*Our Disneymoon PTR!!!11/20/11 update-TR LINK!!!*

[dreamerchic33]

Hey everyone!

This is my first PTR! I have been reading everyone's and thought I should start one too!

The Cast....

This is me! Christina, the writer of this report!
I am 26 years old and a Licensed Social Worker. I work in substance abuse and addiction field and i LOVE my job! I also work part-time as a wedding planner.
I am a LOVER of ALL things disney!! I grew up there as a child and go with my family VERY often!

This is Scott, the fiance! He is 31 years old. He works for CitiFinancial. He....GASP...HAS....NEVER...EVER...EVER been to Disneyworld!
I know, its horrible!

I wanted to do a quick post today, just to get started! I would love to share our engagement, wedding plans and of course, our plans for the big disneymoon!

I hope you will join me!

Have a great everyone!!

Christina

Chapters:
Our Engagement!

The makings of a disneymoon!

Wedding details! Church, Reception, Flowers, Linens, Dress and Part 1 of Engagement Pics!

Engagement pictures, part 2!


Engagement pictures, part 3!

Our beautiful engagement party!!

My very surprise shower!

Finally booking the disneymoon! Just not all of it :-(

Our ADR's and disneymoon purchases (part 1)!!

Disneymoon purchases contd! (part 2)

a weekend of shopping, a cabana, and a grand gathering welcome!

The LISTS!

4 months! more purchases, MNSSHP, Spa apts, and some questions!

To photopass or not to photopass, that is the question!


a small update

Happy 4th of July! you guessed it, another Disneymoon purchases, contd!

Wedding update! Save the dates, invitations and wedding menu! your creativity needed!

a multitude of updates! Wedding guest sign-in, wish box, DOJ and wedding rings. Also, ADR updates and LOTS of purchases!!!

ADR/Purchase/Life Updates!

Arrival day plans!

Summer/Fall/Honeymoon reading

Day 1 plans!

oh hello pixie dust!

Day 2 plans!

1 month!!! and 1 day!! Day 3 plans!!!

3 weeks and a 1 day!!!

Day 4!!!

Practice makes perfect!

We are back!!!!!

TR LINK! Come read all about it!

 

[dreamerchic33]

So I thought I would share our engagement story!!!

We had been talking about getting married for a while, and we had done some ring shopping. I was still in graduate school, so I was not expecting to get engaged when we did. I thought it would be the summer or fall, after graduation.

We decided to go out for New Years Eve, at the Fox Hollow, which is on LI. www.foxhollow.com.
Scott and I do not live together and so i was excited for a night just the two of us...Mother nature was not very nice that evening, and there was a mess of snow and ice. Now, Scott HATES driving in ANY kind of inclement weather, so i thought, for sure, we would not be going.

I guess I should had suspected something when he said, we are still going, but i did not! We get to the fox hollow, and it was beyond beautiful! It was all lit up from the Christmas Displays and the snow serving the backdrop just gave it that magical touch! It was like pixie dust!

It only got better as we saw our room! It was a HUGE suite, with such beautiful decor and a super comfy bed! We spent some time taking pictures and then it was off to party!

We had a great table and we had a blast! we literally were dancing the entire night! It was one of the best nights we have had! Midnight was just a few minutes away, and I quickly ran to the bathroom. Scott was questioning me and I was confused, but just thought, he was nervous because the ladies room had such a wait the rest of the evening.

So midnight came, we were sharing "Happy New Years smoochies" and then he hugged me. He started saying all of these wonderful things to me and before I knew it, he was down on one knee!
He had our entire table in on it and they were able to get pictures of it happening!!

The next thing I knew, the DJ called us up to the front of the ballroom and was congratulating us! It felt like everyone was! I was in shock, shaking and so happy!!
We left the room to call our families, and everyone was so excited for us!

Scott and my mom had also planned a surprise congratulations brunch for us the next day! I was in shock! It was such a great day!!

Oh! Pictures of my beautiful, custom made ring! He did a great job!

Up next, setting a date and talking honeymoon plans!

 

[JessicaKnits]

I'm In! Such a great story! I can't wait to here the rest! When is the big day?

