8 Years From Now...

8 years from now, when I get married.  Not an uncommon statement for me to make.  So, first, a little background into where this came from.  About 6 years ago, maybe a little more, I had just gotten out of a horrible long term relationship.  And of course, I was helping several of my close friends plan their weddings.  With nothing in my personal life to look forward to, and the typical wedding talk about what you would want in your own wedding (as girls tend to do), I began using the statement "well, 8 years from now when I get married, I would do...this."

One point to note, even though this started 6 years ago, I still say "8 years from now..."  The time frame never decreases.  Marriage is always 8 years away.  (And because most of those couples now have children...children are now 12 years away)

So, what, one might ask, is on the list?  Well...I, of course, am not planning my wedding.  Nor do I have someone to plan it with...so I don't have a lot of specifics about what my wedding day will actually look like...8 years from now.  I do, however, have a list of stuff that I don't want.

• I will not wear a poofy dress.  Just...no.  I would look ridiculous.
• I do not want a huge wedding where I invite every single person I've ever met to attend and feel obligated to buy a gift.  I would much rather have the people that really matter there.
• I do not want the words "Shooting Complex" to appear on my wedding invitations.  I don't care how nice of a banquet center it is.  No thank you.
• I also do not want to host my wedding at a Sleep Inn.  I believe my bff said it best.  "Ew."  

So...the Sleep Inn thing...I recently stayed at one for a race weekend, and I had noticed some decorations that looked a little wedding-esque sitting about while we were there.  Thinking to myself "surely not."  But we got back to the hotel Saturday evening, and sure enough, there was a rockin' wedding going on.  And to top that off...there was also a young girl and her mother talking to the staff about hosting a wedding there.  Oh my.

I don't know what it has been lately...perhaps with everything else on my plate lately...I figure why not add one more.  But I've been thinking a lot about planning a wedding.  It's been a while since I've had to help a friend plan one.  And at this point, most of my friends already are married.  So I guess the next one to plan will probably be my own.  And besides...weddings are fun...right?  And I probably have planned enough that I could plan my own in my sleep.  (Please remind me of this statement 8 years from now when I actually am planning my wedding, and I'm so stressed out that I want to pull my hair out.)  Don't worry...to any potential mates out there possibly reading this...I am not so eager to get married right now that I'll hit you over the head with a frying pan and drag you to the justice of the peace and force you to marry me.  I do still realize it requires a little more effort than that.  And that it won't happen with just anyone.  I'm not THAT girl :)

So...8 years from now...