Congratulations to our newest Proposal of the Week winners: Ari Baruch & John Laing. Come back on Monday to see them try to defend their title against two new couples! Here’s their story:
Ariel Baruch & John Laing
Location: On top of Mt. Sugarloaf in Sunderland, MA
Date: Saturday Oct. 17, 2009
Ariel writes:
It is widely accepted that one of the most breath-taking parts of Fall in New England
is experiencing peak foliage. John and I had planned on driving through the Valley, camera in hand, to capture pictures of the changing leaves, something neither of them was accustomed to growing up in Florida.
After more than an hour of traveling (and no good pictures to show), we made their way to the top of Mount Sugarloaf, a mountain looking over the Valley in Sunderland, MA. It was a brisk Fall morning, one of the first truly cold days of the season, so there were only a few other people at the top. The view was incredible — I was busy snapping pictures when John directed her towards a patch in a field below. “What’s that?” he had asked, pointing at the field. After a few minutes of staring at the field, then at John, then back at the field, I finally understood what was happening.
With the assistance of a pumpkin patch, John proposed. Using roughly 1,000 pumpkins, the message “Ari, please marry me!” was laid out before me.
Do you have a great proposal story? Email us at yourstory@proposalmagazine.com !
Gina writes:
Kyle and I were excited to celebrate our four year anniversary this past weekend in his hometown of Norwalk, Ohio. On Saturday morning he led me to the garage and told me to read the note on the front seat and to “Have a great day!”
I looked in my car and there was a GPS and a rose with a note around it which told me I was going to have a scavenger hunt for the day and to follow the destinations in the GPS. Excitedly, I followed the directions to the first location: A spa. I was instructed to open the next hidden note which said to enjoy myself and take pictures of everything. I spent the whole morning at the spa getting a massage, pedicure, manicure, and hair cut.
After getting beautified, I was instructed by note to go to his brother’s house to get dressed and ready in a dress he bought me. I then was told to go to the final destination: His house.
All dressed up, I walked into his sunroom and he was in a matching suit standing under an eight-foot arch he had constructed. He got down on one knee and proposed, only after his wiener dog Regi ran in with painted toe nails, a black flowered bandana, and my ring tied around her neck. I said “Yes!”
2. Ariel Baruch & John Laing
Location: On top of Mt. Sugarloaf in Sunderland, MA
Date: Saturday Oct. 17, 2009
John & Ari
Ariel writes: It is widely accepted that one of the most breath-taking parts of Fall in New England is experiencing peak foliage. John and I had planned on driving through the Valley, camera in hand, to capture pictures of the changing leaves, something neither of them was accustomed to growing up in Florida.
After more than an hour of traveling (and no good pictures to show), we made their way to the top of Mount Sugarloaf, a mountain looking over the Valley in Sunderland, MA. It was a brisk Fall morning, one of the first truly cold days of the season, so there were only a few other people at the top. The view was incredible — I was busy snapping pictures when John directed her towards a patch in a field below. “What’s that?” he had asked, pointing at the field. After a few minutes of staring at the field, then at John, then back at the field, I finally understood what was happening.
With the assistance of a pumpkin patch, John proposed. Using roughly 1,000 pumpkins, the message “Ari, please marry me!” was laid out before me.
3. Karen Hofreiter & Jeff Radjavitch
Location: Autoire, France
Date: July 12, 2009
Jeff & Karen
Karen writes: Ours was not a romantic introduction. When we met, I was a stranger sitting in his kitchen at 3am (invited by a mutual friend), my brain tequila-soaked, shoveling down mounds of guacamole. Regardless, he found me intriguing, and soon we were dating. Two summers later, on a sweltering 95 degree day outside a Medieval village in France, we were on an arduous hike up a steep limestone cliff (and cursing our ambitiousness all the way). But it was worth it–the view at the summit was breathtaking. Video camera in hand, I panned the landscape, making silly chatter. Behind me, I heard him say, “Hey, I have a question to ask you.” I swung the camera around, lens focused on him. It was then I saw something glittering brilliantly in the mid day sun. “You wanna get married?”
