Will you marry me?

In honor of 9 months of marriage, (yipee!) here is our engagement story that was on our wedding website for those of you that haven't seen it or would love to re-live it:

Saturday, June 05, 2010

Will You Marry Me

The summer of 2009, Scott and I went on our first day trip to St. Augustine. We had an amazing time sight seeing all the history, lighthouses, and the culture. Dinner that night was amazing, and it was like it all came out of a dream. White glistening light's illuminated the garden patio at night,  live music danced through the air as we enjoyed an exceptional meal. As we walked down by the water, Scott surprised me with a night tour of the city by horse and carriage. Yes, this was the most romantic date ever. However, that is not the best part. As Scott drove me home (3 1/2 hours mind you), I feel fast asleep. A loud thud woke me out of my slumber. We hit a deer. However, I didn't move an inch out of Scott's hold. This was the night I fell for him. But he didn't find that out for a long time.
 Fast forward to June, 2010. Scott and I just returned from a surprise birthday trip to Michigan, and a wedding in Michigan prior to that. Needless to say, we were exhausted. The last thing I wanted to do was travel. Then Scott informs me of a day trip he has planned for the upcoming weekend. I was not being a team player. That was until my maid of honor, Courtney, called me. Looking back on the conversation now, she couldn't of been a better friend of mine, and alli of Scott's. In so many words I was told how grateful I should be for such an amazing "manfriend". Not only did he travel back home with me, but he secretly got all of my friends and family together for a surprise party in Michigan the previous weekend. And I must say, it was one of the most memorable birthdays ever. She was right. I apologized and regained the energy to support Scott.
When Scott picked me up bright and early, he informed me we were going back to St. Augustine. I was thrilled. That is until we hit the expressway and it was shut down. Little did we know that there was a fully involved care fire. As we approached the scene, Scott jumped into action as a first responder. This was the first time that I ever witnessed Scott fighting fire. I could not of been more proud of Scott. 
We were hours behind in our trip, yet we finally made it to St. Augustine with just enough time to make our dinner reservation to the same restaurant as our first endeavor. For one of the first times in my presence, Scott didn't finish his dinner. He kept claiming his stomach was upset. So I suggested a walk on the beach for sunset. He stalled, and stalled some more. Offering dessert, music, anything to get me to stay in my seat. The sun was officially setting and he was finally ready to go. As we walked to the street, he insisted on the longest hug ever, and I turned around to a horse and carriage pulling up. I was completely surprised, and we reminisced our first tour of the city. Upon completion of the ride, Scott  stated he was ready to head out to take me home. Honestly, I was surprised. Then on the way out of town he asked if I wanted to get a frosty. They were closed. Then he offered a McFlurry, and as I waited in line, Scott said he was sick and we needed to leave right away.

St. Augestine, FL

As we got into his truck, he asked if I loved him, I said of course. He asked if I trusted him, I said completely. Then he handed me a blind fold. Riding with the blind fold on felt like an eternity, while he claims it was only a few minutes. When we stopped and he helped me out of the truck, all I could hear a bunch of teenage guys talking and the ocean, I'm not going to lie, I was nervous. Especially when he took me through the sand while walking with heels on. All that was going though my mind was that it was dark out and where in the world is he taking me. Scott made my mind really start spinning when he told me to sit in the chair. Where did this guy get a chair from? 
As I sat down, I saw a flickering of a flame in the bottom sneak through my blindfold. That's when it hit me.. he's proposing! As he took the blindfold off, he revealed an aisle of candles in the sand leading to a table set up at the end. As he got down on one knee, and presented me with the ring, he asked for me to..... yes!...marry him! As we celebrated, I asked him if he got down on one knee... he replied yes and asked if I even remembered what he said. No, I didn't. It's true, it was such an extraordinary moment that I didn't remember. So I gave the ring back and asked him to do it again. And to my wonderful surprise, he did! 
Then Scott's best man "Peach" came running out of the distance with his uncles, the men behind the beautiful scene's of setting up our engagement! Ask Scott sometime about he's detailed itinerary and even a google map of the beach that marked the spot of the engagement.
That evening, we spread the delightful news to our friends and family. Angie, one of my best friends, and I were delighted to share the same news with one another! We became engaged on the same night, and the guys didn't even know
Scott and I feel so blessed for such a rich journey in the Lord and give Him all the praise. We have faith in the Lord for the journey ahead of us, and we are thrilled to share this next chapter with all of our friends and family.

A Joyful Healing

On Friday, March 2, Scott and I took a little trip down to Sarasota. We left for our destination at 3:30am. Promptly at 5:30am, we checked in at Sarasota Memorial Hospital for what was scheduled as Laparoscopic and Hysteroscopic Surgery. During the procedure the surgeon found that my left fallopian tube was attached to my large intestine. He also diagnosed severe endometriosis on my uterus, cervix, fallopian tube, ovary, and large intestine. This was causing my severe pelvic pain over the last 6 months. My fallopian tube was surgically separated from my intestine, and it was reported that it has been that way my entire life. That is the ongoing abdominal pain that I have had since I was a child that was never diagnosed since it cannot be seen via ultrasound, MRI, Ct scan, etc., only via surgery. The surgeon removed as much of the endometriosis as possible. I was discharged that evening.

The recovery process has been slower than anticipated due to the side effects of anesthesia, Co2 and additional incisions. Scott has been an amazing husband while taking care of his wife. For Valentines Day he gave me some bake-ware and a breakfast in bed tray. He had no idea how much use we would get from that tray!

I went back to work at the internship this previous Wednesday. Thankfully, God is great and everyday gets easier and closer to normalcy. I have been going to bed around 7/8pm and slept my heart away today. I continually have to remind myself of my 10 pound lift/pull/push restrictions, and I am looking forward to being allowed to due more strenuous activities in about a month.  Thankfully, the internship has been extremely accommodating and my current rotation at the school board is working well. 

We appreciate all of the continued prayers and support from all of our family and friends. There is no such thing as too many prayers:) Scott and I apparently know how to keep our 1st year of marriage interesting! Thankfully, this was discovered while we are young and not later on under different circumstances. God has blessed us and we are continually praying for a complete healing. We send our love and blessings. Enjoy your weekend and Be Joyful Always (1 Thessalonians 5:16)<3