How He Asked <3
/THE LOVE OF MY LIFE ASKED ME TO MARRY HIM!
And of course, I said YES! (After a bunch of XOXO’s)
I still can’t believe it!
We are finally ENGAGED!!!!
Definitely on Cloud 9 over here :)
You see, Justin and I have been together for SEVEN years now! Over the last couple years, we’ve taken several BIG trips. During each of those trips, I thought he MIGHT just ask me “the question” (Vegas, Gainesville, Nashville). But the trips came and went, and no question was asked. We totally had a blast!!! But I decided to stop thinking about when it might happen so I wouldn’t get my hopes up.
It’s funny….you know how the saying goes…
”Sometimes the best things in life happen when you least expect it.”
I shall continue 😊
THE “DAY”
My only rule: Please don’t ask me on a holiday!
(So if he listened — I knew Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, Valentine’s Day and birthdays were out of the question)
I selfishly wanted our “own” special day. And that’s what I got!!!
On August 23rd, 2019 <3
But before I tell you about this day, let me backtrack to our first FL trip together!
2018 TRIP TO FL (Gainesville)
Last year, Justin and I went to our first Gators Game in Gainesville (UF vs. LSU). Justin loves college football and I love a good adventure — so needless to say, we had an amazing time! It was one heck of a game and the Gators won, too!!!!
We found some of our favorite “spots” in Gator-land:
FOOD: A burger place called Relish! The best chicken ZINGERS you’ve ever tasted at Miller’s Alehouse. Biscuits for Breakfast at Maple Street Biscuit Company!
DRINKS: Swamp Head Brewery was AMAZING. They had awesome beers and had a sweet setup! Miller’s Alehouse also had margarita pitchers that were on point!
GEAR: Alumni Hall had ANYTHING you could ever want in terms of Gators Gear! We went a couple times on our trip and bought everything from shirts, a bottle opener, a Loki bracelet, a collar for Manny, a UF YETI-like bottle. All the goods!
And a couple of my favorite “things”:
THE ATMOSPHERE: The campus was full of school spirit (and scooters). Hahah. I’ve never seen anything like it! People in the South take both of these things seriously! And I’m allllll here for it!
THE TRADITION: Gators’ Walk! Albert and Alberta! CHOMPING! Chanting “It’s Great to Be a Florida Gator”. A blue out (this time). A Tim Tebow appearance! Singing “I Won’t Back Down” with all the Florida fans in the stadium between the 3rd and 4th quarter!
I remember Justin saying we should get season tickets. I told him, “Until we can afford that, let’s instead try to go to one game every year” 😉). And that’s what we were doing this year — the weekend before Labor Day! Going to our annual Gators game!
2019 TRIP TO FL (Orlando)
This game was special because college football season technically hadn’t started yet. It would be the first game to kickoff 150 Years of College Football — the Florida Gators vs. Miami Hurricanes at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, FL.
Since the game wasn't in Gainesville, we needed to come up with a new list of fun things to do in Orlando :) The Tuesday before we left, Justin pulled down his whiteboard from the wall and we mapped out what we planned to do! I was actually in Orlando for work back in May, so I had seen / eaten at a couple places I thought we should check out!
Here’s what we came up with:
FRIDAY, August 23rd
As you can see, we had an EARLY flight on Friday! Our morning started at 2:30AM when our alarms went off. We caught a Lyft at 4AM to catch our 5:45AM flight. Before you knew it, we were in Florida!
First Thing First: Get the rental car
We got a Versa. It wasn’t the most luxurious car ever. It didn’t have a backup cam. But it got us from Point A to Point B. It also cost less ($19) than the tolls we had to pay ($25) — so I’ll consider that a win. Thank you, Qtego for the Hertz points I’ve accumulated over the years :)
Then: We had some time to kill before we could check into the hotel. Justin had hear about a place called Old Town that looked neat! (But he wouldn’t let me listen to the song “Old Town Road” on the way there hahah) We headed that direction. When we got there, we learned we were there about 45 minutes early. We left to get breakfast at Holler & Dash and went to the Nike Outlet! When we returned, the shops were starting to open. It’s basically a long strip full of “touristy stores”. They also had outdoor rides (but we were there a bit too early for that) Haha.