 

[dreamerchic33]

I'm In! Such a great story! I can't wait to here the rest! When is the big day?

yay! a follower! thank you soooo much!
The big day is 10/30, with arrival is disney on halloween!
can't wait!
xo

 

[dreamerchic33]

So, the plan was to start planning AFTER grad school, but that just didn't happen lol...

We sat down and discussed the date! We live in NY, and I am a migraine sufferer and Scott suffers with horrible allergies. SO, spring and summer were a no. Fall or winter it was! We ultimately decided on the Fall, it is our favorite time of year, and the fall foliage is just stunning!

We sat down with calendars in hand, and decided on October, 30th, 2011!
We had well over two years to start planning and saving!
We chose having a long engagement for quite a few reasons...
1-SAVE SAVE SAVE; we decided we wanted to have our dream wedding and honeymoon, and the more time the better!
Let me tell you, the time FLEW!
2- really wanted to be settled in my career and get licensed

Now, what kind of wedding would we have???
We were thinking either a Disney wedding OR a beach wedding in mexico.
Half our families loved this idea, and the other half did not. So we decided to have our wedding in NY. This decision was difficult to make and had me a little down.
UNTIL
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.Scott Said.....
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How about we honeymoon in BOTH Disney AND Mexico?!?!?!?
I was so excited, I couldn't even contain myself!!!
i IMMEDIATELY started researching!!
I went back and forth A LOT about where to stay is disney!
I am used to staying in the Epcot area BUT wanted to go somewhere I have never been before, since it is FH's first time.
So i narrowed it down to GF and The Polynesian!
I debated for weeks, asked a lot of people their decisions and finally decided..
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The Grand Floridan it is!!!! We booked a garden view room here, not going to lie, HOPING for a little bit of Pixie Dust, the CM i booked with, gave me high hopes about Pixie Dust, telling me how much they love giving some pixie dust to their honeymooners!

We also found the perfect hotel for Mexico
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Excellence Playa mujeres in plays mujeres, Mexico! We booked the Club Level, roof top terrace here!

 

[dreamerchic33]

I realize I jumped into the plans about our HM before the wedding, but I am just so excited!!

So, how about a little wedding talk!

At this point in our planning, we have just about everything finalized! We are just working on the little things!
So i would love to share some of our plans and amazing vendors!

When Scott and I met, he was of the Jewish faith. We always spoke about getting married in a church raising our children Catholic (my faith). This past year, Scott made the decision (on his own!) to convert. It was such a beautiful process and experience for both of us! We will be getting married in the same church my parents were married! THis is also now our parish!

Our Hall...The Royalton Mansion...
http://www.theroyaltonmansion.com/index.html
(we were booked at one place but things took a turn for the worse, we changed our hall ASAP!)
Some pictures (these pics do not do this place ANY justice!)

We ADORE this place! We also got to plan our menu from scratch! I will share this in a later place!

COLORS COLORS COLORS!
Jewel tone fall is the theme! Eggplant with burnt orange and gold!
Pedestals is our florist and this is where we are going with flowers:

Our centerpieces will be high, they are on a swivel base with candles and crystals. There will also be a low centerpiece attached to the swivel base! I can't wait to see them! So excited!
The girls will be in eggplant.
The guys will be in classic tuxedos.
And these are our linens. You can see our table number frames in one of these pictures as well!

I would love to share a few quick pics of my dress!

And NOW the engagement pictures!!!!
We were SO lucky to do 2 shoots with the AMAZING Amanda Picone! Here are some of our favorites!
WARNING: LOADED with pictures!!!

 

[dreamerchic33]

 

[dreamerchic33]

Stacy Doolan of About Face Artistry did my makeup for these pictures!

So, I think this is a good place to stop for the evening!

Up next:
A quick overview of our amazing engagement party and my shower!
As well as, we can FINALLY book our honeymoon!

Thanks for reading!
xo Christina

 

[dreamerchic33]

Hey everyone!
It is a GLOOMY day here in NY, I hope everyone is having a great day!
So last night, i just couldn't sleep, I just was so excited for our Disneymoon!
So the way it happened was Engagement Party, booking the honeymoon and then the Shower....I would just like to recap quickly our engagement party and shower and then get into the honeymoon!