In shock, I drop the camera–still rolling–getting an up close view of my sweaty belly button, and all that can be heard is my voice saying, “Are you serious?” I repeated that phrase about 20 times, completely forgetting to say “yes” until several minutes later. In all my sweaty, greasy, baseball-cap clad glory, he slipped the ring on my finger.
Maybe I wasn’t in a sexy dress standing on top of the Eiffel Tower, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Now that you’ve read their stories, it’s time to vote for your favorite.
Cast your vote below. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow and vote. The results will be posted on Friday!
Congratulations to our newest Proposal of the Week winners: Gina Gonter & Kyle Bowers. Come back on Monday to see them try to defend their title against two new couples! Here’s their story:
Gina writes:
Kyle and I were excited to celebrate our four year anniversary this past weekend in his hometown of Norwalk, Ohio. On Saturday morning he led me to the garage and told me to read the note on the front seat and to “Have a great day!”
I looked in my car and there was a GPS and a rose with a note around it which told me I was going to have a scavenger hunt for the day and to follow the destinations in the GPS. Excitedly, I followed the directions to the first location: A spa. I was instructed to open the next hidden note which said to enjoy myself and take pictures of everything. I spent the whole morning at the spa getting a massage, pedicure, manicure, and hair cut.
After getting beautified, I was instructed by note to go to his brother’s house to get dressed and ready in a dress he bought me. I then was told to go to the final destination: His house.
All dressed up, I walked into his sunroom and he was in a matching suit standing under an eight-foot arch he had constructed. He got down on one knee and proposed, only after his wiener dog Regi ran in with painted toe nails, a black flowered bandana, and my ring tied around her neck. I said “Yes!”
Last week, Jessica and Derek took the title. Will they win again this week or will a new couple knock them out? You decide!
You can vote once a day for your favorite couple, so make sure to come back tomorrow and cast your ballot for your proposal of choice!
1. Jessica Glassberg & Derek Heeren
Location: The Griffith Observatory – Los Angeles, CA
Date: December 20, 2008
Jessica & Derek
Jessica writes:
The morning of Saturday, December 20th, 2008, Derek said, “Let’s go to the Griffith Observatory!” I had a lot of errands to run, but excited by his spontaneous enthusiasm, grabbed my camera and headed out.
After falling asleep in the planetarium (it’s cool and quiet… don’t judge), I thought we should go… my errands weren’t gonna run themselves. But Derek insisted we walk outside to take pictures…
We strolled to this secluded area with a great view but my camera ran out of space. Derek said he was going to tie his shoe, which I shrugged it off with a sarcastic, “good for you,” and proceeded to concentrate on my camera. When Derek started to tell me how much he loved me, without looking up, I nodded with a “Yeah, yeah, I love you too.”
And then I started thinking… “Man, Derek has been tying his shoe for an awfully long time.”
It was then that I realized he was down on one knee with an opened ring box. The rest was a blur of screaming, excited cursing and confusion, “What the %&*^ is that?” lots of “‘Oh my G-d, oh my G-d.” And of course… “YES! YES YES!”
2. Elizabeth & Eddie Grimes
Location: Nashville, Tennessee
Date: February, 2007
Elizabeth & Eddie
Elizabeth writes:
My boyfriend, Eddie and I were taking a weekend vacation with my parents in Nashville in February of 2007. I noticed that Eddie stole a few private minutes with my father at the Country Hall of Fame Museum and I had the sneaking suspicion he was getting permission to propose to me.
After the museum, we ate dinner at a Mexican restaurant where I had to use the restroom. The women’s was out of order, so Eddie stood guard for me. That’s when I couldn’t be patient any longer. I told him I knew he spoke to my dad and I didn’t want to wait anymore to be his fiance. He knelt down in the men’s bathroom and proposed. I went back to the dinner table with a ring on my finger and my parents noticed the rock immediately. We’ve been married for 2 1/2 years now!
Gina writes:
Kyle and I were excited to celebrate our four year anniversary this past weekend in his hometown of Norwalk, Ohio. On Saturday morning he led me to the garage and told me to read the note on the front seat and to “Have a great day!”
I looked in my car and there was a GPS and a rose with a note around it which told me I was going to have a scavenger hunt for the day and to follow the destinations in the GPS. Excitedly, I followed the directions to the first location: A spa. I was instructed to open the next hidden note which said to enjoy myself and take pictures of everything. I spent the whole morning at the spa getting a massage, pedicure, manicure, and hair cut.
