Our Engagement

Time for the story of our engagement. : ) (If you missed the beginning of our love story, go to the "love story" tab at the top of the page!) It's long...sorry!

Justin and I knew within about a month of dating that we wanted to get married. We talked about it a lot and couldn't wait to become husband and wife. In January 2010, we went and looked at engagement rings.

Side note: I think this part is up to each couple. Some girls don't want to pick out their ring, some girls do. I definitely wanted to try some on. I just "knew" that I wanted a three stone ring. I was dead set on it. I'm so glad that I went to try some on, because the three stone ring did NOT look good on my finger. I have long, skinny fingers and it looked awkward.

We had SO much fun looking at engagement rings. It was such an exciting experience...full of fun, anxiety, joy, and nerves. I ended up liking three rings and left the decision up to Justin.

Justin went on a fishing trip with his dad during the week of Valentine's Day. It was our first Valentine's Day together and we were miles and miles apart! He felt bad about missing it, but the trip had been planned for months. When he got back, he told me that he wanted to have a "redo" of Valentine's Day and that he had planned a surprise trip for us. He told me to pack a bag...that was all I knew. On March 5, 2010...we left for our little getaway. He wouldn't tell me where we were going until we were almost there. He took me to this adorable little Louisiana town, Natchitoches. It is about an hour from where we live. It's a quaint little town that is known for romantic bed and breakfasts and brick streets. I have to admit, I was thinking "maybe he is going to propose." It was definitely in the back of my mind. While we were driving, he started talking about how hard it was going to be to keep the proposal a secret and that he didn't want to buy the ring until right before the proposal because he was worried someone would tell me. I bought what he was saying and thought that he didn't even have a ring yet.

When we got to Natchitoches, he pulled up at this adorable bed and breakfast and said, "We are here!" I was so excited...it was adorable and I had never stayed at such a precious place before!

The bed and breakfast...with wrap around porches.

We unpacked and then decided to go walk around downtown. It is such a beautiful town, right along the river. They have lots of unique shops downtown and we enjoyed walking through each one.

Downtown.

As the day went on, Justin told me that we needed to go back and change because he had a dinner reservation. He took me to Mariner's...a restaurant right on the water. It was stunning and the view was literally breathtaking. For some reason, I don't have any pictures from there. I think I was too distracted with the mounds of food that we ate. : )

When we got back to the bed and breakfast, Justin said he wanted to walk around to the front of the house. When we got to the front, there was a horse drawn carriage waiting for us! It was amazing. We climbed in and went on a romantic ride around downtown. It was SO beautiful. It was the first time that I'd ever been on a carriage ride. (Later, Justin told me that he remembered me saying that I had never done this before, so he wanted to incorporate it into the proposal.) I was in heaven as we snuggled in the back and saw the beautiful town at night.

Our carriage.

When we finished our ride and got back to the bed and breakfast, we walked into the lobby. Justin told me that he had a "sweet and delicious" surprise to end our night. He told me to wait downstairs so that he could set it up. Now, if any of y'all know me at all, y'all know that I am a dessert girl. I was thrilled because I was thinking that he had some dessert to end the evening! It was so cute because I could hear him tromping around upstairs. After about 5 minutes, he came back down and got me. He told me that I had to cover my eyes and then he led me into our room. When he told me that I could open my eyes, I saw chocolate covered strawberries and diet coke (my favorite) set up on a little table. Right next to that, there was a huge silver box. I was "oohing" and "awwing" and trying to take pictures of it all set up. He told me to open the box. When I opened it, there were two teddy bears...a bride and a groom. I turned around and he was down on his knee. I was SO shocked and I just remember that I kept saying, "Are you serious?????" I eventually said "YES" and we hugged and jumped around! Okay, maybe I just jumped around. One of the best parts? He got it all on video! : ) He had set up his video camera in a hidden spot. It's my favorite thing ever.

Our first picture as fiancées!

The table set up. 

My two new loves. ; )

Happy happy happy.

We called all of our family and told them the great news. I was about to call my best friends when Justin told me that he had another surprise! He said that the next morning we were driving to Pineville (where my besties live) to surprise my friends! He had set it up with one of my friends. I was so excited!! He knows how special my friends are to me and that meant SO much to me that I was going to get to share the news with them IN PERSON!! : ) He also told me that after going to Pineville, we were then going to drive to my hometown for dinner and have dinner with my family! Hooray! : ) He's such a doll.

"Dad, she said yes!"

I made him reenact it.

My stunning ring.

After all those calls, it was time for dessert!

Please notice the "love" themed diet cokes.

A night that we will never forget.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for such a wonderful proposal!

The next morning.

Precious cake from my friend who was in on the surprise!

This is what my love bunny did while we had girl time.

I can't wait to have his babies.

We had a wonderful afternoon with my friends and then had a fabulous evening with my family! It was simply perfect! Justin knows me SO well and the proposal was perfect for us. I wanted a private proposal, but I wanted to be able to share it with my friends and family. When we got back that night, Justin said, "Okay, I'm done doing anything thoughtful for awhile...I'm tapped out." Haha! : ) He's such a cutie! March 5, 2010 was such a perfect day! It's funny because looking back, I can see how nervous he was that night. I can't believe that I didn't notice it!!

Love, love!