Free Information on Easy Bridal Shower Games

Inject some fun and a change of pace into the bridal shower you are planning with some easy bridal shower games. Coming up with the games may be your challenge. Fortunately, you can turn to a variety of free resources to draw inspiration on some easy bridal shower games that you can put on the agenda for the party. Turn to one or more resources to put together a few games you can use to break up the time of the bridal shower and allow your guests to have enjoy themselves and maybe win some prizes too.

People You Know

No matter how young or old you are, you know people who have hosted or attended a bridal shower. Talk with your friends, family members and co-workers about the games they have played at bridal shower games. Shoot out an email, pick up the phone or tell them in person that you are looking for games to play at a bridal shower. You should have a pen and paper handy so you can write down the details of each game.

Draw from Experience

You too have attended bridal showers and other types of parties where you have played games. Think back to the bridal showers you have attended and remember the games that you played. Do not just limit yourself to bridal showers either. Think of baby showers, birthday parties or other types of party games too. You can always put a wedding slant on a popular party game. For example, if you decide to play charades, then all of the charades can revolve around weddings.

Books

Party planning books are in abundance at book stores and even your local library. Spend some time at both locations looking through these books. In addition to books, both of these venues offer magazines that also touch on party, event and wedding planning. Even when the games are intended for bachelorette parties or another girls night in party, you can use the game as is or give it a bridal theme.

Websites

The Internet is also a primary source for easy bridal shower games. Numerous wedding planning and party planning website devote sections and pages to games. Some sites even provide you with template downloads or instructions you can print in order to put your bridal shower games together. Martha Stewart Weddings, Party 411 and The Knot are but three of the websites that provide you with free and easy bridal shower game ideas.

Activities in Boston for Your Wedding Guests

It is common for guests to travel some distance by land or air to attend a wedding. If your wedding is taking place in the Boston area, there are many attractions that your guests may wish to visit before or after your ceremony. From historical landmarks to popular museums, Boston has something for all ages.

For Children
For your guests with children, there are a variety of museums that will entertain and amuse. The Boston Children’s Museum is perfect for children aged 0-10 and their families. It is open daily from 10 AM to 5 PM (9PM on Fridays). The Museum of Science is another great choice, with IMAX, a planetarium, 3-D Digital Cinema, and various exhibits. It is open daily from 9 AM-7 PM, with films and shows at various times. The New England Aquarium is also a tremendous attraction with more than 7,000 fish and aquatic mammals. It is open daily from 9 AM-5 PM (6 PM on weekends).

History

Boston is an epicenter for historical monuments, landmarks, and other attractions. Boston Common is the oldest park in the nation. Famous people throughout history have given speeches and concerts here. It has been declared a U.S. National Historic Landmark and features an ice-skating pond and Brewer Fountain, a 22-foot tall bronze fountain. The oldest building in downtown Boston, the Paul Revere House, served as the home of the legendary silversmith. The historical site is open from April 15 – October 31, 9:30 AM- 5:15 PM. The USS Constitution is the oldest commissioned warship that is still floating in the world. Guided tours of the famous vessel begin every half hour from 10 AM to 5:30 PM daily.

Arts, Parades, Feasts & Festivals

Although all events in this category are not available every day throughout the year, it is quite likely that one or more events are happening on the week of your wedding. The Mayor’s Office of Arts, Tourism, & special Events presents many events, as does the Strand Theatre. For more information and a schedule of events during your wedding, visit the City of Boston website.

Nature

On a particularly temperate wedding weekend, the guest that is also a nature lover will appreciate the Arnold Arboretum on the campus of Harvard University. It is open daily from sunrise to sunset and features family activities, events, plant highlights, and 185 species of birds. An adventurous guest will appreciate the world famous Boston Duck Tours, which takes people on a journey over land and sea on a Duck Tours vehicle.

City
For magnificent views of downtown Boston, your guests can visit the Prudential Tower, which boasts a sky high view on the 50th floor. The tower is part of the Prudential Center which features 28 acres of hotels, restaurants, shops, plazas, and covered walkways. Downtown Crossing is a neighborhood full of restaurants, shopping, night-life, and culture in the heart of downtown Boston. The neighborhood also hosts a variety of special events for residents and visitors alike.

Get Married Hits the Newsstand

The fall issue of Get Married magazine hits the newsstand TODAY!

Join in the fun, and whether you're a bride or a wedding vendor, you have a chance to win some prizes!

SHOP: Pick up your fall issue of Get Married (available at Barnes & Noble, Borders, Target, CVS, Kroger, A&P, Waldenbooks, Book World, Hasting, Books-A-Million and more). You can pick up an issue for FREE if you register online at www.getmarried.com.

SNAP: Take the most creative, fun or outlandish shot of the Get Married magazine cover you can dream up!

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GET INSPIRED + GET PLANNING: The fall issue features:

* Bridal trends and this season’s hottest colors to fit every bridal style

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Pick up your fall issue of Get Married and Get Creative because the contest ends on Monday, August 30th.

Get Married: Catch the End of Season 3

Get Married Season 3 hits the TV with seven new episodes starting on Saturday, July 3rd at 9:30am EST. You can watch these new episodes by tuning into WE TV. The final of the seven episodes airs on Saturday, August 14th. Get Married features real brides facing fun challenges with the show founder and host Stacie Francombe. Stacie guides the brides on the show through wedding planning experiences as they interact with wedding professionals and experts.

Tune in to discover some of the hottest wedding trends and surprising happenings, including a customized father-daughter dance song by Edwin McCain.

