Our Story: Engaged!

Sorry for the delay. I got distracted this week, but we are back on track....

I knew that it was just a matter of time before Rick proposed. We went ring shopping and I picked one out that I liked. I really like white gold, but the ring that I wanted only came in yellow gold. So, we had to wait for the jeweler to make one exactly how I wanted it.

For the next few weeks, I nagged Rick endlessly, telling him that I really wanted to get engaged before school was out so that I could show off my ring to all of my classmates. (I know, very silly) But, the jeweler was taking forever.

One day, Rick announced that he wanted to take me on a little date. He told me to be ready for him to pick me up really early on Saturday, April 15th- the last day of finals. To say I was excited would be an understatement.

On the morning of our date, Rick was really fretting because the weather wasn't that great. He said that we wouldn't be able to do our activity if it was raining. I told him not to worry because I was more than willing to get wet. He said that it really wouldn't work. I was confused and didn't have a clue where we were going.

We drove for a short while, and then Rick pulled into the Provo airport. Waiting for us was his cousin, Brad, who was flight instructor. Rick and Brad spoke for a few minutes, and they decided that the weather was good enough for a flight.

I was so excited! We climbed into a little 4 seater plane. It was so small (and loud) that we had to talk into a headset to hear each other.

We flew above Provo, and although it was a little drizzly out, it was still gorgeous. Rick said he packed some breakfast for us, and he pulled out some snacks. First, he offered me a small round donut, which I ate. The he offered me a bagel that he had prepared beforehand with peanut butter on it. I declined that. (Where was the cream cheese?) Then Rick pulled out a bag of dry fruit loops, which I thought was a slightly odd choice. Next came the gummy peach rings. Peach rings? For breakfast? When Rick pulled out the Funyuns (you know, those nasty onion flavored corn rings from Frito Lay) I about lost it. I said something like, "Rick, why in the world would I want to eat Funyuns at 8:00 in the morning?" This was seriously one of the weirdest breakfasts I've ever had.

Rick decided that he better do something good before I really got mad. He asked Brad to take off his headset for a little privacy. He pulled a small white box out of his pocket and tried to get on one knee, but there wasn't any room. He told me that he loved me and promised that he would always take care of me if I would be his wife. Of course I said yes. I wonder how many people are proposed to on a headset?

I loved my ring and couldn't stop looking at it....

Rick had done a very good job at convincing me that my ring wasn't ready, so I really hadn't been expecting a proposal that day. As it turns out, he wasn't lying. My ring wasn't ready.

The jeweler had promised that my ring would be ready by Saturday, but he had some problems and hadn't finished. Rick had already planned our whole engagement outing, so he was a little ticked off. The jeweler understood Rick's predicament, so he offered him an alternative. The ring Rick used to propose with was the gold one from the display case dipped in white gold, although my stone was in it. In a few more days, when my ring would be ready and we would just need to bring the loaner back in a switch the stones. I couldn't tell the difference. I was just happy to have a ring on my finger.

After our flight

We went back to the car after the flight, and Rick pulled out a gorgeous bouquet of roses out of his truck for me. White roses are my favorite. Bonus points to Rick for remembering to add one to the mix.

When we got back to my apartment, we called our families, talked for hours and enjoyed being newly engaged. It wasn't until this point that I finally figured out what was up with Rick's bizarre breakfast. Everything was ring shaped. He had to come out and tell me this. I'm a little dense. Of course, I made Rick empty his backpack and I took a photo of everything he brought.

Counter-clockwise from the roses: donuts, funyuns, peach rings, bagel, tylenol (why in the heck did he bring this) a cup for our drinks, and Fruit Loops in the while bag. In the middle is Rick's favorite "mad bomber" hat with my white ring box sitting on top of it.

Eventually, I had to go up to campus and take a German final. I did really bad on that test. It was hard to write and look at my ring at the same time. I really enjoyed showing off my ring to my classmates.

After class, I hurried home to Rick and we went to Carver's Steakhouse to celebrate our engagement. In this photo I'm grasping my wrist, trying to resist the urge to hold my hand out and show off my ring some more.

After dinner, we stayed up way too late, talking about the wedding, our future and our dreams. We also had a toast with some sparkling cider. I was head over heels in love.