*special thanks to Daniel for singing J When I First Saw You (Jamie Foxx) When I first saw you, I said, oh my I said, oh my, that's a dream, that's a dream I needed a dream, when all seemed to go bad Then I found you And I have had the most beautiful dreams any man has ever had When I first saw you, I said, oh my I said, oh my, that's my dream, that's my dream I needed a dream to make me strong You were the only reason I've had to go on You're my dream, all the things I ever knew You're my dream, who could believe it could ever come true And who could believe the world would believe in my dreams too There comes a time when a child's got to grow There comes a time when the woman's got to go Mama said I am special She said I've got to go I'm just as good I'm even better than That's what you would say Shall I need to say Shall I need to say I'm not gonna say You're my dream (Now I've got dreams of my own) All the things I could ever be (Dreams you never know) You're my dream They'll never take my dream from me When I first saw you, I said, oh my, oh my That's my dream
Go4Flowers - Maybelle Focasan http://go4flowers.multiply.com +63 918 937 9115 +63 916 671 2397 Nice Print - Charisse Tinio +63 917 7964549 Solemn Vows - Cerruby Yap 2nd Level, Market! Market +63 917 819 2367 mailto:solemnvows_0506@yahoo.com CSM Events - Cecille Maglalang +63 917 533 8045 mailto:ceciliamaglalang@yahoo.com Holly Paraiso (Harpist) +63 918 261 2709 Card Prints Robinson's Galleria Merlyn Padagas (HMUA) +63 915 636 5599 Nurture Spa chilLine T www.chilline.com/tagaytay.html
So I promised a couple of wedding kwentos before… so here goes…
En route to T
I was cramming for my missalletes; I had them DIY’d but then our printer ran out of ink. I was so confident that I could do it on my own. Waaah! I rushed to SM Taytay to look for a good quality printer who can deliver in four hours. Good thing I found one and had them printed out immediately. The girls were raving about how it looked and could not believe I did it on my own. I just wish I had done this sooner rather than later. Oh well.at around noon, I started my way to Tagaytay (yes, alone!). my car was packed with all my stuff – the gown, 1 box of accessories, my luggage, and fourteen bottles of wine. I picked up DJ at G4 at around 130pm then headed straight to T.
Arrival at T
When we arrived, I saw my cousin, Daniel. All he could say was “Rowena, this place is soooo UGLY!” he was speaking ironically though since he was smiling. I later learned that he asked the caretakers if he could buy it. Haha! (Go ahead and buy it and let me borrow it a couple of weekends a year!) My family was already there when we arrived (DJ and I made a couple of pit stops along the way and traffic was bad even on a Friday afternoon with the construction going on.)
The Night Before
Zayd and I went night swimming haha! We figured tonight was our last night at T so might as well enjoy the pool. It was cold though! After that, Zayd, Beng, Neil, DJ, and I watched Ex-Men… Zayd was so addicted to those videos up on YouTube that he compiled everything into one movie! I was busy reading *work* emails and making audio cd copies of all the songs I want played during the reception. Oh, and did I mention we opened one bottle of wine that was meant for one of our ninongs? Hahaha! We knew he wasn’t showing up so we decided to take matters in our own hands
When it was time for bed, zayd and I were texting each other pa. We were both so excited we could not sleep!
Wedding Day Morning
I was up really early. Di naman ako excited gaano no? I wanted to do a webcast of my wedding preps but the wifi signal was very weak in my room I had a hearty breakfast, in anticipation of my loss of appetite in the next few hours.
Merlyn was the first to arrive among my suppliers. They had a good look around T and fell in love with it. By 11am, I was already being “detailed” on by her. “Detailed” was a term Zayd coined, which likened me to a car. Hmmft!
My tita Bang kept on peeking inside my room and see how things were going. At one point, she just stared at me and then suddenly ran towards her room crying! My mom was alarmed so she immediately talked to me asked what happened. I did not have any clue! Later on, we discovered that tita Bang was having thoughts of: “Baby ko ikakasal na! and she looked really pretty!” Awww. *sweet*
I did not get to see much of Zayd that morning.
“Delubyo” at T
Two earthquakes hit Tagaytay on September 27, 2008 – while Merlyn was doing my make-up. I jokingly told everyone in the room that it was God’s way of asking me if I am really, really sure I wanted to go through with the wedding. Hahaha!
However, the real delubyo was when everybody who arrived Tagaytay early decided to stop by T to take a peek at me and Zayd! We almost ran out of food haha! and parking space!
My mom was nowhere to be found during my pictorials. She was running about errand after errand. Hay naku! She missed a lot of pictures and video shots when I finally saw her, her make-up was almost gone and she was sweating! Arrgh! My dad came in ready for the cameras when I noticed that he only buttoned the top button of his barong. Oh my :)
I’m off to get married!
Zayd’s family went to Caleruega at around 2pm as tradition dictates, the groom’s family should arrive the church first to meet and greet all the guests. My coordinator suggested we have some light snacks and refreshments ready for everybody who arrives at the church. It was a hit and everybody who got one was touched buti daw naisip naming yun! Hehe.
I left with my bunch at around 230pm and yes, I did take the main entrance it was quite a cardio activity, I tell you!
One of my flower girls, Bea, arrived just in the nick of time. Two weeks before the big day, Patty was not sure if Bea could walk down the aisle with me because of a sudden case of allergies and she had to be confined for *I think* more than a week. With God’s grace, she was able to make it! Yay!
Bless the Broken Road
As tita Beth began to sing my bridal march song by Rascal Flatts, a weird child’s voice suddenly filled the room:
“Daddy! May nagtetext sa yo! Daddy! Daddy! May nagtetext sa yo! Babasahin ko ba?”
Horror of horrors it was my dad’s message alert tone! He forgot to silence it and everyone was laughing! I did not know whether to laugh or cry but I laughed first! I was so tense and I really wanted to cry. I was thinking
“This is it! The moment I’ve been preparing for, in the past seventeen months! I hope I don’t trip! I hope Zayd is smiling!”
Though it was going to be a short walk, I took my time. I let my dad finish texting haha before I went on my way.
Caleruega was so crowded with family and friends who mattered to us. And ouf course with flowers hehe! I could not get a glimpse of Zayd as I was walking. When I finally arrived at my parents’ side, that’s when I saw him. He was smiling! Actually smiling! :)
Fr. Lolo Bobby was really cool. Everybody loved his homily. :)
We are hitched!
Heading out to Nurture Spa, Zayd and I could not believe we pulled it off. Now, we silently prayed that it does not rain.
The weather was typical Tagaytay – cool. The grounds at Nurture were damp though. The ambiance was very romantic and they did a great job playing around with my three-color motif.
Funny moments include:
Dove release. I am really freaked out with claws. I only held the dove in like 2 seconds and when it moved.. eeewww I had to let it go.. with a shrill shriek (yeah it’s redundant but this is the perfect description!) Zayd had no choice but to let his dove fly on haha!
