I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT HERE IN RICHMOND VIRGINIA!!!

The week I have dreaded is here. It is transfer week. We will find out tomorrow if any of us will be transferred to another area. I sure hope not! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE SERVING HERE IN RICHMOND!! I really love serving in a YSA Ward because they are da bomb. It is so fun to have people around who are my age. They are super supportive of us, I Love That! I have made so many new friends and it kind of makes me regret not getting very involved in my ward at school...I wish I would of gone to ALL of the activities and really tried to get to know people, but oh well! I will do that when I get home! 

The students are back!! The campus is bumping and I am having the time of my life! We had a lemonade stand in the middle of campus the other day and we ran out in 20 minutes....that is a lot of lemonade! There were swarms of people everywhere! We filled up lemonade after lemonade!! It was so fun! It is fun having the students back! There are so many new faces in the ward. The other night we had this thing we called "Girls Night" and we invited people from the ward and investigators to the church to watch "Legacy" and to eat Ice Cream/Popcorn and to paint their nails. It was so fun and it just makes me laugh about how excited I get to watch church movies. One of the things I love about my mission is all the awkward moments that happen. It is awesome to meet all these people from all over the world. I could not be happier and sometimes it makes me wonder why...haha. I mean I am exhausted, but I am so Happy. How does that work? I guess it comes from serving the people around me and serving the Lord. Service is the Key word!

Well two sisters headed to Argentina got their Visas today. They are super excited, but they have been waiting for six or seven months. So crazy! I am just so mixed up with feelings about that.

We are hoping that our teaching pool grows but the last few weeks have been kind of hard. First the students were gone and now the first week is super busy for everyone. We pray that we will be able to teach more next week. In the mean time I am enjoying the experiences I have each day.

Today a miracle happened. We literally had no food and had spent our money for the week. We were a bit worried what we were going to have for lunch and bam. I got a box from home full of goodies. I am learning so much from my companions, I love them very much! We are so unified and were unified from the first moment we were together. We laugh everyday too much and we get along so well! 

It makes me happy that people ask about me and write me. I kind of thought that I would go away and be a little bit forgotten. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR ALL YOUR THOUGHTS, PRAYERS, EMAILS AND LETTERS!! I LOVE BEING A MISSIONARY MORE THAN I EVER DREAMED I WOULD! THE LORD HAS TRUELY BLESSED ME! YOU ARE ALL IN MY PRAYERS AND THOUGHTS! Til next time, have a great week!

 Ready to clean the church

 Love my companions

Richmond Zoo with the whole zone!

Last Monday we went to the Richmond Zoo! I loved it! They had every kind of monkey I am sure. There was a cool place that you could go feed the Giraffes. Sister Nelson fed one from her mouth! Haha. We got into the Zoo for free, evidently a member owns it. We will have to come back on another P-day.

Some crazy miracles happened this week! Well as you know we are teaching a girl names H. She is amazing, she started to investigate because she came to her best friends baptism and started to cry and she didn't understand why she was crying. We first taught her the first week I got here. She would drive down two hours to have lessons each week. Now that is devotion. So we had what we knew would be our last lesson with her on friday night because she is moving to school, six hours away. There is no way she could drive that far for us to teach her. When we first came into the lesson we were not sure how it would go. We had a lesson on the gospel principles and the spirit was so strong. Then Sister Romney felt inclined to leave her alone and let her pray about what she should do. She then told us she needed to be baptized. She felt so strongly that she needed to be baptized. She looked so happy and let me tell you, we were so happy too! Well we were talking about how things would happen. We were joking around and saying we could do it tomorrow!  (this was friday by the way) and she was like YES! It started as a joke ad then turned very serious and asked us if she could really be baptized tomorrow? So, we told her we would see what we could do. It was late night calls to the District Leaders, the Bishop, and the Mission President. The next day was very stressful and we were not sure what was going on, but we were told to meet with her and then have the interview. The Mission President came and talked to her and interviewed her. It was determined that we would wait until she moved. So the Mission President called the Bishop down there where she was moving. It turns out that the Ward she is moving to just finished a 40 days of fasting for the missionaries (40 day and 40 nights; 40 families each day and night taking turns for missionary work). They finished that the day before our Mission President called about H getting baptized down there. Miracles are all around us! They happen everywhere!

