Where have I been?

I guess more accurately I should title this post, "where have I not been?"

The last few months of my life have been a complete roller coaster. It started off with a move from an apartment to a house. The best move of our lives, for sure, but also at a stressful time (more on that later). It took months (still not quite done) to get things unpacked and settled. I'm realizing how much furniture I got rid of to move into that silly apartment and now wish I had back!

Then it was my birthday and I got in a car accident! That's right, Happy Birthday, Jennie let's ruin your car. The story is long, but to put it short and sweet, it was not my fault. There was some sort of insurance mumbo-jumbo and I had to take the claim out on my insurance. State Farm was wonderful and now they can fight to get their money back, plus my $500 deductible. But my truck was not fixable and has been totaled out. Due to it's age and the repair cost, I no longer have "Ironhide".

My youngest brother got married (yea!!) and my parents came here from AZ to visit (yea!!) we drove 8 hours to his wedding and then another 5 hours to visit my dad's cousin. All in a rental car that had expired tags, no cruise control and the darn Enterprise people wouldn't return my mom's phone calls. (in the end, my dad got the 5 day mini van rental for free, plus 4 more days for free when they come back to visit!! Awesome!)

 My Buddy wanted a picture of "just me and Uncle Austin" so sweet

My Princess was a "flower girl." She loved her beautiful orange dress and being a part of the wedding.

On Tuesday (a week ago) we found a new truck, but because of some serious mix-up at the dealership where we bought "Ironhide" we don't have a title to give to State Farm to get my check to buy the new truck. It's the exact same as "Ironhide" only it's turquoise. It's beautiful has leather, a tow hook (why I would need that, I don't know!) and the part Oswald likes the most is that it has a gadget that tells me which direction I am going. Being from out west where everything is on a grid, knowing N,S,E, and W was easy...not so much here on the east coast.

After a few more ups and downs in the process of getting our new truck, I finally got it on Saturday morning. She was worth the wait, and I think I'm going to name her "Smurfette". She's blue/green and I just think the name is fun!

And on an even better note, Baby #4 will be here in late April. I am due April 22nd and I am so excited to be past the first trimester. As Oswald said, "now things can get back to normal."

As the doctor was listening to the baby's heartbeat, he said, "It's really strong!"

"What is it?" I asked wanting to know how many beats per minute.

"165" was his response.

I looked at him with a sly grin, "so what sex is usually faster?"

"Girl's" he replied without hesitation, then he said, "but at this stage they all beat pretty fast, but if I had to bet, I would say it's a girl."

We went home and finally told the big kids about the baby! My Buddy looked at his dad and said, "Can we have a girl? Roxie!!!?"

We explained that Heavenly Father gives us what he knows our family needs. He looked at his little sister and said, "Let's pray for a girl!"

That night during our family prayer he reminded my Princess of his "girl request" and her prayer went like this, "Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for this day, thank you for our blessings, thank you for our girl. Name of Jesus Christ Amen."

So I guess we know what our kids want. More regular posts coming again because things are "back to normal" whatever that is!

How I became "wifey"

 Oswald always thought the traditional "wedding picture" poses were stupid...he came up with this instead.

We spent our Honeymoon on an island just off the coast of Georgia. The weather was perfect. We spent hours upon hours in our hotel room and the rest of the time by the beach. I thought life couldn't get any better than that.

It was like we were getting to know each other all over again. We would walk down the coastline hand-in-hand talking about everything.

Our hopes.

Our dreams.

Our future.

Our wedding.

Our lives.

Everything.

It was as if time stood still. As though we were the only two people on the planet. We ate delicious food, the kind of food we would not normally eat. We spent money on things that were frivolous. 

One night as we were getting ready for bed, Oswald put his arms around my waist and said, "Can you believe you're my wifey girl?"

"No, I can't. It feels like I have been waiting for this day forever, and yet we've only known each other such a short time. It's amazing how when things are right, they just work out."

