Ahh, the muppets, the muppets!

It's the muppets! I love the muppets! At one stage, I could do the voice of the French chef really well and my sister and I would play different characters in the car (like Count Duckular and his grandmother and a cockroach) and laugh hysterically. Ok, I would laugh hysterically but whatever. And we would make up silly songs like this:

He's a funny spider

A funny spider

He only has four legs, HEY! 

I want to watch the movie!

Oh, and totally unrelated to that is me finding shots of a beautiful, colourful wedding.

Is it weird their wedding video made me teary? It just felt so sweet and cosy with close friends and family. I love the colour scheme, all the decorations and the way they set the entire day up, even with ice cream, pancakes and what looked like jars of peanut butter for the guests. My cousin had a photo booth at her wedding in January and I think taking polaroids or funny shots  of everyone with props is such a fun and fabulous idea for remembering the special occasion. The blog post made me a mix of tingly happy and emotional inside (not to say tingly happy isn't an emotion...I'm just finding my vocabulary very limited these days).

Adelaide in the Fall



Photo from CameraBag

Just returned from our little trip. It should officially be autumn now. The days were still relatively warm but the nights were cool. Nick and Miin's wedding was lovely - perfect weather, beautiful garden setting,  and sweet and funny speeches delivered by family members, and the best men and bridesmaids (I like the song they presented as a surprise too), yummy food: not to mention a giant chocolate fountain :), and the chicken dance to boot! I meant to tell the lady who sang during the signing of the marriage register that she has a great voice...and ask where she got her gorgeous stockings...ah well...

What great fun spending time with the Thens and all the new additions to the family - I have such terrific in-laws.

Photos of the special day to come...

More photos from Neil & Sandra's wedding

Neil and Sandra's wedding

Photo from Shania:

Such a happy looking wedding!

Wedding Favours - Photo from Design Sponge

I love mustard yellow! I wish I had thought to have my wedding in this colour scheme.
What's amazing is that the bride got her dress for $5!

Shin Yee & Rayson's Wedding

Annoying how one of my eyes is smaller than the other

Weddings...

 

  

• Amazing photography by Leigh Miller 
• This cute card note thing
• I also ♥ the gorgeous blue shoes. Vibrant blue works really well with white for a wedding I realise. The last two photos were taken from here (still Leigh Miller's blog, just that it directs you to this particular couple's lovely wedding. I pinched a photo of the bride because I think she's incredibly beautiful)  

Bali Wedding

Our friends Pei Yin and Ian just got married at this amazing place in Bali. Can't wait to see the rest of their photos and the wedding video. What a gorgeous location and the bride was stunning (not that she isn't on other days). Would love a holiday there!

i ♥

Sarah Seven dresses...they are beautiful, sweet and feminine but ridiculously priced. Anyway, I've been finding more bridal websites with absolutely gorgeous photographs and ideas. They make me secretly wish I could get married all over again. I might have to have 30 ceremonies to cover the different concepts, gown designs, floral arrangements and colour schemes though!

Ours was a sweet day, nonetheless, and people expressed they felt the presence of God and a lot of love, which were essentially the most important aspects. Still, I can't help but dream when I browse through pictures of other couples' weddings. Often the location plays a huge role, I realise. Here's one (Katie & Preston) I love. The bride later wore a gorgeous pair of blue satin shoes by Kate Preston to match the theme.

♥ these hairstyles

And as the site says, you don't have to be a bride to have the look

Yee Yee & Daniel's Wedding

     

 Funnily, I don't have a good shot of the groom :)

Remembering the Day

It's been one year, nine months and about three days. And I'm married to a real cutie. He's gorgeous, he's wonderful, he's patient, gentle, loving and supportive, he's my closest friend, laughing buddy, playstation three hero and a whole lot more!

