boscobel

They look adorable!

Oh I love the idea of a villa wedding! I remember when we were booking, there was a place in Jamaica that was like that and I wanted it sooooo bad. Congrats on your engagement and good luck with your planning! _________________________________ Welcome to BestDestinationWedding.com Here are some links and tips that might make your time here on BDW more enjoyable. If you have not done so, you may want to: complete your profile (upload a photo, add profile details, etc.) visit the Newbies forum and introduce yourself find the forum for your wedding destination and create a subscription to threads/members/vendors that you are interested in Here are some links that may be helpful to you: Destination Wedding Community & Forum Resort Reviews Wedding Vendor Reviews Destination Wedding Wiki's and Articles Wedding Image Gallery BDW FAQ's BDW Forum Rules and Etiquette Downloading Attachments Here are some BDW members and staff you should follow: Moderators and Community Leaders Tammy Host (Founder and Owner of BDW) Ann Jamy Abbie Carly If you are a vendor and looking to advertise your business, please email [email protected]. Vendor rules are HERE! Please read! Hope you enjoy your time here.

Welcome to BestDestinationWedding.com Here are some links and tips that might make your time here on BDW more enjoyable. If you have not done so, you may want to: complete your profile (upload a photo, add profile details, etc.) visit the Newbies forum and introduce yourself find the forum for your wedding destination and create a subscription to threads/members/vendors that you are interested in Here are some links that may be helpful to you: Destination Wedding Community & Forum Resort Reviews Wedding Vendor Reviews Destination Wedding Wiki's and Articles Wedding Image Gallery BDW FAQ's BDW Forum Rules and Etiquette Downloading Attachments Here are some BDW members and staff you should follow: Moderators and Community Leaders Tammy Host (Founder and Owner of BDW) Ann Jamy Abbie Carly If you are a vendor and looking to advertise your business, please email [email protected]. Vendor rules are HERE! Please read! Hope you enjoy your time here.

I am actually in the same almost-exact situation except it's for my baby shower. I don't think it's selfish to want one shower (I do too!) but sometimes we need to relinquish a tad of the control. For me, it's that our guest list if 92. Yes, 92 for a BABY SHOWER! We both come from very large families and I refuse to cut any of my friends. So I probably have to give up my want of having one shower and break it into at least 2 possibly three to accommodate everyone (my family, his family, friends) and keep it cost appropriate. Maybe you can find something to compromise on too? Maybe allow MIL to throw her separate shower for her friends and do the shower that you want later in May. I know it's your wedding and I'm all for doing it the way you want, but showers are supposed to be thrown FOR us and it's only a newer thing were the brides are so involved in the planning.

Great contest!

Geez, 28 days! You're really down to the wire! I just did a quick search b/c I knew that photosharing was something that has been discussed at length and I got a ton of results. Try this link that I post below, or try your own search to read what people have to say. http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/search.php?search=photo+sharing

I just did a search and the firs tthing that came up was "Memories" http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Memories-lyrics-Elvis-Presley/CC23E43B32AAEF9248256874003747F7 Memories, pressed between the pages of my mind Memories, sweetened through the ages just like wine Quiet thoughts come floating down And settle softly to the ground Like golden autumn leaves around my feet I touched them and they burst apart with sweet memories, Sweet memories Of holding hands and red bouquets And twilights trimmed in purple haze And laughing eyes and simple ways And quiet nights and gentle days with you Memories, pressed between the pages of my mind Memories, sweetened through the ages just like wine, Memories, memories, Of holding hands and red bouquets And twilights trimmed in purple haze And laughing eyes and simple ways And quiet nights and gentle days with you Memories, pressed between the pages of my mind Memories, sweetened through the ages just like wine Memories, memories, sweet memories, memories...

Another long-time member brought the idea for this thread up and I really think it's a good one. Until I experienced my own loss(es), I wasn't aware of how truly difficult it was to get and/or stay pregnant. So many of my real life friends have multiple kids and most were unplanned that I always thought getting pregnant was natural and easy. I've shared my story in various other threads, so I won't bore you all with the details here again, but thought it might be beneificial to members to have a place to talk about their loss or difficulties in either getting pregnant or maintaining that pregnancy. Unfortunately, it's not something that many people talk about, but it's nothing shameful and it's actually very common. So post here if you need to vent or need support regarding your loss/difficulty. Or even to offer support to those of us that require it. _________________________________ To give a very short-versioned background, I experienced my first loss of an accidental pregnancy in June 2009 due to an ectopic pregnancy in my left fallopian tube. This resulted in the loss of that tube and a 50% decrease in my fertility. After many fertility treatments and taking a medical break, we got a second surprise BFP in November 2010. This also resulted in an ectopic pregnancy. I am finally in my 5th month of my third pregnancy and everything is going great. It's been a very long and tough road though.

