Engaged. It's True.

I thought I would start the new year off by writing about my exciting news:
I am engaged!

It all happened the night before our departure to Beijing. We went to Rockwell's for lunch and then spent the whole day downtown touring the Christmas decorations and shopping for gifts. We headed back to Aaron's apartment to pack his suitcase. Then to my apartment to finish my packing. Throughout the month of December, Aaron and I have been using an advent calendar my Mom gave me for Christmas last year. It's shaped like a little house and has little boxes to open for each day leading up to Christmas. We went to Jewel and bought little gifts to put in the boxes, Aaron got the even days and I got the odds. As I was packing my bag, Aaron was eager to open the last of the boxes while I was getting tired of packing, but it needed to be done. So I kept telling him we would do it after I was done. And yet...he kept asking me if we could do it. And I still refused. I had to pack! We had planned to go to Panera for dinner because my Grandma Redding gave Aaron a gift card for Christmas. I was getting hungry so I said that we should eat first and then do the advent calendar. But Aaron wouldn't let that happen. So he opened his box and then it was time for me to open mine. I got a little excited, because I thought this would have been a cute way to propose. I opened the box and there was a note that read... "Turn Around."... and there was Aaron who said..."It's ME!" and hugged me. Yep, it did not happen then. He hugged me and kissed and held me while talking about how we would be together forever and asked me if I was ready to be with him forever and how we would get engaged... sometime... so that was that. It wasn't going to happen then (or so I thought!). So it was Panera time. So I turned around to put on my boots and fix my frustrating jeans. I turned around... and there was Aaron, on one knee... "Chelsea Elyse Redding, will you marry me?" He said. Of course I said YES! And then I asked, "really?!" And it is really true! We spent the night calling family and friends. I couldn't get a hold of my Mom until the morning, which was really hard. Both my Mom and my Grandma Redding cried when I told them (:

And then we hopped on a plane to China, newly engaged.