Who says you have to break the bank to have a wedding to remember? Today's column proves you can spend as little as a hundred bucks and still have memories that last a lifetime ...
KENNY: The kind of marriage ceremony I would've been happy with: A drive-thru Elvis imitator in Las Vegas, or perhaps barefoot on the morning beach in Maui.
What we ended up with: a gothic church for the ceremony, then the country club for the reception. Live music, DJ, open bar, coffee bar, stretch antique limo driven by a guy straight out of "The Godfather" and lots of flowers. The photographer was a crook. He kept adding new charges. I think we ended up paying him twice.
First there was the rehearsal party. The bachelorette party that was high tea at the Ritz Hotel. I never even considered a bachelor's party. At my age, I was quite happy to just meet everyone for a beer and dinner. I paid for the honeymoon in Greece. I estimate the total cost at over $30,000. I truly think the wedding was at least as much about her mother showing off as it was about us getting married.
WILL: Our wedding cost $4000 total. I was 41 and my wife 35. First marriage for both. We had the ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday and then a brunch reception. My wife bought her dress off the rack.
After the reception, we went bowling. My one regret: we didn't take the leftovers up to our room. Could have eaten for a week!
JULIA: We were married in his Mom's backyard. I'd just moved to the United States from Sweden three weeks earlier. We drove there in a VW van. I wore a dress I'd bought for about $30 and he had on a nice navy blue suit.
His Mom was mortified when she discovered we didn't have any rings and took me over to her jewelry box and handed me her Mom's gold wedding band. After the ceremony I was going to give it back, but she insisted I keep it and I've never taken it off. She also had asked us the day before if we had flowers and we said we didn't need any, but she ordered a beautiful bouquet from a local florist. There were about 30 friends and relatives present. Everyone brought food for a potluck.
To this day we still get comments about our wedding and how much fun it was even though it only cost a hundred dollars. Last year, our three daughters (27-year-old twins and an 18-year old) hosted a party for us at the local brewery. It was great.
Next year, one of my twins is getting married. It'll be a lot more along the lines of a "typical" wedding. We tried to talk her into a backyard one like ours, but it didn't work!
Was your wedding over the top? Send your thoughts, along with your questions and rants to [email protected].
Any advice for Alicia? Send your thoughts along with your questions and problems to [email protected]. And check out my new ebook, "Dear Cheryl: Advice from Tales from the Front." COPYRIGHT 2016 CREATORS.COM
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