I'm ENGAGED! * Updated! with Details!

More details to come...

Okaybee, so ya'll want some details? huh?
As some of you may already know, for the Memorial Day weekend, we were up in Bear Lake, Idaho, where the majority of my mum's family lives. My honey-man and the angel boy-O joined me in Salt Lake City last Friday afternoon, and then we were off to Bear Lake together! I must point out that the two of them lovingly suffered through four days of car traveling for only 2 solid days of visit time - - ? ! ? - - But it was so worth it!!! Visits to Ootah and Idaho are never long enough, but ALWAYS so worth it. This visit in particular was the angel boy-O's first time up to Idaho without any snowfall... Well, kinda - - most of the time we were there, the weather was purty nasty - - and although it didn't stick, it even snowed! Yup, there was SNOW!?!

FIRST, SOME UNRELATED-TO-THE-ENGAGEMENT VISIT DETAILS: On Saturday, we were at my cousin Thayne's High School District Finals Rodeo competition held at the B.L. County fairgrounds -the angel boy-O's first rodeo- and the wind blew and it rained all day, but our spirits were high and we had a blast! By the way - my cousin Thayne was deemed H.S. district champion for "team roping," and he'll be off to the state championship finals next month!!! Yessirree Bob! I gots me a cowboy family ~ Go Thayne! So yeah, most of our time on Saturday was spent in the rodeo stands, huddled together with several cousins and their friends, and my ever-dedicated Grams and my aunt Shelly, all of us beneath multiple coat layers and many shared blankets, sipping hot chocolate, warmed some by a propane heater propped before us all. The whole time, the angel boy-O was literally tickled pink (we all were, it was so cold)! But really, he was thrilled outta his lil' mind, with his mouth running constantly, yelling at the top of his very small yet terribly powerful lungs, rousing us all, including the stands and the competition! [SIDE NOTE: Having been given the freedom to run absolutely wild (well, almost absolutely wild) all weekend long, the angel boy-O totally reminded me and my Grams of ME, to a ' T ' when I was his age; constantly chittering away, either making strange noises or singing songs at all times and constantly wriggling! E.g. Two of my many childhood nicknames: "Motor Mouth" and "Wiggle Worm."] There was one moment that day at the rodeo, however, in which the boy-O was stunned absolutely silent for a mere moment when a rather large and fast running bucking bronco rushed against the length of the arena grandstand siderails, kicking mud up into the stands... Once the bronco had past, the boy-O announced with great shock and pure glee, "I just got DIRT kicked in my mouth!?!" - - followed by his most infectious, VERY CUTE, almost maniacal laugh!

AND ON SUNDAY: Late Sunday morning, we brought the angel boy-O over to my aunt's home, where they were all getting ready for some roping practice. After running some errands, thinking they'd had to come in from the wind and the rain by then, my honey-man went back over to check on the boy-O. No one was inside, so heading back to the corral, my honey-man could see all 5 of them (my aunt and uncle and their 3 eldest children) on horseback, and at first, he wondered where the boy-O was, but then he wondered who was running the roping chute with the steers?!?! It was the angel boy-O!! and with the "hot shot" in hand!?!? HOLY S***!!! Definition of a "HOT SHOT" - A 'hot shot' looks like a long plastic wand, about 3 feet in length and it's used to give cattle an electrical shock, to move them down and into the roping chute or wherever you want them to go. And the boy-O was lovin' the hot shot!

Another thing that was super funny (again, totally unrelated to the proposal story), which we heard about over dinner later that day with the fam... But first, some BACKGROUND INFO: On our car ride up to Bear Lake, we had stringently warned the angel boy-O to avoid all expressions of "the Lord's name in vain" [e.g. "Oh my Lord"], telling him that Grandma Rae would die of a heart attack (nor did we want her getting after us for it), if otherwise. So at dinner, my cowboy uncle Trent and my aunt Shelly told us how earlier that Sunday morning, the angel boy-O had vigilantly pointed out any failure on their part to keep their language sparkling clean. "You just said a bad word!" (and some time passes) "You just did it AGAIN!?"

~ Way. Too. Cute. ~

THE PROPOSAL STORY: Alrighty, so the part you really want to hear about? The marriage proposal? Sometime around the beginning of this past weekend, my honey-man had told me at some moment - when exactly, I cannot recall, if that wasn't already obvious - he would really like it if we went up the north pasture together like we had during his first visit with me to Bear Lake. BACKGROUND INFO: In 2004, after having gone on like, maybe one or two dates? I had the balls to ask my honey-man whether or not he'd be willing to meet me in Salt Lake City, flying in from L.A., to go up to Bear Lake with me and meet my mum's family. K, so the reasons why I asked him despite a bit of fear that he'd tuck tail and run away from me if I did so: 1) I already knew that I was nuts about him; and 2) I had a pretty sure feeling he was purty sweet on me already; and 3) hopefully, based upon the whole "nuts about you" feelings, he'd still be around a year from then, but 4) it was his last chance to ever witness "the end of summer splendor" that was my Grandma Rae's garden in Bear Lake, before she was about to have a driveway built up through its middle, up to the house that Fall. So yyyeah, my asking him didn't scare him off at all - he said yes and he met me in SLC and drove with me to Bear Lake. That weekend together in really solidified the basis of our relationship: TRUST. And while there, we had had a significant 'moment' up on the pasture hill, overlooking the Bear Lake Valley, just north of my Grandma Rae's home - One could say it was in that very 'moment' that our mutual trust and our belief in one another was defined.

