Big News!!

March 11, the day that would change the world...forever (wow, Corbin is dramatic). March 11, a day to be remembered. March 11, the day that Corbin popped the question! 

Here’s how it went for each of us...

Tatum: 

“With another day in Luang Prabang I was ready to get out of the city. We woke up early, hopped on a motorbike, and headed for Kuang Si falls. The motorbike ride was very scenic and I loved being in the valley of lush mountains. We arrived at the falls and hiked up to the cascading pools. We explored around the pools and ended up hiking a couple miles through the jungle to the top of the falls.

It felt great to hike but before long we were sticky, hot, and in need of a swim. We hiked back down to a secluded pool we had scoped out earlier and jumped in. The water was chilly but felt great. After a short swim Corbin told me that he wanted to take a picture of the swimming hole. He asked a gal nearby to take a photo of us sitting on the ledge of the pool.

We sat on the ledge, got picture ready, and I smiled at the camera. After a couple seconds I noticed that Corbin wasn’t looking at the camera... he was looking at me and looked SO serious. Then he began talking. I thought to myself, why on earth is he talking... we are supposed to be taking a photo. After the first few sentences of his proposal it finally registered!

I sat, smiling, as Corbin stood up from the ledge, got down on one knee in the water, and asked me to be his travel partner for the rest of our lives. Will you marry me? YES was my response. Then... he put a beautiful ring on my finger.

I spent the rest of the day on cloud nine. I could not stop smiling and even cried a couple times (happy tears, don’t worry). We wondered to another, lesser known waterfall, where I began asking about all the details. I loved hearing about how he asked Justin and Logan’s permission to marry me while ice fishing back home. I laughed when he told me that the ‘guys brewery trip’ to Fort Collins with Kent and Jon had actually been a ring shopping trip. We spent the whole afternoon celebrating by the water. We swam, lounged, and chatted while drinking cold Beerlau’s (they didn’t have champagne).

That evening we couldn’t wait to share the news with our families. Turns our that the only two surprised that day were myself and my mom, Amy. She wasn’t in the loop but was so excited to hear the news (thanks for not spilling the beans boys). Turns out that my brothers and Corbins family had been looking for a ring for weeks while we would video chat from abroad. Corbin made everyone wait a while... but it was worth it.

I went to bed that night with sore cheeks from smiling and feeling so lucky to be with such an incredible man.” 

Corbin:

“This morning we woke up early, around 7, to head to Kuang Si Falls. I’ll get to that but first we need to talk about my original plan.

I knew we would be going to a place called Pai in Thailand. I originally thought Pai would be a great place to propose, in the mountains, with a hike and a waterfall. I wanted the proposal to be a surprise, that is part of the reason I didn’t want to ask her in the Philippines; I knew she was anticipating it.

But it was not to be, Pai was incredibly smoky and the waterfall was barley a trickle. Now I was working on the fly. I carried the ring with us, hidden in a flashlight, on every day trip we took so if I found the right moment I could pop the question. 

My plan didn’t change too much, I still wanted to go for a hike and be at a waterfall, just the location was an unknown factor. In Luang Prabang one of the most popular tourist sites is a waterfall with lots of pools to swim in. I thought “this could be the place, but it may be way to busy with tourists.” 

So we woke up early in hopes of beating the crowds. When I woke up I had a feeling that today was the day and thought “when I come back here I may be engaged, that’s crazy!” We weaved our way out to the falls, the sun was shining, birds chirping, a little smoky but not to bad, it was a beautiful drive. We arrived at the waterfalls and made our way to the main fall. It was beautiful but people had already started gathering so I waited till we were a little more alone. We found a hiking trail which was a blast but hot. We needed a swim. We wondered back to a pool we found earlier in the day. 

We arrived back at the pool and only one other lady was in it! I thought, “okay this is it, this is where I’ll ask Tatum.” I asked the lady to take some pictures and I told her I was about to propose and to take lots of photos.

We sat on the ledge and I looked at Tatum, I don’t think I have ever been that nervous. 

“Tatum, you know how my #1 goal in life is to be happy? Well, I can’t reach that goal without you in my life. You are my best friend.” At this point Tatum realized what was happening and showed it by saying “Are you shittin’ me?” I got off the ledge and got down on one knee in the water. “Will you marry me?” “YES!!!” She shrieked. I placed the ring on her finger with shaky hands and with the biggest smile. We stood in the pool talking, hugging and kissing.

We then realized that there was a lady watching us and had Tatum’s phone. So we thanked the lady got our things and left the pool. As soon as we were on the trail by ourselves Tatum started crying, smiling, and laughing. I think we were both in shock a little bit. 

      I enjoyed telling Tatum about the details of my original plan, the ring, and asking permission from her brothers. The ring is a travel ring and I thought it suited what we are currently doing. We are going to design a diamond ring together when we are back in the states. What a magnificent, unforgettable day! 

It seems crazy that I’m engaged! But I couldn’t imagine being engaged to anyone other than Tatum.”

With Love,

Boots Abroad