New York Engagement

A few years ago Missi and I found out that the famous Broadway show called the Phantom of the Opera was coming to the Benedum Center in downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Excitedly she requested that we attend. Without hesitation I agreed. As the Broadway show approached, I paid no attention and put off the purchase of the tickets. Ultimately I ran out of time and the Phantom vanished.

This past year I decided that it was time for Missi and me to take the next step in our relationship. Since we’ve been happily together for the past 5 years and we both love each other more than most can dream of, I proceeded to Missi’s uncle Roy (an excellent jeweler) to start the creation of her engagement ring. The ring was a custom fabrication and turned out unbelievably beautiful. It is the most beautiful piece of jewelry I have ever seen.

I wanted my proposal to be something Missi would remember for the rest of her life. For her 23rd birthday I bought her tickets to the Phantom of the Opera at the Majestic theatre in New York City. Along with the Phantom tickets I surprised her with JetBlue airline tickets to NYC. This was my first step towards asking her to be my wife.

On Friday September 29th, 2006 Missi and I traveled to New York City for what she thought would be a weekend of site seeing and a trip to the Phantom of the Opera. Little did she know that I would be asking her to marry me on Saturday. Most of Friday was spent at Time Square and Central Park. Early Saturday we visited the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty, Ground Zero, and various other places. We then returned to our hotel, the Millennium Broadway, to get ready for dinner. At 5:30 a Lincoln Town car picked us up and took us to a restaurant called the 21 club were I had reserved a table. In addition, I had called the restaurant ahead of time notifying them that I would be proposing. They excitedly agreed to assist with the proposal process. While being shown to our seats at the 21 club I slipped the ring to one of the waiters. After Missi and I ate our appetizer and entrée the waiter came over and asked if we were ready for desert. This was my cue. Within a few minute our Crème Brulee desert was served. On the top of Missi’s plate were the words Will You Marry Me written in chocolate. In the lower left hand corner sat the ring. Missi looked and then let out a scream. I believe it was OH MY GOD!!!! She then started crying as I got down on one knee and asked her to be my wife. She gladly accepted. After some pictures, claps and congratulations we proceeded outside to wait for our transportation to the Phantom. As Missi called every family member and friend she could think of, a white stretch limo pulled up to take us to our destination. We then had the pleasure of watching the Phantom of the Opera from the front row at the Majestic Theatre. (Another one of my surprises) Our night concluded with a romantic stroll back to hotel room, which was secretly filled with red rose petals.