Being a maid of honor entails responsibilities and obligations. You are the main assistant to the bride from the day she first prepares her wedding details to the moment she walks down the aisle. You have to be with her every step of the way, so that the wedding goes according to plan and is exactly how the bride dreams it to be.

Another one of your responsibilities is writing and delivering the maid of honor toast. This is a speech that you compose and recite at the wedding reception. To give you a head-start on your maid of honor toast, here are some things you have to remember:

- Your speech is meant to honor someone that you care very much for, which is why it is important to write and rehearse your speech before the wedding arrives.

- There is no universally ‘perfect’ maid of honor toast, as what works for one wedding would be inappropriate at another..

- Introduce yourself as half of the people attending the wedding reception will probably not know who you are. Keep the information that you give relevant though, by only talking about who you are in relation to the bride and groom.

- Incorporate the good values of the bride in your maid of honor toast; how well a wife she is going to be and how you foresee her happy married life.

- Talk about a memorable event or two, such as how the bride and groom met, or the first time that you realized that they were in love.

- Express your gratitude to everyone who came to witness an eventful day and invite all the guests to make a toast for the groom and bride.

- Put an end to your speech by giving out your wedding wish. Say your prayers for the couple; wish them a bountiful life ahead and your hopes for them to have a big blissful family.

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Learn more about writing a maid of honor toast by visiting http://maidofhonortoastblog.org

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Nobody could question the importance of wedding in any couple’s life. But with the global crisis that the world experiences, practicality when wedding planning is a must to ensure that the couple will live a longer live without having nightmares on financial setbacks.

When planning a wedding, it always include the attire—specifically the gown of the bride and the suit of the groom as well as the attire of everybody else who is part of the entourage. In fact, the wedding dress or the suit is always a big part of the “problems” any bride and groom experiences in their big day. This is because brides as well as grooms are so anxious on how they will look like during the wedding day. But, experts say that, you don’t necessarily have to spend so much money just to look good. All you need to do is shop around for cheap wedding attire that can fit your taste, style, and preference.

The next best thing that couples could do to be able to save money when planning a wedding is to set their budget and stick with it. For frugal brides and grooms who want an elegant yet inexpensive wedding dress or suits, it is very important to carefully plan your allotted budget before shopping. When you have a specific budget allotted for your wedding attire, you will not be tempted to feast your eyes on super elegant gowns or suits that would cost you a huge fortune.

In setting the budget, it is helpful to conduct a research about the price range of cheap wedding dresses or suits available in most stores so you can make the necessary adjustments. Always remember that in setting the budget, always allot 10 percent of its total as an allowance. This will ensure that you won’t be having so many headaches once your wedding dress or suit choice is out of the allotted budget.

When you are choosing for a reception venue after the wedding, select those that are near the church or the wedding venue. If you are not going to have a church wedding, it would be best to use only one venue for the wedding rites and for the reception as well. It would be best to know the best places where you make a relatively cheaper reservation. Since you are on a tight budget, don’t include the list of restaurants when looking for a wedding and reception venue.

For souvenirs, look for simple but elegant items and designs. If you are really on a tight budget, it is better to opt for simple designs of the wedding souvenir and with lesser details. If you look for these types of souvenirs, you are sure that they are cheap since they are not made of high quality materials or intricate materials.

When planning a wedding, it would help if you find time to surf the internet. Here, you can will be able to find stores that sell quality yet cheaper wedding dress or suits as well as souvenirs and other items needed to push through with the wedding.

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For years now, the prominent color of any wedding rite has been white. White flowers have been the base of all decorations at any ceremony. With the changing times it’s time for you to do something new in your wedding too. time to move on from the white and splatter some color in your marriage rite.

Consider this, the bunch of the bride has traditionally been made from white flowers but if you’re about to bring color in your life, you need to commence with this bouquet. There is not much of a difficulty here, you can still have the same base design of flowers with long stems tied in a neat bundle but you need to tie only white flowers in it. Use red roses, white lilies and some leaves to get in the green color.

