Our Engagement Story

Hello Blogger World, I am Travis, Anna's fiance. We were engaged on July 31, 2010 and this is my story about that day.----- We had been dating for about 6 years to that point and we talked about the possibility of getting married many times. But we both knew that time was starting to wind down on deciding whether we would spend the rest of our lives together. I had put so much prayer into this and sometimes my answers would even confuse myself. I had a plan for what I wanted to do with my life for the next couple years and Anna had a better one. But the spirit I felt always gave me the same answer, getting married to Anna was definitely what I had to do, no matter what I had to sacrifice. Things weren't exactly figured out in my life to that point, but Anna's life was. She is going to go on to be a successful neonatal nurse, and she is very dedicated and good in her work. We talked about it and we agreed that eternal marriage should not hang on worldly things as that. However, I would still have doubts. But I knew the Lord was testing my trust in Him. And through more prayer, discussions with my bishop, and much thought, I felt more spiritual confirmation in this than anything before.----- I knew that I had to propose to her that night as she was leaving for school the next day. The day began with more prayer, that the Lord would be with me through everything that day. I went ring shopping and I had some input/suggestions from my mom and sisters. I ended up getting one from Zales that I thought would look good for Anna and one she would like forever. I thought of her when I saw that ring at the shop and I knew that was the one to get. I had to go to work that day but I argued with the head cashier to let me go early. He reluctantly let me off at 4 pm so I knew the stage was set. I rushed home, got ready for the night, and went to pick up Anna. She looked very pretty, as always, and I tried to dress up, well..it was a polo shirt and jeans, which is formal for me. I took Anna to Texas de Brazil, an upscale Brazilian BBQ restaurant at Fair Oaks Mall, for dinner. After stuffing our (my) face with all-you-can-eat steak, I was about to propose to her over dessert, but then I decided against it, as we were too full for dessert, and I didn't want to propose on a sore stomach. So we got in my truck and drove to Washington, DC by the Washington Monument. We walked around for a little bit admiring the beautiful views of the DC buildings (and Anna) illuminated at night. It was already great to be spending time with her, just walking around. It was very romantic and intimate being together in such a special place like that. But I knew my time was dwindling, and I had to step up to plate soon. I said one more small prayer in my heart. We finally reached an isolated spot on the field, away from all the tourists, right under the Washington Monument. I knew the time was right.----- My heart began pounding uncontrollably. I asked Anna if she really wanted to be married to me. She said, "of course." I said that I loved her and I was ready to move on in our life. I pulled the ring out of my pocket and got down on one knee. She covered her mouth in disbelief and said "no way!" Barely keeping myself from falling over, I popped the question. "Anna Karlee Brionez, will you marry me?" She immediately said "yes, of course I'll marry you!"----- Then I fainted..............nah just kidding.----- After all the action. We walked around some more, and sat on a bench under the Washington Monument. We sat there and I held her, we took some pictures, and we soaked in the moment. We were engaged to be married for eternity.----- After our special moment, we anticipated some explaining to do to people who have doubts about us. People who think we are too young, or people who think we should graduate college first. Things changed and I don't have a plan 100% mapped out (though I still plan on working in the IC). But I'm glad I have a partner to do that with now. I'm excited to go through tough times in our lives now that we have someone to overcome them with. I'm excited to enjoy our good times together. I'm glad I have an eternal companion and I intend to treat her as such. I've witnessed how much Anna's parents care about her and her well-being and I've felt their care for me as well. I know that this decision will not fail and I know that we will have a strong marriage and we will have our own little happy family. I've felt the Lord's confirmation and I know that He is happy with this decision as well. Though there may be opposition in this world, not only toward us, but to marriage in general, I know that if we keep following the Lord's will, we will continue to be as happy as we were at 10:31 pm on that memorable Saturday in July.