Thursday, October 19, 2006

And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, the act you've been waiting for...

I'm engaged! I'M ENGAGED! I'M REALLLLLLLLY ENGAGED!!!!!!!!!!!! It feels so crazy that I am at this point in life. I'm SO excited. It was almost a week ago, and it still hasn't completely sunk in. I told my sorority sisters tonight, and it was so overwhelming-3 years ago I was 18 and listening to seniors tell their engagement stories, thinking-wow, I wonder if I'll get to do that!? And I just did. Right after initiation, I told about 185 girls (some weren't there) that I was engaged, that I have a sparkling diamond ring on my finger and a promise from my perfect guy in my heart. I'm so happy, I could burst. =) To read Tom's side of it or see pictures, you can visit his blog. To hear my side of the story, from an email I sent out earlier, you can read below!

Most of you know that Tom and I got engaged on Friday, Oct. 13!! But I just wanted to send out the story as well as a picture so yall could see how beautiful the day was and what an amazing job Tom did!! =)

Tom told me that we had dinner reservations for 5:00pm on Friday at a restaurant that we hadn't been to before, so I was excited about trying somewhere new. He said he wanted it to be a surprise, so he didn't tell me where it would be. After I drove to Atlanta (that took a couple hours due to traffic), I got changed at his apartment to go out to a nice restaurant. Then we drove to some random paylot, and he told me we had to walk the rest of the way. I was just trying to figure out where we were going, and before I know it, we were in Centennial Park. I had never been there before, but always wanted to go, so I was pretty excited to walk through it.

It was really pretty-about 5, and the sun wasn't set but was getting there-kind of a golden color. And we walked over to the fountains and then Tom stopped walking (so I did too). He asked me if I ever read over the emails that we sent back and forth when I was in Costa Rica this summer, and I said that I hadn't. He said there was something in them he wanted me to see, and then out of no where appear these papers. They ended up being some of our emails. He had blurred out the words from the emails except in the paragraphs that were important for me to read, and in those paragraphs, he had circled the important words. The first email had lyrics from a song that we both love that came out in high school:

Those notes you wrote me
I've kept them all
I've given a lot of thought of how to write you back this fall
With every single letter in every single word
There will be a hidden message about a boy that
loves a girl

He circled "this fall" and "hidden message." Then there was only one word circled per email after that, making up: "I" + "wanna" + "get" + "engaged" (about here I stopped reading and he had to tell me to keep going) + "tonight." I think I quit breathing for a minute or two, but Tom didn't-he proposed! =) With the light shining through the fountain, you should have seen the way that ring looked!! It's so beautiful!!!

Then a random guy from Maryland who is in town of a convention told us that he was taking pictures of the fountain when it happened, and would we like him to email them to us? And of course we said yes, and he took some more "staged" engagement photos too. So, I am really looking forward to getting those. Then Tom told me that we were going to eat at The Sundial, a restaurant that revolves at the top of The Westin, giving an amazing view of the city. We had gone there for his 16th birthday, again at 18 for his brother's (Ben's) 16th birthday, and again when we were sophomores in college. We both love that restaurant, so it was perfect! And we could even see where he proposed from our seats!! I was still shaking, even after we ate. =)

He told me then that the night wasn't over and that I had to follow him in my car to another surprise. We went back to his apartment for my car, and then I followed him back to my parents' house-where my mom and dad, and his, and Ben, were all waiting for us with chocolate cake and champagne!! It was so nice to get to share the night with family! And then I noticed a picture (the one attached) of us in front of the fountains, sitting in a frame on the table. I was so confused as to how they got it, and I asked if the Maryland guy really was a plant. He wasn't, but Tom had gotten one of his fraternity brothers to hide in the park with a hat and glasses so I wouldn't see him, and he took our picture from a distance. He had lab, so he didn't get out there until we were doing the "staged engagement" for the Maryland guy, but it is a GREAT picture-it shows off how awesome the location Tom chose was.

Overall, Tom made such a big deal of it, and I felt SOOO special! It was perfect for us, and I am so happy, and I know that I am SOOO blessed to get to marry such an amazing guy. God definately has blessed us.

I hope all is well with all of yall, and let me know how yall are doing!
Love,
Meghan

And that is about the whole shebang! I'm really excited, and I am so glad I can finally share it with everyone!
Love,
Megs

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