It's only three days away! Check out the promo for Get Married’s newest episodes.

Freelance writer at ZSB (Las Vegas, NV)

Freelance writer at ZSB (Las Vegas, NV)
This company hires writers and then does not pay them for completed work. DO NOT do business with them and expect to get paid! They have owed me $400 for months and keep promising to pay me, but never do.

Luxury Wedding Etiquette

It is important for all weddings to follow certain rules of etiquette and protocol. This is no different for a luxurious, formal event. Most rules of etiquette are similar regardless of the extravagance of the affair. However, the overall luxury of the occasion heightens the formality of etiquette and protocol.

Payment Due
Traditionally the responsibility for paying for a wedding belongs to the bride’s parents. This includes everything from the bridal wear to the wedding cake. The groom and/or his family are responsible for his clothing, the marriage license and clergy fee, as well as the wedding ring and groomsmen’s gifts. He is also financially responsible for the rehearsal dinner. A formal wedding usually follows the traditional protocol for finances, but often the bride and groom work together to present the elaborate event.

Gift Registry
Registries are created for the convenience of the guests; however it is most acceptable to advertise your registry by word of mouth instead of including cards in invitations. Regardless of the extravagance of the actual wedding, gifts from all price points should be included on the registry. If a guest is unable to attend the wedding, a gift should be sent to the couple before the wedding or within three months of the wedding. Likewise, a thank-you note should be sent within three months.

Invitations
Invitations for a luxurious wedding should also be luxurious. The most formal invitations are usually printed on white, ivory, or ecru paper with black script. A gold or silver border or other simple accents denote formality. They include an outer and an inner envelope, often with a sheet of tissue paper to protect the ink. On a formal invitation, names are written out fully, with no nicknames or shortened names. All of the words in the address, date, time, and year are spelled out fully (i.e. “Avenue” instead of “Ave.” and “Two Thousand Eleven” for “2011”).

Attire
For a luxurious wedding, the bride, groom, and wedding party should wear the most formal clothing. Dresses should reach the floor and tuxedos should include bow ties and vests. For guests attending such a wedding, ladies should wear a formal dress (usually floor length) with formal jewelry and a fancy purse. If it is a religious wedding, shoulders should be covered with a wrap. Avoid wearing white and anything that is too revealing. Gentlemen should wear a well-fitted tuxedo with a bow tie to a formal wedding.

Reception
Typically, a luxurious wedding occurs in the evening and denotes a formal sit-down dinner. The reception will usually begin with a cocktail hour that the guests enjoy while the bride and groom are taking photographs. There is usually a receiving line at most formal receptions. The meal should consist of at least three courses, with full silver service and wait staff. At the most formal occasion, full bar service is provided along with dancing and live orchestral music.

Catholic Wedding Sand Ceremony

The Sand Ceremony is often compared to the Unity Candle Ceremony. Both are two physical displays of the unifying power of marriage. The unity candle ceremony is quite new to wedding traditions (it originated in Protestant churches about 40 years ago); later in the century, couples searched for ways to complete a unifying act without the use of candles. A sand ceremony can easily replace a unity candle ceremony in a Catholic wedding.

The Facts
In a Sand Ceremony, the bride and the groom each hold a small glass vase full of sand. At a specified time, each takes a turn pouring some of their sand into a larger glass vase. Then they pour in the remaining sand at the same time. The ceremony symbolizes the Biblical concept of two individuals becoming one. A third small vase is often used by the officiant who pours in sand representing God and His omnipresence in the life of the new couple. A sand ceremony can be used in any kind of ceremony, religious or not, but a Catholic sand ceremony will include text spoken by the priest during the pouring. Usually the two (or three) small vases contain different colors of sand, so the resulting larger vase is a beautiful blend of colors. The large vase is kept as a treasured memento of the union.

History
Although it is somewhat difficult to determine from where the sand ceremony originates, it is often thought to have begun in Hawaii, where the bride and groom scoop sand from the beach at their feet into their vases for the ceremony. Some argue that this type of ceremony originated with Native Americans thousands of years ago. Regardless, the sand ceremony is gaining in popularity and received a well-televised boost when it was featured on a wedding spin-off of The Bachelorette in 2003. The sand ceremony holds little or no history in the Catholic Church.

Types
The most commonly known sand ceremony involves sand in two or three smaller vases being poured simultaneously into one larger vase to signify two becoming one. Another option is when couples only use the two small vases and together pour the sand into the wind. In this case the ceremony must be outdoors and the couple should take care to throw it with the wind and not against it. If children are involved in the ceremony, they can pour in a vase of sand also. All of these variations would be religiously acceptable in a Catholic wedding.

Significance
The overall significance of the sand ceremony is the visual imagery of the union of marriage. Often the groom pours part of his sand first, symbolizing the foundation of the marriage. The bride then adds her sand to symbolize her support. When they both pour the remainder of their sand together, the colors mix in harmony and equality. Some couples choose to leave a small amount of sand in their individual vases to signify their individuality. The Catholic wedding ceremony stresses the unity and commitment of marriage; a sand ceremony certainly supports this belief and further symbolizes that the two that have become one can never again be separated.

Considerations
The Sand Ceremony is not a Catholic tradition and therefore is not present in the Catholic Rite of Marriage. Your officiant may decline to include it for this reason. Regulations on the inclusion of procedures not present in the Rite of Marriage differ from parish to parish. Some say that this celebration of unity is somewhat repetitious as the Catholic ceremony already celebrates unity through liturgy, prayer, and the administration of a sacrament.