wishful thinking

i'm hoping Lily's can make me at least one of these.







crossing my fingers. =)

going home

last week aldo told me that the immigration dept. sent him a letter requesting for payment of my landing fee - this is the last step before passport request (then they affix the immigrant visa!). although it's good news, it was a bit confusing to us because the embassy's still supposedly waiting for the replacement of my thailand police clearance (which they lost).

the other immigration applicants in the e-group i'm a part of are pretty optimistic though, as they've been asked for payment right before passport request. aldo and i are keeping our fingers crossed that the visa pulls thru by september at least - so i get to go home with him by the end of september.

home.. now that's a new term to get used to.

and together with that... one time, one phone number, one season, and one zip code.

i can't wait!

connect the dots

i was writing our avp script and decided to post these here (a.k.a. boredom).

some trivia about our wedding and our wedding suppliers:

- aldo, terry, jong, and hangad's coordinator M are all xaverians
- thus, Mary The Queen is our non-negotiable church
- our official first date was a UPJMA formal ball, and we had agreed to meet up in Edsa Shangri-la
- we've been physically together for a total of 8 months, covering a period of 8 years
- terry was T's (bridesmaid) sister's ex
- Good Friend O is Jong's friend from college
- terry used to live in canada
- Fr. F is a good friend of aldo's family from both sides
- Secondary Sponsor J was once Bridesmaid T's client for work
- one ninong, one groomsman, our best man, one seconday sponsor, and our bearer come from one family

beach-bound!

finally found time to go to the Ten Knots office to make a deposit for our honeymoon. yaay!

what are the odds... a reception at the palawan ballroom, and a honeymoon in palawan. i'm praying for lots of sunshine since all our beach trips so far have been accompanied by rain.

and since rustan's is still on sale (well it's right across my office - too near to resist!), i found nice bikinis in tigerlily at 50% off! seafolly has selected pieces on sale too but definitely past season ones with broken sizes.

5 weeks to go Part 2

*swiped from www.cakeartist.ph


saturday was a major marathon.

submitted papers to Mary The Queen, and listened to Hangad sing at Khristine & Johann's wedding. noted that MTQ's sound system really is a bit faulty, but Migs of Hangad says that it was better the day after. let's hope it was just a minor glitch of some sort.

next stop was at lya's libis shop for mom's and sam's fittings. met my Ninang H there since she was in manila for a 4-day vacation en route to singapore.

got my cord and pillow at Ready To Wed that day too.

talk about lagare!

************

between distributing invitations and fitting schedules for the moms, ninangs, and maid of honor, i was able to meet Tita Cake-Maker last sunday. since our wedding cake is a gift, i found it quite inappropriate and kapal to show up at her doorstep with bookmarked wedding magazines and printouts. so i crossed my fingers and prayed that she would show me samples that i'd like.

her previous instructions to me were pretty vague - pick a cake you want and i'll make it for you. so i defined what i wanted and what i didn't want before i went to her place.

and i wasn't disappointed.

she makes beautiful fondant cakes... with really dainty and detailed rolled fondant flowers that look even more real than silk flowers.

she has a rather grandmotherly air about her... the type that will voluntarily teach you how to cook if you asked. her kitchen reminded me of Becky's Kitchen - homey and very afternoon-tea-ish. her baker took out albums and Wilton books so that i could pick - since i didn't have the guts to bring the magazines down from my car. LOL.

after half an hour of flipping, i finally settled on one which resembles Judy Uson's cakes, spcifically the one up there.

only, ours will have a light pink base with a different sort of swag-drape-thing.

argh whatever... not really stressing about how the cake looks anyway. as long as there's cake - that's all there is to it. well... as long as we can still cut it and swallow the piece... then i'll take whatever is available, thank you very much. hehehe.

5 weeks to go!

Hand Calligraphy by Mang Lincoln



with poetry printed on vellum



invitation text by Pia



main invitation, entourage card, and after the wedding info

antique lace pillow from Ninang H, improved by Lya Armovit

Cord by Lya Armovit

bored!

hay, more than a year of wedding stuff. i feel like a boring and overly-OC person already. everything here has been wedding, wedding, wedding.

only a month and a few weeks more and i can finally go back to being me!

funny how over a year's worth of preparing will only take 4 hours max.

talk about production value. maybe weddings ought to be the new media for advertising since it's a mini-production in itself. LOL. now that would literally be marrying my career and my personal life!

Pananatili

after months and months of deciding what my bridal march will be, i finally settled on Pananatili. i was torn between With You (from the Pippin soundtrack) and this, but by virtue of choosing which describes our relationship the most, Pananatili (without a doubt) takes the cake.

**********

Huwag mong naising lisanin kita;
Wala 'kong hangaring ika'y mag-isa.
Sa'n man magtungo, ako'y sasabay,
Magkabalikat sa paglalakbay.

Mananahan sa tahanang sisilong sa 'yo,
Yayakapin ang landasin at bayan mo.
Poon mo ay aking ipagbubunyi
At iibigin nang buong sarili.

