My World

Toilet training Leia - seriously

2011-03-08T14:18:00.028+08:00

I wrote an entry about Toilet training Leia November last year but i wasn't so serious in executing it back then. Leia is 2 yrs 4 mths today and last weekend i started to get serious with my mission to toilet train her. The first 2 days were a bit tough with a few 'accidents' but now i think she has understood the concept of pee-ing in the toilet. Day 4 has been going on quite well so far with only 1 'accident'.
Toilet training can be exhausting and takes up most of my time but the reward is priceless. Since i started toilet training Leia, i would post every development on facebook and a few mummy friends would ask me for tips. My only tip is to not let the children tell you that they want to go to the toilet but bring them to the toilet every couple of hours instead eventhough they say they don't feel like going. A parent must also be very patient and don't easily give up. There are no such as thing as too early or too late to start toilet training a child but i wouldn't want to open a 4/5 year old diaper with poop inside. Bleurghhhhh!!!

Alhamdulillah my children are considered easy to toilet train. I didn't have much trouble with Luq too last time and i NEVER had to clean up poop from the floor bcoz they would tell me each time they want to poo.
To parents out there who are or will start toilet training your children, GOOD LUCK!

On this date, two years ago..

2011-02-23T22:23:00.004+08:00

i started my role as a stay-at-home-mum. It wasn't easy then and it's still not easy now. I cherish every moment that i get to spend with my kids and i have never once regretted the decision that i made 2 years ago.

But now things are getting tougher and expenses are increasing so i need to go out in the working world again to help our family. I hope that when the time comes Luq + Leia would understand that whatever i do, i do it for them.

A day full of LOVE

2011-02-21T22:18:00.019+08:00

*Picture googled

Me n my twitteroos decided to have an all girls movie outing yesterday and we chose to watch the new romantic comedy, No Strings Attached. It was hillarious and also sweet at the same time. We absolutely loved the movie. especially bcoz we get to drool over Ashton Kutcher's body. Hehe.

The movie started at 12.20pm but we came early around 11.30am so that we could have our teh tarik session before the movie started.

Me and my twitteroos.

I call them my twitteroos bcoz we seldom meet but we 'talk' on Twitter every day. After the movie, we went for our late lunch and i reached home around 4.30pm.

*Picture googled

As i got home, i knew we didn't have any plans to go out so i just changed my clothes and lied down on the bed reading my timeline. I told Luq + Leia that i'd bring them to see Gemma at 6pm. When i was getting ready to go my mum's, i received a BBM from a friend asking whether i wanted to watch the Terima Kasih Cinta theatre tonite as she has a few extra tickets. I already planned to go watch it with a couple of friends but bcoz there was no news on the tickets, i quickly grabbed the opportunity (rezeki jgn ditolak) and asked for 2 tickets.
I straight away went to my mum's to ask whether she could babysit Luq+Leia so that i can watch the theatre with Mr A but since it was a last minute plan, my mum couldn't watch them bcoz she was already busy preparing to cook and my sister wasn't around to help her look after Luq+Leia. So in the end, i went alone. Mr A and the kids sent me to Istana Budaya after maghrib and i arrived there just in time before it started.

Me and Erna at Istana Budaya. She also received sms about the free tickets at the same time i did.

The casts of Terima Kasih Cinta. I just loved the set. Simple but very creatively done. All i can say about the play is that it was very entertaining and the casts had very good vocals (it's a musical play). I'm not going to elaborate further on it but you may read about it more here.

My favorite actor for TKCinta would definitely be the old timer Latiff Ibrahim. To those who have not watched it, i would recommend that you go before the tickets are sold out.

My 'dates' for the night.

Farra is part of the TKCinta team. Thank u so much for the ticket babes. The seat was good and i really enjoyed the show.

I really had a long day. It was almost 12am when i reached home and before i slept that night, i did not forget to thank Allah for the 'rezeki' that He gave me and for letting me have such wonderful family and friends.

It was indeed a day full of LOVE :)

Wordless Wednesday Ver.2

2011-02-16T16:39:00.006+08:00

So proud of my childhood friends :)

CONGRATS DEAR AZALEA!

It seemed like only yesterday..

2011-02-14T23:20:00.014+08:00

i received the phone call which made my world fell apart. It was the day that i lost someone very close to my heart.

I still remember clearly, the morning of 14th February 2001. I was working as usual and was so looking forward to celebrating my 1st Valentine's Day (time tu zaman jahiliyah) later that evening with Mr A until i received a phone call from my close friend who told me that my ex-bf whom i knew for almost 8 years has passed away early that morning.

Some people may say "why do i have to care about an ex?" Well, eventhough we were not together anymore, we became close friends and he was already like a part of my family.

14th February will always be a sad day for me but it is also the day where i knew i have found my true love. Mr A was my bf back then and we were only together for less than 6 months but the sacrifice that he showed on that day was enough for me to know that he's the one for me. On that day, he took me and my mum to see my ex- bf's remains at UH's mortuary and then to my ex-bf's parents' house for his funeral, which during all those times i was bawling my eyes out.

I don't think any other men would want to see their gf cry over another man. He was really calm and stayed with me until the end of the day and even until today, he would understand if i were to be a bit emotional on 14 February. In a way, it's like a blessing in disguise bcoz we never celebrated Valentine's Day.

Today marks the 10th year of his passing and after 10 years of lost contact, earlier tonite i received a facebook mail (as above image) from his sister which made me cry after reading it. My mum cried too after i forwarded it to her.
A lot can happen in 10 years. A baby who was born 10 years ago is already in standard 2 primary school today. A couple who got married 10 years ago could be celebrating their 10 years wedding anniversary today. 10 years is a long time but the memory of 14th February 2001 is still fresh in my mind. I always wonder how it would be like if he was still around. What would he look like, how many kids would he have or will we still be friends? If he was still here, he would be 33yo end of March but he is not here anymore and all i can do is send him du'as and read Al-Fatihah/ Yaasin.

Rest in peace Amirul Mazli.

May Allah bless your soul always.

Sun, Sea & Sand on Lunar New Year

2011-02-08T16:22:00.035+08:00

It was an impromptu trip. Mama's boss has an apartment in Port Dickson so we decided to spend CNY there. Initially we wanted to go on 3rd Feb and come back on 5th Feb but mama's boss' SIL wanted to use the apartment on the 4th so we went 1 day earlier and came back on the 4th morning. As Mr A was still working on 2nd Feb, me and kids went with mama and my sister in the morning and Mr A joined us in the evening after he finished work. Alhamdulillah the traffic was smooth and clear.

We reached PD around 2pm and searched for Ocean View Resort which was located at Batu 9 right after Ancasa Resort. It was not like any fancy hotel/ resort but it was just perfect for us. It was a fully furnished apartment with 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a kitchen, living room and dining hall. Once we were done tidying and cleaning the place, we went out to PD town to get some late lunch.

Luq and Leia were so happy and can't wait to go to the beach.

When we got back to the apartment it was already 5.30pm and it was just nice to go to the beach. Since it was quite a distance to walk to the beach and Mr A wasn't around to accompany us, my sister decided to drive to the beach which was about 3 minutes drive from the apartment. The weather was perfect that evening and surprisingly the beach was clean too and not many people. Maybe bcoz most people were still working. As soon as we settled our things on the beach mat, Luq and Leia started building their sand castles. They were really enjoying themselves.

The last time we brought Leia to the beach was last year when we went to Club Med, Cherating but she was scared of the water then. This time around, she was the one who ran towards the water and was excited to catch the waves. She even didn't want to leave.

We went back to the apartment close to 7pm as it was getting dark and there was no one around.

Mr A arrived just after maghrib as i was preparing dinner. Since everyone was on quite a tight budget, we decided to cook our own meals instead of eating out. The kitchen was complete with a fridge, a microwave and kitchen utensils except for a stove. Fortunately, mama's boss lent us her portable stove which was really convenient and useful that i'm thinking of getting our own for emergency purposes.

The next morning after breakfast we went to the same beach again but this time Mr A was with us. It was already the CNY holiday so the crowd was bigger unlike the day before. The weather was lovely that morning and the tides were low. As usual, Luq and Leia started building their sand castles while mama and my sister strolled on the beach.

Once Luq and Leia were bored with the sand, it was time for some splish splash. Words can't describe how i felt looking at Luq and Leia having a good time.

Just look at them. It was a blissful sight.

We were also happy to get to spend the holiday with mama and my sister. By the time we left the beach around noon, the parking lot was already full and cars kept coming in. After having lunch, we just stayed in the apartment to rest and went to PD town around 4pm to buy some kuihs.

We were caught in the traffic jam as the crowd were still arriving that by the time we reached the apartment, it was almost 6pm. So we quickly ate our kuihs and changed into our swimsuits to go to the swimming pool.

The swimming pool was quite full so we didn't spend much time there but nontheless, Luq and Leia were happy.

Since it was our last night in PD, mama decided to take us out for dinner instead of cooking that night. It was quite difficult to find a place to eat bcoz all the restaurants were full. In the end, we were lucky to find a decent restaurant which wasn't full. After dinner, we visited my uncle and his family who were staying in Royal Palm Springs Golf Resort.

The above are snap shots of the apartment's interior. I forgot to take photos of the bedrooms but they were equipped with airconds and fans.

The next morning after having light breakfast, we quickly packed and made sure that the apartment was clean and tidy bcoz mama's boss' SIL was going to use it later.

We left the apartment around 11am and had brunch at PD town. The traffic home was also smooth bcoz people were still heading down south instead of KL. Now that we're back at our own home, i kind of missed staying in the same house with my mama and siblings. I wish we can go on more vacations together again.

Double fun

2011-01-16T23:18:00.010+08:00

Last Saturday i had my 'me' time and today me + Mr A had our 'us' time +2 when we went on a double date with Ms M + Mr F. Initially, we wanted to watch Gullivers Travel but the show time was too late as we wanted to reach home before maghrib. So, we watched Little Fockers instead. As expected, the movie was hillarious and we couldn't stop laughing. I almost cried myself of laughter.

*Picture googled

The last time we went out sans the kids was early last year when we went for a wedding reception. So it was fun to go on a date with Mr A once in a while. Luq + Leia also behaved themselves when we left them at home with my mum. We were lucky they didn't cry, especially Leia.

