Planning a Dream Wedding on a Budget
7/26/2016
Planning for your dream wedding can be pretty exciting but anyone who went through it already will also tell you that amidst all the excitement on this stage, there are headaches too. Mostly because of the cost. Weddings these days can cost a fortune and sometimes this stops us from trying to achieve our dream wedding and just settle for what we think is "achievable". I say, go for it! All you need is a strategic planning and a lot of thinking outside the box.  Need tips? Then read on!  Set your budget and stick to it It is best that as soon as couple decides to tie the knot, whether it's for a civil or a church wedding, families from both parties should have a chat regarding the budget. Like who is contributing how much and how much should be allocated on what. Having a clear picture of how much is to be spent on things can help you in filtering your choices, from the catering, the venue down to the flowers. Once you have a budget, do your best to stay within the limit. I know how easy it can be to go overboard and spend thousands of money on tulips instead of the daisies you originally planned just because the sales lady smooth-talked you into it. Get a grip and think about the other expenses.  Don't go crazy on the guest list If you can afford to invite hundreds of guests, why not? As they say "the more the merrier", right? But for those who are on a limited budget, don't worry about trimming your guest list down to a number that will work for you and your partner. Although some may disagree with me, a wedding in my opinion is something that should be intimate and spent with people closest to the couple. If you think you can only afford to invite 50 people, then invite the 50 people who are closest to the two of you. I don't think your classmate from grade 1 who you haven't spoken with for 20 years will mind if she won't receive an invite. It's your's and your soon-to-be husband or wife's day. You decide who you want to spend it with.  Re-think your giveaways I know so many couples who spent a lot of money on giveaways during their wedding day. Tokens that most likely will spend the rest of eternity gathering dust and tucked away in a cabinet. So choose your giveaways wisely. Don't spend too much on expensive figurines, scented candles and accessories. Aside from the budget, think of it's usefulness. Will your guests appreciate the tokens or will the trinkets go straight to the top shelf where there will remain unused until they get thrown away? Why not DIY? Wrap carefully chosen scented soaps with an affordable but elegant looking lace cloth? Print thank you notes and tie them with a ribbon. How about a few select candies and chocolates with hand written letters in the box? Nobody said that giveaways need to be expensive but they do need to be well thought of.  Get married on a weekday Here in Cebu, most church wedding ceremonies will cost you more money if it falls on a weekend. If you want to save a few thousand on this part, choose a weekday for your wedding day. You can check some of the church rates here.  Borrow a bridal car I know how much it can cost to rent a bridal car. Why not talk to one of your friends who owns a car to see if they can lend it to you on your wedding day as a gift! Just take care of the gas and the driver and maybe send a bottle of wine to the owner the following day as a token of appreciation. Just make sure you get a reliable driver, of course!  DIY your invitation One of the ways my husband and I saved money on our wedding was DIY-ing the invitations. I had fun doing it, too! There are plenty of free templates as well as free photo editors online that you can use! Unleash your creativity! The good thing about doing the invites yourself is that you have complete control over everything. No going back and forth to the supplier to have some errors corrected. Once you have your design down pat, find a reliable printer and viola, one thing ticked off from your to-do list.  Skip the banquet and go for your favorite restaurant. Holding the reception in a banquet hall costs a fortune. Not to mention the decoration that needs to be done since most halls are bare. Why not hold your reception at your favorite restaurant! Some restaurants allow private functions where they close off the entire establishment for a few hours for you. An advantage? Restaurants are usually nicely decorated already which means you spend less in that department. Just a few centerpieces and you're done!  Skip the pro-singers Professional wedding singers have high talent fees, why not tap a few of your friends who can sing! Allow them to use your wedding day as their concert! They know you best so they most likely will know your favorite love songs! Aside from this? A great CD collection of instrumental melodies will also do just fine.  Hire a Pro Wedding coordinator If your budget will still allow it, a pro wedding coordinator will have lots of ideas based on previous experiences that can greatly help you. They are walking encyclopedias when it comes to all things wedding and can save you a great deal of money and headaches! If not, you can still tap friends who are skilled in this area.  Don't be afraid to go against the flow
