It's Wedding Week!
Photo by Carmen Freemark.
Well, well, well... how the tables have turned. This week, my sweetheart, Ryan, and I are getting married!! We couldn't be more excited, and I'm about to log off of all work-related internet stuff for two weeks to enjoy the crap out of our wedding week and honeymoon. You know I'll be posting highlights on social media, so go follow me! Instagram is where you'll find the most wedding and honeymoon snaps, so go on and click follow now - @popjukeboxdj is the handle.
It goes without saying that I'll be away from the computer for the next two weeks, so if you email me, you can expect to hear from me after August 22. If you're an existing wedding client, you'll be the first I reply to when I get back.
Before I take off for the week, I thought I'd share a bit of our wedding planning experience!
First and foremost, throughout our entire engagement, by far the most common question I've been asked is:
So who does a wedding DJ get to DJ their own wedding!?
Well, my friends. The short answer is Newley Sound. The long answer will come in the form of a blog post after the wedding - accompanied by dance floor photos, I hope!
Otherwise, here's my take so far...
- Our friends and fam have been awesome. Because we're having a cocktail-style reception with no seated dinner and no.... a lot of things (fresh flowers, wedding cake, bouquet toss, flower girl...), I was expecting a lot more resistance to some of our non-traditional choices. You know, I'm pretty sure this comes from the amount of alternative wedding blogs I read, where so much of the advice centres around "how to explain (or understand that you don't need to explain) your wedding-related choices to your relatives". So many people seem to meet resistance when they deviate from the norm, so I was bracing myself for this too. It has not even been an issue! When someone asks about our wedding cake and I say we're not having one, there's usually surprise and the "Well, what are you having, then!?" question. And honestly, our answers are most often met with "Oh, cool! What a good idea." And for that, I am so thankful, and freshly reminded that our families are awesome.
- Through the whole process, we've fluctuated between wanting to add a million personal touches... and wanting to throw all the extra work out the window and do the bare minimum because planning the basic wedding logistics is exhausting enough. We're landing somewhere in between the two, with a number of personal touches, but fairly minimal on the DIY side of things.
- Okay, we have been absolutely spoiled by our friends in the wedding industry. I can't wait to tell you about all of the awesome people who are helping make our wedding a reality. You know that there will be blog posts about our vendors after the wedding. Stay tuned!
- In case no one has ever mentioned this before... weddings are expensive! Even though I have known the actual prices of wedding products and services for years, I have somehow still ended up baffled at how everything adds up. Even staying within the planned budget, you just feel like you're pulling your debit card out every three seconds. Also, every couple has to decide what's simply not worth the money (and this is different for everyone!). We've definitely had to axe some ideas we had when we realized they wouldn't fit in the budget. It sucks in the moment, but you forget about it pretty quickly afterwards.
- I'd heard both friends and clients who were in the thick of wedding planning say that they just can't wait until it's over. I didn't understand that, and vowed that I would never be that person. Again... how the tables have turned. Don't get me wrong - I'm SO excited for the wedding. I'm excited for all of our friends and family to be together, and I'm excited for a crazy, fun, and emotional day. Most of all, I'm excited to be married to the best person I've ever met. That said, it really does feel like life is on hold until the wedding is over! All of our free time, conversations, and resources are being poured into this day, and I honestly find it hard to focus on anything else. I finally understand why people look forward to the 'other side' where normalcy can resume. And honestly, I think looking forward to actually being married is preferable to only looking forward to the wedding.
While meeting with one of my awesome couples last week, they told me that they coined the word "YOMO"- You're Only Married Once. They are my heroes and I wish I'd thought of that. So... I'm embracing the chaos until the wedding, and doing my best to plan an awesome party while enjoying time with my fiancé, friends, and family... because #YOMO.
Want to stay updated on my wedding festivities? Follow me on Instagram - @popjukeboxdj - because I'll definitely be sharing photos and videos during wedding week and beyond. <3
