Kait and Scott's Wishes Wedding YCG/YC Marina 4/28/13

[paigeturner]

Phew... That rant wasn't that bad... I have seen worse!

I totally understand how you feel, we originally had a small guest list of about 30-40 people, then my dad and dfs dad kept inviting people! lol Not that I mind as they are all paying for their own flights and accommodation, its just the meal at the wedding that we will be paying for. (We is - My mum and dad and DFs mum and dad) DF and I have paid for some stuff too!

We now have 70-80 guests coming from the UK! crazy! lol As long as your happy with your venue then I'm sure if you had to tweak the guest list some people wouldn't mind. It is a head ache though! Good luck with everything!



Faye

xxx

I know this problem isn't unique, but it's nice to know that I'm not alone in my stress/headache! One of our biggest things that we wanted to spend a lot of money on was the food, so that's why I was getting all worked up over it...it'll work out though, you're right I can't believe you have that many people coming from the UK!!! I think we're just going to go with the long list for now. The more I look at it, the less people I think will come. I think we might actually be at 80-100 people instead of the 140 thankfully, it's just the gesture of sending it! My mother and stepfather are helping us pay for most of the wedding, my father and stepmother haven't really offered and don't seem to thrilled about maybe possibly helping, but whatever! I'm just glad to have my mom and stepdad supporting me and wanting to be a part of everything!

PS, I'm glad you didn't think my rant was too bad

 

[Icecoldpenguin]

no worries about the rant we all will rant that is why we have these things! LOL I am glad I have a small guest list and maybe I am a bad person but I don't mind not inviting certain people.

Teresa

 

[paigeturner]

no worries about the rant we all will rant that is why we have these things! LOL I am glad I have a small guest list and maybe I am a bad person but I don't mind not inviting certain people.

Teresa

Thanks And it totally doesn't make you a bad person! I really wish I could have a small list, I just have a giant immediate family...I can't wait to see how many are on the guest list for my at-home reception, it's going to be insane!

 

[paigeturner]

After a lot of minor freak outs and doing and re-doings of the guest list, my mother, DF and I have finally come to the conclusion of "we're only inviting who we want to invite." If we didn't do it this way, we'd be spending money we didn't have, and it's not like we won't be having a celebration at home with everyone else! Besides, my immediate family and very close friends are the only people who would actually want to attend our Disney wedding without complaining about having to travel, so I'm sparing myself and everyone the drama! Before I go to work tomorrow afternoon, I'm calling DFTW and starting the process! We have our guest list, our date, our preferred venues (I'm still debating a few of them), and I'm ready! I even have some pictures of my ideas and inspiration for everyone to look at, woohoo!

So here's what I'm thinking for date/venues..
Date: End of April 2013
--I know I said I wanted January or March, but the very end of April now seems to be the best time for immediate family to come, so we're going with it!

Possible Venues:
Ceremony:
Wedding Gazebo @ the Yacht Club (my favorite area!)
I was also going to ask about Port Orleans French Quarter courtyards or the Casitas Courtyards at Coronado Springs, but I think I should stick with my initial places since I've ALWAYS wanted them!

Reception:
Croquet Lawn: I love it there, plus I don't know where else I could fit that many people that was outside in the Boardwalk/Beach Club area without using Shipwreck Beach since DF has a huge aversion to sand.

Tower of Terror Courtyard: This one is for DF, I'm not sure about doing a reception in a park since there are so many stipulations and extra expenses. I'd rather have outside photography and stick with my Boardwalk/Beach Club area. He just wants me to look into this one, and I'm going to! This would be an AWESOME place for a reception though, I just don't know how it would work out.

Welcome/Dessert Party:
Italy Isola/Isola West Plaza

Guest List: We got it down to 130, but we're almost 100% sure 30-40 people won't come, making it much more affordable and giving me my Yacht Club Gazebo ceremony! (I think the guest maximum is 120 there?)

My favorite color is orange, so we just had to have it as a part of the wedding decor! So, our colors are going to be orange and aqua. I am obsessed with bright colors. Anyway, here's my inspiration for an aqua/orange wedding!

I love this cake...

LOVE this setup for the ceremony with the brown chairs/umbrellas...

Some more inspiration..

I might want to add some plum/purple accents into the decor, but I am sticking with these two colors because I love them! Weeee!

 

[roxysmum123]

Joining in!

Stick to your guns about that guest list, you've got an entire crew of Dis'ers to back you up!

Love the inspiration board too, can't wait to follow along with this one!

 

[Lulu83]

Hi, just joining in!

Your plans are sounding great so far. I love your colour scheme, it's a little similar to ours (orange, pink and lime green).

And I hear you with the guest list woes, that's one of the reasons we've decided to elope! Although we'll have to deal with it when we have our at home reception..

Looking forward to reading along with your updates

 

[paigeturner]

Joining in!

