The World is Complete Because of You

Looking back-2009

2010-05-02T21:00:00.000-07:00

2009 was an eventful year, and to me, it zoomed past just like that!! As you can tell, I din not even have time to update this blog..I struggled with thoughts as to whether I want to continue with this blog, and finally decided that it is well worth it, not as annoucement to the world how fruitful my life is but to remind myself what we have been through, counting our blessings and the possible encouragement it may render someone who reads this blog (esp on my threatened abortion, andy's faith in god in the midst of his eye condition) So here it begins..back to the PAST!

Jan 2009
We finally got our keys to the much awaited new flat! We had many friends come for different sessions of house warming and it was great gathering!

Photos of the new home to be furbished later =)

April 2009
Confirmation that I was 5 weeks pregnant! Seriously, we were totally caught surprised cos we decided to start trying for a baby since the gynae told me I have Polycystic Ovary and needs 1-2 yrs to get pregnant due to irregularity in menstrual cycle. Since 2007, I have been put on OC, and so we thought, ok, try now just nice, cos Baby will be born in at least 2 years time and Andy has finished MBA by then.

Seriously, this is the case where God demonstrates that you can plan all you want, but still, it is HIS timing. But Andy was really calm when I told him the test kit showed positive. "Never mind, just sit down, relax and watch the DVD, kit should be correct, cos diffcult to have false positive one lah" So, yah, the two big kids are going to have one small kid of our own, at a very inconvenient time ie: Andy having MBA, we just shifted house, I just changed job..I wondered how were we going to cope mentally and financially

June 2009
3 days before the Church camp, I went home from working in the pharmacy and while taking a shower, I starting bleeding. Andy rushed me to the hospital and I just couldnt stop crying, cos I was so afraid I would miscarry the foetus. I had a terrible first trimester such that I lost 3kg and couldnt eat anything without puking or suffering tummy cramps. So I thought God didnt want me to have this baby afterall. Though the bleeding stopped after 2 days, gynae still think there are risks of miscarriage and ordered total bedrest for 1 week with injection twice weekly and oral tablets daily for at least 6 weeks. My mind was in a whirlpoool: are we going against god by having all these injections? What if the baby is not normal, that's why it is showing signs of miscarriage? I was at a lost. But Andy stood by me "If god wants to take away the baby, no matter what you do, he will take it away. So, just do what we can and commit to god. If it is his will, he will see through this treatment and bless the little one". I really thank his words, god's mercy as well as friends' prayers. God walked with me throughout this tough period and that was the best moments I had journeying with God. My family also made all the differences: dad n mum bought tonics for me and also came to help me, sisters cheered me up with gifts and phone calls. I love the Lims family!

Though it was traumatic especially Andy's parents were not so easy to handle during my entire preganacy, but with all the love I have got from family, friends and Andy, I managed to come this far! The MAC DONALD breakfast cheered me and the little one out throughout the whole pregnancy!My fav branch in Queensway

Nov 2009
Weeks past by and before we knew it Nat is about to be delivered into this world. At 36 weeks, gynae advised to have labour induced since he is worried that given my threatened abortion, the placenta may not be above to support Nat beyond 38 weeks. Instead of risking sudden fetal death, induction at 38 weeks is a safer option.

So from 36- 38 weeks, i go in once a week for heartbeat monitoring and need to chart a sheet of fetal daily movements ie: 10 times of movements a day at around the same time. I tell you, it is scary, cos you keep wondering if the heartbeat is there, whether can Tahan till 38 weeks. Induction made me felt a bit cheated, cos I really want to experience the waterbreaking, caught off surprise kind of feeling. O well, Andy sure dont wish that to happen though. So, off to induction for labour on 18th Nov. I was already on maternity on 16th, since at first gynae said induce on 16th, but when I went in on 16th, he said cervic not ripen yet cant induce. Felt that it was illogical since that was what induction is for, to induce ripening. Later realised it was cos the nurse made a mistake calculating my gestation week, hence, the gynae dare not induce on the day. So, I just keep packing the baby room to keep myself occupied. They call it the nesting instinct. Sounds like a bird huh? I have read everything I could from taking care of the baby to breastfeeding successfully. I am just waiting for the moment.

18th nov 9am, I was induced for labour by inserting a vaginal tablet. Nothing happen till like 7pm. My friend from the Japn honeymoon trip was induced on the same day too, so we were delivery ward room mates! The men went for dinner and breakfast together while us, the poor women stayed in hospital to wait and endure the anxiety of upcoming labour pain.

By 730pm, the pain finally came on. Still bearable, much like menses pain x2. Then the horror came, no dinner for me and with all the laying down, I have backache, gastric pain and menses pain x4-5 by 10pm. I really tried to endure, so I paced up and down the ward and went to loo so often I bet I irritated the lady and her hubby nearest to the toilet =P That day was like the auspicious day lo, everyone in the delivery ward was like giving birth one after another, you can hear what's going on, since only separated by cloth blinds.. gosh, when will Nat be out?

By midnight, I already did my best and did not want to try to be smart alec any longer. Told nurse I need epidural, she was super stunned, but I tell you, I am not going to endure the kind of pain they caused when they measure how much I have dilated by. By midnight it was only 1cm. Every like 1 hour they stick their finger up the vagina, and without epidural, seriously, how to tahan?? So, by 1am, I had my epidural and was so relieved cos the anathestics actually closed shop after me..phew..but it was so numb, I felt I lost my legs. Still, I just drift in and out of sleep in the icy delivery suite.

By 7am next day, gynae came and measure, only 1.5cm dilated, can you believe? So, he broke the water bag and by 9plus, I was 5 cm dilated. Seriously, why didnt he break the water bag earlier and spare me the waiting? Then by 10plus, I was fully dilated. The nurses expression were priceless, cos as I was about to deliver, the one next door was too.They were so shorthanded cos it was a MASS LABOUR DAY!

The nurse tried to help me deliver Nat, but gave up after half an hour cos his head simply cant squeeze through and I am just not pushing in the correct manner. Well, then drama, the nurse dont know call my gynae and said I am in danger, so my gynae rushed up and he was so stern looking. He then assessed the condition and scolded the nurse for giving him inaccurate details of my situation. All I can think about is: Is Nat going to suffocate there? I kept asking Andy, then he just replied:" dont worry, still got umbilical cord there, just relax, just relax". His face so blank and full of worry that I knew it was not a pretty sight actually. He himself also very anxious, but yet have to comfort me.

Finally at 1156, Nat is finally out by suction. It was a split second, "dont close your eyes, dont close your eyes, open your eyes and now..congrats, you have your son!" Before I know it, Nat was lying on my tummy, bare naked, covered with mucus and blood, and I was so stunned!He is so fair!

I thought I would cry, but I didnt. Guess I was just too relieved he is ok, and wanted the nurse to quickly attend to him and make sure he is alright. The I see Andy snapping away with his camera, saying hi to Nat. Nothing taken of the delivery process and the placenta (which I so wanted to see), but only the little baby boy cos Andy thought the whole thing was just a swollen bloody mess that he dont think any of us would want to see again..We chose to donate Nat's cord blood to the public cord bank since we thought we should exercise faith in God for Nat's wellbeing and also to bless some other baby instead. Seriously, if you go for the talks, they will tell you storing it does not guarantee there is enough viable cells for use in the future when the child needs it. So, instead of being selfish or throwing it away, I surely hope some child was blessed by our love gift.

