Top 20

In honor of day 20 in my countdown, I have compiled the top 20 things I have learned since being engaged. In no particular order…

1. People, even strangers, are genuinely happy for you when they hear you are getting married.

2. Receiving wedding gifts eight days in a row is the closest an Irish Catholic girl will ever get to understanding what Chanukah must feel like.

3. Your fiancé shows you unconditional love. For example, he leaves the most anticipated March Madness game all season, to come pick you up after girl’s night, in a parking garage, at 11:30pm, because your car battery died. (This may or may not have happened on Friday.)

4. Sitting on the phone with your mother, 800 miles away, as you are both looking through the same wedding magazine is priceless.

5. Getting all new stationary and monogrammed items with your new initials never gets old.

6. Waiting to use said items is agonizing.

7. You can pronounce fiancé in a French accent to strangers and they (usually) don’t look at you like a whacko.

8. Planning a wedding with your mom and best friends provides some of the greatest memories you will ever have together.

9. Lying on the couch with your fiancé as you talk about your wedding day until the wee hours of the morning is amazing.

10. The chances of seeing your future mother-in-law in her underwear increases dramatically. (This may or may not have happened on Saturday.)

11. Trying on your wedding dress, with all the bells and whistles in place, really does take your breath away.

12. Some people offer extremely dumb advice and suggestions on things you should have at your wedding. Two favorites so far were making Hershey kiss roses for your guests and using Velcro on your mother’s veil to attach it to a hair clip.

13. A diamond engagement ring is ten thousand times better than a best friend’s forever necklace.

14. The first three weeks and last three weeks of being engaged feel like a whirlwind.

15. This is the only time in your life you can wear a tank top with words bejeweled on the front. ANY other time you wear a tank top with ANY type of bejeweled words is a fashion crime.

16. Watching your dad getting teary eyed when he talks about your wedding melts your heart.

17. The first time you wear a ring on your left hand feels bizarre.

18. The first time you forget to put it on after washing the dishes, and you instantly think you lost it, feels like your world is closing in on you and you can’t breathe.

19. You are allowed to be a bit dramatic. (Read number 18).

20. This is one of the few times in your life people will gush over you, praise you, bless you, and encourage you for an entire year. Be sure to cherish EVERY SINGLE moment!! I know I have!