The Love Story - Part Finale

So we have reached the end . . . 
Or is it the beginning of our 10 year story?
You decide.
Wanna catch up . . . Here are Parts 1, 2, and 3.
Starting in mid-February of 2005 we were officially official as a couple.
We spent all our waking minutes together and just really enjoyed getting to know each other.
We talked about marriage, and I knew I really wanted to marry him.
But I knew it took people at least a year to get engaged if they were normal:)
One night (without my knowing) Tim took my parents out to dinner to "talk" to them,
As soon as he said the words, "I wanted to ask you a question . . "
My dad broke out the video camera and began taping him,
Nothing like adding to the pressure of the situation.
The best part of that story is after we got engaged my dad was so excited to show me the video.
We all sat down to watch it, and as he pressed play he realized he hadn't been recording.
Such a let down to my dad, although I think Tim was relieved.
Tim did get their blessing that night at dinner and began to plan our engagement.
My mom told him not to tell my dad what he planned because my dad has a small (ahem) problem with letting the cat out of the bag, so to speak.
Basically, he can't keep a secret to save his life.
Sorry, dad.
His original plan was to fly me to the keys to pop the question, but he had made the mistake of talking with my dad about it first.
One night at dinner my dad blurted out, "Well, when are you going on that plane to the keys?"
My mom all but punched him.
So that plan was out the window.

I guess Tim reevaluated and decided that wasn't the most cost effective or easiest way to go about it.
I appreciate his flair for the extravagant, but he also knew I would want our families there to celebrate.
His plan B ended up being absolutely perfect.  
Until this point our families hadn't met.
His family was all in south Florida, and we had only been dating 2.5 months.
He told me that we needed to rectify the situation by meeting up in Orlando to celebrate his birthday, which was May 20th.
We picked the weekend of May 5th, and all met up at the Wilderness Lodge.
It was very fun to have the whole gang together.
On Saturday morning I thought the plan was to wake up and head to Typhoon Lagoon to let Tim surf as his birthday present.
We got up and got our suits on, but as soon as I went downstairs in the hotel he told me plans had changed.
We were going parasailing together while everyone else watched.
Oh, I was totally clueless.
Totally oblivious.
No idea what was going on.
Except not.
I can't tell a lie.
Remember the "brutally honest" part of myself that I can't contain.
Well, here it is . . . I knew.
As soon as he said we were going parasailing, I knew.
But then I started getting nervous and silently asking myself questions on how this would all work.
 How do you bring a ring parasailing??
Would it be scary?? (I had never been before)
All my questions hanging in the balance  . . .
They strapped us in and up we went.
It was amazing.
Felt like floating.
After we had been in the air for a little while, Tim told me to look down.
On a boat underneath us my family and his were holding a sign that said, "Are you ready to marry me yet?"
(The way in which it was written is another story for another day.)
Again, I figured it was coming, but it was still so surreal.
I told him yes, and we tried to kiss in our awkwardly placed harnesses in the air.
I wish I could show you the pictures.
#mostawkwardkissever
Then, being the patient woman that I am, I asked for my ring.
And he politely replied that it was waiting for me on the dock when we got back.
Smart man.
It felt like an eternity before we got down, so I could check it out.
There was a table on the dock with roses and chocolate covered strawberries and a box with the ring.
Tim got down on one knee to make sure we covered all our traditions and put the ring on my finger.
I haven't taken it off since.
We were married November 26, 2005.

Our story is not one that I ever would have written.

It is completely abnormal from the way we began dating to the short time before we got engaged and then got married.

God knows me.

He knows that circumstances like that are what make Him so evident in my life.

Our love story is just another way that God's grace has completely saturated me and made me aware of His love for me.