As an avid Howard Stern fan, recently on the show Jason Kaplan talked about how he had to take out a $15k loan to help cover costs for his wedding. He already had $30k available for cost, but apparently that wasn't enough. After being close to 2 weddings (my sister and cousin) I can say that my wedding will be a very intimate ceremony, with just close friends and family being invited to a nice dinner, as opposed to a wedding at a church and then ceremony following. But since not everyone is like me (thank GOD or else our country would be in BIG trouble,) how did your wedding go? Was it a huge extravaganza or a nice intimate affair, and what did it put you back money-wise?

mine was big 100+ people.. 30k+ cost.. only got 17-18k back.. so not worth it.. would never do that again..

65 people $175 per person, a little over $11,000 food, cake, Hall, music, plus $1200 for pictures,$1000 flowers. Less then $15,000 Got about $4000 back as gifts. Not the biggest bargon, But OH well, atleast I'm still getting Laid!:luvlove::yes

I am currently planning mine and looking at 15k; not too happy about that but we all know that as men, we do not have a say or a choice in this ordeal!

had about 350 people back on the mid 90's and it was about $40k or so (don't do this! go small and stay simple)

I don't get these big over the top weddings and such. Maybe I'm cheap. (this was 6 years ago)

I am going from memory:
Church: (big old methodist, all stone, late 1800's architecture): $100 for 2.5 hours and we are not members of it. Members get it free.
Pastor: From another church, $50 for ceremony
Rehersal Dinner: $850
Banquet hall/catering/DJ-Music/open bar: $3000
Gifts for wedding party(gift cards) $200 total
Honeymoon $1000 (used priceline, got a package deal for Flight, 7 night hotel, rental car)
Photographer: a friend, but we did pay them $200
Dress: Not really sure, but it wasn't crazy
Tux: insignificant
Cake: a friend from a catering company baked it for us for the price of ingredients.
Cake stuff/candle/table decorations: $300
Got about $4000 back in gifts and money. Had about 200 guests (counting kids)

Prices vary wildly around the country so it's tough to compare. I just know we were very budget conscious and did our best to keep emotion out decisions. My best argument to my wife was "you are the object of this for the most part, let's not get crazy with fancy decorations and stuff that takes attention away from you" :)

$200 for chapel and minister, $75 for a dress on sale at the DEB Shop, $25 for license and gas, and $300 to feed a dozen people at Macaroni Grill. The roles of usher, setup, music and best man were all played by me. Roughly $600 bucks and everyone agreed it was a very enjoyable, and relaxing, time.

We bought 20K worth of Nortel stock at 47 cents per share with the money we didn't spend on a big wedding, which we later sold 2-years later from $4.00-$6.00 per share.

I would highly recommend keeping it small and only involving extremely close friends and family.

My wedding was 40 years ago. anniversary is this Saturday. Then it was about $1500. Had about 100 family and friends.
Paid for by motherinlaw.

We had a large Catholic wedding for our daughter. Since most of the guests were invited on the Groom side, they volunteered to split the cost and arrange the religious ceremony. The total was $20K with us paying for half. We had just over 200 guests. Then the extras started, They wanted a better band and fancier limo extra bar etc and I wanted a good photographer and I did the wedding video. I had FOB duties, so I hired two cameramen, shooting with my equipment and then did the editing myself. I also hired an expert in wedding video editing as that specialty is not in my list of skills. That out of pocket cost $5000 but I ended up with about a $12,000 photo / video package. So, all total it was $30K I estimate.
The wedding was outside and was presided by a Catholic Bishop and we had the reception at the World Golf Village.

My wife got a case of the nerves in the final days so she hired a wedding coordinator just to manage the days events. That way my wife was able to focus on relaxation and being with our daughter and spending more quality time with her mother. It was a well spent $200 for the day. Otherwise the two mothers and our daughter did all the planning. The groom planned the honeymoon. And the father of the Groom planned the reception entertainment.

Contrary to other's suggestion, yes, I would do it again and I'm not a party person at all. I think it was a good, fun event for both families as it became a nice family reunion on both sides with relatives visiting from around the country, making it a week vacation. Hey, we live in Florida and many of the family coupled it with several days at Mickey Mouse land.

