Botched Proposal? AITAH?

I’ve been dating my girlfriend for 7 years. We got together when I was 22 and I’ve known only her as my partner for most of my adult life. I was unable to meet her parents for about 5 years due to cultural reasons which I am accepting of but that may have delayed my proposal. Anyway, this year, I proposed.

I took her to a few places where we had some of our first dates and then at sunset, on a beach not too far from home, I asked her to marry me. I had a photographer there, and our closest friends were there to surprise her with flowers and champagne. I feel like everything came out great, her nails were done, she looked beautiful, and she was completely surprised. We then went to dinner and spent the weekend at a small cottage in a remote area next to the ocean, we went kayaking and spent quality time with close friends. Our friends even decorated our room for us with rose petals and balloons, etc.

I had an extended period of time scheduled off from work, and I was able to extend a trip to Hawaii for a week into a 10 day trip shortly after our engagement (2-3 days). I thought about proposing in Hawaii but she made a request to me that her friends be there when she gets proposed to and I’m not in a financial position to take her friends to Hawaii and I knew it would be unfair for me to ask them to be there because it is an expensive trip. We also travel together with friends often and I wanted to have some quality time alone with her. The trip went amazingly and I couldn’t be happier with my engagement.

Unfortunately, the same can not be said for my Fiancée. She said yes to marrying me, but she tells me that "I knew what she wanted" and it had to be a "grand gesture." Her requests prior to my proposal were a hot air balloon proposal, and she also tells me she wanted to be proposed to in Hawaii. I looked for hot air balloon experiences in Hawaii but there are none due to trade winds. She also made comments such as being proposed to in France. I think her issue is that at the very moment of me asking, it was just on a beach at sunset, and maybe that wasn't enough.

I am struggling to come to grips with this. It's debilitating because the moment is gone and can never be changed. I felt a lot of anxiousness about proposing and the weekend trip we took with friends was expensive combined with the trip to Hawaii to boot. I really felt deeply that those places I took her when we had our first dates were meaningful to me. I think also my anxiety came from knowing I was going to mess it up somehow. It was hard for me to even keep her attention while I was trying to ask the question. Our trips come maybe twice a year. I've never been to Hawaii in my life, but I wanted to do this because it's our engagement.

I guess I should've just proposed in Hawaii. She's upset and I can't fix this. I don't want to feel like garbage about the way I proposed, and I'm actually proud of myself for doing it. AITA?

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Posted Sep 23, 2023, 7:53 AM UTC

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