Sapphire723

No worries!

The port in NJ is just over the border, so it wouldn't be too difficult for NYC guests to make it there. However, the port in Manhattan and the one in Brooklyn might be more convenient still. CC does have more cruise brides than BDW, but I don't find it to be quite as helpful and you're right that most of the brides are Carnival.

I've found that any recipe that calls for ground beef can be easily substituted with ground Boca (usually right next to the Boca patties) without making any huge sacrifice to the quality of the meal. It reduces your fat (even from lean beef) significantly and calories too. In addition, the ground Boca soaks up surrounding flavor better than beef, so sometimes the taste is even better. Any time we make taco salad, we ditch the beef for Boca.

Haha, love the cake! In college, I was a part of the Resident Living Council and we organized a few events here and there. One was a cake decorating contest. At the time, I was taking an accelerated evening course (so I could graduate in 3 years instead of 4... I was so broke I couldn't afford a fourth year!), so I missed most of the event. I came in at the last minute, grabbed one of the chocolate cake pans, skillfully carved it into the first shape I could think of and put a little white frosting at the tip and called it a day. Since it was a private Catholic college, I got looks of horror and also looks of appreciation from the other students there. However, mine was not nearly as detailed as your cake!! Christine - LOVE Bulging Brides. That show is pretty awesome. I love that they make the bride's enablers go through a workout punishment too! I ordered my wedding dress in the slightly smaller size too, but my waist was only 1/2 an inch too small when I ordered it. I found a shop in the area that had a sample in the size I ordered and I tried it on a week and a half ago. If anything, the waist needs to be brought in a little!!! However, I realized that I really need to tone up my shoulders and back, because it was not looking gorgeous from the back angle. For you Wii Fit-ers out there, I would recommend trying out the EA Active 2 for the Wii as well. I like it better than the Wii Fit Plus game and I think it gives a better workout over all. However, the Wii Fit game gives more yoga and balance stuff which I do appreciate. I'm also really loving the dance game my sister got me for Kinect. It breaks down all the dance moves and then grades you on how well you put them together. I miss going out dancing and this is a fun way for me to learn new moves and get some movement in. I have to admit that after doing some of the songs on hard, I was a little sore the next day. Speaking of being sore.... I am super sore today. Xbox kicked my butt!

Wow, really stiff competition this season! Congrats, Christine! Really great job. I got a Kinect for Christmas, and my mom bought me a game for the Wii that I alrady had so I returned it and bought the EA Sports Active 2. It has a 9 week exercise program that is pretty decent. However, I feel like I look silly doing it, so I try to wait until John leaves before playing. :-)

Okay, so I got the "audition" for that job I really wanted. I'm going to spend March out of the country (I'm still not sure where yet). While I'm super excited about the opportunity, I'm really bummed about not being around John for that long. I'm also a little anxious about not getting back until a week before the wedding.

I sent mine in yesterday and then FI brought home some chinese food. I did pretty well, but I think most of that is that last week was Aunt Flo and this week is not. Also, I think I forgot to mention it in my original email to you, but I would like to be put in the competing category, please, Marla.

I like Spark People a lot for a free "weight watcher" type program.

Oksana (Jen's makeup artist) is amazing. I'm actually tempted to bring her down for our wedding. That's how amazing she is. My breakout prone skin looked smooth and clear and my eyes were uber-sultry.

Well, we had dated before he moved away, but then we were apart for a year and then together for another couple years. It would be for 2-3 years. There would probably be some domestic travel where I would either be coming home at night or coming home every weekend.

Woohoo! I'm a San Patrick bride too, but I'm Edimburgo. Yours is beautiful! http://www.sanpatrick.com/wedding-gown-photographies/edimburgo2011.html

My first boyfriend and I had a LD relationship that ended up not working out. However, the LD part wasn't the biggest issue. It was the fact that when we lived closer together we realized that we weren't compatible any more (which I attribute to growing up). I'm a little concerned because I've got an awesome job offer that will likely involve some international travel (3-4 weeks away, 1 week back type of deal). It's kinda my dream job and it'll be awesome for my career, but I really don't want to be away from John.

