Sister Burton at Halifax Temple and entering New Glasgow

Sister Burton's First Apartment.  They are opening a new area and are the first missionaries in the area. She is in New Glasgow, it is about 75 miles north of Halifax. These are picture of the area she sent.

Greetings from Canada!

There is so much to say I don't know where to begin! The last few days at the MTC were so good, but I was also excited to head to Canada. The flights were good, I was the only missionary out of all 7 sisters that got to sit by a non-missionary (hope that makes sense) at first it was a little scary (cause I'm supposed to share the gospel with them and all) but it was so great to be able to talk to people and share what I believe. And you'd be surprised at how many people are willing to take a pass-along card or learn more about doing their family history work. Three of the 7 missionaries got stuck in Toronto because the airplane was full or something so they had to take a later flight. But my boarding pass was fine so I landed in Halifax around 8:00. We stayed at the mission home for 2 nights were they did like orientation and such. My mission president is great! He was funny and nice but also strict. He knows how missionaries are supposed to act and I am grateful to have such an inspired man as my mission president. 

On Thursday I went out with Sister Weaver to visit some less actives and such in Halifax and Dartmouth because my Trainer hadn't been transferred yet. Later that night I got to meet my trainer, Sister Starkie!! She is so great! She is from somewhere in Utah.. I don't really remember. She has so much energy the mission president told me my job is to tell her to slow down so she doesn't work me to death. I love it though, we definitely stay busy! They stuck Sister Starkie and I in a car and said head to New Glasgow. haha we had no idea where we were going, she's only served on prince edward island and I'd never been to Canada and no one had a map or instructions. They told us to follow the signs... kinda crazy. We did find it eventually but we had to call the Elders once we got into town to help us out. New Glasgow is just the cutest little town. Everyone is so friendly and the houses are tiny and cute. I love the people here already!

The Elders are SO great! Elder Roberts is the district leader and his companion is Elder Watson. We got to go to a lesson with them and that was fun. We are serving in the same area so we see them all the time and they've helped a ton. We serve in the same Branch of about 40 active members. Man is Canada BEAUTIFUL! You should see the leaves this time of year, they are spectacular. I love walking and being outside because it is just so pretty! We have a car (brand new 2014 chevy cruze) and bikes (lucky me. haha) and we walk a lot because our apartment is really close to the church. The first night in my apartment I sat there thinking to myself I am in a new country, in a new city, in a new apartment, with someone I don't know.. and I LOVE IT! haha the church is so true. Our apartment is so cute and tiny. I hear its one of the nicer ones but they've never had missionaries there before so it will be interesting.  My Pdays are Mondays, I'm pretty sure that's how it will always be. 

 

We spoke in Sacrament on Sunday and taught the Primary. (its a tiny branch and they don't have enough active members to fulfill all the callings) And we will be teaching gospel principles with the Elders too when the Primary doesn't need us.The Elders had been telling the Branch the Sisters were coming for more than a month now and they were so excited to finally meet us! The members are so sweet and kind, I love them so much! They talked about how the Branch President even posted on facebook that he was excited to meet the new sister missionaries. :) They were SO excited it was so cute! The first night we were there we went to the Branch Mission Leaders house, his name is Brother Mckinnen and that family has taken good care of us! They even had us over for dinner last night. They are the best family and have incredible testimonies! They even gave us some milk so we could have cereal in the morning. The milk was in a bag. Isn't that a little odd? It's funny how somethings are just different here. Like when we are out knocking you don't go to peoples front doors, you go around back to knock. I always feel like I am trespassing in someones backyard but its just normal here. 

Since Sister Starkie and I are both new to the area we have gotten lost so many times! Typically we call the Elders and they save us. haha We did get to teach a few lessons and that was really cool. Every time I teach a lesson I get another confirmation of how true the gospel really is. How lucky am I that I get to bring people closer to Christ! I love being a missionary! We go knocking quite a bit because we don't have really any investigators but finding and street contacting really isn't that bad. The people here are SO nice! Like they will just stop and have conversation with you about where I'm from and why I'm serving a mission. Typically they aren't interested in learning more, but respect our desires to bring people to Christ. and 90% of people we talk to will take a pass along card. Which is great! The only part that I don't like so far is tracting or knocking at night, but I just keep telling myself the Lord takes care of his missionaries. 

