The last four months have been a lot of fun. Lauren and I got married on August 13th and have been living it up since. We are with each other ALL day long because 1) we want to be with each other ALL the time 2) all of our classes are pretty much the same 3) this means we do the same homework, have the same tests, and I have a built-in study buddy 24/7! We even have the same calling at church-we team teach Sunday School. We are a couple that loves to just be together-and we are blessed to have that luxury! These are a few pictures of life with the greatest girl!
Grace sent Lauren and me some great bookmarks that double as great hair clips.
She is just SO excited to have a cute bookmark-FINALLY
Savannah took us to the Taylor Swift concert- the best night as I'm sure you can tell.
At the San Diego Zoo!
As Lauren's birthday approaches, I wanted to surprise her with this blog post about all the wonderful things that I love about her.
1) She loves to be funny-and when she gets on a roll with her songs, Elmo impersonations, and dance moves-WATCH OUT!
Lauren enjoying a football game! You know she's having fun when she closes her eyes and doesn't say a word...
2) She is the greatest at making me feel important and building my confidence.
3) Her cute little smile
4) Her beautiful hair
5) Her beautiful BLUE eyes
6) She's so positive!
7) She wants to do what's right
8) She always tells me that we could live in our little old rented house forever and she'd still be the happiest-haha
9) She's so cute, loving, funny, and sweet that I have forfeited many a basketball game or football game to watch toddlers and tiaras or some other TLC masterpiece-THAT is how cute, loving, funny, and sweet she is!
10) She's the greatest cook in the world!
11) She is the best at being a good example for me.
12) And most importantly- I know how much she loves me
After we decided that we would be getting married in August, David and I decided that we would both go to our separate homes to work for the summer. It seemed like the best idea at the time, being that David has an awesome job down in California, and I am working at a surgery center as an anesthesiology technician. We knew that we would miss each other, but what we didn't fully realize is that long distance love is comparable to eating 17 cupcakes by yourself -it seems like a good idea in the beginning but then you end up sad- with a constant stomach ache, wondering what you were thinking! Because the ache can't be cured until we get to be together forever and ever, for now we just try to remedy our long-distance-blues with a myriad of methods- the favorite method: surprises! Here's the latest- a love package:
yes, yes, yes. it was crammed full of love.
Because David loves treats, i made a candy version of our love story:
A story of two Nerds who fell in love,
The first time I saw you I thought Hubba Bubba! Break me off a piece of that mr. Goodbar! Yet, you were with a few Sour Patch Kids. So I played it cool, not wanting to be a Butterfingers, and let you slip through my fingers! If I had 100 Grand for every time your were on my mind since then, boy-oh-boy would that be the biggest PayDay of my life!! Fast forward to January, our Snickers could be heard all through the class, as our love grew and grew.... Although we didn't pay much attention in class! I waited around for you to make a move, but you decided to Take 5 million bazillion days! Just as it was getting down to Crunch time, you decided to take your hobbies to the Xtremes. After your Roll-up on the sidewalk you were pretty hurt- just in time for me to swoop in & fool you into thinking what a sweetart I am! Apparently my plan worked as we fell more in love, creating a relationship of complete bliss! You may snicker at this, but now I love you Mounds and mounds! In fact, I would even fly to the Milkyway for you! Mostly, I just can't wait until Franklin joins our family so we can be called the 3 musketeers!!! (this is just a little inside joke, it's not real!) I just wanted to send you this package filled with my love, just so U-No I love you to Pieces!
the front of the pillowcase I made
and the back.. just lauren and david taking part in a little chemistry!
also included, a hundred love notes
since i made it, i had free range in the design process :)
but look! he loves it so much he wears it to work!
Other surprises include... this blog, a squirrel named Shellman, love letters, recorded original love songs.. and dances. Because those reading this are mostly family and a few friends, here's a small sample to help you understand our love in a whole new way:
Listen, there have been fireworks from the beginning-- we're used to them!