Next Up: About this time, Justin realized he left his sunglasses at home! It’s tough being in Florida (of all places) without sunglasses. We decided to leave Old Town and go to the Florida Mall to look for a pair.
Justin also wanted to check out the Dick’s Sporting Goods down here to see if they had any FL gear. I also wanted to get some THIN socks because I realized the only socks I brought were thick ones and I didn’t want my feet to be super sweaty all weekend in my tennis shoes. (Funny story, if you’re familiar with Nelk and their shenanigans, this is the Dick’s where one of their pranks was filmed!)
I got my socks! J got a GREAT deal on a pair of Oakley sunglasses at the Sunglass Hut! We split an Auntie Anne’s pretzel! (Well, the bites!) By this time, were getting closer to hotel check-in time. We both desperately needed a NAP. We left the mall, got lunch at Rock & Brews (across the street from the DoubleTree we were staying at) and then it was….NAP TIME!
We took a two-hour nap! Just what we needed to re-fuel before getting ready to go out!
1st = Played Putt Putt at Pirate’s Cove
Last time I was in Orlando, I drove by this Putt Putt place and it looked AWESOME. I told Justin we should totally check it out!
Plus, I think the last time we played Putt Putt together was in Gatlinburg about 4 years ago! We were due for some friendly competition ;)
It definitely lived up to its appearance. We played the Blackbeard’s course! It was SO FUN!!! Justin got THREE hole in one’s! I got ONE! He beat me by just a few points. It was super close!
While we were playing, it began getting dark. We noticed The Wheel down the street was starting to light up! What do you know?!?! The colors were the colors of the teams that would be playing the next day! Blue + Orange for the Gators and Orange + Green for Miami. (So! Freaking! Cool!)
2nd = Ate Dinner at The Whiskey
Justin found this BBQ joint with a ton of fine whiskey when we were doing our Orlando research! It was just a couple miles down the street, but in reality, it seemed to take FOREVER to get there with all the traffic / construction. Once we got there, I’m pretty sure we snagged the last parking spot in the lot! It was in a little strip mall which was SUPER PACKED.
It was crazy busy inside, but we found a place to sit. Justin got the tallest burger I’ve ever seen! The onion rings on top made it stack SO HIGH haha. I got a burger with pimento cheese (my favorite to order when I’m down South) plus a Caesar salad. I’m telling you what! I think that Caesar salad wast the most delicious Caesar salad I’ve ever eaten.
The service wasn’t the best. At this point, we’ve either had GOOD food and OK service. Or OK food and GOOD service. Justin told me I needed to pick the next restaurant because he was striking out on getting both at the same time 😂
3rd = Rode The Wheel at ICON Park — AKA WHERE HE PROPOSED!!!
After dinner, we went back up to International Drive to check out ICON Park. This is where The Wheel was! The Wheel is basically a HUGEEEEE Ferris Wheel that you can stand up in! It doesn't have seats, but there’s a ton of standing room for up to 15 people!
We walked up to pay for our tickets — Justin asked the guy about getting our own cabin. The guy working told him he’d save us some $$ and still give us our own because it was super slow. We just had to pay for admission for 2 instead of renting out the entire car!
Then we went through security and into a room to take photos on a green screen. It’s so funny looking back, because in the photos, Justin had the tickets / receipts / cash in his hand. That’s because he had taken his wallet out of his pocket to put the ring box in there! Haha! The photo lady had us take three different photos (one sitting with our hands up, one standing and one looking up). They put together a photo package so after the ride, you could see your pictures!
Before you went up into the sky was a bar! I asked Justin if he wanted a drink for the ride. I got a mango White Claw and he got a Coors Light! We were soon stepping into our own cabin and up we went! Slowly! The entire ride takes 22 minutes.
I remember walking in and thinking, this thing is really big on the inside! If you wanted to sit, there was a little stool in the middle. On each side had a video board where you could scroll through to read about the different attractions you can see from up above. Though at this point, it was dark, so it was hard to make those out.
