THE WEDDING PLANNER - The Man Cave

Do I ask her parents for her hand or for heirlooms? This is up to you and depends on your relationship with her Dad & Mom... If they are pretty traditional, even if they aren't and you just want to include them in the secret, WHY NOT?! It can't hurt and it is a nice way to stick to tradition! WHAT DO I SAY WHEN I PROPOSE? If you don't know how to start, start with why you love her and why you want to marry her! The key to the perfect proposal is to be sincere. No matter where or when you pop the question, so long as the intent is clear and the question genuine, this will be the beginning of a tremendous engagement! Make it personal and memorable! - keep your eyes and ears open! I guarantee your girl has been dropping hints if she is ready for you to pop the question! Your proposal should mean something to you and your girl... if you snowboard together pop the question in the gondola on the way up to the village. If you hike lots bring a backpack of goodies and even champagne for when you reach the destination of your hike.	Okay, you know Who? and Why? ...but what about the rest of those questions you have about proposals?! Heres where to start... The anticipated response is an enthusiastic "yes," so it is important to consider your girl's ideas about a perfect proposal. Relax, you know your girl best, you already know how to make the event special and memorable for her... Also, remember that it's okay to ask for help in making your proposal extra special, ask her best friend, sister, cousin, or mom for their opinion... or come to us for help! If you need help or inspiration give us a call, we are always happy to help you pull off a really amazing proposal. Want a group of dancers to surprise her? A beautiful candlelit dinner on the beach? We can make that happen! When? Valentine's Day, The anniversary of a first date or introduction, A birthday, After a momentous event (graduation), Christmas, New Year's Eve, any major holiday, or tomorrow! What Ring do I buy? Some women may prefer to choose their own ring, which can be done before or after the actual proposal. Or, hey, take her to jewelry store and pop the question there! If she probably has a ring in mind... watch for clues, if a magazine magically appears with a certain page open and a circle around the ring she likes, take notice!
	WHAT'S MY ROLE? Determine your priorities Plan your ceremony Set your budget Choose your wedding style Spread the news Define your resonsibilities Set up your support team Hire Professionals- Polish your look – dress to kill and get a hair cut man! Give and Receive – show your gratitude with notes and gifts for family and friends who have helped you and your fiancee What are the best tasks I can take care of for her? DJ/music choices (be sure to include her in the key songs for ceremony, reception entry, first dance, parents dances, bouquet and garter toss...) Plan the honeymoon Buy the drinks Plan the rehearsal dinner Help make the invites/name placecards there's all sorts you could help out with... even if you don't take something on your own to do, GO WITH HER to appointments! Should we hire a planner? A coordinator?* Of course! A planner will help you step by step through the entire process and really help take the pressure off. A wedding day coordinator will meet with you in the final stages and take care of everything on your wedding day. Either way you get to enjoy the process and especially your wedding day! Prior to the wedding expect a few other things... an engagement party bachelor and bachelorette parties a bridal shower (usually for the women but a Jack and Jill party can be a fun BBQ!) a rehearsal dinner (can be super casual and involve pizza at your parent's house) ...and after the wedding... *gift opening (have a brunch the next day and make it a potluck!)
No Pressure... but what will you wear? The photographer will catch some great shots of you that will be around forever so you want to look good! Options: tuxedo suits uniform ethnic traditions something fun for a beach wedding; board shorts with a crips white button up or kahki pants with a button up and flip flops other ways to shake up the tux or suit: accessories: pocket watches cuff links pocket squares Many grooms now are getting away from the typical tuxedo and shiny shoes. instead, wear fun shoes flipflops/sneaks/vans/converse There are so many options out there, your best direction should be your bride's attire and the theme/style of your wedding
	Your Best Man How do I ask my buddy? Make plans for a “man-date”, he is your best friend or family member so why not go hang out and do something you enjoy together? This is a great excuse to go to a hockey game, head to Big White, go for drinks or play some vids together like you usually do or never have time to do! What will he be doing for me? Bachelor party Back you up on the big day. Keep your things organised, tux, rings, boutennieres, transportation if you havent already arranged this, walk the MOH down the aisle, witness your marriage certificate, toast you and your bride at the reception Tell him to bring kleenex, it may not be for you but someone is guaranteed to cry at some point that day!!
HOW DOES THE WEDDING DAY GO DOWN? How will my day look? You may have to take care of some last minute running around if you haven't hired a wedding day coordinator. You will need to make final payments for some of the professionals you have hired. don't let your fiancee try to take care of too many things, take some items off her hand or hire a professional wedding day coordinator! Socialize* Hang with your best man Hand out gifts to your groomsmen Arrange for someone to get a gift to your bride! Dress to kill! Take your time getting ready... Get a hair cut that week Clip your nails Try a 7 day teeth whitening kit Buy a facial scrub and moisturize (sounds a little girly but you will look hot after!) Shave that morning, don't use a new razor it is more likely to cut your skin! If you have a drink the night before don't over do it! Take care of yourself so you feel great on your wedding day Be early! If you get to the ceremony a little early you can mingle with your guests... Let's not start off your life together with you being late. It is important to keep traffic into consideration, if it is a long weekend give yourself extra time. Do expect her to be late though, she should leave a little time for late guests. Something most couples say is that the day flies by so take every chance to have a quiet moment with your beautiful wife!

