Decade One

Thank you, Angela, for giving me an incredible first decade of marriage. Here we are, 3.9 children and a dog later. I could not ask for a better wife. So that our posterity knows how it all began, below is a brief history that you and I drafted early on in our marriage (with a few minor edits). It offers differing view points, and at times you can tell where one of us said "give me the keyboard so I can tell how it really was."

I love you!

March 1996
Douglas is dating Angela’s roommate’s sister. He visits Angela’s apartment for a birthday celebration. Neither have any recollection of meeting the other; however a good friend of Angela remembers meeting Doug at this party.

November 6, 1996
Doug leaves for the Portugal, Lisbon North mission.

April 23, 1997
Angela leaves for the France, Bordeaux mission.

October 15, 1998
Angela returns home from a mission to Bordeaux, France and began work at Legacy Antiques.

October 28, 1998
Doug returns home from a mission to Lisbon, Portugal and began work at UPS as a delivery driver.

January 1999
Doug and Angela resume their schooling at Utah State University in Logan, Utah. They both move into Old Farm Apartments.

March 27, 1999
Doug and Angela meet. Here’s the background… Angela’s brother Steve served a mission in the Dominican Republic with Jonathon, who became Doug’s roommate. On occasion Jonathon would hang out with Angela and Steve. One Saturday night Angela had been invited on a double date. The guy of the other couple cancelled, and Angela’s date called her and asked her if she knew of anyone else who could come and fill the place of the other guy. Fortunately, Jonathon agreed to come. As Angela prepared for her evening out, her roommate Noelee came home and her friend, Kristina came over. Angela wanted them to come too, so she called Jonathon and asked him if he had any friends or roommates who would be willing to take her friends out for the night. Jonathon proposed the idea to his roommates Chubs and Douglas; both of whom agreed to come. The meeting place was Angela’s apartment. Angela’s heart skipped a beat when she saw Doug, but she didn’t let it show. She thought Kristina was lucky to get set up with him. Doug thought Angela was a babe. The four couples set off for the Fun Dome for a night of roller blading. Jonathon neglected to tell Doug and Chubs that they were on a date; fortunately they were gentlemen and paid for Noelee and Kristina to get into the Fun Dome. While skating Angela noticed an inexperienced Doug trying to skate backwards. Unable to resist the handsome chap, Angela thought this to be a perfect opportunity to get to know him better. She skated on over to him and asked if she could help. Doug, who was still getting over the fact that he had to pay for someone that asked him out, was just minding his own business when Angela approached. Doug happily accepted her generous offer. She held his hands and they began to skate around the rink (many, many times, in fact Doug was shocked to find out 8 months later that she was even with someone else that night). After skating together for a little bit, Angela said that the way they were holding hands was uncomfortable and suggested that they interlock their fingers. Doug gladly took her hands. After they had finished skating together, Doug thought to himself, “Hmmm, I kind of liked that, her touch was electrifying.” Now for Angela’s two bits about what happened on the skating rink. She agrees with Doug’s statement that there was an electrifying feeling when they touched. It’s hard to describe, but it was an undeniable occurrence. However, Angela was taking pity on this handsome chap who was struggling to move around the rink. The amount of time she helped him was minimal, two laps at most. However, she understands why Doug thought it was more; it felt as if time was standing still. She was definitely intrigued by this strong, silent young man. After skating the four couples enjoyed a treat at Charlie’s Ice Cream Shop. The night ended with Angela and Doug wondering if they would ever see each other again.

March 28, 1999
Angela turns 23. Her roommates threw her a big birthday bash. Doug made an appearance to the party, but much to Angela’s dismay he only stayed a few minutes. Her hopes were raised when, as he left, he looked her right in the eyes and said, “don’t be a stranger.” Her first hint that perhaps he was interested in her too!

