The Greatest of All

  As I have been thinking about who I am grateful for and why these last weeks, it has become even more apparent to me to whom I owe more thanks than I can ever sufficiently give, and that is to my loving Heavenly Father and His son, Jesus Christ.

  I have thought a lot about what I want to say in this post, to keep it reverent and also sincere. I have decided to simply share my testimony of Them.

  I know that I am a daughter of God. He is my literal Father and He loves me like a Father. He blessed me with an Earthly father who loves me so overwhelmingly, and that has taught me to know how much Heavenly Father knows and loves me. He knows my name. He knows my heart. He watches over me. He helps me. He blesses me. He is always there. He has guided me to every person that has had an impact in my life, and I am grateful to Him for that. I know that all He wants for me is to experience true joy, and that if I will trust Him, joy will be my end result.

  I know that Jesus Christ lives. I know that he suffered for my sins, and that He did it because he loves me and every one of us. I know that I would not be who I am without Him. I know that who I am today is very different from who I was 10 years ago, and that change is because of Him. I know that He set the perfect example for me to follow. I know that He is kind and full of patience towards me. That He is always willing to forgive me. I owe Him EVERYTHING. I will never be able to repay Him. And He doesn't expect me to. He just asks that I do my best. I am so grateful for my Savior and all He has made possible for me and my family.

  I have not always known all these things. But I have prayed. I have searched the scriptures. I have gone to church and discussed things with family and friends. And I have put principles to the test. And then, I have had profound and sacred experiences where the Spirit has told me the answers that I was seeking. I know these things for myself, and not because it's what my parents told me or what my church leaders say. I have received my own personal revelation, and for this I am grateful as well.

  I can't imagine a better way to start the Christmas season than by focusing on how grateful I am for Jesus Christ, and the joy He brought into the world the day He was born. I will just end by sharing a scripture that shows one of the reasons why I love the Savior:
 
John 16:33 - "These things I have spoken into you, that in me he might have peace. In the world he shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."

 

Thanks Amy

Amy,

  First of all, can you believe that this is the only picture that we EVER took together? I guess it's our own fault for having kids who are so unbelievably adorable that we are way too busy always taking pictures of them. Because I've got lots of pictures of your girls, or you and the girls, or you with my kids. At least we can safely say that we are not like those youths who can't do anything without taking a picture of themselves and posting about it. We are so cool. And grown up. And just so over it all. Ha!

  I don't know if I ever told you, but the very first time I saw you at church, I knew we were going to be friends. Ask Tyler, I told him as much. At first, I was intimidated to talk to you. You were rocking your red lip and I thought, I don't know, this girl looks way too cool for me.  I didn't know that we were going to be #soulfriends, though.You were and are such a blessing in my life. Over the years I have come to realize that friends mean a lot to me. Thank you for being mine.

   Thank you for inviting me and the kids over for a play date. Thank you for being so kind and friendly and easy to talk to and awesome. Thank you for being from Georgia and for having that amazing southern accent. Don't you ever get rid of it. Thank you for wanting to hang out with me just as much as I wanted to hang out with you. When we first became friends, Tyler teased me one night about how often we were getting together. But I thought, hey, when you find a friend like that, you don't wait around! Thank you for going to the pumpkin patch with us, and honestly all the different outings we went on when Olive was still so little that you had to carry her around. If the roles had been reversed I probably would have said no thanks, that's too much work. 

   Thank you for offering so many times to watch the kids for me just because. Just to give me a break. Just because you are a good person who is always looking for ways to serve the people you care about. Thank you for not just telling me about the good parts of your life or the good parts about you but also your struggles and frustrations and the hard times you were having. Thank you for being willing to let me see your imperfections. Being able to be vulnerable like that is a strength I don't possess, and I admire it in you. 

   Thank you for coming up with the Girls Night idea. Thank you for staying over until an hour of the night that there is no need to admit to here. Thank you for watching movies with me. Thank you for sharing yummy treats with me. Thank you for telling me all about your high school and college stories and for listening to mine. Thank you for still coming to Girls Night even after we moved to Independence. 

   Thank you for introducing me to so many new things! I tried so many new foods that I wouldn't have otherwise, and I loved almost all of them. I mean, where would I be without pistachios now? Or butternut squash?? And that Ham you made at Christmas is now our Thanksgiving tradition, so you will always be a part of our home. Thank you for taking me to try Hot Yoga. If it wasn't so pricey, I'd go all the time. Thank you for doing the exercise and nutrition challenges with me, and for laughing with me when we didn't quite fulfill our goals. Thank you for cheering me on and telling me I could do it. Thank you for meeting me early early early in the morning to go walking. I miss that so much. 

