Today's a very special day in my life... 09-01-09... cos' I am now officially married to OWLoon! Since it's a memorable day, thought I should capture the details of what happened earlier...

Our session was supposed to be at 9.30am but since OWLoon and his family's from Kuala Selangor, we called to change the time to 11.30am instead. We were supposed to meet at Thean Hou Temple at 11.00am so I was a little upset when he arrived 10 minutes late... Luckily my friend was there to distract me... :)

We were number "20" for the day, not sure if it meant we were the 20th couple... nevertheless, once it was our turn, we were asked to produce our original ICs as well as the witnesses IC. Then we were asked to check the details on our marriage certificate...

Thereafter, we entered a little room... OWLoon and I sat side by side facing our fathers (our witnesses). Right in the middle, sat the marriage registrar person. We were then given 3 pieces of documentations to sign... 2 original marriage certs and 1 photostatted... which was rather funny cos' I was under the impression that we should say our wows first prior to signing...

Upon signing... we were asked to stand up... Now this is where the guy started saying our wows for us... in MANDARIN... Honestly, I can't remember half the things he said... partly cos' I was nervous and also cos' my Mandarin's not very 'canggih'. My colleague told me that we can request for the session to be conducted in English... but since everything happened very fast, I guess we forgot to request... hehehe...

Then it was the customary rings exchange session where my hands trembled a little... just a little... :)

And with that... we were pronounced man and wife...! Yay!

I was about to go to the back for the photo taking to begin when dear OWLoon asked the marriage registrar guy... "Don't we have to kiss?"... LoL...

We took numerous photos that day... cos' we've got 3 different cameras... my brother with his view cam... my brother's girlfriend with a point-and-shoot camera and my friend's brother with a DSLR camera...! So much so that we felt like celebrities that day! Haha!

Will post up more photos in a separate post but here's one with OWLoon and I as well as our parents... which marks the beginning of the union of OngLai clans on this auspicious 09-01-09 date... FYI, OWLoon's surname is ONG and mine's LAI. OngLai... means pineapple in Hokkien and the translation's a meaningful one... hehe... Ong = Auspicious, Lai = Come... thus OngLai = Money Come? :)

With that, "maemee" is now officially married and is also legally known as Mrs. Ong! Yay!

The good thing bout getting registered in a temple is that we're able to pray for blessings thereafter... not to mention... temple's a nice place for photo sessions too... :)

OWLoon and I took numerous shots but of the many shots, the most memorable one was when we were "caught" in the act of praying... :)

This was damn funny cos' while we were praying, OWLoon whispered "Praying to your friend ar?" cos' my friend's brother was standing right opposite us and that sentence alone sent me laughing like a mad cow!

Not sure why but I love this photo!!!

OWLoon's friends said our lips looked a like in this photo... And my ex-boss said we look like celebrities... hahaha!

We kept the session small and private where only close family members and friends were present and it is of my greatest pleasure to introduce them to everyone.

My parents & my niece...

OWLoon's parents...

My brother and his girlfriend (who will also be my bridesmaid)...

OWLoon's friend (who will also be his bestman)...

My darling friend... da SHEEP...

And here are some more shots to mark the historical union of the OngLai clans... :)


My life is so beautiful! Yay!!! :)

Whoever who said that there's nothing to prepare for Registration of Marriage (RoM) deserved to be slapped... cos' there are actually quite a few things to be done...

6 weeks before...
First thing first... the wedding bands!!! Honestly, if you ask me what is the happiest thing about getting married? It has got to be da bling blings!!! "Salah" priority I know... hehehe... We took quite a few weeks to get this done... cos' most of the wedding bands are normal looking and are usually just plain platinum bands... But one fine day while we were walking around in Mid Valley, we randomly walked into Diamond & Platinum... and that was where we found the wedding bands we both liked!

4 weeks before...
Next... we needed to ensure that we are properly dressed for the occasion... and this task alone sent OWLoon and I hunting shops after shops, boutiques after boutiques, weeks after weeks... OWLoon needed to get a new blazer and I a new dress... But we are both pretty fussy and vain by nature... Either the cutting's not right or the colour's not "ngam"... In the end... I got my dress a few days before the RoM and OWLoon got his blazer 2 days before!!! Talk about being last minute!!! This was the only photo of us in full length...


