She Said Yes!

I think it is safe to say, that this is the most highly anticipated post in the history of Pete Chat. This past weekend was beyond epic. I'll put a few pictures of firsts for Shannon and I in for your enjoyment.

Our first picture together

This story really begins after the BYU vs. Pepperdine game that my family and I attended. We went out to dinner afterward and I told my sisters that Shannon and I were going to go ring shopping when I went to Virgina the next weekend. They were very excited about this, because up to that point, I had kept it pretty close to the vest. Jennifer suggested that I propose when Shannon came out to California for Savannah's Baptism in March. I nodded but didn't really say anything else. As we walked out of the restaurant both my sisters gave me a hug and told me how proud they were of me. It felt good to let the world know that I was serious about this.

First Outdoor Pic

The next week I went out to Virginia to see Shannon and go to Kat and Seth's wedding. I think there were some expectations that I might propose on that trip. They only expectations I had were to look at rings.

As I have mentioned before, long distance has not been easy, and it became more difficult when I told Shannon that there was a chance I would be going to Israel for the summer. Shannon and I were visiting her family  in Richmond and went to do a little shopping. We stopped at a jewelry store and Shannon tried a few rings on. I don't think she was convinced that I was totally serious about it. I told her not only was I serious, but I already had a diamond. Most importantly I found out that her ring size was 6 3/4. Later that night Shannon's dad sat me down to have a talk. He wanted to know what was going on with us. I told him that I loved Shannon and but I just wasn't ready yet. That was true, but what I didn't tell him was that I would be ready in about six weeks. As Shannon dropped me off at the airport I told her that we would go ring shopping again the next time we were together. She told me, "No no no, take your sisters. You know my taste." So with that mandate I went back to CA.

Our First Valentine's Day

The next few weeks were not easy for us. Because I wanted to keep the proposal a surprise I could not let Shannon know that I was seriously shopping. I would float red herrings about going to Utah to ring shop and then not go. When I didn't go and didn't have a good reason why I didn't, she wasn't so pleased with me. Anytime she talked about weddings, rings, engagements, I acted totally disinterested. This strategy was brilliant for keeping her off the trail, but didn't make things easy for our relationship. Valentine's day was not great. I sent her flowers, but my card was late. Shannon saw this as just another example of me not putting her first. In my mind I was saving money that I would be spending on something much more meaningful, but of course I couldn't say that because it would ruin the surprise.

Fast forward a few days and I am talking to Shannon on the phone. She asks me if I had spoken to her dad. I told her no. I could tell in her voice she wasn't pleased about this. What I didn't tell her was that I had sent her step mom a message labeled Top Secret to get her dad's phone number.

I told Shannon I really wanted her to come for the weekend of the March 2nd.  I told her about the baptism, and the Lakers game, but didn't hint at a proposal. She told me she had been invited skiing, and her sister wanted her to come to Texas. I was going nuts but finally she got her ticket and the countdown was on.

The first time I met Shannon's Family on Easter.

One of the things that was holding me up was talking to my dad. I love my dad a ton, and I know he loves me. But he is German and he doesn't really do "feelings". He was leaving for the weekend so I cornered him in the kitchen. I said, Dad there is something I need to talk to you about. I told him I loved Shannon and I wanted to marry her. He asked me if that was what I wanted and I said yes. He said sounds good. He told me he would find me the diamond (it was my Grandma's) and that was that. I don't know why I was so worried to talk to him about it. So now I had the diamond and the date for the proposal, the next thing I needed was a ring and a way to propose.

I wasn't sure how or where I wanted to propose. I go to school at one of the most gorgeous places on earth. I thought about getting new wide receiver gloves, having the ring in my gym bag and proposing on the flag football field. I knew Shannon would be coming to the Lakers game so I considered that option too. But the moment we went to Table Rock Beach to take family pictures I knew that was the spot where I wanted to propose. It is a secluded beach on PCH in Laguna. You have to walk down really steep steps to get there. I hoped it would be empty when I we would be there.

Our first Angels game together on Shannon's first trip to So Cal.

