Our Love Expressed with Songs

(my 22nd monthsary gift to my honey)
Let me start off by saying I promised myself, no posts on wedding preps update until November so… looking for something to post about, I went blog hopping and saw saw Jenn’s post about her and Tab’s love story… it kinda got me started on posting our love story as well…

Before we even get to the story, let’s start from when I didn’t even know of Charlie’s existence so the readers would know where I’m coming from…. by the way I titled each “chapter” of this kwento with a song title quite apt for it:

Didn’t Know I Was Looking for Love
I have always been what people would say as a “late bloomer”. In high school, when all my friends and classmates would be talking about boys, I was always the odd one out. Mind you, I had my share of crushes and admirers but at that time, it wasn’t my “priority”. So when finally I had my first boyfriend right before I graduated from high school, I thought it would all be about sweetness and “kilig moments” (I was an avid reader of Sweet Dreams; Sweet Valley High and other Romance pocket books at that time). But I was promptly disillusioned when my idea of having a sweet, romantic relationship turned out to be too dreamy for real life…. After that short (it only lasted for three weeks), tragic relationship I became “hungry” for a new one… I told myself that my next relationship would last longer and would be more “mature”. So when my best friend of three years declared that he has fallen in love with me, I readily agreed to go steady with him. Needless to say, that didn’t work either. This time, “we” just lasted for two months. Mind you, I am not blaming these guys for the failed relationships… I guess I was just too idealistic or too immature to handle whatever these guys were offering. Anyhow, my next boyfriend came much later. By this time, I was thinking “hmmm… this is going to work” because I was more “level-headed” and my view on life wasn’t seen through rose-colored glasses anymore. It lasted long enough… long enough for me to realize that even the best of intentions could turn sour when people with evil minds interfere! After the three year relationship with an incredibly sensitive and thoughtful guy ended I was starting to lose all hopes of ever finding “the right one”. I guess it was a blessing in disguise na din because it strengthened my faith in God… It brought me back to the church, and taught me to really lift everything up to the Lord…

Lose Your Way
Trials came and went… There were still a couple of suitors but I can’t seem to trust myself to enter yet another relationship with such high hopes and then be let down again… I was just too tired of trying… I wanted stability… I wanted security… but all these came second to Faith… I wanted someone I could trust and pray with… and so I prayed… I prayed for guidance… I prayed for strength… I prayed for patience… I prayed for a sign… I sort of made a pact with the Lord. It was that if by the time I turn 30 and I still don’t have a boyfriend, it means that I was meant for spinsterhood. That it was God’s way of saying I was one of those women who will be happy with taking care of her nieces and nephews and is better off. But… If and when I will have a boyfriend before I turn 30, I would know that I should say yes when he asks me to marry him only if he would turn out to be somebody I could pray with. No, not just ordinary going to church together or belonging to the same religion but really pray together in the true sense of the word.

To Be Loved
Then came Charlie….

Love Moves In Mysterious Ways
He came into my life when I needed a friend the most…

The year was 2003, the venue… THE NET! Yes, the internet… I was checking my mail and browsing through the Banana Republic site when… came an instant message containing a new ID I have never seen before… the message was… “Hi! Ganda ng smile mo…” and when I still did not reply he sent another message saying “Can we be friends?” Ok, ok… so it wasn’t original nor attention grabbing or anything but I was bored so I said “where did you see me? how did you know I have a nice smile?” and then he went on to explain that he saw my picture in my Yahoo! profile (no folks! it’s not there anymore!) and thought my smile looked really friendly. And so it went… we chatted for not more than thirty minutes but somehow, we became at ease with one another, we chatted almost on a regular basis after that… talking about nothing in particular, never mentioning anything about ever meeting in person. Later on, (about 4 months after that first IM) we graduated to phone conversations… He became my confidante. You know the saying “it’s easier to open your mind and emotions to strangers”? I guess that proved to be true for me because I could talk to him about anything… as in anything at all! My sentiments about work, family and failed relationships… my hopes and dreams… my near-boo boo with a married man (don’t ask! suffice it to say that I came to my senses way before the point of no return!)… my faith… my plans… my rules… and he did the same… we shared anything and everything under the sun! From day to day experiences to our most embarrassing moments! We were phone pals for another four months before it finally came… the request for an EB! I hesitated (who wouldn’t?!)… I mean, it’s ok to pour your heart out to a complete stranger over the phone but to actually meet in person is a totally different thing! So after days of convincing and reassuring we agreed to meet… no buddy system, just us (don’t worry I insisted on a well populated venue)… and the rest is history…