Let me tell you a little about where I serve and what my days are like. The YSA ward I serve changes every semester I am told. It is pretty big, which is cool.  We are teaching H of course but she is moving and we a teaching a man from Africa names J. he speaks only French so we teach with a translator which is kind of complicated. But it works:)  Everyday is different which is nice. We start the day off with personal study, then companionship study, Then I do my language study, then training and the we eat lunch. We don't usually get out of the house until 1 pm due to all that. We try to go out and visit with either the less actives, recent converts, or find new investigators. How we find them is through lemonade stands on campus. It is fun to serve people and tell them about the gospel. We also do activities with the ward every week like FHE, institute. Then on friday nights we teach a Book of Mormon class which is really fun! It surprises me how many people actually come...I mean it's a friday night and they come and hangout with the missionaries, how cool is that?! Then we are home either before 9 or at 9:30 depending on what is going on. Last night Sister Romeny and I made up a new game with socks. We call it Siemney. It is basically soccer with socks. We find ourselves doing a lot of things like that, it just makes me laugh. I mean we have to entertain ourselves some way! The other night we watched the Restoration with popcorn. Haha, I just laugh a lot about what we do. It is great!

My testimony has grown so much because on a bad day I can't call my mom. That is hard for me, but I find myself calling on Heavenly Father more frequently. I pray like 2934379847 times a day and that has drawn me closer to him. I have real conversations with him and I love that. I also have been reading the scriptures so much and I am finding I am understanding the stories more and more. I guess I should have paid more attention in Sunday school. I love the scriptures more and more and love what I am learning. I love my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and how they really love me and how I feel them close everyday!

Well this coming Sunday are transfer calls and then if we transfer we leave next Thursday! Wish me luck:) Love you all!! Thanks for all the support and if you have time Please email or snail mail me! I would love to hear from you all!!

Love you all
Sister Siepert

Third Transfers are coming soon! Yikes!

Today our zone is going to the Zoo!!!! I am so excited!! I have been holding in my excitement, except last night I lost it and went crazy...haha, but it's okay because my companions love me so much! haha

I am so jealous you are all together for Eric graduation. Congrats to Eric! It is fun that you get to be around them especially kaylee and Colton! Have fun with them and give them lots of kisses from me! I bet Eric and Megan are excited to be moving on, but somewhat sad. It is sad to leave places you have grown to love. Like I am dreading that transfers are coming...they are coming so soon! AHHH! Can you believe that I am going on my third transfer?!?! I only have 12 transfers my whole mission....my life is so unreal right now! I hope I stay in this area (well unless I get to Brazil!) because I just am now getting to know everyone in this ward! And guess what?! I think they like me!

We had a wonderful sacrament meeting yesterday! There is this samoan boy in our ward named J and he spoke. He spoke on missionary work and how members need to help. He got home from his mission almost a year ago in California! He and his sister J took us out to dinner this past week (to Olive Garden I might add!!!), but anyways he spoke and it was amazing.! Then he said well, I know this is weird, but I would love to share one of my favorites songs. So his sister came up and played the piano and he sang. He sang a song about promising people in the pre existence that we would find them and find his lost sheep. I don't think a single person was not crying. It was so cool, the spirit was so strong! I love them both, but I think they are leaving soon:( She is in the Army and he is just here to support her. They are incredible! This morning I read Alma 5. Read it! It is so good kind of makes you reevaluate your life. I can't believe Ty is doing a baptism!! What the heck! That is so awesome!! How crazy! I never thought really about missionary work until I was a missionary and I didn't realize how few baptisms we had in our ward...weird, I am so glad it is rising!

