Amy & Jeff: 10/24/11 20th Anniv. Vow Renewal **8/4 - We surrender!**

[dolphingirl47]

After weeks of discussion, debate, frustration and tears, we are cancelling our DFTW .... and moving it to the Swan.

We became so frustrated with the difficulties of getting in touch with peopler, of Disney's rules and restrictions (especially the ones that are only arbitrarily enforced), and a million other little things, that we just gave up. The straw that broke the camel's back was Disney's insistence that we couldn't have our MK session on a Thursday due to EMH (never mind the fact that other girls here on the DIS DO get them on Thursdays even with EMH) and that because of that, our MK session wouldn't count towards our Wishes minimum. They made it impossible for us to do it on the day, and then said it wouldn't count because it wasn't on the day. Our planner (who was lovely but obviously overstretched in terms of couples she must be assigned to) instructed us to email the DFTW director to express our concerns, and we never even got the courtesy of a return call or email.

So, DFTW beat the magic right out of us, and we were going to call everything off. Then the lovely Joanne got me thinking about the possibility of having our VR at the Swan, and as I got in touch with Just Marry, various managers at the Swan, and the manager of the Wave (where we are now having our luncheon after the VR), I received prompt replies, helpful information and generally the kind of stellar service we'd expected but never received from DFTW.

We are now scheduled for 10/27 on Crescent Terrace at the Swan. Hopefully it won't rain, but I'm okay with their Atrium which is the back-up location. We are saving a TON of money, and I'm getting every single little thing my heart desires that we couldn't get and/or afford with DFTW. The only thing we are losing is the MK session, and we're going to do a bridal session at the Studios instead (TOT is my favorite ride and I've seen incredible photos from there lately!). And frankly, DFAP (namely Dara) has been wonderful to work with so we're happy to still be working with them for the shoot.

So there we are! We are looking forward to planning our VR again and are very happy about it!

Wow, that sounds like a big change, but I am glad that you are getting exactly what you want and that the new company is easier to deal with.

Corinna

 

[tinkerbell 766]

My sweet Amy - I really am sorry that you have been through so much frustration and heartache!!! Planning a VR should be a happy time and it is such a shame you have had this bad experience!!
I really hope that you now get the attention and help you so richly deserve in planning your special day. The Crescent Terrace is so pretty!!!
I am convinced that Karen and the team will bend over backwards to make your VR perfect. I am proud and honoured to have helped in a small way to get your dream back on track!!!
Much love to you, sweetie, and be sure to keep us updated with all your revised plans.

 

[pixie921]

Wow, that sounds like a big change, but I am glad that you are getting exactly what you want and that the new company is easier to deal with.

Corinna

Thank you, Corinna. So far, I am really pleased with all of my new vendors!

My sweet Amy - I really am sorry that you have been through so much frustration and heartache!!! Planning a VR should be a happy time and it is such a shame you have had this bad experience!!
I really hope that you now get the attention and help you so richly deserve in planning your special day. The Crescent Terrace is so pretty!!!
I am convinced that Karen and the team will bend over backwards to make your VR perfect. I am proud and honoured to have helped in a small way to get your dream back on track!!!
Much love to you, sweetie, and be sure to keep us updated with all your revised plans.

Joanne, you are such a doll. I wish I could tell you what a difference the change has made, and it really all started back when you did Carrie's podcast! You planted the seed, the idea that we should be having a different experience, and that has blossomed into what feels like the event we were wanting all along!

As far as an update on our plans, I am excited to say that as of today, we have our custom aisle runner ordered (eggplant with silver border and our logo painted in silver on it) and have secured Jason Angelini to photograph our day! I fell in love with the photos he did for Wendy & Eric's wedding last year and am thrilled that he's going to record our day as well.

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Sweet Amy - Very exciting to hear you have Jason photographing your day!!! I, too, fell in love with Eric and Wendy's photos and had we not already secured the fabulous Randy, I would certainly be looking in to the possibility of having Jason. Your aisle runner is going to look so pretty at the Terrace!!!
You certainly seem to be at peace with all the new plans - I am so happy for you!!!
Thank you for the sweet comments!!! I hope that by telling the truth on the podcast I may have prompted a few people to at least consider S/D as a viable (and affordable) option!!!

 

[April Elizabeth]

Amy,

It sounds like you made a good decision switching to the Swan. Best wishes to you!

