Karen Aucoin

Hmm...I had to really think about this as well. Everything really went well with our wedding but there are those little things that stand out both good and bad. To do again: -Book an outside Pastor from the US (That is living in Punta Cana) that spoke perfect English and provided us with the most beautiful ceremony. We had to do our paperwork at home first which I wasn't keen on doing originally but in the end I'm so glad I did it this way. -Pay the big bucks for an amazing photographer!! We didn't know if we could afford it but my sister and parents came through as they knew how much it meant to me. In the end, these pictures are what I will have to look back on. -Bring my own chair sashes and table runners and some decor. It really made it our wedding! -Go with "Real Touch" flowers from Enchanting Memories! They were so beautiful and looked so real. Plus, the lasted the entire night and now I have my bouquet as a keepsake. -Jump in the pool in my dress with the rest of my wedding party! It was so much fun and a great way to end our evening. (Well, we went and changed and then went to the Disco) -Not worry about not being able to do a private dinner and an open bar. Our guests totally understand that we don't want to be in debt for our wedding and they do such a nice job of the dinner even when it's not "Private". We had our own waiters who were wonderful and we were tucked away from everyone else. The open bar ended up being given to us for free in the long run but our guests all brought their champagne and beer from their rooms and for the 2 hours, that would have been fine. What I would do differently: -I would have liked to have had a few poses from my photographer that I didn't ask for...I wish I would have been more assertive and asked for specific shots that I wanted. -I would have had my husband try on his outfit for me before...I had seen what he was wearing but not all on. He wore a long sleeve white shirt with beige pants which was fine but he wore a white t-shirt underneath and it really showed and when I look at the pictures it bugs me. Not really a huge deal... -I would have locked my IPod in the safe when I said to myself, "I should put that in the safe". Both of our IPods were stolen from our room, 100% positive but no proof of course. Oh well, my own stupidity. -Made sure that my husband came home from the Disco with more than two hours to go until our Trash the Dress session. He had swollen eyelids, a swollen ankle from falling down some stairs, and looked HUNG OVER!! I was told by his mother that I should have been grateful that he at least showed up. Awesome...

