So excited to share some big news with y’all today – Will and I are engaged!!! If you follow me on Instagram, chances are you already saw my announcement last weekend, but I wanted to share the story and a few more photos in today’s post.
Before I get on with the proposal, I wanted to give you guys a little backstory in case you don’t know me or Will. If any of you are fans of The Office, you’ll remember the quote Michael says about Holly that goes, “I think we are one of those couples with a long story when people ask how we found each other. I will see her every now and then, and maybe one year, she’ll be with somebody, and the next year, I’ll be with somebody and it’s gonna take a long time. And then it’s perfect.” That’s sort of how our story has been, so this scene has always resonated with us. It also makes it even better that Will introduced me to The Office when we met over nine(!) years ago, and it became a big part of our relationship ever since, haha!
Like the quote, everything has been about timing for us – from the moment we met after both living in Charlottesville our entire lives and coincidentally never meeting until two weeks before I started at UMW where Will was a sophomore, to having feelings for each other at different times all through college, to him saying those three little words before we even started dating – we haven’t done things in the most conventional way. So when we decided we both wanted an October wedding but knew our hometown books up quickly, we decided to preemptively look at some venues for 2019… even though I didn’t have a ring on my finger yet. Some may say it’s bad luck, I just say it’s us and we do things backwards (and I honestly wouldn’t have it any other way). So we toured a venue on Saturday morning, September 8th, and both instantly knew it was the one. We talked about how we really wanted to book it but that it might be a little strange to do before an engagement, and Will explained that he wished he could have proposed earlier, but that my ring was taking forever and he was actually super frustrated about it. We had gone ring shopping in June so I thought he’d had the ring for weeks, but was just looking for the right moment. I was surprised, and any idea I had of a proposal in our hometown that weekend went out the window.
Will had suggested we look at another venue later that afternoon and was a bit particular about the time, but now that I knew he didn’t have the ring yet (or so I thought…), I didn’t think anything of his schedule preferences. We arrived at the vineyard, got glasses of wine, and watched the storm for a few minutes before Will suggested that we walk around the property to “explore.” I thought this was a little weird (but he’s a little weird), so I followed him into the rain with our umbrellas in tow. He started telling me random funny things to distract me and make me laugh, as I was starting to get kind of suspicious. We proceeded down to a small wooden bridge over a creek, and Will was pointing at different areas where he thought the ceremony could be, the reception could be, and even suggested a spot where we could take blog photos in the rain (classic Instagram husband). I was looking where he was pointing and when I glanced back at him, he was down on one knee in the pouring rain. He gave a speech that I would imagine was very sweet, but unfortunately I blacked out with pure joy and don’t remember a word (but don’t worry, he said he’ll write it down for me because he’s an angel). I think I said yes, dropped my umbrella to the ground, and threw my arms around my new fiancé!
We then walked up to the winery/brewery, where our closest friends and family were waiting for us to celebrate. I had a feeling our parents and maybe my sisters would be there, but when I went inside, I saw that Will’s sister had flown in from Napa, our best friends had flown in from Denver, two more had traveled down from DC, and some of our favorite people (including my godmother, Will’s grandmother, and my sweet baby nephew) were all huddled together to surprise me. I was obviously shook to the core and promptly burst into tears, again.
After I settled down, I was filled in on the details of the past week where Will: worked with our moms to set the whole thing up, took my dad to that same brewery one week before to ask for his blessing, drove out to my mom’s to ask the same of her and my stepdad, informed my best friends, hid the ring in his work bag every day in case I went on a cleaning spree, and all the while, flawlessly kept it a secret from me when he was constantly feeling like a ball of nerves. After 6.5 years of dating, I always thought I’d know instantly what was going on and inadvertently ruin any kind of surprise for myself, but Will somehow executed the whole thing to perfection. I’m the luckiest ♥
This was one of my very favorite days, and I’m so happy to share the details with you all. Can’t wait to start this next chapter in our story!
If y’all are interested, I’ll share some aspects of the wedding planning process on the blog! Feel free to comment below or send me a DM of any specifics you’d be interested in. Thanks for reading Chlo & Tell – love you guys!
