blkladylaw

Thanks all...we are so excited! I'm so ready now to be a mom. I am glad I travelled overseas and partied and did so many of the crazy things I wanted to do in life beforehand. I am so much more settled now and in a place to give this child so much more from my life experience and financial stability. My husband is 4-5 years younger but he is in a place where he is ready also.

 

I found a typo below...I meant mom did not think we should try for #2 since I am 38 now

I am happy to say we are awaiting the birth of our first little one...a boy any day now.

I am 38 and the pregnancy has gone smooth, with no complications, we got pregnant quickly, baby is doing great is healthy, and planning a natural no meds birth with a midwife!

As I live in a city that attracts a lot of highly educated/professional women who did lots of years of school and career first before marriage and kids...my midwife (and the OB I saw prior to her) said the majority of their clients in the DC area are over 35 so it is so not abnormal around here...but more the norm to be 35-45. My mom found it to be and seems to think we should try for #2 but she lives in the midwest where folks just start way earlier.

I have been checked by a perinatal specialist (high risk) throughout the pregnancy just in case...and frankly I was surprised by how many younger women were coming in with high blood pressure (preeclampsia) and gestational diabetes and other problems with their pregnancys...being late 30s really isn't the main factor with being high risk anymore. In fact my midwife showed me studies where the Obstetrics community is planning to reevaluate their (over 35 being high risk) guidelines soon and push the date up to over 40 or so because the last studies for the rates of problems and abnormalties are so outdated and there have been newer studies in recent years with more valid results and many more moms are over 35 and doing just fine with no abnormalties. Those old charts everyone goes by for increased risk of this and that at X or Y age are going to be updated in the near future.

Actually a factor many do not talk about as they focus on the mother is the father...the age and genetics of the father also has to be taken into account with increased abnormality rates as some research has recently discovered.

Best wishes to all!

Update on the Trump...since wedding is now long over and I've actually stayed there We got the Trump for a steal as I booked about when they first started taking bookings and had major discounts as it is a new hotel. If you can get a good deal the place was amazing! It was right by the Fashion Mall and across from the Wynn. We checked in after our wedding reception coming back from Lake Las Vegas still in our wedding gear...and they upgraded us to a luxury penthouse suite. It was amazing! It was so awesome we had to invite friends over the next night for some drinks to share the space. We had a kitchen, living room, amazing views overlooking the Strip, the gigantic luxury bathroom was off the hook! My hubby is 6'5 and I am 6' and we both could fit in the gigantic jacuzzi tub. They also had a gigantic shower with multiple showerheads...(where we consummated the marriage ) and an LCD TV in the mirror in the bathroom. I loved the Trump and would definitely stay there again. We liked that there was no casino there...so not overcrowded lobby...just hotel guests and their guests. When we did want to gamble...we linked up with guests across the street at the Wynn. Having the Fashion Mall next door was nice also. I bought some things for the honeymoon that I had forgotten to pack.

The Ritz at Lake Las Vegas was amazing also. They also upgraded us to a more luxurious suite.

Hey ladies! Best wishes to all the new brides with your planning! We are now 9 weeks pregnant!

 

I have nothing in damask or fuchsia left. I only have earrings I decided not to wear, veils, real touch gardenia, bubble wands, flower basket, some bells etc. left. See all my leftovers on my Bonanzle.com booth located here.

 

congrats on your wedding CancunBride!

We just married in Sept. and started trying in January. Jan was a no go but thusfar this month it looks like we scored. We tried on my high peak day right after ovulation per the ClearBlue easy monitor and thusfar per most of the home tests I have taken it looks like a go. I'm 37 husband is 33 (and smokes unfortunately) and all my friends my age or older can't anymore or have had various GYN issues/surgeries in their 20s and 30s that have made the odds highly impossible or high risk so I have been nervous. I am a lawyer and it is very typical for us to wait until later in life considering how long we go to school. Most of my female colleagues successfully have had multiple kids (some after fertility treatments but most without) btwn 37 and 42 with no issues. I haven't believe all the hype though. Live healthy, avoid chemicals/smoking/caffeine/cooking on old teflon/artificial sweetners/diet coke and anything else toxic in your environment (that goes for both the future mom and dad) and I think most women 35 to early 40s should be just fine.

