Wedding Photography: Preserving the Memories

A person''s wedding can be one of the most important times in their life. They will have memories that they want to treasure forever and then pass on to their children. Wedding photography helps them do this. Having pictures taken at the wedding and then at the reception can capture those precious memories in freeze-frame and help you keep them forever.

Pictures are important so you want to be sure you get good photos, high quality photos that you can enjoy forever.

Most people will have a wedding book designed out of the collection of the best wedding photos. Usually the photographer will do this for you. You will then have a beautiful scrapbook from your wedding to hold your memories.

Choosing a photographer is a very important step in your wedding pictures. You want someone experienced that will do an excellent job for you. It''s possible that you may be on a budget and price may be a factor as well.

How Do You Choose a Wedding Photographer?

There are several things you are going to want to look for with the most important being the quality of the work. It would be great if you could find a photographer that you had seen in action, perhaps at a family member or friend''s wedding. The hardest part of choosing a wedding photographer is that you sign a contract and agree to pay before you have ever seen the photos. That''s how it works in the world of wedding photography; you must make your decision based of faith in the photographer. So how do you make a decision like this?

Referrals

First, you are going to want to look at referrals. Ask your friends or family members who did their weddings and start compiling a list. You will also need to verify that these people are still photographing. Ask everyone you can about their wedding and their wedding pictures. Most people will even let you see their wedding photos and you can check out the photographer''s work.

Experience & Samples

Aside from samples from people you know, you can ask the photographer himself about samples. You can call the photographers on your list and do an interview over the phone or make an appointment to meet in person. This is your chance to ask the photographer any questions you may have such as their experience, what training they have and what different types of photography they have studied. If you are doing an in-person interview, the photographer can show you portfolios of samples of their work. If doing a phone interview, that ends well, you may want to go in person and see a portfolio.

Schedule and Appointment

When you have chose the photographer you think you want to use, you will have to schedule several appointments. The bride and groom, the bride''s parents and anyone else who may be taking part in paying for the wedding should be present at these meetings regarding the wedding photography.

At these meetings, you will discuss price, payment schedule and possible deposits. Next you will discuss the plan for taking the photos. Many people also get video and digital photographs now. Do you want these? Will your photographer be able to provide these? Will there be extra fees?

Many people have specific plans as to what they want pictures of (e.g. bride and father coming down the aisle, bride and groom, rings exchanging, the kiss, the bridesmaids, etc.) This is your chance to get all this written down so that the photographer is sure to get all the shots you want. Other people give their photographers a little more freedom to decide what pictures will be good to take.

Be sure to ask any questions you have about this important event. Your wedding photography is important to you so don''t hesitate to be clear about what you want.

Looking for information about Photography? Go to: http://www.asaphotography.com, ''ASA Photography'' is published by Colin Hartness - An excellent resource for Photography! Check out more Photography articles at: http://www.asaphotography.com/archive', 178, 'Wedding Photography: Preserving the Memories, Marriage-Wedding, Marriage-Wedding articles, Marriage-Wedding information, about Marriage-Wedding, what is Marriage-Wedding, Marriage & Wedding Information', 'Wedding Photography: Preserving the Memories plus articles and information on Marriage-Wedding

5 Tips To Select The Best Wedding Reception Location

Being disc jockeys, we get the opportunity to evaluate many reception facilities while having little or no bias to "sell" one location over another. Most Brides and Grooms know where they will be holding the ceremony before they decide where to have the reception, so we have compiled five observations that can help you when selecting your venue.

Distance - If people have to drive a long way to get from the ceremony to the reception, some will get distracted or decide to do something else. Try to keep the reception within a 15 to 30 minute drive of your ceremony. If it is not possible to get a reception hall close to your ceremony, make a caravan. Have the Bride and Groom lead the parade, and people will follow you to your reception.