Bouquet and Garter Game. One my my bridesmaids, Gayle, admitted to not listening to the instructions. So she ended up with the bouquet. Haha! It was a simple, Trip to Jerusalem-like game only that the bouquet and garter were being passed among the single ones. Zayd’s cousin got the garter, who was up on stage, with his Chucks!
First Dance. Daniel sang our first dance, which was the song from Dreamgirls, When I First Saw You. It started to drizzle at this time. 
Group Pictures. Zayd and I ran out of wacky poses :)
Crayola Mode
When the Niceprint team was ready for the on-site video, I held my breath. It was so fantastic! Not that because it was our wedding in it, but it did capture every moment, every emotion that happened that day. 
Tita Bang prepared a really nice speech for us which ended up with me in tears. I love you Tita Bang!
Tita Leonie stressed how we both were blessed.
Mommy and Daddy gave short but sweet messages for us, also asking for a granddaughter.
Mom and Dad, told us about how Zayd was a miracle baby and to take care of each other and for a grandson.
(we’ll probably shoot for twins haha!)
The night ended with everybody posing for the cams.
More pictures are uploaded at http://wengerts.multiply.com
Supplier Name Rating Comments Church: Caleruega 1.0 In all the times I've been there, whether to attend a friend's wedding or just out of walang magawa, it has never failed to amaze me at how beautiful it is. The church is small and is perfect for intimate weddings. If they can make further improvements pa, I would suggest paving the roads and making the place more handicap-friendly. Officiating Priest: Msgr. Bobby Olaguer 1.0 We went to the NBP (yes, the bilibid prison!) a year before to tell him about the wedding to make sure that he does not double-book! He also enlightened us on how to go about a mixed marriage, not only with how the ceremony should go, but also on the possible "repercussions" it will have once we have our own family. He even suggested an unconventional way of doing the rite of marriage :) which we did but without the funny element to it. [It was supposed to go like: "Weng, do you take me to be your lawful husband?" "Yes, I do." then the bridesmaids would go "Owwwws?"] Fr. Bobby is actually my lolo and the dad's side of the family were all excited since I was the first grandchild to be married by him. Reception Venue: Nurture Spa 1.5 The ambiance was perfect for a simple garden reception; what was even better was that it was really affordable too! Inclusions of the package were: 5 hours inclusive use of the venue, smoke and bubble machine, luminaries, floral drop arrangement, sound system, and cake. They provided tents at no additional cost too. The only problem was that it rained a few days before our wedding, so the ground was soft. My gown ended up having a chocolate brown train at the end of the night. The staff were really friendly and reliable. Food was great (though we did not eat as much with all the excitement happening around us!) and the guests loved it. Too bad I did not get a piece of the mango crepe L Photo/Video: Nice Print 1.5 Charisse was very easy to talk to. This actually led me to pencil book them immediately. My first AE was Jane but sadly she left… and I only found out about it when I scheduled my prenup pictorials in August. I did not get the famous guys like Bernie and Rupert. I was assigned to Dennis. On our way to Antipolo (where we held the prenups), all three of us bonded on one topic: CARS. Suffice to say, we had a blast during the pictorials. During the wedding, I was a bit disappointed because they arrived around two hours late. So I was almost done with my make-up when they came in. the team sent to me was quite a young team! Which turned out to be great since they were all makulit and we had fun! Even the guests nakikipagkulitan sa kanila. I availed of the on-site video and was very happy at the finished product. The guests were amazed ambilis daw nila nagawa. I got the raw pics after 10 days. True enough, the best yung pictures!!! They caught all the drama and the emotion! We are very happy with their output. What I do not like about Niceprint is yung office personnel nila. They need to improve on customer service talaga. You can't get a straight answer from them, as if they are always clueless. OTD: CSM Events 2.5 Ate Balu is really great. We already had a gameplan months before the wedding and it was executed naman. Not as I wanted it to happen, but it was okay, I guess. I guess the clincher for me was that they arrived an hour late. HMUA: Merlyn Padagas 1.0 I LOVE HER! Make-up was very simple and I loved how she did my eyes. Bridal Gown and accessories 1.0 My gown was very simple, tube gown with beading on top. May 3 stripes lang sa back. I bought this in a quaint bridal shop in Minneapolis. It came with a secondary veil whose beading was the same as my gown's. The veil was ordered at eBay, customized; I never really liked the long ones so I opted for the elbow-length veil lang. My purse was bought at David's Bridal in San Jose, it is the same one as Katherine Heigl had in the film 27 Dresses at the start of the film! The shawl was matched to the bag so I immediately bought it too. Entourage Gowns: Solemn Vows by Cerruby Yap 1.0 Tita Ruby is very easy to talk to and very honest. She worked within my budget and she worked really fast! Without sacrificing quality, mind you. I only have good things to say about her and her shop. Highly recommended. BTW, I had to make adjustments to my gown since I bought it more than a year before the wedding. Syempre I gained weight ;-) haha! But she charged me very minimal lang as in I can't believe it. Considering she had her hands full trying to figure out the intricacies of the gown, but she did say she learned something by doing it. Music: Holly Paraiso 1.5 This was another early booking :) Again, most of my guests raved about her. Sobrang galing daw… well she is! I gave her music sheets only a week before the wedding and viola, she learned it. The only drawback was she did not know how to download music sheets and she has no printer. Hehe. Good thing I lived near her so it was okay to just print those out for her. Limited lang din yung playlist with her. But it's okay as long as you have a fallback audio cd at hand. She was very accommodating din when I brought my singer to her house to practice. She really does find time for you. Flowers: Go4Flowers 1.5 The flowers were beautiful, especially mine hahaha! The only problem was that the aisle flowers were supposed to be on pails hung by the pews. With the size of the aisle at Caleruega, kumusta naman nung nakatayo yung flowers?! Ayun, di kami kasyang tatlo ng parents ko. Laki kasi namin hahaha! But it was beautiful talaga! Invites: Cardprints 1.0 Easy to talk to and they did deliver naman what I asked them to do. Although I've heard some bad feedback about them, I guess you just have to treat them as regular printers who won't do any grammar or spell checks for you! Cake Topper: Precious Moments musical cake topper 1.0 I got them on sale at Megamall and it complemented my cake perfectly. I plan to have my future kids use them in their own wedding :) sana gumagana pa sya by that time haha! Souvenirs: Heart-shaped Measuring Spoons from eBay US 1.0 Very unique daw sabi ng guests. Grabe I got them from eBay as well and you guys can imagine gano kabigat yung maleta ko when I came back. The NWA folks were like "What's in these luggages?" When I told them they were measuring spoon souvenirs for my wedding they gave me a free pass! Rings: Ultra Diamond and Whitehall & Co. 1.0 Zayd had a simple titanium wedding band with three diamonds, while I had a sort-of eternity ring made in 14k white gold. My ring complemented my engagement ring too. It was basically a steal when we got the rings; the saleslady was very helpful and maxed out the discount she could give us. I guess she saw the disappointment on my face when she said my ring would cost around $335 *sniff there goes the budget* We managed to lower it down a wee bit more until it reached an acceptable limit ;-) DIY: Kissing bells, candles, cord (by MOH), missallete 1.0 LOVE YOUR OWN. And of course, the labor of love from my ever-creative MOH, DJ. The cord was really heavy (laki ng beads e) very nice it had a prism effect nag iiba iba ng color :) Shoes: Abbylyn's 1.5 The first beadwork they did, my shoes looked like pink. My motif was purple. So what I did was I asked them to re-bead everything to silver na lang then accent on purple pearls. PERFECT na! Preps Venue: "T" chilLine Tagaytay 1.0 I found this through the web while I was scouting for a nice hotel for my preps and my family who will be staying over the day before the wedding. I found that hotels were more expensive, since at that time, their weekend rate was 50k -- that's Friday to Sunday. We paid for the house even before we had to ocular it, relying mostly on pictures from the web. So a week before the wedding, we decided to swing by and take a look at it. WHEW! The view was breathtaking and the house! $&%*! It had four rooms, 2 of which had the nicest view; kitchen, ref, utensils, towels, pool, sauna, and a jacuzzi. Oh, and did I mention this was where For the First Time was shot? Gotcha! Gifts for Principal Sponsors and Parents: Wine Depot 1.0 Wine Depot is really the place to snatch good deals for wines! Very affordable prices. Cebu Pacific 1.0 This was my first time to take Cebu Pacific on an international flight. I was dreading it actually because of the bad feedback I've been hearing.. However, it turned out okay naman. Yeah, they're not your typical PAL, NWA, etc. But what the heck, they have good prices and I did arrive alive and all my stuff with me. They even arrived earlier than estimated. Beat that!
