Geralyn's (RIUMBBride711) Planning Thread!!! :)

I can’t believe it’s my turn!!! We are leaving in 3 days and we are still trying to get everything packed. I want to thank everyone on this forum for all of your great ideas, advice, and for listening when I needed to vent.

So without further ado here is my planning thread…

When We Met: We met in 1999 while we were both working at On the Border Mexican Restaurant. (My Mom picked it to be where my shower is held…I thought that was cute) I was a waitress and FI was a busboy. I was walking back to the kitchen with a stack of dirty dishes and FI offered to carry them for me….that’s where it all started!

Geralyn and Steve

Engagement Our Wedding story started out a little backwards. We had a wedding date booked before we were engaged. We had gone to Jamaica 3 years ago and absolutely loved it and knew we wanted to get married there. We returned to Jamaica in July 2008 and booked our wedding for July 11, 2009. We got back from Jamaica and he proposed on August 24, 2008. Steve wrote “Will you marry me?†in a shell that had the ring in it.

The e-ring

Wedding Bands

My Ring

His Ring

Engagement Party Invites

We had a pretty big engagement party (160 people) since we knew the wedding would be small. I designed these and ordered them from Vistaprint.

My Father Daughter Dance

My father had Parkinson’s and was very sick over the last year. We knew he was not going to be able to come to the wedding in Jamaica because in August he had to go to a nursing home. He passed away on New Years Eve. On Thanksgiving my Mom surprised me and had him dressed in a tux and we got to dance. My whole family was there (Aunts, Uncles, Cousins) and there was not a dry eye in the room. He had been working in PT for about a month trying to get strength enough to be able to stand. I am so grateful that I got to have my father-daughter dance.

Here are some pics…In one of the pics FI is helping to hold my dad up…so sweet.

The Wedding Location

We are getting married in Montego Bay, Jamaica at the RIU Montego Bay.

Wedding Website Feel free to check it out

Monograms

I have a few different ones that I am using for different things in the wedding (envelope seals, Tags for oot bags, thank you cards, etc.)

Save the Dates

I made the save the dates myself from a photograph I took on our last trip to Jamaica when we booked the wedding date (before we were engaged lol) I found the 2 shells on the beach and wrote the date in the sand. I did the writing myself in power point and then printed them from kodakeasyshare. Very cost effective…I think it was 10 cents for each print.

Invitations

I had originally wanted to make my own passport invites but then my father got sick and passed away new years eve and things got a little crazy and I ran out of time…so I ended up ordering invites which are fine but not in my original vision =)

I ordered them online from invitationconsultants.com. They came out to be $238 for 75 invitations, inner and outer envelopes with printed return address, and 75 response cards.

Pre-Travel Brochure

These were mailed out to the guests that RSVP’d that they were coming, along with luggage tags a month before the wedding. I borrowed a template from someone on here and then had them printed on Vista Print. At the time they had a special for free brochures…so I only had to pay for the shipping! Score!

Luggage Tags

Photoshare Website

I set up a photoshare site on shutterfly. I had had these printed up on Vistaprint to let the guests know about it. I put them out at our engagement party and I will use them at the wedding too.

My Welcome Dinner Dress

I got this in Charlotte Rouse for $35…I love this dress!!

Bride Tank Top

My Aunt made tank tops for me and my bridesmaids to wear the morning of the wedding while we’re getting ready.

Hair Inspirations

Hair Flower

I got a great deal on this flower at a wholesale store in the city….$2.00…can’t beat that!

My Jewelry

Earrings

My Garter

My Dress

Shoes

I am undecided if I will be barefoot or wear these shoes for the ceremony….I guess I’ll decide when I get down there.

They are from gojane.com

These are my reception shoes…they are my something blue. They are Chinese Laundry Colette

Bridesmaids Dresses

One of the very first things I did (actually before we were even engaged haha) was find the bridesmaids dresses because I wanted to have my colors for the wedding before I got anything else and I was undecided at the time. Anyway here they are.

Mori Lee ~ Affairs Bridesmaid Collection 732 Chiffon Color: Turquoise

Grooms Attire

Just Married Flip Flops

Groomsman Attire

Shirts- These are white linen shirts that I got at Century 21 for $20 (sorry it’s wrinkled in the pic)

Bridesmaids Gifts

These are the bags that the bridesmaid’s gift/OOT items will go in for my 3 bridesmaids.

“Girly†Flasks with each girls name engraved. I got these from elighters.com for around $25 each

Starfish Necklaces~ I bought these online from Gems and Beauty.