David came up to the lakehouse in Coeur d' Alene for 4th of July weekend! We had the greatest time playing at the lake- even if the water was cold enough to instantly freeze an otterpop!
the only thing that could make the lake house any better- david p!
this is what love looks like.
for every little psycho, there's an equally strange goofball.
and they belong together.
i love him. so i dance for him. often.
he would never dream of throwing me in that ice water.
but i will gladly take him in with me!
surfing it up the way only a Californian knows how
Last Tuesday Ricki and Sarah threw me a bridal shower in Moscow! It was so fun to see everyone and David and I received the nicest gifts to get our new life together started off right!
Everyone gathered at my house
David was on Skype playing a game where we both had to answer
questions... we did less than mediocre.
My good friend Carma, and so many others made the trip to Moscow
Favorites of the week: 1. Going to work with David! What a spectacular little working man he is!
2. MARRIAGE LICENSE! I would like to use it... tomorrow!
Lauren Dru PARKER
During our last trip to California we went in and got our marraige license.. in our swiming suits! Only 45 days left till we get to put it to use! but who's counting?... WE ARE! Since we signed the license in San Diego county we just headed to moonlight beach right after!
Look how happy he is to sign it.. That's a good sign!
3. The beach! We were just loving eachother so much the whole time, trying on hats and eating sandwiches. I caught my first sand crab! What a day to remember!
Lauren is the cutest little hat model.
4. Watermelon time. We stopped at a strange little exit in the middle of no where and bought a watermelon! Our faces were just covered in juice from the four slices cut by a strange little man with a frosting covered knife! Then I was lucky enough to have my strange little face covered in a combination of the watermelon juice and David's saliva after he tried to help by licking it off.
5. The bridal shower! David's family threw me the cutest shower!
6. When David's mom told us all of her stories about just loving his dad, we stayed up until 2 am just listening!
7. Just singing all sorts of songs all over the house- we were both getting a lot of performing in!
One of the things I love most about Lauren is that she is a great song maker-upper.
This is why I just love the man!
8. When David gave me SHELLMAN! Our first child together... Ok, just a squirrel puppet. But I love squirrels. He knows me too well. I was So happy. I welcomed him into my heart with open arms.
This is the San Diego temple, where David and I are getting married in only 61 (long) days!
Growing up as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, I have always loved the temple. When I was little my love for the temple stemmed from it's similarity to a castle. Because of this, I knew that it must be important. As I got a little older and was able to go inside, I began to love the temple because of the way it made me feel, so I knew by the distinctive spirit felt there, that it was important. Just this last week I was able to go through the temple to receive my endowments. My understanding of the truthfulness and shear majesty of the gospel deepened, and because of the way it has already altered my life I know that it is the most important.
One of the best parts of the weekend was having so many of the people there that I just love the very most! David, and of course my Mom and Dad were there, along with my sister Jackie, and David's parents even made the long trip up from California!
It was a happy day, so naturally he can't help it, he's just a dancing nut!
Jackie, Lauren, and Dad
Sisters
Lauren with Mom and Dad
David with his Mom and Dad
I always tell David that I could never love him anymore than I do in that moment when I say it (which is logical thinking because it's just so so much love that I often think I could just explode at any second- and love would just go flying everywhere!) However, I'm constantly proved wrong, as I find new reasons to love and admire him every millisecond; especially when we went through the temple. It was such a tender and peaceful experience that created a whole new dimension to our love, multiplying it by.. infinity million! Getting married in the temple is something I have so deeply desired and prepared for my whole life. I'm so grateful to soon be marrying a man that has also prepared himself to take me to the temple so that I can be sealed to my best friend, true love, and favorite goofball for time and all eternity.
On May 5th, 2011 after much trickery, David took me up to Bridal Veil Falls where we sat and were eating truffles and cookies until I bit into one and spit out something hard, he asked me to stand up, and then he asked me to have the happiest life in the whole wide world!.. oh i mean he asked me to marry him:) He had our good friends hide to secretly take a video and pictures. I really was SO surprised! I just LOVE him and can't wait to spend all eternity with my favorite goofball & my best best most handsome friend!
