Got the Wedding Blues

I apologize.  I've been quite lax about posting this week.  My brother-in-law is getting married and there's quite a lot to do.  This is the last wedding of the season for me and It occurred to me (not for the first time) that getting married is a lot of work, for just about everyone.  That being said, I have a few tips for any of you getting married in the near (or distant) future.

1 ) Make a list of all the stuff you have to do.  Make sure it's clear who is responsible for doing what.  You don't want to ever have these words pass your lips: "WHAT?! I thought YOU were taking care of that!"

2 ) Don't decide to take care of [insert wedding-related task here] next week.  You're going to let it go until the last minute and then you'll be kicking yourself and going nuts.  This closes in on 100% probability exponentially as the number of tasks you put off rises.  If you have more than 3 tasks you're not taking care of right away, one of them is almost definitey going to come back to bite you in the backside.

3 ) If you haven't set a date yet, set one as far off as possible and stick to it.  Just remind yourself of #2 every week.

4 ) Watch your wallet (or pocketbook, as the case may be).  Between the  florist, the reception hall and the DJ/Band you're pretty well hemorrhaging money.  All that other stuff is local, but some of the stuff you can take care of on the web quickly, easily, and most importantly, cheaply. My recommendation for inexpensive bridesmaid gifts, groomsmen gifts and cheap wedding favors is one stop shopping at Gifts and Otherwise.  They've got a price guarantee and a lot of nice stuff.  Since chances are you're not buying all that stuff right at this moment, bookmark that site for future reference so you don't forget. In fact, you should probably make a bookmark/favorites folder called "Wedding Resources" or something so you have all your wedding stuff in one place.  I suppose that's tip 4 1/2 actually, but I stopped counting a while ago.  Counting is hard.

5 ) The final, and perhaps most important piece of advice I have for you is: stay out of politics.   I'm not joking, I'm re-applying that adage to the inevitable complaints and feuds that pop up between families, and yes, even future spouses.  Oh, sure! Right now you're saying to yourself that won't happen to you because your family is different.  Your relationship is different.  Let me be the first to expel that illusion.  It'll happen to you so be prepared for it and come up with a couple of ready-made plans to calm flaring tempers.

All right, that's it.  I've got to go get my stuff together.  Good luck.

- one