How it began
Paul's View
I believe I first met Kara about 2 weeks into college. I went to play soccer with a few people that lived in the 'smart kids' sections of Daniels Hall. (I, fortunately, was relegated to Calhoun Hall, where my unique sense of humor was received far better than it would have been in the Honors dorm).

In any event, the group that went to play soccer met up with a few of their friends, one of which was a strange girl wearing a duct tape bow tie. She had a gorgeous smile, was very nice to everyone, and, for one reason or another, insisted on calling me "Russell". (Later she revealed that she was afraid she was going to forget my name).

This was my first introduction to my bride-to-be.

Kara's View
Freshman year, some referred to Paul as "Jesus in a Hawaiian Shirt." A well-earned nickname. I, however, called him "Russell" and when I asked him if that was okay, he replied something like, "No problem, Beverly." It was fun calling out hi to Russell as he passed my studio and joking around with him at parties. As a friend, I thought he was pretty cool, nice to everyone, and very hilarious. Later, when we began dating, I found out that he is super intelligent, hard-working, and has a wonderful sense of family.

The engagement

Paul's View
I had known for years that I would be asking Kara to marry me, as she is the most thoughtful, truthful, and kind person I know. And one of the few people that can get me to admit I was wrong about something. It was all just a matter of choosing the right time and place.

It was December 23 when I finally chose to ask her. She was planning on getting a ride home (from Indianapolis to Sylvania) that evening from a friend who I had contacted earlier and told that I was going to suprise her with a Christmas present, so I could take her home, (big props to Paul K. for the assist). I had one of my sisters call Kara and tell her she needed her out of the apartment and over to her house to check a few things. Kara was reluctant at first, as she still believed she was waiting for her ride to show, but eventually was convinced to run over as fast as possible, then she could return to the apartment.

As soon as she left the apartment, I rushed in and hung a few ornaments on our sparse Christmas tree, each containing a message dealing with various parts of our relationship together, (the past, present, and future), and corresponding with a present below the tree. When she came back, I had her search through the tree for the ornaments, and open each present along with the ornament she had found.

When it appeared that she had found the last one, I told her there was still one more on the tree, (which I had, in a stroke of brilliance, hidden around the back of the tree). She found the ornament and present, and opened it up. Inside was another ornament with "Will you marry me" written inside, along with a ring. Her first words were "What?", but after I explained that I would need a yes or no answer, she happily agreed.

Kara's View
It all began at about 7:00am when I sleepily arrived at work. My plan was that I would get off work at 4:00 so Kreft wouldn't have to wait too long for me since he was already on Christmas vacation. He was supposed to drive me to Toledo. I unhappily got an email from him that said we were leaving at 6:00. I was so sad I woke up extra early. So when I came home from work at 5:00, I tried to take a quick nap. My phone rang, and it was Tex asking if I could do her a favor and check to make sure her door was locked. I then called Paul to see if he was on his way home from work, because then maybe he could check the door and I could sleep. He said he was just leaving work, so I went over to the Welty's to check it myself. When I got there, I saw a gift bag on the doorstep. I thought someone had dropped it off for Tex or Gramps. So I checked the door and picked up the bag. Then I noticed Paul's handwriting. The note said, "Come home for a Christmas surprise, Bonk!"

When I got back to the apartment, there was Peanuts Christmas music playing and Christmas lights on the floor. It was fun, and I was hoping that we could open up the presents before Kreft arrived. Paul opened up my ornament. And then he had ornaments for me on the tree that corresponded to gifts. They were thoughtful gifts, but (of course) the best gift was the last one. There was an ornament and it said, "I hope this always reminds you of me." I think... Then inside the box, there was another ornament with "Will you marry me?" in the inside. There was a little box with a beautiful ring that he designed at Paolo's. As mentioned above, I responded a little teary-eyed with, "What?" Once it sank in, I couldn't wait to tell everyone. Savy and Ariana randomly called me that night! And then I talked to Paul's family, Jamus, and Nick the rest of the way home. My parents were surprised and did not believe me at first. Then they were very happy for the both of us.