On Friday night, December 19th,2008,
Kara Quackenbush said yes.
The evening started with an innocent dinner at a restaurant called "Bang". When our relationship began, our first date involved the attempt to dine at said restaurant, only to find it was closed that particular evening. So the second attempt was splendid. A fine little eatery, we began discussing our relationship and our favorite moments throughout. Then as we left we drove past "Lakeside", an amusement park near Denver that is more white trash and a health risk than amusing. At our first date, since Bang was closed, we ended up partaking in the amusement of Lakeside. It was a moment where Kara said, "There's no way you would take me to Lakeside on a first date." I believe my response was "Prove it." The night was a perfect way to "break the ice" and has since become a long-standing joke of our relationship. So obviously, there was no better place to propose than where it all began.
(Lakeside, circa 1908, which, ironically is the year Grandma Doris was born. More on that later.)
First, however, a little history. Kara and I have known of each other for several years now. Since moving here in 2005 I've run into Kara often as she would visit from Boston. I was always intrigued and, according to her mother, had "eyes" for Kara for quite some time. After her brother Kellen's graduation party, I got a green light from Kellen and her mom and we have since been personally funding JetBlue and their new Terminal in JFK.
And on another note, my mother informed me in October that I had two diamonds waiting for me in St. Louis - one from each of my grandmas. The news was quite humbling to say the least (Grandma Poshak was proposed to in 1940, and Grandma Morhart was proposed to in 1936, and was born in 1908 which makes the Lakeside photo interesting). My mother said, "You know, if you ever need them for some reason." Subtle. After Kara visited the family in St. Louis for Thanksgiving, Kara and I decided it was time to make a move. Kara, so innocently believed (I am really bad at surprises), that I had left the diamonds in St. Louis when I flew back to Denver, so she thought there was no possible way for me to propose before we received the rings at Christmas. But of course, that was never the plan.
Back to the story. We drove past Lakeside and I asked if we could pull in and laugh a bit about our first night. She still had no idea what was going on, which was fun. I then pulled out a jazz cd I had made her for Christmas and asked for a dance in the snow to the song "All the things you are" which was the first song we danced to at the Top of the Hub in downtown Boston.
As we danced, I told her about the lyrics of the song and some other nice thoughts about our relationship, including the phrase we've used since Day 1, "you're worth the risk." As I pulled out the ring, the ring she didn't believe I had, she said, "NO!" in a surprised voice of near shock. "Did you just say 'No?'" I asked, wearing a smirk. She laughed and said "yes" about 34 times in a row. We celebrated with a few pictures as we entered back into the warmth of the car.
I told her that her family knew and were all waiting for her at home. As we rounded the corner to her home, she noticed the nearly 20 cars lining her house, and as we entered the front door she noticed the nearly 40 people filling her living room, she knew this was far more than a "on a whim" decision. We celebrated late into the night with friends and family and neighbors.
All in all, it was a fantastic night that is one to remember.
We are planning on an early August wedding, one that is quickly approaching. The dream is to be married and then head off to Pasadena, CA so I can start school at Fuller Seminary in the fall.
Thanks to all your notes and well wishes. More information to come.
Mark and Kara