Makeup Bags~ I bought these at a wholesale store in the city.

Groomsman Gifts

OOT Bags

OOT Tags

The idea for these tags came from the fact that every time someone asks me when I'm getting married and I tell them July 11th, more often than not people will reply "Oh 7-11, like the store!" So I thought it would be cute to add a little something to the wedding. These tags will be tied around the handle of our OOT bags.

Welcome Booklet

Oooooohhhh so far so good! Your engagement ring is gorgeous and very unique

Keycard/Tip Holder for OOT Bag

Bookmarks for OOT Bag

I love to read on vacation and at the beach and figured bookmarks would be a cute and inexpensive item to add to my OOT bags. I designed the bookmarks in a word doc, printed them out, laminated them and then cut them out and that was it...I'm really happy with the way they turned out.

Mugs for OOT Bags

Playing Cards

Handkerchiefs for the Moms

Memory Frame

My father passed away on New Years Eve. I wanted to get this memory frame to attach to my bouquet so he can still walk with me down the aisle.

I ordered it online from Target.

Petals for Aisle at the Ceremony

Hot Pink and Orange

Petals to Throw

Ceremony Programs

Fans for the Ceremony

Blessing of the Hands

This is a reading I will have my cousin do during the ceremony.

These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that are holding yours on your wedding day, as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever.

These are the hands that will passionately love you through the years, and with the slightest touch, will comfort you like no other

These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes, tears of sorrow and tears of joy.

These are the hands that will comfort you in illness, and hold you when fear or grief wreck your mind.

May these hands that we see today be blessed.

May they always be held by one another.

May they have the strength to hold on during the storms of stress and the dark of disillusionment.

May they remain tender and gentle as they nurture each other in their wondrous love.

May these hands continue building a relationship founded on love, rich in caring, and devoted in each other.

May Geralyn and Steve see their four hands as healer, protector, shelter and guide.

Sand Ceremony

FI’s Aunt will do this reading for our sand ceremony.

As you stand beside the ocean, may your love always be as constant as the tide; waves flowing endlessly from the depths of the sea. Just as water is the eternal force of life, so is love. Love is the force that allows us to face fear and uncertainty with courage.

You have just sealed your relationship by giving and receiving of rings. But although you will be sharing one life, never forget that you are two separate people. Cherish and affirm your differences. Love each other. Keep your commitment primary. Together you will laugh and cry, be sick and well, be happy and angry, share and grow. Grow sometimes together, sometimes separately.

To symbolize this union and the importance of the individuals within the marriage, two separate colors of sand will be combined. Each one holds its own unique beauty, strength, and character. They can stand on their own and be whole, without need of anything else. However when these two are blended together they create an entirely new and extraordinarily more intricate entity.

Each grain of sand brings to the mixture a lasting beauty that forever enriches the combination. Please pour the sand into this common container to symbolize the union of your two lives.

(Begin pouring sand)

Steve and Geralyn, just as these grains of sand can never be separated and poured again into the individual container, so will your marriage be a molding of two individual personalities, bonded together forming one heart, one life, and one family.

I bought my sand ceremony items from moonglowcandles.com. The sand that I got was $3.75 per pound. I got the Pool Blue Wedding Sand and the White Wedding Sand. This website is great because the sand colors match up to Davids Bridal, Alferd Angelo and MoriLee bridesmaid dress colors.

I got the Romance Jar which was $18.75 for the jar with lid and 2 pouring vases.

Here’s the pic from the website.

Irish Wedding Bell

Wedding Day Card

I took a picture of our dog Daisy and made this card for FI on publisher.

Cards for Moms

Inside of My Mom’s Card

In all the moments of my life your presence always there,

a place of shelter from the storm or laughter, love and care.

At times I thought I’d lost my way but you would let me know,

that you believed in who I am, with this my strength would grow.

I may have been quite blind with the ignorance of youth,

to understand all you gave but now I know the truth.

Because of this and so much more, I will dedicate to you,

my life, my love, my happiness the day I say "I do".

I Love You Mom With All My Heart ~ Thank You!

Inside of His Mom’s Card

To marry your son is the dream of my life,

I'll be so proud to become this man's wife.

You've been his mentor for all of these years,

there for him always through laughter and fears.

You knew when to guide him and when to let go,

the latter the hardest as most parents know.

Because of your caring he grew up to be

the love of my life a blessing to me.

My heart is so grateful for all that you've done,

I'll lovingly spend my life with your son.

Thank you for raising a wonderful man.

Cake Topper

BD Book