September 2, 2014

It must be super weird with only Ashton and Dallen home. i was just thinking how weird that would be. soon tho it'll be full of grand kids.. and we will visit so much. I'm so looking forward to having my kids growing up around you and having you and dad as grand parents. makes you feel old huh? well i am 20.. haha. ugh its crazy. haha. itll be nice tho. now you get to spoil them rotten and get them all sugared up and poopy and give them back to us haha. I love you Mom. you have no idea how Happy it makes me that you and Jackee talk.

Super bummer about Calvin's Wreck. that really stinks. glad hes ok tho. idk why he cant just go get a normal friggin job.. oh well. 

I miss my family. i miss my brothers. and hanging out and messing around. Dallen and Ashton are Prolly driving eachother mad. Dallen is a lot like me so hes Prolly pushing ashtons buttons all the time. haha they are getting so big its ridiculous. imma get home and they'll be bigger than me. Derrek is gonna be the smallest out of everyone haha. then we all get to whoop on him for a change rather than him killing us all the time.. i cant wait. then when we all team up against dad we can actually win especially now that hes old and grey and his back is all messed up we might have a fighting chance haha maybe. Man life its crazy. growing up is crazy.. goes so fast. 

Its been a good week tho. we do lots of service for everyone it the ward. like 10 hours a week. its awesome i love it. my birthday was pretty good, i really enjoyed it. today we are doing the ice bucket challenge.. i don't really know what it is but i guess you just dump a bucket of ice water over your head and film it. and Angela's kid. Nate nominated us to do it. so we thought why not. so that'll be fun haha. its gonna be a good week tho. im excited. Idk why but i feel like its gonna be a good one haha. i hope.

gosh i suck at writing emails..  i never know what to write. 

I'm going to the chiropractor soon. my back is pretty messed up from the car accident so i guess we will see how that goes. i don't really have money tho. if there is any you can spare i would greatly appreciate it. i budget everything out and i still come up short every month. then the chiropractor is another 10 that i originally didn't plan on. so idk. what ever you can spare would be very appreciated.

Jackee sends me money sometimes and i hate it haha i feel like a bum when she sends it. but i have no problem asking from you haha jk. plus were having to buy more food now cuz the members are slacking on feeding us. were supposed to have a dinner every night. but they cancel all the time so we go through our food faster than planned. so that's a bummer. idk. oh well.

just loosing weight haha

Mom .. I love you.. I hope you know that. and imma hug you so hard when i see you.. love you too dad.. haha

Have a great week. 

Love Elder Bowler

August 25, 2014

Hey Mom and Dad, 

Thank you for your emails they were great! Crazy that its all flying by now. transfers are tomorrow and I am staying here in the area. and also for the first time my whole mission i have the same companion for more than one transfer. Mackley is being transferred but im staying here with Humphreys. should make for an interesting transfer. we share our ward with sister missionaries but now they are being white washed and replaced with elders. no one is really happy about that. our ward mission leader is a very opinionated guy and he doesn't like it at all. this ward has been through 4 white washes in 8 months which is friggin crazy. its been a good week tho. this transfer flew by so fast tho man its nuts. thank you so much for the package i loved it! the g's are super white haha.. i loved everything. the slushy maker worked perfectly for me. it says if you read the instructions that if it doesn't work you have to turn the fridge down. so basically it has to pretty much be about frozen already. and you have to do like soda or something. but it works great. i love it. the pinata was awesome tell Dallen that the gum in the barrel and top really does taste like soap.. i tried it haha. it was great tho.. i think my favorite part was the oatmeal lace cookies ugh. man that made my week. theyre like crack haha. im surprised that they even made it in with Dad there haha. crazy that i turn 20. man haha. thats crazy. it doesnt even feel like anything now. its crazy being on the downhill slope of my mission tho. time is just flying by. i cant believe it. everything is all a blur. im looking forward to this next transfer. it should be a good one. we are working with Angela still and her family. they are my favorite. i love them haha. i hope to stay here in junction for a while. 

elder Oaks came to the mission on saturday and talked to the missionaries here in junction. it was super cool. hes pretty funny and he knows a ton. he spoke for only 30 minutes but it felt so short to me. i could have listened forever. he was just winging it the whole time by the spirit. every once and a while he would stop and say that the spirit is saying this. which is so cool to see someone so in tuned with the spirit. he even read his wife's mind. he was talking and he stopped all of a sudden and said that im getting a feeling that my wife wants me to say something. then he stops and then was like oh she wants me to talk about this. and she didnt even say anything.. it was pretty cool. i was glad to be able to meet him. 

other than that its just been another busy week in the field. working hard everyday. same ol same ol. ..

what are we gonna do today elder bowler?

the same thing we do every day pinkey. try and save the world..

some parts of it gets old haha but i enjoy it. 

my back has begun to be a problem. its hurting way worse now. that car accident up in craig really messed me up. we have an official mission nurse now so maybe ill call her. and im still having a rough time sleeping. im exhausted all the time.. i hate it. i cant even function sometimes. idk. ill call the nurse and check it out. 

i love you guys tho. i really do. thank you for all the help and support you give me. and thank you for all the letters from the family campout. i loved them. 

love you!!!