We just started trying in January. Jan was a no go but Feb I am waiting to find out. I'm 37 and all my friends my age or older can't anymore or have had issues so I have been nervous. We did it on a highest peak day with the lil egg symbol using the Clearblue easy monitor and I have been testing like crazy with anxiety. Well yesterday I took a Clearblue test that is supposed to make a + symbol for a yes and I though I saw a faint vertical line but not quite. Well I looked at it again this morning when I got up before throwing it away and the line looked a lil darker. I showed hubby and he said yeh it does kind of look like a line there. So I started drinking water like crazy to create more urine lol and took a digital First Response test just now and it says Yes +!!!

 

I am still not sure yet though. Yesterday at work I thought I was starting my period because I saw a lil brownness but then woke up this morning and there is nothing going on down there.

 

I can't wait til I know for certain...the waiting is driving me nuts!

14 ZEN CANDLE SETS CENTERPIECES

 

Lot of 14 sets, including rich jewel tone candleholders and rocks! Tiny points of candlelight cast a rich rainbow of harmonious hues, flickering from within the hearts of five radiant jewel-toned cups. Scatter a colorful handful of polished river rocks upon the handsome wood tray; add the gleaming candles to create an instant Zen-like aura of tranquil reflection! Wood tray with glass cups. River rock and tealight candles included. 17" x 3" x 5 1/4" high.

 

Would make a great centerpiece.

 

You can take them all for $100 or I can also sell for $8/each.

 

I have them listed for sale on my booth at Bonanzle.com here

14 ZEN CANDLE SETS CENTERPIECES ($8 each or $100 for all) - Fort Washington - Bonanzle

 

Thank you to AwesomeBride for buying the first 6. These 14 are left and then I'll be rid of these big boxes and there will be space in my living room again!

....also white tulle rolls and Michael Miller Dandy Damask fabric/unfinished table runners.

 

Sold most everything now but still have a few leftovers.

 

See all my leftovers on my Bonanzle.com booth located here

HauteLegalDiva - HauteLegalDiva's Bonanzle booth - Fort Washington

 

Thanks to the ladies who bought some of the earlier items and best wishes to everyone on your upcoming weddings!

I wasn't going to do one and then a couple weeks before the caterer sent me the table set up and I decided to plot a chart out using theknot.com tool to plan each table

 

I definitely wanted immediate family together at 1 table near our own sweetheart table. It was kind of fun determining which friends would best mesh and have things in common. I put similar couples together and mixed up my friends so they had someone at the table they knew and also some of his friends that they did not know so our friends could get to know each other better. I also tried to place single with some folks I thought they'd find interesting and tried to match age groups so there wouldn't be an older relative at a table with a bunch of 30 year olds. I've been at weddings like this ...being the only young and single person sat at a table full off older relatives and their spouses...horrible evening. My matching did work out well for the most part....everyone enjoyed who they were seated with though a few guests did reseat themselves elsewhere using some empty spots from people that didn't show up. I had a single guy seated with some single women and then he brought a date (only RSVP'd for himself) and I noticed he had moved to a table where there were 2 seats because another couple had not shown up. I just had a number on each table and my cousin had a list of names and where they were seated and just told them as they entered the yacht. I didn't make placecards and all that...totally unnecessary for a 60 or less group. Looking back I could have just had an immediate family table and let everyone just sit where they wanted....I doubt it would have mattered much but I think my 'assignments' let to some new connections amongst our friends especially those that had things in common and may not have chatted much if I hadn't placed them at the same table...everyone would have just gravitated to sit with who they already knew. I'm glad I did have a seating plan. The biggest pain for me in the process was trying to plan seating when I did not have final confirmations of attendance for many people.

