Before I go on about the day and how I proposed, you must understand a thing or two about me. It takes me a long time to make my mind up to do something, but when I decide to do it, I take care of it ASAP. It's a little bit of procrastination, liking to work under pressure, and stupidity rolled into one. This being said, by the day I was going to propose, August 4, I had done nothing. Hadn’t bought the ring, talked to her folks, or taken care of the details of the actual proposal. The pressure was mounting.
The day started off with me knowing that Heather had work, class, and a meeting to keep her busy all day, so I had a full day to get everything done. I decided to take care of the ring first. I called up my buddy Will Landreth and said I needed a wingman. I knew I wanted to get the ring at Blakeman's in Rogers, so Will called his buddy Ben Blakeman, and told him we were coming out to buy a ring. We eventually pulled up in mid-morning and the Blakemans took amazing care of me. I will never use a different jeweler. They helped me find the perfect ring that I was confident Heather would love. I knew a few styles Heather liked, so I picked accordingly. It was beautiful. As soon as I finished there I needed to talk to her folks. I told Will thanks for the help and headed to Bentonville to talk to her dad.
Her dad wasn't on duty at the fire station that day, so I called him up and said we needed to talk. He said to come on over to their house. I was about to throw up being so nervous, but I pulled it together. I had a nice conversation with her father. I just told him how much she meant to me and that I wanted to be with her forever. He had a few questions and then gave the okay. He was great, and it was pretty painless. After that, he and I went to the school where her mom works, and I asked her mother. Tears and a few questions later, she gave me her blessing as well. Lastly, I went and talked to her little brother Hayden. He was cool with things thankfully, so I had made it. I had the approval I needed. Now it was time to plan the actual proposal.
I decided to "make" her dinner and propose sometime that evening. Luckily, we had her duplex to herself, so there would be no roommate interference. I started the plans by heading to Wal-Mart. I bought a ton of candles and flowers. Then I went to Mexico Viejo and ordered way too many cheese enchiladas and beans and rice. This was her favorite food from our favorite place to eat. We ate there at least three times a week, so I knew she would like it. I headed back to her house and put the food in the oven, set the table, lit the candles and put on some Frank Sinatra. She loves a little Frank! The mood was set. I then put on her apron to prove that I had cooked the food. When she got home that night, I met her at the door. She laughed and my apron and the night had begun. I proceeded to watch her eat the food I had prepared. I was much too nervous to do any eating myself. We were enjoying the evening. I, of course, assumed she thought I was going to propose that night, so I tried to throw her off. I would do little things that would look like I was going to pop the question and then not do it. After we ate, we went and got some ice cream like we always do, and headed back to the house. I then put in one of her favorite movies, Pride and Prejudice, and we sat down to enjoy the rest of her night. As we sat down, she said that Maya, her new puppy, would need to go outside. I had Maya in the back room, out of our way the whole night for a reason. I volunteered to go get her. I went into the back room and told Maya it was our time to shine. I tied the ring around her neck and let her loose. She ran right to Heather, and I met them on my knee. I then said my sappy proposal, and she said yes!
It was a crazy day, and it may not sound that great, but it was perfect for us both. We spent the rest of the evening calling friends and family. I will never forget August 4, 2008.
