"Oh, Honey. Bacon is bacon...It's all pork butt!"

And that is a lovely quote from, you guessed it, Mamma Dudley! Sister Mellor was telling her about her bacon that didn't taste like normal bacon, and this was Mamma D's response. Man, I love her! We went home that night and cooked ourselves a nice dinner with some of her green beans!

(Sorry if that's not really missionary appropriate...)

But anyway, it's been a week! I don't think ours has been nearly as exciting as it sounds like home was, but it's been a good one! 

Clinton Elders

On Friday, Sister Mellor and I got all ready to go out on our bikes, and then as we were walking out the door, the lady we were going to see texted us to cancel. We were a little put out...

We have a solid investigator, named Tonya who lives super close to us! She is awesome, and very eager to learn. This week we met with her a few times, and have talked about baptism. She hasn't said yes to a date yet, but we're working on it. She even watched the Women's Session and texted us after to say what a good meeting it was! So we're excited and hoping to meet with her a lot this week. She said she had been praying that God would show her what to do with her life, and then we knocked on her door! She told us we're her angels, and she knows that God sent us to her. I'm excited to teach her this week! 

Brighton we still haven't seen. We've been praying hard for her, because she's still been in the hospital. We're not sure exactly why, but we did hear that on her medical forms and papers she filled out that she was a Mormon! And her mom (who wasn't interested in learning before) has read part of the Book of Mormon now and thinks it's interesting!! So she's still awesome, and hopefully we can see her soon, and hopefully she starts feeling better. 

Clinton has had some pretty solid sunsets this past week! We sure live in a beautiful world.

Beautiful Clinton Sunsets

The Women's Session was awesome on Saturday night for us as well! I think my new motto for tracting is going to be "Fourth Floor. Last Door." Because honestly...it's hard sometimes to go to every door. But there are so many people who need the message that we as missionaries and members of the Church have! It's something special, that deserves to be shared. And we're each expected to share it. I know that it's true. And I'm so grateful that I get to have this special opportunity to share it with the people of the South. 

May you all have a blessed week! And enjoy General Conference! 

My Conference countdown is coming to an end!! 

Clinton has Dragons!!!

Oh, and Clinton has dragons. And that's cool. 

Hello from Clinton!

Hello from Clinton! 

So in all honesty, I can hardly remember what happened this week, but Sister Mellor and I have been busy and it's great! 

Wednesday was our Zone Conference, and it was so good and much needed. I felt spiritually uplifted and got some great insights as to the things I need to do to be a better missionary. Not only that, but the Clinton Missionaries (Elder Eells, Elder Lesuma, Sister Mellor, and myself) won the Big Shiny Hubcap award for having the cleanest car. You better believe I was proud of us. That certificate made all of the hard scrubbing of I-don't-even-know-what off of the door 100% worth it. Actually, just driving around a pristine car was worth it. Ha!

That night I also got a very pink package from Kathryn! Haha, I'd waited quite awhile for that one, and was over-the-moon when it was actually in my mailbox after hearing about it for so long! Thanks, Kathryn dear! And also, my little corner of the room just got a lot cuter with some pink added to it!

Thanks, Kathryn dear!

We also got some more cups while we were out tracting this week! Is this going to be a regular occurrence?! Southerners are the sweetest! 

More New Cups!!!

The Black's took us to Cock of the Walk on Thursday and I ate catfish and collard greens (basically cooked turnip tops). And well...I didn't particularly love either of them. They were alright, but chicken and potatoes are still better. But that is also where I found the best RockIn' Chair I've ever seen! 

Catfish and Collard Greens

At Cock of the Walk with Sister Black and Sister Mellor

I finally got a picture with Mamma Dudley! And to sum up being a Southern Belle, basically anyone could be doing the things to qualify. They just might not be accenting it right ;) 

Mama Dudley

On Saturday we had the Day of Service! We went to the Zoo, but they were finished there so a whole bunch of us missionaries went to a house that had caught on fire and helped clean it out. After we finished with that, we headed over to a campground and helped clear out trees. And it was kinda swampy...and so we all got kinda muddy! It was great!! I never would have thought that I would enjoy moving trees so much, but I sure did! 

Day of Service

Yesterday, Sister Mellor turned 22! Happy Birthday to her!! 

