Thursday, March 26, 2009
California Shower and Batchelorette Party
So I just talked to Kathy, Paul's sister, who is in charge of all of the California events leading up to the wedding such as the bridal shower and the batchelorette party. There will be a "family style" bridal shower in Hawaii on the Wednesday before the wedding to include all the out-of-town people, but we're going to hold one here to have one that's more intimate. I have to say that I cannot wait to see what Kathy and crew have planned. They are making things extremely mysterious, and with things like this, Paul's family is extremely good at keeping secrets. I have already experienced this with the engagement. Kathy and her mom even accompanied Paul to choose the right ring a few months before he officially asked, and I had no clue. I'll just go with the flow when the big days get here. I am just looking forward to spending time with the women I love and love to hang out with.
Paper time!
We made an order for our invitation papers/envelopes last night. It was quite a search for the right paper, and I hope that when it comes in, it'll all piece together nicely. I'm not sure what the final product is going to look like, but it should be enough for our guests to have all the information with a little bit of fun inside.
I did try really hard to find some other options for invitations, but it was so expensive and not in the right colors or right style. I'm not that picky really, but I didn't know red was such a difficult color. If you make it too red, it looks like bright red lipstick, and then it could go more orange or purple or pink. I really wanted the deep red, and it's kind of funny that red the paper we chose is named "Rose Deep." It even sounds romantic. We also bought some beige and silver papers for some accents...I can't give too much away.
The next step is to organize an invitation making party. It's going to take a lot of repetitive work, stamping and glue. I've never really been to one or had to organize one, but I think I will try to make it a little fun with some crazy music, and good food...lots of ventilation.
That's the update for now. By the way, I also wanted to add that I am really proud that Paul posted a blog. He's really shy about writing...he always thinks that he doesn't write well, but he doesn't give himself enough credit. I hope to see more of his work, and some others if I can convince them to contribute. It's always hard for me to read only my voice on this blog, and Paul put a little bit of life with his thoughts and feelings. Thank you! It wouldn't have been complete without you...
I did try really hard to find some other options for invitations, but it was so expensive and not in the right colors or right style. I'm not that picky really, but I didn't know red was such a difficult color. If you make it too red, it looks like bright red lipstick, and then it could go more orange or purple or pink. I really wanted the deep red, and it's kind of funny that red the paper we chose is named "Rose Deep." It even sounds romantic. We also bought some beige and silver papers for some accents...I can't give too much away.
The next step is to organize an invitation making party. It's going to take a lot of repetitive work, stamping and glue. I've never really been to one or had to organize one, but I think I will try to make it a little fun with some crazy music, and good food...lots of ventilation.
That's the update for now. By the way, I also wanted to add that I am really proud that Paul posted a blog. He's really shy about writing...he always thinks that he doesn't write well, but he doesn't give himself enough credit. I hope to see more of his work, and some others if I can convince them to contribute. It's always hard for me to read only my voice on this blog, and Paul put a little bit of life with his thoughts and feelings. Thank you! It wouldn't have been complete without you...
Friday, March 20, 2009
1 Year
So it's been 1 year since I got engaged, and this experience has been pretty incredible. I couldn't have dreamed of a better engagement year or a better future-husband-to-be. I should have known from day one that Paul would change my life so much and make it so very exciting. There's actually a lot of things that I owe credit to him. Most recently, without Paul I would have never been so deeply involved with curling and Team Bond Girls. All of a sudden, I have an excuse to get some exercise, meet some new wonderful people, and make an impact since curling is such a niche sport. I had a once in a lifetime experience with the Club National Competition, and I would have never that opportunity if Paul never sent that email contacting a Southern California curling club. Winkie and Nibbler wouldn't be in our lives. I have never lived with cats nor wanted one let alone two, but Paul has lived with cats practically all his life, and he won the pet battle. I was really adamant about just getting one, but we ended up getting two because they needed to give each other company. I think we would have had three if that orange one hadn't disappeared. I love Winkie and Nibbler, and they are the sweetest cats despite a few quirks, (Winkie likes to show her displeasure once in a while on our bed.) and I don't know what I would do without them. I am a Kings hockey fan, and I'm from Hawaii, but Paul really loves to introduce all the ice sports to me. We go to many of the games, and we sit in the last row yelling, screaming, standing and cheering. Also, I'd like to think that I've brought a few things into Paul's life...the Filipino/Hawaiian culture, "The Goonies," "Fraggle Rock," and a social connection to the world because sometimes he can be a little shy...until he gets to know you of course.
