We're Getting Married!

We met in 2009 when Ryan began working as a manager at the Native New Yorker in Queen Creek, Arizona. I had been working there as a bartender for a few years. What started as a simple manager-bartender relationship turned into many late night talks, text messaging every day, and constant secret flirting! We tried to hide our feelings and our relationship from our friends and co-workers, fearing there would be consequences because Ryan was my boss. This went on for a few months. Until finally we decided that we couldn't hide it anymore. On May 30, 2010, we made our relationship official!

The weekend before Christmas, we went shopping at a vintage market at The Big Tin Cotton Gin in Queen Creek. We came across a wood pallet picture frame collage that I fell in love with. The lady at the booth told us that they only accepted cash. Sadly, not having cash, we went to another booth. Little did I know, Ryan had planned on secretly going back to buy the pallet for me for Christmas. A few minutes later, the woman came over to explain that she actually could take a card for the payment. Ryan had to tell me what he was going to do, ruining his plan! Wr bought the pallet together among some other gifts and went home. Christmas Day: The morning started out like any other Christmas. We drove over to pick up Cody, had breakfast with family, went to have brunch with some more family, and headed home to open gifts before more family came over for Christmas dinner. After Cody opened some presents, Ryan wanted me to open mine. He told me to wait in the living room while he got the gift from the bedroom, meanwhile telling Cody and my mom to get their cameras ready. Evidently, I didn't pay much attention to that part. A few minutes later, the bedroom door opened and Ryan came out, holding the wood pallet we had bought a few days before. Ryan walked towards the hallway and began hanging the pallet on the wall. Confused, I watched him until Cody nudged me to go look at it. He had put pictures in the frames! As I looked at the pictures of me and Ryan, our son Cody, and our puppy, Elliot, Ryan said "See, it's our family." It was pictures of the little family we had grown together.. I turned around to see Ryan kneeling on one knee. Before he could even put the ring on my finger, I threw my arms around him, sobbing out the words, "It's about damn time!" I could not have asked for a better proposal either. It was simple, sweet, personal, and absolutely perfect! And the ring was gorgeous too 😉!!