Yes, he or she has finally proposed to you. Assuming you are happy with the marriage proposal and have said 'YES' 😛 I would like to update you on the stress level of your wedding day 'to be' and its lead time. Because hey, planning a wedding is not a big deal, as is apparent from the film The Wedding Planner! This step-by-step plan makes planning and arranging your wedding a bit easier.
Haven't seen The Wedding Planner yet? Then I suggest you plan a night out with your girlfriends and enjoy Jennifer Lopez and (especially) Matthew McConaughey together.
https://youtu.be/EoTiZO3g_Lk
But now… everything still has to be arranged for the 'most beautiful' day of your life! After that, after having children. The only question is where to start? First of all, it is important that you try to get some agreement with your partner in crime. Do you both think the same about an upcoming wedding, or does he (she) have completely different ideas?
Table of contents
I can tell you that we differed quite a bit about a wedding and how it should be planned. I actually didn't want to plan a wedding at all, but just had a nice meal with family. Frank, however, wouldn't be Frank if he couldn't make it a real party. So that was our first struggle, but we got through it well 😉 . We eventually found the golden mean to plan our wedding. Walking to the town hall, at 5 pm with champagne in our backyard, at 5:30 pm at the paella prepared by a friend who is a cook and snacks and drinks throughout the evening. Ending with a pool scene that everyone is still talking about!
Anyway, that was mine, now you have to plan your wedding!
That's why here's a handy checklist to make sure you don't forget anything and that you can fully enjoy each other on the day itself, together with your family and friends.
As long as you don't know when you want to get married, not much can happen and you can't plan a wedding. Nice and safe of course, but step number 1 must still be taken. So decide together when you will say yes to each other. Do you want nice weather? Or should it be a specific date because you have memories of that? Are you in a hurry, or do you have all the time? Pick that date!
Well, it's a legitimate question of course. The budget. What is your budget and how do you want to divide this budget? It is important when planning your wedding that you clearly discuss this with each other in advance. If necessary, keep a kind of budget booklet, so that you know exactly how or what. You don't want to get into a disagreement about money... that kills every relationship!
It can sometimes be a challenge to decide who to invite to your special day. So that was also a thing for us. And what do you invite people to? Both for the ceremony and the party or just the party?
Talk about the possibilities together, but also about that one annoying aunt who gets pissed if you don't invite her. No problem if you don't want them there, but make sure that you support this together and that any parents / parents-in-law know why this is the case. You don't have to defend yourself, but it's nice if they are aware, if only because they will probably get the full blow from that aunt 😛 .
One of the most important decisions when planning your wedding:what will the wedding location be? There are countless locations to choose from that you may not even have known you could get married there because they are used for different purposes. Start orienting yourself in time and request different quotes. Especially if you have a certain budget to take into account, because the prices can of course differ quite a bit!
Since we decided not to make any distinction between the people we invited, we made concessions in the wedding location… we sacrificed our garden. Do you think about that too? Don't forget that you have a lot of mess to clean up the next day 😉 , that's a big advantage of a location elsewhere. In this way everyone makes their own choices.
Do you want to keep everything in your own hands or do you also like it when others help you with the planning of the wedding and on the day itself? In the latter case, it is useful to think about, for example, a master of ceremonies. Who do you think can best take on this task? And - not unimportantly - would that person also like to do that for you? A wedding day also includes witnesses, who will fulfill this special task for you?
Whether or not wedding rings and what will they look like? Are you going for yellow gold, white gold or something completely different? And do you want to have something engraved in the rings? All nice things to think about. And of course the wedding attire:what will the dress code be? Something traditional or different from the usual? Or is there no dress code at all? Do you go for white or -just like me- do you go for something completely different?
I hardly dare to say it… but I found my dress in the first store I went to with my mother. And matching shoes in the shop next door! Bizarre right? In addition, my first photo in the wedding dress was that I was vacuuming my house. How do you find that 😛 .
We had the wedding rings given by Luc by the way. so cute! Such a small man (over 2 years old) who comes to indicate the wedding rings with a chain around his neck.
