The Proposal

Our 2010 Thanksgiving trip to Amesbury was, as usual, full of fun, laughter, and precious family time. I was so excited about the trip and knew it would be wonderful, but little did I know that Nik was planning something VERY special…

There is a tiny town on the Maine coast called Ogunquit. It is a very special place to me, one of my favorite spots in the whole world. My family has been vacationing in Ogunquit regularly for as long as I can remember, and, for the past few years, has been visiting the quaint town for day trips around Thanksgiving. There is a mile-long pathway that hugs the coast there, the Marginal Way, and we walk it each year. We always create little adventures as we walk along the path, leaving it here and there to walk on the sand and broken shells and to climb around on the rocks, waves crashing around us. There are endless pictures of me and my family, as well as Nik, posing on the pathway, beach, and rocks with the breathtaking beauty of the Maine coast behind us.

As I said, this is a very special place to me. Secretly, I had always imagined this would be THE PERFECT place for a proposal. Not only is it gorgeous, but it means a lot to me and is very connected to my family. I had only ever told one person, my friend Zena, that this would be an ideal spot for a proposal–but I never imagined it could happen. It is far from home and would require a great deal of planning and secret-keeping.

Well, Nik swears he never talked to Zena, but somehow he knew how much proposing in this spot would mean to me. He did the planning and secret-keeping…

…and proposed to me! On November 27, 2010, we were walking the Marginal Way with Mandi, my mom, and Memere. We had had breakfast at Cafe Amore in town, done a bit of shopping at my favorite pottery place and the store that sells my Sid Dickens tiles, and were heading back along the pathway at the end of the day. Nik set Mandi up with the camera and started rock-climbing with me.

Mandi snapped a few pictures as we explored the rocks and the ocean. Suddenly Nik bent down on one knee and asked me if I would do the honor of marrying him, and he pulled out the most gorgeous engagement ring that has ever been made.

Of course, I said “YES!” I walked the rest of the Marginal Way without my gloves on, but the cold hands were completely worth it! What a special day.