Fans of MTV's reality shows may already know that video director and skateboarder, Bam Margera, got married back in February. Bam has been making a name for himself on the network on shows like Jackass and Viva la Bam. Basically, he'll do pretty much any stunt in front of a camera, including marrying his childhood friend.

At the end of 2006, Bam and his fiancée, Missy Rothstein, started filming Bam's Unholy Union. More on Bam Margera's Unholy Union

Most of the time we focus on men popping the question, but it doesn't have to be that way. These are modern times. Women can ask men on dates, so they should also be able to ask the men in their lives to marry them.

Of course most celebrities tend to do it the traditional way, but there are some who buck traditions. Take two-time Grammy winning singer, Pink (whose real name is Alecia Moore), who married her boyfriend, motocross racer Carey Hart, last year.

The couple met at the 2001 X Games and dated for two years before calling it quits. Then in 2005, they rekindled their romance and decided to take it to the next level. During a June 2005 race, Pink wrote a sign saying “Will you marry me?” and held it up for Carey to see while he rushed around the track. On his next pass, she held up a sign announcing she was serious about her question. Clearly, he believed her and accepted her proposal. In no time, she was seen wearing a five carat diamond engagement ring in public.

Married on the Beach

About six months later, the couple headed to Costa Rica and were married on the beach in front of about 100 guests. The aisle was lined with lit candles and Billy Joel's “She's Always a Woman” played in the background.

Obviously Pink is a little more bold and outgoing than your average woman – any one familiar with her music or her videos could tell you that, but there's still something to be learned from her.

For example, her method of asking the big question was fun and unique. Maybe it wasn't the traditional down-on-one-knee proposal that some people might expect, but it was definitely special. Whether you're a man or a woman doing the proposing, think about how you could propose while your significant other was working. Maybe you could have a bouquet of flowers delivered with a note asking the question. Or you could wait until you're some place romantic: the top of a ferris wheel, watching the Fourth of July fireworks display, sitting beside a fountain.

Informal Weddings days

Of course, the engagement wasn't the only special part of Pink and Carey's relationship. Their destination wedding in Costa Rica was an informal, but beautiful event. Of course, you don't have to fly away to an island to have a special wedding. Most cities have gorgeous areas that would make perfect backdrops for the exchange of vows. Think about your local public parks, art museums, botanical gardens, zoos, river fronts, etc.

And finally remember that the music says it all. You don't have to limit yourself to traditional wedding music, even the “Wedding March” is optional. When the bride comes down the aisle, you could play her favorite song, for example. Or why not play a selection of the couple's favorite songs before the wedding starts. Save a special song to play during the recessional. The right music can help you make the ceremony your own and can set the mood for a wonderful event.

One of the biggest “groan” moments of a wedding is usually the period of the reception in which the members of the wedding party toast the bride and groom.  The reason most people don’t look forward to this portion of the reception is that they have had to sit through any number of mind numbing, excessively long, inappropriate, or drunken speeches.  However, your toast does not need to be that way.  Here are some wedding toast tips to make your speech memorable for the right reasons:

Tip #1:  Keep it short and simple.  Use a small index card to summarize what you are going to say.  If it doesn’t all fit, it is too long, so trim it down.  Your wedding toast should be no more than three to five minutes.

Tip #2:  Check the guest list.  Many an inappropriate toast has been given due to the person not considering who is present.  It is okay to use humor, but not everyone will appreciate an R-rated version of it.  Keep your toast in good taste.

Tip #3:  Avoid the alcohol.  While alcohol may be known as “liquid courage,” it is also known as “Idiot Juice.”  You may think you need that drink to get through your speech, but instead you may find that you end up slurring or saying something inappropriate.  If you are than nervous, just make your toast a simple one or two line congratulatory statement.

Tip #4:  Keep it personal.  Include some stories about the couple in your toast.  It makes what you have to say memorable and fun.  However, avoid telling stories that will embarrass the couple or be considered in bad taste.

