In this episode of Now That I’m Engaged, How Do I Get Married?, Kevin and August sit down with newlyweds DJ & Jacob Pingue for the second installment of our series, “Now That I’m Married, How Can I Help Others?”. Married on June 28, 2025, with a ceremony at Mission Santa Clara de Asís and a reception at Casa Real at Ruby Hill Winery, DJ and Jacob share a candid look at planning a large, family-forward celebration from the ground up. They talk about dividing roles (vision vs. logistics), balancing opinions with empathy, and building a vendor team through trusted referrals and preferred lists. (Fantasy Sound supported coordination for the first half of the day and provided reception lighting!)

From choosing meaningful spaces to mingling during cocktail hour, they unpack the small choices that made their day feel relaxed and personal. Plus, the lessons they wish they’d known sooner.

Highlights:

• How deciding non-negotiables early simplifies every decision after
• A practical way to split planning duties
• Why mingling at cocktail hour can be the secret to enjoying more of your reception
• The case for a first look (and what made theirs so emotional for the whole wedding party)
• Building your team: using preferred vendor lists + personal referrals to vet pros you’ll love
• DIY wins that stretch the budget and mixed centerpieces for scale without overspending
• Navigating family opinions with empathy
• The bouquet preservation tip they wish they’d heard before the wedding

Whether you’re hosting a big, all-family affair or a cozy celebration with close friends, DJ and Jacob’s grounded advice will leave you feeling confident about your priorities, your partnership, and the path to a day that truly feels like you. Because really, there’s no better place to get planning advice than from someone who has just lived through it.

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Alright folks, welcome to another episode of Now That I'm Engaged, How Do I Get Married? And we have a former couple with us here. We have DJ and Jacob, and they got married back in June on the 28th, and we were fortunate enough to coordinate their wedding ceremony part of their- the early part of the day, and then we also did some lighting for their wedding. But before we jump in and talk about their wedding day, we want- can DJ and Jacob, can you tell us a little bit?

Just like your love story, how you guys met, and how did you get to June 28th, I guess is the biggest thing.

Yeah, of course. Do you want to start? you want me to start? Okay. ⁓ so I moved out to the Bay area after I graduated and dance has always been a big part of my life. used to do competitive dance as a child and a teen. And then after college, I was like, I want to still do this. So I joined a competitive team in San Jose.

I love that. You got it.

And Jacob was at San Jose State still. So he was living in San Jose and he also joined the team. And that's kind of where we met. Kind of when you are with a bunch of peers for many long hours practicing into the night and into the early morning, you tend to bond with those people a lot. So.

Mm-hmm.

I love it.

That's how we found each other. think it's funny when people ask though, because neither of us can pinpoint the moment we actually first met, right? Yeah. I mean, it's just like, yeah, we can't remember. We were both like, guess in different parts of our lives or like, ⁓

really?

Yeah, when we when we first really started, I guess hanging out is when that's when I first remember quote unquote meeting. Yeah, like I don't even know. I am DJ. I am Jacob. I can't remember any of that stuff. It's just us gradually developing a friendship. And then over that time, developing a deeper friendship. And that's how things happen, because everyone always asks us that I'm like, I don't know, I actually don't know how I met you.

Yeah.

Yeah

feel like it's

almost better that way. Like you said, it was just natural, gradual, and it felt right. So I kind of love that.

Yes, no meet cute or anything. It was like a very natural development. Well, the turning point was when I needed a date to my holiday party. ⁓ I just freshly graduated and then I was ⁓ working here in San Jose. And yeah, it was my first like company holiday party. I was single at the time, didn't really ⁓ wasn't really talking to anyone at the time. then

Mmm.

⁓

DJ was always a great person to hang out with. So I was like, you know what, might be pretty fun. And we kicked it off from there. It was like 2018, December, 2018. And yeah, almost 10 years. Yep. Literally since that day, since that day, that, that holiday party. And then that day on it was like, no turning back. Yeah.

Wow.

I love it, that's great.

The

rest is history.

Yep, yep. It really was.

Yep.

All right, well, I think- thank you guys for sharing. That was really sweet to get into that. And am I right to suggest that a lot of you guys's peers, the dance group was part of your wedding party too, right? Because I will say later on, I saw a really fun dance video on Instagram of you guys. And I was like, that's our couple right there. They killed that. So that was really cool to see that. But ⁓ are we ready to get into some questions? I know with this continued segment,

Thank

No.

