Date Story #17- The Official Engagement

After Christmas break, J.D. and I started the spring semester. I specifically chose to do a fitness class because I wanted to be skinny for the wedding. I used J.D.'s class book which had ALL the answers already written in it. It made the class really easy. One requirement was that I had to exercise 3 times a week for 30 minutes. J.D. was so sweet and would do these exercises with me. Maybe this is why we were so calm for our wedding... or maybe it was because we both just knew it was right.
Anywho, we would spend nights going to the university and run or lift or just walk together.

We did a lot of prep work for the wedding. I remember sitting in my room on the floor and hot glueing vases and ribbons together. J.D. and I had mad planning skills and so everything was done together, calmly, and really fun. I loved that he was helping with so much.

One thing I had told J.D. was that I wanted to be officially engaged for at least 1 month before the wedding, which would be February 14th and I was hinting it would've been the perfect day. I just wanted an actual ring. I knew J.D. was working on it too. For me, everyone would say, "You engaged?! Let me see your ring?" It would turn into a long story of random things every time. Little did I know it was going to happen before the actual 1 month mark before the wedding, but we would get to be officially engaged for more than 2 months!

On January 5th, I woke up and got ready. J.D. came over early in the morning to start driving the shuttle. However, before going to work he came to say hi to me first. We were cuddling and
J.D. said, "So tonight I want to take you on a date okay?"
My response with a lot of excitement, "Are you going to propose tonight!!!??"
J.D. looked at me with disappointment, soft slow voice, and a long pause, "..... We'll get your ring real soon."
To me, that meant he didn't have the ring. So I tried not to look disappointed, but secretly I was. So I changed the subject and said, "Well, I have a lot of homework and it will be a really late night if I go on a date too. So we don't have to go on a date. Let's just save the money and I'll get some homework done."
J.D. immediately said, "No! We are going on a date! No excuses. I want to take you on a date. okay?"
Me, "okay."

After our normal day, we went to go take the shuttle driving test at the drivers license place. I was going to start driving it too so I could get a pay raise. We go up to the counter and I have all my paperwork filled out only to let the lady say, "You aren't 21, you can't take this test." Apparently you have to be 21 to get any kind of CDL. What the heck! So embarrassing, and just made my day feel like it wasn't going good. I waited for J.D. to take the test. We went back to work, and everyone kept saying, "Have fun tonight!" I wasn't very excited because  I KNEW we weren't getting officially engaged. We left work, and we drove to one of Chet's friends' houses. I had no clue where we were. We go in, and Chet hands J.D. the keys to his car and then we turn to walk out... and  I didn't even notice J.D. was handed something else...

J.D. made me lay back the entire way to our destination because he didn't want me to know where we were going. FINALLY, after about 40 minutes we stopped. J.D. also made me bring my camera. So as we were getting out of the car I only saw that we were in a parking garage. Still had no idea where we were.
J.D. says, "Grab your camera."
I replied annoyed, "No it's fine. I don't want to carry it around."
J.D. "No, get it... and he turns around to get it himself. He also grabs a rose and gives it to me."
That definitely put a smile on my face. I love single roses.
We start walking out of the garage and guess what!? We were at the Bountiful Temple!

I had spent hours and hours sitting on the lawn of this temple sketching and pondering my first year of college. It's my favorite temple, has a lot of meaning, and here I was walking around it with J.D. What I didn't know about the temple was that there is a part in the very front where you can walk around inside and look at the nature outside that is enclosed in a glass circle! So J.D. took me in and we walked around and just silently took it all in. We went up the stairs and came out the front doors and went to look down into the nature that was enclosed.

All of the sudden J.D. gets down on one knee. I was kind of upset because I 'KNEW' he didn't have the ring. I said, "J.D. that's not funny. Please get up." He just stayed down and started to fish around in his pocket. I said, "If you have that ring I'm gonna be so mad." His hand was stuck and he was trying to pull something out of his pocket.... and there it was. A small black box. My reaction, "Shut up. Shut up right now. Are you serious?! Shut up!"
J.D. was grinning ear to ear and right then a huge group of people came out from a session in the temple and stopped to watch. Me, "J.D. there are people watching. I will be so mad if you don't have that ring. Do you have the ring? shut up right now."
J.D. asked, "Jenny M'lee, will you marry me?"
My response, "Shut up. oh my gosh. Shut up!?" He proceeded to put the ring on my finger and then said, "So is that a yes?"
I exclaimed so loud, "Yes!!" and then we both laughed because my first words were 'shut up'! lol!
Me "This is why you wanted to bring my camera!!???" Still laughing and giggling and in shock of course.
The crowd clapped and that's when we noticed how many people were actually there. We asked a couple to take some pictures. Unfortunately I don't have those pics because the film was ruined when we were moving. ;(
We walked away to the car and I just kept looking at how beautiful the ring was. We got in the car and I immediately said, "Hey! you lied! you said that you didn't have the ring this morning when I asked!?"
J.D. "I didn't lie. I said I'd get the ring real soon. This is real soon."
I'm pretty sure that my mouth hung open as I thought about how that's what he said and of course I misinterpreted it. I said, "That... That was real smooth J.D. Real smooth." On the way home we texted pics to everyone, and called our parents. It was official!! We were really engaged January 5th, 2007!!

We took Chet's car back to him and then J.D. dropped me off at my apartment. It was a pretty magical night. We couldn't have been happier and to this day J.D. gives me a hard time about all the "shut ups" I said that night. :)