With Costs for Guests Skyrocketing, Couples Need to Ensure a Great Experience

Watch any of the popular wedding reality shows - Say Yes to the Dress, My Big Fat American Gyspy Wedding, Four Weddings - and the common denominator is money.

"The focus has always been on saving, borrowing or budgeting so that the bride can have her 'perfect' wedding," says Eric Gulbrandson, a wedding photographer and author of the new book, "Dream Wedding Secrets: The All Important G.S.F," (www.dreamweddingsecrets.com),

"But weddings now cost more than ever for the guests - the average cost jumped 75 percent over the past two years!"

Wedding guests now spend an average $592 per wedding on clothing, gifts, transportation, hotels, etc., up from $339 in 2012, according to a just-published American Express survey.

"If you want people to actually attend, you have to make sure it's the perfect wedding for them, too," says Gulbrandson, whose book is a compilation of tips for doing just that based on interviews with hundreds of wedding guests.

Gulbrandson shares four must-haves for achieving a high G.S.F - Guest Satisfaction Factor:

•  Have plenty of food and drink.

If you have to choose between paying for more food versus paying for better food, go for quantity. Nobody will mind if the food's not stellar, but they will if you run out!

Taste and presentation are important, but having enough food and drink and having it available throughout the event is more important, Gulbrandson says.

"I had one woman who said that, toward the end of one reception, the caterers brought out a nacho bar.  She said, 'It was cheap ... and perfect!' " he says.

•  Have details that show appreciation.

"One woman I interviewed talked about being greeted by trays of hors d'oeuvres and champagne as soon as they arrived for the wedding, and how it made the guests feel appreciated," Gulbrandson says.

"Another went to a wedding in a foreign country. The bride and groom had a welcome bag  filled with helpful items, like a survival translation dictionary, insect repellant and maps of the local area in the hotel rooms for their guests as they arrived."

When people take the time and expense to attend your wedding, details that show how much you appreciate that go over very well, Gulbrandson says.

•  Have on hand whatever's necessary to make people comfortable while they wait.

One couple Gulbrandson interviewed talked about arriving at the reception venue following the wedding and waiting for more than two hours for the bride and groom. Not only was there no food or drink available while they waited, there was no entertainment or information about when the wedding party would arrive.

"When they finally did arrive, it was clear they'd all been out drinking and joyriding in their limo," Gulbrandson says. "Many of their guests had left!"

Some delays are unavoidable: Photos taken after the wedding, for instance, can delay the reception.

"Make sure food and drink is available for those waiting, and entertainment," Gulbrandson says. "It could be an acoustic musician or a disc jockey, and slide shows of the bride and groom growing up."

•  Have entertainment that almost everyone can enjoy.

Usually, the choice is between a live band or a DJ. Since DJs can usually provide more musical variety than a band, they stand a better chance of giving all of your guests a good time.

"A DJ can play music that appeals to different generations and different styles of music," Gulbrandson says. "One compromise, if you'd really like a band, is to have live music for an hour or two, then switch to the DJ - although that's not the most economical choice!"

Gulbrandson also recommends taking the time to choose your own music rather than giving the DJ carte blanche. Be sure to choose songs from a variety of genres and styles. If there are some wedding standards you dislike, create a "do not play" list for the DJ.

About Eric Gulbrandson

Eric Gulbrandson is a longtime wedding photographer who began compiling interviews for "Dream Wedding Secrets: The All-Important G.S.F," (www.dreamweddingsecrets.com), in 2009. As a wedding photographer, he heard many happy guests - and many unhappy ones - and realized that most publications offering wedding advice focused on making the bride and wedding more beautiful, or saving money. He interviewed hundreds of guests and includes more than 200 of their quotes about essential Guest Satisfaction Factors.

Paddling the Lower Mississippi River

Caruthersville, Mo. - There was no brass band playing to greet John Ruskey and his five crewmates as they paddled their 30-foot wood canoe into Caruthersville to end an 11-day voyage on the Mississippi River from St. Louis.

