San Diego highlights...

Hi readers:) I was just in California for a conference, so I apologize for the lack of posting if you care. 

Also... I got engaged!

(which just about everyone who reads this blog already knows, but hey, whatever)

I promise to take good ring pictures to post, but I haven't yet and the cell phone photo I have is very blurry. 

this would be when we first started dating, 2 years ago, but it's one of my favorites.

But the story is: We were in San Diego (specifically La Jolla, which Chris kept pronouncing like it's spelled, which makes me laugh hysterically. ANYWAY) walking around after we had some very late breakfast at whisknladle which was amazing, and you should check out if you are in that area. We went and bought cupcakes at cups because I read in the free magazine in our room that they always had a gluten free option (carrot cake...yum), and then we just kept walking. I had said that I wanted to get some type of jewelry souvenir, because I love wearing jewelry from awesome trips I've taken, so we were ducking into stores that might have cute stuff. (AJ- we almost bought Tay a whole kids cooking set, but resisted. And Cheryl - there were also some child sized fire hoses that we almost purchased for your future children, but stopped ourselves.) 

We walked by an estate jewelry store and I stopped to look in the windows, and they had some really pretty wedding sets (I've always wanted a vintage/estate ring), and Chris said we should go in and I could try some on. Note, we had talked about getting engaged in the next year or less, but that's pretty much it. So I was thinking "OK, he can get an idea of what I want/what would look good on my very skinny hands" and we went in. I tried on a few rings and initially I really liked one that was on the expensive side, and Chris was talking to the shop owner about financing, etc. But I looked in another case in the middle and found a ring that looked EXACTLY like all the rings I had seen online and loved, so I tried that on, and I love it. Chris asked me if it was the ring I wanted, if I was sure, and then said "well then I'm buying it." Which in itself was surreal. So while the guy is ringing it up, Chris looks at me and says "So does this mean we're engaged?" We determined that it did, in fact, mean that very thing. 

After some congratulations from the guy in the shop we walked down to the sea wall and watched for seals, then sat on a bench and called our parents. Well, we called Chris's parents, since my mom was nowhere to be found. Couldn't get Anna either. Or my sister. Obnoxious!!! After a bit (and a couple of calls), we went to a movie (Dinner for Schmucks if you were wondering) and then we bought champagne at Target and had some in our hotel room while we packed and watched True Blood. overall, awesome. 

 Wedding will be in 2012, roughly a year after I graduate, and it will be here in the Boston area. That's all we know :)

Other highlights from California:

• Sea World! went right when we landed. and speaking of almost buying gifts, I almost bought Parker the entire gift shop. Katie, be thankful I didn't. It would take up your entire apartment.
• San Diego Zoo, and Belle and Rico came down from LA to hang out, which was amazing.
• In-N-Out/smoothies to be found everywhere. The #1 thing I miss from Arizona is smoothies.
• oh, and I did attend that conference for a bit...

***update - ring pictures!!! see below.***