Sheree10

Quote: Originally Posted by MDLady Hey ladies, I've seen this item - Pre-departure Brochure and Meet the Guest Page - but don't know what it actually is. I've never seen it at any of the weddings. Can someone please tell me what would go into the pre-departure brochure and how to get it to the guests. Also, I love the meet the Guests idea and I have that on my website but I doubt many people are going there to look.... What ideas do you have for Meet the Guests These ideas are completly optional. Some brides send a brochure with info about the island, resort, excursions etc. beforehand. I put this information on my website( I don't think many have looked at it).I plan to create a Welcome to Aruba booklet. I actually put it together but I am not tech- savvy so I need to have it designed into a booklet. I prefer not to spend too much because guests will probably throw them away.

Quote: Originally Posted by MDLady I have a dumb question. Does the resort provide the numbers for each of the tables or do we need that also? I think it depends. Most of these resorts should have basic table numbers or they may be able to personalize one for you. I was thinking of creating my own and instead of regular numbers, having the numbers in papiamento (Language of Aruba) or different places on the island. The sweetheart table will be Mi Dushi (my sweetheart).

It's never too early to start the dress shopping. I ordered mine about nine months before my wedding. I went shopping on and off for about two months and eventually found one that had all I was looking for. I would suggest that you not jam dress appointments into one day/weekend. Maybe go every other weekend and take a look. This way you can see what looks best on you. I was so overwhelmed the first day of shopping. Take some pictures of dresses or have certain styles in mind. Don't feel pressured to get something. Once you find the one you love take some time to think it over and bring a friend/mom for second opinion. It usually takes 4-6 months to get a dress delivered. I wouldn't recommend getting it a smaller size because you can always alter it to make it smaller. If you can't fit in it that will be a problem. Good Luck and enjoy!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Thomasjsgirl If anybody's interested in doing a no frills program, here is a picture of mine as well as the template: Love this program!! I printed out a copy and it looks so nice. I am leaning towards not having one but I may use the cover for my welcome booklet. Since we're having a DW and not getting married in a Church most likely we'l skip the programs. Plus, we only have a MOH and BM and the ceremony should be very short.

Congrats Mrs. and thanks for sharing your pics!!

Quote: Originally Posted by cathyandchin neither do I, FI is a SLACKER!! Mine too!! I talk to him about it every once in a while but he keeps saying, "we have time"! He hasn't even looked around to get ideas. I just had to tell him what I want him to wear. Knowing him, he will end up waiting until July to get himself together ;(

Quote: Originally Posted by Island Bride My deadline is also May 1st and I sent them out in March and I've gotten about 30 RSVP's out of about 150 back!!! But some people have already booked rooms at my resort so I obviously know there coming and I havent gotten RSVP's back from them. I cant complain too much.. they still have 2 weeks to respond. But I agree.. its very frustrating! What's up with that? I understand that they booked already but why can't they just send the rsvp back? Our guest list was a little bigger than yours and we got back less cards so far! We'll see what happens.

Quote: Originally Posted by JanineA Sheree are you in constant contact with the WC at your resort? Ask her to send you an update. Every so often mine send me an update of anyone that has booked at the hotel. Which is how I was able to find about that 8 people who actually told me no initially went ahead and booked. We made it clear on our wedding website guests had to mention they are going for our wedding to receive the special room rate. As a result they are also coded differently in the resorts system and it is easy for my WC to send me a list. There is always a chance people may stay elsewhere but try to control what is in your grasp. As you said you have enough on your plate and it is also their responsibility to respond in a timely fashion. Try not to let this part frustrate you and good luck! Our WC doesn't have much to do with the reservations. We worked with a travel agent who has been helpful in updating me with those who have booked. However, it gets complicated because some people have taken care of their own travel so I can't go based on that alone. I've gotten a few more rsvp's but I highly doubt I will get a full response by the deadline. As of now the main people are accounted for.

Quote: Originally Posted by damaris Shoot your pictures convinced me!!! I called Jennifer and my appt is set. Damaris- You will be happy. Jen is great!!

Absolutely stunning pictures!! Your Fi is going to be so happy. Jen is amazing to work with, I know firsthand because I did my pics with her also. I'm still deciding on whether to make my own album or order with her.

I was planning on doing a flush mount album also. My photographer includes a coffee book album- I think similar to mypublisher/myblurb books but the flush is my first choice. I can only find sites that work with photographers. Here's one that I found some time ago. Check them out anyway, You never know.Albums Unlimited home page, photo albums, wedding albums, flush mount albums, library bound photo albums, professional photographer supplies There's also http://www.sproulliedesigns.com I was in touch with her a few months ago to inquire about designing an album. Good luck and let us know how it works out.

I'm so sorry to hear that you are dealing with all of this. A wedding can bring about such excitement from everyone, especially a FMIL who is helping to plan her son's wedding in Jamaica. As you now know, In Jamaica weddings are a huge celebration for everyone- even people YOU and hubby have never met or may never see again. I would have loved to have my wedding there but we chose a neutral location to avoid complications such as this. I can see how frustrated you are! I think that one of the first things you should do is have a conversation with FI and let him know how you feel. You two should decide on what you would like for your wedding and then he or the two of you can share this with his mother. It won't be easy but you shouldn;t have to give in to everything she wants just to appease her. I do agree that it;s important to choose your battles but if you feel she is taking over this may lead to resentment for many years to come. Whenever there is a situation my FI usually is the one to speak to his mother, especially if she doesn't understand when we say "no". Maybe it's better for your FI to speak to his mom so you don't seem like that bad guy. My FMIL chimes in every once in a while with suggestions/comments. I simply SMILE & NOD. I listen to what she has to say even if I know we are not going to do it. I try to keep conversations about the wedding to a minimum. I don't think she's too happy about not being heavily involved but heh- we're footing the bill!!

