why I say all the way our Saviour leads us

I guess the title says it all. since it is our wedding theme and our heart's song, I thought it is good to re-cap, and re-count once again, the blessings that God has given me in this journey with emerson.

we go a long way back. and when I say long way, I do mean loooooong way! so long, that some years just seem to go by in a blurr!

emerson and I first met each other in kindergarten. he was short and cute. I was short and cute. all kids are short and cute, right? :) ok, honestly, I can't remember the details, other than (I think) we would take the same school bus to school. and we (probably) played with each other.

time flew by and year after year, we grew older (and taller!). we became more familiar with each other because we would see each other every sat and sun in church.

ah ha. it got to the year when sparks started to fly. 姐, now that I think back, I seriously think u have a part to play in this, although I can't place my finger at exactly why! I liked him, and I think he liked me, but I was never too sure. I mean, u probably would like someone if you greeted her good morning and goodnight with an sms everyday, right? yet, nothing was ever said. at that time, I just knew that I enjoyed his company. he was funny, sporty, he loved his brother (who was soooo cute THEN), he loved God and he seemed to be a disciplined student, talented in many ways. we studied, we sent sms-es to each other… we played with ahjijan (who was only 5-6 years old)…and we grew older, yet again.

then, in JC1, he took part in a series of judo competitions that required him to fly overseas to quite a lot of places (korea, vietnam, etc..). absence made the heart grow fonder! just before he left, we celebrated my birthday and that was when my heart really melted! he gave me an sms book, recording all our exchange of sms-es for the past year! I was deeply touched and at that point, I knew with a certainty that I meant something to him. we kept in touch through emails, he wrote me a postcard for the first time and he shared more about himself through his emails.

when he came back, he asked me out on a date! on the bus, on 7th november 2003, he told me that he was fond of me. I blushed and I kept quiet for a very long time. and then I said, lets take things slow.

10 August 2004 - we held hands. :) :) so this is the "electric shock" that rev quek was talking about :)

2005-2006 2 years of pain, heartbreaks and tears because God sent Army and Sandhurst to teach us. to help us to be sure, to mould our perspectives, and recognise each others' weaknesses, and to see how we simply could not do without Him.

7 Nov 2008 - the day he proposed to me. many have asked: what makes you so sure that God wants you to get married now? it is clear because God sent a blessing so emerson could provide for the family while he is studying. this means that we can afford to take care of ourselves. to us, this was very clear sign. however, we felt young, unprepared, unsure. after speaking to rev koshy, we were comforted by his advice and we felt sure that it was God's will to take the path towards marriage.

who would have known? man proposes, God disposes. in the span of a few months, a few hiccups were sent our way. one major hiccup sent forced us to rethink the time of our marriage, for the sake of our loved ones and being a good testimony. it felt so painful at that time! I could not bear the thought of waiting an extra 2 years to get married after being engaged.

now, looking back, what can I say? it is God's perfect plan and timing! through this two years, we have matured, grown, learnt to understand and accommodate each other and learnt to work through our problems in a wiser way. im not saying that we are perfect or fully equipped for marriage as we are far from that! nonetheless, we have been taught precious lessons from God through these two years of preparation.

through these 7-8 years of Ups and Downs, we testify that it is entirely by His keeping and His enabling that we are still together, and that we still love each other (more and more by His grace!). He has taught us what love is, and by Him, and what He has done for us, we recognise how He desires for us to love each other too.

therefore, as we approach the wedding day, I am so excited. I am not excited about the decorations, the cards, the bouquets, the photographer or the dinner. these are not things that matter. yes, these bits and pieces make the day memorable and we do like to make things look nice/meaningful. but what makes me so glad in the heart is the fact that after these 7-8 years of seeking and courting, it has cumulated to a day where we are more eager than ever to do God's will and make this promise to keep loving each other, just like we have been learning to do so for the past years. it has taught me that when we seek to do His will, we do not go wrong. and much as there are a lot of uncertainty and fears, I find courage in the fact that our Lord will continue to lead us, just like He has done so, simply because we are doing what He wants us to do!

