How to Avoid Wedding Disasters

 

 

September 6^th my new sweet, romantic comedy, A Groom for Mama, releases. The book is filled with disastrous dates and a mother pushing her daughter toward a marriage she doesn’t want. I thought, given the wedding theme, it might be fun to explore some bad-luck wedding superstitions that brides should take great care to heed.  I’m sure most of you have heard of these superstitions, but do you know where they originated and why brides follow them today?

Well, I’m here to answer some of those questions, give you a peek at A Groom for Mama, and a chance to win either a PDF ARC or an eBook (winner’s choice) of my romantic comedy, with a touch of drama, A Groom for Mama. Be sure to check out the instructions on how to enter to win at the bottom of the post.

 

·       Why the groom doesn’t see the bride before the wedding:

Even today, when couples live together before marriage, most adhere to this custom. My best friend was stitching her future daughter-in-law’s bridal veil, and her fiancée walked into the room as the bride-to-be placed the veil on her head. Immediately, he put his hands over his eyes and turned away. He knew to see the bride in her dress before she walks down the aisle is considered bad luck. He didn’t know why, but he knew he shouldn’t. This superstition dates back to the days of arranged marriages where brides and grooms often had never met one another. Families worried that if the groom caught a glimpse of the bride and didn’t like what he saw, he’d back out of the deal.

·       Something old, something new, something borrowed something blue, and a sixpence in your shoe:

I’m sure every one of the ladies reading this post adhered to this saying. It’s the most widely known of all wedding superstitions. But do you know why? The “something old” represents  the couple's desire to hold onto deep-rooted memories; "something new" symbolizes the new union of marriage; "something borrowed" represents a token of love from a friend or family member, preferably from a married woman who has had a happy marriage—so the bride’s marital life will also be happy; and "something blue" represents fertility. As for the sixpence in her shoe, that's for good fortune.

·       Why the bride (and groom) cut the first slice of cake:

The bride cuts the first slice so the couple won’t be childless. Today’s tradition of the husband assisting by laying his hand over hers while cutting signifies that the couple will share all their possessions.

·       Why the bride and groom feed each other a bite of cake:

This custom signifies the bride symbolically offering herself up to her husband.

·       Why everyone at the wedding should eat a bite of cake:

To refuse to partake of the wedding cake is unlucky for the bride and groom and for the person who doesn’t eat cake. So take a bite, even if you’re on a diet.

·       Why the bride and groom keep a portion of the cake:

Traditionally a portion of the cake, usually the top tier, is saved by the bridal couple, originally to ensure the groom’s faithfulness. In earlier times, when a couple’s first child was normally born within the first year of marriage, the cake was eaten at the baby’s christening. In modern times, the tradition of eating the cake falls at the couple’s first anniversary. Why? Because superstition says that good luck and prosperity occur when the couple eats a piece of the cake a year later, and it’s also a great way to remember that fabulous occasion that sealed your love.

 

Did you have any other traditions you adhered to at your wedding?

 

Now for a peek at a new love story. I hope you’ll enjoy this excerpt from my romantic comedy.

           ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

A Groom for Mama

By Catherine Castle

 

Beverly Walters is dying, and before she goes she has one wish—to find a groom for her daughter. To get the deed done, Mama enlists the dating service of Jack Somerset, Allison’s former boyfriend.

The last thing corporate-climbing Allison wants is a husband. Furious with Mama’s meddling, and a bit more interested in Jack than she wants to admit, Allison agrees to the scheme as long as Mama promises to search for a cure for her terminal illness.

A cross-country trip from Nevada to Ohio ensues, with a string of disastrous dates along the way, as the trio hunts for treatment and A Groom For Mama.

 

Excerpt:

Allison snapped her suitcase shut and shoved it under the bed. “I don’t want to talk about the one who got away, or any other man, Mama. They grab your heart and break it—just like Daddy did to you . . . to us.”

“Not all men are like your daddy,” Mama said. “There are good ones out there, too.”

“Not in my experience.” Allison gave her mother a hug. “I don’t want to talk about it anymore, okay?”

