HappyGoLucky

For those interested in a great weight loss program, I'm currently doing Ideal Protein (www.idealprotein.com). It's all about changing your daily diet and it's a great way to change your eating habits for good. The results I had were amazing! I lost over 20 pounds and they just melted off. I am eating a lot healthier now and I've never felt better in my life. My fiance's father was so impressed that he began the diet and he dropped about 20-30 pounds and his doctor's are amazed because his health has improved (he had a quadruple bypass a few years ago) and he's still sticking to the Ideal Protein diet. I've been doing this now for over 2 years, however the weight came off quickly in the beginning. I weigh less now than I did in high school and because most of the weight that I lost was body fat, the clothes sizes are even smaller than what I wore in high school. I didn't do this diet for the weight loss, I actually have stomach problems and this diet is good for that. The nice side effect was that I also ending up losing a ton of weight and now I'm happily resting somewhere between a size 2-4 and I'm 5'9"! I do warn people, though, that it requires a lot of cooking and eating fresh veggies and lean meats, but other than that, this is the healthiest diet I've ever been on. I don't know where I'd be without it. Also, in the beginning, you do have to purchase their food packets, which is a little pricey. It starts at $81/week and trickles down from there. I've always been a regular at the gym, however the weight never came off. Any trainer/nutritionist I've ever had always told me that the gym would take care of 30% of my weight loss, but what I ate had more to do with what I loss than anything else. I never liked hearing that because I wanted to eat whatever and figured I'd just workout harder, but that didn't work. I'm realizing now that what you put into your body is more important than anything else. I'm so in-tune with my body at this point that I know if I eat a ton of sugar, I'll be paying for it later! Hope this helps for anyone out there looking to lose those pounds before the big day.

For those interested in a great weight loss program, I'm currently doing Ideal Protein (www.idealprotein.com). It's all about changing your daily diet and it's a great way to change your eating habits for good. The results I had were amazing! I lost over 20 pounds and they just melted off. I am eating a lot healthier now and I've never felt better in my life. My fiance's father was so impressed that he began the diet and he dropped about 20-30 pounds and his doctor's are amazed because his health has improved (he had a quadruple bypass a few years ago) and he's still sticking to the Ideal Protein diet. I've been doing this now for over 2 years, however the weight came off quickly in the beginning. I weigh less now than I did in high school and because most of the weight that I lost was body fat, the clothes sizes are even smaller than what I wore in high school. I didn't do this diet for the weight loss, I actually have stomach problems and this diet is good for that. The nice side effect was that I also ending up losing a ton of weight and now I'm happily resting somewhere between a size 2-4 and I'm 5'9"! I do warn people, though, that it requires a lot of cooking and eating fresh veggies and lean meats, but other than that, this is the healthiest diet I've ever been on. I don't know where I'd be without it. Also, in the beginning, you do have to purchase their food packets, which is a little pricey. It starts at $81/week and trickles down from there. I've always been a regular at the gym, however the weight never came off. Any trainer/nutritionist I've ever had always told me that the gym would take care of 30% of my weight loss, but what I ate had more to do with what I loss than anything else. I never liked hearing that because I wanted to eat whatever and figured I'd just workout harder, but that didn't work. I'm realizing now that what you put into your body is more important than anything else. I'm so in-tune with my body at this point that I know if I eat a ton of sugar, I'll be paying for it later! Hope this helps for anyone out there looking to lose those pounds before the big day.

Hey everyone! It's been a while since I last posted. I'm getting married on April 9th at Paradisus and I'm also trying to get a hold of Cecilia and haven't heard anything from her. I just sent another email to her. Perla told me that December would be when I'd start picking out the specifics for my wedding and December has come and gone and still nothing. I'm getting a bit concerned and I'm hoping Cecilia responds soon, otherwise I'm thinking of possibly trying to find someone down in the Riviera Maya that can help plan my wedding and will be easier to get a hold of. My photographer (Elizabeth Medina) gets back to me within a day, how can it take over a week for Cecilia to do the same? I hope someone gets a hold of her soon! She needs to know that in her job, with all the weddings Paradisus puts on, she better be able to hit the ground running!