 

[PinkSleepingBeauty]

As far as an update on our plans, I am excited to say that as of today, we have our custom aisle runner ordered (eggplant with silver border and our logo painted in silver on it) and have secured Jason Angelini to photograph our day! I fell in love with the photos he did for Wendy & Eric's wedding last year and am thrilled that he's going to record our day as well.

Yay for booking JASON!! We booked him aswell I can't wait for him to capture our day and I think their customer service is wonderful, they are so friendly and helpful
Great news about the aisle runner too

 

[pixie921]

Sweet Amy - Very exciting to hear you have Jason photographing your day!!! I, too, fell in love with Eric and Wendy's photos and had we not already secured the fabulous Randy, I would certainly be looking in to the possibility of having Jason. Your aisle runner is going to look so pretty at the Terrace!!!
You certainly seem to be at peace with all the new plans - I am so happy for you!!!
Thank you for the sweet comments!!! I hope that by telling the truth on the podcast I may have prompted a few people to at least consider S/D as a viable (and affordable) option!!!

Joanne, that's so funny about Jason being your other choice! If we hadn't booked Jason, we would've gone with Randy, LOL! We're so fortunate to have great photographers to choose from, even from so far away!

And we are definitely at peace with these plans. We haven't had one single second thought about it.

Amy,

It sounds like you made a good decision switching to the Swan. Best wishes to you!

Thank you!!

Yay for booking JASON!! We booked him aswell I can't wait for him to capture our day and I think their customer service is wonderful, they are so friendly and helpful
Great news about the aisle runner too

Natalie, I thought I remembered that you said you'd booked Jason! Yay! He's going to be making several trips to WDW that week, isn't he? Maybe he should just bring the family down and stay for a few days, LOL!

Today's update in our plans: We have arranged to have silver Chiavari chairs for our ceremony (sooo pretty!) instead of using them for the previously-planned reception at Ariel's. And we paid for our Studios Bridal Shoot today, too! So we're all set with that! We're doing it two days before the VR so I get to wear my dress twice that week!

 

[pixie921]

I have a fun update for today: we have officially booked Mickey and Minnie for our VR! I had to laugh when I printed the contract they sent, though ... it's SIXTEEN pages long! For a half hour with two characters! Say what you will about Disney -- they're thorough!

I don't know if I mentioned that we finally settled on transportation for the VR day. We'd originally wanted to use a Rolls Royce, but once we decided on the Swan, we thought it might be better to have one vehicle to basically transport all our guests back and forth between locations. So we settled on a Hummer limo from VIP Transportation Group. It will bring our moms over to the Swan (they're going to set some things up for the ceremony), then come and get Jeff, Travis and me so we can take photos before the ceremony, and then retrieve the rest of our guests in time for the VR. Afterward, it will basically repeat the pattern and deliver everyone back to BLT/CR for lunch at the Wave.

On a not-so-fun note, we did have one sort of unfortunate result of cancelling our DFTW event -- my best friend and her family lost their discount on their rooms at the CR. We knew that it would happen, and she and I discussed it before Jeff and I cancelled. I felt really conflicted about it (and never would've done it if they'd already purchased airfare, but her dh is dragging his feet on that), but she insisted that she wanted us to do what would make us happy. Plus, we are crossing our fingers that we'll be able to find a better discount than the one the room block would've given them.

They won't be coming if we can't get them a discount, and that makes me sad, but then again, with her dh not being a Disney fan (and he's definitely not close with us at all) and the just-revealed fact that her brother's wife is newly pregnant and due 4 days before our VR, we're a bit unsure if they'll actually be able to make it? It's especially true for her mom and grandfather who were planning on coming, too ... now her mom will have to choose between a Disney trip with two of her grandkids (it would be the kids' first time at WDW) vs. possibly missing the birth of the third!

 

[leonix8238]

On a not-so-fun note, we did have one sort of unfortunate result of cancelling our DFTW event -- my best friend and her family lost their discount on their rooms at the CR. We knew that it would happen, and she and I discussed it before Jeff and I cancelled. I felt really conflicted about it (and never would've done it if they'd already purchased airfare, but her dh is dragging his feet on that), but she insisted that she wanted us to do what would make us happy. Plus, we are crossing our fingers that we'll be able to find a better discount than the one the room block would've given them.

They won't be coming if we can't get them a discount, and that makes me sad, but then again, with her dh not being a Disney fan (and he's definitely not close with us at all) and the just-revealed fact that her brother's wife is newly pregnant and due 4 days before our VR, we're a bit unsure if they'll actually be able to make it? It's especially true for her mom and grandfather who were planning on coming, too ... now her mom will have to choose between a Disney trip with two of her grandkids (it would be the kids' first time at WDW) vs. possibly missing the birth of the third!

