stages of engagement

There was a new couple at dance class last night. They were engaged very recently and it showed. At one point in class the guy couldn't understand how to signal to his fiancee that he was going to spin her and I turned to my fiance and said something to the effect that he would know if they already did their marriage prep. It was a bit snarky, but we giggled. You could tell they were excited with their energy, but had a nervousness that seemed a bit off. Sort of like us shortly after he put a ring on me.

After class we met and congratulated them on their engagement. They haven't set a date yet and are thinking late next year. The guy was saying they already went to a bridal show and it was fun. My fiance asked if he really liked it and the groom-to-be said, "Yeah, $22 and all-you-can-drink booze." We are in a more advanced stage of wedding planning and I was thinking back on our newly engaged period when we had no idea what we were doing. We were engaged in August 2006 and didn't make a concrete wedding plan until late February 2007. Those goofy months were kind of funny and all over the place, like they should be. My wish for the newly engaged couple is that they have fun with it and don't stress a lot with planning for their day.


I also wish I would have done this blog to document what was going on back then. Our plans changed so much within those months. It seems like we were trying to appease each other so much that we were planning things that neither of us really wanted. The next best thing to an archive I could have done is Cathy Guisewite's work I suppose. She is the creator of the Cathy comic. I have never been a big fan, but I think I can relate now. Irving, Cathy's boyfriend, proposed on Valentine's Day 2004 and they were hitched in February 2005. Marriage was not on my radar then and I didn't bother to read the strip but I think it could be fun now. Luckily Cathy's wedding planning is available in a book.
It follows them from the proposal through the wedding. Much like we watched this newly engaged couple last night I wish we could get the thoughts that the older relationships in our dance class have about us. Perspective is always fun.