Extremely Untraditional

There are TONS of traditions that are supposed to go hand-in-hand with a wedding, but in case you haven't noticed by now, FI and I are not traditional in the least bit.

Outside of wedding planning, there are a few reasons we are not traditional: we have lived together prior to being married and we will likely be buying our first house before we get married.

As a part of wedding planning, and the wedding itself, there are a lot of traditions that we will not be taking part in:

1. Spending the night before the wedding apart - This tradition really doesn't make sense for FI and I since we live together.  I wouldn't want to spend the night before with anyone else, and I want to wake up on our wedding day, and be able to spend those last few moments of calm with him.  Plus, I tend to sleep way better with him around than without.   
2. Transportation to and from the ceremony/reception - Since our ceremony and reception are in the same location, there is no need for transportation between venues, and I also don't see any reason to spend extra money on transportation when we both have reliable cars that are also really pretty!
3. Post-ceremony planned exit - The planned exit from the ceremony is typically a church tradition, and since we are not being married in the church, I figured we could nix this.  However, we will be having a post-reception planned exit - more on that later!
4. Flower girl/Ring bearer - This goes back to the discussion about the size of the bridal party. Plus, we don't really have family that fall in the typical age range.  
5. Veil & tiara - No, no, no.  This is so not me. I am not really a girly-girl, nor do I want to be a princess on my wedding day, so that means no tiara. In terms of a veil, I typically associate them with church weddings, and since I am not religious, I will not be wearing one.  I will have something else in my hair to embellish it though (DIY!).
6. Something Old/New/Borrowed/Blue - I really don't care for this tradition either, although I'm sure that even though I'm not trying to have the tradition, it will end up being there. I guess I just don't really want it to be recognized or called the "Somethings" tradition. I know, I'm crazy.
7. Matching BM Dresses - I'm not so sure that this is an actual tradition, but I've decided to let my two girls choose their dresses.  They have completely different body types, and I know that it would be difficult to find something that they both like, so I figured same designer, fabric, and color, and then they choose the style.  
8. Announced entrance to reception - The wedding day is going to be hard enough on me as it is with being the center of attention, so I decided that I really didn't want an announced entrance.  This may still be debatable, based on what is suggested by the DOC and the DJ, but I at least know that we will not be introducing the wedding party.
9. Bouquet/garter toss - I hate this tradition.  It is always sooooooo awkward. Single ladies hate being on the dance floor being expected to participate, and while I'm not necessarily a private person, I can't imagine FI getting a garter out from under my dress.  Plus, not so sure that the meaning of the garter applies, if you know what I mean.  

That's just a small list of what I think will end up being our list of traditions not happening.  I'll get into the ones that we are covering in separate posts, as those are more fun, and will actually have pictures!