HOW HE ASKED!
Justin and I were nearing the top and I remember thinking, holy smokes, we are high up here! He had made a couple comments like “I love you lots” in which I replied “I love you too”. I figured once we got to the top we would kiss!
Well ladies and gentlemen! Justin had other plans 😉 I turned around to kiss him, and he got down on one knee and asked to marry me! The next 11 minutes coming down seem like such a blur. I was so excited!!!!! Later Justin told me after he asked, all I wanted to do was give him a hug and a kiss (Haha — sounds about right). He finally got me to a place where he put the ring on my finger. It is absolutely beautiful!!! Literally everything I could have ever wanted and more. The ring was perfect. The “spot” he proposed was perfect. My man is perfect! He did amazing and made it such a special night.
When we stepped on The Wheel — we were boyfriend / girlfriend!
When we stepped off The Wheel — we were each other’s fiancés!
Still so crazy to say!!!!!
Once you walk off the ride, you walk into a room that has your photos they took in the beginning of the ride. I immediately told Justin (without even seeing the photos), WE HAVE TO BUY THESE!!!! I never say that with those photos but this was too special to pass up. Justin agreed, but told me I couldn’t post on social media. Hahha. Fine :) Then we asked the lady to take a couple photos of us in front of the backdrop there :)
I also like to collect shot glasses — so before Justin went to pay for the photos we grabbed a couple shot glasses! They had some with different colors on the inside and that’s what we got! One orange and one blue! Just like the golf balls earlier in the night, just like the Gators colors.
Simply PERFECT <3 <3 <3
TIME TO CELEBRATE = Drinks at Bar Louie
We were both EXHAUSTED and thought about just going back to the hotel to crash, but it’s not everyday you get engaged! Near our hotel was Bar Louie. We wanted a place that wouldn’t be super loud and obnoxious. This was a great find! We got celebration drinks and an appetizer — and I stared at my ring THE WHOLE TIME.
This is also when we decided all wedding planning would be saved for when we got home! We were going to ENJOY the weekend :D
Instead of turning to post anything to social media or immediately call or text family / friends, I decided to wait. It was our little secret we held onto for the night <3 Soaking up every minute as our first evening as an ENGAGED couple! Plus! It was like 11PM when it happened, so I figured I would also wait because it was late.
That night before bed, I had two thoughts:
The first day down here has been AMAZING but the BEST PART?!?! The weekend is just beginning!
Wait, do I sleep in my ring?!?!? After a quick Google search, I realized I probably shouldn’t sleep in it all the time. But I decided while we were down in Florida, I would <3 <3 <3 I “held” it like a baby all night long. Felt so amazing! Felt so complete!
SATURDAY, August 24th
The next morning, I woke up before Justin and went downstairs to get coffee. The DoubleTree we stayed at had an AMAZING pool area. I grabbed a coffee for me, and decided to go outside and soak up the sun and take a couple moments to myself. (The introvert in me needed some solo time to recharge). I decided it was a good time to make a couple calls! I called my Mom, my Dad, text my siblings and a few close friends <3
It was a moment I will forever savor. Sitting in the cabana. Sharing the story with my loved ones. Seeing my ring sparkle in the sun by the water!
While I was downstairs, I decided to take advantage of probably one of my last trip’s this year as a Hilton Diamond Member (OMG, GET IT! DIAMOND. HAHA — Ashley sit down). This meant using our Free Breakfast coupons! I asked the hostess if I could get breakfast To Go and she said yes! She handed me two boxes and I went to the buffet to build us a nice little “breakfast in bed”.
J had SportsCenter on when I went back up. They were live at Disney! After breakfast, we both showered and got ready. First stop would be Miller’s Alehouse! It was our favorite place for chicken ZINGERS in Gainesville and we discovered there was one less than a mile away from our hotel. SCORE! They also have awesome pitchers! It was time to Pre-Game!!! Because today was the day!!!! The day of the game!!!!