Fab, you're such a blessing to me. I thank God for you everyday! Thanks for sticking by me even when I lost the plot and was so close to giving everything up . You were there when no one else understood. When no one else knew what to say. When I didn't want to talk. When I scared myself with how crazy and depressed I got and didn't know how I was going to overcome that season of life. Thank you for bringing strength and comfort. Thank you for laughing at my bad jokes and thinking me adorable and pretty even when I know I'm not.

I ♥ you

(Photo courtesty of Xi Liu - you can view the album by clicking on his name. All his photos are copyrighted though so please don't save or use any, thanks! Here's another post with a photo he took)

My multi-racial family

That's my Uncle John (O'Rourke) on the far left with Sharmini's partner beside him. The lady in the mustard pants is Auntie Uffie (Elizabeth), his wife. My mum's in purple. My cousins are on the other end. There's John-Paul at the far right with his wife Belle and their second little girl. John-Paul is Auntie Uffie's oldest child and the only male cousin. Then there is Kay to my left in the photo, with her husband Michael behind. Their 3 daughters are in the front with John-Paul's first girl (the one hiding). Kay is Auntie Uffie's third child. Ann (who's number 2) couldn't make it with her family. Neither could Traccy (number 4). My dad's next to Fab and my sister and brother-in-law are in the front with my two nephews. The little Asian lady in front of Fab is Ah Hoon. She's looked after me since Day Three of being in this world, so much so that she's one of the family now. Don't mess with her, she runs our house. Her cooking is out of this world fabulous! She's totally the best! Of course that's not to say everyone else in my family isn't either! They're all super duper wonderfuller! Anyway, as you can see, the little ones got to be page boys and flower girls on the day.

Fascinating isn't it? How I don't look like them because their dads are Aussie. Actually I think Uncle John has Irish descent. This is of Pip, Sharmini and I - Pip is the youngest of 5 kids my mum's older sister (Auntie Uffie) has and Sharmini is my mum's younger sister's (Aunt Shanta) only child. My mum doesn't have any other siblings. It's just them 3 women. Auntie Shanta and her husband Uncle Clive attended the Singapore wedding dinner instead so Sharmini and Grant represented them in Brisbane. Pip (well, Philippa to be exact) is 3 years older than I and Sharmini (Lang) is 3 years younger than I. Maybe I should have stood in the middle. Notice the great dip in height. :) Ok, so a little background for those interested. Mum's dad is Indian and mum's mum is Eurasian. My Pa might have Peranakan descent. So when the entire clan gets together, we look like a huge bowl of salad. Thankfully no one is green in the family.

I love them, I love them all! You should come for the giant get to gethers. Grampa's side are all really musically inclined and super talented. There's a player for every instrument and a singer for every note. Food's always great and the company superb. I miss them...

Thank you to Xi Liu for the beautiful photos. I have yet to download them off Flickr. Whoops

More professionally taken photos

Studio Wedding Photos

A couple of days after the wedding ceremony in Brisbane, we flew to Singapore to host a traditional sit-down 10-course Chinese dinner for relatives and family friends. As usual, neither of us got to eat, which is why the hotel prepares supper for couples and serves it in the honeymoon suite after all the guests have retired for the night. During one of the days leading up to the dinner, Fab and I had professional indoor/outdoor photos taken as part of the package we purchased from one of the bridal studios in Singapore - the one that included my gown, his suit, the bridesmaid dresses...I quite like this one because of the lighting.

Thanks Jules

Photos by Julie Tirta on our wedding day
(We escaped to the Spit after everyone had left the church)

touching base

I have so much to write but just haven't had the chance to really sit down and put all my thoughts into comprehensible sentences with colourful pictures to match. Am secretly taking a few minutes at work to say this so those of you who read my blog know I am alive and well and had a great time in Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia respectively for our honeymoon. It's back to work now and I'm currently on my third day.

Monday was surprisingly fine though I got off to a really drowsy start when we woke up early to make it in by 9am. I had a good amount of energy throughout the day and got so much work done. Then it hit me hard at night and yesterday, I certainly felt the weight of the hour and a half commute (each way) and was really tired in the office. I'm sleepy today.