Well this has been a weird week. Number wise our numbers were bad because literally everyone canceled on us! Also the summer semester is done at VCU so a lot of the students are gone. The next two weeks should bring a lot of new students to campus and our ward! I can't wait! We really really tried and hope next week is better. I still love my companions so much! They are wonderful! We get a long so well and we really know how to have joy while working. We all have different talents that work well together. I am also becoming braver and braver. We do this thing called "walk and talk" where we got out and just hand out cards and such and I am handing out more and more! I am less afraid! I mean these people may not agree, by why not. I have really learned to follow promptings and the importance of following them. When you follow them more and more. Life is good and we just keep pushing a long! I am happy to be here! I am praying that my visa comes, but I am also praying that it doesn't...haha, it is the weirdest feeling!

One of the sisters in serving in our ward is a Temple Square Missionary and is from the Philippines. I love her with all my heart! She is so little and has an awesome accent! She made us good food from her country. We have planned a trip together. We are going to meet in Singapore and go to Dubai and then India, and then to her home island.  We planned it all out!

Something I learned this week! When we struggle in life all we have to do is ask our Heavenly Father. He and Jesus Christ are there just waiting for us to ask. It is hard to do but when we ask they will lift our burdens. They are just waiting for us!!

Well love you all! Ya'll have a blessed day! (they always say that here and I love it!)

Yep this is me in Virginia!

Richmond Virginia

This is were I live for now!

Sister Missionaries and the Mission President and wife

My two Companions Sister Romney and Sister Nelson

Richmond is Portland!

We now have nine missionaries in our YSA ward. Six sister and three Elders. It is so fun to have so many of us. We work a lot together and on Thursdays we are doing a lemonade stand at VCU. I love when we do that because is always is very interesting to hear what people have to say about us...haha. I love it though. I guess I didn't realize how many people are not a huge fan of Mormons...haha, but it is all good! You should see the Baptist chruches here! They are HUGE! They are as big as RHS and they are everywhere and lets just say a lot of them do not like us one bit...haha, but whatever, we are working! Mom here are quick answers to your questions:

1. We never get to go to the Temple...kind of sad, but they just split missions so we don't get too.
2. When I mentioned the first two months being the hardest I heard at the MTC that the first two months are the hardest. Especially with the new languages.
3. We teach mostly by referrals. They are the best source because they are the most promising. We do a lot of finding and stuff.
4. No there is not really anything you can do for me and my companions other than Love Us and send us fun stuff!
5. We attend most of the things at the YSA ward. We go to FHE, institute and usually other activities. It is better to go when we have investigators, but it is also good to create good relationships with everyone in the ward.

Let me tell you about this cool thing we went to this week! It is called first friday and it's like a street that they are selling all sorts of things. This includes a lot of art shows. So basically every hipster there ever was shows up. It is so awesome! I swear Richmond is Portland. It is so much like Portland that is kind of blows my mind! It was cool though because like all the missionaries in the downtown area set up two lemonade stands together. There had to be at least 20 missionaries. It was fun talking to all the people. There are some strange people here and it is awesome! Haha, Ryan would really like the scene.

Cool thing my companion Sister Romney knows my cousins Emily and Aubrey! She went to school with them both. Emily has even gone on dates with both of her brothers! Crazy, Huh?

We are still working with J and H, but sad thing is H is leaving for school. She is so awesome and tells us everyday that she reads the Book of Mormon the day is better. I love that! I love that she is so interested in knowing more! She is wonderful, but will be moving. So new missionaries will more than likely take her over. J is still here though! His english is getting better, but he is still looking for a job. People always come to translate for us, which is cool and very very helpful! He has read the whole introduction to the Book of Mormon and had amazing questions. I loved that! He comes to church and loves how nice everyone in the ward is to him! I love that! This ward is so good at fellowshipping! That is why YSA's are awesome! But we are still looking for new investigators...it will be nice when VCU gets back in. That is coming up and I am super excited for that! It will be booming down here. That is why we have three sets of missionaries, right? Yesterday the man that got baptized the first week I was here got the priesthood. How cool is that!? He was so happy and it was cool to be apart of that! We work a lot with less active and recent converts here. It is so cool to have so many less actives and recent converts to teach! I am super stoked about that!

