Happy 27th Anniversary (of knowing each other...), darling

It's 10:40pm, 25th April 2011.

In 1 hour and 20 mins, it'll be 26th April 2011 - marking the 27th Anniversary of the day Ayah and I first knew each other. To those who followed our cherita chenta which I posted 4 years ago when we celebrated our 23rd Anniversary (I think?), you would already know the cerita hindustan and the ups and downs of our courting years which started when we were both 16 years old, sampailah we tied the knot ten years after that, at the age of 26 on 9.9.94 :)

Syukur alhamdulillah - this year both of us are 43 years old, and I still can't believe that it has been 27 years since we first knew each other way back in 1984 when we were in Form Four! And we're still going on strong, insya Allah - with our eldest - Hanna at 16, Hasya at 12, and Hilman at 11 :)

It has been a wonderful 27 years - going through an amazing journey as best friends - more than 16 years of which as husband and wife.

Syukur alhamdulillah, life has been good to us and Allah SWT has blessed us with a wonderful marriage, albeit with glitches, cold wars and challenges here and there, which had sometimes rocked the core of our married souls. However, the same dugaan were the things which have made our love and commitment to each other stronger over the years.

I guess having known each other for more than 10 years before tying the knot had laid a very strong foundation for our marriage to stay steadfast, come what may.

There's no such thing as a perfect marriage, and I don't claim my marriage to Ayah to be perfect. But, I know that, dengan Rahmat dan Berkat dariNya, we are very happy because we always bersyukur with whatever that comes our way, insya Allah - be it good things, great things, not so great things, dugaan maha besar and dugaan maha kecil... Through thick and thin, we have stayed together, syukur alhamdulillah.

I don't know if I would ever live that long and get the chance to celebrate another 27 years of pure marital bliss, but, I know that whatever borrowed times we have, I will treasure Ayah - my husband, my confidante, my best friend until my last breath, insya Allah.

And I make do'a that he will treasure me the same way, insya Allah... Amin.

Happy 27th Anniversary (of first knowing each other!), darling :)

Love you loads... (Words just can't describe how much exactly, but, I know you know just how much I love you...)

From Ramadhan...to Aidifitri :)

Salams.

God... Can't believe that I have not updated this blog of mine for more than a month!

Ramadhan has been pretty hectic for everyone, I guess, and no exception for me. Somehow, this year puasa seems to pass by so quickly. It has not been as bad as I had expected, being maidless and all. And I surprised myself this year with the fact that out of the 28 days of fasting, syukur alhamdulillah, I had managed to consistently wake up between 4:30am to 4:45am to prepare sahur for the family. Cuma once we nearly terlajak when I woke up at 5:25am, and we ended up having bread and jam for sahur!

Anyway, sahur has been okay since we very rarely have rice, and the whole family can survive the whole day fasting with just 2 pieces of bread/toasts with our own choice of fillings or soups/dips, and/or other non-rice stuff for sahur. So, my life has been pretty easy when it comes to preparing sahur thus far.

The kids and Ayah are also not fussy when it comes to Iftar either. I would cook when time permits. If not, we would either eat out, tapau or berbuka at my MIL's or my Mom's.

All five of us have lost some kilos over the last 3-4 weeks, but unfortunately, I have not succeeded in meeting my aim of losing 2kgs more over Ramadhan, but syukur alhamdulillah I have managed to lose 3kgs out of the aimed 4kgs which I started out in April.

I was just telling Hilman how much weight he had lost and I was praising him for being such a good boy over Ramadhan, and had encouraged him to maintain his weight or lose a bit more after raya. I was just telling him how much more handsome he looked now that he has lost some of his baby fat (Hehehe!) and that he should start controlling his food intake from now on.

And this was what he said, "Okay, I'll start a week after raya".

Me : Why a week after raya, Man?!

Hilman : Because I'll be busy the first one week.

Me : Busy?! Busy with what?

And Hilman dengan selambanya replied - "Makan..."

LOL!!! That's my boy :)

Anyway, I still have not collected our baju raya from the tailors yet, and hope to do it today. I just hope Khatijah, has finished siapkan baju for us girls. I actually sent to her to sew 3 pairs each of baju kurung for us, and she said she could only guarantee to siapkan a pair each, and if we're lucky we'll get two pairs. My worry now is if she has not even siapkan that one guaranteed pair! I have been calling her since yesterday, but she has not been answering, so today I'll just drop by her shop at pasar Taman Tun. Wish me luck!

As for Baju Melayu Ayah and Hilman, clever me has misplaced the Omar Ali's receipts! But, luckily, I remember Ayah's number for last year's baju which Abang Man the tailor has re-used for this year. The only thing is, I hope they have kept Hilman's bajus together with Ayah's because I for sure cannot remember his new receipt number. Sigh...Anyway, hope to drop by at Wisma Yakin later today to collect the baju melayu and get a new samping for Hilman. Our boy has outgrown all his old sampings!

Hilman has really shot up over Ramadhan, and I guess maybe it's because he has lost some weight, and somehow that has made him look taller :) But, having said that, we've also discovered that he's now wearing Size 7 shoes when we went to get his chapal raya the other day! That's like 2 sizes more than his previous Raya shoes! Hanna and Hasya have also lost a lot of weight and have grown rather lanky this Ramadhan, and somehow have become rather matured young ladies over the month :)

As always, there's a tinge of sadness to say farewell to Ramadhan especially when I feel that I could have done so much more in terms of amal ibadah. Insya Allah akan diberikan rezqi again to sambut bulan mulia ini di tahun hadapan, dan memperbaiki lagi diri ini, insya Allah. Amin...

Raya this year will be extra wonderful as Ayah has been extra generous this year as Ayah has presented me with early Raya and Anniversary gifts early last month in the form of a bracelet and a ring! Yeay!!! (Oh, that reminds me - I have to get him an Anniversary Card and gift for our 16th Anniversary this Thursday 090910!) And he had also asked the girls to choose a piece of jewelry each as raya gifts, and a raya watch for Hilman :) And oooh, I realized that the girls have outgrown their little girls' taste when I saw the designs that they have chosen for themselves! No more charms or cute dangly bracelets and pendants, and the likes. (Yikes!! They're growing up too fast!)


Apart from that, Raya this year will be the same as all our previous rayas. Raya eve will be spent at my parents' place when I would help out to kemas the house gotong royong with my sisters and help to cook the rendang and all and then I would go back to my MIL's and spend the night there. Pagi Raya will be spent at my MIL's and we will only go back to my parents' in the afternoon and stay on until very late. My Sis Lala also has a similar arrangement with her hubby, so, her family will also be there in the afternoon until late. And my second and third brothers (if they don't go back to the wives' kampungs) will be there at our parents' the first three days of Raya.

That's one of the things that I'm thankful for - the fact that my parents and my MIL stay about 20 minutes from each other's and our house, and we don't have to ikut giliran balik kampung. The downside is - my kids don't really have a kampung per se, and as such do not really get the real feeling of Raya like most of their friends get :( But. like they say - we win some, we lose some, eh?

My raya leave only starts on Thursday, and I will be away from work for the whole of next week. Nice :) But, as it is, I'm already in Raya mood, and can't seem to do much at the office this week. But, I'm trying my best to finish whatever I can so that I can really enjoy the long break with the family. We're not planning to go anywehere, but, lazying around the house for one whole week sounds perfect (and surely would contribute to the accelerated post-raya weight-gaining process. Sigh...But, what the heck... It's Raya :))

Ooops! Is that the time? Okay, gotta go and get ready for work now.

But, before that I would like to wish you all -

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri :)

And if in any ways at all I might have wronged or offeneded any of you with the things I have written in here, or in any other ways at all -

Jari Sepuluh disusun, Mohon Maaf Zahir Batin.

Enjoy the time spent with your loved ones, y'all!

Take care! :)

Happy 14th Birthday, Kak Long Hanna :)

14 years ago today, we welcomed our firstborn - Hanna Suhaila binti Haizal, into this world...

I remember that day very clearly even until today. We had the first snow in Newcastle upon Tyne for that year in that early hours of 17th November 1995, and the grounds were already covered with snow by the time I had my first contractions at 4:15a.m in the morning that day.

Being extra-cautious and extra-anxious first-time parents-to-be, Ayah and I had prepared ourselves for that moment and had rehearsed the drill over and over again (in our heads, that is) on what to do and how to do them, especially should the contractions start during ungodly hours (as it was in fact fated to be!). But of course, nothing could have prepared us for the real thing. For one, we didn't expect it to snow (and quite heavily, too!) on the day I went into labour!

It must have been just before 4:00a.m when I had to go to the loo to ease myself when I noticed a show and I immediately woke Ayah up. The EDD was 19th November 1995, and we were hoping and praying that the baby would stick to the EDD (Hehehe...wishful thinking, right? But no - she decided to come out 2 days early!) Barely 15 minutes after that, the contractions started.

I immediately asked Ayah to get the hospital bag and call the hospital to expect us within the next 15 minutes. But as fate had it, the icy and snowy weather which started a few hours earlier had led to the windscreen of our car to be covered with ice, and the roads with snow that morning.

While anxiously monitoring the intervals between the contractions, I tried very hard not to panic while watching and waiting for Ayah who had to spend nearly 15 minutes scraping the hardened frost off the windshield of the car. Ayah being Ayah, he was pretty calm throughout the time, and I have to admit that THAT in a way had helped me to remain calm as well.