Elder Bowler

August 18, 2014

I am so excited for Dallen to be in seminary. especially when his senior year will be the Book Of Mormon. I did it my freshmen year and i didnt pay too much attention haha. so senior year will be pretty amazing for him. especially when preparing for a mission. Calvin being a bouncer is pretty funny. i can totally see it. not exactly a great environment but oh well. im pretty sure you thought i was Derrek in that paragraph haha. i can totally see Ashton playing the guitar. And when Derrek gets home they can jam out. haha. 

Mom, thank you for all your patience and love and kindness and the great example you have set for us growing up. its funny to think back over the progression as we grew up. like when we were younger and we would clobber each other and you would freak out and cry. but after a while all you would say is "take it outside, Dont break my house" which happened quite often. then me putting a ton of little holes in the wall. having to fill them and repaint. but then wrestling and putting a huge hole in the wall haha. and then us being boys were always pretty dirty minded haha. after a while you would catch it before we did haha. someone would say something and before we could even think dirty you would say "thats what she said" before any of us could and it would only make us laugh even harder. haha or you would stop us before we could say anything. you knew us so well. knew our thoughts even before we did. it made growing up in our family a wonderful experience. i loved it

I know that i have my rough days. and i know that you probably think that i have a crap work ethic and i cant do hard things and that youre probably expecting me to come home early. but even in my rough days i know that itll get better. i know that i can do hard things. i know the time will fly by and i know that i will finish my mission, and ill give the best homecoming talk youve ever heard haha. then im gonna go to clear creek and go cliff jumping. i wanna go on a camp out with dallen and ashton and dad when i get home. leave for a week. and i want us to read the whole book of Mormon together in a week. i think itll be awesome. im sorry if i disappoint you with some of my choices and mistakes. i wasnt exactly the easiest child to raise. i honestly dont know how you did it. especially with five of us. you get a lot of sympathies from the people here in colorado. I also want to thank dad for all the advice and help he has given me over the course of my life. i honestly wouldnt be where i am today with out him. he is someone i look up to immensely. ill always reach out to him for help and advice. and i know that i havent been the most affectionate child ever but man i cant wait to get home and hug the crap outta you guys. and ill never stop. i havent shown much appreciation for all that youve done so i have a lot of hugs and kisses to make up for. youll be sick of me in no time haha. it makes me so happy that you and Jackee are becoming good friends. i read my patriarchal blessing all the time and i cant believe how much it has helped me and is going to help me in my life. i really love my family alot. my emails are short and for the most part positive. but i wont lie i have some extremely low and hard moments throughout the week. but i keep going. i do my studies but my family is something that really gets me by. and the thought that i need to finish what i started. i guess what dad said about me having to earn her is something that really motivates me to keep going. because its true.. I am going to finish this. as hard as it may be. im doing it. i just hope that ill be strong enough to get through the hard times. but studying really helps. the book of mormon really keeps me going. and prayer. no im not a perfect missionary but im a good one. ive become quite the teacher. ive learned alot. i love it. this is the last week of the transfer. crazy how fast time flies. \

i love you mom

i love you dad

 thanks for all that you do for me in my life. 

Love
Elder Bowler

August 11, 2014

there was a member here that knew jackee and snapped that picture to her. it was a while ago. i didnt even know she posted that or even talks to the rest of the family. i actually havent talked to her in a while. the 7th was the year anniversary of Nicks death. most likely a super hard day for her. how is she doing? do you still talk to her?

this week has been better than the last few. ive been studying like mad. i read everything. listen to talks all the time. i just get lost in this stuff. its nice tho cuz when my comps have questions about certain things i can answer them. they are suprised that i actually know my stuff haha. i suprise my self sometimes. its nice to that i can put confusing things in a simple way for others to understand. it really helps as a teacher. weve been working hard. success is kinda slow tho. there are a few families that were working with that are super awesome. one is a less active husband. and his fiance is investigating. with two kids. super awesome. theyre gonna get baptized but the husband wants to do the baptism but he is slow to repent. kinda holding her back. kinda annoying haha. but oh well. Grand Junction has some amazing people. awesome members. theres a family that moved in from germany out of the military and theyre super cool. i like serving here. the transfer is coming to an end which is crazy. it feels like it just started. and im almost twenty. man.. its cool to look back in my journal a year ago and see how far ive really come. me and elder mackley are training elder humphreys and sometimes its a little frustrating. hes pretty immature and doesnt really know how to teach. but were really helping him learn which in turn is helping me learn. i think all the time. was i that immature and unlearned. i probably was. which again is cool to see the progression. and i see the potential for this kid to become a great teacher. thanks for keeping me updated on everything back home. its really nice to hear about whats going on. i love it.

also idk if you already made a B-Day package. but could you include like four pairs of the shirt stays. like the normal ones you usually get. maybe some study materials like highlighters and a strait edge. and gum and maybe a gift card to somewhere for three of us. idk thats all i really want. maybe if you wanna spoil me a new watch would be nice. one with a white band. maybe. id like that. 

