3rd Email and LOTS OF PICTURES!

Wow! i''m on my last week of the the provo mtc! holy cow how things have flown by! i got my travel iternary but i forgot to grab it before i went to the temple so i''m sending a copy to stef in her letter so check it out there! but everyone be prepared on nov. 10 at like 2:30 ish thats when i should be calling! i fly to texas to florida then down to the DR and our layover in flordia where i'll call is like 4 hours so that is muy bueno! so yeah i bought a calling card for like 10 hours just incase! but speaking of which mom! my bank account is low from the book store because i've had to buy my antibiotics which are coming up in a later story, but then i also had to buy a bunch of stuff to take care of my toe like neosporin and band aids and then a few other things for class like spanish dicitionary things etc etc. so yeah! sorry! if ya can throw more into the account it;d be much appreciated! but yeah so on to the stories for the week! uhhh so my toe operation was a success he sliced up a lot of them! i'm pretty sure you guys have already gotten the pictures or are about to! but yeah he cut out a lot! so i soaked it and all that and it kept hurting and it was way red so after acouple days i told elder godfrey we should go to the health place so we went to the health place to check it out and the nurse walks in to look at it cause the foot doctor only comes in like every two weeks so she took one look at it and was like WHOA! yeah that's infected lets get you an appointment at the medical center down the road so they hooked me up with a shuttle ride to the medical center so me and elder godfrey went off campus in a car! it was way weird but cool! and we went into the appointment and the nurse checkin me in took a look at it and was like wow that is infected! so i was like great everyones first word is wow! that's bad! just what i wanna hear right?? yeah so she checks me in and the doctor comes and she takes a look at it and guess what she said??? you guessed it! wow yeah lets get you on some antibiotics! so they prescribed me some antibiotics that were like 500 mg each pill which i have to take 4 times a day! so on top of this mtc food my stomach is going nuts! but none the less it seems to be going down! i have an appointment with the doctor tomorrow to have him check on it! So i should be good to go! They do know me in the medical place now! surprise surprise right?? haha so yeah i'm loving all the letters and packages! i'm known as the kid that always gets something! so i feel really blessed! i feel bad though cause sometimes i don't get to write everyone cause thursday's are our only times to write and we only have like 4 hours! so i kinda have to pick and choose! Sorry i don't write you guys back to much i figure you get the email and others don't but today i'm writing you guys! So yeah things here are awesome! La espanol es muy bien! es muy dificille! pero con la espiritu estoy apprender it! :) so yeah we gained a new investigator which is just our teacher but we still try to teach him! it's a lot easir now cause the spanish is coming along better but it's still difficult because i dont get every word so i can't express myself like how i want to! so i'm struggling there but with paitience i can learn it! so yeah i can't believe next week i will be out of the country! es muy loco! i can't wait though! one of our branch presidency members told us that the DR ccm is way more relaxed and that i get to go do splits in the afternoons with the elders! so yeah! :) awesome huh?? i'm way excited but way nervous cause i'm not gonna know what they're saying at all! they talk horribly so i'm way nervous! so yeah what else?? we have these things called trc's which are just members that volunteer and come talk to us and we just talk about the gospel in spanish and it's way cool! i love it cause they help us! and its fun to be able to talk about things and they know what we're saying! OH it snowed here! yeah i'm glad i'm going to the carribean soon! it's getting way cool! Oh hey beau congrats on the elk! i want pictures soon! so email some! and i have to brag! when i get out of the temple i can see the leval edwards stadium! yeah its like two blocks away! its awesome! except saturdays when i'm walking to class and i hear the crowds roar and can hear the game going on! So i miss you guys a ton! the spirit is so strong i love it here! i can't wait to be able to talk to you guys and talk about it and not have to write about it! think up some questions! i'll answer them! i don't think i'll get a email in next week cause of the whole flying down there! but i'll be able to talk to you guys! Oh dad i got the socks! i have never been so excited for socks! haha kinda feel stupid saying that but it's true! thanks mom for your two pairs too! they're really warm so when its cold up here they keep my feet warm! uhhh i have like 6 minutes left! i don't like the whole timed thing but oh well its a good thing! so yeah thanks for your pictures you guys sent too! i'll take a picture of my desk beau will appreciate it! ;) so will nicole and all the woolleys! :) Oh it made me so happy knowing that stef and mom and nicole hung out and read letters and pictures and stuff! keep it up! that raises my spirits up so much knowing that my three favorite girls are getting together and talking about that kinda stuff! i hope it helps you guys as much as it does me! :) Uhhh lets see 4 minutes so for my last thought i'll share an experience that i had! I went to a workshop about prayer and reciving revlation yesterday and they had us read our scriptures and come up with a question we wanted answered! as we did this we were supposed to pray to find the answer to the question and then ponder and read scriptures and seek revelation! as i pondered my question the spirit told me to do one question but i wasn't sure if i should do that one so i came up with another one just incase. as i started praying and reading my scriptures my first question was pounding in my heart and all the scriptures i read talked about that! I was amazed at the things i learned and as i was walking back to class the spirit hit me so strongly about the revelation i had recieved i started crying! i felt like a cry baby but the spirit was so strong i was amazed! i couldn't believe it! Stay close to the spirit! Pray alot! Be strong and of good cheer! I love you guys so much! Can't wait to talk to you guys next week!

