excuse me

eventhough i had promised to make this blog exclusively for our wedding notes, i just can't help but write down random stuff that has been annoyingly sitting in my head. i cannot contain this any longer. besides, our main blog (where i usually write stuff like this) is down. and it's not going back to regular programming anytime soon since both brian and i are busy. crazy busy.


pardon me, but me and packing just don't get along very well. i have been sorting my stuff to pack and now i'm sitting here with my head ready to pop. i wish i can just skip this whole ordeal of packing my stuff and just get up, get ready and go on vacation. it's almost midnight and i'm not even halfway done. i still have to work eight more hours tomorrow. arrgh! the pain!!!


i hate packing. i hate it to the bones.

good news

this is not so wedding related but is equally deserving to be shared (i don't have anyone to share it with here. so, just let me). we're just officially worry-free now that honey had passed one of the biggest hurdles in finishing school. compre results came out today and, sure enough, his name is one among the long list plastered in campus released early morning (manila time). ha! see! i kept saying he'd make it. but stress somehow got him and started to worry.

so, now that compre's out of our hair, we can concentrate more on graduation stuff and lots more of wedding preps (and some pasyal on the side). i feel it coming... wheee!


***wedding updates***
on the roll:
:: fernwood garden - dp paid
:: juan carlo - dp paid
:: njork - half-way paid.
:: paul vincent - reservation paid

to do:
:: obtain freedom to marry from St. Pius (Fr. Pat)
:: keep working on guestlists
:: nov 4-first fitting at njork, meet/talk to p1
:: nov 5-meet p2, ella, lala
:: full coordination vs. OTD ?
:: come up with at least 3 outfits for pre-nup shoot
:: finalize locations for pre-nup shoot
:: choose HMUa for pre-nup shoot -Jasmine Mendiola, Madge Lejano ??
:: finalize menu
:: do food tasting now vs. month prior the wedding ?
:: scout for confectioner - Judy Uson, Alex Franco, ???
:: chocolate fountain?
:: invites
:: favors - guests

ahh... who am i kidding. i can't do this without my notebook in front of me!

fickle, fickle

this month's issue of bridal mags came in my mailbox today. you guessed it right. i now have my eyes on these: (lol)

_{*images borrowed from jimhjelm.com*}

cute hues:


and pretty, pretty styles:

timeline fuss

shouldn't setting up an appointment be as easy as 1-2-3? i'm a bit confused with the responses we get from some of the vendors/suppliers we've chosen.

after numerous of times na kinulit-kulit ko si brian to get us an appointment with the vendors and suppliers, he was given one similar answer: "tawagan mo na lang kami one week before sya dumating".

SAY WHAT!!?
instead of getting the actual date and time for an appointment, they give us an "appointment" to set up an appointment? wtf?!

you see, eventhough this trip is totally unplanned for (budget and time wise), i am goin back to PI for a lot of reasons: a) to attend my husband's second graduation-- which is mainly why doods (my dad in-law) offered to fly me for free again, b) to accomplish as many wedding preps as possible, and c) misc reasons like to see so and so & go to such and such, to do this and that.

my time frame: leave san diego nov 2 and fly back on nov 26. since i am flying out of LAX at 2045, i am goin to lose 2 calendar days. so technically, my vacation calendar starts on nov 4 when i arrive manila at four in the morning to be exact.

yeah, yeah. A for anna & A for anal.

i am leaving in 18 days (my time) from today. this impromptu vacation is, by far, the shortest one i'll ever have, since normally, i go away for a minimum of six weeks in majority of the time. hence, the reason why i am so anal about plotting my schedule waaay ahead of time than i would normally do. yes. feel free to call me a plan-freak because i am a self-confessed one.

but hear my point first: i plan ahead of time for just-in-case instances. that way, i'll have an ample of time to fix things up when situation calls for it. right? right. also, i am a visual person. and for plans as special as our wedding, i'd like to view my calender with the scheduled turn of events and mapped out plans. doing so will give me a picture of what else i can squeeze-in to maximize my time. now tell me if that's reasonable or not.

now, as to why i am irritated and find these vendors'/suppliers' (i won't name names yet, di pa naman ako ganun ka-upset) mode of scheduling clients weird: i'm just concerned na what if on the day that we intend to go eh wala na silang slot for us? that would mean major adjustments on my part just to accomodate the changes. that's a very classic hassle! haaay.

so far, the only thing i have for sure, aside from the trips brian and i had scheduled for, is my first fitting with Njork. i will arrive at 4am and will have my first fitting at 9am that very same day. (now, talk about excitement!-- oo, atat na bride ako! hahaha!.) they even pre-booked me for my second fitting already! now that's what you call service. they understood my time-frame and accomodated my needs. now i only wish the other ones would do just the same or would even go an extra mile just to show you that your time and their time are valuable.

people who work for people, like me, would understand my point. you might think i'm losing my gray areas or that i don't have one. maybe so. because this is me under pressure.

so, this is me

ha!
i finally had the chance to steal this quiz from nikki. thanks, niks!


Congratulations! You are a traditional bride!


What Kind of Bride Will You Be?
brought to you by Quizilla

the motif

ahh.. colors.

choosing the motif has seem to be a none ending task for me. when Migs asked what color/s i have in mind, i honestly went blank. not that i have no idea. it's actually the opposite. i have so many color combinations in mind that it came to a point where choosing which would really best fit our wedding, i suddenly went scatter brain.

our very first choice was apple red. it was nice when we were flipping through david's bridal website. but then we did our ocular at fernwood and saw it, it didn't blend very well with the garden set up. nasty combination. so scratch apple red. then on that same day, there was a wedding goin on and we stayed and peeked through. we liked their motif of ecru/gold and fell for it. then as i go online and do my wedding research and all, more bold, lively, beautiful color combos are flipping in front of me.... so yeah, go figure.

brian and i came to an agreement: no blue nor too pink. it has to be even. but i told him i cannot not have pink! although i don't claim pink to be my most favorite color, i like it so much to make it a part of my happiest day. and brian being the most loving, kindest hubby in the whole-wide world that he is, compromised! teeehee!

so today, i decided to make swatches to narrow my choices down:
^{trust me, these had been narrowed down already, heheh.}

two tones



three tones




but i think i'm seriously leaning towards these (though, not final since i have to show them to brian for comments) two sets of color combo for motif:



^{first set: secodary BM & JM, second set: matron & maid OH. all with silver embellishments}


ah, but god knows what martha stewart will come up with for 2006 hip colors. argh! there's a reason why God made me a woman, let me put it to use here. so don't quote me on this until the garments are cut, hehe.

bibles for brides

_{*warning: this is a shameless yet worthwhile plug*}

stressed out searching? try this.

today i got my w@w's Bride's Yellow Pages (2005-2006 ed.) and the Wedding Primer (3rd ed.). these two are publications that are exclusively designed to cater for brides-to-be/couples in helping from engagement preps to the wedding minute details itself. consider these as pinay bride's bibles. if you're interested, these books are available at major local bookstores in the Philippines and, as far as i know, are distributed here in the US by w@w brides that are based here (depends on which state you're at). i got my books through the kindness of edrei, a fellow bride who resides here in california (hayward) as well. i say if you're a pinay bride, getting married in the philippines or abroad, grab these two as these books are concise, will provide you the complete contact details, even discounts at participating vendors and will direct you to suppliers that are from around the metro manila area who are more than capable of catering to brides abroad. i felt my full year subscription to Bride's magazine (and the like) is not enough. trust me, these books will get you the real meat of it all.


happy hunting everyone!