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Did you have a romantic proposal of marriage ...And were you happy with it.?

(115 Posts)
annsixty Wed 03-Mar-21 11:47:50

This query is prompted by a conversation I had yesterday with an acquaintance who said her recently married D, second marriage, had been rather disappointed by her man-friend’s proposal and he has been making up for it since with romantic (expensive) gestures.
Have things changed so much?
It is a very long time since my H and I got engaged and it seemed to “just happen” he certainly never proposed, we had known each other since school and always knew we would marry sooner rather than later.
Any really romantic stories?

Calendargirl Wed 03-Mar-21 12:36:46

I was never ‘properly’ proposed to either, if you mean boyfriend down on one knee and producing a ring in a box.

We just assumed we would get married, we chose the ring together, would not have liked to have no say in the matter.

DS bought his girlfriend a ring and proposed properly. He had asked me what I thought beforehand, I said would she rather not choose her own, but he seemed to know what she wanted, and she loved it.

Should add he wasn’t getting my permission or blessing, just wondered how best to do it.

He took no notice of what I thought anyhow!

BlueSky Wed 03-Mar-21 12:42:30

I proposed both times! Well just casually said “Would be nice to be married just after my birthday” first time, and “Would be nice to be married just before Christmas” second time round! wink

Grandma70s Wed 03-Mar-21 12:47:39

I had to think hard to remember! Basically, it was another example of just assuming we would get married. There was never a proposal as far as I remember.

annodomini Wed 03-Mar-21 12:48:14

My ex said he would like me to be the mother of his children. I assumed that he meant marriage! So I am still the mother of his sons but haven't been his wife for 36 years!

vampirequeen Wed 03-Mar-21 12:49:53

DH proposed to me at Haworth Waterfalls. I had no idea it was going to happen. We climbed up the side of the falls until we came to a spot were I could stand in the dry with the water coming down on either side. DH said he wanted to take my photo. So I stood where he said. He then kneeled in the mud in front of me and proposed. I started to cry and couldn't stop. I'd gone up the waterfall laughing and came down crying. There was a group of ladies giving him the evil eye until I explained that he'd just proposed. They started gushing about how lovely and romantic it was. This led to their husbands giving DH the evil eye grin

We then went to Oakworth Station (where they filmed the Railway Children) and he put the ring on my finger on the platform. The station master was so nice. He wanted to give us a gift but didn't have anything so he let me close and reopen the level crossing gates when the next train came along. OMG that was soooooo exciting and made the day even more special.

Smileless2012 Wed 03-Mar-21 12:57:30

We still laugh about Mr. S.'s 'proposal'. We were sat in his car outside my mum's and he said "I suppose it's time we got engaged". At not quite 18 I was so excited I said "does that mean we'll be getting married?". He said "I suppose so" and looked rather pale!!

Looking back it could have been better but being married to him couldn't have or be any bettersmile.

NotSpaghetti Wed 03-Mar-21 13:02:59

No special proposal - I remember the place and discussing marriage - but oh, so very very lucky that we have been happy together for so long and haven't grown apart.

A marriage isn't made by grand proposals, grand weddings or grand gestures, it's the small every-day kindnesses that truly count.

annsixty Wed 03-Mar-21 13:08:20

Oh how I agree with that sentiment, my H was never the romantic one but I couldn’t have done better in so many other ways.

thisisnotme Wed 03-Mar-21 13:37:51

Following our second date, we were sitting in the car chatting.

He told me he'd fallen in love - I asked 'who with'?

I haven't an ounce of romance in my bones (then or now) and it never occurred to me that someone might love me let alone want to marry me!

grandMattie Wed 03-Mar-21 13:42:37

I tease DH that he proposed to my DM, who adored him. It was reciprocal.. Something like “would your mother like us to get married in Mauritius?” Both sister had married in Europe.

So no, no bender knees, no rings in champagne glasses (could barely afford Hirondelle wine, remember that?), no rings... I had had my eye on one and was waiting for the proposal.

BTW we paid for my rings from having saved Common Market 50p pieces!

Daisend1 Wed 03-Mar-21 13:42:46

I was with my boyfriend on the ferry to Jersey. The sea was extremely choppy and feeling queasy needed to get fresh air. A seasick girlfriend clearly did not put him off as it was on deck he asked me to be his wife.

