Propose To My Girlfriend

Air fare is expensive, but there are many ways you can find the lowest price on your airline tickets. Here are some of the best.

Airfare is expensive and getting more so. Recently one airline after another has been announcing fees ranging from baggage charges to airfare surcharges during peak travel periods. That means travelers may end up paying much more than their ticket price when things are all said and done. There are, however, ways around some of this that can help you get the lowest airfare available.

If you’re planning on traveling and proposing to your girlfriend on a trip, that can be a wonderful experience, and give you great memories that will last a lifetime. Obviously flying somewhere can add up in a hurry, and rapidly render that proposal frightfully expensive. You’re in luck though. Below are some ways that you can pinch some pennies and still get to that spot in the sun or on top of the mountain without having to stick out your thumb.

When you fly you spend money on three things; the airfare itself, taxes, and fees. Recently cash strapped airlines have been looking increasingly toward adding fees as a way to add additional revenue. As the worldwide economy sank over the past 24 months, the travel industry was hit especially hard, so the airlines are looking for any cash they can find. Increasingly they are finding it in passenger’s pockets.

First they were hit by dramatically increased fuel prices, followed by a severe cut back in business and personal travel. Traditionally you’d see airlines offering myriad incentives to entice travelers during such periods of reduced passengers. These days though, it is often quite the opposite.

In many cases you won’t even be aware of these fees, as airlines try to use some sleight of hand to make them disappear. In other cases however, they are right in your face, such as the now common practice of charging for carry on luggage. One day in the not too distant future it may be cheaper to bring only a backpack, then go shopping for new clothes at your destination.

Here are some airline fees you should be aware of, just avoiding them will save you money:

Fees for repricing a ticket to take advantage of a lower price on your flight. – Airlines now charge hefty fees to reprice your electronic ticket to take advantage of any fare decrease on your flight. It’s no secret that the ticket price structure is so convoluted there may be 50 different prices on the same flight. In the past it was relatively easy to call and ask them to change the ticket price if their airfare was dropped. They’ll still do it, but you have to pay about a c-note (sometimes far more) for their troubles, so think twice about asking.

Fees for using your frequent flyer miles too close to your travel day. – It’s true, on some airlines you can just walk up to the ticket counter at your local airport and get a ticket with your frequent flyer miles. Southwest, Jet Blue, and Northwest are among these. Hey, with Northwest, on some flights you’ll even get 150 extra miles for free. Most airlines though, will make you pay an extra fee if you try to use frequent flyer miles fewer than 3 days before departure.

Checked Bag Fees – Most U.S. airlines now charge at least $20 for your first checked bag, and more for the second. At last check, United only charged $15 for your first checked bag. But wait, it gets better. If your bag is more than 50lbs, you may have to pay even more than that. In some cases you may be better off to have your stuff shipped to your hotel via UPS. At least then it won’t be lost or rummaged through by Homeland Security or those camcorder thieving baggage handlers (all apologies to the honest baggage handlers).

Talking to a real,  live person on the phone fee – I don’t know what they call it, most likely a customer assistance fee (shouldn’t they assist their customers as part of the ticket price?). It is almost as annoying as Ticketmaster’s “convenience” charges. Most airlines will now charge you between $5 and $20 to actually talk to a non-computer on the telephone when you’re making reservations. To speak to someone in the country in which you’re calling from, add another $1,000.

Bring a snack, as most airlines actually charge, you guessed it, a fee, for that food we all used to complain so much about in the past. We didn’t know how good we had it. Now, at least there are about a million choices for eateries in most major airports, so you can have a bite before you board the aircraft.

Okay, if you manage to avoid all the extraneous fees the airlines want to charge you for using their services, here are some ways to actually save money on your airfare.

Tips for How to Get the Lowest Airfare Available:

1)Don’t travel on holidays. Not only are fares more expensive, it makes you want to gouge your eyes out trying to get through airports on busy holidays. To add insult to the already higher ticket prices many airlines just announced they will be charging fees, known as surcharges, during this holiday season. Once this is standard practice, there’s no telling when it will abate. Likely never.

2)Don’t count on one of the Internet travel services to always get you the best fare. Many times they will, but there are some things they don’t do. One of these is list flights by Southwest Airlines. At last look Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, or LowestFare  all omitted Southwest, one of the lowest priced and highest rated airlines around. If you’re flying for a vacation you plan on which you plan on proposing , you may well want to cash in some frequent flyer miles and go first class, but keep the above advice in mind.