1 week before...
Since we spent so much time looking for our blings and our attires... we completely forgot bout the flowers for the day!!! OWLoon only managed to book this 2 days prior the RoM... had to rely on his judgement cos' I had to work... and lucky thing, it turned out great!

1 day before...
A day before the BIG day... I had to go and get my hair done too (must look nice la... somemore my hair is so short now)... Since I was already in my "vain" and "tai-tai" mode... I also went ahead to get a French manicure and pedicure... :)


And those were the preparations we did for our Registration of Marriage. :)

Yesterday's post was written and uploaded via my mobile phone. Since it was OK, here I am again... updating my blog before I zzz...

RoM's this Friday... Only 2 more days to go... The closer it is to the DAY, the more nervous I am. Afterall, my singlehood will be gone within a few strokes of the pen! It's not like I'm not ready to be legally married, but RoM's really a BIG deal! It's a declaration of a lifetime of love and devotion to one another through sickness and health till death do us part. It's a heavy responsibility and should in no way be treated in a light manner!

So I guess, whatever I'm feeling's perfectly normal...

It's my first day at work after my long break and I intentionally got up at 6.30am today hoping that if I start the year waking up early, I won't be late for the rest of the year (not a morning person ma)! Hehe...

Am damn sleepy now, but there are a couple of things buzzing at the top of my mind now...


Fluid Template
I just realized that this template is a fluid one, instead of a fixed one I wanted! While it looks good on a 15-inch laptop, it looks terrible on a 22-inch monitor cos the post panel stretches in accordance to the size of the screen! Each paragraph then became a single liner!!! Grrr...

I supposed that was also one of the reasons as to why I'm not updating this blog as often as I should cos' I spent every free moment fiddling with the bloddy html scripts. Damn kannasai!


New Car
I got a new car last Friday and was rather happy until I realized that the engine sound was louder than it should be (in my opinion la...) and that the car jerks when there's a gear shift. My colleagues said it sounded like a transmittor problem. Anyway OWLoon said he'll test drive it on Wednesday... and the car is on warranty for 3 years... but aiiiii...

Also, I didn't know how SLOW I was driving until I drove this car cos' the digital speedometer's right at the top of the dashboard and one can't help but be drawn to look at the numerical changes. All these while, I've been driving like 50-ish to 60-ish ONLY!!! No wonder everyone says I'm a 'careful' driver!


Old Car
OWLoon came to KL to drive my car to KS last Sat evening cos' I'm selling it off to his relative who owns a chain of Used Cars outlets. The value given was RM3k more than market value and the car collection was done at OWLoon's house! So convenient!

Since this is the first time I'm selling a car (my 1st car is with my brother still until he gets his newly launched City), I wasn't sure what to expect and I must say, it's quite a memorable experience.

Upon signing all the required docs, OWLoon's cousin checked the engine and chasis number to ensure that the actual matches what was written on the registration card. Thereafter, I expected him to inspect the car in greater detail but to my surprised, he said: "OK that's all. Thank you very much. Bye bye!".

When the car was driven away, I felt a twinge of sadness... It's akin to watching your wife elope with some other man! Really! Afterall, my dear City served me well for close to 5 years now. Regretted not taking photos of my car. Sob sob. Goodbye City! Muax!


Registration of Marriage
(I) Dress
I spent 16 fucking days not working and yet I couldn't find a dress for RoM. Last Saturday was the final deciding moment cos I know for a fact that when I resume work, I'll have no time to go dress hunting. Thus OWLoon fetched me to Just Wardrobe at Damansara Uptown.

Out of the many many dresses I tried on, OWLoon selected one and was rather adament that it looked good on me. But somehow I dislike the dress. It was a 1 piece corset like tube top coupled with a flaired A-line bottom. Anyway, as a back up option - we bought the dress and will be collecting it on Wednesday cos alterations are required. Back up option cos if I see anything nicer between now and then, I'd buy it!

(II) Hand Bouquet
Which reminds me... We haven't booked any hand bouquet yet!!!

(III) Lunch Venue
And we have not even decided where to have lunch after the session!

Kannasai or not? I'm registering in a few days time and everything's not done yet! This is only the beginning and I'm already scrambling! I'm so stressed out!!! Wahhh!


New Role
This new role was more challenging than I initially thought. But strangely I felt motivated to catch up and learn up asap. If anything, this new role will have me equipped with enterpreneurial skills of running a business on a large scale! And is something I've always wanted...