"That's true. I can't wait to spend eternity with my wifey."

I smiled and said, "I love you, husband."

Do you have a nickname for the love of your life?
--We continue to call each other husband and wifey to this day. I think it might make some people sick, but those are our nicknames for each other.

Where did you go on your honeymoon?

--We went to Jekyll Island off the coast of Georgia. About an hour from our home in Jacksonville, FL at the time. When we drive to my in-laws in Florida and I see the road sign, I still get nostalgic.

If you could change one thing about you, what would it be?

--that's a tough question. I think I would change shoe size. I am a size 9.5 or 10 and it's hard to find cute shoes in that size! I think a size 8.5 or 9 would be perfect!

All Eternity

It's a good thing I have all eternity with this man because if I didn't, I would be really sad.

He's my bff. The one I tell everything to. The one I can be completely crazy, random, mean, ugly, kind, sweet, and thoughtful to and he won't judge. He'll continue to love me.

He's the one who took two weeks to hold my hand.

He's the one who told me that once he kissed me, he would never want to stop.

He's the one who took me to the Temple and married me for ALL ETERNITY!

He's the one who 8 years, three kids, one miscarriage, 4 moves to 4 different states, and numerous stretch marks later still loves me.

He doesn't care that I don't wear make-up every day. He doesn't care that my pj's consist of his shirt and gym shorts. He doesn't care that I have spit-up or boogers or both on my shirt every day. He doesn't care that the house is not always pristine. He doesn't care that some of my adventures in cooking are complete failures!

And because of that, I love him.

Thanks for picking me to be your eternal companion. For picking me to go through this crazy journey called life. Thanks for picking me.

I love you more than you'll ever know and this has been the best 8 years of my life. Happy Anniversary, husband!

XOXO

The big day is here!

 

We were married on June 20, 2003 in the Orlando, Florida Temple. 

The day was beautiful. The sun was shining. The sky was as blue as the ocean. The wind was non-existent. And we were happy and in love.

We took pictures with our bridal party outside the Temple before we were married. The girls were in lavender dresses that came to their knees and the men wore black tuxedos with lavender vests and ties.

Soon after we took the pictures a Temple worker came outside and told us it was time to come in and get dressed. 

I got ready and met Oswald in the celestial room where we waited to meet the man who would perform the sealing. 

"Can you believe this day is finally here?" I asked Oswald as we held hands.

"I can't."

"Are you nervous? excited?" I asked with my excitement showing in my eyes.

"I'm a little of both. Mostly excited and ready. It feels like we've waited forever for this day to get here." He said squeezing my hand gently.

A sweet older lady walked up to us and whispered, "It's time, follow me."

Oswald and I walked hand in hand to the sealing room. The seats were full of family and friends. Everything seemed like such a blur. I couldn't tell you how many people were there. I couldn't tell you what they were wearing. I couldn't tell you much about what was said that day, all I know is I felt loved.

We were sealed for time and all eternity at 12:30 that afternoon. We promised to love each other, not until we parted at death, but forever. We promised to be companions in this life and in the next. We promised before God that we would remain faithful to each other and to not let anything separate us. 

By 12:33pm, we were man and wife. We were an eternal family. We were a unit that could not be broken. A companionship that would last forever.

One of those days...

 A look at my messy room...I bet your room never looks like this!

Do you ever have one of those days where you just feel pitty for yourself?

Well, today is one of those days for me.

I feel like a slovenly pig because I have not been eating the way I should.

I feel as though some of the decisions Oswald and I have made in the past might haunt us the rest of our lives.

I feel as though I have so much to do and so little time to do it.

I can't wait for my mom to get here, but I am also nervous about everything I need to do between now and then to get ready for her arrival.

I feel like I am just barely keeping my head above water sometimes.

And all I want to do is snuggle my sweet kids. A dear friend of mine lost her toddler this week and it makes me realize how fragile life is and how blessed I am to have my kids here on this earth with me. It makes me thankful for the knowledge of Eternal Families. 

