our october 2oth birthday

I vaguely remember the first time I met Chris. He came over to my aunt's home in Provo. I was in charge of the temple trip that evening for my ward, and had to leave early. But, he was cute. We were scoping each other out because we had been set up on a blind date the following weekend.

I do remember quite clearly the next time I spoke to Chris. He phoned me up. That evening we were scheduled to go on our blind date.
Chris:"Yeah, so, I can pick you up on time without taking a shower, or I can take a shower and be a bit late." I chose the shower.

I can still see him, with lots of hair, bright smile, sparkling blue eyes, shoes two sizes too big, a mustard colored, collard shirt, blue sweater vest and glasses. He was inviting and fun. He talked a lot and fast. He drove his blue car and was constantly changing the radio station. We ate pizza with friends and watched a double feature in the comfort of our friend's home. He was always in motion (rememberOCD) and actually took my feet in his warm hands and gave the first of countless foot rubs. I was happy I had waited for him to shower. And I was happy that we had this date.

Here's a confession. That night we kissed. Yes, the first date. But, I have to confess again, that if that had not happened, we probably would not have gone out again. We kissed good together, so why not kiss some more.

So, the rest is history. There's a summer romance, fall engagement, storybook wedding, and 13 fun years and counting.

I love this picture of Chris because it speaks volumes. Chris is so open and inviting and warm and fun. He's easy to talk to. He's a pretty easy-going guy. He's smart, funny, interesting and entertaining. He's also forgiving. He always opens his arms to me and invites me back. He's pretty great.

So I asked him what he wanted for his birthday. He wanted to fish all day. Then he decided he needed another surf board to surf all day. He's getting his fishing gear ready now. His boat is outside waiting for the early sun to surface so they can cruise the waters and catch flounder. Then he'll take a break, purchase his new board, and surf for the rest of the day. He's also trying to be good so he can run his marathon, so I don't even have to make a cake.

Like I said, he's pretty easy. Happy birthday Chris. You can even bring the fish home and cook them in the house if you want.