WE'RE ENGAGED!
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He did it! Tom proposed on July 4th, 2021 in Long Island City, NY right under the Pepsi-Cola sign across the river from the Macy’s 4th of July Firework Show! As I said in my Instagram announcement, he’s given me yet another reason why the 4th of July is my favorite day of the year. Here’s the whole story…
Tom and I attended Andrew & Jessie’s wedding weekend from July 2nd to the 4th. (The ceremony was STUNNING - see above. They got married here.) On Sunday, July 4th, Tom couldn’t even wake up to pack and get ready for the 4+ hour drive back home, so I thought all our firework watching plans were going to be cancelled. He managed to get it together for a goodbye breakfast and then he, his friend Matt, and I left for the long drive.
We dropped Matt off, picked up Alejandro and Archie from my mom’s house, and headed to the apartment to get ready. I didn’t even shower, had the same hair as the wedding, and just dressed comfortably.
My sister Vanessa and her boyfriend Eric picked us up, we drove to meet up with Tom’s sister, Julia, and her boyfriend Phil and all six of us walked to the train. I was in a state of pure happiness — it was my favorite holiday and I was with my favorite people!
We took the LIRR to Woodside, and took a subway from Woodside to Long Island City. We got off at Vernon Blvd, Tom met up with Corrine from NBC to get the tickets none of us ended up using, and we walked the busy, sunny streets of Long Island City to Maiella for dinner.
There was a moment while Tom and I were walking hand-in-hand, the sun shining down on us when I turned to Tom and said it was Carmen, that I felt her. I’ve been feeling her in the sunshine since she passed four months ago, and her she was - getting to witness what her life brought me to: establishing a strong foundation within myself, and a future with Tom. Her showing up like this was one of the many moments of pure magic. I love and miss you, baby girl.
Tom ordered a bottle of Malbec for the table, and everything we ate was delicious (a white clam pizza pictured above…OMG). At one point during the dinner, I left to get up to go to the bathroom and my sister asked the table what was going on that evening…she asked Tom if he was going to propose… Haa haa! Apparently there was some confusion because Tom and his sister had planned for this night to be “the night”, but after Tom talked to my mom a couple of weeks earlier asking for her blessing, my mom spilled the beans to my sister… but Tom had never directly told my sister… so there was that.
After a great meal and cappuccino for me, we walked outside to the cool July evening, and Tom took the selfie shot of us three couples above as I requested. I captioned it: “My favorite holiday with my favorite people.”
We walked around a bit, trying to figure out where we would stand amongst the see of people to watch the firework show and found a spot just off to the right of the Pepsi-Cola sign. It was the most perfect, cool, clear July night. *heart eyes*
AMANDA, DID YOU HAVE ANY IDEA TOM WAS GOING TO PROPOSE? I’ve been asked this question a bunch of times, and the answer is NO. Firstly, we were 5 hours upstate the whole weekend before this, and I thought he was going to be too tired to even keep these plans. Tom played it off so well as a take-it-or-leave-it kind of evening. Secondly, the 4th of July is MY FAVORITE DAY OF THE YEAR! Tom knows this and has made this holiday special for me every year. In 2019, he got us both into the ACTUAL Macy’s Show and we were on a pier in downtown Manhattan directly underneath the blasts. It was wild! Last year, we were also in Long Island City for dinner, but there was no firework show due to COVID. So…I figured inviting our sisters and making it a nice evening with dinner and getting to see the show was his way to try and make my favorite day of the year special. I DID NOT expect him to get on one knee here, on this night, during the firework show…but alas, that’s just what he did…
A little panoramic photo of the view and the night we were working with here...so stinkin’ magical! (click the photo to enlarge)
We all took our pictures and videos, we waited in anticipation for the show to start, and when it did, I was bopping up and down from happiness. I was so excited.
I. LOVE. FIREWORKS. Like, SO MUCH. They remind me of going upstate in the summer, visiting a fair for the day, and then sitting with my Nana on a grassy hill watching them explode. They remind me of the time my uncle took the family to his sanitation site, and again - next to my Nana - we got our own private viewing of the Macy’s fireworks that year. They remind me of the time I sat with my dad on the boardwalk and watched them too. Fireworks are my favorite. No, back tot he proposal…
…about 5 minutes into the show, Tom grabbed me to take a couple of selfies (which I later found out was his way to document my last unengaged moments ) and right after, I turned to him, and he said, “Baby…”
…When he started to get down on one knee, my whole body flushed with shock and watching the video (below) back now, my voice got really high and I said “Oh My God” a lot of times. It was a surreal moment — I couldn’t believe it was actually happening! I looked at my sister and Tom’s sister and they were hooting and clapping, smiling and taking photos and videos…it was such a special moment…the fireworks blasting in the background - what seemed like for us - and us embracing and getting to be here in this life together. I will never forget it.
It happened. It happened. It happened. I still can’t believe it happened. Tom is now my fiancé, and all I can think of is this scene from Seinfeld - one of my mom’s favorites - Maybe the dingo ate yo’ baby! Haa haa!
…and a big appreciation shout out to my sister and my future sister-in-law for being there and for taking all the photos and videos. I hope I can pay it back and be there for them in such an important way. Love them!
The rest of the firework show was a wash in my brain because it was still trying to catch up and comprehend what happened and what it all meant. I couldn’t stop smiling. This moment was such a long time coming.
To Tom about his proposal, I wrote on Instagram: I said ‘YES’ but I could have said ‘DUH’ since our partnership in this life is the surest thing I’ve ever felt. 🤍 Thank you for choosing me; thank you for what we are building together; thank you for all that went into this magical night. It means everything to me. I love you more than fireworks, and I REALLY. LOVE. FIREWORKS! (as I explained above) Cheers, baby!
Once the show finished, we snapped back into reality and realized we needed to make our way through Long Island City’s overcrowded streets in order to catch a train. As we walked, Tom video-chatted with his mom. “Congratulations,” she screamed! “Oh, I’m so happy!”
Before getting on the subway back to the LIRR, we stopped at a family favorite LIC spot: SHI where we each got a celebratory cocktail. I watched Tom order at the bar, and when Julia went up to help him, he hugged her and thanked her for all her help making his proposal go off without a hitch.
I ordered one of my favorite drinks: a Lychee martini. We had to drink them in a hurry, since we had a train to catch. Julia and I ended up putting our in to-go cups and sipping them on our commute home.
…and that is the story of how he proposed. I’ve heard quite a few proposal stories in my day and I always tell my girlfriends the same thing: the proposal is ENTIRELY UP TO HIM. Let him do it, and let it be what it’ll be. I didn’t do my nails or have my best outfit on, our sisters took the photos of it, but man, was it incredibly special. Tom did really good.
Now, on to wedding planning!
