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Some wedding entertainment ideas are explored in this contributed post. What’s the best part of a wedding? Is it getting to make your vows in front of all your nearest and dearest? Or is it the wedding breakfast and all the delicious goodies you’ll get to drink throughout the day? We all have our own favorite part of weddings, but I’m sure that most of the guests will agree that their favorite part is the evening party. This is after all of the usual formalities and when everyone can let their hair down. Want to throw an evening wedding celebration that your friends and family will remember for the rest of their lives? Here are some great ideas that can help you get the wedding party started! DJ And Disco One of the usual options that you will find couples go with is a DJ and disco. After all, everyone loves a good old dance, and you will find that the best wedding DJ gets all of your guests up on their feet! A DJ will spin his records throughout the night and until the wee hours. If you want, you and your partner can let him or her know what type of music you prefer so that you can be sure that you will enjoy the music. Just make sure you add some classic wedding songs. After all, it’s not a wedding party if the DJ doesn’t play Lionel Richie! Live Band As well as DJs, live bands are a very popular choice for evening wedding entertainment. This is an especially popular choice for couples who really enjoy music and regularly go to gigs. There will be lots of great wedding bands in your local area, so it’s a good idea to take a look and see who you can get to play on your special day. Whether you prefer rock music or jazz, I’m sure you will be able to find someone that plays your kind of tunes! Party Limo There are now lots of firms, such as http://www.bergenlimo.com/fleet/new-jersey-nj/, that hire out large party limos for various celebrations. Why not incorporate these into your wedding’s evening celebrations? This is a really great idea if your wedding ceremony is going to be in a different venue to your evening party. It’s a super fun way to get all your guests from A to B! Karaoke
Do you have a few friends and relatives who love to sing? If so, then they will dive head first into a karaoke party! You can either hire a karaoke bar, such as one of the ones mentioned at http://www.refinery29.com/the-best-karaoke-bars-in-nyc, or you can rent a karaoke machine to take to your reception venue. Either way, I’m sure all of your guests will love showing off their vocal skills or lack thereof! No matter which one of these you choose, you are sure to have a great wedding party!
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Helpful tips to find a wedding photographer are showcased in this contributed post. Although you'll have a marriage certificate and your union bands, they are still not enough to rekindle those good wedding memories. But with wedding photographs, you can easily walk down the memory lane and relive that special day all over again. Typically, anyone can take pictures, and you may even request one of your friends to handle that, provided you have a good DSLR camera. However, to ensure your moments are well captured and preserved, you may have to hire a professional. Someone who can capture emotional but beautiful shots. So, when looking to hire a wedding photographer, consider these 3 essentials.
1. Gallery The first thing you'd want to see is the photographer's portfolio. This will at least introduce you to some of their works, and you get to gauge their styles and skills. While assessing the gallery, make use of the 12 principles of a photograph which are Impact, Creativity, Color Balance, Subject Matter, Composition, Style, Story Telling, Center of Interest, Presentation, Lighting and Technical Excellence. Photographers have different ways of telling their story. And by going through their galleries, you are able to see a variety of photography styles that you think can be good for your wedding. If you are not sure about what works best, let photographers know your needs and expectations. They'll be able to develop a story for you based on your requirements. You could use a professional Vittore Buzzi photographer, that ensure you get cute wedding pictures for your everlasting memories. 2. Covers groundwork If there is one thing that separates quality and ordinary photographers, that would be their planning skills. An excellent photographer will make sure they prepare well in advance, instead of just showing up during the wedding day. Have a list ready that defines the activities of the day, speakers and moments you want to be photographed. It's important to do this so that every special moment is captured and nothing important is left out. Your photographer will then plan the best approach, angles and background to use. 3. Cost Photography is one of the lucrative artistic work. Whether it's nature, documentary, food, architectural, landscape, fashion or wedding photography. Therefore, before hiring a photographer, be sure to compare several price packages and basing them on the type of photographs they take. There are photographers with slightly cheaper packages than others, but you want to be sure they offer quality. Most professional photographers offer four types of packages. They include bronze, silver, gold and platinum. In other cases, photographers will charge based on some factors such as their brand name, labor and equipment used, operation cost and size of the event. Find a photographer that offers the most reasonable package and the best price possible. When selecting a photographer for your wedding, it's always important to also bring your spouse on board. Although the two of you may not agree on some things, at least find common ground to accommodate all your preferences. With that said and done, tie the knot. Happy marriage. 8 marriage tips are explored in this contributed post. You can have the best relationship, the perfect proposal, and the dream wedding, but marriage is a whole different story. If can be the greatest adventure of your life, but it takes more than a ring to make a marriage work.
Here are some tips that will make your marriage a breeze. 1| Spending time together Just because you’re married and have a house full of children does not mean that you stop spending time together - alone. If you have busy lives, then dedicate one evening a week or month as a date night. There are some great ideas you can use that don’t cost the moon. 2| Spending time apart On the flip side, you can’t live in each other’s pockets for the next 50 years - that’s a sure fire way to drive each other insane. You might love each other to pieces, but you need to have some time apart to do your own thing and to spend time with your own friends. 3| Talking You might think that you know everything about your partner, but as the year's pass, people change. Things that they believed or opinions they once had might not be the case anymore. Talking about the important things might not always be easy, but it’s vital to grow together. 4| Arguing Whether you talk calmly or yell the roof down if you need to talk something through that you disagree about then do. Keeping it bottled up will just cause it to come out at a worse moment. But, whatever you do, don’t go to bed without making up. Even if you have to stay up all night, makeup before you sleep - you never know what will happen tomorrow. 5| Counseling Sometimes there comes the point where a disagreement or a situation that can’t be solved overnight - or over a week. In these times looking into marriage counseling might be a good option - just to have an outsider's opinion can really help you to see each other with fresh eyes. 6| Have fun Just because you’ve been together forever, doesn’t mean you can’t have fun. Just letting go and having a laugh is one of the best things to do with your partner - and it’s probably one of the reasons you fell in love in the first place. Go out and do something new or have fun at home, just don’t let the seriousness of grown-up life bog down your marriage. 7| Heat it up There’s a misconception that intimacy dies after the honeymoon - but it isn’t true. Keep things hot in the bedroom just because you want to, and not for any other reason. 8| Be grateful No matter what age you found your perfect partner, be grateful for the time you have with them. Even if you end in divorce, remember the good times and don’t let the bad destroy the parts of your relationship that were great. Don’t take them for granted. Whenever they make you a drink or dinner, when they just pick up your favorite treat for no reason or help you to get better when you’re ill - always be thankful for them. Proposal tips are highlighted in this contributed post. Are you thinking about popping the question? If so, congratulations. This means you’ve reached a point in your relationship where you want to spend the rest of your life with your partner. It’s great news, and now you’re probably starting to think about saying those important four words. Let’s look at some of the choices you’ll need to make here and ensure you plan a proposal she won’t be able to say no to. Finding The Ring? You’re first goal is to find the right ring that guarantees a yes which also means finding the right diamond. You have a lot of choices here with princes's cuts, oval cuts as well as choices for the style of ring. You need to think about budget too because the amount you are willing to spend will determine the clarity of the diamond as well as the carats in the ring. One other consideration you can make is letting your partner choose her own engagement ring. The benefit of this, of course, is that you can’t get it wrong and she’ll love it because she’ll be able to get the exact one she wants. Now, it’s important to realize that most women won’t ask for this option. But that doesn’t mean that they don’t secretly want it. Of course, if you do want to get one yourself, there are plenty of resources you can use to make sure you find the right choice such as http://yourdiamondguru.com/. Here you will find reviews of different diamond sellers and ring designers, ensuring you can get the perfect sparkle for that yes. Choosing The Location Location, location, location. There are lots of options here as well. For instance, if your lady isn’t scared of heights you could propose in a hot air balloon. This something rather wonderful about this as they say that everytime you go up in a hot air balloon, you add a year on to your life. You can learn more about hot air balloon proposals on https://rohrballoons.com/. Alternatively, you could head down memory lane and propose at the venue of your first date. The problem with this, of course, is that your bride to be might seem the proposal coming. However, it’s still a romantic possibility, and at the very least you might just impress her because you remembered where your first date was. The Perfect Day There are special days throughout the year that might seem like the perfect option for a proposal. Christmas day anyone? However, you might want to be careful about doing this. Most girls are now under the impression that guys propose at Christmas for two reasons. To make sure they remember the date and to avoid paying for two presents. Instead, you might want to propose on a completely unique day, perhaps on holiday or a long weekend away from work. Make it special.
