The Proposal
Click on the photo above for additional images from the moment he popped the question
Every man knows the day he is sure he wants to marry his girlfriend. So did I. So in the winter of 2016/2017 I began scheming. I wanted our families to be a part of it and knew the next best chance we'd be together would be in June 2017 at our 7th annual float trip, so there I set my sights. I had asked her father on two accounts and had his blessing. With the help of accomplice Caitlyn, cousin Seth's new fiance, who had access to Corey's Pinterest account which was full of emerald cut diamonds, I hunted down the perfect haloed radiant cut diamond and white gold band.
24 hours out, all our friends and family knew what was going to happen except two very important, yet horrible secret-keeping people, our sons Taylor, 9, and Miller 6. So during a quick trip to HyVee to pickup two ring-pops, I had a quick heart-to-heart with Taylor about my proposal plans for Corey the following night near the river. I told him I wanted him to be a part of it and he was excited to do his thing with his ring pop.
Fast forward 24 hours. The air was cool due to a storm front just missing us. Camp was all setup and over a dozen kids had been playing in the river for hours with parents hanging out in lawn chairs under shade trees near the water's edge. Corey's parents Bob and Patricia had arrived a while ago in their camper van and as the crowd moved up the hill to check it out, I had Taylor stash a very expensive blue box and two ring pops near the slow gurgling river's edge a ways away from the crowd. The scene was set!
An hour of van-gawking and story telling later, it was time to move into action. I finally let Miller know what was going to happen, as I knew he couldn't hold that big of a secret very long. Taylor was to head up river about 75 yards from the group (and therefore near the rings), commence rock skipping and wait for me to join him. Once I joined, I had him go to the group and ask Corey to join us. Of course she wasn't crazy about it but the whole crowd, knowing what she didn't, guilted her into getting out of the lawn chair and leaving all of them behind. So she walks up the bank and with Taylor in tow and we all start skipping rocks.
My plan was working. I had her alone with just us boys but I also wanted a couple pre-appointed adults to come up with camera's (phones haha) to capture the moment. So when I motioned for them to come up, so did EVERYONE else! All the other kids caught on to what was happening at this point, so we were instantly surrounded by a swarm of nervous adults and hovering five to nine-year-olds. Our good friend Deidre noticed this wasn't my plan so she tried getting everyone back down river, and Corey is suddenly seriously frustrated at her predicament. First she's dragged from the group, then the group swarms her, then the group is dragged away from her.
At this moment I knew things had to move along or the whole deal would go south. But the obstacles didn't stop just yet. Just after asking me what the deal is with the group, she begins staring behind me, part in humor, part puzzled. Taylor was standing 5 feet from us with his hands behind his back and a stuck grin. She says, "What are you doing buddy? What's behind your back?" And as if he had a mouth full of marbles, he grunted "nothing." She looks at me for answers and I think "It's go time."
I had picked my line weeks ago. I reached down and picked up a rock. Not a nice rock, but the first rock my hand hit. I was out of time. No margin for getting fancy at this point. I showed it to her and said, "That's a nice rock isn't it?" to which she chuckled, "umm, yeah sure." Lifting the blue box out of the pocket of my American Flag board shorts I responded, "but not as nice as THIS rock," and dropped to my knee to do what I'd waited to do for so long. She was a little puzzled at first as we definitely snuck it up on her, so I paused before asking. A long enough pause by the way, that she asked me if I was going to ask. I did, she said yes, and then before I could say anything else Taylor was on his knee proposing with his ringpop, followed by Miller, who almost promptly asked for his ring pop back because, well, he wanted to eat it.
I was able to tell Corey some special things I wanted to say and then it was hugs and happy tears. There were extra special hugs for a super happy Mrs. Cathey and a teary-happy Mr. Cathey, the Marine Corps Drill Instructor who gave me the honor to ask his baby to wed. Lots of pictures and laughs and good vibes, along with jokes for years to come, followed throughout the evening. And just like life, things never go as planned but most of the time, in the big picture, they work out perfectly.
Guest author: Casey Buckman
