Crucibles

A crucible, for those who don't know, is something that is used to separate impurities from metals. It makes it possible to remove the impurities and to mix something else in to make the metal stronger. Likewise, there are difficult experiences we go through both individually and as families that, if approached properly, can be crucible experiences that solidify and strengthen our characters and bonds.

To put things into perspective, if we go through an extremely trying experience, we can either view it as a miserable experience or a crucible experience. A miserable experience is viewed individually under the context "Why me?" or "It's not fair!/It's not right!". A crucible experience, however, is viewed as more of a paired, family, or collective experience where we are no longer alone or blaming/accusing. It can allow cheerfulness because of the changes and learning that occurs, which can be seen as "little miracles" or "tender mercies" because we purposefully look for the good.

A good point to note, however, is that the crucible (trial) is not the change, we are. We can't just sit and wait it out, we have to do something to change. Also, the purposes of family are often accomplished with really difficult things that we have to go through together. Finally, we must recognize that there is opposition in all things: trials bring appreciation for blessings; difficulties bring true happiness, if we maintain the proper perspective.

When I am going through difficult times I try to maintain a good perspective. Granted, I wine and complain and ask "Why me?" But, at some point, I take a step back and think: "What am I meant to learn from this?" or "How can I become a better person through this trial?" I would encourage everyone to do the same! It helps so much to see a trial not as a punishment, but as an opportunity for learning and growth! You'll have a happier, less bitter life if you can maintain an eternal perspective and continually shoot for the long-term goal of a happy, fulfilling life filled with love, forgiveness, and personal development.

Work

So, just to start off, here's a little fun fact: the most common source of contention between newly-wed spouses is the division of housework and other tasks around the home (it continues through the first 5 years).

Work is actually more beneficial to a relationship, such as marriage or family, than play. All work and no play makes one ill-prepared for adult life and more self-centered because the goal in playing is to win. By focusing on play as a means of connecting with family members, parents may rob their children of the opportunity to develop good work habits. People connect more through work than play because you learn to truly love someone when you're focused on their needs rather than your own.

We should view work as a blessing, rather than a curse. Work has a greater capacity to bind families as they focus on doing something meaningful and important. Menial tasks (those that require little expertise or intense concentration) provide opportunities for children to contribute to the family in meaningful ways.

However, managing our homes like businesses, with an emphasis on being economically prudent and efficient, often results in diminishing the likelihood of strengthening families. This is because the quickest way to get things done is by spreading people out and giving out assignments. The smartest way to get things done is to have them work together. This allows them to help each other, talk, laugh, and connect.

One final note: the father sets the example for work in the home. On page 222 of Successful Marriages and Families: Proclamation Principles and Research Perspectives (Hawkins et al.), it states: " A father who assumes responsibility for a single significant daily task, such as washing dishes, and actively gathers his children to help him, is a powerful example of partnership and service within his home." I can attest to this because when I was living at home I was the most motivated to do the work my siblings and I were told to do when my dad was willing to work with us.

So, as a wrap up, if you want to draw closer together as a family, work together, don't just play together!

More on Parenting

 This is sort of a continuation of the previous post, but it's focusing more on how we should parent, not so much on the why.

• A teen's perception of parenting is much more reliable than the parents' perception.
• Types of parenting
• Authoritarian
• force
• tendency toward coldness
• rigid
• Authoritative (most effective)
• teach via example
• open communication, negotiation
• child guidance
• parent before friend of children 
• Permissive
• friend before parent
• many choices, few consequences
• few limits
• acceptance of behavior
• low expectations, high warmth
• Neglectful
• not involved/present

• behavior control vs. psychological control
• coercion =  to exert control over
• Authoritarian & Permissive tend to focus more on parents' needs instead of child's.
• Active Parenting (Michael H Popkin)
• focuses on natural consequences of behavior

• the punishment should match crime (NOT: grounding for misusing cellphone, taking cellphone for staying out past curfew)
• problems with punishment:
• revenge cycle
•  can damage relationship
• can make parents lose their child's respect
• no learning (if they don't get caught, they don't get punished)
• can create criminals
• curfew at 12 AM: coming in at 1 AM = chewing out!, coming in at 3 AM = concern, lecture (creates desire to come in later & kill time; can lead to girl becoming pregnant)