After the epidural went off in like 10mins, my wound felt like they went on a major fire. Burning sensation was terrible and no painkiller will help! So they gave me iced sanitary pad., which only helped after like 1 hour...

The ward was so packed that we only got a room at 2plus, considering some other women had to lay on the op table and parked beside the vending machine along the corridor, I am real lucky to be able to get B class twin sharing that day. Breastfeeding was hard, cos it involves feeding every 2hr and he is so fragile to hold in the correct position. Luckily, my reading up helped and I knew what I had to do, just needed the lactation nurse to help correct the posture and reassure me that I am indeed producing milk.

The story behind Nat's name
Nathanael means the gift from god and it was the one and only name that appealed to me for the entire pregnancy. Even before the gender was confirmed, I knew it was a boy. It is such an apt name since Nat really is a gift from god- I have PCOS and gynae said it was difficult to get pregnant, I had a feeling ever since young that I dont think I would have babies of my own- strange but true and given the threatened abortion, this baby is living proof that God's grace is shown upon us and His grace is sufficient for you.

So, Nathanael, remember how precious you are to all of us and always take heart that you are God's creation, a gift from heaven, packed with love and blessings. It is our daily prayer that you learn to honour God and do His will, blessing and touching lives you come across to everyday.

Full month Dec 2009
The first month was crazy, I was in this robot mode. Cant sleep and just kept doing household chores even though mum was there to help me. Guess cos I felt bad that mum had so much to do, and that she also feel quite stressed and overwhelmed as she usually quite slow with doing things. Still, she is the best! Without her, Nat and I would be in real trouble. I managed to breastfeed thanks to her nutritious meals and support, as well as my Malay massage lady who was such an expert! I slimmed down within a month and the pain in the breast was over in like 5 days. Though breastfeeding is a traumatic experience and I had serious doubts why anyone would pain such a beautiful and untrue picture about breastfeeding when it actually was more painful and ugly. Looking at it now, it is so convenient and you really have time to cuddle your baby while taking a good look at the head, the little angelic face.

Dec was the highly anticipated month since Erjie and Erjiefu were back! Just in time to see Nat. We had so much fun catching up, playing WII as well. Nothing beats having your dear sister back home with you. I often look at the photos taken then and those while they are still here in Singapore. Boy, how sweet are all these memories. Cant wait for Nat to be a little bigger and we can visit Erjie together at her new home in our dream country =)

I must thank all of you in my life who has rendered me support and love, to Andy as well, thank you for going through thick and thin with me, adding so much joy (of cos, sometimes, tears but that is what marriage is about, we care for each other so we iron out issues *winks*) to my life and for working so hard. To you, who is reading this and may be facing difficulties, I hope you continue to have faith that "God has plans to prosper you and not to harm you' and may peace be with us for every day. Amen!

1 year anniversary- marriage

2008-12-08T02:14:00.000-08:00

09DEC2008- 1 YEAR since our wedding
A year on into our mariage- nothing much has changed- except there are more to expect together and plan together ie kids, house, finances etc. We have matured together and of course, with maturity, there may be less romance/ honeymoon. Little things can lead to arguments and tears too. However, I am thankful that we are able to use such times to trash out our feelings and get to know each other even better. Marriage is definitely not a bed of roses and like the pastor said, we have to work hard to ensure the tank of love never run dry and keep remembering our promises to each other and turn to GOD whenever we meet with difficulties.

I count myself fortunate since darling has made lots of effort to ensure I feel loved and I am well taken care of. Be it precious moments figurine or winnie the pooh- he always buy them to cheer me up or just remind me how much he loves me. I especially felt very touched when he sent me these flowers after we watched "ten promises to my dog". While I thought of Melco and felt sad he might leave me one day, Darling thought of using it to tell me he too, made 10 promises to me, to love me exponentially each day.

Although work and his studies (MBA) eat away lotsa time and energy such that we din even have a romantic dinner to celebrate properly, but I am contented and happy coz I already feel blessed and look forward to the many years we have together as a married couple.

Our Japan Trip this year- a honeymoon trip

Dogs and Japan Trip

2008-11-24T20:14:00.001-08:00

An update regarding HAPPY
Yvonne managed to find an owner for HAPPY and we are so thankful.
Now, we still got KOBI and BEAUTY though. Hopefully, they will get a new owner by this xmas and experience a new lease of life.

Japan trip
23 Oct to 29 Oct 2008- Our trip to Tokyo-Osaka-Kyoto-Tokyo was fabulous! Though it was tiring and well, food was not fantastic, but we did manage to see lotsa stuff and met great friends who were in our tour group. It was indeed an eye opener for us both.

We would love to go back, this time backpacking- and of course to go to FUJIQ highland for its famous scary roller coaster ride and haunted house!!

Mount Fuji was beautiful! Mesmerizing in fact! We would love to go back there, with our family and spend more time there.

Our last day there, we met Peter and had some real Jap food. Kudos to Peter who has Japan as his second home!

Hang Out places

2008-08-07T06:51:00.000-07:00

Recently, we were introduced to a board game place by Jaspar. It's at Balmoral plaza. It's really cheap and good and it's a great hang out place with great pals Imran, Kuan Xian, Kok Yong, King Mum etc. We played games like sabotuer, some kind of shaky tower game which got everyone in the cafe looking at us and fighting over it right after we finished playing it. There is this hardcore memory game called Down under and it's pretty fun actually! The owners are witty and humorous and we are defintely going there again!Hopefully Ricky and Hoon Huan can join us. I havent seen Hoon Huan in such a long time.

Havent played pool for some time at our favourite pool place (Depot Rd), hence I didnt fare very well during pool time with Guosheng, Serene, King Mum and David. Lost to darling all the time.

Dinner this week with darling's ex TTSH colleagues at Pasta de Waraku proves a disappointment because the food was not up to standard/ expectation. Miss Ma Maison at Bugis so much! Supposed to celebrate Dajie's bdae there next week, but then everyone is pretty busy, so cant go so far. Reserve it for mum's bdae next month bah! Actually, got a lot of places in my list like Ben and Jerry's at dampsey's. I so wanna go back for the swing and the pear pie! The last time we were there with James and Jasmine, the music was way too loud though. There's still Thai food at Hort Park! Nice ambience!

Well, recently since we work a lot less on weekends, there have been chances to meet up with friends and it really feels good catching up. Even got time to meet up with my JC student/ junior who is now already a HOUSEMAN! My gosh! when he messaged me that he is in NUH, I couldnt believe it that time just went past like that. Meeting him up stirred up memories of SAJC, and even younger days of sec schools. How good it was to have a couple of best friends and stuck through thick and thin? But then, now it also pains me to think of the past, coz the present is not the same, especially the friends part. Some friends you treasure alot, they hurt you the most. Leave you out for every gathering and when you find out, they say it's coz they didnt think I could make it, I must be busy. oh it was a last minute decision, really very hard to organise. Everything i believed. Only when i come across many pictures of many occassions then i realise it cannot be so conincidental- that it was always because of those reasons told to me. It's heartbreaking I tell you. That you never receive a bdae sms except from one of them, that they tell you they cant meet coz busy and in the end, they met without even asking you and tell you when you found out that it's coz they think i was busy. Just an sms. And all along i believed every word of it. Till now. Seeing the photos of two of their bdae celebrations are good enough. I really feel like a fool.

