Happy birthday to you..

WTF?!!

Now don't get me wrong. Juz like the red velvet cake, i've also heard a lot about Tutti Frutti frozen yogurt (TF) and last Friday nite i got to experience my 1st TF at the TTDI outlet. So what's WTF? It's my version of Wow Tutti Frutti! Hahaha.

I was very lucky to bump into a friend who i consider a TF addict to guide me through my 1st experience. It's not like ordering an ordinary cup/cone of ice cream from BR or HD. It is self service and below are the steps for you to enjoy your TF:

1. Choose your cup (S-L) and they don't have cones

2. Go to the McD-like ice cream machines where you pump out your desired flavor/s

3. Go to the toppings area. There is a wide range of toppings from fresh fruits, choc chip, cornflakes, gummy bears, hersheys syrup, u name it they've got it

4. Pay at the counter.

This is where the catch is. So you get excited bcoz u can pump as many flavor as you want and put as many topping as you like BUT the heavier your cup, the more expensive it will be. The price is RM0.35/ 10grams if i'm not mistaken. Last Friday i chose 3 flavors: pomegranate, banana + strawberry, death by chocolate and i sprinkled a lil bit of choc chips, raisins, gummy bears n 2 choc wafers for Luq n Leia. How much do you think i paid for my TF (as above pic)? It cost me almost RM20!

It wasn't a shock to me bcoz my friend had told me about the charges earlier and since it was my 1st time, i told myself it's ok to splurge on frozen yogurt once a while.

I really loved the 3 flavors that i chose especially the pomegranate. I don't think i'll become a TF addict as it could really burn a hole in my wallet n i'm lucky bcoz they don't have an outlet near W*ngsa M*ju YET!

Our 1st iftar outing in 2010

Since we're celebrating Ramadhan in a very moderate way this year, it includes avoiding any iftar outings at fancy restaurants. However, last Friday (27.08.10), Mr A's company hosted an iftar session for one of their vendors and since most of their vendor's staff couldn't make it, the invitations were opened to family members as well.

The iftar session was held at Tropicana Golf & Contry Resort. Mr A was on leave bcoz it was a public holiday for Selangor so there was no rush to come and fetch us first then go to Tropicana that day.

The buffet spread was more to Malay cuisine so the only wester food was spaghetti and pizza. The main attraction was the bbq corner where they had grilled lamb, beef n seafood which was the first place i 'attacked'. As usual, there were also rice with variety of dishes, char kuey teow, porridge, oxtail soup, noodles, laksa, satay and many more.

The buffet rate was RM55 for adults n RM35 for children.

Thank you to Mr A's company for having us.

I juz got to know..

Published: Wednesday August 25, 2010 MYT 7:45:00 PM

Malaysia Day on Sept 16 is a paid holiday: Dr Subra

KUALA LUMPUR: Workers who work on the Malaysia Day public holiday on Sept 16 will be entitled to a paid holiday, Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam said Wednesday.

This was provided for under Section 60D(1)(b) of the Employment Act 1955, he said in a statement.

The government has declared Sept 16 as a public holiday in view of Malaysia Day beginning this year. - Bernama

How cool is that? Another public holiday is added to our calendar. It was actually announced by our PM last year but i only got to know about it yesterday. So why am i fussing about this particular public holiday? The answer is bcoz 16 Sept is OUR (me n Mr A's) wedding anniversary. Who would have thought that of all the dates, the PM chose 16 Sept as Malaysia Day!

Luq's private party

Juz like the previous years, we will have a private party to celebrate Luq's birthday and this year is the same. Although he hasn't experienced his own birthday party like some of his friends, he understands why and never requested Mr A n i to throw him a big party. Thus, we will make sure that every year is special for him and he gets to choose his cake or rather choose the picture for his cake and i choose the flavor. Hehehe.

