Hey guys! :) I'm so happy to say that this is the last Wedding Wednesday blog. Well, I will share pics of the wedding afterwards of course, but as Ken and I are getting married this Sunday, I am signing off as blogger bride and will be exchanging the Wednesday posts about floral arrangements and bridesmaid dresses with a blog about being a wife and having a family.

I hope you'll continue to follow along. And with the wedding-planning craziness behind us, I promise I will be posting more often again with fashion, beauty, home decor, and new recipe posts. In the meantime, I'll be taking the week off for the most part, because my soon-to-be husband has several days off next week, and I will be spending the next few days prepping last-minute details. But first, here are some tips I'd like to pass on to any future brides and grooms.

Take Your Time

Sometimes when you know, you just know. Ken and I dated for a short time (like 3 days) before we were certain that we wanted to be exclusive and less than six months before we got engaged. We knew we both wanted to be together. We spent almost a year, however, being engaged. I'd say one year give or take is important for both logistic and financial reasons as well as for the relationship. You need time to really imagine marrying this person. Did you fall in love with the person for who they really are? Or did you get swept up in how they temporarily made you feel? Because marriage and real love is about choosing to stay connected and choosing to continue to act in a loving way even when you don't feel like it. And when you have moments during which you fail to do so, which inevitably you will, you have to be able to forgive each other and just move forward as quickly as possible. This is easy to do with someone you truly love and truly want to be married to.

And you need time to go through the ups and downs that come with life, parenting, finances, health issues, intimacy, insecurities, etc. Ken and I moved in together and blended our families earlier this year, and I'm so glad we did. It not only gave us time to get the kids adjusted, but it gave us time to experience the good and the bad together. And our conclusion time and time again has been that we truly are both loving towards each other and our kids, and that we are always better when we're together. So any cold feet here? Not a chance.

Invite Whoever or However Many People You Want

Our wedding is small...like 20 people after receiving rsvp's. And that is no shock to us considering we inviting little over 30. I have a very small family, and we only invited people who we've hung out with or talked to in the last year or so. It's tempting to invite every single second cousin or person on your friend list, or coworkers, but think about it...it's one of the most important days of your life, and you are celebrating with the person you love. You should be surrounded by people who are genuinely happy for you, not people who are there for the open bar or are looking to meet someone themselves. I've been to weddings during which someone's estranged uncle showed up purely for a free meal, another relative made loud comments during the reception about how bad she thought the food was, and one of the bridesmaid's said she was only crying during the ceremony because she was thinking that she was going to be single for the rest of her life. I simply want to celebrate this special day with my fiance and our best friends who are happy for our marriage.

I know the dilemma for some women is that they want a beautiful formal wedding and therefore feel like there should be a decent amount of guests, but it's all about the venue. A beautiful mansion or Inn is the perfect place to have the intimate yet formal wedding of your dreams.

Remember That It's Your Wedding After All

As we've chosen to be a bit picky with how we spend our wedding day, or the fact that we didn't want a separate bachelor's or bachelorette party, we faced some backlash here and there, even people saying things like "You're acting like it's all about you." Um...well, it kinda is, isn't it? The people who are your best friends will be there to say, "It's your wedding...what can I do to help?" or "It's your bridal shower...how do you want to celebrate it?" But while it is all about you, don't forget to acknowledge and thank the people who are there. As my fiance has written about in one of his blogs, it's important to give credit where credit is due...to invest in the people who have been supportive. I'm so very thankful for our bridal party, and you can bet my bridesmaids are getting some very pretty gifts.:) I am so looking forward to getting a bit of extra time with them before it's time to put on the dress and start posing for pics.

I'm also looking forward to spending the earlier hours in the morning with my groom, having our last cups of coffee in bed before we officially become married, and well as the evening before. We are so not into the whole can't see the bride before the wedding or have to sleep in separate places the night before nonsense.

The Only Traditions Worth Incorporating Are the Ones You Want

It's easy to feel like you have to do the ceremony a certain way or that you have to follow certain traditions, but you totally don't! Feeling obligated to traditions can lead to doing things you don't really want to do or inviting people you don't really want to invite. I'm not doing a bouquet toss, we don't have a ring bearer, and we are going to see each other before the wedding. We are the ones getting married, after all, so if I want to do the running man down the aisle, I will. Don't worry though...I'm gracefully walking down the aisle to the "Who Is She" song from the newest Cinderella soundtrack.

Remember That Everything Will Work Out

As it gets closer, the cost adds up and the stress levels can rise. But as my fiance reminded me last night and my maid of honor reminded me this morning, it will all be okay and everything will work out just fine. That is life after all...unexpected things come up and challenges arise, but in the end everything works out. It's the journey along the way that can make or break you. So just relax, focus on the good, and enjoy it!

Keep Your Eyes on the Prize

In the end, it's a day for you and your groom to exchange vows, to celebrate your love for each other...and to look amazing and get some great family photos.:) Whenever I get stressed over the planning process, I remember what it feels like to be in my big, beautiful dress, I imagine being in our beautiful venue, and most important, I imagine being with Ken. I'm going to love every minute of posing for photos, exchanging vows, kissing, and dancing with my husband.:)
 
I'll try to get in a few new Christmas posts before next weekend, but until then, you can find all of my previous holiday tips and recipes featured below on the home page (web version) or here >. I hope you have a great weekend and continue to enjoy the holiday season.

You can follow on Instagram for more posts this week as well as some wedding day pics, and you can follow our wedding hashtag #kenandkrisztina2016