In February 2010, Lauren and Phillip decided to go on a vacation. Lauren did the research and together they decided on a cruise that would travel from Miami, to Key West, to Cozumel. Lauren arranged the travel agenda and thought that it would be fun to fly first to Orlando to see Phillip's family.

About 5 days prior to their trip, "SNOMAGEDDON" (the largest storm DC had seen in years) arrived. At this point, Phillip and Lauren were still about a week away from their trip. Nervous, Lauren asked friends and family what they thought the weather for the next week would be. Everyone said that the weather would be fine. However, a few days later, round two of SNOWMAGEDDON was set to arrive on the date of Phillip and Lauren's flight. The airlines were preemptivelyrescheduling some flights for free due to the weather. Lauren checked the airline's webpage multiple times a day until she was permitted to change her flight. Lauren and Phillip left for Florida a few days early, and were welcomed by Phillip's family.

The cruise was wonderful. At the beginning of the trip, Phillip told Lauren that he wanted to buy her a massage for Valentines Day. However, the only massage was at 8:30 a.m. Lauren really did not want to get an 8:30 a.m. massage but Phillip really seemed to want to get it for her, so she agreed. During their cruise Lauren and Phillip relaxed at the pool, toured Key West, and took a Tequila tour in Cozumel. After they returned from Cozumel they had a nice dinner. Phillip told Lauren that he would be out getting flowers for Valentines Day while Lauren got her massage.

On Valentines Day Lauren begrudgingly woke up early and walked to her massage. The massage was very relaxing. Afterwards, Lauren decided to go to the gym. Phillip finally texted her to see where she was. When Lauren returned to the room, R.E.M. was playing, there were roses, champagne, and Phillip was dressed in a tuxedo. Phillip brought Lauren over to where he was sitting and told her how much he cared for her. Lauren did the same. Then Phillip proposed and Lauren joyfully responded "yes".

The proposal was not the end of the surprises. The couple then rented a car to take back to Orlando where they spent the last few nights of their trip. Lauren was excited that she would be in Orlando to celebrate Phillip's sister Allison's birthday. After Allison's birthday dinner, Lauren returned to Phillip's dad's house to find a group of people assembled for an engagement party. It was such a nice reception for Phillip and Lauren to return to. Lauren and Phillip got to share their engagement with friends and family. The celebration would continue with Lauren's family when they returned to Baltimore.