rachelia160

@@forevertogether congratulations!! I feel like my day is NEVER going to get here, but before I know it I'll be in your shoes! Be sure to let us know how it goes!

@@TinkerSofi Trying to organize my FI's friends has been the worst--none of his friends can plan anything more than 5 minutes in advance, so I have absolutely NO idea if he'll even have any groomsmen. Every time I ask them if they're going, I just get "I don't know," or "Maybe." UGH! Sorry, completely off topic but I related to wanting to pressure them for an answer. Most brides I've talked to have had trouble getting the groom's guys to book so we're not alone.

@@Surfingsara That's happened to me about six billion times on this site--I think I've pretty much thought of everything I have to do, but then people mention things that I haven't even THOUGHT about that end up being pretty important! I have no idea how anyone could get through planning a DW without this site!

I LOVE how you did your seating chart--I was going back and forth with whether to bother with one, but it seemed risky to leave it up to everyone to pick their seat (awkward numbered groups wanting to sit together = lots of empty chairs), so just doing it by table is a great idea. I'm also stealing that boquet picture--we have the same colors

@@LaurenC3432 We were in sort of the same position--I would have loved an adults-only resort, but we have a few little cousins and a nephew coming, so we needed a family-friendly option. My wedding is at the Now Jade in the Riviera Maya, where I've vacationed several times. There's a family pool as well as an adults-only pool on the other side of resort (and they really enforce it--they swoop down and kick kids out surprisingly fast!) It's a great compromise for us--you still definitely get the adults-only feel, but can walk right to the other side of the resort if you want to be on the kid-friendly side. My FI and I are moving over to an adults only resort for three nights once our families and friends are gone too, so we get a little taste of both

Welcome! I went the same route as you--we got engaged and sort of held off on everything until I was done with school, but it flew by and now here we are, six months from our wedding! My wedding resort is the Now Jade in the Riviera Maya. I've been there several times and love it! I also think it's a very affordable all-inclusive option, in case you want to check it out!

Thank you!! I'm definitely greatful that everyone had the wherewithal to grab a camera as it was happening!

The All of our guests coming so far are so excited to go on vacation with us, too! This is pretty much everyone's first DW and they're all unbelievably excited. I guess we should all just be glad that the dramatic people are saying no, because who wants to go on vacation with a party pooper anyway?

Where are you getting your maracas from? I love that idea!

I have a love/hate relationship with planning threads--I love seeing all the pictures and ideas, but it makes me realize how much I have left to do!

I'm the EXACT same way--I'm very type A, and feel very responsible for everyone having the best time possible, so I want to have everything and everyone hyper organized and planned to a T with back-ups for my back-ups, but that's hard to do with a destination wedding. Some people, especially on this site, are super into planning and I'm so jealous--if it were up to me, I'd let someone else organize and plan the entire thing and just show up with everything being a surprise! Adding beach cover-ups is a great idea, I'm adding that to my site right now! Thanks!

@@nadiakat17 I agree, feel the same way at weddings. I understand that it's a way to thank your guests, and while I appreciate the gesture, at the end of the day I don't really need a little jar of candy to take home with me that I'll forget about. I'm guessing a lot of people feel this way, but I think it's one of those traditional things you just have to do at a wedding. But I do think that OOT bags are fine in place of a trinket-type favor.

@@TinkerSofi That's amazing!! Which song? Glad I'm not the only Disney fanatic!

This is bizarre...how is a person planning THEIR wedding, which is THEIR special day, selfish? No matter HOW you do it? As you said, no one is obligated to come, and I'm sure most brides are very understanding of that fact (it would be another thing if a DW bride ran around getting insulted every time someone wasn't able to attend, but I don't think most people are that rude!) At the end of the day, a wedding is a party to celebrate a marriage, and I don't see how someone throwing a party in the way that they want could be selfish.