Our double date partner, Ms M + Mr F. Thanks for the lovely time guys. We should do this again :)

Wordless Wednesday Ver.1

2011-01-12T17:35:00.005+08:00

Visiting baby Aryan (latest addition to Ngeks junior)

2011-01-10T15:17:00.018+08:00

Yesterday, we (Ngeks) went to Rawang to visit Faez who gave birth to baby Aryan on 30th November 2011. We didn't get a chance to visit her after she delivered bcoz she went back to her mom's at Melaka for confinement. Only Nury and family did not make it yesterday. It was our first meet up for 2011 since we last went out to IKEA late last year so there were a quite lot of catching up to do.

Baby Aryan is such a cutie. The day that we visited him, he was only 40 days old but he looked like a 3 months old baby and was so active.

Big brother Adam showing his love to Aryan.

The Ngeks junior. Well, part of the Ngeks junior. Adam, Iman and Luq has been friends since they were babies. (9 months old to be precise). Hopefully they will still be friends when they grow up. InsyaAllah. Missing from the photo was Zahra and Muhammad (Ein was bathing Ara) and also Balqis and Mukhlish.

Take care Faez. Another 4 more days to go and you'll be free. Weeeeeee :)

As usual, our visit won't be complete without a group photo before going back. Missing you ladies already. Can't wait to see you all again.

Last but not least, a group photo of the Ngeks' hubbies. Teehee.

Splendid Saturday

2011-01-08T22:28:00.010+08:00

Working moms who say that they don't need 'me' time are actually quite wrong bcoz when you work, that is considered as your 'me' time bcoz you get to see your colleagues, have breakfast, lunch, tea breaks and sometimes go shopping during office hours. Which is why when you come home from work, all you want to do is spend all the time that you have with your children.

As for me, I 'work' 24 hours, 7 days a week so 'me' time is very important to keep me sane. My definition of 'me' time is to just be away from my children for a few hours at least once a week and i am very fortunate to have such an understanding husband to take care of them while i'm away.

So, earlier today i spent my 'me' time with my closest friend Dydy. We decided to have a pot luck breakfast. I cooked asam pedas on Friday night and brought it to her house this morning and she cooked fried rice. After breakfast we just talked and watched tv. It was good to talk to an adult (other than Mr A) bcoz i spend most of my time with a kid and a toddler. Later in the afternoon we went to have some froyo at Tutti Frutti Taman Tun.

The above picture of Plaza VADS is where i used to work for 9 years. Taman Tun will always be dear to my heart bcoz that is where i started working and it was also where i met Mr A. Even Luq's 1st day care was at Taman Tun. That's why i always feel a bit sentimental when i'm in Taman Tun.

Froyo with the Nawi sisters :)

Thanks a lot for your time my friend. Eventhough we practically did nothing today but it was the best 'me' time i ever had.

Wish you were here

2011-01-05T22:54:00.008+08:00

Today i'm missing my ayah more bcoz it's his birthday. The last time i saw him was on 28th September 2009 when we went back to Indonesia to celebrate Syawal. I've always been a daddy's girl bcoz i'm more open to him compared to my mum.

Happy birthday ayah! May you be blessed with good health always and may Allah protect you from any harm. I love you!

*The above photo was taken on 3rd May 2009, 6 days before he left to Indonesia for good. It was the last time we had dinner together as a family.

Monday blues

2011-01-03T18:13:00.011+08:00

* Picture googled

It's 3rd January and the 1st Monday of 2011, which means kids are back to school and most people have started working. Today, as i went through twitter and fb, i couldn't help feeling sad reading friends' tweets and statuses about sending their children to school bcoz we are unable to send Luq to school yet this year. He turned 4yo last August and by right he should be going to a pre-school this year but due to our financial situation he'll have to wait.

2010 has been the toughest year for us but we are very grateful that we are still surviving until today. No one knows what we are really going through except for our parents. I have been applying for jobs for quite some time now but have yet to receive any good news. There are times when i feel like giving up but after prayers, i always feel that Allah has plans for me and only He knows what's best. In the meantime, I'm enjoying all the time i have with Luq and Leia bcoz i never know when i may start work again. Luq may not be going to a pre-school this year but this doesn't mean that he couldn't learn. I'll have to be his teacher for now and i'll bet i'm going to be his best teacher in the whole world.

Goodbye 2010

2010-12-31T23:34:00.007+08:00

*Picture googled

Today is the last day of 2010 and i couldn't just let it go by not saying goodbye here. So much has happened this year. A lot of tears has been shed but there were also a lot of laughter. 2009 was a difficult year for us but 2010 tested us even more. Now that 2011 is coming, i really don't have any high hopes for it. We'll take it as it comes, try to be positive and continue praying that our lives will be back to normal.

Here's wishing everyone a Happy New Year 2011. May it be a prosperous, healthy and blessed year for all of us.

A trip to the National Science Center

2010-12-31T18:25:00.013+08:00

My sister was on her year end holiday and so was my mum. So they decided to take Luq & Leia out and asked whether i had any place in particular to bring them. I instantly remembered my friend Muna who took her sons to the National Science Center a few weeks back and thought that it would be interesting to bring Luq & Leia there since the Dinos Alive exhibition was still on.

We reached the NSC around 1.30pm and the weather was perfect. Cloudy with a little chance of rain. Teehee. After buying the tickets (RM10 for adults and RM5 for children 4yo n above), we made our way into the center. I remember going to the NSC but it was a long time ago during school days so it was like the first time for me too.

As soon as we passed the walkway and entered the center, we saw 2 gigantic dinosaurs. A brachiosaurus and a tyrannosaurus rex or also known as the t-rex. Luq and Leia were scared of the dinos (most kids were), especially the t-rex bcoz it was moving and roaring. We walked past the 2 dinos and went upstairs to the exhibition halls.

While walking towards the exhibition halls, we passed by a few experiments stations and tried out each one. It was interesting but there was not enough time to complete each experiment bcoz Luq and Leia were easily bored. Who can blame them since they're only 4 and 2 years old. There were also photo tricks. Can you spot them in the photos below?

There were 2 dino exhibition halls (carnivores and herbivores) with smaller dinos. The halls were dark and the dinos were also roaring, which made Luq and Leia more scared. Luq was sitting in the stroller and refused to take photos and Leia was holding on to me like a koala bear to a bamboo tree. Somehow it did feel like we were in Jurassic Park. Hehe.

Once we were done with the dinos, we went down where there were more experiments stations. Luq and Leia were running here and there eventhough they were still coughing. I had to monitor their body temperatures closely too bcoz they just recovered from high fever.

As soon as we were done with the NSC, we went to IKEA to have our late lunch and went home after that.

Luq and Leia really enjoyed themselves and couldn't stop talking about their trip as soon as Mr A came home. 1 day we will go there again with Mr A. InsyaAllah.

*All photos were taken with my BlackBerry bcoz i forgot to bring my camera. Not bad eh? *wink*

Addicted to Foursquare

2010-12-21T18:27:00.011+08:00

Yes i am! I started using foursquare on 12th June 2010. That was when i first unlocked the Newbie badge. At first it was fun to check in to different places bcoz my friends in fb and twitter would know my where abouts since i set it to post my locations to fb and twitter. Then it became more fun after i found out there are a lot of badges to unlock and i became obsessed with unlocking the cute little badges. The new fb for blackberry also has the function where you can check in to places yo go but it's no fun bcoz it doesn't unlock badges like foursquare.

My sister was quite worried with me using foursquare at first bcoz she said one of her colleague's friend's house was broken into all bcoz of foursquare. Well, sorry to say but some people are really stupid to check in to their homes on foursquare, revealing their full address. And some people don't know that they can still check in without posting the location to fb or twitter. Now that my sister also has a blackberry, she's hooked on foursquare too. Haha

I've just learned a few tricks on how to unlock foursquare badges (no i'm not going to share it). Hehehe. So nowadays i mostly check in to places which i know i can unlock new badges and i only post my locations to twitter instead of fb. I now have 36 badges and still counting. Some may say it's a waste of time but for me, it's a hobby that doesn't cost a single cent.

On his birthday...

2010-12-15T23:19:00.014+08:00

we celebrated it by having dinner at San Francisco Pizza. He didn't want to be celebrated but my mum insisted that she bring us out for a dinner treat.

The food at San Francisco Pizza was not bad actually and it wasn't our first time eating there.

The birthday boy (boy ke?). Hehehe.

Happy 33rd birthday daddy! We LOVE u!!!

My terrible TWO

2010-12-09T13:44:00.010+08:00

Nothing much to write about my little princess except that she always drives me up the wall with her antics and screaming but i still love her to bits.

And now she's not shy to pose in front of the camera (if she's in the mood).

But if she's not in the mood, her picture will be as below. Hehehe.

It's been ONE year

2010-12-01T14:22:00.009+08:00

*Picture googled

.. since I started dis blog and i think i have matured in the sense of writing over this 1 year. When i first started blogging, most of my entries contained a lot of emotions and i was pouring out almost everything out in the open but i slowly learned to control what to write. Another month to go before we welcome 2011 and i hope this last month of 2010 will treat me a bit better. I've only changed my blog layout twice since i started blogging. Maybe it's time for a blog make over so that i would blog more. Alasan! Haha

When The Ngeks Meet for Meatballs

2010-11-15T22:34:00.007+08:00

It is really difficult to meet all the Ngeks eventhough there are only 5 of us bcoz everyone is always bz. Even for this meatballs session, we had to plan 1 month ahead bcoz Nana was bz with her exams and Ein with her never ending family functions. Hehe.

So finally last Sunday we get to meet up. We arrived at IKEA around 10ish but found out they only serve meatballs at 11.30am so we ordered light breakfast and got to catch up with each other while waiting. Faez is due to deliver her 2nd baby early December, which is next month! Nury is expecting her 3rd baby in March next year and Nana June next year.

We were so happy to to finally have our meatballs. It was a girls only session but Nana had to bring Iman bcoz her husband had to attend to his class that morning.

After filling up our tummies with the yummy food and 3 hours of sitting at IKEA's cafeteria, we decided to jalan2 to exercise our feet and eyes. Hehe.

Our outing will not be complete without a group photo and after 3 attempts of taking our own photo in front of a mirror, we finally got a nice shot which i personally loved bcoz it looked as though we were all in a frame.

