the chai file

(g s tr -n m k)

2011-03-10T22:08:00.000-07:00

Otherwise spelled gastronomic, it is a word that looks and sounds fancier than it needs to be. Merriam-Webster says "1. the art or science of good eating. 2. : culinary customs or style." We Chais travel a fair bit, and whether we travel south 45 miles or to Mexico, a lot of our energy and interest surrounds food and drink. Maybe it's magnified by the fact that we live in a relatively unimaginative gastronomic region. I wouldn't even say that we've had the 'best steaks ever' where we live now - and really, shouldn't we have? Considering the location...well, regardless of that issue, we seek interesting and new food choices. And we don't particularly discriminate - street tacos can be just as, or more amazing, than a $200 dinner. So we'll be happy to report on our adventures of the stomach after returning from Las Vegas next week. Viva!

For your brain and soul

2011-03-07T20:36:00.000-07:00

"I have a lot of faith. But I am also afraid a lot, and have no real certainty about anything. I remembered something Father Tom had told me--that the opposite of faith is not doubt, but certainty. Certainty is missing the point entirely. Faith includes noticing the mess, the emptiness and discomfort, and letting it be there until some light returns." --Anne Lamott

One of the reasons I love my friend Shari - she finds these things and posts them for the world, and I so very much appreciate the clarity.

My Bucket is going to Fill

2011-02-19T22:18:00.000-07:00

It's decided. I will create and pursue a Bucket List.

Turns out, not everyone knows what a Bucket List is. Let's get a shared definition going before we begin.

From UrbanDictionary.com: "A list of things to do before you die. Comes from the term "kicked the bucket"."

Hmm. Not sure if I'm a huge fan of this definition. I might rather think of this list as "A list of things to do while I enjoy a full and interesting life." It isn't so much that I want to beat death to something, but that I'd like to have some mini-goals that might or might not have age-based limits.

On the radio this week, a woman said something about the fact that she was not implying that the pecan pie her mother made was an easy feat. I thought, I've never made a pecan pie. I want to make a pecan pie. Not because I want to eat it, but because I want to have made something that could be considered difficult by the average amateur cook. Push outside the comfort zone, so to speak. And I have recently realized that my comfort zone is...well....teeny tiny. Like, Rhode Island tiny. Dust mite, invisible to the naked human eye, tiny. And I am no longer satisfied with Rhode Island. I'd like to have New Jersey, at least. And then expand to Vermont, perhaps.

So here we go. I haven't yet decided the exact format of the weekly or more frequent entries, but I am excited about this topic and the voyage in general.

What is to become of the blog?

2011-02-01T23:19:00.000-07:00

I'm still stumped as to which topic should be the focus of my blogging. Food? Travel? Certainly not daily life; talk about a boring topic. A few of my friends seem to make daily blogging really work - but I'm not so sure that I am that interesting. Or that I can make everyday topics that interesting. Of late, I love food, and I love travel. Both topics seem blog-worthy, and both are limited according to the annual financial picture. So perhaps, we'll do both. Fill in the blanks depending on the week.

VIVA 4 days...

2010-08-12T09:58:00.000-06:00

and counting!! The mental preparation for a 6-night AI trip is pretty minimal. We are psyched that friends will be joining us, and excited to meet any other fun people who are at the resort when we are (that's one of the more fun things about this type of trip - the people!). Well okay, and being honest, the food and drink are pretty high up there as well, in terms of things that we look forward to as we prepare. So I thought it would be appropriate to post a few photos of food/drink that other vacationers have posted online...savoring the thought!

EPM: All about the food

2010-08-09T10:16:00.000-06:00

Our vacations are primarily about relaxation and food. Well, ok, mainly food. The fact that an all-inclusive resort allows you tons of choices in the realm of food makes it very appealing to the Chai household. I found some awesome photos of EPM resort foods - but this most recent one takes the cake. I love amazing room service breakfast foods!! 7 days to paradise!

conversion never felt sweeter

2010-08-06T11:36:00.001-06:00

Over the course of my life, I have dabbled in Macs and PCs, always quick to choose the most convenient option at the time that I needed a computer. As I learn more about operating systems and internet junk and system performance, I find that the world of Mac is sexy, sleek, and seductive enough that I'm willing to throw my PC-love (specific to statistical software packages that always are developed more quickly for PCs than Mac) out the window.

And yesterday, all those thoughts came to fruition when my loving husband presented me with a fabulous gift of a MacBook Pro (15''). It is the most gorgeous machine I've ever owned, and will most certainly receive the love and attention it deserves. Here are a few photos of my new baby...and believe me, she'll have a name at some point in the near future. :)

Sand Flea War

2010-08-04T14:27:00.000-06:00

During our wedding trip to Mexico last year, I was the lucky recipient of a number of insect bites that left enormous welts on my back, arms, and legs. I didn't know exactly what these were, and quite frankly didn't care too much about them until we got back to the mainland and I noticed how very ugly they were. After some searching, I decided that I must have been bitten by 'sand fleas' (ew!). According to my research, they only bite certain people in certain settings - totally random - and 'sensitive people' are most likely to be affected. Great.

If you're in the mood for prevention, and are heading to a beach vacation this fall, keep these things in mind:

Step 1
Try to avoid the beach after it has rained. These moist, cooler conditions seem to put the fleas at their friskiest state. Give the area a chance to dry and warm up a little before venturing out.
Step 2
Wait until mid-morning to early afternoon to go the beach, as the cooler early morning hours are a favorite time of these little mites.
Step 3
Give your body a good coating of insect repellent before heading out. Check the label to make sure that the repellent works on fleas and not just mosquitoes.
Step 4
Put something between yourself and the sand before sitting down, be it a beach towel or lawn chair. The reason sand flea bites are commonly located on the backs of the thighs is because this is the most exposed and accessible area when sitting directly on the sand.
Step 5
Wear longer shorts if there will be direct contact with the sand. Board shorts work fairly well. Be mindful of the calves and ankles, however, as they are fair game as well.
Step 6
Reapply the insect repellent if the beach party continues after sunset. Biting insects tend to get a second wind when the evening sets in.

Found: CUTE suit

2010-08-04T09:51:00.000-06:00

Barreling toward Mexico...T-minus 12 days and counting...and of course, that last-minute freak-out hits. "I'm going to be there for 7 days and I have...2 swimming suits? Ack!!" This always leads to a harried internet search for reasonably-priced and reasonably-styled, modern swim gear. Not too easy when you can't try it on. And this year, I was determined to get a swim suit skirt. Tricky business, that is, with my other requirements in place (the cute, non-grandma look is somewhat hard to find with a skirt bottom). But triumph emerges from the land of JCrew! (and at 30% off, who can say no? not me...) I got both pieces in 'bright eucalyptus.' Does anyone else have recommendations on sweet suits?

The man who shaves in his truck

2010-07-29T14:27:00.000-06:00

I have sucked at contributing to the blogosphere lately. I have also become increasingly disturbed by this man in a red Chevy truck who passes me every morning on my way to work. And every morning that I see this man, he is shaving his face. In his truck. While driving. "Sir, do you know why we pulled you over today?" "No office, because I wasn't speeding...but hold on a second, I missed a section of my neck, can you move away from the mirror for a second" This is completely ridiculous to me. Not only is it a hazard, similar to putting makeup on in the car, or texting while driving, but it is also downright GROSS. My whole creepy-crawly-skin feeling about this can be summed in one question: Where does the hair go?

In other news, we depart for our Mexico anniversary vacation in only 17 days, 19 hours, 36 minutes...yessssssssssss.

EPM Photo of the Day

2010-06-29T21:45:00.000-06:00

Can you believe it? Two in one week?? Shock! Awe!!

I want to be there NOW please.

EPM Photo of the Day

2010-06-28T21:03:00.000-06:00

And now that the world is settling a bit again...I can get back to being ridiculously excited about the Mexico trip 2010. EPM here we come!

Procrastination, made eas(ier)

2010-06-28T20:59:00.000-06:00

I absolutely love to procrastinate. At the same time, I hate the physical and mental consequences of procrastination.

For example, right now I'm just sitting here grading student responses. Obviously NOT because I am writing this post, but I am SUPPOSED to be grading student responses. It isn't that those responses are boring, or difficult to read/grade; it isn't that there is absolutely nothing rewarding about grading; and it isn't that I'm so tired I can't keep my eyes open (I exercised tonight so I still do have some energy, amazingly). The art of inattention to the task at hand is just MORE rewarding than doing what I should be doing. I can't even completely say why. It just is. I'd rather admire the nice background I finally found for this blog; or read about random peoples' crap on Facebook; or listen to this very cool version of Over the Rainbow that my Genius found inside my iTunes (which is now combined with my husbands, so the library has 11,867 items as of right now). It's beautiful and I'd rather dream about being over the rainbow, where there is no grading to be had. Sigh.

EPM Photo of the Day

2010-05-15T12:21:00.000-06:00

Photo of the Day: The X-Lounge

EPM has an on-beach nighttime lounge where you can bask in the beauty of the beach as the sun sets and falls into the ocean. It is uber-modern with white couches and tables, bar service for as long as people are around, and ambient lighting once the sun has departed.

So...you think you want to change your name.

2010-05-13T16:58:00.000-06:00

Well, I agreed with the husband long ago that I would indeed change my name. My previous college-aged women-libber self would not have gone along so easily (I dragged her kicking and screaming) but it was pretty important to my husband, and the more I thought about it, it would make life a little easier, especially when/if children join our family. So, I thought, cool, I'm going to change my name. A few months after the wedding I stopped by the Social Security office, ready to change my name. Either I was completely dazed or they messed up - but I came out with the name (first) Mindy (middle) Joy (last) Dahl Chai. I then ventured to the dreaded DMV, where I again received an identification card with (first) Mindy (middle) Joy (last) Dahl Chai written on it. I didn't really recognize any issues, that is until my husband opened the letter containing my license from the mail and exclaimed 'Dahl Chai? I thought your middle name was going to be Joy Dahl!'. Wow. I honestly - truly - had not even recognized this until he said that. I felt like a complete idiot. Am I that mentally busy (is my cognitive load really that high) that I didn't see this?

Then, topping it off, we visited Sports Authority to get me an annual fishing license. Using my driver's license, the dude behind the counter only entered my 'first' last name - Dahl. The husband gave me that look 'see, I told you people would get confused' - when all along, I agreed with him and never wanted 2 last names. Wow, what a ride.

Today, I re-visited the SSN office, and the DMV, all in about 40 minutes. Thank goodness for small towns on a Thursday mid-morning. And the biggest issue? They made me re-take my license picture, which had finally been a good one. Meh.

A Photo a Day

2010-05-13T16:01:00.000-06:00

I am becoming increasingly excited for our Mexico 2010 trip (94 days to go!), so I decided to pull down a few photos of Excellence Playa Mujeres (EPM) resort and make a collage for my computer's desktop background (dork, I know). Then I thought - I should share these fun photos with the world! Maybe this will even convince a few more of you to come along to EPM.

This pic was taken inside the resort; they have 'pools' that form a kind of river around and through the property, with bridges that go over the river. Apparently you can grab a pool floatie and glide around the resort at a leisurely pace.

Rest your wings my butterfly

2010-05-01T11:53:00.000-06:00

I love listening to Josh Groban while I grade student responses and papers and exams. There is a significant link between music and various events in my life. For instance, in graduate school, while I wrote my comprehensive examination responses, I listened to to Enigma over and over and over again. Josh Groban creeped into the end of the comps process, and then continued while I was writing my dissertation. I know every word, every transition, every key change in those songs. And most of them were learned subconsciously, because technically I was multi-tasking the entire way through. Hopefully I'm still pretty good at multitasking and am grading student work fairly as I continue to listen. ;) Only 1 week to go this semester, and then I get a 4-week break before summer session begins. I'll be teaching a class at LCCC and UW again - both online - this summer session, for only 8 weeks (versus the usual 16-week semester). Then, I get another 4-week break in August before the Fall semester starts. The more I do this teaching thing, the more efficient and effective (hopefully!) I become. It's pretty exciting stuff.

