The "Budge" in "Budget"

If yours is anything like ours, it's not budging anywhere anytime soon.

I had a few hours to kill this morning while I was offsite from the office, and luckily I brought my lap top with me. Two hours later, I found myself with two lists - the LISTS OF ALL LISTS.

One of them is a complete breakdown of our budget. The estimated cost. Deposits. Actual Cost. Once I had all the numbers infront of me I was a bit in shock.

"It's costing THAT much?" I thought to myself, panic stricken.

The estimated total was a bit daunting, but it wasn’t factoring in what our parents have and will contribute. It’s just to give us an idea of what this whole thing could cost. But, nonetheless, it’ll give us a good idea of what we’ve spent so far, and what we should aim to spend. The latter part being the most important of all.

What do we dish out the cash for? And what do cross off the list and save for a rainy day (or maybe for our 10th year Anniversary?!). It's a tough call when you want everything, isn't it? We get it in our heads that without every single detail, somehow the day just won't be at it's full potential. Or that people will notice something's missing.

While I'm not quite ready to give up and face the fact that we may not get everything we wanted, I am sure of two things, and laying out the budget confirmed it for me - As long as we have enough to spend on good food and good music, then at least we're guaranteed a good time. Those are two items that would definitely go noticed if missing! If we can't afford the extra candles, washroom baskets, and Out Of Town Guest Giftbags, than at least we'll know that all of our guests were well fed and boogin' on the dance floor :)

If you are currently looking for a budget template, you don't have to look much further than Google. Google Docs, that is. Everything from budgets, schedules, to do lists - they're all there, and free to download and use.

There are also some great inexpensive wedding planning books that help with budgets. Within the first week of our engagement, my MOH bought me "Wedding Planning on a Budget." It had a As Seen on Oprah sticker on it, so she knew it had to be good, lol.

I ended up making one of my own (I'm not the Office Bride) for nothing, mostly because there are unique items to purchase (mainly books, and book related things). However, I'd be happy to share with anyone, if it will help you create a budget of your own. Whatever you use, I strongly suggest that you get one sooner than later, as to avoid surprises or disappointments later.

And who knows? Maybe we'll be able to afford custom made stamps and a projection screen. Just maybe!