DinaQtobe

Your invitations are so beautiful!

I feel you ladies about being tempted at work! I work in the health care setting where I see patients every day for 3-7 weeks straight. When they finish their treatment they often bring in chocolates, cookies, and other amazing goodies. It can be really hard to resist. The trick for me is to just not start. Two weeks ago I decided that I was not going to have any of the goodies, cut them out completely. Once I set my mind to it I can do pretty well, but it is very tough. Especially when chocolates come in that are my favourite!

My mom has been really big on me sending out invitations - even though many have said they can't come. She made me send out SaveTheDates too (though I was able to do those by e-mail). My wedding is in November and I haven't sent out the invitations yet. I am aiming for June. I was able to pick up invitations at Hobby Lobby for a grand total of 30$ for 50 invitations. They are nice, though I will have to print them myself.

Ah, but do you pay for a gym membership?

YOU WILL FEEL BETTER IF YOU GO!!!! Oh, and I might remember reading something about how it costs you a decent chunk of money to sign up for it? Something I can share that helps me personally: I like to visually see that I have exercised by keeping track. I have a whiteboard with all of the days of the week and I "check" off the box when I've gone. Gives me a sense of accomplishment. Plus, if I look at it and see that I haven't gone enough I feel guilty and do.

I just came back from a run. (When I say run I mean run/walk). I did NOT want to go tonight. I was so tired. I forced myself to (I just keep thinking about how I want to look in November). I am SO glad that I went. I feel less tired and have energy! I am posting this to hopefully motivate anyone who was feeling the same way I was after work today! I also am dealing with difficulty with the Future In-Laws. I think it is just part of the process, honestly. Even if we were having a wedding in Canada, I am sure we would still have issues (though likely not the same ones). When I first started looking at resorts I was looking at them with my FI's family in mind. I fell in love with the Now Sapphire and almost didn't book it because I was thinking too much of them. Thank goodness I listened to my heart and booked where I wanted! They have said multiple times that they aren't going to come. Can you imagine if I had have booked somewhere else for them, and then they don't show up!? Moral of the story: do what you want. You can't please everyone, and not everyone is going to please you. PS, anyone have any good running apps? I am currently using runtastic, and really like it, but will have to upgrade (ie pay) to get the features of voice over for distance, time, etc. Thanks!

Hi Ladies, My name is Dina, I am from Ontario, Canada. About a year and a half ago I lost quite a bit of weight through watching what I eat. My mom had just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and was adamant on not going on any kind of medication to control it. Through working with a dietician she was able to get her diabetes under control and dropped about 30lbs in 4 months. This was a huge wake up call for me as my mom was never one to eat a lot of candy or treats, and I didn't want to follow the same path into diabetes. She inspired me to change the way I ate. After that I only ate things that "came from the ground", with the exception of chicken, tofu, yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese, salad dressing, and the occasional squares of dark chocolate. Plenty of veggies and fruit. I cut out all of those "refined" carbs; I only ate oats, potatoes, and quinoa. I started walking a little bit here and there too and felt amazing about myself. I followed that for almost 8 months and went down about 4 pant sizes. It felt great to have everyone comment on how great I looked! Now that my wedding is only 6 months away I want to tone up and lose some of the weight that I have gained back since I stopped being so strict with what I have been eating. I think my biggest challenge is to start exercising regularly. Last week I exercised 3 times. So far this week once (but it's only monday!). I am hoping you ladies can help me with my motivation and continue to inspire me to look great for the wedding! I also hope that I can inspire some people too!

Well, in all honesty there isn't much more to do! Send out invites (STD's went out in March), get FI's suit, find wedding shoes. Everything else is just a bonus to do or have for the big day. My MIL-to-be has asked my FI if she can "help" with anything and I have no idea what to say... I think I have everything under control. I think she is feeling left out, but I don't know what to have her do. (ESPECIALLY because she might not even be coming to the wedding!)

Thanks for the recommendation on the suit! We really wanted to stay under 350$ for the suit. I am hoping that we can manage that. Am I delusional? When we first started looking I was shocked that his suit might cost more than my dress! (yikes!). I think we are going to try shopping in the states. My dad got his suit for less than 200$. I love the look of succulents! I hope once you get the boutonnieres in that you will post a picture! Have you thought about sewing your OOT bags? When I was initially thinking of making up bags my mom offered to sew them for me. There's quite a few patterns online that don't look too difficult, but look pretty cute. Then you could customize the material to your wedding colours and wouldn't even need to add a logo! I think it's amazing that you are sewing your own napkins. I never thought of that and I might think about that one now! The playlist has been difficult for me! I have tons of songs picked out for the cocktail hour and dinner... but the dance part is a LOT harder. Thanks for the updates ladies!