3)Be a bit flexible on your dates. No, I’m not talking about playing twister with the missus, but rather the date you fly. That is easier said than done, especially if you want to have a place to stay when you arrive. Sometimes staying an extra day can net you handsome savings on your airfare. In some cases even enough to pay for an extra night’s hotel. In that case you’d get an extra vacation day almost free.

4) Check all the airports in the area. In many major metro areas, there are several airports serving the general vicinity. For example, if you’re flying into Southern California, you have a choice of John Wayne airport in Orange County, LAX in LA, Burbank in where else, Burbank, Palm Springs, and  SanDiego. Southern California traffic notwithstanding, you can often save a hefty sum by choosing an airport in the area based upon the airfare, rather than it’s proximity to your destination. You may have to drive an extra ½ hour to an hour, but you could pocket some nice change for doing it.

5) Don’t look in only one place to find the lowest airfare. There are many websites that promise you the lowest fare, but not all will have the lowest rate at any given time. Actually there are three different kinds of web sites that supply airfare information.

There are traditional travel sites such as Expedia.com and Orbitz.com. Their business model is set up so that they get a fee in exchange for their services. It’s not much, only about $6 or so. These websites are also known as booking engines.

Most airlines also have their own websites where you can book flights. Sometimes you can get the same flight you found on Orbitz or Expedia and save yourself their fee. However, going through the extra work of looking things up twice seems like quite a bit of hassle to save $6.

Saving the best for last – The third type of website you can look at to find low fares are called aggregators. Aggregators look at many different airlines for their information, similarily to the booking engine sites. The difference is that they rely on on site advertising and affiliate deals with airlines and hotels to make their money. You’ll typically not have to pay any fees for their services. Examples of air fare aggregators include Farechase.com, Sidestep.com, and Kayak.com.

Make sure you go to several different websites before you choose a flight. Only then can you be sure you’re getting the lowest fare to a given destination.

6) If you haven’t joined every frequent flyer club under the sun, do it now. This is especially true if you travel frequently for business. Just because you company pays for your flight doesn’t mean they get the miles. Actually you do, so make sure you get them.

7) If you’re going for an international destination, make sure you check that little anachronism, the travel agent. Yes, they still exist although the Internet has sure thinned the herd. The problem is that many of the overseas airlines don’t make their best deals available to the Internet travel sites. You have to go to an insider to get them. Check online first, but then talk to a travel agent to see if they can get you a lower fare.

Book round trip tickets. You’re probably going to do this anyway, but never use two one way tickets, always get a round trip. It is almost always much less money that two one ways.

9) Depending on where you’re going it may be a good idea to fly into one city, and fly out of a different one. The good news is that some airlines will let you do this free of charge. That is great if you want to do some traveling when you’re at your destination. It will save you from having to go back to your arrival destination to depart.
10) Be flexible about what time of day you fly. Often, only an hour or two one way or the other can save you big money on your ticket. Here’s an example:

A non-stop flight on Delta Airlines from Seattle to Atlanta and back departing Seattle at 6:00am or 11:56am costs $461 as I write this. Leave at 7:10 instead of 6:00am and that extra hour of sleep will set you back $160.00! The flight at 7:10 is $621. Leave at 9:10 and it’s another $20 more. But wait, you’re also taking your girlfriend, so it’s really going to cost you and extra $320 or $360. The moral is: check all the times for the day you’d like to depart.

For some real insider secrets from an ex-airline employee to help make sure you get the lowest airfares check out: Insider’s Secret Guide to Getting the Lowest Airfare

If you’re planing on a proposal vacation, make sure you do your due diligence. A little bit of time spent up front can help make sure you get the lowest airfare available.

Proposing at Sunset in La Jolla is certainly romantic.

Here is another in the series of romantic ways to propose to your girlfriend. This post is a continuation of last week’s where I shared the first of the three best stories I’ve received recently on romantic proposals. Here is the second.

“We were on a 2-week vacation together in San Diego. I’d been with my girlfriend, Heather for about 3 years, although it seemed like we’d known each other our whole lives. I thought before we left that I might propose to her on our trip. I wanted to, but I’d been really busy at work for months wrapping up an important project, and hadn’t the time to plan anything. She made most of the arrangements for our vacation, and I couldn’t very well have her make the arrangements for the proposal too, could I?

The day before we left I talked with some of the friends we were going to meet there and got some ideas, then spent a few hours on the Internet to fill things out even more. I wanted to propose to her in a very special way, but it’s tough to put something like that together in such a short time frame, but I was determined.