We've been having good lunches - Fab made a batch of beef mince with mushrooms, onion and taco seasoning and I helped slice up tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce, then we wrapped all of that with a slice of cheese in soft tortilla sheets. Oh, don't forget splashings of BBQ sauce. They taste great when toasted in a sandwich press. The only thing that does not survive the heat is the lettuce so I recommend trying spinach leaves instead or adding the lettuce after the toasting. If you want everything warm, maybe the lettuce can be replaced with olives (the reduced salt kind and pitted of course) as I tried this and it was pretty tasty. That's if you like olives.

I have much to tell about the honeymoon and photos to edit and upload...do stay tuned...by the way, since I've been asked this question rather frequently - I am liking this marriage thing - it has been a completely natural and comfortable progression and I don't feel any different. We're in the midst of sorting through our gazillion boxes of stuff and setting up the study room. We're done with the bedroom and kitchen but I may make a few amendments here and there once we're done, just as final touches because the walls are so bleak...plus we might get bed side tables and some other bits of furniture for the study and living room - more bookshelves and a TV station.

We're still deliberating over having the place painted. So far Fab has decided that we should take a few weekends to mend the ceiling ourselves. He'll patch up all the holes (as we had all the lights re-positioned and re-fitted with pretty light fixtures - the old ones were so ugly) and then we'll paint the place in sections. We'll also go over the walls that need fixing or just make sure we cover up anything un-presentable with a picture (don't go looking under my wall displays if you're ever in the house, ok?)

One Month Seven Days

That's the space of time between now and my last post. I guess I've been occupied. Not unavoidably detained, but occupied. With work, with other activities going on, with being out of the house, with being lazy and lounging and reading and hiding under the doona. It's cold, still.

The wedding's in three weeks. That's 18 sleeps away. 18, I like that number. I was born on the 18th. Not of this month but still, it's a good date. And dates are good in loaves. Talk about random comments. There will be a dinner in Singapore to celebrate. Some of my closest friends can't be there. They are the ones who are unavoidably detained. How can I compete with work? It's Singapore. They don't have a choice. One's being sent overseas for a month (so we're missing each other completely. I land in Singapore, he flies to wherever it is he's been stationed) . One works ridiculously long hours. Hospitality. How can I compete with a baby? That's right, one of my closest friends is having a baby. Her very first one. I'm so glad for her. She'll be a great mum, I just know it. She's a great friend. So I'm not complaining. I'm a little sad about the ones who have to work but I completely understand. I just hope I can see Alysia (the one in hospitality), Elaine and her baby boy. Elroy. I think that's the name that stuck. Must remember to get a gift for little Elroy. Babies. So many of them this year and most of them are boys. So many weddings too. What a wonderfully productive year 2008 is. What with the Olympics on too.

So much has been forgotten. Again my mind has lost great blog posts material. Funny things, clever things, life things, all sorts of things. A pity but not the end of the world.

So where are we up to with the planning? The main things are to organise the hand bouquets, get bits and pieces for the decor and reception table, and the drinks and ice, have the Order of Service cards printed, tie little "thank you" labels on the favours and confirm things with various parties and ensure we've got enough people to help out with ushering and things on the day and for the Singapore dinner (two separate bunch of people, naturally). Oh, got to sort out the video recording. Fab's going to do the photo montage to show on the day while guests are settling in. Things are coming together and falling into place. It's not that big a deal organising a wedding when both families are pretty relaxed about the way things go and we keep it all simple with our relatively low budget plan. Good, we're pretty much set then.