For any of you that are members of the Majestic Colonial Brides Facebook group you may have already read the review I wrote but I thought that I would post it here as well for anyone who is getting married there. Sorry, it's pretty long... I'll start off by saying that we have been to Punta Cana twice before for weddings at other resorts and have had something to compare our resort/wedding to. The resort is beautiful and the staff are so friendly and helpful. Our check-in was a breeze and we were able to receive our upgrade and got a suite. This room is HUGE!! It was so nice to have the extra space and we even had a big get-together one night on our terrace with over 20 people. It was also nice for getting ready the day of the wedding with having so many people plus our photographers. My wedding coordinator throughout the entire experience was Maritee and she was wonderful to deal with. While communicating by email she was always very quick to respond and I tried to keep my questions brief and right to the point. We had arrived late on Saturday, November 7th and Maritee had arranged to come in on her day off to meet with us in order for us to get married on Monday the 9th. This was so sweet of her and I really appreciated it. Our meeting was set for 9am and went so quickly and easy my fiancé looked at me after and said, "That's it?" as we just went over the location and little details. I had brought a suitcase with things such as our sand ceremony set and chair sashes, table runners, place card holders and decorative shells and starfish and had the rest of our things back up in our room. I had planned to have a couple of our guests arrange things like our fans for the chairs and the cake decorations and topper, guests book etc. but Maritee said to bring it all to her and she would do it all. She added our ribbon to all the fans and had everything arranged perfectly. We did keep our favours and added those to the table just before dinner. When we had booked our trip I knew that November was the tail end of hurricane season but in what I had read and experienced in the past I wasn't worried about the weather. Any time I have been there and it's rained it rains hard for 10 mins and then it's done. Well, not the case this time. When we arrived on Sat evening it was pouring...again, all day Sunday and in our meeting Maritee said that the backup plan would be to move things inside. I didn't think much of it assuming that with all the rain surely by Monday it would be done. Not so much, I woke up Monday to more rain!!! I went up to deliver our Ipod to Maritee and she told me that with the forecast saying 60% chance of rain that we would need to move everything inside. I was really disappointed but it's the weather, nothing I can do about it. She told me that our ceremony would be in the lobby where the tour desks are normally set up and that our reception would be in one of the conference rooms. I was supposed to get married in the Gazebo and then have our reception at the Parrot Bar. I went to get my hair done at 11am and hoped that maybe the weather would clear up before the afternoon and maybe we could go back to the original plan. Spa appointment - I had booked appointments for my mother and I online and then went to the spa the day before to confirm our appointments. My mother and I had both brought pictures from home and we were both happy with the outcome. I would have liked my hair to be a bit more loose and flowy but with the weather I understand that lots of hairspray is and was required. I had my nails done prior to arriving. Left the hair salon in the rain and went to my room to get ready. Room Service - On the recommendation of our photographers I ordered room service for all us girls and our three photographers around 12:30. It arrived after 1:30 which was fine for us but if you're on any kind of a timeline keep that in mind. (I find room service at any hotel to be slow so I wasn't too bothered by this) I can't tell you if it was any good as I didn't eat any of it because I was addicted to the thin-crust pizza from the buffet so grabbed a couple of slices and brought it to the room after my hair appointment. Ceremony - at 2:30pm is finally stopped raining. By this time everything was set up in the lobby and our guests were gathered and ready to get this show on the road. The groomsmen were all going to start grabbing stuff and moving it down to the Gazebo but ended up leaving things as it was maybe because those darn black clouds were still lingering. It was better than I had expected and my only complaint was that the songs we had chosen to walk it to were all now cut so short as it was a much shorter walk than it would have been it we had gotten married in the gazebo. Also, I had seen in someone's photos how they had brought chair sashes and then there were some yellow ones still attached underneath. I actually had one of my guests in charge of taking off the yellow hotel ones if they were still on the chairs with the sashes I had brought and when I walked in I was surprised to see both. I later realized that they are permanently attached and therefore cannot be taken off so it looks like there are two on there. Overall our guests said that they were glad they were inside and had a bit of a breeze and that it was still set up beautiful. I still wish I had had my "outdoor wedding" but it wasn't so bad. In the end I still got married and had my friends and family there to celebrate with us and that's what matters. Pastor Rick York - Pastor Rick made our ceremony so personal and I loved having our guests involved in our ceremony by doing readings. We also incorporated the sand ceremony and had so many compliments on how it was such a nice touch. Our ceremony was approximately 20-25 minutes and I could not have been happier with the decision to use Pastor York and do our paper work here at home just before we left. Dinner - Our dinner was supposed to be at the Steakhouse and was moved to the other side just in case it was still raining. The Seafood side provides a bit more shelter from the rain blowing it. I hadn't been to these restaurants before so didn't even know the difference. Our meal was great and the table looked awesome. Our table runners were set up and we had shells and starfish that we had brought as well as our sea shell place card holders and our glass starfish plates and seashell and starfish chocolates. The meal was surf and turf with the Chateaubriand and Grouper. From those who had the lobster throughout the trip they actually said that they preferred the grouper. The lobster is very different there than here at home. Reception - We were supposed to be at the Parrot Bar and then the conference room was our back-up plan but Maritee had called me earlier in the day to say that our reception would be in the Sports Bar. In the long run this proved to be awesome as they gave us an open bar and a DJ which we hadn't planned on doing. They had it decorated with our lanterns and chair sashes and our cake looked awesome. It was great and I wasn't disappointed to be inside at all. Photographers - Based on the reviews and photos on this Facebook group I had booked Phil and Michael Steingard. Anyone who has been on this site knows that their work is unbelievable so I don't need to say much except I was so happy to have had them. I even had one of their co-workers Jamie join them for the day and all three were so great to work with. The time flew by and I can't wait to see all of our amazing pictures. My guests went on and on about them all week and everyone is really excited to see the final outcome of all those shots! Flowers - I had decided to go with Enchanting Memories for our flowers again based on the reviews and pictures on this site. I was so happy with them and can't say enough about how easy Pat and Debbie were to work with. They looked so real that one lady on the plane was saying how nice they smelled and my sister handed my mother the bag with her bouquet just as we came into the Punta Cana airport and my poor mother got stuck at customs as they didn't believe her that they were fake! Everyone commented on them and I'm now able to keep my bouquet as a souvenir.

I don't plan on doing a garter toss or bouquet toss either. Just not my style and I don't think anyone will care either way. Almost everyone coming to our destination wedding is married.

Thanks ladies for the site. I have looked on The Knot website, didn't see any there, I looked at pics at my hair salon, didn't see any there. The only thing I have found so far is pics of Carrie Underwood inspired prom hairstyles but there's where I found the one I liked and my mother isn't too keen on. I'll check out that site today!

Hey Ladies, I'm leaving for my Dominican wedding in 4 days and I still have no idea of what to do for my hair!! I had one or two ideas but the one I was leaning toward my mom isn't a fan. I have med/long hair with no bangs and I don't want a big fancy updo. My hair is layered and falls about 6-8 inches beneath my shoulders. I also have an orchid that I'll be wearing and a single-tiered veil to my waist. Any thoughts?!?!

