Wedding Ideas

Men’s Wedding Bands
Men’s wedding bands provides useful information on gold, platinum, and titanium wedding bands for men.

Forever Brides
Forever brides is the number one resource wedding planning, bridal fashion and accessories, wedding beauty tips, registry gift ideas and etiqutte and tradition advice.

Tecroney Concierge Services
Traditional concierge service specializing in the art of fine service. We also assist in event planning, wedding coordinating and vip services.

Degwyn Gems, Private Jewelers Since 1975
We specialize in diamond and colored gemstone custom designed platinum and gold jewelry creations. Utilizing an extensive network of dealers, brokers and manufacturers, we offer superior craftmanship and the finest available gemstones and mountings.

Tiffany Morrison, 30, of Dover, Ohio, learned that firsthand a few years back. She was supposed to get married in May of 1997, but she and her fiancée had to put the wedding off a year because their job situation changed. While she was waiting for the big day to happen, Morrison put on 20 pounds. As a result, she no longer fit into her dress. “When we were a couple of months out from our new wedding date, I decided I really wanted to wear the dress I originally bought, but it had already been altered and my only option was to lose the weight,” she says.

The position Morrison found herself in is one thousands of brides and grooms across the country face every year. Between the stress and excitement of an upcoming wedding, it is not unusual to put on weight. Especially with all the get-togethers and parties you’re attending in the months before the big day. So what’s a couple to do? Pledge to combine a healthy diet with regular exercise and implement the plan not weeks but months before the wedding.

As far as exercise goes, if you’re not the type of person who likes going to the gym, you can work it into your day by parking your car at the end of the parking lot then taking a brisk walk into the office, taking the stairs instead of the elevator, and going for a walk during a coffee break or lunch. When you get home, do housework at a quicker pace and more often; for example, try vacuuming every day. When it comes to diet, the National Academy of Sciences recommends healthy adults consume between 1,600 and 2,800 calories per day.

In addition to watching what she was eating and exercising regularly, Morrison’s doctor recommended she start taking the dietary supplement conjugated linoleic acid which is sold under the brand name Clarinol CLA.

“The best solution for long-term weight management is enhancing a balanced diet with products powered by Clarinol CLA,” says Dr. Marianne O’Shea of Lipid Nutrition, a division Loders Croklaan. “It helps reduce your body fat and increase lean muscle mass.” The results over 8 to 12 weeks are a slimmer, shaplier figure. So start getting ready for your wedding today.

You can find bars, shakes and supplements fortified with Clarinol CLA at your local Target, LifeTime Fitness Gym, Whole Foods Grocery store and your favorite health food stores on and off line. Log on to www.clarinol.com for more information.

Courtesy of ARA Content

French Favors
Online ordering of handmade wedding favours and freeze-dried petal confetti. Order up to 3 samples. World-wide shipping.

(ARA) - Family traditions define who we are and where we came from. From the simple Friday night pizza party in the living room to the elaborate wedding celebration, family traditions are the bedrock of society — bringing order and predictability into our lives and emotionally nourishing us by building bonds with family both near and far. They make the mundane and everyday special, and they make the special occasions and milestones even more meaningful.

Holidays and family celebrations like weddings are catalysts for inspiring traditions. Traditions handed down over the generations, as well as new traditions, are all part of the mix. Most Americans know the tradition of “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue,” but what about weaving in wedding traditions based on your or your spouse’s heritage?

In Germany guests lay fir boughs in front of you as you leave the ceremony, to pave your way with hope, luck, and fertility. In a few regions in Italy, the couple shatters a vase or glass into many pieces. The number of pieces represented the expected number of years they’ll be happily married to one another. Many Web sites explain different ethnic traditions. These and others can supply ideas to enhance your ceremony, tying one generation to another.

“I think people need traditions more now than ever,” says Dr. Susan A. Lieberman, of Rice University in Houston, Texas, and author of “Family Traditions: Redefining Celebrations For Today’s Family.” “The world is changing so rapidly now, and traditions give us an anchor. Traditions make you feel good as a family. These indelible memories bring character and texture to our lives.”

Modern Woodmen of America, a fraternal benefit society offering financial services, created a Web resource, www.gatherings.info., which offers tips for creating traditions and encouraging family gatherings. The organization’s survey of 500 Americans discovered that people are most likely to attend family events that celebrate tradition.

“Celebrating family, holidays and major life events all rank high on the list of why Americans feel it is important to gather together,” says Modern Woodmen’s Sharon Snawerdt. “In fact, 87 percent of Americans say they attend family gatherings simply because the gatherings themselves are a family tradition.”

What about developing traditions after you’re married? Try some of these or let them be your inspiration to create your own.

* Purchase a guest registry book for your new home and every time you have guests (friends and family too) have them sign and date. Include the purpose of the visit when special events arise.

* Plant shrubs or trees each year on your anniversary or for the birth of a child.

* Before you and your spouse leave for work, take a minute to say goodbye and state something you are grateful for about the other person.

* Celebrate the anniversary of the day you moved into your first home together by purchasing a special item that could be handed down to your children someday.

* During the holidays consider starting your own tradition of sponsoring a needy family.

* Not everyone gets the holidays off, so why not take baked items or part of your holiday meal to the local police station, fire station, or hospital?

* Many people live too far away to get back home for any holiday. Create an annual gathering, and invite friends who are in this situation. Buy a simple cheesecloth tablecloth and fabric markers. Drape it over your table and have guests write their name, the date and what they are thankful for this year. Each year everyone can reminisce about the year and what has happened since.

“Always remember to honor the spirit behind your traditions,” concludes Lieberman. “You can describe building new traditions as unraveling the old and weaving new with the same threads. The whole value of traditions is to give pleasure and joy and make us closer to those we love.”

For more great ideas for family traditions and planning family gatherings, visit www.gatherings.info.

Courtesy of ARA Content