I guess the next time we'll be seeing each other will be when Faez delivers. Eventhough we don't see each other often, we always keep in touch with each other via facebook, BBM or sms.

Private party for a little princess

2010-11-10T00:46:00.005+08:00

As usual, no birthday party or eating out at a fancy restaurant. Just us, a birthday cake, at home. If only Leia's Mbah Kong (my dad) was here, it would have been perfect.

Leia's a big, smart girl now. She knows how to blow her birthday candle on her own. She was even shy at first when i put the birthday cake in front of her.

Luq also wanted to blow the candle. Fuhhhhhhhhh!!

Me and my 2 munchkins.

It was a coincidence that everyone wore red/ pink yesterday.

Leia showing the world that she is now TWO years old.
Mummy and daddy hope that you will grow up to become a soleh child who will always remember to send your du'as to us when we are no longer in this world.
Happy 2nd birthday my little princess.

You will always be mummy's baby girl.

Nuraleia Ekaputri is TWO!

2010-11-08T22:58:00.009+08:00

Alhamdulillah. My baby girl is two today. Since last Friday was a public holiday (Deepavali), i've requested Mr A to take leave today so that he could spend the day with us since it's Leia's birthday. We went to Wangsa Walk Mall to let the kids play and it was also the first time for Mr A to join us there bcoz normally me and the kids will go there with my mum.

Luq and Leia really enjoyed themselves especially bcoz daddy was there. So did Mr A.

After a couple of hours in Wangsa Walk Mall, we went to One Utama to collect Leia's birthday cake and since we haven't had lunch, we ate at Teppanyaki. It's been quite a while since we went out for an outing and having to go out on a weekday made it more enjoyable and stress free bcoz the malls are less crowded. Most importantly, we were together to celebrate Leia's birthday.

Toilet training Leia

2010-11-04T15:17:00.009+08:00

* I did not take these photos when Leia was pooping. These were when I was training her to pee. Hehe

I actually planned to start toilet training Leia after she turned 2yo in 4 days time but today she already took her 1st toilet training lesson. It has been a while now that everytime she wants to poopoo, she will inform me. Not during or after poopoo BUT before. So this morning when she told me she wanted to poopoo, i quickly put her on the toilet, took a stool and sat beside her. She thought that i was playing with her but after i explained to her why she was sitting on the toilet, she kind of understood and after a few minutes she pooped. She was a bit scared at first and wanted me hug her. Maybe bcoz she was used to having the diaper as a support but when it was over, she smiled and clapped her hands.

It was the same with Luq last time. I started training him to poopoo in the toilet first then later pee. I think teaching Leia to pee will be a bit difficult bcoz she drinks water a lot and i will have to remember to always bring her to the toilet. For the meantime, i'll let her wear her diapers until she reaches 2yo but after next week i'll go all out to train her. I feel like my baby girl is all grown up and i'm very blessed to see her progress every day.

The right time

2010-11-04T14:33:00.006+08:00

No, i did not just bought a new watch and am not trying to sell online. I got this Tissot watch in 1995 during my 5 years tenure with my previous company but i haven't wore it even once until today. It is still in very good condition (with the plastic still on). In V*DS, if u serve the company for 5 years, u get a Tissot watch and a Tag Heuer watch for a 10 years tenure. It was part of the company's initiative to show that they value their long serviced staff.

I value this watch so much bcoz it holds many great memories from when i was in V*DS. I'm waiting for the right time to wear it and i hope 'it' will happen soon.

Bottle no more

2010-11-04T13:36:00.006+08:00

It's been 1+ week now since Luq stopped drinking milk from the bottle. Before this, we (Mr A n i) trained him to drink milk from the bottle only at night but bcoz he damaged his last bottle nipple by biting on it, he had no choice but to drink from the glass/ cup. At first it was a bit diffficult bcoz he used to wake up at dawn and ask for milk so Mr A had to explain (Mr A is in charge of waking up n making milk) to him there was no more drinking from the bottle and send him to bed.

We had to be creative bcoz Luq didn't want to drink from any ordinary cup so since we had a few TGV combo cups, each time he wants to drink milk we'll ask him which cup he wants. So far, the Iron Man 2 is his favourite. Some may say 4 yo is a bit late for a child to stop drinking milk from the bottle but for me, nothing is too late bcoz i've seen children who are still drinking milk from the bottle even when they are already in primary school.

Catching up

2010-11-04T13:26:00.004+08:00

I've been a really bad blogger. If spiders could live in my blog, i tell u there would be a huge web right now. I'm not lazy to blog. Trust me i have so much to write in my mind but i just don't have the time to sit in front of the lappy. Today i'm a bit free bcoz all house chores are done yesterday so i guess there'll be a few entries from me today. Stay tuned!

Arisza Wiryawan in KL

2010-10-19T17:09:00.004+08:00

My cousin Risza from Jakarta was in KL for his friend's wedding last weekend so we got to meet him for a few hours in Pavillion a day before he went back. The last time i met him was last year when we went to Indo to celebrate Raya.

He is known as the joker among our family so you can imagine how difficult it was for us to stop laughing everytime he's around.

We're glad to meet any relatives from Indo whenever they come to KL either for leisure or work and hope that we'll all be able to visit them next year.

Last Minute Raya with Ngeks

2010-10-19T16:45:00.012+08:00

Raya won't be complete without celebrating it with Ngeks. Eventhough Syawal had just left us and it was already 1st Zulkaedah but we still planned to meet with full Raya attire at Faez's in laws in Rawang. Ein & Nury couldn't make it at the last minute so it was just 3 families out of 5.

It's been quite a while since we met and we were glad to finally catch up with each other. The kids also enjoyed themselves.

Photo session is a must when we meet and Hadi was ever ready with his camera and tripod.

Ngeks sans Ein and Nury.

The husbands in the baju melayu.

Good luck to Faez who is due to deliver her second baby in December.

Twenty Three Months

2010-10-08T23:07:00.002+08:00

There's exactly one more month left to go before Leia turns TWO! I've promised myself when I first started this blog that i will post an entry every 8th of the month until Leia turns two eventhough i don't have any photos or interesting stories to tell.

Luq & Leia's Traintastic Adventure

2010-10-04T14:31:00.018+08:00

Luq & Leia had never been on a train before so last Friday my mum was on leave and we decided to take the kids for a train ride. The initial plan was to take the Putra LRT from Wangsa Maju to KL Sentral and from there take the KLIA Express to KLIA but the ticket price to KLIA was RM35 for an adult's 1 way trip, which means that we'd have to pay RM140 for 2 adults trip! So we decided to take the Putra LRT to KL Sentral and later take the ERL to a shorter distance which was Putrajaya.

We left the house around 11am that day and the kids were so excited. Just look at their happy faces.

Luq & Leia couldn't keep still on the train. Luckily it was a non- peak hour so there were not many people.

As soon as we reached KL Sentral, we went to McDonalds first to take away some nuggets and fries so that the kids could eat in the train since it was already almost noon. Then we went to buy the tickets to Putrajaya at the ERL counter. We didn't have anywhere to go in Putrajaya so we just chilled at the station and waited for the next train to KL Sentral.

Since we already had McDs earlier, my mum decided that we have our late lunch at KLCC.I thought that Leia will sleep on the way from Putrajaya to KL Sentral bcoz she was running everywhere at the Putrajaya station so but she only dozed off when we almost reached KL Sentral. As soon as we reached KL Sentral, i told my mum that we'd have to find a place to sit bcoz i couldn't carry Leia all the way to KLCC and the LRT would be packed anyways bcoz it was lunch hour. So we waited for about 1/2 hour and by the time we were ready, Leia was already up and fully 'recharged'.

It was already almost 3pm when we reached KLCC so most of the people who were working had gone back to their office. We had our late lunch at Dome and after that went to the supermarket and later went home just in time before the Friday evening peak hour.

As you can see from the above photo, Luq almost dozed off on our way back bcoz he didn't even sleep throughout our trip. I just can't describe how happy i am seeing Luq & Leia's happy faces that day. Hopefully 1 day i'll get to bring them on the KLIA Express. So in summary, here's our trip for that day:
Wangsa Maju> KL Sentral> Putrajaya > KL Sentral> KLCC> Wangsa Maju

Five years ago..

2010-09-16T22:23:00.025+08:00

i married my best friend n soul mate. I've known Mr A for 10 years now n today is our 5th wedding anniversary. Although 5 years have gone by, the memories are still fresh in our minds. Our wedding was really hectic bcoz it was back-to-back.

16th September 2005 - Solemnization ceremony @ Dewan Perdana Felda

17th September 2005 - Bersanding ceremony @ Dewan Merak Kayangan

18th September - Bertandang ceremony in USJ

I have never posted any of my wedding photos anywhere except for one solemnization photo in my facebook last year so these photos are exclusively for My World readers. I won't bore you with any mushy stories. Just enjoy the photos :)

16th September 2005 - Solemnization day. The theme was white n apple green.

With mi familia.

With some of my Indonesian relatives who managed to come.

With my uncles n aunties from my mum's side.

With my Indonesian relatives n my late grandmother.

With close friends who managed to attend since it was on a Friday morning.

17th September 2005 - Getting prepared for the bersanding ceremony.

With my in laws.

My Indonesian relatives managed to attend our bersanding ceremony and went back to Jakarta the day after.

With close friends n our 'pengapits'.

18th September 2005 - Bertandang ceremony.

Alhamdulillah our wedding went smoothly with no glitches eventhough we had tight schedules. The only thing which i regretted a bit was that i did not hire a professional photographer for the solemnization n bersanding ceremonies. I had a cousin who work as a freelance photographer for magazines so when he said he would take our photos as a favor, i simply agreed but the photos didn't turn out as well as i expected.

Mr A and i have been through a lot of ups n downs these whole 5 years and i pray that we will still be strong together for many more years to come. InsyaAllah.

*Starting this year our anniversary will be more special bcoz 16th September has been declared a public holiday (Malaysia Day) as Malaysia was formed on 16th September 1963.

Eid Mubarak

2010-09-12T21:49:00.007+08:00

I know it's already the 3rd day of Syawal but it is still not too late to wish all Muslims a blessed Eid Mubarak.

Maaf Zahir Batin.

May the spirit of Ramadhan always be with us.

