Happy Monday!!!

It is officially a new year and we are so excited to dive in and get started with our amazing couples! I hope that your holiday season was full of family, friends, food and fellowship!

For some of you it was EXTRA special because you received that proposal from your significant other and you have been upgraded to FIANCE!!!!

Congratulations!!!!!  It is now time to plan a wedding…right?????? By this time all of your family and friends have seen your social media post or gotten the news and your phone is going crazy with texts about the wedding…

Well no fear! Your Stohr-ee telling planning expert is here to save you from feeling stressed out before you even start planning.

10 steps to a stress free planning experience!

10. Enjoy just being engaged for at least a month– There is no need to rush and make any decisions right away.  Take time to enjoy the giddiness that comes from being engaged and be sure to show off your ring and tell the proposal story to any and everyone!

9. Set a Wedding date– This is a conversation between you and your fiance. This is one of your first major decisions as a couple and you should make it together…Alone.  If you are choosing a popular month like April, June or October be prepared to have a secondary date or two just in case your favorite venue is booked already. Once you have decided on a date together, then you are welcome to discuss it with family first and then everyone else.

8. Consult with a PROFESSIONAL Wedding Planner- This is critical for several reasons.  First and foremost, you have absolutely NO idea what a wedding can cost.  You have a plumber look at your pipes, a mechanic to look at your car and hire a roofer for your house, why would you not have a professional on one of the most important days of your life! Your friend or family member who “helps” with all the family weddings is not up on the latest and greatest and will cost you a lot of time and money.

Secondly, you have no idea if your dream wedding is realistic for your budget. A professional wedding planner can tell you if you are off on your projections and give you an idea of what you will be spending. This is also a perfect time to hire a planner, because this will make numbers 1-7 a lot easier. I could dwell here for a while, but we will move on to number 7

7. Sit down with your family to discuss the budget– Only do this if your family is helping to pay for the wedding. If they are not financially responsible for any part of the wedding feel free to skip this step. It will eliminate a lot of stress if you keep the money details to yourself.

6. Bridal party– In my experience as a Professional wedding planner, the bridal party is by far and away one of the top 3 stressors of the couple during planning. There is NO NEED for you to have 15 bridesmaids and groomsmen unless they are all direct relatives or exceptionally close to you.

Set a criteria for those who will be closest to you. Do you speak with them regularly? Are they willing to help you and be there for you? Can they afford to be in your wedding? Theses are only some of the questions you should ask of each person that will be standing with you.  Lastly if they tell you they would prefer to be a guest, don’t be angry, that means they can afford a really nice gift…lol!

5. Pre-marital Counseling– Every single couple that gets married needs to have some kind of pre-marital counseling. If it is not offered through your church there are marriage and family counselors that offer those services. In addition you will get a discount on your marriage license and some tools for a successful marriage.

4. Where will you live?–  I would not advise starting a house hunt while planning a wedding. That is 2 major changes happening at the same time and can cause lots of stress and arguments. If you aren’t already living together, I would advise condense your living situations and look for a home after the wedding…you will be glad you did!

3. Financial Planner– One of the top 2 reasons for divorce is your finances. In addition to counseling, sit down with a financial planner and go over each of your fiances and make a plan for your new joint life. Each of you need to go into your marriage knowing about any debt or issues and have a plan for it. One of my favorites is Financial Peace University by Dave Ramsey. 

2. Trust your Wedding planner– If you don’t trust your planner you should not be working with them. You should trust our planning schedule and also meet our deadlines for your wedding planning journey.  We can not make this happen without your cooperation and above all BE HONEST  with us. If there are secrets from your planner about your wedding or your family then you are just setting us up to fail you as your planner.

1. Get Married!!!!!!– Your wedding day will go by soooo fast. Be present, enjoy it and have fun. Let your planner and their team handle the details, because that is what we are paid to do.