cougs

welcome to the forum! are you the denise from facebook? (i'm lisa) definitely check out this thread: http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t2782 it might take you until your wedding to read through it all, but it's so worth it! happy planning!

Quote: Originally Posted by lanalovesyou You can go to Azucar every single night and get two complimentary drinks...to tell you the truth they barely ever write down how many drinks you have anyways. Its a nice little bar for sure but not many people go there for some reason! probably because they can get unlimited free drinks at the resort! i think we'll want to go for karaoke night there ... we will have to pre-game the drinking at the resort first though because 2 drinks isn't quite enough to get any of us to sing in public! LOL

i like my FMIL too! since i'm kinda robbing the cradle (fiance is 9 years younger than me), his mom is literally not old enough to be my mother! i have older sisters and she is very close to their age (a little younger!), so she really feels more like a sister to me. don't get me wrong, she has her quirks as they all do, but really she is wonderful, very warm and has always made me feel part of the family.

no matter which ceremony you do, dreams allows you to add readings/poems and/or sand ceremony, so you can customize it a bit (in the case of legal ceremony, the WC told me i would have to have someone else read the sand ceremony because the judge won't do it). i think others have written their own entire symbolic ceremony for the minister to read, but you'd be taking a chance on how good their english is! it's probably safer to get a friend or family member to read stuff, plus it's a good way to include someone else who is special to you in your day.

if you are doing a symbolic ceremony they supply a "non-denominational minister" (pretty sure that still means christian tho). i'm certain that you'd be able to bring your own rabbi (BYOR, lol), but the ceremony would still not be considered a legal ceremony, as only the ones performed by the judge are legal. are you doing the legal part at home beforehand?

we will have 2 years and 10 days. like others, it was to be able to save the money since we are paying for everything ourselves. my fiance has been out of work on disability (very limited income) and going to school as well. it just made sense for us. it got so annoying with people's comments that i actually started saying, "if you'd like to pay for our wedding, we'd be happy to get married tomorrow." LOL, but then again, i'm a sarcastic b*tch and people would expect that from me. hehe you could be more tactful tho haha, and since you have decided on a destination wedding, why not tell people that in today's economy you felt it was necessary to have a long engagement not only for your own financial situation, but in order to give your guests ample time to save the money to attend.

kelly, i have actually LOST weight on vacation before, despite eating with wild reckless abandon, lol. depends on the kind of trip you take ... sometimes there is so much heightened activity (usually tons of walking, and more time for burning calories in the bedroom hehe) that you might be pleasantly surprised! and if you end up not losing, or even gaining, you'll just have more of a reason to push yourself in season 6. definitely stick around tho ... i find it helpful to have to stay accountable to someone. most importantly, have a great vacation! and definitely don't deprive yourself. in this economy, vacations are difficult to find room in your budget for. when you're able to squeeze one in, you have to enjoy it to the fullest!

does anyone know what the deal is with azucar? is it complimentary admission & two free drinks ONCE during your stay, or complimentary admission all the time?

lana, congrats! we will all be anxiously looking forward to your review and pics! as promised, attached is the schedule of daily & nightly activities at dreams. i was wrong, the nighttime stuff was included on the second page of the excel doc (labeled "front" and "back" ... so be sure to check out the "back" page too). just a heads up tho, the concierge said that the schedule is subject to change and may not be the same when we're there. bummer ... kinda kills the purpose of asking for a schedule! also looks like they no longer do casino night. mzo 1era parte.xls

i'm dying to know his response, LOL! my uncle "invited" his best friend pete (and his long-time gf) to my wedding. pete has actually known me since i was born, but i have been in his presence as an adult maybe twice? i probably wouldn't recognize him if i bumped into him somewhere, and i have no idea who his gf is, tho he's been with her for about 18 years. they BOOKED when my uncle did (that's right, BOOKED, BEFORE invites even went out). i ended up asking my uncle for pete's LAST NAME (i didn't even know THAT), address, and gf's name so i could send them an actual invite. i'm a sucker, i know. what was i to do? pete told my mom that he's "known me since i was a baby and wouldn't miss my wedding for the world." LOL! this destination wedding business is craziness. if we're all still somehow sane after our weddings it will be a miracle.

stupid double posts ... why does it do that?? ok, edited again to say I'M stupid. it wasn't a double post this time ... i just saw my previous post as well and thought this one posted twice, lol. dumbass me. i was responding to cattie about the door hangers ... i'm back and forth on it as well. if i do them i will do funny "do not disturb" signs saying something about them being hungover from partying too hard with the newlyweds, not anything that indicates their whereabouts, posing a security risk.

got some stuff done on friday with my mom. we did koozies (iron-on ... didn't turn out too well so i may not use them, or just pick out the best ones and give to bridal party only), added ribbon & fake orchids to raffia fans, made thank you tags for favors, and painted mini-maracas in my wedding colors. the only problem is now more people are coming than i originally thought, so i have to buy more stuff, which means nothing is totally finished, lol. my flower girl came over to try on her dress and it fits her perfectly. we went shopping and bought her shoes today too. fiance and i also got everything together for our apostille document requests, which will be dropped in the mail tomorrow morning (there was a miscommunication that made us think we didn't need these, which is the only reason we waited so long)!

i received the activities schedule from dreams, but like kat's, it only includes the daytime activities. i wrote them again requesting the schedule of the evening theme nights and entertainment (casino night, caribbean night, movies, shows, etc.). hopefully they'll have that for may too. for some reason i can't attach the schedule (my computer is being wonky). i'll try again tomorrow from my work computer. at least we know for sure this schedule is current. i just got my stuff together to send my birth certificate for apostille. originally my TA said claudia said original birth certificate was fine, but i don't think claudia understood her. i wrote to claudia asking if we needed the apostille, OR just our original birth certificates, and her answer was "yes, please." it wasn't a yes/no question! so we're getting our apostilles to be safe! also, i had no idea we were supposed to send copies of all our paperwork a month in advance until someone posted about it on here ... when was claudia gonna tell me that, when it was too late? all you ladies doing symbolic ceremonies have it so good ... i envy you!

