Getting Ready For The Big Day

Many people are surprised when I tell them that we're getting married in May.

"May...... 2015?" They ask. 

"No May, this year. 2014"

*cue look of utter shock* 

"ARE YOU PREGNANT???"

lol

Well, the truth is, I'm not pregnant. We'd just like to get married when our pastor is still in Singapore, my aunt is around and before my parents head back to the States. That leaves us with the end of May this year as our best option.

Not to mention, I'm such an impatient person. I really couldn't stand the thought of waiting an entire year to get married!!!

I know what many of you are thinking... How am I supposed to pull off a wedding with slightly less than two months to prepare? 

I got three words for you.

God Answers Prayer

The very moment Jerry and I knew we were going to get married this May, we clasped our hands together in prayer and asked God to go on ahead of us and help us plan our wedding. We knew there would be challenges ahead. Perhaps it would be difficult to book a wedding venue with such little notice. What about the photographers, makeup artist, the dresses, his suit, cake, etc etc etc?

There were simply too many things to worry about and we knew there was no use trying to handle it all on our own. So we sought God's hand and wisdom in our planning process.

You would not believe how quickly and amazingly God answered each and every one of our prayers!

In just a few days, we managed to narrow down, visit and book the venue of our choice. The last function room that was available on our wedding date was exactly the right size.

We got our wedding photography package signed up with Sophia Wedding along Tanjong Pagar Road. On that day, a couple cancelled their appointment at the last minute and I was able to pick my gown there instead of waiting a few weeks (it would have been too late by then).

I shopped for fabric with my aunts and had my cheongsam custom-made in Chinatown. The dressmaker's shop, Iris & Edel, were able to complete the cheongsam in time for my photoshoot despite having to alter it twice.

A few weeks later, we went for a food tasting session at our wedding venue. Everything tasted way better than I expected!

I spent an hour and a half the next day trying on dresses for my bridesmaids. We ended up choosing none of these. 

Then, something unfortunate happened. 

We hadn't skated for almost a month and I was missing the skatepark like crazy. So we went to the skatepark about two weeks before our photoshoot for a little skating session. 

That night, Jerry went home with two stitches in his upper lip and a bad scrape/bruise on his left knee. He couldn't smile without busting his stitches, nor could he walk properly. He was really upset that this happened so close to our photoshoot. 

I remember sitting with him on the floor at the skatepark, his face covered with blood. But I only felt peace. Somehow, I knew in my heart that everything would be okay. So I prayed with him that his wounds would heal before our photoshoot on April 24th. He had about 14 days to recover at that point. 

The day of the photoshoot came.

For once, we arrived at the studio on time. We were always so very late to our dress fittings (and that's bad!)

My mom and xiaoyee (aunt) came to help us with the shoot even though it was a weekday. Without them, we would not have been able to get to our photoshoot locations on time.

Oh, and do you see Jerry's wide smile in this photo?

Just the day before, his stitches came out and he was finally able to smile on the morning of our photoshoot. It was the first time I'd seen him smile since we were at the skatepark.

From the left: Jensen, the photographer's assistant. And Arsen, the photographer. 

Sadly, when the photos were completed, we found that we did not like any of them. Not because Arsen isn't a good photographer, but mainly because none of the shots were really taken in the kind of style we wanted (warm, natural, romantic). 

Thankfully, Sophia was very professional about it and offered to let us reshoot the entire thing. 

So that's what we'll be doing this coming Sunday... 

All the invites were done in a matter of two days.

Each invite took us about five minutes to put together. Fortunately, this isn't a big affair, so we were not overwhelmed by the invitations.

The bridesmaid dresses from TheBMDshop arrived within a day and Amanda and Talia got to try them on Saturday. They were perfect!

Pretty much everything is going smoothly and I truly don't have to worry about anything at all! 

I'm gonna miss my family when they're back in the States and I'm still here in Singapore, but at least I won't really be alone. I think being married helps. I've never actually thought about how I'd feel once my parents return, but now that I'm typing this out, I can see why God had me meet Jerry now...

I didn't even imagine that I could possibly feel this lonely, but thankfully God foresaw all of this and provided me with a husband to comfort me...

I am just so amazed that despite me failing Him and being such a pain, God is still willing to not only stand by me; in the midst of everything, He is still wanting to bless me. How wonderful and merciful is He!!!

To my future self reading this post again: I want to remind you of how God's grace truly has no bounds. 

You didn't think you needed anyone, but God sent you someone when you least expected it. He already knew that when your parents leave Singapore, you'd miss their noise, and so He took care of that. 

God is faithful!

When wedding preparations needed to be done, God did them all for you. You did not have to fret about anything at all.

God provides!

You used to worry about Jerry's spiritual growth. Has He not put His Spirit in Jerry's heart? 

God leads!

And now as the wedding day draws near and fear of the future tries to creep up on you... (well this is getting weird cause my future self is supposed to be reading this eh?)

Anyway...

