We meet again...

It has been almost three years since I last wrote on this blog (after only writing once). HOW BAD IS THAT?! So, in an effort to try a bit harder to be a little more faithful, I am going to start over from the very beginning and hope to make a little book to forever remember. :) Keep in mind that this will get long, boring, and maybe even a little mushy for anyone else's liking, so steer clear if that's the case! ;)
Here I go...

Our Story

The VERY beginning...

Derek was born on November 17th, 1988 in Pocatello, ID to Leland and Lori Warren. He was the third born of four kids. His oldest sibling is Britni, followed by Megan, and Dallas is his younger brother. I am told Derek was a really shy little guy. He was really into his action figures and could easily entertain himself for hours. He was in love with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Michael Jordan/Space Jam. His family always talks about how they could look at Derek in the back seat on a trip and he would be singing to his reflection in the back window. He was not (and still isn't) one to jump in on a fight. I guess this is how he became his mother's "favorite" growing up. :) He went to Indian Hills Elementary, Irving Jr. High, and then Pocatello High School. His parents put him in a variety of sports growing up, one of which was wrestling, which I hear he was very good at. He decided in high school to stick with football and basketball as his main sports, and even did track for a while. He was a good student and got mostly A's and B's. His family loved to take trips all over the place. They were all really close. Derek's BFFs in highschool were first and foremost, Wesley Mennear, Josh Smith, Taylor Jensen, and Dexter Truman.

As for me, I was born in Logan, UT on June 26, 1989 to my mother Lisa. She was a single mom at that point, so I got lots of time with her and my grandparents when I was little. She and I ended up moving to Pocatello when she got a job as a secretary at a law firm. After she lived here for a while she met my future dad, Jerry Orr. They worked in the same building. I am told she knew him as "Mike" for the longest time because he never corrected her. For a long time they were just friends. In fact, my mom used him as a babysitter while she went on dates with other people. Funny how things work out! A while later they were married and he adopted me. When they were married I got a new big brother, Jason, who is ten years older than me. After me came my sister Karlee, my brother Casey, and my sister Ashley. I actually got to meet my biological family a couple years back and have had the opportunity to get to know my sister Kortnie, which has been a lot of fun. I grew up in Chubbuck, ID. I went to Chubbuck Elementary, Hawthorne Jr High, and Highland High School. My mom says I was also a pretty shy kid (except when it came to talking at school with my best friend Sarah). I spent the majority of my time playing with her and we were inseparable until high school. My parents put me in t-ball (which I stunk at) and soccer (which I rocked at). I played soccer until the 8th grade when I tried out for cheerleading and made it. From that point on, cheer was a big part of my life. My BFF in high school was Erica Hunn and I had many others that were great!

 And now for us... :)

Derek and I met in February of our senior year of high school. I went to a Poky basketball game with a friend and he was playing on the team. I met him after the game and ended up hanging out with my friend and his friends afterwards. We went to Arctic Circle. I thought he was one of the most beautiful boys I had ever seen, so I had an instant crush on him. I ended up getting his number because the silly boy was pretty shy and told me later that he was too scared to ask for mine. From then on we hung out constantly and ended being "together" only 2 weeks after we had met.
Our first kiss was around that time, in his room (shhh...haha) after he had serenaded me with the song Your Guardian Angel by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus on his guitar. (Which has been our song ever since.) I mean come on, who could resist that?! From that moment on I was completely smitten. I was almost always the only girl around for the rest of senior year and was totally fine with it. I didn't have a problem just hanging with the guys, which is one reason Derek said he liked me so much. He was the most fun boyfriend I had ever had and I loved being with him. My parents really liked him, but said he was really shy. I THINK Derek's parents liked me... but Leland scared the bazeebees outta me (can't believe it now!)

After being the only girl for a long time, I had my friend Jess come hang out with us. What is funny is... we weren't THAT great of friends, but I knew she'd be pretty fun. I was right, and she and Derek's best friend for life Wes hit it off. From that point on we were the "foursome." It was mostly Derek and Wes "dating" and Jess and I on the side... but we made it work! Little did I know that things would work out for all of us and it would live on! ;) We couldn't ask for any better friends.

Then

Now

After high school I moved into Bengal Creek with a bunch of friends before starting my first semester of college and absolutely loved it! Derek received his mission call in September of 2007 to go to Houston, TX. We decided (more him than me to be honest) to end things in October to help him prepare/make things a little easier.We still tried to hang out as friends, but there were too many feelings there so it made it pretty tough. He left on December 19th of that year. We wrote faithfully the whole time he was gone. I remember my heart beating so fast and being so excited every time I would get a letter in the mail. I remember sending him packages on holidays hoping that they would make him happy. One of my best memories of writing him was playing the "favorite game" so that we wouldn't forget little things about each other. Although I didn't "wait" for him, this man had my heart for what I didn't realize would be FOREVER.

