Hi there. Welcome back.
I’ve got juicy news. So just keep reading for the good good stuff.
First off. This blog is going to change a bit. My story has changed some and Mr. Trevor Haynes has become a permanent part of my life. And by golly that means this life is going to be one heck of an adventure. From now on, I hope to be able to capture what our life and adventures consist of through writing and pictures.
I hope to keep this blog as a journal, per se.
Anyway.
This is the good stuff.
I want to tell you about this great love that I have found. And the love that I choose every day.
This boy.
He is everything.
He’s practical.
He’s real.
He’s loving.
He’s sexy.
He’s intelligent.
He’s funny.
He’s dedicated. And driven.
He’s competitive.
He’s all the things I’ve wanted.
And let me tell you, God led me to this man. Divine timing is real.
That being said.
Let me tell you about one of the very best of days of my life, to date.
03.27.2021
There is something uniquely special about being in the House of the Lord with only those working there, the family and friends who are closest to you, and the love of your life. The silence. The privacy. The temple was empty except for us. The entire place dedicated to the ordinances that we were about to make. The celestial room to ourselves. Every single person there to help us be in a setting to allow communion with God. It was special. It was holy. It was eternity wrapped in white.
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On the 27th of March, 2021 at 11am I was sealed in the Provo City Center Temple to the man that I have chosen to do eternity with, Trevor Jake Haynes. I made sacred covenants that, if I remain worthy, will seal me to this man and to God for longer than the short time that we have to live here on this earth.
How. Powerful.
And oh how I hope I can forever keep a painting in my mind of how T looked in the celestial room, dressed in white. How it felt to be in his arms. What my hand in his felt like over the alter. His face as we made covenants. The tears that welled in his eyes. The words the sealer spoke. How it felt to be surrounded by our family and friends in God’s house.
The plan of salvation of was made manifest that day.
And I hope to always keep the Atonement of Jesus Christ at the very center of our marriage. And never forget that feeling.
That day was special.
I was so full of emotion. Simple, genuine, real love for my husband. Gratitude for my family who had traveled so far and sacrificed so much to be there with us. Feeling genuine love for and from the family that I was marrying into. So much gratitude for my friends, who came to show their support. And mostly, the overwhelming feeling of acceptance from God that I had made the correct decision in marrying this man.
Our reception was beautiful. The weather was perfect. The tents set up looked phenomenal. It was everything that I wanted. And most importantly, I got to spend the evening with my husband celebrating us.
So here’s a public thank you.
Thank you to those that came and celebrated with us.
Thank you to my mom for ALL of her help, stress, support, in trying to long-distance wedding plan. And for loving me and being my best cheerleader.
Thank you to my in-laws for putting up with my procrastination, and for loving me and welcoming me into the family.
Thanks to my family that traveled out of state to come spend that day with us.
Thank you to all of my friends and bridesmaids who traveled, helped, loved me, and have supported me every step of the way.
You guys.
Thank you.
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Our honeymoon... it was perfect. For us.
Our first night was spent at the Anniversary Inn. It was awesome. And so so fun. We stayed in the biker room, and were treated like royalty. The next day, we drove up to Stanley, Idaho. We stayed at Stanley High Country Inn. It was fun! We explored a bit, we went to a hot springs, soaked in the hot tub, saw a herd of elk and a bald eagle. It was calm, relaxing, and just what we needed. The next day we took a beautiful drive through Idaho. We stopped at a hot springs, we stopped at the cooooolest public shooting range, and made our way over to Sunriver, Oregon. We stayed in a super cute cabin. We looked into buying me a gun, and just hung out. At midnight we went to the only place open to get food; a drug-dealing truck stop diner. Food honestly wasn’t that great, but it satisfied my hunger. The next day, we did a bit of exploring. We went to North Twin Lake and set up the hammock. It was warm. Think I may have actually sunburned my shins haha. But it was relaxing and exactly what I needed. We explored the lava fields, and tried to get into the cave (But it was closed for bat hibernation... and we didn’t want to disturb their slumber).
We drove over west for our reception, spent the evening with friends from Oregon. We exchanged vows. We danced. We shoved cake. It was fun.
And today, we make the long trek home.
Our honeymoon has been great. It’s been bonding. It’s been loving. It’s been a great vacation with my husband. But there is a large part of me that is excited to settle into real life. For some consistency. For real life without planning a wedding. Just living out our dreams, creating our adventure, and cultivating our legacy.
Stay tuned.
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And in case anyone was wondering or doesn’t know... here’s our story.
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Swipe Up
This is where it honestly begins, an overused dating app. Yup, you read that right. Mutual success story coming your way.
August 2020, Savannah had traveled down to Utah for a wedding for one of her college best friends. With much reluctance she joined the other bachelorettes for the bouquet toss, and her competitive nature did not disappoint. She came out victorious, albeit somewhat bloody (just kidding) with the bouquet.
