Greetings!

FIRST OF ALL:
CONGRATULATIONS MADI!!! :) :) :) :) :) 
I can't wait to share this adventure with you. MISSIONS ARE THE BEST! Sister Missionaries are awesome. 
President Hacking, in the MTC presidency was showing my companion at lunch a 19 year old girl who got her mission call to Argentina today, leaving the first week of January!! It's going to come fast madster, but you can do it! I've been praying for you for 2 weeks about this. I love you girlfriend!

This week has been a whirlwind. Today marks my 2 weeks in the MTC! It feels like I've been here for 6 months. I'm learning so much, and retaining soooo little! The language is a beast, but it's coming. So far I've taught 5 lessons in Ukrainian, and have 3 more this week. Can you believe it? It's the hardest, craziest thing I've ever done. I literally go to bed at night with Ukrainian in my head, and am barely starting to pick out a few words that I can understand. It seems impossible, but the Lord is on my side and wants me to succeed, so it's going to be okay. :) 
I seriously love my district. I can't get enough of them. The other districts in our Zone keep commenting about how much fun we are always having, and how much we're always together. We sit together at every meal, and we are pretty much never separated. It probably has something to do with the fact that all the Russians have been here longer than us and only converse in broken Russian, and then there's the "Ukrainian 8" and we just sit and laugh at ourselves. I don't know how I would survive the mtc if it wasn't for a solid, hilarious district.
Today we got to go to the temple, and I felt the spirit so strongly. I LOVE THE TEMPLE. It's one of the best parts of my week, easily. :)
I got questions about the mail system: I get real mail after lunch everyday, and dear elders after dinner. I can only write back on Wednesdays, so Madi, you can stop asking why I don't send letters to you every day ;) But I love you! You've been so faithful in writing me. I get a letter almost every day! All the elders in my district want you to write them...seriously though. One of them asks about you every single day. (Write him a letter. It would make his day. I'll send you a picture of him.)
Isn't that cool that I'm connected to Sister G, the Ukrainian teacher in 2 different ways! She told me she talked to Janae about me. I love that they served together. Did she tell you that I cried in our last lesson with her last week as our prog. investigator? It was the first time I really cried, and it was because this language thing is rough. I know exactly what I would say in English, but the fact that I can't do that....it kills me. It's kinda funny how I desperately wanted to go foreign, speaking foreign. English is looking really great right now. Even Spanish! But I'm so glad I get this opportunity, because I'll get the language down if I keep working hard!
I'm learning so much about the gospel and about myself. I can't believe I'm cranking out 16-hour days. It really is a miracle. We call our gym time our "Happy Hour" because it really is our saving grace. It's nice to get to blow off some steam and play a grueling game of 4-square. It's insane how competitive that game gets! I usually just run though. It's the best. Thank heavens I uploaded Manheim Steamroller Christmas music onto my iPod because it would be difficult to run to MoTab or Gen.Conf. :)
Funny moment of the week: 
Everyone around the MTC going foreign will walk around speaking their new language. Since we're the only Ukrainian speakers in the whole MTC, we decided to look up funny words and walk around "greeting" people with them, because no one would even know what we're saying anyway. So we go around saying "dobre den stareeshni harboozy!" and then laugh at ourselves (it means, "Good day elder pumpkin!"...oh the things 19 year old boys think of. But it's hilarious to us.) 

Thanks so much for the package! I was so happy. Those smart cookies were the best. I shared some of it with my district, we cut them up in little squares, and they were all dying. Best thing ever.
My companion and I were totally trying to think of a way we could get someone to send us Cafe Rio while it's still warm....but we let go of that fantasy real quickly. Haha. 
This week I was able to see so many close friends, and it was such a tender mercy. I think every single day last week I was surprised to see people from BYU-Idaho, Lone Peak, or my BYU ward. It really is so nice to be able to see so many familiar faces :) 

If I've learned anything this week, it's that this church is true. I've always known it, and I've known it with my whole heart. I've seen miracles happen already that wouldn't and COULDN'T have taken place without the Lord. I know he's listening to me, and blessing me with little tender mercies along the way. This mission thing is tough. But I know I have it in me to trust in my Father in Heaven. It brings me so much joy to think about serving in Ukraine and bearing testimony of my Savior, Jesus Christ. This is the greatest work on earth. I testify of that. 

I love you all so much! Thanks for all the letters and the support. You're the best. Congrats on being in the "800 club"! I'll be praying for you like crazy! 

All my love and prayers (and missionary prayers work as double, at least), 
Cectpa Webber