3.26.12

Hey Daddio!!

That hunting trip sounds like a lot of fun! haha airborn in a chevy diesel sounds like a whole bucket of fun! Yeah I was afraid of the steer but we watched for while and it got tired and wasn´t as fast so decided it would be super awesome and what happens is a guy gets behind another guy and they place it just right so the steer hits the first guy in the stomach and he grabs its horns and they try to push down the the steer can´t lift its head and launch them. Then everyone jumps on so it stops moving and then hold it for a little while then everyone, but the guys in the front on the horns, run away and those two push really hard the steer away and run like crazy to the fence. Sometimes then aren´t able to stop it and they get pushed across the pen or the front guy gets picked up and thrown or he falls and gets smashed into the ground...it is super awesome to watch.

My hand is doing just great, I just jammed my fingers a little and it was kinda not awesome but everything is all good now. We did have a pretty bad scare this week, I got out of the shower and had 2 patched about the size of a silver dollar of some crazy looking rash/zit thing. The other elders thought it was shingles cause they both had it so we took sharpie and dotted all the bumps and I went to sleep and the next day it was the same and now a few days have passed and it seems to be getting better. It doesn't itch or anything really but it looked super gross and we don´t know what happened. I think it was from where my back rests, it got sweaty and just rubbed a rash, I don´t know though.

I am super excited to go shoot things. I didn´t think I would miss it as much as I do.  I  think you succeeded in putting a little bit of redneck in me...a little Spanish Forkian. :)  I thought I had seen that Tiger Woods was going to be out for a little while because of his leg giving him issues? I thought I saw that at the café place we were eating at. We need to by Francesinhas when we go to Porto by the way...so awesome. Also the Masters is coming up really soon right? Also General Conference is this weekend which will be cool  I really like conference as a missionary!!!!!!

This week we had the baptism of a girl named Joana who is the daughter of an inactive member from Brazil he used to be the ward mission leader and everything...it was super awesome. She gave all the missionaries here little lady bug candles...cause Joaninha means (little Joana, or ladybug) her dad is coming back and is trying to get his wife baptized but they need to get married but to do that they have to go to Brazil so he can get divorced then be able to marry again...its a complicated deal.

Also I am sure mom will tell you but i am getting transferred to Ermesinde which is just a little bit out of Porto on the north side.I will be in the furthest north zone in the mission. I will be serving with an elder from the Lisbon area, so  I probably won´t be speaking a lot of English and will not remember lots of words when you come. But it will be way fun to serve with a native again to help me with Portuguese! :)

Thanks for everything daddio!! I love you tons!!!

Elder Bushnell

Hey Mommy!!

I will be going back up towards Porto...this time i will just be on the north side of Porto in a city called Ermesinde. It is just a little bit above Porto. It is super weird that this is probably going to be my last area! I will be greenie breaking/finishing training a native, I think its Elder Fai. Trainings in the mission are now 2 transfers long and he is going into his second transfer so he will be finishing up with that and I will just have to make sure his trainer didn't mess him up yet! :)  I saw that you guys booked flights and it got me super excited...it is weird that in only 12 weeks I will see you guys....in 6 I will talk to you for Mother's Day.

That is super awesome that it worked out perfectly through Air France and Delta. When  I flew here I flew Air France but everything still says Delta on it. But that is cool because you guys will hear Portuguese for the first time there in the airport..everything will be announced in French, English, Spanish, Portuguese, and German. It is super weird cause now i can understand Spanish and read quiet a bit of French and Italian.  A camping trip sounds like it does do this adventure to Europe justice...sister are still  getting the short stick but I win either way! :) I like this game!

Wow that is weird that Jackson already has 2 kids.I don´t feel like i have been gone for that long. It looks like Hudson sure took his time...haha!!! I wonder if he even had time to lose his missionary goggles...if you don´t know what that is I will tell you after the mission. :)

I looked at that iternerary and it all seems really great. I think it will be great to go to the Algarve first then back to Setubal area then to Porto/Gaia/Ermesinde then we can go back down.Here in Santarém we are only like 45 minutes from Lisbon if we wanted to visit Filipe...he is super awesome. Also it isn´t necessary that dad gets an international drivers license but if he wants he can. Technically he can drive here for 6 months on his US license without any problems but i guess it wouldn´t hurt if he got it. I didn´t get a license, I would really like to get a European license. They are good for 40yrs with out needing to be renewed all with the same photo.

Good to hear that you are almost done with the crutches/scooter and that before long you will be running around like normal. Also it is good to hear that everyone else is healing up nicely.

Thanks for everything!! I love you tons!!!

Elder Bushnell

3.19.12

Hey mommy dear!!

