Cheap wedding attire turns into anything but

Posted in Mom Stuff
by Melissa Linebrink

Cheap wedding attire turns into anything but

Ah, the joys of summer: backyard BBQ’s, kids splashing in the pool and of course, weddings.

I used to love weddings as a child. I’d wear a fancy dress and nice shoes, and that was pretty much the extent of it for me. To me, a wedding was all about the reception and dancing!

This weekend, the Linebrink Five are invited to a wedding. We are all going since my husband is the best man, so it would look a bit tacky if we didn’t at least show up.

But, then I got to thinking and calculating, this wedding is costing us a lot of money!

Back in the BK (before kids) era, when we were invited to a wedding, Seth and I would each wear a nicer work outfit that we already had hanging in our closet and we’d buy a wedding gift.

But  now, this time around, we have had to buy four new outfits, plus the wedding gift, plus pay for the hotel, plus his rented tux.

You see, as a stay-at-home mom, I am oblivious to what is “in” and what is” out” in the fashion world. What is “in” at the moment generally does not fit me or look right on my post-twin-preggo body – still, nearly a year later.

Last fall, I found a great deal online and bought a Gap dress for $14 – really, it was free since I had a gift card to use toward it. But, as any woman knows, buying a dress entails much more.

Not only did I need a new dress, I also needed new shoes (all I ever wear are crocs or gym shoes) and I needed a tummy tuck too, but since that wasn’t in the budget, I had to settle for Spanks look-a-likes which do not allow me to breathe, but that’s OK – I just won’t eat the remainder of this week.

Then, I went into the twins’ closet where everything is stained with baby food, or some other kind of stainable item, so naturally, they too needed new outfits. I didn’t bother with shoes since they’d rather take them off and use them as chew toys.

Ethan, he was the easiest of the bunch, and the cheapest too! Khaki school pants and a school shirt, old shoes from Christmas and socks. Mission accomplished.

So, the way I look at it, this wedding will cost the Linebrink Family of Five this:

Tux: $100

New dress/shoes/look-a-like Spanks: $75

Babies outfits: $25

And everything else: $200

Price of seeing your husband walking down the aisle in his $100 tux: PRICELESS