Maura

Quote: Originally Posted by coreyphil maura - i was just thinking that since bradley does a more 'photojournalistic' style ... you may just be fine with 4 hours (especially since both he and christa think so). my dad used to shoot weddings, and it seems like the majority of time is sucked up in trying to round everyone up for the posed / traditional shots. i'm using juan carlos - we booked 7 hours, but we're splitting it over 2 days and doing a TTD session. i was worried about the same thing, so juan said he would just put a note on our account that we may want to add one hour ... would bradley be willing to do the same, or do you have to pay for it all up-front? off-topic - i know i've read this before and could probably search it, but where in san jose are you getting married? we ended up booking bradley for 5 hours, and i think he'd be willing to add one more hour if we deem it necessary later. his up front fee is 50% of the total. i think you're totally right about the fact that since its photojournalism and most of the shots will be candids, we wont have to worry about rounding people up. i think i may try to talk my FI into doing a TTD the next day but havent broached that topic yet, haha, and i wouldnt do it unless i found a second dress i wouldnt be afraid to ruin. i'm getting married (cross your fingers) at mision de san jose del cabo. FI and i have emailed padre juvencio a few times and my FMIL has called there a bunch, but has never been able to get a hold of anyone. we're starting to panic a little, im not going to lie. we really wanted to get married in a catholic church since we were both raised catholic, but we have started a contingency plan in case we can't have the church. i'll be totally bummed if that happens though our reception is at the westin los cabos, which is at the end of the corridor closest to san jose del cabo. we totally fell in love with the westin the minute we decided on getting married in cabo. FI hates AI resorts, so that put so many other choices out, as well as # of guests we expect to attend.

Red Velvet Cake This works easiest if you have a KitchenAid mixer or other stand mixer. 1/2 cup butter 1 1/2 cup sugar 2 eggs 2 tbsp cocoa powder 2 oz red food coloring 1 tsp vanilla 2 oz water 1 cup buttermilk 2 1/2 cup sifted cake flour 1 tsp salt 1 tsp vinegar 1 tsp baking soda Cream butter, sugar and eggs. Make a paste of the cocoa and the red food coloring and then add paste to the creamed mixture. In a separate bowl, mix vanilla with the buttermilk and water. Add to creamed mixture alternately with flour and salt. Combine soda and vinegar and fold into batter -- do not mix this too much, just lightly fold it in with a spatula by hand rather than doing it with the mixer to avoid over-mixing. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 mins if you are making cake (poured into two 9" greased and floured round cake pans) or about 18 mins for cupcakes. Test with a toothpick. When finished, let cool for 10 mins before turning onto cooling rack. Wait until completely cool to frost. Cream cheese frosting (which originally came from the Joy of Cooking book, according to my mom): Beat 8 oz. cold cream cheese (not rock solid, but it means you can use it straight out of the refrigerator) with 5 tbsp softened butter and 2 tsp vanilla (real vanilla extract, not imitation!!!!) until combined. Gradually add 2 cups powdered sugar that has been sifted after measuring. Continue to add more sifted powdered sugar until you reach a consistency and sweetness that fits your taste. No softening the cream cheese (though you do have to plan ahead with the butter). ENJOY!

ill post ASAP - but i can confirm the williams sonoma cupcakes are also very yummy!

tammy, i have an AMAZING recipe from my mom for red velvet cake/cupcakes with the most delicious vanilla buttercream frosting that has a bit of cream cheese in it so its not too sweet. if you'd like, i'll post the recipe when i get home tonight! and alyssa, these cupcakes are to die for, but if you really want to do vanilla and chocolate, i highly recommend doing angelfood cupcakes with the same frosting recipe for the red velvet ones im talking about above. soooo delish and different from what most people expect cupcakes to be. never had anyone not like these!

