Time Line for a Rustic Wedding

Once upon a time, there was a couple who wanted to get married.

They wanted a simple, rustic wedding in her parent's backyard. 

Two years later, they said their vows in that backyard, starting their journey as a married couple.

In the two years between "I will" and "I do" there was a lot of planning that took place.

2 years ago:

 - We planned where the wedding would take place and reserved our church as a back up

 - Looked at every wedding blog and read every wedding magazine to get ideas and inspiration

 - Decided on a budget (our goal was to keep it under $7000.00)  A future post will show a breakdown of what we spent

1 We picked a photographer (the good ones get booked up fast ) Photos are important to us so we picked the best -  andigrantphotography.com

 - Decided on the size of the wedding (we limited it to 150 people due to yard size and limited budget)

 - Placed rental order (we ordered 150 chairs and a 16x16 dance floor)

 - Decided on colors for the wedding (the bride chose chocolate brown and pear green as the primary colors with orange, rusty red, and yellow as floral accents).

 - Chose wedding attendants

 - Bought the wedding dress (Ashley bought her dress at a bridal consignment shop - more about that in a future post)

 - Bought rustic fall decorations when they were 50% - 90% off

 - Chose paper theme (save the dates, invites, programs, etc.)

6 months ago:

 - We started  looking for attendant clothing and mother of the bride outfit ( Ashley had already decided to forgo formal tuxes and bridesmaids dresses, choosing simple dresses for the girls and sweater vests for the guys)

 - Started buying candles on sale, a few at a time (this was our goal, but we did end up having to buy a bunch the week before the wedding)

 - Collected pots and containers at thrift stores to decorate the tables with

 - Bought all of the chocolate brown burlap we could find (to decorate tables)

 - Bought all of the canvas drop cloths we couldfind (to cover tables)

 - Ordered cake (we had already asked a good friend to make the cake)

 - Decided to not use a catering company and lined  up trusted friends to help.  Our team was so amazing, guests were asking which catering company we used. 

 - Sent out "save the dates"

 - Registered for wedding gifts (if you register too soon, some of the items may be discontinued before your wedding)

 - Started buying white dishes at thrift stores (we weren't able to use all white dishes due to the size of the guest list, but we did use an assortment of white coffee cups which the guests liked better than styrofoam cups)

(more trays of cups were brought out as these were depleted)

6 weeks ago:

 - We had the final fittings of all clothing.  Two of the bridesmaids had recently had babies and needed to have their dresses taken in (congrats to you two for getting in shape so quickly).

 - Double checked everything (rentals, photography, food, decor, attendants, minister, music)

 - Sent out invitations

 - Finished making party favors ( we made apple butter and also gave out glass coaster the groom's mother had purchased while visiting family in the Philippines.

  - Decided on wording and layout for the programs

1 week ago:

 - We borrowed tables and two steamer trays

 - Borrowed a corn hole game and portable fire pit from friends

 - Stood in the backyard and cried because it was under water

 - Rented a sump pump to pump rainwater out of the yard

 - Said our final "good-bye" to my Mother in law as she entered into heaven

 - Bought food and ordered party trays (shrimp and veggie) I'll talk more menu stuff in a future post

 - Got haircuts (touched up gray in my hair - just sayin')

 - Took programs to printer.  Cut, bound, and decorated programs with a special touch.  (more to come about that)

 (programs awaiting the arrival of our guests)

3 days ago:

 - Awoke to a beautiful day

 - Rallied all of our friends to help us set up the back yard

 - Married off our baby girl

 - Got a new son

 - Visited with friends and family

- Thanked God for our blessings and gave Him all the glory