What Happens in Reno . . .

“What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.” 

But what about what happens in Reno?

I’ll tell you.

In Reno it’s 70 degrees

In Reno there are stores that would blow your mind

In Reno you will meet the nicest people

In Reno the highway system is confusing

In Reno it’s 70 degrees

In Reno there are quite a few dead animals

In Reno everyone loves the Wolf Pack

In Reno people are still cowboys

Oh, and did I mention that in Reno it’s 70 degrees?

Chris served part of his mission in the Reno area two years ago.  We decided to visit, mostly because some members whom he was very close with invited him to their baby’s blessing.  We were a week late for the baby blessing, but we still had adventures, and saw the Lord’s love for His children.  Two of my favorite adventures were:

 

1) Downtown:

Chris told me that Reno was the biggest little city in the world.  I didn’t understand what he meant until we drove through downtown Reno.  It felt like we were on a movie set.  The big buildings and flashing lights that lined the streets of downtown didn’t last very long.  In Chicago you could drive around for miles and not run out of skyscrapers and traffic.  In Reno you ran out of these things fast.  The streets weren’t as crowded as I thought they’d be, and oddly enough a lazy peace lay over the city.  No one was cutting us off, and there were no horns or screeching tires. Chris explained to me that people ran on “Cowboy Time” in northern Nevada, meaning no one was in a rush to get anywhere.  My favorite part about walking in Reno was the 70-degree weather. 

Instead of directing me to downtown Reno, Chris wanted to walk along the river that ran though the city.  We hadn’t walked ten minutes until we were out of downtown and by a quiet neighborhood.  Chicago is still my favorite city, but I fell in love with the lazy peace that I felt in Reno.  The rest of our vacation mirrored the slow-moving city of Reno.

Chris and I at the "river" by that flows through Reno

2) Scheels:

 “There’s a big airplane in there hanging from the ceiling, and a Ferris wheel inside the store, and every possible outdoor thing you can imagine!” he told me as we drove along the twisty highway.  I went to Scheels purely for Chris’s sake.  I would much rather have stayed outside in the 70 degree weather than be stuck in a store full of guns, tents, basketballs, and cameo gear.  What Chris forgot to mention was that Scheels had animals in it, granted most of them were dead, but it was still more exciting than the warm weather.  When we walked in the first thing I noticed was a gigantic arched fish tank separating the checkout stands and the main part of the store.  There were fresh-water fish two feet long swimming in the tank.  In the gun section of Scheels there were about 100 taxidermy animals hanging on the walls

Chris feeding a "deer". 

(those are dead animals that are stuffed for those of you who, like me, didn’t know that before this past weekend).  Not to mention the huge “mountain” artistically covered in taxidermy animals from grouse, to coyote, to moose, to wolf.   I was in aw at how big some of the moose were, and how beautiful the wolves were.  Looking at the animals made me realize how great God is.  He made these magnificent animals for His children to enjoy and learn about.   I didn’t get board in that store, and when we went back the next day with some friends I wasn’t too disappointed.

My favorite part of the vacation was meeting people Chris knew on his mission.

The man who gave us 75 cents so we could park in downtown:

The machine used for paying to park in downtown Reno wasn’t reading our card.  After fifteen minutes of swiping and reswiping our card, my temper was hotter than the 70-degree weather.  I was getting fed up with downtown Reno, and Heavenly Father wasn’t answering my silent prayers of “Can you please get this machine to work!”  On our way to another machine we passed a man who had the same problem.  As he passed us he handed us 75 cents.  We scrounged around in our pockets and car eventually finding 75 more cents.  We could now stay in downtown for 1 ½ hrs instead of just 45 minutes.  Though the Lord didn’t answer my hotheaded prayer immediately, He did answer it, and not in the way I had expected.

The Fogelbergs:

We arrived in Reno at 11p.m. Thursday night.  The Fogelbergs stayed up and waited for us to come.  They gave us their little boy’s room to sleep in, and opened up their home to us while we were in Reno.  Their home was not spacious, yet because of the love they have for my husband they let us stay with them.  While getting to know the Fogelbergs I saw how the love and trust Chris developed with this family two years ago continued to pulse blood through thier friendship.  “Brother Fogelburg is like my brother . . . or my cousin!  I feel like he’s someone I’ve known for a long time,” Chris said.  I was amazed at how the love of Christ can carry a friendship over distance and time.   When those two talked it was as if they hadn’t seen each other in a couple days, not two years.

The Fowlers:

Chris had the privilege of baptizing one of the Fowler’s friends while serving in Reno.  She is now attending BYU-Idaho.  When we went over to visit the Fowlers, Sister Fowler made us chocolate ice-cream bowls, and the whole family shared memories they had while Chris was serving there.  (There were airsoft gun stories included in these memories).  Appreciation oozed from the Fowlers as they and Chris shared spiritual and funny experiences.  It reminded me of my mission, and people I met in the Chicago area.  I wondered if any of them would have as much appreciation for me as the Fowlers did for Chris.  They trusted Chris and his companions with their friend, who is now a strong and faithful member. 