*Photos taken on the 1st day of Syawal. As u can see our theme this year is blue :)

Twenty two months

2010-09-08T21:25:00.005+08:00

Time is flying really fast nowadays and Leia is twenty two months today. Last monday we brought her to see the paed bcoz she was having high fever + flu + cough all in one. Since she seldom falls sick, the doctor's office seemed to be very strange to her and she does not like it at all. As soon as we entered the doctor's room, she started crying. Me and Mr A couldn't concentrate much on what the doctor was explaining but Leia was put on the nebulizer for the first time. The medicine wasn't ventolin though as the doctor said her lungs were clear and there were no wheezing sound. He said something about putting Leia on nebulizer to clear her throat bcoz her cough did sound awful (mcm batuk kokol).

As i mentioned earlier, she cried when we saw the doctor. So you can imagine how harder she cried and screamed when she took the nebulizer. I couldn't even snap a picture of her with the mask bcoz i had to calm her down while Mr A held her. The most touching part was that Luq cried too watching Leia going through the ordeal.

After 3 days, Leia is now recovering. She is still coughing but no more high fever and flu. Alhamdulillah. This is also the first time that she's been put on antibiotics. I guess it is ok to be sick once in a while bcoz it also helps build your antibody and immune system.

My cheeky baby girl. Always active even when she is ill.

Leia is one talkative baby (baby lg ker?). Before this, she only speaks one word at a time but now she can speak with two or three words. I know i'm going to have more headache when she really starts talking one day. Hehehe

Almost an end

2010-09-07T22:57:00.005+08:00

Syawal is just around the corner and i'm already missing Ramadhan. I don't know why but after 32 years, i feel like this year i really appreciate Ramadhan. I juz hope that all my religious worships during Ramadhan will be accepted and blessed by Allah swt and that i will become a better person after this. InsyaAllah.

Not the ordinary

2010-09-03T14:13:00.016+08:00

Last Saturday nite as i was chilling with my ex- schoolmates, i bumped into Ms M and Mr F and they passed me Luq's belated birthday present. Since Luq was already asleep when i came home, i waited eagerly for him to wake up the next morning so that he could open his present. Mummy yg hover! Hahaha.

He was really excited to see a picture of Buzz Lightyear as he tore the wrapping paper. At first he was confused as he didn't know what was in the box but once i told him it was a jigsaw puzzle, he couldn't wait to put them together.

Luq putting the jigsaw puzzle together with the help from mummy and daddy.

Leia helped too.

The finished Toy Story 3 jigsaw puzzle.

It was a 3D jigsaw puzzle so it had two different photos, which was kinda cool. Mr A and i agreed that putting together a jigsaw puzzle was a good family activity and we have decided to start collecting jigsaw puzzles.

Happy birthday to you..

2010-08-31T21:56:00.004+08:00

WTF?!!

2010-08-29T16:30:00.010+08:00

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

2010-08-29T15:05:00.005+08:00

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..

2010-08-26T23:03:00.009+08:00

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

2010-08-18T23:26:00.012+08:00

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!

2010-08-18T15:49:00.012+08:00

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

2010-08-16T14:21:00.004+08:00

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.

2010-08-10T18:21:00.008+08:00

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

2010-08-10T17:23:00.005+08:00

..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

2010-08-10T15:33:00.005+08:00

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

2010-08-05T23:12:00.006+08:00

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

2010-08-02T23:27:00.027+08:00

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.

Work in progress

2010-08-02T17:50:00.001+08:00

I am still editing photos of our Club Med, Cherating vacation so stay tuned for updates (mcmlah ada yg baca). Hahaha. I hope streamyx will be ok by then bcoz the line has been really bad since last week. Tungguuuuu..
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device via Vodafone-Celcom Mobile.

A surprise indeed!

2010-07-27T16:54:00.009+08:00

It was an ordinary Sunday and for once we had no invitations to any birthday parties or kenduri. So, we decided to juz chillax at home and maybe go to the park in the evening. Since it was a free day, i told Mr A that i wanted to go to the hair salon and he said ok. So off i went around 1.30pm. Since i'm driving, i always bbm Mr A once i've arrived at the salon and before going back. Last Sunday when i told him that i was on my way home, he asked me to buy a slurpee from 7-Eleven, specifically the green flavor. I went to a few 7-Elevens near my house but couldn't find the green flavor. So i called Mr A and he said it's ok and asked me to come home.

I didn't suspect anything when walking towards the house. The curtains were drawn but that was normal bcoz we always draw the curtains when Luq n Leia are sleeping in the living hall. As i entered the house, i heard SURPRISE!!! and saw my fellow NGEKS (except Nury & co) waiting for me. I was indeed surprised and felt very touched by the effort that my friends had put in to throw me a surprise birthday party, not forgetting Mr A for playing his part too.

There were so many food but i really loved my Twilight Saga themed cupcakes, which they ordered from no other than Bake Freshly.

The boys managed to get a quick dip in the swimming pool before it rained. Luq was busy playing in his room and didn't notice that Adam & Iman were already in the pool. By the time Luq changed into his swimming attire, it was already raining.

Thanx again NGEKS! There's juz no words to describe how grateful i am to have all of u as my friends.

Taxiiiiiii!!!

2010-07-27T15:46:00.010+08:00

Yes i need a taxi to Yellow Cab Pizza please. Hehehe. Last Saturday nite, my sister Arie treated us to a family cum belated dinner. At first i thought she wanted to go to the branch in Ampang but she said the branch in Jalan Raja Abdullah is bigger so off we went. It was a cosy little place but luckily my sister made reservations for us bcoz there were quite a few customers who do eat in rather than opt for the delivery.

I must say that the menu and pizza toppings are a bit different from any other pizza restaurants that i've been to and i simply loved it. We ordered a pizza with everything on it (can't remember the name but it's like the version of Pizza Hut's super supreme), a pizza with mushroom toppings, Charlie Chan chicken pasta (tasted like CPK's Kung Pao spaghetti), potato skins and some chicken wings. Since they actually emphasize on delivery, eating in was juz like having a picnic, with paper plates, cups, forks and spoons so that it's easy to clean up afterwards.

My sister also bought me a cute and delicious vanilla cake from bisou.

Look at them still blowing the candle. Hehehe

Thank u for the treat little sister.

31 no more

2010-07-22T13:09:00.009+08:00

I feel very grateful for being able to still breathe each day i wake up in the morning but today i am extra gratefull bcoz i get to celebrate my 32nd birthday. Not to celebrate as in throwing a party but to celebrate another year of life.

Juz like last year, midnite last nite i was 'surprised' again by Mr A when he led me to our dining area with 4 cakes + 5 candles (3 big ones + 2 small ones). I knew earlier that he had brought home cakes when he came back with a paper bag and straight away went to the kitchen. I didn't ask him anything as i didn't want to spoil his surprise. I want to be surprised by not knowing what cakes he bought.

Luq n Leia was still awake last nite so they sang me a birthday song and helped me blow out the candles. Mr A was a bit dissapointed bcoz his 'surprise' didn't work out like last year but i told him cake or no cake, it doesn't matter to me. All that matters is i am surrounded with people who matters the most to me. However, i'm still waiting for that red velvet though *wink*

Oopsss!

2010-07-19T00:06:00.012+08:00

I missed 18th July by a few minutes. Nothing special about 18th July except that it's exactly one month away from Luq's 4th birthday. As usual, there will be no birthday party bcoz his birthday falls on a fasting month and we simply have no extra budget for a party. Some can say that it won't hurt to do a simple birthday party but it will still require a few hundred ringgit to be spent. It's juz not the time yet.

Nevertheless, we'll still have our own 'private' party and he'll still get his birthday cake.

My baby boy, all grown up.

Leia juz had to be a busy body while i was taking Luq's photo.

Until we meet again

2010-07-16T02:26:00.010+08:00

My friend Fida will be going back to Doha tonite so i've volunteered to host her farewell dinner with a few close ex- schoolmates. Since i don't hv time to prepare the meals with the kids around and no helper, we've decided to have a pot luck dinner. Chem brought KFC, Sue brought pizza, Shaly brought delicious durian pancakes from Mandarin Oriental and Fida brought pandan jelly layer cake.

It always felt good to see old friends and reminisce the old school days while not forgetting to talk about our present lives. Eventhough Chem was not from our school (we went to an all girls school), he knew everyone bcoz he was staying in Melawati and we all used to hangout back then. Only Shima couldn't join us bcoz she had to work late.

The yummilicious food that we had yesterday. The durian pancake was so delicious they felt and tasted like the real durian. I still have left overs in my fridge so i don't have to cook lunch today.

Fida brought her two kids, Ali + Soraya and Preeti brought her daughter Lily. They really got well with each other and it was chaos with them playing with toys and running all over the house. It didn't matter to me bcoz i was happy seeing them get along with each other and it's not like every day i have guests coming over.

At one point the kids got tired and sat on the sofa to watch cartoon.

I will always cherish my friendship with my old friends. Hopefully we'll get to see each other more often.

Have a safe journey back to Doha, Fida. I'm definitely going to miss u and your kids. InsyaAllah we'll meet again.

Twenty months

2010-07-08T18:43:00.010+08:00

Yes! Leia is twenty months old today. Another four months she will be two years old! I remember conceiving Leia when Luq was about nineteen months. Mr A n i planned to hv at least 4 children n 2 years gap for each child but i don't think another baby will be on the way soon due to ur current financial situation. It is true that we can't deny the 'rezeki' from Allah the almighty but it's really not the time to have another baby.

Back to Leia, at twenty months, her biggest development is that she no longer need her pacifier. It's been almost two weeks of 'no pacifier' now n i would say that it wasn't so hard to 'wean' her of her pacifier. I just cut a bit of the tip of her pacifier n when she asked for it i gave it to her n realising there was something wrong with it, she herself didn't want it. The first nite without her pacifier, she was a bit restless n couldn't stop mumbling but after that she was ok n never asked for it ever since.

However, there is a drawback for not having her pacifier. She has become extra clingy n wouldn't let me out of her sight at all. I guess her pacifier has always been her 'best friend' n able to comfort her but when it's gone, she needs a substitute.

Nowadays, she is also extra stubborn, over demanding n will easily throw a tantrum if she does not get what she wants. I guess these are all signs of the 'terrible' TWO coming soon but whatever it is she's still my little princess.

