I won't say 'I told you so'. . .

I mentioned how I'm super crazy with the pre-planning, right? 

I may or may not have also mentioned that I get a lot of lighthearted-but-completely-serious-in-sentiment comments akin to "that shit cray" when I mention that I want to start my favors and see what they look like, or that I have certain things booked. But, friends, I am not alone. Take it from Mrs. Sparkler over at Wedding Bee. . . 

An excerpt:

"I’m not going to lie… the actual week of our wedding was pretty stressful. All of the “little” projects on our “To-Do” list started to feel really big, and it didn’t seem like we had nearly enough time (or money, grrrr) to get anything done. So here’s my biggest piece of wedding advice for ya: Do whatever you can, as early as you can. Seriously. Don’t feel silly doing your programs or favors 5 months before the actual wedding. Because you won’t feel silly when you have all of that stuff done, and you can relax poolside with your bridesmaids before the wedding." -- Mrs. Sparkler 

All of these 'timelines' float around, telling you when is 'appropriate' to accomplish thing. Guess what: I didn't see a single one that said 'Start right now'. For a wedding that was almost a year and a half away, I had to use my imagination and apply the '12+ months' to my planning. The problem with that was that they were all basics that I had set for what feels like forever: set a date, pick colors, choose your wedding party - done x3. 

At the end of the day, though, I told myself (for the first of many, many times) that this was OUR wedding and that this was OUR planning process. I knew that we want to be able to enjoy the next year and a half with each other as well as with our bridal party, and honestly whomever else. I mean, really, I'm going to be a nervous freakin' wreck regardless, why not do what I can to reduce said nerves? 

For any other brides-to-be out there (or brides, who went through it all and came out alive on the other side): did you start the planning process early? Did you follow any timelines, or did you make your own?