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Swerving through the pandemic surely is no feat. And facing the Covid-19 storm head-on requires so much more strength, courage, & perseverance. From juggling with the whole work-from-home scene to facing the realities of wedding postponements – surely anyone who had gone through this experience deserves a huge pat on the back!
In this article today, we had the privilege to hear from 2 of our couples, Krystine & Cyrill, Thiviyah & Vecks, and our founder, Laverne, on how they have graced through these trying times, and perhaps, still swerving through it, but with a stronger heart & mind each day. These real stories are stories of a love that perseveres through it all – and one where we could not make it through without the relentless teamwork from our loved ones!
You may find these honest stories relatable: the struggles of communicating your needs to your partner or appreciating the little moments with your family during the lockdown. We hope these stories inspires you to not shy away from the heartbreak, but face the road ahead with big smiles & heads’ high!
While we’re still waiting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, the pandemic has certainly shed a light on these 3 couples that their love is much stronger & braver than they think. So, get cozy as you read on these love lessons learned during the pandemic by these individuals!
With lockdown being imposed, we’re spending an even greater time at home with our families and loved ones. While this gives us an opportunity to be physically there for our loved ones, being completely present – physically, emotionally, and mentally, takes a lot more effort.
For newlyweds Krystine & Cyrill, the pandemic did not give them much of a change in their routine, as they’re both serving their housemanship. The newlyweds who tied the knot in early May this year shares how they both look forward to each other’s company at home, especially after a long, hectic day of work.
Gorgeous solemnisation ceremony for Krystine & Cyrill taken at the St. Francis Xavier Church Melaka.
“Marriage life has been great! The married life has definitely brought us close and more intimate as a couple. Coming home every day to the thought that I have someone who would always be there for me no matter what, just as how we had vowed to each other, is just simply wonderful,” shares Krystine when we asked her how has her marriage life been. “As we’re not home most of the time, we always look forward to coming home to each other’s company,” Krystine adds to her experience of being newlyweds in the pandemic.
Sam’s 4th Birthday Celebration with a cozy Batman Themed Party To Go all done with a stress-free, seamless setup at home.
For our founder, Laverne, the pandemic has shed a light on how she viewed ‘home’ – as more than just a building & a place for rest. For Laverne now, home is a place for valuable family time. Laverne shows us that with just a little intention to your daily routine planning, you can make every day meaningful.
“While the lockdown period has its own hurdles, I’m grateful that I got to spend more time at home with my family, and getting to know our neighbours and neighbourhood better. Before Covid-19, both my husband and I were hardly home as our schedule’s are booked with meetings, outings, and home seems to only be a place for rest. Now, as I stay home a lot more, I get to take my dogs out for walks while Sam goes cycling around the housing area, it makes me see the beauty of our neighbourhood much better!” — Laverne
Love in the pandemic today is to be completely present with our loved ones. It is to leave tomorrow’s worries for tomorrow and to live every day a day at a time.
A little ‘Thank You’ goes a long way. And in these trying times, love is about appreciating the little things our loved ones & families had done for us.
A Marriage of Cultures – Krystine & Cyrill all dolled up in their respective heritage: Krystine was born from a family of mixed Portuguese and Chinese descent, and Cyrill a mixed heritage of Sabahan & Sarawakian.
For Krystine & Cyrill, it is the random texts during work hours – just to show a little support & love to each other!
And let’s also not forget the small efforts done by our loved ones just to cook up a delicious meal at home.
Thiviyah & Vecks – Best of Friends & Lifelong Partner.
“This pandemic definitely has got us appreciating the little things that we do for each other.” — Thiviyah & Vecks
“As we get to spend more time with each other, we’re able to learn & understand more about each other, our emotional needs, and expectations of each other,” shares Thiviyah & Vecks. “Thiv has been putting a lot of effort into cooking delicious meals for the both of us. As we both are new to cooking, I truly appreciate the time she takes to find new recipes and put her time & love into cooking for us,” adds Vecks.