April 5, 1999
Doug went to his 10:30 institute class, Doctrines of the Gospel for Returned Missionaries. Angela, who normally went to the same class at 11:30, went to the 10:30 class as she had several times in the past. She slipped into the front row just after class had started. Doug saw her and thought to himself “Has she been in here the entire time and I didn’t notice!?” As she began to focus on the teacher, she heard someone from behind whisper her name. She turned and much to her surprise and delight she saw the tall, dark and handsome guy from the weekend. Her heart skipped a beat. After that class she always looked for excuses to attend the 10:30 section, and when she couldn’t she tried to be early for the 11:30 section in hopes of seeing Doug when he was leaving his class. During this saga, Doug would get very nervous when he saw Angela in the same room as another girl that he had dated. He was very couth and introduced them and they didn’t suspect a thing. He looked forward to seeing her in class and always hoped that she would come to the 10:30 class. One of Angela’s favorite memories of this institute class was the day when Doug saw Angela going into her class and upon hearing that she would be sharing a missionary experience decided to stay and hear her presentation. Angela played the piano for class that day and her nervousness and excitement at Doug’s presence manifested itself as she hit several wrong notes. Doug was very impressed with Angela’s presentation. She manifested the strength of her conversion and her maturity to Doug with her stories from her mission. He doesn’t even remember her hitting any wrong notes.

April-ish, 1999
Angela ventures over to visit Doug’s apartment. Doug wasn’t there when she got there. When he entered the apartment he was about to bound up the stairs to his bedroom; however his plans were quickly changed when he saw Angela on the couch. He promptly sat down and entered the conversation. Before long she and Doug were the only ones in the living room. They had a nice exchange of ideas that night.

April 7, 1999
Around 9:00 at night Angela was doing the dishes, waiting for a date to pick her up, when she heard a knock at the door. She was surprised and elated to see Doug standing at the door. She wanted him to stay all night, and was worried about what his reaction would be if he knew that she had another date for the night. Her worries were in vain, because Doug was not worried about competition. That night he invited her and her roommate to accompany him and his ward to the Manti temple the coming weekend.

April 8, 1999
Snowstorm; Manti trip was cancelled.

April 9, 1999
Angela and her roommate Heather went with Doug to the Logan temple. Angela was puzzled by Doug’s silence and felt challenged to figure him out. Doug was puzzled by Angela’s friendliness in the Celestial room. He could feel her brushing her shoulder against his arm. He liked it. In reality, she was jus t trying to get closer so she could hear the intelligent questions he was asking the Bishop. She liked it too. She was impressed by his desire to obtain more knowledge about the gospel that he obviously loved so much. Later that day Angela and her roommates hosted a barbecue. Doug came for the party and even accompanied the girls to the movie, October Sky.

April-ish, 1999
Angela invited Doug over, at Scooter’s (a convert from Angela’s mission) persistence, for crepes. The only reason Angela hesitated was because she didn’t want to scare Doug away by being too forward. Doug was very glad that he was invited and had a great time.

April-ish, 1999
Doug saw Angela after institute and asked her if she would like to go running in a couple of days. Since Angela was an avid runner, she readily agreed, excited that Doug might share the same pastimes as she. The day came for their run, and as Angela huffed and puffed to keep up with Doug she wondered if this was such a good idea after all. It took all of her strength to try and look fit and capable of running at the same speed as Doug; she had little brainpower left for thinking of things to say. It was Doug’s first time running for fun since he was a kid. He felt intimidated by this professional runner, and didn’t want to slow her down. They ran up to the university, over to the dairy, down to the gas station and back home again. Back at Angela’s apartment they found Angela’s friend Scooter patiently waiting for them. She needed a ride to Ruth Ann’s home. Ruth was one of Angela’s old mission companions. Doug graciously agreed to give Scooter a ride under one condition, he had to take a shower first. After seeing Scooter safely off at Ruth’s home, Doug was hungry. He suggested that they stop at Teriyaki Stix for dinner. It was here that the two of them enjoyed their first meal together. Angela was flattered that Doug didn’t hesitate in paying for her meal. Doug was happy to pay for her.