  Thank you for having us over for Christmas Eve dinner and for cooking that amazing meal. Thank you for your sweet ornaments you gave us both years. Thank you for loving my kids, and making them feel so safe and welcome in your home. Ellory still talks about Miss Amy's house. 

  Thank you for being excited for us when we got the Iowa State job. Thank you for being as sad as I was at the same time. Thank you for making jokes with me about how we were acting like we were some sort of couple who was deciding to try a long distance relationship. Thank you for talking on the phone with me for an hour of my driving across the country. 

  Thank you for your contributions to my #wardrobegoals. You really should find out if there is someone out there who would pay you to shop for them because you're amazing at it. Thank you for all the shopping trips. Thank you for going to French Press with me. Thank you for the Pumpkin and Strawberry donuts. 

  Thank you for your example of a selflessness. You always put the girls' and Nathans needs before your own. They came before your workouts, your meals, your tv shows, your books, anything and everything that you wanted to do came second to them. It's incredible, and I try to remember your example as much as I can. You always tried your best to say Yes instead of No, and I try to follow your example. Thank you for your sense of right and wrong. Thank you for sharing your testimony with me. Thank you for sharing your concerns with me. Thank you for talking through solutions with me. Thank you for being an example of what it means to go where Heavenly Father wants us to go. I know how hard it is for you to be so far from your family, and in a place where you hate the weather. But that's where you're supposed to be, and the people there are lucky to have you.

  I am forever changed because of you, Amy. I will never find another you. I loved that we were such good friends and so inseparable, that when I showed up to a gathering, the first thing people would ask me was either, "Where's Amy?" or "Is Amy coming?" because of course I always knew what you were doing and where you were. I am a better mom because of you. We joke, but I'm serious, I always think of you when I start to lose my patience. You may of gotten mad at your girls, but you were so good at keeping your voice calm and lowered and your face never looked scary. Ellory has told me many times how scary my face looks when I get mad at her. 

  I hope you know how much you mean to me. I hope you know that you are family to me. I hope you know that I love you very much and I am so very grateful to know you and to have you in my life. I'm so grateful that we can facetime and that when we do, it really feels like we're catching up and hanging out again. I know we will see each other again. Even if it means booking a cruise together, we will make it happen! Thank you again, for everything.

Thanks Kristen

 

Kristen!!!

   My beautiful, beautiful friend!!! I miss you so so sosossosososososos much! Did you know you were an answer to my prayers? Before we moved to Washington, my one prayer was that I would make ONE friend. Heavenly Father ended up blessing me with many friends, which made it really hard to move away in the end. And I became close with Rachel first, but you were and are just as important to me and just as much an answer to that prayer. And the ways that you have influenced me are more than I can say. And probably more than I even realize.

   First of all, thank you for being my friend! I came in to your world, to your town that you grew up in, where all your family still was and all your friends. You didn't need to add another friend in the mix. You obviously didn't need me. So thank you for being willing to be my friend anyway. Thank you for making room for me. Thank you for having Bauston. He and Kale were just the best little pals, and when I was praying for a friend for me, I never thought to pray for a friend for him. But Heavenly Father knew best. Again! 

  Thank you for hanging out with me all the time. Thank you coming over in the morning to do workout videos with me. Thank you for going to Yakima with me. Thank you for inviting me to your bridal shower and bachelorette party and sealing. Thank you for telling me all about your life and how you got to where you were. You have strengthened my testimony in ways beyond measure. Thank you for bringing me Palace fries when I was pregnant. AND for bringing them to me at the hospital after Ellory was born. Thank you for throwing me the cutest baby shower I have ever seen. Thank you for being so excited for me when I told you I was pregnant. Thank you for telling me you were pregnant the day that we moved away. Thank you for being just as obsessed with Pretty Little Liars as I was. Thank you for laughing with me. Thank you for sharing so many of the same interests.

  Thank you for all the times you watched Kale for me. Thank you for asking me to watch Bauston for you. Thank you for introducing Jesse to us. He is so great, and I'm so happy for you that you found him. Thank you for stopping to visit us in Salem. I'm so excited to one day meet up with you guys in Kansas City! It WILL happen.  

  You know, you were the first friend I had that was in the same stage of life as me and the same geographical location. Meaning, we were about the same age, had one kid, and still dirt poor. I had other mom friends who I loved very much but they were mostly far away or had a 2 or 3 kids and they were a little more established. It meant a lot to me to have you, someone who could really relate, someone who knew what it felt like right now, in the moment, and someone who understood that all we could really do for fun was hang out at each other's houses or at the park. And it was the best! Thank you for your understanding and your support. You became a sister to me, and your family is like my family. I love you very very much. Thank you for everything you have done for me and the huge role that you have played in my life. Until we see each other again. I'm sure we could find a job for Jesse in Iowa. Just sayin......

