Wow

Well, looking back I see that the last post was on Wednesday. I didn't quite realize the tremendous adventure that would ensue after this last post. So much has happened in the last few days and I have much to reflect upon and share. However, the most important event over the last few days is that she said "yes."

Last Thursday, while sitting in the Syracuse airport, this strange sensation came over me and I realized that the next day, Friday, I would propose to Jenn. Believe me, this was not in the plan. Actually, I had picked out another day later in July and was just starting to get things together. However, the pieces had come together too perfectly.

Earlier in the week, Jenn had offered to come up to Bremen for the weekend instead of me going to Rensselaer. She offered to bring food for the grill if I would do the grilling. She also asked if it would be okay to bring her dog, Gus. I said that would all be great but that I needed to mow the church yard and would be home about 6.

So while sitting in the airport, it occurred to me that Jenn would certainly not suspect Friday night - after all she was bringing the food and Gus would provide a bit of distraction. The plan quickly came together.

On my way home from O'hare, I stopped off at Jenn's parents' house and had the big discussion with them. On Friday at lunch, I took off on a quick shopping spree and picked up a tablecloth, silverware, wine glasses, cloth napkins, stereo player, and flowers. Back at work, the anticipation was killing me and I could not wait until 5. At 4:58, I made a mad dash out to the car and picked up my canopy from Lois. At home, the canopy went up along with lights. I set the table with the St. Joe china and glasses, wine glasses, our picture, and candle. The music featured a CD that Jenn had burned recently and sent. I also set out some more candles and pulled out one of the bottles of wine that made the trip back from Germany.

When Jenn arrived, she was a bit distracted by Gus and just kind of said something about me being busy. Down-playing things a bit, I just said that I wanted to do something special since she had brought the food. So we proceeded to grill and enjoy a wonderful dinner. However, I wasn't sure how to make the next move. Jenn came to the rescue. She brought some pineapple for me to grill. After taking the pineapple off the grill, I asked if she wanted to try roasted marshmallow on the pineapple. She said sure so I took off into the house, changed into different clothes, grabbed the flowers and ring and marshmallows.

Jenn was playing with Gus when I came back out. I said that she might want to sit down. On one knee, I stumbled out a proposal. With tears streaming down both our faces, she said, "Yes."