[This week we had sent a number of  questions, and we even had a bit of emailing back and forth... we figured this was the best way to represent his letter for the week...]

From Mom:

Hi, Elder Swalberg!

I hope I can catch you online during your P-day on Friday!
Here are a few questions I have for you:

1. What do you do during exercise time?

2. How much time do you get for P-day?

3. How many elders share the same room with you?

4. How are you enjoying the food?

5. How are your clothes? Do we need to make any changes? I still need to order the button extenders for your shirts we bought from missionary mall.

6. Did you get the CTR ring?

7. Have you been able to buy a good bag/backpack.

8. Would you like me to continue sending Jacob, Dakota, Kelsey and Kelsey's missionary letters through dearelder.com?

Landon’s response:

1. our district does football (brazilian style..,soccer)! We get Gym time almost every day. We are going out to play some more "football" at like 2:30 today. Our district owns the game! of course we dont keep score, but we still know we dominate! ;p hahaha


2. Well P-day is from when we get up till dinner which is at 5:00. I get up at 6:15 every morning just to get in the shower with out a huge line, and today I got up at the same time so I could actually get a washer! There are so many missionaries here that everything has a line! Its crazy!


3. Well there are 6 beds (3 bunk beds) in each room and it is seriously smaller than Austin or Taylors room. But as I will tell you more about, one of the Elders, Elder Houston, that we had in our district for 2 weeeks left so we now have 5 people in our room, but I still have to make sure it stays clean every once and a while or there is no room to walk around. I miss my own space! haha But ill get used to it, I already am actually.


4. The food is great, there is always something for me to eat and still eat vegetarian. There is always fruit and veggies out. And as I said in Austins letter that a sent a couple days ago, I always have donuts and chocolate milk for breakfast! lol


5. My clothes are great! I think I will buy a couple new white sock from the bookstore. They have a great book store. We could have missed everything and pretty much bought it here. lol But I actually havent worn all my pants yet, just so I dont have to wash so many, and they dont get that dirty. But the 2 pair that we got from Khols are a little big and baggy but they work. Everything else is great, including the shoes. I have been waring them both in.


6. Yes I got it, but seriously within 2 days it broke. lol It has that metal part in the middle and the little weldings keeping it together broke and so now it comes apart. I am stil waring it but its annoying that the middle part slides out when ever I take it off. But its whatever. Its not the most important thing in the world.


7. No they have like 3 options at the bookstore, and I havent felt the nessesity to get one right away. I definately want some kind of shoulder bag/belt strap on it. The one like Scott Anderson had would be so perfect. But maybe Ill find one there in Brazil or my reassignment.


8. And yes! please do! Its great to get those! Thank you so much! I loved hearing about them! Its so hard to keep up with them here. I really hope it gets easier to communicate to people outside the MTC becasue I just feel so rushed when ever I write anyone. And especially on the computer!


Oh but on any of your dear elders or letters please continue to put the date on them! It helps me know when it was actually written. The dear elders can be kind of confusing.

Thanks for asking me the questions it helps me know what to talk about becasue I am so rushed when I am writting you all.


I will send another email with my update of the week now. :)


-Elder Swalberg




From Mom:


Thanks for your responses!


I'm sorry about the rings...maybe we ought to just buy you a good, sturdy, regular one.


I guess this is the first time you are having to share a room....I’m glad you are getting use to it already....


I will try to remember to put the dates on the dear elder letters. The week I was at YW camp I got a letter forwarded from all the missionary mom's. Those are the ones I sent. I just got another from Bonnie. That is the other one I just sent.


Everyone continues to ask about how you are doing! They are all praying for you and for the visas in Brazil to come through.


I love you so much!!!!

Mom


Landon’s response:


Mom, yeah maybe that would be a good idea. apparently all the ones I pick just don’t want to work. But if it’s too much of a hassle really don’t worry about it!


Okay well I appreciate it and all the letters you all send me!


It looks like I won’t be able to get much of a typical email sent out casue I am running out of time but I hope you will be able to get enough out of these emails to update my blog and send to people. I will try to mention a few other things in a minute.


In response to Mom’s dear elder letter:


I’m glad Taylor and Austin are having such a great time this summer!


I am soooo excited for Austin and his patriarchal blessing! Tell him to write me after he gets it! It so cool to read my patriarchal blessing now that I’m on my mission! One night my whole room pulled ours out and read over ours (to ourselves) and then just commented how there is some cool stuff talking about us on our missions!


Way to go on your missionary experience! Keep it up, I know our family can be better member missionaries. I know I will be so much better as a member missionary when I get home! ANd I know how helpful those pamphlets are! They are especially great when we are teaching in a different language because they explain things so well when our Portuguese is not so great! But yeah, use them!


I have loved hearing about your experience with girls camp! I am so glad it has gone so well! You such an incredible leader!

ANd I love your idea about teaching the girls how to teach that first lesson! That will help them so much and I can testify that practicing teaching (if done with real desire to get better) that the fear of talking to people about it will go away! Even in a different language the fear of teaching it goes away after practicing!


I love having our practice investigators! A little about them: Both have committed to baptism (they act really well and in character too, so we really feel like they are real people btw)

and one has even set a date of the day before we leave to be baptized! It makes me so happy to teach them and it is so incredible to see how much I can speak the language when I go in there!


But also about Elder Houston, who left our district this week, was reassigned so we are now back to a tri-companionship. But he was reassignment to Houston, Texas! haha Crazy right! lol But yeah EVERYONE going to Brazil is getting a reassignment. We are essentially just waiting to hear where we will be going in the states now. We will probably find out the Thursday before we leave the MTC. Sooooo JUly 25ish. But yeah I will keep you updated! Others are going to Kansas, Alabama, Texas, Colorado, and a few other states. But yeah.


