Family Issues

It is the last day of you being single. It will be the last time on earth that no male or female will be constantly hounding you around. But what happens after your wedding will be either a lifelong of love or misery (depends really). Nevertheless, you should enjoy the last day you have being single by having a bridal shower.

Bridal showers are fun for the bride because instead of her planning and doing all the stuff, the party is instead intended for her. The party is usually is organized by a close friend and not an immediate family member. The bridal shower is usually done four to eight weeks before the wedding to prevent the busy schedule. It is important to make sure that the bride and other attendants of the party are free during the day of the party.

The party is usually held on weekends and also follows themes too. The usual number of guests is around twenty to forty people. To prevent the person from buying more than one gift and help her save money, only invite her to one party. Avoid duplicating the guest lists. Instead of having multiple bridal showers, just have one big one by combining tem all.

The old traditional bridal parties only included women. Nowadays the party can also include the groom and other men. The men I am talking about there are not those chip and dales that women hire during the bridal shower. The men that I am talking about could include the guy friends that you have. It could be more fun for others to have their guy friends included, but others may have more fun when there are only women. Having only women can actually make them talk about girly stuff only. Whether you include men or not, just get the party creative so that everyone may have fun.

If the organizer is as dull as wood here are some suggestions on things to do on a bridal shower:
•    Pass photos around and let the guest guess the year. The pictures will be fun because it tells stories that might be memorable for you and your groom. It will also give you and your friends the time to remember the great times you had.
•    Have a scavenger hunt around town. If the event is done at night bring a flashlight. Also bring cell phones for communication. Add some humorous items like her groom’s underwear. However don’t take this to the extreme that you might get the bride caught by police and end up in jail
•    Have a lingerie party. Invite some guys and fool them into wearing lingerie while you all wear PJ’s.

Have fun during your last day being single. Usually the bridal shower is there to take the pressure of your mind from being committed to your groom for the rest of your life. Married life can not be that bad, there may be lots of couples breaking up but I’m sure there are more that are staying together for the long run.

Tags: Wedding Invitations, Getting Married, Wedding Guests, Tying the Knot, Starting a Family

Let’s face it, weddings are boring. Most of us only go to weddings due to respect and the chow time. Even though the couple may have cut down on all the speeches and mumbo jumbo part, some people may still get bored. Too make weddings more fun, there are now a different variety of themes that may help change the mood.

Seasonal/Holiday Theme:
Basing the theme of the month of your wedding is what some couples do. For example, if you are set to be married in February, the theme will be Valentine’s. If you are to marry on a December the theme may either be Christmas or New Year. You may even want to set your theme to Mardi Gras if the wedding month is set in that day. Maybe a bikini wedding will do if the wedding is set on summers.

Time Period/ Era Wedding:
This theme is mostly a vintage era theme. The concept of the wedding is to bring out the dust from the old stuff. It can be renaissance, mediaeval, etc, as long as you can be able to find the resources. However it might be very demanding for your guests especially if you ask them to wear a knight’s armor. If you really want something old school, maybe a cave man themed wedding will be right for you.

Western/Cowboy/Country Style:
Some people live in the country side, so it might be to their delight to have a wedding them that helps reminisce their old life. The attire and supplies are easy to find. You don’t need to be too realistic by actually getting real horses; you can actually have a donkey to save you some trouble in finding a horse. A band playing country music is also easy to find. If you can’t find a country playing band, just dress up some band into cowboys and Indians and that might do. Do remember that a red neck wedding is different from a country themed wedding.

Cultural/Ethnic Style:
Show the best about both your culture. Mix and match both your culture and you might have an interesting wedding. Let your relatives and friends share their ides. If you have watched, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”, this is how a cultural and ethnic style wedding will turn out. If you are marrying a person who has head hunter heritage, maybe it’s best to do a traditional wedding instead.

