BIG News!!!!!

I'm engaged!!!!!

Yesterday afternoon GL totally surprised me and proposed! He came into my office mid-afternoon with a rose and the ring tied to it and asked me to marry him! Of course I said yes!!! I wish I could express in words what I feel for this man, but I honestly don't think I can.

I also wish I were a much better photographer and had fancy photo programs to post amazing photos! But I don't!

I digress.....

Here are some pics to share.....and trust me they don't do the ring justice :)

For those of you that are interested in more details, here is the rest of the story....

A number of weeks ago GL & I went ring shopping a few times. We had decided on rings for both of us. He told me a week or so ago that he had ordered mine but that it wouldn't be ready until the 11th. That was all he was telling me, the rest was a surprise. Well, I'm not a huge fan of surprises, so I tried to endlessly pry for information. A hint...anything! He told me he had been thinking about coming to my work and proposing there and I said no way, that would be so embarrassing! Well, Monday the 11th rolls around and no word from the jewelry store. Just prior to GL going to class Monday night I get a text from him saying "it's going to be another 2 weeks, they have to order a new band". What!?!?! Are you kidding me!?!?!? At first I thought, oh he's just trying to fool me and then he kept the story going all night. Meanwhile, I'm stewing....I'm about ready to call and rip someone a new one politely share my opinion. I was so bummed. To make matters worse GL seemed so "ok" with the 2 week delay (that shoud've been my first clue), he kept telling me, it's ok, nothing we can do about it. I knew that but I was so excited about getting this ring and it finally being able to be official. Though we had already picked a date, put a down payment on the location, found a florist, dj and photographer. For some reason the ring made it "official". So I now realize I might as well just let this ring deal go because clearly it's going to be another 2 weeks and nothing is going to happen...grrrr!!!!

Well, Tuesday afternoon I'm sitting in my office and GL peaks his head around the corner, "Hey Ky". I'm like what in the world are you doing here?!?!?! He comes around the corner with a rose in hand and gets down on one knee and asks me to marry him. I'm like what!?!?!? Are you for real!?!?! You lied about the ring!?!?! I set the rose down on my desk not realizing the ring was tied to the ribbon on the rose! I'm looking at him like where's the ring and he's looking at me like what is your answer! Of course my answer was YES!!!!! I ended up taking the few remaining hours of off work for the afternoon so we could spend some time together. He ended up skipping class at night and we were able to go out for a celebration dinner :)

We also were able to spend some time talking, it was so priceless. I value the times we have that we can learn more about each other and share deep, meaningful conversation. For those of you that do not know, GL is still active in the A*rmy as a First Sar*gent. He has served our country for 21 years and has already served 4 tours. He will continue to serve for 9 more years. While there are things I'd love to share, I can't for security purposes. My heart absolutely aches when I think about the thought of him leaving and possibly never coming back. But he loves it, and I support him. I'm so very proud of him and feel honored to walk beside him in life. It's because of people like him that I have my freedom and I'm forever grateful. I never imagined I'd marry a solider one day, but I count it a privilege, though I know it will be a tough jouney at times. I have a great support system surrounding me of family and friends. And I also feel that God has prepared me for that over the past few years. But that's a entirely different post in and of itself. (FYI: in case you are wondering, the * in certain words is not a typo. It's so that if that word is googled, it can not be traced back to my blog.)

The date for the wedding is September 4, 2009 and it's going to be a small and casual sort of deal with family and close friends. My long-time friend Stephanie is going to stand up for me and we've actually both found our dresses already :) Yes, we've been doing planning already!

I honestly feel I can't put into words what I feel inside, how very much I love this man. The only thing that comes close to explaining what has happened in my life in the past 6 weeks is truly a "God thing". It's certainly not anything I could've planned. It far exceeded my expectations, hopes and dreams. I have walked through more crap in the past 10 years in my life than I care to remember. The past 5 years were probably the toughest. I walked through pain and hurt that I wouldn't wish upon anyone. The past 2-3 years I was so frustrated with the dating scene. I wanted to be with someone so badly and yet it never worked, I never found the right person. I was so frustrated! I had gotten to the point where I honestly wondered if love was ever going to happen for me. Would I be single forever? On March 4 I posted about my life and pretty much let things go! On April 4, GL walked in to my life. Exactly 1 month to the day! It's a "God thing". I never thought my life would mesh with someone like it does with GL. I never thought I'd find a man that loves my dogs like I do. I never thought I would find a man that respected me as a person and thought I was beautiful. I never thought I'd find a man that my family could accept, let alone adore. I never thought I could be this happy, that I could love like this and that it could feel so right, so perfect, so meant to be. It's a "God thing". Every day I am thankful for God bringing GL into my life. I would walk through all the pain and hurt again if it meant I could have this man for the rest of my life....fortunately I don't have to do that :) I already have this man, he is mine, I am his...forever!

I hope that you can be happy for me, for us! Yes, it's been a fast process, but I can tell you I know in my heart 100% this is meant to be. I have no doubts. I still can't fully explain what I feel inside, there just are not words. I just know. I can't wait to marry this man and spend the rest of my life with him. I know we will have our ups and downs. I don't expect perfection. I know it will take work. But I know God is faithful and that GL & I can work through anything that comes our way. God has blessed me beyond measure, even though my faith was smaller than a mustard seed. God has given me so much more than I ever dreamed of. I have never been this happy....it's a wonderful feeling. Every day seems to be better than the day before. I so look forward to the future and what God has in store for us.

Thanks to my all my friends and family for your support through the years. For those of you that have walked through many hard years with me and kept telling me my day would come. You were right! You can say "I told you so"....it's ok! Thanks for sharing in this excitement with us, your support means the world to me. And for those of you that might be skeptical, that's ok, I can appreciate and understand where you are coming from, I promise. I appreciate that you care! Just know I'm confident in moving forward with GL. Please just be happy for us!

I apologize because this has turned into a book, but I'm so excited and thrilled to share the details with all of you. My apologies for turning this blog more into my life story than necessarily just about Faith. One of my co-workers said it's now going to be changed to Kylea + 7! Oh my!!! It will probably have a title change as I'd like to keep this up and share my journey with GL and our 6 four-legged kiddos! Dogs will always be a part of our lives, as will rescue. I'm so excited to share my life with someone that has the same passion as I do for dogs! Again, it's a "God thing".

Ok...I digress yet again....

One last thing I'd like to end with. It's a song that I've heard for a long time and it's finally true in my own life. The song is entitled "When God Made You" by Newsong with Natalie Grant. You can click here to hear the song and read the lyrics.