finleys7

you are so creative... =) love them

Your pictures are great...you look so happy. Love the colors =) and love the shorts =)

Karen, DON'T LOOK AT WEATHER.COM. It's a TRAP to get you in a bum mood. I looked and it was SOOOO wrong. The weather after Wed. was great, windy but great. Seriously, don't fret, even if it does rain, it does that 20 minute down pour and then sun again. Hopefully the rain will cool things off a little. =)

Nucci - I am glad it helped. If you have any questions, feel free to fire away. We completely forgot about the cold fireworks...which was fine because the night flew by...I forgot to do a lot of things I had wanted to , but it was all in all WONDERFUL. Who are you using for your TA?

It varied between 10-25%. But it was hard to tell for bartenders and such, so I gave them $40 each.

We tipped out to everyone. I had everything in envelopes, labeled so we could hand out at the end of the night. The florist was the only before wedding payment. I designated my father as the money holder/tipper but my husband ended up tipping =) The DJ, photographer, assistant, videographer, wedding coordinator, bartenders, cigar roller, waiters, trolley drivers...everyone got tipped =)

How many people? That can change some ideas...the OOT bags can get quite expense. We threw in the 3 pack of the Starbucks coffee, because hotel coffee sometimes is really bad! Travel Mugs Some warm dessert/snack...cookies are always a plus or any kind of chocolate.

Love the pics...the one in the water is my favorite..I am laughing will you, he really captured the emotions...

Jenny - your pictures are GREAT. You look beautiful. Love the rock picture with the bridal party...that was a big bridal party. =) Also like the one coming back down the aisle (married) with the yellow rose pedals...AWESOME!

Quote: Originally Posted by dianep we're married! the wedding went smoothly. it was gorgeous and fun. we have a few days before we get back, but thought i'd post and share the picture we got as a teaser from the trash the dress. hope to catch up again in a few days! mrs. diane Diane - CONGRATS!!!! great teaser picture...the wave and your dress look awesome.

Quote: Originally Posted by caligirl1282 Hey ladies, Im finally back (well I wasnt gone this long, I wish!). I got some teaser pics from my photographer and LOVE THEM. They were featured on destinationinspirations.com. Im gonna go through the thread tonight to see how all you ladies are doing. Hope everything is going well!!! Jenny & Matt Destination Wedding Cabo San Lucas Mexico Destination Inspirations Jenny Welcome Back!!!! Congratulations!

Quote: Originally Posted by KittenHeart Shannon I love it!!! Sounds like you had a blaaassssttt! It's funny my one complaint was that it was sooooo freaking hot and we were all sweating a lot. We had the exact same open air but covered patio type of thing for our reception. When talking to everyone later they said they embraced it and didn't even care! Amazing how people just have fun, I love it Amy - Welcome back..love the siggy pic of your first dance. I, like you, are dying for the pro pictures. I left the day before your wedding...but the weather was FANTASTIC leading up to Saturday. I totally understand the heat...Joe was just drippping...but it is what it is =) Congrats again!

Quote: Originally Posted by KarenM Aww, thank you so much girls!! You all are so sweet and I really appreciate all of your kind words & excitement! I really loved all of the planning, & I probably would've done more but we're simply out of time. (a blessing in disguise I think) Shannon, I haven't totally decided but I'm thinking I'll have one of the bridesmaids deliver the book to P while I'm getting my hair done and he's getting ready in his brother's room. I went back & forth on this, between me giving him the book so I can see his reaction and not being there but having it delivered so then he can think on it all day without seeing me. I think I like the element of build-up without being there, but I guess I'll have to see where he's actually going to be so I can have him receive it privately. I could probably talk to his brother to let him know I need him to be in a room around 2 or so. eek! He's gonna freak! Karen, I gave it to him on our wedding day. Around 2ish he came up to our room (I was in my sister's getting ready - I stayed with my mom the night before) and I had given my BM a key to put the gift on the bed with his card. It was great, he was by himself and he called the room and spoke with a BM because we couldn't talk...and he LOVED it. then my brother deliered my gift...WooHoo...love jewelry.