Bengal Creek Crew

While he was gone I finished my first year at ISU and decided that I wanted to try something new. One of my best friends, Jordan Peck (Bennion now), had applyed to BYU-Idaho and was waiting to hear whether or not she got in when she suggested that I think about applying. I remember thinking that was crazy at first. I was almost anti BYU-I at that point. I remember laying in my bed that night just thinking and I kept getting the feeling over and over again that I needed to go there. I jumped out of bed and applied right then and there. It ended up being one of the greatest decisions of my life. I moved home for a while and then ended up moving into the Grove Apts with one of my other best friends Jasmine Chacon while I waited for my time to go to Rexburg. During that time I worked hard, played hard, and waited to leave. I had some of the best friends anyone could ever ask for. Even though my bestie from high school and forever to come, Erica, wasn't around much (at Utah State), we rocked the time we had. Jess and I became way close during this time which is why I think I had so much fun! ;) We were pretty much inseparable until she left for school in Wyoming.

  

 I got into the Winter/Spring track with Jordan and we ended up being able to live together at the Camden Apts. with 4 other girls. During those two short semesters I can honestly say I learned the most about myself and who I wanted to be. I was there at the right time, with the right friend, in the best setting I could have possibly been in. It is at that point I knew how I wanted to live my life and I gained the strongest testimony of the Savior and the blessings that come by living righteously. I will forever be grateful for the friend and example Jordan was to me at that time.

I don't think I can tell the story of Derek's mission very well. I would have to dig out all of his letters, but I'll try and do a little bit. Derek served in many areas around Houston. Some of the cities I THINK I remember him being in (could be wrong) are Sunnyside, Houston, Pasadena, Lake Charles and... that is about all I can recall right now. He had some great companions, a few of which he still keeps in touch with. He was down there when Hurricane Ike hit. He said he stayed in a church with a bunch of other missionaries. They slept in classrooms and took baths in the font. After the hurricane he was able to do so much service, which he says he enjoyed a whole lot more than going door to door. He was able to bring many people into the gospel and will forever remember the great experiences he had during his mission.(Man... can't even do it justice!)

I moved home from Rexburg when school got over in July 2009 and was planning on returning again in January. Derek got home in August of that year. I remember getting a call from his mom while I was working at Aeropostale and had to call her back when I got off since I was closing the store that night. I remember thinking that she probably wanted to do pedicures since she had mentioned that a few weeks prior. I called her back and she answered and quickly said she'd give me a call back. I hadn't been in my car for more than a couple seconds when THE call came. It was NOT Lori's voice who answered when I said hello. It took me a second to gather what was going on, and then my heart and stomach dropped. I was talking to Derek. We had a slightly awkward conversation that ended up with him asking me to come up to his house. I agreed... and off I went. That drive was the longest of 10-15 minutes of my life. I was so nervous, but so excited. I didn't know what I would say or how I would act. I knocked on the door...and can't even remember who let me in now. I remember walking into the living room and his entire family just stared at me. I looked across the room and there was Derek, walking towards me. At that point, I was just completely excited. He gave me a huge hug and we were both just nervous smiles. We then went out on the porch and talked for a while. We gave each other the run downs of our lives over the time he was gone. I don't remember exactly what was said that night, but I remember leaving with a smile. My best friend was finally home. :)

 

Derek wasn't home for very long before he decided he wanted to go visit his mission buddy Hunter in California for a week. So, he jumped in the car and left for what felt like FOREVER. (a whole week haha)When he got back I remember him meeting up with me the second he pulled into town when I was bowling with some friends. He was filthy from the trip and I remember loving that he didn't even want to go home first before coming to see me.... silly I know. After bowling he and I went to Stuart Park. It was so easy to talk to him. It was like he had never left. That night we had our next "first kiss" as I like to call it and it was AMAZING. (I know I'm sorry...ew, gross, sick, whatever... I loved it!) BUT, we ended up deciding that he should probably get used to being home and maybe even go on some dates before we started things up again, but that we could still hang out. We would watch movies, go to parties together, and I remember going to the Blackfoot fair and to his cousins baptism with his family. After a while we noticed that we kept falling back into the same old same old (acting like we were dating), so we decided to take some time apart and do or own things. WELL we did this, but it didn't last very long. After two weeks, Derek called and said he wanted to hang out. I don't remember what we did that night, but I will never forget the drive home. He drove me home in his parent's Durango and played a song that he had written just for me. To make a long, mushy story short, lets just say it was the greatest song I had ever heard. We got back together that night, September 10th, 2009. I was the happiest girl on the face of the planet. 