The Fowlers

Sister Angle:

In church on Sunday Chris introduced me to an older couple in the ward, the Angles.  Chris informed me that they had served two missions and the missionaries had taught one of their friends.  “They were like our grandma and grandpa,” Chris said.  We stayed for the full three hours of church, and to tell you the truth I was out of my element for most of it.  I knew no one.  I followed Chris around like a puppy dog.  When Chris left me alone in Relief Society I was nervous.  I hated feeling like no one knew me, and I was just the visitor. “Go sit with Sister Angle,” Chris told me before he left for Priesthood.  I slowly made my way to the back of the room where only person I knew in that whole room was sitting.  And even then I had only met her for about ten seconds; I mean we were practically best friends at this point!  When Sister Angle saw me making my way toward her she smiled and patted the seat next to her, then talked with me as if we were best friends.  I felt Christ’s love through her kindness that warm Sunday morning.

Chris and I at the Reno Temple

Taukiuvea Family:

“Did you hear that the Taukiuveas got sealed?” Sister Fogelburg asked Chris.

“No!  They did!  That’s so awesome!” was how a late night conversation started about a part-member family Chris had taught.  They were now all members and an eternal family.  We tried to stop by their house twice, but they weren’t home.  At church we saw them right before we left.  We only talked for about ten minutes, but in those ten minutes I felt the love that this family had for Chris.  The two little girls couldn’t stop smiling at him, and when Brother Taukiuvea saw him a smile spread across is Tongan face.  I can only imagine the love and appreciation this man had for Chris.  Chris had to wait two years to see the fruits of his labor.   Chris helped them in a small step, baptism, which led to a bigger step, sealing in the temple, which will bring the ultimate blessings in the eternities.  This is the true purpose of a missionary. 

The Lord showed me the love He has for each of His children, and more especially how He will constantly show His love for us through the people around us, whether it be a random man on the street, or a family that achieved a temple marriage through our help.   The Lord is forever watching out for each of us, and will usually send an earthly angel to help us on our way.   

Next time I go to Reno I’ll be sure to share with you the adventures we have J

God's Red Pen

In her farewell talk two months ago, my sister Saydi (now Hermana Ostler) said,

“[T]he beautiful thing about writing an essay is that you are never done. . . . True, some essays are better than others, because everyone is at a different stage of writing.  Some are still developing a thesis, some are working on finding supporting details, and others are perfecting their grammar, [but there is always something] to improve on.  Even if [it has] all the elements of a good essay, [it] can still [be] stronger.  

“Likewise, in our essays of conversion, we can always improve.  We are all at different stages, but we can all be better. So you write your essay, you get a testimony, then you get experiences, overcome trials, throw in some transitions, and add a beautiful conclusion. . . . Then you take your essay to the ultimate editor, the perfect tutor: God.  You give him your essay and say, “Look, I did it.  I got a thesis, I got my topic sentences, and transitions.  It’s all there.  I did everything you asked.  It’s done.  Now if you could just read it over, maybe check the grammar, and the commas.”  You hand Him your paper, and He takes out His red pen.  He starts marking things, crossing out sentences, circling others, writing comments in the margins. . . . Then He hands you back your paper and it is covered in red marks.  Your hearts drops, and you look at him with a question in your eyes . . . “Why?”  Then He says, “This essay is good.  But I know you can do better.” …

 “Often times we don’t understand why we must rewrite, but we do, and our essay is strengthened.  Paragraph by paragraph we improve.  Through all the hardships of life we are strengthened, and we draw closer to the Lord.” 

(Click here to read Hermana Ostler’s complete talk).

When I got home from my mission I thought my essay was pretty good.  I had become more patient, my faith had grown, and I was ready to go out and serve the Lord in whatever capacity He needed me.  I never realized how many red marks the Lord would use to mark up my paper.

While Chris and I were engaged I was blessed to obtain a job as an orthodontic assistant in Idaho Falls and Rigby.  I received good hours and the pay was better than what most newly weds get.  Since I had had previous experience as an orthodontic assistant, working at Ostler Orthodontics in Richland, WA, I thought this job would be fairly easy. 

God took out his red pen.

I had this dream of becoming the perfect wife . . . well as perfect as I could be.  I would cook amazing home cooked meals, my house would be clean, most of the time, and I would absolutely love what I do and understand everything that my husband does, because lets face it, I grew up with five boys and was constantly associating (appropriately) with elders on my mission.

God took out his red pen.

My first day in my new married ward.

God took out his red pen.

