I’m off in Hawaii visiting my sister, so just a quick tip for today:
Many brides and their families have a strong emotional desire to spend some special time together just before the wedding ceremony. Whether this be so that Mom and Dad can pray with their child before he/she takes this momentous step or just to give last minute hugs, 10 or 15 minutes of quiet, personal time before the bride walks the aisle is a very important priority for many families. My advice to all brides as a wedding coordinator is to put this 15 minutes into your wedding day schedule.
It may not just magically happen that you and your parents are together, alone in the busy moments before the ceremony begins. Many photographers get carried away with their art and forget to stop in time to not rush the ceremony. Some parents are busy rushing to and fro with last minute details and don’t realize they need to find their son or daughter.
If you want to have private family time before the ceremony, you will need to take steps to make that happen. Schedule it. Tell everyone you want present when and where to be. Assign your wedding coordinator to track these people down and bring them to a quiet room at the right moment. Plan photography to end early enough to allow for private time and have the wedding coordinator hold the photographer to the schedule. Don’t assume that because you and your parents want to be with one another that it will automatically happen. Also ask the coordinator to guard this time for the families, not allowing last minute interruptions from various wedding personnel. Be purposeful about making it happen. Then you won’t regret missing out on that special time.
I am not usually a very emotional person, but I remember having a little last minute panicky, butterfly feeling and really wanting my Dad. I felt much better when someone tracked my parents down and we took a minute to pray before heading out to stand in front of a church full of people. Planning time for this will not only create special memories, but make for a calmer bride and smoother wedding day.