Movie Themes:
You can base your wedding on popular movies like those done during prom or high school dances. Some movies may be considered to cheesy and your wedding may end up cheesy too. The best movie theme probably is to do a Shrek or a Godzilla movie. It will be cool if you dress up like monsters.

No matter the theme you get for your wedding, always remember that a wedding is only a symbolism of your love. What matters most is that you be able to enter the world of marriage with fewer problems and have a long and lasting marriage.

Tags: Getting Married, Starting a Family, Wedding Planning, Tying the Knot, Wedding Invitations

To a person entering a lifelong commitment, it is already too much to think about. The groom or the bride is probably perspiring to death that one deodorant is not enough. To make things worse, because you haven’t planned for this wedding well the whole reception has become a circus. To reduce your problems and to prevent your whole wedding reception and wedding itself to be total circus, here are some advices that one may consider.

Be sure that the clergy or the person to officiate the wedding is available. Also make sure that the place you would like to set the wedding is also available. The worst thing that could happen is let some old hippy marry you right under the sun. But it’s the symbolism of marriage that’s important anyway. Ask about the dates if the site is free during the time you desire. Other things that factor in are added costs such as site fees, permits, restrictions, etc. After those things have been settled you would now have to deal with the songs, vows and attendants you would want.

If you would want to lessen the hassle of things you could hold your reception the same place where you hold your wedding. Many couples have been actually doing this. It prevents the guests from transferring to another place in which they don’t know. It helps prevent the guests from getting lost.

Just make sure that the place has an adequate space to hold the tables for the guest and the catered food. Laos plan the seating arrangement based on the building’s layout, make sure that the place will not become to narrow. If it becomes too narrow when you hold the reception there too, it might be best to transfer. If you plan to have your wedding outdoors, have a backup just in case rain happens to dampen the mood. Aside from that make sure too ask the additional fees that would cost you.

The usual old school way of sitting and handling of the guests is handled by the ushers. The ushers will ask to whom family member you belong, because traditional ways have got the bride’s family to sit on the left and the groom on the right. These prevented the all out brawls for families that really don’t get along. A military wedding is worse; the seating will be according to ranks. If you want a very proper seating arrangement, plan ut very well sot that each guest will not get confused.

It is also important for the wedding planning to have a rehearsal party; this minimizes the chances of errors on the actual wedding. Most people rush the rehearsal party because they know that they will be bored again tomorrow and would like to get the dinner started. Don’t rush it, if the guests seem to be ticked off, never mind, continue to practice until everything is right for you.

You might not have the wedding of the century, but even a simple wedding can be able to bring headaches as well. To further lessen the stress factor you have during your wedding day, try to practice and plan very well.

Tags: Wedding, Wedding Guests, Wedding Planning, Marriage, Getting Married

In a guest point of view, well in my point of view, a wedding is a long and boring event. I especially hate it when there are so many icky and mushy speeches. The only thing I look forward to is the reception. After making me wait for them, they should at least have a good food at the reception. Here are some advices that you may want to consider when choosing a caterer so that people like me will not be pissed off.

Great wedding caterers, who are pleasant, well known and have great reputations, have a very hectic schedule. Immediately after setting the wedding date book them right away.

Reputation aside, you should be able to know what caterers offer the best food. Most caterers have a picture of their previous works to give you an idea of how good and organized they are. Just be wary, if the pictures seem to be just cut outs from the internet or newspaper clippings. Those guys might just be the guys who run you’re local pizza parlor or the cafeteria ladies.

Ask them if they are able to give you a price lists of their menus and entrees. This will help so that you can be able to plan your menu at home with the budget you have. Also remember that the price quotes that have been given to you during your planning stages will be the same when the actual reception is done. Put that in contract.

