For Better or Worse..

I guess it's about time to get a web host for all of my personal blogs. My baby Iya is nearing the 6-months mark, and though I plan to breastfeed until she's 1 year old, I am anticipating some extra free time. Time I will use to revive my blogs which I sorely neglected the past 5 months or so. In line with that, I am planning to move my blogs to a web host server. That is, if I find an affordable web host service. Currently I am looking over the best web hosting awards nominees to see which web host best fits my sites' needs and my budget.

For the technically challenged, a web hosting service is a type of Internet hosting service that allows individuals and organizations to make their own website accessible via the internet (via Wikipedia). Web hosts provide space on a server they own or lease for use by their clients, i.e. me ^_^ It is very useful especially if your blog or site uses a lot of photos. Blogger (where this blog is currently hosted) only has limited space for free users like me. Anyway, these are just but plans until I find a reliable and affordable host. If you know one, lemme know! =)

Yes, I just turned 29 years old ~ my last birthday before hitting the big 3-0! And soon, my age will be out of the calendar month, LOL! But who cares? At 27, I became a licensed medical doctor and married my bestfriend. At 28, I gave birth and became a mom to the best baby in the world.. And while motherhood was a bumpy ride (still is!), life can't get any better than this! ^_^ Well, may be it can if I win millions from the lottery and we wouldn't have to worry about our finances anymore, hehe!

On a side note, I would like to apologize to my blog readers for not updating this blog more than once a month. Being a hands-on and breastfeeding on-demand mother is very, very hectic. I have no yaya and I take care of our baby Iya full-time. To all those who questions on lucky 2010 wedding dates, please just read the blog post. Everything is there =) To those who have other queries, message me HERE. Thanks! And thank you for dropping by our wedding blog! I hope I have helped you plan the Davao wedding you have always dreamt of!

Last January, I wrote about my bestfriend's wedding wherein I was the matron of honor and our other bestfriend (BFF #2) is the maid of honor. Around a month ago, May 8 to be exact, BFF #2 got married herself! As usual I was the matron of honor along with BFF #1. Yep, we have gone full circle as these two were my maidens of honor in my October 2008 wedding. That's the three of us below.. ^_^

Anyway, BFF #2 got married to the man of her dreams in cold and scenic Eden Nature Garden and Resort. The wedding ceremony was in a quaint chapel liberally decorated with white calla lilies and other white flowers. The wedding reception, on the other hand, was held in the resort’s highest point. It was a very lovely affair, the perfect beginning to my BFF #2’s forever with her soulmate. And the best thing? All but one of our high school barkada were present in the wedding! Yep, that's us below. Long live CJS-3! ;-)

Yes, I'm the one carrying the baby on right! In my BFF #1's wedding last January, I was 7 months pregnant. In this wedding, I'm a mom with a 6-weeks old baby! How time flies! =) I initially had reservations in bringing baby Iya with us (I've heard of baby travel horror stories!) but we really didn't have any choice as my parents were also participants in my BFF #2's wedding. We have no one to leave baby Iya with.. Anyhoo, my fears were for nothing coz our baby girl behaved perfectly. She just slept through the wedding prep down to the reception -- such a very good girl!
Of course, Labsie had so much to do with Iya's great disposition. That day, my hubby showed that he is a very excellent babysitter! Hehe! Now I'm having family vacation ideas, no qualms at all traveling with Iya as long as hubby is with us. We just have to make sure we pack everything Iya needs: baby sunglasses, toys, milk, clothes, diapers, etc, etc. Missing one baby item is a big no-no! The rule of the thumb when traveling with babies is PACK EVERYTHING! Anyway, to my BFFs, go hurry up and have babies already! Iya needs a playmate soon! ^_^

This wedding blog of ours is around three years old. And though I find our cute mostly-white Blogger theme adequate, I sometimes dream of switching to a more polished wedding theme. Maybe even switch to Wordpress as it has more amazing templates that have options for total customization. As it is I'm looking at several websites that offer FREE Wordpress themes. Yep, Your wordpress templates site should offer free themes before I'll even consider visiting it, LOL! :p But, of course, I'm not saying I won't pay for an excellent wedding template. After all, it's for the betterment of this blog. Anyway, if you have a Blogger or Wordpress wedding blog template, please contact me. I just might use it! ^_^

I'm sure most of the sentimental "fools" will choose get lucky in love (i.e. marry soulmate) while "mature" practical people will choose get lucky in online casinos (i.e. win lotsa money!!). But if you're smart, you'd choose BOTH. Who said you can't be both successful in love and in your finances? Hehe! :p Anyhoo, moving on to the point of this post..

In today's world, women are not just after finding the love of their life, they want to have financial stability too. Thus, more often than not, these women work hard so they can spend on anything they want without having to ask for their boyfriend or husband's money. Also, these women decided beforehand that before getting married, she should be financially secure (of course, the guy should be too). This is just in case that if the marriage will fail, she will not be left destitute with nothing to fall back on. While this kind of thinking is unromantic, it is very wise. Empowering even. And I'm all for it!

