| In the current economic environment, more and | | | | decorating off site locations. |
| more couples are forgoing large weddings in favor | | | | Since backyard weddings are smaller and more |
| of smaller, more intimate (and substantially less | | | | intimate, and the menu can reflect that. Where as |
| expensive) ceremonies held at home. While some | | | | in the case of our reception there were the |
| people cringe at the idea of having their wedding | | | | standard beef/chicken/fish choices, not to |
| at home (who can forget Mr. Banks's constant | | | | mention a vegetarian dish to accommodate some |
| dismay in "Father of the Bride"), there are several | | | | family members. Had the wedding been at home, |
| very good reasons to give this idea some | | | | a much lighter menu could have been served. |
| thought. | | | | Hours d'ouvres and perhaps some additional |
| When my wife and I were married our guest list | | | | desserts would have been more than enough. |
| of "just family and friends" quickly ballooned to | | | | Now while there are several reasons why having |
| over 300 people as more cousins/associates | | | | a backyard wedding can be a wonderful |
| business contacts/clients/etc. were added to the | | | | alternative, the biggest draw back is that you are |
| list... and that was just for the ceremony. The | | | | at the mercy of the weather. Having been born |
| reception was even more crowded. Had we | | | | and raised in Central Florida, I can assure you that |
| chose to have a backyard wedding we could | | | | blue skies and sunshine can be replaced in an |
| have kept the gust list much smaller simply due | | | | instant by rainstorms and lightning. Forecasting the |
| to the fact that there was a limited amount of | | | | weather months in advance is out of the |
| available space. | | | | question, however there are a few alternatives. |
| Regardless of the size of the wedding, finding | | | | Canopies can protect against rain provided that it's |
| available locations can be another hassle. The | | | | not too heavy (or windy), and the ceremony can |
| church and the reception hall will both need to be | | | | always be held inside the house with the reception |
| booked well in advance giving you little to no | | | | outside. |
| flexibility should anything come up, and that's | | | | In the end, this is a day that you will remember |
| nothing to say of the deposits that both will | | | | for the rest of your lives, however that doesn't |
| almost always require. This can range anywhere | | | | mean that it has to cause you to age 10 years |
| from a few hundred, to a few thousand dollars, | | | | from the stress of planning, nor should it require a |
| and that's before you have decorated. Having a | | | | Wall Street style bail-out to pay for. Having a |
| backyard wedding eliminates most of that cost. In | | | | backyard wedding can, in many cases, be the |
| most cases decorating a house/backyard is much | | | | answer to both of these problems. |
| less expensive than the cost of reserving and | | | | |