 

 

 

yes all petals are left...send me a PM and lets talk!

yes they are still available

you can PM me an email address and I can send a paypal invoice or if you don't have paypal we can work out something else

oh i also would skip buying the disposable cameras to have on each table at the reception; most guests bring their own digital camera and email you the pics or upload them to a site and the quality of the pictures on these cameras was poor (or maybe I just got a bad batch or maybe it was because we were indoors and the lighting was dark and people didn't use the flash button)...but this is one thing I would NOT do again

oh my gosh this was a nightmare! I thought it would be special to have us all together but it was the most stress I had of the whole experience. Maybe if they had already arrived ready to go or came to the site earlier to get ready it would have been better. I assumed they were coming dressed. Now that I have seen my photos I wish I had had more time to do more with my eye makeup and used some concealer in lieu of dealing with family right beforehand but oh well. Yes I would NOT recommend this...I would have preferred the quiet peace and solitude of being by myself absorbing the major step I was about to take.

it was difficult using a lot of cash reserves and adding more debt for the wedding this year; it is scary to think about the fact that one of us could get laid off and then need that money

in addition my fully paid off car died right before the wedding so I had to buy another car and have a car note that I was not expecting to have

I'm glad we went ahead with it all though

Actually it was probably for the best that the economy is the way it is because we ended up with just our core close family and friends and not a bunch of extraneous people who in the end cancelled due to financial concerns mostly. Neither of our families are well off people at all (and we are paying all our own costs) so I know it was difficult for many of them to attend...I even had one girlfriend get laid off two weeks before the wedding (she came anyway using frequent flyer miles for her ticket and stayed with a family friend who lived in Nevada). My guests were very resourceful in saving money on their travel. We had a few guests sign up to do go to timeshare sales pitches and got their rooms for free. We had friends who had timeshares in other places get their week transferred to Vegas for the week of the wedding and shared space with other friends who let them crash in the room. People who may have normally wanted their own rooms/beds shared rooms/beds. If you give people enough notice they should be able to work out similar ways to save money. You may consider picking a less expensive location to travel to...I know for me Lake Las Vegas, Nevada was an affordable place for most people to get to which is why I chose it though we had toyed with Hawaii. I got my palm trees, beautiful scenery, mountains, water and an intimate get away ...which was everything that I had dreamed of in having a destination wedding on an island someplace else. I was even looking at resorts near the Chesapeake Bay in my own state at first or other "local destinations" that were a short drive away. There are ways to have a "destination" without it being very far away on the usual islands/countries. In these times we all will have to cut back on non-necessities to get the things we need or that are very important to us. In saving for the wedding for several months I stopped unnecessary shopping, skipped hair/nails visits, stopped eating out and brought my lunch, sold junk I have around the house and don't use on ebay, use public transit and save on gas, etc etc. Many guests can come up with airfare by doing the same. I feel if it is important enough we all have luxuries/habits/things in our daily lives that we can cut back on to save money for something more important to us.

I also have these bachelorette party dice. My friends gave them to me afterwards. The had fun humiliating me having me wander around a club doing whatever the dice landed on.

 

 

I also have the Modern Bride and some Bride magazines from the last few months.

 

I can throw any of these in the box for free with any purchase if anyone wants them.

Found them. They are 5 inches in diameter as mentioned. This is the large size. I'd like $29 each for them or $55 for both plus shipping. I paid $35 each plus shipping on ebay. Here is a photo of one.

Alyssa we got married on the same day!

 

this is one of my favorite threads - i can't believe i can finally post to it!

and more thoughts....

 

I Would NOT

 

suggest getting there the day prior to...I wish I had more time to get settled in and take care of final details but hubby is in grad school and didn't want to miss 2 weeks of class vs. just 1 for the honeymoon

 

forget to prepare a speech ahead of time or at least think about what to say...I skipped it and let hubby do it for us

 

suggest that our moms, grandmoms, 2 family friends that came with my mom and my 3 close girlfriends all get ready in the bridal suite with me beforehand or at least have them arrive earlier or already dressed; they arrived around 3:30pm wedding starts at 5pm; 3:30-4:15 was greetings, the awh my baby is getting married moments, a bunch of questions, trying to get them all together to head to the bridal suite next to the chapel and me trying to finish packing up my things to checkout of the hotel at the Lake so we could go to the other hotel on the Vegas Strip for the rest of our stay; then I was in a mad rush 4:15- 5pm to get ready and do my makeup and get dressed while fielding a zillion requests for bobby pins, makeup, borrowing curling iron, nail clippers, etc etc which all stressed me out; one of my girlfriends finally locked the door to my separate lil area in the suite so I could focus and de-stress while she helped me finish; all the while the wedding chapel coordinator was giving countdowns and pressing us to come out so I just put on basic everyday makeup....foundation, lipstick, blush and eyeliner....never got to eyeshadows and concealer or the sealant to prevent sweating off makeup or false lashes; I ended up going down the aisle a lil late