it is such a joy as a child of God to rest in this simple assurance: the Lord will lead you all the way. in this truth, I find comfort, peace, joy. when tough times come our way, we know that behind it all, God has a perfect plan for us. dear friends, are u a child of God? the years of courtship are nothing to do with coincidences. all these circumstances sent our way have a higher purpose to shape and mould us into who He wants us to do, to bring us to where we are today. there is a great God in this world! but is He your God? we pray and hope that through our holy matrimony, you may come to know this God of ours, who has led us all the way…

see u in…. SIX DAYS!!!! :) :) :)

desktopwallpaper

thank God for the wisdom and ability to complete our wedding cards. we never thought it would turn out like that and i was so apprehensive and fearful about starting on it :) that said, we really did have some fun, although it was tough initially! 

we wanted a card which our guests would be able to put to good use and not just throw it away after the wedding. since it is the start of the year, a calendar would be practical and useful...

God led us to the right choices, the right design, the right theme....and we pray that the card may be a blessing to everyone as they begin 2011, that they may also remember that it is truly day by day, all the way, that the Saviour leads!

TA-DA! here are our cards :)

the front..

and the back!

*to download the desktop wallpapers according to your screen resolution, here are the links :)

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♥

family

as the day draws nearer (9 weeks GASP), the support i get most comes from the ones whom i know i can always count on. my dearest family.

姐， thank you so much for being a GREAT GREAT support. i know that when i am stuck on something or i need some advice or assurance, i can always look for you! longing to go out and spend more time with u and zachy! :)

mummy has been very concerned for me. i think she is worried because i am falling sick alot and instead of getting fatter as i desire too, im losing weight :( and looking white and thin :( GAH! need to exercise! today, she peeled some pomelo flesh for me to eat. will miss her most as i 'leave' =...(

that said, i'll be gaining a new, awesome and totally cool one! :) WOW!!! :)

30 Sep 2010, from the PP

“Historical Gaze” of Our Engagement Photoshoot

Disclaimer: It is my first time posting anything on a blog, and how fitting it that it is on fitw and in such a manner:)

This journey of the photoshoot began way back in Jan 2009, when we first signed our wedding package. At that time, we did not think much about the significance of a photoshoot, nor what it would fully entail…

After listening to godly counsel and advice, we were convicted not to take wedding photos that would depict us as if we were already married. So that begged the question – what are we going to shoot? (in fact the bridal coordinator was really very puzzled when we told her that we did not want to shoot wedding photos. It is like going to a chicken rice stall and not order chicken rice, haha) in any case, we decided to take the approach of an “Engagement Shoot” – after dd saw many lovely ones on her favourite blogs.

As we got closer to the date of the shoot, we agreed that the end product would be a mini-story of our journey thus far, and how the Lord has led us through it all. The creation of the storyboard took place over many days and at different locations (in the car, in our new room, on our new table). Through it we are reminded about the goodness of the Lord and also learnt more about how each other worked. We even went on a pre-photoshoot practice session! It was a great experience, even though we were ‘scolded’ by a little German boy!:) it was during the shoot that we realise that smiling at the camera isn’t as easy as it looks! The storyboard included the creation of props as well, I shan’t reveal what they are now, so just have to wait for the photos to be out yeh (we can’t wait to see them!).

That was a brief summary of the events prior to the photoshoot. As we got real close to the shoot itself, things started to get a little rocky as I got too focused on getting all the things done and feared that the shoot would be a mess. Basically I did not walk by faith but relied on self. So there were some tensions a few days before the shoot. But very graciously, all these were removed by the Lord on the day of the photoshoot.

God also provided a friend who has “a car”, which had a lovely number plate that went along with it. And more importantly he, and his wonderful family, were so kind to lend the vehicle to us, even taking the trouble to make it gleaming before lending it to us. This was one real experience we had of the goodness of God. It was a great ride to drive in, haha!

The Lord also gave us a most fantastic ‘aunty’. She has been a great friend. aunty has not only helped in this photoshoot, but was one of the key players in the surprise birthday celebration this Feb. I can imagine that without such a person, we would have fallen flat on our faces for the shoot. (one small advise, if you’re having a photoshoot, please ask along your close friend to help, you will need it. But make sure he/she will not blackmail you with any of the silly pictures taken on that day. Esp if you don’t really wear make up. hint hint: aunty, please don’t release those pictures heh)

Our photographer was also a very cool guy to work with. He was professional, flexible and open to our ideas and able to use his experience to guide us to the right shots. Furthermore, he was a rather funny and happy guy, which made the whole experience even more pleasant. (do contact us if you want recommendations).

