For most of us, we dream about the day when our favorite person, our lover, and best friend in the world will get down on one knee, profess his love, and ask for our hand in marriage. It's all dreamy and wonderful in our minds, but when it actually happens, it's a happy time but filled with stress.
The questions start flying...
"Who's going to be in your wedding party?"
"When are you getting married?"
"Did you pick out your color scheme?"
"Are the groomsmen going to wear tuxes or suits?"
"Where are you going to have the wedding?"
"Will my kids be invited?"
"What's your dress going to look like?"
"Are you going to wear your hair up or down?"
"Are you going to have roses in the bouquets because you know I'm deathly allergic?"
AHHHH!!!! Seriously. What do people think you've been doing for your entire life, planning a wedding? For most of us, we were so concerned with getting engaged [0], that we never thought much past that.
Just because you are engaged does NOT mean you know every last detail about your future wedding. So enjoy this extraordinary time and don't let other people's nosiness get in the way.
Want to know how to ditch the stress? Then
- Politely tell people that you haven't made any decisions yet, that you and your fiancé (awww, you can call him that now) are just enjoying the incredible feeling of being in love. When people start handing you advice, you can always be the nice sweet bride and say "Thanks for your suggestion. I'll think about that when we start planning."
- To relax, instead of doing something like a gentle yoga class, choose an hour of pumped up cardio instead. It'll distract you from wedding thoughts.
- Get advice from other recent brides. Learn from their mistakes and get tips from someone who knows what you're going through.
- Sick of the unsolicited and crazy advice from everyone? Just say "Interesting. I'll have to think about that." It is polite and wonderfully non committal. You committed to your finacé, so you can blow off those silly suggestions that keep coming your way.
- Take a trip to the bookstore. Pick up some bride magazines and books about planning a wedding so you'll feel more prepared about making decisions.
- Definitely celebrate, but at the same time continue taking care of yourself. As tempting as it is to go out every night toasting your joy with oodles of champagne and brownie sundaes, you still want to eat healthy and stay active. Remember to celebrate in moderation.
- When you are ready to start making some decisions about the big day, check out Dear's Wedding Time Line [1].