OUR ENGAGEMENT

LANDON’S POV

As the (future) husband, my story starts a bit earlier than the time we were in Italy. It was much more of an emotional roller coaster, but in the end, it was all more than worth it.

So there I am one night in bed a few years prior to the proposal, scrolling on Instagram, naturally, and for "some" reason I found myself on the jewelry side of Instagram. From which, I stumbled across a particular page that I became really interested in. I knew it was what I wanted for Kylie but how did I go about getting the specifics of what she wanted without giving away what it was for? Well, as I'm sure for most couples, deep down they have to know something is coming, right?

Some time goes on, I show Kylie some pictures of rings here and there to get a true feel for what it is she wants. All her jewelry is rose gold so that part gave me a nice head start. I eventually got the specifics narrowed down and I finally thought I had it all figured out. So I'm talking to my friend who had been married for some time, and I'm getting all excited explaining to him - "Man I'm about to propose, I couldn't be more excited." and as we start going back and forth about it more he asks if I know what size ring she is? *Jaw hits the floor* I did not even think about that, did not even realize it was a thing. So I ordered a keychain with the different ring sizes on it and I had Kylie try them on so I could confirm what size her finger actually is. I was literally praying that I wasn't being too obvious or giving something away at this point!

With all the specs of the ring now set in place, it was time to meet my jeweler and begin the process. Meeting with Nuno could not have gone smoother and he could not have been better to work with. He probed my mind, truly got to know who Kylie and I were and what I was looking for. He assured me we were in good hands and the build was set in motion. A few months go by and I get an email notification saying the ring is ready to be shipped and in that moment, the reality of everything began to truly set in. I'm about to spend the rest of my life with the person I love the most. I wouldn't say nervous was the right word for the situation, it was much more positive than that. It was exciting, but something I knew that couldn't be rushed.

So I was watching the tracking of this ring like a hawk as it departed from Canada. If it moved, I wanted to know about it. The shipping process started off normal but then it hit a snag. What good story doesn't have one of those? At the border, it had to be processed as an imported good and required extra documentation in order to be cleared. I got this notice and begin frantically trying to get the documents signed so that the package wouldn't get shipped back, lost in the either of shipping land, etc… Eventually got that figured out and we were clear for the US. Back to tracking its movement.

The day comes when it was supposed to arrive and I'm eagerly waiting at the window. I see the FedEx truck role in and my heart starts frantically beating, it's here! It's here! So I wait and I wait - eager to sign for it and also playing it cool because Kylie is unknowingly sitting at her desk right behind me. The FedEx truck proceeds to leave my complex and I felt it in my bones that something was not right. So I instantly take off after the truck on foot. FedEx trucks are faster than I expected, so I had to come back and hop in my Jeep to start the chase. It was on like something out of a low budget action movie. I drove all through the neighborhood and finally found the truck parked inside a docking zone at the local university. I was not a 100% sure this was the right truck but I walked on and asked the driver anyway if he had a package meant for our address. He said yes but the apartment number wasn't matching, it had been labeled one digit off – a typo somewhere in the chain, of course. But alas! I finally had it in my possession and a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. Now I had to sneak this thing past Kylie…

Now, before getting too carried with the more romantic part of the story, there is one thing that had to be done before I felt comfortable proceeding. The love I have found and share with Kylie is truly amazing and something I could never take for granted. The only person in this world for me… is Kylie. With that being said, it was still so important that I asked Scott, her father, for permission to take his daughter's hand in marriage and it had to be face to face. So we planned a trip to go back to Colorado to visit family and the whole time in the back of my head I knew what I was going to do, just needed the right opportunity. It was a Friday and Kylie was in a meeting upstairs while we were staying at her parent's place. Ironically, Scott had taken me downstairs to his man cave to show me around and share some stories. It couldn't have been a more natural place to have a moment like this with her father and hear his perspective. Needless to say, I was still sweating bullets through the whole thing, but Scott said yes and what a feeling it was. It truly meant a lot to have that moment, it's one of those memories that will always stick with me and I'll always fondly look back on.

With the ring in place and Scott's permission, it was time to plan the big moment. Kylie and I always plan an annual trip and I was thinking this would be the perfect disguise. We had always talked about visiting Italy and Kylie told me how much she dreamed of visiting Positano as a little girl. So one summer day we just pulled the trigger on some flights to Italy out of Newark. This was one of the only airports that was allowing access to Rome because of the COVID protocols in place at the time (that’s a whole other story). But with these flights set in place, we began putting the rest of the pieces together. Flights to Newark, a few nights in Rome to begin, a wine tour in Florence, topped off with a never-long-enough stay on the cliffs of Positano.

