Langkawi 23-27 November '07

We had FUN, FUN, FUN in the SUN, SUN, SUN!

Ayah had a 2-day meeting at Sher**on Langkawi 24th-25th November, and the kids and I tagged along for a holiday in the sun with him. We arrived a day earlier, and yours truly managed to shop for a few Corningware and Corelle sets for herself. Hehehe! And the two days when the meeting was on, we just enjoyed the hotel, as Ayah could not get away from it all. Very nice hotel indeed (but, Hasya thinks The Cyberlodge is still the "bestest" ever hotel we have ever stayed at, though!)

We checked out of Sher**on after the meeting ended and checked in into Ber**ya Beach Resort for the rest of our Langkawi stay. Although the hotel on the whole was not as nice/posh as Sher**on Langkawi, the kids just loved the beach and the swimming pool at Ber**ya much better. And I think I agree with them on that. The beach and the pool at Ber**ya were very much more children-friendly. But, in terms of the rooms we had, Sher**on got everybody's vote and won, hands down.

Despite the fact that Hasya was having fever on and off throughout the 5 days, and despite the fact that Hilman threw up nearly everytime after he had his breakfast, lunch and dinner (not because of anything, BUT because he just ate too much all the time!) all in all everybody had great fun.

We rented a Mitsubishi Outlander to get around the island, and discovered Pantai Chenang which became our place to "cari makan" throughout our stay there. Food was excellent, but I have to say that I expected it to be much cheaper than KL. Apparently, Ayah said that if we were to have the same dish, say, in Kuantan, it would have only cost us half of what we paid for in Langkawi! Anyway, we still needed to stuff ourselves with all the seafood while we were there, right?! So, no choice but to eat! Hehehehe!

We managed to cover the 'wajib' attractions (Kota Mahsuri, Underwater World, Cable Car, Telaga Tujuh, etc). This time around we decided not to go island hopping or snorkelling - we're saving those for our next trip to Langkawi, insya Allah (and Hilman just LOVED the waterfall at Telaga Tujuh that we have promised him that next time we will spend more time there!)

But, I think I need another vacation to get over this vacation loorrrr...

Enjoy the pics!

Hanna UNgrounded...

To some, I might have been a wee bit (an understatement?!) too emotional last week when Hanna got her UPSR results. After all, it was ONLY UPSR, right? It wasn't PMR or SPM, or STPM, and it was not even her Uni exam - all these exams being the actual keys to pave her future.

However, it may not be so much of feeling anxious for Hanna. Rather it was more of a guilt trip for me, I guess. For some of you who are new to this blog, you all might not know that I was away from the family for 7 months (November 06-June 07) - meaning for the first 6 1/2 months of this crucial year for Hanna, I was not here for her - to guide or supervise her in her studies. Everything was left to her and her tuition teacher, Puan Ya*untha, who came 3 days a week to Mak's house to coach her. My contribution in that 6 1/2 months : I would call to talk to Hanna and her adek-adek twice a day everyday without fail so that they would not feel my (physical) absence. So, I was REALLY anxious as I was worried that THAT could have affected Hanna's performance (and Hasya's and Hilman's performance, for that matter).

But, syukur alhamdulillah, all three of them did us proud...and I can't thank Puan Ya*untha, and of course all the teachers at SSP enough for all their help and guidance. Thank you, thank you, thank you, and infinity thank you from us.

Anyway, for those who have been following this blog, you would have remembered one of my earlier postings when Hanna was grounded. But, last weekend, as a reward for her 5As, and also because it was her birthday (Saturday 17th November), Hanna was officially UNgrounded, and she was allowed to have some friends over for a special dinner prepared by her Aunty Adek (my sister-in-law) at Mak's, after which they came for a sleep-over at our place in SD.

Aunty Adek who is a die-hard fan of Jamie Oliver volunteered to cook for Hanna's birthday and UPSR celebration. She slaved over the stove and oven since 8 a.m Saturday morning until 8:30pm Saturday night - preparing an All-Jamie-Oliver menu. And moi - my sole contribution was my "Spaghetti Olio" (or as my kids would call it - "White Spaghetti").



* The chef with moi.

And oh yes, that morning we all also had a special treat when AYAH (Yes, you read it right - AYAH!) prepared breakfast for all of us. For HIS standard, I think he also came close to Jamie Oliver....NOT! Hahaha!



* Ayah showing his cooking skills
** Hanna with the Jamie Oliver's spread prepared by her Aunty Adek

It was also my Mommy's birthday on 14th November, so it was a double celebration (or rather TRIPLE - if we include Hanna's UPSR celebration.



* Hanna with friends and family
** Hanna with her Jaddati - the birthday girls!

The next morning, we brought the kids to a skating outing at S**way Py**mid. Imagine supervising 7 screaming/giggling girls (plus Hasya and Hilman who only joined after their traditional dance class at 1:30p.m) from 11:00a.m until 3:00p.m!


* Hanna and friends at the skating rink.

