A mutual friend invited a few of his friends to celebrate his birthday for a day of hiking & enjoying nature. We were lucky enough to be among those invited. It was a beautiful May day--warm enough that we even got to enjoy a dip in the pool. The group spent the day together, but Tim got up the courage to ask Sam for his phone number before leaving. He couldn't wait to get home to text him. We called each other every evening that week & Sam was able to come to Tulsa to visit for the weekend. We talked again every night the next week. The following weekend, Sam came to Tulsa again but never had a reason to leave.

It was not the day that either of us expected. Tim woke up Christmas morning with his ear buzzing as it had the day before. He wasn't in the best mood. He felt hurried to fix breakfast, get showered & open gifts so we could drive down to Seminole for lunch. Sam had already talked to all the kids as well as John & Dan beforehand, so everyone was waiting to hear how the proposal went. Kristen was home for the holiday. While Tim was taking a shower, Kristen asked Sam, "Are we still going through with this?" That's how grumpy Tim was. But Sam has great love & great patience. He told her, "When you love someone, you love them even when they're not in a good mood." When we finally sat down to exchange gifts, it started out pretty normal. At the end, Sam pulled a little box from a branch in the tree & got down on one knee. It was beautiful and overwhelming and humbling, all at the same time.