Thanks Rachel

Rachel,

    You had to know this was coming. You had to know that profound influence you've had in my life. I refuse to believe you didn't know. When we were getting ready to move to Washington, I was nervous. We didn't know anyone up there, and I was afraid I was going to be very very lonely. And so, I prayed. I prayed that I would make just ONE friend. And then, I met you. You were an answer to my desperate prayer. Thank you! Thank you for following a prompting to ask me to be a co-leader with you on the 4th years overnight hike at Girls Camp. That is the only time in my life where I have actually enjoyed Girls Camp! Thank you for inviting us over for dinner all the time. Thank you for playing games with us. Thank you for having kids who wanted to play with Kale! 

    Thank you for caring about what was going on in my life. Thank you for always being aware. Thank you for being an amazing example of motherhood. Thank you for showing me that our kids want us to get down and play with them. Thank you for showing me that we will be happier if we don't let the little things get in our way. Thank you for showing me that just because I'm "grown up" and a mom doesn't mean I can't still have fun and be silly. Thank you for showing me that the most important thing a mom can do is make sure her kids know that she loves them.

   Thank you for all the times you strengthened my testimony by bearing yours. Thank you for being an example of someone who is always mindful of the Spirit and how the gospel effects our daily lives. Thank you for making and delivering a chocolate cake to me when I was pregnant and feeling sorry for myself and simply leaving it on my doorstep. Thank you for all the times you watched Kale for me when I was feeling sick or had a doctor's appointment. Thank you for being the someone I was going to rely on should the baby come before my mom came. Thank you for being so excited when Ellory was born. Thank you for taking her baby blessing pictures.

  Thank you for coming to visit us in Salem when you were on a long journey back home. Thank you for laughing with us and making that visit special even though it was short. Thank you for letting Tyler crash with you when he had to unexpectedly stay in Ellensburg after a football game. I was sooooooooooooooooooo jealous of him. I seriously considered driving up there. Thank you for your Sunday Family Photos. They are a little sad to look at because I miss you and your family so much, but I love watching them grow and change. 

   If I had never met you, I would be a different mother. I am not exaggerating. There are many times when the kids do something or want something, and I often think to myself, "Ok, how would Rachel handle this?" Because Bryn has little patience and a short temper. Thank  you for helping me to become closer to the mother my kids deserve. Thank you for being a wonderful friend. There are not many times in my life, when saying goodbye to friends, that I have cried. But I cried saying goodbye to you, because I truly didn't want to not have you nearby anymore. I was certain that I would never have another friend like you, because there is no one else like you. I love you, Rachel. Thank you for everything!

Thanks Marlee

Marleeeeeeeeee!!!!!!

  Like a G6, like a G6.....IT'S A LOVE STORY BABY JUST SAY YES!!. Oh the good times we had singing songs in the Control Room at the top of our lungs. We were, by far, the coolest security guards to ever work at the BYU Museum of Art. No contest. Can you imagine if we'd never become friends? I can't. There is so much I would have missed out on. So much I wouldn't have learned. Thank you for all the great times! Thank you for coming to walk around my galleries with me when you were on break. Thank you for "prank calling" me from the Control Room.
  Thank you for that summer when we were inseparable. Thank you for going to people's receptions with me and laughing at how awkward we were. Thank you for all the sleepovers. Thank you for helping me fine tone my snarkiness.Thank you for all our discussions about church. Thank you for spending your birthday with me that one time. Thank you for always being on my side when I was mad at Tyler and then always being on my side when I thought he was the best thing ever, too. Thank you for always being so articulate. You have an amazing ability to put things into words in the exact way that I want to but am never able to. Like this thank you, I'm sure you could put our friendship into much better words. So, just suffer with me a little longer.
  Thank you for getting together with me when you could after we got married and had kids. Thank you for calling me before you moved to Japan to tell me that was happening. Thank you for inviting me to meet your beautiful family. Thank you for not being afraid to admit your mistakes and move on from them. You taught me that I don't have to hide from my past mistakes, that I can admit them and learn from them. Thank you for showing me how to laugh at myself. Thank you for that one time when we tried to be people who went to the the gym. Ha! Our abs looked amazing because we spent the whole time laughing. Thank you for enjoying guilty pleasure's with me like Vampire Diaries.
  Marlee, you are amazing. You astound me as a mother and friend. You are kind and thoughtful and slow to anger, but you are firm in your beliefs and are more than willing to stand up for what is right. Thank you for being my friend. Thank you for making my job my favorite part of college. Thank you for making that summer a little less miserable. Thank you for helping me to see that my identity did not begin and end with who my future husband would be, but also to not discount how my identity would change once I was married. I am so very grateful to count you as a friend and to know you and to continually learn from you as I look at your pictures and read your blog. Thank you, thank you. I don't think I can say it enough. I don't think you can understand how much you have meant to me and how often I still think about you and remember you. I hope this ill-worded letter has given you an idea of how I feel, though. I love you, Marlee!

