They walked out with the groom at my wedding 4 months ago. And they walked out with the groom at all the weddings I have been to in the last 5-7 years. BUT, they were all Yankee weddings, so maybe the rules are different down there !? ;) :p

At one of my friend's weddings the girl walked half-way down and then the guy walked up to meet her to escort the rest of the way. It was nice I guess.

At the two most recent weddings I've been to (a good friend got married this summer,and one of my pledge sisters got married last summer), the groomsmen escorted the bridesmaids down the aisle. It worked nicely, AND gave the bridesmaids a little extra stability while wearing fancy shoes! :)

I've been to a bunch of weddings, and I've seen it different ways:

* Groom is at the front w/ his best man, maid of honor comes up the aisle alone, the rest of the bridesmaids are escorted all the way w/ a groomsman

*Bridesmaid comes up and groomsmen meet halfway (I've only seen that once.. it seemed .. different?)

*All groomsmen come up w/ a bridesmaid the whole aisle through

So many have posted their experiences, but I'll just add my own from the past two weddings I've been in (over the past year) :D

Last year, I was escorted down the aisle and back up with the groomsman (this was a wedding in Michigan, and it was a "fan-shaped" church, so I couldn't tell you how many aisles there were)

Last month, I walked in by myself, and the groomsman walked me back out (more of a rectangular church, with only approximately 7 aisles on either side of the church - this was in New York)

I think it depends on what the bride and groom are comfortable with - in the first wedding, it was nice because the girls were wearing "unstable" heels and I KNOW I would have tripped if the groomsman wasn't there, while in the second the shoes were much more stable, there wasn't a lot of room in the church so having the guys go in ahead of time worked well.

In our wedding the groomsmen came up the aisle first, and the best man ( my B-i-l) walked side by side with my husband. They were up at the altar waiting for the processional for us.

On the way back, each groomsmen escorted one of my bridesmaids outs--one guy escorted two of the ladies, one on each arm.

I've seen it done, though, where all the men are waiting at the front, like the wedding that DH was in during the summer

If you're using a coordinator, check with them. I'd also check with your wedding site and ask how they've done it it in the past.

Most important, do what feels right with the bride and groom.

Remember to hire Asian Elvis impersonators.

-Proudly Sponsored by the Asian Elvis Impersonators Teamsters Region 456

I'll get BlazerCheer and Baby Berry to do Elvis. :D

For the wedding I was in Saturday the groomsmen walked us down the whole aisle and back out but I haven't seen it done that way for any of the other 7 weddings I've been to this summer.

Oh, and the cookie table was laid out and almost empty by the time we got to the reception. And it was yummy!

the cookie table is a good idea. was it for snakes or in place o a wedding cake?

We sat down with the florist today and got an idea of what kind of bouquets she'll have.

Bride--mostly red roses with some white accent and something Christmasy, maybe holly

Bridesmaids-mostly white roses with a red accent and something Christmasy, maybe holly

Jr. bridesmaids and flower girls-kissing balls covered with white hydrangea florets and something red for an accent

Corsages-white roses (to match everyone's dresses)

Boutonnieres-red roses

That sounds lovely! :)

Awww. Sigh. Sounds just perfect to me.

Big, big, big happy face :)
Silver

That sounds simply lovely, Carnation! What type of headpiece is she wearing?

She's wearing a double-layer, fingertip-length veil with a tiara. She'll wear her hair swept up. We don't know what kind of jewelry she'll wear yet!

And I'm thrilled because I found a dress to wear--silver (Christmasy plus it's the week of our silver anniversary) and off the shoulder and hugely on sale! :D

Everything sounds lovely.

Forgive me if I am being nosy, but where did you find your dress? If it's a nationwide store, please let me know. My mother is having the most difficult time finding a mother of the bride dress. She has shopped everywhere.

We found it at David's Bridal! I was thrilled to find a dress that didn't look "old lady". You know what? Most of them do and I'd rather wear jeans.

ETA: hey, those of you who want to come please get in touch with me!

Thanks! Most of the Mother of the Bride dresses we have seen looked a little too matronly.

We bought the bridesmaid dresses at David's. This is for my sister's wedding.

How perfectly lovely!! And the silver dress - perfect! What a wonderful weekend it will be, for the entire Carnation Nation!!

Of course you realize that if you don't post photos afterwards, you just may have a revolt on your hands...! :)

Yea. Major tasks accomplished this week:

The invitations came. Now to address them...

The bridesmaids' gowns came. Can't wait to see how many don't fit.

The in-laws-to-be came. :) We got the rehearsal dinner planned.

Only a little over 2 months to go!:eek:

That's where I got the dress I wore at the banquet at convention last year. I was very happy with the dress and the service.

:eek: less than 6 weeks to go! Her engagement announcement is in the paper today. We have to send out invitations this week and finalize plans with the florist and caterer. I am so afraid there's something we should do that I haven't thought of.:eek:

She wants to put Christmas trees with white lights in the reception hall. Okay by me, but when does the child think we'll have time to put them up before the wedding? I've been told that nerves will fray as we get closer and de veras, they're beginning to do it.

Ooh! How exciting! Just remember that you're the mom so you'll have to remind her to take a deep breath & relax (also, don't forget to do it yourself when you're at your wits end).

You sound like my mother. I was talking to her yesterday, and she is also afraid that she has forgotten something. My sister's wedding is in 3 weeks from yesterday.

I really couldn't think of anything. I have my dress and purse. My shoes are being dyed. She has her shoes and is picking up her dress today. She bought it at a small dress shop on Long Island that her friend recommended. The response cards have been returned so they have a head count. There is a problem with the flowers so they are taking care of that today.