Time ? Time is just like the distance issue. If your reception is several hours after the ceremony, people will get busy doing other things and not show up for the reception. Try to start the reception within an hour or two of the ceremony. If you don''t want to start your wedding dance at 4 o''clock in the afternoon, have a Meet and Greet mixer before your reception. Serve some punch and get people to mingle. This will be one of the few times that both families will be together. Encourage family members to share stories about your childhoods.

Size - People like their personal space, and they have most likely spent an hour packed into a church for your ceremony. If you let them spread out, they will enjoy themselves more. Make sure your reception hall has plenty of room for your guests. The people renting the location might tell you it holds 200 people, but that doesn''t necessarily mean it will hold 200 people comfortably! Make sure to visit the venue before booking.

Climate Control - Having a summer wedding? Is your reception hall air conditioned? If people sweat while just sitting, they won''t dance. On the flip side, if they are cold they won''t dance either (who wants to dance in a parka?). Also make sure you know who has control of the thermostat so the temperature can be adjusted if needed. Chances are your reception will be warm and stuffy while all the guest are there, but as they trickle out during the night the room will begin to cool down.

Smoking - This is a hot button issue, but if your reception hall is non-smoking, you can fully expect smoker''s to leave your reception for 15-30 minutes every hour. If enough of them leave the reception area, you may find a large percentage of your guest just hanging out in the smoking area. This can be a big problem if you have many smokers in your wedding party. You don''t have to allow smoking, but it is something you should consider, especially if anyone has any health problems like asthma or allergies that could be triggered by smoke. If you decide not to allow smoking in the reception area, how close is the nearest place for a smoker to go? Is it close enough that you will be able to get needed wedding party members during events like the bouquet toss or garter auction?

Facility coordinators will no doubt bring up several other factors for you to consider when you interview them for your booking, but these are often missed items, especially if they don''t favor the potential venue. If you keep the overall picture in mind and work with your wedding planner or event coordinator on the decorating ideas, you will no doubt have an enjoyable and memorable wedding reception.

About the Authors: Tim & Tammy Smith operate By Request DJ & Karaoke Company, located in Fargo, North Dakota. They have been providing entertainment for wedding receptions since 1994 and belong to several professional disc jockey organizations.

This article may be reprinted without permission providing all URLs are live links only minor editorial changes are made. Please send an email to byrequest@byrequest.dj with the name (and url if the resource is on the web) of the publication.', 178, '5 Tips To Select The Best Wedding Reception Location, Marriage-Wedding, Marriage-Wedding articles, Marriage-Wedding information, about Marriage-Wedding, what is Marriage-Wedding, Marriage & Wedding Information', '5 Tips To Select The Best Wedding Reception Location plus articles and information on Marriage-Wedding

Restore Your Marriage - 5 Ways to Feel Connected to Your Spouse Even on Opposite Schedules

We''ve all been through times in our lives when it was so busy we would rarely have time to ourselves let alone time to contact our family and friends. With every day life moving as quickly as it is, there just seems to be no time to do everything in one day and get a decent amount of sleep so you can do it all over again the next day. It''s no wonder why it''s so hard these days for a married couple to share a strong relationship. If you feel your marriage is lacking, check out the following advice to improve or even save your marriage!

1. Call them. Yes, this sounds simple and it is! Whether you initiate the phone call or are returning one, it is all based on keeping an open line of communication. Nothing says "I don''t care," more than not calling or not calling back. And if you married the person, it''s obvious you care about them! So show them! It doesn''t have to be a long conversation; not everyone has the time for that anymore. You can just call to say hi and that you love and miss them. If you''re returning a call and don''t have a lot of time to devote to your spouse that second, let them know that you were just returning their call and arrange a later and better time to really catch up.

2. E-mail them. This flows along with the idea of an open line of communication, only to a further extent. If it''s hard for the two of you to talk on the phone, your next solution would be e-mail. You can write out anything to any length and send it to your spouse for him or her to read when they can. However, if you''re looking for an immediate response, maybe you should develop your patience because chances are, you probably won''t receive that. On the other hand, if you just want to send say, pictures of the family, pets, etc. or just don''t need to instantly receive anything back from them, then the e-mail system will work out great. Another thoughtful thing to do is send your marriage partner articles or websites that concern his or her hobbies or interests. It shows that you still care and think about them and want them to be happy even when the two of you are apart.

