Blending Sands, NY Style Engagement Tips from a Newlywed

From the moment she said, “well, duh” to my Valentine’s Day proposal, it was destined that a couple who bonded over a mutual love of the beach would host a seaside wedding ceremony.

We’re just a few years removed from our nuptials, but it feels like just yesterday we were picking our menu and mailing invitations. Besides my luck in finding my soulmate, the most striking part of the experience is how it opened the floodgates to an eye-popping amount of advice — some solicited, some not.

“Enjoy this time together,” is the best suggestion we heard repeatedly while engaged. “Don’t get too stressed out.”

Tips like these are worth their weight in wedding bands when taking the plunge in the East End area, which is consistently ranked one of the nation’s costliest places to get married. What follows are the most useful lessons for brides-and-grooms-to-be that this reporter has received:

Don’t Try Keeping Up With The Kardashians

Comparing weddings is futile. Some will say you’re spending too much on the reception, more than needed for an event that boils down to how much two people love one another. At least twice as many friends and relatives will suggest additional expenses, from forgotten invites down to the hors d’oeuvres selection. But the bling is ways going to be sparklier at the wedding on the other side, even for those planning weddings with oceanfront views, versus those with mere bayside venues. There are more important things to worry about when it comes to major life events, which brings me to the next tip.

It’s Your Day, Do What Makes You Happy

Want to skip the storybook wedding, elope to Las Vegas in a red convertible and get married by an Elvis impersonator with rings found at the bottom of a cereal box? If that’s what you and your honey are into, go for it. Because when all the rice is thrown and cake is cut, what really matters when the night is done is that the unique relationship between the two people who exchanged those sacred vows feel they celebrated their love the most memorable way they saw fit. And lastly…

Remember Why You’re Getting Married

My smart, gorgeous wife has the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever known, makes me laugh and is an amazing mother. And by some miracle she puts up with me. Hopefully, everyone preparing to walk down the aisle is reminded as frequently as I am of why they, in the immortal words of Beyoncé, like it and put a ring on it. All the contracts that will be signed with caterers, photographers and other vendors will make everything feel like one big business transaction, but despite it all, love is all you need.