Ryne proposed to me nine years ago in front of the Gapstow Bridge in Central Park. We were 19 years old and still in school, but oh so in love. Every year we celebrate this marked occasion with dinner and a holiday beverage or two. This year Ryne offered to plan the date night, which happened to fall on a Friday. Rewind to Wednesday morning, Ryne and I were having breakfast at our fav local spot before an OB appointment where he began to trickle small hints at the bomb that this dinner date he had planned was actually a weekend getaway. After our OB appointment, he sent me to get my nails done with my mom and packed my bags while I was away. I woke up that morning thinking we were going to spend a laid back weekend frosting gingerbread cookies with the kids and went to bed with bags packed for a surprise trip Ryne had been secretly planning for months.
I was literally SHOCKED. Totally flabbergasted. I don’t know how he managed to keep such a big secret! He gave me a few hints as to where we were going, but drug out as much of the surprise as he could to the very end. He said “dress warm” for somewhere “local”. Thursday morning we dropped Conrad off with my parents and Quinn off at school before hitting the road. I was convinced we were headed to the mountains for a snuggly weekend fireside. He drove a weird way to the airport to throw me off, but once we hit the highway it became apparent we wouldn’t be driving to our destination. Once we got to the airport he refused to let me check in with him or see our tickets. Wherever we were headed, we were cutting it close to catch our flight, so we raced (as much as a 21-week pregnant lady can) all the way to the gate. And it wasn’t until we walked up to the gate that I realized we were going to one of our most cherished places of all time- New York City. Not exactly what I’d call “local”, but I was so excited all the same 🙂
With baby girl on the way, he told me he knew we wouldn’t be able to make it back for our 10th anniversary and saw the perfect opportunity for a mini babymoon and a really fun surprise for our 9th. He booked us three nights at the most gorgeous hotel I’ve ever stayed in. We walked hand in hand through Central Park, ate our body weight in waffles at our most beloved restaurant in the village, had afternoon tea at Bergdorf Goodman, and ordered dessert and coffee to our room every single night while we snuggled in bed with a Christmas movie. It was really magical. And I left with a heart filled to the brim with gratitude for a man who loves me so well 💕