Unromantic as it may sound, being financially stable is the best thing you and your partner can "do" to have a successful marriage. In today's materialistic society, lacking money to buy the basic stuff plus shiny new toys can little by little break your marriage. Love is NOT enough to have a long-lasting marriage. But remember, money is NOT also everything. As with all things in this world, a successful marriage is a combination of many things, all done in moderation ^_^

In two days, my other bestfriend will walk down the aisle and say I DO to her soulmate. And yes, I'm a matron of honor again -- as with my bestfriend #1's wedding last January ^_^ And of course, I helped a bit in the wedding preparation. I wasn't able to do much coz I just had a baby and I'm breastfeeding her on demand, i.e. I'm my daughter's slave. Hehe! Anyway, I guess one of my "important contribution" to my BFF #2's wedding is their choice of wedding photographer. They so love him and his crew during my wedding two years ago that they decided to get him without researching on other wedding photographers. Good for them!

My hubby and I, on the other hand, had a hard time finding the "right" wedding photographer back then. We wanted the best one in our city but we can't afford him (figures, LOL) so we had to find someone in our price range but will also do a great job. Our solution? Find up and coming talented wedding photographers: talented = great photos, up and coming = fee is still affordable, hehe! ^_^ Anyway, here are tips on how to choose a wedding photographer:

1. Most important: how much are you willing to pay the photographer? Your budget will determine the wedding photographers you can hire.

2. Ask your family and friends for referrals. This is what my BFF #2 did. With this, you can be assured that the wedding photographer will do a good job. Well, if s/he is consistent that is :p

3. Decide what style of wedding photography you want. Some couples want their photos to be quirky and artsy while others want formal and classic pictures.

4. When you finally find a wedding photographer that you can afford, does your photo style and has a good track record, meet him/her in person before you book. Sometimes you might not like the photographer's attitude and your wedding photo sessions will not be as smooth and joyous as it should be. It's important you get along so you will have great photos ^_^

Related Post: Must-Have Wedding Day Photos

After 9 long months, our firstborn is finally here! And no, we don't need a fancy birth announcement to trumpet her arrival to the world, a post about baby Iya in all of my 5 personal blogs will do. Hehe! That's how we do it in the Internet age baby! ;-) Anyway, that's her below. She’s 3 days old there and oh-so cute! *pinches Iya's cheeks* Our daughter, Iya Elycia S. Elbanbuena, was born on March 20, 2010 at 9:48pm in Brokenshire Integrated Hospital Ministries, Inc. via normal delivery. She weighed 5.7lbs or 2.6kg, same as my birth weight 28years ago =) I was in labor for around 24 hours (or more accurately, admitted for 24 hours) before I gave birth to our princess. See, I had epidural anesthesia (for "painless" delivery) and that delays the birthing process. Anyhoo, all is well now and we're just enjoying our sleepless nights with her :p

Having a baby is perhaps the most challenging thing I ever did. Truth is, I never wanted to have a kid coz I know that would end my nice and easy life. But the Lord had different plans and to my husband's delight, I got pregnant on the ninth month of our marriage. A lot of baby announcements were sent out as our family and relatives were also waiting for us to get pregnant :p And as we celebrated our 1 year and 6 months of blissful togetherness, Labsie and I received baby Iya. Talk about perfect timing -- in the first 9 months of our marriage, we were a family of 2; in the second 9 months, we were the pregnant married couple; and now as we enter the third 9 months, we are a family of 3. I wonder what the fourth 9 months will bring? Our second child?? *shudders* -_-

Anyway, talking about birth announcements, I tried making one at HelloLucky.com -- that's it below. So pretty in pink huh?? Love it! And I so love the site! Hello Lucky is a premier designer of letterpress wedding invitations, greeting cards, birth announcements and stationery. They offer Christmas cards, birthday cards, party invitations, wedding shower invitations, baby shower invitations, and even Halloween cards. If you need retro wrapping paper, custom birth announcements, a unique party invitation, bridal shower invitation, or an engaging greeting card, their website is the place to go to! As you can see with Iya's birth announcement, you can customize what you put in your invite. That's total control and we all know that's what makes OC moms (like me) and party planners go wild with happiness! ^_^

Macau may be known as Asia's gambling capital or Vegas of the East but its so much more than that! I've been there for our second honeymoon and believe me, it's a great place for romantic weddings or proposals ^_^ Of course, the casinos there are superb attractions on their own and even a non-gambler like me (I do play online casino games but just for fun and not to gamble :p) was impressed with their efficiency and grandeur. Anyway, if you're into online casinos, poker and other games, go check out TX Casino Games -- they rate the best casino games and websites on the Internet for addicted players like you :p

So what's in Macau aside from casinos? Tons of luxury hotels, museums and historical sites! And if you're an adrenaline junkie, there's the Macau Tower for your bungee jumping purposes ;-) Imagine getting married while bungeeing in the air! Supah fun and your wedding will definitely be one-of-a-kind! Also imagine getting married along the canals of The Venetian Macau -- sooo romantic! And you need not spend Euros to get that authentic atmosphere of Venice ;-) And if you and your future partner is into history, why not get married in Macau's beautiful old churches? Or maybe St. Paul's awesome church ruins is more to your liking. Yup, that's its below -- beautifully preserved for your upcoming wedding! ;-)