Friday, Ryan made the trek from LaFayette to Demorest/Cornelia/Baldwin to meet the family! :) He came and picked me up, and we headed out to Papa and Nanny's so he could meet them first, and so we'd be able to have a little more conversation than we would if we had just seen them over dinner! :) He got the grand tour of the yard and house, and gave it his stamp of approval! :) Yay! :)
We left Papa and Nanny's and headed to Gusben's to meet up with the rest of the clan - Mama, Marcia, Diane, Dudley, of course, Papa and Nanny, the Bettys and Doris Ann. (This past weekend was family reunion weekend, so we had 3 more in attendance than usual! :) )
After enjoying a wonderful meal, we headed over to Marcia's for our after dinner talk and dessert, giving Dudley a chance to talk to Ryan. :) Which he'd been waiting to do for a while now! :) Marcia's is where we took the pictures you have been provided with. :) So, a thank you to Marcia for allowing us to use her yard! :)
We headed back to Demorest after dessert, and went for a walk on the bridge across the used-to-be-lake at Piedmont, but that got cut short when the bottom fell out of the sky, and onto us! :) We headed home, with my straight turned crazy-curly hair, where I promptly changed into the most comfortable clothing I own! :)
We sat in the living room for a while, and talked with Mama. Chalupa wasn't much of a conversationalist...he just curled up next to Mama, and promptly went to sleep! :) It was after midnight, before Mama encouraged Ryan to get on to the Davis' so he could get some sleep. So, I reluctantly walked him out to his car.
And it was there, under the streetlamp, with me with my crazy-curly hair, wearing the most comfy and unattractive clothes I own, that he proposed! (And yes, he had asked for Mama's blessing, and she gave it completely!) :D And of course I said yes! :)
If you know my heart at all, you understand how incredibly perfect our proposal was. Just the two of us. Not on a holiday. Not some monstrous gesture. Simple. And absolutely perfect. And for him to love me enough to want to commit to me even when I have the crazy-curly hair, and the comfy-baggy clothes on...a dream come true, and the icing on the cake!!! :)
He loves me right where I am, just as I am. And that, to me, has been the most amazing part of this whole experience. He has seen me at my worst - and he still wants to share his life with me. :)
I cannot wait to see what God has planned for this next season of our lives! :) If it's anything like the past month, it's going to be an incredible journey! :)
I love you all! :) Thank you for all of your kind words, encouragement and support! :) I know I keep repeating myself, but it still makes me so incredibly happy that you all are so happy for us! :) So I must keep repeating myself, so you understand how blown away I am by your continuous love and support! :) Thank you! :)