“Homecooked meals are the best by my wife,” shares Cyrill.
And being grateful for the health of our loved ones matters a lot more today.
“To be living in times like these, it can be hard to count our blessings. But, I’m just extremely grateful that my family and close friends are still well and healthy. We are all affected by the pandemic. For now, I’m just thankful that our loved ones are alive, well & healthy. To me, that is my greatest blessing every day during the pandemic.” — Laverne
The heartache of dealing with the realities of the pandemic – the stress & changes – is a real struggle for many today. But for these individuals, they’re counting their blessings every step of the way! Love in the pandemic is a love that’s brave enough to swerve through the storm and take on any pandemic challenges that comes your way.
Right: Thiviyah & Vecks’ traditional pre-wedding photoshoot
For Thiviyah & Vecks, it is having to face the disappointment of the postponement of their wedding date. But it did not stop them from staying close with each other. Thiviyah shares how she had moved into their rental home just to stay close to each other.
“Covid restrictions have delayed our marriage to an unknown date. Since we have only done our marriage registration, we’re not able to move in together yet until the traditional wedding ceremony is done. I moved into our rental home, which we were supposed to move in together after our wedding, just to stay close to each other! It’s been tough as we navigate through these pandemic times, but we are counting our blessings every day, and hoping that everyone stays safe.” — Thiviyah & Vecks
Wedding bells rang for newlyweds, Krystine & Cyrill on their wedding day ceremony, photo taken at St Francis Xavier Church, Melaka.
Top right: Krystine serenaded the night with a surprise love song for Cyrill during their couple dance.
The pandemic also allowed Krystine & Cyrill to reflect together as newlyweds their plans to build up their home & family and to cherish every moment they have together.
“This pandemic has certainly allowed us to reflect as newly-weds and cherish each other’s company even more. Both Cyrill and I have thought about having kids after marriage. Rather than rushing through the process, we realised that raising a child comes with immense responsibility where both of us have to be mentally and physically prepared to navigate through these difficult times. It’s important that we set a good environment and support system before rushing to have kids. As we spend a lot more time together during this pandemic, it definitely allowed us to have some time to enjoy these moments together as a couple before a new responsibility comes along.” — Krystine & Cyrill
Laverne shares her struggle working from home, while at the same time caring for her firstborn, Sam. Being a mompreneur surely is no feat: from juggling with house chores, to supervising the children’s education while championing work, all at the same time, Laverne shares that it takes a lot of teamwork with her husband and tons of intentional planning to conquer each day!
“Honestly, working from home during the pandemic is pretty stressful especially when we have to juggle between work time and playtime with our child. There was a period of time where I found myself physically and mentally drained and I knew this would not be beneficial for my mental and physical health in the long run. It takes a lot of communication and teamwork between my husband and me where we had to work our schedules around each other. I think I’m considered lucky as I have more control as to when to plan my meetings. We try to work our meetings around so as if one is busy with work, another will be available to take care of Sam.
But, there will be times when the both of us are busy or when we need to attend the same meeting together. When that happens, we will need to take more time to intentionally plan Sam’s schedule so that we’ll let him watch TV while we have meetings. Sam gets his screen time on non-school days. On Fridays, he gets his screen time when we have night meetings.
And on weekends, we watch movies together. It’s important to set a healthy daily routine as we do not know how long this pandemic will last. My daily evening play time for Sam is also a break for me from work where my husband and I take time to exercise and spend time with Sam outdoors.” — Laverne
Being transparent with our feelings & thoughts is key to building a strong and healthy relationship. Just as how we’re not meant to journey through these difficult times alone, learning to communicate and getting support from our loved ones certainly helps when it comes to conquering the pandemic storm.
This rings true especially for Laverne, where both she and her husband takes turn to run the house! Laverne shares how she communicated with her husband to make teamwork a dreamwork as both of them juggles caring for their home and work at the same time.
