Okay so the rest of 1996 and the first part of 1997 went by fairly quickly and were uneventful. We were both in college doing our thing and in the summers we both worked full time.
Come fall of 1997, I was entering my senior year of college and starting to think about what I would do after I graduated. As a child, my dream job was to be a Supreme Court Justice. I even read books about the Supreme Court. As a political science major it was assumed that I would either teach or go to law school. I didn't really want to be a teacher so it was law school. I bought the LSAT prep books and was one my way until I realized that I wasn't sure I wanted to be a lawyer, what if I hated it and spent $100k on law school for nothing? I opted to get my Master's in Education Administration specializing in Higher Education instead. I loved working with college students in residence life, orientation and admissions so it was a good fit.
So now that my career/education goals were in place, what about my personal goals? Dave and I had already talked about getting married after college. It was kind of a no brainer. We even picked out my engagement ring together that October. I didn't get it right away, Dave hid it from me. He said that I would get it when he was ready to ask me the big question. So I waited....I am not a patient person, I am much better now but then not so much. I tried to figure out when he might ask me but I had no idea.
First, I thought it would be Thanksgiving. We had Thanksgiving with my parents so I thought maybe then. Well, Thanksgiving came and went and nothing. Then I thought, well maybe Christmas??? But he was going home to WI for Christmas and I was staying in CA so maybe it would be at our Christmas break from school??? Well most of December had come and gone and I was due to fly to WI the day after Christmas to visit. I had only seen snow once before and didn't really own a warm enough coat or gloves so that was an adventure and I thought just maybe on this my first trip to WI, he would finally propose.
There wasn't a lot of snow on the ground that year but it sure was cold. This coming from the CA girl that freezes if it gets below 50 outside. I survived and got to meet some more of Dave's friends and spend time with his family. On New Year's Eve, we were having a little party at the lake house. Some of Dave's friends from high school were coming up and spending the night. Well, I was one of the only people over 21 so I had to stop at the liquor store in Lodi, WI and sign my life away to buy some beer. And I kid you not that the name of the liquor store was "Ted Kennedy's Liquor" I so wish had taken a picture of that.
Anyway so we were having a good time with our friends and were counting down the last seconds of 1997. Okay--here is the funny story. As we started to say Happy New Year, I found Dave down on both knees with my ring asking me to marry him. I cried and then laughed and then cried some more as it appeared he was begging me to marry him. Everyone else stopped mid thought and started to stare at us. It was a little weird since I didn't really know them all that well. Everyone was waiting to see what I would say. Obviously, I said yes. I loved this dorky, smart, funny man so why wouldn't I say yes.
I will never forget that moment. I waited until the next morning to call my parents and tell them. I couldn't wait to show them my ring when we got off the plane in a few days. And I couldn't wait to call my bestest friend and tell her either. I knew she would be thrilled and then we could start doing wedding stuff again (she was already married).
Stay tuned for wedding planning, bachlorette/bachelor party and the BIG DAY.
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