We ate and drank, and then caught a Lyft to the Dr. Phillips Center in Downtown Orlando. This was the “official” location for the Gators tailgate put on by the school. We got a couple beers (one from a lady that kept calling everyone DUDE — Justin’s pet peeve haha). Walked around a bit! Found a spirit shop!!!! Got our hands on some Jordan hats — including a new bucket hat for Justin! Got a couple ‘free’ “BEAT MIAMI” t-shirts in exchange for a small donation to the University. And then headed to the game!!!!
The game was at Camping World stadium. When we got down there, I really had to pee. I saw some guy that looked like he knew what he was doing and asked him where the closest bathroom was. He pointed me in the direction to the stadium or the porta potties — but the funniest thing was Justin actually followed that guy on Twitter! Hahah! Totally crazy he “knew” the stranger I asked.
Then, we lined up for the Gator Walk so we could see the coaches + team when they arrived. The marching band was also there! Of course while I waited, I took pictures of my ring. If you haven’t been proposed to yet, one day you’ll know ;) And if you have, you know what I mean! I swear all weekend I would just STARE at my hand hahah.
Soon after, we were able to go into the stadium!!! We learned they sold beer inside. SCORE! Justin made friends with the nice, fun old lady at the concession stand. He told her he’d buy her a drink if she wasn’t working but said he’d make sure she’d have enough $$ in tips by the end of the game to by herself one 😉
Then we found our seats! It was one section over from where they were filming the SEC Nation. That was fun to watch — Tim Tebow was down there! My favorite thing about it was they kept bringing these long tubes that looked like dryer ventilations but I’m pretty sure it was cold AC to cool them down for TV!
The game began, and we all stood to our feet! There was a flyover and three people in parachutes that jumped down — one with the football and the other two with flags for each team.
The game was fun! The teams didn’t play very well BUT the Gators pulled out a win! Man it was close!!! Now Justin and I are 2-0 for our FL trips!!!!
So a couple things about Camping World stadium:
It’s kind of near the ghetto
When there’s THAT many people (like 50,000 people) leaving the game at once, your cell phone service won’t work
Which wouldn’t be a big deal if we didn’t need a ride home!!!! OMG we learned our lesson — never take a Lyft / Uber down there because getting one back home will take FOREVER!
You were suppose to go to Jones High School nearby for the Ride Share pickup. But we couldn’t get any service to even request a ride. So we kept walking…but that meant we were getting further and further in the ghetto. Finally we stopped at a Wendy’s, hoping for a ride to come through with what little service we had. No luck. Eventually, I told Justin we needed to walk back to the stadium and get on the Free Shuttle that would take us downtown. Then when we got downtown, we could figure it out. That’s what we did.
I’m pretty sure we made it on the last bus of the night. Traffic was so bad downtown, the bus driver actually pulled over and dropped everyone off a few blocks early. Justin and I started walking toward downtown. We both kept requesting rides on both our phones. It was a waiting game. (Oh, and the surcharges were insane. There were totally too many people needing rides and not enough people to give them). We had gotten to the point where we almost bought a hotel room downtown so we could sleep. We were exhausted and ready for bed!
By the Grace of God, Justin got a ping on his phone! Seriously, we had been waiting for 2+ hours so it was such a relief when we stepped inside the Uber’s car.
But wait! The rock! The Gators #KindnessRock I painted…..we almost forgot to hide it! Justin set it on a large planter and I quickly snapped a picture before we hopped in the car. It wasn’t how I envisioned we would hide the rock, but golly I was happy to be “hiding” it quickly so we could get back “home” to our hotel!
SUNDAY, August 25th
Our last day! Wahhhh! Totally bittersweet.
Justin and I had originally talked about going to the beach on Sunday, but the more we thought about it, the drive there and back didn't seem worth it. I told Justin I could get my water fix by going to the pool! So that morning while he slept in, I got my suit on and went downstairs. It seriously felt like a tropical oasis out there!
