Wedding Bells and Wedding Hells

As my time as a bride-to-be comes to a close, I've been doing a lot of reflecting on the wedding planning process. I was faced with the challenge of planning a wedding in 6 months, where most brides have about 9 months to a year. By the time I actually got the ball rolling, it was really more like 5 months. I've realized through this journey that I experienced 5 emotional states as a bride-to-be. While they might be different for every bride, here are my five.

1. Excitement!
   Yay! Congrats! You are engaged! Everyone will be so excited and want to see your ring and hear the story of how your boo proposed! You'll be excited too. The happiness and joy is all there. It's a time full of celebration and joy.
   
   I remember being so happy during the first week after my engagement.  I was finally Connor's fiance! Everyone was covering us with love and couldn't wait to hear more about the wedding.  It's so important to enjoy this part of the process, because I felt like it was quite some time before I was feeling excited again.  After this, everything gets real...
2. Anxiety and/or Stress
   Then the real fun begins. It hits you that you have to plan a wedding. All of it. The whole thing. Looking at venues, picking out a dress, and everything else. You look at a check list and feel overwhelmed.
   
   Once I hit this stage, I suddenly felt so lost and unsure of what to do.  For the first month of our engagement, I had Connor help me with the planning and picking things out.  After that, he was off to Georgia and I was in Lakeland doing most of this without him. I was still working full time at my internship, and already didn't know much about weddings. Every bride feels this, so its totally normal. You just have to remember that its your day and it's important to do what feels right for you and your fiance.  At the end of the day, you're celebrating the love you two share.
3. Calm
   Finally, you can breathe a little bit. You've checked off some pretty significant tasks, and things are looking up. There's still plenty of time before the wedding to tie up any loose ends.  A pretty solid plan is in place and things are starting to come together.
   
   This usually happens around the halfway point of your planning timeline.  It's the best part of the wedding planning process because you can kind of start to have fun with it again.  You've kind of gotten a hang of things and you've found your groove.  You're excited for the wedding, and everything is going to be okay. Things are finally coming together.
4. Over it. So incredibly over it.
   The last thing you want to do is put one more stamp on an invite, paint one more centerpiece, or make another decision about the wedding.  At this point, you just want to wear your dress, say, "I do!", and eat some great food with your family and friends.
   
   I'm going to be 110% honest with everyone...this is where I am at right now.  I am so over painting centerpieces, looking at check lists, and overall just done with planning.  All I want is to wear my dress and marry Connor and have fun and then be married.  You get to the point where it's not really fun anymore and it's time to get this party started.  The saving grace with this stage is usually the bridal showers and your bachelorette party.  At least that's what kept me sane.  You're able to have fun and you get to feel excited about your wedding again.  However, in the back of your mind the actual date is lingering and coming up. The stress and anxiety comes back.  Basically, you just want it to get here and do the dang thing.
5. Excitement!
   Congrats! You made it and in one piece! You're finally getting married. All of the  hard work is coming to life, and everyone is so excited.  At least one thing will not go as you have planned, but chances are no one will even notice.  This will make for a good story later. Live it up and take it all in! You're married!
   
   Ugh, get me to this day already please.  Not only am I dying to see Connor, I am so ready to just have fun and be done stressing over the wedding.  All of the planning will finally be over, and it's your turn to enjoy all of the hard work. I know things will go wrong, but a year from now that's not what people will remember.  I am ready to celebrate our love with our family and friends.  I can't wait to get to the big day!

It's crazy for me to think that I'm only a week out from the wedding.  Even though we had a very short engagement, I feel like we've been talking about this for so long.  Now it's finally going to happen.  Being a bride-to-be can be a real pain in the butt, but it's a precious time that really should be cherished.  I might not have always done it right, but I did my best to stay true to myself and stay level headed. Getting married soon? Feeling any of these stresses? Any of this bring back memories from when you were planning your wedding? Be sure to share your stories!

Until next time, 

Brandt

(But not for much longer!!!)