One down, one to go

One year ago, before dropping him of at the Missionary
Training Center in Provo, UT

Happy one year to my little bro, Kendall!  He's been serving a mission in Sapporo, Japan for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints since August 2011. I miss him. Mostly picking on him and yelling at him when he eats ALL my Nutty Bars and any kind of sugary, unhealthy, delicious treat that I'm saving for ME.  And I miss laughing with him, or as my mom would say, "going into mania" with him.

We had fun together growing up. Playing with our beanie baby collections, running around Grandma Stratford's property pretending to be Robin Hood and Little John (he always made me be Little John because I was "bigger"), making movies, chasing him around in his whitie tighties (that one ended bad, story for another time), and covering the bathroom floor in water and soap during our bath time so we could surf.

I liked controlling him through force. It worked until
 he got bigger than me.

One of my favorite memories: One fine Texas day, Leighton and Tyler left for school. Kendall and I were still at home, too young to be in school yet, and I had been eyeing Tyler's newly purchased pack of Zebra gum for awhile. As soon as that door shut, I grabbed my partner in crime, snatched the Zebra gum from Tyler's dresser, and we crawled under Tyler's bed and chewed every last piece of gum. Still not sure if Tyler has forgiven us for that.

I'm proud of Kendall and the example he sets for our family. While stubborn at times, he is also extremely diligent and hard-working. I've never seen someone prepare for a mission as much as he did.  I know that he loves the gospel of Jesus Christ, and that he is loving and serving the people in Japan with his whole heart.  Can't wait to see him next August!