I thought it would never happen

 3 years ago, this man of mine embarked on one of the hardest, craziest, lesson-learning journeys he/we have ever been on...

Below, you will see the evolution of a Young Men's President.

 from Summer 2009

to Summer 2012

Spencer started out fairly unaware of what all a YM's President does, or how to plan activities.  You see, he was inactive for a good chunk of his youth.  So he didn't have too many memories or experiences to rely on. But if there's anything Spencer has it's a drive to learn, work, and do something well.  He always tackles a project head on, whether he knows what he's doing or not.  He figures it out as he goes, and always accomplishes his goal.  I've never seen anything like it.  And I've definitely seen examples of hard-working men in my life.  But Spencer is like no other in my eyes.

And in spite of his wariness for being in the constant spotlight of a leadership role like the YM's President, he  was willing to do what he was asked to do by the Bishopric, and set out to tackle and magnify this intimidating calling.

The first year and a half, he had some super fun, amazing boys that he was over.  Throughout the whole 3 years, there haven't been very many boys in the program, but in the first year he at least had a few older ones that he was directly over in the Priest's group.  He had so much fun with these particular guys, that they would even do stuff together outside of the official church youth activities.  Below, he's with Brandon and Lance when they went on a hike somewhere.  He saw so many beautiful places, and I'm glad he took pictures.

There have been A LOT of youth activities to go to: dances, firesides, stake activities, tri-stake activities, temple trips, on top of the regular weekly duties of Tue/Wed night mutual activities and the Sunday responsibilities of attending ward council and PEC meetings, being in charge of the sacrament, and teaching lessons.  He has been VERY busy.  I mean, EXTREMELY BUSY.  

In the last 3 years, we haven't seen very much of each other.

In the beginning, I would go with him to the occasional youth dance, until I discovered it was like pulling teeth to get him to even dance with me.  Spencer is always focused on the task at hand, and in his mind, attending a dance is a "task at hand" or a job he needed to focus on accomplishing rather than something "fun to do."  Good grief.  Why can't a man dance with is own wife at a youth dance?!  Oh well.  I gave up going since there wasn't much other point for me to be there if I couldn't even get a measly dance out of the man.

Anyway, that's me pictured below with some of the youth from that first year.  It's crazy...all of them are now off in college or on missions...and one is even married!

In addition to the previous things listed, the majority of what he had to focus on was Scouting.  As in, the Boy Scouts of America.  There were monthly Friday night campouts, the week long summer Scout Camp that always seemed to land on the week of my birthday. :/  And the court of honors, pictured below.

I can't tell you how many times I had to wash and press that uniform.  He has been a stickler for the boys wearing their uniforms, and he wanted to set the example for them with a full uniform of his own.  It was both cute and annoying at the same time.  Those things aren't cheap.  And I always had to make sure it was ready for him when he needed it.

As he entered into his second year of YM's President, things shifted a little bit.  It was a little harder and more demanding.  He didn't have as much help as he ought of had.  And there were a lot more younger boys and no older ones.  And we all know what 12 and 13 year old boys are like. :/ And on top of it, there were some difficult personalities to manage.  And though I know he missed having the comradery that he felt with the older boys from the previous year, Spencer never complained about these younger boys.  In fact, he was usually the one standing up for and defending them when others were frustrated or irritated by obnoxious personalities and habits.

I have to admit, he tolerated a lot.  But he expected a lot too.  And I think it was a good lesson for him.  I'm pretty sure it was beneficial for the boys too.  And I have to say, if anybody knows how to turn a boy into a man, it's Spencer.  I have full confidence in his fathering skills after watching him be a YM's President.

 These last couple of pictures above and below are from his last campout this past Friday/Saturday.

He knew going into it that it was his last one.

Here he is below loading up the truck.  He's got his beloved CamelBak on.

Yep.  My man got released as the Young Men's President today.

HE GOT RELEASED!!!!!!!

**shock**

The Bishop loved Spencer so much that he always teased him/half-way seriously told him he wasn't getting released as long as he was still the Bishop.  And while I loved that he loved and appreciated my husband so much, there were times when that seemed like the never-ending reality.

There were many, many times that I cried and just felt like I needed my husband.  And he wasn't there.

And there were even more times that Spencer would come home so drained and tired and void of life that there was nothing left for me even when he was home.

And he often felt there was no time or opportunity to do anything for his own enjoyment.

He was always working.

He was always serving someone.  

Helping someone.  

Doing something related to church.

And I was always doing something related to church too.

We have both been off in separate corners doing our own thing for so long.

It has been hard to have time together.

Or time for ourselves.

But as you know, things dramatically changed for me a few months ago.

It has been so great.  But I still wondered when I was going to get my husband back.

And it happened TODAY!! :D :D

I still can't believe it.

And the timing is so perfect too.

I remember when I talked to the Bishop a few months ago, I informed him that we were hoping to do IVF this year, probably late summer/early fall.  I told him that I was going to need my husband during that time.  When I said it, I wasn't necessarily expecting him to be released, but was more so implying that he would need some real help.  Some people that would step up to the plate to fill in for him when he couldn't be there.

I'm not sure if the Bishop remembered that conversation or not, but he certainly was in tune with what we were needing right now....

...Because We. Are. DOING. IVF!

:D :D

So CHEERS to a brand new journey!

And CHEERS to my Spencer and the completion of an incredibly intense 3 years!

YOU DID IT!  WE DID IT!

And I am so proud of you. ♥