Karenk77 & Damaris, I bought my dress at Kleinfeld and I was blown away by the experience. My sales consultant was Audrey Pisani and, unlike other bridal shops, she was with me throughout the entire hour and a half of my appointment. She was incredibly mindful of my budget and was actually uncomfortable when I began trying on dresses that were outside of my budget. Normally you don't get this from a salesperson. They want you to spend as much as you can! Kleinfeld was the first place I went dress shopping at and I had zero intention of buying a dress there, but between the exquisite service and the incredible selection and the incredible deal they offered, I couldn't say no! I got my one-of-a-kind sample for $999, when normally it was priced at $5,700! Even as I was leaving, the owner of the store came and shook my hand and thanked me! Also, they don't charge you for an appointment. You need a credit card to secure a spot and will only be charged $50 if you don't show. They have to do this b/c they're so busy, but a lot of restaurants and doctors do this anyway, so this practice isn't anything new. Honestly, even if you're not considering Kleinfeld, I'd go anyway just for the experience. I can't rave about them enough!

Dress #1 is very haute couture and, although I'd personally go for #1, you have to ask yourself if the first thing your guests will see is the dress or you. It can't look like the dress is wearing you, it has to be the other way around. The best dress you can wear is the one that plays the supporting role and isn't going for the main part. When I was trying on dresses I saw another girl trying on this gorgeous Monique Lhuillier dress and my sis and I were oohing and aaahing over it. But after the bride went back into her dressing room my sis turned around and asked me if I even knew what the bride looked like or if I was too busy staring at the dress and I realized that never once did I glance up to look at the bride! I was too busy admiring her dress. Great dress, but it stole the show! I hope this tid-bit helps you choose your dress!

I got my beautiful wedding dress at Kleinfeld and, since it's a sample, I paid $999 for a dress that normally sold for $5,700! It's hand-painted and only Kleinfeld sells this Parisian designer. LOVE IT! I got my BM dresses from a store in NJ called Nonchalance (in Morristown about 30 minutes outside of the city). They're Jenny Yoo and uber-cute!

I put a link of some simple things to do in our wedding website. Here's a link to the document (no need to have points to open the file): Things to Do I included activities for guys (golf) and girls (shopping) and everything in-between. Hope this helps!

My FI bought this ring without ever consulting another person! All he knew was how much I loved a friend's e-ring, so he had her get in touch with the jeweler and setup a first meeting and he took over from there. He hit it off with the jeweler and I think the 2 of them designed a great ring. I call it "sparkles" and every night she gets tucked into my jewelry armoire.

I was just 2 weeks shy of my 19th birthday when we began dating and by the time we marry we'll have been together for almost 9 years! We survived a long distance relationship with him going to school in Boston and I attending the University of Colorado. Thank goodness we're both from the same town and came back to each other in the end.

I am sooo using the line, "We'll have a margarita in your honor." I came on today because my FI and I just found out that one of our groomsman and bridesmaid (they're married to each other) are pregnant and their baby is due the week after our wedding! Needless to say, they won't be making it, which is a bummer because we'd love for them to be there. We've been fortunate enough to get considerate heads-up from guests that received our STDs and can't come. They weren't nasty about it, but it's still a downer when you're getting all the "noes" and not really hearing about any "yeses." In the beginning, we thought hands-down we'd have 100+ people at the wedding, but with the way the economy has been it's hard to say if even 50 people will end up showing. However, I'd rather have a small wedding in a place that makes me smile, than a large wedding at some wedding hall in northern NJ (think Real Housewives). I'd be miserable if I had to spend double the money on a wedding that's going to end up like the 15+ weddings we've been to in the past 2 years. In fact, the weddings I'm most excited for are the weddings that take us away from NJ. We've got friends marrying in Vail, CO, Newport, RI and L.A., CA and we're so excited to go to each one of them. I'm not going to forget a wedding in the Rockies or any other wedding I have to fly to. Yes, they're expensive, but I love traveling, which is why I'm doing this DW in the first place. In short, the nasty things those people are saying is more of a reflection about them than it is about you. None of us brides are selfish and ungrounded. We just happen to want a wedding experience that weeds out all the "haters" and leaves us with the folks who love life and really want to be there.