Around $7000.00 for and $35000.00 for the divorce :eek:

30 years ago...
Got married in my living room. Just family. I cooked in the morning while wife cleaned and decorated the house. Her sister does cakes so she brought one over.
No band. The judge was a friend of my father-in-law.

Total cost, about $150 plus $100 for the judge.

Now... I officiate at weddings. People usually pay me $150 to $200. A lot of folks were... or are... looking for ways to NOT do those huge, expensive weddings. I marry people on boats, in parks, at fire halls, ... their choice. I've done a couple of ceremonies in churches where they could rent the church, but the minister wouldn't perform the ceremony because the bride and groom weren't members of the church. And the ministers from those churches were always very congenial to me ... they just had a rule about not doing marriages for non-members.... kinda weird.

Seems to be getting more common that the bride and groom rent a hall or get a banquet room in a restaurant, set up a nice background, I come in and marry them and then everyone sits down to dinner. Normally they still have music and dancing after dinner.

I've had the opportunity to see some VERY nice weddings done for very little money. Hay, if you HAVE it... why not spend it, right? But if you DON'T have it, then why pretend and start out with that kind of debt?

cparker
Ordained Clergy
Church of Spiritual Humanism

I got married on the beach. I paid $350 for the pastor to drive there and have a wedding arch put up. I needed no other decorations since we had the water, sun, and sand, nothing to set up, nothing to clean up. She wore a white sun dress, and I wore a white button up, khakis, and sandals., so not much spent there. Wedding party was small, best man and maid of honor. We only invited our imediate family, so the reception didnt cost much either.

I would say overall costs for the wedding and reception, was $600 ( plus whatever I spent on gifts for the best man)or so. I LOVED it this way, and was glad to find a wife that went along with it.

I saw what my parents spent on my sisters wedding. WAYYYY over the top in my opinion.
The rented out Bellingrath Gardens in Mobile, Alabama. Wedding was on the garden terrace at the Bellingrath Mansion over looking the river. Flowers everywhere, and i would say 200-300 people. Very nice, that kind of thing just isnt for me.

First time $10K, 250 people, covered polka band, Polish food fit for a king, and drinks, and the hall. Local judge (friend of the family) did the ceremony at the hall in front of all the guests. My parents payed the bill.

Second time around, got married by the son of the first judge at city hall, rented out a local bar, the owner did the Polish cooking, hired a DJ, and ran a tab for about 75 people. We partied at the bar till 3:30 AM (yes afterhours), and then walked down the street to our house with the remaining 20 guests and partied till 4PM the next afternoon, when the food and energy ran out. Total cost $1500. Second party was much better.

I think we spent, at most, $1000, including the dress. Our wedding was a private ceremony with only immediate family at an LDS temple. The reception afterwards was at our church gymnasium, friends and family provided decorations, cake, punch, etc.

I got married on the beach. Me, too, friend. 2002, Myrtle Beach, SC: "Smiling Faces, Beautiful Places. The cost to me was around $100.00 (license and ordained local minister).It rained 2 days straight before the wedding (probably a sign). It quit long enough for us to say the vows...and WHAM! Buckets of rain, again (probably a sign) ..Still nice, though..But the honeymoon's been over ever since..:rolleyes:

Less than $1k in 1976 dollars.

NightRyder

First time $10K, 250 people, covered polka band, Polish food fit for a king, and drinks, and the hall. Local judge (friend of the family) did the ceremony at the hall in front of all the guests. My parents payed the bill.

Second time around, got married by the son of the first judge at city hall, rented out a local bar, the owner did the Polish cooking, hired a DJ, and ran a tab for about 75 people. We partied at the bar till 3:30 AM (yes afterhours), and then walked down the street to our house with the remaining 20 guests and partied till 4PM the next afternoon, when the food and energy ran out. Total cost $1500. Second party was much better.

You don't say! With that name Paul? Seriously I don't believe you! ;)

2006
$15k (not including the bar bill)
Ceremony: Local Catholic Church
Guests: 180
Reception: Firestone Country Club in Akron, Oh.
Food: Sit-down dinner including your choice of Chicken Marsala or Prime Rib.
Bar: Unlimited (Us Irish sure like to party ;))

The wife and I are lucky, in that we only ended up paying for the invitations, flowers, dress and rings. The parents took care of the rest.

