My Daughter's Wedding Budget

Naturally, as soon as my daughter announced that she was engaged, I gave her copy of my book:  Your Beautiful Wedding on Any Budget.  Like my wife and son, my daughter was surprised to hear the news that I had actually written a book, and she was further shocked to discover that I had written a book about creating a debt-free wedding. (Debt free for Mom and Dad being the operative concept here!)

We've been talking about the wedding budget of late.  I'm suggesting she and her fiance elope,  that they don't bug me with the details, and I'll give them a sizable sum of cash in exchange for a hassle-free summer of 2012.  She's not biting on this carrot, naturally. 

Still, I have to hand it to the young-un . . . she's got simple taste, and so far none of her ideas are going to force me to sell a kidney or donate bodily fluids in exchange for cash. Becky can continue teaching and she won't have to be like Roxanne and sell her body to the night.  (Believe me, I've tried for twenty-seven years and can't even get a freebie!)

I've also reminded my daughter that the remainder of my salary for this year will be transferred to Ball State very soon in the form of cashiers checks and gold bullion, and her mother and I will be subsisting on Kraft dinner for several months while we bank roll enough money to fix my 1991 Caprice wagon and save for a wedding dress.  She understands.

I'm grateful that I wrote Your Beautiful Wedding on Any Budget.  I'm grateful to Sourcebooks (Chicago) for publishing it.  Now my daughter knows that I write books and have plenty of unsold copies to hand out.  I have suggested giving out the remaindered supply at the wedding itself, or using the books as table decor.

I'm not sure my daughter will learn anything from reading this book, but it is chocked full of hundreds of money-saving ideas that some brides (the three or four brides who bought copies) seem to covet.  I also saved a couple of glowing book reviews so my daughter will know that somebody out there likes me, and that Dad does occasionally hit upon a good idea. I want her to know that I have attempted to impact the lives of thousands of women everywhere, and that I can find encouragement and strength from feminine sources.  I also want her to know that I am in touch with my feminine side, and that I'm all right with that, and I'm not threatened by cooking or cleaning a toilet.  I don't see myself as any less of a man because I love to bake pies and eat them in a single sitting with a quart of chocolate ice cream.  And If God had seen fit, I  would have been perfectly content with an ovary.

I'm just this kind of man and father.

I hope my daughter enjoys reading Your Beautiful Wedding on Any Budget.  I hope she tells her friends about my book.  I hope another half dozen brides will find a used copy at Costco!  I hope she doesn't think I'm blatantly trying to sell copies of my book so I can make enough money to pay for her wedding.

But in the event others do want to know about my book, again, the title is:  Your Beautiful Wedding on Any Budget.  That's, Your Beautiful  Wedding on Any Budget.  Again, that's Your Beautiful Wedding on Any Budget.

Wanna buy a copy?  My daughter sure would appreciate it.