After getting beautified, I was instructed by note to go to his brother’s house to get dressed and ready in a dress he bought me. I then was told to go to the final destination: His house.
All dressed up, I walked into his sunroom and he was in a matching suit standing under an eight-foot arch he had constructed. He got down on one knee and proposed, only after his wiener dog Regi ran in with painted toe nails, a black flowered bandana, and my ring tied around her neck. I said “Yes!”
Now that you’ve read their stories, it’s time to vote for your favorite.
Cast your vote below. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow and vote. The results will be posted on Friday!
Congratulations to Jessica & Derek for being our Proposal of the Week!
Come back next week to see if they can win two weeks in a row!!!
Jessica Glassberg & Derek Heeren
Location: The Griffith Observatory – Los Angeles, CA
Date: December 20, 2008
Jessica & Derek
After falling asleep in the planetarium (it’s cool and quiet… don’t judge), I thought we should go… my errands weren’t gonna run themselves. But Derek insisted we walk outside to take pictures…
We strolled to this secluded area with a great view but my camera ran out of space. Derek said he was going to tie his shoe, which I shrugged it off with a sarcastic, “good for you,” and proceeded to concentrate on my camera. When Derek started to tell me how much he loved me, without looking up, I nodded with a “Yeah, yeah, I love you too.”
And then I started thinking… “Man, Derek has been tying his shoe for an awfully long time.”
It was then that I realized he was down on one knee with an opened ring box. The rest was a blur of screaming, excited cursing and confusion, “What the %&*^ is that?” lots of “‘Oh my G-d, oh my G-d.” And of course… “YES! YES YES!”
We are still reeling from last month’s launch party for Proposal Magazine. The party, which was held on February 20th, allowed us to present the online publication to our friends and thank the many who have helped us in our journey thus far.
A few months ago, when Shannon and I first started planning the party, one of us mentioned how awesome it would be if someone actually proposed at the party.
It was just a passing thought for us and we never brought it up again. Little did we know that one of our dearest friends, Gerard Gonzales, had something up his sleeve.
As the party was beginning to die down, Gerard cornered me in the kitchen.
“I thought that since this is a party for Proposal Magazine that you should have a real proposal,” Gerard said pulling out a small black box.
The box wasn’t for me. It was for his girlfriend, Kati. My eyes just about popped out of my head.
“Are you serious?” I asked. I had no idea that he and Kati were that serious.
“Yeah,” he replied.
“You’re really going to propose?”
He again told me yes, but that Kati wanted to leave soon so we had to put the plan into action. He also told me that I needed to make sure to take pictures. Not a problem, I thought. In fact, Jen (our senior editor) had her flip camera so I pulled her aside and told her she needed to have the video going.
I went outside to the patio where most of the people were mingling and told Shannon that we needed to get everyone inside. At first she thought there was some kind of noise complaint from a neighbor, but then I explained what was happening.
“When Tia first told me that Gerard was proposing and everyone had to get inside I went in to a form of shock. It was a happy nerve racking shock. I felt like I was in emergency mode, aka the mode that slows time down and gives you a jittery tick,” Shannon said.
So we ushered the 15 or so people still at the party into the living room and Shannon and I proceeded to go through what seemed like the longest presentation of a website ever. Every now and then we would stop and ask if anyone had any questions, trying to hint to Gerard that he could raise his hand anytime.
Finally, about ten minutes later, I realized why he hadn’t raised his hand. I didn’t have my camera. I had set it about ten feet away because I stupidly thought that a video would be enough.
Nonchalantly, I got up, got my camera and prompted him one more time. What happened next? Well, I’ll let you watch for yourself.
It’s not often when you get to witness someone propose to someone else. I actually had seen one once before at a comedy show, but this was the first time of witnessing someone so personally close to me do it. Also knowing in advance that it was going to happen made my a bundle of nerves, though I’m sure it was nothing compared to the anxiety Gerard was facing.
“Part of me was a little concerned of what the people at the party would think during our ridiculous business presentation, especially now since I have no memory of what I said about our publication or how valid or intelligent my statements were,” Shannon said. “We were just stalling for to him ask his question.”
