Relationships

Bin Bin Tan In Casual Portraits, Family + Children Portraits, Life, Maternity, Musings, Portraits, Relationships, Tips + Ideas

5 Ways to Treasure Your Pregnancy Journey

Pregnancy is a special time in a woman’s life – full of anticipation, excitement, and joy. However, there is often so much to prepare for that we sometimes get lost, focusing on the to-dos, instead of savouring all the special little moments.

Here are some tips for treasuring your pregnancy, and making the journey just that little bit more special:

1. Take the time to prepare your home

Babies may be small, but they can take up a significant amount of space. From diapers to bottles to clothes, the list of things to buy may seem endless! But shopping for your baby shouldn’t have to be stressful.

Whether it’s a nursery, or carving out a corner in your current room, take the time to think about what works for you and your home. Make a list and run it through with experienced mums. Knowing exactly what items you’ll get also prepares you to designate storage space for the things you need and want, so you don’t end up with more than you can handle.

In the end, having that cozy nook prepared in advance for your little one’s arrival will help build anticipation. Plus, a photogenic corner will help you capture the special moments of your journey.

2. Keep a journal – or even better, a pregnancy scrapbook

Keeping a pregnancy journal is a wonderful way to capture your thoughts and experiences throughout the nine months. You can record your feelings, your hopes and wishes for your baby, your cravings, your daily routines, and more.

For something a bit more special, consider scrapbooking instead. You can include ultrasound photos, baby shower invitations, congratulatory cards, and other mementos. Years later, you’ll be able to look back on these items and remember this special time in your life.

Suzyana Ong In Life, Musings, Relationships

Keeping The Love Alive: 3 Perspectives

Keeping the sparks fly in a relationship/marriage takes intentional effort and sincerity. Hear from three incredible ladies on our team as they share their experiences.

How do you overcome obstacles together?

Grace: When conflict arises, there is one principle that grounds us again and again: We are on the same team. It’s never about me vs. you, but about how we’re able to get through this together. I have learned to be quick to stop judging and always willing to listen. If I listen carefully to his perspective, I am able to understand his thoughts better. This is how we navigate obstacles and challenges within marriage.

Shan: No marriage is perfect and how you navigate through the lowest points of your journey together will truly test your relationship. Patience and understanding are essential. We need to understand that each person will have their own perspective on things, and how you communicate and listen to one another will help you overcome obstacles.

Bin Bin: Disagreements are part of a healthy relationship as long as done in a respectful manner. Always take the time to see things from their perspective, communicate your feelings and needs (don’t expect your partner to read your mind), agree to disagree, take a time out if necessary and don’t go to bed angry!

How do you make things exciting in marriage?

Grace: We love spending time doing fun activities together. Not every activity needs to be adventurous (though we’ve done skydiving before!), but it should be something different that you are willing to explore together. It could be café hopping, watching a movie from a different location (a bathtub, perhaps?), or taking a walk around a park in a previously unexplored part of town.

Shan: Be spontaneous! Not everything has to be planned. Be willing to try new experiences as a couple.

Bin Bin: Be intentional and take action. Don’t wait for things to happen to you, make the things you want happen for yourselves.

What is your most memorable date night?

Grace: A surprise overnight camping trip to Bagan Lalang Beach!

Shan: I wanted to surprise my husband for his birthday. So I told him we were going for a business pitch with some clients (even prepared a proposal for him to take a look at). When we got to the hotel lobby the concierge gave him a note to say there was no meeting but a surprise dinner date instead. After the meal, we went down to the car park and in the trunk of the car, he found a packed bag for a surprise staycation.

Bin Bin: 4 months into our relationship, I had a work trip to Europe. I asked Lih Xiang if he wanted me to extend the trip and travel somewhere together. We ended up booking tickets to Spain. It was really spontaneous and looking back, kind of crazy as it was a new relationship! But I suppose sometimes the craziest things work out for the best. It was definitely a crash course in getting to know your partner.

If you could give one piece of advice to couples out there, what would it be?

Grace: Relationships take time to build. It is the accumulation of many little decisions that we make daily. In the same vein, broken relationships didn’t happen overnight. They are an accumulation of many years of wrong choices, cracks that were ignored, and voices that weren’t heard. Choose wisely what you accumulate and what you need to discard.

