When? January 15th, 2026 Where? The Natick Mall Wait. Where?! Why? There’s a back story… The year was 2021. We had been talking online and decided to meet in person for the first time somewhere halfway between where we were both living at the time for lunch. So, we chose the Natick Mall. As you may know, Ashley is the top authority on decision making. So, naturally, when she was given two options, PF Chang’s or the Cheescake Factory, she quickly and wisely chose to sit on the floor in the middle of the mall, tantrum style, until Eric made the decision. Fast forward to January 2026. It was a random Thursday, just before the start of our school semesters. We had made a plan to go out to Natick for a day for ourselves and to go to a restaurant we like. We went to the Natick Mall again and Ashley wisely made some crucial shopping decisions. At the end of our visit to the mall, Eric sat on the floor in the middle of the mall, in true Ashley tantrum style, and told Ashley that SHE needed to make the decision and held out the ring (while looking amazingly handsome as always).