After all of this, my fiancé and I are seriously considering eloping.

I have a question. What is your daughter wearing to the church? My sister doesn't want to wear her regular coat, but we can't really think of anything. It might be a really cold November so she will probably need to wear something.

how about a stole or a wrap-there are some beautiful wraps(like a big shawl, only more elegant) around-it seems to me that somewhere, some store would have a winter white one in cashmere or wool. or a velvet opera coat.

I went to a Christmas time wedding 2 years ago and the bride wore a BEAUTIFUL red velvet cloak that was lined with white fur (faux fur :))

It was beautiful beyond words..

This girl we know who got married last year at Christmas wore a fur-lined cape and it would be cool if ASLFRose could wear that! If it looks like it'll be cold, we might ask.

When I got married the same week in 1980, though, it was 70 degrees here! Boy, you can't count on the weather in this area one way or another.

I think we're going to force the other 8 girls to elope.

:eek: Oooh, it'll be 3 weeks from Saturday. We have showers coming up and I'm taking tomorrow off to make final payments to the florist, the caterer, the cake baker, and the reception hall.

Does anyone remember anything that calmed them down in the last few weeks? I'm about to explode from nerves and anticipation and things to do.

I remember my mother living on Valium and lists...

Yeah, I was thinking Xanax.

http://www.drugs.com/data/images/thumbs/ME0320F.jpg

That was for evenings! :D

I met a wedding planner who works at the Waldorf Astoria. She gives the mother of the bride a glass of champagne and 15 minutes to calm down. If that doesn't work, she gives them a valium.

Carnation, my mother is going through the same thing as you. My sister is getting married on Saturday so she is a little nervous to put it mildly. She and my sister went over the final guest list and made a seating chart. They have their dresses and shoes and have scheduled appointments for hair and makeup. Wednesday is the rehearsal dinner. It will be like Meet the Fockers, lol.

My advice to you is just enjoy this time with your daughter...and have some champagne. :)

:eek: Less than 3 weeks to go.:eek: 3 showers to go. Acceptances are coming in. Almost all our daughters' skirts are hemmed..almost all the money has been paid. ASLFRose is with her fiance in the town they'll be moving to; they found out that their house won't be ready for a few weeks and they'll have to move in with some friends. Now that'll be real romantic.

How will I ever deal with this, Christmas plans, and giving finals all at once?

In all honesty, carnation, have you considered asking Santa to make your house the "last stop" - say, around December 27 or 28 or later? It may help things go a little easier for all involved!

And while I know that the last thing you need is another expense, I got a Newport News clearance catalog yesterday, and there was a full length cape with a hood that looked perfect! In fact, I'm thinking of getting one for myself for those times when you don't want to wear fur, but you're dressed to the nines.

Well said Peachs-n-Cream!! I believe because my mom didn't get anxious about my wedding, that I didn't either. Of course there where things that were not planned, like the church lady stepping on my long velcro vail and pulling it off just before I was suppose to go down the isle so my MOH had to put it back on in the middle of the ceremony or the DJ showing up 30 minutes late in the middle of our recieving line (we didn't even know if he was going to show). Through all that my mom still held her cool and that helped me tremendously!! My advice is to take one day at a time and remember this is going to be one of the happiest days in your life...your daughter is getting married!!

Now we're down to 12 days. Part of the time I'm calm, part I can hardly teach because I'm obsessing about whether we've forgotten something!:rolleyes: LOL because that's so out of character for me.

Her future MIL made her this gorgeous short satin cape that matches her gown perfectly! We don't know the exact flowers she'll carry with her AOII red roses--the florist wanted to wait and see which white flowers will be available.

Most of the attendants have gotten their dresses altered except Baby Berry, that's par for the course, and the only guy who hasn't been fitted for a tux is my husband. (That's par too.) About half of the bridesmaids won't make the bridesmaids' luncheon because they have late finals--they'll barely make the rehearsal.

With my sister, 2 pledge sisters, and AXOAlum at the wedding, I'll have plenty of support!

Looking forward to the low country boil rehearsal dinner...:D

We just came in from a giant shower...5 more days!

Does anyone have any final words of wisdom? As in "don't forget to..." or "make sure you..." ?

My advice is always to not sweat it if things go wrong on the wedding day. As long as the couple ends up married, that is all that matters. So, don't lose perspective of the goal :)

As an aside, is it typical in the south to have showers so close to the wedding? In my area, you have your showers 3 to 4 months before the wedding, generally. Just curious!

Carnation, if you knew what all went wrong on my wedding day, you'd love yourself silly! We still say "The programs weren't ready, the tables were sent up wrong, the glue in my hairpiece wouldn't dry - but it was a BEAUTIFUL day!"

Just go through your check list, make sure you have your hair & nail appointment (and do not let ANYTHING change that!) and do your best to relax! (You do have someone to stand in for your daughter for the Rehearsal, don't you? That always seems to be forgotten.)

AGDee, I had three showers, from different places/people, and they were each the three weekends prior to the wedding, FWIW.

:confused: Is this a joke or some other southern tradition I'm clueless to?! :)

I wish I had exact advice on how to stay calm, but I don't. I have been told by everyone that I was the most calm bride they have ever seen. I just kept remembering that it was a joyful celebration, that I was marrying my greatest love, and, MOST importantly - I was the bride, and they can't start anything without me!!!! :p So if you are running late or anything, don't sweat it.

Have fun and enjoy the day - that's the most important thing!!!