Thanks Nate and Brady

Nate Vaughn,

   Where would I be without you?! Thank you for being my friend almost immediately after you moved into the house up the hill. Thank you for not caring that I was a girl. Thank you for playing football and basketball and snowball fights. Thanks for being cool with me hanging out with you and the boys. Thanks for being my friend even though Kyle Kilburg and I hated each other for a while. Thank you for always having my back. I knew I could always count on you. Thanks for all the fun times in show choir and band and normal choir.
   Most of all, thank you for being such a GOOD guy. You are so genuine and thoughtful and just all around good. Most guys in high school were jerks and idiots and immature, but you never were. I don't think I ever heard you say anything negative about anyone. Ever. I count myself lucky that a great guy like you considered me to be one of his friends. You probably don't remember, but when they announced I was Homecoming Queen, you ran over to me and you gave me the biggest hug and you said to me, "Of all the people who have ever been Queen, you deserve it the most." I have never forgotten that. Because your opinion meant so much to me. Thank you for your very kind words and actions.
  Without you my 4th and 5th grade years would have been much different. I liked my friends at school, but I was in this weird phase and so I didn't allow myself to become close with any one of them. But I looked forward to getting home from school and playing with you. You were my very best friend and the reason for a lot of happiness in my life. I will always fondly remember our sledding days, the "campouts", and all the jokes. You're the best, Nate, and I hope you know that I wish you the best in all you do and I'm so happy for the success you've had so far. Thank you again, for all you did for me.

Brady. Brady. Brady.

  I feel like I have so much to say! I may have become friends with Nate first after you moved in, but our high school shenanigans became epic. Thank you for thinking I was cool. Thank you for wanting to hang out with me just the two of us. Thank you for playing video games and eating, what was it? Canadian bacon wrapped in cheese? It was delicious. Thank you for all our late night talks. Thank you for JAMMING to "I Swear" over and over. Thank you for all the times you gave me rides places.
  Thank you for making me feel important. You sometimes went out of your way to make sure I was included or invited. Thank you for being the kind of guy friend who actually listened to my complaints and concerns and for telling me about yours. Thank you for always always always looking out for me. If you heard anything at school that might have concerned me and maybe be bad, you were there for me in half a second. And you always defended me.
  Thank you for keeping in such close touch with me during my freshman year of college. You called me all the time and we texted all the time and I felt like we weren't drifting apart at all. It meant a lot to me that you made that effort. And you helped me through a hard year of my life. Thank you for being excited for me to come home that summer. Thank you for not hating me for falling out of touch after that. Thank you for coming to my wedding reception! Thank you for inviting us to come over to your house afterwards.
  I feel like I'm missing a lot of things, and I'm sorry for that. I just want you to know, you were a huge part of my life. I have told Tyler so many stories about you, you'd probably be surprised at well he knows you. Thank you for being my friend. Thank you for making me so happy. Thank you thank thank you for everything. I can't help smiling when I think about the fun we had. You are the best and you deserve the best. And hopefully, I"ll get to see you again soon!!

Thanks Jim and Kris

Jim and Kris,

   Thank you, thank you, thank you for soooooo much. When I wasn't at school or my own home, the vast majority of the time I was in YOUR home. Thank you for welcoming me into your home and allowing me to be best friends with your daughter. Thank you for making me feel a part of your family. Brittney is my best friend, but you are both more like parents to me rather than the simply the parents of my friend. Thank you for talking to me and being interested in my life. Thank you for all the times you fed me dinner or breakfast or lunch or anything. Thank you for letting me sleepover at your house. Kris, thank you for all the times you put those stupid rollers in my hair. Thank you for cheering for me as well as your daughters when we were at sporting events or music competitions. Thank you for telling me you loved me. Honestly, the first time you said that to me, I was kinda like, "whaaaaa?" but when I really thought about it, I felt silly for thinking it was weird. And of course, I love you, too!

  Jim, thank you for being so fun-loving and for ALWAYS SCARING THE CRAP OUT OF ME. I'm still not certain that the whole Cleopatra freezer story isn't real....Thank you for being a kind man who loves his wife and family above all else. I had a great example of what a good father and husband looked like in my family, but it never hurts for a girl to see more than one example. 

   Thank you for letting me be a part of you lives and family and for all your support since I've been away. Thank you for the wedding gift. Thank you for coming to my reception. Thank you for being so excited for me when I started having babies. Thank you for continually reaching out to me and showing me you still care. Because of you and your home, I had more than one place to go to feel safe and loved.  I'm sure I've never made it clear to you how much you mean to me, and how grateful I am for all you did for me in high school and since. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Thanks Erin

Erin Moore!