Back to Mexico 2010

2010-04-24T12:38:00.001-06:00

In a slightly sporadic move, we decided last Sunday to return to Mexico in August 2010. In my head, the excuse was 'well, it is our anniversary, and the prices are just so low in August...' - when really there is no good excuse. The notion of 'needing' a vacation or a break from general life stuff has always been lost on me, which is probably why at the ripe old age of 30, I can't even sit still long enough to watch a whole movie. This is a sad fact that my husband is attempting to help me overcome. So back to Mexico it is! We'll be staying at one of the resorts that was on the original list of wedding resorts, but at the time was in a price bracket that concerned me (in terms of our guests and the cost of the ceremony/reception). However, this down economy must be doing something 'right' because now we, and some of our friends, will be going for 6 nights of glorious all-inclusive pleasure! Excellence Playa Mujeres got great reviews on Trip Advisor (www.tripadvisor.com) and was actually once owned by the same company who built our wedding resort (Secrets Maroma Beach). So we have good confidence that we will have excellent (ha) food, service, and accommodations. I am personally excited to have NOTHING to plan or pull off (a wedding, for instance) and to get to just enjoy myself.

Julie and Julia Inspiration

2010-03-20T12:40:00.000-06:00

(A Mindy Post) Last night I watched almost all of Julie and Julia (with 30 minutes left I remembered that the dogs were at home alone ALL DAY and probably up to naughty business, so the movie will be continued). First the first time in a great while I actually felt inspired by a movie.

This probably seems an odd choice for an 'ispirational film' - most people would look to something like "The Blind Side" for that. But, since early January, I have been cooking - actually cooking - something I have never truly done before. I pay attention to ingredients, weekly fliers at local grocery stores, I actually read my Cooking Light magazine (to which I have been subscribed for over a year), I ordered Real Simple magaine, I installed 3 recipe finders on my iPod touch, I print recipes and then use them - and - I organized my pantry. I now buy canned tomatoes in bulk and large packages of meats (which are then broken down into useful sizes in ziploc bags and frozen) from Sam's Club, and try to plan weekly evening meals for us (and even friends sometimes!). This is an entirely new way of looking at the world of food. I have transformed from "I'm not a cook, have no interest" into "I can completely manage this and practice to become better, and enjoy it along the way." I think Christopher quite likes it too (except that one night of beef pot pie....ugh....).

The film Julie and Julia inspired and reminded me that most people, in most cases, can do anything if they are motivated and use their skills with purpose. It also reminded me that people are multidimensional and quick to forget about the other important pieces of their lives when they find something new to enjoy. I didn't feel like the movie developed the character of Julie's husband very well at all, but his actions were the most poignant to me in terms of a lesson. Love your food and your projects, but love your people first and best, always. More to come on the topic of food, love, cleaning, pets, and randomness.

We don't "Do" Hallmark Holidays

2010-02-14T17:30:00.000-07:00

My husband has informed me of this fact, and in general I do agree. Why put a ton of money and effort into something that was misconstrued throughout the ages, only to be turned into another valiant effort of consumerism in America in today's world? I found some very interesting information regarding the actual history of St. Valentine's Day, and thought I'd share it here - not only because I like to be informed with evidence and truth, but also with varying interpretations of the same thing.

"Although it is celebrated as a lovers' holiday today, with the giving of candy, Valentine flowers, or other gifts between couples in love, it originated in 5th Century Rome as a tribute to St. Valentine, a Catholic bishop.

For eight hundred years prior to the establishment of Valentine's Day, the Romans had practiced a pagan celebration in mid-February commemorating young men's rite of passage to the god Lupercus. The celebration featured a lottery in which young men would draw the names of teenage girls from a box. The girl assigned to each young man in that manner would be his sexual companion during the remaining year.

In an effort to do away with the pagan festival, Pope Gelasius ordered a slight change in the lottery. Instead of the names of young women, the box would contain the names of saints. Both men and women were allowed to draw from the box, and the game was to emulate the ways of the saint they drew during the rest of the year. Needless to say, many of the young Roman men were not too pleased with the rule changes.

Be My Valentine

Instead of the pagan god Lupercus, the Church looked for a suitable patron saint of love to take his place. They found an appropriate choice in Valentine, who, in AD 270 had been beheaded by Emperor Claudius.

Claudius had determined that married men made poor soldiers. So he banned marriage from his empire. But Valentine would secretly marry young men that came to him. When Claudius found out about Valentine, he first tried to convert him to paganism. But Valentine reversed the strategy, trying instead to convert Claudius. When he failed, he was stoned and beheaded.

During the days that Valentine was imprisoned, he fell in love with the blind daughter of his jailer. His love for her, and his great faith, managed to miraculously heal her from her blindness before his death. Before he was taken to his death, he signed a farewell message to her, "From your Valentine." The phrase has been used on his day ever since.

Although the lottery for women had been banned by the church, the mid-February holiday in commemoration of St. Valentine was still used by Roman men to seek the affection of women. It became a tradition for the men to give the ones they admired handwritten messages of affection, containing Valentine's name.

Cupid

The first Valentine card grew out of this practice. The first true Valentine card was sent in 1415 by Charles, duke of Orleans, to his wife. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London at the time.

Cupid, another symbol of the holiday, became associated with it because he was the son of Venus, the Roman god of love and beauty. Cupid often appears on Valentine cards."

Fascinating stuff. I'm not sure whether I'm happy or sad that we no longer use stoning and beheading as punishments for particularly stupid people, but I personally do not with to further contribute to the amazing amount of profit that the Hallmark card company brings in each year due to this evolving holiday. It isn't that I don't appreciate some love-showing... just not only on one day of the year.

(source: http://wilstar.com/holidays/valentn.htm)

Where to go from here?

2010-01-30T15:02:00.001-07:00

After a long, stagnant few months (at least in terms of our bloggosphere presence - nothing about the past few months has been actually stagnant), the Chai family is reappearing on the scene. Here's a quickie recap of our Fall09 and early Winter10 months:

--->We got married - twice - within 29 days (well, three times technically, but that's a story for another day...).

--->Christopher quit his job and started working in a research lab at the University of Wyoming.

--->Chai Photography stayed busy with family photography and wedding photography.

--->Mindy continued teaching classes at LCCC and UW.

--->Mindy continued enjoying her job at the Department of HEalth.

--->Christopher took the GRE in anticipation of applying to psychology Ph.D. programs in 2010.

--->We spent Christmas in northern MN with my (Mindy's) family. We drove there and back, with the schnauzers, straight through. We were reminded of why we don't do this every year.

--->Christopher applied to graduate schools for Fall 2010 entry.

--->Christopher received word that he will be interviewing for at least one school in February.

--->Christopher found the joys of ice fishing in Wyoming.

--->Christopher and Mindy started discussing when they will start expanding the family (TBA).

--->Mindy began picking out paint colors for the interior of the house, which has been white for nearly 3 years because we weren't sure we would stay in Wyoming. Now, we could be here another 4-5 years.

Whew.

Testing, testing...

2010-01-30T13:16:00.001-07:00

What? New look, new ideas, new topics? Yes!

Legal Ceremony Photo sneak peek

2009-09-17T15:41:00.000-06:00

We were lucky enough to have a few friends taking photos with point-n-shoot cameras on wedding day in DC...this is one of our favorites! We'll have pro-pics by Carmen Fong Phototgraphy soon - sneak peek on her website is at: http://www.carmenfongphotography.com/ - hooray!

Legal Wedding: CHECK. No mo weddings please.

2009-09-10T11:02:00.003-06:00

We're back from DC and boy are our arms tired....and the rest of our bodies and brains too!

And another thing...

2009-08-30T23:33:00.001-06:00

It was my original intent to continue this lovely blog up up and beyond the wedding of the Dahl-Chai household. I still intend to do so, but will be looking for feedback from any readers out there who might find the non-wedding content to be drab, boring, stupid, or otherwise time-wasting. But I promise, more wedding-y stuff to come - the legal ceremony is only 7 days away and I have to make it through 3 days of work, two 4-hour lectures in my PSYC 1000 class on the air force base, and somehow find time to pack and bathe the dogs and organize all things wedding-related once again, prior to Thursday morning at 8am. It's going to be a crazy week; see you when we get back on the 9th!

We're Married!

2009-08-23T12:04:00.003-06:00

Wow - it's been almost a month since I blogged, and so much has happened in that time span. I will definitely catch up and post a review of our resort, our travel agent, our fabulous photographers, photos of the trip to Mexico, and our plans for the legal ceremony in Washington D.C. (coming up over Labor Day weekend).

For now, let me say that the Mexico wedding experience was fantastic and just about as stress-free as a wedding can be!

A wedding at SMB: Movie

2009-07-28T21:24:00.003-06:00

A bride posted this video on the Best Destination Weddings forum just a few days ago - I was so excited to see photos of a wedding at SMB just weeks before we arrive for our big day. PLUS, the photogs who put this movie together used one of my latest favorite songs - "Say Hey (I love you)" by Michael Franti/Spearhead. Enjoy.

Shower the People

2009-07-27T08:36:00.003-06:00

Coming off an insane weekend here...with only 10 days before we step on the plane, and 12 to our wedding, I'm working hard to find some calm and solace in the days. On Saturday, I attended my very own bridal shower - woo! It was a very fun experience, and having never had one before, definitely surpassed any expectations I had of what a bridal shower might be like (for myself; I've been to others). Erin and her family dressed the table with orange plates, blue cups, and wonderful brunchy foods, including a three-berry trifle that everyone devoured. They also set up the porch with tables, chairs, runners/tablecloths that matched our wedding colors, and centerpieces that fit the 'kitchen theme' of the shower (including one kitchenaid mixing bowl that had sand and shells in it, with bamboo cooking utensils sticking out the top!). It was far more than I could have wished for, and I am so thankful to have wonderful people in my life. It's a bit overwhelming actually. Thank you to everyone! I'm one happy bride.

Here's a group photo from the day (a few people are missing - and Wendy is taking the photo).

The BEST Wedding Processional Forever. And Ever. And Ever.

2009-07-23T20:43:00.002-06:00

I'll take the purple orchid for $2000, Alex

2009-07-23T12:33:00.005-06:00

After ignoring the details of bridal/bridesmaid hair, makeup, and other details for awhile, it came time to make decisions. So I did. The good news is, everyone at our wedding will be clothed and have shoes to wear. (There isn't any bad news here folks.)

The new news is that the bridesmaids will be wearing a purple orchid in their hair (which we'll do our best to keep off their necks in the August heat) and the bride will wear the same orchid in white. This was a quickie DIY project that emerged out of an email and was completed in little more than an hour - I love those types of projects! Plus, Hobby Lobby had the orchid stems for 1/2 off, the barrettes for $1.99 (for 18), and I already owned the glue gun (watch out). A little hot glue and patience, and voila -- hair-ready orchids that look pretty darn real. If we can nab real ones in Mexico we'll try to use those instead, but these are a nice stress-reliever that we'll definitely have some tropical look to our hair. Plus, it's just plain fun - how often do you have an excuse to wear a flower in your hair?