but if you already got stuff then dont worry about it. i can wait till christmas haha.

i love you mom. sorry for all the headaches i give you

Love

Elder Bowler

August 4, 2014

Dallen.. Play Football. youll be glad you did. plus youre gonna be bigger than me and everyone will be mad at you if you dont play. and its really good prep for doing hard things (mission)

anyway. its crazy that everyone comes home now. derrek comes home next month. and im on the downhill of my mission. i can look back in my journal and see what i wrote a year ago. its pretty cool. i do have my rough moments. this week was pretty hard but im determined to stick it out. the bad times will blow over eventually. so i just work. not gonna lie the hard times suck pretty bad when they come but i just read the scriptures like a mad man haha. it helps. im on my fourth time through the book of mormon. almost done with alma. its a pretty good book. i can read it forever. 

g sizes i guess i need like 4 xl extra support bottoms. and 4 cotton poly crew neck xl tops would be greatly appreciated. and yeah i like to wear long sleeve. if you could can you get like a smaller chest size. like mid 40s 50s are too big. i got a shirt from walmart and it was a 17. 17 1/2 neck . so just a xl shirt and it fits great. but i got short sleeve. if you got a few of those it would be nice its hot here haha. everyone says oh youre from arizona youre used to the heat. but im dying haha. its more humid here and i sweat like crazy. and ive always liked the cold more. 

other than that im doing pretty good. im determined to make this a good week. the transfer ends on tuesday the 26th. my bday. so dont send anything close to it cuz i might be transferred. idk. 

it seems like my emails are just getting shorter and shorter. i guess i just like letters more. maybe ill start writing again. well see haha. stamps are expensive. i think i should be able to get some tho.

i gotta go tho. 

love you!!
Elder Bowler

July 28, 2014

I got the pants. not very good material tho haha. i slid down a pole on the stairs and it burnt a hole and completely ruined them. but i got the other pair so its all good. my shirt size is like a 17 1/2 or 18 neck and 36/37 sleeve,

i ended up in grand junction with elder Mackley and Humphries, both super funny elders. Mackley served with Gonzales right before i did and hated him just as much. we just moved apartments today 

so our address is

125 Franklin Ave. #312 

Grand Junction, CO 81505

i had a pretty rough week. easily the worst on my mission yet. closest ive been to coming home. but i got over it i hope. i just hate moving around every transfer and not being able to stay anywhere long enough to build relationships with people. so when we visit the mission there wont be hardly anyone to see. and i hate being tossed around not feeling like i belong anywhere. its very lonely. i dont really have friends. its just hard. 

but i cant really do anything about it so might as well make the most of it. right? 

theres this online college for members of the church. idk if youve heard about it but i want to do it when i get home but i think it would be perfect for calvin. its only $65 per credit hour. for a year then after a year it transfers to byui and if you keep doing it online then it stays $65. and has a quite a few degrees. its way awesome. bachelors degree for about $10,000 total. super awesome. all online at your own pace. plus it throws in a little religion. haha. but its awesome. im deffinately gonna do it.

pathways.lds.org look it up

other than all that.. ive been pretty good. i like it alot here in Grand junction. its nice. 

i feel like im getting worse and worse at emailing haha. ill try to do better 

Love ya. 

Elder Bowler

July 21, 2014

i got transferred to highlands ranch again but president is moving me tomorrow. maybe to craig idk yet. ill send a letter with my address when ever i land. i know president doesnt hate me. just sometimes he gets really frustrated haha. he kinda had a bad week the other week. four missionaries went to in-and-out in provo. idk if i already said that or not but but he was in a bad mood. and i didnt help. i saw him the other day and he took one look at me and said hes gonna give me $100 to go buy some new shirts. i guess mine are pretty worn out haha. oh well. use it up wear it out make it do or do with out. motto still carries on for missionaries. ive pretty much had water and pretzel bites for the past week. and then what ever members feed us. not too often tho. missionary life. i decided from now on im never shopping anywhere except the dollar store haha. that place has just about everything a missionary needs to get by. perfect. im not coming home. i decided that a while ago. i started it might as well finish. im half way done. no turning back. yeah it gets pretty crappy sometimes but whos life doesnt? just roll with it. pray a little harder. and move on. such is life. one year left. still some growth to go through. but its all good. im excited. time flies. just gotta work hard. make it go faster haha. crazy that nana and papa are coming home already then derrek in a little while too. i cant believe it. time goes by so fast.

sorry to hear that the activity didnt go as planned. it sounded like it was gonna be a lot of fun. then life happens. do what you can with it i guess. man life is just crazy. i look back over the past year. i cant believe how far ive come. then i see how far i still have to go haha. im excited tho. id just like to stay in one place longer than one transfer so i can actually have some friends to connect with and come back and see. the past six transfers i havent been able to really connect with anyone. havent really get to be a part of someones conversion like i would like to. oh well. not much i can do tho.

i gotta go tho. pday is calling. might go play ball with jimmer. we saw him earlier today. shooting at the stake center. hes pretty cool.

LOVE  YA!!!!

Elder Bowler