I’d gotten the ring months ago, in anticipation of the time when I’d propose to her. I made sure it was packed about g times, just in case I’d forgotten it somehow. I knew exactly what Heather wanted, because we’d done a bit of browsing in a few different jewelery stores. I ordered it off the Internet to save some money (and help pay for our vacation). It was pretty safe to say that she probably had an inkling that I was going to ask her to get married at some point, because we had talked about it, and looked at rings together.

I was pretty determined to keep it a surprise however, so I hadn’t mentioned anything about marriage or weddings for about 2 months before we left. I found out later that she hadn’t forgotten a thing, and was hoping I’d ask her during our trip. As it turned out, she was still kind of surprised, though.

We got to San Diego on a Saturday. We both had quite a few friends there, since she had gone to college there, and I had a couple of close friends who had. Plus, my brother had been there for 4 years in the Navy. Between the three of them, I’d gone there quite a few times. It was kind of funny that Heather and I actually met through our work in New York, though. It’s about as far away from San Diego as you can get, in more ways than one.

The first couple of days we spent hanging out at the beach and going to open air restaurants. We were generally soaking up the sun and getting the New York winter our of our systems. It felt great, because it seems like it takes a while for that east coast, cold to the bone feeling to go away.

The forth day, she went off to spend the day with her friends, and I spent the day formulating a plan of attack. I was more sure than ever that I wanted to marry her, and that this trip was the perfect time to propose to her. After some checking around I found the perfect place to propose, Scripps Park in La Jolla. I took a drive there and my sources were right on the money, it was perfect.

I had to work fast, but I’m a project manager, so it comes naturally to pull all the aspects of a project together. This one was just more important than most.

I hired a 2 piece band (okay, so it was only a couple with guitars, but they were very good) to play at the spot where I planned to ask her, which had the most spectacular view of La Jolla Cove and the beach, with the waves breaking over the rocks.

I told her we were going for a picnic there, which I actually prepared and packed in a proper picnic basket. We went to the park, but we had to park on the street about 2 blocks away and walk in, because there is really not much parking at the park itself.

Once we got there, we went for a romantic walk over looking the ocean. As the sun started to drop toward the horizon, I suggested we have our picnic dinner, which I’d packed. We got to the spot and I spread everything out. We started to eat, and the band came over and began to play some relaxing guitar melodies. Heather was kind of surprised, but she thought that they were just one of those bands that goes around and plays for money at the park.

They began to play her favorite song, Angel by Sarah McLachlan. The woman was an excellent singer, actually. I took a bouquet of roses from the picnic basket and gave the roses to her, one at a time. With each flower I told her a reason why I loved her so much, and why she was to woman for me. As the song was finishing, I got on my knee (I had to actually get up, rather than down, as we were already sitting), pulled out the ring, and gave it to her as I asked her to marry me.

She was overcome, and started crying, but she did manage to say yes through all the tears. It was very romantic. The sun was setting, and the orange / red was painting the sky and the few clouds on the horizon. The band was playing, and she was holding the roses. Her ring was sparkling in the sunset.

We’ve been married for 8 years now, and I don’t regret a single one.”

Alan P – New York, NY

What I like about Alan’s proposal is that it was simple, yet very romantic and tied all the elements together nicely. It proves you don’t have to spend a fortune to give her the romantic proposal she wants. The one rose at a time, while giving her a different reason he loves her was a very nice touch. Music is a very powerful, emotional experience, and having the band playing her favorite song was great. Now, whenever she hears that song, it will remind her of her marriage proposal.

You can find romantic ways to propose to your girlfriend, you just have to think about who she is, and what she likes.

When asked what they’re looking for in a proposal, many men give the same answer “Romantic ways to propose to my girlfriend.” Obviously, many men don’t have that strong, romantic streak that let them find those on their own. Many guys just aren’t wired that way. And even guys that are romantic could use a little inspiration or some fresh ideas once in a while.

What is romance, anyway? Is it like the Edwin Meese porn definition from the ’70′s; I’ll know it when I see it? Well in a way that’s true. You also have to take your girlfriend’s personality into account. When some women would consider hugely romantic, will barely move the meter for others.

Here are some dictionary definitions of romance:

“of, pertaining to, or of the nature of romance; characteristic or suggestive of the world of romance: a romantic adventure “

or maybe this one:

“fanciful; impractical; unrealistic: romantic ideas “
or
“imbued with or dominated by idealism, a desire for adventure, chivalry, etc “

None of those romance definitions really embody the spirit of when it is to be romantic for your gal. I like these better:
“characterized by a preoccupation with love or by the idealizing of love or one’s beloved “ although that could also apply to a celebrity stalker, I suppose. That being the case, these two are the ones that define romance best when it comes to proposals:
“displaying or expressing love or strong affection “
“ardent; passionate; fervent “

So, how can you be ardent, passionate, or fervent when displaying or expressing love or strong affection for your girlfriend as you propose to her? Thought you’d never ask………..

