2. The First Step in Wedding Planning

Welcome to Episode #2 of Before I Do! 

So today we are talking about the FIRST thing that should be done after you get engaged: host a “Wedding Dream Sesh” with your fiance. 

What we mean by this is to have a chat with your fiance about your wildest wedding dreams and expectations. This may sound kind of fluffy, but we think it is SO necessary. You’d be shocked at how many couples we’ve worked with where we are in a meeting and one fiance is SHOCKED at the ideas the other fiance is spitting out. Or how many times we're deep into planning and the groom joins for a meeting and is just blown away by the plans we’re working on or the budget. We think it’s extremely important to plan this thing TOGETHER and know what is important to the other when it comes to planning. 

So, here’s what we suggest for your “Wedding Dream Sesh”:

1. Pick a day a couple of weeks after you get engaged (give yourself a little time to really celebrate before starting the business talk)
2. Make it a date night! Go to a fun restaurant or coffee shop, but somewhere you can pull out your notebook and have a good chat. 
3. Talk about the following and kind of flesh out each of them:
   • Wedding Size
   • Location 
   • Time of year
   • BUDGET - who will be contributing? How much do each of you want to contribute? Who is paying for what family wise?
   • What are the most important aspects of the wedding to each of you? AKA: where do you want your money to be spent?
   • How “traditional” do you want things to be? Prime example: paper vs digital RSVP’s?
   • What type of ceremony do you want to have? Religious? Non religious? Do you want a friend to officiate? Or a member of a church? 
   • What cultural/religious traditions do you want included?
   • What are your expectations for family involvement?
   • Do you want to DIY a lot of things?
   • How big of a wedding party do you want to have?
   • When/where do you want to honeymoon? Leave immediately after? Or wait a while? 
   • Band vs DJ?
   • Do you want to really focus on guest experience or have a simple guest experience?
   • Any family dynamics you need to discuss?
   • What have you seen at weddings that you LOVE/what have you seen that you HATE?

So, basically get on the same page with what’s important to you, what are your biggest wedding dreams, what you want, and what you don’t want when it comes to the wedding. The goal is to plan together and set a solid foundation for planning! 

If there is a topic you’d like us to touch on, please let us know by sending a note to thebeforeidopodcast@gmail.com

Be sure to check us out on Instagram: 

@beforeidopodcast

@jacksonandjuneevents

And check out our website for all your wedding planning needs: www.jacksonandjuneevents.com