How Joe got Julianne's number: offered her a discount on coffee beans with his code How Joe asked Julianne on a first date: texted her to go get coffee sometime How Joe kept Julianne's attention: hid paper cranes with her books in the library How Joe asked Julianne to be his girlfriend: after a lot of dates and patience, with a speech involving how dating didn't have to be so serious How we survived two years of long distance: phone calls, red eyes, and online board games How Joe moved to South Carolina: as soon as Julianne let him, he was on Zillow, and then he was here! How we got engaged: after impressing Julianne's parents on the ski slopes and getting their blessing, Joe started planning the proposal...

After 4 years it was time. I had the method, the ring, the dinner (shrimp pasta), and was ready to propose. Nerves prevented me from eating much of said dinner until after Julianne said yes. She could not say yes until she solved the crossword I constructed which would lead to the proposal. I knew Julianne might get suspicious that I had actually CREATED my own crossword, but I had the idea to propose through a crossword puzzle for several months. Considering one of the first activities we shared together once we started dating included racing to solve mini puzzles, I knew she would like the idea too. Thankfully, I'm marrying a smart woman who solved it despite my nervous onlooking. Feel free to try the puzzle by copying the link below or enlarging the photo at the bottom of the page. Ultimately, Julianne was excited to say yes and we shared the evening and weekend celebrating our new engagement.

Copy this into your browser to get a PDF copy of the proposal Crossword Puzzle: https://bjoebarnhart.com/gallery/My%20Number%20One.pdf