A good friend of mine is meeting with his pastor this evening so that he and his bride can submit letters detailing ten reasons why they are marrying each other. In a year, the pastor will send the letters to them in the mail as a sweet reminder of all of the passion and excitement they feel right now.

I love the idea of using your wedding planning process to build in romantic traditions that you can use to celebrate your love year after year. In addition to sending yourself letters, try some of these ideas to make sure your first (and fiftieth!) anniversary is bursting with romance and passion:

• Let Them Eat Cake! Many couples defrost a slice of their wedding cake to eat during their one-year anniversary, but why not carry the tradition over indefinitely? Choose a timeless cake flavor you can make yourself, so that you can celebrate each year of wedded bliss with the same sweet treat.
• Relive the Memories. Watch your wedding video, flip through your scrapbook and scan through photos to remember all of the good times. Some couples even arrange for the videographer to film wedding guests giving advice specifically for after the first year, and then they wait to watch the video until their first anniversary.
• Mini-Ceremonies. While you rehearse your wedding ceremony, think about little parts of the tradition that you could relive at each anniversary celebration. Even if it’s just you, your spouse, a bottle of wine and a box of Chinese takeout, you could both stand up and renew your vows, slipping your rings on each other’s fingers again and repeating your favorite part of your big day.
• Watch Your Love Grow. Immediately after your ceremony, plant a tree in the backyard. Take a photo with it each year on your anniversary so you can document how your love has grown since the day you said, “I do.” If you rent, use a houseplant or plant your wedding flowers at every place you live to keep the tradition going.

In honor of their anniversary, Heidi Klume and Seal recently held a trashy vow renewal ceremony that looks absolutely hilarious. The pictures of the celebrity guests dressed up in their trashiest looks on TackyWeddings are classic!

Since Heidi and Seal are known for being chic, glamorous and all-things-fashionable, do you think the theme is funny or a flop? Would you host a ridiculous costume party for your vow renewal ceremony? What’s your dream theme for an anniversary party?

Does Heidi and Seal’s trash-tastic party make you want to rant or rave?

When you are planning your wedding, you dedicate countless hours to finding the best websites, vendors and blogs to help you transform your ceremony and reception into wildly chic, stylish and memorable events. Once your big day is over, don’t let these great resources go to waste!

Most fashionable wedding retailers offer fantastic items that would fit perfectly into a celebration of any kind. For example, I spent hours looking for inspiration for my Thanksgiving table all to avail until I started researching wedding linen rentals on LinenEffects.com. Lo and behold, the site’s gorgeous table settings for fall weddings provided the perfect burst of creative energy I was looking for! I think their color palette will look gorgeous with Wedding Paper Divas’ Graceful Gratitude Thanksgiving Dinner Invitations.

If you are hosting an anniversary or birthday party any time soon, make good use of all the research you’ve already done on stylish party planning. Like Linen Effects, Wedding Paper Divas offers a wealth of fabulous ideas that will inspire you to celebrate any upcoming event in a big way! Here’s just a few of our fun and fashionable party invitations: