Check Ride

Jake passed his check ride by the skin of his teeth today. Apparently he got some of the dials or directions mixed up. Luckily he corrected it right at the last second. It was definitely a cause for celebration, so Jake went to Jamba Juice. We only got to enjoy a few sips because he spilled the shakes all over his lap. Good job Jake! 

A few words from Jake:

I only spilled one of them!

I have been ready to take this check ride for the past two months.  However, scheduling conflicts, weather, the stupid FAA, and everything else imaginable combined against me to delay taking it until today.  An F-16 even crashed at Ogden shutting the airport down yesterday and one of the runways today to complicate things.  Besides yesterday, I haven't been able to practice at all in the last two weeks and so I was a little nervous and rusty.  I almost failed on a couple parts but recovered just in the nick of time.  It couldn't have been any closer, twice!  They were stupid little mistakes too that I'd never had trouble with before.  I am one lucky feller.  My check ride examiner was Steve Biggs.  He's missing the middle finger on his right hand and he likes to make jokes about it and play tricks on people (except when he's in the middle of the check ride).  When he found out that I'd just got engaged the week before he said, "NO WONDER YOU HAD A HARD TIME CONCENTRATING!"  Anyway, I'm glad it's finally behind me and I can move on.  Next up:  Commercial Rating.

Jake's Hospitalization

I dragged  Jake to the emergency room the other day because he was hit in the throat during a football game. He didn't feel it was anything significant, but I wanted to make sure there wasn't anything wrong. He really didn't like my worrying or insistence, but I told him to get used to it. :-) When we got there, the nurse made Jake take his shirt off and put on a gown, then proceeded to hook all sorts of tubes and hoses up to him. She even put a breathing tube up his nose! We think she went a little overboard with her precautions...The doctor said everything looked fine and if Jake had any other problems he needed to come back. Other than a sore throat and not being able to make high pitched noises or sing, his throat is healing just fine.

The Proposal

I couldn't have asked for a better proposal! It was so romantic and sweet! Jake put so much thought into it and I love him so much for that! I told him since I already said I'd marry him and we picked out the ring that he'd better make it a proposal I would be proud to share with everyone for the rest of my life. No pressure, right? I felt kind of bad because I really started putting the pressure on Jake to give me my ring about a week after we picked it out. He told me he was going to trick me a few times, just to keep me on my toes and wondering when the ring was actually coming. 

On April Fool's Day I was walking home from a piano practice with my duet partner, and when I tried to enter my apartment, I was shoved back outside and forced to go to the store with my roommate Anamarie. I knew Jake was up to something because I heard him in our kitchen. After an agonizing 30 minutes, we were allowed to come home. Jake was in our kitchen trying to act normal, (which is hard for him to do sometimes :-) and I walked into my room.  I was surprised! There was a bouquet of roses on my bed surrounded by balloons and a letter with a picture of Jake sitting on top of it. I looked all around to see if there was a ring box...but there wasn't. Jake walked in while I was reading his letter and he just hugged me. His letter made me cry! Even though there wasn't a ring, the thought was so sweet.  

Later that night, Jake grabbed my hand and started pulling me out the door. I asked him where we were going, but he wouldn't say anything. We started walking down the sidewalk and Jake handed me the wooden spoon (it's an inside joke) and told me to hold onto it. We walked down to a river and just stood there holding each other for a few minutes. Then Jake got down on one knee, took my hand in his, and said, "I need to tie my shoe." I punched him.

About two weeks later I was really bugging him about getting me my ring, and was trying to find out as much information as I possibly could. He gave me a few hints, and my roommate Anamarie told me he was waiting for the weather. The next day, Friday April 1oth, Jake called me while I was in my piano practice room and told me to answer the phone when he called me back in an hour. When he called me the second time, he told me he was coming to pick me up because he had a surprise for me. Jake picked me up and drove me back to my apartment to get a jacket and some sunglasses, then he blind folded me and we drove to the airport. I wasn't expecting anything out of the ordinary because the day before I had been told I wouldn't be getting proposed to for a little while. I thought Jake was just surprising me by taking me flying, which was very sweet. I did get a little nervous when I found out Jake was flying the plane without his instructor. Talk about putting your life into someone's hands! 