If this isn’t where you need to stop, you may be able to add carnations. The advantage of carnations is they come in a selection of colours. Prepare the bridal bouquet of carnations only but include carnations of pink, yellow, orange, red, white or any other possible color you want.

You can also use different tones of the same color for flowers. In this case, its silk marriage flowers give you more opportunity to play with shades rather then their natural assortment of blossoms.

For the wedding dcor, you can create texture dcor by using different shades of the same color. For instance, if you are using purple, then you can use flowers in deep purple, lilac and everything that lies in between. This won’t only set a color theme for your wedding but also add to the feel.

Using unusual color combos is another brilliant idea if you need to make your marriage more colorful. Everyone uses yellow and orange wedding flowers together, so it could be great if you opt for something different.

If you would rather not experiment too much, you may choose more muted shades in contrasting colours for your dcor.

If you do not have to go too overboard with the use of colours, then adding a dash of green will be a neat concept. You may use a lot of leaves and foliage. This won’t just raise the employment of colours but also give a more natural appeal to the marriage flowers.

You can further jazz up your dcor by dividing the room into to 2 parts and decorating them with separate flower colors on each side. your floral arrangement should be kept consistent foe both sides. You may need to use blooms of contrasting colours for added drama like orange and yellow or pink and blue.

Try these ideas and make your wedding colorful.

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The bride, groom and wedding these are the 3 integral components of any marriage. No wedding is complete without wedding flowers. It is because of this that planning wedding flowers is one of the most critical steps in planning a wedding. While planning wedding flowers, one of the most significant considerations is where to get the flowers from.

There are a few places from which you can obtain your marriage flowers such as farmer markets, grocery stores, store front florist and wholesale flower marts. Purchasing from either of these sources has its own set of advantages and drawbacks.

Though there are several options that you can avail to get your wedding flowers from, wholesale flower marts top the list. These marts are known for the in depth assortment of flowers that they stock. You assert it and they have it all. So when it comes to marriage flowers you have multitude of options to select from these flower marts.

Not only are these markets a useful source of flower varieties- they also offer competitive costs for their blooms. Since the flowers here are sold in quantities, they can usually be bought at great kickbacks or saving options. You’ll have difficulty in locating one of these markets. Since they are typically meant for vendors, purchasing your marriage flowers here might be troublesome. The good new is that most sellers are eager to sell their stock once the executives have already picked up their share.

Corner shop stores especially are a great option for those who don’t want to damage the bank while purchasing flowers. You get a decent variety of flowers to choose from here and all of them come at very affordable prices. These stores also supply you with the option of getting your blooms delivered at the location on the day of the marriage. The only downside to this flower source is the limited spread of blossoms on offer.

Small florists are also a great option to source your wedding flowers. You may have them to arrange the kind of marriage flowers that you would want.In addition, you can also ask them to make arrangements for all the materials that’ll be required to make arrangements for wedding flowers. Naturally, these small front florists charge you for arranging flowers but it protects you from the trouble of hunting for flowers you want. Besides, you can also have the florist help you with the marriage floral arrangement.

These days, many a net savvy bride or groom, wish to order their flowers off of the internet. Needless to say, of getting your wedding flowers is the simplest and most convenient. You have to go through the website to see what’s on offer and make an order with the click of a mouse- and voila! The flowers will be delivered to your doorstep. while While getting your flowers online is really convenient- it might also be a pricey venture.

So if you’re on a lookout of places to purchase your wedding flowers from, do not worry. Simply make use of these tips and you are all set to zero in on the right means.

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It may not be high on the list of wedding planning activities, but there are a few simple steps that can help keep tax issues from interrupting your newly wedded bliss. If you recently married, check out your new tax situation. You might save money or even prevent the problem of a missing refund check.

The first things to handle are changes of name and address. Later, as tax season approaches, consider whether or not you’ll itemize deductions, which tax return form is right for you and what filing status you’ll use.

