Where to stay....

I get a lot of questions on where to stay while here on the Emerald Coast.  My usual response is ... it depends.  It depends on what you want to do while you are here, how many people you have with you and whether you have an adult party or you have children with you.
Most of the condos/houses require a min of 3-7 night stay.  The chain hotels do rent for one or two nights though. 
Some suggestions ....
If you have a large group of people that are going to be here with you usually renting a house is the best deal.  It costs more per night but when you break it down by the bedroom or person, it is usually quite reasonable.  By doing this, you are able to take advantage of cooking onsite as well, which can save quite a bit of money.  If you have children, you can usually have a floor that is child friendly and then an adult floor for those that don't want to be woken up by the kiddies in the morning.  A lot of the wedding parties that I do go this route with everyone staying at the house and then they have a reception at the house as well.  You can check out www.vrbo.com for rentals by owner.
If you have a smaller group or people would like their own space, there a lots of condos on the beach.  The condos on Miramar Beach (although the listing says Destin) are across from the beach, but it is an easy walk.   There are quite a few townhouses on the beach for rent in Miramar Beach as well.
If you have children or want a quieter time, usually Miramar Beach is where you would want to stay or Holiday Isle in Destin.  Destin condos are closer to the restaurants, bars and other activities.
http://www.emeraldcoastfl.com/the-beaches/destin.aspx
If you are not familiar with the area... there are three basic areas in the Destin area.  Destin East (Miramar Beach, Crystal Beach, Henderson Beach), Destin Central (Destin, Holiday Isle) and then Destin West (Okaloosa Island, Fort Walton Beach).   There are restaurants and activities all along these areas and with the exception of Fort Walton Beach (which actually is not on the beach) they all have the beautiful white sand and gorgeous water.  When people (from out of town) refer to Destin they could be talking about any of these areas. 
Destin Harbor is where the fishing boats and charters are, there are also rentals for pontoon boats, jet skis.  This is also where you will find the parasailing and snorkling activities.  But that is for another blog post.
If you have any questions, you can either submit a comment here or shoot me an email at jfrasernotary@yahoo.com. 
No matter where you stay, I am sure you will enjoy your time here!

Sand ceremony ideas

I just wanted to share a few ideas for the sand ceremony.  Some folks are intimidated on what kind of keepsake vase to get.  There are many types of vases out there and you can get many types.  My first suggestion to think about is if you are travelling here for the wedding, then you will want to get a vase with a stopper or top.  This will make it easier to travel without worrying about it spilling. 
Another thing to think about is how many people are participating in the ceremony.  If it is for two people you don't know a really big vase, but if you are including your children then you might want something a little bigger so that all the colors will show. 
Some folks get the vase engraved with their names and the date and others don't.  It is another personalized decision that you will make for the ceremony.
Below are some samples of ones that we have used at the ceremonies that I have done.

 

 

 

Ups and Downs

Since my last post, I have done a few more closings... that time was well spent getting certified and listing with the notary sites.  I am so very glad that I did that.
I have done quite a few weddings lately as well and with each wedding there is always something that doesn't go quite as planned, from dropped rings to missing licenses to people coming up to us on the beach while we are doing the ceremony and then of course, the weather is sometimes an issue especially here on the coast. Whenever these things happen, I remind the bride and groom that every wedding needs a story and whatever went not as planned (I won't say went wrong)... it adds to the story of their wedding.  Don't worry about the little things that go different than you planned, and keep the big picture in mind.  Most of the time, the bride and groom are good sports and laugh off whatever the issue is and carry on.  Just remember that life rarely goes as planned and if you let the little things bother you -  life will be much more difficult.  You have to have a sense of humor about life and all its ups and downs. 
Remember the reason that you are there is to marry your love and as long as you are hand in hand, it will all work out and you will have a good story to tell down the road.

Notary work

Sorry I have not been on here lately but I took a couple of weeks off during a slow period and went to visit my 92 year old mother.  She is doing great, thanks for asking!  :-)
Most of my posts are about my wedding officiant side of Destin Notary but I have to share something that happened today.  I have decided that this is going to be my full time job going forward and such I need to get the Notary side of the business going stronger to cover the slow months of the wedding side of the business.  So today I went on to the National Notary Association (which I am a member of) website and watched one of their webinars on branding/increasing your business.  It was a great webinar!  If you are a notary out there, you really need to belong to the NNA... they have great information on their website.  Anyway, I have done most of what they were recommending but had not followed up by registering on some the websites that closing/signing companies go to when they are in need of a notary signing agent.  So off I went to the websites, registered and put down a little description of myself and what I do.  I figured maybe someday, someone might call and I would get some extra work out of it.  Was I wrong!! Two hours later, I got my first call and set up my first appointment for tomorrow.  For those of you interested, the website that they found my name on is www.notaryrotary.com.  The company that called me is based out of California and needed a notary to do a signing here in Florida for a property in Georgia, talk about being a national company!
So that little exercise and the hour I spent listening to the webinar, were very much worth my time.

