Should you start spontaneously singing James Taylor’s “Oh Mexico” while reading this blog post do not be alarmed.  The following images will make you long for a Mexican vacation.

You may remember Lori & Justin from their Las Vegas engagement session, well when it came to their wedding they knew they wanted a vacation inspired dream wedding on the white sands of a tropical location.  Their quest for the perfect destination wedding lead them to the Grand Palladium Resort and Spa White Sands in the heart of Riviera Maya, Mexico.  They were so ecstatic when they booked the venue and began planning wedding of their dreams.  Along the journey of planning there were some typical bumps in the road, but nothing could prepare them for the month before when apparently all signs pointed to NO for their wedding.  The swine flu epidemic hit hard (amongst other news worthy issues) and before they could blink people were questioning the safety of traveling to Mexico.  Lori and Justin decided they would be getting married no matter what and decided not cancel or relocate their wedding.  By the time their wedding rolled around most of the swine flu scare had passed and everyone was ready to spend some time on the beach.  We are so glad they didn’t have to make alternative plans for their wedding day.  We couldn’t have imagined it any other way than on the beautiful beaches of Mexico.  Everything was absolutely perfect.  It was exactly as Lori predicted… laid back and jam packed with fun!  This had to be one of the most easy going wedding parties we have ever worked with.  Everyone was having the time of their lives and we are so happy we were there to capture it all.  There were so many amazing pictures from their wedding that I had a hard time narrowing it down for this post… so I will cut the words to a minimum and get on with wedding.  My advice to anyone considering a destination wedding… do it!!!!

Notice…  many many beautiful images are to follow… proceed with caution!

Who wouldn’t want to get married here?!

hello gorgeous Mexico detials… and yes that is a giant iquana running around.  They act just like our little Florida lizards only they are muuuuuuuch larger.

I just loved Lori’s cute hot pink ballet flats.  Perfect flip flop alternative for beach inspired wedding shoes.

Isn’t Lori just the spitting image of her mother!?!  This family is full of beautiful women I tell ya.

all the guys had their own mini mustache for the occasion

the view… oh the view!

some of the other resort guests showed up to watch from the beach… no one likes to miss out on a good wedding!

Lori’s sister Holly was the maid of honor… I told you this family was full of beautiful girls.

Lori discovering Justin’s secret mustache

if you look closely you will see me in Lori’s right eye and Brad in Lori’s left.  Pretty sneaky huh…

the girls

the boys

and their alter egos

the whole gang

this was entirely their idea… and I love the results!

The reception was held overlooking the little river that ran through the resort.  I love all the light reflecting in the water.

Lori and Justin thank you so much for having us there to celebrate with you and your families.  You were all an absolute pleasure to work with and made us feel like family.  We wish you both years and years of happiness, love and adventures together!

Lots of love!

Mel & Brad

Stay tuned tomorrow for images from their super delicious underwater day after session!