Mother of the Groom: Part of the Team

Mother of the Bride, have you reached out yet to help the mother of the groom feel included in the wedding preparations? Remember, the wedding you’re helping your daughter plan is a very big deal to the mother of your little girl’s beloved too. This is a major milestone and celebration in the life of their family as well.

True, unless the groom’s family is helping in a significant way financially and thus in charge of certain aspects of the wedding, you and your daughter will take care of most of the wedding preparations. However, you can enlist the MOG’s help for certain things.

Here are a few ideas to help make the Mother of the Groom feel like she’s part of the team:

1) Ask her to be in charge of providing the card box/container to use on wedding day for any cards guests may bring.
2) Invite her to help decorate the church and/or reception venue the day before the wedding.
3) Ask if she can provide some needed items such as cake knife and server set (since one will be needed for the groom’s cake as well) or a champagne bucket.
4) If a problem arises with some aspect of the wedding prep, is there some way she might be able to help? If so, call on her.
5) Is there an errand she can run? For example, if you need to find multiple items of a certain component of the centerpieces, can she check to see if more of the items you need are available at the store in her location?

MOB, these are just a few possibilities for including the MOG. I’m sure you’ll be able to think of others. The important thing is to reach out, to make her feel included. The joy will be that much greater during wedding weekend if you’ve built a bond ahead of time. Don’t miss out on this special blessing!

*You might also like to read Kicking Off the In-Law Relationship.

*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 with a giveaway in every regularly scheduled issue, will come out in early August. Sign-up is FREE. *Temporary problem with Life Notes sign-up. To sign up, just contact me.

*Flickr photo by Or HiltchCreative Commons License

Wedding Slide Show: Gather Photos Early

Mother of the Bride, I have some short and sweet advice for you today—gather photos for the wedding slide show early in your wedding planning journey. This is something you don’t want to put off until crunch time.

Yes, you’ll want to include some of the happy couple’s engagement photos which won’t be ready until later on, but you can start going through old photo albums and/or files on your computer as soon as you know a wedding is on the horizon. Select your favorite photos from your sweet girl’s growing up years right on up through the days she started dating her knight in shining armor. And make sure the groom knows that he and his family should be selecting their photos too.

Give yourself a break, MOB, and do your part for the slide show before things start piling up on you. You’ll be so glad you did when you’re coming down the home stretch!

*You might also like to read Wedding Day Checklist: Containers for Leftover Cake, Wedding Day Need: Corsage and Boutonniere Pinner, and Day Before Wedding Tip: Preview Flowers.

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

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

*Photo by Analia Ferrario on Unsplash

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