This posting is definitely well overdue! Since my last posting I got married and we actually just celebrated our 1 year anniversary in Jamaica! Yeah, so this is really late, but I always try to finish whatever I start, so here we go!
In my last posting, all the way in August 2009 I made note of the great help it is to have a strong support team and someone there for you on your special day. I have to admit that I had the best team around me, who were there to support me every step of the way! I definitely didn't want to turn into a "bridezilla" so I knew that I didn't want to overwhelm or stress myself as the big day drew closer.
My advice is to make sure you have a strong support team around you and remember to be gracious for all of their help. I was not planning on having a rehearsal and day of wedding coordinator, but I was soo happy I ended up having one. One of my best friend's mom's actually volunteered so I really lucked out! If you can't afford to have a professional coordinator (like me!) then I strongly suggest you find someone you trust to take the lead. This can be someone who has aspirations to become a wedding coordinator or is not afraid to step up and maintain order as an authority figure.
The important things that your coordinator should do are as follows:
-At the rehearsal make sure everyone knows where they have to walk, stand and line up.
-Do a run through more than once. We did a run through 3 times to ensure that everyone, including the little kiddies felt comfortable with what they were doing.
-Establish what everyone's responsibilities are. For example, I had my groomsmen seat guests as they arrived and my coordinator made sure they carried this out.
-Find out if there is anything last minute that needs to be tended to.
It helps to know that there is someone else there making things run smoothly the day of the wedding because you may have done all the planning beforehand, but you never know what snags may come up the day off, so best to be prepared! And remember this doesn't have to be a professional, just someone you trust who is not afraid to take charge.
Below are some pics from my rehearsal. At the urging of one of my besties, I decided to have all the ladies involved in the wedding wear a saris to represent part of my Indian/Arabic side. The same bestie, Ren (http://www.makeupbyrenren.com/ ) also did all of our makeup, which was awesome!
Until next time, I'll discuss last minute details and show you some of the final pics of our wedding day!
Some of my fam
The lovely ladies
ATL besties
Duke besties
The hubby and I
