a bride... again

Yes, I'm a bride again. And yes, we are getting married again! (insert BIG smile here) I actually revived this blog for the purpose of writing and expressing rants, thoughts, ideas and feeling with the preparations. I had a glimpse experience of the love-hate feeling of wedding preparations when we had our civil wedding last June 09, 2008. This time I know that the wedding preparations will be more extensive, crucial, exciting, nerve-wracking and gratifying. It's a huge project that I know most women love to take on.

When the topic of wedding preparations came, we started with the basics. When and Where. When. We have both agreed on that it will be sometime next year (2011) since we still have to save for it and at the same time, he would still need to finish his doctorate degree this year. If it would be up to me, I'd like to have it on our anniversary as bf/gf which luckily falls on a weekend! However, that date is on a rainy month of August. And being in the place that we've chosen, I'm not sure if it will be advisable. So we opted for the next best. The month of our civil wedding. Since our civil wedding date falls on a weekday, we chose the nearest weekend to it. Wedding date will be June 11, 2011. Where. It was like a non-verbal agreement that we will be having it on Tagaytay. Since we are both from Cavite, Tagaytay is the nearest venue and the place has sentimental value for us.

Picking the church is not as hard as I though it would be. After reading forums and groups, I've learned that there are more or less 5 churches to choose from. They are:

1. The Transfiguration Chapel in Caleruega
2. Our Lady of Lourdes
3. Chapel on the Hill
4. Ina ng Laging Saklolo
5. San Antonio de Padua

Although the Transiguration Chapel in Caleruega is technically in Batangas (Batulao, to be exact), we still opted for that church. It was very serene and tranquil. We both feel that it was a great place to re-declare our love for one another with Christ as our main witness.

We have already booked the church as it is one of the sought-after churches for couples who wants to get married. Booking early means that I was able to get the date and time that we wanted. After church comes the reception. Several options are available for the reception It can be done on restaurants overlooking the Taal like: Josephine's, Sonya's, Antonio's, Max's, Leslie's, RSM, Taalena etc. Another option is to look for a venue and then hire a caterer. I have my heart set on getting K by Cunanan as our caterer. Although their rates may fall on the mid-upper rates, I love their style and I've read raves about their food. Getting them as caterer means that I won't have to spend on styling the place.

 

 

(Photos grabbed from KbyCunanan)

As for the venue, I would loved to get somewhere overlooking Taal but I know that it does not come cheap. I'm thinking that since most of our guests will be coming from Cavite, a view of Taal is not a requirement. At the moment, I have 3 venues in mind. Plaza de Aza, Balay Indang and Moon Garden.

Plaza de Aza

(photos grabbed from d-cat-dat-got-d-mouse)

Balay Indang aka Red Ginger Farm

(photos grabbed from Andi's Mommy)

Moon Garden Tagaytay

(photos grabbed from 80 breakfast)

From the 3 venues, I would want to have the reception in Balay Indang. I've seen photographs of weddings that were set there and it was truly beautiful. Although I haven't been there yet, it seems like the place was magical. I've asked my parents to visit the place and they said they would this weekend. I'm anxiously waiting for their feedback.

So far, we have only accomplished booking the church. I'll be booking KbyCunanan on the PICC wedding expo on March 13-14. I'll be asking my sister to drop by to make the booking for me. We still have to find a photo/video supplier before the wedding expo. It's best to book suppliers on expos since they can provide the best price possible and gives freebies. I want to finish the major suppliers as early as possible to lock the price and make sure that they will be available on our date. Happy preps to me!