My Wedding Day

After much needed rest and recuperation, I’m so excited to write about the best day of my life and highlight of 2024: my wedding day!

My husband, Fernando, and I got married on November 1st last year in Puerto Aventuras, Mexico. The moment we got engaged, all roads began to point to this day. I never knew how much work went into planning a destination wedding. It seems like a silly statement, but I really did devote every single day from late October 2023 to the wedding day itself making a decision for this perfect day. Let me tell you about it!

The day started out exactly as I hoped. Since my hair was already done and I was doing my own makeup, there was no alarm, no rushing at the crack of dawn. I could take my time which is all I wanted. I packed my necessities, tidied up the suite for Fernando’s photos, took a shower, and headed to my parents’ suite to wait things out until it was time to move downstairs to my aunt’s suite for photos.

At 1:30 p.m., the photographers arrived for me to do my “getting ready” photos which flew by. I was so grateful to myself that I basically did all of my makeup prior to their arrival. It gave us time to not only get pictures of me, but also detail shots and celebration photos with my aunt. Right when we finished the photos, we got the call at 2:30 p.m. that my shuttle arrived to take me, my parents, and my aunt to the venue early for more photos and to have time to get into the dress!

We had a week of torrential rain leading up to the big day, so it was all smiles and relief for me as we drove in clear, sunny skies to the venue. We arrived around 3:00 p.m. and I was given the opportunity to walk around and confirm everything was to my liking. One of my biggest points of stress throughout the year was that I wouldn’t actually know what everything looked like until I arrived on that day. I had to trust that I communicated the vision well enough in Spanish and also accept that if something was wrong, I may not have been able to do anything about it. Thankfully, it did not disappoint. It was absolute perfection.

The most important piece was the collage my aunt made for us for our Day of the Dead altar. If you’re unfamiliar with this custom, I wrote about it in my trip to Guanajuato a couple of years ago. With our wedding date falling within the days of celebration, it only felt right to incorporate this as we were in Mexico and we, of course, wanted the spirit of our loved ones who passed to be there with us. ❤

After cooling down from walking around the venue in the sun (!!), I got into *the dress* and took more photos by myself and with my parents before Fernando arrived. By 3:45 p.m., Fernando and I did our first look. It wasn’t as emotional as I expected, but that was better for both of us. We took advantage of the downtime to also get photos with my parents together to save us time during the cocktail hour. By 4:45 p.m., our guests arrived and as soon as they pulled in, a breeze came off the ocean and I knew we were in for a perfect night.

The ceremony started at 5:00 p.m. Fernando and his mother walked out first to “If I” by Aloe Blacc. My father and I walked out second to “Die With You” by Beyoncé.

Fernando and I had our ceremony officiated by our friend, Adriana, and our rings were presented by our siblings. At the altar, it was my first time seeing my wedding band and, with the help of my friend and sister-in-law, I surprised Fernando with a new wedding band (he expected his first one from our courthouse ceremony in May). Adriana presented us as husband and wife and we walked back down the aisle to “Dilemma” by Nelly and Kelly Rowland. And guess what, y’all? I didn’t cry once! I just tried everything possible to be present in the moment.

After we said, “I do,” our cocktail hour began with the most beautiful orange sunset. We were able to get photos with everyone and more photos together. I was working so hard trekking through the sand in my five-inch Jimmy Choos (quite honestly my only “regret” due to the toe straps, not the height), but I knew the first shoe change was coming so I persevered! My wedding planner extended our cocktail hour by a little bit because she knew we also wanted to enjoy it. After changing my shoe to a shorter, bedazzled satin heel, I pretty much ran out to greet our guests and, of course, take more pictures. The cocktails were great, the playlist was great, how many times can I say it was perfect?

It was finally time for dinner and Fernando and I did a second entrance introducing us as a couple. I loved sitting on our own so we could talk and observe everything. The corset in my dress made it a little uncomfortable to eat, but I didn’t mind because I was so happy. Before dinner ended, the staff presented the tables with bottles of tequila as “La Botella” by Mach y Daddy played to reignite the party. Little did we know this would be the catalyst to a lot of funny memories!

After a wonderful dinner service, we were directed to the beach where our DJ lit up the dark dance floor with gold and we began the first dances. My father and I danced first to “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell. We didn’t have anything rehearsed, but we just had fun! Somehow, someway, I still didn’t cry. Fernando and his mother danced second to “Te Amo Mamá” by Marco Antonio Solís. Fernando and I closed out with our first dance to “I Love You (For Sentimental Reasons)” by Nat King Cole. When I did dream of my wedding day as a child, I always envisioned a string quartet, a pianist, and a small horn section to play some of the big band classics as the guests danced in black tie attire in a ballroom. A beach wedding is quite the opposite of that, haha, but I knew the song for my first dance had to capture that essence, and it did at one point feel like it was just me and Fernando.

To let everyone know the party started, we transitioned into “Suavemente” by Elvis Crespo, and for the next six hours, we danced the night away. When we originally booked the venue, we planned the evening to start at 7:00 or 8:00 p.m., but something told me to do a little research and that was the weekend of daylight savings. In order to have appropriate time for first look, ceremony, and sunset photos, we bumped everything up, but kept the original end time of 2:00 a.m. And I’m so glad we did!

I did an outfit and shoe change a couple of songs into the dancing part so I could take my time and cool down (or so I thought). I changed into a short, ivory romper/playsuit with appliqué similar to Fernando’s suit. My final heel of the night was another satin and organza white heel with a silver heart which matched a silver heart pendant necklace my mother gave me. Perfect, am I right? From there, it was just a night of endless dancing, hilarious memories, a final shoe change that I have no memory of, and being surrounded by loved ones. How many times can I say it was perfect?

I’m truly, truly happy that our wedding day went the way that it did. I know not a lot of people are as fortunate and there were so many factors that were out of our control that could have completely altered our experience. I won’t go so far as to say all of the stress and tribulations were worth it because many things happened in 2024 that were unnecessary and avoidable on my own part (and the part of others, to be honest); however, the extra effort that we both put into the day as far as details and experiences for ourselves and our guests absolutely were worth it. I hope y’all enjoyed reading about my wedding day! Until next time…

xx, AT

Dress: Low’s Bridal
Shoes: Jimmy Choo, Dolce Vita, Gianni Bini, Puma
Veil: VeroWedding on etsy
Second dress: BABYBOO
Photographer: Carlos Lozano Photography
Flowers and decor: Varsovia Group
DJ: Diego Alvarado EvolutionMix Audiovisual
Venue: Blue Venado Seaside
Wedding Planner: Claudia González Bodas (THE BEST WEDDING PLANNER IN RIVIERA MAYA)