I know I've said this before, but I can't believe that we are now in double digits! We have a few more things that we can cross off the list.

Invites - Love! Love! Love them!! They are exactly how we wanted them. We ordered the invites pretty early because we were afraid that they will not be ready in time. However, to our surprise, it took the company 3 business days to have them made and mailed to us! I just couldn't believe it!! Especially because they were handmade and were coming internationally. It was definitely a pleasant surprise. =) We can't wait to give them out!!

Cake Flavour - Mark and I started brainstorming which cake flavours we like best. We were able to narrow it down to two flavours, but then we couldn't decide which flavour we want to cut into at the reception. Why you might ask, mainly because we both wanted our flavours to be cut when we first cut the cake! LOL! So how did we settle it, a good old "rock-paper-scissor"!! Ha! Ha! Then it's fair and square. =) Who won? He did! >_< He he ... you'll just have to wait and see which flavour he chose! We will have our tasting near the end of August.

A few other things that we have accomplished are the flower girl dresses and we have chosen our dances for the First dance, Father-Daughter dance and Mother-Son dance.

I also met up with Ate Apple to go over what I have already accomplished. Let's just say that I was nowhere near where I thought I should be. LOL! Time to get crackin'!

-Lene

The last month  honestly flew by so quickly! We were able to finalize a few more important things though.

Bridesmaids Dresses - All of my girls now have their dresses ordered. Phew! A pretty important thing that we needed to get out of the way. Since it's wedding season, I was told that it may take longer for the dresses to come in, so I thought it would be best to get it ordered early. At least it'll be one less thing to think about.

Canadian Tourist Visa Application
This task has somewhat lasted a lot longer than I had anticipated. I have been working on getting all the required information for our family members from the Philippines and Singapore to get a visa to come here to Canada. The process itself is pretty straight forward, but they do require a lot of detailed information. Also, I had to gather as much supporting documents as I can to help with their application. I am very happy to say that I am now 90% complete and they will be applying within the next couple of weeks. I pray that everything works out and that they are granted the visa to come here. I can't ask for a better wedding gift!

For those who are thinking of getting a Canadian Tourist Visa, here is a site that I actually got some really great information on: Canadian Tourist Visa 101 by Mai Mai Lim.

Music Repertoire
I don't think I've been able to update you with regards to our ceremony musicians. Unfortunately, as much as we wanted the Youth Inspired! to provide the music for our wedding, it wasn't meant to be. Due to unforeseen circumstances, they can no longer provide the music.

However, our search for musicians led us back to our church! Last night, Mark and I met with one of the church choir heads. We thought it would be just a normal meeting where she would give us a list of songs to choose from and we pick from there. We were both pleasantly surprised. There were probably about 8 other couples there to meet with her also.

What they did was truly a great idea. The consultation was ultimately an audition! They played and sang clips of the all the songs that we can choose from. It was something we have never been to before, and we thought was pretty cool! In this way, we know exactly what to expect for our wedding day. All I can say is that we left that consultation grinning from ear to ear! We can't wait to hear them play and sing again at our wedding! =)

-Lene

Today, I finally had the opportunity to go shopping with the girls to try on some bridesmaids dresses. A few months ago, I already went with 3 of them, but this time, we were complete (99% anyways, we were missing one girl).

The day started out great. I was pretty excited because at least most of them will be there. Then we can finally try on the dresses all at once and see how the whole group looks like. Being me, I did a bit of research online already for some of the styles that I thought the girls might like. So I came prepared. =)

When we got there, we were assigned a consultant to help us out. I told her that I already checked out the dresses online and have a list of the ones that we were interested in trying out. The main goal for this visit was really to just try on the dresses and see what works best for everyone. I didn't plan on purchasing anything yet, unless of course the girls were sure that it's what they really want. The wedding after all isn't for another 11 months.

Initially, our consultant was very helpful. She found all the dresses that we were wanting to try on and gave us a lot of suggestions. Near the end though, everything just went downhill.