Have you looking into the Swan/Dolphin for your friend? It's a very nice hotel to stay in, the staff are excellent, you get all the Disney transportation benefits and EMH so it's just like staying on Disney property but cheaper!

If the Swan doesn't work you could look at some of the other on site properties for cheaper rates, I've heard good things about Buena Vista Palace.

I hope your friend manages to make the trip for you but even if she doesn't I'm sure you'll have a fantastic time. Plus when you get back you get to organise a girly evening looking at photos with a bottle of wine.

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Amy sweetie - Yay for booking the main mice!!! How exciting!!! I would have really LOVED to have them at our VR, but just couldn't justify the expense!!
I am sorry that there is some uncertainty surrounding whether some of your guests will make it to your VR!! I suppose they will have to make the decision which is right for them, but I am sure they will regret missing all the fun!!
You make me slightly nervous by saying that you have mothers going ahead to set things up for the ceremony!!! Does this mean that Karen and team will not do it? I only have programmes, fans and confetti bags to put onto the chairs, but assumed this would be done for us (though I admit I hadn't yet asked). Is this not the case? Do we have to set up these things ourselves????
I am sure that you are relieved that you do not now have the worry that the other poor brides have in relation to the construction work at the GF and/or WP!!!

 

[pixie921]

Have you looking into the Swan/Dolphin for your friend? It's a very nice hotel to stay in, the staff are excellent, you get all the Disney transportation benefits and EMH so it's just like staying on Disney property but cheaper!

If the Swan doesn't work you could look at some of the other on site properties for cheaper rates, I've heard good things about Buena Vista Palace.

I hope your friend manages to make the trip for you but even if she doesn't I'm sure you'll have a fantastic time. Plus when you get back you get to organise a girly evening looking at photos with a bottle of wine.

I suggested either the Swan or other options, and her husband would gladly stay anywhere that would save him money, even off-property. However, bff is quite adamant about staying "as close to the MK as possible" with her two kids since they only plan to visit MK and possibly the Studios in the 3 nights they're there. So I am on the lookout for a great code, or we will end up doing your second suggestion of a girl's night!

Amy sweetie - Yay for booking the main mice!!! How exciting!!! I would have really LOVED to have them at our VR, but just couldn't justify the expense!!
I am sorry that there is some uncertainty surrounding whether some of your guests will make it to your VR!! I suppose they will have to make the decision which is right for them, but I am sure they will regret missing all the fun!!
You make me slightly nervous by saying that you have mothers going ahead to set things up for the ceremony!!! Does this mean that Karen and team will not do it? I only have programmes, fans and confetti bags to put onto the chairs, but assumed this would be done for us (though I admit I hadn't yet asked). Is this not the case? Do we have to set up these things ourselves????
I am sure that you are relieved that you do not now have the worry that the other poor brides have in relation to the construction work at the GF and/or WP!!!

I know what you mean about M&M being so pricey ... I was looking at my spreadsheet, and aside from our ceremony, they're the costliest thing about our VR!

I'm sure that JM will put out your ceremony things -- I imagine all that's pretty standard. We have a bit more ... floral, tablecloths and ribbon, and the like, so we just assumed we'd need to put them out.

And I am relieved as you say! I feel so bad for the girls that are going through so much stress!

 

[PinkSleepingBeauty]

Hi Amy, sorry to hear about your friend possibly not being able to make it to the wedding. I keep worrying about our room block and wondering if there are better discounts out there but I have no clue!

Great news about booking Mickey & Minnie!

 

[pixie921]

Hi Amy, sorry to hear about your friend possibly not being able to make it to the wedding. I keep worrying about our room block and wondering if there are better discounts out there but I have no clue!

Great news about booking Mickey & Minnie!

Natalie, that room block thing was so confusing and frustrating to me -- I'm actually sort of relieved not to have to think about it anymore, LOL!

And I'm really excited about the mice -- it should be lots of fun to have them!

 

[pixie921]

Well, I think we finally have just about everything in place as far as vendors now. In the last few days, we've booked a videographer and ordered our cake.

We're going with Kat at Cinema Chic for the video. She's doing a 2-hour BluRay package for us, and I'm really excited about it! We initially weren't going to get a video, but Jeff pointed out that we were going to have beautiful music and both sides of the family together, all in one place, so it was something we should do. Once he put it that way, I had to agree.

