Here are some proposals that were caught on video. Would it be easier to propose to your girlfriend if you could see some other guys do it first? It’s not too often that we’re in a place where we get to see another guy proposing to his gal. It would be nice. You could take notes, figure out what he did right, and what mistakes you might want to avoid in you own proposal. To that end, I’ve put together a little video proposal compilation where you can watch someone go through what you’re going to be doing soon. Maybe you’ll get some ideas for your own proposal. Enjoy!

TV weatherman proposes to his TV anchor girlfriend on live TV

Tim Tebow proposes to his girlfriend while dozens look on and cheer

A guy proposes to his girlfriend on the set of scrubs with some help from a couple of the cast members. She’s on the crew, and they set her up perfectly. A great proposal.

Maybe you want a couple of proposals where neither of the participants are in show business or athletics. Makes sense, since most guys aren’t. Here are a couple more videos, then:

If you’re in the military, you’ve got a damn tough job, but this guy proves some warriors can be sensitive, too!

If you want to propose at Christmas time with the family, you could do what this guy did:

You can propose to your girlfriend anywhere you'd like, but make sure it's somewhere that she thinks is special. Remember it is her proposal, not so much yours.

After reading so many proposal stories that get sent in you’d think I would be immune, but it never ceases to amaze me the lengths some guys will go to make sure their proposal is memorable. Here is a great one…..

“We have been very happily married for about 7 years now, but here is how I asked her to be my wife. Jenn and I had been dating for just about 3 years, and I was finally realizing that she was the woman I wanted to marry. We’d met when we were both finishing up our senior year of college, and hit it off instantly. There was definitely a heck of a spark right off the bat, but I wasn’t ready to settle down yet and she wasn’t either. There were too many things in the way that could have derailed our whole relationship.

My senior year I had an advertising internship in New York that took up most of the first semester, so I wasn’t around campus very much. She was finishing up a double major in finance and marketing, so she was pretty busy herself. Despite our busy schedules, we still new there was something special going on. I had my share of girlfriends, both serious and the few-weeks-of-fun variety, and I knew instantly that this would be different. Thankfully, she felt exactly the same way.

We both moved to New York after graduation and settled into a schedule that only a medical intern could love. It was brutal for both of us, and we didn’t see each other nearly as much as we’d have liked, but you know what they say “Absence makes the heart grow fonder. ”Thankfully for us, it was definitely true.

Between going to Yankee games with the guys (in the company seats), entertaining clients 2 or 3 nights a week, working out, and watching the Jets play in the winter, it was a wonder I had any time left for Jenn, but she was working so much then; even more than I was. When I was away from her and having a great time, she was still always on my mind in a big way. No matter how much fun I was having (and I had quite a bit), I always thought the time would have been much better spent if she was there, or I was with her somewhere else.

That was when I knew for sure it was time to ask her to marry me, and and started to think of a way to propose that would really show her how much I loved her and how extra special she was to me. It wasn’t easy. I thought of all the traditional ways to propose, you know, the dinner at a nice restaurant, or walking along the waterfront somewhere scenic. None of those really did it for me though, and more to the point, I didn’t think they would for her, either.

I did everything to get ideas. I read books, talked to married and engaged friends, surfed the web, and generally puled in as much info as possible on the subject. Back then there wasn’t nearly as much help available on the web as there is now. There were some great ideas, but nothing exactly like what I wanted to do.

Finally I hit on something that I was sure she would be excited about. She is a pretty cerebral girl. Actually she is pretty and cerebral. Lucky me. One of the things that she loves more than anything is traveling through New England in the fall, when the leaves are just starting to turn. She also loves history and old things. That’s great for me in 50 years, I guess.

One thing that would be right up her alley is art, artifacts, and where they all collect, museums. There are dozens of great museums scattered throughout New England. We’d visited some of them before, since we travel up there once or twice a year. We would have both liked to make it more than that, but our busy schedules precluded too much time off.
Here is how I proposed to her. I told her that we should take off for a long weekend to get away, unwind a bit, and enjoy the sights of New England in the fall. As I expected, she was delighted with the idea.

We left NYC on Friday morning and headed north. It was beautiful. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. A gentle breeze was blowing, and it was a little chilly in the morning, but soon warmed up into the low 70′s. It made me wish I’d rented a convertible. I kept thinking that things were going almost too smoothly. I had managed to put off a client meeting until Monday, and Jenn was able to get the day off, despite an unusually busy time in her office as well.

First stop was in one of our favorite places, Providence. After stopping up on Federal Hill for lunch, we hit the Rhode Island School of Design Museum of Art. It is pretty fantastic, especially for such a relatively small town. They even had some jewelry on display, which I was sure to get her opinion on!
After spending a few hours at the museum, it was time to head back to Federal Hill for a nice, romantic dinner. I could have just asked her then and there, but that wasn’t the plan. The asking her would have to wait, but I wanted to put us in a few situations that might make her think it was a possibility first, just so she would be even more surprised when I really did pop the question!

Early Saturday morning we headed for Stockbridge MA, where the Norman Rockwell museum is. He is about as all American as you can get, and we both wanted to see some his painting up close and for real. It was definitely worth the drive. After about 3 hours there, it was back on the road for a beautiful, scenic drive up Rte 7, into the Green Mountain National Forrest in Vermont. What a beautiful, scenic drive. I love driving, so it was great to go through some of the most stellar terrain anywhere in the country. We both enjoyed it, and she thought it was very romantic. The plan was working.

We arrived in Ludlow, VT just in time for dinner. I had reserved a room at a fantastic bed and breakfast there; The Governor’s Inn. It is actually the ex governor of Vermont’s personal residence. If you’re going to be in the neighborhood, I highly recommend it. We had been wanting to stay there for quite a while, after getting positive reports from friends and reading really good reviews. We had a great time, and like I had been told, the Inn, the rooms, and the food were just about perfect. Once again, we had a very romantic evening together.

The nxt morning, it was back on the road. This time toward MA once again, and a museum I had been wanting to see for a while, and I thought she would enjoy, too.; the Worcester Art Museum. Not as big as some of it’s contemporaries in larger cities, this little museum nevertheless ahs a pretty good rep and I had a few friends go there, and say good things about it. The best part though, is what it has inside that’s not a painting or sculpture.

The Wocester Art Museum has this really unbelievable old French Chapel rebuilt right inside of the museum itself. It was actually dissembled in France and rebuilt, brick by brick, in the U.S. Actually, it is a chapter house, which is kind of ironic, because it was built for celibate monks!

I had been carrying the ring with me for the whole weekend, and kept thinking I’d lose the thing (or she’d find it). As we got to the museum I checked once more to be sure it was still in my jacket pocket. Relief! It hadn’t moved, and the time was about upon us now, little did she know. We spent quite a while going through the exhibits.

They had an early photography exhibit by Janos Scholz. I’m talking really early, like more than a decade before the Civil War. It was a great exhibit but I could barely contain myself while we were looking at it. She loves photography, especially the old stuff, and I could barely tear her away from it.
I steered her to the center court to look at the exquisite floor mosiacs, and then to the arch of the old, French chapter house. As we stood in the archway that had been built almost a thousand years ago, I told her that my love for her would last for longer than the stone of this magnificent, old church, and how very much she meant to me. When I started in about how I wanted to make sure we could share our lives together forever, I think she began to suspect when was happening.

Right then, I got down on one knee, pulled the ring from my pocket, took her hand, put the ring on her finger, and asked her to marry me. I had practiced taking the ring out of my pocket, opening the box, and removing the ring about a hundred times. I knew my hands would be sweaty, and didn’t want to fumble the whole thing when the time came to do it for real.

Although we were in a public place, there was hardly anyone around right then, so we had the moment all to ourselves. It was perfect.The irony that I had asked my (now) wife to marry me in a place built for celibate monks didn’t dawn on me until later. Thankfully, celibacy hasn’t been part of our marriage up to this point.”

