Adventures of a Young-ish Bride, Blazing the Trail

There are a lot of perks that go along with being the oldest child: scoring a later bedtime, never having to wear hand-me-downs, getting the bigger bedroom…the list goes on, I’m sure.

There are also definite downsides: getting blamed for something that your little brother actually did, the strict rules you have to follow as a teenager that your sibling ends up somehow getting out of, and, when you add into the mix the deadly combo of a young-ish bride and a young-ish groom, you get Super Duper Wedding Trailblazer status.

(Photo Credit )

Let me explain.

Both Mr. Star and I are the first among our generation in our families to get married. This means a few things:

• No one is exactly sure how they are supposed to behave or what the family wedding planning dynamic is. Both Moms have been unsure of what their specific roles in the planning will be: how much involvement is too much? Should they give their opinions or not? Who will throw the bridal shower? What should they wear? If you’re not the oldest sibling who’s getting married on the young-ish side, it’s often likely that your families will have figured out these crucial dynamics before your wedding planning even starts!
• We are creating the benchmark for future family and friend weddings to live up to and surpass! I feel like there’s a lot of pressure when no one else has done this yet, so we have no idea what our guests are expecting in terms of traditions, level of formality, or even how much each family was willing to contribute monetarily. We’re making this up as we go, here, and I definitely think it’s true that future weddings will take from ours, whether they decide to follow in our footsteps or “outdo” us ;)
• Although my bridesmaids have actually been absolutely amazing, there are a lot of young-ish bridal parties who have no idea what they’re doing. Miss Lightning made her ladies booklets to get them up to speed on wedding etiquette, and Mr. Star has had his work cut out for him in teaching his groomsmen how to be bridal party experts! Older couples often have more married or engaged bridesmaids or groomsmen, which is a huuuuge bonus. I mean, I know that I will be an infinitely better bridesmaid in the future, after having planned my own wedding, don’t you?

There are a lot of unique challenges that accompany a young-ish bride as she fulfills her Super Duper Wedding Trailblazer duties. How have you been a Wedding Trailblazer, young-ish brides and not?