Thoughts on Grace....

As the Holiday Season begins, I'm always reminded of the countless Blessings that I have received in my life - many more undeserved than deserved. Remembering those Blessings is a great way to keep my priorities in order as the hustle and bustle begins. What is your definition of Grace? I like this one.


GRACE

When a person works an eight-hour day and receives a fair day's pay for his time, that is a wage.

When a person competes with an opponent and receives a trophy for his performance, that is a prize.

When a person receives appropriate recognition for his long service or high achievements, that is an award.

But when a person is not capable of earning a wage, can win no prize, and deserves no reward - yet receives such a gift anyway - that is a good picture of God's unmerited favor. This is what a Christian means when we talk about the grace of God.

From Mannersmith Monthly... Holiday Manners for Minors

Manners are important. They are like your calling card and reflect YOU in so many ways. Teaching your children proper manners is one of the greatest gifts you can give them - and it costs nothing but your time! One of my favorite monthly reads is the Mannersmith Monthly. It's filled with great tips for all types of situations dealing with everyone from infants to CEOs. Take a look. Life is too short to have bad manners.

As the holiday season approaches, Mannersmith's Marianne Cohen shares suggestions to prepare your children for the festivities. Here is her fabulous latest posting.


It is crazy how the calendar says October, and already the end-of-year holiday decorations are out. Children are getting excited about wearing their cool Halloween costumes while parents are fretting about planning the upcoming holiday meals and gatherings. One way to ensure the holidays are smooth sailing for all those involved is to provide your children with the proper tools for polite behavior. Here are some tips and techniques to transition your Halloween monsters into Holiday angels.

• Review the Basics ~ Of course we recommend working with your children all year long, but now is a perfect time to review the five building blocks of proper manners: please, thank you, you're welcome, sorry, excuse me.

• Do Your Homework ~ Ask each child to come up with one new thing about themselves to share with relatives and friends they have not seen in a long time. Those involved may be surprised to learn how much they have in common. For instance, if your daughter scored the winning goal in her soccer tournament, she may find that Great Aunt Sophie was also a star soccer player in her day.
• Act Like a Journalist ~ It is never too early to teach youngsters how to handle an awkward pause in a conversation. Have the child pretend they are a journalist. They can ask a guest questions about their past or their interests, and may find something in common which can lead to an interesting conversation.

• Practice, Practice, Practice ~ It takes approximately 28 repetitions to make a behavior a habit. If you would like your children to learn how to set the table, have them do it every day and soon it will become second nature. Every time they ask for something without saying "please," have them say the whole sentence again. Soon it will be routine.
  

• Be a Model ~ As parents, we are the role models for our children. For example, if you want them to have good table manners, you need to have good table manners; if you want them to set the table correctly, you need to show them how to set the table. Practice a formal dinner at home and make it a game. Using role reversal, pretend to be their age and show them the bad manners they are exhibiting. Ask them what they saw and how it can be corrected.
  

• Mail Call ~ Children should learn to write thank you notes as early as they can hold a crayon. There is never a bad time for a thank you note. Toddlers can draw a picture of the gift and once they can write their name, they can sign the cards. As they get older, you can make or purchase fill-in-the-blank cards and have them write the recipient's name and their name, and then keep expanding as they get older. By third grade, they should be able to write a simple thank you note. At Mannersmith, we like to say that an "emailed thank you means you cared enough to send the very least." Handwritten thank you cards are a cheap and effective way to make someone's day.
  

• Oscar Award ~ Has your child ever opened a gift, and by the look on their face, thought it was the ugliest sweater they had every seen? Before the holiday season gets underway, review with your children that it is the thought that counts. The giver may not have thought enough about the recipient's interests and likes, but they did give the child a gift nonetheless. You can also teach your children the art of philanthropy. If they really do not want the sweater, you can donate the gift to someone who may need and enjoy it. The holiday season can be very stressful for all those involved but by practicing polite behaviors, it may make it a little less hectic. We wish you and your trick-or-treating monsters a very happy holiday season.

When insults had class

"I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend ... if you have one." - George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill

"Cannot possibly attend first night, will attend second ... if there is one." - Winston Churchill, in response.