I wonder why the most treasured friends and the ones you were the closest with cannot stand the test of time? There are friends who you dun even meet for more then 5 times a year, who would sms you or call you to arrange to meet every now and then even though they know it's hard? When you finally get to meet, it's always enjoyable coz you waited so long for it.

For the friends who stood by me all these while, I want to say a very big thank you. Especially to Anderson. Thank you for all that you have done and for always offering to help me, even with moving house in the future. I am very touched by it. Kim Guo too. For being such a great friend. I love your kid! Really got big cute eyes like Esther. Andy is looking forward to see the cutest baby too!

Mt Faber- Hort Park Walk etc...

2008-08-03T07:05:00.001-07:00

On this bright sunny and super hot day, we went with our church friends to the new Henderson waves, anderson arch. This is the walk from Mt Faber to Hort Park near the old SAJC. The structure resembles that of the tree top walk in Western Australia, but the height is only about a quarter of it, since we do not have such tall trees and one vast difference is the scenary you see. Here you see 2 things all the time- lotsa people and conrete after concrete- buildings, roads. The flowers are only at the Mt FABER hilltop and no where else. It was a pretty long walk and time consuming since we took our own sweet time to walk and chat along the way. "Borrowed" the little kids from Cherryl and Wai Liang and darling and I had an enjoyable time pushing the pram and playing with the kids. Yue yue and xun xun are really adorable! We have some pics of them in darling's hp, when i return tmr and figured out how to upload it, I shall share with all of you =) I must say the HORT Park is impressive! It is artistically done up and has a feel of a modern comtemporary home with lotsa plants.

Speaking about modern contemporary, we are now looking for interior designer for our new home and this is our theme. Already bought a red designer sofa, the tv console, coffee table, dining table, a grand comfy bed and chanderliers as our lightings. Looking for a suitable ID is surely tiring and time consuming. Havent decided on using who yet since the ideas have not been drawn to 3D for us and still discussing alot on the designs and budget we have. I just hope everything would fall nicely into place. It doesnt have to be the nicest, just have to be nicely done up and we feel happy about it and did not suffer as a carrot head under that ID such that we paid too high prices for the things we asked to built.. Now alot of concerns in our minds, have to slow address them. Hopefully, we will settle on one soon and no need headache too much or for too long.

Mutts and MIttens

2008-06-24T06:11:00.000-07:00

I just want to share some photos which speaks of our happiness and many's happiness. Just received a message from Nick today showing how happy Missy is and I just thought how good it would be for all dogs to enjoy this kind of love.

Below are Mutts and MIttens' angels:

Melco- My own doggie of 7 years!So timid yet always wanna act fierce. When he is sleeping, you feel like cuddling him onto your bed.

Bulldog- what a sweetheart!

MIssy with Darling before she got adopted

MIssy during one of her walks with us at Mutts and Mittens

Missy "toking" to another dog in Mutts and MIttens

Yellow- the super obedient one!

Happiness

2008-06-24T05:39:00.000-07:00

There are many people who keep searching for happiness and it seems like it is impossible to find it. Perhaps it is because some of us assumed that it is not so easy. In fact, happiness actually can be plain easy and simple to get. Getting a dog is definitely one of the best ways. Dog is man's best friend and many can testify for you that this is true. Even those who used to be so fearful of dogs, once they develop a bond with the dog, they really enjoy their times of their lives because they have a loyal friend.

We search for happiness and so do the dogs who share this Earth with us. Of course, they are animals and can care for themselves and be happy even if they have no roof over their heads, but sadly, us human beings dont leave them alone. Some like to abuse them, call the AVA to put them down etc. Hence, there arises cases like HAPPY. We are currently helping Yvonne to find a home for HAPPY. Even if you cant keep a dog, tell somebody you think may be able to keep HAPPY. Happiness for both you, your friend and Happy may be just a call, a msg or an email away.

Yvonne has the following to share:

"Hi! This poor doggy needs help.

She is currently staying at a back lane of some shophouses and needs a home badly. We had tried putting her at our doggy's place that my husband had built illegally for another 3 dogs in the night. But on the very next morning, that there will be packets of urine thrown inside the "shelter" and subsequently kerosene and blocks of bricks and tiles. We found out all these "act of abuse" was done by a malaysian worker as Happy barks at him when he comes back to his working place when he used the back door. We had no choice but leave Happy with her owner's worker every night in which sometimes they do not bring inside the house, Happy will be drenched if it rains.

Seeing this situation and we couldn't do much help as currently we are already paying 2 other dogs to stay in a kennel. I really hope Happy could go a nice home with caring and patience owner who will take good care of her. Btw, Happy is sterilised and vaccinated 9 month old black female mongrel. She is loveable and obedient and knows some basic command but being a puppy still, she can be quite playful.

If you wish to adopt or see her, you could leave a message here or contact me at nictansj@singnet.com.sg"

HAPPY- Wagging her tail to show how much joyful she is whenever someone pays her some attention

Missy got adopted

2008-06-22T22:10:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the last time we walked Missy down the familiar lanes of Mutts and Mittens. Our hope of adopting her is gone, but God made a wonderful arrangement for us and for her. We managed to meet her adopters and Nick surely looks like he loves MIssy as much as we do and they have the time and means to taake good care of her. Hence, though we are sad we arent the ones adopting her, we felt very happy that Missy indeed found a good home and we surely continue to pray for her health and welfare.

With Missy gone to a permanent home, we moved on to help walk other dogs we normally have no time to walk like Sky and Ritz- the malamutes (Like Huskies but bigger than them). Both of them are really huge and it takes so much strength to control them, but they are very gentle actually, just very excited to be able to come out to play =) Saw CoCo as well,still as obedient and sweet as before- I adore her so much. But Darling's eyes are all on Blackie- the black Jack Russel who is also v adorable but he has a temperament. Hence, we gona try to interact more with him and see how it goes..

Chanced upon Yvonne who is a dog lover and rehomer for dogs. She brightened up our day knowing that there are such kind souls who put in time, effort and money to help the dogsWe are trying to rehome a mongrel currently. Once I get the photos, we will post it here and any one interested, pls call us to arrange for a meeting up=)

Wedding weekend

2008-06-16T08:56:00.000-07:00

14 and 15th June seems to be a very auspicious weekend for wedding. Had 3 to attend, even emceed for 1 of them. Pretty enjoyable and well, they were all extraordinary weddings. 1- Maybelline's wedding was a simple church wedding but coz it was an international love relationship, it was extra touching and meaningful, summore i met my sec seniors there! super happy!2- Yishan's wedding- the whole TTSH pharmacy was there and we just went phototaking crazy. Her gowns were very nice and it's great catching up with my dear dear friends at TTSH,especially Eric whom we went for supper after the dinner to chat over some bothersome stuff pharmacists face in Spore. 3- ROM in the Aloha chalet. At first we did not expect much especially since we are the emcee and the groom happily din even give us programme, must chase and chase.. but it was very nice coz the groom had a touching vow and the bride had a lovely cute dress and the deco was nicely done up by a guy fren who is so good at flower arranging. Impressed! Of coz, in the meanwhile of rushing from one wedding to another, we found some time to visit Mutts and Mittens, had fun with Missy(Missie), bLACKIE, ah ma, yellow(hahah..always sleeping- like Cohen said, put at home also nobody know we got another dog, just an ornament maybe..)On top of all these, we also had Fathers' Day celebration.. hahah, really rush from one place to another, but it's very fulfilling... Okie, here are some photos to share

