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Monday, December 21, 2015
MERRY CHRISTMAS, SUZZIE, MY LITTLE GINGERSNAP!!
Monday, December 14, 2015
IIT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE......
Before this letter commences, ladies and gentlemen-boys and girls! If you have not yet seen the Christmas video on Christmas.mormon.org called "A Savior is Born", close this e-mail right now, put down the handful of trail mix, and go WATCH IT!!! It is soo good! How blessed are we to know that the Literal Son of God, Jesus Christ, came into this world for US. Not only so we could be saved from our sins, but so we can change and use the Atonement to become LIKE Him. And all that He asks is that we keep His commandments and endure until the end. Seriously?!? That is so cool! What a blessing it is to live in this day and age where we have the fullness of the gospel, where we have a living Prophet, and where we are able to have the Book of Mormon at our very fingertips. Being a member of the Church is so cool it blows my mind! AH!
So Merry Christmas everyone! It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....except for outside! It is nice and WARM Here!!! Wait...what? Did I just write WARM in the middle of Michigan in December? You heard it right, folks, it will be 60 today! Boom baby!! Man, life is so good. Due to the warm weather, and the change of scenery, Christmas this year is "somewhat unique and calls for a different kind of introduction" (quote from Tower of Terror in Disneyland:) ) We are doing all we can to bring the Christmas Spirit. It's definitely a lot different and easier as a missionary, and I love telling people Merry Christmas because it forces them to be nice in a sort of way. #tistheseason This week, we had quiet a few cancelations, so I took some of my Dad's mission advice and did what? Went to the hospital to carol! OH MY GOSH IT WAS SO MUCH FUNN!!!! We ended up singing in the Alzheimer's Center, and it was one of the funniest and most memorable evenings!! There is a lady, named L., who is in our ward, who DOESN'T have Alzheimers, even though she is in the center. So why is she in there? I don't know! She sees me and says, "HEY! I KNOW YOU!!!!" Haha!! After a while, I figure out who she was and that she actually knew what she was talking about, and we had so much fun. There was an older lady who had huge dentures in, and she had her hair done and her nails done, and was in a matching pink pajama outfit, and she was so happy! It made me sad to think she can't remember things, and that she wouldn't remember us if we come back, but I loved seeing her all fancied up. It made me realize how important it is to establish yourself when you are young, because even when your memory is gone, you still like the same things. It makes me want to learn all I can about the gospel that so that later, no matter what happens, I'll still know that the gospel is true.
We were ranted at by quiet a few people this week, which was quiet hilarious. We were in one neighborhood, and I said, "What I would give to have my parent's watch me do this right now!. It's amazing the different kind of reactions we get! But I know that the Lord is mindful of us, and that when we can walk away with a smile, we never lose. We met a guy this week who offered us Pizza after he turned us down. He said he wasn't interested, but because it was cold, asked if we wanted food. He said, "This might sound really weird, but do you want some Pizza?" I laughed so hard! We said no, but it was so cool. Then we saw him again the next day! We were walking and he pulled over and said, "Hey! It's me again!! I don't have any food, but can I do anything for you?" People are soo nice.
We also had transfer calls this week! AAANNNDD.......I'm staying in Mt. Pleasant to finish Sister W.'s training!! Wahoo!!! This is no surprise as training is two transfers, but I did get a little nervous that we might get another sister to train. When I found out that it would just be us again, we definitely partied hard.
Well, I know that this week was great, and I know there were many miracles! Calie was baptized this week, so that was a really neat experience!! She has been on baptismal date for over a year, and she has been waiting because she wanted to be baptized on her 20th birthday! And she was! It was great! I love it here, and am so happy!! I hope all of you have a great week, and SERIOUSLY.....go watch that video.
Love you all! Thanks for all you do! I can't wait to TALK TO YOU NEXT WEEK!!!!
Xoxo
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Hello Beautiful Family
Hello beautiful family and everyone else!! I hope you are all doing well, and I hope you know that you are loved!!!
This week was a really good week! I can't remember too much of what happened, but I do know that the Lord helped us in every phase of it!!