3. Pay attention. When catching up on the phone or in e-mails, pay attention and really listen to what is being said. You''d be surprised at what can be uncovered! Now I''m not saying analyze everything that comes out of either of your mouths but if something jumps out at you or you keep hearing the same thing over and over again, you should probably consider that to be something important enough to explore further. For example, if you keep hearing about visits to say, Starbucks, and there''s no indication that your spouse is tired of it, maybe you should make arrangements to meet at one. The next time he or she is there without you, that special visit you two shared will be on his or her mind and therefore mentally connecting the two of you when you can''t be in the physical company of one another.

4. Cherish the time you talk to them. A phone conversation or e-mail may be occasional in your marriage so don''t be afraid to say what''s on your mind. Yes, there is a time and place for everything and judging that is a whole other subject but if you feel a specific time is appropriate for what you have to say, then say it! You married your fiancé to share a life together and bond on many levels so why hide your true feelings? The key here is confidence. If you feel that strongly about something, your enthusiasm will show through and at least that much will be respected. All I''m saying is don''t hold back too much because you never know when you''ll get another chance to speak your mind or show your appreciation.

5. Cherish the time you spend together. This may happen even less if the two of you are on opposing schedules so make it high quality and top priority when the plans do come up. You don''t necessarily have to go out though. Maybe you could spend a quiet night at home with no cell phones and minimal connection to the outside world. Okay, maybe that seems like a lot to ask but think of it this way, the more distractions, the less continuous the connection will be between the two of you, which will lessen the quality of your time together. If you do want to go out, maybe you could go to a favorite restaurant or see a movie starring one of your commonly admired actors. The more special the activities are that you two share as a couple, the easier it will be to do your own individual tasks. Even if you''re dog-tired be thankful you have someone to share a love with and to spend time with whatever time of the day or night it is.

These are just a few simple tips that are fairly easy to utilize and benefit from. If you want to re-ignite the spark between you and your marriage partner, take this invaluable marriage advice. There is so much to gain from the help offered here and it only requires a small amount of effort to put the suggestions to use. I''m giving you this match; now it''s your job to strike it, see the flames it will produce, and save your marriage!

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© 2004 Kristin Craft. You may freely distribute this article in your newsletter, on your website or in your print publication provided you include the copyright and resource box at the end. Hyperlinks should remain active whenever possible. Notification would be appreciated but not required.

Kristin Craft is the owner and webmaster of Marriage-Success which provides helpful tips and resources for married couples and those considering marriage. Couples that are experiencing difficulties in the marriage can especially benefit by visiting Save My Marriage ===============================================', 178, 'Restore Your Marriage - 5 Ways to Feel Connected to Your Spouse Even on Opposite Schedules, Marriage-Wedding, Marriage-Wedding articles, Marriage-Wedding information, about Marriage-Wedding, what is Marriage-Wedding, Marriage & Wedding Information', 'Restore Your Marriage - 5 Ways to Feel Connected to Your Spouse Even on Opposite Schedules plus articles and information on Marriage-Wedding

Wedding Weekend Activities

Weekend weddings are becoming more popular, particularly as families are spread further apart. They usually begin on Friday night, continue with the wedding Saturday and conclude with a post-wedding breakfast on Sunday before everyone returns home.

Planning activities for these weekend-long celebrations doesn't have to be difficult; in fact, it can be quite a bit of fun if you keep everyone's needs in mind. First, consider the wedding. Will this be a formal wedding with a sit-down dinner at its center? If so, you might want to ban a formal rehearsal dinner and replace it instead with an informal barbecue dinner or picnic.