Dajie and Jiefu

Dad and mum

Darling and me

Jingyuan;s ROM

Faridah and me

TTSH Pre Regs

Huihie, siling and me

Missy darling playing at Mutts and Mittens

Blackie and my Darling at Mutts and Mittens

Australia Trip-Sydney & Tasmania

2008-06-09T17:43:00.000-07:00

17th July 2008
It was 4am and both Darling and I got up excitedly since today is the day we fly off to our favourite country- Australia. It is expecially meaningful to me since this trip was planned mainly to visit my sister and bro in law in sydney. Havent seen Erjie for about 5 months and really miss her

We were in Sydney for 2 days, then we went to Tasmania for 1 week and came back to sydney for the other remaining week.The photos paint a thousand word- more than what i can describe. Oh, but i wun be able to post all the photos up, so you only have a slight idea of how wonderful it was. Ever since we are back, we keep thinking about the trip- how wonderful and enjoyable it was!We miss the chilling cold Cradle Mountain, my pademelons and wombats,the snow. I was glad we had Victor over there with us too. He even bought a cake to celebrate Andy's birthday on his birthday itself which was the day we set off to leave Sydney and fly back Singapore.

Was planning to visit again in oct, but guess i cant since i just got a perm job and have to wait till march then. Not much leave, so cant let imagination run wild, if not will get very disappointed.

Just for memory sake- i am gg to write down where we went
17th May- arrive sydney in the evening and chill at Erjie's place, ate Canto
18thMay- We went to national parks in Sydney and saw wild rabbits, turkeys
19thMay- we departed for tasmania, rented car and stayed one night at Hobart. Little cat came into our apartment for warmth and stayed for the night
20thMay- drove up to Cradle mountain- too rainy and dark to go for walks- fed pademelons and possums which came to our house instead
21stmay- walked Dove lake. freezing cold!
22ndmay- went to wings wild life park, stanley
23rdmay- stanford, queenstown etc and back to hobart
24thmay- Salamanca market in the morning, Port Arthur day tour and then night ghost tour
25thmay- wineglass bay- 1200 steps-OMG
26May- Hobart botanical gardens, Zoodoo wild life park, back to Sydney
27thMay- Shopped at DFO with Victor with us, bought alot of shorts
28thMay- Went on day tripper to Manly beach, Bondi Beach, Fisherman wharf etc
29thmay- to blue mountain
30thmay- took train, went to Jalenon caves
31May- went to walks and took roller coaster down the hill
1stJune-celebrate darling's bdae and then back to singapore

All 7 of us at the bungalow on Blue MOuntain

Darling's birthday cake.. hahaha..unrotated version...

Parrot in the tree during our walk to Katomba Falls

The three sisters rock

At Sydney's Fisherman Wharf- super smelly!!!

Me and Erjie in the cosy apartment

Mount Solitary in the pool of clouds.. fluffy!!

Wild wombat in Tasmania. Our treat for walking 4.5hours around dove lake...

View of dove lake and cradle mountain

Snow on our car in Tasmania- this is not the coldest point yet! wait till you wake up in the morning!

Me and darling in sydney

GDOP 2008

2008-05-11T18:35:00.000-07:00

Global day of prayer 2008 marks a significant day in my life, as it was the first time I attend this big event and it was the first for darling too. As a young Christian, I was full of anxiety before the event since I was afraid there will be some people who would worship in ways i felt uncomfortable with. However, It was really a touching night and God arranged for us to sit next to Sue and Ken, australians here for visiting and they were such a blessing to us and their faithfulness, kindness showed how exemplary good Christians can be. I thought it would be great to bring my family along next year since it really gave me peace and make me want to me a better person to th society and to my very own family. I recalled how it was during my JC years, the chapel days where I felt very uncomfortable during chapel because I thought the people behaved as if they were in some cult. Now, because i understand how this can be scary to non christians, I am careful and tell myself that I should never appear like this to others. The church we attend is very important and I am glad the one we went to is family oriented and the atmosphere is welcoming.

After the event, we sent Sue and Ken back since it was on the way and this wed they are flying to Chennai for mission trip and I wish them the best. Darling and I thought it would be great if we could do the same when we retired. To do missionary and see the world at the same time.

Not only did this event at night made my day, but the morning event of mothers' day celebration began my day with happiness. We had dim sum at goodwood park and it was superb! Dajie's recommendation! Wished erjie and wujun was there with us too. Then afternoon was Andy's mum turn and it was a rather simple and inexpensive meal. Value for money! Then, we went to mutts and mittens again. This time, we walked another dog since somebody else was looking at missy. Coco is 16 years old and super gentle and obedient. My heart really melted at her sweet nature! Wished I could adopt her. Mum said I could since she thought perhaps such a good dog would mellow my mother in law, but i think the chances are very slim. We hope to walk her more often next time. We bought a new collar and lesh for missy and we are so happy to see her. Still awaiting adoption, we pray she would get a good home, or wait for us for our new home to come and she can come live with us!

Saw our new home also, 2 blocks are being painted and it is getting closer to completion date! how we wish the home would be ready soon! hope this aug!

Eye opening night

2008-04-23T08:04:00.000-07:00

Meet up with a group of strangers to talk about cars in the middle of the night sounds pretty turn off, since I was the only lady around and hence I told Darling I want to give it a miss. Din want the other guys to think he is hen pecked.. Lol.. But I am so glad he brought me along. It was really an eye opener coz those guys really spend a fortune making their car so pleasing to the eye and touch! Especially the BLING BLING jazz! The owner painstakingly glued up crystals to the handles of the car and also glues up a sheep's fur to the top of the inner roof! That's not all. He even modified the front dashboard such that the passenger can play PS2 in it. There is even neon blue lights that shine in the dark just below the dashboard! It is so retro but glam! The owner was saying his sisters love his car coz it is so girly. Indeed, i couldnt take my eyes off it. They spend around 10k on beautifying the car and yup, my eyes nearly popped out =p
The other eye opener was this auntie who cares for the cats in the neighbourhood. Shes bought can food for all the 30plus cats and feed them faithfully every night after she comes back from work and all of which she had send for sterilization! She has such a big heart and I really feel inferior to her. Really take my hats off her and I couldnt resist the temptation to talk to her and befriend such a saint! She told me it costs about 60bucks to sterilise each cat and she shares the cost with another 2 aunties who take turns to bring the cats for sterilization. It was very touching and heart warming that they are doing this. She also has a dog of 13 years and ever since she has him, she never went for any holiday, coz she needs to take care of him and also she thought it was exp to put him at pet hotel. Such sacrifices! When you have a beautiful heart, even strangers like me can see it and be at once drawn to her by admiration. How wonderful a feeling it is, to see that beautiful heart! Be attentive and look around for such people do exist and thank them for making our world better.