Many have sent in about their proposals. They are a great place to ideas if you aren’t sure about how you are going to ask your girlfriend to marry you. Here are some of my previous posts that can help you:
Romantic Ways to Propose to a Girl That Really Worked
Best Way to Propose to Your Girlfriend – Number 3
Best Way to Propose to Your Girlfriend – Number 2
Best Way to Propose to Your Girlfriend – Number 1
Great Ways to Propose to Your Girlfriend – From the Woman’s Perspective

I Hope these give you some ideas and inspiration on how to propose to your girlfriend.
Don’t forget to write in if you have a great idea and tell how it worked.

Should you propose while enjoying a beautiful sunset? Perhaps, but then again, that may not be the perfect proposal for her.

“How should I propose to my girlfriend?” It is one of the most difficult questions most men will ever face, and with good reason, there is a heck of a lot riding on it. If you’re entertaining the possibility of asking your girl to get married, you’re likely facing a whirlwind of emotion. After all, you usually only get one shot at this, and weather she says yes or no, the answer will change the rest of your life like the answer to few other questions.

There are so many possibilities, and it can be a daunting task to figure out which way is the best. A few guys just know how they’ll propose, but for the rest of us, it likely means more than a few sleepless nights. It sure did for me. It is a rare combination of pure excitement, anxiety, and in some cases, sheer terror that is caused by few other events in your life.

We’ve probably all seen those YouTube videos of the poor bastard on the basketball court proposing during an NBA game and getting ruthlessly shot down. The look on his face as his (probably now ex) girlfriend walks off the court, leaving him to face the 15,000 fans on his own, is something no one wants to experience for themselves.

Hopefully, you’ve gone beyond that, and you’re at least pretty darn sure that she is the one for you, and she feels the same about you. If you are not sure yet, check out my post on how do I know if my girlfriend loves me. That will give you some signs to look for and questions to ask, just in case you have some niggling doubts in the back of your ole’ head.

If you’re beyond all the uncertainty, and just want to know how you should propose, here is what you need to know. The single, most important thing to remember is that women love romance. Sure, not all of them are the most romantic creatures on the planet, but even among those that aren’t, it is a rare woman who doesn’t want her proposal to be a romantically charged affair. Several polls and studies have been conducted on the subject. The most famous is probably one of those conducted by Korbel’s Champagne.

Sadly, many guys think that a romantic proposal just means turning to chapter 6 in the romance cookbook and following the romantic proposal recipe. It would be nice if it was that easy, but it just doesn’t work that way. You can always just pile on the typical accoutrements of romance; the dinner with a view, flowers, and sweet love poetry, followed by a huge diamond, but you actually have to dig deeper if you want it to be an out of the park success.

With romance it is the thought that counts, and you have to put some thought into it. A romantic proposal must be one that is specially for her, and she knows it. That’s where the romance comes in. Every woman is different, just as in some ways they are very much alike. That’s not to say she won’t want the traditional romantic gestures, but you have to not only combine them in such a way as to make them uniquely hers, and add in some elements that she will know are just for her.

You should know your girl better than anyone else, and you should know what really makes her heart sing. Use that knowledge to craft your proposal into one that would be just perfect for her, but not quite right for any other woman. That is the kind of romance that will touch her heart.

One thing that you’ll have to address is the location. Where are you going to ask her? Asking her in a spot that is significant to your relationship can be a great way to bring personalized romance to your proposal. Another great way to pick the perfect spot is to take her to a beautiful place she has always wanted to visit, or a favorite place that she has been to before. One caveat here; you do not want to take her to a place she first visited with an old boyfriend, no matter how much she loves it. That is not the kind of memory or emotion you want cropping up when you’re popping the question. Check my post on the Top 30 Romantic Places to Propose to Your Girlfriend for some inspiration.

One thing you do not want to do is propose in a way that will make her uncomfortable. No public venue proposals, for example. In 95% of cases, proposing at concert or sporting event is the wrong way to go. There are exceptions to this of course, but typically that fills your deep seated fantasy, not hers, and one thing to remember is that it is really her proposal. Do it right and she’ll play it over in her mind for the next 50 years; do it wrong and she will too. It is your choice what’s playing in those memories, so make it special.

Here is a post with some more posts with fantastic Ways to Propose to a Girl, in case you’re stuck for ideas and inspiration. These are stories from and about guys who made it something special for their gals

Valentines Day may be the perfect day for you to propose, but there are things to watch out for.

Valentines Day is one of the most popular days to propose to your girlfriend. That can be both a blessing and a curse. It is very romantic, and women typically love romance, especially where their proposals are concerned.

On the down side, for the reasons mentioned above, it is also kind of cliché to propose on Valentines Day. After all, everybody does it, right?

With that in mind, here are some things to be aware of if a proposal is in your plans this Valentines Day.

It is already February 13th, sorry if these come a bit late to help you.

1) Things are going to be crowded. Make reservations and make them early, if your plans include a restaurant, be aware that this is one of their busiest days of the year.

2) If you are going to propose in a public place that is popular for proposals, such as the aforementioned restaurant, propose early. You don’t want to be upstaged by the 4 other guys that are going to propose th their gals tomorrow night too. Nothing is worse (okay, so that is an overstatement, but barely) than sweating all evening in anticipation, the ring burning a hole in your pocket, only to have Joey at the next table get down on his knee before you have a chance to. She’ll be enchanted, sure, but she should be for your proposal, not his. Plus, it kind of steals your thunder, no matter how finely crafted your proposal speech is.

3) Florists are busy too, so if you are going to get her flowers, you should probably get an early start. It is already too late to get the from most of the Internet florists. You may still be able to get them from someplace like flowersfast.com or USASflorists.com, but time is getting pretty short.

4) Try proposing at home on Valentines Day. You can still get all the romance of proposing on the 14th, without the crowds and competition. Also, home was picked as the number one place to propose on V-day according to a wine industry survey. Just make a nice, romantic dinner with candles (actually set the dinner table, and don’t just put the dinner spread on the coffee table in front of the TV)

Hopefully these tips can help you of you’re thinking of proposing on Valentines Day, one of the most popular days to pop the big question.

You can save a bundle on your wedding plans with a few simple strategies. Check out these ideas for keeping some of your cash, while still giving her the dream wedding she deserves.

If you have started planning your wedding, you have no doubt come to the sickening realization that weddings can get very expensive in a hurry. In fact, the 2002 American Wedding Study pegged the average cost of a wedding in the U.S. at $22,000, and that was 8 years ago! If your girlfriend has her heart set on a lavish affair fit for royalty, you’re pretty darn lucky if her father is footing the entire bill. If you are looking to stretch your wedding dollars, maybe some cheap wedding plans are in order, but only if she doesn’t have to sacrifice her day due to the economy.

Sure, you may have to make some sacrifices, such as forgoing a 5 star hotel on your wedding night, but overall, your ceremony should be all you have hoped for. Here are some great tips that can really help you save money, but still get the wedding you (and mostly she) have been dreaming about. The key is to be cheap without looking cheap.

Start planning early –
It is never too early to start the wedding planning process. If you are going to have a large wedding, there are a tremendous number of details to be worked out, and the sooner you get started, the easier it will be. From a cost standpoint, early planning means that you have more time to get the best deals on everything from the venue, to napkins, to booze. Use the Internet to find and compare prices on everything. Getting an early start will allow you to do this much more effectively.

Get a used gown –
Think about it, you can have her get a spectacular, designer wedding gown for pennies on the dollar. The great thing about wedding gowns is that they are only used once. In some cases, people put them away for relatives or friends to use in the future, but many times very expensive designer gowns are sold for next to nothing. Check Craigslist, eBay, and one of the many used wedding gown referral sites populating the Internet. Often you can get a fantastic deal from an individual on Craigslist or eBay, but you’ll get a better selection and easier shopping at the referral sites.

Wear old shoes (her, not you) –
Yes, I can hear her screaming now, but think about it for a second; if she has a long gown, no one is ever going to see her shoes, and when you’re peeling them off her feet later that night, she isn’t going to care that they are old. There is no sense in spending a few hundred clams on new designer shoes that no one is ever going to see anyway.