On our way to the Blackfoot Fair

Concert Time :)

Halloween 2009

Derek and I had SO much fun together. Everything was perfect. Derek told me he loved me for the first time at "our spot" not too long after we made things official. We were inseparable from that point on. I got a second job in September and decided to start again at ISU. I knew there was no way I was going to go back to Rexburg at that point. So, I worked the two jobs and went to school. Derek got a job at Costco not too long after he got back and took a couple classes at ISU on the side. We started talking about marriage in about the middle/end of October. He proposed to me on Christmas Eve. After spending time with our families, he called me that night and told me to meet up with him at the Poky tennis courts so that we could go somewhere and exchange gifts. When I got there I got in his car (which at this point was his grandmothers old car- blue Honda CRV), and he drove me up to a spot above Poky where you could look over the city (since our spot was closed for the winter). I gave him his gift first, which I can't even remember now what it was. (Tells ya how awesome it was haha!) After he got done and thanked me he had me start opening mine. He got me a very cute shirt and a watch that I had wanted which I pulled out first, and then I pulled out a little box. He told me to stop. He grabbed the box from me and told me to get out of the car with him. The car headlights were on and he met me in front of the car. I automatically started thinking, "Oh my gosh, he's going to propose". He then got down on his knee, (at that point I started getting all giddy because I thought FOR SURE he was going to propose) and he opened the box. IT WAS A PAIR OF EARRINGS!!! Very cute earrings mind you... BUT EARRINGS!!! He then proceeded to pull the earrings out of the box and try to tell me that the light changed the color of the earrings (hence why he was on his knee). I tried SO VERY HARD to hide my disappointment. I thanked him and kissed him and told him how much I loved them. He started smiling so big and then started to chuckle. Soooo, I was like what the heck is going on! He got really serious, looked me in the eye, told me how much he loved me and some other very sweet things. He then got down again on his knee, pulled a box out of his pocket, and opened up the box to show the ring I had been waiting to get since I was a very little girl (I inherited my the ring from my grandpa's side) and asked me to marry him. This proposal fits Derek's personality 100%. I have never met a more loving and caring person, who can find humor in just about anything. All of my disappointment went away and I was the happiest I had ever been up to that point. I knew I was going to spend eternity with my best friend. We originally thought we would wait until July/August to get married so that Wes could be at our wedding, but decided on March to play it safe. Britni took our engagement pictures for us and we started the wedding plans!

I went wedding dress shopping in Logan with my mom, Grandma Pond, and Erica. We were supposed to go to Salt Lake the next day, but after we went to two stores in Logan just for the fun of it I found my PERFECT dress. My mom, grandma, and I still ended up going to Salt Lake just for funzies to show  Cindy my dress. I also found my sparkly converse shoes that I wore instead of heals to my reception. I LOVED them! I can honestly say I did not have to worry about much for my wedding. I picked the food choices, my colors (cream, brown, & green), and gave input on what kind of decorations and things I wanted, but my mother-in-law and my mom rocked it! My mom was sooo super nervous. I could not have been happier with how everything turned out! I received my endowments in the Logan Temple so that my G-ma Pond could be there. That was an amazing experience and I am so glad I was able to do that with Derek there with me. :)

We drove to Utah a couple weeks before the wedding to do bridals. I went to some pretty cool places with both Britni and Megan to take them. Once we got done we were supposed to meet up with the rest of Derek's family to go to dinner. BUT, dumb me forgot to bring clothes to change into. SO, I ended up going into Ross to find an outfit to go to dinner in, IN MY WEDDING DRESS. Lets just say I got quite a few strange looks. I did get a cute outfit out of it though! ;)

A couple days before our wedding we headed to Utah to do some wedding pictures. Yes, Derek saw me in my dress before the big day, but I thought it was close enough. We didn't want all of our family and friends waiting for us to get pictures done on our wedding day. They turned out perfect.

