Going to the chapel

On Sunday night I went out to dinner with TK and his family, as well as his twin's gf's family. I am an English professor and I don't know what to do when there are two possessions in play. Ladies?

Anyhow, there were 14 of us at a Brazilian steakhouse. It's one of those restaurants where they bring meat around on skewers and put some on your plate. They had 14 different kinds of meat, plus a hot and cold bar. My apologies to the vegetarian readers, for which I have most likely described a version of your hell, but the food was tasty. I even tried alligator. It was fine, but it was very salty. I'm getting distracted from my point.

My point: TK's twin proposed to his gf at the dinner, in front of everyone. She cried. I scrambled with the camera. She said yes. It was the first time I've ever been present for someone's engagement. Only the two moms knew that it was going to happen. They've been dating for 8 months, and every time I mention that to someone expecting disapproving reactions, I hear a new story about people who had known each other for two weeks, two months, etc, and how they've been married for 30 years, 45 years. CK keeps telling me that another couple's time line can't predict your own...but how do we ever know it's right for ourselves if everyone is different?

Marriage and weddings and rings (oh my!) have been on my mind for a bit now. A few posts ago, I assured you, my readers, my friends, not to worry, because I "wasn't imagining a wedding and the like." In nearly two months' time, the tables have turned. TK and I do talk about it. We've even talked details. Time line, location, honeymoon ideas, etc. I've never done the marriage talk with anyone. A few times the lawyer mentioned that he saw marriage in our future, but back then, we didn't talk about it specifically. I imagined it for a few minutes here or there, but it wasn't something I got caught up in. As I talked with Sunshine today, she told me I had "the fever."

I love romantic comedies like it's my job, but I've never really been one of those girls who has been planning or dreaming about her wedding since childhood. I don't have colors, I don't have a date in mind, or a dress sketch, or any of that. But slowly I feel myself making plans. I've even been to adiamondisforever.com and started designing rings. It's hard for me to admit this, since I know some of you are going to give me flak for it, but there it is.

A few minutes after TK's twin proposed, their mother looked at me, threw her arms in the air and exclaimed, "Next!" I told her that it has only been 3 months, and that there was still plenty of time. Later on in the evening, she came over behind me and TK, put her arms around us, and whispered, "Time doesn't matter."

I shooed her off, telling her it would take time for TK to save up for a ring, which is true. But I knew just that afternoon TK had asked me where I'd like to go on a honeymoon. And that evening as we drove home from dinner, he said he might start saving this summer.

I'm not sure how we got here this quickly, but maybe that's something I need to stop worrying about. I've never been someone who takes a lot of risks. I think through things until I've exhausted myself and my friends (though I'm sure that's clear by now), but I think I need to learn how to go with the proverbial flow a little more.

I just need to figure out how to do that.