The whole point is now you guys are married, you guys have been through the process, so we want to bestow your wisdom and your advice on the couples that are currently in the process. All right.

Yes, definitely.

think we wish we had that too. A fresh experience for us. So the perspective that you'll be getting is very from a couple that was very green to the wedding industry, to the wedding planning process. Like we knew nothing going into this.

You

Yeah!

you guys haven't had any friends get married? No.

Well,

we did go to a wedding a year prior, but that was in the Philippines and it was like, it's a different, Very different, like no one in our close circle.

Mm-hmm.

weddings are crazy in the Philippines. Like the whole village comes and there's hundreds and thousands of people. It's insane. I've heard about these weddings. They're like insane.

Like we've never been in a wedding. We've never been on a bachelor, bachelorette trip. I've never been to a bridal shower. Like any of those things that I ended up doing, I had never been a part of. So it was all a very new experience.

Mmm.

Mmm.

Well,

you were a pros pro on the day of, so you guys did great.

Hahaha!

gonna

say because I was gonna bring that up at some point during this recording that you guys were just like, I know Kevin said it already, but so organized. It just made our day so much easier, but I am excited to kind of hear where you guys' heads were at coming into this with no prior blueprint or experience or just anything to base it off of at all.

Yep.

Alright, so let's jump in. So what was the first thing you did after you got engaged? And how did you feel like after you got engaged?

Whenever people ask me how I felt on the day of the engagement, I feel like I was so shocked that I couldn't even fully process what was happening because I had, there were a couple hints here and there, but everybody around us that were involved in some way, or form, like our friends and family, they held up the act so well. Like they,

Hmm.

did all of these things that really made it look like it was authentically, because Jacob disguised it as like a family, like Christmas card photo shoot. So I showed up thinking that the entire family was gonna be there, we were gonna do family pictures for like two hours with a friend who's a photographer. So I had that mindset going into the day, like, okay, I've got like my family hat on, like I've got my picture taking hat on, and I'm like thinking about all these things, like how am I gonna pose?

You

How many types of pictures should we do? So then as soon as things were happening, I remember I was walking too fast and then you were like, stop, there's no photo shoot. And I was like, what was happening? So then even after the engagement, I was still like, what's happening? Like I was putting on this face, moving along, like going through the motions, but I was just like, what's going on? like could not put things together. Like it took.

Hahaha!

I think even a couple days after like, what is happening? And then, and I think that's why I didn't cry. Like a lot of people will cry when they get proposed to, but no, I didn't. And I was like, does this mean that I'm not gonna cry during a wedding? Like, am I not as sensitive as I thought? But I think it was just because I was so shocked that I couldn't even grasp it. So then the first thing that we ended up doing, everyone's telling me what's happening. And they're saying like,

⁓ okay, yeah.

Mmm.

Now we're gonna go to lunch with our parents and your future in-laws and we're all gonna meet at this Italian restaurant but in my head I'm like what what what's going on?

They will start with your name code and they will try to get you to You're

Hahaha!

⁓

still in picture-taking mode. You're like having transitioned yet.

I'm like looking around looking for our parents like wait, but where is everybody else? Yeah, it was so funny, but you organized all of that. So yeah, you should comment on how that went down. Yeah, definitely want to like keep it intimate for the moment. I really just feel the raw emotions and just let it I mean, I was really stressed the morning up because of the weather. It wasn't so much the plan, but it was

Mm-hmm.

you

Hmm.

gonna

rain or it did rain. So I was up since five just checking the weather app. So I was really stressed about that because obviously if it's raining, like why are we still taking pictures if it's raining? That makes no sense, right? So that would have blown it. ⁓

Ha ha ha ha!

Yeah.

Although when it does rain, the photos turn out so nice because it's like so glo- yeah, yes.

Right. Cause overcast. Yeah.

Exactly. But I wasn't sure if, if my friend was the photographer Raymond, I wasn't sure if he had the right equipment to keep his stuff dry. So I was worried about that. But, ⁓ yeah, right after I knew I wanted to have, cause like all of our families are really close. So I knew I wanted to have a, ⁓ like a nice, lunch and she loves Italian food. So we went to a nice, Italian restaurant in Campbell.

The lighting is good, yeah.

Hahaha!

Hmm.

Hmm.

And

yeah, so we got to enjoy that. And then I think we were just so exhausted after the first thing we did when we got home was just take a nap for, think it was two to three hours. Well, the shock is moving through my body. I need to lay down. This is too much. But when we woke up, we actually had plans that night for our friend's 30th birthday. just, there was like a last minute plan and he just.