On Friday night at dinner, Chrissi told me about her jeweler Alberto. He had made a ring for her before and really liked him. We called him but he had just left his store. Chrissi and I decided we would go the next day. Saturday came and after the BYU game I went over to get Chrissi and we headed towards Alberto's. He was closed. We systematically went to every jewelry store we knew in Whittier/La Habra and everything was closed. Chrissi suggested Robbin's Brothers. I called them and they were still open. We walked in, and started looking at rings. I was hoping that something would "speak" to me and I would know that was just the ring I wanted for Shannon. I looked at a lot of settings and finally found one I liked called a Halo setting. First I saw a round setting that I liked but then I saw the "squarish" setting that Chrissi and I both really liked. It is called a cushion setting. It was speaking to me. We took pictures and sent them to Jenn and she agreed with our thoughts.  I felt like I was really being pressured to buy the ring that night but I didn't want to until I saw Chrissi's jeweler first.  Sunday after church I called Shannon's dad and we had the chat. I told him I loved Shannon, and wanted to marry her. He seemed amenable to the idea

I thought I had a paper due on Monday so I drove back to Pepperdine Sunday night, and so began one of the busiest weeks of my life. Monday afternoon I drove back to Whittier to to the Jewelers and met Chrissi there. Unfortunately Gavin was there too. I don't think he understood how or why I was so stressed. He would not stop talking, or messing around, and I was pretty well freaking out. Nevertheless, Alberto said he could make the exact ring I wanted and have it ready for me in time for the weekend. He told me he would send me pictures the next day. That night as I was driving back from Whittier I was talking to Shannon on the phone. She wondered why I would go home after just being there and having class the next day. I couldn't tell her that I was finalizing the ring.

Tuesday, I waited most of the day for the pictures to come and they finally did. The ring looked great, the one problem was that there were two variations, the square and the round. I had been partial to the square but Alberto said the round was amazing. I told him I would come in on Wednesday to make a final decision.

What I haven't mentioned to this point is that I was super busy in school as well. I had two papers to write and they were both due this week. So on top of having the ring to square away I also had to find time to write two papers, neither of which I was super excited about. (the B- I got on one of them showed that), and on top of that three Lakers games and a day in the office made for a very busy week.

Our first picture after I got accepted to Pepperdine

I was still pretty set on the square cushion setting but wanted to make sure I was getting the best ring possible for her. I told Alberto that I would come in and see the ring on Wednesday, but forgot that I had work that day. I called Jennifer and she and Chrissi met at the jeweler to give their take. Both agreed that the square cushion setting was the best. I told Alberto I would be there on Friday to pick it up and pay for it.

Shannon missed her flight on Thursday, but she finally made it that evening. I was so happy that she was there, and wasn't really that nervous. The only thing that stressed me out was maintaining the surprise. Haydan and Bronte were very excited and I was worried if they saw Shannon that they would say something. Jennifer texted me on Thursday night to tell me to keep Shannon away from the Brenier kids and Bronte in particular because they we chatting about the proposal. So for the next 48 hours I did everything I could to make sure it would be a surprise. There were a few snafus along the way. First I had to get the ring without Shannon knowing what I was doing and that meant I had to get away from her without her being suspicious. Unfortunately I left my Lakers ID in Malibu and needed it for the game so that meant an unanticipated trip back to Malibu. Jenn called and asked me to speak at the Baptism, which I of course happily accepted. I told her I got her message about Bronte. When I hung up with Jenn, Shannon asked what was wrong with Bronte. I came up with some story how Bronte had gotten in trouble at school. Luckily she didn't ask any more questions. Time was getting close because I still needed get the ring, change clothes, and drive to Staples Center, and wasn't sure I'd be able to do that if I headed all the way to Malibu. Luckily Jordan and Anthony were able to meet us in Santa Monica and drop off my ID. We headed back to Whittier, only to be caught in bad traffic on the 10. I knew it was going to be close thought I could still pull it off. We got back to Whittier and I nonchalantly walked into the house like I was going to get ready for the game. This is when my acting skills were really put to the test. I faked a phone call from my sister. I had a full on conversation but no one was on the other end. I told Shannon that there was a Brenier type emergency and they needed me. I told her not to worry, that I would be right back. Shannon asked me why she couldn't come and I told her that if she came the kids would never let her leave and we would be late for the game. In reality I raced to the jewelers. On the way Shannon called and I was worried she had figured things out. But in reality she just wanted to know if she could open the Nilla Wafers.