We have been teaching Gary, who is so cool!! He has had some challenges with being able to afford tithing, so it has been a bit of a struggle. We talked with the Bishop yesterday, and I learned how impressive adults are. Man, I love being able to turn to adults who know what they are doing and to be able to be helped!
We saw many miracles this week, including a man who said, "Hey, do you have an extra Mormon bible on you?" After talking, we came to find that this man has been taught before, and he said, "How can I be a male missionary? I hope my life leads me to this becuase...Wahoo! Go mormons!" So that was pretty exciting!!!
There are so many good people here who help us all of the time!
Sorry this letter is short, I am running out of time, but know that this week was great, and I am learning how much the Lord is mindful of all of us!
Watching the Christmas devotional last night was super fun, even though it is kinda weird to see Salt lake city and not be there!! I hope you are all enjoying the Christmas lights!
Mt. pleasant is so fun, and I am loving Christmas time here!
Have a wonderful week! Love you all!!
Xoxo
Sister Ensign
The picture is for Huntie Baby :)
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Monday, November 30, 2015
Happy Thanksgiving!
When life gives you a lemon, make lemonade. OR-go black Friday shopping with the entire Isabella county because IT WAS SO MUCH FUN!!!!!!!!!
Hello hello once again from the most pleasant of Places...Mt. Pleasant, where it can snow 6 inches and melt, all in the same day.
We had a pretty crazy but good week this week!! There were a lot of people out of town because of the holiday, so we didn't teach too many lessons. We were able to see some of our top investigators, and things seem to being going really well. We ate dinner with Denise this week at her home, and she made grape leaves. THEY WERE SO GOOD! I thought all about you Momma, and I told her how much you would have loved them! We also have been teaching Gary, who should be getting baptized in the next few weeks! He doesn't have extra money, so we got him a few little things to decorate his apartment and warm it up a little. It's been really fun to have it finally be Christmas!
This week was also THANKSGIVING!! We had such a wonderful time spending it with AMAZING MEMBERS!! I love the people here, and have been so blessed to be around those who are so willing to sacrifice on our behalf. The Harrast family, in particular, have been so kind, and I ADORE THEM!!! We spend thanksgiving morning knocking on doors, and then we had the ENTIRE day to do whatever! So, we visited people, had a beautiful dinner, and then went Black Friday shopping to buy a few things to decorate our apartment. It is so cute with a huge red bow on our front door. We also were able to be in the hustle and bustle of Christmas shopping at Walmart, which is basically one of the only stores in this town. And.. it was the only one open. So everyone was there. And I absolutely LOVED IT.
We had trade offs this week, so I spend the night in Midland with Sister R. It was fun to do missionary work in a new town, but I also realized how much I love being here in Mt. Pleasant, and how much I truly want to do my best while I am still here.
Sister W. is doing amazing things. She is so great at opening her mouth "at everyone opportunity to teach", and we have been led to so many people because of her service. She has such a desire to improve, and I am learning along side of her every single day. What a blessing she is :)
I studied gratitude this last week, and especially President Uchtdorf's talk : Grateful in any Circumstance. As I have thought about the last 4 months, I have truly learned how blessed I am, and how grateful I am for all of the things the Lord has blessed me with. No only do I have an incredible family that is stable, but they are also REALLY COOL people!! I love you all! I also have been blessed with incredible opportunities like dance and to serve a mission!!! Being a missionary is definitely tiring, but also a privilege to help not only others, but help myself become closer to Christ.
Speaking of dance: Good luck Folk Dance Team in Christmas Around the World this weekend, and good luck Acadamh Rince in Festival of Trees. Whoever is gets to be Vixen is a lucky lady:)
Anyway, I hope you all have a great week, and know that I love you! The book is blue and the church is true!
XOXO
Sister Ensign
Monday, November 23, 2015
Pictures!!!
IT"S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS!
EVERYWHERE WE GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Everyone, everyone! Hello! How are you today? I hope you are staying warm and dry, and are enjoying this new change of scenery! Happy Birthday Molly! Congradulations to all who competed in the Oireachtas! It sounds like it was a very successful day, and I am so happy and excited for all of you!! #Orlandohereyoucome :)
This week was SO MUCH FUN! It is kinda crazy to say that I actually really enjoy missionary work because it truly is so hard. But I really am finding it to be so fun! This week started with a nice 60 degree Monday, and ended with a 25 degree Saturday. Thank all that is good for a 1) Car 2).Dick's Sporting Goods and 3) a companion with a good sense of Humor! Haha Oh my goodness I honestly cannot say enough good about Sister W! She has such a positive attitude and a desire to be the best she can. You can't ask for someone better-especially as a trainee.
