You are a new bride. Let’s look at what to put in a wedding time capsule to remember what life was like the year you were married.

He had it all planned out. He would bury the time capsule one month before he proposed to her. The close group of friends gathered around to reminisce and were going through the objects they wanted to put in their time capsule to be opened in 20 years.

He Proposes using a Time Capsule

Then, the hole was dug and to the surprise of the girlfriend, there was already something else in the ground. The shovel hit something hard as they were digging to bury this time capsule. At first, she thought is was just a hard rock. Then, she realized it was another time capsule someone else buried (“what if it’s Hitler’s? What if it’s gold?,” she said). When this old time capsule (already in the ground) was opened, she found something she never imagined…..a ring box. Then, her boyfriend (on one knee) pulled the actual ring from his pocket and proposed to her. It was so romantic. You can read more about the story and see the video here.

A wedding time capsule is a heartfelt and enduring gift that lasts for generations to come. Imagine being able to open it again (with all of your mementos and heirloom items from your wedding day, honeymoon, or your first year of marital bliss).

Do you remember making your own time capsule when you were in first grade. Then, when you graduated high-school that special teacher mailed you your time capsule. What answers did you write on your worksheet asking about what you wanted to be when you grew up? Do you even know where that time capsule is to this day. It is such a special gift to give a student that means so much years later. It is like opening up a lost treasure.

Think about how much fun it would be to stroll down memory lane again for you when your 25th Wedding Anniversary comes around and you reopen your time capsule.

List of what to put in a wedding time capsule 

• A local daily newspaper
• A DVD of the local nightly news
• A National newspaper (USA Today)
• A Television Guide
• A weekly news magazine (Time)
• Special interest magazines (Sports Illustrated, Mother Earth News)
• Ceremony program from the wedding
• Personalized napkin from the wedding
• Cork from your champagne toast
• Copy of your marriage certificate
• Copy of your wedding invitation
• Wedding favors
• Utensils used on the cake
• Cake topper
• Airline ticket stubs from your honeymoon
• Brochure from your hotel or cruise
• Matchbook or item with hotel logo from your honeymoon
• Event/sightseeing tickets
• Foreign currency (if traveled outside of the country) for your honeymoon

• Receipts an other memorabilia
• Ticket stubs fro a concert or movie
• A sample of product packaging (Coke/Pepsi can)
• Extended family tree (after you are married)
• Drawn floor plan of your first home together
• Stocks and Bonds
• US Savings Bonds
• Popular music or tv show recorded.
• A menu from your favorite restaurant
• Items from your job (business card)
• Messages from guests at your wedding reception (have them fill out “Message to the Future” letters to the bride and groom predicting their future, like how many kids they will have).
• A current postage stamp
• A Year-in-Review magazine or newspaper
• Lock of hair from the bride and groom (before it turns gray, or goes away completely).

For 69 other great ideas, order your own Wedding Time Capsule here and get a FREE Inventory Checklist. What would you put in your Wedding Time Capsule? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post What to put in a Wedding Time Capsule appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Are you looking for the perfect mother of the bride dress? My mother and I have not always been close. I went through those teenage years too, where I slammed my door shut, and yelled at the top of my lungs in my bedroom. Then I always turned up the radio at full blast to drown out anything she was saying. Oh the teenage, rebellious years. They are not easy. I do not know how my parents did it. 

I can tell you, the experts are right. It is just a stage. It will eventually go away. I am now so close to my mother, that she is like my best friend.

Now I look forward to shopping with my mom and doing basically anything with her, just to be able to spend time with her. What is your most favorite thing you do with your mom?

It was going to be an all day shop till you drop day. We were not going to stop until we found the perfect mother of the bride dress for my wedding.

You know how it goes women, you always end up shopping at every store for the “one” item you need, only to return to the first store that had exact item that you needed. Well, that is exactly what happened to us. We went shopping in Indianapolis, Indiana at the local mall and a few other stores here.

Ways to Bond with your Mom

Not everyone is close to their mother, and I understand that, however there are always ways to improve your connection with her. I realize there are generations gaps, and sometimes respect can be hard, but do not wait until it is too late to connect closer with your mother. Sometimes you have to cut the ties, but when you do not have to, make the most of your time together.

Do you ever wonder where you get your style of shopping from? Are you a fast shopper, like you can eye a nice shirt from a distance and know it has to be yours, or are you a slow shopper and have to look at everything? It is amazing how you can see yourself in your mother, when you are shopping for the same thing together? I never realized how similar we were on color interests. I was having fall theme colors for my wedding, but we both fell in love with this deep dark eggplant purple, long dress. It was beautiful. But, we still had many other stores to go to and compare, so on with the shopping trip.

My mom was the one who taught me how to be frugal with my clothes and still look fashionable. I am forever grateful for that. She taught me how to make three outfits out of one pair of pants or shirt. It is amazing how creative you can become when you hang out with your mother shopping. We have shopped so much together now, that we can almost read each other’s minds when we just hold up an outfit. Shopping together now is almost a traditional ritual now. I know I will passing down this family fun of bonding time with my daughter in the future.