Only one couple was there when I got there. I took my ring off, dipped my feet in the pool and then dove in! It was so refreshing and felt so good to wade in the water. I swear, deep down I am a water bug! (Like our doodle, Mister Manny)
After I got my water fix, I went back up to the room to shower (Ha, more water!) Justin and I discussed what we should do the rest of the day! Our flight wasn’t until later that evening. On our original list was Lake Eola. We read it was a neat place to check out, and I was also intrigued because I had a client that hosted a very large walk there every October!
I did some research and guess what I found?!? Lake Eola also had a Farmer’s Market going on Sundays from Noon-4PM. Seriously PERFECT!!!! Justin made the comment I was in heaven because today would be filled of my two favorite things: Brunch and a Market (LMAO — he’s so right).
We had originally talked about going to get brunch with a mimosa bar at Café Tu Tu Tango, but I decided I didn’t need all that. But what DID sound good was a smoothie! There was a fresh smoothie bar on the way to the lake that looked delicious and had great reviews. We stopped! The guys running the store were so sweet. And the tops of our drinks were so cool, too. Instead of lids, they actually seal them with plastic and a heat press!
Lake Eola was so neat! We parked on one side and then walked halfway around to the market. On the way, we saw a PIG ON A LEASH. Haha. Justin and I got a couple beers to enjoy while we walked around. We tried some hot sauce from a hot sauce truck, bought Manny an embroidered Gators bandana for his collar and checked out all the cute shops.
We were getting hungry — there was a restaurant nearby called Graffiti Junction. It had awesome reviews and I know why! Their food was delicious. Justin and I ordered an appetizer — Buffalo Chicken Bacon Tater Tots. Literally to die for. The chicken pieces were so good! I honestly filled up on this, I couldn’t even make a dent in the salad that came out after.
We definitely needed to burn some calories after that meal! We went back to the lake and walked around the other half to go back to the car. Probably one of the coolest things is they have these swan paddle boats you can rent!!! I totally wanted to do it, but we were super full, hot and exhausted. Maybe next time!
We got back in the car, and had a couple more hours to kill. We decided to go back to ICON Park one last time! There’s a place there called The Sugar Factory. I’ve actually wanted to go to the one in Chicago, but the timing never worked out. We decided to check it out!!!
We ordered one last celebratory drink: a watermelon goblet. They bring a glass of dry ice with the candy inside + a glass of your drink and pour it right in front of your eyes. This was, you can see the smoke come off the dry ice. We also got a cookie dessert! Literally HOLY SWEETNESS. The treats were good, but I’d say my all-time favorite part of the entire experience was when the crew came out and sang birthday songs. Apparently, if it’s your birthday, you can pick from a list and the entire restaurant will sings / dances with you! We saw performances of everything from In My Feelings to the Baby Shark song.
The other thing they have at ICON Park is this GIGANTIC swing set. I really wanted to do it! Justin wanted no part in that though haha. I almost went and did it solo, but unfortunately, we were out of time. It was time to head back home! (Well that is, after I ran back to the Sugar Factory to get the car keys I left behind — whoops — thank goodness they had them).
We caught one last glance of The Wheel before we went bye bye! Such a special place. Such a special weekend. (Babe, I hope you know, Ferris Wheels are totally “our thing” now and I’ll want to ride one from now on, wherever we go on our next adventures!)
And that’s a wrap to our engagement weekend!
Justin and I both agreed that while we LOVED our weekend getaway, nothing beats being back home with our boy, Manny <3
Side Note: Justin did get Manny’s approval of the ring + asking me! ❣️ (It was super cute, when I went to pick up Manny from his Grandparents’ house, he immediately jumped on me and sniffed my hand. He totally knew! How do dogs always know?!?)
Anyways, I’m super stoked for this next chapter!
Let the wedding planning begin!!! I’m sure I’ll update y’all more with that, as it gets underway :) But probably the thing I’m most excited for, is that soon (probably Fall 2020) I’ll finally be able to call Justin my HUSBAND. XOXO
(If you know me, you know I like to document everything so I can vividly remember it later down the road! I took SO MANY PICTURES while we were down in Florida and I WROTE DOWN ALL THE DETAILS because I never want to forget these special moments <3 )