This year has passed by so quickly with so many major life events. I almost wish it would never end, but then we'd never get married. So with only about 98 days left to enjoy the engagement limelight, we're going to have to get things cracking. If this is only the beginning, I am looking forward to the rest of our lives together.
This year has passed by so quickly with so many major life events. I almost wish it would never end, but then we'd never get married. So with only about 98 days left to enjoy the engagement limelight, we're going to have to get things cracking. If this is only the beginning, I am looking forward to the rest of our lives together.
Paul's Blog Entry...Finally!
First off, I want to wish Donna a happy birthday! For those that don’t know, today is her birthday and is also exactly one year from the day we got engaged. So today I’d like to share one of her favorite stories from the planning process that went into surprising her with an engagement ring in Hawaii!
After finding the perfect engagement ring at Robins Brothers (little promo there!), I wanted to get permission from Donna’s father before proceeding with my plans. Unfortunately, flying to Hawaii wasn’t really an option, so I had to do this over the phone. My first hurdle was getting his cell phone number so I could talk to him while Donna was still at work. After getting the number from my future brother-in-law (Elliot), I decided it was time to make the call.
I’ll admit that I was a bit nervous. As the phone began to ring, I tried to go through what I would say in my head. He answered the phone around the third ring. I started by introducing myself (though we had meet several times before), but I knew he didn’t have my cell phone number saved in his phone and he wasn’t expecting my call.
“Hello Mr. Umali, this is Paul, Donna’s boyfriend.”
He responded by saying hello, though I got the feeling he wasn’t quite sure who I was yet. I was probably talking fairly fast, as I often do when I get a little nervous. But I decided to continue on anyway.
“Mr. Umali, I’m calling to ask for your permission to propose to your daughter.”
There were a few seconds of silence that seemed like an eternity before he responded with:
“What’s your proposal?”
I figured that he didn’t know who I was, so I tried to start over again.
“This is Paul, Donna’s boyfriend, and I’d like to ask your permission to marry your daughter.”
“Which one?” He responded.
Now, I was a bit flustered. I was pretty nervous going into the call, and it was not going anywhere close to how I had played it out in my head. When you stop to think about the question he asked, then you’ll realize how it threw me off. Joyce (one of Donna’s younger sister’s) had gotten married the previous summer and Arleen (the only other sister Donna has) was 14 years old at the time...
But after taking a moment to collect myself, I told him that it was Donna that I wanted to marry. And after telling him one more time who I was, it finally clicked. In the end, he of course gave me permission and later told us that he originally thought it was a co-worker playing a prank on him. I’m sure the whole thing would have gone much smoother had I been able to do it in person, but then we wouldn’t have this fun little story to share with all of you.
Looking forward to seeing everyone at the wedding in June!
-Paul
After finding the perfect engagement ring at Robins Brothers (little promo there!), I wanted to get permission from Donna’s father before proceeding with my plans. Unfortunately, flying to Hawaii wasn’t really an option, so I had to do this over the phone. My first hurdle was getting his cell phone number so I could talk to him while Donna was still at work. After getting the number from my future brother-in-law (Elliot), I decided it was time to make the call.
I’ll admit that I was a bit nervous. As the phone began to ring, I tried to go through what I would say in my head. He answered the phone around the third ring. I started by introducing myself (though we had meet several times before), but I knew he didn’t have my cell phone number saved in his phone and he wasn’t expecting my call.
“Hello Mr. Umali, this is Paul, Donna’s boyfriend.”
He responded by saying hello, though I got the feeling he wasn’t quite sure who I was yet. I was probably talking fairly fast, as I often do when I get a little nervous. But I decided to continue on anyway.