While shopping, you can bond using the following ideas:

• While you are exercising together by walking around, you can also spend the time learning what possible Christmas gifts each other may want. Pay attention and listen to what each other likes or does not like while shopping. Depending on your daughter’s age, you can use the clothes you see to talk about issues like self esteem and her image of herself.
• We all tend to open up more and communicate while we are doing something else, like shopping. This is especially true for teenage daughters, so use your shopping time to ask questions about each other’s life and find out how each other are doing in school, work, with the kids, etc.
• Keep a mother daughter journal of the activities you did for the day together. When we get older, we tend to forget about our daily memories we are making sometimes. What a great treasure to leave your daughter to read, years in the future. Leave this journal in a time capsule, so your daughter can open it and read it, when she has a daughter herself. Priceless.
• Find a common interest to talk about. Go shopping to stores that have your common interests in mind, like craft stores.

Do not take your time with each other for granted. Treasure your shopping bonding time. Save pictures from your trip and your special mother daughter journal in your own time capsule or in a decorative Wedding Time Capsule to give your daughter when she gets married. What a great day it will be for your daughter to open her Wedding Time Capsule 10 or 20 years later, and reminisce what it was like the first year of her marriage and all the wedding preparations you did with her, as she reads this sentimental journal.

It is now a joke between my mother and I about how many stores we went to, and still ended up coming back to the first store, Dillards, to buy her mother of the bride dress. Just wait till we tell you what happened to her dress during our wedding ceremony, in a future blog.

So what is your favorite bonding activity to do with your mom? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post Bonding through Shopping for Mother of the Bride Dress appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Are you looking for proposal ideas? So the big Valentine’s Day is coming soon. What are you going to do? Keep reading for one of the most romantic wedding proposal idea ever. It is sure to be a proposal idea to last for years into the future. Many women are expecting that they will be proposed to on Valentine’s Day, so show her an unexpected proposal with one of these creative ideas.

10 Great Proposal Ideas 

1. If you are in the Midwest states currently, there is a lot of snow to be creative with. You could make a snow angel, and then propose using a stick to write will you be and angel and marry me, in the snow. How romantic is that. Make sure to take a picture of your winter wonderland art work to save in a large picture frame for your home to hang on the wall, as a memory, after you get married.

2. If you are the artistic type, write her a personal song to sing. Make sure to record her reaction to you while you are singing the song, then ask her to marry you at the end of the song. You could even add lyrics that tell about the story of your life together so far.

3. Take your fiance on a stroll down memory lane. Make a weekend out of it, and take her to several of the favorite places you visited together. Go backwards in time and stop at each place, eventually stopping at the one place where you first met each other. What a great way to show her how much you remember about the relationship. Then, to top it off, pull out a decorative Wedding Time Capsule which holds your engagement ring in it. Explain to her that you have enjoyed the many great memories at each of these places together in the past, but cannot wait to fill this time capsule together with ‘our’ story. Then ask, “Will you marry me?” How can she say no to that? Get your own Wedding Time Capsule here.

4. Of course you can always take a long walk on the beach, ending with a proposal. You could add a special touch, by putting a message in a bottle together, then send it out to sea together. Who know who may one day find that bottle. Inspire that person together as a couple, and tell them you just got engaged. What advice would you offer this person or what would you tell this person about the world today? What a great romantic idea to start your marriage journey together.

5. For the person who wants to make a very public proposal, you could always go to your favorite restaurant or the restaurant from your first date together. If your first date was at a movie theater, you can sometimes rent ad space before movies start and use that to propose to your girlfriend or boyfriend. Again, just make sure to record her reaction, so you have this moment saved forever. You could even save the video in your own Wedding Time Capsule. Then on your 10th or 25th anniversary, watch the video again and reminisce about what life was like the year you proposed.

6. Set up a scavenger hunt, making her find clues to find the ring. You could even set up the scavenger hunt, so that she has to visit all the special places where you both created many memories together, like where you had your first dance, first kiss, first hay ride together, etc. End the scavenger hunt with her finding the last clue in the Wedding Time Capsule and you down on one knee. Tell her she found the grand prize at the end of the scavenger hunt…the ring.

7. Involve your pets, and tie a ring onto their collar, then have the cat or dog bring the ring to your girlfriend or boyfriend along with a note that says how much you love him or her. How cute is that idea? Check out The Knot for more great ideas like this one, here.

8. Fill a room all the way with balloons. Include a love note or one sentence note in each balloon. She has to pop each one to read the message. Then, have a last special balloon in the corner of the room with the ring in it. Before she pops the last one, get on one knee and propose to her.

9. Set up a romantic room full of candles that spell out the words “Will You Marry Me?” Don’t forget to include the rose pedals all over the floor too.

10. Involve sports or your favorite board game. Tie in your own interests and personality to your proposal. For example, if you are both lovers of baseball, you may just ask the local baseball team to let you make the first pitch of the night and announce that you caught the lover of your soul and then ask your girlfriend or boyfriend to marry you in front of everyone at the big game.

