Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! Wow, I can't believe the year 2010 has already come and gone! For me 2010 has been an amazing year, however I am very excited for all of the wonderful new adventures 2011 will bring. As most of you know by now through Facebook or otherwise Micheal and I are engaged! We are so very excited about taking this sacred step into marriage. He and I have known for many years that we would be married however neither one of us has felt a peace about it until the last few months. We prayed and trusted that God would give us wisdom in making this decision and He most definitley has! I was afraid that since we had been together for so long people would not be very excited for us. I thought people would just say that it was about time and move on. While we did get several "It's about times." for the most part we have received wonderful reactions from our friends, family, and church family! Thank you all so very much for your love and support!

I thought I would share a little bit about Micheal and I and our journey together in honor of our engagement.

Micheal and I met when we were both kids in youth at Trinity Church in Littlefield. We were both very involved in the youth group and were on our youth pastor's leadership team along with two of our closest friends. Throughout my freshman and sophomore year Micheal, Kayla, Gary, and I spent a lot of time together. We all became very close friends both inside and outside of church. I had always had a crush on Micheal but throughout this time we were just friends.

The summer before my junior year my best friend Kayla moved away. Kayla and I were inseperable so when she moved away it was very difficult. After Kayla left Micheal and I began to spend a lot more time together. We would hang out on the weekends and we got to know one another on a more one on one basis. I treasure this time in my heart so much because we were able to learn so much about one another without the pressure of a dating relationship. It was so innocent and fun! We grew to treasure one another's friendship very much. At this time in our relationship Micheal and I both had feelings for one another but neither one of us would admit it! We enjoyed being friends but I wanted us to become more. Micheal however did not think it would be a good idea. He did not want us to ruin our friendship.

At this point in our relationship things got really weird! I hate to make him sound like a jerk, because he wasn't, but basically Micheal simply quit talking to me. Even though we weren't in a dating relationship it felt very much like a breakup to me. At the time it felt like torture but looking back on it we both see how God used the time we were apart to reveal things to us individually. For about 8 months we barely spoke to one another. It was such a strange and painful time but it was a wonderful growing experience for me. By this time I was a senior and was able to spend my senior year making new friends and learning who I was as Amanda. Not Kayla's best friend or Micheal's best friend... just Amanda. I find it so interesting how strong I was during this time. Looking back on it I don't remember being sad or upset (even though I know I was for a time). I remember that time as very fun and exciting. It is amazing how God protects our hearts and truly does provide us with the perfect amount of strength needed for whatever situation we are going through.

So at this point Micheal and I had not spoken or spent any time together from April 2005-December 2005. Now this is the really fun part of the story!  I had not thought about Micheal in months, in fact I was actually dating another guy at the time. But Christmas Eve morning I woke up with Micheal very heavy on my mind and heart. I truly felt like I needed to talk to him and clear the air. You have to understand when I say Micheal quit talking to me I mean QUIT talking to me. From one day to the next. It was like we went from best friends to strangers in a matter of days. I had never understood why he did that and I had never cared to find out until that morning. I decided not to stress about it and I decided that if I was supposed to talk to him God would provide an opportunity. On Christmas Eve night my family and I were celebrating at my grandparent's house in Littlefield. At one point in the evening a few of us went to our church's youth building  because my dad and cousin wanted to play ping pong. I tagged along to watch but I remeber very vividly sitting on the couch just in my own little world. I kept thinking that I had to talk to Micheal.

When we got back to my grandparents house as soon as we walked in the front door I walked straight to the table and picked up my dad's cell phone, I still have no idea why I did that but I distinctly remember making a bee line straight to the phone. I picked it up and saw that there was a missed call from a number. I went and got my cell phone, went to the contacts, found Micheal's number and compared it to the missed call number. They were the same! I couldn't believe it! At the time we had our home phone set up to where all of the calls were forwarded to my dad's phone. Micheal had called the house. I remember being so nervous and excited as I called Micheal back. I could not believe God had created this clear opportunity for me to be able to talk to him. I know this may not sound like such a crazy experience but to me it was God opening the door for us to continue our relationship. I ended up calling Micheal back right that second and we ended up talking on the phone for 5 hours that night! We talked about what had happened, why we hadn't spoken in so long and everything in between. It was an amazing night! All of the feelings I had felt for him came rushing back to me that very night. That night Micheal also shared with me the things God revealed to him about our relationship. I truly beleive he and I both needed that time to step back and figure things out for ourselves.

Well needless to say I broke up with the guy I was dating at the time and Micheal and I begin hanging out again. On New Years Eve he came over and we got to bring in the New Year together and have been together ever since! We consider January 1, 2006 our anniversary because that was the official day we began "dating". And now 5 years later here we are! Stronger than ever! Our relationship has not been perfect, in fact it has been extremely tough. I truly struggled with whether or not we were supposed to be together or if I was supposed to go off to college and a million other what ifs. However Micheal has never left my side throughout all of my worries and fears. He has truly been my rock and I know for a fact our relationship would not have lasted if it had not been for his commitment to me and to our Father in Heaven. In my eyes he is a perfect picture of what a godly man should be. He loves me with all of his heart and treats me like a princess. I know I am totally gushing right now but I am just so grateful and excited that he chose me! God's hand has truly been in our relationship from the beginning! I am so excited to be engaged to Micheal, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt this is the man I want to marry and I absolutely cannot wait to begin this awesome adventure with him!

I love you Micheal! Happy Anniversary!

**I honestly did not realize this was going to turn into such a long post! I will share the story of how he proposed in my next post! Stay tuned!**