•  Alternatives?
• rewards: trains them to be manipulative, they learn to rely on rewards, they take advantage
• natural consequences (no interference from parents)
• logical consequences :
• discuss with them!
• don't use firm statements frequently (don't use a canon when a flyswatter works just fine)
• polite request: respectful, denies negative attention, helps with request of others in future (such as teacher, police, etc)
• use when natural consequences are :
1. Too dangerous
2. Too far in the future
3. Too harmful to others

• We're not just trying to teach our kids how to mind, we're teaching them how to be successful in life & as parents themselves!
• Punishments that aren't logically connected to the crime are manipulative & disrespectful.
• Set up logical consequences after a rule is broken/a small problem occurs.
• Needs of human beings (especially kids!):
• contact & belonging
• not just a desire, it's a need
• failure to thrive (physical & mental, kills babies)
• feeling important is so valuable (kids love to contribute!)
• teach to contribute (belonging)
• offer it freely (contact)
• hugs, attention at home lessens promiscuous activity

• When needs not met: undue attention seeking (misbehavior, desperation)
• "You can never get enough of what you don't need, because what you don't need will never satisfy you."

I'd like to conclude with a personal story I have about a girl that I knew years ago. I'll call her Sarah. Sarah was a very annoying girl that rode on my school bus when I was in Elementary school. She was noisy, she wouldn't stay in her seat, she'd do gross things, and just plain bother/irritate everyone on the bus. One day, I decided to take action and work on controlling her so she'd stop bothering everyone. I sat next to her (with her against the window) so she couldn't get out of her seat; I kept her from licking the bottom of her shoe, the bus wall, or other people. From that day forward, I dealt with her and did my best to get her to calm down and be nicer. It didn't take long for her to begin to be calmer on the bus and I eventually became her friend (even though she was a few years younger than me :P). After learning about parenting and the needs of children and Brother Williams sharing a story about a boy he knew in his church ward who acted similarly, I have realized why Sarah acted the way she did and why what I did helped her. She was, for whatever reason, desperate for attention and contact. Me sitting next to her and constantly telling her to "stop," "sit down," "don't do that" gave her attention, albeit negative attention, and me physically restraining her at times gave her the physical contact she so desperately sought. All in all, once her needs were met, she became a much more calm and likeable little girl and we didn't have problems with her on the bus anymore.

Brother Williams' story about the boy in his ward was very similar: Jonny acted just like Sarah, if not worse, but when Brother Williams went out of his way to talk to and make physical contact with him, he calmed down and became a whole new person! I guess the "take-home" message from this is that we should try to find the reasons behind people's behaviors; we should look for what need is going unmet. And, we need to make sure that all the needs for our children are being met throughout their lives. Like mentioned in my notes, a baby that is not getting its need for contact met will die. Being fed is not enough to survive; we humans need contact with other humans or there can be severe emotional, mental, and physical consequences.

Purposes of Parenting

I don't know how well I'm going to be able to elaborate on this topic, so I'll just share my notes this time because I think it's the best way to pass on what I think is important.

• The purposes of parenting
• prepare for eternal life
• help children so they can be successful
• learn & grow via responsibilities
• bring people to Christ
• have joy
• feel & become more like Christ (charity)
• creating bodies for God's children
• The biggest resources we have for our teenagers is our relationship with them.
• Mothering =
• great love & concern
• verbal expression of emotions/problems
• relationship oriented
• emphasis on support
• nurture 
• Fathering =
• task oriented
• fixes, solutions
• independence
• orient children out into the work
• teaching
• Divorces tend to occur between 2 & 5 years after wedding (after birth of 2nd child)
• The husband should be in the delivery room, not the mother of the woman giving birth!
• The mother will put the new mother in the role of the child & the husband will be left on the sidelines.
• Child care
• husband (& wife)
• responsibility
• Nurture
• wife
• tend, support, comfort
• Having an expert in both areas (child care & nurture) will allow you to cover more territory
• Fathers are portrayed as useless, insignificant, dumb, uncaring in the media (men are only needed to contribute their X or Y chromosome)
• Not true!!!
• Women entering workforce denigrates & removes father's role as breadwinner & mother's role (she's no longer at home to care for the kids)
• My definition of parenting: The purposes of parenting are to provide an enriched environment in which to raise & guide children such that they will be prepared to live a full life when they are out on their own.
• purposes: protect & prepare to survive & thrive in the world

Marriage Preparation

In today's society, people are now more preparing for divorce than they are for marriage. Evidences of this include: prenuptial agreements, high aspiration and low expectations, waiting longer to get married (on average until age 26 for women, 29 for men), waiting to have a career to "fall back on," delaying marriage to have more money and resources, finishing college first, cohabitation (parallel lifestyle, less likely to marry, less sex). All of these actions are focused on divorce avoidance rather than marriage strengthening.

