A Burning Question

Caden had a game Tuesday night at 6 o’clock. Games last one hour, plus getting together his gear, hearing the coach’s pep talk, etc. Making David’s improv show at 7:30 was going to be a long shot, but we decided try.

I texted David at about 7:17 that we were on our way, and I asked would there be seats for us (sometimes they pack the place out.) Yes, there were seats. We made it just a few minutes late and slid into three, front row seats.

After the show, roughly 8:20 or so, the boys were doing their usual post-show thing — discussing who was going to ride with David and who was going to ride with me. David said wait, would y’all like to go down to the water and feed the fish. He said he had some crackers in his car.

Now, I’m usually a party pooper at times like these — it’s the boys’ bed time, we’ve already been to the game, then the show, I kinda wanna get home — but decided a few minutes feeding the fish would be OK. It was a cool night and the boys were excited about what David had proposed. We fed the fish at the downtown spring and lake once before  a show and it was a lot of fun of mainly David and I sitting on a bench and the boys running around at the ducks and fish.

We walk down to the waterside, we immediately see two ducks so David proceeds to give the boys bags of Goldfish crackers and Cheezits. I thought when he said he had crackers to feed the fish it was like old, stale crackers that maybe he’d found cleaning out his cabinets at home. These were new bags he had bought at a store. That shoulda been my first clue that something was up.

So David and the boys are a few yards away feeding ducks and fish and I sit down on the stairs that lead down to the water.

(Some events may be outta order here because things kinda happened quick and chaoticly at this point).

Caden is there asking if he can have a piece of candy from this orange Icebreakers candy box I recognize from David’s car. Sure, I say, I don’t care, and proceed to open it commenting that it sounds like it’s empty. What’s inside is a package of Taco Bell sauce that says “Will You Marry me” on it. I start laughing. I’d seen the packet before a long, long time ago, before David and I were serious or maybe before we were even dating. Finn approaches with another candy box — this one I recognize as a box that David had indicated a few weeks earlier he was storing my engagement ring in until he/I/we were ready. (We had shopped and picked it out together).

So this time I’m expecting to find the ring we picked out. But no, it’s a toy rubber engagement ring (that had even broke into two pieces). Joke’s on me right?

Until I realize that David is now sitting beside me and has the hand farthest from me hidden from sight and he’s trying to talk to me while sending the boys back to feed fish. The boys weren’t buying it. So he asked with them there — “Will you marry me” — to which I said “I will” and to which the boys said “yay” and jumped up and down. He put the ring on my finger and it glittered and shined beautifully in the soft streetlight and moonlight.

The distraction of the ring and of David kept me from noticing that Caden had opened the packet of HOT Taco Bell sauce and was sucking it out of the packet. He announced “I ate this!” to which we all cracked up laughing and I said “The 5 year old slurped the proposal!” He then gave a slurp to Finn, offered some to me and then to David. It was a taco sauce toast!

So there you have it. David and I are engaged. We’ve received lots of congratulations as we’ve told those close to us. We’re happy and the boys are happy and we all look forward to what comes next.

Tags: engagement, marriage, postaday2011, proposal