stinky, puffy-cheeked proposal

I have about a million things I need to be doing right now, but I can't let today pass without sharing.

Today (the date, not the day, because it was actually a Monday) marks SEVEN years since the love of my life asked me to marry him.

It was the Monday before Tulip Festival.

I had very recently gotten my wisdom teeth out, and I looked like a human version of what I had imagined our baby "squirrels" to look like when they grew up. Big, puffy cheeks.

I decided on that morning that I should do arms and abs of steel. Steve showed up in the middle of it. I know for sure that he already loved me, or the sight of my puffy cheeked face intently concentrating on making my not-so-steely arms and my definitely not steely abs perform these cruel repetitions just may have caused him to return the ring. But obviously he didn't.

Steve decided on that morning that we should go on a picnic. He had just graduated from college, and was about to head out for the summer to Rhode Island. I figured it was pretty normal to want to spend lots of quality time with me before he left.

So I told him he better wait til after my workout. :)

We packed a lunch at my house. Then we went to his house to grab a few Cream Sodas. His grandparents would be coming later in the week for Tulip Festival, so there was lots of Cream Soda on hand.

And then we proceeded to drive around town looking for a park that wasn't being MOWED for Tulip Festival. We were completely unsuccessful, so we ended up back at Kinderspeelland where we started, and they had finally finished mowing.

We put a little blanket down, ate our little lunch, and Steve got out his guitar. There were not any big red "proposal" flags waving, because Steve often played his guitar for me. And while I imagined that to be the way he proposed, I certainly didn't think that it would be in my workout clothes with puffy cheeks.

There was a police car that kept driving through through the park, and finally he went to the parking lot and parked, facing straight toward us. I laughed to myself, thinking that he probably thought he'd pretend to be watching for speeding cars on Iowa Ave. while witnessing a proposal of some sort. Silly police man. There would be no proposal today.

Steve played a beautiful song about being with me forever, and said he had one more song, but he needed his capo. And instead of his capo, he grabbed the ring. I don't remember what he said. I don't even remember if I cried. I just remember being TOTALLY shocked that he did it right then. I was sure it was just going to be some sort of 'trick', so that when, at a different point, we went somewhere with his guitar, I wouldn't be expecting a proposal. And then there he was. On his knee.

It was perfect. Well, except for the puffy cheeks and stinky workout clothes.

But maybe that's part of what makes it perfect. It wasn't anything showy. It was a moment just for us. Just how I would want it. And the fact that I looked the way I did (which you won't see, because I'm NOT posting those pictures on here) just shows what kind of guy I married. He couldn't have cared less. He just loved me. And he probably had a hunch that I would be in some sort of "sweats" for most of my life, with my hair in a ponytail, covered in some sort of bodily excretions. The only difference is that it wouldn't always be mine...it would be our children's. :)

Or maybe he didn't think about any of that. He probably just wanted to have me for his wife, and in a matter of seven years be working a random job to pay for that wife and three children at home. Okay probably not. :) But we wouldn't change anything for the world.

Steve, thank you for asking me to be your wife so many years ago. It's still a privilege. Love you Babe.