We had been talking about marriage for a while and even looked at rings so Brandon could see what I liked.  I picked out one that I really liked but Brandon wanted to be the one to pick it out to surprise me.  So he kept showing me pictures of other rings asking what I liked and didn't like.  I was originally scheduled to work on Saturday the weekend of the proposal.  Later I would come to find out that Brandon had asked to see some pictures on my phone and got my boss's phone number. This was so he could call and ask her if she could work it out so that I could be off for the weekend. So almost the entire salon knew all week before I did.  I came in to work and my boss told me they had that Saturday covered that they wouldn't need me so I had the weekend off.  I told Brandon and he asked if maybe we could go home to AR for the weekend so he could do some hunting.  So I called mom and told her we were coming for the weekend.

The Day of the Proposal

When I woke up on Saturday morning Brandon and my Dad were missing.  Mom told me they were down at Shirley having coffee and I thought nothing of it because Dad does that all the time. I kind of thought maybe he was asking my dad for my hand in marriage which he knew was important to me.  An hour later they came home and we all decided to go spend the day and my brother and sister in-law Brad and Julie.  So we were all hanging out and enjoying the day when later in the afternoon Julie mentioned she needed to do some shopping and that we should go into town.  What girl doesn't like shopping? So Mom, Julie, and I went into town while the boys stayed at Brad's or so I thought.  We were about done shopping when Mom called Dad to see what the boys were doing and he told her that they were down at the cabin at William's Rock fishing and that we should come join them.  So we headed towards that way.  When we were coming down the hill I looked out over the pond by the cabin and no one was fishing and I said "where are they there is no one fishing." We drove down the hill and down by the pond and came to a sign that said "Follow the Signs."  I immediately said really loudly "He is not going to propose today is he?" My mom said "Well I tried to get you to dress up this morning". You see earlier that morning my mom had tried to get me to dress decent and put on makeup because she wanted to take some pictures but I did not catch on at all, and wore a tshirt and jeans and very little makeup.  Hence I felt like I looked awful!!  My mom and and Julie were both laughing and trying to get their phones so they could take pictures.  I was crying as soon a I saw the first sign.  We drove up the hill following the rose petals to see the next sign and park the car at the top of the hill.  It read "Your my Sunshine Everyday."  When we parked the car my dad was waiting with a handfull of pink roses.  He told me to follow the flowers to the next sign.  I walked up to the next sign that said "You calm me in everyway." Then the next one said "You're my strength when I'm weak," and the next one said "My only question is...."  I had to turn and climb towards the top of the bluff and there is Brandon holding the last sign that said "Will you Marry me?" I climbed to the top and he got down on one knee and pulled out the box with the ring and said "will you marry me?"  Of course I said Yes!!!!!!!!  Julie, mom, and Dad had folowed me all the way up the bluff taking picutures and filming the whole thing.  After my Dad prayd blessings over us and our future marriage and I could feel the Holy Spirit the entire time.  God was with us and it was a very beautiful and amazing moment standing up there on that bluff with the Sun going down behind us.  It was breathtaking and very emotional.  Yes I cried!!!

We had talked about marriage for a while but I needed the perfect place, a perfect time and I didn't want her to expect it. Luckily I was able to do just that. From the beginning I had Alyson give me a style of ring, she ulimately found one she really wanted but I told her that I wanted to be the one to pick it out. Little did she know after some looking of my own I decided to go with the one that she chose. I had the blessing of Brenda, her mother, to take her wedding ring and take the center diamond to put in to Alyson's ring. So I did just that. When the time came I was able to go straight to the jeweler and it was done in a matter of a couple days. Much faster than I expected so I had to make my plans come to life quickly.

I had the place picked out, William's Rock. One of the most beautiful places I have seen in my life. I had the time picked out, right at sunset. Luckily the bluff that I was proposing off of would have the sun setting behind me. The lack of expectation was by far the biggest piece since we had been talking about it for a while. On the weekend of the proposal, during the ride to Arkansas I was able to convince Alyson that even when the ring was picked out because they might have to special order it to accomodate her mother's diamond it could take 4-6 weeks. So the lack of expectation for a proposal was not even in her mind. 

My plan:

The plan was to have signs set up along a path that lead her all the way up to the bluff I was standing on top of. My plan worked out perfectly. I had my signs, and the help of my future father-in-law to get the signs set up. I had it all visualized in my mind since I had already scoped out the area. So I set up the signs as you will be able to see in the pictures in our photo album. The only challenge was getting separated from Alyson long enough for me to make sure all the candles were lit and everything was still set up how I had set it up in the morning. With the help of my future mother-in-law she was able to distract her, take her shopping, and show up right at the right time. 

It was with the biggest surprise, and a little bit of hiking up a hill and a bluff that I was finally able to ask Alyson to be my wife. Alyson and I were blessed enough to have her family with us and right after my proposal, Bill prayed over us and the future of our marriage. God was there that day, and God will continue to be there every single day as I am able to be the best husband I can be to Alyson.