Called To Serve: Christmas Week

I GET TO SKYPE HOME ON WEDNESDAY & I'M SO STINKIN' EXCITED!!!!!!!!! CAN YOU TELL FROM ALL THE BIG LETTERS??!? THIS IS MY ONLY WAY TO SHOW MY EXCITEMENT THROUGH TYPING :) also, thank you to everyone who wrote me this week..i got on my email and saw the number 67 in my inbox and just about passed out!!! you're all great <3

They are sending me home

^i met with president this week because i needed a little "pick me up". he proceeded to tell me that before transfers he actually had me moved to a different area with a different companion, but when he went to finalize it all he said just couldn't move me. he knew i needed to stay in diamond bar and with sister havens. ever since i have been determined to figure out why it is that the lord wanted me to stay here. is there a person here that only i, sister toolan, would be able to touch? is there something sister havens has to teach me, or vise versa? ever since he told me that i am GUNHO about getting out and finding people!!

Christmas party

^in honor of being fed a grand total of SEVEN times on saturday i have decided to change the words to i hope they call me on a mission to:

"i love that i am on my mission, but now i've grown a pound or two...." #truestory

^one thing i'm trying to work on right now is actually ACCEPTING compliments. i'm really bad at believing the nice things people say to me, but maybe if i learn to just say thank you and go about my life i'll actually start believing it :) sometimes it's the little things in life that are holding us down like this, so that's why it's important to try and improve yourself every single day. you just gotta be better than you were yesterday!

My fab friend Miguel

^my favorite part of this week was the fact that we finally had some opportunity to do service. we were able to help a less active family set up for a huge family party they were having and later that day after we had gone over for a few hours we got a text from the wife saying "If you want to come around 2 just in case that would be awesome. My sister in law (who isn't a member) loved you guys. You have no idea how horrible a week this was. To have your help was truly a blessing in more ways than you will know. Thank you so much." i started thinking about how much sister havens and my hands helped in getting that party put together in time. it didn't seem like a lot at the time, but the 4 extra hands made it HAPPEN. so of course, being a missionary, i related it back to the gospel. theres 80,000 missionaries out right now...but think about how much more would get done if each and every one of us pitched in "our hands" and started sharing the gospel to our friends and loved ones? how much more missionary and temple work would get done?!?!? people! it's time to get out there and share what you know to be true with anyone and everyone!!! we are ridding people of so many blessings when we don't share our message with them.

^on saturday we got invited to big birthday party with a Polynesian family in the ward and it was a BLAST. while we were there one of the little babies fell in LOVE with me and wanted nothing but for me to hold her...which i cant...because i'm a missionary..and it made me sad...and also get a little bit of baby fever, but that's besides the point...(: this little girl was falling out of her aunts arms to try and get me to hold her hahah. even though i couldn't hold her i decided i'd take a picture with her...notice how she is holding my hand. she did for like 15 mins.

She loves me!

^last night our whole zone got to carol at a members house while this little "christmas light block party" was going on. it was so much fun & it made me happy to sing the night away. you knooooow i love singin :) we handed out over 300 pass along cards!!! such a neat missionary experience!

^sunday i prayed ALL day to heavenly father asking for help in finding new people to teach. around 3 in the afternoon we received TWO referrals of people who had asked to talk to missionaries on mormon.org..uhm, HELLO! talk about amazing.

i am thankful for this christmas away from home and for how much it's made me see the bigger picture and true meaning of it all. HAPPY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE. i love and miss you all.