Who needs a doorbell when you have a dog??

Seriously, everyone here has a dog. Almost always two, actually--a big one and a little one. Several people just have many little dogs. Or a lot of cats. Oregon people love their pets!

But HI everyone! How was this week??

I'll tell you how it was here in Oregon...WONDERFUL.

It's getting all spring-y, so lots of pretty plants are popping up out of the green-ness. I have three favorites that I just LOVE, and they are pretty popular, so I get to see them a lot, which makes me smile. One are the rhododendrons that are pretty much the symbol of this city because there are so many here...the red ones and the hot pink ones are just so cool. Each flower is like a bunch of hibiscuses bunched together. And there are these little bright pink bushes that look kind of like bougainvillea, and these pretty white trees that are like popcorn popping on the apricot tree. Oregon is just beautiful and I am so glad that the Lord created this earth for us to enjoy!

 

It's so funny being a missionary...At nearly every door, Sister W and I compliment each other's creative knocks while tracting, and we are always trying to come up with new ones, usually to the rhythm of a hymn. One time (Dad, you'll be proud) I did the beginning of the BYU fight song! It was a little long and awkward though, so it was discontinued :) 

 

We also know EVERYONE. Especially since Florence is just little. We will just be driving around town and we will notice people on the street that we have talked to. We will be able to say how well they received us, what distinguishing characteristics their house has, and we have little nicknames for most of them like "Holiday D", who decorates her house intensely for every holiday, or "C with the baby", who couldn't talk to us because he was putting his baby down for a nap. Those are lame examples, but it's pretty entertaining for us.

 

Also, Oregon houses (or maybe it's just here?) have the weirdest front door situations...it's really an adventure trying to find the front door to most houses here. Usually the garage is in front and you have to go around to find the front door. Or the front door, the garage, and the back door will all be in front and the doors will look the same. We've had some fun times trying to work that out.

 

So this weekend was really just the best. I had been struggling a little bit this week, just trying not to be apathetic and trying to stay positive and obedient. But then this weekend came, and the Lord, who was so aware of my hard times, placed so many magnificent spiritual experiences and miracles in my path. First of all, the General Women's Broadcast was incredible, and I took two pages of notes. Within three minutes, I just wanted to write down everything they were saying and everything I was feeling. I just love this church--what a wonderful, uplifting, blessed organization! One thing I got out of it was this: "As much as I can't wait to get back home to my mom and dad and I never want to let them go once I am home, how much more do I feel that way about my Heavenly Father? Although I am on an important, blessed mission here on earth, that will be both difficult and joyful, (similar to this mission for the church), and I have to be away from Him for a period of time, I MUST live in such a way that I can return to Him one day and make Him so proud of me." Each day, we should do what we know will make our Father in Heaven proud of us and will keep us on the path that leads us to eternal life with our loving God. AND, TWO of our investigators were able to come to the church and watch it with us!!! I was just so excited. 

**If you would like to watch the General Women's Broadcast and see what touched her so deeply, here's the link.  You will definitely be touched and inspired!  

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/watch/2014/04?lang=eng&vid=3408781210001

Church yesterday was even better. What I wrote in my study journal during fast and testimony meeting: "TODAY IS THE BEST DAY!!! My heart is SO full and SO happy, I literally feel like I am just going to burst. I can hardly stand how happy and full I feel and I just love the Spirit and this joy. I LOVE my companion and her friendship and spirit and testimony. I LOVE this Gospel and this church and the perfection of it. I know that this is the Lord's church and His blessed work. I know that God is so aware of us and loves us so much....and He let this glorious Sunday come at just the right time to uplift me and help me feel the Spirit when I needed it so badly. I am so happy. Miracles happen every single day in this work." How blessed I am. One of our investigators came to church for the first time, and I was so grateful that she could be there to feel of the powerful spirit in that meeting. I just cried right there in my seat because of my overwhelming gratitude to my Heavenly Father for the miracles I get to see every day and the perfect organization of His church and the glorious gospel that I get to live and share. I was full of such immense love for this incredible ward, I felt the strength of my own testimony and I felt it grow as I listened to the sweet, heartfelt testimonies of our ward members, and I thought my heart might burst because of my gratitude to God and how strong the Spirit was. The Spirit is such a wonderful thing, and I never want to be without it. I just wanted everyone in the world to be able to feel what I was feeling and know of the goodness of our God and what love He has for us. 

 

We had a great 5th Sunday lesson and a discussion about it in Ward Council before church. The lesson was on high expectations, and I will have to write more about it next week.

 

ALSO, General Conference is coming up this weekend, and I am just so excited about that. It is going to be so uplifting and inspiring and amazing that I can hardly wait to hear from our prophet and his apostles! PLEASE, if you have the opportunity at all, watch it. It will be another blessed weekend :) And I realized today, I get THREE mission General Conferences! That will be a real treat :) 

**If you would like to watch General Conference, you can go to lds.org where it will be broadcast.  Saturday 9:00 and 1:00 AZ time, and Sunday at the same times.  Hope you can watch!

Thank you all for everything that you do for me. I have been overcome multiple times this week by how much I love you all and how wonderful you are. I hope you are happy and that you can see the "small" miracles that are in your life each day! I know that God loves you just as He loves me--individually, continuously, and perfectly. Have a most marvelous week! Love you!!

Love, 

Sister Partridge

 

 

 

 

These 2 pics were taken while tracting.  The awesome bridge that we get to drive across every day, and my beautiful city! I sure love this place! :)

 

 

 

We always drive past these two geese in the same spot, and I finally got out and got pictures with them! They were far away, so Sister W just kept snapping pictures as I walked backwards, just in case they decided to fly away...which they did! But we got pretty close first, so it was fun.  They are HUGE!

 

 

 

Took a walk around our yard today and explored a lovely little trail.  It's so green and beautiful here! I love it!