If I had to describe my wedding using only one word, it would be: "classy" What a surprise, no?

Well. It was a very classy venue with just under a hundred people sitting down for a five course gourmet dinner overlooking Lake Michigan. There is so much that I love about that day in 2000 and now that my baby sister is newly engaged she is curious sending me hundreds of emails each day about everything wedding related.

Nine years after getting married I thought I would compile a list of things that I would have done differently and things that I am glad I did. It was much easier coming up with a list of things I loved. Because, I loved! I am glad that I:

1. Decided to upgrade to filet and salmon for the main course. Because I ate a lot on my wedding day.

2. Hired a driver and Rolls Royce for the time between the ceremony and reception for half the amount a huge limo would have cost to transport our bridal party. And the pictures with the car are oh so classy.

3. Found the most awesome 12 person band at the Wisconsin State Fair 1999 while devouring a corn dog and paid an enormous amount of money for them to entertain our guests. They rocked!

4. Invested in a talented photographer.

5. Picked a classy dress from a fancy Michigan Ave store that still looks timeless in pictures. Pre-digital camera pictures that need to be scanned in...

6. Traveled half way across the world to Moorea for our honeymoon on frequent flyer miles. I don't foresee us going back anytime soon. Not because it wasn't beautiful but because it was difficult to get to.

7. Crafted my own wedding invitations by hand.

8. Found cute little white stilettos on sale for under 25 dollars since I never again wore them again in bed.

9. Stumbled across sensible lavender dresses at Ann Taylor for the bridesmaids and didn't worry about tiny details such as shoes, hair, and accessories.

10. Worked two jobs, daytime inner-city school teacher and night time restaurant hostess, to pay for as much as we could because lord knows we appreciated everything.

10.5. Oh yeah and... I am glad that I married my husband *smacking* my forehead.

I should have:

1. Had just my sister and best friend stand up as bridesmaids. No offense girlfriends. Just would have made it more intimate.

2. Not spent so much time/money on the flower arrangements.

3. Cut the guest list even more. There was no reason that our most favorite bartender from Lake Park Bistro had to be there with his random slutty date.

4. Not served martinis during the hor'dourve hour. It looked really fun in the Martha Stewart bridal magazine and didn't look so good spilled over lavender bridesmaid dresses.

5. Remembered to reapply my lipstick more throughout the day.

6. Gone on a much longer honeymoon. Didn't realize that after nine years of marriage I would have chaos three kids.

7. Not served martinis at all, simply because the word "martini" rhymed with my new married name.

8. Embraced my Polish heritage into the ceremony and reception a little more.

9. Not obsessed over the fine details such as ribbons. No one remembered if my ribbons were pure silk or from the dollar store.

10. Kept a journal or blog during those childless years planning a wedding. How I would love to go back and see how much I have grown a muffin top since then.