“Mr. Umali, I’m calling to ask for your permission to propose to your daughter.”
There were a few seconds of silence that seemed like an eternity before he responded with:
“What’s your proposal?”
I figured that he didn’t know who I was, so I tried to start over again.
“This is Paul, Donna’s boyfriend, and I’d like to ask your permission to marry your daughter.”
“Which one?” He responded.
Now, I was a bit flustered. I was pretty nervous going into the call, and it was not going anywhere close to how I had played it out in my head. When you stop to think about the question he asked, then you’ll realize how it threw me off. Joyce (one of Donna’s younger sister’s) had gotten married the previous summer and Arleen (the only other sister Donna has) was 14 years old at the time...
But after taking a moment to collect myself, I told him that it was Donna that I wanted to marry. And after telling him one more time who I was, it finally clicked. In the end, he of course gave me permission and later told us that he originally thought it was a co-worker playing a prank on him. I’m sure the whole thing would have gone much smoother had I been able to do it in person, but then we wouldn’t have this fun little story to share with all of you.
Looking forward to seeing everyone at the wedding in June!
-Paul
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Mendoza Monogram
Here's the final monogram that Jared, the best man, designed for us. I think it looks really lovely.
This took many drafts, and it is pretty amazing what the final product turned out to be. I was kind of afraid because our initials didn't really piece together very well at first, and all of a sudden here it is.
I feel like "DMP" is some sort of Power Facility like: BWP - Burbank Water and Power. I've been trying to figure out some cool combinations in which DMP could stand for. Anyone want to try it?
This took many drafts, and it is pretty amazing what the final product turned out to be. I was kind of afraid because our initials didn't really piece together very well at first, and all of a sudden here it is.
I feel like "DMP" is some sort of Power Facility like: BWP - Burbank Water and Power. I've been trying to figure out some cool combinations in which DMP could stand for. Anyone want to try it?
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Dancing in the Moonlight
So I just talked to my cousin, Elaine, yesterday, and we finalized the details for the Filipino folk dancing. We have it all figured out, and it's going to be a 15 min. presentation from people involved with the Filipino Cultural Center. They will have the bamboo dance (Tinikling), candle dance (pandango sa ilaw), and other dances that I don't know the Filipino names for. I'm really excited that I can check this off my list. So far, we are doing a good job with getting things finalized even though I had so much other things going on such as the curling tournament and jury duty.
So the next thing that I want to focus my energies on is getting the boy's clothing figured out and getting the invitations done and over with. We'll probably an "invitation-making" party. It should be fun...not sure what that entails, but I have to schedule that really soon.
I am trying to find a place where Paul and I can get dance lessons. I've always wanted to learn how to dance. I know Paul is dreading it, but he shouldn't have anything to worry about. Regardless, he's going to have to dance at some point, and he might as well start learning now. I think he'd be great at it. We just have to work on moving smoothly despite our height differences.
So the next thing that I want to focus my energies on is getting the boy's clothing figured out and getting the invitations done and over with. We'll probably an "invitation-making" party. It should be fun...not sure what that entails, but I have to schedule that really soon.
I am trying to find a place where Paul and I can get dance lessons. I've always wanted to learn how to dance. I know Paul is dreading it, but he shouldn't have anything to worry about. Regardless, he's going to have to dance at some point, and he might as well start learning now. I think he'd be great at it. We just have to work on moving smoothly despite our height differences.
Hawaiian Airlines-Wedding Wings Discount
Hey Everyone,
If you haven't bought your tickets yet, I have some information for you for Hawaiian Airlines. I apologize for people who already bought their tickets...they cannot make the discount retroactive once you've already bought them, which kind of sucks.
Before you pay for your tickets, please put in this code: WED216
This includes a 5% discount off our lowest available transpacific roundtrip webfare. You can access this through: www.HawaiianAir.com. The Wedding Wings Discount doesn't apply to wholly interisland travel and cannot be combined with any other offers.
Route that is registered is between any West Coast gateway and Oahu - Honolulu.
Travel validity period is between 6/20/09 - 7/11/09 (The Wedding Wings discount is not applicable to any flights made outside of this period.)
