talicea7812

This is what I did... Originally we were just going to do symbolic bc we didn't want to pay the xtra money, get blood tests or have our certificate in Spanish. You can go to your local courthouse and get a self uniting certificate. Then at the Mexico ceremony -u, ur hubs, and 2 witnesses sign the certificate. When you get home you mail in a portion of the certificate and u are legally recognized as married the day it was signed The self uniting certificate was only like $80 and we spent about 10 min at the courthouse

I am soooo happy to hear carol is no longer with the company! She was down right awful and really ruined the planning experience for me and those bad feelings carried over to my stay. I felt like the ppl on site were all trying to make up for her mistakes! So happy brides no longer have to deal with her. I hope with all the complaining brides do on here karisma is finally taking the Miami end of things seriously!

So I think I pretty much covered all the wedding stuff... If you are reading this and have any questions please don't hesitate to ask. I'm honestly a party planner at heart...I only wish someone would pay me to do it. So now the plan is to have a small at home reception. We aren't doing anything major bc we feel that we spent enough money in Mexico but it should be a good time. The plan is to have the party June 28th. By that time we will have the pictures back from the photographer and the video back. This week I sent out a very informal facebook invite to all the people we invited to Mexico. Since June 28th is also very close to my daughters birthday we are doing a dual party. The invite was titled "Our Mexican Fiesta & Aubrey's Very Merry Happy Unbirthday." We intend to decorate the inside of the house in Mexican fiesta type decorations & serve Mexican food- cheap, easy to make in bulk and everyone can craft their tacos to their own specifications & hopefully some Mexican beers and Margaritas! For the 2nd half of the party we will have the outside deck and backyard area decorated for an Alice in Wonderland, Mad hatter tea party theme. We are going to have an awesome mad hatter cake and "tea" related beverages- iced tea, twisted tea, long island iced tea NOW THE BEST PART OF ALL!!!!!! About a week ago I found out that I'm pregnant!!! and we are going to announce it at the party!!! I have a Mexican fiesta dress for my daughter to wear the 1st part of the party. When we switch gears for the bday part I'm going to change her into a different outfit. The shirt is going to say "BIG SIS" I'm just going to change her and let her go...see who picks up on it first! I seriously can't wait for the party. We already have 30 people who responded yes. It's going to be a great day! I've attached some pics of the bday stuff- cake and my daughters outfit items. I'll post more about the AHR as plans come along

@@malyna I did not pay an outside vendor fee. Maya Floral was able to deliver the flowers right to the lobby. I don't think Azul was very happy about it but they permitted it. when the flowers were delivered my husband and groomsmen picked them up in the lobby and took them to the wedding offices. Everything was already assembled. I didn't choose anything thing crazy bc Azul would charge an arm and a leg if they had to do any assembly. All they had to do was place them on the tables. So happy with the results and I saved soooo much. I thought about fake flowers but then I would have to bring them down with me...and really? what would I do with it after? it would just sit around collecting dust bc I would feel bad throwing it out.

I was recently married in riveria maya. I decided to go with a florist not associated with the resort- marvin from maya floral. His prices were amazing and I suggest you check him out. Azul beach (where I was married) is associated with Lomas travel. Lomas wanted to charge $350 for my bouquet. $225 for the bridesmaids and $250 for centerpieces. They said the reason they were so expensive was bc I wanted orchids and hydrangeas and they are imported flowers. Maya floral charged- $170 for my bouquet, $65 bridesmaids, $75 or $85 for centerpieces (can't remember) I was told the cheapest flowers in mexico are roses, lilies, and gerber daisies

SET UP FEES & LOMAS What ever you do...don't let them overcharge you. I had my meeting with Omar and Paola. There really wasn't that much to discuss bc I wouldn't pay my balance until my wedding worksheet was totally correct (which took til the day b4 I left for Mexico) I had an email from my coordinator that I would not be charged more than $250 for set up. The day after the meeting I brought omar my decorations and he tried to charge $300 for setup. He tried to tell me it was bc I was an outside florist? and they would have to bring the flowers in. Really? an extra $50 to intercept the flowers from the lobby. My hubby picked them up from the lobby the day of the wedding and took them to the wedding offices. The only thing I ended up ordering from Lomas was the 2 small hanging corsages. Total waste of money...even tho they didn't cost much. I really wish I had just talked to Marvin (who did the rest of the flowers) I should have asked him to do them. I must point out tho... Omar was able to reuse them for the reception. He put them on the table with my place cards and stuck peacock feathers in them. Good idea