And for our cake, we're using Buttercup Cakes in Kissimmee. I saw photos of a couple of cakes they did for someone on the cake thread on the restaurant board and they were beautiful -- very "Disney"! I came up with a design I liked and have been emailing back and forth with Dani, the baker, and I am really excited about it! And it's literally going to be half what it would've cost through Disney. We're having two different layers -- one chocolate with vanilla buttercream and the other marble with coffee buttercream. We're going to do more of a "ceremonial" cake cutting at the Swan and then rather than have them cut and serve the cake, they're going to cut it and put it into cake boxes for our guests to take with them, since we're going to lunch right after.

The only things sort of up in the air are the limo situation ... we're not sure if we want to stick with the Hummer, or get the Rolls, or nothing at all and just save the money ... and the Grand I for a fireworks cruise. Since we're not doing a dessert party or anything on the day of the VR, I thought it might be nice to book the Grand I for Wishes (actually, I think it would be "Hallo-Wishes" 'cuz it will likely be a MNSSHP night) that evening. Still debating that one.

So that's it -- it feels great to have so much settled in such a short amount of time. Now I get to move on to other fun stuff like our invitations and Mickey program fans! The paper I ordered from Cards & Pockets is supposed to arrive today, so I guess I'll be starting another project soon!

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Amy sweetie - the cake sounds yummy!!!!
It is a dilemma about the transport. Are all your guests staying on property. If so maybe they could just use Disney transport or taxis??
The cruise sounds great and I thought about doing one for a while but I have two people in our guestl list who are not the greatest fans of boats (one is quite scared of travelling on them) so, as I didn't want to make them feel uncomfortable or leave them out, we ditched the idea.
We will have to make do with fireworks viewed fron Narcossee's landing after the meal at Citrico's!!!

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Amy sweetie - Just checking in to see whether you have made any plans about what to do now that it seems certain that your MK portrait session has been cancelled. I am so sorry that you have to go through all this yet again!!! You have been so mucked about by Disney that it is enough to try the patience of a saint. My thoughts are with you sweetie!!!

 

[pixie921]

Amy sweetie - Just checking in to see whether you have made any plans about what to do now that it seems certain that your MK portrait session has been cancelled. I am so sorry that you have to go through all this yet again!!! You have been so mucked about by Disney that it is enough to try the patience of a saint. My thoughts are with you sweetie!!!

Hullo dear Joanne!! It's so sweet of you to pop in and check on me.

So, where we're at is this: we have a phone appointment with the photography manager on Weds. at noon, but I don't have a lot of hope that anything will change, especially after on the other thread people are starting to get notified of the cancellations. *sigh*

When we first got that call last Friday and I was sobbing on the couch, I just wanted to cancel EVERYTHING. The whole trip. Never go back. Then once I calmed down and Jeff and I talked a bit, I realized that I still want to celebrate our anniversary with our whole families, and that I really am in love with the WP island and am really looking forward to having photos there. And I've always loved the view from Commander's Terrace and the photos taken there, so by doing the Escape with DFTW, we get that, too.

I also told Jeff tonight that if we truly can't do our MK session, then I think I want to put more effort into the WP as far as decorations.

Oh, and as far as other elements, we've still got Christine coming to play the harp for us, so I'm so happy about that! And then we'll have the violinist just join us on Commander's Terrace for the cake-cutting.

So there you are! And you know I'm watching your PJ carefully to see how things are for you, now that you're so very close!!

 

[tinkerbell 766]

Aww sweetie I am so glad that you are still looking forward to your big day!!! You will still have some stunning photos!!!
Yay for keeping Christine. She is one of the things I am mosy excited about at our VR!!
My PJ is sadly lacking new updates. This is partly because I am busy (Easter, DS's girlfriend staying, packing for a little trip we will soon be taking ) and partly because, at the moment, there is not too much to update. Most of the planning is now done and the last minute stuff is still to do. I am at the moment on with getting the programmes printed out!!!

 

[momto1]

Congrats on 20 years! I love all your ideas. I am subsribing and beginning to plan my VR for 25 years for August, 2012. We are looking at the Swan, too.

 

[Staciajc]

I am subscribing! Thanks for sharing your plans with us!

*Do you need an officiant for your VR? I am an ordained minister and DVC member and would LOVE to come down to perform your VR! Let me know!
(Any excuse to get to WDW!)

Congrats on 20 years! God bless you!