Swept Away
It went like a whirlwind romance… the kind you read in pocket books… only this time I was not wishing for one anymore… At first, I thought it was just a matter of him being in the right place at the right time (he was lucky) but then he became my savior, my knight in shining armor, my friend, my shock-absorber, my adviser, my source of strength, my teacher, my alter-ego and most of all… he gave me true love when I thought I would never be able to experience it… Love that doesn’t discriminate nor judge. Love that is genuine and pure. Love that is kind and generous without waiting for reciprocation. Love that is blessed by our strong faith in the Lord and the fact that he makes all things beautiful. Proof? He gave us each other, didn’t He?

Feels Like Home
When I asked Charlie when and how he knew he loved me he said “Ipinagdasal kita… Nagdasal ako noon na mahanap ko ang babaeng makakasama ko habang buhay, ng babaeng mamahalin…” and just when I thought I was going to cry from sheer happiness he continued “Binigay ka niya sa akin, kaya alam ko, walang duda… Mahal kita noon pang una mong sinabing sa simbahan tayo magkita”

Updates!

Ok, I know it's been quite a while since my last real post so this is going to be quite long... Let's start from what happened first...

August 13

Charlie and I braved the streets of Quiapo once again… this time we combed through Evangelista St. to look for bargain barongs and entourage gowns. Earlier on, we decided that we would first buy his barong and from there we would base the color of the gowns of the entourage. You see, he wants a specific type of barong… one that is colored green from the bottom and then the color fades or lightens towards the upper part. Anyways, we looked and looked but all we found were ordinary ones and one that has green leaves printed on it. It looked nice enough but we decided to look again in a couple of weeks in Baclaran or in Divisoria. And then we headed to Ongpin once again, this time to submit our wedding ring design to a shop owner that we talked to during our last visit. We gave her the printout of the ring we wanted and she gave us a quotation much cheaper than the ones we got from the other jewelers we talked to. She gave us her contact number and we promised her we’d call her as soon as we decide, besides, we have yet to finalize the date of the wedding and we want the rings engraved already before we get it.

****

August 16

• I was informed by ate Emma, my dressmaker that we would have to postpone our Divisoria textile hunt due to the influx of work load on her part. I agreed naman agad since I still have a lot of things scheduled for next couple of weeks
• My officemate and kumare, Rosebeth, informed me that my inaanak “Justhine” is going to have a party for her first birthday and Justhine and I have the same birthday, I offered to make her invitations in lieu of my not going to be able to make it to the event
• I found out from Charlie that he has overtime work on Saturday (my birthday) so he wouldn’t be able to accompany me to the church and the grocery to buy party needs for my celebration on Sunday. I told him it was ok as long as he would make it on Sunday.

****

August 17

• Charlie and I met up for our usual Wednesday novena and mass at St. Andrew’s Cathedral and then afterwards we went to SM Sucat to buy paper and ribbon supplies for the invitations I will make for Justhine
• We told my mom that we would probably have the Ongpin jeweler to make our wedding rings instead of her jeweler-friend because of our limited budget. She still insisted for a while that her friend could be trusted to make rings with higher quality but when we explained that the Ongpin rings would come with certificates and a “sort-of warranty” she relented.
• Having decided on who would make our rings, Charlie and I had to make the date final so I scheduled an early morning trip to the Church the next day

****

August 18

• Went to St. Andrew’s Cathedral office to have our date blocked but found out new rule: We have to provide our Baptismal and Confirmation certificates first and have the Canonical Interview before we could even reserve a date!
• Finished printing and assembling Justhine’s invites and gave it to Rosebeth for distribution

• Informed Charlie about the new rules and we decided that we would go to San Miguel Church next weekend with his Baptismal Certificate so he could be confirmed (or be scheduled to have a confirmation)
• Uncle Boy told me of the rates of Multinational Village Clubhouse and I thought that it was a lot cheaper than the other venues that we have inquired. Upon passing on this information to Charlie, we decided to have the reception there (yey! we have a venue!) But we have to move fast on our Church reservation first because I was also informed that there are already quite a number of 2006 events being scheduled in the clubhouse so we could have a date blocked there too!