We went back to Mak's house for Zohor and Asar, before proceeding to John*y's at Jaya Section 14 to continue with the celebration. We had the usual Steamboat, etc and sent everybody home after that. By the time the last girl was sent home, it was already 8:00p.m, and both Ayah and I were already like "kain buruk"...


* Dinner at John*y's

But, it was all worth it. Everybody had fun... HANNA had fun...after all we were all celebrating her...

Well done and Congratulations again, my dear...and Happy 12th Birthday!

Ayah and Mommy love you very, very much. And we're so proud of you!

The longest Thursday morning...

I thought waiting for Ayah to come back from KB last night was suatu penyiksaan. But, this morning (or rather - yesterday morning) - I got to REALLY experience REAL torture.

Hanna left for school with Ayah at 6:50a.m, after which I busied myself with all the chores around the house. I didn't get a good sleep the night before as I kept on waking up every half an hour or so - every time checking the clock. Aduhhh...lamanya lah pulak nak daylight!

By 8:30a.m, I already had Hilman and Hasya in the car - still groggy and still in their jammies, with their unkempt hair. The jam along LDP going towards Bandar Utama seemed worse than usual, especially at the Sri Damansara end toll. Both Hasya and Hilman slept throughout the first half an hour of the journey, and it was really quiet in the car, which was rather unusual - I thought to myself. There was something missing. And then I realised - I forgot to switch on the radio, like I would normally do. Hmmmm...my mind was somewhere else... It was with Hanna, to be exact.

As I left LDP and headed towards Taman Tun, Hasya woke up and reminded me -

"Mommy, don't forget to get some Dunkin' Donuts for my class party, okay?"

And I was like - "Party? What party?"

And then I remembered - oh ya... the end of year class party!

9:o5 a.m - reached Dunkin' Donuts off the Sprint Highway opposite Eastin Hotel. Hilman was also awake by then.

Still no phone-call from Hanna, and I was starting to have palpitations...

I thought of getting Dunkin' Donuts for both Hasya and Hilman's party as I was really in no mood to go somewhere else to get some other foodstuff, but, no - Hilman did not want any freakin' Dunkin' Donuts. He wanted a cake. I tried to talk him into settling with Dunkin' Donuts. But, no - he wanted a cake. Me - breathe in, breathe out (10 times).

9:15 a.m - headed towards my office to clock-in. I received permission from the HoD to be away in the morning.

9:35 a.m - still no phone-call from Hanna, and I decided to drive to Section 14 to get Hilman his cake.

Went to Bak*r's Cottage, and Hilman could not find anything that he liked. So, we made our way to Ki*g's Confectionery. My mind was miles away, when suddenly I heard Hilman - "Mommy!!! I want this one!". I didn't even look at the cake, and just asked the staff there to write "Happy Holiday" on it and paid for it. Still no phone-calls.

I dragged Hasya and Hilman to the bank and settled the car loan instalment, and we headed to the Post Office to post some letters.

10:05 a.m - reached Mak's house in PJ and dropped the kids. Tried calling Hanna, but she didn't answer the call. OMG...is she okay?

10:10 a.m - should I call Hanna, or not? Oh well...what the he*k. I dialled her number again. Still no answer.

I called Ayah, who was already on his way to school from Putrajaya (where he had to attend to our Bibik matter at the Immigration Office). I told him that I was worried, and he said, "Hanna's probably in her classroom and has put her handphone on silent mode."

Yes, that must be it. That must be the reason why she didn't answer her phone just now- I was pacifying myself.

10:15 a.m - I called Cikgu Raz*an, and tried to sound as cheery as I could - "Assalamua'laikum Cikgu. Maaf mengganggu. Is it okay to talk? Cikgu di sekolah ke ni? Saya cuba telefon Hanna a few times, but, she didn't answer her phone. Risau jugak saya ni - Hanna senyap aje! Results dah keluar ke Cikgu?"

All that in one breath.

And I felt like he was taking forever to answer.

"Wa a'laikumussalam...Belum lagi lah Puan. Cikgu Nazr*l dah pergi Kementerian, dan dia dalam perjalanan pulang ke sekolah now ni. Dalam pukul 10:45 pagi ni dia sampai. Dan, insya Allah kami akan umumkan keputusan pada pukul 11:00 pagi di Dewan nanti. Insya Allah, Hanna okay tu. Walau apa pun keputusan dia, kita terima sebab dia dah buat yang terbaik..."

"Hmmmm...does he know something that I don't know?!" I was asking myself. Oh, please Allah...Please give me strength. Be still my 1000-beats-per-minute beating heart!

10:40 a.m - made my way to the school.

I was at the traffic light under the flyover at Jalan Universiti when my phone rang. It was Ayah. I looked at the time. It was 10:43 a.m.

"Hello, Mommy...are you on the way to school? Where are you now?"

"At the traffic light. Should be there in 3 minutes, insya Allah", I replied.

"Hmmmm...Hanna dah dapat results dah...", I heard Ayah said.