L
L
this is the view from my room at T
i really am in love with this place. i can't wait till i rent it again haha :)
from other weddings, i saw the onsite video played on the early part of the reception. i can't remember when they finally played it and when i saw it... damn! it was worth the wait.
thanks to niceprint for sending a team of really young and makukulit peeps!
it's been more than a week since the wedding.. we've already spent 4 fun-filled days at HKG for our honeymoon and now it's back to reality... i.e. time to make linis the apartment, buy stuff, and so on.
i have lots of kwento but am at a loss of time. i am back at my parent's house, just packing my stuff. zayd is busy watching tv hehe. i promise to post more kwento next time.
anyhoo, here are the UNOFFICIAL pics from cameras from all over hehe.
dahan dahan maglakad dahil baka madapa! (saka maikli lang yung aisle ng caleruega)
i woke up early today to finally pack my stuff for the wedding. i have been "ejected" of my room for the past week because of Daniel *peace ulit! i love having you here!*.. so as soon as he got up, i spent an hour getting my stuff out. with that out of the way, i went through my list of stuff to bring.
i was all ready in 2 hours. everything was stowed in my car -- the trunk was full of wine, the backseat was stuffed with my gown, accessories, and so on.
i picked Dj up at Glorietta 4, and headed off to tagaytay. traffic was kinda hard so it took us about 2.5hrs to get there from makati. the weather was still uncooperative, though it was really scattered and short.
my family loved T. it was breathtakingly beautiful.
when zayd arrived at T, we went on to Nurture spa to check things out. the tents were in place and they were working on the tables na.
all my toxicity suddenly went kaput when i saw the place. maski raw pa, it felt really romantic. *i kissed zayd*
so why am i still up? :)
guilty as charged.
i just had my eyelash extension this evening. man it hurt like hell!! all the while i was lying, i just kept on thinking "this is the downside of vanity" the aesthetician did mention though that it was doing to hurt. what she failed to mention was that it was gonna hurt AFTER.
so there. my eyes were bloodshot red, i was crying all over. when i arrived home, everybody was "what happened to you?" which really translated "did you and zayd have a fight?" hahahaha! all i could answer them was "why wasn't i born with long lashes??" my brother has these :( talk about unfair!!!
only 3 days left :) i haven't packed by stuff hehe i could not get decent time with my room hahaha :) peace out daniel :) you know i love you for coming home for this very special day :)
a couple of friends threw me a bridal-shower-cum-dinner last wednesday. i had 5 of my close friends with me and it was fun. chickahan lang. i did not feel as if it will be my last night out with the girls after i get married. but it sure was fun seeing mich, gayle, and shelly again after a long time. errr... maybe not gayle :) haha!
so we had dinner at italianni's at GB3. so ayan picture taking na. akalain nyong, may waiter na umepal. as in nag pose ng mala-mr. pogi. i'd post it here if i had a copy. haha! super nakakatawa. we asked for another picture to be taken, this time wala na sya. the waiter was apologetic naman. pero it gave us more reason to laugh.
it's almost 1am and i am still up. yes. i'm backing up my files so that my boss can borrow my external hard drive for a week. :) that's what you call -- for the love of... :D
here is a list of what we need to accomplish, yet again, this weekend :) so far, so good.
- go to Pinong's wedding
- get my hair fixed *i hate RED SALON! they practically ruined my hair. to think i told them i was getting married and they do this to me! grrr. never ever go there girls. lesson: JESI MENDEZ IS THE BEST SALON IN TOWN!!!*
- move the bravia from my room to our apartment in Pasig *sniff*
- pack my stuff for the wedding weekend
- pack my stuff for the honeymoon
- get Holly the music sheets for the wedding vows :)
- get nails done
- go to tagaytay :)
- go to niceprint to settle the 30% :)
yan lang. *lang!*
i really hope i can update this blog everyday... haaaay life :) i'm so excited :D
*i lost another inch hooray haha but is it really hooray if i lost it at the chest area? hmmm*
we accomplished a lot of stuff over the weekend:
super duper top secret souvenirs
the bears Bea, Gian, and Gwen will carry instead of flowers
our symbol of wealth -- not your traditional one but these are coins from places around the world
personalized napkins -- ilalayo ko to kay gran kasi baka di gamitin and itago na lang nya hehe
our kissing bells proudly DIY'd by yours truly
will post more pics of the cord and hair vine, DIY'd by MOH DJ *kiss mwah hugs*
a few realizations during my prenuptial pictorials:
i've always FANTASIZED of being a model, now i realize it's really very hard. for a couple of reasons
- you need to wake up early to prepare
- you need the perfect set of clothes to change into
- if you are doing an outdoor shoot, you need to stay tuned to the weather forecast. it was raining -- errr drizzling -- when we had our shoot so it was kinda humid. it was better than having it in the usual hot weather.