Get discount flowers at the local market or online, don’t go to a specialty florist -
Specialty florists are very expensive and do you really care that you’re not going to have bouquets of  Casablanca Lilys, Hydrangeas, or Lily of the Valley? Probably not, and if you’re having a large wedding with a bouquet she is going to throw, and dozens of tables at the reception, you don’t want to be using these kinds of flowers. You could spend thousands on flowers alone.

Have the reception somewhere that doesn’t look cheap, but is. –
Why rent an expensive venue such as a 5 star hotel for your reception, when there are some fantastic places that can be had for far less? For example, try some of the state parks where you can rent space. You’ll be rewarded with spectacular views and spend a fraction of what you’d spend renting the ballroom at a nice hotel or other venue. For example, the Egyptian Ballroom and terrace at the Fox Theater in Atlanta goes for about $7,000 a night, and a ballroom at many 5 star hotels such as the The Grand Ballroom at The Peninsula Chicago, can command that much and more for the privilege of holding your reception there.

Have the reception at some place that looks cheap and is. –
You can rent a lodge or hall from the VFW, ELKS, or any one of a dozen organizations in lieu of shelling out the cash for some expensive digs.

This is one time to call in favors from friends, relatives, and acquaintances.  In our current economic situation, bargains are to be found, if you spend the time to look for them. Check for hotels with meeting facilities in your that have been experiencing a lag in business, then, and this important, negotiate with them for a reduced rate. Remember many hotels have been hit especially hard by reductions in business travel and meetings, so their meeting room and ballroom bookings are way down. Use this to your advantage. It will take some time on the phone, but it will be well worth it.

If you have any friends or relatives with nice homes, or homes with scenic views, now may be the time to see if they’ve ever thought about hosting a wedding or reception. Don’t make them feel bad or hold it against them if they say no, though.

My wedding was on a beach in Hawaii. It was one of the most beautiful settings anywhere, and it was so cheap it was almost free. The weather was perfect, except for the wedding party there was no one around for a mile, and the warm sand felt fantastic between our toes. See, if you aren’t wearing shoes, you’ll definitely save money on them. It took some time to find the perfect beach and set it all up, but the money we saved on the venue paid for our trip to the islands.

Get your cake at Costco or Sam’s Club –
You might also negotiate a favorable rate with a small, local baker if there is one in your neighborhood. That will save you money on the cake vs. one of those larger bakeries or custom cake places.

Look to other sources for the eat and drink. – Another way you’ll save big by not having your reception at a fancy schmancy hotel is on the booze and food. If you have the reception on a beach or in a state park, you’ll be able to bring your own alcohol, and  have the food brought in from a local restaurant or caterer with reasonable catering rates. You can  even cook the food yourselves and have it brought to the reception by a friend. You can get the hors d overs at a warehouse food store or at Costco for a much better deal than you’ll get at a hotel.

Hire a photography or videography student to handle the photo and video duties –
This can save you a substantial amount of money, but be aware that you’re potentially risking family heirlooms here. “What, Grandma and Grandpa don’t have any pictures from their wedding because they cheaped out and there was a problem?” On the other hand, you may get fantastic results and save hundreds.

These are just some of the ways you can save your hard earned dough on your wedding plans. You may have to scale back your (or her) expectations somewhat, but you can still get a tremendous wedding for far less than you’d expect. Remember, it pays to negotiate, and never take the first price they quote you for anything.

Know these when you propose to help prevent disaster.

This is proposal season and there are so many different ways to propose to a girl, you might appreciate a little guidance if you’re planning on popping the question. There are some important things to remember before you propose that I’ll look at, and there are some classic, and not so classic ways to propose that you can draw from for your own proposal.

Here are some important points to remember when proposing and planning your proposal:

Be sincere – Sincerity is of the utmost importance when you are are asking the woman you love to marry you. Leave the funny stuff at home; now’s probably not the time for it.

Be In Command of the Situation – Women love confidence, and although there’s a good chance you’ll be shaking like a leaf as you propose, do your best not to show it. In fact, you should do your best to portray nothing but supreme confidence, not only when you deliver the proposal, but throughout the entire sequence of events leading up to that moment.

Make the Situation Romantic – Women love romance. As it is with confidence, this is a generalization, but it is far more often true than not. Yes, it’s been said before, but even if your girlfriend isn’t overly romantic, she will want romance in her proposal.

Make it Just For Her – A proposal is a very personal thing. You should use every bit of knowledge at your disposal to make sure your proposal is laser targeted. You want it to be specially for her, and you’ll need to take into account her personality, what she likes, what makes her feel special and comfortable, and what she holds near and dear to her heart. Music, food, locations, settings, season of the year, weather, literature, poetry, hobbies, family, and just about anything else you can think of is all fair game.

Don’t Do Anything as Part of the Proposal that Will Make Her Feel Uncomfortable. – Sure, you may think it’s really great to propose in front of her family. After all, what could prove your love for her more than that? Unfortunately, that may make her feel like running from the room. Eve if she doesn’t feel completely uncomfortable, you’re trying to make everything perfect. Making her feel uncomfortable in any way whatsoever doesn’t fulfill that goal. The same goes with proposing in a place that she may not be comfortable in, such as in a balloon if she’s uncomfortable in small aircraft or high places, or at a sports stadium, if she’d rather not share this intimate moment with 75,000 of her closest friends (possibly more if the event is televised).

Practice makes perfect – You think that practice is a good idea for anything important? You’re right, and nothing in your life will be more important than this. Run through it a few times, including the proposal speech (What you say to her, not the assembled throng) and everything leading up to it. Make sure that everything goes as smoothly as possible, because even with practice, there will probably be a few hiccups.

Plan everything – Spontaneity is fantastic, but you don’t want to leave anything to chance. Make sure you have plans and backups in place in case there is any problem. It is best to make a plan that has a minimum of opportunities for problems so you’ll not have to go scrambling around for your backup plan.

Leave as Little to Chance as Possible – Want to propose outside? Great, there is certainly nothing wrong with that, just make sure you check the weather forecast if you have anything planned that is weather dependent. If part of your day includes a restaurant, double check your reservations, and make sure you check the day before you’ll be going there.

Don’t Forget the Engagement Ring – Do you need a ring to propose? Maybe technically not, but the vast majority of women polled indicated that neglecting to have a ring at your proposal is the most serious proposal related mistake a man can make. You don’t have to give her the Hope Diamond, but at least put a ring on her finger. Another ring related mistake is to spend too much for your ring. Sure, you want something nice, and something that she deserves, but you don’t want to start out your life’s journey together with a boat load of debt. Better to start off on solid financial footing and a little smaller ring.

These tips can help you propose to your girl the way that she deserves. For more ideas, see some of my previous posts. You’ll find romantic ways to propose, the best from stories that were sent in by readers, and some great proposals from the girl’s point of view. There are nuggets in there that you should mine to find out how to propose to your girlfriend.

Proposing can be your key to life of happiness; if you do it correctly

How should I propose to my girlfriend? It is the question of the day, and one you likely want an answer to. What are the most important things to keep in mind when you’re proposing? Is what you say the key to the whole puzzle? How about the setting? Is that important?

I’ll cover all the answers to those questions and more shortly. If you don’t find the answers in this post, there is plenty more to look at in the archives, so take the time to look around some, you’ll probably find the answers you are looking for.

There are some things to keep in mind when you are deciding how to propose. One thing is that most guys don’t necessarily do it wrong, but they don’t do it nearly as well as they could, or should. No pressure, but think about this; your proposal will be one of the seminal moments in your girlfriend’s life. She will carry those memories with her until the day she dies, hopefully far in the future. Don’t you want the proposal that starts your life together to be perfect for her?

Of course you do, and that is the key. It has to be uniquely for her. The proposal you give has to be tailored for the person she is, and presumably you know who she is more than anyone else. You know her likes and dislikes, her wants, and her hopes and dreams. Use all that knowledge when you’re planning your proposal.

