I’m thrilled to go to medical school, it’s the reason I’ve invested so much over the past few years. But you know what? Annie and I got engaged this past weekend and I’m even more excited to spend the rest of my life with her! So let me tell you what went down.
Annie and I had looked at rings together a few weeks ago because I really wanted her to love what she got (and thankfully we did because she hated everything I liked!). Once she picked a few she liked, I told her the ring I chose would take about a month or so to get set and sized, but it was actually ready the following week…so she had no idea that the engagement would be happening soon. This past Thursday we went down to Cincinnati because I had a Second Look event at UC’s med school and so the weekend had an “all about me” feel which helped take away any of Annie’s suspicions.
Friday after I got back from UC I asked Annie to go to dinner and boy was it difficult to get her to say yes! She wanted to stay home with her family because she doesn’t see them often but she finally agreed because everyone was “busy” for the night. We went to a great Asian restaurant called Green Papaya in Hyde Park. At dinner I was super anxious and flustered, but I don’t think she was catching on. Toward the beginning of our meal I told Annie I had something really exciting to tell her and to give her. Before I go on, you should know that Annie always loses her water bottles and I had told her when I picked a med school that I’d give her a water bottle from that school. But when I told her I had something for her she started to think that was it…and you know what she thought? “Is he really going to do it here?” But I didn’t. I gave her the bottle and told her that I had chosen UC for med school. (Annie is from Cincinnati so this was exciting news since we will be near friends and family for the next four years.) She thought that was the big news and all her suspicions left, and so did my anxiety….for the most part.
After dinner we were extremely stuffed and I asked Annie if she wanted to go for a walk at a nearby park. What she didn’t know, however, was that three of her good friends had set up something special for us. When we got to the park, I was a mess. I wasn’t familiar with the park so I had no idea where to go. To make it worse, Annie took my coat because she was cold and so I had to put the ring in my pocket which was super obvious. We walked around for a bit and eventually I saw what the girls had set up. The only problem was that Annie had to go to the bathroom, which was right near the overlook where I need to take her. So I awkwardly distracted her as we walked in that direction and tried to get her to run to the bathrooms with me since we had to go so bad….I was so nervous, I couldn’t think of anything else to do! We did what we had to do and when she came out, I was standing by “the place.” There was a blanket, strawberries, champagne, and music overlooking a beautiful view. As she walked over to me, she knew what was going on. She walked over to me, I got down on my knee, and I asked her to marry me!
The rest of the night we spent with family and friends. It was a wonderful night and a special time for Annie and me. We’re very thankful for everyone who has invested in us as individuals and as a couple over the years. We are excited for what God has in store and pray that through our marriage we will grow closer to Him.