"And?!!! 5 A's??!!" - I was not breathing.

"Hmmmm..." Ayah sounded reluctant to say it, and then he said -

"Yes - she got 5 A's!", and Ayah was laughing at the other end."I knew she would get it!" Ayah said.

And all I could remember was that everything became very, very blur after that....because I was crying. And I mean - REALLY crying...

Vision blurred, I somehow made my way to the school and went straight to the hall, and saw my first born jumping up and down with her friends.

Hanna saw me and ran straight to me, and we hugged each other.

"Mommy! I got 5 A's!!! YESSSS!!!" she screamed.

I just nodded, and continued hugging her.

"Mommy, why are you crying?!!! I got 5 A's laaa!"

"I know, sayang...I AM SO, SO PROUD of you..." I managed to utter the words in between the tears.

And she gave me the biggest smile ever, and kissed my cheeks...

Syukur Alhamdulillah...

I want him to know...

Ayah is in KB tonight. He's being asked to be an external examiner for a Clinical Exam for Masters students of U*M Medical School there. He took the cab to KLIA at 4:30pm today, and Insya Allah he'll be back by 10:00pm tomorrow night. He'll only be away for just over 24 hours, but somehow I am missing him....And I mean REALLY missing him.

It's not as if he has never been away before. In fact, he's a seasoned traveller - often leaving me with the kids for days, sometimes more than a week at any one time. And more often than not, he would be away to places much, much further than KB. And, hey... we were apart for 7 months when I was in Newcastle just some time ago.

So, the only explanation as to why it is that I'm feeling extra melancholy NOW about him being away is that I've been reading Shila's, Idham's and D's latest postings tonight (especially D's) which have stirred some really deep emotions in me...

I guess there can never be enough time spent with our loved ones.

I guess sometimes we do take our loved ones for granted.

I guess sometimes we just assume that they know we love them.

I guess sometimes we do not realize just how significant the things in our lives which we see as insignificant, are.

I guess sometimes we refuse to acknowledge, or we choose not to linger too long or too much on the facts of life...that the inevitable will happen.

I guess sometimes we just don't want to think beyond today or tomorrow.

I guess sometimes we just assume too much about everything and anything.

I guess sometimes we take a LOT of things for granted.

And I KNOW that I'm not alone in being guilty of all of the above.

So, I just want Ayah to know that tonight -

I miss the sound of his car driving into the driveway.

I also miss the sound of his key going through the keyhole as he unlocks the front door.

I miss the sound of his car when he turns the alarm on.

I miss watching him hug his kids as he enters through the front door.

I miss his peck on my cheeks.

I miss his hugs.

I miss the sound of the cutleries as he has his dinner.

I miss the never-ending phone calls he receives from, and makes to the hospital.

I miss watching him wrestle with and/or tickle his kids on the floor.

I miss watching him perform his solat.

I miss his sneeze.

I miss watching him (TRY TO) do his work at home...

And hey, I have to admit - I even miss the sound of his gentle snoring...

And I miss the three little words that he would say to me every night before he says his "goodnight" and goes to sleep...

And tonight, I just want to say - I love you, too...very, very much.

See you tomorrow night, dear.

I am worryingly weird...

This entry may be a wee bit late (which is an understatement!), but, hey - as they say, "better late than never", eh?

I was on my lunch break and was just blog-hopping and reading through some old postings by Ibu in her blog when I stumbled upon her "Weird Factors About Ibu At Last" which was posted in March this year which was actually in response to a tag. Ibu tagged me for that, and I promised her that I would work on it after I figured out how to create the links, etc (masa tu masih berhingus meleleh-leleh lagi in blogosphere daaaa...Eeeeewwwww!!!!) I was supposed to post an entry listing 6 weird facts about myself, and I was supposed to tag 6 others to do the same.

Due to the never-ending commitments in Newcastle and problems faced with configuring my (then Friendster's) blog, the whole thing just fell through the cracks, and I totally forgot about it....until today! (Selamat Hari Raya, Ibu.... Maaf Zahir Batin. Mintak Ampun! :D)

So, I thought I would just do it today, just to settle my debt with Ibu. However, I will not be tagging anybody because this is soooooooooo yesterday! This is just for the fun of it - and also, in a way for people to know that under this cool and composed image (that I have succesfully projected so as to fool you poor guys out there - HAHAHAHAHA!) there are some facts about me which are worryingly weird...


Weird Fact No. 1

I am a "Furniture RE-arranger".

I would rearrange the furnitures around the house (and in my office) once a month. And I'm not talking about just moving the tables and chairs, okay? I would move the beds, all the cabinets, the sofas, the dining table, the kitchen table, etc - in short - EVERYTHING! And when this "angin" comes, I would do the WHOLE house!

AND I do all these ON MY OWN - without Ayah having to move a single muscle. Not because he did/does not want to help, but because I would normally do the make-overs when he was/is not around.

(FYI, a few times he did not even notice the changes until I hinted it out to him a couple of days after that?! This happened EVEN when there was a MAJOR make-over that took place, okay?! Eherks!)