Once the ice came off, we started our drive to the Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI). The journey to the hospital from our place in Forest Hall which normally would have taken us only 10 minutes, had taken us about 40 minutes due to the snow-covered roads. Syukur alhamdulillah, the baby was quite comfortable and quite contented to stay put in my tummy throughout the journey which seemed to be like the longest journey of my life ever.

We reached the hospital just after 5:00a.m and I was immediately wheeled to the Labour Room where I was given a change of clothes in the form of a hospital robe, and the nurses started to take some readings and monitor my progress, and I was prepared for the actual delivery.

I remember so vividly when the waterbag broke while I was sitting on the sofa. I've read about it, and I've heard about it from others. But experiencing it myself was another thing. I was drenched from the waist down and my whole body suddenly felt very light. The nurses took this cue to give me a change of robe, and immediately after that sent me straight to the Delivery Room.

The contractions became more regular and more painful within the next hour, and as it was happening too fast, they were not able to give me the epidural fearing that it would take full effect at the wrong time and might cause complications during delivery. And throughout the whole time, I was only relying on Enthonox to relieve the pain.

As the intervals between the contractions became shorter and shorter, the labour room became more crowded with nurses and doctors as the medical team realized that the baby's heartbeat was going down to abnormal level everytime I was having the contractions. At one time, there were 5 doctors attending to me and the baby in my tummy, and in my enthonox-induced dazed situation I was praying hard in my heart for everything to be okay.

Concerned with the possibility of complications while delivering the baby, the doctors had asked our consent to extract some blood from the baby's crown for some tests to determine the actual cause of distress, and to eliminate other possible factors so as to prepare them for any unexpected labour room crisis. Ayah gave them the green-light and they did whatever needed to be done. I couldn't quite comprehend what really happened within the next 1 hour or so after that, but, what I remembered was when I was told that there was nothing really wrong with the baby. It was just that she was too lazy to work her way out of her mommy's tummy, it seems :)

Ayah was beside me throughout the whole time, and everytime the contractions became unbearable, I would squeeze his hands like there was no tomorrow... In retrospect, he probably was in more pain than I was then, I think. Poor thing...

And at 7:10a.m on 17th November 1995, I safely delivered Hanna Suhaila, weighing at 3.54kg. She came out with thick, black spiky hair, and lips like rubies. And the wail that she gave out when the world welcomed her was the sweetest music to my ears...

I remember holding her immediately after that, and putting her on my chest and she suddenly stopped crying, and I looked at Ayah. He was smiling at me and squeezing my hands. And while kissing my forehead, he whispered to me -

"Our baby..."

And my eyes just welled up and I started crying - out of the undescribable joy and love I felt at that moment.

And Hanna, no matter what happens, no matter how old you are, and no matter where you are, you will always be our baby, my dearest...

And please know it in your heart that Ayah and I love you so very much, and we will do anything for you.

Mommy do'akan your life be filled with love and happiness and people who truly care about you. You have brought so much joy not just to Mommy and Ayah, but also to so many people - friends and family, with your special ways, and your kind heart. Semoga Hanna menjadi anak yang solehah, berbudi pekerti dan mempunyai akhlak yang mulia, dan berjaya dalam kehidupan, insya Allah...

Again, please remember that you'll always be our baby, and if you ever need us, we'll be there...

Happy 14th Birthday, sayang...

Surat Tunjuk Sebab :)

Hmmmm, we're into our third week of Syawal, and I had not posted anything on our Raya celebration this year. So not me!

Well, life pre, during and post-Raya had been pretty hectic for all of us, me included, and on top of that I have been spending more time on Facebooking than blogging (which I think quite a number of bloggers are guilty of, too!) But, I hope to be able to balance between the two soon, insya Allah.

A summary of what had happened in the last couple of weeks -

The first day of raya, my MIL cooked Lontong and Macaroni Goreng, on top of the usual Lemang, Rendang, Nasi Impit, Satay, etc. While my Mom cooked Mee Rebus, on top of the usuals. And I also cooked some Asam Laksa for both. Malam Raya was spent at my parents' for our last berbuka, after which we went to spend the night at my MIL's. Pagi Raya was spent at my MIL's and we only left for my parents' around 4:00p.m and stayed till late. Everybody was there except for my second brother, Jame who spent his Raya in Taiping as he had to work.

Oh ya, the theme for First Day Raya was Turquoise Blue :) The following days - semua carca marba :)

I lost 2.5kgs during Ramadhan, and gained 1.5kg back in the first week of Syawal. Sedey tau ! :( I'm still trying to make sure that it stays at that, or hopefully go down from now on. I'm on my third day of Puasa qadha' (some say, can also be considered as part of Puasa 6). Thinking of doing a proper Puasa 6 after that. That is IF there's enough time to do that. Syawal dah half-way dah ni...

The whole family is fasting now. Just as how it was last year, I'm very heartened when the kids, especially Hilman and Hasya decided to join us to puasa. Nobody pressured them or anything. They decided to do it on their own accord. And so far, so good. Imaan masih kuat di sekolah even though the temptations must have been great when they see their friends eating and drinking during recess.

We have also been dining out a lot after raya, AND buying food for our meals - the reason being, my MIL's and my SIL's maids (both staying at my MIL's) ran away on first raya! My MIL left the house at 6:15p.m to beraya at her sister's place in Keramat, and by 7:00p.m., when the guard came for duty, he could not get in as there was nobody to open the gate for him! Within 45 minutes - the maids lesap. That was after we gave them 2-3 pasang Baju Raya each and duit raya! Big mistake - with the cash in hand, panjang lah lagi kaki they all :(

Anyway, so, now my Bibik Dar kena kerja lebih sikit coz' kena cover 2 houses. But, my MIL is paying her extra for the extra chores/responsibilities. And everybody in the house chips in to wash the dishes, iron the clothes, sweep and mop the floors, etc. I would help with the cooking if I finish work early. If not, my MIL would just buy lauk dah siap, or we would eat out.

My MIL had a temporary maid last week on Thursday, but decided to send her back to the agent on Monday morning. So many things yang memeningkan kepala and menaikkan darah my MIL. That maid refused to eat leftover rice, and would cook fresh rice for HERSELF every day, and would also serve the DRIVER the fresh rice. BUT she would serve leftover rice to my MIL! Ada kah patut?!

On top of that, she spent more than half of her time eating whatever she could find in the kitchen, in the fridge, in the freezer, etc. She even finished the food meant for the toddler at home, Qadri! And she actually cooked one whole packet of Meehun and ate the whole thing herself for breakfast on Sunday! The whole KUALI of Meehun... Can you beat that? She refused to do other things EXCEPT cook. Even then, she would cook ikut selera dia even though my MIL had taught her how to cook the way the family likes it.

She didn't know how to iron properly, she didn't know how to use the mesin parut kelapa (even though dah diajar a few times), and she refused to cook the fish/chicken/meat which had been in the fridge for more than 4 days. According to her - dah tak sedap! Lawan tokey betul...The majikan tak kisah, pembantu rumah lah pulak yang memilih!!! Tak sakit jiwer kitorang?! Anyway, good riddance - my MIL asked her to pack her bag and sent her to the agent on Monday morning.

Another thing yang memeningkan my kepala, Bibik Dar wants to go back for a 2-month holiday in November, but, I'm trying to persuade her to go back in January 2010 instead. So many things to settle at work year end, and having her around while the kids are on their school holiday would really help ease a lot of things. She's keen to come back and work for another 2 years after that, but, she said she has to ask her husband first...I REALLY hope she'll get the geenlight from her hubby. She has been the best maid we've had so far, and the kids are close to her. We're giving her a substantial raise if she comes back, and we hope that will convince the hubby to let her come back and work with us. Pray for us, please. Thanks! :)

Okay, I guess that's all for now - Surat Tunjuk Sebab why this blog has been idle for a while :)

But, before that, you can click here and here for some of our Raya pics :)

:)

Selamat Hari Raya :)

It's Wednesday...or should I say, it's ONLY Wednesday...

This week is REALLY taking it's time to reach the weekend, huh?

I am so looking forward to Raya.

But, before that I still have today and tomorrow at work before I can really start enjoying the break. I have 5 hours of tutorial classes tomorrow - the first one starting at 9:00a.m, while the last class will only end at 5:00p.m. I know that many of the students would have already gone back to their kampung by tomorrow afternoon, and I'm contemplating whether I should just cancel all the classes and reschedule all replacement classes after the break. Hmmmm...I might just do that. After all, I was a student once and I know that those who will be in class tomorrow will not be able to concentrate and give 100%, anyway :)

My leave starts on Friday, and I plan to go for serious retail therapy with the kids. We have not been doing any shopping over the last month because of Ramadhan and H1N1. We did most of our raya shopping before puasa, but, I still need to find kasut raya for Hilman, and I'm thinking of getting the girls new earrings/earstuds for Raya. Hasya had just pierced her ears 3 weeks ago (for the THIRD time), and she needs to get a gold set as she's allergic to non-gold studs (that was the cause as to why the last two attempts at piercing and wearing earrings failed). (Sambil-sambil tu, if mood Ayah baik, I boleh gak get a piece of bling-bling for myself, too, kan? Hehehe!)