Whatever idea you choose, I know it will be a moment you will never forget.

How would you propose to someone you love? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post 10 Romantic Valentine’s Day Proposal Ideas appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Photo Credit: The Other Sister Photography/via Oh Lovely Day

Are you looking to have a beautiful wedding on a cheap budget? So he proposed to you. Now what? Oh my goodness, I realized a few days later, after the initial excitement came down, that I was getting married. I grew up in a humble home financially. My parents did a great job at making my brothers and I feel like we had money, yet we knew the truth as we got older. Just like other girls there were a few things I just had to have in my wedding, that I always dreamed of, since I was little. I wanted fireworks and lots of sparkles in my dress.

So what have you always dreamed of having in your own wedding since a little girl?

Have you ever seen the tv show Extreme Cheapskates? I am not that bad, however I have always been a frugal kind of girl. Don’t get me wrong here, I like expensive things (that is my Grandmother in me), but I just will not pay for it. I will make it myself, or wait till it goes on sale. Every now and then (like one per 3 years) I may see something that I know I cannot make and will not be in my size or something like that, if I do not buy it “now,” so I go ahead and buy it “now.”

So as the wedding preparations begin, I started to collect many different free bridal and wedding books to get ideas from for my wedding. Let the imagination begin.

1. Go to stores like Goodwill, or borrow wedding planning books from friends, or go on the internet and download Free wedding checklists.

2. Start looking for family and friends to help pitch in financially by making crafts, decorations, dresses for you, etc. If that is not available, then there is power in social media and you just might find someone who has connections to others who can make things cheaper for you rather than buying in directly from a store new. I was able to combine several ideas I liked from different wedding dress pictures, and then have my husband’s birth mother make my wedding dress. Not everyone is that fortunate to have someone in the family like her, but you can find stores that are re-sell or wedding dress discount stores around the world. Again, just use Google to find some or ask a friend.

3. I know it is not for everyone, but my husband and I just wanted to make sure we had a cake topper and main cake to save for ourselves, so we found a nice decoration that looked like a gazebo and we put a photo of us in it, then put that on top of a small nice cake from Walmart, as opposed to buying a very expensive cake. We then bought several other sheets of a similar cake to ours, for our guests. The cake tasted great. The only difference is it was not in stacked layers like an official wedding cake. That does not mean that you could not purchase a tiered cake stand and layer it yourself. Be creative.

4. Find someone you know or call a local photography school and ask if anyone there need to put together a portfolio and would be willing to take your wedding pictures on a budget.

5. As far as the flowers, I know not everyone would go for this but I always wanted my wedding day to last forever. I did not want it to end, especially since I have been planning it for so long. I chose to use fake or silk flowers, so that I can keep them years into the future. I currently have some saved in our own decorative Wedding Time Capsule, along with other memorabilia and mementos from the first year of our marriage. I plan to open the time capsule on a special anniversary, years into the future, to reminisce about what life was like the year we were married. I cannot wait. You can get your own Wedding Time Capsule here.

6. The decorations – In addition to having family and friends help you make them, you can also plan your wedding after a holiday or season, or just watch throughout the year at craft stores and purchase decorations half off. If you are like me, I took a chance and kept waiting and purchased fall color decorations for 75% off. That thrilled my parents, which made me happy because we all were happy.

7. The venue – Some like tradition, some people are open to new things. I am a mixture of both. Because my husband and I have gone to church almost all our lives, and were regulars, we chose to have our wedding at his church (due to the set up compared to the church I came from). Having the wedding at his church made things very inexpensive, practically free, since he has gone there for so many years and they knew him. If you just take the time to plan your wedding, shop around and compare prices, and even strategically plan to have the wedding during a dead time, you may get better discounts off of the venue. Again, always ask your friends who have been married already, for their suggestions too. You could also have your ceremony at home or outside somewhere.

8. The reception – Create your own mix of music and use your own or borrow a nice stereo system to play the music. Luckily we had a friend who would DJ for us. Who says it has to be a full catered meal for everyone? Rent table cloths, napkins, dishes, and other needs for the wedding and reception. Again, my family could not afford that. So, we made it look nice with our discounted decorations, and had snacks we made ourselves. You can also have a pitch in reception. I have heard from other friends that these can be very fun, yet different. Have each guest bring the meal with a recipe card so the couple can have their first cookbook made that day at the reception, with all the recipe cards put together in one nice book. What a great idea?

9. Thank You cards – Send out nice photo post cards to everyone, instead of a letter to each of them. You can make these like very nice, yet they are less expensive. We even made our own invitations and ended up liking them better than the store bought ones, because we could make them personal with our own photo on them. This was great, for family or friends who could not come to the wedding, yet now had an updated picture of us to keep.

10. Make your own aisle runner. You can be creative and add your own personal touch. Check out this creative time capsule aisle runner with the couples photos on it in a sequential order from when they met until the day they get married. What a great way to capture their milestone moments together as a couple, and have an aisle runner to keep the rest of their lives in their own Wedding Time Capsule. I love it.