Tip #5:  Practice.  Practice makes perfect, and it prevents you from bumbling the toast if you get nervous.  Just go over your notes ahead of time and try saying the toast a few times before you actually do it.

Tip #6:  Ask everyone to toast.  At the end of your statement, you should ask everyone to stand and raise their glasses to the bride and groom.

Planning your wedding takes time and effort to get everything you need, and one great resource for finding what you need is a bridal show.  However, getting the most from a bridal show is not just about showing up that day to see what vendors have to offer.  Instead you need to be more strategic about your approach so that you have a great experience, get new and fun ideas, and find what you need at the right price.  Here are some tips to help you get the most out of the show:

Register:  Registering ahead of time often brings a discounted ticket.  Also, you will be able to get information you need to plan your bridal show outing and possibly other discounts.

Research:  Once you have the information on the show, you can see what vendors will be present and which ones you want to visit.  By knowing where you want to go, you will be less likely to get distracted by things you don’t need.  Also, realize that many vendors offer discounts if you book their services at the show, so know which vendors you will be willing to sign with that day.  Also, if you see a vendor on the list that interests you, do your research and design questions before you head out.

Fashion Show:  Be aware of bridal show schedule.  There is usually a fashion show, which can be helpful in determining what style dress you want.  You will be able to see how the dresses look on people rather than seeing a photo in a magazine or advertisement.

Ask Questions:  You spent the time researching the show and vendors, so do not be afraid to ask questions.  That is what the vendors are there for, so ask away.  Many of them love talking about what they do, and they will be glad to answer any questions you may have.  However, do not be rude and interrupt other conversations.  Just quietly listen in, because you may get your questions answered via their conversations.

Get There Early:  Bridal shows and expos are very big occasions, so there may be a lot of people running around.  Plan to spend at least a few hours there, and take your time.  Also, get there early so that you can beat some of the rush.

Keep and Open Mind:  While you may not think you need every vendor, you never know.  Try to stop by every booth to gather information.  Later on you may be looking for an item you forgot, but then you find exactly what you need in your stack of information from the expo.

Stay Organized:  Try to carry separate bags or folders for specific groups of vendors.  Use one bag for vendors you hire that day.  Use another bag for vendors you want to meet with at a later date.  Then use a third bag for vendors you don’t think you need, but you want to keep their information “just in case.”  This way, when you get home, the information is easy to find.

Theme weddings are often a fun and unique way to celebrate your special day, but if you are a “Star Trek” fan, you now have a new place to hold your dream wedding – Las Vegas.  Known for catering to the whims of just about anyone, and boasting the greatest number of wedding chapels in the world, Las Vegas now allows couples to go “where no couple has gone before” – the bridge of the U.S.S. Enterprise.

The Las Vegas Hilton has a theme-park style attraction called “Star Trek:  The Experience,” in which couples can get married on the bridge of the beloved starship.  Couple can even opt to have four extras attend the wedding dressed as Klingons, BORG, or Ferengi, as the Hilton offers several wedding packages for enthusiast couples.

While this is only one form of a “theme wedding,” you can develop your wedding surrounding any theme possible.  Other popular choices include Renaissance, Shakespeare, Star Wars, and decade themes.  The theme of choice requires a little extra planning, but can make your wedding a memorable affair.

Do you want to throw a theme wedding, but not sure where to look for inspiration?  The easiest place to look is at your interests.  Use a theme that fits your passion.  Then check out books or movies that give you ideas for elements you can incorporate.  For instance, if you are throwing a Renaissance wedding, you may want to look up dress styles, foods, and décor of the period.  You could see if there are musicians that play that style music.  Just doing research into the theme itself can help provide you with inspiration, but if you find yourself stressed with the logistics of planning, you may want to hire a wedding planner or enlist a friend to help you out.

Theme weddings do not need to be all out events, either.  You may just want to add elements of a theme to your wedding.  For instance, if you are a big football fan, maybe you hand out football themed favors.  Or maybe you are an avid gardener.  You can hand out specially designed seed packets to your guests.  The themes and ideas are limitless.