No one should delay the cake cutting or honeymoon because of taxes. But here are some helpful hints for later:

Use Your Correct Name

You must provide correct names and identification numbers to claim personal exemptions on your tax return. If you changed your name upon marrying, let the Social Security Administration know and update your Social Security card so the number matches your new name. Use Form SS-5, Application for a Social Security Card.

Change of Address

If you or your spouse has a new address, notify the U.S. Postal Service so that it will be able to forward any tax refunds or IRS correspondence. The Postal Service will also pass your new address on to IRS for updating. You may also notify to notify the IRS directly by filing Form 8822.

Refund Checks

Each year, the Postal Service returns thousands of tax refund checks as undeliverable, usually because the addressee has moved. Notifying both the Postal Service and the IRS of an address change in a timely manner can help ensure the proper delivery of any refund checks. To check the status of a tax refund, go to the IRS web site and use the “Where’s My Refund?” service.

Changing Filing Status

Your marital status on December 31 determines whether you are considered married for that year. Married persons may file their federal income tax return either jointly or separately in any given year. Choosing the right filing status may save you money.

A joint return (Married Filing Jointly) allows spouses to combine their income and to deduct combined deductions and expenses on a single tax return. Both spouses must sign the return and both are held responsible for the contents.

With separate returns (Married Filing Separately), each spouse signs, files and is responsible for his or her own tax return. Each is taxed on his or her own income, and can take only his or her individual deductions and credits. If one spouse itemizes deductions, the other must also.

Which filing status should you select? It depends entirely on your specific situation. You should consider sitting down with a tax professional to make a determination.

For more advice please visit us at wedding planning website and wedding planning guides

Finally! You Can Have The Wedding Of Your Dreams Regardless Of Your Budget!

“Discover An Ex-Wedding Planner’s Secret Tactics For Planning A Luxury
Wedding On A Miniscule Budget!”

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So you’re planning a bridal shower — and everyone says you need a theme. “Around the Clock.” “Home and Garden.” Yawn!

There aren’t many times we get to be silly and girly in this world, so a bridal shower shouldn’t be wasted. Make sure it’s genuinely fun. It’s simple — just think about what makes your bride special, and let yourself loose with the theme. Here are a few ideas to charge up the noggin and organize something unique.

“Like High School — But Better.”

Revive some great times by tipping your hat to the bride’s high school days. Look up all those slightly embarrassing hits from the year she graduated — let’s say the 80s. (Create a gift CD of same for all your guests — they’ll secretly savor them when no one else is around.) Yes, they still make banana clips! Pass them out, along with big, dangly inexpensive hoop earrings and loads of jelly bracelets (remember? You wear about a hundred on each arm, a la vintage Madonna). Slather on the pink, blue and green eye shadow, metallic nail polish and bright blue mascara. Play the soundtracks from Pretty in Pink and Sixteen Candles.

Now for the games: segment a flashback classic, such as Madonna’s “Holiday,” into three or four CDs. Divide your guests into the same number of groups, and challenge them to come up with a dance routine to fit their part of the tune. Bring them back together in 10 or 15 minutes to perform their mini-masterpiece before a video camera you’ve set up for the occasion. Tape everyone’s routine in order. Give a prize to the best choreographers (actually, give a prize to everyone for being a good sport). Together, you’ve created a music video that no one could forget. With any luck, it’ll mysteriously show up at the reception.

Wine and Chocolate

Sometimes, when you tour a bunch of vineyards in wine country and you’re really lucky, you hit upon “wine and chocolate” day. But you don’t have to wait to hit the jackpot — you can organize your own. Plan an easy afternoon of popular, easy-drinking wines like Merlot and champagne, and ask each guest to bring a creative form of chocolate. Some of our favorites: chocolate croissants, chocolate papaya crepes, chocolate-covered ginger, and yes, jalapeno brownies.

