Wedding Lessons from a Broke-Ass Bride: The Saga Begins

Anyone who has ever read my blog knows that I haven't written anything in a while.  It isn't the absence of things to say, projects to discuss, nor the lack of will.  I've been working hard and doing every possible extra project at the office to see if I can't persevere further in grownup careerdom. It is rewarding, but somewhat mentally exhausting--and makes me less inclined to think on topics. Then this happened:

Ignore the chubby, weird-shaped fingers.

And I find myself having trouble shutting up about my ideas, plans, and overall enthusiasm.  I don't want to be Bridezilla.  I don't want to be that girl that's giving way more information than anyone cares to have.  I don't want to drive my family and friends crazy.  Something must be done!  I might still drive everyone crazy, but I think blogging is a good way to get some of the rambling out of my system.

The first thoughts that I had when Tom proposed were somewhere between "AHHHHH!!!!" and "YAAAAAAAYYYYYY!!!!!" and that night was glorious.  The next day was still a lot of YAY and then suddenly...oh dear lord how are we ever going to pay for a wedding?  We pretty much live paycheck to paycheck as it is.  I spent a couple of hours wallowing in worry and then, think it's cheesy if you want, but the thing that calmed me was a song that came to mind that I haven't heard since like...the nineties.  It says "God will make a way, when there seems to be no way."  And then the happy came back.  I have a lot of awesome ideas.  The decor will be so cheap.  How I shall find the affordable ideal venue or catering is still a mystery, but it's a journey.  I hope that in the end I will have put forward some useful information and ideas for other broke-ass brides like me who don't want to sacrifice their dreams of a magical, whimsical, impressive, amazingly fun day with friends and family.

I just hope I can be as classy as these folks.

I tried to have a healthy start by not announcing our engagement in an annoying way.  This article was extremely helpful in that regard (sorry if you did one of those...). haha.  I wanted to be different.  So I posted a picture of the ring on the table with the candlelit dinner and said "Great Odin's Raven!  Is that..." and followed it up with that picture of the ring on the chubby fingers, as I'm sure you'll remember.  Caption: "By the beard of Zeus!  That sassy lady is ENGAGED!"  I find that you really can't go wrong when you're using Ron Burgundy's exclamatory interjections.  My next choice would've been saying "I said no!  And kept the ring."  That one seemed a little too...irreverent?


Three ways I've cut costs to start saving for the wedding:

1.  Canceling my gym membership and continuing to work out at home, using things like the Bikini Body Mommy Challenge (even though I'm not a mommy).

2.  Canceling my NatureBox subscription (for $20 a month they send you a box of healthy snacks) and just sticking to homemade goodies.

3.  Cutting back on our booze budget.  We aren't lushes or anything, but we do like our wine.  And we like having liquor for special occasions...like nightcaps or Tuesdays.  We might spending $60 every month and a half, but I'm going to cut that way back.  Incidentally, it should help with my weight loss as well.

Three things I've learned so far:

1.  Bridal shows are both fun and practical.  You never know what kind of deals you'll find.  One girl won a $600 wedding dress today.  Maybe at the next one it'll be me!  Also, you're going to want to shove a million samples into your mouth when you get there.  Pace yourself.  There's a giant room full of cakes, cupcakes, petit fours, hors d`oeuvres, mousses, trifles, and maybe even alcohol.  Don't put yourself into a sugar coma.  Today I discovered that it is also an excellent way to inspire you and help focus on the fun and exciting parts about starting your planning.  And they let you do this:

Yeah, I'm the weird one in my family.

2.  A lot more people are happy to see me happy than I knew, and that's nice.

3.  At the end of the day, it's okay to be a little cheesy.  I love my fella, he loves me, and we are on our way to officially belonging to one another and living happily ever after.