To all those brides out there who are stressing about every big and little issue while preparing for your upcoming nuptials –

First of all, please give yourself a pat on the back. Planning a wedding is hard and you deserve to take some time out to treat yourself for all of the time, emotion and effort it takes to plan a wedding whether you are planning it on your own, with your family and friends or working with a planner – organizing a wedding can be tons of fun but is still a difficult task and you need to be good to yourself.

Second, there are ways to help yourself out as your big day draws nearer. After planning my wedding for a year and a half, I decided to take some key advice from my FAB (Friend and Bridesmaid) who suggested that I make the most of my wedding party. And so I did.

The month before my wedding I sat down and figured out what last minute details needed to be managed and sorted out the week of my wedding, including the To Do’s for the big day. I then divided up responsibilities amongst all of my bridesmaids as well as their dates and my groom-to-be, of course. Everyone was happy to help and excited to be part of the wedding.

For example, one of my friends accompanied me to the florist to finalize the floral arrangements, while my fiancé dealt with all last minute details with the venue. On the day of the wedding, one of my bridesmaids and my bridesman put together the cones for the floral petals and stuffed them while my maid of honor and another bridesmaid helped me to get ready. As I was close with my bridesmaids’ plus ones, I gave them duties as well such as directing parking and dog sitting during the ceremony. In fact, one of my bridesmaids’ dates who I didn’t know even volunteered to help queue the string quartet and band just because he wanted to be part of the festivities.

By delegating the major responsibilities of the day, I was able to sit back, relax and enjoy my wedding day without all the last minute logistical worries so that I could focus on the most important part of the day – my fiancé and I saying our vows and having a fabulous time celebrating with our family and friends!

So all I have to say to you is “Delegate! Delegate! Delegate!” – your friends and family are there for you so trust them to relieve some of the pressure on your big day so that you can have the time of your life…