Our Engagement Pic

The engagement details...

On Friday, October 6th (My grandparent's wedding anniversary),
I received a special gift from my friend Monica (8).

She gave me a special fortune cookie that had 3 fortunes inside:

"you are pretty",

"golden hours are coming to you"

and "be ready @ 5pm".

Chester had let me know that the proposal would not be a total surprise... that he would be kind enough to give me some sort of advanced warning, so that I could be ready in whatever way I chose....

So when I got the cookie, I was very excited!!! I knew that my "golden ring" hours were coming soon:)

The Distraction

Because he knows me so well, Chester told me to be ready @ 5 when he really wanted to start @ 7 pm.

October 7th was also our 23 month anniversary or 1.11 years :) I knew that he wanted to celebrate us.

Because I was so excited about possibly getting proposed to I was actually ready pretty early... @ 5:30 :)

Because Chester was all set to start at 7 pm, he sent some of my best friends by with saying they needed girl time to distract me... and take me shopping :)

Finally on our way

My friends brought me back home right around 7 pm and

Chester was waiting for me with an umbrella in hand.

It reminded me of when he used to wait for me at work on rainy days.

I was so happy that it was our anniversary and I knew Chester had a good surprise in store for me.

Our First Stop: JAVA JUNCTION
(Coffee shop where we first went out as friends)

We get to Java Junction and inside are some of our friends. I was under the impression that they might be a couple... We greet them and they let us know that they are working on school stuff... (which makes me smile since that is what Chester and I used to do)

Chester asked me to listen in on what they were saying... It turns out that they were saying specific things that Chester and I used to say to each other! Chester wrote a script about the last two years in our relationship and had our friends perform it!!!
At the end of their performance, he asked her to get married and she replied that "he would find out later on tonight".

Then Chester turns to me and gives me a white box.
Inside was a beautiful sapphire "eternity"
pendant. He told me that he wanted to give me something that I could always keep close to my heart.

A Kiss to Remember: Stop 2

Then Chester drove me to the kid's park where we first kissed. Surrounded by swings, see-saws and trees he hands me a beautiful platinum rose (in full bloom).



It is a real rose dipped it platinum so that it will live forever... "like our love" he said.

Then he talks about how it can be hard for some people to remember their first kiss, but since we have only kissed each other, we will always remember...

Then he said that since we don't know where life will take us and how often we will be able to visit this spot... he dug up dirt from the spot where we first kissed (and placed it in the pot with the platinum rose) so that we can always have a piece of that spot with us, no matter where life takes us.

I was moved to tears and was touched by his thoughtfulness.

Where we became more than friends:

Stop 3: The "what are we?" lake

Chester then drove me to the lake where we first told each other that we liked each other and that we wanted to be more than friends.

He then tells me to close my eyes because he has a surprise...

He was eating a Chick-fil-A sandwich!!! He has been a vegetarian for the last 12 years! He knew that I love Chick-fil-A and that I have always wanted him to know what it tastes like and share it with me... So he finally did! and told me that he would do anything for me!

This made me sob... I was so overwhelmed by his gesture of love...

He broke a 12 year fast!!! and all so that he could know what I was talking about when I said I loved Chick-fil-A.

Then before I knew it he took out a white box... I was so excited!!!

and inside I find: a very beautiful ring with a pink stone in the center.

I didn't know what to make of it... he didn't ask me anything... he just smiled...

so then I asked... "Is this a right-hand ring or a left-hand ring?" (Maybe he wanted to be different, so i had to make sure!)

It's a right-hand ring made out of sapphires he replied... (another present wow!!!) He told me that sapphires historically symbolize faithfulness. :)

Are you ready? -The FINAL COUNTDOWN

We get back in the car and head back to the student apartments. When we arrive, he asks me... "Are you ready?"

YES!!!

We make our way into his apartment and his living room is covered in lit tealight candles...

In the center of the room, is a table covered with flowers and candles and pictures of us as kids, and together in the photo booth and at the Christmas ball :)

I notice a guitar out of the corner of my eye and before I have time to wonder if he bought me a new guitar (since he doesn't play)

He grabs it from the case and begins to play (he had secretly been learning how)

and he sings a song that he wrote especially for me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am floored!!!!!

and at the end of the song he sang:

"Melissa, will you marry me?"

I am overcome with emotion and before I can say yes, He reaches for a blue velvet box. Inside is a beautiful glass slipper.

Engraved on the slipper are the words:

" Te quieres casar conmigo?" (Will you marry me? in Spanish)

On his knee he reaches out to me and holds out a beautiful ring

And says: " Melissa, te quieres casar conmigo?"

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!,

i replied

He then yell's out: SHE SAID YES!!!!

and then

all of these wonderful people that love us and have supported our relationship (and helped with the proposal) came flooding out of His room!!!

and they all had little bunches of flowers which they gave to me as they hugged and congratulated me... so I had a beautiful bouquet at the end:)

and they put up these bright decorated signs in Spanish and English and brought cake and punch and Papa John's BBQ pizza... YUM! :)

So as of October 7th, 2006... Chester and I are officially engaged!

We have our parents blessing and plan to get married in Summer 2007!

I can now proudly introduce him as my fiancee or "mi prometido".

YAY!!!!! GOD IS SO GOOD!!!!!!!!!! :) :) :)

We're ENGAGED!!!

We've only just begun

This is the beginning of a very beautiful time in our lives. Thank you for stopping by to share in our joy :)