@@BDABeachBum Ummm...not 100% on what I paid but here's an approximate breakdown (3 ppl. me, hubs, and daughter) 1. $3,000 for our room (pd 3 nights in deluxe room & 3 nights in family swim up) 2. $240 each for airfare- download the skyscanner app to your phone and check it everyday! We flew out of philly to Chicago, then to Mexico. Our first checked bag was free (Delta) didn't have to pay any xtra fees 3. a little over $3000 for photographer- $1500+tax for photo package, $4something for plane ticket, and $8something for her room. Offered to pay for 4 days for her bc it was cheaper to pay the extra day then to fly her on another day. So I saved a little and she got a longer vacation. 4. $1500 for videographer- paid for a 3 night stay and he discounted his package 5. $570? for flowers- My bouquet, 2 bridesmaids, 1 grooms bout, 2 large centerpieces and 4 small 6. $250- Ipod hook up 7. $506- Reception dinners 8. Wedding ceremony package, cocktail hour and cake- all included. no charge. 9. $180 for hair & makeup by Beso brides. No outside vendor fee or day passes purchased So I guess those are my main elements. Of course there were other things. I brought my own decorations and paid the $250 set up. I did the math and it still worked out to be a better price than renting...plus I brought a lot home and intend to reuse for an AHR and my daughters bday party. bridal party gifts etc. I have a blog on here called tina's peacock wedding. check it out. I detailed the whole planning experience. the ups and downs and how I saved money. Azul is a great place but the offsite coordinators are terrible and they do try to nickel and dime you. You just gotta be smart! Hope this helps

PEOPLE SUCK... Well it is very true when people say "you find out who your friends are when you plan a wedding." I only had 2 bridesmaids. Each only booked a 2day stay. BM1 actually flew in the sunday b4 and spent the week at another resort with her family. Both girls arrived on Friday (day b4 the wedding) BM1 showed up first and everything started off to be really fun. We had lots of drinks, swam in the pool and did some drunken salsa dancing. A little later in the day BM2 showed up. At that point BM1 had too much to drink and got sick. BM2 went off with her to take care of her...which is fine. But that was it. Didn't see either for the rest of the day. That night we had rehearsal dinner & they arrived late...very late. When dinner was over I went over to talk to them and was pretty much blown off. I said something about them coming back to my room and they were like "oh you should get some rest." So yeah...the night b4 the wedding my hubs hung out with his friends and had a great last night as a single man...while I spent the evening alone with my daughter. The day of the wedding. I woke up early with my daughter bc I wanted to be able to have some beach/pool time with her b4 I got all wrapped up in getting ready. Both BM's were no where to be found. I was at breakfast (which there is only one place open for breakfast) then I was at the main pool. Easy to find. The BMs decided to finally show up right as my hair and makeup people arrived. I have never been the center of attention, nor do I ask to be. My BMs are the attention grabbers while I'm usually the one who flies under the radar...but for one day I hoped to be a big deal. Unfortunately I didn't get that. I can't even say either one told me I looked beautiful. I dunno... I always thought of the wedding day getting ready part as a huge bonding moment with the ladies. Well...its situations like this that make me all the more grateful for my husband and daughter. I may not have the best girlfriends...but at least I have my family. In my vows I said he is always the one that comes thru for me...and its true. So many others have let me down.

@@BDABeachBum Yep...its true. the cake cannot leave the reception area. Really sucks. we did 2 different flavors on each layer. I don't think they even served anyone the top layer! I didn't think about it that night but I would have liked a slice of each flavor. I really hope it didn't get thrown away. I work in the restaurant business and when something like that happens the employees reap the benefits. Soooo I hope the staff at least got to eat it. As for the cake...(I purchased my flowers from outside the resort) I was also looked into doing an outside vendor for the cake. Azul charges a fortune for the cake and then won't let you have whats left. If I remember right, for my number of guests it worked out to be 12.50 a slice (for a very, very basic cake, not fancy decorations)!!! insane!!! I had a lot of issues with the Miami coordinators so they offered me my cake for free... but if they didn't do that, I was going to order from Zaida Marcos! Check her out! She quoted me $150 +delivery for the same cake.