- you must know which angle gives off the best shot
- SMILE! SMILE! SMILE!!!
after the shoot, zayd was all simangot. he says his muscles hurt due to smiling all the time for the cam.
here are a few of my favorite shots...
mahirap talaga sya pangitiin :'(
syempre dapat kasama si vio... na dahilan bakit nagkaganito!!! bwahaha!! :D
haaaay! i never thought i could accomplish all my tasks during this long break.
i already wrote about the saturday and sunday activities (see previous posts).. so here's the hot update for today..
without my dad knowing (sorry dad! *kiss*), we went ahead and had a "working" breakfast with our officiating priest, lolo bobby. we arrived late at his home and we were already kind of worried that he may have gone off elsewhere :( all the activity over the weekend was really tiring. good thing was, he also had the same kind of weekend. so when we arrived, he was still fast asleep.
zayd and i went out again for some jollibee breakfast, took 'em out and shared with the rest of the guys in lolo's house. by the time we got back, lolo was awake and happily ate the breakfast we brought. :)
so there, while we were having breakfast, i went ahead and asked for his advice on how the ceremony should go. if i haven't mentioned it already, this is going to be a mixed marriage, so it requires a different format. we went through a couple of sample missalletes and a really old book -- a 1982 edition -- discussing and describing how mixed marriages should go (including muslims!). he was about to lend it to us but since it was really old, he decided to make copies of pages of the ones that applied to us :)
we even had the readings nailed down! :) *YEY!*
so now i have to start typing and looking for a printer hehe :) wish me luck guys!
yesireee that is the magic number [and UOM] this weekend!
everybody -- INCLUDING ME! -- had adjustments of 2 inches ;) yeyeyeyey!!! all the dieting and gym finally paid off.
now the tricky part... 1 more month to maintain...!!!
i am off to market! market! again :) every weekend na lang haha
but today will be different.
i am going there to fit my gown :) *awwwww* zayd will also be there to fit his barong and slacks. i got a peek at it last night and it was a nice mocha color.
i am almost tempted to call in a priest and get married right then and there! kainan na lang next month! hahaha :D
i promise we won't see each other's fittings later so we don't ruin the moment. too bad i can only post pictures of it after the wedding... (it will take a WHOLE lot of will power for me)
i swear if the fitting goes well today, i will reward myself with a nice dinner at conti's :D
waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!
almost all of my entourage gowns are done. yipeee!!
and today, we went shoe shopping at the shoe expo in cubao :) with my future mom- and sis-in-law, beng.
if you have been in the area, this is a small [two] strip mall where you can find good and bang-for-buck shoes. we went to abbylyn's where i had mine custom-made (will post pics later). it was my third time to go there since last week when i was supposed to pick it up, they have mistakenly put in PINK beads instead of light purple ones. i had them replace it with silver instead and to accent, a few light purple pearls. it turned out very nice! *gush* (purple is in every sentence now)
it was weird that all three of us had the same shoe size. and i was waaaay taller than them. as in waaaaaaay taller. i left my mom's shoe size back in high school so i never had a chance to really utilize the shoe-swapping-with-family with her, even with my extended family.
so after two gruelling hours of trying out a few pairs, stretching the entrada, and all. we were all set. we were able to buy 4 pairs of shoes and 2 clutch bags for both moms. total bill was 1.7k -- NOT BAD!! (zayd paid for it hahaha!)
off we went to gateway for an early dinner while waiting for anne, one of my bridesmaids, who was a cousin of zayd, coming in from tarlac.
soon as she arrived, we headed off to market market for beng and anne's first fitting. it is amazing that ALL of my bridesmaids lost weight. (huhu kelan kaya ako magiging ganon) and their dresses looked nice as well. (really great job for tita ruby, two thumbs and toes up!)
and.......
I SAW MY GOWN ALREADY!!! *clapping*
it still is perfect, and am still in love with it like i was the first time i saw it in chanhassen, minnesota.
chanhassen... *cry* now i remember my good friend bhabes who went with me to try the gowns at that store. she passed away this week. the same week i was about to give her a call and ask for her home address since we made a deal that she will come home for my wedding. i am saddened by the loss of a really good friend -- one who took care of me while i was away from my family and friends for a good six months on my first visit to the US. *i am crying as i am typing this* however, i do know that she is in a better place now, happier than ever and surely she will be there come my wedding day.
as promised...
here is my inaanak, Bea:
here naman is my inaanak Gian and her sister Gwen:
i've always had high expectations on how the flower girls' dresses would come out. glad it turned out fabulous! :)
overall i loved how all the dresses came out. i did not see DJ's though kasi she arrived earlier than i did haha!
the invites also turned out beautifully. it was very simple and they also asked if they can display our invites at the next bridal fair hihihi!
i am officially in P-A-N-I-C!!
tita ruby (of solemn vows) texted me yesterday. first fitting of the entourage gowns will be on saturday! yahoooo!!!!
i am really excited to see how the flower girls' dresses come out. will post pictures this weekend!
so anyhow, just a quick rundown of my to-do list:
1. Church (Caleruega) - fully paid na yey! :D
2. Reception Venue (Nurture Spa) - food tasting done :D will need to coordinate with Rosell for next plan of action
3. Music (Holly Paraiso - harpist) - finalize playlist
4. Ento gowns (Solemn Vows) - first fitting due on Saturday
5. P/V (NicePrint) - pre-nuptial pictorials scheduled in August (inulan kami this weekend and we had a schedule conflict -- well mine of course)
6. HMUA (Merlyn Padagas) - taken care of na!
7. Souvenirs (secretong malufet) + Personalized Napkins - hahanapin ko pa sa bodega baka daw natabunan ng sobrang daming boxes nila bro and sis
8. Kissing Bells (proudly DIY'd) - 50% done, i just need to glue gun the flowers sa bells :D woo hooo i stayed up till 2am sunday just trying to finish the handles. 30 bells for P529 is pretty darn good!
9. Cake Topper - done c/o Precious moments
10. Rings - with my mom for safekeeping (thanks ma! *mwah!*)
11. Flowers - all taken care of courtesy of Maybelle of go4flowers
12. Invites - are due to be out this week! yey! i hope cardprints did it great.. *fingers crossed! i am such an OC pa naman*
13. my gown - ayun nasa operating room hahaha panic mode ako lalo :D
after more than two months, my little cutie nephew is finally home! yey!
i took this pic while he was sleeping :D
the nose!!! argh. (wala ako nyan kaya ganun na lang ang inggit ko hahaha!)
have you ever noticed the weird signs getting to Tagaytay?
this one is my second favorite:
why is this funny?
who would look for an ostrich??? (naalala ko tuloy si mickee! hahaa i hope you're reading this!!)
so anyway, we went to tagaytay (again! second time in a week) for food tasting at Nurture Spa (www.nurture.com.ph) and MAN!!! isa lang masasabi ko... my guests are darn lucky.
this is a long overdue post :(
things have been really, really busy since my last post. almost every weekend, zayd and i had tons of stuff to do. to top it all off, i have been working nights so essentially my normal 2-day weekend turns out to be just 1.5.
