Proposal

Since so many people have asked, I figured I'd put the story of how I went about proposing to Tianna on Monday. I'm proud to say that she was completely surprised, and we were both really happy.

We were planning on going out on Monday, since it was one of her rare nights off, so she asked me if we could go out somewhere fabulous. We like to splurge a little every now and then, so I told her to leave everything to me. This is my code phrase to indicate that, while I'm making the plans, I'm going to surprise you with the actual result. She's a fan of this, and she has a great time guessing where were going during the days leading up to it.

So, without her knowledge, I made a reservation at Pappas Bros. Steakhouse, one of our favorite restaurants. We'd been there once before: it was the first night I took her out and the first night I told her that I loved her. It seemed like the perfect choice for starting off the most important evening (so far) in our relationship. I told them over the phone that I was planning to ask later in the evening, and so arranged to put us in a quieter part of the dining room and to put some flowers on the table for us.

I booked a town car for the night as well, which would pick her up at her place with me inside and take us to dinner. Afterward they would be dropping us off at our destination for the night. I had reserved a suite at the Four Seasons, taken the ring there, and locked the ring in the room safe before leaving to get her.

When the car came around to get her, she stepped out and started looking around for the Jetta, but didn't see me. The chauffeur flagged her down and motioned her toward the car, then she got what was going on. She got into the car and immediately demanded to know where we were eating, and I told her. She was super excited.

Dinner was fantastic. Crab cakes, steak, great wine (I ordered the same bottle that we had on our first date), and fantastic service. We had some after dinner drinks and then I ordered dessert to go. She was clueless as to why I was getting it to go, so I told her that it was part of the next surprise. "There's another surprise?!" Man, was she in for it.

On the way back to her loft, the car drove straight past her exit and headed for the Four Seasons. On the way there she asked to make sure that the surprise didn't involve any of our friends. I told her it didn't, and she was relieved. When we pulled into the turnaround, I told her that we were staying for the night, and she freaked out (in the good way). I paid our driver and said goodnight, and we went upstairs.

After getting settled, she thanked me for such a great night. Then I asked if she was ready for her next surprise. "There's more?!" I told her to wait in the living room so that I could get ready. After she left, I went to the safe, opened it up, grabbed the ring and headed into the living room. As soon as she saw the box in my hand she stared to laugh and cry. I'd never seen her so happy. I got down on one knee, asked her, and she said yes (about 10 times, I think). After that I gave her the ring. She told me that she loved it.

The rest of the night, we called everyone we knew and told them the great news. Our parents were all thrilled, and our friends were very happy. We got a bottle of champagne sent up by a friend of hers that used to work in the hotel. Thanks Maria! The morning after we had our breakfast in the room. We vegged out and relaxed in the room until the next afternoon when we checked out.

All in all it's a night I'll never forget. I'm so happy to be with Tianna, and to know that I'll be with her forever makes me feel amazing.