But don’t stop with the food — make an outright bordello of it. Pile lots of velveteen pillows around the room, drape the walls with heavy fabric, burn a bit of incense. Put on some soothing Moroccan music, and arrange a few flowers in plum colored pails or vases you’ve dressed up with groovy gold fringe. Now pass out those beverages in pretty glass flutes, dropping a rose petal in each one. Then dig in! (Have doggie bags at the ready for blissed-out guests who want to enjoy the spoils later at home).

Occupational Hazard

Few things are more flattering than having your friends develop a party around your job. After all, you spend day in and day out there, and what you do is probably pretty important to you. Is the bride a teacher? Hand out apple-shaped candles as favors … and place them in brown paper lunchbags. Give her a chalkboard eraser “to erase any grudges” after she’s married: spray paint the top gold or silver, and have everyone sign it with a Sharpie. Sew or glue together a quick clip-on or bandana for her dog’s collar that reads, “Teacher’s Pet.”

Is your bride an attorney? Hire a Judge Judy impersonator (yes, they exist!) to make a showing. Ask each guest to “submit a brief” — a gift of lacey underwear for the honeymoon, accompanied by a personal note to wish the bride well.

More Ideas for Exciting Showers

Christmas in July: Place the bride’s gifts under a big, frou frou artificial tree you’ve hung the guest favors on. Serve iced eggnog and mocha-cinnamon smoothies. Everyone loves Christmas … especially when you’ve had a break from it, and don’t have to agonize over what to buy the boss.

Dancing Queens: Dress up in big, pouffy prom dresses from the past (you’ll find them at every thrift store), super-glam makeup, even tiaras. Lay on loads of body glitter. Head out en masse to your neighborhood restaurant or karaoke bar and toast the bride as she opens her gifts.

Cheesecake Party: Ask your guests who their favorite hunk is. Serve mini-cheesecakes in lots of different flavors (Baileys and orange, amaretto, chocolate fudge), and place a framed photo of their favorite “cheesecakes” next to each serving platter, with a special label: “Brad Pitt Blueberry,” “Creme de Menthe Mel.” Get inventive with the descriptions. Borrow or rent the biggest espresso machine you can find, and serve up steaming coffee drinks.

Whatever you end up going with, don’t be afraid to be creative. The less you go by the book and the more you think about what makes the bride special, the more fun your shower will be for everyone.

For more advice please visit us at wedding planning website and wedding planning guides

Finally! You Can Have The Wedding Of Your Dreams Regardless Of Your Budget!

“Discover An Ex-Wedding Planner’s Secret Tactics For Planning A Luxury
Wedding On A Miniscule Budget!”

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Many marriages and dating relationships fail years before the loving couples meet. The exposure to a value system that promotes the acquisition of material possessions has a direct affect on our development as children. We learn early in life to take control of our material possessions.

This activity awakens our selfish nature and fortifies it as we mature. We learn to believe that we can do what we want with those possessions, my wife, my husband, my money, my toys, my bike, my car, my woman, my man, and mine, mine, mine! Unconsciously we believe these possessions are our slaves and should be at our beckon call or perform a particular function that we desire. At anytime, when our possessions do not conform to our desires or expectation, we become outraged. The reality is these are not our possessions, especially human beings.

We want our mates to take a subservient position to our desires. This is the beginning of the end of a healthy marriage or dating relationship. The core of the problems in marriages and dating relationships today is that we rely on traditions and false promises by others and institutions that manipulate our hopes and dreams for profits. We have been led to believe that institutions are held to a higher standard and do not fall into the same category as others who are motivated by selfish desires; but they are! There are in excess of 400,000 marriage counselors, workshops, and therapy sessions posted on the Internet.

Marriage counselors are professing to have the solution for a fee. Do you think they care about your marriage or dating relationship? The judicial branch of government is pointing the finger at the legislative branch. The legislative branch is pointing the finger at the judicial branch, and church organizations are partnering with social scientist to qualify for federal funding to rebuild marriages.  Where is the solution?

