Okay so here is the engagement story you have all been asking about.....
So, I had been planning on going home for a few weeks to visit my family and work. Jared's parents and little sister were coming with me on this fun little adventure to meet my family and just tour the awesomeness of Oregon! I was really hoping to have
a pretty shiny(AKA: ring on my finger) before I left. I thought that maybe if I was really lucky, I just might get my wish! Well, the week before we left Jared's mom informed me that Tom(the ring guy) was out of town...BLASTED!!!!!! My hopes quietly went crashing down. I was bummed to the max but what could I do right(shoulder shrug). I had to smile and just keep pressing on. Thursday night(3 days before we left) Jared asked me what my ring size was....WHAT?!?!??!!!! Grrr...all I could think of was, "You mean to tell me it's still not even sized"..haha I have learned through this whole process that my patience is seriously lacking
...working on it(scouts honor)!! Well that weekend(Saturday to be exact)Jared picked me up for our normal weekly date. Nothing was out of the ordinary. He seemed to be anxious to go eat but I just assumed the kid was super hungry..
haha He told me that the Olive Garden was having a two for one special for some kind of an anniversary. He thought it would be good since we were and still are trying to save money(not to mention it's his favorite place to get grub)! He asked me to call his mother dear and ask her which Olive Garden was having the special or if it was all of them. I did. She answered. I asked. She laughed. She went on to tell me that it wasn't the Olive Garden(silly Jared), it was The Garden(easy mistake). Ohhhhh I said, "The place were we went on our first date"? Yep that was the one. I told Jared that we could still go to the Olive Garden if he wanted. We discussed it and then both agreed that it would be kind of fun to go back to The Garden(for old times sake of course)! It was really funny because sure enough there was a 100th anniversary going on...CRAZY!!! I was still completely off in my own world not assuming a thing! We took the elevator to the 10th floor and then went to the front desk to see if there were any open tables. The receptionist asked if we had a reservation...ummm No! Lucky for us there was a table open. Jared had obviously gone earlier on that day and worked it out...sneaky sneaky! I just love this cute sweet adorable boy! When we sat down Jared seemed a little off but I just thought it was because he was un-entertained by my current rant and rave..haha He told me that he wanted to switch things up
for a change and chose my meal! I was totally cool with that, it sounded fun! Hmmm what was Jer Bear going to pick for me....so anxious to find out :)! After 5 minutes he
put the menu down and said that he had come to a conclusion. He asked if I wanted to see what he had chosen but I said no. He insisted saying that he didn't want to order something
that I didn't like. I gave in. He opened the menu and pointed. My heart stopped. My head felt like it was on fire. I sat there. I starred.
I somehow DIDN'T quiet catch on...haha I am blond remember. All I saw was where it said, "Hailey's Special". I just kept thinking, "Hmmmm, was this here last time? Maybe they have a different name special every week, what a coincidence"...lol The entire time Jared was thinking that I was reading the menu...haha He got on one knee and immediately I blurted out word for word, "Are you freaking kidding me right now" hahahahaha I was beyond SHOCKED!!!!!!! My mouth just hung open as I stared back and forth between him, the ring and the menu. Boy oh boy was I lost! He asked. He waited patiently for an answer. He kept waiting. He waited some more. He looked at me with the face of, "Please answer me soon?" hahaha OH CRAP I totally forgot that I had to say yes.....! When it finally hit me I said YES without hesitation! It was a beautiful moment. PERFECT! I couldn't stop smiling. I couldn't stop looking at him. I just kept waiting to be woken up from this happily ever after fairytale dream! It was priceless, truly!!! The effort and thought that went in to this proposal describes Jerad and the person that he is to a tee. He is so very loving and kind. It is his greatest desire to see me smile, to make me happy! I still have a hard time understanding how I got so lucky. Someone please tell me how did I end up with someone so GREAT???!!!! It is beyond me. I went home that next week with the pretty shiny on my finger..YAY! The moral of the story: Wishes do come true! :) On August 20th 2011 I am marrying my best friend for all time and eternity! Big heart smile!!!!!!
