing to be a tool in God's hands. I love these people. 

I got sick this week... ya know my usual that has become my not so usual. I forgot to dab my bacon and sausage so when we were in the downtown of ghetto-ville I needed a bathroom ASAP. So we went to Save A Lot and they didn't have a bathroom... so we went to Family Dollar and they didn't have a bathroom. So we went to the WORLDS NASTIEST gas station where I then walked in on a man in the bathroom. Thank goodness he was washing his hands but it was a very humbling experience to say the least. But I'm doing mo better now.

We met a lady this week who can crack nuts with her teeth... haha oh man it made me cringe but she is super awesome and actually became a new investigator! 

We had an incredible time with with our new investigator Drew, she is married to a returned missionary named Tyler who was a recent convert when he left on his mission. They recently got married and now she is ready for the lessons from us! She is so cute and looks just like Kate Hudson! We taught the restoration at the Bishop's house and it went beautifully! The spirit brought everyone to tears and helped us all to re kindle our testimony of the restoration! It was so magical. 

There is so much water here! It's been so rainy, yesterday we actually couldn't go anywhere after church because we aren't allowed to drive through standing water. It was so stormy and nearly every road was flooded. So we napped and played games and enjoyed our hurrication. It was so weird because it felt like a NORMAL Sunday :) 

Well I hope y'all are doing good. Hope to hear from y'all soon. Have an awesomely wonderful week.

Love Sister Kerr

Kerr Street in Opelousas, Louisiana

Waste Grease Disposal... No wonder my intestines want to die at the age of 20. #southernsisterprobs

My pumpkin, its an owl.

We wake up to inspirational messages from Pop nearly every morning.

Our Southern Family of Missionaries