Maura

Jenesis, so sorry this is happening to you! I think I can help. My FI is the director of public relations for UNAM here in Chicago (the national autonomous university of Mexico). Let me talk to him and ask what he thinks and I will get back with you ASAP!! Take a deep breath, we'll solve this.

tav! glad to gain another guy's perspective around here, hope we aren't too much estrogen for you!

Glenda, I must admit that I am the messy one in our house. But I try to clean up everything that gets messy as I go, ESPECIALLY the stove. I have found this cleaner that is made for George Forman grills, and it does wonders on our stove top. I am always spilling stuff or smearing stuff on it by accident, and this George Forman spray does a great job. We tried many other products before we found this -including the easy off bam i'm sad to say, and it does the best job. We also have a very dusty apartment no matter how much we clean. We live in a loft style condo building, so the exposed ceiling I think is the culprit. There's nothing we can figure out to solve the dust problem, but if you have the ability to change your AC/furnace filters, switch to a HEPA filter, and that has seemed to help a little.

i love them and think they are so cute. forget your FMIL. its not her wedding, its YOURS! if you and FI like it, thats all that matters!

i have to echo angela -- sept 1 is smackdab in the middle of the hurricane season in cabo, so the liklihood that you'd be totally rain-free is pretty low. october is a much safter bet for clear weather.

Congratulations Alyssa and Jessica! Two of my (many) fave BDWers! Woo!

Being as I just got back from Mexico City (my 3rd trip this year because FI's family lives there)... I (mostly through my FI) can offer some opinions about this. On the hotels list that Ann posted: #1 is a total hole according to my FI #2 is an American equivalent of a low-level Radisson #3, the Four Seasons is the best hotel in Mexico City but is for business travelers and not whatsoever a resort #4 is not a bad hotel but is located near the oil company and is a bad neighborhood nowadays. my FI's mom grew up in this neighborhood and back then it was a nice middle class neighborhood. he says he wouldnt exactly call it a slum now, but it isnt a nice place. #5 Gran Melia is a Spanish chain and FI says they are generally OK - they are the European equiv. of a Hilton. #6 NH is downtown in a not-fantastic location, plain hotel with minimum amenities mostly for business travelers. #7 the Presidente InterContinental - in the 60s when it was built, designed by a famous Mexican architect, had a great lobby with beautiful art, all heads of state have stayed there and many celebrities. It's a old (and not in the charming sense of the word) hotel - right next door, the Nikko hotel, a modern Japanese chain hotel and the JW Marriott and the W hotel are just down the block, both world class hotels. #8 The Sheraton is mostly a business hotel frequented by government and business travelers because it is located directly across the street from the American Embassy. I would really like to stress however, that none of these hotels should be considered "resorts" and that Mexico City is not a "resort" kind of city that I would recommend to tourists under most circumstances. I don't want to scare you, and don't get me wrong, I love Mexico City and spending time there, BUT... it IS a dangerous place if you are not familiar with it or don't have someone familiar with it to show you around. Especially in the downtown area where you'd likely be interested in going as a tourist, you need to be very careful. I would *especially* not wear an engagement ring there in public, IMHO. I have always been accompanied everywhere by FI or his family or his mother's driver, so I have never felt in danger there per se, but FI got pretty ticked at me a few times on this recent visit when i forgot to either take off my ring when we were going out somewhere in the public way, or turn it around so the stone was facing inward. I would absolutely tell you to not take the subway system or the buses, as it is not safe. Taxis are honestly not that much safer either. FI knows a number of people who have been "taxi kidnapped" where they basically hold you hostage and take you to an ATM to withdraw money, sometimes late at night and then keep you until the morning so you can take the maximum amount out that night and in the morning. It is not a place I would recommend visiting if you don't have a local guide. And don't be deceived into thinking that everyone there speaks English - they def. don't. I would be happy to answer any questions anyone has about Mexico City. **Additionally, if you are coming from the states or Canada and you have a connecting flight in Mexico City, let me say also that it has one of the highest landing fees in the world and is a confusing airport if you have never been there. The lines to go thru immigration and customs are generally very slow (quicker if you have a Mexican passport), so theres a big chance of missing a connecting flight if you don't have multiple hours in between flights. PaulaV might also be a good person to chime in on this discussion. Not to say there are not positive aspects to Mexico City - I have always had a wonderful time when visiting. But it is not a place for naiive tourists by any means. Especially no walking around with a guide book! That is just asking for it.