God knows. He cares and He is always listening. He knows all your faults and weaknesses and He will not give you more than you can handle. He will always give you something to hope for and you do not have to worry about what the future holds because He has already taken care of it. All you have to do is to sit obediently at His feet, serving patiently and resting in the shadow of His wings. He will bring you good and not harm... 

Amen!!!

Full Of Fun

Ahh yes blogging streak is definitely still on! 

Time for another recap of this past weekend!

Ok this wasn't exactly the weekend, but I met up with Talia last Thursday. I think she looks like a doctor or a medical student in this photo! I'm sure it's the white blazer...

It was raining really hard that night so we just walked around inside ION before heading to Coffee Club at Wheelock for dinner. 

I ordered wasabi shrimp salad. First and last time man! You can even see from this photo how unappetising it looked. 

Coffee Club just updated their menu so some food items aren't served anymore, like the smoked salmon and beef ciabatta bites. Other favourites like the chicken baked rice remain.

We shared a basket of potato wedges. Mmm!

On Friday night, a small group of us met at our regular spot.

We knew it was going to be a fast skate that night since there were only four of us.

In about 40 minutes, we made it to Marina Barrage. There were actually quite a number of people there with lanterns and even candles. Not sure if the latter is actually allowed...

Paused for a short break.

Got a beautiful view of the Marina Bay area from crossing the bridge to the east.

We ended our skate at Rochor Beancurd which was pretty crowded for a Friday night!

I packed a few home for the fam and realised halfway.... that I was sending tofu at 12am!

HAHAHA!

See video below (just till 1:27)  if you've never watched Initial D and don't know what that means:

Takumi Fujiwara is the son of a legendary mountain drift racer, and the reason why he's so good is because he's been delivering tofu for his father every single morning. Rain or shine, through all four seasons, Takumi has to deliver tofu down the same mountain pass without damaging the tofu in the back of his AE86. To help him keep the car stable, Takumi's father puts an uncovered cup of water in the cup holder. Essentially, Takumi has to drive in such a way that water doesn't ever spill out. This ensures that the easily-bruised tofu in the back stays intact.

Since Takumi drives on the same route every single morning, he unconsciously started to drive faster and faster just to get the delivery done quicker. Needless to say, his skills on the mountain pass were developed far beyond any ordinary racer of his day.

The reason why I'm spelling out this entire story is just to illustrate one point: to be an expert in something, you just have to practice daily. Talent may bring you further, but it is the boring, routine, mundane practice that helps you beat all opponents in your skill.

I know that, because I've been skating almost daily, and as a result I've improved very quickly. Last October, I wasn't able to tackle urban terrain (stairs, curbs, rough roads) on my own. Fast forward to now, I have no fear skating anywhere in Singapore, nor do I have any fear skating in the rain.

This same principle is inherent in the docu-biography Jiro Dreams Of Sushi.

Jiro is an expert in sushi, quite simply because he makes sushi everyday. Everything he does is for and about sushi, to the point where he even dreams about sushi when he sleeps at night. From dawn till dusk, Jiro and sushi are one. 

And that's why the man is so good now! After years and years of daily improving, failing, experimentation, dreaming, doing, practicing, Jiro has left all his competitors in the dust.

Alright, sorry for the diversion... It's not like I'm really intending to become a pro skater or anything, but this is just something that I'm always thinking about. 

ANYWAY.

On Saturday night, the moon rose round and bright.

A group of 50+ skaters met at Bishan Park for Skateline's Mooncake festival skate to Woodlands Waterfront.

Though the skate started out kinda slow, it ended on a rather intense note. But all in all, I had a lot of fun!

Sunday morning, I went to the 07:30 service in church and then dropped in the Chinese youth service at 10:00. Man, it's been a loooongggg time since I was last part of this service. Such a strange feeling of nostalgia swept over me as I sat there surrounded by the same group of people (now all youth leaders), singing the same songs we once sang as secondary school students. 

After youth service was over, we went to Saizeriya in Bukit Timah Plaza to meet with Ida, our ex-youth group teacher who was in Singapore for a short visit.

Found some dry humour in the menu.

It's okay if I'm the only one who's laughing.

Food was alright. The smoked salmon salad was definitely better than the wasabi shrimp salad from Coffee Club! And at almost half the price, it's a win win winner.

After church and House of Bread, Papa picked me up to go for dinner with the fam in Geylang. 

Won't be revealing the location of this restaurant because it's crowded enough lol!

Had bean paste fish head.

Veggie soup. Very very very good veggie soup! 

Minced pork and salted fish.

Stir-fried beef and veggies.

Stir-fried tofu.

After dinner we drove through Chinatown.

Then went to Gardens By The Bay to join the rest of the Mooncake Festival crowd!

It's nice to actually be here without skates for once.

The moon didn't disappoint!

After Gardens By The Bay, we went to ECP for our usual candle burning nonsense.

My dad's right. It's like we never grew up. I probably will never outgrow this.

We lit and hung up lanterns at the pavilion we were in.

Joel got creative and decided to set a palm branch on fire.

Like a 野人 (wild man) LOL!

I love that we are still playing like this as "grown" children. 

May we never grow too old to enjoy ourselves!