Family Past, but Mostly Present

List Items Three & Twenty-Four: In my family there is a father, a mother, three sons, and one daughter. I wish I had a cute family photo to illustrate our 90s family dynamic, but you'll have to be satisfied with this family photo circa 2010.

We're cute, no? Since 2010 I've gained another addition to my family, my sister-in-law who married the bald guy on the far left (not the other bald one who is my Dad).

In terms of family dynamics I think the biggest thing that's changed is our location and how we now operate as several diverse family units. My little brothers are now grown up people--with one living in LA pursuing his dream to be an actor and the other the most responsible and the kindest high school senior I've ever met. With a four and six year age advantage respectively, I was pretty bossy with them as we grew up, but my little brothers (most often) went along with the games I imagined up. Since then they've both grown taller than me in addition to becoming my confidantes. I love them a lot.

My older brother and I are the closest in age and even though he was way cooler than me in high school, he always let me hang out with him and his friends. We both attend BYU so I've been lucky enough to hang out with his cool self post-highschool as well. Lately, the thing I am most grateful about my older brother is that he married Jamie. Having a sister is awesome as I dreamed it would be and as a return missionary, graduate-school-completing, straight-A student she the epitome of poise and accomplishment.

And then there's my parents. I'm fairly sure they feel similarly, but I have a pretty close relationship with both my mother and father. When I was younger I dreaded disappointing either of them and I made many (good) decisions based primarily on the fact that I knew that if I did the opposite it would make them unhappy. Even when I did disappoint them, both were quick to forgive and I never doubted that they loved me A LOT. Most recently, I've been grateful for my parents' input and wisdom regarding life decisions. As I've talked to them over the years regarding my goals, priorities, and dreams they've offered great advice and support. Knowing that they believe in me has given me the confidence to apply for and achieve things I definitely wouldn't have been able to do on my own.

When I was deciding whether or not to serve an  LDS mission I was, to say the least, very conflicted. While both of my parents had different opinions about the matter, ultimately they both rallied and told me that they trusted and respected me enough to fully support any decision I made. Their trust in me was key for me trusting myself and gaining the courage and inspiration I needed to make the decision on my own.

In sum, my family is wonderful and I'm excited to see how our dynamic continues to change. So far the changes have been different, but mostly good. So here's hoping that the trend continues.