Wedding Planning: Involve your Fiancé in 10 Easy Steps

Written by Blake Kritzberg


He's poppedrepparttar question. You've chosen a date. And now, you're swimming in a sea of euphoria with no horizons. Good thing, too, because there are literally a thousand things to arrange beforerepparttar 130732 big day.

You dorepparttar 130733 research, buckle under and dive in. But you find your fiancé's ardor forrepparttar 130734 event itself seems to have cooled. It's not that he isn't mad about marrying you; after all, he is a great guy, even if he can't tell a Vera Wang from a Gunny Sack. It's that his preparation style is hands-off, to sayrepparttar 130735 least. And planning a wedding isn't a job built for one.

So what to do? Here are ten ways to involve him without increasing both of your stress loads:

1) Delegate areas that have a prayer of interesting him.

The worst thing you can do is expect him to match your ten to twenty years of feminine wisdom onrepparttar 130736 relative merits of buttercream vs. fondant.

Here are some probable no areas when roping in a reluctant wedding planner:

- Selectingrepparttar 130737 cake frosting - Choosingrepparttar 130738 favors or favor packaging - Selectingrepparttar 130739 wedding colors or floral arrangements

Then there arerepparttar 130740 potential maybes, fraught with fewer hazards:

- Choosingrepparttar 130741 photographer - Choosingrepparttar 130742 videographer - Arrangingrepparttar 130743 rehearsal dinner - Arrangingrepparttar 130744 all-inclusive honeymoon - Renting big, tricky items like outdoor tents

These are probable yeses, well worth running by your guy:

- Selectingrepparttar 130745 DJ orrepparttar 130746 band - Setting up and maintaining your wedding website - Researching and selecting charities, if you choose to donate instead of giving out favors - Setting uprepparttar 130747 carriage, limo or other transportation arrangements

2) If you ask him to help you choose vendors and styles, narrow downrepparttar 130748 choices first.

It's a jungle of options out there, enough to giverepparttar 130749 most natural-born party planner pause. So if you want his opinion on photographers, invites, flowers or cakes, narrow downrepparttar 130750 options to three or four. He's less likely to feel overwhelmed, and more likely to feel like an important part ofrepparttar 130751 process.

At times, it'll feel so good to sharerepparttar 130752 load that you'll be tempted to drag him intorepparttar 130753 buttercream debate despite your better instincts. At these times, take a deep breath, count to ten, and call your mother or your maid of honor.

3) Ask him directly for help. Let him know how important his input is to you, and that you can't do it without him.

Guys like to be needed. Your frank request for help may be enough to pull him out of his comfort zone and onto your team.

4) Tryrepparttar 130754 Art Director/Production Staff approach.

If you think your guy wants to help, but feels uncomfortable playing "art director," give him "production staff" tasks. Have him makerepparttar 130755 payments, pick uprepparttar 130756 food or decor, handlerepparttar 130757 rentals, do online comparison shopping, or reserverepparttar 130758 hotels and reception halls. These are all jobs that will take a load off your shoulders, while freeing up time forrepparttar 130759 aesthetic stuff you probably enjoy and he doesn't.

5) Get a calendar and put allrepparttar 130760 planning in black and white.

The Daughters of Elder Care

Written by Barbara Mascio


We have all heardrepparttar old African saying "It takes a whole village to raise a child." It expresses some things that we can all easily accept: family values, shared responsibility, community spirit. But where is that same spirit when it comes to caring for our elderly?

Typically, allrepparttar 130731 responsibility falls on one adult child, normallyrepparttar 130732 daughter. The adult daughter cares for children, spouse and an older adult relative while maintaining a career. What about caring forrepparttar 130733 needs ofrepparttar 130734 caregiver? Her needs are often ignored and trivialized by community, physicians, employers, other family and society in general.

Family caregivers faced with a landscape much different fromrepparttar 130735 one commonly accepted and assumed by society suffer guilt and exhaustion while attempting to ‘do it all’.

“Families have never done this with such complicated medical treatment andrepparttar 130736 kind of economic pressures this brings today,” says Carol Leving, director ofrepparttar 130737 United Hospital Fund’s Families and Health Care project in New York City. “Inrepparttar 130738 old days, people got better or they died.”

Caregivers often times have higher health risks than those they care for. Severe depression, anxiety, substance abuse, severe anger and stress-related diseases including cardiovascular disease, cancer and infectious diseases are highly common.

Quality Care Options Community of Resources isrepparttar 130739 village that you and your loved ones can turn to. Services, resources and support for bothrepparttar 130740 older adult andrepparttar 130741 family caregiver are available. Quality Care Options strives to assistrepparttar 130742 entire family by making our service a one-call solution, saving you time, money and stress.

These excerpts from letters sent to QCO tellrepparttar 130743 story much better than I can …

“We had less than a day to locate a rehabilitation facility for my father-in-law. We were familiar with nursing homes in Alliance, but not in our Cleveland area, which is where he wanted to be. I came across your yellow page ad, likedrepparttar 130744 name, ‘Quality Care Options’, and then went to your web site. I felt relieved after speaking with Barbara. The follow up service was great. There were a few concerns, Barbara acted on our family’s behalf, and everything worked out well. I am recommending QCO to everyone, including my friends and my pastor. Thanks again.” Nancy V., Cleveland Ohio

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