March 25!!!!

Great day, Great day!!!
Today is March 25!! I´ve been waiting for this day my whole life! This is the only March 25th 2009 I will ever live so I´m going to cherish every second!!
Hahaha! Like that little SW taste? I´m teaching my companions through example about positive self talk in the morning. I´m finding that SW truly is inspired mission prep. I´m using a lot of the techniques here in the mission field and also lots of the activities we did in group meetings. Thank you, SW! :) Hahaha!
So...I´m having a blast with Sister Barboza. Dad asked for more info about her. She is really sweet and a hard worker. She looks kinda serious on the outside and I´ve thought she was upset with me more than once in this last week, but I´m learning that´s just how she is. Not everyone wears their emotions on their sleeves like I do! ;)
I´m having a blast teaching her English and also how to sing and lead music. What a blessing I have to put into practice the things I learned at BYU! I´m trying to remember now all the little song games we used. She has a good ear, she just lacks the confidence to try. We did English study this morning with both pairs. It was really fun for Sister Reynolds and I to be English teachers! It´s so fun to see your ´students´ grasping the concepts and applying what you´re teaching. I love to see the wheels turning in their heads. I know I´m just going to love teaching children after the mission! :)
We did some of the pages in the BYU English Grammar book they got in the CTM and then I taught them ´I like Bananas, Coconuts, and Grapes´. HAHAHAH! It was so cute! They really got a kick out of it and now it is stuck in our heads!! Thanks, Mom, for teaching me so much. It has not only blessed my life, but is now blessing the lives of others around me. We sang it where I stopped singing and they had to continue. It was a really effective exercise to test their intonation and also their pronunciation. What a deal!
Hmmm...in other news, we had a ward activity last night called Noite de Integração. It was an improvement from the last one we did (only 10 people or so --incl. the 4 missionaries). This time there were about 50! We also had a cute investigator couple there. We were really happy they came. He´s jewish (inactive) and doesn´t really believe in much of anything. She is recently baptized in an evangelical church. They were having serious marital issues when we got their referral from a recently reactivated couple. They were hesitant to give it to us since she just barely baptized in this other church (last week in fact), but we persisted and knocked on their door. It was a miracle. She got really emotion because she said we were an answer to her prayers. Eric asked when meetings were at church b/c they wanted to visit and that´s when we invited them to the activity. They arrived early--beating most of the members by half an hour. They really had a great time. It was so cute to see them getting into the games (guestures and do you love your neighbor) and laughing with the members. We´re probably going to have to move slower with them, but I´m really excited to help them out! They have only been married for 3 years and I know the gospel is what they need to have a happy and eternal marriage.
We are going there tomorrow to probably teach them to do a ´companionship inventory´ and then to invite them to a FHE at the house of their member friends who live in their condominium. What a privilige it is to be an instrument in God´s hands!!
So...the short story would be that the work is going forward here in Cuiabá. In other news, we heard that 3 new sisters will be arriving April 8th. I´m really excited!!! (The mission has only ever had 8 sisters on average. Now we´ll be up to 11!)
I love you all very much.
Way to go, Laura with the surprize for John. I thought it was awesome! Hang in there with everyone else getting sick.
Sounds like y´all are going to have a fun get together at Conference this time. Play lots of Nertz for me. ;) HAHAHAAH!
I do have one request. It´s actually a plea rather. I have no body spray/perfume. I only brought lotion with me and it´s too hot and muggy to be overdosing on lotion when I also have to apply sunscreen. My poor companion is probably suffering lots because of my smell. It would be nice to have some kind of spray to put on for church, conferences, etc. Or just to relieve these poor Brazilians who have to hug and kiss me out of custom´s sake when we greet them. Please have compassion on my poor companions and these innocent Brazilians. Will someone please send me perfume/body spray ASAP? Thank you.
Love, Sister Ellis
P.S. Mom--I don´t know if you are already doing it, but Jenny Mobley would like to get these emails forwarded on to her if you could. Thanks!
P.P.S. Grandma--Thank you so much for your email of love and support. I love hearing from you. Please don´t ever apologize for emails. I love hearing your news. Feel free to write me an email of whatever length you desire. The only thing I don´t appreciate receiving are forwards.

