Hurray! I am Super-Bride

[Independent Gal]

So here I am, I''ve been engaged for a mere 6 weeks and so far, for Wedding Part 2 I have:

1) Booked a venue (this includes the catering since its a restaurant, on site wedding coordinator, and they take care of centerpieces... I just tell ''em what colours!)
2) Bought a dress & shoes
3) Found a photographer (I forgot that my best friend''s sister is a professional photographer... I''ve always LOVED her work and she sent us a wedding portfolio that was great... and the photojournalistic / staying invisible style is her usual M.O. Plus, this means my best friend gets to hang out with her sister whom she rarely gets to see!)
4) Found an awesome DJ
5) Chose our DIY invites
6) Found affordable and nice accomodation for our guests
7) Almost finalized the guest list
And tomorrow I meet with the florist to pick a bouquet.

So, I guess that''s nearly it, huh? I just have to a) finalize contracts, b) actually print and assemble the invites and send them, then c) pick the food closer to the date, and do up a registry.

Am I forgetting anything? We''re not having bridesmaids or a cake. FI does still have to find a suit. He''ll do that in January. Then we need the legal paperwork.

Mom is taking care of WP1. So, no worries there.

Hurray! Who says wedding planning has to be long drawn out and stressful? We could be ready to get hitched 6 weeks from now if we wanted!

I''m feeling so proud that I think I''ll treat myself to an ice cream.

 

[zoebartlett]

Wow! Great job, Super-Bride!! I can''t think of anything else that needs to be done at the moment, but closer to the date I''m sure lots of little things will creep up on you. Are you doing favors or welcome bags for OOT guests?

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I didn''t stress out while planning our wedding either. I think it is mind over matter. Sounds like you got a ton done!

 

[Independent Gal]

Yes! mind over matter! Exactly. If you start out with a set of clear priorities for the day, and, as you guys advised me back at the start, a list of what''s most important to you, then it doesn''t feel stressful. You keep your eyes on the prize and don''t get wrapped up in details that aren''t so important. I just knew that I wanted to end up married, and to show my friends a good time with good tunes and good food in a pleasant space.

I haven''t decided about favours / gift bags. I think I might wait for something to inspire me, rather than try to think it through now. I''m not really fussed if we have them or not. Gift bags aren''t really done here so much. Which means if we did it it would actually be special (because unexpected). But it would be pricey to do it nicely. Hmmmm...

I just thought of another all important thing... how could I forget... THE BLING!!!! We need wedding rings. I''m pretty sure I want a 7 stone with 9 pointers set in platinum u-prongs (a la Kcoursolle''s ring). He wants a 4mm platinum comfort fit band. So I guess we should order those before platinum gets any more expensive.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

Hey Independent Gal,

I''ve been lurking on here for a bit (getting married next month) and just have to say that you have the right idea about planning a wedding. I think that so long as you are flexible, it''s not that stressful.

We were engaged in Feb. and I knew we needed to book the venue and I had to order my dress somewhat soon, so we had those things done by March. We literally waited until June to do everything else, haha, and it was fine. I found the officiant, florist, photographer, caterer, musicians, seamstress, salon for hair and makeup, veil, shoes, table/chair/china rental, centerpieces blah blah blah within a month and it was all done. We sent out the invites and have just enjoyed getting the RSVPs back.

We ordered the wedding bands a few weeks ago (that''s how I found this forum) and are having a completely normal, non-wedding-centric summer.

Some things like a final head count for the caterer, final fitting forthe dress and other odds and ends have to wait for a couple of weeks before the wedding, but even that isn''t really stressful. The only thing that can be at all stressful are the guests We''re having a tiny family-only wedding and even then you get extra RSVPs, logistical "can you pick me up from the airport" problems and overall typical family hoopla!

The only thing I can think of that''s not on your list is finding an officiant or JOP, hair/makeup (if you''re having it done) and that''s about it. I saw your dress in an earlier thread and I really love it!

 

[monarch64]

Good for you, IG! You ARE indeed a superbride!!! Maybe you could add to your list having a tee shirt made with the Superman emblem on it, only it could say "superbride!" LOL!

