Big, big news!!! I'm engaged! To Trip! We're going to get married!

It all happened on New Year's Day. We had gone to a gathering at a friend's apartment the previous evening, so I stayed over at his apartment. After sleeping in, we ate breakfast on the couch. I was excited to see that there was a Monk marathon on -- once you start, you can't stop! But after we finished breakfast, Trip decided that we should turn off the TV.

He said that he wanted to start the year off right -- and led right into the proposal. I said "Yes," although I wasn't quite sure that it was real...until Trip got out the ring box from the Before he even opened it, I started tearing up. Trip explained that his grandfather Sullivan had given the ring to his grandmother and that if I didn't like the setting, we could get something new. And that he wasn't sure if it would fit me.

I thought it was a gorgeous ring -- so much bigger than I ever expected! I found out later that it's a cushion diamond and it is really sparkly. I also LOVE the fact that it has been in his family. Trip also told me that they think his grandfather proposed in 1927, so the ring is probably around 80 years old! Best of all, the ring fits me! It is perhaps a tiny bit too big, but...it's not falling off and it is definitely not too small to go on!

Me and Trip, freshly engaged! Notice the traditional engagement pose.

Sparkly, sparkly ring!

Pretty ring from the side.

It hasn't even been a week and we've already started deciding some details. It helps that we went to four weddings this past year and got some ideas of what we like and would like to do. The plan is to get married some time in the end of October 2007 here in Maryland. We met in church, so it seems only fitting to get married there.

Yay!

I've got a whole end-of-the-year wrap up to do too, and the somewhat discontinued but still kept track of "100 Books Challenge." I managed to read 140 books last year, over 10 per month! Although, I did read A LOT of young adult books, which are usually pretty easy to read. But still, 140! That's a lot!