The Engagement Scheme

You may have heard the story as it went on the weekend but we thought we’d let you know all about it via our new blog =)

The decoy

Nathan leads Anisia to believe he is going to propose on the Adelaide Cup long weekend (March 8,9,10). Meanwhile, Nathan arranges with Tyson and Rachael Stelzer to pretend they are coming to Adelaide to surprise Ellie and Jordan Saturday 1 March 2008, flight arriving 8:30am. It’s a ‘surprise’ and Anisia is the only on who knows. She feels special. She takes it upon herself to become a super sleuth, keeping track of EllieJordan’s plans for that day and letting Tyson and Rachael know all about it so they can know what to expect when they get here. Anisia even messages both T & R to let them know how excited she is to have them come and visit and how excited and surprised EllieJordan will be to see them.

Nathan lets Anisia know they have an invite for lunch on Sunday so their weekend looks pretty busy…

Anisia plans to wake up at 7:30am for the airport pickup. Nathan arrives at 6:30am, knocking on the front door repeatedly. Ellie opens door, eyes barely open (Jo, you know what I mean). Nathan says to Ellie: “I hope you’ll forgive me for waking you up so early in years to come”…Nathan bursts into Anisia’s room. Anisia tells him to lie down, be quiet and sleep for another hour because he has come way too early. Nathan doesn’t lie down. Anisia tries telling him to lie down again because she is also having difficulty opening her eyes. Nathan repeats Anisia’s name multiple times to ensure he gains her attention and then says: “we’re not picking Tyson and Rachael up. They’re not coming. We are going somewhere and you need to pack x,y,z and you have 1 hour before we have to leave!!”. Anisia wakes up quickly and does what she’s told.

The transport

Anisia and Nathan leave EllieJordan’s with bags in hand: waiting out front is Nathan’s friend Damo (Damien Martin) waiting to drive us to the airport. Nathan gives Anisia a gift and a card: the gift was a bottle of her new favourite fragrance: Beautiful Love…which happens to be the name he calls Anisia…The audience says “aawww….”.

Anisia and Nathan fly to Sydney, Anisia sees the bridge through the aeroplane window and points it out to Nathan. Nathan responds uber-casually so as not to give away any clues “Oh yeah. Cool”…. Anisia is repeatedly excited in her seat and ensures that she lets Nathan know all about it.

Nathan and Anisia catch a taxi. Nathan hands a piece of paper to the taxi driver to let him know where we’d like to be taken. Driver does as he’s told. Nathan and Anisia arrive at their hotel.

The hotel

Nathan has booked one night at the Mercure Hotel in Parramatta. It is fabulous. Both of them are repeatedly excited. They make their way into the main street of Parramatta for lunch at a quiet Italian restaurant where Nathan recommends Anisia eat a lot because dinner will be a long way away (intriguing), and that we only have one glass of wine each (Anisia is disappointed and confused about this…but trusts her man in his plans).

The climb

Nathan and Anisia catch a River Cat into the city. Once again, Anisia points out the Harbour Bridge and notes the climbers making their way up it. Once again, Nathan coolly responds “Oh yeah. Cool”…. Anisia asks him to take photos on his phone as both have forgotten their cameras. Anisia suspects a climb is afoot (!).

They spend some time wandering around The Rocks, looking at the markets and then making their way to the ‘Bridge Climb’. After an especially long ‘toilet break’, Nathan emerges with his suit on and joins the rest of the group.

They position themselves (conveniently) at the back of the group. Anisia is repeatedly excited. She asks Nathan how he’s doing. He is fine. All smiles.

The proposal

Once at the peak, Nathan pulls Anisia aside (she is worried about leaving the pack but Nathan has been given the signal from the climb leader). So he speaks, gets down on his knee and asks Anisia if she will marry him. Anisia says “Yes” and continues to be very excited!

Multiple groups of climbers clap their hands while the climbers in their own group attempt to shake their hands whilst still connected to the bridge by their harnesses.

The ring

A few climbers were concerned about the safety of the ring. Nathan ensured this was not an issue by utilising an Engagement Ring Device (ERD) attached to his wrist. The ring was selected by Anisia and Nathan while they were still in Brisbane (Jan 2008). It was purchased at the same place Nathan’s siblings got their rings (Sean and Yvonne and Aaron and Ali). Highly recommended by all for those of you who may be in the market…

The limo

Upon completing the climb, Nathan ushers Anisia hurriedly through the photo area, purchases photos swiftly and leads her out the front of the building. Waiting for them was a stretch limousine! Inside were two bottles of champagne, personally chosen by Nathan (with thanks to Tyson) in Adelaide and posted to Sydney in preparation for this night. The champagne was opened and well-enjoyed. Nathan asks Anisia if she would like to call anyone and hands her phone back to her (he had taken it away all day in case plans were accidentally leaked by those ‘in the know’).

The parents

Anisia says: “Yes, I’ll call mum and dad!!!”. Anisia calls her parents and excitedly tells them the great news. Anne asks: “Where are you?”. Anisia says: “Sydney”. Anne says: “No way!! We’re in Sydney!!!!”. It takes Anisia and Anne a few moments to realise that they are indeed in the same city and that Kevin and Nathan have schemed this plan together to have them here to celebrate with them. Nathan announces that the limousine will be picking them up shortly!! Anne is beside herself stating: “This is the most exciting thing that’s ever happened to me!”.

The limousine manoeuvres through the mardi gras festivities and makes its way to Anne and Kevin’s hotel to pick them up!! They jump in the limo and more champagne is utilised to celebrate. The limousine driver (Lilly) drives them to some scenic vantage points so they can get a good view of the bridge/take some pics with the icon in the background. They are all excited and can’t believe what a great job Nathan has done scheming this plan.

The siblings

Multiple phone calls are made to the siblings of Anisia and Nathan: Sean, Yvonne, Mark and Cassy in London, Aaron and Ali in Brisbane, Ellie, Jordan, Rikki and Kristin in Adelaide and Cheyne and Mel in Sydney. Anisia and Nathan take great joy in sharing their news =)

The breakfast

Upon reaching their hotel, Nathan gives Anisia another gift: a pair of Peter Alexander pyjama pants adorned with diamond rings: a perfect outfit for the night. Anisia had shown Nathan said pyjamas and hinted at how much she liked them. Nathan picked up on hint and ensured he made the purchase in preparation for the event. He did well.

After sleeping in and enjoying the luxurious room provided to them by the Mercure, they made their way downstairs to enjoy the buffet breakfast. They ate their money’s worth and left.

The aftermath

To finish their weekend, the fiancés made their way back into the city to meet up with Anne, Kevin, Cheyne and Mel for a few hours. They both enjoyed seeing the expectant Mel… Nathan particularly enjoyed meeting Cheyne and Mel for the first time. He is pleased he has now met all of Anisia’s siblings.

They spent the afternoon retracing their footsteps from the day before with the group (minus the Bridge climb) and enjoyed re-telling the story.

The rest of the day/night was spent informing all of their loved on

es about the great event. This blog post plays a role in that process. Anisia and Nathan hope you have enjoyed the ride =)