8 years ago today

February 17th, 2001 was the day Nate proposed to me!!

That was such a special day to me!! The anticipation started building up weeks before. Nate had surprised me with flowers on my bed, and with the flowers was a little handmade puzzle telling me to keep February 17th open. Then a few days after that I got balloons with a box of chocolates with more directions for the date hidden in the balloons. And then the last few clues were inside of some chocolate balls. I can't tell you how LONG those weeks were!! I was so anxious. And so excited. I guess I was assuming that he wouldn't make such a big deal about a date unless he was going to propose. So the morning of, I think it was 7:00 am, my mom drove me to the Flying J (as per instructions), where I was picked up by my brother-in-law Mark, and then driven to Nate's house. He had prepared a cute little candlelit breakfast. Complete with heart waffles. He had music for us to dance to, and he kept giving me gifts the whole time...a jewelry box, and a cute little clock. It was just amazing. I have to admit it really surprised me that he didn't propose then....but I still knew it was coming :) So we hopped in the car and started driving. You can imagine my curiosity of what we were going to do next!! And you can understand my disappointment when Nate asked, "so what do you want to do now?" lol It still makes me laugh. We stopped and got a car wash, and then went back to my house to finish watching the Truman Show that we had started the night before. I was really starting to worry that he really wasn't going to propose afterall :) I was very bummed. And I was really bad at faking like I wasn't bummed :) I totally got impatient and asked him if he was ever going to propose. I still regret saying that. But he answered with, "just take that little bit of patience you have left and stretch it just a little further" (I should probably mention that I had thought he was going to propose the Christmas before. It wasn't time then, but my mom had read into something and gotten me all excited for it :)--- so I had been "ready" to be engaged for "a long time") So anyway. I still wondered if it might be that day, but I wasn't sure. The next thing we did was stop at the mall to "pick up something from Beth's work(Nate's sister)". I really couldn't believe he wanted me to sit in the car while he ran into the mall, but I have to admit that it did get me really excited thinking he might be getting the ring while he was in there. :) When he came back out he didn't have anything with him and I just got so excited :). So after the mall we went to Subway. Again, I couldn't believe how unromantic and hoped he wasn't planning on proposing there :) (are you noticing my pickiness about when and how, and yet the urgency to do it that day? I'm so weird) So anyway. We drove around for a while. Ended up at Temple Square. We went and sat at our spot. After a few questions (we used to play the question game) it was his turn, and he asked me, "What knee are you supposed to kneel down on when you propose?" And I told him that it depended on waht side you were on and that I would have to see it. He got down on his knee, and I told him it was the other one :). Then he did it!! He said he had another question, and then pulled out the ring that he had picked out himself just for me, and asked me to marry him!!! Still gives me chills when I think about it!! I just love that moment.

I'm sure I missed some details. And I probably should have put more emphasis on how grumpy I got in the middle of the day. I really was bummed when I thought he wasn't going to propose. Nate would probably add that the reason he didn't get to propose after the romantic breakfast was because the ring place had messed up with the ring, and he didn't find out until the night before, that he wasn't going to be able to get it until 5:00 PM. So all the other plans he had had to go share the news with everyone and get pictures and stuff, were thrown out the window since we were not engaged yet :). He did such a good job though, and made it a fun little story. It's very symbolic of how we are :) Nate knows how to surprise me and I know how to have the hugest mood swings ever :) jk. But really he made it very memorable and very special to me.

I just have to say that I am SO grateful for that day, and for the fact that I get to spend the rest of eternity with such an amazing man. I remember our engagment and the whole time we were engaged as being such an awesome time. We were totally on a cloud. I remember the day after he proposed was Stake Conference in my ward and I just couldn't stop thinking about Nate and the fact that we were going to be husband and wife. I sat and drew a picture of us sitting on "Cloud 9" (way cheesy I know, I really haven't changed :) always been cheesy). I remember driving to his parents' house and then to mine and my grandparents' houses. It was SO fun to tell everyone the news. Everyone was so happy for us!! I didn't want the night to end. It was such an incredible feeling to know that he was the one I would be with, through everything else. It felt so amazing, like a load had been lifted and a comfort that I would not have to go through anything else on my own from that point on. It was just incredible. Nate is just incredible. I'm so glad I have him. I'm so glad he asked me to marry him, and I'm so glad that the last 8 years have been so good. Well, just wanted to get those feelings down. I keep thinking about him today and about that day and I just want to make sure that I always remember what an amazing thing that was.

Happy 8 Years Since Our Engagement Sweetie!! I love you!!

(my dad took our engagement pictures...I still just love them!)