The Engagement Saga

David and I had been dating just about 2 1/2 years before he had proposed (we had talked about getting married for a while but months just kept going by. I was starting to think it was never going to happen). Little did I know that David had begun planning the proposal back in December of 2009. (I love that he put so much thought and effort into it).

His original plan was to propose to me at RED (our favorite fancy restaurant in Hyde Park) and then also surprise me with a cruise to celebrate our engagement (cruising is one of our favorite things to do). So he first started researching dates/cruises and decided on the week of April 25 – May 2, 2010. David talked to his brothers and decided it would be courteous to give me some lead time before the cruise (they know me all too well), so he decided the date of the proposal would be a week before the cruise. So, Saturday, April 17, 2010 was the date!

We usually go on a cruise every February, but this year David said the economy was bad and that we better postpone it. I decided to take matters into my own hands, on Valentine's Day I surprised him with a cruise for the week leading into Memorial Day 2010. He didn't look very happy when I gave him the cruise papers. I definitely did not get the reaction I wanted. Here I was, thinking I did this awesome thing, and all he could say was that “it wasn't a good week” and that he couldn't go. I, of course was bummed, but I was able to cancel the cruise and get all of my money back. Little did I know that he had already booked an April cruise!

The day before Easter we were all over at my Dad & Step-Mom's house, and my sister, Sheryl, and her boyfriend, Joe, announced that they had just gotten engaged. David wasn’t ready for that news flash (he knew he was set to propose to me in 2 weeks)! Then on the very same day, my Step-Mom told us that she read in the newspaper that our favorite restaurant, RED, had unexpectedly closed. The very restaurant where Dave was going to propose!

Quite the saga, I know! Poor David and his engagement plans... David had the ring and the cruise tickets and so he knew there was no going back.

Anyhow, on Saturday, April 17, 2010 David and I were discussing dinner plans while at the grocery store and then he said that we hadn't been out to a nice dinner in a while just the two of us and "just because", so we decided to go to Jeff Ruby's, The Waterfront. We made a reservation right then and there. We had awesome dinner with an awesome view of the Cincinnati skyline. I, of course never thought anything of it. I just thought it was a nice dinner out on the town (not too uncommon for us).

We then got back home and David said he had a surprise for me. He ran upstairs real fast and then came back down and proceeded to tell me how much he loved me and how much I meant to him etc., (I'll keep the details between him and I...hehe) and then he got down on one knee and proposed! I, of course was shocked, happy, every emotion, etc. It actually took me about 30 seconds to say YES because I was just in shock. Obviously, I had no doubt in my mind I wanted to marry him; I was just taken back by it all. He then surprised me with the cruise!

Our engagement was definitely the happiest moment of my life so far!