The Proposal (!!!)

As all of you certainly know by now, Ed and I are getting married! You may not have heard the back story, however, so I thought I'd share the details:

Two childhood friends of mine were getting married in California one weekend apart in June, so I took the interim week off work and Ed and I flew west. The first friend got married in Napa Valley, and since we had a few days to kill before heading to central California for wedding #2 we'd decided to spend a few days wine tasting. Ed is a big fan of wine and had never been to Napa, so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to see the sights. Little did I know he had bigger plans for our trip.

On Monday, June 23rd, a driver Ed had hired picked us up from our hotel and took us to Duckhorn, our first stop of the day. Ed loves their wine and had made a reservation for 11:00. (This may sound early but we're told that many people start wine tasting at 9:00 A.M. in Napa!) Duckhorn is beautiful and the day couldn't have been more perfect--sunny but not too warm. Our driver snapped a picture of us in front before we went in; I never imagined it would by my last picture as a single lady! (Well, not single exactly. You know what I mean.)

We were given glasses of a very nice Sauvingnon Blanc when we checked in and taken to a table on the back porch that looked over the garden, with the vineyards and hills forming an idyllic backdrop for the whole scene. I said I wanted to walk around the grounds a little bit before we left and Ed readily agreed. (I didn't know that I'd just saved him the work of trying to get me into the garden without arousing my suspicions.) A waitress poured us samples of few other wines and told us about what we were drinking, then left us to sip on our own. I felt relaxed and blissful and babbled something about how I wanted to spend more time in Napa, but that I felt that way about just about all of the places we traveled to, and so it seemed we'd have to just spend our lives in transit from cool place to cool place.

Pre-proposal

About halfway through our tastes, Ed suggested we take a spin through the garden. I agreed, grabbing a glass for the trip, in case, you know, I got thirsty on the way. It was sunny, as I said before. Up close, the garden was, indeed, very pretty, and we walked right up to the first line of grape vines where a thick stand of shrubbery stood between us and the house. Ed wanted to walk through the vineyards themselves, but after both of my sandals filled with a layer of dust after only a few steps we abandoned that idea and headed back to the gravel path. 

I took this picture a few minutes after we sat down on the porch. 

Ed told me he liked my idea of being on vacation for the rest of our lives, and I felt a sudden rush of heat wash over me that I'm sure was only partly due to the wine. Then he asked me to marry him. The ring was a big surprise. Ed once told me offhandedly that he couldn't understand how a man could buy a ring without getting input from its recipient first (when I asked later he said he doesn't remember saying this), so I figured that the question would be the big event of the day. But then Ed kindly asked me to detach myself for a moment and pulled a small leather envelope out of his pocket. Inside was a stunningly beautiful ring. "Can I put it on your finger?" he asked. Duh.

The ring, by the way, had come in a cool leather box but it was fairly large and Ed worried that it would be too obvious if he'd had it in his pocket. So the jeweler supplied him with the more subtle envelope. I learned later that my great grandmother's engagement ring had been given to her in just such an envelope, so it turns out Ed was accidentally following a family tradition. I tend to riffle through most of the cabinets and drawers in our apartment in my endless quest to attempt to organize our lives, but I never touch anything in Ed's office area for fear of moving something he needs. Wisely, he'd kept the ring hidden in in his file cabinet, a place I never look, while awaiting our trip. For interested parties, it's an emerald cut diamond flanked by two baguettes in a platinum setting. 

We returned to our seats on the porch and if Ed hadn't been holding my hand I really think I might have floated away. We decided to finish up at Duckhorn before making any calls. I kept staring at my left hand and my face ached from beaming. The other people on the porch went about their business as if nothing momentous had just happened; it's funny how one of the most memorable days of my life was nothing more than a pleasant afternoon to countless other people around us that day. I learned that both my parents would be expecting a call as Ed had told them of his intentions at my friend's wedding a few days before. Ed said that my mother had immediately burst into tears and my dad had apparently launched into a theatrical speculation on Ed's odds of success. But it was still fun to call and tell them and even more fun to call both of my brothers, who had no idea that this was in the works.

Outside Duckhorn

Our next stop was Bell, a tiny, great winery our driver recommended. We were the only guests there and so we learned a lot about the grapes and the owner, a South African guy who makes wine with scientific precision. I took notes and nodded and exclaimed in appropriate places as our tour guide showed us around, but it was tough to stay focused for more than a few seconds before I'd get swept up in the events of the morning all over again. I think the wine at Bell really is that good, though, and that it wasn't just my mood that made it seem so delicious. Since we're moving in a few months, we opted not to join the wine club that day--not the best timing for stocking up on bottles of fine wine--but I think once we're settled in Colorado we might sign up. 

We had lunch at a nice little place called Brix where we sat on a pretty patio with a view of the restaurant's thriving garden. I ordered mussels and Ed started a little when I placed my ring on the table next to me. "I don't want to get mussel juice on it," I explained. "Well don't forget it," Ed said. I realized I had failed to convey to him just how smitten I was with my ring. 

In spite of my slightly purple teeth, I love this picture.

Our last stop of the day was Silver Oak, a winery known for its Cabernet. Ed had booked a private tour. Apparently this is where he'd been planning to pop The Question, but he'd made a last-minute decision to shift his plans so we'd have the whole day to celebrate--an excellent decision as far as I was concerned. Our guide was a bit disappointed that Ed had jumped the gun, as he'd arranged for us to have a romantic little space to ourselves at the end of our tour, but we assured him we'd enjoy it anyway. And we did. He'd set out some strawberries (grown on the grounds of the vineyard) and chocolates alongside two glasses of top-notch Cabernet, and had even picked a few flowers to set the whole thing off. It was a wonderful way to end an eventful day.

After resting and freshening up in our hotel for a while, we headed to dinner at Auberge Soleil, a restaurant up in the hills with a great view of the valley. It had come highly recommended and Ed had arranged for us to have a table on the deck so we could admire the view as the sun set. The setting was lovely, and the food was just as good as we'd heard it would be.

An absolutely terrible picture that fails to capture either us or the backdrop, but you get the idea.

One of the best parts about Ed's timing was that I got to celebrate with many family members and old friends so soon after we got engaged. (I'm not sure this was part of his plan, but I'll happily credit him for it anyway.) After Napa, we headed south to spend a night with my grandparents in the Bay Area, then continued on to Visalia for our second wedding of the weekend. It was wonderful to be able to surprise my grandparents with our news in person, and to be able to toast with my parents and hug my friends. It seems that everyone I know is very taken with Ed; many of my friends have gone out of their way to convey their approval (and urge me not to screw this up). It's a great feeling to know that the people that matter most share my excitement about our plans.

It's hard to believe it's already been three weeks since that day. Just as it always does when great things are happening, the time has absolutely rocketed by. I don't know how I got to be so lucky.