Unbeknownst to me, it all started about a month ago when Justin decided he was ready to take the plunge (a.k.a. buy the ring). In a tornado. The last I had spoken to him that stormy day, we had decided he would come over to my house after work. As I was leaving, I called a gazillion times to no avail and decided he'd been sucked up by a tornado and was somewhere between here and Oz by now. I was just beginning the process of mourning the sudden loss of my boyfriend when he finally answered the phone. He told me he'd ended up driving around (in. a. tornado!) while he was waiting for me and didn't hear his phone ring. Convenient, huh?
About three weeks later it was game time. St. Patrick's Day happened to coincide with the date of the ring's arrival and Justin (being the adorable six year old that he is) could. not. wait. This time, however, it was my turn to not answer the phone. I wasn't out buying myself an engagement ring in a tornado, but I was at work learning a new task. I returned to my desk to find five missed calls from him. I called him back.
"I'msosorry!Areyoureadytogotolunch?" "It's ok," he answered patiently, "I'll pick you up." I ran downstairs, hopped in his car and began thinking about the amazing peanut butter and jelly english muffin sandwich I was going to make when we got to my apartment for lunch.
I whipped out my phone to play my newly rediscovered Words With Friends app. I looked up from trying to figure out whether "dag" would pass as a word to see that we had passed the street that heads to my apartment. When I asked where we were going (assuming he had gotten distracted by the sight of a plane or dog (as he is known to do) and missed the turn) and he ever so nonchalantly replied that we were going downtown. Like, "oh no big deal" like, "oh you know, downtown" like, "la la la." It was definitely nothing like "we're going downtown to get engaged." I way fooled.
Again I asked where we were going and again he cooly convinced me nothing was up, even though it should have been absolutely clear that something was. I tried not to think about it. He took me to the bridge, walked me out to the middle, did the whole "kneeling and proposing thing" and I boohooed. Like, he took a photo right afterwards that I'm not even going to include because bawling is a very unflattering look on me. The rest is history. That is if history is defined as "frantically trying to find a venue, set a date, decide who to invite and where to register." I'm not sure, I'll have to ask Mr. Words With Friends...
From Justin's Point of View...
Well I knew I was going to propose for several months, but I wasn't quite sure when. I saved up some money, and one day it just hit me, and I knew I was ready so I planned to head over to Jones and Son Fine Jewelry. They were the only store in Little Rock that carried the Ritani brand that had the specific setting that Mallory wanted. I had checked the weather that morning and knew storms were expected in the late afternoon, but it wasn't like I could leave work real early to buy the ring.
So at 4 o'clock I left work and ran to the bank to deposit a check, and then back home to check the mail, and then I called Mallory to let her know that I had left work, and how disappointing it was that she couldn't go home early since it was starting to rain. I let her go because I couldn't let onto what I was doing and I gave the best man a call to let him know I was going to do it. He happened to be in the closet per his wife's orders due to bad storms in his area.
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| The Best Man Who Was Stuck in the Closet |
Mallory probably called me 10 times trying to find me, thinking I was dead, but you know that part already. The jewelry store told me it'd take three and a half weeks, but probably just three, for the ring to be ready. I called two weeks in, but they told me it usually took four weeks so I resigned myself to the idea that I wouldn't get to pick it up on St. Patrick's Day after all. When I woke up that morning, I knew there was a chance, but doubted it would happen.
Fast forward two hours, and I was sitting in the Capitol in a committee meeting waiting on a bill to come up before the committee. Right before it starts I get a call from a number I didn't recognize. I had to answer it because for some reason my iPhone suddenly has a password on my voicemail and I wouldn't be able to check it. It was Mae the lady who I bought the ring from, and it was ready! An hour and a half later I was able to get out of that building and run to my car.
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| It didn't actually look like this, but it's how it felt in my mind at the time. |
As you know by now I took her to the bridge and proposed. I think I kind of shocked her when I actually dropped to one knee because she really wasn't fully expecting it right then. The funny thing is, she said yes almost instantly (in her mind she waited an eternity). She sat there and I kept kissing behind her ear to comfort her because that was the only dry place on her head. But she said yes and I'm the happiest person in the world because I get to spend the rest of my life with the most beautiful woman in the world! See the picture below for proof.
