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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Aibu to say no if my boyfriend proposes

190 replies

Mumof4girlshectic · 06/08/2025 15:00

Me and fella have been together 6 years, we are happily in love and to be honest we don't have any problems, I love him to bits and I feel he's the same with me... Honey moon faze seems to be our whole relationship and we have beautiful children together. He knew from the moment we met that marriage was something I wanted and he said the same, we spoke about it a lot in the start of our relationship... Anyway we are in the 6th year, have children, a home but still no proposal and in my head I told myself if he didn't propose in 5 years I'd say no, I feel if it's taken him this long then there's a reason, he just doesn't love me enough or something is stopping him, he knows I'm fine with a long engagement so it's not financial. If he was madly in love with me and we was meant to get married he'd have proposed by now, he's made me wait 6 years, I haven't been naggy I don't mention it at all we only spoke about it a lot at the start... I just feel if it was menna be he'd have done it and if he does it now its because he feels he don't have a choice or something.. So I'd say no. Id tell him it took too long and it's too late now. Is that me being an arsehole. Yes I wanna spend forever with him, but he doesn't seem keen to marry me and has kept me waiting why should I say yes when he finally wants to....

OP posts:
GentleSheep · 06/08/2025 17:58

You need to have a proper conversation with him OP, otherwise you are just guessing at what may or may not be going on in his head. Never a good thing to do, especially not over such an important topic.

BabyCatFace · 06/08/2025 17:58

Why don't you be an adult and have a conversation with him?

BlueMum16 · 06/08/2025 17:53

You love him.
You want to spend forever with him.

Yet you have never proposed yourself and have decided to decline if he does ever get round to asking.

What a head fuck!

nomas · 06/08/2025 17:50

Are you a SAHM or working full time?

Whose names are on the house mortgage?

silverspringer · 06/08/2025 17:41

I think it’s a ridiculous attitude. If you want to get married why not propose to him?

It feels like you’re playing games, waiting for him to propose just to say no. It’s childish.

Phonicshaskilledmeoff · 06/08/2025 17:27

Honestly from a purely financial viewpoint I think it’s wild not to be married if you have children if you earn less/have less assets. I need to know that my children and I are financial secure. perhaps you’re not in that position, but your reasoning seems daft in my opinion.

ByGutsyTealViewer · 06/08/2025 17:27

You resent him and want to punish him.

SoftLass · 06/08/2025 17:24

Awaywiththegnomes · 06/08/2025 15:27

she said no to…. Prove a point?

Yeah, pretty much. She felt like he'd held the power over proposing and not given her what she wanted for so long that when he wanted it, she wanted to withhold it from him. Tit for tat.

MonkeyMonkeyUnderpants1 · 06/08/2025 16:37

Just ask him. My husband and I were together for 7 years before we got engaged. My husband had life goals he wanted to meet before we got married, like getting to a certain career level, buying a house (and adapting it for my disability). I'm pretty sure he was very close to ticking everything off when my DF got diagnosed with aggressive terminal cancer. Over a glass of wine and tears, I said I want my dad to see me get married and can we do it and soon? Of course he said yes and that he couldn't wait to marry me and he regretted the diagnosis being the driving force. Despite organising the wedding for 4 months later, my DF didn't hold on to see the day. So my advice, be an adult, tell him what you want and do it soon.

VickyEadieofThigh · 06/08/2025 16:17

LizzieSiddal · 06/08/2025 15:02

I’m 59 and do not understand why young women today need to wait for a man to ask them to marry them. Why can’t you have a grown up discussion and decide together to go and get married. It’s 2025 not 1925!

Absolutely this.

I'm 67 and have been married to a man and am civil partnered to a woman. In BOTH cases we just discussed when we might get married - there was no "proposal" because in neither case was there any need.

We get these "Why hasn't he proposed?" threads time after time. I just do not understand women doing this sitting around waiting for a man to ask - ASK HIM YOURSELF.

PommieBear · 06/08/2025 16:17

Don't be so silly. Ask him to arrange a date to get married. Why do you want the big proposal and flash mob? Seems silly to wait for the Instagram ready proposal when you have the house the kids and the mortgage 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️

SugarMarshmallow · 06/08/2025 16:16

Maybe stop being a child and mention to him that you’d like to get married in the near future and don’t hide your feelings or keep a “mental note” that if he proposes after 5 years you’ll say no

You Still chose to have children with this man without mentioning marriage when it was clearly something you wanted

Just be an adult

Reddog1 · 06/08/2025 16:12

Just discuss it like adults!

Sunshineandgrapefruit · 06/08/2025 16:10

Yes you're being childish. Unless you don't want to marry him for other reasons ( in which case you probably need to think about whether you want to leave and if not if you need any other legal protections if you're staying)

PestoHoliday · 06/08/2025 16:09

What a childish, petulant way of looking at things.

CharlotteFlax · 06/08/2025 16:07

I got married after 22 years with DP. We just agreed to do it one day and neither of us proposed with a ring.

Just talk to him about it.

Maybe show him this thread!

istheresomethingishouldsay · 06/08/2025 16:07

I just hope you haven't given up your career and your name is on the deeds.

StarlitPurple25 · 06/08/2025 16:05

BeltaLodaLife · 06/08/2025 15:05

Didn’t you have this discussion when you got pregnant? Why did you plan children together when you weren’t married, if marriage is what you wanted?

Perhaps because it’s not the 1950s?

BauhausOfEliott · 06/08/2025 16:04

Oh for god's sake, grow up. If you were desperate to have a wedding you should have asked him yourself; it's not 1950.

Ayoopkid · 06/08/2025 16:03

Good men and fathers are hard to come by. Either arrange a lovely proposal from you to him, or get over your feelings about it. If you refuse when he eventually proposes you’re risking a good thing.

NewDogOwner · 06/08/2025 16:03

Please tell me you haven't taken a financial hit to accommodate having his children like leaving work / shortening hours / missing progression opportunities/ moving to support his career.

Roosch · 06/08/2025 16:03

I think you might be daydreaming about having the power to say no to a hypothetical proposal.

In reality he hasn’t proposed and probably isn’t ever going to propose. It hurts your feelings and sense of self worth, and you want to imagine that you still hold onto some of the power.

Zov · 06/08/2025 16:01

YABU to not want to get married. Any woman who has children with a man should absolutely get married to him.

NewDogOwner · 06/08/2025 16:00

With respect, he clearly doesn't want to marry you and now has no incentive to as you have already committed to buying a house and having his children without any commitment. He has no financial obligation to you at the moment so there are only financial downsides to him marrying you. Why would he?

Pinkelephantridesagain · 06/08/2025 15:59

What will he gain by marrying you ?
He has everything marriage would give him already
Can't see him proposing now at all

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