Well, folks, I know I’m trying to make this more of a library and book themed blog, but all of my free time lately has been consumed by wedding planning. George and I will be getting married in 3 months and I am feeling the crunch– literally– I’ve been working out like it is going out of style.

I’ve been failing miserably to make planning stress-free and I feel it is partly because I’ve been totally misinformed about the whole planning process. Everyone told me wedding planning would be fun and a great chance for you to spend time with your family and your “hubby-to-be.” (That phrase is gag-worthy, by the way.) Well, everyone was, for the most part, wrong. It’s been stressful, and hard, and I’ve seen even less of my family and fiancee.

I know it sounds a little surly, but I wish someone would have told me that WEDDING PLANNING SUCKS. It sucks all the free time out of your life. Hobbies, forget it. Chores, forget those too. This blog, yeah, neglected. Now you have another job. And that job is planning. Those people who told me that “Oh, you’re having a small wedding, it will be nice and stress-free” should eat their words.

Here are some of the things I wish someone had told me about planning even the smallest of wedding gatherings.

6. You may get more self-conscious about your own appearance. (Wedding pictures last forever, right?!)

5. Some people, be them the bestest of friends or the closest of family will probably get mad at you during some point in this process. (If you are having a small wedding with a big family, be prepared for the hell that is the invite list.)

4. People will judge you for doing unconventional things. I heard this one as not doing things “right.” (It’s a very Southern thing to say.)

3. You may start to understand the women who appear on the tv show, Bridezillas. It is a disgusting display of humanity, but I heard the “bridezillas” say a few key phrases that I’ve spit out. (I.E. Well, this is MY wedding, not theirs!)

2. Even small weddings can be ridiculously expensive. (Tack “wedding” onto any phrase and it becomes $1,000 more in price.)

1. Wedding planning is not fun. (You may start to even hate your own wedding at some point and have elaborate elopement fantasies.)

I don’t have much advice on how to avoid the perils of planning and sometimes I wonder if it can be avoided. I simply hope my unpreparedness helps future-brides. And I hope my own planning journey reward is a relatively stress-free wedding.

What do you wish you were told before you began planning for your own wedding?

love,
melanie