My Great Good Fortune: To Be Invited To Officiate Your Wedding Ceremony When You Don't Even Really Know Me!

Beni "The Bride"

Trying Out Wedding Veils For Pure Joy & Fun!

(I am so honored to marry Beni & Rick on September 30th)

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When Benita (aka Beni) sent me this photo of her taken trying out wedding veils, I couldn't help but smile big. You see, Beni's style doesn't include a veil and the look of pure joy and glee on her face is one for the books!

So, this post is really a "thank you" to the wonderful couples who come my way. Couples who trust me and invite me to create and deliver their wedding ceremonies - many times often at a point in the wedding planning process where they still don't know me and are flying on faith.

So, if I could list all of the wonderful engaged couples I'm working with this year, I would...and here is a short list of couples who have said "yes" to a deeply personalized wedding ceremony - "yes" to trusting me with their wedding ceremony - and "yes" to fun, creativity and creating a lasting and life long memory with a thoughtful and poignant wedding ceremony...

Jacquee and Chris; Jessica and Steve; Linnea and Tony; Stephanie and Jon, Kristin and Andy, Mary Ann and Craig; Kathryn and Nick, Andrea and Brandon, Becky and Terren, Amy and Brad, Steven and Lauren, Jeremy and Rhonda, Lisa and Shawn, Becky and John, Kandis and Charles, Amanda and Larry, Suzi and Craig, Steve and Pauline...to you and all of my couples, my deepest thanks and gratitude.

Annemarie

Tips for A Happy and Fun Wedding Rehearsal - Especially When Family and Friends Aren't Fully Listening!

Bride Bethany Rolstad (right) and Wedding Dog Bailey

In my wedding work, wedding rehearsals can be a lot of fun.

And first of all, nobody is fully listening.

On rehearsal day, emotions are all over the map. So to insure a smooth and fun rehearsal - and that everyone remembers the "action parts," here are a few tips to consider:

Give Yourself A Buffer Day - If you are being married on a Saturday, have your rehearsal on Thursday. If you are being married on Sunday, have your rehearsal on Friday. By giving yourselves a day between rehearsal/rehearsal party and the full wedding day, you have more room to breathe, to take care of last minute items and perhaps even take just a few hours away from everyone just for the two of you (imagine that!).

Half-Hour Rule - Tell your wedding party and family/friends that your rehearsal will start at 11:30 a.m. - but you and your Officiant/Minister know it will pretty much start at Noon. By giving yourselves a half-hour buffer, you are allowing for late-comers. And people are often late to rehearsal so as I am very fond of saying, bribes are good!

Action Parts Only - In my rehearsals, I keep the words sacred for the wedding day. My goal when we are rehearsing together is to make everyone comfortable with what, when, how and where - this way everyone involved in your ceremony is more fully present throughout your wonderful ceremony on your wedding day.

Rehearsal Dinner/Party - Schedule your rehearsal dinner/party for family and friends after rehearsal at a location near the actual rehearsal venue. By keeping travel distance down, you will make things easier for people - and traffic is always a consideration for people not famliar with the Puget Sound area.

What Makes Me Crazy? "The Perfect Wedding..."

TED & PALLAS DAME, JUNE, 2006, REDMOND, WA

"A truly fabulous couple!

Okay, I'm going to get on my wedding soapbox for a few minutes.

What makes me crazy? It's how the wedding industry markets "a perfect wedding, "a perfect day."

I've seen a lot of "behind the scenes stuff" at weddings and here is what I know for sure: if you're planning your day as a "perfect wedding," you are setting yourself up for possible disappointment.

In this work that I do, it's the imperfections that create a memorable and sweet wedding day. When I hear back from couples that I have worked with, I often hear about the wonderful details of the day - and I also hear about the "snafus" or the imperfections of the day. And these imperfections are many times woven into the memory of the wedding day with a smile, a grin - even laughter.

Why? Because a wedding is a wedding - and as much as we strive to create moments that are breathtakingly poignant and memorable - a wedding also creates moments that are silly, funny, a tad embarrassing and perhaps even odd.

So, two things to consider on your way to your wedding day: 1) a wedding brings up emotional "stuff." Keep your boundaries and prepare for a day that is joyful and perhaps has a few quirks, too. 2) The sweetness is in the imperfections - a wedding day goes so quickly. During your wedding day, create moments just to be and absorb - it's not so much what is said on this day, it's the "feeling" from the wedding day will be your sweetest memory in years to come.