This year he actually wanted a Buzz Lightyear character on his cake but as usual we were late in ordering and the bakery did not have a ready made Buzz Lightyear character. So, he got a Ben 10 character instead. Instead of plain sponge or butter cake, we ordered a paddle pop ice cream cake which was super duper yummy.

Seeing Luq's happy face was juz priceless.

Our party guests :)

Leia also enjoyed the cake very much.

My pride n joy. Couldn't live without them.

Luq n his current craze, Buzz Lightyear. Presents were from Luq's Mak Yie n Gemma. Sorry mummy couldn't buy u any presents sayang but i can give u 24hr tlc every day.

Happy 4th birthday again.

Fabulous FOUR!

Alhamdulillah my baby boy Luqman Aditya is FOUR years old today! He's not a baby anymore but it seems like only yesterday i gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. Words can't describe how much he means to me. I only want the best for him and that he will grow up to become a good khalifa. InsyaAllah. Amin.

These pictures were from he was a baby and his yearly birthday celebration. No big or fancy birthday parties. Just us. Wait for his 4th birthday celebration *wink*

Luq when he was 2 days old (19.08.06)

Luq's 1st birthday (18.08.07)

Luq's 2nd birthday (18.08.08). I was pregnant with Leia.

Luq's 3rd birthday (18.08.09)

U are my sunshine.. my only sunshine
U make me happy.. when skies are gray
U never know boy.. how much i love u
So please don't take my sunshine away

Mummy loves u so much Luqman Aditya!

Twenty one months

I've been so frustrated with Strea*yx for this past one week that i almost forgot to post an entry about Leia turning 21 months on 8th August 2010. There are so many additional words to her vocabs now n she's more camera friendly. I am thinking of starting to toilet train her since she always informs me or Mr A whenever she wants to 'poopoo'. Some kids only tell you they want to 'poopoo' after it's over but she tells us before.

Only 3 months to go until she turns 2yo. How time really flies so fast. Sometimes i miss the times when she was just a baby but i also can't wait to see her grow up. For the time being, i'm just enjoying every moment that i spend with her.

Tomorrow will be the first day of Ramadhan and not only will it be a fasting month for all Muslims, it is also the holliest of all months. This year, i hope i could collect as many 'pahala' as i can from this holy month. My life has been turned upside down since last week and i know it will never be the same again. The only reasons that are keeping me 'alive' right now are Luq n Leia. I will not blog about my personal life anymore bcoz it may backfire one day and whatever obstacles in life that Allah the Almighty gave us is to test how strong we are. If i think that this is the end of the world for me, i must also think about other people out there who perhaps have bigger problems than i have.

This Ramadhan, let's make it a month of change. Let's re-charge our imaan and revive the Deen in our heart, in our family and in our communities, insyaAllah! Wishing u n your family a blessed n happy Ramadhan. Please forgive any wrongdoings that i have caused intentionally or unintentionally.

I'm a virgin

..to the red velvet cake!!! Hahaha. Gotcha!

I've been hearing so much about the red velvet cake and almost ALL of my friends have posted photos of it in facebook that i really had to try it out for myself. My first experience was last saturday at The Apartment n i would say that it is rather expensive. I mean RM15 for a slice of cake n it wasn't to die for. Perhaps bcoz it was my first red velvet so i had nothing to compare it with.

I've heard about red velvet cakes from Whisk, Just Heavenly n California Pizza Kitchen. These places will be my next target *wink*

When the 'ex'es meet

It's been a while since i met my ex- colleagues n last saturday we finally agreed to meet at The Apartment, The Curve. Initially it was supposed to be the ten of us but in the end only four could make it. When i mentioned colleagues, not all of them were from V*DS. I regard those who were from K*lly S*rvices as my colleagues too bcoz we were partners and used to work closely together.

It was refreshing for me to meet them bcoz it reminded me of my working days which i very much miss. We laughed n gossip about the good old days and talked about our current lives.

