MikkiStreak

I think the cupcakes are a great idea! I'm doing food as a favor too, but I'm making my own (beach themed chocolates and decorated wedding cake cookies). I'm all for the jumbo, but that's the sugar junkie in me speaking!!!

Ok, there's probably a thread on this somewhere, but I'm losing steam (bedtime), so I'm going to throw this up here anyway... What are you guys using for your colors (as the primary and secondary colors) and where/how are you using them in the wedding (dresses, flowers, table linens, invites, menus, programs, placecards, etc...)?

I love those! The vases and flowers look awesome! Would definitely love to see a close-up of this too!

Adamsgrrl: Our TA is heading down there in May or in August to tour the new resort on the complex (Grand Hotel). She said she'll take a ton of photos and send them to us, so I'll pass those your way too (just remind me!)... Last time she photographed a resort for us, she came back with 350 phtos of Moon Palace. I was wondering about the appearance too because I must have found the same photos as your FI--- but I've come across a couple people who have been there and said it's really beautiful. Plus, I fell in love with their beach--- the water looks absolutely AMAZING!!!! We originally planned on 12-1 for the wedding, but my FI's job is really crazy at that time, so we moved it to January---- You're the only other Iberostar bride I've heard of on here---- (cloud 9 feels *really* good right now!!!

I'm envious! My FI fell in love with Azul and we wanted to have our wedding there, but couldn't afford a private reception there. It has now moved to our "must stay there when vacationing" list---- ahhh..... beach butlers..... beach beds.... does life get any better than this

I am on pins and needles---- we finally selected our resort for the wedding (Iberostar Paraiso Lindo) and sent the paperwork to reserve January 26 for the wedding date!!! Now I'm just waiting for confirmation from the resort... Yea---- it's finally over!!! Now to the fun stuff (STD, invites, centerpieces, flowers)!!! What a relief!!!

If she comes back and is hesitant to accept your offer, you could get a little sneaky on her---- tell her you worked out something with your TA to get her rate reduced to (insert whatever she could afford) and let your TA know to book this lady's travel and bill you for it. I have a sister-in-law that we may have to do something like this to get her at our wedding..

If you are wanting to invite everyone except this one person, here's an idea---- mail one of your formal invites to the company as a whole---- those you are close to you can approach about it verbally, but it won't "offend" because it will be for everyone in the company. It will probably get posted on a peg-board somewhere for everyone to see. At least, that's the way I've seen it work in small companies I've worked for...

Damn--- I wanna crash a wedding here too!!! Those photos are gorgeous!!! Very "Platinum Wedding" ish---- Ahhhhhh, if only the lottery would pick my numbers----

I love the invites! This is what I plan on doing also and I love the brads on all the inside papers.... It really draws attention to all the information!

I finally found my favorite photo of Raven. My daughter got bored on a trip we took last year and started snapping pictures with my cell phone and she got this one:

I've always heard it was bad luck to see each other the day of the wedding (not the day before). I personally thought it would be neat if the both of us got up that morning and went to the beach ourselves to exchange private vows to each other before getting ready with our bridal party. But he is more traditional and likes the idea of not spending the night together and not seeing each other the day of until the ceremony. I think the only hotel that I've seen that makes it easier to spend the night apart is Dreams--- I've seen their packages include a second room for the groom the night previous, if available....

Does she seem very social or outgoing with many people? If you've been out after work as just the 2 of you, maybe it's that she feels more comfortable with you than the other people who will be there, but knows your attention is going to be divided among everyone and she'll have to socialize more with other people. I know people who come across like they are really sociable and easy-going, but they get too tense/nervous when it comes to a social setting where they have to mingle instead of just hanging out with 1-2 people all night... I'd probably say something to her, simply because I'd be curious about it.

I know--- St. Thomas is *way* expensive. Altho, I wish we could still do that.... I'd still like to just sneak off with him and get married over there by ourselves the way we had planned (beach wedding, private sunset cruise on a yacht and then dinner at Havana Blue).... But he'd be a widow once we set foot back on the mainland because his family would *kill* me for going without them....