And oh ya...I have yet to collect our Baju Raya from Kh*ti*ah at Pasar Taman Tun, and also Ayah's and Hilman's Baju Melayu from Om*r Al*. The girls have 4 Baju Kurung each, while Hilman has 3 Baju Melayu. On top of that we've also bought a few new tops and jeans/pants for them. Ayah has 2 new Baju Melayu, while I have 3 myself. Gila sakan nak raya...Hahaha! And of course, after collecting my Baju Raya, I will then have to go and find matching tudungs, too. Wajib. Mesti:)

We've already got new notes for Duit Raya, and also the Raya Packets. Two bundles of last year's RM5 notes still tak berusik, so we only tukar some RM10 and RM50 this year. Not a lot - just for the kids and immediate nephews and nieces.

I've also sent some money back to Indonesia for Bibik Dar, and hopefully her family will have a good raya this year, insya Allah.

Hilman needs a haircut, too. Badly. And I'm thinking of getting one myself, and if I feel like it, I might also get some henna done. My white hair is fast becoming more prominent than my black ones. Yikes!

I also need to sort out the girls jewelries. I've forgotten where exactly I've kept them. Whether at my MIL's or in one of my drawers at home. They only wear the jewelries once a year - during Aidilfitri. Tu yang sometimes boleh terlupa where I've kept them.

Hmmmmm....macam tak cukup masa ajer to settle everything by Saturday...

Raya this year seperti juga Raya-raya sebelumnya.

Last berbuka, insya Allah I will berbuka with my parents in KD, while Ayah will berbuka with my MIL in PJ, and the kids can choose where they want to berbuka. I will be busy helping my Mom kemas-kemaskan rumah, etc., and will only go back to my MIL's late at night. We will all sleep in PJ, and spend first raya morning with my MIL and Ayah's siblings, and late afternoon baru beraya at my parents and be with my siblings pulak, and we'll stay there until late at night. We normally would go back and sleep in SD, and the second raya will depend on what my parents and my MIL plan(s) to do, and we'll schedule everything to cater for both sides, insya Allah.

Menu for first day Raya, normally my Mom will cook Mee Rebus and Laksa Penang, on top of all the ketupat rendang. While my MIL will cook her Lontong and Macaroni Goreng. Also on top of the usual ketupat rendang. Meaning - by the second Raya I will have gained back all the kilos I shed over Ramadhan... :( Tsk...tsk...tsk...

Well, that's what Raya is all about, kan? ;)

I'd like to take this opportunity to wish all of you -

SELAMAT HARI RAYA AND MAAF ZAHIR BATIN.

Sekiranya ada terkasar bahasa and tersalah kata, jari sepuluh saya susunkan, memohon ampun maaf.

Drive safely, and enjoy your Raya break with your loved ones.

And don't forget to come back!!! :)

Take care, you all :)

Happy Anniversary, my darling :)

As I felt your warmth against me, and all emotions that it brings - the sense of belonging, peace, calmness, and assurance your love has brought to my life for the past 15 years, I pray for this to last...and I wish you all my love and much, much more, forever and a day.

Thank you for being there for me all these years, and making me complete...

Happy Anniversary, sayang.

I love you.

So. Very. Much...

WSR v4.1

Yours truly celebrated her birthday last week - another year older, another year wiser :) ( I hope!)

Thank you so much for all the well-wishes and do'as which I got through Facebook, SMSes and e-mails. I'm very, very touched indeed. The friendship and warmth extended on my birthday are very much appreciated and treasured. I still received birthday wishes even until yesterday - when I got free kerang from my usual towkay ikan at Pasar TTDI when he knew it was my birthday last week! (Next year nak demand ketam lah pulak...)

Ayah gave me my birthday card at 12:55a.m on my birthday - 55 minutes later than usual because he overslept. He was supposed to take a nap for 15 minutes before the clock struck midnight. In fact he even asked me to wake him up at midnight just in case he didn't hear the alarm. Ada kah?! :)

Anyway, I just didn't have the heart to wake him up, and I only managed to stir him when I snugged under the duvet as I called it a day at 12:55a.m. He woke up, wished me a happy birthday, gave me my card, kissed me on my forehead and off he went back to sleep after that. Granted and understood - it had been a long day for him at the hospital :)

Throughout the day, family and friends called to wish me, and my staff and colleagues at work threw a "surprise" birthday tea party, which was not really a surprise because I sort of guessed it. Who wouldn't if they kept on asking me over and over again, "Puan, you're going to be around petang ni, kan? Around 3:00p.m?" (AT LEAST 5 times, okay?) So, the "surprised" look wich I practiced for Hilman on Mother's Day, also came in handy on my birthday. HAHAHA!

Ayah came home earlier than usual that day and brought back a lovely bouquet of flowers (from him and the kids). And Hilman being Hilman, gave me a stalk of plastic red rose which he got from school, which according to him cost him RM1.20... And he wasn't lying, because the price tag was still there when he gave the rose to me. HAHAHAHA! Bless the sweet boy :)

We left the house after Maghrib for a family Japanese dinner at Su*hi Za*ma* at One-U. The restaurant is one of the children's favourites. Suffice to say, I think the kids enjoyed the food as much as (if not more than) the birthday girl did :) We finished our dinner just before 10:00p.m., after which we had to follow Ayah to Co*um*ia As*a as he had to review one of his patients there. We reached home JUST before the clock struck midnight to end my birthday. Perfect timing, I'd say :)

I feel very blessed indeed, and bersyukur to Allah SWT to have have had another year to spend with my loved ones, and I make do'a semoga diberikan umur yang panjang, kesihatan yang baik dan rezqi yang halal, and love and joy , and hidup yang diberkati throughout the rest of my life, insya Allah.

I thank Allah SWT for my family, and my friends who have made my birthdays more meaningful each year as I grow older...

Syukur alhamdulillah :)

Surprise for "Mumy" :)

Hari yang dinanti-nantikan akhirnya tiba...

And on Mother's Day, Hilman presented me with his "surprise" - a weaved basket with a hand towel with "Happy Mother's Day Sharina" embroidered on it. That was the "surprise" which required him to take out all his school books from his school bag the other day. And he also gave me a Mother's Day card which Ayah bought for him :)

And I think I did a good job at my "surprised" look, especially when I read the wordings of the embroidery. Hehehe!

And when I thanked and kissed him, I asked, "Hmmmmm, darling - why did you put 'Sharina', and not 'Mummy'on the towel?", and he said, "Because my teacher asked me what your name was and I told her 'Sharina' laa..." Hahaha!

And his Kak Long gave me two cards - one hand-made, another one, courtesy of Ayah :)

And his Kak Ngah gave me a card (also courtesy of Ayah) and another one which she made for her Seni on Monday.

And the kakaks had a field day teasing Hilman for spelling "Mummy" wrongly on the envelope...and the WHOLE of Sunday they kept on wishing me "Happy Mother's Day MUMY...."

And Hanna said, "Mummy, if Hilman had told his teacher to put your name as "Mummy" and NOT "Sharina" on the towel, it might have come out as "Happy Mother's Day, MUMY", anyway what..." (Trust Hanna to tease her lil' bro :)

:)

Aaaaahhhh...Children. Without them we are not mothers...

Thank you for making me a Mom, my children :)

Mommy loves you all so much...

Separa surprise :)

I was in the car with Hilman after fetching him from school earlier on. He was sitting alone at the back, with his schoolbag occupying half of the space.

We were on our way to his Wan's house to fetch his Kak Long Hanna and Kak Ngah Hasya, before going back to SD when he suddenly said -

Hilman : Mommy, your "surprise" is in my schoolbag okay, Mommy?

(FYI, he has been hinting about this "surprise" for me for the last week or so :))

Me : "Surprise"?! Hmmmm, I think I know what it is, Man. You want me to guess, ke?

Hilman : Okay la, Mommy. You can make a guess.

Me : It's a Mother's Day Card, right?

Hilman : (Silent for about 10 seconds) I know you already know la, Mommy.

Me : Hehehe...Sorry, to have spoilt it for you. Thank you, dear. Did you make it yourself?

Hilman : You see la nanti, Mommy...(Pause for about 10 seconds again). That's why la all my books are on the seat. Cannot fit in the bag because your "surprise" is in there.

I looked behind, and true enough his books were all over the backseat!

Me : Cannot fit in your bag?! Waaaaahhh, how BIG is my Mother's Day card, Hilman?

Hilman : I'll give it to you in 2 days time, okay? Then you see laaa...

Me : Okay, darling :)

Hilman : And Mommy, when I give it to you in 2 days time, make sure you "look" surprised, Okay?

Me : (???!!!) Errrr, okay... (Hehehe!)

So from now until Sunday, I will be spending most of my time in front of my mirror - practising my best "SURPRISED" look for my dear boy ;)

* HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY TO ALL MOTHERS OUT THERE! Hope you'll have a lovely time with your family this weekend. And make sure practise your muka 'surprised' for your anak-anak, too, okay? ;)

Happy Silver...

I was sitting on the two-seater sofa, watching Man U playing against Spurs - my eyes, although heavy, were on the telly. My mind - elsewhere...

I wasn't really watching the game. I was downstairs in the living room to accompany Ayah who was working on his article for the Ma*ay Ma*l Monday edition. He needed to e-mail it to the Editor early in the morning, and I needed to make sure that he stayed awake to work on, and finish the article. Every now and then, I would ask him some random questions on Man U and Spurs players. Not that I was really interested to know about them, but, rather, so that Ayah would have to think of the answers - and hopefully THAT would help him keep awake :)

Ayah was sitting on the three-seater sofa across me, when he suddenly stood up and walked slowly towards me. And I said to myself, "Hmmmmmm, ni sure nak menggendeng and nak sleep on my lap lah nih...bila lah pulak nak habis article ni?!"