2008-04-21T18:04:00.000-07:00

Demise of a pharmacy senior
It is one of those days you ask why GOD created illnesses, why only the good people suffer and die young. I do not have the actual answer and I sure hope I can understand in time to come. I remembered my last conversation with her about 2.5 years ago and it was about how to cope with pharm stats module taught by Eli Chan. That moment is fresh in my mind, i still remember her answer which demonstrated how carefree she was and how she thought there are more important things to worry about then just studies. Indeed, we often worry and stress over things we thought were very important. Only when some years passed by and we begin to worry about something else, did we realise that thing we stressed over was nothing big deal. But, why should we waste time worrying or be stressed about so many things? Actually, we need to cherish what we have and learn to live happily with ourselves and with others. There is so much to do but so little time. I am guilty of being stressed over little things and I am trying to learn to let go and enjoy life the way it should be. My senior was an adventurous one and from dancing to being a hair model, she has done it all and her life was fruitful. Surely we will all miss her but am glad she is at a much better place now

Colmar Triopicale

2008-04-20T21:30:00.000-07:00

Darling arranged for a little trip to Bukit Tinggi to celebrate my birthday. So there we are, at the French themed resort- Colmar Tropicale! The weather was not as cooling as we would like it to be, but I had fun! The japanese garden was beutifully built and was tranquil. Rabbit park was a cuddly affair and I wished i have a garden too, to rear these lovable little ones and let them roam freely. Saw 2 puppies there and i couldnt help but think of Angel darling again.. How I miss her.

The highlight of the trip was horse riding. Never thought horse riding is an exercise coz i thought you just sit on it and ride along. Boy, it was hard! When it gallops, you have to use you waist and back muscle strength to hold up your body and then sit again. Up and down up and down together with the horse's momentum. Wah, seriously super tiring! My butt hurts,my back felt like giving way! Mustang was the horse darling was riding and i think she was hungry so she walked very slowly while my Indiana is lazy by nature and she will just stop by the road side to eat the grasses.. hahaha.. couldnt really control her. It was an experience! If not for my back problem, i would surely try another time.

Here are some photos of nmy birthday trip

My little Angel Darling

2008-04-20T21:02:00.000-07:00

Angel Darling
Wednesday 16Apr2008 11pm, i held out Angel to her adotper's arms and my heart was full of emotions. What if she does not get good care? Will he be a bad egg and kill up for meat? Are we doing the right thing? I couldnt bear to give her away, but given our circumstances, we have to. Finding her a good home was priority and we surely hope this is a good home. Otherwise, I would feel guilty my whole life. Luckily, her adopter seems gentle and kind and he has updated us this friday about her well being. I thank GOD that he found Angel such a dear home. Doesnt matter it is HDB, at least she has a home, a family who dotes on her. My hubby and I would continue to pray for her as well as the many other strays that are waiting to get a home.

The world through Angel's incident
It is frustrating to know many out there have little or no compassion at all. Angel is a puppy and of coz, she shits and urinates like human babies. Some refuse to take her in saying she is smelly, noisy, take up too much time or space. May i then ask, is she so different from human babies? I know not everyone loves animals, but at least give them the same kind of respect as you would to a human being. Do not just dismiss them saying:" ee, so smelly, quickly bring her away" When you are old and cant move, shitting in your diapers, do you want others to say the same thing? You want ur children to take care of you even when you are like that right? So, you cant expect them to be like that overnight. They have to cultivate their love, care and concern for others as well as develop tolerance to such smell, such tasks. It can all begin with such small animals. Only if you show care and concern to everything around you would you be able to bring up kids that are like that. To those who dislike animals, at least do not stop others from helping the poor animals, just coz you think it is only too common to see them roam around in the factory near your workplace and it is rightful to let them die since there are too many anyway. We cant save all, yes, i agree, but that is coz there are only so few of us. If most can make 1 attempt and bring the strays to be sterilised or find them a home, they wun be there at the factory etc to populate and die of ill fate or let their children go thru the same. We all know about the starfish story. Even thou there are so many out there, if 1 can save some, at least so many being saved. We are all not saints, but we can try not to be evil. Help if you can, and do not add on to the worry or stop others from helping if you dont want to help.

To those who love animals, please think of adopting instead of buying. If you have good living conditions, why not allow an animal to share it with you? It is amazing what animals can do to your life if you would allow them to. We know of some loving ones waiting for a home at Mutts and Mittens. Do drop by and take one of them home!

2008-04-16T05:11:00.000-07:00

Cute right? I happened to chance upon her when I was repairing my car my bodykit at a car workshop at Jalan Ahmad Ibrahim. Te people there wanted to throw her away as the owner of the workshop found her ugly because she's not like her dad which has short legs!!! Me and my wifeee couldn't bear to see that happen, and decided to bring her to a pet shelter to see if the owner there can adopt her. Sad to say, people nowadays do not like to adopt dogs but instead rather spend a few thousands for a pedigree dog. So what? Mongrel is not a dog ah? Henceforth, it's really sad when the owner told me he's really tight in space as he currently probably has about 60-70 strays at his place, and because of the high maintenance cost, I may have to fund her if I were to put her there. With Melco and also another Missy on the way, I would say it's really beyond my financial capability to keep her there. So no choice but to do a dog rescue myself and ask around for adoptees.

She's really well-behaved. She sleeps easily while I was driving her around and she seldom barks also, other than when she's locked up in a small area or while she is playing. We really can't bear to part with her because we love her so much. Her tear-drop eyes are so mesmerising that it can really make anyone fall in love with her (on the account if that person likes dog. My mum is so afraid of her that she kept asking me to throw her back...)

We have tried SPCA but they mentioned that if at the end of the day they can't find an owner for her, she will be put to sleep. Henceforth it's left with two choices for us. To find her a home by hook or by crook, or to give up and send her back to the workshop. To make it worse, we are leaving Sngapore for a short trip 3 days later and we cannot impose on anyone else to take care of her either, especially my parent'-in-law as they are already tired out by Melco.

So the journey of searching for a comfy home starts here. Me and my wife kept on praying to God that we can manage to find a home for her. She's really obedient and despite her age, she can sort of listen to you and it's really disheartening to know that there are people in this world who are selfish enough not to care about her. It's true I can't save all the strays in Singapore, but I just hope I can change this little's life and that is all I prayed for.

Two more pics for enjoyment and also memory should we failed to find her a home.

Oh ya...by the way, we named her Angel....because she's really like an angel to us...

Dog's heaven on Earth and Our Paradise

2008-03-29T07:04:00.000-07:00

For the past 3 weeks, darling and I have spend our weekends either swimming (coz of my stupid backpain) or at Mutts and Mittens- the shelter for abandoned dogs and cats. It is a truly amazing place with extraordinary people who truly devote their lives to these dogs and cats.

Darling and I especially like this dog, MiSSY. She is very obedient and beautiful. We go down there often just to bond with her, so that perhaps we would be lucky enough to be the one providing her with a permanent cosy home. Melco (my cocker spaniel) goes there for obedience training as well. This week, Melco is there for a short stay and we brought him out today for a good walk and interaction with Missy. He seems to like Missy and can get along. Given Melco's temper, it is amazing he did not attack Missy. He even put his paws on Missy and that got Missy angry instead.It was a hot and sunny afternoon today and the both of them kept running into the shade for shelter.. 3 hours with them really made me tired, but very contented. Hopefully, we can have Melco and Missy under one roof and become part of our happy family=)

Here is a picture of Missy (this is from one of the volunteer's website, our photos are still in my hp)

Friends here in Singapore

2008-03-21T07:21:00.000-07:00

Last week was a truly magnificant week and it is so for the following reasons:
1. great company
2. superb food (with beer)

Andy and I were fortunate enough to be the hosts of Herbert and Claudio, here in Singapore. The first night was spend with Claudio alone since he arrived here earlier than Herbert and we had a nice long walk to Beach road and raffles city where he stared over the millions of watches =) Then it was dinner at Ding Tai Feng.. I remember Claudio loved the tea and hated the plum juice Andy had =P

The next day was the really fabulous food day! I am glad we did not give newton circus a miss just because it was raining cats and dogs that day. We had so much food and Asahi beer! this is authentic singaporean food and lifestyle!The clams and fried rice was especially good!