I am doing just great!! I have been super lucky and haven't gotten sick on my mission. I jammed my finger super hard today on bumper cars...we had an awesome pday today!! We went to this fair cause today is a holiday so we had to wait to do internet until we got to Filipes house...on his super awesome super computer. But the fair was super awesome we rode the craziest bumper cars i have ever seen...they were fast and hit with so much force..not little kid ones. Also they had this thing called a "Garraiada" which means "Steer fight" So what they do is they poke a small bull with a large sharp stick to make it mad then they release it into a pen that is about 40 yards wide and 80 yards long and people just jump in and run up and slap it then run like mad to jump on the fence...we watched a couple guys get drilled it was super cool.YES! I did slap a bull...no I did not get gored and yes it was the most terrifying thing i have ever done in my entire life. ;) 

This week went pretty good...we didn´t find a lot of people but Joaquim is progressing really well...he made a huge effort and while out of town went to church and really liked it. Also today we talked to a girl from Romania who is really awesome...she speaks English and Portuguese really well it is super awesome...we have some other people but it gets kinda hard because they work a lot cause everyone has to work 2 jobs to make money sufficient to pay the bills and stuff. we have found that lots of people are losing their job so it should be getting easier.

Transfers are next week and it is super scary that i will probably for sure leave and that really it will most likely be my very last area. Also something super crazy is that Chris sent me an email that he met a guy who moved up to England a few weeks ago and it turns out he is from here in Santarem and his mom is the funniest crazyiest old lady. I will for sure get a picture of her I like her a lot. But what a small world!!

Elder De Hoyos is super awesome...did he speak English very well? President really likes to meet the parents and as we are the last group to leave under president Torgan he really likes us and i am sure he will want to get to meet you guys. I don´t have my passport cause we give them to the office elders when we get here but yeah i promise its not lost! As far as the flight plans that sounds great...i kinda am starting to think more about what i want to visit...i think i want to visit a giant fair on Monday in a city called Espinho which is in my area in Gaia...it is super awesome...they sell everything you can think of for super cheap! I just don´t know how to do that when I want to go to church in Setubal on Sunday...i guess we can go from Setubal to Gaia Sunday afternoon/night. 

Sounds like we need to put you on that scooter when we go to the mall...so i don´t have to get behind you and put blinders up and push you through the store.  wow i don´t think i want to talk about how old i am it is super depressing!!

Love you mom!!

Elder Bushnell

3.11.12

Hey Mommy!!

I am doing great!! This week was actually kinda a bummer...we met with this guy named Antônio who really needs to be baptized...but he has debt and can´t pay tithing. So we got it worked out where since he is retired and all he is going to just do service and stuff to count for his tithing. He really doesn't get any money it all goes to a solicitor who then pays his bills and gives this lady money to buy his groceries. But in the end he disappeared we don´t know what happened to him it was weird. He came to church and ran out like halfway through Sacrament Meeting and we couldn't find him the rest of the day and it was just weird. We will keep trying with him and see what we can do. As for Maria Jose she is going to get back on Tuesday and should be getting baptized on Saturday. The lady and her boyfriend were in Church for part of it, but they had to go to a funeral so they couldn't stay for all of it. We are teaching them Tuesday night. It is super weird cause Elder Lefevre is going home the same time as me so sometimes we get all trunked out cause we realize how fast it is going. But i guess trunky isn´t really the right word its more like scared.

I am glad the ankle is progressing well. It is amazing to think about the body and how God really made such a crazy masterpiece.To think about the ankle and how when it wasn't right some guy was able to use his hands to put it in place and it all heals up perfectly...miracle!

Wow I can´t believe how fast everyone is getting married. I thought for sure the twins were going  to make it till I got back and we would go on big group dates and stuff. It is super weird how crazy time is going. That is super awesome that the wedding went super well. Is Tiffany going to transfer up to UVU as well? My teeth are doing great....probably I have some cavities but it is going pretty well I am flossing a lot. By the way I could use some more of that floss for under my permanent retainer thing, normal floss here is not that great at getting underneath. 

I can´t believe that Rylie is 16 and that Nate bought an FJ Cruiser. They are kinda cool but they are like the hardest things ever to see out the back of. I went on a date with a girl that drove one and she couldn't back up worth beans and so I sat in the seat and maybe it was just hers but it was hard to see anything out the back they are cool looking though!

Good to hear Jordan is getting the house all ready for me to get home...so i don´t have to do that stuff later!! :) I don´t remember why I punched the hole in the wall. But i wasn´t a happy camper for some reason...good thing we don´t live here cause all the houses are made of cement.

I am certain that the 19th is my release date. Dad can call whenever I promise he will probably end up talking to Elder Christiansen who was in the MTC with me and lived with me for the first transfer. If we come home on the the 26th or 27th that would be perfect especially cause the next Sunday is Fast and Testimony Meeting. So, I would get an extra week to get ready. The only bummer is I think that is Chris´s homecoming talk day as well but we will see. I am SO glad the work at Dad's office is picking up!

Thanks for everything mommy!! I love you tons!!
Elder Bushnell

3.4.12

Hey mommy!!

This week was okay actually it seemed to go by super fast! We were not able to get her baptized because there is a crazy virus going around that is really bad and she caught it and had to stay in bed for a few days and had a crazy cough. She is going to go to Madeira this week so it looks like she will have to wait till next week. Satan is really good at what he does, but we will get her in the water eventually. we had a great church this week. It went really smooth and we had a new guy there who is the boyfriend of an inactive but she wants to come back and so brought him. She has taught him a lot and we are going to call today to set up an appointment with him. He seems to have a lot of potential, they just need to get married or stop living together for a little while....small details.