But how will you keep people occupied during the long weekend? There are many activities to consider. Will the wedding be near a lake? How about planning a day at the lake on Saturday, filled with pre-wedding activities like swimming races and beach volleyball.

One popular pre-wedding activity is a scavenger hunt. Prior to the wedding weekend, a list of meaningful items should be drawn up, and guests placed in two teams. The list should include things like "get a brochure from the jewelry store where (groom) bought (bride)'s ring" or "take a picture of the group at the location where the couple got engaged". You will have to tailor the scavenger hunt list to the location of the wedding and the energy of the guests who will be participating.

You can even offer lavish prizes for the team that wins the scavenger hunt, such as gift certificates or gourmet food and wine baskets. It might seem an obvious choice to divide the teams into groups who know or are related to the bride and teams who know or are related to the groom, but it might be a little more fun to mix it up a bit. You can create teams of friends versus family, or men versus women (always a popular choice).

Another activity that's popular during wedding weekends is a competitive sport activity, such as baseball or flag football. Again, add a special twist. Offer prizes for performance (first home run gets a kiss from the bride) or make silly rules, like members of the bridal party have to wear tiaras while running bases or members of the groom's family should always have their shirts on backwards.

It's important that during the wedding weekend, planners keep in mind that the weekend itself might be expensive for some guests, particularly those who had to fly in for the occasion and many of the activities should be free, or inexpensive. If they are more expensive, and planned for the entire group, they should be paid for by either the bride and groom or their families.

But there are plenty of activities that don't have to be expensive, but can provide big bang for the little buck, such as the scavenger hunt suggested above. If the wedding weekend guests will mostly be family, you can schedule a home movie-viewing event, including home movies from both the bride and groom's families. For even more fun, consider an activity where the movies are mixed up and the guests have to guess which family's videos they are watching. This might sound easy, but depending on the contents, it could be hard, particularly if the bride and groom are babies in the photos.

Common Format Of A Wedding Reception

The following article can be copied but you must keep about the author section.

Common format of a wedding reception:

• Arrival of guests at hall
• Introduction of wedding party
• Introduction of bride and groom
• Blessing
• Meal
• Cake Cutting
• Toasts
• Bride & Groom''s First Dance
• Father & Daughter''s Dance
• Mother & Groom''s Dance
• Special Dances
• Bouquet and Garter Toss
• Dancing and Fun

Arrival of guests at reception site
Typically, a wedding lasts about 15 minutes. However, some guests do arrive early to the reception. Therefore, be sure all reception to-dos are complete by the start time of the wedding. Also, all wedding vendors should be wearing proper attire for early arriving and late staying guests. All tables should be set-up including cake table, entertainment''s table, sign-in table, food tables, and tables with chairs for all guests. If you have a seating arrangement, all seating lists should be at the reception with everyone''s name with where they are sitting.

Introduction of wedding party
This step is not mandatory, but it is nice for everyone to know who the wedding party is as many have not met before your wedding. Create a "Reception Planning Guide" and give this to your master of ceremonies prior to your wedding. This details, among other things, the order of entrance into the reception site with their names and titles. The order of entrance is as follows: parents of the bride, parents of the groom, ushers with bridesmaids, flower girl and ring bearer, special guests, best man, maid/matron of honor, bride and groom. In addition, review the pronunciations of the wedding party''s names with the master of ceremonies.

Introduction of bride and groom
This is always the last of the introductions. Everyone should stand before the bride and groom enter. In addition, a special song can be arranged with the music entertainment and a special announcement made to punctuate a true grand entrance. Also, inform the master of ceremonies how you would like to be introduced: Mr. and Mrs. Smith or John and Jane Doe.

Blessing
This is another step that is not mandatory, but for the religious couples makes a nice setting. If you invite the person who performed the marriage ceremony to the reception, I would recommend having them conduct the blessing. If they are not able to attend, a parent or family friend is a good idea. Lastly, the master of ceremonies could give the meal blessing. Be sure to communicate with whomever is giving the blessing in advance so they are prepared to give a personal touch.

