Not just a new marriage but a new family

When one of the persons getting married has children, whether from a previous marriage or otherwise, you're not just marrying the person you love. You're also creating a new family. In my opinion, it's important that the children understand not only what is going on (what marriage means), but how it will impact them after the wedding day is done. If you are required to attend pre-marital counseling, you may want to consider having one special session with the couple and the children as well. The children will be a part of that day's new union as well. There are lots of small, subtle, yet meaningful ways to incorporate children into a ceremony.

A wedding this past June had custom M&Ms. The groom has two sons from a previous marriage and so they incorporate all four of their names into the sayings on the M&Ms. Cool idea! They said things like 'We said "I Do," 'Love You,' 'Love is Sweet,' 'Forever Friends,' 'Our New Family,' and 'Just Married.' Here's a coupon where you can buy 3 or more bags of custom printed M&Ms and get one free, Gotta love free stuff!



Another way is a Unity Pendant. At this particular wedding, the pendant was blessed by the priest during the actual service and the bride and groom placed it around her son's neck.



The Unity Sand Ceremony is a great way to show the blending of a new family through the use of different colors. At this wedding we coordinated last October, the bride, groom, and 3 children (2 his, 1 hers) created a new piece that now hangs proudly on their mantel.

Sports lovers...literally!

Once again, the Buffalo Bills kicked a wide right field goal to lose the football game during Monday night football. So sad... Like the late Tim Russert, I have roots in Buffalo (where I was born and raised, and watched Buffalo lose four consecutive Superbowls!), attended college in Ohio, and (sort of) have a connection with politics. (My husband works in local government as a city manager.) Even though they lost tonight, the Bills still make me want to shout! :-)

Having lived in Ohio since 1996, I also enjoy watching live Cincinnati Reds and Bengals games. There is something about the crowd at a game. Speaking of which, did you know you can have your wedding at Duke Energy field, host your rehearsal dinner in a box, have your wedding photos taken at the Bengals Stadium, or get the Buckeye mascot to come to your reception? I have had die-hard Buckeye fans play the game during their wedding reception or (at least!) have the DJ announce the scores. You can have your wedding reception at the Cintas Center, a local country club or even on an ice rink. Most courses will let you have photos on the greens but some have restrictions with the ceremony. So many unique ways to bring the love of sports into your wedding! Now if only the groom could look like David Beckham...