How We Met
Bobby and I met my freshman year of college. I had just joined Greek life and our organizations ended up being partners for homecoming. Bobby and I were both on the skit team but never officially met. Four months later, I went to church with my friend and accidentally sat right next to Bobby and his friends. I didn’t recognize him but during greeting, he turned to me and said “hey Lauren”. That day the sermon just happened to be about dating, which we now find perfect. After that we still didn’t talk but a month later we briefly ran into each other at a party. After that, I began to have a crush on this random boy I kept running into. I told his fraternity brother, who I am great friends with that he had to introduce us. I didn’t know what it was but I just had to met this boy officially.
So finally in April 2012, we met and began to hangout. But it was almost over as fast as it began because it was time to go home for the summer. We agreed to stay friends and maybe reconnect in the fall when we came back to school. Well about a week into summer we started talking more and one night bobs said he couldn’t wait until the fall. So we began a relationship being 5 hours apart this actually sets us our whole story because we had to do long distance many times but we always made it work. Especially in 2015, when I pursued my dream of working for Disney World. Bobs supported me through the entire thing and we didn’t even think about breaking up over the distance. It’s difficult being 650 miles away from someone you saw every single day but that distance actually brought us closer together.
Him being able to let me go and do this just speaks to the amazing person Bobby is. He’s selfish and caring. He loved me through it just as hard as if we were right there beside each other. I moved back to North Carolina after my five month program and we were closer than ever. We both work and live in Raleigh and we’re always planning our next adventure. So it was exciting when as soon as I got home from Disney, Bobby said let’s go to Disney in the fall! I was all in, of course.
how they asked
We arrived at Disney both full with excitement! Disney has always meant so much to me and I’ve been 26 times in my life. Bobby kinda adopted the love for Disney too when he fell for me, which made me love him even more. Our second day of the trip was our first day at Magic Kingdom. We had a breakfast reservation early that morning inside the park before it was even open to everyone else. I just kept saying how I wanted a photo in front of the castle with no one else in it because it wouldn’t be crowded yet. So we waited in line at the Disney designated photographer at the castle to get our picture. I had my camera around my neck and realized I wouldn’t need it so I tried to put it in our book bag when Bobby snatched it away from me. That’s when I got a little suspicious. We were next in line when I hear Bobby ask the people behind us to take a picture with this phone of us. I was thinking “well that’s dumb because the photographer will take the pictures” but I didn’t say anything.
At this point, Bobby is literally behind me pulling out the ring box but I’m oblivious. It’s our turn to take the picture so I walk right up and stand there ready to take our picture when I notice Bobby isn’t there beside me. I then see him walking towards me with a little black box in his hand. I heard him say “Lauren” and that’s all it took to get me to start crying like a baby. I actually didn’t fully hear what he was saying from pure excitement but he got down on one knee right there and asked me to marry him.
Everyone cheered for us as I said yes and we also have the best pictures of it happening captured by a professional.
We spent the rest of the day in pure bliss calling all of our family and friends. He tells me about how he drove an hour and a half the day before we left for Disney to meet my dad to ask for his blessing. My dad has loved Bobby from the moment they met so it was an easy yes for him and that meant the world to me. The next day of our vacation, still on cloud nine, Bobby revealed something else that was a surprise to me.
While I was away at Disney for my internship, we exchanged “Open when…” letters which had a different occasion on them. I wrote him one saying “Open when you’re ready to ask”. I just wanted him to have something from me when the time was right. Well Bobby kept that letter for a whole year and read it the day before we left for Disney. This just made my heart so happy that this man cares about me that much that he remembers the small things like a letter I wrote. I got so lucky with this one and I cannot wait to be his wife.