Things God wants me to improve on:

Patience

Diligence

Faith

I quickly learned my current employer expects different things of me than Dr. Ostler did.  He does things completely different than what I was used to.  For one, the schedule is unpredictable.  Before, I had a pretty good idea of what patients I would see.  I could therefore mentally prepare for the harder appointments. I no longer have that luxury.  We grab the next patient who shows up, which means I literally have seconds to mentally prepare for the longer, harder appointments.  I have learned that I usually need fair warning before I get one of those.  Secondly, my two different employers emphasized different things.  Learning what my new employer wanted was especially hard.  There are other things that has made me want to give up and quit.  At times it felt as if work was too much to handle. I would get frustrated when I couldn’t get a procedure down, or continually forget to do something. It was when I was making the half hour drive home from one particularly hard day of work that I realized the Lord is teaching me to be patient with myself in learning new procedures, and being patient with people who can be difficult to work with at times.  I knew that He expected me to be diligent in learning everything I needed to learn even if I thought there was a better way of doing things.  Ever since this time, work has been easier.  The stress of work has not gone away, but I now know what the Lord wants me to do. 

I normally get home around 6 p.m.  That’s when most people have dinner.  That’s when I start cooking it.  As a new wife I wanted to make sure Chris always had enough to eat, which is sometimes hard to do, and that he actually liked it, which isn’t hard to do.  Keeping a clean house where the Spirit can reside isn’t the easiest thing when I’m only home for 4 hours out of the day, and 2 of those hours consist of cooking and eating.  There was still the cleaning up to do, the visiting teaching to do, the writing in the journal, the scripture study, the temple attendance, the visiting with old friends, the making of new ones, and the spending quality time with my husband to do.  By the end of the day I was exhausted.

I quickly became overwhelmed with my responsibilities as a homemaker and a breadwinner.  A few breakdowns later, and some counsel with Chris and the Lord, I am coming to realize that the Lord wants me to trust in Him.  He does not expect me to be the perfect homemaker, especially when I have a full-time job.  He does expect me to do the best I can in my duties.  Since this realization, my stress level of feeding Chris has gone done because I usually have plenty of time to cook something for him, with his help of course.  The messy house doesn’t bother me as much, especially when there is no time to clean it, and I have found that more often then not the house stays pretty clean, thanks to Chris always helping me with the dishes.  Time to visit teach, to fulfill my calling, to visit with friends, and to even start a few crafty projects has appeared out of no where.  Through all of this the Lord still wants me to trust in Him, and to rely on Him for the strength and energy I need.

My entire Rexburg life (nine semesters, fourteen-weeks long) I have attended singles wards.  Being thrust into a young married ward threw me upside down on my already corkscrewed rollercoaster.  I was sitting next to married couples in Sacrament Meeting who were in the same boat as I was!  And my boat wasn't very sturdy at times.  After the first day of church I had so many thoughts chasing each other around in my head: How was I supposed to act around them?  What were our conversations supposed to be like?  What about the activities we do?   I was clueless when it came to constantly associating with married couples.  Then the bishop called Chris and I into his office and told me that the Relief Society President wanted me to be her 1^st Counselor.  After I accepted the calling I thought, “I’m in an environment that is new to me.  I don’t know how to talk to other married women, and I don’t know what they could possibly be struggling with.  Now you want me to be part of the leadership of these women?”  As I stood to be sustained the next Sunday I was terrified that I wouldn’t know how to fulfill my calling. 

My fear was realized in my first couple of presidency meetings. I sat, listening to the president and 2^nd counselor talk about different girls in the ward and how we could help them.  I didn’t know any of the girls.  I sometimes felt like a worthless piece of rock on a seashore.  I didn’t know which girls would be good at fulfilling different callings, and I had no idea, which girls needed help or even how to help them. Overtime I did realize that what the Lord wanted me to do was to be diligent.  I tried my best to learn the girl’s names (I’m still learning) and willingly visited different girls to see how they were doing.  In the end I did what I was asked to do.

My diligence paid off.

Our Relief Society president moved, and a new one was called.  She kept me in as her 1^st counselor.  When I stood up in church to be sustained I felt more confident than I did three months before.  I now knew most of the girls and what they needed.  I knew that this semester I could better help the girls I serve.

President Uchtdorf stated, “Often the most difficult times of our lives are essential building blocks that form the foundation of our character and pave the way to future opportunity, understanding, and happiness.”

I am learning that no matter what stage of life I’m in, God will always take out his red pen and mark up my essay. 

The Story of Us

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

Let’s back up.  I didn’t fall in love with him overnight. 

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

Our first weekend back together we went to Olive Garden, walked by Idaho Falls, where Chris first discovered why the place was called Idaho Falls (yes Chris, there is a waterfall there!) and saw the Mormon Tabernacle Choir preform. (WOW!)  The next couple of weeks were only slightly stressful.  I kept asking myself if I really wanted to marry this guy.  Could I commit to something this big?  The answer was “Yes.”   

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