How we became "Jen & Ken" - Part 5

5-19-07


Oh wow, I have much to update here. Tuesday I didn’t get to Jeanine’s when I had expected to because I got my storage and dad brought me mattresses so I had to wait for him all day. Then he took Dustin Brinkerhoff and me to one of those Japanese places where they cook the food in front of you. I really enjoyed it actually. It was good. Plus I caught all the shrimp he tossed in my mouth. He helped. Then I figured since I hadn’t left yet I could see Ken. So I called him and he gladly came over. I was on the porch and he came out around 7pm. It was still light outside and we laid down on the Hammock again. We finally checked the clock again at 3am!!!! Opps. We didn’t even want to leave then, but we had to. It was really cool. We have a surprising amount of things in common. We are both blues, over analyze things, think the same way sometimes, have a similar sense of humor, love talking, deep conversations, think intimacy (not sexual) is very important in people we date, we even like a lot of the same music. That’s a first to me. He has so many of the qualities my family told me I could never hope for! He is also very sweet to me and is continually telling me how amazing I am and how much he likes me. I went inside to get something and on my way back out Karen stopped me and we listened and heard him singing 8 Days a Week out there by himself. So I joined him and he said he wanted to listen to the Beatles with me sometime, and I had my i-pod handy so we did. We sang the Beatles and Billy Joel together and he sang “Daughters” to my by John Mayer. It was really fun and we were just belting it out and didn’t care who could hear. How cool is that. He really enjoyed it too. Then I introduced him to flight of the concords and John Coltrane and he thought it was hilarious. He held off for an alarming amount of time considering the circumstances and eventually kissed me. Although we have different stories of how that happened. So, it was a neat evening and we didn’t want to go, but it was late (or early) so he left and I drove to Jeanine’s crashing on her couch around 4am. Yikes.

Ken thinks I kissed him first, but I NEVER kissed a guy first. He kissed me first. He thinks beause he kissed the sides of my mouth it doesn't count, but it does.

I had to wake up the next day to baby-sit. It was cute because Kierra came and snuggled with me. So I watched the kids and played trains with my mommy. My scrapbook I made of the trip came and it turned out really awesome. Then I cleaned the house and my parents left. When I was done we watched “The Holiday” while I gave Jeanine a pedicure. I, hopefully for the last time, cried over J.J again. Watching that movie just brought back memories. He had taken me to see that and we had kissed throughout the show, then he took me to the store for sparkling cider and noodles. On the movie they made fettuccini and it made me crave some so we went to my house and I made us dinner and we danced to “When you say nothing at all” and the next night he told me he loved me. The fettuccini part made me sad, but at the end when Jude Law tells her he loves her I broke down a bit. To top it all off, the movie ends with New Years and everyone together and J.J and I really started falling for each other on New Years and that amazing night. Grrrr. It had all just felt so wonderful and it was taken away so quickly and the pain of it all hit again and I put my head down as I was folding laundry trying not to be obvious then scolded myself the whole drive back for even thinking of him. When I got home I called Ken who helped me carry my scrapbooks upstairs then said goodbye to his sister and came back. We were sitting on the couch and I was tired, but wanted to do something more productive than make out so I said I wished I had my Calvin and Hobbes book, and he took me to his place and pulled out the complete collection. Go figure, I swear we like so many of the same things. I started freaking out a little and warned him of my tendency to do that. I told him I just needed to take it slow and he said he’d do whatever it took. I calmed down and we talked and kissed more. He left at a crazy hour again and we were both having a hard time letting go despite the fact that he was coming over the next day. So funny.

 Thursday Ken woke me up with a phone call and came over. I made creeps and got ready. Then we left him doing his lab while Karen and I stretched and ran. It was nice to be able to talk to Karen about Ken and the gossip thing and she talked about Andrew and it was all good. Then I showered and got ready again and Ken went to the bank and Michaels with me. He also said I looked ridiculously good in my white dress, and laughed that I changed so many times in a day. We sat on the couch kissing and laughing until he had to go help clean his apartment for the ward guitar hero playing activity. I edited some pictures and eventually came over. He is so funny when he plays that thing. He gets into it and dances like a rock star with the plastic guitar. I played a song with his sister Katy and I laid on him when he sat by me.

Katy & I playing Guitar Hero. This was that very night.

Then I left to get ready for bed and he joined me shortly thereafter. He went to the hammock again, which is always risky, as we don’t tend to leave it. We stayed there until 4:30am. We sang kids songs like 5 little monkeys swinging in a tree and just really silly things that we both enjoyed and laughed wondering who else would do that. We are so similar. I love that we can be completely ridiculous together. There was also some very nice kissing and snuggling and also some serious and deep conversation in the mix. We also share how cocky we are, while trying to hide it. For some reason, I love to hear how cocky he is. That confidence is really attractive. I made him tell me stories from his past of how he knew girls liked him and avoided things and had kissed two girls in one day and all kinds of things. It made me glad that I was with him now and not three years ago, as things would not have turned out the same. It also made me realize I was finally the girl that was liked. I have quasi dated a lot of guys and they have treated me the same way and I have then watched them go on to find the girl that they really like whom they don’t treat that way. I don’t mean anything abusive, but just making out without any form of commitment and not even offering to take me out and disappearing and things I had heard him describe that he had done to other girls. Finally, I was the special one that he cared enough about to treat differently. It’ a switch I am not used to, but the one I have always said I longed for. It gets better. Anyways, I like the mix of his cockiness with his sweetness because to much of either is sickening, but the combination is great. So, it was another nice evening that we didn’t want to end.

When I watched "He's Just Not That Into You" a year or so later after we were married it made me cry because he tells her "You are my expection" and that is exactly how I felt with Ken. I was finally the exeption.