Grant & I were set up on a date by a dear friend of mine! Grant called me the day that we were scheduled to meet and honestly the only thing I remember from that phone call was him saying “It will be just fine, no need to worry!” (I was freaking out inside & apparently he could tell!) We met at Walt’s Pizza in Marion where he presented me with 3 orange roses (my fav) & a dog toy for Murray (anyone that knows me- knows that dog toy sealed the deal even before it started!) For the next 2 hours we sat over a pizza that neither of us ate because we were too nervous to order what we actually preferred! I remember talking about family, work, our love for dogs, & travel- it was so easy to talk to him! We continued our night with a round of “Goofy Golf” at the local park where I beat him?!?!? Anyone that knows Grant knows he is an awesome golfer so maybe he let me win, who knows? I remember laughing, carrying on, & simply forgetting I had just met this person! When Grant recommended we end our date with a trip to the Dairy Queen I was thrilled because remember neither of us ate during dinner! I ordered a chocolate milkshake and he had an Oreo blizzard & the rest was history.

Grant & I were vacationing with his company in Hawaii and by no suprise, Grant had each day planned! (I truly appreciate his Google skills!) We set out early in the morning in a 4 door Jeep Wrangler to accomplish one of Hawaii’s “must dos” The Road to Hana! We had been advised by many to make sure we had maps, food, & plenty of cell phone battery! We hit up the local McDonalds for a lemonade & Diet Coke and then hit the trail! If you research The Road to Hana, you quickly learn that it is a 7-9 hour trip (not including stops.) We went bee-bopping along, often stopping for hikes, swims, pictures, food, shops, etc. always thinking that we would be back to our hotel by sun down! The road to Hana consists of 62 miles of curvy and windy roads going up and down mountains(with NO guard rails!!!) that never seem to end! We finally reached Hana at dusk thinking we were almost around the island, when we were hit with a construction sign saying “No through traffic.” I don’t remember what we said at this moment, but I’m sure it was not cheery! We had been on this path for hours and this orange triangle was informing us we had to do it ALL over again, but this time in the dark!!!!!!!! Grant was completely silent and his knuckles were white! I was hanging my head out of the window trying not to be car sick. I kept asking Grant to talk to me so I could stay awake and all of a sudden he said, “Meredith, I cannot talk right now, I’m trying to keep us ALIVE!” You could have heard a pin drop in that jeep! Haha!! About an hour later, Grant said, “Hey, hand me some of those mints we bought this morning.” I then had to inform him I had eaten all of them out of nervousness. LOL It was a LONG night consisting many trying times, but yes we did survive! We arrived back to town at who knows what time, found a 24 hour Hawaiian Burger King, & the rest was history!

While hanging out in the pool in the Grand Caymans on Grant’s work trip, I remember Grant saying, “We are eating dinner here tonight.” I didnt think anything about it because as most people know *Grant always has a plan! I did notice as we got closer to dinner time, Grant got more restless. As we got ready for dinner, he left our hotel room 3 times- in and out- always telling me he had an errand to run. We walked down to the resort’s restaurant where we were escorted to a private table on the sand surrounded by 4 tiki torches. I remember thinking, *woah he pulled out all the stops for this! We started with an apperizer sampler of shrimp & scallops which was accompanied by a “chef prepared” tray of sea life decor. I remember looking at the sea life made from fondant thinking “I cannot eat that!” In the middle of the fondant shells & starfash was an incredible large shell (The large shell was a ring box Grant had ordered from Etsy) Grant took the large center shell immediately and began his speech that to this day I wish I could remember every word! I of course said yes (after I blubbered, “Did you ask my parents?”) He cried. I cried. I think we continued dinner, but who knows what it tasted like? I’m sure it was amazing. And that’s the story. After pictures, lots of conversation, tears, and food we ventured back to our room where coworkers of Grants had decorated our room with flowers & candles. I immediately called my parents and attempted to get the words out to them. After a few moments, Grant said “Meredith that was a terrible job of explaining what just happened, do we need to do it again?” LOL I was so shaken with what had just happened outside, I didnt know how to put it into words! I got better at telling it. Best. Night. Ever.