[Wedding] Preparation

For two months, my to-do list consisted of what seemed like a million tasks everyday. There were moments I felt overwhelmed, but for the most part, in retrospect, I had an incredible time! Rather than being a stressful, hair-splitting two months, the time of prep was marked by joy, excitement and family bonding. We've all heard the horror stories of weddings splitting families up, but for us, it did the exact opposite. I spent almost everyday with either my mom, my aunt, my siblings, Mark, or his family. Not only did we start and complete a gajillion DIY (do-it-yourself) projects, we also laughed until we cried about literally everything, packed into the van for countless trips to Home Depot/Michael's/JoAnn's, and transformed our home into the wedding of our dreams...seriously.

So many people warned me that I'd have to let go of some details because I just can't do it all. While this proved true for a few projects, because of the help I received from so many people, most of what I envisioned became a reality. And the best part? It wasn't just done...it was done beautifully.

About two days before the wedding, when we were all feeling the crunch, I looked to Mark and said, "Everything in the wedding is DIY, huh?" He answered, "Yes," and I responded with, "Why did we do this to ourselves?" While it seemed like a crazy load at the time, I'm so glad we went the DIY route. We received so many compliments that each detail was so thoughtful, and I really believe it's because we used our own hands to create it. 

For the flowers, since we weren't having extravagant floral centerpieces, we decided to do it ourselves. Mark's aunt and cousins, Aunt Diane, Lauren and Allise, offered to make the bouquets and boutonnieres for us. They all have incredible taste, so I knew that whatever they made, I'd love. But, wow, I had no idea it would be so beautiful. They took my photos of inspiration and my scattered suggestions and turned it into the absolute perfect bouquet. When I laid eyes on what they did, I cried. I just couldn't help myself.

Don't you think they should open up their own flower shop?!

For the centerpieces and decorations, my mom and I went to the local flower wholesale market the morning before. We purchased peonies, gerbera daisies, hybrid ranunculus, yellow billy balls, fern, waxflowers, and others. Then, some wonderfully talented family friends made miniature arrangements for the mason jar aisle decorations and three mini bouquets made into one for my bouquet toss (I wanted to give a few girls the opportunity of catching the bouquet instead of just one!).  

More than saving money, tackling all of these various DIY projects gave all of us numerous opportunities to just sit down, work on the project, and enjoy each other's company. And as happy as I am that it's all over, when I do have those wedding withdrawal moments, it's often because I miss the creative/family time. 

Ah, what the heck, let's just do it all over again next week, shall we?