When a Ring isn't just a Ring

2009-07-22T21:13:00.006-06:00

Today was "Cheyenne Day", which to any state government employee means 4 hours leave time granted by the Governor so we can participate in the insanity that is Cheyenne Frontier Days (yee haw). Pretty cool stuff. Christopher and I both used the time to...well, do a bunch of random things, including stalking the FedEx truck from between our blinds. Packages from UPS and FedEx are always special, of late...but today was a BIG day. Why so big, you ask? Today was the day that Christopher's ring, which we designed sight-unseen online at Avant Garde Titanium Style, was scheduled to arrive on our front step. And, not realizing we had to sign for them to leave it, I was very glad we didn't do anything fun on Cheyenne Day and stayed put at home. Woo hoo!

Review: We are very pleased with the ring. We ordered a polished titanium tension-mount band with a .10k diamond in the center, and platinum inlay. The packaging was very basic, just a FedEx envelope inside a FedEx box, and the ring comes in this dowdy leather ring box. But - the important part of the delivery was perfect. It fits Christopher's finger like a glove (a 1-fingered glove) and is just what he wanted (that we couldn't find in a store anywhere). Without further adieu, here it is - once again, in all its "haute" glory (because it's fun to say 'haute').

(click on the photos for enlarged version)

We also took some photos of the trio of rings; oh so exciting and super dorky (got some new photography equipment and had to try it out, of course!).

What they say about SMB

2009-07-20T22:45:00.003-06:00

I checked out the TripAdvisor website, and the written word about people's experiences at SMB are terrific - so I wanted to share a few things that might be different or helpful. You can always check out the full reviews at TripAdvisor.

The Journey...

* The road to the resort is, yes, bumpy, to say the least. We didn't mind at all. We knew about this ahead of time from Trip Advisor. It was an adventure.
* The road in to the resort is like a little jungle safari. It's a one lane, dirt road with many potholes. If there's more than one car the other driver has to pull over to let you pass. We didn't mind this, it was like a mini-adventure for us.

The Small Things...

* I enjoyed having a large shelf-sitting area in the shower so I could shave my legs easily without falling over :)
* They provide you with Gilchrist and Soames toiletries which were quite nice. We had a sewing kit, shaving cream, toothpaste, toothbrush, razor, shampoo, conditioner, lotion, and a bottle of SPF15. All of it smelled really nice.
* Can't say enough about how gorgeous our room was. All marble floors (slippery when running in from the swim out to the bar fridge for another Corona so be careful!) Bathroom was all marble with separate little room with toilet--nice for the openness of the room. Loved how the tub was open to the room. Someone didn't think there was enough privacy but it is an adults only, very romantic resort so privacy wasn't an issue for my fiance and I.
* The bed was heavenly. My fiance didn't want to leave it. On the firm side which we loved. Bedding very cozy--all white.

The Rooms...

* Loved the Secret Box for room service. If you put your red light on they see it outside and know not to disturb so place your order in secret box and give a knock and leave. Very private. Never have a mess in your room cause all dirty dishes and bottles go back in the secret box and they are picked up regularly.

o Swim out suite was very worth it. Main pools close at 6pm so when u feel like lounging in pool after dinner or through dinner and order room service to your room to enjoy dinner while in pool, the option is yours. Very much enjoyed the late night dip.

The Food...

o I agree about asking for your steak to be cooked a little more than u would ask for at home. I always get medium but medium steak there was too rare. No problem though-they took it back and brought me a new cut done perfectly then I knew how to ask for it.
o (We) had our private little candle light dinner for 2 on the beach--highly recommend booking this. We asked our concierge on the 2nd day about it and he got us booked in for the Tuesday evening at 7pm. It was unbelievable. We walked onto the beach to find a little candlelit path guiding us right down to our table. Only 3 tables set up and 1st couple was finishing as we arrived and 3rd couple arrived as we were finishing. Very romantic dinner under the stars with a lovely breeze and the sound of the ocean and our feet in the sand. Two waiters took care of our every need. It was the most romantic dinner we have ever had. Food was surprisingly very hot too. I recommend everyone booking this. It comes included with a swim out room. It costs $200 if u do not have a swim out. Ours was included but we tipped nicely.

The Activities...

o There is an Avis car rental desk in main lobby. Was overcast first couple of days so we thought we would rent a car. We used our internet in our room and went online to Avis at night and made a reservation for the next morning. They didn't have any compact cars available, which is what we reserved so they upgraded us to a jeep at no extra cost. Our rental cost $36 per day. We rented for 3 days and drove ourselves to Tulum and Xel-Ha.
+ (We) don't recommend a bus tour to Tulum. Very hot and just stone structures to look at. Only cost $7 entrance fee and saw it in 20 minutes, much faster with our car.
+ Then we went snorkeling in Xel-Ha. Loved it there. You have to make the time and go early. Everything is included in the entrance price of $75. Towels, unlimited buffet and drinks, snorkel gear--brand new mouth pieces in plastic for each person. You can tube down the river and jump off the cliff. It's on the must see and do list for sure.
+ I heard mixed things about renting a car in Mexico and going off on your own but we felt very safe the whole time--mind you we never ventured into any bad areas. I recommend renting a vehicle and doing your own thing for a day or two!
o I thought building 26 was a little noisy as it faces the back of the pool bar and the pool, it was OK though as we only used the balcony in late afternoon and evening and everyone clears out by then.

+ Scuba diving - we booked with Aquaworld down at the pool for both Cozumel and cavern diving - the package was a good value, they had good equipment and good dive masters. We liked the cavern dive better than the Cozumel dive. It was a smaller group and such a unique experience!
+ Activities pavilion - there is a fun pavilion with ping pong, foosball, and a pool table (the pool table is NOT level!) along with a TV and a bar that is open only part of the time. We ended up spending time here watching football and baseball and playing a lot of ping pong.
+ The drinks - they really do have a lot of top shelf liquor. We aren't big drinkers but it was a lot of fun to have a pina colada or mojito. Most of the drinks were too sweet in my opinion but the bartenders were very nice about following my instructions to make the drinks to my taste, which I really appreciated.

Keeping it Classy

2009-07-20T22:30:00.002-06:00

Awhile back, Christopher sent me some fun links from Yahoo, each having something to do with a list of things to do/not do when faced with a wedding. These crack me up, mainly because not only do you see them everyday (and at every wedding I have ever been in, planned, or attended), but they all seem so darn commonsense that no one understands why they continue to occur! Have a good chuckle and check it out.

First, from "9 things you should never WEAR to a wedding"...

1. White Is Not Right - It seems obvious and yet so many guests seem to forget. Material that is mostly white with a small pattern is a no. White suits are a no. If there's a question...no. White garb is meant for one person only and that's the bride! Always. End of story.
2. Skip the Shorts - Shorts at a wedding? It's just wrong; even if you dress them up with a blazer or a pair of sexy heels. Guys, no matter how preppy you make 'em, and, girls, no matter how stylish Charlize Theron looks in them, shorts just won't do at this affair.
3. Keep it Classy -(San Diego? hee hee) Up-to-there miniskirts, shirts with more buttons undone than not, and bustier tops are best left for a night out with the girls (or that person you really want to wow). We know you're sexy, you know you're sexy, but a wedding isn't the place to show off. Play down the sassy and play up the classy.
5. All That Glitters Is Not Gold - Stay away from anything lamé, sequined, shiny, or glittery. It's distracting (both in person and in those precious keepsake photos). Again, the newlyweds are the star attraction, so resist the urge to be a "shining star."

Then, from "10 things you should never DO at a wedding"...

The day two people exchange vows may not be your special day, but it's someone's special day, so be on your best behavior -- all the way from the I -do's to the obligatory Gloria Gaynor dance marathon...
1. Don't Produce Sound Effects * While at a wedding and reception, turn off your Blackberries and cell phones, put them on vibrate, or better yet, don't even take them!
2. Don't Come Bearing Gifts * Whether you're planning on gifting the happy couple a Cuisinart or cold hard cash, do them a huge favor and don't bring it on the wedding day. If you do, they have to keep track of it and haul it home at the end of the night. Send the gift ahead of time, or after the actual ceremony -- at a time when they can really relax and enjoy it.
3. Don't Steal the Show * Wedding ceremonies take all forms -- from religious to poetic, musical, or humorous. Whatever the vibe, let the bride and groom set the tone and follow their lead. If you're normally a loud, life-of-the-party type, bring it down a notch and let the wedding couple stand out. If you're a weeper, bring tissues and sit where you can sob without disturbing the I Do's. If the ceremony includes religious rituals, find out what you should do (or not do) ahead of time.
4. Don't Drag Out Skeletons * If the bride blushes, it should be from pride, joy, or sheer love. Not because someone just stood up and told a humiliating story about the loser she dated in high school! Ingratiate yourself to the lady and her groom by avoiding any potentially embarrassing or juvenile behavior -- no bawdy jokes, no tales about their dating habits or exploits, no overdrinking, and no overly sexy dancing. Have fun, but don't have it at anyone else's expense.

Guest Book!

2009-07-18T23:29:00.002-06:00

I have never - ever- understood the use of a traditional Guest Book. People sign their names, and where they are from...like visitors do at church on Sunday. Hmm. As though you don't know the guests were at your wedding? Or like, if you did not realize they were there, maybe you don't know them well enough to recognize them? I suppose the practice is more useful at those enormous wedding ceremonies where the parents invite everyone and their dogs for some kind of social power play.In our case - 33 guests (including ourselves and our photographers) - guest books, at least the traditional kind, don't seem an overly useful concept. Many months ago, I found a great idea for a more functional and meaningful guest book. I ordered a set of 100 vintage Mexico postcards from Ebay (cost = $11 with shipping) and purchased a pretty orange paisley photo album ($8.99 at Michaels). The cards, along with some pens, will be stationed on the cocktail tables, and guests will be asked to write a message to us on the back of a card and then place it in the photo album. Instant-fun-guest-book! Plus, then we can add photos of each guest near to their written message, and have something that will be fun to peruse over the years. And just in case we forget what any of our guests look like....ha ha ha ha, right.

Menus

2009-07-18T23:21:00.004-06:00

I have been warned that at a destination wedding held at an all-inclusive resort, menus are quite possibly antiquated. Or at the very least, not useful and potentially more work than they are worth. As I am not often deterred by such nay-sayers, I set out to create a simple menu that will spruce up our rather simple reception tables and convey the all-important reception menu (which will be the same for all guests, save for a few vegetarian types). I plan to print them on all-white cardstock that I already own to save costs, and then cut them in squares to add visual interest. For now, the two favorite picks in terms of font and layout are...

OOT contents - are we done?

2009-07-18T23:16:00.002-06:00

I think so. I hope so. I can't possibly think about adding one more item to our already overloaded suitcase world. The latest (and possibly last) adds: individual packets of Motrin and chewable Pepto Bismol tablets. These items are a particularly useful addition to the OOT bags, and I definitely think they will be used by our guests. Got them on Amazon.com ($18 for 100 2-tablet packs of Motrin; $18 for 3 48-count chewable Pepto boxes; free shipping!).

Shoes: The Finale

2009-07-16T23:27:00.003-06:00

I know what you're thinking: so soon? Heh heh. Yes, I ordered, and received, the gorgeous little numbers that I posted just below (Luichiny Duchess, in Grey). Completely uncomfortable (going to invest in some foot petals) and completely to-die-for-cute. I will not allow myself to return or purchase new shoes until after the wedding, as a matter of principle.

Without further adieu, here they are - in all their haute glory.

Shoes: The never-ending saga

2009-07-12T23:23:00.002-06:00

Yes, I am still fretting about wedding shoes. This is partially due to the fact that I have 2 dresses, and partially due to the fact that I love perusing for shoes and don't ever really want to have to decide already because there are so many pretty things for feet!

One such example: LOVE these shoes for bridal wear by Luichiny (the Duchess Sandal) - and how perfect is the heart on the bottom? I want them! $28 for the taupe color, and $63 for the silver. Which to choose?

