One of Those Days You Won't Forget...

It started off like any normal Thanksgiving Break. Up early because there is only so much kicking you can take when you sleep next to your little sister. Lots of TV watching because there isn't usually anything else to do. But that day, I felt like making a pie. Strange, since I NEVER want to bake! But today was different... So, I went to the store, bought my supplies, went back home and started in on my apple pie. Matt and Wrigley stopped by on their way out to Matt's house. And as usual, Wrigley sprinted in, searching for a cat to chase and some cat food to eat!

We decided to go out to dinner in Bartlesville earlier in the week and were trying to decide on a movie... and eventually just said we'd skip the movie and look for Christmas lights. So Matt said bye and back I went to my apple pie making. Little did I know (though EVERYONE else did know) that that would be our last visit as just boyfriend and girlfriend.

I told Matt I would meet him at his house around 5. I was hanging with the fam and realized at about 5 that I was late... but this is nothing new! I'm always late! I told the fam that I was leaving to go to Matt's and they all started booing me and couldn't believe I was leaving them. I actually felt bad, but said bye and off I went to Matt's. From what I learned later in the evening, as soon as I left, they all started cheering and jumping up and down... they knew something that I did not.

Got out to Matt's and he was looking dapper. We watched a few minutes of the OSU basketball game, which I could have cared less about, put Wrigley in his kennel and were off. All week, Matt had been telling me he wanted to show me some land that him and his brother had been thinking about buying. I said fine, knowing that most likely, he would change his mind about this land again because that is what Matt does. Changes his mind... alot!

Anyway, on to this land we drove (land that has no roads - they were trails), and drove... and drove some more. At one point, when Matt was getting out to go unlock yet another gate, I said outloud to myself, "What the hell are we doing?" I was just finding this a little pointless -- he was wanting to show me a pond that him and his brother fish at and it was getting dark and I was getting annoyed! He eventually starts driving in circles which is when I ask him what he is doing. He says, "Well, I have a surprise for you!" And being my mother's daughter, I exlcaim, "Boulevard Wheat?!" No, was his response, followed by, "Wow, you are your mother's daughter!"

He had me get out of the car and move to the back of the 4-Runner, where he had hot chocolate and a blanket. We hopped in the back and I wrapped up because it was freezing! We sat and chatted for awhile... about nothing really important -- where should we go to eat, why hadn't I brought a coat, the usual. He told me to let him know when I was done with the hot chocolate, but I was taking my time... it was really good hot chocolate!

When I was done, he told me he had one more surprise for me. It was a note slash poem he had written for me, which is when I knew what was happening. The note talked about how excited he had been for this day and how long he knew I had been waiting for it. I started to tear up while reading the letter and when I was done just sat there for a second to grasp what was about to happen. Matt hopped out of the car and got down on his knee and out came the little box and those four words that I really had been waiting to hear for so long... "Will you marry me?" Ofcourse, more tears followed by a Yes!, followed by lots of hugging and remarks of "Holy cow! This is real!" from me. I finally let him get off of his bad knee and we sat there for awhile, letting it all sink in. It was a feeling I have never felt before and I absolutely loved every second of it... as did he.

Next I asked if I could call my mom, which is when he said he thought it would nice if we could wait until Thanksgiving to tell our families. Woah... that would be hard, so he agreed to let me call my sister, but since there is no service anywhere near Matt's house, that would have to wait a bit! So, we continued on our journey to Bartlesville. Matt called the restaurant to get a reservation. They said it would be a 20-30 minute wait, so he thought it would be nice to drive around and look at Christmas lights. Oddly enough, no one had Christmas lights on! That plan didn't work so well, so we headed to the restaurant. We walk in the door and head to our table... I'm looking around at all the empty tables and wondering why there was a 20-30 minute wait and then look up and low and behold, there sat my family and Matt's family. Those dirty people had made me feel bad about leaving them when really, they had known all along what was going on!

The tears came again... I think I was just in so much shock that he had pulled all of this off without me knowing! Everyone was so excited and I was just so happy to have everyone there... and not have to wait to tell them that we were engaged!

So that is the story... I don't think it could have gone any better. I'm just so happy that in nine short months, we will be moving on to the next portion of our lives together, rather than apart! What a great feeling!

Now... we are starting a "Donate to the Wedding" fund ASAP. Let me know if you are interested! :)

On this Turkey Day, I am thankful for...