Stick to your guns about that guest list, you've got an entire crew of Dis'ers to back you up!

Love the inspiration board too, can't wait to follow along with this one!

I'm so glad I've got my Dis crew Thanks for joining in!

Hi, just joining in!

Your plans are sounding great so far. I love your colour scheme, it's a little similar to ours (orange, pink and lime green).

And I hear you with the guest list woes, that's one of the reasons we've decided to elope! Although we'll have to deal with it when we have our at home reception..

Looking forward to reading along with your updates

I love bright colors, so your color choices are a-mazing! I am getting to the point of eloping now, wait until you read my next post ugh!! But thanks for following along!

 

[MrsDrewsky]

Your inspiration photos are lovely. Can't wait to read more

 

[Fay]

Yay, for you on the guest list!

Your inspiration photos look beautiful! The colours are very pretty together! Cant wait to hear more!


Faye

XXX

 

[tric8783]

Sorry I seem to have dropped off for a minute! Love the orange/aqua/white, they look so great together! Are you going to have a daytime reception? Just wondering about that over on the Croquet Court- that would be super fun to see!! April should be really good for warmth but not bad humidity too!

Def stick to your guns on your guest list, we were at 80, we crept up to about 130, and we are still inviting 130 but I'm hoping we don't get more than 80! I'm so anxious to find out how our numbers are going to pan out!

We are using UK Upper and Lower for our DP- we had too many for I think Italy West and not enough people for Italy Isola. Would be awesome if you can have one there but there are restrictions apparnetly!

Yay for making your plans more solid!!

 

[paigeturner]

Your inspiration photos are lovely. Can't wait to read more

Thanks!! I'm obsessed with my inspiration photos!

Yay, for you on the guest list!

Your inspiration photos look beautiful! The colours are very pretty together! Cant wait to hear more!


Faye

XXX

Thank you thank you! The guest list got even shorter thank goodness! So glad you love the colors!

Sorry I seem to have dropped off for a minute! Love the orange/aqua/white, they look so great together! Are you going to have a daytime reception? Just wondering about that over on the Croquet Court- that would be super fun to see!! April should be really good for warmth but not bad humidity too!

Def stick to your guns on your guest list, we were at 80, we crept up to about 130, and we are still inviting 130 but I'm hoping we don't get more than 80! I'm so anxious to find out how our numbers are going to pan out!

We are using UK Upper and Lower for our DP- we had too many for I think Italy West and not enough people for Italy Isola. Would be awesome if you can have one there but there are restrictions apparnetly!

Yay for making your plans more solid!!

I totally disappeared this weekend, so no worries! We REALLY lowered out guest list, and are definitely planning on a daytime ceremony/reception to cut costs. Croquet is no longer happening I'll explain it in my next post, but it seriously makes me want to cry! AHH! 130! It is so easy to get up that high...I hope only 80 come like you're planning, keep me posted!

The DP locations are totally up in the air, and depends on what Disney tells me. Italy West and Eau de France are our top ones I think, I don't know..I keep finding conflicting information about guest minimums/maximums and really just need to ask my consultant about it. We'll see!

 

[paigeturner]

This weekend has been extremely eventful, and I'm finally kind of sort of getting to where I want to be with the initial plans. Here it goes!

I received a call from my consultant, Kristi Davis, on Thursday, and the conversation was helpful, but I was so unprepared for it! Plus, I got some blah news--the Croquet Lawn will no longer be available in 2013 for Food and Beverage events, so no reception! I asked about the Tower of Terror Courtyard for DF, and the maximum guest count is 60, so nope! Even so, there were so many stipulations with that location that I really don't care to bother with it. I also asked about the Casitas Courtyard, and she told me how beautiful it was there...but how ugly the backup location is. BLAHHH! The last option she gave me (other than a ballroom, which I really don't want as my first choice), was the Yacht Club Marina. Since I'll have too many people for The Attic (which I am absolutely in love with now that I can't have the Croquet Lawn), this seems like a good option.

Aside from my Croquet Lawn letdown, it was going pretty good. But then, Kristi asked me the big question..how many people we were planning on inviting. I was all proud of myself since I had whittled the guest list down from an atrocious number to 110-120 with only 90-100 expected to attend. But then, when Kristi told me 100 people would put me at 30K plus, I think my face looked like this... I ended the call by telling her I had to play around with the guest list more before I could ask any more venue questions.

So, now we got our initial guest list down to 85, and are only expecting 65-75 to come. It may not be much less than before, but we're trying to make up for it in other ways. Instead of a lunch or dinner reception, I think I'm going to go with a brunch buffet after a 10 am ceremony. I definitely still want my dessert party, especially if the reception is going to be super early! I'm going to call Kristi tomorrow or the next day to get more information and actually have a list of questions to ask this time!

