Everything comes to a screeching halt. Did I just say that her mother would be spending the night with you and your bride on your wedding night? Well, you think to yourself, I guess we could make up the spare bedroom. Wrong again, because your mother in law will be in the bedroom with you. Now you know I must be either drunk as a skunk, or crazy as a loon. Well you are wrong on both counts. I am describing a wedding custom of several villages in Africa. In all complete seriousness, there are tribes who have a custom that the bride’s mother, your mother in law must spend the night with the newly married couple and it gets worse. Her job is to make sure that your new wife knows what to do to make you happy…in bed.

It does not have to be the bride’s mother. In certain situations, it can be the groom’s mother or in lack of a bride or groom’s mother, a female village elder. They literally sit there and direct the bride what to do and watch to make sure she does it right. To make things worse, if your wife does something too well, the watcher will report to the village elders that she was not a virgin and the wedding will be annulled. Talk about some strict rules. You have to hope that your new bride is not a natural at sex or you could lose her.

In another small village near Borneo, there is a wedding custom for which I just do not think I would have the stomach. During the first 72 hours after the wedding, in order to avoid bad luck, the newly married couple is not allowed to urinate or have a bowel movement. In order to ensure they do not cheat, the couple is watched day and night. They can only have small sips of water and a few bites of food every now and then. I do not know about anyone else, but I cannot go 72 hours without peeing even if my life depended on it. Shoot, at my age, I am lucky if I can get through a two-hour movie without relieving myself. In fact, I do not go to the movies because of this, choosing instead to wait for the DVD release of the film. Making it through one night without going to the can would be hard enough and they want me to go for three nights? My bladder would burst.

These weird wedding traditions are pretty strange but they are steeped deeply in the traditions of these customs and are lovingly followed to the letter in most cases. I just cannot imagine how embarrassed I would be to have my mother in law standing over my wedding bed directing traffic. I think it would be even worse if it were my mother doing it.

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It is a very archaic tradition when you talk about giving a wedding favor during a wedding. History had it that the first ever practice of giving a wedding favor were done by ancient European aristocrats, nobles, and members of the elite and upper class. Bonbonnier, which is an Italian word, was the first term for wedding favor.

Centuries ago, bonbonnieres were always characterized by a little box, the size of a trinket or jewel box that was made out of porcelain, crystals, and rarely with additional precious gems and stones. These boxes often had sugar, sugar cubes, and other fragile confections. This was created to solely signify loyalty and wealth. The purpose for this was, because back then, sugar was a rare commodity because of its expensiveness, only the rich people and the nobles could have and could afford it at that particular time.

But due to the passage of time as sugar became a basic commodity and more usual, couples not belonging to the upper classes were able to have access to it. Thus, the tradition of giving a wedding favor and other special gifts of gratitude was spread to the people, to couples belonging to either upper or lower class.

Thereafter, bonbonneries were replaced with almonds because of the decreasing trend of sugar over the ages and its becoming cheaper. For many centuries, it was usual to give almonds as a wedding favor to the wedding guests to convey a message of affluence of the new couple’s life together.

It was part of the tradition to bear five Jordan almonds to be offered in a confection box or to be wrapped in a fine fabric. Each almond signifies wealth, health, longevity and long lasting joy. One fundamental reason why almonds were used, apart from being a bit expensive, was because its bitterness and sweetness of candy coat symbolizes the perfect mix of marriage.

Today, gifts to wedding guests are more popularly called as wedding favors and the distribution of these tokens of gratitude to guests is a long tradition shared by different cultures across countries around the globe.

Nowadays, gifts to wedding guests are more commonly considered as wedding favors and the giving of tokens of gratitude to guests is a tradition continuously existing for the longest time and is shared by different countries around the world. More importantly, a wedding favor is included in the reception plan of every wedding that is particularly popular in the United States and in Canada. Sometimes, these gifts have variety of shapes and sizes depending on the motif or the theme. Classic wedding favors usually come in sugar coat almonds, chocolates, small cakes and scented candles.

Weddings are such joyous occasion that everyone participating in the wedding entourage are excited to experience its preparation. You can begin with wedding favors that will display a stunning effect on this big day. Or you may want to try groomsmen gifts.