How to Adapt

2009-07-08T22:44:00.007-06:00

Literally. My sister wrote me yesterday and asked whether we need to bring along plug-adapters for the trip to Mexico. Uhh....honestly, I had not yet thought about that. Dang. So, I did a little basic research and discovered the following:

1. Electrical sockets (outlets) in Mexico (Estados Unidos Mexicanos) are very similar to the electrical outlets found in the United States and Canada, and if your appliance has a North American plug, it's possible that you won't need any adapter at all in order to plug in there.

2. Sometimes though, if you have an item that has a 'grounding' agent (aka, that third plug below the other two plugs) it will not fix into the plugs in Mexico.

3. Therefore, bring an adapter so that you do not find yourself languishing without a hair dryer for a week.

4. Electrical sockets (outlets) in Mexico (Estados Unidos Mexicanos) usually supply electricity at between 110 and 120 volts AC. If you need to plug in a U.S. or Canadian 120 volt appliance, or an appliance that is compatible with multiple voltages, then an adapter is all you need.

5. However - here again it is important to consider what kind of voltage your appliance can take. You may need a voltage transformer in order to handle this properly.

6. Moral of the Story: Bring it all, to maybe need it.

You could go all-out and purchase something like this Samsonite Dual Wattage Converter/Adapter

Or, just forget the converter (the more expensive component) and get the adapters, like this Lenmar AC5 World Traveler Plug Set. If your appliances can handle the voltage differential, this should be all you need.

Do the research before you go, and you won't find yourself with unnecessary headaches on your vacation. Oh, and ask your little sister for ideas on other things you're forgetting in the whirlwind-wedding-fog of the last 30 days prior to your destination wedding. :o)

Florals and Flowers and Petals, oh my!

2009-07-05T13:47:00.006-06:00

While I appreciate the beauty of flowers, let it be said that I do not consider myself a connoisseur of floral design in any way. However, I do know a few things about wedding flowers. First, they should be 'pretty' (at least to the bride); second, they should be hearty (so as not to wilt as they are jostled around from photos to ceremony to reception); and third, they should be reasonably-priced (since they will eventually pass on to flower heaven - I'm just too darn practical to spend tonsa money on things that don't last beyond a day or two). So, in the case of our lovely Mexico wedding, our package with the resort includes my bouquet, the groom's boutonniere, and 2 other corsages and 2 other boutonnieres (typically for parents is my guess). We also receive a large table arrangement that will be placed on the ceremony table, and then moved to our sweetheart table or the cake table for the reception.

After we chose the bridesmaid's brightly-colored dresses (look in the blog history below for photos), the colors definitely suggested that a 'bird of paradise' flower-focus was the way to go. So, without further adieu, here are the photos that have been sent to the resort for replication; crossing fingers!

Songs I Heart: Say Hey (I love you)

2009-07-03T11:12:00.002-06:00

This little ditty is by Michael Franti and Spearhead, and it's very simple yet very inspiring at the same time. Some people said he 'sold out' when his music started moving in this direction; I say, if music can make the people who listen to it happy, then who cares. :)

TTD, still motion style

2009-06-30T22:57:00.002-06:00

WOW. By now you likely know that we have signed up for a "Trash the Dress" photo session the day after our wedding, somewhere on a beach/jungle in Mexico. VERY exciting. Many people would instead call is a "smash the dress" or "wet the dress", since most brides don't actually trash their dresses. I intend to be a wet/dirty-the-dress bride as well, as I do so want to donate my threads to the Making Memories Foundation. In the spirit of things, I keep my eyes peeled for any inspirational TTD footage or links that come along...and this one takes the cake. Check it out. I love how artistic it is, and the way that the music flows along with it...if we had something half this inspiring, I would be oh-so-happy. What do you think?

Shootin' at the Slough - Cheryl + Andrew's TTD // Vancouver from StillMotion on Vimeo.

Courtesy of Mrs. Milkshake on the Wedding Bee blog.

Joshua Radin: TODAY

2009-06-27T19:06:00.000-06:00

budget budget, who's got the budget

2009-06-26T19:54:00.003-06:00

Through all the glory and beauty of a wedding, there is one insidious issue that, although we would like to forget it, keeps cropping up. Money. Payments to vendors. Dress and Suit purchases. Gifts for wedding party, gifts for parents, gifts for each other. Plane tickets, resort stays, food, drinks, activities. A wedding, and the commonly-surrounding events (i.e., bridal showers, engagement parties, honeymoons, etc.), costs a lot. No matter how you slice it, or how cheaply you try to do it, and no matter how wealthy you (or, if you’re lucky, your contributing parental or familiar units) are, most families feel some burden from the financial obligation of a wedding. And, if there is one thing I’ve learned through helping others plan weddings, it is that almost everyone, almost always, goes over budget. I’m not a huge fan of the phrase “over budget,” primarily because it seems to indicate that at one point, there was a plan to be ‘under’ or ‘at’ budget, and someone failed at that plan. Ew. I like to avoid the feeling of failure whenever possible. So instead, I propose that we give that situation a different name. For example, instead of saying “Yes, we’re over budget on our wedding,” perhaps people could say, “We decided to spend a bit more than we originally planned so that we could have the things that we want on our wedding day.” Doesn’t that sound more mature and reasonable?

I look at it this way: the only things that get in the way of sticking to one’s budget are one’s desires (or two’s desires, so to speak). If a bride or groom desires to have things in the wedding that are outside of the budget, a conscious decision is made to either pursue that desire, or not to pursue that desire. There are no accidents in wedding budgets (unless of course a vendor is dishonest with you, or you do not read the fine print in a contract), and if anyone tells you otherwise, they’re lying - because they too do not want to feel the failure that comes with having to admit that they have gone “over budget.”

Wowie Wow

2009-06-21T14:06:00.007-06:00

As I'm working my way through grading 2 weeks worth of student postings (thanks to my abrupt bacterial infection last week, I'm behind), this pop-up ad for www.like.com comes, seemingly out of nowhere, and entices me to look into some handbag sales. BAD IDEA. Just a few weeks ago, I lost my composure and purchased this adorable and perfect-for-the-beach-setting handbag by HOBO at TJ Maxx (I love the Maxx- can you tell?) so I am in no good position to purchase another bag. However - I may just reconsider that thought after seeing this ridiculously functional and fun-shaped bag by Kate Spade (at bloomingdales and other places, no doubt) - it's so wonderful!

Ok first, to give props to the bag I actually purchased:

"Amuse" by HOBO International

The bag I will just drool over (I swear; it's $262 on sale at bloomie's, ugh) --

Kate Spade "Tamarind Cove"

Keeping our Guests Cool

2009-06-21T10:47:00.000-06:00

I love the idea of raffia or similar fans placed on every chair at the ceremony site, with a little ceremony program tied on the front (our ceremony will be quite short, so I'm thinking 1/4 of a typical 8.5x11'' piece of cardstock would do the trick). But which type of fans to choose? I found a few slightly different looks that I just can't decide between, so I am hoping that someone out there will point out some pros/cons for each type. I keep transportation of the fans (from the U.S. to Mexico), as well as the likelihood that guests may keep and use them again in mind...and of course, the price is always something to consider. Colors...textures...shapes....ribbon or flowers on the fan....I'm maybe not as picky about those things, although if someone has a thought on which would 'go' best with our wedding destination, I'm all ears.

The Anti-Bride Phenomenon

2009-06-09T23:37:00.003-06:00

Here we are, just 58 days from our wedding day. And, here I am, a bride just 2 months away from her wedding day. You know what that means - all social situations involve some kind of questioning about the wedding. "So, are you ready?" "Are you excited?" "Do you have everything done?" Due either to the fact that I'm a little wedding-crazy to begin with, or to the fact that we chose a wedding with as few drama-causing elements as possible, I don't at all mind that everyone and their grandmothers ask me the exact same questions. Over. And. Over. Honest.

I have, however, started to feel like I'm "giving up" on certain details of the wedding. I have really tried to maintain a reasonable perspective on the whole event. It's just one day; yet, it's an important enough day that 32 people (woo!) are traveling to another country to witness it. I don't know about anyone else, but, to me, that makes it more than 'just a day.' Keeping the spirit of 'more than a day' is difficult when the day is happening a few thousand miles away.

So - maybe I'm not giving up on details, per se, but instead, becoming more 'normal' and reasonable in my approach to these things. I have, for the better part of the past 18 months of our engagement, allowed myself to get lost in the details. And when one is planning a destination wedding (read: more simple than at-home-wedding), there are fewer details to obsess over, which means more time to obsess over fewer details. Hmm. I'm fairly certain that I spent hundreds of hours on things like choosing the invitations, the favors, the bridesmaid dresses, the wedding dresses, the wedding resort...but, yet I have failed to make any decisions about reception decor. Well, technically I did make a few decisions, but I haven't fully committed to them yet (i.e., nothing has been purchased yet). Am I excited to make these purchases? Not really. Do I still have to do it? Yeah. This is just one example of the anti-bride phenomenon I am experiencing.

How about those out there who are married? Did you become the anti-bride as the wedding got closer? Or get sick of the details and just want it to get here already?

SMB Tip Number 83: Cancun Airport

2009-06-01T23:49:00.003-06:00

A colleague of mine just returned from her honeymoon in the Riviera Maya, and having flown into and out of Cancun airport, had a few tips to share.

First - the food in the airport is ridiculously priced (2 burgers, 2 onion rings, 2 shakes at Johnny Rockets = $33). Eat elsewhere if possible.

Second - walk past every person IN the airport who tries to give you a ride or persuade you to talk to them. They are selling timeshare presentations. Your ride is OUTSIDE the airport with a sign that has your name on it.

Third - plan to be delayed at Customs coming into Mexico. If you are bringing a mass quantity of items (say, for a wedding...) place copies of your receipts inside your luggage, with a note written in Spanish explaining that the items are for a wedding and that you do not plan to sell them in Mexico.

More tips to come!

SMB Tip Number 82 :o : Cash Flow

2009-06-01T23:44:00.004-06:00

A recent SMB bride wrote me today with some great insider information. If you believe you would like to have some cash on you during your trip to Mexico (pesos or dollars), get it prior to arriving at the resort. SMB does have an ATM on hand, but apparently it works only sometimes, and the front desk will charge you a whopping 10% fee (wow!) to withdraw money from your account. While you may not believe you'll need any cash, we have learned from countless blogs, forums, and emails, that a few dollar bills here and there can encourage things to happen more quickly (or, if you forget your sunscreen and need to purchase that $20 bottle from the gift shop, you won't have pay international credit card fees in the process). Just a little tip from the world we'll enter in approximately 65 days!

SMB Photos

2009-05-14T21:09:00.005-06:00

I found a few more great resources for photos of the Secrets Maroma Beach Resort - check them out when you are feeling procrastinatory! :o) Many of the albums were created back in the Fall, so some things may have changed (more grass, etc.).

Album 1

Album 2

Album 3

Album 4

Album 5

Album 6
The SMB Lobby Bar-->

I get by with a little help from my Friends...

2009-05-09T14:37:00.006-06:00

Planning a wedding in Mexico has its ups and downs, ins and outs, and half the time I feel completely behind and alone in the process, while other times, I know many people who are willing to help and do so without even knowing it. Today is a gracious kind of day! Not only am I super happy to have a full Saturday without too many obligations on it, but I am also very thankful for my friends and family.

At this point, our 'people present' guest count for our Mexico wedding is 32 warm bodies. I have no idea how that happened, and I completely did not expect that many people to make a priority out of our wedding day (and a Mexico vacation in August...c'mon people, I'm realistic too). How amazing, especially in a year of economic recession, heightened concern for the drug war violence in Mexico, and crazy exaggeration of the "swine" (H1N1) flu by the media (many of the businesses in that country are suffering greatly due to travelers changing plans and heading to other countries for vacations). I often joke that we picked the worst possible year to have a wedding in Mexico, but at this juncture I believe it will be a wonderful experience for us, and for our guests.

