I’m engaged! Let the chaos begin!

Yes, I just got engaged for real. I cannot express in words how excited I am to marry my amazing fiancé. Tyler is remarkable in every sense and I do know I am a really lucky girl. 🙂

We got engaged about 2 weeks ago, and have begun the hard work of planning the wedding. Readers, it is definitely way harder than I ever thought it could be. There are so many things to think about, people to consider, and money to be saved.

For example, I am from California, and my fiancé, Tyler, is from Illinois. But, we will be having our wedding in Alabama where went to school & met. Well, that means travel for our guests! I am getting a lot of input from people saying that isn’t wise, that I have to consider weather and money, and people won’t come. Some people have very strong opinions, and either don’t want to see it your way, or do not care. This is upsetting, and stressful to think about, but Tyler and I have decided that having it at school is important to us, and best for us, and so we have decided to stand firm.

Because we are having a hard time pleasing everyone we made up some important rules to help us cope with this exciting and stressful time:

1. We Breathe! Before we get upset, over-react, or want to scream, we make sure we take a deep breath. This helps us calm down and reset.
2. We spread out the work. I am lucky in the sense that my fiancé is really involved and wants to help. We work together and work on different tasks to make things run more smoothly. Also, we try to work on wedding stuff for a little bit each day. It makes it less overwhelming.
3. We set aside special time. We go on walks with our dog Reggie, we make dinner together, we watch movies, etc. and do not talk about the wedding. The special time is to enjoy each other and it gives us an opportunity to be in the present.
4. We remind each other we are excited to marry one another. It is important to keep that in mind, and know that the wedding day is just a big stepping stone to what is ahead for us in our life together.
5. We remember that this is about US. Our wedding day will be a day celebrating OUR love and OUR commitment to one another.  While we love and are grateful for a strong support system, this day is not about who was invited, who could not travel, what color the bridesmaid dresses are, etc. We try to make decisions based on what makes US happy.

One thing I try to remember is that none of the mess and chaos of the planning will matter at the wedding. The only thing that will matter to me that day is Tyler, and I know he feels the same way about me. We do try to take other peoples ideas and comments into consideration, but we really have to do what is best for us. Always remember your family loves you and you have their support even if they don’t agree with having fish at the reception and not steak. They really just want to see you happy.

Here is a link to some more information on preparing for marriage: http://www.twoofus.org/engaged/preparing-for-marriage/index.aspx

-Julianne (& Tyler!!)

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