With so many helpful websites, blogs, and people willing to share their ideas on the internet, it is easier to plan a beautiful and luxurious looking wedding on a frugal budget. For other great helpful websites on this topic, check out 101 Ways to Save Thousands on Your Wedding and The Knot’s 30 Ways to Save Money on your Wedding.

Oh and one more thing, just so you know the janitor at our church who has helped set up thousands of weddings there said “that was one of the most beautiful weddings I have ever seen here.” It touched my mother’s heart and helped her feel at ease. She and I did not want it to look cheap, but had to make it frugal due to our budget. He made our day. Mission accomplished in our minds.

Have fun being creative with your wedding. Most importantly, don’t forget to have fun.

So what is the best idea you can offer someone getting married, to help make their wedding day cheaper? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post 10 Ways to Have a Beautiful Wedding on a Cheap Budget appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

No one wants wedding day problems? So, now what?  We were finally engaged.  It was a tough road.  It seemed like everything that could have gone wrong . . . did.  Little did I know.  That is really just the beginning of the story!  Over the next few months, things were rather uneventful.  She and her family planned the wedding.  They made the decorations.  She didn’t want a normal dress, so she cut out bits and pieces that she liked from magazines and my birth-mom made her dress.  (Did I mention I was adopted?)  I lined up my groomsmen and worked out the details of the honeymoon.  Believe it or not, I managed to tell everyone else about the honeymoon without letting her know what we were doing!  More about that later! Needless to say, we started to have many wedding day problems or wedding issues.

Everything was in order.  All the details had been planned.  We decided to make our own invitations.  We worked on the wording together and chose a nice stationary.  We printed our invitations and began addressing them.  At the appropriate time, we mailed them to our guests.  That is where things began to fall apart.

Now, I don’t know what kind of wedding you had, but ours has been, affectionately named, “The Wedding Of Substitutions.”  Everything was planned perfectly, but in the final hours before our wedding, everything seemed to go wrong and get changed.

The first indication that something was wrong is when I received a phone call from my birth-mom.  It was about 2 weeks before the wedding date.  She asked me if she was invited to the wedding!  I was confused!  “Yes, of course you are!  Why would you think you weren’t?” I asked.  That single question changed my view of our plans.  I was informed that she had not received an invitation!  I was confused, offered my apologies, and wondered what had happened to her invitation.  I soon began to investigate this mystery as I found that many on our list had not gotten theirs either.

I began calling the people on our list to see who had received their invitations and who had not.  I soon began to realize that almost all the invitations I had personally mailed on a particular day, mostly friends and family of mine, had not reached their destination.  I contacted the post office and they assured me that they would do their best to track them down and let me know what had happened.  (I never did hear back from the post office!)

To this day, I do not know how many  invitations reached their destination, but I can tell you that we have had several “parts” of them returned to us over the years.  I can also tell you that several of them arrived at their destinations very late and rather “torn and tattered.”  The longest reported delivery was to a friend of mine that arrived in a “plastic bag” with an apology note from the post office.  This arrived almost 3 years after our wedding date!

To be honest with you, it is actually amazing to me that this kind of thing doesn’t happen more often than it does.  With the amount of mail the post office delivers, I would think that hundreds-of-thousands of letters would be destroyed each day. . . But it doesn’t!!!  No, no . . . It only happens to me . . . On the most important piece of mail I will ever mail!

“The Wedding Of Substitutions” has begun!  Many things were substituted, and I will tell you as many as I can remember.  Just know that it is not pretty!  Be patient, and we will talk about all of them!

It can be very frustrating when things do not go our way, especially on our wedding day which for many of you, has been planned since a little girl. Sometimes we get so caught up in what is going wrong, that we forget to enjoy what is going right. Keep in mind that the bad and funny stories are all a part of your special wedding day. Make sure to include these stories in your decorative Wedding Time Capsule too. It is all a part of what makes your day truly special. You may look back years later, when you open your Wedding Time Capsule, and laugh at the things that did not go as planned. You can get your own unique and artistic Wedding Time Capsule here.

What has happened to you?  What went wrong with your wedding?  Have any of you had a wedding with no issues?  Somehow I doubt that any amount of planning can prevent at least one wedding-day tragedy! Check out this fun and informative article about what all can go wrong at your wedding, that you need to be prepared for or at least always have a plan B. Read the article here.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Mark

The post Wedding Day Problems – Wedding Issues appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

As I was making preparations and shopping around for my wedding day, I was only focusing on myself. What about the guests? As women, we dream about this big day since childhood, so we want everything to go perfectly. How do you pass the time for the guests though, while they wait on you to get all your photography done at your wedding?

There are so many thoughts that can go through your mind, as you are preparing for your wedding and marriage. So what do you do for the guests, before you walk down that aisle? I know you have friends and family members who have made a great impact on your decision to marry this special person. There are many people who have helped shape who you are to this day. So how do you say thank you to them and keep them entertained during your wedding day?

Cool and Fun Entertainment for your Wedding

1. Have a fun time of karaoke and even include fun prizes after having the guests vote on the best person who sang for the night.

