Update from March

So, it's official. I FINALLY get to write in this blog... I know that it's been awhile. Rick and I got married on June 21st, we both can't believe that we've been married for a month already. The day before the wedding, I went to through the temple, and then we set up for the reception in Phoenix. I was so stressed, but it was fun the next day, because everyone catered to Rick and I! YAY! We had a great time. On Sunday, we went to church in our ward, since neither of us like to travel on Sunday if we can avoid it. Then we left to go to San Diego on Monday morning, spent a few days there, went to the zoo, and overall we had a lot of fun. Then we went to Rancho to spend a couple of days there for the California reception, and then we finally made it home. Rick's been back to work for a few weeks, and I am just completely bored for the most part. I am spending most of my time cleaning, buying stuff for my classroom, and getting ready for the upcoming school year.
About a couple of weeks ago, Rick asked me if I wanted to play a computer game that he really liked called "World of Warcraft". I said I'd try for him. I was frustrated really easily with the controls and I wanted to give up. Then I kept playing, and now I am hooked. We play together, and it's really fun, even though it's not something I would usually do. I also joined a gym called Pure Fitness. I've been wanting to start exercising again, and my mom and sisters told me about this program that they found online called "Couch to 5K". I am excited... It's been awhile since I've gotten into shape, and so, I'm making baby steps. I don't just want to walk or jog the 5K I'm planning on running in October, I want to RUN the 5k, which to me is a considerable difference from jogging. Tommorow I go on a hike early with some girls that I met from my ward.
Another thing that Rick and I did this past weekend is that we went to see "The Dark Knight". All I have to say is that it's one of the best movies that I have ever seen. We've been having a lot of fun, and I am so thankful that I am married to a great guy. Life is great, although it will be getting stressful in the next couple of weeks with work starting up again and getting ready for everything, oh and Rick and I have callings in our ward. We technically haven't been sustained yet, but we will be busy.

Road Trips

Everything has been crazy-busy so far. I mean, the weekend after we got engaged, Rick and I went to California to talk to my family. Then a couple of weekends after that, my Mom and sister, Bethany came out to Arizona to help me find a wedding dress. Yesterday and today we were in Thatcher, Arizona, picking up Rick's sister from college for her spring break, asking a relative to seal us, meeting Grandma and Grandpa, and taking engagement photos. It has been CRAZY!!!!! I am really looking forward to June 21st.
It's been stressful, but also fun. Rick, Kajsa and I went to Disneyland when we were in California. My uncle works there and has connections. He's awesome. It was a lot of fun. I was recovering from Strep Throat though, so I wasn't feeling so hot. I mean, I had fun, but I was tired so easily. Rick, Kajsa and I were all pooped out by 3. It's not like we're 60 or anything! We're all still in our early 20s. I am glad that I got to go to Disneyland with my two best friends. I mean, we are awesome.
When my Mom came to visit, I was really excited, but also nervous. We went out to Mesa to find a modest wedding gown, and I didn't like them too much. This is what I said about the best one there: "Well, I don't love it, but I don't hate it either." Wedding dress shopping is depressing. I mean, I have huge hips. There's a big difference between my waist and my hips. So, wedding dresses run 2 sizes smaller, so you have to get a dress that is 2 sizes bigger than your pant size! So depressing. I feel like a cow. I got over it pretty fast when I saw how the dress fit me. I mean, the shoulders were so big that I looked like a linebacker for the Raiders. We finally found the dress in a place that we were not expecting. David's Bridal. And, it was like the only modest dress there.
We took engagement pictures today. Lots of fun. We went to Mount Graham, which is the first real mountain that I've seen in Arizona. Climbed over rocks, carefully stepping around water and mud, and hurling myself over the log. Not to mention the fun bathroom facilities I needed to use, and the mossy wall. AND, after all that, most of the photos, are NOT cute. Yeah, that's what I said. There are maybe 2 or 3 that I like. I look funky in most of them. OR I am laughing. OR my eyes are closed. Oh well. Such is life. We only took like, 12 pictures. And, I guess that my smile is too big and I'm not as photogenic as I think I am.
This week is busy. Finally got a notice on my car from the cops that I needed to get my car registered. I lasted for almost 8 months without having to do anything. :) I am GOOD!!!!! And then, major stress, the state of Arizona education people are coming in to watch us teach and look at kids and tell us what we're doing wrong, and what we're doing right, if anything. Looking forward to a nice week of spring break. Go home for a weekend, and then get things done in Arizona. It will be nice to have time to do all the things that I want to do.

