Hey Family, and... admirers? If I have any.. Anyway, so transfer announcements were today, and I'm staying in my area, but my companion is transferring (Yay!) and I am going senior companion. Which isn't really that big of a deal cause I was basically the senior this transfer. This way it'll just be a lot easier for me so I'm happy about it. I won't know who my companion is till wednesday though, so you'll all have to wait till next monday to find out who he is. He could be this huge Samoan that will just destroy me. But we'll see. I won't know what to do if he's American, cause I've only had Filipino companions ha. The weather this week has been a little crazy. Really hot the first of the week, but the past few days have been cold and rainy and stormy. The work has been ... all right. It'll be lots better when my companion is gone though. Oh! We had a baptism on saturday! Those are always awesome. I feel bad for those people in missions where they get like 0 baptisms. It would be hard for me to feel successful. I'm not sure what else to write about... So ask me some questions or something next time if you want a longer email. sige, well I best be going. Thanks for everything! Love, Elder Andersen

Hey Family, this week has been... good. A little less productive than I would have hoped but its all good. Things here are pretty much the same. Hot, sunny, beach, coconut trees, etc.. I bet that sounds good to you all in your winter wonderland! So this week we did a lot of tracting, which is why it was less effective than I would have liked. Because everyone knows there is a better way to do missionary work, and that is through the members. But when you don't have referrals from members, which is sadly more often than not, you gotta do finding on your own. Hopefully we can get this branch rolling though, it has a lot of potential. Wow so only one week left in this transfer! Next monday I'll know if I'm transferring or whats gonna happen! Time flies when you're doin the Lord's work! One of our investigators had a successful baptismal interview, and will be baptized on Saturday! On the sad side, my sd card to my camera is broken.. Hopefully all my pictures are not lost or I might cry! And I have to buy a new one. Grrr. Oh well. Hmm sorry this email is so short and boring, I can't think of anything else to tell you all, except thanks for your prayers and support and everything! Love you all, Love Elder Andersen

Well Happy Valentines Day to you all from the Philippines! Well where to start.. This week has been pretty good! On Thursday Elder Michael John U. Teh of the first quorum of the seventy, and second counselor in the Philippines General Presidency came and did a mission tour. He came and spoke to us at zone conference, and it was all just really good. He and his wife are really nice, and greeted every one of us one by one. They are both really good speakers as well, and amazing at English, even though they are both Filipino. They sound like Americans and everything, but when they speak Tagalog, or Cebuano, they sound like native speakers. I'm way jealous of their language skills! Anyway, so that was great, and then on Saturday we had 2 baptisms! Thats always awesome! Other than that our work has been a little slow this week with all our meetings and traveling and what not, so hopefully we get back in the groove this next week. Things are going well just as always. I'm still healthy and I believe disease free! We found a snake in our kitchen this morning, that was a first for me! Good thing it was relatively small. My companion was really scared of it though, and killed it with the broom. Thats the usual though here, finding strange creatures in your house and disposing of them before they eat you or something. Sorry I don't really have much to say! What are all your questions?? Tell Mom I hope she gets feeling better soon, and I know her pain. Actually mine was probably a little worse, but still I know her pain. Hey I wouldn't be complaining about free food, thats the best! Oh yeah Dad, I was finally able to eat a jackfruit this week! It's really good. I've eaten it before, but not like the fruit. They eat it when it's not ripe and cook it with like chicken and stuff and use it sorta as a vegetable and eat it with rice, but I like it better as a fruit. Basically all the fruit here is really good. Ok well I best be goin now. Thanks for all your prayers and support and everything else. The Church is true! Love, Elder Andersen

Wow, well things on my side of the world are completely opposite. It's gotten hot again. I'm basically in a tropical paradise. Coconut, banana, mango trees everywhere you look, and just green everything, and of course right next to the ocean. Well you all seem to do be doing well with this new fitness program you are all on haha. I'm definitely in the worst shape I've been in in a good 5 years. Oh, that stinks for Joel, I would hate to wait any longer than I had to. OK so you asked about the people we are teaching. Well we have 2 baptisms on Saturday, Sister Alfonsa Garcia, and Sister Mary Jean Chavez. Alfonsa is like mid 50's maybe 60, and is really cool. I'm a little scared to baptize her cause she's a bigger woman! haha. But it'll be ok. Mary Jean is like... 15? Yeah 15 I think. She's also really cool, and has wanted to be a member since November or so, but there were no missionaries there so she couldn't be baptized. Same with Alfonsa, she's been going to church since December. I really can't tell you about everyone I work with cause that would just take so long and give me carpal tunnel syndrome, so you'll just have to wait till mothers day to ask all your really detailed questions I guess haha. Sorry! But it's not like I have all day to just sit here and email... Don't worry about me I'm doin just fine. You should probably worry about me less here on the other side of the world than you should when I'm at home, cause I have the Lord with me here haha. There hasn't been a time on my mission I can say where I have felt unsafe. Even when hanging out the door of a bus, or riding on top of it, or whatever I'm doing, I've felt safe. So Elder Michael John U. Teh of the seventy, and presidency of the Philippines is coming to visit our mission this week. Thats the big news I guess. We have to go to Escalante on Thursday to a big meeting with him, so that will be good. Other than that, there's nothing much new with me. Just keep truckin along and doin what I should and trying to do my best! Thank you for all your support and prayers on my behalf, I certainly need them! Well, until next week, Love, Elder Andersen