Your wedding should be one of the most joyous occasions of your lifetime. With all the stress of booking a venue, hiring a caterer, finding the perfect attire, and ensuring Aunt Mable doesn’t get into a tussle at the reception with Cousin Ruth, you shouldn’t have to worry about wedding party security.

While most venues these days require you to hire wedding party security—and many of these places even provide wedding party security staff as part of the rental package—here are a few extra tips to help ensure the safety of your belongings and your loved ones on your special day.

‘Tis better to give AND receive

1. If at all possible, have your wedding gifts sent to your home rather than brought to the reception.
2. For guests that do arrive with gifts, have the coat-check personnel allocate a separate, secure area for gifts.
3. No coat check? Designate a friend, relative, or security person to watch over the gift table.
4. Once the reception is underway, move all of the gifts to a closet or room that can be securely locked during the celebration.
5. Determine ahead of time who will be transporting the gifts from the reception site to your home.
6. Assign a separate person to collect any monetary gifts. Keep these gifts together in one place so that you don’t lose track of them during all of the hustle and bustle.
7. If you will not have time to visit the bank before departing for your honeymoon, leave a deposit slip with your parents or a trusted friend so that they can place the money safely in your account.

Wedding Crashers isn’t just a movie

1. Have a friend or family member act as a greeter throughout the reception; this way you can make a mental note of who’s coming and going. Have the greeters take shifts so that no one person is stuck by the door all evening.
2. If you’re unsure as to whether an individual belongs at your event, have a friend introduce himself and ask a few polite questions about the individual’s association to the wedding party.
3. If an uninvited guest does show up, have security immediately escort that person off the premises.
4. In order to ensure that things don’t get too rowdy, be sure that the bartender knows to stop serving drinks to intoxicated guests.
5. Let the security guards—not your brother or the groomsmen—handle any disturbances.

What’s mine is yours Mine

1. Keep personal belongings in a visible place during the reception, so that you can check their security with a quick glance.
2. Allow your guests to place purses and other personal items in the coat check during the event.
3. If you leave possessions in the dressing room, make sure it is locked during the reception and/or ceremony.
4. Don’t leave valuables in your car in plain sight.
5. Make a list of all the items—everything from jewelry and shoes to champagne flutes and vases—that you are bringing to the site so that you can be sure you’ve recovered everything at end of evening.

Mi casa, NO es su casa

1. Arrange to have someone stay at your house during the event and while you’re away on your honeymoon.
2. If you can’t get someone to house-sit, have a neighbor park a car in your driveway.
3. Place a hold on your mail and newspaper delivery.
4. Put your house lights on a timer to give the appearance that someone is home.

By taking the proper wedding party security precautions ahead of time, you can ensure a magical, worry-free day for everyone.