2. Hire a party magician or have someone you know take the time to learn a few simple magic tricks from you tube videos, to try at your wedding reception.

3. Have guests sign their names on fun guest books or picture frames where they can leave special notes. You could also have guests place their fingerprints on a pre-done family tree. Have them write their names next to their fingerprints on the tree as seen below in this picture.

4. Hire a DJ, band, or other local music group that appeals to everyone. Think about how involved you want your musician to be. Do you want someone who will play games or play fun dancing music, or do you want more classical style music the whole time?

5. How do you involve the children in your wedding? Besides the obvious ring bearer and flower girl, there are other ways to entertain the children at your wedding. Put together inexpensive goodie bags or activity kits with coloring books, crayons, or small toys from your local dollar store.

6. For the table centerpieces at your reception, include a photo of the couple throughout their years of growing up or knowing each other. Then have guests write about a funny or memorable story about one of them on a quick note to include in the couple’s Wedding Time Capsule to read year later.

7. Set out board games for guests to have fun playing. You could even set up the board game table with decorative picture frames of the couple playing them before they were married. Also include a sign that says most favorite board game for the bride and groom.

8. Shoot off fireworks if your wedding day goes into the evening, for fun entertainment for everyone. You could also include an outdoor movie time before watching the fireworks.

9. Include disposable cameras on each table at the reception. You can never get enough photos of all the fun moments happening at the wedding. The cameras also help the couple make sure they do not miss a thing on their special day.

10. Place “Message to the Future” letters on each plate on the reception tables. Have the guests take a few minutes and write out their predictions of where they see the couple in a few years. You could also write about how many kids you think they will have, where they will live in the future, and other fun memories you have about each of them. Place the letters in a decorative Wedding Time Capsule from www.timecapsule.com or set up a nice display like this photo, to transfer all the letters to the time capsule right before they leave for their honeymoon. They can open their time capsule years later on a special anniversary, to read all your letters and reminisce about the day they were married.

Photo Credit: Summer Street Photography

11. Have guest write on slips of paper, date ideas to include in their decorative Wedding Time Capsule. The happy couple can pull one piece of paper out per month for special tips of places to go or things to do for a date. For more great ideas of how to make this check out our blog about it here.

So, what are some other fun, entertaining ideas you can think of to keep your guests occupied? Share below in the comments.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post 11 Unique Ways to Entertain Guests at the Wedding appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

I’m Getting Married! Now what?

There were so many thoughts filling up my mind, that I could not keep up with myself. I did not know what to do next. It was about 3:00am when my fiance proposed to me. It is a long story. If you want to read about it, check out the most recent blog he wrote about “What to say during a Marriage Proposal.” My parents were certainly not made of money. We have always been the practical family who bonds closer by making things with our hands and hearts. So I knew I was limited on a wedding budget. I had to be creative in making a beautiful wedding, without letting it look cheap. Mission accepted. I find it a fun challenge to make things look great, on a budget. It is like a game for me.

Let the Games Begin

I am always in the mood to hear a great marriage proposal story. I am such a girl in that aspect.  There are so many of them out there on you tube and the internet. Although, what do you do after being proposed to? The many steps of planning a wedding can be very overwhelming. Sometimes we can plan so much, that you forget to enjoy the journey along the way. Your personality can really shine in a good or bad way before the wedding. It is up to you to enjoy the planning process and make the best out of it. When following these ten steps to planning your wedding, remember it is just that…”your” wedding. This is your special day you have been waiting a long time for, so preserve every moment.

10 Steps to Planning a Great Wedding

1. Pick a location

It may not be that easy for some of you to agree in your relationship, but as tradition has it, we had ours in our church. It is nice being a part of a church family, because it makes it easier to get a discount having a wedding there and easier to have marriage counseling with trusted advisers before the official “I do.”

2. Make a Guest List

Again, on a limited budget you can cut food involved and invite more people, or have more food and expenses in other areas and limit the number of guests. That seems so hard to do when you are close to so many people. Again when you go to a church already it can be expected that you may have people come who may or may not have been invited just because they attend that church. So, that is why my fiance and I decided we love people and would rather have an afternoon wedding with snacks and cake instead of the full meal deal. One piece of advice I would tell my future child, in our time capsule, is to start your marriage off right with as little debt as possible (including using your creativity to try and create win win situations for everyone involved).

3. Set a Budget

You know some people dream of their wedding since being a little girl. To each his own, but for my future fiance and I we would rather put the down payment on a house, then spend it on a one day wedding event. Everyone is different, so whatever you do make sure you do not compromise showcasing your own personality in your wedding.

4. Find Helpful Friends

Ask around. You never know the power of networking, until you network. Ask some friends or family members if they know of anyone who can DJ for your wedding, make the cake, donate a nice get-a-way car, etc.

5. Send Save the Dates

Send out Save the Date cards with the invitation all in one. If you feel you need to remind people again later, send out a fun musical email card reminder just before your wedding. Again, be creative. That is what helps make a wedding memorable.