Mama’s silence told her she hadn’t heard the last of this subject. Her mother’s stomach growled, easing the way to a subject change.

Laughing, she asked, “Are you hungry, because I’m starving. Come on, I’ll fix you some lunch. How does your favorite—tuna salad—sound?”

“Lunch,” Mama echoed. “Oh, I forgot to tell you—Jack’s bringing something over.” The doorbell rang and Mama smiled sweetly. “You’d better run and answer the door, dear. I’m not taking the stairs too good, what with my arthritis and—”

Allison cut her off. “Please don’t say it, Mama.”

With a nod, Mama said, “Hurry then, before whoever it is thinks we’re not coming.”

“Do you need me to return and help you downstairs?”

“No thank you, dear. I can manage.”

Allison didn’t doubt that for a minute. Her already-stubborn mother grew more stubborn every day, if that was possible.

It’s just the situation. I won’t lose my temper when we’re both so stressed, she promised herself. Time is too precious to waste on arguing.

Bounding down the stairwell as the bell rang, she shouted, “I’m coming! I’m coming. Keep your pants on!” She threw the deadbolt off and jerked open the door.

Jack Somerset stood in front of her, his chin perched on top of a stack of Chinese take-out cartons. Shoving down her tingling gut reaction, she commanded her heart to stop jumping like an overexcited puppy.

Except for a few more laugh wrinkles around his eyes, Jack hadn’t changed a bit since college. His brown hair still dipped over his forehead in a shaggy mane. A lopsided smile spread across his face when he saw her. He winked at her, his green eyes twinkling.

“Well, if it isn’t the bride-to-be. Nice to see you again, Allison.” He jiggled the cartons balanced in his arms. “I brought Chinese. I remember it was your favorite. Moo shu pork, right?” He pushed past her and headed toward the kitchen, apparently as well acquainted with her childhood home as she.

Grabbing her head between her hands, she squeezed her temples.

Chinese. Of all the things he could have brought, he brought Chinese.

She’d broken it off with him in a Chinese restaurant . . . over moo shu pork. Very loudly and very violently. The pork and the pot of hot tea had landed in Jack’s lap when he tried to keep her from leaving the table. Did his choice of entrees mean Jack hadn’t forgotten the incident? She hadn’t, and she’d been unable to eat that particular Chinese dish since.

Trailing behind him into the kitchen, she said, “You can put the boxes on the table.”

He obliged then started taking plates out of the cabinets.

A frisson of annoyance crept up her spine at the familiarity he showed in her mother’s kitchen. “Why don’t you just make yourself at home?”

“I will.” He shot a boyish grin at her. “Been doing it for some time now.” He set three plates on the table then turned and dug into the silverware drawer.

Stunned, she watched as he laid the silverware out on the table just the way Mama liked them—the knife, fork, and spoon lined up on the right-hand side of the plate. He hadn’t been joking when he said he been making himself at home.

What in heaven’s name had her old flame been doing in her absence? Courting Mama?

 

Buy link for A Groom for Mama  Available for pre-order on Amazon.

 

Leave a comment on this post to get your name in the drawing for A Bride for Mama. Don’t forget that every comment this month gets your mane in the drawing for the grand prize and runner up prizes.

 

Bio:

Multi-award-winning author Catherine Castle has been writing all her life. Before beginning her career as a romance writer she worked part-time as a freelance writer. She has over 600 articles and photographs to her credit, under her real name, in the Christian and secular market. Besides writing, Catherine loves traveling with her husband, singing, and attending theatre. In the winter she loves to quilt and has a lot of UFOs (unfinished objects) in her sewing case. In the summer her favorite place to be is in her garden. She’s passionate about gardening and even won a “Best Hillside Garden” award from the local gardening club.

 Her debut inspiration romantic suspense, The Nun and the Narc, from Soul Mate Publishing was an ACFW Genesis Finalist, a 2014 EPIC finalist, and the winner of the 2014 Beverly Hills Book Award and the 2014 RONE Award. Her most recent release, A Groom for Mama, is a sweet romantic comedy from Soul Mate Publishing.  Both books are available on Amazon.