Before I tell my tale I'd like to state I'm not bragging or trying to impress anyone. Here goes:

The ceremony we kept small. We got married at the chapel of the university I attended outside of Chicago. (Lewis University in Romeoville for any curious Chicago satguys)

For the reception we wanted something BIG. We rented the Field Museum of Natural History in downtown Chicago (Across the street from Soldier Field). We had about 250 people attend. The final bill for everything (Museum, catering, entertainment, cake, rented parking lot, insurance, limos) came to around $70k. Most of which was footed by my beloved in-laws.

Would I do it again? Sure - assuming I have the same financial backers :) It was a once-in-a-lifetime chance. And few people can claim a wedding photo with the largest T-Rex ever discovered in the background.

First wedding- thousands, but not crazy. FiL paid for most. Second wedding, very little. Married at friend's place on the Potomac. Largest expense was probably paying preacher to show and do. Next year marks 20. People still ask if we're newlyweds. Life is good.

I think we spent, at most, $1000, including the dress. Our wedding was a private ceremony with only immediate family at an LDS temple. The reception afterwards was at our church gymnasium, friends and family provided decorations, cake, punch, etc.

Yes, there's a lot to be said for Temple weddings. Automatically, the invite list is trimmed considerably. :p And for effect, and solemnity...
-signed, perpetual IG

$200 for chapel and minister, $75 for a dress on sale at the DEB Shop, $25 for license and gas, and $300 to feed a dozen people at Macaroni Grill. The roles of usher, setup, music and best man were all played by me. Roughly $600 bucks and everyone agreed it was a very enjoyable, and relaxing, time.

We bought 20K worth of Nortel stock at 47 cents per share with the money we didn't spend on a big wedding, which we later sold 2-years later from $4.00-$6.00 per share.

I would highly recommend keeping it small and only involving extremely close friends and family.

I can't picture you in a dress:eek:

First time $10K, 250 people, covered polka band, Polish food fit for a king, and drinks, and the hall. Local judge (friend of the family) did the ceremony at the hall in front of all the guests. My parents payed the bill.

Second time around, got married by the son of the first judge at city hall, rented out a local bar, the owner did the Polish cooking, hired a DJ, and ran a tab for about 75 people. We partied at the bar till 3:30 AM (yes afterhours), and then walked down the street to our house with the remaining 20 guests and partied till 4PM the next afternoon, when the food and energy ran out. Total cost $1500. Second party was much better.

I don't think I have ever gone to a wedding that hasn't had a polka or two and hasn't had the chicken dance. You have to love polish cooking I am making some halushki (spelling) Tomorrow and had piggies last night.

Halušky is a traditional dumpling meal in Eastern European countries, such as Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine.

Although recipes vary from region to region, in general potatoes are finely grated and mixed with flour, salt and optionally a small amount of egg to form a batter. The batter is passed through a special perforated halušky strainer into boiling water forming small (1/2 X 2-3 cm) dumplings. These are then mixed with regionally varying ingredients, but usually includes chopped cabbage, onions and butter.

Traditionally, no special instrument was used to form halušky. Instead, dough was placed in a thin layer on a wooden cutting board and cut off in even pieces (using a knife) and cast directly into boiling water.

-Don't you just love the answers.com add-on option in Firefox?

Halušky is a traditional dumpling meal in Eastern European countries, such as Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine.

Although recipes vary from region to region, in general potatoes are finely grated and mixed with flour, salt and optionally a small amount of egg to form a batter. The batter is passed through a special perforated halušky strainer into boiling water forming small (1/2 X 2-3 cm) dumplings. These are then mixed with regionally varying ingredients, but usually includes chopped cabbage, onions and butter.

Traditionally, no special instrument was used to form halušky. Instead, dough was placed in a thin layer on a wooden cutting board and cut off in even pieces (using a knife) and cast directly into boiling water.

-Don't you just love the answers.com add-on option in Firefox?