6. Fight about Things that Matter

Please try hard to remember this is “your” wedding. When it starts to get stressful and you may not agree on colors with your in-laws or mother, remember what matters most to fight about…your continued loving relationship with your fiance, his parents, and your parents. Learn or find books to help you word things in a confident and loving way, to get your opinions across. The last thing you need to do is marry this family (because you are marrying his family too, not just him), and start it with a fight over the color of the ties in the wedding. Take a deep breath, and learn to say no in a positive, confident, way. You may even boost your self esteem in the process.

7. Register for Gifts

Find all the gifts you can think of now to register for, to take the financial headache away when you get married. It can be overwhelming supplying a new apartment or house with items for two instead of the one you are used to. You never know who on your guest list may be feeling generous and want to give back to you in a special way. Also, please do not register for weird gifts you think you may use, but end up in the back of your cabinet for years lost. (For example, our pineapple cutter we have yet to use and is about to go to a garage sale next summer.)

8. Participate in Marriage Counseling

You never know what issues may come up, when you are still stuck in the honeymoon stage of your dating months or years. There are people called “seasoned veterans” of marriage for a reason. Take advantage of the advice they can offer you.

9. Pick out the Perfect Dress and Wedding Cake

Again, do not worry about what others think. Worry about the regrets you may have if you do not do things how you want to. So, take your time picking out your perfect dress. It should be like a home. When you walk into it, you know it screams your name and says “welcome home.” Also make sure to find a wedding cake that expresses your style, personality, and budget. Don’t forget to save the top of the cake for your anniversary later.

10. Preserve Mementos Along the Way

So how do you really make sure you are enjoying the wedding day shopping journey? Make sure to preserve your wedding mementos and memorabilia in a decorative Wedding Time Capsule, to open years later (like on your 25th Anniversary) and reminisce. Your fiance may not even know what all you had to go through to put together your beautiful wedding until the day you open the Wedding Time Capsule. Enlighten him and show your personality all over again as you reflect what life was like the year you got married. What a momentous day that will be as you bond and remember? Get a unique and decorative Wedding Time Capsule from http://www.timecapsule.com/product/milestone-collection-wedding-time-capsule/.

So what is an important step you would advice someone to do before their wedding? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post How to Plan a Wedding appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

The stage was set.   It wasn’t the way I had planned it, but I can roll with the changes!  It was 3:00 AM in our hotel room.  Marcie had just walked out of the bathroom and I had the ring box sitting behind me on the bed so she couldn’t see it.  I’m not for sure, but I think she knew that something was up.  She must have noticed me acting suspiciously weird.  That said, she didn’t let on that she knew anything was up.

I asked her to come over and sit down on the bed across from me.  As she walked over, I put one hand behind me and to the ring box out of its outer box.   I took her hands and began to talk to her.  I don’t remember my exact words, but I remember telling her that I loved her, and I had enjoyed getting to know her better.  I brought up several things that we had done together over the past few months.  It only took a few minutes.  I reached behind me, picked up the ring box, got down on my knee, opened the box, and asked her to marry me.

She had small tears in her eyes.  She looked at the ring, and looked at me.  She smiled as if she could not speak.  The silence was deafening!  I’m sure it was only a few seconds, but the time it took her to answer me seemed like it was an hour!  I was back in that place where I could hear the thump-thump of my own heart and could feel my chest pounding.  I was thinking, “It is a simple yes or no question . . . Why doesn’t she answer?  Something!  ANYTHING!”  I felt like the squirrel in the cartoon, “Over The Hedge” after he drank the caffeinated beverage!  The world seemed to move in slow motion!  It seemed as though I could have ran out, gotten a pizza, brought it back to the hotel, and eaten the entire thing before she answered.

Finally I heard her take a breath to say the words I wanted to here.  Her mouth opened, she inhaled, and said, “How much did you spend?”

WHAT?!?!?!  Are you seriously kidding me here??  What kind of an answer is that?  Was the ring too small?  Too big?  Why does it matter how much I spent?  Then I remembered . . . My love is cheap  FRUGAL . . . I meant, she is frugal!  She wants to be sure that I got a good deal on the things that I purchase . . . I smiled back and said, “I got a 30% discount, now can you answer my question?”  The anticipation was killing me!

She looked at me like I was being silly, and said, “Of course, Yes!”  My heart fluttered.  The weight and burden of this moment was gone.  We hugged and kissed.  She then said, “I need to call my mom!”  I laughed and reminded her that it was now 3:30 in the morning, and that she really should wait until the morning to call.  I then shared with her that they were already aware this would be happening.  She was a little confused as to how this could be until I explained the previous few days, and how I had already talked to them.

The next morning, she called her mom and dad as we were finishing our drive to our Tennessee destination.  We never made it to the mountain that I had planned on taking her up.  In a little less than a month, we will have been married 11 years . . . We have still never gone to the mountain!

So how did you propose to your wife? We love to hear proposal stories from our fans. If you have not proposed yet, we wanted to help you out by giving you suggested websites that offer tips of how to say the words during the romantic moment. Do not do what I did. Try to plan things out. Be aware though, that no matter how much you prepare, sometimes life happens. That is what happened to us unfortunately. Life, is really about making lemonade out of those lemons though. One thing is for sure, it was a milestone moment I will never forget.

