Vikki

The whole point of a DW was to avoid stress. So, with a few minor exceptions the wedding was relaxing and enjoyable. Until now. My mom has insisted on having a reception when we get home. I have been supportive so far and it will be nice to have some other family around to celebrate. However there seems to be an emerging alternative motive to her party planning and it's kind of frustrating me. The background-many of you know I lost my grandfather shortly after my engagement was announced and having the excitement of wedding planning overshadowed by the grief of losing someone I was so close to really took the fun out of most of my planning. The loss was also hard on my mom who was executor of his estate. As part of that process we had to sell his home and go through his possessions. At that time her siblings came and put aside some items for sentimental reasons. So now as she's planning the reception she sends out this email to everyone in her family asking if they would like to go through his things while they're in town for the reception. Ok so far. Until this: "I was wondering, how would everyone feel about a second gathering to go through Dad's things and get them distributed? The area that we are considering renting is available to us the entire day, and I had the idea that maybe one of the side rooms could be made available to bring Dad's stuff for our family to go through either before or after the reception? It would put everything in one place, and accessible during one day." Does this really have to happen at the venue we're renting for my reception?? I loved my grandfather more than I can even begin to say but having his items around will make me cry, especially if family is all around discussing it. Even if we go through it "before and after". I guess I need a couple more degrees of separation between these two events. And what about out other guests that aren't related to my grandfather? Would that be weird for them? I appreciate my mom wanting to try and combine the trip for the out of town family but at the same place on the same day? I would be totally ok if they wanted to have a gathering somewhere else or a different day but not at my reception. However, she's the one throwing this so I feel kind of stuck telling her what she can and can't do. I just really miss my grandfather and it makes me sad when I think about him. Having all of his things in the next room while I'm supposed to be celebrating will be tough. I'm at the point where I don't really want to have a reception at all.

Quote: Originally Posted by KLee147 woohoo! Tell me you totally love your kitchen aid mixer! The brownie recipe that it comes with it is tops! Yes....I LOVE it! Best gift ever :-) Haven't tried the brownies yet though.

Sounds like you had a wonderful time. Congratulations on being a Mrs. Can't wait to see some pictures...??

Quote: Originally Posted by SgtPepperette Keira, congrats!!!!! Oh my, Im sorry you fell!!! You looked beautiful on your wedding day! I cant wait to check out more of your pictures. Our TTD was on Sunday and we used paint! It was a blast for all of us! I posted the teaser pics on this thread... http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...int-ttd-51780/ Congrats to all you upcoming brides! My advice is stop and take in as many moments as you can. It goes by like a blink of an eye! Ok, I posted on that thread as well but DAMN girl, that top picture is sweet! I love it.

Ooh I love it!!!! Can't wait to see more.

http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...-thread-51790/ Bleh. Finally got this up. Now I need to start thinking about the review. I hope everyone else is doing well-I'm headed back to work soon and trying to stay positive about that. I wish I were back in Jamaica.....

Here is the travel book we used. I borrowed most of the resort info from another BDW bride that was married at Couples Swept Away :-) ErinB I think Brandon's rant about air travel is my favorite part though :-) Travel Booklet.doc