“None of that matters because watching Gerard get down on his knee and ask for Kati’s hand in marriage was one of the most wonderful moments that I have experienced and one that I will cherish forever. I know how serious and thoughtful they both are and how they respect their privacy, knowing all of this makes it even more sacred and I am so honored to have been there as a witness in their beautiful moment,” Shannon continued.
I asked others at the party if they had ever witnessed it and no one else had, but all agreed that it was an amazing moment.
The next day, we were dying to get the scoop from Gerard – how long had he been planning to propose and when did he decide to do it at our party.
“I bought the ring in late January and thought about the best time to propose. Valentine’s Day was cheesy, other things didn’t fit, but Proposal Magazine’s Launch Party seemed ideal. And it was.
I wanted there to be an element of surprise, though Kati stipulated that it get caught on tape, so I couldn’t just do it at random.
The surprise (or shock) value was quite high, which made me happy, though not as much as having Kati become my fiancée and soon my wife,” Gerard said. (Read the full story here.)
Kati was definitely surprised. When we asked her what was going through her mind, she said she was in total shock.
“I thought it was a sick joke at first. I knew he got the ring about a month ago, but didn’t expect it to be in front of a large group of people. It wasn’t until I opened the box and saw it was the ring I had picked out that I knew he was really serious.
When I hugged him, I said “I hate you.” How romantic is that… Thankfully he knows me well enough to know that I didn’t mean it,” she said.
We’re so happy for Gerard and Kati and are honored that they allowed us to share such a significant moment in their lives. They made the Proposal Magazine Launch Party a night that none of us will ever forget.
Last week, Laura and Wesley became the first couple to win back-to-back weekly contests. Will they go for a three-peat or will one our new couples knock them out of the competition? You decide!
You can vote once a day for your favorite couple, so make sure to come back tomorrow and cast your ballot for your proposal of choice!
UPDATE: You may have the noticed that the poll was down for a few hours today. We have reposted and for the first time in Proposal of the Week Contest history, we will have our poll close on SATURDAY to give our contestants equal time. So you have until Saturday (March 13th) at 12:05 am to vote!
1. Laura Clontz & Wesley Hargrove
Location: Santa Barbara, CA
Date: November 25, 2009
Wesley & Laura
Laura writes: Wesley and I have known of each other since elementary school. He was in love with my best friend in fifth grade.
We “went out” in eighth grade for a month or so. Different middle schools was so rough, and it didn’t last. In high school, we became great friends and started dating again sophomore year. When it was time for college, I stayed in our hometown, and he went off to Santa Barbara, California, where he’s been most of the year for the last four years. Even with the long distance, we knew that we were perfect. In total, we will have been together for six years this March.
In November, I came to visit from Texas for Thanksgiving and Wesley’s birthday. He took me to a beach that we often visited during the summer we lived in Santa Barbara, with cliffs overlooking the beach and the ocean. It was sunset, which is our favorite time of day. As we sat and talked on the cliffs, Wesley said he wanted to go down to the beach. We both stood up, but instead of walking down the cliffs, he knelt down, took the ring out of his pocket, and asked me to marry him.
I said yes, and he told me that the people behind us with cameras were his friends taking pictures of us, so we now have pictures from the actual proposal! We spent the rest of the night on the phone with family and friends!
We’re now planning our marriage on October 23, 2010 here in Texas. And even though we’re still 1600+ miles apart, we know that there is nothing else that we would rather be doing. This is love.
2. Jessica Glassberg & Derek Heeren
Location: The Griffith Observatory – Los Angeles, CA
Date: December 20, 2008
Jessica & Derek
Jessica writes: The morning of Saturday, December 20th, 2008, Derek said, “Let’s go to the Griffith Observatory!” I had a lot of errands to run, but excited by his spontaneous enthusiasm, grabbed my camera and headed out.
After falling asleep in the planetarium (it’s cool and quiet… don’t judge), I thought we should go… my errands weren’t gonna run themselves. But Derek insisted we walk outside to take pictures…
We strolled to this secluded area with a great view but my camera ran out of space. Derek said he was going to tie his shoe, which I shrugged it off with a sarcastic, “good for you,” and proceeded to concentrate on my camera. When Derek started to tell me how much he loved me, without looking up, I nodded with a “Yeah, yeah, I love you too.”