I would've loved to have had my wedding at an adults-only resort. I'm not crazy about kids (definitely not having any anytime soon) and I really didn't want to have them around the resort where I marry. However, with that said, we did visit 2 adults-only resorts on our site visit (Secrets Capri and Royal Hideaway Playacar) and found that it was a little too "honeymooner/wedding anniversary" for the wedding. Yes, they were very romantic, but I felt like our guests would feel awkward being amongst so many honeymooners and we may ruin the resort's guests' time if we're loud and party a little too much. I'd say the vibe for an adults-only is definitely more quiet, sophisiticated and, at times, elegant, but it could mean a more low-key wedding, which I have a feeling I won't be having. The nice thing about a resort like Paradisus is that they have an adults-only pool (you do pay extra to use it since it's part of the Royal Service package) but if guests want to get away from other guests' kids, they do have it as an option. If you find a resort that you love but it's not adults-only, check and see if they have an area that caters to adults-only. Guests may appreciate some peace and quiet away from the loud and energetic youngsters. Best of luck in your search!

Your slideshow makes me happy that I booked Elizabeth Medina for my wedding! She really is talented, and I'm hoping that in the end I'll be happy I picked her despite the really high price.

I didn't even know you could insure your wedding until I began diving into the whole DW research and came across a lot of people who were getting wedding insurance. What's wedding insurance? Wedding insurance are policies specifically designed to protect you from financial loss in the event your wedding must be cancelled or postponed due to circumstances beyond your control, or if one of the major elements of your wedding (e.g., photographs, wedding attire, and/or gifts) is lost or damaged. For instance, if your wedding dress is lost or damaged in the process of it being shipped or flown to the destination, you're covered. If the photographers fail to show or if they go out of business and you're forced to book a more expensive photographer as a result, you're covered. If a natural disaster or "Swine Flu"-like event occurs, you're covered on any lost deposits. If in the midst of your frenzied wedding day your wedding bands are lost, you're covered. I think you get the picture. Usually you tailor the coverage to fit your needs. Not everyone spends the same amount on their wedding, so some may find they need more coverage than others. In short, I think it's worth looking into. Your wedding is a huge financial investment. You'll probably spend as much, if not more, on your wedding as you would on your car, and your car is insured, so do the same for one of the most memorable days of your life. Wedding insurance premiums can range from $150 - $1,000. There are many vendors that sell wedding insurance. I myself am going with Travelers, since they seem to be a little more well known and well-established. You can find more about them by visiting: Wedding Insurance | Travelers Wedding Protector Plan. Here are some other articles to read if you wish to know more: Wedding Channel About.com Top Reasons for Wedding Claims Wedding Insurance Catches On

Jennib31, Most of our friends/fam were really excited but we had some family that blew the whole Swine Flu scare out of proportion and out of sheer ignorance are still afraid to go down in April 2010, which is a whole year after the scare even took place! We also have some family members that won't be able to travel there based on their health condition or that they live too far away. Some family were even concerned about a certain family member of ours that's an alcoholic and doesn't do to well in an all-inclusive resort where you can drink all day long. You'll never be able to please everyone, so just stick to your guns and have the wedding you want to have. In the end, all that matters is that you're happy.

