How and or where did you meet?
We are a Tinder success story! Is Tinder still a thing?
How did you get proposed to?
Tyler gave himself away a bit by proclaiming that “2021 is the year I’m going to propose to you!” since the end of 2020 ..sooo when he out of the blue decided to book a “getaway weekend” around the time of our anniversary, I was suspicious. When I ended up having a serious jury trial scheduled for the week after that weekend getaway and Tyler was adamant, we could not move our plans, I was fairly certain it was going to happen. Tyler was always willing to accommodate my work schedule.
Tyler had this whole itinerary in his head: we were going to check into our cabin over the lake (adorable) and do a quick dinner the first night—all a success. Tyler even made sure to get a stay that would allow us to take our cat, Sergeant Whiskers, with us! He had given me some details: wake up early to see the sunrise at one of the best peaks over the Ozark Fall Mountains, have breakfast at this cute little hometown café, then head down to the caverns and waterfalls where we had explored before (and the weather would be perfect for), and finish the day with kayaking and dinner/drinks at the best restaurant in the area. I was convinced he’d propose at sunrise, and we would spend the day doing all of these activities basking in the glow of engagement.
Sunrise came and Tyler and I were struggling to get moving, so we got to the peak just a bit later than Tyler wanted. After he got over his disappointment that we hadn’t made it earlier, Tyler seemed a bit nervous and somewhat fidgety with his pockets, so when he stepped behind me to hold me while we watched the sunrise, I thought “this is it.” My heart was pounding with nerves. I feel him reach in his pocket behind me and he asks me to turn around. He gets down on one knee and pulls out this adorable, engraved box with my initials and the day’s date…he tells me to open it…. I’m welling up with tears and am like “what!?” but I open it and….
…it’s a rubber ring with cubic zirconia. He smirks and asks me to marry him. He’s holding back laughter and I look at him and laugh. Now, for this to make sense, Tyler goes all out when he sets his mind to do something. I had always teased him in response to his claims he was going to propose that he better have the right ring—his response to that was ALWAYS—”I’m getting the best; that rubber ring with cubic zirconia” So this was him literally doing that. I laugh and push him for making me cry but I am now FIRMLY CONVINCED this man was proposing today—no way would he pull me away from a serious case for a fake proposal. He was happy with himself for pulling off a joke proposal, semi-relieved I wasn’t upset, and we went on about our day to breakfast.
Breakfast was diner style, delicious and filling. We then moved on to the drive to the caverns. When we arrived to the caverns, we found out they were still closed due to COVID-19 restrictions. Tyler was frustrated but I reminded him that just because his plan for the day wasn’t going perfectly, it doesn’t mean the day can’t still be perfect. I’m pretty sure he ignored me at that point. I finally convinced him to stop sighing and said that we could go visit some waterfalls and then go kayaking early. He seemed content with this idea. I recognized that getting frustrated when plans go awry was MY thing, NOT at all Tyler’s, and how very out of character this was for him. This again made me more certain it was the day.
We go to the waterfalls—it’s packed because it’s a beautiful fall day, so we don’t stay too terribly long and head back to go get the kayaks—one of our favorite outdoor activities to do together. (Except for when Tyler gets us lost on a new route and we have to walk 10 miles to get to my car, but that’s a story for another time.) Hooooweeevverrr, on the way to get our kayaks, I see a stray dog struggling by a creek in an area of the park where no one was around. Its hind end looked as if it was completely paralyzed, and I was convinced the dog was going to drown if we didn’t go help it. So, I have Tyler turn around.
We turn around and walk down to where this dog is and at this point, he is in the water, and it appears as if he’s struggling. I high-tail it in the water, duck boots and sweats knee deep, and try to get this dog. It growls but winces at the same time and paddles away from me, so my next thought is to at least guide it to the bank where it can touch. It lets me touch it briefly to do this. Meanwhile, Tyler is trying to call any humane society/animal shelter/firefighters/police to try to come help this dog. I get the dog to move toward the bank and to a place he can touch, but now that we are there, the dog decides I am too close and he for sure doesn’t want me near him anymore and snaps at me. He ends up catching a chunk of my right index finger. While the shock prevented it from hurting, I move away and see Tyler on the phone hollering at me to get out of the water. I step out and we try to brainstorm what to do next to help this poor dog while it seems content on the bank of the shallow part of the creek and I wrap my finger with my sweatshirt. Another couple arrives a few minutes later and they are able to locate a local rescue to contact. Tyler takes another look at my finger—still profusely bleeding, so he insists we go to urgent care.
On the way to Urgent Care, Tyler again realizes his plans have been all messed up and keeps saying how “that damn dog” has ruined things. He’s huffing and sighing because we can’t go kayaking and is genuinely upset that the day hasn’t gone at all as to how he planned it. At this point, I called him out for his out of character frustration and ask if he’s ok, because he’s normally so ‘go with the flow’. He insists it’s just that he “wanted everything to go perfect.” I again reminded him that just because things don’t go perfectly according to plan, doesn’t mean the day still can’t be perfect. Tyler doesn’t respond and keeps pouting while we wait for Urgent Care to get me in.
2 hours, a full wrap up, antibiotics, a tetanus shot, and a rabies vaccine plan noted and we get back to our cabin. Poor Tyler looks defeated. We pick up a small snack from the grocery store since we hadn’t eaten since breakfast and dinner was still 2 hours away. We went back to the cabin, and I continue to try to get Tyler to not be so bummed we didn’t get to do things as planned. He is still somber and goes in and grabs a beer to eat with his snack. He drinks it fast. He then declares he’d like to try to take me to one more place before sunset; that we can fit it in before dinner.
I finish my salad and we head out to a dock, overlooking another part of our favorite river to kayak, with a gorgeous view of the fall Ozark mountains and sunset. I get nervous because I feel like this is it (again! Haha). Tyler claims he wants to get his good camera out of the truck to take some pictures and heads back. I stay on the dock. He comes back and typically, but excitedly exclaims, “look at this rock I found.” I turn around and he walks closer to me on the dock and extends this large geo rock, brimming with amethyst, my birthstone. He PLOPS down on one knee (this is no joke, I literally laughed and asked him if he was ok he hit the dock so hard). He became choked up and you could tell how nervous and anxious he was; how so many thoughts were running through his head. I could tell he was just telling himself—“just get the question out!” and he did: He exclaimed my full name, choked up a bit more, took a deep breath and asked me to marry him while opening the geo—which held another R*O*C*K*–a ring so perfect I couldn’t have picked something out better myself. I tear up and squeal at the same time, tell him I absolutely will, and it’s like a wave of excitement and relief pours over his sweet soul. He wouldn’t let me put on the ring while we were down by the dock and requested we move away from the water for me to do so (he knows me too well—there was a legitimate risk I would’ve been so shaky/excited I could’ve dropped it, ha.)
We enjoyed the time at the dock together and headed back for dinner. We enjoyed dinner, with wine and sparklers provided, and celebrated our next soon to be chapter late into the night.
It may not have gone perfectly as planned, but the day was still perfect.
What was your favorite memory from your wedding day?
The entire elopement was amazing! I think my most favorite part was exchanging our vows in the most intimate setting: on top of the Cliffs of Moher, Ireland.
What vendors did you use at your wedding?
Photography/Videography: @weddingsbymoltensky
Elopement Planning: @twinflameselopementsireland
Flowers: @yes_flowers
Makeup: @susanfox_makeup
Hair: Martina at @mimishairsalonennistymon
What was your experience like at Normans Bridal?
Great! They were able to accommodate my last-minute walk-in and off the rack request with excitement, kindness, and professionalism.
