luckiest gal around

I stink at writing about our anniversary or even Dax's birthday. Nothing I write ever seems to express how I really feel about my man. Suffice it to say I adore Dax. He is simply the best match for me. A match that was truly made by Higher power.

At age 18, I moved to St. George to attend Dixie College. I had applied to numerous other schools, but when I was chosen to be a student ambassador at the college, I immediately knew Dixie was the place for me. Meanwhile, Dax was on a distant Spanish island deciding where to go to school when he returned. He had scholarships at BYU and U of U (genius), and was praying and deciding between the two. His prayers were answered surprisingly when he was prompted to stay at home after his mission and attend Dixie, an option he had not considered.

I started school in August of 1999 and was adjusting college life. A few weeks into school, the boundaries for our college ward changed slightly. My apartment building and the one across the street would now be apart of the Santa Clara student ward--the one Dax would be attending when he returned from his mission in 2 months.

My roommate introduced me to Dax one day after church. She and Dax had just met and were chatting when I walked by. She totally liked him. That was fine, because I gave no thought to our meeting after that. There were lots of fish in the sea and I loved swimming. It was pretty sweet being the "apartment girls" in a ward of people that lived at home and had gone to high school together. We were definitely the bomb.

One Sunday, Dax came up to me after sacrament meeting and asked, "Hey, would it be alright if I asked you on a date sometime?"
"Yeah!" I said.
He said ok, turned and walked away.

"Don't you want my phone number?" I called after him.

I guess he was going to just take it slow. Really slow. You know, first ask me if he could ask me out, then next week ask for my number, then the week after that ask me on a date.

Our first date was a group date with a bunch of his high school buddies. We went out to a little canyon in the red rocks, had a fire, and cooked foil dinners. It was fun! He got a little freaked out when he found out I was only 18, but other than that, the date went well.

We continued to hang out in groups of friends; the guys from the ward would come over to visit the apartment girls and invite us to do stuff with them.

I didn't have a clue who to ask to Sadies, so I figured I'd ask Dax since I owed him a date. I called him up and he said he would go with me. He sounded as excited as someone going to the dentist, so after I hung up the phone, I immediately regretted asking him. We doubled with my friend Melanie who took Mason- a guy she'd had a crush on for some time. Melanie and I took the boys to a Chinese Restaurant and then to the dance. I love dances in any form and I was pleased that Dax brought some skills; we had a fun time. I asked him why he didn't sound that excited when I invited him to go and he said he was really excited. I think he was just nervous because he liked me. Also, I've learned over the years he doesn't show excitement the way I do. He is pretty chill.

Well, of course I fell in love with the guy. He was kind, smart, funny, and so fun to be with. He worked hard and was dedicated to the gospel and also his education. It took quite a few months for me to think of the "M" word. It wasn't until our friends Melanie and Mason got married that summer that I even considered that I could marry Dax. But the more I thought about it, the more I knew there were only two options: break up or get married. I knew I never wanted to break up with Dax, and I also knew I couldn't date him forever. But still, marriage scared me. I was still young and wild and not responsible enough for anything quite so important.

So Dax remained patient. He was quietly waiting for me to come around. He knew very early on that he wanted to marry me but of course he couldn't say that or I would have run away screaming.

I did come around. At age 19 -still FAR too young to realize how important this decision was- I married Dax.
And here is a look at us through the years... (beware: very long)

Our first year of marriage was exciting and fun. I got pregnant right around the time we graduated from Dixie. As if studying and writing final papers through the night wasn't stressful enough. But we made it. Both my and his parents were there for our graduation and we told them at dinner that evening about the happy news.

This picture was taken on our first anniversary. I was 8 months pregnant. We stayed in Park City, which is where we spent our honeymoon. That evening we ate at Ruby Tuesday, which is where I had my first drink. Dax ordered me a virgin strawberry daiquiri and upon tasting it, I knew it was about as "virgin" as I was at that point. We brought this to the waiter's attention, and through his thick accent and hand gestures, we gathered that he hoped all would be well with our unborn child.

