Wedded Surprise...

I believe in the traditional family. I believe that marriage is a sacred institution, a bond and a union between God and His children. Marriage should only be between a man and a woman. Basically, what I believe about marriage is perfectly captured in "The Family: A Proclamation to the World":

"The family is ordained of God. Marriage between man and woman is essential to His eternal plan. Children are entitled to birth within the bonds of matrimony, and to be reared by a father and a mother who honor marital vows with complete fidelity. 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. By divine design, fathers are to preside over their families in love and righteousness and are responsible to provide the necessities of life and protection for their families. Mothers are primarily responsible for the nurture of their children. In these sacred responsibilities, fathers and mothers are obligated to help one another as equal partners."

Marriage, when it is gone about correctly, should be the best, the strongest, the most rewarding relationship we have on this earth. I am grateful and feel blessed that mine fits this description.

Among the myriad trends that are threatening this God-ordained institution is one in particular that I would like to mention...

This is the cake that my wife and I had at our reception. It was beautiful, and it tasted even better than it looks.

So why on earth would you want to shove something like this in the face of the person you just married hours earlier? I don't think that shoving food in someone's face is a good way to start off what many people believe is an Eternal marriage. You should conduct yourself with class and dignity, not reduce the most wonderful day of your life to a pseudo boxing match.

Do I think less of people who DO shove cake in eachother's faces at their reception? Yes. It is a harsh reality, but even the people I like the most fall sharply in my list of people I respect. I don't know if studies have been conducted on the subject, but I think you'd find a nice relationship between divorce rates, and people that start off their marriage by shoving eachother in the face in public.

After all, aren't you supposed to be ADULTS to get married?

A Few of My Favorite Things, Part 1...

I love animals. And I've included a few of my favorites below.

But then I decided that they all have a disturbing trend...they're all awkward in some way--most have some feature of their body that is abnormally large. But I still love them.

In no particular order, I give you...My Favorite Animals:

Black-Capped Chickadee

African Penguin

Hippopotomus


Loon

Mallard Duck

Octopus

Killer Whale (Orca)

White Indian Runner Duck

Leopard Frog

Giraffe

Black Dutch Rabbit

Beaver

Kermit

"Jacket Weather"

The title of this post is blatantly lifted from fellow Blogger and great friend, Marissa Benton. She and I grew up in the same part of the country, so it stands to reason that we would agree on this topic. And I love the imagery.

Fall is the most underrated season. So few people appreciate how amazing it is, that if we're not careful, we may lose it altogether. In fact, there are only a select few places where it truly exists in its purest form. And I happen to have spent the formative years of my life in one of them.

So I will show you why fall--or autumn if you prefer--is the greatest season of the year.

Fall Foliage

Fresh-Picked Apples

Apple Cider

Crisp Air

Pumpkins

Hot Chocolate

Cool Rain

Cranberries
(Kathleen chose this picture.)

Polar Fleece

Maple Syrup

"Called to Eat"

When I was in the LDS Missionary Training Center, or MTC, there was a slight food-shortage crisis. Record numbers of missionaries were in the MTC at the same time, and there just wasn't enough food for everyone to be able to eat as much as they wanted. This revelation came to light because the people in the later meal schedules sometimes had nothing to eat but "onion rings and cereal." It was determined that it was because people on MY meal schedule (the first shift) were eating 3 or more entrées.

After that, this famed all-you-can-eat buffet-style MTC dining experience was limited to one entrée per meal, per person.

In protest, the 12 members of my District composed new Spanish-language lyrics to the missionary classic "Called to Serve," which we would then sing loudly in protest as we waited in line for our meals. The lyrics follow:

"Llamados a Comer"

Voy a comer tres o cuatro entrées,
No me importa lo que pasará.
A los otros, que vienen tardes,
No recibirán nada...

Como, siempre como,
Engordándome al fín,
Glotón, yo soy glotón,
Como oso en jardín
Pollo, Super-Pollo,
Mi amigo a comer,
¡Yo estoy feliz,

porque yo se que gordo puedo ser!