Marry Me?

I feel like so much has happened recently, I don’t even know where to begin! During this week my 26th birthday came and went, we partied all week long! I must admit my actual birthday was sort of a drag because I had to work, but all the surprises definitely made this birthday one of the most memorable.

Jon made plans weeks ahead to fly and see his family during my birthday, he felt bad that he wouldn’t be in town so he took me out to celebrate the weekend before. I drove down after work Saturday afternoon (June 26th) and of course Jon had the entire night planned without my knowledge. We started out with dinner at the Melting Pot (Amazing dessert)!

After dinner he drove a few miles down the street to a resort called the Scottsdale Hyatt Regency. I still had no idea what we were doing until he walked me to the backside of the resort and had a Gondola ride waiting for us... This resort was absolutely beautiful! I had to steal some pictures off the internet so I could remember how pretty everything was. The Gondola ride was very romantic, our (driver?) even wore the striped shirt and hat like you see in movies. Towards the end of the ride he sang to us in Italian. It got a little awkward when he started singing at the top of his lungs but it was definitely a fun experience. After our Gondola ride we walked around the resort for a bit and checked out all the entertainment. Then we were off to the next planned surprise… (By the way, I HATE surprises and Jon is very aware of this… I think he enjoys torturing me, then seeing how happy I am after the surprise is over) :) Our next stop was a few blocks away at another resort called the Scottsdale Fairmont Princess (We like to call this "resort hopping") This place was truly stunning; from the lights, landscaping, ponds, golf course, waterslides, and weather, I couldn’t think of a more perfect place to be that night. When we got to the parking lot, I asked Jon what we were doing. His reply was that we were going to a “function”. This was actually pretty believable because there were a lot of people in the parking lot, I assumed we were going to some type of concert.

Once we got inside he finally told me that we were going to do a Geocache that he had found the GPS coordinates for online. I was really excited to do another one since it was dark outside and it wasn’t on a mountain like the other ones we had already done. We started searching around the golf course and the pond area until our GPS said we were within 9 feet of it. He told me to go check one direction while he checked the opposite direction. I found several areas that it could have been but I couldn’t find it anywhere. Then he came over to help me check and he couldn’t find it either. After a few minutes with no luck, we finally found the area where it was….He let me be the first to find it, then he stepped away and let me claim the prize :)

The box was hidden beneath this bench (except it was at night time, we went back the next day to take these pictures)

Inside the box was a scroll wrapped with a bow (handmade by Jon) and a pen. – I didn’t think twice about it and opened it up to sign it like you do at all the geocaches.

There wasn't any toys in the box so my first thought was that we had been ripped off. Thinking back on this exact moment I remember Jon stepping away from me as I opened the box and he started chewing his gum louder :) (maybe he was nervous?) Once I unrolled the scroll and saw the words I have waited my entire life to hear, I instantly started crying. I turned around and Jon was on his knee holding the ring. I don't even remember him saying the words "Will you marry me?" I remember hugging for a long time and crying like a little girl. After a few minutes he asked if that meant "yes?"

We continued to embrace this special moment while drinking sparkling cider and walking around the golf course. We kept having to dodge all the sprinklers and walk through all the puddles on the sidewalk. We laughed the entire night and talked about our future plans, I never wanted it to end! I felt incredibly happy knowing I had found the person I will be with for eternity! I have never been more excited and at peace in my entire life!!