DaniellaP, I'm marrying April 9, 2010 and I think only 2 people have booked out of the 100+ guests that we've sent STDs to. Most people aren't going to start booking until the invites get sent out and even then, they'll probably wait until about 3-4 months before the wedding - when things really get down to the wire. Plus, a lot of people are probably counting on things that are out of your control. Some people may be worried about getting laid off at work, so they want to hold off and see how the economy is before they shell out $1K+ on airfare, hotel and all that fun stuff. Others might not be sure if their schedule will permit it. We have friends that just opened a business and are waiting to see how the business does before they decide whether the whole fam should book or just a few of the kids. So don't stress... If people haven't booked by January, then I'd start to fret. Besides, your WC probably won't need to know specifics about the headcount until right around then anyway. Everything will turn out fine.

I wasn't really going to spend much on a videographer until I spoke to some of my friends who recently got married. I've probably attended 20+ weddings in the past 3 years and every single bride said she was happy she had a videographer. Some even said they wished they had allocated more of the budget to the videographer. Pictures capture a moment but videography allows you to relive the moment. Naturally, I've never wanted to really sit there and watch another bride's wedding video, but now I realize that it's completely different when it's your wedding and you want to see parts of your big day that you may have missed or can't really remember because your head was spinning in a million different directions. I now realize that we should have videography for our wedding, although I'm still hesitant to spend too much. I'm in search of a good videographer, although we've already thrown nearly $6K towards the photographer, that I'm just not sure what's left in the videography budget. But for those of you wanting to scrap it altogether, remember that this is a day that you're spending months planning for, the last thing you want is regretting that you didn't spend a few hundred extra to capture the moments on film. After all, you'll probably never throw a party like this one again!

I'm so glad to see these great reviews! I just sent him the deposit today for our April 9, 2010 wedding and I can't wait! Music is one of the most important things for me and our guests. Nothing ruins a wedding like bad dancing music or a DJ that can't emcee.

Ktchi, Everything with Paradisus takes a while, but if it's been a week, I'd email them again. Sometimes Perla wouldn't get my emails or would forget to respond, so I'd be sure to email her a few days after the initial email just to make sure she was on top of things. Normally, though, she wouldn't go more than 3-4 days before answering emails, but sometimes she gets really busy down there with all the weddings they have.

ebredhawk: Yep, Kleinfeld is the place where the "Say yes to the dress" show is filmed. Funnily enough, I've never seen the show! I've heard the girl who helped me out is on the show: Audrey Pisani. I had her full attention for the 1.5 hours I was there. It took me 30 minutes to select dresses with my sis and about 45 minutes to try on 10-15 dresses. The last 15 minutes I was basically finalizing my decision, which wasn't too hard to make. There was another Nicole Miller dress that was to die for, but it wasn't very wedding-y. The secret is trying not to describe it to the FI! I'm so bad at keeping secrets!

MUA = makeup artist Click http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t2690 to see other abbreviations/acronyms.

I'm totally in love with my dress and I found it on a whim at Kleinfeld's in NYC (well known for the show "Say 'yes' to the dress"). The designer is a French duo (Amarildine) and Kleinfeld is the only place in the country that sells their designs. The best way for me to describe the dress is "shipwrecked mermaid." It's 100% silk, which is the most breathable material making it a perfect choice for DW in a hot climate. It's unlike anything I've ever seen and the entire bottom portion is actually hand-painted and stitched. The dress is originally $5,700 but I got it at a sample sale and ended up paying only $999 + tax! I hardly need any alterations done to the dress. I'm in love! Here's the dress on a model: Here are my bridesmaids dresses. The color I chose is tangerine. The designer is Jenny Yoo and the material is crinkle silk chiffon. I chose this dress because it's the lightest, most comfortable dress that my sister and I tried on in our search. It's totally a dress you can wear again, and I'm not just saying that! (Ignore the model's ugly hairdo.)