Instead of trombones and tubas, lightning flashed, thunder boomed and rain fell. Lots of rain.

"That's part of the adventure, you have to accept what Mother Nature throws at you," said Ruskey, shrugging off the storm. "That becomes part of the stories that come off the river with you."

Ruskey, 50, owns Quapaw Canoe Co. in Clarksdale, Miss., which made the handsome cypress strip canoe, dubbed "the Grasshopper," that the travelers arrived in. The "voyageur canoe" is similar to the big boats paddled by early explorers and pioneers.

Ruskey also is director of the Lower Mississippi River Foundation, which he founded in 2011. The foundation's mission is to spread the word about the beauty of floating the stretch of the Mississippi from its confluence with the Missouri north of St. Louis to the Gulf of Mexico.

Over the last two years, Ruskey has gathered information for his Rivergator, a paddler's guide to the Lower Mississippi; it's available free online at RiverGator.org. The website currently has stories, photos, maps and information on the stretch from Caruthersville to Vicksburg, Miss.

"Most people only experience the Mississippi from a bridge, which always goes over an industrial area that is not attractive," Ruskey said. "And the locals will tell you, 'Don't get on the river; it's ugly.'

"People just don't think of the Mississippi as a place to go and enjoy the outdoors. But the fishermen know. It's like a greatly held secret."
Ruskey and his crew now have traveled the Mississippi from St. Louis to Baton Rouge, La., a total of almost 1,000 miles. Along the way, they've accumulated data on camping spots, points of interest and potential obstacles, all of which will be posted online by Oct. 15. In 2015, they'll add 235 miles through New Orleans to the Gulf of Mexico to complete their Lower Mississippi Water Trail.

"We want to share the wild aspects of the Lower Mississippi River for paddlers," Ruskey said.
"Primarily this is for advanced paddlers in expedition-style canoes or sea kayaks. Those are made for long-distance travel and are capable in all the challenges the Mississippi presents - waves, winds, long crossings, quick crossings in between towboats."

Their argument, that much of the Lower Mississippi is wild and scenic, was evident in the 307-mile stretch from St. Louis to Caruthersville, Ruskey said.

"For about half the way, all you see is big trees, big bluffs, big islands thriving with wildlife and the big river that ties them all together," he said.

"The bluffs below St. Louis were just spectacular, particularly around Herculaneum and Crystal City," he added. "In the back chutes, behind the islands, we saw deer, coyotes, bald eagles, numerous songbirds. At Osborne Chute, below Crystal City, we saw three eagles feasting on a gar. Sunrise on the limestone cliffs at Trail of Tears State Park was beautiful."

Paddlers will share the river with towboats and barges, but Ruskey said that was not a problem.

"The towboats are slow-moving and very predictable," he said. "Normally, on any stretch of the river, you'll see them about an hour before they actually pass. That gives any perceptive paddler time to predict where they'll go, and how to maneuver around them."

Getting more paddlers out on the Lower Mississippi will have a beneficial impact by making more people conscious of the landscape of the river's flood plain, Ruskey said.

"Not only do paddlers clean up places they camp, but they also become impassioned users of the river," he said. "That leads to more public land along the river and better decisions about its use."

As far as the occasional thunderstorm, that is just part of life on the Mississippi, Ruskey said.

"You might be slightly uncomfortable, like getting mud between your toes or sunburn," he said. "But these are things that make you remember the experience and what wilderness is all about."

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·         Free emotional-support help line from Optum open to anyone

• Assistance for UnitedHealthcare plan participants whose access to care may have been affected

 

 

minnetonka, Minn. (June 19, 2014) - UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) and its benefits and services businesses, UnitedHealthcare and Optum, are taking immediate action to help people in Iowa and Nebraska affected by the recent tornadoes and floods.  This includes a free emotional-support line to help people in the affected communities and assisting health plan participants who may be affected and need to make alternate arrangements to ensure continuity of care.

