Planning A Stress Free Wedding

By: Wendy Yeager

Congratulations, you have a wedding to plan! You've decided to take the plunge into holy matrimony!
Ok, now take a deep breath. You can make the wedding planning process as easy or as difficult as you want. Whether you are planning a small wedding or a large one, you've got some work to do. You'll need to arrange for rings if you don't already have them. Some people like the traditional diamond wedding band, while others prefer another beautiful gem such as a sapphire or a ruby. You'll also need to arrange for a wedding dress, attire for the groom and wedding party, invitations, flowers, a wedding cake design, the location for the wedding ceremony, the wedding reception site, a color theme, the honeymoon, etc.
It all sounds overwhelming, doesn't it? It doesn't have to be. You just need to be organized. Start taking care of details as soon as you can. You want to have as much accomplished by the last week before the wedding so you will not be stressed out and can enjoy yourself. You can begin by making a wedding planning checklist. Make lists and categorize tasks. Purchase a notebook and a binder with pockets. Write down all pertinent information in the notebook. Save a sample wedding program, invitation and thank you card samples, etc. in your binder pockets. Enlist the help of friends and family. Assign them tasks, such as planning the reception or coordinating rehearsals. Be sure to include the groom in all the plans and give him some tasks also. You will make things much easier on yourself by asking for help from those around you.
Your wedding day is one of the most memorable days of your life. Everybody wants their wedding day to be perfect, and with luck it will. But, you have to be realistic about your expectations. You must be flexible if everything isn't going exactly the way you planned. Be prepared mentally for any unforeseen problems. Stay calm and go with the flow. It wouldn't be a bad idea to have a back up plan ahead of time that you've prepared with friends and family just in case a mishap should occur, such as a no-show photographer, a cake that is dropped on the floor, or the flowers don't arrive in time. Remember to keep a sense of humor and a positive attitude. After all, your main goal in the first place is to be married and for "two to become one". If you achieve this, you will have a successful wedding.