I met my future wife way back in 1990. We dated for a year, then moved in together. The years went by and everyone kept asking, when are you going to get married? Every holiday, my girlfriend waited and hoped, but never got a ring.

We had started traveling south in 1993 and in 1997 went to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. I had decided before the trip that I would surprise my girlfriend and propose to her. My mom works in a jewelry store and with her help, I got the ring. She was the only one who knew what would take place.

Upon arriving at our hotel we were unpacking. The ring box fell out of my suitcase and onto the floor. Luckily my girlfriend didn’t see it.

Later in the week, we were lucky enough to find an invitation slid under our hotel room door to attend a very special dinner at the upscale restaurant at the resort. It was like it was meant to be. It would be the perfect setting to propose.

The night came and we attended dinner. During dinner I pulled out the ring and asked her to marry me. Of course she immediately said yes.

Two years later, we returned to the very same resort and were married. We are now thinking about going again in 2010 when we will celebrate our 10th anniversary.

- Michael Z., Bridgewater, Nova Scotia

It was on her birthday I decided to take her to a very expensive restaurant. I had it all set up at the restaurant before hand so everyone knew about it but her. We got there and had a seat right next to the fireplace and we had a wonderful dinner. She went to the bathroom after dinner and that was when I got the ring out. When she got back I started to tell her how much I loved her and then I got down on one knee to propose. She thought I fell off my chair at first. She was so excited that she did not even look at the ring she just said yes. Right then and there I knew she was the right person for me and that we would be together forever. It is now 8 years later and we are still going strong. I love her with all my heart and she is life along with our 3 year old daughter now. Thank you for this contest and for me to tell the world how I got my beautiful wife.

- Peter, Kitchener, Ontario

Being a singer/songwriter, I decided that I wanted to write a song for my bride-to-be Vicky and propose to her in public. Her favorite restaurant has a stage where bands play every weekend, so I contacted a couple of bands to see if they would let me propose via song on-stage during one of their breaks. The band and the restaurant both agreed, so a few weeks before the date I told my fiancée that my office was having a drawing for a $50 gift certificate to the restaurant. She was very excited, but of course I downplayed it saying, “Oh, you know there’s no way I’ll win though.” The proposal was scheduled to be on a Friday, so on that Monday I reminded her about the drawing, and then Tuesday told her, “You’re not going to believe this, but I won! Do you want to go this Friday?” She didn’t suspect a thing.

We arrived at the restaurant and were seated directly in front of the stage which turned out to be very loud. She was quite upset that “this is the only place they can find to seat us” because the loud music was giving her a headache, but I convinced her to stay for just a few more minutes, and then at the last song before the band took their break excused myself to the restroom. A waiter from the restaurant grabbed my previously-stashed guitar from the office, and I nervously tuned my instrument in the men’s room while waiting for the break. As soon as I began walking towards the stage my fiancée spotted me and her jaw dropped and she began desperately holding back tears as I played the song I wrote just for her in front of a packed house. As my song ended with “will you marry me”, I climbed from the stage and dropped to one knee and handed her the ring. The audience burst into applause and one guy in the back yelled, “What’d she say?” to which I held up her newly-ringed finger.

- Chris B., Richmond, Virginia

I proposed at our favorite Ice Cream Shoppe. The story actually made regional news headlines appearing in the local paper as well as the State Newspaper. I received a personal letter of congratulations from the Governor of SC, Mark Sanford. He spoke of how he actually proposed to his wife and said my idea was so much more creative than him. Please click on the link to read the entire story.

 
Chris, Rock Hill, South Carolina

It was my 30th Birthday and my fiancée was throwing me a spectacular party. She rented a restaurant and booked a band and invited the whole town. Little did she know that I was planning a proposal party at the same time. The night began with lots of great friends and fellowship. Everyone was having a wonderful time. After the second song, I asked the band for a moment (they were in on the secret) and began thanking everyone for coming out and celebrating this special day with us. I redirected all of my thanks to Jessica, of course explaining to her how special she is to me (she would not stop blowing this little whistle the whole time until I asked her to come up to the stage). She walked up and of course I took a knee. Being that only her parents and my parents with maybe only a few more exceptions did not know about it, the whole room was shocked and crying (including Jessica) Of course when she got it together she said “yes” loud enough for everyone to hear her. Well, that my story!

