I'm Engaged!!!

Yes! It has finally happened! I am now officially engaged to Autry! YAY! And I must say it was a complete surprise and perfectly romantic! :) It couldn't have been any better! For all you girls who love a good story...read on!

Autry & I went to a Christmas Parade (Item #16 on My Winter Bucket List done!), but we got there an hour early because we got confused about the time....SO we decided to drive around and look at Christmas lights (Item #1 done!) while we waited for the parade to start. This was around 6, the parade was supposed to start around 7.

I didn't think to take any more photos, but this is the best one I have of the lights that were all over the yard and fence at the house were Autry proposed to me. As you can see, there are quite a bit of lights...and yes this is just one little house!

We found this one really awesome house which had lights ALL OVER the house, yard, fence...you name it, it had lights on it! I LOVED it! Next to this house was a place to shop for a real Christmas tree...I'd never even touched a real tree so we decided to get out and walk past the house (so we could see everything that was there) and then to go the tree shop...I guess that's what you call it?! lol. I have to admit that I never knew real trees were so SOFT! Wow! I cannot wait for next year! Autry & I will be getting a real tree for our house!

Anyway, we walked past the house again and then back to the parking lot where our car was. We were standing outside the car talking and I was telling him how happy I was right then with everything in life and with us...It was a perfect moment and I hope I'll be able to remember it for a really long time! At some point Autry said, "let's go look at those lights again." I said, "Seriously? We've been by there twice; those people will think we're creepers!!" He laughed and said, "no they won't, they're probably not even home." So we walked back to the house to look at all the beautiful lights and decorations which were literally everywhere.

I had turned to fix this ornament when Autry got ready to pop the question!

Both times we had walked past the house before I had not noticed all the wreaths which were on the fence. Each one had an ornament on it, but the one on the very end was turned so I couldn't read it. I bent down to fix it and was looking at the ornament wondering who made it and if they lived at the little house now when I heard a noise of something Autry was doing behind me.

I turned and looked and he was on one knee!!!

I don't remember too much after that except I said "yes" lots!!! I was so very surprised. All day long I thought something was up, but he didn't propose when we went out to dinner, and he didn't propose when we were at the park...and when we left for the parade I thought he locked up the ring (aka didn't have it with him) so I thought to myself: "well, I guess it's not today..." so after that I didn't expect it at all lol. He told me the original plan was to propose on Christmas Day, but he didn't want to wait that long. :)

I did have the camera with me which is why I have a few after photos which I will now share with you. I couldn't keep the camera still so some are blurry, but I have so few that I didn't want to delete a single one!

I really love this photo!

A little blurry, but I think this is my favorite.

Look at our faces! :)

 

This is not long after. We are sitting on the back of his car watching the parade!

 

We walked around a bit after I took the above photos. We ended up making a short stop at a small grocery store...and the very first person I saw (which was on the other side of the isle in the parking lot) I shouted: "I'm engaged!!!" And I don't think she heard me, or she chose not to respond...either way I was not phased and went on into the store. :)

The Ring

The ring Autry gave me actually is a family ring...it used to belong to my Grandma Helen whom I was named after but never got to meet. She died young from a brain tumor when my mom was in her teens. The ring has belonged to my mom for years. I remember seeing it's box among her jewelry collection and I would sit and look at the ring and think how beautiful it was.

 

 

Autry & I went looking at ring stores for something I might like, but nothing really ever quite matched the beauty of Grandma Helen's ring! Finally one day I told him that the only ring I really wanted was that one...so he talked to mom and I guess things worked out because now the ring is mine!

 

 

Mom told me that she gave me the ring because it belonged to Grandma Helen and since I was named after her it should go to me. It feels so weird to have a ring on my hand. I haven't worn any jewelry in years and now I have an engagement ring!!! :)

 

 

I think it is an absolutely beautiful ring! I wouldn't want anything else. I tried on so many rings, but nothing will ever compare to this one! It has a diamond in the center and two on each side. It is perfect in every way.

 

Telling Family & Friends

When we got back to my house we told everyone we were engaged. I think for the most part they all pretty much already knew, but they were all super excited anyway. AJ was the first to give me a hug. :) He is so sweet.

 

He said his hair was too messy for a pic so he grabbed the hat I made for him last Christmas...
And then I pulled it down over his eyes. :)

 

I called both the best friends and told them over the phone. They both squealed and then asked when was the big day. We told them that we weren't sure yet, but possibly January 14th, but it may end up being February since Autry's time off won't kick in until mid-to-late January and we'll want that for the wedding and honeymoon.

 

At my house in front of the Christmas tree.

 

Mom wanted us to get a photo in front of the Christmas tree. Autry said he wanted to propose where there were Christmas lights so that every year when I saw lights I would remember when we got engaged. I thought that was the sweetest, most romantic thing ever!