Letter #6: Off to Boston!

THIS IS MY LAST DAY IN THE MTC! WHAT HOW DID THAT EVEN HAPPEN TIME GOES SO FAST!!!!! So today is super crazy because its half p day half frantically trying to pack and also we still have our usual six hours of class. So lots to do lots to do. Also I have to get a shot today and that’s just not cool. Ive already warned Sister Davis that it will not be a pleasant experience.

Mom I got your package this week! It was SO CUTE! You are the best missionary mom EVER. hahah I loved it and it made me so happy and thank you! Sister Bruggeman: I also got your package and it was the cutest thing ever and you didn’t have to do that it was so sweet! Tell your class THANK YOU for the adorable cards and that I love them and that missionary work is the greatest thing ever. Also I wish I could be there this year to see your house decorated like Hogwarts because that is my favorite thing on this planet. I want to be just like you when i grow up :) LOVE YOU

So last Tuesday was our last time going to the temple. So our whole district met by the front gates of the MTC and went together which was really special. That night we had our departing interviews with the branch presidency and mine was with Brother Sell which was cool because he was the
one to interview me the first day i got here.

For service this week we got to raise all of the country flags that are in front of and around the mtc! That was awesome cause we got to pick which countries went up that day so of course we picked our favorites and brazil went up first. We also hosted again that day and guess who I got to host?!? Brooke Lafevere!! I actually stole her from another sister that was already hosting her. I was like woops nope im taking this one over. And then we went and found Mercedes Thompson who was also hosting that day and we got her all ready to be a missionary and then put her on the bus over to west campus. Which we later found out Alli Yost was over there and hosted her when she got off the bus! so lucky Brooke was greeted by half of Redmond stake. We basically take over every place. I don’t know how our stake manages to do that but we tend to travel in packs.. Also arriving at the mtc that day was Irmao Bitners little brother! he told us to look out for a big red van cause that would be his fam. so we did and when it pulled in Sister Kimbrell and I chased it around the entire MTC so that we could be there when he got out and meet his fam. they probs thought we were cray but it was exciting to meet our teachers fam.

On Thursday we had in field orientation ALL DAY. From 8 to 5:30. And I was stressed and anxious all day cause that was also the day that our calls were supposed to come! So we finally make it through the day and then we go to the mailbox and THEYRE NOT THERE!!! ahh I died it was terrible. So then we go back to class all sad and Sister Davis got a migraine so the two of us actually ended up going back the residence hall so that she could lie down. So she’s sleeping and im in there studying and then we hear Sister Kimbrell and Sargent running up the stairs screaming that our reassignments were there!!!! I guess they were in the travel office but they hadn’t put them in our mailboxes for some reason but Elder Lott got them to give them to us somehow. So thankfully Sister Davis was feeling better so we went back to the class to open them! I was skipping there I was so excited and freaking out and Sister Davis was totally calm and I don’t know how she does that. So
Irmao Hickman was already there teaching our class that night but then we were also waiting for Irmao Bitner to come be there to watch us open them too and so waiting for him was torture and its like he better have been running. We all sat in a circle and Elder Lott randomly handed out the calls. So we left them upside down on our desks and then took turns reading each other’s which was SUCH a special way to do it. So Sister Birch read me mine and I got Sister Kimbrell and got to read hers!

okay here’s the reassignments

Indiana, Indianapolis
Sister Pedilla
Sister Forsyth
Sister Sargent
Sister Kimrell

Everett, WA
Sister Birch
Sister Davis
Elder Nixon

Sister Whittney: Anaheim, CA
Elder Barrus: Long Beach, CA
Elder Byron: Knoxville, Tennessee
Elder Hamilton: Des Moines, Iowa
Elder Lott: Little Rock, Arkansas

Friday we had our last lessons with our investigators and they went really well. Afterwards Elder Bitner showed us pictures of the real investigators that we were teaching since they were people that he taught on his mish. So that was awesome. That night we had a district testimony meeting and I have never been in a more powerful testimony meeting it was incredible. We went in a circle and everyone bore there testimony and everyone cried and you could just feel the love that everyone has for each other and for our Savior. Afterwards Elder Nixon opened a letter that he had from his family with his little brother’s mission call in it! He wanted to do it with us while the spirit was so strong. He was called to Anaheim, CA!

I don’t even know where to start with General Conference. After the first session Elder Nixon was like "is it always this good??" hahah kinda true though we've been missing out! Not that we haven’t paid attention to it before its just different listening as a missionary I guess. It was cool noticing the themes throughout the sessions. We watched the relief society re broadcasted while the elders were at priesthood session. And I sat by Alli aka Sorella Yost!!!! she already knew about my reassignment cause I think her mom told her and she was so cute and all worried that I was going to be cold there and did I have a coat and not to get lost. She knows me.

Okay so I have a lot of favorite things from GC but something that I wrote in my notes from Bednar's talk was that God does not always change our circumstances, but He will bless us with the power and strength to endure our circumstances.

