Is your engagement ring insured? If not, it needs to be! Most homeowners insurance policies will allow you to add a rider to cover your ring (or other expensive jewelry) very easily – just call your insurance agent and ask about insuring it. Don’t assume that you are covered under your standard policy – most homeowners only cover jewelry up to a certain dollar amount which is usually much lower than the value of a diamond engagement ring. Adding the rider really is quite inexpensive per year and costs a lot less than replacing that diamond!

If you are already insured, do you have a current appraisal? Many insurance companies require a current appraisal to be on file. What is considered current? Nationwide requires it be within the last two years – if you don’t have a current, professional appraisal, they can deny your claim! Kind of tricky, huh? Check with your insurance company for their requirements regarding the appraisal including how current it should be and if the appraiser must have any specific certifications.

You can find a professional appraiser at the American Society of Appraisers website.

Happy Thanksgiving! I sincerely hope that you are able to spend it with those you love, remembering the good things from the past year and giving thanks for all your blessings. Don’t forget to be thankful for the things that might not seem good – sometimes you learn more from the bad/difficult things than you do from the good/easy ones.

I also hope you have lots and lots of turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, pumpkin and pecan pies!!

I finally updated my Media Page! I had quite a few fun things to add including a bunch of new articles and press features. Take a look and I hope you enjoy!

(See if you can follow me on this – Mark from QOH Weddings found this on Earthly Affairs who found this in New York Magazine – so credit to all of them for this great list.)

I get asked for the ‘rules’ of who to invite to the wedding quite often. My rule of thumb for people on the bubble has always been, have they been to your house for dinner or vice versa? If yes, they should probably be invited. If no, invite them if there is extra room on the list. This usually works but there are always those random people who are still question marks on the list.

Now NY Mag has come up with the definitive list as to how to figure out if someone should be invited to your wedding. Enjoy and use wisely!

ALWAYS
1. Anyone who hung around the hospital the day you were born.
2. Friends of the family referred to as ‘Uncle [name]‘ or ‘Aunt [name]‘.
3. BFFs, ‘bros,’ and spouses thereof.
4.Irritating stepmothers.

DEFINITELY, IF IT’S POSSIBLE
5. Camp bunkmates who didn’t make the bridesmaid cut.
6. Co-workers and friends who are entertaining drunks.
7. Charismatic teachers/professors who went the extra mile to inspire you in high school/college.
8. Friends’ significant others who are known for getting the party started.
9. Vince Vaughn.
10. Co-workers and friends who are promiscuous drunks.
11. Co-workers and friends who are scandalous drunks.

ONLY IF YOU FEEL LIKE IT
12. Co-workers who are politically expedient.
13. Former co-workers.
14. Nonthreatening exes.

ONLY IF IT WOULD BE A PAIN NOT TO
15. Friends from high school with whom you can only talk about how fat everyone else from high school got after graduation.
16. Friends from college with whom you can only talk about how drunk everyone else in college got before graduation.
17. Your boss.
18. Your parents’ former spouses.
19. Friends’ significant others who are known for getting arrested.
20. Children under 16 to whom you are not biologically related.

NEVER
21. Torch-carrying exes.
22. The guy whom you used to refer to as ‘Uncle [name]‘ until you found out he’s your actual father and your family has been lying to you about it for 25 years.
23. Grifters.
24. Loan sharks.
25. Charismatic teachers/professors who went the extra mile to inspire you in high school/college because they’re sexual predators.
26. Bounty hunters.

Just a little warning – I am very annoyed right now so label this as a vent.

Warning to anyone thinking about stealing from my website: I actually protect my content because I wrote/designed/programmed it all myself. From scratch.

Yep kids, another coordinator decided that they like my package details so much, they should steal them. Word for word. Now, don’t get me wrong here – I am 100% aware that there are only so many ways to say that we will help with the budget. I am not talking about similar wording for a few of our package details matching – those I chalk up to coincidence. BUT if someone copies every single point word for word, that really ticks me off.

You know, our clients rely on us to give them unique, special ideas to set their wedding apart from the cookie cutter weddings out there. I have to question how someone who can’t even come up with their own service details on their own can actually think for one second that they can do that.

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery but I don’t consider stealing to be imitation – I consider it pathetic.

Vent over.

I was in Babies R Us and they were playing Christmas music. I just ordered my Christmas cards. They are showing Christmas commercials and it isn’t even Thanksgiving yet!

One good thing about the Christmas season starting so early nowadays is the catalogs come early too!

I saw this in a catalog and fell in love:

It is an advent calendar – you put little treats in each mitten or hat and count down the days to Christmas. I always had an advent calendar when I was growing up and want Ellie to have one too so I am planning on making this. I learned to knit thanks to my 101 Things challenge so now I just need to find a pattern for little mittens and I should have it done for Christmas 2008.

I never said I was a fast knitter!

Wow, those 1001 days go fast.

I just updated my list and the current count is:

33 Things done – yay!
1 Things postponed
67 Things remaining on the list

Realistically, I can probably get another 20 of those 67 remaining items completed by the end date of February 14. The other things are probably going to go on my next list which begins February 15.

If you can help with any of the things (Anyone want to teach me how to salsa dance? Meredith U.?) – feel free to let me know!

Long time no post – I know, I know, I have to be better but life has been busy around here!! I have been having so much fun with my amazing brides and grooms, my beautiful baby girl (click here to see what we have been up to), and getting my gall bladder removed. Okay, so the last thing wasn’t so much fun but everything else has been great!

I got the new CB2 catalog in the mail the other day and there are some very fun things that would be great for a winter/holiday wedding!

How much fun would this be as a place card holder? It is pretty reasonable at only $35 and has 34 clips total – you would probably only need 3 for a wedding of 150 guests:

As far as place cards go – why not take clear glass ornaments, pop the top off and put your guest’s names and table assignments inside? Just use a slip of paper, take tweezers and arrange it as needed, add some extra pretty things like silver raffia and you have a unique place card and a cool favor in one. (They also sell these very inexpensively at craft stores):

I love these beaded sprigs – they would be perfect in centerpieces and come in red, green and white:

You are probably going to have candles on the tables – why not make them snowballs? I think these are so cute! Be forewarned, since they have a texture to them, they are probably not going to throw as much light as a plain votive holder so you might need a few more for the same candlepower:

There are lots more things at the website. Check out the glass snowmen and glass trees – both would be great for table decor as well.