Proud Dad

I am a proud Dad.  My son is getting married January 1, to a delightful young woman who makes him happy!  His younger sister is already married-so he is the last in the family to get hitched. His Mom and I  are looking forward to the festivities.

You may be wondering, what has this got to do with personal finance?  Well I’ll get to that, in due time.  But keep in mind, it’s my blog and I will write what moves me!

My son, on their wedding website/blog, posted the 10 reasons why he loves Beth:

Ten reasons why Beth is Best

1. She is cute. Not just how squirrels are cute, but like big time 100% even-when-sweaty cute.
2. She is funny hilarious. For evidence, just have a 30 second conversation with her.  Really.
3. She uses the TAB key on a keyboard. 1% of you will even know what I’m talking about but it is, no lie, the coolest thing ever.  Ever.
4. She is patient. I am one of the most impatient people on the planet.  I want everything to happen right now and as efficiently as possible.  As a result, I can be amazingly difficult to get along with.  Beth, however, just let’s me ramble for a while then tells me, politely, to shut the hell up.  For this she deserves a Nobel Peace Prize (well, one before they started giving them out to just anybody).
5. She has a great memory. During our second or third date I mentioned in passing that I’d like to look into something.  I don’t remember what it was but it was some topic that I’d been meaning to Google or whatever to find out more information.  A few hours into the next day I received a totally unexpected email from Beth with the information in question.  That probably doesn’t make any sense – she probably remembers but that’s all I got!
6. She is mushy.
7. She works hard. It seems that a lot of folks our age, and perhaps folks of all ages, are just plain lazy.  Beth is the opposite.  She is always doing something and doing it well.
8. She is a great friend. Not just to me, but to others as well.  She has about a bajillion friends on Facebook and unlike me knows and keeps up with almost all of them.
9. She is smart. Way smarter than me.
10. She loves me. Nuff said.

Dr Dean (Dad) Says:

I haven’t gotten to know Beth well yet, but am looking forward to it.  But if she moves my son to make a public declaration of love in that manner, then I know she is a wonderful person.

Weddings and Money

Now getting to personal finance.  They have made the decision to have a small wedding, with a small number of family and close friends to celebrate their day.  They have set up a budget,  and as far as I can see, are making wise decisions on their choices of where they want to spend their money.

Not being cheap, but deciding between themselves what is most important, and spending money on those things.  It will be their wedding done in their own style.

Many seem  to think that a wedding has to be over the top, with thousands spent on accoutrements, that a year later, will not mean anything to anyone.

Your wedding is a sacred covenant to each other and God, and should be a celebration of love, not an orgy of consumerism and worship to the altar of bling!

It is sad that so many couples weigh themselves down with debt that takes years to repay, to have one day that represents their idyllic dream.  Instead, I suggest they work harder on living that dream, every day, for the rest of their lives.

Choices, Choices, Choices

I don’t stand in judgement of those of you who choose to spend money you don’t have in this way.  Life is full of choices-I have made my share of wrong ones….

I just want to make sure my unmarried readers understand -they don’t have to have the celebrity wedding to make their day special.

If you are surrounded by those you love, and who love you, celebrating the day that you make your promises: to love, cherish, and care for the other forever, then that seems good enough to me.

It has worked for me for 30 years!

Congratulations Will and Beth,

Your Mom and Dad Love you!