But instead of sitting beside me and landing his head on my lap, he stood in front of me, gave me a kiss, smiled, and said -

"Happy Anniversary, dear...."

And I was like, "Errrrrrr..." (blank for about 10 seconds), before I came out with -

"Errrr...Anniversary? Errr...today...? Errrr...what's the date today, eh?! Oh my God...Oh ya lahhh... It's 26th April! Alamak...sorry...I langsung tak ingat. So sorry!"

And he came out with -

"Hehehe...I ingat, but tak sempat nak beli card laaa... I was waiting for midnight tadi to wish you, but somehow I didn't realize until just now! (that was about 12:40a.m)

And I was still like -

"Ha-ah laaaa 26th April...I lupa!!! Hmmmm...25 years already! Sorry laaa! I betul-betul tak ingat!"

And that was SO UNLIKE ME, okay? There were a couple of times before this when Ayah was the one who forgot. BUT, NEVER ME!

I guess this time around, I'm the one who's more stressed out at work, compared to Ayah, sampai I pulak yang terlupa our anniversary.

Mind you, it's NOT our wedding anniversary, but, rather it's the 25th Anniversary of the day we first knew each other - when we were both 16 :)

If some of you might remember, it was this time last year when I posted a posting on our 24th Anniversary which somehow led me to share our Cerita Chenta yang berkebat-kebat with you all...Hmmmm, time REALLY flies!Has it really been a year?!

Anyway, so tadi Ayah asked me -

"Hmmmmm, where shall we go tomorrow?"

I knew he was thinking of dinner somewhere, but, nyaris I nak reply - "SELBERAN, boleh?"

Hehehe! Just joking, dear :)

ANYWHERE is fine with me, as long as I'm with you...

HAPPY 25TH ANNIVERSARY, DARLING...HAPPY SILVER :)

I make do'a that we will at least get to celebrate our GOLDEN Anniversary in 25 years time, in happiness and good health, insya Allah.

I love you loads (or as Hilman would put it - infinity and beyond...)

MMMMMUUUUAAAAHHSSS!

Of sports, and birthdays...

Sorry, sorry, sorry... Have been busy, busy, busy!

Exams have started, and I need not say more :)

Anyway, before cerita jadi lemau, I'd better post this.

It's the time of the year when anak-anak kita get the tan, or rather - sun-burnt. Yup - it's Sports Day time :)

Hanna took part in the shot-putt event and she got silver for Class 2. Initially she thought she got the gold, but apparently the teachers also took into account the throws made by the students during the qualifying rounds. It's okay, dear. Silver is good :) You can always try for the gold next year, okay? No pics of her because her Sports Day was held on a Thursday and both Ayah and I couldn't be there :( Most parents couldn't make it. Maybe memang the school wanted it to be a closed thingy? I don't know.

Hanna was also involved in the handball tournament. She's in her school U-15 team and they also had the inter-school tourney last week. She was the Wing and one of the Strikers (I think?). Anyway, they won 1, and lost 2. So, their journey to the next level ended there :( But, I know she had fun practising and playing for her school. That's the most important thing, dear :)

Hasya was in the 200m and also the 4x100m events. She just missed the bronze medal for the 200m run by just a foot, I must say. But, YEAY!!! Her team got GOLD for the 4x100m event! We've never really seen her run on the tracks before, and I have to say, she can really sprint! It just so happened that three of the runners in her team were also with Hasya in the state rhythmic gymnastics team, which I blogged about here. Memang gymnasts ni kuat lari, kot? Hasya was also in the Perbarisan and her house - Tun Perak (Green) won first place.

Hilman pulak was in the Baling Bola dalam Bakul event and his team won the silver medal. And I think, if there was a prize for it, he would have also won the "Student Most-Resembling Udang Bakar" prize that day. Him, being so fair and gebu, habis muka jadi so merah! Kesian betul...

Overall, Green House got second place, behind Red House. And Hasya is praying hard that her legs would grow longer so that she can run faster, and beat Red House in all events next year. That's the spirit, my girl :)

Anyway, Mommy and Ayah are SO proud of you guys!! Well done :)

Petang tu, they didn't go for their Chess and Swimming classes. Balik from Sports - semua melepek...

In the evening - checked in at Sa*ja*a Im*ia* Resort again for a triple birthday celebration - Hasya's, Ibu's Idin's and also Sh*dy's a.k.a Mr.Engineer's birthdays, or in short - "HASYIDIN'S BIRTHDAY" :) It was a Pot-Luck thingy with spreads like Nasi Hujan Panas, Kari Daging, and Acar (On*ir's), Ayam Masak Merah (Moi), Ketam Masak Lemak, Lala Tumis (Ibu), Eclairs (J*), Satay Kajang Samuri (yang dibawa dari Taman Melawati ke KAJANG oleh Re*a, buleh?!), Nasi Lemak, Spaghetti Bolognaise dan macam-macam lagi.

Ibu was the games coordinator and the kids had some water games in the pool, which included water polo, and also a race. Who would have guessed - Hilman won the swimming event! (But, errrr...maybe because he was the ONLY one wearing flippers that night? Laju giler...Hehehe!)

We also had a Karaoke contest, and Ayah got the highest score of 98! Fuiyoooo... don't pray-pray, okay? :)

Another sleepover, but, the Kaum Ibu only went to bed at 4:30a.m :)

Sunday morning - left the "Resort" at 11:00a.m as Hasya and Hilman had their dancing lesson nun on the other side of KL...but, not before having a few rounds of Nasi Lemak with Sambal Sotong and Sambal Udang and Ayam Goreng, and Nasi Goreng Bibik Special. Breakfast included in the package, maaa...Kena lah makan, kan? ;)

Everybody had fun. And needless to say - everybody had extra kilos on them that weekend... :) And nobody cares. Hahaha!

Here are some pics.

Happy 10th Birthday, Hasya :)

I meant to post this on the day itself, but, exhaustion and stuff at work had other things in store for me in the last three days.

We had another makan-makan session on Wednesday night at my MIL's to celebrate Hasya who turned 10 on that day - 8th April 2009.

I am always reminded of the hikmah (which I wrote here) which had given us the gift of Hasya 10 years ago, and how the grave sadness that we felt when we lost our second baby after a miscarriage in 1997 has been compensated by Allah SWT many, many, manyfolds when HE gave us Hasya in 1999. Syukur Alhamdulillah. God really works in mysterious ways...

Of all three of our kids, Hasya is the choleric one. I wrote about it here. She's a perfectionist. Very determined. Strong-willed. Knows what she wants. And very set in her ways. So much so, sometimes we feel like she's the boss :) But, she listens to reasons well if they are valid :) She's a very bright girl. She NEVER cried (not even once) when she had her immunisation jabs when she was a baby. In fact, she never cried/cries when she got/gets a scolding from us. It's quite frustrating sometimes when you want to get some kind of reaction from her after a round of scolding! The only times that she cried/cries (or rather, merengek) would be when she was/is really sick. That's our Hasya :)

For her 10th Birthday, we didn't plan for any big parties, etc, but she did ask if she could have a couple of friends for a sleepover this weekend. But, after the makan-makan and after I explained to her of how packed our weekend would be - what with the school replacement AND also another makan-makan session at Aunty On*ir and Uncle Sh*dy's new house this weekend (Ya...hidup kami memang sentiasa dipenuhi dengan sesi makan-makan. Anda ada masalah?...;)), she was okay with not having the sleepover today (but, she did ask if she could have it in May, instead. And I said - depending on her Mid-Year exam results :))

Anyway, this time around, I goyang kaki ajer, coz' I outsourced everything. I gave a free hand to my SIL - Ya*re*n a.k.a Aunty Adek, to organize the birthday dinner. She just finished her exams and was/is on her Semester break, and so, she jumped at the opportunity to mess my MIL's kitchen up :) I only asked her -

i - to come up with the menu
ii - to list out the things she needed to whip up the dishes
iii - to follow me to Co*d St*ra*e @ Ja*a33 to buy the stuff, and
iv - to cook everything

I only paid for the stuff. One thing I realized - Co*d St*ra*e has EVERYTHING, I tell you! Considering that the menu she came up with was pretty much a western spread, and she's the type who follows the recipe to a T, we actually managed to get EVERYTHING she needed (including those pelik-pelik and rare ingredients!) from there. Pretty impressive (and pretty expensive, too, if I may add...but, sekali-sekala tak per...And it's for our daughter's birthday pun, kan?)

And she came up with :-

Mushroom Soup and Garlic Bread
Cheesy Jacket Potatoes
Pizzas (a myriad of those!)
Beef Lasagna

and

Roast Chicken (she made FOUR, in fact - and obviously she over-estimated, as we were having roast chicken until Friday. Hehehe!)

And, oh ya - for desserts, she made some Baked Poached Pears.

How cool was that?! :)

Thank God, for a SIL who's a gem in the kitchen (and she's only 20-y.o., okay?)

The food was REALLLLLLY good. And everyone was stuffed to the max that night.

Thank you so much, Adek. Nanti Kak Shana and Angah belanja you somewhere, okay? :)

(Errrrr, another thing - maybe you should block the weekend of Hilman's birthday in September? Because I think he has already planned a similar feast to celebrate his 9th birthday! Hehehe!)

Anyway, here are some pics.

HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY, DARLING HASYA. WE ALL LOVE YOU SO VERY MUCH...

MMMMMMUUUUAAAAAAHHHHSSS!