Yeah.

Yeah,

that's so real. I love that.

So we went out to downtown and that's where we got to break the news to all of our friends. was nice because all of our friends were already there so we could just easily just break the news to all the people. Yeah, all you have to do is like show them the engagement ring and then everyone starts screaming and jumping up and down. it all went over very smoothly like after the engagement happened and then

Well that's nice.

And it's not like you had to keep it a secret for very long, like I'm sure you were just ready to tell everyone and they were all waiting for you, so...

Yeah.

seeing everybody. So it all happened well, even though I was like in shock for three days after.

Yeah.

I love it. All right, so then

how soon after you guys got engaged did you jump into like the planning process?

Mm-hmm.

i'd say a couple weeks. no, I would say literally that that week next day, we already

Yeah.

Jacob, you're

gonna be wrong at anything you say, so.

Get used to it now. ⁓ No, I'm just kidding. The next day, remember we started making a draft of guest lists? started this because we wanted to kind of see what was important to us. Yeah, exactly. Like what was most important to us was having our family there, but you guys saw we do not have a small family. Yes.

⁓

Like a rough draft.

300 yet you feel you filled the whole church there

an empty seat. I don't think

Yep, exactly. There are people standing, I think, in the back. But we made that first draft guest list and that's when it started to hit us. We only finished my family and we're like, oh God. Yeah. It's a lot of people. My mom's side is a hundred people. Alone. Just his mom's side.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Wow. Just mom

side? That's how my mom's side was when I got married. It was... I have too many cousins is what it comes down to. Yeah.

Wow.

Mm-hmm. Yeah. It's all

the cousins. i got 23 cousins. Yes, which is a huge blessing, but I think that was the first step for us. So like that day after, and then before the week ended, I was looking at churches and I had my eyes set on the mission because I was like, this place is gorgeous. yes.

Yeah.

⁓

Mm.

It's stunning. It's absolutely stunning.

it's very special that it was your uncle that did the service. that, I mean, I think that makes it even more. And he did such a nice job. So it just made it. And it's probably so much more special because you guys know him very well. You know what saying? Like, just, there was a lot more meaning behind it.

Yeah.

Right. And he traveled all the way from Europe. he was a, he's a busy man. Yeah. He's living in Brussels right now. Yeah. So he was there for a couple of days for our wedding. And then he was celebrating a big anniversary of his own ordination in the Catholic church, also in the Bay area. But what I- a fun fact that I wanted to add, I just thought of this.

I didn't even know that.

⁓

OK.

So when my parents got married in '91, he was meant to do their wedding mass in the Philippines. And he was still studying as a student in Vatican city. So he had to then fly from Europe to the Philippines and he was almost there. But a volcano, big volcano, Mount Pinatubo erupted on his way there and they had to turn the plane around.

wow.

Wow!

So he never got to say the mass. Yeah. So then what was extra special was that he actually got to be there and do it for us, even though he never had a chance to do it for my parents.

⁓

Do it for your parents. Yeah, that's,

well that's gotta be special for your parents as well, so.

Yeah. Yeah,

Well, I had

no idea he was from Brussels, so that's amazing.

Yeah.

And Vatican

City, too. That's just so impressive, like, really cool.

Yeah, he's a newly appointed Archbishop of Europe. Of the European Union. ⁓

He's legit.

Holy, wow.

Wow! You guys, that's super cool! Wow. That's so amazing.

Yeah.

It was cool. Yeah, it was it made it super special because his that promotion had just happened the month before the wedding happened. I mean, it was a time the Catholic Church to the Pope had just died. Before like, I was like, no, is he gonna have to go to Rome? He's not gonna come to the wedding. But no, it turned out just fine.

Well then they

Yes.

Right.

That's good.

Wow,

and so special and no volcanoes this time, so dang. That's so...

Yeah, thankfully in the US, we're good.

Wow. Well, how did you guys go about choosing all of your other vendors and creative partners? What made you feel confident about those decisions when you guys were weighing out who to pick?

Yeah, so ⁓ actually Casa Real where we had the reception had a really great preferred vendors list, which is where we also found Fantasy Sounds. ⁓ But it was a really great starting point because then at least, we could go into it knowing that all of the vendors on the list were trusted or have a lot of experience. But there were also ⁓ we took advantage of like our own personal network to.

