Hope your week is going well and that you enjoyed part one of our engagement!
If you missed that, feel free to catch up here.
Without further ado, let's finish this love story.
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Where we left off, life was good.
Joe and I were settled in Alpharetta and doing really well at our jobs.
We hadn't talked about getting engaged since the wine incident, and even though I was a little sad it hadn't happened yet, I was very content in our relationship.
Before we knew it, it was December - our five year anniversary, Christmas, and New Years.
December has always been one of our favorite months {clearly because there's a lot of celebrating to be done}, and this one was no exception.
We had a lovely, low-key anniversary on the 19th, and then spent some time at Joe's parents' house for Christmas.
For New Years, we had planned to have Kayla and her boyfriend over for a couple of days to celebrate.
They were set to arrive on December 30th, and I couldn't wait!
I remember that day being a very normal day.
I had to work and Joe didn't, so he was tasked with cleaning the apartment before our friends arrived {which obviously had me slightly panicked...will he get it all done in time?!}
I was grumpy because something at work wasn't going my way, so basically I was watching the clock - ready to get off, have drinks with my friends, and relax for the next couple of days.
Because Joe was in charge of cleaning {and I know that he would choose Xbox over actually cleaning any day of the week}, I texted him a few times throughout the day to make sure things were getting done.
But he never answered.
Which is so strange, because normally we talk pretty much all day. If an hour or two goes by that we haven't touched base, it's unusual.
So by 3:00, I was straight up worried. Worried enough that I told my manager that I needed a minute to FaceTime him because this was so unlike him not to answer.
And thank goodness, he finally answered...only to tell me he had been playing Xbox and was just about to start vacuuming.
What?! Please start cleaning, they'll be here in two hours!
That's pretty much how the conversation went.
My manager laughed once I got off the phone, and at 5:00 she wished me luck on the cleaning, to which I responded, "If he hasn't vacuumed, he's dead."
If I knew what he had really been doing all day, I never would have said that!
It was the single most perfect night I've ever had, hands down.
December has always been one of our favorite months {clearly because there's a lot of celebrating to be done}, and this one was no exception.
We had a lovely, low-key anniversary on the 19th, and then spent some time at Joe's parents' house for Christmas.
For New Years, we had planned to have Kayla and her boyfriend over for a couple of days to celebrate.
They were set to arrive on December 30th, and I couldn't wait!
I remember that day being a very normal day.
I had to work and Joe didn't, so he was tasked with cleaning the apartment before our friends arrived {which obviously had me slightly panicked...will he get it all done in time?!}
I was grumpy because something at work wasn't going my way, so basically I was watching the clock - ready to get off, have drinks with my friends, and relax for the next couple of days.
Because Joe was in charge of cleaning {and I know that he would choose Xbox over actually cleaning any day of the week}, I texted him a few times throughout the day to make sure things were getting done.
But he never answered.
Which is so strange, because normally we talk pretty much all day. If an hour or two goes by that we haven't touched base, it's unusual.
So by 3:00, I was straight up worried. Worried enough that I told my manager that I needed a minute to FaceTime him because this was so unlike him not to answer.
And thank goodness, he finally answered...only to tell me he had been playing Xbox and was just about to start vacuuming.
What?! Please start cleaning, they'll be here in two hours!
That's pretty much how the conversation went.
My manager laughed once I got off the phone, and at 5:00 she wished me luck on the cleaning, to which I responded, "If he hasn't vacuumed, he's dead."
If I knew what he had really been doing all day, I never would have said that!
...and buying me the most beautiful ring!}
I got home, and thankfully the apartment was spotless, so I proceeded to tell Joe all about how awful my day was - so awful that I didn't even feel like changing out of my work clothes for dinner. {These days I'm kicking myself for that...}
Our friends arrived around 6:00 and brought their dog along with them, which AJ was less than thrilled about.
I remember offering at least three times to take him to daycare, and everyone kept insisting I didn't leave {which I totally didn't understand...why is everyone being so weird?! It's not a big deal!}, until finally Kayla suggested we go freshen up for dinner.
The two of us went into the bedroom and started touching up our makeup and chatting about our day.
After a moment or two, Joe peaked his head in and asked me to come to the living room real quick, which I assumed would just be him asking me a question about the plans for the night...
He quickly walked over to our Christmas tree, so {still oblivious} I followed him to see what he needed.
When he turned around, he handed me a glass of red wine...
"Taste this - is it good? Do you know what wine this is? Do you remember what you said about this wine?"
It immediately clicked, and all I could said was "yeah...I do..."
{In my head I was thinking is this really happening?! NOW?!}
He took my glass, set it down on the TV stand, and took both of my hands in his.
Then he said the things I had been waiting to hear for five years.
I wish I could remember it all verbatim, but after he said, "I can't wait to have kids with you one day," I honestly think I blacked out from the realization that this was actually happening. Here. In our apartment. On what seemed to be a normal Monday night.
He asked me to marry him right there in our living room, in front of my best friend and her boyfriend, and obviously I said yes immediately!
That wasn't the last surprise of the evening though.
Joe had planned a celebration for us {clearly he was confident in the 'yes'}, so immediately afterwards, his family and a ton of our friends were at our place, toasting and celebrating and admiring my sparkly new addition.
 |
| freshly engaged :) |
It was the single most perfect night I've ever had, hands down.
And this brings me back to my original point on 'perfect timing.'
If Joe had proposed back in year one when I was ready, we wouldn't have been surrounded by all of the amazing friends we've made over our years together, it wouldn't have been as personal and intimate as it was {in our shared living room of the place we both call home}, and {biggest of all} we wouldn't have been able to afford the wedding we both envision having with each other.
It was so important for Joe to make sure we were taken care of {education, careers, savings} before he felt comfortable taking us on this next step, and now I understand why.
Wedding planning so far has been virtually stress-free because we're so settled, and for that, I am grateful.
That guy of mine, he's smart.
So there you have it folks.
That's the story of how we got engaged.
For those of you that are wondering, the wine we had was a Kathryn Hall cabernet.
I think it was this one, but I'd have to double check to be sure.
It was amazing though, and totally worth the wait {much like our engagement!}.
Lastly, since I was lucky enough to get engaged with my best friend present, I have a video of the whole thing that I will cherish for the rest of my days.
Thanks, Kayla!
It's a little dark, but you can hear the sweet words he said and I love it.
I can't wait to show it to our kids one day.
Enjoy!
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