The night before our wedding my family stayed at a hotel in Bountiful (minus me) with my grandparents and Cheryl, and Derek's family (minus Britni) stayed at Megan and John's house. Britni and I stayed at Nana and Papa's apartment so that she could get me all ready in the morning. The night before the wedding Derek and I went and ate at Chuck O Rama (Papa let us drive the mini cooper) with my family and I remember not wanting to eat much so that I could fit into my dress! On the big day Britni woke me up with the song "White Wedding." haha I'll never forget that. She got me all ready and we headed to the temple.

Derek and I were married on March 12,2012 in the Bountiful, Utah temple. It was the most perfect day I could have imagined. Looking at him across the alter I knew that I had found the man I wanted to spend eternity with. Beautiful words were spoken, promises were made, and we were finally husband and wife. I can't express how grateful I am to my Heavenly Father for allowing me to find a man who was worthy to take me to the temple, who I knew would love me unconditionally, and who would make me laugh each day I was with him. We were supported by so many family members and friends.

 After the ceremony we took a few pictures with everyone there before heading to the luncheon. Our luncheon was just up the street from the temple at the Eagle Rock Reception Center. It was great. The food was fantastic and the company was great. We had a video of pictures that Lee had put together of Derek and I with all of our favorite songs.

 After the luncheon Derek and I left for our hotel. We stayed at the Swiss Family Robinson room at a themed suite in Salt Lake. It was the coolest room. The room's bed was in a giant tree house and the shower was a rock waterfall. It was a very special experience.
The next day we drove home. Our reception was that night at the old Whitman Hotel in downtown Pocatello. It was an old building, which is why I picked it. It was decorated beautifully. I would not have changed a thing. So many people came to support us... most of which I can honestly say I probably don't remember. We spent most of the time in our line since there were so many people, but when we got out of the line we had our cake (which was rainbow chip cake... requested by Derek), had our first dance, and got to mingle. It was so fun! Once we decided it was time to leave we decided we were really hungry. SO, we drove in our destroyed/decorated car through the Robertos drive thru to get ourselves some breakfast burritos. haha We are so awesome. We then got to stay at the Black Swan Inn thanks to our parents. We stayed in the Egyptian room which was SO COOL. The next morning we went to wash our car before going home. The car was pretty much destroyed. Cookies, shaving cream, and whatever else was all over itand I felt awful. The car wash owner happened to be there that morning, saw that we destroyed his car wash, and STILL paid for our carwash to congratulate us. To top it off, Derek then accidentally backed into the metal trash can and bent it. haha It was quite the experience at the carwash.

We weren't able to head out to our honeymoon right after our wedding. We waited about a week until we had Spring Break for school. So, we headed home to our new apartment, our first place together. We spent the next few day going through gifts and setting up our little place. It was a two bedroom apartment up in the Highland area. It was perfect for us. I remember talking with him for the first few days about how weird it was not having to drive home during the middle of the night. We got to sleep in the same bed and everything! When we finally got to leave on our honeymoon we drove to Mesquite, Nevada. We were able to stay in a family friend's condo. It was a cute little condo and was great for us. It was beautiful warm weather there. We stayed there for a couple days and then headed to Las Vegas. I'd never been there before. We stayed in the Luxor Hotel and spent the next couple of days exploring the city. We went shopping and rode the roller coasters in some of the hotels. We had a blast and I remember being sad when it was time to go home again. Once we got home, we both went back to school and worked our two jobs.

Three years later....

Trying to remember almost three years is pretty hard! So much has happened since then. We are still very happily married. In fact, I can honestly say I love him more now than the day I married him and I did not know that was possible. We have gone on a few fun trips since then. In July 2010 we went to California with Britni and Dallas. We drove... crazy right?! We were able to go to Six Flags and that was a blast! We then drove north, played on some random beach and headed into San Fransisco. We then went to Paradise to stay with Derek's mission buddy Hunter. It was beautiful and we had so so much fun!

In May 2011 we went to Lake Mead, St. George, and then Lagoon with Derek's family. We got to stay on a houseboat that had a water slide on it! We spent our time there boating, jet skiing, and lounging around. We pulled the houseboat into a little cove and stayed there for a couple days. We had a blast! That vacation was Derek's dream vacation. I think we were all pretty much in heaven. Once we left there we stayed in a a really nice condo in St. George. We ended the trip by playing for a day in Lagoon. Overall, it was such a fun trip!

Trips with my fam included trips to Bear Lake and Island Park. We've been to Bear Lake each year since we've been married for the annual Orr family campout. Always very fun! We also got to stay in Derek's Nana and Papa's cabin with my family. We spent a lot of time four wheeling. My family has always loved doing that. Casey spend a lot of time fishing. We also went rafting down the river. EVEN GRANDMA POND! haha It was awesome. We had so much fun!

