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Wow Jess!!! That is absolutely beautiful. Tammy, you are a lucky lady! And Roja... well SHE's even luckier!

For what it's worth, I forgot my flowers in my room. So I didn't have any until the reception. The photos were great, even without the flowers. I don't think you need them if you don't want them.

Happy birthday Ann! I hope it's absolutely wonderful!

I printed directly onto the envelopes with the script font and colors. It looked really nice.

I LOOOOOVE the look of it down. I'd leave it down for the ceremony (and obviously some photos) and the bustle it for the reception.

I'm going to disagree with the majority - I like the second one with the lace up back. Soooo pretty on you!

Gorgeous dress - I love the beadwork!

Kelly!!!!! You look fantastic - and sooooo happy! Congratulations!

Really pretty! And it looks like it won't need too much in the way of alterations - bonus!

I am SO sorry to hear this. How awful! When it comes to layoffs, sometimes its the strongest performers who are let go, for the simple reason that they are often paid more than some of the others. It's unreasonable, but companies do it anyway. Fingers crossed that he finds something soon!

I have to agree with Debs and the others who follow. The thing of it is this... she married into your family. How would you feel if FI's father decided to remarry and his wife-to-be looked at you and said "YOU'RE not immediate family, so you can't come". You are risking further damaging your relationship with your father. It is as simple as that. I understand you don't like her; I understand you disagree with many of the things that she has said and done. But you're doing the same thing. Be the bigger person, swallow the anger and move on. Your relationship with her might improve immensely because of it. And if it doesn't, you'll always be able to look at her and think "at least I included you, even if you're not my favorite person. Can you do the same?"

Beautiful dress! love the lacing in the back!

Use silver (or gold) sharpie markers! They show up very well on dark envelopes and at $2.50 each they will probably cost less than the labels would. Only catch is that you'll have to hand-write them. But they will look better than using labels.

DH found his at Macys. But that was just dumb luck. I'd suggest some of the boutique tie shops. Too bad the Tie Rack isn't around in the US anymore. I don't suppose you have any friends in the UK?

Do you mean for after dinner? I think it's a fantastic idea - and wil keep your party going. And it's got to be much less expensive then a full-on private dinner and reception. GREAT plan!

Personally, I'd be really surprised if this is really an ultimatum. If what you want is St. Lucia, have a heart-to-heart with them. Tell them this is really, really, really what you (not FI) want and that you can't imagine anything else. Also tell them how important it is to you that they be there. I get that money is an issue, but how much less expensive could it be to fly to Iowa and stay there, vs. paying for 1/2 the expense of going to St. Lucia? I wonder if they are seeing how adamant your FI is about the DW and wondering if it's what you really want, too. By saying US or not at all, they could be trying to give you a way out if they think you don't really want a DW. Now, if they still say US or not at all after you've explained it all to them, then you have to make some tough decisions. Or you could give them an ultimatum - "maybe we'll just do a private courthouse thing (without you) and not bother with a wedding at all".

I used Mannia!!! And we LOOOOOOOOVED him! Carlos was the best. Responded immediately to any questions I had, met with us both for our site visit as well as pre-wedding. He played exactly what we wanted (it wasn't a huge list) and filled in extra time with appropriate music. Also, he cut our first dance for us - started with about 30 second of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and then cut to "My First, My Last, My Everything". AND, he gave us copies of all the stuff he played pre-wedding, the cocktail hour and our first dance music (as cut). And really, he's the NICEST guy you'd ever want to meet.

At 4:00? Maybe I can make it. But not at 6:00. Sad....

I've heard that some places won't do acrylics on toes because if they get and stay damp, they are prone to funguses and other icky stuff. Take a good top coat (reapply EVERY day) and the same white polish to touch up and you should be fine.

I am so sorry for your loss. I'm glad that you can be comforted by the thought that he is now out of pain. Big hugs, my dear!

Listen to the advice whoever you feel like you connect with. If you like someone's approach, and what they are saying makes sense, go with it. If there's something about the person or the advice that you just don't like, don't try to apply it directly. You don't want to get into a situation where the you resent or don't follow someone's advice because you don't like the person. For me, when I was working to get out of debt, I made a budget and stuck to it. And that amount of self control was really hard. One of the things that made it easiest for me was that I put away my credit and debit cards. If I went to the bank and took out $100, I was far less likely to spend it on stuff I didn't need (Starbucks, etc.) than I was if it was as easy as pulling out a credit card. I also built "rewards" into my budget so that when I hit certain milestones I was "allowed" to have a treat. Also, I called my credit card companies and had them reduce both my interest rates and my limits. And now, I have a rule that I pay off my credit card debt in full each month. But being out of debt, or mostly out of debt (because I don't count the mortgage), is a WONDERFUL feeling.

We had a bunch of people with birthdays in and around the week of our wedding. We had the resort bring out a big birthday cake for dessert at our rehersal dinner and we all sang and had fun. It was nice, and we planned it specifically so that it wouldn't happen on our wedding day.

Can you do it the day after the wedding? I think before the wedding would be inappropriate - especially the day before. But the day after is much more forgivable, especially if the bride & groom are leaving for their honeymoon that day. If the day after just won't work, talk with them about it. But be prepared to back off if your FSIL hedges at all. If it had been me, I would have been irked about something before, but totally fine with something the day after.

I carried my bouquet and his bout on the plane with me - just tucked into the open top of my shoulder bag. But anything hard sided (box, suitcase, etc), should protect them.

We went to Tahiti (moorea, actually) for our HM. It was fantastic. If you go see if there is any way to swing an over water bungalow. OMG so amazing!