Anyone trying to plan their wedding while working AND in grad school?

That would be me! I really have no tips other than just to keep your head down and keep on keeping on! I had a really hard spring semester and got almost nothing wedding related accomplished, so I try to get as much wedding stuff done on my breaks as possible!

That's what I've been doing. It's stressful sometimes. I wish I had more time to devote to wedding planning because I actually really enjoy the process. Usually. I'm getting a bit stressed because I'm realizing that less than 5 months (til the wedding) is not a lot of time, even though it sounds like it is..

Same here. I commute an hour each way to classes and had a 20 hour GA this spring semester. I just started catching up on things the past two weeks and have 70 days until the wedding. My saving grace from going insane is knowing that classes end at the end of June and clinic ends the beginning of July which gives me a few weeks to focus solely on the wedding and GA work. I definitely would not give up your workout routine if that is your stress reliever since that allows you to unwind from schoolwork.

I am in my final class of grad school and commute over an hour each way to work. It is very tough to fit in working out while doing all those things and plan a wedding. I have found what works for me is to go to the gym on my lunch break and pack a healthy lunch to eat at my desk. Sometimes if I don't feel up to going to the gym, I will walk around my building at work.

I stopped going to the gym...and I'm StReSsEd!!!! I balanced 9 credits a semester with a 30 hour GA position, 10-15 hours a week preschool teaching job, and 4-6 hours of babysitting a week...until this past semester when I student taught high school Spanish and basically had to really cut back on everything, including the wedding. The good news: no graduate debt. The lesson I learned from all of this: it is possible...but it takes lots of time management, lists, and determination!! The other lesson: The things that were so important a year ago are no longer on the radar, and I don't care if my DIY projects look a little more DIY than I had originally planned.

I graduated 2 weeks ago, and the wedding is less than a month away. Chin up, you can do it! Lists and checklists are important, don't lose them (I lost three checklists the week of graduation...and I need them. oops!)

I am working full time, planning wedding basically alone right now, and top it off i have never been to hall where the reception is going to be....so its hard to vision lol which is leaving me STUCK on how to do ANY sort of decoration planning...i have no idea on size, celling, rectangle or round tables ect its driving me nuts.

(we live in VA, but we are getting married in my FH hometown in SC)

I'm working full-time and going to law school part-time while planning my wedding. I also try to go to the gym as much as possible and cook healthy food. My best advice is to start planning early, make sure you make yourself a priority, and take any help anyone offers! Good luck!

Oh thank god I found this post. I'm in my fourth year of a dual PhD in social psychology and JD program, and just got engaged. I thought I was INSANE for trying to plan a wedding, take classes and complete the work for my research assistantship, extra part time job, and dissertation work. I'm planning on a long engagement, as I'm taking the bar exam next summer and thought it would literally be too crazy to have a wedding in the same season. I know I still have awhile, but I am super stressing because the wedding will be in Michigan and I'm in Nebraska. So I def need the support as well!!

Well...I'm in school. Not grad school but working on my bachelors in nursing. Work full time, full time student, trying to plan the wedding, and keeping everything else balanced. Definitely stressful.

Me, me, me! Its stressful, but with an understanding FH you can do it!!!

Ditto to everything you just said!

I start my graduate school classes in one and a half weeks and I am so nervous! We can do it!!

Join the club. I'm a little late on my workout routine because of everything going on. But I am definitely kick starting it in June (new planet fitness in my neighborhood yay!!!).

Advice: sleep/rest as much as possible. Especially if you're not consistent with exercise. Resting will at least keep your face looking fresh until the rest of your body catches up. LoL.

With such a crazy schedule, its easy to grab a fast and easy meal. Try to eat as healthy as possible. If on the run, grab a granola bar, make a protein shake, eat some fruit. But stay away from grease and a lot of sweets.

Breathe. Take it easy. It'll all be over soon. Wish you the best!!!

Right here!

Full time work, part time school and wedding planning has been tough, but I just took my time and tried to stay organized!

Good luck!

Not for my most recent wedding. But for my first wedding, I was working full-time, going to law school ¾ time, serving on law review, and planning a wedding. My attitude was that doing well in school was way more important than any one day. My strategy was a) to simplify wedding planning as much as possible, b) to tell my FI that he'd better be doing at least half the planning, since his schedule wasn't as crazy as mine and it was his wedding, too, and c) to accept all help offered, even if it meant that I didn't have control over some aspects of my wedding.

To simplify things, the reception was lunch in a restaurant we took over for the occasion. That way, we could use just one vendor for venue, food, alcohol, linens, etc. And there was no music or dancing, since the groom was hard of hearing and music would have just made it impossible for him to hear any conversation.

(cont.)

For an example of accepting help, my in-laws really wanted flowers as decoration, and were willing to pay for them, even though flowers were not terribly important to the groom or me. So we basically told them to pick whatever flowers they liked, and go ahead and order them without consulting us. I really don't even remember what they came up with, but they were happy, and it was one less thing for me to worry about.

Wow! I'm happy I'm not the only one! Thank you for all your advice and support.

@almostmrsg I realized after I posted I should have just said "school"

I'm definitely trying to accept any help I am offered. I tend to be someone who wants to do everything herself, but I'm learning that help is necessary in this situation. We can do it! We should all be proud of all we are accomplishing. Having crazy busy schedules is hard work.

@Rachel W. congrats on starting graduate school! I just started last semester, in January. It's definitely an adjustment but like everyone is saying, what has been working best for me so far is just staying very organized and trying to manage my time.

I just started an online masters program, work as a teacher, and live in a different state from the wedding location (although my MOH and mom both live where the wedding is so they'll help when needed.) I plan to get as much planned over the summer and on school breaks as I can.

I came up with a master schedule of tasks for wedding and school deadlines. We also have two kids and my FH is in school as well. We also go to gym 3-5 times a week.

Using the calendar was a big help. When I got to two weeks out from the wedding last week, most of the stuff was already finished. We are 5 days out now and I only have 3 things left on my wedding to do list.

Did I also mention I made the Dean's List last semester? Boom! You can do it all if you plan!

Congrats on your wedding.

Not grad school, but working on my BS. And currently taking 11 credits in 6 weeks. I may just have a death wish. Though I just quit my five day a week job with the blessing of my husband. I need certain grades in these classes for grad school and if I don't do good enough, I'd be losing more money than I'd make at my job through December when I was originally planning on leaving. I plan on looking for a babysitting job once these classes are over. DH has also stepped up and told me to tell him what to do and he'll do it. And he has (well, with a couple reminders!)

I am not in school, but I do work full time and even just balancing work and wedding planning is hard, so I cannot imagine throwing school in there too- props to you!!! Trying to balance my two, I have found that the only way I can survive is to designate true times/days to take care of each. For example, I will take one afternoon a week to let myself ignore real work and focus on wedding stuff. Good luck!!