  Orange porta-potties, huh? Did you know you helped me pick my major? I was frustrated that BYU was dropping their Bachelor's program for Social Work and I was thinking I would do a Psychology major but it wasn't sitting right with me. And then I met you, and you told me all about your Sociology class and how much you loved it and so I decided to take the Intro class that very next semester. And I felt really good about it. I wouldn't say I'm as passionate about it as you are, but I enjoyed the way it challenged the way I view people and the world. Thank you for introducing me to Sociology and for being so passionate about it. Thank you for helping me all those times with my assignments. One time, I had to write a paper, and I had sort of an idea but I was having trouble developing it into something really good. And so, you stopped doing YOUR homework, you erased our apartment whiteboard, and you helped talk me through it. You didn't just give me an answer and send me on my way. You put in the time and effort to help me figure it out for myself. Thank you for that night and the many other nights.
  Thank you for welcoming me into your apartment and group of friends. Thank you for letting me crash on your couch and use your shower. Thank you for sending me care packages over the summer. Thank you for always reading my blog and texting me about it afterwards. Thank you for continuing to call me "Bryan Gerbals". Thank you for teasing me when I was dating Tyler and making me so embarrassed I'd cover my face with anything available. Thank you for driving me a boatload of places. Thank you for being a Y Group Leader with me. Thank you for asking me to do all the other cool volunteer things around campus. Thank you for always being down for some silliness, whether it be a good old fashioned game of Truth or Dare, or pranking our poor sleeping roommates.
  I appreciate your friendship and I'm grateful for all you have done for me and helped me with. Thank you for thinking of me when my Grandma died. That meant all the world to me. Thank you for having such a burning desire to love everyone and help everyone and to do your part to make the world a better place.

Thanks Alyssa

Alyssa Kate Smith,

  Thank you thank you thank you thank you thank you for being my friend. I can't help but be happy when I'm with you. I think I distinctly remember a time when I was really mad and I didn't want to not be mad yet, and so I avoided you because I knew as soon as I saw your face I'd stop being so mad. Thank you for always being able to cheer me up and make me laugh. Actually, thank you for always being able to reduce me to giggles. Thank you for having a September birthday. Thank you for all your silly cat references. Thank you for being ok with me crashing on your couch for a year. Thank you for agreeing to let me be a real roommate sophomore year.
  Thank you for being such a great example to me of what it means to be kind and loving to everyone. No matter how kind or unkind they are to us. No matter if we agree with them or not. No matter what.
  Thank you for being excited to tell me that you were engaged or that you were pregnant even though I have been so terrible at keeping in touch with you consistently. Thank you for working at the MOA with me. Oh my goodness, that was the best job in the world.
  I'm sitting here thinking about all my favorite memories of you and they all end with us laughing so hard that it hurts. Thank you for bringing so much laughter and fun into my life. We always had the best kind of fun. I'm so excited for your baby to be born! You are going to be the best, most laid back, most loving, awesomest mom. Your little girl is sooooo lucky! I hope I will get to meet her one day.

I love you Alyssa!

Thanks Alison

ALISON!!!!

    Yelling your name just always feels right. Just thinking about hanging out with you makes me happy and excited. You have this amazing quality about you where you are so full of joy and happiness and anyone within your vicinity can't help but feel the same. Thank you for filling my life with more joy and happiness! Thank you for being an amazing example of what a friend should be like even in our teen years. We were all so focused on ourselves, but you were always completely aware of everyone else and taking care of everyone else. Thank you for laughing with me. Thank you for helping me to laugh at myself. Thank you for being genuinely interested in what was going on with me, even when what was going on with you was much harder.
   Thank you for all our silly shenanigans. Thank you for being the voice of reason. Thank you for buying ugly Goodwill dresses with me and then wearing them in public with me. Thank you for always being willing to drive us around in your boat of a car. Thank you for being a great teammate. Thank you for always being able to say what I wanted to say about what I was thinking or how I was feeling way better than I could. Thank you for loving traditions as much as me. Remember our post-football game tradition? I only remembered just the other day when Tyler and I were driving passed the football field. We would go to Walmart and get some Ben and Jerry's pints and some plastic spoons and then wait on the hood of our cars at the high school parking lot for the boys to come out and we would hopefully cheer them up because they lost like all their games. And I guarantee that idea was alllll YOU. And we always did that, even when it was FREEZING. Thank you for letting me be your date to your senior Prom. We had a blast! Thank you for all the phone calls my freshman year of college. Thank you for the packages you sent me. I still have the bracelet you sent me from Mexico.
   Thank you for offering to drive out to Utah when I got married. I know you totally would have done it, too. Thank you for coming to my Iowa reception and offering up the idea that we should all hang out afterwards. I wanted you and Tyler to hit it off so badly and you made it easy. Like usual! Thank you for making time to see me every time I've been able to visit Iowa. Thank you for thinking my kids are adorable. Thank you for all the amazing voicemails you've left me over the years. They are long. They usually involve singing a Queen song. And I love every second of them.
  Thank you for inviting me to your Bridal Shower and your wedding! You were beautiful and it was fun! Thank you for thinking of me amidst all the craziness of wedding planning.
  Alison, you have touched my life in so many ways. Without you, high school wouldn't have been nearly as pleasant. You helped me to know that I can be myself and not worry about what others may think or say, because it doesn't matter. And you were so supportive of me and my beliefs. In fact, I'm pretty sure that if I had tried to drink some alcohol you would have slapped it out of my hands and sent me home. I adore you and all the memories we made. I feel so blessed to be able to call you a friend. I love you, Alison!