Best Man Olympics One way to choose your best man if you have several friends and you just hate to have to single one out from the pack is to hold a best man Olympics. This would be a series of games to decide the outcome based on their desire and a little bit of luck. The only fair way to proceed however would be to devise games that did not favor anyone. If you are like me, you have a diverse group of friends that range from the geek, who could assemble a computer in his sleep during a tornado, the freak, who has to take thirty piercings out of his body just to pass through the airport metal detectors, (and avidly avoids magnets) and the steroid pumping terminator who could bench press all of us. With that in mind, here are the challenges.

Seven Card Best Mans a Stud Poker! It is a man’s game that requires the kind of intelligence not required to build a computer. You do not have to be pretty to play it and if you can lift a deck of cards, you’re in. It is an equal opportunity game that, with a little luck, anyone could win because our rules are a little different. Winning hands mean nothing. The last player to pass out from days of poker playing without sleep and all the beer and cigars you could possibly consume, wins the round. During the only intermission, the players get extra points and a nap for the best choice of wedding favors. The winner is usually the first one to pick the Las Vegas wedding favors.

Run Men Run Another contest that is great for choosing your best man is the three legged beer run. With three friends competing, each man pairs up with the other until everyone has gone with everyone once. The man on the teams that has the best overall time at the end wins. This game, however, has to be played early in the wedding planning stage as the beer runs themselves consist of all the beer each man can carry and the beer has to be completely gone before the next run can be made.

Pin the Tail on the Best Man If you have never played pin the tail on the best man you probably do not walk with a limp. This game involves a raccoon tail, several large darts, and a package of Charlie Brown band aides, family size.

The Jig Saw Marathon In this game, you purchase three, five thousand-piece jigsaw puzzles with the same basic color design but three totally different pictures. Stock up on beer, pretzels, and Visine because you will need it. You dump all the pieces from all three puzzles into a bucket and shake vigorously. Then you pour the pieces out onto the floor. The first man to put his puzzle together wins the spot. This game takes a while and requires more skill than you would imagine. To make it easier, you can devise an elimination process. The man with the least amount of pieces linked has to take a shot every five minutes for one hour. Then the man with the second least amount every five minutes for one hour and so forth around and around until someone completes his puzzle. Passing out does not eliminate you completely because you might wake up and find the other two contestants passed out with puzzles yet unfinished.

Or you could do a quick round of paper, rock, scissors, best two out of three–and be done with it in less than two minutes. It is entirely up to the groom.

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Choosing Your State of Mind Wedding stress is natural and is sometimes hard to deal with. It is also fun and a wonderful experience. Which one of these you get the most out of is completely up to you. If you are in a frenzied, ready to pull your hair out and then start on someone else, very stressed out mode and you are just weeks from the big day it is time for a breather because this kind of state is the last frame of mind that you want to be in going into your wedding day. It is okay to let someone else take the reins for a little bit while you gain your composure. Pass smaller but important tasks, like choosing wedding favors, especially unique wedding favors, on to someone you trust. You do not have to do everything yourself.

Did someone say Spa Day? Its Miller time and you need it. If you are too stressed, and find yourself taking it out on everyone around you, take a break. You want to be relaxed and composed on the big day so treat yourself to a spa day and get a massage. If that is not an option for you, grab your closest girlfriend or your best man (if you are the groom) and go do something fun. A nice bed and breakfast would be just the ticket to get away for a few days and read a book. Do whatever it takes to get rid of some of that stress because you will enjoy your blissful day much more if you go into it with as little stress as possible.

Honeymoon Myth Do not get into the mind-set that everything will be better when you get to your honeymoon destination. By that time, the damage is done and your wedding memories will be far less clear if you went through your wedding stressed out and with all the pre-wedding rush fighting for position in your mind. If you can take a break a few days before your wedding day and go somewhere relaxing and new to you, do it. You will enjoy your wedding day much more if you are less stressed and clear headed than if you went into it in a stress-filled fog.

Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff Perfection is for God and God alone. Everything and everyone else is flawed. Things are going to go wrong and that is a fact. You can plan, plan some more, and do everything in the world to try to have a perfect wedding and chances are, you will. If, however, things go wrong, do not let it get you down. Remember to enjoy the reason you are there and do not lose sight of the overall, big picture. You are marrying the person that you love and that is all that matters.

