A Bigger View Article: To Pop or Not to Pop: That is the Question

Valentine's Day highlights the romantic side of A Big Life. Every year, as February 14th approaches, many couples begin thinking about moving one step closer to marriage. Such a big decision brings up many questions. How do you know if you should propose or not? If you do decide to propose, what is the best way to prepare? Now that we've reached the 21st century, is it okay for a woman to propose to man? If you or someone in your Big Life is struggling with popping "The Question", Sissy has called in Elle magazine's advice guru E. Jean Carroll to help.

According to E. Jean, one of the first things to ask yourself is whether you are truly in love. Secondly, understand that you may never truly know if the time is right in your relationship to take it to the next level. There's a little bit of luck involved for every couple. Could someone better come along down the line? Maybe. But, if you are at a point where you honestly feel that you are in love with someone and you've been together for awhile, you know deep down if you should get engaged or not. If you are being wishy-washy, doubting yourself and really don't know if you want to ask this person to marry you, E. Jean believes that you are probably really not in love.

If you are the woman in love and you want to take control and initiate the proposal, E. Jean has good news for you. Go out and buy HIM a ring and pop the question. It's completely acceptable and some men may even prefer it.

Regardless of who actually does the proposing, we all want to avoid the clichés associated with this ritual. According to E. Jean, you can't miss if you take your love to the place you first fell in love with her or him or if you take them to the place where they look most beautiful or handsome. This will always be special and rarely cliché as it will be a place unique to the two of you. So, think hard about these criteria and plan accordingly.

A couple of other questions that 21st century couples face:

Does a man still need to ask her father's permission? E. Jean says yes. Since this is the man who brought your love into this world, asking his permission is the perfect way to show respect and also, to thank him.

If you are cohabitating, is popping the question less important? Quite the opposite according to E. Jean. Getting engaged becomes even more important when you are living together because everyone else in your life - from your parents to your best friends - is expecting you to get married.

One of the biggest questions for prospective proposers: Is a ring a definite must for the proposal? E. Jean says it is. Click here to see Sissy and Mimi So's tips on picking the perfect ring.

If you are thinking about getting engaged this Valentine's Day or some time in the near future, your love will look beautiful at Daniel restaurant in New York City.

Let Mimi So help you choose your ring.

Finally, in addition to extending our sincerest thanks to Daniel restaurant and Mimi So, we want to thank E. Jean Carroll for all of her great advice. For more advice from E. Jean, check out her website: http://www.askejean.com/

Share your proposal stories with the A Big Life community. We'd love to hear who proposed and how. We'd even love to hear about the proposals that maybe didn't work out the way they were planned.  Email us at abiglife@nbcuni.com.

Happy Valentine's Day from everyone at A Big Life!

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