On Saturday there was a branch holiday dinner. I guess it was for thanksgiving and Christmas but since thanksgiving is already over here, they did it in the middle. It was delicious and they let us take stuff home :) They LOVE us. haha and they don't even know us yet. It's amazing how much small branches like this rely on the missionaries. Like they gave us a master key to the church, so we have access to everything. There really is about 3 families that make up almost the whole Branch. Haha But I love it so much! There are the cutest old ladies too in the Branch, so I think we will be raking lots of leaves for service. :) We have a specific exercise routine we have to do every morning called like P5X or something. It definitely will keep me in shape. I guess it's used for the Canadian army or something.. haha 

I am so grateful I am able to be on a mission. It really is incredible to be able to dedicate all my time and talents to the Lord. He loves all his children so much and I want to help bring them to him. And I'm only one of 80,000. Isn't that incredible!? I love being a part of the Lords work. He definately takes care of his missionaries. I know that through Christ I can find strength to face each day with a smile. In the mission field you pray SO MUCH! but it totally pays off because you can feel the spirit so close to you. I find that when I am serving other I become so happy! Even just helping clear tables at the holiday dinner made me feel closer to the Savior. I hope you all have a great week! Oh and by the way.. the mission home doesn't forward me my mail.. so Sister Starkie said it's safe to send it there, I just might not get it for a few months. We just pick it up whenever we are back at the mission home. (Who knows when that is). So for now I would love it if you'd mail things to my apartment! :) 

Sister Breanna Burton

159 Abercrombie Rd

New Glasgow, NS B2H 1K5

Canada

I hope that's the right address... :) It's fun because they don't really use numbers for roads here, they all have cute names like Abercrombie. haha we even found a Roy Street. Go Roy! :) Anyway.. sorry it's so long, we've had a busy week. Don't forget to write me, mail is the best! Serving a mission is hard and exhausting, but you can't call it a sacrifice because you get so much more out of it than you ever put in. I love you all so much! Til next week... 

Sister Breanna Burton

Breanna's First Letter

Dear Family and Friends..

Wow wow wow the MTC is the place to be! :) It's incredible here and the spirit is SO strong.I love it so much! I am getting a little attached to my nametag, I kinda feel like the Elder on the best two years because I just wish I could even sleep with it on. It gives me so much purpose to know I represent Christ. It's probably an unhealthy obsession :) The classes here are so great and my teachers so inspired. I don't ever want to leave the class I am in because there's no way the next class could be better but it ALWAYS is. That's the miracle of the spirit. The more you learn the more you want to learn. I got to see a few people from school, which is really cool. I'm not sure you'll recognize any of the names but I saw Colton Smith, Garrett Anderson (headed to federal way), Kyler, and Julia Satterthwaite. She just got here last night and I got to meet her because I was called as a sister training leader. (like a zone leader, but a sister :)  Very humbling. I received this assignment Thursday night. yes, the day after I got here. It was pretty overwhelming as I felt extremely inadequate. I didn't have a clue what I was doing, how was I supposed to help others know what they're supposed to be doing? But the Lord works in mysterious ways and I've learned to love the sister in my Branch SO much!

Elder Dallin H Oaks came to speak to us on Tuesday, that was amazing! He talked about a lot of things but one thing that stood out to me was he said one of his favorite quotes to mumble under his breath is "No good deed goes unpunished." haha I thought of how our family says that all the time and how this related to missionary work. We shouldn't be discouraged when hard things happen, Satan will always be trying to get us down. No good deed goes unpunished. Just thought it was funny to hear it from an Apostle.

