Day 8: Top 12 Places We Wish to Visit

8/30: Travel List. As I said in this post, if we keep on wishing, praying and saving hard enough, we might get there. :)  So allow me to take this moment to wish and dream. *Dream.Dream.Dream.* 

If I may say it again, I'm currently jobless, thus I'm flooding FB with my humble blogging. :) By now, this 30-day blogging challenge has depleted all the words in my very limited English vocabulary but I vow to finish this till the very end! To save myself, here's another photo dump. :) This is also our travel list represented by the table numbers from the wedding. Who knows I might go back to this post after a year and might cross out one or two, yes? So let's dream on, shall we? :)

Presenting our Travel Bucket List: (priority not necessarily in this order)
Note: Photos are not mine, obviously, as I've never been there :). Photo credits to the links below.

1. Alesund (Norway)

2. Barcelona (Spain)

3. Basel (Switzerland)

4. Burgundy (France)

5) Copenhagen (Denmark)

6. Hohenschwangau (Germany)

 7. New York (USA)

8. Paris (France)

9. Riomaggiore (Italy)

10. Salzburg (Austria)

11. Santorini (Greece)

12. Venice (Italy)

How about you, what's on your list? :)

Day 7: Photography and Travel

7/30: Wedding Theme. Here are some photos and details of our photography and travel-inspired wedding. Lando and I had fun conceptualizing these details because we both love to take photos and travel. :)

CAKE | We love every detail about this cake: Us, luggages, cameras, polaroid, bag tag and Moo, exactly the way we sketched it! Cake was made by Gervy's Amazing Cake, highly recommended!

Close up of us and Moo (our travel pet buddy who was also part of the entourage!)

INVITATION | Film strip with stamp for the main invites, post mail-type for the envelope with real stamp from Ireland. Package was enclosed by a wood twine by Lando and I. Invitation was printed by Impress Prints in such a hurry they deserve an applause! :)

PHOTOBOOTH | Hanging polaroid photos of us as the booth's background. Photos were printed on a magnetic polaroid with map background, printed layout designed by yours truly. With the long list of photobooth suppliers, Tinkerbooth is one refreshing and quirky photobooth! Thumbs up!

FAVORS | We found awesome clay photo holder and chimes (with very reasonable prices) in Papelmerotti! We re-ordered for more because they are just so pretty! With the discount they gave us, timely delivery and friendly staff, we give them a very happy face! :)

TABLE NUMBER | Q&A GUESTBOOK | DIYs from us. Table numbers represent the countries we want to visit someday, if we keep on wishing, praying and saving hard enough. :) The Q&A papers were put in a vintage mini luggage from Divisoria. 

POINTER/WOOD SIGN | I love taking photos of pointers in places I go to. I asked my brother to do this quirky and fun wood sign as pointer for the big day. :)

That's it! Hope you enjoyed this photo dump! Wishing to take millions of photos with hubby and travel to places we have always dreamed about. :)

Day 6: Our DIY-filled Wedding

6/30: DIYs. I'm running out of words but not of photo collages. :)  Our wedding was filled with DIYs and you may not believe me, but the groom had a handprint in most of these! I married the right man, didn't I? :)

Just a quick summary to extend my gratitude to the people who lent a hand. From left to right:

1) Matchbox - c/o groom ;)

2) Heart - c/o Mariel 

3) Ceremony Verses - layout by groom, printed by Luan, thanks superfriend!

4) Invitation - layout by us, printed by Impress Prints. This wedding invite didn't make it to print but made by yours truly with all her heart. :)

5) Bible - c/o Helenne, maid of honor.

6) Table Numbers - c/o groom, represented the top countries we wish to visit someday, God permits. :)

7) Q&A/Guestbook - c/o us (with help from Lando's sisters)

8) Wood Sign - c/o bride's eldest brother. I'm proud of you Kuya Eldy, you really have a talent in carpentry!

9) Just Married Banner - c/o Yna's sister. Thanks so much Yzelle. I'll bring that banner to Ireland and hang it on our wall for a year. :)

Day 5: That One White Dress

5/30: Bridal Gown. I looked far and wide for this one white dress that changed my life forever. :) 

"After all there is something about a wedding gown 
prettier than any other gown in the world."

~ Douglas William Jerrold

Yes, there is really something special about a wedding gown. In my opinion, it has earned a right to be prettier than any other dresses in the world because it speaks of finding LOVE. :)

I thought of writing this post because my gown received a lot of compliments (thank you very much! *wink). It actually took me three tiresome months of gown and designer hunting before I finally ran to someone who had a good portfolio but wasn't too pricey. I was losing weight dramatically so I settled for something that would wrap me up and make me look like a princess, even for a day. Thanks to Carmen Lazaro Couture for creating a simple combination of Princess Kate's and Nicole Richie's gown for me.