Well around here Haluski is onions and cabbage fried up in butter then mixed in with egg noodles. Piggies are also called stuffed cabbage.

As oddly similar yet different I wonder if Haluski & Halušky are actually two separate items based on a very old original idea. I easily see both names explained exactly as above.

Sounds like the old recipe was "Americanized" by "cheating" -er, uh, "simplifying."

$200 for chapel and minister, $75 for a dress on sale at the DEB Shop, $25 for license and gas, and $300 to feed a dozen people at Macaroni Grill. The roles of usher, setup, music and best man were all played by me. Roughly $600 bucks and everyone agreed it was a very enjoyable, and relaxing, time.

We bought 20K worth of Nortel stock at 47 cents per share with the money we didn't spend on a big wedding, which we later sold 2-years later from $4.00-$6.00 per share.

I would highly recommend keeping it small and only involving extremely close friends and family.

I wish more people were this sensible. If not stock at least save the money for a down payment on a house.

16 years ago; 200 people; about $11,000. Didn't have to pay for most of it. :)

This is my second marraige...both weddings were completely different, but cost roughly the same...about 15K.

2006
$15k (not including the bar bill)
Ceremony: Local Catholic Church
Guests: 180
Reception: Firestone Country Club in Akron, Oh.
Food: Sit-down dinner including your choice of Chicken Marsala or Prime Rib.
Bar: Unlimited (Us Irish sure like to party ;))

The wife and I are lucky, in that we only ended up paying for the invitations, flowers, dress and rings. The parents took care of the rest.

Are you stereotyping the Irish?:D

I have a few Irish friends. I could keep up with them in my "salad days", but now in my old age, I don't even try.

Well around here Haluski is onions and cabbage fried up in butter then mixed in with egg noodles. Piggies are also called stuffed cabbage.

I fry onions, and mix with cottage cheese and egg noodles. Don't know what it's called, nor remember who showed me this the first time, but it sure is good. Stuffed cabbage; you just gave me an idea for dinner today.:D

Are you stereotyping the Irish?:D

I have a few Irish friends. I could keep up with them in my "salad days", but now in my old age, I don't even try.

I've never met an Irishman who objected a "few" pints. Barley and hops flow through our blood. ;)

Location - Den of In-Laws' home $0.00
Pastor - Bishop of our church $0.00 (actually he gave us $20 as a gift)
Dress - out of closet $0.00
Suit - no thanks $0.00
Food, decorations, & entertainment - brought by family/friends $0.00
Honeymoon - bedroom upstairs $0.00

Worth every penny ;)

Do you know why they used to name hurricanes with female names? Because they both took your home and left you naked in the driveway.

2002

Around 170 people

With Reception, Bar (we had to provide alcohol), pictures, cake and such....

It was in the $15,000 range

Year 2000, I got married in the same courthouse that my Mom and Dad got married in in 1957. Obviously not the same judge....LOL...said he couldn't take anything for marrying us, so all that cost us is the license. Wife got her dress from a local dress shop, think she paid 200 or so for it, I got married in slacks and a button down shirt.

One week later, my parents footed the bill for us (my wife's parents are deceased) a Cajun Style reception at my Mom and Dad's house, boiled crawfish, boiled crabs, two kegs of beer, he told me they spent about 3k total, for everything, for about 100 folks. :cool:

I still have people today walk up to me and tell me it was the coolest reception they ever went to. Which was our intention, to have FUN, not be all stuffy with dinners and ties and stuff.:)

$100 for the pastor,

Gazeebo surrounded by ponds ringed by weeping willows and ducks was free as it was a public park behind the township offices.

Dinner at a local nice resturaunt in its wedding room for 20+ family and a cousins weird boyfriend along with the cake and wine was covered by my uncles for their families plus our dinners.

My out of pocket besides the minister was the wifes hair and some accessories for the dress and a pair of shoes plus a new shirt and slacks along with a tie so it came to $400 all together for me and an estimated $1,500 all together wich isnt bad at all.

If your going to go the route of a local park with ponds and ducks / geese / swans be sure to have someone go there a few hours before hand with leaf rakes and brooms and cleaning supplies to get rid of the land mines the water foul leave. You can talk to the public works about this and to ask them to make sure the shore line is clean but its a hit or miss if they get it done in time.