Just truffle eating..
This is my new favorite truffle!
The best sparkly surprise of my entire life!
I can't wait to be 'The Parkers'!
I love him more than cookies, snowmen, disneyland, fuzzy sweaters, brown sugar cinnamon poptarts, and every single other joyful thing in the world.
"We are all a little weird and life's a little weird, and when we find someone whos weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love."-Dr. Suess
Laur P fo' life!
After school got out we headed down to David's house in Southern California, we had so much fun getting there, as well as being there.
We went to Disneyland!
I would kiss him here or there, I would kiss him ANYWHERE!
So we got Piglet and Pooh Bear best friend necklaces, and before we bought them I made David swear that no matter what he would wear this necklace as a token of our love...
Unfortunately they were a little small! We were crying from laughing so hard!... I think his tears were more from the realization that although it was like a choker neclace, I would expect him to wear it anyway!
One of our favorite things to do is make funny singing movies. Mostly about small animals. Here's a small sample of our work:
We attended the April 2011 sessions of General Conference. David's family was also in town for conference. It was so fun to meet them for the first time!
After David's mission reunion, I surprised-(ish) Him with tickets to the Lakers game! I have never seen a more grateful man!
David started a small, informal, tradition of love poem writing. Every time I walked out of the testing center, he would have a clever little poem waiting for me.
To David. Love, Lauren.
To Lauren. Love, David.
We love to laugh. David cracks me up everyday. Sometimes he goes out of his way to make me laugh. Once we had talked about how very 'stylish' hawaiian shirts can be, and also how my Dad wears his as a physical representation of being in.. 'Vacation Mode.' One day he walked into chem class wearing this little hawaiian number. I have never laughed so hard.
Favorite thing: he'll do anything to make me laugh.
Just a few more examples...
In March, David told me that he had a surprise for me that Saturday. We woke up early and drove away from Provo; however, I still couldn't pry out of him where we were driving to. After about an hour and a half of begging to know, we finally arrived at the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake! Yes, he took me on a surprise adventure to the Zoo!
I got piggybacks around all day!
Zoo day= a full day of staring at small animals and each other. clearly, the best day ever.
For the past 2 years I have volunteered for an organization called, Hearts for Hospice where you are assigned a patient that has less than 6 months to live. My most recent patient, Mr. Clark, was the sweetest man, who I learned so much from. David came with me on one visit, where we read from President Monson's book, To the Rescue. Before we left Mr. Clark, he bore his tender testimony to us, and asked us what temple we had been married in, not giving us time to answer, he explained what a magnificent, and eternally important decision we had made, and how very happy our Heavenly Father was with our choice to marry one another. As we walked out the door he asked, if possible, he could have a small part in our wedding. Little did he know, he already had! We had only been dating for a few weeks at this time, so driving home, I teasingly (or not so teasingly..) joked to David that I hoped he had listened because Mr. Clark was so close the veil that he knew these things!
Our good friend, Mr. Clark.
My family came down to Provo for spring break. We joined them at Provo Beach Resort.
We make an excellent (and over excited) team!
Happily taking a picture with my niece and nephew, until.....
This was our reaction after my mom said, "You're like a little family!".... Little did we know, that he would propose just 48 days later, and we really would become a little family of our own!
One of the first times I knew that David was truly my perfect match was walking home from class one Wednesday. As we walked through the parking lot, we saw a dead bird on the pavement. I immediately suggested a funeral to honor the life of the small bird. Not even missing one beat, David grabbed my hand, bowed his head and began to give a sermon on the good life lived by this small bird, Fredrick. Each of us exchanged words about both Fredrick, and his wife Ethyl. We attended and participated in a full bird funeral for Fredrick that day. I knew he had to be the one. It was a monumental day in our relationship. Two weird P's in a pod, as some would say.
