Two weeks left. Two weeks until the culmination of 13 months of planning. It’s pretty unbelievable that this whole process is coming to an end soon.

It wasn’t until my bachelorette party that it occurred to me that our planning time was winding down. Celebrating the bachelorette party with my amazing friends was the last mental milestone I had to cross before the actual wedding. Now it’s time for the big day. That’s one if the downfalls of having a fairly long engagement: You become comfortable pushing the details to a later date. But now the bags for out-of-town guests need to be assembled, the alcohol needs to be ordered, RSVPs need to be confirmed, and so many other little things need to be crossed off the ever-growing to-do list before July 3.

I’ve thankfully aligned myself with some amazing vendors to take care of most of the details for me, and a group of us met at our final venue walkthrough this week at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens. It’s been months since I’ve been to the atrium, but even on the gray day we visited it looked magical. So together with our caterer, venue manager, and day-of coordinator, Andrew and I gathered at lunchtime to lay out the floor plan and make sure everything was ready for the reception.

I’ve managed to stay away from Bridezilla behavior through most of the process, but I did have a very particular request for the Meadowlark staff that was challenging to resolve. One of the most beautiful parts of the atrium is an outdoor path from the visitor’s center to the building: Flowers embrace you with every step, and you feel like you’re walking away from the noise of Washington into a serene garden of tranquility. I wanted each of my guests to experience this right when they arrive from the ceremony, but there’s no natural walkway from the parking lot to this path. So I asked the venue manager to create a way for guests to avoid the main door and enter through the path, and although it may not be the most natural progression, she made it work for us. A minute detail to some, but for me it confirms that everyone will get the true essence of Meadowlark and hopefully understand why there’s such a trek from the ceremony site to our reception.

The final walkthrough concluded, and as we walked away from Meadowlark, I thought about how the next time I step foot in that building, I’ll be married to Andrew. So no matter how many details pile up on that to-do list, as long as I stay focused on the fact that I’m marrying the man of my dreams, the rest just doesn’t seem to matter as much.

Lisa Marie, a local bride-to-be, writes every Friday about planning her wedding. To follow her adventures from the beginning, click here.