Nope, I'm not planning on doing this--- I was just curious about what it entailed because the article I read wasn't real clear. Until I read the article, I never would have even thought of something that complicated to keep straight. At our guest list is too small to even justify doing it. We're doing everything in Mexico (wedding and reception) and have about 80 people on our invite list and only expect about 20-30. Our families are too big to do anything at home and still pay for everything ourselves. I was just curious if anyone else had heard of this idea...

I don't think we'll have time to do site visits. We had planned on getting married in St. Thomas until about a month ago. Once we switched to Mexico, started working on getting passports. We just got our birth certificates and next weekend will take everything in with the application. So it'll be a couple months before we even get them back. We can't wait that long to decide where to have the wedding and still keep it on track for Dec/Jan. So we're making our plans based on input from our TA as well as family and friends who have been down there and the research we're doing on different resorts.

Well, I stopped by Jared's on my way home today. Talked to the GM and could kick myself in the butt for *ever* setting foot in Kay Jewelers... I told him the whole story about what's been going on and he was really great, but not a whole lot he can do about it. The 2 companies are treated completely separate, so I can't transfer the warranty from Kay to Jared. The only thing he can do is take care of the service stuff and bill Kay for it. Which, I will wind up taking him up on that because I definitely don't want to wait 2 weeks everytime I need my ring cleaned or serviced or rhodium plated. So, now onto corporate to file a complaint and see what they will do. I want to keep the diamond because of the good deal we got on it, but I want to be "given back" my 3 month exchange period on the band because we had actually planned on switching bands before they made that impossible with the way they did the transaction when they set the stone in the permanent band...

Jen, That's kind of how I thought this article was specifying it should work. The only thing they weren't clear on was whether you adjust your RSVP dates based on which round of invites you're sending out... I wouldn't think too many DW brides would use this because so many DW's have much smaller guest lists. But I can see where it would be beneficial for AHW/AHR for a lot of people. Heck, if we did something at home, we have about 500-600 people on his side of the family and I have about 200 on mine, without even counting friends.... (Thank GOD! we are doing a DW!!!!)

Hey, I read in some magazine advising brides to create a guest list and mark each person A/B/C, which indicates rounds of invites going out in order to prioritize and keep guest list/cost under control. Anyone done this? Exactly how did you implement it (ie, different response due dates, sending out round B as you received no's for A's)?

Quote: Originally Posted by Nrvsbride Ok now that I have finally set a date, I am starting to get rude comments from everyone. Opinions are like a-holes everyone's got one. So my aunt starts telling my mom how her son went to cabo not too long ago and it is so expensive and the cab ride from the airport to the hotel was $40, blah, blah, blah. And my cousin makes $3 million a year and he is complaining about a $40 cab ride? We live in NY that is how much a cab ride costs here from the airport to the suburbs. So now my mom is all distressed about how expensive it is, and now I am upset b/c I am starting to realize that once people see how much it really is, they won't go. Which upsets me only b/c we live in NY where everything is fairly expensive and people spend on average $200 a night going out to a city club and it would be about the same price to stay in a hotel in cabo for the night. Okay I totally highjacked this thread and I'm sorry. But you brought up a good point Jenetta. -Glenda Part of me almost wishes no one would show up--- just picturing our wedding as only the two of us and no one else is such a pleasing thought!!! hehehehe....

Know anyone who has a camcorder you can use for your site visit? If so, you could take video of not only the resort, but of the marketplaces around the resort, off-premise restaurants, etc...

Ok, I'm *way* too into all this planning stuff.... I've been driving myself crazy looking at all these resorts and trying to keep the information straight. Even having it written down on paper drives me crazy because I'm constantly flipping back and forth between the papers to find what I need. So, I created an excel spreadsheet that (pat on back) I think is pretty cool. Basically, it has one worksheet where I can list up to 15 resorts that we considering and check columns for items that are important to us. On that sheet, I can also put in the price of the package that most interests us. Then, there are worksheets included that list specific a la carte items. For every resort I've named on the first page of the spreadsheet, that resort name will populate to the appropriate worksheet that itemizes the a la carte items. I can enter the price of the item and quantity and it totals the amount for me (with subtotals for each category and a final total estimate). The final "total" for the estimate then automatically logs itself into the main page of the worksheet where I'm listing all the resorts and features. Hopefully, that doesn't sound too confusing. But basically, I have this at home and if anyone wants a copy, let me know and I'll post it....