The following romantic ways to propose were left by various people. I’ve chosen the three that best fit what a romantic proposal should be. They are great examples of romance, and sure worked great for the guys that used them. See if you can find one that you think would be the perfect fit for proposing to your girlfriend. I’ve posted the first today, and the other two will be in my next post.

“I’d been dating my now wife Sherry for over 2 years when I proposed to her. I knew she was the perfect woman for me, and we’d talked about marriage a bit in the abstract, but never as it pertained to us, really. I was sure she had the same feelings for me that I did for her, though, so I decided it was time to ask her the big question.

I didn’t want to do the same old thing when I proposed that many of my friends did when they asked their girlfriends to get married. You know, the restaurant, bottle of good wine, table in the corner thing. I had bigger plans in mind for mine. I wanted to really sweep her off her feet. After all I was only going to do this one time in my life, and I wanted it to reflect how much I loved her and what she meant to me.

She really loves flowers (deep down, what girl doesn’t, I suppose?) so I wanted to use them somehow. She’s a big time family girl. Her family is really important to her, and she is really close to them. Thankfully, I love her family too. I knew that she’d really appreciate it if they were involved in the whole thing.

Here’s what I ended up doing for my proposal. I set up a family get together, with her mom and dad, both sets of grandparents, her sister and her family, three of her cousins and their families, her aunt and uncle, and her two brothers. We always got together with her immediate family, so I could do this without arousing suspicion, which is important, because I really wanted to surprise her in a big way. I guess I kind of went overboard, but me asking her to marry me was the last thing she expected that day, so it worked out great.

I set up our get together in a local park with a really nice rose and flower garden. We were surrounded by roses on three sides. It was really beautiful, and smelled fantastic. There were a few too many bees, but it just fed into the “Birds and the Bees” theme of the day.

I have a really nice portable stereo with an iPOD hook up that sounds fantastic, so I put a bunch of her favorite music on my iPOD and played it throughout the day. She even commented about how many of her favorite songs were playing, but never put two and two together that it meant something else was going on.

For dinner, I had her favorite food catered in. I would have just had a nice barbecue, but I wanted to do something extra special for her that day. She loves Bouillabaisse, so I had a restaurant that makes great Bouillabaisse bring us a huge pot of it for everyone. It was kind of casual, but special at the same time.

We had a really great day there with her family. After dinner, I stood up and got everybody’s attention. I had Sherry come over in front of a fantastic rose bush, where I was standing. I took her hand, looked into her eyes, and told her how important she was to me, why I loved her, and why she was the only woman for me. I got down on my knee, pulled the ring from my pocket, and slipped it on her finger.

She was shaking like a leaf, and tears were welling up in her eyes. She said yes, and gave me a great kiss and huge hug. I pulled out a bouquet of roses from the bush, where I’d hidden it before, and gave it to her. The whole family was cheering and crying. It was a pretty amazing experience. “

Jeff J. – Spokane, WA

What I like about Jeff’s proposal is the way he really surprised her with the proposal, and that he incorporated so many things that she liked and were important to her in it. He had her family there, played her favorite music, and even brought in her favorite food. Having it in a park surrounded by flowers was the perfect setting. Even better was that it wasn’t super expensive. He probably spent quite a bit less than if he would have taken her out to a really nice restaurant for dinner and a bottle of wine.

It shows that if you try, and think about what is important to your girlfriend, you can propose to her in an extremely romantic way without having to spend huge amounts of money or leaving town. Best of all, she will be really happy.

There are so many ways to propose to a girl. Talking a romantic walk on the beach is an old standby, but there are thousands more. With some though, you'll find the perfect way to propose to your girlfriend.

If you’re worried about how to propose to your girlfriend, loosen up a bit. There are millions of ways to propose to a girl, and I’ve posted dozens of them here in previous posts to give you some inspiration. Just in case none of those proposals were exactly what you were looking for, here are some more proposal stories that just might give you exactly what you’ve been looking for. Note that these are ways to propose to a girl that really worked, as told by the girls themselves. Listen and learn.

“We were in my boyfriend’s home town for a long weekend. It’s one of those small towns in the south where everyone knows each other and it has just so much charm. Anyway, we were walking down by the river, talking about where the world was going, our careers (we both just graduated from college last year), and our future.