March 18

Hello, lovely, growing family!!!
I am so exstatic to hear Laura is pregnant!! With TWINS!!! I´m so excited to have twins in the family! There are 4 families with twins in our ward. Thanks, Laura, for the email and the news. I´m so happy for y´all!!
Well, the baptism and wedding and confirmation of Mara, Gilson, Felipe, Thiago, and Junior went very well. It was so beautiful seeing them all in white, imagining them all (in a year) dressed in white again to be sealed in the temple!! What a privilege it was to find and help out this beautiful family receive the blessings of the gospel! And it was even sweeter because Sister Bulhões and I got to stay together until after their confirmation. We received the news that we´d get separated 2 weeks earlier, but Pres. Milder let us stay together til after the baptism. It truly was a tender mercy.
Now, I am with my 2nd companion, Sister Elenice Gomes Barbosa. She is from Bayeux close to João Pessoa. She is wonderful! I love getting the opportunity to learn from her example and learn some different ways to teach. She walks a lot faster than Sister Bulhões and we are having a great time working diligently to acheive our high goals for this month.
The baptisms of the girls fell through, but we are going to try to teach Yasmin with her parents. The good news is that I know God is preparing others who are ready to accept the gospel and be baptized this month of March!!
The Area Presidency (cough, cough...Dad) has been putting a lot of emphasis on baptizing every week. I am psyching myself up for this. Elder Ballard taught that baptizing has all to do with attitude and hard work (or in other words not accepting excuses). I am increasing my faith everyday. I know that God has the power to help us baptize every week when we do our part (10 contacts every day, asking for referals, teaching with the Spirit, etc). I am so grateful to be a missionary!! I can´t believe I already have 6 months on the mission! What a privilege it is to spend every day helping my brothers and sisters receive the blessings of the gospel. I will never have a chance like this again in my life to devout myself 100% to preaching the gospel. I am soaking it all in.
Thank you all for your prayers and emails. Thanks again, Kit, for the pictures and drawings.
Thank you so much, Becky for your email!!! I was so ridiculously excited to hear from you!!! I love you so very much and am praying for you. Give Mick my love and all Tribe #5.
Love, Sister Rachel Ellis

March 11

Yesterday we had a miracle in finding Mariza´s house. Her mom gave permission for her to be baptized after many prayers and fasts, but then took it away again. So, Sister Bulhões and I made a chocolate cake and bought guaranã and took it as a peace offering. (Her baptism is scheduled for Saturday 14th--Mariza´s birthday). I know a miracle can happen so long as we exercise faith (2 Ne. 27:23). I have been studying Mormon 9. It is so sad how he says that if miracles have stopped in our day, it is because the children of men lack faith in God. So...we were trying to find her house and had to walk through this jungle passageway on the edge of this smelly little river. It was quite the experience! We didn´t even know if it was the right way, but in the end, we came out right in front of her house! Truly a blessing. Sister Bulhões took a picture of the passageway we took and I´ll save it to my CD today.

Another blessing: I was contacting a man at the bus stop when our bus came. It only passes once every 30-40 minutes. We´ve been teaching Mariza adn Yasmin after their school at noon in the park by their school. Sister Bulhões hopped on and was calling me. I tried to finish the contact as quickly as possible, but by the time I turned around, the bus was already driving away!! Sister Bulhões mouthed ´RUN´ in Portuguese. I obeyed. Hahaha! I ran after the bus in my dress with my bulky bag, down the main highway in Cuiabá, hitting the side of the bus for the driver to know I was there and by way of a plea for him to let me on. Sister Bulhões had been telling him that we couldn´t be separated and the guy who takes the money was giving a play by play about how I was running after the bus, etc. Miraculously, the driver´s heart was softened and he opened the door for a split second--just enough time for me to jump in. As soon as I stepped in, he stepped on the gas again. Whew! It truly was a miracle! Hahaah! I wish I had a video of so many things on my mission to go back and watch. It definitely was quite the scene with everyone on the bus gaping out the windows, etc.

Thank you all for the emails. I love you all so very much. But, I would like to repeat that I do not need nor want any forwards. Time is much to short on PDay. I would rather here your own words, dear family, or see pictures of you rather than random things. Thank you though for thinking of me. Thank you for taking me off your forward mailing lists.

John, how was your birthday, long lost brother? I hope you had fun and are enjoying your 3 adorable kids. How´s Celeste? Did she get my letter and present?

Kit--Thanks for the adorable drawings from Ryn and Elle and the picture and homemade frame. It warmed my heart so! I am so blessed to have such adorable, loving neices! (And a very loving, thoughtful sister to think of me). :) Thank you! It is sitting on my desk for me to look at every day.

So...are there cadbury eggs yet there? The easter eggs are starting to get put up in the super markets here. Do they do that in Portugal, Spence? I love easter!! Unfortunately, the eggs are too expensive for my reduced budget so I won´t be buying one. If I could, I´d buy a Sonho de Valsa one. But, if anyone gets sick of having too many cadbury eggs lying around, I will sacrifice and eat them for you. ;) Hahaha!
Love, Sister Rachel Ellis

March 4

I have exactly one minute left from 50! It took me that long to read all the emails and blogs. I loved them all! THAnks everyone! Happy birthday John. What all did you do? Congrats, Joy on the marathon. Love, Sister Ellis III
Pls my email is getting full again...