What's a Personal Ceremony?

A personal ceremony is one that’s created just for you, your needs, your wishes. Maybe you have something to release and you want to do it in a profound and important way. Have a ceremony!

There are two recent situations that have come up that are great examples of out-of-the-box ceremonies that resulted in healing and happiness. One was created to clear emotional and physical abuse from the psyche and to clear the way for a new loving relationship. What a great event!

Another situation had to do with healing and re-bonding an entire family. A client came to me dreading a family reunion that was to occur the following month. She told me that it seemed as if every time her relatives would get together, there would be bickering, back stabbing, dredging up the past, and hateful comments.

I’m sure you know what I’m talking about - if it hasn’t happened in your family, it’s happened to someone you know or you’ve seen it on TV. Have you ever noticed when you’re watching a family squabble on TV it’s funny, but when it happens to you it’s not?

So, she HAD to go to this family reunion or she’d never hear the end of it (you know how that goes as well, I’m sure).

I asked for a great deal of information so that I could get to the core of the situation and create a ceremony that everyone would take part in, not be too far out, be meaningful, not offensive, yet accomplish the desired results. She wanted everyone to get along and to appreciate each other.

There was one more ingredient. The reunion was several states away and I would not be able to be present. No problem. The solution was a conference room and a speaker phone.

I produced a forgiveness and an appreciation ceremony based on Ho’oponopono and the Burning Bowl. Did it work? Rather than take my word of “Yes, it was a huge success,” let me copy here a note I received from one of the relatives:

Dear Rev. Phran,

Thank you for taking the time out of your weekend to conduct that ‘cleansing experience.’ My wife and I found it very helpful to ‘erase our blackboard.’ It truly rounded out the celebration for the family! We really appreciate the time, effort, and leadership you gave to us and our family. God bless you!

Sincerely,
Ron & Debbie S.

Whatever you would like to celebrate, clear, cleanse, release, or forgive, I can write a personal ceremony about it for you – which is a perfect way to mark the event with a positive and momentous experience!

McCaffrey Haute Couture Trunk Show this Weekend

It's trunk shows like these that make it wonderful being a bride-to-be.....in Ottawa !

The lightest fabrics of silk organza, chiffons, charmeuse and silk tulles accented with small feathers and delicate hand crafted flowers define the latest collection of McCaffrey Haute Couture wedding gowns.

This Friday and Saturday (February 20th and 21st), the launch of McCaffrey Haute Couture's newest wedding gown collection "Illumination" will be shown from 10am to 6pm at Ottawa's flagship boutique at 465 Sussex Drive.

This trunk show is exclusive to appointments only so please call 613-789-4336 or email at ottawaretail@mccaffreyhautecouture.com. Be warned, time slots fill up quickly so book your appointment now.

The best part... any purchases made at the trunk show will be eligible for a 10% discount.

Sweet Wedding Candy Bar

A wedding candy bar is an excellent alternative to the traditional dessert table. You can ask your family and close friends for their favorite candy and gum choices and feature them on your candy bar. These sweet and tasty treats will be a favorite among young and the young at heart.
On the left candy table, candies or gum are packaged in individual tins, paper candy bags, cello bags with inserts. Large vases are wrapped with silhouette stationary stickers and filled with candy selections. Mini pails contain specialty offerings, and small take home bags are available for those who want to mix and match. All can be labeled with clips, chalk board, directional arrows and personalized stickers and tags. You can even select gumball machines to add sports theme or Casino theme to your candy buffet table.
Here are more selections of candy boxes and containers.
Visit us at http://www.supergiftplace.com

Bling for your Bridesmaids

We are in love with jewelry from Jennifer Zeuner !

www.jenniferzeuner.com

Her pieces are so personal and creative. We think they would make amazing gifts for your bridesmaids, especially since most of them can be personalized with initials or full names.

There is even one necklace we came across that has individual cut-out charms on it. How about engraving each charm with an initial of each of your bridesmaids as a special keepsake for yourself.

Must-Have Wedding Day Shots

When you think about it, all you have left over from the most magical day of your life are your photos. Any bride will tell you that the day goes so fast, it's so easy to forget to gather your high school girlfriends together for a shot or a generational shot of your grandmother, your mother and yourself.

Sure, your photographer does this for a living so they will most likely capture the major shots but you don't have this day to do-over so it's important to ensure you have every personal shot you want for your wedding day.

How do you do this? Weeks before your wedding, you sit down and list all the photos that you must have before the day is over.

Good news... In Style Weddings has already started the list for you. Head to www.instyleweddings.com/photography to download their list of 40 photos your photographer can't miss.

Wedding Registry Option

So what do you do if you have been living together with your significant other for years and you have everything you need for your home? Traditionally, you are not supposed to register anywhere and the word eventually gets out that money is what you'd prefer. But what if you don't need the money or would rather see it go to a good cause?

Think about making your wedding registry an entire charitable cause for your guests to donate to.

www.globalgiving.org has over 700 grassroot charities listed. All you have to do is set up an account/registry in your name. You provide this information to your guests and they can donate to a particular charity that is close to your heart in liew of wedding gifts.

Can't really afford to donate all your wedding gifts to charity? Well, consider all the pre parties before the big day where the money spent on gifts can be donated to a charity instead.

Giving back has never been so easy for you and your guests!

Wedding Vases

For your wedding vases, you may select glass vases in different sizes and shapes then accessorize with flowers and foliage with contrasting textures all within your chosen color palette. This creates an electric but cohesive centerpiece that is simply fabulous. You may use decorative clips and water pearls to hang your pictures about your romantic stories.
Vases also make great holders for pillar candles or water candles. You can select different sizes of vases to hold various candies for guests to scoop into bags or boxes. Don't you want to add some personalized touch by adding glass clings.