.... a Cajun Style reception at my Mom and Dad's house, boiled crawfish, boiled crabs, two kegs of beer, .....


WHAT! No SHRIMP! I'm pretty sure that's not legal down there...... ;)

WHAT! No SHRIMP! I'm pretty sure that's not legal down there...... ;)


It was APRIL. Shrimp season was not open...LOL;)

Invitations: $300.00
Bridesmaid: $500.00
Best Man/Groomsmen: $300
Pastor's Fee: $ 25.00
Church: Free
Reception: $1500
Limo: $500
Hotel: $250 (1 night).
Airfare: $ 350 each.
1 week in the Virgin Islands: $6,000.
21 years with spouse: Priceless.

I think a main problem with weddings nowadays is that women have this notion that they should have this huge celebration for this event, and that is certainly ingrained in our culture. So many guys have said that they have as much influence in their wedding planning as Singapore has an impact on the Olympics games. My girlfriend (and hopefully soon to be wife) grew up on a poor farm on the outskirts of Beijing, and she couldn't even fathom the idea of planning and throwing such a huge party and potentially going into debt in order to pay for it.

One thing that I could see as somewhat "sucking" about having a small intimate ceremony is, what do you do about gifts? I mean when you go to a regular (big) wedding, everyone comes with a gift, whether it be monetary or otherwise. I can't imagine my wedding party being more than 15 people, but I have a big Irish family from my mom's side. I'm not sure how you can tactfully say, "Hey, Sue and I are announcing our engagement. You aren't invited to the wedding (don't feel bad, almost no one else is either,) but can you still send us a gift anyways, as we could REALLY use the money?" Announcing it after the fact doesn't seem like a much nicer thing to do either, but what do you think is the best way to keep costs down but keep rewards high?

Announcing it after the fact doesn't seem like a much nicer thing to do either, but what do you think is the best way to keep costs down but keep rewards high?

Call me a romantic, but when I get married years ago, I didn't care a rat's a** what the "rewards" were.

Call me a romantic, but when I get married years ago, I didn't care a rat's a** what the "rewards" were.

Amen, and oh by the way, I knew exactly what the rewards were. 33½ years later and two children bear that out.....

Amen, and oh by the way, I knew exactly what the rewards were. 33½ years later and two children bear that out.....

:up, but only 20 years and two children for me.

10 years 1 and in 2 and 1/2 months 2 kids later, but the rewards were nice. The wedding cost 12,000 we made it all back and had some spending money for the honeymoon. We invited 250 people about 150 showed up and others mailed us the rewards.

10 years 1 and in 2 and 1/2 months 2 kids later, but the rewards were nice. The wedding cost 12,000 we made it all back and had some spending money for the honeymoon. We invited 250 people about 150 showed up and others mailed us the rewards.
150 people for 12k? That sounds like a bargain..

My wedding looks like the smallest cost on this forum... we had about 120 people and the hall / catering was $7k, the cake was $0 (dad's a baker), rehearsal dinner was $200, minister was $500, DJ was $500, photographer was $0 (friend's a professional photographer) and the limo was about $800 for the wife (I drove myself... screw that nonsense)

Total cost for the wedding was about 9k and the "rewards" was a free trip to Vegas for 3 days without our daughter...

16 years ago started getting frustrated with all the BS costs and family involvement so we called everyone and told them we're getting hitched in Tahoe.

Got married outside under the redwoods with 60 friends and family members.
The reception - everyone paid for their own plates.

Total cost for the wifey and I including her dress,hotel room, and chapel - $600

150 people for 12k? That sounds like a bargain..

If I remember correctly, the hall charged $60 per person, cake was free (my mother had he own cake decorating business) the rest was spent on flowers (friend of the family owned the flower shop), we belonged to the church we gave the priest $300 DJ, Limo and photographer ( photos only) family video taped for free.

If I remember correctly, the hall charged $60 per person, cake was free (my mother had he own cake decorating business) the rest was spent on flowers (friend of the family owned the flower shop), we belonged to the church we gave the priest $300 DJ, Limo and photographer ( photos only) family video taped for free.

