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Tying the knot is a big step in life and while you may seem ready, there are definitely some things you’ll want to know before you say your vows and commit to just one man. Some of these small details can really impact your relationship, negatively or positively. So, if you’re hearing wedding bells in the near future, before it becomes official, here are some must-know details.

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From YourTango

By Jane Garapick

It’s an all too common scenario; there you are, still reeling from your whirlwind romance and even more whirlwind wedding planning. The invitations have long been sent out; travel plans made, cake ordered, non-refundable deposits have been deposited. Suddenly you have this nagging gut feeling that it’s just not the right thing to do. Something is telling you to call off the wedding. Is it simply the typical pre-wedding jitters?

Most, if not all, engaged couples experience some level of nervousness and last minute questioning about whether or not it’s right, whether or not he’s the one, whether or not you both have what it takes to be in this thing for the long haul. Just because you have cold feet is not a good reason to call off the wedding – but the following are:

1. You’re hoping he’ll change. You already know you don’t share the same values, but you think he’ll “come around” once you’re hitched. Maybe he wants to keep partying with the old gang and you’re ready for the white picket fence. Or you see onesies and flushable diapers in your future and he doesn’t want to have kids. Even when you want the same things, marriage is a rough road, fraught with the ups and downs and curve balls that you’re just not expecting. But if you’re going into it thinking “opposites attract”, we’ll work it out, he’ll settle down once we’re married, well, you’re definitely in for more downs than ups.

Check out the other 6 reasons on YourTango.com.

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When you’ve been in a relationship with the same man for awhile, you will more than likely start thinking ahead to the future: marriage, living together, kids, and so on. Your mind is bound to wonder when he is going to propose with the ring of your dreams. If you’re wondering if your guy is ready to pop the question, here are 14 signs that he’s going to do it really soon!

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Guess the jokes on us! While entertainment writers have been spreading tales of Janet Jackson and her billionaire boo, Wissam Al Mana,  planning a lavish wedding ceremony fit for royalty, Janet and Wissam have pulled the plug on on all of that noise, releasing a statement to ET saying no wedding is in the works because they’re already married!

According to ET, in their first joint statement as a married couple, Janet and Wissam said:

“The rumors regarding an extravagant wedding are simply not true. Last year we were married in a quiet, private, and beautiful ceremony.

“Our wedding gifts to one another were contributions to our respective favorite children’s charities. We would appreciate that our privacy is respected and that we are allowed this time for celebration and joy. With love, Wissam and Janet”

Good luck with that. Janet should know that with spreading this news, those previous rumors are just going to shift direction. Instead of people guessing what the couple would have done in what everyone thought was their upcomingwedding, the focus will now simply turn to trying to discover what went down in their private ceremony.

Kudos to the couple for keeping things private for this long, though, although Janet is no stranger to secret marriages. Her union with 37-year-old Qatar billionaire businessman Wissam is her third marriage, and the third one she’s kept under wraps. In late 1984, Janet eloped with  James DeBarge at 18 years old, but the two divorced shortly afterwards, and the marriage was annulled in mid-1985. Then in 1992, she secretly entered into her second marriage with dancer, songwriter, and director René Elizondo, Jr., which lasted eight years.

Hopefully the third time will be the charm for 46-year-old Janet Jackson, or shall I say Mrs. Al Mana? Congrats and good luck to the couple!

Lewis Whyld/PA Wire URN:15299925 (Press Association via AP Images)

You’ve prepared for the costs of the perfect dress, shoes, and venue to complete your grand wedding day, a celebration with friends and family. But are your finances ready to pay the premium for the floral arrangements, the costly professional wedding photographer, or a Saturday night wedding?

A happy marriage is priceless, but a great wedding can cost! Check out these ten wedding expenses that could make or break you and your fiance’s wallets.

Goodies from the Lover.ly website.

There are websites out there to satisfy foodies, crafty folks, television junkies, and, of course, brides. Lover.ly is a search engine for brides that allows them to save content similar to Pinterest and it has joined with Real Simple magazine for a content and advertising partnership.

Real Simple, which has 1.975 million readers as of June 2012, will pull some of Lover.ly’s content into its first-ever online weddings channel, TechCrunch reported. Lover.ly currently gets its content from a variety of guest bloggers, a handful of wedding and bridal magazines, and retailers and vendors. By partnering with Real Simple, the content will be syndicated, getting wider reach overall. The partnership also includes an advertising element, as the Real Simple ad sales team will also work to fill Lover.ly’s inventory.

