The Cinderella in me as been awakened by Cinderella ^_^

One thing that I enjoy the most about the one year wedding preps is that I do a mixture of impulsive and well though of decisions. Depending on the amount, we buy and pay for things if we believe they are the best bargains out there.

So far, I've had luck with many things-sale and pretty bridesmaid dresses that I've enhanced, and recently two purchases that have made me really happy-secondary sponsors dresses and my wedding shoes! I'd upload the dresses in a separate blog since I havent done the finishing touches on all of them so let's focus on the shoes first.

I have always been a "feet" person. At times, I wonder if I give more importance to shoes than facial products. Tawagin nakong mukhang paa, I dont care as long as I have pretty shoes. From what I can remember, I noticed that I was into shoes way back in college..and the love has always been there. Now, as a bride, this priority surfaces even more- bumili nako ng wedding shoes and yet I havent even decided on my gown yet.

I was in SM Fairview to do a favor for my sister...eh ang lola mo super tagal with her classmates so I decided to do some window shopping first. LIAR! haha.. My fiance should stop me from window shopping coz more often than not, I end up buying something..but this time I'm not complaining. I went to Cinderella, tingin tingin, ikot ikot..and I saw the magic word..SALE..hehe..Upon checking it out, the wedge sandals were so pretty so I looked at the price tag.

699.75(I just dont get why they always do that for only stupid people will not realize it's 700).

I asked the sales lady if it was the sale price or they'd still slash off, she said they'd still take 50% off.OMG! #@$^!%..I can possibly get my dream shoes for 350! However, I was scared that it was the last stock and that the pair looks dirty, or there were no stocks and so on. But God was on my side and the shoes fit me perfectly. I was still apprehensive because I couldn't believe that I was already buying my wedding shoes so I kept asking the saleslady but she wouldn't answer and she only responded when I told her the pair would be my wedding shoes.

Miss tattletale became excited all of a sudden and told the cashier and they both smiled. The saleslady said it was the last pair, and I jokingly said muntik ko nang hindi mabili ah to which the cashier replied para sa'yo talaga yan ma'm...and indeed, it was meant for me. I always imagined I'd be tiis ganda- buying beautiful shoes that were expensive, high heeled, dangerous and multiplying my chances of tripping but I no longer have worries because I got the pair that are perfect for me, heeled, comfy, light, pretty, blue and cheap! Have I told you they're only 350? wink wink...

happiness...wedding shoes..check!

see yah!

6 years of love and laughter

Aside from the fact that my head has been filled with wedding related chuva for the pasrt 4 months or so and I want a break from it, I decided to make this post because our anniversary is so near. Adding the fact that I found something which almost made me give up on us, there is no better timing than to make this post.

This post reminds me,meio and others(kung sino man ang dapat pang maremind) how we started, how we grew together and how we got to this point. More than other people, I need to be reminded of us. Pain can sometimes blind us from where we are and where we need to get. More than other people, I need to be reminded why I shouldn't give up on us not only because of how much we've worked to get here but also because of what's in store for us..the continuation of our lifetime. actually un lang talaga yun, gusto ko lang isingit ang blog title.haha...
Anyways, here goes trip down memory lane..

Meio and I met via Friendster hence it had such a big part in our lives back in the day..Here are some of the most memorable pictures taken from 2005-2009(pre-facebook)..

On our first monthsary..Sa Kodak Alimall.hehe. take note of meio's clothing style-laging nakapolo at ako, this was 30 pounds ago.harhar

first ek trip nung 6th monthsary...sa wheel of fate :)

first anniversary sa eco park. at this time, I thought meio would be based in bicol for good T_T

ang payat ni bebekoi dito! 2nd anniv namin sa moa and the fireworks were the perfect ending to our celeb :)

I can't remember how we spent our 3rd anniversary so instead, here's a memorable pic in 2008..our first pic with seng :)

At dahil antagal maguplaod ng pictures..anni pictures nalang ng 4th and 5th anniv upload ko dito :D

sa napakagandang miag-ao church...

and opkors, our anniv last year sa cebu with beloved jemimah and madam aco...

sa tuktok ng cebu....