Here are some other helpful things to consider:
•    The location – it would be pretty stupid of you to actually cater Chinese food from China. If you want Chinese food catered just go to the nearest China Town.
•    Transportation of food – you would probably hate it when the food you ordered would only be transported by a 10 year old kid. Try to consider if after the food has been transported it will still be warm and not spoiled. Also consider the safety of the food, as some of the food might spill.
•    Do you still need additional cooking facilities at the reception site?
•    Are the foods just frozen and microwaveable or fresh?
•    Leftovers – who keeps them?
•    Are servers included?
•    Do they have a state license?
•    The deposit that they will ask
•    Are additional decorations provided?
•    Due date of the balance
•    The catering charges – is it per plate or per person

To be able to save money here are some more advices:
•    Serve a sit down luncheon instead of a fancy dinner
•    Don’t look for foods that are probably on the other end of the world, order those that are easy to obtain.
•    Ask family and friends if they are willing to help out in serving, cleaning, and setting up.
•    Ask the caterer if you could bring some of your own food. But don’t ask too much, when you only order one item from the caterer and you bring all the food.

Those are only some advices that can help you out have better caterers at the wedding reception. It will help minimize the errors and unsatisfied guest who are waiting to eat. If you think that the caterers you chose stink, you can still save face just by making the wedding the faster to prevent boredom and hunger.

Tags: Marriage, Getting Married, Wedding Invitation, Wedding, Starting a Family

The thought of having a wedding is nice. The couples feel that they are now entering a new life and they would like to tell the world about it. This celebration is about their commitment and never ending love that they have for one another. That’s why they make this event so special that they plan this out very well.

One of the things that they have to consider during a wedding is who they would invite to witness their love. If only one of the couples had their way, the in-laws will definitely be not invited. But it’s a must to invite in-laws to show the couples that they know how to compromise with another. Here are some tips and advices on creating wedding invitations.

The invitations you choose should reflect the style and theme of your wedding. If you would a want a wedding that is themed like a kiddy party, it’s perfectly fine, because it is your wedding. After deciding what invitations you should then finalize your guest list. Also remember that it is best to order your invitations four to six months before the big day. Try making a budget to help you out and won’t have to overspend on invitations and won’t have any budget remaining for other stuff the wedding needs.

The best way to start is to look at samples over various establishments that create wedding invitations. If you see something online, ask them if they can send you a free sample. Most of them would oblige. Samples will help a lot s they would be able to make you see what kind of material, printing method and wording would you prefer.

After you have decided where to order your invitations, you should also consider other things too. Try considering their pricing, how they handle errors, cost of additional orders, and how long do they take to get it done. Also ask if they have special discounts to offer. Also remember that printing methods and the type of paper varies widely in price.

During this time, it is best if you could also order the following items as well: luncheon invitations, respond cards, rehearsal invitations, and thank you notes, so that all of them will be consistent with the theme.

The invitations have now arrived and you now have to write down the names of the people you want invited. If your too lazy or have thousands of guests, you can ask someone to write it for you. The best way to write it is using a pen that doesn’t smear or a crayon. Mr.  & Mrs. Or Dr. & Mrs. should be written on the outer envelopes, while the inner envelopes are more personal because they include the first names.

If the couple you are inviting has annoying kids and you don’t want them invited, you can simply not put the kids name in the inner envelopes. Or you could tell them “no annoying kids allowed”.  For single guest, the best way to write it is the name of the person and “guest”. Or you can say “Boo Hoo, you’re still single and we’re not”

After being stressed out in writing, you would now have to send them out so that people will know you are getting married. You would be stupid if you do forget to send the invitations out. Just remember to send them out four to six weeks before the wedding. This makes it good for some guests to clear up their schedule. For people you don’t like and are forced to invite send the invitations a day before. At least you can say that you still sent the wedding invite.

Those are only a few etiquettes when sending wedding invites. There are probably more out there, especially the not to do part. Just remember that don’t be stressed about the invitations, because this is only the beginning.

Tags: Wedding Invitations, Wedding Guests, Getting Married, Wedding Invitation, Marriage