Not all celebrities need a huge wedding with custom dresses in exotic locations when they tie the knot.  One recent example was gymnast Dominique Moceanu who married her long-time boyfriend and former coach Michael Canales on November 3, 2006.  In fact, Dominique did something else most celebrities would never dream of doing:  she planned the wedding herself!

Jumping Through Olympic Hoops!

Dominique, best known for winning a gold medal in the 1996 Olympics, met Michael almost 13 years ago while she was competing in the Junior National Championships.  She was 12, and he was 16.  When they met again a five years later, they became a couple and Michael, who was also a nationally ranked gymnast, started coaching her.

Their romance culminated in a Saturday afternoon ceremony in front of more than 175 guests which included other Olympic gymnasts, including Nadia Comaneci and Dominique Dawes.  Her teammate, Kerri Strug, was even a bridesmaid in the wedding.

Although Dominique's relationship with her parents had been rocky in the past (she became emancipated from her parents at the age of 16), her father was present at the wedding and even proudly walked her down the aisle.  Dominique didn't choose to have a dress custom-made for her as other celebrity brides would have, instead she chose an Oleg Cassini off-the-rack.  She also handled most of the wedding arrangements herself without the help of a professional wedding planner or public relations team.

Dominique Did It This Way

More brides can learn from Dominique.  We all want things to be perfect, but hiring a professional planner to help make the decisions and coordinate the event isn't cheap and it isn't really necessary.  Sure, you might save a few hundred dollars here and there because the planner gets special deals from vendors but, in most cases, you're going to be paying that wedding planner more than you're going to save.

Plus, this is your wedding.  Traditionally, planning the intricate details of the big day has always been part of the thrill for the bride and sometimes even the groom.  When you turn those details over to a stranger, you're missing out on a big part of the event.

Dominique also kept things simple.  Even though her wedding party included sports celebrities, the wedding was very traditional and down-to-earth.  She knew it was a day to celebrate the love between her and Michael, not a day to attract media attention for having the most attention-getting ceremony.

While you might not expect a lot of media attention for your wedding, lots of brides do forget the real purpose of the wedding at some point between its planning and its execution.  We've all heard about these bridezillas who make the ceremony miserable for everyone around them.  Those women have simply lost sight of what the big day means.

So how can you prevent that from happening to you.  Well, when things get really stressful during the planning process, step away for a moment and take a deep breath.  Then remind yourself that the reason you are going through all of the stress is because you want to share this special moment in your relationship with everyone else who matters in your lives.  It might even help to have a picture of your spouse-to-be handy as an extra reminder.

Regardless of whether you plan your own wedding like Dominique or you hire a professional to help you, it's important to keep in mind what's most important: each other.

Sometimes the unlikliest couples are the ones most likely to walk down the aisle.  Take, for instance, Jay McGraw – the oldest son of talk show host and self-help author Dr. Phil McGraw – and Playboy model Erica Dahm who were married on August 12, 2006.  Jay, an author of his own self-help books for teenagers, met Erica while they were working on Renovate My Family, a reality show on the Fox Network.

Who would have thought that a writer and a Playboy model would end up being a good match?

A Home Wedding
The wedding was held at Jay's parents home in Beverly Hills.  One of the large rooms was draped in thirty feet of sheer fabric covered in crystals to create the white chapel back drop.  The couple wrote their own vows and exchanged them in front of a modest crowd of 70 friends and family members.  Jay's father served as his best man while Erica's sisters – they are triplets – stood beside her at the altar.

After the ceremony, the couple headed to a hotel for an incredible reception for over 400 guests. 

Wedding Tips
Of course, you don't have to marry a Playboy model to learn something from their example.  Actually, their wedding story illustrates that you don't have to say your vows in a church in order to have a beautiful wedding.

Even though your home is probably not as stunning or as enormous as the McGraws', it could still serve as a perfect location for your wedding.  With some decorations and material from any craft store, you could transform your average living room into a romantic setting fit for a ceremony.  And if you're not sold on using your home because it's too small, too full of pets, or has too little parking, you could always use the home of a friend or family member.

