Unique and creative marriage proposal ideas

For those of you planning to propose this coming year, here’s some creative ideas of how to propose:

1) Spell it out – surprise her during a romantic dinner with an elegant charm bracelet that spells out your special request "M-A-R-R-Y M-E".

2) Make it festive – Hang a few love notes all over the Christmas tree and then have her find the one box with her name on it that has the ring inside for the proposal. Another idea during the holidays is to decorate the Christmas tree with lights that read “marry me” and surprise her with the ring once she sees the proposal.

3) New Year’s Resolution – after a romantic dinner, read each other’s New Year's resolutions and the last one will be “to have you as my wife”.

4) Be a poet –Carve out a heart in a book of poems making sure that her favourite poem is on the first page for her to enjoy – or better yet write your own poem. Once she’s done reading that poem, tell her to turn the page where she’ll find the ring hidden inside the heart.

5) Wear it – Have a T shirt customized with a picture of the two of you and “MARRY ME” on the front. If you want to make it more fun, you could also have a matching t shirt made for her with “YES” on the front of the shirt and the same picture on the back.

6) Share with family and friends – Invite your family and friends to a surprise party for your girlfriend – it could be an anniversary, special occasion or an engagement surprise. While all eyes are on the two of you, take the opportunity to profess your love in front of everyone and propose in a traditional way, on one knee.

7) Say it with words – another fun way to ask her hand in marriage is to create a crossword puzzle to propose.

8) Record it – Make a video of yourself proposing and plan a movie night after a romantic dinner at home. Get comfy on the couch and pop in the video as if you rented it from the movie store and watch her be surprised when she watches the proposal on TV.

9) In the sky - Take her/him up in a hot air balloon with a bottle of champagne and announce that'll you'll jump if she/he doesn't marry you.

10) Romantic travels - propose at the top of the Eiffel tower, at the Taj mahal, or on a white sand beach by presenting the ring at these romantic destinations. Or if you are in Las Vegas, not only can you get engaged but you can even get married at the same time.

If you want the proposal to a public display of your love, why not try:

1) Radio - Have the local radio station play your favourite song during a precise time to make sure you are both listening and either before or after the song, have the DJ dedicate the song and announce your proposal.

2) Theatre – Schedule a night at the theatre and coordinate with the stage manager if you can propose after the final curtain.

3) Newspaper - Take out an ad in a local paper that you know will be read regularly and be close by when he/she reads it to get your answer.

4) Billboard - Post your proposal on a billboard that will be seen either on the way to work or on a walk with a pet.

5) Parade – have “MARRY ME” on a large sign being held by people on a large float, stop the float while the two of you join the float and then propose in front of everyone.

Whether you chose to be creative or traditional in the delivery of your proposal, the most important thing is that you are happy, in love, and ready to spend the rest of your lives together! Either way, I know the proposal will be memorable for you both!

Always nice to get away...

Second annual Tremblant weekend was fantastic. Plenty of snow, lots of good friends, lots of wine, and many reasons to celebrate! Half of us had recently celebrated or was soon-to-celebrate a birthday and what better way then to get away from the hussle and bussle by taking a weekend trip to a resort chalet? With a room full of Sagittarius' - the laughs and activities were ongoing!

Not only did we relax at our beautiful chalet but we had the pleasure of taking a trip into the Village to enjoy the festivities. It was the 10th edition of Tremblant's 24h of Skiing which raises proceeds for three foundations: the Fondation centre de cancérologie Charles-Bruneau, the Ottawa Senators Foundation and the Tremblant Foundation.

Besides relaxing, we also spent our Saturday afternoon tasting different rums that were paired with an appetizer. Our tasting consisted of:

1) Bacardi Lemon rum & Avocado stuffed with saffron & lemon-flavoured rice

2) El Dorado dark rum & sweet potatoe chips

3) British Virgin Island dark rum & BBQ beef skewers

4) Royal Oak (Trinidad)& curry crabmeat

5) Spicy Sailor rum & Tandoori chicken

Not only did we try rums that we wouldn't normally try but we learned a bit about each rum while we tasted them. Great idea for a small get together of friends or private event at your home when entertaining! Assign each guest a different liquor, ask them to research it and prepare an appetizer that would pair well with it, tell them to bring it to the party and provide a short history while everyone enjoys the pairing experience!

All it all, the weekend consisted of a great (very relaxing) time, lots of laughs and a full tummy - now to get ready for the holidays!

Noteworthy blog post from Carol Rame: August Coffee Talk: Why you NEED to hire a Professional

Blog post brought to you by Carol Rame Weddings, Noteworthy is a dedicated Wedding Blog for Trends and Wedding Know-How. Rich with up-to-date info on how to have the Wedding of your dreams! So true and a good read:

Noteworthy: August Coffee Talk: Why you NEED to hire a Professional

Tweet out Hunger and Diaper Drive

This year I learned about the Hard Rock Cafe's international campaign "Imagine There's No Hunger" from the Sales and Special Events Manager, Michael Machargo. And as many of you may know, I'm an avid Twitter fan. So when Michael and I met, we decided to show our local support by planning the first ever tweet up at the Hard Rock Cafe Ottawa on Dec 1st. The event then grew and it was not only to "Tweet Out Hunger" but to then join forces in the "Ottawa Diaper Drive" - all in support of the Ottawa Food Bank.

With our Twitter handle name tags and a room full of Twitter fans and newbie twitter fans alike, the room was buzzing. Everyone was enjoying in the festivities knowing that they were supporting a great cause that is so very important especially during the cold holiday season.

FACT: the Ottawa Food Bank provides emergency food to 43,000 people a month -35% of those being children and 1 in 5 Canadian moms have struggled to provide one of their babies' most basic needs such as diapers was more than enough reason to put on this event.

Together, with the music of Ana Miura and the Babes 4 Breasts, Mike Machargo, myself, Stephanie Montreuil and Candace Derickx from the Yummy Mummy Club, Alex Surrett from Surreal Mark8ng, and Neil from 99.7 EZ Rock were the proud hosts for the successful event!


If you can spare a couple of dollars, donate non-perishable items or diapers and baby food this holiday season, please do so as it's so important to show your support of our Ottawa community - especially since it's this time of the season we should be most thankful for what we have in good fortunes!