We're getting hitched!

Charlie and I became casual friends in 2007 during freshman year at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. After college, we each moved out west in chase of bigger mountains & more snow. He moved to Jackson in December 2011, and I moved to Boulder in January 2012. We went about our lives exploring the mountains separately until May 2013. My roommate and childhood best friend, Joanna, previously lived in Jackson, WY. We decided to take a trip to Jackson over Memorial Day weekend in 2013, and I had ironically planned to set up Joanna with Charlie since I knew he lived there. Within a few hours of meeting up with Charlie, my gut was telling me that my "grand plan" for Joanna was failing miserably and I was the culprit. Luckily, Joanna understood and gave me the green light! We had a magical weekend filled with post-holing in knee-deep snow to Ampitheater Lake, glissading back down the mountain, Rumple Minz shots at the Tavern, late night shenanigans at the pool house, and camping in the rain at Curtis Canyon. On our drive back home to Boulder, I told Joanna that I would figure out a way to move to Jackson one day & that I hoped it would work out between Charlie & I. He made it much easier than I expected, and came to visit me the following weekend in Boulder! We have been spending weekends, and most other days, together ever since. :)

As most of you know, Charlie and I embarked upon VanLife the summer of 2017. That spring we dabbled with looking at engagement rings online, so I had a feeling he might pop the question sometime on the trip. However, the trip was 4 months long, so there was a lot of anticipation! On a rainy, foggy rest day in Squamish, BC we decided it would be a good idea to hike up the Stawamus Chief (the prominent 2300 ft cliff in Squamish). In retrospect, there were lots of signs I missed prior to his proposal that day. For instance, he spent much longer than usual "getting ready" for the hike by shaving & picking out his clothes. As you can imagine, we didn't really care much about our attire during our van life stint. I think Charlie even commented on what I was going to wear that day, so I should have known something was up! We hiked up to the top of the 2nd peak and had a nice picnic. I actually thought to myself that he seemed sad and quieter than usual while we sat & ate jelly beans. Little did I know what he was scheming! We decided to pack up, and Charlie went off toward the side to get one last good view from the top. He asked if he could set up the tripod, and I sat in the frame enjoying the scenery & waiting for him to "fix" the camera for about 10 minutes. When I finally started to ponder what was taking so long, the random people next to us left, & the camera was miraculously ready. He ran over to me, and before I could even think he was down on one knee! We laughed & I cried, and of course I said yes. It was the best day ever.