And So…The Adventure Continues…
March 7th was the best day of my life. I got engaged to my best friend and soulmate, and was lucky enough to be surrounded by family, friends, and an endless amount of love. Every couples’ engagement embodies its own unique mix of intimacy, creativity, and emotion. I felt the need to share our personal experience and additionally, share with the world some amazing talents that deserve to be showcased.
My relationship with Lauren has been one big adventure from the start. It has been filled with celebrating milestones and events with family and friends, eating everywhere and everything that we can, attending concerts and sporting events, shopping in New York City, skiing in Vail and Tahoe, exploring desolate rain forests in Costa Rica, and venturing to our families hometown’s of Chicago and Philadelphia, plus so much more during the last 3 1/2 years we have spent together. Most everyone that knows us has suspected that a proposal was in the near future. The only aspiration that I knew Lauren had for our ‘special day’, was to be surprised. To adhere some pressure to the situation, I must also add that my quick-witted Lauren is practically a modern day Sherlock Holmes, which left me very little room for error with my planning.
HOW I DID IT
One of my business ventures offers entertainment services, in which we had an event on the evening of March 7th. Lauren was under the impression I would be working this event and had planned to be spending the evening alone, binge-watching Netflix in bed with the infamous “Saki The Shiba” and a glass of wine. My 28th birthday was the weekend before, and she had been busy studying for her UCF PT grad-school midterms so we could not celebrate the way we wanted to on the weekend of. We had instead decided to celebrate this past weekend and planned to kick the off the celebration by enjoying lunch before I had to work that evening. Of course, without hesitation, we chose our favorite foodie spot, Prato of Winter Park as our destination. Lauren had also conveniently suggested to go to the Winter Park Farmer’s Market prior to lunch. The significance of Park Avenue in Winter Park in our story, is that it is where I first asked Lauren to be my girlfriend.
When I woke up the morning of the 7th, I made sure to complain about having to work that evening, while pretending to load equipment into my truck for the event. I then proceeded to (like usual) rush Lauren to finish getting ready so we could get out the door and be on time. Walking from the Farmer’s Market to Prato, there is a brick canopied walkway with gorgeous landscaping, that opens up to a fountain and peaceful area along Park Avenue. I had decided this was going to be the proposal spot when I put together the itinerary for my proposal (I have a slight, I mean, extremely strong touch of OCD, so I was pretty particular in my planning, click here if you don’t believe me).
My Mother, Susan Sobel, is a tremendously talented artist. There is no way to describe the type of work she produces without seeing her portfolio for yourself. She and I had discussed incorporating a painting of hers into my proposal from the start. Upon deciding what particular photo to use for the painting, we agreed on one that was both recent and meaningful. It was one from mine and Lauren’s recent adventure to Vail, Colorado where we were able to capture this amazing photo:
My Mom was able to hand-paint, from scratch, an exact replica of the photo on a canvas. (Make sure to scroll back up and look at the actual photo again after looking at the ones below):
Yes. She REALLY DID paint that. Absolutely perfect. Pay attention to the level of detail, from the zippers on my shirt, to the ‘beard’ that I’ve been trying to grow for years. And to really put things into perspective, look at these pictures she captured along the way:
The painting was sitting peacefully on an easel in the location that I had asked it to be positioned. As we walked to Prato, I made sure to take the path I had so carefully planned out, while cautiously leading Lauren towards the painting. The paparazzi was all over us as I tried to make sure the plan was coming together:
The plan was to walk by, see the painting, and bring it to Lauren’s attention. Mind you, I still have not seen the painting myself at this point because I wanted it to be a surprise to me, as well. As we got closer, my emotions began to run wild. Once the painting was in clear view, Lauren started to ask questions and get confused. The second she returned her gaze to me after trying to figure out what was going on with the painting, I was down on one knee…
I removed my glasses, began to speak, and practically blacked out. What I had planned to say did not come out in exact words, but this is what I do remember saying:
“Lauren. When we met, we were not looking for love, we were looking for an adventure. That adventure turned into me falling deeper in love with you every single day. I am confident in knowing that I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I know that we can conquer anything together. Lauren Patricia Howard, will you marry me?”
After she said YES, full of excitement, I HANDED the ring to her, before kissing and hugging her. There were herds of bystanders across the street, clapping and cheering. This included cops that had literally stopped traffic to help the crowd have an optimal vantage point. Lauren and I could not stop smiling just as she said “I think you are supposed to actually put it on my finger now” (notice Lauren pinching something in between her fingers in the above photo). We shared a nice laugh, poking fun at the fact that I had not even put the ring ON her finger yet.
After the proposal I carried the painting all the way to Prato.
On the way, everyone was staring at us, as we were beaming in joy en route to the restaurant, both of us still in shock. I thought the attention was solely due to the massive painting I was carrying, but then a couple of older ladies stopped us and said, “Wait, are you THE couple… The couple on the painting?! Congratulations on your engagement!” It was as if everyone on Park Avenue knew about the proposal somehow, except for Lauren. I will chalk that up as a big win. I had arranged for Lauren’s family to visit from Clearwater and for my family to visit from South Florida to celebrate this day with us and to surprise Lauren, yet again. When we finally made it to the restaurant they were all there to greet us with open arms and smiling faces. We toasted with some delicious champagne and shared an amazing meal.
Later on, we proceeded to our dinner reservations that I had made for the entire family. While at dinner, I got an email from Scott Trippler, of Scott Trippler Studios, that was full of photos. I had arranged for Scott and the amazing Elena to capture the moment with some candid proposal shots. During the proposal itself I was so wrapped up in nerves while attempting to flawlessly execute the plan that I had spent months brainstorming and planning for, that I completely blacked out. As I opened up the photos Scott sent me during dinner I was able to see everything again, and this time from a different view. That is when my emotions got the best of me. Having worked with Scott for years, while building on a friendship at the same time, I knew that the photos would turn out top-notch. But never in my wildest dreams could I have anticipated the creativity and quality that Scott and Elena would bring to life on that day.
The proposal had many additional sentimental elements and details, of which I have shared the most integral components in this post. In closing, one of the main reasons that I wanted to share our experience was to thank my Mother (and Lauren’s future Mother-in-Law) for her contribution to our proposal, and for being my hero. Throughout my entire life, I have never had any doubt that she would always be there for me right by side. My mother puts up with my antics, offers endless amounts of advice and support, and continues to help me become a better person everyday. It is a goal of mine this year to make sure that her work is showcased and appreciated by as many people as I possibly can, and what better time to start than now. Mom, I thank you for everything you do for me and for our family, and I thank you for creating what was the focal point of my proposal to Lauren. It holds all the more meaning because it is something that was constructed from the bottom of your heart. I love you.
It truly was a well-executed plan. I cannot express the gratitude that I have for everyone that played an instrumental part in this experience in mine and Lauren’s lives. To my Father and Mother, to Lauren’s Father and Mother, to all of those that offered their advice along the way, to the most incredible piece of artwork I have ever seen, and to the most perfect photos that we will always have to re-live the experience over and over, I truly feel blessed and am forever thankful.
Lauren, I love you with all my heart, and I am so happy to call you my fiancé! …And So…The Adventure Continues!
I would like to also extend my gratitude to Chris and Theresa of the Unique Diamond Boutique, of Winter Park Florida. Their patience, accommodations, and the overall experience they provided was class-act. The ring didn’t come out too shabby either 😉
