Within in the past several months I started two different
blog postings, but never finished them. Consistency
is one of the most important things about being a blogger. If you’re not consistent than people will
most likely stop reading your blog. Opps
. . .
Within the past five months a lot has happened. Remember that one guy that I went hiking up
Badger Mt. with? (If not take a look at
my last post). Well turns out that a
Summer Fling turned into an Eternal Commitment.
This is the Story of Us According to Me
It all started Sunday August 5, 2012 when, after a little
over four months of being home I reported to the high council. I walked into the same building that my
parents met in twenty-five years before.
The first thing I remember about Christopher Christensen was his big
smile. I could totally tell he was
excited that I would be reporting with him.
He was smitten before I even said hi to him. It took me a little longer to warm up to
him. Like a week. After our first date he had won my
friendship.
Why Chris won my friendship:
He loves to smile
He loves to see other people smile
He’s got a big heart
He loves his family
He loved his mission
If you had told me on that warm August day that Chris was
going to ask me on date in the same room my parents met in, I would have
believed you. If you had told me that in
less than a month I would have gone on several dates with this guy because I liked him, that I would have kissed him,
and was beginning to fall in love with him, I would have laughed at you. Further, if you would have told me that he
would follow me down to Rexburg, buy a ring and propose to me, I would have
called an insane asylum and had you carted off.
How Chris won by love:
He cares about me more than himself
He shows me he
loves me
He came down to Rexburg for me (although that was before he
knew anything about Rexburg ;)
He was, and is always there for me
He puts up with my mood swings
He is a Glass Full of Lemonade
 |
I was used to going on dates RMs when
Chris asked me on our first day. What I
wasn’t used to was RM’s asking me on a second, third, and even forth date. After our first date, which consisted of
mini-golf, The Lorax in a park, and
walking by the Columbia River, I realized Chris had taken me on the best date I
had been on since my mission. I quickly
came to the conclusion that I would know immediately who my future husband was
going to be when he took me on a better date than Chris did.
That never happened.
By the end of August I realized Chris
was falling in love with me, and I was falling in love with him. Big no-no.
I wasn’t supposed to fall in love with him. I was supposed to go back to Rexburg,
graduate, then go to BYU to get my teaching certificate. Nowhere in my plans was marriage, or even
seriously dating someone. Heavenly Father invited me to explore a different
path than the one I had planned for myself.
 |
| He even came to my mission reunion |
When I went back to school in
September I ran into our old seminary teacher, Brother Peck. After informing him that Chris and I were
dating I could see the wheals in his head turning, “How did Chris Christensen
and Amanda Ostler end up together?” He,
like others, couldn’t figure it out, and neither could I. Chris wasn’t anything I had planned on
dating, let alone marrying. He was into
football hard-core, well any sport for that matter, he ate more than I could
cook, was a party animal, and listened to loud music. On the other hand he is cute, a gentleman, a
faithful, good missionary, humble, knew his Savior, loved the gospel, lived the gospel, was a life-long
missionary, and he loved his family. I
realized it was okay to fall in love with him and start a story with him when I
realized he made life exciting, funny, and enjoyable—he was the sugar that made
my life sweet, something I had been looking for since coming home from my
mission.
Two long weeks after arriving in
Rexburg, and after many prayers, and miracles that only God could preform,
Chris showed up on my doorstep. He was
there to stay. Hugging him in the
parking lot, I recognized I loved him more than I did when I said good-bye to
him.
 |
| At Idaho Falls |
As it is for some Mormon couples the
proposal happened fast. And it was
perfect.
Only Chris would propose to me on a
Thursday night. Only Chris would propose
spontaneously. Even he didn’t know that
he was going to ask me to marry him that night until right before it happened
(although he may tell you otherwise. But
remember this is our story according me).
I can’t remember what I had dreamed
my proposal would be like. I do know
that I wanted there to be flowers, a tear shed, a kiss, a hug, and some
pictures.
When I picked Chris up that evening
he had a whole bouquet of origami roses.
Flowers, check. After having
dinner with some of my old roommates, Chris wanted to show me something at Porter
Park, the park by campus. We parked in
front of an occupied bench.
“Darn it!” Chris said.
“What?”
“Well the best place too see this thing
is on that bench.” A couple was sitting
on the bench.
To tell you the truth I just wanted
to go home and go to bed.
So I quickly listed off the options
he had.
1.
We could come back tomorrow (please say that one
even though I would feel bad).
2.
We could ask them to move for a minute so he
could show me whatever he wanted to show me.
3.
We could sit on the bench with them and make new
friends. (It’s BYU-I, you can do that
here).
For some reason Chris was having a hard time deciding, which
was not like him. I thought maybe
something was up, especially when he told me to wait in the car while he asked
the couple if we could sit on the bench.
We usually do everything together, like go ask random couples to share
their bench with us.
Chris
talked with them for about 10 seconds before they jumped up like the bench had
sprouted spikes. “That was weird,” I thought
“Do you
know what this place is?” Chris asked me as he put his jacket around me.
“Yeah, it’s
the bench where we had our first real conversation
in Rexburg.”
He reached
into his back pocket, and my heart did a cartwheel of anticipation. He pulled out . . . a piece of paper. Okay, so he wasn’t going to propose tonight.
If I was more awake and more willing to believe that he was about to propose I
would have caught on quicker.
The paper
was a poem
a poem he
wrote
a poem he
wrote for me.
He read the
poem he wrote for me
it was a
rhyming poem.
I usually
don’t like rhyming poems
but I liked
this one
because of
what happened
at the end.
The poem instructed
him to get down on one knee and say, “Will you marry me.” Which he did, reaching into his coat pocket,
that I was wearing. He pulled out a
little white box. It held the ring I had
picked out three days before.
I said,
“Yes.”
He slipped
the ring on my finger, gave me a hug (check) and a kiss (check).
The
proposal was perfect. So perfect that we
attempted to take pictures (check), which didn’t really work in the dark.
 |
| The night he proposed |
Thankfully
our mom’s took care of the wedding stuff.
All I had to do was pick out a dress, pick out colors, pick a date, and
show up.
December 20,
2012 was a very sacred day.
The
reception was a “hit”, thanks to Janet, Jackie, Cheri, and all of my mom’s other
friends who put so much work into it. Pictures
were fun, and being with family was amazing, but the thing that I loved the
most was the feelings that came when I was sealed to my best friend.
I am so
thankful that Chris and I served missions at the same time, that we met when we
did and how we did (it was love at first testimony), that he was brave enough
to ask me on a date, and I was smart enough to say yes, again, and again, and
again. I’m so thankful he stuck around
through all the hard times I went through, and I’m thankful I stuck around for
the hard times he went through. I’m so
grateful that Heavenly Father prepared both of us for each other. Through the tears, laughs, frustrations,
doubts, dates, smiles and faith, Heavenly Father let me figure out that I was
going to, and that I wanted to marry
Christopher Christensen.
 |
| Happily Ever After |
Life gave me Lemonade, and sometimes I can’t imagine why J