Elder Carlson and Elder Luke Peck - They've been buddies since elementary!

Scott's 2nd Email and PICTURES!

Familas! Week 2!‏

Hey everyone! Week two is here! The nuevos missionarios (new missionaries) came in yesterday! feels so good not being the new guys! I didn't get to see elder turek but i got the package from the mail room! thank you so much for the halloween package! I don't know if i'll eat it all but i'll definitly enjoy the club crackers! Mi favrito! and thanks dad for the jerky! i definitly will enjoy it! so the toenail is lookin pretty gnarly! the pediatrist came in yesterday and took care of it right there free of charge! awesome blessing! He had to numb up my toe on every side... even though i said red light he still kept going ;) haha anyways the last shot he gave hit my nerve! oh boy did that hurt! but yeah he said it was pretty deep so he had to cut a lot of the nail off which is no bueno! i've been able to walk around and he said that i should be game to do whatever i want just to be careful! he also said that it should be healed up and all that before i go! i go in and see him again on the 9th the day before i leave so i'll know for sure if i'll be safe! i haven't heard anything about my visa yet! the other guys in my district are going to Argentina and they've had to do a lot of stuff for theres so i take it no news for us is good news! but guess we'll find out! Uhhh lets see.... home sickness.... Gone! oh my goodness do i love it here! The days fly by! i feel like they're all just one day and that i get no sleep but oh well my body stays renewed and i keep going! uhh I had a scary moment the other day. Mi companero almost got sent home. he had to resolve somethings with the district president which is like the stake president and so he went in once in the morning and had to call home and everything! then he came back out and said he wasn't sure if he was leaving or not so we went to lunch and to class and had some tense moments and lots and lots of prayer! We went back later that day and he met with him and he said Elder Godfrey could stay! it's crazy i've known this kid not even a week then but i seriously was having a hard time just thinking about losing him! Crazy how much the love is in a companionship! But yeah So we're growing closer everyday! we're still complete opposite but it's fun for us to get to know each other! i love it! uhhh what else??? oh we had a member of the Seventy come and talk to us on sunday! he talked about what kind of a missionary we want to be and the legacy we either follow or start as missionaries! got me kinda excited to have a legacy of my own of missionaries! for sure my boys will be out here doing this! it's such a testimony builder! the spirit is neccesito por apprender de espanol! The language is tough but i'm getting it day by day! Everyone here is so nice and so helpful i love it! Uhhh oh i got to go to the temple this morning! it was awesome! the temple is way tall so you have to walk up a ton of stairs to get to the endowment room so my toe is throbbing right now! we went to the cafateria after and they had real hot food! the food here is good but it's usually about room temperature and sometimes colder! so yeah not my favorite! but oh well! Uhhh Oh dad i did get my towel and it rocks! it's amazing! but i do Need my socks!! i'm running low here and have restorted to the ones that don't smell bad! Today is laundry day so i'll have clean socks! uhh Oh tomorrow is nicole's birthday so mom when you go in to see peggy tell her to wish nicole happy birthday! you all can if ya want! i got a card up here in the book store and sent it down to her! uhhh lets see oh i need some more shirts like just to do pe in and sleep in! uhhh what else! uhhh i think that's about it! more pictures! oh and send newspapers! the outside world seems so far away! the BYU football field is like a block away from the MTC so every saturday when i'm walking to my class which is the closest to the field i hear the band playing and the crowd cheering... yeah no bueno! Tell beau to keep me updated on scores and who there playing! so i know whats going on! Uhh yeah i wanna know what's going on with the world and local news too! i'm pretty sure if like new york burned down they'd probably just reassign those missionaries and not tell us what happened! but yeah I miss you guys and am loving the work! You can't post pictures on here cause it won't let you but i'll get some printed off! Yeah also P days are my only day i can write letters before i could write them everyday but since the week started i had to stop but yeah so i'll be writing you guys today and getting them off hopefully before the pick up comes so ya may get them tomorrow or saturday! so be watching! oh mom i got a calling card! for like 10 hours of talk time for like 7 bucks so it was an awesome deal! once i find out my itenerary i'll let ya know so you guys will know when to expect a call! if i have layovers! uhhh oh i met a guy that went to my mission! he's a volunteer here and he said it's the best! he talked about how the light goes and comes and that one week he went without showering the entire week until the members complained to the bishop and then they got hooked up with a water tank! but he said the people down there are so nice! i  am so excited to get out of here and be down there! i'm nervous though cause some of the hermanas in our district went to the peru ccm and they said it was kinda like prision and they learned how to kill guiene pigs cause i guess thats what they eat down there! but yeah they said it's way strict and you have to read the book of mormon in 19 days or else you have to run laps around the ccm everyday til you read it! sound like the army at all??? yeah lets pray its not that bad! But yeah things are going great here! my time is closing down so i better get off! thank you guys all for the packages and letters! don't be afraid to send more! it's the highlight of my night and it's the thing that keeps me motivated! i love hearing about your lifes! i'm sorry i don't get to write you more often but we're aiming for 100% obedience! so yeah! i love you guys so so so so so so so much! Keep up the prayers and the good spirits! you guys are always in my prayers! morning noon night breakfast lunch and dinner! see ya guys soon!

