Three Tips for Including Your Groom Into Wedding Planning

This is it! The love of your life has asked you to spend your lives together, and you’ve said yes—pure bliss.  Now to start planning!  Or maybe to resume your planning.  If you’ve been planning your wedding since age eight,  dreaming of your lace-trimmed gown with delicate beading across the bodice,  then you know what your goals are and probably have an idea of what you want your wedding to look like.  And, chances are, your groom has not spent the same amount of time daydreaming and researching wedding venues on the sly!

Why should your groom help with wedding planning?  Traditionally, the bride and her mother have made many of the wedding-related decisions together in past years.  But, gone is the era of the groom in isolation from wedding planning!  Today, most grooms help and participate in the planning of their wedding.  And why shouldn’t they?  It’s your groom’s big day too.  Wedding planning is the perfect time to dream, plan, and share responsibilities just as you will dream, plan, and share other decisions you will make together after the wedding is over, and your life together begins!

Three Tips for Including Your Groom in Your Wedding Planning:

Include His Interests

1. What is your groom interested and excited about when it comes to your wedding or reception?  Finding out what interests your groom is a great way to understand what excites him.  And what he’s interested in, he’ll spend time learning about. If he’s not interested in floral arrangements, chances are he won’t have strong opinions about whether you will choose Hostas or Hibiscus in your table decorations.  Find out what he is interested in and go from there.

Some real-life examples of including your groom’s interests I have seen done recently include incorporating a love of hunting into your day. Now, I’m not advocating for adding camo to your decor! But if your man loves duck hunting, why not include some vintage duck postage stamps to your invitation suite? You can find some cute ones on etsy! 

Listen to His Ideas

2. Be open-minded and listen to his thoughts.  Truthfully, most grooms want to accommodate their bride’s thoughts and ideas about wedding details.  Return that respect by listening to and incorporating his thoughts and ideas about wedding details too.  You might be surprised by the thought and care he has spent researching.

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Sometimes it takes adding in a few touches yourself to let your groom know you value the things he cares about too. Is he a Tar-Heels fan? Maybe incorporate white and blue into your bridal bouquet as a nod to his favorite team! Does he love fishing? How about getting him some fish embossed cufflinks? Or you could use a favorite fishing lure in his boutonniere!

Show Off His Talents

3. If you find that your groom isn’t as excited about the wedding planning as you like, then talk about a list of tasks that he feels he can accomplish.   Most grooms enjoy the DJ versus band decision and compiling a must-play song list.   And, if he picks your first dance song to be, “I’m Too Sexy”, well then, maybe offer other choices that appeal to his other talents and interests, such as groom and groomsmen attire!

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Another favorite activity I have seen grooms get excited about is planning the signature cocktails at the reception. Let him choose the names and liquors to create drinks that perfectly complement the relationship you two share! 

Bottom line,  by keeping your groom involved and listening to his opinions, you’re encouraging your groom to share with you what he’s excited about! Not just for planning your upcoming wedding, but also setting the tone for a lifetime of teamwork together!