Tales of Chocolate Shoes and a Giant Fiberglass Castle

Can I just say how much I love the internet to start off this entry? JP and I updated facebook last night after getting home from a momentous week at Disney World and it literally took 16 SECONDS (looking at you Jason Carfagno) for someone to realize that we had changed our relationship status and comment on it. I had 35 new emails when I check my gmail for the first time today 28 of which were from facebook! Also, I love how everyone commented on my profile and not JP's...long story short I feel a little like a rock star now and am VERY thankful for all the people out there who have apparently been rooting for us (I'll come back to this at the end I think). Ok, enough of my attention whoring and onto what you all are REALLY reading this for...the juicy details.

Let me start by saying that I really didn't expect this at all; to clarify this means I was surprised it happened in June at Disney...not that he proposed. When you've been with someone for almost five years its pretty much a given that you've had the "marriage talk" with your significant other. JP and I had discussed getting engaged and we agreed that sometime this year we would probably take this step. However, with him trying to find the shrouded beginning of his career path and me diving head first into the higher education game this year, I figured that we were looking at a Christmas or New Year's scenario here. It also helped that JP had flat out told me he considered popping the question at Disney, but couldn't afford to get the ring he wanted and just thought the timing was wrong. Additionally, the weeks leading up the trip were peppered with him showing me numerous diamonds online that he wasn't able to get and fake-proposing in the "wizard voice" (see future blog entry to come). I will admit that I secretly had been dreaming of him asking me to marry him while in Disney, because in our minds (even if some of you don't share this sentiment) the Walt Disney World resort is one place in the world where we feel magic is still a real and tangible entity. Perhaps I should have been more suspicious when JP made reservations at one of the most sought after restaurants on property, Cinderella's Royal Table (the restaurant thats inside Cinderella Castle), but he had me convinced it was simply a very special birthday present since I always beg and beg him to make reservations there.

Though visions of fireworks and Mickey Mouse ring boxes danced in the back of my mind, I mentally prepared myself for the reality that it wouldn't happen on this vacation. We got down there, had an excellent time with Joe Quintas on Monday, almost died from the ridiculous heat and humidity on Tuesday and generally had a fun vacation. Wednesday we had a great time running to Splash Mountain in the morning, having lunch at the Rain Forest Cafe with JP's cousins, Katie and Colleen, and brother Bryce, and then relaxing at the hotel for the afternoon. FINALLY, it was time to go to dinner, which would have been amazing regardless of how it ended. The restaurant, for anyone who's never been there, is phenomenal inside. Even though there is not one single real brick in the whole place (see title) you really do feel like you're in a real castle when you walk inside. Cinderella greets you in the foyer and allows you to take a photo with her while you wait for your table to be ready. As a huge Disney geek, I was totally overwhelmed by every detail from the small statues of Jaques and Gus Gus up near the ceiling, to the coats of arms decorating the rooms, to the stained glass blue birds in the windows. This will be illustrated once I get the BILLIONS of pictures I took up on facebook.

From the lobby we were escorted up a spiral staircase to the main dining room where we were pleasantly surprised to find that we had the BEST table in the house. It was a quaint little two person job right next to the window that looks out onto Fantasyland and the beautiful Cinderella Carousel. Apparently, even JP was unaware that we'd have seats that were this good. He was also unaware that the food (while slightly overpriced...you definitely pay for atmosphere here) was actually VERY tasty. We had BLT salads, lamb chops and prime rib...it would have been nice (and probably helpful for JP's nerves) to have a nice glass of red wine with dinner, but alas there is a strict no-alcohol policy in the Magic Kingdom. Oh well...I was so busy snapping even more pictures of chandeliers, menus, carpeting and other ridiculous things I didn't even notice JP leaving to "go to the bathroom" for 10 minutes or looking particularly sweaty during dinner and pictures with Snow White, Princess Aurora, Ariel, and Belle.