AND

((((((HUGS)))))))

All in a day's work...and fun :)

I woke up at 7:00a.m on Saturday morning, and only went to bed at about 1:00a.m the next day. That's a good 18 waking hours - out of which I think I only got the chance to sit down for about 2 1/2 hours in total (excluding the times when I was sitting in my car, driving, that is :)

I don't think our new PM's schedule running up to the three by-elections pun was as packed as my last Saturday's schedule!

The day started off with me going to Pasar Taman Tun at 8:30a.m as I needed to get the stuff to cook for a Pot Luck Dinner to be held at my Sis Lala's place in Keramat to celebrate our Abah's 80th Birthday that night. Abah's birthday fell on Monday 30th March actually, but, we decided to have a makan-makan on Saturday instead with my other set of MTs - the regulars at Lala's on Saturday nights - i.e. my siblings and my BIL's siblings and families.

Hanna had to come along with me to the Pasar as she had to be at Sek. Ab*ul Sa*ad at 10:00a.m for her Interact Club meeting/gathering, and there was no way that I would go back to SD to fetch her after going to the Pasar, and then send her to Sa*ad. I would be wasting petrol, wasting my time, wasting on toll money, and of course - wasting my energy, too, if I were to do that.

By 9:45a.m, we got everything we needed from the Pasar, after which we went to my MIL's place in PJ to send some of the groceries there. Ya lah kan....Anak-anak I memang selalu didepositkan kat situ before and after school, and semuanya kuat makan, kan? Every 3 days or so - kena lah replenish stock in my MIL's fridge and freezer :)

From PJ, I went to send Hanna to Sa*ad and waited in the car with her outside the gate until her other school friends came. I left her with Aqila and a few of her seniors at about 10:00a.m, after which I drove back to SD - reaching the house at about 10:25a.m. By that time, Hilman and Hasya were already up.

I took my shower again, and after the kids had had their breakfast, I left for Sa*ad again at 11:20a.m with Hasya and Hilman to fetch Hanna. We reached Sa*ad at 11:45a.m - greeted by a sulking Hanna who had been waiting there, at the front gate, under the hot sun since 11:30a.m! Sorry, dear...

We rushed to One-U as Hanna's guitar lesson was to start at 12:00p.m. The traffic and the crowd were not that bad, syukur alhamdulillah, and we reached her class five minutes early. While Hanna was having her lesson, Hasya, Hilman and I went to MPH to get some books, and then to Pa*kso* to get a birthday present for Ayah's friends' daughter whose birthday party we were planning to go to later that afternoon. Imagine - 2 places to go to under half an hour, had to choose and shop for books and birthday presents some more! It was quite a rushed job as Hanna's guitar lessons was only for half an hour, and we were aiming to be back at her class before she finished her session at 12:30p.m.

From MPH and Parkson, the three of us went to get Hanna and we all left One-U at 12:40p.m. Just as we were about to leave the parking area, my BIL Su*fi*n called to ask if Hilman would be interested to follow him to the Sepang Circuit as he had an extra ticket to watch the F1 Race. Of course Hilman was interested lah kan?! (But, having said that, he was having a difficult time trying to decide between going to Sepang OR going to the birthday party which was to be held at the Tr*ca*er* Bowl at Tropicana Club - much to his sisters annoyance! Hehehe...Dah lah dapat gi tengok F1 free - lepas tu boleh tak sure nak pegi or not?! Aiyooo...Kak Long Hanna dia sikit punyer tension ker...Hehehe!

So, instead of going straight to Tr*ca*er* Bowl, we had to make a diversion when I had to send Hilman to my MIL's place as Su*fi*an, together with my SIL Ly*n and their 2 kids - Q1 and Q2, would be leaving for Sepang from there. We reached Mak's house just before 1:00p.m.

After dropping Hilman off, Hanna, Hasya and I drove straight to Tropicana for Aleysha's 6th Birthday Party. Aleysha is the daughter of two of the doctors who are with Ayah at TMC. Ayah who had been working from morning was supposed to meet us there as I segan nak gi the party just with the girls as I had never met Aleysha's parents before this. So, we waited for Ayah in the car until about 1:35p.m when we finally saw his car going into the parking area.

Ayah and the girls had fun bowling while I just watched from the sidelines. And the amazing thing was - it was Ayah's second? (or maybe third?) time bowling ever, and he actually got the highest overall score that day (much to Hanna's and Hasya's dismay! Hahahaha!)

Hanna and I had to leave the party at 3:40p.m while Ayah and Hasya stayed on a little bit longer as I had to send Hanna to my MIL's place as her Aunty Ad*k was to send her to a handball tournament in Section 13 PJ which was supposed to start at 4:00p.m. They left just before 4:00p.m, and barely a few minutes later, Ayah came back with Hasya.

Leaving Hasya and my car at my MIL's, Ayah and I made a dash to BSC to join our KPP86 - BTU2 friends for a Reunion at The Do*e. We were fashionably late (Hehehehe...) as it was supposed to start at 3:00p.m...and we reached the place at 4:30p.m! Even though there were only 15 of us, it was actually a good start for our first reunion after 23 years of going our separate ways. It was really good to see all the gang. Thanks, Wa*Sa* and Li*a for organizing it. Insya Allah next gathering, we'll get a bigger turnout :)

We left BSC at 5:45p.m and headed back to my MIL's place as Ayah had to drop me there before going to another meeting - this time with his primary school reunion committee members at Ja*a32 (which was supposed to start at 3:00p.m!). I left my MIL's place with Hasya at 6:20p.m to fetch Hanna from her handball tourney. And seperti biasa (and I didn't mind really :)) Hanna asked if I could drop three of her seniors at a couple of places, and thus, we had to make a detour to Section 14 and Kg. Tunku before heading back home to SD.

We finally reached home at 7:05p.m and I had to start cooking immediately as I was to bring two of the main dishes to my Sis Lala's place for our Pot Luck dinner. Nasib baiklah I had earlier left instructions for Dar on what to siapkan, and Dar was ever so efficient. By the time I reached home, all the ingredients had been prepared, and I only had to put and mix everything in the pot and kuali and cook them. I finished cooking Ayam Masak Merah and Acar Rampai at 7:55p.m. and straight after that went up to get ready and solat. By the time I came down at 8:20p.m, Hanna, Hasya and Dar were all ready to go.

I couldn't wait for Ayah coz' nanti semua orang kat Keramat lambat pulak makan coz' waiting for my lauk-pauk! So, I called Ayah up and asked him if I could drive to Lala's with the girls first. Ayah had just finished his meeting and was just about to fetch Hilman from my MIL's (Hilman had just come back from Sepang then). Ayah gave his greenlight and off I went to Keramat with the girls and Dar.

We reached Lala's place at 8:50p.m - semua orang dah lapar menunggu ketibaan my lauk. Hahahaha! And the feast began at 9:00p.m :)

Abah was very happy to have his 80th birthday celebration last night. If only his sons were there, too. Eddie was down with flu, Jame was in Taiping and Abang Imi had something on last night. But, it's okay - Abah's favourite girls were all there with him last night :)

However, Ayah and Hilman only reached Keramat at about 11:00p.m as Ayah was called to the hospital just after they left Mak's place for Keramat. He had to attend to an emergency case. And according to Ayah, Hilman had a field day exploring the A&E Department last night while waiting for Ayah to finish his work. Hehehe...

By the time Ayah had his dinner with Hilman, most of the Keramat MTs were already leaving for home. Ayah spent some time berborak with my BIL and my biras, and I could see that he was struggling to stay awake! Mana taknyer - he had been out and about since 8:00a.m in the morning! He was physically and mentally exhausted after a looonnnngggg day of work and socializing. By midnight, he was having a splitting headache and had gone into my nephew Amir's room for a short nap.

By 1:00a.m, I decided to just let him sleep. Or rather, I decided that ALL of us should just spend the night at Lala's as I didn't think I would be okay to drive back to SD myself.

The kids were delighted of course!

Me - the only concern was on how to clean and store my contact lenses? Aiyoooo...pakai langgar ajer lah! So, last night I had to sleep with my lenses on. To all the opthalmologists out there - I know...I know...That is one of the biggest sins for you guys, kan? Sigh. But, what to do? Unplanned overnight stay, maaaa...

As for Ayah - he woke up at 3:00a.m, and immediately started working on his article for Ma*ay Ma*l. I don't think he slept at all after that. He woke me up for Suboh at 7:00a.m, and continued working until we left Lala's place at 8:30a.m this morning.

What to do? Suamiku sememang seorang workaholic... :)

Anyway, for a different perspective of what went on yesterday, Hanna also has bits and pieces of her day posted here and here :)

Here are some pics.

Happy Birthday, Ayah :)

Today's Ayah's birthday!!! Yeay!!!

Happy Birthday, my dearest :)

I wasn't sure whether to just have a quiet outing with the kids to celebrate this special day, or to belanja makan the whole clan like we always do on someone's birthday, or celebrate with friends, either at home, or at Re* Bo*. I was toying with different plans for the last one week, and still could not decide on Friday night.