In addition to this partnership, Lover.ly also announced that it is re-designing its website and introducing a new mobile application.

“We’re launching a brand-new property from start to finish,” Lover.ly founder and CEO Kellee Khalil told TechCrunch. “We had to look at our brand, what it stands for, and how it’s going to translate over time. We’re leaning towards becoming a lot more sophisticated, more modern and more tech-centric.”

The mobile app will be more about browsing, but will also allow users to take photos on-the-go and upload them to their Lover.ly pages.

When I tell you Nene is giving us life this season, I am not exaggerating. Last night she read everybody up, down, and sideways and didn’t let not one little detail slip past her when it came to the messiness of some of her castmates, proving Kenya isn’t the only person who this season wouldn’t have been the same without. Check out the highlights from last night.

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According to the NY Post, NBA Baller Amar’e Stoudemire and his fiancée, Alexis Welch, were a part of the mass of engaged couples who rushed out to jump the broom on 12/12/12 and make their special day even more special by occurring on a day that won’t come around again.

The couple, who has been dating, probably off and on, since 2002, got engaged this summer in Paris, and reportedly tied the knot yesterday in a super-private ceremony on the rooftop of the Knicks’ apartment.

Sources say the couple was inspired by the special 12/12/12 date, and wed in front of their three children — Amar’e Jr., Ar’eand Assata — and a few other family members. “Less than seven other people were there, no Knicks teammates. It was just about them,” a source said.

As has become the trend among celebs lately, the couple is planning a much bigger and more extravagant celebration that everyone can attend, the source added:

“They are planning a big bash next year for friends and family to have a great time.”

On Twitter, Amar’e also confirmed the news, by tweeting this pic of their wedding rings and saying: “12.12.12 now has a special & spiritual meaning for us.”

Source: Twitter

Congrats to the newlyweds!

A mass wedding in Malaysia. AP Photo/Vincent Thian

If you’re feeling a little lucky today, it might be because it’s December 12, 2012, or 12.12.12. The special day has couples racing to the altar, hoping to secure a little wedded bliss from all the good vibrations that are floating around.

According to USA Today, this could be a particularly good day for Las Vegas. The city has seen its revenue from quickie weddings drop by a third since 2004. They hope to capitalize on this once-in-a-lifetime date to drive their faltering business. The story says newlyweds are an $800 million per year business for the city.

“Chapels from the rundown courthouse area to the ritzy Strip are jumping at the chance to sell 12-12-12 packages at three times the normal price for weekday ceremonies during the wedding offseason, from November to April,” the article says. Companies offering wedding specials are relying on Chinese numerology (the numbers one and two are yin and yang) to sell the date.

Today could also be a good day for giving. The 121212 Concert is taking place today to benefit the victims of Hurricane Sandy. Alicia Keys, Kanye West, and Bruce Springsteen will be among the talent taking the Madison Square Garden stage tonight to raise money for the Robin Hood Relief Fund, which fights poverty in New York City. The hashtag #121212Concert is already up and running. And you can livestream the concert its website starting at 7:30 pm ET.

And finally, for everyone else who won’t be getting married or going to the big concert, there’s a Dunkin’ Donuts Twitter giveaway. It started at 6am ET and continues through 6 pm ET, awarding a dozen free donuts every hour. Answer the question, “With whom would you like to share a dozen donuts?” with the hashtag #DDozen and you could be a winner. If anyone out there wins, send us a picture. We’d love to post it.

So it’s the most important time of your life. Maybe you just got engaged and you’re going through hell and high water to plan an amazing wedding. Or maybe you’re past that and you’re becoming a mother for the first time. Maybe you finally got the job of your dreams! And while these are all usually times to jump for joy, when one of your best friends is acting like somebody stole something from her, it can be an extremely stressful time instead. That’s not to say that your BFF isn’t excited for you deep down inside, but for one reason or another, she’s not feeling that things are finally falling into place for you. If you’ve been wondering whether or not this is your girlfriend, here are a few signs that she’s igging this new milestone in your life, rather than digging it and being supportive.

PS, this can also describe a few family members…