For the details of the photoshoot itself, I think my other half has provided a most comprehensive picture. In any case, the main lesson learnt is that of faith. To trust in the Lord to provide all that we need. And the photoshoot has been used by the Lord to show us that He will see us through it all. We have seen how the process and the end can be so wonderfully planned out by the Lord. And indeed it was an experience worth going through and all praise be given to God Almighty.

children's day, again!

children's day 2010! there was quite a debate in my heart whether i should do or not do anything. sometime in the process, i turned to PP and asked him and his response was (pardon the singlish): you can don't do anything meh?

that's right. after all the love showered on me during teacher's day, it's hard to stay aloof and give something half-heartedly....

so i made them badges...using this idea. the badge has a penguin taken from here and it says "improvements are made, step by step!" for my school students" and "walk with Jesus, step by step!" for my sunday school students. here's the tag..

then, PP and i scooted over to the meiji seika factory at 36 quality road to buy some goodies for the kids..if you are ever free on fri from 12-3pm, you should go there to check it out! it has a myriad of meiji goodies at significantly cheaper prices and i promise your heart will start beating faster when you enter the shop :) think hello panda, garlic toast biscuits, chocolate bars, galbo and horn chocolate WOW!!!! we bought the special-kind-of-yanyan and tons of other things for ourselves and others. packing time!

time spent: quite long  -_-'''
money spent:we were abit more prudent this year compared to last year so it was good! :)
was it worthwhile?
being able to work on something with PP, hearing kids squeal in delight and say things like "Ooooh Ms Esther Lin, you are so sweet!!".."CHEEZELS!!!! THERE'S CHEEZELS!!!"..."Thank you SO MuCH i have never received anything like this before!".."Ms Esther Lin, you always like that one!!" ..."EEEEEEH!! There's CHEEZELS!!!" ...i guess it was worthwhile :) :)

30 sep 2010 from the DD

"God bless your photoshoot! =)"

received this sms from huilin in the morning of 30 sep-the day of our photoshoot! woke up feeling quite tired and groggy, and definitely, quite nervous about how the day would turn out.

10.00am. joce and PP arrived. dear joce had cheerfully agreed to come along for the photoshoot. we packed our stuff, took the guitar and set off! PP driving the mazda and meeeeeee driving the miiiiinnnniii!!! :) we bought breakfast and headed for the studio.all this while, it was drizzling. but i kept telling myself to have faith.

11.00am. thought we were running late. we went to the studio and discovered that it was still not opened even though our appointment was at 10.30am. of course, the worrywart in me started to nag...oh no...this is a bad start to the day..

11.10am. emily, my make-up artist arrived! she was nice and friendly and very sweet. although the trial makeup did not go too well (because of me not knowing what i wanted) it all worked out fine even though false eyelashes were poking my eye! PP had to wear make-up too!!!hahahaha!! :)

12.30pm. we were almost done, but it was still raining :( :( :( we decided to have our lunch first. PP went to maxwell market to grab some food while joce and i stayed at the studio...

1.30pm. we finished our lunch, and our koi, but it was still raining.....

2.15pm. we decided to just set off.

2.30pm. we arrived at mount emily park. it was still raining....we had to stay in the car and wait..joce showed me a hilarious caucasian version of our photographer...

3pm. we could not wait any longer! although it was still drizzling, we headed out anyway. the sand was wet, the swings and see-saws were wet, we had to make do with alot of plastic bags and towels, but we were already starting to have fun and that was when we realised that our photographer was really humourous and we felt quite comfortable with him :) :) thanksgiving: thank God for our photographer, calvin!