Sa'n man abutin ng paghahanap,
Ikaw at ako'y magkasamang ganap.
Ipahintulot nawa ng Panginoon:
Ni kamataya'y maglalaho, anino ng kahapon.

Dahil pag-ibig ang alay sa 'yo, mananatili ako.
H'wag nang naising tayo'y mawalay,
H'wag nang isiping
Magwawakas ang paglalakbay.

aldo's new toy

while i'm excited about Rustan's big sale - particularly on the stemware and flatware sections... aldo's tinkering with his new toy - the Sony RM-AV2500 Integrated Remote Commander. here's a review: http://www.remotecentral.com/av2500/

hmm, new toy na naman. integrated remote + recliner + an out-of-the-country-wife = a couch potato husband.

on the other hand, i suppose it'll be easier when we argue... i only have to confiscate or hide the remote and leave the house. now that'll make an impact. hehehe.

hay... boys and their toys.

invitation-happy

work has been crazy, and immigration requirements even more screwed up. the canadian embassy sent me a letter asking for my original thai police certificate - which i had already submitted one week prior to their letter. after 2.5 weeks of sending the embassy letters to explain that i had already submitted it together with the other documents they required - i never got an answer.

so no choice but to go to round 2. it's the fingerprint card - thai embassy authentication - send to bangkok - get a thai police clearance route all over again. sheesh. when will this ever end.

but i've still managed to squeeze in our wedding invitations.

The Write Impression is worth every peso they charge. Jong was able to give me the envelopes a few days ahead of time, and when i saw the invitations, i was pretty excited to give them out.

it only took Mang Lincoln one day to finish 110 envelopes - thanks to the big rally in Ayala. although hand calligraphy is extra hassle versus printing out the names using a laser printer, i think they're worth it. haha or maybe that's just me being a purist.

out of all the invitations i'll be giving out, i wonder just how many people will bother to read the poem printed on the vellum wrap, or even read the RSVP (moreso reply to it) card. then again, that'd be a perfect trivia question for our reception... the person who can guess who and where the poem came from wins something! =)

invites - check. bahala na how i'll distribute all of them without aldo here.

now on to the even more gruesome task of producing the AVP!

ironic

probably the only good thing that the rally in makati today resulted in was being sent home at 2pm.

we saw rally participants meet up in front of rustan's - a stark irony to the empty (but always full on normal days) steel parking lot fronting mercury drug in glorietta.

in the sweltering heat outside were fishball vendors, ice cream peddlers, and a whole lot of people walking around as if we were in luneta. but inside rustan's, everything was glitzy, pretty, and luxurious (not to mention on sale!).

to top it off, there they were... commonfolk who had no idea what the hell they were fighting for but were there anyway, while people who worked hard to earn a living were made to stop work because there was a big rally outside.

just another good-meets-bad plot. who needs soap operas when you can watch the news!

hannah

this is our lone flowergirl and my first inaanak, hannah.



she's the only one with a long gown, aside from the Maid of Honor. instead of a bucket of flowers, she'll carry a bouquet of pink roses.

i can't wait!

something to tickle your tastebuds

the most awaited wedding task... food tasting at edsa shang! too bad aldo missed this one!

since their coffee shop is under renovation (hence no nearby kitchen), we had to go to paparazzi for the food tasting. interiors are artsy and homey (what restaurant wouldn't be if the chandeliers and glass accents are all murano!), a perfect place for dinner and wine. mom had cream of mushroom soup and seabass fillet - surprisingly not expensive - which turned out to be really really good. the portions were generous, enough to be shared by 2 people. sam had their shrimp pasta which had huge chunks of shrimp on it. portion was generous as well, as sam was struggling to finish it.

now back to the wedding food.




the bread plate is now a standard in all shang restaurants and weddings. instead of servers going around with pandesal, this is a prettier alternative. i love the cream cheese & garlic spread that goes perfect with the crunchy breadsticks. the ciabatta is also noteworthy - the blend of herbs compliments the balsamic vinegar and olive oil dip.




the cream of pumpkin soup with frothy cream was good. a bit salty, but good nonetheless. it had the right balance of cream and pumpkin, although tends to be a bit filling when you consume the whole bowl. we're thinking of changing this as it makes the whole menu heavy - our guests might need anti-acids after the meal if we feed them too much. worse, they could fall asleep in the middle of the program!




next was the entree - flowers of smoked salmon with tarragon mayonnaise & tagaytay greens. i love smoked salmon! this one is really an appetizer - with only 3 pieces of smoked salmon, you'll be ready for your main course. the greens prepare your tastebuds for more - although the lemon slivers are a bit overwhelming when you but right into it.




now for the main course - chicken breast with saffron potatoes, asparagus pepper ragout with orange sauce. although the name isn't too appetizing, this is a definite winner. the portion is pretty big (although aldo says that what's big to me is small to him LOL) and filling - i couldn't finish the chicken, moreso the safron potatoes. the chicken itself was tasty without the sauce, and broiled just right so that it's not flaky nor rubbery. again, here's the heavy part - the asparagus and muchrooms have a cream-based sauce which makes it very rich. the saffron potatoes are also yummy, but a bit heavy if you attempt to finish off the portion. if guests are on the atkins or south beach diet, this is a definite no-no.




