This is a long story. Brace yourselves. It starts way back in the 90s. That's not a joke. It really was that long ago. I had been taking piano lessons from the marvelous Pauline for a few years at that point. Soon, three siblings started taking lessons from her as well. Their mom would drop them off as I was waiting for my own mom to pick me up. Or vice versa. That doesn't really matter. We'd also see each other at recitals. Being about 10 at the time, all I really thought about their son was, "He's really good at the piano."
I passed through the awkward years of junior high and continued to take lessons. I started high school and discovered that two of my piano acquaintances attended Gilbert High as well. At this point, all I really thought about said son was, "He's pretty funny." He was actually there for my first date. Of course, he was with another girl with curly hair and I was with another short guy. I laughed so hard when I found this picture.
I graduated and headed off to BYU. When I was feeling extra ritzy, I would splurge on a Hot and Ready pizza from Little Caesar's with my roomies. That's when I discovered that the piano boy was employed at said establishment (How many times do you think I can use the word "said" in this post?). I'm not really sure what I thought about him then. Once I started student teaching, my mentor teacher would sometimes mention her cousin. We somehow figured out that her cousin Tim was the same Tim who had wowed me as he played 'The Entertainer' at one of our recitals. She told me some pretty interesting stories about him before realizing that I knew him, so it was then that I thought he might be a little strange.
Fast forward six years. This is when I moved from one house to another house, a mere seven miles away. This move put me into the boundaries of new young single adult ward. The same ward that Tim attended. We occasionally hung out with the same people and had a good time. Tim nonchalantly mentioned that he didn't have my phone number, so I gave it to him. I later started receiving text messages from a phone number I didn't recognize. The phone's owner initially claimed that his name was Raul, and we had met at The Running of the Bulls in Pamplona. This is when I started to realize how much "Raul" likes to make up totally bogus stories.
In November of 2012, Tim called to ask me on our first date. Due to crazy schedules, we ended up going on a breakfast date to IHOP. I had a nice time. I didn't really feel like I was on a date. It just felt like I was hanging out with one of my good friends.
A week later, we went on double date that Tim had set up with his friend Jordan. The four of us cooked dinner together. Well, the chicken wasn't technically "cooked," but that's alright. Nobody got sick. While watching a movie, the other couple got all cuddly on their couch. I stayed as far away from Tim as possible. It probably didn't help that there was a fling going on in the movie between a short man and a tall woman.
It took my some time to feel comfortable with the idea of me possibly dating someone who was shorter than me. After all, I'd spent most of my life telling people that all I look for in a man is that he's TALL. I was finally at peace with my height and ready to go out again with Tim, but he didn't ask me. I realized that he might need some encouragement, so I made him a Christmas gift. He left town to spend Christmas in Utah and I felt like he was never coming back. He did finally return and asked me out, a month and a half after our previous date. It was during that date that I realized I really liked his guy. A lot. When he dropped me off, he said we'd do something again "really soon." (I have since banned Tim from using the word "soon." He has to give me more precise time frames).
This is getting to be so long. I'm sorry. It's fun for me to tell all this, though. In January of 2013, Tim and I started "officially" dating. We've been together almost every day since then. And every day, I've grown to love him more and more. This is the mushy part (as if you couldn't tell that already). He's beyond wonderful. I can't imagine my life without him in it.
A few weeks ago, we were in the vicinity of our piano teacher's neighborhood and Tim asked if I wanted to drive by her house. When we pulled up, I thought, "This would be a great place to propose." But he didn't. We left her house and then he suggested a walk through the neighborhood park. As we were walking along, we came upon a lake with some guys fishing and drinking. Further ahead, there was a bridge lined with luminaries. I was trying to figure out if the romantic lighting was for me or if it was a coincidence. When I saw the gorgeous bouquet placed on the middle of the bridge, I started piecing things together very slowly.
Tim has a record of taking his time with everything, so I wasn't expecting what was about to come. Next thing I knew, he was saying super sweet things and then getting down on one knee. As soon as I saw him start to kneel, all I could think was, "Hurry up and ask me so I can say YES!" He did ask me. And I did say yes.
That's our story. Well, the beginning of it, I guess. Thanks for reading.
P.S. We're getting married at the end of December. I can't wait!
