A few days after we first met, he asked me on a coffee date. Since coffee is my love language, I couldn't refuse. We stayed until the shop closed, and we've been going on coffee dates ever since.

He'd visited the jeweler and come back giddy. He asked almost every day if he could show me the ring he had designed because he couldn't stand to wait. It was scheduled to be ready soon. (He's not much of one for secrets - can you tell?) And then, COVID-19 hit. He received the news that my ring was on hold indefinitely until non-essential businesses could reopen in Oklahoma AND in New York, where the diamond was waiting to ship. I might've shed a few tears. We already knew we wanted a fall wedding, and we decided planning didn't have to wait. We joked and brainstormed about a fun “engagement” announcement for family and friends so we could share with them our wedding planning adventures even while waiting for my ring to arrive and the official engagement to occur. At least, I thought we were joking. It was a Tuesday. He grilled steaks, and we went for a walk as the sun set. It was a lovely evening in a normal sort of way. In the living room, he took my hand and asked to dance as the lyrics played: “It’s not just picture-perfect dancing in a white dress. It’s not just rainy days when nothing stops the fighting. It’s not just highs and lows and champagne toasts. I’ve come to know that love’s not only the best days or the worst days. Love is the Tuesdays.” And somehow, uncontrollable laughter mixed with the sweetest tears as he told me he couldn’t wait any longer to officially ask me to marry him. The ring was large and blue and sticky, but the gesture could not have been more genuine. It was appropriate somehow. As an enneagram 7, Jacob is my silver lining. He brings optimism and laughter to every situation. So, this ring pop proposal in the midst of a pandemic felt oddly right. Like a silver lining. Hope in the chaos. And so, I said yes. Always, yes.

Yes, he proposed again. And he was definitely more nervous the second time around. It was perfectly sweet and worth the wait in every way. And THAT DIAMOND... *swoon*