We’re Engaged!

Harry proposed! I said YES! Following is the proposal story.

Of course, I don’t know all the before-he-popped-the-question details. Maybe I can convince Harry to write a quick post from his perspective. Maybe!

I was full of bliss and excitement about the weekend because my good friend Jenny and her husband Alex were in town. Saturday night was going to be my favorite kind of get-together: a delicious, long dinner around a cozy table with friends.

Around 12:30AM, I caught Harry’s eyes from across the after-dinner bar (coincidentally the same bar where we had drinks together for the first time over five years ago) and gestured that I was ready to go. We hopped in a cab (because of Sandy, the Path train isn’t running at night) and sped through the Holland tunnel towards Mercer Street.

Because of the warm weather and my distaste of the cab driver’s crabby response to driving us to New Jersey, I strongly suggested we get out of the cab a few blocks early. I gabbed on the walk home, unaware that Harry’s head was probably spinning with excitement and anticipation.

Harry let me trip through the dark apartment first. I flipped on the bedroom light and spotted a vase full of huge Stargazer Lilies (dropped off by our friend Erik while we were out).

With my back to Harry, I exclaimed: “What is that!?”

I turned and found Harry on one knee with an absolutely beautiful ring in hand. I’d like to say I remembered what he said to me. But as I have heard many women say, I blacked out. I know he said something wonderful though. And then we kissed.

Moments later he opened a special bottle of wine we bought in California last summer. We sat and chatted for a while about the five years we’ve been together. We said many I love yous. We laughed and cried a little. We called our families and a few friends. We left funny messages when we didn’t get an answer (It was 2AM!).

Too excited to go to bed, we decided to get some late night pizza. As we scurried out of the house, Harry turned to me, “do you have the keys?”

I laughed.

“Nope.”

We were locked out! What followed was a ridiculous, unforgettable late-night journey for a celebration slice and a way back into the apartment.

Before we worried about the keys, we headed to get that pizza. Foiled. The late-night spot was closed.

Disappointed, we walked to wake our friends Erik and Michelle who had keys — but who also have a young son, Arjen, who we didn’t want to wake. Our first attempt (which consisted of knocking on a bedroom window and trying to remove a screen), failed.

We happily came up with a plan B: get a hotel room. (Why not, right? We just got engaged!) We skipped down the road to the Westin. But there was no vacancy. We weren’t disappointed for long, just around the corner, was an open pizza restaurant! We mingled with the late party-goers and told them our good news.

As we left, we realized, we were out of ideas and our only option was to ring Erik’s doorbell. He appeared sleepy and confused, but quickly buzzed us in. Michelle came to the door to see what all the commotion was about. She told me the next day that we couldn’t stop giggling as we explained how the night had unfolded.

We finally made it to bed around 4AM, tired, but overjoyed.

We can’t express enough our gratitude to all the friends and family who have sent their love and congratulations. As the text messages, Facebook comments and voicemails poured in on Sunday, we were reminded of how blessed we are to have so many people who care about us individually and as a couple. Thank you just does not fully express our appreciation.