atalanta

@Tori, Nice save..... I was going to announce my wedding party, but I think I won't be doing that now..... Thanks! Great tip!

Thanks, Tori, I feel amazing, and everyone has noticed the difference. I forgot to mention there is a support thread on BDW for people doing insanity. Be sure to check it out!

Hey Tori, Yeah, I've been doing insanity on and off. In my first three weeks I lost 15 pounds. Then I went on vacation, and its been hard to start back up again. Good luck!

You look gorgeous in that dress! Congratulations again!

Good afternoon Mrs Torrey Gundy, I am so happy for you. While you were wedding, I was with my FI and all of his family and friends celebrating his big 40. I promised myself that I would take some time to send positive thoughts your way, but everything just moved so fast. I know just how you feel about your hanger and the ribbon for your cutlery. I feel as though all of these months that I spent planning my FI's surprise 40th birthday treasure hunt, I still forgot somethings. I never got one of his friend's e-mail addresses, they found out about the party and were a little hurt for not being invited. I downloaded the top hit of 1971 onto my computer, which was no easy feat because I'm not an itunes user (never had an ipod--missed the whole phase) and left my computer at home. I forgot to cook the spring rolls and put out the kiwi. But, just as you, let go and could let the moment with your father sink in, I let go and enjoyed the amazingly beautiful Minnesota weather (go figure), which held up despite the promises of thunderstorms, my FI's friends, his family, the laughter of children, and most of all my FI's surprised look every time he got a treasure/party. Who knew wedding/party planning would give us life lessons? Can't wait to see your pictures! Enjoy the rest of your stay and get back to your hubby. We'll make do until those pictures arrive when you are back at home.

To the one and only "futuremrstgun", We are all so excited for you. Although we haven't met, you have such a sweet heart and darling personality. I know mrtgun knows just how lucky he is to have found you. Speaking for all of the women on this site, we wish you love, joy, peace, patience, growth and happiness in your marriage! You've worked hard, now sit back and enjoy! With much love, Your proteges We'll be thinking of you on your special day!

@ delgadot- That is so exciting! Who is going with you to try on dresses? I hope you have fun! I hear your guests get champagne while they wait. You'll have to tell me whether that's true or not. Good luck. I hope you find and can afford the dress of your dreams!

At first, I really regretted paying so much for these workout DVDs. But, I love INSANITY and Shaun-T. Now, I am only saying this because right now I am sitting at my desk and not panting through one of the workouts. Seriously, I lost a net of 10 pounds after completing only 2.5 weeks of the video (I had lost 15 but skipped a few days and went back up). Not even considering the weight loss, I am so much more fit. I had an appointment and forgot something and had to run four blocks up mountain (not uphill) home to get it and back. I ran the entire way!!!!!!! I was so happy, I almost cried. Even when I was skinny, I couldn't do that! My fitness numbers keep going up, and although I don't see revolutionary changes in my body, both me and my fiance notice small changes all over. All I can say is "Come on yall, let's go"!

Welcome arnriv, Always happy to have another july bride. You guys are just two days after us. Congratulations!

Congratulations, Mrs. Lewis! Can't wait to see your pics!

Well then Congratulations! Another great idea with the removable sash. I'm taking notes. Who was the original seller at DHgate?

Your dress looks fabulous! Maybe I should keep my trap shut because you seem to be happy with the dress, but is it me or does the sash look a little low compared to the original? Is that where you wanted it? Great idea about going for a full coverage sweetheart neckline. I'm going to have to do that when the time comes.

@ FutureMrsLewis, Your wedding is in two days. What ever happened with your dress? Did I miss the updated pics?

@JoanneIreland, I completely agree with what others have said. The dress is beautiful. However, the material of the sash really doesn't go with the dress. I would encourage you to ask them to remove the sash. If it bugs you now, it will always bug you. @lleow3, I would disagree with you about the catering to the consumer being "very nice of them". Businesses need to understand their clientele. When a business wants to attract customers from a different market, the business needs to understand their customers desires and needs. This is why American brides are flocking abroad for their weddings and their dresses. If China stops catering to the whims of American brides, I'm sure another market will emerge to attract that business.

@ Excillindy, Your wedding is going to be fabulous! I have the utmost confidence in Alisha and her staff to pull of an amazing production. I think the invites with an RSVP request and date will be an excellent way to remind your guests. As brides, we are so excited about our weddings. The wedding is in the forefront of our minds, but it just isn't so for everyone else. I work on my wedding a little every day and sometimes for hours at a time, but I hardly ever get in contact with Alisha. Usually, I just get on chat when I have questions for the ladies. From your posts, you guys seem to be more in touch with Alisha than we are. No wonder she's always checking in with us. I have an online notebook of ideas, some are not so solid as yet. I just kind of percolate on them and talk with my FI about them until they take shape. Then I add them to our concept questionnare. Alisha said she only needed it 6 months before so we've just been taking our time. @FoxyRoxy It is definitely possible to get your guest list down. We started out at over a 250 and are now down to about 168. I thought we were gonna stop there and take our chances but the fiance said last night he was thinking of cutting a few more. Plus I can't help thinking about this recession/depression in which we are headed. I'm leaning towards my dad's estimates that about half of the people we invite won't be able to make it. @Delgadot Wow! That is exciting. 15 people booked and you haven't even sent out invites yet. Since we were still working on our guest list we haven't even sent out our STDs yet. We were going to do the message in a bottle but as time has been moving ahead, we are now just considering doing an online STD from our wedsite at The Knot. No, we haven't picked accommodations yet. I think the hold up has been that we really want to stay at the a small Jamaican-owned hotel. The problem is that although it is priced like the Iberostar Beach, it is NOT all-inclusive. An all-inclusive plan is available, but that is extra. Although kids stay free, their meals are not. The resort has 50 rooms so it's likely that we could have the entire resort to ourselves. Plus, I have a significant amount of family on the island and guests are welcome for $20/day. We are trying to talk them down to match the Beach. If not we'll be headed to the Iberostars. I went virtual dress shopping with my sister last weekend. She went to Costco and texted me pictures of dresses from one of their traveling demos. I found a totally reasonable dress for $1400, 100% silk dutchess satin. This is my backup dress in case I can't find anything else I love in my budget or style. @ Excillindy talk about not seeing your wedding venue until the day of, I might not see my dress until it arrives. @mbjlove Your self-designed invites will be fabulous. No one is more into your wedding than you. Inspired by the planning page of the "futuremrstgun", I tried my hand at designing monograms and invites using powerpoint. We have two fabulous designs that we are just trying to narrow down. We are going to end up saving ourselves tons of money, and you will, too. So ladies, that's where we are: trying to send out our STDs, finishing up our wedsite, selecting invites and accommodations, and dress shopping. We have a lot of things in progress, but only the cake design decided. I was going to say and the venue, too, but we might have to move everything to the aqueduct/beach if our numbers run over. Is anyone planning an excursion with their group? Happy planning everyone and keep in touch!