****

August 20

Hmmm… I’m 31 na!

Aside from going to church, making some last minute party needs shopping and having a footspa/pedicure and hot oil at RHC with my youngest sister Mae, I spent the rest of the day just lazing around the house, finishing the latest Harry Potter book (which I have started reading a couple of weeks back but has not had the time to finish!) and watching DVD. Charlie called several times during the day and my cellphone went crazy with all the text greetings from friends and family… All in all, my birthday was very relaxed and peaceful!


August 21
My day started early because I still had to do some last minute cleaning around the house before my guests arrived for lunch. I was still on the last stages of my cleaning when my Ninang V arrived with my Lola and several of my cousins. Good thing my dad and I had started cooking early! I had to take a quick shower before entertaining my guests… By the time I finished dressing up, my friends Andrew and Jaybee has already arrived. The other guests started coming after that… I served them with Inihaw na Bangus, Beef Caldereta, Adobong Pusit, Grilled Pork Strips and Chicken Barbeque. Cheese flavored Ice cream served as the dessert. Charlie came at around 2pm… He came with a big red ribbon cake, a greeting card and a heart-shaped small box which contained our engagement ring! My birthday was perfect! Almost all the people that mattered to me were present (even Vhangie, my friend whom I haven’t seen in a long time and my inaanak and future flower girl, Leanne came!) Jheng, my officemate came even though she was late and alone and has not been to our house before. I couldn’t have asked for anything more… it was made even more special with my engagement ring! I’m so happy!

And here is one more picture of the ring on my finger!


Ok... one last shot! (is it obvious I love it so much?!)


And then of course, I have to post a picture of the person who gave me this really beautiful gift... I LOVE YOU SO MUCH HONEY!

Mood Ring

I don't have the energy to write my post today although I have so many things to report so for those who chance upon this site today... entertain yourselves by taking this cutesy "mood ring thing"

Your Mood Ring is Red

Excited Energized Adventurous Ready to go

Mood Ring Generator

Tagged!

Passing a tag from Jennie:

1. What are the things you enjoy doing even when there's no one around you?

hmmm... let's see... I enjoy watching old movies (yung tipong hindi pa ako pinapanganak e pinalabas na). I also like reading books and listening to mellow tunes pero sometimes naman I like dancing (yes, po! alone... he, he) but mostly I sleep or I munch on junk food!

2. What lowers your stress/blood pressure/anxiety level?

praying, talking with friends or just looking at old photo albums (it helps to look back at happy times when you're down kasi) but if super stressed out na talaga ako, i go to a spa for a treatment like sauna & massage or facial or foot spa basta anything na nakaka-relax

3. Tag 5 friends & ask them to post it in theirs:

Dei
Jenee
Cri-C
Edrei
Zelle

The Ongpin Experience

Although most of the Saturdays that my honey and I see each other is spent Manila (either in Quiapo or Sampaloc-where he lives or mall hopping) we have never visited Ongpin together before. The last time I visited was... I don't know, it was too long ago to remember. Anyways, Wednesday, Charlie said he wanted to buy a necklace chain in Ongpin and asked if we could go there on the weekend. Hesitantly, I said ok. Friday, the weather was gloomy and it looked like it was going to be rainy for the rest of the weekend so I was begging off the Ongpin trip but Charlie was too excited so I relented. Saturday morning proved to be even more rainy than the past couple of days so I was trying to call off the trip but hearing the excitement in my honey's voice (I've never heard him so set on doing a shopping trip this much!) kept me from disheartening him... So we agreed to meet up in front of Mercury Drugstore near Plaza Miranda. I got there first and had to wait about 5 minutes before he arrived, I of course, told him I waited 30 minutes for him (because it was the first time I had to wait and he always scolds me for not sticking to the time we agreed on) and then we proceeded to walk our way to Ongpin. But both of us hasn't been there in a long time (me particularly!) and we got lost! We asked a guard somewhere and he pointed us to the wrong direction! Anyhow, we asked a pedicab driver and he said we passed our turnoff already but he offered to bring us there (for a fee of course) and tired from walking we agreed. Guess what? We would have not been that lost had we sticked to our blurry memory and not asked the guard... When we got there I told my honey to choose quickly as I'm getting hungry already so he first bought me something to drink and proceeded to choose a necklace... then after booth-hopping and haggling with several salespeople he suddenly said... "honey tingin ka ng gusto mong ring" So shocked, I just looked at him and said "Di ba magpapagawa na tayo ng rings?" but he smiled and said "hindi yon, engagement ring." I was ecstatic! but he continued by adding "pero pili ka pa lang ha? kulang pa budget ko ngayon, sa birthday mo pa makukuha yan" so I proceeded to choose... I picked 3 different designs and left it to him to make the final choice (I'm crossing my fingers it's my favorite) kasi mejo mahal yung mga napili ko. But whatever his choice is... basta I'm very, very happy kasi unexpected naman! I can't wait for my August 20 to come!

