Anyway, Christmas day arrives and the weather is worse than I had hoped. While South Jersey wasn't that bad, the North was getting hammered. Throughout the day I kept getting reports from Erin that the weather was progressively getting worse.. Then she started hemming and hawing as to whether she was going to come down.

At this point I was pretty stressed out and, in my family's eyes, acting really odd. Everyone at my Aunt Di's house must have thought something was seriously wrong (no one except my parents and Erin's Dad knew I was planning on proposing that night). Anyway, I was trying to act as if nothing was the matter when, clearly, something was. That only fueled concern.

Finally, Erin decided to test the roads and soon thereafter, I got a call telling me how bad they were. I tell her to keep on trying and that the roads will be clearer once she gets closer to the coast and to the south the roads. I practically told her it was 65 degrees and sunny down in South Jersey just to get her on the road. I got about 3 more calls detailing her travails. Finally, she calls me from the mall (appropriately enough) on the verge of tears, obviously torn as to whether to continue or return home. When she called me a final time to tell me she wasn't coming, I was incredibly bummed, but figured it best for her safety to return home.

Later that night, my family and I went to my cousin Marcella's house and I was still visibly bummed about the situation. Not even my Uncle Mike's stromboli could cheer me up. Then, just as we're leaving Marcella's house, I get the call - the snow has stopped and Erin is coming down. What a relief!!

Anyway, I got to the house about 15 minutes before Erin did and I attempted to decorate. It was brutal - I had these big, 70's style, twinkling, multi-colored lights draped around one window and I taped them to the wall using packing tape. A few sockets didn't even work. Above the TV, I draped icicle white lights, plugged in to an industrial, orange extension cord. Again, held in place by packing tape. Finally, I set up a little plastic Christmas tree that I stole from work on the coffee table. The tree had built in lights, so I just added some old school ceramic Christmas balls (seriously, they're almost as old as I am). I also hung the ornaments Erin had given me over the years including a de-faced Eric Lindros figure and a couple of Tom and Jerry ornaments. The whole set up was pretty ghetto.

Finally, Erin shows up, abit dazed from her drive, yet somehow resilient. We begin swapping gifts - Erin rips through all of the wrapped ones - clearly tring to figure out if there's a ring in any of them before opening. Finally, I tell her to look in her stocking. Since this was the first time I ever gave her a stocking, she was quite interested in its contents.

Erin rifled through the stocking and literally turned it inside out once she emptied all the contents. Then, I gave her the t-shirt and explained that I'd been looking at rings. The look on her face was priceless - as if to say, "You're kidding, right?" She tossed the t-shirt over her shoulder, then got up to get a drink of water.

When she returned, she opened some gifts from my family and as we surveyed the wrapping paper wreckage, I reached under the couch and produced a box. I first got down on both knees (practically begging), then switched it up to one knee. I don't even know what I said, but I guess I managed to work in a "Will you marry me?" And of course she said yes.

Erin was indeed thrilled (I think she was equally fond of the box the ring came in). Although at first, I had a feeling of relief, I was quickly overcome with the excitement of the upcoming months and with the feeling that, finally, Erin and I would be spending the rest of our lives together.