Photo: Perceptive Films
First comes love, then comes marriage. But before the joy of wedding planning begins, comes the biggest, happiest question of all: Will you marry me?
Thanks to HowHeAsked, we found some real, romantic, and ridiculously creative proposal stories that will get you inspired, tearing up, or both!
Shanna and Dave had a hunch they were meant to be less than two weeks after their frozen yogurt-filled first date. "Literally, since about Day 11, Dave and I knew that we were going to be married," the bride-to-be says.
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It took a shared dream of living in Colorado and a strategic video to set their future marriage in motion. "Over the 4th of July, we spent a week camping, hiking, and soaking up the crisp mountain air, falling more in love with each other and Colorado, our future home," Shanna says. "During our time there, Dave wanted to film an 'About Me' segment for his business's website, but we never got to it. We had another trip planned in October for a wedding—we'd just shoot it then, I thought!"
Over the next three months, Dave carried on about the video until just before they left for their trip. "In the last weeks leading up to our trip he was acting so normal. There was no way he had anything planned." Besides, Shanna points out, they'd committed to marrying each other long before, so the proposal was more of a formality.
Relaxed and ready to shoot the video for her boyfriend, Shanna got dressed up for filming day in Rocky Mountain National Park so they could take some pictures in the mountains, as well. Unfortunately, a closed road leading to their shooting location, Bear Lake, caused a change of plans.
"I later found out that poor Dave nearly had a minor breakdown when we found out Bear Lake Road was closed," Shanna notes. "That had been his plan all along and he certainly didn't anticipate having a change it up so last minute!"
Once they picked a new, equally stunning location, the pair set up their cameras and microphones. Dave handed Shanna his iPad, ostensibly so she could use a new app to help her film, but instead told her to push "Play."
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It wasn't until the couple's favorite Matt Wertz songs came on and a video Dave had created for Shanna popped up that she figured it all out. The video showed Dave sharing his love for Shanna, asking her parents for their permission to marry her, and telling her of his promise to never lose sight of the way they came together so perfectly. As it ended, Shanna looked up from the iPad to see Dave down on one knee in front her.
A simple "Baby, will you marry me?", some tears from Dave, and one diamond ring later, they were engaged. But the best part of all is the video that captured the entire event! Watch below to witness how it all unfolded.
Our Takeaways
1. There was no pressure: Because they'd already had serious marriage discussions, Shanna was willing to sit back and enjoy the ride—and still be surprised and overwhelmed with emotion when the moment finally came.
2. Setbacks didn't hold them back: Even though Dave was shaken up to see his original proposal spot out of the question, he went through with his plan and didn't show any signs of stress.
3. The ring didn't mean a thing: Shanna admits that her fiancé popped the quesion with the most beautiful ring, but she didn't even look at it until after the shock wore off! All brides-to-be can surely understand that feeling.
4. He got creative: We love proposal stories with a twist, and this is one that will last forever. The video-within-a-video is personal (Shanna does all of the videography for Dave's business), and something they can always go back and watch together. Talk about romantic!
Click here to read more about Shanna and Dave's engagement.
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