DIY Projects: OOT Bags and travel packets Brandon designed a logo for us and we ordered canvas bags, T-shirts and stickers from zazzle.com. We put a few other items in the bags as well. We didn’t do save the dates or formal invites because our group was so small….and I’m not a really creative person. We did send out travel packets to our guests with resort information, travel reminders and Brandon’s satirical guide to airline travel, complete with obscure references. (attached at the end!) Ceremony Decorations My mom was a huge help with the wedding decorations and spent hours helping with details. The resort offered a standard wedding package but once I got a look at the ceremony location I knew it wasn’t going to work for me. The cost to upgrade started at $300 and I wanted to try and keep it simple and way under that cost. So we made our own bamboo tripods draped with our colors. My mom helped me sew matching chair ties as well. Our cost came in around $150 and included decorations for not only the ceremony but our small reception as well. I also hung starfish on fishing line (that belonged to my grandfather ) and strung that with the organza. Additional décor – votive candle holders in the wedding colors, beads dyed to match wedding colors and scattered flowers/starfish around the ceremony location and reception. Bouquet/Cake: I decided not to spend additional money on upgrading the cake. We are going with the complimentary cake and champagne. We were initially going to design and have a cake topper made from our MMORPG characters from the online game we played when we met. But there wasn’t a way to do it around copyright restrictions so we scrapped that and instead found this awesome cake topper that represents another of our favorite activities-hiking. I’m going to upgrade the standard bouquet offered at the resort. I spent some time trying to decide what I wanted and customize flowers but it was going to be really expensive so I will just stick with the resort offering on this one. Bridal Shower/Bachelor Party My mom arranged a bridal shower for me at a local tea house. I originally did not want a shower but ended up enjoying myself. Two of my aunts were able to join us and my other aunt called earlier in the day to wish her congratulations. Some of my cool goodies from my shower. The same day as my shower Brandon had his bachelor party. It was a pretty standard event and as expected he arrived home at some point in the early morning the next day with little memory for what happened and a horrible hangover. We heard from his friends later that he had a great time  And so that’s it I guess. There are so many more pictures and details but it just gets too long to try and get it all together.

Well, I’m technically writing this on the airplane and will post when we get home. This last week was a bit hectic and I just couldn’t find the time to get it done. I have to say thank you to founders and members of BDW for this awesome resource. I’ve had much more fun with getting ready than I ever would have without the ladies here! Just a warning-I tend to be a bit too detailed in descriptions so continue at your own risk! How we met: Brandon and I met about 4 years ago when we both played an MMORPG. We were gaming buddies for a few years and then a group of us decided to have a group party. We flew in from around the US and had a great time.. One thing led to another and in early 2007 Brandon packed up and moved out to Boise. In March of this year he decided to make it official and asked me to start giving him hints about what kind of ring I might like. Why a Destination Wedding? Since I can remember my dream of the perfect wedding has involved being barefoot on a beach. I didn't have the desire to go plan and organize a large wedding and so the private beach ceremony was perfect for us. We chose Jamaica for a couple reasons. First, Brandon had been there before and loved it. Second, at the time we were booking there was quite a bit of negative press around Mexico, the other potential location, and I wanted our parents to feel comfortable. The Venue: We’re having the wedding at Couples Sans Souci in Ocho Rios Jamaica. I chose the resort before joining the forums and there were a few moments of doubt after seeing the other options in Jamaica but for the small wedding party I have it will be perfect. Couples is a small, all-inclusive, adult only resort chain with 4 locations in Jamaica. I relied heavily on a message board provided by couples when I chose Sans Souci for the location. (Couples Main Message Board - Couples Resorts Message Board) I was looking for a more secluded, quiet experience. Our wedding won’t be completely private but compared to other options I think the location will suit us just fine. During the peak season they hold multiple weddings per day but in the off-season there are very few. There was one other wedding scheduled for my date and the bride and I have been in contact for the last several months as the date gets closer. It’s been fun to have a “date twin”! The Guests: Wanting to keep the list to a bare minimum I only invited our parents but shortly after booking I lost my grandfather and the resulting time with family made me decide I wanted to share the wedding with more of the family. We invited our siblings and will be holding a reception in January so more extended family can celebrate with us as well. Only my sister and her husband were able to come so our party grew from 6 to 8 with the majority of our friends and relatives attending the January event. The Details: Rings: We found my ring at a small jewelry store that was going out of business. I had actually stopped in to check out what they had and fell in love with the ring. It has an offset diamond and I hadn’t seen anything like it in our other shopping trips. I dropped some not so subtle hints and left the rest up to B. My wedding band is a plain white gold band. I will not be attaching it because I don’t want to have to take off both rings for my active lifestyle. Brandon’s ring we got at another small jeweler. We had looked and looked with no luck and just stopped by one day and there it was. The Dress: I found a dress online that I initially absolutely loved! It was perfect for a destination wedding. The only size in stock was a 16 (I’m a 10) so I ordered it on a special program that I could send it back for a fee if it wasn’t alterable. I was running out of time to wait the 3 months it would take to have one made in my size if I didn’t like the dress. It came, the alterations shop said they could accommodate and I kept it. Somehow I just didn’t feel like a bride in the dress and kept going back to a more traditional dress style. Finally I bought one. It's a Maggie Sottero "Veronica" I was able to re-sell the first dress for close to what I paid for it so it worked out ok. Accessories: I went with some pretty traditional items for the old, new ,borrowed and blue. A bracelet given to me by my mother that belonged to my grandmother is my something old. My dress is new, grandmother’s pearls are borrowed and my barefoot sandals and garter have blue. The Ceremony: My parents will both be walking me down the isle and my sister will hand us our rings. The resort has standard vows but allows us to write a short exchange as well. We will have an empty chair to symbolize the loved ones that are not longer able to join us. Pictures: Wedding: Misha Earle - Misha Earle Photography I chose my wedding photographer before I joined BDW based on recommendations from the Couples Message Board but I still think she’s the perfect choice. The cost was right and she worked out an arrangement with us to accommodate our TTD session the next day. Boudoir: O2 Photography - O2 Photography - Fine Art Wedding, Senior & Family Photography! I’m going to detour from my post for a quick (or not so quick) rant……. After reading many posts and looking at beautiful pictures posted by other BDW brides I decided to do a Boudoir (BD) photo book. I chose the photographer Jennifer Oats of O2 Photography randomly from our area. I initially liked her personality and pictures although I didn’t see any of her BD work in advance her other photos were good. The photo shoot went ok, I felt a little rushed and we actually had to do a second session so she could go to another engagement she had scheduled. She didn’t get a good image of my “white” bridal corset outfit so that was frustrating. She also used a lot of standing, full body shots rather than soft close ups. I initiated a few poses I could remember liking from other pictures I’d seen and those ended up being some of my favorite pictures. The next fiasco came when it was time to order the book. The photo selection process took place with her business partner and there was a lot of miscommunication about the pricing and album size I picked out. He told me one thing and didn’t tell her so she assumed we were doing something completely different. We finally figured that out and she put up the sample album for me but I just didn’t like the layout. It felt like a high school year book to me. I was really frustrated and so I decided to do it myself. We ended up keeping one page of her layout and designed the rest ourselves. Fortunately Brandon is very knowledgeable in the software required to build the necessary templates for the book so together we spent time and built the design. While the surprise was ruined it was so much fun to work closely with him to create a book we both were in love with! The book showed up 5 days ago (right against the wire!) and so even though it’s not a surprise he’ll still love it. ((Quick note-I don’t blame the photographer for my dissatisfaction with some of the process. Her photos were spectacular and it was my problem for not doing more homework, and being more clear with my expectations. I do think that she and her partner could have a more organized method of working with clients that would have helped with many of the communication breakdowns during the photo selection and pricing process.))

