Proposal Story (Girl's Version)

I am finally posting the Proposal Story! Yayyyyy! :)

We all know that there are many ways to tell a story. But two of the most distinct ways, are a girl's way and a boy's way. This is not sexist; it is merely a statement of fact. This fact is especially present in the Proposal Story. I'm going to tell my proposal story through my eyes, which would indeed be the girl's way. I do feel obliged to include a Surgeon General's Warning (for the men that read this story) that the side effects of this story may include nausea, upset stomach, or intense gagging. I also feel obliged to warn these same men that their significant others may suffer side effects that include, but are not limited to, squealing, oohing, awwwing, giggling, tears of joy, and the desire to get engaged themselves (if they aren't already). Now that I've cleared the air, let me begin......;)
In a very complicated and round-a-bout manner, Chad managed to (mostly) surprise me with a trip to Carson City, Nevada for a 10-day vacation. I say mostly because I thought we were going mostly to just visit his Gramme and see the sights around where he grew up. (It was supposed to be a total surprise but when plugging something into the calendar on his phone one day, I accidentally came across his trip plans.) All of that aside, Chad and I left from my work on Thursday, September 3rd, in a rental car with our bags packed and our hearts ready for some nice, relaxing time away!
It took us right about 21 hours to get all the way to Gramme's house in Carson City, Nevada. Those 21 hours were filled with lots of yummy (but terribly bad for you) road-trip food, blaring rap music, MercyMe in the wee hours of the morning, eating at a casino at 3am (Venida a West Wendover), buying 5 different BlackBerry car chargers, and LOTS of winding, mountain roads! By the time we got to Gramme's, I believe we both never even wanted to see a car again! The moment we got out of the car, Gramme came hobbling out with tears in her eyes saying, "CJ, oh my boy, my CJ" over and over again. The complete adoration for her not-so-little grandson was very apparent in that moment. After she hugged him for several minutes, she came over and hugged me saying, "It's so good to finally meet you." I hugged her tiny self right back and then all three of us headed inside.
What is the first thing that any grandmother asks her grandkids after not having seen them for more than a day (in this case,about a year)?? "Are you hungry? Can I make you some food?" And can anyone who has known Chad for more than a day tell me what his response was?? "Food?? Yes, please!!" :):) That's Gramme and her CJ for you! (I politely declined Terryaki Oysters and a microwaved hot dog.) For the rest of the day, we mostly sat and caught up while Gramme sipped on her CRW from the glass I made her. :) For dinner, of course, we went to Gramme's hangout "Grandma Hattie's" and ate delicious burgers and fries.
The next day few days went very much like the first day. We ate at Grandma Hattie's several times, sat and talked for hours on end, looked at picture after picture (which caused the tears to run freely from all of our eyes), and tried on hip outfits from the 70's (that Gramme insisted that I take because no one has ever been as little as her and able to fit into her old clothes) which included but were not limited to a black and white checkered puffy sleeved dress and a mustard yellow and brown, elastic-waist, pantsuit. Gramme sent us home with woven fans, china, pictures, albums, clothes, and so much more! :)
Chad had been saying all weekend to Gramme and Donna (his step-mom) that he had plans for most of the day on Monday. I, for once, had NO idea what these plans were! (Usually I spoil all the surprises he plans for me because I have the bizarre ability to read his mind.) Donna informed us that all of her family was coming over for a barbeque on Monday night and Chad assured her that we would be done by then and be able to celebrate Labor Day with everyone. I only asked Chad that he tell me what time we needed to leave Donna's and what I should wear. His responses were "7:30am" and "dress nice" respectively. So when Monday morning rolled around, I got up at 5:30 and began my extensive beauty regimen (HAHA). [But seriously, my hair is as thick and long as horse hair, so it takes forever to dry and straighten!] At about 7:00 I walked out with hair done, makeup on, and a nice cream-colored dress on with heels. Chad was sitting at the breakfast table looking VERY handsome in dress slacks, a dress-shirt, and a tie. Donna got up and made us strawberry waffles (which were very yummy). So before we left, we enjoyed a very yummy and filling breakfast! Right after we finished breakfast though, Chad decided that where we were going, I might get a little cold and he'd rather I enjoy our day and be warm and dressed more casually than look nice and be miserable. (Which turned out to be very smart! :) So we both changed into jeans and casual shirts and then brought along sweatshirts in case we got really cold.
