Verse 20 – A Joy Beyond Compare

For a bride who is a few weeks away from her wedding, a bridal shower is somewhat anticipated whether she admits it or not.  The glorious challenge for her MOH, bridesmaids or close friends and family is to somehow manage to throw her a bash like a bolt from the blue with little or no suspicion knowing that it’s going to happen any day before the wedding.  Well, hats off to my girls because they absolutely knocked me down with a feather when the element of surprise came out of nowhere!  I was impressed to say the least especially when I saw my sister Joyce who was the mastermind of it all.  Even though she’s my MOH, I didn’t expect to see her since she was just here a few months ago to do the engagement shoot and will be coming for the wedding in a week.  Flying from Minnesota to Jax is not cheap… not to mention three times in a row.  I certainly appreciate Stef and JB for accommodating her overnight.  Everyone played it so well including Jon, my mom and dad who were responsible for bringing me to the “baby shower” party (hahaha!)  Great excuse, I even brought a baby shower gift myself.

Bel's Bridal Shower courtesy of joycedzphotography.com

Courtesy of joycedzphotography.com

Not only did I get pampered once, my friends at work gave me a shower too.  I was so overwhelmed by everyone’s generosity and thoughtfulness.

Bridal Shower at work

My heartfelt thanks to everyone who made the showers truly special from the smallest detail to the biggest jaw-dropping wonder.  I’m so blessed with wonderful friends and family.  Thank you all for showing me the way to a joy beyond compare!  I love my girls!

Verse 19 – Me & Mrs. You

On August 13, after the 730am mass that we offered for Lola Nena, we applied for our marriage license…

I can’t stand still
I’m so excited, I just wanna scream
I see you right before me
And it’s like a real good dream…

Photo courtesy of Joseph Masculino

Verse 18 – Sway

With So You Think You Can Dance, Dancing With The Stars, and American Best Dance Crew dominating primetime TV and invading even the world of video-sharing websites, keeping our routine out of the ordinary posed a bit of a challenge for both of us.  I guess that’s one drawback of knowing the basics of ballroom dancing.  Our family and friends have somewhat set their expectations higher than normal which means we can’t just do the traditional first dance of swaying back and forth… hahaha!  Honestly though, it’s tempting to just wing it because of the crazy schedule at work and other matters at hand.  We’ll see what we can do with this concept that Jon and I have been tossing around like a salad.  The intention is one thing but the execution is another.  With one month to go, we could use some magic technique… “When marimba rhythm starts to play, dance with me make me sway.”

Verse 17 – You Belong to Me

While I was flipping through the pages of our engagement book, even though each and every picture speaks to my heart, this particular shot stood out right this very minute. For the obvious impressed upon reason, I felt a great sense of security in Jon’s confident arms.

"You Belong to Me" (photo courtesy of {joyce} d.z. photography)

“Send me photographs and souvenirs
Just remember when a dream appears
You belong to me… “

I’m content with my God’s gift. Good night.

Verse 16 – Can’t Buy me Love

Jon and Bel 9.5.09

We left The Galleria of Jewelry thrilled to bits as if we won the lottery jackpot. Not minding the hot and sticky summer afternoon, we celebrated with two cups of free hot cappuccino from Jared.  Brimming with pride, we held our engraved bands high in the air like we were ready to exchange our vows.  Two months ago when we started exploring all the jewelry stores in every single shopping center in town, we were determined to find the ideal wedding rings.  Not the really fancy diamond ring my friend coz money can’t buy me love but something that we could call “ours”.  We did go over our budget according to the planner but one can’t simply put a price tag on our token of love.