Wedding Day Portrait: Father of the Bride

-5074Mother of the Bride, if getting the Father of the Bride to pose for a picture seems as impossible to do as catching a unicorn, wedding day is the answer to your prayers. Don’t miss your chance. Who knows when such an opportunity will roll around again!

What better time to capture a great photo of the former main man in your little girl’s life? After all, he’s all dressed up with nowhere to go while he waits to walk your daughter down the aisle. The Father of the Bride above just happens to be my husband on the day of our younger daughter’s wedding. I’m so glad the photographer thought to take this photo. It’s one of the best ones we have of Don.

So MOB, just ask your photographer to pull the FOB aside at some point before the ceremony and do an impromptu portrait session. A good photographer can snap three or four great shots before the FOB decides he’s had enough. Quick and painless—and you’ll end up with a dynamite photo!

*You might also like to read Wedding Day Photo Idea: The Groom and Minister.

*Photo by Flowers Photography

Wedding Day Photo: Moms Light Unity Candle Together

Mother of the Bride, will your new Mr. and Mrs. use a unity candle in their ceremony? If they’re still undecided, you might show them the photo above and see if they might catch the vision for something similar for their own wedding.

Having you, MOB, and the groom’s mother light your daughter’s and son’s respective candles while holding hands provides not only a sweet wedding ceremony photo, but it also sets the tone for the families to be united right along with the bride and groom. If you and the groom’s mom share this feeling of unity, why not showcase your joy and commitment with a beautiful photo like the one above?

Some couples want both the moms and dads involved in the lighting of the unity candle. Our daughters and their grooms fell into that camp. This approach can also provide a great photo opportunity. Just let your sweet couple put their own creativity to work to decide exactly how it could be done and what kind of shot they’d like the photographer to take.

So MOB, if the unity candle decisions haven’t been made yet, why not use this photo to start the conversation? May unity, love, and joy abound for your families!

*Also take note that the mothers in this photo are wearing dresses of different lengths—and unity can still reign, right?

*You might also like to read Wedding Photo Idea: A Shared Faith.

*For info about my book Mother of the Bride and also my Wedding Inspiration cards, check out my Books/My Work page.

*The new issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter with a giveaway in every regularly scheduled issue, came out last week. It’s not too late to receive it. Sign-up is free! Temporary problem with Life Notes sign-up. To sign up, just contact me.

*Flickr photo by Corey AnnCreative Commons License

Feeding and Nurturing the Young

Have you ever spotted birds at work feeding their young? I have several times since I like to watch and photograph birds when I get a chance.

When we visited my parents one Memorial Weekend over a decade ago, I got to observe a particular bird’s parenting skills over and over. Mom and Dad lived in Missouri then and had a couple of birdhouses on their property. Bluebirds had built a nest in one. I hoped to share a picture of the daddy bird’s parenting prowess (he was easiest to spot because of his bright blue color), but darn it all, the shot is too blurry to use here on the blog.

This daddy blue bird took his responsibility very seriously. He worked tirelessly to feed his little namesakes. Time and again he’d come flying in from a distance to land atop the bird house and rest a moment before scooting through the little hole to where his young ones waited. Within seconds, he was out again, taking only a minute’s reprieve before he was off scouting more food. He was a dedicated parent.

Have you spotted anyone feeding the young lately? You may be in the midst of feeding the young at your very own house—and I’m not just talking physical sustenance. As parents, we need to feed our children spiritually, too. Even when our kids are grown and gone, we still have opportunities to pour truth into their lives and eventually into our grandchildren’s lives.

Have we in the past or are we currently filling our kids’ or grandkids’ hearts and minds with the Word of God as we “sit at home and when [we] walk along the road” (Deuteronomy 6:7)? Have we exposed them to the spiritual teaching available in our churches?

We can also help nurture and feed other young ones besides those in our own families. Think of all the children in your circle of influence. Consider also the spiritually young, those who have only recently come to faith. They need us who are more mature in the faith to take our responsibility seriously. They need us to work tirelessly to help them grow and become strong in the Lord.

Let’s demonstrate some parenting prowess. Let’s be faithful to feed the young.

“Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.” Psalm 34:11 NIV

*How are you feeding the young in your circle of influence?