Dating relationships that lead to marriage is the fundamental social institution deeply rooted in all societies. To uphold and defend the institution of marriage, we must place emphasis on the truth. The institution of marriage should not be built on the traditional foundation of the past. The institution of marriage must be built on a strong foundation representing truth, sincerity, sacrifice, and cooperation, mutually putting our desires and opinions to bay.

Individuals who enter a dating relationship or marriage with opposing objectives, which are to fulfill their own desires, will have a failed dating relationship or marriage. Both participants must understand that individual desires and opinions are the furthest from the truth. The truth is what exists at the moment, or an incident that occurred in the past. The truth is not what one may think is going to happen in the future, nor is it what one may believe should have or could have happened. Falsehood, seeking to fulfill individual desires, and imposing one’s opinions on another are destructive ingredients for all relationships and marriages.

It is time for us to face the truth and to adopt a different posture when seeking a dating partner or a marriage companion. We must change our perspective and evaluate why living together in harmony is such a momentous task. We then must apply the true meaning of love and togetherness and then we can begin to live happily ever after!

For more advice please visit us at wedding planning website and wedding planning guides

Finally! You Can Have The Wedding Of Your Dreams Regardless Of Your Budget!

“Discover An Ex-Wedding Planner’s Secret Tactics For Planning A Luxury
Wedding On A Miniscule Budget!”

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If you’ve gotten through the wedding planning and the wedding day without a hitch (no pun intended), then you’re already on your way to a successful marriage. Marriage takes commitment, compromise, and patience—all of the things that you have needed to plan a beautiful wedding.

Here are a few final words:

Have fun

When it all comes down to it, your wedding is supposed to be a celebration of you as a couple. Forget about what the cake looks like; if it’s off balance, take pictures from a different angle. If the deejay is playing horrible music or the band is off key, who cares?

Dance like a fool with your nieces and nephews. Dance with your mom or your dad. Let loose a little and stop worrying about what your hair looks like. Have some fun.

Just be with and enjoy your new spouse, family, and friends—this is a party for your new life together, not a test of your wedding planning skills.

Something always goes wrong at a wedding, so just ride with it and deal with it the best that you can. If it can’t be fixed—most times no one will notice.
Eat a little

One of the things that couples forget on their wedding day is to have something to eat. Of course, this means that they will have to take some time for them selves to sit down and relax—and why not? Take just fifteen minutes to have a little something to nibble on. You’ll have even more energy to dance until dawn and more cushioning in your stomach for any fun beverages that you may consume.

Talk to your family

This may be one of the few times that your entire family is together for a happy occasion. Take the time to walk around and talk to everyone. Thank them for coming and ask them about themselves. They probably have wedding stories that they can share with you as well.

Treasure this time you have together.

Smile

After all of the stress and the commotion, you are finally at the point where you can relax a little. Smile for the camera, smile for your friends, smile because you’re happy. Just smile. There’s no need to hold back anything for the sake of being proper or solemn. Solemn is for funerals. This is your time to rejoice in being married.

Congratulations!

For more advice please visit us at wedding planning website and wedding planning guides

Finally! You Can Have The Wedding Of Your Dreams Regardless Of Your Budget!

“Discover An Ex-Wedding Planner’s Secret Tactics For Planning A Luxury
Wedding On A Miniscule Budget!”

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Typically, wedding ceremonies are structured events and are commonly broken down into several components. Remember, that this is your wedding and you have options on what happens during your wedding. Don’t be intimidated by your friends, family, or even your wedding officiant. Unless you are asking for something outrageous, you should be able to have the ceremony conducted to your desires. Music is almost always part of the beginning of all wedding ceremonies, but music can be a part of any element.

Some of the most common elements of the wedding ceremony are:

Introduction – In this segment your wedding ceremony officiant declares the purpose of the gathering. He introduces the bride and groom, and welcomes the wedding guests. If it is a religious ceremony, he solicits everyone to participate in a prayer.

Lead up – This segment is probably the most forgettable part of the event, and it is often omitted. You may ask your officiant to follow the introduction with your vows to save time or if you are not interested in a drawn out sermon. If you elected to have a clergyman as your officiant, this part of your ceremony may be difficult to omit.