Just because it's "in" doesn't mean you have to do them too. If you want to skip the grand reception then go ahead and skip it. I know a couple who held their wedding ceremony at 5 in the morning because they want to face the day as a married couple. What followed afterwards was a lovely light breakfast of fruits and pastries for the reception. Refreshing and so unique! I'm pretty sure they saved a lot of money by skipping the usual dinner reception. So you see? There are so many ways to save money when planning for your wedding. Just remember that your wedding day is a celebration of love. And love does not require granduer and extravagance. It's about you and your partner. Lastly, remember that your wedding day is just the start of your lives together. Have fun! Jhanis V. - Top 10 Blogs Voice Boks Comedy Edition, featured on BlogHer.com, HumorWriters.org, Bloggys 2015 - Finalist, Family and Relationships Category. She blogs at The Vanilla Housewife and The Cebu Gazette.  1½ lbs beef shank
¼ cup soy sauce 1 tbsp. salt Gravy: 2 tbsp. oil 4 cloves garlic minced 1 medium onion minced 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1/2 cup water + 2 tbsp. cornstarch Pepper to taste Prepare the beef by placing it in a pressure cooker with water. Add in soy sauce and salt. Cook the beef until tender (about 1 hour). Remove the beef and let it cool down. Meanwhile, make the mushroom gravy. Heat the oil in a separate sauce pan. Saute the garlic and onions. Add the cream of mushroom soup. Mix until well blended. Add in the water + cornstarch mixture. Mix until sauce thickens. Season to taste. Heat the sizzling plate until very hot. Arrange the cooked beef on top. Pour over the mushroom gravy and let sizzle for a few minutes. Serve sizzling hot. Crispy Kangkong Recipe
7/18/2016
 One of my challenges in raising 2 kids is getting them to eat vegetables. It can be quite a struggle. Each time I prepare vegetables, they would simply push them off their plates which worries me so much. We all know how important it is for growing kids to eat plenty of veggies, right? So, as a mother who is willing to go to great lengths for her kids' nutrition, I have found ways on how to cook vegetables in a way that they will enjoy it. A recent favorite of theirs is Water Spinach Cracklings or Crispy Kangkong. I love preparing it because it's easy and I am assured that they will eat every bite of it! Wanna give it a try with your kids, too? Here's my recipe for Crispy Kangkong as taught to me by my mother.  Ingredients
A bunch of Water Spinach (Kangkong) Cooking Oil 1/2 cup corn starch 1/2 cup flour 1 Egg(beaten) 1 cup cold water A dash of salt Direction Remove leaves from stalk, wash, pat them dry with paper towels and set aside. In a separate container, mix beaten egg, corn starch, flour, cold water, salt and whisk well. Pre-heat your cooking oil. One by one, dip your kangkong leaves into the batter then drop it into the hot oil. Once light brown, remove leaves from oil and place on paper towels. Serve immediately with mayonnaise or any favorite dip. There you have it! An easy vegetable recipe that kids will love! What tips can you give to ensure that our kids are eating the right amount of veggies? Jhanis V. - Top 10 Blogs Voice Boks Comedy Edition, featured on BlogHer.com, HumorWriters.org, Bloggys 2015 - Finalist, Family and Relationships Category. She blogs at The Vanilla Housewife and The Cebu Gazette. Rainy Day Soup Recipes
7/12/2016