Quote: Originally Posted by dgsjsu Congratulations on your wedding. The pictures are gorgeous. I was wondering where you got the BM's dresses as well....or maura where did you find them? I love them they are great and awesome color. Jim Hjelm Occasions Here is the link where I found them, theres also a store locator link on there that will help you find a store near you that has them. If anyone can help with figuring out the price that would be great all my BMs love this color and that they can get it in dif styles!

you are DEF not alone. FI's family is incredibly supportive and excited - AND they're footing the bill! whereas my family is a buncha chumps (at least on my mom's side - only one aunt and her husband and kid are coming, and my mom has 3 sibs). even my dad who is supportive of the wedding being in cabo said to me a few weeks ago, "dont you think youre being a little selfish" when i was complaining that my mom's family wasnt coming and gave me some BS reason. I was like uh, ok dad, its MY wedding, and we're doing what we want. if people wanna join us, thats great. if not, tough luck, we dont wanna hear any bitching! i know it sucks and it hurts and is stressful, but keep your chin up, the people who really love you will be there on your special day.

Susan, where are your BM dresses from? I am drooling over them, I have spent all day looking for them and finally someone found them for me! I showed the photos to my BMs and they are in loooove! Edit: I just answered my own question by looking at some old threads: The BM dresses are by Jim Hjelm. Can you give us an idea about how much they cost though TIA!

Tammy et al, I'm seriously considering using a travel agent because we definitely don't want our guests calling us with problems or questions about booking their travel. Many people have already asked us if we have a group airline discount and other questions. I am totally clueless about using travel agents because when I travel for work, I have an assistant who books it for me through our corporate travel agency. I guess what I am asking is, can you provide a rundown of how using a travel agent works, what the costs associated with it are, etc etc. For me personally, part of my contract with the Westin is that we have to guarantee a minimmum of 10 rooms reserved for 3 nights each. We obviously will use more rooms than 10 but I'm wondering if using a TA would mess up that block of rooms guarantee. And then for airfare, what a mess, I don't want to deal with my guests calling me to figure out that junk. Can you explain a bit more please? And other gals, if you've used a TA, please post your experiences how everything worked. Thanks!

Can someone post photos of the BDW starfish so all the new girls can see it? And perhaps a link where to find an identical one if they want to buy it? I have seen it on some of the older threads but don't know where it was purchased.

from another chicago bride! i'm getting married at the westin in cabo, and some parts of the year you can swim in the ocean on their property, other times it's too dangerous. you should just check with some of the WCs at the hotels you like. happy planning!

Quote: Originally Posted by dinogomez Although it's cheap, you'll want to avoid Aug-Sept 'cause it's "hurricane season" and you never know... that's why the price is low. According to my WC, hurricane season begins in the middle to late part of August. We've been told by many (WC, vendors) that our early Aug date is safe. Our quoted room price is about $215 including taxes for our group room rate for the partial ocean view rooms. I know someone who paid a group room rate of $600 last May because it was still high season!

KarlaV used Neysa from Hive and loved her. Search her name and you should find her review!

Ugh Corey, so sorry you're having to deal with this. Take a deep breath. IMHO, I would be upset if I were you too. You booked at a place thinking it would look a certain way, and if anything were to change that you would be notified. Unfortunately, the photos were deceiving. And it's not your style (not mine either haha) - BUT - it's Mexico, and its not uncharacteristic of Mexico to have a fresco on a chapel wall. Yeah, it's not great, but it's not horrible looking either. I honestly think if you cover it up, it will just draw more attention, and how could they seriously tastefully cover all of that space up? Juan Carlos is a pro, and I am sure that he can manage to take photos that leave the mural out -- or worst case scenario he can edit them out. As far as what your guests think, I think that Ann has it right. They're going to be focusing on you and Phil and not the painting on the wall. That said, it wouldnt hurt to ask them to cover it up so you can see what it would look like, and if it's the lesser of two evils keep it up. If it looks horrid, take it down, and I'm sure nobody will notice. And explaining it to the guests will only draw more unwanted attention. Just my two cents. Sending a hug your way!

angela, how cute! i'll have to try it out. quick off topic question - what is the name of the font in your siggy and where can i get it?

from a fellow cabo bride! so many dreams brides here, and we're all happy to help!

brandy i love that dress! to be honest i ALMOST bought it a few weeks ago! only thing was that i didnt want a strapless gown, but i felt so pretty in it. i have since found another gown, but i do really love the watters gown. when i was thinking about buying it, the store price was kinda high, so my best friend did a search for it online to see if she could find it cheaper at another bridal store, and she found some random store in Louisiana that was selling it for $900, what a steal! i was so tempted. i tried it on with the brown ribbon. i will have to look thru my computer for a photo of me in it to show you haha.

abbie i just got back from mexico so im catching up on posts and OMG you got your dress!!!! wooo!!!! you look so fantastic in it, and i love the pickups in the skirt. cant wait to see it with the alterations!

to the forum! check out the section where there are wedding reviews and you can post something with all the details and some photos of your big day! (we LOVE photos around here if you havent already noticed!)