While I see your FI's point in not letting it stress you out forever, I do believe that this store needs to be held accountable. What if they did irreparable damage? What if they did this to someone else? I think the biggest thing for you to decide is "What do you want to be done to fix the situation?" Do you want a letter of apology? Do you want them to give you something? Do you just want them to admit that they screwed up? I would recommend buying or borrowing the book Shocked, Appalled, and Dismayed! How to Write Letters of Complaint That Get Results by Ellen Phillips. She goes over how to best write a letter to the company and what government offices/regulations committees/professional organizations you should CC if the company doesn't fix the situation. I would go all the way up the ladder to the top rung of the chain. While individual stores and managers might not care much, corporate almost always cares (as I'm sure you're aware, having been in customer satisfaction). In addition, I would give BDW brides the name of the chain in this post and in a review, so we're forewarned. I would also give your review in Yelp!, Yahoo!, Google, The Knot, and any other site that lists this chain/individual store as a vendor.

I don't fully understand why she's no longer coming to your wedding... is it so she can plan and afford her own? If so, I think that's kinda messed up and super rude and selfish. Like many other people said, if she chose the date knowing you wouldn't be able to go, then there's no way she should reasonably expect you to go. If you want to try to salvage the friendship, apologize profusely for having to miss it (even though it's not your fault), get her a gift and be a part of the rest of the wedding stuff. You've already made a promise to the other bride, and I think she would be hurt if she got bounced because a "better" offer came along. The proper etiquette for this situation is to keep your commitments. If you give your word that you'll attend something, keeping it is always in the best taste.

CT bride over here. I did my BD with Jen too. The pictures came out pretty great.

Hi Ladies, Due to the new TSA regulations, we chose to do a last minute switch from having our wedding in Mexico to doing a cruise that leaves locally and goes to Bermuda. Unfortunately, I don't feel like there's as much info out there for Bermuda or RCCL as there is for the resort we had chosen. I'm kinda freaking out trying to get all the info. I've been looking into the Cruise Critics board and looking at old posts, but are there any other brides out there who are sailing on RCCL or who are getting married in Bermuda? If so, any reviews/wisdom you can share?

Great thread!

I'm totally in. If I lose 1 lb a week from now until the wedding, I should be at my goal weight for the wedding. YAY!

We still a go for the 31st?

I'm sorry to hear about both of those stories. We canceled the trip to Mexico and are going to do a cruise leaving out of NJ so we can drive instead. I can't ask my guests to submit to these gropes like it's ok.

Count me in too! The sooner, the better, for me, but I don't mind waiting until the 31st if that's what everyone else wants. I ordered the dress, so I've gotta be good between now and April!

Hey, Are there plans for Season 11? I don't want to miss it this time around!

So, my mom called me yesterday in a panic, because she realized that our wedding day falls on Good Friday. I hadn't realized that before, but I had let FI pick the date, and it doesn't bother either of us. However, she (who isn't normally the pushy type) insisted that we change our wedding date. And then she ultimatumed me! Thankfully for her, we're probably going to change the wedding anyway, because both FI and I are against the new TSA screening policies. We feel that there's conclusive evidence that the x-rays do more harm than good and that the new procedures do not provide extra security. Moreover, I do not feel comfortable forcing my guests to choose between not wanting invasive searching techniques and wanting to come celebrate our joyous day. I think I'm asking a lot of them already to fork over the dough and go to Mexico. John and I are discussing trying to take a cruise for the wedding instead. I've got to do some more research, because I'd like to do that on Princess, but it doesn't seem like they've got any good options leaving from our area for the next year. I'm just so stressed out right now. I feel like I'm going crazy!

I think I'm leaning towards canceling the wedding. There have been reports that people going through the machine also have had to submit to the groping, and I don't think I can handle that.

I'm really sorry that you're stuck with only those options. Apparently an German TV show did some experiments with the scanner and found out that the scanner caught a cell phone, swiss army knife and his microphone. However, it missed all the components to make a bomb that he hid on his body.