Reflections on a Leap Day

Four years ago today, my roommate Suzanne (see previous post) and I wrote letters to each other listing five things we thought would have happened/be happening in the other's life on the next Leap Day. (We also kidnapped for ransom and dressed up our friend's stuffed lemur, but I don't think we'll make that a tradition...). Here we are, four years later, and we open the letters tonight.

So while Leap Day isn't a typical day for reflection, this day is for me. Frankly, I can't believe how fast four years have passed. I can't believe I married Suzanne's high school friend, that I had his adorable child, that still live in this college town, or that American Idol is still on the air. Most of all, I can't believe how blessed the last four years of my life have been.

I wonder what the next four years will bring?

The Story

For those who've heard it (and seen the accompanying multimedia presentation that goes WITH it), this story is old hat. But for those who care, here's the Reader's Digest version of how Matt and I met:

So I lived with an amazing, wonderful, witty girl named Suzanne all four years at BYU. During Spring term after our third year, she mentioned that her high school friend Matt was back from his mission and at BYU. I'd heard about Matt throughout his mission since he and Suz kept in touch (she wasn't 'writing' him per se, but he did send us letters and pics - you get the idea).

Anyway, about 11:00 one Monday night, she suggested that we should meet up with Matt and our other mutual friend Rob to go to the weekly devotional the next day. Problem: it was too late to call Matt that night, and we weren't going to be able to catch him before he left his house at 6 the next morning (and he had no cell phone). Suz happened to know where his class was just before devotional though, but it was across campus from where she would be at that time. I was free that hour, and she jokingly suggested that I should wait outside his class holding a sign with his name on it - a la those people you see at the airport. I was feeling adventurous and agreed.

So there I was at 10:50 the next morning outside 106 JSB, feeling like an IDIOT as hundreds of students filed past and looked at my sign. Matt was, of course, the last person (or close to it) out of the classroom. He was wearing a gray suit and a very bewildered expression as he said, "Uh, I'm Matt." (He told me later that his first thought was that I must have been from the administration sent to give him some bad news.)

I explained who I was and why I was there, and we ended up watching the devotional (not sitting next to each other).

Fast forward to that Saturday, when I suggested to Suz that we go visit Matt (he was commuting to BYU from his parents' house at the time). So we showed up at the homestead, and I played DDR for the first time ever before we all headed out to see Sons of Provo (which may be the worst movie ever made).

Afterwards I was enjoying a bowl of vanilla ice cream with strawberries when Matt asked me about my class schedule. Lo and behold, he and I had a music theory class at the same time in the same hallway. On Monday morning, I walked out of music theory and was greeted by THIS:




So there you have it. I have video footage of my husband asking me on our first official date. And you would not believe how many people in my music theory class asked me the next day, "Did you really meet that guy online?"

More of our love story (and more of the multimedia presentation) to come...

Tagged Again!

Thanks to Hillary for tagging me for this post - it's supposed to be 6 things/habits/quirks about me, but since I'm running out of things like that to share, I think I'll just...see what happens:

1) I am blessed to have not only really amazing, warm, and wonderful parents, but also a dynamic duo of marvelous in-laws. Rare. And delightful.

2) I can't go a day without eating peanut butter. I've tried. It's impossible.

3) When I was three years old, my family took a vacation to San Fransisco. I was a 'straggler' and kept getting left behind in shops and at tourist attractions, so my parents bought me a leash. They tricked me into wearing it by telling me that my dad was going to get lost if I didn't hang onto him. I bought it hook, line and sinker.

4) When I met my husband, I was holding a sign with his name on it.

5) I like Golden Grahams with cheddar cheese. I'm not even sure how I found this out, but those tiny Graham cheese sandwiches are de-lish.

6) I never learned how to type with the right fingers. I just fake it, and not very well.

Questions I Want to Ask the Universe

• Exactly how often should I be clipping my baby's toenails?
• Does hot chocolate count as dessert?
• Why has my right ankle been slightly swollen, weak, and achy since 2003?
• After watching the Today show this morning: When did this become a Huckabee-McCain race?
  
• How much would a wintertime trip to Greece cost?
  
• Where is my favorite black cardigan?
  
• Truman squirms and squirms when he's on my lap (like right now) as though he wants to get down - where is he going to go?
• When is the weather going to warm up enough that I can once again feel my nose?
  
• Are there any good 'manly' gifts for Valentine's Day?
• If a package arrives from an online photography vendor, and it's covered with tape that says "Ann Taylor" (as in the posh clothing store for women), should you be worried?
• Why does the bullet look like a bullet in the preview, but a flower when I actually publish the post?

And the eternal, ever-plaguing question:

• What am I going to make for dinner tonight?

The world may never know...