anyway, we have accomplished all documentation requirements for the church. we just spent the whole day on Wednesday in Tagaytay for our canonical and pre-cana seminar. man it was tiring! especially for me, since i came directly from work then straight to Tagaytay (and it was raining!). by the time we arrived Manila, it was almost the start of my shift! so i was up for more than 24hours since Tuesday.
zayd and i also happened to chance by SM Megamall last week. we were scouting for stickers to put on our souvenirs when we passed by one stall (forgot the name) that sold Precious Moments collectibles. there was a 40% off cake topper on sale!
yey! needless to say, we bought it. our original budget for the cake topper was at 5k. we got this one for less!
hhhmmm....
so my Vio's 25k PMS was due since last week but we had to go to zayd's cousin's wedding. so this saturday, it was make up time. as soon as my shift ended on saturday morning, zayd was already waiting for me up front the office. we went to breakfast at chowking (the fort) and then headed straight home. while i slept, he took care of bringing my baby Vio to the casa.
to kill time, he went to the nearby SM mall and looked around. and there it was...
he was all so excited. like a kid in a candy store! :) i did like the idea that once we move in to our new home, we'll have a really nice entertainment system. :)
it is now installed in my room. grabe. the tv is too big for my room. para akong nasa sinehan! super cool! as in, we got a very good deal for it *i won't tell you how much! just visit your nearest SM Appliance Center!!!*
some revelations:
1. i need a large family room for this tv
2. i need a nice tv rack (or should i hang this on my wall?)
3. i can now buy a PSP3!
4. all my stuff are (almost) all Sony-based
wedding preps update: i finally booked my gown maker for my entourage. next sunday na yung sukatan nila. bait bait kausap ni tita ruby of solemn vows. she reminds me of my tita bang! :)
where have i been??? :(
i just realized that my wedding blog has been inactive for more than a month now. isn't it ironic that i am able to actively update this while i was in the US? i used to think that i have more time in my hands in manila.
errr. i was wrong.
so just to give you an update on how things are coming along....
on my first weekend back home, i just slept. i had a slight flu due to the significant change in weather (from very cold -- in my standards-- to VERY hot!) it is actually nice to know that i have not lost my capability to sweat! mind you, even without moving!
most of my weekends thereafter was all fuly booked. i had a heart-to-heart talk with my soon to be in-laws. man! no amount of prep work can ever be done for this. i ended up crying on my way home and feeling lost :D seriously, i had a strange feeling that this wedding might not push through.
you see, zayd and i have different religions. though i understand where the in-laws are coming from, i just wished i knew it sooner rather than in april 2008. i have no one to blame but zayd and myself for going as far as we have in the preps without really involving his parents :) BUT! just yesterday we had it all worked out and things are now going back to the way it should. *whew*
we finally booked go4flowers to do my flowers. yey!!! we compared how the rates may vary if we opted for a supplier already based in tagaytay. turns out -- NOT MUCH! maybe 500-1000 diff! :)
i also had a chance to spend a weekend with zayd's extended family in tarlac. really nice! sarap ng hangin parang very conducive to sleep!! (jason mraz: sleep all, sleep all day... well sing it for me!)
that same weekend, my sister in law delivered my nephew a few months earlier than expected. she had to deliver since the baby might be in danger... the doc says enclampsia. omg. i wanted to fly back to taytay (from tarlac) just to be with the family but unfortunately i couldn't. so my little mohan was born and incubated (till now) at medical city on april 26th. it's been a rollercoaster ride from then on at home. one day everything is fine, then one morning i see my mom crying. my sis-in-law is back at home, minus mohan, but they do visit him everyday. only the parents are allowed inside the NICU so nobody has seen this very loved little boy. sheng says that he looks a lot like mel. at this point, i would like to ask you to include little mohan in your prayers, that he will surpass this phase and come home to his loving and waiting family. i do believe miracles happen and he is our miracle!
i'd like to think he's excited to be in my wedding.
The Secret to a Lasting Marriage: Embrace Imperfection
0 comments Posted by Weng at 3/31/2008 09:30:00 AMthis was posted at Weddings@Work and thought to pass it on to you guys...
The Secret to a Lasting Marriage: Embrace Imperfection
Deb Graham
When I was a little girl, my mom liked to make breakfast food for dinner
every now and then. And I remember one night in particular when she had made
breakfast after a long, hard day at work.
On that evening so long ago, my mom placed a plate of eggs, sausage, and
extremely burned toast in front of my dad. I remember waiting to see if
anyone noticed! Yet all my dad did was reach for his toast, smile at my mom,
and ask me how my day was at school.
I don't remember what I told him that night, but I do remember watching him
smear butter and jelly on that toast and eat every bite! When I got up from
the table that evening, I remember hearing my mom apologize to my dad for
burning the toast. And I'll never forget what he said: "Baby, I love burned
toast."
Later that night, I went to kiss Daddy good night and I asked him if he
really liked his toast burned. He wrapped me in his arms and said, "Debbie,
your momma put in a hard day at work today and she's real tired. And
besidesa little burnt toast never hurt anyone!"
In bed that night, I thought about that scene at dinner...and the kindness
my daddy showed my mom. To this day, it's a cherished memory from my
childhood that I'll never forget. And it's one that came to mind just
recently when Jack and I sat down to eat dinner.
I had arrived home late...as usual...and decided we would have breakfast
food for dinner. Some things never change, I suppose!
To my amazement, I found the ingredients I needed, and quickly began to cook
eggs, turkey sausage, and buttered toast. Thinking I had things under
control, I glanced through the mail for the day. It was only a few minutes
later that I remembered that I had forgotten to take the toast out of the
oven!
Now, had it been any other day -- and had we had more than two pieces of
bread in the entire house -- I would have started all over. But it had been
one of those days and I had just used up the last two pieces of bread. So
burnt toast it was!
As I set the plate down in front of Jack, I waited for a comment about the
toast. But all I got was a "Thank you!" I watched as he ate bite by bite,
all the time waiting for some comment about the toast. But instead, all Jack
said was, "Babe, this is great. Thanks for cooking tonight. I know you had a
hard day."
As I took a bite of my charred toast that night, I thought about my mom and
dad...how burnt toast hadn't been a deal-breaker for them. And I quietly
thanked God for giving me a marriage where burnt toast wasn't a deal-breaker
either!
You know, life is full of imperfect things...and imperfect people. I'm not
the best housekeeper or cook. And you might be surprised to find out that
Jack isn't the perfect husband! He likes to play his music too loud, he will
always find a way to avoid yard work, he watches far too many sports & play
the whole night with warcraft. Believe it or not, watching "Golf Academy" is
not my idea of a great night at home!
But somehow in the past 37 years Jack and I have learned to accept the
imperfections in each other. Over time, we have stopped trying to make each
other in our own mold and have learned to celebrate our differences. You
might say that we've learned to love each other for who we really are!