On Sunday in between sessions the Elders gave us all blessings. I asked Elder Lott to give me mine and it was so special and exactly what I needed to hear. They told us all to pray the night before to know who God wanted to talk to us through. So I did and I felt like it needed to be Elder Lott and then as he was giving me my blessing I realized that YES you were the only one that could have worded that the way I needed to hear it. That night for devotional VOCAL POINT CAME. That’s right. Vocal Point. They sang for us and several of them talked and gave short messages and it was really really really cool. Then afterwards I went and found Alli and we said goodbye. even though we both hate goodbyes and said that we wouldn’t do that we still did which was dumb because we just stood there bawling but it was like a happy kind of cry cause we're so excited for each other!

Alrighty well I love you all and family I’ll talk to you TOMORROW!!!!! Have a great week :) church is true. God loves you. SO MUCH.

Com Amor,
Sister Tantillo

Sometime we do Laundry

Me and Sister Davis Reassignment Day!!!

this basically describes irmao bitner (far left) irmao hickman is on the right

Me and Sister Kimbrell (I got to open her call!!)

Package!!

Sister Davis and Me pointing to our new mission!!

Silly Elderessssss

REASSIGNMENT IS HERE!!!!

BOSTON MASSACHUSETTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
oh  my FREAKING GOODNESS!!!! I'M SO EXCITED!!!!!!!

My Address while I am in Boston:
Massachusetts Boston Mission
182 W Central St, Ste 203
Natick, MA 01760

Letter #5: MINHA FAMILIA

Okay so this week started with devotional last Tuesday night where I saw Alli again! It’s like our weekly meeting spot and we have to catch up on a weeks’ worth of information in like five minutes but it’s wonderful and I love it. We wore our matching green skirts and took a picture. Yes we planned that. On Tuesdays we wear green. People judged and it was great. The devotional was AMAZING. My favorite thing that was said was that the Holy Ghost is a gentleman and will only come when he is invited. It is SO IMPORTANT that we pray to invite the Holy Ghost. And then he will come! And what a blessing that is. 

Okay random things of the week. I have literally run into the entire BYU 108th ward this week it is ridiculous. And all people that I had no idea were even coming. Like my old home teacher and a few of the girls that lived on my floor. We took a picture with one of their cameras I’ll try to get it so I can forward it. This was crazy. We had a new district of all elders join our branch last week and like on the third day they were here one of them ran away in the middle of the night. He lives pretty close so he just got up and walked home while his companion was sleeping and wasn’t there the next morning. That was super sad and kinda a downer way for that district to start off here. I felt bad. Sister Kimbrell has been sick all week and lost her voice and sounds like a high pitched five year old with a North Carolina accent. It’s hilarious. Elder Byron and I cannot be friends anymore he says because I am a Yankees fan. So sad day on that one. Oh and mom I was telling my district about how you started crying when you watched General Conference  and Elder Nixon was like ohhhh so that’s where you get it from. hahah RUDE. Not really it’s true. 

This week our district got to host!!! Like be those missionaries that stand on the curb and take the newbies away from their families while everyone is hugging and crying. Remember that. Yah me too. Haha but it was awesome because we got to start off hosting the international missionaries!!!!! The sister I got was from south japan and going to serve in Tokyo. So she’s here for two weeks and then headed right back to japan. She was so sweet and thankfully spoke English really well which a lot of them didn’t. On my way back out to the curb to keep greeting the new missionaries I ran into DAKOTA!!!! It was so perfect he had just gotten around the corner from the curb so I just missed his family which was kinda a bummer but i got to see him and we took a picture on his camera so hopefully he sent that home. But he looked so happy and im glad i got to see him once cause he’s over on west campus so I probs won’t get to again.

We got to skype with a girl from Brazil this week!!!!! Ahh it was SO COOL. We were late coming back from choir so I stayed on my split with Sister Sargent and Kimbrell and skyped with them. We talked to this girl from Sao Paulo that leaves on her mission in a month for London and she was so sweet and talkative and we talked for over an hour! The connection was a little glitchy which made the Portuguese even harder to understand but we got through and it was awesome.

This week we also started teaching each other. They’re thirty minute lessons and everyone and their comp makes up a fake person that they portray as the investigator and then we get taught. Sister Whittney and Pedilla teach us and we teach them. Its super chill and less stressful than teaching our teachers because we don’t feel like were being evaluated on our Portuguese abilities or lack thereof. Haha okay so get this. Elder Nixon and Elder Barrus went into their lesson as the investigators and told the missionaries that their names were Mario and Luigi and that they had moved to brazil as part time plumbers in search of Luigi’s girlfriend, Peach, who had been kidnapped by Bowzer..... WHAT HAHAHHA I Don’t know how Nixon said that with a straight face. 

Friday was sister Forsyth’s birthday!!! The sisters sticky noted her door after they had gone to bed and it was sups cute and she loved it. Then that night we had a birthday party for her before lights out and ate massive amounts of food that had been sent to her in birthday packages. Pictures to come. Yesterday we all made guesses about where everyone is being reassigned and wrote it on the whiteboard! Everyone thinks im going to Georgia or Arizona. So we shall see!!! We get our reassignments on Thursday and then ill email you Friday morning and tell you where im going! I CANT WAIT!! Its seriously feels just like the first time im so anxious and excited and its killing me to know!!! Plus also that’s where I’ll be NEXT WEEK!!! crazinessssss. So yah I’ll let you know the info when I get it about where im going and what my flight plans are. I’ll buy a calling card dad so don’t worry about that. 

