I've Been Tagged!

Hooray, I have been tagged by Lindsey! I loved your post all about Mike, thanks woman! This tag is all about hubbies, so here is the scoop on my sexy man!

1. What is his name? Justin Dee Young - When I first asked him what his middle name was and he said Dee I was a little confused! I said "What do you mean? Your middle name is a letter?" To which he replied "No, D-E-E, not the letter D." I hadn't met anyone with that middle name before. Then I learned it comes from his Pa (Grandpa), Jon Dee and it all made sense. They were born on the same day and even look alike if you look at pictures of Pa when he was younger, so it's perfect!

2. How long have you been together? We first started dating, if you even want to call it that, (long story) in February 1999. So we've been together for nine years! It's crazy how fast that time has flown!

3. How long did you date? Okay are you ready for the long story? I hate telling it, I should just get a tape recorder with the pre-recorded story and hand it to people when they ask how we met. Ummm, well we only dated for about three days! Here's how it all began... Justin served a mission for our church in Portland, Oregon. The town I lived in was nearby and was his first area in which he was assigned to serve when he came to the Northwest. He first met my mother, who was working at the post office when he came by to mail some things. She noticed his Southern accent (which he strangely doesn't really have anymore) and the black missionary tag that all LDS Missionaries wear. In true Barb fashion, she cheerily said "Hello Elder!" and asked him where he was from. They discovered that Justin had come to Vancouver from Marietta, Georgia. Which just happened to be the same town my family lived in for six years prior to moving out West to Vancouver, Washington. Even weirder was that when his family moved to Georgia from Texas they moved into the exact same ward my family had moved out of. Had my family never moved out west, we would have lived only miles from each other.

I noticed the first time I met him that he had great taste in shoes because we had the same pair of Doc Marten's, only mine were the Mary Jane girl version (ahh, the '90s). I remember thinking he was kind of a jerk though and pretty cocky, which to me is totally nauseating. So I went on with my life, dating my then boyfriend and trying to survive the jungle that is high school. For some strange reason though, aside from what I didn't like about Justin, he had an impression on me and I didn't forget about him. Even after he left our town and continued his service elsewhere over the next two years, he was somewhere in the back of my mind. Which I really didn't understand at the time, but now I know it was the good Lord planting a seed.

Apparently somewhere in there, Justin had noticed me too. (I'm sure it was my fabulous Doc Marten's!) After he completed his two years of missionary service, he returned home to Georgia. Justin had been writing a close friend of his from his high school days, Stephanie, while he was on his mission. They had wondered about whether or not to try to take their friendship to the next level after he returned home. So shortly after returning to Georgia, he bought a plane ticket to Utah to see if there were any sparks between him and his old friend. Apparently, there just wasn't a single spark to be found. So oddly enough, one of the first people Justin called to lament to about his woman woes was my Mom. (Justin and my mom stayed in touch even after he left our area. I mean who doesn't love Sister McLean!?) They talked and eventually the conversation turned to "So, how's Sarah doing?" My mom suggested he find out himself and give me a call at where I was babysitting.

My boyfriend, Stu, had left for Rick's College and was preparing for his mission, so we agreed to date other people since we couldn't be together. My newfound friendship with Justin filled the void of being all alone in Vancouver after graduation, when all my friends had left for college. Even better, I found myself having great conversations with him and slowly I realized, I really liked this guy. We had talked on the phone long distance for a couple of months, when we decided that it was time for a visit. So I flew out from Washington to Georgia for Valentine's Day 1999. Three days after I got there, the writing was on the wall. I couldn't deny that I was head over heels in love with him, he proposed, we picked out a ring together, broke the news to our shocked and semi-ticked parents (I was 18). I flew home the next day and two weeks later Justin moved across the country to be with me. We were married three months later and the rest is history. It's totally insane, but strangely enough it seems to have worked for us in the long run. But just for the record, if our daughters ever pull a stunt like that I will beat them and lock them in their rooms!

4. How old is he? Justin turned 30 this past year on August 23rd. He says it was a little traumatizing and swears the aches and pains have increased ever since turning 30! It's a good thing he has a sassy wife in her 20's to keep him young! I have to remind him of his own pick-up line that "Hey baby, we're forever Young!" (I married into a great last name!)