For example, I like to take my time, I'm a perfectionist, and I'm
even-tempered. I tend to work too much and sleep too little. Jack, on the
other hand, is disciplined, studious, an early riser, and is a marketer's
dream consumer. I count pennies and Jack could care less! Where he is
strong, I am weak, and vice versa.
And while you might say that Jack and I are opposites, we're also very much
alike. I can look at him and tell you what he's thinking. I can predict his
actions before he finalizes his plans. On the other hand, he knows whether
I'm troubled or not the moment I enter a room.
We share the same goals. We love the same things. And we are still best
friends. We've traveled through many valleys and enjoyed many mountaintops.
And yet, at the same time, Jack and I must work every minute of every day to
make this thing called "marriage" work!
What I've learned over the years is that learning to accept each other's
faults - and choosing to celebrate each other's differences - is the one of
the most important keys to creating a healthy, growing, and lasting marriage
relationship.
And that's my prayer for you today. That you will learn to take the good,
the bad, and the ugly parts of your married life and lay them at the feet of
GOD. Because in the end, He's the only One who will be able to give you a
marriage where burnt toast isn't a deal-breaker!
i've always loved purple and all its different variants. it's not surprising that i'd make it as one of my wedding colors.
i initially started with a lilac and silver motif. now, when i was thinking FLOWERS.. hhmmm wala naman silver na flower!!! white meron pero... hmmmm i think i need to spruce it up.
then i came across Metro Weddings. i was inspired by the purple, sage, and sky color triad. it was perfect for a garden venue!
so, without further ado... here are my colors:
special thanks to: http://www.colorsontheweb.com/colorwizard.asp
for some weird and crazy reason, i was able to secure my wedding gown even before i booked all my local suppliers... yes, wedding dress muna bago ang simbahan! tama ba yon?!?!
for the benefit of those who haven't heard this story...
i spent a weekend at Minneapolis around May (?) 2007. out of boredom, my very good friend Bhabes and I stopped over one of the nearby bridal shops. my intent then was to look for a nice color motif. yeah, and maybe try on a few gowns hehe.
so there it was, my size in a rack, scanned through the dresses and then one gown caught my eye. Bhabes was really excited and wanted me to try it on. (i won't even describe it at this point!) so i snuck in the fitting room and put it on. *SHRIEK!!!* i never wanted to take it off!!! Bhabes joined me inside the room and snapped some pictures. i went out and took my turn in front of the 360-degree mirror and viola! i wanted to cry. hahaha! the store owner even said that it seemed that the dress picked me ;) *bolera ampf!*
i asked the lady if she can put it on hold for me until tomorrow. she immediately agreed.
we went home, i called up zayd and told him of my recent escapade hehe. Bhabes was really intent on getting that gown for me so she took a chance and grabbed the phone from me so she can talk to zayd.
needless to say, i was back at the bridal store first thing next day! :)
p.s.
yes, i hand-carried my wedding gown from Minneapolis to St. Louis and then back to Manila. my mom could not believe her eyes when she saw me holding the gown. that's when it actually dawned on them that this wedding was a go. hahaha!
zayd still hasn't seen my gown.
so zayd's mom asked me to buy flat sheets this weekend. since Good Friday was a non-working holiday, we decided to temporarily shutdown our brains and go out.
it was a test -- i think. i went bedsheet shopping with my tita mona back in september for my granny. i was too busy looking at the pricetag and kept pointing out the cheap ones. hehe. she then gave me the low-down on picking the right bedsheet :)
1. know what kind of bed needs the sheet - king, queen, twin, and single. unfortunately walang single dito sa tate hehe.
2. does it have to be fitted or just the flat sheet - in Manila, usually it's just one but in the US, may fitted na, then may flat sheet pa sold as a set. since this is going to be used in Manila, i opted to just get the flat sheet and not the packaged one (na may kasamang pillowcase)
3. know the fabric - i saw tons of fabric at BBB! satin, cotton, egyptian. i kinda liked the thought of satin. but naisip ko it will get hot and sticky sa skin during the summer (which is NOW!). cotton is most common. but i remember after some time, magninisnis sya.
4. thread count - the higher the number, the softer it feels.
taking these into consideration, i spent an hour inside BBB hehe. almost everything was on sale and had additional discounts taken at the counter. i had all the time to waste in the world since my friend and i won't be meeting till about 5pm. prior to BBB, i looked at the price ranges of the sheets at Burlington and Marshall's. i already had my eye on the Nautica sheets I found in Burlington but that was cotton i think, for about $30.
it was at BBB i found myself satisfied, and decided to get the 500 thread count clay-colored flat sheet. i even got a nice and matching beige-colored pillowcase too which was a steal.
satisfied ako with my recent escapade. actually, i was very excited hehehe. i can only imagine pag house na namin yung bibilhan ko ng stuff!
i just wish we get that house started na. ngrrrr!
on the lighter side of TV:
i caught Warren Beatty's version of Love Affair on Friday morning. haaaay. inlababo na naman ako hehe.
then came: He Said, She Said. darn. Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth Perkins. nakakatuwa sya. but too bad di ko natapos huhu kasi we had to leave na. i am trying to catch it at Oxygen this weekend. haaay. i wish i can finish that movie. i wonder how it ends...
another classic on TV: When Harry Met Sally. this is a funny movie talaga. basically explains why a man and a woman can never be just friends. hhmm. let me rephrase that: there is a high probability that men and women can never be just friends. it will take whole lot of will (or should it be don't?) power.
shout outs:
i miss you zayd! it's a shame na we don't get to chat as much over the long break but i do understand you have to be with your family in tarlac. i just miss you so much! ngggrrr! thank you for calling me everytime you wake up :) i feel you miss me too! hahaha cheesy!
ge! i know you are always reading my blog hahaha! i hope you liked Ice Castles! stay happy girl!
deeej! i'm so happy for you! love yah girl!
i miss my family. i wonder what's for easter lunch? hhmmm. i am so excited na to get bac home. i have been given the go signal to shop for my up-and-coming nephew: Aaron Mohan. i already bought him a cutesy nike rubbershoes. yeah, i know. never buy shoes for kids since madali daw lumaki ang paa nila. but, wth! (as in what the heck!) this is my first pamangkin and i will splurge on him if i want to ;) well i know my brother will preserve this pair like my dad did mine.. which is an adidas that till now is displayed inside my room :)
i was stuck at home this last weekend, trying to resolve the serious performance issues we have encountered in our server. so anyway, i worked in front of the tv with 2 laptops :)
come 5pm, i was on ABC Family. viola! Cutting Edge marathon weekend pala!
