Are you like me and moving a million miles a minute with this wedding planning stuff? I feel like my mind changes so quickly about decor, color palette, menu, flowers that I can't even keep up with myself. I mean everyday I browse the super fabulous wedding blogs like Style Me Pretty and Green Wedding Shoes and see so many weddings one more gorgeous than the next and it gets my wheels turning. Since not all of our details are confirmed I'm thinking "we can have that," "make that," "do that," but I think it hit me this week that you really have to have realistic expectations about your wedding. You need to consider timing, budget and resources.
I ALWAYS thought I wanted to a quick engagement - Why do people wait years until they finally say "I do" once they get engaged? From the time we got engaged until the time we get married it will be 9 months total. More than enough time for some folks but maybe not for folks like us who have really busy travel schedules and who are getting married at the farthest point on the opposite Coast from where they live (live in FL getting married in Oregon). There is no doubt in my mind it will go off without a hitch but for a detail oriented control person (I won't go as far as saying freak) it's a little stressful to be 3 1/2 months out with so many things still left to do. But it's all self inflicted stress that I brought on myself thinking we could have all the lovely things in my "wedding inspiration" folder on my desktop (with 100's and 100's of images) in one wedding!
My advice is....after you get engaged...take a break to enjoy that time and when you decide it's time to sit down and talk about your wedding really think about what is important to you, narrow your focus to that, figure out a realistic timeline to get it all done (don't worry about availability at venues, there will always be another great venue!) and don't let all the other loveliness and inspiration you see everyday distract you from that vision. We always knew we wanted a small, intimate, personal, rustic, outdoor wedding in a beautiful setting with all our closest friends and family and guess what - we are going to have that! Even if we don't have garlands, yards of beautiful ribbons, wood cuts, rustic signs, succulents, donut holes, firepits, a photobooth, hay rides, a fun reggae band (sure we will have some of that but we don't need it all) it will be perfect! My point is to have a plan before you start your wedding planning or it could get out of control.
I've reeled myself back in and I think we (or just me) are back on track and focusing on what is truly important and won't worry about the rest. I've learned in my work and in life - it will all get done and what doesn't - well, doesn't really matter anyway. My friend over at A Mountain Bride blogged something similar today about the importance of slowing down and taking it all in - enjoying this very exciting time together without getting too caught up in the details. And most importantly enjoying your time together and reminding yourself why you are really getting married b/c it's not about the wedding but the marriage.
And we've finally made a decision on our honeymoon which ties in well with this...more to come on that tomorrow!
I ALWAYS thought I wanted to a quick engagement - Why do people wait years until they finally say "I do" once they get engaged? From the time we got engaged until the time we get married it will be 9 months total. More than enough time for some folks but maybe not for folks like us who have really busy travel schedules and who are getting married at the farthest point on the opposite Coast from where they live (live in FL getting married in Oregon). There is no doubt in my mind it will go off without a hitch but for a detail oriented control person (I won't go as far as saying freak) it's a little stressful to be 3 1/2 months out with so many things still left to do. But it's all self inflicted stress that I brought on myself thinking we could have all the lovely things in my "wedding inspiration" folder on my desktop (with 100's and 100's of images) in one wedding!
My advice is....after you get engaged...take a break to enjoy that time and when you decide it's time to sit down and talk about your wedding really think about what is important to you, narrow your focus to that, figure out a realistic timeline to get it all done (don't worry about availability at venues, there will always be another great venue!) and don't let all the other loveliness and inspiration you see everyday distract you from that vision. We always knew we wanted a small, intimate, personal, rustic, outdoor wedding in a beautiful setting with all our closest friends and family and guess what - we are going to have that! Even if we don't have garlands, yards of beautiful ribbons, wood cuts, rustic signs, succulents, donut holes, firepits, a photobooth, hay rides, a fun reggae band (sure we will have some of that but we don't need it all) it will be perfect! My point is to have a plan before you start your wedding planning or it could get out of control.
I've reeled myself back in and I think we (or just me) are back on track and focusing on what is truly important and won't worry about the rest. I've learned in my work and in life - it will all get done and what doesn't - well, doesn't really matter anyway. My friend over at A Mountain Bride blogged something similar today about the importance of slowing down and taking it all in - enjoying this very exciting time together without getting too caught up in the details. And most importantly enjoying your time together and reminding yourself why you are really getting married b/c it's not about the wedding but the marriage.
And we've finally made a decision on our honeymoon which ties in well with this...more to come on that tomorrow!
