Kinda lot of words.

How time passes so quickly and yet so slowly at the same time. Quickly in terms of months and slowly in terms of days. But at the same time I can't remember not having a child. Memories are fading faster and faster like they NEVER HAPPENED! I guess that's why we have pictures. But even pictures can't bring back the ENTIRE situation. Journals are good, but when I read back I have a hard time visualizing what happened, every detail. Its really interesting the things one remembers about their childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Like for instance I remember a certain tire swing I loved to play on at recess. Do playgrounds even have tire swings anymore? I haven't seen one in a while.

I can't even remember the restaurant of Dave's and mine's first date. A fish house somewhere in Huntington. I remember watching one of his student's, Wes, play the ukulele for us. I remember feeling a little nervous, but excited about our upcoming trip to Santa Barbara. Little did I know at the time that I'd be engaged the next day. I don't really remember our conversation on the way up to SB but I do remember it not taking very long to get up there. I remember not wanting to listen to Hymns because since I was heading for a mission I was asked to only listen to hymns to prepare, and by then I was sick of them. So being the rebellious person that I am we listened to the Smiths. I guess that was the start of our whirlwind relationship. . .out of rebellion. I remember telling Dave I wanted to marry someone who was musical. . .he listened carefully to that remark.

Well since that time we've been married three years. Its been a time of learning and loving. I think our biggest learning curve was going to New Zealand. It was our first major trip together and we were still in the "getting to know you" phase. . .6 months into our marriage. After 1 week of traveling, in our van, I was ready for a shower and warm bed. I love camping, but after a week or so I need to sanitize myself and brush my hair. However I am not very good at expressing myself at the time of need. I usually wait until I'm at the brink of exhaustion til I open my mouth. Something I'm trying to work on constantly. And on our way from Wellington to Abel Tasman I was tired, cold, hungry, and dirty and I unleashed the beast. Dave was very taken back being the tender plant that he is. Had I communicated EARLY ON in our trip I wouldn't have had to let it get out of hand. I was irrational and silly, but Dave learned the things that I need. I need food. I need sleep. I need exercise. I need to be about 75 degrees. And I need to be clean. Kinda like a baby. If any one of these things are out of proportion I get beastly. So lesson learned. I need to communicate better, and Dave needs to keep my 5 needs in check. The rest of the trip was much better. I'd say by the time we were up in the coromandel peninsula things were rock solid. I was able to surf because it was warmer and Dave met all of my needs. New Zealand is one of my favorite places in the world. I don't know if I'll ever get to go again but if I do it will be in the summer.

I wish I was more like Dave. He is the most easy going person I know. He does not get offended. He does not get angry. He loves me unconditionally and says "I love you" multiple times of the day. He is calm under stressful situations and is clean. He is child-like but not naive. He has a good awareness of the world around him. He loves his family, especially his brother Steve and talks about how they were best friends growing up. I think its cute that his best friend was his brother who is 6 years younger than him. He loves being a bishop and helping people. At times he comes home late in the evening and tells me about how much he loves being able to help people. I've learned how important it is to give generously to fast offerings. They really bless the giver and receiver. I do not know specific people who benefit from this, only the bishop knows that, but I do know that he meets with people who have serious needs that I take for granted, like being able to go grocery shopping without having to worry about paying my mortgage at the end of the month, going to the dentist to get my wisdom teeth taken out, getting a prosthetic appendage because diabetes caused my foot to be amputated. Things like that.