I’ve been married for 236 days. Not that I’m counting. As many of you brides know, I only know that figure because The Knot tells me each time I sign in! Before the wedding, there was a countdown of how many days until the wedding; now the website actually tells me how many days since the wedding.
Wedding planning certainly becomes a bride’s whole life during the engagement. You can’t eat without thinking about the food at your wedding, fall asleep without counting RSVPs, or think about anything without ticking things off on your mental wedding checklist.
Then you’re married. Then the planning, which became its own monster full-time job in itself, ends. And it’s just the two of you, starting a new life together, and falling into what will become your newlywed routine. For me, it was discovering what it’s like to live with my husband, work, and sleep. After all of the thank-yous are written, and the pictures are finally arriving, what else does a bride do but…think about her wedding decisions? Looking back, would I have done anything differently?
Yes. I know I would. I’ll make a list.
1. Enjoy being engaged to my fiancé. Instead of working so much on the wedding, I wish I had taken more time out of our 11 months of engagement to focus on him and our impending commitment rather than be stressed over wedding decisions that didn’t matter all too much in the end (ex. Fret ting over the tuxes as much as I did!).
2. If I could go back, I would have definitely done black ink rather than taupe on the invitations. You just can’t go wrong with what’s classic.
3. For our last dance, I should have had played our first dance song runner-up: The One I Love by David Gray.
4. I completely forgot to arrange something to change into after the reception. I showed up at our hotel in my gown with that huge train and luggage and a backpack slung over my shoulder.
5. I should have hired a limo to leave in. Jimmy’s old buddies thought it would be “funny” to write inappropriate things on his car with shoe polish. That’s embarrassing.
6. This one I go back and forth on: wedding gown. I did a traditional gown with lots of beadwork and a huge train. I kind of wish I’d gone vintage with a delicate ivory lace gown and a birdcage veil.
I don’t obsess over these things, but sometimes brides ask me what I would change if I could go back. At Heather’s Glen, the cuisine and the music are thankfully always fabulous. The gardens themselves make the wedding so spectacular and unique; I got so many compliments. As a bride, it was sometimes hard to see the big picture: the things that would really matter to make a great party. I’m very lucky as I look back that none of my regrets are about the facility itself. Thank you, Heather’s Glen!
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Photo by Dave DiLauro