4pm. we headed for portsdown road. our photographer has an eye for detail and good lighting. we found a pretty spot and took somemore pictures. we experimented with our props, we ate (sour) strawberries, cycled, and saw a lorry that was stuck on the field because of the mud caused by the rain. thanksgiving: thank God for the rain! by then, it had stopped raining and the sun had come out. perfect for photo-taking :) and not too hot for us! PLUS, no mosquitoes, possibly because of the rain :) :) :)

5pm. we headed for the railway track that was not too far off. we met...a photojournalist...and we took more pictures :)

6.20pm we reached upper seletar reservoir, a most beautiful place. the sun was setting! gasp! we were running out of time! gasp! PP had to pump the helium balloon! gasp! i had to change! gasp! this was probably when the madness started. i walked/sprinted/jogged/crawled all the way to the toilet with joce rallying behind/next to me. it was the longest walk of my life. the toilet was a good 1000000000000000000000000km away and i thought i was never going to reach! at long last, i stepped into the toilet. gasp! there were no lights! in a frenzy, auntie suggested that we just close the door to the toilet entrance and we did just that. i changed, as fast as i could! i think i looked mad. i ran out. gasp! PP was still nowhere to be seen. ah, that was when i saw him in a distance, running towards me, brandishing a 3 feet wide balloon in his hands.

i thought to myself, 他真的是在追我。quickly, hastily, the photograper set up his equipment while we tried to blot the oil off our face and i tried to look sane. we took pictures....with the beautiful sunset..it was....so beautiful.. thanksgiving: that was when i really tasted God's love. joce told me that if it did not rain, the clouds would not have cleared and sunset would not have been so gorgeous.

7.15pm we decided to leave the place.

7.30pm. the carpark was so far away it took us so long to actually leave.

7.50pm. we dropped joce off at FEBC before heading back to the studio. thanksgiving: auntie, you are such a great great help!!!! we will really be a mess without you! it is also a comfort to have you beside me while i drive.....

8.10pm. our families were waiting for us! i ran to the studio trying not to trip over the gown. changed.

8.30pm. we started taking pictures and that was when i felt a warm fuzzy feeling in my heart. 2 families 'united' because of our relationship. thanksgiving: for all our beloved loved ones who love us so much and patiently waited for us! also, the timing according to jie, was good because Zachy just woke up.

9.30pm. had dinner, went home, cleared up. soooooo many things that needed to be cleared up! spent a good 30 min clearing the gunk on my face and another 45 min clearing the helmet of hairspray on my head!

1.00am. finally, i can take a deep breath. can we say enough about how good God is to us, in so many countless ways? when you start to doubt, don't. have faith. be sure that you are walking according to God's purposes and that is when you will really taste, and see that the Lord is good, indeed. Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

all that said

the cards were fun to make but all that aside, it has been an amazing journey thus far as we approach 01012011. counselling with rev koshy has been very blessed and thought-provoking. learning everyday and striving harder to be a help-meet for PP.

its not about me, but about him. its not about what he can do for me, but what i can do for him..

it is a beautiful pattern set by God. have been reading a book given by jie. after reading the first chapter, im aspiring to pray more for my partner, for life. thinking about it makes me look forward to the big day even more!! :) :)

xiong di cards

of course, since there are 姐妹 (chinese for sisters) cards, there ought to be 兄弟(chinese for brothers) cards as well :)

our plan is for the brothers to wear suspenders on that day, hence this concept :)

a tutorial on how to fold the shirt from a dollar bill-sized paper can be found here :) thank God for dear PP who folded ALL the shirts!!! :)

because we felt the tie looked too bland, we used japanese masking tape to coat it. then, we added two brown strips down the sides of the shirt to look like suspenders. the rest is pretty much straight forward, similar to cards for my sisters :)
ta da!

making my bridesmaid cards

just thought i would share something crafty i have been up to. i have been up to alot of crafty things which i really enjoy alot but im also trying to tread carefully...

both in terms of managing my time, and also that i will not take pride in these things. really need God's help!

this is what i did for my sisters-to-be on my big day!

here's a little tutorial! you need:
1) PAPER - i like the kind from popular where you have to weigh the paper before making your purchase. they have a nice texture :) you will need 4 colours: for the base of your card, the colour of the skirt, the lines that hem the skirt, and red colour for the heart.
2) double-sided tape - the thick foamy/flat kind, both will do.
3) glue
4) scissors
4) a cutter to round the corners of the card would be a nice touch :)

cut a strip of paper for the skirt. estimated size 5 cm by 21cmv(the width of A4 paper). after that, cut thin little strips of blue paper to line the bottom of the strip. estimated thickness - 3mm. glue the two strips on the white strip of paper.

fold the edge slightly crookedly (sorry i don't know how else to express this, hope the picture helps!

