How We Met: Megan and I both attended the University of Central Florida (currently ranked 19th in the nation for football, woot woot!) I was hanging out at my fraternity house one night my junior year and she happened to walk into the room I was trying to study in. Of course, being the outgoing person she was, her loudness rivaled that of the space shuttle. I mean I’m talking a soccer fan with a vuvuzela loud. I couldn’t believe that a creature so tiny could be so loud. However, she lost interest in the lack of excitement in that room and moved on. Afterwards though, and in the days that followed, I couldn’t stop thinking about her. Luckily, after never seeing her for the previous two years before that while I was at UCF, I began to run into her everywhere. Before we knew it, I couldn’t get her out of my mind. Unfortunately, I was a year younger than her and she made me work to win her over. My persistence paid off and now she’s my little cougar :) The rest is history
He I Asked: Megan and I live in Orlando, FL but planned a weekend up in New York for Thanksgiving. She thought we were going up there to surprise her family; little did she know that I had other plans.
We were staying out on Long Island and I knew that I needed an excuse to get her to go into the city so that I could pop the question. With it being around the holidays, Radio City had started their annual Christmas Spectacular. I told Megan that I had found a great deal on tickets that I couldn’t pass up and that we should go into the city the Friday after Thanksgiving and just make a day out of it. The seed had been planted.
Friday morning rolls around and I was as nervous as could be. We hopped on a train into the city and the day had started. Our first stop was the Rockettes’ Christmas Show. We grabbed our buckets of popcorn and found our seats. The show was just as wonderful as we had remembered. Afterwards, we wandered over to Central Park to do a little winter ice skating. Megan made a joke because the previous year we had seen a couple get engaged while we were out on the ice and all I could do was give an awkward laugh. We skated for a while, enjoying the cool weather and watching parents drag their kids on the ice as they struggled to keep their feet underneath them. When the Zamboni came out to resurface the ice, we took a hot chocolate and warm cider break before doing a little more skating. By this time, we had worked up an appetite and wanted to find somewhere that we could stop in. We decided to venture down to Little Italy to find something. We ended up ducking out of the cold and into a cozy little Italian Restaurant called Il Cortile.
After dinner, Megan started to mention that she was getting tired and was ready to go home. What was I going to do, it wasn’t the right moment yet? Luckily, I had planned for her stubbornness and had edited a Groupon for a speakeasy type bar called 2nd Floor on Clinton. I pulled it out and told her that it would expire if we didn’t use it and that we should just go for a couple drinks before we headed home. She agreed and we decided to walk since it was only a few blocks away. On the way, we happened to pass Tiffany & Co. My nervous had started to build so I thought having a little fun might help calm them. I asked Megan if she wanted to go in. She thought I was joking but I said that she could show me what kind of engagement rings she liked. We did a little browsing and she showed me what style she wanted (luckily, I already had the same thing in my coat pocket). We left the store and strolled a few more blocks to our final destination.
The entrance to 2nd Floor on Clinton is actually hidden in the back of another bar called Barramundi. Right before walking in, I posted this status on Facebook …
As we walked through the door and up the staircase to 2nd Floor on Clinton, my heart has pounding. We walked in and there were candles of all sizes in hurricane vases all over the intimate space. The folks at 2nd floor had set us up with a booth in the corner and a florist had placed a beautiful orchid bouquet along with the candles on the table.
We sat down, and the staff brought over a couple of strawberry mojitos (her favorite drink) to enjoy. I don’t think Megan even realized that we hadn’t even ordered them because she was still mesmerized at the space.
After taking off our coats, I pointed to a leather bound book that had been sitting on the table and asked her what it was. She wasn’t sure but when she opened it, there was a page with a picture of us.
I think this was the first moment that she thought something was going on. I told her I wasn’t sure and to just read through it. Page by page, we read through different moments and events of our relationship – laughing and crying at all of the fun that we have had. When she got to the last few pages, I had written different passages about when I knew that I wanted to marry her and how I imagined proposing. As she finished reading, I had gotten down on one knee and asked the girl of my dreams to marry me.
She may be able to tell you exactly what I said but it was all such a whirlwind and I was so nervous that I couldn’t remember anything that I had planned to say. All I know is that she said yes so I must have asked the right thing! The best part about all of it is that Jashim from Jashim Jalal Photography had been disguised across the room and captured it all on photo. After enjoying the moment, and toasting to our new life, a car came and picked us up and drove us back to Long Island where her family was waiting. It was truly a surreal moment that we will never forget.
Marriage Proposal Planning: The Yes Girls Events // Venue: 2nd Floor on Clinton, New York City // Customized Leather Bound Book: Old Leather Books // Florist: W Floral Design //Photographer: Jashim Jalal Photography