T-18
THE HERALD, Sharon, Pa., September 27, 2011; ALLIED NEWS, Grove City, Pa., September 28, 2011
f
s
r
-
-
-
f
t
,
n
t
-
-
,
r
-
-
-
d
-
r
u
feel comfortable.
μ Wear your wedding
heels around the house to
“break them in.” Pack a back-
up pair of flats to wear during
the reception.
μ Remember to ask for
help. Designate members of
your family or close friends to
specific assignments.
Wedding Day Details
μ Provide bottled water for
your wedding party. To en-
sure no one gets over-heated,
hide water near your bridal
party during the ceremony
for emergencies.
μ Choose meaningful gifts
for your wedding party. Neck-
laces, earrings or bracelets
are great for bridesmaids; cuf-
flinks are perfect for grooms-
men.
μ Create individual en-
velopes for tipping drivers,
caterers, musicians, etc. Sepa-
rate envelopes will help en-
sure you don’t forget anyone.
Plan for weather:
μ
In case of rain
. Order a
tent or choose a venue with
indoor space for last-minute
protection from the elements.
Offer extra umbrellas to ush-
er people from their vehicles
to the venue.
μ
In case of heat.
Place
fans throughout the venue
and provide plenty of water
for guests.
μ
In case of cold
. Space
heaters can be placed
throughout the space to
warm up the room in advance
of the event.
μ Over-estimate the
amount of parking needed for
guests.
Following the Honeymoon
μ Open wedding gifts and
keep an accurate list of each
guest in correspondence with
their gift.
μ Write thoughtful, per-
sonalized hand-written thank
you cards.
Source: Jewelers Mutual
8
Engaged?
from page T-16
By Tim Rozgonyi
St. Petersburg Times
What is the best thing to
say to two young newlyweds
starting a life together?
Well, given that marriage is
just about the biggest, scari-
est and most amazing com-
mitment one can ever make
(second to having children, of
course), perhaps it would be
good for this father of a new-
ly minted bride to share some
words of wisdom from people
who have been married for
years.
μ If you think she’s beauti-
ful, tell her.
μ Make dinner together.
Eat dinner together. Go to
bed together.
μ Your fantasy life should
revolve around your wife, not
your football team.
μ Life is short. Say “I love
you” at least once every day.
μ The more time you
spend trying to change your
spouse, the less time you
have for improving yourself.
μ One of the sexiest
things you can do in bed is to
serve your spouse a nice
breakfast.
μ Talk to each other, not
at each other. And really lis-
ten.
μ It doesn’t matter what
you think you’re fighting
about. It always comes down
to a choice between fear and
love. Choose wisely.
μ Write this into your wed-
ding vows: “I promise to faith-
fully replace the toilet paper
whenever I use the last of it.”
μ Do things together. Do
things apart.
μ Career, personal goals
and family are important, but
nothing is more important
than your relationship.
μ The cruelest question
you can ask a husband: “No-
tice anything different?”
μ Be your spouse’s biggest
cheerleader.
μ If you’ve truly forgiven
your spouse for something,
you’ll never bring it up again.
μ Your wife doesn’t need
to know that you think that
chick across the street has a
great figure. (Not that there’s
anything wrong with notic-
ing.)
μ Be spontaneously ridicu-
lous and unabashedly silly.
Make your spouse laugh. It
nourishes your souls.
μ No one person can give
you everything you need.
μ If he forgets your an-
niversary, don’t freak out
about it. If he forgets your
name, do.
μ “What can I do for you,
honey?”
μ He’s not a mind reader.
If you want him to know what
you’re thinking or feeling, you
have to tell him.
μ If you make your kids
the center of your universe,
there’s going to be one mas-
sive black hole when they fi-
nally grow up and leave.
μ Recognize your spouse’s
weaknesses, but focus on the
strengths.
μ If you always have to
win the argument, you’ll even-
tually lose the relationship.
μ Only if she asks: “No,
honey, that dress isn’t very
flattering.” (Not “It makes you
look fat.")
μ Find someone to talk to
about your marriage, but nev-
er talk your spouse down to
anyone.
μ When you finally realize
your spouse is as flawed and
messed up as you are, you
can leave the rose-colored
fantasy behind and start build-
ing a real adult relationship.
μ If your wife suddenly
starts tanning and exercising
a lot, might as well call the
lawyer now. (This one came
from a recently divorced
friend.)
μ Every little disagreement
doesn’t have to snowball into
a discussion about “the rela-
tionship.”
μ It’s actually OK to go to
bed angry sometimes, as long
as you agree to discuss it in
the morning.
μ She’s your wife, not your
mommy. Go clean up after
your own self.
μ It’s not your job to make
your spouse happy. (It’s not
possible, either.)
μ Appreciate the love your
spouse has for you. It’s not
something you’re entitled to.
It’s something you earn.
μ When he says, “You
might have a point there,
honey,” what he’s leaving out
is “if you weren’t so full of
crap.”
μ Create your own tradi-
tions for the holidays.
μ Sharing your secrets
(and hopes and fears) is the
secret to true intimacy.
μ Want to get lucky
tonight? Do a load of laundry,
start to finish.
μ Listen to other people’s
advice, but make your own
choices.
μ Argue naked. It’s guar-
anteed to keep a minor dis-
agreement from turning into
a big fight.
μ Random expressions of
love and affection are the best
ones. (Foot rubs count dou-
ble. Feet are gross!)
μ Being selfish and being
in love are incompatible.
μ Just because you know
where someone’s buttons are
doesn’t mean you have to
push them.
μ If your dog gets more
snuggle time in bed with your
wife than you do, you’re in
trouble.
μ Money is something to
talk about, not fight about.
μ When all is said and
done, you can hang onto your
pride or you can hang onto
your relationship.
μ And, finally, here’s a
great one from Ogden Nash.
“To keep your marriage brim-
ming / with love in the wed-
ding cup / whenever you’re
wrong, admit it / whenever
you’re right, shut up.”
Scripps Howard News Service
45 steps to good marriage