Outstanding Work, Gentlemen!

Did you know our wedding is less than 6 months away? Or, as Crate & Barrel puts it, "Only 165 days til the big event!" (This is right next to their red-typeface exhortation, "Add more gifts!")

I feel as if we are way, way behind where we should be at this point. I know that many people, including my amazing sister, succeed in planning weddings on a very tight timeline. But, I still feel anxious and panicky that we have so few things finalized.

If there's one thing I know for sure in this life - and it took me about 30 years to learn - it's that things get done when you make a schedule for doing them. Below is our to-do list, with deadlines, and we will keep you updated as we accomplish these objectives.

List of Totally Non-scary Objectives

1. Invite the Officiant. It's embarrassing that this isn't done already. We practically have the entire ceremony planned, the readings (and readers) picked out. At least the person we have in mind is already coming as a guest. I assume the answer will be "Yes," but I wonder if my procrastination is somehow a sign of avoidance, rather than over-confidence. Deadline: this Friday, May 2.

2. Hire a DJ. It's probably time to get busy with this, since wedding season is in full swing now, and we don't want to be left with some cheeseball DJ and his old Abba records. I'm leaving this to Michael, who has identified at least one good prospect and can also potentially write a good Craigslist post for recruiting more possibilities. I give him a deadline of May 22.

3. Plan Ceremony Music(ians). I have a co-worker who is not only a real liturgical singer, but also a music librarian. I want to invite her to sing, and to help "music direct" the ceremony. I have a feeling she could be very helpful with recruiting instrumentalists and choosing songs/hymns/arrangements that she knows we'd like, but can't find for ourselves. But the asking has been delicate, since I've been keeping this whole wedding on the DL at work. (See, there's another bride in the office, and I don't want to detract from how much she's relishing the Princess thing.) I have to find an appropriate occasion and way to make this request, though. So, I'll give myself a deadline of May 22, just before I leave for NYC.

4. Walk-through with the Tent Guy. This, at least, is already scheduled. We should be prepared, though, with some ideas about what we want, and we should be psychologically ready to fight for our budget. The walk-through will take place on May 23.

5. Design and Print Invitations. Our talented twosome are eager to spring into action. We will meet with them in the last week of May, and hopefully we can make enough progress in planning and collaborative design that they will be able work over the summer, and we'll be ready to put invitations in the mail during August. Deadline for conceptualization: May 28.

6. Book the Buses. We approached the bus issue back in March, and the vendors clearly thought we were a little too early to worry. But, there is a sweet spot between too-early and sorry-we're-booked-up. I think that sweet spot is now. We got an estimate and chose a vendor, we just need to sign a contract and make a deposit. Deadline: June 1.

7. Finalize the Menu. Our farmer friends out in Orange County have confirmed that they can provide us an heirloom pig for the wedding feast. There are two questions that remain to be answered: Can we afford it? And, will the caterer embrace the plan? Deadline for answers: June 6.

8. Get a Florist. Michael spoke to the owner of an organic flower farm (who, unsurprisingly, never replied to my email). She was enthusiastic about doing the wedding, although she demurred on the issue of expense. I'm not sure how to move this forward, since email is obviously not effective. I think we'll have to call and schedule a visit. Although we're swamped with travel next month, I'm saying, Deadline: June 30.

9. Figure out the Bar(tending) Situation. We spoke with the manager of our wine "superstore" on Sunday, and he had good ideas, information, and advice. He says we only need a few weeks' notice to put in an order, and is happy to work with us in fulfilling our plan of serving European wines in magnum. We brought home a few more bottles to taste, and I hope we will make our selections soon. On the cocktail side, we need to have a serious conversation with the caterer about the logistics of this, and I need to figure out if we can buy liquor in New Hampshire on one of our trips up there this summer. Evaluating the cost-effectiveness of that plan (as it requires driving that booze 1,000 miles in a rented car) will take some math. On the whole, the booze situation seems like the least urgent, so I'm giving it a deadline of August 15.