1. Spread the Word
Your boyfriend finally popped the big question and you've been up all night trying to notify all of the essential people via phone.  After repeating the proposal story for the 30th time, you may feel the temptation to climb up on your rooftop and shout it out in one shot for rest to hear. Before you pull the ladder out of the garage, consider your options. If you want to publicly announce this new development in your relationship, a time-saving plan of action is to purchase a space in the local newspaper. Other options are printing formal wedding engagement notices and mailing them to all of your friends and family.

2. Get Your Nails Done
For the next 5 or so months, everyone will be dying to see your new ring. Make sure that you invest your time and money in a couple manicures so that your hands and cuticles do your new band justice. Because trust us, you'll want to flash your new rock all over town – and dry hands may make you feel a little self-conscious. Be confident and take care of yourself so that when someone asks to see your diamond you're more than ready!

3. When & Where?
The first two questions that everyone will ask you right off the bat is: when and where? Setting down a particular date and venue can be tough, especially if you just got engaged yesterday – but an estimation will suffice. If you know that you want to have a spring wedding, you could say: “Southern California in spring.” This is vague enough where you could alter your plans but specific enough to give your relatives and friends a good idea as to what to expect.

4. The Bridal Party Details
The next thing that everyone will want to know: who's going to be in the wedding? Chances are you'll already have some people in mind when it comes to the groomsmen and bridesmaids. Sisters and brothers are a given – towards the end you may need to get strategic. You could find yourself in a situation where you're deciding between two friends who you're close with. How do you make this determination without hurting someone's feelings? Is it worth salvaging a potential estrangement by having someone in the wedding who will make the bridal party number uneven? These are important matters that you should contemplate before officially handing out the roles.

5. Determine the Guest List
Putting together the guest list is another task which should be taken care of within the first few weeks of the wedding engagement. This will give you a better idea as to how much money you'll need for the festivities. As you start planning you'll definitely make cuts and perhaps even additions along the way; but having a guest list from the get-go will help you when managing and maintaining a general budget. Start scouting out possible vendors for your wedding. See what they offer and for what price. You may find as you look around that the wedding is going to cost a lot more than you initially anticipated. This is a good time to re-think the guest-list. Cut your 200 person guest list in half and save yourself thousands of dollars.

6. Put the Funds Together
Talk to your parents about the wedding. See if they have intentions to help you financially with the preparations. This could be hard for you depending on your relationship – just keep in mind that this is a natural consequence of having kids. Most parents are more than happy to lend what they can for the celebration, especially if the entire family is taking part. Before confronting them, ascertain what kind of wedding you wish to have and how many people you want to invite. This way you'll know exactly how much you need to proposition them for.

7. Go Bridal Gown Shopping
If you think you can have the wedding within a year, it's critical that you start dress-shopping now. Set up a few consultations with all of the most promising bridal shops in town. Try on every style and color you can get your hands on. For some brides, finding the ideal dress could take months, and you may or may not have that kind of time. Don't forget – you still need to get the dress fitted and find all the perfect accessories! Start looking as soon as the wedding is in the works so that you have plenty of time to change your mind.