Congrats and welcome to the forum!

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your engagement! If you haven't already the thread supplied by CeeBubble is a great place to start your planning. Good luck!

Hi Meagan, There is so much information already out there, I'll list a few threads/forums that seem like they would contain information that you are interested in: Dominican Republic Subforum http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/f/33/destination-weddings-in-dominican-republic Majestic Elegance Thread http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/t/34234/majestic-colonial-or-elegance-brides-post-here Riu Palace Thread http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/t/69930/riu-palace-punta-cana-2012 DIY Forum http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/f/103/diy-forum-passport-invitation-template-boarding-pass-invitation-templates-and-more Wedding Registry, Gift Bags and OOT Bags http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/f/69/wedding-registry-wedding-gift-bags-and-oot-bags Wedding Invitations, Passport Invitations, Boarding Pass Invitations, STDs, photos & website http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/f/55/wedding-invitations-passport-invitations-boarding-pass-inviations-stds-photos-website Once you start poking around in those forums, you'll probably find a ton of threads dedicated to the things you are interested in.

Congrats, Blondie! Very exciting to be celebrating your wedding and baby so close together! Are you going crazy with details? Anf of course, you are welcome, Jam! Everyone's welcome!

You don't think Theodore is lame? I feel like it's such an old man name and not in a cute way, but I love Theo. And we like Lorenzo b/c of Enzo for the for nickname. Matt's cousin is Enzo, but just Enzo, so we wanted an official name with that as a nickname. BOYS NAMES ARE HARD! And seriously, girls names, I could name an army of girls and be happy with all of their names!

Whew, I'm glad it's resolved! I was going to comment, but since you're good now, there's no need.

Wow, I love everything! Great job putting everything together!

I love the more photo-journalistic style vs the posed shots as well. The ones that I like best from my wedding are the shots that were taken when the subjects weren't expecting it. You get such genuine emotion, those are the ones that pull my heart strings when I look back.

Great pics and it def looks like you guys had a great time! One of my faves was where you were floating in the pool and your hubbie is cannon balling. So lucky that your sis is a photographer!

Congrats and welcome to the forum! Since you are open to various locations, I suggest contacting a DW specialist TA b/c they'll be able to offer all kinds of suggestions on what locations would work best for your guests regarding travel, cost and specific things you are looking for. There are a few TA's on the forum that you can contact but filling out the banner at the top of the form, but if you go somewhere else, make sure they're knowledgeable regarding DW's. Good luck!

Congrats and welcome to the forum! You will find SO much information on here. You can check out the link in my siggy for helpful tips on how to navigate the forum.

I agree with the other posters that I know where you are coming from, but I think you should focus on why you asked them to be in your wedding. Remember all the things they've done for you in the past and thank them for standing by your side on such an important day. Unfortunately, sometimes weddings don't bring out the best in our friends.

Great job and very professional looking!

Hi Meagan, congrats and welcome to the forum! Have you checked the DR section and read any of the threads? http://www.bestdestinationwedding.com/f/33/destination-weddings-in-dominican-republic I only pointt you there b/c the newbie threads are just for basic introductions and I didn't want you to think you were being ignored if no one answered your questions.

I'm sorry it's such a sad situation and I think it's lovely that you and your brother will honor your father by dancing for him. I'm the same as you with songs and titles, so I don't really have much advice, except maybe pick the same one you would have if you were dancing with him. Or chose the one you think he would've liked the best. I know that my dad always envisioned "Daddy's Little Girl", so I picked that, even though it's not the most original choice, b/c I knew it meant a lot to him.

Talking baby names is one of my favorite things to do. For as long as I can remember, I've kept lists of my favorite names. When I moved recently, I found my list from when I was in HS and had to laugh at some of them (Heaven Leigh) while some of them were still on my faves list (Christian). We don't know the sex of our baby yet, so we're trying to talk about both names but have a terrible time with boys. To give a very small background, I'm Irish but my family has been here for generations and my husband is Italian and first generation here. I also lost my little brother this year and would like to incorporate his name into our child. His name was Ryan William, but I don't want to use either name straight out b/c I think it's too soon and too heavy to put that on a child. But since my kids will never get to meet their uncle, I want there to be some connection. So far, here are our names and thoughts: Boys: (we don't really like ANY names, but this one keep coming up) Lorenzo / Enzo Theo (but I don't care for Theodore) Girls: (so much easier, I seriously have such a long list it's hard to narrow down) Luciana Willa (this is my hubs #1 and he thinks we are done, I like it but not ready to say this is it) Lu for short Viviana Willa Valentina Willa I could list probably 20+ more but I'll keep it simple for now....