The main message to take away here is to take your time with your proposal, planning it to a Tee. Try to avoid the norms of proposals and find your own unique path to that yes. Remember, all that’s holding you back from the perfect proposal is the limits of your imagination. Preserving wedding day memories are explored in this contributed post. If your wedding day is creeping ever nearer and you are putting the finishing touches to your plans, consider diverting your attention for a few minutes to think about how you are going to remember your big day. When tying the knot with the love of your life, you don’t want to be concerning yourself with anything on your special day other than soaking up every morsel of the experience. You don’t want to have to chase up the caterers, organise the live band or concern yourself with the table decorations. Your planning and preparation should have this covered. What you must consider is how you are going to maintain the memories of your special day, so when you arrive back from your honeymoon, you will have some means of reliving those special moments again and again. Photographs The most obvious way of capturing memories is using the medium of photography. Wedding photographers are now dab hands at capturing the most candid of moments using a documentary style of photography. Images of the groom pulling up his lucky socks and the mother of the bride weeping as her daughter enters the church can evoke strong memories of the day. You could also use a specialist company like Booth Boy to hire a photo booth, capturing another level of wedding day memories. With your friends and family adorning props and having their photos taken in unique ways, you’ll be able to harness the fun of your day. For another candid approach to preserving memories, you could put disposable cameras on each table for the wedding breakfast and invite your guests to take photos. You can then collect these cameras in at the end of your incredible day, and you have another ready made photo album of moments. Guest Books Setting up a guest book at your wedding reception is a fantastic way of recording each guest’s thoughts and seeing them write you a message for the future. You can sit on your sofa and look back at these messages with a tear in your eye as your wedding video is playing in the background. For those who enjoy something a little more unconventional, you could also set up a time capsule, with your guests predicting where you might be in ten years time. Keep it somewhere safe and open it up on your ten year anniversary to see how accurate the predictions were. Clothes
People tend to wear their wedding attire once and then sell it on or return it to the hire shop. You may also want to pass on your outfit. However, you should try and keep at least one aspect to your ensemble. This could be your shoes or a piece of jewellery. By preserving this and keeping it locked away, you’ll be able to whip out your pair of white kitten heels in the future to show your children. You never know, your daughter may end up wearing them for her special day a few years down the line. Don’t just think it’s all about the traditional photographic memories when it comes to remembering your special day. By following these inspirational tips, you’ll be able to refer to your wedding day at any point in the future and relive the moments of your perfect day. During this program, you’ll discover: 12-Week Group Class Twelve 90-Minute Sessions Some of the material covered includes: What is Conscious Dating? Life Purpose and Life Vision Limiting Beliefs Taming your Inner Critic My Requirements, Needs and Wants My Relationship History and Patterns My Relationship plan Lifetime Partner Profile Dating Strategies Attracting the right Partner AND MUCH MORE RECEIVE a 147-Page PDF to print. It's the Program Book and it includes 18 Exercises in English or French. Classes are in English but participants can ask questions in English or French. Remember to ask about our bonuses! Don’t waste another second getting bullied by the voices in your head. Your life and your mission are far too important for that. Register Now. You’ll be glad you did. Please reply to 1-855-383-2323 to register or ask questions and my staff at Absolute Bachelor Club will take care of you. To your Success, Sincerely, Natacha Noël Founder, Certified Matchmaker and Dating Coach Updated February 28, 2018 The Worst Wedding Regrets By Frank Kermit Weddings can be overwhelming. So much to do, so many details to take care of, and so many choices. It is very easy to end up making choices that seem like a good idea in the moment, but that end up being your worst wedding regrets. I asked some wedding professionals to share some of the biggest regrets their clients experienced to help give you all some cues. Allison Plachcinski, a wedding planner with A Belle Affair Weddings says that brides tell her that one of their biggest wedding regrets was putting too much emphasis on the look and feel of the bridesmaid dresses. As a result, the brides and the bridesmaids get into heated arguments to the point where some have fallen out of touch because of all the drama. This included one maid of honor who dropped out of the wedding party because she did not have any choice in the bridesmaid dress. Angela Skinner of Mobile Bartending by Linen and Lace, says that one of the biggest wedding regrets she hears from brides were from the ones that purchased a wedding dress that did not fit as a means to have the motivation to lose weight before the big day. She also states that couples who choose a very small, intimate venue too early on in the planning tend to be in for a shock when they finally tally up the full number of guests being invited to the wedding.
Wanda Malfara, photographer and head of SIAM Productions says the mistakes people make when it comes to wedding photography is when the bride and groom think they can have friends and relatives take the best photographs. "When it is all said and done, the dress has yellowed, flowers wilted and the only thing left are the memories - the photographs are forever and are so much more important than people realize in the excitement of an amazing wedding day" says Malfara. James P. Correia, also a wedding photographer, states that it is becoming more common to have an "unplugged-wedding". This means that neither digital cameras nor phones are permitted. This "allow all guests to enjoy themselves more, take in the meaning of the day, and truly observe a magical moment." Correia believes that, "our generation too often buries our heads in our gadgets...and we are starting to miss out on a lot." In addition to what these photographers said, when I was doing the research for this article, there are actually some couples that want to be the first to distribute photos from the wedding on social media after the event, and not have it done for them by the wedding guests, throughout the event. Caryn Lim, Designer and Wedding Planner at A Timeless Celebration warn brides and bridesmaid against attempting to make their own invitations. "The costs come out to roughly the same, however the do-it-yourself method comes with a whole lot more headaches." Says Lim. Florist Helen Mandrozos, creative director of Studio Floral Ermis offered some very insightful advice. "Bigger is not always better!" Brides have told her that they regretted ordering a big bouquet that was too heavy to carry throughout the day and how it overpowered their wedding dress, even though it was the bouquet the bride had set her heart on. Also, she has often received phone calls from frantic wedding participants the night before the wedding asking to hire her services to help with their flowers at the very last minute after failed do-it-yourself projects. Travel agent (the late) Dagmar Daghofer of the Vision 2000 Travel Group who helps couples book honeymoons strongly suggests not waiting too long to book anything because the resort they want may have either gone up in price or is no longer available. Waiting until last minute might force the couple to end up in a family oriented hotel as opposed to something more romantic. Simply put, you cannot take back a low class honeymoon. Good or bad, your wedding will be one of the most memorable days of your life, and thus it is important to be mindful to take whatever precautions are necessary to ensure the memory of your wedding is a pleasant one. Frank Kermit P.S. Do you Agree With This Article? Disagree? Have something to Add? Write your thoughts in the comments below and share this article to see how many of your friends think like you. Ways to make your wedding unique are highlighted in this contributed post. One of the things that makes a wedding day the perfect wedding is how unique it is, how personalized and heartfelt. This is your wedding day, it is the day your wife has been planning since she was six and a half years old and first learned what the word wedding meant. It is that day you will have everlasting memories of, no matter how much champagne. It is a day that will define you and your love, it is a day that will be forever spoken of and etched into the memories of your nearest and dearest. Luckily, there are hundred of little ways in which you can get creative and make your wedding that much more special and personal, and you can do so without breaking the bank too (whatever breaking the bank actually means?). Here’s how: The Save The Date Invite That Oozes You The first thing that is going to get excitement buzzing around the air like a swarm of honey bees is your engagement, the day when she said, “yes”. But the thing that ups the ante is your 'save the date' invite because this is when the anticipation gets to manifest into a countdown. What makes it extra important, though, is that your invite is what tells your guests what sort of wedding it is you are having. The look, the style, the vibe; it all comes from this invite, so put your stamp on it. Make it something that is true to you. Have an invite that, when it is opened, a knot gets tied tighter. Put old school 3D goggles inside to help the decode the message. Send them a balloon they have to blow up in order to find out the details. The choice is yours. The One Ring To Bind Them All There can be nothing more personal than exchanging rings that you designed, or rings that are bespoke to you. It doesn’t have to be a crazy design or anything like that. It could just be that you get your Tacori engagement rings engraved with something special, like the chat-up line you used to land your first date. The date of your first date. That romantic film line your soul mate absolutely adores. The name of your first song. There are so many endless ways to make your rings personalized without leaking money, and what makes this extra special is the fact that your rings stay with you forever. Crazy, Quirky Transport