Like we knew some of our past, one of our past dance friends, Kenny, he actually was the photographer for our wedding. So we knew him personally. He's immediately who we thought of when we wanted to shoot the wedding. So that was-

Which is crazy,

he's pretty well known in the Bay Area, like we've worked a lot of weddings with our story media, so that's like honestly really cool.

Mm-hmm.

I remember

seeing him start up back in like, yes, I was during the pandemic. That's really when you shot up. Well, because we've known him for like 10 years now. So I saw the bare bones of him starting his business and him telling me he wanted to start a business and go into the wedding industry. Like we saw that growth happen just so rapidly. So we were like, oh my gosh, it has to be him. Like, it can't be anyone else. Right.

I had no idea.

Plus you probably

feel super comfy with him and that's like a day where you want to feel super comfortable too.

Yeah. Exactly.

Yeah. Yeah. And they did a great job adapting to the big family because I know it can be a lot. and he mainly does intimate weddings. That's what we know too. Like he does like a lot of destination stuff. So it's actually really great that he was able to shoot our wedding as well. Our DJ also was a personal reference. One of my cousins, he actually is a vinyl DJ here in the Bay Area. I hit him up one day and was just like, do you have any good references?

cool.

so cool.

So he sent me DJ Eternal's number and he's actually a great MC as well. So ⁓ it was kind of killing two birds with one stone there. But yeah, a lot of personal references and the preferred vendor list, that's how we kind of got our vendors. And then just doing extra research on top of that.

Awesome. Well, DJ Eternal is super fun. I, you guys know I used to work at Casa. He was there all the time and always was a big party when he was around, so he was super fun. How did you guys feel about making decisions together? Was that usually pretty easy? Were you guys normally on the same page with things?

yeah.

Yeah, so it's a really big project. It's probably the biggest project you'll do together so far in your relationship planning a wedding.

I think it happened in the most ideal way possible, but that doesn't mean that when you're planning something so major with someone else that you're not going to disagree. And I think it was a really good glimpse into how we as a couple collaborate and manage problem solving because there are certain things that we discovered along the way are our strengths between the two of us.

I think there is a popular understanding or conception that the bride takes over and that she has this very specific vision. And ever since she was a little girl, she has imagined this like beautiful wedding. I always imagined I was gonna get married, but I was never like, I'm gonna do this and I'm gonna have that and it's gonna look like this. Like I was never that little girl. And.

I think also people might do this.

I think that's the norm,

I'm going to be honest with you. think that's more the norm than the fairy tale.

Yeah, okay, okay,

because I was like going into it. was like, I just don't know. Yeah, like, I don't actually know what I see. I see you and I there, but I don't know what I see around us. You know, I wasn't sure. And so sometimes it would be really hard to kind of initiate things over the last year and a half to just get started because

Is something wrong with me? Yeah. Yeah.

Yeah.

Hmm.

There are certain points in the planning process that are more difficult than others. ⁓ but Jacob actually was really good at motivating us to stay on a deadline and then stay organized in a very specific way. Like he, he uses like Excel for, or Google sheets. Like he knows how to do all that stuff. I have, I'm like the visionary.

Yeah

And then

I would kind of come up with these ideas. We would discuss them. We would discuss what's realistic. and then a lot of the, I guess, people facing things I would always do. So taking calls like with our vendors, I was usually the one initiating communication or having all of those meetings. Like he would be there as well. But then I was always like doing the scheduling, but then.

the budget, which is like the most important and foundational part to the entire process. Jacob was in charge of that entire thing. And so there was like this balance that we discovered along the way. And you're not going to just have that balance right away, right? Even if you kind of delegate things a certain way from the start, like you just kind of start to find out what you're good at. And there are things that surprised me. Like I thought I was going to be the one like, let's do this today. Let's do this tomorrow.

But he actually was so much better at that and was really good at holding us accountable to things because I think it was, I was very sometimes sporadic about like, oh my gosh, I need to do all of this right now. And then I need to do all of this next month. it didn't have to be that way. He was so good at encouraging me to like, it is okay to just chip away. You don't need to do everything in one day. And then it, cause I would get so overwhelmed so easily. And so like, I think that

That's what made the planning process as smooth, I think, as it could have gone. Not to say there are certain things that you disagree on along the way. But yeah, that's.

But

I think that's great advice for every day. Just chip away. There are days that get overwhelming, and you just continue to chip away at a little here, a little there. And then before you know it, everything's going to work itself out. that's good advice for every day. It's going to take you guys far into the future. all right, so question, opinions. So as you probably learned, probably from the moment you guys got engaged, everyone has opinions when it comes to weddings.