Me n Suzana (ex-K*lly S*rvices)

Me, Suzana n Aiza (ex-K*lly S*rvices)


Me with the ex- K*llys n Lin (ex-V*DS)

Belated birthday treat

It is very difficult to meet my childhood friend, Alin these days bcoz she's currently super busy with her new 'baby' Dear Azalea. So, i quickly said yes when Nani told me that Alin wanted to meet up for brunch at Bianco today. Of course i had no choice but to bring along Luq n Leia.

Thanx for the treat Alin. We should do this more often instead of meeting at birthday parties. Hehe

Thanx guys.

Club Med Cherating

Mr A and i have been planning a beach retreat since May and our favourite destination is of course the east coast of Malaysia. We were in the midst of deciding which hotel/ resort to stay when he 'bbm'ed me one May afternoon to inform that he had juz got out from a staff meeting and his MD announced that they're going to organise a 3D2N company trip to Cherating in July. The best part is that we'll be staying in Club Med! Since that day onwards i started to count the days to our all expense paid vacation. Weeeee!

30th July finally came. The agenda was for everyone to meet at the first check point which was McDonalds Genting Sempah and once everyone was there, drive and meet at the next check point which is after the Jabor toll and convoy to Club Med Cherating. We reached Club Med around 2pm and were greeted by their G.O team. I forgot what G.O stands for but they're like the events co-ordinators. We were then led to the reception area where we were served welcome drinks and were briefed on the resort's facilities and activities. After that, we went to our respective rooms and were required to gather at the theatre by 3.30pm where there will be a tele-match cum ice breaking session.

It took us about 5mins walk from the reception area to our room bcoz it was quite a distance and we reached our room around 2.45pm so we had some time to unpack. The room was not as i expected as it was so simple and the bathroom was rather small. I think it was the cheapest room in the resort as it was all paid by Mr A's company. As the saying says "beggars can't be choosers". Juz be grateful with what you have. But overall the room was juz fine bcoz we were spending most of our time outdoor. There was a king sized bed, a single bed and a baby cot ready. Although Mr A said he did not request for a baby cot but i guess when the company made the bookings, Club Med will automatically provide a baby cot in your room if you have a child under 2yo, which i find very proactive.

I guess Luq and Leia were also very happy to be away from home once in a while.

Once we've settled unpacking, we went to meet the others at the theatre. That was when Leia said she wanted to poopoo so i had to wait for her while Mr A and Luq went first. As Leia and i were walking towards the theatre, we bumped into the group who were walking towards the field near the archery area. Before the tele-match started, we got to know each other (all the other staff's wives and children). The tele-match took about 1 hour and after that we were brought to the snacks area. One of the many things that i loved about Club Med is that you will NEVER be hungry bcoz the package includes accomodation and food throughout the day and evening. There's breakfast, lunch, te-time snacks and dinner. Not to forget the open bar drinks where you can request any drinks (juices & soft drinks) u like at anytime.

After having some snacks (sandwiches & french fries), we headed back to our room. While most of the other families decided to go to the beach or swimming pool, we opted to stay in so that the kids can rest. We went to dinner after maghrib and i was really thrilled to see the variety of food which were served. I had mini lobsters (take note on the plural), sushi, grilled lamb and not to forget the yummy desserts. I didn't even capture any photos bcoz i was too busy eating. Hehehe.
After dinner, we wanted to see the magic show at the theatre but we were a bit late so it was already full. Every night, there will be a variety of performances in the theatre. Since we were still tired from the travelling, we went back to our room and planned to explore the whole place the next day.

Once back in the room, we fooled around in front of the camera for a while and watched tv.

Luq and Leia getting ready to sleep.

