diana2008

Hi - might be a little late for this post but just in case anyone is ever looking for a rabbi... we found one in Cabo! He's not officiating our wedding (we just figured it out last week, and we already had plans to fly one down), and I'm not sure if he even does weddings, but here's his information in case anyone ever wants it. He is making a challah for us and seems very friendly and helpful.

Rabbi Sholly Silver

Casa Shalom

Miguel Hidalgo Y Ninos Heroes

Cabo San Lucas,BCS Mexico

Home: 011 (52) (1) (624) 143 1951

Cell: 011 (52) (1) 624 358 7899

U.S Phone: (310) 587 5707

[email protected]

Los Cabos Jewish Community Website

I asked Paola for pics of sample hair/makeup about a month ago but at that time she said they didn't have any. I asked her to take some next time they do a wedding party (I wouldn't want to book without seeing their work).

I think our contract says something about using their spa, too, but I might just use them for other things (maybe the mothers will get their hair done there, or even the bridesmaids, or pedicures or something) and probably get Suzanne Morel (sp?) to come in for my own hair/makeup. I think as long as they get some business that weekend, they won't hold you to that.

Are you having an at home reception? If so, and if they're invited to that, then I'd say it' s ok to invite them to the bachelorette party. But otherwise I wouldn't. Although my FI claims that it's different with guys and he's inviting people to his bachelor party that aren't invited to the wedding.

This is definitely a topic that stirs up a lot of emotions! We're not having childern at our wedding (or rehearsal dinner/welcome dinner, for that matter), but we totally understand if some people decide not to come at all because of that. Every guest needs to do what's best for them, and we've decided early on that we can't let our feelings get hurt if some people don't come, for whatever their reason is.

I understand that Cabo is a vacation destination, but I have a hard time with the idea that since it's a destination wedding, you should reconsider your policies, etc. Frankly, I live in LA, and all of the East Coast weddings I've been flying to are much more of a destination for me than the 2.5 hour flight from LA to Cabo! And it really won't cost anyone any more than it costs us to go to NYC and stay in Manhattan for a weekend wedding. So IMO it's equally acceptable to have a no children policy, no matter which city/country you have your wedding in.

The way I look at it is - I checked with my absolutely most important people (2-3 best friends and family) before I booked my date and decided on these things to make sure that they could make it. All other guests, however many come, are icing on the cake of what will be a wonderful celebration. I'm excited to have as many of them come as possible, but if they need to skip it b/c of my child policy, then that is totally ok.

I agree, I think you should tell them right away (or have your fiance call if it's one of his friends). That way they may not have booked their flights yet and can either decide to leave the child at home if they're not comfortable with the babysitter, or reconsider and not come at all. Telling them right away gives them more options.

I think there have been other threads about this and it can be a sensitive topic - people feel strongly both ways - but IMO you've got to stick with what YOU want. Plus in your case you have an actual safety concern. We are having a "no kids" policy too except for my nephew who is ringbearer, and most people are leaving their kids at home with grandma or something. Some parents might not feel comfortable leaving their kids alone with a stranger in another country, so we've just told people in a nice way that we completely understand if it's a concern of theirs and they aren't able to attend.

It is amazing, though, how many people don't read the invitation and see that it's addressed to just "Mr & Mrs", not "and family".

We are doing this, too. We're doing one lump sum donation based on the # of guests, and then making cards that say something like, "In Lieu of Favors, a donation has been made to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation in your honor." We're expecting ~130 guests, so individual donations would be difficult. We'll probably just make our own little white cards, maybe glue a small pink ribbon to them, etc.

Have a great time! Can't wait to see pictures and hear all about it....

We are having 4 on each side. Our first list would have been 6 or 7 on each side, but we decided to cut it down for financial reasons from BOTH perspectives - for us, we're paying for one night at the hotel for everyone, and that really adds up! And for them, it's expensive to be an attendant when you factor in dress, bridal shower, all that stuff, so I didn't want to ask more than a few very close friends.

