How will I ever keep it together?

This would be a whole lot easier than you could ever imagined. I'm not sure if you remembered, but I too was suppose to get married and it was suppose to be taking place in NY as my ex and I lived in MD. You will learn to delegate sister. I know that you want to be as hands on as possible, but this is when your MOH get to earn her stripes. You will have to rely on her now more than ever as she will have to handle your schedule for you. This is my advice sister friend. Since you have to come to NY for your fittings (3 might be necessary), try to schedule the things that must be handled around the time of your fittings, such as meetings with your bridal party, menu tastings, etc... As as for traveling back and forth, there is nothing wrong with traveling by bus. Girl, there is this absolutely cheap bus service by the chinese, that will get you to NY and GA and back very cheaply, you don't have to fly and you could use your time on the bus to continue to jot down ideas, talk to your MOH and your planner, if you're having one. Don't sweat the small stuff girl, you will be in Georgia, you can still handle all your DIY projects over there and brings some of them with you whenever you have to come to NY for fittings and store them at your MOH's house. You will be just fine. Don't worry!!!

Everything is going to work out fine. The rich do it all the time when planning weddings across the country or in exotic locale's When they are dealing with their $$, they manage to stay on top of things from 100's or 1000's of miles away....But I have a few suggestions:

1) Take your dress to GA with you, so you can get your fittings done there. If the dressmaker/tailor is a chain like David's Bridal, you can transfer the consultations/fittings to a local one.....Having the dress with you can take some unnecessary stress off you and give you little bit of peace in your mind.

2) Consider hiring a wedding planner in NY if you don't already have one, and draft a new contract that stipulates certain tasks are reviewed by you, including pictures, etc....
2a) Consider using the most trusted BM with who has less family responsibilities to work with this wedding planner to make sure your tasks get done.....

3) Create a timeline....this is important in getting things accomplished in a timely manner. That way, when you plan your trips to NY (I would do no more than 1 or 2 before the wedding), you, with your list in hand, will already know or have expectations of what should be done, by whom, and when. Then you can delegate more tasks, re-evaluate plans, tasks, etc.

4) Set appointments around your NY trips and get the cell phone #'s of vendors if you can....Its possible! Reputable vendors are used to working with people from far away, and they have more respect for clients who come to them in a business-manner, and know what questions to ask, and expect them to do it!

5) If you have not already, pick the dresses for the BM's and set a schedule for them to get the dresses fitted, etc. When these deadlines approach, make a call to each one for a quick update on the fitting and the shoes...either pick it for them, have them pick it from 3-4 options of your choosing, or have them pick a certain color of a shoe they feel comfortable walking in:

Quick experience story....at my brother's wedding here in FL, the bride was living in TX, dressmaker bailed out at the last minute, so she picked our dresses and shoes, and we sent her the $$ for the price of the shoes and dresses and got them fitted in our respective cities (the BM's were in 4 different states)...the only problem was that the shoes she picked ended up being a waste for some because they were too high for us all, and 2 had big ankles so the strap was too tight, the other one had recent toe surgery, and the very sexy shoe was not an option, and the rest of us were just uncomfortable....so we all had on different colored-gold shoes...which didn't matter, but 3 of the girls wasted their money on those pricey shoes...so you have to be a little flexible....

FINALLY: Look at your wedding in a business-manner....nothing personal to people helping you or working for you! If you worked for Donald Trump and were planning a party for him at one of his hotels in Palm Beach, FL, and ya'll are based in NY, you would have the same diligence in pleasing your boss....you should work with this type of attitude from far away.....

So set your plans, stay on top of the list, and take control....everything will work out....many of the Vibrides here are getting married in a different city, state, country...so they can chime in!

Hi SensationablyHappy! I agree with Ginoue, delegate, delegate, delegate. Is your Mom here in New York, do you have a sister or trusted friend that can step in? I got married in New Jersey and had so much going on that I had to rely on my sister to see that the reception site was up to my standards. I must say that she and my neice did their thing and everything surpassed my expectations. Stay in touch with those that you delegate to -- you will see every thing will work out just fine.

Also as Ginoue said when you travel to NY try to handle as many things as you can. I wish you all the best.

I agree with Ginoue and Bumble. Def bring your dress with you if you have received it. If not have them ship it to you in Georgia. The rest of the ladies ideas are a great motivation to "keep you together!"

Well said Bumble!!!