Meal
It''s time to eat! Bride and Groom, be sure to stop and take a moment to eat. This may be your only chance in the day. In addition, it is customary for the bride and groom to start the food line. Most guests know to wait until the bride and groom start the food line. So don''t be late!

Cake Cutting
This is the traditional bride and groom making the first cut on their wedding cake. Then, the bride feeds half of the piece of cake to the groom and the groom feeds the remaining half to the bride. The cutting of the cake is a ceremony intended to symbolize the caring and sharing for one another. Forks may be used as they make the image very attractive for the photographer. Forks may also minimize the possibility of someone being hurt with the more playful squashing that sometimes happens.

Toasts
The toast is when the bride and groom toast each other then interlock arms and drink. Immediately following, the best man and maid/matron of honor make toasts to the bridal couple. Be prepared for other family and friends to follow with their toasts too.

Bride & Groom''s First Dance
The Bride & Groom''s Dance is the first dance between a bride and groom as a married couple. The dance is also commonly known as the "First Dance". The timing of the bride groom dance can vary in the evening based on your preferences. The first dance can be done immediately following the grand entrance with the wedding party circling the dance.

Father & Daughter''s Dance
The Father & Daughter''s Dance or the Father Bride Dance is the dance between the father(s) of the bride and the bride. Brides, if you have more than one father in your life, one can tap the other on the shoulder in the middle of the dance so you can dance with both of them. If you do not have a father, a common substitute is a father figure or even your brother would make a very nice gesture.

Mother & Groom''s Dance
The Mother & Groom''s dance is the dance between the mother(s) of the groom and the groom. Grooms, if you have more than one mother in your life, one can tap the other on the shoulder in the middle of the dance so you can dance with both of them. If you do not have a mother, a common substitute is a mother figure or even your sister would make a very nice gesture.

Special Dances
There may be songs in your life that mean dear to your heart. You can ask the music entertainment to play these songs during the night or immediately following the formal dances. An example would be: If someone dear to you passed recently, you may ask the music entertainment to play Angels Among Us by Alabama.

Bouquet and Garter Toss
The traditional tossing of the bouquet is when the bride tosses the bridal bouquet to all single women in attendance. Immediately following the bouquet tossing, a chair is set in the middle of the dance floor. The chair is for the bride to sit and the groom to remove the bride''s garter from her leg. The traditional tossing of the garter is when the groom tosses the bride''s garter to all the single men in attendance. The people whom catch the garter and bouquet are said to be the next one to marry.

Dancing and Fun
This is what you pay the music entertainment to do...get people to dance and have a good time. Give the music entertainment music examples and limitations of what type of music you want but don''t give them a list of 100 songs they need to play.

About The Author: ã Matt Campbell is the owner and webmaster for Weddingmuseum.com. Weddingmuseum.com is a place to plan, book and rate your wedding day. You can email him at matt@weddingmuseum.com or visit WeddingMuseum.com', 178, 'Common Format Of A Wedding Reception, Marriage-Wedding, Marriage-Wedding articles, Marriage-Wedding information, about Marriage-Wedding, what is Marriage-Wedding, Marriage & Wedding Information', 'Common Format Of A Wedding Reception plus articles and information on Marriage-Wedding

Terrific Advice Concerning Destination Weddings As Shared By Two Gurus On The Topic

Today Norm Goldman, Editor of Sketchandtravel.com & Bookpleasures.com is pleased to have as a guest, Denise and Alan Fields, authors of BRIDAL BARGAINS and the BRIDAL PASSPORT WEDDING PLANNER. Both are in bookstores nationwide or you can order online at WINDSORPEAK.COM.

The Fields have been featured on the TODAY SHOW, OPRAH and DATELINE NBC.

Thanks Denise and Alan for accepting our invitation to be interviewed.

Norm:

Please tell our readers how you started writing about weddings and why did you want to write about this subject matter?