Disadvantages of waiting longer to marry:

• Narrows the field (you're around fewer potential spouses when you leave college)
• Having kids later (can't have as many, have less energy & interest in them)
• Have a more established life, which makes it harder to mesh with someone else's life (you have more to give up)
• Makes you completely self-dependent, when you should go from leaning on your parents to becoming a little more self-dependent, to still needing to lean on someone (your spouse). As a married couple, you should be depending and leaning on each other for support.

 Dating= Planned, Paid for, Paired off (with multiple people, it's not exclusive!). Young, single adults today tend to "hang out" instead of dating and they go straight from hanging out to boyfriend/girlfriend to engagement. They skip dating and don't truly court each other! Dating is SO vital! To help illustrate this, here are some things that separate dating from "hanging out":

• One-on-one conversations, getting to know each other
• You're not competing with other people for the person's attention
• They're frequent and simple
• You get to know yourself and others (what you like and don't like in them)
• You build social skills

Why do people tend to hang out instead of date?

• It's less complicated
• It takes less effort, easier
• Free for the guys
• You can come and go as you please
• NCMO (non-committal make-out) (benefits without committments)
• Dating is not properly understood

Courtship should be the next, clearly defined step after dating. It is exclusively dating (not hanging out!) and is a trial for marriage. Everything about dating remains the same, you're just doing it with only one person, getting to know them and your compatibility.
 

After courtship comes engagement, again, a distinct step away from courtship! Engagement is the point at which you are making definite plans for marriage, are truly and clearly committed to each other. However, engagement does not mean that you should stop courting! There is always more you can learn about someone, and your potential spouse is no exception. Even after you're married, you still continue to learn about them!
 

The final, obvious step, is marriage. Again, marriage does not end courting. You should still go on dates (dress up and make it special!) and must stay in contact throughout the day, just like you would when you were courting prior to engagement and marriage.

 
As I mentioned multiple times, the steps you go through towards marriage should be clear, distinct, and defined! This means you must communicate with each other where your relationship stands and where you are headed. This is the best way to build a good relationship and a firm foundation for a strong marriage. Thus, the "dreaded" DTR (define the relationship) is actually smart! It removes confusion about where you stand with each other and opens up communication. It will be awkward at first, but it'll get better! If you can't discuss your relationship when you're dating, how can you do it when you're married? The natural tendency is to slip from one stage to the other, with no or little communication; it "just happens." This creates confusion and neglects developing your communication skills, which will be detrimental to your marriage.
 

But, if you're already married and "slid" when you were dating, there's still hope! Go on dates! Dress up, make it special, show that you care about each other. Work on communicating more on a daily basis. These things help you stay connected and in love and keep you from just "drifting" apart, which occurs all too often in marriages.

To end, here are some final notes on marriage prep:

• Deception and duplicity in dating doesn't end with marriage.
• Dating isn't trying to lure in (getting dibs on) someone  you like;  it's learning what you like in people, getting to know different people.
• Inspiration is needed all throughout dating, courtship, engagement, and marriage because if you just wait until engagement, you're not as willing to hear "no."
• You want to know your Father's will to let your relationship continue or not.
• He wants to counsel with us, not just give His "stamp of approval."

So, now that you know what dating is, GO DO IT!!!! Hanging out is not bad, in moderation, but dating is so much better!

Physical Intimacy

So, I know this is an awkward subject for some people, but it's really important and should be well understood. I'll just stick to the basics though and keep it relatively short.

 The Relationship Attachment Model illustrates the ideal/most stable levels of knowing, trusting, relying on, committing to, and touching that should be seen in a healthy relationship. You should know someone more than you trust them, trust them more than you rely on them, rely on them more than you are committed to them, and be committed to them more than you touch them. (see below)

However, relationships today tend to have much higher touching and commitment than they do the other 3. A more common model American society today may be the exact opposite of the ideal. This causes problems with relationships and has long-term effects on marriages. My professor, Michael Williams, is a marriage and family counselor. He says that quite often, when a couple comes in for marriage counseling, if you look back to their dating history, their problems began at the beginning of their relationship with their RAM. Thus, it is evident that RAMs are very important and we should be careful how we handle our relationships from their initiation.