I was so nervous that something was going to happen on the way that I started having sleeping issues from worrying so much. Was I going to lose it during transit? Was it going to clear customs in my carry on? Was it going to get stolen out of the room? Luckily none of these things happened and the day finally came in Positano – Friday, Sept. 3, 2021 – to ask the love of my life if she would spend the rest of her life with me. Waking up that morning, I felt a feeling I can't quite describe. It filled me up with so much joy but I had to hold it back, just for a little bit longer. It was the perfect day, the weather was gorgeous, Kylie, as always, was gorgeous. I remember we were getting ready for our "photoshoot," playing Drake's newest album that just dropped, playfully dancing as we always do. I thought to myself this is what it is about, sharing these little intimate periods, the little things we always talk about. It could not have felt more right leading up to what was about to unfold.

I told Kylie I had booked a photographer for us while we were out there since in our 9 years together we had never had professional photos done. Kylie is typically the one behind the lens and this felt like the perfect way to not raise any suspicions. Our photographer, Mary, and I had discussed my plans beforehand so she knew what was happening and she played into it so perfectly. Kylie was so excited and even more beautiful in that purple dress, flowing in the wind so gently. I remember holding her hand walking through what felt like the silent curving streets of Positano, yet it was as crowded as ever. Mary guided us down with some easy going conversation when we ended up on the beach. She instructed us that this was the first picture, meaning this was it. She started lining everything up and so did I. I knelt down on one knee and the whole world paused, "Kylie, will you marry me?" "Yes!!" she screamed "Will you marry me?!" A question that can only be answered by a kiss while Mary captured the rest of our newly engaged moments.

For the remainder of the trip Kylie and I stayed low key with our announcement, only telling select family and friends and living in the moment for as long as we could, watching the sunrise and sunsets pass as we would do every morning and night for the rest of our lives. I find true beauty in being able to share that with the person that holds the dearest place in my heart, the one that I love more than anything in this Universe. Somebody to build a family with, somebody to grow old with, somebody to achieve forever with, in this lifetime and the next. Kylie Scott Degnan, I love you so much boo.

KYLIE’S POV

So we are on the most amazing trip in Italy, right?

And I should start by saying – we try to take trips over Labor Day weekend every year for a few reasons: it typically falls around Landon’s birthday and we also get a built in long weekend. Win win! So I was just thinking we were doing one of these same trips we do every year! And naturally, me being me, I am anal about having everything planned nearly down to the minute, so I definitely made it hard for Lando to surprise me with anything.

Anyway! We had finished our first leg of our trip up in Rome & Tuscany, which was even more amazing than we imagined. But the Amalfi Coast (and Positano specifically) is somewhere that has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember, so this was the part of the trip I was most looking forward to (no secret to Landon). We had no plans once we got down to Positano aside from dinner reservations – we had done so many tours and sightseeing days in the first half of our trip that Positano was where we planned to just relax and enjoy the leisurely lifestyle.

Landon told me he planned a photoshoot for us while we were there because we had never had professional pictures taken and he knew it was my favorite place :) I don’t know why I wasn’t suspicious of this, but I just wasn’t. I really am always the one taking pictures and it felt like a really fun and thoughtful thing to do! So I knew that the shoot was coming, was able to plan a cute outfit, and didn’t think twice when he looked SO GOOD before we headed out to meet the photographer.

We had a few drinks before heading out, went and met the photographer Mary, and walked through the town to our first shooting location. At this point I guess the photographer and Lando had a little cue for when the shot was right and we were in the right spot🥺 This is when he got down on his knee and asked me to be his wife!

I. Was. Shook. I was so surprised and taken aback that I literally froze! Maria told us afterwards that people were cheering and clapping for us, but I didn’t hear any of that – I was totally engulfed in the moment. It was so special and absolutely perfect.

Since the first picture she took was the proposal, we then got to have an entire engagement photoshoot with her for the next hour and a half. This was so, so special to me because we were totally in the moment and I think it shows in the pictures. We were both elated and he was finally relieved that he didn’t have to carry this heavy secret anymore!

We then got to share our next few days in Positano wrapping up our trip and enjoying our engagement just the two of us. We told our families and closest friends of course but did not share publicly until we got our photos back the next week. I have to say – this was such a great way to spend our first week being engaged. We really got to celebrate us without having our phones blowing up or feeling we had to update everyone on the details. Not that that is a bad thing - we have LOVED sharing the story and details with everyone, but it was nice to have a bit of calm before the storm if that makes sense :) Once it’s out, it’s out. So it was really nice to keep it quiet for a little bit.