Yes.

As someone that has been married and actually has children, I'm going to tell you, take the opinions you got for the wedding and times it by at least four or five, and that's the opinion you're going to get when you have a child. So how did you guys balance opinions from family and friends through the process? this is something I think couples struggle with the most.

So I think opinion wise, think everyone, all of our family were coming from like a point of like, they're trying to help us. Like it's all a good intention at the end of the day. But I honestly think our parents were not too, they didn't lay it on us too much. They kind of understood, like made there some things that they wanted to see, but they would always like pose it as a suggestion, not so much as forcing it on us. So that definitely

That's great.

kind of helped ease us. So we did take like opinions into account, but at end of the day, we just-

We know what we can and can't do, given our circumstance and budget and just what's realistic for us. So we do take everything with a grain of salt. But then, a day, the opinions are there to help us. ⁓ Maybe there's something that we missed. There's a question that we didn't even consider. So they were helpful sometimes, and then other times, just... It's ⁓ not always so straightforward when they give us an opinion. I think one thing to consider for people that are planning

you

is understanding the culture and the dynamics of your family already based on your entire lives with them because I think- you and I have set a precedent that we are getting engaged with a year and a half to spare and that was intentional, right? We promised to...

wait for engagement until I was finished with grad school so that we had a stable income. And we shared that with them and they knew that. And so there are certain things that we had already kind of tried to plant the seed so that we could show everybody that we were worth trusting in this process. Even when it came to how organized we wanted to be, right? Like when we were communicating with our families and the bridal party, like there were things that

Mm-hmm.

we did early on so that come the time there were no questions about it, right? So like we were trying to- are still questions about it. Yeah, there's always-

Okay. ⁓

I remember you guys saying that on the bus, you were,

you're almost like training the wedding party, right? So the day of, there was no room for interpretation. Everyone knew what they were doing.

Yes.

Yes, yeah, exactly. And so I think that kind of sets a little bit of a barrier for offering more and more opinions. I mean, I think one thing that we did get a lot of was, so how can I help? So what can I do? So how can I help? And sometimes we just didn't know what to ask for. And then we would just be like, well, not really anything because we still have a lot of decisions to make.

Hmm.

⁓ And again, a lot of our really close circle, we haven't been in a wedding before. So those people didn't have a lot to offer because they hadn't done it yet. So that's also kind of creating a barrier to who's gonna offer an opinion. Of course, like parents are gonna be parents and they're gonna do that for the rest of our lives. ⁓ But.

Mm-hmm.

Again, we know that I think it's viewing it with a lens of empathy of like, okay, they're just trying to be helpful. Like we don't want, we know none of this is malicious. And also like that is the culture of our families. Like we have an understanding that we trust each other and we're not pushing to a point of breaking, right? So yeah, I agree with what you said too.

Well, I was going to say too, it's kind of, it's nice when that happens. and, you're also setting a precedent for the future of what your guys's life is going to be together. But it's also, you mentioned being one of the first of your friends. I, I personally feel for couples that are in your situation, it's easier to get married because one, no one's comparing their wedding to your wedding. ⁓ no one's telling you, have to do this because this is what I did at my wedding.

Hmm.

Yeah.

you know, it's actually a really sweet spot to be. It's harder for couples that get married and they're one of the last of their friend group to get married because every one of their friends has an opinion because that's the biggest thing. And you mentioned your parents got married in '91 from '91 to today. Weddings are so different. And it's even and we hate the covid word, but even from like pre covid to post covid.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Like weddings are so different. Like weddings have continued to change and it just continues to change. And so having people that are a little bit more like, no, this is what we're going to do. you know, that's a sweet spot to be in for you guys. So you guys were very lucky.

Yeah, I do think it was ideal because we were all shrugging our shoulders like I don't know what to do.

Yeah, I agree.

Yeah.

That is so funny.

Yup.

Okay, so kind of more of a fun question, but if you could relive one part of the wedding day, which part would you pick?

There are so many. ⁓ But I think what I remembered the most or what was really fun was actually after we were finished taking pictures, it was cocktail hour and ⁓ DJ and I decided to stay out during cocktail hour to mingle with everyone.