Well I am having a wonderful time here and I cannot believe today is my second month marker! I feel like it was like just yesterday that I left! Well, I love you all and keep making good choices and keep feeding the missionaries because I sure don't get fed! Haha, but I am becoming cook-ish...haha, love you all! Keep working hard and give referrals to the missionaries! IT HELPS! Love you!

Another week in paradise!

I am in paradise here. There is a road we drive down when we go to meet the district that is over the river and there is green everywhere. It is so beautiful!!!!! It looks just like Oregon and I LOVE THAT! I also drive down a street called Monument Avenue everyday. I don't know if you know what that is, but it is famous. Oh and I got a box today! It made me SO HAPPY! I love getting letters and boxes and guess what?! I got both today! Thanks for all the love!

Let me tell you about my Companions. They are so Awesome! I love them so much! Sister N is from Snowflake Arizona and Sister R is from Salt Lake City Utah. Sister N is so strong and has been out six months. She is 20 and is a cosmetologist!! So cool because I get to have my hair cut for free! Sister R is 21 and kills me. She and I have the same taste in movies and she is so funny! We look like twins with our blonde hair and blue eyes. We really stick out when we go to the downtown church. The church is not that far from campus which is cool, but we only go there for institute and for lessons it is easier for the students.That church kind of freaks me out...because it is downtown. When we pulled in the other day there was a criminal investigator car parked across the street. Yeah that was reassuring!! Haha, but then I realized that the police station was across the street Hahahaha,

Let me tell you about the three people we are teaching right now. We have an investigator names J and he is from Africa. He has been living in America just a short time. He speaks french and so we have someone from our ward come and translate. He is loving it and loves that we were able to give him a French Book of Mormon. He is excited about the ward and loves how everyone is so nice. Then there is S. Well he is from Kuwait and is Muslim. We don't really know if he is trying to convert us or we are trying to convert him. Either way it is super interesting to meet with him. We gave him an Arabic Book of Mormon and he was so excited.! Hahaha, he was so shocked it was in his language and thanked us a million times because he could understand. Haha I don't know what will happen there, but it has been so interesting learning more. Then we have H and she is friends with a girl that got baptized three weeks ago. She became interested because when she came when her friend was confirmed she felt so much love and it actually made her cry. She cried in our first lesson and texts us everyday to tell us her favorite parts of the Book of Mormon. She is the sweetest person and is just falling in love with the gospel it is amazing to watch her. Another cool thing happened this week! There is a recent convert named J! She just had her one year anniversary of being baptized on Sunday and guess what else she did?! She also opened her mission call that day too!! How cool it that?! She is heading to the Salt Lake East Mission in November and is so happy! However she is not sure how she is going to tell her family because they are still heated about her being a member of the church. She loves us missionaries and hangs out with us often! She is amazing and is going to change lives. I wish I had time to talk about everyone I have met, but I can't! We meet with a lot of less active and recent converts. I have heard so many amazing stories here. All the young people here are so faithful and so good. I can't believe Heavenly Father would give me the pleasure of meeting with them.

I love it here and yes my apartment is nice and has air conditioning. The weather here has not been bad. I am a little nervous when winter comes around because it gets really cold here. For example the missionaries don't have lemonade stands they hand out Hot Chocolate. Well I guess I will deal with it when it comes. I practice my Portuguese  everyday, but I feel it going away slowly. Some people in the ward are RMS and so they work with me a little bit. I will keep practicing!