My very large family, grandparents, Matthew and his family -- the ones that like me, my wonderful friends who still consider me a friend even though I never see them, the pilgrims, Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, turkey and mashed potatoes, family and friends having babies, seasons, people that laugh at anything and everything, 'A Charlie Brown Christmas' CD, long drives, snow, the annual 4th of July fireworks in Sedan and my dad throwing the punk back in the water which signals that the fireworks show is over, Wrigley, cold weather, home videos, my brother's sense of humor, hot tubs, Boulevard Wheat, Christmas lights, e-mail and facebook, K-State, coworkers that make the work day bearable, Houston, Texas, nicknames, the state of Kansas, Mr. Goodcents, cell phones, Coke, Kappa Kappa Gamma, TiVo, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Brothers and Sisters, The Bachelor, Private Practice, Law and Order, Jon and Kate Plus 8, and Say Yes to the Dress, gas cards (when I had one), my sister who is proving everyone wrong, the Doty's, Pitch, macaroni and cheese, college football, WSU Media Relations, the Muppets and 'A Muppet Family Christmas', memories, feather beds, weddings, ballet flats, Pasta Milano, washers and dryers, and most importantly, the Big Guy up above who has allowed me to have all of these wonderful things in my very blessed life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Those Important People...

In life, you have those people that are your go-to people in certain situations. For instance, if I want truthful fashion advice, I call my mother (not sure if most people do that!). For a good laugh, I call my brother or my cousin. For a dose of what college life was like, I call my sister. For a great listener, I call my dad. And for good, truthful advice, I call my best friend.

What makes this best friend of mine so amazing is that I know I can tell her something that I'm worried about or what is bothering me and she can ask me questions that make me think about the bigger picture. I like to see myself as a person that can see an issue from different viewpoints... except when the issue is myself!

As an example... Today, I told my best friend about Matt's latest idea for our lives (he has many and they change daily!). He has wanted to go back to school to get his master's for awhile - this has always been a constant! But the question had always been where to go and when to do it? When I first moved to Tulsa, the plan was for him to move down here next summer and find a job and possibly go to school at ORU. Well, now that this school is one lawsuit away from the loony bin, he has moved on from that idea! His latest thought has been to go back to school at Wichita State. It would be free (paid for by Coleman) and somehow, someway, they do have a good business school... amazing, I know! So... that means that if I could find a job in Wichita, I would move back next summer... if this is what he decides to do.

Truthfully, I don't have many issues with moving back to Wichita. I love Wichita! I actually miss it... its one of those places that you can't wait to leave, but once you do, you can't wait to get back! Not sure why...

Anyway, my main concern with this is what will people think of me packing up and going back to Wichita? Do I look like a big loser that can't stay in a job for longer than a year and can't stay away from Wichita for longer than a year AND can't live without her boyfriend?! These were the questions that I posed to my best friend and this was her question to me: Who exactly do I think all of this looks bad to? Probably (hopefully) people you care about the most only want what’s best for you/you&Matt … The other people probably don’t matter that much, right?

The basic answer to both of those questions is that it shouldn't matter what others think... I should do what is best for me and what is best for me&Matt. It's a hard thing to learn, though. Obviously, I haven't learned it yet! It's hard to do what is best for yourself when you are a people-pleaser.

But I like her way of thinking... and once again, she made me look at the bigger picture. Now what seemed like a scary idea doesn't seem so scary anymore...

What a gal! :)

Cattle Sales and Life

I know nothing about cows and I have never been one to fight that. To farmers, they are cattle... to me, they are all cows. The spotted ones -- yeah, those are chocolate milk cows.

Now, I do know that the spotted cows don't really produce chocolate milk, but it drives Matt insane that I say that to him. This weekend, he tried to teach me that they are called holsteins... can I just say that calling them chocolate milk cows is way better than what they are really called!

Anywho, all of this cow - cattle... whatever - talk is being brought up because the Clark family had their big "Cattle sale" on Monday. Hillcrest Genetics. That is the name of their company... all I know is that they had 450 cows - or head of cattle to be politically correct - to be sold and most of them were sold so it was a successful day.

I was not around for the big sale... I did go home Sunday to see Matt, which didn't happen until 7ish that night. I called at 5:30 and told his brother that it was getting dark soon and shouldn't they be done soon -- no, he says... when it gets dark, they bring out lights. Geez.

Grandma Donna had wanted me to come out on Saturday and help peel potatoes, something I have probably only done once in my life and it was probably in Sally Whited's kitchen for a 4-H cooking class I took (that obviously didn't teach me very much!). Unfortunately (or fortunately, however you want to look at it), I had to work Saturday. But I was guilted later that night when Matt says to me, "Well, you can come out tomorrow afternoon and help out if you want. I won't be around, but Chelsi (Michael's girlfriend) is coming out to help." Chelsi, I love you dear girl, but you are KILLING me... and making me look bad so we've got to try and get on the same page, friend!

It all comes down to the fact that I am a townie. I am not country. There is not one ounce of country in me. I hate dirt roads, I hate gross insects that only come into your house when you live on a farm, I don't like to hear animals howling at the moon in the middle of the night, and I like clean water (I only say that one because the one time I had to stay on the farm, they had smelly water and its freaked me out forever!). I know this is something that is troublesome to Matt since he can do both town and country - but he knows me! He knows that I don't like any of the above...

I hope he knows what the word compromise means because if I ever have to move back so he can take over the farm, he will be doing alot of it! I've already requested all roads be paved.

Feasible, right?