Hello Lovelies,
This post has been half written for weeks now (wups!), I keep coming back to it again and again but it is so very difficult to put this perfect night into words! But here goes!
I really put my poor
Fiancé (I never get tired of saying that!) through the ringer on this one! About a month before we got engaged I accidentally found out that he had met with my dad. Now my dad and him are really close so normally this wouldn't be a big deal, but every time something came up about them getting together, Aussie would get all giddy and grin ear to ear...needless to say I was a bit suspicious. Then came the phone hiding and extra sneaky texting, and countless people asking if we were engaged yet! It just felt like he was definitely up to something.
If you know me at all you know that I'm pretty bad with surprises, I'm one of those girls that asks too many questions and likes to figure things out (not the best quality when your man is trying to set up a perfect proposal). For the next couple of weeks every time we were spending time together I would think to myself "ahh this might be it". I tried to look real good that whole month ;).
After a couple attempts (which I managed to unknowingly sabotage) came the real deal. We had always thought that getting engaged on Valentines day was a bit cliche so February 14th rolled around and I was unsuspecting, or at least
mostly unsuspecting. Now just some background, I am completely spoiled and blessed when it comes to date nights and special little surprises, he is probably the most romantic man out there so he can get away with being a little sneaky and over the top on Valentine's day.
I got instructions to show up at his house at four o'clock, bring boots and something warm and that was it. I drove up to his house where he was waiting out front looking mighty handsome ;) He ran out and opened my door and escorted me in to his living room which had been transformed into an indoor picnic by the fireplace. It was perfect. We ate strawberry spinach salad, stuffed peppers, marinated chicken and wonderful bread while Billy Holiday serenaded us in the background. It was sweet and cozy, and everything was so yummy! He was quieter than usual but didn't seem too out of sorts.
After dinner we sipped some amazing wine and danced a bit, it really was lovely. Then all of a sudden he said we had to go somewhere, silly me told him I wanted to dance to the next song so we danced a few more minutes. After telling me to change into boots, the little sneak
blindfolded me! Eek! Then he led me out to his car and drove down what seemed like the worlds windiest road. I started nervously asking questions, even though in my head I was pretty sure I knew what was happening. After what seemed like forever, we reached our destination and he told me to wait in the car (blindfold and all!) and he would be right back. Once I got over the fact that I was being left in a car, in the dark, blindfolded, in the middle of who knows where, I started to think this was really IT! I already began to tear up in my blindfold and had a million butterflies.
He finally came back (it was probably only a few minutes, but it felt like much longer) and led me up a path. Once we started walking up the ridiculously uneven stairs, I immediately knew where we were. I nervously chatted and exclaimed silly things like "I'm freaking out! I'm going to pee!", super cute, I know. After tripping a few times the stairs came to an end and he told me to stand in a certain spot. Then he told me to take off my blindfold.
He had brought me to our special spot, up in the Hoyt arboretum. It is a little opening, only big enough for a couple people, surrounded by trees with an opening to get in. We have gone there for years now so it was the perfect place. He had transformed it by making a bunch of lanterns all shapes and sizes, and hanging them up in the trees. When I took off my blindfold I was too excited to even notice the flickering candle lit lanterns, but it was really beautiful.
Waterworks immediately started when I saw him down on his knee, I'm not just talking sweet tears, it was full on swollen face crying (in the happiest way of course). I could not believe that it was finally happening. After thinking about it for a long time and imagining how it would feel and how I would react, the moment was really here! I was laughing and crying and squealing a bit, all the while he was saying the sweetest speech I've ever heard, he told me a story about the the first time he came over to my house (he was my brother's good friend), when he left he told his dad "I'm going to marry Dylan's sister someday", he told me how he wanted to spend forever with me and grow old together, he told me how I had changed his life, and how he wanted to spend the rest of our lives growing closer to God and worshipping Him together.
During the whole thing I kept trying to hug and kiss him, I even tried to sit on his knee at one point! It is a bit surreal having someone confessing their love to you, down on a knee! I just wanted to get down there with him! He asked me if I would marry him, and I said YES! Then he put my grandma's beautiful ring on my finger.
After soaking it all in, we went back to his house where dessert and champaign was waiting for us. He lit a fire and we spent the rest of the night dancing, squealing and jumping up and down like little kids, and calling friends and family. We celebrated all weekend long with dinner with our parents one night, and a beautiful engagement party the next.
It really was the most perfect night of my life, and now I get to spend forever with my best friend and love.
Here's a few photos from the night! Sorry they are crummy phone photos, but they'll have to do!
Hope you all are having a lovely day.
