When I briefly mentioned we might be getting married in Texas, we got a few emails asking if everything was okay, did something happy and were we and Chicago still friends?! Yes, we are, by the way. Several people (including our family and friends) have said Chicago is integral to who we are as people…we can’t get married in this state we only kind of like…right?
It turns out planning a wedding from 1,000 miles away is a pain in the ass. It also turns out when you move from Chicago to Tejas and live there for four years, only a handful of your friends will stay close and a lot of them want to visit you soon anyway. Finally, hello average cost of weddings. How are you today, you fun-ruining bastard? Chicago’s average cost for a wedding is just outrageously higher. We can have twice the wedding here in Fort Worth for the same cost as a modest wedding off the beaten path in Chicago.
The photos above are of the venue we’re leaning toward right now. The ladies are really easy to work with, their pricing rocks my Chicagoan face off and I love the xeriscaped ceremony spot and warehouse interior.
While Chicago may be a huge part of who we are (we are still throwing a fit about the last game with the Heat in the finals and we’re already saving up a little bit at a time to have an emergency fund for when the Bears go to the Super Bowl again…), does that really mean we have to pay twice as much to get married there?
We’re able to bring down the guest list a little bit by having it in Texas and almost all of the venues we’re talking to are all, “What’s a preferred vendors list?” Just kidding, but we can have our own caterer, bring our own alcohol and set up an iPod as our pre-planned DJ.
The only negatives left are that we wouldn’t be married in Chicago, our home, the city we just adore and love and want to spend the rest of our lives with and that some people won’t be able to make it, including my great-grandma, which might be my greatest regret.
What are your thoughts? We haven’t put down a deposit on anything yet, so if you think we’re making a HUGE mistake, go ahead and just…you know…tell me now.
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