To be honest, I've never worn too many gowns in my life and my slim physique is both a blessing and a curse. Just saying that I do have insecurities you know :). But God, as He always did, took care of every worry in my heart. It turned out to be a wedding gown that's just right for me. It wasn't overwhelming, it wasn't heavy. To top it all, some fairy godmother from the other side of the world waved a wand for its creation, a wonderful blessing indeed! :)

          (photos above were taken from CL's FB page, for more photos of this gown, please see link.)

Day 4: So Much Love Out There

4/30: Another Wedding. It sure feels like everyone is getting married. In the last three months, I've known about seven couples who tied the knot and sealed their love stories in marriage. Exactly two weeks after my own, my friend Hazel from my discipleship group got married in one intimate wedding. A preview for you:

It wasn't a long time ago when Hazel and I partnered in prayer one Thursday night. We were in the same boat: the Wedding Preparations Struggles Boat. It was both our prayer that God would shine on our wedding day and that we would love our partner even more during the crucial times of preparation. Months after, we took the plunge, said our vows and adapted to different surnames, by God's grace. :)

There's so much love out there, if I may say it. That's why I love attending weddings. Each wedding is a unique love story on its own. When I was still single, weddings made me believe that the Author of Love is at work and He writes love stories and makes them happen in His perfect time. In a world of increasing divorce rates and self sufficiency, I am happy to learn that people are still taking the risk of committing their lives to one person. I believe marriage is a beautiful thing because God Himself created it.

So for all of you who just took the risk, signed up a marriage contract and vowed to love (and annoy) that one person for the rest of your life, cheers! We just received that beautiful gift called MARRIAGE. :)

Day 3: The Heart of Mariel

3/30: That Cute Heart. A day before the wedding, I received this YM message: "Amiga, san ko dadalhin ang puso mo?" Hours later, I found this heart in the condo and I was in awe! It was soooo fab and cute! Lando and I chorused in exclaiming, "Ang ganda!!!" Our wedding was full of DIYs but this one is extra special. In case you were wondering, this was created by a mother-daughter tandem. :)

To my talented dear friend Mariel, thank you! I don't know where this heart ended up after the wedding but photos of it scattered all over facebook would be enough to remind me of your handprints on our special day. Thank you for doing this heart with the shortest lead time, for the friendship and for the songs of Chloe! She wasn't able to sing all the songs she practiced since April (tama ba?), but thank you! Godbless you both! I hope I can return the favor one way or another.  :) *Hugs.

Day 2: One Stormy Day in Ilocos

2/30: Prenup in Ilocos. Being the hopeless romantic that I am, I must have seen thousands of prenup photos from various photography sites and have sighed, wowed, and dreamed that someday, I'd have my own.

Then came our very own prenup, which to us, was another addition to our growing list of blessings as a couple. By God's grace, we were able to organize a one-day session in Ilocos Norte despite our tight schedule and the crazy June weather. We tagged our photographers and one make-up artist along with us by bus. Take note, it was storming that day of June 20. Thankfully, the wind calmed down and the storm rested its case by mid afternoon allowing us to roam around Pagudpud and Bangui. Here's a preview of our Travel and Photography Prenup in Ilocos Norte: (full album is here in FB.)

When it was all wrapped up, Lando and I were just humbled that God answered our prayer once more. He sent us talented and kind people who did not only work with us, but prayed and laughed with us. The rain stopped and we got to be the stars of a photoshoot, even for once. More than that, we have awesome photos to hang on our wall and great memories to take with us and to share to our future kids someday.

Awesome God, thank You. :)

Day 1: Thank you for your shower

1/30: Bridal Shower. Friends, the bridal shower you held for me cheered me up big time!!! The laughter we had relaxed my tired body and spirit. It took my mind away from the trials I was going through. We all wanted a wedding where we have all our loved ones, right? Unfortunately for me, it couldn't came true and it had really worn me out during the preps stage. Sobra ang pinayat at pinanget ko diba? LOL! 

Kaya sobrang thank you for making me so happy and for shooing away my biggest worries before the big day! The least I can do is to write this post thanking all of you! Biggest and warmest thank you to:

Yna -  for organizing, preparing and hosting the games, for comforting my worries! I still remember your words, "Hindi mo na mapapansin yang gown mo sa wedding mo!"

Tin - for organizing, getting the place, contacting people, offering help, for the gift! Sobrang nanghihinayang ako that I wasn't able to assign you one pero Tin, sobra sobrang thank you!

Joanne - for coming home, I know how hectic your schedule is in SG. Your story touched me. :)

Hannah - for joining your Ates! :)

Irene - for tagging along with Tin and for your cute shower gift.

Rochele - for coming along fresh from your trip and for the shower gift as well!

