Make your out of town guests feel at home.

You invited out of town guests to your wedding and, they are coming. Many brides and grooms often ask: "How can we welcome our out of town guests and make them feel at home while we are so overwhelmed with last minute details?" Obviously you are important to your out of town guests or they would not have made travel arrangements and gone into the expense just to be at your wedding. They want to be with you and share this happiest day of your life. The also understand that you may be pre-occupied and don't really expect to be catered to. But you feel funny. While you know that taking care of last minutes details may prevent you from being able to devote time to them and welcome them properly, you want them to feel welcome and at home.

There are a few things you should do that will convey to your out of town guests that you care.

To welcome them take care of their immediate necessities.
• 1. Contact a car rental agency at the airport and pre-arrange a rental car for your out of town guests. If you reserve enough cars, your guests will enjoy a discount.
• 2. Arrange a block of rooms at the hotel of your choice so that your guests will be welcomed and get a room discount.
• 3. Arrange with the hotel to deliver special gift baskets or gift bags from you after your guests settled down in their room.
• 4. Call the hotel to check out if your guests arrived safely and are settled down in their rooms.
• 5. Remind the hotel management to deliver your gift baskets or bags to your guests.
• 6. Call each to welcome them, wish them an enjoyable stay and to tell them that you are glad they came and are looking forward to seeing them at your wedding.
•

Actually the gift baskets or gift bags are not a necessity but they convey your thanks and will welcome your guests with a warm and fuzzy feeling. Yes, I can hear you ask: "So, what do we put in these baskets or bags to make our guests feel really special?" You know your guests. Think of them as individuals and try to find something that will personalize your gift to this person. It does not have to be expensive. It does have to be expressive. Do any of your guests:
• Enjoys gardening? Put a packet of seeds in each of their gift baskets or gift bags.
• Collects stamps? Pick up a set of Pictorial Stamps at the post office for their gift baskets or gift bags.
• Play Chess, Checkers or Backgammon? Give them each a small magnetic Chess, Checkers, Backgammon or a combination set.
• You got the idea. Just put on your thinking cap on and you'll do just fine.

Here again tailor your gift to the recipient with coffee, tea, hot chocolate, special candy, fruit, cookies or nuts, etc... Next put in some niceties for them to pamper themselves. Special soaps, sponges, and lotions.
And in case they forgot to pack, comb and brush sets, tooth brushes, tooth paste, a pen, etc...
Now put a few maps and directories in the gift baskets or gift bags. An area map or area maps with points of interest where your guests may enjoy themselves before or after your wedding. A map and direction to your wedding ceremony and to the reception. Etc... I left the most important elements of any wedding guest's gift basket or gift bag for last. Your Thank You message and a few Personalized gifts as specific mementos of your wedding.
I will include only a short list of ideas because only when you implement your own ideas will the gift be truly from you.
Some ideas for Personalized wedding gifts. Your names and wedding day on:
• a Tee shirt
• a refrigerator magnet
• a towel,
• a framed poem
• a personalized candle
• a sun catcher
• a coffee mug
• a pen
• a tote bag
• and the list goes on. Wishing you a wonderful one-of-a-kind wedding full of memories and keepsakes.
Wishing your guests a memorable enjoyable visit.
By: Nily Glaser
A-wedding Day
http://www.a-weddingday.com
And
Candles By Nily
http://www.a-weddingday.com/candlesbynily.html
and
http://www.candlesbynily.com

Copyrights Nily Glaser a-wedding Day.com 2001

Candles By Nily
www.candlesbynily.com
Personalized candles for any reason for any season.
Make today's special moments tomorrow's treasured keepsakes.
If you can think it, I can candle it and so can you. Ask me how.

Copyrights © Nily Glaser 2001
This article was written for A-wedding Day
www.a-weddingday.com

iPod Weddings

Go Ahead... Google iPod Wedding and you will find a wealth of information on how to accomplish one. But what they don't tell you is what can, and usually does, go wrong. The above video is just one example. What do you think the guests will remember about this reception?

The iPod articles would have you believe that DJing is so easy. All you have to do is hook up your iPod or computer to a sound system and let it run.

If you are considering this option ask yourself the following:
Where will I get the sound system?
Who will make announcements?
Do I have music in my collections everyone will like (grandparents, parents, friends)?
Do I have the time to download new music?
Do I have the time to program my entire night of music?
Who will be responsible enough to sit and man the system all night?
What do I know about setting up a sound system? or Who will set up the sound system?
What happens if something goes wrong with the system?
How do I get the system back to the rental place?
What about lighting?
Who will act as our event coordinator that evening, making sure all of the vendors are working together?

If your reception is a very intimate affair requiring just background music, no announcements and no dancing an iPod wedding might be just the thing for you.

A larger affair requires a true professional. But how do you know who to choose? That answer is simple... Interview several companies.

The ADJA provides a great list of questions to get you started:
http://www.adja.org/chapters/stlouis/#questions

Other questions:
When do I meet my DJ?
How much time will my DJ personally invest in my event?
Do you allow requests?
Do you allow do not play lists?
What type of training has your DJ had?
How long has your DJ personally been in the business?
What makes your company different from all of the others?

Other things to consider:
What most people don't realize a true Professional DJ personally invests an average of 20+ hours into each wedding.

Estimated time invested in wedding:

Phone: 1 hour

First meeting: 1 to 2 hours

Second meeting 2 to 3 hours

Third meeting: 1 to 2 hours

Music research: .5 to 3 hour

Play lists formed: 1 to 3 hours

Reception itineraries: 2 hours

Site inspection: 1 to 2 hours

Set-up at reception 1 to 3 hours

Performance time 4 to 8 hours

Pre-loading, driving, unloading and tear down: 3 to 5 hours

That is not including the time your DJ should be investing in their own personal improvement. Including industry related seminars, MC training (through groups such as Toastmasters), belonging to industry professional growth and development associations (like the ADJA).

