Nine

Nater and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary last weekend.  Sometimes I can't believe it's been that long, and some days I feel like we've been in this same apartment and routine for a lot longer!  We are SO excited to finally be looking for jobs and browsing the housing market for REAL.

I love my man.  Our relationship isn't perfect, but we are both trying our hardest to do what is right and lead our little family towards the Celestial Kingdom.  We have so much fun together.  We drive each other nuts.  We still have the hots for each other.  We have the same goals and dreams.  I love you, Nate!

We got to go on a running date (6 miles baby!) and then out for lunch.  And of course we put the kids to bed early like we always do...  :)

Temple

After 9 years of wearing his old mission suits, Nate finally went and bought himself some snazzy new suits last week.  Holy smokes, that boy looks FINE in them!  Really, really hot.  Sigh...

Anyway, tonight my sweet visiting teacher, Lynn, offered to watch our kids while we went to the temple.  We chose the Bountiful Temple, which is always one of my favorites.  It's just beautiful.

I love being in the temple with Nate.  I love remembering and renewing those covenants I have made and WE have made together.  I know that temples make forever families possible.

I am so happy and feel so blessed to be a member of this Church.  I know it is true.

Young Love

My dad brought me some pictures from back in 2005.  Nate and I were just babies back then!!

We were so excited to begin our life together.  We had strong testimonies and were in love, but it's amazing to see how much we've grown over the past 8 years.  We know things now that we didn't know back then.  We have a better relationship with each other and with our Savior.  We know how to make better decisions now.  We are wiser.  We worry less about whether or not things will work out in life.  We have more faith.  Life is such an amazing journey.  In another 8 years, we'll look back and will have grown even more.

PS..Nate is HOT.  Seriously.  I can hardly stand it. And he picked ME!  I'll never get over it...

HAHA, this is one of my favorite pictures from our luncheon.  My mom looks like she's praying, I look like I'm about to kill someone, and Nate is all cute (it's impossible for him to take a bad picture) and probably thinking, "Wow, what have I married into?"  Kids, this evil face of mine is probably actually going to be more familiar to you than my smiling one...sorry about that!!  :)  It's not my fault, you 3 are stinkers!!

My brothers are awesome!

Eight

Happy 8 Years, Nate!  I love you so muchie.  Thanks for being my best friend.

Our kids are nuts!  Someday we'll run away and get some peace and quiet.  Until then...thanks for being such a great dad and partner as we navigate this whole parenting thing!  I couldn't do any of this without you!

Our life is not perfect, but it's ours!

And thanks for the beautiful tulips and the yummy Olive Garden!

xoxoxo

Good ole Blast from the Dating Past:  Tennis Mickey at Disneyland!

Our Wedding Video!!

I finally got this put onto a DVD (Thank you, Kevin!).  It's way out of my comfort zone to post pictures, let alone video of myself, but here you go!  Nate's so hot, I am so lucky!!

 

Music:  Vanessa Carlton, Switchfoot, John Mayer and a Korean band I don't remember the name of!  Mandy Moore is supposed to be on there too, but the video guy messed up and put 2 Vanessa Carlton songs on there.  So that's the random Vanessa song in the middle that doesn't seem like it fits!  It doesn't!  :)

Heavier Things

It's been awhile since I've given JM some love on my good ole bloggity blog. 

On our 3rd date, Nate bought me John's 2nd album, "Heavier Things".  I listened to it nonstop while we were dating.  I remember playing "Clarity" over and over when I drove the hour home after getting engaged.  Good memories.  I love how this album takes me back 8 years just like that.

I haven't listened to it in a LONG time, and I'm suddenly obsessed again.  GOOD music going on there.  I love the vibe of this album.  "Come Back to Bed" and "Split Screen Sadness".  Amaaazing!!!

Believe it or not, I really do love NATE more than I love John.  :)  One of my favorite things about our relationship is our mutual obsession with JM.  Last night we were going through our 72-hour kits, and suddenly Nate jumps up and goes, "Um, how have we not been listening to John all this time? What is wrong with us??"  Most evenings, one of us will end up on YouTube listening to John, or Nate will get out his guitar.  We both end up just sitting together listening to John.  For HOURS.  It's awesome.  We both get this about each other.  I love it.  I love Nate.  So much.

