Family Cheer

For our first family home evening in our new home a couple weeks ago, I gave the lesson. I read the story in this conference talk by Richard J. Maynes. He quotes a story about a little boy that likes to go roping with his dad. I had some rope that the kids held and unraveled to show the individual strands that make up a rope. We talked about their analogy of a rope being like a family. Then I introduced our new family cheer. So now, every night after family scriptures and prayers we chant 3 times,

"We are the Westons and we are strong!"

The kids absolutely LOVE this part of the evening and are pumping their fists and flexing their muscles like crazy. We talked about how we are not just strong in our muscles, but we want to be strong in faith, strong in our love for each other, strong in our unity, testimonies, etc. That little phrase means a lot to our little family. Sometimes I hear the kids saying it randomly during the day.

My major at BYU-Idaho was University Studies. That's obviously nothing to brag about, and not very interesting at all for conversation-making, but I loved it. I had to pick 2 minors, and I did Home and Family Living and Marriage and Family Studies. So basically I went to school to be a mom, because that's all I've ever wanted to do anyway. But anyway, we talked a lot during these family classes about how family traditions can be so important because it gives the children a tightly-knit system that they're apart of. It helps create consistency and they have a life where they know what to expect at certain times. Not just Christmas traditions, but even nightly traditions like reading books together and singing a song before bed, or whatever it is. It provides that stable environment that gives them security.

I just wanted to share a little idea that's been a lot of fun for all of us, not just the kids. Ours is very simple, but it's ours, and that's what matters.