We started flying south, and Jake even let me take the controls for a bit (I wasn't very good). I was surprised when he radioed Provo tower and asked for permission to land at the Spanish Fork airport, which is where I'm from. That was a pleasant surprise. I figured we were just going to take back off again because we had no car to go anywhere with. When we got out of the plane, Jake put the blind fold back on me and led me to a car. We then proceeded to drive around for awhile, and when we stopped, Jake led me up some wooden stairs and sat me on a bench. He was really quiet then, and I thought he just left me sitting there. Jake started reading a few versus out of D&C 132 about becoming an eternal family and becoming Gods and Goddesses together. He paused, then started to cry as he read a part out of his patriarchal blessing about his future wife and family. I, of course, was bawling as he pulled the blind fold off and was down on one knee with the ring and asked, "Will you marry me?" I didn't even look at the ring but said, "Of course!" 

My sister-in-law and my sister had provided us with a picnic, and we enjoyed that together while I admired my ring. It was the best proposal ever! I am so lucky to be marrying such a thoughtful, romantic man! 

Dating and Engagement

I have gotten  a lot of inquiries about the recent development between Jake and my relationship. It has happened all very suddenly, and many people have excitedly demanded "give me the details!" Jake told several of his siblings and family members our story, but I feel men aren't extremely great at detail, so I've decided to share our story from my point of view and with as much detail as possible. Hopefully this will satisfy everyone's curiosity. ;-)

Jake and I have been neighbors since the beginning of the school year (August 2008). It's actually an interesting story how I came to be at Garden Court (my apartment now). Back in March 2008, I was looking for housing for the fall semester and was just going to stay at the place I was currently living (Old Farm). I even paid my deposit and everything! Something didn't feel quite right, however, and I ended up applying for an apartment in Garden Court. I was put on a waiting list and was told it was already full. A few days later I received a call from the manager telling me there was a private room available in Apart. #1. I became roommates with Alli Cope and Anamarie Lamb, and because the three of us were so much fun, Jake started coming over to our apartment and practically took up residence as our 7th roommate. Needless to say we got to know each other very well. (A little too well I think. :-))

Jake tells me that about the beginning of February was when he started liking me. He told me he loved being with all three of us (Alli, Anamarie, and me), but when he came over he wanted me to be there, and he missed me when he wasn't with us. (I thought that was so sweet!) I tend to be a little dense when it comes to noticing boys' advances, and I didn't think anything about Jake staying later to talk to me on our love sac night after night, or asking me to go to his friends house for dinner one Sunday evening, and then to Alan and Whitney's for the next Saturday. Jake said he was showing all kinds of signs that he liked me, and everyone apparently noticed it except me. It should have been obvious to me when he volunteered to accompany my roommates and I to the hotel my parents were staying at for Parent's Day and spend the rest of the night having a "girl's night" party with all of us. 

The following Monday after our dinner date, I received a text message from Anamarie telling me that "boy did she have some news for me about Jake!" and I needed to call her when I got out of class. When I called and talked to her, she said she couldn't tell me what had happened unless Alli said it was alright. I started to panic a little when I called Alli and she responded hesitantly to my inquiry, saying she would talk to me when she got home. "What in the world is going on?!" was the thought racing around my mind. Words cannot really describe my thoughts when, upon returning home for lunch, Alli proceeded to tell me Jake had asked to talk to Anamarie, sat on our living room couch, and told her he was considering dating me, asking her for all sorts of insider information. (The little traitor!)

I was speechless. That was the last thing I was expecting. I had so many thoughts race through my mind. My biggest concern was that I had a missionary out who was coming home in May, and I didn't think it would be fair to date Jake for a few months while I was planning on dating my missionary when he got home. My mind was set on seeing what would happen with my missionary. It's funny how God works, and several things happened the next few days in order for me to have a change of heart. I started really praying to know what I should do, and after Jake and my date to Alan and Whitney's (which was really fun), we went for a drive. We drove around for about an hour looking at cool houses in Logan, and then we stopped to fill up Jake's car with gas. Once the car was filled and we were on our way again, I could tell Jake was nervous about something because he just sat there waiting at a green light. I said, "Uh, Jake it's green. Green means go." and he mumbled, "It's hard to talk and drive at the same time." I just laughed and said, "You weren't even talking!" He was quiet for a minute, then said, "Shannon, I like you, and I want to date you. I'm 25 and not getting any younger, so I'm dating to get married. Anamarie told me you're waiting for a missionary, and I told myself I was never going to date anyone who has a missionary again because I don't want to date someone who already has half their heart given away to someone else. So I need to know how serious you are about your missionary." 

