So, I told everyone here I would let everyone know how the Monday night shotgun wedding turned out. I was expecting somewhat of a disaster, and while I wasn't completely right (after all, they did get married, and that's what it was all about) their wedding/reception was almost a textbook example of how to piss 100 people off at once.
I will fully admit that after my wedding, I have become somewhat of a wedding "snob", and I judge things a little harder after hanging around these boards, but this was just ridiculous from the beginning.
First, the whole Monday night thing. Who the heck gets married on a Monday???
We got our invitation last week as did everyone else. No RSVP card, no clue as to how to get in touch with anyone. DH texted the groom to let him know.
Then, we get there, and the site was pretty beautiful. Not my thing, at all, but for people that like the idea of getting married in a barn, it was a beautiful place.
The ceremony was nice, I didn't understand why she picked the traditional bridal recessional as her processional, but if that's what she wanted, whatever. My biggest qualm was the fact that half the time we couldn't hear the officiant, and then he'd yell "can I get an amen???" and everyone would look around confused, not sure what we were amen-ing.
After the wedding, the DJ announced that they were going to flip the barn into a reception hall, so all of the guests needed to wait outside....and this is where it went downhill. It was 103 degrees out. No drinks were offered, we just stood around for over 45 minutes while they flipped the room. If that wasn't bad enough, at first we were all huddled under the awning trying to stay in the shade, and someone came and told us that we needed to move, because the bride and groom wanted pictures there. So we all got to stand in the sun for the rest of the time.
After we finally get to go in, and we've all sweated through our clothes, we realize that there is a severe shortage of tables. They only had about half as many tables as they needed, so we weren't able to eat at a table.
They did provide dinner, but DH and I were slightly worried about going through the buffet line, because there didn't seem to be enough food, at all. In the end, they apparently had just enough, but that was with someone serving child size portions onto the plates.
Everything else was negligible, the DJ was pretty rude and overly rambunctious for the mood, didn't play appropriate music, etc, but that wasn't their fault. They didn't announce the cutting up the cake, so no one really knew it was happening, we just looked up from the buffet line, and they were cutting it. There were several older children thundering around the upstairs, which echoed through the whole building, even over the music, and no one seemed to know how to restrain them.
All in all, Its just pretty obvious that she underestimated her guest list, and that she really didn't take the time to think of the logistics of what her guests would be doing, or really, how to treat guests at a wedding. I think the thing that stood out to me, is that no one really seemed to be that happy. Everyone looked pissed, or at the very best, apathetic to the whole thing. During the migration out to the sun, I heard one guest remark that he felt like we were a herd of cattle.
Mainly, I wanted to write this so any future brides who are reading these boards will see this and know to not underestimate their guest list, and to just...plan better. People are going to notice, they are going to be pissed, and no, they aren't going to just be happy to be there for your day. Maybe your Mother, but no one else is going to be happy about not having a table to sit at, and having to wait in the heat for almost an hour.
I think that a lot of brides think that everyone should be "honored" to attend their wedding, when really, it should be the other way around. You should be honored to have friends and family that support your life and marriage, and your reception is a reflection of that.