Sounds like your surgery was well needed, 6 weeks goes really quick mom that is only one transfer...basically only 2 of those left. Those knee scooters are super fun. I had a teacher in school that had one and we would always ride it around the halls and stuff...good times...not a good idea to try to go down a handicap ramp backwards with 2 people on it...fyi! Good to hear you are already on the recovery and it sounds like you are doing great.

It is super scary how fast the time is going. I can´t believe how little time 3 months can feel like. The office elders know you are going to call so go ahead and do it, no matter what someone will speak English there. At least enough to put you on the phone with someone who is from Utah. :) oh I know I am getting super close but it looks like I might need some more socks...I am seeming to find more and more holes, that are bigger than I can seem to sew up. I have one sock that is almost all royal blue cause I don´t have any black thread and its not worth it cause you never see the blue parts as long as I have shoes on.

Also another thing, President Torgan decided to change the rule for emailing friends. I can email you the ones for my friends and they can reply through you...make sense? So for example I will send one to Maddie today that I will send to you with the subject line as Maddie McCann and you can forward it to her. Then she can reply to you and you forward it back to me...she might be able to just send it to me straightway i don't know. 

Love you mommy!
Elder Bushnell

Hey Daddio!

this week has gone really quick but nothing super exciting. We are trying really hard but kinda just spinning our tires. We will get rolling here in a little bit. We are trying super hard to do everything right So cool things happen. I am trying to be a lot more bold. I tried it through a door...a lady yelled "who is it" so i said "I am Elder Bushnell and I am a representative of Jesus Christ" and she didn´t really want anything and was just like "keep on working...go" it didn't work really well but ya just keep on trying.

Man 16 points...that is a long time but probably worth it yeah? What are our odds for drawing Boulder? What is the lasal area like? I heard some good stories from there but I don´t even know where that is or anything. That would be a fun hunt if we all drew out there in Boulder! I am still like 7-9 years from desert bighorn right? I am so super excited to shoot a sand hill that has been like my greatest wish since I was super little!! Did you eat yours yet? How much does it cost to have one mounted? :)

The baptism didn´t end up happening the lady got super sick and now is going to Madeira for a week or so...it will have to wait till she gets back.  We will get here though! 

That is sad about Brother Neilson. it really is kinda awful how many young dads have passed away in the last little bit in our ward!

Thanks for everything you do for me dad!  I love you tons!!

Elder Bushnell

2.26.12

Hey Mommy!!

This week was a little bit rough. We had a conference with President in coimbra which is a cool city but umm it went really well and we came home super stoked then i think Satan got super upset and kinda made our week rough. We had a lady named Maria José marked for Saturday but she got sick and wanted to wait until Monday (today) so we are going to try to get her baptized today but she might still be sick so we are going to have to see how she is feeling and stuff. We also had a rough time finding news this week. We had a district conference so it was at a hotel which basically no one knew where it was. It was a rough gig. We did get a ride to it in Filipe´s mini cooper....cool but i couldn´t ever drive one.

That is crazy that they are shortening the time in the MTC....weird. I think it is good though cause honestly i don´t think it needs to be so long cause most people don´t learn the language until they get in the field anyways. Good work on not crying I am super proud of you!! It scares me how little time I have. I always get super freaked out when thinking about it. i had to do some counting cause i am trying to decide how i can finish the BofM again and also read Preach my Gospel and Jesus The Christ but I realized I have just a little over 100 days....super scary. I have heard so many horror stories, they say the first day back isn´t bad but when you lay down and fall asleep the dreams are weird then when you wake up it hits you like a semi-truck and you realize its over and you can´t ever go back...that scares me! I hope Aaron gets things figured out and gets out here cause if I could I think I would take his place and serve again. Joe is going into the marines...that is weird...not air force? He will get it figured out I am pretty sure...we have an elder here who served a tour in Iraq before coming out here on his mission...he is super awesome.

Thanks for everything you do for me mommy! I am praying the surgery goes well and am excited to see you guys soon! I love you tons!!

Elder Bushnell

Daddio,

This week we don´t have any super awesome stories. We had a super cool meeting with the President in which he talked to us about a lot of things and we actually got the opportunity to teach him as our eternal investigator which was awesome. I don´t know if I have told you about this or not but every week when we do weekly planning we pray a lot to make sure we are doing God´s will and we pray for how many baptisms and WHO they are. So basically we know going into every week who is going to be our focus because we know God has given us that revelation and that He will always provide a way. So we did an example of when we feel a eternal investigator and the first run through was just talking about baptism and stuff but then president stops me and was like..."Elder Bushnell you are talking like Brother Bushnell....as long as you have that tag on you can straight up tell your investigators you are a representative of Jesus Christ and that God the Father has sent you to that investigators house and that you know that God wants them to be baptized that weekend...then pray with them and they will feel the same thing and then they can´t deny that" It was super awesome the way he broke it down so simple. I am trying to be an example and do everything right but i think this last week Satan drew Santarém out of his hat. We will get him back this week though! :)

Thanks for everything dad!! i love you tons!!

Elder Bushnell