We also figured that we're at that age now (29) where most people have been in many weddings already, and it's kind of a relief for them to just be able to attend the wedding and not have to go through all the hoopla of being in the wedding.

I'm a (future) Cabo Surf bride, happy to help if you have any questions!

I'm having my wedding at the Cabo Surf Hotel, but I stayed at Hotel Finisterra last year for a vacation and loved it! Everyone who was there with me on that trip had a great time (there's a swim-up bar in the pool that was really fun, good restaurants, good rooms, etc.), so I'm sure their weddings would be great, too!

At a wedding I was in last year, the bride had the first couple bridesmaids in the line next to her hold a tissue in their hand - we just sort of wrapped it around the part of our bouquet that we were holding so you couldn't see it - and when she needed one during the ceremony, it was easy to just pass it right over to her without a lot of commotion.

I've been getting really emotional about things lately, too, but you just have to go with it! I thought I would cry at my graduations over the years, but I held it together at those, so you never know.

We chose July 5, 2008 because we wanted it to be in the summer and we thought the holiday weekend would make it easier for people to travel and take time off work (plus July 4th isn't a holiday in Mexico so it wasn't more expensive). Also, I have friends getting married in April, May, and June.

Wow, those are absolutely breathtaking! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the ones taken of you guys from above, when you're standing in the rocks and water. They are all so beautiful, and you are just glowing with happiness!!

Juan - you are the best!

Congrats!! You must be so relieved!! The rest will be a piece of cake now that the big decision is made.

Thank you for all of the tips, everyone! I think I'm leaning toward either yellow or green to go with it, but like some of you said, it probably depends on the exact shade of blue I wind up with.

I think I want my bridesmaid dresses to be blue - either a light blue, or sort of an ocean blue. I've been looking at some of those sites that help you pick colors but I can't figure out what accent color would look good with that for the decorations/flowers. Any advice? Help!

Beautiful pictures!!! Wow! I'm so glad I booked Juan! Yay!

Yay, another Cabo Surf bride! Congrats! It feels so good to book the date. Snacks from Costco sound good. We're going to have our rehearsal dinner and a farewell brunch off site, but people can always rent a car and go into town if they get tired of the restaurant, I guess.

I'm so glad to read your reaction to the hotel... I haven't actually visited yet, I just booked it based on reviews, this board, and the idea of having the hotel to ourselves, so it's nice to hear your glowing review!

p.s. Yay! I just went from Newbie to Junior Member!

For those of you that did/are doing site visits to Cabo, how long did you go for? What kinds of things did you do on the visit?

We want to go for a long weekend in December and meet with Maye and Juan Carlos, do a tasting at our hotel, maybe a cake tasting, check out rehearsal dinner and brunch venues, etc. Is that too much to try to accomplish in a few days?

Wow, saying on your website that gifts are expected is so tacky!!!! I wouldn't have sent one to that couple, either.

But besides a situation like that, I always send a gift if I receive an invitation. If it's someone I'm not close with or haven't talked to in ages, I'll just send them something on the lower end of the $$ range than I normally would for a good friend.

It rained at my sister's wedding (in LA), and the photographer got a shot of them kissing under a big umbrella... it was the most beautiful picture from the whole wedding! And it's good luck, too!

My family had a big blowup about this for my sister's wedding 5 years ago, and it created a huge family rift that still hasn't healed! My sister had a no kids policy, and an aunt called to see if she could bring her kids, and when my sister nicely explained that it was an adults only event, the aunt flipped out and it triggered a whole chain reaction. Bottom line, they all banded together against her and 3 sets of aunts/uncles didn't come!! There was probably some other stuff bubbling under the surface there anyway (they are step-aunts/uncles and never treated her very well), but the no kids thing was the last straw that set it all off.

I hope this much drama doesn't happen to you, but if you stick with no kids, you definitely have to be prepared to have some people decide not to come. But it's YOUR big day, so if having kids there is something that would bother you, you gotta go with what you want.

I'm going with store bought ones, too, probably with something relating to my colors, or seashells, etc. When I get thank yous in the mail I toss them about 2 seconds after reading them, so I'd rather use that money somewhere else.