Ladies and gentlemen, I’m very happy to say that as of recent I have a little bit of experience in this particular area myself, for as of May 3rd at about 9:45pm, yours truly is getting married! It was every bit as magical as one could’ve ever dreamed, and as it fittingly took place at The Happiest Place on Earth, I thought that this would be just as good a place as any to reflect back on the moment itself, all of the planning and just how I worked up to the moment of truth, and some thoughts that I would offer to others who are considering Disney World as the location for their proposal…
For me, that special moment that we’ll both fondly remember for the rest of our lives took place in front of Spaceship Earth, at the very first photo opportunity just inside the turnstiles at Epcot. We were spending an extended weekend at Walt Disney World – it was our first evening in town, having driven over from Tampa after work Thursday night with the intention of simply catching dinner and fireworks before retiring back to our hotel. On the outside it looked like just another trip to Disney, although we had talked about engagement on and off in previous months so my fiancée would no doubt profess that nearly every trip out of the house left her wondering if she’d be wearing an engagement ring when she returned home! Of course, on the inside at least for me … I was just a tad bit nervous, between carrying the ring around in my pocket and wondering if she’d find it ahead of time to simply working up the confidence for what I was about to attempt. Looking back, though, that day’s battle with nerves was well worth it at the end of the day, and I couldn’t imagine having done it any other way!
So there we were, walking towards the front gates of Epcot after watching IllumiNations, when I suggested that we stop to get a picture on the way out. Apparently we had dawdled enough that the official PhotoPass photographers had already left for the evening, but thinking quick, I ran over to one of the cast members working the turnstiles to ask if anyone could possibly fill in as our impromptu photographer. Having asked Sara to wait where we would be standing for the picture, in private I explained to the young girl that I actually had a ring in my pocket and was planning to propose, if she wouldn’t mind taking some photos of the act itself. And much to my delight, the cast member was thrilled with the idea and thought it was really cool, following me back to where my fiancée had been waiting for what she thought would be just a brief photo in front of the ball that probably wouldn’t end up turning out anyways…
I put my arm around her and posed for a single shot, however instead of going to retrieve my camera after the photo, I instead turned to face her and began the lines that I had rehearsed in my head roughly three million times that day:
A little over one year ago, we shared our second date here at Epcot and we had such a magical time, it seemed only fitting that it would be the perfect place for me to give you this…
…you would make me the happiest man at the Happiest Place on Earth if you would be my wife. Will you marry me?
And there, in true Prince Charming form, I offered up my proposal to the love of my life and waited. Thankfully I didn’t have to wait long, as she pretty much broke out in tears of joy when the ring first made its appearance, and the rest, as they say, is history! As I slowly came back to reality, I heard the cheers and applause from the crowd that had gathered around as they realized just what was taking place, which was certainly an intimidating thought beforehand but ended up being a pretty cool addition to the moment. Our impromptu photographer took a few last photos, offered her congratulations, and then disappeared to wherever Disney cast members go after they’ve added that last dash of pixie dust to your evening. I turned and looked back at the giant, geodesic sphere glowing behind us with Mickey’s wand illuminating the night sky, then returned my gaze to Sara, the both of us knowing that our engagement couldn’t have been any more perfect.
Working Up to The Big Moment…
Of course, despite how surprisingly well everything managed to flow once I handed over my camera to that cast member and the gears started turning, I didn’t just wake up that morning knowing exactly how to pull off our perfect engagement. Well, actually I did, but it certainly wasn’t as easy as that sounds…
Was Cinderella Castle the right locale for my proposal???
In all honesty, I actually worked through several different scenarios in my head during the previous months before I finally settled on the picture-perfect moment that I just described to you. Admittedly, an idea of one of the theme parks and somehow incorporating fireworks did cross my mind early in the game, but when push came to shove, the idea was initially written off because believe it or not, I’m actually quite the shy person in real life … at least until I get to know you or become more comfortable with my surroundings. So as cool as it might’ve sounded to propose in front of Cinderella Castle with the final words from When You Wish Upon a Star… playing over the fireworks of Wishes in the background, I just didn’t have the nerves to pull a feat of that magnitude off … or at least I didn’t think that I did when the initial planning first began!
Initially my plans leaned more towards the beach – far, far away from Disney World altogether. The idea of proposing before a beautiful sunset on the Gulf beaches that we’ve walked hand-in-hand many, many times seemed inviting, and without an audience to get my nerves built up even further, it would just be the two of us and the waves when I finally popped the big question. I’d lead into the evening with a nice, romantic dinner on the beach, and our engagement would have that perfect tropical flair that we both enjoy every day from living in Florida! But the gears, they kept a turnin’…
As I mentioned earlier, this was a moment that Sara had been anticipating for a while and I certainly wanted it to be a surprise, which might’ve been a bit tough to pull off at the beach simply because that kind of thing just isn’t something that I’d normally spring on her (we normally make the decision to take a night out on the town together) and I was afraid that she’d smell the plan that I had afoot from a mile away. But what could be feasible would be something snuck into our already-planned getaway to Orlando in May for a little fun at Disney as well as a long-awaited swim with the dolphins at Discovery Cove!
So my next idea for the grand proposal included a casual dinner, yet upscale dinner followed by a peaceful walk through the tucked-away grounds of our resort where I’d wait until just the right time to make my move. The resort that we had chosen for this trip was Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, so naturally I assumed that there would be plenty of white, sandy beaches for just such an occasion, and at the end of the day I was pretty content with this new scheme because it sort of combined the best of both worlds for us – Disney and the beach. Better yet, because I’d be proposing at some random point on the beach away from prying eyes, my nerves were limited to the stress brought by the act itself and not compounded by outsider influence, if you will. Perfect plan, you say? Well, up until the morning of the deed itself, that’s what I thought.
