What’s the point of a Blürg and thoughts on planning a wedding (part 1)

When I think back on it I am not entirely sure how we came up with the idea of keeping a wedding blog (henceforth called a Blürg). I am pretty sure it was my idea, but that is neither here nor there. I suppose we both liked the idea of being able to keep friends and family both near and far updated on what we are doing, both in life and in terms of planning the wedding. I hope everyone out there (and it may only be my mom who actually reads this) is enjoying it so far. So what is the point? To use the wonders of the world wide web to spin us all into the same world in cyberspace, Blürg’s world! Thank you for visiting.

The wedding:

We are four months and 7 days away (I think I counted right….) and so far no fatalities or serious injuries have occurred in the planning of it. I am actually surprised at how easy it has been and for the most part, stress free. I have been reflecting on why this unlikely state of calm has transpired for the past six and a half months and I have come up with some conclusions. They are:
1) The real simple wedding guide: Available at your local bookstore, I have found this book (more like a thick magazine) to be amazingly, well…simple. It avoids being over superfluous and “frilly” and cuts to the chase. It breaks down each month before the wedding and what you should be concentrating on, and the pictures are beautiful. I recommend it to any couple planning their own wedding. It really has everything you need.

2) GoogleDocs®: Have you heard of googledocs? Have you used them? They are amazing. I love google! A googledoc is similar to an excel spreadsheet but it is stored online. This means you can share it with others and they too can view it and/or make changes to it from their personal computers. We have spreadsheets set up for many different aspects of the Big Day: the ceremony, the reception, hotels/ transportation, attire, the rehearsal dinner and the best part…the guest list. It’s all online. If my mom needs to contact someone at the reception site, the contact info is there, if I need to double check on the address for one of our guests, it’s there. I’m telling you, it’s worth looking into.

3) A DIY Wedding Binder: I impulsively purchased a pre-made binder (looking oddly similar to the photo above) from Borders months and months ago and quickly felt the pangs of buyers remorse. Not only was it kind of cheesy, but I didn’t like the way they categorized certain sections, oftentimes the folders wouldn’t hold standard 8x10 documents and I just didn’t enjoy being slave to someone else’s preconceived notion of how a wedding binder should “be.” So I created my own and I must say I am very pleased with it. At present I have sections for: the ceremony, the reception, the catering, the band, the hotels, the florist, the transportation, the honeymoon, and the photography. More will be added I am sure and perhaps I will post a photo of it. Regardless of whether or not you choose to make your own or buy a pre-made one, I highly recommend having some sort of wedding binder. It keeps you sane and vendors love it when you appear organized. You are a “good bride” in their eyes.

4) Going with your gut: Quite possibly the most important piece of advice I could pass on to anyone planning a wedding. If you are truly honest with yourself I think you would agree that you usually like something the first time you see/hear/touch it. Trust that feeling. My dad always said that about trying on shoes “you know if you like how they feel in the first ten seconds.” I see his point, but shoes are an exception as sometimes those cute polka dotted mary-jane heels just need to be broken in a bit, or your foot needs to shrink. However I echo his sentiment when it comes to choosing wedding elements- like the reception venue, the invitations, and yes even the dress. I will go more info to detail about this in part two. Until then, brides and their mothers everywere, trust yourself, you know best.