nadiakat17

Yeah it is interesting about those people..we paid for a friends suite and one friend could have stayed there for free so really just plane ticket and food so saving up less than 100$ a month for the year in advance ( and she has job and lives rent free at parents no other big expenses ) so it was ridiculous to hear that she "couldn't save up" when she'd blow this amount on a night out and was deciding if she could afford it last minute ( you either know up front if it's going to work or not...). No I get it, it just wasn't your priority. I just got sick of hearing the money excuse.

Ugh that's so annoying about the photo booth . Definitely keep fighting About the guests: as people saw on this message board I was really sad certain people backed out etc. but I will say after the actual day all I can think about are the people that actually came. And it seems perfect to me because now I have the actual memories of those people and not hypothetical ones I was thinking about before the wedding. Plus I honestly struggled to spend quality time with all groups ( immediate and extended family on both sides, two groups of friends, family friends, etc) and am so glad there wasn't more added to the mix!!

My friend had a small wooden box that held bottle of wine and at the ceremony they placed in it a letter they each wrote and nailed it shut ( nails already in place so quick to hammer ) to open on their ten year anniversary

Canvas is the way to go ! Our guests loved them and reused them. We spent like 1.50$ per bag by doing them ourselves

Hmm this is hard bc if this was before the RSVP I would probably say ok however at this late in the game I might even tell your friend no! For sure I'd say no plus one. If he didn't have an extenuating circumstance before he needed to have figured this out before. It is very rude what he is doing and asking for a plus one at that! My thing is if you don't know if you can come by the RSVP the you RSVP no. It's crazy how our friends and family have been outted while planning weddings as having no manners

Even without gender roles maybe it's just how he always envisioned it? It's how I envisioned it and I'm a successful woman in a male dominated career so it has nothing to do with feminism, gender roles, etc to me. It was just something sweet I've seen throughout the years that I wanted to capture. Sometimes it feels good to be traditional.

My resort made our cake nothing like the pictures. It was hideous. When it came out I was upset but now I laugh about it...it was crazy how wrong it was . I have so many other pics that it doesn't matter at all. It tasted delicious though! Why don't you just get a plain white cake and bring a cake topper ? How bad could they get that?

I think it would be difficult because I thought with the fake cake you still have to decorate it with fondant and stuff

I agree with you ... We did an 8 hour cat and I wish it was longer! The trip was almost better than the wedding. I would start by doing a survey ( this is what we did) and see who really wants to go . Then I would try to bargain with that boat company or do more research to see what is out there. I'd also inform the people that haven't booked yet that you need final boat counts so if they don't book soon they are out of luck for boat

I thought about this but opted to set up a candy bar instead !

Glow sticks! I even had glow glasses

They have these spiralizers you can buy that look and work like a pencil sharpener to make noodles. Do it w a raw zucchini then just nuke in microwave for two mins and voila. I bought mine on Amazon for like 10 bucks. Also using a cheese grater to make rice out of cauliflower for a fried rice recipe was amazing ( also used cauliflower to make "buffalo wings") My favorite thing is this shirataki tofu "noodles" that are in the refrigerator sec of grocery in a bag filled w water...they have the exact consistency of angel hair pasta with like 40 cals per package...it's likes miracle food!!

Dang wedding regrets!!

People really liked the aloe, headache meds, Imodium, and koozies oh and sunglasses for sure ( for ex one of my friends brought only one pair and it broke) I saw people w the bags. I didn't get a ton of feedback except people saying it was cute and thoughtful

i like that idea. My resort allowed Chinese lanterns so we did that at the end which was awesome. I kind of liked breaking the dancing up. A few things ..I wouldn't count on Walmart to have them because PV Walmart did not and its not a normal thing Walmart carries I believe. My next point would be do not bring them on plane! I was thinking about sneaking them on but they are considered an explosive so you risk a felony charge... It's not like they would just throw them away it would be a big deal and I would not want to risk being detained before my wedding! I'd ask my WC to arrange