Funny you mentioned "video taped for free." My father, who is as far away from being a holy man as you can get, got ordained as a minister and married my cousin, who was his godchild. When my mom's side of the family heard of this (my parents are divorced) their eyes lit up and they all but demanded to see it. I took it upon myself to be a gentleman and record the ceremony, as I was sure it was going to be a disaster that we could fondly look back upon for years to come. Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on your POV), my dad didn't do a bad job and it came out rather well. Throughout the day people were thanking me for recording the ceremony, and I came to realize that NO ONE was hired to record this event; not even a family member who wanted to remember it. As a result I took it upon myself to also record things from the reception as well, including what had to be the greatest speech I've ever seen given by a best man (It's actually on my Youtube channel that's in my signature.) As a result of recording this stuff and posting it online, I got the only personalized "Thank You" card from my cousin and her new husband. Also I did all this with just the "video" option of a canon digital camera (luckily I had a nice 2 GB card to work with.)

I suppose a good morale of the story is that if you want basic video recorded at a wedding, just get a decent digital camera/digital video camera and a nice memory card and you'll be all set.

10 people was there, I paid $50 for the license and $50 for the judge, I paid $200 for both rings. My mother gave my wife a dress.

Pretty simple.:)

Around a grand, with most paid by the wife and I. She was 19, I was 20. Her parents couldn't afford much, neither could we. Did most of the stuff ourselves, friends did other stuff to help us, like dresses, cake, pictures.

I wish now it would have been nicer, but almost 12 years later she is still my very best friend!

Tomorrow will make 33 years for me. We had 200 people at $18 a head with an open bar. The band cost about $500 back then. Which was expensive for the time, but we paid extra because I didn't want them taking any breaks and slowing down the party. Limo went for $100,and I think my wifes' dress went for $200. I went to my wife's cousin's wedding about 2 years ago. I know they paid $30,000 for flowers alone!!! Way over the top!!!

Wow, battle of the cheapest? :) (Not that there is anything wrong with that... $$$ isn't the important thing!) I was just going to chip in that... coming from an Italian family... with most of my cousins and such living in northeast NJ... a huge wedding was the norm. One of my cousins (er, well, maybe my aunt and uncle :D) had to have dropped close to $100k... everything over the top. The most amazing cocktail hour that would have been fit for entertaining heads of state... THEN the actual meal... a band with a light show rivaling a tour-ready production... complete insanity. But it was a splendid time. :) haha

Me, I don't forsee a small affair, but DEFINITELY not that outlandish.

Hmmm... maybe I'll just start with a girlfriend first... LOL! :D

In by first marriage my EX got preg within two weeks and we got married in her mom and dads living room (her dad is a Luth minister) so the hold cost about 50.00. Just my mom and dad and her bro and sister.

we lasted two years. I guess what I'm saying is do what you and her want and don't let not pressure you to change you dreams.

Anyone here about the couple who got married at a waffle house in Georgia?

Anyone here about the couple who got married at a waffle house in Georgia?
You mean these beauties: (http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/main.asp?SectionID=6&SubSectionID=84&ArticleID=16944)

With everything included apprx $15,000.

80-90 guest
would be considered a small wedding
Not sure where all the cost came from since even tho I was the bride my in laws paid most of it.

Wedding was in 1976. Most of the expenses were paid by my mother-in-law out of an inheritance she had received.
The rehearsal dinner was at my parents home. No idea what it cost, I don't even remember what we ate, but $100 probably covered it.
Wedding was at my wife's church, so there was no cost.
My father was an ordained minister, and I paid him in grandchildren.
Music was provided by family members.
My wife sewed her own dress, and the bridesmaid's dresses.
I rented a tux, which cost me about $25.
Flowers were were provided at cost by one of the biggest florist in the Long Beach, CA area, who was a boyhood friend of my father-in-law.
Photos were the cost of film and developing, by a professional photographer. Did a great job since most of the pictures he took were of McDonnell-Douglas planes, where he worked with my father-in-law.
The cake was baked and decorated by my mother-in-law.
The reception was at my wife's church, which again, cost us nothing. The food was prepared by family members, and was build your own sandwiches and various salads.
The "limo" was my brother-in-law's" 1965 Lincoln, although we were the last ones to leave the party.
The honeymoon was a couple of weeks at my in-laws cabin in the mountains.
Total cost: I really don't remember, but it seems like it was between $2-3000.