So glad you had fun. It all went by so fast!

Your grandmother was an amazing woman. You have been so fortunate to have her in your life. I hope now she is at peace you are able to find peace of your own. She would want that... I lost my grandfather within weeks of announcing my engagement in April. So the first couple months of my wedding planning were overshadowed by helping my mom deal with his estate. We knew he was ailing but had no idea when he went into the hospital that he wouldn't come home. I felt so guilty for even thinking about my upcoming wedding. I know there is no comfort now but I want to share a few silver linings I found in my grandfather's passing. First, I learned more about him than I ever knew before. I traveled back to New York to visit West Point Military Academy where he graduated in 1942 and was Post Engineer later in his career as a full Colonel. Besides his family his military career was the most important accomplishment he ever achieved. He was nominated for General a couple times but because he had never seen combat he was not confirmed. So so so much history I knew existed but didn't understand the significance of before. Second, his legacy allowed for my sister and her husband to join us in Jamaica for the wedding. Something they would not have been able to do before. They live several states away from our family and we don't see them much so the ability for them to share in this special day was the greatest gift my grandfather could have given me-and I know he would have wanted that. Third-because of his passing my mom and I have developed an even closer relationship than we had before as I have shared her grieving process for not only her father but also the mother she lost when she was 18. The healing she has experienced over the last several months is hard to describe but has been a long time coming. You and your family are in my prayers as you move forward - and know that she'll be there with you, always.

