June 28 2006 - Our engagement

We are engaged!!! Yes its true! Its so exciting!!!

Steven proposed to me last night and it was the most wonderful night of my life!! It was picture perfect and I would not have wanted it any other way. We first went out for dinner to the restaurant where we had our very first date. So cute...we love it there because it brings back so many funny memories from the beginning of our relationship. Then Steven surprised me by telling me that we were going on a hot air balloon ride..something i have always wanted to do....i was sooo excited at this point...he told me that it was an early birthday present. I realize now that yes indeed it was, but it was also a tactic...he didn't want me to know that anything was up.....sooo...before we left the ground i called my parents to tell them what we were doing and to look for a rainbow balloon because we would be going right past my house......so we take off and the views are just breathtaking....it was sooo amazing to see the farmlands and the rivers and ocean from that elevation...its such a different perspective...i was loving it...then..it happened....

Steven, from the heavenssss above, declared his love for me....as you can see from the picture below, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him....it was soo emotional and exciting all at the same time....the other people on the balloon cheered..and it was just the best moment ever.....after a few minutes someone offered me to use their cell phone to call my parents and let them know...we just happened to be flying past my house...but this is the honest truth...i took the phone in my hand..opened and...dialed 604 and for the lifeee of me could not remember my own home phone number...like gone..not a hope..it was soooo weird...i have never everr been so effected by love, joy, and just complete shock to not even remember my own number....so after steven so graciously reminded me of the number i called my parents..they were watching us go by at that moment..."mom can you see us?"....."yes we see you!"....."well mom, can you see my diamond from there!!!!"......haha..oh man..those of you that know my mom need not an explanation of what happened next....haha....they were sooo happy.

So after i got off the phone with them we are just enjoying ourselves sooo much,..everyone on our balloon was sooo nice and excited for us......but then......could it be.....someone says to me "ummm by any chance do your parents own a red convertible?"...ohhh noo..why yes..they do....i lean over the side of the balloon and see my dads car pulled over on 192nd with hazard lights flashing and my mom is running around in her bathhhing suittt taking pictures....it was soo funny....she had been swimming i guess when they all the sudden decided to follow our balloon...sooo that they did....they followed the ballon the whole rest of our ride.....we could see the red car driving through the streets of langley...my dad pulling over once and a while, and when he couldn't pull over my mom was like standing in the car as it was moving snapping shots...and then all the sudden our balloon would change direction and i would see my dad pulling a u-turn...haha..they loveddd it!!....so my mom took over 100 pictures of us in the balloon..some really neat shots....its so awesome to have sooo many memories of our special day!!!

So once landed, the crew and other passengers had some champagne with us and it was really nice to see complete strangers celebrating and caring so much about such a special day in our life.....After we left the airport we headed to my house where Elsie(my soon to be mother-in-law) met us for some more champagne with my parents.....we all just hugged and celebrated mine and stevens love......God has blessed Steven and I richly!!! I have a wonderful family and soon i will gain and become part of another wonderful family....what more could i ask for??

the moment

the happily engaged couple our shadow landing

the fire is scary

my parents...at one of their many stops along the way...you can see my dad waving

we did it...we landed...we went up as boyfriend and girlfriend and came back down as bride and groom!!!!!

beautiful sunset