Adam and Lauren: August 14, 2010

I suppose now is as good as a time than ever to start a blog. Honestly, I think I spend more time reading blogs than I do on Facebook! How many of you can say that?! I have an unhealthy obsession with reading about everything from Do-It-Yourself projects, to weddings and babies, to just every day life. So, here I am... starting one of my own. Let's see how it goes...We'll start with the basics:

What: A blog about the life of soon-to-be Mr. and Mrs. Johnson... and all of the wedding planning that goes along with it!
When: Although Adam is the one with the creative writing skills, I will be the one blogging as often as my busy schedule allows. :) Stay tuned!
Why? Because I'm a fiancé!
To who? Oh, only the most amazing man on Earth!

Ok, ok, I may be a little biased... But on August 14, 2010, Adam made me one of the happiest and luckiest girls in the world! One of the very first questions that people ask is, "How did he do it?!" So here I am, about to delight each and every one of you. Sit back and relax, folks, because you're about to read the exciting proposal of Adam and Lauren!

It all started 4th of July weekend when Adam and I were in Long Beach Island. At the time I had no idea, but Adam asked my mom and dad for their permission to marry me. (I know! I couldn't believe it either!) Then about a month ago, he told me that we would be heading to Jacksonville for the annual friends' boat trip. Every year, Adam's good friend, Brad, has all of us come in town to spend a weekend soakin' up the sun, drinking ice cold beer and enjoying each others' company. Thinking nothing of it, I happily obliged to this up-coming weekend and counted down the days on the calendar.

August 13th came and the car was loaded! Our first night there, we headed to Brad's parents' house for a little get-together. Apparently everyone was afraid to talk to me that night, in fear that they would slip about the big "surprise" that was coming the next day.

Saturday morning was like any typical morning for us... I showered and got ready for the day, while Adam relaxed and enjoyed the peace and quiet for an hour. As it was just about time for us to leave, Adam got a text message from Brad that said everyone was running a little late and that we had about 25 minutes to kill (I now know that it was really because he needed to get gas in the boat). I didn't understand why we couldn't just go and wait for them at the dock, but didn't question it and instead sat on the couch and read a magazine.

Finally it was time to head out! When we got to the dock, I only saw two people: Brad, who was rinsing the boat off and a man that I didn't recognize, fishing... As we approached, I asked, "Where is everyone?" Brad told us that they were out on a beer run and they'd be back soon. He then asked us to grab the life preservers out of the box behind us. I proceeded to ask, "Do I have to help him?" (ha!) Of course he said yes... When we got to the box, Adam noticed it was locked and asked me to go grab the key from Brad. No questions asked, I turned around and headed back towards the boat when I heard Adam yell, "Lauren?" I turned around to find Adam down on one knee. It took me a second to realize what was happening because all I saw was a purple string attached to a bracelet (more on that later), but once I did, the tears were flowing as I headed back to Adam... He continued to say, "Lauren, will you marry me?" I, of course, said, "Yes!" We laughed, we cried and we celebrated! Turns out, the "fisherman" was one of their friends that I have only met once, about 2 years ago. Because I wouldn't recognize him, they had him standing there so he could get the whole thing on video! Pretty sneaky, huh? Oh, and the purple string and bracelet I saw? Adam's mom tied the ring to a string, which attached to a bracelet. She did this so that he wouldn't drop the ring on the dock or in the water. (Thanks Mrs. J!)

After we finally got the ring off of the string and on to my finger, we headed onto the boat. 'Captain' Brad had "our" music playing, a list that Adam had created. As we pulled up to the dock of the restaurant, Adam and I were sitting at the back of the boat. From a distance I saw my dad standing by the water... As soon as I saw him, I started to cry again, thinking that our parents were there to celebrate with us. Well, as the boat turned and we got closer, I saw about 25 of our closest friends and family waiting for us! I was in complete shock! Adam and I are so lucky to be surrounded by such thoughtful and loving people. We completed our day of celebration spending time with the people we love and couldn't be more thankful for that!

Adam and I talk about our engagement all of the time. We would re-live this day 100 times if we could! Everything was absolutely perfect and I, for one, couldn't ask for anything more! I must also give a little shout out to my groom-to-be for putting together such an amazing weekend without one bit of the information slipping! Can you believe that Adam put together a full day of surprises? No? Yeah, me either... but he did! I really am a lucky girl.

So what's next? Well, we want to really enjoy this time together. We're looking towards a Fall 2011 wedding, probably in November. Since we'll be celebrating our marriage in Jacksonville, I will be traveling home about once a month for the wedding planning. This blog will be a good place for all of you to come and see the process! :)

Amidst the 100 degree weather and the sobbing mess that I was, we got some pretty awesome pictures! (Thanks to my fabulous brother-in-law, Tom!) I'm going to leave you with a few of our favorites from the day!