One day, after getting tired of dating, I prayed to God, asking Him to give me a boyfriend. My subsequent prayers for a boyfriend had more specific details. Eventually, I asked God for a specific man.

Three years later, while taking care of my brother who was sick with flu, I received a message from Val, my brother’s best friend, the man who since eight years ago, continued to make me all giggly and who sent me jumping around the house whenever I saw him. We continued exchanging messages after that incident. After just a couple of messages, Val called and asked me out.

Five years after, in December of 2006, Val proposed to me.

Val and I knew that the year ahead was going to be a busy one for both our careers since he was reviewing for his US Medical Board Exams and I was busy preparing for a business trip to the US. At that point, we had very little knowledge of what we wanted for our wedding. We also knew that help with the preparations would be scarce as most of Val’s family and friends are in the US, and while I have three older brothers, they were very busy. Most of my friends were also residing abroad. So we prayed for God’s hand to work in the wedding preparations.

Equipped only with two issues of Wedding Essentials Magazine as my wedding directory for abroad, our friend’s wedding pictures and lots of faith and prayers, Val and I went our separate ways to the US.

We both came back four months before our wedding. I was a bit nervous because we haven’t decided yet on what we wanted. We were only sure of one thing - the venue. Val and I wanted the perfect place and we couldn’t think of a better place than Antonio’s Restaurant in Tagaytay. It was the only place that passed Val’s very critical standards. He wanted no less than Antonio’s.

Every minute and every second was important at that point. Val and I chose January 12, 2007 as our wedding date because Val wanted us to get married on the first month of the year and I agreed because I wanted to be wed in the coolest time of the year. At that time, Antonio’s could only accommodate our wedding on a weekday. It turned out to be a blessing. Choosing an "unpopular day" for our wedding made other bookings and reservations easy.

Being a jeweler, I knew I wanted my entourage to wear jewel tones. A week before I went home to the Philippines, I scouted flea markets and stores in downtown LA with the help of my tita, Cora Manimbo, for the perfect hue. I brought home boxes and boxes of taffeta - ruby red for our sponsors, emerald green for our secondary sponsors and a combination of blue sapphire and amethyst-colored fabric for our bridesmaids. Our friend, couturier Raymund Saul, was game enough to create the gowns for the entourage despite the tight schedule and he delivered everything ahead of the promised time.

While my mom and I were in NY, I window-shopped in Manhattan for bridal gowns. We had no intention of purchasing a gown since we were just there to get ideas. That was before my mom fell in love with the latest design from the bridal collection of Oleg Cassini. Like most moms, she tried to convince me in a very subtle way - with dreamy and moist eyes. I finally gave in. A month before the wedding, the gown arrived in the Philippines. My mom was right. It was perfect for me!

For our wedding souvenirs, our fine jewelry shop fashioned dangling earrings set with amethyst and blue sapphires and peridot dangling earrings with green emerald stones for our secondary sponsors and bridesmaids, matching their gowns. For the men, we gave away neckties matching the women’s gowns. We also had cufflinks set with ruby, blue sapphire, green emerald and amethyst stones made. For the guests, my aunt from the US brought home place cards that doubled as souvenirs. I couldn’t help but thank my eldest brother when he had this wonderful hair clip made of 14k white gold set with diamonds made for me to hold my long hair in place on my wedding day.

With my busy work schedule, there was no time for me to surf the net or flip through hundreds of wedding magazines for ideas. But I remember reading one of the wedding articles from Manila Bulletin, a feature on a few young but talented make-up artists. That’s how I found mine. Jasmine Mediola did exactly what I wanted - something simple with a very light glow. I was also lucky enough to have found the right wedding coordinator. Ms. Kutchie Zaldarriaga and her team assured me that everything will flow smoothly. Even though I just hired her for a day, Ms. Kutchie and her team made sure all the details were ironed out and polished before our big day. It was almost like we hired her for full coordination. True to her promise, everything went smoothly and things started and ended on time.

Our Christian wedding ceremony was held at the Taal Vista Hotel. The original plan was to have it in the garden along with our cocktails but the weather was unpredictable. Without any backup plans, Taal Vista Hotel was ready and gracious enough to open their main ballroom as our fallback venue. It was definitely a blessing since the weather outside was just a little bit too windy for the ladies.

Pastor Dennis Legaspi of Christ Commission Fellowship officiated the ceremony. I have to say that it was an emotional time for me and for all the guests who witnessed our marriage. Upon hearing the song that usually gave me goose bumps, "Panunumpa", sung beautifully by the Ateneo Glee Club, headed by a dear friend, R Lanete, I couldn’t help but cry my eyes out. Tears of affection and joy poured from family members and guests that afternoon, as we honored our parents and expressed our appreciation for the years we spent with them as we were about to start our new lives.

Val and I were surprised as we entered Antonio’s. Everything was picture perfect. Thanks to the very professional staff of Antonio’s, it was all worth the trip on the off beaten track. The service was better than any hotel I’ve been to, and the food was just superb. Each single plate of our five course meal was a delightful experience for our palates. Everything was freshly made and cooked just minutes before and they served them without the unnecessary delays. We also found out that Antonio’s charged very minimal corkage fees, thus giving us the chance to bring some of the best wines so our guests could drink to their heart’s delight.

For our flowers, Jun Hen made Antonio’s even more magical for us with an all-white theme, a contrast from the very colorful flowers he provided during the wedding ceremony and cocktails at the Taal Vista Hotel. The all-white drapes and flowers complimented the lush garden of Antonio’s Restaurant. The place became enchanting with the help of our lights and sounds people. The evening became even more romantic as guests arrived to classic love songs. Later that evening, we heard ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from our guests as our photographer showed our pre-nup and ceremony pictures. Our family and friends gave warm rounds of applause after the other as Nolyn Cabahug sang a medley of our favorite classic songs while the Ateneo Glee Club surprised everyone with their a’capella rendition of romantic ballads. The evening wouldn’t have been complete without my cousin Windie Villarica-Hayano’s lovely voice as she sang "That’s All" while Val and I first danced as a couple, signaling the end of our magical wedding.

Ascribing all glory to God and asking for His will to be done in the preparations and in the wedding; He made everything perfect for us. Our wedding was a delightful event. It was pleasant, not only for the eyes and ears, but for our tongues as well. Looking eight years back, I wouldn’t have planned it any other way.