Denise and Alan:

We began writing in 1989 as we were planning our own wedding; yep, we are still married today. As two starving college students in Austin, Texas, we quickly realized planning a wedding was a darn expensive endeavour. We wanted to know how to save money but still have a nice wedding without getting ripped off. We heard the horror stories from our friends and decided the world needed a consumer''s guide to tying the knot. Bridal Bargains, our first wedding book, was the result of that effort it was first published in 1990 and now is in its 7th edition, with 500,000 copies sold. Our latest book, the Bridal Passport wedding planner (the Dollars & Sense Guide to Planning a Wedding) was published in December 2004.

Norm:

What in your opinion makes for a wonderful and unique wedding experience, where everyone would be left with fond memories? As a follow up, do you have to spend a great deal of money to have such a memorable experience?

Denise and Alan:

Think about the best weddings you have ever attended and what made them so memorable? Chances are it was a FUN event first and foremost. That might have been a combination of several factors, a unique setting, a great band, and so on. Focus on those factors when planning your own wedding. Conversely, realize there are many parts of a wedding that are expensive, but contribute little to the fun aspect of a wedding flowers, for example.

No, you don''t have to go bankrupt to plan a memorable wedding! Yes, you may have to make a series of trade-offs to pull it off, but you can save and still have a fantastic wedding. Example: instead of a fancy downtown hotel, you can rent a historic home that lets you bring in your own caterer. That enables you to hold the total cost down, way under what the hotel would charge. The key: you save money in ways your guests don''t see. A bottle of house wine from a hotel might be $50; that same bottle from a wholesale club like Sam''s or Costco would run $10. Do you guests know the difference? No.

A destination wedding is another great way to save and you have a special setting for your wedding, without all the cost of a domestic affair.

Norm:

What tips would you have for destination brides who plan to bring along a wedding party? It''s a growing trend for destination weddings to now have a fairly sizeable wedding party sometimes about 50, so it would be great to get their tips on group airline discounts, hotel blocks.

Denise and Alan:

Good news: the travel biz has awakened to the destination-wedding trend. As a result, many airlines and resorts have special discount packages for those planning a wedding. Airlines, for example, are courting destination weddings with special group discounts. Many resorts now have on-staff wedding planners to ease planning; and special discount rates for blocks of rooms.

The best advice: work with the airlines group booking department and/or the resort''s meeting planners. And always double check to make sure any special rate you get is really a deal and simply price the same stay or fare on a travel web site. Most travel companies honestly offer groups a better deal than regular travelers; but it always makes sense to double check.

Norm:

Could you tell us something about the advantages and disadvantages pertaining to different unique venue weddings as: beach, park, museum, mountain ski lodge, tent, train, yacht, and other sometimes off- the- wall sites? (Perhaps you can add a few of your own.)

Denise and Alan:

Name a destination and you can get married there---ski buffs can take their vows on a mountain top in Telluride, beach fans on the white sands of Aruba and so on. The key advantage of a destination wedding: you are already in the place where you will honeymoon. That cuts down on the travel, as you just travel once to both the wedding and honeymoon.

With all unique venues and destination weddings, the biggest trade-off is control. You will have to trust a wedding planner at the venue to help coordinate the details. And that means not being a control freak. Many tropical venues may offer a stunning setting, but slim pickings when it comes to finding a photographer (there may just be one or two on an island). Ditto for other remote locales, like a ski resort.

Norm:

If you had to choose 5 ideal geographic wedding destinations from the point of view of ambiance, costs, etc, which ones would you chose and why?

Denise and Alan:

Hawaii is probably the best combo of both ambience and ease of use and no changing dollars into a foreign currency, a very developed tourist biz and so on. Specifically, we would recommend the north shore of Kauai in the summer; Maui or the Big Island in the winter.

Mexico offers the best value for the dollar. A falling dollar has made foreign travel pricey just about everywhere, but the peso remains a relative bargain for Americans. Resorts like Cabo, Cancun and Puerto Vallarta offer that beach wedding (and Caribbean water) at a discount price. Top pick: Cozumel, for its excellent snorkelling.