I got to Alberto's and paid for the ring. I was very grateful for his help but in a major rush. He wanted to chat about his charity work and I was trying to extract myself from the situation. Eventually I told him I would try to get some Lakers stuff donated to his charity. I jumped back into the car, headed over to the Breniers, and told Chrissi about faking an emergency. We agreed on Gavin throwing the chickens over the fence, and Don not being there to rescue them. It seemed reasonable and just the sort of thing that would constitute a Brenier type emergency. I got Danielle and we headed back to my house so I could change and the girls could meet before the game.

From just about the time I started dating Shannon I knew she would get along great with my McCousins. (McKeon Cousins) they like all the same things. So while they had been friends on Facebook, Shannon and Danielle became fast friends in reality. We drove out to the Staples Center. The girls had a late lunch and I went to work. I was especially nervous for this game because it was against the Kings and that meant Jimmer Fredette would be there. It is not healthy how much I like Jimmer Fredetter, I talk about Jimmer like we are friends. While I was down on the court, there was Jimmer warming up. When he had a moment, I said hey Jimmer, I'm a BYU guy too. He said cool. I told my fellow intern Irene to document this, and she did. It was to that point the highlight of the weekend, but would be supremely eclipsed later on.

I did my pregame duties on the court and invited Shannon and Danielle down to take pictures and get a closer look at what I do on game days. The Elders Quorum from the Mar Vista Ward  was also  there night and it was really cool to have them come up to me and thank me for the tickets I got them. The game was just what I hoped for. A Lakers win and Jimmer having a good night. He started Jimmering in the fourth quarter much to my delight.

I had to stay late after the game to wrangle the players to meet and take pictures with the honorary ball kid for the evening AJ. He was a really nice kid whose dad I convinced to buy the experience at our auction at the previous game. We waited as the Lakers came out of the Locker Room after the game. I hoped Jimmer might come through the same door but alas he did not. By now it was well past 11:00 PM the girls had been kicked out of the stadium and were really ready to head home. Shannon later told me that she thought if I was going to propose it would have been Friday at the Lakers game. I found the girls in the lobby of the Ritz and we headed home to Whittier.

Saturday morning came and I knew it was going to be the day I proposed. As far as I knew Shannon did not know this. I had kept her sequestered from the rest of the family and I only needed to get to my spot. Unfortunately I couldn't be so definitive about why we needed to leave the house really early for the baptism which was scheduled for 4:00 PM. I told her we might see a movie, or go to the beach, but that didn't make much sense because we would be wearing nice clothes because of the baptism. I didn't want her to be suspicious so I found myself running out of time. Finally we just decided to head south and stop for lunch on the way. I figured we would go to Newport for lunch, take PCH over to Ladera and I could stop at Laguna on the way. I'd have enough time to propose and we could announce it to everyone at the Baptism.

As Shannon and I were driving, we started chatting about my mission. I mentioned that I left July 27, 2000. Shannon said isn't it strange that I was in 5th grade. And I said yeah, that is kind of weird when you think about it. She said, you were just waiting for me to grow up. It was the sweetest thing and made so much sense. Sometimes I wondered why it took me so long to get to this point, and it turns out I just needed time for Shannon to grow up. Incidentally she is still waiting for me to grow up.

Despite the best laid plans we were behind schedule. Because I have learned so many life lessons on the Flag Football field, I knew I would have to call a risky audible. Instead of Newport we went to the Crab Cooker in Tustin. It was delicious ( I wish I was eating it right now). We have so much fun when we are together. It's no wonder I want to spend forever with this girl. We ate and chatted, and then headed towards Ladera. By this time I just hopped no one would say anything. Between Bronte, Savannah, Aunt Maudie, and any other potential whistle blowers I knew it might be tough to keep the secret.

The service was wonderful. I spoke and I think I did a pretty good job. I made a joke about my singing voice, and I think most people enjoyed my talk. We got through the service and no one said a thing about the ring. I was relieved.

Our last picture as a non engaged couple.

