The fiance and I have been to a ton of weddings recently, and while it may just seem like we are both just ambling around these things half in the bag, we really are studying them carefully in order to better plan our own ceremony.

Here is a list of some things we have learned so far:

1) Get the speeches done early

Unless your best man is Tony Robbins, it is not likely that the people that will be speaking at the wedding are trained public orators. Some may try to combat this by letting the best man and maid of honor get a couple of drinks in them before making the all important reception speech.

Don’t do it.

If someone tells you they need a buzz before they can gather the courage to get up in front of a room full of people and talk at the most important day of your life, tell them to take a public speaking class.

The last thing you need is to have a speaker get up and decide to let Jesus and Captain Morgan take the wheel of a toast.

The best way to combat this that we have seen so far is to have the best man and maid of honor give their toasts mere seconds after the first dances are over. Seriously, you don’t even have to wait for me to sit down before you get cranking, lets keep this thing moving. By keeping a tight schedule early on in the reception, you open up the latter half to just relax and have fun.

2) Dine and dance

Most wedding food is pretty standard fare, so there is no need to stretch the eating portion of the reception out for hours on end. Slam that steak down your gullet, walk over to me and tell me how awesome I and my fiance are, then hit the dance floor and/or bar and proceed to embarrass yourself.

We are here to have fun, this isn’t dining on the French Riviera.

3) Stick around for the after party

The reception, after party and hotel rooms are all in the same complex. This is literally one stop shopping for having a good time with old Rob and Maura.

Want to do shots with the bride? What to hear about all of the super cool and interesting things I’ve done in my life? The after party is the place. It is a little less formal and I should be far more relaxed after the actual reception is over.

At the latest wedding I went to, the fiance and I tried blazing a path and started an after-after party. Sadly, nobody else saw the need to drink for an 8th consecutive hour and we were left at the Hurricane Bar and Grill all by ourselves.

If you have any more wedding tips, leave them in the comments.

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