So lets go!

Our engagement party was November of 2009.
We had an INSANELY beautiful fall day!
My parents VERY VERY graciously threw us this party!
We had it at the Westbury Manor and it was a perfect day!
Here are some shots of us and the details!
Our invitations:

Card Box:

The room: <3

Table #'s We named them after special places in our relationship.

CH area and guestbook (made it on shutterfly)

Some of the AMAZING food!

Some of my favorite pictures:

 

[dreamerchic33]

I still get emotional talking about it!
You see, on President's day, 2011, my mom got VERY sick. She was in bed for weeks, she was being tested for everything from Lupus to cancel and everything in between. It was a really scary and hard time for us.
I had no idea my shower was coming!
My mom fought through being so sick and still threw me an absolutluey amazing shower!
You see, I thought on April 3rd, that I would be working an event as part of my part-time job. So i was ready to go to work that morning; my boss came and got me and off we went. My mom told me she was going to visit my grandmother (who lives 9 houses away) and she would see me after work.
I am very close to the staff at Westbury Manor (where my mom threw my shower) due to the events we have had there as well as because of my work. So I spoke to some of my collegaues as they walked me up to the room...we opened the door and....
SURPRISE!!!!!

as you can see, i was beyond shocked! my hands were shaking the ENTIRE time! I just couldn't believe they got me and i couldn't believe how much my mom did when she was so sick, not to mention how much my family helped me mom!
Some pictures!

my amazing mom!!!

my amazing grandmother!

one of our ring bearers: SO cute! he turns away from me and goes "IT'S A WEDDING! He's 3 and a half! He is also a twin and the soon to be big brother of our future flower girl!
Next to me is my brother's g/f. They are HS sweethearts and are together almost 6 years! She is like a sister to me! She made me such a beautiful baking basket (we are baking obsessed and want to open a place togehter) and as i am reading this card, it says "for your showers of happiness" and its Coach rainboots!

And another emotional part!

this box contained my old, new, borrowed and blue.
old: my great grandma's cameo for my boquet. Now, my great grandma used to live with us and we were two peas in a pod! she was everything to me. She passed when i was in the 8th grade.
new: a garter from my grandma
borrwed and blue: my grandma's garter that she wore on her day, all the women in my family have worn it. It means so much to me, as my grandfather has passed.

it was an emotional moment for me!
So the pictures of what is in this box, and my cake and favors are not on this computer, so i promise to share those tonight or tmw!
Update: pictures:

 

[dreamerchic33]

So I think that is enough of the wedding stuff for now!

Let's talk booking the honeymoon!

I must have called Disney so many times! Each time I called, they told me i couldn't book yet and they really couldn't give me an exact time i could book. SO i called and called and called and called!! It was ALOT of calling! obsessive even lol.

FINALLY July 2010 came and I could book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! wahooo!!!!
but not everything
Just the room....so we booked the room at GF, garden view.

Then the calling continued lol
I called and called and called...
you see, i just really wanted everything set in stone so i could put in time at work with no issues.
At this point we have our mexico part booked for months!

I believe it was FINALLY September when we were able to book our package!
We decided on the deluxe dining plan! I love signature dining and I didn't want to have to worry about carrying cash and what not. My family and I have NEVER done the dining plan, so i thought it would be a GREAT time to give it a try!
We also decided to do a 3 day park pass!
Of course, now was the wait until i could see park hours, make a tentative iteniary and book our reservations!
Waiting for this was torture!!!
In the meantime, i researched spa treatments, fireworks cruises and photo sessions....

up next: would we get all the dining reservations we wanted?
Would we add another day at the parks?

Also, i would love to share pictures of some disneymoon purchases!

Have a great days everyone!
xo Christina

 

[dreamerchic33]

so i see a lot of views! who is reading along? i would love to get to know everyone!
xo

 

[dreamerchic33]

So last I left off, I caught you up on our wedding plans, and recaped our e-pics, eparty and my amazing shower!
Today I thought I would let you in on Our ADR's and some disneymoon purchases!