To get more information visit: www.Hawaiianair.com/weddings.wedlogin.aspx (not accessible before or after the booking period)
If you have any questions, feel free to give me a call or email.
If you haven't bought your tickets yet, I have some information for you for Hawaiian Airlines. I apologize for people who already bought their tickets...they cannot make the discount retroactive once you've already bought them, which kind of sucks.
Before you pay for your tickets, please put in this code: WED216
This includes a 5% discount off our lowest available transpacific roundtrip webfare. You can access this through: www.HawaiianAir.com. The Wedding Wings Discount doesn't apply to wholly interisland travel and cannot be combined with any other offers.
Route that is registered is between any West Coast gateway and Oahu - Honolulu.
Travel validity period is between 6/20/09 - 7/11/09 (The Wedding Wings discount is not applicable to any flights made outside of this period.)
To get more information visit: www.Hawaiianair.com/weddings.wedlogin.aspx (not accessible before or after the booking period)
If you have any questions, feel free to give me a call or email.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Wedding Coordinator
I have good news. Even though I stopped wedding planning at the moment, it doesn't seem to stop by itself. Looks like I found a wedding coordinator, and I am so relieved. I tried to interview some wedding coordinators before, and they were a little out of my price range, plus I am always a little worried depending on people to follow through; so at least if there was anyone to blame, it would be myself, and I can handle that. Also, there were a few snobby ones who told me that I had to spend a lot of money in order to use them, and I thought that this was not me, as you all probably already know.
So Michelle, one of my bridesmaids, has a sister who is starting to get interested in wedding coordination, and I thought maybe she would like to try it out with my wedding. She can see what it is like, and help out in areas where I need help. She is local, living and working in Hawaii. I love Michelle; so I already love her sister, Christine. I am so excited to share this news with you. All the people I have helping me out are already busy with other things wedding and non-wedding related, and I needed one person who wouldn't mind overseeing it all especially on the day of. We are going to get things started once I return from the curling tournament, which by the way is awesome. Right now, we won 2 games and lost 3, but the girls here are so much fun. We have a great attitude, and we're not going to give up.
I'll definitely kick wedding planning up a notch once I return! There's still so many things to do...
Also, I was thinking if there was some subtle way I could add something curling related into the wedding. It might be hard, but I am going to think about it since it has currently been such a big part of our lives.
So Michelle, one of my bridesmaids, has a sister who is starting to get interested in wedding coordination, and I thought maybe she would like to try it out with my wedding. She can see what it is like, and help out in areas where I need help. She is local, living and working in Hawaii. I love Michelle; so I already love her sister, Christine. I am so excited to share this news with you. All the people I have helping me out are already busy with other things wedding and non-wedding related, and I needed one person who wouldn't mind overseeing it all especially on the day of. We are going to get things started once I return from the curling tournament, which by the way is awesome. Right now, we won 2 games and lost 3, but the girls here are so much fun. We have a great attitude, and we're not going to give up.
I'll definitely kick wedding planning up a notch once I return! There's still so many things to do...
Also, I was thinking if there was some subtle way I could add something curling related into the wedding. It might be hard, but I am going to think about it since it has currently been such a big part of our lives.
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Wedding Plans on Hold Again!
So I am in Utica, NY competing for the Club National Curling Competition. I am going to be here for a week, and so the wedding plans will have to go on hold for just a little bit. I did try to do as much as I could before we left; and I was able to cross a few things off the list, the biggest one being putting in the order for the bridesmaids dresses. My biggest challenge right now is to find paper to make the invitations, and I'll have to figure that out when I come back.
I am really excited to be in this event with my team who are really awesome. They have great attitudes and skill. We've been fundraising for this trip for the passed 2 months, and we're finally here.
Here's the blog website for Team Bond Girls that we will be updating throughout the trip: www.bhttp://www.bondgirlscurling.blogspot.com/
Well, wish us luck. We're going to need every bit of it.
I am really excited to be in this event with my team who are really awesome. They have great attitudes and skill. We've been fundraising for this trip for the passed 2 months, and we're finally here.
