Just to get a better picture

Okay everyone that submitted a deposit. You will be staying here.

And here is a link to an article about Rincon.

I'm still working on more stuff.

I know, I suck

I know that most people aren't hanging on to my every word here. Nevertheless I still suck for not updating in over a month. Of course I haven't actually finished that map either. It's been a little nuts outside of the wedding planning. Anyhoo.

Villa has been reserved. I decided that those that decided not to respond to me will have to find their own accommodations if they decide to grace Gil and I with their presence. I know I sound like an asshole when I put it that way and honestly, I meant it that way. A text, reply email, phone call, any little thing to show that there was a genuine interest would have been great. I don't do last minute. Do not tell me a week before the wedding that you want to put in to stay in the villa because it is not that simple.

Flights are up. Remember guys, you have to fly into Aguadilla in order to avoid a 2+ hour drive. And please let me know when you're thinking of flying in. My dad is doing the driving for free and I don't want him to strangle me because I'm sending him to the airport multiple times a day for days. He has to work too. Trying to make things smooth all around.

Other than that, I have decided to stop stressing. Whoever comes, comes and if I have to invite 10+ strangers in order to have my minimum 30 guests then so be it. I need to loose weight and all this stress eating is not helping.

Update Slacking

So with the move and trying to finalize little details here and there I have been a slacker on the update department. At least I can recognize this.

Anyway, I'm still waiting for the airfare prices to be released for November. Hopefully should be happening by this week. I suggest everyone get their flights asap because with fuel prices increasing I can only imagine it will only get more expensive with time. Gil and I will be out there from 11/8/11 - 11/14/11. These are also the dates that we'll have the villa (because it's tons cheaper to just rent for a full week than to rent day by day) Everyone can feel free to join us for as long or as little as you'd like.

I'd also like it if everyone coordinated with me on the dates/times they want to reserve flights for, just so I can make sure that my dad can accommodate pick up from the airport and stuff. I don't want to give him too much of an extra headache.

In the meantime please enjoy pictures of the villa we'll be staying in (which by the way is a 2 minute drive from where the wedding will be held) at http://www.rinconvillas.com/Photos.php

It is decided!!!!

After lots of back and forth the last few days between myself, Anita (the wedding planner), and some Gil, the wedding/reception location has been chosen. The ceremony will take place on Friday November 11th at 5pm on the beach at the Rincon of the Seas - Grand Caribbean Hotel. The reception will be in the Hotel itself.

I can barely put into words how excited and relieved I feel right now. It's all about finalizing the details once the contract is signed later today.

I haven't forgotten about finding stuff for you guys to do and see while you're there. I am actually putting a map together with the locations of everything and what kind of place it is ranging from coffee shops, to restaurants, bars, surf shops etc. Give me a little more time.

I'm tryin' not to become the 1st groomzilla!

So Sechel tells me she found a wedding planner who is handling all the necessities in PR and is coming up with quotes. So far we have the "easy on the wallet quote" and the "It's pricey but worth it quote". She tells me that the cheap one involves the ceremony and get together to be at a resturaunt on the beach. Looking at pix, it seems way too open and invasive to those not to there for us. Tourists and locals just running through our event with no remorse, which they should have none!

As soon as she got a few words in showing me pictures, I felt a little off put and shut it down completely. I'm not getting married and having a reception at no damn Sammy's Fish Box >: (

The second pricey spot looked awesome and had privacy for the wedding as well as reception for guest. I guess privacy demands payment. I'm ok with that for now. I figure, in my own opinion, if we're gonna do this, might as well do it right and memorable.

Maybe I don't need a best girlfriend?!

It seems I now have a wedding planner. In my dad's line of work he meets and makes connections with a lot of people. One of these, apparently, was a wedding planner that he worked closely with for Shania Twains wedding. So he calls her, he calls me, and hopefully by tomorrow she'll have the majority of the details worked out for me when it comes to the ceremony and the reception.

I'm nervous about it because I am one of those that feels if you want things done right you have to do them yourself, but at the same time and relieved because I don't have to do this myself! Now I can gorge on BBQ and beer in peace!

On a serious note, I am going to start looking up things to do while in Rincon so that you, my lovely guests, will have options other than laying on a gorgeous beach all day ;-)

The plan is taking shape

So it seems I may have to change our desired wedding date to that Sunday the 13th instead of Friday the 11th in order to best accommodate my budget as well as my sanity.

