So, this morning we woke up REALLY early to a crazy-eyed bird making weird noises outside of our window. I was so hoping that it was a monkey or a tucan, but it wasn't...just a big 'ol nasty black bird being sooo loud!
Realizing that we just couldn't get back to sleep (we are still on EST, so it was actually 9:00 when we finally got up after not being able to take the bird anymore) and got in a pretty good workout before our $20.00 breakfast....ugh. I hate paying more than $2.00 for breakfast. What would Dave say, right? Thank goodness we are going to an all-inclusive resort or we would make ourselves miserable each time we had to pay for food. :)
We are getting ready to leave the Hilton Garden Inn and head for the Paradisus Resort. We are sooo excited! Not sure if we will have internet access at the resort, so if not then we will talk to you all when we get back.
P.S. I don't think I will be able to post any pictures since I am not working off of my laptop but the hotel's public computers. But I'll see what I can do.
P.P.S.S. Mom the frogs here are soooo cute! :) Just kidding...I haven't seen any yet. Granny....tell Hailey I will do my best to bring her back a monkey! :)
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Early morning in Costa...
Saturday, June 13, 2009
We're in Costa Rica!!
Well, we love it already. We made it in a little early and it was already dark here so we haven't got to really see Costa Rica yet but I'm sure it will be great. The airport is open air which was cool and it was raining when we arrived, so that was an experience in and of itself. :)
For tonight we are staying at the Hilton Garden Inn that is close to the airport to save some money. Tomorrow we will head on over to our resort, the Paradisus Playa Conchal. We are so excited for tomorrow! When we got to the hotel, the service was superb. Everyone here is so friendly and just waiting to help. However, when we went down to dinner we were going to sit outside and all of a sudden this HUGE RAT came running out in front of me screeching "EECH EECH!" (Okay, I may be exaggerating a little...it was more like a small, black mouse, but still...gross!) Now to redeem the hotel...it is not a hotel that you would think would have a mouse on the patio. It is a very nice hotel, in fact, I think it is the nicest Hilton Garden Inn's that I have ever stayed in.
Dinner was good and we are about ready to go to bed since it is almost 11:00 our time. We want to make sure that we have lots of energy to explore Costa Rica and our resort tomorrow.
We hope that you all have a great week and pray for us that there won't be much rain. We are here on the "rainy season" but have heard that it is no more than what Florida experiences with their afternoon showers. If anyone has to get ahold of us, call the resort which you can find their information online. Otherwise, we will see you all when we get back. Have a great week!
Friday, May 22, 2009
And the winner is.....
Friday, May 15, 2009
Voting Time!
It is time for you all to vote for who has the best story and who will win the cigars and cigar box! We could not pick out 5 top stories, we like them all! So, we are going to go ahead and open the voting up. You can put your vote in until next Friday (May 22nd). Whoever has the most votes, wins! You can either leave your vote as a comment at the bottom of this post, or you can email me at natasha@allureeventconsulting.com.
Bride #1 - Ashley Bobbitt
My Groom deserves the Boss Box for many reasons. However, the main reason is because he was the most patient friend I ever had. We were friends and dated, but were not in a relationship, for almost a year and a half. He pursued me, but to no avail during this time. Finally, after a year and a half, we agreed that it was the right time to take our friendship to the relationship level. Two months later, he proposed and I said yes! I knew he was the one because he never gave up and always respected me. So we're getting married 10 months after he proposed. Even though patience paid off for him, he still deserves a good smoke after all the waiting!
Bride #2 - Lauren McKinney
My fiance deserves the 'Boss Box' because my family gives him such a hard time. My parents didn't get married until they were 27, so they think we are young at 21. They are always commenting on how we should wait at least another year, even though they love my fiance. He has to put up with not only this, but also my family causing so much drama with the planning. Because they are not into the idea so much, my fiance has had to help so much more with the planning than he would have otherwise. He enjoys it, but definitely wishes I wasn't getting him to do so much! My fiance is so wonderful in every way, and I want some way to show him how much I appreciate his help and patience.
