Jenn

Quote: Originally Posted by jenvh Unfortunately, I wasn't able to try the dress on in my size so I don't know yet the extent of the alterations. I will wait and see what they say next week. I am definitely going to make them give me the rush charge back. I guess everything was going too smoothly. I needed something to make me crazy, right? Maybe I will focus my attention on finding shoes so I don't think about it too much. Unless you are super tall, you will probably need the dress hemmed, right? Do you know who you're going to use? If not, I would start talking to dress shops/seamstresses. Tell them the situation and see what they say... at least you won't have to stress about that once the dress comes in.

Okay... 11 includes our garment bags... Our friends had 3 big bags for themselves, we had 3 large suitcases, 2 real garment bags filled to the brim with our towels for the OOT bags and clothes, my dress, his tux, and a carryon. It was crazy, but we made it through no problems. My stress levels the day we flew were crazy - I didn't sleep well, and getting on the plane with everything was the first hurdle, customs was the second. Once we were past customs, I was totally relaxed and ready for a Red Stripe!

Your pictures are gorgeous! Looked like a beautiful day, and of course beautiful bride!!!

I wouldn't go looking for an alternative yet... I would call the manager and make a big stink about paying extra to rush it, that your wedding is coming up, etc. I would also talk to whoever is supposed to do your alterations... most places can do it quickly. But, I would definitely make sure I had it lined up and that they are expecting it to be a quick alteration job. Even if they get the dress March 1st (hopefully much sooner!), you should be able to have it done in time. I hate that you are going through this, but it will be okay. Don't freak out yet...

Quote: Originally Posted by mauraw my FI has all but begged me to get a brazilian for the wedding, and i told him "i will if you will" hahahaha he was like wait, they do your buttcrack too right? yeah, forget it, count me out! Too funny! I actually got a brazillian the trip we got engaged on... NEVER AGAIN! Sam loved it, but it hurt way worse than a regular bikini wax, and I was really irritated. A regular bikini wax hurts, but not terribly. I agree with the idea of wearing sweatpants instead of jeans. Oh, and if you're going to do it for your BD, you should try to keep it up until the wedding - it hurts the worst the first time and then is a lot easier each month. The other thing I would recommend is to try to either trim the hair before you go so that its a little less than half an inch - alternatively, shave and wait until it grows to that length. If the hair is long it hurts worse and if its too short, it will be hard to wax.

Just wanted to bump this up and let all the Jamaican brides know that you can breathe a little easier about customs. We had no problems whatsoever. We flew in with another couple, and between us had 11 bags, yes... 11 when we hit customs. We didn't declare anything. When you get to customs, there are 2 lines... declare and nothing to declare. If you say you are declaring, you go to a line where they look through your bags. If you declare nothing, you breeze right through without a single question! I know this was something I stressed about, so hopefully you guys can now relax!

You look beautiful Tami! I love the detailing on the back of the dress!

I had bought some really awesome stuff for our wedding/honeymoon, and in 3 weeks, I NEVER PUT A SINGLE PIECE ON! Sort of a bummer, but honestly, our wedding night, we were both exhausted... and after getting the shalack out of my hair and taking a shower, we both literally fell into bed and were asleep in half a second! (No worries, marriage consumated in the middle of the night - lol) Every night we were either too drunk, exhausted, or hot to think about lingerie. But, new hubby has gotten some fun evenings now that we're home and enjoying being newlyweds

Quote: Originally Posted by DougsGirl I can't see any of the pics Just red X's. Siggy too. Great review tho, sounds like you had an amazing time. Hmmm... now I'm stumped! I changed the pics to photobucket, so they should work - including my siggy and avatar...

Sam gave my mom a really nice cashmere pashmina and a starfish broach from swarovski. We gave her boyfriend (who is essentially my step-dad) an engraved lighter and a hankie. I gave my mom a monogrammed hankie with a really sweet poem. I thought it was going to be cheesy, but she loved it

I'm so sorry you are going through this! We've all said this, but having a destination wedding really shows people's true colors. Sometimes the best families are the ones we choose for ourselves. Hang in there and try not to let people being stupid get you down

Stephanie - you look amazing! Your FI is going to love it!! Hot momma!