Shan: Pick your battles! Remember to cherish and affirm one another while making time to grow your relationship.

Bin Bin: Don’t sweat the small stuff. Learn to let the unimportant things go. Don’t take your partner for granted and make time for each other (especially after you have had kids!).

About us

Grace has been on this journey called marriage for 17 years, together with her husband, Alex, and two children. Other than photographing families, she loves helping couples improve their relationships and reach their family goals through coaching.

Shan has been in a relationship for the past 22 years, of which being married 12 years. She has two kids and looks forward to spontaneous moments and weekly date nights with her husband, Segar.

Bin Bin met her husband, Lih Xiang while diving in the Philippines. They have been married for 6 years, recently welcomed their first child and look forward to more adventures around the world (diaper bag now in hand).

Bin Bin Tan In Life, Musings, Relationships, Tips + Ideas

Capturing My Journey Towards Parenthood

Photo from Bin Bin

I’ve never really considered myself to be a very maternal person. In fact, there was a time in my youth where I wasn’t even sure if I wanted kids.

What changed? It could merely be the passage of time and the perspective gained along with it, or finding the right partner to parent with. Whichever it was, since making that decision to have children, it’s been such a journey of self discovery for me and my husband and I’ve realised that this is such a precious time that only happens once in our lives.

Below are the moments in the journey towards parenthood that I now look back on and savour. If I could go back in time, I would have done more to document this experience – especially taking many more photographs!

Grace Tan In Comma Videos, Life, Musings, Relationships

Lessons I Learnt in 14 Years of Marriage

It was 14 years ago, exactly on this date that I said my vows at my dream wedding. I had 200 guests seated at the garden of the Palace of the Golden Horses, all dressed in shades of purple or white. It was the perfect day. There was a cool breeze that day, and everything went smoothly, despite a little accident that broke a portion of the trishaw I was transporting from Malacca for the ceremony that day.

14 years flew by, it wasn’t short, but it didn’t feel so long either. I do not remember the personalised vows I said that day but thank God for videos…all the memories were recorded beautifully. I was an idealistic 27 year old bride. I believed in true love and I found it. But I didn’t know how much work it takes to stay in love.

I’ve learnt many lessons over these 14 years. It took me some time to learn them, so if I could speak to my 27 year old self, I’d say…

The romance may disappear but true love is deeper than just feelings

The commitment we made to one another that day was the seal that brought us together. The heart palpitations faded after a while, but it didn’t mean I was less in love with the man I married so many years ago. The love I feel now is much deeper because of my understanding of who he is, and how much he tries to make things work for the family.

Change yourself first

We had a difficult first year of marriage trying to understand each other. In between tears and feelings of insecurity, I had to come to terms with my own weaknesses. If you accept responsibility for your own actions, your marriage will thank you for it.

If you want the fun and adventure to carry on, you need to make time for it

Life goes on after a while. The bills need to get paid, children come along, and soon, the only excitement you get is to choose which movie to watch on Netflix that night. We really had to make time for date nights where we spent time talking or exploring some new activity. This is even more important after the children are born.

Make time to listen

Even though we work in the same office, there were days when we just breezed through life without saying anything significant to one another. I had to learn to listen with undivided attention so that I could understand his needs. Frequent conversations was the key that made us feel connected.

Always forgive

We might have differing opinions, but we always attempt to resolve issues before sleeping. We need to remember that we are on the same side, not against one another. If there is a problem, it’s our problem, not the other person’s problem. Through the years, we had to learn what it means to speak kindly in the midst of a disagreement.
Ultimately, the very cord that holds us together is our love for Jesus Christ. It’s our belief system that kept us unified all these years. 14 years and counting.

If you would like to follow my marriage and parenting journey, please head on to Comma: Rethink Life.

Sarah Lim In Family + Children Portraits, Outdoor Weddings, Parties & Events, Relationships, Weddings

A 10th Year Wedding Anniversary and Renewal of Vows: Shaun & Jochebed Isaacs

Shaun and Jochebed Isaacs celebrated their 10th year of marriage with an intimate renewal of vows. Together with their daughter Eden, and pastors Mervin and Leanne Jayaseela, they exchanged vows and gestures of honour on a gorgeous day at Putrajaya. They also shared their reflections on marriage and how meaningful this day was for them in a short video. Scroll down to watch!