How We Met
A big takeaway from my proposal is learning that my best friend and fiancé are excellent liars.
My fiancé Matt was born and raised in Long Beach, CA and went on to play water polo at USC. Originally born in Southern California myself, my family moved to North Carolina when I was seven and my college years were also spent at USC, well, the “other USC”. A country a part, Matt was catching waves while I was sporting cowgirl boots.
After graduating from South Carolina, my family moved back to Newport Beach, CA and they did not have to twist my arm to join them on heading back West. During my 13 years spent in the Carolinas, I maintained a lot of my California friendships, the longest being my Maid of Honor, Charlotte.
Charlotte happens to be an incredibly talented jewelry designer so for years we’ve been day dreaming about weddings and every detail of our non existent engagement rings. I felt pretty confident that when I found the guy of my dreams, he’d not only know to have Charlotte design my ring, but that when the day came, Charlotte would probably spill the beans due to her below average secret keeping abilities.
Shortly after moving back to California, Matt and I were introduced by mutual friends. To say that Matt is thoughtful would be the understatement of the century. For the first 6 months of dating he never showed up to my door without a bouquet of hydrangeas in hand. Over our 3 year relationship I quickly re adapted to my life in California but always told Matt about the magical places in the Carolinas, one in particular, Kiawah Island. If you’ve been, then you understand. If you haven’t, book your flight.
how they asked
For my birthday this year we decided to finally take a trip back East to see my friends, family and visit Kiawah Island. On the second day of our trip we played a beautiful round of golf and Matt played one of the best games he’s ever played – a sure sign that there were no proposal nerves nearby. (In addition to the fact that I had interrogated Charlotte earlier that month in which she made it very clear that Matt had not come to her about a ring). But it was ok, because it would have all been too good to be true. Later that afternoon we returned to the 18th hole clubhouse for drinks and dinner, but not without taking a birthday photo that Matt was 100% sure I would ask for. Guy knows me well. However when Matt reached into his coat pocket for his phone, it wasn’t his phone at all (cue shocked face!!!).
In my favorite place in the world, with the most special ring designed by my best friend, Matt asked me to spend the rest of my life with him. In that moment, all of the important chapters of my life collided. Discovering that Matt and Charlotte had spent the past 4 months secretly meeting up to design my ring together was just as special to me as the proposal itself. Charlotte, if you’re reading this, I apologize for underestimating your secret keeping abilities. You go girl.