Thankfully I wrote down names and dates of all the phone calls & visits to the store I've made. I have one of those jobs where if I make a mistake, it's a huge issue and I get raked over the coals big time, so I've learned to document the hell out of everything I do and operate on 'cover your ass' mode... It will serve me well with this!

Quote: Originally Posted by mexicomelissa The Barceló Maya Tropical Beach, is located right on the best beach in the Mayan Riviera, on the Mexican Caribbean coast. Its magnificent facilities are surrounded by a lush 500,000 square-meter natural park. Together with 3 hotels, it forms part of the Barceló Maya Beach Resort. Through the "Barceló All Inclusive" program, one of the most comprehensive in the Caribbean, it offers an excellent variety of facilities and services that will make your stay an unforgettable one. Rooms ***** 478 Rooms (210 Standard Double, 210 Standard King, 50 Junior Suite (26 Junior Suites con 2 camas, 24 Junior Suites King) 6 Suites King and 2 Master Suites without terrace). Each one provides: Ironing Board Terrace or Balcony Air Conditioning Telephone TV-SAT Bathrobes Minibar Shower Hairdryer Safe Connecting Rooms On Request Food **** 2 Buffet Restaurants Restaurant specialized in Seafood Restaurant Specialized in Oriental Cuisine Italian-Mediterranean Restaurant Steak House Restaurant 2 Lobby Bar, 2 Bars in the Theater and 2 Poolside Bar Facilities & Additional Services *********************** Discotheque Children's area in the Swimming Pool Sports Track Chapel Commercial Square Business Centre Meeting room for seat 150 people Convention Centre, with a capacity to up to 850 people, which can be divided in 3 Rooms 3 Swimming Pool with Jacuzzi (which one is for water sports) Currency Exchange Car Rental Hairdresser Diving Shop Entertainment Program Babysitter (on request) Doctor Souvenirs Shop Theme parks in the area Shopping Centre in the area Nightlife in the area Internet Access Horse Riding Tours and ATV´s in the rainforest Accessible to the physically handicapped Services Included in the "Barceló All Inclusive" Program: Welcome drink Breakfast, lunch and dinner at the buffet Restaurants (Colonial & Tropical) A la carte dinner at the specialty restaurants: Bali-Hai†(Oriental), “Mare Nostrum†(Sea food), “Capri†(Italian) and “Santa Fé†(Steak House)* Lunch, snacks (sandwiches, hamburgers, hot dogs, etc.) and beverages available at the beach restaurants “Mariachi†and “Palmeras†and wet bars Domestic beverages (soft drinks, beers, house wine, liquors, cocktails and coffee) available up until 2 am Coffee-maker in room including water, coffee, tea, sugar and cream Minibar in room stocked daily with water, sodas soft drinks and beer In-room safe, alarm clock, bathrobes, iron & ironing board and hairdryer Use of sun-beds, beach towels and hammocks Day and night entertainment Free entrance to discotheque including domestic beverages Kids Club (kids between 4 & 8 and 8 & 12 years old) Mini-golf (18 holes) / Pitch and Put (4 holes) – equipment included Gym, Jacuzzi, Steam and Sauna rooms Sports: Tennis (7 lit courts) Basketball and multi-sports court Snorkelling (1 hour free equipment use per day) Kayaking Windsurfing (standard boards only)** Sailing (standard boats only)** Diving (1 lesson free per week in swimming pool Catamaran Aquatic bikes Aqua-aerobics in pool Water polo Beach Volleyball Table-Tennis Darts & Archery Bocce Billiards table Big-piece Chess *Reservation required - upon availability (For a 7 nights stay - a ticket is given for each restaurant, for a 4 to 6 nights stay - 2 tickets are given for either restaurant, for a 2-3 nights stay 1 ticket is given for either restaurant) Dress code: semi-formal ** Reservations may apply, minimum skills required So, am I reading this correct--- the a la carte restaurants are included in the AI price, but you can only eat there if you have a 'ticket' and how many tickets you are given depends on how long you stay? So if our guests stayed for 3 nights, they would only be able to eat at the a la carte's once, and only if they made a reservation?

One of the resort chains we're looking into is Iberostar. They have a lot of features that appeal to us: disco for adults and another one for teens, kids club, babysitting services, golf, spa, room service, etc... and their prices they have listed on their website seem really reasonable.