and the grand finale... iced mango parfait topped with raspberry sherbet and fresh strawberry garnish. i'll be looking forward to my own wedding because of this one. the mango parfait is much like a lite mango cheesecake that tastes like a real cheesecake - and not the fake ones that are sold in bakeshops all over metro manila. the raspberry sherbet on top perfectly blends with the parfait, with the tangy raspberry swirling with the parfait's creamy base. shang didn't have strawberries that day so they replaced it with a mango garnish. with the strawberry garnish, i'm sure it'll be a big big hit. hmm, one more reason to table-hop: if guests can't finish it, i'd be happy to help them out. hehehe.

at the end of the meal, i was ready to go to sleep. the whole meal was a bit heavy for me, so we're thinking of changing the soup to a clear one instead. my sister and i loved the dessert so much that we're arguing over who gets dad's share (he's diabetic).



exactly 2 months to go to W-day!

window shopping

my feet brought me to rustan's when i needed a break from work yesterday. aside from looking at tankinis and bikinis for the honeymoon, i found myself wandering into the home section.

i found the villeroy & boch and noritake sets that i was looking at online - so that aldo could draw up a bridal registry for us at The Bay. well that did not quite materialize (and that deserves another post altogether) so we're left with no bridal registry anywhere.

i must have spent 30 minutes going around the crystal, china, and linen section - before i knew it, i was looking for the bridal registry office. but as luck would have it, the girl in charge was busy with another couple.

after a few more minutes lingering around the area, i abandoned any ideas i had of registering since aldo doesn't really want to bring a set of plates, stemware, and flatware - baka dumami pa lalo along the way. but if we were going to live here, i would have definitely signed up.

oh well. taboo, scrabble, twister, and cranium sets are most welcome pa din.

the happiest place in asia

the magic begins on September 12, 2005!

could have been timely for our honeymoon, save for the other ten thousand people waiting for its opening day. sayang!

hmm... maybe i should cancel our church wedding and have a disney wedding instead... hehehe!

the other side

a good friend sent me an instant message the other day - saying that she will be at my wedding ceremony, but not at my reception. i thought that what would come next would be the usual excuse - something work-related, an important family errand, or another wedding. instead, she told me quite honestly that she's a bit tired of the extra helpings of mush during wedding receptions, and that it is not a boycott of any sort... and ultimately, that it doesn't quite sync very well if you're single and you only know the bride.

we talked quite lengthily about how she feels as a single girl in a crowded reception - and it does make perfect sense. i've been to a wedding or two without aldo, and it does feel quite overwhelming - what with the bouquet toss, the roll call if you don't get on the dance floor, or the bridesmaid role. i guess for some couples, mushy programs during receptions do not seem offensive and insensitive - but for some guests, the whole relationship and happy-bubbles-everywhere is just a tad bit too much, and strikes (and maybe even pounds on) uber sensitive strings.

with all the excitement and anticipation that weddings bring, it's not very hard to forget the other side of the fence sometimes.

at random

i once believed that friends were like security blankets, and that all you had to do was reach for it to find security. but in the real world, people grow up, grow apart, and remain to grow in different pots.

in planning my wedding, i found myself retracing my steps - back to buried bad memories of college, realizing the value of real friendship, and moving forward without adolescent guilt and paranoia.

the past year and a half have been a whirl of mixed emotions - highs, lows, and everything in between - not only because aldo's away, but because i've been dealing with my past, present, and what lies ahead.

take my fresh start with C - i am surprised that this opportunity to get to know her again has ironically given me a stronger sense of belonging to my bangkok life, as opposed to a childhood yearning of getting my best friend back from the evil stepsisters who have brainwashed her - or so i thought. lesson learned - you can't bring back the past, moreso resucitate a friendship that has apparently lived out its lifespan.

i've realized that the friends you've made at the briefest of encounters also count because at the time you need them the most, they will be the quickest at your side.

there's M and J who have instantly accepted their roles at our wedding even if they have to fly to manila between hectic schedules.

there's M, P, and A, who, even if they're only guests, have already notified me of their travel schedules.

and then there's family. who would have thought that uncles, aunts, and cousins whose last visit to manila was 6 years ago would arrange their travel arrangements to make it to our wedding.

with all these people around on my wedding day... how the hell am i supposed to walk down the aisle without sobbing?

argh. aldo has to cry first so i can win our iPod bet.

done!

two months away from the wedding and my gown is done! lya did a great job - she beaded the top half of my gown and adjusted a few details... I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT - i can't wait to wear it! but to prevent me from obsessing further about my gown, lya's going to keep it muna - so that in case my miracle of losing further weight will happen, she can adjust it pa.

i've been obsessing about my sister's and our moms' dresses - and ended up asking lya to make them as well. at least that way daw i have something to obsess about other than my ring pillow and cord - which i also turned over to lya na din (in my sister's and lya's words - leave the pillow and cord alone) so she can make something that fits the wedding theme.

i therefore conclude that i do not think in fabrics and swatches... so i'm sticking to words and concepts. LOL.