Here's the blog website for Team Bond Girls that we will be updating throughout the trip: www.bhttp://www.bondgirlscurling.blogspot.com/
Well, wish us luck. We're going to need every bit of it.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
It Pays To Be Filipino
So a few weeks ago, Charissa and Kathy accompanied me downtown LA to find alternatives to the Jim Helm dress that we loved for a bridesmaid dress because it was too expensive. Basically, there's a section in LA called The Fashion District, and that's definitely the place to be to find deal on everything, cloth, clothes, shoes, etc. Before this excursion, I have never been there before, and I think after this experience, I'll go there again. We found a dress right away, but we didn't make an order yet because I wanted to be sure.
Yesterday, I went with Michelle to return to the same store and make a final order. It was good, too, because Michelle could try the dress on and make sure she got the right size. After all that, the sales woman called the factory, and they told her that they would not do a special order for them for the dresses in that color we wanted. They would have to buy about a 100 dresses not just the 6 dresses that I would need. I was kind of a little disappointed because it was hard enough finding this dress, and the other dresses in the store just didn't have the right look. I felt stressed out. With the upcoming curling tournament and everything going on, I wasn't sure when I could go dress hunting again. Then the owner came out and talked to me. He asked if I was Filipino, and of course I said yes with a big smile. He looked at the dress, and said, "Ok, I'll do this for you." He told me that his girlfriend was Filipino, and she told him to give all the Filipinos a discount. It was just going to take 6 weeks. I thought that should be more than enough time to get the dresses and then get it altered; so I made the purchase, and it is DONE. I thank his girlfriend for putting out that good karma for all Filipino customers, and I wish her all the good luck. May their relationship blossom with many children because I got my bridesmaids' dresses. =P
It's kind of a coincidence that all of this happened, but I am very happy that it did. I think there is someone up there looking out for us. I mean I could have just left the store, swearing up a storm, but we decided to stay just a bit longer to find some alternatives. And that's just when the owner arrived to save the day.
So I am recommending this store for anyone who wants to find an affordable evening dress:
Nobell
950 Santee St.
#8
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Tell them the little Filipino sent you.
Yesterday, I went with Michelle to return to the same store and make a final order. It was good, too, because Michelle could try the dress on and make sure she got the right size. After all that, the sales woman called the factory, and they told her that they would not do a special order for them for the dresses in that color we wanted. They would have to buy about a 100 dresses not just the 6 dresses that I would need. I was kind of a little disappointed because it was hard enough finding this dress, and the other dresses in the store just didn't have the right look. I felt stressed out. With the upcoming curling tournament and everything going on, I wasn't sure when I could go dress hunting again. Then the owner came out and talked to me. He asked if I was Filipino, and of course I said yes with a big smile. He looked at the dress, and said, "Ok, I'll do this for you." He told me that his girlfriend was Filipino, and she told him to give all the Filipinos a discount. It was just going to take 6 weeks. I thought that should be more than enough time to get the dresses and then get it altered; so I made the purchase, and it is DONE. I thank his girlfriend for putting out that good karma for all Filipino customers, and I wish her all the good luck. May their relationship blossom with many children because I got my bridesmaids' dresses. =P
It's kind of a coincidence that all of this happened, but I am very happy that it did. I think there is someone up there looking out for us. I mean I could have just left the store, swearing up a storm, but we decided to stay just a bit longer to find some alternatives. And that's just when the owner arrived to save the day.
So I am recommending this store for anyone who wants to find an affordable evening dress:
Nobell
950 Santee St.
#8
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Tell them the little Filipino sent you.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Paper & Lots of It
That is what I am going to need to make my invitations. I've contemplated going through a company and ordering the invitations and letting them do all the work, but I feel that first of all, it's too expensive and secondly, maybe they can't do things that I want to do, especially the cookie cutter invitations that only print your information out. I've got a plan, and I think it's going to work.
