I recently had the pleasure of getting married to the father of my son and my best friend. There are just a few things that I would warn brides about before they take the plunge, things people don't tell you and you won't read in a magazine.
1. Take a Honeymoon! Whatever sort of vacation you can afford, even if it means 4-5 days just staying at home. Not only will you be all geared up after the wedding, but you also want to take advantage of all those special offers that honeymooners get. I went back to work three days after our vows and I couldn't focus on a thing! I was tired and burnt out after a week of wedding fiasco. The added bonus if you stay home: you get to ooh and aah over all the gifts and you can get a head start on the thank you notes!!
2. Get it in writing. I'm not talking about a prenuptual or anything, I'm talking about finding a reliable person that somewhat knows your friends and family to write down (in detail) all of the gifts you receive at the shower and the wedding. Including cash and gift cards! You will not remember a thing, I guarantee! I had a couple great people who did this for me and I am very grateful. On a second note, also have someone take all the cash, checks, gift cards, and list of gifts and put them somewhere safe. We only lost one gift card that was easily replaced, but there was a lot of stress as to who had the cash!! If you lose cash, it's irreplaceable.
3. Don't let the weather get you down. My husband and I chose a very special place with a great view of the mountains. However, we did not anticipate the huge wind storm that blew in unexpectadely. This meant that most of the decorations had be taken down before my husband and I even got to see it! I'm not disappointed (however I hope someone took a picture of it!!) We knew that was a possibility. On that special day, it's best to just let it be (in the very famous words of Doris Day), Que Sara Sara!
4. Bring a list of the photos you want to have taken. I suggest this regardless of whether you have a professional or a friend taking pictures. My father-in-law took the photos at our wedding and he did a great job! However, it was pretty confusing and there were a lot of people around to distract us. I think we dealt with it well, but there were a few pictures that we didn't get. If there had been a list, we would have gotten them all and I would have felt a little more organized!
5. Hire or appoint someone to be a coordinator of sorts. I purchased a bunch of fun stuff like bubbles, glow sticks and crayons for the kids, and other items that didn't even make it out of the box. It's my fault thinking I would remember all that on the busiest day of my life. I wish I would have appointed someone to take care of all that! At least my son likes bubbles and glow sticks 'cause he has about 100 of each!
6. Last but certainly not least, enjoy yourself and stay in the moment. All day long I kept reminding myself that this day will never happen again and I need to stay in the moment and remeber this. I think I did a very good job, but even looking at the pictures my memory gets jogged about a certain part of that evening that I had forgotten already. The one thing I will never forget is looking into the eyes of my husband as we recited our vows...that was a moment I will be in forever!
Good luck to all the brides out there, as for me. I had a great day, and I'm glad I never have to do it again!
1. Take a Honeymoon! Whatever sort of vacation you can afford, even if it means 4-5 days just staying at home. Not only will you be all geared up after the wedding, but you also want to take advantage of all those special offers that honeymooners get. I went back to work three days after our vows and I couldn't focus on a thing! I was tired and burnt out after a week of wedding fiasco. The added bonus if you stay home: you get to ooh and aah over all the gifts and you can get a head start on the thank you notes!!
2. Get it in writing. I'm not talking about a prenuptual or anything, I'm talking about finding a reliable person that somewhat knows your friends and family to write down (in detail) all of the gifts you receive at the shower and the wedding. Including cash and gift cards! You will not remember a thing, I guarantee! I had a couple great people who did this for me and I am very grateful. On a second note, also have someone take all the cash, checks, gift cards, and list of gifts and put them somewhere safe. We only lost one gift card that was easily replaced, but there was a lot of stress as to who had the cash!! If you lose cash, it's irreplaceable.
3. Don't let the weather get you down. My husband and I chose a very special place with a great view of the mountains. However, we did not anticipate the huge wind storm that blew in unexpectadely. This meant that most of the decorations had be taken down before my husband and I even got to see it! I'm not disappointed (however I hope someone took a picture of it!!) We knew that was a possibility. On that special day, it's best to just let it be (in the very famous words of Doris Day), Que Sara Sara!
4. Bring a list of the photos you want to have taken. I suggest this regardless of whether you have a professional or a friend taking pictures. My father-in-law took the photos at our wedding and he did a great job! However, it was pretty confusing and there were a lot of people around to distract us. I think we dealt with it well, but there were a few pictures that we didn't get. If there had been a list, we would have gotten them all and I would have felt a little more organized!
5. Hire or appoint someone to be a coordinator of sorts. I purchased a bunch of fun stuff like bubbles, glow sticks and crayons for the kids, and other items that didn't even make it out of the box. It's my fault thinking I would remember all that on the busiest day of my life. I wish I would have appointed someone to take care of all that! At least my son likes bubbles and glow sticks 'cause he has about 100 of each!
6. Last but certainly not least, enjoy yourself and stay in the moment. All day long I kept reminding myself that this day will never happen again and I need to stay in the moment and remeber this. I think I did a very good job, but even looking at the pictures my memory gets jogged about a certain part of that evening that I had forgotten already. The one thing I will never forget is looking into the eyes of my husband as we recited our vows...that was a moment I will be in forever!
Good luck to all the brides out there, as for me. I had a great day, and I'm glad I never have to do it again!