I have been District Leader for like 3 1/2 weeks and will be probably released next week. But I felt like I have done the best I can.



Sorry I have to go I wish I could tell you more but I can’t.


From Dad -

Dear Landon -
Hope you are having a great p-day! Keeping close tabs on my email today while at work for when you get online.


How is 100% Portugese going in classes?


Austin received your letter yesterday - he read us the part of the letter that was not personal. Great to see your handwriting.


Thinking about you lots, knowing you are having a growing in so many ways - likely so much you are not realizing it.


FYI - your last paycheck from Northlake came in = $92.63.

Do you want us to pay the $9.26 in Tithing for you?


Love -
Dad


Landon’s resonse:


It is a good p-day! Thanks.

Its actually really good. I am understanding so much more now, its so great! The speaking is coming a little better too, its just the verb conjugation that is the hardest for me right now. But my language goal for the next week is to really work on that and especially my iregular verbs!





Oh good! Im glad it is there! I am writing a letter to Taylor today and hopefully it will be sent by tonight maybe tomorrow. I wish I had more time to talk to you all. Just know that I if I werent so busy you would all get a letter everyday from me!




Oh hey! Thats right! Thanks for noticing that! Yeah if you could do that, that would be great! Thanks so much.


So about your dear elder letter you sent me:


[Dad comment: asked how much computer time they have on P-Day ]
I get about 1 hour on the computer they have a little countdown timer for you on the computer like right now it says I have 25 more minutes but you can still go past it and it doesnt kick you off. Our first zone leaders said they went over a lot too, but just adviced not to go over too far, casue yeah they cant really manage it all...just too many missionaries! We are getting on average 800 in every wednesday plus whatever senior missionaries come in on Mondays. And There are only like 300 to 400 missionaries going out every week. I have already seen a huge increase since I have been here! We ate breakfast with the MTC secretary once and he said there are only 300 missionaries over at wyview and that they cant expand it until they get more cafeteria space! But on the main campus there are over 3500 missionaries!


But yeah I have time to write hand written letters sometimes before I go to bed but that time goes by really fast. It either I chose to write a letter/journal or read a little bit in the scriptures and then its lights out.

But yeah if I wright handwritten letters it would be great to have those put on my blog! Thanks!


[Dad comment: work been very busy - long hours]
 Sorry to hear about work! :/ That stinks! You are seriously amazing though Dad. I Have always been so imppressed with how much you work and still stay mentally okay! I pray you and the family every night and I will pray for you at work.


Oh by the way My companion Elder Gardner reminds me so much of you! He is a big football player, but has some of your same personalities! Like one time we got on the topic of politics and he went off on one of the same kind of conservative rants just like you do! haha Then ALL the time he bites his nails like you and a few other things. ITs kind of funny! He is great though.



[Dad comment: Mentioned I am speaking in a Spanish ward later this month...] Awesome to hear about the speaking assignment this sunday! I know you will do well! I actually might have to speak too....in portugese! They call on 2 people in our branch to speak during church, but we have to all prepare a talk becuase that is how they do it. So we will see. haha


and I like your portugese pun! haha I like it! I miss your puns all the time! haha
[Dad comment: Here is the pun... works in Spanish or Portugese...
When starting a letter, there are several common salutation words used to start the letter, most common in English is "Dear..."  In Spanish you could use: "Querido...", "Amado...", "Muy senor mio" (Dear sir), etc.... 

so... which greeting is preferred for a Statistician?  
ESTIMADO  (translated it is Esteemed or Estimated) LOL!!!!   ]

From DAD:


Awesome - your Mom sent some great questions.

I remember getting up early to get a washer on Pday too!
Did Elder Houston get re-assigned or go to Brazil? what is generally happening with Brazil missionaries?
Are you back in a threesome companionship?
On the CTR Ring... maybe we should just get you one of the cheap primary ones LOL. I'll call Deseret book and find out what we can do to replace it and let you know - very sad...
Will keep watch on your bank acct and keep it at $300 even with bookstore. right now it is at $393 with your last Northlake paychk (sent email to you this am on that.)

I looked around online for the shoulder bags with a waist belt - looks like popular with photographers. Let us know if you want us to send one to you if we find one like Scott's.

Love ya bud... feel closer to you right now, even though the physical distance is the same.... Ok - sending this so you might catch before you have to get off the PC.


Love ya!

Dad



Landon’s response:


But quickly Dad,


The bank account stuff sounds great and about the shoulder bag with a belt strap would be great! If you find one like Scotts then yeah I would love that! I have a small Preach My Gospel and my scriptures that I would want to be able to fit in it. But seriously Scott’s bag looked perfect. So yeah if you find one...Sweet!


Thanks so much! I will try to write a hand written letter soon! I love you guys sooooo much!


-Elder Swalberg


From Mom:

Oh...also....Austin has kept your voice on his voice mail. I didn't realize this until I tried to get a hold of him the other day and I hear your voice. It made my day. I called back a gain just to hear it again!


I was also wondering if you feel like the 2 years of Spanish and the 3 years of Latin have helped you with the language much.


Okay....again....I love you so much and am so proud of you. I am strengthened each time I hear from you. I know Heavenly Father is too!


Mom


Landon’s Response:

Oh thats funny! Hope he is liking the phone./


And Yeah it is a little bit especially casue the conjugation stuff make more sense because of it! But I wish I remembered more! haha


But yeah got to go!


LOVE you so much! Hope I gave you guys enough info today, even if it was really scattered! lol


-Elder Swalberg