On your mark, get set, PLAN!

While Rob is gearing up for the Boston Marathon, I feel like I'm in a different kind of race...

Venue? Check
Band? Check
Dress? Check
Florist? Check
Bridesmaid dresses, cake, hair/makeup and lighting? Check, check, check and check

Since the day I got engaged, it has felt like I'm in a race against the clock..or calendar. Ok, maybe I gave myself a week or two to just get used to the new relationship status, share the news and enjoy my new bling, but soon thereafter I realized along with the ring came a checklist a mile long. I started setting goals for myself each month. I wanted a church and reception venue by the 4th of July, a band picked out by the end of August, and to find and order my dress within the 2 day span in October when my Mom and future Mother-in-law flew to Boston to go shopping with me...luckily I fell in love with and ended up buying the very 1st dress I tried on. Somehow I've met almost all of the timeline goals I have set for myself, and it feels so good each time I can say check! Each check brings you one step closer to the day you have been waiting for, the day you can't wait for.

But what I am realizing now, more so than at any other point in the last 10 months, is that what people tell you when you first get engaged is true. Enjoy all the planning, no matter how stressful or overwhelming it may seem, because your engagement goes by before you know it. Take the time to enjoy being the bride-to-be, because it'll only happen once. Buy the wedding magazines, spend the extra time and money on the things you want for your big day, and try to have fun picking out just the right font for your invitations even when the website is driving you crazy!

My wedding is less than 4 months away now, and I can't even explain how crazy that sounds to me. I've reached an in between time, where most of the major things have been checked off my list, but the craziness of meeting with all the vendors to finalize the details hasn't yet begun. So I'm going to put down the pen and checklist and just enjoy this special time, because July 31st will be here before I know it, and once you are married you can never be the bride-to-be again.