First MTC Letter

Hello from the MTC!
Alo!
So today is our P day and I have just a few minutes to write home, but I am so excited about it. Tudo Bem! (Everything's Well!). It has been an exhausting few days, but oh so rewarding. The spirit is so strong and I'm learning so much. Although, Mommy, I did not get a picture in front of the MTC sign since they're doing construction in front of the campus and it is no longer there. So I'll have to make sure to take a picture in front of something else to distinguish that I'm at the MTC.
So I have two companions and they are Sister Wegener and Sister Dangerfield and they are incredible. We were best friends on the first day, and it just keeps getting better. They're both from Utah, and just the sweetest girls ever. Our district is a blast as well. All of our elders are just so much fun. I did see Elder Casey the other day in the cafeteria as well as one of my boys from my very first week as an EFY counselor three years ago. It was really neat to see him. Though since both of my companions went to BYU they see people they knew all the time. So it was fun to see at least two different people that I knew before I came here.
So portuguese is going well. It's hard and kind of overwhelming, but our teachers are excellent and we're starting to learn quickly. We were challenged yesterday after learning how to pray in portuguese to say every prayer in the language, and even though it's hard it's helping already. Though sometimes when I try to pronounce certain words my tongue just feels thick. but the more I practice the easier it feels. El evangelho (the gospel) is especially hard though. That lh combination is tricky. But it's all going good, and we're slowly replacing words like thank you and hello with their portuguese counterparts in every day speech.
Eu quero prestar meu testemuho com voce. Amo este evangelho e meu Pai Celestial. Meu Salvador vive, e A igreja de Deus esta aqui na terra. Eu nome de Jesus Cristo, Amen.
We learned how to bear our testimony the other day and had to go and bear it to at least two people outside of our district. It was scary, but the elders we found were spanish speaking so they couldn't tell how much we butchered it.
But in addition to the language, we've been learning so much about our purpose as missionaries and how to talk to people. It's an incredible work we're doing, and I'm just starting to realize the power that I've been set apart with as I learn to rely on the Lord. Even though the language is hard and the schedule is rigorous, and it just feels like there aren't enough hours in the day for all that we have to learn, I know that we are the Lord's servants and it's his work we're doing and he qualifies his servants. I love this gospel and so far I'm just loving the mission. I love learning. I know at some point I'll probably have a melt down, but I'm so so so happy so far.
I love you, and I hope everything at home is just dandy. I am so grateful for all of your support and love. It makes it easier for me to know that my family is behind me one hundred percent.
Love,
Paige

p.s. Packages and letters are like gold here. And we're all greedy for them.

p.p.s. We've heard a lot about sisters and elders getting reassigned because of visa issues. But I'm actually ahead of a lot of missionaries in my district having already filled out the online visa application. But I've heard that might not even mean anything. All we really know for sure about it is that it's unpredictable. But we're all hopeful.

p.s.s. The chocolate milk is indeed delicious, and the food has been good as well. But with all of the excersize I've been getting I don't think there are any major concerns about my gaining weight. So hopefully I won't come home with that mission 15.