The third day was kinda free and easy and we did some shopping. super proud of myself because I found some T shirts at very NICE prices at Giodarno, which had pictures of singapore on them and it is really a great gift to take home.

The last day was time to bid good bye and i wished there was much more time spend here in singapore with us since there is still so many places we would like to show you guys to! Hope you had a great time here and yes, we will be in Holland next year to visit!

Here are the photos we took over the last week

Claudio and his desert at Long Beach restaurant at Dampemsy

Herbert, Claudio and Andy at the airport

Us with Claudio

Bangkok Trip

2008-03-02T00:56:00.001-08:00

Darling's company had a company retreat tp Bangkok and he brought me along and I really enjoyed this short little trip. A good mix of expensive places and authentic Thai places =) I loved the shopping! Too bad did not bring a bigger baggage!Planning to go this Sept to buy some stuff for our new home. Would very much love to bring dad,mum and dajie along! Duno whether Erjie can join us on this trip. She got a new job now! so happy for her! Then can go shopping with dajie and erjie and bring dad and mum to COCCA restaurant and stay in NOVOTEL ON SIAM SQUARE. These places were where Dad brought us to about 11 eleven years ago. Now it is my turn to bring them there. But Mum does not really like the air there, so i wonder if she would like to go again. hmmm, well, plan later and see how..

Here are some photos of the lovely trip

Nice view of Thailand from Vertigo-71 storeys high and the only restaurant on rooftop

us at oriental hotel

the posh oriental hotel restaurant by the river- awesome ambience, but i din fancy the food, just amazed by the layout and the cutlery. so unique

orienal hotel- look at those lamps!

such a lovely view at the garden of oriental hotel

Something different from our Mac

Chinese New Year

2008-03-02T00:45:00.000-08:00

This year's Chinese New Year is a little different from other years for me for several reasons:
1. Erjie and Wujun are not with us, though we rang them and took over the phone during our reunion dinner
2. It was not the usual steamboat at CCK home but dinner at Jia Xiang Bk Merah Branch
3. Giving Ang Pows for the very first time.
4. Visiting friends and their kids (Never really do visiting much in the past)

Here are some photos we took over CNY 2008

Jaspar's Baby gal- carried by Darling

the dinner itself

Me with my dad and mum.. in purple coz i refuse to wear red!

Dajie all dressed up in red for the new year

Mini getaway AKA pseudohoneymoon

2007-12-26T05:18:00.000-08:00

GUess everyone wished they have more of everything ie money, time etc.. Well, I am one of them, that's no denial about it. Especially when you are a poor pre reg like I am now. Wished there were more leave so we could have gone somewhere further and "nicer" for honeymoon. Still, we make the most of what we have and well, what we are blessed with. Some months back in april this year, Andy tuned in to Class 95 to his fav Morning Show, send in an sms to ans a question and vola! he won a prize just like that! A 4D3N land tour to phuket. So, yes, phuket was the choice of destination for our mini getaway after the wedding.

My parents went with us.....no, dun give me that look of "WHAT!?now this is really no honeymoon at all!"..Lol.. And no, it does not remind you of Meet the Parents, whereby the dad tries to scare the son in law away, or dig into his secrets etc. My dad had wanted to visit phuket and thought perhaps he cld go with us and experience what we experience when we go to such places. He wanted to bring mum along for it also. As you age, you also want new experiences as well as time with family. Andy and I understood that and yup! so off they went with us. sAME HOTEL, different Room, different Flight if that is what you are dying to know =) It turned out to be a really enjoyable time since Erjie (my sister who migrated to Sydney) was back to attend my wedding and had some time to spare before she heads back to Sydney, was able to join us on this trip.

My parents and Erjie have never tried snorkelling and this time round, we headed for such a trip to Khai Island for a full day and much to my surprise, they love it! Darling and i simply loved those beautiful islands coz the water was just so calm and clear. Other than the snorkelling trip, we went for a full day tour to chestnut factory, elephant ride etc. Time just flies especially when you are enjoying every min of it. Still had time to buy some lamps and paintings for our future new home and was extremely satisfied by it. It was a rare chance for us to go on such a trip together, esp since my sister lives 6000km away from me and my fmaily now. Family outings like this have got extra value now. Andy's officially a family member now and that makes it even more significant. It is not just about the two of us when it comes to marriage. It is about people coming together, becoming family.

It may be only a pseudo honeymoon, but it was extra meaningful to me. Whatever it may be, pseudo, perfect, dream honeymoon.. As long as we are together, everyday can be a honeymoon (Even travelling from home to TTSH, with Andy just holding my hand while singing to the tune of one of our wedding songs, is a honeymoon) I am sure there are many of you out there with that sweet feeling in you everyday, with your loved one around.Cherish them =)

To Dajie and Jiefu: We will have a trip like this together soon!

Beautiful discovery- quiet part of the beach on Khai Island

Chestnut factory-only then we learnt its nut grew outside the fruit. To think we eagerly share with dad and he said he already knew it like a decade ago!Hahah

Us on the hilltop overlooking Phuket

"Sawadeekup.. Tips please" This was in our hotel and in Thailand, you got to know and practise the art of tipping and this figurine just a gentle way of reminding you

Us snorkelling. As usual, me in life jacket and Darling is not

A pose for pic before heading for elephant ride

On the plane, flying over Phuket and heading home

Flashback to That Special Moment

2007-12-25T05:09:00.000-08:00

The year was 2005. It was a tough year. There were many examination casualties. Tears relentlessly flowed down for some of them, when they saw the horrid grades given by despicable and heartless examiners. Of course, for those survivals, grins and grins marked their faces when they were in favour of these examiners...yeah yeah...favourism...it was around in 2000 B.C. or even much beyond then, and it is still around even until now, 2000 A.D...no matter where we go, where we stay, this F word pierced right through our most fallible hearts...and sad to say, it's always here to stay...(Of course such things never happen in the grading system. Horrible grades occur because of bad luck, wrong choices and more bad luck).

Enough of bullshitting around.

Seriously, it's not really that of a tough year for me. For someone who could tie up with buddies and go hit some balls instead of attending some so-called important lecture, being able to pass with an average score was already the greatest achievement for me. I remembered there's this instance when me and one of my best buddies went to school, and 5 minutes just before entering the lecture hall, realised that it's most likely we would either go into the lecture hall with our eyes pasted with fake drawn open-eyes, or reading some novels or fantasy books, we decided to go hit some balls. Of course, not wanting to waste our time travelling so far to NUS and still pon-ten, we threw our bags (which are always filled with storybooks and storybooks and no lecture notes) into some lockers, deciding that we will come back for them to prepare for our next lecture. Off to the billard centre me and my buddy.

Piak piak pop pop....

2 hours later.................back in front of our lockers.................we took our bags, and back to the billard centre........

That was how crazy and boliao we were during our school days..........but come on.....if don't play now, when would we have the chance in the later parts of our lives to have such audacity to commit such crimes?

Anyway, cut the story short again, that's how I have spent life through my schooling days. I do not mind doing it again.

It was 2005. July. I met my future happiness. Location where I sealed my fate and redeem my soul? ------ Grand Copthorne.