The thing that often gets overlooked is the transport. People often go for practical over personal and so they just speak to a minibus company about handling that side of the ceremony. Some people go a bit out there by hiring a London double decker bus or a limo or something, but that has all been done. What we are thinking is way more personal than that. We’re thinking about hiring a bunch of scooters or bicycles and everyone riding to the next destination together. Maybe you could convince a local store to lend you a bunch of hoverboards or Segways. Maybe there is a hire company that has four or five classic VW campervans that people can squeeze - and we mean - squeeze into. It is these teeny-tiny personal things that are going to last forever in people’s minds and will make you smile when you look back through your photo album. The Wedding Toast Speech By Frank Kermit Remember this day, your wedding day. Not for the parties, not for the extravagance, nor the dinner and dancing, but remember this day, your wedding day because of the reasons you chose to marry your spouse. Remember who is it that you picked to marry on this day, and why you picked this person over all other choices available. Remember the reasons why you chose to get married and how it fits in with your plans, life goals and why you decided that the person that you wanted as your spouse was a reflection of everything you felt is important to you enough that you wanted to make him or her part of your family. Remember this day, your wedding day That the ritual of the wedding is more than just a celebration of your new union. It is to mark the change in your lives as individual "I"'s to a unified sign of a "we". As a "we", you call on all those people closest to you both to witness and be a part of your togetherness, in the hopes that not only will they be celebrating your endeavor; they will also be employed in the ongoing support of your new and future family. Remember this day, their Wedding Day To you: the wedding guests, please know and remember that your role in being present, is more than the gifts you offer, your toasting their happiness, and your boost to start the new couple in their new life together. Your role as participants in a wedding audience is that you have also accepted a role in the ongoing support of the new couple to help keep this new family together through the hardships and triumphs that life can and will force upon us. For better or for worse, isn't just a saying. It is a reminder. Life gets very real when you have someone else to care for and think about. If and when you are blessed with children, the realness of every decision you both make is even more intense; Remember this day, your wedding day, as you both pledge to do your best to suffer them together, and support each other, even when either of you happen be at your worst. Remember this day, your wedding day Because you BOTH Will Make Mistakes There will be times you both will make mistakes, when you both will etch an emotional scar, when you will have to deal with financial worries, mental health concerns, new limits on your physical abilities, accidents, the challenges of well meaning people who love you, who interfere more than help you, having to move and change with the times, and in the death and passing of people close to you. Remember This Day, Your Wedding Day, As you both pass into the next stage of your lifespan, up to and even past the point of being present for the possible weddings of your own children and grand children. Remember this day, your wedding day, Remember every reason you had to make the commitment to start this journey together, knowing that life together would NOT be easy but that you still wanted to go through with it. Remember this day, your wedding day because it was the event you chose to create. Remember the love that brought you together, the willingness to stand together, and the drive behind making your intent to build a future together a public decree. When either of you are overwhelmed by life, and it is likely to happen more often than not over the course of your lives together, remember this day, your wedding day to remind you why you chose to make it happen. Remember this day, your wedding day, to help you build and create a better future for the two of you, through each and every new day you decide to stay together and honor the promise as best you can everyday. So, Remember this day, your wedding day, when some days are better, when some days are worse, and take it one day at a time. -Frank Kermit Learn how to pick a wedding theme in this contributed post. There are blue skies above, which means that wedding season is about to hit the ground running. If you’re planning a wedding in the coming months, you may be thinking about whether to have a themed celebration or not. Wedding themes appeal to some couples, but you don’t have to have a theme for your big day. If you do like the idea, here are some tips to help you choose the perfect theme for your wedding. Seasonal themes The seasons play an important role when it comes to choosing a theme, and many couples take inspiration from the weather, the surroundings, and the time of year. If you’re getting married in the holidays, for example, winter wonderland and Christmas themes are always a big hit. If it’s summer, and you’re having a beach wedding, something more tropical and exotic may appeal. If it’s fall, you may choose to use the colors of the leaves for your table decorations, or you may go for golds, rich reds or burgundy shades for your bridesmaid dresses, for example. Heritage and culture Many people like to celebrate their heritage when it comes to planning a wedding. This could be reflected in the addition of dragons to the table centerpieces or choosing the color red for an invitation for a Chinese wedding or in the outfits you choose to wear for a Scottish celebration. If you’re marrying somebody from a different culture, using your heritage is a theme is a great way to bring everyone together and create a day that involves both sides of the family. On-trend themes If you’re getting married soon, you’re probably aware of what’s hot and what’s not in the world of wedding themes. Like fashion catwalks, trends change every year, and there is always a collection of ideas, which seems to reflect what everyone wants. A couple of years ago, vintage fayres and shabby chic were all the rage, and this year, al fresco gatherings are stealing the show. Informal ceremonies are becoming increasingly popular, and more and more people are shunning the traditional wedding breakfast in favor of more sociable and less formal options like barbecues, buffets, and grazing platters. Passions
It’s common for couples to use their passions and interests as a source of inspiration when it comes to planning a wedding. Perhaps you’ve traveled the world together, and your table names are named after your favorite places. Maybe you love jazz, and you’ve gone for a retro Hollywood theme with live music. Or maybe you’re massive fans of Star Wars, Harry Potter or Game of Thrones and you’ve asked everyone to dress up for your big day. If you do have a shared passion, this is an excellent way of personalizing your ceremony and making it memorable. If you’re in the middle of planning a wedding and you’re considering potential themes, think about what interests you, and what kind of event you want to create. Celebrate what makes you special, be creative, and plan a day that’s unique and personal. Secret Past! Does He Need To Know About Her Sex Tapes? Q&A: Question and Answers Dear Frank, For almost 4 years I was involved with a man and we participated in BDSM. He was my master, and I his submissive. We had a very documented love life (he loved to record everything) especially when we played with others; more like when he let a number of others play with me. Anyways, that was a long time ago. I now live with my fiancé and he knows nothing about my past. He knows that I had one major relationship but does not know anything about the group sex, the BDSM or the videos. I ended up with most of those videos and photos I think, but not all (my Master still has a few). Also, I was blindfolded most of the time during group play, and although my master assures me that no one was was recording anything, there were times when it happened. I live with the secret fear that my fiancé might find my box of tapes and pictures and stuff. He is way conservative and would not understand. Can you suggest any place that I might store this so that he will come across it at home? -Submissive Sindy Dear Sindy I knew a woman once that was in a similar situation. She was a swinger with her ex, and had exactly the same situation with videos and pictures, afraid that her husband would find them. She ended up giving her collection to a male friend of hers to hold on to so that she could get it back anytime she wanted, but it was not where her husband could get to it. Ironically, life being what it is, her and and the male friend have lost touch, and now she doesn't even have access to her videos and photos. As I teach it during my pre-marriage coaching sessions as well as in my coaching workbook for women I'M A WOMAN, IT'S MY TIME EBOOK I would suggest that the BEST thing you can do is to tell your fiancé about your past BEFORE you get married. Just as you would want to make an informed decision about who you are marrying, you owe your husband-to-be the same opportunity to make an informed decision. You have a very simple, but difficult, choice to make. If you are certain he would not marry you if he knew your past, end the engagement immediately. If he wouldn't marry you if he knew your past, do not marry him. A Broken Engagement is Better Than A Happy Divorce!