• Free Help Line: Optum, a leading health and behavioral health services company, is offering a free emotional-support help line.

The toll-free number, 866-342-6892, will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for as long as necessary. The service is free of charge and open to anyone. Specially trained Optum mental health specialists help people manage their stress and anxiety so they can continue to address their everyday needs. Callers may also receive referrals to community resources to help them with specific concerns, including financial and legal matters.

Along with the toll-free help line, emotional-support resources and information are available online at www.liveandworkwell.com.

• Help Finding a Network Care Provider, Early Refills: Plan participants who need help finding a care provider in the UnitedHealthcare network or obtaining early prescription refills can call customer care at the number located on the back of their medical ID card.

For plan participants who cannot locate their medical ID card, call 866-633-2446, 8 a.m.-8 p.m. (in the local time zone), Monday through Friday. People enrolled in employer-sponsored and individual health plans who have a smartphone can download the free Health4Me app, which provides instant access to their ID card, network care providers, their personal health benefits and more. The Health4Me app is available as a free download at the Apple iTunes App Store and the Android Market on Google Play.

About UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) is a diversified health and well-being company dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and making health care work better. With headquarters in Minnetonka, Minn., UnitedHealth Group offers a broad spectrum of products and services through two business platforms: UnitedHealthcare, which provides health care coverage and benefits services; and Optum, which provides information and technology-enabled health services. Through its businesses, UnitedHealth Group serves more than 85 million people worldwide. For more information, visit UnitedHealth Group at www.unitedhealthgroup.com.

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Piggybacking the obesity epidemic, diabetes rates continue to surge. On June 10, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new and alarming statistics on diabetes. An estimated 29 million Americans have the disease, a nearly 12 percent increase from the 26 million diabetics in 2010.

One-fourth of people don't know they have diabetes?a scary fact, given the complications of chronically high blood sugar: heart attack, stroke, sight-robbing eye disease, kidney failure, foot amputation. Worse, another 86 million adults have prediabetes, a condition of elevated blood sugar just below the threshold for diabetes.

The vast majority of cases are type 2 diabetes, a condition characterized by insulin resistance, meaning cells fail to respond to insulin. In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas doesn't make enough insulin.

The good news is type 2 diabetes is largely preventable. A seminal 2006 study demonstrated that intensive lifestyle modification reduced the risk of developing diabetes by 58 percent, as compared to a 31 percent risk reduction achieved with the antidiabetes drug metformin.

• Lose excess body fat. Being overweight is a big risk factor for diabetes.  In contrast, every kilogram (2.2 pounds) of weight lost reduces diabetes risk by 16 percent.
• Follow a plant-based, low-calorie diet. Eat a variety of fruits and vegetables?a dietary pattern studies show reduces diabetes risk. Foods to avoid are those rich in trans fats (also called hydrogenated fat), saturated fat, and sugar.
• Drink water. Studies link sugar-sweetened beverages with obesity and diabetes.  Cut them out of your diet and the risk of both conditions falls.
• Move your body. Physical inactivity raises the risk of diabetes. Exercise renders cells more sensitive to insulin. The aforementioned 2006 study had volunteers exercising moderately 150 minutes a week. Brisk walking does the trick.
• Stress less. The stress response triggers the release of several hormones that increase blood sugar. Studies show that mindfulness meditation improves the ability to cope with stress. Physical activity and social support also help relieve stress.
• Sleep well. Chronic sleep deprivation and poor quality sleep increase the risk for diabetes and obesity. For tips on sleeping better, see this Remedy Chick's blog. If you have continued problems sleeping, contact your doctor.
• Keep medical appointments. Warning signs of type 2 diabetes are less dramatic than those of type 1 diabetes.  That's why it's important to see your doctor regularly.