Bride #3 - LeRae Edwards
My groom has been surrounded by women! He deserves the Boss Box because he's spent the past year not only helping me plan the wedding, but also coaching girls. Yes, my fiance has 12 other women in his life--his girls' basketball team. After moving to my hometown to be near me, he took a teaching position at my alma mater. As a first year teacher, he was asked to coach the team or they wouldn't be able to play. Despite the fact that he didn't have basketball experience, he stepped up to the plate (baseball is his sport of choice) and took on 12 girls who needed a coach. After spending every night reading coaching books and going over plays, he coached the girls to a winning record and second place in the district!
For the wedding he's had one request: a cigar bar. This would fulfill his request. My groom deserves his cigars for spending the year surrounded by women! (And yes, his players will attend the wedding!)
Bride #4 - Name concealed
My fiance deserves a good cigar as his reward for putting up with me the past year and a half. We've had a very long engagement and I've been constantly planning for the wedding throughout all of it. I change my mind so many times with the little details. And I waste our money buying decorations and then changing my mind months later! It drives my groom-to-be nuts! I'm sure he will be very happy after the wedding when we are finally married and our lives can go back to normal. A good cigar would be the perfect way for him to kick off the celebration of our return to a normal couple instead of the crazy wedding-obsessed couple that we currently are! I'm sure all of the groomsmen and our fathers would enjoy these cigars too. I could just envision a classy b&w photo of all of them smoking them outside at night! :)
Bride #5 - Amanda Woodward
My fiance deserves the Boss Box because he is the most amazing and compassionate man I've ever met. He always puts my well-being before his own desire and always wants to make sure that I'm happy. Before I had major surgery in January, the surgeon told me that I could not be around any kind of second hand smoke for at least a month before surgery and two months afterwards or I would not heal correctly. My fiance used to smoke mini-cigars like cigarettes, in our house on a daily basis, so this was going to be a huge deal for us (or so I thought). Much to my surprise, we came home from that appointment, and he quit smoking immediately. He wanted to make sure that I would be able to recover properly and gave up something he loved so that I would not have complications with my surgery. He still loves cigars but isn't smoking as much anymore and I think that this Boss Box would be a great way for me to express my thanks to him for all that he does for me every day. Thanks!
Bride #6 - Future Mrs. Rickles
I love these cigars. My FI doesnt smoke but I would love to win them for my stap dad. He is one of the greatest men in my life. He has always been there for me. I always have a good laugh when i am with him. On every good ocassion he hands out cigars so this is the perfect gift. At my brothers wedding I have a great picture of my step dad and I smoking cigars on the porch during cocktail hour. He looks so proud and it is one of my fondest memories of us. So not a funny story but still a sentimental and cute one.
Bride #7 - Nicole-Lynn
My groom deserves this Boss Box because he has stood by my side for 7 1/2 years and has promised me he will continue to do so. He is my rock and is always such a big supporter in anything I do. On a serious note, my parents are getting a divorce after 24 years together and it has really taken a toll not only on our family, but on my emotions. He has comforted me and been there for me through it all and without him during this trying time I would be a mess. I think he and his guys deserve this box of cigars so they can sit back, relax, and enjoy them at his bachelor party!
Bride #8 - Holly P.
My groom deserves this cigar box for waiting seven years until I was ready to get married, and quitting his job and moving to another state just to be with me. When he decided to move to Illinois to live with me, he would work 3rd shift at his job in Michigan, drive to Illinois when he got off in the morning, change in a gas station bathroom in order to make it to a job interview in Illinois. Then he'd drive back to Michigan for work that same night. This is just one of about a million things he's done without me asking, just to be with me. Since we've been engaged, he has helped me SO much with the wedding planning, I can't even begin to express how much I appreciate him. I would love to be able to give him a fancy cigar to light up to celebrate our wedding night!