Wooo another westin bride!!!! Welcome Kimberly!!! I'm getting married at the Westin on Aug 9, 2008. Take lots and lots and lots of photos when you go next week!!!

There seems to be a growing number of us Westin Los Cabos brides on here lately, so I think we need a thread to share what everyone is up to! Post your date and as many details as you have! WEDDING DATE:August 9, 2008 WHY WE CHOSE LOS CABOS/THE WESTIN We chose Los Cabos because almost my whole family is from Chicago, and almost his whole family is from Mexico City. No matter what, someone's family was going to have to travel far, so we decided on doing a destination wedding to a place we wanted to go. We aren't into huge traditional weddings which is what we felt we'd be obligated to have if we married in either of our home towns. I'm an anxious person anyway and am not comfortable with tons of attention, so we also figured that by having our wedding out of town we could cut down on the number of people who "have" to be invited. Since my FI is from Mexico originally, we wanted to get married in Mexico and Los Cabos was one of the few places he deemed acceptable. For some reason, my FI doesn't like AI resorts. So, we wanted to pick a place that was private, not gargantuan in size and that would give us a guarantee that we would be the only wedding held on our date so we could have the full attention of the WC and the staff for whatever we need. We absolutely loved photos we saw of the Westin and from other weddings held there and knew it was the place for us. The mix of the modern architecture plus the colors make for very dramatic scenery, which we loved. We also love the fact that it has a timeshare section of the hotel, the Regina Club, in case any of our family members want to spend the whole preceding week vacationing with us. CEREMONY **UPDATE** Ceremony is now for sure at the Westin. Padre Juvencio gave away our ceremony time so we are doing a private quickie church thing with our parents to make it "legal" in the eyes of the church, and then doing our big thing with the guests at the westin. RECEPTION We were given two options: Restaurante La Playa or the pool deck. We are heavily leaning toward La Playa because both locations have equally beautiful views of the ocean, but La Playa has a roof over it. The sides of the restaurant are open air though. I have some photos I will post later today to show the difference between the two. End of August begins the rainy season, so we shouldn't need to worry too much about rain in the beginning of August but you can never be too careful. If we do it on the pool deck and it rains, they would move us indoors and we don't like the indoor options. I also had spoken with another BDW member, KarlaV, who had her reception on the pool deck, and she told me that if she had to do it over again, she would've picked a more private location at the Westin because there were other hotel guests walking by throughout the night. MENU We will be doing some kind of cocktails between the ceremony and the beginning of the reception so that we can sneak off for some photos of just the two of us. We have still not decided our menu selections yet, as we have a bit still before we have to do so. We do know for sure it will be a plated dinner served to the guests. Amazingly, one of FI's best friends owns a wine/tequila importing and exporting company and has generously offered to provide the wine and tequila for the evening as a gift. WEDDING COORDINATOR UPDATED 3/2/08 We still dont have one. Been dealing with Karina Jajan who is the general sales manager and Maira Gallegos who is the group reservations coordinator. They answer emails fairly quickly but seem to be trying my patience a lot lately. PHOTOGRAPHER Bradley Fraser. We booked Bradley for 5 hours based on many wonderful examples of his work as well as recommendations from other clients. NEW! VIDEOGRAPHER Enrique Diaz from Baja Video Productions. Very excited about this because I wanted a video and originally couldn't afford it, but they gave me a great price so I reworked my budget to fit it in and I am so happy I was able to! I can't think of anything else right now... Welcome to all the Westin Brides out there(and anyone thinking about becoming a Westin bride)! Share your details and experiences with the Westin here!

Quote: Originally Posted by moxie06 Congrats to you! Because of your post, I started looking into Bradly and contacted him. Will probably book him for our wedding too! woooo another westin wedding! we need to start a thread! to answer your question about how long we booked him for, we decided 5 hours would be enough. christa had him for 4 hours and said it was plenty. there's a thread around here somewhere with her photos in a kodak gallery, and for 4 hours, she got a TON. (of course for any bride, you can never have too many haha). my dad used to be a professional photographer so he will be bringing some of his equipment (because he just cant resist) to shoot a bit after our 5 hours with bradley are up.

i agree with everyone above, if they arent invited to the wedding, they shouldnt be invited to the shower. however, if you are close with only one cousin, by all means invite her. did you invite her to the wedding? IMHO, if you are close with just her, theres nothing wrong with giving her an invite to both wedding and shower. if she cant swing it financially so be it, but at least she has the choice. and you can always ask her privately to not tell the other relatives that she was invited...