Rolling with the punches

A lot can happen in two years, and a lot of things can change. Just ask Jessica Martin Finlen, whose May wedding didn’t exactly go off without a hitch.

“We dragged out the engagement way too long, enough to make anybody crazy,” Jessica said, laughing. “There were a lot of little glitches, to the point we were like, ‘Let’s just go to Vegas or Mexico or anywhere.’ ”

For starters, Jessica’s original venue backed out five months before the wedding. When she visited the site to discuss placement of the tables and DJ, the person in charge was nowhere to be found. Luckily, her father stepped in to save the day. “My dad worked at Sun City for like 10 years. And it just popped in his head, ‘What about Riverbend?’ ” she said. “It’s a beautiful long dock out to the water.”

Still, there was the matter of the 200 invitations that had already been printed.

“They all had to be redone,” Jessica said. “Luckily, we hadn’t mailed them yet. My husband’s stepmother printed every single one of them.”

Then came the seating chart. Luckily, a family friend who Jessica described as “super-organized and fabulous with everything,” helped organize things and calmed the stressed bride.

“I had a complete meltdown,” Jessica said. “I texted her and said, ‘I can’t do this.’ She called me and said, ‘Come over in the morning and we’ll do the seating chart together.’ And we knocked it out. She was an angel.”

What’s more, the friend ended up acting as a veritable wedding planner.

“She made her own wine labels and knew where to have the cocktail napkins printed,” Jessica said. “She was able to monogram all kinds of things. It really took our wedding to a whole other level.”

And somehow, the wedding that once seemed doomed worked out perfectly. Looking back, Jessica said she wishes she hadn’t spent as much time sweating the small stuff.

“The day is going to unfold the way it’s meant to unfold. Don’t let the small things distract you from the big picture — this is a celebration of the love you have for each other.”