It's been... 3 weeks since I got the ring...

... and I've already managed to scare off one friend with my wedding blather. Go me!

I'm exaggerating, really - I called her in the midst of running errands, and she had to go into the car wash. Or so she said. At any rate, I do have one friend who's more than happy to discuss venue options and flower arrangements and all that other good planning stuff, so I'm happy.

But seriously, though. Last night I was pretty much over the whole wedding thing, and it'd been only 3 weeks since the proposal. It's my own fault, though. As soon as I could, I started contacting photographers to find out their rates, and investigating venues, because I needed to see what all was possible. But the problem was, we didn't have a budget set, and there are SO many options that depend on what the budget is, and I was driving myself nuts. Too many possibilities. Theoretically, you get a dollar amount, and work backwards from that. The suggested "50% for the reception", "10% for photography" (way too low, in my opinion - photography's important to me, because those photos are your memory... they're what you're going to have to look at years from now when you want to throttle your husband, to remind yourself of why you got married, haha), and so on. Small budget? Afternoon wedding with a tea and cake reception. Huge budget? I apply to be on "Platinum Weddings." (that's not an option, by the way.)

To make things worse, I'm making things more difficult for myself because I'd like to avoid the standard church wedding/hotel-or-banquet-hall reception. I'd love to be married outdoors. I would love a funky barn or loft space for the reception, and I'd love to be able to pick whomever I want to cater it - to pick a caterer that has a special meaning to me. Doing it my way means I'm going to have to rent linens, and maybe even serviceware, and having to juggle many contacts instead of one wedding coordinator at a hotel. Believe me, I'm sometimes tempted to throw my hands up and do a golf club wedding/reception.

(Ha! Listen to me - you'd think I was a jaded wedding planning veteran of months.)

But good news is on the horizon - I think we're close to setting a date and budget, and things should be much easier from here on out. I need to get the big ones taken care of now, and can wait on things like color schemes and flowers and invitation design. Knowing me, though, I won't be waiting for too long, haha. I do feel sorry for my fiance. Allll the time!