The Proposal – Shelli
It was Sunday August 2 and we’d been in the South of France for eight glorious days with our four girls and Mum and Dad (aka Val and Tony). We were staying at La Baume holiday park just outside the town of Frejus, a perfect paradise for kids (and big kids) with no less that five swimming pools, water slides and endless sunny days. We’d ventured out of the campsite on a couple of occasions for some “sightseeing” but the majority of our time was spent lazing in the sun while the girls turned into prunes in the pools.
On this particular day we had a more energetic schedule planned than we’d grown accustomed to. After breakfast we headed to a nearby adventure park with obstacles to navigate high up in the trees, much like the Go Ape parks we have in the UK. It was an exhausting few hours, but all the girls enjoyed themselves and overcame some fears to get themselves around the courses (a couple of pictures can be seen in the More Memories gallery). After that it was back to the campsite for a cool off in the pool.
St Tropez looked as stunning and opulent as ever. Row upon row of yachts bigger than our house proving that there’s plenty of money in the world if you travel in the right circles! We wandered along the marina with the kids trying to decide which of the yachts they fancied buying (ah, the imaginations of the young!) and popping into shops to look for souvenirs. At the end of the marina we wandered through a stone archway and found ourselves at the edge of a small picture perfect cove surrounded by stunning buildings. The tide was coming in but the girls and I tiptoed across the rocks avoiding the intermittent waves to reach the small sandy beach. After a brief stroll along the sand we turned and headed back to where Darren, Mum and Dad were waiting for us.
If memory serves me correctly we reached a more open area of the wall — a round clearly designed for folks to sit and take in the views — and Darren stopped. He passed the camera to Dad and asked if could take some photos of us against the sunset. Next thing I remember he took my hand and made a little speech about how much he loved me, and how he’d been planning this day for over a year. Then he was on one knee, hands shaking as he held out a ring and uttered the words I had waited a life time to hear, “will you marry me?”. I was blown away. I tried to say yes but couldn’t actually formulate words out so instead I just nodded and reached out to take the ring. Taking that as an acceptance, Darren took the ring out of the box and placed it on my finger. Happy doesn’t come close.
Asri, Alice and Mum had cottoned onto the fact that something was happening and had watched the proposal. Dad, it turned out, had been the only one in on the secret after Darren had asked his permission a few days previously over a pint and so he caught the whole thing on video. Eleni and Elisa had been none the wiser as they clambered over the boulders, but were soon brought up to speed by their older sisters and were jumping up and down screaming “we’re going to be bridesmaids” (you have to get your priorities straight in life…).
I’m always teasing Darren about his lack of romance but he really pulled it out the bag on that day. I’m not sure he planned the sunset, but it certainly added something special to the occasion. Perhaps it was our departed parents smiling on us? He tells me he used up a lifetime of romance on that one moment. I can certainly believe it. But let’s hope there’s a little left over for our wedding day…
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