The past 6 years have been wonderful and I know we'll take more pictures..Undecided pa kung saan ang next adventure this year ^_^

the dream gown

I originally wanted to wear my Mom's gown but honestly, as of the moment, I am half hearted about it...
My mom's gown is way too simple for my liking and I'd really want something with more bling..
Most of all, I want my gown to be ME..something that really embodies who I am. so after a few twists and modification with search terms on google, I found it! The design that is as close as I can get to what I envision my gown to be. Truth be told, it is close to what my mom wore but details here and there make it so much different because...
1)The silhouette is A-line, unlike my mom's dress that has a balloon skirt.
2)The neckline is also sheer, but this one is made of organza and not lace(my mom's gown's was lace)
3)There is a belt...which I would modify to include more bling :)

See the difference :D

moi wearing mom's gown

Parang gusto ko na tuloi magpagawa ng gown bukas :) yey!

till the next update future brides and grooms...

this is it pancit! quidos grill na!

I've had one prior food tasting with meiokoi and another without him and both didn't feel so right..it's like there's something more out there.. So despite the fact that our other option looked more expensive at first, we called them up and it was one of the best things we did wedding wise!

We arrived a little earlier so I guess Ms gina was not yet ready to receive us.. She discussed the setup, etcetera, etcetera...after a while, she showed us to the back door and that's were our happily ever after began! haha

The food was awesooooome! pardon the shot for it was taken by a cam phone but nonetheless, it'll give u a good idea of what we had

clockwise from top: chopseuy, carbonara, roast beef, fish fillet with tartar sauce and chicken teriyaki

The food looked a little different in person- the carbonara was much saucier and the teriyaki was darker..We loved them all!

carbonara- was creamy and had tuna which i loved

roast beef- I'm not a beef fan but it was yummy!

fish fillet- nothing out of the ordinary but the fish was tasty, soft and the sauce was good

teriyaki- h2b was at a loss for words..many times he tried to describe it but couldnt and just ate and ate!

anyways, we also had leche flan and salad..though they also have fondue, we didnt have that anymore...

This was the "this is it" feeling we were waiting for and we're quite happy..After 3 foodtastings, we now have a caterer and we'll make the dp one of these days..

caterer, checked!

ta-ta engaged people:)

June CheckList

It's approximately 10 months to go before the wedding and I'm starting to panic, mostly because of money matters.Anyway, I will calm down and here's what we have so far

Church- Santa Clara De Montefalco Pasig

Venue-Tanghalang Pasigueno

Yey for us! However, Sta Clara doesnt allow us to pay the downpayment until we've given ALL THE requirements, so we're keen on getting them as soon as possible :)
For Tanghalang Pasigueno, we've paid the dp and we're considered blocked, so we'll just coordinate with them in the future :)


My timeline got screwed up when I found out that rockinphotographer/videographer was already booked for our wedding. Truth be told, in my original plan, I was only going to contact them August, and imagine my horror when they said they were already booked. Hence, I panicked and starting pulling back my timeline a few months earlier..With that it mind, here's our "current"(current as the operative word as it might change again)


July
Down Payment to Caterer
Down to Photo/Video
Buy supplies in Divi for bridesmaids gowns and DIY projects


August
Scouting for MOH and FSIL clothes(maid of honor and future sis in law gowns)
-Set Money aside for gown measurement/down,
-2nd installment to caterer


September
-measurements/down,set money aside for photo/video and caterer
-hmua scouting in time for the pre-nup, buy thingies for prenup


October
-prenup!(YEY!)
-more installment payments :)


November-April
Saka na to kasi marami pang mababago but we'll definitely give our STD cards by December :)


Wow, Blogging that was therapeutic ^_^.. I've been panicky for a couple of days pero hindi naman pala kami super behind schedule and I can still manage our finances..hehe..kalma gurl :)(ayan psycho na ako, talking to myself)


Tuh-Tuh future brides!