If you're getting married during good weather months, then you might want to consider having your wedding in your backyard.  Arches, tables, chairs, aisle runners, and other elements can all be rented, so don't worry if your backyard's seating and décor are limited.  Plus, if you start planning early, you could hire a landscaper (probably for a fraction of the cost of renting a church) to add some bushes, trees, or flowers to the yard to create a beautiful look in time for the big day.

The good thing about a backyard wedding is that the location can double as a reception hall.  You could have a down-to-earth barbecue (catered, of course) under the stars. 

Alternative Houses?
If you like the idea of getting married in a house but not your house, then there is another alternative.  Some cities have designated historical houses that are being preserved as tourist attractions.  Many of these homes are available for special events, including weddings.  To find out if you have a historical home in your area, contact your local tourism information center.

As Jay and Erica have shown, you don't have to travel far from home in order to have the wedding you've always dreamed of.

June may be the biggest month for weddings, but not all celebrities choose to exchange vows during the summer.  Take Santa Clause star Tim Allen's recent marriage as an example.  On October 9, 2006, Tim said “I do” to his girlfriend of five years, Jane Hajduk in a private ceremony in Grand Lake, Colorado.

Tim and Jane met in 2001 while he was still legally married to his first wife, Laura Diebel, with whom he has a 17 year old daughter.  They dated for years and even worked together on the less than stellar Zoom and The Shaggy Dog.

Grand Lake Ceremony

Tim, who was born in Denver, chose Grand Lake for the ceremony, probably because its one of the most beautiful spots in the state.   The specific location of the wedding wasn't released, but the small village of shopping, restaurants, and charming real estate, is home to nearly a dozen different wedding facilities .

For a Colorado wedding, especially one with such a tremendous view of the Rocky Mountains, October is an ideal time because of the beauty of the changing season.  However, October and other off-season months can be great wedding times in other places, too.  Let's look at a few reasons why.

Why Marry Off-Season?

One reason is you're more likely to be able to get what you want for your wedding.  If you're planning for a late spring or early summer wedding then you'd better plan at least 24 months in advance especially if you're hoping to have the ceremony in a popular location or to hire the top vendors in your area.  If you choose an off-season time, then you're more likely to find your locations and vendors available when you need them.

Another reason is that you're going to save money – or, at least, you should.  Wedding vendors charge premium prices during the wedding season just as hotels and tourist attractions do.  When demand is high, prices are just naturally going to get higher and that's not a great deal if you're planning a wedding on a budget.  With an off-season wedding, however, you'll either automatically receive a discount or you can ask for off-season pricing if it's not offered.

Finally, depending on where you are located, off-season months might just be more desirable weather wise for a wedding.  In many spots, the temperatures and humidity make it miserable for the bride and the bridal party to wear their dresses.  The heat can also easily ruin cakes and can increase the risk of dehydrating guests, especially when there's drinking involved at the reception.  Also, if you have your heart set on an evening wedding, you're going to have to wait much later at night during the spring and summer than during the off-season.

Of course, these benefits may or may not have figured in to Tim and Jane's decision to get married in October.  Either way, choosing an off-season time for your special day might be just another way for you to have the wedding you truly want without worrying about the money or the weather.

Not all marriages end up being happily ever after tales. Some, sadly, end in divorce even after the most elaborate and romantic weddings .  Take, for example, the interesting weddings actress Pamela Anderson and musician Kid Rock had before their marriage came to a quick end in November.

Short Engagement

On July 29th, the couple were married on a yacht in Saint-Tropez, France just eleven days after announcing their re-engagement (the couple had been previously engaged but broke up in 2003).    While photos of the wedding show her wearing a white string bikini similar to the one she wore when she married Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee in 1995, she insists that she wore the bikini only after the wedding was completed. 

Although the wedding was reportedly a lot of fun – at least based on claims by people who attended, such as Elton John's husband, David Furnish – it wasn't legal.  French law requires all couples to exchange their vows in the mayor's office.