Karen - You have a lot going on, but it really seems like you are on top of it all. Here are the dance songs we asked for: (didn't get all...but he was FAB) It's RANDOM Dance Music •"Brown-eyed Girl" by Van Morrison •"Sweet Caroline" by Neil Diamond •"New York, New York" by Frank Sinatra •"Crazy in Love" by Beyonce •"Build Me Up Buttercup" by The Foundations •"SexyBack" by Justin Timberlake •"Hey Ya!" by Outkast •"Jump Jive An' Wail" by Brian Setzer Orchestra •"Shook Me All Night Long" AC/DC •"Mo Money, Mo Problems" P. Ditty •"Humpty Dance" Digital Underground •"Yeah," "Caught Up" Usher •"Livin' on a Prayer," Bon Jovi •"Footloose" Kenny Loggins •"Jessie's Girl" Rick Springfield •"Hypnotize" Notorious BIG •"Big Pimpin'" Jay-Z •"Blister in the Sun" Violent Femmes •“Send me on my way” by Rusted Root •“Jump Around” by House of Pain •“Low” Ludacris •“Say Ah” •“Carry Out” Justin Timberlake/Timbaland •“Single Ladies” Beyonce •“Shoop” Salt n Pepa •“Cha Cha Slide” •“Cupid Shuffle” –Cupid •“Baby Got Back” Sir Mix A Lot •“Imma Be” Black Eyed Peas •“Boom Boom Pow” Black Eyed Peas •“Let’s Get It Started” Black Eyed Peas •“Rude Boy” Rhiana •“Please Don’t Stop The Music” Rhiana •“Watagatapitsuberry” by Pit Bull •“Hotel Room Service” by Pit Bull •“1, 2, 3, 4, I know you want me” by Pit Bull •“My Chick Bad” by Ludacris •“Empire State of Mind” Jay-Z •“Get Your Freak On” Missy Elliot •“Welcome To The Black Parade” My Chemical Romance •“Swagga Like Us” Remix •“It’s Gonna Be Me” N’sync •“Start Me Up” Rolling Stones •“Me And Julio” Simon and Garfunkle

Amy - Welcome back and CONGRATS! I am glad it was perrrrfection ;-)

Tips...they always appreciate tips. Up in the states it's usually 10-20% of the wedding cost. Hope that helps.

Amy - I wouldn't worry about the pictures if you are doing an AHR in August. They do a decent job but don't advie where to stand and whatnot. If you bring a list of pictures to take and where...then it will be easier. No worries...that's the theme here. =)

Karen - It's going to be wonderful. Your groomsmen and bridesmaids are LUCKY people. You treated them really well. All of your guests will LOVE the OOT bag...lots of good stuff in there. I really like the jewelry too and that each girl has a different style and color. I cannot wait for you to come back with your pictures and review after this one...it was so detailed and GREAT. you really are a special person and your FI will LOVE LOVE LOVE the book. My FI loved it and then said "Who took the pictures?" After he found out it was a professional WOMAN he couldn't stop looking at them. He still does and asked for all the proofs that I didn't put in the album. It's going to be great. When are you giving it to him? Thanks for sharing your planning thread, lots of new brides will be lucky to see such great ideas.

Quote: Originally Posted by KarenM Hiya girls!! Just posted my planning thread http://bestdestinationwedding.com/fo...-thread-59148/ I'm going to go check it out. =)

Chrissy - I went back last Monday and by Thursday I was spent. Everything caught up to me. But this weekend helped, we were able to get some things done. Now just paying off extra bills and making sure the final payments are made. Plus cashing everyone's gifts...so I don't mess up their accounts =) But it is exhausting...this week will be rough...going back to work!

Very detailed review - Great Job. Great pictures - Congrats!!!

I probably won't be on this weekend, so Happy Wedding Day Diane, Dolfinluck, BeachBride10, Jessica, Amanda, and Stacy!!!!!!!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by Girasole Hi Girls!! Got in late last night, had an amazing time!! I so want to go back, ha! I'll post my review soon but I am not a Mrs. & so excited : ) To all of you that are getting married this weekend, congrats & I hope you have the time of your life!! Congrats Chrissy!!!!! Looking forward to your review and pictures. And good luck getting back into the swing of things...it was a rough week for me. TGIF!

Happy Wedding Day Lindsey, Jessica and Christie!!!!

Quote: Originally Posted by amylynn77 Hi Shannon! Thank you for your thorough review. I just joined the BDW forum this week to find out a little more about things like flowers and photogs. I am getting married at the Maya on October 8th and thanks to your review, have booked Claudia Rodriguez' as my photographer. I damn near died when I saw the hotel's photoshop - photocaribbean's - work. Nothing creative and total cheese. They are def laughing all the way to the bank. So, thank you for your review. I wanted to inquire further about your centerpieces. You mentioned going with a local floral shop that contract with Iberostar. Was the hotel not able to provide flowers for your centerpieces, or did you just feel comfortable using an outside resource? Also, did you reach out to them prior to your wedding week arrival, or when you arrived? How was their pricing? Thanks in advance. Best, Amy Amy, you made the right choice with Claudia...she's GREAT! The hotel service is definitely making out...$300 every time they DON'T do work...HaHa The centerpieces would have been a little smaller and I wanted the tall vases. The Del Mar only had 5 and we had 10 tables. So rather than mix and match with tall and short, I went outside. So easy to work with, it was $50 a centerpiece @ 10 tables, so $500 not so bad =) And they were just how I pictured...he sent a prototype and everything, with details of the flowers...so we knew what to expect. I emailed prior to arrival about 2 months ahead of time. And no deposit was required, but we signed the contract (electronically) of course. Good luck and ask away...that's why us Married ones keep coming back to the site