I’ve thought about this day many times and concocted many ways of how the story might unfold, but never could I have imagined the way it actually happened. You see, I am a girl that loves to plan. I like to figure out surprises before they happen and make sure things are just the way I want them. So, I had always imagined to be prepared for this event by finding clues so I could have my nails done and wear the perfect outfit. Boy, did I have one pulled over on me! If you want to know the whole story, I’ll start from the beginning now…

B and I like to make the most of my weekends off since they are few and far between. With my birthday last week and then having the weekend off, it was the perfect time for a getaway. We went down to Hilton Head Island and enjoyed a few days of perfect weather, bike riding, beach relaxing, and eating tasty seafood. B told me that he brought our Scrabble board with us to the beach and mentioned playing a few times, but I told him I would owe him one when we got home. (Note: we love playing board games with friends and we actually played a lot of Scrabble/Words with Friends when we first started dating.)

I mentioned to B that I wanted to stop by the Old Sheldon Church Ruins on the drive home because I had never seen it in person. It was right up our alley because we like to explore historical and unique places. In case you’re unfamiliar, the ruins are from the Prince William Parish Church built in the 1750s. It burned twice, but the walls have remained intact. Now, it’s surrounded by towering oak trees covered in clumps of spanish moss, which I’m a little obsessed with. To me, it’s romantic, serene, and absolutely beautiful.

In typical B fashion, he woke me up super early on the morning we were to leave so we could get on the road in order to beat the traffic. I am NOT a morning person and even though I had a large cup of coffee to feed my caffeine addiction, I had woke up on the wrong side of the bed. I told him that I was riding home in my PJs because the ruins were the only stop we were making.

After about an hour of driving away from the coast, we pulled up to the ruins and found we had the place all to ourselves. I got my big camera out and we walked around snapping photos and taking in the pretty scene. It wasn’t until we were about to leave when I noticed B carrying the Scrabble board. “Really? You’ve got to be kidding me”, I thought to myself. I asked about the board and he said that I owed him one and we should take some time to enjoy the morning since we had a long car ride home. I begrudgingly agreed to a quick game.

He laid out the board on one of the picnic tables at Old Sheldon and began to look over the rules again. I asked how we would keep score, so I opened the game box and found a pen but there was no paper so I said we could keep score on our phones (Note: this is where my head was! Making sure we knew who was winning! Did I mention to y’all that I’m super competitive?!) What I should have noticed when I opened the box was the tiles on the rack spelling out: WILL YOU MARRY ME J?

B had to pull out the tile rack and put it in front of me so I would stop worrying about how to keep score and see the surprise. I finally saw it and lost control. My hands covered my face and I immediately felt warm tears soak my palms. When I looked back up, B was down on one knee at my side. He told me a string of heart-touching words (which I made him repeat later because I’m pretty sure I blacked out from shock), asked me to marry him, and put the most beautiful ring on my finger.

Since I was the one who wanted to visit the ruins, I was completely blindsided with the proposal. But it all makes sense now…he had asked where I put our board games weeks ago claiming he was looking for the poker chips; he had asked me about sunrise sessions and what time they should be to get the best light in photos (which is why he woke me up so early to get there in time for that); he mentioned playing Scrabble several times over the weekend to bait me into thinking it wasn’t out of left field for him to carry the box with him; he didn’t say anything about me wearing PJs because that would heighten my skepticism (so yes, our newly engaged photo has me in orange flannel Clemson pants!). He’s a sneaky one, but it couldn’t have been more perfect!!

I kept repeating “Is this real?!” because I just couldn’t believe that I had gotten so lucky in life. B is truly the one that God made just for me. B makes me laugh like no one else; he builds my confidence; he encourages my dreams; and he cares about our future together. I can’t imagine spending my life and building a family with anyone else and I’m looking forward to many more adventures with my fav.

So now you know! We are officially engaged, blissfully happy, and crazy in love. FOREVER.