This is Offbeat Bride's archive of Advice posts.

Because Ann Landers isn't especially helpful when you're trying to figure out invitation etiquette for your polyamorous parents or trying to figure out what non-floral item to hold when you're walking down the aisle.

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Here's Jami and Jamie getting their potato sack race on. Photo by Ian Mullen

We hosted a game night reception so it could be more interactive for everyone. We bought most of the prizes on sale, nearing $200, but still saved a lot by not hiring a DJ or band, which comes with an added cost of a dance floor and lights.

That quote from Jami and Jamie's backyard game night wedding inspired me to put together a roundup of great games that you can play at your wedding. Ready, set, GO!

This is not exactly going to be a "omg, yay ideals!" kind of post. Nay, not this one. This, friends, is my personal story of how I was not able to calmly stick to my convictions. My story of how I let my mom take something and run with it. My tale of how I basically threw a tantrum like a frustrated toddler… and, my reflection of what I learned from it.

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So you're planning out your beverage strategy for your dry wedding, or your wedding with kids and future Offbeat Mamas, or just looking to offer some non-boozy alternatives. You can surely offer sodas and coffee, but why not make their experience a little more special with fancy-shmancy mocktails? Adding fancy stemware and a garnish will put those teetotalers in the mood to party, and they won't feel left out from any "signature cocktail" moments.

Realistically, every wedding is a blending of two families, but in no situations is this mixing of families more clear than when the one (or both!) halves of the couple have children from a past relationship. Over the years, we've seen lots of really lovely ways to include children in blended family weddings, but we've never featured the vows that were spoken.

For those of you looking for specific wording ideas, I've enlisted the help of a few of our favorite Offbeat Bride officiants, asking them to share wording for blended family vows that they've written. (Plus, we've got one batch of bonus vows from an Offbeat Bride Tribe member!)

If you know anything about neurology or brain cells, I'm currently mired in a slump I'd compare to the action potential "undershoot" — the point where the membrane can't do what it's supposed to because the ion channels are inactivated. If you're not familiar with that, let's just say I'm so burnt out on "wedding stuff" that all I can do is loaf about on the couch and whine (or wine).

What's a gal to do in this situation? How can I perk up enough to get tasks done? Here's what I've been trying…

Obviously, a wedding is the perfect excuse to whip out the sequins and glitter, but most of my family and friends have never seen me all tarted up and looking like RuPaul's latest protégé. I know, I know: be yourself! Wear what you want to! It's your day! But this is a wedding, not a diversity workshop. The last thing I want is a bunch of complicated questions about gender identity from a bunch of extended family members I only met me the day before (who have probably been drinking). It can be awfully hard to untangle how you want to feel in your clothes from how you want others to react to them.

Okay, I admit it, I'm part of the Wedding Industrial Complex — I work at wedding venue. I'm also an Offbeat Bride. As an offbeat member of the wedding industry, I wanted to share a couple of insider tips for finding a venue and caterer.