Russell is my everything. Waking up to him each morning and falling asleep in his arms is better than any fairy tale scenario I had dreamed of as a little girl.
When I was 15 years old I received my LDS patriarchal blessing. Patriarchal blessings include a declaration of a person's lineage in the house of Israel and contain personal counsel from the Lord for that persons life. I was more than eager to see what it had to say about my future husband. I would like to share a brief sentence, "You will be led to the man you will marry." I would be led? So God had someone specific in mind he was reserving just for me? This sentence always brought on a sense of frustration for me. This sentence required that I put everything in God's hands, that my relationship was his will. Being the planner I am that wasn't the easiest concept to grasp. A lot of the time I'd find myself even questioning if I was ever going to get married in this life.
I dated... don't get me wrong, but I never fell in love. I never had a boyfriend. Every guy I dated seemed to always just be missing something. I just knew they weren't HIM they weren't my husband. I couldn't lead a guy on and pretend to be in a relationship with him if I just knew he wasn't the husband I was waiting for.
By the time I was 22 I was really getting nervous. I was 22 and had NEVER had a boyfriend! I was seriously questioning the idea of a mission but I wasn't getting a answer to go. At this time the opportunity came up for me to go to China with a program called ILP to teach little kids English. It would be for an entire semester living in a third world area. I wasn't getting an answer for a mission so I told myself I was going to go to China and read as much of the standard works (Old and new Testament, Book of Mormon, D&C, and the Pearl of Great Price), as possible until I go my answer on what I should do with my life. Little did I know that I would read ALL the standard works while I was there and get closer to my Heavenly Father then I dreamed possible. I also got my answer... I wasn't supposed to go on a mission and was needing to just live at home.
When I got home 4 months passed and NOTHING happened. I can't lie, after living more righteously and getting that answer in China I halfway expected to come home, start attending college classes, and meet a guy within the first month of being home. This did not happen.
After this time there was a huge change in the way the LDS church's singles wards were set up in the Salt Lake Valley. They basically rearranged all the wards so you felt like you got an entirely new ward with a new bishopric. I was called to be a teacher in the new Relief Society, and loved the opportunity to share what I had come to know so well in China. By this time I started questioning a mission again, and thankfully Heavenly Father knew I needed more witnesses to my original answer. I had both my parents (who are both returned missionaries) come up and tell me they felt like I'm just not supposed to go on a mission.
I had gotten home end of December, well that next August is when Russell walked into my life. I attended my first ever singles ward trip up to Idaho and he sat down next to me at the bonfire to talk. Russell told me that he had seen me right when our singles ward was created and the first thought that came to his mind is, "Wow she is beautiful, I HAVE to ask her out." He said it was such a strong feeling of not just wanting to ask me out but NEEDING to ask me out. He didn't get my number at that bonfire but 2 weeks later in church he heard a voice say in his ear, "Ask her out now or you will lose her!" He turned around to see who had said that to him and discovered there was no one behind him. After some stalking he hunted down my number and finally called me up to go on our first date.
Dating Russell was the most surreal experience of my life. I believe we have guardian angels who attend us and watch over us. I KNEW they were honestly giddy with happiness during the time I was dating Russell. I KNEW this was the husband God had picked/led me to. I couldn't shake that feeling. Every time I prayed at night I just felt the purest happiness I could ever experience. One time I even asked during my prayer, "Heavenly Father, is this my husband you were meant to lead me to?" Immediately I felt the warmest rushing feeling of goosebumps run all the way up from my toes to the crown of my head and back down, and I just felt the answer YES!!!! Russell was my husband hand picked by God!!!!
Fast forward to now. We've been married a little over a year and are expecting our first daughter, that was meant to come down specifically to us (can read post: http://amberandrussell.blogspot.com/2013/02/why-we-became-pregnant.html). I still wake up every morning knowing that Russell was and is and will forever be my best friend, my HUSBAND!
Purly amazing!!
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