My story is a bit of a long one, so I'll try not to get too carried away with details. I married my husband Matt in May of 2008 and we knew that we weren't planning on having kids right away. We said we'd "talk about it" in a year. Well, what do you know, but I ended up getting pregnant the weekend we went away for our 1st anniversary in 2009. A few days later, I had some major cramping. Like so bad it made me feel like I was hot and sweaty and might pass out. After it continued for a few hours, I had a co-worker drive me and my mom to the ER (we work on a university/hospital campus). They did an ultrasound and couldn't see anything, but confirmed the pregnancy via blood work. By then, the cramping had stopped. Since they weren't able to locate the sac, they wanted to continue to monitor me, so I went in every other day for blood work to make sure the pregnancy was progressing as it should. Unfortunately, the blood work lied! My blood hormones were doing everything that they should in a normal and healthy pregnancy, but when they gave me another ultrasound, they located the pregnancy in my left fallopian tube. If they had caught it earlier, they could have dissolved it via a methaltrexate shot, but since there was already a heartbeat, I needed emergency surgery and ended up losing my tube. This was super depressing b/c I wasn't all that excited about the pregnancy at first since it was a surprise but had just gotten to the excited part and I thought all was well since my blood work was good and then I heard this. Physical recovery was fine, I was sore for a week or so and had lingering back issues for a few months, but the emotional recovery...I'd say I'm still dealing with that. As soon as we were medically approved, we began TTC and I started charting on Fertility Friend (FF). Funny enough, once I started charting, it was obvious to me that when I had "accidentally" gotten pregnant previously, it was because I ovulate late in my cycle. I had assumed I was normal and I O'd halfway through. Anyway, since my fertility was decreased by 50% b/c of the loss of my left tube, after a few unsuccessful months, we went to a Reproductive Endocrinologist (RE). We were with one office for almost a year and went through various medical and/or IUI cycles before I decided that I just wasn't happy there. We had taken a few month break and were just starting back up with the doctors inn November of 2010. I had an appt at practice #1 on 11/19 and decided I wouldn't be returning there, so went to practice #2 on 11/23 for an initial appt. I found out on 11/26 that I was pregnant for the second time with no medical interventions. It was definitely a surprise. But I got the bad news on 12/06, on my 32nd birthday, that this pregnancy wasn't viable either and was most likely another ectopic but in my right tube. We couldn't locate it on an ultrasound, so knowing my history, my doctor gave me the methaltrexate shot (in my ass cheeks, fun!) to dissolve before a heartbeat was able to be formed and I lose my remaining tube. This was also very depressing b/c we had been trying so hard for so long and then to get that news on my birthday morning, I just felt like we were cursed. As soon as AF returned, my doctor was very proactive about treatment and I had another surgery in February 2011 to remove polyps, some endo and verify that all was well with my right tube. And we immediately started up IUI cycles and continued through until May. In May, I experienced a very sad and unexpected tragic loss in my family, so we stepped away from TTC b/c my heart just wasn't in it. Then I got my third surprise and unexpected BFP in August. Of course we are super happy and I look at it as a gift from my lost brother. I think this gift was given to us to lessen the pain of losing him. Or to take away the focus of the grief. We watched this pregnancy carefully and didn't announce until we were pretty sure it was safe. In fact, I just made the announcement (besides my bosses) at work today! We don't plan on finding out the sex at the next ultrasound, we think we will have them put it in an envelope and open it Christmas morning. We were going to wait until the shower, but I decided it was something better shared with close family first. Plus, this is the first set of holidays without my brother, so it's very difficult for my family and I think it might be good to have something positive to focus on Christmas morning rather then the sadness of who is missing. We are due April 13, 2012 and I have an open mind about my "birth plan". I like to think that I tend to the natural side of things, but I also watched my sister give birth to her youngest a few years ago and I was terrified. I've since some to terms that we are all strong in different ways and just b/c she was natural doesn't mean I am weak if I chose an epidural. I'm very excited to become a mom! But also, super scared. And I guess I'm not all that great at keeping stories short, am I....