By this point it was a ticking time bomb. I knew if I wanted to keep the surprise that things had to happen now. We left the reception and I told Shannon we were going to see the Vow but we would take the long way home. Of course Shannon wondered why we would do this, and I told her that she says I never do anything romantic so here I was trying. We drove down PCH and I found the entrance to Table Rock Beach. We parked the car I found myself tangled up again in a little problem. The ring had been in my gym bag in the trunk since I picked it up. I purposely put my coat in the trunk so I would have a reason to get in there and get the ring. When I went to get it, Shannon was standing right next to me and looking in the trunk. There was no way to get into my gym bag without Shannon seeing. So we started to walk to the beach but without the ring in my pocket. But because I once participated in Marine Day at Quantico, I simply thought, Improvise, Adapt, Overcome ( I didn't actually think that, I just knew I would have to come back to the car.)

Table Rock Beach is beautiful but it is not easily accessible. You walk down a steep street and then down this really long and steep staircase. We walked down, got to the beach and found that it was mostly deserted. We walked around a bit and found a place to sit. We talked for a short while but the whole time I was thinking I need to get that ring. I needed Shannon to stay put too. So I did the only thing I could think of to make sure she didn't follow me. I told her I had to use the bathroom. So I sprinted across the sand (which was ridiculous considering I was wearing dress shoes) and up the thousand stairs. I got to the top completely out of breath and walked the two blocks back to the car. I finally had the ring in my pocket and was almost ready to propose. I still wanted it to be a surprise. So once again thinking on the fly I ran across PCH to 7-11 and bought Shannon the fanciest water they had FIJI, and a Reese's which is her favorite candy, and then ran back to the beach. By this time I had been gone for almost 20 minutes. Normally I wouldn't let my bride to sit alone on a dark beach for an extended period of time but these were extenuating circumstances. As I was walking back down the thousand stairs Shannon was on her way up, she said Peter where have you been.  I told her "No, No, No, you are ruining the surprise." So she headed back down. I don't know what exactly Shannon was thinking by this time but I told her, I have a surprise for you, and pulled out the Water and Reese's. Shannon was appreciative but somewhat perplexed about all this. I told her I was just trying to be romantic. We got up and found another rock to sit on and shared the Reese's. By this time the beach was totally empty and I knew the proposal was imminent. We walked out further towards the water and it was really beautiful. We are standing on the rocks and I give Shannon a huge hug. I make good eye contact and drop to one knee and proceed to...tie my shoe. It may have been my best misdirection yet. I'm pretty sure I could see the disappointment in her face. Here we are in this beautiful place, totally alone I'm on one knee and nothing. I stand up, dust myself off and announce that not only am I cold, but I'm ready to leave. Shannon says, what, why are we leaving right now? I make up some excuse about by leaving now we can still make the movie. I noticed Shannon had left her phone in the car so I pulled mine out and pretended to look up movie times. Instead I was tweeting.

The beach was pretty dark for the most part but one of the houses on the cliffs above had a bright light shining on the beach. I took Shannon's hand, guided her into the light and got down on one knee and said very nice things. To be perfectly honest I don't know exactly what I said. I pulled out the ring (that's why I wanted to be in the light so she could see it) and said will you marry me? Shannon stood in complete amazement. She was totally shocked. After a pause which seemed like a really long time she said yes, of course. I don't think her eyes ever left the ring though. I got up to put the ring on her finger and she told me, no get back on one knee and put it on me. Which I happily obliged. Once she sort of got through how startled she was, she asked me if I had talked to her dad. She was convinced that there was no way her family could keep a secret like that. I assured her I had, and she called her parents to tell them the good news.

Our first picture as an engaged couple.

We spent the rest of the evening calling our family members and telling them the news. Everyone was very happy.

On Sunday I had to work but when I got home we had a family dinner, and the little girls spent a lot of time on the computer finding Shannon dresses to look at and flower girl dresses to consider.

We are so excited to start are life together. It looks like we will be getting married on August 18th in the Washington DC Temple, a honeymoon to Hawaii, and then an open house in Whittier in the beginning of September. Shannon isn't super thrilled about leaving her beloved Virginia, but an 80 degree day on the following Monday helped the sell big time.

I love this girl so much and am thrilled that she said yes!