Our Story

Before I dive into our story I want to state in plain english, as clear as day, so even if you don't care to make it through our story you'll know the important gist. Marrying Clay Duke Lambourne was and still is to this day the best decision I have ever made. He is absolutely and undeniably my best friend. It is great to be loved, but it is a million times more profound to be understood to which I would argue Clay understands me better than anyone else.

When you hear the saying "he completes me" that was absolutely not the situation of Clay and I falling in love. Before I met Clay I was a whole, 100%, no slices missing gal. I didn't need no man haha jk. I can remember my girlfriends in high school taking polls and guessing who would be the first one married out of our group. The group consensus was always that I would find someone after medical school and would for sure be the last one to get hitched. At the time the idea of marriage was so far and distant it was almost humorous.
Anyone that knows me knows that I am very head strong and driven. I am the last girl you would picture blogging, making pies, and playing wife. I got to college and literally everyone that I knew was dating, getting married, pregnant, or some combination of those. Then there was me. An avid Tupac listening, t-shirt wearing, only friends with boys, geeked out pre-med student.
Then there was cool boy Clay. He didn't date much in college. He focused on running and friends. He was really quiet and kept to himself. Clay in all his coolness ate his turkey sandwich for lunch every day, went to track practice every day, went to classes everyday, and then had the occasional hoodrat adventure with homies.
Doesn't it sound like we just complete each other?

Flash forward to the night where two strangers agree to go get ice cream on a spontaneous blind date. Skinny little runner boy squeamishly knocked on my apartment door and said hello. Being the outgoing bundle of light and joy that I am I went in to greet him with a hug, unknowingly that his hands were stuffed in his jacket pockets. Our blind date kicked off with an awkward mummy side hug followed by a quiet walk to the car afterwards.
Suprisingsling the rest of the date was filled with We the Kings throwbacks, new inside jokes, and great conversation. I went home that night and just remember smiling. Which is pretty much a foreshadowing of how every day with runner boy is spent, smiling.
Dating Clay changed me for the better. He softened my heart, taught me a lot about myself, and showed me what it was like to selflessly care for another human being. I can't speak for Clay totally but I think that I changed him too. I think that I helped him come out of his shell and try new things. Together we made each other better. We both found a piece we didn't know that we were missing.

We were so lucky to have so many fun adventures while we dated in college. Our little college town was filled with so many fun spots to adventure. I can remember meeting Clay in the library to study and eat grilled cheese sandwiches. I remember flying foam airplanes in the park on Easter weekend and staying up late watching music videos on youtube. Clay made me the cutest attempt at spaghetti one time in his little college apartment. We spent pretty much any spare time we had together. Without even realizing it, Clay had become my best friend.
Now that is not to say relationships do not take effort, work, and patience. Bless Clay's heart, I can be a tornado sometimes, but he can be a diva, so it's give and take. But life was so much blissfully better with him in it. It got to the point where I just couldn't picture a future with Clay not apart of it. Keep in mind these were the thoughts of no marriage minded Maddie. So that was a game changer.
The middle of summer I got in my car and drove to watch Clay compete in a track meet in Logan. After his meet Clay and I are having a conversation, out of the blue, he says "So we will probably get married." UMMMMMMMMMMM. Weirdly enough I wasn't afraid, nauseous, or even hesitant, I simply knew I was going to marry Clay.

So I did! A lot sooner than I thought! Clay proposed to me the weekend before he went to cross country camp at the end of summer. We were just about to move back up to college for our senior year. He took me on a goodbye hike before his departure to cross country camp. We hiked up the ski resort mountain side in a field filled with flowers. I looked into the distance and saw something hanging from the trees. As I went over I saw that they were pictures of us. Clay got down on one knee, told me how much he loved me, and asked me to marry him. Then he left for cross country camp the next day. TALK ABOUT A MIC DROP. You also can be confident that this was a surprise proposal because one I looked like a bum, two I didn't want to hike in the direction of the pictures because there was a river to jump over, and three because then Clay left the next day lol.
But honestly Clay knows that I am a surprise cracking genius and that if he would have done it any other way I would have known all of the details then we would have had a lame, staged proposal. To which I am an avid hater of. Clay understands me so perfectly, are you getting the picture yet?

December 19, 2017 was the day we got married in the Salt Lake City, Utah Temple. Everything about that day was me and Clay to the Tee. It was simple, no drama, lots of food, lots of friends, popping music, karaoke (moreso Clay), nap in between, so much laughing, and just bliss. I had no idea that on this day I was just opening a pandora's box of infinite and numberless days of joy with Clay.
Since then we have both graduated college, got a dog named Jerry, moved to Oregon, and spend every day doing hooligan shenanigans.
Looking back I am always so amazed that Clay and I found each other. I never thought that my life would have taken the course that it did. But isn't that what life really is? The stuff that happens when your plans are going to crap. I for sure am glad that all of my plans went soaring out the window and that runner boy stumbled into my life.

This post is for Clay. I love you dearly.