A SIDE NOTE: when I booked my stay at Azul, we planned on spending 3 days in a deluxe room and 3 days in a family swim up suite. I chose the family swim up bc my TA told me it was the most spacious out of rooms. I wanted lots of space for the getting ready part of the wedding day. I would have my bridal party in the room, photographer, and the hair and make up duo. When I arrived at the hotel, I was told that I had been upgraded...which turned out to be a honeymoon suite. Very nice and even though its smaller than the family room it cost more. At that point I was under the assumption that we would still be switching rooms the day of the wedding. Later when I asked about it, I was told I was in the computer as staying in the honeymoon suite the entire vacation. At first I was like okay...that's fine. It was definitely a nice room and worth more that both the rooms I had booked. Well the day after the wedding I stopped at the in laws room. They were staying in the fisher price suite. same as the family suite I had booked just no swim up. I was definitely impressed with the room...and mad that I never switched over. There was so much more space...3 separate rooms- living room, bedroom, and bathroom with a Jacuzzi! I liked my room until I saw the family suite and definitely felt cheated. I really wish I had check out the room before the wedding. If that were the case I would have definitely switched. So just a word of advice...be careful with the upgrades. Even though the room costs more it may not be what you need. The Family Suite would have been amazing...even better bc we would have had a swim up. I will post pics later.

TAINAN RESTAURANT The Japanese restaurant is beyond awesome for the sushi lover! In the center there is a circular bar with a sushi chef in the middle. He stands in the middle hand rolling sushi, then places the pieces on little boats that float around the circle. Guests can sit right at the bar and help themselves as the items float by. I also had the lemon chick dish. Amazing!!! This restaurant was definitely a great way to cap off the vacation.

@@KaraEbeth we did the sound system. it was just fine. we had a few kinks bc my hubs was in charge of the playlists and didn't set them up properly. so that's my only complaint. cheap and sounded fine. we had one of the groomsmen introduce us and the dances. we didn't pay extra for a microphone (hotel supplied) one for speeches.

@@rebepax OMG...the flowers were perfect!!!! I admit...towards the end I did get a little nervous bc if anything went wrong the resort couldn't help. but they were delivered about 15minutes early and were able to bring them right to the lobby. everything was beautiful and exact copies of the pics I had sent in! Check out marvin with maya floral... his prices can't be beat and totally happy with the way everything worked out

OMG!!! so glad the FI is okay! that's really scary! I admit I haven't checked in for a while...but I love your bridal party gifts and getting ready outfit! I am so jealous! I wish I could go back! It was a great time! I'm so happy for you! I am def looking forward to pics! Good luck and I'll talk to you when you are a Mrs!!!

THE REST OF OUR STAY... The morning after the wedding was a very early one...we had only gotten about 3 hours of sleep and were up again for our trash the dress session. It was a beautiful morning but the ocean was freezing. We did pictures only about knee deep in the water and did some shots out on the pier. I'm definitely worried about how my hair is gonna look in the pics. My hair is no match for the salty sea air and was definitely frizzing. I wish I had worn it curly instead of trying to straighten it that morning. I also wished I had pushed through the cold and got all the way in the water. Wet hair would probably look better than frizzy hair. After the shoot we went back to bed. At 9:30 our honeymooners breakfast in bed was delivered to us. It was just an insane amount of food. Definitely too fancy for my taste. Out of everything I ate a bagel and drank the amaretto coffee. If you are staying at a Karisma resort and getting the breakfast in bed...I would suggest sharing most of the meal. There were 4 or 5 courses...most of which I would think would be good to share. I felt bad because a lot of the food went untouched. Some of the groomsmen even stopped by and ate some of it... still sent so much food back. Originally we wanted to spend the day alone together...but as soon as I woke up I missed my daughter. We spent some of the day with her at the pool and beach then kept the evening for ourselves. DINNER ON THE BEACH... Dinner on the beach is done in the cabana's that people use during the day. They pull the mattresses out and set up the tables inside. If definitely was a little chilly because there was a good breeze blowing of the ocean. My dinner selection was called "magic night." 1. asparagus gratin with hollandaise, parmigiano and truffle 2. seafood bisque with lobster and saffron essence 3. angus beef tenderloin with peppercorn sauce, spring vegs, and mash 4. trilogy of chocolate (taken from another menu) My husband ordered different items for the 4 menus. He did order the same desert. Like I said before, Im a picky eater...the only thing I really ate was the main course and desert. Both were very good. Whatever I didn't eat, my hubs ate a little of it just to try it out. Dinner on the beach was a nice experience. It was nice to get away and just be with my new husband...however, I definitely don't think it would be worth paying the extra money for had it not been included in the wedding package. The food was delicious but no better than what we were getting in the restaurants.

