The Proposal
Photo credit courtesy of:
Affordable Wedding Photography of Nashville
The Perfect Proposal ♥
From the very beginning, Justin and I have always occupied the roles of ‘Bonnie and Clyde.’ We have loved the adventures we have had and will have, and the relationship of a couple that is invested in each other and will always stand by each other’s side. With that said… here goes!
The date is May 23, 2014 and the agenda for the night was for Justin to plan a date night. I was on my way home from work and was talking with him on the phone. I was about ten minutes away from the house and I had mentioned to him that I wanted him to drive us to the “date” since I was just about out of gas. He replied “ok,” and said that he would see me when I got home. We hung up the phone and I continued on my way home.
I pulled into our gravel driveway and noticed that his car was not there (very peculiar), and I thought maybe he went to go get gas. I got out of my car and walked up to the back door and taped to the door was a manila envelope that was marked Bonnie Urgent!. I immediately smiled and opened the envelope. Inside was a letter that read:
Bonnie-
I pray this letter finds you safe. Our lifetime of mis-doings have come to a boiling point and the day we grew to fear is upon us. They know everything; the money, the robbery, the moonshine… everything. They trailed me back to the house. I held up here for as long as I could but I’m nearly out of ammo, and completely out of options. I have to lead them away or I fear you will drive into a fire fight when you arrive. They will be gone, but not for long. This house is no longer our home. You must *QUICKLY* pack, and pack light, only a nights worth. We’ll wash what we need to in rivers as we flee. The instructions you find are for your eyes only and must be kept ‘less than obvious.’ I’ll wait for you at the hideout…
-Forever my Bonnie
Love always your Clyde-
-Location of next instructions-
*This 6-string instrument carries more than a tune*
After I read this, I was so excited and nervous and emotional all at the same time! I entered the house and hurried over to where our guitar was kept in the living room. On it, I saw another envelope labeled BONNIE and a pair of sunglasses with a mustache hanging from them. I opened the envelope and it read:
Our faces are plastered all over this town, framed by the words “Wanted” and “Dead or Alive.” Wear this disguise till you’re safe with me…
-Next Location-
*This can wash away stains from clothes,
but not the crime from your past*
So I proceeded to the laundry room and, exactly where I expected it, was another envelope also labeled BONNIE. This envelope was taped to the washing machine. I opened it and it read:
This situation changes our location, but doesn’t change who we are. I am a fireman. I need my helmet. Go to my fire station down the road in Greenbrier and retrieve it. Everything you need to continue will be inside the helmet. Bring your bags…
*To enter the door press – #, #, #
Then twist the latch and push door open while twisting*
At this point, I realize that this is for real! I hurry through the house packing my bags for a nights worth. My adrenaline is rushing and I am so excited about what is to come. I get all of my bags packed as “quickly” as I can and I get in the car to drive down the road to the fire station. I pull into the fire station and punch in the code provided to me and open the door. Immediately in front of me is a couch with his fire helmet on it and a note taped to it that states For Bonnie, Do Not Remove. I walk up to it and I see that there are two envelopes in his helmet. One says BONNIE, 1st, and the other says BONNIE OPEN 2nd *Don’t open till you arrive at the address…* So I do as I am told and open the designated first envelope (Side note: I was so excited that I ended up ripping the note as I opened it and have since taped it back together, haha) and it read:
We don’t always know where we are going, but we know where we want to end up. You don’t’ know where you’re going, but the GPS does. Go into ‘Recent destinations’ and click the top one, should start with ‘2800’. Open ‘2nd’ envelope when you arrive.
The next thing that goes through my head is Wow, he has created the best adventure I could imagine. So I get back in my car with his GPS, helmet, and the next envelope. I plug in his GPS and go to the recent destinations and find the address. I have a thirty minute drive ahead of me. Please take a moment to imagine a thirty minute drive by yourself when you have a feeling you are getting ready to be proposed to. Side note: If you remember at the beginning of this story, I was out of gas. So on my way to this destination I stopped at a gas station to fill up. When I left, I got on the highway and was in stopped traffic due to a wreck up ahead. I didn’t have air conditioning in my car at the time, so my windows were down. I had two different people yell at me during the traffic jam that I had left my gas lid open. I had been so excited that I didn’t even shut the lid to my fuel tank!! Haha!
I finally arrive at the destination and it has brought me to the Opryland Hotel!!! I park and open the second envelope. It read:
They would never expect to find us in a ritzy place like the Opryland Resort. Go to the front desk, tell them your name is ‘Bonnie Parker’. Say you are meeting a guest here and he left a note with them for you…
I could not believe this! Now he had incorporated the hotel staff in this adventure. He had called me at this time to specify that I needed to go to the Concierge desk. So I grab my bags and find the front of the hotel and get in line for the Concierge. I finally make it up to the desk and tell them with a smiling face “I’m supposed to tell you that my name is Bonnie.” She looked at me with a returning smile and said “Well hi Bonnie, you are a very lucky woman and he is a lucky man.” She hands me a manila envelope that reads BONNIE PARKER and a nerf gun revolver. I could not help but laugh. I opened the envelope. It read:
You’re almost there. The hideout is room D3084 on the 3rd floor. You’ll need this 6-shooter for protection. I can’t protect you till you get here… be safe.
Here’s the hideout key.
I kid you not, I got lost twice trying to find the correct room in that big hotel. I finally made it to the room, took a big breath and opened the door.
Inside the room was pitch black, lit with mason jars filled with tea candles on the floor. The mason jars framed a path that was filled with glitter and rose petals that led to the bed. My eyes started to tear at this point. It was beautiful. I turned on the light and proceeded to the middle of the room where my last clue was taped to the dresser. I opened it and it read:
Bonnie-
The only thing that can save us from our fate is in one of these balloons on the bed. You know what to do.
On the bed were about fifteen white balloons. I started popping them with a pen that I had found in my purse. I was about 3 balloons in when Justin came out of the bathroom dressed in all black, suspenders, and his fedora hat, shooting me with his nerf gun!! I was taken by surprise that’s for sure. He told me to continue popping the balloons but that I was not going to get what I would find, it was for him to have. The last balloon I popped had the black ring box inside. He grabbed it and got on one knee and said:
“Brittany Nicole Rinehart, I can’t imagine a life of doing anything but this, with anyone but you. Will you marry me?”
He put the ring on my finger and I shook my head yes and cried. It was the best moment I could have ever wished for. The ring took my breath away and I was so happy. He did such an amazing job and it was an adventure that I wish I could relive over and over again.
On another side note: I wanted to make sure that I would remember him asking me, so I made him get down on one knee twice. He said he didn’t expect anything else of me haha.
We stayed at the hotel with a balcony view. We took pictures and ate sushi at Wasabi (which was where we had our 2nd date so it seemed very appropriate that we ate there for our engagement). It was an amazing evening. And the perfect proposal.
Photo credit courtesy of:
Affordable Wedding Photography of Nashville
Thanks for reading!! More posts to come!
Love y’all,
Brittany
https://heartofamountainmama.com/love-marriage/