This week was full of on-the-spot teaching opportunities. These are actually my favorite because I know that the conversation HAS to be lead by the Spirit. Sister W and I both spoke in Sacrament meeting this week, and as the sacrament is being passed, we looked at each other and said, "What should we talk about?" Haha! We both spoke for about 10 minutes, and they were very much prompted by the Spirit. It was a really neat opportunity. She spoke about how grateful she is for blessings of the gospel, and I spoke about some of my greatest blessings. Namely: being a missionary, My Savior's love, AND...My Momma. I started talking about my Mom and STARTED TO CRY!!! To which I then laughed thinking that if my Mom was there, she would cry. Haha! So I had this interior vision of my mom's reactions to my talk and I thought it was so funny....all whilst I cry in front of the congregation. Confused? Yeah, my emotions were too. Overall, The talk ended well, and I was grateful to see that the Lord will fill our mouths like D&C 100:4-6 says:)
Happy Thanksgiving this upcoming week! I am SO EXCITED FOR THANKSGIVING! We will be door knocking for a couple hours in the morning, and then we have most of the day to DO *WHATEVER WE WANT!! (*according to that which is appropriate to my calling and position)... So by that I mean... WE ARE DECORATING OUR APARTMENT WITH CHRISTMAS THINGS AND MAKING GINGER BREAD HOUSES!! I AM SOOOO EXCITED! We are going to a members home for dinner, and they are easily some of my favorite members in the ward. AAAAAND they make AMAZING FOOD! You better believe we are pretty much not eating anything for the next 3 days. We will then probably visit some less actives, and see some people who we feel may be lonely on Thanksgiving. Then? CHRISTMAS TIME BABY! It is fun to see everyone get into the holiday spirit.
This week was also filled with Miracles galore and people going above and beyond to help the missionaries. Truly, I can't thank my Father in Heaven enough for allowing me to spend some time with these people. I was able to teach a gospel principles class on the spot yesterday, and I learned how much the Lord is aware of us-no matter what our circumstance is in life. I know and can proudly testify that His Grace is sufficient, and that He IS helping us throughout our life.
Seriously, I love being a missionary.
Anyhoo, I hope you all have a great week! Thank you for all of the letters! STAY WARM! (I HATE it when people say that to us right before they slam the door in my face. Like, "I WOULD stay warm if you let me in your home to teach you!" Haha!) I love you all and I know that He lives! How grateful I am to be His servant, and to be apart of His Church in these latter Days.
Love you all! BBYYYEEE!
Xoxo
Sister Ensign
Monday, November 16, 2015
YOU SISTERS NEED A RIDE? OOH YYEEAAHH!!
(Note from Mom. Camille sent lots of pictures. I will be posting them soon on this post. In the first paragraph, Camille is talking about the Western North American Irish Dance Championships which she participated in numerous times.)
Needless to say, it was a great
week.
Do you ever have those moments when you are
in bed, and all of the sudden you have a complete panic of a “recall number”
overcome you because you realize that this week is the Oireachtas? Because I
know I sure do. And I did this week! I guess old habits die hard. So to all
those who are longing for orange legs, overpriced water bottles and warm
sandwich meat, and to all of those who will be competing in this years'
Western Regional Oireachtas, GOOD LUCK!!!! You Will be amazing Acadamh
Rince!!! Remember to turn out your feet, smile, and enjoy every second of it.
This week here in the big ole’
Michigan was CRAZY!! It was also full
of many, many, miracles. Everyone, I have no clue what I am doing. And
the scariest thing is that I fear this realization may never go away for the
rest of my life. WHAT AM I DOING? I don't know how to be a missionary? I've
only been out here for 2 and a half transfers! So what happens when I am
asked to train? I do things the only way I know how: laugh at all of the good
things, and pray when things aren't looking too great. Like President Hinckley said, "It will
all work out in the end. If it isn't
working out, it isn't the end". I
can boldly and happily testify of the reality of that! There are some nights
I am trying to accomplish so much that I am pushing for time just to change
out of my skirt before 10:30. I am definitely being kept busy, which is the
best thing that could have happened.