So I know typically like it might be common to kind of just chill in the back room, kind of catch your breath and kind of recollect before the actual reception starts. But I was all up in the crowd saying hi to everyone, getting... ⁓

really getting some real face time with people and like really thanking them for being there. ⁓ Just catching up with a lot of because a lot of our family travels from so far and we knew that the whole day was going to be a struggle to like really talk to everyone. ⁓ So I think staying out during cocktail hour, it felt like it was like that's when I felt like the party really starting and just getting to enjoy the venue that we booked and like.

Mm-hmm.

Like there were so many details with the new bar that Casa Real had and the satellite bars that everyone just looked really comfortable in the space. I think enjoying that time before there was like a more structured event, I think I would relive that because that's like the real social part of the wedding that I enjoyed. Yeah. Yeah. Cause we actually had originally planned not to go out at all. I was like, I'm tired.

Mm-hmm.

Well, it's, and

I find that couples that do go out really relax a little bit more and feel a little bit more comfortable and get to enjoy their wedding. Cause that's, I have a bad joke, but there's a lot of truth in my bad joke is I always tell, if you want to have fun at a wedding, you need to be a guest at somebody else's because it's, it's really hard going through the, I mean, we started with you guys at eight o'clock in the morning that day, you know, so it just, hard to go through that, the wedding day and really enjoy it. So I'm glad that you guys were able to go out.

Yeah.

Good.

Thank you.

and do the cocktail hour. cuz it really, I mean, that's the one time where everyone's just relaxed and it's just very casual. There's no structure to the wedding at all. It's just very casual. so that's great that you guys got to go out and do that. All right. I was going say, do you have one?

Did you have one?

Yeah, do you have the same

answer? Different answer?

⁓

that is one of them, but my favorite part was the first look. That was so awesome. Like I, so funny because I feel like it wasn't even the part about looking at each other. I know that the whole purpose is to be like, Whoa, you look so good. Like, we don't even care about that. We just like wanted to see each other. And I think like, cause

⁓

Hmm

As soon as we pulled up to the venue that day in the bus, I was like already kind of feeling like this gravitational pull, like almost like this magnetic feeling of like, I like I know why and I can feel him nearby and I haven't seen him in like more than 12 hours. And so like the anticipation up until that moment. And then it was only us with like, you know, some of the vital party watching nearby. And then afterwards, like,

Like he's here.

and some weirdos that are walking

around that we had to yell at to get out of the way. The guy in the Lakers jersey, the damn Lakers fans. Anyway, I digress. Sorry. Sorry, DJ.

Yeah

Yes. Yes. I

i remember that.

I'm like, just get the... That was just funny.

You're like, excuse

me. It's always the Laker fans. Yeah. But even the Bridal Party to this day, they talk about how that was like such a core memory of the day. Cause they got to kind of like watch from around the corner. And my cousin actually got like a cell phone video from where she was standing. And that was so cool because we kind of got to see like some of the groomsmen were in the shot because she was like.

Damn Laker fans.

⁓

recording from around the corner and getting to see the way, because I had no idea everybody else was reacting too. Like you can see, yes. Yeah, or you could just see the groomsmen, like they just start crying. And when I watched that, oh my gosh, it just makes me so happy because like I got to see you. But then I actually know that someone else was kind of witnessing it and feeling those same things. So that was so, that was so cool. I loved that.

They were all crying. They were all bawling their eyes out. Yeah.

Yeah, I remember that was

other than the damn Laker guy, that was all they were just clueless. They were just like they had no idea what was going on. And then finally, I'm like, we're we're this is a very private moment. Can you just give them? And then the wife. Yeah.

Ha ha ha!

No, but I agree, DJ. It was so

beautiful out there too and just, it was just a very wholesome moment and I, and I'm, it was great. It was really great.

Yeah, I loved it. All right, were there any hidden gems or details you were glad you invested in?

Yeah.

Yeah, we actually DIY'd the signage at Casa Real. So my dad was really awesome for helping us buy all of the materials. He painted the mirrors. We laid down the actual ⁓ vinyl stickers on it.

⁓ cause I know those things can get pretty expensive and for like a one-time use, you know, it's not. The most, easy thing to find either. So, ⁓ choosing to do that. we designed our programs pretty much by scratch. Yeah. We did ourselves. So we had our fingerprints all over the, the look and feel. Yeah. ⁓ I think another hidden gem that we kind of worked out with our florists, ⁓

from Vo Floral Designs was, so as you know, flowers can be really expensive. It's probably the second most expensive thing that we ⁓ paid for besides the venue. But she was really awesome and we were trying to find ways to kind of be more cost efficient and trying to, without sacrificing the look or...

