The Lengthy Engagement: He put a ring on it...now what??

We have been engaged for just over a year now. Though I’m excited about being married, the thought of wedding planning had me frozen with fear. We don’t have a huge pot of money to work with, and I knew that planning a wedding would be tedious, frustrating, costly, nerve wracking, and… did I mention tedious? lol.

I was never one of those girls that had the details of her wedding documented and tied up in a neat little binder waiting for Mr. Right to come along and pop the question. The proposal, though we’d talked about getting married, literally came out of left field. So in addition to being strapped financially, I felt completely overwhelmed by the idea and task of planning a wedding.

As the year went by, of course I was asked time and time again, when is the wedding. I’d see people at 4th of July cookouts, then at Christmas parties, and still not have any new updates for them regarding the wedding plans. Then FINALLY I just couldn’t take it any longer. There has GOT to be a way to plan a frugal wedding and still make it be an event I would look back on and cherish.

I’ve seen so many girlfriends and family members spend aaaaaalll this time and money on these dream weddings, only to see them stressed out, and sometimes disappointed, because one thing or another didn’t turn out quite how they expected. I’ve been to enough weddings to know what I liked, didn’t like, and never want to have happen to me when it’s my time to plan this special event.

I also am known as the do-it-yourself queen. I’m a jack of all crafts, and a master at none. But I like the idea of doing for free or for cheap the things that stores or other people will charge you an arm and a leg for.

So after a year of being engaged, and almost having to sedate my mother, I decided to get on the stick. Where there’s a will, and parents willing to put up a few dollars, there’s a way! And I’m going to find it!