A Break from the Crazy

Korea is a lot of fun...but it's tiring and not the best for your body/liver.  I'm going to spare you from most of the pictures, but let's just say 99% of them are THIS ridiculous (or more so):

Most of them involve this partysuit too!
(all photos are mine or Beau's)

I'd also gotten a new job post-earthquake timeframe, so my trip back to Japan was even more welcome when I finally got to go in May.  One of the things we did (besides chill out with our dogs) was to stay a night at a ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn with onsens (natural hot springs baths).  Onsening is by far one of my favorite things to do in Japan, so I was super stoked.

It was lovely, but the real highlight of the trip was when I got this:

Bling!

The whole visit, Jason had been hinting about proposing, but I was completely clueless...I guess I don't pick up on social cues that easy.  He is a TERRIBLE liar, but had somehow convinced me that the ring hadn't arrived yet.  A couple days before he proposed, I helped him pick out ribbon for an unspecified "craft" project he needed to do...somehow didn't think this was strange.  The day of  our date to Yoshino's (where we went on our first unofficial date), he called from work to say he was doing some "arts & crafts" time before he came home...I thought he was maybe working on a farewell gift.  When he got home, we were laying in bed when he asked "will you hold me for the rest of your life?" and I said yes, thinking nothing of it.  I promise, I'm usually very alert!
When we got to the restaurant, I sat down on the bench next to the one we'd originally sat at.  Jason said, "Hey, let's move over here," motioning to the next bench over.  I was reluctant, but did it anyway.  And that's when he surprised me by getting out our book (it's a little moleskine book we send back and forth when we're apart), where he'd tied my ring onto one of the pages with blue ribbon and wrote "Will you marry me?"   I immediately burst out crying...I was so blindsided!  He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him, and I could only nod...which is when a small group of strangers in the corner burst out in applause.  One of the ladies actually thanked us and said she'd never actually witnessed anyone else get engaged.  Shortly after, about 10 of our friends showed up to give us gifts and have dinner with us.  Our friend Kim graciously took a few pictures...

We got home, ate some of that delicious looking cake, and spent the rest of the night informing all our very-asleep family and friends that we were ENGAGED!