In this same vein, in response to my earlier posting about my hair-flower-obsession, a friend took some time to look on the internet for similar hair pieces. She found 3 options, all of which were amazingly close to the original, and it means so much that someone would spend time to help me in that way. Here is a picture of the one I chose to purchase, for a mere 23% of the cost of the other flower! It was found at "Wedding Factory Direct" and I will update this post when I receive it in the mail, and include a full review of that vendor. Hooray for gracious Saturdays!

OOT Bag Addition...

2009-05-09T12:03:00.000-06:00

Drumroll please!

We received the FI's favorite addition to the OOT bags in the mail on Friday. And, I have to say, I tihnk they will be my favorite too! We found an EBay seller who was able to take the monogram that I created and recreate it for their printing purposes...and voila, a super fun favor for guests at a DW who also happen to be at an all-inclusive resort (read: the guests can bring this to the bars and get their favorite drink anytime!).

The EBay seller we worked with is called Factory 21 (the woman's name is Kaylan) and they were fabulous. She even let me send her the font files that I used to create the monogram so it would be replicated exactly on the cups. She was very responsive and the cups were here in just 10 business days.

Bridal Accessories: Part 2

2009-05-05T22:34:00.003-06:00

I forgot to mention - I'm completely obsessed with a hair pin that would not only match my ensemble amazingly well, but I feel like it would be 'the' standout piece for my ceremony-dress-ensemble. However, it is $125...and as I have said before, I get a bit stuck on the 'it's just one day!' business, particularly when every cent is coming out of our own coffers. This stuff is harder than it looks people!

Photo courtesy of glamgal.com, maker of said obsessed-about-piece

Bridal Accessories

2009-05-04T23:16:00.003-06:00

Although I ordered my veil a few weeks ago and still have not seen it in the mail (I'm only concerned because an independent seller on Etsy.com has agreed to custom make it for me, and I haven't seen any estimated shipment information at all yet...), I actually was able to pin down a pair of shoes and a lovely little clutch purse for the wedding day. I still may purchase a second pair of shoes to better match the second dress that I purchased (for the reception and Trash the Dress photo session the day after the wedding) but both of these items work rather well even if I am unable to find a second pair. I like the idea of wearing flats mainly due to the fact that I won't have to worry as much about either taking them off, or falling face first into the sand while walking down the aisle. We'll see how that goes.

For all you DW brides out there, I purchased the shoes at TJ Maxx ($50) for half the cost at Nordstrom, and the clutch purse is from Target boutique ($15).

The Sounds of Mexico

2009-05-04T23:12:00.003-06:00

In the case of our wedding, the sounds of Mexico will no doubt include a large percentage of the wedding guests belting out some awesome karaoke at the Desires Nightclub, located right inside the SMB resort. I found some photos of the festivities...get your pitch pipes out people and start practicing!

The OOT continues

2009-05-02T13:59:00.004-06:00

Our OTT bags have some fun new contents! I have read many postings around the web about how much guests of DWs enjoyed having a little pen and game book to bring to the pool, so I grabbed some fun brightly-colored pens at the Dollar Tree, along with some word search books from Target's dollar bin section.

And who doesn't love a little pack of Chiclets?

I also nabbed a few boxes of randomly-sized bandaids (Walgreens/Dollar Tree), along with some great individually-packaged antibacterial hand wipes (Dollar Tree) for the first aid kit (and hope to add little packets of pepto and advil in the near future). I'm surprised that I have thus far been able to spend relatively small amounts of money and come out with some really fun stuff that I hope our guests will enjoy. It can be done!

Love Story meets Viva la Vida

2009-04-30T23:52:00.002-06:00

I couldn't resist...you MUST listen/watch.

Secrets Maroma Beach website

2009-04-30T21:19:00.003-06:00

Our wedding resort has finally decided to update its website, and I must say, it is fabulous! There are virtual tours of the property, and some great high-resolution photos that blow away what has been available prior to this change being made. It got me very excited all over again to get down there and get married in that gorgeous setting! (well, post-swine-flu I hope, but you get the gist)

Here is a link to the site: http://www.secretsresorts.com/maroma/photo.asp

There are, of course, the obligatory very-nice-looking people inserted into some of the photos at random ...hope this whets your appetite for Mexico!

Wedding Video

2009-04-30T19:33:00.002-06:00

For the past few weeks I've been hemming and hawing about hiring a videographer to shoot the getting ready and ceremony parts of our day. I'm still not sure I want to bite the bullet, seeing as how the average cost for only 3 hours of shooting time with 1 cameraperson is around $700, but on occasion I look for examples of good wedding videos. Well today, I found one, and wanted to share it here. Turn up the volume; it's a beautiful piece and I love the simple cinema and how it makes you feel like you're there and feeling the love. :)

Laura + Josh // The All Brevis Wedding // Mexico from StillMotion on Vimeo.

New Suit: Found

2009-04-18T22:04:00.003-06:00

After some extensive staring at Christopher's (the FI) lower half in the suit pants from Express, it was determined that his muscular lower half needed something a bit more comfortable for the wedding day. So, back went the suit to Express Men (thanks anyway, it was fun while it lasted), and off we went to the Men's Wearhouse. Figuring we'd find nothing (I was in a cranky mood), I didn't even think to bring the sandals the FI will be wearing on the day of. Low and behold, we found a fabulous Calvin Klein linen suit, fully customizable to Christopher's body, and they actually had it in CREAM (not white!). We also found a wonderful lightweight cream shirt that he'll wear under the suit coat, and made some important decisions (i.e., no tie will be worn, and a tangerine pocket scarf is in order for that all-important touch-of-color). We pick up the suit from the tailor this coming weekend, and are ecstatic that the Men's Wearhouse came through (the suits were on a BOGO, so we actually purchased 2 suits, a dark grey and then the cream linen, for the price of one!).
Here is a teaser pic :o)

Random Excitement

2009-04-18T21:26:00.005-06:00

In the midst of attempting to decide which kind of starfish or coral should comprise the men's boutonnieres, I ran across a photo that I didn't even know I had once found (a few months ago, according to the 'modified' date!). Here's the VS bridesmaid dress that eventually won our personal bridesmaid dress contest in action! How exciting! (My bridesmaids will of course look waaayyy hotter in it...)

OOT Bags: Filling up

2009-04-17T12:11:00.007-06:00

Our OOT Bags are coming along rather nicely! So far, we have travel-themed playing cards, Spanish for Dummies (the pocket guides), pillow boxes that will serve as first-aid kits, bandaids to go into the first aid kits, the waffle-weave aqua-colored bags , some decorative raffia, and will soon have the imprinted plastic travel drink cups (steins with handles) in the mail! It looks like we'll now just have to grab some Advil and Pepto packets, maybe some gum or mints, create the welcome letter and 'guest information packet', and the Sudoku books. I'm on the lookout for fun tropical pens to include too, but haven't been able to track them down anywhere for a reasonable cost. I'm also hoping that we can stop in Cancun or Playa del Carmen to grab some local snacks. Is there anything I'm forgetting??

= our Frosty Stein Mugs
= the OOT bag (a reusable shopping bag)
= I like this idea that I found on one of the boards - a couple took a silly picture of themselves, and had it printed on a postcard and placed in the OOT Bag. The purpose of the card was to encourage guests to post their photos from the trip on one website to share them among all of the guests - they gave them all the same username and password, so it was protected but still available to all guests. Pretty cool, right?

Monograms

2009-04-17T11:08:00.006-06:00

Hey all! I'm going to use this fortuitous snow day (woop!) for some excessive blogging, so watch out.

I have been hatching plans to design us a wedding monogram for weeks, but until recently, had not been able to truly determine what elements I wanted involved. Once we settled on tangerine and aqua as our official 'color scheme', I started playing around a bit with ideas. Most monograms that I came across on the forums and other blogs were square in shape, yet everything I personally made ended up being rectangular. I figured out (finally) that this is because my name is rather short, while Christopher's name is...well, 3 times longer. So it takes up more space. And since I'm a relatively big fan of symmetry...you can imagine things got more complicated than they should have been.

The other issue I've had is that we (I) chose "coral" as our theme. Believe it or not, coral is amazingly difficult to incorporate into a symmetrical monogram. Plus, finding decent clipart of coral (free clipart) is also not easy. But - barring these potential barriers - I have developed a few good (?) ideas. We're working on ordering some drink steins for the guest OOT bags, and I'd be interested in hearing thoughts about which of these you like best! We'll probably also stick the monogram on the wedding ceremony program, the menu, and the welcome letter...just to have some continuity in the design.

A post about posting

2009-04-12T23:26:00.004-06:00

I'm having trouble articulating this next post topic, so I figured I'd throw it up here for now and let it simmer for another day...

The topic on the table is the inevitable argument that every couple about to have a wedding encounters: the "it's just one day!" versus "we only get married once!" argument. Perhaps it is had only internally to each individual person, or perhaps it's the case that there is one partner on either side of this issue. In either case, there must be some kind of happy medium we can reach, whereby we can be guiltless in planning a really cool party to celebrate our marriage, yet not go so far out that it leaves us in crazy debt for the first 5 years of said marriage.

More on this to come....

Oh, the food you will eat!

2009-04-07T19:41:00.013-06:00

When you stay at Secrets Maroma Beach! (almost rhymes, almost)

When I first started reading the TripAdvisor.com forums on SMB, I initially got sick and tired of all the photos that were posted by reviewers - always of the exact same things. Last night, I took some time to review the photos again, and found quite a few that involved eating and/or drinking...which makes a little sense, considering the fact that it is an all-inclusive resort. After collecting the photos, I was not only excited, but I was hungry. So, I thought I'd share them here, just to give you all a 'taste' (hee hee) of the resort's fare. Enjoy!

Found Shoes and Shirts

2009-03-24T22:46:00.004-06:00

In a stroke of luck, this past weekend we wandered into Macys and stumbled across the most perfect Cubavera shirt (though at first we didn't want a short-sleeved shirt, but then realized it would be more comfortable for the men...in Mexico...in August...). This shirt suits our purpose perfectly and will look fabulous on all our guys.

______________________________________________

I was inspired to find the guys' shoes as well (we decided to buy all of the guys, including the officiant, matching flip flop sandals) after finding the perfect shirts, so after quite a few minutes (okay fine, hours) of searching online, I found a pair of leather, handsewn, dark brown (walnut) sandals at Sierra Trading Post - and they had all of the sizes I needed (finding 7 pair of the same shoes is amazingly difficult, even on the internet). So we ordered them - received them today (a 2-day turnaround, amazing!), and the FI loves them (he got a pair too)!
They came with a sandal bag and were very well-packaged - I would highly recommend Jeffrey Fitzhugh (the maker) and Sierra Trading Post (the shipper) to anyone. What a wonderfully productive week!

Progress!

2009-03-24T21:41:00.005-06:00

I am so happy to write this post. It seems we may have found a suit for the FI to wear to his own wedding - hooray! We originally decided to visit Banana Republic because of past success in purchasing great-fitting, good quality suit wear there. However, this season, BR decided to implement the 'noticeable stitch' on the lapels of all its suit jacket (yack). We randomly decided to hop into Express MEN and wouldn't you know, we found this gorgeous white/ivory suit jacket and matching pants there. Ordered his size via the internet, and voila - we love it! I can envision an aqua blue handkerchief inserted into the chest pocket of the jacket...and a simple white collared shirt underneath it, with just 2 buttons un-done. (The FI still maybe wants to wear a tie though, so I'm holding back on my dreamy visions for now.) Here are a few photos of the suit. I love the idea of both of us being in all white, it's elegant and casual at the same time.

