Part 1: Words of Wisdom from a Past Bride

I know how you must feel planning this day that you want to be perfect. Perhaps you're stressed out over your budget, unhappy because people aren't RSVP'ing or booking their trips like they should before the deadline, or maybe you're panicking because you haven't heard back from your wedding coordinator in a few days -- or has it been a week? I get it, I was there. Wedding planning, while exhilarating and exciting, can be really, really hard.

So here are some tips from me (a past bride who went through it all, including the threat of borders closing because of the swine flu and drug cartels ) to help get you through this journey as a bride-to-be.

1. Don't sweat the small stuff and take a deep breath before you handle the big stuff. There will be times when you find yourself breaking down over the smallest of details. I remember going into a slight panic when I found out one of the colors of my bridesmaids' dresses was being discontinued. My then fiancé recalls me going into a crazed frenzy because the three bridesmaids wearing that color still hadn't bothered to get their dresses despite my constant reminders to "get it done." They eventually did and all was well. But it didn't happen without me pretty much losing it LOL. So before you decide this new problem is worth calling the whole thing off, step back and look at the big picture. Will this issue completely ruin your Wedding Day? Will it prevent you from doing what's most important -- marrying the one you love? Don't make any rash decisions or fly off the handle, if time permits, give yourself 48-72 hours to assess the situation/problem and go from there.

2. Not everyone will be able to attend your destination wedding and you need to accept that. The beauty of having a destination wedding is that sharing I Do's in a place far from home will weed out the people you didn't really want to invite but felt obligated to. Admit it, you know exactly who I'm talking about. The sad but true part is that there will be some people who you knew for sure would be at your wedding, that simply won't be able to make it -- for whatever reason. We had some people tell us they couldn't afford it or they simply couldn't take time off work. And then there were those who didn't want to travel to foreign country. We listened to reasons of every kind. I also lost someone who I thought was my best friend because of my destination wedding. About two weeks before we were going to leave, she told me her sons' father wouldn't give her permission to take the boys to Mexico. I later found out, not only was she probably making up that excuse, she was also trying to convince my other best friend not to go either. Yep, I soon realized she wasn't the person I thought she was all along. Was I heartbroken and sad? Yes, but I didn't let her lack of wanting to be a part of my Big Day bother me. She wasn't going to stop me from having the wedding of my dreams -- see advice point #1.

3. Be in the moment. You spend months, maybe years like me, planning for your Wedding Day. So when the time arrives for your destination wedding experience to begin, don't forget to soak it all in. I cannot emphasize enough how quickly our Wedding Day will fly by -- you wake up the day of your wedding and before you know it, it's over. Trust me! So take some time throughout your Big Day to look at everything and let your senses take it all in. Look around at all the beautiful details, inhale the fragrance and smells that waft through the air, listen to the music and the voices of your family and friends, taste and enjoy your delicious meal and drinks, touch your new spouse's hand and kiss him/her deeply -- enjoy it all. This is your Wedding Day -- live it, breathe it, love it, and enjoy every moment.

Don't forget to check back for Part 2 of Wisdom from a Past Bride!

- - -

About me: I am a former BDW Bride AKA as MarieSam and was addicted to this forum as I planned my own wedding in 2009. Since 2010, I have been the proud owner of MarieSam Sanchez Photography -- a husband and wife photography team based in Southern California and documenting love all over the world.