Kim19 Wed 03-Mar-21 13:46:00

Yes, I suppose it could be classed as romantic but I kind of ruined his moment by declining (VERY kindly) initially. About an hour later I was persuaded otherwise and never regretted my decision. Five hours later we were waiting for the jewellers to open and my ring was chosen by him with my approval. In the next hour he was off on a train with the thought that we wouldn't be meeting up again until our marriage. However a family death intervened and we had an unexpected short time together.

maddyone Wed 03-Mar-21 13:53:31

A other one here with no proposal. We discussed getting married rather than proposed. We chose the ring together, and I loved it. Some years later I lost it and was terribly upset. We replaced it, but I never felt really happy with the replacement. Three Christmas’s ago, before Christmas he said he’d take me to Hatton Garden to choose a new ring. We went together and chose a diamond together, and had it set in a very similar setting to my first ring. It was a lovely romantic day, and to me, it made up for the long years of never feeling quite right about the replacement ring.
Incidentally, I had the replacement ring diamond set into white gold and put on a chain and we gave it to our daughter for Christmas. My Christmas present was of course, the new ring, which I love.

annsixty Wed 03-Mar-21 13:59:42

My ring which we chose together in those far off days, it was Easter 1957, cost £22:50 .
We were 21 and 19.

kittylester Wed 03-Mar-21 14:01:58

Dh proposed after a Burns Supper while we were sitting on the floor in someone's lounge. Alcohol had been taken.

But, he rang up at 9 am the next day to check that I remembered and meant it when I said yes.

We had only met 6 weeks previously and married the following October. And, it was our golden wedding anniversary last October.

glammanana Wed 03-Mar-21 14:06:46

I didn't get a proposal as such from my lovely man,after I had had our first son he said "seeing that we both like the little boy we now have don't you think we should make it official" ?
He was the kindest husband and father you could wish to meet and we would have been married 45yrs on 19th March but I sadly lost him last year.

Luckylegs Wed 03-Mar-21 14:07:14

Life is full of disappointments and my proposal was one of them! We were only 19 and he took me outside at a ‘do’ so we stood in the car park and he said “do you fancy getting married”? or something like that completely out of the blue and I said yes and that was it!

We all went back to a friends house and the men were playing cards and I was left to talk to the girls who were asking me questions and I had to shout over to him to get the answers!

Our wedding day was very disappointing too but we’re coming up to 52 years now and I’ve had a lovely life on the whole so I’d better get over it I suppose!

Redhead56 Wed 03-Mar-21 14:08:53

We booked a holiday cottage on Anglesey in a remote place called Hermon. We had been out for hours walking and my children were playing in rock pools. We decided it was time to go and started the walk back to the cottage.
Later while eating our meal my partner got up and left the room briefly. He returned with a ring box opening it he knelt down on one knee. He asked me to marry him then looked at my children and asked if that was ok. My son was eight and daughter was five at the time. The two of them were jumping around with delight. That was nearly twenty five years ago I don't know where the time has gone.

Galaxy Wed 03-Mar-21 14:09:45

On top of the Eiffel Tower. It would have been very romantic if I hadnt organised the whole thing wink

Liz46 Wed 03-Mar-21 14:11:28

When I met my second husband (by accident) about 30 years ago, I was going through a divorce and the last thing I wanted was another man.

He was in the forces and away some of the time. Eventually he decided to take early retirement as he had served for 25 years. He went on a pre-retirement course where the men were told that, if they were thinking about getting married, they should do it while they were still in the forces, for pension reasons.

Also, it was advisable to marry someone who works in a bank or building society - yes, I worked in a bank!

That is how my marriage proposal was delivered and we are still happy together and have survived the last year shielding together. It is I who needs to shield but he has done it with me rather than try to split the house, have separate bedrooms etc.

Kate1949 Wed 03-Mar-21 14:13:10

I can't really remember. It wasn't a grand gesture. I do however remember going to the jewellers to choose my wedding ring. They gave us a free gift of three teaspoons in a box. I was thrilled! grin

LauraNorder Wed 03-Mar-21 14:31:21

We were 19, snogging in the car on Parbold Hill, after an evening at the cinema, the radio was playing ‘you were my thrill on Blueberry Hill, Orlin started singing along replacing blueberry with Parbold and then asked me to marry him.
We went back to his house to tell his mother who said she was delighted but didn’t want us to marry until we were at least 25.
Orlin actually asked my Dad for permission, he’s always been a bit proper. My Dad said ‘If you can handle her, mate, you can have her. We got married at 20 and emigrated to Australia.
He still sings that song to me sometimes, big sook that he is.
The rest, as they say, is history.

LauraNorder Wed 03-Mar-21 14:34:16

That reminds me Kate1949, Orlin still owes me £10 for the wedding ring although he did fork out £23 for the engagement ring.

Kate1949 Wed 03-Mar-21 14:49:16

Don't forget to add interest *Laura". I think my engagement and wedding rings were about the same price as yours!