Telluride is our favorite mountain resort to tie the knot, summer or winter. Winter lets you enjoy a world-class ski mountain; summer is hiking, white water rafting. A selection of the top restaurants makes this a winner year around.

Orlando is among the best bargains going and most airlines offer deals on air/hotel packages here and the raft of entertainment options is second to none. And its more than just Disney . . . you will find Universal, Sea World and a plethora of water parks.

Norm:

Do you have any tips as to how couples can get the best value for their dollar when they are honeymooning?

Denise and Alan:

Two words: shoulder season. The shoulder season is the space between high and low seasons. No, you probably don''t want to go to a tropical isle in August. How about April? In the Caribbean, you can find great deals in the shoulder season after Easter but before summer vacation times.

Hawaii is cheapest rate after New Year''s until mid March, when spring break crowds end deals. Deals also abound in Hawaii in the fall, from Labor Day until just before Christmas. Hence, November would be a great time to go for a honeymoon.

Fall is also a great time to visit the wine country of California or the Rocky Mountains on a honeymoon.

Norm:

What are the 5 most important factors, cost-wise, a future bride and groom should bear in mind when planning their wedding and why?

Denise and Alan:

Location, guest count, time of day and wedding style are the most important budget factors. Some thoughts:

Location: Where do you envision the wedding? Reception? The location will drive much of the cost. A hotel reception is much more expensive than a home wedding, for example.

Guest count. A no brainer this clearly impacts the budget!

Time of day. A 2pm wedding is much less expensive than an evening affair, Why? Guests already have had lunch and are not expecting dinner! Brunch or lunch reception are also less expensive than dinner.

Wedding style: Do you have envision a garden wedding? A beach-side ceremony? Or a formal Catholic mass? The style of your wedding is a major driver of costs.

Norm:

How does one go about finding out about the different marriage regulations around the world? Is there a web site that we can click on et voilà we have the answer?

Denise and Alan:

Wish there was! Unfortunately, it takes a bit of surfing. Start by identifying which countries you are interested in: then Google their official tourism site. Most tourism bureaus now have wedding links on their front page . . . in a few clicks, you can find out the marriage requirements. Another idea: ask the concierge of the hotel or resort you are considering to be married at. Many now have wedding planners on staff.

Norm:

How does one go about checking on the reliability of a hotel or resort when it pertains to service, food, etc especially if the hotel or resort is located in another state, province or country?

Denise and Alan:

The web! Most wedding sites (including ours, bridalbargiansbook.com) have online message boards. You can chat with other brides and find other couples who have been married where you are considering . . . yes, that is possible! Of course, you can always ask for references from the resort, but this can be unreliable. Sites like tripadvisor.com have detailed reviews of resorts by travellers and that can be very helpful.

Best wishes,

Alan & Denise

For over thirty- five years, Norm practiced as a Title Attorney and Civil Law Notary in Montreal, Canada. After his retirement from the legal profession, Norm pursued two of his passions - book reviewing and travel writing, implementing many of his research skills he had been practicing for 35 years.

Norm and his wife Lily are a unique husband and wife team, writer and water colorist, who write and paint about romantic destinations and wedding destinations.

Basically, they meld art and words in order to create an unusual travel story, which generates interest, particularly because of the fact that each painting appears to have been ''custom-made'' for the story-original story and original art. Combining the watercolors with travel writing provides a softer, more romantic look at the places they visit.

As they specialize in web-based content, their articles and water- colors are featured on their own site, Sketchandtravel.Com, as well as several other sites.

