1975 & 1979

This picture was taken when Dave was 19 and I was 16. Dave was getting ready to leave on his mission (note the missionary haircut) to Kentucky, Nov of 1975. I was still sporting braces and did not want them in the picture, I was in 10th grade.

Beginning of 1975 -
We had become good friends that year. The difference in age made it that we never went to Jr high or High School together. It wasn't until I was 15 that I even noticed him at church. I spotted him one day and asked my mom "who is that guy with the blue eyes"! She replied "that is the Bishop's son". Then on my 16th birthday Dave and his friend from church were bored and looking for something to do and his mom suggested they look through the list of Birthday's of kids at church. He and Brian Taylor pooled their money together and had enough to buy marbles, an abba zabba bar and two birthday cards. They came to my house and introduced themselves and gave me my cards and presents. It was very silly and fun. We hung out a lot and became good friends.

At this point Dave was dating a girl (another Kathy) that was in band with him from High School. She was not a member of the church but during the year at some point he had brought her to church. He should have warned me because I saw him sitting on the back bench at church and I slid right up next to him, bumping my shoulder into his. (the seats were wood). Well apparently on his other side was Kathy. Oops!! She was NOT happy with me. It was not my intention to date Dave at that point.....he was my friend!! All the adults at church would ask if we were dating and our standard answer was "no, we are just friends". This went on for 6 months or so. Dave was not planning on going on a mission during this time. Then he attended the play ""Saturday's Warrior". He only went because he had family members in it. Well he had a spiritual experience there (his girlfriend Kathy was with him) and I think that is when he decided he was going to go on a mission and needed to dump Kathy! Well he does not remember but he took me to see that same play later, after he broke up with the other girl.

Dave does go on a mission and it was very hard to have him go. We had only been dating three months officially before he left. He knew I was too young to not date while he was gone. Thank goodness because I did date while he was gone. It was strange when he returned because I was still in the same ward as him but I was dating a person that I was ready to not date anymore but he would not go away! He had joined the church shortly before Dave got home (knowing that I wanted to marry someone that was LDS and that I could be sealed in the temple with). Well when Dave got home he felt awkward with us both in the ward and my boyfriend attending. Dave some how found himself dating a girl and then another girl. He was pretty serious about this second girl, Lisa. Meanwhile I finally broke up with this guy and our family was moving to Agoura which is a half an hour away from the valley where we had lived. Dave's family invited our family over for dinner before we moved. That was all it took for me. We were good friends again and I could tell I still loved him and I could not stop thinking about him. He was still dating this girl and I did not know what to do. I did not know how serious he was about her and I did not want to break them up. I sent him a Christmas Card and he called me. We started dating again and he broke up with her. We were engaged three weeks later.

I did not tell you about the time between him coming home and getting engaged. I guess he said he always had loved me and after getting the Christmas Card he had talked to his Bishop and told him that he had a girlfriend that he cared about but he still had feelings for me and did not know what to do. His Bishop counseled him that he should explore those feelings and make sure because it would not be fair to Lisa to marry her and still have strong feelings for me, always wondering what if! I am grateful for a wise Bishop.

So here is a picture of us after our wedding reception at the Encino Ward in CA. We were sealed in the Los Angeles Temple May 5, 1979. This May will be our 30th anniversary. We are still good friends and have four wonderful children. We are going to Disneyland with all four kids, their spouses and three grand kids. We are very excited to take them to CA and show them where we lived and went to School and church and see the Beach and SUN!