But this week's cool story happened on Friday! The Elders had the car, to take Elder Lesuma to the doctor, so we were walking (when normally we wouldn't have been). And as we walked past our neighbor's house (as we've done many times) someone was sitting outside, so we decided to actually go talk to her. Her name is Tammy, and as we got talking things just got cooler and cooler! Turns out, she's a member!! She moved here in June and has been wanting to get back to church and doing what she knows she needs to do. And also, she lived in Magna! Her sons went to Cyprus! Crazy! 

So yeah, things are great! 

With love, from this Mississippi Missionary!  ​

"When you're a true Christian, you won't have to tell other people. They will know it."-Mamma Dudley

This week I started my Southern Belle training, and Mama Dudley sure did teach me a lot! I will be starting to implement some of my teachings so that I by the time I get back to Utah, I'll be full of Southern charm as well as the spirit. 

But really, the South is great! And this week has been another really great one!

On Saturday we volunteered at the Visitor's Center and counted the number of people at their Civil War event. And guess who I got to meet?! None other than good ol' Abraham Lincoln! It was a good time, and we got to visit with some cool people. 

On Sunday we were able to contact a Bible referral. Her name is Shelley, and we got to talking and introduced the Book of Mormon to her. I was about to ask her if she wanted one when she said, "How can I get one of those books?!" So in case you couldn't tell, she's absolutely great! She's been searching for a church, and said seems very eager to actually read the Book of Mormon. We are going back to see her tomorrow and I am terribly excited! 

This week, Sister Mellor and I put some of our home-making skills to work and we made corn bread and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies! Thanks mom for sending the stuff for cookies! The only set back was that the package was out for awhile and the Mississippi heat got to the chocolate chips...and so sweet Sister Mellor had to chop up a chocolate block! 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sidewalks in Mississippi are interesting. They either do not exist at all, or they randomly end. Gotta love it!

On Thursday night we experienced the laying on of hands, the Pentecostal way. It was kind of interesting, but very sweet of them. It was a very heartfelt, tender prayer. But it also made me extra grateful for the priesthood and the power that can come from it. 

On Friday Sister Mellor and I got the chance to meet Sister Marriott and Sister Reeves! We were at the church for service, and they were here for a meeting, and so we bumped into them in the bathroom! Okay...we may have totally meant to bump into them, but still. They were super sweet, gave us hugs, and thanked us for serving missions! 

It's been a great week down here in the South, and I'm excited to see what this next week holds!

Oh, and I bought a nightgown at a thrift store, and I am 100% in love with it. 

Love y'all! ​

I Officially Love Clinton and the People Here

​Well friends, I officially love Clinton and the people here. It's been a solid week, and Sister Mellor and I have been blessed with appointments and people to see! 

We haven't gotten to meet with Brighton yet, because she didn't make it to church. But she's already been telling people she's Mormon, so we're excited to set her with a baptismal date tomorrow!! 

On Thursday, Sister Mellor and I were the only missionaries who showed up to serve at the Food Network! It made the work a lot slower, but we got to talk to the convicts a lot more. I talked to Cassy and she told me that she's never thought about religion before but that seeing us missionaries has made her really interested in our church. She loves it when we come on Thursday and Tuesday, because the entire atmosphere changes and we bring a light with us. She said she didn't know what the Book of Mormon was but she wanted to read it! So I told her about what it was and how she can get one someday! We aren't allowed to proselyte there, but it's cool to see that just being there is making a difference! 

We also taught the Restoration at our Pentecostal Bible study that night, and it went well! We have some differing doctrinal views, but they were very respectful, and are curious about Mormonism in general. And also they love us, and we love them. Mr. Jerry Delaughter said he would be pleased to have Sister Mellor and I as daughter-in-laws (no worries, his kids are all grown up and married) because of who we are. They are impressed with our church's strong families. How grateful I am to have grown up with the gospel in my home. 

We were tracting on Sunday and a Lutheran man was not interested in our message, but he offered us cold water! It was super nice! But he really must not have wanted to talk to us any more than was necessary, because he gave us the cups. So Sister Mellor and I didn't get to share the gospel with him much, but we did get some new cups! 

Mostly this week, we've been blessed to actually teach the Restoration to a few people, and things are moving along! Having appointments to fill time is a major blessing. And even though a lot of people in the South already have a religion and don't want to hear about ours, for the most part they are still very nice to us, and for that I'm grateful. 

And yesterday we made brownies to take to our neighbors, the Black's, and the Delaughter's. Because we just love them!! 

But how could we not?? 

Love y'all too, and hope your week is a good one!

-Sister Kylie Crosby