I feel a whole lot better writing all of this stuff down. Thanks for letting me vent.

It's always nice to get things off my chest!

I know I'm slow...

 November 2010

I know I'm slow posting about Mother's Day, but I have an excellent excuse!

Saturday I woke up with a sore throat, no biggie. I have dealt with this thousands of times before. By Saturday night my body ached. Like I thought someone was jabbing a knife into my back. Plus, my throat went from a small ache to feeling like I had shards of glass inside it.

That night, I had a hard time sleeping. I woke up several times freezing, then sweating, then freezing again! My body shook from the fever.

When the morning finally came around, I was completely exhausted. Oswald made me some french toast (my absolute favorite breakfast) and I cringed as I swallowed each and every bite.

I ended up taking a nap before 10am! Oswald and the kids bought me Guitar Hero for the Wii for Mother's Day. He wanted to get me a gift I wouldn't buy for myself. It was so nice to be thought of even when I felt so horrible.

I skipped church and rested the entire time. When Oswald and the big kids came home, I wasn't feeling any better. I had been taking Tylenol the whole day, so the aches were gone and I could swallow without much pain. But the fever and sweating continued off and on the whole night.

Monday morning Oswald was able to work from home, so I headed to the doctor. It takes 5 minutes for the instant strep test to come back...at 4 minutes she checked it and said, "Well, you have strep."

"Great." was my reply!

I have been on penicillin for 24 hours and I think I am no longer contagious, but I am not taking any chances. We've been washing/sanitizing our hands for days now. No sharing drinks over here and I am now in the process of washing load after load of laundry.

Tomorrow: my thoughts on Mother's day...just 3 days late!

Oswald's first trip to Arizona

 Oswald and his sisters, Jen (left) and Suzie (right), outside the Orlando Temple June 2003

I had not been back to Arizona since I moved to Florida in October of 2002, so in my mind it was time to go. I wanted to take Oswald, but was not sure what his thoughts/reaction might be if I ask him to spend $300 to fly 6 hours to meet my family. 

“Hey Oswald, how do you feel about going to Arizona with me this Easter?” I asked kind of joking, but also really afraid of what he would respond.

“Of course I will go with you. I’d love to meet your family” was his calm, cool response. All of my worries were in vain. He wanted to go to Arizona with me. He wanted to meet my family! Life couldn’t get any better!

A couple of days later, I called my parents to tell them that we had bought our tickets to fly out there. My mom was so excited to see me and finally meet Oswald. My dad, on the other hand, had one big question.

“Is he coming out here to ask you to marry him?”

“I don’t think so, Dad. I just want him to meet you and to get to know my family. He hasn’t said anything to me about asking me to marry him.”

“Oh, ok.” My dad not being a man of many words, said goodbye and that was it.

I hung up the phone thinking that maybe Oswald would ask me to marry him. But I knew nothing of the ring (that he had already bought) and I knew he wanted a ring to give me when he proposed. So I kind of just pushed it out of my mind.

The night before Oswald and I traveled to Arizona for Easter, I spent the night at his parents’ house. His mom asked me what was in my suitcase, clothes wise. I replied, “Jeans and t-shirts.”

“See, Oswald, you’re going to be too dressy. You should just take jeans and t-shirts.”

 

“Mom, I am taking jeans and I like Polo shirts, so that’s what I’m taking. It’s not bad is it Jennie?”

“No, I just prefer jeans and t-shirts. My dad only wears polo shirts” with that he zipped up his suitcase.

We had an early flight the next morning, so we went to bed kind of early. Only I didn’t sleep. I had quite the interesting conversation with my future sister-in-law.

Jen was a junior in High School. I slept in her bed while she slept on the floor. We talked about everything. We talked about her schooling. We talked about boys. We talked specifically about her brother.

“So, do you think you’re going to marry my brother?” She asked without any hesitation. 

