Dear Parents,
In light of you coming in only a matter of three days all the way across the world to visit your daughter, I'd like to share a few things with you. Things I love about each of you, things I am grateful for, and whatever else spurs in my mind at the moment.
One of my favourite things about you guys is that you still love each other. Life hasn't dealt you the best of hands, but I'm willing to bet neither of you would admit that. Through thick and thin, and very very thin, you have stuck together. You have remained on each others side, and showed the world, and most importantly your kids, that love DOES work. And it can work forever, no matter what. That lesson is often lost in this world, but how grateful I am that you two were able to prove the world wrong. My personal romance story to always believe in. I doubt anything could top the romance you two have created. :)
I am so grateful for the individuals you are. Dad, you are the most humble, gentle, hard working, honest, caring, tannest, blue eyed, sweetest, most faithful man I know. Countless times you have brightened awful days just by being there. I remember one time I was having such a bad day at school.. so you drove, literally, all the way up to the front doors of the school, and we shared a Little Ceasers entire pizza. You don't know how much that meant to me. :)
Every little moment with you counts. Singing awesome 80's songs in the morning before school, learning to cook on the grill, and all those times you allowed me to be weird in front of people. haha, each one of those moments is a treasure to me. And I look forward to them all. :) But dad, something you should know I am most grateful for, are your Fathers Blessings.
How lucky I have been to have such an incredible, sweet man lay his hands upon my head, and bless me with peace, blessings, comfort, or whatever it was I really needed. Even though I have been away from you for five months, I can still feel the way your hands softly touch my head, and how your fingers move slightly all through out the prayer. If I am being completely honest with you, most times I don't remember what you say in your blessings because I am already so consumed with feeling such peace and love by just the touch of your hands, and the clearing of your throat. Those moments will forever mean the most to me.
Thank you, for being worthy to uphold your priesthood, for being willing to council and guide me, and for sharing your spirit with mine. I love you dad. You are the most important man in my life. And I pray every day that the man I marry reminds me of you. Because then I will know that, like mom, I chose the best egg. :)
Mama, though it may sound odd, I am so glad you have always been my mom first, and my friend second. No matter what, you have always chosen to teach me to choose the right choice, instead of to fix whatever problems i had, with gossip, or anger, or belittling, or whatever I else I wanted to do. I know so many girls who's moms' advice I would never trust.. and that has only instilled my trust in yours. I know that no matter what, you will lead me in the right direction. You always have, and you always will.
Mom, thank you for teaching me about never giving up, about loving unconditionally, and about finding the joy in the journey. I have never met a stronger, more faithful, or more loving woman than you. And I doubt I ever will. Through each trial or experience thrown at you, to me, you have always come out on top. You have never stopped looking to the Lord, and you have always kept going. Kept pushing forward, and because of this.. you have succeeded. I wonder if you know how it feels to have a super hero as a mother. Because I can tell you right now... it's the most incredible feeling in the world. :)
Besides being the best mother, and constant Christ like example, you have also always been my friend. You have always respected me, and believed in me. Even if I didn't see it sometimes. You have always been my biggest fan, and my largest support system. One small example that meant the world to me is that one day we met at Bajio in Washington to share a lunch together. Though it wasn't really anything, I learned that day that I wanted you to be my best friend,and that i wanted to make you proud. That day you gave me money just to help me out, even though I know you didn't really have the ability too. You also asked me if I would come over to the house more often so we could chat. That question lead to one of the most profound moments I think we've ever had. I'll never forget you reading to me Uchtdorf's talk, baring your testimony, and then reminding me of my own.
Mom, it's because of that moment alone, that I know I will NEVER give up on my testimony or the church. I will always believe in God. And I will always believe in the goodness of others, and also myself. You taught me that by loving me. By sharing with me what I needed to hear,from my greatest example. You. I love you mom. And when I say I honestly couldn't ask for a better mother and friend, I mean it. We are so much alike, and I know life only holds more good memories for us to share together. And I can't wait. :)
Another thing I am extremely (especially now) grateful for is the way you raised me and my siblings. There are so many aspects of your parenting that I admire, and hope to transfer to my own parenting skills. You have loved us no matter what. No matter how we have ended up thus far, or what we have done, nothing has stopped you from unconditionally loving us. And I know nothing will. I have heard of so many parents giving up on their kids, or disowning them, or just not caring to keep that great of a relationship with their children... but I have always felt so opposite from you two. You have supported me, cared for me, respected me, and taught me to become a person I can be proud of. I will never be able to repay you for the happiness, peace, and confidence this has given me.