We had talked about marriage before, and I thought he might ask me to marry him at some point, but I sure wasn’t thinking he was going to that day. The river walk is so scenic and tranquil. It’s such a change of pace from Atlanta, where we live. I really feel peaceful and relaxed there, and I guess Michael knows that. We walked for a while, then he led me off the river trail through some woods. We emerged into a beautiful rose garden. I didn’t even know there was such a nice rose garden in his town.

All of a sudden he was talking about how much he loved me, and why I was the perfect girl for him. He always says nice, sweet things to me, but I was kind of in shock as he got down on one knee and looked  into my eyes. He pulled a ring box from his pocket and opened it. It was all kind of happening in slow motion, but really fast at the same time. It was almost like it was happening to someone else, as he proposed to me, right there in the garden.

I managed to spit out a yes, and he stood up and gave me the most passionate kiss. It was so romantic, there amid all the roses. That was 4 years ago, and I haven’t regretted it a day since.”

Holly J – Atlanta, GA

“My boyfriend Jon and I were just out for a trip to Costco in Astoria, OR. Astoria is a great little town in Oregon, right at the mouth of the Columbia River. It has even gotten some write ups in big magazines so more people know about it now. We go into town about once a month, because they have a Costco and some other stores where we can stock up.

Well, one thing they have is this tower in a park on the top of Coxcomb Hill hill they call the Astor column. It is just that, a column that has a spiral staircase inside that leads to the top. It’s pretty old, and has murals painted all over it about Oregon’s history and stuff. The view from the top is so amazing. You can see forever, it seems like. It’s over 100 feet high.

We climbed the stairs to the top, and got out onto the observation deck. It was so gorgeous and sunny. There is a great view of the bridge and you can see all the way out to the Pacific Ocean. It’s so romantic! We got up there and we were just enjoying the view, or so I thought. The next thing I knew, he was taking my hand, and kneeling down. He said how much he loved me and that he loved all the little things about me. I thought Oh my god, he is asking me to marry him! I  had been waiting for this for so long. Of course I said yes. All the people at the top of the column were smiling and clapping. It was so cool.

I barely even remember the climb down all those stairs to the bottom of the column. Now I know what people means when they say they’re floating on a cloud.”

Michelle P. – Astoria, OR

“My boyfriend Charles and I had been going out for about 6 years before he proposed to me. I was beginning to think it was never going to happen, but when he finally proposed, it was definitely worth the wait. We were on vacation in Miami, when he did it. I found out later that he planned our whole vacation around the proposal, but at the time it was such a surprise and seemed like a spur of the moment thing, except for the ring.

First, we slept in and had a delightful late breakfast at a place called the Puerto Sagua in Miami Beach. It was really fun, the food was fantastic, and it set the pace for the whole day. We went for a nice stroll on the beach and dipped our toes in the sand and sea. After freezing our behinds off all winter in Minneapolis, it was so nice to be warm for a change.

After our stroll on the beach, we went on a boat with some friends on Biscayne Bay. We ate on their boat while enjoying the salt air and ocean views. The six of us split a couple of bottles of very nice wine. I thought C was acting a bit strange, but chalked that up to the travel and being on out on a boat. Little did I know then that he something else on his mind.

For dinner we went to a restaurant called Baleen in Coconut Grove. If I knew how much it cost before we went there, I would have probably protested, but he was paying for it, and I didn’t know how much it was until later. It was so romantic, though! We were right on the water. Not only that, but it was the best food I’ve ever eaten. I love seafood, and being pretty well landlocked, we don’t get much from the ocean. I know they fly it in, but somehow it’s not the same as getting it right next to the water.

We were enjoying the view out to the water, there were these little tiki torches all around, and it made for great ambiance. I was kind of lost in a reverie after the excellent dinner, when C started talking about our future, and where were going together. All of a sudden he started talking about how special I was to him, and how he couldn’t bear the though of not spending our lives together.

I couldn’t believe it! He was proposing to me, after 6 years. By then, he was down on his knee on the floor, and was handing me the most fantastic diamond ring I had ever seen. It looked huge, and the way it was reflecting the light was mesmerizing. I couldn’t say yes fast enough. The whole day had been so romantic, and the evening topped the whole thing off.

He really surprised me, what with all the day’s activity and everything. I was having so much fun, and felt so in love and close to him that day. It was the perfect ending to a perfect day.”

- Maholia S, Minneapolis, MN

Use the way these guys proposed to their girls as inspiration, or just pick a few ideas from them. You’ll notice the proposals had some things in common.