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One of my dear friends, business associates, colleagues, mentors and wanna-be comedians (hee hee), Ron Castle posted this on his blog and I couldn't help but steal it from him. If you ever need to know anything from website production, SEO genius info, how in the heck Google works, how to be #1 on Google, and some great recipes for some good ol' Tennessee cooking, give Ron a call. He picks up his phone 99% of the time on the first ring. So dang impressive.

I love Winston Churchill. This photo was taken from Time magazine where he was named their man of the year both in 1940 and 1949.

As an English statesman, author and prime minister, it would be his masterful speeches that dominate his legacy. Serving as First Lord of the Admiralty from 1939 to 1940, he offered all of himself in his words 'blood, toil, tears, and sweat.'" He rallied his countrymen in their resolve against the Nazis by saying, "For a thousand years, men will still say: 'This was their finest hour.'

Another favorite saying of his that I especially enjoy today: "An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile - hoping it will eat him last."

We need more Winston Churchill's today.

An Open Letter to Wedding Church Coordinators

My church - St. Barnabas Episcopal, Bainbridge Island, WA on the day of my wedding. Do you LOVE the dendrobium orchids? (I do!)

Today's post is taken directly from the talented team at planningforever.com. If you haven't taken time to look at their website, you should pay them a visit. The picture at the top of their home page is worth the trip alone! Thanks, Shauna.

Dear Wedding Church Coordinators,

I’d like to introduce myself, I’m a professional event/wedding planner. Professional in the fact that this is my full-time job, assisting clients with their weddings. It feeds my family and keeps my lights on. This isn’t a whimsical hobby, so I take my responsibilities and the happiness of my clients very seriously. I have a dedicated office space, published telephone number, business website, business license and file business taxes. Just wanted to clarify the “professional” part of my statement before I carry on.

With that said, I would like to personally apologize for the dozens of ignorant girls that came before me that said they were “wedding coordinators”. Many of them just finished their own wedding (which was really, really awesome by the way) and they are now helping their BFF/MOH get married by coordinating her wedding. Their frame of reference has been to make themselves happy and being catered to by other vendors at their own wedding. For the many times these “coordinators” stepped on your pews, moved furniture around on the altar and dug in your closets, I will apologize for them. The next time one of these little darlings skip into your church, please feel free to give us a call; we’ll hold her down and you can dunk her head in the baptismal pool repeatedly.

You see these precious angels ruin it for professional planners. When we walk in the door, you are already rolling your eyes and exhaling loudly. I understand your frustration. But I’d like to have you stop for a moment and take a closer look. Does the wedding planner have a professional business card (not an ink-jet card with perforated edges)? Does the planner ask questions that make it painfully obvious she has done this before? Is the planner respectful to you and your place of worship? Does she inquire about setup times and when the wedding party must leave the church so mass or other ceremonial programs can start? These are telling signs that this person knows what she/he is doing.

Please remember we are not there to usurp your authority. This is your church, your sanctuary and place of Worship of God. Professional wedding planners know this and treat it accordingly. We know that most likely you met the bride, once at the time of her visiting the church and giving you a signed contract/retainer. And the second time again at her Rehearsal. However, we have been with her throughout the whole planning process. We have fielded the teary phone calls, countless emails and numerous meetings. It only makes sense that since we know her this well, that we should be the ones to line up the wedding party and take care of their needs. Also, it is our job — we are paid to do this.

I submit a crazy idea for your consideration. We’ll take care of the duties of lining up the wedding party, sewing last minute buttons, making sure food is there for them and you will coordinate your church. Meaning, you know where the lights are, keys to doors, reserved signs for pews, etc. We could work together in harmony and unity. So the end result is that our mutual client has a terrific, stress free wedding day.

Thank you for your time, and we’ll see you on Saturday.

In Christian Love,

saundra

Love someone today - even if it seems they don't deserve it.

"When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years." - (attributed to Mark Twain)

Love your kids today.

We're teaching a Wedding Planning Certification course. Join us!