The Knot website helps guide you through questions to think about, to help you put together your perfect proposal. Check out their great article at http://wedding.theknot.com/getting-engaged/marriage-proposals/articles/wedding-proposals-what-to-say-and-how-to-say-it.aspx. Also check out 33 Marriage proposals that she cannot say no to at http://www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/awesome-marriage-proposals-you-couldnt-say-no-to.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

–  Mark

The post What to Say During a Marriage Proposal appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Photo from: http://wedding.theknot.com/getting-engaged/marriage-proposals/articles/50-romantic-ways-to-propose.aspx

It was Friday . . .

It was here.  My plan was in motion.  I had permission from her parents.  The plan was simple . . . I got off work at 5:00.  I would go to the jewelry store to get the ring.  I called them that morning and they assured me that it would be ready by that night.  I would then rush home where Marcie would be waiting for me to get home.  (I had told her that I needed to run an errand and would be late arriving back at my house.  She had her own way into my house, so it wasn’t a big deal.

We would then leave and drive to Tennessee.  We had a place to stay there that didn’t cost much.  I had planned on driving to North Carolina, where we would hike up a mountain.  (She wasn’t into the mountain climbing like I had been, but I had hoped that the view at the top would make the hike worthwhile for her!)  The place where we were going was a “touristy” area and had ropes, and ladders to help the tourists get to the summit.  It was there, at the summit of the mountain, that I planned on proposing . . . with the beauty of God’s country as far as the eyes could see.  The plan was perfect.  Nothing could go wrong now!

Making the Best Out of Detours in our Plans

Wait . . . did I say, “nothing could go wrong?”  Yup!  But, we all know, that is not how life works.  My perfect plan didn’t account for life’s variables.  I ran into traffic picking up the ring.  It wasn’t ready when I got there.  It was close, but not yet completed.  What was supposed to be a 5-minute pickup took me over 2 hours by the time I drove there, waited for it to be completed, and left.  I grabbed my duffle bag, and threw the ring box in the top really fast so Marcie wouldn’t see it.  I threw the bag in the trunk, and we left.  We were supposed to be leaving Indianapolis around 6:30PM, but it was now more like 9:00 PM.  This makes for a long drive when you have been up all day, and your destination is 6 hours away!  Then we hit an accident in a construction zone.  We decided to pull off for dinner in hopes that the traffic would be gone by the time we were done eating.

No such luck.  As the night grew longer and longer, I came to realize that we were not going to make it to our Tennessee destination.  As I grew more tired, we decided to stop and get a hotel.  We really could not afford to get separate rooms, but we also didn’t want to be in the same bed . . . So, we got a room with 2 queen beds, and decided to make the best of a bad situation.  Now, as we made this decision, I was thinking about that ring, in the trunk of the car, in the top of my duffle bag.  I was wondering how I was going to get it out of my bag without her seeing, and then I was wondering what I was going to do with it so she didn’t find it prematurely.

Where to Hide the Engagement Ring

As we entered our room, she went immediately to the bathroom.  I was excited.  I quickly scanned the room looking for a place to put the ring as I opened my bag and pulled it out.  I pulled open the night stand drawer, thinking this would be a good place.  I then saw the Gideon Bible that had been placed in the room and thought that she might look for the Bible to read a little before she went to bed.  I scanned the room again. . . and . . . there it was!  The mini-fridge!  A perfect hiding place for my, “ice.”  I quickly opened the door, slid the ring in and closed the door.

At that exact moment, Marcie came out of the bathroom.  I was terrified that she had seen me close the door to the fridge.  I was now standing 3 feet from her.  The truth of the matter is that she didn’t see anything.  She wasn’t even looking at me.  She looked up at me and said, “Oh yea!  A mini-fridge!  I can put my Gator-aide in there for the morning.”  Crap!  Now, what?!!?  She hurried off to the car to get her drink, and I grabbed the ring again.  I couldn’t think of anyplace else to hide it.  I decided the best plan for the moment would be to push it down to the bottom of my bag and be very careful when I was pulling things out of it in the near future.

As I was opening up my bag to put it inside, she walked back into the room!  Are you kidding me?!?!?  Did this girl suddenly get DNA from “The Flash?!?!”  That was the fastest run to the car in human history!  So, now I am back here I began . . . The ring in the top of my bag, and no place to hide it.  I was terrified she saw me put it in the top even.  I could hear my heart beating.  I could feel the thump-thump, thump-thump of my heart in my chest.

Make Good out of a Bad Situation

I began to think for a moment. . . If I can’t even make it past one evening in a room, how was I going to make it up the mountain?  Would we even make it to the mountain.  I began to do some calculations in my head . . . 3 more hours just to our place to stay in Tennessee, 3 1/2 hours to the mountain from there, 4 hours to climb, 3 hours back down, then 3 1/2 back to our place in Tennessee . . . We weren’t going to make it.  There was no way we’re going to be able to execute my plan.  As I watched her brush her teeth, I made a panic-stricken, but thought out decision . . .