So you know how I didn't know how to set a watch so I had Colten do it for me and that seemed like a great solution at the time? Yeah not so much because I know its hard to believe but it's a different time in Canada than Utah. haha So I guess I'll have to figure it out.. whoops. :) Gym time is way fun, my companions and I have played volleyball every day and I must say I'm not as bad as you'd think. I have finally mastered the overhand serve. One of my teachers talked to us about how this is probably the only time in our lives we will receive 24 hour tutoring from God. What an amazing thought. :) that's why the MTC really is the happiest place on earth. I love love getting mail so definitely keep it coming haha We are scheduled on a flight to Canada Tuesday early early morning. (I think we leave here at like 3:30) so keep your phone by you. I will call dads number (801-725-0971) so be ready for that. I'd assume sometime around 5am but really I have absolutely no idea when I'll be calling. haha We have three different flights before landing in Halifax but I'm so excited!! Wahoo!

Sundays are great at the MTC, my favorite part was the Temple Walk where we actually get to leave MTC campus and walk to the temple with our district and take pictures. We had so so fun! The Branch President reminds me of Brother Gentry when he was bishop, he's funny and I've got to meet with him lots in leadership meetings and such. Every Wednesday and Sunday are Ice Cream Day at the MTC from the BYU creamery. Wow its good! I love Ice Cream! :) I want you to know paying for the more expensive laundry bag because it had a shoulder strap.. totally worth it, the laundry room is a nice long walk from our residence hall. I have learned so much and can't wait to learn more. Everything here is great and I can feel the hand of the Lord protecting and supporting me. I had the opportunity to sing in the missionary choir the night Dallin H Oaks came to speak. What an amazing experience!! I love getting up early and can't ever get my mind to shut off before going to bed.. I just want to keep teaching! haha They have people interested in the church (real investigators) walk around sometimes with Gold Name tags, and we were told to stop and talk to them if we ever have a second. Well we stopped to talk to a sister yesterday who was so amazing! Her name is Chae and she is so cute! she moved to Utah with her boyfriend and 2 daughters from Oregon and said she just kinda was curious about what we were about. We asked if we could meet with her again and she said she would love that! Unfortunately about every second at the MTC is booked so we will have to miss dinner on Monday but hey, that's what the food in our residence hall is for right? :) It was so fun to go talk with her about how she can be with her family forever and she was wondering if we could teach her how to pray so she could show her kids. One of the Gold Tag investigators is getting baptized (for real) on Saturday and Chae said she plans on going! :) I can't wait to teach her Monday!

I should probably start to wrap this up, although I could talk forever. :) The church is true and I am so glad I have the opportunity to share it with others! I know this is where Heavenly Father wants me to be and I am so glad he is trusting me with this work. It's so fun to hear from people back home so keep writing! I love and miss you all so much!!

Love,
Sister Breanna Burton

Sister Breanna Burton was successfully delivered to the Provo MTC.  She was extremely happy!

What I Wish I Would've Known 4 Months Ago... 

Hello There! Welcome to my Blog! I'm Sister Breanna McKinley Burton and I leave for the Provo MTC in 3 days to serve in the Halifax, Canada Mission and wanted to make a personal post before taking off. First of all I am SO Excited to serve! For those of you preparing to serve, believe me, time flies! I wanted to write down a few things I have learned in the last 4 months that may be helpful to you as you prepare. So here's a list of (in my opinion) things that would've been nice to know 4 months ago! :) I am no expert, but I hope you find something helpful! 

• Buy clothes you are comfortable in. No matter how cute it is, if it doesn't fit right, is a little too tight, or short.. Don't Buy It! Keep looking and something else you love will come along. Old Navy and Downeast became my favorite stores to find nice, comfortable and inexpensive tops and for skirts, try the Sister Missionary Mall in Provo. 

• GO TO THE TEMPLE! I went about 3 months before my reporting date and I still wish I would've had more time to go. The temple is an incredible place that can really help in preparation. It helps keep things in perspective and is totally worth going every week! 

• Don't be afraid to call your mission office with questions specific to your mission. They're there to help! 

• Watch the district.. and then watch it again, and again. It is SO helpful and you'll learn something new every time!

