Our Story

In case you haven't already noticed, on Saturday November 9th, 2013, Jordan and I got engaged!!!!!!! Woohoo!!!!!!

But there is so much more to our story, in general as a couple, as well as our engagement story, that I haven't really shared much of. I also think there are some important things to be shared about us that will tie it all together.

Let's start with the beginning...

I was a junior in high school, Jordan was a sophomore. I was 16 and he was 15. It was the Conference XC race and I was unable to race due to Mononucleosis, but I wasn't going to miss cheering on my teammates. I went to the race sporting rain boots and a lot of layers (as well as a tiger print blanket, as you can see below!).

Jordan had been on my radar for a while, but I really wasn't in a place to be dating up to that point being sick and all. That day, however, changed the game. Jordan and I hugged for the first time, and let me tell you, I was just about as giddy as a 5 year old meeting Prince Charming at Disney World.

Shortly after was my 17th birthday. 2 weeks later was the Districts race. I decided to run for my team, and it was not pleasant. And unfortunately, I was so tired before and after racing that I really didn't get to watch much of the boy's race. I saw Jordan run by near our tent and I sat up and cheered for him, then laid back down. Other than that, I spent most of that day sleeping.

 

(My dad and I at the race)

Then came Sectionals.... and that was the fun part. I obviously missed the qualifying mark, but Jordan didn't! I was so excited for him and at this point we were in that sort of awkward "I think you're really cute" stage. I ran all over that stinkin' Longview course cheering for him like a crazy fool. Most of the race he was right around the 30th place mark... And then... he started running towards the finish, turning over his legs to pass a ridiculous amount of people, and, HE QUALIFIED FOR STATE! I sprinted to the finish to find him and ran up and hugged him like crazy! He probably thought I was insane. 

The whole week before State he and I talked before practice and at school. I remember seeing him and our friend Billy running into Custard's Last Stand and just laughing at them because the week before State was always a joke. It was all about having fun, tapering, and getting super pumped up for the race!

Then State came. Us girls begged the coaches to let the guys ride with us to Jeff City, unfortunately, they weren't having any of that with Jordan since he was their prized possession for the weekend :)

When we got there, we proceeded to begging them to go to the mall with us, all together, but the coaches weren't having any of that either. I was so disappointed! But, when we were all back at the good 'ole Econo Lodge, we all joined up in Jordan and Billy's room (with the door open, of course!) and watched the movie Bourne Ultimatum. I sat by Jordan, and I remember the backs of our hands were touching for a lot of the movie. I couldn't have told you a single thing that happened in that movie because I was too distracted by the fact that our hands were touching! We were both too scared to hold hands, but we also didn't want to move them away! I also recall talking about how we had the same phone (some sort of Pantech phone) and asking if I could "compare" his to mine, but I really just wanted to put my number in it so he would text me- but I totally chickened out!!! We finished our movie and everyone said goodnight and proceeded to our own rooms. I still had butterflies when I laid down to go to sleep.

(I so dislike this picture of me, but it's our first picture together from November 6th, 2009 and I can definitely deal with my ridiculous, overly excited, crazy face for the sake of memories!)

The next morning I remember I didn't really see him much until we got to the course because we left before them. I saw him sitting on the tarp in the tent area and I told him good luck. He was going to warm up and left his phone sitting out on his bag.... I knew this was my chance! I put my number in it, texted myself so I would have his number, deleted that text on his phone so he wouldn't think I was a dork, then texted him something along the lines of "Hi! :)"

Unfortunately, his race was delayed because of a runner walking the course, and I was riding home with one of my teammates and her family. They were ready to leave and didn't want to wait for his race and it just about broke my heart. I found him by the start line sitting in the heat, waiting to start the race, and told him good luck. I sat down by him and gave him a little side hug and told him to let me know how the race goes as soon as he finished.

As we reached the car, I heard the warning gun go off and knew he was getting ready to race. It was awful! Not too long after, he texted me and we talked all day long. That was the day I began to fall for him, and that was the day we call our anniversary because we both knew that this was turning into something more than a friendship.

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4 years have passed since that day, and I can honestly say I still remember it clear as crystal. I had butterflies for at least 48 hours that weekend. Something in my heart told me that this was different, that we were different. I fell in love with him so quickly that it was probably foolish. I was head over heels in no time. He was the most amazing person I had ever met and I couldn't imagine ever caring for someone the way I cared about him, especially being so young.