I was going to do it.  Right here.  Right Now.  It’s as good a place as any.  It’s 3 AM.  Am I thinking straight?  Yes, I’m good.  I can do this!  I grabbed the ring box from the top of my bag, and set it beside me.  I was sitting in the middle of the two beds.  She was coming toward me.  Here we go . . .

Not everything goes our way sometimes. What would you do in this situation? To help you with your own ideas, check out the 13 Heartwarming Marriage Proposal Ideas from http://www.buzzfeed.com/lukelewis/heartmelting-marriage-proposals.

You can also put your engagement ring in a decorative Wedding Time Capsule from http://www.timecapsule.com/product/milestone-collection-wedding-time-capsule/ and propose to your girlfriend by pulling it out telling her you want to fill the time capsule together with her, to open years later on your anniversary together to reminisce about how far you have come on your journey together. How romantic would that be?

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

The post Planning the Perfect Marriage Proposal appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.

Photo from: http://www.popsugar.com/tech/Wedding-Photo-Ideas-30957626

This day only comes around once, hopefully. It is a milestone moment to take and preserve fantastic, emotional, and fun wedding photos. Preserving memories from your wedding day is majorly important.

You dream of this day since a little girl. Your wedding day can be over in a few hours, but the photography, videos, and mementos from your wedding day you will treasure for a lifetime. The enduring keepsakes help you reminisce on your anniversaries. It is a once-in-a-lifetime occasion. That is why it is important for the people who will photograph and videotape your wedding be people you can trust.

New Trends in Wedding Photography

I find that the wonderful world of Pinterest offers so many wedding photo ideas. Save as many wedding poses as you can from ideas online, and give the suggestions to your photographer. This will help them get a jump start as to what you want to see with your own photos. Also, when you plan all the photos you want to take, it can help you plan timing it will take to do all of them, so you know how much extra time you will need to have activities for your guests planned so they do not get bored waiting on the happy couple to finish their photos.

Photo from: http://unveiledwife.com/inspiration-creating-art-with-your-spouse/

Great Wedding Photography Ideas Include:

• Documentary style approach, in which the photographer basically takes pictures of everything from beginning to end. It will be like a news story in the end of your hour by hour poses of emotions.
• Black and White photos to gain the artistic and classy look of your wedding day.
• Special effects photos, like soft focus images.
• Disposable cameras are a great idea to put on everyone’s place setting for the real candid photos too.

Wedding Photo Checklist

There are so many different ideas of wedding day photos to take. Don’t forget to take photos of the few days before the wedding too, to capture the feelings and thoughts of the couple up until the “big day.” Here is a list as a guide to check off all the shots you want your photographer or videographer to capture.

• Bride leaving for the ceremony
• Groom leaving for the ceremony
• Bride and father arriving at church
• Groom’s parents being seated
• Brides’s mother being seated
• Groom and groomsmen at alter
• Bridesmaids coming down aisle
• Maid of honor and best man
• Flower girl and ring bearer
• Bride and father coming down the aisle
• Exchanging vows and/or rings
• Upclose picture of the rings
• Photo of flowers and other decorations used
• Exchanging kiss

Photo from: http://www.buzzfeed.com/peggy/impossibly-fun-wedding-photo-ideas-youll-want-to-steal?sub=2997375_2438189

• Bride and groom coming up aisle
• Bride and groom together
• Hands with wedding rings
• Bride with parents
• Groom with parents
• Entire wedding party
• Bride with her attendants
• Groom with his attendants
• With grandparents or other special guests
• The receiving line
• Wedding cake
• Bride and groom dancing
• Bride and her father dancing
• Groom and his mother dancing
• Cutting the cake
• Bride and groom feeding each other cake
• Toasting
• Groom removing garter
• Tossing and catching of the garter
• Tossing and catching of the bouquet

Photo from: http://www.avesphotographicdesign.com/blog/?p=15072

• Wedding party decorating car
• Bride changing into going-away clothes
• Groom changing clothes
• Bride and groom saying good-bye to parents
• Guests blowing bubbles, releasing balloons, or whatever else as a send-off
• Bride and groom getting in car and guests waving good-bye
• Bride and groom leaving in decorated car
• Other

We hope this blog and list was helpful to you as you prepare for one of the most important days of your life. This is not a day to take for granted. That is why it is so important to capture every moment. Preserve these many photos, videos, and keepsakes in a decorative Wedding Time Capsule from http://www.timecapsule.com/product/milestone-collection-wedding-time-capsule/.

Newlyweds fill the Wedding Time Capsule with memorabilia from the day and year of their marriage. This timeless keepsake is then sealed and not opened until a special anniversary years in the future. This heartwarming 22-piece gift set comes with everything needed to create an absolutely unforgettable treasure.

Save those special moments in time and share the memories with future generations.

So what is the most helpful wedding tip you have heard? Comment below.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Marcie

www.timecapsule.com

The post Wedding Photography Tips – Preserving Memories appeared first on Time Capsule | Personalized Gifts.