It was a mixed up to be there actually...not I deliberately went there because some six sense fella told me that my future happiness could be found there, but my FYP supervisor indirectly created this chance for me....Disclaimer: This life story may resemble or remind of some characters and names. It is of no intention to create any misunderstanding nor offence to anyone...it's only for fun and laughter.

What happened was my FYP was supposed to be presented in a symposium instead of the Pharmacy Congress. Anyway, I ended up standing beside a poster. But I really want to thank my supervisor, as without her, my nirvana of happiness could never be attained.

That was when I saw her. Sitting a few seats away, was this girl with immense beauty and enveloping charisma. Charisma and beauty that can consume almost everyone's breath. This girl really lives out the lyrics of "Lady in Red". "Will I ever have such luck and fate to be with such a girl?" I threw my kim tun (gold coin) and it landed with a negative answer (Disclaimer again: I do not believe in such stuff, just adding in to build up the story..hehehe).

Flashback flashback again. I have seen this girl before. Many a time in NUS, and in fact conversed with her before in one of the events held many months back. I was already captivated by her charm then, but my skin isn't thick enough to cultivate any courage to talk to her more, and also circumstantial denial blocked my passage towards my future. However, this time round, as the chinese idiom described "Da2 Tie3 Chen4 Re4" (Direct Yim Bun translation: Beat the metal when it's hot")...for the rest of the story...please spare some of your precious time to watch the cartoon, that is only if you are interested. Parental guidance is not advised. Suitable for all ages. Sorry to disappoint some, but not rated. No nudity. No gore. No violence. No vulgarity.

(Due to some technical problem, cartoon will be put up soon after some glitches are fixed. So stay tuned!!!"

July 2005. The month that I will never forget. The day I met my love. The day I sealed my kiss. The day I made my decision. The day my life is complete...

...And also...The day my femme-detectora radar was programmed to malfunction. The day my eyes flickering towards oestrogenic-release in orchard road was cured and gone forever. The day my fourth finger on my left hand was reserved to be crowned with the Monkey God Ring (which is gona be put on by her and nobody else) one day. The day I contacted Other-Women-Fatal-Anaphylatic-Shock-If-They-Come-Near...hehe...

People to thank

2007-12-24T04:57:00.001-08:00

Friends who must be specially mentioned and thanked
Media and Photogrpahy:YP, Terry and JingHui (for their professional work)
Cross stitch art work: Ching Hung
Reception: Xiaoyan and Jingyi
Justice of Peace: Dr Kwoh Chee Keong
Montage and Cartoon: Raudhah and her boyfriend (for the professional work)
Decoration: Agnes, Agnes' hubby and Pauline
Beer: Anderson (On the house from him)
Caterer: Kriston Catering Pte Ltd (Patrick in particular)

Jen's Wedding Thoughts

2007-12-23T06:53:00.000-08:00

The Eve of Wedding
I do not know how many people out there organise their wedding without engaging a wedding planner. I guess not too many coz i stunned almost everyone i came across when i told them i have no wedding planner! Andy and I were the wedding planners and we run our own show and yes, that means to do some last min work even on the eve of our wedding. While I got a chance to catch up some beauty sleep on that day since I was off that day, poor Andy had to work at TTSH that Sat till 2pm. True, we are crazy enough to work through the whole week without taking any day off, but seriously, we do not really have a choice...All thanks to no $$$$$ and of coz miserably not enough leave days one can claim!!

Immediately after his work, we drove around to send out the last few invitations and then off we went for quick dinner and then to meet one of my decoraters: Agnes to decorate the wedding car. It was a sibeh long procedure at the multipurpose carpark at CCK. Ended at 10plus and I was super pleased with the results and so was Darling and MY dad armed with his camera and shooting away. I do not know why, but the decoration of the car marks the beginning of my excitement and anxiousness.

In view of the wet weather, we decided not to tie the cute wedding bears onto the car tonight. Of coz other then weather, we are also afraid the drunkards near Andy's blk wld rip them off. So, poor Andy learned how to tie them and promised to wake up early to tie them on our big day. Or does he have a choice? Hehehehe

I stood there for some time watching Darling drove the car out of the carpark heading home. I thought: this is it. tmr is the BIG DAY!!I murmured a payer for the event to run smoothly tmr and for Darling to arrive home safely and be able to have some good sleep.

Then, i rushed home to change into the nice nightie erjie bought for me, specially for the wedding. I closed my eyes and tossed and turned. Damn! Cannot sleep! That means darker eye circles and tmr i wun be pretty! The solution was...*no not some SK II eye mask* It was Dimenhydramine 2 Tabs ON PRN!! It surely worked and knocked me out till the wedding day itself!

Wedding Day
Dimenhydramine works wonderfully and almost too perfectly! I woke up just 15mins before Darling came to fetch me. I jumped out of bed when Mum woke me up. It shouldnt be that way! Oh dear! Now which bride wakes up late? Nobody! I thought, as i rushed through brushing. Die, this time, sure look very ugly! I cheong into my room and Mum, Erjie very quickly combed my hair saying the nice, auspicious words. As i was going to change out of my nightie, Darling appeared at the door step. Sucks! My hair still in quite a mess coz it was still not properly combed. Which groom sees his bride on the wedding day looking so lang1 pei1? Andy lor.. Poor thing. He, however, smiled so brightly and in his ever teasing tone said: "just woke up ar..hor hor..I woke up at 5am leh! ANd yet, no dark eye bags nor circles...hehehehe....and still got pleeeennnnttttyyyy of time to comb my hair" Cannot tahan, what time le, still got time tease me and show off..

Well, later on his car, i started to miss the teasing coz his cursing and swearing began.. Coz it was drizzling and it looks like it will be a heavy downpour.With our videographer JInghui with us, we carried wedding albums, cross stitch frame, suits, gown etc all in the rain. A tour group of Jap tourists happen to be there and when they saw us and the wedding car, they clapped and cheered! That lifted up our spirits and somehow helped us braved the rain and brought all the stuff nicely into the museum.

Then off we went, me to undergo some major "construction" under the good hands of Ferene ,my makeup artist. Coz my original makeup artist cldnt make it, so Ferene stood in. I was full of worries since I have never seen her works, never gone for a trial with her, only a few phone calls to finalise where to meet, what time etc. But, I was very blessed. She was superb and made me looked fabulous! As Benny said: :"Wah, managed to cover the panda eyes! That got to be the hardest thing to do and the greatest achievement! Very good and nice. Amazing work!"

Darling was busy coordinating while i was having my makeup done. Friends who came to help out started to arrive and I must say it was chaos at first coz we weren't sure who has time to brief yan, ah bee etc. Thanks to my sisters and bro in law Nicholas, together with yan and ah bee, things were well taken care off and running smoothly after a while. You got to have such reliable friends and loving family members to make sure the event can be carried out if you do not have wedding planners like us. I am telling you, the coordination before, during and after is really no joke. Imagine setting up your own bridal table, running up and down the stage to start and stop the cartoon on your own. It turned out to be pretty hilarous to some guests and well, haha, luckily we managed to keep our cool and the event was splendid. While i was standing at the hallway with Dad waiting to march in, we watched the cartoon and laughed as the guests laughed while watching it. I was touched, really very touched. I counted my blessings that my friends and family are here and they seem to be happy and enjoying themseleves too. It was our hope when planning for this wedding, that guests enjoy themselves and truly immerse in the blissfulness of the wedding couple.