Back to the actual proposal story: Okay, so my honey-man had told me he wanted to revisit our special spot up the hill, and without suspicion, I had said something along the lines of "Oh yes, let's!" Well, the aforementioned crappy weather? It was way way too cold and windy and too wet to take a walk up that pasture hill or anywhere, for that matter. So Sunday afternoon, my honey-man told me that he had something for me downstairs. He took my hand and without suspicion, I went with him. We passed through the room and stopped to stand in front of the angel boy-O and my 11-year old cousin, Tanner, off to the side of them a bit. At first I thought I was about to be shown some trick on the X-Box, until the X-box game was willingly paused and muted by the two boys. This move was confusing. And looking at the angel boy-O, he wore a smile the size of a large watermelon slice and his eyes were like a pair of pies! and it was as though the angel boy-O was about to burst with excitement! Seeing his state, my suspicions rose (can't blame me, after the Bernina) and I began to glance back and forth between the boys and my honey-man.

My honey-man, sensing my confusion, then made an effort to hold my attention. Still holding both my hands, he began speaking in a soft, but very formal and serious fashion and he said/asked "You know that I love you very much?" Feeling my confusion grow, I told him "Of course, I do." -- at least, I think that's what I said... either that, or simply, "Yes." Then glancing over to the angel boy-O again, who looked as though he may explode any second, I looked back to my honey-man, who's eyes were suddenly quite seriously serious. It is here in my memory that, um, my memory is a lil' fuzzy... He said something, that I remember thinking at the time was really sweet and perfect and then he said something more about loving me so much and asking me if I knew just how much he loves me... and I think I said something like 'of course' or 'yes' and I think he was still holding both of my hands when he began to kneel down, and I do remember thinking just before he began to sink toward the floor, " OMG! He really meant it when he said [just last month] this would "happen sooner than you think..." And I do remember that I almost blurted out an over-eager "YES!" before he'd even settled down on one knee to pop the final question.

THE PROPOSAL, Itself: I'm not sure I can even repeat with any accuracy what he actually said when he asked me to marry him. I think he said my full name - I know he did at some point, at least twice. All I know for sure is that he did ask me and I said "yes" without a miniscule moment's pause, immediately pulling on him to stand and hold me. And then there were our tears, happy tears and loud cheering from the boy-O! And I know that thereafter, once standing again, my honey-man told me that I make him very happy, and the angel boy-O then stood to present a red paper-wrapped box - the ring - and I giggled and laughed, and I know I kept repeating the words "OH WOW" and I tried to stop myself from bawling. Opening the box, I do know that my honey-man was telling me that we could use the ring as an engagement ring only, to have something custom made later on, just how I want it, and once the box was open and I saw it, I instantly loved it, and once the ring was on my finger, he explained that the three sapphire stones represent our beginning = The three of us; Me and him and the angel boy-O, and by then??? THEN ? My brain was total mush! I couldn't think straight. But my heart? OH MY HEART! I thought my heart would lift off like a rocket and I was officially stunned outta my mind - I'd gone into orbit!

My Grandma Rae had heard the cheering and came downstairs to see what was up. Walking toward her, as she was midway down the stairs, I told her casually, but a lil' sheepishly, "So, I'm engaged."

"Ohhh, you're not - Whatever," she replied.

Almost to the stairs, as she neared the bottom stairs, I said "No really, I am!" and I held up my left hand for her to see. It was then her, who was the one doing the swooning. My honey-man joined me on the stairs to steady my Grams and she bear-hugged us both.

Only a couple hours later, or less, we had 16 members of my mum's extended family over for Sunday dinner and my Grandma Rae had told us not to tell anyone of our engagement until we were all sitting down. Several squeals were heard and even more tears were had, plus many hugs and several genuine and genuinely goofy, fun loving toasts were given. After having heard my marriage proposal was offered down in Grandma's basement, the family declared to my honey-man "...You fit right in!"

P.S. My honey-man picked the ring himself! "Sapphire" had been his only guideline - he done real good, din't he? And no, we haven't set a date for a wedding.
P.P.S. And we reserve the right to elope!!!
P.P.P.S. Is it really "P.P.S." or is it "P.S.S." Anyone? *Ahhh, okay! It's "P.P.S." ~ THANKS Effie!