alyssa, i feel the same way. although i havent been to too many holiday parties, im just a lazy ass and didnt go to the gym for the last two weeks until yesterday because i was busy at work or whatever other excuse i could come up with because i was tired. what changed my mind to stop being so lazy was looking at photos of my fat butt/thighs/hips and untoned arms while trying on wedding gowns on saturday. i say it's ok to eat holiday treats, but make sure to get to the gym too. i made a promise to myself to go to the gym for a minimum of 30 mins per day, but aiming for 45-60 mins. i am just one of those people that if i stop working out i start getting pudgy almost immediately. my stupid FI doesnt ever work out and he's like a freaking bean pole! grr. i hope our kids get his genetics!

they're definitely knock offs. but for that price.... my FI was like buy a dress from there and if you don't like it, you can always resell it on ebay or wear it for a TTD!

ahhhhh kate! you looked AMAZING! i'm so happy everything went great and i cannot wait to see more photos!!!! congratulations girl!!! (my internet was down since yesterday morning and finally just came back on about an hour and a half ago, and the whole time i was like man i hope kate posted some photos of her wedding! hahaha)

Hi Melissa, welcome to the forum! I was going to say I'm a Miami grad too, but Kate (LALA) beat me to it! haha. You can get lots of ideas here. So many of the resorts do packages inexpensively for vow renewal. Let us know what kind of ideas you have... like beach versus church etc etc and we'll do our best to help you figure something out!

morgan i really like the third one! what did you use to make your mock ups?

Felicidades Paula!!!! Can't wait to see some photos!

Quote: Originally Posted by DougsGirl Oh gag! Toilet paper wedding dresses, "How much does she know about him?" Quiz and store-bought cake? Barf. I forgot about that stuff! The worst part is you have to sit there pretending to be happy about being there so the person you don't even know who bought you something you didn't ask for won't be offended. Lady, if you just didn't get me anything (like i asked) then you wouldn't be offended by my not wanting it! This sucks, girl! Stick to your guns and don't allow what you don't want. This is your event and you can do it how you want it, all the way, including the shower (or not, as this would be!) hahahahahaha abbbie you crack me up. i totally agree with this. i dont want a shower or a bachelorette party, and my close girlfriends have agreed to abide by my wishes and join me for a spa day the day before my wedding in cabo. dont think they agreed to this easily though...some of my girlfriends were really bitchy about it. to appease my female relatives, my sister is going to throw a non-shower where they will join me for tea at the drake hotel in chicago (which is super fun and only about $30/pp) the week before i leave for mexico. so much easier, more fun and no pressure to open gifts in front of strangers.

yeah....i'd call your place and see if they'll accept a credit card/debit card over the phone... FedEx is also known to be not-so-reliable in Mexico... plus you can do what i did and use your miles credit card!

Quote: Originally Posted by dinogomez You could try the San Jose's church, Father Juvencio performs ceremonies in english, maybe you could have a small family-only ceremony at the church?? here's his info: Phone: (624) 142-0064; Email: [email protected] d!no FYI, Padre Juvencio is EXTREMELY difficult to get a hold of. We've sent several emails and called a bunch of times and still no response... we have our hearts set on getting married there, so we're going to keep trying but... we're starting to worry!

p.s. my FI's best friend's wife is pregnant and due one month before our wedding in august. she told me she would come even if she had to drag her toddler and her newborn! haha. but then, she's originally from mexico, so she's not afraid to travel there with her kids...

it's illegal to courier currency across the border and sometimes they consider a check to be currency... can they accept the payment via a credit/debit card?

danielle, you are totally not being a baby. IMO, i think its really selfish of his girlfriend to ask him to not attend his own sister's wedding! if she is worried about being able to take care of the baby on her own for a measley 3 days.... can't she just ask her mom/aunt/friend/somebody for the love of god to come help her so your brother can be there on your wedding day?? i dont think that's too much to ask... its not like the baby is going to be a newborn when you get married in november, she should be comfortable with having a baby and a regular schedule by then i think.