Weird Fact No. 2

I never weigh myself when I have my spectacles on.

Hmmmm.... I hear some of you saying that it's because I don't want to see the reading?!

Errrr...Hellllooooo!!! If I don't want to know how much I weigh, why do I go on the weighing scale in the first place?!! Duuuuhhhh...

Tsk...tsk...tsk....The reason WHY I don't wear my spectacles when I weigh myself is simple - so that the weight of my spectacles will not add on to the reading of my weight! So, I only weigh myself when I have my contact lenses on laaaa.... HAHAHAHAHA!!!!


Weird Fact No. 3

Still on the subject of weighing myself.

I would weigh myself a few times over a minute or so, at DIFFERENT spots in the room - hoping that at certain spots, the reading would be lower.... HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!


Weird Fact No. 4

I can only drive if I wear my Clarks Springers slippers. ( That reminds me, they are in such a sorry state now! Have to make note to self to go and get a new pair!)

I have tried driving with other shoes, and I have also tried driving bare foot - I totally lost confidence in my own driving when I was not wearing my Clarks Springers slippers!

I would only change to the appropriate shoes once I reach my destination. So, if you happen to be sitting at the front passenger seat, please do excuse the 4 pairs of shoes on the floor of the car, okay? I have two pairs of working shoes, one pair of casual sandals, and one pair of trainers down there.


Weird Fact No. 5

Contrary to a lot of peoples' beliefs and perception of me being a very expressive/verbal person, I don't really like to talk, at least when I'm at work. 9 out of 10 times, I would eat alone during lunch time. Due to my flexi hours, I would normally go down for lunch around 3:00pm when most of the people around me have finished tucking in their lunch, and they would only be going down to the cafeteria again for tea after 4:00pm.

Simple - nobody to eat with, SO, nobody to talk to, SO, no need to indulge in gossips, AND no need to rub shoulders with two-faced individuals or backstabbers who would be bad-mouthing others in front of you.... SO, kurang dosa.... Insya Allah...


Weird Fact No. 6

If I'm waiting for my turn to read the newspapers, I, for the life of me, CANNOT do anything else in the mean time!

If somebody is reading a newspaper, and I'm waiting for my turn to read it, I can just WAIT for my turn WITHOUT engaging myself in other fruitful activities while waiting!!! I can't even go to the kitchen and make myself a cuppa tea while waiting!

I can just wait by the side and do nothing... (errrr....besides staring into space, that is!) unless there is another newspaper which I can read in the mean time.

And this only happens when I'm waiting for my turn to read the newspapers. Not other things.

Weird, or what??!!!


So, there you have it - 6 worryingly weird things about me.

I am, after all, only human... ;) (Sorry to have disappointed some of you... HAHAHAHAHA!)

Cheers, and Wassalam...


P/S : So, Ibu, ZERO-ZERO, eh?! Hutang sudah langsai...

It's the time of the year...

It's the time of the year when you fetch the kids from school, and the first thing you would ask them would be, "Did you get any results yet for your exams?"

If the answer is "Yes", and after you've been fed with all the marks they get that day, the next question would be, "Did anybody get more marks than you?"

If the answer is "Yes", the next line of questioning would be, "Who?", followed by - "How many more marks did he/she get than you?"

And you expect your kids to know the marks of EVERYBODY in the class, okay?! So that when you get back home, you could take out your little calculator, draw out a few nice columns with the names of your kids' competitors in his/her class in one column, and the marks that they get for each subject in the other columns.

But, of course, more often than not, your kids couldn't care less about the other kids' marks, and this would mean that you would be kept hanging in suspense, because you could not gauge how well (or badly) your kids have fared compared to the rest of their classmates without the full data to analyse maaa!!!

So, for the next couple of weeks, the standard first question you would ask when you fetch them from school would be, "So, have your teachers told you your position in class yet?" (while trying your very best to appear as if it didn't matter if the reply to the question was "No", when in fact you would be fuming mad while trying to comprehend WHY the teachers are taking such a looooong time to work out the kids' position in class!)

And finally, when the kids were given their position in class for their final exams, and if they get Top 3 and/or highest in any of the subjects in their class, the next question would be, "So, when is your "Hari Anugerah Kecemerlangan"? - so that you could block the whole of that day to attend it and later maybe celebrate somewhere.

So far for us, it's 2 down, 1 more to go.

Hasya got 1st in her class, and top for English and Bahasa Malaysia. Syukur Alhamdulillah... She has always got 1st, except in the last exam when she got 2nd placing (which we think was due to her rigorous and traumatic rhythmic gymnastics training that she was going through earlier this year)

Hanna got 5th in her class, an improvement from her 6th position in the last exam (and her marks are much, much higher. Syukur Alhadulillah... So now we're just waiting for her UPSR results which will come out middle of next month... (and I'm already having cold sweats now...)

