And so it begins — my best friend is getting married! Nichole and Robert got engaged last year and have now set a date — Oct. 23, 2010. I know, it’s January 2009, but let me tell you — things are already booking up! With so many details to be arranged and sorted, starting early can’t be a bad thing. Plus, my sister and I are only too happy to help her begin the lengthy planning.

After having lunch with she and Kate today, I have all sorts of bridal terms whirling around in my head. My sister is a huge fan of “Whose Wedding Is It Anyway?” and knows the lingo like no one else I’ve met. I plunked down next to her at Panera and watched in pure amazement as she began to write out a check-list for our friend, detailing all of the items she should have figured out before D-Day (or W-Day, I guess). Who is this person? I thought. Kate could be a pretty sophisticated wedding planner. Hey, if the TV news anchor bit doesn’t work out, I know in which direction I should push her — she’s all about the brides!

Of course, I know next to nothing about weddings — just what I’ve gleaned from attending a few memorable family occasions over my lifetime and indulging in TLC and Style Network marathons of bridal shows. I haven’t been to a wedding in years, and I’ve never been in the bridal party of a close friend. For that matter, I’ve only been to a handful of friends’ weddings, period! But I’ve entered that eventful and somewhat terrifying phase of my life where friends and old classmates begin to have children, get hitched and buy their own homes — and I’m watching it all with a careful eye, trying to make my own path through all of this.

And I need to study up. Seriously. I’ve stepped boldly into the world of bachelorette parties, reception venues, catering prices and color schemes. I’m thrilled about it, but I’m overwhelmed, too — and I’m not the one getting married! There’s a bit of pressure associated with being close to someone planning one of the biggest days of their life. I’ve narrowed down a few of my thought processes to focus on choosing a reception site in Southern Maryland, and I’m looking at Herrington Harbor, Mount Airy Mansion and Chesapeake Beach Resort and Spa as our top recommendations. Thank goodness I have my knowledgable coworkers to help me! I want to make some decent suggestions.

And thank God for Google. I rely on Googling the way others might rely on academic research, the kind and careful advice of friends and relatives — or even prayer. There is scarcely a question in the world I can’t answer by Googling my problem!

Since I need ideas for a fall wedding, I’ve found a hundred and one sites with all sorts of advice and clever ideas. And color scheme ideas? We have many options!

She’s already selected red as her main color, so perhaps we’re looking at a red/chocolate combination? I love the look of that! With accents of orange and gold, and a red sash for the bride? We could have tabletop decorations of fall foliage, perhaps some classy pumpkins by the pretty crystal wineglasses . . . is there such a thing as a “classy” pumpkin? We’ll find out, I guess! And then we could look for . . .

But let me not get ahead of myself here — whose fall wedding is it, anyway?!