Wedding Planning Checklist

9 - 10 months before the BIG day, i.e. your wedding

• Decide on a location for your destination wedding
• Draw up a wedding budget
• Decide on the size of your wedding and begin developing a guest list
• Gather information about potential ceremony and reception sites, set a date, and book as soon as you are sure of your location
• Gather informaion about marriage requirements
• Hire your wedding planner
• Invite your close friends and family to be part of your wedding party
• Choose and book the officiant
• Develop your wedding website
• Researc group room rates and reserve blocks of rooms for your wedding party and guests. Update your website with the information
• Begin shopping for your bridal gown
• Begin researching wedding vendors including photographers, videographers, florist, reception bands and DJ
• Book your caterer

9 months

• Order your wedding shoes
• Book your photographer
• Book your videographer
• Book your reception band or DJ
• Book your florist
• Send out your "Save the Date" cards or smses

8 months

• Decide on men for reception
• Begin shopping for bridesmaids' attire
• Decide on flowers
• Make travel arrangements for wedding and honeymoon   

7 months

• Order bridesmaids' dresses
• Begin exploring music selections for your ceremony and reception

6 months

• Begin attending pre-marital counselling
• Shop for wedding invitations
• Groom: begin shopping for attire for you and your groomsmen
• Register for gifts

5 months

• Gather all the documentation you will need in order to be married at your destination
• Apply for passport if you do no have one; if you have a passport, be sure it's still valid
• Obtain a visa if your destination requires one
• Obtain translations for your documents if required
• Shop for wedding rings (or earlier if there's sale)
• Research cake designers

 4 months

• Order your wedding invitations
• Order your wedding cake
• Order your wedding rings
• Make arrangements for wedding day transportation

3 months

• Address your wedding invitations
• Begin writing your wedding vows, if you're a Christian
• Begin designing wedding programme if you intend to have one

2 months

• Send out your wedding invitations
• Begin deciding on your hairstyle and try different hair do's
• Purchase gifts for attendants, parents & each other
• Purchase items for gift baskets
• Prepare a packing list for travel to your destination and honeymoon

1 month

•  Have your final dress fitting
• Check in wth bridesmaids to be sure their alterations are on schedule
• Finalise the order with your florist
• Meet with your photographer to discuss the pictures that are important to you
• Contact your ceremony and reception musicians to finalise the music that will (and will not!) be played

2 weeks

• Call guests who have not returned their rsvp
• Bride: get your hair trimmed and coloured
• Prepare your reception seating chart

When you arrive at your destination

• Meet with your wedding coordinator to go over last minute details
• If you do not have a wedding coordinator, contact each of the wedding vendors to confirm all arrangements
• Get your marriage license
• Have your dress pressed
• Get manicure and pedicure
• Meet with your hairstylist if you're having one; usually the make-up artist is your hairstylist

Source: Destination I do & Honeymoons Too Spring 2009

You are What you Think

Here's something I've been keeping on my notice board for ages and would like to share it with you:



You are what you think:



Thoughts are like seeds...

Watch your thoughts

They become your words


Watch your words...

They become your actions.


Watch your actions...

They become your habits


Watch your habits...

They become your character


Watch your character

They become your DESTINY.


-Unknown-

Then and Now: My Feelings about Being Pregnant

I had mixed feelings when I first found out that I was pregnant, mostly because I wasn't prepared to be a mother. Unplanned pregnancy, what d'you expect?

The first time the doctor did ultrasound on my belly, 'it' (my unborn baby) was just merely 4.6cm in diametre.  All I could see was just a black dot.

I was OK, emotionally.

I did feel a bit nervous when I stepped into the clinic because I wasn't sure if I were pregnant.

"What if I were?" "What happened next?" All these questions were circling in my mind.

When the doctor broke the news to me that I was indeed pregnant, I breathe a sigh of relief. Not that I was all joyful or anything.

No more guessing games. No more anxiety. That was 'the' relief.

A new thing to worry about, that's all.

The next immediate decision was which hospital to go to. That was easy.

There's only one nearby.

So we made the time to go to the hospital.

The second checkup was at the hospital, my first appointment with a gynaecologist (I eventually said vaGINA-cologist *Blush*). And it kind of changed my feeling about being pregnant.

'It' had developed into a vague figure.

I could see its heartbeat, a sign of life; its head and behind were visible and I could see its hands and they moved, a bit.

I developed a sense of motherhood in that instant.

I was...pretty ready to be a Mom.

I was in my 9 weeks' of pregnancy.

A month later and I was back at the hospital, waiting patiently for 2 long hours to see the gynaecologist (it happens sometimes). Those who came in later than me went in first, which I later concluded that they had bigger bellies than me and so they were prioritised.

Well, it wasn't a big deal. It was worth the wait.

Whenever I visit the gynaecologist, there's only one thing in my mind.
Do the ultrasound immediately!
I wanna see my baby!

So there it was...only a tiny 7cm, but was already moving vigorously, stretching its hands and kicking its legs.

The body parts were becoming more apparent. I could see clearly both his hands, legs, relatively big head and bum.

I realised...I had fallen in love, with this life inside me.

I'm now into my 4th month pregnancy and I can't wait to have him/her in my arms in August.

Oh, I'm so over the moon right now....

I'm going to see my baby in 2 weeks' time! On the screen, I mean.

AirAsia X Factor

I was on an AirAsia X flight returning to Kuala Lumpur from Tianjin, China. It was my first time on AirAsia X.

Why AirAsia X, you ask? Well, it's the only airline in KL which has direct flights to Tianjin.

If there were an alternative, I'd surely opt for that.

So, there we (my husband and I) were, onboard and settling down, tucking our carry-on luggage into the over-head compartment, when a woman in her early 50s asked my husband to put her rather large carry-on into the same compartment as ours, which was already quite full.

So, he did her the favour, placed her luggage into the compartment and she thanked him for that.

It was almost time for take off; flight attendants were trying to finalise everything, making sure all compartments were tightly closed and what have you not.

We were buckled up and ready for take off, when a stewardess asked the owner of a luggage (in this case, it was the woman in her 50s) to transfer her bag to another compartment as it was too full.

The woman looked at her (the stewardess) helplessly because it seemed that the luggage was too heavy for her to carry. So, she asked the stewardess in the most polite manner if she could help her with her luggage.

Well, we all know that it's a flight attendant's duty to help passengers, right? And they would always help with a smile.
Or so I thought.

The reply she gave to that woman sucked me into a complete disbelief phase.

"It's your bag, shift it on your own."

I believe my eyes widened for a long one minute. I was stunned. Totally taken aback.

Not only did she say that loudly, but she said in a rather rude tone; it sounded like a command. And to a woman in her 50s!

I would never do that, ever.

I felt so sorry for that woman.

In the end, the poor woman shifted the bag on her own, without even complaining or getting mad at anyone.

As for the stewardess? She acted like nothing happened and continued doing her "duties".

I wonder, was it THAT difficult of a task for her to perform? It'd only take her less than, say, 2 minutes max to move that bag.

But, she just wouldn't do it.



What you pay is what you'll get. In this case, it applies.

So, if you choose to fly AirAsia or AirAsia X, drop all your expectations.

You wouldn't want to wind up in frustration and disappointment.





Bon Voyage!





More about AirAsia X on the next posting.....stay tuned.