... somethings don't change- even after the wedding.
I'll try to make this useful for you soon-to-be brides!
Rehearsal Day
Things that went well:
-Since we had a small wedding party (1 BM & 1 GM) the rehearsal was fast and simple
-Learned that guitarist music was too quiet and needed to be turned up (my mom noticed this- not me, ask your family to listen for little changes like that which you may not notice)
Things that could have gone better:
- Apparently the Best Man didn't realize it was important for him to be there, so I learned a few hours earlier that he wasn't coming- and it ended in a panic with FI texting and calling him to convince him to come. He did show up, but we should have been more clear about who needed to come.
-There was no plan for speeches/toasts/introductions at the rehearsal dinner. FI's family hosted and planned it- so I assumed they would plan that stuff. They didn't have anything planned, so once we arrived there was awkward silence (since our families don't know each other) FI and I decided to stand up randomly and welcome everyone. Then we asked everyone to introduce themselves and my dad caught on and started toasts/stories/etc. That should have been better planned.
-I had a million little things to get done still but once guests started arriving they all wanted to hangout and go to dinner- understandably. So I was up much later than I wanted to catch up on the rest of my to-do list. I should have been more proactive at getting things done before guests started arriving- so I would have more free time to hang out with them.
Wedding Day
Things that went well:
-I took nighttime cold meds to sleep the night before the wedding- BEST DECISION EVER! I slept like a baby and felt well rested and excited on the morning of
-I got ready at my apartment with my sister. It was a quiet, peaceful, fun time with the two of us. So glad I didn't have a million people all around me because I really appreciated the quite time to myself and with my sister as I got ready
- Everyone showed up EARLY to help set up! Yay for non-late people!!!
-I had a very detailed timeline for everyone to stick to during the day- and it worked out perfectly! We were very intentional about sticking to the timeline (so we wouldn't be fined for being at the venue late). It was very helpful as we took pictures and tried to minimize the gap between ceremony & reception. I had the courage to say"no more pictures" at certain points or "lets move on to the next thing" when I felt things were getting long/boring. I don't regret that at all. People also complimented the length of the reception because it didn't get too long and drawn out/boring. It was just fun, casual, and short.
- I had so much fun. I forgot all about the stress/anxiety and just had the time of my life and tried to really be present and alert through every single second
-Our coordinator was amazing! She and others made sure I had a completely stress-free day. I wasn't told of the problems that happened (except my dad not showing up for family pictures). Everyone did a great job of managing little crises very well and by the time I got there- I didn't know anything had happened. It was great!
Things that could have gone better:
- Apparently the florist had a panic attack/meltdown and started yelling at my helpers (I never heard about it- because I was taking bridal portraits). I should have been more specific about exactly what I wanted her to do. I also didn't like the bouquets/boutonnieres/corsages. I sent her pictures of flowers I liked, but she really didn't stick to that concept at all and ended up using colors/flowers that I didn't want. I should have asked her exactly what she was going to make and asked for pictures beforehand. I gave her too much creative freedom.
-Although our timeline worked out in the end, I wish we had one more hour at the reception. It was only 1.5 hours long, and that was too short! It was such a rush to get everything done (brunch, cake cutting, toasts, bouquet toss, garter toss, dances, etc.) and I didn't get a chance to talk/hang out with my guests. There are a lot of people I didn't get to say hi to. I wish it was longer and less rushed.
-My dad and FIL left the venue while we were taking family portraits because someone told him that the caterer forgot to bring orange juice for the mimosas (which was NOT true- so we ended up having 15 EXTRA gallons). They took a 30 min trip to the grocery store to buy 15 gallons of orange juice WITHOUT asking me or my coordinator. They ended up completely missing family portraits- so now I don't have any of my whole family. I was seriously pissed that they left the venue without even asking. I'm still upset about it... arghhhh
-Lots of guests that RSVPed YES didn't come and lots of guests that weren't invited- showed up.... it was really weird. In the end it all evened out...but I still don't understand..
Honeymoon
- Seriously it was awesome... just too short. I wish I was still there!!!! Nothing went wrong except the weather- which was too rainy
-So glad we didn't plan anything. We just did whatever we felt like at the moment which was very relaxing.
Back to our lives now:
We spent hours yesterday making a list of all our gifts for thank you notes. I'll hopefully be taking a day off work soon to go change my name on my license, social security, bank, etc. We also need to merge our bank accounts/utilities/insurance/etc. So, my to-do list is still long! Then I'm hoping to start getting into my hobbies and things that have been put on the back-burner during this whole wedding planning process.
Getting back to work is weird because nothing really has changed... and yet everything has changed. One of my coworkers said "you look the same..." which is true, but my life is now very different at home. Such a huge event has occurred which consumed my life/mind/plans for the last 4.5 months and now it's over and it didn't really impact my work life- which is most of my time. So, being married is kind of odd but when I get home it's amazing!
During the honeymoon, I was talking to the airport check-in lady and mentioned "my husband". It was so weird to say that! I instantly felt much older and mature haha
That's it for now! Can't wait to get my professional pictures!