We are now waiting with bated breaths for Hilman's position in class. He got number 12 in the last exam (despite getting over 95% for 3 of the core subjects!). His marks this time have also improved, but of course, his friends might have also improved a lot, too!

Okay, okay....I confess - I AM A KIASU PARENT!!!!

There... satisfied?!

Now, don't tell me you guys don't do the same things?!

Errrrr...... you guys DON'T do these things?

Oooooopss..... Wowww...


30 October 2007

Latest update - Hilman got No. 5 for his final exam - that's a climb of 7 places. Yayyyy!!! AND he will go on stage (as will Hasya) on 13 November for Hari Anugerah Kecemerlangan for being the best student for Science in his class! Hmmmm... He definitely got it from Ayah. Science and myself - we never see eye to eye...Hehehe!

I am so happy and very proud of all three of them :D!

Di mana kan ku cari ganti... NOT?!

I felt the urge to write this after reading Dad of Four plus One's latest posting today. I really can relate to his predicaments.

Remember I wrote some time in June that my maid ran away, right?

Since then, I had been without a bibik. The agent had been promising to get a replacement for us, but, he seems to be full of excuses - no supply, too young, too old (we specifically asked for one aged 30-34) failed medical, passports not ready, puasa, raya, etc.

It has been more than 4 months, and I think we've been coping quite well (just...).

Some of you might know that for the past 9 years, we have been staying with Mak in PJ. Even after we bought our own house in SD 7 years ago, we still stayed in PJ during weekdays, and only went back to SD during weekends. We've had, let me see...7 maids in the last 7 years.

One was sent home because she was so "gedik", and was trying to woo one of Mak's staff. She somewhat succeeded - we had to send her back.

One would have won an Oscar - she would be the best actress if she were to star in the Exorcism of Emily Rose.

One was quite good, and we had no issues with her - except that when it was time to renew her permit, she failed her Medical. She was Hep B +ve.

One followed us to the UK during my first year of my PhD. We brought her everywhere we went around the UK, we let her call Indonesia every 2 weeks (we footed all the bills), we gave her pocket money (in pound sterling) on top of her monthly salary, we let her cook whatever she wanted to eat (because she was quite particular with her diet), we bought her clothes and stuff, we even bought for her whatever she fancied at all the Car Boot Sales in Newcastle we went to. She ended up telling people that we starved her, and we found out that she also pasang a Pak Arab boyfriend there... (and until today we couldn't figure out how both of them communicated with each other!). So, when we came back home to Malaysia, we sent her back to Indonesia.

One was quite pleasant, but she just could not stand Mak's bibik who was so bossy (even bossier than the majikan, mind you!) and was subject to being bullied and ended up doing most of the work! She asked to be sent home. Our principle - if our maid asks to be sent home, we send her home. No point of keeping her.

One was another Oscar winner - faked a fall, and ended up at the A&E, and pretended to lose consciousness (from morning until the afternoon!), when all the docs (including Ayah) and the nurses could tell that she was faking it! She had to go.

One was quite okay - quite hardworking, but quite loud. But, she, too could not stand Mak's bossy bibik! This was the one who ran away in June...

(We really are at their mercy, aren't we? Mak's bossy bibik was a REALLY good cook and very hardworking, and she can do just about whatever you asked her to do! So, we just couldn't send her home just because she was bossy with the other maids, could we?! Anyway, her contract just ended in August and she's gone now)

So, for the past 4 months or so, everytime we went back to SD during weekends, I would be the bibik. I would do the sweeping, the mopping (all 3 floors AND also outside, okay?!), the washing/drying/ironing of the clothes, the cooking (including the pre- and post-cooking chores), the dishes, tidying up the mess, etc. It's not that Ayah and the kids did not help at all. They did and still do, but, it's just me. I like to do things MY way, so at the end of the day, I would re-do the chores which had been done by them! But, it's strange in the sense that when we had the maids, I just let them be and do the chores around the house, and I would be Ma'am Besar and just supervise them. Boleh pulak?!

Anyway, it's a bit of an irony and quite mind-boggling that in our dire maidless situation, Ayah and I decided that we would move from PJ to stay at our own house in SD permanently. And the decision was made about 2 weeks into Ramadhan. Can you imagine that? Elok-elok we stayed in PJ, with Mak's and my SIL's maids there to prepare for Iftar and Sahur, we decided to make our life difficult during Ramadhan.

Yes - yours truly had to set at least 3 alarm clocks just to make sure I wake up in time to PREPARE for sahur. I also had the chance of honing my driving skills going through the Ramadhan traffic jam everyday from my office, to the kids' school in PJ, to SD (going through Jalan Universiti, Section 12, Section 16, SPRINT and LDP or Penchala Link!) I also decided that alang-alang dah jadi Ibu Mithali, I would also COOK for berbuka... Smart, eh? So, I did just that.

It was quite a torture.

People might think that we were crazy - the timing was not quite right...

But, we were adamant. We REALLY wanted to experience Ramadhan with just the five of us. And we are so glad that we did it.