-with love! Elder Carlson!

First letter from Elder Carlson!

Hey familia!!

Things are crazy here! the first week has been pretty insane! really overwhelming! first day wasn't to bad i got here way before everyone else so i had to wait awhile! plane ride was pretty fun! its a lot faster then just driving! seemed like we had just taken off when we got there! salt lake i followed all the signs around trying to find my bag came down some escalators and there were a bunch of families waiting for their return missionaries! made me homesick but so excited to get to that point! found my luggage and got to the xpress shuttle and got to the mtc! its way sweet here though the food isn't to bad but the fact that its about room temperature isn't the best! all the elders here are way friendly! i love it! My companion is elder godfrey! he's total opposite of me! hes an english major and is into style and all that! he wanted to match ties with me one day... yeah wasn't gonna happen! Spanish is intense! yesterday we taught our first investigator and he spoke about 3 words in english and we knew about 3 words in spanish so it wasn't that great! but today we taught him again and the spirit was so strong! i bore my testimony in as good of spanish as i know which is little but the spirit pretty much punched me in the chest! i started tearin up! i couldn't believe it! I've been strugglin the last couple days with home sickness and so i met with our branch president last night and talked to him. he told me he understood completely and said that i was welcome to leave but he challenged me to say a prayer for help because he knew it was hard and that we can't do it by ourselves so if i would pray he promised that i'd recieve comfort and help! so i did that this morning and wouldn't ya know it i had the success with our investigator and felt the espiritu! It is so amazing here! i can't believe it but with all the spirit i just want to leave and start teaching! no more of this 9 hours a day in a class room! if i could just learn spanish in one day it'd be so much easier! these three weeks need to fly by! soooo ya remember how i had so many ingrown tonails?? yeah i got another! awesome huh? i tried diggin it out but its to far down so i tried going into the medical place here but it's closed saturdays so monday i'm gonna go in and have them check it out and see if i need surgery or what! i'll keep ya posted! thursdays are my p days so i'll let ya know then! my district is pretty awesome! the other elders in my district are going to argentina and my companion and another pair are going to the DR. Luke Peck is in my district too! crazy huh??  My residence is pretty big surprisingly! i sleep on top of a bunk bed! which isn't to fun but oh well! there are two other elders in our room and they've been here for 5 weeks i believe and they're going to colombia! They are way funny! Elder Chugg and Elder Rogers! yeah they keep me and Elder Godfrey pretty entertained! Except they talk past midnight every night so far! last night i fell asleep on them cause i was just so tired! but its kinda nice because we talk about other things and about our lives so it's like our time to like relax and talk about other things then the gospel! But yeah i'm loving the spirit here and can't wait to get out and share the gospel with the people of the DR! It's gonna be awesome! How's things going on back home?? What's new?? well i better go! this counts as next week two so i gotta hurry! well Send more letters they keep me going through the week! don't be afraid of sending packages! :) talk at ya next week! :)

Love you guys! Thanks for the support and scripture! it helps when i need it!

-Elder Carlson

...Crazy!

If you want to write scott in the MTC his address is:

Elder Scott Kenneth Carlson
MTC Mailbox # 222
DOM-SDOW 1220
2005 N 900 E
Provo, UT 84604-1793

And he's off!....

See you in 2 years Elder Carlson!

You will be the most AMAZING Missionary! The people of the DR are lucky to have you!

Scott's Farewell

Scott did AMAZING at his farewell talk! He spoke on the general conference talk by Brother Waddel (from the priesthood session). Afterwards we went to Washington Elementary for the luncheon. We had LOTS of good food! Thanks to everyone who came to support Scott!