There are many times I feel like I
am running faster than I can run, which A) makes me feel like I should get a
cute new runners jacket to celebrate and B) realize the truth is, that this is
God's work, and He won't let us fail if we are trying our best. I have been
trying to find rides to and from places this week, and have been trying to
find members to join us in lessons, and it is crazy. But miracles after
miracles have happened. This was one of the best weeks of the mission. And as we were
walking home from church, (which takes about an hour) a Sister in our ward-a
police woman- says, "Sisters, you need a ride?" OOHHH YEEAHH WE
DO!!! It was the hardest seat I've ever sat on. I hope to never be in the
back of a cop car again, but I also really do because it was so fun. I guess
if that is the extent of my rebellion, I'm doing alright.
Again, thank you to all who send
me things including packages and letters. I love you all! I hope you have a
great week, and know that I pray for you!!
Love you!!
Xoxo
Sister Ensign
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Monday, November 9, 2015
SISTER W HAS ARRIVED IN STYLE
Hello Everyone!!
I hope you all have survived this week much like I have! This has
questionably been one of the craziest weeks I'll experience in the mission, and
I absolutely loved it! This week, both of my companions left. Sister R. left
for Australia, and it was so sad! (First there were three) and Sister M.
went home! (Then there two...which then became one.) It was weird to watch her
get on the shuttle!
So, what does that mean? I'm companionless you say? NOPE! I got to go
down to Lansing and Serve on MSU campus this week!! IT WAS SOOOO COOL!! I met
so many people, and I can't even tell you how good it felt to be back in a
city. Oh how I loved it. We were in the mission headquarters building for quite
some time, so I had the opportunity to meet and talk with many of the Office
Missionaries. I loved it. Talking to
people for 8 hours a day was exhausting, but I loved the experience! President Jacobsen, if you-by chance are
reading this letter on my blog-I LOVED MSU....just saying...:)
This week was full of stress and
miracles: a perfect combination really. We were doorknocking, and A MIRACLE
from Heaven alone occurred before our eyes. We received a referral from Lansing
a couple months ago, and have been in contact with him for a while. He hasn't
given us his address, so we texted him on Thursday to see when it would be a
good time to meet this week. Oh and behold, the last door we knock on the last
night was HIS. It made me feel so much better because I don't know what I am
doing as a trainer, so to be LED to this man's apartment was a BLESSING! A
Blessing I tell you! He said, "What
are the chances that you would find me? This is all so crazy to me. I didn't
want to tell you where I lived because I live with my sister while I am trying
to figure out my life. So instead of me finding you, you came and found me. I
can't believe you found me". And I can't believe it either. It was so crazy! I know this church is TRUE! It HAS to be!
I love you all! Have a wonderful week!!
Xoxo
Sister Ensign
Monday, November 2, 2015
HALLOWEN AND TRANSFERS
Note from Mom.. I am sorry that the text is black. I have my person working on it. (Camille's brother Taylor).
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Hello there dear family!
I hope you are all doing well! Thank you to all of those who sent me things
this week. Truly, it means the world to me! I love you all to pieces! Thank you
again!
This week has been
pretty nuts! We had our transfer calls, and it went differently than I
expected! Sister R.'s Visa came, so she left yesterday morning for Lansing and
then Australia today. It was so sad to see her go. Mom, the skirt was
PERFECT!!! It meant the world to her. The letters from both of you nearly made
her cry, and she isn't a crier. Her family life is pretty rough, so to get
letters from both of you, and a PERFECT skirt meant so much to her. She has
already made plans to come to SLC. Thank you for making her feel loved and
welcomed.
Sister M. and I will be
headed down to Lansing in a little bit to drop her off. It has been a crazy
week! We got the apartment all situated for my sister to leave, and it is SO
sad!! What an experience this truly has been.
