A Working Holiday

Tea time

Ceramic glass + Sharpie -- for our ninongs and ninangs.

Quill flowers

For our centerpiece

Strawberry fields forever

Jotham and I spent the entire Friday creating our wedding decors in preparation for our visit to the venue next weekend. We made a sample table centerpiece, a clothespin photowall, and some area labels. 

Even if things like decors and such are, traditionally, very feminine domains, he is ever so helpful and supportive in the way he involves himself very deeply in these. 

Me, I get so bored when we go to hardware stores purchasing LED lights or toolkits... 

Sigh. Lord grant me the passion and interest to support him in all his interests, the same way he makes me feel that my interests are worth his time. 

Hello Long Weekend!

That is the dream. 

Hey Darling Don't You Look Fine

The Grand Archives' Torn Blue Foam Couch is my official soundtrack to the decorating spree that will ensue once I move into our new home.

Vintage

If it were't so costume-y, I would love to wear a full skirt and white gloves to my wedding.

Sea Green and Blush Pink

I wonder why my best friend Mia even second guesses herself. Her invitations are perfect. 

Inspiration Sunday

Paris. 

Caroline Trentini's elegant wedding.

Grace Kelly.

Bookshelves by a staircase.

A Party For Mia

The grounds of the Pinto Art Museum in Antipolo were lovely. And Erika outdid herself with the decors. It was a fun night of food, wine, games, and a music video. 

Saturday Morning

Breakfast while waiting for Jotham to finish his physical therapy. 

My shirt happened to match our red berry color scheme.

Can't wait to fill up this space. 

Inspiration from Dessert

Taking color cues from ice cream.

The Dress

The Aspen is exquisite. 

An Exercise In Loveliness

Clarise made our table numbers. The only thing I said to her was to keep it simple. And this is the lovely rendering she came up with. 

Our sleeper sofa arrived yesterday. Jotham and I decided that we will decorate our new home around this teal blue sofa, and I am excited to scour the internet for inspiration. 

Peg

Sofia Coppola barefoot, sitting on her light blue couch, with pink flowers on the table, and black-and-white photographs on the walls. She is my peg when I become a stay-at-home wife. 

Labor of Love

Ruth

Today we looked at the house that we might possibly move into, and I started to cry. Not tears of joy, mind you. But tears of fear, and tears of despair.

But Jotham was so patient, and he diligently tried to see it in the best light. The kids who were making a ruckus right in front of our would-be gate -- these are children we could minister to. He said, you know it could be fun, we could organize a mini-basketball tournament with them.

All I could think about was the trash and the noise. I had visions in my head of the Pinterest-worthy home I would soon be moving into. And it did not include dirty, noisy kids playing a ragtag basketball game in my front yard.

Later on in the evening, we talked to the owner of the nearby unit, and he pretty much reassured us that all is well in that area. That, plus the chalk scrawl on the yero wall that listed the two basketball teams as "AstroBoys" and "Tropang Liit," made me feel a little better.

And to be honest, the Lord was pulling me into the direction of trying to see things with His eyes. The kids weren't just a rambunctious bunch that deserved a good spanking or a hot water washdown. They were little people we could share the love of God to.

So driving home, I told Jotham. "Your God will be my God, and your little people, will be my little people."

That was my promise from the beginning, and this is a real-life application of it. 

Thank You Gifts

Old Emails

Today I read old email exchanges between us and I was just reminded of the wonderful, beautiful promise on which we have built this entire relationship on. I also read a John Piper sermon on how God is most glorified when we find our greatest satisfaction in Him. He said, "Christ is glorified in you when he is more precious to you than all that life can give or death can take."

I am blessed that things happened the way they have. I am blessed by the two + years we were together before you formally asked me to marry you. I look on those years and it's just clear to me just how much I've learned. I'm blessed that you always encourage me to go to church, to serve, to fellowship, to have bible study.

It's clear that the Lord is the one thing most needful, the one who can give us the most joy, the most satisfaction. This has been clear to you from the very beginning, and I now understand why you pursue Him so ardently. Me, well, I am a work in progress. I'd like to think that even if I am still in the process of being sanctified, the Lord has been gracious enough to help me become more mature in Him.

There are still so many things that  I am learning, or need to learn. Sometimes I catch myself getting overwhelmed at the idea of the  many things involved in running a household, or being  a mom. These are the times that I want to just curl up into a ball and hide.

But I just cling to His strength, His guidance, His provision, His wisdom. There is courage to be found in the knowledge, that the God of the whole universe cares enough to help me with things like this. 

Late Nigh Laughs

I like it when we talk on the phone, and we find something so funny that even when it is late at night, we are chortling in our pillows and just trying very hard not to laugh too loud. 

It's Here!

I got my bridal gown today. Walking towards the Fed-Ex guy, I was literally shaking. 

It came in at 8 am, and I should have been leaving for work by that time but my EQ is not that high that I will walk away from my bridal gown, and spend an entire day at work without even trying it on. 

The Jenny Packham-inspired Aspen gown is lovely. It is all that I've wanted and more. A few nips and tucks and alterations here and there, for sure. But it is lovely. 

I am very, very, happy that it's not one of those over-the-top ballgowns that are so popular these days. It is subtle, elegant, understated, and very very lovely. 

My Vows

I've been hemming and hawing about writing my vows. It's one of those things that I've been looking forward to writing all my life -- but when the time came when I actually had to write it  -- I didn't know where to begin.

I thought the start-of-the-year retreat might be a great place to do it. But when I was there I thought to myself "What Pastor Bob said is right. This time is for the Lord."

To be honest, I planned then to put if off until days before the wedding.

But today, for some reason -- I just realized I knew how to write it. I knew what I wanted to say. 

To be sure, this will change quite extensively as the days pass. and I'll be deleting and adding some things that will come to mind. But the main thrust will be the same: my response to Jotham will be a response propelled by God's love and grace.