Thoughts on Veils

2009-03-17T19:41:00.004-06:00

One element of the wedding attire I never thought I would think too much about: the veil. I figured all veils were created somewhat equally, and that there would not be too much pain or consideration in the process of finding a veil that would 'go' with my gown.

Obviously....I was so very, very wrong.

So after some botched attempts at veils - I ordered one off Ebay at the same time I bought my dress, and while it is gorgeous and beautiful and wonderous, I'm afraid it just isn't quite what I had in mind (after seeing it on with my dress). Who knew I had something in mind at all?

I traversed through cyberspace to find out how other brides have chosen their veils. Most of them have indicated that they always knew they wanted a 2-tier illusion tulle veil in the color of their dress (2 tiers so they could wear one of them as a blusher, aka, the part that hangs over the bride's face), or that they always knew they didn't want a veil at all. I read about destination brides in particular, and those getting married on the somewhat-windy beaches of Mexico had this to say: find a veil with some weight on the ends, and get one that is at least waist-length, so it isn't always blowing in and around your face, so as to prevent seeing yourself fighting with it in every single photo or video clip. A-ha, good advice! So, I began the hunt for a veil that meets these specifications.

I found one right away and thought, I better just order the darn thing. Then I realized the veil itself cost just under $200. ARE YOU KIDDING?! For a piece of tulle, that crap they put in icky prom dresses, and on prom tables and chairs, and around wedding arches? It was then that I decided to search a bit differently - I typed in "45'' bridal veil ivory" and wouldn't you know, the wonderful handmade-seller site Etsy.com came up in the first page. Someone out there was making bridal veils at a fraction of the cost of the one that I liked, and still had the style that I just loved. Stay tuned for more on whether I bought the veil or not...and how it looks with the dress!

*Photo courtesy of ETSY seller bellabridalveils

Don't Drink the Water

2009-03-10T21:33:00.006-06:00

Yes, it's the name of a Dave Matthews song, but it's also a pretty important rule to remember when traveling through Mexico. A friend was kind enough to share some suggestions about "things your guests might want to know" after a recent trip to Mexico. For example: don't drink the water, and if there are large bottles of water sitting on your bathroom counter at your resort, use those for brushing your teeth and rinsing your mouth. I've heard people say they used the resort water to brush their teeth and didn't become ill, and have heard still others say they became ill because they drank a beverage that had ice cubes in it.

Another potentially strange-to-some-Americans tip is this: look for signs that indicate whether or not you can flush your used toilet paper. It sounds gross to a certain degree, but the sewer systems in Mexico are different than those here in the U.S., and some cannot handle paper or other objects (including feminine products). Public areas are likely to have signs posted to this effect, but many resorts will not - when in doubt, just ask someone. Some water systems go to the ocean and it's always nice to do your part in keeping the environment a bit cleaner. As a side note, it might be a good idea to bring a deodorizer or air freshener for the bathroom in your room, as the bathroom inevitably smells like...a bathroom. :o)

Be prepared to be hassled by timeshare agents arriving at the Cancun airport, particularly after you have cleared customs and are making your way to the curb to find your resort taxi. They will ask you questions that make it appear as though they are your resort's taxi service, only to suck you into signing up for a timeshare presentation in exchange for something cool-sounding.
For example, my friend and her husband ended up sitting for about 5-6 hours in a presentation (always go to the early morning presentations so you can have the rest of the day for fun) but got tickets to Xcaret and Xel-ha out of it - about a $200 value. So just decide in advance whether you'd like to be party to something like this for the sometimes-cool freebies, and keep your head low until you get outside of the airport if you are not interested. Your resort taxi/transfer service will always be outside the airport, and will almost always have a sign with either your last name or resort name on it. Accept no imitations.

And speaking of airports....the ride to the resort from the airport is usually anywhere between 20 and 40 minutes. The lines at immigration take approximately 30-45 minutes, depending on the day and time you arrive. So - if you need to use a restroom, do so before you get in the car or shuttle bus. Your bladder will thank you.

All for now...more tips to come!

Maroma Beach = "Most Romantic Beach"

2009-03-01T17:46:00.000-07:00

New SMB Wedding Photos

2009-03-01T15:13:00.004-07:00

Thanks to the Best Destination Wedding forum that I follow, I was able to grab a link for a full set of photos from a wedding recently held at Secrets Maroma Beach (SMB). It's pretty exciting to see some more of the details of the resort itself, as well as the possible wedding locations. Check it out!

Wedding: Gerald and Julie - del sol photography

photo copyright del Sol Photography

Confession

2009-02-22T13:52:00.002-07:00

I personalized my tank top. Well, not altogether personalized, but I did stick the word "Bride" on the darn thing last night, all the while feeling a little silly and a little excited as well. I still have no idea what to do with the girls' tanks, but hopefully this is a step in the right direction! I did find very similar rhinestone stickers that say "fabulous" so perhaps that is the way to go, as opposed to writing Matron of Honor on two of them, and Bridesmaid on the other two. Hmm. Ideas? Anyone?

Invitation Compilation

2009-02-22T11:10:00.009-07:00

Determining that I was not very interested in cleaning the house yesterday, I instead decided to spend some time cutting, gluing, inserting, sticking, folding, and generally preparing our wedding invitations to be mailed. Although the traditional timeline for a mailed invitation is somewhere between 2-3 months prior to the wedding date, destination weddings have their own little set of rules - most of which are made up as you go along. In an effort to ensure that any and all people who would be interested in attending our wedding will have ample time to procure well-priced flights and room reservations, we will be sending our invitations out 5 months in advance of our wedding date (I think that puts us at March 8th for a mail date).

Here are a few pictures of the finished product - including the packing list that we'll place inside the belly band behind the invitation. I'm very pleased with how it came out - and after 3 hours with a tweezer and those sticky rhinestones...I wasn't certain I would be able to say that! I am also happy to report that we will be e-mailing invitations where possible, to cut down on our use of paper, envelopes, etc. and generally assist the environment. It's a small effort but every little bit can count.

OOT progress

2009-02-22T10:54:00.003-07:00

The OOT bags (or oooot bags, as the FI calls them) have begun to expand nicely in the past week. I was able to procure the most adorable playing cards (in their own little cases) at Michaels craft store for just $1 each, so for now, we have playing cards, and Spanish for Dummies. I am hoping that I will be able to order a few of the other items online soon.

Does anyone have ideas about items that we should consider including- that were not listed before? We have talked about having something in there that will surprise and make guests feel truly special and appreciated (not that the other stuff does not, but we are open to suggestion).

Oh! And I found an excellent template for covering rolls of Life Savers with a personalized label, so I think we'll do that instead of mint tins (far more cost-effective but just as cute).

Favors: Check

2009-02-14T21:43:00.005-07:00

The latest news on the wedding front is that I finally broke down and ordered the darn maracas that I have wanted for a few months now. They arrived yesterday(in a huge box...how the heck are we going to get these to Mexico?! More on that later...), and we think they are perfect! I was a little bummed at first that we could not order specific colors, but I think that the multi-colored feel will actually be better table-candy than uniform maracas. So you can see, there are 6 colors total, and I ordered 48 of these babies. We are going to place a favor tag on each one, tied with some kind of ribbon or raffia, and place them on the reception tables. The favor tag will say something like "Shake This for a Kiss", and we hope to tie it in with the table numbers that will list things that the guests can do to get a kiss from the bride and groom. We completely stole this idea from a number of other sources (can't credit them all) that suggested placing instructions for kiss-getting on the Menu cards, Place cards, or table numbers. We've had a few ideas, such as "Stand up and sing a song with the word 'love' in it, shaking your maracas to the beat." I'll post more on that later, but for now, check out the pictures!

*I bought the maracas from Windy City Novelties. Shipping was fast and service was good - packaging was nicely done too.

Invitations and Wrap-around Labels

2009-02-09T22:22:00.005-07:00

Our invitations arrived! And we like them! Hooray!

Ok enough excitement. Let's talk about the fact that I have horrible, terrible, not-to-be-trusted penmanship. And the fact that the FI actually addressed all of the Save the Dates because of this fact. In essence, I am either going to have to pay someone to address our invitations, or break down and figure out a way to print them onto a label that does not appear cheap, pointless, or lazy. I came across the idea of wraparound address labels (somewhere on Martha Stewart's site I believe) and thought, what a great plan! Purposeful yet elegant. Only problem was, all of the do-it-yourselfers were gluing these babies onto their envelopes...too risky for me. With my luck, I would choose the wrong glue and they would all fall off before reaching their final destinations.

So upon a whim, I did some Google searching, and sure enough stumbled across some print-your-own stickers that are 8'' x 2'' and positively perfect for this DIY project! (It says the labels are for water bottles...shhh...). Here are a few visuals of this crazy project, with just plain old paper where the stickers will be, to give you an idea. I'm very excited to add this to the 'belly band' idea (burlap paper around the center of the invitation, not the metallic stuff you see in the pic, tied with raffia) and think it will soup up our otherwise plain invites.

OOT Bags: The List

2009-02-08T21:22:00.010-07:00

<--Example OOT Bag Contents

So far, I have accumulated exactly 1 item for our OOT bags. Ugh. However, I have accumulated a variety of ideas for what WILL go into these things, and I may have even found the BAGS to put the stuff in!

IF you are coming to the wedding and wish to be completely surprised, do not read any further! (this list isn't final of course, but I don't want to deprive anyone of a surprising incident, hee hee)

First, the list of stuff:

1 Spanish for Dummies pocket edition
1 pack of playing cards (white with blue, red, green, yellow I think)
1 small bottle of aloe vera gel
1 book of Sudoku puzzles
1 mini beach ball (for the guys)
2 palm tree pens
1 first aid kit (bandaids, alcohol wipes, pepto bismol, advil)
2 tubes chapstick
2 tins DIY personalized wedding mints
2 Stamped post cards
MAYBE 2 plastic personalized stadium cups (Mindy+Christopher, Mexico 08.08.09)
MAYBE Some type of snack or candy item
MAYBE Personalized Matchbooks
MAYBE travel candle for romance (beach balls for single men?)
DIY Welcome Letter/Thank you for coming
DIY Wedding Itinerary
DIY Things to Do On and Off the Resort guide

Next, the bag to put the stuff in - right now I'm torn between these two bags, and will likely go with a natural or blue color in the end:

http://www.papermart.com/templates/73-1-01.htm#GO_73101

http://www.papermart.com/templates/73-1-21.htm#GO_73121

My main wish is that all of the things that we give to guests are usable in some way and won't just be discarded or left in the room because they are too bulky or stupid to be brought home. Feedback? Ideas? Which bag do you like?

Bridesmaid Dresses are In!

2009-02-03T18:06:00.004-07:00

It is a very exciting week here on the wedding planning front. Not only do our wedding invitations arrive in the mail tomorrow (!), but all bridesmaids should have their dresses by the end of the week. Hooray! And one of them was kind enough to take a few pics so I can show the world the gorgeousness of this dress. I'm really excited about the colors, so vibrant and tropical. Next we'll have to pick out some shoes and jewelry, but there is still a bit of time for that. All I can say is that my bridesmaids are going to be smoking hawt (and hopefully keep cool in the warm Mexican August evening). Hopefully I'll get some more pics from the other ladies as well and I can get a real photo album happening up here. Thanks to Dana for the early pics!!

