I’ll be up front and admit that I’ve never actually attended a Wedding/Bridal Show. I had every intention of doing so – mainly for the rumoured freebies that are to be had. I was keen on the $100 coupon that I’d read about a certain tux vendor giving out. But then, sadly (for them; for us, I have to admit we were feelin’ the schadenfreude in a big way) Syd Silver declared bankruptcy and we were able to kit out LX like a superstar (head to toe – including cufflinks & shoes!) for less than the cost of a rental. So that, combined with the fact that I’d finished planning and booking pretty much everything by the time the show rolled around, meant I could spend my Sunday lounging about with a cat on my lap and a hot cuppa joe in my hand (a much more pleasant prospect than battling a throng of brides and their moms – just sayin’…)
 

Word is, though, you can win diamond rings, cruises, full honeymoon trips… even get your entire wedding paid for at these events! I’ve also been told that there are tons of vendors there who will offer greatly discounted rates if you’re willing to put down a deposit and book their services on the spot. I’m not sure I’d be keen to do that without first doing a bit more research myself. But if you have no idea where to start looking, it’s as good a place as any to start. And who knows – you may just end up falling in love with a wedding cake, dress, whatever – and be able to make a decision on the spot. You’re likely to save some money AND mark one more thing off your To Do list.
 
With everything represented from beginning to end, these shows seem to be replete with wedding products (invitations, dresses, flowers), services (caterers, DJs, Limos), tips and information of all kinds. Some shows even feature Wedding Celebrities (it is SO a thing!) I have a co-worker who went to the last big one in Toronto (the one I’d actually registered to attend – for free, I might add: if you’re a bride, some will waive the entry fee) and she and her sister met Jane Dayus-Hinch from Wedding S.O.S. You can’t NOT love a prim, well-dressed woman with a penchant for Harleys.
 
So if you haven’t the foggiest idea where to start your planning, one of these behemoth expos might be the place to begin. On the other hand, it might also overwhelm you to tears. So if you do decide to venture down that road, be sure you have a few stalwarts to accompany you along your mission (hey – that’s what BFFs and bridesmaids are for, right?)
 
Find a show near you and ruck up with a coffee and some sturdy shoes. But, remember – do your research, too.
 

While I’m not trying to drop a size or two to fit into my wedding dress (a course of action, incidentally, I could not advocate LESS… especially since I’ve already been down that self-inflicted road as a bridesmaid), I have to admit that you’d be hard pressed to find one bride-to-be who wouldn’t like to /isn’t trying to change some physical feature prior to her day in the spotlight.
 
And it occurred to me that I spend just as much time trolling the net for recipes, workout info, weight loss advice, hair care enlightenment etc. as I do wedding planning and other various wedding-related lore. So I think it’s only fair that I expand my ramblings to include the wonderful worlds of health, nutrition, fitness, beauty – whatever it is that it takes to make a girl look & feel all purty-like.
 
Anyone who’s met me knows that it’s no secret that I like to eat. A lot. Seriously. Because of this, I’ve had to learn all sorts of tasty, exciting and  smart things with which to feed myself. And, for those times that I couldn’t care less about the caloric or fat content of a family-sized serving of Pad Thai noodles (delivered hot and steaming from Springrolls… yummm), I’ve had to learn how to counter those lapses. Because I’d be lying if I said they didn’t happen. I’d likely be struck by lightening as well – but who’s judging, right?
 

Do yourself a favour & buy the damn dress in a size that already FITS you.

Enter Sparkpeople. I shudder to think of the man-hours that went into creating this behemoth of a site. But I’m eternally thankful to the folks who logged the time to do so. It makes my life so much easier to manage. Ok, it may not pay my bills or help me find spiritual enlightenment, but it helps to manage the girth of my arse. And that’s no small feat.
 