You can learn more about Norm and Lily by visiting their site: http://www.sketchandtravel.com', 178, 'Terrific Advice Concerning Destination Weddings As Shared By Two Gurus On The Topic, Marriage-Wedding, Marriage-Wedding articles, Marriage-Wedding information, about Marriage-Wedding, what is Marriage-Wedding, Marriage & Wedding Information', 'Terrific Advice Concerning Destination Weddings As Shared By Two Gurus On The Topic plus articles and information on Marriage-Wedding

It's Never Too Early to Renew Your Wedding Vows

When you think about couples who renew their wedding vows, chances are you''re not picturing anyone under the age of 50. But the truth is that it''s never too early to renew your vows ? especially if you didn''t get to do exactly what you wanted the first time around. I''m talking about those couples that really wanted to write their own vows, but that got talked out of doing it by family, friends (or even themselves) for a whole host of reasons that "sounded good" at the time.

Does This Sound Like You?

Rick and Holly were recently married, and as much as their day was truly memorable, there was one aspect that really bothered them -- their wedding vows. Like many modern-day engaged couples, they wished to write their own vows to make their exchange of love more romantic and personal. However, they were talked out of the idea by Holly''s mother and her maid of honor, Karen.

Holly''s mother believed that writing their own wedding vows was going against tradition, which would be frowned upon by many of the guests attending the ceremony, while Karen felt that writing personal wedding vows was tacky and likely to be longwinded.

Holly carefully considered the opinion of each woman, both of whom she respected and loved very much, as they had been wonderful and exceptionally helpful during the planning of her wedding. She discussed the situation with Rick and found out that he, too, was having mixed feelings about writing their own vows. It seemed his brother Jim and sister-in law Deborah also expressed their distaste concerning the idea.

With a heavy sigh, both Rick and Holly decided that it would probably be best not write their own wedding vows. They tossed away brainstorming ideas, and although neither of them would admit it to the other, they were equally feeling miserable about abandoning their original plan to create their own vows.

Now, here they were, happily married, and yet feeling cheated out of the wedding they had always wanted. Why had they listened to others instead of their own hearts?

Why Not Renew Your Vows on Your Honeymoon? (Yes, Your Honeymoon!)

That is when Rick had a clever idea: what if they renewed their wedding vows on their honeymoon? Holly brightened at this thought, and after a moment of consideration it was settled. Both of them carefully composed personal thoughts that they wished to share with the other, and set the day when they would renew their vows.

Afterwards, Rick and Holly were able to ignore the regret they once felt, as they now had new memories born from the second chance of being able to express the everlasting words of love they had always wanted to share in the presence of others.

If you are one of the unfortunate victims who have listened to others and went with traditional wedding vows instead of your original plan of writing out your own, you can stop regretting and start renewing. That''s right; you can have the wedding you originally wanted by simply renewing your wedding vows.

You will discover that renewing your wedding vows is not a difficult process, and could be even more romantic than the first time you were married. A renewal of vows is a beautiful decision, because it is like saying to your spouse, "I love you even more than the day we were married, and if I had the choice, I would marry you all over again because I can''t imagine my life without you in it. You are the only one for me, and I want the whole world to know."

If this sounds like something you''re interested in, try searching on the Internet for places that cater to "destination weddings." After all, you want this to be a special moment ? just as special as the day you were originally married.

And in terms of getting down to the business of actually personalizing the words you''re going to say, products like The Ultimate Wedding Vow Toolkit (which I created ? more info at http://www.weddingvowtoolkit.com) will walk you through the process step by step.

Good luck?and this time, don''t let anyone talk you out of what you truly want to do!

Chris Simeral is the creator of The Ultimate Wedding Vow Toolkit, a downloadable, step-by-step manual for couples personalizing (or renewing) their wedding vows. Sign up for the free wedding vow mini-course at http://www.WeddingVowToolkit.com.', 178, 'It?s Never Too Early to Renew Your Wedding Vows, Marriage-Wedding, Marriage-Wedding articles, Marriage-Wedding information, about Marriage-Wedding, what is Marriage-Wedding, Marriage & Wedding Information', 'It?s Never Too Early to Renew Your Wedding Vows plus articles and information on Marriage-Wedding