our thoughts
| First, we were Friends... | The Dating Begins | Is this Love? |
| A Few of my Favorite Things | It's Official! | Decisions, Decisions, Decisions |
| The Big Day |
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| First, we were Friends… | |
| Initially, we were friends - we used to go out to lunch and talk about almost any topic under the sun. Occasionally, we would out go to a bar with a bunch of other people from work. In short, we were pretty good friends. She even invited me to her birthday in Central Park and a Yankees game (my very first Yankees game). |
We met in 1999, the year we began working together. It was an instant friendship - you know, one of those friendships which is just naturally comfortable... I could just do or say anything with him and it felt just fine - and, just right. |
| The Dating Begins | |
| I don't remember when I started thinking of her in a romantic way, but there were a few times when I considered asking her out - the fact that we worked together prevented me from doing so. The first night we gave each other a hint of our feelings about wanting to date each other was a night when we'd both had a little too much to drink. After that we went out on a couple of "non-date" dates to analyze whether dating was the right thing for us (hmm!!! how romantic). Then came the Sushi dinner and our first kiss... the rest is history. | Things started slowly…I started feeling that little "something" and started to imagine what dating him might be like. But, given that we were good friends and we worked together, I was a little hesitant to test the waters in the romantic sense-no need to complicate things. And then a little alcohol intervened and things escalated. But, knowing me, nothing is ever easy-I need to analyze everything, and this was certainly no exception. So, after some thinking, and finally shutting up my brain and listening to my heart, the dating began. |
| Is this Love? | |
| I don't think there was a specific moment when I realized I loved her. I just knew that I did. I do remember wanting to spend more and more time with her. Even though I wasn't the first one to say "I love you", I believe that I was the first one to realize that I was in love (not that this is a competition, but if it were, then I would have won). | There was no specific day that I knew this was "IT"; my feelings just kept growing until it was obvious. I guess the closest thing to an "Ah-Ha" was when I started practicing how to say "I love you" in Hindi in preparation for those special words-I just knew. And then that day came: Well, I learned from the transliteration, of course... |
| A Few of my Favorite Things | |
| As anyone who has ever met her can testify, she's an amazing human being. She is sensitive, cute, intelligent and an absolute gem of a person. She has strong opinions and is very articulate. She is very loyal to her friends. I love her full-throated laugh. She has an amazing memory (sometimes, I think that she has memorized all the words to every song ever written). I rely on her to remind me of all my appointments. I can tell it's going to be fun being married to her, there's never going to be a dull moment. There are so many things that I want to write about her but I feel that anything I would say wouldn't do justice to describe this 'fantabulous' person that I am lucky enough to be marrying. | He loves to be silly-and he's great at it. He's the most patient man I know. He's a rhyming machine. He is willing to try anything. He has a million different smiles, each one warmer and more adorable than the next. He's a wonderful cook. He laughs harder at his own jokes than anyone else. He loves me more than anything in the world and has a way of making me feel that inside and out. He has a funny new nickname for me almost every day. He is entirely predictable, though he swears he is not. He is so thoughtful and giving. He makes everything into a competition-and has to win, even when he really doesn't… He's amazing with children. He helps me to become the best person I can be, while loving me for exactly who I am right now. He is my KiSA (knight in shining armor) and my best friend. |
| It's Official! | |
| I had no idea about what to look for in a diamond or an engagement ring (I guess no one really does). Good thing for the internet. I learned a lot about diamonds. I found a really great place to buy an engagement ring (Frank Pollok & sons in NYC, in case anyone is interested). My brother Sean was in town the day I was going to buy the ring and he had some prior experience buying one (he's getting married in December), so it was really nice having him come along with me. On March 3rd, I proposed and she said "Yes". I really wasn't nervous at all. But, for some strange reason, I don't seem to remember what I had for dinner at one of our favorite Brooklyn restaurants, Henry's End, that night. | After about a year and a half of wining and dining, he proposed! And, what a romantic…it was March 3rd, his birthday. We were meeting my parents during their first trip back east our place for some dinner and drinks to celebrate his birthday. Apparently, he informed them of his plan to propose that evening and asked for some assistance. So, after a delicious dinner at Henry's End in Brooklyn Heights, my parents asked me to join them at the liquor store to pick up some wine and then, as he so frequently does, he had to use the restroom so he headed back to our place. After the wine purchase, just according to plan, my parents needed to stop at the car to pick up a few things and I headed back to meet him at our place. I arrived at the door, knocked and then let myself in-and as I began to push open the door, the apartment was dark and I noticed little candles lining the floor. As I pushed the door further, I saw him down on his knee and heard the words, "Patti Helene Jellybean, will you marry me?" I said yes, just as some tears slid down my cheeks and hugged and kissed him until I could barely stand anymore. At some point he asked whether I'd like to see the ring, which I eventually did, and it was just beautiful! My parents returned a bit later and he greeted them with, "She said Yes!". Then we had champagne and called Leon's parents and others to help celebrate. Just a perfect night… |
| Decisions, Decisions, Decisions | |
| The first hint I got of all the decision making to come was when we went to register at Crate and Barrel, where we subsequently decided not to register. Deciding what kind of flatware (I never knew that forks and spoons were called flatware) to add to our registry was something I had never imagined ever doing. Don't get me wrong - I enjoy selecting flatware and dishes as much as any other guy. After my introduction to the whole process of registering, came the decisions involving the "when" and "where". It's been fun making all these decisions and I'm enjoying every minute of it. | So…wedding planning-isn't that the fun part??!? So far, we've changed the place as well as the date. Now that we've got March 12th @ Bridgewaters, all should be smooth sailing from here. We're actually having fun time with all of our planning so far. Some of the highlights include: the day we found the place-we both just knew it was perfect, exploring designs for my wedding dress-Leon's family will be taking me to get it hand-stitched in India, and working together on this website with my brother, Jordan, our pro web-designer. |
| The Big Day | |
| March 12th - Before we know it, it will be upon us. And, it's going to be a great day. We're looking forward to sharing this special occasion in our lives with all of you. | What can I say?? I can't wait to become Mrs. Patti B.!! And sharing with all of you that special event commemorating the beginning of my life together with Leon will be absolutely wonderful. |