Details, details, details

Some of you already know, but maybe you don't know the details. Here is a little more on what happened last weekend.
First, both of us had to work last Saturday which was Valentine's Day. Rufina had to give a lecture and attend a workshop; while I was the benefactor of the PTA's poor date selection for the school picnic outing. Nonetheless, we did have a short Valentine's dinner at a little Taiwanese (not Thai) restaurant near Rufina's home. I picked her up some roses at a local flower market and treated her to dinner.

The following day, we went to church and then met one of Rufina's friends who was visiting Hong Kong. We had lunch with him and his fiancee.
After saying goodbye to them, we had a short rest and break at the IFC mall and plaza. We then boarded the #6 bus to Stanley. Now if this sounds familiar, it is. Last year, we celebrated Valentine's Day in Stanley. However, I did manage to change a few things.
We walked around Stanley on a cold, grey day.

But we found ways to entertain ourselves.

Later, we found a little spot near the Starbucks to sit and enjoy each others' company. We spent about 30-45 minutes together in prayer. Then we went to dinner...

This year, I selected The Boathouse, which is a sister restaurant and next-door-neighbor to the Pickled Pelican, where we ate last year. We had a great little table on the balcony overlooking the Stanley seaboard. I had some tasty ribs and Rufina had a seafood pasta. We had strawberry Pavlova for dinner. It was my first time ever having any kind of Pavlova and I was pleasantly surprised.

During dinner, we shared a lot of our memories together. We talked about our first meal in China, our first meal in Thailand, and our first meal in the US. We talked about some of our favorite moments together and some other times that were difficult then, but that we are better for having gone through.
After dinner, we took a little walk to this little outcropping of rocks at the water's edge. You can see a picture of it if you click on the link I posted from last year's Valentine's Day. Rufina likes to collect little pebbles or stones from the different places she goes. It helps her to remember special places and moments. So I encouraged her to look for a little stone and gave her a little keychain flashlight. While she was looking, I got the ring out and said, "I think I found a good rock for you" (or something cheesy like that). She turned toward me to see and I got on my knee and proposed. I told her that I love her and I wanted to spend my life with her... and then I started to put the ring on. But I had forgotten to actually ask her if she would marry me- oops! I was nervous and my mind was racing, but I recovered and then asked her. She said as long as I would never leave her, she would marry me.

So I was pretty excited about that. (Note: if you look at the earlier pictures in this series, you can see that the rings and positions have changed.)

So after a little celebration in Stanley, I took Rufina back to her parents' home and we announced the engagement to them.

And one more of our classic poses which I really like. Rufina and I can both be a little wacky at times, but it's just one of the ways that makes us a good couple.

Yay!