Side note: I wish I could eat this for breakfast tomorrow. If only Sunshine Seasons @ the Land Pavilion was right around the corner, *sigh*.

One more thing, I went out to dinner with my parents, stepparents and DF's parents tonight, and DF's mother mentioned the fact that the date I chose for the wedding was the same day as his sister's birthday, and that she was not happy about it. I laughed, which may have been inappropriate, but I didn't know if she was kidding or not! And, I really didn't know that it was his sister's birthday! I asked DF about it in the car on the way home, and he said he'd rather not have it on her birthday, so I of course started thinking of the weeks before and after that, but they just won't work! Once he saw me getting all panicked and stressed he said it wasn't a big deal, but is it really? We can change the day I guess, but chose that so it would be easiest for our guests to travel to our wedding (certain very important family members can't travel in May because of work, and the week before is still spring break-y busy). Who knows, I'll probably change it now.

 

[LittleKittyMarie]

Just caught up on your PJ. Going back a page, I really love your inspiration pics. Especially the ceremony image with the umbrellas that is such a good idea. Sounds like you guys are really putting a lot of thought into your locations. My DF and I were having similar conversations just this past weekend as well. I'd so love to do a tower of terror courtyard reception, but we both are having difficulty getting over how it would need to be 90 minutes after park close... So late!

About your DF's sister, if you couldn't change your date would the family appreciate if you at least paid a small tribute to his sister's birthday, with a small cake or something else? Just a thought. Looking forward to reading more!

 

[NoOrdinaryPrincess]

I'm sorry to hear about the sister's birthday. I agree with idea of holding it on the date that you want, and if that person shows up, finding a small way to honor them. You could order a mini cake or just have the DJ or the person making the speeches announce it and sing Happy Birthday or something.

 

[paigeturner]

Just caught up on your PJ. Going back a page, I really love your inspiration pics. Especially the ceremony image with the umbrellas that is such a good idea. Sounds like you guys are really putting a lot of thought into your locations. My DF and I were having similar conversations just this past weekend as well. I'd so love to do a tower of terror courtyard reception, but we both are having difficulty getting over how it would need to be 90 minutes after park close... So late!

About your DF's sister, if you couldn't change your date would the family appreciate if you at least paid a small tribute to his sister's birthday, with a small cake or something else? Just a thought. Looking forward to reading more!

So glad you like the umbrella idea! I figure it's a good way to add some more color to the Yacht Club Gazebo area, which I hear they are refurbishing this year? Who knows! The whole 90 minutes after the park closes thing makes it so difficult. When I talked to my consultant she said it's something they'd have to further discuss with DHS before saying they could actually do it, and it just seemed like too much of a pain. But it is so stinkin' pretty! I'm definitely going to do something for DF's sister...she doesn't like a lot of attention, so I think I'll send her some gifts and a cake to her room? Or something like that, I don't know!

I'm sorry to hear about the sister's birthday. I agree with idea of holding it on the date that you want, and if that person shows up, finding a small way to honor them. You could order a mini cake or just have the DJ or the person making the speeches announce it and sing Happy Birthday or something.

Thanks for understanding! I always wanted to do something for her, and like I said, she doesn't like a lot of attention, so I'm going to do something small but fun for her! I hope she comes, and that she knows I definitely want to make her feel special too!

 

[tric8783]

Hi there! I had Kristi too and she was really great to work with in the beginning stages!!

The YC Marina actually sounds really awesome! There is also a patio over there, Asbury I want to say- might technically be at the BC? Bethie is having I believe her farewell breakfast there or maybe a tea, but she posted pictures of the space on her PJ and on my PJ to show me too. I think the space is really pretty!! Looks like it's out of the way, you wouldn't need much decor, etc. Maybe ask her if they will let you have a reception there too!

As for the sister's bday- ugh. Our wedding is on my sister's anniversary. I asked her before hand if she minded, she told me she couldn't care less, etc. As planning got further underway, she got more vocal that she actually DIDN'T like that I was getting married the same day. Drama! haha I would say if you have any way to change the date, do it. Honestly, I know it's terrible to say but choose a weekend in May when not everyone will come- it will decrease your numbers! That way you are inviting everyone and you won't be upset if they can't come (you'll actually be glad when some of them RSVP no!) lol
We were trying to plan for April vacation so all the kids could come etc. We couldn't get the locations we wanted so I bit the bullet and moved to an off weekend knowing we'd still invite them and tell them we understood if they couldn't come and wouldn't be upset- now knowing everything associated and my stress levels, I'm glad our count is lower and we didn't plan the wedding when it was more crowded so that more people could come. Your wedding is also one of the only times you're allowed to be selfish and have your own day, even if she doesnt need much attention!

