Tag Archives: planning

Engagement Photos… One of the best wedding purchases we made

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Taking engagement pictures was one of the best decisions we made when planning our wedding. At first I thought the idea of engagement pictures was totally frivolous, unnecessary and maybe a little narcissistic.  But after I got thinking about it, I realized that I wanted a few professional pictures of George and I in our everyday clothes. We don’t wear wedding attire everyday, ya know?

So we called up our photographer and told him that we regretted not adding engagement photos to our wedding package. He then told us to meet him the upcoming weekend to take a few pictures! Engagement pictures was one of the best wedding purchases we made. I think I might even blow a few of the shots up and (finally) decorate our walls.

All photos credit of  Richard Israel Photography. He’s a great guy. I highly recommend him.

Did you decide to get engagement pictures taken? Let me know in the comments.

love,
melanie

 

 

Things No One Told Me About Planning a Wedding

Who has a Victrola at their wedding?

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

Love Love: Wedding Planning

Drinking cheap champagne and wedding planning from our tub.

I don’t want to jinx it, but I think I may be getting a little bit excited about our wedding. The outcome of Amendment One was a total downer, but I don’t think it should stop us from our plans. And I’m still hopeful that one day everyone will have equal marriage rights in our country.

George and I have been talking about our wedding and Googling almost nightly from our office/bathtub. Yup, we sit in the bathtub, drink and hang out for about an hour every night. It’s one of my favorite things to do.

We even chatted on the phone with an amazing photographer last night. He is almost unbelievably amazing. I don’t even want to share his name yet. He is that good. George and our possible photog hit it off too. They both like motorcycles and fried chicken livers, weird combo, right?

I think that letting go of what was expected of us (i.e. inviting the whole family, having a summer wedding, decorations galore, wedding blogging constantly) has been a huge relief. I might even share a few details of the planning process with you all, if it is not too stressful, of course.

Did you “let go” of expectations for your wedding? I want to hear from you!

love,
melanie