I posted a little teaser picture of my most recent article in the EC Journal newspaper and lot of my Facebook friends have been asking to read this article in full. One interesting fact that I didn't include in the article is that, according to this cool website, 74% of engaged couples talk about eloping... probably for any family reasons for some but also I suspect that wedding planning is just plain old stressful and elopement makes a lot of sense. Just an interesting side note.
4
Reasons to Get Married Fast
This is not a
suggestion to run out and marry the first person you come across but,
if you've met that special person whom you plan to spend the rest of
your life with in marital bliss, this is the case for a short
engagement. According to the Huffington Post, 40% of couples are
engaged for 13-18 months before marriage, 27% for 7-12 months, 23%
for 19-24 months and 6% for 24+ months. Only 4% are engaged for 0-6
months before saying, “I do”. Engagement is like making payments
on a house that you can't live in. It's an inconvenient state of
limbo, it's frustrating and it drains your resources. You've in
essence settled for a monogamous relationship, so why the big delay?
1. Less
money spent. More satisfaction.
According to costofwedding.com, “The average wedding cost in the United States is $26,444. ... most couples spend less than $10,000.” Longer engagements often amount to more wedding expenses. Put a chunk of money into savings instead of a ceremony and avoid gaining financial debt right from the start. I can hear your future selves and your bank account thanking you already.
According to costofwedding.com, “The average wedding cost in the United States is $26,444. ... most couples spend less than $10,000.” Longer engagements often amount to more wedding expenses. Put a chunk of money into savings instead of a ceremony and avoid gaining financial debt right from the start. I can hear your future selves and your bank account thanking you already.
2. Proper
etiquette.
Six months really is a decent, if not long, engagement period. According to The Knot 6 to 8 weeks prior to the wedding is an appropriate time to send out invitations. Since guests will have recent notice of your nuptials you don't need to send out save-the-date cards as the invitation will suffice. I recently attended a wedding that was organized within 48 hours as the groom was heading overseas with the Army. The details fell into place surprisingly well. Understandably, most people can't and won't want to get married with only 48 hours to prepare but most wedding essentials can be tackled in 6 months or less.
Six months really is a decent, if not long, engagement period. According to The Knot 6 to 8 weeks prior to the wedding is an appropriate time to send out invitations. Since guests will have recent notice of your nuptials you don't need to send out save-the-date cards as the invitation will suffice. I recently attended a wedding that was organized within 48 hours as the groom was heading overseas with the Army. The details fell into place surprisingly well. Understandably, most people can't and won't want to get married with only 48 hours to prepare but most wedding essentials can be tackled in 6 months or less.
3. Room for
temptation. Douglas Wilson wrote that, in essence, you can't
preheat the oven without cooking the roast. If you have any moral or
religious motivation for saving anything for wedlock then a prolonged
engagement is your worst enemy. Many times couples cross boundaries
with the intention that they're getting married anyway. This often
ends up destroying their relationship altogether or adding guilt,
hardship and conflict that could have been avoided had they simply
shortened their engagement. Resisting temptation has never been a
strong-suit for humans. 1
Corinthians 7:1-2
4. Keeping
up with the Joneses.
After a year of planning, and many couples plan for much longer than that, every little detail that doesn't go as planned is cause for great stress in the weeks leading up to the wedding and especially on the day of. Since social media has allowed us to be a part of others lives we often feel the need to maintain a certain socioeconomic status. Sights like Pinterest give us great DIY ideas, but we often expect our weddings to turn out exactly like those picture-perfect images we see online. It's not about having low expectations for your big day... it's about having realistic expectations. The vows between two people are the important part... not the decorations.
After a year of planning, and many couples plan for much longer than that, every little detail that doesn't go as planned is cause for great stress in the weeks leading up to the wedding and especially on the day of. Since social media has allowed us to be a part of others lives we often feel the need to maintain a certain socioeconomic status. Sights like Pinterest give us great DIY ideas, but we often expect our weddings to turn out exactly like those picture-perfect images we see online. It's not about having low expectations for your big day... it's about having realistic expectations. The vows between two people are the important part... not the decorations.
An engagement
is simply an agreement that two people will be married as soon as
wedding arrangements can be made. Stop watching Say Yes to the
Dress, Four Weddings and other fairytale distortions of
reality and get married. Our grandparents' generation got married in
their living-rooms with a few family members present. Weddings should
not cause newlyweds to be exhausted, disappointed and already in
debt. Rather they should be about true love, real vows and life-long
commitment.
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