We are back and have BIG NEWS!!!!

Well... what can I say... It has been ENTIRELY TOO LONG but we are BACK!

And... we have lots to share!!!

Joe and I got ENGAGED!!! WHOO HOO!!! We celebrated our one year anniversary yesterday so I thought it only appropriate to start blogging again and to share this really exciting news with all of you! I appreciate your patience in my absence... We have had sooo much going on but we are so excited to be back and have so many great ideas to share with all of you! I thought that today though I would dedicate this post to my precious fiance! He deserves it after all! He orchestrated the most romantic, thoughtful and sweet proposal and I want to make sure he knows just how special it was to me!

Now... Being that I am a wedding planner, I have to give Joe A LOT of credit! I am sure when he began putting all of this together he felt he was hiking Everest! The poor guy had to propose to a wedding planner and might I add someone who is probably THE BIGGEST hopeless romantic there is. I am! I totally believe in fairy tales and love nothing more than romance. And, I have seen it all! I have heard so many great engagement stories and often thought how is this poor guy going to pull this off! But, let me tell you... HE DID!!!

So.... Here it is...

Joe told me that we would be doing something special that Saturday night and that I needed to be ready at 6:30 PM for a romantic evening... So, we ran some errands together that day and I was totally exhausted from a long week so I told Joe I wanted to rest a little before we went out. For those of you that know me... I don't rest! I am always doing something! Well, he was completely annoyed by this! He had a million things to do to prepare for the proposal and now I was going to be in the way at home "resting!" So, he left and went about his "errands." I was ready at about 6:15 PM for our night out but Joe still hadn't come home. I called to see where he was and he said he was over at his sister's helping unload groceries and then was going to run to the market and would be home soon. I was sooo annoyed! So, about 5 minutes later, he called back and asked me to go check the date on the milk in the refrigerator to see if we needed any. My response: "Joe, milk costs $2.00, just get some and get home - SERIOUSLY!" His response: "No, go check in the refrigerator. I don't want to get it if we don't need it." UGH!!!! So, I went to check and there was NO MILK! But, there was a pink rose and a card. He told me to read the card right then. It was a beautiful card that he had made that had lyrics to a song on it... And then a super sweet note telling me that it was going to be a very romantic evening and that he was sending me on a treasure hunt to find him. On this hunt, I would be visiting some of our "firsts." Our first date, the first place he told a group of family and friends that he loved me and our first New Years...

So, I got in the car and headed to the restaurant where we had our "First Date." The restaurant was Tarbells and Harry the bartender met me at the bar with another rose and another note! That note also had song lyrics to "I've Had The Time of my Life." We sang it Karaoke at Julie and Rich's Christmas Party at 5th and Wine and at the end of the song, Joe went into this big speech about how he has had the time of his life with me and that he loved me more than anything... The crowd loved it! So, I drove myself to 5th and Wine and when I walked in Julie and Rich (Joe's Sister and Brother in Law) and his parents were waiting there for me. They were soooo sweet! Joe's father gave me the next note and his mother gave me a pink rose. That note also had song lyrics and instructions to go to the place we went for New Years and made promises about our future together! So, I drove to Sophie's Bistro. There, I was met with the last note and another pink rose. That note also had song lyrics and instructed me to go to the Royal Palms and to come to our special garden to meet Joe. So, I headed to the Royal Palms.

Joe had setup rose petals and candles EVERYWHERE! There were also musicians and a photographer there to capture all of it! He was standing in the center of the garden holding a vintage jewelry box waiting for me!

It was all sooooo pretty and so romantic!!!

He also had arranged for us to have dinner in the garden after he proposed! The whole thing was just so incredibly romantic! This was the table and the floral arrangement he arranged all by himself!!

He met me there and had the most beautiful things to say to me... He told me how much he loved me and could not wait to spend his life with me...

I tried really hard not to cry but as you can see in this picture it didn't work!!!

Then... He got down on his knee and asked me to share my life with him and be his wife... Of course, I said YES!!!

He then put the ring on my finger and it is FABULOUS! We had visited an antique store that Joe used to volunteer for while he attended Law School in La Jolla, CA called Ark Antiques and came across this GORGEOUS antique ring! It was INCREDIBLE. We weren't really looking for rings at that point but Joe noticed it and we both just loved it. It was made in 1890 and was in its original setting. It was an old mine cut diamond set in yellow gold and had 22 small diamonds set in the antique filigree setting. We totally fell in love with it but of course, I had to play it SUPER COOL and not show too much excitement as I didn't want to scare Joe. Well, I guess he thought it was perfect because he called the antique store the day we got home and bought it. He put it away and kept it a secret for several months... CRAZY!!! That night, when he gave it to me, I was soooo incredibly excited! I love the story behind it and I love that it is so different and special! It is truly one of a kind... PS. For those of you looking for a ring, consider antique stores! They have BEAUTIFUL RINGS and I am sure you will be able to find something SURE TO IMPRESS! Don't worry... I will dedicate a post specifically to this subject soon and will share some excellent stores both locally and nationally that have an incredible selection!

So... we are engaged! Joe and I are getting married!!! I could not be happier!!!

It was a beautiful evening and I owe it all to my fiance! He outdid himself!!!

We are planning a wedding for late February 2011... It will be an intimate affair with our closest family and friends and we cannot wait!!!

It has been a whirlwind since the engagement but we are having a great time planning the wedding! I am going to try really hard not to just post about our wedding and to still stay true to sharing great ideas and my work with you but just bear with me... I am incredibly excited!!!

I have been doing LOTS of research so luckily I have a TON of stuff to share with all of you and have several weddings in the next 6 months so I will also be sharing that with you too! So, stick with us! This is going to be a lot of fun and it feels SOOOO GOOD to be back! I missed all of you bunches! I look forward to hearing from all of you...

Until next time...