Making It Legal

On August 3rd, Pamela and Kid ended up making it legal in a much more subdued manner at a courthouse in Beverly Hills, California.  No one but the couple and a friend were present to see their vows exchanged.

Just fourteen days later, the couple were married again.  This time they tied the knot on stage at Tootsie's Orchid Lounge in Nashville, Tennessee in front of a surprised crowd of patrons.  The ceremony was done by an actual judge from the county and ended with Kid singing a “Some Kind of Wonderful” to Pamela.

With three ceremonies under their belts, the couple tried to make a go of the whole marriage thing only to find out within just a few months that it wasn't meant to be.  However, that doesn't mean you can't take something away from their adventure.

Taking Weddings to Your Relations

While it may seem crazy to have so many ceremonies, it might not be such a bad idea for some couples.  You both want your families to be able to attend but what if the distance is too far for them to travel?  Who makes the sacrifice of not having their family present on the most important day of their lives? Well, the answer could be neither.  You could have multiple ceremonies – although you might want to keep all of them a little low-key for budget reasons – in different locations.

Or perhaps you want to get married quickly because you're expecting a child or one of you is being shipped out with the military.  You could have a quick courthouse marriage now, then plan a bigger event later.

You might also have your heart set on a destination wedding, such as Saint Tropez, yet your families want to be present as you exchange your vows.  There's no reason you couldn't have both weddings and make everyone happy, right?

The bottom line is that while Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock's multiple weddings may have seemed like a crazy publicity stunt leading up to another failed celebrity marriage, there's no reason why you couldn't do something similar in order to have the wedding(s) you want.

Celebrities often behave in strange and unusual ways – one only has to remember Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah's couch and yelling at Today's Matt Laurer to realize that.  But perhaps no celebrity has “strange” nailed down so perfectly the way Howard K. Stern , was strange:  it was almost too normal.

But Who Was the father?
Back in the fall of 2006, Anna Nicole Smith made entertainment news when she announced that she was pregnant and refused to name the baby's father.  Her fans were even allowed to pay so they could view her pregnancy progress on her web site.  Although the birth of her daughter came without problems, it was marred by the unexplained death of her 20-year old son in her hospital room.

Just three weeks after her son's death, however, she decided to get married to Howard, who proclaimed himself the father of her baby even though another man was also making the same claim. 

Heading for the Bahamas
Their wedding was held on a tropical island, named Sandy Cay, which is in the Bahamas.  Their minister, friends, and family members were brought to the island by a ferry that afternoon.  Although their wedding was informal, Howard wore a black suit and she wore a long white dress.  Part of the way through the ceremony, they not only exchanged their vows but also selected passages from the Bible.  Instead of just kissing to celebrate their union, the couple jumped into the ocean . . . as giddy as a high school couple.

Following the ceremony, the couple served champagne and apple cider – an unusual combination.  Then a sailboat brought over a healthy supply of fried chicken from a popular chicken franchise for the guests to enjoy.

Learning Lessons
One thing you shouldn't learn from the ballad of Anna Nicole and her attorney-husband is that you need a lot of drama in your life to have a great wedding.  Most brides would crumple under the stress of giving birth to and losing a child within just three weeks – that's really more than most people could take!  Beyond all of that, however, it was clear that Anna Nicole and Howard were having a good time at their wedding, even though the ceremony wasn't legally binding.

That's what you should remember.  Above all else, you need to have a good time during your wedding and your reception.  So as you're going through every stage of your wedding planning you should be asking yourself:  Is this going to be fun?  Am I going to enjoy this?  Sure, wedding planning is stressful – so is life sometimes – but that doesn't mean you shouldn't take some time and enjoy everything you've been working on all these long months.

So look towards Anna Nicole and Howard for inspiration.  If you want to have fried chicken at your reception, then have it.  If you want to wear a flowing gown on the beach (and in the ocean), you should do it.  If you want to exchange Bible verses, special vows, poems, or even songs, then feel free to do that, too.  Do whatever you want, as long as you have a good time.