For the bride and groom, planning the honeymoon gives them a chance to focus on something after the big day. And, it’s also a way to relax and unwind after months of planning! Ten years ago, Tom and I had the DREAM honeymoon…we went to Tahiti, Moorea and Bora Bora. While the 9 hour flight from LAX to Tahiti did leave a lot to be desired, the experience once we arrived was amazing!! At that time, I didn’t have THE person to go to ask all of the questions, so I ended up using a friend’s advice for where to go — and luckily she didn’t steer us wrong. But, now I have Christi from Travel Bug and I never have to worry about a vacation again! She has planned every trip for me since…Riviera Maya, Key West, Orlando, Disney…and they were all perfect!!!! Today, I want to share my interview with Christi, along with some pretty pictures of tropical locations. I feel the need to fly away….right now!

Q: When did you start Travel Bug and why?
I started TRAVEL BUG, LLC in January 2005. I had worked in the travel industry for approx 10 years (9 years at AAA) prior to opening and really wanted to branch out and offer a more personalized experience for my clients and a business that I could call my own.

Q: You have to have a love of travel, so I want to know your #1 favorite vacation destination?
WOW..I LOVE to travel and there are so many wonderful places…I would have to say that St. Lucia has been my favorite place. It is so beautiful and lush and very romantic. I did not want to come home from that trip.

Q: What are your favorite destinations for honeymoons and why?
The most popular destination that I book honeymooners to is St. Lucia. I also have booked a number of clients to Tahiti, Antigua, Jamaica, Italy and yes…there is usually at least 1 Disney honeymoon.

Q: With websites like Orbit, Tavelocity and Kayak, why should brides and grooms use a travel agent to plan their honeymoon or other vacations?
When people ask me the ‘internet” question….I always tell them that if you connect with a good travel agent, you will not only have a professional that knows the destination, you will have someone that you can count on to get you the best value for your money (not always the cheapest price) and to be there to assist you prior to and through the vacation.  Try calling one of the well known travel internet sites at 8AM on a Sunday when you have a problem or situation that you need assistance with and see who you get.   I also email the resort managers prior to my clients arrival to notify them of my VIP clients for possible upgrades or amenities and I always mail the clients a Welcome Home card and follow up a week later with a phone call.  I do not think that the internet companies offer those extra services…..personalized travel services.

Q: What are the top three things a bride and groom should ask a travel agent?
When I talk to my honeymoon couples I ask them if they have passports, as most places now require them.  Most brides will not change their last name on documents until after the honeymoon, so I almost always book the travel in her maiden name.  I recommend resorts that are “adult only” especially for the spring and summer honeymooners because the regular resorts will be full of children and though you may like kids…you may not want to see them while on your honeymoon. The third thing that I would ask would be what type of experience are they hoping to have…there are many great.

Q: If money and time were no object, where would you recommend that a bride and groom on their honeymoon?
If money (and time) were no object, I would recommend the Tahitian Islands…Bora Bora and Moorea

Q: Describe Travel Bug in 5 words
Professional…Personalized…Organized…Caring…Creative…

I couldn’t agree more…now to decide on a second honeymoon….hmmm…where to go this time and when should we go???

Today, I’m blogging about something near and dear to my heart.  Some of you might know that my son was diagnosed with autism when he was 20 months old.  Now, at almost 8 years old, he is a thriving, happy and boisterous boy.  If you were to meet Logan today, you would have no clue that he was ever diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder.  We are so proud of all of his accomplishments and I contribute his success to early detection and intervention.

I could write a book with everything we did, tried, read and learned.  I could also list about 50 people that helped us throughout the journey.  But for brevity sake, I will leave those specifics for anyone who wants more information from me. I’m happy to share anything with you — if you have specific questions or if you would like to talk in more detail about our experiences, just let me know.

Since April is Autism awareness month, Allison Barnhill Designs will be donating $0.10 for every invitation made in the month of April to Autism Speaks.  We are also hoping that our clients, friends and fellow vendors will consider making a contribution to Autism Speaks, as well!

We’ve created a special donation page just for you!!  We’re making it easy….just click on this link!

http://events.autismspeaks.org/tributes/abdforautismawareness

Our goal is to raise $1000 by May 1st and I know that we can do it!  I’ll be sure to keep you updated over the next two weeks on our progress via Facebook. Thanks in advance!

Allison

So, I’ve been making progress in the planning for the renewal and thought I catch you up on all the updates. So, we met with Rev. Laura Cannon last week, which went so well! For Wedding Wednesday, she sent me a draft of our entire ceremony. So exciting!!!

At that meeting, we discussed a way to include our other child, Roxy (aka “the pug”) into our renewal ceremony. Roxy is adorable, but she also snorts, snarfs and barks when she is excited and I feel that having her at the renewal would be too much for this 9 year old girl. :) So, I’ve asked Liz and Ryan (aka Elizabeth Ryan Photography) to do a little photo shoot with the diva! You’ll have to wait and see how this gets incorporated into the ceremony, but needless to say, I know the photos will be adorable.

New vendor update! For the ceremony and cocktails, we will be having a string trio from Chesapeake Strings. While I was at the Chesapeake Bay Beach Club bridal show Chesapeake Strings was in the Tavern Ballroom playing. So, I got to listen to them for a few hours, playing everything from Pachelbel to the Beatles to Coldplay. Really, that’s a huge variety of music and it all sounded great!  So, check that off the list — deposit and contract in the mail!

Lastly, I’ve been having a wonderful time sharing ideas back and forth over Facebook and Pinterest with Sarah from Intrigue Design & Decor. So, I guess I’m also announcing that Intrigue will be designing the flowers for the renewal! Yay!! I’ve worked with Sarah and Melissa for years and we always collaborate so effortlessly. I’m happy to have them on board “the team”. Here are a few pictures that we’ve been passing back and forth:

I’m off to Disney World with the family next Wednesday, so there will be no blog post.  But, I’ll be back the following Wednesday with another interview with one of my vendors! Yay!   Have a great week!

Big week! On Thursday, Tom and I are meeting with our officiant to discuss our renewal ceremony. Exciting!!! So, I thought it would be appropriate to share my interview with the Rev. Laura Cannon from Divine Transformation. I have heard so many wonderful things about Laura…from vendors and clients. Tom and I talked to her via phone before the holidays and just felt like she “got” what we wanted to do for our renewal ceremony. That being said, we can’t wait for our meeting tomorrow and I can’t wait to share this interview! Enjoy!

Q: How did you become a wedding officiant?
A: Kind of by accident. I was a Reiki Master teacher and had my ordination as part of my healing practice. I had a Reiki student who got engaged and – knowing that I was an ordained minister – she asked if I could perform her wedding. I explained to her that I had never done a wedding before but that I would love to try. As soon as I began the ceremony I had one of those moments that Oprah describes as an ‘A-ha’ moment. I knew it was what I was meant to be doing. As I finished the ceremony, the caterer who had witnessed it came up to me and said it was the best service he had ever seen and asked for my card. Then I thought, note to self: get business cards and make this happen. The rest is history!

Q: Being in the industry, I love weddings, but I always want to know why others love weddings too!  Why do you?
A: I love LOVE! I really feel like I have the best job in the world. I get to bear witness to so much love and one of the most special and memorable days in a person’s life. The love of the couple, the love from their friends and families, it is just too amazing to describe. I get to wake up every day excited about what I do and there is nothing more inspiring than that!

Q: What is unique about Divine Transformation Wedding Officiants?
A: Our philosophy, which you can read at: http://www.divinetransformation.com/why-choose-us/ Also,All of my officiants go through an extensive training to become officiants. They don’t just get ordained online and show up for a wedding. They invest a lot of time into honing their skills and becoming the very best at what they do. We all share the same philosophy… our job is not to make a couple adhere to our belief systems. Our job is to create a highly personalized ceremony that is a reflection of that particular couples beliefs, desires, and wishes. We have been in business for nearly a decade and have been providing 5 star award-winning wedding services since our founding.

Q: Do you like when clients personalize their ceremonies?  Do you have any good stories of something a client has done to make the ceremony their own?
A: We encourage every client to personalize their ceremony with something that is meaningful for them.  I have so many really cool things that couples have done.  To name a few:  a box of memories that each person in the family came and put a gift in, a love letter ceremony, a lemon tree ceremony, their own special dance down the aisle with the bridal party.  I could go on and on.

Q: Are there any ceremony trends that you are seeing more of now?  Is the sand ceremony still popular?  Unity candles?  Something new?
A: Everyone loves having friends do readings and that hasn’t changed.  People are still choosing the sand ceremony and unity candles because they are now considered ‘classic’.  A lot more people are choosing to write their own vows and do things that incorporate guests and wedding party.  There seems to be a movement away from just the couple participating in the ceremony.  Often times family and guests are now participating in really cool ways.

Q: Do you have a favorite moment during a wedding?
A: The look on the faces of the couple as their eyes meet for the first time at the start of the ceremony.

Q: When you aren’t standing at the altar, what do you like to do with your time?
A: Anything with a spiritual/self-development focus.  I teach yoga and am also an energy worker.  I have a deep personal spiritual practice so I enjoy reading, meditating, spending time with loved ones, and spending time in nature.  When it is not prime wedding season I am often off on silent meditation retreats.  It’s pretty funny because when you think about it I alternate between speaking all the time to not speaking at all.   I believe in doing what you love, and I love a lot of things… too many to name here :)

Q: I just did this to Elizabeth Ryan Photography and I and now I’m asking you too…describe your business in five words.
A: Fun, Creative, Dependable, Open-Minded, Professional