Wedding Planning that Nurtures Your Relationships

People say the most stressful thing one can do is plan a wedding! Is it even possible to plan a wedding in a way that nurtures your relationships and doesn’t pull people apart? I promise that navigating your relationships during wedding planning can be filled with joy and ease once you set up the right foundation for wedding planning!

The to-do lists, the feelings you don’t want to hurt, the money flying out the window, the vision you so desperately want to achieve, the family members who keep telling you how you are “supposed to” do things! It’s enough to make you want to elope or plan a small wedding!

But let me tell you, you can have it ALL – absolutely STRESS-FREE! It’s all about setting expectations & not letting fear into your planning process. 

Haley Rynn Ringo Photography

This is going to be part of a larger blog post series on managing stress during wedding planning and on the wedding day. The way we plan our weddings have a lot to do with our personalities and how we handle (or fall into) stress! If you are an introvert like me, planning something on a large scale like a wedding can be more than overwhelming. I want to share with you the 5 tools I used to help plan my wedding as an introvert and stay sane! Once you tackle knowing your personality planning style you can implement the tactics below.

Let’s start with the people you have in your life & how you can best set up your relationships to thrive during this time of change, distractions, and pressures.

As you begin your wedding planning journey, it’s crucial to make sure you and your soon-to-be-spouse are on the same page.

Take time to sit down and discuss your expectations for the actual wedding day. What is a reasonable budget? Who you want to marry you two? How do you choose a potential guest list? Can you budget for a wedding planner? Taking these items into consideration now, allows you to hand things over when the time is right so you can enjoy your wedding like a guest.

In order to effectively navigate your relationships while wedding planning, communication is key when it comes to having the real wedding of your dreams! Not just the kind that makes pretty pictures worthy of pinning on Pinterest.

Make sure you surround yourself with understanding people.

Do you have a friend who is constantly venting about all the drama in their life? Or know someone who has consistently not shown up for you in times of need? It’s a good idea to think deeply if you want that kind of vibe around you while wedding planning.

You want to have friends around you that are soothing, will help shoulder the burdens, will take the time to listen and offer support, and aren’t always asserting their opinions or judgments about your choices.

Sloane Photography | Peterson Design and Photography

This also applies to vendors too. Do your research and really ask yourself if these vendors reflect the same vibe. Will they be a joy or a regret on your big day? If you feel stuck on not knowing where to find the best vendors, turn to trusted resources like Every Last Detail Blog. They have vetted and verified wedding vendors they are so happy to recommend!

Now that you’ve got yourself a “bride tribe” that you can depend on, be ready to let them know when you need help!

As you navigate your relationships while wedding planning, find out what your friends and family are really good at and delegate smaller items to them. This is also a good time to set their expectations, which might sound like a strange concept. Everyone has their own idea of what a wedding should be, but this is your day.

To help avoid confusion or hurting someone’s feelings open up communication. Let people know upfront anything special, important, or different you are doing for your big day so they know what to expect.

When you know you’ve got a bigger task in front of you that you cannot tackle on your own, call in the professionals.

Hiring someone who cooks for a living can help you gauge how much actual food to have at your event. Allowing an artist to capture the sweet in-between moments will give you priceless memories that you hang up in your home and pass down for generations. Handing over your wedding timeline on the big day will give you room to breathe.

Don’t you want to be so totally in the moment you never check a clock to make sure things are happening on time? Knowing you have a solid team to carry the logistics of your big day, allows you to spend time navigating your relationships while wedding planning.

Becca Murray Photography

Sometimes it’s hard to articulate what you want, so it’s also important to show your vendors what it is you want. Be open and honest. The more information you give to those around you, the more things will start to fall in place.

No wedding is perfect, so it’s time to let go of your expectations of things looking a certain way.

Little things fall through the cracks, but that doesn’t mean your wedding isn’t absolutely perfect for you! Instead, maintain perspective by focusing on loving yourself, and spending quality time with your forever love. This means planning time to hang out and not talking about the wedding.

If you are looking for things to do together while you are engaged, take a look at this list for some practical and whimsical ideas!

I hope you feel encouraged knowing that navigating your relationships while wedding planning with an open heart and an open mind is possible! Spend time building a solid foundation for your marriage where decisions are made together, where trust is highly sought after, and forgiveness is never a question. 

Happy planning sweet couples!