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Ch-ching. The Amy Wedding Money Train just keeps on chugging.
She sent us a link this morning to the $50 dyeable shoes she wants us to wear.
I remember that I had a choice. Really, I do. And I KNOW that I should just shut up and suck it up and deal with it, since the choice I made was, "Of course, Amy, I would LOVE to be part of your special day!"
But here's the thing.
I planned a wedding. And I told my girls, of which there were many, because I figured I was only gonna do this once and dammit I wanted them ALL in the wedding, that I wanted to be cautious about how much everything cost them. So I chose the dress judiciously. And yes, it still cost them each about $180 all-told for the dresses. But that was it. I didn't make them wear special shoes. I didn't make them wear special jewelry. I didn't insist that their hair or their makeup or their nail polishes matched. And never ONCE has anyone looked at the photos and noticed any of that crap. The little girl dresses were under $50. The little boy outfits ended up under $25. The guys chose the tux together. I had a final vote but they picked out what they were comfortable in, money-wise and appearance-wise.
And my pictures were beautiful, and the wedding was beautiful, and I would do it again in a heartbeat exactly the same way.
Now, if you want to be a conscious and conscientious bride in terms of what it costs your bridesmaids, that's wonderful. And it's entirely possible to do.
And if you want to be a bride that says, "Screw that--this is my day and I want things the way that I want them, and if you agree to be a part of my wedding, be aware of that fact," well--that's fine, too. You're the bride. Knock yourself out.
But don't BE the second type of bride and masquerade as the first. You'll just make at least one of your bridesmaids hate you. Or, at least you will if I'm in your bridal party. Because the $200 for the dress and the $50 for the shoes and the $50 for the jewelry and the $40 for the hairstylist who is coming to the wedding site is not really being "conscious" about this stuff.
Add on to all of that the cost of the Husband's outfit (we're already at $180 and he hasn't bought a jacket yet--that's just the pants and the shirt, which of course had to come from Brooks Brothers. The jury is still out on the jacket, but I'll be DAMNED if the Husband is going to spend $340 on a blue blazer he'll probably never wear again. And if he does, then god help him, he's wearing it EVERYWHERE), the outfit for Will (don't even know, but thankfully, I don't think Brooks Brothers makes clothes for toddlers, do they?) the hotel ($600 for the two nights, plus tax), dinner for the babysitter on Friday night and at the wedding (because we "volunteered" to pay for her and her boyfriend's meals) the wedding gift, the shower gift, and whatever I'm going to get hit up for at the shower meeting tonight...
Remind me again that I had a choice, okay?
I sound evil and bitter and petty. But hey--it's my diary. I'm allowed.
In other news, there's a flurry of activity happening at my mom's house. Sadly, none of it involves digging up the street.
I think I need a shower and some lunch.
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