Picture Perfect Proposal

One year ago today we got engaged… so what better time to share the story of our proposal? Plus the proposal video which is basically blackmail of me…

The Day Of

It was December 21st, 2018… A little after lunchtime I got a text from Austin asking me if I wanted to go out to dinner that night because he had to get gas. I was a bit suspicious because we were heading to Kansas the next morning and why was he planning dinner in advance? We had been designing my engagement ring together, so I knew being proposed to was on the horizon. But surely he wasn’t going to do it at dinner, right? Right before the holidays? He was going to wait, it wasn’t going to be tonight.

The day goes on, and the to-do list piles up. Beyond shooting a campaign that night, packing, finishing wrapping… now I had to go pick up a James Avery ring for my sister in a different part of town, and they closed early. So much to do, so little time to do it. As the clock nears 6pm, I still have wet hair and I am rocking a sports bra with sweat pants. Austin gets home and asks why I haven’t gotten ready for dinner.

This should have been another clue, but it went right over my head. He kept pushing me to do my hair, put makeup on and change clothes. I told him we had no time to do any of that because we had to hurry and pick up Alex’s Christmas present before the store closed. I threw on a jacket and off we went.

That Night

We get Alex’s gift just in the knick of time before the store closed. Traffic was pretty rough and Austin said traffic was bad all day on 635… which should have been another hint, why was he on 635? His office is a straight shot down 75, and the jewelry store we designed my ring at is off 635. Weird coincidence, right?

From the store we went to our next stop, dinner at Frankie’s Mexican in Richardson. Next door to Frankie’s is our local ice cream spot Sweet Firefly… this is important for later. Speaking of fun facts, Austin asked me to be his girlfriend at Howdy Homemade. I never actually told him yes… I said maybe. Then proceed to change our Facebook statuses to “In A Relationship” at the gas station (strangely gas stations are a key factor to his big life changes) on our way home. But I digress…

After dinner we went back to the house and Austin insisted I got ready for the photos I needed to take. Claiming that my followers didn’t need to see more photos of me without makeup on… WHY DID I NOT PICK UP ON THIS HINT…. I decided to switch into a cozy Christmas-y outfit, but refused to put on anything more than mascara because the photos were going to be in front of the tree wrapping presents. I didn’t need to be done up for this photoshoot (or so I thought).

The Photoshoot

We set up the shot, snapped a few quick pictures and I was ready to check it off the list for the night. Lots to do!! Instead Austin started messing around with the camera and asked me how to record videos (earth to Casey…). Austin had this great idea to do a little vlog of me wrapping the last few presents because it would be “hilarious content”, and he’s not wrong. He thought it would be a great way to poke fun of the bloggers that have trees with perfectly wrapped gifts, but in reality it’s impossible to do yourself. Always keeping it real. But also, why tonight? Why be such a good IG boyfriend?

He had to delete some images on my memory card, which took for-ever, then proceeded to look for my tri-pod. Why did he need to set up the tri-pod, couldn’t he hold the camera (I mean come on)? He set up the camera on the table and so began filming…

The Proposal

Well… I’ll let the video speak for itself. Take a shot every time Austin gets down on one knee… then take another shot for every time I get mad at him for being “funny”.

Key Moments

• At the beginning, I slip and fall hard because of my fuzzy socks. Video just show the aftermath, but my face says it all.
• Austin takes his first kneel at the 50 second mark, I call him out and flip him off.
• I try to tell Google to play A Very CBL Christmas Playlist, but it starts to play German music instead
• Honestly I am this bad at wrapping gifts, I struggle. Please skip ahead to 2:54.
• For the next minute I awkwardly talk to the camera while Austin, unknowingly to me, is struggling to fit the ring box in his back pocket. Because nothing more awkward than a front bulge, am I right? (HIS WORDS NOT MINE)
• 4 minute mark, kneel number 2!! “You’re down on one knee with the camera on!”
• The next 15 seconds I pat down Austin, who does that??? And then feel the ring box in the back pocket.
• 4:22 witness Austin throwing tape at me (because again, WHO PATS DOWN THEIR SOON TO BE FIANCE?!)
• 4:27 “and now that you’re standing up….”
• And for the grand finale… at 4:37 I say “MAYBE”, take the ring and embrace my fiance (or is he because I didn’t say yes??)

Asking for Permission

Over the year more and more fun snippets of each of our accounts of that day have come out in conversations. Honestly, knowing what the other was thinking along the way makes the proposal even more fun to recount.

For starters, Austin has been planning to ask for awhile. He asked everyone in my family for permission to marry me that summer on respective vacations (in case you didn’t know, my parents divorced when I was young). When he asked my mom, he couldn’t even get the question out before she said “yes, oh my gosh, yes”. He even asked my sister and brother (he was asked by his BIL before he proposed to his sister, Kendra). What a sweet moment and fun tradition to start… melted my heart for sure.

What Was Supposed to Happen

So that day he picked up the ring at lunch, which explains him knowing about the traffic on 635, and couldn’t wait to ask me. The plan all along had been to ask me before we went home for the holidays, originally Thanksgiving, but the ring had lots of timing issues… story of our life.

Fun fact, Austin really needed to get gas, and dinner at Frankie’s had nothing to do with the proposal. However, the ice cream was the plan all along (before I ruined the plans). Austin was going have someone at the ice cream shop record and take photos of the proposal. For the record, I told him before we were even serious about dating that when I got proposed I wanted 2 things: a photo of it and my nails to be done. He took this very seriously… and he claims this was the most stressful part, even harder than designed a custom ring.

Not only is this sentimental because of him asking me to be his GF over ice cream, but he thought it would be cute to say that we got some “ice” before coming home for the holidays. INSTAGRAM BOYFRIEND OF THE YEAR, AMIRIGHT?!

Like I said, I ruined the original plan. I shot down the ice cream after dinner suggestion because there was way too much to get done that night. This took Austin by surprise because who am I to turn down ice cream??!! Austin had to audible last second to figure out A) a special way to do it, B) how to get a picture with no one around, and C) seriously how to do A&B before tonight! His mind was going a million different directions, plus my stubborn self was not helpful.

The Picture Perfect Proposal?

Despite all the craziness, I wouldn’t re-wind time for it to happen any other way. It was the most imperfect, perfect proposal. Full of road blocks, laughter and love. The proposal happened in front of our first Christmas tree, in the home we bought that year together. In a world where the picture perfect proposal is on trend, I love that ours was a bit of a hot mess. And from now, the Friday before Christmas will always be filled with jokes about me REALLY needing to get ready, and eating chips and queso at our favorite local spot.

Also, to this day when we chat about this… Austin’s first thing he says “I was so pissed at you for not taking all of the hints to get ready!!” 😉 He tried, he really did.

Life isn’t always easy, but find yourself a partner who makes it fun. And never let them go.