On Friday, April 20th, 2018, my best friend and love of my life asked me to marry him. He popped the question on a beautiful spring evening on Pier A in Hoboken, one of our favorite spots in the Mile Square City, as the sun set and sparkled against the Manhattan skyline. It was a dream – I felt like I was floating as he said some the sweetest words to me, knelt down on one knee, and asked me to spend forever with him. I managed to say ‘yes!’ through streams of joyful tears.
Matt and I were walking along the same pier almost two years earlier when he first realized he loved me. We weren’t dating yet, but there was an unspoken understanding that we both cared for each other deeply. We stopped to take in the NYC cityscape, which was brightly lit against the night sky. I remember this night so clearly – we stood close to each other as we leaned against the railing, peering out over NYC and talking about life. It was incredibly romantic…there was even a moment when I wondered if he’d kiss me. And that’s when I realized I wanted to be more than friends. We went on our first date that fall, and the rest is history.
Before we started dating, Matt would make lists of things he’d think would make me laugh. He’d rattle them off while we were out at a bar, talking on the phone, walking along the pier, etc. These lists evolved into sweet love notes as we dated. It didn’t have to be a milestone for him to write one – he’s given these notes to me when I’ve come back from a trip, read them to me over the phone while I was driving somewhere, and brought them along as small gifts on date nights. He is so sweet to me and helps me slow down to remember the small, yet significant moments in our relationship.
As we were walking along the pier on the night he proposed, Matt pulled out a note and began reading it to me. It was titled ‘Things I Love About Devin’, and was super cheesy but so cute. We took a few more steps and rounded the corner to start making our way down Pier A when he pulled out a second note. This one was much more thoughtful and meaningful. He wrote about the journey of our relationship, the big milestones and the small special moments, that brought us to that Friday night, our “529th day of dating.” We stopped at the end of the pier. He put the note back in his pocket, took both of my hands, and told me he “wanted forever to start now.” Then he pulled out the ring and dropped down to one knee.
After I said yes, Matt stood up and slid the most beautiful ring onto my finger. I was hugging him so tightly when he told me to look back down the pier in the direction we walked from. One of my dearest photographer friends, Carol, was walking toward us with two cameras strapped to her. Matt told me she captured the entire proposal and that we now had a photo session with her on the pier. I was speechless. I tried to wipe the tears from my eyes and the lipstick off of Matt’s cheek as Carol started posing us and clicking away. It was tough for me to remember to look at the camera because I couldn’t stop staring at Matt…and the beautiful new piece of jewelry on my left ring finger. 😉
After our photo session, Matt asked me if we could keep the news just between the two of us for the next few hours as we went to dinner and celebrated. We went to Del Frisco’s Grille, which was just a few steps away from the pier. We had a beautiful dinner together – complete with a champagne toast and dessert on the house. The Del Frisco’s staff went above and beyond to make the night so special for us – they took the label off of the bottle of wine we drank, placed it in cellophane, and put it inside a congratulatory card and all signed it. Such a sweet gesture!
After dinner, we made our way back to 8th & Madison to have a celebratory bottle of champagne. When I opened the door, Matt’s parents and my mom were waiting inside! I could not believe it! I felt so incredibly blessed that our parents would make the cross-country flight and cross-state road trip to be a part of our engagement night with us. Matt retold the story of how he proposed a few hours earlier and I FaceTimed family and friends to do the same. We spent the rest of the weekend celebrating all together.
Our engagement story is something beyond anything I could’ve dreamed up. The thought Matt put into making it absolutely perfect is an illustration of how well he loves and cares for me. Matt, thank you for being my everything – my best friend and love of my life. I can’t wait to spend forever with you and build a future together. To the moon and back xoxoxo
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And special thanks to Carol from Carol Denise Photography for capturing these sweet moments!