“I sure hope so. I have never felt this way before.”

“So if he proposed, would you say yes?”

“Of course, but I’m not sure when or if that will happen.”

“You know he has the ring, don’t you?”

No. I. Didn’t. I had no idea he had already bought, sized and paid for the ring. I had no idea he had the proposal all planned out. And I had no idea when to expect it.

Coming up…how he had me convinced that he did not have the ring and how he totally surprised me when he “popped the question”

Double Date

My family with Oswald's Mom and Dad, Summer 2010

The first time we went out on a double date with his parents, we went to an Italian restaurant. His family had lived in Sicily for four years while his dad was stationed there with the Navy, so Italian is a family favorite. Just a few days before our double date, Oswald had taken me to my first every Hockey game.

Hockey is not just a game in their family, it’s THE game. They love hockey. 

We climbed out of the car at a Jacksonville Barracudas game. It was cold, much colder than I expected. Lights were pointed at the arena, making the ice as bright as if the sun were shining inside the building. The stands were not completely full, but the fans who were there, were hockey lovers. The lines on the rink were dark and the ice was without a single scrape.

The teams took to the ice and, with a blow of the whistle, the game began.

The entire time, Oswald sat next to me telling me all the rules of the game. He told me about “icing” and offside passes and being offside. I tried my hardest to memorize those rules because I wanted to impress Oswald, but I also wanted to impress his dad. I wanted his dad to like me and see that I was willing to learn things and like the same things his son and family liked. 

A few nights later, we met his mom and dad for our first double date. After we got to our table, we looked at the menu and made small talk. But soon after we placed our order, Oswald started in, “So Dad, I took Jennie to a hockey game.”

“You did. What’d you think, Jennie?”

“It was interesting. It was my first time ever seeing a hockey game.” I replied feeling very nervous.

“What does it mean when the puck crosses over two lines, Jennie?” Oswald asked me with a smirk.

“Ummm, that’s icing.” I said raising my eyebrow, hoping he would understand to please drop this line of questioning, but he continued to fire away. 

“And what about when the offensive team has the puck and one of their teammates crosses the line before the puck?” He continued, ignoring my raised eyebrow.

“I believe that’s called, off sides.” The grilling over hockey rules and regulations continued. 

As the night continued, the conversation turned from hockey to other things. It was nice to be with his parents and get to know them better. Because, after all, I wanted to marry their son and be a part of their forever family. Little did I know just how quickly it would happen.

Oh the sneakiness...

Oswald and our dog, Polo, at our apartment in Utah

Little did I know, but the night Oswald went to talk to a guy about being an umpire, he was actually picking out my ring.

While I was cleaning up from dinner in complete oblivion to what he was doing, Oswald was being super secretive. He grew up with this girl whose dad was a jeweler. Oswald and his dad had made arrangements with Curtis to look at rings that Sunday evening.

Curtis opened the door to his home and lead Oswald and his dad back to the living room, “So you’ve found the girl you want to marry?”

“Yes, Sir,” said Oswald as he confidently pulled out his chair to sit down. He was not nervous about the next step in his life. He knew I was the one and he was ready to move forward.

Curtis pulled out several different types of rings.  He laid them in a row from left to right inside of a ring display box. Oswald instantly saw the ring he wanted to give to me. 

“That’s it, that’s the ring.” He said pointing to a beautiful round cut diamond ring with a band on top and on bottom. “Only you need to switch out this center stone, with this one.”

Curtis looked up at Oswald. “You’re pretty confident aren’t you?”

“I know what ring she wants. She’s going to love this ring. How much is it?”

“Are you sure you don’t want to look at any more?”

“Nope. That’s the one.” Oswald picked it up and moved it around in his hand. He didn’t need to look any further; he knew the ring he would present to me when he proposed. All that was left was actually popping the question.

Oh, the ring...