Hey randp8910, I highly suggest sending out STDs, especially if you need a passport to get there. I also highly recommend having a wedding website and putting the link on your STDs. This gives people a chance to start planning in advance, plus it gets them excited for the wedding. Not many people have a chance to do a DW, and most are excited for it. The STDs is a great way to get them in the mood for a Caribbean fiesta and it gets you a little more organized.

Hey Rachel! I was fortunate enough to visit Paradisus in early June with my FI, his family and my fam and we took tons of pictures. We also had a chance to witness a few weddings at the resort because the resort never stops having weddings! In some instances, there were 2 weddings on the same day, but they took extreme precaution to make sure the brides never saw each other and didn't feel like they were having their wedding in a wedding factory. The beach terrace is the best location, by far. It's probably one of the most private locations in the resort (apart from the ballroom) and it has the best view. I checked out 2 other resorts in the area (one of them was the only 5-diamond adults-only resort in the RM/Cancun area) and the beach terrace venue had them all beat. If you want to see pics of the resort, email me at [email protected] and I'll send you the link for my pics. Another recommendation is to check out TripAdvisor and see the pics posted there. TripAdvisor is how I picked out Paradisus. I pretty much researched every resort in the area and Paradisus came highly recommended. PS: I LOVE the main pool and the beach. Probably one of the best beaches I've ever been on.

Hi Ktchi, The room block is just the rate that Paradisus is giving us per person ($150pp for the base room). I am using a travel coordinator (Cardinal Tours), which is owned and operated by family friends. They'll be handling everything from airfare, hotel and excursions. But, if our guests don't want to use Cardinal Tours, they can just call Paradisus and say that they're guests of our wedding and they'll be guaranteed that lower rate until Feb 2010 when the room/rate block expires. In order to get this room block, we had to put down a deposit that eventually goes towards the banquet/reception. There are certain stipulations about booking, such as if we don't meet booking 85% of the 50 rooms we requested, then Paradisus reserves the right to only give us free nights but not with the Royal Service option. I recommend a travel agent simply because the guests can contact them instead of you about all things travel related. You've got enough to worry about when it comes to planning the wedding, the last thing you need to do is field the same questions over and over about how to go about booking the trip. And right now roundtrip airfare flights are pretty cheap! We saw a Tuesday through Tuesday flight for $198 non-stop! Also, I highly recommend setting up a wedding website with info for your guests about sights to see, contact info, links to travel documents, etc. It's a great resource that will keep you organized and something guests can keep referring back to. Our website is: Jehda & Ken and it cost $30 for the year and we did all the work. Can't get more economical than that!

Hello fellow April brides! I'm getting married April 9, 2010. I sent out about 60 STDs last month and am still continuing to send out more, go fig. We'll be marrying at the Paradisus RM in Mexico and can't wait! We visited the resort in early June as a site visit along with both our families. I know the wedding books say that anywhere between 30-50% of the people you invite will RSVP "no" so we're clueless as to how many can actually make it. Either way, we're stoked! So far I've got the dress (Kleinfeld's in NYC), the bridesmaids dresses, the photog, the DJ and we're flying down the minister to do the ceremony in Mexico. He'll write on paper that we were married in the US ahead of time (even though we won't have) and he'll do the actual ceremony down there. He's a friend of the fam, so he was willing to accommodate us in this way. All I need to book is the videographer and the MUA. If I can get this done by the end of the month, I'll be on pace. According to the DW checklists, all vendors must be booked by the end of April in order to be on pace. We have the invites picked out and will probably mail them out in November. We know that's a little early but we want to give people enough of a head start. We setup the website to help people out with making reservations, etc. and we have travel coordinators that will book the airfare, hotel and excursions for the guests who don't want to be bothered with doing it themselves. We're using a wedding consultant (she cowrote The Knot's Destination Wedding book) to recommend vendors to us, however I'm finding that I'm not really using her recommendations, it's more for peace of mind. I gotta say, I'm loving this whole planning bit! So much fun!