Big Day Checklist

1. Church (Check)
2. Dinner (Singapore, check...Brisbane, pending)
3. Gowns for day and dinner reception - hiring from Singapore (Check)...just need to ensure alterations are fine
4. Suits - part of the package (Check)...need to ensure it fits right for the day
5. Bridesmaid dresses - part of package (Check)...hope they don't fall off and my bridesmaids don't look like sticks wrapped with a towel!
6. Flower girl dresses and Page boy suits (Check) - THANK YOU MUM! Hope they'll agree to hold one anothers' hands to walk in pairs...hmmm
7. Shoes and earrings (Check) - Thanks to mum again...just need to re glue a couple of the beads on the shoes
8. Invitations (Check)...finally done designing them, thank you to Peach who is printing them this week (OK, yes, I'm a little late, I know)
9. Programme 'n' Thank You card (Half Check)...almost done designing them
10. Rings (Check)...waiting for delivery
11. Ring Pillow (Sticking to box) - One of the best men to hold
12. Catering (Check) - Thank God for this wonderful Christian woman from Indonesia who's a great cook and doesn't charge the earth!
13. Plates, cups, cutlery, serviettes, garbage bags, table cloths, drinks and ice (Got the cutlery and cups, need the rest, have a nice big basket to present the things in)
14. Decorations - Again thanks to mum who paid for some of the stuff we found at Spotlight when they came over to the Coast for a few days (Half Check)...need more stuff like cloth and maybe more ribbons and maybe flowers for the reception desk
15. Guest Book, stationery, gift collection box (Need to get)
16. Wedding favours (Check - Praise God for the great find at IKEA!)...Need to make little tags to go with them and then sit down and attach them with ribbon
17. Live band (Check) - We have wonderful friends! Worship team is set too! AND thank you to BANGA (my sister) for her gift to us is a live jazz band for the dinner reception...ooh nice...
18. Song selection (Half Check)...need to put more thought into this one and sort all PA and instrument related things out
19. Photography and Video-taking (Almost a full check) - Again, thank You God for great friends! Need to locate a proper video camera...although I need to find a photographer for the dinner in Singapore as my friend can't make it now due to unforeseen work circumstances
20. Car (One Big Fat Check)- Thank you Phuong, Joseph, Gel and Ambrose for the really sweet gesture of hiring a vintage Rolls for us! Woo hoo!
21. Hair and Makeup (Check) - Shyen and Amy...set for bridesmaids too...call to confirm timing
22. Meet with wonderful friends we are about to con into helping out with music, photos, setting up things and ushering other guests in...(Set Teams and Rehearsal)
23. Accommodation (Check) - Family and relatives sorting themselves out...might book a place for Fab and I those first couple of nights before flying home since our house will be completely inhabited
24. Gifts for bridesmaids (Need to source)
25. Other thank you gifts (Need to source)
26. Good thing the hotels in Singap0re pretty much take care of all the little details for the dinner reception and the bridal package covers hair and makeup
27. Accommodation for honeymoon (Need to book)
28. FLOWERS FOR HAND BOUQUETS!
29. Am I forgetting something?

This is crazy!

We've reached Location 17! So much has happened so fast that I haven't kept up with reading about the different places and countries since location 4! I also haven't been that good about keeping the 10,000 steps target everyday. Personal best. 14, 000. Personal worst. I think it was about 3,500 although I am convinced something was wrong with my pedometer that week as I was out and about when my parents came over for 5 days with two other couples (close family friends) so I could try my gown.

They made it way too big! What was the point in measuring me so carefully on two occassions if they were going to make it two sizes too big as if my boobs were the size of massive papayas?! Ok, nevermind that...hopefully the alteration will go well...the gown for the night reception in Singapore was alright except I can't breathe deeply in it due to the in-built corset like feature. Ah well, at least it'll help hold Bert (my belly) in. Sigh, it seems to be a known-tradition that the bride never gets to eat at her own wedding. So anyway, the hotel we're having the dinner at in Singapore has very kindly arranged for supper to be provided in our room once guests have retired for the night. Yay!

OK, back to the pedometer...it acts up every now and then, or rather fails to act every now and then as I've been recording an inconsistent number of steps though I take the same route every morning to work. It's been behaving today so we should be right.

On the subject of so much having happened, I've now forgotten all those wonderful posts I had in mind to blog about. All these great ideas that generated in my mind since my last entry...poems, stories, personal insight. Oh well...moving on then...