And Then He Kissed Me! Part 17

Wedding plans were in full force. Our wedding date was to be on January 19th in the Bountiful Temple. Which meant we only had 2 months to plan the wedding, 2 receptions (one in Utah and one in Wyoming), find an apartment, move, find a dress, rent tuxes, flowers, decorations, pictures, food, and on top of all of that, fit Thanksgiving and Christmas in.

I knew financing a wedding would be difficult for my parents. I had a brother serving a mission in France and four other siblings still living at home. Money was tight for all of us, and so I planned the wedding to be as budget friendly, as possible. First thing was first, and I had to find a wedding dress, A.S.A.P.!

I knew exactly what kind of dress I wanted. I wanted it to be simple, yet elegant. Long sleeves were a must, since we were to be married in the winter. I didn't want poofy sleeves, ruffles, a lot of beading, and most definitely... NO BUTT BOW! My first attempt for looking for a wedding dress a month previous was a failure. And being fairly new to the Utah area, I had a difficult time finding my way around to the various wedding dress shops. I was a sad sight. I would often have to try on dresses during my lunch breaks and the shop owners would often ask where my family was. I never imagined that I would have to pick out my wedding dress, alone.

I was beginning to panic at the thought of not being able to find a wedding dress. Then one day I went to an appointment at a dress shop in downtown Ogden. There I was, alone at the dress shop, and a Mexican family with their daughter that was about to turn 15. They were there to find a white gown for their daughter's Quinceanera celebration. The sales lady helped me pick out a couple of dresses to try on. None of which, was the dress of my dreams.

The first one made me look like Dolly Parton. Hello chest! This was definitely not the statement I wanted to make on my wedding day, however, I didn't think "Plumber guy" would have minded. The second dress looked okay. So far this was the best dress that I had tried on. It had a sweetheart neckline, which would have to be altered, due to the girls. The sleeves had some poofiness, there was some beading on the bodice and sleeves, and some trailing of beads, streaming down the skirt of the dress, which was actually unique and kinda pretty. The one thing that I did like about the dress was that the skirt was simple and it had a small train. And the other draw back with the dress, was there was a bustle thing, smack dab in the middle of the butt. However, it WASN'T a butt bow!

I walked out of the dressing area to look at myself in the full length mirrors. I tilted my head to the right and crinkled my nose. "Do you think it looks good?" I asked the sales lady. "Oh yeah! It's really beautiful on you!" she replied. "Your paid to say that," I thought to myself.

I did a full turn around in front of the mirrors, looking at the dress at every angle. "It's not too bad," I thought. I felt so alone. I needed some one's re-assurance and opinion on what I was trying on. Did the skirt make my butt look too big? Was the neckline appropriate for the temple? I wish my mom was there.

The Mexican family sensed my distress. The women of the group all conjugated around me, fluffing and straightening the train to it's full grandeur. "Oh si! Si!" they all harmonized. They reminded me of a flock of chickens. "Muy Bonita! Muy Bonita!"

The sales lady then asked me if I wanted to try on any other dresses. I began to think of how soon my wedding was approaching, and I began to panic. This was the best dress I had tried on, thus far, and I decided to take the plunge. Besides, if the Mexican ladies said I looked "Muy Bonita" in the dress, then I just had to pick this dress. "I'll take it!" I said.

From there on, there was no turning back. I picked my colors, which were the "hot wedding colors" of that time... navy blue, hunter green, burgundy, and I thought I would kick it up a notch and added ivory. Riveting. To save money, I planned on making all of the centerpieces, flowers for the wedding party, and all of the other flowers, lights, bows etc. for the decorations.

With in weeks of "Plumber Guy" proposing, we had our wedding pictures taken and we chose our invitation. All of the details were falling into place perfectly. A family friend of "Plumber Guy's" offered to make our wedding cake for free, my Dad constructed our entire backdrop and all of the fencing, and I had shopped around for the best prices on linen rentals, flowers, and all of the other important details that make up a wedding.

Every waking moment, I spent with Plumber Guy. We made the Hallmark movies, look lame. There was no comparison. I revelled in every detail that we planned for our future together. I stayed busy with the putting together centerpieces and such and he was busy planning our honeymoon. Oh the honeymoon! (sigh)

He had big plans for us! A lot of which, he kept a secret.

"So where are we going to spend our wedding night?" I prodded.

"Motel 6," he teased back. "Yup, I'll just pull over to some Motel 6 and check in."

"Whatever!" I would squeal. Then he would just laugh.

I knew him better than that. I knew he would make our wedding night as romantic as possible. I had dreams of staying in the Anniversary Inn or a luxury hotel with satin sheets on the bed. I heard many positive rumblings about the Anniversary Inn. I heard that there was a Swiss Family Robinson room and an Egyptian room. I imagined us spending the night in a hammock-like bed, stuck in the tree tops in the Swiss Family Robinson room. He could wear a loin cloth, made out of a buckskin, since we would be stranded on an island and all. And his bare chest would be glistening in the hot sun. Or maybe we could bathe in the inner sanctum of a pyramid in the stone jetted tubs. Whatever he had planned for us, it was a fantasy that I just couldn't wait for.