If you have any friends that knew what you were into, it will come up (just like what started to happen to the lady I mentioned earlier that was previously involved with the swinger culture. She had friends from those circles that stayed in touch or would re-connect with past lovers, or just had platonic friends that knew the details of her past. She had to start cutting ties with everyone because some of her contacts were getting careless about what they mentioned around her and her new family. Blindfold Sex Toy Also as you mentioned in your question, you were blindfolded most of the time, and thus there are chances that there are videos and photos of you out there in the hands of people you do not even know. In fact, they might already be on the Internet as you have no control over what your ex (or others from the group activities) will do. Bottom line is that, you cannot build a life with your new fiancé with this threat constantly hanging over you. In the meanwhile, there are storage companies available (with the note that unless they are packaged and sealed, even the people storing them could view them. Make sure the photos and videos are labeled inconspicuously. There is always the option of destroying the material (burning would be best as you can not guarantee where just tossing them in the trash will land them). I would not suggest giving them to any of your friends. Friendships come and go, and you might lose touch with them and not be able to retrieve your momenteos (just like the lady from swinger culture I mentioned earlier). In this case, honesty really is your best policy if you want to build a solid foundation for a marriage. If this marriage could not handle honesty, it is not the marriage for you. Also, if you desire to ever explore this fetish and lifestyle again in the future, putting yourself in a marriage that could not allow it, would be a mistake. -Frank Kermit It is time to Take The Luck Out Of Love and sign up for Coaching. P.S. Do you Agree With This Article? Disagree? Have something to Add? Write your thoughts in the comments below and SHARE this article to see how many of your friends think like you. A Relationship is:
Acceptance at the Worst, Loving at the Best By Frank Kermit At a workshop I hosted I issued one of my famous Frankisms that seemed to really resonate with the attendees. I was trying to convey the importance of sticking to your own rules and boundaries when you are in a relationship, to the point where, you may very well have to walk away from someone you care for deeply (maybe even love) if you are unable to accept the worst parts of your partner. Frankism: "If you are unable to accept your partner at his or her worst, then it does not matter how much you love your partner at his or her best." Sometimes we end up dating people, and fall into committed relationships without meaning too. We start dating casually, not really sure if there is any real future, but being with somebody is better than being with nobody. Then you show up at a party together, and someone puts you both on the spot asking if you are a couple yet or not...and not wanting to sound pathetic or inappropriate, you both confirm that you are in fact a couple (regardless that neither of you spoke about it beforehand)...and there you have it! You are now in a relationship that really hasn't got there on its own merit. But again, being with somebody is better than being with nobody. Maybe if you get more serious, you will end up liking each other more and your partner will change all the things he or she does that you hate. Sounds plausible, right? Wish it were as plausible as it sounds my dear reader. It is easy to base the success of your relationship on all the things you love about your partner. That is where most people start to fantasize (er, um, we mean plan right? Right? Planning, not fantasizing right?) about the kind of future you can build with your partner. The reality is that loving what is best about your partner is not where the success of your long-term relationship solely grows from. The success of your long-term relationship is just as rooted (if not more so) in being able to accept your partner at his or her worst. So, what is the worst thing about your partner? Does your partner forget to bathe regularly? Does your partner refuse to take better care of his or her health? Does your partner get annoying on purpose because of the "fun" way the veins pop out in your neck? Is your partner unable to keep a job? Is your partner a nail biter? Does your partner get snarky to the point of being abusive when feeling under the weather? Does your partner act like a people pleaser and then blow up at you unexpectedly in public? Is your partner simply unable to be sexually faithful to you? Does your partner drink excessively, or is a drug addict of some kind? Forget about what is great about your partner; Find out what is the worst of the worst in terms of what you will have to deal with if you continue seeing your partner. If you have any doubt about what you can handle, stay out of a serious relationship with that person. A broken engagement is better than a happy divorce. A part of the workshop also covered the topic of how: "Understanding does not Equal Acceptance". Just because you can understand that your partner may treat you poorly because your partner had a rough upbringing does not mean that it makes the abusive behaviors any more acceptable. You can intellectually understand the source of your partner's pain and the roots of the bad repeating behavior patterns, however, that does not demand that you fully accept it, and invite that aspect into your life through your life partner. When the worst, is worse than the best-of-the-best you are getting, then the end result of the relationship is that it is still worse to stay with your partner than it would be to find someone better If you want to learn more about how to understand and master your dating and relationship skills: Learn more about self awareness and self actualization by checking out the coaching workbooks For Men: I'M A MAN THAT'S MY JOB WORKBOOK EBOOK For Women: I'M A WOMAN, IT'S MY TIME EBOOK Learn the Complete The Emotional Needs Mastery System Check out the Benefits of COACHING Video The 7 Weird Words That Help Define Relationships
By Frank Kermit There are 7 certain words that catch many people off guard when it comes to relationships. They are: Lust, Love, Sex, Dating, Commitment, Marriage, and Monogamy. At their most literal meanings, these commonly used words are very understandable. Intellectually, most people have no problem grasping their mental understanding of those words. Lust can be defined as the sexual desire that someone may experience when attracted to someone. To enjoy lust even better check out Now What? Unique Ways to Cater To her Sexual ENA Love can be defined as an emotional attachment someone feels for another person. To make someone full in love with you learn to master their emotional needs. Sex is a physical act between people and usually refers to the act of intercourse. If you never had sex, talk to me about how to lose your virginity. Dating can be understood to refer to the process of two people spending time together with a romantic intention. Check out the NEW rules of dating. Commitment is an obligation that you make a promise to fulfill. There are ways to check if your relationship is commitment ready. Marriage can be considered a legal status you enter to define your legal standing with another individual. Before you get married, sign up for marital coaching. Monogamy is a term to describe a dynamic where you have sex with only one particular person and refuse to have sex with others. Learn the basics of monogamy and non-monogamy. The issue with these particular words is that people may directly associate a word on the above list to be the equivalent of one, or more, of the others words. Even though we can define each word differently, we may make emotional connections with these particular words that cause us to substitute one word on the list for the other words. For example, a person may feel that marriage is the exact same thing as monogamy. A person may feel that having sex with someone means having someone's love. A person may even feel that simply dating someone for a few casual coffee dates automatically implies a deep commitment. A person may assume that the more lusty attraction they feel for someone, the more they are in love with that person. This is what makes these certain 7 words intriguingly weird. These words, which intellectually can be understood to be clear and separate, get muddled through multiple shades of gray on deeper emotional levels. It is the realistic person that does not assume commitment when dating, until that commitment is earned and publicly stated. It is the emotionally mature lover that grasps that having sex or lust for someone is not necessarily an expression of any loving attachment beyond the attraction nor physical act. It is the millions of happily married couples in the swinger lifestyle who will attest that being married does not equate monogamy. The understanding that each of these words is unique and separate from the other words is a key ingredient to the beginning stages of getting your love life in order. It is a part of the self-actualization process and achieving clarity in relationships that a person must come to terms that each word does not mean exactly the same thing as any of those other words. One of the best ways to fully grasp this first step concept is to ask yourself if you can experience any one of those terms, without experiencing any other of those terms. For example, is it possible to be in a marriage that is devoid of lust, love, sex, having dated, commitment, or monogamy? The answer of course is yes. There are loveless marriages, sexless marriages, arranged marriages that never involved dating, marriages of convenience where the couple are married but simply are not commitment to each other beyond some kind of materialist exchange, and there are married couples that are non-monogamous where the couple, individually or together as a couple, engage in open consensual sex with other people. This is not about infidelity nor cheating, as there is neither deception nor lying, as both partners of the couple are involved and consenting in the extra-marital sex. Marriage can exist completely independently of all those other terms. This is an example of the clarity that is required to properly handle your relationship mismanagement behaviors. If you want to fully figure out where you might be making incorrect word associations when it comes to your relationship expectations, go through each word and write out if the one word could exist without any of the other words in association. This exercise can be a revelation to some people, and reality shattering for others. You must never assume that other people will interpret those 7 words the same way you do; that is what makes them weird. These words are some of the most commonly misunderstood words when wrangling with relationships, and at the same time these are the same words that are significantly used in correlations to define what is a relationship. If you want to learn more about how to understand and master your dating and relationship skills: Learn more about self awareness and self actualization by checking out the coaching workbooks For Men: I'M A MAN THAT'S MY JOB WORKBOOK EBOOK For Women: I'M A WOMAN, IT'S MY TIME EBOOK Learn the Complete The Emotional Needs Mastery System Check out the Benefits of COACHING Video How to Guarantee A Divorce By Frank Kermit When wedding season is upon us, I get couples coming in for some pre-marital coaching. This process, usually in private couples coaching, but sometimes as a group class is to get couples to ask one another very important questions, the answers to which may even end their engagement. The goal is to build a rock solid foundation for the marriage so that when tough times trouble the couple, the couple has the best possible odds to stay strong and steady until the storm passes. One of the components that I teach in my coaching workbooks for men and women, "I'm A Man, That's My Job" and "I'm a Woman, It's My Time" in this process is the rule of putting a life partner ahead of your own extended family and friends. In dealing with couples on the verge of a break up or divorce, as well as, separated and divorced individuals who are starting over, a remarkably clear pattern became identifiable. One of the key components that the individual asking for the break listed as a primary reason for ending the relationship was a feeling that a partner put the wants and needs of extended family members and friends ahead of the needs of a spouse and even their children. It is important for new couples getting married to understand that the number one person in your life is your spouse:
If you end up in the middle of a conflict between having to choose what it best for your spouse or what is best for anyone else, you better choose your spouse if you want your marriage to survive as you must be able to trust in your spouse that your spouse would choose for you. In the most basic of terms, it is you and your spouse against the world. You come together in marriage to form a partnership to build a common future, a family unit, and to have each other's best interest in mind because it is expected that the two of you have already discussed and agreed upon achieving similar life goals. These conversations should have covered family planning, careers, retirement, lifestyle and coping with any known and potential obstacles to those plans as well as agreed upon sacrifices necessary to make all of those goals happen. If you haven't given any thought to these core goal oriented communications, you will be thinking about them while you are in the process of splitting up. Ironically, the very questions you are asking yourself about your partner during a divorce are the same one you both needed to talk about during your engagement. There is only one exception to this rule...if you already have young kids when you are getting married. At that point, your kids who rely on you and have no one else to depend on take priority over your new spouse. Your spouse is an adult that got to choose to be with you and must accept your priority to be a parent to your children. However your children did not have the choice of having you as a parent and you may be the only person your children have to give a damn about giving them a decent start to life. In the future I will write an article for child-free adults who date single parents and how to navigate realistic expectations of step-parenthood. Check Out The Benefits of Frank Coaching and Sign Up (Especially if you just got Engaged!) P.S. Do you Agree With This Article? Disagree? Have something to Add? Write your thoughts in the comments below and share this article to see how many of your friends think like you. The 5 Extreme Effects of Valentine’s Day
By Frank Kermit Sometimes people will use Valentine’s Day as a catalyst for something significant. Some of those significant undertakings can be life changing, while others just re-confirm what human beings tend to forget or take for granted. Here are some examples of the extreme effects that Valentine’s Day can have on people, and the actions they are motivated to take. The Confessional: Valentine’s Day is notorious for people confessing their undying love to someone that has thus far been just a friend. At times it is a long drawn out secret-admirer type of communication with the admirer being revealed on Valentine’s Day. The problem with this method is that the anticipation of discovering whom it is overshadows the reality of who the admirer actually is. The build up is so high, that even a great date candidate might still not live up to fantasy built up in someone’s mind, and makes the climax of the secret revealed be a let down. Other times, it is a person who has been planning and rehearing a “You Mean The World To Me” speech. The intention is good but I strongly discourage such execution. This only works if the other person already likes you. There are a few people who would welcome this level of attention and reward it with a date to see where things go. However, most people do not react well from the extra pressure, and it can be a bit intimidating to get to know someone romantically that already has very strong feelings. More often than not (at least what I have seen in my coaching practice over the years), rejection is usually the response. Ask the person out for a date on Valentine’s Day if you wish, but confessing an undying love to someone that may not feel it is deserved or merited is more likely to scare the person off. The Break Up: Valentine’s Day is a day of reflection, and sometimes that means that people who reflect on the relationship they are in, or reflect on the person they are dating, and come to the conclusion that they should no longer be together. As great as Valentine’s Day can be touted as celebrating love between two people, it is just as equally destructive in ending dating and relationships. Getting dumped on Valentine’s Day is a real occurrence, precisely because it calls attention to elements between the two people, that people might sometimes ignore, or tolerate. When a person discovers they really wouldn’t mind not spending Valentine’s Day together, that realization can turn into the rational that they wouldn’t mind not spending ANY future time together. The Reminder: Sometimes Valentine’s Day does exactly what most people hope it will do. It is a reminder for each couple to focus on the reasons that they are happy that they are together. Instead of focusing on the day-to-day routine things that may annoy you about your partner, Valentine’s Day is a reminder for couples to take time out, recognize what it was about your partner that drew you in to begin with, and to show some attention, appreciation and love to your partner, in ways that makes your partner feel loved, special and respected. When appropriately done, Valentine’s Day can be exactly what saves a couple from a break up, and can be a reboot for the couple to get back to where they were on their path together, before the rest of life distracted them from what was really important in a relationship. In a time when the divorce rate is about 40-50%, I would suggest that anything, like Valentine’s Day that can get a couple back on track is an nice extreme effect. The Proposal: Ding-dong! Ding-dong! Wedding bells are ringing! There is nothing wrong with proposing on Valentine’s Day. In fact, in 2013, the American Express Spending and Saving Tracker consumer report surveyed Americans’ Valentine’s Day plans, and found that six million couples are likely to get engaged on Feb 14th making it a very popular day for proposals. However there is a difference between a surprise proposal and a marriage proposal that a couple knows is eventually coming. If you and your partner have spoken at length about a future together, and you both acknowledge that a proposal is coming, but just don’t exactly know when, it is a pretty safe bet that once the proposal happens, the person asking is going to get a resounding “YES”! If you know for certain, you are going to get a yes, then by all means, do propose. However, if you are going to use Valentine’s Day as your day to surprise your partner with a proposal that the two of you have not previously seriously discussed, then you are HOPING for a yes. That is not a time to propose. A proposal needs to be an expected surprise, not a “What the heck are you doing to me?” surprise. The Last Straw: When Valentine’s Day pushes people to utter the words, “Never Again!” is when Valentine’s Day initiates the last straw. It is what I tend to see in my coaching. Someone has the worst Valentine’s Day they ever had, and decides it is time for a change. Perhaps they just got dumped, suffered a third divorce, ended up alone for V-day for the 5th year in a row, or even proposed and got rejected. A very painful Valentine’s Day can be the breaking point that some people reach, in order to step up and take the steps necessary to begin the hard work that comes with changing. The last straw is when a person reaches a point where the pain of staying the way they are is less than the pain involved in changing their ways. It is when you realize that the common element in every problem in your love life is you, and it is time to fix you. It is a shame that as human beings we sometimes need to be slapped by life in order to be motivated to make changes in the way we do things. But reaching that extreme point can be one of the effects of the worst Valentine’s Day of your life. Check Out The Benefits of Frank Coaching and Sign Up. Dating 8 Years Not Married
By Frank Kermit There are times when people will come to me for coaching, feeling very frustrated that they are in long term relationships, but as yet, are still not married to the person they are involved with. Sometimes it is a matter of the person promising that they will get married at a particular point in the future (when the kids are in college and out of the house), but then once that time point arrives, there is no future planning on getting married. Other times I have seen people who told the partner that they do not believe in marriage and never plan to get married to which the partner says, “I understand”, only to have the same partner be frustrated because they secretly hoped that he or she would change their mind in a few years. Finally, there are those cases where someone is too afraid to bring up the topic of wanting to get married out of a fear of potential conflict, so they stew in their frustrations of waiting for the other to bring it up. When the other does not bring up it, the person finds themselves erupting out of frustration and having a major fight that threatens to end the relationship. None of these situations is acceptable. Let me be frank with you and make it clear that if getting married is important to you, then it is best to find someone that already thinks the same way you do and to screen every date you have to find someone that is compatible with your beliefs. In today’s society the resistance to getting married actually makes sense. Depending on your income level (the higher income partner risks alimony and child support payments), your status (if you are previously divorced and financial compromised), and your history of being a lousy judge of character, or a repeating behavior pattern of self-sabotage, then the risks of getting married can be very real. Not everyone aims to get married, even if they want to date, live together and even have children. If you happen to be dating someone that tells you that they will marry you once a certain point of time happens, it comes down to whether or not you trust your own judge of character if you believe the person. I often mention that even if you have to wait for marriage, you do not necessarily have to wait to get engaged. This conversation tends to lead to any others reasons that someone might be holding back, and can be a very effective tool to finding out if the person means it, or is just using it as an excuse. The bottom line is this: If you want to get married by a certain deadline, be sure to communicate that deadline to the person you are involved with. There is nothing wrong nor demanding in saying that if you are not married by (insert # of years of being together) then you will end the relationship. The key is to stick by your own words when you issue any ultimatum. If you do not stick by your own ultimatums, then why should your partner take you seriously about anything else you might claim is important to you? You cannot have it both ways. You cannot complain that something you want is not happening and then refuse to take action when what is so important to you is not being fulfilled. Speak up for yourself, and be clear about your needs and expectations. Otherwise, you will not get what you want, and the only person you can blame is yourself. To learn about the Hierarchy of Dating and Relationships and learn where and how marriage fits in: Click here to buy a copy of the Coaching Workbooks For Men : I'm a Man, That's My Job For Women : I'm a Woman, It's My Time This is a contributed post. Starting a family and getting married can all come at you so fast. It’s a good thing to question whether you’re ready to make such a big commitment in your life. If you don’t question these things and whether now is the time for you to push ahead, you might make the wrong call for you. That’s the last thing you need, so don’t let it come to that. Instead, be honest with your partner and discuss the practical challenges that the pair of you are likely to face when starting a family and tying the knot. These practical areas of concern might not be romantic, but it’s the practical things that will hit you hardest later on. Timing First of all, you need to think about the timing of all this. Is now the right time for you to be starting a family and settling down with a partner who you aim to stay with for the rest of your life? Questioning that is nothing to be ashamed of; it’s perfectly natural. We all have to find our own way, and you don’t have an obligation to anyone if you’re not ready to do something yet. There are other ways in which timing should be considered too. For example, if you are entering middle age and you still want to have children, you will have to think about biology. Of course, there are things you can do to have children later in life now, but it’s something that is worth keeping in mind. You don’t want to regret things later. Financial Issues Money is a big part of any long-term relationship. You need to find a way to make it work financially for the both of you. And looking at how the balance of financial obligation is going to work between you is key. Talking about these things openly and frankly is always the best way to do things. That way, everyone will know where they stand. The other thing to think about is whether you should put a prenuptial agreement in place. Some solicitors or law firms can provide expert advice if that’s something you want to do. It will mean that if the marriage doesn’t turn out as planned, the finances will be clear and no one will have to argue over money. Finally, think about whether you have the money to start a family and maintain your lifestyle. Raising kids isn’t cheap. Career Concerns