• Skinny belts are so helpful when feeling like some shirts look a little awkward tucked in. I have one in just about every color! 

• Read through your call all the time. It helps remind you why you're doing this in the first place. 

• Pick up cute stud earrings. They'll be nice to have in an assortment of sizes and styles.

• Attend institute if possible. I learned so many good things that have helped me prepare in my institute class. 

• Buy Stickers to take with you! Everyone loves stickers and you can find inexpensive ones to put on letters and such. 

• Read "Our Search for Happiness" by M. Russell Ballard. It's written by an apostle, to explain our beliefs to a non-member and it's the shortest book in the Missionary Library. What more could a missionary ask for? 

• I bought space bags to try and fit more clothes.. and wasn't very successful. However, the travel space bags worked INCREDIBLE with my towels and sheets. I definitely would recommend them for that!

• Hair Donut = Awesome! I told myself I wouldn't.. but I had to. It's such an easy, cute hairstyle. If you don't know what it is, look it up and see if you're interested. It really only takes like 3 minutes and you're good to go all day! 

• Get the Mini Hand Sanitizers from Bath and Body Works. They're cute, smell good, and are travel sized! Plus, you never know how many hands you'll be shaking and where those hands have been.. let's keep it clean right?

• I bought colorful pens to use to make writing letters and taking notes in class a little more interesting. I found great ones at the dollar store!

• Join a gym! If you don't have a workout routine already set, this is a great way to get started. I joined Planet Fitness for only $10 a month and it's worth every penny! Its a great way to relieve stress, and get your body ready for the demands of missionary life. 

• Duct tape helps a TON with blisters. If you don't believe me, try it out. But I didn't want to pack those huge rolls of duct tape so instead, I took the tape and wrapped it around cut up straws. (I took the idea from the masking tape at the church library). It makes them small and travel sized so it doesn't take up any room in your suitcase. 

• Pack, and then unpack and then pack and unpack again. My family has made fun of my mercilessly because I have been packing for the last month but it's helped a ton! I realize what suitcase, and order to pack things in so the things that need to be easily accessed, are on top, and everything is organized so I can find whatever I need. Plus, you'll be a little more confident on the day you leave that you aren't forgetting anything because you've packed a hundred times before.

• Check out store.lds.org. I had no idea this existed until about a month ago. It's an incredible place to purchase things you can use to prepare, and the best news?? FREE SHIPPING! You can buy scripture mastery flash cards and bookmarks, missionary  handbooks, pass along cards, mini preach my gospel for only $4, pamphlets to practice teaching the missionary lessons, missionary preparation manual, the adjusting to missionary lifestyle booklet, and even order different types of garments to try. There are special edition church magazines you can purchase for only $1 including... 

• 2 New Eras on Missionary Preparation

• The Book of Mormon Ensign 

• The Lord Jesus Christ Ensign

• Previous Conference Issues 

• store.lds.org

• Write a missionary serving in your mission. I'm sure they'd LOVE to hear from you. I follow a few blogs of people serving in Canada that I wrote and they had GREAT advice for things specific to my mission and answered any questions I have. 

• Make a mission binder. I made one as soon as I got my call. I love it so much and use it daily. You can make it your own and include in it what you like but it helped me stay organized and not lose important papers. Inside is 

• a copy of my call

• my mission booklet

• a copy of my patriarchal blessing

• a map of my mission

• the letter from my mission president

• the letter from the temple 

• 4 generation pedigree chart

• pictures from the day I got my call, went through the temple,my missionary photo shoot, and from my farewell. 

• receipts of things I've bought for my mission in case I have to make returns

• a list of things I still need to do, or buy
• simple recipes I'd like to make
• A list of birthdays and dates to remember
• other letters, notes, and important things I want to take with me.

I'm  sure there's more I am forgetting but really, if you put your trust in the Lord, he'll help you figure things out and when the time comes, you'll be ready. If you have any questions for me (or advice and ideas) I'd LOVE to hear from you! My email is breanna.burton@myldsmail.net. Best of Luck in your Preparation!!
 Love Always,
Sister Burton