Scene from Walt Disney's Cinderella

"Why can't you be happy for me,
and then go home and talk about me
behind my back like a normal person?"
~ Lillian, the bride, to Annie, her maid of honor,
in scene from the movie Bridesmaids

Welcome back as we resume The Wedding Series!

We've heard a lot about the bridezilla, but what about the bridesmaidzilla? She's the one who has accepted the bride's invitation to be a member of the wedding party, either as a bridesmaid or maid/matron of honor, but is not really able to get with the program or function as a member of Team Bride, or she might just have a moment of bridesmaidzillahood that throws everyone and everything off. Regardless, such behavior can be a headache and heartache for the bride and other members of the wedding party.

Prevention Of and Planning For Getting Sick On Your Wedding Day

Every few years I seem to catch one of these viral gremlins that lays me low. It was bad enough getting sick in my corporate life, but if I had to miss work at least I had a team to back me up and I could usually perform some aspects of my job effectively from home while avoiding the passing on of my germs to my coworkers. But in my current occupation getting sick means I could miss a speaking engagement or running a workshop for a client or a community presentation. And that's exactly what happened; last Saturday I had to cancel an event sponsored by my local library in which my daughter, Lyn, and I were presenting four workshops on job search techniques and skills. My symptoms started on Tuesday with an ominous tickle in my throat and by Thursday they were full blown -- fever, chills, sore throat, aches, cough, congestion, drippiness and laryngitis; even antibiotics and rest couldn't make me well enough by Saturday to stand in front of an audience. 

   The Three E's and The Wedding Series are taking a brief break. We'll be back next week! Until then, Jeanne

Randolph Caldecott Illustrations

Hey! diddle, diddle,
The cat and the fiddle,
The cow jumped over the moon;
The little dog laughed
To see such sport,
And the dish ran away with the spoon.
~ A Mother Goose Nursery Rhyme

About this time in the planning of a wedding, the bride and groom might feel as though eloping might be easier and less frazzle on the nerves. Sometimes the father of the bride, or the parents of the couple in general, suggest half-jokingly at the outset that eloping would be a great idea. It's certainly a simpler and less costly option. 

Last Girlfriend Fling Before She Wears A Wedding Ring

Unlike the bachelor party, which has been around for centuries, the bachelorette party is a fairly recent development, in line with the Western world's evolution of women's equality over the last few centuries (although we women still have a long way to go, baby!). And why shouldn't women celebrate their last single days just as men have always done? No reason at all.

The "Jolly Old" Party ~ Chambers's Journal of Literature, Science and Arts, Vol. 59 (1922)

Another age-old custom is that of the bachelor party -- or stag party, as it's called in the U.K., Canada and New Zealand. Dating back to ancient Sparta in the 5th century BCE, a celebration was held to honor the groom on his last night as a single man. As Spartan men were restrained and frugal it can be assumed that such celebrations were quite reserved. As the bachelor party evolved it remained a rather staid, decorous and tame occasion; the men smoked cigars, exchanged anecdotes and toasted the bride in absentia. As civilization approached modern times, the bachelor party unfortunately changed into an occasion for men to behave badly. Here are a few highlights from three recent generations:

pixabay.com

When the villagers found out the bride’s father refused
to bestow a dowry on the newlyweds, they came together
and ‘showered’ the couple with gifts
so they could establish a home together.
And thus began the tradition of bridal showers.
~ theamericanwedding.com

The bridal shower is a time-honored affair that began as a very practical occasion to help young couples start their marriage with some essentials for the kitchen, bed and bath. While it's still based in practicality it has evolved into a bonding of friends who wish to show their affection, support and goodwill for the bride and groom. For that reason, the shower is a smaller event consisting of close family and friends. Often it involves only women -- the mothers of the wedding couple and the female attendants, close friends and family members. However, coed showers have also become popular and include the groom, the fathers of the bride and groom and close male friends and family; this is especially likely if the bride's maid of honor happens to be a man of honor. Same sex couples, as well, might have a couples shower or each may have separate brides' showers or grooms' showers with their respective attendants and friends.    

"Maybe the pickle fork in her pattern is part of the dream
we all have when we get married…
until then the pickle fork is great for picking the lock
on a bathroom dor (sic)
when the kids lock themselves in.”
~ Erma Bombeck, Nevada Daily Mail, October 7, 1985  

As both the vintage graphic and quote indicate, wedding guests have given -- and brides and grooms have received -- some interesting gifts over the generations. Some have been expected and some quite unexpected. There are the long-running jokes about the wedding couple receiving a half-dozen blenders or bun warmers, or that hideous vase from Great Aunt Ernestine that lives on the closet shelf except when it's hauled out and given a place of honor when she comes to visit!

“Think left and think right and think low and think high.
Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try!”
~Dr. Seuss

Happy New Year! To new readers, welcome! With this entry I am resuming my Wedding Series by wrapping up the topic of wedding invitations; if you'd like to start at the beginning of the Series, please click here. To my regular readers, welcome back.

Photo credit / source: inmylittlekorner.blogspot.com

"Details create the big picture."
~ Sanford I. Weill

The formal wedding invitation suite may include all or some of several components that should be assembled carefully for the most accurate, beautiful and delightful presentation when opened. The suite may also apply to less formal invitations, i.e., those that use colors, designs, typefaces and so on that differ from the strictly formal guidelines that have been discussed in the previous two entries.