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A long time ago I promised you guys our engagement story, so here it is. Be warned: It's kinda long. (But well worth the read!)
It was November of our senior year in college. We were having a winter semi-formal for the first time in many years and I was on the planning committee. The Monday before the dance, I got a letter in my mailbox from a secret society (like a sorority or fraternity, except co-ed and well, secret). I thought this was a little odd, being that I was not a member of one and you generally joined long before your senior year. But I was an active leader on campus so maybe it had to do with my society or some other group I was part of. Anyway, of course, I mentioned my invitation to Nate. A darned if he hadn't gotten one too! Convenient, right?
The night of the dance came and everything went off without a hitch. Great turn out, good DJ, decorations were awesome, fun time had by all. As it's approaching midnight and time for us to leave, Nate is getting more and more antsy to go. But I am a hostess of this shindig, so I have to make sure I've done my part, right? I am running around doing a million little things while he continues to hurry me along. Then a great slow song comes on and I want to dance. Then I want to change my clothes before we go. When we finally leave, we are over 20 minutes late.
On the way there, I am crabbing at him because he wouldn't let me change my clothes. Hello?! It is 28 degrees outside and I am wearing a sequin top and open toed shoes under my winter coat. So not weather appropriate (but super cute, of course!). But he argued that he didn't have anything to change into, the invitation didn't say we could change, we don't have time, just stay dressed like you are.
The invitation directed us to take a little walk through the woods near campus. As we climb out of the car, my camera falls out of my pocket and Nate nearly has a heart attack. What are you doing with a camera? Why did you bring that? Did someone tell you to bring your camera? He totally thought I was on to him. But I bring my camera everywhere with me, so I just kind of looked at him like, 'Dude, what's your deal?' and kept walking.
Nate was in charge of bringing the flashlight for our little woodland adventure, so as we entered the woods, I asked him to turn it on. Click. Nothing. Dead. No batteries. Seriously? That was your only job and you didn't check the batteries? First you don't let me change my clothes and now I have to venture through the woods IN HEELS, IN THE DARK.
We forge ahead, flashlight-less, and Nate grabs my hand and points out the full moon and how romantic this walk is without a flashlight. Uh-huh. Right. I'm too busy watching my feet to look at any stupid moon. Poor guy, I was not making this easy!
We get to a little ditch with a piece of plywood laying over it. Nate starts to walk across it and I'm like, 'Don't walk on that! You don't know how long it's been there. You could fall and break your ankle and then I'll have to carry you out of here!'. Of course, not knowing that he'd put it there just that day so that I didn't have to jump the ditch in my heels. Which I totally did anyway.
We passed a little boy scout hut and turned down a side path and even in the dark you could kind of feel that you had entered a little clearing. The woods fell away and the path opened up on both sides. Then suddenly thousands of Christmas lights were twinkling all around us in the bushes and trees. Yes, literally, thousands (2500 to be exact!). It was like a wonderland.
And I still totally thought it was the secret society thing.
That is, until I saw the rose petals on the ground and the table with a spotlight and what looked suspiciously like a ring box. Who felt like a total heel then? This clearly took days of work and planning and I had been *ahem* difficult, to say the least, since the minute we left the dance. I was lucky he hadn't walked me to a different clearing and left me there instead!
So we walked hand in hand down the little aisle of rose petals and he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I was so busy reminding myself to remember what he said (for the scrapbook later, duh!) that I completely missed the first two sentences! But I got the gist of it!
The whole thing was without a doubt the most romantic thing he has ever done for me. It took days to string up all the lights, then they blew a fuse, had to hi-jack electricity from the boy scout hut, and he was covered in poison ivy to boot! Poor guy. But it was worth every minute of it for the memories we have and the joy I get in telling the story over and over again. I love it!