Btw... blogging is really a great way to relieve pent up frustrations and an even greater avenue to record beautiful moments / occasions!


ZZZzzz...

Our RoM date is fast approaching...
In less than 4 weeks, OWLoon and I will be officially married...

Last weekend, we finally completed the most important item in our checklist (for now)... the wedding bands! Prior to this, we window shopped at so many different outlets checking out the different types of bands offered... But nothing really caught our fancy and thus it was delayed week after week... But last weekend, we finally saw something that we both liked...

All was OK until we came home... when I tried on the ring again, somehow it felt tighter than when I first put it on... Even my parents said it was a bit too tight... That night, I couldn't sleep... Was so worried that they wouldn't let me change another size cos' we have already engraved our initials and anniversary date on the ring... The first thing I did when I got up the following morning was to try the ring on again (our fingers swell in the morning)... and surprise surprise... I could barely push it in...

In desperation, I called up the lady who served us... and told her about the situation. I was half expecting her to say "resize" since it's already engraved but noooo... she told me that I could exchange with the other ring that I tried on yesterday and that she will reserve it for me... We rushed to Mid Valley after breakfast (in case she changes her mind)... When she asked us if we want to engrave the same initials and date... we were totally surprised (cos' we assumed that she has forgotten bout the engravings on the earlier ring)! Apparently, even if you've engraved at the back of the ring, they can still polish it off... PHEW!!!

So now I got the right ring size and even had it engraved with our initials and marriage date: AV919! Here's a clearer picture of the ring which I took off the net. It's called a "Promise" collection with 7 diamonds in a channel setting. OWLoon got the same one but with thicker band...

Plus, they even cleaned my engagement diamond ring for free! After cleaning, my ring's all bright and shinny again... and the sparkle was just so blinding... hehehe! Since I brought along the diamond certificate (must match the serial number if you take your ring for cleaning)... OWLoon asked them to check the market value of the diamond... In less than 4 months, the value has increased by RM700! Hehehe...

I love my blings!

Today OWLoon and I went to Thean Hou Temple to complete Step 1, 2 and 3 of registering our marriage... >> Application >> Declaration and >> Submission...

We reached the temple at about 3pm and there was barely any queue. While waiting for our turn, we realised that we're the oldest couple around... The rest of the couples were all in their early 20s... I mean, OWLoon and I are also 20s la... but late twenties...

The other peculiar thing was that the front desk staff was an Indian guy called Mathi. Who would've thought of that la right... Chinese temple somemore... hehehe... We paid RM99... and were given a receipt...

After that, we went to the Commissioner for Oaths office to declare that we're not married before... I was kinda nervous cos' I wasn't sure if I had to like literally swear in public... you know... palm in the air... "I solemly swear that blah blah blah..."... and when I asked OWLoon he said: "Ya... Must swear in public. Maybe they'll take our blood and ask us to drink it too"... LOL...

In the end, we only signed a couple of forms and submitted all our photostated documentations. The fee here was RM29.

Our RoM date is fixed on 09-01-09 (Friday) at 9.30am. Apparently, we're the 3rd couple for the day and each session takes no more than 10 minutes! It's kinda hard to believe that I've waited all my life only to be married off in 10 minutes! :)

Since it's a significant day, we took a photo outside the temple... and even bought the number 9109 at Sports Toto... hehehe...

Went to Thean Hou Temple (somewhere near Mid Valley) to find out the processes of registering our marriage. Rushed like mad only to find out that the Marriage Registry office is open from 9am till 5pm on Saturdays not 9am to 12noon as mentioned by my colleague...

So anyway... while we were there, we found out that there are actually 5 steps to registering one's marriage:

• Step 1: Application
• Step 2: Statutory Declaration
• Step 3: Submission
• Step 4: Verification
• Step 5: Registration of Marriage

Step 1: Application

• The couple must be present in person and bring along the following documents:
• Original and 1 photocopy of Identity Card (A4 size, not to be cut)
• Original and 1 photocopy of Birth Certificate (A4 size, not to be cut)
• 1 passport-size coloured photograph each (Instant photos are unacceptable)
• Photocopy of 2 witnesses' I.C. (A4 size, not to be cut)
• Witnesses must be Malaysian Citizen above 21 years old. They are not required to be present during the submission application.
• Application from male below 18 or female below 16 is NOT acceptable. Female below 18 but above 16 may register her marriage with license granted by Ketua Menteri and her father must be her witness.
• At least one of the applicants must be a Buddhist. Foreigners or Malaysian who had registered abroad or had carried out traditional wedding before 1/3/1982 cannot apply to register here.
• Time for Submission of Application: 9.00am till 5.00pm (Monday to Saturday)