Last but not least, you should think about how your family and marital plans fit in with your career. For many people, their jobs and careers are the most important things of all to them. And there is nothing at all wrong with that. But it can be challenging to keep your career on track while raising a family. It could be a better idea to wait until your career is in a more stable place before starting a family if you feel like you are stilling growing fast in your job. That way, your career will be less hectic when the times comes to have children and take on fatherly or motherly responsibilities for the first time. Pre-Marital Disclosure:
What to do after you get engaged By Frank Kermit This is an article for couples that are now engaged, I wish you congratulations on getting the "yes"! Welcome to the next level of the development of your relationship. Beware...if you thought getting to this stage was hard, you are about to embark on an even more challenging endeavor: The period of time where you and your partner are testing the waters to see if marriage is going to work out for you. When working with couples that are discussing marriage, or have gotten engaged, but have concerns about their ability to maintain a lasting relationship, I always encourage the couple to sit down and have a Frank Disclosure It is time you and your now fiancé embark on a very challenging journey...to share every secret you each have that could potentially end a marriage that has not even begun yet. We all have secrets. Some secrets you can keep to yourself, but other secrets, if exposed, can ruin your marriage. So the question is, what do you have to tell your future spouse? The answer is, you must tell your spouse everything you believe might cause your spouse not to marry you. If you happen to be thinking that you could NEVER tell your fiancé about X...well that X is exactly what you need to tell them now. Does your fiancé need to know everything? In today's world of social media and recorded history...well actually, yes you do. If you chose to safe guard certain truths from you past, at least, you must share those truths that would cripple your relationship if your fiancé ever found out. For example, if you know that your fiancé would never tolerate dating someone who currently does certain types of illegal drugs, and although you currently do not do any illegal drugs, but you did so in your past, it is important to let your fiancé know. Your fiancé may stay, your fiancé may go but it is important to give your fiancé the chance to make an informed decision, even if it could lead to the end of your current relationship. Chances are your fiancé will eventually find out, and when that happens, any assumption you might have had that it would no longer be an issue goes out with window, as the divorce papers come riding in. Keep in mind a break up today is a lot less detrimental to your emotional health than a divorce tomorrow from a marriage that was based on omissions of truths. Here is another example; have you ever posed nude for photos or made a sex tape that is in the hands of an ex? Even if your fiancé does not mind the fact that you did or did not, your fiancé should at least be shown the courtesy of being ready for the day when your vindictive ex makes those images or videos publicly available or posted them on the internet. We never know what can happen in our futures. Something like this could simply blow over...or it could be detrimental to a career (yours or your fiancé). It would also be a good idea to tell your fiancé before you have children together as your children will share in the fortunes and hardships you experience as a couple. Consider that your kids might get mercilessly teased and bullied in high school when intimate showing of either mom or dad catch up to them. You cannot control the actions of a crazy ex but you can at least have your team be informed of the potential play hazards and take whatever precautions may be necessary. If you just got engaged, and want to have a disclosure with your partner, consider all the things you can and cannot handle. Take into account your boundaries and deal breakers. Really think about what your values are and how you want those values to be enacted in your life daily. Here are some things you might want to share with your fiancé if you want the best chances of making your marriage last a lifetime. Do either of you have a child out of wedlock that was given up for adoption who may come back into your lives in 20 yrs? Have either of you worked as a sex worker (stripper/ prostitute/ pimp/ driver) at any point in time? Have you ever had a secret friends-with-benefits liaison with someone that your families will insist attend the wedding? Where either of you ever hospitalized for a suicide attempt? Have either of you ever been on medication for a mental illness that you may relapse into? Have either of you been arrested, incarcerated or have a criminal record? Were either of you dating someone else when you initially met? Have either of you been a party to cheating on past partners, or were the "other" person in an affair? Do either of you have some form of fetish, or alternative sexual lifestyle, or sexual orientation that your current partner does not know about? Have either of you participated in a wild-nature relationship that your current partner would not be able to handle? In some cases, your fiancé just might not care about your past. If that is the case, then sharing this information will help the couple bond, and make your relationship stronger. It will prevent your enemies, that WANT to see your relationship fail, from being able to use either of your past histories to turn you against each other. In other cases, your fiancé will care. Your fiancé may have certain beliefs about relationships and life, such that your past, or accepting your past (and vice versa) is just not feasible. In a perfect world, a person's past would not matter, and the love of your life would be accepting of everything about you. We do not live in a perfect world. For that reason, you need to know, and your future spouse needs to know. You are investing your life and all of your resources into this relationship including your bodies, your souls and banking on future children. Make your marriage strong by making an informed decision. This is a contributed post. Got a friend tying the knot soon? You’re probably already looking forward to celebrating their last few nights of freedom! Hosting an epic bachelor party is the only way to send your friend off, and it’s best to start planning early. Don’t just go for the traditional beer and stripper night in Vegas- it’s old and contrived! Instead, do something everyone will enjoy and remember for a long time to come. The best way to celebrate is on a trip with the guys, and there are a wealth of locations to consider. Gambling and drinking is one way to celebrate, but it’s better to find out the groom’s interests and find something fun and unique. Find destinations with plenty of fun activities to take in. You can still relax and party later on! Here are some of the best bachelor party trip ideas you might not have considered. Go To Barcelona https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Night_view_seen_from_Palau_Nacional_(Barcelona).JPG The famous city in Spain is a fantastic place to hang out all year round. Even in the midsts of winter, you can enjoy warm days on the beach with a few beers. You could even get in the water for some surfing or take a speedboat tour to the sea. Even away from the beaches, you can find plenty of fun things to do with a group. If you’re feeling competitive, take the guys for some high-adrenaline karting. You can put your driving skills to the test at breakneck speeds. You could also try something novel like bubble football. You might even want to go bungee jumping for a real thrill! It’s a great city for sports fans too. There’s plenty of places to play soccer, and you could also take in some beach volleyball. There’s also an opportunity to watch one of the best sports teams in the world at Camp Nou, the home of FC Barcelona. You can get delicious food at top restaurants offering things like tapas, steak, and seafood. The nightlife is fantastic too, with plenty of bars and clubs where people of all ages can have the time of their lives. Take On Toronto Places like New York and Las Vegas may get most of the hype for North American bachelor parties. But if you venture further north, you can get plenty of thrills in the capital of Ontario! It’s a buzzing city full of gambling spots, but it has plenty more to offer for your bachelor trip. You can go on a bar crawl around the best bars in Toronto. With rooftop venues, sports bars, and trendy spots, there’s plenty to try out. There are many craft pubs too, so you can sample some great ales from Canada and the rest of the world. Away from the nightlife, you might want to check out the Hockey Hall of Fame. It’s the home of the Stanley Cup, making it a mecca for NHL fans. It also has some great exhibits and an extensive collection of hockey memorabilia. It’s also a city full of manly activities. You can check out shooting ranges, archery, and there’s even an axe-throwing league! There’s plenty of options for accommodation. No matter how big your group, you’ll find plenty of fun things to do here. Camp Out Nothing beats spending time with your buddies in the great outdoors. Instead of partying it up for your bachelor trip, why not try out some camping? It’s an activity every guy can enjoy, especially when you bring food and booze along! You can check out some of the best places to camp in the USA or even look further afield. No matter where you go, take a truck and pack it with plenty of camping gear. Bring enough tents for everyone- you won’t want to share! Bring the snacks and drinks along, also. Building a campfire is a must. All you need is some matches to get it going- although you may also want some lighter fluid to help. With a camping grill, you can cook up burgers, bacon, and all kinds of other great camping foods. Of course, you could also roast marshmallows! As an alternative to pitching tents, you might want to rent out a cabin. It can give you space for all your party to sleep. It’s much more comfortable- especially in the depths of winter! But don’t let it stop you from getting outdoors, taking in some fishing, and spending time around the campfire. Playing drinking games and telling stories around the campfire is a great male bonding experience. But you never know what might happen on your camping bachelor trip. One bachelor party rescued a family of puppies in the woods of Tennessee! Head To Bangkok Bangkok is known for its crazy nightlife and wild shows on every corner. It’s definitely a city full of debauchery, but there’s much more to it that makes it an ideal bachelor party location. One of the best things about heading to Bangkok is how cheap it is. Tourists love Thailand, and Thailand loves tourists. There are hotels everywhere with shockingly cheap prices. Many are near fantastic beaches and nightlife hotspots, so it’s perfect for your bachelor trip. It’s also rife with cheap daytime activities. You might want to get some thrills by taking your party ziplining. You can even trek out into the wild on their guided jungle tours. It’s also a fantastic location for golfing, so you can relax with the guys and hit some holes. It’s another city known for high temperatures year round. You’ll have plenty of fun with your friends in the hot Bangkok sun. Hit The Road If you can’t think of one place to go, why not go everywhere? Hit the road with your party and try out every place on the way!