I went over to both Paul's mom's house and Sarah's (friend from college) house and played around with their cricket. It's a machine that cuts out shapes, cards, etc. for scrapbooking and cardmaking or really anything you need it for, and I might need it for my invitations. We experimented with different shapes and cardstock and papers, and I think we have a rough invitation that looks really good. I just have to figure out the many details such as postage...I don't know how much it will cost to send the whole invitation. Hopefully, it will still fit within the weight limits of a normal postage. Also, I need paper! It's extremely difficult to find bulk paper in the color that you want for an affordable price. Micheal's Arts and Craft Store sells a lot of nice paper, sheet by sheet, but that's really expensive. They have packs, but it's filled with all sorts of paper not necessarily the ones I want or could use in the future. I have searched at Staples, and their cardstock is extremely limited and in 8"x 11" size only. So it's just been a little tough. I've contacted a few paper stores, and hopefully, they'll be able to shed some light into this predicament. I'm going to see drop by their stores sometime this week and look around. Of course, I do have a backup plan if all else fails.
I went over to both Paul's mom's house and Sarah's (friend from college) house and played around with their cricket. It's a machine that cuts out shapes, cards, etc. for scrapbooking and cardmaking or really anything you need it for, and I might need it for my invitations. We experimented with different shapes and cardstock and papers, and I think we have a rough invitation that looks really good. I just have to figure out the many details such as postage...I don't know how much it will cost to send the whole invitation. Hopefully, it will still fit within the weight limits of a normal postage. Also, I need paper! It's extremely difficult to find bulk paper in the color that you want for an affordable price. Micheal's Arts and Craft Store sells a lot of nice paper, sheet by sheet, but that's really expensive. They have packs, but it's filled with all sorts of paper not necessarily the ones I want or could use in the future. I have searched at Staples, and their cardstock is extremely limited and in 8"x 11" size only. So it's just been a little tough. I've contacted a few paper stores, and hopefully, they'll be able to shed some light into this predicament. I'm going to see drop by their stores sometime this week and look around. Of course, I do have a backup plan if all else fails.
Scan Away!
So Paul and I were finally able to fit in a moment to get at least a large chunk of our registry done. We've been meaning to do it for a while, but our schedules have been quite unpredictable with all the extra things we've had to do for work and life. One night, we just went to Bed Bath & Beyond and got it over with. At first, we weren't really sure how to start. Luckily we talked to someone who was actually the store manager, and he got us registered with scanners and everything. He just recently got married and new everything about the store; so he personally took us around to explain a few things and help us with the whole process. It was a much more enjoyable experience than when we tried to do our registry at JCPenny. There were a few things that he told us that stuck in my mind. He said that there are some things that people just love to buy for other people such as pillows and towels. The explanation for pillows is that they think every night before you sleep, you will think of them as you lay your head on that wonderful pillow they bought you. That made me laugh, but he did have a good point. I think I should revise my gift giving method from now on. So he walked us around the store asking us questions and pointed us to a few things that would be good to add to the registry. It was really nice to have him around because the whole process was really fast and really enjoyable. We learned about the difference between German knives and Japanese knives and why people choose certain things. We ended up choosing the Japanese knives (they are sharper than the German, even though they need to be sharpened more often) because of the handle. They fit really nicely in my hand (since I'll pretty much be doing all the cooking), and our guide told us that these knives won't give you blisters because of the way the handle is made. That was a really great selling point to me. He didn't really show us the most expensive things or made us choose a certain brand. He gave us views that he gathered from his personal experiences and product information which let us decide for ourselves what we wanted. I was kind of dreading this part of the process because shopping for me takes a really long time. I don't really know anything about a lot of these products, and I'd hate to waste anyone's money. I think Paul and I can agree that we chose a good range of things to put in the registry. There are things that we each really love and hope that people will get for us, but it doesn't really matter. It's not really our priority...we know it's already a little financial burden to come to Hawaii especially for our far away guests. Just having them there is special for us. So I am glad to get that bulk of the registry done. We did want to do some additional "house" stuff from Lowes that would be good to have like power tools. Paul's been a little interested in doing some handy work such as rebuilding a foosball table and maybe later on a pool table...I'm kind of hoping he'll learn to make some shelves so that I can finally put together my pantry. =P One step at a time I guess.
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