Sparkpeople is an online community that provides anything you could possibly need to stay motivated in working toward your own personal health & fitness goals. In addition to a virtual library of feature articles & videos (including online workouts: I, personally, am a fan of the New YOU Bootcamp) on nutrition, fitness, health and general well-being, Sparkpeople features a slew of forums/teams categorized by interest, geographical location, age, gender, you name it… there’s someone else out there you’ll click with for one reason or another. You can also find recipes, track your daily calorie consumption, sweat a few of them off and log that info as well. Need a new exercise idea to keep you motivated and/or interested (because – let’s face it – if boredom wasn’t such a huge factor, none of us would ever be out of shape)? There are plenty to be found. You can even set up our own personal Spark blog to ramble on about your struggles and accomplishments.
 
With its detailed (and I do mean detailed) Nutrition, Fitness, Weight & Measurement Trackers, you can keep a firm handle on your love handles (or lack thereof, as the case may be.) You can enter everything manually or you can enter a few parameters and let the site do all the work (ok, not the work, but at least most of the planning) for you.
 
Oh, and did I mention the best part? FREE. That’s right, kids. Free! No fees of any sort are involved in using this bad boy. That’s why it’s so deserving of this mention. Go. Check it out. You may be a bit overwhelmed at first (it is massive) but you won’t be sorry.
 

In the past few months I’ve taken to watching Slice TV’s lineup of “reality” wedding shows (Wedding SOS and Rich Bride, Poor Bride on a regular basis and Bulging Brides on the odd occasion that I feel like my self esteem might be getting just a bit too healthy) because – who’s kidding who – I enjoy TV wedding porn as much as I do the online variety. And, no, I don’t mean anything unsavoury or that you couldn’t watch with your Grannie or a toddler in the room. I just mean the pages upon pages of wedding photos one can find online to either A) drool over & covet, B) discard in peals of laughter, or C) glean fabulous ideas.
 
The general brattiness & self-centered “I want, I want, I want”-iness of the majority of the featured Brides (and – let’s be fair – Grooms) on these shows makes me want to cringe and avoid the mere mention of my own wedding. Honestly, my biggest fear is being lumped in with some of these princesses (again – meant as an entirely non-gender-specific insult). How did some of these couples manage to even forge a relationship with another human being, never mind take it to the point of walking down the aisle? The self-absorption is pretty outstanding. Well done, talent scouts… you’re made of hardier stuff than I.
 
One of the things that strikes me as incredibly odd (and this is more than likely the production company’s choice of ‘star’ than it is brides in general) are the number of women who pay no heed to the cost of anything. In other words, if they want it – they must have it: price be damned. More puzzling, to me, are the number of women there seem to be who aren’t shelling out any cash of their own and who are leaving the distasteful matter of money entirely in the hands of their doting parents or their befuddled groom-to-be.
 
Watching these shows really puts the entire wedding planning process into perspective for me. I’ve learned that people lose their ever loving minds while putting together their (presumably) blissful day. Ordinary folk who probably read flyers when they land on their doorstep, watch for sales and may even clip grocery store coupons on occasion, flip their proverbial wigs when making purchases for their wedding.
 
One episode (of Rich Bride, Poor Bride I’m almost certain; I PVR them all, so they tend to blur together after a while) showcased a girl who paid $500 for the tiara she wore. Really? I thought paying over $100 seemed like madness (I didn’t, incidentally, but that’s another post.) Another highlighted a couple who dished out close to $2,000 on a cake. Honesty, does anyone even EAT the cake when they go to a wedding? Seems like pretty pricey prop for your photo album. Oh – and, my personal favourite: a girl who paid $600 for her veil. Her VEIL! $600! DOLLARS! Are you kidding me!? The pricetag on my dress wasn’t much more than that. Mind you, I did buy it at a boutique’s outlet store AND off-the-rack. But that’s how I roll.
 
So, thank you Slice TV – and spoiled Brides & Grooms everywhere – for teaching a valuable lesson in what NOT to do during this entire experience. I’m really beginning to feel rather virtuous and – I won’t lie – just a wee bit smug.