I was 17, he was 15 (he turned 16 that March). Even though our ages were young, they did not define our hearts. The feelings we developed for each other were far beyond our years. I didn't care about other guys, I didn't care about what people thought about us, all I cared about was being his.

It only took a matter of months before I knew I was in love with him, and I told him that. I cared about him more than I ever thought I could. I truly believe that God sent Jordan to me. I was not in a good place when I met Jordan. I was falling away from my relationship with God, I was not making smart decisions for my future, I felt like I owned the world. Jordan got me back into the church and reminded me why I became a Christian in the first place (thank you to my family and my Longview Chapel family for helping raise me into the Christian I am today). I had lost sight of what it was all about and just cared about the fact that it cut into my post-saturday night recovery sleep from staying up way too late with my friends. I became mature in my faith and was reassured of why I fell in love with the Lord. Jordan was my angel, and I will always be thankful to him for that. There was nothing my family could really do- they knew it was ultimately my choice at that point, but Jordan could do something about it- and he did. My parents have always told me I have an old soul, and I agree with them, but I definitely think Jordan does too. We see the world differently, and I think that's why we get along so well and why we clicked so instantaneously (even if I was sometimes behaving opposite of how I thought and felt at that time before Jordan).

It's funny to me to go back and think about the start of our relationship, because it was so innocent, so juvenile, and honestly I think it's so sweet (of course, I may be biased). It seems like there wasn't ever a time where I wasn't with Jordan, and that weekend seems like ages ago, but at the same time it's hard to believe how quickly 4 years have gone by and how easily I can still remember that day, as if it were just yesterday.

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2 years passed and we definitely had some ups and downs. I think pretty much everyone had a hard time taking us seriously because we were so young. Both of our families weren't too crazy about the idea of us being so serious at such a young age (and I can't blame them for that at all). But I graduated high school and I was getting ready to move to Columbia for college. It was only 2 hours away, so I came home a lot that year. They say that distance makes the heart grow fonder, and I really do think that was true for us. There were definitely times where it was hard, but there were times when it was also totally worth it- like the butterflies I still got when he would randomly text me something sweet in the middle of the day, or the video chats where I would be down in the dumps and he would make me laugh until I cried, or the smiles from ear to ear we both had when we would see each other again. (It also helped that I had some seriously amazing friends). Those were the times that reminded me why it was all worth it. In October of that year for my 19th birthday, Jordan gave me a promise ring and asked me if I would promise to marry him someday. Of course I said yes, and we both knew we were on the same page- that we so terribly wished we were older, and that we both knew this was going to be a forever thing. 

As our relationship developed over those two years, we made sure to center it around Christ. We hold each other accountable, we learn and grow together, and we love because Christ first loved us. 

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It's been over 2 years since Jordan and I got promised, and I've known every single day that I want to marry him someday. 

People always tell us we are so young, it's going to be so hard, don't rush into things, etc...

But if you know us, you know these things just don't matter like they would for other people. I believe that when your relationship is centered around Christ, it changes the way you see the world, and the way you see yourself. You love in a different way- it's not about the world, or the material things, or the  silly fights, it's about being with each other and knowing that you have a true purpose on this earth, together and apart. It's about showing Christ's love and preparing to be in covenant with the Lord. 

Jordan and I don't want to get married because it looks fun or because of worldly things, we want to get married because we love each other so much that we want to make our relationship a covenant with Christ. 

Yes, we are young. Yes, it's going to be hard (and by the way, marriage is hard no matter how old you are!). But we are not rushing into things. I have known I want to marry him for a long time, and I can't wait until I get to! The past four years we have grown and matured so much, individually, with our relationship, and in our faith. We have grown together and I love him more and more every single day. I have no doubt in my mind that Jordan is the one for me. God has put us here for a purpose, even if we are just a puff of air in this HUGE universe and our lives are just a blink of an eye, we are here for a reason. And we would not get married unless we knew for sure that God had this all in His hands and it was part of our purpose here on Earth. 

So, that's why we are ENGAGED TO BE MARRIED! YAY!

And here's how it happened!!

