Christmas Eve at the Eiffel Tower

The Eiffel Tower sparkling right after dark. I don't have any pictures from Christmas Eve, so these others will have to do!
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So, here's the story of the best night of my life (so far) from my perspective!!

On Christmas Eve we went to the Arc de Triomphe during the day, and then went to the Opera Garnier in the evening to see the ballet, "Paquita".  However, there's a little bit more to the day than that.

First of all, Neal was kind of moody all day--one minute he'd be really cheerful, then kind of snippity the next.  I just ignored it for the most part; I figured he'd get over it, and that he was just jet-lagged.  While we were at the ballet that night, though, during intermission he suggested that we go to the Eiffel Tower after the ballet to see it sparkle (it sparkles on the hour for about fifteen minutes every night after dark).  I thought it was a great idea, but then decided, no, maybe it would be better to see the Avenue des Champs-Elysses all lit up, since it WAS decorated for Christmas.  He seemed kind of reluctant, but he agreed.  Mom, Dad, and Kara thought it was a great idea, so after the ballet we hopped on the metro to the Place de la Concorde JUST in time to see the Eiffel Tower sparkling in the distance.  We made our way up the Champs-Elysses slowly, taking pictures and looking at restaurants to stop in.  We settled for a nice pizza place (yes, REALLY French, I know--nothing but the best for MY family), and sat down to eat.  Neal seemed kind of grumpy again, but I could tell he was making an effort to be cheerful.

The Eiffel Tower glowing in the haze.
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Neal suggested, again, that he and I go to the Eiffel Tower after we were done at the pizza place.  My parents thought that was a good idea, so after we were done, Neal and I walked over to the Eiffel Tower from the Champs-Elysses.  We were crossing the Seine right in front of the Eiffel Tower when it turned Midnight, and the tower started to sparkle!

We walked underneath the tower to the other side, where there are big patches of grass.  We found a path between the first two patches of grass where we stopped so we could see the tower in all it's glory.  Then, all of a sudden, Neal dropped to one knee, pulled a little box from his coat, and opened it--and asked me to marry him!!!  I accepted, of course!

The Eiffel Tower glowing!
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We ended up walking the mile-and-a-half home to find Mom and Kara sitting up waiting for us.  But, Dad had gone to bed, so I couldn't break the news to them (I had the hardest time acting normal and hiding the ring).  Mom had a pretty good idea that Neal was intending to propose then, so she was kind of disappointed when we came home and didn't break any news to them.  But we sat them down the next morning and told them all about it, and Neal asked for my parents' blessing.  If they hadn't given it to us, I'd have ignored them, but I'm glad they approve. :D

The little pink heart shows where Neal proposed... if you notice, the spot is almost directly in the center of a heart that the paths make! He didn't intend that to be the spot because of that, but it worked out nicely, I must say!
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Now, the reason Neal had been kind of grumpy was because he'd been carrying the ring around in his coat all day, and he'd been terrified of getting it pickpocketed.  That, and when Mom started to feel his coat to see how many pockets he had in it, he had to act shifty so she wouldn't find it.  But, it worked out well, and, even though I was pretty much expecting it to happen over break, it was still a big surprise!

We're planning on having the wedding in June of 2009.  We haven't decided where it will be yet (probably either Illinois or Michigan), and renting a hall will determine the exact date.

The ring! It fit perfectly, by the way. :D
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Regardless, I this was the best Christmas I've ever had!!!