Location on a Budget

I was talking with my sister yesterday and I might have found a place to have my wedding.

My first location fell through. I wanted to get married at a huge rented house so that after the reception no one would have to drive home at the end of the party. Sadly, the contact never replied to my calls or emails.

My sister and I may have found a second best choice. This wedding is on a super budget. I’m not settling for things that I’m unhappy with, I just don’t think that I should spent thousands on my wedding. That money should go towards living after the wedding and for the honeymoon.

Let me explain how much money I’m saving on this wedding. I have the sexiest red dress that I bought for under $100. Yup, beautiful dress that I can wear at many other occasions.

Just one way to wear my sexy, convertible wedding dress

Locations I’m looking at are still outdoors and are much cheaper options. One consideration is renting a room in the community center.

Pros:
I’d be able to rent a projector from the comm center and it would only be a couple hundred dollars
Cons: It would be indoors and we would likely have to tone down some of the exuberance of the party considering I am not going to spend $15k renting the entire facility.

The option I’m more seriously considering is renting the park in a town close to where I live. How can that be less expensive, you may ask. Well, it’s a small town and the park property is a large community picnic shelter, some playground equipment and a grassy field. It is also the place where the town holds their annual festival.

The stage area at one end of the picnic shelter.

Pros: Groups under 20 people can enjoy this recreation area for free. Groups larger than 20 must pay a fee to rent. Get this: $25. Also, flushing toilets, play area for children who can’t toast champagne and get hammered drunk.
Cons: No sound system/projector and unlikely place to set one up.

I need to call the city and make sure $25 is really how much they will charge me for an all day event rental. There will likely be some refundable deposit as well in case my guests were to tear something up.

Question to my readers: How much would a sound system rental cost? We’re talking CD/mp3 player compatible and large speakers for blaring dance music; no DJ services needed. I’m hoping that, by putting my feelers out early enough, I will be able to find a friend who can loan me a sound system.

My Love, My Heart

Or, “How I Became Engaged to a Man Twice My Age.”

After I posted my journals blog last night I sat on my bed reading two of my journals in particular. I was reading the months leading up to and my budding relationship with Kit.

Although the writing was Nobel worthy it still made me laugh, blush and tear up as I read my memories from four years ago.

At the time I was in a relationship that I was not happy with, I dated this guy because I was denying the possibility of dating my (at the time) supervisor. Every entry reflected my unhappiness with my boyfriend and the joy that I had when I was with Kit. Even sitting at work on a rainy day it was perfect.

One entry made me chuckle. I’ll summarize:

I was at work and my boyfriend called me to wish me a good day and ask if I wanted to hang out after work. At the end of the phone call he said, “I love you,” to which I replied, “I know, bye.” Heartless…I know.

When I hung up Kit asked if he said he loved me and why I replied that way. I told Kit that I didn’t want to lie to my boyfriend, we had talked about it and I had told him that I didn’t feel the same way. Kit said that was probably the meanest thing a guy could hear from his girl. He also asked, why date him then?

At this point in our friendship, Kit and I had been saying “I love you” as a platonic exchange for several months.

We denied our feelings for each other for a long, long time. My journals reflect how often I stressed over this. I often wrote how doomed our relationship would be because of our society’s lack of acceptance for it.

Yes, for about six months we had to break everyone in to our new relationship.
When our relationship was still secret we had this exchange at work:

I had to stand in as a model for photos. Not because of me, they were trying to get the lighting just right for a family shot. I stood there, in a grumpy mood, on a balcony.

I escaped being in the pictures but I did stand around they were testing the quality of the light for a picture. So I was standing upstairs at the banister, the photographer flitted away to talk to the family. I mumbled, “If you guys don’t need me, I’m going to go back and drink my coffee.”

Kit looked up at me from the lower floor and replied, “I need you.” I laughed at his joke. Then he said, “I always need you,” and I heard his voice change.

It made me smile like a Cheshire cat. After that the photographer was looking for Kit and the moment was gone. For five seconds we were alone in a building full of people and just had a tunnel vision scope on each other.

Every second of your love that I have experienced has been worth all the hard moments.
Four years and counting. I love you, Kit.

Vetoed Vows

While searching for wedding vows and creating a custom ceremony, I stumbled upon these vividly constructed vows.

Kit and I decided this might shock or offend some guests. I’m glad the Celts are keeping real with their honeycomb and night terrors. ;-)

Traditional Celtic Wedding Vow

You are Blood of my Blood, and Bone of my Bone.
I give you my Body, that we Two might be One.

I give you my Spirit, `til our Life shall be Done.
You cannot possess me for I belong to myself

But while we both wish it, I give you that which is mine to give
You cannot command me, for I am a free person

But I shall serve you in those ways you require
and the honeycomb will taste sweeter coming from my hand.

 

Traditional Celtic Wedding Vow

I vow you the first cut of my meat, the first sip of my wine,
from this day it shall only your name I cry out in the night

and into your eyes that I smile each morning;
I shall be a shield for you back as you are for mine,

no shall a grievous word be spoken about us, for our marriage
is sacred between us and no stranger shall hear my grievance.

Above and beyond this, I will cherish and honor you through this life
and into the next.

Source: http://www.documentsanddesigns.com/verse/Celtic_marriage_wedding_vows.htm

Ed: Originally posted on January 16th, 2011.