So, finally you reach that day and time when it’s actually happening to you. The day you’ve dreamt of your entire life. The glitz, the glam, the pomp, the circumstance, the whole shebang is before you. You’re saying “I do” to the man of your dreams, in front of friends, family, (and obligatory second cousins). The birds will be chirping, the skies… parting, all will be beautiful & right with the world. B-U-T, what if you’re slightly alternative, or even, (dirty word warning) v-e-g-a-n!?? If your journey looks anything like mine – this, oh this, is where the controversy begins.

I had envisioned this day for many months, with all sorts of questions, anticipation and ambiguity brewing. However, on the day when my mother, after months of speculation, delivered the news that my father agreed to “pay for the wedding”, a sigh of relief echoed through my soul. Wow- this would mean that I would be able to elicit all the fanfare, the beautiful dress, the breath-taking locale, the (well, let’s not get carried away) but at least I’d be able to have the quality trimmings and impressive cuisine I’d dreamt of…ahem. Did I say cuisine?? Cuisine has been a controversy ever since I became vegetarian at the ripe age of 15 and told my father that I’d like to have cutting-edged “veg” food at my wedding. Conflict arose then, and it surely arises now. In an instant, my dream of a 300 person New Jersey wedding with all the trimmings was dashed upon my father hearing the words “vegan & eco-friendly wedding”. Despite the fact that providing vegan desserts to the world is what I do for a living, (www.earthcafetogo.com) and despite the fact that this is who I’ve been ever since I was too young to even drive, in his words, having a vegan menu at the wedding, would be “insulting to my guests, and embarrassing to him”. Ouch. With that, our wedding independence was born, and my convictions and beliefs, solidified.

So here I am, having wasted nearly a year of pseudo New Jersey dream wedding planning. I now have little more than 3 months to plan the VEGAN wedding of the year with no family close by (except of course, the amazing groom), no wedding planning experience, no leads for great caterers, no locations, no locations that provide vegan food or who accept outside catering…(or who even might accept something other than my kidney or my first born as a down payment towards their exorbitant prices), no notion of who the best & eco-friendliest florists are, no understanding of the best wedding planners and how to even determine such…no idea about the best dj’s, best dress-makers, best candle-makers, favors, invites, photographers, videographers, rental companies, lighting, sound, (and these are just a few of the unknowns that come to mind)! I’m short on time, but long on hope. This is all quite overwhelming of course. However rest assured that come hell or high water, I am going to plan every bit of a dream wedding as I had envisioned my entire life. Oh yes, this is going to be a wild ride. So hop on. I’m sure it will be great fun, to see all that unfolds…