Cutting Edge starring Moira Kelly and DB Sweeney. I swear this is one of my all-time fave romantic movies while I was growing up. i remember using this line on zayd: "just remember who said it first" hahaha!
then it went on to Cutting Edge 2. i didn't really like it as much as the first one. apparently, it was a continuation of the original one, so yung main na skater was the daughter of the characters in CE1.
and then! eto pinakamalupit! ICE CASTLES!!! OMG! umiiyak ako while watching! as in. buti na lang wala si ka-PBB haha! kadireh. i so like the plot. as in. i suggest you watch it. this was filmed in 1978 and also had the main soundtrack of "Looking Through the Eyes of Love" -- when you watch the movie, you'll definitely understand why this is the song. super ganda. i wish they made more films na ganyan nowadays.
come sunday night, it was cutting edge 3! it was a better offspring than CE2 if i must say so. the plot and storyline was kept pretty close to 1 and the characters have no direct lineage to the original one. their coach though, was the daughter of the couple in CE1. the pamchenko move was also revived in this movie. which was amazing. and the guy! OMG. to drool for. hehe. he looked a lot like josh hartnett.
wala lang. i felt so in love with zayd nung weekend. pero may sakit sya eh. no pansin ako huhu. pero okay lang. okay naman kami :)
*my gosh, it just dawned on me na it's just 6months away till the big day! i can't wait to get back home...*
my heart just always goes out to the rockers...
first it was Bo Bice..
then Chris Daughtry...
now it's Carly!
Zayd
There are 9 letters in your name.
Those 9 letters total to 41
There are 3 vowels and 6 consonants in your name.
What your first name means:Muslim Male Superabundance.
Your number is: 5
The characteristics of #5 are: Expansiveness, visionary, adventure, the constructive use of freedom.
The expression or destiny for #5:
The number 5 Expression endows with the wonderful characteristic of multi-talents and versatility. You can do so many things well. The tone of the number 5 is constructive freedom, and in your drive to attain this freedom, you will likely be the master of adaptability and change. You are good at presenting ideas and knowing how to approach people to get what you want. Naturally, this gives you an edge in any sort of selling game and spells easy success when it comes to working with people in most jobs. Your popularity may lead you toward some form of entertainment or amusement. Whatever you do, you are clever, analytical, and a very quick thinker.
If there is too much of the 5 energy in your makeup, you may express some the negative attitudes of the number. Your restless and impatient attitude may keep you from staying with any project for too long. Sometimes you can be rather erratic and scatter yourself and your energies. You have a hard time keeping regular office hours and maintaining any sort of a routine. You tend to react strongly if you sense that your freedom of speech or action is being impaired or restricted in any way. As clever as you are, you may have a tendency to make the same mistakes over and over again because much of your response is glib reaction rather that thoughtful application. You are in a continuous state of flux brought by constantly changing interests.
Your Soul Urge number is: 3
A Soul Urge number of 3 means:
With the Soul Urge number 3 your desire in life is personal expression, and generally enjoying life to its fullest. You want to participate in an active social life and enjoy a large circle of friends. You want to be in the limelight, expressing your artistic or intellectual talents. Word skills may be your thing; speaking, writing, acting, singing. In a positive sense, the 3 energy is friendly, outgoing and always very social.
You have a decidedly upbeat attitude that is rarely discouraged; a good mental and emotional balance.
The 3 Soul Urge gives intuitive insight, thus, very high creative and inspirational tendencies. The truly outstanding trait shown by the 3 Soul Urge is that of self-expression, regardless of the field of endeavor.
On the negative side, you may at times become too easygoing and too optimistic, tending to scatter forces and accomplish very little. Often, the excessive 3 energy produces non-stop talkers. Everyone has faults, but the 3 soul urge doesn't appreciate having these pointed out.
Your Inner Dream number is: 11
An Inner Dream number of 11 means:
You dream of casting the light of illumination; of being the true idealist. You secretly believe there is more to life than we can know or prove, and you would like to be provider of the 'word' from on high.
Weng
There are 11 letters in your name.
Those 11 letters total to 56
There are 5 vowels and 6 consonants in your name.
Your number is: 11
The characteristics of #11 are: High spiritual plane, intuitive, illumination, idealist, a dreamer.
The expression or destiny for #11:
Your Expression number is 11. The number 11 is the first of the master numbers. It is associated with idealistic concepts and rather spiritual issues. Accordingly, it is a number with potentials that are somewhat more difficult to live up to. You have the capacity to be inspirational, and the ability to lead merely by your own example. An inborn inner strength and awareness can make you an excellent teacher, social worker, philosopher, or advisor. No matter what area of work you pursue, you are very aware and sensitive to the highest sense of your environment. Your intuition is very strong; in fact, many psychic people and those involved in occult studies have the number 11 expression. You possess a good mind with keen analytical ability. Because of this you can probably succeed in most lines of work, however, you will do better and be happier outside of the business world. Oddly enough, even here you generally succeed, owing to your often original and unusual approach. Nonetheless, you are more content working with your ideals, rather than dollars and cents.
The positive aspect of the number 11 expression is an always idealistic attitude. Your thinking is long term, and you are able to grasp the far-reaching effects of actions and plans. You are disappointed by the shortsighted views of many of your contemporaries. You are deeply concerned and supportive of art, music, or of beauty in any form.
The negative attitudes associated with the number 11 expression include a continuous sense of nervous tension; you may be too sensitive and temperamental. You tend to dream a lot and may be more of a dreamer than a doer. Fantasy and reality sometimes become intermingled and you are sometimes very impractical. You tend to want to spread the illumination of your knowledge to others irrespective of their desire or need.
Your Soul Urge number is: 2
A Soul Urge number of 2 means:
With the Soul Urge number 2, your motivation is centered on friendships, partnerships, and companionship. You want to work with others as a part of a cooperative team. Leadership is not important to you, but making a contribution to the team effort is. You are willing to work hard to achieve a harmonious environment with sensitive, genial people.
In a positive sense, the 2 Soul Urge is sympathetic, extremely concerned and devoted. The nature tends to be very sensitive to others, always tactful and diplomatic. This element in your nature indicates that you are rather emotional. You are persuasive, but in a very quiet way, never forceful. You are the type that makes really close friendships because you are so affectionate and loving.
If this number is over-emphasized in your makeup, you may be over-sensitive, with a delicate ego that is too easily hurt. You may be timid or fearful, too easygoing for your own good.
Your Inner Dream number is: 9
An Inner Dream number of 9 means:
You dream of being creative, intellectual, and universal; the selfless humanitarian. You understand the needy and what to help them. You would love to be a person people count on for support and advice.
Guest Etiquette by John & Benz Rana (MB, 03/12/05)
I got an invite but have no plans of attending; should I still send a gift?
First thing's first. If you won't be able to attend for whatever reason, please RSVP. A big chunk of the wedding budget goes to the reception and it will be utterly inconsiderate to just give up a reserved seat without letting the couple know. Give them the chance to assign that seat to another guest in their "waitlist." Having that out of the way, let's get to your question: YES, it is customary to still send a gift.