To finish off, here are my notes from class:

• Purposes of sexual intimacy
• invite children into the world (not a casual act!)
• create closeness
• become "one"
• grow closer to God
•  Being very physical with many people greatly decreases your ability to form attachments.
• it makes it harder for others to attach to you as well (they don't know how serious you are)
• Sexual intimacy is not a race (after you get married); you can take as long as needed for both of you to be comfortable!
• The greatest satisfaction comes in happy marriages & those that have been married for a long time.
•  Being attentive to your partner provides the most satisfaction.
• Focusing on spiritual aspect more than physical aspect helps you draw closer to God.
• It's important to marry a person who is chaste! Being a virgin is not the important part; it's being clean.
• If you're engaged and still feel the need to keep your opposite gender friends, you're not ready for marriage.
• Have clear boundaries!
• Be so loving and so kind that your spouse has no need to look for comfort else where.
• Preparation/overcoming apprehensions: And They Were Not Ashamed: Strengthening Marriage through Sexual Fulfillment, by Laura M. Brotherson (read before marriage, separate from partner)
• Teaching children: LDS.org - search teaching about physical intimacy

Hopefully you found some of this interesting and helpful. I did and I wish that everyone in the world could understand the sacredness of sexual intimacy. It should only be shared within the bonds of matrimony. It was create to bring children into this world, therefore it should not be "played" with outside of marriage! Anywho, that's my little lecture and that's everything I have to say on this topic.

Marriage, An Equal Partnership

The idea of marriage being a truly and sincerely equal partnership is a revolutionary idea and comes from a unique belief system. In past generation, the husband was considered above the wife. Currently, this can still be the case in some homes, but so can the wife being over the husband. But, most importantly, marriage can now be seen as more of a relationship of equality rather than one of dominance and submission. This is more of a religious view on marriage and can especially be seen in LDS or "Mormon" culture and it is quite contrary to the practices of many other cultures of the world.

Creating a marriage of equality takes significant hard work because it is rising above natural tendencies towards structured leadership or dominance (this is seen many animal species, in the food chain, in business, in government, etc). However, it can be a refining process. You learn to become more submissive or outspoken (depending on which end of the spectrum you are on to begin with) and charitable.

As a quick side note, something interesting that one of my classmates said regarding same-sex marriage is that males and females are like puzzle pieces, you can't fit the same pieces together (a hole won't attach to a hole and a peg won't attach to a peg)! I won't elaborate more on this topic because it is so controversial, but I thought that was a very profound analogy that really makes sense. We are designed to choose a mate of the opposite sex.

One of the best ways of creating unity is through counseling, and I don't mean going to see a marriage counselor. The council method is used by the leaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and their model can be applied to marriages, families, or any situations that require coming to a consensus. The goal of the council method (for the leadership of the church), is discussing a topic to consensus regarding the Lord's will. They open with a prayer to invite the Spirit in order to receive inspiration, to facility love from unity, and to get everyone focused. Next, the agenda of the meeting is laid out so that everyone knows what will be talked about and to prepare them for discussion. What follows is the discussion. I will not do the process justice, so here is a video describes what happens very well: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtwpPT1QQQE&feature=feedwll&list=WL. 

The key is that everyone has a say and they continue around the circle until everyone agrees. The meeting is then closed with a prayer to solidify the proceedings and give thanks to God. Afterwards, a treat is always provided. This is because eating together bonds people, opens them up to each other, allows them to reconnect, and lightens the mood. Another thing to note is that before the meeting begins, the brethren take time chatting and expressing love an appreciation for one another, which helps create unity and love and starts the meeting on a good note.