April 16, 1999
Angela and her roommates hated to ask boys on dates, but they liked to try and do one group date with all the roomies once a semester. As luck would have it, that date was set for Friday, April 16. Angela hemmed and hawed about asking Doug. True, they had done many activities together, in her opinion they could be considered dates, but in Doug’s opinion they weren’t official. Her desires to go with Doug outweighed her sense of dating etiquette. When Angela asked Doug out, he was very impressed that she knew that dating is a two-way road. He was ecstatic to go with such a fine young cowgirl. The only reason he refers to Angela as “cowgirl” was because she liked country music and she’s from Idaho. The night began with a New Horizons Institute Concert at the Kent Concert Hall. During the concert, Doug held Angela’s extremely available hand. They were both thrilled. Young love! After the concert, the group relocated up the canyon for a bonfire. They played games and talked and Angela was impressed by Doug’s thoughtfulness as he found her a log to sit on. He stood behind her and tenderly stroked her cheek and her hair. Her heart was doing cartwheels. Could it be possible that this guy really liked her? Yep! The journey back home was rather quiet, but no words were needed. They held hands the entire way home. Upon returning to Old Farm, they sat in the Bronco for a while and talked and held hands. Doug was picking up obvious signals from Angela that she really liked him. He leaned over to gently kiss her. He met no opposition. Their first kiss was powerful, yet pure. The electricity between them had just reached an all-time high. True, true, but according to Angela there are a few more details. Kissing was the last thing on Angela’s mind that night. Although looking back she realizes that she gave a few signs of wanting to be kissed. You have to realize that she was out of practice on the dating scene, and didn’t mean to be so kissable. She was savoring the touch of Doug’s hand on hers and enjoying the conversation when Doug reached his hand out to touch her face. She smiled, and before she knew it… One look at his face told her what he planned on doing. Time seemed to stand still as she had time to weigh the consequences of kissing him. True, they hadn’t known each other for long, but there was definitely something between them, and she had been home from her mission for a while. She hadn’t kissed anyone since her return home, and wanted that first person to be the one she ended up marrying; but Doug was so irresistible and special. Maybe it would be okay. Of course it would be! Afterward she didn’t know what to do, so she babbled on for a while. Doug walked her to her door, and upon entering hr apartment she had mixed feelings. Excitement and worry that he would never call her again after babbling on like that! Doug was so twitter-pated that he didn’t notice the babbling. Now Doug, being a cool cat, thought it would be best not to call her the next day even though he wanted to call. He didn’t want her to think he was desperate or psycho. Angela took his caution as a sure sign that he wasn’t interested and thought that he thought he’d made a mistake. The next day was a Sunday and it was agonizing one for Angela as she hoped that he would call and invite her to the fireside. He never called.

April – May 1999
The next few weeks are just blurs in their memories. The couple spent much time together getting to know each other better. They looked forward to the time they spent together. Some of the activities they did:
- A visit to Lundstrom Park. Doug shared his animal crackers.
- Acappellooza
- Country dancing
- Dinner at Café Habenero
- Dinner at Hardware Ranch
- Hike to Juniper Tree

May 1999
Dinner at Zanavoo Lodge, played at Jonathon’s cabin, watched Dance with Me, said good-bye until next school year

June 1999
Angela and her mom went to Europe. Doug received the only postcard Angela sent. Doug started UPS again.

July 1999
Angela returned from Europe. Doug and Angela talk on the phone about once a week. Angela’s heart lit up every time she saw his name on the caller ID. There was some mail correspondence.

August 1999
Angela came to Utah to run the Provo River half marathon and to go to several missionary homecomings. Doug asked Angela out for the weekend she was in Utah. He picked her up at her cousin’s apartment (after she accidentally gave him the wrong address). They went to Rodiezio Grill for dinner. It was Angela’s first time at a Brazilian restaurant. They went to the rock garden where.

May 2000
Angela graduated from Utah State University. Her family and Doug were there to witness the event. She got a job teaching high school English, speech and debate the upcoming year. She stayed in Logan until June as a long-term substitute. She moved out of old farm and into an apartment with her good friend. Doug moved home to Sandy and resumed working for UPS as a deliveryman. During this month Angela and Doug missed each other tremendously. They spoke almost every night on the phone. Fortunately Doug had free long distance in Utah because his dad was employed at the phone company. When the phone bill came they had spoken for over 1400 minutes just in the month of May. They met in Layton for a rendezvous. They enjoyed a meal at Applebee’s, found a park and ate ice cream and watched baseball. Doug came to Logan and brought Angela back to Sandy with him.

June 2000
Angela moved back to Hailey and resumed her job at Legacy Antiques. She elected to work part-time in order to get some rest and relaxation before starting her teaching job. The pair continued to talk on the phone often, every night actually. They met in Rexburg and went to Joseph’s Technicolor Dream coat in West Yellowstone. They also attended Angela’s cousin Todd’s homecoming. During this month Doug was making important decisions concerning the future of their relationship. In thinking about Angela, Doug was unable to resist her charm and beauty.

