HOW WE MET

Taylor Says:

Tom and I were both part of the same engineering department at Lehigh University. Tom was pursuing a degree in Information Systems Engineering while I was studying to be an Industrial Engineer. Though the two degrees required many different courses, they also shared several in common. I had always thought Tom was a handsome guy during class (at least the back of his head was, since he always sat in the front row, while I sat texting in the back). It didn't hurt that he would wear his Lehigh Football attire, either. Regardless, one day I used my famous flirting technique.. Pretending to fail a test, even though I knew I did fine. I saw Tom after class and went up to him, pretending to be slightly panicked, saying how hard the test was. He tried to assure me that I did fine (I did end up getting a higher score than him), which definitely broke the ice. Tom still claims he had "sneaky game" and that it was all part of his plan...Regardless who made the first move, it was definitely part of someone's plan for us, and we've been together ever since.

Tom Says:

At first she was just a voice behind me in class - a really loud voice.  A voice that answered a lot of questions correctly and was always laughing or making a joke.  I never looked behind me because I did not want too seem obvious.  When we first spoke she told me how poorly she thought that she did on a test that we had just finished.  I didn't buy it for a second and rightfully so.  This broke the ice and when I happened to run into her at one of Lehigh's bars, we definitely hit it off.  I was immediately struck by her energy, wit, smile and of course her bright blue eyes.  As it turned out, we had a lot in common: our majors, playing sports, mutual friends, etc.  It was so nice to meet someone who shared my values and felt like a partner as we pushed through dozens of tests, practices, games and projects.  We could talk for hours on end and not be bored.  I never had to worry about running out of things to say because she always seemed to have enough.  From the early days until now there has been a level of comfort that I never thought that I could find with another person and I am thankful every day that I found her!

THE PROPOSAL

Tom Says:

It took me a while to find the inspiration of how to ask her.  At first elaborate schemes crossed my mind ranging from doves and butterflies to a flashmob.  Then it hit me - it had to happen at the beach.  For Taylor, most things start and end at the beach and I thought that it would be the perfect place to start the next part of our lives together.  My family already had a post-Labor Day trip to the Jersey Shore planned.  A chance for us all to relax at a low-key beach house after a busy year.  The town happened to be very close to where Taylor grew up and her family still lived, so I knew that this was my best opportunity.  After a brainstorming session with my wonderfully creative mother, I settled on a plan to hide a "message in a bottle" on the beach with a nice note and go down on one knee as she was reading it.  Predictably, Taylor was extremely difficult to guide through the process.  From convincing her to get ready on time, to having her nails and hair done, she fought me all of the way, not realizing what was next.  When I finally convinced her to go for a walk on the beach with me before dinner and we walked by the bottle that I had placed, Taylor assumed that it was "somebody else's surprise" and yelled at me for walking over to pick it up.  As she read the note she began to cry (tears of joy I hope!).  I ended the note with "look up", believing that she would look up from the note to see me on one knee with a ring.  However, she looked up to the sky instead until I loudly cleared my throat and caught her attention. 

As we walked back towards our beach house Taylor asked me if I had told her parents.  I convinced her that it would be best to wait until the end of the night.  What she didn't know was that I invited her Mother, Brother and Father down to share in the excitement with us.  When we arrived back at the house they all surprised Taylor and my sister held up my one year old nephew wearing a shirt that said "Did you say yes Aunt Taylor?"  Needless to say she was extremely surprised and happy.

Taylor Says:

You'd think between: beach, nail appointment, the fake planned fancy dinner, I should have had alarms going off in my head screaming "PROPOSAL," but nevertheless, I was completely surprised. Tom asked me if I wanted to go for a walk on the boards before dinner. I thought it was a nice idea, but was really annoyed he wanted me to get dressed up nicely prior to walking..I was thinking more gym clothes attire. Tom's sister, Amanda, convinced me that I wouldn't have enough time to get ready for dinner after our walk and I should just listen to Tom. After some whining, they finally got me out of the house, dressed in a pink dress (Tom had planned to match me in his pink polo), and walking down the boardwalk. Tom's next hurdle, was convincing me message in a bottle he planted was actually for me and that we should open it. It didn't click until I started reading the note what was going on. And then.. the tears came. Lots of them. I was so overwhelmed with joy I couldn't even get a word out. At the end of the note, the quote above was written and then "look up!" In my confusion I looked to the sky first and didn't even realize Tom was on one knee.. Cue: more tears. He had to prompt me for an answer since I was still sobbing and couldn't form words. It's a good thing "YES" is a three letter word, otherwise I would have had more trouble accepting the proposal through my tears.

I kept asking if my Mom and Dad knew, and Tom convinced me we should surprise them the following day when we had a Randazza-Foxworth BBQ planned. Again: alarms should have gone off in my head, because I knew Tom would never propose without asking the Spence's permission. As we walked back into the beach house, both of our families were there to wish us congratulations, including our nephew Connor (see picture below). I love you, Tom. I can't wait to call you my husband.