I think in most cases, bridesmaids pay for their own dresses. I don;t think there's anything wrong if the bride and groom pay for it but it should be totally up to them. If you want to do something special for them maybe you can take care of something like their accessories, shoes, hair/makeup, spa day or an excursion.

I'm so glad to hear that I'm not the only one dealing with this. Thanks ladies, I don't feel like I'm alone in looking at things in this way. I wonder if this happens with regular weddings or just DW's? It's so strange because some of the guests have already booked (according to them) but they haven't returned their response. It doesn"t make it easy that I'm very anal and lose sleep over trivial things related to this wedding planning. I have some time so I'm just going to wait and see. Once the deadline passes, I think I will speak to my mother and moh and have them reach out to their family members/friends( the ones who have said they may come). I won;t stress it too much but it does make it harder to move the plans along. I actually have a May 1 deadline because I knew this would happen. Planning a wedding has made me see so many things differently. Great discussion... thanks ladies!

Okay so we sent out our formal invites a few weeks ago and have a rsvp deadline of May 1. There's still some time to go but we've gotten very few responses- about 20%. There's some people that we haven't heard from AT ALL since we got engaged or sent out the STD's last year. We have a pretty large guestlist and I know everyone is not coming so why don't they let us know? Some people still say they would like to come and haven't booked a room or flight( They're gonna be in for a suprise... the tickets that were once ~400 have increased to ~700+, this doesn't include their room.)Some are still looking for a "better" deal. I've had people complain about how expensive it is, well geesh it is almost double now- we're only a few months away!! It's all so frustrating when I would like to plan for a welcome reception, oot bags, favors etc. When the deadline passes what do you suggest, do I reach out to non-responders( particularly those who expressed some type of interest) or do I assume that they're not coming if I haven;t heard from them? FI thinks I should just plan for those who I've heard from and don't waste my time finding out about the others. I already have enough on my plate anyway. Anyone have to deal with a similar situation? Any suggestions on dealing with non-responders.

I was thinking about doing the whole costco/bjs thing too and was going to get a few things fruit snacks, peanuts, candy, gum... anything that won't melt in the heat. have you thought about getting a few items in Jamaica? I'm not sure if you have the time before the wedding. Maybe you can even add a bottle of water to the bag. Jamaica has a chain of costco like stores and I don't think you need a membership card... I forgot the name

Everything loos great! good luck with your special day and enjoy the trip!!

yes, I'm definately feeling the stress. It happens whenever I look at my ticker... time flies by so fast. I remember when I had one year and a half to go.. now it's almost three months!

Gorgeous, Gorgeous! Congrats Mrs.!!

I've been freaking out since I got the ring on my finger... lol. The time just flies by too fast. I'm even more happy that we chose to have a dw because a coordinator is part of the package. I have a type a personality and always feel like I have to do everything myself to make sure it gets done the way I want. A local wedding would have been too overwhelming. The whole dw thing has made me be more relaxed. I know that it wil all hit me a few weeks before. The main things are done it's just the small details that I can;t take care of yet until the final head count. Why do people wait until the last minute?? Checks: *Booked venue *created wedding website *Sent out STD’s and travel packet *Booked Photographer *Air and hotel booked, got TA for guests *Got the dress *shoes *Ordered invites *BD date set * renewed passport( got it back in record time- 2 wks!) *completed draft of welcome booklet *scheduled appt for first counseling session *received invites *purchased outfits for upcoming BD *created gift registry To be done: *Wedding Day Accessories *Décor: paper stuff- table numbers, guest book/mat *favors, oot bags? *Groom, BM attire *Plan Welcome gathering *Playlist *Dress alterations fitting #1 in May *Marriage certificate paperwork *wedding bands *Work out *cake, menu, centerpieces Here are a few of my recent checks: *Started premarital counseling *Invites sent out w/ May 1 RSVP *Shopping w/ moh and mom & ordered their dresses *Bd pics taken * found 2 possible locations for welcome event * tried out a new hair stylist to get ideas *put together ideas for welcome brochure( still need to design)

Quote: Originally Posted by tracy0716 TlC I hear you on the moving stress... FI and I are building a house right now. I feel sooo stressed between all of the planning and decisions for the house on top of the wedding. Plus it's looking like we're going to close around 2 weeks before the wedding. I'm dreading moving! That's a lot to be dealing with all at once. My FI and I have our own places and I promised myself that I wouldn't start the house hunt or move before the wedding. I don't think I would be able to handle it all. But at least after the wedding you will be settled into your home. Best of luck!

Welcome and Congrats!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Diva General question: Where did you ladies get your lingerie for the photos? To me Fredericks of Hollywood has cute styles, but their material and quality looks cheap when you get it! VS is cool, but they can also get kind of pricey. Suggestions? I wouldn't suggest that you wait until the last minute to shop for outfits. Whenever you're shopping just take a look at the lingerie section and start to put things together. First maybe check with what you have and think about what you would want to wear. I got my items from VS, Fredericks, H&M. You should have a variety of colors and styles. I agree with Fredricks poor quality in comparison to VS but they do have some cute stuff. Did you set a date for the shoot?

Imppearl- gorgeous pics, thanks for sharing!!

amazing pics! I love the ttd shots at dunns river. It's usually really crowded, how did you manage not to get anyone else in the pictures?