Add in another ingredient that too many guys go a little light on, romance. Women polled in a recent marriage proposal poll conducted by Korbel Champagne found that nearly three fourths were not satisfied with their proposal. I pull that stat out quite a bit, and this definitely isn’t the first time that I’ve mentioned it, but I do it to prove a point.

Far too many guys don’t give enough thought to how they should propose to their girlfriends. Let’s qualify that a bit. Many actually give it entirely too much thought, but it’s the paralyzed, deer in the headlights kind of thought. You know; “What am I going to do?” Then, all to often they end up doing what too many guys do, and give her the old standby nice restaurant proposal.

There is nothing inherently wrong with proposing at a nice restaurant, but in many cases it isn’t the perfect proposal for her and you could do better. One way to do better is to make the proposal an entire romantic experience. Treat the proposal experience like a fine piece of literature, with a beginning, a body, and a conclusion, with the conclusion being you actually down on your knee asking her to marry you and slipping the ring on her finger. Only then will you have made the kind of proposal that the love of your life truly deserves.

So, how then can you go about creating the kind of proposal that she’ll grow teary eyed about when telling the story to your grandchildren?

Use your knowledge about her to create the perfect proposal just for her. What is near and dear to her heart? What does she find romantic?

Be aware of – Something to think about before you go further. If you think an outdoor proposal would be perfect for her, you may very well be right, but remember to check the seasonal weather where you are going to pop the question. You’ll then want to check the actual forecast within a few days of the actual date you planned on proposing. Many a guy has had his carefully laid plans derailed because inclement weather threw a monkey wrench in the works. Sure, you can still propose in a situation like that, but it won’t be the special proposal you’d planned out.

Remember that you’re striving for a whole experience with a beginning, middle, and conclusion. Like any other intricate task, break up your plans into manageable pieces. Do you want the experience to include travel? If so, where to? Planning that portion of her proposal is one piece. You can start by looking for a city or location you think would be the perfect spot, and then looking for a place to propose in that city. Alternatively, you can just look for the perfect spot to propose, and then make your travel plans to the city where it happens to be.
See my post on the Top 30 Romantic Places to Propose Marriage for some inspiration.

Maybe traveling isn’t what you have in mind, and you want to propose closer to home. There are some great reasons to propose close to home, including budget and time constraints, or being able to propose at a romantically significant location. Planning your proposal around something significant to your relationship, such as the location of your first date can be a great idea. That has serious romantic connotations.

Something else to be aware of – Remember that planning your proposal for certain days can give you plenty of competition with other proposers. Valentines Day is the most common of these competitive days. It’s not uncommon for there to be three or four proposals at a popular romantic restaurant on any given Valentines Day. If you want to propose on Valentine’s Day, think twice about doing it at a popular, romantic restaurant, or other popular romantic location in your city. You don’t want to be about to drop to your knee and give your proposal speech, only to have some guy two tables over beat you to the punch.

When you are designing your proposal, remember that it is all about her. Some women will want something simple, others will really appreciate something more extravagant. What ever you choose, sincerity is of paramount importance. You need to communicate to her that she is special, that she is the only one for you, and why she is the only one for you.

The ring, always remember the ring. One of the most serious mistakes a man can make is proposing without the ring, so don’t make it. If the economy has rendered you a bit short of funds, you may have to get a smaller ring that you would like, but for goodness sake don’t propose without one. You can usually by rings on credit or using your credit cards, but don’t go too deep in the hole for her ring. You do not want to start off your life together deep in debt. See some of my previous posts for powerful strategies to get affordable engagement rings.

Making your proposal romantic and about her doesn’t means just taking every item from the romance menu and serving it up as a proposal. Let’s see, I’ll have the flowers, serve her a nice dinner, a nice box of candy, and then get down on one knee. Anyone could do that! Remember that it has to be especially for her, and take elements from her likes and personality that she’ll really appreciate; only then is it the perfect proposal.

Here is another important tip to remember when planning how to propose; don’t do anything that would make her uncomfortable. Now, that may seem self evident, but guys often forget this vital bit of information. If she is uncomfortable in front of crowds, don’t gather her family together to propose in front of. That means you should think carefully before proposing to her at a music or sporting venue, or in front of her family.

Actually, while a few women would really appreciate a proposal in front of their entire family, most would not. Even a woman who is very close to her family would probably rather the proposal be an intimate gathering with just the two of you. It is up to you to determine if your girlfriend is one of those women who would think that a group proposal is the perfect one for her.

Another hot tip; remember the music! Music is one of the most powerful emotional triggers in the human experience. If you have a special song, as many couples do, can play it (or arrange to have it played) as you propose to her. If not, play her favorite music that fits the occasion. If you’ll be proposing somewhere you think that isn’t possible, at least try to find a way to make it happen. It is another way to personalize the proposal for her and make sure she has the right memories of it.

What to say? That is possibly the most difficult part of the whole enchilada when you are trying to figure out how to propose. Many guys get a bit tongue tied even at the best of times, and you can multiply that about a hundred-fold when they are trying to ask their girlfriend to marry them.

There are countless ways to propose to her, but you need to include some important elements when deciding what to say to her. Make sure you tell her why she is the only woman for you, that you will always be there for her, no matter what (you don’t have to use those exact words)and then ask her if she will marry you.

In the vast majority of cases, don’t try to be funny or flip when you propose. Unless your relationship is based upon humor, this is better treated as a serious occasion.

There is no one right way to speak the actual proposal, but for more ideas on exactly what to say when you’re down on one knee, check out my posts on what to say to propose to my girlfriend.

Here is something that will make the whole thing run much more smoothly; practice! That’s right, to the extent that you can run through the entire proposal as many times as possible, until you can get it perfect every time, even under stress.

Remember, your (her) proposal is going to be in her memories for the rest of her days. It’s up to you whether those memories are all they can be. Sure, she may say yes either way, but wouldn’t you rather your proposal story be a family legend than forgotten for eternity? Only you can make sure she is really, truly happy with her proposal.

There are so many different ways to propose, and the best on for your girlfriend is out there somewhere. Michael Webb, featured on many TV shows, and probably best known for being a frequent, featured guest on Oprah for his relationship expertise, (he has even been called Oprah’s “romance expert”) has just revealed the 101 best proposal ideas.

How can he possibly say that? Easy, he had 7,329 great proposal stories to pick from. He sifted through them all, and after careful consideration came up with the 101 best ones. You know that some of them will really help you discover exactly what to do for your proposal.

Click here right now to check out Michael’s 101 best proposal stories.

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.

There are countless ways to propose to a girl. Here are some great ones that just might just kick start the ole' noggin' and get you thinkin'

If you’ve been thinking about proposing to your girlfriend, you probably never realized there are so many ways to propose to a girl. Now that you’re in the hot seat, you’ll want to get some proposal ideas so you can see what way will be the best fit for your girlfriend. There are romantic ways to propose, fun ways, and unique ways. The key is to choose a proposal that properly fits with your gal’s personality and what she likes.

Korbells, the champagne producer, does a wedding survey. One of their recent surveys discovered that almost 80% of women weren’t especially satisfied with their marriage proposals. Here are some proposal ideas to help make sure your woman is in that top 20%.

There are some things you should do to make your proposal is all it can be, and I’m not talking about anything to do with the U.S. Army, although I am a strong supporter of the armed forces and those who people who sacrifice to serve our country. The first thing is planning. Too few people actually take the time to plan out all the details of their proposals, beyond making dinner reservations and ordering flowers. While you may think taking these essential steps qualifies as planning, you’ll want to go a bit farther on something so important.

Think about everything you know she really likes, and all the things she’s mentioned about her likes and dislikes during your relationship. What does she talk about wanting to do in the future? How would she spend her time if she didn’t have to work, and could do whatever she wanted for the rest of her life? Is she very social, or a woman who is happier alone or with only a few close friends? The important to think about when planning your proposal is to make sure it is for her, and fits her personality perfectly.

Plan every detail, and have a back up plan in the event things change. You may not stick to the plan exactly, but if you have one, and some contingency plans, you’ll be much more confident, and your chances of success will be much higher. If you have to deviate form your plan, so be it, but at least this way you’ll be much more sure all the details are covered, rather than fumbling around later, with your girlfriend wondering what the heck is up.