Finally, it was time for dessert and I was actually feeling a little sad that the meal was about to end. I was looking out the window watching some little girl in a princess dress attempt to pull a sword out of the stone in front of the carousel, when our waiter, Ken, put down a plate with one of those dome covers on it and said "we thought maybe you'd like this for dessert instead." In typical Jill fashion, I was kind of like ummmm WHERE THE HELL IS MY CHOCOLATE MOUSSE KEN???????? in my head, but then they whipped the cover off and there was this glass slipper with rose petals and a ring inside and then JP was holding my hand and omg then he was down on one knee and people were looking and at some point I started crying and then he made a lovely speech about friendship and love and loyalty and how he couldn't give me a life of luxury because I'd always be more gainfully employed than him (no those weren't his exact words) and suddenly he was done and was all "so will you marry me?" and I said...

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!##@@!*%&$^^#!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!::":":"::":@*!#*#*&@@#$!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

and then I gave him my right hand to put the ring on...and he put it on and I was like oh no wait thats wrong! and we put it on the correct hand and the ring fit and it was ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS! It was around this point when I realized that people were clapping and a Disney photographer had been *gasp* taking pictures of all this madness. Unfortunately, I was so surprised that I look rather angry and confused in most of them...what would my life be without awkward pictures though?? They gave us two champagne glasses with sparkling cider and these amazing looking desserts consisting of a white chocolate glass slipper filled with chocolate mousse on top of a fluffy pastry, surrounded by a berry explosion on a plate that had Happily Ever After written in chocolate on the rim. JP then started taking pictures with my camera and we quickly covered up the large chunk of pastry that I'd eaten with berries so we'd have a nice picture of the dessert. Ken then comes back and is like soooo here's the desserts you ordered earlier for show in order to not give away the surprise!!! We clearly switched desserts then and had the chocolate shoes boxed up to eat later. Princess Aurora came back to congratulate us again, the restaurant gave us a goodie bag of souvenirs including clean champagne glasses, the crystal shoe (which was engraved with Friendship, Loyalty & Love on one side and our names on the other with the date on the bottom) and the all important Just Engaged buttons. In a daze we left the restaurant and went to the old Swan Boat dock in the rose garden to call our parents and enjoy the spectacular fireworks. Allow me a minute to be cheesy here...it was all pure magic and I despite all the sarcasm and jokes at his expense in this blog, I love JP so much and can't wait to be his wife. The fact that he'd go to all this trouble to create the absolute perfect moment for us just reinforces that I've made the right decision.

While a Disney proposal in Cinderella castle isn't for everyone, for two Disney addicts like JP and I, it was totally perfect...especially since we had a couple of other magical moments during our vacation that were a direct result of having gotten engaged in the midst of it. Later that night while watching the Main Street Electrical Parade, Mickey Mouse saw us sitting on Main Street from his float, waved, pointed to his hand where a ring would be, gave JP a thumbs up, and waved again!! Later in the week a cast member working the parade in the Animal Kingdom saw us looking hot and tired and invited us to sit on one of the floats with Rafiki during the afternoon parade...which was AMAZING also! I can't even tell you how many times we were stopped, congratulated and given advice that basically equated to "Happy Wife, Happy Life" by the various other Cast Members in the parks. It was the experience of a lifetime, and something that will stay with JP and I forever. I want to throw out a thank you first off to Joe's mom, the lovely Terri Quintas, who helped JP book most of this and put it together, to our parents siblings and a number of our close friends who knew this was happening beforehand and kept the secret, Chris DeMaio who was the first to suggest we get married about six years ago and www.allears.net, (possibly the greatest Disney planning website in existence) which also helped JP put our evening together.

Just in case anyone was wondering, there are absolutely NO immediate plans right now for setting a date, location, colors or any other wedding details (a big "Thank God" for some of you and "Oh Damn!" for others). While he couldn't have gotten another moment like this for quite some time, JP and I are focusing on getting jobs and graduate school applications respectively before diving into wedding plans. Also...JP has never met most of my extended family!! We are totally going to be that couple who are engaged for a few years, while we plan and save for a wedding thats as perfect as the proposal was (not to mention building a base a the whole marriage thing after that for the rest of our lives)...SO DEAL WITH THE SUSPENSE! ;-) In all seriousness, all the phone calls, text messages, facebook posts and everything else are SO GREATLY appreciated and valued. Our friends and family mean the world to us and we can't wait to celebrate with you all.

Pictures will be up soon I PROMISE!!!!!!! Thanks for all the love and support,

Love,

Jill and JP