On Saturday morning - woke up and suddenly decided to have a makan-makan at our place for that night. And another dilemma - whether to have ONE makan-makan session for family and friends this weekend, OR have TWO different sessions for them. After campur tolak kali bahagi the pros and cons, I decided to do the latter - dinner on Saturday night with friends, and lunch with family on Sunday :)

(Our house is just not big enough for us to have family and friends together over at one given time. Lagi pun nanti depan Mak Mertua tak leh nak huha-huha ngan member sangat! ;))

I didn't tell Ayah about it, and right after Ayah went to work, I started SMSing/calling our friends about the dinner plans, before going to Pasar Taman Tun to get all the wet stuff to cook. Came back and briefed Dar on the dinner menu, and after giving instructions to her on what to prepare, we began our campaign to bring the kitchen down. Hehehe...Memang macam tongkang pecah...

At 1:15p.m, I left the house to send Hasya and Hilman to their Chess class, and after that made my way to Tesco to get the dry stuff pulak. Nasib baik Ayah volunteered to fetch the kids from Chess and send them to Swimming class after that. I finished my Tesco rounds at about 2:45p.m, went home and started cooking. Nasib baik Dar had finished preparing all the ingredients while I was out, so, sampai rumah ajer, senseng lengan and started to bersilat in the kitchen.

It was easy to keep it as a secret(ish) as Ayah was out from morning, and only came back with the kids just before 7:00p.m. But, of course, by the time he came home, the extra table was already set, and the buffet "station" was halfway prepared, and he sort of knew that there would be guests coming (and I bet he knew it was to celebrate his birthday :))

Anyway, the menu for the night was :

Nasi Lemak with -

- Sambal Tumis Udang
- Sambal Tumis Ikan Bilis
- Szechuan Chicken
- Fried Ikan Bilis + Kacang Goreng
- Kangkung Tumis
- Telur Rebus
- Timun)

Spaghetti Olio

Kuey Teow Goreng

Ayamas Fried Chicken Drummets

Ayamas Fried Hot and Spicy Drummets

Sirap Bandung Soda

Chocolate Moist Birthday Cake (Se*re* Re*ip*)

Teh Tarik/Coffee


(Ada sorang kawan we all tu, sanggup tak makan lunch coz' he was saving his tummy for the dinner! Hehehe!)

The first to arrive were Ab*d and her kids, followed by On*ir & Co., J* and her clan, Re*a & her heroes, and Yu* & family. Ib* could not join us as she had gone balik kampung in JB. Aw*n, too, was back in Melaka.

As usual - sangat hingaq bingaq tak ingat dunia we all semua. Makan, borak, gelak, borak, makan, mengekek/mengilai, borak and makan non-stop.

As the clock struck midnite, we took the birthday cake out, and sang the birthday song for the Birthday Boy (who was at the time dah terlena kat sofa...Hehehe!)

Everybody stayed on until just before 2:00a.m. and left with tapau-ed food beraneka jenis :) and by the time Dar and I siap kemas everything, it was already 3:00a.m before we went up to sleep.

I set the alarm clock for 6:15a.m, 6:25a.m AND 6:35a.m. as I wanted to go to Pasar Taman Tun early to avoid the Sunday crowd there. And I didn't hear it went off at all! All the three times - tidur real punya!

I only woke up at 7:35a.m (Suboh terlepas!!!) and left the house for Pasar Taman Tun at 8:05a.m. Spent about 45 minutes there, and reached the house just after 9:00a.m.

Again, briefed Dar on the menu, and she prepared almost all of the ingredients, with me helping with the not-so-yucky/tedious stuff only. Started cooking at 10:00a.m, and Ayah left the house at 10:30a.m to send Hasya and Hilman to their Dance class.

By the time they came back home at about 1:15p.m, all the dishes were ready.

This time, the lunch menu was -

Nasi Ayam

Kuey Teow Goreng (again!) - special request from my nephews and niece :)

Kuey Teow Soup

Sirap Bandung Soda

Tiramisu Birthday Cake (Ca*e Se*se) which was just soooooo yummy!

Teh Tarik/Coffee

My Sis Lala and her clan arrived at 1:30p.m, followed by my MIL and my SIL (Ya*re*n), my SIL Lynn & Co., my BIL Along & family, and finally my Mommy and my Sis Yong. My Abah was not feeling well, and decided to stay at home. My Mommy didn't want to leave him alone at home, but he insisted that she come. Tu yang by 4:30p.m, my Mommy dah nak balik rumah dah...My Brother Ed*ie was involved in a camping thingy at his school and could not make it. My Brother Jame was in Taiping, while my Brother Imi could not be contacted - last minute planning lah kata kan...

Again - everybody tapau-ed food back with them :)

(I ALWAYS cook a lot when I invite people over for makan-makan. My motto is - "Lebih tak per...Jangan terkurang" :). And every time I buat makan-makan, I would buy all the plastic containers sesiap for them to tapau the food :))

After everybody had left, it was back to mengemas again for me and Dar. And by the time we were done, it was already Maghrib.

As for the Birthday Boy, he was called to the hospital at 5:30p.m and only came back at 9:30pm just now!

(See?! Sunday AND his birthday pun kena gi kerja...)

Anyway Ayah...Hope you enjoyed your special day with our family and friends.

I know that you've got pretty nice birthay presents this year - the best must have been when Liverpool bantai Man U 4-1 last night, huh? And of course, when Dato' Lee Choong Wei beat Lin Dan at the Men's Single Finals at the Swiss Open this evening, huh?

And as I'm typing this, Ayah is watching a Rugby match between England and France on ASTRO downstairs. If England wins tonight, memang sah - the best birthday ever for him. :)

Happy Birthday again, Ayah :) Semoga dipanjangkan umur, dimurahkan rezqi, dan segala usaha diberkati Allah SWT.

Love you loads, dear... MMuuuaaaahhhh!

* Sorry - no pics yet. The camera battery was empty, and we couldn't find the charger the whole of yesterday! Hanna managed to snap some pics using her camera, but she has yet to download them to this laptop. We found the charger late last night, but alas, today Hanna was not in the mood to take pics, and I was busy in the kitchen most of the time :(

Mesmerized and blown away...

Nope - this has nothing to do with a certain Mongolian beauty who met with a gruesome end not so long ago on a secluded hill/mountain somewhere. But, this is about another beauty...who...errr...has something to do with a mountain, too. Different beauty, different era, different ending. And different mountain. So, sit back, and relax :)

I had never been to a Musical before. Not even when I was residing in London way back in 1991-92 when the West End was a just a tube ride away from where I was staying. I don't know why I was never interested to go and see Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Miss Saigon and the likes then. The closest I got to a Musical was all those Christmas pantomimes at the end of the year. Pathetic, huh?

When Istana Budaya was having Puteri Gunung Ledang The Musical Season 1, I never bothered to find out when the show was on, or even how much the tickets cost. I was saying to myself, "Alangkan West End shows pun I tak tengok...why should I go and watch PGL kan?" (I know...I know...sungguh macam diva, kan?!) And I guess because I never got to watch PGL The Movie, there was no "attachment" to PGL The Musical. I started to pay attention and show some interests only after hearing the rave reviews it got.

PGL 2 came....and went. Just like that. Both Ayah and I were just too busy. By the time we decided that we could go and watch it, all the tickets were sold out. And we thought, that was it. There goes our chance to witness the most talked-about Musical in town.

So, when we heard that there was going to be PGL 3, we decided that whatever the prices were, we would just get the tickets. Everybody else we knew seemed to have watched The Musical. Some had even gone to watch both PGL1 and PGL2 and were going back to watch PGL3, too! So, there must be something with this Musical which kept on pulling/calling people back to it, kan?

We decided to coincide this PGL3 outing with two of our MT members' 40th birthday celebration - Ibu and Re*a. It was kind of a belated birthday treat for them, as theirs were the only 40th birthday parties of the MTs and hubbies' which we didn't manage to organize properly last year. So, their PGL tickets were on the rest of us :)

So, armed with 3 credit cards which entitled us to a 15% discount on the tickets, Ab*d and I went to Ro*k Co*ne* at The Cu*ve about a month ago to purchase the tickets. As one person could only buy 5 tickets per one credit card, we decided that I would purchase 5 with one of my credit cards, and Abid would purchase another 7 using 2 of her credit cards. And we managed to get quite good seats for Thursday 19 February. (I was sitting right smack in the middle - in fact almost directly behind PM Pak Lah malam tu, albeit selang 4 seats behind him! And before anyone starts asking me, NOPE! I didn't see him sleep/doze off that night. Hehehe!)

There were a few celebs which caught our eyes that night, one of whom was the ultimate Perempuan Melayu herself - Datin Seri No*ma*a Sh*msu*in. There were a few dramatists whom the MTs for the lives of ALL of us could not remember their names at all! Haiyaaaa...where got time to watch all those Samarinda and yang sewaktu dengannya, and hafal their names what...I must say Datin Seri NS memang anggun and jelita in real life (or should I say "LEBIH" anggun and jelita dari dulu?)

The show started right on time, and from the moment the curtains were up, we were all mesmerized and blown away with everything The Musical had to offer. There were moments when I suddenly realized my mouth was gaping while watching the superb performance. There were moments when my eyes were welled with tears. There were times when I would just laugh at the hilarious antics portrayed on stage. And the songs...and, oh, the dances - they were just brilliant. And the backdrops and props and all those special effects. Oh my...VERY impressive indeed. Kudos to the whole PGL3 Team!

I can't even pick my favourite character(s) of the night! I loved AC Mizal as Adipatih. I also loved Ida Mariana who played Bayan - she has such a beautiful voice. She was the best singer on stage that night, I must say. But, Stephen Rahman-Hughes a.k.a HUNKY Tuah has such a wonderful and dreamy voice, too! And Adlin Aman Ramli - Mahmud Melaka, was one hell of an entertainer, too. And Datin Seri Tiara Jacquelina - what can I say? She was in all her elements that night. She was really into her character...