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT YOUR CEREMONY How can we make the ceremony personal and unique? Infuse the ceremony with some fun stories or inside jokes. Add cultural or creative touches (wine ceremony, candle or sand ceremony)(you could also add a rose ceremony for your moms/grandmas) Should we see each other before? This is up to you! When you first see her this is a big moment, if you chose to meet before the ceremony set up a special spot where the photographer can capture your reactions when you see each other for the first time!

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT YOUR RECEPTION Speach - your speach should be personal and you must thank a few people, including a toast to your bride! personal stories are great keep it short and sweet try to not be nervous, everyone in the room loves you and nobody will judge! First dance - Depending on your bride, if she loves to dance, she would want a memorable first dance. If this sounds like your girl surprise her with dance lessons. Not all first dances have to be a ballroom style boring dance! Take a hip hop class or find a choreographer (I know some!) Choose your fave song and hit that floor! The dance class won't hurt and if she is in to that sort of thing you will gain major brownie points!!! Cake cutting - wow, super old school traditional! Go with it though if you have a cake to cut! Your moms, auties, and grandmas will all be there with cameras! Start to cut into the cake and pause long enough for everyone to get a good shot of you! Garter toss / Bouquet toss - usually a fun part of the night once the dance has started. This is your chance to ham it up a bit, people have lots of fun with both of these traditions! Sometimes, the man who catches the garter is supposed to put it on the leg of the woman who catches the bouquet, or the garter is sold in a raffle instead of being tossed.

Who should plan it? Best Man and/or you. Be sure to tell him what you want, this is your party dude! Ideas: pub crawl, go karts, paintball, laser tag, fave sport? Fave passtime: vids? Fave movie? Create a theme for the night and have fun with your buddies! Destination bachelor party? Fun Hint: *use facebook for this planning, it is a super easy way to connect, you can create the page with your best man and create the guests list easily. I have had groups of guys kick the groom out of the “event” so they could make plans without him knowing... this groom was pleasantly surprised by his friends' ideas	Start as soon as possible to book your vacation and save save save to afford a fun place to travel to! Should I risk surprising my fiancee? Why not? Tell her you want to figure it out later or that you want to take care of it for her. If you don't want to tell her outright and you really want to surprise her go for it and book something you think she will love! Let's not forget her Maid Of Honor, she is usually an excellent resource of info! Carefully pick your allies and you could end up with the perfect surprise for your bride! Other things you could ask her MOH for... gift ideas, even proposal ideas! Where? Wow, there are so many choices! Many couples choose somewhere tropical, keep your minds open though, go on a tour of Europe or on a cruise if you're into that. Head into the nearest travel agent and get some advise on the best places to go in the time of year you are planning for. If you book something as a surprise make sure you inform her what what to pack, ask the travel agent that too. Also have your passports ready!