 

I would DO AGAIN

 

no formal bridal party....my closest 3 friends were there and did everything a bridesmaid would do except walk down aisle and stand for me...they got to just have fun and wear what they wanted; no stress in organizing other people...it was perfect I highly recommend skipping bridesmaids/groomsmen

...especially for older brides like myself; our parents and grandparents went down the aisle and my brother escorted me in his military dress uniform...it was perfect; they were all told what to do right before they walked out; no rehearsal dinner required

 

have my brother escort me down the aisle in lieu of father who I am far less close to....he looked so sharp in his military uniform and it was a special moment between us before he leaves for Iraq in the spring that we will never forget

Thought of some more...

 

I Would...

 

put most every wedding expense, catering and all, on my AMEX card and a US Air Visa and used points to upgrade flights to first class, a $200 certificate off of our car rental and $100s saved on our hotel rooms. Use points to save money! Though of course pay them off with cash at month end and don't carry large balances though.

 

Use live.com cashback to save money if shopping for wedding items online...I am getting about $600-$700 back from using this site to buy things I needed for the wedding.

 

UPDATE: I have all 10. Finally got around to counting them last night. They got demolished in the box shipping them back so you would have some work to do in putting most of them back together. There are some still fully intact. They are styrofoam balls with the silk flowers attached to them. When I arrived at the wedding site I used glue to help secure some of them where they were inserted in the holes on the styro ball. This should work for you also. I paid $225 for the 10 of them and am open to any fair offer. They also have no ribbon attached to hang them on anything since I just used them as centerpieces on top of vases but I think one could be added easily. Addings pics...

I was anti-video before my wedding date. I opted not to get the video and then a week before the wedding the videographer contacted me and asked why I wasn't buying the video (lowest option was $800). I said I felt it was too high and we'd just have friends video it. They dropped the price for basic raw footage and one video camera and I went for it. He was out of the way behind the pastor in a corner and I forgot he was there. I am actually excited to see it now because as the bride you miss everything that happens before you come in and after I cam in it was all a blur as everyone mentioned. I know some family who missed it will like to see it (of course probably easier to justify buying an expensive video for others to view who did not attend when they have supported the wedding financially or via monetary gift which is not the case for us). I just paid for ceremony coverage...no behind the scenes getting ready as I felt I would be too stressed out and rushing and I was and no reception coverage. I did have them just cover after it was over the walk through the village by the water of guests as they went to the yacht... I did want to capture the scenery. I also did have a friend who ran around videoing everything (even when it was annoying me as I was getting ready I am sure I will appreciate it later) so I can get her footage and his and our own footage from the after-party the next day at the club and our honeymoon and get someone to edit it all together one day. I do think having friends video may not have captured the sound as well. When you hire the videographer they set up mikes to capture sound. If tight on funds I would suggest just getting raw footage like we did and not a fully edited video....you can always do it later when you recover from the wedding costs. I'm running to the mailbox looking for mine daily!

I also have 11 fuschia pink tissue bells (you can see them hanging in the windows of the yacht in these pics) $15

 

and

 

a white box by Beverly Clark for cards and cash gifts $19

 

and

 

2 rolls of white tulle 5 3/4 x 100 yds $10 for both together..one never opened and one had a small amount used

 

For those considering the flower balls...you can see them in this pic also.

Hi. I am looking for them right now. I have to find where I put them before I left! I have the one that I wore during my honeymoon in Hawaii and it is 5 inches in diameter. I believe the other two are the same. I was originally going to wear mine for the wedding and the have my non-bridesmaids wear the extras in their hair but changed my mind. Will post once I find them! I am so discombobulated since my return ...I have stuff everywhere!

I would do these again:

 

Wear hot pink shoes...they were a hit...everyone loved that they were not normal wedding shoes and so did I! The pop of pink poking out from the dress in my pics was great!

 

Lake Las Vegas Chapel Fiorenza & reception on La Contessa yacht cruise...it was perfect, beautiful, my guests loved the locale and it was very unique!

 

Design my own table decor/centerpieces and buy the supplies myself and ship it to have them setup for me..so much cheaper

 

Do black/white/fuschia color scheme...very easy to find things and find bargain deals on items for a black/white wedding.