Thanks Brittney

Brittney May,

   Oh my bestest friend for so many years. I guess I'll start with, thank you for being my best friend since 6th grade. Do you remember how it happened? I don't. I just know that it did and we were inseparable for the next 6 years. Thank you for thinking I was cool. Thank you for having a secret notebook with me. Cinnamon and Ginger were two cool cats. Thank you for doing school sports with me. Thank you for convincing me to do plays with you. Thank you for being in band and choir with me. Thank you for being so humble about how good you were at all things musical. Thank you for knowing who you were, what you liked, and not basing that on what anyone else did or said. Thank you for letting me be who I wanted to be and not base our friendship on whether or not we liked or wanted the same things. Thank you for always being kind to everyone. You are the most inclusive person I've ever met. You will be friends with anyone.
   Thank you for all the sleepovers. Thank you for always wanting to double or group date with me to school dances. Thank you for telling me you thought I could do Drum Majoring with you.  Thank you for birthday surprises. Thank you for summers full of fun fun fun. Thank you for showing me most of the music I still love. Thank you for playing the piano with me. Thank you for convincing me to try out for Show Choir.
   Thank you for always being there. Thank you for listening. Thank you for being on my side. Thank you for letting me come spend a weekend with you at Wartburg. Thank you for sending me that WTF shirt. Still got it. Thank you for going out of your way to make sure you came and saw Tyler and me when we came to Iowa for our reception.  Thank you for taking me out and pampering me when I came to Iowa for Christmas when Kale was 1. Thank you for getting him a present. Thank you for letting me come to a MOTAB concert with you in Salt Lake City!
  I love that no matter how long it has been, *cough cough* years* cough cough*, when we do see each other again it doesn't even matter. Thank you for that. Thank you for understanding that even though I am terrible at keeping up with what's going on in your life, that I still care and I still wish you well.

 Because of you, middle school and high school were something that I enjoyed. I don't necessarily wish to go back to high school days, but I loved it. I had a blast. And that was because I had an awesome friend like you. I love you, boo!

Thanks Brittany

 Brittany Crumback!!!!!
 
   I have so much to thank you for, I hardly know where to begin. How about, thank you for saving me? I know I sometime have a tendency for exaggeration, but I promise you I am not exaggerating here. If not for you, my freshman year at BYU would have gone MUCH differently. If not for you, I'm honestly not sure if I ever would have gone back. So thank you for befriending me immediately. Thank you for not just being nice to me because my big brother had invited me to tag along and so I happened to be in the room, but because you are a genuinely good person. And then thank you for going out of your way to invite me to do things with you all. Thank you for letting me crash on your couch almost every night. Thank you for introducing me to Mariko, who got me my amazing on campus job. Thank you for wanting me to be your real roommate for sophomore year. Thank you for making church and the gospel a priority in our apartment. Watching General Conference, going to FHE and all 3 hours of church, were not optional, they were important. You helped me become someone who lived the gospel rather than just tagging along in it. Thank you for cooking me so many dinners. THANK YOU FOR ALL THE BRITT-COOKS!!!! Thank you for the birthday parties. Thank you for all the all-nighters. Thank you for the endless laughter. Thank you for always knowing everything about everything. That might sound snarky, but it's not. I really think that you always know everything about what's going on!
  Thank you for being the best room-roommate ever. There was literally nothing about being your roommate that I didn't like. No little quirks. No snoring. Nothing. Thank you for constantly washing the dishes and taking out the garbage. Thank you for almost always being the one to clean the bathroom.
   Thank you for being the most thoughtful person I have ever met. Thank you for being good at inviting people around us to come and join. Thank you for looking out for Jake, too. And for signing up for all his classes for him (eye roll). Thank you for reminding me of ways we can be of service to those around us.
   Thank you for taking me to urgent care when I slice my finger open on that stupid can. Thank you for teasing me about it forever. Thank you for being excited for me when I started dating Tyler. Thank you for not telling me I was being an idiot all the times we broke up and then got back together. Thank you for inviting me to come with your family to Midway. Thank you for being jazzed for me when we got engaged and for telling Tyler my ring size and probably many other things in secret. Thank you for going wedding dress shopping with me. Thank you for throwing me a bridal shower. I loved the video you did! Thank you for coming to BOTH of my receptions. Thank you for hanging out with me after I got married. Thank you for bringing me twice baked potatoes when I had morning sickness and I had told you that was the only thing that I could eat.
  Thank you for loving my kids like they are your very own family. Thank you for the many adorable gifts you have given them, both in person and via mail. Thank you for the Nike shoes you gave Kale. He's still upset that he outgrew them. Thank you for having a bag of little presents for them in your car all the time so any time you came over you had something for them. Thank you for that one night when we ate dinner at the food trucks and went to the BYU volleyball game. Thank you for sending me flowers after my Grandma died. Thank you for sending me the first 2 seasons of Gilmore Girls after Ellory was born. Thank you for always being so very aware of everything going on in my life even though I am not the same to you. Thank you for being the most amazing friend to me even though I fail to you. Thank you for continuing to give me a chance to be your friend.
   Without you, I can confidently say, my life would be COMPLETELY different. I would be different. I love you with all my heart and I think you are one of the very greatest people on this Earth. Thank you for all these things and so much more, Brittany.