Our ADR's!
I booked everything online and it was so easy! There were no glitches or issues! I made sure to notate that it was our honeymoon on each reservation. i was able to get all the ones i wanted and for either the exact time or within a 10/15 minutes time period. I was a little worried booking everything, beacuse not all the park hours were out yet, and each time i called a CM, i recieved a different answer. It all worked out, as the park hours were released a few days later.
So here they are!
Our first evening will be spent here! Narcossee's!

Very excited that we will be able to watch "halo-wishes" from here!.
I am excited to give this one a try! The menu looks wonderful and the ambience looks great too!
Breakfast the next morning will be here!

with Lilo, Stitch and friends!
I have been here once and LOVED LOVED LOVED it! I can't wait to take Scott!

Dinner that evening will be at one of my absolute favorites!

I have been here on multiple occasions and ALWAYS had a great experience!

The next day will be a new one for me! I had no intentions on booking it, until a few things:
1-i read a few TR's and saw how great everything looked
2-FH asked me, if we would be seeing the princesses!
So i really was left with no choice! lol

i am really very excited about this!!!

That evening, we will be dining at

I dined here in January and it was DELISH! I do miss alfredos though!

The next morning we will go to

Kona! a new one for me, and after all the raves, i didn't want to pass it up!

That evening we will be going to

i am really excited about this! I am hoping this evening we will also be able to attend the fireworks show at the tomorrowland terrace at MK! Finger crossed! I have been checking the dates EVERY day!

The next morning we will be having breakfast at

! Another new one for me and again, after all the raves I am so so excited!

We will be having dinner here

LOVED it on the last trip, so i am looking forward to being here! and I LOVE the BW atmosphere!!!

What do think???

No onto some fun purchases for this trip! Some of these were gifts ffrom my shower!
1- Scott had an idea of getting custom shirts that said something honeymooner. So i got them made for us and they are so cute and VERY comfy! personalizationmall.com It says "Honeymooners" "date" and "team our last name"
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i made this purchase back in January, I just couldn't resist, I can't wait to put a picture from this trip in it!
8.

now, as i mentioned, I am a planner on the side. One of my brides has this wrapped around her Bo-K, and being the lover of disney that I am HAD to find it on our last trip! It was the last night we were in disney, in the last store! it was hiding and was one of the last one's left!
9.

this i plan on using in Mexcio.
10.

LOVE it! got this idea from the DIS boards! Thanks everyone!
11.

12 and 13 are wedding purchases but i wanted to share!

 

[dreamerchic33]

And here we go with some VERY important items!
Our luggage! Delsey Helium Collection! VERY lightweight and has an indicator for if it exceeds 50lbs!

My carryon! The Miller tote! It's perfect for me and I can't wait to use it!

This wallet is for the airport. I am pretty sure that its called the travel wallet, but not 100% sure! It has spots for boarding passes and passports!

Newxt up is the cosmetic tote! I love this item! Its large and has lining, in case anything spills (knock on wood that doesn't happen!)

finally the hipster and matching wallet!

I would LOVE to purchase these next to items!
The hanging organizer, thought this would make everything nice and easy!

and the jewlery roll ( i am on the fence about this one, but think it may be a great option!)

So that is my updates for now!
Next up, i will discuss some surprises planned for FH and tell you about adding in the 4th day for the parks!
OH! and please wish me luck! Mom and I are going shopping for some HM clothes! I Have lost quite a bit of weight since we got engaged and of course i am hoping to lose more, but we need to start the shoppinG!
Thanks everyone! Have a wonderful day!

 

[janabananas]

Congrats!!! The pics of everything are just breathtaking!!! Looking forward to reading more.

 

[Tea4Alice]

so i see a lot of views! who is reading along? i would love to get to know everyone!
xo

I'm in, congrats and wow your plans and party's are awesome! Wishing you and your guy the best.

