A Walk Down Memory Lane

I’ve given a brief summary of how Matt proposed when I wrote this post, but in honor of the anniversary of his proposal, I wanted to share the details.  Five years (and 2 days) ago I was about to embark on one of the greatest journeys in life! 

For those who don’t know, Matt and I were long distance until we were married.  He was living in San Francisco while I was in Austin at the time he proposed.  That particular weekend, he was supposed to be coming into town, but told me earlier in the week that he was going to have to work on a huge project and wouldn’t be able to make it.  I was disappointed, as our weekends together were really all we had at that point, but my week turned around a bit when a huge bouquet of roses showed up at work with a card saying he had booked a massage for me that Saturday to make up for his not being there. 

Saturday morning, I woke up and headed to get my massage (not having talked to Matt yet because of the time difference).  Afterwards, I went by the front desk to make sure I didn’t owe anything and the girl suddenly seemed a little excited and said “oh, are you Brittany?!”  I replied that, yes, I was, and she disappeared for a second, then came back with a flower and an envelope.  She told me everything was taken care of and I was good to go! 

I opened the envelope to find this…

{I should note that at this point, I still had no idea he was actually in town, I just thought he felt really bad about not being able to make it and went over the top to make it up to me!}

I proceeded to collect the following clues from all of our favorite places in Austin… from outdoor spots with great views, to the apartment of the friend who introduced us, even a stop at Sonic to get me my favorite Diet Coke (seriously, I pressed the button and the carhop came out with a large Diet Coke, a flower and my next envelope!)  Talk about knowing the key to my heart… :)

The next clues took me to Hula Hut (my favorite restaurant), GSD&M (my old work), and the deck at the house where I was living at the time.

{As I read the final clue, I finally realized that he was probably in town, seeing as how he said we had a nice evening ahead of us, but it still didn’t register that he would be proposing.} 

(Also, please note that he had to underline HOUR when telling me how long I had to get ready.  Apparently he didn’t want to be waiting in a suit outside for me… )

My last clue took me to Mount Bonnell, which is the highest point in Austin, and it wasn’t until I was on my way there and called a girlfriend to tell her about my fun game, who instantly said “ohmygosh! he’s going to propose!” that it finally clicked.  I drove right past my exit because that was seriously the first time that thought had gone through my mind! 

When I finally arrived, I “hiked” up the hill to find Matt, in a suit, with a bouquet of roses and another envelope!  He handed me the following letter…

I looked up to him with tears in my eyes when I finished the letter and he was down on one knee with a ring in his hand!  We had an audience by this point and after I said yes we got a huge round of applause!  It was far more romantic than I could have ever imagined my proposal to be! 

Matt had one last surprise for me after he proposed – he took me to a nice steakhouse for dinner afterwards where my parents were waiting to surprise me! (His parents would have been there, but they were living in London at the time!)

It’s so hard to believe it’s been five years since then!  A job change (x2), name change, a new city, new house and a baby later and we’re still going strong. :)