There are a couple of ways you can go about it. If you have a car to accommodate the whole party, you can rent cheap accommodation everywhere you stop. But you might have more fun renting out a huge RV where everyone can sleep! Get some road trip essentials and plan out a route. Emergency equipment and dry snacks are helpful. You could also bring a cooler for the passengers to store their drinks. No matter where you go, you’ll have a hell of a time road tripping together! Is Living Together Before Marriage
a Good Idea? By Frank Kermit The question of living together before marriage comes up most often in my work, when helping couples through pre-marriage coaching, and helping singles figure out their boundaries and personal moral code on their path to finding a life partner. The first place to start when answering this question is whether or not there are any cultural or religious reasons not to live together out of wedlock. Advice needs to take into account the personal beliefs of the individuals and not force anyone to violate their own sense of right and wrong. What may be appropriate for one group of people may not be acceptable for another group of people. In cases where the couple may not have any such issues with living together prior to being married, but the family members close to the couple would not find it acceptable, the next question for that couple to explore is the importance of maintaining familial relations compared to following their own path. Depending on how close people are to their extended families, and whether or not said families would cast out those who defy family social norms, may factor in greatly to the decision of living together. With all that said, if there are no cultural or religious practices obstructing the couple from living together before marriage, I would generally counsel that it is a good experience to live together first. To be clear, there are benefits of living together prior to being married (and if not to get married, then to test the waters for a life partnership and child rearing in the case of raising a family), which favor the couple that learns everything they can about each other. There are things that you find out about your spouse-to-be only through living with them such as their grooming habits (or lack thereof), their ability to cope with being sick, and how they handle the stresses of everyday life. Living together is one of the best ways to force an end to any remaining remnants of a honeymoon phase. Best to know these things about your future spouse before becoming the spouse. If there was one caveat that I would recommend, it is that living together must be a prelude to getting more serious. If there is no interest in being serious long term, then do not move in together regardless of any convenience or incentives it may offer. The best way to insure that neither member of the couple is wasting time with the wrong partner is to set a deadline to ensure that at some point, the couple that is just-living-together, will in time become the couple that is engaged. If the deadline is reached after living together for a certain time period and the couple has not moved their relationship to the next level, take it as a red flag to end the relationship. Frank Kermit This is a contributed post. Marriage is never easy. After the honeymoon period ends, it can feel like a battlefield. Keeping the romance alive is hard. Having to consider someone else’s feelings at every turn can be a real challenge. For the most part, that challenge will be worthwhile. Being so connected to someone can be a real reward if you put the effort in to make it work. There comes a time, though, when that effort is too much. All marriages need work, but sometimes it can feel as though the work has replaced the good times. At this point, it might be necessary to say goodbye. Here are some signs that things have gone too far. RESENTMENT If you start resenting each other, it can be hard to get back to a good place. Resentment can kill the best relationship. That resentment can take on many different forms. It may be that you blame your partner for holding you back in life, or maybe you just resent the way they act. You may feel as though your partner has stolen an important part of yourself. Maybe you just resent the fact that you do all the giving in the relationship. Whatever the cause is, there’s no room for a destructive emotion like resentment in a marriage. As soon as resentment creeps in, the blame game will soon follow. These types of emotion can kill any love between you. Divorce is not an easy choice to come to. If resentment has replaced any feelings of love, it may be the only option left. DISTANCE The distance between you and your partner is about more than just physical space. It’s possible to live in the same house as someone, and still feel far from them. Distance can grow in any relationship, and it doesn’t have to mean the end. The larger the gap, the harder it will be to come back from it. A growing distance between the two of you may mean that you are going in opposite directions. If you feel a gap growing, it’s worth sitting your partner down and asking how they feel about it. Communication is a great way to bridge gaps, and if you both agree to make more effort, you may be able to save your love. If the conversation ends in another argument, or nothing seems resolved, it may be time to call it a day. Do you and your partner tell each other about your days? Do you still maintain a physical intimacy? If you are blocking each other out, it may be a sign that distance is growing between you. ARGUMENTS
Arguments happen in any relationship. Love is never a smooth road, and sometimes you’re going to annoy each other. A sign that arguments have gone too far is when they happen on a regular basis. Do you snap at each other every time you speak? Do you stay angry at each other for days? These could be signs that things have gone too far. This is a contributed post. While traditions are beautiful, it’s important to remember that your wedding day is ultimately about you and your partner. You can follow traditions, but you don't have to be completely bound by them. And so if you want to do things a little differently or break the mold- go for it! It’s the perfect time to get creative, and really have fun with all of the little details. Here are just a few of the ways you can bring in a fantastic, personal element into your wedding. A Wedding Website Wedding websites are becoming more and more common, and are a great addition to your wedding. You can link your wedding gift list from here, information about how to find the venue and even photos and stories about you and your partner. It’s interactive since guests will be able to post comments, and is a fun way to get people involved and build up to the big day. Stationery Your wedding stationery is one of the first things your guests will see about your big day, so you’ll want to make a good impression. It might also give them clues to your wedding such as the style and colors you are going to use. You could have a designer create something for you, or even have a go yourself if you have good design skills. Alternatively, you could invest in personalised wedding stationery from Paper Themes or similar companies offering this service. Favours Wedding favours are a fun way to show your guests your appreciation for coming and are an excellent way to get creative. If you have a smaller wedding, you could personalise them to each guest. But if that’s not possible you could put together different favours for men, women and children. It could be anything from confectionery to a miniature candle to bath products to a miniature bottle of champagne. You could even get crafty and make something yourself. Although it might be best to do this well ahead of time since you’re likely to be busy close to the day itself. Decide on the kinds of things your guests are most likely to enjoy and put together a favour based on that. Wedding Rings There’s nothing wrong with a beautiful store bought the wedding ring. But if you’re looking to take it a step further, why not have bespoke rings made? This gives you full control about the metal, any stone placements, the width and just the overall look of the rings. Plus if you wanted to go with something a bit more unusual that you’re not likely to find pre-made then this is a good way to go. You know that no-one else is going to have the exact same piece and it’s totally personalised to you and your partner. Wedding Cake and/ or Cake Topper Even if you want to stick with quite a traditionally themed wedding, the cake is one area that you can really have fun with. There are tons of absolutely incredible wedding cake designers out there. They are able to put you together something that’s completely unique. If an alternative wedding cake is a little out of your comfort zone, why not personalise it with a fun topper instead? You can have these designed to look like you and your partner on places like Etsy. They don’t even have to be human looking versions of you. It could be anything from animals to aliens depending on what reflects your interests the most! Dogs Our dogs really are part of the family, and so if you want them to be a part of your big day then why not? Check with the venue to see if there are any restrictions, at the very least you should be able to have some photos taken with them outdoors with your guests. Providing your dog is social and comfortable being in groups of people, if not you could just arrange some photos with you the dog and the groom. Since you and your wedding party are likely to be busy on the day itself, your best bet would be to hire a pet sitter. They can bring them in when needed and then drop them back at home afterwards without you having to mess around or worry. Shoes Since most wedding dresses are full length, it means the bride is able to have fun with shoe choices. On the outside, it can look like you’re dressed very traditionally. But underneath you could