You know how I told you
not to freak out 6 weeks ago because I wasn’t a trainer? Well, let the FREAK
OUT commence. Haha!! I will be training a new sister, and I can't even believe
it. So this week has consisted of a lot of change and a lot of prep for my new
sista coming! I have no idea what will happen, but I assure you there will be a
lot of laughter and tears. Here we go!
One of the craziest
things that happened this week was that we doorknocked into an Irish man. When
I told him I that I Irish dance, he grabbed my hand and started to spin. A).
Don't touch me, I'm a missionary and B). That is NOT how you Irish dance! When
he started to correct me, I nearly wet my skirt I was laughing so hard. He then
began to chastise us for our belief in God, which made things a little less
cool, but I still really enjoyed hearing the accent.
Halloween was so fun! We
had a ward part on Friday night, and it was so great to be with the ward. We
had some investigators come to church and to the party, so it was a smashing
success. We taught lessons on Halloween, and it rained the whole day, so we
weren't too bummed to stay inside in the evening. We were outside on Halloween,
and it was freezing cold. Like, SO COLD!! I was shaking so hard underneath my
umbrella, and I couldn't feel most of my body. I looked at my companions, looked
up at the sky, and laughed as I said, "I seriously am beginning to love
this". The Lord has blessed me so much. For the first time, I truly am
beginning to love it! What a great week!
Sorry about the
randomness of this letter, so much happened, and so much is going on around me.
But overall, I am doing well! I am nervous to train, but I am honored for the
opportunity to attempt to teach someone even newer than I. I definitely have
mixed emotions, but overall, I am going to hold off on the complete break down
for a few more days:)
The weather has been so
different every day, that I don't think I will be needing my coats this week.
It should be warm, and I will be in Lansing for the majority of the week
waiting for my new sister. I am thinking I may need them next week though! I'll
have to get back to you on that! Thank you again for the packages sent and the
letters from so many people this week! I love you all!!
Have a great day! Love
you all!!
Xoxo
Sister Ensign
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Monday, October 26, 2015
THE RAIN CAME DOWN... AND SO DID WE! Ha!
NOTE FROM CAMILLE'S MOM... I did not get her letter posted last week, but it is now posted below this letter.
Oh what a Week!! Happy week to you
all! And Happy Birthday Lisi, Mckay, and Bennett!
This week we had a lot of
appointments cancel on us. WHAT!?! No thank you! And the worst part is that we
had so many already scheduled with members! But I learned that the Lord will
allow things to fall out of place so other things can fall into place.
This week we met a guy
named Chris. Chris is so, so, so, so, cool. We taught him for his first time
this week, and in the lesson I asked him if he would be baptized by someone who
held the same authority as Christ if he could. He said, "I can confidently
say that is something I would love to do". And now he is on baptism date!
We had a few other lessons like that this week, and it has been really fun to
be a part of! We will be teaching Chris,
his mom, and his little sister later in the week, and we are so excited to help
him come closer to Christ.
In the week, however, we
also meet some very unique individuals that I believe the Lord puts in my path
to keep me laughing. We were door knocking this week, and were talking to a man
about receiving direction from God. The man said, "The only direction I have
is what is stuck to my ankle” Awesome…..an
ankle bracelet. Well, after a few more
doors, and a few other criminals on parole, we left the area. Oh man! You've got the love the randomness of
missions!
We
also meet a man who served as a veteran in the Vietnam war. We taught him the
restoration in his barn because his wife wasn't home. It was dark outside due
to the rainy weather, so we were teaching this man, who has severe ADHD, about
the gospel of Jesus Christ...in his barn; while he downed a beer and smoked his
cigarette. I asked him if he loves Jesus, and he said, “Of course I love Jesus.
He saved me in war!" I then asked him if he would do something for Jesus
if Jesus asked him to, and again he said, "Yeah! I would do something for
Jesus!" I then said, "What if Jesus asked you to stop drinking that
can of beer and smoking that cigarette?" The guy looked at me for a while and said, "If Jesus
came to me right now, and told me that, I would probably have to quit all of my
bad habits". Bingo... Hook, Line,
and Sinker. So that is where we will
pick up next time!
It was a great week and I
am enjoying all of the random things I am able to be a part of in my day!!