snip off the little corner at the bottom that will be sticking out from the front.

now the folding starts! note, your aim is to get the blue strips curl nicely in a wide 'u'. as you fold, allocate more space to the bottom as compared to the top of the skirt. this requires practice so you can try it with scrap paper first :)

fold fold fold! :) after about 8-9 pleats, fold the strip of paper backwards.

cut!

depending on the outcome of your skirt, snip off the top to even out the waist (about 0.5cm)

now to make the waist :) cut a strip of paper the same size as the blue lines..put some glue, paste it on the tip of the skirt.

fold the rest to the back of the skirt and use a big piece of double-sided tape to hold everything in place.

cut a nice little heart from red paper. stick the skirt on the card, and the heart on the skirt :) it will be nice to use the thick foamy kind of tape so there is a "pop-out" effect.

type, print and cut out your question...i used a font called tweed, available here. add your own message at the back and the masking tape with the same colour combination is a nice touch :) not to forget the rounded corners!

the more i do the cards, the more i think about my sisters...and i am thankful!

6 things to thank God for

time has flown by. how have all of you all been? im sorry for the lack of updates. i have been trying to prioritize. trying to attend to the things that are more important, but im still struggling in doing so. what about all of you? what comes first in your life and is it something worthwhile?

many things have happened to me in the past few months.

first thanksgiving, is to thank the Lord for a wonderful avenue of work. thank God for how after some time of waiting, He has arranged a perfect plan for me. thank God for understanding leaders..and how He has used them to work out an arrangement for me to work part-time. :)

second thanksgiving: as we near the end of PP's attachment, thank God for sustenance. there has been many ups and downs (sometimes in my impression more ups than downs :S ) but thank God that we learn and grow...right, PP?

third thanksgiving, for church camp. though it was only in june, it just seems so far far away. how i wish to be free from all our cares and worries and just gather every morning to learn and listen to God's word! it was truly a blessed time..but i think i have forgotten the lessons learnt. time to revise...

fourth thanksgiving... i learnt how to cycle!!!! :) with the patient help of PP... meet 一朵 :)


fifth thanksgiving..we are only about 5 months away to our big day. can you believe it? i cant. 5 months does not seem like a very long wait after waiting for 1 and a half years. however, i hardly feel ready in all aspects!

sixth thanksgiving..for my dear nephew, who has grown so well and has brought the whole family so much joy despite the fact that he is loud, indeed.

do i sound very melancholic? i guess im at a point where im asking myself alot of questions...like what actually matters and what doesn't. in what kind of friendships i should invest in and how i can be a blessing to those around me...hmmmm....

ouch

i went for a wisdom tooth operation this afternoon and OUCHIE :( it hurts hurts hurts! still, it's a good time (blessing) to rest a little and recuperate. if i post a picture of my teeth, will it gross you out? :) so much has happened, including the birth of my fiesty nephew who can REALLY resound :) i know, because he wakes me up every morning :) but don't get the wrong idea, im not complaining! i can't wait to recover from my flu so i can carry him again!

pictures of the bazaar have finally been edited so ill post some up here. looking at them make me reminisce the wonderful time i had :)
 

the closure of the bazaar has made me ponder on what i really want to achieve for fitw, hence affecting the decisions that i make regarding it. just taking it all one step at a step. thank God for His care and providence in each step i take. its a comfort that each step i take, my Saviour goes before me..

shoppe update!

the shoppe has been updated with products left over from the bazaar at nus :) by God's grace, there isn't much left (ok i know this sounds weird), but the bags are still available and waiting for THE owner:)

as PP said, every work simply needs that very special one owner, to purchase it and be happy using it.

here are some of the stuff left, and im offering a special few at a discount.

this is priced really cheap because the the label appliqued in front is frayed and loose. it still looks nice though!

i remember this pair of really cute girlfriends chuckling at this bag (which is on sale too!)

i decided to put this on sale too :)

im going to post more images because the images in the shoppe are unfortunately, rather small. note: if you would like a better view of the products, just email a request!

i love this bag to bits!!apparently, so does ahjijan haha :) please, someone buy it because im so tempted to keep it for myself!

this is one of my favourites too :)

the stuff are available only for a few weeks so do act fast~ :)