Part 2: Parent Appreciation
As we continue our month of Gratitude at RiverStone, we want to take time to appreciate the people who first exemplified love in the lives of our couples. Today is all about gifts, gestures, and words of gratitude for the people who raised you. Webster defines a parent as the origin or source of something (or someone). Whether the original source of love in your life was your mother, father, in-laws, godparent, sibling, grandparent, neighbor or close friend, RiverStone believes that the individual(s) who helped shape you into the beautiful person you are today deserve some extra special recognition on your wedding day. And it’s just as important that we appreciate those who raised the person you fell in love with! Read on to learn how to express your gratitude to parents and in-laws during wedding season.
Gifts
- Wedding Accessories – Personalized, wearable items make excellent wedding gifts. Consider engraving jewelry, cufflinks, or a tie bar with your wedding date or a special message to your parents. Or choose to embroider a handkerchief or bowtie with a personalized message to your loved one.
- The Royal Treatment – Pamper your parent(s) by treating them to a day at the spa for a massage, mani/pedi, or facial.
- Photos – Ask your photographer to take formal and informal wedding photos of you with your parents and in-laws. Print and frame the best images or have them made into canvases for lovely gifts that commemorate shared wedding day experiences. Alternatively, ask your photographer to capture a few shots that replicate your parents’ original wedding photos. Then frame the old and new images side by side for a beautiful Then & Now keepsake.
- Framed Song Lyrics – Print and frame the lyrics to your Father Daughter or Mother Son Dance.
- Event Tickets –Treat your parents to a night out with tickets to see a favorite musical artist, movie, or theater production once all the crazy wedding festivities die down.
- Custom Illustrations – Gift your parents a custom illustration of your childhood home, summer cabin, wedding venue, etc.
Gestures
- Incorporate your parent’s wedding apparel into yours. Sew a patch from your mother’s dress inside the skirt of your wedding dress. Tie a ring or special piece of jewelry to your bridal bouquet. Wear your mother’s veil, shoes, or hairpiece. Put on your father’s tie, cufflinks or class ring as you walk down the aisle.
- Print a line of thanks in your wedding program that acknowledges your parents and in-laws by name.
- Print copies of your parents’, grandparents’, and in-law’s wedding photos. Display them at your reception as a tribute to the love that brought you to your own special day.
- Create a special signature cocktail in honor of your mother or father.
- Play your parents’ and/or in-laws’ first dance song(s) at your reception as a special tribute to their love and commitment.
- Talk to your photographer about getting a photo of you and your spouse decked in your wedding apparel and holding Thank You signs. Then use this photo as the cover of your thank you notes.
Words of Gratitude
Saying (or writing) Thank You is such an important way to acknowledge the kindnesses we receive and to appreciate the people who regularly enrich our lives. So remember to communicate your gratitude before, during, and after your wedding day. You will be so glad that you took the opportunity to do so.