After the show, the rest of the MTs and their hubbies decided to go for a Teh Tarik session in Keramat, but Ayah and I had to give it a miss as Ayah had to rush back to TMC to see a patient. We also had to fetch the kids from Mak's house in PJ and bring them back to SD as the next day was a school day.

All in all, we had a great time at PGL3 The Musical. Worthed all the money and time spent. And Ayah and I have decided that when P.Ramlee The Musical makes its next round, we're definitely going. This time, bringing the kids with us, insya Allah.

Who needs West End musicals when we have such superb talents in our own backyard, huh? (says the once-a-diva-me-when-it-comes-to-local-musicals... Hehehe!)

(Errrr...do I get commissions for this 6-Star review?)

Here are some (BLUR) pics...

Perfect Valentine's...

Friday night - right after Maghrib, Hanna and I left the house for One-Utama.

The mission - to get a pair of running shoes for Hanna as her school was having a "Merentas Desa" event on Saturday morning, and she didn't have any running shoes to wear. And I also wanted to get a Valentine's card and gift for Ayah. The last Valentine, both of us were so busy that neither managed to even get a card for the other! So, this year, I was determined to at least get a card for him :)

We reached One-Utama at 8:30p.m, and for the next one hour or so, we were at Ne* Ba*an*e, Ni*e, Ad*da* and Ba*a, Ne* Ba*an*ce (again!) and finally Ba*a (again!). Mak ooiii... The trainers are so mencekedaghah, except for those in Ba*a, so that was where we finally settled for a pair of Po*er trainers for Hanna for RM50 :)

Anyway, after getting the trainers, we went to look for Valentine's cards for Ayah. Hanna managed to find a cute one for her and her adik-adik to give to their Ayah, while I was struggling to find a nice one for my hubby. As it was rather a last minute thing, I didn't have much choice, and I had to settle with the best of whatever were left at the card shop, which were not that nice. Sorry, Ayah :(

Next mission - to get his gift(s). By that time, most shops were closing already! Hanna and I managed to run to Gu* La*oc*e. Hmmmm...bad idea to go shopping with your 13y-o daughter as her taste can be so like langit dan bumi to yours! Whatever it was that I liked would get an immediate disapproving look from her. Anyway, as it was a VD gift for MY hubby, and I was paying for them, I had the final say lah kan? By the time we settled with the gifts, it was already 10:30p.m, and off we went home to SD.

And then, it was the waiting game...

Ayah finished his Friday clinic at 10:30p.m, and he was supposed to meet up with Na*a, a friend who was back in KL from Sydney. As Na*a's flight back to Sydney was on Saturday morning and as both of them had been pretty tied up in the last couple of weeks, Friday night was the ONLY time they could meet up for a teh tarik session. 10:30p.m turned to 11:30p.m as Na*a had to settle a few last minute things before his flight back to Sydney. And while Ayah was waiting for Na*a, I was waiting for Ayah at home...Tension lah jugak...

And as the clock struck midnight, still no signs of Ayah. I decided to SMS a Valentine's message to Ayah and almost immediately I received Ayah's Valentine's message to me! Apparently, our messages got crossed :)

By 12:45a.m, I dah merajuk dah...and SMSd Ayah -

"Lama sangat waited for you. I'm going to bed now"

And he came back with, "ODW home".

I put the card and the gifts on his pillows, and went straight to sleep.

I can't even remember when exactly Ayah came home because I was so deep in Slumberland then. Merajuk MAKSIMA lah tu...But, I somehow could recall him saying sorry and thanking me for the card and the gifts and kissing my forehead, before I heard him snoring...and I myself went back to sleep! So much for a romantic Valentine's eve, huh? Hehehe!

On Valentine's Day itself, we had another cause for celebration - in the form of Hasya and Hilman getting prizes for their Hari Anugerah Kecemerlangan at school. The prizes were for their 2008 Final Exams. Both Hasya and Hilman received 2 trophies and 2 Certificates each : Hasya for getting No.2 in her class and best for English for the whole standard 3, while Hilman for getting No.1 in his class and best for Science for the whole standard 2 last year.

Another cause for celebration was when we found out that Hanna's (cheap :))new pair of Po*er trainers had served its purpose very well indeed as Hanna got a medal for 16th placing for her Category (out of about 200 runners) in the Merentas Desa! No need for expensive trainers to run fast, huh? ;)

The rest of Saturday afternoon was spent sending and fetching the kids to and from their swimming class, and with Ayah and I having a long nap until just before Maghrib(something which we rarely get the chance to do!)

After Maghrib, Ayah and I left the kids at home with Dar, with RM125 for them to order Pizzas from Do*in*es (sebab guilty lah tu!),and off we went to KL*CC as Ayah had made reservation at Ta*ak*ra. NOT the most romantic place to have a Valentine's dinner - what with its very bright light and noisy crowd! Hehehe...But, it was perfect for us :)

We left the place just before 10:00p.m, and as we were walking to the car, holding hands, Ayah said,

Ayah : I can still remember the first Valentine's card I gave you...in 1985...

Me : Oh yaaa...me, too!

Ayah : It has a picture of a girl...

Me : Yeah, wearing a bonette... It was red and pink!

Ayah : You remember it, too?!

Me : Yes, of course...my first Valentine's card. Of course I ingat.

And I could feel him squeezing my hand tightly...

And I dah tak merajuk dah with him after that...:)

Even though this year Ayah did not give me any cards or roses like he normally did in the past, I went to bed having this warm and snug feeling in my heart that night knowing that like me, he still remembers the first Valentine's card he gave me 24 years ago...

I guess the feelings are still very strong...Syukur Alhamdulillah :)

Another new year, another year less...

On this New Year's eve, in saying farewell to 2008, and hello to 2009, I have a lot to be thankful for.

Syukur alhamdulillah, 2008 has been a good year for me, Ayah, the kids and our loved ones, and we make do'a that 2009 will bring with it more love, joy, rezqi, wisdom, success, and more importantly - good health for us to enjoy all that Allah SWT has bestowed upon us, insya Allah. And we make do'a that we'll be able to give more to others, too, insya Allah.

I have made so many new friends in the last one year through this humble blog of mine, and I have also found some long-lost friends, too. And for that, I am so grateful.

So, on this eve of 2009, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you abundance of good things in life, love, joy, laughters, wisdom, success, health and semoga dipanjangkan umur dan dimurahkan rezqi, insya Allah.

And as we leave 2008, I would like to leave all of you with this little conversation that I had with Hasya and Hilman today, and something for all of us to ponder upon -

Hilman : Mommy, why do cats eat mice?

Me : Hmmmm, I dunno. I've never thought about it, Hilman. Why do you ask?

Hilman : I dunno, I'm just curious.

Me : I guess, it's like, why do WE eat chicken, vegetables, and fish, etc.? Because we just do? Hmmmm, I really don't have any other explanation to that, Hilman.

Hasya : Errr, Mommy, do you think, MAYBE it's because mice taste like fish? MAYBE?

Me : ???!

(You don't know where this is going, do you? And I am not making any sense here, am I? Oh well,what the heck? Hehehe...))

Guys, what I'm trying to convey here is that - this new year, whenever you cannot find any answers to any questions, or when it feels like you're walking straight onto a solid wall, or when you're stuck with stuff, and when you feel nobody could help you explain the things that need explanation, and ALL THAT are pulling you down, be it at work, or otherwise, just spend MORE time with the kids.

They might provide you with the answers that you're looking for. Be it logical, or illogical ones.

But,hey, even if their answers are illogical, they will surely bring smiles to our lives throughout the new year, non? :)

And just think. Another new year would mean that we have one less year to spend with our kids, with our loved ones. Just think about it.

Just try to spend more time with your loved ones this New Year :)

And I'm sure, 2009 will be one of the best years in your life, insya Allah :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR, Y'ALL...

Wassalam.

Great weekend...

I received this SMS from Ab*d - one of my MT friends at 6:29p.m, on Friday 5th December -

Are u interested to join me for Es*o Dinner tomoro night? Faizal tahir is the guest artist.

My reply -

VERY interestd maaaa! Where? How much? Theme? SET!!! M driving now. Will call later.

As it turned out, the dinner was at The Pa*ac* of Go*de* Ho*se*, my ticket was on Ab*d, and the theme was "Fantasy Night".

As it was quite a last minute thing, I could not think of any good fantasies that I could translate into my dinner attire. So, I just put some black clothings together and went as Woman in Black. Boring. I know. I'm a clean girl. No fantasy whatsoever. The fantasies that I MAY have had may not be suitable for public exhibits in the first place, anyway. HAHAHAHA!

Ab*d went in a gorgeous turqoise top with a pair of smart black velvet pants, as she could not think of what to wear, too. Her initial idea was to go in a smart working suit because she said her fantasy was to become the CEO of the organization. Hey, I wouldn't call that a "fantasy", dear, but rather "an aspiration". Very achievable :)

And Faizal Tahir. What can I say? One word - SUPERB. And if I may add a few more words - SO HOT and so chomei!!!

But, alas...No photos :(

I didn't bring the camera, but I tried snapping some shots using my phone. Memang sakit hati and sakit jiwa coz' punyalah delayed reaction! I would snap the pics, say at 10:22:25 p.m, and the images would only be captured at say, 10:22:32p.m and by that time, all I could get was the back of Faizal's head (or worse - somebody else's head!!!) AAAArrrrrggghhh!!! Tapi, tak per...yang penting I WAS THERE, and at one point he was just 2 feet away from me!!! Tak bernafas I selama 15 saat you all...Hahaha!