We ended up leaving a little closer to 8 and then stopped at Starbucks before heading up some very twisty roads. I don't tend to do well with twisting and turning roads, so I laid back and closed my eyes until we got closer to our destination. I was very surprised when we turned a corner and Chad said, "Babe, look!" Before us was the bright blue, shining waters of Lake Tahoe. It was amazing!!! [I finally knew why Lake Tahoe is Alicia's favorite place on earth!] I pulled out the camera and began snapping pictures left and right! We then drove up through some of the houses and tried (unsuccessfully) to find another of Chad's childhood homes before shopping around a little at some of the shops. We bought a deck of Tahoe cards (I collect decks of cards) and a Tahoe picture frame for the two of us, and then spent a good chunk of time just browsing. Finally, Chad announced that it was TIME. Time for what? I had no clue! :) So we hopped in the car and drove to a hotel. Yes, a hotel. The Americana Inn, to be precise. He then informed to get out of the car, put my sweatshirt on, and stay by the car until he came back.
WHHHHAAAATT?????!!! Why are we at a hotel? What's going on? My mind was going crazy! In my crazy state of mind, I took a picture of the swimming pool and the hotel sign in case maybe later they'd have some significance in the day. [Turns out, no.]
Chad finally comes back out, grinning from ear to ear, and leads me over to a bench in front of the hotel. He sits me down and tells me to just wait. For what???!! What's going on? Mass confusion was still in residence in my brain. :) Finally after about 10 minutes or so, a bus pulls up. The driver opens the door and says, "Are you the Duncans?"
I just replied, "For the most part." Haha! Who was this guy though, and how did he know who we were? We hopped on the bus and sat down for about a 7-minute ride, to what turned out to be Lake Tahoe. The bus driver kindly tells me (announces) that this particular bus carries passenegers who are taking a lunch cruise on the Tahoe Queen. Ssssaaawwweeettt! A lunch cruise? That's awesome! I look over at Chad, and he just smiles. We get off, go up to the ticket window, get our tickets punched, and then make our way down to the dock to wait for the TQ to become ready to board. Another couple on our same bus passed by us, so as Chad suggested, we took the opportunity to snag them and ask them to take our picture. :) (That way we would have at least one picture that didn't include my stretched out arm in it.) They did, and we returned the favor. Then, we sat and just waited some more. Finally, after what felt like a morning of waiting....:).....it was time to board! As each person, couple or group boarded the TQ the boat's photographer took their picture behind a life-preserver that said "Tahoe Queen" on it. After our picture was taken, we boarded the boat, and found ourselves a nice, little bench on the top level of the boat, out in the beautiful sunshine of California. (Yes, we were on the California side of Lake Tahoe.) It started to get warm while we waited, so Chad went to second level of the boat to get us something to quench our thirst, and I took off my jacket and basked in the sun. :)
The boat took off not long after that, and while the captain narrated, we took in the beautiful sights around us. The water was SO blue, the sky was SO clear, and views were stunning. I was on a beautiful lake, with the love of my life....all was right with the world! The photographer who took our pictures (who happened to look like Morgan off of Chuck) came around and asked us if we wanted to buy our picture that he had taken earlier. Those things are WAY expensive, and we had our own picture from when the couple from our bus took one for us, so I automatically started to say, "no, thanks." But then Chad pipes up with, "Yes, thank you." HUH??! I whispered to him how expensive they are, and not really worth it but he claimed that he'd like to have it anyway. He said he wanted to be able to remember this day and show our kids this picture someday and tell them a neat story. (And I'm thinking, you want to tell our kids a story of how we road on a boat at Lake Tahoe? Can't we just take them here some day?) He was adament though, and pulled out a some cash to hand to Morgan (photographer). For the rest of the day he got to carry around a nice, orange bag. :)
By that time it was 11ish, and I was hungry. (I know, surprise, surprise.) I asked Chad if he was hungry, and anyone who has known Chad for more than a day can tell me the answer to that question. :) We moseyed on down to the bottom level of the boat where the dining room was located, and oredered ourselves some lemonade and two turkey sandwiches. The waitress brings out these two, huge, roasted turkey sandwiches that looked (and tasted) amazing! We had gotten no further than our first bite though when the captain announces that we were pulling into Emerald Bay. *choke* That was Chad's reaction. Then he started eating really fast (and when I say really fast for Chad, that means warp-speed compared to how I eat). Thinking that he just really wanted to see the pretty green and blue water, I gave him the other half of my sandwich (because I knew I wouldn't be able to finish it) and hurried to eat mine as fast as he was eating his. While he waited for me to finish, he starts talking really fast, and stumbling over his words. I had no idea what he was trying to say, only that he NEVER gets like this! (Babbly.) Something funky was going on...that's for sure! ;)
