Show some appreciation for your other half! (Wedding Gifts)

In the run up to your wedding day it's very easy to get lost in the last minute arrangements and appointments. It's easy to get stressed out, and panic that things won't turn out exactly as you have planned them. It's equally as easy to loose track of the most important part of your wedding - your husband/wife to be. After all your wedding day is about making a life long commitment to each other, acknowledging the love you have for each other and making a union in the eyes of the law and, if you are religious, in the eyes of your God.

I think it is very important to make sure you take some time out for each other in the run up. Go for a meal together, or have a quiet night in watch a DVD and just enjoy each others company. Remember why you are doing this. As lovely as your dress, make-up, flowers, cake, venue and so on may be, they aren't or at least shouldn't be your motivation for the day.

A mixture of forward planning and my husband kept me very grounded and relaxed in the run up to the wedding. I wanted to continue this laid back approach in the last few days when the final touches were being put in to place and it would have been easy to get very stressed. So my husband and I tried to spend as much time together before the wedding as we could. Nights curled up on the sofa watching DVD's, talking about the future and just generally enjoy each others company. Our budget couldn't afford nights out, but we managed a bottle of wine and some quality time. I think it's important to do this as it brings you back to earth & stops you getting too riled up and bridezilla-ish.

What we also did, that a lot of couples do, is bought each other a gift. I didn't know he was buying me anything & he didn't know I was buying him anything but on the day of our wedding we both received a lovely surprise!

My husband bought me a pearl neckace & earrings, which funnily enough I was going to borrow off my Mum so it worked out very nicely! You can just about see them in this lovely picture of me & my hubby. He also wrote a lovely card which just made my morning. Reading the card he wrote for me & receiving such a thoughtful gift meant the world to me. It left me buzzing with excitement all morning and I felt like a Queen wearing my pearls all day.

For my hubby I had a card made for him with pictures of our special place, first date, and other things that meant a lot to us, including the picture of us that we had put on our save the dates. Inside I wrote him a lovely message that was very long, but I knew would be appreciated. For his gift I selcted a pocket watch.

On the back I had it engraved saying "No more waiting, Love Rachel". The reason being that it is common knowledge amongst my family & friends that my hubby fell for me before I knew it, I kept him in the friend zone waiting for a long time and when we eventually got in a relationship he would remind me that he had been waiting a long time for me haha! I'm a lucky girl that he did wait for me, not many men would have the patience he had with me and I felt it appropriate to acknowledge how lucky I was with this little momento.  I also gave him cuff links the same as the rest of the groomsmen and he keeps both momentos in his little man cave - aka our spare room!

If your budget can't afford a big gift then get a card and write a personal message that will mean a lot to them while they are getting ready and the nerves are beginning to kick in. But if you can factor a gift in to your budget, such as cuff links for men, jewellery for women, flowers, or just something personal that your other half would appreciate then do it. When you can't see each other until you get to the aisle it's a big comfort to know your other half is thinking of you and went through the effort of getting something for you. 

Basically this little post is just to remind you that so long as your wedding is legal, and so long as your other half turns up then all the other stuff is just an added bonus. So if you can put the time in to arranging flowers, food, cakes, cars etc then don't forget to put some time and effort in to making sure your other half feels like a King/Queen on their big day. Spend time with them in the run up, because every moment counts.

The Wedding is a bonus, your marriage is what counts.

I hope you enjoyed reading & that you will enjoy picking out something special for your loved one. 

As always thanks for reading xox

Mum's The Word - Mother's Day Tag

With Mother's day fast approaching I decided to dedicate this blog to my wonderful Mum. I am working on a blog post on Wedding Cakes, but decided this was far more important, so I have taken an evening away from that post. I hope you all enjoy!

Mothers Day is Sunday 10th March so make sure you have got something special for your Mum or mother type person. It's not very often we all take a moment to stop & appreciate what our Mums have done and continue to do for us. I have decided to create a mothers day tag and if you have a blog I would love it if you too would do this post and on the comments below post the link to your blog for me, if you don't have a blog feel free to comment below with your tag.

Ok so the idea behind this tag is to list 5 of your favourite things or memories about your Mum. So Mum, this one is for you!

1) My Mum is now one of my best friends as well as my Mum. We enjoy each others company and have fun together. Which is of course fabulous that we are close and like each other (always a bonus)! But what I love most is this is something that happened when I became an adult. When I was a child my Mum was my parent, not my best mate and I loved that about her! I loved that she looked after me and wasn't there to impress me.

2) My Mum has a wicked sense of humour. We share a similar and sarcastic sense of humour which can confuse people and they don't know whether to take either of us seriously when we are together. I love that my Mum can get a giggle out of me during pretty much every conversation we have. I love that we get each other and share many jokes together. Funny funny woman!

3) One of the things I love most about my Mum is that she has always encouraged me & my sister to improve our skills, to be independent and to know what we want from life. Teaching us to cook, feeding our love of reading and allowing us to try our hand at pretty much anything within reason. I am quite independent and stubborn. I moved out at 19 and I love to do things my way. It doesn't always work out as planned but Mum is always there for me & because of that I think I am more resilient and always quick to come up with my back up plan. The tough skin my sister and I have & the skills we have to provide for our families came from the time & effort Mum gave to teaching us. In this day & age not many Mums have the time to teach their children to cook or sew, our Mum did... and I love that!

4) Her cooking! My Mum is just the best cook & I don't care what anyone says, your Mum is not better!! Haha. From her soups, to her pot roast chicken. From her Sunday Roast to her Spaghetti Bolognese. From her Chocolate Mousse to her Profiteroles, my Mum rocks in the kitchen. If I have been ill, or had a bad week there is nothing like spending a day with my parents. The icing on the cake and the cherry on the top is my Mums delicious food.

5) I have far too many good memories & things to say about my Mum but my collective favourite times with my Mum are our girls days out. Shopping for her Mother of the Bride outfit, shopping in town, having lunch or going for coffee. No matter where we go or what we do on a girls day it is always fun and I always enjoy myself. It's always good to catch up, and no matter what is happening with our family or in my life Mum is always there, she always has time for me and our girls days are just the best.

So! A big thank you to my Mum for always being there, for letting me make plenty of mistakes  along the way but still supporting me, for never giving up on me when I "don't do things by half" and for laughing with me when everyone is looking at me like I lost the plot. Thank you for looking after me when I've been ill, for listening to me moan when it all gets too much and for just being a genuinely lovely person & wonderful Mum. I love you so much & am so grateful for everything you have done & continue to do for me! HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

Ok guys let me know what your favourite things about your Mum are, what makes her the best Mum in your eyes. Show some appreciation and give me your top 5!