be wearing anything from big gothic boots or bright pink converse! It’s a nice way to bring in your personality in a more subtle way. They can be shown in certain photos, but the rest can stay looking traditional and bridal if that’s what you prefer. Flowers Flowers can be an expensive element of a wedding, but if you plan it well, you can save costs and make it more personal. Growing your own, and asking friends and family to grow some blooms to or contribute some from their gardens is a fantastic option. You could also pick wildflowers (although make sure you check it’s legal from where you’re picking them from- certain areas will be restricted) which is an inexpensive way to add some rustic charm to your wedding. Alternatively, you could decorate your wedding with balloons to keep flower costs down. This way you’re able to bring in your wedding colors and brighten up the reception room without having to fill every area with flowers. You can buy ‘balloon arches’ and other types of arrangements for weddings. Then all you need is a helium machine and plenty of balloons in your wedding colors. Guestbook There are so many creative wedding guest book ideas online that you could incorporate into your wedding. A particularly good one is to leave out a Polaroid camera and have guests snap pictures of themselves and write a message on the back. Then you can display the images however you want. For example, you could clip them onto pieces of string inside a photo frame, and turn them into a piece of wall art to remember your wedding day. This is a contributed post. Planning to propose is one of the most nerve-wracking times of a man's life. This is a decision that is going to influence the rest of your life - not being nervous about it is a bad sign. This is something that you should be taking very seriously indeed. It's made all the harder when the expectations on the proposal itself - not just what it signifies - are becoming greater. No long is it enough to want to spend your life with someone; you're now expected to have a great story to tell when people ask how it happened. Given the magnitude of what's ahead, perhaps it's time to look at the other perspective. Women who have been proposed to have the best take of all of what the experience should be like, and here's their thoughts. So as not to embarrass anyone, they have chosen to share their stories on condition of anonymity. Names have been changed for the same reason. "I wish it had been more straightforward." Anna was proposed to by her boyfriend, Tom, after two years of dating. "He did a big thing," she recalls. "Gathered around our family and friends, had a whole speech planned out and even had a song. It was sweet, but I think I'd have preferred the moment to be about just us. It depends on the woman, but sometimes, less is more." They married six months ago and are now expecting their first child. "I was disappointed by the ring." Adrienne and Josh had been together for five years, but the proposal was still unexpected. "I was worried by it, to be honest," she admits. "The ring was not something I would choose at all. It made me wonder how well he knew me. I love Tacori wedding rings and anything with a modern twist, but this was very standard engagement ring. I don't care about price, but it would have been nice to think he'd put some effort in." Nevertheless, they married. Adrienne has yet to tell Josh she dislikes her engagement ring. "It's still the one he chose so it'll always be special," she reflects, "but I made sure I had an input when we selected the wedding bands!" "He got it spot on!" When Aiden proposed to Louisa, it was not a surprise. "We'd talked about it beforehand," she says, dismissing the idea this is not romantic. "I think that was important. He still did a whole down-on-one-knee thing, but I believe it was better because it was expected. And it was less nerve-wracking for him too, as he already knew the answer! Maybe it's not romantic, but it definitely made more sense for us as a couple." They are planning to have a destination wedding, though a recent house move has put this back a year. "You can't plan everything, so it turns out," Louisa laughs. So What To Take From This? 1. Know your bride and the things she likes. 2. Consider venturing the idea before taking the plunge; the surprise element is not always on your side. 3. Don't think you have to go all out on a proposal. Sometimes, less is more. Happy proposing! Here Are 7 Things to Consider for your Rustic Outdoor Wedding by Natalka Celebrations 1. Bear in mind you will likely have to rent everything, tent, flooring tables, chairs, bathrooms and sound systems. 2. Get all your permits: Contact the municipality / parks department to arrange for a permit. Don’t forget to find out about the rules regarding, trash removal, candles, torches etc. Alcohol Permit: If you plan to serve alcoholic beverages. 3. In case of inclement weather, provide umbrellas, lap blankets, and propane heaters. Make sure your guests are comfortable: provide, plenty of water, hand held fans, flip flops, spray sunscreen, bug repellent, and on a really hot day, prepare a bucket full of cold wet wash cloths. Remind your guests to wear appropriate footwear. 4. Did you choose a public place? You may have to put up with onlookers and unwanted noisy distractions, speak to your DJ about the appropriate sound system. 5. You picked your location because of the rustic beauty and your decor should emulate the natural surroundings, consider renting burlap, unfinished wood decor, vintage furniture and table top elements. 6. Lighting: Lanterns both glass and paper, twinkle lights, torches and candles (if permitted. See # 2). 7. Consider a menu fitting for an outdoor wedding, discuss food ideas with your caterer that do well at an outdoor wedding. -Natalka Lee Gach Wedding Planner, Co-coordinator and Consultant www.natalkacelebrations.com 514-652-4073 This is a contributed post Weddings are something that most of us dream about throughout our lives. Meaning that when our big day comes around, we want to ensure that it’s perfect in every way. While a lot of the time we focus on the reception, it’s also important to take the time to ensure that your wedding ceremony is perfectly planned out. Otherwise, it may not end up being what you’ve always dreamed it would be. The good news is that ensuring that your wedding ceremony goes without a hitch isn’t too difficult to do. It’s just a case of making sure that you do adequate planning for it and know what you would like it to be like. Ask yourself what type of ceremony have you always dreamed of? A quick one or something longer and more romantic - it’s your big day, so you need to make sure it’s what you want it to be. To help you ensure that your wedding ceremony is exactly as you have always imagined it would be, below are a few ideas and suggestions. Take these on board and you can make sure that your big day is memorable for all the right reasons. Double check your invitations Before sending out your wedding invitations, make sure to double check them. The last thing you want is for a printing error to cause problems, such as the time or postcode being wrong, for instance. So take the time to check over your invitations before sending them out, to ensure that your guests have all the right details. This is important as without the right information, some of your most important guests may end up getting lost or not turning up at all. Have a schedule in place For everyone in the wedding party, put together a schedule. That way everyone will know what they need to be doing and when. Having a plan written out will help to ensure that everyone arrives at the church on time and does what they’re meant to do. A few days before the wedding, email out the schedule for the day of your wedding to everyone in the wedding party. That way they can make sure that everyone knows what they’re meant to be doing and when. This will help to calm your wedding day nerves and ensure that everything goes to plan. Get your orders of service sorted Whatever you do, don’t forget about your orders of service. If you want to make sure that your ceremony goes to plan, it’s important to give each guest an order of service. That way, everyone knows what to expect from your nuptials. If you’re yet to get your wedding ceremony programs sorted, get in touch with a specialist order of service printing company. The last thing you want is for your orders of service not to have arrived by your wedding date, so make sure to get them sorted in advance. Have a tick list of what needs to be done on the day So that on the morning of your wedding, you’re not stressing about everything that needs to be done, create a tick list. So that you have a simple list of the tasks that need to be completed to hand. You can then give this list to your head bridesmaid, who can make sure that everything on it is completed. This should contain things like ensuring everyone gets their buttonholes and making sure that all the ushers are at the church early. Just the little things that otherwise, could end up being forgotten about. Don’t forget to call to confirm Last but not least, a few days before your wedding, call your service providers to confirm your booking. For instance, if you’ve hired a car to take you to the venue, call the company a few days before to confirm. That way you can double check that the vehicles you’ve hired will all arrive at the right times and places. Or say, for example, you’ve paid to have flower displays put together for the church. Call the florist to confirm what time they’ll be delivered, so that you can ensure someone is there. This will give you peace of mind and will help to ensure that your day goes as smoothly as possible.
Planning a wedding is always going to be stressful, as there’s so much that needs to be sorted. To ensure that your ceremony goes without a hitch, take note of tips and suggestions above, and implement them. |
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