Keys that cliff-dive

How did I meet Richie?

Alright, you guys asked for it.

Thanks to having 13 kids, Mr. & Mrs. Richie's Parents have had to have a very healthy marriage.  Now they plan and host a marriage enrichment weekend on occasion, some of which my parents have attended.  This past January a handsome, tall boy named Richie visited his parents and sang a duet with his dad, after which my mom walked up to Mr. Richie's Dad and said the now infamous line, "I have a girl for that boy."

At this point he was down in Provo at BYU and I was finishing my senior year in Sandy. We started emailing.  First short blurbs, then paragraphs, then pages. and pages. and pages. 

In March he gave me a tour of the campus, since I had decided to go the Y.  I was instantly drawn to him; there was something about the boyish charm, the delighted smile that would spring to his face, and his calloused hands.

On our first/second (it's debatable) date, I somehow dropped my keys off a cliff.  Yeah, it happened.  I had to call my mom to bring us the spare to my truck.  The rest of the evening went flawlessly: Real Salt Lake soccer game with my family, finishing up by star-gazing/music-listening on the top of my car. (Which we then had to jump at 2 a.m.)  I knew there was something special about him from the start.

The next day I was called down to the office at school.  I left art history, wondering what mom needed. As I told the receptionist my name, a huge smile overtook her tired face and she handed me....my keys? And this note.

Yes, he hiked back up the mountain. And found my keys. 

After the first date.

And thus it began.

all my love.