At 14, Bobby was sure he would marry Shen-Tel one day, to her disbelief. “I can’t imagine my life without him in it. It feels like we have grown up together and that I married my best friend.”

The 16-year-old Shen-Tel was a constant heartbreaker, snubbing Bobby’s persistent requests to be his girlfriend. “I would always say no. It took me 4 years to say yes,” she mused. “Looking back, it amazes me that he never gave up on me.”

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Every now and then, the couple like to reminiscence symbolic milestones of their relationships. Of these memories, the fondest would be their first kiss at the royal Easter show. “It was the moment Bobby thought for the first time that he might have a chance with me,” Shen-Tel remarked cheekily.

In what Shen-Tel calls “the world’s longest courtship”, the wild pair dated for 10 years before tying the knot. On December 2008, they got married in Sydney, followed by a Kuching ceremony in January 16, 2009. The receptions paid tribute to both families’ quirky personalities which they clearly inherited!

2013 marked the start of parenthood, but that didn’t change the couple and their zest for life. After their firstborn, Benjamin, a second son, Kingston, entered their lives in 2014.

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Being the candid person that she is, Shen-Tel spoke to us about her postpartum depression and how she overcame it. “Bobby has seen me at my worst and I know it was a hard period for him too but he’s been amazing,” she had mentioned.

Being married with kids has changed their relationship for the better, and that has helped solidified their bond. “We do miss the days when we were university students who could sleep in till 1pm,” she shared. “We also miss how skinny we used to be before the kids.”

But they wouldn’t trade anything for their parenthood status, especially when witnessing the joy their sons bring to their parents.

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Although its been years, the sparks still fly between Bobby and Shen-Tel. “I love how madly he is in love with me. There is nothing he won’t do for me,” she gushed. “It is the greatest feeling knowing that he has my back and supports every crazy idea.”

For Bobby, Shen-Tel is still the partner-in-mischief of his childhood. “I love how we complete each other’s sentences,” he piped in. “We love the adventures but also sitting and reading the weekend papers.”

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The ultimate test of a relationship is when a couple can do everything together, from working side by side to unwinding at the end of the day. “There is a sense of a 2-for-1 package when it comes to us,” Shen-Tel described. “We are annoyingly inseparable.”

Till death do us part, but it’s equally important to give your partner room to grow. While the 2 profess to be joined at the hip, they both respect each other’s careers. “We both have very different career paths but support each other when it comes to us,” Shen-Tel shared.

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The pair were fortunate to find in each other soulmates at the tender early 20s. It took years of friendship and a fair share of heartache, but it all paid off in the end. “With so many years of friendship under our belts, we knew we were never going to meet anyone else that could fill those life memories.”

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The next time you have the umpteenth lovers' quarrel, know that it’s perfectly normal and part and parcel of finding true love. The same could be said for Bobby and Shen-Tel. “We broke up and got back together so many times over the silliest things, that we ran out of reasons not to be together,” she concluded.