July 2000
Doug invited Angela to come down on July 1, for the Forth of July celebration, but he had a little more in mind than just fireworks. He had planned to take Angela up to Snowbird when she got to Sandy. Angela got there around 7:45 (the last tram goes up at 8:00). He decided to hold off on the Snowbird plans until Monday. Monday came and found Doug to be deathly sick with food poisoning. He vowed to go forward and they went up to Snowbird that night. The wind was searing through the canyon and the tram was closed. One last chance. On the morning of the Forth of July (Tuesday), Doug successfully took Angela up to the top of the tram at Snowbird. They found a secluded spot on the mountain and had a beautiful brunch (with sparkling apple cider and everything). After the brunch, Doug presented a few gifts to Angela, including a letter. When Angela finished reading the letter, Doug had her stand up and he got on his knee, whipped out a little box and asked Angela to be his eternal bride. Angela delayed the answer by grabbing Doug and kissing him for a long time. During the kissing, Doug was somewhat confused, so he pulled away to ask her again. She said yes. A few more details will make this story even more accurate. Angela and Doug had already discussed marriage a little bit. Angela knew that if Doug didn’t ask her to marry him over the Fourth of July weekend they wouldn’t be getting married for a while. The last thing she wanted was to get married when school was in session. She thought Doug might have something in mind when he absolutely insisted that she arrive in Sandy before 7:00 PM on Saturday. So she begged, pleaded, and finally talked her way into getting off work early, even though it made her boss very upset. As she prepared to leave on Saturday, Doug called her and said that the weather was bad, and they wouldn’t be going to the top of Snowbird after all. He said they’d try to go before she went home. The whole drive to Utah, Angela battled feelings of frustration. Why should she be going to Sandy on the busiest weekend of the year, if he didn’t have anything planned? Was he going to ask or wasn’t he? She wanted him to propose the way he wanted to, knowing Doug’s romantic side she knew his proposal wouldn’t be average. At least that’s what she was hoping. When she got to Sandy, Doug said the weather wasn’t as bad as the weatherman had claimed it might be, but it was too late to head up the canyon, so they went to listen to Marc’s band play in Salt Lake. Marc was a friend of Doug’s from high school. The band was nice, but on the way home Doug was asking Angela all of these strange questions. The questions were, according to Angela, testing questions, and she was convinced that Doug was still trying to decide if he even wanted to marry her. During Doug’s illness Angela realized how much she really did love him. She woke up in the middle of the night to his puking, and it didn’t repulse her at all, instead it just opened her heart even more in sympathy and in love. She cared for Doug through the night and into the next day. When Doug had enough strength he agreed to accompany Angela to the mall so that she could check out the new running shoes. While there he suggested that they look at rings. The poor girl in the store who diligently wrote down all of the styles Angela liked, neither she nor Angela suspected that Doug had already picked up and paid for a ring for his bride to be. By the time the couple rode the tram up to the top of Snowbird, Angela was convinced that Doug had nothing special in mind. Even the sparkling cider and the long search for the ‘perfect secluded spot’ didn’t make her suspect anything too abnormal. As she read the sweet letter he wrote for her, emotion started to fill her heart and when she looked up and saw the beautiful ring Doug had selected just for her she felt that time stood still. The ring sparkled in the sunlight, it was so beautiful, and the exact style she wanted, right down to the rectangle baguettes on the side. She looked into Doug’s smiling eyes and was speechless. The only thing she could think of was to answer his question with a kiss. She melted into his arms and almost laughed when he asked her what her answer was going to be. At that moment on top of the mountain, she was so completely happy and at peace with the thought of marrying the wonderful man sitting next to her. The world was theirs. There was not an ounce of doubt in their hearts. It was a wonderful elated type of feeling. As they prepared for their descent Doug made Angela put the ring back in its box. It was a little too big and he was worried that it might fall off before it got insured. As they rode the tram back down to reality, the gravity of their decision began to sink in. If school started August 18, and if they wanted to go on a honeymoon, they had to get married very, very soon. That mean they had much to do between then and now. The first thing they did was to travel back to his homestead to announce their engagement. They called Angela's family who had been waiting on pins and needles for this very phone call. Apparently Doug had called Angela’s father the night before he originally planned to pop the question in order to ask permission to ask Angela for her hand in marriage, however the original plans had been delayed. When the family had not heard any news they were convinced that Angela had turned down Doug’s proposal. They were excited to hear the news. Angela's family received regular updates on the couple’s relationship. Angela’s mother had been waiting for a ring since Angela’s graduation in May. Doug's parents were taken more off guard. Doug didn’t disclose as many details to his family. When Doug’s mom returned home, the couple didn’t get a chance to decide how to tell her their news. She saw the ring on Angela’s hand as soon as she walked in the door. When they told her they wanted to get married in August she asked “of next year?” No mom, next month! The only response they got out of Doug’s father was “oh.”

