Look at scaling back your wedding plans not as a tragedy, but as a great challenge to get creative with your plans, DIY what you can do well, make some changes to your menu, find new and better-priced websites where you can order your invitations for half the price (I like www.invitations4sale.com for great discount prices on brand-name invites). Agree with your groom that you'll switch into a mindset of 'beating the system,' looking for great ways to plan your dream wedding on half the money.

Refer to my book 1001 Ways to Save Money and Still Have a Dazzling Wedding to discover terrific new ideas, great resources, and insider secrets to avoid those wasteful extras and hidden contract clauses that add up to a lot. Working as a team, you'll get your wedding plans together without sacrifice, and without the savings showing to your guests. And you'll be proud of the way you kept your calm, mobilized your network of friends and family to help you find budget-savers, and negotiated better pricing and some freebies from your wedding vendors.

These may be tough times economically, but you can 'beat the system,' believe in yourself, and get your whole planning team in a new mindset of not fearing your budget...but mastering it.