Nothing says romance like Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort...
A Last-Minute Adjustment
…but the more I thought about it while I prepared myself for work that morning, the more I knew that there was just something missing. Sara still got the ring at the end of the day and it seemed like it would be a nice ambience for the presentation, but way back in the far reaches of my shy mind grew an idea that was just yearning to be explored … that of actually having photos of the whole thing to look back on 5, 10, 25 years later. Had I optioned to propose in a restaurant, I probably could’ve talked one of the wait staff into taking a few pictures for us, but for some reason I just didn’t see someone following us around the resort until I had decided that the time was just right! And with the majority of our friends and family who could’ve been talked into playing Secret Agent Photographer living several states away, it seemed like the idea was a wash. It’s too bad that Disney doesn’t have people that they pay to just walk around and take pictures of their guests all day long…
Viva PhotoPass!!!
Why hadn’t I thought of it sooner?! Oh yeah, that’s right – because I’m a chicken, that’s why. Taking advantage of Disney’s PhotoPass service would’ve meant actually breaking out the ring in public, which would no doubt attract a significant amount of unwanted attention for an already shy individual like myself. But maybe it would be worth it, I began to ponder as for the first time, the anticipation for the excitement of the moment attempted to overcome the nerves that had previously determined anything even remotely public to be unattainable! The potential to have those photos to look back on was a huge deal to me and from there, the questioning of exactly where to conduct the act itself lead to only one answer – the front of Epcot.
We’d taken many a picture there ourselves, it was probably our most frequented park in recent months, and on top of all that, Epcot also held an extra little piece of sentiment, being that it was there a little over a year prior that we had spent our second date together. Our first had been only two days before at a local restaurant where we initially met face-to-face after chatting online and over the phone for a couple of weeks, so that day spent at Epcot was pretty much our first chance to really spend a decent amount of time together and it was nearly as perfect as anyone could expect a second date to be! (Hey, I ended up getting that all-important first kiss out of the excursion, so that’s gotta count for something…)
And thus the plan was born as I shaved and brushed my teeth the morning that I was to propose to my love, bolstered by a combination of rushes from preparing for the act itself and also some incredibly heartfelt words from her father the night before when I told him of my intentions – I was on top of the world!
Ok, so not exactly – I still had the deed itself to carry out, and if you’d like a fairly candid walkthrough of those hours leading up to the proposal itself, you might want to check out my recent humor column titled The One Where Scott Gets Engaged – let’s just say that there’s simply too much from that day to possibly fit into a single column here today! But at the very end of the day, as we enjoyed a nice glass of champagne and flipped through the photos that had been taken to commemorate the occasion, all the nerves in the world were worth it.
So to Anyone Out There Who’s Thinking of Proposing at Disney…
What advice can a guy who’s been through it himself now offer to those prospective engagement fanatics?
Choose a location that’s special to the two of you.
Epcot worked great for us because it had a special meaning for us, but that’s not to say that you might not have a different special place that the two of you consider to be your own. Walt Disney World is filled with unique, little hideaways, from gardens and secluded benches to not-so-secret viewing areas for fireworks and whatnot. Believe it or not, I was actually even seriously considering Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin at one point because it’s probably our favorite attraction in all of the Magic Kingdom! Granted, it was later voted down for obvious logistical reasons, but regardless, think back to your previous trips and what specific locations make Disney special to you as a couple – you might be surprised at the ideas that will come to mind…
"To infinity and beyond, 'til death do us part..."
Don’t let a few jitters stand in the way of doing something cool.
Clearly it worked out for me, and I can’t stress this enough – I’m a huge wuss when it comes to public speaking and so forth – so don’t let your nerves stand in the way of greatness! To be honest, once I started saying what I had to say and I was down on one knee, she was the only one in the world to me anyways – I was seriously completely oblivious to the fact that several dozen people who were trying to leave the park had gathered around to take in our moment, which looking back had to have been kinda cool for them as well, you know? You’re in an amazing mood because you just spent a perfect day at Disney World, and then you get to witness someone pledging his love to another on your way out – talk about icing on the cake!
…and just for the record, this whole no nerves thing goes the same for her as well because I was told later by my new fiancée that she hadn’t really noticed the people gathering until it was all over with either. In fact, she even went a step further and admitted that she really was in such awe that she didn’t even catch all of my speech that I’d worked so hard on to get absolutely perfect, but that’s a discussion topic for another day and certainly another column!
A picture’s worth a thousand words…
This truly isn’t an exaggeration, but figuring out a way to capture photos of the occasion really did make all of the difference in the world because not only do we have some great photos to go up on the wall and a great way to share the moment with friends and family via e-mail and the Internet, I can’t help but imagine that those memories are only going to grow more and more valuable as time goes by. And believe me, I’m excited enough to be able to show people in person where it was that we got engaged when we’re walking through Epcot, but those pictures really helped to capture the moment and I’m particularly grateful for that, so I’d say that it’s definitely worth working out some way to make this happen, whether it be by relying on the kindness of Disney cast members or bringing along a friend or family member. It’s a detail that will be well worth the effort later on down the road…
So that’s my story, and I sure hope that you enjoyed this month’s installment because it certainly has been a very near and dear one to my heart. Just when I thought that the Happiest Place on Earth couldn’t get any more magical, not only do I find the woman who I want to spend the rest of my life with but a year later I came back and proposed to her … successfully, even! I like to think that she would’ve said “Yes!” even without the pixie dust, but at the end of the day every little bit helps to make those dreams come true…