It has been 5 weeks now - living in our own home. It's quite exhausting, but it's nothing compared to our feel-good feelings. Even the kids enjoy their home. More space. (More like more internet access! ;)) even though sometimes it looked as if a toranado had just passed through the whole house sometimes...

What we do now is - Ayah would send Hanna to school in the morning before going to the hospital. I would send Hasya and Hilman to Mak's house before going to my office. Mak's staff would send them to school in the afternoon and also fetch Hanna and send her to Mak's house. I would fetch the kids from school straight after work, fetch Hanna from Mak's and drive everybody back to SD.

Prepare dinner. Wash dishes. Iron clothes (aaaarrrrggggghhhh!!!). Settle kids for bed. Sleep. Wake up. Do the laundry. Sweep. Mop. Hang laundry. Shower. Wake kids up. Send them to PJ. Go to office. Work. And the cycle continues.... Hmmm...I sound like a robot, no?

Hasya and Hilman are quite independent and so, when they're in PJ, the only thing that Mak's maids need to worry about is just to prepare lunch for them (which is no big deal because more often than not they would only ask for Ayam Goreng and Nasi!) What' so difficult about that? They would take their shower and get ready for school on their own.

Shouldn't be a problem, right?

Shouldn't be.

Just that - this morning, two of the maids ran away...*

Ppppfffhhh...

(*Apparently one of them has a boyfriend somewhere out there...)

An outing that was...

We took the kids skating at Sunway Pyramid yesterday.

The plan was (if you could call it a "plan" that is) - that we would send Hanna and a friend to join four other friends there, and one of her friends' parents would be there to accompany them, and Ayah, Hasya, Hilman and I would just do some (window) shopping for a couple of hours before fetching Hanna and her friends and send them to one of the friends' house where they would stay on for dinner (I know...it's pretty confusing - so many friends maaa!)

THAT was THE plan.

But, this was what actually happened.

When we reached Sunway Pyramid, the friend whose parent was supposed to accompany the kids was not there yet, and we waited a while. As luck had it, the ice rink was being resurfaced and everybody had to wait for half an hour before they could go in and skate. Half an hour gone. We noticed all of her friends who were supposed to join the skating session were there - but...no parents around.

Apparently, Hanna told the friend concerned that Ayah and I were there, so THE parent concerned just dropped her daughter and left! You would have thought that after what happened to Nurin Jazlin, parents would be more alert and cautious, wouldn't you? Apparently NOT. None of the parents made any efforts to call Ayah and I to make sure their kids would be under adults supervision.

What if the girls were making up stories that there would be adults around, when there were none? What if the girls wander off somewhere, instead of spending the time skating at Sunway Pyramid? What if there were perverts around preying for their next victim(s)? Nauzubillah.... I just cringed to think of all the possibilities...

Honestly, we don't mind keeping an eye on the kids IF somebody were to tell or ask us to be there and supervise them. We wouldn't have minded to keep an eye on the kids IF it the outing was properly planned and organized, and we were tasked to be there for 4 hours in the first place, or if we were to take turns with another parent to supervise the kids. No problemo.

But, apparently, Hanna and her friends had planned the outing on their own, and they took it for granted that ONE of their parents would be there throughout their skating outing. And, it just so happened that we were there.

We had no choice, but to stay on. And Hasya and Hilman joined their big sister and her gang gliding on the ice (well...in Hilman's case, it was more like "walking" on ice... Hehehe!). We were quite surprised that both Hasya and Hilman took the whole thing like duck to water (or is it "penguin to ice"?), being first-timers on the ice. Of course, Hilman probably fell down more than 20 times maybe? Hasya, being a gymnast that she is, she was quite poised, even though she also had her fair share of falling down flat on her b**t. But, they were okay with the whole thing. They didn't cry, they just laughed it off. They had fun. Hanna was quite good at it as she had gone ice-skating before.

When Ayah left for Solat Jumaat at 12:45p.m, I was left alone to look after the kids. They were resurfacing the rink again, and the kids took a 30-minute lunch break while waiting for the rink to be re-opened. Another friend joined the party at 2:15p.m - this time around, the mother called to speak to me to make sure that there would be adults around. Hmmm...there's still hope. There are still responsible and cautious parents out there, I thought to myself.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Ayah and I are perfect parents. Far from it. But, come on laaa... All these are basic parenting know-hows, and sheer common sense. It's called p-a-r-e-n-t-a-l r-e-s-p-o-n-s-i-b-i-l-i-t-i-e-s. What happened before this should stay in the past. We could not change what was in the past, but we should have learnt our lesson. If we used to be quite laxed with our kids whereabouts before the Nurin Tragedy, we should have a different attitude now.

The outing which was supposed to end at 3:00p.m, dragged on until 4:00p.m because one of the girls' driver could only come and fetch her at 4:00p.m. So, all of us had to wait to make sure that she would be safe and sound in the car before we were to make our way home. 4:15p.m - still no driver in sight. 4:20p.m, the friend got a call. The driver was waiting for her in front of OUR house in SD! Somewhere somehow there was a miscommunication, or rather, everything was not clearly planned. We had to make arrangements for the driver to fetch the girl at Hanna's friend's house in Section 11.