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Take care of the little, important things early in the planning stages, even if it means you have to put something in storage. For instance, the personalized wedding favors should be ordered months in advance of the big day. If you put them in personalized favor boxes, they are more thoughtful and can be stacked and stored much easier. Take care of these kinds of things as early as possible so that you are not scrambling around as your date draws closer, trying to get everything done at once.

Early in your wedding planning days, find someone you can trust, a close friend or family member and recruit them to share the load. Their job…details. Ask them to make a list of how to plan the perfect wedding and then compare that list to your own. The difference is probably the details. Two heads are better than one and you have a lot to worry about. The week of your wedding, when you believe everything is under control, have them go through everything again. Designate this person as your official panic button, ready to spring into action as soon as problems spring up. Between the two of you, odds are that your wedding will go off without a hitch (or in this case, one hitch)

Know more than one route to the wedding ceremony location and make sure everyone who has a role knows more than one route as well. The best way to ensure that everyone is on time is to map out everyone’s drive, especially yours. Make sure you drive your routes several times in the weeks leading up to your wedding more than once. Always drive them on the same day of the week you are getting married and at the same time of day. This way, if there is some kind of delay on the day of, you will be ready with an alternate route.

Prepare a couple of emergency kits and place them at strategic locations. In the kits, include a small sewing kit, a list of important phone numbers including the number to the location, and enough money to pay a cab from anywhere between your home and the wedding. Also, carry one of the kits with you when you leave for the wedding. This way, no matter where you are when the seam comes out of the wedding dress or the groom splits his rented tux, you will be prepared for it.

Call your vendors and caterers a month and a week in advance of the big day to make sure that everyone will be where they are supposed to be at exactly the time they are supposed to be there. Do not leave this to chance. Hopefully none of the companies that are hired to service your wedding were hired with a verbal contract. Get everything in writing and have a witness, even if it is a member or close friend of the family. This holds true especially for the photographer.

Finally, remember to breath. Even if one or two things do not pan out exactly as you had planned, do not panic. Things will go wrong but it does not matter. You are getting married today and this day should be filled with joy. A wedding day is really the only day that can be remembered as the very best and the very worst day of your life at the same time. This can be avoided if you stop for a few moments and contemplate the real meaning of the day.

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The All Important List The very first thing that you have to do is make a list of what you want from your wedding. Do not believe for a second that it is the only one you will make. Your very first list will be a generalization of what you want. As you go along, your goals will become more refined and you will have to remake your list. You will also find that the main components of your first list will need a list of their very own so if you grabbed one sheet of paper, wad it up, and grab a big notebook instead. Better yet, if you do not have one already, invest in a laptop computer.

Don’t Even Go There Unless you are a super-sonic, mega-monster organizer and a meticulously clear thinker, do not assume you can plan your own wedding without help. Nine times out of ten, it cannot be done. Look into hiring a wedding planner. Even if you have already bragged about how well you could do it and that you do not need a wedding planner to create your own wedding, bite your lip, swallow that pride, and start your interviews. You will be so much better off having someone you trust and has seen it all before than to blindly go in and spend more money that you can imagine. Do not worry about the cost, a great wedding planner pays for him or her self after the first deal or two of your wedding planning cards.

Location, Theme, Location These are categorized together because of their close relationship to each other. Let’s say you plan to have chicken as your reception meal and go with a set choice of colors. You hire a caterer and a good wedding designer and you are off to the races. Then, you find a great location and find out that they supply the food and offer decorating services as part of a package deal. Stop here and see if you can guess what you just lost. If you said non-refundable deposit, you guessed correctly. Go get yourself a cookie. Changing themes after the fact can be a pain in the neck so find a good solid theme right off the bat and stick with it. If you order Twilight party favors and Twilight party supplies and then decide to do a beach theme, you will have a hard time returning the merchandise.

Return to Go If you have not made a guest-list and you have already looked at location and food catering, head back to go and lose a turn. I do not care how many guests you think you are going to have, add 25 because if you have remembered every single person you want to invite and then also figured out who is bringing an uninvited date, you should open up a stand at the carnival and start making money as a mind reader and fortuneteller.

Go Back Three Steps As with anything in this life worth doing, this is worth doing right so you might as well do it right the first time, which is why we come back to the wedding planner. I cannot emphasize enough how important this step is. Interview is the word of the day. Speak to several before you make up your mind and do not be afraid to call the references and find out a little about the person you are trusting with the most important day of your life.