SMB is Catching On

2009-01-25T17:50:00.005-07:00

Whenever I find new photos of the still-developing Secrets Maroma Beach Resort (the site of our wedding) I get impossibly excited and have trouble being calm about it. After reading a few forum postings about the resort's difficulties related to hosting a wedding (ugh, talk about days of second-guessing our decision) I am always on the lookout for evidence to the contrary. Hopefully more brides who have held their weddings at SMB will post reviews soon - but until then, I did find some great new shots of the areas of the resort that thus far had been less visible.

You'll see a photo of the Asian fusion restaurant, Himitsu, as well as a new aerial shot of the resort itself. The shot of the ballroom-type space is apparently one of our choices for a reception - and just off this room is the disco! The other two pics are of the Spa area - this has received raving reviews, particularly with regard to massages, but not as much with pedicures and manicures (more than one person wished they had their toes/nails done at home before stepping on the plane....ouch...). I'm going to remain (naively?) optimistically certain that these growing pains will mostly subside by the time August rolls around.

*Photos were found on Expedia.com

To personalize, or not to personalize...this is the question.

2009-01-20T20:38:00.004-07:00

I have to confess: I am an anti-personalization bride. I have seen weddings that are personalization-happy to the point of insanity (personalized linens on the tables, personalized tags on the silverware, personalized sparklers...) and I'm afraid I do not have one single item or image that I love SO MUCH that I would stick it on every single thing in sight. Nope. Can't be done. I'm not even so desperately in love with my new last name or initials that I would put that everywhere. (I'm only moving up 1 letter in the alphabet anyhow...kidding honey!) But, with weddings does come some element of personalization, whether that means that your intials are plastered on foreheads, or you spray-paint the room in 'peppy tangerine orange'. So, I have embraced the practice in small ways. For example, fun tank tops for the bridal party ladies to wear the day of the wedding - now that is something I can get behind. After scouring the internet for possible options, and finding the average price of a personalized blingy tank to be hovering in the $25 range, I thought it might be better if I did my own personalization and bought some quality tank tops instead. JCrew had a sale...so I am now the proud owner of 4 'bright tangerine' tanks, and 1 'cerise' tank - all of which are waiting in my office to be personalized. Now the question is...with what? Iron-on bling? An aqua satin ribbon tied around one of the tank arm-holes? Printed iron-on decals? There's always the 'bridesmaid' 'bride' business, but I wanted something a bit more unique...hmm...maybe just the word 'mexico'? Or "lucky" (the new song we love for a 'theme song' for the wedding)? I don't want to put anything on there that will prevent the tank from being worn again, quite honestly. Can it be done?

OOT Bags - the buying has begun

2009-01-20T20:19:00.003-07:00

The concept of an "out of town" guest gift bag is something I love. In concept. However, when you really start looking at the costs associated with such a concept, it gets a little bit overwhelming to think about making 35, 40...or even 50 of these things for your guests, transport all of the items needed to make them to another country, and then somehow assemble and hand out each one to all of the correct rooms at the resort in a timely fashion. (Or pay the resort staff to deliver them for you...for $4 per room...hopefully to the correct rooms...) So, I had not actually decided to jump into the fray and 'do these things' until today. After reading the Best Destination Wedding forums for a bit last evening, I realized that the FI had actually stumbled across the PERFECT item for a Mexico OOT bag = a pocket-sized Spanish for Dummies book (he bought one from the dollar bins at Target the other day). So today after work, I sped to Target in hopes that they were not already sold out of these perfect items *gasp*. But, of course, I forget where I live. Here in Cheyenne, WY, who else besides crazy destination-bridal-me would have a need for 42 pocket-sized Spanish for Dummies books? No one, apparently, which is why I can happily report the first items for our OOT bags (that almost didn't happen but now have to happen) have been purchased! The question now becomes, what else do we stick in these things? And what do we stick the 'else' into?? A canvas bag? A paper bag? A reusable grocery bag? Man, sometimes I think I subconsciously try to make things more difficult for myself. :o)

Veils

2009-01-19T10:56:00.001-07:00

Who knew veils were so complicated?

http://www.occanseydesigns.com/veilcutsandstyles.html

More soon...

Invitation: Final?

2009-01-19T00:11:00.005-07:00

With some discussion and compromise, I believe we have found a winner. Although I have said that about a hundred times before, this time it just has to be done. I'm having trouble ignoring the signs (hello, the invitation is currently 40% off and the perfect combination of classy and modern whimsical...), and indeed, it does fit most specifications that I have carried from website to website. I'll post it here and of course, update when it is actually ordered (dum dum da dum).

UPDATE: We ordered these invitations from EInvite.com last week (40% off, $57.95 incl. shipping for 80 invitations and envelopes). They should arrive later this week, at which time I'll post a full review.

The Invitation Search

2009-01-12T22:04:00.013-07:00

It continues! As I mentioned in previous posts, I am oh-so-tormented by the choice between thick, elegant, letterpress(read: expensive) invitations, and the do-it-myself design that is fully customizable(read: inexpensive). I love beautiful artful things, and thick heavy paper, a gorgeous font, and perhaps a small image evoke actual warm fuzzy feelings - weird, right? Obviously not, since brides and grooms are actually willing to pay an average of $700 for the full stationery set that accompanies the typical wedding (invitations, envelopes, response and reception cards, inner envelopes...the list goes on).

I have reined myself in to not spending more than $200 total on all of the elements that go into the invitation (sans postage of course). I am fairly certain that response cards are unnecessary; we will ask guests to visit the website or call to RSVP. And reception cards are similarly not helpful, when obviously the reception will be at the resort, as will the ceremony (so if anyone gets lost between the beach and the pool, they have larger problems that a reception card could not possibly fix...). Here are a few of my all-time favorite options, although I am truly no closer to a decision than I was 6 months ago. *sigh* Which is your favorite?

Latest Color Scheme...

2009-01-12T21:34:00.003-07:00

The indecisive bride with far too many options strikes again. After choosing the gorgeous bridesmaids dresses (and we'll only keep them if they are comfy and not too-too revealing...) the aqua and persimmon color scheme seemed perhaps a bit stark...too close to red. So I think it's safe to say I'm moving toward oranges, blues, white/ivory/natural, and things in that neighborhood. Which means, continuing to search for the ever-elusive invitation, the table decor that won't blow away in the Mexican wind, the welcome bags and menus and ties and...oh so many other things. I am loving the Bird of Paradise flower for inspiration lately, and I also am still in love with the use of coral somewhere in the mix...both items are pokey, pointed, whatever you want to call it, and I seem to like that. So the search continues for a cohesive design that I can take to the bank...until then, I do enjoy just looking. And looking. And looking some more.

Bridesmaid Dresses? Oh yeah, we picked 'em!

2009-01-11T22:46:00.003-07:00

And we could not be more excited! After a few weeks of toiling and going back and forth between solid colors and patterns, short, tea-length, and full-length dresses, v-necks, strapless-necks, and just about every other differentiating factor you can think of, a decision was miraculously made and the ladies have ordered their gowns. This gown's colors were just too wonderful to pass up, and the sharp contrast of the burnt orange, tangerine, aqua blue, and deep purple harkens thoughts of tropical flowers and fiery sunsets over the blue ocean waters. Where did we find this wonderous halter-neck, full-length, jersey-knit concoction? Well, Victoria's Secret of course. Hah! No one would ever guess you could find bridesmaid dresses there, but like other destination brides, I chose to look outside the typical bridesmaid dress box, and I am so glad it happened the way it did. As long as the dresses fit and are comfortable, this will be 'the dress' and we'll just have some minor accessorizing to do. I plan to make bracelets for the 'best women', and potentially also ankle bracelets. I hope to find some trendy flat sandals as well, and will post about those in the near future (the hunt for reasonably-priced shoes has so many stops!).

New Year's Resolution: Blog More!

2009-01-03T17:48:00.003-07:00

Obviously my great momentum with blogging over the past fall has slowed. However, I have made quite a few resolutions for behavior change this year, and one of those relates to my blog. I hope to have many insightful topics to contribute to the blogosphere in the near future. I would also love to hear any suggestions on topics for the blog from anyone who happens by! More soon...

Here is a pic from our recent fabulous vacation to the Virgin Islands (for Dana & Kai's gorgeous wedding). We're excited to see the tropics again in just 7 short months!!

Wow!

2008-12-16T18:59:00.003-07:00

Seriously, I cannot believe that I have not blogged in a month. Things have been a little crazy, between the holidays and weddings and international trips. But, I do promise to get back on board with blogging after the final grades have been entered for the class I'm teaching (this Friday! woo!). Thanks to anyone still checking in!

Song of the Week

2008-11-19T22:00:00.002-07:00

Sarah McLachlan has one of those voices that can make you feel enclosed by the feeling in the song she sings. I love the live version of her song "Ice Cream" mainly because FI introduced it to me - and because it is a fun song that makes me think of all the light-hearted moments that are part of being in love with someone. Enjoy! And then go get some ice cream. You know you want it.

Budget Customized Stationery

2008-11-19T21:39:00.005-07:00

As most of you know (and some may not), I am a crazy-obsessed-online-bargain-shopper. I blame the fact that I am trained as a researcher, but truly, I have a difficult time spending hard-earned money on a product that I know (or believe) can be bought anywhere for less. While this principle does not always apply, I do try to examine and often exhaust my options before making a final purchasing decision.

One Example: I tried on wedding gowns at 3 different salons over a 2-month period, including one stop at the Brides Against Breast Cancer charity event in Denver. With the wedding so far away, I didn't feel pressured to buy anything during those visits. However, when we decided to have our wedding in Mexico, I looked back through the hordes of photos we took at each salon and found the dress that I loved, but felt was too 'beachy' for our original wedding idea (Hollywood Movie Premiere). In a random chance of luck, I found said dress on Ebay. It isn't overly romantic to buy one's dress from Ebay, seller of all things (including used underwear...ew...) but it was 50% cheaper than I found at the local store. It was my size, my color, and just so happened to be located at a bridal salon in Arizona - where we still have many friends. I emailed the seller, asked if my friend could come and look at the dress - they said yes, and she did - it was in perfect condition, a floor sample they wanted to sell - they pressed the dress, boxed it ever so carefully (including the optional straps and extra buttons), and sent it to me in just 4 days time. A completely insane experience, but am I glad I got this dress for 50% off? Hecks yess.

In a similar fashion, when it was time to send out Save the Dates (STDs), I chose to work with my ever-reliable holiday card printing source - Vistaprint.com. They made our 60 cards and 60 magnets for only $30, and did a great job. Until a few days ago, I was dead set against using them for our formal invitations, mainly because they do not carry thick enough cardstock/paper to suit my requirements for the wedding invitations that I thought I needed. The past few days have brought some reflection to this notion, and I have started to change my mind about using Vistaprint for our invitations. Not only can I make the invitation exactly what I want (with some limitations, paper weight and font choices being two of them), they will cost a fraction of what other 'wedding invitation' printers charge. And after all, a wedding invitation is an announcement of your wedding - something that most people will eventually throw in the trash (save for moms and other sentimental friends). Most couples have wedding websites, and have used Save the Dates to announce their big days, minimizing the traditional purpose of the wedding invitation. Plus, if I can spend $80 as opposed to $280, why wouldn't I put the money toward something that is part of the experience in the day itself, such as a live band, cooler OOT bag gifts for the guests, or even part of another night for the honeymoon? I suppose it's a matter of priorities, and I feel mine changing somewhat constantly since this whole thing started. I'm torn between "I will have no regrets and will have what I want" and "It's just one day!" Has anyone else experienced this, and if so, what did you do to sort it out?

Here is an example of an invitation I made on Vistaprint - see the "Coral" invitations below from whiteaisle.com for a comparison (and about 3 times the cost).

Mexican Wedding Traditions...