Bride #9 - Amanda
This box would be such a great gift for my groom for so many different reasons! Firstly, I'm finishing up my last semester in college, while he has been out for about a year. In this market, he isn't making much, and very few companies are willing to hire a girl with such a sporadic schedule as mine, so he has been basically supporting me for a year now. He definitely didn't sign up for that, but he has been so great about it, and I can't wait to make it up to him in the years to come! Secondly, I can't figure out why for the life of me, but my mom is really quite mean to her. His family has been nothing but welcoming of me, and they are so excited to have me as a part of their family, but my mother refuses to accept my fiance. If I tell her he says hi (which he always does, because he is just too sweet) she completely ignores it or changes the subject, blatantly not saying hi back. If I bring him up in any way, she just changes the subject. It's so rude, and when I've tried to talk to her about it, she again just changes the subject. It really hurts my fiance, but once again, he's a trooper, and just points out that he's marrying me, not her. :) Finally, he graduated from The Citadel, we can't wait to move back to Charleston, and our wedding will be down there! This would be such a great gift! Again, with me not working, and the fact that we are paying for this wedding ourselves, money is super tight. He keeps talking about how he absolutely must have a cigar with his boys on the day of the wedding. I want to make that happen for him so SO badly!! Please pick me, it would just be a really great touch for our wedding day! :)(And so ends my novel of love and gratitude for my amazing man...haha)
Bride # 10 - Tara Handren
On 9-19-09, I will marry my "buddy" Clay. When I saw this giveaway, I just about jumped out of my chair! Clay is definitely a lover of cigars and we have yet to incorporate that into the wedding. I was thinking of getting a baker to make a groom's cake that resembled a cigar, but think this would be much more enjoyable for him. As for why he deserves this... many reasons, but one that is fresh in my mind: this past weekend, I had to go out of town to a friend's baby shower. I was almost embarrassed at how much I missed him until I came home and realized why. He had cleaned our entire apartment ceiling to floor and had done all my laundry for me. Clay is a giver and is very patient and for that, I think my cigar aficiondo deserves the Boss Box.
This is a great picture from http://www.sakuraphotography.com/!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Contest: Cigars and Customized Box for your Groom!
The 'Boss Box' is great gift for any cigar lover. You can get the name of the Groom put right on the box! The box comes ready for consumption, but Coastal Cigars wants the gift to be your box. Their in-house experts will assist you in choosing the proper cigar for your needs, whether its premium, super-premium or private label. Each wooden 'Boss Box' has two separate compartments. One compartment is designed to hold four cigars, matches and a cigar cutter. The opposite compartment is designed to hold your choice of a mini bottle, poker chips or Nike golf balls.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Bill's 60th Birthday Party
For the past year, I have been giving hints on one of my main projects that I have been working on. Well, the day has come to reveal the big surprise.....it was my grandfather's surprise 60th birthday party! The theme of the night was "Celebrating the Past 60 Years" and boy, did we go all out! On the invitations it told everyone to dress as one of the past decades that my grandfather was alive in 1940s - 2000s. I was so amazed to see how well everyone responded! There were great outfits and everyone looked so much their part! The picture above is of my sister...and as you can guess, she was dressing as the 1940s. I just love this picture that the photographer captured of her. To see all of the pictures you can go to La Vita Photo's website.
The night was a HUGE success! My grandfather was very surprised and had about 120 guests all there in his honor. However, there was a twist in the night and we had one more trick up our sleeves. About a fourth of the way into the night, I asked my grandparents to join me on the dance floor. I gave them a gift, which ended up being empty. Once they figured out that there was nothing in the box, the doors to the facility opened and in came all of the grandchildren with leis. Yes, that is right....we were letting them know that we had given them a trip to Hawaii too! The trip came from everyone at the party. It was indicated on the invitations that we were giving a huge gift and everyone in the party was more then generous with their donations.
I just want to give a few thank you's to a few people in particular:
-Ryan Vorhees for being our dj and providing us with great dance music
-Sandy Bland and all of her staff for making us a delicious meal and taking care of our catering needs.
-Victoria Stapleton at La Vita Photo for being our photobooth photographer
-Kim Burke for the yummy cupcakes!
Friday, March 20, 2009
Do It Yourself Flowers
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