Mm-hmm.

the quality of view that we wanted. But she offered, cause we had like 35 tables. 36 tables. Yeah. Tables of 10. So 36 flower vases was really expensive. So she actually suggested doing bud vases for half of them while another half would be the full florals. So.

It still gave the illusion of being full but it also helped us on the cost side and the bud vases were really really nice. Yeah, aesthetically like it looked so beautiful and that it wasn't so symmetrical throughout the room. like mixed. Yeah. Yes. Yeah, yeah and some things that I really or a couple things that I really liked

that were hidden gems that like we had that welcome table with a bunch of our engagement photos and our engagement photos that were taken in the Philippines were by one of my best friends LTK photography. So just knowing she that was her work and that we were just it was like a gallery of her work that all of these people got to see and our actual engagement day was our friend Raymond Balthazar who did those photos and they're both very talented photographers and the fact we got to incorporate it into the

Hmm.

first thing that you see when you walk in, like sharing the talents of the people we love, because even the entertainment during the reception, which you guys didn't get to see, we wish you were there, but ⁓ there were performances from our dance team, right? So we were in that too. And then there was a singing performance by my cousins from all over the globe.

Mm.

wow.

that

came together to do that. I feel like which- dance too. And then yeah, our first dance was your niece and your cousin, they sang it live. So like those little pieces that made it feel so personal were probably like some of the most special parts of the day.

wow.

Wow.

I

love how you said that, that you get to share their talents too with everybody. That's just, yeah, and it makes just the day so much more special.

Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

Love it.

Okay, so I think we're getting down to the end here. So I think kind of the last few thoughts that we want to send around is really just what have you guys learned throughout the planning process that you want to bestow upon the couples that are going through it right now? So do you guys have any tips that you wish you knew before you started or just what are some wisdom we can bestow upon the couples right now?

I think kind of understanding what are your non-negotiables. Yeah. Like ⁓ what's core to you, right? ⁓ Because that's going to drive the whole- It's going to drive the whole process. We knew that we wanted our family there and it was like an all or nothing kind of deal. So either we invite the whole family or it's just a small one.

No.

Mm-hmm.

Mm hmm.

Yeah.

Non-negotiable.

And then there's going to be about her for not being invited and all of that.

So obviously having a lot of family that kind of narrows down the choices of like, ⁓ no more, can't do a destination wedding, obviously, because that's just going to be way too crazy. ⁓ So that narrowed down like our choices and then yeah, your non-negotiables like whether or your priority of whether it be really good food, whether you want an awesome photographer that's like top, top of the line. ⁓

performances, all of that. see like, yeah, so what's non-negotiable? Like what needs to be in the wedding? I think. Yeah, and then be realistic about it. Like I think it is super awesome to dream as much as possible at the start, but the hardest parts of the process are the very beginning and the very end. And the reason being, at very beginning, you have no vendors. And that whole vendor exploration process was really stressful for us, especially flowers and like those really big vendors.

Mm.

Mmm.

where it's like taking a huge chunk of your budget. And then the very end when you're like, everything has to be locked in with every single vendor within that two to three week period right before. So then you're having to lock in at the very end and in between like, yes, it's not easy, but it's those two parts of the process that are gonna be the most difficult.

where you have to really, really work together. Like if you can help it, don't be the couple that just lets one of you plan the whole thing because I just feel like the process is, that is the start of your marriage. Like it is an introduction to the way that you're gonna collaborate as a married couple. And like we've only been married for almost exactly three months to the day. Like.

We we see those things shine through like in our everyday life and then the only piece of advice that I was like running around telling people Mostly for the brides though the bouquet preservation thing. I had no idea that I had to look for

Hmm.

Hmm.

a bouquet preservation service and then book it ahead of time so that I had all the shipping equipment to send it in the next day. Cause sometimes you're, I was at the hotel, our whole family was at the hotel for an extra two days, three days after. And then at that point I'm trying my best to preserve this bouquet that's going to die regardless of how much I take care of it. And so by the time that I was ready to try and find someone to preserve it, like

Mmm.

There was no way I didn't have any of equipment with me. Even if I drove it out to somebody local, they would be like an hour away, but I was entertaining family. was like expensive. And so I didn't end up preserving my bouquet, even though internally I had planned for it, but I just didn't know that it was something you had to reserve ahead of time. I just thought like, ⁓ I'm going to find someone after, but.

