2 Years Down, Eternity to Go!

Two years ago today Chris and I were sealed together. It was the happiest day of my life.

Chris and I were civilly married on Feb 4, 2005 because he hadn't been a member of the church for a year yet. It was not a decision that we made lightly and we sought a lot of council before doing it but in the end we felt good about it. We planned on getting our endowment together in Sept of that year when his year membership was up. In August we went in to our bishop for temple recommends. We were told then that there is an exception to the rule of having to wait a year from your civil wedding date before you could be seal. That exception is if you couldn't enter the temple because you hadn't been a member long enough. Our bishop told us that once Chris' year was up we could not only get our endowments but we could be sealed as well. We were so excited. The bishop had to step out of his office for a minute after he told us that and Chris and I just held each other and shed a few tears at this unexpected blessing. After we left his office I remember calling my parents and my sisters to tell them the good news.

About a week later we had our interviews with Pres. Brown. I went first and everything went well, until he went to sign the recommend. I could tell something was wrong because he just kept reading and rereading the info on the recommend. Then he told me that there was a mistake. He said we couldn't get sealed yet. I explained to him what our bishop had told us but he said our bishop had misunderstood. I was so crushed! I remember calling Mom when we got in the car and crying. She told me to be patient and that we would just have to wait a few more months and then the blessing of an eternal marriage would be ours.

I couldn't get it out of my head. I thought about it for days and I was so very disappointed. The next Sunday our bishop asked me how it went in our interviews and I told him what Pres Brown had said. He kind of stood there in shock and then he said he thought Pres Brown had misunderstood the exception. I asked him how I could find out FOR SURE if we could or could not be sealed early. It just so happened that Pres Rich, the former temple pres, was in our ward at the time and he and his wife always sat behind Chris and I. Our bishop suggested that I ask him. So, I marched my determined self right up to Pres. Rich and asked him to PLEASE clarify this issue for me. He said that he believed we COULD be sealed early but that I should check with the current temple pres. He then gave me the man's cell phone number. Right when I got home from church I gave him a call. I explained the situation to him and he told me he would need to double check a few things and get back to me Tues night. I was so anxious for his call. Finally , at about 8:00pm on Tues night, I got a call. He said that we COULD DEFINITELY GET SEALED. I could have jumped thru the phone and kissed that man.

All the hassle I went thru was totally worth it. I will never forget that day. The endowment session was overwhelming for the both of us but we had kind of expected that. Then the sealing session came. I cried thru the whole thing. And it wasn't attractive. I did the ugly cry that you do when you are trying really hard not to cry. But, I couldn't help it. I had never felt the spirit so strongly in my entire life. I just couldn't believe that my Father in Heaven was so merciful to let me have that great blessing in my life. I remember just being so overwhelmed with gratitude and in awe of the blessings I was being given. I remember looking across that alter at the man that I had chosen to spend eternity with and knowing, more than I had ever known anything in my life, that I had made the right decision and that Heavenly Father was proud of me. I remember thinking that life couldn't possibly get better than that moment.

Chris and I have talked before about how our marriage changed after we were sealed. Neither one of us can pinpoint anything specific but it is there. For that and other reasons we have chosen to only celebrate this anniversary and not our anniversary in Feb. The day we were sealed is the day our marriage was made whole.

I am still in awe that he is mine and I am his forever. Now we have added my most precious Noah into the mix and I know what perfection is like. Right now, in this moment, my life is perfect.