And then I started thinking… “Man, Derek has been tying his shoe for an awfully long time.”
It was then that I realized he was down on one knee with an opened ring box. The rest was a blur of screaming, excited cursing and confusion, “What the %&*^ is that?” lots of “‘Oh my G-d, oh my G-d.” And of course… “YES! YES YES!”
3. Kayla Maxwell & Cameron Bailey
Location: Overlook of the city in Pittsburgh, PA
Date: February 7th, 2010
Cameron & Kayla
Kayla writes: Cameron and I had planned to celebrate Valentine’s Day a week early this year so we could avoid the packed restaurants. He chose to take me to The Melting Pot since neither of us had been there, and he wanted us to go somewhere that our city didn’t have. The day before our dinner it started snowing really hard and we ended up getting about a foot of snow. But he was determined we were going anyways.
When we got to Pittsburgh, the roads were horrible but he insisted on taking me up on the mountain to the overlook of the city. We finally made it up to the overlook after trying about four different roads, and the view was absolutely gorgeous.
After taking some pictures he decided he was going to give me my Valentine’s Day gift early. So he handed me a little black bag and in it was a very pretty charm bracelet. He put it on me and then asked me to read what it said, he had it engraved to say “Will you marry me?” He then pulled out the ring box and asked me to marry him, and of course I said yes!
Now that you’ve read their stories, it’s time to vote for your favorite.
Cast your vote below. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow and vote. The results will be posted on Saturday!
We thought that it couldn’t be done. A repeat. After four weeks of new couples, finally a couple has defended their title. Congratulations to Laura Clontz and Wesley Hargrove for winning for the second week in a row!
Come back next week to see if they can go for week three!
Laura Clontz & Wesley Hargrove
Location: Santa Barbara, CA
Date: November 25, 2009
Wesley & Laura
Laura writes: Wesley and I have known of each other since elementary school. He was in love with my best friend in fifth grade.
We “went out” in eighth grade for a month or so. Different middle schools was so rough, and it didn’t last. In high school, we became great friends and started dating again sophomore year. When it was time for college, I stayed in our hometown, and he went off to Santa Barbara, California, where he’s been most of the year for the last four years. Even with the long distance, we knew that we were perfect. In total, we will have been together for six years this March.
In November, I came to visit from Texas for Thanksgiving and Wesley’s birthday. He took me to a beach that we often visited during the summer we lived in Santa Barbara, with cliffs overlooking the beach and the ocean. It was sunset, which is our favorite time of day. As we sat and talked on the cliffs, Wesley said he wanted to go down to the beach. We both stood up, but instead of walking down the cliffs, he knelt down, took the ring out of his pocket, and asked me to marry him.
I said yes, and he told me that the people behind us with cameras were his friends taking pictures of us, so we now have pictures from the actual proposal! We spent the rest of the night on the phone with family and friends!
We’re now planning our marriage on October 23, 2010 here in Texas. And even though we’re still 1600+ miles apart, we know that there is nothing else that we would rather be doing. This is love.
Will Laura & Wesley become the first couple to repeat their victory or will one of these two couples beat them out?
Cast your vote below. And remember, you can vote once a day, so come back tomorrow and show some love to your favorite couple!
1. Laura Clontz & Wesley Hargrove
Location: Santa Barbara, CA
Date: November 25, 2009
Wesley & Laura
Laura writes:
Wesley and I have known of each other since elementary school. He was in love with my best friend in fifth grade.
We “went out” in eighth grade for a month or so. Different middle schools was so rough, and it didn’t last. In high school, we became great friends and started dating again sophomore year. When it was time for college, I stayed in our hometown, and he went off to Santa Barbara, California, where he’s been most of the year for the last four years. Even with the long distance, we knew that we were perfect. In total, we will have been together for six years this March.
In November, I came to visit from Texas for Thanksgiving and Wesley’s birthday. He took me to a beach that we often visited during the summer we lived in Santa Barbara, with cliffs overlooking the beach and the ocean. It was sunset, which is our favorite time of day. As we sat and talked on the cliffs, Wesley said he wanted to go down to the beach. We both stood up, but instead of walking down the cliffs, he knelt down, took the ring out of his pocket, and asked me to marry him.
