When I was 15 one of my best friends was dating a guy who was absolutely obsessed with jeeping. One night at a football game he was making plans with his friends to go jeeping once the game was over. Well, of course I was one of those annoying friends who always hung around his girlfriend and this night was no different. My friend Amanda pointed Jake out to me and I instantly fell in love. And when I say "in love" I don't mean the cute head-over-heels in love, I mean the crazy stalker in love. Obviously I begged my friends boyfriend to let us go up the canyon with him and he finally agreed as long as we stayed quiet and sat in the back, but hey that was enough for me! We left the game, loaded up on gas and drinks and finally started up American Fork canyon. Of course anyone who has been jeeping knows, jeeping isn't jeeping unless something breaks. Luckily for me this proved true that night and the jeep I was in broke right in the middle of the trail. We all hung around and let the boys try to be men and fix the jeep but after about an hour it was pretty clear that wasn't going to happen. Once they realized this he came over and told us that we were going to have to split up into different jeeps to get back home. I seriously don't think I could have bee-lined it any quicker over to Jake's jeep. One of my other best friends, Courtney, had the same idea I did so we both (HAPPILY) rode in Jake's jeep. Looking back now it is so weird how things worked out. On the way home I rode in the front seat of Jake's jeep and Courtney rode in the back seat of his jeep with Zak. The weird part is that that night was both of our first night meeting these boys and now Courtney and Zak are now married, and Jake and I are soon to married. I'm totally convinced that cupid is real and was riding in that jeep that night! Anyway, our ride home was hilarious (including us peeing in the forest while Jake spotlighted us trying to be nice hahah thanks babe), and a night I always love to relive in my mind. Over the next couple of months, and even years, Jake and I dated. And when I say dated I mean friends-with-benefits that hung out with each others family too. Things weren't always picture perfect and I hate to say this because it is so cliche but, whatever is meant to be will eventually be.
In the summer of 2011 Jake and I started hanging out again but unfortunately it was right before he left for his mission. I'm not going to say that I waited for him and give some fairytale ending because that certainly didn't happen. Jake had been gone a year when he wrote me a letter saying that he felt like he should focus on his mission and that we should stop writing. He also mentioned that I was immature and needed to grow up hahah and just to show how immature I was I ripped up the letter and threw it away. During that next year I started my dental hygiene program and time flew by! I remember his mom messaging me and inviting me up to the airport with them to pick Jake up and I about died laughing thinking of how mad Jake would be if he walked off the plane to see me and my immature self there. What I didn't know then was how sad Jake was when he got off the plane expecting me to be there and not seeing me anywhere. Pay back for calling me immature right? ;) Well, it didn't take him too long to call me up and invite me to a demolition derby with his family. It took him even less time to kiss me later that night! I think he just wanted to join the 24 hour club. Jake has now been home for 11 months and it's been pure bliss!
Now that I've got you all up to speed I can share the good stuff! 2 months ago Jake and I went ring shopping at a jewelers who Jake had done some IT work for. The guy behind the counter absolutely loved Jake and when we showed up he handed him the keys to all of the counters and told Jake to stand behind the counter with me in front of it and to get out any ring I asked for. I absolutely loved every minute of it because it was just me and Jake going from ring to ring with out any annoying sales people, and Jake kept making funny jokes about stealing all the diamonds and running away. In the end we designed a ring that took forever to be made! I wish the actual ring designing experience was as fun as the ring shopping but it all worked out.
On Thursdays I get out of clinic at 5:00, the same time Jake gets off work. A couple days before hand he said that his friend Clint wanted to go up AF canyon for a RZR ride so we had planned to do that Thursday. Once I got done I called Jake and told him I was coming over and then we'd leave. He took years to get home, which I thought was normal because he works at the bank and everyone always comes in on the weekends or days before holidays to deposit checks. What I didn't know then was that he was down at the jewelers picking up the ring, so literally no one had even seen it yet. He finally got home and we loaded up and left. Okay this is the best part guys, guess where we ate the night of my engagement? Anyone who knows Jake knows exactly where... Yep, Taco Amigo. Hahaha I can't keep him away from there. Obviously I don't think anything is up, I mean seriously we were eating at Taco Amigo. We left and as we were driving to the canyon Jake turns to me and says "you're going to kill me" ha (my favorite phrase) and then proceeded to tell me that Clint had "bailed" but that he didn't want to tell me cause he was afraid I wouldn't go. Haha he knows me too well. Anyway, we get up to Tibble Fork, parked the truck, got on the RZR, snapped a few pictures and left. Everyone keeps saying "didn't it seem weird that he was taking a lot of pictures?" but honestly no, Jake takes pictures everywhere we go- I LOVE it. On our way up we stopped and took more pictures (I'll post them on here too) and then we FINALLY got up to forest lake at the top of the trail. Forest Lake is where we always went jeeping with all of our friends and the first place we met in the story I told earlier in this post! I love forest lake, it's almost magical to me and brings back so many memories from these past 6 years with Jake. This time we went up to forest lake was different though. We got up there right after the sun had set, it was dark, and I started freaking out. He wanted to take more pictures and I kept saying "Nooo, let's leave". I am really not a fan of the dark, and especially the dark when I'm in AF canyon. I kept telling him how the RZR could break on our way back down and we wouldn't have service to call anyone, and that it was just too late. Well right in the middle of my fit Jake says "Ok we can leave as soon as I ask you a question" haha and I just started laughing and told him how he wasn't going to do it right there cause it wasn't even anything special and continued to beg him to leave. Finally he got back in the RZR and we went to drive back down the trail when he quickly cuts up a small trail going up hill. I (in true brady fashion) start to freak out because I wanted to leave when all of the sudden I saw a flicker of light in the corner of my eye as we dropped down into a small clearing. I hurried and looked over to this small separate lake I had never seen before tucked back in the trees away from everything else. I jumped out of the RZR and demanded that Jake made it light up again. At this point I knew something was going on but I didn't know what the lights said. He kept telling me to hold still but I couldn't stop freaking out. He set up the camera on a tripod, led me over the the edge of the lake and the sign lit up. There was a lot of mushy stuff said, and a lot of "of-course's", and way too many kisses following that! After we took pictures I kept asking Jake if we could just camp there for the night because the sign looked so magical. I seriously couldn't bring myself to leave. Jake's parents had gone up before us and set it all up, and I really could not thank them enough for all the help. I can't think of a more magical, intimate, romantic, and sentimental engagement. I still get butterflies looking at the pictures from that night!
We've been so overwhelmed by all of the love and support shown from friends and family these past few days and I just have to say thank you to everyone! Getting engaged the place we first met and to the first person I ever loved exceeded all of my dreams I had as a little girl of getting engaged. Along with being engaged where we first met, we have decide to actually get married on the day we first met too which is October 3rd. Can you guys tell how big of a romantic Jake is yet or what? I couldn't have gotten luckier with the man I fell in love with and am amazed at how much he has taught me about love. Jake is everything I've dreamed about in a husband (and then some) and I can't wait to start our life together! Okay okay enough sappy stuff, you have to see these pictures!
