<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"Before you read this awesome proposal story, grab a tissue&amp;amp;#8212;or a sweatband!Writes Save the Date reader Natalie: I had been with my boyfriend, Jeff, for more than two years when a friend told me about Engagement Chicken. Another friend and I had both been hoping to get engaged, so we planned a double date for June 22&amp;amp;#8212;two years and two months to the day from when Jeff and I met at the dog park. Let me preface the next part by saying Jeff is always the one to ruin the end of the movie. Less than 15 minutes in, he announces the plot&amp;amp;#8212;which drives me crazy! Still, when I told Jeff that my friend and her boyfriend were coming for dinner and I was making a whole chicken (highly unlikely under normal circumstances!), and he asked with a smile, &amp;amp;#8220;What is this? A baby-making recipe? A getting married recipe?&amp;amp;#8221; I was floored! I tried to play it off, but I figured a post-chicken engagement was off the table for us. Still, I made the chicken on June 22. Our friends were coming for dinner, after all, and I figured I could hook a sister up. Three days later we were in Seattle, where we were running the Rock &amp;amp;#8217;n&amp;amp;#8217; Roll Half Marathon together after training for months. Thirteen miles in&amp;amp;#8212;just a few feet before the finish line&amp;amp;#8212;Jeff stopped running, turned to me, and said, &amp;amp;#8220;I don&amp;amp;#8217;t know if it was the chicken , but ...&amp;amp;#8221; Says Jeff: I knew all along I would only propose to Natalie when she least expected it&amp;amp;#8212;and the race provided the perfect opportunity. A few months before we left for Seattle, I chose the perfect engagement ring, but I was concerned about getting it from the starting line to the finish line without losing it. On race day, I wound up tucking it in a tiny plastic bag from the jeweler and safety-pinning the bag inside the built-in pocket of my running shorts. I had to pat my pocket every so often to make sure it was still there! At mile 6, I decided exactly what I was going to say when I proposed, and I spent the next six miles repeating the words in my head so I didn&amp;amp;#8217;t forget them. At mile 12 I dropped a few steps behind Natalie, grabbed the ring, tore the plastic bag apart, and slipped the ring on my right pinkie, band-side out. When we were almost at the finish line, Natalie asked me to hold her hand so we could cross the finish line together, but I shook my head no. That wasn&amp;amp;#8217;t the response she was hoping for, but I had something better planned. Just steps before the finish line I put my hand on Natalie&amp;amp;#8217;s shoulder to stop her. &amp;amp;#8220;I don&amp;amp;#8217;t know if it was the chicken, but ...&amp;amp;#8221; I said, as I dropped down on one knee. &amp;amp;#8220;Ever since I saw you at the dog park, I knew you were my girl. Don&amp;amp;#8217;t think of this as us crossing a finish line together, but us crossing a starting line to a new chapter of our lives together. [Insert heavy breathing!] Natalie Janae Welch, will you marry me?&amp;amp;#8221; I&amp;amp;#8217;m still not exactly sure that she said yes! I was worried Natalie would find out about my proposal plan, so I had added an extra element of surprise. I guessed that the first person a girl calls after getting engaged would be her mom, so I wanted the first person Natalie saw when she crossed the finish line to be her mother. I let her mom and my parents know about the plan, so they all flew to Seattle to celebrate with us. When Natalie noticed her mom, she covered her mouth and began to cry. It was a race we will never forget. (And for the record, she got the ring&amp;amp;#8212;but I beat her by one second!) How adorable is that proposal story? Would you like your boyfriend to do something similarly sporty? Or are you hoping for a couch-potato-friendly proposal? More fantabulous proposal stories: * On Ice! * In a Movie! * In Central Park! More Ways to Get Glamour: NEW! Now You Can Read Glamour on Flipboard! Visit ShopGlamour.com for cute stuff starting at just $10! Download Glamour for your iPad. Print subscribers, it&amp;amp;#8217;s now part of your subscription plan! Enter the latest Glamour sweepstakes! Follow us on Twitter. Photos: Courtesy of Natalie &amp;amp; Jeff"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/weddings/blogs/save-the-date/2011/07/a-proposal-story-this-clever-b-1>