*The next issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter, comes out in early February. One lucky subscriber (new or current) will receive a $15 gift card to Starbucks and a signed copy of my book to use personally, give as a gift, or donate to a library. Sign-up is free! Temporary problem with Life Notes sign-up. To sign up, just contact me.

*For info about my book Mother of the Bride and also my Wedding Inspiration cards, check out my Books/My Work page.

*Flickr photo by Sister72, Creative Commons License

Wedding Guest Book Photo Booth Idea

Mother of the Bride, is your daughter looking for something fun or especially memorable to do instead of a traditional wedding guest book? Here is an idea that may just be an answer to her bride-to-be prayers: a guest book featuring photo booth photos of your wedding guests!

A photo booth wedding guest book provides not only a super fun visual record of those attending the wedding, but it gives the guests a chance to include a personal message as well. As opposed to the formal feel of the traditional sign-your-name-on-the-line-provided guest book we usually see at weddings, a photo booth guest book takes on an almost yearbook feel. Fun and memorable!

Photo booths for reception fun are great, too, as they allow the guests to take memories home with them, but the photo booth for the wedding guest book will be for the benefit of the bride and groom.

The bride and groom are so distracted on the big day (imagine that!) that many times they don’t have solid memories of those who attended. After the newlyweds have returned from their honeymoon and things have calmed down a bit, the photo booth guest book will allow them to review who was in attendance and to notice details they may have missed on their wedding day.

So go ahead and mention this clever guest book idea to your daughter, MOB. She may decide it’s one of your best ideas yet!

*You might also like to read Providing Photo Booth Fun for Wedding GuestsWedding Guest Book Ideas, and Guest Book Idea: A Guest Tree.

*For info about my book Mother of the Bride check out my Books/My Work page.

*The next issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter, comes out in early November. One lucky subscriber will receive a $15 gift card to Starbucks and a signed copy of my book to use personally, give as a gift, or donate to a library. Sign-up is free! *Temporary problem with Life Notes sign-up. To sign up, just contact me.

*Flickr Photo by paperladyinvitesCreative Commons License

A Mother of the Bride’s Prayer of Thanksgiving

May this Mother of the Bride’s Prayer of Thanksgiving help you express to God what’s in your heart this year, dear MOB!

Dear Lord,

My heart is filled with thanksgiving this year as I help my precious daughter prepare for her wedding. These are once-in-a-lifetime days, and I’m so grateful to be sharing such an exciting journey with her. Thank you, Lord, for granting us this amazing time together.

Father, as I see my sweet girl take on this new role of bride-to-be and soon-to-be wife, my heart swells afresh with love for her. Not only has she grown into a beautiful woman, she has become a funny, smart, kind, and loving person. I am so very proud of her and I thank you, Lord, for allowing me the great privilege of being her mom.

And how can I ever thank you for bringing such a fine young man into her life to be the love of her life and share the rest of her days with her? I pray that you’ll draw them even closer to one another in these months preceding their wedding. Help them form a bond that nothing will ever break, and help them to always look to you and desire to honor you in their marriage and in all that they do.

Lord, help me to be a mother of the bride who is truly helpful and encouraging in every way. Help me to be the support that my daughter needs now and help me to develop a sweet and loving relationship with my soon-to-be son-in-law. I pray I will be a mother they can always count on and a friend who will walk with them through whatever the future may hold. Help me to be a blessing to them, Lord!

Yes, Lord, my heart is filled with thanksgiving this year. How I thank and praise you!

“The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.” Psalm 126:3 NIV

*You might also like to read Spirit and Soul Refreshment for the Mother of the Bride. And from my home page, you might like A Prayer for Couples You Know.

*For info about my book Mother of the Bride and also my Wedding Inspiration cards, check out my Books/My Work page.

*The new issue of Life Notes, my quarterly inspirational newsletter with a giveaway in every regularly scheduled issue, came out Nov. 2nd. It’s not too late to receive it. Sign-up is free and to the right! (If you’re on a mobile device, scroll to the bottom of the screen and click View Full Site to find it.) Temporary problem with Life Notes sign-up. To sign up, just contact me.

*Flickr photo by JFXieCreative Commons License