Surprise!

So I was worried about making this weekend as awesome as possible. I had planned and schemed and plotted to surprise and delight Boyfriend for his 30th birthday weekend.

I had no idea.

Friday I got off work early, unbeknownst to Boyfriend. Came home and did a bunch of chores, taking recycling to the recycling center and taking out the trash, cleaning the cat box and mouse cage and fish bowl, vacuuming and doing several loads of laundry. I washed dishes and put them away, scrubbed counters, and proceeded to pack us both plenty of clothes and toiletries for the trip. With our bag of personal stuff packed, I dragged out the tent and sleeping bags, started packing supplies and foods into bags and coolers, and stacking them near the door so when we all arrived, we could grab everything and go. I finished in just a couple hours, and quickly prettied up for the next event.

I showed up at his office at 3:15. His boss and co-workers had already decorated the main meeting room and laid out a spread of fiesta foods and drinks. He had no idea I'd be there. At 3:30, he and another coworker with a birthday right next to his walked in, and a great big surprise party ensued, complete with beers and nachos. Much fun was had... and the weekend was only beginning.

I still had no idea.

I returned home to await the arrival of two friends from up north, and soon the arrival of Boyfriend as well. We nabbed some last-minute supplies, such as firewood, and wound our way up the swiftly-darkening slopes of Mount Laguna. We pitched the tents in the last vestiges of twilight, the guys built a fire, and I dragged out the food. We chatted and cooked hot dogs and made s'mores, while our astronomically-inclined friend showed us incredible sights through her telescope: the Orion Nebula, the Pleiades, Mars. The night turned cold as we went to bed, and kept getting colder, chasing us to our cars to sleep through the night, turning on our heaters to thaw our frozen feet. We woke to a beautiful clear day, and more friends joined us for breakfast, which was eggs and bacon over the campfire.

We chatted and talked about random things, and I laid out my next surprise: a card signed by all the friends present, and a birthday gift: a small piece of the Berlin Wall. I was riding high on the thought that I had managed to monopolize the surprises for the weekend, with one still planned in the form of a birthday cake to be had later.

But still, I had no idea.

Boyfriend then suggested we head to his "spot" on the mountain, a beautiful scenic place where the mountain descends rapidly into a canyon that drops immediately into the flat white expanse of the desert beyond. I have shared this place with him before and loved it every time. It's a gorgeous place, where the earth reaches up to kiss the sky and the hot fire from the desert is met by the damp mountain biome. It is a sacred place. "Bring your cameras," he said, and I brought mine too. I agreed whole heartedly: it was definitely worth taking pictures of. Little did I know.

We reached our destination and piled out of the cars, and immediately I set to tracking. I found evidence of deer and rabbit, but most exciting I found mountain lion tracks. I followed them, pointing them out, pleased with myself for knowing what to look for and feeling all smart-like. We ventured down the hill a ways where the view got extra wide, and wandered around, folks taking pictures of everything. I wandered away a bit to sit with the mountain for a time. Boyfriend came up and kept me company, then suggested we move away from the cliff. I followed him over to another spot, and he held my hand tightly, asking if I knew he loved me.

We do this every now and then. I suspected nothing. Except for the fact that he was shaking like a leaf and his voice was trembling. I hugged him and asked if he was okay. He said, "Yeah, I'm okay," but I wasn't exactly convinced. I asked him was was wrong, and he said he was nervous. His heart was racing like he'd just run up ten flights of stairs. He said, "well, I'm nervous."

Nervous? Why?

"Because I want you to say yes," and he pulled out a gorgeous star-sapphire ring.

...

It gets a little blurry after that. I was too excited to think straight. I said "Of course!" and gave him a big hug, and he placed the ring on my finger. (Apparently he was worried he hadn't got the size right, but it was perfect.) The whole world sort of faded out for a bit. We hugged and kissed for a long time. Then at some point I became vaguely aware of the clickety click click clicky click of cameras going off like a press conference. I suddenly felt self-conscious and started laughing. And with that, the conspiracy broke, and everyone congratulated us.

I was apparently the last to know this was coming.

I am now engaged. Boyfriend is now Fiancé.

Later in the car, he explained that no, he hadn't in fact been calling my dad last week to talk about health insurance. He'd called to ask my dad for my hand. And he'd planned a flowery speech for me... but it all went right out the window. It wasn't anything like either of us had planned, but it was perfect just the way it happened. He said jokingly, "You know, you haven't actually said 'yes'." Well, I said, he hadn't exactly asked me the question, either.

So he asked me, now no longer nervous, and I said yes, perfectly prepared.

Surprise!