Talk about being upfront and forward! I was stunned. Not so much by the fact we were having this conversation, because Anamarie warned me it was coming, but by the way he did it. There was no beating around the bush at all! It was a this-is-how-it-is-and-I-need-an-answer-now type of a thing. I took a minute to collect my thoughts, pray for guidance, and really think deeply about how I felt. Then I just went with my feeling. I told Jake my missionary and I had been very serious and I was, at the time, waiting for him to come home to see what would happen. I wanted to date my missionary and see where things would go. I also told him I was going with what felt right, and dating Jake right then felt right, but it was up to Jake whether or not he wanted to pursue this relationship knowing what I just told him. I held my breath, hoping he would say we should date, but thinking he probably wouldn't want to take the chance. He took a deep breath and said, "Ok, if we're going to date there are some things you need to know about me being in the military..." While Jake talked and filled me in on the difficulties of being a military man's girlfriend, I felt the most amazing warm feeling fill my chest, and I knew this was right. 

Jake walked me back to my apartment and we both stood there awkwardly because we didn't know how to transition from being friends to dating. After he left, I went into my room and started to panic. What was I doing getting into a relationship right now? Was this the right thing? I prayed really hard to have no doubts about this, and in church the next day sitting next to Jake, I had the most powerful feeling that this was what I needed to be doing. Since we were neighbors we spent almost every hour together, and it was Spring Break that week which was a big plus. We went tubing, snowmobiling, and watched movies, talking until 4:00am (it was ok because he hadn't even kissed me yet) about anything and everything. We got to know each other so much better, and we both feel that without Spring Break, our relationship would be on a lower level than it is right now. He did finally kiss me Tuesday night (which was really Wednesday morning) before I left for home. It was a good thing because I don't know how much longer I could have waited for him to take charge before I kissed him first myself! 

After the week of Spring Break, I knew I needed to make a decision about Jake and my missionary. It wasn't fair to be dating Jake while waiting for my missionary, and I was starting to have some pretty strong feelings for Jake. The Sunday after we started dating, March 15th, I made the decision to see where dating Jake would lead and not date my missionary in May. It was a hard decision, but I felt it was right, and I took off the promise ring my missionary had given me before he left and took down the countdown poster. I prayed for confirmation I was doing the right thing, and felt impressed to say, "I'm going to marry Jake." I immediately felt the same warm, powerful feeling I had before and I knew I was given my answer. Now all I had to do was wait for Jake to feel the same. 

On Monday night I told Jake I took my ring off and was only going to date him. Needless to say he was extremely happy with this turn of events and rewarded me for my decision. ;-) 

I called my mom on Tuesday and told her I was going to marry Jake. She reacted better than I thought she would. She didn't even question my decision. She asked me why I wanted to marry Jake. I started telling her about how great of a leader he was and how nice and smart and handsome....she abruptly cut me off and said, "Shannon, I don't care about all that stuff! Does he make your heart pitter-patter? Do you just want to be with him all the time? You are too logical! Is your heart telling you he is what you want?!" I laughed really hard at that! Leave it to my mom t0 put me in my place. (And yes to all of those questions.)

Jake and I went to the Draper temple dedication on Sunday March 22nd, and while they were showing the bride and sealing rooms, I thought to myself, "I really want Jake to take me there." Later that night Jake and I were talking and I asked him what he was thinking. After a moments hesitation he responded, "If we keep dating like this we're eventually going to get married." I immediately said, "I already know I'm going to marry you." What? Why on earth did I just say that?! It just popped out! Jake sat up and said with a bewildered look, " What did you just say?" I was super embarrassed and didn't want to tell him again, but he demanded it. Jake said he had been thinking about marrying me but didn't want to scare me away because we had only been dating for 2 weeks. He also told me that during the temple dedication while they were showing the sealing room he had the thought that he wanted to take me there. Coincidence? I don't think so. I asked him if he really wanted to marry me, and I absolutely loved his response! He said, "I have never wanted anything so bad in my life." 

We went ring shopping the following Wednesday, and I already knew what I wanted because I had gone by myself the day before. I was just so excited I could hardly stand it! We picked out the ring and I told Jake he had better propose to me in an amazing way because I would have to tell everyone this remarkable proposal story for the rest of my life. He got the hint. :-) I called the temple and scheduled the day and time, and Jake came and asked my dad if he could marry me. My dad was beaming about Jake the rest of the weekend. My parents definitely approved. Everything was set, all I was waiting for was the ring...