Slow month, it seems...

Still not much going on in the planning area. I've done everything I need to do at this point, and most other things need to wait a few months before they kick into gear. Right now, the main goal is to set up a specific spreadsheet of immediate expenses/deposits that are required to reserve spaces/caterers/send out "save the date" cards, and then I don't need to deal with anything until the day I find a dress to put a deposit down on. And that won't be happening for at least 3 months, I think.

The important thing is that we've found the church and reserved our wedding time with them, and we've also found a perfect reception spot, and we've been penciled in there as well. (Still working out the little details for the contract right now, and I hope to have it all in writing, in pen, by the end of October. Maybe earlier...we'll see.) The reception will be at The Boulevard Brewing Company. Unfortunately, they don't have the new space listed on their website just yet, since they only just opened the space officially last week, but I'm hoping to have a link to it up in the next couple of months. Or maybe y'all would like to be surprised when you first see it? Hmm...

My main struggle when it comes to the wedding planning these days is the distance between my father and I, as well as the issue of time. I feel like giving ourselves a whole year to plan is the most frugal and proper thing to do, considering that both Jesse and I work full time jobs (Jesse is even more than full time most weeks!), and are planning the wedding ourselves. Also, according to most planners, wedding websites, and venue managers, it's not abnormal to book spaces 9 months - 1 year in advance of the date of the event these days. Jesse has a coworker who is planning a wedding in a very short period of time...she got engaged mid-summer, I think, and she's planning her wedding for November of this year. She had a very hard time finding a proper venue that was (a) available and (b) affordable. When you limit yourself with time restrictions, you limit yourself otherwise as well. And I'm really glad that Jesse and I could both agree on having the wedding on a date that's as far out as it is, so as to give ourselves plenty of time to make sure we have the best celebration of our wedding we could ever imagine.

My father (and I hope he doesn't mind me talking about this...) and my stepmom planned their wedding in a relatively short amount of time, and due to certain circumstances, had to change the date at least once during the planning stages. With that experience behind him, he is extremely cautious about setting a date and putting down deposits on locations over a year in advance of the event. And I don't blame him! It's this sort of behaviour that I was exposed to when growing up that made me the no-nonsense, somewhat detail oriented kinda girl that I am today. (I hope to become even more detail oriented as I grow older and wiser...I can't really get any more no-nonsense about things, though. People might not like me much if I get worse on that end!) But the frustration remains when it comes to having to discuss these matters over the phone, with a man who can be sillier than I am when he wants to be, and without the ability to be face-to-face to discuss the details as quickly and efficiently as possible. It's my own fault for moving my ass to Kansas all those years ago, I know. But hey...if I hadn't moved to Kansas, I wouldn't have met Jesse! So there's the end to that argument. :)

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go find some reasonably priced "save the date" cards to order, so I can plan accordingly for the expense. Hope everyone is having a great week!