Definitely definitely move back the ceremony! Just got married at 530 and of course in Mexico it was delayed by 15 mins and then I didn't realize how many people would want to hug us and how long group shots take. I was almost crying by the time it was couples shots because we literally had 15 mins. I had a whole list of inspiration pictures but we got to do like 2. Luckily my brother is an amazing photographer so he captured a handful of good ones but that is one of my biggest wedding regrets. Plus I was so stressed at that point I started the marriage by snapping at my DH ( trying to get him to move into different poses quickly) which I wish I could have been more calm!

Right. Traditionally thank you cards are just for gifts but in these situations attending is like a gift!

Yes I'm beginning to think about this. I second what Kim said. I'll add extra photos to those who came but for those who just sent a gift I will send the generic thank you card ( us on the beach with the writing in the sand saying thank you) with a short note. I debated sending one to those who came who didn't give a gift ( prob most ) but want to because I am thankful they came

I guess we naturally hung out with most everyone. Now that I think about it everyone ended up at the same pool the day after the wedding without any planning. We also had an impromptu brunch that morning with like 10 of us. I would say the best idea is to have a good balance of planned activities and spontaneity to allow guests to enjoy vacation ( at first I think I was planning too much ) we had an amazing welcome dinner /potluck and a full day catamaran sail ( almost better than the wedding people!) which almost everyone attended. We also had a night out in town with just the "young" people. I did feel torn with hanging out with some groups ( esp dinners... My parents and his parents always wanted us!) and some people liked certain pools or beach . I also didn't realize how much wedding planning would factor in (setting up welcome party, preparing welcome bags, rehearsal stuff, last minute gathering of wedding decorations etc) which took us away.

@@calgarybride2015 I've been feeling guilty too, but more about the whole week and not spending enough time with people... For example I think I talked to DHs moms friend like twice the whole week lol

I just had my wedding and had a sweetheart table which I really recommend. It was so cutely decorated and near the other tables. We didn't do a first look so I enjoyed the quiet moment with my new husband. Then between courses we got up and moved around talking to each table.?We had 4 other tables with 8-10 people which I thougt was perfect. That way our entire immediate family/bridal party could sit at one table. in my opinion I always felt bad for bridal parties that had to sit at one table and their dates at another

Hi everyone! I'm back in the real world, wedding and whole week was amazing. My friends and family couldn't stop talking about it esp how luxurious our resort was of course there was some stress and some things went awry during wedding but overall it was fantastic. Hope to have pics this week and write a review...but may take awhile as life is in full swing right now. DW brides enjoy the planning and all that, the week was over in a flash and I'm having some blues that there is no more!

Thanks everyone! We are here safe and sound ( after some snafus nothing major just "lost" passports and trying to figure out people's arrival shuttle info stuff like that ) most people are here with another batch coming today and a few more stragglers during the week. We had our trash the dress the pics were awesome! ( my bros a photog) including a pic with a baby sea turtle crawling its way to the ocean! Not going to lie it's been a bit stressful trying to hang out with groups and we still have stuff to do ( welcome bags, meet w planner, assemble some wedding stuff ) but I'm trying to enjoy as much as possible as it is already flying by! I just want to drink by pool ( and I def intend to!)

I agree with rachelia160. I personally would be offended if I got one of those notes esp if it was a cousin I wasn't close to ( I'd be like I barely talk to anyways @&)hole I know I'm not invited to your wedding!) that being said as we all know on this board there are some dingbats ( that I guess we all know and love?) that can't grasp the concept of etiquette and assume they are coming or are invited and forward the info.. So I'd let the invited family know the deal and don't say anything to others unless they ask. I don't think most people would take offense to saying " we are having a DW to cut costs and you know how big our family is, unfortunately I had to make the tough decision to invite only the ones I talk to most )

I would just consider them both MOH!