The next thing is to practice your proposal speech. Speech doesn’t mean you have to deliver the Gettysburg Address or anything, but if you plan to say more than “Will you marry me?” you should at least run through it a few times. You’re going to be nervous, and nerves have a funny way of messing things up. A few run throughs before the show will really help you minimize your chances of a colossal screw up. The confidence gained from practicing it will help your nerves and help make the whole thing go more smoothly. Trust me, proposal can never go too smoothly.

What the heck are you going to plan and practice, anyway? Here are some of the ways you can propose, so you have something you can plan and practice.

There are many romantic ways to propose, and many of these are old standbys. You’ll rarely go wrong with a well planned and  implemented romantic proposal. Most women really appreciate romance, especially when it comes to their proposal. In light of the aforementioned survey results, going the romantic route would seem a safe bet.

What are some ways you can bring romance to your proposal? A wonderful view sure never hurts, so look at proposing in a place with a panoramic mountain, water, or city view. Adding in a sunset sure doesn’t hurt the view or romance component either.

Another way to include romance is to be sure there are some flowers and candles around. Make sure you are in an intimate setting. You can be at a restaurant, but be sure you’re at a private booth or a cozy table for two in the corner. Here is where the planning comes into play, because you have to actively pursue such details and make sure they happen according to your plan.

Here are some classic, romantic ways to propose.

Walk on the beach proposal – You can do this either at sunset or by moonlight. Both are very romantic, but if you want to do a moonlight proposal, you’ll need to look at the weather report, and a moon phase chart. After all, it will be hard to get a romantic, moonlit walk on the beach if the moon isn’t full, or if it’s obscured by clouds.

Romantic restaurant proposal - This is probably the most popular proposal scenario of all. Chose a restaurant that either has some romantic significance for you, or one that has a great reputation in the city where you’ll be proposing. If it has nice views, arrange a table that takes advantage of the view. If you can go on a night that isn’t busy, so much the better. You’ll have more privacy, and a smaller chance of obnoxious dinner guests interrupting your evening.

Go there a few times beforehand so that when you’re proposing it will be more of a surprise. If you haven’t ever been there before she’ll suspect something is afoot, unless you customarily dine out at nice restaurants. Remember, many women say that surprise is one of the keys to a successful proposal.

Romantic Bath Proposal - This works best if your girlfriend has had an especially difficult day, and would really appreciate a nice, hot bath. If she has a job where this is a regular occurrence, finding such a day will be so much easier for you. Get her bath ready and put in some nice, scented oil. Make things a bit more romantic with some soft, romantic music, flowers, and candles. You can even scatter some rose petals around the bathtub. Sure, she may think you’re getting her in the mood for something else, but that will only make it easier for you to surprise her.

As she is relaxing in the bath, give her a nice massage to make her even more relaxed. As she settles into an extreme state of relaxation, get down on one knee next to the tub, take her hand, slip the ring on her finger, and propose to her.

Romantic Adventure Proposals – These are not so classic, but are romantic just the same. If your girlfriend is the adventurous type, you can propose to her while doing something exciting, but you can make it romantic at the same time. Hiking or mountain biking is great, because you can go to a place with a spectacular view. Plan a picnic for when you arrive at the scenic view spot. Enjoy the view, and while she is paying attention to the view, surprise her with your proposal.

To take it a step further, you can go beforehand and prepare a proposal message for her that she can see as she views the landscape. You can also set it up so that your proposal is visible through binoculars as she is enjoying the scenery. As she looks through the binoculars, she’ll discover your proposal, and as she turns around to look at you in disbelief, you’ll be on one knee with the engagement ring for her.

I wrote in another post about proposing while white water rafting, and that is another great adventure proposal idea. You can also propose while scuba diving. As you surface with your bag full of whatever the heck you found down there (she’ll soon forget whatever it was anyway) turn to her, pull the ring out of the bag (making sure it is secured, so it doesn’t fall into the watery deep) and propose to her.

If your proposal is going to be more than “Will you marry me?” (and it should be) You can find some more ideas in one of my my posts on what to say when you propose to your girlfriend.

There are countless ways to propose marriage to your special girl. Maybe romance isn’t your thing, but it probably is hers. However, if you are sure she would rather have a proposal with a bit more zest, or intrigue, you can check out some of these others:

The day at the museum proposal – If your girlfriend is an Art or museum aficionado, you can arrange your proposal to happen during a trip to her favorite museum. Even better is to take her to a new one she has always to visit. She’ll be excited to visit a new museum, so she won’t suspect you’re about to propose to her. The great thing about museums is that there are so many different kinds, and chances are, if your girlfriend is really into visiting them, you’ll be able to find her one she hasn’t been to before, but has always wanted to. If it is in another town, you can make it a proposal trip.

You can arrange this with the museum director if you want to take things a step farther. That is great, because it will let you be a bit more creative than just asking her on the steps, although there is nothing wrong with that, either.

The huge party proposal – This works great if she is extremely social. Be aware that many women who love social gatherings and partying would still rather have their proposal be an intimate, romantic affair (maybe not the best word choice here) If you want the social / party proposal, have a huge party somewhere; at the beach, or at a large home works very well. Have all her friends and family who she would typically inviter to a large party.

Make it about some specific occasion such as Independence Day or the end of summer, but not about a milestone on someone else’s life, like a graduation. Making the party about a date or event can throw her off the trail, so she doesn’t suspect what you’re about to do.

When you propose to her, get everyone’s attention first. When everyone gathers around, and all eyes are upon you, make a short speech about how much she means to you and why she is the woman for you. When you’ve completed your speech, turn to her, get down on one knee, and propose as you take her hand and slip the ring over her finger. If you do this during an Independence Day celebration, time it so that the fireworks show starts just as you finish your proposal.

These are some great ways to propose, but if you didn’t find anything here you think would suit her, check out some other posts about Ways to Propose to a Girl.

If you have any proposal stories you’d like to share, please leave them in the comments section.

There have been many famous wedding proposals throughout history, but was anyone prepared to go as far as England's King Edward VIII to marry their sweetheart? Doubtful. Find out what he gave up to marry.

Not everyone proposes like you and I. Some proposals are either unique or are made by celebrities and a guaranteed to be remembered for years. Here are some famous wedding proposals that we may never forget. Use them for inspiration when planning your own proposal. (You are planning yours, aren’t you?)

Perhaps the most famous proposal, if not for the actual proposal itself, but for the people involved and what the groom to be sacrificed, is the proposal of King Edward VIII  of England. Sharp readers will note that he’s no longer the king, and hasn’t been for over half a century. Part of that is due to his death in 1972, but King Edward VII actually abdicated his throne, just gave it up, to propose to the woman he loved. Quitting your job for your girlfriend is one thing, but giving up the helm of an entire empire is quite another.

Here is one wedding proposal that will be tough to top, literally. When singer Seal proposed to his super model girlfriend Heidi Klum, he did it in a custom built (really, aren’t they all?) igloo in Whistler, BC. To make it even more remarkable, the igloo wasn’t in Whistler Village, just a short hop from the Longhorn Saloon. No, Seal pulled out all the stops and had his proposal igloo built on a glacier at over10,000 feet above sea level. Did she like it? Klum called the proposal a “Once in a lifetime event.” and said “Yes!”

Uber Novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald proposed to his wife to be, Zelda Sayre, immediately after the success of his first novel, This Side of Paradise. Like many would be husbands, his future father-in-law was none too impressed with Fitzgerald’s prospects for supporting his daughter. In retaliation, F. Scott wrote a bestseller, then sent his girlfriend an engagement ring with a proposal note. In a classic, romantic twist the engagement ring he used was originally his mother’s. What did the wedding proposal of one of the best writers of the 20th century say? “Darling, I love you so much, much, much that it hurts every minute I’m without you. Goodbye, My own Wife.”  Maybe not a master work, but short, and to the point.

