The Proposal
His Story
We both have been backpacking across europe, and in the Summer of 2012 we went treking together. On a previous tour Madeline had fallen in love with Lauterbrunnen, Switzerland, and told everyone how wonderful it was. We returned and took a long hike up the valley walls. Madeline spoke often of this very hike, of the beauty, streams, and dairy cows she met along the way. Near the top we came upon the valley Madeline had described in detail. I set up the camera for a picture, knowing this was just the spot I had been waiting for, and went down on one knee!
We kept it a secret and planned to annouce it as soon as I found the ring I had been searching for. A month went by, then another, and yet another. I went from jewler to jewler, looking for just the right ring. Once found, yet another and another month passed, as the ring went through changes and customizations, until it was just how I wanted it.
So much time had passed, some kind of creative presentation was called for. I called the parents of the twins Madeline babysat for, and asked them to arrange for Madeline to take the twins to the Butterfly House. In Switzerland, the visit of a butterfly had made the proposal magical, so the Butterfly House seemed a good link. We brought along a few toy rings we had found for the kids, and while amougst the butterflies, I gave a ring to Jesse, a ring to Evie, and The Ring to Madeline!
Her Story
By the time you've been together for 5 years, most girls start to wonder about the "big question." I tried my best not to bother Niels, but I'm a planner and a communicator, so we had talked about it. Nevertheless, a proposal was the last thing on my mind the day we hiked the alps in Lauterbrunnen. I had done the same hike by myself 2 years earlier and it was one of the most magical and exhilerating days of my life. Lauterbrunnen is a valley with waterfalls flowing from the peaks of some of the highest mountains in the country. Along the 2.5 hour inclined hike, you pass by a number of those falls, as well as numerous colorful flowers and immense trees. One of the parts I remembered most from my first time hiking that path was a field full of cows, no one tending them, that directly intersected with the path. There were literally cows grazing on the hiking trail and it's the closest this city girl has ever gotten to one of the major animals she tries to save by being vegetarian!
I immediately recognized the field when we got there (and had told Niels all about it), and he suggested we take a picture of the view. He set the camera on a timer and as I started to smile and pose, he got down on one knee. I was sooooooo confused. Usually I am prepared for just about everything in my life, so my brain did not know how to compute. Why was Niels kneeling and smiling up at me for our hiking picture? Then I figured it out. He was proposing! The proposal I had waited so long for, and I almost missed it because I was so surprised and confused! We decided to keep the proposal a secret until we got home and Niels was able to find the ring he wanted to give me. After all, we were on a family trip and we just wanted some time to take it all in ourselves before having my entire family talking about it.
The ring finding quest took a bit longer than we hoped (don't quests involving rings always turn out more complicated than you think they will?). Months went by and I slowly began to tell close friends about the engagement, every day expecting that maybe Niels finally had the ring. Once again, my mind was vigilant to signs of proposal, and once again Niels managed to completely blind side me with a second romantic proposal.
One day I got a call from the mother of the kids I used to nanny. She said that the kids missed me and asked if I wanted to take them to the Butterfly House. I was overjoyed! The kids missed me! Little did I know, it was all just a diabolical plan to confuse me yet again... Niels and I had some plastic light-up rings we had gotten for the kids ages ago, so we brought those with us to give them at the Butterfly House. Halfway through looking at the butterflys, we all sit down on a bench and Niels gives them their rings saying, "here's a ring for you, and one for you, and one for you." On the last line, he gets down on one knee and opens a ring box holding the most exquisite ring. I was completely surprised, again! I had been so focused on helping the kids with their rings, that I hadn't even seen him get down on one knee. The kids were more fascinated with the ring box than the ring, but I was exceedingly happy. Niels got to tell me all about his lengthy ring designing process and we finally announced our engagement (facebook official☺).
Now we're getting married and planning to live happily ever after. The end ♡
