The Story of Us Part 2 // He Put a Ring on It
This is part 2 of our story! Read Part 1 here.
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Janice: Fast forward 19 months (20 months from our first date), and one Saturday, Michia suggests we go on a sunrise hike + photoshoot + picnic on Slacker Hill the following weekend. He claims I proposed that we go to that same location for a sunset hike, he just suggested sunrise instead. I have no such recollection.
I loved his suggestion and got very excited, even telling him, "This is how you stole my heart!" 24 hours later, I have this sudden revelation that he might be using this opportunity to propose. We always joked that I'm prophetic, so he would never be able to properly surprise me, and I just had a sense. We rarely do anything at sunrise (Michia’s not a morning person), and it would be the perfect spot — overlooking the city we fell in love in, with few people there because it’s so early, and a photoshoot, so I’ll look nice for pictures. Once I had this suspicion, small things he did throughout the week confirmed it. For as long as I had known him, Michia's tripod had been missing an important piece. Suddenly, a replacement for this piece shows up in the mail. And he purchases two macro lenses that he’s super excited about — perfect for shooting a ring? And he wouldn’t plan anything else for Saturday — all other activities were for Friday or Sunday only. I was definitely suspicious.
Michia: I tend to be a goal-driven person. As soon as I set a goal, I have to make it happen. Sunday, June 3rd, I was praying at Reality SF, and just felt like June was the right month to ask Janice to marry me. Once I’d decided June was the month, the rest was easy. Less than 24 hours later I’d bought the perfect ring and it was scheduled to be ready on June 13th.
I decided June 16th would be the perfect day to propose and all that was left to do was get ready for the proposal.
Janice: The week crawls by at the slowest pace possible. I can’t sleep because I’m so excited, and I have all these things to think about, like what am I going to wear (sunrise in SF is freezing), what am I going to say (just “Yes”?), and, most importantly, how I’m going to continue to pretend I don't know?!
Friday rolls around, and I realize I haven’t done my nails. Even if a proposal doesn't happen the next day, I figure it’s probably better to be safe than sorry, so I go get my nails done. Meanwhile, Michia is confident I have no idea.
Michia: After getting her dad's permission, the most important thing for me was to keep the proposal a secret. I disabled all notifications on my phone so that no “your ring is ready!” emails would pop up and even kept my schedule the exact same so that not a minute was out of place. All friends were on high alert not to text me anything even remotely proposal-related and I was 100% sure she’d have no idea what was coming. And yet... none of it mattered. Janice saw right through my tricks. Which, funnily enough, is just another reason why I love her so much.
Janice: Friday night, we go see Incredibles 2, and I’m sure he’s seen my nails, which would mean I suspect what's going down the next day. Turns out he hadn’t noticed my nails at all, but I spoiled the surprise by mentioning it, to get rid of a nonexistent "elephant in the room!" Such a bummer.
The next morning, we get up early (at like 4am) and make our way to Slacker Hill. The drive was beautiful, and the hill was so serene. No one but Karl the Fog was there, and we spread our picnic blanket and watched the sun rise over the ocean and begin to light up the hill, the bridge, and, eventually, the city. We drink our coffee, eat our waffles and soft-boiled eggs, and just enjoy the absolutely perfect view with each other.
Eventually, Michia sets up his tripod and we begin to shoot some photos, when he poses me, then sets the camera to record it all. He comes over to me, squeezes my hand, then gets down on one knee. Even though I suspected it was going to happen, it was a fairytale proposal, and I was so emotional.
I reply to his, “Will you marry me?” with a, “YES! Absolutely yes,” and utter giddiness. The ring he slips onto my finger is utterly perfect. We had never really talked about the ring I wanted. He had picked it out entirely by himself, then checked my Pinterest to confirm, and I had pinned the exact ring many months ago, which he immediately took as confirmation.
We talked for a while about how I knew and how he knew I knew, and all other things we hadn’t been able to share over the course of the week. Then, using the tripod, we shot some photos ourselves — our first photos as "fiancé(e)s"!
As we were dismantling the tripod, we noticed a military style box that had been tucked under a bush. On the side, there was a note that read: "Please DO NOT remove from Slacker Hill (but feel free to open)."
The box contained some flowers and a notebook that was dedicated to a friend who had passed away. The notebook had some really special notes inside, including this drawing of the Golden Gate Bridge and city.
We felt it only right that we leave a note too, to commemorate this man and our engagement.
After this second special moment, we finished our breakfast, FaceTimed our families, and headed down the hill, back to the city.
To celebrate, we went to Mr. Holmes Bakehouse, where we found a parking spot directly in front of the bakery, with a broken parking meter, so we couldn’t even pay. Praise Jesus! A short line later, we had in hand our first dessert as an engaged couple — a maple creme cronut.
That evening, Michia took me out to the Japanese restaurant Anzu, where we ate wagyu cooked on a hot rock. The restaurant's staff were incredible and super happy for us! The hostess let out a little, "eek!" when our response to, "When did you get engaged?" was, "This morning!" It was a special evening, complete with champagne and dessert on the house.
Engaged Life
Since that day, everyone has been so happy for us and our engagement, and we have been incredibly blessed by the love and support we have received. As we plan our big day, we are constantly reminded of how loved we are and how faithful our God is. He brought us together, after 20+ years of living vastly different, separate lives. We're grateful for that every single day, and wouldn't have it any other way.
Part 3 will take place in about 5 months! (So soon!) Until then, I'll be blogging about Africa and wedding planning! Stay tuned.
Outfit details: WHBM Suede Jacket (sold out), similar here and here. WHBM Bodice Top (sold out). Paige Verdugo Jeans. Blanket scarf (similar).