TAJill, i noticed you said you were using an ipod and docking station and bought a microphone. we have the bose portable dock system, but were told by guys at the bose store that you can't use a mic with it? what kind of docking station did you have, and did the mic work out?

Quote: Originally Posted by Michelle613 Hey, how much of a credit did you get for not having dessert? Great review btw! Also, I noticed on the ultimate package it says that there is "Gazebo decor based on chairs w/ white covers, ceremonial table & red carpeted walk way." No actual gazebo decor?!! Did you get bows for the chairs for the ceremony, or does it look fine all white? you're correct that there is no actual on-the-gazebo decor included ... funny that they call it "gazebo decor!" lol. the drapery (tulle) and/or ivy, flowers, bows, etc. are all additional $$$. i decided it's perfectly beautiful enough in its simplicity without any extra stuff. also, just my opinion, but you can't go wrong with all white (always classy) so the bows (more $$$) are unnecessary too. some people brought their own chair bows and i don't think they were charged any setup fee. the original poster mentioned the credit for not having the dessert was that she didn't have to pay anything to upgrade her cake. btw, and i only answered because the review was from 2007 and i don't know if that bride still posts here or not. wasn't trying to step on toes!

Quote: Originally Posted by mayanbride78 WHat abt. Michaels craft store I know they def. have bouquet jewels. they definitely don't carry the starfish she is looking for: Bouquet Jewels - Unique Bouquets for Unique Brides ($14.99) Simply Flowers - Products - Bouquet Jewels ($13.99) i posted both since i don't know whose shipping is cheaper!

wow, let me tell ya, i NEVER thought that i'd ever have to deal with drama from a vendor ... i expect drama and stress to come from family and friends, but NOT from anyone i'm PAYING to provide me a service! you were right to get out. sorry you had to take such a loss financially, but it was definitely worth it for your sanity! it really is a shame because [photographer name removed] is a wonderful, creative photographer. and morgan, you saved the day! it's people like you who make the stresses of destination wedding planning much more bearable.

hmmm, my wc (claudia at dreams cancun) sent me the judge's "speech" and it wasn't anything like that (i don't have it on this computer, but it included a bit of the "love is patient, love is kind" corinthians). she still NEVER has (and i've asked several times) sent me any order of ceremony, or what words they use for ring exchange and vows! she did, however, say i could add a sand ceremony and a reading if i wanted to, but i think i would need to add it at the end, which seems all out of order to me. i want to do programs, but i'll never be able to at this rate!

what are the dates of your trip? seems like it will be really close, but it might be possible for you to borrow the starfish before me, if you could guarantee getting it to me before may 22. i wish we could trust the resort to just hold it for us (the first 3 brides, 4 if you sneak in, are all dreams cancun)!

Quote: Originally Posted by Yari I have my sitting on a chair in my kitchen doing nothing. I need to cut cause it's way to big, I wish it wasn't orange. really! why can't they make them in neutral colors that match more people's decor? i mean, we're registered for orange dishes and all that orange-handled rachel ray cookware, so it matches our stuff, but we're weirdos. LOL! most of the world doesn't love orange.

you could put it on for your "entrance" into the AHR, do a dance with your husband to your wedding song, and then change into something else more casual. or like someone else suggested, change after dinner.

Quote: Originally Posted by cancunbride WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 25.00 PER PERSON!! : They must be crazy... we just want to enjoy some music and the guests can just walk into the hotel bar and pick up a drink. They are crazy, they try to get you with everything. Im not regretting having my ceremony here but if I knew all this ahead of time I would of looked and considered other places that actually have their weddings ending at 12am. right, and you'd probably pay for the extra time just to have them tell you to turn the music down! I THINK NOT! i mean, i understand, i'm staying in the tower, and not everyone's musical taste is as good as mine LOL! i could just imagine if your room is on one of the lower floors how disturbing someone's party might be if they let it go til midnight. that said, they shouldn't allow receptions anywhere near resort guests' rooms then. we pay good money for our weddings, not to mention some people pay out the wazoo for djs. i will NOT be told to turn down our music! just take your party elsewhere when your reception ends. i'm having problems with it just being 3 hours too ... i mean, how long does dinner take? what would we be left with? like an hour and a half of partying? i tried to make our dancing music playlist, and without any slow songs to break it up, i have over 4 hours of party tunes in there! how do you narrow that down?

Quote: Originally Posted by cancunbride A trio is like wearing a suit without a shirt to us Mexicans. lol -- ugh My parents want a Mariachi with 10 men and its super expensive... whatever, the parents are driving me nuts also. hahaha good description! i would say that if it's that important to your parents they should offer to pay for it.

oooh pretty! tom wouldn't go for anything flowery, and i felt i had to give him the final say on anything kitchen-related since he does all the cooking. i'm a very lucky girl that way!

Quote: Originally Posted by azhuskergirl I always told myself that there would not be a cheesy DJ playing the electric slide or the chicken dance at my wedding.....and there wasn't. i hear ya, but i don't mind the electric slide HALF as much as the macarena. i don't care if i am getting married in mexico and the song is part spanish, there is no way that is being played. it's a song about a girl cheating on her boyfriend! why would anyone want that at their wedding? we are using an ipod tho, so we're totally in control!