Christine and Eric had planned a vacation to Maine for late August of 2010, and Eric thought it would be a great backdrop for the proposal.  In the months prior he studied up on diamonds and engagement rings, leaning on Christine’s friends and family for advice.  In the end bought a loose diamond from New York City’s diamond district and had it set in a custom, handmade ring from a designer in San Francisco.  He carefully stowed the ring in his camera bag, where it would wait until the moment was right.

On the first day of the vacation Eric encouraged them to take a walk along Ogunquit’s Marginal Way, a manicured path along one of Maine’s gorgeous rocky coastlines.  While walking mile and a quarter long path Eric kept a lookout for the perfect spot to pop the question, someplace with a beautiful backdrop and secluded from the other tourists.  By the time they turned around to head back he had made up his mind, deciding upon a large rock outcropping near the beginning of the trail.  By the time they got there Christine was tired from the long walk and had just about had her fill of taking pictures.  When Eric asked her to climb down yet again she politely declined, saying Eric should go along on his own.

This was a major monkey wrench in Eric’s plan, but he pressed on alone, hoping he could convince her to come down.  After a minute Christine changed her mind and followed him down, a crucial move she would soon find out.  Eric brought her to the water’s edge, and positioned her for some photos.  He got down on his knee and snapped a few, and then said that something wasn’t right, and dug into his camera bag.  Christine thought nothing of it, and used this brief break from the paparazzi to take in the surroundings.

When she turned back to face him he was talking about their life together and how wonderful it had been.  It took her a moment to notice the ring box, and when she did her eyes lit up and she became overwhelmed with excitement.  Eric eventually got around to asking the big question, and Christine gave a resounding “yes!”  That night they celebrated with a fancy dinner and a moonlight cruise around Portland’s Casco Bay.