Have you ever felt like you have so much to do that you don’t
know where to start? You get so overwhelmed that you just push everything aside
(mentally and physically) and focus on an insignificant task that makes you
feel better in the short term. IE – I have been trying to “eat clean” these
past few days to shed a few extra water weight pounds and have been consumed
with it. When I start on a project, I start to obsess over it. I made a grocery
list of all fruits and veggies and left the store with about 10 bags of food.
My fridge is stuffed with melons, berries, apples, oranges, lettuce, broccoli,
cauliflower, carrots, peppers, etc…Heck I even bought a Papaya for goodness
sake?! Have you ever bought a Papaya? It sounded good and it is good…But, there
really is no need for ALL of that food to be in my house. As I sit and think, I
realize that I am trying to distract myself from what I really need to be
focusing on.
Work has been intense and there are some projects that I
could be focusing more time on. The wedding planning had come to a halt for a
few weeks, but we are back in action and scheduled a meeting with a few DJs
this week. I am hoping to nail down DJ and cake this month. I have an event
that I will be styling at the end of the month that I have not even started
storyboarding. I have so many DIY projects that I want to tackle and post on
the blog…The list goes on…That is the thing that helps me calm down and focus…Making lists! I make lists for
everything in my life! Daily lists…lists for lists! No joke! It works. It feel
so great to check off those lists and see physically that I have accomplished a
goal, no matter how small or insignificant it may be.
Much like in life, when planning for a large event (such as
a wedding) it is important to know your priorities. Physically write them down.
Discuss them with your partner to make sure you are on the same page. Ours went
like this:
1)
A day that we will remember and look back on as
the best day of our lives. A day that we can declare our love for each other in
front of friends, family and God. More mushy stuff…you get the point. This is
obviously the first priority for many couples getting married.
2)
Being married in a church – We pondered this a
bit when we found out that our church had another wedding schedule on our date.
We had to push back our wedding start time to 5:00 pm (yes, I know that
typically couples get married at the half hour so the hands are on the upswing,
but this I will discuss maybe in a later post). Our venue is scheduled for 6 –
midnight, so we didn’t want to cut in too much time from our venue rental time
block. I always wanted to have an evening wedding, so this is fine with me. I’m
glad we are able to get married in the church where we will become members. We
will bring our children to this church and will have memories there for years
to come. Of course, church weddings are not for everyone and there are
certainly so many venues that are able to host ceremonies and reception in one
place. This is completely a personal choice and one that should obviously be
discussed between the bride and groom.
3)
Location - Location being Columbus. We thought
about a destination, but we both have some close relatives that would not be
able to travel that we would want there. Also, we don’t like the feeling of
putting any one out and having people pay for traveling arrangements. Now this
is completely our own opinion and I absolutely understand the idea of a
destination wedding, it is just not for us.
4)
Atmosphere – For me the ambiance and décor is
very important, being an event stylist and attracted to all things aesthetic. I
was looking for a venue that was elegant, chic and romantic but with a minimalist
feel because I wanted the décor to pop. The venue we chose (the Ivory Room) was
perfect for my vision. We both want to cater to our guests, so the big open
space of our venue will allow guests to move about and shake their groove things
on the open dance floor. This is why we chose the venue that we did.
I’m going to stop there because I don’t want to bore you too
much with wedding details. Of course, we do take into consideration the BUDGET.
Ahhh…the dreaded budget. One of the first things you should do as an engaged
couple is talk about your budget for a wedding. Are the bride’s parents paying
or helping to pay? Or do you need to pitch in. Are both sets of parents helping?
I’ve heard every combination, so it is completely up to what you and your
signif (and parents) decide works best.
So, when it comes to priorities…WRITE THEM DOWN! Discuss if
there are others that need to be involved. Before you start signing vendor
contracts and trying on wedding gowns…You must first decide on what is
important to you as a couple for your special day and go from there…
I hope this helps you as it has helped me :)
