Sunday, October 28, 2012

NEW BLOG. new excuses.

It has been a LONG TIME friends!

Great news though! I got married this summer and have moved to California.  Maybe all of the crazy busy-ness of a new life is the best excuse for why I haven't blogged in a while.

I did start a new blog though! Come check it out and follow me over at:

http://mylifeasawifetheblog.blogspot.com/

See you there! :)

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

it's a love story

My love story began before I ever even saw it coming.  If someone had told me 2 years ago that I was about to meet the man of my dreams I might've laughed and rolled my eyes and thought 'yeah right.'
  I had struck out on love and didn't expect that to
change anytime soon. 

It was two years ago this spring that I met him.  Two of my girlfriends, Taryn and Havilah, had
invited me over to a game night at Havilah's boyfriend's (Brett) apartment.  Before I went I had to pick up one of their friends (who was a guy-Phil) and bring him over to the apartment.
Now I know what you're thinking; but no this is not the guy I met who forever changed my life.

Warning: I don't remember much of the next part. This has all come from the man who remembers the first time he saw me.
Anyway, so I arrived to game night with Phil.  Everyone was already there and so the introductions were made.  Brett introduced me to his friend Garrett and then I met Nick.  Nick says he remembers everything about that night and how he thought that I was with Phil because
we had come together.  Sadly, I barely remember any of that.

A few weeks later everyone got together at the girls' apartment to hangout by the pool and grab some
frozen yogurt.  There was a baseball game that afternoon that I had been planning on
going to and boldly I remember asking Nick if he'd want to go with me and my friend.  Later we
met at the stadium and started to get to know each other; we continued the conversation all the
way to Applebees and back to his fraternity. 
I liked this guy a lot.  But there was definitely no way that I would ever date him.
I resolved that we'd stay friends and that would be the end of it.
And it was.

Every once in a while we would get together and get ice cream and talk. Or I'd take my little TV over
to his house and we'd watch movies.  He even got a job at the catering company I was working
at on campus (which crazy enough- I had been working there with his brother for almost a year and didn't know it!).  Back and forth, we would seem to always have an
attraction for each other, but neither of us was ever in a position to pursue anything other
than friendship.

Until last June.
I had a few friends over for a graduation party and he came.  My parents were hesitant and I was torn.
That's when Nick decided that he was going all out, which honestly freaked me out a little.
I knew that I couldn't date him, but I didn't want to lose my friend.  Our lifestyles were polar opposites.  We didn't have many mutual friends. Everything was pointing at us not working out.
But that didn't stop him. 
Even my continual "no's" didn't stop him.
We hung out almost everyday that summer.  We snuck into apartment complexes and went swimming, floated the river, went to a baseball game, went hiking, watched movies, looked at stars, cooked dinner, baked cupcakes,
and I even broke his heart almost every week it seemed like.

There's one night that is vivid in my memory.  My parents sat me down and suggested I stop pursuing this "thing" with Nick.
I was furious. I ran out of the house without any shoes, crying my eyes out, and drove all the way to Corvallis to tell Nick that we couldn't hang out anymore and that it was over.
I picked him up, we went to a park, and I poured out my heart to him (crying the whole time) and told
him that I didn't want to see him anymore.  We were just too different, didn't want the same
things out of life.
He said that I was wrong.  Little did I know, the things that I wanted out of life were really what he wanted too.  He told me that he never felt like he was living to be who he was meant to be
until he had started seeking God and hanging around me more.

yeah right.
That's what I thought after I heard that.  After a few hours of talking things out in the park, I left
and things were over.
At least that's what I thought.

Nick continued to call me almost everyday and told me that he wanted to date me more than anything.
I was so confused because the more that he pursued me, the harder it was to say no.
But over the course of the entire summer I saw a new man begin to emerge.
One who wasn't afraid to be himself; one who was strong, compassionate, and loving.  One who put my desires above his own.  One who loved God more than the hindrances from his past.
Nick was so sweet.  Never once did he pressure me.  He never told me that he would leave if I didn't make things official with him. Which shocked me considering that he asked me
to be his girlfriend four times before I said yes.
He was gracious, kind, and patient.  A far turnaround from the man at the beginning of the summer that my parents didn't like.  Not only did he woo me that summer,
but he also had my family falling for him.

Fast forward a couple of months., which puts us at last October.  We had been in our last term of college and were gearing up to graduate.  Both of us were still working at our same job and one night
he had to work til about 9 or so.  I remember because he was supposed to call me
when he got off before I went to bed so that we could talk for a minute.  But
he never called.  So at 9:45 I finally texted him and asked if he was almost off
work. He called me about 5 minutes later and I just remember his voice.
"Jenn, would you be mad at me if I told you that I was in your driveway?"
Confused, I went out to greet him.  He came inside and I could tell that something was definitely up.
He just started talking to me, asking me how my day was and making small talk.
So not like him.

But I saw something in his eyes, and I knew exactly why he had come.
After talking for a few minutes, he looked me straight in the eye and told me that he had come over because he needed to tell me something.
He told me not to say anything back.
He told me that he had been feeling this way and needed to tell me.
He told me only to ever say it when I meant it and that he would wait however long it took.
He told me he loved me.

I didn't say it back, but the feeling inside of me definitely had me thinking. I did say it back eventually, but every day until then he would just tell me how much he cared about me
and loved me.

Since then, the man has been romanticizing me and making me fall in love more and more everyday.
He's taken me on the most romatic dates.
He's written me letters and poems. 
He's brought me flowers.
He's held me through my tears.
He's played games and cards with my family.
He's made me laughed until I cried.
He's inspired me to grow more in my relationship with God.
He's taught me to not be afraid to love with my whole heart.
He's the man of my dreams.

Almost a month ago, Nick moved up to the Seattle area and I stayed down by Salem.
We've had to learn to communicate on a whole new level, and it's been a huge test for our
relationship.  But we've been trusting God to bring us through and know that it won't last for long
until we can be together for the rest of our lives.
He still pursues me, though, which never ceases to amaze me.
Everyday I get a poem that he writes for me to encourage me.
We write each other snail-mail letters.
He even learned a song and played it on his guitar over Skype for me.

I'm so excited to see what the future holds for us and what adventures God has in store for us next!











I'm telling ya...
I'm totally smitten.

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

sometimes I eat too much







Let's just say that sometimes I eat way too much.  And Sunday was one of those days. :)

For dinner we had Cajun Chicken Alfredo, homemade Cheesy Garlic Bread, Green Beans from the garden!, and homemade ice cream. 
And afterward I slipped into a food coma.