The next morning, we went for breakfast around 8am. Eventhough it was a company trip but everyone were allowed to have their own activities. The only time the whole group were together was during the tele-match. So, after breakfast Mr A and i brought Luq and Leia to the Ohana Cabana. One of the many Club Med's attractions is the Mini Kids Club where you can leave your children (aged 4yo & above) at the mini club and they will be taken care by the G.Os with a day full of fun activities so that the parents could spend more time together and join the all day activities organised by Club Med. Eventhough Luq is almost 4yo but he's not the type who listens to instructions yet, so we didn't register him for the mini club. Since there was no one at the Ohana Cabana when we reached there, Luq and Leia got to enjoy the place all to themselves.

After about an hour at the Ohana Cabana, we decided to go back to the room and change to our swimming attire and hit the pool. By the time we reached the swimming pool, it was already 11+am and the sun was smiling right above our heads. Luq and Leia were more than happy to jump into the pool and play.

The above photo was a pool game where a G.O stands on a surf board and whoever can knock him down will win a prize but no one managed to do so. He was real calm when people knocked him a few times as though his feet were glued to the surf board. It was really entertaining bcoz the people who knocked him are the ones who fell into the water. Hehehe.

As it was getting too hot, we went back to our room to bathe and went for lunch. Around 3pm after lunch, a few of Mr A's colleagues invited him to try out archery. So off we went to the archery area.

While waiting for the others to come, Mr A decided that we take the train to the beach juz to check it out. We could also walk to the beach but riding the train seems to be more fun. So off we went on the choo choo train. Luq and Leia were so excited.

The beach did not have milky white sand but it was very clean and the water was clear too. Since it was an unplanned trip to the beach, we didn't have our swimming gears on so we juz walked on the beach and let Luq and Leia play with the sand. We planned to come back later in the evening when it's not too hot.

When we reached our room, Luq and Leia were already exhausted from waking up early and playing at the Ohana Cabana and swimming pool that they slept after drinking their milk. By 6pm they were still asleep and i knew that we'll not be able to go to the beach again and it rained that evening.

We went for our last dinner at Club Med that night and i was hoping to have some more of the mini lobsters but they served different foods which nevertheless were still delicious. I had scallops, prawns, steamboat and more desserts. Remembering all those food makes me hugry. Another thing that makes Club Med special is that they're G.Os eat together with the patrons so that there is a special bond between the resort and the patrons. I can't imagine how the G.Os looked slim and fit when they actually get to eat delicious food everyday. I guess they must go to the gym everyday too.

Since it was our last nite at Club Med, Mr A and i decided that we spend time a little longer at the bar area and take photos bcoz we don't know when we'll get the chance to come back. It was already almost 11pm and the kids were getting restless so we decided to retreat to our room. Check-out time the next day was at noon so we have to leave the room by 12pm but can still stay until after lunch. Lunch was also provided on the departure day, which was why i said earlier that you will never be hungry.

The next morning, the plan was to have a quick breakfast, spend a while at the beach, the swimming pool, pack our things and get ready to leave the room before noon. Unfortunately, when we arrived at the train station, we waited until 9.15am but the train did not come to take us to the beach and we didn't know how far we had to walk to the beach. We didn't want to waste time waiting for the train so we juz went to the pool instead. Luq and Leia really enjoyed the pool that they didn't want to leave.

Once we reached our room, it was already 10.30am and we had about less than two hours to pack and get ready to leave. Luckily, Mr A and i have packed everything the night before and only left the clothes that we were going to wear the next day. We left our room around 11.45am and headed to the reception area. Lunch was only ready at 12.30am so after returning our room key, we sat at the open bar area and took more photos.

After lunch, we finally said goodbye to Club Med Cherating.

The above is a photo of me and Soey, the G.O who was in charge of our group.

Mr A stopped outside the guard post to take photos. One of the many things i learned when you're travelling with kids, EVERYTHING is about them. Eventhough Mr A and i had some tough times during our holiday when both kids wanted to poopoo during dinner and nap when we were supposed to be trying out as many activities as we can, we will cherish every moment that we spent with them bcoz one day they will not want to follow us anywhere. We hope to come again when the kids are older so that Mr A and i could enjoy more. InsyaAllah.