My 1st Bridezilla Moment 

After we have settled on a style that we liked, I spoke to the girls about what they want to do. The Maids of Honour were happy with their dresses, so they were alright buying it already. But the rest of the girls were still wanting to loose weight and wanted to place the order next year instead when it's a little closer to the wedding. To me, this made sense. It doesn't make sense to buy a huge dress now only to have them altered later on. Then more money is wasted.

So I explained to our consultant that we may not be placing the order yet because some of the girls are still wanting to loose weight, etc. I explained to her my reasoning above about trying to save on the alterations. But then she kept on insisting to buy it now and just to get a bigger size. She's like, "You can always have it taken in." Obviously she didn't understand anything I explained to her. So I had to repeat it a few times. When I thought she finally understood me, she surprises me with this comment, "Well, if that's the case, then what's the point of coming in and trying them on?" (or something along those lines, I couldn't think straight after she said it). She pretty much told me that we wasted her time.

Alright, you guessed it! I blew up! In my mind, I was like, "WTF?" My mouth literally had verbal diarrhea. I exclaimed to her that the reason we came in was so that we can try on the dresses and see if it looks good or not. My wedding after all isn't until next October, so we do have some time. I re-explained to her the reason again why some of the girls didn't want to get it yet and how it really makes more sense that way. I asked her, "Isn't that right?" She then replies to me with, "Well, you're the customer..." OMG!! In my head I was like, "EXACTLY!! That's my point!! So what the heck!"

By this point, I didn't realize that I was fuming (all red and everything) and was screaming at her. My sister tells me to calm down. I didn't realize that some of the people were starting to look at us.

My two Maids of Honour were alright buying their dresses already, so the consultant went ahead and started getting their measurement. I was still fuming with anger! How dare she?! It's her freakin' job to help the customer. When we do place the orders for the other dresses, I was going to let them know that it was her who helped us so that she gets the commission. It just wasn't right for her to pretty much tell you in your face that we wasted her time. Which we didn't because we did find the dresses that we liked. But to say those things to get the customer to buy right then there was not right.

I work in retail and I know how customer service should be! In the end, my two MsoH ended up buying their dresses (I really didn't want them to yet because I was so mad), but they were really happy with the dress and did want to buy it already.

I just couldn't believe it! Arrggghh!!! I'm still fuming with anger as I sit her typing about it. Arrgghhh!! *deep breath* Let's just say that there's no way I will allow for us to have her as a consultant again. She just lost a pretty good commision!

*sigh* So yeah. It was fun, until that incident ruined it for me. I probably shouldn't have screamed at her, but I didn't realized I was doing it until it was happening. I just couldn't believe it. To tell a customer that?!

There is one positive outcome from all of it, the MsoH have their dresses already. =)

-Lene

I forgot to write about this!! (How could I?!?!)

My dress is HHEEEERRRREEE!!! I picked it up today (07/17/11) with my two maids of honor and one of my bridesmaids (aka. Kristine, Joy and Catherine). Ha ha!!



I decided against trying it on - for now. The actual alterations won't be done until next summer (unnecessary "extras" still needs to come off!). Ha ha! But it's here!! One less thing to worry about!!

For some reason, it all still seems unreal... Ahhhh!!!

OK, I'll freak out a year from now!

=)

Now ... how about those perfect shoes ... =D

Who would have thought that looking for a bridal dress would be so complicated (as everything else in planning a wedding). Ha ha!

From silhouettes to necklines to embellishments or details, the options just keeps going and going!

Before you even begin to look around, research gowns. You should always have a bit of knowledge about dresses (and know some of the lingo) before you even set foot into a bridal shop. - check!

Decide on a silhouette. Wedding dresses are made in several different silhouettes. Before considering anything else, know which type of gown will flatter your figure the best. - check!

Envision your wedding. Picture yourself on your wedding day. What are you wearing? What silhouette is your gown? What fabric? Is it embroidered or beaded? What color is it? - check!