The afternoon was spent making phone calls, picking a date, and registering at Target. That evening the couple went to a Fourth of July party in the neighborhood. They shared their news with those in attendance. Sister Bennett confided that her husband was going to be so excited, because he was getting worried about Doug. The couple then went down to watch the fireworks at City Hall.

The next couple of weeks were a whirlwind of excitement and full of busy planning. The Lord helped pave every step of the way. By July 12 the announcements were ordered, the engagement pictures were taken, the dress, veil and shoes were purchased, they were registered at Target and ZCMI, the flowers were ordered and the temple was reserved. Angela made frequent trips down to Sandy. Each trip she stayed for about five days, she literally just went back to Idaho to work a couple of days. Her mother accompanied her down the first weekend after the engagement to meet the parents and select the dress.

The blessings the couple experienced during this time included… Doug was frequently given days off at UPS, a rare occurrence at UPS!!!… They found an apartment the day before they got married… Doug’s mother went to the temple for the first time the day before they got married … … The temple was available the day they wanted to get married (the Salt Lake Temple is often booked months in advance)… The photographer they wanted was only available on … Aug 10… Angela was able to pick a dress in one day, a mere miracle in and of itself!…They were able to get the sealer they wanted, Ralph Bradley…Old Farm refunded their deposits… Doug’s neighbors were able to drop off Angela’s half of the announcements at her home in Hailey on their way to Sun Valley…

August 2000
Angela’s mom threw Angela a bridal shower in Hailey.
Doug drove the truck to Idaho in order to help Angela move to Utah. They loaded the truck with her belongings and an old couch.
Doug’s aunt Shelley threw Angela a bridal shower in Bountiful.
Doug’s friend Brad threw them a party the night before they got married.

Aug. 10, 2000
Angela spent the night at her cousin’s house, while Doug slept at his home. The morning was spent doing last minute preparations for the wedding. Doug purchased picture frames for displaying pictures at the reception. He also picked up his last paycheck from UPS. Angela purchased a book for displaying the rest of the pictures at the reception. One of Angela’s best friends from college, Kristina, came from Colorado for the wedding. She stayed with Angela on this last night before the wedding. Kristina accompanied Angela to the hairdresser’s home in Draper. The two girls then found a place for manicures and pedicures. Doug picked Angela up at around 2:30. They traveled to the temple together, Doug in his suit and Angela in a new skirt and shirt picked out especially for this day. They were both glowing and very excited. They pulled into the parking lot at the temple just as Angela’s family arrived from Hailey, Idaho. This was a great relief to Angela, for she had imagined all of the disasters that could happen to her family on the way there, preventing them from getting to the temple on time. Luckily, they made the journey with out a glitch. Together the couple and Angela's family made their way into the temple. Angela’s father reminded her that it was not too late to back out, and through his tears he signed the marriage certificate. Then Angela and her mom were escorted to the bride’s room and Doug was escorted the men’s dressing room. Angela donned her dress with her mother’s help. The bride’s room was beautiful and there was much excitement and peace in the air. Angela had a moment alone with her mom, and then she was taken to meet Doug. From there the couple was escorted up to the Celestial Room. Doug was flabbergasted at his bride’s beauty upon seeing her. Her spirit shined and filled Doug with excitement. The Celestial Room was a place for the two of them to enjoy being together in preparation of the ceremony. Angela kept repeating how happy she was that they had the time in there together. Doug kept agreeing. The Spirit permeated their souls, and there was no doubt as to the validity of their decision to join together in Holy Matrimony. A sweet old lady escorted them out of the Celestial Room and led them to their sealer, Brother Ralph Bradley. Brother Bradley led them to the elevator and got to know them better as they ascended. Here it was, the moment of their lives, they had fallen in love and chosen each other as eternal companions. The couple couldn’t stop smiling (not that they wanted to).