The second year of our marriage was even better than the first. We were mostly adjusted to married life, living in Logan and attending Utah State. We had our first baby in December and life took on new meaning. I chose to be a home Mom and Dax worked his guts out to provide. It was a happy, crazy time. After spring semester, Dax took a summer job with the Idaho Fish and Game and the three of us moved to northern Idaho. It was so crazy. We lived in a house with a girl that was to work with Dax. We had no TV, no phone, and 30 minutes to an hour away from "civilization". It was an adjustment being newlyweds with a baby and sharing a house with a non-LDS single girl. She was very nice and courteous of us. And we ended up having a fun adventure there. It was bitter-sweet to move back to Logan after just three months in little Harrison, Idaho. School started back up and both Dax and I went full-time. INSANE. We were happy to get away to Salt Lake and celebrate our second anniversary. The Friday we were going to leave town, I was in class and a girl in my ward asked me what I was doing for the weekend. I told her I was going to Salt Lake and she said, "Oh! Can my husband and I get a ride with you?" I knew they didn't have a car but I really wanted our anniversary getaway to not include an awkward other couple we barely knew. But being put on the spot (and being nicer then than I am now), I said yes. So we drove to Salt Lake together, making small talk and listening to baby Preslie cry because all she could see were two strangers sitting next to her. We stayed at my sister's house and she watched Preslie while Dax and I dined and saw the movie, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
In the third year of our marriage, a sweet baby boy joined our family. This was also the summer we spent in a stinky camp trailer while I was pregnant. Hunter was 6 weeks old when we celebrated our anniversary. We got a sitter for Preslie and took Hunter to Winger's for a much needed date.
The fourth year of our marriage was spent in Logan. Dax was finishing up his Bachelor's degree and we were both adjusting to having two babies. It was hard work, but we were happy. Dax graduated from Utah State in Wildlife and began his Master's degree there. Dax surprised me for our anniversary and got us a room at Anniversary Inn in Salt Lake City. My mom watched Preslie and Hunter for us. It was the first time in 3 years that we'd been alone over night. It was weird being so free and light. We barely knew how to act. But eventually, we figured it out.
I really enjoyed our fifth year. This was the first year of our marriage that I was neither pregnant nor breastfeeding. Dax was getting paid to go to school and he was working half time for the Division of Wildlife. Our rent was low and money wasn't tight. Our kids were at darling ages (4 and 2), we had good friends, had Logan figured out, and just had our groove down. We decided to leave the student ward and start attending the family ward. Life was good. For our 5th anniversary, we traveled to Salt Lake and saw the play Mamma Mia! at The Capitol Theatre.

We were still in Logan for our sixth year. Dax was home a lot. His work schedule was flexible and we spent a lot of time cooking and eating good food with Dax's brother and his wife. We had a lot of fun hanging out and enjoying the beauties of Cache Valley. This is the year Dax should have been hot on his thesis writing. We are paying for it now, but at the time we were so carefree and having a great time making as much money as we do now but having no where near the expenses or responsibility. We realized during this year that it was probably time for another baby and we started trying for #3. For our 6th anniversary, we saw the James Bond flick, Casino Royale.
It took us longer than ever before to get pregnant with our 3rd baby. But in our 7th year, it happened. Dax finished his research for his Master's degree and we took a full-time grown-up career job in Vernal. We said goodbye to Logan. At that point in our marriage, we'd moved 7-ish times and every time I was excited and ready for a new adventure. This time, I dragged my feet a little because we were moving onto a new stage and I had a feeling it would be a harder one. I was pregnant moving to a little town to have our third child and my husband was starting his career. I was excited, but we loved Logan so much. We moved into an apartment we never saw until we showed up with our U-Haul. It took a few months to get used to writing our rent check. Housing was expensive because of the oil and gas boom. But we were happy just to find a place. Mack joined our family and we have been nuts about him ever since. For our 7th anniversary, we took all 3 kids to Park City to spend the night. It was a fun, refreshing getaway from all the grown-up adjustment we were making.
In our eighth year of marriage, our spare time was spent hunting for houses and building lots. Prices were so inflated and we were discouraged by what was in our price range. Then in the summer, the Lord provided and we found a lot and began construction on our first house. For our anniversary, our contractor watched the kids while we saw the movie, Twilight.


In our ninth year of marriage, we were eyeball-deep in the construction of our house, and then about that deep with a new mortgage payment. Dax and I laugh about how we had more money when we were college students. Life is funny. We sure do enjoy our house. We like our neighborhood and our ward. And we love our family and each other. We learn from the new challenges and enjoy the new freedoms. And all along the way Dax and I have been together. I really hope I have been the friend to him that he has been to me. He is so caring and selfless. He is patient and sweet with me. He is hilarious and makes life fun. He is a great dad. He is a perfect provider. I know I complain about being a full-time Mom sometimes, but I am grateful I am able to do it and grateful Dax supports me 100%. He really is my perfect match. No other guy would kiss me as much as he does and tell me he loves me as much. No one could put up with my moods or spacey-ness like he does. I love my husband. I am so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man.