Progress at Last!

1. My mom gave the design of the rings (she lost the first one) to her jeweler and asked for an updated price quote but I also e-mailed Matus last Monday regarding the possibility of them making our rings and they replied the other day... hmmm, note to self: must make an appointment with them soon and then decide later who we would hire to do the job.

2. Talked to ate Emma (my long standing dressmaker) about our trip to Divisoria on the 12th to look at possible textiles and accessories.

3. Made payment/deposit to Metrobank (Aug. 3) for the W@W tags.

4. Made a couple of inquiries on possible Reception Venues (will probably close a deal with one of them by September... YEY!!!

5. Saw possible Caterer at an office function (Aug. 2) and she was offering so many freebies... he! he! Syempre I have to talk to other caterers para I could make an educated choice (huh?) but I really like her na.

Haaay! Finally meron na ding nangyayari sa wedding preps namin, hopefully I could report more developments in the weeks to come.

Bow and Arrow

I was blog hopping and checking out the sites of the people who visited my site also and came upon a sort-of personality quiz... I got this cool result. You should try it also... 'la lang konting entertainment amidst a busy day! Besides, it sort-of rings true (ngek! syempre maganda yung result e!) pero no kidding, its just a few questions tapos you get the result quickly naman so ok lang.

RESULT:
"Your easy-going personality is best represented by the bow and arrow. You probably dont like the spotlight too much, and would much rather be backstage making sure everything is working right. You have a cool, level head and a broad perspective on life. This combination makes you an excellent advice-giver."

O di ba... COOL? He, he, he! sabi ko nga kay Meng, I wouldnt have probably been so please with the result had it been negative... Anyways, if you want to try the quiz for yourself just visit Meng's website through the link found in the "LINKS" named... guess what? Syempre MENG!

Our Weekend

It was quite a productive weekend for us... we managed to deliver quite a number of items for our "side business" and then we were able to accomplish several personal errands also. I hope business would be smooth sailing until next year para ma-reach naman namin yung quota namin for the wedding budget. Saka sana din makahanap pa kami ng mas maraming mura and yet beautiful add-ons for the wedding.
Last Saturday, after making the pick-up and deliveries, we went to the bank for an update on our Savings plus we got our new certificate for the time deposit. Oh! And Charlie nga pala got a new haircut... I'm still thinking if I'll get a hair treatment so I just watched and left for next weekend whatever I decide to do with my hair... it's getting dry na kasi. Afterwards, Charlie had to leave early kasi he has a prior engagement with his friends for a little drinking session. While I on the other hand watched a DVD na matagal ko na gusto mapanood kaso I always dont have the time to watch.
Sunday was super relaxing day for both of us kasi he slept until afternoon (may hangover siguro!) while I on the other hand woke up at around 11am then proceeded to watch the CSI marathon after brunch! We texted each other nga gabi na e...
Wow! I cant believe August na! Malapit na naman madagdagan ang age ko... (sigh!) Anyways, I'm planning to have a simple celebration this year (as opposed to no celebration at all for the past few years) kasi last birthday ko naman as Miss Espiritu e... Question na lang where I will celebrate, sa house ba o kakain kami (with the whole family) sa labas?