5. Who eats more? I totally eat more than him, which surprises people because Justin is a big, burly guy. He really is quite picky actually, if it's not peanut butter, chocolate chips, or his Mom's cooking he really just can't put it down like I can!

6. Who said "I love you" first? Honestly, I can't remember. That whole time in my life was such a blur. Justin said it on the phone one night when we were still in the phone phase as he was falling asleep. (The time difference wasn't his friend, we'd talk until the middle of the night for him sometimes, poor guy!) I told him the next day what he had said and he seemed really surprised. Like if his subconscious said it, maybe he really did love me and he wasn't just saying it during his waking hours because I was a convenient rebound.

7. Who is taller? Justin is 6'2" and I am 5'8". He likes it when I wear heels though, he thinks it's sexy seeing me eye to eye.

8. Who is smarter? Hmm, I'm going to have to call a tie on that one. Justin and I have totally different interests, so we know a lot about totally different things. It's actually quite nice, because putting our two opposite brains together makes life more interesting!

9. Who does the laundry? Justin helps out a lot here. Usually I'll wash and dry it and he'll fold and iron. (I hate folding laundry!)

10. Who does the dishes? If he's in town, it's usually Justin. If I cook, he does the dishes. If he cooks, I'll do them. We have a pretty good thing going there.

11. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Justin sleeps on the right and I sleep on the left. Not sure why, that's just the way it works!

12. Who pays the bills? Me! I am a total control freak (yes honey, I can admit it!) when it comes to finances. I am a very 'duck in a row' kind of person and really crave the security of knowing exactly where we stand with money. I honestly can't say Justin has ever paid a bill in our entire marriage. If I died, he'd be totally up a creek because I've always just taken care of all of it. Truthfully though, I like being fully in the loop and Justin doesn't have time to do it anyway. So it works!

13. Who mows the lawn? Justin. I'm not opposed to doing it, but he enjoys it. He throws on the iPod and gets out of the estrogen jungle that is our house and works up a sweat. It's good for our lawn and his mental health.

14. Who cooks the dinners? Like I said before, whoever isn't doing dishes is doing the cooking.

15. Who drives when you are together? Justin! He was a passenger in a car accident on his mission and so it freaks him out to not be in control of a vehicle when he's in it. It used to bother the little feminist (now equalist) in me, but I've matured through the years and recognize that if that's what he needs to feel safe, let him do it.

16. Who is more stubborn? We can both be pretty stubborn at times. But I think it's pretty fair to say, Justin is much more stubborn than me. The first several years of our marriage we really butted heads because that boy does not back down for anyone or anything unless it is 100% his idea and on his time. The years have helped him a little bit though, he's still stubborn, but softer.

17. Who kissed who first? Justin kissed me first as I was getting off the plane in the Atlanta airport, the first time we met in person post-mission.

18. Who asked who out first? Justin initially pursued sweet- little-ol'-me, which I loved to remind him of when he was fed up with me in our early years! :)

19. Who proposed? Justin proposed, but he will tell you that the way that he did is to this day one of the biggest regrets of his life. We were sitting on the couch in his parents basement watching a movie, actually he was watching me and it just came out. He hadn't planned on it, no ring, no speech. Just us in sweats not looking so great, but totally comfortable in each other's presence. Truthfully, for me it was okay. I already knew I wanted to spend my life with him and I was just so thrilled to hear those four little words. I don't need a flowery, romantic display to know Justin loves me. Sure, I love when Justin brings me flowers or writes me love letters. But what makes me feel loved is the way he looks at me. That night he looked at me and for the first time in a long time, maybe forever, I felt like I was home. In him I found safety, acceptance, and love that I hadn't ever found in anyone else. No ring or bended knee would have changed the feeling of completion that I had at that moment.

20. Who has more siblings? Justin has me beat by one. There are six kids in his family and five in mine. It's because on his mom's last pregnancy, she had twins!

21. Who wears the pants in the family? Like I mentioned earlier, I'm a total equalist. I don't believe in one partner being more dominant that the other. Justin and I work together as a team to make it all work. We pick up each other's slack when needed, because that 's what best friends are for.

So there you have it, now you know my husband a little bit better!
Now I am going to tag Erin, Tina, Kristen, Keira, Kristine, Melanie, and anyone else who would love to brag on their hubbies!