I truly believe that the sweetest part about a proposal isn’t the setup. When you think back on the moment, I don’t think the first thing that comes to mind will be exactly what he said to you.

The stories you’ll tell for the next 50 years will be about how he thought about it all. It will be the story of what happened after you said yes, when you looked at him and said, “I have to tell Mom and Dad!” and he looked back at you and said, “They already know. We’re going to go celebrate with them.”

It will be the story of him telling the people you love. Of him coordinating for your sister to fly all the way in from Florida just to be there. Of all the little details you didn’t know were happening behind the scenes because he was quietly making sure that when you said yes, the people you loved most would be there to celebrate with you.

That’s love.

It’s the intentional choice we make every day to put the person we love ahead of ourselves and everything else. It’s thinking about what will make them feel known, loved and cared for, even when they don’t know you’re doing it.

And that’s exactly what Taylor & Brennan’s Proposal was like.

He did it all. He set it up. He location scouted. He took her out to dinner and felt his hand shaking in his pocket the entire way to their detoured spot, where her sister, me and the dreamiest setup were waiting.

She’ll remember that he didn’t just plan a proposal. He planned what would happen after. He thought about the people she would want to tell first. He knew that celebrating this moment with her family would make it even more special, so he made sure they were part of it before she even knew she was getting engaged.

Taylor and Brennan,

You two light each other up in ways I truly can’t describe. It was such an honor to be hiding in the bushes and watching these sweet moments unfold. But the sweetest part of this proposal is that it is only the beginning.

It’s the beginning of giggling over a wedding planning binder. Of choosing venues, tasting cakes and making a million little decisions together. It’s the beginning of building a marriage and a life that is full of all the same intentionality Brennan put into this one moment.

I hope these images always take you back here.

Back to the nerves Brennan felt walking toward that spot. Back to practicing his proposal speech over and over again. Back to the surreal joy on Taylor’s face. Back to the laughter and the tears and the feeling of realizing that the person you love has been quietly planning one of the sweetest moments of your life.

And most of all, I hope they remind you that this was never just about the ring.

It was about choosing each other. Over and over again. And this was just one example of a lifetime of doing exactly that.