In Motion

I hope people aren't sick of listening to me go on and on about the wedding, because this post is gonna be about the wedding again . Don't get me wrong, I am super relieved that the wedding is over, and that life can resume as normal. I'm not trying to relive the wedding or seek attention way past the event. I'm just trying to write down as much as possible about this important event because one day I may look back and wish I remembered more about it. =P Memory ain't what it used to be. Also, if anyone asks me for recommendations, I can just refer them to this post. This post is just going to be a simple one about the vendors that helped to piece my wedding together, 'cause the rates were reasonable and I felt that I (mostly) got good value for money. Heheh. My dress : Pearl Studio (rented), <RM500 for dress (+alteration), accessories and veil. Of course different dresses go at different rates, but most fall between RM400 - RM700, which was exactly my bu...

So. The long-awaited ( I HOPE) post about the wedding is finally here. Sorry for dropping off the edge of the world for the past few days, I've been busy. ;) Most of you know how much I dreaded the hassle of the wedding planning and the surveying and the decision-making and all things tedious, right? Well, I also didn't expect the actual wedding day to be much better since I'd have contacts in my eyes, makeup on my face, and be wearing pretty but uncomfy shoes for the whole of SIX (6) or more *winces* hours. All my fault, really, since I wanted an outdoor photoshoot on the same day (because I didn't want a pre-wed photoshoot or yet ANOTHER makeup and dress up session). =P The pleasantly surprising thing was, I had more fun than I ever expected to have, mainly because of the company. It was only at the wedding that I realized how much I had missed human interaction and socializing. Jia Wern's crazy St Jo gang even came up with a hashtag for the wedding : sixpoi...

An excerpt from John Piper's This Momentary Marriage :  "Marriage is not mainly about prospering economically; it is mainly about displaying the covenant-keeping love between Christ and his church. Knowing Christ is more important than making a living. Treasuring Christ is more important than bearing children. Being united to Christ by faith is a greater source of marital success than perfect sex and double-income prosperity. If we make secondary things primary, they cease to be secondary and become idolatrous. They have their place. But they are not first, and they are not guaranteed. . . . So it is with marriage. It is a momentary gift. It may last a lifetime, or it may be snatched away on the honeymoon. Either way, it is short. It may have many bright days, or it may be covered with clouds. If we make secondary things primary, we will be embittered at the sorrows we must face. But if we set our face to make of marriage mainly what God designed it to be, no sorrows and...

So it seems I have a long weekend this week - my school took Monday off. I like long weekends. Haha who doesn't. But it's nice to be able to kick back and relax, and think of all the wonderful time-wasting things you can do WITHOUT feeling guilty or rushing for time. Like shopping, for instance, and blogging, which I'm doing right now. First of all, UPDATES on wedding preparations. During the March hols, I managed to settle a lot of stuff such as the wedding dress (can I hear a Yay!) and makeup. That's...A LOT of stuff ok. You have no idea how long it takes just to find a wedding dress. I basically spent 3-4 days spread out over a span of 6 months trying to find THE perfect dress... ...and realized it doesn't exist. Not within my budget, at least. I really shouldn't have so many ideals. Well, the point is, I DID find a dress that I liked enough, even though it did not fit every single criteria I wanted (such as a black sash or something to break the mo...

Over the holiday, some decisions were made, the guest list was finalized and my bridesmaids and parents worked together to get the invitations and bridesmaid dresses. I'm feeling pretty happy with the progress because the full picture is finally materializing. Before anything else, I want to thank everyone who was involved (both sets of parents, Rene and Amy) profusely for their cooperation to get everything done under a week or so. You can also read about the details  here . I'm always so kancheong to put plans into action, so the stress I felt prior to this might have been caused by the standstill. People have been telling me to "enjoy the process", but I've always been a goal-oriented person, so setbacks and waiting around tend to stress me out. That is, I'm usually happier at the end of the journey than on the way. Can't help my choleric personality. =P Back to the progress they made. Bridesmaid dresses, (finally) check! I gave my bridesmaids t...

I spent the whole afternoon watching TLC's " Say Yes To The Dress : Randy knows best ". It's addictive and informative, especially because I have this irresistible compulsion to do my research. =P I even managed to convince the two boys to sit down with me and watch at least one episode that night. After that, Jameson said he's not getting married because now he knows the pain brides-to-be go through in the process of choosing a dress. xD Anyway. The series was surprisingly down-to-earth and realistic. Randy even talks about how brides should not try on dresses that are beyond their budget, so it's not about indulging in your whims and fancies at the expense of other considerations (which I initially expected it to be about). I saw so many pretty things in the last 3 hours or so, and I can't help but wonder WHY bridal studios in Kuching don't carry such beautiful designs. The dresses in the episodes weren't even especially elaborate - I saw th...

I really do NOT have to document all my wedding stuff here, but I have benefited immensely from the various online articles and blog entries in my bride-to-be learning experience. So, by blogging about my experience, I hope that other people can benefit from it too, given that most online articles feature Western weddings (still helpful, but may not take into consideration the constraints Malaysians face). I think it's helpful to know a thing or two about weddings and how much to spend on them, unless you're marrying into a really rich family and the cost is not an issue. I'm what you might call a budget bride - that is, I'm trying to keep things within a budget of below 10k. Okay, more like around 7k. I still remember Sonia exclaiming in astonishment about a certain couple's wedding because it cost around 7k, and at that time, I wasn't very sure how to react. 7k seemed like a HUGE number. Sonia told me it was highly economical for weddings, though, and ever ...

"Don't you think you're still  too young to get married?" I've gotten this question a few times already, mostly from Chinese friends. Not to stereotype or anything, but I guess Chinese people usually get married around 25-30 years old, and my mere 23 (next year, that is) is rather...shocking. Granted, if I see a Chinese peer from secondary school or primary school married/getting married, I'd immediately assume it was a shotgun marriage. =P  Still.  Another acquaintance (yes, ONLY an acquaintance because "She's getting married next year" is practically my surname when introduced nowadays) was shocked when the announcement was made. He couldn't believe I was getting married "so early". Even double-checked to see if I was getting engaged or married next year, whereupon I flashed him my ring. =P A friend who asked this question said that she wouldn't marry early because felt she hadn't done enough with her lif...

As I type this, I have just finished googling "how to pose for wedding photographs". Not that I'm any wiser - that would take at least another 5 more articles on how to look photogenic and natural, not to mention leave me feeling despondent and hopeless that I'll get pretty wedding photos. Seriously, the more articles on weddings that I read, the more I feel like I'm not cut out for this whole wedding thing. The "marriage" thing, maybe. The "wedding" part, not so. You see, I am pretty bipolar when it comes to wedding preparation decisions. Below is a list of what I've thought about/felt/wanted at SOME point in the planning process (which is still going on) : 1. Let's have a simple wedding, I don't like the fuss of ceremonies, and the more frills you add, the more money you spend, and all this is just for ONE day, which isn't that big a deal. What matters more is the marriage after that, and I definitely don't want to s...