Thanks Dain

Dain, Dainy-Boy, Bubba,

   My favorite BABY brother! Thank you for being so dang adorable. I still remember loving being your big sister when you were a baby. I loved feeling responsible for you, and caring for you and doing my part to take care of you. I wonder if that time in our life spurred my desire to be a mom. Obviously mom inspired me a ton, but baby Dainy-Boy certainly helped, so thank you for that!
   Thank you for being so kind-hearted. Thank you for doing everything with a smile. I can't remember a recent time that you have been mad and actually looked mad. I don't know if your facial muscles know how to make and angry face anymore. Thank you for always choosing to be happy. Thank you for letting me crack that egg on your head. Thank you for sucking at Tennis as much as I do. Thank you for playing that game with me and Nate and Kelly Vaughn even though we scared the crap out of you. Thank you for liking me even though I helped convince you there were evil monkeys coming to get you in the night.
  Thank you for being so good to mom. After suffering through Jake, and me, and then Kyle, I'm so glad she got to just enjoy and be happy with you. Thank you for making up for all of our idiotic choices by not making any of them.
   Thank you for asking me for advice, and actually taking it sometimes! Thank you for Snapchatting me up a storm. Thank you for telling me about the things that are going on in your life. Thank you for not hating me after that one night when we were at the Oregon Coast and I was grumpy and I was annihilating everyone with my words and you took the brunt of it. Thank you for playing air hockey with Kale over and over. Thank you for playing with him on the beach.
    Thank you for always being a friend. Thank you for always thinking the best of me. Thank you for being excited to meet your niece and nephew. Thank you for liking Tyler and thinking he's as cool as I do. 
   Thank you for always going along with whatever crazy person I decide to be whenever you call me. Thank you for being excited for us when we got the Iowa State job. Thank you for coming to visit us in Oregon. I'm so happy to have you for a brother. I think without you I would have been more scared to become a mom. So thank you for helping me learn responsibility and to love little ones.

I love you Dain! I can't wait to see you at Christmas. Thank you for everything!

Thanks Kyle

Kogs,

   Do you remember how you got that nickname? Do you still hate it? In my mind I'm thinking that you got the nickname from Dain when he was a baby and he couldn't say your name so he called you Kogs. I love it. And when I call you Kogs, it is completely out of love. Thank you for not hating me forever for continually bringing up your nickname.

