for my spectacular friends.

There are too many thoughts swirling around in my head for me to know where to start!

Several of you orchestrated the entire event seamlessly, despite the many rain checks and last-minute cancellations. You didn’t let the obscurities of email and Facebook stand in the way of delivering a successful surprise. Somehow you managed to bring many of those we know and love to the same place at the same time.
Still others of you drove hours that night in order to come. And when I gave you an incredulous look, you simply smiled and said that we were worth it.
A few of you were new friends that we’ve known for only a few weeks… your appearance made it all the more special for us…
And a few of you were friends we haven’t seen in months… just the addition of you there made it all the more memorable and meaningful to us.

This is a big thank-you to all of you that played a part in Extravagant Engagement Surprise on Sunday night… words do not adequately express how much Ryan and I felt loved by everyone. Thank you for the meatballs, the hummus, the yummy cake and homemade brownies; the hundreds of hugs and well-wishes of congratulations, the crazy bingo (I didn’t find out about the Star Trek obsession until AFTER we started dating), the conversational bits that were long overdue, and the insurmountable love you gave in the form of sacrificed time and resources… really, we are very, very humbled!

We are so very blessed to have brothers and sisters like you to walk with us – it is the impact from people such as yourselves that has built both Ryan and me up as individuals. We hope we can live up to this standard of friendship for you as well!

All in all, Sunday night will be unforgettable. Thanks for everything – we love you all!

Grace & Ryan

P.S. – We want those pictures of us being surprised… they’d make a great addition to the Crazy Incredibly Embarrassing Photo Slideshow of Grace and Ryan for our wedding…