January Birthdays

January is a busy month for birthdays in my family. We have Daddy's, Brookie's and Campbell's all in just a few weeks. Unfortunately I missed both Brookie's and Campbell's, but I can't miss out on doing a birthday shoutout. And since there are three of them, this is going to be one long post :)

Let's start with Daddy. I know I already did a post about him for Father's Day, but I truly can't say enough how much I love this man. He is one of the most hardworking, humble, patient, kind, loving and selfless men I know. Even when I call him at work and he's really busy he still makes me feel like he has all the time in the world for me. He makes me feel so good about myself every time I talk to him. He's one of the most outgoing people I know and people everywhere can't help but love him. I swear, it's impossible to go anywhere with him without him running into another friend. He's such a good example of truly caring for others.

Daddy and me in the grounds of the Jerusalem Center

Next, Brookie. She is absolutely the most loyal person I have ever met. She's one of the first people I call when anything happens because I know that whether the news is good or not, she will support me 100%. I can always count on her to cheer me up with I'm down. I can't even count the number of times I called her crying when I was applying to grad school, convinced that I'd never get accepted. She such a way of calming me down that few people possess. She's always there for people when they need her, even when it's not convenient. She's always so much fun to be around. We can go from having really deep intellectual conversations to singing at the top of our lungs to Prince - regardless of what we're doing, I love spending time with her.

Don't mind the fact that I look like an idiot...

And finally, Campbell. It has been so much fun to see her personality develop over the last 2 years. She is so strong, independent and determined. She always makes me feel so loved when I see her. She loves being with people and playing with them. She's also a major dare-devil and way more brave than I will ever be, and she may be as accident-prone as I am, though that's still up for debate.

Campbell and Bapa (kinda...)

I have such a great family! And I'm so glad I got to spend so much time with all of them over the break.

Now back to that paper I was writing. Come to find out, writing birthday blog posts is much more fun than writing papers. Who knew?

A birthday!

My sister's birthday is coming up and so I just wanted to talk a little about how grateful I am for her in my life. So Bri, here's a {very limited} list of some of the reasons why I love having you as my sister:

• I've always had a hard time with decisions (but only the inconsequential ones. With the big ones I seem to do just fine. What's up with that?) and I could never choose what to wear. So she would pick out my outfit pretty much every day. Something so small, but it really meant a lot to me

At a girls photo shoot.

• Growing up whenever I was upset and crying she would take me and let me lay down and just play with my hair while I cried and told her about my woes. She's always been so good at taking care of me.

Bri and Andy in Bear Lake this summer.

• Speaking of taking care of me, just this weekend she spent a few hours on the phone with me helping me study for my exam on Monday. I know that she had better things to do with her time on a Saturday night, but she took time to listen and help me understand. So thoughtful.

I love this photo of Bri and Daner in St. George.

• She's such a peacemaker. I've never in my life heard her even raise her voice. She's so even-tempered and patient. I've always admired that in her.

Bri and Andy in Jackson Hole.

• Bri is always willing to share her time and talents. Whenever she has a fun project she always shows me how to do it so I can share in the creativity that I lack :)

Bri's graduation from Nursing School.

• She's always so good at making people feel loved and included. Even from our childhood, she has always asked me how I'm doing and what she can do to help and would do little things without me asking to show she cared. 

Basically, she's the best. Bri, I've always looked up to you and I am so grateful for you in my life. I can't wait to see you so soon! Happy Birthday honey!

We interrupt your program for a very important message...

Alright, so I'm not interrupting your favorite TV show. What I am interrupting is my studying, which is actually much happier than interrupting a TV show. I felt the need to take a little study break to give a shout-out to my sister, Lindsay. Her birthday is coming up (I won't say when for privacy purposes), so I just wanted to let her know that I love her. And here's just a few reasons why (with pictures that may or may not have anything to do with my list. That's how I roll :)

I love singing with her because she has the most beautiful soprano voice. Any day I get to sing with her is a good day.

We go on lots of road trips together

aaaaand she puts up with my incessant need to take pictures. Even when she's driving.

She's such a cute mother to two of the cutest little munchkins on the face of the planet

'Nuff said.

She's super crafty and awesome at cooking and doesn't even get mad at me when I have to call her for the millionth time to remind me how to cast on for knitting or exactly how to make a recipe she gave me. (This happens often).

 And sometimes when I am feeling crappy about myself she drops everything (everything, I tell you) to come help me, even though there's a million other things she could be doing.

This is a very condensed version of what I could say, but the point is I love you Linds. I'm so grateful that you're my sister. I'm sad I can't be there for your birthday, but I hope you can have an decent one without me there :)

Happy Birthday! I love you!