“I sent off my helper on the first day of January this year. I still remember the night before the New Year’s, I found myself panicking, thinking how do I cope with the stress from working from home, caring for my kid and family, cleaning and taking of the house chores. Of course, I couldn’t have done it all alone. I discussed it with my husband and we tried to come up with some regular routines. During the first few weeks of lockdown, I spent almost every night watching YouTube tutorials on how to prepare meals! The support and understanding I got from my spouse and business partner helped me a lot as I navigate through the lockdown period.
I find that coming up with a daily routine helps a lot in coping in these overwhelming times. Teamwork with my husband to divide and conquer the house chores mattered a lot more, and Sam will just have to learn to be more independent by cleaning up after his own mess or toy area.” — Laverne
Krystine & Cyrill also shares how both of them took the time to understand each other to make teamwork happen!
“Both Cyrill & I have odd working hours. We both try our best to understand each other and take turns doing the house chores. Usually, whoever comes home first or has an off-day would be the one finishing the house chores!” shares Krystine.
“During the lockdown period, both my wife and I made an unspoken understanding to never be calculative with each other. At home, whoever is free will do the house chores.” — Cyrill
For Thiviyah & Vecks, spending a lot more time at home meant that they could understand each other a lot more. The time & effort made by the couple to communicate & be transparent with each other was definitely worthwhile.
“Being newly-weds has been a fun journey: it’s like hanging out with your best friend, but only this time, on a daily basis – and it can be tiring! Thiv visits me daily as we both work from home. We would usually take turns in doing house chores. When Thiv cooks, I’ll clean and we both take turns in mopping & vacuuming the house on a weekly basis,” shares Thiviyah & Vecks when we asked how life together was like. “This pandemic has definitely grown our relationship with each other. We used to argue a lot during the start of the pandemic, mainly due to distance and also the uncertainties of Covid-19. But as the years went on, we learnt to improve our communication with each other and agreeing on things became much easier. Communicating & understanding our partner’s needs & expectations, whether it is emotional support, time, or space has been essential for the both of us during this pandemic time,” adds Thiviyah & Vecks.
“This pandemic definitely has got us appreciating the little things that we do for each other. As we get to spend more time with each other, we’re able to learn & understand more about each other, our emotional needs, and expectations of each other.” — Thiviyah & Vecks
Date nights during the pandemic couldn’t look more different now, especially with travel restrictions being imposed. But, with just a little creativity, even the smallest moments could mean so much. Love is about celebrating every moment despite the circumstances!
Galaxy-themed with a modern touch wedding decor left guests starstruck during Krystine & Cyrill’s wedding reception.
For Krystine & Cyrill, date nights now is as simple as coming home to each other’s company and having a meal together.
“Date nights now looks more like dining in together and coming home to each other’s company. A Netflix & chill date at home on our free days is always a pleasure!” — Krystine & Cyrill
For Thiviyah & Vecks, the pandemic did not stop them from staying inspired to plan out small projects for their home & business.
“Our date nights now mostly consist of doing things together at home like movie nights, trying out new recipes, planning out small projects for our home & our rental business!” — T&V
Our founder, Laverne, shares how she ensures meaningful family milestones stay celebrated with just a splash of creativity, anywhere can be a party.
“This pandemic has definitely got me thinking out of the box for both my family and my business. With travel restrictions in place, it can get hard for us to celebrate meaningful family events. My team and I took this opportunity to bring something new to the business where we pivot from big-scale, elaborated decoration celebrations to intimate, budget-friendly, and cozy easy-to-setup home parties. I got to celebrate Sam’s meaningful milestones even while being at home. Here’s some of the products we curated during the pandemic:
1. Party in a Box: We collaborated with Little Collins where you can have themed birthday celebrations with matching decorations and balloons – a complete celebration, all in-a-box!
2. Party To Go – A thematic party banner with batching decor props, perfect and ready for a home party-setup! Many of our clients were happy with this product as they find it easy to set up. We offer rent-and-reuse options of our ready-themes or you can also customize your own version of Party To Go.
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