I know that raising us wasn't easy. Especially me. I mean, I stuck a hose through your bathroom window while you were on a date and flooded your bathroom/room.I was constantly giving you grief with Kara, and I can't count the amount of times i called and called and called and called your names at 10 o'clock at night until YOU got out of bed to turn off MY light. Yeah, no angel inside of me whatsoever. haha :)
But you stuck it through. You taught me the principals you believed in, and exemplified. And out of an incredibly rough rock, you smoothed me into a river stone. Or at least, gave me the tools I needed to get myself all the way there. Teaching me to clean, to pick up after myself, to respect others, to respect myself, to stay humble, to never gossip, to remain close to the Lord, to always search for the bright side, to learn from misfortunes, to work hard, and to always always always show your love. I am who I am today, because of you two. And though that may not seem like a great accomplishment.. I know what I could have been.. and let me tell you, it's the greatest accomplishment in the world.
I still have so much to learn from you two. And you know, perhaps for the first time in my life, I'm excited for that. ;) I am excited for you to tell me that I was wrong, and that I could have done better. But you know what I am most excited for? To have my parents be my best friends. :) I couldn't ask for anyone better. And I hope with all my heart that I DO become like you two. I hope that when people meet me, they will know that my parents were great people. :)
I love you two more than anything in the world. And I am practically flipping out CONSTANTLY with excitement for the arrival of you two in China. It will be a week to ALWAYS remember. And how blessed I am that I get to share my experience, and the beginning of my, hopefully, career, with the two most wonderful people in my life. I love you. Safe travels, I'll see you on the flip side in exactly one week. :)
with all my love,
In light of you coming in only a matter of three days all the way across the world to visit your daughter, I'd like to share a few things with you. Things I love about each of you, things I am grateful for, and whatever else spurs in my mind at the moment.
One of my favourite things about you guys is that you still love each other. Life hasn't dealt you the best of hands, but I'm willing to bet neither of you would admit that. Through thick and thin, and very very thin, you have stuck together. You have remained on each others side, and showed the world, and most importantly your kids, that love DOES work. And it can work forever, no matter what. That lesson is often lost in this world, but how grateful I am that you two were able to prove the world wrong. My personal romance story to always believe in. I doubt anything could top the romance you two have created. :)
I am so grateful for the individuals you are. Dad, you are the most humble, gentle, hard working, honest, caring, tannest, blue eyed, sweetest, most faithful man I know. Countless times you have brightened awful days just by being there. I remember one time I was having such a bad day at school.. so you drove, literally, all the way up to the front doors of the school, and we shared a Little Ceasers entire pizza. You don't know how much that meant to me. :)
Every little moment with you counts. Singing awesome 80's songs in the morning before school, learning to cook on the grill, and all those times you allowed me to be weird in front of people. haha, each one of those moments is a treasure to me. And I look forward to them all. :) But dad, something you should know I am most grateful for, are your Fathers Blessings.
How lucky I have been to have such an incredible, sweet man lay his hands upon my head, and bless me with peace, blessings, comfort, or whatever it was I really needed. Even though I have been away from you for five months, I can still feel the way your hands softly touch my head, and how your fingers move slightly all through out the prayer. If I am being completely honest with you, most times I don't remember what you say in your blessings because I am already so consumed with feeling such peace and love by just the touch of your hands, and the clearing of your throat. Those moments will forever mean the most to me.
Thank you, for being worthy to uphold your priesthood, for being willing to council and guide me, and for sharing your spirit with mine. I love you dad. You are the most important man in my life. And I pray every day that the man I marry reminds me of you. Because then I will know that, like mom, I chose the best egg. :)
Mama, though it may sound odd, I am so glad you have always been my mom first, and my friend second. No matter what, you have always chosen to teach me to choose the right choice, instead of to fix whatever problems i had, with gossip, or anger, or belittling, or whatever I else I wanted to do. I know so many girls who's moms' advice I would never trust.. and that has only instilled my trust in yours. I know that no matter what, you will lead me in the right direction. You always have, and you always will.