I finally finished my sandwich and he quickly pays the waiter and then we bound up the stairs to the top deck. He takes the camera and starts snapping a bunch of pictures of Emerald Bay. It WAS beautiful, I'll give him that! I could have camped out on the rock in the center of the bay and been set for life. After we had gotten about half-way through the bay and headed back out, Chad suggests we go to the other side of the top level, back behind the captain's booth. (Is that what'd you'd call it? I have no clue.) There was a nice little bench that sat right in front of the railing for the back of the boat. It was very quaint, and very cozy. I started to get cold, so I suggested we put on our sweatshirts. Mine is very warm, but always has been a little difficult to zip. So I'm standing there, fiddling with the zipper on my jacket, when he says, "Now's a good a time as any." Without looking up, as I'm still messing with my sweatshirt's zipper, I say, "for what?" Then, as he kneels down on one knee, and I look up to him saying, "for this. Would you make me the happiest man in the world, and do me the honor of becoming my wife?" I stood there, hands frozen, mouth hanging wide open making a noise that sounded a lot like *silence.* I was speechless! When I finally started to talk, I was crying and making no sense at all. I think I said, "I....uh...I just can't believe....how did you...where...the ring...I....oh my gosh...babe...YES!" Smiling, he slips the ring on my finger and then gets up and just hugs me. I couldn't believe it! While he hugged me, I cried a little more and of course....stared at the ring over my shoulder. :)
Taking a teeny-tiny break from the story...I wanted to mention the story of the rings because I think it is a beautiful one! A couple months before the engagement, we had tossed the words "engaged" and "rings" a bit. We did some online browsing and looked in a few stores, but nothing caught our eyes as being "the one." (I'm very picky too...Haha! I know, you're saying to yourselves right now, NO WAY!) Also, one of the things we were trying to achieve was a matching women's set and men's wedding band. Chad remembered one day that he had one of his dad's wedding bands that was passed on to him when his dad passed away last year. Then when looking on Kay Jewelers website, he found a women's wedding set that matched that ring almost exactly. How cool!!! We went to the mall one day so that I could try the set on and as soon as I did, I knew it was "the one." It was dainty enough for my small hands, with diamonds on the side (which I really liked), and really just looked RIGHT. Chad nodded and said he would keep that in mind, even as he sent his dad's band away to be cleaned. :)
So anyway, back to the story. Amazingly enough there was no one on the end of the boat that we were on, so after he snapped a few pictures of the sparkler and my beaming face, we sat down on the bench and enjoyed a nice, relaxing trip back to the dock. I did, of course, have to call and my mom and spill the beans. :) And then, because I knew if I didn't she would, I had to post on Facebook that we had just gotten engaged!!! [Then the rest of the day was filled with both of our phones buzzing like crazy with tons of congratulations from our awesome friends and family.] (Oh, and another side note....we had the ring sized a few months back when we went in so that I could try them on, but I guess my fingers shrunk. Haha! So I had to wear the ring on my middle finger for the rest of the day because I would have been devastated if it would have fallen off on the boat, or anywhere else for that matter!) We drove back to Donna's house, as her whole family was coming over for a Labor Day celebration, grinning from ear-to-ear. I swear, you could have seen our smiles all the way across the country! (Another side-note, as I seem to have become the Queen of them....we chased a Lamborgini Gallardo down the mountain, coming back from Lake Tahoe to Carson City.)
When we got back to Donna's, I met Marcus (Chad's half-brother) and his wife and super-sweet kids and then all of Donna's kids, their spouses, and their kids. It was quite a gathering! Gramme took it upon herself to take me around to everyone and tell them that "my hand was tired because of the rock on my finger and I was now going to become her new daughter-in-law. Haha!
The next day we went to Claire's and got a plastic ring back for my ring so that I could wear it on the right finger, picked Tris up from the airport, bought awesome Western shirts, went to Applebee's in said shirts and got the world's most amazing desserts, had deep, heart-felt talks out on Donna's patio, made funny memories at Walmart, went back up to Tahoe with Marcus and family, watched this season's first football game (which of course, the Steelers won), and visited Chad's daddy at Fernley. It was an AMAZING trip, that included the best day of my life thus far, but also that went by WAY too fast! Before we knew it, we were packing the car up to start the long drive back to Colorado. We got back exahusted beyond belief, emotionally filled and then drained beyond comprehension, but nonetheless, the two happiest people in the WORLD. :)
True to my usual fashion, I will leave off with another sweet Chad-quote:

"Life is better being engaged to you." 09-13-09