I had to do it myself and it was hard and it and most of it ended up molding and not holding up but I there were people that I ended up saving that we actually do have in a frame here like along with our program our invitation like all preserved in a frame. Yes, yes. Pieces that I did get to keep are here but ladies please look into it ahead of time because I suffer the consequences but

⁓ no.

a shadow box? Yeah.

That was the only thing where I was like, shoot, that's a huge regret of mine. But it, it worked out on its own, you know?

⁓

Well, and

one thing too, DJ, my sister did this with her wedding is she also wanted to preserve hers, but she had assigned someone to take it from her right after the wedding. So then they took it and they handled it. So then she didn't have to worry about it. But doing it yourself is hard too, because Meg, who was the other bride who came and did the podcast, she preserved hers too. But she's like one of my best friends. And I went over to her house and she had this huge box with like rice in it.

Yes.

other, I don't even know how she did it but I was like wow this seems very complicated so.

Yeah.

It is, it is complicated. And then I failed at the end of it, but I got to keep some and they look very cute and hopefully they last forever.

I'm glad some of them came out,

Yeah.

And just having I'm gonna be on and your florist , Trang she's the best so she vo floral She we just worked with her last night on an event and she's probably hands down the sweetest woman in the wedding industry So you could it's yeah

Truly.

So wonderful, like so

gorgeous. So seamless too. such a seamless process. Right away, like when we went to the church, she had all of the... She even had extras because there were a couple guys I forgot to mention. So she came prepared. it was- all of our vendors were excellent. Cakes by Bev, Bev Tanaka. ⁓ my gosh I love her so much. oh my god.

yeah, she's great.

Mmm.

And she's retiring

soon too. Yeah.

I know it's so sad to us.

Oh no, I'm so glad that we had the chance to work with her. Yeah. Yeah. Everyone was great.

So yeah, me too.

Yeah, it's extra special.

All right.

Well, guys, I think we come to the end. So I guess the best thing is just congratulations. Good luck.

i loved your guys' advice, so eloquent. You guys really thought about this and I love that.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I

hope so. This was so fun. were like, Oh my gosh, this is such a great opportunity being on a pod. And we can't thank you both enough for the help on the day. Yeah, no people in the bridal party, because at first we're like, Oh, we can handle it ourselves in the morning. Like we don't need to learn. And then I started to get so worried. And my someone in my bridal party was even like, Do you even need that?

And I was like, yes, I think we do. And after the fact, she was like, oh my gosh, everything made so much sense. Having day of coordination, starting that early in the morning. Like there are certain things like no one wants to be responsible for or thinking that you have the capacity to be responsible for. then once it comes to it, like when it's go time, it's go time. Yes. Everything is just going to go by so quickly. And it was cool. It was cool having both of you there.

because we were always like, I just felt like those things are like the cherry on top to everything, like just gluing it all together.

Well, appreciate that but I will say you guys were very well behaved as a group like it wasn't like we said if we said something everyone did it there was no problems it was like even like when you when when your girls did the first look with you at the hotel it was like I Literally, I think I had ten or eight phones I don't I had everybody's phone and they're they're all trying to like airdrop You know how you put your phone together. They all start trying to airdrop. I'm like what?

Hahaha

Mm-hmm.

Hahaha

Yes.

And they're all, I'm like, what the hell is going on in my hands right now with all these... But anyway, they, and I'm not like, she's, you were coming, but then you weren't coming. And then, but they stood there and they did exactly what we needed them to do. they, no one complained about it. And they were a very well-behaved group of young ladies and young men. So it was just...

connect together, yeah.

You

Yes, choose your bridal

party wisely. Every single person in our bridal party was perfect for the job. And that's another reason it was a huge success. I'll say that as another piece of advice too.

Yeah,

they were all there for you guys and they were there to help you guys get through the day and they weren't bringing their own drama to the wedding, which we find that happens a lot. It's like, me, me, me. And it's like, no, it's not about you, girlfriend. It's about them. listen.

Mm-hmm.

It's all energy. Yeah, it's all energy. Yes, they

It's not about you. Yeah.

had such amazing energy beginning to end. It was amazing. Yeah. Okay.

All right. All right, guys.

Well, we can't thank you for being on our second episode with talking about weddings. So thank you so much. You guys were a very special couple to us. So we were very happy that you guys get to come and be on here with us. So thank you so much. And folks, we'll see you on another episode. And now that I'm engaged, how do I get married? We'll see you guys next time. Bye.

you

Yeah.