What? An Engagement?

Okay, so I've never done this before, so I thought I'd begin now. I'm currently engaged to this amazing man named Richard Evan Chappell, II, but I just call him Rick. A lot of people asked me how it happened, so I thought that I would just write everything on here, and if people really cared, then you'd read about it. End of story. So here we go.

In June I took a job out in Glendale, Arizona, which is basically Phoenix. It was the place that I felt I should be in. I am currently teaching 7th grade Social Studies, and 1 class of Language Arts. Lots of fun. Especially since I'm teaching in a low income area, where I'm teaching little thugs about American History, and they think that the United States was fighting Mexico in the Civil War. Anyways, I became the Enrichment Counselor in my tiny ward in Glendale, and I was relatively busy.

Then, toward the end of October, I started noticing this really young looking guy that had just got off of his mission. It wasn't until a Roller Skating FHE that I really noticed that he was geeky, but definitely cute. Then, that next Sunday, he helped me with setting up some things with Relief Society, and he sat by me with our after church eating social called Eat and Greet. We talked a little bit, and I began to think then that this guy is going to be a really good friend. I mean, we're both major geeks, and we have the same type of lame (awesome) sense of humor. We flirted at FHE the next day, then he gave the Elders a ride to my apartment for a missionary discussion with a friend, and then I saw him the next day at a game night at my apartment. That's when I really started to get to know him. It was easy to be myself around him, and to smile and laugh whenever he was around. I invited him to go on a hike with some friends the next morning, and he was the only one that showed up. It was nice to get to know him better and to talk to him, one-on-one without anyone else there. I began to learn about his interests, his mission, schooling, etc. EVERYTHING! That night he asked me out, and then, it kind of just started.

When I was around Rick, I always felt amazing. I knew, from the very beginning, that I was falling in love with him, which is crazy-scary. I was just expecting to be friends with him! Anyways, we began seeing each other every day, spending all of our free time with each other, I met his family, he met my family during New Years', and things were going great. We laughed at the silliest things, talked about everything, read books together, laughed, and smiled constantly. We get along great with one another---we're so perfect for each other. It's scary, but amazing at the same time.

I was having a really bad week with school. My students were seriously acting like Satan's offspring. They were serious brats. Anyways, so I decided I was going to take a Personal Day, because my students were driving me crazy. I met up with Rick at around noon, and he took me out to this cute little restaurant called "Kiss the Cook." The food was yummy. Then we went to Encanto Park in Phoenix to feed the birds and ducks. Now THAT was entertaining. When we were finished with that, Rick and I found a bench that wasn't inhabited by homeless people and we sat down. We were talking about something and Rick told me, "Well, it's not enough just to say that I love you." As soon as he said that, I thought "He is so going to propose right now." Then he dropped down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I remember I was smiling like an idiot, and I said "yeah... OF COURSE!" It was a wonderful experience and I am so happy and thankful to be blessed with someone like Rick in my life.

Of course, I'm scared to death, but hey, that's how it goes. I know that it's right, so I have to make sure that the fear that Satan is putting in me doesn't completely paralyze me. Thankfully, Rick is my more rational half, and whenever I'm with him, the fear fades away into complete happiness. I love him. "And for now, that's all I need to know".

The best part was telling all my family about it. I was so nervous about my father's reaction. So this is the best story. I tell my Dad, "Dad, I went to a park with Rick. We fed the ducks and threw stuff at the pigeons. Then Rick proposed to me and I said yes." After I said this to him, I was expecting some sort of body hitting the floor like he had a heart attack or something, but no...He asked me if I had heard of what happened to Shaq. I was extremely confused--- was my Dad trying to brush it off or did he not hear me? So, I asked him about Shaq. Then my Mom came back on the phone, wondering exactly what happened, since my Dad seemed so calm. I told my Mom what Dad had said. We both started laughing hysterically over the phone. Hilarious! Now that definitely broke the ice, even though I had to tell my Dad again... yeah, we won't go into that reaction. So that is a very basic synopsis of my relationship and engagement story. June 21st, 2008! So excited!