1) Their girls were surprised by them. – Women note that surprise is a big element to a successful proposal. Even if you’ve discussed marriage with her, make sure that when you actually propose, you do it in such a way that she’s not expecting at the time.

2) They were filled with romance. It’s true, most women love romance, especially in their proposals.

3) Every proposal is different. There is no “One perfect proposal” for every girl. Your girlfriend is unique and so should her proposal be.

Discover more about how to propose to a girl, check out my previous post on ways to propose marriage.

Stowe was one of the romantic locations guys used to propose. Location is only one of the improtant ingredients. Here are some great ideas for you to use.

If you’re about to propose to your girlfriend, coming up with a proposal that’ll just knock her socks off and leave her in tears, barely able to utter a “yes” is the goal. It is however, easier said than done. In one recent survey, about three fourths of women were not completely satisfied with the way their husbands proposed to them. With that in mind, here are some great marriage proposal ideas that men really used when popping the question. Needless to say, their girlfriends were among the 25% that were satisfied!

Julie B – Los Angeles, CA
“When my husband proposed to me, it was after one of our frequent walks on the beach. Not only was it romantic, but since we often did this, I really didn’t suspect a thing. Not only that, but it was two days before Christmas, so when he pulled a large box from the trunk of his car, I just though it was an early Christmas present, something he’d done on previous Christmases.

I opened the box, only to find that it was full of those messy, shredded packing materials. It contained a smaller box. After about 3 of these, I was starting to really wonder what the heck he was up to, and frankly I was curious with just a hint of annoyance. After I opened the last one, there was a really cute, stuffed, teddy bear holding a really small box.

Now I was excited! I opened the small box with my trembling fingers, thinking he had given me a nice piece of jewelry for Christmas. When I opened the small box, there was a ring box inside that contained the nicest diamond engagement ring I had ever seen. When I opened the ring box, he got down on one knee and proposed to me. I was overwhelmed, and of course I said “yes”!”

Sammy A. – Omaha, NB
“I work in a large insurance office, where every cubicle is pretty much like all the rest. My (Now) fiancée, was in the habit of sending me a nice bouquet of flowers every Friday at lunch time. One Friday, no flowers came, and I was kind of surprised, but I figured something must have gone wrong with the delivery truck or something. I was really busy, so after lunch I soon put the whole no flowers thing behind me and got back to work. The day went by pretty fast, and soon it was over. After work, I walked back to my car with a couple of coworkers to begin the long awaited weekend.

I was shocked to find that my entire car was filled to the brim with red rose petals! It was unbelievable. As I started cleaning out all the roses, I found a small box tied to my seat. Inside was a ring and the most beautiful proposal letter I have ever read. Just then, my boyfriend drove around the corner, jumped out of the car, got down on his knee, and proposed to me in front of my shocked coworkers. Did I say yes? Of course I did, and we’re getting married in June. Yes, he did help me clean out the rest of the rose petals from my car.”

Michelle R. – Denver, CO
“My (now) husband Mike has never been the overly romantic type. That’s fine with me, I don’t think too many guys are. One thing we share is a love of the Broncos. My dad has had season tickets since the 70′s, and our family always went to the games when I was growing up, so I have a lot of great memories attached to the team. I know most guys would kill to have a wife that loves football as much as I do, but I guess he’s just lucky. I actually met him in college at CSU at a football game. We have Broncos season tickets, and he’s had them for years, long before he met me.

Well, we were going to a game in December against the Dolphins. It was cold, as you’d expect in Denver in December, but the game was amazing. It seesawed back and forth, with Miami taking the lead at the beginning. In the 2nd quarter, Miami’s Sammy Morris ran in for an 11 yard touchdown to give the Dolphins the lead, 14 – 7. I was pretty mad about it. After Mile High calmed down a bit and we had the ball back, I looked in our game program to find out who this Morris guy was.

I still don’t know how he did it, but right there, laminated to the Sammy Morris program page, was a really touching note that ended “My Darling Michelle, will you marry me?” I mean, Morris wasn’t even a Dolphins starter. I guess Mike knew not to put my proposal on a Bronco’s player’s page because I pretty much knew all of them by heart and wouldn’t have a reason to look there. That’s another reason I love him, he’s always thinking ahead.

At the end of the game, the Broncos had a hard fought 20-17 win, and I had a new fiancée! Who could  have asked for anything more?”