Rainy days are here again! Can't go out for a nice family dinner? No problem! A cozy and warm dinner is easy to whip up with these great and easy rainy day soup recipes that your family will love!  For great rainy day comfort food inspirations, check out some of these recipes from a few of our awesome mommy bloggers here in the Philippines. Feel free to check out the individual posts for the complete ingredients and steps!  Yummy Chicken Mami by All Around Pinay Mama A nutritious and hearty meal in one! Great source of protein, vitamins and minerals plus the kids will surely love it! A great dinner to come home to after a long day at work!  Corned Beef and Corn Macaroni Soup by The Misis Chronicles A flavorful sopas that can warm you up in this cold and rainy season. A macaroni soup with a twist that can easily become your family's favorite! Try this one out for tomorrow's dinner!  Beef Sinigang by Royal Domesticity If you love tart dishes, then this one is for you. A tried and tested sinigang recipe that will surely drive the coldness away! While you're having dinner, that is. :)  Paksiw na Pata by Chic Mix Just thinking about this one makes me drool. A Paksiw na Pata cooked without the soy sauce. Easily warms up the body with it's yummy sourness and warmth! Easier when made with left over crispy pata!  Instant Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup by All Around Pinay Mama A hearty soup to turn any cold night warm and cozy. This is going to be a great hit with the kids with its milky and creamy texture. I want this now!  Pork and Beans with Pata by The Vanilla Housewife
Tender pork meat in thick soup that can be paired with rice or bread. Makes a great family dinner during those busy rainy nights! An easy peasy recipe that's perfect for lazy people, I mean busy moms like me. You can just throw everything in the slow cooker or pot and forget about it until dinner time! There you have it! 6 yummy rainy day soup recipes that your family will love! What are your favorite soups for this kind of weather? Share them in the comments! If you will take a look at the weekends' weather forecast for Cebu for the entire month of July, what you will see are mostly "Cloudy with a thunderstorm". Gloomy! What about our family outings during weekends??? Fret not my friends. This is Cebu and there is always something fun that you can do no matter what kind of weather we're having! Below are just a few ideas that you can keep in mind in case it rains on your parade, I mean outing day!  Entertaining and fun indoor activities that you can do in Cebu!  Cebu Happymong Kidspark Bridges Town Plaridel Street, Zone 5I Alang Alang – Mandaue City A 3,000 square-meter of indoor attraction park. Located in Bridges Town in Mandaue City, the indoor park will provide plenty of things to do for you and your kids to enjoy! Read this post for more info.  Museo Sugbo M. J. Cuenco Ave, Cebu City, 6000 Cebu, Philippines Another fun and educational activity for the entire family. A trip to Museo Sugbo is a feast on the eyes and the brain as you will find plenty of bits and pieces of Cebu/Filipino History. Great way to supplement everything our kids have learned from their History subjects in school. *photo source  University of San Carlos Museum P. del Rosario Street, Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines This one is both educational and fun. What better way to teach the kids about the history of Cebu than to show them our historical and religious artifacts! Fun way to learn! *photo source  Ice Skating at SM Seaside City Corner SRP-Mambaling Road, Cebu South Coastal Rd, Cebu City, 6000 Cebu, Philippines Treat the entire family to an exciting day at the SM Seaside Skating Rink. Since we do not have snow here in the Philippines, the next best thing that we have here in Cebu is most probably the chance to experience skating on ice. With a total of 1,800 square meters of ice surface, everybody is guaranteed to have loads of fun! *photo source  6D Theater Cebu Crown Regency-Cebu Osmeña Blvd, Cebu City, Cebu, Philippines One of the very few 6D theaters here in the country, the 6D theater in Crown Regency is a must try. The kids will truly enjoy not just watching movies but with the help of technology, all six senses will be engaged to give the you the feeling that you are part of the adventure and not just a mere viewer. *photo source  Extreme Aeropark
2F Parkmall, Ouano Avenue, Mandaue City The entire family will truly enjoy the Indoor Trampoline Park or the Laser Tag! Great adrenaline rush! Just an FYI, a parent or legal guardian must sign a waiver before anybody under 18 can play. You can check out their Facebook page for more details. (*photo from Extreme Aeropark and used with permission) Casa Gorordo Museum in Cebu No 35 Lopez Jaena, Cebu City, 6000 Cebu, Philippines Another fun yet educational activity for the entire family, Casa Gorordo is home to many personal items, household materials and furniture from 1860s to the 1920s. Also a great way to show our kids how thankful we should be for the available technology that we have nowadays that makes life a little easier. There your have it! Accessible and fun family destinations during rainy days! Do you have other suggestions? Leave them in the comments below! |
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