My fiance' calls wedding planning the "Super Bowl of Crafting", and man, is he right! I've always been a crafty person, but preparing for a wedding has taken that to a whole new level. There are invitations to design (and don't forget the hand-calligraphy!) and little tags for Mason Jars to make that say cutesy things. My actual wedding to-do list includes items like: make guest book, design centerpieces, research artificial blueberry stems, finish sewing bunting, make labels for the jam favors and finish fabric/twine lids.

It can be a little overwhelming. So many of these little jobs I didn't expect and to be fair, a lot of them could simply be skipped-- but for someone who does enjoy making things, this is easier said than done. I want to win the Super Bowl! But one of the brilliant things I've come to realize of late is: I need a team to help win! And this is where my friends and family have been awesome!

Call it a mix of Catholic guilt and homegrown roots from reserved mid-westerners, but I hate asking people for things. It makes me feel like an obligation, and I certainly wouldn't ever want to make anyone feel put-out. But when it comes to weddings, people want to help. One of my dearest friends told me that just after I got engaged and I didn't believe her, but it's true. It's the best advice I've gotten as a bride; people come out of the woodwork to offer up their talents.

My dad is a champion brewer. He loves it, used to do it all the time when I was younger... but then, life got in the way and he doesn't do it much anymore. The minute we begin to share our wedding vision post-engagement, my dad's eyes began to glisten and he said, "Can I make the beer!?" This weekend, Tony & I went to my parents' house to begin brewing two of the five different varieties.

Papa and Tony during one of the "hurry up and wait" stages.

My dad even took into account our favorites. For Tony, we're making a Chocolate Coffee Stout. For me, a pear cider.

In the end, I don't know if brewing will have saved us any money, but I like that it personalizes it. I'll admit I had a teeny Bridezilla moment at first when my dad suggested making the beer, but it was because I was uncomfortable with that huge task being put on someone. Once I realized it was something my dad really wanted to do for us, and that we weren't putting him out in any way, it made it that much sweeter.

Another part about letting people help you win your crafting Super Bowl? You will learn more about your loved ones. I have so many talented people in my life! I think everyone does in some way or another, but we rarely get to show off these skills. My friend, Beth, loves to sew and was more than willing to jump in and help me with my sewing ineptness when it came to our wedding bunting.

Beth has helped cut and sew miles and miles of tiny fabric pendents that will decorate our ceremony & reception sites. She won't be able to come to the wedding, and so she said it was a way to still be part of our day.

The list really does go on and on. My sister's boyfriend took our engagement photos, my friend Carly is going to play music during our ceremony, my former Sephora co-worker is going to do my makeup...

We are less than four months out now from the "big day" and I still have a lot to do. In the meantime though, I'm really enjoying each one of these little tasks and the amount of time I get to spend with my friends and family who are helping.