Thanks Andrea! Do you mind if I ask how much your flowers were? Since the flowers are included in the package I don't want to spend more on an outside vendor unless the savings are more than the $65/each for my bridesmaids bouquets. (I don't plan on having floral centerpieces). Lucy did a great job they were beautiful! Thanks!

Hi November Ladies!!! There hasn't been much action on this forum in a few weeks. I was wondering where everyone is at with their planning so far. Last weekend I found my wedding jewelry, which was very exciting! I also purchased a few things at Hobby Lobby: invitations, a cake topper, and garter (50% off!). I was in Sam's Club and found these awesome huge travel tumbler mugs... 6 for $20. Couldn't turn down that price for favors for our guests!!! Two of my sisters have booked their trips, as have my parents. I am so excited! I have various things that I have left to do: -Find FI suit (any suggestions? We are finding this hard in our price range) -Send out Invitations -Write our ceremony -Finish playlist for dinner and dance -DIY foot jewelry for bridesmaids -Find wedding shoes I am sure I am forgetting tons of stuff that needs to be done. Where is everyone else at? Just over 6 months until we leave!!

Andrea, your photos are beautiful! I love your dress, you look stunning! Were your flowers from the resort? Did you end up paying any extra?

Anyone know how much a taxi will cost from the resort to: 1. Puerto Morelos 2. Playa Del Carmen 3. Airport? Pesos or dollars is fine! Thanks so much!!!

Hi CancunBride, Glad you were able to make the trip! You said you were able to try some of the food. Was this wedding food, or just the resort restaurants in general? Any tips you have would be fantastic!

My colors are Navy and pink with green accents. I don't need to have a drink in my 'color' though. I just want it to appeal to guests...

Club soda is pretty much carbonated water. Also called soda water. Tequila is my favorite spirit. You could substitute any type of liquor in for the tequila though. I have also made a version of this drink but putting in frozen watermelon cubes for the pineapple juice. Tasty! I get to pick a signature drink for my wedding and I am struggling to come up with something that I think will appeal to most tastes. I am hoping this board will give some great inspiration!

I do not like drinks that are overly sweet. My favorite is something that I came up with on my own. Tequila Club Soda Splash of Pineapple Juice Squeeze of Lime Juice It is perfect for me

When I stayed at the Grand Bahia Principe in September, I took the collectivo from the resort to Akumal beach. It took maybe 10-15 minutes and only cost about 5$ for two people. The van drops you off on the side of the highway and it's a short (5 mins) walk to the little shops and beach area. There is this really neat little area just behind the rock building that leads to the beach that has all of these little shops and restaurants. It is completely encased in trees and vines and has a really cool atmosphere. I think that might be where Trisha is talking about. There is great snorkeling off of the beach too! I have been a few times and have always seen sea turtles. On our return to GBP, we got a taxi back to the resort for maybe 15-20$ - we negotiated.

Yes, apples to oranges for sure! Some resorts have things in the packages that are just "extras"... not related to the wedding at all. It makes it all a bit confusing. The Now Sapphire is beautiful. The package included a lot of what I wanted for our wedding. It can get expensive very quickly if you have over 25 people attending. I know everyone is different, but we invited about 70 people and so far we only have 7 guests confirmed, and a lot of people have told us that they will not be able to come. I don't think we will have many more people confirm, so likely under 25 guests for us.

I want a pinata too!!! I've read of couples having them before. Have you contacted your WC about it? Let me know if you do. I was telling my mom two months ago I thought it would be fun!

Picking the resort was the hardest part for us. I started to feel like every resort looked the same, offered the same things - it was honestly overwhelming. Eventually I started looking through websites of various photographers in the Riviera Maya. It gave me a great idea of what the big day would look like if I chose to go with each resort. Ultimately I fell in love with the photos at the Now Sapphire. Once I saw those photos I could hardly even look at any other resort. It made the decision easier. Good luck with picking your resort - it really is the hardest part. But once you have that picked and your trip is booked, it's all smooth sailing from there!

I was telling my fiance last night that it's 7 months until our wedding. So excited!

TealMarie! We have the same wedding date! So exciting!

I just have little tea lights. They are more for decoration than to be lit. Add some colour to the table without a lot of $$. Now to figure out if I can get them through customs or not....

Hi Hortonk! My sisters picked out and ordered their BM dresses in March for our November wedding. We didn't plan it that way, it's just how it happened. We hare getting legally married in Canada before we leave for Mexico. At first I was very against the idea, but now I have totally come around to it. We didn't want to have to worry about being in Mexico for the required amount of days before the wedding, or the blood tests, or all of the paperwork that needs to be done. It saves us a bit of money too.