Thank you to all of those who are praying for me; they are so felt! I love this
gospel and love seeing the message change people's faces when they hear it for
the first time! I love being a part of someone's first prayer, and letting them
know that God loves them! Have a great week! The church is true and I love
you!!
Xoxo
Sister Ensign
LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! Wait, WHAT!?!?!?!
Date: Tue, 20 Oct 2015 12:10:53 -0400
Hello hello once again!! How are all
of you!! Oh what a week it has been! The weather here is so crazy and I love
it!! It was so warm this week, in the low 70's. And it also snowed. You've got
to love it. We never are sure of what the weather will be like, so we are
always grateful when it is warm. The wind is called the lazy wing. It's too
lazy to go around you, so it goes right through you. I can boldly testify of
the truth in that statement! THANK YOU FOR THE PACKAGE of warm things this last
week Momma!! They came JUST in time!! I don't think I will need my
warm coats yet, and would love to wait a few more weeks on that so that-if
I get transferred-I won't have to transfer them as well!
This week we had so much going
on, that the three of us became way too tired. And what happens when I get
too tired? That's right! I stop breathing before I go to bed every night
due to my uncontrollable laughter! I have laughed more this week than I have since
being on a mission!! The funniest moment!?! We were in the car this
week, and my companion in the back was making some phone calls. I didn't
realize she was half asleep until I heard her say in a voicemail to a
potential, "Thank thee...I mean you, for all that thou has given us".
The best part is that the potential is one of our neighbors!! She started
praying!! We were dying!! She was also trying to name all of my siblings, and
instead of saying Hunter/Huntie baby, she said, "Howard baby" for
Howard W. Hunter. I can't even type this I am laughing so hard!! Oh how
you've got to love being a missionary!!
You also know how I CAN'T order
anything at the drive-thru because I laugh and then I can't talk? Yep, that
happened on the phone this week also. My comp had to come save me, and then she
also started laughing, so my other companion had to save the day. It was awful,
but so funny. And all too late, we learned we can re-due voicemails.
We had trade-off's this week and we
also had interviews with the mission president. They both went well, and I am
excited to see what will happen in the next transfer! I will know on the 30th
what will be happening for the next little bit and I am freaking out!!
Thank you, again, to all of those
who write me and send me things! It means the world to me!! I love you all!! My
scripture this week is D&C 11:21. I have seen so many miracles I can't even
stand it. God is so great!
I love serving the Lord and am happy
to be here! I hope you all have a wonderful week and know I am praying for
you!! Love you!!
Xoxo
Sister Ensign
Monday, October 12, 2015
Nope it's actuallty Saturday
Note from Mom.. I think Camille must have been thinking that she would tell us why the subject of her letter was "Nope it's actually Saturday", but I believe that part of the story was left out.
Hello, hello, hello!!!! Oh what a
week it has been!! I would like to start off by THANKING all of those who sent
letters/packages this week! It is the best thing ever to hear from those I
love. You don't know how it brightens my week, so thank you!!!
We have had a crazy and good week
this week! One of my companions goes home in 3 weeks!! It is crazy! And the even
crazier part is that I will most likely be…(you never can tell what the next
transfer will be) taking over the area all too soon! What the heck!?!
This week we door knocked into a
part member family! We are super excited!! They have met with the missionaries
before and it's awesome! The dad served a mission when he was my age, but
hasn't been to church in a while. We'll see what happens!!
This week in church, I had a
profound realization of how much the members in this area have to work to be
members!! They are SO sweet and they give so much for the church! Some have to
drive about 40 minutes to come to church. Some live on very modest incomes, yet
insist on feeding us. I am realizing every week how blessed I am and how much I
owe my sweet parents! Thank you mom and dad!!
The funniest thing that happened
this week? Ok, so can I just tell you that I have NO IDEA how to be a
missionary? I was doorknocking with my "trainee" who had never been
doorknocking as a duo until I took her on Saturday. As we were doorknocking, I was struggling
because I realized that I didn’t have my own trainer to rely on. Though it was
a struggle, I also realized how much I have learned! Yeah baby! And in the
moment I think I am doing really well, I hear my companion snort because she is
laughing so hard at my struggle. It's a working process!!!
Well, I hope you all have a great
week!! Love you all, and thank you again!!!
Xoxo
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