 

[dreamerchic33]

Congrats!!! The pics of everything are just breathtaking!!! Looking forward to reading more.

awww thank you so much!
and thanks so much for following! xo

 

[dreamerchic33]

I'm in, congrats and wow your plans and party's are awesome! Wishing you and your guy the best.

thank you!! xo

 

[dreamerchic33]

Good morning everyone!
how was everyone's weekend?
I had a WONDERFUL weekend!
Friday night, Scott came over and we went over some HM plans. He was sooo excited! Saturday, mom and I went shopping for clothes and for our apt. Saturday night, Scott and I did dinner and a movie. We saw bridesmaids, it was HYSTERICAL!
Sunday, more shopping and some relaxing!

Mom and I went to Macy's on Saturday. We did SOOOOO good! They were having MAJOR sales (ex: i got a $79 shirt for $23!!!) and then it was 20% off your entire purchase, NO Credit Card required!!!! WAHOOOOOOOOOO! So needless to say, I purchased A LOT of clothing for the moon!!!! So excited! I really had a great time shopping! As I shared earlier, I have been losing weight. I am down a dress size and I purchased things I haven't been comfortable wearing in quite some time! It was such a happy experience as opposed to the self-loathing experience it can be! So i have just a few more things to go! Today was weigh-in, and I am down another 2.6lbs! wahoo!
We also did great at BBB and JCP for our apartment (which is currently getting new carpet as we speak! yay!)

Oh, and I purchased this for FH! http://www.landsend.com/pp/Toiletry...-_-ToiletryKitsTravelAccessories&origin=index
It was on sale AND i received another 25% off! I read some TR from other DIS'ers and thought it would be great for him!

So some DisneyMoon updates!
I spent a lot of time reading on DIS these last 2 weeks! After last night's lurking session, i decided we HAD to book a cabana! So today, I did just that!
I can't wait!!!

I really am so excited about this booking!!!!

I also decided I will be booking this and surprising the future hubby!

Mickey's Grand Gathering welcome!
With our package, we receive %15 off spa services, so i am going to look through those today, and book them shortly! I will fill you in when i decide!
I also made quite a few "lists" this weekend. A to-do list, toiletry list, a souvenir list and so on. I will share those with you soon!

up next: The "Lists"!

Have a great day everyone!
xo Christina

 

[dreamerchic33]

Ok here we go!

So i am going to share my toiletry list, to do list, and still to purchase list!
Let me know if I am forgetting anything, also, let me know your must haves for room organization!


Tolietries
Deodorant
Body Wash
Body Spray
Lotion
Cologne
Toothbrush
Toothpaste
Comb
2 round brushes
Blow dryer
Flat iron
Keratin Hair spray
Make-up
Hand sanitizer
Butterfly clips
ruberbands
sunscreen
Razors
Shaving cream
Q-tips
Tweezer
1st aid kit
migraine meds
neosporin
Alieve
bcp
oral gel
shampoo
conditoner
face wash
moisturizer
mouth wash
floss picks
blot sheets
vitamins
protein
aloe
dr. scholls molefoam padding
lint roller
stomach meds
cortisone
cold medicine
biofreeze
neosporine
woolite
wisps
benadryl
bath and body works foot cream
pummus stone
body glide
tweeze scissors
some kind of waxing kit
wrinkle release
makeup remover
tide stick
tassie
Other:
Phone chargers
Ipod chargers
memory cards
camera
camera charger

My book list (for the plane and mexico)
-Mindful recovery
-Read my hips
-Your voice in my head
Would LOVE to hear your reading suggestions!

Still to do/Purchase
-Metallic silver flips- CHECK!
-Metallic gold flips- CHECK!
-Make a travel binder with inserts-CHECK!
-look into and book GF spa treatments- CHECK!
-Books
-undies and socks....every time we go away, i always love to stock up!
-more dresses
-bathing suits and coverups
-keep checking a certain store for new lingerie
-find out about laundry services- CHECK!
-book disney florist
-look into cabana rental- CHECK!
-look into EPM spa services- CHECK!
-fireworks dessert party
-buy pj's
-buy a foldable hamper-CHECK!
-scott tolietry bag- CHECK!
-Vera Bradley: hanging cosmetic and jewel roll CHECK! and then some lol!
-Go to the doctor to get rx refills

There we have it! Any and all thoughts, comments, suggestions and your MUST haves are welcome!

Have a great night!
xo <3 Christina