Hi Erin, welcome to the forum! I'm getting married in Cabo in August 08 if you ever wanna chat! I'm also from Chicago (FYI, Anya and I are both getting married at the Westin)

Heidi! Congratulations! I know you'd been wanting to switch jobs pretty bad You absolutely can negotiate days off --- tell them the only thing keeping you from accepting is the lack of vacation days and see if they can work something out. After all, if they created a position for you, they must want you pretty bad and should be a little flexible when it comes to the vacation days. 5 days seems like a really low amount... I had 15 days PTO my first year at my job... Especially since you are getting married in 2008 you should tell them vacation days are a big priority for you because of that. If they won't budge, it won't hurt to have tried!

I leave Dec 29th, so I'll be around before then. I have to work Dec 26-28 though, big boo :-(

Quote: Originally Posted by DanielleNDerek Maura - the trainer is a very good idea. I always thought as trainers being mean and intimidating. but i've never actually had one. i think I just got the idea of them being like that from a Friends episode and it stuck with me. But sounds like the trainer really worked for you 25lbs in 4 months is really good. The first year that we lived together I gained 25lbs. Just from the change in what we have for dinner. He likes things with sauces and extra cheeses. And my mom never cooked like that, my body can't handle all that bad stuff. I have the motivation of looking good in my wedding dress but I really want to change the way we eat and live. Sorry this is so long but i'm excited about it. Danielle, my trainer is SO nice. My Bally's membership expires at the end of this month and my trainer said he was willing to keep working with me for $50 a session (which is cheaper than I currently pay!) AND he will come train me at my gym in my condo building!!! I said I didnt want to renew my membership at Ballys because it seemed like a dumb expense to me when we have a nice gym in our building. Dont get me wrong though, if you want to lose as much as I did, you have to work really hard. I was working out no less than 4 days a week when I lost all that weight. And I totally can identify with you on the thing about your FI liking things with sauces. I gained about 10 pounds when we moved in together from that too. I had to sadly cut most cheese out of my diet or eat only the fat free kind because I was getting fat again. My FI doesnt work out because he's a skinny minny and doesn't have to, so eating right and working out are things I do that he doesnt really see value in because he doesnt have to do them. I am determined to lose at least one more dress size before my wedding in august though!!!!

it might be helpful also if you guys could add how many invitiations you had and around how much you spent ;-)

Quote: Originally Posted by carlymcmullen Awww, that is so sweet! I wish I had our engagement on pics. Although, kinda glad I don't as well - sitting on the floor in my pj's and eating chinese out of the container isn't a very romantic engagement memory! hahahaaa haha carly, i had just taken off my dress pants from going out to a nice dinner and had my sweatpants pulled halfway up when jose was about to ask me hahaha so typical of me! glad we dont have any photos of me in my underwear with my pants halfway down during our engagement... and ABBIE! i dont know how i missed the engagement story you originally posted, but i just finished reading it and that is so adorable! i hope we get to meet up while you're in town in a few weeks! did you ever post a photo of your ring? i dont remember seeing that either!

Quote: Originally Posted by Lorilou you look fab in the dresses, this is where i got my dress. make sure you take a friend to White Chicago b/c you have to search through a ton of dresses. make sure you know the style of dress you are after too, that helps a lot. It's fun but I don't think i would have been able to handle it without my girlfriend. they had a lot of Alvina Valenta when I was there. good luck! Thanks lorilou! I loved your dress and that kind of pushed me over the edge about going to ultimate bride to try stuff on. I had also heard that about White Chicago being kind of a needle in a haystack type situation, so I'm bringing my mom, sister and one of my two best friends about 30 mins before my appointment starts! I'll let you know how it goes!

while you're here you could also check out house of brides on franklin and ultimate bride on oak st. www.houseofbrides.com - i have an appointment there this saturday so ill check for you if they're open when you're here Ultimate Bride - this place is all designer gowns, pretty expensive but i had fun last weekend trying stuff on there

yep its white CHICAGO | white Chicago designer bridal consignment wedding gowns new used - the owners are ursula and stacy. they are closed though sat dec 22- tues jan 1! i've spoken with ursula and she was really sweet on the phone. she will ask you what your regular dress size is so they know in advance to pull some gowns in your size. abbie, i live like 3 blocks from it so if you want me to meet up with you or get a drink afterwards i'd be happy to hang out