Aaron Hu has authored on an extensive range of topics related to the wedding industry. If you are looking for unique wedding favors, E-WeddingFavors.com has the biggest selection available. You will also find Wedding Favors and much more, all at very affordable prices.

Some couples loose there sleep in order to find the best wedding gifts for their wedding guests but you do not have to do that. There are many options available in the market and even there are many online stores that exclusively deal with wedding favors. These are very simple and cost effective and will definitely bring a smile on your guest’s face.

Personalized wedding favors are also a very nice gift to give. The guest will really appreciate your effort and will remember your wedding day every time they would look at the gift. Typical personalized favors should have your names and of course the date of wedding on it.

If you have a creative mind you can always make a simple gift look exclusive. You can also find many online ideas about personalizing the gifts and these are very quick and easy to do ideas. Most common gifts are edibles like chocolates, cookies, cup cakes, candy are quite popular gifts and you can very easily personalize then by adding your name and wedding date. You can also have them in your favorite color and design them as per your wedding theme. Packaging can also be done creatively by packing them in elegant looking boxes to make your wedding favor one of a kind. No matter what favor you decide, one thing to remember is that it should reflect you as a couple and this would surely be appreciated by your guest.

If you are a music lover then you can compile your favorite songs and include the songs used in your ceremony or reception. Another personalized wedding favors idea can be giving decorative table accessories which do not even go waste. Also if you have a wine maker in the family you can give your guest a uniquely labeled homemade wine bottle commemorating your wedding day.

Depending on your personal choice and preference, you can have these gifts distributed to your guest. Either you can place it on each table or hand it over later after the reception party. If you plan of putting it on the table make sure it complements the table decoration and matched with other items else it would be a misfit spoiling the whole look of the table decoration. Always keep few extra gifts so that if you miss out on anyone you can just have spare to handover.

You can also ask you friends to help you in distributing these personalized wedding favors to your entire guest. No matter which one you choose make sure you are pleasant and thankful for their presence.

Depending on your budget you can choose this wedding favors. Your guest does not expect any lavish gift from you, so it is all your personal choice and liking. These gifts are tokens of your love and respect for your wedding guest.

Weddings are such joyous occasion that everyone participating in the wedding entourage are excited to experience its preparation. You can begin with personalized wedding favors that will display a stunning effect on this big day. Or you may want to try wedding favors.

Another quaint but original idea is to write your own wedding song. If you have no writing skills do not worry, every family has someone who can write and if not, an add in your local newspaper is sure to bring plenty of hits. If you have hired live entertainment for your wedding, there is a good chance that they will help you write the music to your lyrics and may even coach you and the groom on how to sing the melody. Then, when the music is moving everyone to the dance floor, you and your new partner can get on stage, announce that you have written a very special song, and want to share it. If this is done right, there will not be a dry eye in the house and everyone will know how much you really love each other.

There are many ways to make your wedding day special for yourself and your spouse, the challenge will be to make it a completely new and unique experience for your guests. This is where your wedding favors can come into play. There are hundreds of wedding accessory internet stores but only a handful of truly unique wedding favor specific sites that will have something that totally turns you on. Find these sites and you will be in business. These few sites will be dedicated solely to wedding favors and will have beautiful gifts that you can get at affordable prices. With that in mind, think of what theme your wedding is in because that is the kind of unique wedding favor you want to go with. If the guests remember the theme, they will remember more detail about the wedding and reception.

A gift of candle wedding favors and elegant wedding favors like crystal, porcelain, and glass are among some of the most popular and yet still unique favors that you will find and they come in so many brilliant and startling colors and designs that these favors are sure to be a success. Wedding favors are not the only thing that can be presented in a new and memory jogging way. You have plenty of options when it comes to food and drink. You might think about serving exotic dishes to go along with that exotic theme. If you are having your wedding or the reception on a beach, everyone will be expecting seafood, which is one of the best foods with which to be creative.

Imagine your guests surprise when you serve those Alligator or shark. Instead of filling their plate with cod and hiding the long john silver boxes in the dumpster down the beach, hire a Cajun cook who really knows his way around a crawdad or frog leg.

Regardless of the menu or the guests gifts, you can come up with many ways to make your wedding a one of a kind event if you just look in your heart and let your love and inspiration flow.