Although experts agree it is best to propose with an engagement ring, some people just don’t listen. Take ex-President Bill Clinton, for example. When he proposed to his future wife Hillary, he reportedly exclaimed “I bought that house you like, so you better marry me because I can’t live in it by myself”. If you can’t buy your girlfriend a house just yet (although interest rates are low, and home prices have never looked better in some areas) just stick with a diamond. Even Clinton eventually popped for one. Hillary now sports an estimated 3 carat rock.

Not everyone can propose on stage, but if you’re an NFL superstar and your girlfriend is a gorgeous actress, you can probably pull it off. In  1998, that’s just what former Giants DB Jason Sehorn surprised dark haired beauty Angie Harmon with, right on the set of the Tonight Show, in front of Jay Leno, the studio audience, and the millions watching at home.

The astonished Harmon promptly sputtered “Oh, Baby, Yes!” and the couple enjoyed a song by Elton John, who happened to be in attendance. Sehorn did the classic, down on one knee proposal, the difference being, of course that he was on live TV in front of millions. You would probably find yourself in a slightly different environment.

One of the best known marriage proposals of the 20th century wasn’t even real. It existed only on the set of the 1990′s TV smash hit Friends. Like the Sehorn / Harmon proposal, it too was viewed by millions. In a conclusion many Friends fans awaited for what seemed like years, Monica and Chandler proposed to each other in a romantically packed proposal. The room was decorated and hundreds of candles lit throughout the room.
Here are the words Chandler spoke as he delivered his wedding proposal to Monica on Friends:
“I thought that it mattered what I said or where I said it. Then I realized the only thing that matters is that you. You make me happier than I ever thought I could be, and if you’ll let me, I will spend the rest of my life trying to make you feel the same way. Monica, will you marry me?”

When writer / director Jesse Warren proposed to his actress girlfriend Autumn Reeser (The O.C., Valentine, Entourage) in Los Angeles, he devised a scavenger hunt that would have Reeser going to all the important spots in their relationship. Eventually the hunt led to dinner at a romantic restaurant in Malibu, where Warren proposed with a vintage, 1910 engagement ring.

Okay, so that may not be a truly famous proposal, but it is romantic and many women would love it.

This one, however involves celebs who are considerably more well known, and was witnessed by thousands of people. When country superstar Garth Brooks proposed to fellow country superstar Trisha Yearwood in 2005, he did so at a live awards ceremony in Bakersfield, CA, in front of the roughly 7,000 in attendance.

Part of the ceremony included uncovering a large,bronze statue of Brooks. Unbeknownst to Yearwood, Garth had the sculptor include a wedding band on his finger. The couple stood there as the cover came off, and Brooks pointed out the ring on his likeness’ finger. He then removed his cowboy hat(!), got down on one knee, and delivered his proposal; the classic “Will you marry me?” She, of course, said yes.

These are just a few of the famous proposals delivered throughout history. Although you may not have the means or desire to emulate them, you can glean some inspiration that can help you with your own wedding proposal. Good luck!

You can never have to many ways to propose. Whatever you choose, make sure your proposal is tailored just for her. If you're stuck, here are some more proposal ideas.

Finding new and unique ways to propose marriage isn’t all that easy. After all, most of the traditional ways to propose have been tried a few million times before, and many others have been seen and talked about more than a few times. Want to propose on the scoreboard in Fenway, while falling from a plane, or diving on the Great Barrier Reef? Sorry, somebody has already beat you to it.

How about spelling your proposal in candles on the beach, in flower petals on the bed, riding up to her in a suit of armor, or having your proposal announced over the PA system at Candlestick Park? The fact is that no matter what you are thinking of to propose to your sweetie has probably already been done by some other guy, somewhere, at some point in history.

That doesn’t mean that you should give up on doing something original. The important thing is that no matter what you decide is the best proposal, what really matters is that it is the best one for your girlfriend. Every person is different, and what is important is that you create the perfect proposal that fits her better than anything else would.

You know her better than anyone else, except maybe some of her family members. Think about what she likes. What really makes her shine? Is she a romantic. Most women are, and even if she doesn’t talk about romance or while away her days watching romantic movies, there is a better than even chance she has a strong romantic streak buried in there somewhere.

Some women have been thinking about their perfect proposal since they were little girls. Chances are that your girlfriend has thought about hers more than once. It’s up top you to find out what it is. You don’t have to copy it exactly, but it wouldn’t hurt, either. In any case, it will give you an idea of how she would really like to be proposed to. If you are going to ask around to her family or friends for clues, watch out. Surprise is important in a proposal and if you start asking too many people, news of your impending proposal could easily leak back to her, potentially spoiling the surprise.

If you are still stuck for proposal ideas, here are a few more to think about.

Propose to her in a beautiful flower nursery, the kind where there are shelves of flowers in a greenhouse. You’ll have to set this up beforehand, but you will have to make preparations with many proposals. Have the nursery spell out your proposal in flowers on one of the shelves. Have it on a full shelf, in a contrasting color so it is easy to read. Just have them put her name, then “Will you marry me?” and then your name. You can get down on one knee and read your entire proposal when she sees the flower proposal.

Don’t think flowers will be a big hit with her? How about this one? Have your proposal cut into crops, like a crop circle. You’ll have to get her into a plane or on a tall hill adjacent to the circle, where she can see it. Farmers have done this before, but you’ll obviously have to pay them for their crops. It is definitely proposing in a big way.

Not into the whole farm motif, or live in the city? Are you the creative type? Do a video proposal, but not just any video proposal. It has to be creative enough to go viral on YouTube. Once it goes viral, she’ll see it (or you’ll arrange to have her see it). It will definitely be a surprise. The only downside to this kind of proposal is that you probably won’t be there when she sees it. She’ll probably get a phone call or get it sent to her, when it’s got about 100,000 views on YouTube.

Another tech related proposal idea is to start a website or blog with your proposal. People have been very successful using this idea. You can easily use WordPress to craft a high quality proposal blog or site with a minimum of technical aptitude. Remember though, that your proposal should be all about her and should take her personality into account in a big way. If a blog or website proposal isn’t going to be the sort of thing she’s be excited about, move on to another idea.

Propose to her on her birthday. The advantage of a birthday proposal is that she’ll expect you to take her out somewhere, so it will be easy to surprise her with a proposal. If you are a couple that rarely goes to a nice restaurant, she will think something is up if you all of a sudden want to take her to a nice restaurant or on a romantic getaway. If you do it under the guise of a birthday trip or dinner date, it will be so much easier to surprise her with your proposal.

Propose at Disneyland in California or Disney World in Orlando, Florida. There are so many places to ask her to marry you at either of these theme parks, but you can take it a step farther. You can get some of the Disney characters to help you in your proposal. To enlist their help, you’ll have to contact Disney first. You can contact their wedding guest services at (714) 520-7005 or guest relations at (714) 781-7290 (Disneyland) or (407) 824-5130 (Disney World) for more information.

Take out an ad in her favorite magazine. You can make it look just like a real ad, with a photo of yourself down on one knee presenting her a ring. Make it whatever theme will go best with her personality. This can get a bit expensive, depending on the magazine and your taste for the extravagant. A nice, quarter or ½ page ad works nicely, but there’s nothing wrong with a full page one, either. You could easily spend many thousands of dollars for such an ad, but you could just as easily do that for a trip to Paris too, but this way you won’t have to pack, and you’ll have the ad forever.

There are so many ways to propose marriage to your girl. You’re limited only by your imagination, wallet, and time. Find a way, and get down one one knee…but don’t forget the ring!

How many ways are there to propose to a girl? Countless ways, but here are a few more you can use. Maybe one of them will spark an idea for the proposal to your special girl.

There are so many ways to propose to a girl. You can be funny, romantic, or outrageous. The fact is that no matter how you propose to a girl, the actual proposal will probably not determine weather or not she says yes. You should know that many women in a recent survey were not terribly satisfied with their proposals, no matter if they said yes or not.

I did a post a few weeks ago on ways to propose to a girl, but there are always more, so to that end, here are some more ways to propose to a girl.

