Claire & Sam – OU Campus Proposal – Norman OK

How the heck do you even begin to write the blog post for your BEST FRIEND’S PROPOSAL!?! Claire has been my best friend since day 1 at OU. I remember “meeting” her in the dorms during sorority recruitment – she knew EXACTLY who I was. If you know Claire, it’s no surprise to you that she remembered my name and where she knew me from (she has a memory like a steel trap). Turns out, we had been campers at Kanakuk together and were in the same teepee when we were little kids! We both somehow ended up at OU, pledged Theta, and the rest was history. Getting to play such a big role in this day was an honor. She has faithfully and loyally walked through everything with me in my adult life and the fact that I got to be there for this huge day in her life was HUGE!

Because of how big of a moment this is, I never want the proposals I shoot to be about me or about my perspective. That being said, the best way to share their story is through Sam’s point of view! Scroll down throughout the images to see all of the sweet (and hilarious) things he had to say!:

Claire and I first met when we were going to be counselors at a summer camp for kids with special needs. We instantly hit it off as friends. I thought she was awesome and I loved spending that time with her. She was funny and actually laughed at my jokes. At some point, we exchanged phone numbers, and the first text she ever sent me was smiley face :). We played Words with Friends a lot after that, awkwardly flirting in the chat. We continued to be friends until sometime in the spring of my sophomore, her junior year, where we flirted hardcore at an AP Test prep event like the nerds we are. There was supposed to be someone sitting between us (Painter->Parker) but he didn’t show up. So there Claire was, in her sundress and vans, looking fine as hell. After that I definitely liked her liked her.

Our first date was a double date with our friends Trey and Emma. We went to Rodney’s Pizza in Purcell (no longer in business), and then went to Iron Man 2 at the formerly Warren Theater. We hadn’t held hands or anything before the date, so I knew during the movie I wanted to make my move. Believe it or not, I am not very smooth, and I had zero clue how I was going to make that happen. Eventually, I just kind of looked at her and put my open hand next to hers. I’m still embarrassed about it to this day. But I did something right since she wants to marry me now. When I took Claire home, we sat in my car outside her house talking. Earlier, before we were dating, she said I could ask her anything. I thought I was so clever to reference that, by saying “Do you remember when you said I could ask you anything?” before I asked her out (I also thought I was being clever when I used that line to ask her to marry me). She said yes in about .3 milliseconds. We had an awkward moment when I tried to ask to walk her to the door, and she said she actually was going in the garage door. I kept my cool, adapted, and overcame that hurdle by quickly asking to walk her to the garage door. After we walked to the garage door, we shared the shortest kiss in human history. The nervousness was palpable.

I can’t pick one thing about Claire that I love more than any other part of her. I love who she is completely and fully. A large part of why love her is how much she spreads the love of Christ through the way she interacts with other people. She is a constant scatterjoy who lights up rooms. I love the way she approaches her life and how much effort she put into caring for others. She is also sooooooooooooooo pretty.

I proposed to Claire under a covered area in the courtyard of the OU Union. I had a table with pictures, flowers, a bible with her new name on it, a letter, and the ring. I took her to the bible and we read a passage from Ephesians 5:25-33. Then I tried to tell her how much I loved her but I really can’t remember what I said. After that I got on a knee and she said yes. The ring is definitely significant. The band I picked out with the help of her mom, and her uncle who works at Mitchell’s Jewelry. They both really helped me out because I know nothing about engagement rings. The diamond in the ring belonged to my great grandma. My mom really wanted Claire to have it, so she could continue the tradition of strong women in my family.

We celebrated by having some quality time with our close family at her parent’s house. It was awesome to bring our families together and celebrate like that. Then I surprised her with a party of our close friends. My favorite part of the day was walking into her parent’s house and seeing how happy everyone was. There was nothing but pure joy in that room.

For more OU Campus proposals, click HERE!