When it came time to plan our wedding, my then-fiance Kevin and I picked out a location, a caterer, and started listening to CDs to choose a local band, etc.

Then we looked at the price tag – forget that, we preferred a house payment. The ceremony was pared down to a weekend in my hometown with our immediate family and closest friends only. In total, maybe a dozen people were present.

I bought a white pants suit and Kevin a white button-up shirt. We are jeans and t-shirts kind of folks anyway, so we made a wedding to suit ourselves.

Fortunately, friends of mine are renovating a historic hotel in my hometown (rumored to by haunted, but we didn’t give that much thought). There are currently only eight rooms out of a three-story building completed. The downstairs area, what would have been a lobby, was restored. These wonderful friends let us rent the eight rooms and downstairs for a steeply discounted rate. In fact, the final wedding price tag of $500 includes the cost of hotel rental.

My sister, Melissa, and her husband Gene were invaluable. They made our wedding cake and set up a beautiful cheese display for the night before the ceremony. In truth, their efforts made our wedding beautiful.

Instead of a usual rehearsal dinner, we had game night. Our family members and friends gathered for cheese and drinks and played games like Catch Phrase. Thank goodness everyone was such a good sport.

On the day of the wedding, I have a memory I will never forget. It was such a laid-back, casual affair that we all scattered prior to the ceremony. Some friends toured the busy city of Sutton, West Virginia (okay, we don’t even have a traffic light) and some went shopping at a nearby outlet mall.

Kevin and his friends went to work on our wedding gift, a 1952 Farmall tractor. It was my father’s first tractor and he gave it to Kevin. I refer to this as my dowry. The tractor was not running at the time and we wanted to bring it back to Boone.

Twenty minutes prior to the ceremony, I was dressed, my friends had done my hair and make-up, but no groom was in sight. The judge is waiting downstairs with our guests. I looked up to see Kevin, muddy clothes and all, but smiling. “The tractor runs,” he said.
He jumped in the shower and we walked together down to the ceremony.

We simplified the music issue. I walked down the aisle to the XM Radio classical music channel playing softly in the background. There was no risk of a commercial right at the “Who presents the bride?” question and no one is paying attention to the tunes anyway.

Kevin and I opted not to have a best man or maid of honor in light of our small gathering and low-cost wedding. My best friend, Dana, however, was having none of it. Just as we stood before the judge, Dana grabs flowers out of a nearby vase and said “I’m standing here.” I just laughed. That is what friends do – they are there whether you ask or not.

Afterward, all of the guests and the newly married couple walked down the street to a local restaurant. Instead of gifts, I had asked that everyone pay for their own meal. Kevin and I had lived on our own long enough to own every small appliance known to man and already had sheet sets.

Our wedding was perfect and reflected our personalities. The guests and the groom were in jeans. There was no pressure on anyone to dress up or buy a gift. We all just had a good time together.

Thanks to our wedding budget, Kevin and I will be celebrating our one-year anniversary by moving into our newly built home. Instead of one day, we invested in our life together.