Sweet Valentines

Nate is too good to me!  So beautiful.

Cameron said, "Mom, did Daddy give you those?"

Mom: "Yes, because he loves me."

Cam: "I know he does."

 

On Monday night, Nate's parents had us all over for a Queen of Hearts party.  Robyn had her house all decorated, and we all had cute place settings with heart cards.  We had pink punch and heart-shaped cheese and crackers and heart-shaped pizza.  The grandkids each had a love note from Grandma.  I kept them, but since they will definitely get lost eventually, I wanted to save them here.

Cam, Roo & Cwaire, you are so loved!!  We hope you always know and feel that.

Raindrop Plop

Every week at the library, I grab a few random books off the shelf to read to the kids.  Last week, I completely fell in love with one of those books.  So did the kids.

Cutest little counting story about a little girl playing in the rain.  Love it.  It's probably the Oregonian in me.  Allie loves the very last page, it's a picture of the little girl in pigtails on a swing.  "That's me on the Glenwood swing!"

Our very own copy arrived this week from the poor snow-covered UPS man.  And thank you Amazon for your 10 cent books!

Nate and I both won free books from goodreads giveaways this past week.  Score!  Authors give away copies on the site before they are officially published, so that they can get early feedback.  Nate's book arrived already, and it's really cool!  It's not even the official book yet, the cover is just plain, and it doesn't have the dedication or finished title page yet.  It is a murder mystery, but I'm still excited to read it, even though that's not really my type of book.  Nate is starting to get more into reading lately, which I love.  I'm converting him to reading, and he's converted me to miracle whip (this took about 6 years...).  A good marriage is all about compromise, folks!  :)  I absolutely LOVE a quiet evening snuggled on the sofa, each of us with a book, some jazz playing.  So much better than those lame zombie shows he likes.  Love you, honey!!

Let's do a little daydreaming, shall we?  (Lindsay, I know you'll be with me on this...!)

Someday.

I would love a room in my house just for books and reading.

It's A....

HEALTHY BABY BOY OR GIRL!!

It's always a relief to see a strong heart, spine, organs, brain, etc.  We are so grateful for our healthy baby.  It kept putting it's hands up by it's face, like it was being shy.  It was a fun ultrasound.  The doctor did a good job of keeping the secret for us, and we told him to write 'gender unkown' in the chart so that a certain close family member of mine won't be tempted to spill any beans!!  Dr. Ludlow knows what it is....but no one else!

My dad is in NASHVILLE right now.  His facebook status updates are killing me.... "went on a 3.5 mile run in Centennial Park here in sunny Nashville, the trees are blooming, it's summer here."  Rude...just rude, I say!!!

Nater and I got to go on a sweet date tonight....first the temple.  Always wonderful.  We saw Elder L. Tom Perry in the Conference Center elevator afterwards.  Always a treat!  We were getting on as he was getting off....I'm a dork and just froze, staring dumbfounded at him with my mouth hanging open in a ridiculous grin.  He stopped and said hi and held the elevator door open for us.  Nate said hello to him and then had to physically push me into the elevator because I wasn't moving.  Nice.

Then we headed to Wingers for dinner, where we caught the first half of the BYU game.  We were more than happy to sit side-by-side in the booth and watch Jimmer and eat awesome food.  That shot he made right at halftime...it was almost from half court!  Luckily the people sitting behind us were Y fans too, so they didn't seem to mind my obnoxious cheering.  I miss you, DeAnn....I need my loud-cheering Cougar fan sister with me!!

Now we're home, watching the 2nd half, and watching Cam practice his dunks and lay-ups and free throws.  I've said it a million times, and I'll say it again:  This kid is going places in bball.....and we can't wait for it!!

Life is sooo awesome.  There is so much good to be found and joy to be had in our lives.  Nate and I were talking tonight about how we're both happier and more relaxed than we've been in probably our whole marriage.  Nate said, "I feel like everything we've been through lately has led me to this decision with my schooling and career."  Prayers are answered.  Sacrifices are returned a thousand times over.  Put God first.  Put His will ahead of your own.  Pray and ponder and study and wait and obey and sacrifice and pray some more until you discover His will and plan for your life.  I promise you will find real joy and real happiness....it can't and won't come any other way.

