Archives for December 2015

Holiday Blogging Break Plus Wedding Planning Help

December 14, 2015 by Leave a Comment

7980406309_3524c3f3bd*Since the readership of the Mother of the Bride Blog is ever-changing, here is an updated encore post I hope will be helpful to those of you who weren’t MOBs when I originally posted it last December.

Mother of the Bride, I’m taking a holiday blogging break until the first of the year, but I have a little gift for you—a gift of help! Allow me to point you in the right direction to find some great ideas and tips. Maybe at some point over the holidays, you’ll have a little time to wear your MOB hat. The chances may not be good, but you never know!

Three great sources of help are right here on my website. Glance over to the right sidebar and scan down until you see the Favorite Posts section. There you will find links to some important or super-helpful posts here on the Mother of the Bride Blog. Also, if you would like info or help on a certain topic, just use the search feature right under my picture on the header. It will pull up all kinds of help in an instant. You can check my Archives as well (the last item on the right sidebar.) Click on each year and then click on each month. When you click on the month, then you will see a list of the post titles. I bet you will spot some posts that will be especially helpful to you at this stage in your Mother of the Bride journey.

Another great source of helpful ideas can be found on my Pinterest page. I have eighteen wedding-related boards filled with terrific ideas for you. When you go over to check it out, be sure to follow me while you’re there so you won’t miss out on great new pins I post each week.

How’s that for some MOB help this holiday season? Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you!

*Find my annual Christmas poem over on my home page. Hope you enjoy—and see you in the new year!

*Flickr photo by top10things, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: Gift, help, holidays, Mother of the Bride, preparation, rest, variety Tagged With: , , , , ,

Christmas Poem 2015: Divine Delivery

December 14, 2015 by 2 Comments

11393706364_38f8638c39_z*I’ll be taking a blogging break until after the first of the year—unless I hop on here to share a photo. May you enjoy sweet times with loved ones and have a truly blessed celebration of our Savior’s birth, my friends. Enjoy my annual Christmas poem—and see you in 2016!

Divine Delivery

This time of year I hear echoes
Of angels on parade,
When God sent his Son as a newborn babe
When a divine delivery was made.

No gift before or since
Can match our Savior’s birth,
Except the divine delivery from sin
His blood shed for all on this earth.

But as we make our way through life
God’s miracles we still need,
His hand, his help through our heartaches,
Precious divine deliveries indeed.

So if any among you are hurting today
And need to know hope lives,
Just lift your eyes and hearts to God,
For divine deliveries he still gives.

“May the God of hope fill you with all
joy and peace as you trust in him . . .”
Romans 15:13a

*In gratitude for the divine delivery God
sent our family on January 3rd when Kristin
and Shawn became parents to twin sons,
Isaiah and James. Yes, hope lives—and our
joy knows no bounds!

*When has God blessed you with a divine delivery? Or are you waiting on one now?

*Flickr photo by Conal Gallagher, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: Above and Beyond, Christmas story, encouragement, holidays, hope, joy, miracle, poem Tagged With: , , , ,

A Winner Plus My Favorite Christmas Verses

December 10, 2015 by 2 Comments

4037699377_b218f58079_zToday’s the day to announce the winner of the Little Christmas Warmth Giveaway—yes, time to make someone a little warmer! The lucky winner who will soon be wrapping her cold hands around a luscious hot drink from Starbucks is . . . Tamra! Congrats, Tamra! I’ll dash to my mailbox as fast as I can (without a one-horse open sleigh!) and send the gift card on its way. Hope it makes your holiday season a little merrier!

For all of you dropping by today, I’d like to pass along the best holiday joy I know by sharing my favorite Christmas verses from the Bible. I love reading all of the passages related to the birth of Jesus, but the verses below have become my favorites. May God’s Word bless you today, friends!

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6 KJV

“‘The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’—which means, ‘God with us.’” Matthew 1:23

“And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:10-11 KJV

“The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:14

A child. A son. A Savior. The Word. The One and Only. Amen and amen!

