Delayed Proposal

We had a busy time between Christmas and New Year's.  I didn't know it but Danny had told my mom the ring was almost ready so she expected a proposal at any time.  She didn't let on though--she's good at keeping secrets.  I also didn't know that my friends expected a proposal at our annual New Year's Eve party.  I knew Danny wouldn't ask there because it was too public of a place.  I knew that when he popped the question it would just be us and he would have it all planned out.

What I also didn't know was that he did plan on asking me to marry him on New Year's Day.  Here's what changed that plan:

Josh and I drove home to our house after the party and Danny drove home to his house.  We all made it home safely.  When we got home, our 9 month old puppy, DeSoto, was asleep up on the hay bales where he always was with his unstuffed toy dog right beside him.  He barked at us a few times but didn't get up since he knew it was us.  That was two or three in the morning.  January 1, 2012 was a Sunday and I'm pretty sure everyone in my family was scheduled to work in a children's classroom.

But when my mom went out to do morning chores, which includes feeding the dogs, she couldn't find DeSoto.  She also noticed that the cars driving by the corner of our property were swerving weirdly out of their lanes.  She just knew.  She hopped in the truck and drove down there.  DeSoto was lying in the middle of the road, dead--like the yucky, gross kind of dead.  Our laid back, nine month old puppy, who weighed close to 80 pounds and came almost to hip height had been hit by a car.  Well, more likely a big truck.  She went to get Josh to load him into the back of the truck so he could be buried.

They covered him with a sheet so Lauren and I could pat him goodbye as we bawled.  I was the only one who went to church that day and just had all the kids come in with me.  I called Danny before I left.  Needless to say, the day's events changed his plans, but I didn't know that, and wouldn't know that for another week...but that's another story.

DeSoto at 8 weeks old.  He was a border collie mix from the Jefferson County Humane Society.  He was being trained up by Sydney (another dog) to be a farm dog and was going to begin to learn how to herd in the Spring.