THE PECKING ORDER

--Friends--

"A true friend will encourage you to be your best self."

-FOR THE STRENGTH OF THE YOUTH

Kaitlyn and I she is serving in NY south :]

In the FOR STRENGTH OF THE YOUTH pamphlet we are told to "  Choose our friends carefully."   From what I understand, that does not mean we need to hand our resumes to people so they can do background checks to see if we qualify. I have found that many times throughout High School that many people took this idea to heart, which is not bad, but it does close a few doors. Students would not talk to people who would drink, do drugs, or have sex in fear that they would be tarnished from their presence. I am here to tell you that is FALSE. That we can talk to ALL people no matter who they are. You do not have to go to the parties they do, you do not have to participate in the things they do. However you can be their friend.

Freshman Roommates: Disney, Renee, Lauren, Jackie, Me, Rica

In High School students feel embarrassed to be friends with the kids who have been labeled as a

loser. Always remember that a loser is in fact a child of God and he loves them. In the end you may be their one and only friend.  

High School Days: Nic, Jason, Me

Rica, Wyatt, Me

I love what the apostle Russel M. Ballard said:

"If we are truly disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, we will reach out with love and understanding to all of our neighbors at all times."

-Doctrine of Inclusion

Elder Ballard tells us that we need to help ALL people at ALL times. Selecting friends is something that should be done very carefully. 

Scott, Nic, Jason, Me

I know that the focus of friends is mainly on choosing people who you can enjoy and keep your standards with. I find that RARELY we think of befriending those who have none. My dad grew up in Preston Idaho. For our family reunion a few summer's ago we went to the chicken coups he had worked in (yes they are in Napoleon Dynamite). As I stood amongst the thousands of chickens my thoughts changed when I was given the analogy of PECKING ORDER.

  

At a chicken ranch there are countless chickens running around and a PECKING ORDER is very often established. For some reason all of the chickens SINGLE OUT one chicken who they relentlessly pick on. They always follow the chosen chicken around and peck him until the chicken has its eyes gauged out, until his feathers are gone, and until the chicken eventually dies. When the chicken is finally pecked to death, they pick a new one. It is a never ending trend. 

I can remember many times in High School where the "popular" kids would pick on the "losers" until they were so low they just stopped coming to school. It is so easy, to fall into the trap of teasing and taunting but it is SO MUCH MORE rewarding in the end to befriend the friendless.

 BE A FRIEND :]

www.mormon.org

Cheaper by the dozen......(well half)

Family

“Happiness in family life is most likely to be achieved when founded upon the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ. Successful marriages and families are established and maintained on principles of faith, prayer, repentance, forgiveness, respect, love, compassion, work, and wholesome recreational activities”
(“The Family: A Proclamation to the World”).


THE START



The family started when Bret met Kristi at BYU-I. They fell in love and were married in the Logan Temple, together they raised six CRAZY children who each have different talents and abilities. I am so grateful that my parents honored the sacredness of marriage and chose to raise their children to understand that they are children of God.

THE FUN STUFF

There is one thing that I absolutely LOVE in this world, FAMILY DINNERS. Sunday's were the only days that every single person could sit down for at least an hour and enjoy each other. Most dinners would break out into long debates, sometimes tears, and my favorite, FOOD FIGHTS. My favorite memory is when my Mom handed my dad his roll that was leftover from the boating trip the day before. Instead of eating it he launched is across the table it at Max and pegged him right in the head. After that we all loaded up on ammo. The dinner ended with all of us running around the house throwing rolls at each other. It was so fun to not have any worries of a mess but to just play together as a family.

THE QUALITY TIME

My mom would ALWAYS read to us. I think we would spend at least an hour of quality time together listening to my mom reading. I love to see her read to the grand kids now and understand how it uplifts them to have the one on one attention that kids LOVE. I am so lucky to have a mom that read me the classics Harry Potter, The Great Brain, Cheaper By the Dozen, Little House of the Prairie, Box Car Kids, Junie B. Jones, and even The Princess Bride.

THE TRADITIONS


In the FOR THE STRENGTH OF THE YOUTH phamplet it says to participate in ttraditions. I love family traditions. Christmas is a pretty big deal at my house. We started the tradition of an UGLY Pj's contest that is judged before the big sleep over. All six of us would sleep in the basement and keep the movie Christmas Story on all night on replay.  In the morning Mom and Dad would read the Christmas Story from the the Bible and pray! Then we would all line up on the stairs and go down one by one to see what Santa had brought us. To finish Christmas Day off we go to Golden Star a Chinese Restaurant and enjoy a nice "Christmas Story" meal. Traditions have changed over the years but you can see we still participate as adults and that we still enjoy them!

THE SIBLINGS

Emily, Me, Alex, Mitch, LauriAnn, Max

I grew up lucky. I always had a brother or sister around to play with. There were many times when we would fight and maybe even bite! I remember there were times when I absolutely could not stand my siblings through my teenage years. That is something I wish I could change. As well all got older we became best freinds. Through many "sibling dates" I have been able to get to know each of them to see their strengths and their weaknesses. I have been able to grow to love them and to have them as my best freinds. It is so important to build these relationships young, its going to happen eventually you might as well do it now!

THE SPIRITUAL STUFF

Joe (best brother-in-law), LauriAnn,Alex, Me, Emily, Mitch, Max

I grew up with a loving Father and a kind Mother. I am so grateful because they took the time to raise us each differently according to our needs and our understanding. They strived with all of their might to get all six of their rascals to learn about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Every morning my Mother would DRAG us out of bed to read the Book of Mormon. Max, my younger brother, would lay on the couch and would yell out his infamous statement "Mom make me some waffles." We rarely made it through a morning with out many comments about how we could have had another 15 minutes of sleep. Even though it was always a fight to get us there, and I still could not tell you every story in the Book of Mormon, but I can tell you that we did read together and we did pray together, these mornings unified my family. I love my family more than anything. It has not always been fun, but when there are PEACEMAKERS families get along alot better and have the spirit in their homes. Like my Mother always said.....

 "Who wants to be the PEACEMAKER?"