So, your getting married. The time has come to plan the wedding of your dreams and profess your love in front of family and friends. Sounds easy enough right? Well, it can be. It can also very quickly turn into the most stressful time of your life.

You may know exactly what you want for your wedding or you may be feeling very overwhelmed with all of the decisions that have to be made. You will probably find that there is a lot more that goes into planning a wedding than you thought, but if you focus you will conquer it all!

Before we talk about the things that will help you plan, I want to encourage you and your soon to be spouse to stay true to yourselves with what you want for your wedding. I have seen so many wedding plans get so complicated and confusing because the Bride and Grooms family or friends think that their ideas should be incorporated into the wedding. Now, I am not saying that you shouldn’t ask for help or take suggestions from your friends or family. I am saying that if you are going to plan according to what other people think you should do, there will be regrets on your end. I know how hard it can be to speak your opinions especially if you are a non-confrontational person and also when someone else is helping pay for your wedding. The truth of the matter is that if a person is pushing their opinions about your wedding onto you and they use the threat of them paying for your wedding as a way to get what they want, then they really do not have your best interest at heart. Standing firm in what you want as a couple for your wedding is a great start to boosting your marriage.

Now, the fun stuff! Yay! Here are some things that may be helpful when planning your wedding.

• Hire a planner! Just do it! A planner has insights for you and also has relationships with vendors. Also, this is a great way to keep your wedding true to what you want. The planner will be there for you and will run everything by you so that things don’t get thrown into the planning that you don’t want.

• Start a wedding folder. This is a great way to keep track of your ideas. Look through bridal and food magazines for inspiration on what you think you might want.

• Pick your wedding party. Decide who you want to stand with you as you say your “I Do’s.” Everyone will be excited and will want to know who your going to ask. Again, think about the big picture. In ten years, when you look at your wedding pictures, who do you want to see standing there with you? Who will support your marriage? Who can you not imagine getting married without? Don’t take this lightly. You will find it is more important than you might think.

• Budget. Everyone knows that a wedding is expensive. Be realistic. Use your resources and figure out what is most important to you to spend your money on. This will be different for every couple. It’s a personal preference. Some couples will want to spend more on the ceremony than the reception. Others will want the opposite. Some couples may want to spend more on real flowers instead of fake flowers. There are lots of ways to cut the expense if needed.

• Make a guest list. Invite people you want at your wedding and not people that you feel obligated to invite. Remember this is about you, not them. If you haven’t talked to Cousin Sue in 10 years, you probably do not need to invite them. More people doesn’t always make it a better wedding. If you are on a tight budget, as painful as it may seem, if you reduce the amount of guests you invite, the less the cost.

• Reserve a date and venues. This can be overwhelming as you need to decide if you want to have the wedding and the reception at the same location or if it is best to do it at separate locations. It is best to try to not have a lot of travel time between the two locations if you decide on separate location.

• Hire florists, caterers, bands, photographers, babysitters for children at wedding. It is important to do this as soon as you know the date of your wedding as a lot of these professionals are booked months, sometimes a year in advance.

• Reserve hotel rooms for out of town guests. Typically, find hotels that are close to the reception so people don’t have far to go. Especially if alcohol is involved.

• Hire a designated driver. If you are going to be serving alcohol at your reception, you can hire someone to make sure your guests get home or to their hotel room safely.

• Register. Pick two or three of your favorite retailers and register so that you can be blessed with gifts from your guests.

• Purchase a dress. Of course!

• Shop for bridesmaids’ dresses. You should do this at least 6 months in advance in case the dresses have to be ordered or need any alterations.

• Meet with the officiant. The efficient will help confirm all legal documentation that you will need and also help you design your ceremony and what will take place on the day of the wedding.

• Arrange any transportation. If you are needing limos, minibuses, trolleys, cars, horse and buggy, etc… the sooner you figure this out the better.

• Book the rehearsal and rehearsal-dinner venues. This can simple or fancy.

• Order a cake. Attend several tastings. Good tasting cake is everything!
  
• Hire a hair and make-up artist. Look for someone that is good at the style you are trying to achieve. Someone can be a great hair stylist or make-up artist but not good at the look you specifically want. This is much easier if you know what you want to look like on your wedding day.

• Choose Music. Create a list of music to be played during your wedding and reception. If there is something that you do not want to be played make sure to include that.

I am sure there are other things that can be added to the list above but hopefully this will help you with your decision making that can seem so overwhelming when planning a wedding. Take it one step at a time and remember to be true to you and make this your special day, the way you want it to be. I hope if you are getting married soon, that you have the wedding of your dreams and have a fantastic time.

I also want to say that if the big fancy wedding is not for you, think about a destination wedding or a very small ceremony with a few people attending of your choosing and then have one heck of a reception to celebrate. What ever your taste or style is, enjoy and be blessed. Happy weddings everyone! I would love to hear your wedding story. Please feel free to comment.