@@KaraEbeth I know what pinterest thing you're talking about. We are going to have to come up with some other way to do a gender reveal because we decided to do the party the last weekend in June. July was a bad month for everyone. Each family member that we really want there had something going on. June will be too early to determine what it is. So for now we will just announce that im pregnant. Since its a double party my daughter will be dressed in this Mexican looking dress that we have... when we switch gears to celebrate her bday I will change her into a bday outfit that will be a big sister shirt

@@KaraEbeth OMG!!! I am PREGNANT!!!!

THE HONEYMOON NIGHT The night of our wedding the family took our daughter so we were able to have the night alone. We were both very tired but when we got back to the room a Honeymoon banner had been hung on the door. As promised the room was decorated with rose petals. They had filled the hot tub with water and tons of bubbles. To add to everything all our reception flowers had been brought back to the room...so it looked amazing We also had a bottle of champagne waiting for us... The rest, well I'm sure you know

I checked out the Sky terrace and thought it was totally overrated. I don't know if you can do cocktail hour up there but during the day it is incredibly sunny. It hurt my eyes. I would also be concerned if it were a windy day. It will probably be worse on the deck. Where are you doing the reception? I had a cocktail hour at the wave lounge. I did check it out before the wedding. Nice space and is located to the right (when looking at the ocean) of the wedding area. The beach in front of chil is a small area. They have the beach bbq's in that area but depending on how many people you have that area is a little tight. Plus the beach cabanas are right there. So there could be people still laying in them when you are having cocktails and there is no way to stop people from walking through. Blue terrace...I think is only for the reception? I could be wrong about that...but you do have to have 50 guests to use that area.

THE RECEPTION... Unfortunately, we didn't get to go to the cocktail hour. We had a free GIVC cocktail hour at the wave lounge. Soooo...I can't really comment of the food or the décor. We did have a signature cocktail that was created by my hubby. Nothing I was interested in. It was called an iceberg. It was beer with frozen margarita floating in it. Not my style but the guests drank them. The décor should have been simple. I brought the glitter spray painted bottles from the wedding shower and very tall peacock feathers to put in them. There may be pictures somewhere but I doubt it. Jenny was taking pictures with us so I don't think she was able to sneak away. The reception was on chill terrace. We had 2 long tables for the guests and a sweetheart table. I def recommend the sweetheart table. Even tho we only had a small wedding it was nice to be set apart from everyone and have a chance to talk and take it all in. Kinks in the Music- The plan was to be introduced as mr. and mrs. then go right into the first dance so that we could get that on video before the guy was scheduled to leave at 7. After pictures we went over to chil... The only thing I put the hubs in charge of was the music and intro. He appointed one of his groomsmen to do the intro. Now I don't know what was going on but I ended up waiting about 20minutes. Kevin was figuring out something with the music. Now in my opinion it should have been all sorted out. He was told to make playlists for each part of the wedding day: the ceremony (seating guests, processionals, and recessional) the cocktail hour, and the reception (songs should go in order our dance, father/daughter, mother/son, dedication to my mom, chill music for dinner, then dancing) Well apparently he figured that all out right before the reception. Awesome. Not the end of the world... but poor planning on his part. I should have done it The food- We had vanilla rum flambéed salad with a mango dressing. I don't eat salad but the hubs ate both mine and his I'd say that's a thumbs up. For dinner we had 2 options for the guests. Stuffed Chicken and Surf & Turf. Most got the surf and turf and everyone said it was the best meal they had at the resort. Since I am a picky eater I was able to do a different dinner. I had the filet that was marinated in some kind of red wine with scalloped potatoes. It was awesome!!! For desert we chose cheesecake with strawberry (cheesecake because we met at the cheesecake factory) and our wedding cake was served alongside. The wedding cake looked beautiful. Very close to the picture I provided. It was covered in fondant (which really wasn't very good) I don't know if you can request it/if they are able to do it...but as for marshmallow fondant. The regular kind...no so good. We had a 2 layered cake. The bottom layer was oreo and the top was vanilla rum. I was served the oreo layer. It was okay. Not great but not awful either. Resort policy is that the cake can't leave the reception area...so we weren't able to keep any leftovers. I also haven't heard from any guests who had the vanilla layer...soooo I think we pretty much wasted an entire layer. The dance portion of the reception didn't really last long. I don't think the people in our party are big dancers...which is totally fine with the hubs and I. We aren't big dancers either. I was able to get a very sweet dance in with my daughter. She was soo sleepy and snuggled in my arms. I cant wait to see the pictures! Afterwards, the parents took Aubrey for the night. We (along with our friends) went over to the aquanox bar and grabbed more drinks and just hung out talking and enjoying the ocean and breeze. I would say it was definitely a low key kinda wedding. The hubs and I enjoyed ourselves and it was perfect for us. He remarked several times that he was happy I talked him into doing a destination wedding.

