I was never one of those people that said, “I have been dreaming of my wedding ever since I was a little girl!” knowing exactly what I wanted my dress, ring, and “prince charming” to look like. In fact, I cried every time my mom made me wear a dress to Church and couldn’t wait until the day I could pick what I wanted to wear myself. Although I never dreamed about what the man I'd marry would look like, I know now, and I couldn’t have dreamed anything better. And in case you’re wondering, the ring he picked out for me is perfect.
Now on to the wedding.... I don’t hate weddings, I actually enjoy attending them. It’s a very happy moment for two people that have decided to spend the rest of their lives together and I think it’s awesome that they invite people to share the day with them. Now that I’m getting married I have to think about all of the details that didn’t cross my mind when I was a little girl. I’ll start with... The dress.
I’ve never been a huge fan of dresses, although over the past few years they have grown on me a little, I still only own a few simple ones. A couple months after Stefen proposed I figured it was about time to start the search for this dress that people say is the most important dress you will ever wear, and as soon as you see it “you will know”. I brought along my mom, two sisters, niece, and brother, Luke. Yes, Luke. Since Stefen isn’t supposed to participate in the event, I had to have some man input. A few people had highly recommended a boutique in Tampa, so that was our first stop. As soon as I walked through the doors I signed in and waited only a few minutes before a lady walked over to me with the biggest smile on her face. “Ok. Let’s talk about your dress!” I probably looked at her with the most polite, scared, fake smile I had. I knew from the look on her face she was going to be disappointed with me. She started asking me questions like, “what do you want to show off on your wedding day? Butt, chest, waist?” I looked at her with an even stranger smile, thinking to myself “why would I want to show any of that off while standing in front of my parents, pastor, and a couple hundred other people?” “uhhh...” I stuttered, never giving her an answer.
Her next question, “how do you want to feel on your wedding day? Sexy, beautiful, etc. etc.?” “uhhh...” Fortunately Lindy walked over at that time, “She wants to know how I want to feel..” Lindy’s reply, "comfortable!" Ahh yes of course, comfortable. The lady’s disappointment in me started with that answer. But shrugging it off, her smile came back quickly as she said it was time to look at dresses. She explained to me how it works. She takes me through aisles and aisles of dresses and I get to pick out whichever ones I like and then try them all on. This must be the best part because she was getting very excited. But, before we started looking through the dresses she asked me what my price range was, I told her I wanted to keep it under $500, what?? She told me that was pretty much impossible and that they hardly even had any dresses for that price, if any at all. Since I never really had a dream dress or anything I wasn’t sure what I was looking for, I did print out a few pictures from the internet so I at least had an idea, and I knew I didn’t want anything big, poofy or covered in beads (no offense to anyone that has any or all of the above, it’s just not my style). So it began, we started walking through what must have been hundreds and hundreds of dresses, all different styles, sizes, beads no beads, sleeves no sleeves. I found one dress that I wanted to try on. Yes, only one, not because I thought it was “the dress” but because it seemed nice and looked like a possibility. Once we got to the end of the aisles the poor lady shrugged her shoulders and stood there with a very serious face. One of her co-workers walked by and said, “wow you must be thinking really hard!” She replied, “I’m trying to think of what I can do. I’m out of ideas.” Then she said, “ok, how about I just pick some dresses for you to try on? You might not like them but I just want to experiment with some different styles and you might decide you like something”. I agreed to try. She found about ten different dresses, took me in the dressing room and started the process. First I tried on the dress that I picked out. I didn’t realize it when I picked it out but, it was actually ivory instead of white (I told her I only wanted white). I walked out to the open area so everyone could see. They all loved it, including myself. But I still had a few more to try on.. I tried on every dress she had picked out and my mind didn’t change with any of them. Out of all the hundreds of dresses she showed me, there was still only one I liked. I knew she was getting frustrated when she started saying things like, “you’re not picking out a dress, you’re picking out a costume”, “you’re not going to find a perfect dress, you’re going to find different things you like about each dress and you just have to pick one”, and lastly, “I think what you’re looking for is a bridesmaids dress, not a wedding dress”. They didn't even sell bridesmaids dresses at that particular store, so I got the hint.. I did at least have the one dress that I liked though, and the good news, it was around $500 (give or take 50)! I still didn’t feel completely right about the dress, especially without looking anywhere else, so we all decided that we’d try at least one more place and if we didn’t find anything else we could go back. She wrote the dress information down for me and her last words said to me with a little laugh were, "you are the most interesting lady I have ever worked with". I asked if that was good or bad and she of course said it was a compliment. I'm not sure I believe that..
Next stop: Olga’s Bridal. A tiny little shop named after a German lady that was still working there. There weren’t aisles and aisles of dresses, just a single line of dresses up against the wall. It didn’t take long to realize that there was nothing there for me, besides the fact that they were more expensive than the first stop; I just didn’t see what I was looking for. The store was getting ready to close anyways so we started making our way out the door, but right before we did one of my sisters recommended looking at the bridesmaids dresses like the lady at store #1 said we should. I found a couple that I liked, and they were very similar to the first dress at store #1. I tried them on in a hurry (since the store was closing) and to everyone’s surprise, I loved it. I know I said I found a couple, but they were actually the same dress with just a few minor differences. I pretty much just said “Ok, I’ll get it. Let’s go”. “Don’t you want to try anymore?” “Nope”. My mind was set. It was similar to the dress I liked, had a few details that made it even better, and the best part? Since it was considered a “bridesmaids dress” and not a "bridal gown" it was half the price! So with all those very long details said. My dress is bought. One day, two shops, and a few hours later and it’s done just like that. I would upload a picture but, I think I’ll wait till after the wedding.
