Guys!! I have been chomping at the bit to post this blog!! 😀 However, I also really, really super wanted to have additional, better pictures to share, but the woman who runs the beach horseback rides and snapped them on her cell phone still hasn’t sent them…(*not grumpy about it at all* hehe) Alas, I decided it’s better to post with some photos than to continue to put off the post for images I may or may not receive in the future! So without, further ado…JUSTIN AND I’S ENGAGEMENT STORY!! WOOO!!!!
*Setting the scene* It was Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day fell on a Wednesday this year. Wednesdays in the winter mean that I am at work at the Winter Equestrian Festival (WEF) in Florida, and Justin is at work in Pennsylvania. Little did I know that this Wednesday (*spoiler alert*) Justin WAS IN FLORIDA and AT WEF!
I stopped in to the WEF press room around noon on that Wednesday to drop something off to my coworker, Lindsay, and she pointed out that someone had delivered something for me, and it was sitting on the main table when I came in! 😍 (I was supposed to notice this when I blatantly walked right past it upon entering the press room!)
Inside the box was a message in a bottle that read “Spend the day with me…” I assumed that that had to mean there were plane tickets or something somewhere, and I was NOT expecting Justin to come around the corner!! (Side note: At this point, I was just so impressed that Justin had somehow figured out a way to have a gift delivered directly to the press room, and that would have been more than enough for me!! hah)
Justin at this point said we had to go because we had plans! To which, I said that sadly we couldn’t because it was a Wednesday which meant a work day and me having a lot to do! However, he’d already cleared the day off with my bosses, and they knew all about it! So impressive to me!
Justin took me out to the WEF parking lot where he had a red Camaro waiting, and off we went! 
When I got in the car, I was again supposed to notice that there was a second message in a bottle right by my feet, but I apparently just kicked it out of the way when I got in the car and paid no notice…Finally about 30 minutes into the drive, upon me searching for a USB port for my phone charger cord, Justin had me look down by feet (to which I told him he was dumb for thinking there would be a USB outlet there hehe) in order to find the message in the bottle! This one said, “go to a park with me…” and was my clue to where we were headed!
Skipping the part where I again walked right past my next clue/message in a bottle, my next message in a bottle ride, “go horseback riding with me…” UMM YESSS!!!!
Not going to lie though, when was saw people getting on horses, I was super excited – I’d never ridden on the beach before, and it was a major bucket list item! – but also bummed because it looked like it was going to be one of those single file, walk on the beach types of rides, which I’m not into. haha But then the woman running the beach rides got us on our horses and sent us off without the group!! (Way to go, Justin!)
We rode along the beach, and this time I definitely did not miss the next message in a bottle Justin had set out for me – and I had a pretty good hunch as to what was coming!!! 😍😍 
(Side note: the woman who ran the trail rides apparently was not at all helpful with coordinating this…so Justin drove the hour and a half from Wellington to the beach rides to set it up, drove the hour and a half back to surprise me, and then drove the hour and a half back there to propose…he is seriously THE BEST!)
The final message read: “spend the rest of your life with me!?!” and of course I died and said yes and was just the happiest!! 😍😍😍
And then I took a million pictures of the ring (which is so perfect and exactly what I wanted…even though Justin and I had literally never even talked about what type of ring I’d want! He’s so good!!)
And now we’re starting to talk about planning the wedding, and I’m super pumped!! (And also very, very open to anyone’s wedding planning tips or pointers at any time!) Looking forward to sharing more throughout this next engagement stage of our relationship!! 😀