The envelope bears only my name. May I ask if I can bring a date
Don't bring a date unless your invitation specifically says "and Guest." Bringing unexpected guests is very impolite. Neither should you ask the couple's permission if you may bring one or not. Don't put your friends on the spot. We Filipinos don't really like turning down people. So how would you know if their "Yes" means yes or not? Spare them that trouble.
The invite says "Mr. & Mrs." Could we bring our kids?
Never bring the kids unless "& Family" is indicated. Soon-to-weds don't usually invite children for a good reason. Kids get bored or cranky during hour-long masses. Their tantrums might disrupt the solemnity of the ceremony. Weddings are usually formal events typically not appropriate for the little ones. To be blunt about it, inviting a child at the reception means added two mouths to feed - the kid's and the yaya's.
But my son/daughter is the bearer/flower girl. I'm sure it's understood that my other child is invited.
Which part of the answer above didn't you understand? Seriously, if the couple wanted to invite your other kid, they would have specified that on the envelope.But I'm breastfeeding, I'm sure my friends will understand, won't they?
Granting that it's an infant and he or she won't eat at the reception - let's even assume that your baby won't wail at the church - the answer is still NO! Not even if you've perfected the art of being a cow in a long gown. Four words: Breast Pump and Babysitter!
I don't have a clue what gift to give them. Any ideas?
The average Pinoy soon-to-wed would always prefer monetary gifts more than any other gift. It is the unspoken fact. We're telling you now to make it easier for them to let you know what they REALLY want; unless they indicated that already in their invites which, by the way, is a very tacky thing to do.
If you're not comfortable giving cash, you may ask the couple where they are registered (Gift / Bridal Registry) and choose from what's listed under their names in the store. You can also ask them where they're residing after the wedding and take the cue from there. If you know that they'll be migrating abroad or living with their parents for the time being, a ref or another oven toaster may not be the most practical and logical gift.
I'm convinced. So how much cash should I give them? I don't want to give too little or too much.
That's a hard thing to answer. It's really a case-to-case thing. Try to put yourself in the couple's shoes. How much should a guest of your stature give you without being branded a cheapskate? Also consider your relationship with the couple. If you're good friends of the couple's parents, you'll probably shell-out more than if you were simply the bride's Girl Friday.
Could I skip the ceremony and head straight to the reception?
You can. BUT you shouldn't! You are invited to THE wedding -- that's the part where they exchange their "I dos." The reception is where the Receiving Line is. You can't be 'received' if you are already seated in the hall, right? "Patay-gutom" is too harsh a word and we assure you that it's by no means what anyone would think if indeed you decide to go straight to the reception. But admit that it struck a nerve just mentioning the word in that context, isn't it?
Speaking of the Receiving Line, what should be the proper greeting?
Here's the rule: Say "Congratulations" to the groom and "Best Wishes" to the bride. The reason behind is that "congrats" implies that someone has caught something or won a prize, and it is rather improper to imply that the bride "caught" the man who married her. If this rule gets mixed-up in your head come wedding day, just say the two phrases together and look at both of them. That usually works!
Likewise, saying "Good Luck!" no matter how pure your wishes are will also sound very inappropriate for obvious reasons.
Nice try, but what if the couple makes a Grand Entrance and left the Receiving Line to their parents? What then should I tell them? Note that I don't even know which sets of parents are whose.
Didn't we tell you already not to skip the ceremony? The bride and groom usually walk alongside their respective parents at the very start!
Anyway, make your pleasantries short and sweet. Shake their hands and say "Hello! I'm (your name) and I went to school with (name of bride/groom) in (school's name)/an officemate of (name of bride/groom) at (name of company)." They usually respond with "Nice meeting you." Just smile, nod politely, and move on to the next person. If one replies "Hi! I've heard so much about you!", simply smile and nod just the same. No lengthy conversation; just make small talk at most. If you can't find the words to say, just smile again, nod politely, and move.
During the banquet, is there anything I need to know?
Nowadays, the Reception Program usually have the guests on each table stand up and have their picture taken with the couple before being led to the buffet. This is done to resolve two issues of past weddings: (a) for the couple's convenience and skip the tiring Table-Hopping ritual just to have their picture taken with all their guests; and (b) for the guests' convenience so they won't have to wait very long for their turn in the buffet line.
Keep in mind that Buffet is NOT synonymous with "Eat-All-You-Can." Do not pile your plate full. Be courteous of those who have yet to be served. Don't worry. You can easily go for seconds.
Without You
It feels like a lifetime,
A thousand days have passed by
Since I held you close to me
If I could see that smile from my friend
I know that I could live again
I need you here with me
CHORUS
Heaven knows what to say
Even though for right now
you’re so far away
I hope and I pray
Somewhere in your heart I’ll always stay
Girl, lately
my sun doesn’t shine without you
Never noticed
what it feels like to be without you
Feels like I took my last step
And my last breath and my life ended
Had to say just what I was feeling, girl
‘Cause my sun doesn’t shine,
Sun doesn’t shine without you
VERSE 2
This is more for me than for you
Girl, I finally see there’s no substitute
For what we have
Do you know how much I love you?
And what we’ve shared
I can’t forget
Girl, a love like yours
I’ll never let just slip away
Just promise me that you’ll stay
CHORUS
Heaven knows what to say
Even though for right now you’re so far away
Gonna tell you and show you
Do whatever I can do to get back to you
Girl, lately
my sun doesn’t shine without you
Never noticed
what it feels like to be without you
Feels like I took my last step
And my last breath in my life ending
Had to say just what I was feeling, girl
‘Cause my sun doesn’t shine,
Sun doesn’t shine...
BRIDGE
Have you ever seen a flower that never blooms
See a starless night without the moon
Well that’s me without you
So come back and turn my night into day...
...cause lately,
my sun doesn’t shine without you...
‘Cause my sun doesn’t shine,
Sun doesn’t shine without
you
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nobody should be away from their better half during this time. Napapasenti tuloy ako huhu. Then sakto pa, Paolo Santos on my iPod... I miss my hubby...
arrgh. it's february already. time does fly!
i haven't moved an inch since december on my wedding preps. well -- i can probably say half an inch. i found one potential florist on Multiply. problem is, she hasn't responded to my email. arrrgh. but i did have one officemate, Richelle, meet up with her.
Che is getting married in May. i have been, in a way, helping her get her suppliers and get everything prepared. i referred go4flowers to her and she immediately went to their manila office and booked them. i guess i will have to wait till Che's wedding to see their work hehe.
thank God for the internet. i have been googling for bands and wedding singers for my wedding. i am still looking for that distinct male wedding singer who can pull off "So Close".
which reminds me, i haven't sent Holly any mp3s yet. omg. i hope she can still learn the songs i want when i come home in April.
zayd has been really helpful in terms of taking over the preps while i am out of the country. would you believe he is going to the wedding expo next weekend? how weird will that be?!?! i have given him specific suppliers to watch out for and of course the budget for each. i hope this will turn out well.
ttfn! i've got a lot of googling to do!