Brian and I are celebrating our 4 year anniversary today! It is hard to believe how fast time flies by when you are having fun! I wanted to share a little bit more about how we met, started dating, the proposal, wedding and honeymoon. I haven’t really shared this before, so I thought it would be a great idea. I love reading other wedding/proposal stories so much. And since I wasn’t really blogging then I didn’t get a chance to share that with you.
HOW WE MET/DATING
Brian and I met way back in high school. Or at least I was in high school and Brian was in college. I have know the Schma family for about 12 years now. Brian is 5 years older than me. I will never forget the first time I met him (he will say the same thing), we couldn’t stand each other. I think it must have been our age difference or the that we were both dating other people at the time. I thought he was really cute though. The backwards hat is what immediately attracted me to him.?
Fast forward to college…I ended up going to the same school as Brian for my freshman year. We didn’t hang out hardly at all. Except for one night, he happened to be at the same party as me and I needed a ride home. He offered and I took him up on it. Let’s just say it was an awkward ride home for the both of us. I think we only spoke a couple of words to each other the whole ride home.
After a year at the same college, I decided to transfer somewhere closer to home. Brian ended up finishing college that year and moving back home as well. We hung out a couple of times after we both moved home, but nothing too serious.
It wasn’t until I graduated college that we went out on our first date. We ran into each other outside of my apartment (he happened to move into the exact same apartment as me after I finished school) and we exchanged phone numbers. That same night he called and asked if he could take me out on a date. And quite literally the rest is history. We immediately fell fast and hard in love with each other. We now always talk about the fact that we liked each other all along, but didn’t really want to admit it. I practically moved in with him right after we started dating. ? We dated for 3 years before he asked me to marry him.
THE PROPOSAL
May 25, 2012
Brian proposed to me the day before my 25th birthday. I was anticipating it because we had talked about it so much, but I didn’t know when he was going to do it. He picked me up early from work that day to take me to lunch. After lunch, we went back to my parents house (we were house/dog sitting). Once, we got there, I went inside to change and then he asked me to come out to the backyard to show me something. I got out there and he was on one knee with a ring in his hand. I immediately started crying. What he said exactly is kind of a blur, but I of course said yes! It was so sweet and special. I am glad he did it in a quiet place where there weren’t any distractions. After, he proposed I called everyone to tell them the good news.
The next day he had planned a surprise engagement/birthday party with both of our families. My parents weren’t really even out of town. The whole thing was planned, so that Brian and I could have the house to ourselves when he proposed.
OUR WEDDING
May 11, 2013
Say hello to Mrs. Schma! We got married a little less than a year later. I planned our entire wedding from start to finish. I always tell Brian that I want to get married again. I loved the whole process of planning and then getting married. I think I might have missed my calling as a wedding planner. We had a relatively small wedding only about a 100 people. It was the best day of my life so far!
HONEYMOON
For our honeymoon we decided that we didn’t want to travel overseas or anywhere outside of the U.S. We found out about Hilton Head Island, S.C. and decided that would be the right place for us. And it did not disappoint. Since, our honeymoon we have been back once and planning on going back again really soon. It is one of my favorite spots. More on our trip can be found here.
There are a lot of things I have learned over the years of dating and being married that I also wanted to share. I know we haven’t been married that long, but we have been through quite a bit in the short time that we have been married.
- Keep on dating your husband. This one is so important to me. I love when Brian and I go on dates. It seems to break up the normal routine.
- Communication is key. I feel like everyone says this, but seriously, communication is the biggest issue for Brian and I. If we aren’t communicating there is bound to be an issue.
- Tell him that you appreciate all his hard work, whether it be taking out the trash, making you dinner or just being there to listen. To find out his love language you have to read The 5 Love Languages.
- Laugh all the time. This one is easy. Brian is the funniest person I know. He is always cracking jokes and making me laugh.
- Compromise. You don’t always have to be right. This one is a struggle for me, but ultimately, it isn’t about being right.
Our relationship has been full of both good and bad times, but without Brian I don’t think I would be where I am today. He makes me a better person! He is one of the most loving and caring people I know. The happiest moment of my life was when I said ‘I DO’ to the man of my dreams!
P.S. We are packing up for our trip to San Antonio tomorrow for a weekend get-away. I am so excited that we were able to plan this trip! I’ll be sharing a full travel guide next week. If you have any recommendations that you would like to share please leave them below or email me info@beautifullyelegantblog.com.
Photos courtesy of Payge Stevens Photography