We're honored to be a part of the Everett Community College continuing education staff as we conduct the fall session of the exciting Wedding Planning Certification course! Beginning September 29, and running for 8 weeks, you'll get hands on training (from the fun and experienced team at Good Taste), comprehensive learning materials, field trips, guest speakers and more!

All tests and assignments are done on-line in an easy to follow - yet very thorough- format. It's a great introduction to the career of wedding planning, and by the end of the course, you will successfully understand all the aspects of running your own wedding planning company.

Call us today if you have any questions, or learn more at learn@everettcc.edu.

We believe that great mentors love to share what they know - and great apprentices love to learn from the best.

Join us for this great opportunity!

Let it rain, let it rain, let it rain!

"Anyone who says sunshine brings happiness, has never danced in the rain."

We've had a busy few weeks at Good Taste Weddings & Events (that's a Good thing!). Hot off the press are the gorgeous sneak peek photos of our amazing couple - Jenn & Howard, with beautiful photos by Leanne Scherp of Vancouver, BC.

In the beautiful Pacific Northwest, one of our constant concerns in planning events is the dreaded rain. Leave it to this fun-loving, gorgeous couple to embrace the rain during their ceremony which was held at the gorgeous Sooke Harbour House in Victoria, BC.

Congrats, Jenn & Howard! You never stop making us smile...

Love ya!
The Good Taste Gang

In Memoriam: Sean Patrick O'Reilly, beloved Seattle wedding officiant & friend

Special thanks to my friend Gayle O'Donnell for the majority of this posting today.

All of us in the Seattle wedding community are mourning the loss of Sean Patrick O'Reilly. Word of Sean's sudden death from a brain aneurysm started getting out Sunday in the close-knit wedding network here, and the reactions of all who hear it are shock and disbelief.

I first met Sean several years ago when a lovely couple of ours selected him as their officiant. He later went on to officiate many weddings and even a beautiful baby Christening that we had the pleasure of being part of. During those years, Sean and I spent lots of time discussing my daughter's sudden death at age 7 - also of a brain aneurysm. Sean wrote a special poem for Kelsey and always signed his emails to me with the note: 'Remember the angels, they are always nearby'. How true that statement feels today.

With his amazing personality, genuine loving spirit, tender and loving heart and brilliant character, is it any wonder he won the Vendors' Choice award several years running for Seattle Bride Magazine's "Best of" awards in the Best Officiant category.

Sometimes things happen that make all of us question "WHY?", and the loss of Sean Patrick O'Reilly is certainly one of those times. He had so many friends, all of whom felt like they were his only friend. He radiated warmth and love. Heaven has a new angel in residence, but we will certainly miss him here. Our love and prayers go out to his beloved partner, David Skover, who has shared Sean's companionship for so long, and will certainly feel a void larger than any of us can ever know.

Peace be with you Sean "The Celt" O'Reilly as you begin your too early but well deserved rest.

I pray that you will have the blessing of being consoled and sure about your own death.
May you know in your soul that there is no need to be afraid.
When your time comes, may you be given every blessing and shelter that you need.
May there be a beautiful welcome for you in the home that you are going to.
You are not going somewhere strange.
You are going back to the home that you never left.
May you have a wonderful urgency to live your life to the full.
May you live compassionately and creatively and transfigure everything that is negative within you and about you.
When you come to die may it be after a long life.
May you be peaceful and happy and in the presence of those who really care for you.
May your going be sheltered and your welcome assured.
May your soul smile in the embrace of your anam cara (soul friend).

Have tags, will travel....

I love luggage tags. I use them on my laptop case, my gym bag, my emergency kit, and of course, my luggage! These would be such a darling gift for the newlyweds - especially if they were off to a fabulous honeymoon following their wedding.

From the Mindy Weiss collection, we found them at one of our favorite online stores - See Jane Work. For $25 for the set, these are a pretty and unique gift for the lucky couple.

The honeymoon continues....

Isn't love grand?

These are some fabulous shots of Sean & Avanie Trovato, taken by the absolutely incredible - April Greer during her recent visit to NYC. We were so fortunate to coordinate their gorgeous wedding - almost one year ago!
Time flies, but love lives on...

Happy (almost) One Year Anniversary, Sean & Avanie!