Important note – If you get incredibly nervous when speaking in public, remember that even the most confident men are nervous when proposing, so factor that into how nervous you’re likely to feel into a situation, even without a proposal involved.

For example, if you would be knocking at the knees and stuttering just standing up on stage in front of a large group of people, maybe that would not be the perfect setting for you to propose. You do not want to experience the disaster of forgetting her name or what you were going to say. Don’t laugh; it’s happened before.

I have said this before, in other posts, but it bears repeating; try not to make your proposal to dependent on factors beyond your control. Proposing is a situation where you want everything to go as planned, so the fewer variables you have that can make things go sideways, the better off you are.

A Live Proposal
You’ll have to arrange this one before hand. If she loves live music, take her to a local club and get a table up front, close to the band or singer. If you can do this  when one of her favorite acts is there, so much the better. Go to both the club and tour managers and see if you can arrange to have the act get you up on stage. Once there, you can read your proposal into the mic in front of the whole crowd. Obviously, if she says no or she’ll have to think about it, you’ll be going down in flames with hundreds of people looking on, but nothing ventured, nothing gained.

The Intimate Evening for Two Proposal
Some women like the normal, nice restaurant, Dom, and a ring proposal, but some would prefer theirs be a bit more intimate. If that describes your girlfriend, here is one for you. Take a trip to a mountain or a beach resort, the kind where you can rent a luxury cabana or nice suite with a large fireplace and a really comfortable couch or rug. Sit out on the deck or beach and enjoy a romantic sunset together, maybe with a really good glass of wine. After sunset, it’s time for dinner.

Order in a very a nice dinner  from the dining room, and have the staff bring it up and present it, complete with candles and linen and silver table service. Depending on the resort, you may have to make special arrangements with them to make this happen. Another alternative, if the suite has a kitchen is to prepare a nice dinner yourself. Obviously for some of the less culinary gifted in the crowd, that may not be the best choice.

After dinner, retire to the adjacent room to watch a favorite movie, preferably one that has a special significance for the two of you. After the movie, get down on one knee in front of her, pull out the ring, and propose to her.

The Christmas Proposal
If yours in one of the many families where much of the family is together for Christmas, try this proposal. Put her ring in one of the Christmas presents. When she opens it, get down on one knee in front of the entire family and propose to her.

The Puzzle Proposal
Obviously your girlfriend has to love solving puzzles, and you’ll have to do this when she has the free time to participate in it. You can make it take half an hour, or most of the day. It is a variation on a scavenger hunt. Leave her a not with a clue directing her to the spot where she can find the next clue.

You can use locations that have significance to the two of you. Another variation is to have the locations all be related to one of her favorite activities, and still another is to have the clues lead her to some really beautiful places. Have the solution to the last puzzle lead her to a restaurant, where you’ll be waiting for her at the table. After dinner you can have the ring delivered on a platter with desert. Then you can get down and propose to her. There are endless variations of this proposal, from where you end up to how the clues relate to the two of you and your marriage.

There are so many ways to propose to a girl. Find one that works for the two of you. Remember that many women have not been satisfied with their proposals, even if they truly loved their men and would have gladly married them no matter how they asked. The point is that you want to make your proposal the very special even that your girl deserves.

If you have a great proposal story you’d like to share, please leave it in a comment.

If you are going to propose, make it great. You only get one shot.

There are so many ways to propose. Men scratch their heads looking for cool ways to propose. What they should really do is ask women what they like in a proposal. To that end, here are some great stories from women on how their husbands or finances proposed to them. By definition, they would all be cool, because the women loved them!

Cool Way to Propose 1
“That day he took me to a museum. I thought that was a bit strange because he never wants to do stuff like that. After we got there, we walked through and it was really beautiful. There were so many things to see. He took me over to an exhibit with small artifacts. Among the artifacts was a shining object in a box so I leaned over to get a better look.

In the glass case there was a little box just sitting there with a diamond ring and an old looking note saying “My Darling, I will love you forever if you just say yes. Will you marry me?” Well, I would have thought that it was an artifact, but the ring looked brand new, it was my favorite diamond cut (which he knew) and the note actually had my name on it.

After I regained my composure and stammered out a few “Oh my God!”s I gave him a huge kiss, and said “You bet I’ll marry you!”
Jenny B., Detroit, Michigan

Cool Way to Propose 2
“We had been in a long distance relationship for about a year an a half. He lived in San Diego, and I was living in Santa Barbara. We made the drive to see each other just about every weekend, and spent our vacations together too. Many times we’d just meet in LA, since that was about half way between our homes, and there are plenty of things to do there.

One weekend we were going to dinner at Campanile, a really romantic, Italian place on LaBrea. The building itself was actually built by Charlie Chaplin! It’s one of our favorite places to go together. Well, we had some time to spare before our reservation, and didn’t want to sit around and sip drinks, so we were doing a little browsing. Mark took me into this little jewelery store. Sometimes that means something, sometimes we’re just looking.

I figured I’d give him a hint or two about the kind of ring I liked and he actually checked my my finger size, you know, just in case he might need that info some time! We looked at some gorgeous rings. Dinner was spectacular, so romantic, but he was like that. We went back to our hotel and he brought out a bottle of my favorite wine, and open the curtains to reveal a spectacular view of the city lights. It was breathtaking, but nothing compared to what he had in store for me.

He put on some Celine Dion, and we danced overlooking the city. After our dance, he took out this little box and placed it into my hand, which I can tell you was shaking a bit now. I hadn’t seen him get anything at the jewelers when we were there. When I opened the box, I almost fell to my knees. Sparkling inside was the most gorgeous diamond ring I had ever seen.

He got down on one knee and proposed. I was so overwhelmed, it was all I could do to stammer out a “Ye-eee-sss!” It was unbelievable. I found out later that he’d had the ring for about 2 weeks, and had just brought me to the jewelery store as a ruse.
Megan S., San Diego, CA

Cool Way to Propose 3
“We both love scuba diving. In fact, we met on a dive in the British Virgin Islands. He was diving with his brother and a friend, and I was with my cousin. We hit it off right away and have been diving together ever since. Luckily we both lived in South Florida. He was in Miami and I lived in Palm Beach. We’d been dating for about 2 years and were on a dive trip to Cozumel.

We had been down for about 20 minutes when he motioned that we should start back to the surface. We had been diving off a rocky stretch of beach and were in only about 30 feet of water, so we didn’t have to waste too much time coming up. When we got to the surface, Dave pulled out a small bottle of Champagne, 2 small crystal glasses, a ziploc full of fruit and cheese, and a table setting out of his dive bag. I was amazed. He was always the romantic type, but pulling a champagne picnic out of his bag was pretty remarkable, even for him. He got everything ready. It was the perfect little picnic on our own little beach, shielded by rocks from the outside world.

After our meal, Dave reached into his bag once again, and pulled out a little, blue box with a white ribbon. It was a Tiffany’s box! He untied the ribbon, opened the box, and handed it to me. To say I was stunned would be the understatement of the century. He then proposed to me, right there in the sand. I was saying yes even before he finished asking, and it was the best thing I’ve ever done.”
Jacqi J, Orlando, FL

Cool Way to Propose 4
“Michael has always been a bit of prankster, and I’ve always loved someone who can make me laugh. No one has ever been able to keep me laughing like Michael has. I was in love with him almost from our first date, which was at a restaurant in Seattle called Canlis. It is one of the best restaurants in the city, and is perched up high with a truly amazing view of Lake Union. It is expensive, so we hadn’t been there very often since our first date.

He told me he wanted to take me out for dinner on Saturday night, and to dress for someplace nice. When he picked me up, and sure enough we went to Canlis. It was the perfect dinner. Our table was in the corner at the far end of the bar, which gave us the best view in a place with amazing views. We had a very nice bottle of wine, and 2 hours of great conversation with dinner. That’s another thing I love about Michael, we always have so much to talk about. After dinner it was time for desert. I ordered a brown cake. It arrived under a silver platter cover. When the waiter opened the cover and handed me the desert, I about fell out of my chair. There, on a small, purple, velvet pillow was the most beautiful diamond ring I had ever seen! I looked at Michael and he was all smiles as he got down on one knee and proposed to me, right there in front of everyone. It was so cool.”
Judy P., Montlake Terrace, WA

Those are without a doubt some of the coolest ways to propose. Guys, these are stories that women told, so take note as to what they like. There are so many other great proposals. Stay tuned for more, and if you have some cool proposal stories to tell, or if you think these are nothing compared to yours, please leave them in a comment.

