Quick Post: Planning Resource + Progress Update 2

My co-worker's sister got married this summer. She gave everyone a wedding packet that contained important info like key contacts, schedule, etc. The template came from a website called Weddingbee. I love that template!!! I'll definitely use it come June 2010 :)

Google Docs is also a great way to keep organized. Create a document then share it with your significant other or other members of the bridal party - quick and easy. To the left is a screen shot of my Google Docs. Yes, I created spreadsheets before the proposal. For example, the spreadsheet "Guest List BETA" has a section for D's guests and my guests; it counts how many people we are planning to invite, as well as how many invitations we'll need. There's also the "To Do List" spreadsheet that I copied from some online site. I know it's a little crazy how for about a month I had a status of "pending proposal" for the to-do item "announce engagement to family and friends."

Speaking of June 2010, my mom gave me the list of auspicious dates last night. None of them are weekend dates -_- And so she has to re-check the dates and consult her second source. Hopefully by the end of this week, we'll have a date picked out. I want to book things already >_<

I've also been looking at dresses on the side. Browsing through a bridal magazine sure helps pass time on the elliptical at the gyme. I've been loving the designs of Pronovias dresses. I'm still debating if I should post which dresses I like since D might see them. I invite you to browse the Pronovias site and let me know which dresses are pretty. I'm looking for A-line dresses with layered/tiered skirt.

Location Location Location!

I believe one of the most (if not the most) important things about planning a wedding is picking a location. Of course, picking a date is important too since you can't book a venue if you don't know when it'll be. In my case, we've chosen to respect my mom's wishes of checking the magic book of auspicious dates. In the meantime, venue research goes as follows...

Ceremony Venues

Here's an abridged list of venues we (or I guess more accurately, I) have considered...

Cecil Green

Located at UBC, Cecil Green (CG) is a pretty venue. My co-worker had his wedding there. However, with a rental price tag of $2600 for a summer weekend, couple that with the reception venue rental, it's a bit much for my budget :( CG can also host wedding receptions. However, according to their website, you have to use UBC catering. For more info, click Rental Fees on the Cecil Green website.

Celebration Pavilion

The Celebration Pavilion is located at the Queen Elizabeth Park. Its rental price is quite reasonable at $950 for 90 minutes. I went there for a wedding last year. Assuming it doesn't rain, it's a pretty good venue. I'll keep this in my top three option list.

Minoru Chapel

This chapel is located in Richmond, next to Minoru Park. It's close to our planned reception site, the UBC Boathouse. Rental cost ranges from $1200 + GST to $1450 + GST, depending on what kind of musician you pick. The booking lasts for 90 minutes with 30 minutes between bookings.

There's also the Catholic church option. However, so far it looks like my years of being a bad Catholic is catching up to me :\ Anyway, from my research, here are the requirements to get married in a Catholic church:

• at least the bride or the groom needs to be Catholic
• you need to be a parishioner of that church, otherwise you need to obtain a permission letter from your parish priest
• there's some paperwork involved - birth certificate, etc
• the couple needs to take the marriage preparation course; currently $100 per couple
• $200 "rental" fee
• the priest needs to meet with the groom and bride and their parents
• the ceremony is only 30mins if the bride or groom is not Catholic

Reception Venues

Truly we only have one reception venue in mind...

Yes, the UBC Boathouse! It's pretty :) Friday/Sunday rental is cheaper at $2700 for eight hours, Saturday rental is $3300. As backup venue, we're considering some golf & country clubs. No front runner yet.

Ok, that is all. I should go home... it's almost 7.30pm!

PS - The entry isn't really lining up correctly >_<

What's in a Name? + Progress Update

Who is Mrs. Vernice?

S posed this question in the comments area. Here's the story behind that name...

A customer sent an e-mail, perhaps to our Customer Care department. He wanted to sign up for a support plan and was hoping he can have "Mrs. Vernice" as their very own support representative. It was quite amusing since 1. I'm not married and 2. I had never seen my name spelled with a V. Then again, maybe it was a typo; V and B are right next to each other on the keyboard. On a side note, I did end up meeting that customer during last year's customer conference. He's a nice guy! He took me and my colleague out to dinner at Morton's in Denver. And no, he didn't call me "Mrs. Vernice" when I met him.

Why ChangBangWedding?
I wanted to name the blog site "changbang.blogspot.com" but the name's already taken. :( Looks like some guy named Leon took that name back in 2004 with a sole entry named "check 1 2." So I had to append the word "wedding" at the end to make the name unique. My awesome co-worker also suggested I do this since the blog site will be about wedding stuff.

Why ChangBang in the first place? Here's the story behind that...
D and I went boarding at Cypress back in January. While purchasing our lift tickets, we handed our ski cards at the same time. Once the tickets were printed, it said "Chang-Bang." I found the name funny, while others (like S) found it suggestive. As part of my so-called wedding obesession, the same awesome co-worker of mine suggested I create a blog site called ChangBang. I added it to my to-do list... and here we are!

Progress Update
1. No wedding date set yet. Still awaiting for those "auspicious dates."
2. Venue research continues! There are numerous choices for ceremony venues. As for reception venue, we're hoping to find a backup... you know, just in case.
3. Photographer research also on going. Although the current priority is venue, D and I are doing some photographer research on the side. My ultimate dream photographer are Chris+Lynn *dreamy sigh* Here are some other photographers in contention:

• Leanne Pedersen -- my co-worker's wedding photographer
• Jamie Delaine -- my high school classmate's wedding photographer
• Storia -- recommended by my high school classmate

Feel free to take a look at these photographers and let me know what you think! :)

D Finally Proposed!

D's month-long top secret "plan" finally culminated on Friday the (February) 13th.

What was D's plan?
Part 1 - surprise B by proposing before Valentine's Day at B's house
Part 2 - surprise B by having her family and close friends at her house so she can announce her engagement to them in person
Part 3 - have a Facebook relationship status update
Part 4 - eat the geek cake and watch the congrats-on-your-engagement video

The result?
About 90% went according to plan. What went wrong? For whatever reason, the celphone reception was not very good at my house. As a result, D did not know I was on my way. When I rang the doorbell, he panicked and the proposal he had rehearsed was quickly forgotten. He briefly opened the door for me, told me to wait, then closed the door. In that time, I saw a bunch of shoes by the door, indicating there were people over. After a few seconds, D walked me to his car, which was parked at our driveway. He gave me flowers... nervously sang me the song 今天你要嫁給我 ... got down on one knee and proposed in Tagalog. Of course, me being silly, I said "no" a few times. Ultimately, I said "yes" and we were engaged! The rest went swimmingly from there.

Here are some photos from the big day..

D and I re-enacting the proposal for our friends.


D singing 今天你要嫁給我


Getting down on one knee and proposing


The Facebook relationship status update ceremony


The ring :)


The "geek cakes" - proposal program written on them


D and I looking very happy as we cut the cake