4 Things You Never Expected About Being Engaged

You have a closet full of slightly used bridesmaids dresses and a bookshelf crowded with romance novels. You’ve watched every rom-com made in the past two decades and every episode of Say Yes To The Dress. You are a wedding and engagement expert. Or are you? Now that you have a ring on your finger and have officially gone from girlfriend to fiancé you know the one thing that really matters; you can’t wait to start your life together. But, getting engaged will kick off plenty of situations that you never expected. Here are the top things that no one has ever told you about being engaged and how to handle them.

You will show off your ring constantly

You won’t be able wait to snap the first Instagram pic of your new ring or to giggle with your best friends over how beautiful it is. But, what you won’t expect is that everyone will ask to look at it. You will end up showing off your new rock to everyone you meet, sometimes more than once. Everyone loves an engagement ring, so keep yours sparkly, make friends with your manicurist and get ready to flash your ring daily right up until the big day.

You will continuously tell your engagement story

There’s nothing more romantic than a proposal and everyone will want to hear about yours. Sharing the story is part of excitement of being engaged, but there may be details and tidbits that feel too personal for public knowledge. Feel free to creatively edit the tale a bit, sharing what you want and keeping some parts as a special memory for you and your fiancé. It’s also a good idea to include your proposal story on your wedding website or in the wedding program. Sharing a written version let’s everyone in on the romance and saves you from the retelling.

Everyone will have advice

From your mom to your recently-married best friend to the random stranger you meet at the deli, everyone’s first reaction to hearing you are engaged will be to offer unsolicited advice. You’ll hear opinions on the type of dress that will flatter you, how to handle your first married argument and how their neighbor’s cousin is the absolute best photographer in town and you simply must use them. All that advice can become overwhelming and confusing, especially when it conflicts with the decisions you have already made. People want to give advice because they are excited and care for you. Plus, though some of the advice won’t apply to you at all, there will be some really helpful answers to questions you never thought to ask. So, realize that is comes from a well-meaning place, glean what wisdom you can from it and toss the rest.

You’ll start planning right away, but not as fast as people expect you to

Pre-proposal you might have pictured yourself taking it slow and basking in the joy of being engaged before thinking about the wedding. Maybe you even want to accomplish a few more life goals before actually taking the plunge, like finishing your degree or saving up a larger nest egg. But, it’s hard to stop yourself from buying just a few wedding magazines and flooding Pinterest with cake ideas. In your excitement for the next step you may put wedding planning into high gear sooner than expected. But, no matter how quickly you jump in, people will ask you about the plans long before you’ve made them. Your proposal story will hardly be off your lips before they ask they wedding date and how many bridesmaids you will have. Whether you are looking at a long engagement or begging the venue to squeeze you in as soon as possible, take a deep breath. It’s ok to take wedding planning at your own pace, no matter what that might be. And if people as questions you don’t have an answer to, just flash your ring again and they will forget about everything else.