11 Wedding Planning Reminders To Ensure A Happy, Stress-Free Day

1. You’re in control of your money, and you get to decide how and what you want to spend it on, so unless they’re willing to pay for it, you can ignore the people who try to tell you how and what to buy.

2. There is a difference between making your families happy and completely letting them dictate the flow of your day. You can politely listen to suggestions without getting into a fight with those who want to celebrate you.

3. Everyone will want to celebrate you, which can get overwhelming, but it comes from a place of deep, beautiful, unabashed love. 

4. It’s okay to get your parents involved if you want to—chances are, they’re just going to want to be a part of a conversation and not dictate the whole thing. 

5. It’s okay to accept help—whether it’s a friend who’s giving you a break or someone in your family who wants to provide you with a check. It’s silly and unwise to go into debt over a wedding. 

6. A wedding dress doesn’t have to cost thousands of dollars.

7. The roses at the florist and the ones at the supermarket come from the same patch of dirt.

8. The tiny details are for you and your memories—the things that guests will care about are food, alcohol, and what music you decide to play. 

9. Remember to talk to your future spouse about what the two of you want—it’s about the joining of your lives, so your wedding should be a reflection of you both. 

10. Have fun with the planning—cake tasting is delightful. Menu tasting is lovely, too. Even picking out what kind of wine you want to serve (if wine is your thing) is a treat. Whether it’s about food or the type of invitations you send, the little moments of wedding planning are infused with joy. You have to slow down long enough to pay attention to them.

11. Often, people will tell you that your wedding should be the best day of your life. But that’s a lot of pressure for one day. And sometimes, it will rain. And sometimes, your dress will be the wrong color. And sometimes, you’ll have reserved a block of hotel rooms as a courtesy to your out-of-town guests, only to have a squatter refuse to move by the time your loved ones are supposed to check-in. Sometimes, unexpected chaos will ensue. Sometimes, everything will work out just the way you planned. Either way, remember that while it should be a magical day, it should be a memory that’s rooted in love and laughter and the joining of two lives; it’s just a day. A wedding is not a marriage, but the start of a life together, and it’s the stuff that comes next that fills a heart to its brim.