Hello! I have some news I'd like to share. If you have me on my personal socials you may have seen the photos, but this post is to confirm to everyone that I'm engaged!
Guillaume and I have been together for almost 4 years now, and the topic of marriage has come up many times in our relationship. We are both very serious about commitment and had the concept of 'dating to marry' in our minds from early on.
As time passed and we moved in together, faced some challenges and really got to know each other in person (since we dated online for a year!) it just became clear that this was it.
There wasn't a defining event where I suddenly knew I wanted Guillaume to be my husband, but a slow culmination of tiny moments. I found myself writing in my journal countless times that I was so happy and so in love. I have an overwhelming feeling of gratitude that I'm with someone that truly understands me, sometimes better than I know myself.
Here are some shots from the proposal, which took place on December 9th in Dijon!
Guillaume truly pulled out all the stops -- he took me to a park we had frequented while living in Dijon and brought me to a gazebo. It was cold and rainy, but despite the weather he persisted with the big surprise. I wasn't expecting it at all as I was more focused on the water in my shoes. As we walked up o the gazebo, I saw that hidden behind the columns there was a violinist and a photographer. Guillaume gave me a huge bouquet of roses, and proceeded to say the most touching and heartfelt speech.
Last but not least was, of course, my gorgeous ring! It was exactly the ring I'd been dreaming of -- a big heart! We had a full photoshoot despite the rainy weather, and the photographer did such a lovely job (@seymadphotographie on Instagram).
Just when I thought it was over, he revealed we would be staying in a 5 star hotel with my best friend, who he paid full travel expenses for so she could join us for this special day. She stayed with us for a few days after as well, which was the best Christmas gift I could have asked for.
We got sushi for dinner and when I went to bed that evening, I wrote a long journal entry in my notes app, with one of the lines being 'I feel so at peace. It’s like everything just makes sense.'. I'm so excited to begin this new chapter of my life and to be on the road to being 'Mrs. Carbenay'!
The next steps will be to plan the wedding!
My mother is an event planning expert, so I have no doubt it will be the event of a lifetime. We plan to have it in the States, as I have a very large family and it would be way more cost effective to send over Guillaume's side. I also plan to return to the United States this year and begin looking for a full time job.
I think many people feel the same, but 2024 has such a wonderful energy to it, and I think this year will be an incredibly transformative one. There will be a lot of changes -- I'll have to pack up and leave France, Guillaume and I will be apart for a few months while paperwork goes through for him to follow me to the US, and I'll be hopefully stepping into a full time role doing what I researched during my degree. All positive changes, but still a bit intimidating nonetheless!
To finish this post, here are some lovely photos taken by my friend Stacey (@photosbystaceymarie on Instagram) during our New York holiday visit!
I wish all newly engaged couples a big 'Congrats' and to all the friends, family, and Sincerely, Alice readers who have seen this relationship grow from the beginning until now -- thank you and we love you.
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