I have two weddings this Saturday so I will be enjoying the Labor Day weekend on Sunday and Monday.  I hope everyone has a safe and fun weekend! 

Cancellations

I haven't been on to post anything for awhile but that is a good thing (at least for my business).  I had 19 weddings in the month of July!  That is a record month for me.  I am so happy that my wedding business is growing so well.  I love this job and meeting and working with the most wonderful people.
Of course, there is always a down side and luckily for me and the other officiants that I know, this is a rare occurence.  Cancellations... they can be handled professionally and with courtesy or they can be handled wrong.  We all understand that plans change, situations happen or circumstances change.  We don't want to get too involved in your life, but if you contract with an officiant to perform the ceremony, you should have the courtesy to inform your officiant, as soon as possible, if the ceremony is going to be cancelled. We set aside the date and time, and do not book anything else within a certain timeframe.  If you need to cancel, and if you let us know as soon as possible, then we can open up that date and time and schedule something else.  This is our business, after all.
In the last little while, I have had one bride cancel the morning of the ceremony and another didn't call or contact me at all.  Another officiant I know had two brides cancel on him the day before the ceremony.  I am sure that these brides knew more than a day in advance that they were not going to get married that day.
We typically require a deposit to hold the date and time.  If you do not cancel within a reasonable time ( a week or so would be minimum), please don't expect to get your deposit back.  If you give us enough time to book another wedding, we will be glad to refund the deposit or apply it to another date, if you need to reschedule.
I have had people cancel with reasonable notice and was glad to refund their deposit and was able to schedule another wedding.  Those situations were a win-win for both parties.
Please if you need to cancel, please have the courtesy to let your vendors know as soon as you know.

Vow Renewals

I am getting quite a few requests for vow renewals lately.  I think this is a wonderful way to celebrate a successful marriage, rekindle a marriage or to recomitt when things have been rocky.
It is not necessary to have a officiant/notary perform a ceremony for the vow renewal but a lot of folks want to have that wedding feeling and professional feeling so they hire an officiant to perform these ceremonies.  There is no paperwork involved so it is more of a spiritual bonding or re-bonding for the couple. 
Sometimes after a couple has been married for quite a few years, raised a family and find themselves on their own again, they re-evaluate their relationship and wonder if they would marry this person again, knowing what they now know of each other.  If that answer is yes, then a vow renewal is a great way to do that.  They are starting into a new phase of their lives and it seems important to let the other person know that they would and do choose that person again.
During a marriage sometimes it feels like you have no time for each other... alone time with each other.  Work, kids, family and all the other responsibilites seem to come first.  Doing a vow renewal is nice way to get that "honeymoon" feeling again and to reconnect with your partner and remember that special feeling that brought you together in the first place.
There are times when life gets rocky.  It could be an illness, family responsibilites, or bad decisions, and the couple needs/wants to celebrate that they have struggled and overcome those adversities.  They want to say to each other, see we made it through those tough times and we are still here, still together. 
Some couples use the same vows that they spoke on their original wedding day, and others choose vows that represent their present day circumstances and celebrate their accomplishments.  
Some couples exchange their wedding rings again or use replacement rings if their original ones have been lost or damaged over the years.
Some couples include their children in the ceremony.
There are many ways to celebrate the renewal of the vows that you took in the past.   The ceremony should be as individual as you are as a couple. 
If you are thinking of renewing your vows.... give me a call and we can work together to make it a beautiful ceremony to celebrate a marriage that has stood the test of time!

Alternate Locations - Eden State Park

If you are looking for alternate locations to getting married on the beach here in the Panhandle area, I would recommend looking into Eden State Park.  I have done a few weddings there (including one this afternoon) and it is a beautiful location.  It is a true Southern location.  There is a big plantation style home (I think it is a museum) with a porch and rocking chairs.  There are beautiful trees and gardens.  Most people get married under the "wedding tree".  There is a also a dock overlooking a small bay.  It is very picturesque, and usually very private.  I believe that you have to book the location if you would like a wedding there.  It is a very nice alternative to the typical beach wedding.

http://www.weddingwire.com/reviews/eden-gardens-state-park-santa-rosa-beach/587ac0e40c0f185f.html