Our dating life was a whirl wind of fun. We went to dances, we went to movies, we went out to eat. (Somehow I managed to stay skinny even though we were eating out every night of the week.) But our favorite past time was to people watch at the mall.

So we went to the mall. We walked in and out of stores, doing a little window shopping at the same time. I have always loved to look at the rings in the mall showcases. I had gone with several different friends to look at rings. Friends who KNEW they would be getting engaged and friends who "knew" (aka assumed) they would be getting engaged.

I knew the kind of ring I wanted. My first ring was, as Oswald would call it, "small". It was three stones, all square cut, set in yellow gold. I wanted something completely different. I wanted round cut and a totally different style. On all of these outings to help my friends find rings, I had seen what kind of ring I wanted. I thought I wanted a ring with lots of diamonds up the band leading to a HUGE center stone. I thought I only wanted one band as the "wedding band". I had all of these criteria for my ring, that was until I went shopping with Oswald.

We walked into the store where "my" ring was, and I showed it to him. He thought it was just about the ugliest thing he had ever seen. He could not believe that I would want something so flashy! He was never one to mince words.

So we left that store and went to another one. I gazed at the engagement rings. Oswald had me try on white gold and we both agreed that yellow gold looks much better on my skin.

"What about this ring?" He said pointing to a beautiful round cut solitaire with a band on both the top and bottom.

"It's pretty." I said. The clerk quickly came over to take the ring out of the case and let me try it on. She pulled the solitaire out of the "jacket" (the band on top and bottom were actually connected by what jewelers call a jacket).

I tried that ring on and fell in love. We had never talked about getting engaged or the ring, but I knew that was the ring I wanted Oswald to buy for me. It would have to be on his own time.

********************************

A few weeks later, I was helping his mom and sisters clean up after Sunday dinner. Oswald was on the phone and as soon as he hung up, he and his dad began whispering. His mom walked over to them and started whispering, too.

The next thing I knew, Oswald came over to me and kissed my cheek.

"I'm going with my dad to talk to some guy about my dad being an umpire for baseball season."

"Ok?" I said quizzically. I had never heard anything about this and I thought it was a little strange how he was just going to leave me there with his mom and sisters for who knows how long.

His dad and he walked out the door. His mom, sisters and I finished cleaning up and sat down to watch some tv.

When Oswald and his dad came back, there was even more whispering going on. I had no idea what they were talking about, and I knew better than to ask.

Comin up: the real story of what Oswald was doing that night...

Allergic

When Oswald and I got married, taking turns with chores was easy. We did all things together, except for one. The trash. Oswald’s job is the trash. Always has been, always will be.

But recently, Oswald has been working a whole bunch. Like wake up at 3:30am and not get home until 4:30pm (no he’s not a doctor). 

I cook the dinner, wash the dishes, clean the kitchen, and get the kids ready for bed because even when he’s home, a lot of the time he’s still working (which stinks).

So last night I had a mutual activity at the church and he had been home since 3:30pm and I thought for sure he would realize how stressed and worried I had been about this activity and do the dishes.

Well, I walk in and my Princess is coughing up a lung and sounds like a barking seal. I, of course, think its croup, but give her cough medicine anyway. That seemed to help, thank goodness!

Oswald has resumed his position watching American Idol. I sit on the couch next to him and we talk about my activity, which I’m proud to say went really well. Next thing I know, it’s 10pm and we’re headed to bed. 

I walk into our tiny kitchen and notice a sink full of dishes. I walk into our room and ask, “Do you have an allergy to washing the dishes?”

This is not the first time I have been gone for several hours in the evening only to return home to a messy kitchen. Most times I let it pass because I realize he’s been working all day long and only has a few minutes to relax before he heads back off to bed. But this time, I couldn’t let it go.

“What did you say?” He says as he’s lying all snuggly warm in our King Size bed. 

“I said, ‘Are you allergic to washing the dishes?’” 

“The dishes, ya, I’m allergic” and instantly started snoring.

