Happy 10th!!

Today is mine and Chad's 10th wedding anniversary/family birthday.  It is also my sister-in-law Annalyn's 18th birthday, Chad and I were married the same day she got baptized.  It is also my sister Celeste's and her husband Jeff's 20th wedding anniversary.  I am glad we have that special connection.  Each of us made important covenants with our Heavenly Father on that day. 

Over the last year some of my friends have also celebrated their 10th Anniversary and they wrote a special blog about how they and they husband met and gave a history of their courtship.  I have decided to copy their wonderful idea, "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery", and tell mine and Chad's story. 

I am going to begin back in August 2000.  My brother Brandon married his sweetheart Jennifer on August 4th and during their reception I took a moment to go walk the grounds of the Main Street chapel in Snowflake.  During that walk I offered a heartfelt prayer to my Heavenly Father.  I was awaiting my mission call, but in my heart I had more of a desire to be a wife and a mother, than to be a full-time missionary.  I prayed to my Heavenly Father to let him know that if it was His will that I serve a mission I would, but if possible I would really like to get married and start a family.

By the end of August I received my mission call to the Argentina Mendoza Mission.  I was to report to the MTC in Provo, UT on November 15th.

This is a picture from the only date Chad and I went on while we attended EAC before Chad went on his mission.  I asked him to the school's winter formal dance.

On Thursday Sept. 14th, 2000 I went to my friends Scott South's and Aaron Collins' apartment to watch a movie.  During the evening Chad called Aaron to let him know that his date for the group date they were planning that weekend had to work and so he didn't have a date.  Aaron knew that Chad and I had met at EA so he set Chad and I up to go out the next evening, Friday Sept. 15, 2000.  We had a good time together on the date.  Here is what I wrote in my journal about it.  "I had a really fun time talking with Chad and getting reacquainted.  He is a really great guy.  He was in my FHE group at EA.  He also played on EA’s basketball team.  He is smart and comes from a good family and is fun to be around.  However, we have never had a romantic relationship, it has always been, just friends.  We have flirted, but nothing more than that.  I don’t know if he would ever want to be more than friends.  However I think he is a great guy and I would like to see if we could be more than friends.  But since I am going on a mission, and he knows I am going on a mission I don’t know what will happen.  I have decided to let him make the moves.  If Heavenly Father wants something to happen between us, instead of me going on a mission then that is fine.  But I am going to let Chad make the moves if he wants to, because I feel like that is what I should do."

The next night, Saturday, Chad and I met up at the MCC institute opening social and we started talking and ended up hanging out for the rest of the evening.  I told him that on Monday nights I played basketball with a group of friends after FHE so on Sunday afternoon he called me and asked where to meet to come and play basketball with us.  It was so fun to watch him play basketball again.  He is such a good athlete and watching him play I became more smitten with him.

Tuesday evening I had institute and I vividly remember that evening.  As I sat through the lesson, my mind started to wander and I wondered what I had just put myself through.  I was already beginning to fall in love with Chad, but I was scheduled to go on my mission in less than 2 months.  We hadn't planned to meet up anywhere and I wasn't sure if he was going to call and ask me out again.  I felt kind of depressed.

Wednesday I went to the temple with a few of my girl friends and when I got back my roommate Debbie said, "Guess what!  Chad called."  I told her not to tease me about that, because she knew I liked him, and she said "I am serious he is going to call you back later."  Later that night he called me and asked me out for Friday night.  He also told me he would call me on Thursday to let me know what we were doing.

On Friday, just before our date, Chad called me and asked if one of my roommates wanted to go out with his friend, because his friend’s date couldn’t get off work.  My dad was there when he called and my dad asked me, Mindy are you still going on a mission?  And I said I don’t know right now, I will have to wait and see how things go with Chad.  And he said, when I was Stake President I called up to Salt Lake many times and told them that girls weren’t going on a mission because they were engaged and the brethren said, well tell her good luck!  So I told him I am going to see how things go with Chad before I make any serious decisions. 

