Dr. Taffy Wagner is back with financial advice for you newlyweds-to-be out there.

Do various money songs run through your mind when you’re with your bride-to-be? Do the songs “For The Love of Money”, “She Works Hard for the Money”, or “Take the Money and Run” play on repeat in your home?  When you are engaged and setting the wedding budget – there is a lot of money talk happening. I’m guessing your bride-to-be loves to share about money being spent on the caterers, the florists, and more.

Is money casting a shadow on your wedding planning?

As you sit and listen to her talk, you see money flying out of the window that will never return again. Are you wondering to yourself “will I ever going to get past this point?” Of course you will, but while you are on this path of planning the wedding pay  special attention to what is being said and acted upon.

We’ve all heard “Actions speak louder than Words.” I was following a financially-motivated divorce case where the CEO and Countess are Divorcing.

She says she needs more than $50,000 a week to maintain her lavish lifestyle. Gentleman, I cannot help but wonder if there were not warning signs when he was dating her or if family members attempted convince him not to marry her.  Apparently they even had a post nuptial agreement that she agreed to… but is now not enough.

In a time where a lot of people might not even make $50,000 in a year, she is not satisfied with having that amount per week. I am not saying by any means that this is the type of bride-to-be that you have. What I am saying is make sure both of you are marrying for love and not money. Meaning if you did not even have the money you have right now, she would stick by your side. The motto wouldn’t be “No Money, No Honey.” Know that your bride is marrying you because she loves you regardless of income level.

Dr. Taffy Wagner is a Certified Educator in Personal Finances and founder of DebtAtTheAltar.com She is the Creator of Money Talk Before The Commitment Walk and Debt Stops At The Altar financial education program for engaged couples and newlyweds.

When we’re children our lives seems so easy. As a girl, I was carefree Alice in Wonderland. As I got older and discovered the joy of disobeying my mother I was living a scene from Mommie Dearest.

No matter what we do in life, our personal stories play out like many of the classics from the silver screen. Never is this truer than during your engagement. Getting to know your future spouse and their own personal movie time line is very important. There will be surprises along the way (probably a few I Know What You Did Last Summer moments). But, the more you learn – the better.

My future spouse and I would spend hours talking about our past, present, and what we wanted in the future. Our confessions fell into many “genres,” but the most controversial area was definitely finances.

Enter: Jaws.

You may as well prepare to be eaten alive if you don’t talk about debts, budgets, and what savings before you walk down the aisle. Many couples fail to do this and end up as fish food. But, don’t worry – not every tale ends up with the financial shark chomping away at your relationship. If you’re not afraid to talk about money, you’ll end up swimming in money!

Think about what your financial “movie” would be like? I encourage you to devote a few hour per month during your engagement to talking finances with your fiancé. These conversations will help you avoid financial failure. Enter: Titanic.

Dr. Taffy Wagner is a Certified Educator in Personal Finances and founder of DebtAtTheAltar.com She is the Creator of Money Talk Before The Commitment Walk and Debt Stops At The Altar financial education program for engaged couples and newlyweds.