 

[april diamonds]

Wow!! You ARE super bride! And I thought I was ahead of schedule!!

I''ve been engaged 5 weeks and have already chosen a location (comes with caterer), photographer, and in fact I just ordered my dress tonight!!! O_O (if anyone was following my Champagne Dress - Yes or No? thread...)

But now I see that is nothing compared to Indy Gal here. ^_- Congrats!

 

[ephemery1]

Yay Indy!!! Glad you're feeling good about everything... it's so nice to have Phase 1 (ie., the big stuff) out of the way!!

For me, the stressful stuff was all the tiny little details... not because I cared so much about them, but because they just kept COMING... one after another after another. So my advice would be to keep writing down every little thing as you think of it (just like in your "already done" list above) so they're not just floating loose around your head, driving you crazy!

Even if it's just a fleeting thought... like "Hmmm, what song did FI say he wanted to be announced to?" or "Hey did I get back to the caterer about what color linens yet?" or "I guess I should have my dad check over the map in the welcome baskets to make sure it's accurate" or "Where did I see those earrings that went so perfectly with my dress?" They're not uber-important details... but each one represents a tiny little decision that will drive you insane unless you stay on top of them... take it from me.

...but at this rate, sounds like you will continue to breeze through everything!!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Also the good thing Indy is I doubt you will get stressed out later as well. I was so calm on my wedding day b/c you just can''t sweat the small stuff. I think that was one of the reasons my wedding went so well. Everything works out for the best.

 

[anchor31]

Good for you! I''m pretty much done planning myself except for the decorating details and such - 1 year in advance. I''m holding off ordering the dresses and invites, but if I did today, we''d be ready to get married in 6 months.

 

[Independent Gal]

Three Cheers for all the PS SUPER-BRIDES!!!

I love the idea of getting a Superbride t-shirt made. Or (BLUSH!) panties? There''s a place in Chicago that makes custom embroidered bride-underthings.

I am definitely continuing to keep lists. I thought of several more small things we''ll need to do: book flights, arrange legal documentation (2 citizenships, 4 countries, very complicated), write up our personal ''wedding contract'', figure out the order of the ceremony, do a website... So, we have a list and a timeline.

Should be A-OK.

Just those few guest-list hitches with my mom... but we''ll either get those sorted out or suck it up. It''s actually comparatively painless, I guess, compared with what some people go through.

 

[Harleigh]

Good job, Indy...I am sooo impressed!!!

Gosh...I''ve only been engaged for what, 3 or 4 weeks??? Shoot! I am definitely feeling behind now! I go back to school tomorrow, and the kids come back Tuesday...now I''m wondering how on earth I''m going to manage a Maui wedding next July all the way from here??? Egads!

Give me a virtual kick in the butt, will ya, Indy???

 

[Independent Gal]

Hey Harleigh, I think that most of those fancy Hawaiian hotels come with a wedding coordinator? That will sure help! Or you could get your kids to help you (what grade?) like Zoebartlett did. She had them write up cute little-kid things about love and marriage that she''s going to use in her ceremony. Awww!

The thing is, make a list, then assign a two-week period to each item, and you''ll see it''s fine. I did that at first, then kept getting multiple things done. I think it''s probably because I''m not inclined to keep shopping around once I''ve found what I want! I think it''s easy to just keep looking and looking... ok, and maybe fun too... if you want everything ''perfect''. But if you just want things really nice, then when you find what''s ''really nice'', you say ''YES'' and move on to the next item.

For me, the only perfect for me thing worth waiting for before I said YES was FI!!

 

[Harleigh]

LOL, Indy!

It sounds so easy when you put it that way! I can''t even get lists of names and/or addresses from FI, my mom and his mom, and that''s the only thing I''ve asked of ANY of them! It''s just killing me!

I do have my 99 cent ebay wedding dress AND bought 6 dresses on clearance at ROSS for possible BM''s dresses, so at least I''ve accomplished a little something!

School starts back up tomorrow, kids on Tuesday...my classroom isn''t ready yet, no wedding plans have been started, and I really think I''m losing my mind!!! I think I should just go to bed and sleep on it!

Thanks for the pep talk! J