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Our 4 year anniversary was on Thursday (November 7th, 2009) and we didn't get to celebrate much because our college Conference race was on Friday and it was the qualifying meet for Nationals. We went to dinner and tried somewhere new and then we went to Bass Pro Shops and just walked around and had fun looking at all of their Christmas decorations. We watched a movie and then said goodnight so we would both get sufficient rest before the race. It was really nice, and very fun. Every day with him is an adventure! We agreed on Thursday that we would spend some more time actually getting to celebrate our anniversary Saturday night.

Friday obviously we raced and then we spent some time with the family.

 I made Jordan chocolate chip pancakes and sausage for breakfast and had his roommate let me in to surprise him and wake him up with breakfast in bed!

The beautiful roses he got me!

Having fun at Bass Pro Shops

Saturday morning we went to watch the high school State XC meet, and I told Jordan in the morning that I wanted to stop by the Econo Lodge and take a picture out front for old time's sake. It's seriously the sketchiest motel in the area, but I love it because that's where we stayed that weekend 4 years ago! 

We had fun at the race and it turned out to be a gorgeous day. We ended up not stopping by the Econo Lodge, though, and I told Jordan I was somewhat disappointed.

Then we both "worked on homework" before going out- I put "" because I worked on homework, he schemed and planned for that night! We always like to try new places, and he said he found this really nice restaurant in a small town south of Columbia (towards Jeff City). So we went there and ate it was very delicious. Then he said that since we were closer to Jeff City than we were to Columbia, we could go take a picture at the Econo Lodge since I really wanted to earlier in the day. We went, we took the picture, and it was super dorky.

During the summer, I saw those Chinese paper lanterns for sale at Hy-Vee, like the ones in the movie Tangled, and I've wanted to light one since I first saw them on 4th of July a few years ago. I bought one, but we never found the time to light it. So we said we would do it Saturday night. 

After we took our picture at the classic Econo Lodge, Jordan said we should go find a park in Jeff City and light it before it got too cold. He looked up some parks (this is him totally messing with me, trying to throw me off so I wouldn't know what he was planning) and one was too lit up, we couldn't find the other, etc. and then... we ended up at the State cross country course (which is also a golf course). 

We walked up to one of the greens overlooking a little lake where there weren't many trees. We lit it and we let it go. It was so beautiful. Pictures just don't do it justice at all. It was dark and silent where we were except for the sound of crickets, and we just stood there together, watching it float away into the stars. It was magical. 

 

Just after this last picture^ Jordan turned me around and got down on one knee and talked about how this was where our relationship started 4 years ago and a lot of really sweet and romantic stuff that I am going to keep between us, but it was one of the most amazing, special, magical moments of my life and I am more than excited to be marrying my best friend. 

(These were taken while we were at the course!)

Pictures NEVER do rings justice, but it is the most beautiful ring I could have ever asked for. Its one diamond surrounded in a halo of smaller diamonds, and the band has diamonds on top. The sides around the halo and the band have intricate metal work designs and it's just absolutely gorgeous. 

Our relationship started when we were basically children, but it has grown into something so beautiful and special that I can't even begin to explain. I never knew that I could love someone the way I love Jordan. Loving him through the eyes of Christ completely changes the way I see him. Sure, we get into scuffles and arguments, but even from the beginning we agreed to never threaten the idea of breaking up or hurting each other purposefully in any way. We both knew this could be a forever thing if we treated it as so, and that's what it has become. I think we are completely different people than we were 4 years ago, but I think that's a good thing. We have both grown into adults with our own dreams, desires, and passions, but we have also grown together as a couple, dreaming together, sharing each other's desires, and encouraging each other to pursue the things we are passionate about. 

God created us as two separate people, but He has grown us into one couple, and that is one of the most incredible things to me- that we could grow so much over the past four years to get to the place where we are today.

I am so thankful to have so many wonderful friends and family supporting us right now, and I look forward to sharing our wedding journey with all of you! We plan to get married in the summer of 2015 (so about a year and half from now). Jordan will be graduated and I will either be graduated or student teaching in Lee's Summit. This will give us plenty of time to plan while being in school, as well as prepare ourselves for married life! We will be 21 (him) and 22 (me- going on 23) when we get married and we will be approaching 6 years of being in love! I feel so beyond blessed to have found the man I want to share my life with, and I'm so thankful to be able to marry him! EEEK! I am just so excited! God is writing our story, and I am so thrilled to see where it takes us.

Genesis 2: 22-24 "Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh."

Thanks for being a part of our journey; here's to the start of a new adventure!! 

LJ