We are getting married!

Despite my doubts about online dating I finally signed up for Eharmony to give it a go. After all where was I going to meet a man, my friends were all married and I was a single mom. After a few short months of being on there I had already decided it was a mistake and was too overwhelmed to weed through all the profiles. I would only read my messages and respond to those who took time to write a real message. One special guy wrote a very personal and chatty message. We started talking and had a lot of fun getting to know each other. When it came time to go on a real date or meet in person I was leaving for a two week road trip across the US and Canada. He was willing to wait until I returned to meet so we stayed in touch, as much as possible given I didn't use the phone much over that time. Our first date was to go to Highland Fest and get some food and catch some music/walk around. That morning I text him to bring a swimsuit because it was too hot out and I wanted to get in some water somewhere! I am sure he was excited to hear that, she is taking half her clothes off on the first date! We went to Fort Snelling beach park and talked and swam until we got hungry. Highland Park Fest was quiet due to heat but we ate and sat in the shade. Even had our picture taken by the local newspaper man. Later we went out for drinks and back to my place where a mistaken identity of the cutting board lead to some serious cribbage matches. We had so much fun playing games and drinking wine that night. It went so well we decided to do it all again the next day. After that we did a semi long distance relationship with him in St Cloud and me in Minneapolis. Darin finally got tired of driving down and staying here so much we decided he should just move in! And the rest is history!

We discussed being married but never wedding details. All I knew was we wanted a small ceremony and that Allison wanted to wear her grandmother’s ring. That meant the pressure of finding one was off! As it turns out I couldn’t seem to find "said ring" even with Averiel's help. Finally, I asked Allison for the ring as I knew it needed repair. I decided I needed permission from Averiel and Jay before I popped the question and I had to plan the proposal! I knew she would love it near a lake or on a trail, so that would be the plan. In late February I got the ring back. Now, we wait for the snow to melt…wait for it…wait…wow lots of snow...mid April I was wondering if it would ever melt! Spring eventually came and I did talk with both Averiel and Jay, who were supportive and appreciative of our conversations. As spring progressed, those bright sunny weekends never showed up and we were running to soccer, see family, graduations, etc. I wasn’t finding the time. I decided asking her to marry me was more important than when and where it happened. This brings us to the fated weekend of May 18th; Allison was going camping and I was headed up to hang out with the guys. I guess I needed a nudge from above because Allison’s training was canceled due to storms and I decided to stay home with her. That gave us a weekend with no plans. Friday was a beautiful evening so I asked her to go for a walk but she decided we were going rollerblading. Rollerblading!! Will I lose the ring in my pocket? I wasn’t willing to take the chance. Saturday we decided to drive to Cold Spring and visit my grandmother and aunts in town. At home we had a nice dinner and our typical game night. Allison wrapped herself in a blanket and I said “You look just like a queen, it’s perfect right now”. I knelt down and grabbed the ring as Allison sat on the chair, oblivious. When I asked her she finally looked down and immediately said yes! We waited a week to celebrate with wine, thanks Whole30!