Cathy C -
Boston, MA
“My husband is so romantic. He proposed to me during a ski trip at Stowe a few years ago. We were out for a stroll after a fantastic day of skiing. There was a light snow falling, the air was cold and crisp, and I was feeling just a little tipsy from a combination of the altitude, the day’s skiing, and the 2 glasses of wine I’d had with dinner. His strong arms were around me, and I felt so warm and safe. We were walking along Main Street in Stowe and stopped to look in the window of Ferro, one of my favorite jewelery stores.  We had discussed  marriage a few times in the past, and even talked about what kind of ring I liked. They close pretty early, so we were just gazing through the window, and I saw a ring a lot like the one I wanted for an engagement ring.

I mentioned it to him, but I don’t remember exactly what I said, because at that moment, he pulled a box from his pocket. He opened it up, and there was a ring that looked almost like the one we were looking at, but if anything, it was even more beautiful! There were were, standing under the awning, with snow falling all around us, and he was down on his knee, slipping a ring on my finger. I was completely overcome. I’d been hoping for this moment for months, but was completely unprepared for it. It was the best day of my life except the day we actually got married, and the day our daughter was born.

It turned out he’d been planning this for quite a while, He bought the ring at that store and even talked to them about putting a similar ring in the display case so he could be sure we would see it when we looked in”

Those are just a few of the great marriage proposal ideas I’ve received here. I relayed some others in my post on cool ways to propose. If you have some great stories that you think would give other guys an idea that would save their butt, please leave it the comments section.

Although pink diamond engagement rings have been bestowed upon women for centuries, the pink stone has recently been gaining in popularity. England’s Queen Elizabeth 2nd received a huge, pink diamond for her wedding over 50 years ago, but more recently such celebs as Jennifer Lopez, Mariah Carey, Victoria Beckam, Nicole Kidman, Vivica Fox, and Salma Hayek have all either received pink diamond engagement rings, or enjoyed wearing other pink diamond jewelery.

Why is the pink diamond so prized as an engagement ring stone? First of all, pink diamonds are among the most rare diamonds. A natural, pink diamond costs 10 – 30 times more than a white diamond of similar quality. They come from only a few mines in the world, and are mined in much smaller quantities than traditional clear or light yellow diamonds. Their rarity alone makes them attractive as a symbol of rare love. Then there is the color; pink. Pink is not only a color that many women love, it has implications regarding love and romance. A rare, pink stone would be perfect as a symbol of everlasting love, such as an engagement ring.

Where do pink diamonds come from? The primary source of pink diamonds is the Rio Tinto Group’s Argyle Diamond mine in northern Australia. Over 90% of the world’s pink diamonds are sourced from this mine.

If you’re looking for a pink diamond for your girlfriend’s ring though, chances are it will come from a different source, because while the Argyle supplies the world with much if it’s pink diamonds, most of them are not high quality gemstones. This is not a hard and fast rule however, as there have been some spectacular pink diamonds taken from the Argyle, including a 3.14 carat round pink diamond sold at Christies Auctions in New York for over $1.5 million in 1989. Today that stone would be worth much more. Indeed, while most of the stones from the Argyle mine are not superior quality, their pink diamonds that are gem quality are the best in the world.

The reason the few pink diamonds from the Argyle that are classified as high quality gemstones have such stratospheric values is because of their intense, pink hues. Most pink diamonds tend to be a bit more subdued in color. The pink diamonds from mines in Brazil, Africa, and India come from geological formations called kimberlite plates, while those from the Argyle are a different type of geological feature, called lamproite. It is thought that this difference accounts for the Argyle’s more intense pink stones.

How can you find your girlfriend a pink diamond engagement ring? The Natural Color Diamond Association (NCDIA) is an industry association that, appropriately enough, deals with naturally colored diamonds. There are approximately 55 jewelers that are NCDIA members worldwide. Most of these are in the U.S., although there are also jewelers in Australia, Canada, the Middle East, and the U.K. You can also check your local jeweler for pink diamonds. Most of the pink diamond engagement rings you would have custom made, although you can find rings with the stones already made if you look.

If you’re looking for a way to get a ring that is extra special, a pink diamond engagement ring has a lot going for it. It really says something, and your you know her friends won’t have a ring anything like it!

If you want to build your girlfriend her very own ring, and save up to 70% while doing it, check out this really cool engagement ring configurator. It’s just like the kind you’ll find at the car company’s sites, where you can build your own car, but with engagement rings. You can choose the diamond and the setting you want from among thousands. There are great filter options, so you can narrow it down to what you really want, and not have to wade through every different selection in their catalog.
Check it here:
Build Your Own Ring

You may have asked the question “How do I know if my girlfriend loves me?” You may think you know, but if you are head over heels in love with her, and you are contemplating proposing to her, you should be to be 100% sure.  So, what can you do if you have any doubts about her true feelings for you?

