Wedding sites cater to younger brides

Working in the wedding industry, and being a 20-something female, I find myself spending much of my free time scoping out wedding blogs. I even have my favorites bookmarked for ease of access. While scoping, I noticed that most featured weddings and engagements are of couples that are also twenty-somethings. It's relatively uncommon to find a couple in their late 30s on a wedding blog or in a wedding magazine. This isn't a show of favoritism; instead, it is a show of good marketing. The truth is blogs need to cater to their readership and their audiences have grown strikingly young.

This got me to thinking: Why are we young people marrying off at such a rapid pace? The point of being a ‘20-something' is to wander freely until you find your place. 
Shouldn't we embrace change and opportunity with open arms, rather than permanence and continuity? I am not suggesting change trumps permanence, but simply that, at this age, it should be hardwired in our nature to be boundless, to feel infinitely unlimited, to live without restraint.

Don't get me wrong, I have my wedding details outlined in the corners of my mind, and yet, you will not find me at a bridal boutique anytime soon.

My sentiments seem to be a rare find these days as every time I log into my Facebook account I am alerted that "So and so are getting engaged," and may I just note how the little heart next to the announcement encompasses my feelings perfectly. Thanks, Facebook.

All jokes aside, about halfway through my college career, the rate of weddings occurring in my network of friends began to rise frantically. I have often worried I may have to drop out of college to become a full-time wedding attendee.

Seeing as how I can rattle off a list of married and engaged couples on all my fingers and toes, and they are all under 25 years old, I felt like my observations about the aggregate wedding age in the U.S. are accurate.

I did a little research to find that I was wrong. I won't dig too far into my inaccuracies, just enough to mention that according to the National Marriage Project, based at Rutgers University, the median age of new spouses rose from 20 for females and 23 for males in 1960 to about 26 and 27, respectively, in 2004.

Then why in the local community in and around UCF does the average age seem to not reflect these findings? Perhaps, it is just timing. The young couples are marrying off, but the older couples will make a comeback, effectively balancing off the average age. 

I felt a little more reassured once reading these statistical findings. Yet, I wonder if someone like me has become the new model for the modern-age spinster. Spinsterhood was due for a makeover, as the image of an old woman with forty cats does not reflect the modern spinster. Are independent, successful and career-oriented women (in their 20s, mind you) taking over the throne?

As I attend an onslaught of weddings this upcoming year, I am ever mindful of all the goals I want checked off my list before I start picking out my Christian Louboutin shoes to compliment my bridesmaids dresses. 

The truth is this: Each offers its perks and its disadvantages. I think most of us 20-something spinsters are doing a fine job by pursuing our personal development independently; and I think young newlyweds are doing a fine job of pursuing a life with someone there for support.

Let's just hope I can balance my schedule to account for all the upcoming weddings long enough to finish college with my diploma.