And Now....

Other than those trips, for the most part we have spent our time just living life! I have to be honest when I say I have one of the funnest marriages known to man. My husband is pretty much awesome. He is about as sarcastic as they come... my mom says that is one thing I have become more of since I got married. We try to spend as much time with our families when were aren't working or going to school. Dallas is currently on a mission in Argentina, and Karlee just recently left on a mission to New Mexico. In the three years we have been married we moved from our first apartment, to an old little house in the tree streets in Pocatello, and we are currently living in Derek's Uncle Dale and Aunt Darleen's house out in the Tyhee area while they are on their mission in Canada. It is quite the upgrade from what we had before, so we feel pretty spoiled. We are pretty sure it is going to be torture when we have to go back into an apartment. I graduated with my bachelors degree in physical education from ISU with an emphasis in exercise science. I am currently working on my masters degree in physical education and athletic administration. I received a graduated assistantship in the SSPE department there, so I am currently teaching exercise classes there as my job, getting my school paid for, and loving it. Derek is almost finished with his bachelors degree in biomedical sciences. He will be applying for optometry schools this summer, so we are excited to see where we will be moving to in the next year or so. He is still working at Costco and recently got a position in the optical department, which he was so excited about.

There are SO many things that I have not included, but I have the BIGGEST news saved for last. After 8 months of trying, Derek and I found out that we are having A BABY!!!!!!! We decided we wanted to start trying in January of 2012. We weren't having much luck, so 6 months later I finally went to the doctor. I found out that I had some problems, got on medicine, and 2 months later found out the good news. On September 26th I decided to take my 5 billionth pregnancy test just for the heck of it. I waited two minutes and saw a faint 2nd line. I convinced myself that I was seeing things. Derek was mowing the lawn at the time, so I walked out to him, showed him the test, and asked what he thought. haha I was trying SO HARD to not get excited just in case. I really didn't want to feel let down. He said he wasn't sure, so we decided to wait another day to try and test again. It felt like FOREVER! I went to the store and bought a test that says "pregnant" or "not pregnant" so that I could know for sure. SO, when I got home that night I went into the bathroom... waited again... and it read "PREGNANT"!!!! I instantly started jumping around and smiling. I grabbed the test and ran straight into the office where Derek was studying. I wrapped an arm around his neck from behind and whispered, "someone is going to be a daddy." He turned around with a big smile on his face and looked at the test. It was such an amazing moment. I felt a joy that was unreal. And so the planning began.
We got to hear the baby's heartbeat on November 12th. It was SO COOL. My sister actually had an appointment with Dr. Cox that same day, so she and my mom got to be there for it. It took about 2 minutes to find the heartbeat. Once she found it, it sounded like a little horse gallup, so fast. At that point we were so excited. This was the real deal!
I spent the next 2 months dying to know what it was. We got to go for our ultrasound on January 7th, 2013. Both of our moms were able to come. Up to this point in my life, I am not sure I have ever experience something as cool as that was. I had to pee SO BAD, but once I saw my baby moving around I forgot all about it. I felt like I was in a trance. We found out that we are going to have a little baby BOY!! He is due on June 4th and we couldn't be happier. The two names we were deciding between were Dawson and Gavin. Derek liked the name Gavin better, so that will be our little man's name. Gavin James (after PAPA Thompson) Warren! Knowing that I have a little baby boy inside me made everything so much more real. I gained more of a bond with this baby than I had before and I can't wait to be his mommy.  

I am currently 22 weeks and getting bigger by the day. I have had a lot of fun making little baby crafts and collecting things I know we will need once the little guy gets here. Grandma and Grandpa Pond bought us a crib that is absolutely adorable and my parents got us a pack-n-play and a snug-a-bunny for Christmas. It has been SO much fun. Derek picked out his first little outfit, and of course its a little Nike outfit. It is adorable! He doesn't say it much, but I know Derek is SO excited to be a daddy. I can tell by the way he acts and talks about him. He will be an amazing dad.

The past three years have been amazing. I still can't believe I married such an amazing and loving person. There is not a day that goes by that I am not grateful for the life I have been blessed with. I was raised by such a loving family and was blessed to marry into the best family I could have. They have always made me feel so welcome. I am grateful for the gospel. I am so grateful for the Savior, his atoning sacrifice, and the example he is. I am grateful to know that I do get to spend eternity with my family, and even more grateful that Heavenly Father has given me the opportunity to start my own with my best friend. I am excited to see what life has in store for us from here............. :)