Celebrations by Amy Bacon: Blog Written By Ashley Rahaman

I officiated my first wedding at 8 years old, on the playground of my elementary school during recess. Not only was I the officiant, but I was also the coordinator, wedding dress designer, and would have been the caterer if I could have snuck those cupcakes to school without being caught! I have loved everything about weddings for as long as I can remember; the flowers, the dress, the music, and the love all speak to hopeless romantic in me. Naturally, when I got engaged 20 years after that playground wedding, I believed that my love of all things “wedding” would be all I needed to plan my own perfect day. As I began planning, I had no trouble deciding my color scheme, designing my stationary, picking out my venue, and the all important first dance song. I enjoyed the process of planning; it was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream.

Shortly before I was engaged, a dear friend of mine was also engaged, and asked me to be a bridesmaid in her wedding. So, in October, five months before I would take my own walk down the aisle, I stood beside my friend and watched her say “I do.” The entire event went off without a hitch, and was more fun than I could have possibly imagined a wedding could be. All day, I noticed that my friend seemed completely at peace and when it came time to party, she had the time of her life. When I returned home from the festivities and my friend had settled into married life, I asked her: “How is it possible that your day went so smoothly?” That is when she gave me the best advice I got during my entire planning process. “Hire a wedding coordinator!”

What! Me? Why on earth would I bite into my budget to hire someone else to coordinate my wedding! I worried that if I hired a wedding planner, I’d be allowing someone completely unfamiliar with me, and what I had dreamed of (for nearly three decades!), to commandeer my wedding. I would end up “hosting” a cookie cutter wedding that reflected my planner’s tastes rather than my own. But, intrigued by the prospect of having a stress-free day, I did a little research and decided I’d give Amy Bacon a call. Amy didn’t push me, nor did she try to sell me on her idea of the perfect wedding. What she offered to do was step into my shoes, get my vendors organized, and make sure that the wedding I had been dreaming of came to fruition. I felt confident that my wedding would remain “my wedding”.

As we approached the day of the wedding, Amy asked me a barrage of questions that served two purposes: 1) She got to know me and my fiancé, and 2) She was able to ensure that no detail, no matter how minute, was overlooked. These questions served one more very important function for me: I was beginning to see that I hadn’t even scratched the surface in planning my day. Who would take the cake topper home at the end of the night? How many votive candles did I want on each table? Did all of the vendors know their delivery times and location? And who was planning to clean all of this stuff up at the end of the night? I quickly realized just how important this investment was turning out to be. Instead of being a taskmaster on my wedding day, I’d get to be a bride. What a concept!

Fast forward to one month after my wedding. We’ve been flipping through online photo albums, and exhausting each other with “do-you-remember-when” stories of the reception. I’ve had a chance to process it all now. When I recall my wedding day, I recall the beautiful morning I awoke to find. I remember the quiet time I shared at the salon with my mother. I laugh when I replay the impromptu “Wedding Day Rap” my sister composed in the limo on the way to the church. I see my bouquet, lush and beautiful, my groom, and my friends and family filling the pews of the church. I remember the tears of joy I cried upon seeing the reception room for the first time, having been thoughtfully set-up by my extraordinary wedding coordinator who was sure that there were indeed six votive candles on every table. Absent from my memory is even one moment of anxiety over a single thing.

My memories of this amazing day could fill the pages of entire volume of books, but there is one overriding and all-important theme to them all. On my wedding day, I was the bride, and nothing else. All night, I didn’t field a question more difficult than, “How does it feel to be married?” For that day, all questions, concerns and requests were the responsibility of the amazing woman, Amy Bacon. To this day, I have no idea if there was even one misstep, because every detail was handled for me. If the kitchen caught on fire that day, I assure you, I’d have had no idea!

Needless to say, my day was a dream. Amy impressed every single person with whom they made contact that day. She made sure that the wedding I had been planning since the third grade was coordinated and executed to the smallest detail. In planning your wedding, sure, the flowers are important. And so is the cake and the music, too. But, I can assure you that all of those amazing little details are infinitely better enjoyed when you know that you have also made a priceless investment in the peace of mind you can only get by leaving the coordinating of your big day to the professionals.