Together in Utah!

Derek's family moved to Bountiful UT in 1999.

During the summer of 2003, the Hallsteds were visiting UT for a family reunion and went to see the Walkers. Amanda was excited to see what Derek was like, after having a crush on him when she was 5 years old. Derek only remembered Ammon from being friends with him when they were little, but finally noticed that Ammon had a cute little sister.

Derek and Amanda immediately hit it off. They had a blast together and were instant friends with major crushes on each other. They created great memories in a short 2 days.

Six months later, the Hallsted's decided they were moving to UT. They moved to Cedar Hills, Utah on New Years Day of 2004.

The Walkers and Hallsteds got together a few times a year even though they lived an hour apart. The first time getting together after the Hallsteds moved up to Utah, was when the Walkers came down to see Amanda perform in the Musical, Oliver.

They also did things in the summer like hike Timpanogos Caves followed by a fun jeep ride up the canyon, and go to Lagoon a few times!

When Amanda was finally old enough to date, Derek took Amanda on their first double date to see Pirates of the Caribbean dressed as pirates. They had a blast. They also went on a temple square date each christmas.