I can’t believe it has been FIVE years since Mark and I got engaged in Hawaii! Time has a way of flying by. However, I wanted to start our marriage blog by sharing where it all began, our proposal story.
To be honest, I knew Mark was going to propose in Hawaii. I just didn’t know when or how. At that point, we had been dating for six years, living together, and spoken about marriage. When we decided to take our first big trip as a couple to Maui, I was pretty certain I would come back with a SPARKLY 
on my finger.
While in Maui, we had decided to go to a magic show that my best friend recommended from a previous trip. Mark made the reservations ahead of time. That day, I was exhausted from sightseeing, and I really did not want to dress up. I threw a MAJOR FIT and was determined to wear a tank top and ripped jean shorts. I am actually embarrassed when I look back at it now. Imagine a full toddler break down in the middle of the hotel room. Yes, that was me. Luckily, Mark was able to convince me to put on a black dress, and we were on our way.
When we arrived at the location, there was a man waiting with a sign saying Karina and Mark. At that moment, I thought either this is a really fancy magic show or the moment had finally arrived. We followed him through the hotel courtyard to a beautiful white gazebo with a romantic dinner set up for two.
As we stood under the gazebo, Mark said some words that neither of us can remember due to our overwhelming emotions and nerves. Then, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I believe my exact words were “Uh…yes…duh!” I’m apparently not one with words. All of a sudden two photographers jumped out from behind the bushes. Mark had hired them, and they had been taking pictures from the moment we arrived.
After catching our breath and wiping away the tears, our photographers finished taking pictures of our engagement. We then sat down and enjoyed a beautiful sunset dinner. Did I mention dinner came with a private butler and the food was amazing?! The rest of night we sipped wine, ate delicious food, and celebrated our engagement. At the end of dinner, Mark had one more surprise up his sleeve. At the top of the hotel, there were lights that read M 
K. It was a really wonderful way to end the night.
Mark went all out with our engagement. He customized my engagement ring, coordinated the dinner proposal, and hired photographers to capture our special moment. He definitely made me feel incredibly special, which should not be a surprise considering he has always done that throughout our relationship. Now, he gets to do that for the rest of our lives…JK. Now, we get to do that for EACH OTHER for the rest of our lives.