I had really wanted to get married in Hawaii as well but due to the cost we just thought maybe we could go there for our honeymoon instead. We went with an all-inclusive which suites our needs for our wedding better. Good luck with your decision! Either one will be amazing for sure.

We are doing "Asian Wish Lanterns" (or prayer lanterns they're sometimes called) on the beach after our reception. The plan is to pass them out during the reception and people can write a wish on them, decorate them whatever and then when our reception is over we'll all go down to the beach to light them. They just float up like a hot air balloon. It's nothing too big or expensive but just a bit different and I think it's memorable.

Does anyone know where I could track one down quickly in order to start another one to be passed around? I'm in Alberta but have guests coming from all over if we can track one down in the next two weeks.

Ahhh!!! So I'm now two weeks away from leaving and starting to stess. Being a teacher I was so on top of everything right from the get-go and now I'm waking up at 4:30am every morning thinking of all the little things and dealing with headaches every day. My luck I'll catch the freakin' H1N1 right before we leave. Anyone else totally losing it?!?! Oh, and did I mention that my FI basically does nothing wedding related except complain about the money we are spending and don't have? He still hasn't even found pants or shoes to wear and I ended up finding the groomsmen shirts and his shirt to wear.

Any chance of one making it's way to me in the next two weeks? I love this idea but just learned of it. I'm in Alberta...leaving on the 6th of November out of Edmonton. Let me know if anyone has one that they think would get here on time and then I could pass it on after Nov.15th.

Great choices. Either one will look great. We almost went with that color but I changed my mind. It'll look so pretty against the water.

Thanks ladies. Just the little things left now and then off we go!

Have you joined the Majestic Brides Facebook site? There's lot of great info on there including info on excursions that people have gone on. We did the Caribbean Festival last year which included swimming with sharks and sting-rays and that was good. I've also heard that the Safari one, I can't think of the name right now it good (where you get to see the Dominican way of life, etc.) Besides that we've done parasailing and horseback riding from the vendors that walk the beach and hope to maybe do a zip-line this year. Our tour operator last year told us that the dolphins wasn't worth the time/money and I've heard that the deep sea fishing can be a really rough trip!! A girl I work with did it with her husband and 7 out of 8 on the boat got sick from how rough it was just trying to get out.

They look great, how long did it take to design and receive them?

I totally hear ya! I went to University for 8 years to become a teacher, worked full time as a teacher here in Alberta for 5 years full time but on temp contracts each year and now I'm subbing!! I'm making half of what I was and since I wasn't really expecting it didn't really plan ahead. Our wedding is just weeks away and I had to cash in some RRSP's in order to pay for my share of the trip. I feel dumb because we can't afford welcome bags etc. and can't do an open bar. I know people will understand but I just wish I could be able to do those things. You're not alone...I actually just picked up a part time job and hope that something will come up shortly but it's frustrating that the only jobs I have seen they expect you to have a degree, experience and then want to pay you $10-$12 an hour. Yeah, ok, as if that's gonna help me with my mortgage, truck payment and student loans!!! URRGGG...sorry, this has turned into a rant but I just wanted to say I feel your pain. Best of luck in your job search and for others out there in similar situations, best of luck to you too.

We're doing our "legal" stuff next week. I told the Marriage Commisioner that I wanted it be be sticktly paperwork and have nothing resemble a wedding as I was hesitant about doing this way anyways. I want my wedding day in the Dominican to be my wedding. So, that said, we'll be wearing jeans etc. but maybe go out to dinner with our witnesses. We've told a few people but not many.

I think having maybe one of those small memory frames that attaches into your bouquet would be a nice way to have her memory included in your ceremony.

Wow, I can't believe that she would say all those things. The way I look at it is you can't please everyone so do what you want which is why we all chose destination weddings!!! As for the shower, it's impossible to find a day that works for everyone! Man, I hope you don't have to have her around you often, she sounds like such a "Debbie Downer"!

Wow, that's really tough. My thoughts are with you at such a sad time. I just wanted to say that I had a bridesmaid that had to cancel and even though I knew a long time ago I decided to go with the un-even number. I just didn't want to have anyone feel like they were an after-thought by then asking them and I guess I just don't feel like it'll be that big of a deal to have 3 girls and 4 guys. Whatever you decide I'm sure people will respect your decision but don't feel pressured by anyone, do what you want and what feels right in your heart. Best of luck...

We used Wedquarters.com, super easy to use and updates instantly. P.J. and Karen's Wedding Website - WedQuarters

I vote #2!

I'm planning on doing my hair half up with a veil and an orchid. I'll post pics when I return.

So I joined back in January but haven't been on the site since. I'm getting married in just a few weeks, Nov.9th, at the Majestic Colonial!!