We left the hotel at about 11:35p.m and reached Ab*d's place at Vi*la Da*an*ar* around 12:00 midnite. I had parked my car there earlier in the day, and we had coffee while waiting for Ayah to come to "escort" me home - jadi my outrider. Sayang jugak kat bini. He wouldn't allow me to drive alone at night, even though Ab*d's house is just about 15 minutes away from ours. Anyway, Ayah came just after 1:00a.m, and joined us for coffee. We only left Ab*d's place about 1:30a.m.

Thank you, Ab*d, for being my sponsor. And, oh ya! Congratulations for winning the Lucky Draw for the RM400 shopping vouchers! Can sponsor my shopping, too, eh? ;)

And this morning, we attended Ayah's friend's kids' birthday bash at Shangri-la KL. It was the daughter's 3rd birthday, and the son's 7th birthday. There were bouncy castles, face painting, tatoo painting, painting/drawing booths, and some game whereby you have to grab some silver/gold papers flying in this inflatable plastic cage or something. The kids had fun playing all sorts of games organized by the event crew. And, oh ya, there was also a CLOWN.

Ibu, I think it was the SAME clown you had for Ameer's birthday that day. We were not sure at first. He looked like that dude who was at your place - but you can't really tell clowns apart, can you? Anyway, one thing gave it away. Hanna was the one who spotted it. He kept on saying his tagline "I'll kiss you" to the kids. Memang SAH!!! Same dude. Hahahaha! :)

And the kids got some cool party packs and helium-filled balloons to bring home.

Hmmmmm....No evidence of economic crunch at Shangri-la today. That's for sure.

Again, sorry...No pics :( Hanna left the camera in the car boot, and we were just too lazy to go down to the basement parking to get it.

Anyway, it was a really great party. The kids enjoyed themselves tremendously!

Thank you, Dato' Fa*eh and Datin Fi** for being such gracious and wonderful hosts :)

It has been a swell weekend for us, even for Ayah. FYI, Ayah had his karaoke session with his friends on Friday night which continued until the wee hours of Saturday morning. He SMSd earlier after finishing his clinic at 10:30p.m that he was joining his primary school friends for dinner in Bangsar, and that he would be home within an hour. Yours truly waited for him, and fell asleep (thank God! If not, sure tension menunggu!). I woke up a few times from 12:30a.m until about 2:30a.m and still no sign of Ayah! It was at 3:30a.m when I woke up again and saw Ayah performing his solat in the room. Apparently he only reached home at 3:00a.m! So much for "an hour" with his friends, huh? So, it was fair and square - Ayah ALSO had his dose of fun this weekend ;)

And tomorrow will be even better. Time to be with the family to celebrate Hari Raya. At least the first half of the day, that is. The second half of the day, like the previous two years, Ayah and I will be running on our rounds to distribute daging korban, insya Allah. Syukur alhamdulillah, this year Ayah, myself and the kids again mendapat rezqi untuk korban satu bahagian masing-masing. Hope to be able to do the same for the next four years to cukupkan 7 bahagian masing-masing, insya Allah.

Before I sign off, I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you -

Selamat Menyambut Hari Raya Aidil Adha.

Enjoy the time with the family, but at the same time do spend some thoughts and prayers for the less fortunate. Special thoughts and mention for the victims and those affected by the various landslides which occured in the last few days in Klang Valley.

Al-fatihah to those who had perished in the tragedy, and a special prayer for their loved ones to be strong in these very sad and difficult times. Amin.

Qadha' posting...

Salams. This is going to be brief - menunaikan janji to post an entry on Hanna's birthday do, and also on the kids' new "toys" for their exam results.

Yes - Ayah finally kalah dengan pujuk raya anak-anak (seperti biasa...Hehehe) and they each got their reward in the forms of these.

And Hilman somehow accidentally dropped his PSP on the floor when we were in Langkawi and ruined the screen :( which made both Ayah and I VERY upset, indeed. After a round of berleter from each of us (and I added a 20-minute isolation in the dark powder room to my leteran), we realized that however upset we were, Hilman would have felt even more upset with the whole thing. It was his reward for getting No. 1, and barely a week, it was (slightly) damaged. He was trying to convince us that he was okay playing with it - damaged screen or not, but we didn't want to hear any of that. So, we took the PSP away from him, and we told him that we were keeping it indefinitely.

But, after a while, bila dah cool down sikit, we told ourselves that it was only a PSP. A material thing. And after coming back from Langkawi, both Ayah and I mendapat rezqi in other forms, syukur alhamdulillah. And a few days after we were back in KL, Ayah decided to just send the PSP for repair. The screen costs quite a bomb (considering it's JUST a screen!), but, we decided to just go ahead with replacing it. As I'm typing this, the PSP is still in the "workshop". Insya Allah we'll get it back next week. And Hilman doesn't know that he's getting it back. I just hope we're doing the right thing, and I just hope he would be extra careful with it from now on.

Moving along - Hanna's birthday do. Like the previous two years, Hanna wanted to have a makan-makan with her friends to celebrate her birthday.

So, we had a small bash at Ms Re*d's De*ici*us at One-Ut*ma with Hanna inviting her friends - Na* Ra*li, Na* Roslan, El*nna, Aq*la, Ma* and Mi*a, and we were later joined by my SIL Ly*n and family. One thing about this place - they serve REALLY big portions. Hongeh nak perabiskan!

And oh ya - we found out that Mi*a's Dad - Ju*ai*i, is from our batch, and went to KPP with us. In fact Ayah knew him then. In fact he came over to my MIL's house way back then with a few of Ayah's SAS friends! Such a small world indeed :)

Here are some pics! Enjoy!

Of smelly pasar and green packets...

We left the house just before 11:00a.m yesterday to send Hasya and Hilman to their Chess class at TT*I. While waiting for them to finish their class at 12:30p.m, I brought Hanna and Dar to the market to get some groceries. It was supposed to be ONLY chicken, but we ended up buying vegetables, some dry stuff, some seafood, kuey teow etc., much to the annoyance of Hanna. Hehehe... She kept on going on and on and on about it.

She said she could not stand the smell of the Pasar, and I told her, as a girl she needs to get used to all those smell because more often than not, it'll be us women folks who would have to do THAT chore, because most men are just like her Ayah - either they'd be too busy to go to the market OR even if they're not busy, they would not know what to get - what fish, what sayur, etc. (Hehehe...no offence meant, dear ;)) I should have told her that if she thought Pasar TT*I smelled bad, she should go to the other markets...

Anyway, the whole time we were at the Pasar, she would ask me -

Hanna : What ELSE are we getting after this, Mommy? Can I just stay in the car, Mommy? Do I HAVE to follow you to get the fish? Can I just sit here at the bench?, etc.

Naik tension lah jugak I...But, then again, I told myself (sometimes I have to REMIND myself!) - "It's okay, she's only 12 years old. What do I expect?!"

We fetched the kids at 12:30a.m, and went to Mak's house to send all the groceries there. Ayah only reached Mak's house from the hospital about 2p.m, and we started our Open House marathon by going to Mak An*ak/Ro*ie's Open House in Section 14. We left just before the sky opened up at 3:15p.m, and made our way to Al*ng's house (Ayah's big brother) in Ar* D'sara in the REALLY heavy rain (and I mean REALLY HEAVY. Sampai langsung tak nampak jalan!). We only left Al*ng's house at 5:40p.m and made our way to Ayah's Pak Long's house in Kajang. And as expected, after the heavy downpour, everywhere was jammed, and we only reached Kajang just before 7p.m.

After Kajang, we left for my Wanchik's place at 7:50p.m. She stays in Pu*ak Al*m. So, you can just imagine how renyuk everybody was when we finally reached Puncak Alam at 9:20p.m - from one end of the world, to the other end of the world! I finally met my cousin's wife, El*ne, and their two kids. The last time I saw him was before he got married (and his eldest daughter is now 5 years old!). I also met another cousin (from another Aunty), Ji*a. The last time I saw her pulak was when she was 9 years old. She's in her final year at UI*M now! So, it was nice to have met her again after all these years.

And both El*ne and Ji*a who had never met our kids before, thought that Hanna was in Form 5! Can't blame them. They were not the only ones who thought that. I think some people even thought that Hanna was already working coz' yesterday when we went to the Open Houses, she didn't get her duit raya at one of the houses! Kesian dia... But I promised her that I would top up her duit raya to equal her adek-adek's, which we normally do anyway :)

If the hosts sendiri yang distributed the packets, for sure she'll get one. But, because the hosts had delegated the task of distributing the duit raya to their staff who didn't know her, can't blame them for thinking that Hanna's not a kid anymore!

They wouldn't know that there would be at least 11 years more before she starts working (if she starts right after getting her degree) and 15-20 years more (basing on current average age of getting married that is) before she would be going to the smelly Pasar herself to do the groceries for her own small family. ;)

Heck, even I sometimes forget that she's only 12 when I look at her. Only when she starts fooling around with her adek-adek, and I see how childish she can be, that I would then realize that she's still a kid...

But come to think of it, Hanna dear, no matter how old you are, you will always be our Baby, anyway... Our FIRST Baby :)

Here are some photos - and you'll see what I mean about Hanna :)