Meeting with the Parents

On 8/11 I met with my girlfriend's parents in order to ask her father for his permission to marry her.

I was terrified in the lead up, incredibly nervous. I drove to a bookstore nearby to calm down, browsed around, bought two books, and called them, asking to stop by. I am certain that they knew why. The most nerve wracking part was that first phone call. I had been putting it off for far too long, and now that it was over, I wouldn't say I wasn't nervous at all, but I could deal with it.
I get to the door, and her mother answered, huge smile on her face. Thats a good thing! Her father was on the phone talking to one of the relatives I beleive. I think that her mother was a little excitable, she called her husband on her cell phone to get him off the phone. He say down, I explained and asked, and he happily said yes.

The expected questions followed, what I plan on doing, they asked in more detail about my own family, etc etc. I didn't expect them to say no or anything along those lines, but still, it was great that they said yes and chatted about it. After a while I left, because they had to get ready for a physical therapy session, her father had broken his arm just a short while ago and was heading back to work after the weekend. All in all, it went very nicely. One thing that might've been a faux pas, I mentioned that I had already bought the ring, I wanted to let them know that it was happening before long. But in retrospect, that seems out of place, why am I asking their permission, yet I already purchased the ring? Seems forward no, and sort of nullifies her father having any say no?

I am making a point of not telling my parents, since they've been anxious for me to go over there and talk to him. My girlfriend is expecting the proposal, but, in large part because I've delayed in speaking to her father, she has no idea when its going to happen. She should be surprised. This way my parents will be surprised too. Just having a little fun with that.

....

Later this same evening, I went back over their house to hang out with her, we were planning on watching a movie. Turns out, her parents mentioned that I stopped by. I didn't tell them to not tell her, I had just assumed that thats the normal way things go. Her parents hadn't intended anything by it, they assumed that she had known that I was stopping by that day. Shouldn't really matter all that much, she's known for a while that I would be coming by, this just means that she knows the big event will happen before long.