Helenne - for taking care of the prizes and for the purple gift.

Jover - for taking these awesome photos.

Silver - for coming and as always for your sense of humor!

Another thank you goes to my college friends (Luan, Tessa, Jean, Meg and Shirl). We didn't have a photo that night but I had a photo of the cute balloons you gave me. Thank you for dropping by and checking on me. It was a sweet surprise indeed! And the thing you bought me from LS, I so much love it! :) 

***

Thank you for showering me with your gift of friendship most of all. I'm so blessed to know each one of you. It is my desire to witness your special day as well, someday soon. I'm excited to know who's next to receive the shower. So till then! Shower Album is here in FB. :)

30 Days: I've waited for this!

And now the time has come for me to do this challenge! :) Just like hers, I'll make this extra sweeter by posting our wedding photos and anything that is wedding/love-related. I'll also use this chance to thank the people who made our day more special by lending a hand/time/talent before, during and after the wedding.

As I said earlier, our wedding didn't exactly turn out the way we wanted and planned, but one thing it taught me was to be grateful for whatever God serves us on our plate. It takes 30 days to create a habit, they say. By doing this challenge, hopefully I'll cultivate a more grateful heart and a more productive use of energy (I'm currently out of job, FYI).

So here goes the list (order of write up may change, depending on my mood.) :)

DAY 1: Bridal Shower - Thank you for you Shower

DAY 2: Prenup - One Stormy Day in Ilocos

DAY 3: That Cute Heart - The Heart of Mariel

DAY 4: Another Wedding - So Much Love Out There
DAY 5: Bridal Gown - That One White Dress

DAY 6: DIYs - Our DIY-filled Wedding

DAY 7: Wedding Theme -  Photography and Travel
DAY 8: Travel List - Top 12 Places We Wish to Visit

DAY 9:  New Home - My New Home

DAY 10: Instagram - Instagram Lovin'

DAY 11: Make Up -  The Magic of Make Up 

DAY 12: DIY Love Story Timeline - 20 Months and Counting

DAY 13: Autumn - Hellloooo Autumn!

DAY 14:  That Part of the Wedding Vow - Look who's Cooking? 

DAY 15:  Taking Photos Together - Sunset Spotting 

DAY 16: A Tale of a Full Time Housewife - Just an Ordinary Day

DAY 17: Family - Family Portraits, Part 1 

DAY 18: Family - Family Portraits, Part 2

DAY 19: Autumn Again - In Awe of Autumn, In Awe of You

DAY 20: The Rings - No Return, No Exchange
DAY 21: First Winter Together - Hellooo Novembrrr, Hellooo Winterrr

DAY 22: Birthday - Happy Birthday Hubby
DAY 23: Thanksgiving - Thanksgiving List

DAY 24: Wedding Ceremony - A Walk to Remember

DAY 25: Wedding Ceremony - The Vows and The Rain

DAY 26: First Christmas Away from Home - December Dear
DAY 27: The Bachelors and The Bachelorettes - Hugs and Kisses of Billy

DAY 28: Friends - CMG Friends

DAY 29: Things I Learned from Marriage Counselling

DAY 30: And It's a Wrap

Just M.A.R.R.I.E.D.

It's about time I write about my current status and let me say that in all caps: JUST MARRIED. :) I'm giddy over the two diamond rings on my left hand and can't help it, I am really married! It's past 13 days after the wedding and you'll still find me swooning over the countless photos from guests and photographers.

Sure, our wedding was not perfect. But we knew it happened the way God wanted it to happen. It was, in my and my hubby's definition, a beautiful, chaotic mess---the sound of the rain, the purple and pink colors here and there, the colorful people scattered all over Splendido, the clicking of the cameras, the shouts of best wishes and congratulations--these and more made our wedding day special!

Despite all the hardships and trials we endured during the preps (oh you have no idea), I will say it now: Ang sarap nga pala talagang ikasal and it was all worth it!  Our biggest joy was definitely the people from all over the world who took time and shed resources to grace our special day. We had guests from Hong Kong, Singapore, Bermuda, US, Australia, Indonesia and Ireland! We had friends and relatives who traveled to Tagaytay despite the foreboding rain! If richness can be measured in terms of friends, then we are truly rich and blessed!

When the rain poured on us, I just looked at Lando and told him, "I-enjoy lang natin, minsan lang to, love pa rin tayo ni Lord!" And we did! We smiled unceasingly and we just let everything flow. At the end of the day, God's message of salvation and love was proclaimed (hopefully), and we were pronounced and blessed as husband and wife!

Cheers to this new phase of my life,
Laidel May Pilapil Ebuna :)

P.S.
Photos and 30-day wedding blog coming soon! :) | Photo credits to Flickerhappy (except #3 and 5), all photos edited by yours truly :)