My son is getting married next year.
They will be getting married in the church I now pastor. I'm not planning on charging them anything, and there won't be a cost for the church, but I better get some grandchildren out of it.
My wife is going to sew all the dresses for the bride, bridesmaids, and flowergirls.
I'm going to fire up the smoker for the rehearsal dinner. I may convince my wife I need a second smoker, or a new bigger one to handle the food. :D
The reception is going to be at a campground the city owns. The bride's parents have rented the "back forty" a circle of RV slots with an open area in the middle with a community building and a nice slab of concrete that serves as a basketball court, but also makes a passable dance floor. They have rented the whole thing for the weekend of the wedding, so anybody who comes to town for the wedding with an RV has a place to stay, and other campers won't bother us and we won't bother them. The kids and their friends have spent a lot of time at this park the past few years, and it seemed appropriate. I don't know exactly what else will be on the menu, but the final item will be S'Mores. :)

As a minister I have officiated at weddings of all sizes and levels of extravagance. I do weddings for non-members as well as members. When I'm asked what I charge to officiate I sometimes tell the couple that I think 10% of what they are spending on the reception would be appropriate. If they survive the heart attack I tell them if they are members there is no set charge, if they are non-members its a $100. That includes several meetings, both for counseling and planning the service. Most members pay me the $100 as well, but I had one couple recently who I knew were strapped for cash, and I got much less. The wife's parents lost their house in the tornado that hit one of our neighboring communities a few months ago, and the groom's father has been in and out of the hospital in recent months. It was by far one of the simpler weddings I've had lately.

Next weekend I'm making a trip to St. Louis to officiate the wedding of a young lady I confirmed a few years back. The wedding will take place on the steps of a mansion which is on the grounds of a county park. (They are in the minority, but I've had an assortment of weddings over the years outside of churches, including my sister's wedding which my dad and I did together on Chappaquiddick Island.) I'm not sure that I will actually make anything on this wedding, but they will take care of our expenses, and it will make a nice get away for my wife and myself. By the time they pay the hotel bill for three nights and gas to get from Iowa to St. Louis they will have spent a few bucks. That reminds me, I still need to see if the Cardinals are in St. Louis next week. :D

Bogy, that's a great story. Thanks for sharing.

we had a pretty small wedding, with a pretty small reception. $30 for the license, $35 for the rent for the reception, the pastor didn't want any money (refused), we made our own cake (Nothing super fancy, but supplies cost probably $30-40. That's about it. She had a VERY nice dress, and I had suit pants, and dress shirt.

That was over 3 years ago when we had no money. Now 2 kids, 1 new house, and 2 good jobs later, we're wishing it was bigger, but you can't turn back time. We're talking about for our 5 year anniversary, or even 10 year anniversary (sometime when we have more free money probably the 10 year) renewing our vows and having the "dream" wedding we wish we could have had in hindsight.

Either way, she is the most wonderful woman I have ever met, and I'm just happy to call her my wife.

In 1980 we paid about $2000. Her parents were flat broke and mine were poor, so it was all on us. Most of the cost was for the reception for about 50 people. It was in a very plain hall and the food was not at all fancy. We spent $400 on the honeymoon, which was three nights at the Death Valley Inn. I know the name sounds weird, but anybody who has been there knows what a beautiful place Death Valley is and how nice the Inn is. And the wedding was a success! We are still happy after 28 years.

Four years ago my oldest daughter was married. The entire bill for us was $17,000. That did not include a very fancy rehearsal dinner and the open bar at the reception, both of which were paid by the groom's parents. But since we had 180 guests we got off cheaply enough.

Pray for me---I have two more daughters! My second-oldest is the shy, retiring type. She insists she could never go through a big wedding like her sister's. I hope she is telling the truth, because our youngest would happily let us pay 1 million dollars if we had it.