Weddingbee Blog

Mr. P’s proposal was extremely well-planned, thoughtful, and full of meaning (not to mention a few challenges)! I had planned on taking a girlfriend, Abby, to a very special 30th birthday dinner that Tuesday. Panicked after hearing our phone conversation a week earlier, Mr. P had to step in, as he had plans of his own! Somehow he convinced Abby to cancel the dinner (apparently calling and emailing her for almost a week). So, Abby reluctantly wrote me a last minute email saying that she couldn’t make it (for vaguely work-related reasons).

That evening Mr. P surprised me by picking me up from work, citing that he wanted to walk me home that balmy evening.

He suggested we go for a drink… at Zaytinya, the restaurant where we first met that same night three years earlier. I realized at that moment that it was our anniversary and was happy that he remembered (though I had forgotten). We lucked on the very same table and toasted to our anniversary…

But Mr. P had (once again) other plans. He rushed me through my wine, acting a bit strangely (and in retrospect, a bit nervously). And as we left, he suggested a quick stop across the street at the National Portrait Gallery, one of our favorite museums. Thinking we would head to the third floor where the contemporary art is housed, I got another surprise. Mr. P insisted on walking through the beautiful enclosed courtyard, where he actually requested we stop, complaining that his back hurt. There, sitting on the large marbled planter, he proposed, down on knee (*very traditional!*) as museum visitors looked on.

After he got up and sat next to me again, he said, “… About the ring—you should pick it.” (*Very modern!*)… To top off the wonderful moment, there happened to be a professional photographer (not Mr. P’s planning) sitting nearby putting together his equipment. Mr. P approached him, there were congratulatory handshakes (I love how universal this feeling is), and he snapped pictures of us moments after the proposal! What luck!