Libby and I have some news to share with our reading public. Some ... exciting ... news. Buckle your seatbelts!

This weekend, we took a little trip to Mammoth. Why? To see birds. Or at least, that's what Libby thought!

I like birds.

She likes birds. But that's not really the whole reason why we were going to Mammoth. The whole reason we were going to Mammoth included Love and Big Commitment. My plan had been to go to Mammoth to propose for quite some time, and this was the one open weekend at the cabin in July (the only month that I could get away from work this summer). So, I loaded up the car, and off we sped up highway 395.

I suspected at first that there might be another reason. A bigger reason. A better reason. But, Jonathan cleverly put me off the track (example: the night before we left he told me, "Man, I haven't even started getting ready for this trip yet!"). So, then I decided I must have been wrong to suspect. And I didn't want to expect and then be disappointed, so I put it out of my mind.

I really appreciate that she put it out of her mind. It made my job that much easier! Another clever thing (I thought) was to not wear my Torrey ring, but, to bring it with me in its box. That way I could carry around a ring box without arising suspicion. In casual conversation, I pointed out that I wasn't wearing my Torrey ring, but that it was in my backpack, and, to keep it safe, I had put it in its box. But, that night, I took the Torrey ring out of its box and put it on my finger, nesting in its place a shiny diamond ring intended for my sweetheart!

The next morning, we went for a little hike, and then drove around the Eastern Sierra looking at cool birds. Jonathan suggested stopping for lunch at an Aspen grove that we were planning on re-visiting anyway. We found it last summer when we went up there. It's a small grove in the middle of this sage field. It's like, where'd these tall, pretty trees come from? Like stepping into a fairy world. We had even seen a deer walking around in there. So it was a special memory place that we wanted to come back to. (During that first trip to the Aspen grove, I even thought, "this would be a great place to get engaged." So, that contributed to my initial suspicion.)

However, when we arrived at the grove, another car was parked there. I considered stopping anyway, and waiting for them to clear out, but I figured that might get awkward. It's a pretty small place, and it has a private feeling to it, so they probably wouldn't have appreciated our presence anyway (and it's a good thing we didn't stay then, 'cause I needed to go to the bathroom.) So, I decided to wait a little longer (that was pretty tough) and go on to Mono Lake for lunch, which is only a little further north on 395 from the Aspen Grove. We ate lunch near the shore, and then we decided to go birding at the County Park on the north end of the lake (fortunately, there was a bathroom there). That was pretty cool; there were a lot of neat birds that we saw there, including a Say's Phoebe (This one isn't necessarily all that spectacular, but it is a sort of joke between us. Anytime we see a brown bird, Jonathan says, "Maybe it's a Say's Phoebe!" and it never is. But this time, it really was.) and a Yellow-headed Blackbird! Then, we loaded back into the car and made our way back to the grove.

When we got to the grove, I wanted to take some pictures of it on my digital camera because last summer I didn't get any. My camera, however, was being difficult. After fiddling with the batteries a bit, I got a few pictures of the trees and one of us. (Afterwards, though, my camera totally broke so I don't have any of these.) (I was thinking, "stinking camera." I had more pressing matters occupying my thoughts.) I had no problem messing with the camera. I figured, "we're just here to hang out anyway, right?" Anyway, after getting those pictures that are now lost forever, we sat down and Jonathan read to me the newest chapter of a fairy-tale-like story he's been writing for me. This chapter was about some woods that he based on the Aspen grove. I thought this was very nice. And I thought that was it. But there was more to come.

There was more to come, but I wasn't sure how to get to it. I was pretty nervous by this point, and though I was able to keep my hand pretty steady while reading the story to her, I wasn't at all certain how to transition from the story to the ring. And I have to admit, by this point I was pretty befuddled. Finally, after finishing the story and pausing a little while, I said, "There's one more thing." And I reached into my backpack for my Torrey ring box.

His Torrey ring box. This was somewhat confusing for me. At first, I thought maybe he was playing some kind of joke (which I didn't find funny at all). When he got down on one knee I even said, "What are you doing?" But he didn't let it phase him.

I had this whole plan with the box that I just couldn't pull off. I had meant to throw it to her casually, and then cleverly persuade her to open it, all unsuspecting, to find the ring. But, as I said above, I was befuddled, and I decided the best course of action was the direct one. So, as I struggled to get the ring box out of the cardboard box, I got down on one knee and said something like, "Libby Moothart, I love you with all of my heart, and you're the love of my life. Will you [please] marry me?" (Afterwards, neither one of us could remember if he said please, but he intended to. That's nice. It's polite.) Her face expressed alarm, then happy surprise, and she fell into my arms. Which, I figured, was good.

I was so excited that I forgot to say "yes" for a while. But then I remembered.

She also forgot that I had to put the ring on her finger. I had to remind her about that. So, I took her left hand in mine, and we removed her purity ring, replacing it with a brand new diamond ring, sealing a great and special commitment. A commitment signifying and cementing a bond that's been developing between us since August 15, 2001, when we first met at Torrey Orientation at Biola. I'm looking forward to a long and happy future. :-)

Yeah. So now, we are engaged. To be married (to each other). As opposed to, say, being engaged in battle. Or engaged in criminal activity. We drove into town to get a calling card and some itch cream (there were lots of mosquitoes in the Aspen grove) and then back to the cabin to share our news with Jonathan's grandparents. (To whom Libby and I are very grateful for allowing us to visit the cabin! Thank you!) His grandpa now refers to the Aspen grove as "the loooove vortex."

Soon (November) this blog will be another Rowley Family Blog. So, stay tuned!