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Shop discount and save. There are many little things that you must buy to have a great wedding. For instance, you do not just need wedding favors you need unique wedding favors. Fortunately, for you, there are plethora’s of discount wedding sites that offer great savings on the wedding extras that can make or break the wedding budget. Just be sure to type discount into the search engine in front of whatever it is you are looking to purchase and you will be home free.

Does the bride, the bridesmaids, the groom, and the groomsman all need to travel to the wedding via limo service? Most of the time, a taxi will cost much less than a limo. Some taxi services also offer van service, which could be beneficial if your group is coming from more than two locations. It may be that you know someone that is willing to use that shiny black SUV of theirs to pick everyone up for the price of gas and a good wash and wax of his or her vehicle. You can even pretty it up with washable markers to tell everyone on the road of the wonderful mission of the vehicle.

Almost every family has a member or two that served in the military. Now if they were a cook, that would be a huge plus, especially if they could be persuaded to cater the affair for a family discount. Military cooks are adept at cooking for a large group of people and contrary to popular belief; most of these veterans are excellent cooks. It is always a good idea to check out the professions of family members. Who knows what kind of talents you will find that you can utilize to save a few bucks. At my friends wedding, they purchased the flowers at a discount through a landscaper that they employed yearly and Aunt Rose made the up the arrangements. A talent she learned through the internet in a floral arrangement class and for which she had flair. This little maneuver alone saved them hundreds of dollars.

Do you really need two hundred and fifty people to attend your wedding? Would two hundred not make just as much noise and save you a couple of thousand dollars? Another trick is to not spin your RSVP’s into a new invitation, instead, deduct the savings and set it aside for the overages that will ultimately appear on some other bill, like the bar tab.

Speaking of the bar tab, no one will know what kind of beer you serve if it is from a keg. There is no shame in going with a medium to low expense when serving beer. Your caterer will also have some tricks up his sleeve as to not exposing the brand of wine or champagne that is served at your wedding. A very discreet conversation may be in order. Also make sure that your server is well experienced in spotting who has had too much and when to say, maybe you should wait or eat something first. Appointing a family member that you trust to watch over possible alcohol based complications is also an excellent and responsible idea. Using these few tricks could save you a few dollars and with some creative thinking, you can come up with many more. The bottom line is to have a great wedding without going bankrupt.

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Today, wedding showers and not just bridal showers seem to have emerged and one wedding planner has confirmed that this is an occasion for both the bride and groom to have a pre-wedding party with other couples. Hence, the topics discussed would most definitely be very different and there would be boundaries when discussing love and marriage.

If it is an all girls party, common bridal shower favors would include personalized wedding mints and cookies, manicure sets, scented soap and fashion linen towels. Usually, it is the bridesmaid who organizes the bridal shower and she can get help on how to have the best party ever by shopping online for bridal shower favors. To enliven the gathering and make the occasion one that the girls will remember for years to come, there are also fun bridal and wedding shower games that are sure to get everyone laughing.

Now, if you were to host a wedding shower, chances are things might be slightly different. Expect your bridegroom, his best men and pals to be present. This means that you will have to think about different wedding shower favors for them, altogether. The latest trends in favors for them would be personalized cuff links, beer mugs and pub signs. Other options would include duffel bags, cooler bags and a flask and cigarette case set. These popular gifts should keep the guys happy and feeling good about themselves and the whole wedding experience. You may wonder about what the various topics of discussion should be like during a wedding shower, given the fact that you now have men and women in the same room, who are looking forward to a wedding and who naturally wish to embark on the proper conversation topics.

Generally, discussing home life and the public areas of a relationship are safe ideas. In this way, the couples can get comfortable while talking about life with each other and their pleasant memories. Just so you do not get caught off guard, these wedding showers are also known as Jack and Jill showers!

As always, weddings are a special time for family and friends. Understanding that couples, especially the bride can get duly stressed during this time, wedding planners and ready made wedding favors are available online. The wedding planner is at hand to keep you calm and at rest while favors are a great way of thanking your loved ones and guests without trying to create and make gifts all on your own. Take advantage of these services and you as the bride, will emerge looking resplendent on your wedding day.

Aaron Hu has authored on an extensive range of topics related to the wedding industry. If you are looking for wedding shower favors, E-WeddingFavors.com has the biggest selection available. You will also find Wedding Shower Favors and much more, all at very affordable prices.