Ma Del's food tasting round 1

I've(Sorry I keep using I but h2b usually just follows suit..I'm the one who does all the research.hehe) always eyed Madel's cuisine but I've only called them recently because of two reasons:


I really wanted the Village Patio and Patio Ibarra..two venues with in house caterers. Unfortunately, as reasonable as their prices are, we have 200 guests and budget wise, they didnt make the cut.
2nd, another caterer we wanted looked reasonable at first glance so we were kinda set on them. Lo and behold, however, I realized they would be more expensive than Madels due to the extra charges..relatedly,
3rd reason is that unnamed caterer offers tiffany chairs for ''free" and it was hard to let it go....


But fate led us to Madel's cuisine and upon calling Ms Anj, she told me to come to the take home food tasting in Malayan Plaza in ortigas...Take Home meaning she would take time to talk to us but the food would be in take home containers...


Here are the food we sampled:
Roast Beef
Grilled Blue Marlin with Mushroom sauce
Hawaiian Pork
Chicken Flambe
Baked Macaroni


First and foremost, I thank Ms Anj for accommodating my Mom and I in the actual event. Mega busy pero she took time talaga to talk to me and the other future couples who went there..
Second, all my questions were answered and she even gave me tips to save money and stuff


But, this is after all a food tasting so we have to judge the food. In fairness, all the main dishes were cooked perfectly- walang malabsa, walang overcooked, walang matigas..just the exact texture and tenderness you'd expect for that dish..
As for the individual dishes' verdict, here they are:


Chicken Flambe- Oh, I loved it! it tasted like roasted chicken but much nicer because of special touches here and there...
Grilled Blue Marlin- I liked it because like the flambe it was a combination of something new and something old and it tasted like it was marinated well
Hawaiian Pork-It's their own take of sweet and sour pork but I liked that the veggies were crispy yet cooked
Baked Mac-My mom makes delicious baked mac so I am not the best person to judge this
Roast Beef-again, I hate beef so I am not the best person to judge this...

clockwise from top left: roast beef, hawaiian pork,blue marlin steak,baked mac, chicken flambe 

Miss Anj said we can have a 2nd food tasting and for that, I hope hubby and I can try
tenderloin pork which will replace both the beef and the prok dish
a seafood dish preferably hawaiian fish fillet
and fettuccine italiana plus our chosen desserts like buko pandan jello and 1 more..After all, first or not confirmed supplier or not, food tastings are love :)
till next time future brides and grooms!

Step 1 of bridal gown "make-over" : completed!

A few blogs ago http://arnoldapril2012.blogspot.com/2011/04/la-boda-de-amor.html), I mentioned that I intedn on wearing my Mom's wedding gown on my own special day. Lucky me, the design is very close to what I envisioned my own gown to be...

However, amends need to be done here and there such as
1) The gown is long sleeved. As much as it sounds good to done it ala Kate Middletone, it's gonna be freaking hot on our big day given that it's mid summer and the last thing I wanna happen is to faint from the heat. Not to mention the fact that I'm not a big fan of long sleeved clothing, let alone my gown.hehe

2) uhmmm.....as much as I hate to admit, I'm beefier than my mom...I can zip it up to about two inches from my waist but that's as far as I can go.. and for it to fit me fully and comfortably, I'd have to shed 10-20 pounds tops(shucks, thanks for the pressure mom!)

3) There isnt enough bling for my taste. My mom, a very minimalist by nature, simply put details here and there but I'd love for the gown to have bead word here and there and I'll definitely bring it to a modista one of these days...

And so, after much thought, I decided to cut out the sleeves. Don't get me wrong and visualize me with a pair of really sharp scissors and just cutting pointlessly- It was a very tedious job that required utmost patience and carefulness. The sleeves were lace and I had to be very careful not to ruin the fabric...which my mother was able to preserve for twenty six years..

After painstaking effort, I was able to cut through the arm holes but 1/2 an inch of sleeves still held on to each arm, I stopped there because I was scared I'd ruin it..I just wanted to be able to fit the gown without the sleeves..

So as promised(to those who care to read this), here's the first part of my Mom's gown's journey to becoming the "IT" gown for me

The gown in its original look

Moi wearing it after I've cut out the sleeves

Happy :) best of luck future brides..and grooms if there are some!