It can definitely be a challenge to make your daughter’s wedding the best it can be, and it’s up to you as the mother of the bride to carry much of that responsibility yourself. While a lot of the planning details will be left up to the bride, she will be looking to someone with more experience for support – but you don’t want to go to far and completely take over. So how do you toe the line between offering hands-on support and smothering? Here are a few tips:
Your budget
Talk to your daughter early on about the financial aspects of the wedding. It’s easy for them to get carried away before having concrete ideas about money, and it’s important to express your limitations. Chances are you already have a pretty good idea of your financial obligation, but if you’re unclear, try talking to the bride to see what she expects. It’s becoming more and more common for young couples to choose smaller celebrations that they pay for themselves, in which case, you’re off the hook!
Finding your niche
With all of the planning that goes into the big day, the bride will most likely be more than willing to hand over some of the responsibility; just be sure to avoid overstepping any boundaries. Picking a few important details is the way to go, making sure that your most important details are included without holding the reigns too tightly. Have specific suggestions about color themes, or flower choices? Are there certain people you’d like to see on the guest list? Now’s the time to speak up.
Dress your best
Playing your role also means dressing the part, and finding a good selection of mother of the bride dresses is absolutely crucial. Balancing your personal style with the specific themes of the event is important, and so is making sure to not overshadow the bride herself. The goal when choosing the right dress should be the same as with all the other details that go into planning; do your best to support the bride on her big day and when in doubt, check in with her to see what will work best.
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