A perfect Eclipse

2010-07-08T15:00:00.014+08:00

A perfect nite with my favorite girls, my favourite werewolf n my favourite vampire.

I couldn't ask for more.. except Jacob by my side. Hahaha

We've waited so long for this.

Kudos to Team Twilightbest! Malaysia. The organiser for this event.

I heart u girls :)

Congrats on winning Edward's wristband Nana.

Are u girls ready for Breaking Dawn?

Tik.. tok.. tik.. tok..

2010-07-07T09:06:00.016+08:00

Yes! At this moment, i'm actually counting the hours till i get to see my favorite vampire n werewolf!

Oh My Jacob!!

Who can resist his hot bod?!!

My favourite wolf pack. Awoooooooooooo!!!

*All pictures googled

2 in 1

2010-07-06T13:35:00.020+08:00

4th July 2010 was a very special day for my cousin Nana. It was not only her birthday but she also got engaged on that day. It was a sunny morning as my family arrived at my cousin's house. Mr A n the kids stayed at home bcoz i didn't want them to get restless during the ceremony. So, they only came during 'makan' time.

The family of the groom-to-be were supposed to arrive at 11am but at around 10.30am, dark clouds n strong wind suddenly appeared out of no where n it rained soon after. After about an hour, the rain subsided n the family of the-groom-to-be arrived n the ceremony began.

Once the elders were done 'negotiating', it was time to put on the ring. My cousin Nana is a middle child n she has a younger sister n an older sister. As her older sister is not married yet, it is a Malay custom that the younger sister who is getting married first to give her older sister a gift as a token for getting married earlier, or in Malay it's called 'langkah bendul'.

Nana is now officially engaged to Sham.

The 'langkah bendul' gift for the older sister. A ring n a set of kebaya.

Nana putting on the ring on her sister's finger. It is not necessary for the younger sister to put on the ring but we asked them to do it for fun.

The hantaran from her to him.

The hantaran from him to her.

My cousin Nana n her fiance, Sham.

We managed to pose for the camera before going home.

Hello July..

2010-07-06T02:05:00.005+08:00

I know it's a bit late but i guess it's better late than never. Of all the months, July is my favourite bcoz my birthday is in July, 22nd July to be exact. Some zodiac signs say that 22nd July is a Cancer n some say it's a Leo. Since it's on the border line, i'd like to think i have both qualities of a Cancerian n a Leo. This year, i've received my birthday present from Mr A very early. It's something that i've wanted for quite sometime *wink*

July dis year is extra special bcoz The Twilight Saga: Eclipse will be making it's debut in Malaysia on 8th July but i get to see it on 7th July which is juz a few hours to go!!! I get major goose bumps juz by watching the trailer. I juz can't wait!

Goodbye June..

2010-06-30T23:54:00.003+08:00

Today is the last day of June, which means half a year has gone by. I am very grateful for what I have in year 2010 so far. Mr A got a permanent job in January n I have 2 boisterous, healthy children. I have accepted the fact dat maybe our 'rezeki' is not in the form of money (lotsa money to spend to be precised). But I have a husband who is always by my side. Who never has to leave us for outstation trips n is always home from work latest by 9pm every day. Luq n Leia have not been sick for more than 6 months now. A mild flu n fever is something normal but they'll be up n about after resting a couple of days. These are the 'things' that I consider as our 'rezeki' n all I can say is syukur alhamdulillah. For now, i am contented.

Genting Trip with Ngeks

2010-06-28T18:03:00.028+08:00

It was the anticipated trip for us Ngeks bcoz we've been planning dis day trip about a month ago n finally the day came, 26th June 2010. We agreed to meet at 10.30am after the Gombak toll and later drove n parked our cars at the cable car station. I can't even remember when was the last time i rode on the cable car to genting. We thought that there will be less visitors as the school holidays was over but we were wrong. We had to queue for almost 1 hour for our turn to go on the cable car. It was kinda eerie to be hanging a few hundred metres above the ravines. Luq was really scared that he didn't let go of my arm until we reached Genting station. Leia, on the other hand was not scared at all. She even stood near the cable car window right to the top.

We reached the top around 12pm n it was a beautiful sunny day. After a quick visit to the loo, we headed for the outdoor theme park. Once inside, 1st stop was the carousel. Luq was really excited that we went for two rounds. Next was the ferris wheel. As usual, Luq was scared but not as scared as going on the cable car. He didn't have to hold my arm. Leia, again was standing the whole time on the seat n even stuck her head out.

Look at Leia. I don't think she understands the meaning of height, which is why she's not scared at all. Hehehe

After the ferris wheel ride, we went to other rides but mostly kiddie rides. I must admit that i'm not a big fan of roller coasters or thrill rides but i have been on at least a few small roller coaster rides before.

The daddies also didn't miss their chances to get on the most daring ride, which was the Flying Coaster. Juz looking at all of them gliding on that ride was enough to make me feel sick. I could actually hear Mr A's vice laughing. Hehe. They were all grinning when they came down but i wasn't sure it was bcoz they enjoyed the ride or bcoz they're thrilled dat the ride was over.

After taking a few last photos at the outdoor theme park, we decided to go to the indoor theme park. At that time it was already almost 7pm so we decided to have early dinner. As we were discussing on what time to leave during dinner, we heard a loud thunder n when we looked outside, it was raining very heavy.

As there was no way we're going down on the cable car with rain n thunder, we planned to juz check in to First World Hotel n go home early next morning. However, Nana's husband insisted dat they go home bcoz he has class next morning. Fortunately, Ein n family drove all the way to the top so plan B was for Ein n family to drop our husbands (Mr A, Nana n Faez's husbands) to the cable car station n they would drive their cars up n bring us home.

Once Ein's husband has agreed, we continued with our rides in the indoor theme park n once we were done with the rides, we went to the food court to hv some drinks n had a small birthday celebration for Ein, Muhammad n Nana whose birthdays were in June.

At around 10.30pm, we said our goodbyes to Ein n family n waited for our husbands to fetch the cars. They reached the top at almost 12am n we reached home around 1.30am. I would say dat we had a fantastic 'adventure' n we planned to return but next time with Nury's family included n we'll definitely stay 1 night.

It wouldn't be fair..

2010-06-20T23:40:00.004+08:00

..not to put up an entry to wish all fathers out there a Happy Father's Day. It has been two years dat i don't get to celebrate father's day with my ayah. However, i called him earlier to wish him a happy father's day n to tell him dat i miss him so much. Today, Mr A spent father's day by having a whole day of quality time with Luq n Leia at home while i went out for a movie outing with my ex- school mates. Hehehe.Thank u for always being there for us Daddy. We love u!

Terrific Thursday

2010-06-17T23:56:00.005+08:00

My friend Fida, also has two children and they're both d same age as Luq n Leia. Ali Imran was born 3 months after Luq was born n Soraya only 3 days after Leia was born. Fida asked me where do i usually bring my kids to play and i told her dat my current favorite place to bring Luq n Leia is Wangsa Walk Mall. So, off we went to Wangsa Walk Mall today.

The kids instantly clicked n they had so much fun especially in d colorful pool of balls. Once they were tired of playing, we took them for lunch at A&W.

Normally when i bring d kids to Wangsa Walk Mall, my mom would come with us n she'll help me watch over Luq while i watch over Leia. But today, i had to handle Luq n Leia all by myself n i didn't even bring d stroller. Fida couldn't help me either bcoz her hands were also full watching over Ali n Soraya.

Therefore u can imagine d 'chaos'ness. The most difficult part was when Luq wanted to go to d toilet n i had to bring Leia as well.

Nevertheless, we had so much fun n Leia slept instantly as we entered d car n she continued her sleep when we reached home. Luq n i also joined her later. Having fun was sure tiring *wink*

Class of '95 mini reunion

2010-06-17T23:05:00.010+08:00

This is a back dated entry as it happened last saturday n i'd already uploaded the photos in my facebook.

Me n a few old school frens will always try to meet once in 2 mths but last saturday nite was extra special bcoz Fida, who had migrated to Doha was back for holidays. The last time she came back was 2 years ago when she gave birth to her 2nd child, 3 days after Leia was born. The meeting place was Bangi Kopitiam, Wangsa Link. This time around, we asked Shaly to bring our school magazine since she's d only person who still keeps it. In fact, she still kept year '93 n '94! Lucky we sat at a secluded corner bcoz we were laughing so hard n talking so loud. It was really a fun nite out. We said our goodbyes around 12.30am n planned to meet again on 03.07.10

If someone recorded us dat nite, i think the video camera would've exploded bcoz we were laughing like nobody's business. It was really fun bcoz we had the SULUH magazine n we were comparing how we looked back then n now. Not forgetting to gossip about other friends who we 'met' in facebook.

I heart u girls. I hope our friendship will last until we've become old grannies.

Class of '95, Air Panas Girls School

Fida took dis picture, dat's why she's not in it.

Have you got the fever?

2010-06-11T16:56:00.007+08:00

Today is the day that the whole world has been waiting for. It's the FIFA World Cup 2010 but i'm not feeling the heat or shall i say caught the 'fever'. Maybe it's bcoz i'm not a football fan n neither is Mr A. In fact, we don't even subscribe to the Astro sports channel! Hehe. In a way, i am grateful Mr A is different from other guys bcoz it means i still get to watch my favorite series n movies on Astro without us fighting over the remote.

I still remember the FIFA World Cup 4 years ago. Since it was held in Germany, the games were always played in the wee hours where most normal people like me were sleeping. That time i was heavily pregnant n we were staying with my mom. I would always wake up in the middle of the night bcoz my mom n sister were watching football n cheering on their favorite teams. It was a nightmare.

World Cup this time will be different bcoz there will be not be hearing anyone cheering in my house in the middle of the night. I don't even know the time when the games are scheduled this year. Hehe.

To all you football enthusiasts out there, may your favorite team win n to all wives or girlfriends out there, please be EXTRA patient with your man if you are being ignored this one whole month. After all, FIFA World Cup only comes once in 4 years.

The above photo was taken during the FIFA World Cup 2006 celebration when i was working in T*net call centre. It was fun working in a call centre bcoz there were so many activities. Eventhough i am not a football fan, the jersey that i was wearing was an original jersey n costs me over RM100. I don't know why i bought an England jersey. I guess i've always loved England n hope that i get to go there one day.