- Chris S., Batesville, Mississippi

Well me and my fiancée have been together for almost 4 years. Valentine’s day was coming up and I knew I wanted to do something special. I found the ring I wanted. I already made reservations to Skates on the Bay in Berkeley, CA. I stopped by my local Build-a-Bear and made a bear. In the voice recorder in the hand I recorded my own voice saying “Nicole, I love you so much, Will you marry me?” So on Valentines day I got off of work early and went to the restaurant and spoke with the manager, and set everything up so he would deliver the bear to the table after dinner, but before desert. At dinner the manager sat us at a special table right by the window overlooking the SF bay, it was pretty nerve-racking because it was V-day and the place was filled to the T. After dinner along with desert the manager brought the bear. While she was trying to listen to what the bear was saying “it was load in there” it gave the perfect distraction to pull out the ring, and get on one knee and ask her myself. She was so shocked the only answer I got was “OMG are you serious???” After that she said “YES” and everyone cheered and clapped. The couple next to us offered to take a picture. So that’s my engagement story. I like to think its romantic and original. Thank you.

- Ilja P., Concord, California

Story:
My husband took me to a very nice resturaunt on the 27th floor of a high rise looking over the city.  Since I loved taking pictures of the places we go, he asked the waiter to take our picture.  At that moment he asked me to marry him!  I was so surprised!  It was beautiful.

- Emily G., Deltona, Florida

While I had been planning the perfect proposal for about two months, it suddenly hit me one day while surfing the Internet. The theme for it was “Capture this Moment” literally. I had contacted a young gentleman from the Colorado Institute of Art and told him some specifics of what I wanted for the proposal night. It sent him tons of pictures of my girlfriend. It took him about two weeks to complete the painting. I drove an hour and a half to pick it up and afterwards, I dropped it off where we had our first date. We had already made dinner plans for 7:00pm that night. Once I came home I told my then girlfriend, let’s go to the mall and you should let me pick you out something to wear tonight. She was clueless. So I picked her out a nice purple top to wear. We went home got dressed and headed out for dinner. After the appetizer, I signaled the owner of the restaurant to bring out the package. She began to open the large wrapped package to discover an exact painting of her. From the purple top, to the restaurant background, to her exact hairstyle, but there was one difference. She had an engagement ring on her finger! When she looked up I was on one knee asking her to spend forever with me. Now I really “Captured That Moment!!!”

- Carl B., Colorado Springs, Colorado

We both are from Venezuela, I was living in USA and she was living in Mexico, working as a model (she is extremely beautiful!!!). After few months of chatting and phone calls, I went to visit her for a weekend, then went again one month later, this time we went to Cancun and had a great time together. In my 3rd visit/date (one month after), we went to a restaurant. After couple of drinks I pretended going to the restroom and actually went to her car to pick up my guitar. Came back to the table and asked her: “have you ever heard this song?” and started to sing. It was actually a song I wrote for her, and the last words were: “… and for all these reasons, I’m totally sure that you are the person I want to marry”. Then went down on my knee, open the little box with the ring and said: “since I don’t know how to and I can not longer live without you, I want to ask you: will you marry me?”. She said “of course yes” with tears in her eyes, we hugged each other and people around were cheering. I have to confess I cried a little bit too.

- Derwin G., Dallas, Texas

I proposed in Las Vegas.  Besides offering some romantic spots, it would give me an excuse to take my wife back to revisit our engagement destination and give me a chance to hit up the tables.  We went to the top of the Eifel Tower in the Paris hotel.  I was very nervous and just could not get past all the people around us - I did not want to be “that Las Vegas couple.”  Plus, I kept envisioning the ring slipping out of my hand and falling 80 stories below.  So I planned on waiting till after dinner.  The ring was in my coat jacket and I took it off when we were at dinner.  A few drinks made me forget all about it and when my wife asked me for a tissue I told her to go in my jacket pocket.  She pulled out the box, and started crying and it took me a few seconds before I realized what was going on.  She said yes and the tissues came in handy!

- Mike G., Cliffside Park, New Jersey