The council method does not have to be religious for those who are not. The same principles can be applied to anybody or any discussion. Make sure that everyone involved feels loved. Have an agenda. Let everyone share their opinion and go around the group doing so until everyone has agreed (it may take a long time!). Then, take time to enjoy a treat together afterwards so that you can reconnect and lighten the mood back up. My roommates and I used the counsel method to discuss issues we were having regarding house work. By far, that was the best group discussion I have ever been in and it greatly outshines any previous roommate meetings I have had. I felt like we were all friends and loved each other before hand and was able to keep that in mind throughout the meeting. Everyone was given an opportunity to share their thoughts, ideas, and feelings until we all agreed on what needed to be done to fix the problems. By the end of the meeting, we all left happy and united and more willing to do future meetings (quite the contrary to my past experiences!).

I know that love and unity is important in any relationships, but especially in marriages and families. The world would be so much different if husbands and wives always worked as equal partners and if the council method was used to resolve issues. I bear my testimony that, as the hymn "Love at Home" states, there truly is "beauty all around. . . joy in every sound. . . [and] peace and plenty. . . when there's love at home."

Recap on October 8 - October 10

Marriage is Ordained of God

The Family: A Proclamation to the World states that "marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God." In class, we defined "ordained" as meaning confer holy orders upon, power/responsibility, to order or command, and prescribed by God. Thus, this statement means that marriage between a man and a woman is commanded by God, no other marriage will be blessed by God, it has prerequisites, and it is a gift.

Following are some of my notes from class:

• Just because something is legal does not mean it is no longer a sin. Legal sin is still sin!
• the family= a foundation
• it's Christ-like
• it is a Zion in every way
• essential functions of home:
• procreation
• bringing souls back to Christ
• Priesthood
• shelter, food, security
• love (father's different from mother's! <- will be discussed more later)
• teach the gospel, love God, focus on God
• place of refuge
• unity
• sacrifice
• Not having a father in the home is the greatest predictor of poverty.
• Mothers and fathers relate to both genders differently.
• When there is love in the home, Satan is unable to dwell there.
• 25% or more of the Proclamation is about marriage.
• Marriage leads to less selfishness; things become less about me, my, and I and more about us, our, and we.
• Love is less about romance and more about genuine concern for the other person.
• Christ-like love: unconditional, eternal, not dependent on returned love, grows & develops
• sometimes we are blessed to be able to love beyond our natural capacity
• Spencer W. Kimball's marriage formula:
1. Focus on what's most important
2. Great unselfishness
3. Continued courting (express love in unmistakable ways)
4. Live the commandments
• The quality of your family will always be limited by the quality of your marriage.
• The interaction cycle:

• The most difficult trials for young couples:
• showing your love every day
• communicating (1-on-1 talking)
• relying on each other and not their parents
• service, selflessness
• Nothing should ever come between you and your spouse (physically, emotionally, or symbolically)
• Fun fact: women are much more likely to file for divorce than men.
• Women marry expecting change, men marry expecting things to stay the same.
• It's not natural for women to love their husbands more than their children (because children are so vulnerable and require so much care), but the HAVE to in order to sustain their marriage.
• "Magic 5 hours": spend 5 hours a week with your spouse
• 10 sec. kiss every day
• really talking (as friends!), not just business talk
• do something special
• weekly date
• Nurture your friendship with your spouse! (active process, tend to every need)
• Fun fact: the longest "chemical" love (excitement, butterflies) can last is 2 yrs, after that you have to work at loving each other (through service)!

One final note I would like to leave you with about why marriage is ordained of God: it is the foundation for a new family (a quality marriage will provide scaffolding for the family), it helps you develop Godly character (you better understand God through it), it facilitates growth and understanding, and you become one with another human being ("Zion").

I love my family. I love this gospel. And I bare you my testimony that a strong family is truly dependent on a strong marriage. I wish that everyone could understand and apply these principles to better strengthen their marriages and families. One day, I hope to be able to apply them to my own marriage and family. Please take them to heart.

Catching Up: September 17- October 3

So, this post is going to be a little jumbled and unorganized, just because I'm not doing it based on a specific topic for 2 class days worth of notes, but on several weeks of notes that I would like to fill you in on.

To start off, our first week or two of class was based on The Family: A Proclamation to the World (a link is provided for those of you who don't know about this document). We discussed the principles and messages of this document in great detail, but for the sake of space and the general audience I intend this blog for, I won't mention those specifically here.

The rest of this post will consist of some bullets that particularly stood out to me and I wanted to share with all of you:

• After about age 20, people's ideals no longer align more with their friends', but their parents' ideals.
• Under stress, we often subconsciously revert to what's familiar (what our parents did).

