Avoiding Wedding Planning Challenges and Enjoying Your Day

This day may be all about you and your fiancé, but that doesn’t mean that you want to be rude and not take into account what is important to other people. But when the parents, grandparents, and even others, try to force their will into things and don’t listen to what you want in a wedding, it can cause some problems.

The best way to handle this is to pick your battles. If you aren’t too concerned about what the invitations look like, but your mother-in-law really wants something fancy, then let her choose them out. No one is going to be bothered by that. If you are lost on what to do for centerpieces, go with that crazy idea that your fiancé has. There are so many details to a wedding to start with, so why fight over all the little things.

Who is Supposed to Pay for What?

You need to sit down and discuss the finances of the wedding from the beginning to ensure everyone is on the same page. Traditionally, the bride’s family would take the wedding expenses and the groom’s parents would do the rehearsal. But times have changed. Many couples are older now and pay for their own weddings to keep the burden off their parents and to have more control. And it is possible that your parents may have no plans to pay for it or aren’t able to afford it.

Sit down with your partner and see where the finances will come from. You can also sit down with each set of parents and see what they are comfortable with as well. Once you have some of the numbers from both parents, you can then have a good idea of how much you are willing to spend for the wedding as well. This gives you a good place to start.

It is never a good idea to get started planning on the wedding and assume that your parents, or the brides, will pay for it all. You may get a rude awakening later when you find out that the number is much smaller than you anticipated, or if they won’t pay for any of it. On the other hand, you and your fiancé may assume you will pay for it all, and cause some hurt feelings when one or both sets of parents want to help. This is why open communication about finances from the start is important.

Bad Guest Requests for Music

Do you know your uncle is going to come and ask for that inappropriate song during the reception and you are worried about how to handle the issue? You could talk to them upfront and let them know you don’t appreciate that song, but this isn’t always a guarantee that things will get fixed. In this case, you may want to have a discussion with your DJ ahead of time.

Let them know whether you want guests to give suggestions in the first place. Most couples do this to make sure there is a steady stream of music and that everyone will have a good time. You can also fill out a form of all songs that you absolutely refuse to have played during the wedding. Fill this out with some of the songs that you want avoided at all costs. This list is just as important as your must play list too.

Planning a wedding is meant to be a magical experience. You plan to use that day as the start of your new life with someone you love dearly. You want all the details to fall into place and everything to go perfectly. But with so much to put together, and sometimes on a short time frame, it can seem overwhelming in no time.

There are a number of challenges that come up when you plan a wedding. The exact ones you will face will depend on your wedding and what you want to accomplish. Being prepared for some of these challenges and learning how to overcome each one will ensure that you can plan the perfect day, without all the stress. Some of the main challenges you may face when planning your wedding includes:

Choosing the Right Location

There are many options when it comes to choosing a location for your wedding. Whether you want to have it at a specific church, a destination wedding, or somewhere else, you need to have a good plan in place for the location for your wedding event. If everyone lives close to your hometown and you decide to host the event there, then it is unlikely you need to worry about people not being able to come.

The more unique your location though, the more likely that someone won’t be able to come. For example, destination weddings can be romantic and fun, but it is unlikely that many people in your family will be able to attend. Consider whether this is a problem or concern for you.

Once you pick a location, look at some of the venues that are available in that location. Will they work for your needs or do you need to get creative? You need a place to host the event in your location, so always keep that in mind while making the decision.

Handling the Plus-Ones 

It is likely that a single relative or friend that you invite to the wedding will want to bring a plus-one with them. But if your venue is strict on the guest count, you may need to eliminate the plus-one to make sure you meet your bottom line.

One solution that you can consider for this is to only extend the plus-one to those on your guest list with a significant other who has been around a long time, whom you’ve met, or someone they are engaged or married to. Make sure that all invitations are addressed with whether the plus-one is encouraged or not so you won’t have to turn anyone away at the front door.

Uncooperative Bridesmaids

While there should be some give and take during this time (do not ask your bridesmaids to spend thousands of dollars on the wedding and get mad when they refuse), it can be a challenge if some of the bridesmaids try to overstep their boundaries and work too hard to get what they want, instead of what you want. Be flexible for the bridesmaids when you can and limit how many responsibilities that you try to force onto them, especially if they are still in school or they live out of state and can’t make it to a lot of events.