12 years

Here it is 10:30 pm, I should be sleeping, and I just realized that 12 years ago I was on my very first date with my amazing husband.

I knew he was amazing back then, but I didn't realize how sweet he was, how compassionate and caring he was. I didn't know that he would be my best friend (Forever) and I never would have guessed that 12 years later we would be so incredibly happy.

So, with this anniversary, I thought it would be a good time for another story. I love telling our story.

Spencer and I actually met in May 1997. I thought he was nice, a little quiet, but he was fun to be with. I met him at Lagoon (a local amusement park) when we were there for a physics Lagoon day (basically a get out of school to go play day).

We graduated from high school two weeks later and our lives went their separate ways. Our story could have ended there...but thankfully it didn't. Spencer moved to California for the summer to work and to live with his dad. He came home at the end of the summer and I ran into him at an institute activity at the U (University of Utah). My friend Andrea was with me, she was in her Senior year in high school and had a Halloween dance coming up at school. So, I helped her ask Spencer to the dance, I took a friend and we doubled.


















We had SO MUCH FUN. Spencer was so fun to be around. A few days after the dance my cousin called to see if I could/would go on a double date with her. I agreed then had the job of finding a date. I had enjoyed spending time with Spencer so much that I decided to get up the nerve and called and asked him to come. As I recall the conversation went something like this

Me - Um, hi, Spencer, what are you doing on Monday night?
Spencer - Sleeping...why?
Me - Sleep is highly over rated, come with me.
Spencer - Where?
Me - Will you just do me a favor? My cousin needs someone to double date with her and I was hoping you could come.
Spencer - Well I have to work the next morning.
Me - That's the next day...just come.
(I think I finally wore done his resolve because he finally agreed)

So, I picked Spencer up Monday night and we drove to Ogden, we got there just in time to play games with my grandparents and they brought out all the old pictures. I know bringing out the old pictures, and spending a night with your grandparents is supposed to be embarrassing, but it was so fun.

We left my grandparents house and went to my cousins house for dinner. We had chicken and rice that we ate sitting on the floor at the coffee table. My aunt spilled the rice as she brought it in, we didn't care, we just laughed.

As we were driving home I mentioned to Spencer that a few weeks before I had bought a new truck (that we were in) and we were selling my old car so if he knew anyone who was interested to let us know.

A few days later Spencer called me....but he didn't call to ask me out...or to talk, he called to inquire about the car that we were selling. He was driving a super old gas guzzler and if he wanted to have enough money to get sky diving certified (12 jumps I think it was), he couldn't spend all his money on gas. So he came over and after a little negotiating, he decided to buy the car. I got it all cleaned out, oil changed, made sure everything was ready. You have to know, this was a very old, very high school car. It was a 1984 Dodge Colt E. My sister had totaled it a few years before but my parents bought it back and made it drivable but not attractive again, and here we were 2 years later. This car had a tendency to smoke. We had talked to a mechanics, had it looked at and found that if we put a gas additive in it wouldn't smoke, it would pass emissions and it was fine. As Spencer came to pick the car up we told him about the gas additive and told him that he would need to add it so that it would pass emissions. I even bought the additive and left it in the car for him so he would just need to add it when he filled up with gas.

The next day Spencer called me at work. He was not the nice pleasant person I was crushing on. He was this mean nasty person telling me off because the POS hadn't passed emissions. I was so angry. I couldn't believe that he had called me AT WORK and was upset at me because he hadn't added the stupid stuff that I had even bought for him. I told him how stupid he was, that he should have listened in the first place, I got off the phone and I was just livid. I went home and told my parents if I never saw him again it would be too soon!

Again our story COULD have ended there. Thankfully the next day he did call and apologize and said that the car had passed emissions. We didn't talk again for a week or two when again my friend Andrea had another dance at school and wondered if we wanted to go. This time, we swapped dates, she took the guy I had taken to the last dance, and I took Spencer.

Pretty much that was it for us. We went out the next weekend, and the weekend after that, and so on for the next 8 months until Spencer left on his mission.


I dated while Spencer was gone, but no one compared. No one was Spencer. He was always a gentleman, he was always there when I needed him, he was caring, and sweet, and made sure to always tell me how important I was to him. After 2 years of dating other guys I was so thankful to have my Spencer back.

I am so glad that I ran into Spencer at a dance. I am glad that he didn't stay in California, and I am so glad that he apologized after being a turd when he bought the car...I am glad that I got the chance to get to know Spencer, and I am so thankful for the 12 wonderful years that I have known him.

Today, 12 years later, I am so thankful that I get to spend every day with my best friend.