and the ball is rolling yet again!

since my last post i'm happy and excited to say that the wedding plans have picked up speed again. i took a temporary hiatus due to the busy schedule that all teachers go through in the beginning of the year. things have somewhat calmed down, and i can refocus on getting stuff done for the wedding.

one of the major things i did was compile a wedding planning timeline and checklist of things to do before the big day. i've been searching for templates of master timelines and checklists and was able to come across one that i could work with on weddingbee. i tailored it to fit my own needs, and i think it's going to be a "sanity saver" in the end! it has breakdowns of everything that needs to get done, by when and by whom. knowing me, i'd be willing to bet that as much as i'd love to stay on target with this timeline...i won't. i guess just having it makes me feel better, though.

i'm still finalizing things with our videographer due to a possible conflict in his schedule. he may have to be in a wedding the same weekend as ours, so he's going to have to check on that. if we don't end up booking him, the search for a videographer will have to start from the beginning yet again.

we were also planning on booking this really awesome and talented band we heard play at the tonga room at the fairmont hotel in sf. they do cover songs, are a 4-man band but sound so full when they play. they are also quite entertaining! unfortunately, they charge a bit too much for our pockets. we'd have to pay $2,500 for them to play for 3 hours during the cocktail hour and reception. i tried negotiating the price but they wouldn't budge. oh well! do you think passion or gabe b. does weddings?

so, right now i'm pretty busy with trying to find a dj for the reception, finalize the budget and guestlist, and design our STD's. i needed some inspiration this morning, so i busied myself with a new website i found that allows you to make collages/inspiration boards using fashionable clothing and accessories! here are the fruits of my creative labor:



i think this inspiration board is gearing more toward the feel i'd like to have for our wedding party -- dressy, yet fun, with a little bit of bling. it was cool to see the colors i want come together. i still don't know what the names are of the colors i am using! aqua? teal? turquoise? green? chartreuse? all the resources i find call them different color names!

i've decided that i must must must pick my dress by december. i've been putting it off for too long, so december is the deadline i set for myself. let the search for a dress begin (again)!

speaking of dresses, that reminds me. another thing that i should be starting up again is my workout. i've stopped going to the gym, again, because i got busy. i think i should stop using that as an excuse. there's probably lots of busy people that make time go to the gym. well that's going to be me! if i'm going to order a dress by december, i better be ok with the way i look in it!

wish me luck...

standstill

since i started preparing for this new school year a month ago, wedding plans have come to a standstill. i spent most of the summer researching the internet for ideas and resources, and definitely came up with some really creative ways to make our wedding special. now that things have gotten busier for me, i haven't accomplished as much as i would have hoped to have accomplished at this point in the whole process.

luckily, i have the help of a wedding planner and friend, good ol' francia. during her visit to the bay, we were able to spend almost one whole day driving around sf on wedding-related errands. we took a visit to the reception venue and scoped out the area for decoration ideas and logistics. i actually started to visualize what it may look like on that day! we also went to the church and realized that the parking situation may present some problems -- mainly, there is no parking lot next to the church. my guests will have to park at the garage on the corner (unless by some miracle a metered spot opens up) and walk across to the church. it's not a far walk at all, and the church is visible if you're at the parking lot. i just hope people don't get confused. because if i was a guest coming to my wedding, i think i would get lost. then again, i get lost driving home from work sometimes.

after visiting the church and reception venues, we ran around searching for paper for my invites. we come up with an invitation suite and its color scheme! and, fabulous francia even put together a mock invite and sent it to me a few days ago. seeing our names on that paper was sort of a trip. anyway, we have a general idea now of how the invitations are going to look.

here's my list of to-do's for the next month or so...

• create and put together our STD's
• finalize our videographer
• contact our band (we're in negotiations right now. not even sure we'll have them.)
• find a DJ
• ask a few more close friends to be a part of our ceremony
• contact our new catering manager at the hotel to introduce myself and ask more questions(we're really sad about this! :( our previous catering manager was moved to the long beach hyatt. and she was one of the reasons we chose that hotel!)
• decide whether or not we will be using a florist
• make plans to order barongs
• look for bridesmaids dresses
• find a dress

the last one i'm not so excited about. in fact, i'm not really looking forward to it. i've been to two dress shops so far and have had pretty good experiences. why so hesitent now, you may ask? i think it's because i'm not comfortable with the way i physically look in any wedding dress at this time. i'm planning on losing weight before the big day, and people keep telling me just to try on dresses and just have them take it in later. that's probably what i'm going to end up doing. however, i just feel as though i dislike every dress i try on because of my body size. oh well, we'll just have to see.

by the way, is it too soon to be thinking about the bachelorette party? my girlfriends keep asking me what i want to do and i get so excited thinking about it! vegas, anyone?!

a couple weeks ago at happy hour with the faculty at my school, one of my coworkers asked me what i'm most looking forward when it comes or our wedding and our married life. to the first question my answer was our ceremony. as much as i am looking forward to having a smashing reception, nothing excites me more than thinking about saying our vows before God and our family and friends. as for what i'm looking forward to most about married life, it is definitely having a family. i simply cannot wait!

oh, photographer update: we've booked with the very talented caroline tran! she's the one that took the pics in my previous post. david and i met with her last month when they were here shooting a wedding in napa. see, she's located in socal so we'll have to fly her up for our wedding day. but, we're taking engagement photos in socal. we got such a good vibe from her and could tell right away that we would get along. she is also a uci alumnus and so we know so many people in common! how cool is that?

and the best news of all...i asked father pat to celebrate our wedding and he said...MAYBE! :D he didn't say "no", he said "MAYBE"! i was 99% expected him to say no right off the bat, but everyone was encouraging us to just ask him and see what happens. i'm so glad i did.