In addition to the above-mentioned matters, there are also less romantic/fun things that should not be forgotten, such as entering into marriage and collecting the necessary documents to be able to get married.
Now I can hear you thinking… betrothal? Yes, betrothed! This way the municipality has time to assess whether you can really get married together 😉 . A check on age, whether you are not related to each other, etcetera.
You decide together who will and who will not be invited. That is clear, but you can still invite your guests of course. Do this somewhat ahead of time so that your guests also have the chance to clear their agenda if they already have something planned. You are not the only one who has to plan the wedding 😉 . So don't come two weeks in advance with your invitation, ok?
Also think about how you will invite your guests. Are you going for a traditional ticket? Then it is also nice to send a card from your child(ren), when mom and dad are getting married.
Or, for example, a nice spontaneous video that you record and send around, also nice!
Go for a mode of transport that suits your style. That can be a limo, a sports car, but maybe also a tuk tuk. Or just walking, like we did, but keep an eye on your shoes . Choose what you feel comfortable with.
You probably have a song that is very special to you. Not? Then it's time to think about this, because besides the fact that you probably want to hear it on the evening of your wedding itself, music is often played at the wedding location during the ceremony. How beautiful it is if it is music that you have chosen yourself because it is special to you. Within Temptation it was with us! And I may not be such a romantic… this music always gives me a lump in my throat!
Do you want a DJ or a band on the evening itself? Depending on your choice, you will also have to address your budget, pay attention to this!
Make no mistake… this is another topic to consider when planning your wedding. Whether or not a wedding cake? And if you have a reception… what is served there? Perhaps you will dine with a private club after the reception, then you will also have to think about the menu.
And then the evening. A beer, a glass of wine and the necessary refreshments. Are you going for a nice Dutch treat with a bitterballet and a cheese sandwich at the end? Or are you - just like us - lucky enough to have one of your friends as a cook? Because we took it easy for the rest of the wedding plans, we had a considerable budget to spend on food and drinks. Everyone was there with us from start to finish! Drinks and food for everyone .
The decoration of the wedding location is not entirely unimportant. After all, it's a party. Check in advance whether the wedding location can mean something in this and whether it is included in the price or whether you have to take care of this yourself. And maybe as a bride you also want a beautiful bouquet, so keep that in mind when planning your wedding. Only choose a bouquet after you have arranged your wedding clothes, so you know that the whole fits together nicely. But do what feels right to you, not what someone else thinks is important. No bouquet (just like me) ? Also great!
Of course it is nice to capture memories for later. If you are planning a traditional wedding, you will probably choose a photographer. In any case, ask for his portfolio so that you can see what kind of work he does. But of course there are also other fun things to do than the 'standard' photographer. For example, we asked some of our friends to record something during the ceremony and we all had cameras on the standing tables in our garden. Everyone takes snapshots throughout the evening, super spontaneous! This fit exactly with the wedding I had in mind. Making nice bits of film… that's what I think I would do now, if I could do it all over, plan that wedding.
So, the party is over, now relax and enjoy. Or clean up the mess first if you've held the party at home. A honeymoon is the perfect opportunity to get off to a great start together. Arrange everything well in advance so that you only have to pack your things and immediately leave for the destination of your choice.
Are you going the day after your wedding? Then keep an eye on your partner on the night of the wedding. We had such a good time that I was able to clear his stomach contents all over the house all day after the wedding. So leaving that day was out of the question 😉 .
You can of course thank your guests by giving them something sweet or beautiful as a reminder. That's how it used to be and it still is regularly. Personally, I don't care much for that, so I think these thank you notes go in the trash quite often, don't you think? Unless you make it very original of course. Anyway, if you are planning a traditional wedding, you can also think about the bridal sugar.
Tip:psssttt… haven't you proposed yet? Then take advantage of the 10 hotspots for a marriage proposal! Read also: 10 hotspots for a marriage proposal
I say… enjoy planning your wedding, because before you know it you are planning children's parties that you say to you and you are not looking for a wedding location but a location for a children's party because you don't have all that small grunt in you can lose the house!