We did buy the flip-flop cards... they were much smaller than I expected - about 3.5 inches long maybe? I don't think anyone used them and they ended up being just a cool novelty. We also got the flip flop note books, shell leis (which were a big hit, actually), and beach balls (also a hit). I thought the shell leis would be dorky, but people actually wore them the entire weekend! Who knew?!?

Beautiful pictures and it looked like everything was perfect! Congrats and welcome back!

Quote: Originally Posted by DLyteful Oh my goodness, your sneak peak photos are too cute. I like the one where it looks like you are being dunked. Are you? Oh yes... from the moment we got on the beach, Sam was like, "Robin, can I throw her in now?!?!?" That was a full on toss in the water! If I had it to do over, I would probably have made him wait a little while longer, because my dress was not comfortable once it was wet... and it was so sheer that I think half the pictures will be soft-porn - lol.

Quote: Originally Posted by jilly76 thats why I did it too because it was easier, but it didn't work so I still had to upload to photobucket! everything looked beautiful! I love that your resort was small, it must have been so much more private and intimate with your group taking over the resort. It really was amazing! There was one other couple at the resort besides our group, but we actually became good friends with them and invited them to our wedding. Having our wedding at a small place was exactly what we wanted, and while we were nervous about what it would be like, the resort was perfect and everyone had a fantastic time!

Congrats and welcome back!!! Can't wait to see your pics!

Okay - changed most of the pics to photobucket - was just trying to make it a little easier rather than uploading everything again. Hopefully you can all see the pics now!

Robin just posted a few sneak peaks of our TTD! I can't wait to see the rest! My dress was so-oo damn see-through though, it should be interesting!

Quote: Originally Posted by Morgan isn't the problem taking the flowers there? I have found cheap wholesale petals online, but you can't fly them to mexico. Did you get them wholesale in jamaica? Quote: Originally Posted by carly Jenn, how long wre you there before you got married, if you brought the petals with you? We are flying in on Wed and getting married on Saturday, but I'd much rather bring my own if possible... We bought roses (not just the petals) wholesale in Jamaica from TPG distributors. They are located in MoBay, so its easy to pick up on the way from the airport. Its more work to pick the petals off yourself, but it was way cheaper. The local florist was going to charge us about $5/rose for just the petals. You should figure on about 1 rose/person to throw and then whatever you need for the aisle (the florist can help you approximate how many you need). We bought the roses for about $20/dozen. We picked the roses up on Wednesday and the wedding was Saturday. We had the roses in the resort's fridge until Saturday and picked them the day of.

LOL - and now they are working again - weird!

Quote: Originally Posted by Alyssa no your siggy is an x too - i can see your avatar, the link to your slideshow and ticker but that is it Arghhh... they were working 2 seconds ago on my computer... and now they're not! Alyssa - is your computer screwing with my computer? Has anyone had this problem with the kodak site before?

Quote: Originally Posted by Alyssa Jenn - great review!! your pics are not showing up for me -they are red x's Are they working now? I was playing with the pics, and editing, so that may be why... is my signature pic working? I'm using kodak to host the pics - I usually use photobucket, so I wonder if that's why...

The Main House View of the Second House The Beach at Coral Cove Open Air Shower - there was a hole in the ceiling as well - Tower Suite The Ceremony Area - after the wedding The Reception Area Our Cake If there is anything else you want to see pictures of, just let me know. I don't have our pro-pics yet to post, and my guests haven't all uploaded their pics, but if I have it, I will post it!