I said yes, and he told me that the people behind us with cameras were his friends taking pictures of us, so we now have pictures from the actual proposal! We spent the rest of the night on the phone with family and friends!
We’re now planning our marriage on October 23, 2010 here in Texas. And even though we’re still 1600+ miles apart, we know that there is nothing else that we would rather be doing. This is love.
Bonnie writes:
On a Tuesday afternoon, I got a call from my boyfriend, Lee. He told me that at work he’d won a free dinner for 2 at a restaurant downtown, but that we had to use it that night. It was a treat to go out on a weeknight so, of course, I was excited. It was a beautiful restaurant inside a Marriott Hotel. We ordered a bottle of wine and the food was amazing. When dinner was over, we took the rest of the bottle of wine and decided to go to the Parthenon Park downtown. It’s kind of like Nashville’s “Central Park” – only it has a life-size replica of the Greek Parthenon.
We walked around hand-in-hand for a bit and then on the steps of the Parthenon, in the moonlight, he got down on one knee, told me how much he loved me and asked me to be his wife. I was very surprised but very happy. I said yes and we got married 6 months later. He later confessed he had not won a free dinner, he was just trying to catch me by surprise… He succeeded. That was 5 years and 2 kids ago and we’ve been blissfully happy ever since.
3. John Barry & Andrea Kessler
Location: Chicago, IL
Date: September 6, 2008
Andrea & John
John writes:
I had ordered the engagement ring, but it hadn’t arrived, and frankly, I hadn’t planned the How. I wasn’t going to worry about that very long.
We had been house-shopping for a few months, and one Sunday afternoon, we put in an offer on the house we wanted. To celebrate, we went to the supermarket to pick up a bottle of wine. Andrea seemed a million miles away. I could read her face: “How could I be entangling my finances with a boy who hasn’t even proposed?”
To her credit, she had the trust in me to still take this leap before the greater leap of marriage. But I didn’t want that.
Without ring in hand, in the parking lot of Jewel-Osco, I smiled at her and said, “I’ve got a secret.”
“What is it?” she asked.
“Your engagement ring is being shipped right now. . . Would you marry me?”
And she smiled and cried “Yes!”
We kissed in the parking lot in the one of the lowest budget, yet most romantic, proposals either of us had seen on television. Two days later when the ring arrived, I got down on one knee two days later and placed it on her finger like a proper gentleman.
Now that you’ve read the stories, it’s your turn to weigh in. The winning couple will be revealed Friday.
This week’s contest was neck and neck and neck, but a new couple pulled ahead at the end. Congratulations to Laura Clontz and Wesley Hargrove. Come back next week to see how they fare against their new challengers!
Laura Clontz & Wesley Hargrove
Location: Santa Barbara, CA
Date: November 25, 2009
Wesley & Laura
Laura writes:
Wesley and I have known of each other since elementary school. He was in love with my best friend in fifth grade.
We “went out” in eighth grade for a month or so. Different middle schools was so rough, and it didn’t last. In high school, we became great friends and started dating again sophomore year. When it was time for college, I stayed in our hometown, and he went off to Santa Barbara, California, where he’s been most of the year for the last four years. Even with the long distance, we knew that we were perfect. In total, we will have been together for six years this March.
In November, I came to visit from Texas for Thanksgiving and Wesley’s birthday. He took me to a beach that we often visited during the summer we lived in Santa Barbara, with cliffs overlooking the beach and the ocean. It was sunset, which is our favorite time of day. As we sat and talked on the cliffs, Wesley said he wanted to go down to the beach. We both stood up, but instead of walking down the cliffs, he knelt down, took the ring out of his pocket, and asked me to marry him.
I said yes, and he told me that the people behind us with cameras were his friends taking pictures of us, so we now have pictures from the actual proposal! We spent the rest of the night on the phone with family and friends!
We’re now planning our marriage on October 23, 2010 here in Texas. And even though we’re still 1600+ miles apart, we know that there is nothing else that we would rather be doing. This is love.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=a02dc615-e718-430e-aeb7-d68c7e612865)