We just finished working with Misha Earle. Our wedding was Monday and she was very professional, made us both feel comfortable and put up with all my quirks. I haven't seen any pictures yet but based on the "feel" of the day I'm confident they turned out well. I will be posting a full review when they come in. Misha Earle Photography

Congratulations Melissa and Grant!!! I hope you're enjoying every moment of your special day. Can't wait to see some pics!

Quote: Originally Posted by SgtPepperette Okay, 2 days out ladies and Im starting to have really high anxiety. About everything, mostly the dress, hair, etc. Today we have a full schedule. The caterer is going to be here at 10, than go by and see the cake lady, than go get marriage license, pick up liquor, pick up food for welcome bbq (the grill is one of those park anciet grills so that should be interesting..), and than find a place to get a pedicure/manicure. Im just getting really anxious and a little nervous. I was really surprised with the place though. Its better than I expected. I think trying to figure out the lighting at night as been a little stressful to. We dont have everything so its hard to really see it. I know it will all come together. I just have to remember to breathe. LOL I wonder if Vikki is feeling just like this....lol You have no idea lol! I was so there. Congratulations girl! You're a Mrs. now too. Our day was wonderful, thanks everyone for the congrats. It went by so quickly but everything seemed to be good. All our family is now gone so it's just us at the resort. Best wishes to all of you with wedding dates in the next week. I may or may not be back on before then. We're just waiting to go down to dinner and I had a minute to jump on.

Wow-we're leaving....NOW! I'll get my planning post done in the airport I think :-) I can't believe it's finally here. Wow.

Quote: Originally Posted by amandseth Keira, I'm getting EVERYTHING waxed (YIKES!) and my toenails done before I go. Then we've booked a ladies spa day at the resort the day before the wedding for nails and relaxing. oooh I hope you've done that before and recently or you may want to rethink the Brazilian part and....the first couple times are THE WORST!!!! I started having full waxing done about 4 months ago and my skin has finally calmed down but the first couple times I had blotchy red skin for days and was miserable. Not trying to scare you but if you haven't done it ask the salon what to expect..... Just exfoliate, exfoliate exfoliate!!! Like 5 times a day. I have my waxing this morning after the gym. Speaking of the gym I'm off :-) I'll try and get on later and update. I'm so excited, I didn't sleep last night and my tummy is all flip floppy this morning. I don't think it's something I ate lol.

Quote: Originally Posted by Jess you look amazing!!!! Wow, I totally agree!

I didn't realize it but I think I'm the first bride in the November thread. We don't have a Nov 1st do we? I can't believe it's all going to be over this time next week and I'll be married!!!! Well I figured out make-up with my mom yesterday, found out my grandmother had passed down a small, elegant beaded clutch that I will be using instead of buying one. She was one of those very fashionable, traditional officer's wives in the 40's so it's not only a piece of my family history but something from a different generation all together. I wish I had met her but it's cool to be able to have a piece of her there with me. We leave tomorrow. Brandon is really cranky-I think he's just stressed with work and ready for vacation but he's being a real grump so I'm just sort of staying out of his way this week. I still have some things to do. I found out last night it's my photographer's birthday this weekend so I'm going to go to a local store and get something from "Idaho". We have this wonderful huckleberry jelly that a local woman makes so I might pick up some of that. Brandon suggested I get her a potato but since I'm a native Idahoan I don't think that joke is particularly funny anymore.... So I'm going to try and find something today. I also need to get something for my date twin. She is getting married earlier in the day and we've been conversing through email the last couple months. I'm so anxious. And excited. And aprehensive. And totally not focused on work at all. I don't know what I was thinking scheduling client meetings today. I'm pretty much going to rush through them and leave as soon as I can. Thank goodness I should be done around 1:00 so only a couple more hours. I think I might have to treat myself to sushi for lunch to calm down lol.

Quote: Originally Posted by SgtPepperette I know right? From what I remember I just did a lot of hugging and kissing. To all the girls with me! LOL My sisters went, (they are 20 years older than me), and a friend of mine who is around their age. And this friend is very very close to me so she knows a lot about me, when I try to talk to her about the night she changes the subject or ignores the question. I warned her...you will see a side of me you will only see once. LOL Wow, you must have had a good time!

