talf with a hint of dtes.

Family, the people you grow up with. Blood relatives. The people you literally get to spend forever with. Mine may be small but boy, are they special. Let me tell you about them. First, I just want to start by saying sisters are the best, nothing can beat them. And I, I have three of them. I also have been blessed with two parents. Mom and Dad, as I call them (unless I want something, then it is Mommy and Daddy).

We will start with Dad (even though he is not the oldest. sorry mom :P) My dad Trevor D. Peck is one of the greatest men I have ever known and I am so lucky to call him dad. Not only is he the most hard working, driven, friendly person I have come across in my 18 years of life but he is also the most hilarious. No one can make me laugh like my dad. The funniest thing about him is I can never stay mad at him, it is truly impossible. His witty, sense of humor just does not allow it. He is kind and strong, but the thing I love most about him is that I know he loves me. I know he would do anything for me and that is so important to me. He makes me feel safe and I know I can go to him with anything. He is supportive and pushes me to be my best. I love this man more than anything. He is more than a dad to me, he is my friend, favorite doubles partner, and comic relief. I am so blessed to have him in my life. I love you dad. 

Mom (the real oldest) Not that it shows AT ALL. She is the most beautiful human on the planet not only on the outside but on the inside. She is what I want to be when I grow up. She has the best heart and is the most thoughtful. I love how easy to is to talk to her and she always knows exactly what to say. She is corky and the most adorable woman ever. She can brighten a room with her smile and would never say "no" to anyone (well unless they asked her to do drugs or something, then I really hope she would say no. haha) My mom is the perfect example of a mom. She is my rock. My biggest cheerleader and absolute best friend. She is the most selfless person in this world and is constantly looking to serve and never ever expects anything in return. She is caring, loving and smart. I would not be who I am today without her. She is my hero. My friend. My inspiration. I love you mom.

Dayna. Most of you know Dayna and I just have this special bond. I don't know what it is but I just love the crap out of this girl. Since day one back in 1996 she has been the person I look up to most and she has not failed me yet. She is brilliant. Outgoing and just spunky. She does not let anyone push her or her sisters around. She is my personal body guard and therapist. Dayna is drop dead gorgeous, but the best part about her is she doesn't even realize who beautiful she truly is because to her the inside matters most. She is always looking for the good in others and does not dwell on the past. Dayna is my best friend. My go to shoulder to cry on. My role model. The person I hope to be even just a little bit like. My laugh until we pee our pants buddy. The only person who understands music like I do. Dayna is the greatest person you will ever meet, I promise. She is my shorty. I love you Daynz. 

Emily. Wow. I wish I could describe her as well as she can run. She is fast, like lightning McQueen fast. I love watching her run. She is the girl that got me through high school. Emily is kind and sweet. She can get any boy she wants because she is the most beautiful 16 year on the planet. She is so much fun. I could do anything with Emily and have a good time. She is my favorite to binge watch Netflix with and when we are in the car together, you better watch out because you know we will be jamming. She is my best friend. She is smart, really smart. I love her spunky personality and her ability to make everyone she meets feel loved and accepted. I wish I had her outgoingness and ability to just be yourself regardless of others.  Emily is feisty and I love her sooo much, I could cry thinking about it. I love you Em. 

Sarah. The baby (even though she looks nothing like a baby anymore). Well she is a little genius and excels in everything she does. All A's in school, check. Kicks butt and scores goals in every soccer game, check. Can make friends faster than light travels, check. She is just good at everything. She is funny. Sarah is the comeback queen, fighting with her is tiring because she is just so brilliant with words it is ridiculous. She is the glue to all the sisters and keeps us in line and up with traditions. Sarah is the last and final piece that makes the Peck family so special. Sarah is beautiful, her hair and smile, Seriously, you are not suppose to look good with braces but she does. Sarah is what I like to call my mini me, even though it is her that I want to be like. She is my soccer idol. I love you bear. 

That is my little family. Can you see why I love them so much? They are all individually so great, but when we all get together is my favorite. Whether it be playing cards at the cabin, hiking, playing soccer on the beach, long board/bike rides though the neighborhood, trips to Disneyland, car rides, skiing or my most recent memory, funerals via facetime from three different states. We lost a furry, loving, spastic member of our family. Cinco, our only dog and brother. Through him, we have become closer as a family. We gathered together Friday night. Emily facetimed me and Sarah facetimed Dayna. We stood together in the garden in the of our backyard where my dad had buried Cinco to share our favorite memories of him and what we loved most. Tears were shed. Funny moments were recalled. And the spirit was felt. I did not think I was capable of loving my family more than I already did but in that moment my heart was overflowing with so much love for them. 

These five people make up the best parts of me. They are my everything. Families can be together forever and that is the greatest thing I have ever heard. Yes, we may be silly and at times dysfunctional but that is what makes us great. We love to laugh and just be with each other, We are a family. Ohana means family and family means no one rides alone at Disneyland.  Well, at least that is what it means in our family.

it's the little things.