Great question! I'd love to put a more extensive list on my site as well, especially since a lot of people haven't really gone on a tropical or all-inclusive vacation before. Here's what I have right now: "What to Pack: -Your passport! -Some of the restaurants have a "casual elegance" dress code, so men should bring some sort of casual dress shirt and pants/shorts, and women can wear a sundress (it can double as your wedding outfit!) -We'll be saying "I Do" on the beach, and we don't want anyone to melt--your wedding outfit should can be light and casual - shoes optional -LOTS of sunscreen--even if you tan easily in the States and don't usually need sunscreen, the Cancun sun is brutal, so you'll want to reapply often. -Hat and sunglasses -Bring tennis shoes if you want to go on any excursions (Chichén Itzá, Four wheeling, etc.) What NOT to Pack: -Despite what you've heard, Cancun water is perfectly safe to drink (since it's a resort area, it has a water filtration system), so don't worry about bringing water bottles. -The resort has towels, so you don't need to bring beach towels. -You'll be spending most of your time in your swimsuit, so there's no need to overpack--flip flops, a few t-shirts a pair or two of shorts is plenty (plus your wedding outfit!) -Jeans - it'll be too hot to wear them."

If you don't do favors in lieu of OOT bags, do you think the guests will "get" that that's sort of their favor? I don't want anyone to wonder why there's no favors at the reception. I might go the candy route just so I don't have to worry about anyone thinking that's strange.

Thanks everyone. I definitely won't bother with changing the flowers when the ones they have on the menu are pretty as is!

Same here! I was researching Disney weddings and looking at the packages and the prices, and at first I was like "Oh, that's not too bad!" .....until I realized I was looking at the one that JUST included the bride and the groom CRAZY expensive! I think we're going to go back for our first anniversary My best friend just got back from vacation and brought us back wedding ears that I'm going to bring with me so we have a little Disney magic! (That is, if I can get them back from him and his friends......)

I LOVE seeing these posts telling me that everything is a breeze and not to worry--they make me feel so much better! Be sure to let us know how your big day goes @@oregano, about the boquets, do you mean you can send them a picture of virtually any boquet and they'll make it and, if the flowers were right, it could fit into the Divine package? We're not limited to the ones in the brochure?

@@TinkerSofi @@calgarybride2015 You both make great points. I hadn't really thought about it relative to who I see outside of work. It's probably easier to just leave everything as is. We haven't been very strict on our invite list throughout the proces--that is to say, my mom hasn't very strict on her invite list. I feel like she's invited everyone and their mother (sometimes literally) just to see what sticks cause she thinks it'll be so fun to have so many friends on vacation together. And I'm not complaining--I think it will be too, and my parents are footing the bill at the resort, while I'm paying for the AHR and all the other stuff, so at the end of the day it's not gonna come down too hard on me...although I'm not sure if she's really comprehended how much each person adds up, even though I've explained it. Oh well, I guess we'll see! So far I don't think there's been anyone that I'm super surprised has RSVP'd, but there's still lots of time left!

Hi brides! I've read up on quite a few posts about whether or not to invite coworkers to your wedding, but I have a slight variation on that question. I've been at my job full time for six months, but have been a summer intern for this company for five years, so I've been "around" for a while. It's a very small company--when I started, there were only five other people working here, and we just hired two more people, so we're up to seven, plus me is eight. I sent my boss and his wife (who also works with us) a save the date, but didn't bother to send them to anyone else, since it still felt sort of strange since I didn't know them very well. Now that I've been working here a few months, I'm starting to feel a little closer with my other co-workers, especially a select few...so my question is, should I send my other co-workers a save the date now? Does it seem rude or like an afterthought to send them one after my initial round of Save the Dates? I'm not sure if they would know that I had already sent most of them out. I should also note, it would be more as a gesture to invite them to our At Home Reception--I highly highly doubt anyone will come to the DW. Then that opens up the question of whether or not I have to invite everyone in the whole office, or just the people I interact with on a daily basis...but I'll start with the the first question. Any thoughts?

Thanks for this info!!

Still haven't run into any templates that I wasn't able to download, despite being below 150...maybe I'm just lucky!

Every time I go to Cancun, hitting that stinkin' stoplight button is the most stressful part of my trip...fingers crossed I'll get green!

I was so used to saying my wedding was "over a year away"...and I'm still used to saying it's a year away....now I'm past the 6 month mark! Crazy!!