3.) Married? Tell us the story of how the question was popped.
My husband proposed to me on a cliff in front of Sweetheart Rock on Lanai.
I had a feeling when we got to the edge that he was either going to push me off or ask my hand in marriage. Thankfully it was the latter…though I’m not sure he’ll agree.
He told me the old Hawaiian legend about a warrior from Lanai who kept his Maui sweetheart (princess?) hidden in a cave on the other side of Sweetheart Rock. When a storm came in she drowned. The warrior carried her body to the top of the rock, buried her, and then jumped to his death.
Romantic right?
Well I thought so.
We dated for five years prior. I worked hard for that proposal dammit.
It marks the only moment in the history of our relationship that he has ever planned and prepped every detail of a trip. Or…any detail of anything really. The island hopping, the hotel reservations, meeting family…I had a hand in none of it.
As Pat and I sat on the cliff and did the whole “YES OF COURSE I’LL MARRY YOU!!” song and dance, I thought about the huge party his family had thrown us just a couple nights before. The leis, the flower crown, the food, the people, the music…at the time I couldn’t believe how much effort those people went in to celebrating our visit. True that the Hawaiian people will throw a party for just about anything, this one seemed a little more elaborate.
“You know that party we had a couple nights ago when they put that crown of flowers on my head??” I asked.
“Yeah…” he said, “that was our engagement party. They knew I was going to ask you and they thought I’d done it already.”
He’d spent the evening hushing everyone from spoiling the secret while I admired my head piece.
An engagement party.
And I didn’t even know it.
He’s lucky I said yes.
Now it’s your turn!
Choose a prompt, post it on your blog, and come back to add your name to the link list below. Be sure to sign up with the actual post URL and not just your basic blog URL (click on the title of your post for that URL). For good comment karma try to comment on the three blogs above your name!!
The Prompts:
1.) List your life’s Seven Wonders. Describe the most amazing 7 things you’ve seen with your own two eyes.
2.) Your biggest parenting challenge and/or joy.
3.) Married? Tell us the story of how the question was popped.
4.) Your prom dress.
5.) Write a love letter to an inanimate object.
{ 58 comments… read them below or add one }
He is lucky. Can you imagine if he had pushed you off that cliff instead? No bueno. :(
A real Hawaiian engagement party, and you didn’t even know it. So fantastic.
Also? Swoony proposal!
Have you asked him recently about the pushing? Seriously though, that is soooo romantic. Love that you had your engagement party BEFORE you were engaged!
That is FANTASTIC
AND hilarious.
what a great story Mama Kat
xx
My husband is Samoan and I love the island culture. I cheated a little as over the summer I wrote a series on the story of us. I really appreciate the opportunity to share the best part of our story though. Some may disagree and think Part 4 is the best part…I don’t know.
We honeymooned in Kauai and I lived on the big Island for over a year, so I have a great appreciation for the Hawaiian people and life.
Where’s the picture of you in your headpiece? I’m sure you have it somewhere…Thanks for the opp. to post and link up.
Your story is so romantic! Everybody already celebrated for the surprise engagement hehe, you must be so cute that time! I also enjoyed recollecting my own. Been 10 long years. Thanks for the meme! Hope you can visit my entry, I grabbed your badge too :)
Great story!! Glad you said yes too!!
How could you say no after he went to all that trouble, even if it was the only time?
I wouldn’t go back to the rock if I were you, just in case he’s done a lot of thought about the pushing thing.
I Couldn’t even imagine had you not said yes. His family would be like “we want the crown back”
And he is lucky, period!
Hee, hee, that’s a classic! So funny and also such a wonderful story too :)
Lucky rock. Love it!
Drowning Pool
So funny and completely romantic ;)
I was proposed to on a rock as well, although my engagement party was AFTER the proposal. Then I went on my Honeymoon to Hawaii, but being that I’m not married anymore, I decided NOT to write about it today! :)
You attended your own engagement party and didn’t even know it at the time? Now that’s a great story! How sweet that your hubs and his family planned that special trip for you.
That’s fabulous! Just think about how much more relaxed you were at the party. If you had known, it would have taken on a whole different tone.
Sounds like such a lovely setting!
Cheers to you.
P.S. You had far too many good prompts this week–I wanted to do three.
That is too sweet! I love that his family was in on a “secret”. =)
I can’t believe they were all able to keep quiet about it! And five years? Did you tell him it was about time?! :)
Ready to hear the most UNromantic proposal story ever? I planned the wedding and told him when it was gonna be and that if he wanted to be friends with me he better show up. He asked me a few days later to marry him. What? We already had a kid so I guess the magic was already dead?! Your story sounds awesome though!
He just scored some MAJOR points with me! How wonderful that he set all of that up himself and kept the secret during the party. One quick question though…if you wouldn’t have said yes, would he have taken you down to that cave or pushed you off? ;-)
We all know he loves you…that is why he wants you to drink more water ;-)
So fun! What a great story! & my boyfriend never plans not one detail for anything either so I’m wondering what it would be like if he planned a proposal! Hopefully something along the lines of Hawaii, a cliff, and sunset? Haha, a girl can dream!
I love that story! I love what you said about your husband never planning anything again! Our wedding was a team effort. I planned the wedding and my husband did all the travel arrangements for our honeymoon. He did very well. After that, not so much.
I bet he was sweating it out during that party! Great story though.