Oh a cool thing! The Washington Redskins are practicing in Richmond right now and three of the football players came to our ward. They were HUGE! One smiled at me during sacrament a couple times....no big deal!  Haha until he saw my name tag and haha he is married! Haha, I don't remember their names, but apparently they are a big deal? Cool, huh?

Thanks for all the prayers and love! I feel it everyday as I get out of bed at 6:30! Keep the faith and spreading the good word! Much love from da hood!:)

The Most Humid place on earth!

Hello from the most Humid place on earth, Virginia! I made it here and it has been quite the experience already. Well Mom, don't freak out, but I am serving downtown Richmond.....I live just outside of town for a good reason, but yes I serve down town. We are over the YSA Ward. It is very interesting...haha, I thought that I got away from all the dating stuff, buttt I have not. Cool thing though more than half the ward are converts and they are amazing! We are over the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) campus. We only teach young adults which is cool. I have two companions Sister Nelson from Arizona and Sister Romney from Salt Lake City. No she isn't related to Mitt Romney. I love them both so much! We have such a good time together and they are so funny! The only thing that has been a little hard is the jet lag is still effecting me.

It is so beautiful here! It looks like Oregon, but the humidity is crazy! Yesterday after church we had a Sunday supper and it POURED! We may have gone outside after church and danced in the rain a little bit...we may have....haha shhhhh. Anyway the mission President is new so everything that has to do with the mission is a little messed up. Everyone is still trying to figure everything out. Yes, we have a car. Thank Goodness! We have a car because we live outside of the city and need to get into the city often.

We had a lemon aid stand outside of VCU on Saturday and it was actually really fun and scary because this is like real life now. We didn't get to talk to everyone a whole lot, but we did talk to a few cool people. It is a little intimidating to me that they are all my age and stuff, but I guess that is a good thing. Oh and I had a baptism! Haha, Saturday the sisters and I was with had a baptism! Cool, huh? I conducted the music. So many people came! It was Crazy! They said the baptism the week before had to be moved to the chapel because there were 60 people there....can you believe that? The work is moving so fast here. We are teaching a man from Africa on Tuesday! FROM AFRICA! How cool is that?! He only speaks French, so another man in our ward is coming to translate. Can I tell you how weird it is to be the minority? I have never been the minority...we are here! I love it! There are so many cultures here and so many people from all over the world.

Sister Romney and I look exactly the same. People in the ward call us twins. Haha, just think about that and think about how it must be when we go downtown..haha, but know that I am safe because you know me when it comes to dangerous things...I get scared very easily...we parked by what they call homeless park and I kind of had a heart attack, but I am safe. I really am safe everywhere I go. There are places in town we are not allowed to go, which I will totally stay away from. Haha, like some people in our ward we are not allowed to go visit.

I just loved looking around our ward yesterday and thinking about where all these people have come from. I have heard some of their stories and it blows my mind. They are amazing and have changed their lives completely around. It is really fun to work with all the recent converts and we have 10! 10! Can you believe that? I love it! I love all the strength we get to be around often. They all love the missionaries! We have nine in our ward! Crazy, huh?! Oh and not to scare you anymore, but we are some of the first Sisters they are letting teach downtown Richmond, so we get a lot of people saying, "wait you are sisters? We have never met Sister Missionaries before?" haha, life is good. It is hard to really get into this real world work but I am learning. my companions are helping me a lot.

I am still trying to figure everything out. I know I will probably be here awhile, but it is okay with me! my Mission President said that he would call me right away when my Visa comes! oh, and I am so excited I can listen to uplifting music! Any! But they can't be lovey dove! Well, I love you all and hope to get letters from you! I am safe and well taken care of. MUCH LOVE!

Richmond Statistics:
Population in the city limits- 208,834
Metropolitan area- 1,282,509
VCU- 31,000
Ethnic makeup- 57% African American
                          38% White
                            5% Other