It is not universally realised amongst the male species but us Ladies have an imaginary ring on our fingers pretty much from date one! Girl meets guy, guy asks girl on date and girl starts dreaming about Wedding bells! Whether we choose to admit it or not, us Ladies dream of that magical day when our very own Prince Charming meets us at the top of the aisle and promises to love us forever. The big dress and the party afterwards is also a bonus! The biggest hurdle standing in our way is waiting for THE question. Those 4 little words that set the wheel in motion “Will you marry me?”. It’s not a difficult sentence really but some guys seem to take FOREVER to whisper it!
What is an acceptable dating time frame before the big question? I asked the girls at Country House Weddings and the answers spanned from 6 months to 5 years! It seems that there is no ‘right’ length of time to wait before committing so with that in mind, the male population needs to hurry up! Proposals these days seem to be getting more and more elaborate. Maybe the pressure to get the moment just right is what is delaying things for our men? A grand proposal isn’t for every girl, some of us JUST WANT THAT RING!
For me, that ring came last November in London. We were away for my birthday enjoying an afternoon tea at the Ritz. A birthday gift from my parents the previous year. At the time we were living apart as we were trying to buy a house but our sale completed before our purchase! When I met him at the station he had two massive duffel bags for one weekend. When I questioned it, he said one was for his suit for the Ritz which did sound feasible. However, later that night he produced a massive present! I could not contain my excitement! Being mean he made me look at that massive gift box for 24 hours! Cleverly he waited until we had finished at the Ritz and returned to our hotel before allowing me to open it. He had really given some thought to how I might feel after our experience was over, I had been looking forward to that all year! The big box had a little present in it and… another box! The next box had a little present in it and… another box! You get the idea and soon there were boxes, mini presents and wrapping paper everywhere! I was getting faster and faster thinking my time had finally come until I got to the last box! This was a jewellery box but it was more necklace size, there was a tiny part deep within me that sank at that moment. My other half is some what sneaky though as in the big jewellery box, there was hidden my RING!
There were tears and champagne! A lot of champagne! I still keep checking it is there – even now! So I have my ring. After the elation that finally I will be planning my very own big day, the first challenge arose….. which venue and when?! Follow my story here as I plan, panic and enjoy my real life wedding!
Laura at Country House Weddings