I thought since it's Valentine's Day, I'd have Nate & I share our Love Story!  I feel like my blog is a non-stop gush-fest over Nate, so I'm going to have HIM answer the beginning questions for our post.  You hear plenty from me already!

Him: Nate

Her: Becca

Married: February 3, 2005

Mt. Timpanogos Temple, American Fork, Utah

Two Children:  Cameron (age 3)

Allison (age 1)

Our little interview, done on 2/7/10 as I plopped down on the sofa next to him:

B: Hey, will you answer some questions for me?

N: Sure.

B: Describe our marriage in one word.

N: Groovy

(I immediately crack up......)

B: What's the first thing that attracted you to me?

(we both laugh....cuz we met as missionaries!)

N: Well that's an inappropriate question.....just kidding.  Um...it was your eyeballs.  Just kidding.  Seriously, it was your eyes.  Then your bum.

B:  Oh geez, maybe this was a bad idea!!  Next, what's your best marriage advice?

N: Say 'I Love You' every day.

B: Oh that's good!

N: I love you.

B: I love you too.  Next....What do the two of us like to do in our spare time together?

N: (suspicious smirk....his eyebrows shoot up....)

B: No, not that....

(maybe this was really a bad idea!!)

N: We never do anything productive together.....we spend hours and hours watching seasons and seasons of 24 and LOST.

B:  Haha, you're so right.

N: And we like to play tennis, when we find the time.

B: Okay, that's it.  Thanks dude.

Okay....moving on!!

So here is the story of how we met.  I think it would be fun to hear BOTH of our versions....but today it's just mine:

Nate & I were both called to serve in the Korea Seoul West Mission for the LDS Church. 

Me as a missionary:

Nate as a missionary:

We both arrived in Korea in the summer of 2002, but didn't meet for a year.  When Nate first got to Korea, he was assigned to an area called "Boh-ng Chun".  There are usually 8-10 missionaries in an area. There, he became good friends with another girl missionary (called 'sister missionaries') because they both served in that area for 7 months.  Meanwhile, I was in other areas, and I didn't know either of them.  Every few months, all of the missionaries would get together for a big conference, so we all knew everyone's names, but unless you serve in the same area, it's not likely that you'll get to know everyone.

Here is all of us....can you find me & Nate?
I'm in purple, 5th in from the right.
Nate is 3 rows above me, over one to the left, kneeling.  He's the one in the suit & tie.....ha! We got to wear traditional Korean dresses for Christmas, it was really fun.

Anyway, fast forward about 8 months to Spring of 2003.  This sister missionary, who had served with and become close friends to Nate, she transferred over to my area, and we became companions (missionaries always work together in pairs of 2).  She would go on and on about "Elder Wood" and how awesome he was and what a wonderful missionary he was.

June rolled around, and Nate's birthday is June 2, so my companion suggested we get permission to take the subway to Nate's area and visit him....she also wanted to see some of the families she had worked with.  So on June 2, 2003, we rode the subway a few stops.  "Elder Wood", his companion, and a lady who they all had just baptized, met us there.  When I first saw him, I didn't think anything.....I mean, we were missionaries, I wasn't trying to check out the elders or anything!

We decided to go to Pizza Hut and bowling. I ended up sitting across from him at lunch, and I remember looking at him and sort of being hit with this feeling of:  "Wow, he is a really decent guy."  I thought he just seemed so nice and funny and sweet. We had a really fun afternoon. I'm a horrible bowler, and Nate tells me now that he thought it was adorable that I was so bad!  He got a few strikes that day, cuz he rocks.  We also all got stuck in the elevator leaving the bowling alley, it was funny (and kind of scary, cuz I HATE elevators almost as much as I hate airplanes!).

Nate trying to pry open the elevator door!!

So this is the fun part: That night, I wrote about our day in my journal, just like I did every night on my mission.  He did the same thing.  Here is what we wrote about meeting each other.