Well it really depends on the state of your relationship. Here are some questions to ask yourself. Has she told you she loves you? How long have you been dating? How much time do the two of you spend together? Are you joined at the proverbial hip? Do you have the same values and enjoy doing many of the same things together? Do you make her laugh? Answering “yes” to these questions is a good sign that she loves you, but doesn’t mean for sure she does.

If you have reason to think that she may not love you there are some things you can do to find out. If you are the dotting type that is always paying close attention to her, telling her you love her, and buying her flowers, try giving her a bit of space. Don’t come right out and say “I’m going to give you some space.” Just ease off a bit. If you have been going overboard with the show of affection, you may be just piling on too much of a good thing. Spend a bit more time with your friends and pursuing some of your own interest for a while. If she really loves you, this will probably make her take a bit more interest in your relationship.

Here is a definition of love for you to consider:
“When you are more concerned with someone else’s happiness, well-being, future and life than even your own, you’re in love.”

Does this sound like how she feels about you? Do her actions show she feels about you this way? Is she kind and considerate towards you, or does she seem to take you for granted?

Does she cook for you? How about slaving away in a hot kitchen creating your favorite meal?

Does she do nice things for you that are out of her way, difficult, or expensive? She likely wouldn’t put herself through that if she wasn’t in love with you. If you are thinking about asking her to marry you, you should be in a relationship where those kinds of things are a regular occurrence.

You can always ask, but that can seem needy, and you really shouldn’t have to. Besides, her actions speak louder than words anyway. Watch what she does, how she acts, and look at her facial expressions when she looks at you. If you’re sure she does love you and you are ready to propose, look through the archives and other posts here for exactly what to say when you propose to her, ways to propose, how to save money on your engagement ring, and great places to propose. Good luck!

If you’re going to get engaged there is almost no way around doing some ring shopping, and in most cases you’ll be choosing a diamond for your girlfriend’s engagement ring. Through a nifty bit of marketing by the De Beers family of companies, most people choose diamonds for their engagement rings throughout the western world.

As an aside, Cecil Rhodes, the founder of De Beers, started out just renting pumps to the diamond mines. He grew his little operation, invested in the mines he was supplying the pumps to, and ended up owning all the diamond production facilities in the nation of South Africa. That’s a bit of shrewd investing.

A few months back, I posted on choosing a diamond for her engagement ring, and discussed the 4Cs of a diamond. These are it’s color, cut, clarity, and carat weight.

Here is more about how to choose the right diamond, so you can walk into a jewelery store without that “deer in a headlights” look or browse an online jeweler and know more about what you are looking for. Remember, you can get a great diamond for her ring without spending so much for it, if you have a bit more knowledge.

Different Diamond Cuts
Many people confuse diamond cut with it’s shape, and I discussed this a bit in my earlier post on how to choose a diamond for your girlfriends engagement ring. The cut is actually the angle and shape of the facets. Here are some of the more popular cuts, so you can actually see what they look like.

Diamond Shape
Again, this is sometimes confused with the diamond’s cut, but it is actually just what it sound’s like, the overall shape of the stone, as described by it’s outline. Here are some pictures of the more popular shapes:

Here are some of the more popular diamond shapes. Your girlfriend probably has a favorite already. Your job is to find out what it is.

Diamond Ideal Cut Proportions:

Notice how the permissible variation in tolerances for the cut decrease with quality level.

Why are the angles of a diamond cut so important?

The various cut angles determine how the stone will reflect light. That’s what gives a diamond it famous “fire” qualities that are so prized. Without these, diamonds would just be a really cool glass cutter.

If the cuts are outside the ideal angles, your girlfriend’s diamond will not have the brilliance through the sides and bottom that you want. That is because it will lose light as the light is refracted, or bent, as it goes through the diamond. The angle of the cut helps determine how which direction the light exits. The angle must be just right, and each facet angle must be consistent in order to get the brilliant diamond that most people want. That ensures the diamond has that same fire and brilliance from any side.

Here you can see why the angle of the cut is so important. The arrow represents light entering the diamond. You can see how an improper cut angle lets light “leak” out of the stone, rather than sending it back to your eye.

Look at how the cut angle affects the light path through a diamond.

Hopefully you can use this info to help pick out the diamond your girlfriend deserves. Check out my post on how to find and affordable engagement ring for strategies that can save you big money on your ring, but still get the spectacular ring she wants.