Torn between...

2010-06-10T20:03:00.010+08:00

these two!

*All photos googled

I hv been waiting anxiously for 7th July to come as i'll be among d 1st in Malaysia to watch the premiere of d Twilight Saga: Eclipse until i found out last week that Usher will be performing live in KL on d same date! I mean.. it's Usher y'all n it took him 16 years to come to KL. I wish i could do magic so dat i could watch Eclipse n at d same time see Usher. But dat's not going to happen coz hey.. i'm only human. So, i've made my choice n i'd hv to say bye bye to Usher.

And now.. countdown to Eclipse - 27 days to go!!!!

Nineteen months

2010-06-08T17:40:00.009+08:00

Yes! Leia is already nineteen months today n she keeps adding new words to her vocab. Her mentor is no other than her abang Luq himself. She copies every single thing that Luq does. She also hums to her favorite cartoons n dance around when she hears music. Each time i sing twinkle twinkle little star, she will ask me to "stop" bcoz she wants to sing it on her own. She will go "tickle tickle litter tow" n clap her hands.

She n Luq have been having flu for d past one week n i will usually wipe their running nose with tissue. Today, after Leia sneezed, she quickly went to the table n said "nak shishu". At first i thought she wanted milk "shushu" but when i asked her again what she wanted, she pointed to d tissue box on d table. She wanted me to take a tissue n wipe her nose.

I couldn't be more proud than today bcoz she bacame 'extra' smart on d day she turns nineteen months.

*The above photos hv nothing to do with d story in dis entry but they were taken today

So simple yet so difficult

2010-05-20T12:45:00.006+08:00

*Mind the Hello Kitty coloring book as dis was the only coloring book in the house. I'll hv to buy him new coloring books. Hehe

I never thought about teaching Luq the proper way to hold a pencil until today. Since he's going to be 4yo soon n already knows the letters A-Z, i was thinking of teaching him how to write.. his own name for a start. However, it suddenly hit me "how could he write if he couldn't even hold a pencil properly?" So instead of teaching him to write, i gave him a coloring exercise so that he could practice holding the color pencils. This is juz the beginning n i am already being a bit impatient bcoz he easily gets bored. Therefore, i am going to devote more time for him in doing creative exercises at home n bringing him to art classes one day. It's not easy with d house chores n Leia always seeking for attention when i'm with Luq but i'm all up for the challenge. Wish me luck!

Snap N Pop!

2010-05-14T22:01:00.011+08:00

This is my 1st time entering the Snap N Pop contest by Popmyberry. For April Snap N Pop the photo theme is.. COLORS !! Yes, they want them in bright colors, background or anything! As usual the most creative and original photo submission wins but it must include popmyberry products or signs, paperbags, (not simply cut n pasting the logo on the pics) ! The contest started on April 15th and will end at 11.59pm 15th May 2010 which is today! Did i mention that the winner will get to take home a new BlackBerry Bold 9700?! Yeszaaaa!!

I submitted my entry around 8pm earlier but before that, i had to make a really tough decision in sending my best photo. I took a lot of photos but in the end i narrowed my options to 3 photos which i think has the potential to win (perasan jap).

Could it be the 1st photo?

Or the 2nd photo?

Or maybe the 3rd photo?

Can u guess which photo i submitted?

What's the BUZZ??

2010-05-11T13:51:00.007+08:00

I usually take honey when i have a sore throat or when i feel like i'm gonna have a sore throat. But i never knew that most of the normal 'el-cheapo' honey that we buy from the supermarkets contain more additives than natural nutrients.

Starting today, i will try to take 2 tea spoons of Manuka Honey daily as a supplement. Active 10+ Manuka Honey (as the above picture) can be regarded as a medicinal honey. It is ideal for enjoying everyday and for maintaining healthy digestion.

Why Manuka Honey? My brother-in-law who came back from New Zealand December last year is actually the sole distributor of Nature’s Buzz honey in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia and Brunei. Hence the promo. So if u're interested to know more, please click on the link.

p/s: I'm not earning commission from any sale of Manuka Honey referred by me. I'm juz helping out my bro-in-law to promote his business.

Happy mother's day

2010-05-09T15:20:00.004+08:00

Unlike 3 years before where I would go out for buffet lunch or hi- tea with my mum n mil for mother's day, there were no celebrations this year. However, mother's day this year is extra special for me bcoz I actually learnt the true meaning of motherhood. For the past 1 year I've been staying at home, I've gained a very valuable experience that nothing in this world could ever give me.
I am really happy n proud of myself for what I have accomplished today. When I was working, I was always looking forward to pay day at the end of each month because it's a reward for my hard work. But now that I don't earn any income, my monthly reward would be knowing that my children are growing up happy n healthy.
I don't expect to be showered with expensive gifts or taken to fancy restaurants for all the hard work and sacrifices that I made. I just want to be loved n wish that my children become 'soleh' n 'solehah' person when they grow up. I am not perfect but I try to be the best for my children n family. So, instead of juz celebrating mother's day once a year, I've decided to treat everyday as mother's day for me.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all wonderful mothers out there especially to my Mama n Mak. No words can describe how much u mean to me.

* Today we had lunch (mee rebus) at my mil's and tonite we'll be having dinner (laksa johor) at my mum's. I feel blessed.
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device via Vodafone-Celcom Mobile.

Eighteen months

2010-05-08T23:27:00.004+08:00

Allhamdulillah Leia is already 1½ years today. She now copies every single thing dat Luq does. Additional vocabs include:

• mimma = gemma (my mum)
• tok wa = tok wan
• see yo = see you (everytime after bye bye)

Sometimes I feel like she's too attached to me but I'm not sure whether it's bcoz she's a girl or bcoz I'm staying at home. Whatever it is, she my little princess n I love her to bits!

Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device via Vodafone-Celcom Mobile.

1st attempt

2010-05-08T11:38:00.003+08:00

Testing 1.. 2.. 3.. This is my 1st attempt updating My World via mobile. I am one happy woman if it's successful. Woot! Woot!
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device via Vodafone-Celcom Mobile.

Bald & beautiful?

2010-05-05T15:44:00.002+08:00

I don't think so. It's been almost 1 1/2 years since i delivered Leia n my hair still hasn't stopped falling. I guess all mothers go through dis phase but when will it end? I miss those days when i was pregnant. My hair was shining (i'm serious pls don't puke.. haha) n i did not shed a single hair. Nowadays i have to vacuum d floor almost everyday bcoz i can't stand looking at all d hair on d floor. The worst part is when shampooing. I feel like i have leukaemia or some kind of disease.

I hope dat dis phase will be over soon bcoz i'm bored of having short hair or else i may have to consult a scalp n hair expert. Yun Nam perhaps?

Every cloud has a silver lining

2010-05-04T23:45:00.009+08:00

It was one of those bad days where everything's juz not right. Today it's all about Luq. He has been testing my patience since morning. First he took one hour to finish his one slice of french toast during breakfast n in the afternoon he showed his tantrums when i asked him to tidy up his toys. I really had a bad headache after the all the scolding n the hot weather wasn't helping either.

Luckily Mr A came back early today and bought dinner from the 'pasar malam'. I love cooking but these days i would normally cook for Luq n Leia bcoz i can't stand the heat being so long in the kitchen.

We had yong tau foo for dinner n later i had my favorite 'putu bambu' for desert while watching Desperate Housewives.

Mr A also managed to buy me not one but two carrot slices from Secret Recipe but i'm keeping them for tomorrow. I'm juz glad dat eventhough i went through quite a rough day but at the end of the day, great food always cheers me up!

Refresher

2010-05-04T18:51:00.004+08:00

I need something new, something fresh. So today i've changed my blog layout from minima blue to tekka. I'm not really loving dis new layout but i'll stick with it for the time being until i find a layout dat really suits me.

Happy birthday Mama & Mak

2010-05-03T19:05:00.010+08:00

1st May is a very important date for me n Mr A bcoz both our beloved mothers share the same birthday. How cool is that? I juz couldn't believe it the first time Mr A told me about his mother's birth date. They share the same date but not the year though. My mom is 1 year older. However, for almost 5 years we've been married, we've never done a double birthday celebration. Normally we'll have lunch at my MIL's and later at night go out to dinner with my my mom n my siblings.

It's the same routine this year. We went back to USJ for lunch and later that night had seafood dinner in Taman Mayang, PJ.

This restaurant is situated opposite Fatty Crab (for those wondering). I've never been to Fatty Crab bcoz according to my friend, they don't serve vege there. Juz pure seafood. I actually don't care as long as they serve crabs. My favorite! Our initial plan was to only have a small family gathering but The Teh & Co (my uncle) decided to self- invite themselves. Hehe.

We hope dat one day we'll be able to do a double birthday celebration my mom n MIL. Oh i forgot to mention. My sister's ex- boyfirend's mom's birthday is also on 1st May n my brother in- law's girlfriend's birthday is also on 1st May! How ironic is dat?!

To Mama & Mak, happy 60th & 59th birthday. May allah grant both of u the best of health n good fortune always. WE LOVE U!!!

Long overdue

2010-05-03T17:37:00.009+08:00

I only have 2 entries in april and my last entry was on 8th april?!! Dat's almost 1 month since i updated my blog! Yes. Yes. I have been a bad blogger. It's not dat i'm too bz but i'm juz plain LAZY. Huhu. I actually have a lot to write but i'm lazy to sit in front of d lappy. If only all my thoughts could be automatically typed in my blog. Haha. Fat chance!

So here are d updates of my weekend activities for the last 2 weeks.

Saturday, 24.04.10 - I went for an outing with3 of my ex- schoolmates at the curve. I think d last time we saw each other was before the new years. We really had fun catching up with each other over dinner.

After dinner, we wanted to play bowling but since it was a saturday nite, all the lanes were full and we'd have to wait if we still wanted to play. Since it was already 10pm, we decided to postpone our bowling game to another time and took photos instead (one of my friend brought her dslr camera n tripod). We were juz like a bunch of school kids giggling and laughing coz each time after the camera snapped our photos we would run to d camera to see the results.