@delgadot, How's the wedding planning coming along?

Hi Foxy, Sorry to hear that you won't be able to use HH. I unfortunately don't know of any venues off-hand, but if I see something, I will PM you. Are most of your guests on the island?

@FoxyRoxy30, I seemed to have misinformed you. I double-checked with Alisha this morning. Hummingbird Hall is no longer offering weddings off-site. Because my fiance and I had booked the off-site venue already for our ceremony, we will be able to have our reception there. I apologize for the misinformation, but this definitely explains why they didn't mention this option on the chat yesterday. All the best and happy planning!

Hi Foxy, The gazebo and aqueduct are listed as options on their website, but to be sure about those spaces accommodating larger numbers, I went back to the first e-mail I ever received from Alisha. The quoted excerpt follows. "130 persons is Hummingbird Hall's capacity; but there are a number of options: - Ceremony at the gazebo/beach/aqueduct and reception on Hummingbird Hall's Lagoon Deck if you are sure that your total numbers (including bride, groom, bridal party, children etc) will not exceed 130. - Ceremony at the beach/gazebo, and reception under a tented marquee at the aqueduct; we are more flexible about numbers at these locations, though there is a premium for these sites." So our backup plan, I would say is that we will be paying the premium. However, my upfront plan is to get the guest list down. This is why we haven't sent out the save-the-dates yet even though I've been planning this wedding since the end of last year. Right now my FI has 26 kids on his list that are not related to us or in the wedding. I'm going to try bargain those kids off-the list.

Welcome to the HH thread, Foxy Roxy. The coordinators at Hummingbird Hall can accommodate parties larger than 130 at the aqueduct or gazebo. It's just that it gets to be pretty pricey. If we end up going over, we will have to slim down our menu choices and do that option. I have my fingers crossed though. I know you haven't confirmed a venue yet, but I would encourage you to start looking at dresses, shoes, floral designs, tablescapes/centerpieces. It's never too early to do any of that. Best wishes to you in finding your venue!

@mjblove, Wow. We sound as if we are in the same place with planning and numbers, and I'm getting married two weeks before you and delgadot. My fiance and I are trying to trim down our guest list from 198 people. If only half can come like my dad suggests, we'll be ok. However, if more than 65% can make it, we are going to be in trouble because HH can only accommodate 130. We are hoping to finalize things this weekend so that we can send out our STDs. We were going to do the message in a bottle STDs but decided on an electronic STD from the wedsite we designed on The Knot. (I know HH has free wedsites, but I didn't want my guests seeing HH until the wedding.) I, too, am designing my own invitations. I was inspired by "futuremrstgun" on this site. I highly recommend her planning thread. After seeing what she was able to do with powerpoint, I decided to give it a try. We are really excited about the designs I made. Now, we just have to choose one. I'm sure you'll do just fine with your invitations, too! I still haven't picked a host hotel yet. I'd be interested in seeing where you end up and the value your TA can get for you if you are willing to share. Although I do have my bridesmaid dresses picked out, I haven't picked out my gown either. I found 4 dresses that I really like. When I go back to the states for Thanksgiving, I will head out with my mom and sister to try them on. delgadot, has a great idea of just meeting up at the resort restaurant for the rehearsal dinner. If we end up at an all-inclusive, I'd like to do that as well. Anything to keep the budget down!

Ladies, I fell off again this week. Thursday and Friday deadlines killed the momentum, but I'm gonna get back into it today. @anudrm, I know what you what you mean. Sometimes I feel so good about the work out, I think I should do it at night, too. I have no perm either so I've been wearing braids. Makes no sense for my hair to look fine and me to be a hot mess!

So this may be a little off topic but has anyone ordered or seen wedding dresses at Costco? Apparently, Kristie Kelly makes an exclusive Costco line. My mom was in Costco the other day and she said the dresses were really nice and were approximately $600-$1000 plus an additional 40% off. Unfortunately, this is a traveling vendor who may not be coming to Montreal's costco anytime soon. I'd love to just look at them and try them on in person. If anyone has any experience with this vendor, please do share.

So this may be a little off topic but has anyone ordered or seen wedding dresses at Costco. Apparently, Kristie Kelly makes an exclusive Costco line. My mom was in Costco the other day and she said the dresses were really nice and were approximately $600-$1000 plus an additional 40% off. Unfortunately, this is a traveling vendor who may not be coming to Montreal's costco anytime soon. I'd love to just look at them and try them on in person. If anyone has any experience with this vendor, please do share.

Congratulations, I am so happy for you. You are going to look fabulous!