Step 2: Statutory Declaration

• After filling the application form, the couple shall make a Statutory Declaration with the Commissioner for Oaths.
• All expenses relating to the oath declaration are out of concern with the Marriage Registration Department.
• According to Section 494 of the Penal Code: If a bigamist is found guilty, he/she shall be sentenced to imprisonment of up to 7 years (and fined)!
• Note: Definition of bigamist - Any married person regardless of male / female, if he/she is married to another person when his/her earlier marriage is still valid (with spouse still alive), he/she has committed a bigamy.

Step 3: Submission

• Registration date shall be fixed at least 21 days after the date of submission but must not exceed 2 months (subject to date availability).
• Fees are payable upon submission. Fee collected is not refundable.
• Please notify the officers 3 days before the date of registration if there is a request for a date change. The application will be declared invalid if a couple fails to turn up to register within 6 months after the date of submission. Couples who intend to register must re-apply and re-do all payments.

Step 4: Verification

• All completed application form and documents submitted by the applicant shall be verified by the Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara (JPN) before the Registration of Marriage could be carried out.
• Marriage Registration can ONLY be solemnized after Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara's (JPN) approval.

Step 5: Registration of Marriage

• The couple and 2 witnesses must be present with the following documents:
• The couple's original Identity Cards
• The couple's original Birth Certificates
• Two witnesses original Identity Cards
• Attire on the day of registration:
• Bridegroom: Shirt & necktie
• Bride & witness: To dress neatly or formally
• T-shirts, jeans, short pants and slippers are not allowed
• Time of registration: As set by the Marriage Registration Department
• Do not bring along children and please switch off mobile phones to avoid disturbances during registration.
• The couple and witnesses are allowed to bring their own cameras, flowers or rings during the ceremony.
• The marriage ceremony is completed once the couple receive their Marriage Certificates.

Went for an external meeting today and on the way stopped by Cartier...

Colleague and I then decided to pop by to look at their selection of wedding bands...

It was a pleasant experience as the boutique supervisor who is an Indian lady was not just polite but super duper friendly and helpful too... Before I left the boutique, she even gave me a Cartier catalogue and a Cartier paper bag! Hehehehe...

This was the ring that I liked but when OWLoon and I went and try it on the following week... it didn't looked as nice. Plus, someone mentioned that 3's a crowd though the 3 intertwined rings meant love, fidelity and friendship!!!

The trip to Bali was an extremely memorable one for Alan and I... We've both been together for over a decade thus it is unusual to hear that we've experienced many firsts together. But what was surprising was that, this trip alone offered many firsts for us too...

• Like how I had manicure and pedicure at the beach for the first time
• Like how he wore "sarong" for the first time
• Like how we visited an active volcano for the first time
• Like how we stayed in a suite for the first time
• Like how we tried the couple spa for the first time
• Like how we both watched Olympics out of Malaysia for the first time

But more importantly, it was the first time Alan ever knelt down in front of me.

He proposed to me in Bali!!!

And he chose to do it on our last night at Nusa Dua after dinner in our suite. It was 08-08-08 at 8pm just before the Olympics Opening Ceremony in Beijing begun!!!

I've always dreamt of this moment and have always thought that I would smile sweetly while nodding in agreement. But when it really did happen, it was nothing like what I dreamt about. The minute he knelt down and said those things he said, tears just flowed down my cheeks non-stop.

For as long as I knew him, I have never seen him kneel down. He has this condition where the bones at both his knees juts out when he kneels. Doctor said it was cos he was too active when he was younger and that there wasn't a need to fix it cos they only hurts when he kneels down. So imagine my surprise when he knelt down in front of me!

I was touched beyond words and I could see that he too was choking back his tears when he delivered his proposal... sentence after sentence slowly. I have never felt more loved before and I knew that he felt the same cos it was written all over his face and his eyes... :)

On a more delighted note. He got me a really "tua-liap" bling bling, an 0.91 carat which cost him a bomb! Hehehehe...

So ya, Alan and I are officially ENGAGED!!!