2008-11-12T23:14:00.005-07:00

Every culture has its own traditions that accompany a wedding celebration. Certainly, the FI and I have both talked about various traditions from our respective cultures (Swedish, Norwegian, and Korean) and how we might incorporate these into the festivities. For example, in Norway, the bride might wear a crown of silver jewels and bangles that make noise to ward off evil spirits. In a traditional Korean ceremony, hand-carved wooden wedding geese are given to the bride and groom as a symbol for a long and happy marriage. I thought also to look at some traditions from Mexico. Some of these traditions include: the guests at a Mexican wedding have a lovely old custom of forming a circle around the couple in the shape of a heart, and the newlyweds will then dance their first dance together within this circle of love; a rope (sometimes a rosary or wreath of orange blossoms, fertility symbols) is wound around the couple's heads in a figure eight as they take their vows; the wedding cake is usually a fruitcake soaked in rum; and, the couple may hit a pinata during the reception, which then showers gifts of candies onto the guests. With all of these options, how does one choose which elements to incorporate?

Song of the Week

2008-11-12T18:54:00.004-07:00

Wow, it's that time again! I've been in Washington DC for my birthday weekend (made it through another year, phew) so the blogging has not happened quite as much. But, I intend to make up for it as best I can. This week's song is one I found when Christopher went to Korea two summers ago. He brought back a few Korean pop CDs and I really liked this singer (Baek Ji Young). Two of her most popular songs are in this video - the first is my favorite and the second is Christopher's favorite. There are also some random subtitles in English along the way. Enjoy!

Song of the Week

2008-11-05T22:53:00.004-07:00

This week, the featured song is one you have probably heard on our website. "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz came out around the time we finalized our Mexico wedding plans, and it felt so beachy and lovey that of course it became part of our wedding soundtrack. I just found a fabulous live video of Mr. Mraz doing this song on tour in Korea - check it out! I love it!

TTD (Trash The Dress)

2008-11-04T23:20:00.007-07:00

Any recent bride or bride-to-be has likely heard of the latest cultural rage in the wedding world - the Trash the Dress (TTD)photography session. This photo shoot is typically held the morning after the wedding night, and although the name implies that harm will come to that expensive dress you spent months looking for and pining over, the purpose of this new-tradition is not to trash the dress. Instead, it is an opportunity for the bride and groom (and their photographer) to take photos in interesting poses and locations that would not be as easily done on wedding day (when the bride is trying to keep herself clean). The focus of this shoot is typically the glamour and artfulness of the photos, and usually the work is relatively candid in nature, so it gives the bride and groom a chance to naturally move together and see what happens. At first, I was not a huge fan of this idea, but the more I read about it - and quite honestly, the more photos I see from these types of shoots on or near the beach - the more exciting it seems. Is it creating 'just another opportunity' for a bride and groom to have pictures taken of themselves? Probably. But the possibilities the day after the wedding, when the stress has diminished and the properness of the day are gone...that is appealing to me.

So... we will do a TTD session the day after our wedding in Mexico - very exciting! A&A Photography has agreed to partake in this crazy activity with us. I plan on donating my dress to an awesome organization called Brides Against Breast Cancer, so I will very likely buy a less-formal, and less-expensive gown to wear for our TTD session, and I thought it could be cool for Christopher to wear an all-white cotton or linen shirt and pant set - but we shall see about that. There are so many websites that show amazing examples of TTD photos, so here are just a few to whet your appetite (credit is given directly on the photos).

T rash The Dress

Wedding PhotoJournalists Association

SolTaMargo Photographer (Mexico)

A&A Photography (Colorado)

Found: Very Elegant Destination Invitations

2008-11-03T22:25:00.004-07:00

Some days I feel like I keep up on certain wedding-related blogs all for naught. Other days, like today, I'm SO PLEASED that I take some time to read about what other brides are doing with their destination weddings. This is true today because I may have found our invitations. (I know! So exciting!) I started out the invitation search by doing the usual Google searches for 'destination wedding invitation', or 'topical wedding invitation,' and although I found a few that I do like, all of the samples I have ordered so far have been...less than impressive upon arrival. To quote the FI (fiancee), "I could make these myself." That is never a good impression when you are looking at spending over $100 for paper products that ultimately will be discarded (except for by the Moms, no doubt). Today then, I finally found invitations that I am *crossing fingers* hoping will be the invitations to end all other invitations. They are by White Aisle and they are, to be frank, FABulous. I love how chic and simple they are, while still conveying the obvious message that one is having a tropical destination wedding. You can change the colors of both the text and the image to your liking, and of course you can mess around with the fonts as well. You can even choose the size of the card! Here are my three favorite designs from this lovely merchant - I will post another entry as soon as I receive a sample in the mail. These three are called (from left to right) "Mexico," "Miami," and "Coral." Give me your thoughts in a Comment (just click below).

Falling Back...and more of SMB

2008-11-02T01:01:00.004-06:00

Hooray! We just gained an hour! Why am I still awake?!
Here are a few new photos from SMB - looking better by the minute.

(from left to right - a swimout room, morning yoga by the pool, the wedding gazebo, and the view from the water to the resort)

Boutonnieres - Alternatives to Flowers

2008-11-01T14:51:00.010-06:00

I found it! Inspiration!! It caught me off-guard because I was actually looking for invitation ideas, but I LOVE the lastest posting on the Style Me Pretty blog that details how to make your own starfish boutonnieres. Very rarely do I drift toward the phrase DIY (do-it-yourself) in the bridal blogs that I read - in fact, it is usually quite the opposite (run screaming away from it). I have always been somewhat of the mind that if other humans out there have creative skill sets and are willing to sell me their products, I would rather buy from them than try to make them myself and end up with a lesser product. Plus, it keeps the spirit of a free marketplace alive and well (in my head).

Backing up just a moment - I do not have anything against floral boutonnieres, but I do have something against paying $36 per boutonniere when my wedding is set in a tropical location (where native flowers SHOULD be cheaper). My own little crusade to buck the system and not pay anything extra to the resort has led me down the road to floral alternatives, both for the bridesmaids and groomsmen. I came across a photo of shell boutonnieres in a magazine, and then when I saw this one I thought, okay, perhaps these aren't as chintzy as I once thought. Plus, you could add greenery or a ribbon accent pretty easily and make them less stark.

The original inspiration came from Blooms Design Studio. And just to show the wide differential in cost, the starfish run about $.60 each (available at various online stores), and the backing pins are $5.95 for 144 (any craft store carries these). Ribbon is available in so many places, but I found one I like at RibbonsGalore. You could also do something similar with sand dollars.

Shoes

2008-10-29T23:15:00.006-06:00

Another element of the wedding that most people do not think too much about...but a Bride often thinks A LOT about...is the shoes. As weddings become less cookie-cutter and more personalized, the shoes are just another thing that brides can customize to their every whim. It is no longer expected that a bride will wear white or ivory shoes; in fact, many wedding-style gurus insist that a pop of color underneath a white/ivory dress is just the ticket to liven up a wedding (and looks fabulous in pictures). So, instead of saving the purple and navy colors for only your table settings, why not wear shoes of either color? Or both? Or a pattern that incorporates white, navy, and purple? And then...you can purchase shoe ornamentation. Shoe clips/pins are coming back into style (they were last 'in' in the 40's or so) and you can find hundreds of autions on EBay selling pretty clips and pins that are meant to sit right on the toe of your shoe. You can also pick up sparkly crystals with sticky backing, and place them on the underside of each shoe - in a heart shape, your initials, your significant others' initials, or the date of your wedding. Oh what a wonderful age we live in - it seems that the multi-billion dollar wedding industy certainly knows how to make brides spend $100 on shoes they might have normally only spent $60 (before accessories or dyeing, of course). AND - another trend of late is to purchase 2 pair of shoes - one for the ceremony (gorgeous high-heels that you can only stand to wear for 30 minutes), and another for the reception (comfortable shoes to dance the night away). Make that $150-200 spent. On shoes. Learning from the example set by one of my bride-friends (37 days!), I too now believe that perhaps spending a good bit of money on wedding shoes is not a bad idea altogether - but you might only do it if you are able/willing to wear said shoes again. Sure, buy two pair - but think twice about wearing them just once. Especially in the case of a beach-wedding, you may actually 'need' a pair of flats or flip-flops to take photos in the sand or on the rocks near the ocean. Just be smart about it, and the money you spend on that one day will go a bit further.

I created a very fun inspiration board of all of my favorite shoes - so far. I love the idea of wearing aqua-colored or persimmon-colored shoes - or, perhaps just silver so I can be sure I will wear them again after the wedding. Click to make it larger. {I'm not sentimental enough to let them sit in a box for the rest of my life, only taking them out on my anniversary to pine. Ew.}

Song of the Week

2008-10-29T23:05:00.002-06:00

I struggled a little bit coming up with a song this week - I think I was putting too much pressure on finding something 'different.' So I settled for a random video called "I love Spanish Music" - hee hee! Enjoy!

Song of the Week

2008-10-22T18:54:00.005-06:00

I chose this week's song because I think there is something very sweet about a harmonica and an acoustic guitar. I'm not overly poetic, but here are a few verses so you can get a good picture in your head as to how this song is structured.

If you were a wink, I'd be a nod, If you were a seed, well I'd be a pod.
If you were the floor, I'd wanna be the rug, And if you were a kiss, I know I'd be a hug.

All I want is you, will you be my bride, Take me by the hand and stand by my side

All I want is you, will you stay with me? Hold me in your arms and sway me like the sea.

All I want is You by Barry Louis Polisar

the chai file

(g s tr -n m k)

For your brain and soul

One of the reasons I love my friend Shari - she finds these things and posts them for the world, and I so very much appreciate the clarity.

My Bucket is going to Fill

What is to become of the blog?

VIVA 4 days...

EPM: All about the food

conversion never felt sweeter

Sand Flea War

Found: CUTE suit

The man who shaves in his truck

EPM Photo of the Day

EPM Photo of the Day

Procrastination, made eas(ier)

EPM Photo of the Day

So...you think you want to change your name.

A Photo a Day

Rest your wings my butterfly

Back to Mexico 2010

Julie and Julia Inspiration

We don't "Do" Hallmark Holidays

Where to go from here?

Testing, testing...

Legal Ceremony Photo sneak peek

Legal Wedding: CHECK. No mo weddings please.

And another thing...

We're Married!

A wedding at SMB: Movie

Shower the People

The *BEST* Wedding Processional Forever. And Ever. And Ever.

I'll take the purple orchid for $2000, Alex

When a Ring isn't just a Ring

What they say about SMB

Keeping it Classy

Guest Book!

Menus

OOT contents - are we done?

Shoes: The Finale

Shoes: The never-ending saga

How to Adapt

Florals and Flowers and Petals, oh my!

Songs I Heart: Say Hey (I love you)

TTD, still motion style

Joshua Radin: TODAY

budget budget, who's got the budget

Wowie Wow

Keeping our Guests Cool

The Anti-Bride Phenomenon

SMB Tip Number 83: Cancun Airport

SMB Tip Number 82 :o : Cash Flow

SMB Photos

I get by with a little help from my Friends...

OOT Bag Addition...

Bridal Accessories: Part 2

Bridal Accessories

The Sounds of Mexico

The OOT continues

Love Story meets Viva la Vida

Secrets Maroma Beach website

Wedding Video

New Suit: Found

Random Excitement

OOT Bags: Filling up

Monograms

A post about posting

Oh, the food you will eat!

Found Shoes and Shirts

Progress!

Thoughts on Veils

Don't Drink the Water

Maroma Beach = "Most Romantic Beach"

New SMB Wedding Photos

Confession

Invitation Compilation

OOT progress

Favors: Check

Invitations and Wrap-around Labels

OOT Bags: The List

Bridesmaid Dresses are In!

The BEST Wedding Processional Forever. And Ever. And Ever.