Have you Heard?

The story of our engagement?

Jeff and I became engaged on June 5th, 2004 just over a year after we first met.  It really wasn't a surprise.  I think Jeff and I both knew we were headed towards marriage after dating for four months.  We just hung in there to 13 months to give all this love stuff some time. 

The engagement event wasn't a surprise for me mainly because Jeff couldn't keep a secret.  Not in his personal life, professional life he was a closed book, but I pretty much new in the months before hand that he had been out and about making a big decision (the ring).  I played along like I didn't know because that is what he wanted.

I also knew that our big trip to New York City was going to be the location of the proposal.  It didn't take much deductive reasoning to figure it out: it had been over a year, we had a big trip planned, and I knew he'd been up to something in the months leading up.  Pretty clear-cut.  But again, I played along.

As with many of our stories, this one is pretty funny.  Our first day in NYC and we were headed out to buy 1/2 price tickets to Broadway plays.  I was on a mission.  The plays are my favorite thing about NYC and I love a deal, so I always buy the 1/2 price-day-of tickets.  So, I'm on a force-march to the ticket booth and Jeff is pointing out some locations.  "Hey - here is the Toys R Us, or Hey - here is XYZ."   And my response was "Nope, lets go get tickets we can do that in a minute."  Little did I know, the ring was burning a hole in Jeff's pocket and his blood pressure was through the roof with anticipation of getting the proposal done. Like I said, he couldn't keep secrets and this plan was killing him.

Once we got our tickets I was willing to listen to touristy ideas so we headed towards the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  Once inside Jeff declared that he was hungry and wanted lunch.  My thought was "Now!  You couldn't have said something 10 minutes ago?"  (I'll be honest with you, I thought that the proposal would likely happen that night at a fancy dinner followed by said Broadway play).  But it turned out there was a cafe on the roof of the Met so we headed there on the elevator. 

Once on the roof, Jeff got a snack and we had our picture taken overlooking Central Park.  Then we went to look at some funky sculpture to the side and that is when Jeff dropped down on one knee and said:

"ACK!  I forgot what I was going to say!"

But then he said, "Will you complete me?"

And of course I said yes.

As we kissed we heard "Wow!  We were in the elevator with them!"  LOL

We immediately left the Met to call our parents and friends (I didn't see anything at the Met!) and then we spent the day walking in Central Park and talking.  It was beautiful.

Sincerely,

Jeff's Wife