*Which of these verses speaks to you in the most powerful way?

*Flickr photo by sakarias.ingolfsson, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: Christmas story, giveaway, holidays, joy, Word of God Tagged With: , , , , ,

Wedding Day Photo: A Toast for the Groom and His Guys

December 10, 2015 by Leave a Comment

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Mother of the Bride, as you think of wedding day photo ideas, your thoughts probably center around the bride (after all she is your little girl!), but let me encourage you not to forget the groom. He is the other half of this dream-come-true day and deserves attention devoted to him, too. He may not act like he wants it at the time, but when all is said and done, he’ll be thankful to have memories captured of him, his family, and his friends.

One great photo idea to involve the groom and his groomsmen is to catch them celebrating the big day with a pre-ceremony toast. Not only will they enjoy kicking the party off a little early, but it will make for a cool wedding day shot, too. It’s also neat to capture some of the fun camaraderie between the groom and his guys before the ceremony. Afterwards, it will be all about the new Mr. and Mrs., right?

So MOB, add this idea to your list of photo ideas to suggest to the happy couple and/or their photographer. If they like the idea, why not ask the groom’s mother to be sure to have a bottle of champagne or sparkling cider, etc., on hand for her groom-to-be son and his groomsmen. This provides one more opportunity to help make the groom’s mom feel included in the wedding preparations. And that’s definitely a win!

*You might also like to read Fun Photo Idea for the Groom and Groomsmen, Wedding Day Photo Idea: Bridesmaids Hold the Groom!, Wedding Day Photo Idea: The Groom and Minister, Photo Idea: Bridesmaids Blow the Groom a Kiss!, and Make the Mother of the Groom Part of the Team.

*Flickr photo by dan.thoburn, Creative Commons License

Filed Under: bride, celebrate, cheer, groom, groomsmen, memories, Mother of the Bride, photo fun Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Christmas Gifts for the Bride

December 7, 2015 by Leave a Comment

The Loot (3)*Since the readership of the Mother of the Bride Blog is ever-changing, here is an updated encore post I hope will be helpful to those of you who weren’t MOBs when I originally posted it in December 2013.

Christmas-shopping bills plus wedding expenses can equal one slightly stressed (okay, highly stressed) mother of the bride, can’t it? Either one of these particular expenses puts a strain on most of our budgets, but combine them and we’ll be seeing dollar signs in our sleep each night.

So what can you do, Mother of the Bride, to help alleviate a little of the financial pinch that may come your way in December? My oldest daughter Kristin inadvertently sparked one solution while we were planning her wedding. When the holidays rolled around, she told me not to worry about buying any Christmas gifts for her that year because she knew we were already spending a lot on her upcoming wedding. Of course, I didn’t want to forgo Christmas for her, but an idea clicked—why not combine the two?

And you know what? It worked perfectly. I went ahead and purchased the bridal veil she had shown interest in as well as a pair of bridal shoes and a beautiful wedding memories album that could serve as a guest book for the wedding. It also provided a place to record bridal shower and wedding gifts. A dear friend made some lacy garters for her and even decorated a special keepsake box for them with a bridal theme. I also gave Kristin a beautiful unity candle set as well as a fun honeymoon photo album. She was delighted.

So remember this, MOB, during the holiday season: A few meaningful wedding-related Christmas gifts for your bride-to-be daughter will strike her as not only fun but special as well while also giving your bank account a bit of a break. Another win-win on the wedding front!

*You might also like to read A Simple Wedding Expense Tip, Making Her Beautiful—Bridal Primping on a Budget, Budget Agreement with the Father of the Bride, and Wedding Savings Tip: Borrow!

*Why not pop over to my home page and enter the Little Christmas Warmth Giveaway? Deadline to enter is 6 p.m. (CST) on Dec. 9th!

*My photo

Filed Under: advice, bride, Gift, holidays, joy, money, Mother of the Bride, preparation, provision Tagged With: , , , , , ,
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