Me in the rice fields at night, which is pretty fun cause the paths are so narrow you have to be way careful or else you'll slip and fall in.

Me with a house full of members in Saradroa, a town we go to about twice a week. it takes about 45 minutes in a van to get there, and then a 30 minute walk until you get to the church, aka tent.

The other two are spiders! One on the face of Clareman, and one on my shirt. I wasn't sure if you could tell how big it was on my shirt, so I added the one of Claremans face. The spiders are called Kalamita's.

Hey Mom!
I have good news! I got you letter last week on the 19th, so I guess it took 13 days to get to me, which is actually really fast! I haven't wrote back yet, but I will soon. I think they just deliver the mail down here whenever they need to come down here, which is usually once every couple of weeks. We are about a 3 hours away from the main city, so not too far.
All right I sent an email full of pictures:
One is me in the rice fields at night, which is pretty fun cause the paths are so narrow you have to be way careful or else you'll slip and fall in.
Another is me with a house full of members in Saradroa, a town we go to about twice a week. it takes about 45 minutes in a van to get there, and then a 30 minute walk until you get to the church, aka tent.
The other two are spiders! One on the face of Clareman, and one on my shirt. I wasn't sure if you could tell how big it was on my shirt, so I added the one of Claremans face. The spiders are called Kalamita's. I once told a member that there was a big spider outside her house, and she wanted me to show her. I went out and pointed to it, and she said, "That's not a spider! That's just a Kalamita, they are games for children." And then I freaked out and she smacked it down and picked it up. Then they started tossing it around a playing with it. I felt freaked out for about 2 hours. I am fine now though, they aren't even a big deal anymore. I just let them crawl all over me. The only bad part is when they get their web all over you.
So how do I communicate with the others? Well I am going to start writing letters. I am not really supposed to email anyone outside of the family, so I won't anymore. I don't really have anyones addresses though. I get blakes letters emailed from his mom, cause I can get emails from anyone, I just can't reply to them. And Erics mom sent me a letter with erics first letter, which was way nice. I've been emailing Chase, but I just want to start writing him letters since he is so close. That's basically it so far.
but yeah. Fleas are the worst. They just get in your clothes and stuff. usually I can feel it, so I'll try to catch it and destroy it. The best feeling in the world is killing fleas. They don't deserve any less. But yeah, it sucks cause they jump. I have to give them credit though, they couldn't have developed a better way to disappear than jumping into nothingness. I always check my clothes for them though, and I have started folding my socks to half-height to lessen their range in my socks. I hate them, but it's not too bad. Nothing unbearable.
Anyways yes, I am glad my package came! I knew it would come this month, I ordered it in the summer, cause the Author was signing every pre-ordered copy and I couldn't let the offer pass by without taking advantage of it, even if I would have to wait 21 months to read it. Yes!! I am glad you have set aside a corner of the closet to keep Austin-ish type things. I love Austin-ish type things.
That's too bad about getting the cut on your forehead! It will heal though, that's the beauty of skin. It grows back together. Stay strong! Go to church every week! Always! Cause I know I get bummed when my investigators don't come, so there are probably people at church who get bummed when you don't come! But yeah, getting people to stay active is something we try to focus on a lot. We try to help people find friends in the branch and try to visit them little while after they are baptized.
Well I am glad those little desktop backgrounds bring you comfort, for that was their purpose! haha and you know a good way to find things? Deep cleaning. We just cleaned our apartment real good today, and we found some crazy things.
Anyway, thanks for the nice long email! I love to read long emails. I hope this email was satisifying, haha.
Until next week!

Hello mom! Things are really good down here! I got Zach's letter last week, so that might give you an idea of how long it takes. One factor in getting letters is that I am about 3 hours out of the mission home, so they only send letters down here every once in a while. I'll let you know when I get that one letter though!
So I will write Wyatt, but I still don't have his address. Please and thank you.
That's great that you are able to teach that CNA class! it's good to be busy and occupied with something, and teaching is a great way to spread your knowledge you have built up!
I don't know exactly what temperatures I am talking about, but I could see my breath, so pretty cold, haha.
Yeah, I try to keep my shoes fairly clean, haha, but they get dirty so fast! And yeah, we have a washer and dryer in our house, so I do it all myself. it's really easy.
The missionary work is going good! The biggest roadblock people have is just attending church. When it rains, nobody comes, haha. We have a pretty good amount of people in the branch. Yesterday we had 106 people attend, which apparently is less than average, but not bad. When it rained we had 63, so not too bad, haha. We meet in a building, haha, I don't really know how to describe it. It is connected to a couple other businesses and stuff, but it's not bad. I went out to a place called Saradroa a couple weeks ago, and their church is a tent, so not too bad, haha. Yes, the scriptures are in malagasy. They translate pretty much everything into malagasy. They have malagasy Liahonas and everything. It's well done.
The language is coming along all right. I try to listen and learn everyday, constantly trying to take notes of new words. Its hard though. Cause when you try and listen for new words, you don't know what you are listening for, haha. It all just sounds like sounds jumbled up together with no end nor beginning. It's all right though, it'll come as I practice and use it.
Oh yeah, Brittany, if someone named Kevin Le Starge adds me on facebook, he is cool. He was in the house I lived in this past month, and he just went up to Antananarivo this morning to go home. He has served his dues.
Anyway, this past week as been good. I got caught in a rainstorm without a jacket, so the bike tires flicked mud allll over my back, haha. And I have a lot of flea bites. I went on splits a lot too. A couple times with Malagasys. There is this Malagasy here named Herman, who is super cool. He speaks english well, and he'll start his mission next month. He is going to Salt Lake City!
I am excited for Brittanys letter with pictures! I love pictures!
Okay, talk to you next week.

