Wedding Wednesday: After the big day

Immediately after the wedding, I was consumed with relief that the planning was over and didn't really want to do anything wedding-related for a long time. Now that nearly 16 weeks have passed, I've had some time to reflect on the big day and the process as a whole.

Let's get the regrets out of the way first.

Things I wish I'd done differently:

>> Budgeted for a day-of coordinator. 
I was setting up the bar and snack table in my wedding dress between pictures and the ceremony. Getting vendor checks to the appropriate vendors was difficult (even with an appointed person). The night after the wedding, I had a hard time sleeping because I was worried about tear-down and everything getting put in the right places. Hiring someone would have taken some of this stress off of me.

>> Been better at delegating and explaining my expectations.
I am very Type A and have a hard time letting go of control of things. But I wish I had accepted and asked for more help with some things. I also wish I'd been clearer about what I wanted from some people involved in the big day. It would have saved me some disappointment.

>> Taken more time off work after the wedding.
I got married on Saturday and went back to work on Tuesday. Even with one day free of family and guests, I was exhausted and tired of people. One more day of introverting would have done me some good.

>> Cared less about the opinions of others.
I am such a people-pleaser. I want to make people happy. I don't like to inconvenience anyone. But I wish I'd been a little more self-centered when it came to my wedding day. Sean and I paid for most of the wedding, and it was a day that will always be special to us. I wish I hadn't worried so much about what people thought about our choices or those who complained about being left off the guest list after the wedding (yes, this happened).

... Now, onto the good stuff. This part will include photos. Yay!!!

Things I'm really glad I did:

>> Stuck with my vision. 
I've heard a lot of flack about themed weddings, but I feel like our baseball touches were done well and suited us as a couple. We said our vows at home plate on a neighborhood diamond. Each table was marked with one of our favorite players. We gave boxes of Cracker Jacks as favors. Even our cake was a baseball. It was perfect.

>> A first look before the ceremony.
Not only did this save us from having to squeeze in photos between ceremony and reception, but it created a special moment just for Sean and me. The first time he saw me in my dress, we were alone (except for two videographers and two photographers ... heh), and it was nice to have that bit of time just for us.

>> Booked a live band.
I was super nervous about this as our band was one of my favorite musicians and a friend of mine. I worried others wouldn't like him or his music. I couldn't have been more wrong. People loved him. The dance floor was populated the entire night. We've had more compliments on Tim Stop than any other aspect of our wedding (even more than the food, which was also very popular). Plus, I loved having Tim sing our first dance song.

>> Hired a videographer. 
I went back and forth on this for a long time before deciding to find the money in our budget for someone to capture our day on film. I'm so glad I did. Our videographer was incredible and affordable. I've watched our wedding highlights video so many times. I look forward to watching our full events video each year to celebrate our anniversary. Here's our highlight video:

Overall, my wedding day was a wonderful one. I got to marry my perfect match, and I honestly love doing life with him every day. I look forward to everything that's ahead for us.

And here are some more photos just for the fun of it.

Thanks for allowing me to relive the day a little.