The Tangrens

When the time came I attempted to get him to go but he was helping a neighbor with his car and he kept putting me off. Finally I had to ruin my own surprise to get him up to the apartment where our friends had left because when they got there the door was locked and they couldn't get in. Surprise: Fail. Party: Fail.

Fast forward to a few Thanksgivings into our marriage. Derek was still in school and was also the elders quorum president and was naturally very busy so I had the brilliant idea of kidnapping my husband and whisking him off to a night at the Anniversary Inn ( a VERY nice hotel in the area)before we headed up to Idaho Falls. I'd even slyly checked to make sure he didn't have any meetings or visits that night. Then come to find out he'd scheduled a home teaching appointment! I fumed and told him that I had a surprise planned for that night.Surprise: Fail. Escape: Salvaged more or less. But beginning to swear of ever trying to surprise Derek.

I know there were other surprises ruined but the ones I've mentioned were probably the biggest and the ones I can remember right now. Once Hyrum came and I stopped working the thought of trying to surprise Derek went out the window since we only had our shared account and he checked it all the time. There was very little hope of slipping something past him. But then my friend Cristall had her home art show this last November and I began to think I might try again. We need to back up here a moment give some back story.

Close to five years ago we were living in our apartment in American Fork saving for a house or paying off student loans, perhaps both and we were invited to a home art show Cristall was having. We happily set off to take a look. Immediately a painting caught Derek's eye. A large and beautiful painting of the Carthage jail. But it was way too expensive for our budget to allow so we only admired it. In the coming years Cristall started to be represented by more and more galleries and her prices increased. We kicked ourselves for not getting one of her paintings before she realized what they were worth. She would have shows and we would go and admire but never were in a place to purchase. Then this last November she had another old fashioned home art show like she did at the beginning and we were invited. Again we thought about 'Carthage' and wondered what she was charging for it these days. I planned to go but remembered about it too late to make it. So a few days later I decided to email her see how much it was and then stash away money and buy it to surprise Derek. Knowing how much it was and how much her prices had increased I planned on a long time of sneaking 20 dollars here and 20 dollars there out of the checking account. But when I emailed her she told me that it was HALF of what she was charging all those years ago. (Any one care to take another gander at her work?) I was shocked! I began to move up my plans and thought I might surprise Derek for Christmas. But the more I thought about it the more I thought I should wait till our anniversary since we got married in Nauvoo. I thought about buying it and then having her hold it until July but didn't think that was fair. So I didn't mention that to her but it was my plan.

Then came the Thursday in December ( the 16th ) when Derek called me on the way home saying that he did something a little crazy. I couldn't fathom what it was. Over dinner he told me how he'd been at Cristall's for some reason and had mentioned to her off hand how much he admired "Carthage" and asked how much it was these days. When she told him he simply bought it being as shocked as I was that it was still around at that price. Then he waited hesitantly for a few weighted seconds worried that I'd be mad at him for spending that much money without clearing it with me.( I worry about spending 5 dollars without clearing it with Derek first) Instead I sat in frustrated disbelief. Then I started pounding the table ranting about I can never surprise him and that she knew I wanted to get that for him. Surprise: Fail.

But doesn't it look amazing. We love it. Cristall said she'd almost sold it that week so it was good my husband shoots from the hip afterall. The next order of business will be getting a console table to stand in front of it to keep little hands at a good safe distance from it. We have Derek's grandma's old kitchen table with fold down sides in front of it right now but it's a temporary fix.

When Cristall and her husband Matt came to deliver the painting ( It was too big to fit in the car) Derek brought out a package. I opened it and found another painting of Cristall's called 'Sunny' that I blogged about a couple of years ago. I looked at Derek with accusing eyes because it was another painting I'd thought about buying as a surprise ( from Derek to me) Then Cristall said "Merry Christmas!" I was shocked. I just about burst into tears. I couldn't believe she would GIFT me one of her amazing paintings.