Happy St. Patrick's Day!
Although I have 1% or something like that Irish in me. This day has really never had much meaning for me. Oh....wear green or get pinched. So uh....not so fun...Well, until I got married. A year after we got married I was sitting one day in the first week of March pondering over things and thinking that just a year before Nathan had proposed and our lives changed (for the good of course) and then realized that Nathan proposed on St. Patrick's Day. I went to an old calendar and to my journal and sure enough he really did propose on St. Patrick's Day. So, I decided to make St. Patrick's Day special that year. I went and bought a St. Patrick themed material and made a table cloth. Bought some green carnations I think and made a nice breakfast for him. He was a bit shocked because although he proposed on St. Patrick's Day neither one of us had realized it until the following year.
So it now is special to us as we ponder back at my fickleness, the divine intervention of the spirit and how he proposed that changed our lives. I honestly do believe that if it hadn't been for the spirit's promptings we would not be where we are at today. I am soooooooooooooooooooo glad, he proposed in the manner he did. I am grateful for the spirit and I am REALLY REALLY glad I married Nathan!
The story.... (WARNING: this is cheesy)
It all began when my friend Nicole was travelling from Salt Lake to Alamo, NV to see her parents. I had talked to Nathan and asked him if he wanted to pick me up from Alamo and I could come spend the weekend. He of course jumped at the chance. With a long distance relationship getting to see each other rather than talking on the phone was a treat. Now up to this point we had broken up once because of me and had almost broken up a second time a month or so prior to this weekend because...well a long story....but both of us had prayed and both felt we needed to give it a few more weeks so that we could ponder and pray about it on our own as if we were to break up a second time we both felt it needed to be for good. Well, during that time I prayed and he prayed and although I wasn't quite sure I was ready for an eternal commitment I knew I loved him, I also knew if he proposed I was not sure what I would say...but I also felt I needed to show him that I DID care (I was a terrible girlfriend) so Nicole and I set out for Alamo and he came down and we had planned to go swimming in the hot springs there and do dinner with her family and then head to Vegas. So Nicole and I had concocted a plan one that I was sure would fail but nonetheless we decided to try. We decided to fill his truck with balloons and a stuffed animal and a card to let him know I cared. The trick was getting his keys. We got Nicole's brother to help too. We thought the only time we would get the keys was while we were swimming. So sure enough we hid the balloons in a room he wouldn't go into (since it wasn't his house) and while he was changing we grabbed his keys. Well, her brother was nice to fill the truck. When Nathan came out he went to look for his keys and couldn't find them. We managed to keep a straight face while we tried to help him look for them. Nicole's brother then had finished and came back in and so we asked Nathan if he left them in her parents car (we took her parent's car swimming and their garage is behind the house and he was parked in front) he KNEW he hadn't taken them with but we managed to convince him to go and look so while we were all looking his brother put the keys back in his coat pocket. We come back in and we told him to check his jacket again. And there they were. He was so confused but deep down knew we were up to something. We then left and he said, "I knew it!"
Well, then we proceeded for 2 1/2 hours to Vegas and at some point on that drive it hit me..."He's going to propose tomorrow!" I just knew it in my heart and I was all of a sudden very very scared! I had NO idea what I was going to say. I had my "fears" (not significant fears, might I add.) but I let my mind wander and get the best of me. I remember pleading with Heavenly Father that night that I would make the "right" decision. I went over the past 8 months and pondered about a lot of things. I don't think I slept much that night.