For anyone looking for a more intimate location for a smaller wedding in Jamaica (with a true Jamaican feel), Coral Cove Resort was really a perfect location! We hadn't visited it before, so we were a little nervous, but as soon as we arrived, we knew we had picked the PERFECT place! The place is gorgeous and the staff is amazing! The resort only has 13 rooms, but for our wedding, which was 20 people, it was fantastic. Coral Cove is an all-inclusive located in a small fishing village about 30 minutes southeast of Negril. Its about a 90 minute drive from MoBay, but with a few stops for Red Stripe, the drive flew by. The road is a bit rough the last leg of the trip, but you really get a feel for what Jamaica is like beyond the tourist areas. The town and resort are safe, probably safer than some of the larger areas, and you won't get attacked by the hawkers selling their stuff. In fact, the resort was so safe, we NEVER locked our door, and I don't think my mom ever actually got a key to her room! They have a private beach/cove with loungers, and they supply snorkel gear and water shoes. The water is a bit rocky, so you have to wear water shoes or flippers in, but there is pretty good snorkeling right on the property which was a hit with everyone. The sealife on the property is very cool - anemones, snails, crabs, and pretty fish. The property also has about 10 hammocks, which were well used by us and our guests. All of the rooms are a little different, and they are a bit more rustic than a large resort - no marble or granite, and only 2 rooms have AC, but we never wished we had it. Some of the rooms have open air showers which were very cool - not outdoors, but with a hole cut in the ceiling so you can look up at the stars or sun while you're showering. Some of the rooms had private balconies. Most of the rooms had a fridge, which they will stock with whatever you want - liquor, Red Stripe, Ting, whatever. The beds were very comfortable, which was fantastic, and almost all of the rooms have an ocean view. All of the furniture in the resort and decorations (paintings on the walls) are done by local artists, which just adds to the unbelievable feel of this place. It's like staying at a good friends house, instead of feeling like you're in a big hotel. Our room was the Doctorbird, which is one of the honeymoon suites. It is actually 2 floors on the top of the main building. The first floor is a private bar area, and then you go up a stair to a large balcony that leads to the room. The room was a decent size, with windows on all 4 walls so you can let the breeze in and hear the ocean. It was truly a little slice of heaven! Coral Cove is all-inclusive, and the meals are more like they are at a bed and breakfast. Breakfast is usually about 9:30am, though there is a coffee pot on at the main house porch 24 hrs a day. Lunch is around 2p and Dinner around 6:30-7p. The women in the kitchen truly are phenomenal! Every meal was delicious! There are typically at least 2 main courses and then a bunch of sides. They cook like they are cooking for their families - its all Jamaican, but they want to know what you like (or don't like) and will accomodate any request. We had a vegetarian guest and she never had trouble finding enough to eat. It was without a doubt the best food we had in Jamaica, and we were there for a total of 3 weeks and stayed at some other nice resorts! The drinks are also fabulous... the guys who run the bar are there from about 10am - 10pm. They make these amazing smoothies with fresh papaya (from the papaya tree on property) and coconut! And, if you want something before or after they are there, just go behind the bar and make it! By the time we left, the whole staff felt like new friends, and we had really gotten to know most of them. After we got settled the first night, we met with our WC - Dawn. Some of you may know that I had been pretty concerned with the WC. She was a bit difficult to deal with prior to the wedding, but she really shined when we got to Jamaica. I had brought a lot of stuff with us, and done a lot of planning on my own. I think this was probably a good thing, though she would've done a good job if we hadn't. We had been pretty frustrated with her over issues like flowers and photography, but in the end, everything was wonderful. We did decide to arrange for our flowers and photography ourselves though. We are lucky in that my mom's b-friend is a florist. The first morning we were there, we met the owner, Steve Zindars. He is actually from Illinois, but fell in love with Jamaica many years ago. He still lives in the states, but had flown down to make sure our wedding went exactly as planned, and I believe he does that for all larger weddings. His motto is "If there is something you want, let us know and we will do whatever we can to make it happen... and if we can't... we'll wish we could." They really went above and beyond to make sure everything went perfectly and that every detail was the way we wanted it! We had decided to bring down lilly bowls for our centerpieces, and in transport, 3 had broken. This was a last minute thing, so we were a bit worried that we wouldn't have anything to use! Little Bay is near Negril, but there really aren't a lot of places that would sell this sort of thing. Steve made a few phone calls and Dawn located a florist that rented them to us for $5 a piece. We had a few other things that came up along