After the date was over, Chad and I took a long walk before we went back to my condo.  This is what I recorded in my journal about that night.  "As we talked he asked me how serious I was about going on a mission and how I felt about dating someone and whether or not I would still go if I had the chance to get married.  [He didn’t say that in those exact words but pretty much that is what he meant.]  So I told him what my dad said earlier that day about when he was Stake President, and I told him that my first priority was to get married, if it was right.  He went on to tell me that when I told him I was going on a mission he wished he could have seen me when he first got off his mission 4 months ago, and I told him that I wished I could have seen him too.  [I used to tell Chani and Sandi that I wished I could just see him and go out with him.]"

After that night Chad and I continued to date and fall in love.  Here is are some excerpts from my Sept. 28, 2000 journal entry.  "Last night I went to Chad’s institute class out at Highland High School.  He waited for me and I was even late.  The class was really good.  It was about Rebekah.  Then afterwards we went bowling with Chad’s brother and sister-in-law.  After that we went to Sonic and got some flurries.  Then Chad’s brother dropped us off at the institute where our cars were.  Chad and I talked for a while.  I wanted him to hold my hand or hug me so badly while we were talking, but he didn’t.  Mainly I think he didn’t because he didn’t really know what to do.  I remember during my first relationship how shy I was.  I was extremely shy, and I didn’t really know what to do.  But the learning process sure is fun.  After we were talking for awhile I knew I had to do something to get him to hold my hand.  So I started pacing the parking slot line next to my car.  Then I said, lets have a chicken fight and try to push each other off the line, because I knew that we would at least have to touch hands, and that it would make him more comfortable and less shy.  So we did that and ... one thing led to another and I ended up wrapped up in his arms and holding his hand.  It felt so good to be next to him.  I love the way he smells!  As we were hugging he said, this is the closest I have ever been to a girl.  I told him I didn’t mind that at all.  Then later on I asked him what he was thinking.  He said, I was thinking about asking you a question.  So I waited.  Then he asked if it would be all right if he could give me a good night kiss.  So I said, yes.  So we kissed, one lovely kiss.  It was nice and sweet.  Then we hugged some more and decided that we had better go home.  Chad is such a great guy.  I know he lives the gospel.  He is obedient and kind.  I can’t even picture him getting mad or loosing his temper.  He is so sweet and I trust him.  I know that if we were to get married I could trust him to make the decisions that would lead us to the Celestial Kingdom.  However, I am still not sure what will happen with us.  I am faced with the decision of either going on my mission or staying home with Chad if things continue to go well.  I have been thinking and praying to Heavenly Father to have him help me be sure what I should do.  I also had my Dad give me a blessing.  He blessed me that I would know what I should do.  He told me Heavenly Father was pleased with me, and also that he, my dad, was pleased with me.  He told me that they were both righteous decisions, but that I would know what I should do.  He said I would know by Chad’s actions.  So I am going to continue to keep dating Chad.  Even though I don’t have a lot of time I have a few weeks to make my decision, and I don’t have to make it right away.  I have been kind of worried lately because this is such a big decision to make.  I feel like I have a huge knot burning in my chest.  I know that Heavenly Father will help me make this decision."

I am glad that I made the decision to marry Chad.  It is the best decision I have ever made.  I feel we are "equally yoked", which is something my bishop in the singles ward I attended told me to look for.  I knew that I was blessed with a great man when I married him, but as the years have gone by I have come to realize that he is an even greater blessing than I originally thought.  He is so good to me.

Chad and I are taking a trip together to celebrate our anniversary.  Our flight to Las Vegas leaves tomorrow morning at about 9:00am and we will fly home Wed. night.  I am excited to spend the three days together.  Shannon and Aaron have agreed to come and stay at our house to watch our children for us.  I am so thankful to them for being willing to help us out.  I’ll have to record next week about our adventures.