Confessions of a Catholic Bride

I’m breaking rules with this post.

I’m doing what no blogger is supposed to do. First, I’m going to apologize for disappearing off the face of the earth. Second, I’m going to offer an explanation of why I disappeared.

So, first, I’m sorry I disappeared off the face of the earth.

Such a rebel. I know.

Second, I should have known that when everyone said, “You will get busy, things will have to wait.” They would be 100% right. (Did I believe them? no….but hindsight is 20/20). There were days when I forgot to eat and sleep…how is this possible? I call a biological and possibly a psychological anomaly, and as much as blogging is absolutely essential to my life…if I’m forgetting to eat and sleep…well blogging is definitely not at the forefront of my mind…(but you’ll be happy to know that I have since remembered both how and TO do both of those things and I’m working on the blogging right now so there is hope for me yet!)

At any rate, now that my severe case of “wedding brain” has finally subsided I wanted to let you all know I’m alive, well (very well in fact), and very much married now!

Which brings me to the point of today’s blog. I wanted to talk about getting married and the wedding while it’s still very fresh in my mind. I’ll include some teaser images from the wedding for the curious. I have to credit Brielle Kaschack Photography for the images which are amazing. I highly recommend her to anyone in and near the New Jersey are looking for pictures of anything. Really. Shoes. She’ll own it. People. Even Better. Weddings? She is a photography goddess.

Some reflections on the overall day. I have a lot to write about being a newlywed. I’ll probably have to put it into a few posts instead of just one, so for today I’ll share a few reflections on the Big Day itself.

I did eventually get my contacts in! This is Eva who is doing my makeup. She is awesome.

1.) Putting contacts in when your hand is shaking is really hard. Especially when trying to do it in the dark at 4am. Also, nerves will make you do stupid things…like try to put contacts on in the dark. Don’t forget to take note of how your brain reacts under unbelievable stress. Not only will people shamelessly exaggerate (read: report the truth 100%) how much you wigged out, but the wedding day jitters are your hard earned right as a bride. So embrace them…and then chase them down with a few mimosas.

Happy bride!

2.) Don’t skip the mimosas. Or breakfast. You will want to. You will think eating is impossible. You are wrong. Eat. Please God. EAT!

 My amazing, stupendous, saintly patient, wonderful, incredible bridesmaids.

3.) Be kind to your bridesmaids. As a bride, I learned that being a bridesmaid is a heavy duty job. It’s expensive, it’s time consuming, and they all do it because they LOVE YOU.  Don’t be a bridezilla, poisoning your  friendships on a day as special as your wedding day is just not worth it. There is an AFTER in happily ever after for a reason. It means that you still want your bridesmaids to be your friends even after you say I do.

4.) You can control how the day will go. Which means, you can’t control what other things may happen to you, like the weather or mix ups, or accidents. But you can control how you react to them. I considered just seeing my future husband waiting for me a successful day. And you know what? The day was perfect. Did I have a little eensy weensy snafu at the salon? Yes. Did I allow it to completely wreck my mood? No, I accepted it, and moved on, and the day was still perfect, he was still waiting for me, and my hair still looked awesome. Win-Win-Win.

Making myself a husband right there!

5.) It’s not about the party. It’s about the promise. Parties are great, but make sure you always keep in mind that this is about an intimate and highly special bond you’re making with your future husband. Pray for him that day, pray for him every day of your married life. Ask him to pray for you. The vows you recite to each other MEAN something.

This is pre-reception sneaky pics! 

6.) Some people won’t show…and that’s okay. I had a bunch of friends and family who got sick with the flu. One poor guy’s car broke down. It doesn’t mean they didn’t really want to be there. It just means that for some reason or other they couldn’t get there. Don’t be too hard on them. Life happens.

7.) It is super satisfying seeing how all of the details come together.  Let’s face it, even if you’re having a whirlwind three month engagement, you make a lot of decisions when putting a wedding together. Take some time to just walk through your reception venue and give yourself and your hubby a pat on the back for a job well done. Wedding planning is hard. And you nailed it. Congrats!

Let it snow!

8.) Surprise your guests!  We had it snow inside during our first dance. Whether it’s a funny unique guestbook, or icebreaker cards at the guest tables. having something special that stands out to them will make the day so memorable. We loved the looks of surprise and the gasps when it snowed inside. It doesn’t need to be as crazy as that, but a little creativity goes a long way!

9.) Invest in a good photographer. We didn’t have a videographer, instead we splurged and got ourselves a real crackerjack photographer. It was so worth it. A good photo will decorate your home and remind you of one of the happiest days of your life for years. This fun shot is both dramatic, gorgeous and just the right amount of fun.

10.) Speaking of fun, make sure you HAVE some. Weddings are a celebration, and it’s easy to get bogged down in getting all the boxes checked. Don’t forget to enjoy your food (EAT PLEASE!!!) and make sure that if you’re the types who like to boogie down, to get yourself on dance floor and celebrate. Guests will have even more fun seeing you guys enjoy yourselves. And don’t forget to take some fun pics like this one. Just because it’ll be that much more entertaining looking through your album in a few years.