My Favorite Dessert

The timing of my rare blog posts is kind of hilarious, because the one of last times I wrote on this thing, I was just barely introducing Ben, and now it's time to post the story of our engagement. Take that as you will, but I will have you all know that we dated for a solid 5 months, which is practically aeons in BYU time.

Ben and I had been dating for a little while, and we had definitely talked a lot about marriage, but Ben has this aversion toward the whole we're-engaged-but-not-really-yet thing. He thinks that if you're going to start planning the wedding, there had better be a ring. So I always found it immensely amusing when he himself would bring up the topic of marriage. I'm sure a lot of people can identify - when you date someone seriously, it really does just come up pretty often. However, Ben had made it quite clear that he was going to take his time, so once we passed the 3-month mark (which was about when both my now-married siblings got engaged), I didn't allow myself to get anxious. I mean, I was already pretty sure I was gonna marry this kid, but I wasn't gonna push it. He'd figure it out soon enough.

We had actually had a conversation a few weeks before that fateful day where Ben had reassured me that he would like to meet my parents before we got engaged. I thought that was fair, and that meant I got to relax until our Minnesota visit a month from then. Even the very day of our engagement, he was spinning a web of false security, complaining that he wouldn't like to go ring shopping because he bet the workers there would try to swindle you out of your money or some honky like that. Bull - he had already bought the dang thing, but I took the bait hook, line, and sinker.

Anyways, I had mentioned a few weeks ago that we hadn't gone on very many real dates lately, cuz I'm a whiner like that, and Ben took the opportunity to ask me out for a date the Saturday that we were at his parents' house in Evergreen, Colorado.

The evening arrived. I got all gussied up because Ben had hinted that we might be going somewhere a little more fancy, then we drove down (their house is a 15-minute dirt road drive up a mountain) to Evergreen Lake. We got out and walked around the entire lake, which was beautiful. It reminded me of home in Minnesota - a stark contrast to dry, brown Utah. Don't get me wrong, I love Utah . . . but yeah.

When we got back to the car about a half hour later, Ben told me he had just realized he'd forgotten his wallet. Sighing, I offered to lend him money for dinner, but he was insistent that I was not allowed to and that we had to return to the house to get his wallet. I thought he was merely being chivalrous and agreed. He assured me that the walk around the lake had taken less time than he intended, so our mysterious reservations for dinner wouldn't be put into jeopardy by his mistake. So home we went.

I sat in the Jeep while Ben went inside to "get his wallet." He returned with not only that but two big lumberjack coats from his dad so that we could keep warm in the car, whose entire back roof was off (I'm really not a huge Jeep fan for that reason....at least not a fan of the removable-roof-Jeeps). I bought the story, and we began our descent.

When we were only a little bit down, though, Ben stopped the car and pulled over, putting into park.

"We're here!" he announced proudly.

For a brief second, I was a very confused person. And then I looked out to the field in front of us and realized that there was a table there, with chairs and settings all put out like a fancy restaurant. Every chick flick-consumer's dream - a romantic dinner date in the forest! Aw Ben, you shouldn't have.

So I got all excited and we got out and went to our table. A full steak dinner was already there waiting for us, including a way-too-huge cut of meat, buttered asparagus, corn on the cob, rolls, and a ridiculously delicious-looking cake. So I got even more excited. And then we sat down and ate.

Partway through the meal, I noticed a little sugar bowl in the middle of the table with its lid on.

"What's this?" I asked as I reached to take off the top.

"It's a surprise!" Ben warned, reaching to stop me but forgetting that he still held his utensils.

I received a sharp poke in the thumb from his steak knife. Despite my injured glare, he continued, "It's your favorite dessert . . . let's save it for later."

My favorite dessert! But what would fit in that little sugar bowl? And why would we have this so-called "favorite dessert" when we already had a piece of cake each? Then I realized - Ben had learned early on in our relationship that I was obsessed with Lindor Truffles, and he had made good use of that knowledge by giving them to me as gifts more than once already.

Those beautiful, blessed things.

So I realized that there must be some truffles in there. I sighed happily - what a great boyfriend - and we continued dinner.

Ben finished long before me, but I took my sweet time. Keep in mind that I still had absolutely no idea that this kid was about to propose - I thought he had just planned an especially creative and romantic date. Meanwhile, he was probably freaking out the whole time. Well, at least he did a good job of hiding it. Commendable, really.

Finally, Ben announced that it was time for my favorite dessert. He took the lid off the sugar bowl and took out a small, chestnut-colored box. He kneeled down in front of me, and it was then that I finally, finally realized what the heck was going on.

. . . and I am a little embarrassed to say that I flipped out. My mind was straight up blown. I had not suspected a THING, I had not prepared myself mentally, and I was suddenly being asked the most important question of my life in a beautiful meadow on a mountain in Evergreen, Colorado. In an instant I felt so young, so naive, so unprepared to be the adult that would spend the rest of her life with another person, through thick and thin, loving them unconditionally and always.

I babbled a little bit, patting Ben's face and shoulders frantically and hugging him to me, not yet crying but instead saying very immature things like, "Holy crap! I had no freaking idea! What the crap! How did you--what--when? Holy CRAP!" I hadn't even looked at the ring yet, much less given an answer to the poor guy on one knee in front of me.

Finally I got my bearings enough to give him the answer I had known I would give for a long time:

"Yes!"

He stood up and we finally shared a proper hug. The huge-ness of the occasion overwhelmed me, and I began to sob. Everything was a blur. I was so happy and scared and excited and humbled. But I never once doubted my decision, because I had made that decision already - I made it a little bit every day that I spent with Benjamin Young Christensen. From the very first date, when I laughed with my roommates about my ice-skating adventure with "that funny fro kid from church," there was always a feeling in the back of my mind that I could have something very, very good with him. I knew I would like him before I was even very attracted to him, and I knew I would love him before those feelings actually came. I had always kind of known that I would marry Ben, but we still had to learn for ourselves, getting to know each other and figuring things out one crazy day at a time.

I have no doubt that things won't stop being crazy. They sure haven't since we got engaged. There are plans to make, both for the wedding and for our infinitely more important marriage. There are a ridiculous amount of things to do, and now that the semester is starting again soon, we will both be that much more busy. But Ben has been absolutely incredible at reminding me that the only thing that really matters is that on November 23rd, 2012, he and I are going to kneel down and be sealed for time and all eternity in the Lord's holy temple.

I am so excited for that day. I am so excited for every day that I will spend as Ben's fiance and then wife. Our life together is going to be one crazy, hectic, hilarious, beautiful ride, and we are only getting started.