By this time Ayah and I were starting to lose our patience. Ayah especially, as he had his clinic to go to at 5:00p.m! We were supposed to be there only from 12:00 p.m until 3:00 p.m, and the girls were still dilly-dallying behind us. We hurried everybody back to the car, and drove them to Hanna's friend's house in Section 11, PJ. We dropped everybody there - EXCEPT Hanna. We decided that because the outing was not properly planned, and because she had taken both Ayah and I for granted the whole time, she would not be joining her friends for dinner at Section 11.

Hanna, everything said and done, we did all these because we love you VERY much, and we want you to learn a valuable lesson in respecting us, and also to be more responsible. Mommy knows that it may not be your fault totally that the outing was poorly planned, BUT, Mommy and Ayah care about you, and we want YOU to appreciate that, okay?

Anyway, we went back to Mak's house in PJ, and Ayah went straight to the hospital after Solat A'sar. Mak had invited a few friends and relatives for a Raya Dinner at her place, and as yesterday was our final day for Puasa Enam, we decided to celebrate it with a feast in PJ (having said that, Ayah only managed to join us at 8:15p.m as his clinic only ended at 8:00p.m last night!).

And what a feast it was - Mak had ordered Nasi Dagang with Gulai Ikan Tongkol, Ayam Percik and Jelatah, Sambal Tumis Udang, Daging Dendeng, Egg Salad, and what do you call that Jawa dish - with veges, tofu, tempe, soohoon tu? She also ordered the famous Sate Sa**ri Kajang (from Uptown, by the way...), and of course, complete with Mak's bibik's yummylicious Sambal Belacan and Ulam Timun... Yummy! Yummy! Yummy... (All weight lost in Ramadhan, gained again last night! Whatever....Hahaha!)

We reached SD just before midnight. Eventhough Hanna had apologised to both Ayah and I earlier, we decided that there will not be anymore outings with friends for her - until further notice. She knew she was at fault and she accepted the punishment willingly.

The moral of the story - just be with your kids ALL the time.

The moral of the story- kids will be kids, and you cannot trust them to be responsible and take responsibilities.

The moral of the story - kids will be kids, and they will always take us for granted - intentionally or unintentionally.

The moral of the story - you must be understanding enough to forgive them...but, you must also be strict enough to punish them...(because you can't be punishing other kids, can you?!) ;)

(And finally - if you want to have a really good feast, go eat at your parents' or in-laws' house...)

Wassalam.

The raya that was...

1st Syawal came and went...Somehow this year it was like a non-event (at least for me that is!)

We had our last berbuka puasa and spent malam raya at Mommy and Abah's in KD. However, after Isya', Ayah had to go back to PJ with Hasya and Hilman to play host as the surau people would be going to Mak's place for Takbir. Hanna and I stayed on in KD to help Mommy and Abah around the house.

Mommy does not have any maids, and what with her health condition nowadays, we do not let her do anything around the house. But, Mommy being Mommy, if nobody's around or if nobody's looking, she would be doing whatever chores she could think of just to make sure the house is spick and span for Raya! So, I stayed on to make sure that she didn't lift a finger that night. To be able to have done that, that meant I had to lift all of my ten fingers and ten toes tidying up the house with my Sis Y. Adoiiii....it didn't help that I, myself didn't/don't have a bibik!! Alhamdulillah, by 10:00pm, the house was as how Mommy wanted it - ready for Raya.

This year, my Brother E went back to Kelantan to my sis-in-law's kampong for raya, while my Brother J only arrived from Taiping on Raya Eve after Isya'. Both he and his wife, N, went straight to the kitchen as soon as they arrived and started cooking the rendang for Mommy. It is understood - the rendang for raya is always under their wardship :). My Sis L who was in KD with her whole clan in the afternoon had to go back to her MIL's in Keramat for berbuka. Our eldest Brother I - sigh .... long story....

It rained cats and dogs that night and Ayah was reluctant to let me drive back to PJ alone with Hanna. So, we stayed on until he came to fetch us around 12:00 a.m. By that time, I was already like a "kain buruk"... It has been a practice that we would sleep at Mak's house in PJ on malam raya. Thank God I had ironed all the baju raya a few days earlier. If not, I would be spending the whole night burning all the bajus in between all my "senggok sessions"!

Pagi raya - the usual hustle and bustle, getting everybody ready, bersalam-salaman session with Ayah's side of the family. And of course - the mandatory photography sessions! As our camera was jammed (hmmmmm...I wonder whose fault it was?!), we had to rely on Mak's camera. And as (bad) luck has it, when my SIL went beraya with her friends the next day, an Einstein of a friend of hers accidentally deleted ALL the photos!! Aaaarrrgggghhhh!!! That explains why I have not posted any pics this time. Will have to ask my other SIL to download the pics from her camera one of these days.

