caitlyn a. juengel: May 2012

"two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. if either of them falls down, one can help the other up." -ecclesiastes 4:9-10

i asked ricky what he would like to do, if he could do anything he wanted on his birthday. and you know what he said? motocross. shocking, i know. so we packed up the truck and headed to windy hill out in the middle of nowhere, NC! ricky was SO excited about getting back on his bike, and i was really excited about photographing the experience!

after a long day and a really big blister, we were both tired and ready to head home. hes still got it though! im so proud of my awesome motocross man. HAPPY 22nd BIRTHDAY RICKY! love you. cant wait for 80 more years of birthdays together!

"and above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony." -colossians 3:14

on may 3, 2012, i turned 24 annnnnnnnd I GOT ENGAGED!!!
it was definitely one of the best days of my life.

here is how it happened: that morning, ricky told me he was taking me on a picnic (he had promised me this picnic date for awhile so i was really looking forward to it!) he drove me out to the farm where there was a table and sign set up for our picnic lunch. we sat down and he handed me a big, heavy box, which he said was my birthday present from his whole family. i opened it up to find a REALLY nice nikon camera box, assuming the new camera was inside. i was shocked, to say the least, and proceeded to put it back on the table. ricky insisted that i open it, so i picked it back up and opened the box. inside was a 5 lb weight and a ring box! he stood up, pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket, and began to read the sweetest letter i have ever received. when he finished reading, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him! of course i said yes, and still in shock, i realized i was still holding the ring box. he told me to open it, but i gave it back to him so that he would open it for me (i wanted it to be like in the movies). i absolutely LOVE my ring and cannot wait to marry my best friend next april. i love you ricky winters!!

after all was said and done, tara and nicole popped out from the trees where they got these awesome pictures! im so thankful that both of them, as well as matt lee, were there to capture my big day!

best. birthday. ever.

the letter.

here is a picture of the ring from my cell phone that morning.

but wait! there was one more surprise... mom and lauren were there the whole time! i was so excited that they were there to share that special moment with me. what an amazing birthday!

our engagement shoot with matt lee!

of course moto had to be involved. we are going to be one big happy family!

soon-to-be mr. & mrs. winters!

the next day, tara took kim and i to get our nails done - she kept saying it was important for our hands to look good since we just got engaged. im very thankful we got manicured that day because later that night, everyone surprised us with an engagement party! it was so fun to share our engagement week with stephen and kim, and i love that so many of our family and friends could be there with us!