That's crazy that now is the first time you are really getting snow! Dang.. well let's hope it snows more! haha. It's been really cold here this past week, which I hadn't really expected. It's the rainy season right now, so it has rained. All week. I haven't seen the sun since last monday, if not longer. It has rained. and rained. and rained. haha, my pants and shoes are always covered in mud and dirt by the time i get back to the house, but it's cool, cause when we go into peoples houses to teach them, they don't care, haha, mud isn't a big deal to them, which makes it easier.
I haven't written wyatt yet.. but my letter wouldn't get there in time by now, haha, if it ever would've. You should just find out his mission address for me, then I'll try to write him one to there. He leaves in a week anyway now. So he is in a triple companionship? Blake was in one of those. Yeah, I think a lot of people tend to take the mtc too seriously and not relax sometimes, but oh well. He'll make it through well, I think.
All right, I'll be sure to tell you when I get that letter. Then I'll reply and tell you when I sent it.
Yeah, I kept thinking a couple days before the 7th "dang! abby is going to be one!" haha, thats crazy! and now she just keeps getting older and older! It;s going to be weird in two years, haha.
That thing I was smashing was some smashy-type thing. I don't really know. But yeah, Fara is a brand new convert, so no, she isn't the one who went to canada. The one who went to canada, her name is Sisi (i don't know how to spell it), and she is the daughter of President Pierre, this really cool guy in our branch. They are super cool, and we got to watch Brother Bear for New Years Eve at his house.
There are 5 people in our house right now, Elder Watts and I, plus a tri-companioship of zone leaders. One of the Elders is going home next week though, Elder Le Starge. So then there will be only 4 of us in the house again.
So Ryan has moved out, and Kenzie in? Dang, lots of changes going on! That's good that ryan doesn't have to drive so far anymore though, that should save him lots of gas.
about that guy who was all interested with his friends, we went back up to his house again (he lives in kind of a far area we don't go to super often) when we said we would return, and he wasn't there. So we'll try again next week.
So how does it feel being white here?? Haha well it's pretty weird. It weird being a minority, and being white here basically means everyone thinks you are rich and french, cause french people come here a lot. The kids will look at me and say "Vazaha!" which is just what they say to white people. Sometimes it could be rude, but it's just what they say. It not really weird anymore though. You just get used to it. The REALLY weird thing is when I see white people, haha. It's like.... what the? What are you doing here? About 99% they are french, so I can't speak to them anyway, but it my first week here we came across this girl from Texas. She was a baptist missionary, and had a funny texan accent. That was cool. Anyway, i don't really feel discriminated against at all, like, i think sometimes they say things and think I don't understand (which is right, cause I mostly don't still), but someday I'll be able to understand and it'll be cool. And then all will be well Sure, sometimes you run across rude people, but it's not a big deal. There are plenty of nice people to make up for it.
I tried to talk about madagascar a bit more for you! haha, and I'll write a letter for the ward soon, if I have time. I probably should.
Okay, I'll talk you to next week!
I love you!

The name of the town is Antsirabe. It's a fairly big town, but not as big as the capital. which is a good thing cause I went back to tana a couple weeks ago to sign a visa thing, and it was waaay to big. scared me.
Okay is just sent some pictures with this new sd card reader i bought for 7500Ar (less than $4). Pretty sweet deals down here. Anyway, yeah. they look really dark on this computer, but I don't know. Tell me if they are mega dark over there too and I'll try to fix my camera from being so dark. Just let me know.
The first picture is me with a smashy kind of thing. I felt like such a white dork doing this, haha, cause here I was posing a picture trying to look all cool, when it something they actually do all the time to get by. haha. oh well, it's cool. You can see Fara, the lady, on the left.
The second picure is me. It looks really dark. Sorry.
The third picture is the back of elder watts over looking a some rice fields.
Pretty sweet stuff going on down here.
Yeah we have grass in front of our house, its pretty nice. We played a house-wide game of bocci ball today, and the loser of the whole game had to clean the bathroom.
Cleaning the bathroom wasn't fun.
Oh yeah, I baptised two people on Saturday, they were this couple who just got legally married. The girl is pregnant, so when I baptised her i tried to be real gentle and nice like, which didn't work cause something didn't submerge. So, I had to do it again. and again. I finally got it after 3 tries. When they guy came up next, I wasn't gentle at all, haha, i mega threw him under. Only one try. Yes.
Well that's about it. When you said you were going to go order pizza.. dang. american pizza. pizza here is okay, not bad, but it's not the same haha. I miss chocolate too haha.
Anyway, happy new year! 2012!
I was asleep at midnight, haha. I was meeega tired.
okay bye!