the way that they figured out for us as well. The evening that everyone arrived we had a Welcome Party on the beach. We hired an amazing local steel band and had a beautiful bonfire. The party was really a great way to kick off our wedding weekend. Everyone had a blast! The band was fantastic - most of our guests bought their CD - and the party was a huge success! The next day we took our group by bus to Negril to the straw markets, Margaritaville and Rick's Cafe. Margaritaville was really pretty cool! They have a huge trampoline out in the ocean, which was a lot of fun. Everyone had a great day lounging on the beach, and the sunset at Ricks is gorgeous! We then went to a fantastic Jamaican restaurant at the suggestion of our driver - Sweet Spice. If you happen to be in Negril, this place is a definite not-to-miss! The food is fantastic and very affordable! The following day was the wedding. I was actually totally relaxed the morning of the wedding! The place was buzzing with everyone getting ready for the wedding. One of the bartenders, Donal, was making a braided arch for the reception area; Steve and some of the guys were making our ceremony arch; the ladies were in the kitchen cooking; one of the local guys, who is affectionately known by one and all as Uncle Sam, was starting the smoker and making us jerk chicken; my mom's b-friend Chuck was getting the flowers ready; Dawn was setting up the reception area; and Robin DePaula was running around taking pictures! It was amazing that with all that going on, I was chilling with a red stripe and a "no worries" attitude! Sam and I had a couples massage by the beach around 11p, and after a quick shower and lunch, I went to get my hair and makeup done. The girl who does this is Hope. I would definitely recommend bringing pictures of what you want, but don't expect to get it exactly. I like the way my hair came out, but it was way more plastered with hairspray than my hairdresser had done. In Hope's defense, it was an extremely windy day, so it was probably the right move. My makeup looked good, though in hindsight I might have done it myself and saved the money. I had practiced a lot with it, and probably could have done the same thing. I would definitely recommend bringing your own makeup so you know what's going on your face. A little while later, I got dressed, and then it was time! We used an Ipod for our ceremony and cocktail hour, and it was perfect! The ceremony and sand ceremony were wonderful - though I think I cried through most of it - lol. We took a few pics with Robin, and then we went back to the cocktail hour and reception. For the reception, we hired a local Reggae Band, Fox Trot, and they were also fantastic! Everyone was dancing on the beach well into the night, and we had another bonfire. The food was amazing, as always! We had jerk chicken and lobster, with a bunch of really good sides. The appetizers were patties, shrimp, conch fritters, and a veggie plate. Everything was awesome! Our cake was also delicious! We had chocolate and vanilla, with a rum cream and buttercream frosting. Overall, everything was fantastic! Our guests had a great time, and are already planning a reunion at Coral Cove for our first anniversary! Now - I know this is long - but I want to take a minute to rate a couple of things... Resort - overall, Coral Cove got an A++ - everything was exactly the way we wanted it, and we definitely plan to go back. To anyone looking for a small hotel that's a little more affordable and has a really intimate feel, I would HIGHLY recommend Coral Cove. Even if you are looking for a vacation and not a wedding, Coral Cove was wonderful! Wedding Coordinator Dawn - B - she was a bit laid back before we got to Jamaica, but she definitely pulled everything together. That being said, plan on doing a lot of work yourself. I think we all do this anyway, but certain things were a bit difficult to deal with. We didn't like the photographer that the resort uses, and ended up doing all the research ourselves to find someone else. There are other Jamaican photographers, but the one we liked (again, we found them) in our budget was booked for our date, so we decided to hire Robin DePaula. We also had flower issues. The hurricane season had wiped out the resorts flowers (what they typically use) and the options and prices from the florist were not well described. We ended up doing the research and found a florist for wholesale in MoBay. She wasn't very helpful for this stuff. But, in the end though, she pulled it all together and the wedding was beautiful. Florist - TPG Distributors in Montego Bay (they have another location in Kingston) - A. The prices were a bit higher than quoted, but they were a lifesaver when we were freaking about flowers. We got 10 dozen roses and some stuff for our centerpieces from them, for about $230. They are a full scale florist, and can do your centerpieces/bouquet, but you need to pre-order. Photographer - Robin DePaula - A++. Robin did a fantastic job! She and her son, David, came in with our guests, shot our welcome party, the entire wedding day, and a TTD before leaving. Besides being an amazing photographer, she is also a total sweetheart! At the few points when I was getting a little freaked, she totally calmed me down. Her son is also wonderful - probably the most well-mannered 12 year old I've ever met! Sam and I are completely happy with our decision to hire her.