• How did society change marriage/family so drastically?
• definition of marriage changes over time
• God removed from marriage
• Publicizing through TV, movies, etc that things such as premarital sexual promiscuity, divorce, and homosexuality are okay, even though they're not
• People that want changes are more vocal than those that like things the way they are.
• Nothing about family has one, universal definition anymore.
• It was only right after gay marriage became officially illegal that the first gay marriage was performed.

• Wishing for someone else's life or figure (coveting things we don't have) is useless because everyone has struggles with what they have (life would not be better in somebody else's shoes.
• Don't underestimate the decisions you make! They have far-reaching consequences whether you realize it or not!

• Teaching the Doctrine of the Family" - Sister Beck
• Man and woman = 2 essential halves of a family
• Social skills are important to forming eternal families.
• This generation will be called upon to defend the doctrine of the family as never before.
• If they don't know it (the doctrine of the family), they can't defend it!

Well, those are just a few of my notes. i thought they were rather important and interesting and hopefully you agree!

An Introduction

So, I failed to mention in my previous post what the purpose of this blog is. The title, obviously, tells you that I will cover the general topic of the importance of family. But, what it doesn't tell you is that the information I am posting is from a class of mine called The Family (FAML 100). My plan, therefore, is to do a weekly post on the interesting and vital facts and concepts I glean from my readings and class discussions. By doing so, I hope to help whoever may be reading this learn more about why the family is vital to not only God's plan, but also life and society as we know it.

For those of you that are not religious, I will be mentioning Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and other things pertaining to the family from my religion, but I don't want this to scare you away! What I am learning and teaching is not just important to Mormon families, or Christian families in general, but is necessary for all families in order for societies and the human race to function and survive. My major is Marriage and Family Studies. This means that the things I learn from my class are important to know to help and council marriages and families. Everyone should try to learn and understand as much as they can about those two subjects if they are planning on being involved in them. If more people understood these concepts and principles, I truly believe the world would be a lot different, a lot better in many ways.

The topics I will be covering are similar to those I covered in my Family Relations (FAML 160) blog last year (http://rebap12.blogspot.com/). If you would like to learn more about these topics from a slightly different angle, I recommend reading that blog as well. Also, the textbook I am reading for FAML 100 class is Successful Marriages and Families: Proclamation Principles and Research Perspectives, edited by Alan J. Hawkins, David C. Dollahite, and Thomas W. Draper. It's mostly intended for LDS readers, but I would recommend it for anyone who is interested in getting the facts and information first hand. The text for my FAML 160 class was Marriage & Family: The Quest for Intimacy, by Rober H. Lauer and Jeanette C. Lauer. It is not gospel oriented and has some really interesting facts, information, and readings as well.

Anywho, I hope you enjoy what I share as much as I enjoy learning and sharing it with you. Please comment! I would like to know that someone is reading my posts! Feel free to disagree, argue, concur, banter, anything you'd like! Thank you so much!

Welcome to my blog

Hello! My name is Rebecca Powell. This is my third semester at BYU-Idaho. I really enjoy my roommates, I love my apartment, and most of all I love the Spirit I feel all over campus and how gospel-oriented all of my classes are. So, just a little bit about me: I came up here to Idaho from Katy, Texas, though I call Idaho home because both of my parents grew up in Idaho, we visit almost every summer, and most of my family lives here. I have 6 people in my family, including me: my parents, a big brother, a younger sister, and a little brother.

My eldest brother is actually 3 years married with a little boy born last April.

I'm an aunt and I ADORE my happy little nephew!

I am majoring in Marriage and Family Studies with an emphasis in Home and Family. I absolutely LOVE horses (though, sadly, I'm very allergic to them) and have tried my hardest to learn as much as I can about them, even though I have never taken riding lessons or gotten anything close to owning one! I am going to try to take a horse production class eventually; I'm so excited! My favorite colors are pink and blue, I love to read, and I taught myself how to play the piano when I was 8 and have been slowly progressing in my reading and performing abilities ever since then. I also play the violin a little and love to sing. I love and am very grateful for my family, including my extended family, and wish I could spend time with them every day! Lastly, I am very grateful for my membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and all of the blessings and guidance it has provided me throughout my life. I look forward to the things I will learn and the friends I will make throughout the rest of my years here in Rexburg, Idaho!