Less than 24 hours later, after much aimless swiping, Trevor and Savannah matched on mutual. Coincidence? I THINK NOT.
Trevor was captivated by one picture in particular, and couldn’t resist thinking he could give this girl a shot. This was an interesting time for him, as he had just returned from working a dream job working in Idaho at Redfish Lake. If we are honest, T was sad he had to leave paradise (early for school) and return to the constant hustle, rush, and insanity that comes with living at home in Utah County. He was looking for a girl to help distract him from the disappointment of that recent change.
T messaged Savannah several times on Mutual, but with no response. He decided to persevere a bit more (which she is so grateful for) and added her Snapchat. He knew she was leaving for Oregon the next day but tried to get her to hang out that night anyway. She honestly just wasn’t feeling it. She didn’t want to spend her last night in Utah with some guy she didn’t know, who probably just wanted to make out.
But don’t worry, the story doesn’t end here.
Here’s just some fun facts about that special time.
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— Savannah caught that bouquet
— She received some personal revelation on that trip (before she met Trevor ) that she was supposed to move to Utah
— Savannah’s best friend had a room open in her townhouse. In Lehi. Where Trevor lived.
Long Distance Lovers
Well, don’t be disappointed folks. Savannah and Trevor kept talking. Savannah was intrigued that after a few days she wasn’t bored of conversation. (What?) The more they talked the more that she found they had in common. It seems that they talked about everything underneath the sun. They talked all day every day. Savannah became a little obsessed, she always wanted to talk to this man, she wanted to know about his day, know his answers to the questions that he asked him. Trevor didn’t really know why he kept talking to her, besides the point that he was intrigued. (Thank goodness for his intriguement... is that a word?). They started adding FaceTime calls and praying together at night. Basically, they were falling in love without even really knowing it.
Savannah was planning on moving to Utah in January. That would make it easy to tie up all her loose ends, spend the holidays with her family, and save some more money before she left. Well, long story short, with some divine intervention she applied for a job, accepted the offer, and moved to Lehi in the middle of October.
Also, after a week he may or may not have told her that he loved her. But shhhhh... you’ll have to ask him about that one.
The First Date
Alright, so here’s where it get’s juicy! Date number 1. Savannah and her mom had driven 14+ hours, moved her things into her apartment, and were down in Orem staying with family friends. It was nearly 11 at night, but due to flying out the next day to Virginia, and Trevor leaving shortly for D.C., Savannah really wanted to actually meet this boy. Little did Savannah know that 11pm was thrive time for the Haynes family, and that this would be the first of many late nights.
Trevor picked her up, (Savannah’s mom snuck out and met him) and took her back to his house. Savannah met a number of his family, including dad, some sisters and Blake.
... talk about meeting the family on the first date... and T thought it was going to be awkward...
They took the Pops’ truck and stargazed until 4am. Yup. Four. A.M.
Conversation was easy, laughs came naturally, and they clicked immediately.
Basically, the beginning of the relationship started off easy, comfortable, and set a good foundation for the rest to come.
Becoming “Official”
So this is where it kind of get’s fun.
Since that first date and returning from cross-country trips, they could count on one hand the number of days they didn’t see each other. If they weren’t at work, they were with each other. Naturally, you would think they would become exclusive, but Savannah just wasn’t not ready. But Trevor was patient, didn’t pressure, and said he would be there when she was.
T had mentioned it to her before, trying to define the relationship, but Savannah told him she wasn’t ready. They continued to date and spend all the time they could together.
A few weeks later he said to her, “I don’t think I actually every asked you... would you like to be my girlfriend?”... but once again Savannah told him she still wasn’t ready... that she needed more time. Props to T for sticking out her stubbornness.
Ironically, a few days later she told him that she loved him. Hah. Telling a man that she loved him when they weren’t even in a committed relationship with yet... risky. (But don’t worry, it works out).
About a week later they had an adventure Saturday, they went out to the Tooele Valley and visited Ophir, and this is where Savannah finally told him that “there’s nothing I’d rather be than your girlfriend”.
Finally.
The Rest
From there on out, it has been nothing but fun. They’ve fallen crazy in love with each other, they love to adventure, love to spend time together with family, love a good game of pickleball. They both crave the solitude that comes from being in the mountains away from the crazy. They are both fiercely competitive and show that in all sports/board/card games. They love to be out and active and can also just enjoy a cozy night in cuddling up and watching a movie. It seems, Trevor farts too much and Savannah has a hard time staying awake past 10:30pm... but they’ve agreed they can live with it... most days. ;)
Most importantly, they both have been contributing to a relationship built on Jesus Christ. They know that this is right, and know that by trusting in God’s plan, Jesus Christ and the Atonement, and by working hard, they will face every trial and joy with Christ and each other.
Any time that they spend together is good time, and they can’t wait to live out their life adventure.
