Monday, August 26, 2013

The Proposal



The past two weeks have been such an adventure to say the least! On August 13, 2013 my best friend and now fiancé (!!!), Clay, got down on one knee and proposed. After only a few short days of planning we quickly realized this was going to be unlike any other wedding we've ever worked on. Through the next 7 months I'm going to share with y'all our process but today I'm going to share my favorite story to tell: the proposal.

To really understand what happened on the Tuesday of the proposal we have to back up a couple of weeks. Here's a quick recap to get you caught up: About two weeks before the proposal I got an email from my friend Callie to see if she could stop by the warehouse to pick up a few things for a photo shoot and then we would go downtown for dinner and drinks on August 13th. Fast forward to Friday, August 9th.  On Friday Sydney came home from Pigeon Forge, TN. That was a celebration! The next day Clay and I were working a wedding in Durham. For some reason, the whole household was in a mood that day - it was one of those days. We escaped the craziness of the house to go on a date to a local tapas restaurant before we made our pick up that night. On Sunday Clay left to go to work/church in Greensboro and he had insisted on driving back to Raleigh that same night to be here for Sydney's birthday. On Monday Sydney turned 21 (woohoo!) and we had a day full of manicures, pedicures, shopping, and sipping wine. It was a really good day. At some point on Monday I made a comment about being so excited to get into the warehouse and reorganize after the two events we had that past weekend. Later that day, Clay asked me if I could take the day off work if he stayed an extra day. He had this brilliant plan that we do an Olympics day on Tuesday before he had to head back to a dinner with some of the guys at church that night. Of course I was so on board with this, especially because our weekend had been so hectic and I wanted to spend more time with Clay, Hamp, and Syd. On Tuesday morning we woke up and the Olympics commenced. We played ting tong (our tiny dining room table version of ping pong), we had the Sophie Wrangle, we played putt putt, the boys play COD and Syd and I napped, and we finished off the day bowling. It was a really, really great day. Being with the three of them makes my heart so happy and full! From the bowling alley Clay left to go to Greensboro and I went back home to shower and get ready to meet Callie for dinner. 

On my way to dinner I called Clay who explained how he had missed the Elon exit to pick up his hiking boots, was running late for dinner - all convincing and legitimate things. I told him I was running about 10 minutes late to meet Callie because of traffic and he suggested I call her to let her know. I gave Callie a call and she told me that was totally fine because she was running late too. I pulled up to the warehouse and I could see through the front lobby window that it was spotless. Where there had been stacks of chairs and tables there were flowers and candles. I walked in the front door and saw this:



Clay was standing there holding a bouquet of fresh roses, "Dance With Me Baby" was softly playing in the background, candles were lit, bistro lights were hung....and I started sobbing. Naturally. Clay gave me the roses, and kissed me on the forehead, and poured us each a glass of wine (I think this was his attempt to calm me down, sweet thing.) He took me by the hand, sat me down on our favorite sofa, and pulled out his Bible and began to read.


"Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband." (Ephesians 5: 22-23) 

After he finished reading he said some really sweet things that I really wish I could remember but by this point I was crying again. He reached behind him and pulled out a small green box, got down on one knee, and asked me to be his wife.


I said "YESSS!!!!!" And it turns out Callie was there after all, which is why we have these amazing photographs from the proposal! Callie, I could never thank you enough for capturing this sweet night!


And just when I thought I could not take anymore excitement, this happened:


The whole family was there!! And of course, more tears.


It was absolutely perfect. When the craziness of wedding planning becomes overwhelming I think back to this night when I said "yes," not to a wedding, but to a marriage. March 29th can't come soon enough.







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