UGGHHHHHHH!!!!!! HELP!!!!

MaRiNeWiFe0516

Hello everyone!
Okay my name is Nicole and i am 18 years old (yes im young haha) and my fiancee is also 18 years old (again young i know hahah). He is currently at boot camp for the Marine Corps and graduates in October. He put me alone in charge of the wedding that he would like to have in January or Feburary of 2013. I am so stressed out with this planning and on top of all this we are the only ones paying for this wedding. I cant find venues, dresses, flowers, cakes, food etc.. in our budget. I do have to admit its very very LOW!!! (hubby is a penny pincher haha). I have no idea where to look. We are in California and want the wedding in Oceanside California but thats hard to plan when i currently live in Corona California. How do I do this? How do we save the most money but still have a beautiful wedding? and How do i go about getting permission for things with the Marine Corps? This makes me feel so dumb and young

ggirl2001

I would highly highly suggest waiting until he gets to his first duty station. You will have a better idea of him getting leave, deployment schedule etc. It might be hard for him to get leave if he is still in school in January/ February. To give you an example of my H's timeline (this was a few years ago)

Left for bootcamp in Feb

Graduated Memorial Day weekend, came home for a week leave

Went to MCT for a month, finished end of june and left straight for school (a, c, I can't remember). 

At that school, it was delayed for a few weeks. He also wasn't allowed leave. They had to use the buddy system to get off base.

Left that school in september, went to his next school. That school was delayed from Sept-to Jan. He was able to come home in December, but it was because he did recruiters assistance. School started in January-February, had another week leave and then had to report to his duty station. We then got engaged and planned it for after his deployment so we could save money. 

Basically, if he is finishing in October, then he has MCT which can be a month to a month 1/2 depending on his MOS. You are now in December and he still hasn't gone to his school. 

Next part of this, you have your budget. Do you have your VIP guest list? Also, don't plan for a dinner. Try brunch or lunch? Or have during a non meal time and serve cake and punch. 

But really waiting until he gets to his duty station gives you time to plan and save money. 

crownsuperstar

I would second what GG said.  I would wait until he gets to his duty station.  Things get delayed, pushed back or what ever...it is the military and things happen. 

Again, I agree with GG on the budget and ideas.  Is there a place like a public beach or park that you could use without having to pay rental fees for a venue?  Perhaps try a state park or something along those lines.  I can't speak for California but here the state parks are not that expensive at all.  Also a bruch is much cheaper than a dinner.  I would also consider the day of the week.  Things on Saturday are always much more expensive than say a Thursday or a Sunday. 

Sammy0709

I agree with wiring til he gets to his first duty station. I mean what if you start planning now and schooling or even a deployment pops up. You don't want to stress yourself out even more. Along with all of the budget suggestions you've been given, I know a lot of girls on here have done DIY stuff to save money.

CAB1217

Ooof. Oceanside is going to be pricy. What kind of wedding are you trying to do here? And on what kind of budget? Since you already have a date set, I highly doubt you'll wait or push it off until he gets his first duty station, so give us some specifics and maybe we can help further.

Planing a wedding from Corona in Oceanside shouldn't be that hard, it's only an hour away. The question is WHY Oceanside? And, if you're flexible. There are many affordable venues in the IE. My budget was under $8000, and I was able to pull off an awesome (if I do say so myself, ) wedding. I can recommend a great photographer to you, that's for sure. He worked with my budget, maybe he'll do the same for you. You need to know what you want to spend realistically for your venue, and then go from there.

MyTeenageWedding

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_military-brides_ugghhhhhhh-help?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:13Discussion:74b0dc82-c54a-484f-8f84-7634560725f0Post:dd1cf074-09dd-4a26-8ccf-c28c55b0581c">UGGHHHHHHH!!!!!! HELP!!!!</a>:
Hi Nicole! <div>
</div><div>My name is Preeti  and I am the casting director for a hit TV show called "My Teenage Wedding." We are currently looking for brides that are under the age of 19 that are getting married and would love to share their wedding story with us! We give each couple $4000 towards their wedding costs and also help plan your wedding as well. We are looking for couples that want to get married THIS YEAR until December 2012!</div><div>
</div><div>If you are interested we would love to speak to you. Please email me back at psidhu@cineflix.com!</div><div>
</div><div>Thank you and hope to hear from you soon Nicole! 
<div>
</div><div>
</div><div>
</div><div>
</div><div>
</div><div>[QUOTE]Hello everyone! =) Okay my name is Nicole and i am 18 years old (yes im young haha) and my fiancee is also 18 years old (again young i know hahah). He is currently at boot camp for the Marine Corps and graduates in October. He put me alone in charge of the wedding that he would like to have in January or Feburary of 2013. I am so stressed out with this planning and on top of all this we are the only ones paying for this wedding. I cant find venues, dresses, flowers, cakes, food etc.. in our budget. I do have to admit its very very LOW!!! (hubby is a penny pincher haha). I have no idea where to look. We are in California and want the wedding in Oceanside California but thats hard to plan when i currently live in Corona California. How do I do this? How do we save the most money but still have a beautiful wedding? and How do i go about getting permission for things with the Marine Corps? This makes me feel so dumb and young
Posted by MaRiNeWiFe0516[/QUOTE]

</div></div>

Knottie1428279499

I have to agree with the other girls - WAIT! I know it isn't what you want to hear, you're excited, and financially and for moving, it;s just easier to be married, but anything could happen. If you are dead set on that date - make sure that whatever you book has a cancellation policy that won't hurt your budget too much. Welcome to the military They make it VERY hard to plan. On the bright side - holding off will allow you more time to save up for more things you want!

Look over what it is you want and see what there is for DIY. It works as a great way to kill the time of your FI being gone, and maintain the wedding excitement.

Moonstone Tessa

For a great affordable place to look for wedding gifts you can check out http://www.etsy.com/shop/moonstonecreation. it is such a cute shop with tons of military related jewelry, keychains, cufflinks, etc... Makes great wedding gifts for bridesmaids & groomsmen. I really like the "love is trading in your perals for his dog tags" so sweet.