Andreanna

Thank you for your support, ladies! Good to know I'm not the only one hitting these issues. I'm definitely going to email Niyoka. Our current TA just sent me an email saying "talk to you next spring!", so I guess that's goodbye to her. She was recommended by a friend, but the friend had done all of her research ahead of time and had far fewer locations to fly from. I'm also going to contact the resort about booking the date directly. I thought you'd have to have a number of guests first, but saving the date for us would be a massive help. Good luck to you all, and I'll keep you updated.

Sorry ladies, but I have to get this off of my chest. Despite not being until October 2012, I wanted to at least have a location picked out. We thought we'd go with Dreams La Romana (as FH REALLY loves Dreams Resorts) but our travel agent has doubts that we'll be able to get there for the dates we want but she says that there is no way to know for sure until April 2012. Am I unreasonable to not want to wait a year before knowing if that is the location of our wedding? Because all I keep hearing is that we are just too damn early. Date, location. Seems basic enough. We simply want to give people enough time to save and plan. That was the whole point of getting engaged so early. Just in case, I have been looking at other resorts. FH is set on Dreams, and I want a smaller resort, so our choices are limited by our own stubbornness. The date is special to us as it would be our 5th anniversary, so again, not something we'd want to change. I know it's a petty thing, but the frustration at people telling me to wait is building. Since when did being decisive or firm mean you were unreasonable or a bridezilla? The whole point of DW is to relax and enjoy it, no? Alas, my own brain is trying to intercede. Anyone else getting the "you're too early" shpeel? How are you dealing with it?

Ugh. Last night we talked to my fiance's parents about the DW. My family is treating it like a reunion because we all live so far apart. His brothers are all for it and said they'd do what they had to to be there--even the one who is having money worries. But we always knew that the big sell would be his parents. It could have gone worse, but we were both upset with their attitudes about it. They had wanted something at home so they could have a family reunion with their siblings and nieces/nephews/cousins/friends (people we don't even know and probably wouldn't have invited anyway) and were disappointed with our choice. In the end, what I found worked reasonably well was meeting all of their comments with assertiveness. "This is what would really make us happy, and while it would be so special if you were there, we understand that not everyone can make it. We'll have videos of it online and plenty of pictures so you can still be a part of this happy moment." That effectively removed the unspoken threat of "well if we don't go, you can't have it." The rest of their arguments were met in kind. "We're sorry people feel disappointed, but in ten years, when we are looking back at the video, are we going to remember how special and happy we were, or that we tried making everyone happy and were exhausted?" When they said it was expensive, we said we could give them money instead of birthday, christmas, and mother's/father's day presents for the next year and a half. That nipped their pride enough that they said they'd "scrape up enough to go". Which was as sideways an acceptance of an invitation as I have ever heard. They haven't flown since their own honeymoon, so when they brought up how uncomfortable planes were, I added that my 80 year old grandmother was going, even though she hates flying, hasn't been on a plane in 15 years, and has terrible arthritis. In the end, I think they really want their children to be happy and are adult enough to realize that not everyone can be made happy the same ways. I think they'll go, but I'm mad that they're adding more stress and upsetting their son with the threat of their non-attendance. To everyone dealing with family: Stick to your guns! If they truly love you, how can they not want you to be happy? If they decide not to go, their choice. We are all adults and the days where we are responsible for other people's enjoyment and expectations are over.

Dreams La Romana has a garden gazebo that overlooks the beach and ocean, if that helps?

We decided to try Jalene from Paul travel. So far she seems pretty good despite all of the people from outside of Edmonton who we want to go. Very friendly and appears to really want things to go well. I'll let you know how it goes for any future Edmonton DW people looking for a travel agent.

Newbie Edmontonian Bride to Be, checking in. So new typing that still gives me shivers. ~_^ Going to call travel agents in the next week or so. Any recommendations? G'luck everyone!

I'm wanting to do the same thing! From what I've read elsewhere, it was highly recommended not to mention gifts at ALL on invitations, even the desire for no gifts. Instead, have a wedding website or blog with all of the information for your wedding and mention it there. There are lots of free sites around with easy set up in case you don't want to do too much work on it. The one I'm planning on using is My Wedding because they have unlimited photos and no restrictions on how long it can be up, but I know there are others. If you have people who won't be able to go online, you could also try adding a line or two on their vacation info packages. My FH went to a DW where the bride had a sheet with thanks and extra information tucked in with the plane tickets. Maybe talk to your travel agent and see what they can arrange? Good luck!

This is one of the places we are looking at, but it's so difficult to find any information. Any updates?

We would love to get married October 27, 2012 as it would be our 5th anniversary. Still looking at resorts, but Dreams La Romana is at the top. We wanted to wait until I'm out of school, so one and a half more years! Feeling a little overwhelmed even though the date is so far away. My program is very time consuming and unfortunately that means most of the organizing will be on my fiance's shoulders. I'm in charge of research--and boy is there a lot of it out there! Glad I found this site. How important are save the dates? Is it possible to send invites earlier instead of them? Congratulations to everyone!