Duties as a Groomsmen/Best Man

As a groomsmen or best man and in your friend's wedding you really don't have a lot of responsibilities to the wedding and the groom. Sure, you're a groomsmen and a best man but you don't have to help him pick out his tux or hold his hand on his wedding day. You also don't have to plan bridal showers or anything like that. You've got it easy compared to the bridesmaids and maid of honor. You're only real responsibility is to plan a sweet bachelor party for your buddy that he will always remember. You're probably thinking, "Why am I reading this post from this wedding planning chick? She's not a guy and has never been to a bachelor party." True, I haven't been to a bachelor party before and I am not a guy, but I love weddings and all things that come with a wedding and that does include a bachelor party. I like to think that I know guys-as I am married to one. I'm not here to tell you what you should do, I'm just here to give you some possible ideas and to remind you that you need to remember to do this and organize something. I know as guys you tend to forget and do things last minute but this should be planned out so no one has scheduling conflicts and you can make reservations if you need to. You want this to be a great night for your friend. It might be the last night away from his soon-to-be-wife and it's his last night as a "single" gent.

Possible Bachelor Party ideas:
-Skydiving
-Surfing outing at the beach
-White water rafting
-Trip to Vegas/Atlantic City-just remember to not make it a Hangover spin-off
-Go to a legit steakhouse
-Rent a yacht
-Ice fishing
-Weekend golf outing
-Road trip
-VIP room at the nightclub
-Party at someone's house

Maybe your buddy just wants something low key and that's fine too. Get all the groomsmen, brothers of the bride and groom, cousins, friends-all the men and just do something small. Usually all the guys will chip in to cover the costs for the groom on whatever you end up doing.

The best man is considered the host and is in charge of making sure everyone knows when, where, who, and what of the whole party. Do something that you have all talked about doing and have never gotten around to actually doing. Whatever you decide on doing don't do it the night before the wedding; give everyone sometime to recover. Remember to have fun and be safe!

Bridal Party: For the Bride & Groom

There are no rules when it comes to choosing your bridesmaids, groomsmen, maid of honor, and best man; only good recommendations. I will be going over these suggestions in hope that this post will help you when you get down to making that final list of who will be your bridesmaids and groomsmen. 

Having A Ceremony
When you are planning on having a ceremony a lot of brides and grooms pick the same number of bridesmaids and groomsmen so the groomsmen can escort the bridesmaids. If you are not having a ceremony then you don't need to have the same number of bridesmaids and groomsmen. 

Choosing your Bridesmaids
You should automatically include your sisters. If you don't have sisters then your best friends can fill the void. If the groom has sisters you should include them, as well as your brother's sisters. You're all going to be family once you say those two words- "I do." Having your future sister-in-law can be challenging for some, especially if your relationship is rocky, as was the case in my experience. Nonetheless you should include them as a bridesmaid. This may help mend the relationship, but if nothing else will help to minimize drama. So my advice, no matter how much the sister-in-law doesn't like you still ask them to be your bridesmaid. If there's going to end up be drama by not selecting someone as a bridesmaid, it's better to avoid it by just having more, trust me. Also it may be nice to include those friends or cousins who included you in there's. Girls think about those things and take notice. However if you've lost contact or aren't as good as friend's then obviously you don't need to worry about it. If a potential bridesmaid lives far away or has a schedule that makes them "hit or miss" it may be best not to include them. You need bridesmaids that can give you a strong commitment to be there.

Choosing your Groomsmen
Obviously include your brother's. If you don't have brother's then your best friends and if the bride has brother's include them. You should also include brother-in-laws on both sides. Whether they are the bride's brother-in-laws or your brother-in-laws.  

I recently attended a wedding where the bride and groom included all their family and still had their friends as well. They ended up having a total of nine bridesmaids and groomsmen and it looked awesome for pictures. There is no rule on how many bridesmaids and groomsmen to have but if you have at least four of each, it looks good for pictures: the more the merrier. Now you obviously can't have everyone be a bridesmaid and groomsmen but at least put your immediate family up their first before you think of friends, cousins etc. 

Maid of Honor and Best Man
Usually your sister is your Maid of Honor. If you have two sister's then pick the one you're closest to, or switch off so that each of you have a chance to be a Maid of Honor. If you have no sister's then pick your closest girlfriend. If you don't want to have drama then you don't have to have a Maid of Honor unless you are doing a ceremony then you should. 

Your Best Man is typically the groom's brother. If you have two brother's like my fiancee did, he picked his brother right below him that he is closer with. There were no hard feelings because his youngest brother was still a groomsman. Again, if you don't have a brother then have your closest bro be your Best Man.


Flower Girl/Ring Bearer
You only need a Flower Girl and Ring Bearer if you are having a ceremony. You usually have a niece, nephew, or very young brother or sister to be the Flower Girl and the Ring Bearer. You only need at least one of each, but you can have a few.