He had already made plans with me the night before to go to the temple that next morning. So I thought for sure he would propose on temple grounds, which I always found a bit "cheesy" and really didn't want to be proposed that way. But ya know you can't really choose can you? So anyway we attended the temple and I prayed in the Celestial room very hard that I would know what to say...after that I came out and he was waiting for me as he proceeded to ask me if we could take a stroll (on temple grounds) I thought "oh cheese" he really is going to do it here. We walked around for about 20 minutes and then said, okay let's go...this whole time I am on pins and needles!!!! My stomach was wrenching! And I felt like I was going to throw up and then he says, "okay, lets go?!!!" I was like okay....maybe I was wrong...maybe he isn't proposing or maybe he is doing it tonight. (the fact is he was stalling because he was suppose to call his brother right after the session was over and he ran into problems and of course couldn't take the phone in the temple anyway so he changed quickly and then ran out used the pay phone and then ran back in to meet me.) He then proceeded to drive behind the temple in a little spot that brings back some memories (that's another story) and he pulled off and there in the middle of a mountain side was a table and two chairs...and he says, "Oh look!, How convenient a table for two" Want to see what that's all about?" (honestly I was thinking do I have too?.) At this point I believe I was shaking and really wanting to cry. Because I felt that if I didn't have a sure knowledge as to saying Yes, that maybe I needed to say No! And kept praying in my heart for guidance...After he sat me down a peace came over me and there were crackers and cheese and stuff so we sat for a minute or so and ate some food (or he fed me food) and then in the middle of the table was this book...
He proceeded to say "Oh...look a book, shall we read it?" (he proceeded to walk around to my side of the table, knelt down on very pebbly rocks)
This was the opening , and this picture was when I had come down for our friend Eden's wedding in December (when we unofficially got back together) but as you can see we were pretty much together...I had broken up with him over Thanksgiving weekend. (another long story)
The second page and we will spare you the rest! (Nathan did this all himself by the way) and we actually were talking on the phone two nights before this and he was making it. I could hear he was doing something and asked him what he was doing and he said he was "scrap booking" and I was like "WHAT?" "what kind of guy scrap books?" and I dropped the conversation and we moved on about meeting in Alamo the next night! he later told me he was making this book.
After he finished reading our "love" story(it was just basically all the things he loved about me)...this was at the back of the book. By the time he got to the end I was a lot more calm but still praying I would say the right thing. He proceeded to ask me to be his wife and up to that point I opened my mouth to say no (because I didn't know for "sure") but what came out was (are you ready for this cheesiness) ..."You know I will" (I didn't know(yet) but he did!) I was a bit shocked to say the least but actually VERY relieved we were not ending our relationship (I can't tell you the many I times I just felt empty after he left after spending a weekend together) and then I was overwhelmed with peace and I think my arms went numb and I was overcome with excitement! I couldn't believe it! I was engaged!!! So we went back to his house and told his parents and...well...I am not sure if I called my parents or not.
So it now is special to us as we ponder back at my fickleness, the divine intervention of the spirit and how he proposed that changed our lives. I honestly do believe that if it hadn't been for the spirit's promptings we would not be where we are at today. I am soooooooooooooooooooo glad, he proposed in the manner he did. I am grateful for the spirit and I am REALLY REALLY glad I married Nathan!
The story.... (WARNING: this is cheesy)
It all began when my friend Nicole was travelling from Salt Lake to Alamo, NV to see her parents. I had talked to Nathan and asked him if he wanted to pick me up from Alamo and I could come spend the weekend. He of course jumped at the chance. With a long distance relationship getting to see each other rather than talking on the phone was a treat. Now up to this point we had broken up once because of me and had almost broken up a second time a month or so prior to this weekend because...well a long story....but both of us had prayed and both felt we needed to give it a few more weeks so that we could ponder and pray about it on our own as if we were to break up a second time we both felt it needed to be for good. Well, during that time I prayed and he prayed and although I wasn't quite sure I was ready for an eternal commitment I knew I loved him, I also knew if he proposed I was not sure what I would say...but I also felt I needed to show him that I DID care (I was a terrible girlfriend) so Nicole and I set out for Alamo and he came down and we had planned to go swimming in the hot springs there and do dinner with her family and then head to Vegas. So Nicole and I had concocted a plan one that I was sure would fail but nonetheless we decided to try. We decided to fill his truck with balloons and a stuffed animal and a card to let him know I cared. The trick was getting his keys. We got Nicole's brother to help too. We thought the only time we would get the keys was while we were swimming. So sure enough we hid the balloons in a room he wouldn't go into (since it wasn't his house) and while he was changing we grabbed his keys. Well, her brother was nice to fill the truck. When Nathan came out he went to look for his keys and couldn't find them. We managed to keep a straight face while we tried to help him look for them. Nicole's brother then had finished and came back in and so we asked Nathan if he left them in her parents car (we took her parent's car swimming and their garage is behind the house and he was parked in front) he KNEW he hadn't taken them with but we managed to convince him to go and look so while we were all looking his brother put the keys back in his coat pocket. We come back in and we told him to check his jacket again. And there they were. He was so confused but deep down knew we were up to something. We then left and he said, "I knew it!"
