First Things First . . . What Kind of Wedding?

Shortly after our engagement (okay, a little before), the groom and I started tossing out ideas about the type of wedding we want.  For us, this was a simple process.  Neither one of us are keen on the large, center of attention bashes nor are we the type to dance the night away.  So, that pretty much eliminated the dinner and dance type for the small, informal wedding.

While visiting family in the States, Mike and I opted to do a little venue shopping (with the help of his mother and aunt).  On our plane ride to Boise, we drafted a list of what we would like to see in/at/for our wedding.  This list looked a bit like this:

• Sunrise/Early morning ceremony
• Pancake reception
• DIY/Recycle/Reuse theme
• Rustic/vintage 
• Tea green? Cream? 
• Simple, low-key, informal
• Outdoor, if possible
• All inclusive, if possible
• Ceremony in a venue, not a church
• Something that doesn't take a lot of decoration
• Ideally, ceremony & reception together 

There were a few things that jumped out as definites for us, including:

1) Ceremony & Reception in Idaho
While the two of us are currently residing in Vancouver, BC, most of the groom's family live in Idaho.  Rather than make it an international destination wedding for everyone, we decided that a wedding in the Gem State would be a "gem" of an idea.

2) Morning Ceremony & Pancake Reception
Mornings are our favorite time of day.  Every weekend, we make pancakes with a homemade fruit compote and a bunch of random toppings.  This is a special tradition and one that means a lot to us.  We want to share this "sweet start" with family and as our first feast as man and wife.

3) Outdoors
The two of us met on a dragonboat and the outdoors has special meaning to both of us, individually and as a couple. 

4) Easy to No Decorations
One of our biggest restraints is that we are coordinating our "destination" wedding from our Canadian home.  We wanted something that was relatively easy to decorate ourselves (hence the DIY theme) and would be managable from another country.

Our list helped us narrow down our list of venues, lock in our vision of the wedding and prepared us to share our concept with the various vendors, property owners and coordinators.
What We Learned and Some Helpful Tips:
As recommended on every blog, forum, wedding website and free bridal booklet vendors give you, the first thing that needs to be decided after the "Oh my goodness, yes!" moment is what kind of wedding.

From church services to waterfront vows to destination weddings at a lodge, there are thousands of options, ideas or opinions on what could be done, should be done and ought to be done.  The best way to focus on what you want and what is true to your personality is to . . . make a list.

I know . . . everyone and their lists. But this will save you time and effort for you will know what it is you are looking for in a ceremony site, reception location, caterer and the style of decorations.  

While making the lists, use this time to think big, dream and collaborate.  Communicate what each of you want to see in the wedding or what is "absolute must."  Share your visions and discuss the things that would make your wedding day the Dream Day. 

Throw out ideas and put them down on a piece of paper or a shared Google document.  Then, step away from it for a couple of days.  Let the ideas sink in or transition into another great idea.  If another one occurs, right it down. 
Then the two of you should take some time, prioritize what you want, need and can't live without.  This will help you as you progress through the planning phases including setting up a budget.