What are/were your greatest challenges in wedding planning?

Ooooh Rebecca! I'm so sorry for not seeing this sooner. How are you feeling? How was your sister's wedding?

You know you can create a discussion whenever you want my dear and we'll do our best to help you in what you're going through. I can imagine it must have been a busy year for your family but you should definitely feel like you can count on everyone's support for your special day Let me know if I can help! xx How are you now?

Hi beautiful brides!I got engaged in may 2016, and My two little sisters decided to got engaged a couple of months after me (one in august, 21 years old and the other one last week 18 years old) . The one who got engaged in August is getting married this weekend... I'm happy for them, but I feel like my parents were not there for me at some important moment of my wedding planning and I sometimes feel alone.. but I'm feeling better

Hi Melissa I know what you mean... It can be difficult to deal with when people expect something from your wedding and don't seem to understand the way you want it to be. I like the idea of still having them involved in the planning or your gift idea. I'm sure it will make them feel like they're still involved somehow. Maybe they could be more involved in the reception too. Would you have them make a toast for instance?

My biggest challenge is the guest list. I know who I want to invite from my side of the family but my FH comes from a very large family and trying to get a list of who we should invited has been making me crazy because I think we should invite first cousins at the very least and he is bad with names so I have been trying to piece it together from people I have met at the reunion and funerals and obituaries (totally morbid) and facebook. He went to see his mom so I sent the list with him expecting him to come back with a completed guest list and what I got was a little bit written down (by his mom who has arthritis and English is not her first language) but primarily he recorded his mom in 3 or 4 different different clips that he wants me to listen to and figure it out from there. Also I have like 5 addresses and maybe 10 emails for 60 people. This is making me really really really crazy. I love him dearly but the guest list makes me want to scream and throw things.

My challeneges right now seem to be my bridesmaids... I can never get them together to do anything, I also worry about askng them to do anything because I dont want to seem like the needy bride so I have been doing everything myself ... I am pretty frustrated and feeling alone ... like maybe it would of been easier to not have any bridesmaids ....???......

The expectation that everyone comes to the ceremony was a big one- we are having our ceremony privately, and one of my friends could not understand that our desire to have a private, intimate ceremony. She was not very understanding of our desire for privacy, as most ceremonies are done immediately before the reception, and with the same audience.

I have also had a surprisingly negative response about my choice to not have a bridal party. I love that my friends want to be there for me, but at a ceremony with only 10 family members, it would not be right to invite freinds, when aunts, uncles and other important people have not been invited. I was not happy when she suggested that she may just come to the park regardless of our wishes and attend the ceremony anyway.

Ultimately, I think my friends are surprised/ hurt that I am not asking them to stand with me, or witness our wedding, but they will adjust. The big ceremony is not appealing to my FH and I. I have suggested that if my close freinds would like to be involved in some planning I would welcome suggestions for the reception venue, and company when I try on dresses...which all but one friend were very happy with. I plan on giving the friends who want to help a small thank you gift, as one might for a bridesmaid.

Hey Melissa! I know what you mean... It can be hard if you want to go for something people are not used to! What expectations have your friends tried to set for you?

That's great Terry!! What are your best tips to stay on budget?

I would say staying on budget. This was one of the things that we agreed on when deciding that we were getting married was not to spend to much . And I achieved that for under 4000$ for 70 guests

Our biggest struggle has been not giving in to the pressure from friends and some family memebers to have our wedding fit what they expect a wedding to look like. Our families have been mostly supportive, but friends have actually said some pretty hurtful things.

We are determined to have the wedding that will be meaningful and special to us- we are not trying to impress our guests with something that does not represent our love authentically.

Trying to come up with original ideas

Self control is killing me, my saving grace is that I don't have any pictures of me wearing the dress and I'm getting a lot of it custom. But I agree with you so hard to keep it a secret. I still have one year to go.

That's awesome! Very lucky indeed

I'm so complusive/excited I show like everyone! I just can't help myself!!! I figure it'll look totally different when the whole thing comes together... or at least that's how I justify it in my head. But I totally get wanting to wait and surprise everyone, I wish I had that much self control

I've been very lucky there hasn't been any drama and weird emotions so far everyone is being supportive and helpful

I have grandparents and siblings asking me about my dress, and I don't want anyone to know about my dress I truly want the element of surprise

I KNOW RIGHT!! It's killing me not to show my fiance! I accidentally had a picture open on my phone the other day and was talking with my hands while talking to him and he got upset that he saw it (but it was just the back)...OOPS! I'm going to have to be more careful from now on

Oh definitely the drama and weird emotions that weddings bring out in the people around you!

|For me the biggest challenge is keeping my bridal gown a secret only 2 people came with me my mom and my future mother in law. Nobody has a clue what my gown looks like and they keep hinting I really want to surprise everyone. I want the wow factor, but it's so stressful keeping quiet