Well, then we proceeded for 2 1/2 hours to Vegas and at some point on that drive it hit me..."He's going to propose tomorrow!" I just knew it in my heart and I was all of a sudden very very scared! I had NO idea what I was going to say. I had my "fears" (not significant fears, might I add.) but I let my mind wander and get the best of me. I remember pleading with Heavenly Father that night that I would make the "right" decision. I went over the past 8 months and pondered about a lot of things. I don't think I slept much that night.
So then.... it started with the temple the next morning....
He had already made plans with me the night before to go to the temple that next morning. So I thought for sure he would propose on temple grounds, which I always found a bit "cheesy" and really didn't want to be proposed that way. But ya know you can't really choose can you? So anyway we attended the temple and I prayed in the Celestial room very hard that I would know what to say...after that I came out and he was waiting for me as he proceeded to ask me if we could take a stroll (on temple grounds) I thought "oh cheese" he really is going to do it here. We walked around for about 20 minutes and then said, okay let's go...this whole time I am on pins and needles!!!! My stomach was wrenching! And I felt like I was going to throw up and then he says, "okay, lets go?!!!" I was like okay....maybe I was wrong...maybe he isn't proposing or maybe he is doing it tonight. (the fact is he was stalling because he was suppose to call his brother right after the session was over and he ran into problems and of course couldn't take the phone in the temple anyway so he changed quickly and then ran out used the pay phone and then ran back in to meet me.) He then proceeded to drive behind the temple in a little spot that brings back some memories (that's another story) and he pulled off and there in the middle of a mountain side was a table and two chairs...and he says, "Oh look!, How convenient a table for two" Want to see what that's all about?" (honestly I was thinking do I have too?.) At this point I believe I was shaking and really wanting to cry. Because I felt that if I didn't have a sure knowledge as to saying Yes, that maybe I needed to say No! And kept praying in my heart for guidance...After he sat me down a peace came over me and there were crackers and cheese and stuff so we sat for a minute or so and ate some food (or he fed me food) and then in the middle of the table was this book...
He proceeded to say "Oh...look a book, shall we read it?" (he proceeded to walk around to my side of the table, knelt down on very pebbly rocks)
This was the opening , and this picture was when I had come down for our friend Eden's wedding in December (when we unofficially got back together) but as you can see we were pretty much together...I had broken up with him over Thanksgiving weekend. (another long story)
The second page and we will spare you the rest! (Nathan did this all himself by the way) and we actually were talking on the phone two nights before this and he was making it. I could hear he was doing something and asked him what he was doing and he said he was "scrap booking" and I was like "WHAT?" "what kind of guy scrap books?" and I dropped the conversation and we moved on about meeting in Alamo the next night! he later told me he was making this book.
After he finished reading our "love" story(it was just basically all the things he loved about me)...this was at the back of the book. By the time he got to the end I was a lot more calm but still praying I would say the right thing. He proceeded to ask me to be his wife and up to that point I opened my mouth to say no (because I didn't know for "sure") but what came out was (are you ready for this cheesiness) ..."You know I will" (I didn't know(yet) but he did!) I was a bit shocked to say the least but actually VERY relieved we were not ending our relationship (I can't tell you the many I times I just felt empty after he left after spending a weekend together) and then I was overwhelmed with peace and I think my arms went numb and I was overcome with excitement! I couldn't believe it! I was engaged!!! So we went back to his house and told his parents and...well...I am not sure if I called my parents or not.
but it wasn't until that next month that I fasted once more that I was making the right decision and my "sure" answer came when I read Doctrine and Covenants section 25. That was all I needed and the "real" wedding plans began.
He is my rock and keeps me strong!
He is my rock and keeps me strong!