It seems that I can have almost everything (ceremony, reception/dinner) at the Villa Cofresi for way less than the small fortune everyone else was starting at.

Villa Cofresi back view

That and it looks like getting Casa Tamra for 11 people will cost us about $270 per person for the week which would be absolutely wonderful.

Casa Tamara

I so I guess it's all about telling people whether they can accommodate the change, and getting the deposits for the villa and it seems like we'll be all set!

Keeping my fingers crossed.

Maybe I should start meditating

The thoughts of the upcoming wedding crowd almost all of my thoughts because although I have done so many things, nothing has yet gotten done!

I talked to my dad so that he could look up locations, and generally help me, but he hasn't gotten back to me and it's been a week. I contacted a wedding planner and my budget was out of her range, she reccomended me someplace that was affordable but they only host weddings on Sundays which for now is out of the question. I have emailed a ton of places and only a handful have gotten back to me.

All this unknown is making me crazy. I just want to feel like there has been some progress made! The stress has given me a headache that just wont go away. This is one of those times when I almost wish I had a family willing to help pay for a wedding and a best friend to help me make the arrangements and decisions. I'm sure that at the end of the day, everything will turn out fine, but in the meantime I don't want to develop ulcers.

Humble in the rear view!

As I sit and watch TV, Sechel's clickity clacking seems more noticeable than before. She seems so excited as if I had just asked her yesterday for her hand. It bothers me none as her smiles fill the day with comfort and ease. As said down there, she spends most of her time checking out 1 or 2 things and preliminary budgeting. I feel selfish mentally, but I don't know exactly what to do!

While she has this running through her mind: :/

This is what's running through my mind: : )

I've always thought the womerns were better at this, and men just get in the way. She's already come up with budget saving ideas here and there and is doing such a good job not losing her head. I guess I'll add my input once in a while to show genuine interest (which I do by the way) in such a big event in our lives. But as always, she ecstatic, and I'm humble.

Slow and steady

I did the majority of my preliminary inquiries last night and got a good response back so it looks like my beach wedding plan is on the ball. I just have to get around to some of the big family members like mothers, grandmothers, etc.

Instead of working I've been spending all of my time researching hotels, and villas so that I can get ideas on the pricing. What I'm currently debating with is what kind of scene I'm inviting my guests to. I would like to have something nice and chill in Rincon not only because it's the area I'm most familiar with, but because I could probably get a lot of help from my dad with arrangements.

Rincon, however, is not a big busy area. It's a surf town, no big clubs, no mall, movie theatre etc. only restaurants, small shops, and bars (although I read that a lot of them are pretty good.) I worry that everyone will be bored. I mean personally all I want is to lay in beach water for the entirety of my stay but that may not be everyone else's idea of a good time.

I've been looking into San Juan because that's the big touristy area with buses and lots of shopping and nightclubs but a wedding there is so expensive and lets face it, I am nowhere close to rich.

So I worry, and I research, and I worry some more, and hopefully I can get the number of people willing to travel to see Gil and I tie the knot by the end of this month so that I can really get the figures together.

Now that I think about it, I might just give up and go to City Hall after all :-I

And it starts

So Gil and I finally decided that being engaged for about six years is long enough and since we haven't killed each other yet we'll get married. After all this time together we have never quite agreed on the anniversary date so we think that 11/11/11 will be painless enough for memory purposes.

I had originally planned for us to get married sometime in 2012 and that it would be a City Hall deal with us meeting friends for a celebratory dinner afterwards. This weekend Gil brought up the option of a "destination wedding." In particular, one in Puerto Rico so that my dad and siblings can freely attend. Growing up, a wedding on a beach somewhere was what I wanted and now that I really think about it as a possibility it is completely exciting.

I assume the first step should be finding out how many people would actually be able to fly out to Puerto Rico on this particular weekend. I'm shooting for about 20 in total cause I know that it's a recession and people are falling on hard times. So the question is, will I be able to find a place that is right on the beach, not too far from civilization, where my guests will be able to stay for 3-4 days at about 250-ish per person. I think this sounds like a good general plan but then again, I have never planned a destination wedding or known anyone that has and so I don't know for sure.

I assume that today is will be the first day of a nine month headache. :-)