Published in Internet Newsroom.

May through August are the most popular months to get married, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Believe it or not, the Internet can help you find wedding professionals and vendors in your area, answers to your most perplexing wedding problems, and even online planners to make the myriad of decisions easier to handle.

Journalists who write articles about weddings will find a multitude of resources at their fingertips on the Web.

Let's begin at Weddingpages Online, one of the best and most comprehensive online resources for planning a wedding. Their online planner offers month by month checklists, calendars, and reception planning tips. The online planner will help you plan the engagement announcement, the wedding budget, and even the honeymoon. Want to know what the weather will be like for the big day? Check out their Wedding Day Forecast. The site features articles, online advertisers, and even a forum for posting your diamond-related questions. Be sure to visit the FAQ files, where you'll find the answers to questions such as how to include both a father and a stepfather in the ceremony.

Another excellent site for planning a wedding is USA Bride.com, where brides can even list their weddings online and set up a gift registry. Visit the Frugal Wedding feature that is loaded with tips on stretching the wedding dollar. Not sure how to wear your hair? Check out 5 Great Wedding Hairdos. If you need ideas for wedding favors, visit Favors Galore. The site offers suggestions for table centerpieces, comments on wearing or not wearing gloves, and information about wedding songs.

At Wedding Details, you can learn some of the early traditions of weddings and how they got started. For example, brides stand to the groom's left because early Anglo Saxon grooms often had to defend their brides from would-be kidnappers, so their sword-arm needed to be free. The best warrior in the tribe stood by the groom and was responsible for helping him defend the bride, which explains the placement of the best man. The site also features help in planning a wedding, including a calendar checklist and wedding tips galore, things that a busy bride may not have time to consider. For example, for an outdoor wedding, a good idea is to have a supply of umbrellas on hand. Need help in deciding on the perfect spot for a honeymoon? The Honeymoon planner allows you to select a country or state, then learn about the different resorts, bed and breakfasts, or vacation ideas that are available.

A wedding site that you won't want to miss is WedNet, the Internet's Premier Wedding Planning Site. The site offers answers to difficult wedding questions, such as how to keep lipstick from getting on the groom when you kiss at the end of the ceremony. Sign up to receive a free monthly wedding newsletter, or check the classified ads to see what might be available. Read articles like, "Hey! This is my wedding too!" or etiquette tips on how to handle second marriages.

Did you know that software is available to help you plan a wedding? SoftSeek.com offers wedding planning software to download over the Internet. Some of the programs are limited trial versions, some are shareware, and others are demo versions.

Here's a site that offers a free wedding webpage for the bride and groom: Bridal Gallery, Wedding Products and Services for the Bride. The site itself offers listing after listing of companies that offer wedding services, such as honeymoon destinations, planning services, and wedding consultants.

The Ultimate Internet Wedding Guide is an excellent and comprehensive site for planning a wedding. You'll find articles such as "How to Print your Own Wedding Invitations," or "Who Pays for What?" Learn budget ideas that really work, or visit the Ultimate Wedding Song Library to find the perfect song. Under the Ultimate Bridal Shower Guide, you'll learn the history behind bridal showers, games to play, and shower themes. The site features wedding experts who will answer your questions as well as mailing lists to join.

What about a site that offers wedding song samples to download? You'll find it at Wedding Central, which offers links to wedding resources like flowers and their meanings and prenuptial agreements. Under Wedding Services, select a state and you're off and running with more resources than you'll know what to do with.

For a wonderful listing of wedding tips, visit The "Tips" of Wedding Tips, where you'll learn tips on health and beauty, wedding gowns, florists, rings, and the wedding speech.

iBride is an interactive resource for brides where you can get help on planning your wedding, selecting your honeymoon, or registering your patterns. Each week they look at essential registry items for a particular area of your life. You can also read articles on topics such as stress, beauty, and finances.

If you're interested in the customs and traditions that surround weddings, visit Wedding Circle. Learn that the joint cutting of the cake symbolizes the first task in the couple's life together. When the bride and groom feed each other the first slice, this symbolizes the commitment to provide for each other. You can also learn what age-old customs can be incorporated into the ceremony to add a whole new dimension to the wedding.

We'll close with an excellent site published by a popular bridal magazine, MODERN BRIDE. At Weddings by Modern Bride, you'll get help in wedding planning, fashion and beauty, honeymoon planning, and local services. Be sure to check out their tips of the day, which offer helpful tidbits such as having a trial run with your hair stylist and makeup artist a few weeks in advance, to make sure you're pleased with the results.

Robin Nobles is a freelance writer who can be reached at robinnobles@robinsnest.com.

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