Your reception is a Once In A Lifetime Event. How do you want people to remember your special day?

Wedding Lore

There are few other life events so steeped in tradition as weddings. Do you know the origins of our present day customs? Why do we follow them? Well that one is easy you do it because your mom did and her mom and so on back countless generations. Here is some of the history behind many of our modern day wedding traditions.
Bridesmaid Dresses are often identical in style and color. Why? In ancient times the brides friends and female relatives would dress exactly like the bride in an effort to fool evil spirits bent on spoiling her happiness.
The Post Vow Kiss The Ancient Romans sealed every legal contract with a kiss. Thus the marriage was not legal until the bride and groom kissed. This is why the wedding official says, “You may now kiss the bride.”
The White Wedding Gown brides have always worn white, Right? No white wedding dresses did not become common in the west until Queen Victoria wore one at her wedding. Before that bright colors were the norm.
The Receiving Line originated in ancient times when it was believed that good luck came to anyone who touched the bride and groom on their wedding day. Giving Away the Bride Long ago an unmarried girl or woman was considered her father’s property, so at the wedding he would walk her down the aisle of the church, and “give her away” thereby transferring ownership to the husband.
Why Does the Groom Carry the Bride Across the Threshold? There is more than one bit of lore about this practice. One is that when a girl could be kidnapped and forced to marry against her will, the groom would have to carry her by force into her new home.
Another is that ancient Romans considered it bad luck for a bride to trip when crossing the threshold of her new home. So the groom would carry her in.
Tying the Knot In Celtic, Egyptian and Hindu cultures, the hands of the bride and groom were tied together to symbolize their new bond and commitment to the marriage.
June Weddings Roman mythology held Juno as the god of home ,childbirth and marriage, this is thought to be where the popularity of June weddings originated.

Best Man Back when a man would steal his bride, he would often have to fight her male relatives to keep her. He depended on his best man (friend) for help in fighting them and to get him and his bride safely to the church.
A Locked Church Door In Irish tradition, once the bride and groom were safely inside the church, guests would lock the church door to prevent the groom from running if he changed his mind.
Honeymoon This is another practices with different legends about its origin. One is that if a man kidnapped a girl and could keep her hidden from her family, for a month (moon) she was his to marry. Another is that parents would keep the couple supplied with mead a drink made from fermented honey for a moon, there would be a male offspring within a year.
There are hundreds of other wedding customs many of them unique to a particular religious or ethnic heritage. So if you want something different at your wedding seek out the traditions of your heritage

by: Mary Jane Holmes of find-wedding-dresses dot com

Wedding Toast and Speeches

Tips for the Bride, Groom, Best Man and

Anyone with Something to Say

Raise a glass—now's the time to toast to the happy couple! Wedding toasts and speeches can cause anxiety - but don't let them! Enjoy your moment in the limelight, and make the most of these situations with some prep work. Your best man, maid-of-honor and other special guests may inquire about appropriate speaking times—so it's good to have an idea beforehand. You and your fiancé may also want to prepare some expressions of gratitude for your parents, your guests or each other. Every wedding is different; discuss and layout a general "toasting timeline" before the celebrations begin.

Who Toasts?
Traditionally the best man, maid-of-honor and parents of the bride and groom will say something over the course of events. However, close friends, the bride and groom themselves or anyone who has something to say is welcome to make a toast.

When?
When to toast all depends on the nature of your wedding. If yours will be a cocktail or buffet-style reception, your guests may not ever be gathered at the same place and time to listen to toasts. Another option is to hold the formal wedding toasts, such as the best man's speech, during the rehearsal dinner instead. At a seated dinner, the father of the bride traditionally toasts to commence the meal. Your caterer can arrange an official champagne toast, passing glasses of champagne to each guest prior to the best man speech or the father of the bride. Toasts can really occur at any time during the reception - between courses, after the meal, during the cake cutting etc. Try to give your event coordinator an estimated timeframe beforehand, so he or she can round up your guests to listen.

How to Respond
Everyone should rise for toasts to the new couple except the bride and groom, who remain seated (unless they already happen to be standing). When someone toasts the bride and groom, they should smile and say thank you. They should not clap or drink to themselves. If a toast addresses the bride only, the groom should rise. If a toast is directed towards the parents or any other guest, both the bride and groom should rise.

When the Newlyweds Toast
This is a wonderful opportunity to publicly recognize your family and friends for their love and support. If the bride and groom make a toast, they should not speak in unison (this sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised…). They should instead stand together while one speaks or take turns speaking.

What to Say
Wedding toasts should be light, fun and G-rated. Avoid saying anything you wouldn't say to the bride's grandmother's face. Be succinct. There is nothing more awkward than a rambling, bumbling best man speech - under two minutes is perfect. All speakers should begin by introducing themselves. While toasts should include memories or funny anecdotes, avoid too many inside jokes that exclude the majority of guests. Your jokes will be met with silence if only a few listeners understand! Finally, wedding toasts should mention both the bride and the groom, even if the speaker only knows one or the other. And if the spotlight is on you and you're suddenly at a loss for words, try the old standby, "I'm so happy for you two. Cheers! " It never goes out of style.

How to Say It
It's smart to prepare beforehand, but always try to speak from the heart. Reading from a card seems insincere and awkward.

by: Cori Locklin is editor-in-chief for Elegala Magazine.

And away we go....

My hope with this blog is to provide helpful ideas, fun stories and the knowledge of 20 plus years of experience.