  I don't know if you all saw my post on Facebook this week about moments that matter most, it was a Mormon message. Well if you didn't, go watch it. In life I feel like it is easy to get caught up in things that don't really matter that much. Everyone is so worried with what classes they are going to take next semester, getting a job, and becoming successful. Yes, these things are important but "Happiness is a way of life, not a destination". I feel like everyone needs to drop what they are doing, unpack the suitcase of stress and notice the little things. The trees, someone walking alone, an uneven sidewalk (those will get you, every time), the way the mountains look when the sun is setting, or the way people laugh. All these things may be small but to me, they are the big things.
  There is this song my sisters and I love, it is called Dream Big. It was on an EFY cd a few years ago. I love the lyrics and the message of this song. My favorite line is "when you laugh be sure to laugh out loud, because it will carry all your cares away, and when you see the beauty all around and in yourself, it will help you feel okay." So just stop, smell the roses if you will. Turn off your phone and dance in the rain. Put the to-do list away and call a friend. Smile, smile all the time, at everyone you meet. I mean seriously it takes so much more energy to frown, so why even do it? We were all sent here with a purpose, you are who you are because Heavenly Father needs you to be you. Along with my love for music, comes my absolute obsession with quotes. Everyone loves Dr. Seuss, he is just a great guy, well this great guy said one of my favorite quotes of all time, "Be yourself, because the people that matter don't mind, and the people that mind, don't matter." I live by this quote. There is no one else in this world like                                                          you, so be you! Too much time is wasted caring what people think.                                                        Just do you.

You don't need other people to make you happy or a certain grade or a special occasion. Life is a special occasion. We all need to spend time doing more of what makes us happy. A few things that have made me happy today have been so small like Holly Palmer's reaction to the Marketplace being decorated for Christmas, going to art with Cass and her cute texts to me throughout the day, buying groceries, having to write on the board in English because I may have been falling asleep, and experiencing my first snow fall of winter with my fellow Arizonian Kate (people were definitely laughing at us). It is just the little things. Who would have thought snow, out of all things, would make an Arizona girl happy?

So to all the people out there, be happy (: Smiling looks good on everyone. Appreciate the little things, because you will come to find that they really were the big things.

just what I "kneaded"

Have you ever had one of those days where you just want to be alone? Everyone is annoying and you just want more than anything to get in your car and drive far away. Well Saturday was just one of those days. I just woke up annoyed from a dream I had the night before, the weather was gloomy and not helping at all and I was just mad at the world. I just wanted to get away, to get off campus, so since I do not have a car up here I decided to go for a run. Fall, as I have mentioned before is just beautiful, everything about it just calms me. Running through the fallen leaves along side a creek, passing over cute little bridges and by parks where there are actually children playing. It just felt good to be off campus and run. There was a light sprinkle and I could see snow on the tops of the mountains, I wished more than anything that my Arizona blood would allow me to stay outside for longer than an hour but that is just not the case. It is freezing here. So naturally I decided it was going to be a Netflix kind of day.

I spent the rest of the afternoon curled up on the floor in my comforter watching Friday Night Lights, because nothing says fall like football, right? As I sat there crying every time the Panthers (the TV show's football team) won a game I realized that days like the one I was having were okay every once and awhile. I just needed a day to do things for myself. After three episodes, yes, three, I talked with my mom and sisters for awhile. That surprisingly did not make my day better. I found myself longing to be with them. Sarah and Emily were showing all the candy they got from trick or treating and telling me about the haunted house they went to. My mom said the weather was beautiful and that they had just gone on a family walk. My dad had text me a few nights earlier and it just made my week. I know you all probably think I am pathetic, an 18 year old in college who sometimes wants to go home, well guess what? I don't happen to care what you think. I will never apologize for how much I love my family. Saturday I just felt like I have been at an eternal summer camp, but I just need to come to the realization that my parents are not coming to pick me up and that I will probably never live at "home" again. 

So, as you can tell Saturday was not the most fun day I have had up in Utah yet but Saturday night just might have been. I have this roommate who always seems to know when I am down or sad. She always makes sure that I am doing okay and that I am smiling. Yesterday night she did exactly that. I didn't feel like doing anything but then she invited me to go for a drive with her and get Kneaders (desserts are half off after nine). On our drive we just talked about everything. She told me she kept thinking "what would Taylor's mom do when Tay is sad?" that made my heart smile. I do not know how I got so lucky to be blessed with such a thoughtful person in my life like Cassidy Kay Gummersall but I am so thankful for her. It turns out a long talk, cream cheese brownie, and drive to Brigham City was all I really "kneaded" and of course a great friend like Cass to make my not so great day, a pretty incredible night.