   Thank you for being my little brother! Thank you for being so fun. Thank you for being so CRAZY. Thank you for always being willing to go along with whatever Jake and I wanted to do. Well, for a while at least. Thank you for being brave. Thank you for continuing to try to be funny for years and years and years and YEARS until finally, one day, you were hilarious. Thank you for making me laugh. Thank you for looking out for me. Remember when I rolled the car on the way to church? Thank you for being most concerned if I was OK (and Dain).
     I don't know if you know this, but you have always made me feel like maybe I'm better than I am. It seemed like any time I was feeling like maybe I wasn't as smart as I thought I was, or as athletic, or a good friend, you would come along and say just what I needed. One time, I was struggling with some homework (Geometry) and it was the first time I'd ever really struggled at school. I just could not get it. And I was so angry and feeling sorry for myself and deciding that I wasn't smart enough, blah blah blah, and then you came and asked me for help on your math homework. And it was pretty easy for me and I helped you and then you said, "Thanks Bryn, you are the smartest girl I know," and went on your way. And that changed me. Because I wanted to be the smartest girl you knew, always.
   Because of you, I was always trying to be a good example. I felt like you were always aware of what I was doing, and there were times that I made better choices because of that. Thank you for that. Thank you for being so driven and competitive. It may have driven me crazy during Family Home Evening, but it definitely brought in a new dynamic to our family, and I can see now how much it is benefiting your own little family because you are so determined and driven to do your best at your job. Thank you for not being embarrassed of me when you were with your friends. Thank you for being cool with me hanging with you guys sometimes. Thank you for not hating me even though I wasn't always the best big sister.
   Thank you for being so excited to introduce Heather to me. Thank you for coming out to my brother-in-law's house so that you could. Thank you for tricking her into marrying you, because I love her so much and I'm grateful to have her for a sister. Thank you for being a good man. Thank you for being a good uncle and loving my kids. They love you dearly.
   Thank you for being as obsessed with Stranger Things as I am. Thank you for Skyping with us. Thank you for hanging out with us that year that we lived in Utah the same time as you. Thank you for trying to help me with Ellory when we were at Bear Lake. Thank you for your Monty Python impersonations. 
   Thank you for loving this country and being willing to serve. I was surprised when I found out you were going to do ROTC. I hadn't any idea that you had any desire to be a military man. But I think it's wonderful and amazing. 
   Without you, I may not be the person I am today. I may not have the confidence I have. You know, Tyler is just as competitive as you are, and gets just as emotionally invested, and had I not grown up with someone like that, I may not have understood him and not stayed with him. Obviously that was not going to be the make or break reason, but thank you for that little bit of understanding you gave me.

I love you and I really really miss you and I can't wait for your second little girl to be born and to come visit you in your new house. 

Thanks Jake

Oh Jake, my one and only big brother. I know, for a fact, without any doubt at all, that I have not thanked you enough for the things you have done for me and the way you have influenced my life. Because most of the time, I have focused on your flaws instead of the things that make you great. So first, I'm sorry that I do that. It's not fair to you, and it's not right of me. Thank you for loving me despite my failings.

  Thank you for watching out for me all the time. I remember once in Marion when you and I went for a bike ride and we got caught in a bad storm. I was scared out of my mind, but I knew, 100 percent, that if I kept my eyes on you and followed you, that you would get me home safe and sound. And you did! Thank you for that. I also remember a time when I was mowing the lawn and some sort of buzzing bug flew in my ear and I was FREAKING out. You were inside and you came RUNNING out the back and down the deck 3 steps at a time. You were so worried about me and so ready to help. Thank you. I remember in Middle School that a boy who sat by me in math class and was my friend came in one day and wouldn't look at me or talk to me. I finally got him to tell me that my big brother had heard that this boy liked me and so that big brother had made it clear to this boy that he was not to go near me. Ever. Hahaha. And I had a few similar experiences when I got to high school. Thank you for caring enough about me to beat those boys away from me. Thank you for letting me play with you and your friends. Thank you for playing soccer with me. Thank you for playing a roll in my tomboyness.
   Thank you for all the emails you wrote me when you were on your mission. Chunk and Chubs are the coolest people around. Thank you for that one time when you had one of the ward members call me and I got to talk to you for a bit. On speaker of course. Thank you for being excited to go to BYU with me. Thank you for letting me come hang out with you at your apartment. Thank you for inviting me to come do stuff with you and your friends. Thank you for taking care of me when I got really sick for a couple of days. Thank you for being friends with Brittany Crumback so that I could become friends with her. Thank you for caring about my opinion. Thank you for wanting people to know that I was your sister. Thank you for giving me rides after you got your car.  Thank you for being my best friend that year.
   Thank you for wanting to serve in the military. For as long as I can remember, that's what you've wanted. I think it's an incredible thing and something to be applauded and praised. I'm grateful that you are willing to go and fight for our country. I"m also glad you haven't had to, though.
   Thank you for loving my kids. Thank you for giving them gifts, whether it be in person or by mail. Thank you for being sad that we couldn't come to Iowa for Christmas last year. Thank you for being the best Euchre partner. Thank you for loving to play games. Thank you for making me laugh. Thank you for helping to take care of me when we were in Denver for Kyle's wedding. Thank you for telling me we weren't in a Tornado Watch even though we were. Thank you for finding places for me and my big belly to sit. Thank you for buying us Buffalo Wild Wings that night and delivering it to our door. Thank you for always remember to call me on my birthday. Thank you for coming to my wedding.

I love you lots, Jake, and I think I would be a much different person without you. Also, it's been WAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYY too long since we saw you so tell Caree to quit her job so you can come for Christmas. Easy-peasy.