Anyway, the plan was to go to back to KD around 12:30 p.m, but all the cousins and aunties and uncles from the "Kachar" clan came swarming Mak's house non-stop until about 4:00 p.m! My kids were getting restless and impatient as they were worried their cousins on my side would have left their Jaddi and Jaddati's house by the time we were to reach KD. So, right after the last cousin left Mak's house, we went straight to KD. Much to the kids' delight, everybody was there (safe for my Brother E and family who were in Kelantan, and my Brother I and family - who were there earlier and had left).

Mak came to beraya at KD later that night and later together we went to visit Ayah's Mak Long in Dato' Keramat. It was nearly mid night when we left Mak Long's house. Went back to SD and have been here since - melingkar, doing nothing (apart from mopping the house and doing the laundry, and ironing, okay?! The story of my life...)

Ayah and I decided to Puasa Enam straight from Sunday until this Friday, and insya Allah can beraya sakan this weekend going to all the open houses! It's our fourth day of Puasa Enam today, and as yours truly is too lazy to cook, we will go back to Mak's house for berbuka... Hehehehe! Smart, eh?

But before that, Ayah will have to send me back to KD to get my car which has been left there since malam raya. The kids have their piano lesson from 6:15 p.m until 7:30 p.m, and yours truly will have to send and fetch them as Ayah who has his clinic to go to from 5:00 p.m until 9:00 p.m (hopefully earlier!) will not be able to be the 'supir' tonight.

And that's another thing! Ayah who is supposed to be on leave until this weekend, has been going to the hospital for 2-7 hours (depending) everyday without fail (even on 1st Syawal, okay?!) to check on his patients. Hmmmmm...serupa tak cuti! Well, that's what you get for marrying a doctor who is (annoyingly? Hehehe....no laaah) too dedicated and too committed sometimes - but, I still love you to bits, okay, Ayah... :)

And oh yes, did I tell you guys that my office room is flooded? Yup! Apparently the downpour on 1st Syawal led to a major leakage on the ceiling of the Seminar Room opposite my office, and the water somehow managed to find its way to my room, and my carpet is now drenched. There are still puddles of water in my room. I just couldn't be bothered to go and check. Ayah had been going to my office to see if it has gotten worse over the last couple of days - what with continuous afternoon downpours we have been having and all. Apparently, according to Ayah, my office stinks big time... Well, nothing much I can do this week. Most of UM's "Pejabat Harta Benda" people are on leave until Sunday anyway. Hmmm...could this be a good excuse for me not to go back to work next week? Hehehe...

So, that was basically it - our raya this year.

Anyway, I look forward to completing my Puasa Enam this Friday, and celebrating another round of Raya this weekend, insya Allah.

That, and, oh yes - RUGBY WORLD CUP 2007 FINAL!

GO ENGLAND!!!!!!!!

Syawal empty nests...

I was reading Brother Id's latest entry in his blog just now, and suddenly I felt a lump in my throat. Planning for their Raya Open House, Brother Id and his lovely wife, K.LiL thought of three of their children who would not be celebrating Raya with him and his family in Dubai this year. I really feel for them. And it struck me there and then - how would I cope later in life when it would be my turn to not have all of my children with me under one roof to celebrate Raya?

One day Hanna, Hasya and Hilman will be leaving the nest. One day they will have their very own nests with their own little chickadees. One day they will also have their in-laws' nests to go back to. And one day there will come a time, when ALL three of them might not be able to be home with Ayah and I to celebrate Raya...

But, I guess - wherever they may be, as long as they feel and ALWAYS know that they have our home to come back to anytime they feel like it - no matter what hour of the day or night it is, all year round, no matter if it is Raya or not, it's okay.

As long as they love and respect their spouses and their families like they love and respect me and Ayah, and are willing to spend time away from our family to be with the spouses' family - just as we would wish for their spouses to ALWAYS love and respect us the same way, and willing to do the same, it's okay.

As long as being away from us would mean that they would have a healthy, tolerant and happy relationship with their spouses, it's okay.

As long as they ALWAYS be Mommy and Ayah's Chinchin, Chimin and Chiman - even when they are way over 40 (Yikes!!!), it's okay.

And more importantly - as long as their thoughts, their hearts, and their doas are ALWAYS with me and Ayah all year round, Raya or not, it's okay.

I pray to Allah swt to give my children the strength and wisdom to do and accept what is right when the time comes.

And I pray to Allah swt to give me the strength and wisdom to do and accept what is right when the time comes.

And to all parents out there who are pining for your children this Syawal, wherever you are, wherever your children may be, I pray for your strength and wisdom to be happy....just be happy. Syukur Alhamdulillah for the wonderful and beautiful family that you have, even if you're not physically together...

Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri. Maaf Zahir Batin. God Bless.

Wassalam.

* Picture taken on 1st Syawal last year - Mak's place in Section 17, PJ *

From left - Ayah, Hasya Chimin, Hilman Chiman, Hanna Chinchin, and Mommy