September 9, 2017
It’s no surprise that Patrick and Jenny picked the Leal Vineyards in Hollister, California for their wedding venue. They’re both wine lovers and Jenny is training to become a sommelier.
The groom is the eldest son of my brother Kuya Lito. He is younger than Oyen by two and a half months. The bride is of Taiwanese descent. They’ve been living in for maybe two years now at his townhouse. Patrick made good investment sense. He bought his townhouse a few years ago and now the value has gone almost double.
Hollister is a two hour drive from where we stay and we almost got late. We arrived at the Ridgemark Golf Club & Resort 15 minutes before 3 pm. We barely had time to check in and get dressed. Good that Leal Vineyards was only a mile away and a three minute drive. Ridgemark was where the entourage and guests were spending the night.
We arrived at the vineyard just before the ceremony started. I only had a few minutes to greet my nephews.
Kuya Junior’s bunso (youngest son), Atty. Ryan Tan. He and Nyke look and sound alike. I am trying to convince my son to take up law like his Kuya Ryan but so far no success. He wants to study and work in Barcelona, Spain and also do volunteer work in far flung areas but Edmund doesn’t want. I don’t know where God would lead him, for now he’s still feeling his way around this maze called life.
It was soooooooooo hot and I couldn’t bear to sit under the sun even if guests were provided with umbrellas.
My eldest nephew, Rev. Ric Tan, officiated the wedding ceremony of Patrick and Jenny. Ric, together with his wife Jennifer, founded Tan Weddings and Events (TWE) and is now considered as one of the leading wedding officiants and wedding organizers in Sacramento, Davis, Sonoma counties. Their reach is expanding and they are now officiating weddings as far as San Luis Obispo. Their company has earned many awards and they’ve been featured in many publications. They officiate more than 50 weddings a month and they also provide styling, music, souvenir designs, etc.
Ric is a doctor of medicine and is the first born of my eldest brother Kuya Junior, a retired physician at Kaiser Medical Center.
I told my single nephews and nieces to promise they don’t get married at 3 pm. It’s too hot.
Kuya Junior, Ate Linda, Kim, Tin
Eves and Rae
A few giant willow trees provided shade from the afternoon sun.
The umbrellas were not enough to make me feel cooler. I really had to leave my seat or else I would suffer from severe migraine attack even before the ceremony has ended.
The tree provided not only shade, but a nice photo backdrop.
We were advised not to hold cameras and instead concentrate on the ceremony. There were several professional photographers covering the event.
The ceremony took only 30 minutes which I think is the best. Short but meaningful and very considerate of the guests who were sweating. Walang maraming kuskos balungos.
There was an hour and a half break before the dinner reception. Guests had time to mingle, rest and take photos.
I am so proud of my nephew Dr. Ric Tan. I took care of him when he was a baby and up until he was 6 years old before they emigrated to the US. Even if he’s already a doctor and a successful entrepreneur, he will always be Jun-jun to me. He is such a good and responsible person, and in my eyes he is perfect. He is a great family man, very loving and dedicated to his family, he’s extremely talented, artistic, and I truly admire how he has turned out to be. All his kids are also equally talented.
Len and I with mother of the groom. I also gave Len a long gown by Amir last Christmas but according to her, the wedding guests are not allowed to wear blue because that’t the color motif. The Binangonan Association of Northern California is having a dinner dance in November and she’ll wear the Amir Sali gown to that event.
Dimple’s gown is by Amir Sali. She was in Manila last February and I brought her to Amir. I am glad she likes her gown a lot.
I was already at the NAIA airport when I realized I brought the wrong sandals to wear at the garden wedding. I would be walking on grass so flat sandals or a wedge would have been a better choice. Yun na nga ang nangyari, it was hard to walk without my heels digging into the soft soil. Ang hirap maglakad, nakatiyad ako. I had to tip toe.