BAHAHAHA!!! That is hilarious about the engagement party. No one got any warning with us. In fact, a lot of people didn’t know I had been dating anyone. One person asked if I was pregnant. Hell, we didn’t even like each other. Auspicious beginnings, huh?
W.O.W. I don’t know that I’ve ever heard of someone having a party on their behalf without realizing it! That’s a great story!
Well that is a memorable and amazing proposal story. I didn’t go with this prompt because getting asked during a commercial break on TV just doesn’t scream “romance.” I didn’t want to squash the dreams of others. He is very lucky you said yes!!!!
That’s hilarious, Kat. He must’ve been sweating bullets and now you have this fantastic story to tell your kids and their kids! Hopefully they’ll get the timing better than he did. ;)
man, he must’ve been STRESSED at that party!
what a GREAT story though. and i love that he was able to get a photographer out there to capture the moment he popped the question. ;D
He is lucky! great story.
This? Is gold! Love!
OMGoodness! He is pretty lucky you said yes!! Although, what a sweetie to go to all that work. It sounds completely special and romantic!
Well, shit, least you had a party. My husband’s brother called a few days before Christmas and said he was outside waiting b/c they were going to the mall. To get my gift. Because it had to be sized. FOR MY FINGER. On Christmas day, as I held our one month old daughter and opened the box, he smiled like I should have been surprised. I couldn’t help it, I had to ask: what’s this, a friendship ring? Damn dummy, ASK.
Yes, Pat is lucky you said yes!
With a wonderful proposal and party that you didn’t even know that you were engaged no wonder you have such a wonderful marriage.
What a romantic proposal! And I love that you were at your own engagement party and didn’t even know it!
Awww, so lucky for us that he didn’t push you over that cliff.
I can’t imagine how stressed out Pat must have been going around shush-ing everyone about the whole “Engagement Party”!! That is hilarious!
What a fun story! I can’t imagine how scared he was at the party! Whew!
I love it!! When my hubby asked all I could say was you are Fing kidding!! I should write about it… : )
What a wonderful story! And so romantic. I want so badly to take my husband there someday. He’s never been and I’ve been twice, though a long time ago. I’m shooting for our 15th wedding anniversary. That gives me a year.
LMAO! Sounds like my life isn’t the only one that is filled with tales of folly…I especially laughed out loud when you had had your engagement party before you were even engaged…LOVE IT Mama Kat…LOVE IT!!
This is a great proposal memory. It’s kind of hard to top it…maybe my next husband will be a native of Hawaii. :) Although I can’t give mine too much grief; he has taken me there 3 times…and each time was magical, as I’m sure you can relate.
-MM
Well, magical except for that one time, when he got a speeding ticket on a deserted highway on the north shore, or that other time, when we almost got a divorce driving around Diamond Head, or then there was the time when we brought little guy and he screamed through 75% of the nine hour flight…but still, magical.
Aww that is so sweet and having seen your hubby I can totally see him doing this. Of course not now cause ya know you got the ring and all that already.. ahem.. At least you knew his family approved of you since they gave the engagement party lol. What if they HADN’T that would have been awkward..
How unusual! I never knew anyone before that had an engagement party and didn’t even know it! I agree with the person who said at least you were relaxed and could enjoy the party!
Beautiful! So glad it was a proposal and not a murder scene ;)
I gotta say, that’s incredibly sweet.
I told my husband we were getting married.
He’s lucky you said yes because of more than just that party.
That is the best story!!! You win!
OMG!! So funny!!! A similar thing happened to me the night we got engaged. Several people almost blew it because they thought he had asked me already but he was doing it later that night. I love reading your stories about Hawaii since you know… I live here on Oahu. :) I’m planning to link up my story. Hoping it will come to me in detail so I can write it out.
Haha! I am shocked someone didn’t spill the beans. With all that planning you’d think he would have thought of the timeline!
i can’t believe no one spilled the beans!! haha sooooo lucky you said yes! ;)
I love the “pre” engagement party piece of this! It like a “hooray . . . you might get married!” celebration. :D
Awesome proposal. I love that it could have gone either way. You know, with you, over the edge of the cliff.
And that you were oblivious to your own engagement party? Is brilliant.
I want a flower crown…..
Awesome! I didn’t get my post done this week so I’ll give you the run down in a few. We bought our first house, I said “Well, I want a ring and a commitment by the end of the summer”. He said “It’s healthy to want things”. I considered selling the house (I’m being sarcastic but not by much). Unbeknownst to me he already had a ring that he had put on our cat’s collar waiting for me to find. Three days late I was “What’s this?!” and he asked me if I’d like to throw a wedding soon (I like to plan a good party). Seven years, a kiddo and a lot of water under the bridge we still love a good party and the house is still there :-)
What a great story! And how funny that you had your engagement party without even knowing it.
Very good proposal story! :)
As someone who dances hula and wishes I were part Hawaiian, I LOVE this story!
What a lovely story!!!
I can appreciate the hard work (and patience, in my case) that went into the proposal. My husband completely caught me off guard, probably because I never thought he’d get to *that* moment.
Because of this, I was in such shock that I couldn’t tell you one single thing he said to me when he proposed. Note: not something you should EVER admit.
Which is why I had to take one for the team and write about my prom dress. Because the public humiliation couldn’t possibly be as bad as the private browbeating I’d get for leaving out details on his lovely proposal.
Great proposal and good thing he managed to hush everyone up at your “engagement” party!