Quote: Originally Posted by Prettyhazardous Aww Vikki I hope you feel better. Just think in a few days you'll be sipping a Mai Tai on the beach in Ocho Rios... Also Did I tell you when we were in Ocho Rios last year we went ATVing with/thru Chukka Cove. OMG that was the best experience ever. Maybe you guys could book this trip before the wedding. So you can get some of the stress out. It was so beautiful. One of the best excursions I've ever been on. Here's a link to their site but we actually booked it thru Carnival cruises... Chukka Caribbean Adventures Hmm, that sounds fun. I know for sure we want to check out the zip line thing but I'm sure our family would enjoy that one too. Erika: Chicago? Wow that's a long way to go for a bridal shower but it sounds like you had fun. You must have a lot of family there. Now that you're home you can start packing up and getting ready. You're sooooo close! I'm trying to figure out what I'm going to do with food at the resort. I've been fairly restricted in the type of food I eat the last month or so-more so than usual-and I'm worried about how that's going to affect me when my diet changes drastically. Thank goodness my dress is a lace up so I can hide it if I get bloated but my swimming suits are not so forgiving. I think I'm going to pack a couple Tupperware containers with some ground flax-seed for my digestive system and maybe milk-thistle to help with the alcohol consumption?? Anybody else have any dietary restrictions they're trying to work with? What are you doing about it? We leave the day after tomorrow. I can't stop counting!!!!

Wow Melissa, I didn't realize how creative you were! What a beautiful job you've done preparing for the wedding. I wish you and Grant all the happiness in the world.

Congrats Jamie! I'm so happy for you. Keira-I'm having my photographer take it to him-nothing really special but I want her to get the pictures. Ash....I would be PISSED! But I can kind of understand with the weather being poor. Still, she should have let you know in advance at least. Ok, I had a mini-meltdown yesterday. Somehow in my mind I imagined being neatly packed by Saturday (yesterday) and just working on last minute details before waltzing, stress-free out the door on Wednesday to catch the plane. My morning was supposed to start at the gym then come home, clean up the house and get the packing done. So, I get to the gym at 7:00am and there's about 20 people standing outside. Uh Oh...this doesn't look good. So, no gym. I get home, cranky because I didn't get to work out and instead decide to finish off some cookie dough in the fridge. Can you see where this is going? After I initiated a sugar coma with the cookie dough I didn't much feel like cleaning the house so I decided to pull out the bags and start packing. By the time FI came down stairs it was like a baggage claim exploded in our living room. I had luggage open all over and kept moving things from one bag to the other. I felt so disorganized so I kept trying to make lists. In case you didn't know compulsive list making can be disastrous. I finally realized that it wasn't going to happen (this only took 4 hours) and frustrated I decided to lay down and take a nap. I didn't feel much better when I got up so FI took me out for sushi. When we got home he was really sweet and got the house picked up. We moved everything in one corner and I'm going to work on it again today. I think PMS and wedding stress is making this a really miserable weekend. I just feel like I can't quite get control of the situation and it's such a helpless feeling. I've been fighting with FI all weekend. Not really fighting but just grumping. Ugh....thanks for letting me ramble a bit. Wednesday seems like it's coming more quickly than it should.

Those are beautiful, you did a great job.

Quote: Originally Posted by EDRBride2009 Today is my legal day. I still don't know what I'm wearing, haven't found little gifts for my witnesses, and now don't have a ring either!! Guess that only means one thing - must go shopping ! Forget the ring...enjoy the day! There will be plenty of time later to figure out what to do next with the ring. How exciting. The girls with a "legal" day have the best of both worlds I think. I know it's not the same as the wedding but in someways it's like having the "magic" moment twice! Ash....I'm sure your FI will be just as sexy as normal...even if he's a little fishy. I hope you guys have a great time today. And the 7 day calendar is always right at the bottom of the main forum page.

Just realized I'M IN SINGLE DIGITS!!!!! Need I say more? Oh and Melissa....look, we're on the 7 day calendar already! Calendar 10-24-2009: Dana (Dana_C) and Eddie's Cancun Wedding, Jetsbride Stagette 10-27-2009: jennierin's wedding date 10-28-2009: Vikki leaves for Jamaica, SgtPepperette Leaves for Florida!, Jetsbride Bridal Shower