After our photo session, we went for drinks at coffee bean and discussed on organizing a small reunion for our school batch (air panas girls class 1990 - 1995). The tentative date would be on 26.06.10 bcoz by then one of our friend who's staying in doha will be in malaysia for holidays during dat time. InsyaAllah we'll get to meet more of our ex- schoolmates in june!

Sunday, 25.04.10 - Mr A n i had no plans so we decided to relax at home and watch dvd. Later on in the evening we decided to bring luq n leia to titiwangsa. When we were getting ready around 5pm, the sky became dark as though it was going to rain. I told Mr A we will still go but if it rains, we'll juz cruise in the car.

When we arrived at titiwangsa around 6pm, it was really packed but the weather was beautiful. By the time we parked the car it was already 6.30pm. Nevertheless, we still brought luq n leia to the playground. I personally prefer the playground in titiwangsa compared to the one in lake garden. I think bcoz most of the equipments are still quite new.

We left titiwangsa juz before maghrib. I really love to see the happy faces of luq n leia. They really enjoyed going to playgrounds n we will be bringing them again soon.

Seventeen months

2010-04-08T23:28:00.009+08:00

Once a child reaches 1yo, there are not many monthly developments to share. Unlike when they are babies, every month is a new story. Same goes to Leia but Mr A & i can slowly see her character n we can say she's going to be a tough girl when she grows up.

Making a mess is her favourite hobby

Don't try to ask her to tidy up d toys or she'll throw a tantrum

Dunno when she'll stop puting things in her mouth

She also likes to put her feet up like this n she can go on like forever! I wish i could do d same so dat i can hv a flat tummy. Hehehe

Tweety bird

2010-04-01T12:24:00.008+08:00

I am officially addicted to Twitter. When i first created my twitter account i was juz following my frens but most of them were not active so i got bored. It only became interesting after i followed a few celebrities n now i'm hooked on twitter. Thanks to ÜberTwitter, i am connected 24/7!

Follow me @ninidamayanti :)

Pictures googled

'Kutu' party no.1

2010-03-29T17:47:00.006+08:00

Good food. Great company. Need i say more?

Can't wait to see u mommies again.

Lake Garden

2010-03-28T00:59:00.019+08:00

Mr A n I have been wanting to bring Luq n Leia to the park since last week but it was raining in d evening last weekend. Since Mr A came back from work early last night, we decided to bring d kids to Lake Garden this morning. It was a beautiful morning n when we reached there around 8.30am, d sun was already 'smiling' so bright. It wasn't only d first time for Luq n Leia going to Lake Garden but it was my frist time too coz i couldn't remember when was d last time i went there.
Luq was so excited to play at the dinosaur land but unfortunately most parts of the payground n d slides were a bit wet due to d heavy rain d night before. Nevertheless, he still had a fantastic time.

As for Leia, she too enjoyed herself. She even fell n cut her lips bcoz she was too stubborn to let me hold her hand. As a 'present', she got a swollen lip but a few minutes after her fall she was back to her usual antics. In the end, i juz put her on d swing. Luckily she enjoyed d swing until it was time to go home.

Can u see her swollen lip?

Poor baby

We left Lake Garden around 9.45am as it was getting really hot but myself n Mr A will make it a point to bring them again at least 2 weeks once.

Mummy story

2010-03-24T23:25:00.007+08:00

Today, 24th March 2010, Leia called me mummy for d first time! I was in my room n she was in front watching cartoon in her playpen when i heard her called "mummy". At first i thought it was juz my imagination so i kept quiet. Then she called out "mummy.. mummy". I quickly went to d front, picked her up, hugged n kissed her. She's still adjusting to d "e" sound n still calls me mamma once in a while but i will never forget d first time she called me mummy. I'm so proud of u my little princess :)

Sixteen months

2010-03-08T21:46:00.007+08:00

It juz felt like i juz updated my blog on Leia turning fifteen mo n today she's already sixteen mo. How fast time flies n she's getting more mischieveous each day. Not much to update except for additional words in her vocab like:

- na tutu = nak susu

- na tuwoh = nak turun if she's been carried

- na bubo = nak bubur

- peteh = puting (pacifier)

- hat da = hot dog (Mickey Mouse Club House)

- ah tuda = oh toodles (Mickey Mouse Club House)

And she definitely can't be separated from her pacifier. Wherever she goes or whatever she does she will always ask for her pacifier. Hopefully it won't be difficult when d time comes for her to let go of her 'precious'.

Safety first

2010-03-08T00:01:00.021+08:00

Myself n Mr A are very concerned of our children's safety in d car which is why Luq n Leia were trained to sit in their car seats since they were babies. Luq had always loved being in his car seat n nowadays he would scream "Eh! X pakai seatbelt lg!" each time i forgot to fasten his seatbelt. Leia however, was a bit difficult coz she easily becomes restless n couldn't stop squirming in her car seat. However, we didn't give up n eventhough she still squirms in her car seat once in a while, she's actually used to it already.

It's not only safe when they're all buckled up in their car seat/ booster seat but it actually makes driving/ travelling much easier once they are trained from small. I couldn't imagine myself travelling long distance n having to hold Luq or Leia. Must be tiring. In d US, u're not even allowed to bring home ur newborn if u don't hv a car seat installed in ur car. But then again, it comes back to people's mentality n culture. Not to forget d cost of buying a car seat which is not cheap. I always feel blessed n grateful whenever i see a child sitting between their parents on a motorcycle. Eventhough we are not rich but we could still afford to provide d basic necessities for our children.

Leia will be turning 16mo tomorrow n her current car seat/ baby carrier was getting too small for her as she's entered d age where she likes to explore d scenery while in d car. Therefore, it was time for us to buy her a new car seat. I have been browsing d Babyjaya website (d prices are quite reasonable compared to Planete Enfants) for months n showed Mr A d car seats which were within our budget. So off we went to Babyjaya in Ampang. Unfortunately, d branch in Ampang was smaller than d one in DU so there were limited choices. There was only 1 brand which was within our budget but luckily they had d color dat we wanted. As soon as we purchased d car seat, Mr A straight away installed it in d car n Leia instantly loved it.

The above photo is how our car looks from d inside. Before dis, Leia sits in front coz her old baby carrier was rear facing n Luq at d back but now Luq is d co- pilot while Leia sits at d back with me. If we were to hv additional members (children) in our family, Mr A needs to work really hard so dat he could buy us a MPV. At d moment, no MPV means no baby ;)

De-stress

2010-03-06T22:45:00.008+08:00

It wasn't a good week for me as i was really stressed n exhausted d whole week. Hence, i was very looking forward for an outing with my girlfriends. My friend Nanie, who had migrated to Doha was in KL for a pre- natal check up. Since she will be going back to Doha next Tuesday, we decided to meet up for lunch today.

We picked Delicious coz all of us agreed dat d food there are delicious. Initially, i wanted to bring Leia since it was an all girls outing but Mr A insisted dat i go alone. He said i deserved to take some time off without d kids n enjoy myself. I sure did! We had so much fun catching up n laughing to d old stories.

After 3 hours of lunch at Delicious, Bangsar Village we adjourned across d street to Alexis for some desert n continued our chit chat. Before we realised, it was already 5pm n we had to say goodbye. Nanie wil be coming back again in June coz she will be delivering her 3rd baby in KL end of July. Till we meet again, insyaAllah. I heart u girls.

It's been a while

2010-03-05T14:05:00.004+08:00

Yup. It's been a while since i updated dis blog. I guess i've been too occupied with other things but as promised to myself, i won't abandone dis blog. In fact, d last entry on aquaria was only posted today but i've actually drafted it 3 days ago. What hv i been doing lately? Nothing much, d same old routines as a sahm but since Mr A has gone back to work, my time in front of d laptop is limited these days n i never get to sit in front of d laptop at night coz i'm juz too tired.

Mr A is now in charge of a new project in his company n although he leaves d house around 10am in d mornings, he only comes back home around 9.30pm almost everyday. By d time he bathes, eats n throws out d trash, it was time for Luq n Leia to sleep. Usually, i would bring d kids to sleep around 11pm n doze off too but sometimes, i would wake up once they are asleep juz to spend time with Mr A. He's been working really hard dat sometimes when d kids are asleep, he would switch on his laptop n reply e-mails. He will only go to sleep around 2am. I juz miss d time when Mr A was always around but one can never be too selfish. I can't get everything dat i want. There must be sacrifices.

I'm currently trying to find out how to update my blog from my BlackBerry so dat i don't hv to wait till i hv d time to sit in front of d laptop to update it. Nowadays, everything's on d go. Juz wait for my next entry via mobile *wink*

Funday Sunday

2010-03-02T14:06:00.015+08:00

Last sunday my sister Arie treated us on a trip to Aquaria. It was d first time for all of us but Mr A couldn't join us coz he had some work to do. Nonetheless, we had fun coz i couldn't remember when was d last time we went out with my sister n my mom.

We reached Aquaria around 11.15am and Luq was really excited running around watching all sorts of insects n fish. There were big, small n colorful fish but his favorite was d tiger shark. Too bad they didn't have shark feeding shows on a sunday.

Since it was all dark n cool inside d Aquaria, Leia fell asleep almost instantly as we entered. It was her nap time anyway. I myself would have fallen asleep if i was pushed in a stroller coz it was very calming to be surrounded by d sights of d aquariums n pools of water with beautiful fish.

We even went into d tunnel twice bcoz d first time we went in, Leia was still asleep. The second time we went in, i took her out from her stroller so dat she could walk on her own n she was really ecstatic.

After almost 2 hrs in Aquaria, we adjourned to KLCC where we had lunch at CPK. Luq was really happy dat day he couldn't stop talking about his trip. Until today, he still talks about d tiger shark which he really adores.

Splish splash

2010-02-17T17:04:00.007+08:00

It was a really hot day n since we had no plans yesterday, i told Mr A dat i wanted to bring d kids for a swim. The swimming pool is juz in front of our house but we've never brought Luq for a swim since he was born.

Look at Luq, scared to go in. The last time we brought him swimming was May last year when we went for our holiday trip to Avillion. Oh my! I simply can't accept my children not being able to swim when their mummy is a pro. Yup! I'm a good swimmer alright.

Luckily Leia was opposite of Luq. She was very happy to be in d water. She was a bit scared at first but once she got d hang of it, she could paddle by herself. From now on, i'll make it a point to bring Luq n Leia swimming during d weekends if we are not going anywhere.