 

Lose the 40 lbs that I lost. I felt so much better in the dress from when I first tried it on 5 months prior. Not just a good move for the wedding but just for my health and preparing for a pregnancy in the future hopefully.

 

Register for honeymoon activities, spa visits and on cloud9living.com for things to do at home when we get back. We were also on Target but no one used it...except one person got us a Target gift card.

 

Short engagement...from the official proposal to the wedding date was 5 months...though I started planning one month prior to the official proposal.

 

Add pink floralytes to the vases for my centerpieces...it added a nice touch as it got dark.

 

Skip all the chapel decor again...the chapel was so nice by itself that I am glad I just sprinkled fuschia rose petals down the aisle and at the altar...simple is best. I found that guests were wowed by the location, architecture, water views, etc. No one cared about the decor items so I am glad I spent money on the location versus decor/flowers.

 

Use silk flowers and petals again for centerpieces, mothers corsages, decor. No one cared real vs. fake.

 

No one missed the garter toss and bouquet toss. I gave my bouquet to my grandma and two silk bouquets to our mothers who are both single.

 

Photo frame signature guestbook. It is more practical and will get used to frame a wedding photo vs. a traditional guestbook.

 

Give luggage scales as a favor. People appreciated them with the current luggage fees much more than some unnecessary item with our names stamped on them.

 

Just buy the copyright released CD of the pics and order them yourself for much cheaper on one of the many online sites like Shutterfly.com. You can even make photo books bound in leather online for way cheaper than the photographer was going to charge me. I'm glad we did this versus buying expensive packages.

 

Stay at the Ritz Carlton at Lake Las Vegas in Henderson

 

Stay at the Trump hotel in Las Vegas. One of the most amazing hotels I have stayed in. They upgraded us to an exec suite with one of the first jacuzzi tubs I have seen that can accommodate both of our very tall frames.

 

Stay at the Grand Hyatt in Kauai for honeymoon

Stay at a vacation rental home with our own pool in Oahu for our honeymoon

 

Make CDs to play on the yacht cruise versus a DJ. No one missed it and everyone loved the music and have been asking for copies.

 

Create a DVD slideshow of photos of us from baby to childhood to teens to college to post-college to early dating pics of us all the way to the bachelorette party photos. It was a hit and all the photos of us growing up had people laughing. The funniest part was that I included photos from the bachelorette party that gradually showed me getting drunker and leaning over more and more in my chair and I put the words Going, Going, Gone with the last pic showing me completely passed out in the chair. Everyone was dying of laughter at the end.

 

Marry Mr. J...one of the best decisions of my life.

 

Splurging on unique invitations by Trish at Embellishments.

 

Throw a party in our suite at the Trump the next day. Our room was too big and too nice not to share with beautiful views. This was not preplanned...we decided that morning and texted and called our guests. We went to the store and got some liquor and snacks and popped in our Ipod into the player in the room and had a great time before we went to Club Poetry.

 

Reserve a VIP area at a Vegas club. Since our reception was more of a yacht cruise with just slow dancing and romantic music...we booked the club area for the next evening for some dancing. This was one of the highlights of the event. I would definitely do this again! Club Poetry was amazing and gave us great service. P Diddy and Donny from Making the Band were there. We had such a good time.

 

Rent an Audi SUV. It came in handy having to transport family around and carrying all our luggage and boxes of wedding items. It was fun to drive and stylish. It was a mixed thing though....we did get tired of giving rides and picking people up ....and driving up and down the strip is exhausting. We have such awful commutes in DC already that having to spend so much time driving was a pain. We had assumed our moms/grandmoms would just get to certain places we were having things on the Strip by catching a taxi or something but they called us all the time so we drove a lot.

 

Do my own hair and makeup. I was rushing near the end so I didn't get to do all the fancy makeup tricks that I had wanted to do but I don't think it mattered much and my pics came out more natural looking. I had bought fake lashes and forgot to use concealer but it came out fine. I set my hair with mousse and rollers for lots of curls and just pulled the sides back and used pearl/crystal pins along the sides and the middle....voila...bridal hair. I had left foam rollers in all day so my curls would not fall. I had played with the style before I left so I did it like about 2 minutes before I walked out to go down the aisle. It came out just fine and I am glad I didn't spend extra money on this.