I love the idea of a brunch reception and have debated requested brunch food for our dinner reception. haha I know DF wouldn't go for it, but YUM! I definitely think if you don't do much decor and you have a brunch buffet, you can have 100 people for less than 30k. It just depends how much floral you're going to want, if you'll want to rent chairs, how much food you want etc, but you can make it work. When I was talking to her, she told me the Nutcracker ballrooms were straight up plain/ugly and it would take us a good 60k to make it look good. Sooo after seeing pictures from other people's site visits I don't think that's totally true. I know she's there to help but if you can visit anything first or ask if anyone else has and their pictures, I'd look at those before you totally discount somewhere Also, we were told originally we couldn't get married on any beach- disney wasn't offering them at alll anymore. Come to find out during our PS, we couldve gotten married on Shipwreck Beach or Luau Beach at the poly- ugh! I wouldn't be surprised if once your planner is assigned they tell you CL is available again.
Really I love the patio, you should try to check it out!

Sorry that was a really long post!

 

[DisneyEverAfter]

Love your inspiration board! & sorry to hear about his sister.. I think you should do what you want or you may regret it after.. I wanna hear more about your planning!

 

[enchantedream88]

Just joining in! I'm in the beginning phases of brainstorming a DFTW, and the hardest parts so far have been narrowing down guest list & determining budget (since we'll probably have to pay for most of it ourselves), so I understand the frustration there.

Looking forward to following along!

 

[rrali33tt]

One more thing, I went out to dinner with my parents, stepparents and DF's parents tonight, and DF's mother mentioned the fact that the date I chose for the wedding was the same day as his sister's birthday, and that she was not happy about it. I laughed, which may have been inappropriate, but I didn't know if she was kidding or not! And, I really didn't know that it was his sister's birthday! I asked DF about it in the car on the way home, and he said he'd rather not have it on her birthday, so I of course started thinking of the weeks before and after that, but they just won't work! Once he saw me getting all panicked and stressed he said it wasn't a big deal, but is it really? We can change the day I guess, but chose that so it would be easiest for our guests to travel to our wedding (certain very important family members can't travel in May because of work, and the week before is still spring break-y busy). Who knows, I'll probably change it now.

My boyfriend's brother got married on his birthday. It is very kind of you to consider changing the date, but they def did not think twice about it ( and my boyfriend and his brother are really close and are best friends). It is sometimes a challenge planning a wedding--trying to make it fit perfectly in to everyone's schedule is tough. At first he was a little annoyed that he had to share his birthday (and will have to share it forever). But that passed and he used it as an opportunity to tease his brother and future SIL every chance he got. He would say " now every year you cant celebrate my birthday because you have to celebrate your anniversary" lol Unless she is celebrating a monumental birthday like 21, 30, 40 etc. then I wouldn't go to too much trouble in rearranging your entire wedding (especially since it seems so inconvenient for your guests).

I baked a cake for my boyfriend and brought it to the hotel where all the guests were staying. After the reception I brought it out and everyone sang happy birthday and shared some cake. He didn't expect that at all. If you don't change the date, maybe get a small cake for her and have people sing. I am sure you can fit in some sort of surprise at some point during the day. If you feel really bad,yYou could even send her some sort of present to her room wishing her a happy birthday and how happy you are to share your special day with her blah blah blah lol I know Disney has lots of surprises to send to someone's hotel room for special occasions.

Don't get too stressed about it. She will get over it eventually, and if she doesn't as soon as she gets to Disney I am sure she will def forget all about it! Happy wedding planning!

 

[paigeturner]

Oh my gosh, I'e been gone for SO LONG! I've been so busy...DF and I just moved into an apartment together AND we went to Disney for a while in between the last post and now! I'm ashamed with myself for having been away from the boards for so long! I did read everyone's posts and wanted to say thank you so much for all of the support with the birthday thing...and for all of your feedback . His sister is still super angry about the birthday thing, as are his parents. DF is well into the process of becoming a police officer, and we found out that that weekend is really the only time we can have the wedding anyway--he will be at the very end of his field training, which is the only time they can really get off. She's just going to have to deal with it! Things are still semi-early in the planning stage, but a lot has tentatively changed. My mother and I actually saw an event at the Yacht Club Marina and fell in love with it...and it was at night. We both decided that we have to do a dinner. I will absolutely cut in other departments like floral to make this happen!

While we were in Disney, my family and friends threw us a surprise engagement party!!!!!!! We were staying at Port Orleans Riverside and they had all convinced me that I had to get my friend to the pool for a surprise birthday party for her (her birthday was in 2 days). DF and I got her to the pool thinking we had been the ones surprising her, but then we found out it was actually for US! I was a little confused at first....it even took her explicitly saying "NO! THE PARTY IS FOR YOU GUYS!" for me to get it! We had amazing time! A friend took pictures with his Nikon, and as soon as I get them I'll post them! Just wanted to give a small update since I was MIA for so long