Engagement - The Rendezvous

Our engagement began with a rendezvous. Not between Mr. Meerkat and I but between Mr. Meerkat and MOH Meerkat . Now wait before you start thinking this is a days our lives episode, let me explain.

It started one day in June while I was at lunch with the guys I work with. I had been telling them that Mr. Meerkat was planning a surprise weekend away and how excited I was. During lunch Mr. Meerkat called. As we were talking I realized he was driving while he should have been at work. So I asked him the obvious question, where was he going. He was honest and told me that he had taken the day off and was meeting MOH Meerkat in the town where I work (one hour from where we live) for lunch and shopping (he didn’t bother to tell me that their shopping was actually going to happen two more hours north). As you can guess I was kind of hurt. My boyfriend and best friend were getting together and didn’t invite me.

When I got off the phone my co-workers could see I was kind of bummed and asked what was wrong. I explained what had just happened on the phone. The next thing I see is the guys looking around the table at each other with these goofy grins on their faces. Then a couple little laughs started that turned into bigger laughs. It was then that one of them held up his wedding band, wiggling it back and forth, and said with this goofy grin on his face ‘I don’t know what they could be shopping for’.

Now let me just state right here that I was commitment phobic! Just the thought of getting married would send me running. Yes, like the runaway-bride-movie kind of running. So I was sure the guys had to be joking with me because they LOVE to tease. It didn’t make any sense for Mr. Meerkat to travel that far from home when we have plenty of local jewelry stores. Or did it? =)

I still didn’t believe that Mr. Meerkat was going to propose.  Nonetheless, I was VERY excited just to be going away for a surprise trip with Mr. Meerkat.  FINALLY, July 25 rolled around and after five long weeks of waiting, our trip began. When we were less than 30 miles away Mr. Meerkat handed me a folder. I open it to find the sweetest note from him telling me we were going to Mackinac Island!!! He also included a ton of information to read about our hotel, things to do and about the island in general. We arrive with me frantically reading ever last detail in the folder while Mr.  Meerkat unloaded the car. (What a way to start an engagement, huh?) After we were settled, he took me out for a beautiful dinner on the shoreline and an evening of walking around the town.

examiner.com	Laura Sternberg

The next morning there we rented two bikes (motorized vehicles are prohibited) and took off to explore the little island. Around noon we stopped at a beach where Mr. Meerkat laid out a surprise picnic lunch. We talked, ate and enjoyed the beautiful view. Just before we started packing up he told me he had another surprise for me and handed me a tiny little wrapped box. I opened it to find the engagement ring he and MOH Meerkat drove three hours to have custom made. And there on that beautiful beach Mr. Meerkat proposed. I wish I could remember all the sweet things Mr. Meerkat said but somewhere in there I squealed and screamed “YES”!

What happened to my commitment phobia you ask? Its gone. From the moment I opened the box and saw the ring I was no longer scared but blissfully happy. Everything just seemed... right.

After our morning adventure we decided to do some shopping. In one of the shops we saw hooded sweatshirts with this printed on them:

Life begins at M-185

M-185 is the road we traveled around the island on and where Mr. Meerkat proposed. As you can probably guess Mr. Meerkat purchased us each one as I happily told every single person standing there about our engagement and the sweatshirts. It was definitely one of the happiest days of my life.

Do any of you have something special you got on the day of your engagement? (Well I mean besides the pretty rock on your hand. *grin*)