THE WEEK WE GOT ENGAGED
I could say so many wonderful words regarding the week of August 17th, 2021. It was my love and I's 2 year anniversary. It was the mark of our (almost) one year living together, and it was the day we got engaged in the most beautiful hidden gem Oregon has to offer. To say I love a human would be an understatement. Kaelin lights my soul on fire and fuels my hopes and dreams. He supports and believes in me when I don't believe in myself. I couldn't ask for a better partner to marry.
The week began with surprising my love with a stay at the Jennings Hotel in Joseph, OR.
This is a funny story actually -- I had told Kaelin for months that he needed to make sure to take the week off so we could go camping. So the night before leaving this sweet soul digs out all of our camping gear amongst our random pile of stuff in our storage unit. He gets everything ready to go for our early morning drive the next day, but when I arrive home I finally let him in on the surprise. We weren't going camping after all. I had been planning a neat stay at the boutique hotel. I so appreciated his efforts to pack though and thanked him greatly hahah.
We arrived the afternoon of the 16th and it was such a lovely welcome. The hotel was perfect, quaint, and decorated to perfection. We immediately felt a sense of excitement for the days ahead. Here is a little peak into the lovely space.
August 17th
Okay, okay I will finally get to the day he proposed. We bought tickets to go up the Gondola ride to the top of the Wallowa Mountain Range. We got so lucky and just missed the smoke going up and got a sunny clear day where we could see the lake below and the range in the distance. We spent the afternoon hiking around the area until we found a quiet little spot overlooking the lake, that's when we asked. He had wrote me a loving and endearing letter in our journal we have together. He read it aloud, full of tears, and then and there asked me to be his wife. We cried together and smiled endlessly, it was the perfect moment.
A little side note, we went on our first date on top of a "mountain" sitting on top of rocks - so everything came full circle this day. It was the perfect way to celebrate 2+ years of love.
Other Moments
I really can't say enough about this wonderful little town amongst the mountains. It was quiet, but the town really had a voice of its own. You felt more connected with your surroundings and the ability to unplug. We spent the week playing card games, drinking coffee, and listening to Willie Nelson, Fleetwood Mac, and more on the record player in the common area of the hotel. It was a moment to rewind and reconnect with the next steps in our life.
Enjoy the last snippets of the trip below. Also, it wouldn't be a trip with me without a few tripod photos together hehe.