in regards to sheers... you want a flowy fabric- chiffon or organza. I used organza & ordered from tableclothsfactory.com. I purchased the 40 yard bolt in 2 different colors. However, I was married at Azul beach not Sensatori. I originally planned to have the wedding on the beach under the regular wedding arch spot. The 40yds. would have been enough.

@@girlinthecity97 the officiant was included in the wedding package. As for the marriage certificate... My hubs and I just went to the courthouse. All we had to do was show ID and were issued a certificate. We were asked a few questions and paid $80. We brought it with us and signed during the ceremony. Since it is self uniting we needed 2 witnesses who were called up to sign. Now that were home we just have to mail in the signed bottom portion and everything is legal.

MY VOWS... A little background before I type them out... My husband is the sweetest, kindest person in the world and I am not exaggerating! Every week he tries to do a random act of kindness. For example: One week he saw a family sitting on the side of the road. Something was up with their car. He went to the local gas station and grabbed them a bunch of waters and snacks. He stopped by the car and told the guy he picked them up for family bc it was sooo hot out. He felt bad for the kids sitting on the side of the road and wanted to make sure they didn't get dehydrated. He offered to help but the man had called for a tow truck. Now if that were me (and most people) i would have drove by and thought...that sucks. Anyway, leading up to the wedding I kept telling him...there's still time. You can back out at anytime. I understand if you come to your senses and want out. So with that being said... My Vows Me: Before i get started, i want to give you one last chance to run...(pause) because I'm going to warn you- A life with me probably won't be the easiest. I'm stubborn, loud, and always think I'm right. However, even with all these faults, I promise to always love you fiercely and forever. I want to be the couple that really does stay together. I never want to stop falling in love with you and i want to be able to look beside me and have you next to me anywhere that life decides to take me... because really in the end you are my best friend. The one who always comes through for me. The one I always want to come home to...tell the stupidest details to...the one i want to love. So from this point forward- I can't always promise to be the best listener, but i will try. I can't promise to be patient, but i will try. I can't promise to be on time or not procrastinate but i can promise to look good when late and to always come through for you no matter what. (this was so perfect since i wrote the vows earlier that day & was late for the ceremony) I can't wait to live a lifetime with you. My final promise is to grow along with you, to be willing to face changes in order to keep our relationship alive and exciting because Kevin- You are my fairytale. What we have is the real "Happily Ever After" and from this day forward we will start a new chapter in our adventure book.

@@KaraEbeth Wow! that's a lot of people! 175! I'm sure if I allowed it my hubs would invite that many. We are very lucky when it comes to location. The father in laws place is a good size. We had our wedding shower and my daughters bday there. Good indoor space plus a large deck and land out back. Trying to keep costs as low as possible! Hahaha... it may even become a gender reveal party! lol. I know TMI... but I may be pregnant. I don't want to get ahead of myself bc my cycles have been a little off lately but as of now I'm a week late. Gonna give it til the weekend and take a test. If that's the case we should be able to find out the gender b4 the party. Again, im probably getting way ahead of myself... but I thought it would be awesome to change my daughters outfit midway through the party and put a shirt on her that says "big sister." See who notices Then i would have my cake lady do the pink/blue inside the cake LOL. I love the surprises. We'll see what happens.