Solemnization marked the beginning of our journey as man and wife together and it was an incredibly meaningful moment. "From this moment, life has begin" It would have been even better if Darling acted in acordance to Dr Kwoh's instructions to give me a nice long kiss. Disappoint me and the guests! Lol. What happened was he jokingly said he paiseh and photo album got alot of kissing scences le, and Dr Kwoh thought he was for real and so moved on with something else and it turned out as though the groom refused to kiss the bride!

The thank you speech was the most emotional one for me. I had tears in my eyes when i said thank you to all of my friends, family and my dear husband (though this drew some more laughter from the crowd, was it so funny to thank him? hahah..perhaps..)It was not easy to have come this far had it not been the support of family and some very very faithful friends who provided listerning ears and lending arms 24/7.

The wedding went on within a blink of the eye. Before i knew it, people were coming up, shook our hands, hugged us, took pics and left. The group photo taken with our fellow pharmacists were exceptionally unforgetable. I thought it was pretty chaotic and feared for the worst- the photographer cant fit everyone in. Much to my surprise the photos turned out well and one pharmacist's remarks remain fresh in my mind and will always bring the smile on my face. "Wah, like congress. Whole pharmacy population here liao" Lol.

The happiness and blissfulness i felt sunk in deeper into my hearts, especially when i started to read the cards, the well wishes written on the ang pows and the gifts friends gave to us. We are truly blessed and i wished for all my family and friends to be blessed always.

It was my dream wedding. Every part of it,and though it was hard work and nerve wrecking planning it from Melbourne photo shoot, flavours, invitation, catering, to planning the program etc , it etched deep memories in my heart..

The JC gang! The babes and hunks.

My gown. Thanks to Emerald I got my dream gown which Darling and I love

March in. The dry ice had some effect thanks to the men and women fanning it!

Exchanging vows and rings

Daddy handing me over to Darling

Gifts to Dad and Mum to thank them for their years of love and care

Pharmacy class of 2007!

Pharmacy Class of 2005

Hurrying up to the ballroom right after tea ceremony. Darling trying to help me w my gown

Exchanging rings

Wedding in the Fall 2007

2007-12-21T03:19:00.000-08:00

9th Dec 2007 5am:
With a sky strongly overcast, and a week full of blizzards and storm, my heart is pounding with utmost anticipation for the most important day of my life.

Nope, it's not an interview with your prospective father-in-law who is thinking what the hell you are going to do with his daughter, nor is it with the infamous shrewd boss that makes you grind your flabbergasted teeth in misery, but rather on the contrary, it's the happiest moment of my life...the once in a lifetime union with my most beloved wife-to-be ----- Jennifer

5am...my God, what am I waking up so early for? The last time I woke up with such a timing was all the way back in army days. Those were the days where I couldn't kiss the sun when I left my home and neither could I curse the sun when I'm back home. I live in the east, and I do not know how did I end up serving my NS in the furthest west. I was cursing and swearing during those period that I will never ever step into CCK again after my NS...

A FEW YEARS LATER...(scroll down)

I met my future wife and she lives beside Lot 1.........................

Yeah yeah I know....it's my fault for living in the east...

With the smiley teddybear in my arms, I flip-flopped to the carpark, still in a daze from the half-awaken 4 hours of sleep.

Number 128 (Lexus Wedding Car Plate NUmber aka Winning Number)
As I was walking towards 128, I could feel the unforgiving rain drops against my unshaven skin. Sheesh...the relentless nights of praying for a clear day do not seem to work. I gaze at the sky above the dimly litted neighbourhood, and I was thinking to myself..there goes my ang pows.

Teddy Bears:
With the number 128 standing out conspicuously among the rest, I was tying the teddy bears with half-opened eyes. Each knot that I had made, I uttered a word of prayer again for a smooth event later. Looking at the teddy bears who were going to be drenched, I kept myself in cheonging mood by thnking of the happy moments that I would have in forever bliss with my dearest.

9th Dec 2007 630am:
Yes. Tying the teddy bears took more than an hour because I realised that the strings were not long enough. I was really hoping I could complete the job in half an hour's time to save me from the kapo neighbourhood who will practically forget that they had to rush for the train, bus, market, just to see what you are doing. Think I'm living in close proximity to India thats why. Anyway, left with only half an hour to get dressed and to CCK, I sped up the stairs.

Oh man...it must have been ages since I last moved my muscles. My lungs seemed to have shrunk so much that I was already panting after the 3rd floor. I looked at my tummy, and nodded to myself....yeah....I really have forgotten about my exercise regimen...

730am:
CCK - The land where my love resides. The land of beauties...so as to say...hehe, though i once hated it so much. It's weird to have no gatecrashing, no chaffeur, but hey hey, why should we always follow the norm? Wedding is for us to be happy and for us to do whatever we like it to be. Well, that probably means happy moment also for my brothers, who do not have to eat wasabi, test their vocals etc, or lay on the ground blowing some party-gimmicks. And of course, it means no extra ang pows needed to be given out as well.....hehehehe....however, I must say it's a bit quiet in a sense not to have gatecrashing, nor much laughters. But you should have seen my big big smile when I saw my soon-to-be-wife, who had just woken up from her beauty sleep with the hair still in a mess. But to me, she's ever so beautiful. I'm really fortunate to be able to marry such a girl despite me being only a so-so average joe, or probably below average.

Fast foward:

830am:
Raindrops falling on my head...

Bigger raindrops falling on my teddy bears...

Biggest and loudest cursing and swearing came out from my mouth...

Then came the melody of people cheering and clapping when we drove pass Raffles statue.

With one hand hovering the wedding photos, and one hand hovering my suit, we scurried to the shelter after manually opening the carpark gates. And one of my brother even lagi poorer thing, who had to carry the one-ton video camera.

Think the security guard even more pissed... "Blady hell Sunday and yet had to come so early to open the museum for some kookoos"...Well, this was the sentence that was portrayed when I saw his darken gloomy face, with a twitch in his mouth. I do not even dare to really smile at him and asked him how was his day as I'm sure his reply would be "what's so nice about today?!!!"

900am:
Still hoping the weather would be kinder later, my dearie set off to her make-up while I went on to oversee the decorations and arrangements

Okay, so to cut the story short...

THE RAIN JUST GOT HEAVIER!!!!!!NB!!!!!

But thankfully, really really blessed...eventually...most of the guest turned up and both of us were really touched and happy and joyful to see our most beloved friends and relatives wishing us the best, despite the rain also giving their best.

Friends for life...and the world will not be as beautfiul if it is without you...or course, to my dearest wife and to our friends, wbo braved the cruelly casted hurricanes and twisters to attend our wedding...

Killing time before the guests arrive= taking photos on the beautiful stairs

Showcasing my gown

Couldnt be happier =)

A family picture after putting our signatures and names down on paper, marking the day we begin our journey as ONE

Moments like this are unforgetable, Thank you Jo!

You light up my life(and in this case, the hallway as well)

Sec sch friends rock with style!

Solvay frens and Lily's little angels

Indebted to you- My sisters and Dr Kwoh, for making the event possible & significant

NUS Pharmacy Class of 07. All of you gd! Play me out! Ask me throw flowers in the end all siam!I will rem all of you =p

Yam Seng!!Everybody so high and LOUD!Kam Tong...

Tea Ceremony before wedding ceremony- To my beloved Dajie and Jiefu

Sec sch pals and their partners!

Happy friends and guests = Happy bride

It's official!

The river room- the ambience was terrific, bringing warmth and spreading love

Azhar and Victor- all the way from Australia