Proposing on the beach can be just perfect for the two of you, but there are so many ways to propose to your girlfriend. Which is the perfect one for you?

There are many different ways to propose to a girl. Here are 15 great ones. If you want to use a proposal that will leave her overcome with emotion, barely able to utter the “Yes!” that you want desperately to hear, then the ways to propose that follow will surely do the trick.

There’s no question that proposing is one of life’s great milestones. Merely uttering those fateful words “Will you marry me” will completely change the rest of your life, in ways you could never imagine. Are those words the best way to propose? Maybe you should say “Will you be my wife?” or “Would you make me the happiest man in the world and spend the rest of your life with me?” What is the perfect thing to say to her isn’t necessarily the perfect thing for every woman. Every one and every situation is different.

The point is, there are many different ways to propose to your girl, and what you say is only one part of the whole thing. A proposal is an emotional experience, comprised of many different parts, the words you use being but the culmination of the entire chain of events.

What else comprises the perfect proposal? Your surroundings certainly play a large part. Would you rather kneel in a Brooklyn alley, or before the majesty of the Grand Canyon? During the brilliance of the perfect sunset, or in a driving rainstorm? Actually, a rainstorm in the proper setting can be a very romantic way to propose.

While the weather may be beyond your control, you can influence it by choosing the time and place that will almost guarantee the perfect proposal. Remember the perfect proposal for you two is unique. What is perfect for another couple, isn’t necessarily the right way for you to propose.

You want to hear “Yes, oh my God, Yes!”? Well, then you should make sure everything is perfect, although if she’s truly the right girl, and it’s the right time, you’ll probably get the response you were hoping for anyway. Making the perfect proposal is more about creating fine memories and honoring your fiancée to be.

Some ways to propose can be expensive, but you only do it once, so creating a truly unique experience can be money well spent. On the other hand, maybe circumstances or your personalities dictate something a bit more frugal. Don’t worry, there are dozens of ways to propose that are downright inexpensive, but will still have her overcome with emotion.

Here are some great ways to propose to a girl that will ensure it is only the first step in a lifetime of happiness. Creativity is at the heart of many a great proposal, but there are some old standbys that have a lot going for them as well.

1)A Romantic Walk on the Beach. Sure, proposing during a romantic walk on the beach is a bit of a cliche, but with good reason. It flat screams “romance”. There are so many beautiful beaches throughout the world where you can pop the question. You can take a walk at sunset, and as the fingers of purple, orange and gold reach for the sky, the end of the day can be the start of something new for you two. Just don’t lose the ring in the surf.

2)In front of a cozy fire. Grab a glass of your favorite wine (maybe get one for her, too), cozy up in front of the crackling fire, and gaze into her eyes. A bearskin rug can add just the right touch, unless you’re opposed to that sort of thing.

3)At dinner. This can be at a restaurant, or at another location, such as your home. You know her favorite foods, and if you’re a pretty deft hand in the kitchen, you can prepare dinner yourself. On the other hand, you may have bigger things on your mind. In any case, you can take her to her favorite restaurant, you know, the one overlooking the harbor, and get down on one knee in front of all the dinner guests.

4)At a sporting event – Proposing at sporting event can be just the ticket if you are both huge fans of the teams playing or of the sport you are attending. It doesn’t work so well if you drag her along to something she’s ambivalent about, or downright dislikes. For example, if she’s a huge NASCAR fan, a NASCAR race would work very well as the spot for you to propose. If she doesn’t really like baseball, but grudgingly agrees to along with you to a ball game, that probably would not be such a good place for your proposal.

5)Airplane banner – There are many banner companies that would love to tow a banner spelling out your request for marriage. In this economy, you can probably even get a pretty good deal on such a service. If you are going to propose at the beach, you can have the plane fly over the ocean.

6)Proposing on the radio – You can buy an ad, or you can get her favorite radio host to help you out. That works even better, if you can pull it off. The key is obviously to make sure she’s listening. If she listens at work you can try that, but you’re not there to share it, and there’s no guarantee she’ll be listening at the exact moment your proposal airs. It’s better to have it play while the two of you are in the car, where you can be 100% sure she’ll hear it. If you can get the DJ or talk show host to go along, you can have it played right after her favorite song , or that song that’s special to the two of you.

7)On TV – You can have the proposal aired on TV, or you can be on TV yourself, either as a couple, or by yourself. You can get on a local show, and if you’re sure she’s watching, deliver your proposal to her (and the few hundred thousand other viewers as well). You can also both be on a TV show, and you can propose to her in person, but on the air. If you happen to work at a TV station, or for a network, this can be made to happen much easier.

8)At a picnic in a romantic spot. Proposing this way isn’t an old standby for nothing. You can get to one of the most romantic locations around, have her favorite lunch you prepared for her, and pop the question. You can hide the ring in one of your menu items, just make sure it isn’t too well hidden. After all, you want her to put it on her finger, not eat it!

9)At the Cinema, on screen. You can buy advertising that’s shown on the screen before the movie. Have your proposal put into a short video that perfectly suits her personality. Have it shown before the main feature. Let me tell you, that short video will now be the main feature, as far as she’s concerned. You can use text only, but if you put it the right music and make, or have made a short video, it makes your proposal even better.

10)Write a song or poem specially for her. This is better if you have talents in this area, but the fact that you took the time to create something specially for her can often overcome the fact that you’re not the finest writer. After all, you know her better than anyone, and you’ll know exactly what to write that can turn her into a quivering mess, barely able to utter “Yes!”

11)Write a story for her where the proposal is the dramatic or romantic conclusion. Obviously this only works well if she loves to read and you are a good writer. In the right situation however, this is a great way to propose. As an added bonus, you’ll always have the story, and you can show it to your grand kids.

12)Fireworks – Fireworks have long been a companion for romance, and they work great as the backdrop or feature for a proposal. You can propose during a fireworks display of your own or a large, public display. If you have the money, you can have a custom display created just for the special moment, replete with custom fireworks that can really add that something special to the occasion.

13)At an event that you both really enjoy attending. This can be a sporting event, concert, theater, horse race, car race, auction, or any kind of event. If you have the connections, the guts, or the cash, you can even get the participants in on the whole thing. That can really make for a memorable occasion. Not only for you two, who are going to remember it anyway, but for all others in attendance too. Be advised that you really have to know what she likes (by this time, you should) because there’s a fine line between romance and embarrassment in these situations.

14)Propose during an outdoor activity you both love to participate in. Mountain climbing, skiiing, sky diving, mountain biking, base jumping, scuba diving, snowboarding, white water rafting, hiking, or any of a myriad of events that put you in surroundings you both love, in an activity that you relish. You’re could be in some of the most beautiful places in the world, such as waterfall, mountains, or tropical rain forest. Dropping to one knee at the top of mountain, on a brilliant, sunny day can have the world at your feet, both literally and figuratively.

15)Have your proposal announced over the PA at a sporting event, on an airplane, ferry boat, or train. Ferries and trains can travel through spectacular places that can make memorable places to propose. In front of 50,000 people at a Giants game works well, too.

There are some fantastic ways to propose. Some are classic, some are a bit more off the wall. There are endless variations within, too. You can even mix and match. For example, you can arrange for fireworks during your sunset walk at at the beach, or you can read her your proposal poem during dinner at your favorite restaurant.

You can plan the most elaborate proposal, and if your plans go off perfectly, it can turn out better than you could have ever hoped. Remember, however, that the more elaborate the plan, the greater chance that something can go wrong to upset your perfectly planned proposal master piece.

The point is that you can do just about anything to make the proposal the perfect one for the two of you, and that’s really what matters.