Mom, thank you for teaching me about never giving up, about loving unconditionally, and about finding the joy in the journey. I have never met a stronger, more faithful, or more loving woman than you. And I doubt I ever will. Through each trial or experience thrown at you, to me, you have always come out on top. You have never stopped looking to the Lord, and you have always kept going. Kept pushing forward, and because of this.. you have succeeded. I wonder if you know how it feels to have a super hero as a mother. Because I can tell you right now... it's the most incredible feeling in the world. :)
Besides being the best mother, and constant Christ like example, you have also always been my friend. You have always respected me, and believed in me. Even if I didn't see it sometimes. You have always been my biggest fan, and my largest support system. One small example that meant the world to me is that one day we met at Bajio in Washington to share a lunch together. Though it wasn't really anything, I learned that day that I wanted you to be my best friend,and that i wanted to make you proud. That day you gave me money just to help me out, even though I know you didn't really have the ability too. You also asked me if I would come over to the house more often so we could chat. That question lead to one of the most profound moments I think we've ever had. I'll never forget you reading to me Uchtdorf's talk, baring your testimony, and then reminding me of my own.
Mom, it's because of that moment alone, that I know I will NEVER give up on my testimony or the church. I will always believe in God. And I will always believe in the goodness of others, and also myself. You taught me that by loving me. By sharing with me what I needed to hear,from my greatest example. You. I love you mom. And when I say I honestly couldn't ask for a better mother and friend, I mean it. We are so much alike, and I know life only holds more good memories for us to share together. And I can't wait. :)
Another thing I am extremely (especially now) grateful for is the way you raised me and my siblings. There are so many aspects of your parenting that I admire, and hope to transfer to my own parenting skills. You have loved us no matter what. No matter how we have ended up thus far, or what we have done, nothing has stopped you from unconditionally loving us. And I know nothing will. I have heard of so many parents giving up on their kids, or disowning them, or just not caring to keep that great of a relationship with their children... but I have always felt so opposite from you two. You have supported me, cared for me, respected me, and taught me to become a person I can be proud of. I will never be able to repay you for the happiness, peace, and confidence this has given me.
I know that raising us wasn't easy. Especially me. I mean, I stuck a hose through your bathroom window while you were on a date and flooded your bathroom/room.I was constantly giving you grief with Kara, and I can't count the amount of times i called and called and called and called your names at 10 o'clock at night until YOU got out of bed to turn off MY light. Yeah, no angel inside of me whatsoever. haha :)
But you stuck it through. You taught me the principals you believed in, and exemplified. And out of an incredibly rough rock, you smoothed me into a river stone. Or at least, gave me the tools I needed to get myself all the way there. Teaching me to clean, to pick up after myself, to respect others, to respect myself, to stay humble, to never gossip, to remain close to the Lord, to always search for the bright side, to learn from misfortunes, to work hard, and to always always always show your love. I am who I am today, because of you two. And though that may not seem like a great accomplishment.. I know what I could have been.. and let me tell you, it's the greatest accomplishment in the world.
I still have so much to learn from you two. And you know, perhaps for the first time in my life, I'm excited for that. ;) I am excited for you to tell me that I was wrong, and that I could have done better. But you know what I am most excited for? To have my parents be my best friends. :) I couldn't ask for anyone better. And I hope with all my heart that I DO become like you two. I hope that when people meet me, they will know that my parents were great people. :)
I love you two more than anything in the world. And I am practically flipping out CONSTANTLY with excitement for the arrival of you two in China. It will be a week to ALWAYS remember. And how blessed I am that I get to share my experience, and the beginning of my, hopefully, career, with the two most wonderful people in my life. I love you. Safe travels, I'll see you on the flip side in exactly one week. :)
with all my love,
Kirsten.
Fishermans Wharf. My parents got engaged in San Fransico. :)
Waiting for the train after our flight to San Fran. It was such a good trip with my parents and best friend. We were able to see so many sights, hear about their engagement, eat yummy pizza & pretzels, and see my uncle for a bit. :)
A family photo from awhile back. :)
the girls in the fam. :)
All the kids. We're pretty fly. :)
aint nothin better than a family in blue jeans :)
the boys of the family.. haha
so in love. :)
My parents with Tyler, my little cute cousin. ( don't get freaked out, but this picture makes me excited for my parents to be grandparents. :) )
me and my dad. This is the best picture I have of us two... that's gotta change this week. haha
just my parents being their hot selves. :)
I LOVE my family!