Becca's Mission Journal - June 2, 2003:

"Today was a fun P-Day.  Today is Elder Wood's 20th birthday, so Sister Pink & I went to BuCheon!  We hung out with their convert, and Elder Mattingly was there.  I had never really talked to Elder Wood before, but he is absolutely a gem.  I just loved the crap out of him - he's hilarious!  He's really shy and reserved, a lot like me, actually.  But he kept making these funny faces and saying these hilarious comments."

Nate's Mission Journal - June 2, 2003:

"We went to the station, and we met Sun Kyeong there, and Sisters Pink & Warner.  Then we ate at Pizza Hut!  They sang a song for me.  It was great!  Then we went to the bowling alley.  It was great fun!  Sister Warner is so cool!  I'm really glad I got to meet her.  She is so hilarious."

Can you believe that?  Straight from our journals, I swear!!  Yeah, I called him a 'gem'....I'm a nerd.

(By the way, P-Day means Preparation Day...once a week as missionaries, we had one day where we could dress down, do laundry, grocery shopping, sight-seeing, letter-writing, etc)

Here's proof:

So six more months went by.....we still never got assigned to the same area.  I think it's safe to say that we

both maintained a really high opinion of each other, but really never thought anything of it.  We'd talk at Mission Conferences, but that was about it.

I went home 6 months later, and Nate still had 6 months left.  He claims he thought about writing me after I left....but he had heard through the grapevine that I was dating someone, so he assumed I was long gone.  He was very wrong!!

Fast forward to June 2004. 

Nate comes home. He dates a little.  I'm very single. I date a little. I had sort of forgotten about him.

In July, that same mutual friend of ours invited a bunch of friends out for Korean food.  I lived in Salem, Utah and Nate lived in West Jordan, Utah...about an hour apart.  She invites both of us.  I arrive before Nate and am just hanging out.  Suddenly Nate walks in....um, hello Mr. Gorgeous!  I immediately had butterflies.  All I can say is that in the year since we last had hung out, he had really grown up.  He was SO HOT.  We weren't missionaries anymore, so I was free to check him out all I wanted!!!  So check him out I did...

We sat across from each other again.  We talked and laughed a lot....but he didn't know I was single.  And I thought he was WAY out of my league and assumed he'd never date me. (I was having some self-esteem issues at that time!)  Afterwards, we sort of lingered outside the restaurant.  He says now that he wanted to hug me, but was too shy. We go our separate ways.

A few weeks later, this same friend forwarded me something that Nate had emailed her.....so I copied his email address and wrote to him.  This gets fun because we have saved all of the emails we have ever sent from this point on!  They are hilarious.  Anyway, so I wrote him and was just all casual and "mission-buddy"-ish.  After a few emails, we quickly learned that we were both very single.  I still thought he was out of my league, but we set up a day to hang out in September.....me, him, and our friend.  The three of us, haha!  The day before we were supposed to all hang out, our friend cancelled.  I assumed the outing was off....but Nate emailed me and asked if I still wanted to do something with just him.

YES!!!

September 18, 2004:

Nate knocks on my door (he drove an hour down to my house).  I open it, and he's just so gorgeous, standing there smiling at me.  I still remember what he was wearing and just how yummy he looked. We went for a walk in the park, lunch, a movie, dinner, a BYU football game, talked nonstop about our adventures in Korea.....our first date was 9 hours long! 

We were engaged 6 weeks later.  Yep.  The details of those 6 weeks are pretty fun too.  But that'll be for another Love Story Sunday.

Here's an email that Nate sent to our friend about 2 weeks after we started dating:
"Things with Becca and I are just perfect. She is sooo awesome. The best! I just want to say thank you, cuz without you I don't think Becca and I would be together. I'm glad you invited me to eat korean that one night. It's kinda interesting, but that night changed my life. If I didn't go, I wouldn't have seen Warner, and she wouldn't have e-mailed me and we wouldn't be together. Thanks! I'm just soo happy!"

At a mission reunion, about a week after our first date.

Happy Lover's Day!
Go smooch your honey....I know I'm going to!!