Guess next time he needs some clean clothes for work, I’m going to be allergic to the laundry!

Updated: I told Oswald about this conversation, and he has washed the dishes several times in the last week. Guess my allergy to washing clothes was short lived!

Our First Valentine's Day...

I was curled up in my bed, all nice and warm; when all of a sudden, I am awoken by someone kissing me. 

Believe me it was nice, but I was quite scared. My heart started racing. I thought for sure I was about to become a victim from an episode of Law & Order: SVU. 

Before I could open my eyes to see who was kissing me, I smelled French toast. 

“Why does my house smell like French toast?” I thought to myself. 

When I finally opened my eyes, I was greeted by a smiling Oswald. He had gotten the key to my apartment somehow, snuck inside before I was even awake, and had made me breakfast.

After I had gone to the bathroom and tried to freshen up without taking an entire shower, I walked into the kitchen amazed at what he had done for me, and asked, “How did you get a key to my apartment?”

“Oh, our friend gave it to me,” was his nonchalant response.

“Well, how did he get it?”

“I don’t know. You must have given it to him.”

And then I remembered. The Christmas Oswald and I started dating; I spent Christmas morning with some friends from church. They had planned this scavenger hunt for me to find my “big” present. I searched all over their house only to find out the gift was already in my apartment, set up, ready to go.

One of my friends had gotten the key off my key ring, made a copy of it, and gotten inside my apartment. Upon hearing what Oswald wanted to do for me for Valentine’s Day, he jumped at the chance to give the key to Oswald.

It was such a nice surprise. Not only did I have some seriously yummy French toast, but he had bought me purple carnations and salmon colored roses. He had gone out of his way to surprise me and make this Valentine’s Day one to remember.

To be honest, I don’t even know what I did for him that day. It’s sure it paled in comparison. Oswald can be quite romantic when he wants.

What was your most romantic Valentine’s Day? Has anyone ever snuck into your house to make you your favorite breakfast?

Where Our Feelings Take Us....

 Oswald and me in Argentina

To see other posts of how I met my hubby, click on the tab that says "My Love Story"...

The moment his lips touched mine, my entire body warmed up. So warm it felt like I had been under the Arizona sun all day long. I didn’t need to go back inside; I was just fine being wrapped in his arms. Arms that I knew loved me. Arms that loved being around my body. Arms that would never hurt me.

“So the receiver was ready for the long bomb after all?” He said in my hair after the most amazing kiss of my life.

“I’ve been waiting for this moment, just didn’t want to rush it.”

We walked back into the church hand-in-hand. The last song was being played, but we felt no desire to go back to the dance floor and lose the feelings running through our veins.  

As our friends and family got into their cars, I ran over to Suzie and in my most high-pitched, girlie voice, said, “He told me he loves me!”

I didn’t stick around for her answer, but took off to be with Oswald. We ended up riding back to Jacksonville with someone else. He sat in the front seat while I rode in the back. Every once in a while he would glance back at me and wink or send the sweetest smile my way, like we were talking in code.

I didn’t sleep a wink that night. Never had those three words meant more to me than they did that night. It’s hard not to share such a moment with every person in your life. I wanted to call my mom, but instead, I just kept my feelings tucked away in my memory. Tucked away to pull up when times got tough or unkind words were said. 

The days and weeks passed with a haze. We continued to see each other every second of every day. There was never a dull moment with Oswald. We took romantic walks on the beach at sunset. We watched movies and made lasting memories.

We talked about marriage because we both knew we wanted to marry each other. We never talked about specific dates, but more about what it would be like to be married.

How at the end of the night, we could say good night and crawl into bed together. How we could be together all the time. How we could go on vacations. We talked about everything. The number of kids we wanted to have, our hopes and fears for the future, everything.

Our relationship kept getting stronger and stronger. I knew he would be the man I would spend eternity with, but what I didn’t know is how quickly that eternity would happen.

Up Next: how his sister almost foiled the proposal…