Okay GENERAL CONFERENCE TIME!! So to answer your questions we got our shirts from the MTC bookstore. We had to wear jewel toned shirts.... whatever that means. Alli wasn’t there :( so that’s why you couldn’t find her. We had to fill out a questionnaire about our music experience and that’s how we were selected. So I was like yah I can sight read music and ive played an instrument for forever but I seriously can’t sing but apparently that was okay with them. And the older women there were the senior sister missionaries. Okay so on Saturday we met up all here at the main campus MTC and they took us through this assembly line of wardrobe hair and makeup. Which is not a super awesome way to make us look better. They attacked us with blush. Sister Kimbrel got the worst of it and came out looking like a pink clown. We went to the bathroom after and refixed ourselves. They assigned us to our buses by which branch we are in. we got the bus with the MTC president and his wife, the Nally’s. It was weird being on a bus because we realized we haven’t been in a vehicle for over a month. We pulled right up to the conference center and unloaded. it was BEAUTIFUL! A lot of sisters had never been there so that was cool. We went through security and then into the main floor seating of the hall where they organized us by part and then by height. And then they walked us up to the choir seating and we got to sit where motab sits and walk where the prophets and apostles walk and it was SO COOL!!! We were so excited and overwhelmed. We practiced for a couple hours and then the relief society presidency came and spoke to us for a few minutes. Then they took us through this tunnel thing and down some stairs into this top secret place. Not really it was just another theater room where they broadcast overflow seating of conference. But they fed us a snack which was actually a full meal and there was so much food and it reminded me of sister Richey’s motto about how you can never feed the girls too much. We sat next to this sister that was actually from Brazil and she helped us with our Portuguese a little bit. Then it was time to go back in and they tried to make us all put on lip gloss and I didn’t because I don’t like that stuff. So we filed back into our seats and I sat in between two sisters both going to the temple square mission! One was from Taiwan and the other from Spain. They didn’t know any English before coming to the MTC and spoke it so well and it blew my mind and I was like why don’t I know this much Portuguese. Anyways. I have to tell you about the sister from Spain because oh my goodness did her story humble me. We were talking about our families and she told me that there are six children from her family three of which are on missions right now. Crazy right. And so I was like oh my goodness your poor mother mine is struggling with just one!! Not really love you mom you’re doing great. But then she told me that actually her mom had passed away three years ago and so it was her dad with three missionaries out. And my heart broke. I am so humbled by her strength and her faith and I felt terrible for every complaining about anything ever. So then conference started and we all stood up as the prophet walked in and he was so close to us!!! You could FEEL it when he came in. You could feel the presence of a prophet of God. So then we sang and it was grand and fun and I didn’t like watching it later because it’s just not fun to see yourself on TV but im glad everyone else enjoyed it. Seriously getting all of your reactions family was hilarious because they all involved crying and what is wrong with our family we cry all the time. We get to watch the broadcast again this Saturday while the elders are at priesthood. so we stood again and waited for everyone to leave and I was standing there thinking about everything and I just started bawling and the lady a couple people down from me was all worried about me and I was like no seriously I’m fine I just cry sometimes. Haha but it was such an incredible experience and I felt so blessed to be there with all of those amazing sisters!! On our way out the relief society presidency lined up and hugged each of us. Then we grabbed box lunches (like I said more food) and headed back to the buses. We had a testimony meeting on the ride home which was the perfect way to end the day. 

So yah that’s my week! It went super-duper fast and I can’t believe im getting reassigned this week!!! 

Katie: I will reply to your five million dear elders asap. Haha you’re the best thanks for writing me so much you spoil me! Also THANK YOU for the harry potter updates my district and I appreciate it. Oh and Nan told me that you didn’t tell her about the new HP movie so you probs got in trouble with her about that. Sorry. Hah LOVE YOU. You are beautiful and the best little sister ever

Rachel and Ranner: congrats to the Paxman family with the new baby Vienna! Beautiful name. Send me a picture! Also thanks for writing me and sending me a cardigan rach! Sorry #notsorry that I sound like a missionary now rach. I totes am ;) hah

Nan: your letters are the best and I read parts of them out loud to my roommates because they are too funny to keep to myself. Also my answer is NO. Not worth it. I don’t even like shoes. Just no

EMILY: I wrote you a letter today!!! I miss you terribly and im praying to get reassigned to California because how perfect would that be. Okay I LOVE YOU. I won’t say anymore here because I just wrote you. capote capote capote

I love you all!! Thank you so much for all the love and support. You have no idea how much I appreciate it. I’ll write again in a few days when I get my call! 

Com Amor,

Sister Tantillo

 Here is the the link of General Conference that Sister Tantillo was in. The song that is really good to seen Sister Tantillo in is at 1:13:00
 https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/watch/general-relief-society-meeting/2013/09?lang=eng&vid=2703169989001