Vows – This is the “I do” part. Simply put, this is the one part of a wedding ceremony that you cannot compromise. It is always going to be part of the wedding, and it should be the most intimate part of your entire ceremony. At this time your officiant explains the significance of the couples vows followed by the bride and groom affirming their commitment to each other. Did you know that you could write your own vows? Writing your own vows gives you a chance to really personalize your ceremony. Be sure that both you and your groom are involved in the process. It should be a democratic process, to enhance the experience for both of you. Feel free to use your own words, so you feel comfortable with the language of your vows.

Exchange of the Rings – Once you declared your commitment to each other with your vows you are invited to place a wedding ring on each other’s ring fingers. For many this is one of the most moving event of the ceremony.

Announcement – The closing segment of most wedding ceremonies is the announcement and the “kissing of the bride.”

Keep in mind, this is your special day and you decide on how you want the wedding ceremony to progress. Remember, it is OK to be different. Your guest will appreciate an interesting wedding ceremony that is unpredictably exciting. To a large degree, ceremonies are for the entertainment of you and your guest, so have fun with it.

For more advice please visit us at wedding planning website and wedding planning guides

Finally! You Can Have The Wedding Of Your Dreams Regardless Of Your Budget!

“Discover An Ex-Wedding Planner’s Secret Tactics For Planning A Luxury
Wedding On A Miniscule Budget!”

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Almost as fun as planning your wedding is planning your honeymoon. You want your first trip together as husband and wife to be memorable and it’s tempting to take an ‘anything goes’ approach. After all, you’re likely to get lots of wedding gifts in the form of cold, hard cash so why not?

Well for one, you want to be able to eat and see the sights when you arrive, so you’ve got to use some discretion when making your arrangements. Many couples find that it is possible to have a great honeymoon, even if they’re sticking to a budget and all it takes is some planning.

When is the best time to plan the honeymoon? Obviously sooner is better, especially if you intend to travel to a popular destination during peak season. But at a minimum, while you are putting together your wedding budget, it’s a good idea to allocate funds for this adventure together and work from there.

To help determine an appropriate budget, you’ve got to think about your possibilities, and of course, you’ve got to be realistic. A good way to start planning your honeymoon is to think about the things you both like to do in your free time, think about places you’ve only dreamed of visiting, and think about what you realistically intend to do while away. You can also use the Internet or a travel agent to help you come up with honeymoon ideas.

Once you’ve selected a destination, it’s time to get busy making your travel arrangements. Special deals are out there, but you’ve got to be aggressive in your search for them. Don’t despair; it’ll likely be worth the effort. And the great deals might not always involve getting the lowest price. It’s the extras that’ll turn this ordinary trip into something extraordinary. Perhaps the deal includes getting a suite with a breathtaking view, or being greeted with a bottle of champagne.

When you’re down to only 3 months left until the wedding date, you should have your travel arrangements firmly in place. Know where you’re going, how you’re getting to the airport (after the reception) and once you arrive at your destination, how you’ll be getting to your accommodations. Once you’re in place, the rest of the vacation can run its course. If you wish, you can plan some day trips in advance. This far out, also make sure vaccinations and passports are current, if applicable.

A few weeks before your departure, start gathering the things you’ll bring with you on your honeymoon: camera and film/memory cards, swimsuits, day and evening wear, traveler’s checks, tickets, documents, confirmation numbers for ALL reservations (including person’s name if possible), and a bit of local currency for tipping. Set aside somewhere safe.

Then as the approaching days become more stressful than you can handle, close your eyes and picture yourselves lazily lying around your honeymoon suite, with not a care in the world except how soon you’ll be able to return!

For more advice please visit us at wedding planning website and wedding planning guides

Finally! You Can Have The Wedding Of Your Dreams Regardless Of Your Budget!

“Discover An Ex-Wedding Planner’s Secret Tactics For Planning A Luxury
Wedding On A Miniscule Budget!”

Click here for more details

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