Shots Photography

Involving The Family In Wedding Planning

When Scrubs star John C. McGinley, 47, and fianc?e Nichole Kessler, 34, tied the knot on April 7 at in Malibu they decided McGinley's 9-year-old son Max should serve as both best man and escort the bride-to-be down the aisle. He nearly stopped the proceedings when he ran back towards the house after fulfilling his duties! This added a bit of levity and fun to the ceremony and made it memorable. Max also introduced the couple at the beach.

Including children in the ceremony is a wonderful way to start out on the right foot as a couple. It lets the child know how valued, loved and important they are in the marriage and as part of the celebration.

As weddings trend towards less formal, stiff affairs more and more couples are getting into the habit of including their nearest and dearest, whether those be human, canine or feline. Also included in McGinley's ceremony were the couple's two chocolate labs, Haley and Hudson in their private Malibu ceremony.

McGinley proposed to Kessler, a yoga instructor, last August. Their wedding was a very small affair with family and friends, including John Cusack. It's reflective of what more and more couples do in planning a second wedding, usually a more low-key, intimate affair. Like McGinley and Kessler, you can plan a more intimate wedding for outdoors, using the beach or a sumptuous view as a backdrop. If the bride or groom have children from a previous marriage, they can be assigned special duties such as greeting the guests. Often a child is great at encouraging people to sign a guest registry, distributing rice or confetti to be tossed at the couple after the ceremony, or assisting in any special task such as lighting a unity candle.

Utilizing friends and closest family members in your wedding ceremony isn't difficult. It requires a bit of creative thinking and planning, however. If they've a special talent, such as singing, request they sing a song that has meaning to the bride, groom, or both. Having loved ones read various religious, spiritual or inspirational passages is also a good way to include special guests in the big day. Both of these touches will help family and friends feel included and will set your wedding apart, making it even more special to you as a couple.

While planning your wedding, think about the many ways you can find to include your nearest and dearest in the ceremony. It doesn't have to be something that requires large time or money commitments. Often something as simple as having them help pick out invitations or flowers will show a person they're important to you.

For McGinley and Kessler, Max was an essential part of the ceremony not only for the fact he's part of the family: he is also the reason the couple met and eventually got together. Max used to wander over to talk to Kessler when he and his dad would roam the beach. One could say he got them together in the first place!

Chris Morton ran hotels and restaurants for 10 years, organising many successful weddings in the process. His wife Sue is a wedding coordinator who has help many nervous brides and their families. Visit http://www.theweddingwizards.com for 100's of tips showing you how to plan a great wedding day

MORE ARTICLES:

Engaged Couples Get Helping Hand From Powerful Online Wedding Website Planning Tools
Today, nearly 80% of all engaged couples use the Internet for assistance during their wedding planning. WedShare.com is a service that allows couples to create their own professional wedding website in minutes with no tech experience. Now they introduce a rich set of planning tools integrated with every couple's website. Such tools allow couples to track guest contacts, receive online RSVPs, manage their budget and more.

LightScribe Direct Disc Labeling Launches Photography Kit
With LightScribe, photographers can get noticed with picture-perfect discs.

A Heavenly Wedding - Courtesy Wedding Loans
You always dreamt of walking down the aisle in style. Marriage for you meant including all pomp and show.

Wedding Planning Budget
Wedding Planning Budget

Chicago Wedding Photojournalism
Magazines that reflect the changing world like ?National Geographic? have long used the practice of photojournalism in their publications. People are used to seeing these stories covered in words as well as photographs. The pictures give the story a real sense of time and the behind the scenes look at historical events. A growing trend among married couples to be wants their weddings photographically covered the same way. The result is that professional photographers shooting weddings in a similar style, to really tell the wedding story from the couple?s point of view. Especially in Chicago, wedding photojournalism has been growing in popularity for the last ten years.

Wedding Tips
Weddings are made in heaven, they say, but they have to be organized on earth. For most of us wedding is a once-in-lifetime affair when someone most special becomes yours for the rest of your life.

Why You Should Buy that Wedding Gift from the Gift Registry - OR, the Wedding Gifts from Hell!
When you come to choose a wedding gift it's no wonder that marrying couples issue a wedding gift registry. It's how to get exactly what you want; here are some true-life stories of the worst wedding gifts ever.

Wedding Flowers
The selection process of your wedding flowers will usually begin with a discussion of the Bride's bouquet. You will have a choice of several basic styles.

The Perfect Bridal Makeup for Your Wedding Day
It's important that your makeup look its absolute best for your wedding day. Whether you plan to marry on a beach at noon or at night under the stars, by keep your makeup simple you will look and feel great.

Choosing The Perfect Wedding Hair Style: Tips And Advice
The same frustrations with hair that plague women in daily life often show up during wedding preparations. While you will begrudgingly accept a "bad hair day" every once in a while, you don't want to have such a day with your wedding hair style. You want everything to be perfect, right? Well, very few things about weddings or life for that matter are perfect. It is better to focus on how you can do your best. When it comes to your wedding hair style, there are some ways that you can attempt to make sure your wedding hair style doesn't turn into a "bad hair day."

Planning the Menu for Your Wedding Reception
When you are planning a budgeted menu, you must first know what your exact budget is when it comes to the food and drink specifically. Some people keep the food and drinks separate, but on average, the food and drink are a part of the same bill.

Advantages of Hiring a Wedding Planner
Every girl has dreamed about their wedding day. They want it to be beautiful and perfect, just like in their dreams. But when it actually becomes a reality, the planning and stress can ruin that dream they once had. That is why many couples are opting to hire a professional wedding planner. A wedding planner with a solid reputation and good references can relieve most of the stress that goes along with planning a big wedding. They can also be helpful when planning a small or medium-sized wedding. Although their services might be quite expensive, the peace of mind that they provide is often well worth their fees.

Beautiful Bayside Vista Prompts Romantic Seaside Weddings In Corpus Christi, Texas
Miles of romantic spots serve as the perfect place for couples to exchange or renew marriage vows. Corpus Christi offers a variety of beautiful sites to set the stage for a memorable wedding.

What Happens If You Dont Wear Proper Wedding Shoes?
Here comes the bride! Walking through the alley confidence holding her father's arm, but suddenly the shoes slip and she fell down. Wow.