 

Edit the pastor's script. We personalized it with our own wording and also added a charge to the family and friends who had to say "I do" to the pastors charge to provide emotional support to us during our marriage. Everyone loved this and it made them feel more a part of the ceremony.

 

I would not:

 

Stress about hemming my table runners. I was hemming these with hem tape in the finals days and as it got closer and I didn't have time I was just leaving the edges raw cut...no one noticed or cared. Much wasted time...they were cut in a straight line and that was sufficient and they looked nice as is.

 

Try to buy a new car during the week before my wedding. My transmission died on my car before we left for the wedding and I have a long work commute so I was pressed to find a new vehicle before I left because a brand was having a sales event. It added more stress having to research cars, test drive, etc.

 

Stay in Honolulu, Oahu again...we split time with Kauai because my husband wanted to have a "city experience" so it was a compromise. Honolulu was like being in hectic DC and Vegas all over again with traffic and not much that we can't already get at home in the city. He ended up agreeing that he wishes we had more time in Kauai and had just stayed there the whole time. While on Oahu we spent most of our time driving to things that were closer to the North Shore. If I stay on Oahu again I would stay someplace other than the Honolulu area. I am glad we did a private home rental in Kahala though versus staying in Waikiki hotels.

 

Wait until the last minute to finalize burning our music CDs and making the DVD slideshow. I figured it would be quick easy based on past experiences and I ended up having technical problems. I was up all night the night before we left and instead of packing I was frantically trying to burn the music from my Itunes playlist to CDs for the ceremony and reception music and get a photo slideshow to burn to DVD. Neither was working and I kept getting errors up until the taxi arrived to go to the airport. I had still not packed and had to frantically throw a bunch of stuff in suitcases while the taxi waited and while my fiance freaked out. I finally just burned the slideshow file to CD and hoped I could find someone to get it on DVD in Vegas. I also got the CDs to burn after I updated my computer programs like seconds before we pulled off! The photo/video studio for my chapel only used Mac programs and couldnt do anything with my Windows based file but they tracked down a retired colleague for me who was so nice to do it for us. We went to his home in Vegas and he made it loop a few times and put it on DVD for us. He even made backup copies of all our music for us and formatted them to be sure they would play in all versions of CD players. What an angel!

 

Do dinner at the Wynn buffet the next day with the family. I heard it was one of the best. Our guests that liked seafood loved it for the king crab legs etc. but the buffet was just OK to me. They did have a wide selection though. I wasn't wowed by anything I had. My southern grandma was not familiar with most of the foods...sushi etc...a lot of the choices were too fancy. The sushi was not great...I've had way better. I couldn't finish the one piece I had. We shoudl have done Maggianos or something like that instead.

 

Play slot machines...I generally always lose on these.

 

Don't forget to reapply lipstick and touch up make up throughout the evening. I did forget ...and notice in pics that my makeup had faded after eating and as the night went on.

 

I wouldn't spend so much time helping with the setup before the wedding. The caterer kept telling me to leave and that they had it but the control freak in me had to stay and help do my gift bags. I am glad I was there to help give some direction for a few things that they weren't sure what I wanted done. I had shipped boxes of my decor and favors direct to the caterer with written instructions. But once I had given the guidance and showed how the favor bags would be set up...I should have left. By the time I got back to the room to start getting ready my family had started arriving and distracted me for the final hours. I ran out of time and didn't get to get my nails touched up as the french tips white part started coming off. They were like that at the wedding ...I had to hide my hands all night!

 

Be clearer on the RSVP card about what # of guests means. Some put 1 but meant just themselves and some meant themselves plus one. My headcount was off at the end. I am torn about the use of RSVP cards. Out of 60 invitations I got 20 RSVPs back in the mail and maybe 5 by email via our website. We had about 6 people not show who RSVPd yes and never updated us that they were not coming and some who even confirmed the week prior that they were coming. $700+ down the drain. Completely inconsiderate. One of them has offered to send money to cover their spot.

I'm sure there is more...I'll add later.

Hi ladies. I have 3 bags of the fuschia left and there are 200 per bag for a total of 600. $10 + shipping for all of those.

I have approx. 2000 of the white petals with fuschia tips left. $29 + shipping