So, we ran a 13.1 miles...

...AND WE GOT ENGAGED!!!!

I am still completely in shock, so bear with me while my words jumble together as I try to tell this story.

Let's back track to Christmas. Rob and I were training not so  hard for our half marathon, and he gifted me a weekend getaway to New Orleans surrounding the weekend of the Rock N Roll marathon! I was so excited about a weekend out of town and not having to rush back home after our exhausting race like we did last year! The idea that we'd get engaged literally NEVER crossed my mind because we had discussed waiting until Rob graduated in 2015 to get a ring.

When Saturday morning rolled around, we packed up and headed to New Orleans. Our weekend didn't start like we had hoped because after lunch on Saturday, we got into a car accident! Rob's car got so messed up, AND he couldn't make it to the expo in time to sign in for the race! There were MANY tears, but thankfully, the Rock N Roll volunteers told us that Rob could sign in in the morning before the race! Whew! The rest of the night went pretty smooth. We checked into our hotel, went out for a nice dinner, and then went back to the hotel room to hit the sack early-ish.

We woke up bright and early Sunday morning and took this picture of ourselves in the mirror, and headed to our race!

At the time, we knew that my family was there to support us at 3 and 6 miles, but we thought that we would be on our own for the rest of the race. Last year, Emily drove out to see us at the 9th mile, but this year, she had plans and couldn't come. Here we are before the race - FULL OF EXCITEMENT AND ENERGY!!!

When the race started, we felt great...but as the race went on, we started feeling really bad. It was warm and drizzling at points of the race (complete opposite of the conditions we trained in). The ground was soaking wet. By the 8th mile, I felt like quitting...BUUUUUT when we turned the corner, Emily and my other good friend Danielle surprised us by being there!! It was SO AWESOME to see my girls! I got a huge burst of energy that carried us through to the 12th mile. At that point, we really had to talk ourselves through continuing to run again. We were both completely out of breath, but Rob removed his headphones and started to say sweet things to me. I told him, "STOP TALKING AND CONSERVE YOUR ENERGY!!" hahahaha Poor guy! Little did I know that this was the beginning of the most magical moment of my life!

FINALLY, we crossed the finish line and as soon as we ran across (and moved a little off to the side), Rob said, "I need to do something I should have done a long time ago." When I turned to look at him, HE WAS ON ONE KNEE!!! I was in shock! I kept saying, "No, you aren't!! This isn't happening!!" Two race photographers surrounded us and took pictures. I can't wait to see those pictures, and I promise to share them as soon as we can see them!! :) After that, I got a third burst of energy and started searching all over for my family and friends! Before I met up with them, Em and D found us. I couldn't even control myself. I ran up to them laughing and crying and screaming. Pretty soon, we were all hugging and crying and screaming! It was so awesome to share that moment with two of my best friends! :) Here are some pictures of me with each of them and all of the surprises from the goodie bag that they brought us:

THEN, my family came around the corner, and THIS is where the story gets HYSTERICAL! I can't even type this without laughing so hard that I cry! I started RUNNING and screaming toward my family. In my excitement, I tripped over a huge stick and fell ON MY FACE. It was terrible! I got up and finished running to them while everyone looked at me with open eyes and open mouths! After they realized that I was OK, we all laughed SO HARD. It is so completely MINDY to do something so silly! Here is a picture of me with my entire family after we were reunited!

And HERE is a picture of the infamous "TRIP STICK." The girls suggested that I take it home to paint it gold and put on our built ins. Do they know me or WHAT?

Anyway...now that this blog post is a kazillion words long, here are some pictures of me with the man of the hour and my BEAUTIFUL ring. Y'all, I need to do a blog post one day about how incredible this man is. He is my best friend, my family, my soul mate. He had been planning this amazing surprise for MONTHS. He had thought out EVERY SINGLE DETAIL! He really is the best person I've ever known.

**Just a little info on the ring - I asked Rob a LONG time ago for an aquamarine stone because it reminds me of the color of his eyes (CHEESY) and HE DELIVERED!! He chose this ring on his own. He said that it reminded him of me, and I couldn't love it more!! :)

Just like the race, in our relationship, there will be amazing times and tough times, but in the end, as long as we're together - it will all work out for the best! Thank you all for supporting our relationship and loving us so much. I hope that you guys don't mind that this blog will probably become "Haney WEDDING diaries" for the next year or so. We are SO excited to be starting this new exciting journey together!!! :)