Fish anyone?

2010-02-17T16:33:00.002+08:00

It's been quite some time since we last ate at Manhattan Fish Market. So, last monday we had dinner at Subang Parade. After dat, we went to Kota Damansara to visit a friend.

14th February.. nine years ago

2010-02-14T21:18:00.007+08:00

When i was younger, i used to celebrate Valentine's Day but something really dreadful happened on 14.02.01 which was supposed to be d first time for me & Mr A celebrating Valentine's Day. Someone who was very close to my heart passed away on dat day. Sometimes i wondered if it was a blessing in disguise. With dat person's passing, Mr A & i don't need to wait for 14th February to celebrate our love coz every day is Valentine's Day for us.

Amirul Mazli

30th March 1977 - 14th Februari 2001

Semoga Allah mencucuri rahmat ke atas roh mu

Al-Fatihah

The girl with the 'poopoo' problem

2010-02-10T15:58:00.009+08:00

It's been almost one week Leia has been having problem passing stool. Each time she did her 'no.2' she would cry bcoz her stools lately were dry n hard which makes it uncomfortable to pass. However, d last 2 days was d worst bcoz she was cranky since morning and although i could see dat she was trying as hard as she could to 'poopoo', 'it' juz won't come out. The same happened in d evening until finally she managed to 'poopoo' at night. It made me sad to see her crying n screaming in pain juz to 'poopoo'.

Later dat night, her body temperature rose to 39.1 degrees n i suspected it's due to her constipation. Since her temperature was too high, me n Mr A gave her d suppository n put a damp cloth on her head to bring down her temperature. Alhamdulillah, after about 30 minutes she started to sweat n her temperature went down.

The next morning (yesterday), we immediately brought her to Naluri where d paed gave her d enema n about 5 minutes later she 'pooped' at d paed's office. The paed told me dat i hv to change her diet to avoid her having constipation in future. Currently, i feed her chicken porridge with carrots n potatoes but according to d paed, rice n potatoes are not a good combination. I told him dat she did not have any bowel problems with her food before but d doctor explained dat as she grows, she tends to eat adult food as well and there must be balance in her diet. The paed suggested giving her food with more fiber such as vegetables n fruits n also giving her fruit juice.

Starting today, i will make sure dat she eats a banana/ papaya and also drink at least one small cup of prune juice. I also made her pasta soup with carrots n brocolli today. She did 'poopoo' dis morning but there were no screaming or crying n i am really relieved. However, she still had high fever last night and early dis morning but as i am typing dis entry, she is fast asleep in her playpen with no fever but i still have to monitor her temperature in case it rises.

These photos were taken yesterday afternoon after she woke up from her sleep. Eventhough she had high fever earlier, i was really glad to see her sweating coz i know it brings down her temperature.

'Shawl We Wrap'ping

2010-02-08T22:33:00.025+08:00

Last week d Ngeks suggested dat we meet coz our last get together was 20th Dec last year. Since they were wondering where to meet, i instantly suggested dat we go to Subang Parade coz we could go visit Shawl We Wrap's booth. Ein couldn't join coz she was super bz with her brothers' wedding preparations. So, it was only me, Nana, Faez n Nury but Nury canceled at d last minute coz she had to attend a family gathering.

After 'shawl we wrap'ping, we adjourned to Kenny Rogers for an early dinner.

Fifteen months

2010-02-08T22:33:00.024+08:00

Leia is fifteen months old today. She's getting smarter n much more mischiveous every day.

Below are her developments as to date:

- She has 6 teeth (4 upper + 2 lower)

- She can understand when asked to sit or stand up

- She understands d word 'No' but is having a problem obeying to it. Hehehe

- She still can't pronounce the sound 'i'. Thus, mamma (mummy), dadda (daddy), kaka (kaki)

- Additional words to her vocab: 'auu' (haus), 'maoww' (meoww), 'babuk' (habuk)

- She knows dat she has to smile in front of d camera but her smile will look like d above. Hehe

Shah Alam weddings

2010-02-08T22:32:00.008+08:00

Dihar's wedding @ Bukit Bandaraya, Shah Alam

Last saturday we attended two weddings in Shah Alam. Very tiring indeed as we left the house around 12.30pm for a relative's wedding at Bukit Bandaraya. We left Shah Alam around 2pm n stopped over at KLCC coz i had to buy my compact powder. Mr A n d kids stayed in d car coz it was juz a quick dash to M.A.C. When we reached home around 4pm, i quickly changed and went to saloon. I came back around 5pm, bathed d kids n got ready for a dinner wedding reception of one of Mr A's friend at Concorde Hotel, Shah Alam.

Rizal & Amirah's wedding @ Concorde Hotel, Shah Alam

I was actually excited when Mr A told me dat we were invited to one of his friend's wedding. Not bcoz i knew the bride or groom but bcoz it was held at a hotel so i got to wear my kebaya dat i've been longing to wear. I bought the material mid 2007 in Jakarta n made the kebaya there (it's a lot cheaper to make d kebaya there) but never got to wear it coz there was juz no reason. I couldn't juz wear it to any 'kenduri'. It has to be for a formal ocassion. Then there were a few hotel weddings in 2008 but i was pregnant at that time. Finally, after three years i was so happy dat i got to wear it last saturday =)

Rusty ol' me

2010-02-05T17:35:00.004+08:00

Recently, me n a group of frens started playing 'kutu' n i'm in charge of d monthly collection. Since i will be dealing with a sum of money which is not mine, i juz know i hv to create a tracker. And what better application to use for a tracker than microsoft excel. I won't say dat i'm an expert with microsoft excel but on a scale of 1 - 10 (1 = poor & 10 = excellent), i consider myself an 8 bcoz when i was working, i would use microsoft excel every day and am quite good with d formulas. I even created the payroll spreadsheet for contact center staff which is currently being used for all contact centers under V*DS and have done many trackers which are still being used until today (i'm so proud of my legacy!).

However, when i was creating a simple tracker for d 'kutu' collection today, i couldn't even remember simple things like formatting d cells or to sum d amount. My mind juz went blank! I had to refer to my old trackers juz to get 'feel'. Then i realized dat it has been almost one year since i left d working world and nowadays i only use d laptop to surf d internet. This is something which is not good bcoz my brain is starting to 'rust' and i will not let my 'talent' go to waste juz like dat even if i do not get d chance to work anymore. No siree! Therefore, i know i've made d right decision by volunteering to collect d 'kutu' money. At least i hv a reason to do something which i really missed.

1 year anniversary

2010-02-02T15:18:00.003+08:00

29th January 2010 marked my 1st anniversary owning a BlackBerry. Hahaha. Bunyi mcm poyo tp lantaklah. I've never owned anything dat i feel very worth it until i had my BB n i juz wanted to post it here as a reminder. I can't imagine my life without u BB.

Bon voyage Mak Anjang & uncle Pat

2010-01-26T15:16:00.006+08:00

Yesterday we went to KLIA to send off the Marshallsays who were going back to Adelaide. At first i told my mom why don't we take Luq n Leia on an adventure and go to KLIA via lrt n erl n ask Mr A to pick us up from work later but she didn't agree. We were lucky coz my Pak Ngah is also staying in Wangsa Maju so he offered us to come in his car.

I can't remember when was d last time i went out with Luq n Leia without Mr A n no stroller. Tak pernah kot. Before we reached KLIA, i told Luq dat he can walk by himself but don't go too far until he can't see me. Sampai sana mmg hampeh. Terus berlari mcm kambing keluar kandang. Fortunately i have my cousins to watch over him. Seeing Luq running everywhere made Leia wanting to join too so i had to put her down (tangan pun dah lenguh sebenarnyer).

It is very difficult to handle 2 kids without ur spouse around. I was so lucky yesterday coz i had my cousins, aunties n uncles to help me look after them. Kalau x mmg fengsan sbb KLIA tu kan besar nak mengejar 2 budak!
Inilah naughty girl yg xmo dgr cakap. At least Luq will come running to me when i call out his name but dis girl will run even farther.

"Luqman nak airplane ni mummy, please". Ermm.. rm100 for d small plane?! I'll buy u a different airplane k sayang. On d way home, Luq n Leia immediately fell asleep as soon as we were in d car. Penat sgtlah tu dah tawaf satu KLIA. I always have a 'happy' feeling when i go to KLIA eventhough i only get to send or fetch other people. Australia is definitely on top of my to- go- list. Wait for us Mak Anjang n uncle Pat ;)

The Marshallsays in KL

2010-01-25T13:45:00.016+08:00

My Mak Anjang n her husband uncle Pat, who lives in Australia came to KL last Friday. They're here for 4 days n will be going back dis evening. The last time she came back was in 2008 when my late grandmother was ill. As usual, we will all meet up when they come up to KL.

Last Saturday, myself, Luq, mama n my sis Arie accompanied Mak Njang shopping in Bukit Bintang. Later dat nite, we went to Hartamas Square for dinner cum 'lepak' session with d rest of d Abd Kadir clan. Since Luq was tired after spending d afternoon with me, Mr A volunteered to look after d kids bcoz Hartamas Square was not an appropriate place to bring kids, especially during weekends.

We had to combine 4 tables. Luckily mama n i arrived early so we got to 'reserve' d tables. I have a very boisterous family so when we meet, we'll talk n laugh like nobody's business. Hehehe.

Yesterday, we had a potluck lunch at The Tams in Nilai. There were lots of food but i only took a small portion of rice but plenty of 'lauk'. After lunch we juz relaxed while d Abd Kadir sibblings sat together reminiscing their childhood times.

We don't know when we'll meet the Marshallsays again but we do hope we'll be able to come down to Australia one day.

Little miss naughty

2010-01-21T14:42:00.008+08:00

I was in d kitchen juz now when Luq shouted from d room "Mummy!!! Adik main baju!!". When i came into d room, i saw Leia rummaging through her drawer n taking out her clothes. When i called her name she juz gave me a cheeky smile and said "apetu". Oh dat's her favorite word by d way *sigh*

Hey doodle doodle

2010-01-21T14:12:00.003+08:00

The above is a pic of Luq which Mr A doodled last 2 days. It may look silly to us but to Luq, he loves it so much dat he requested me to keep it at a 'safe' place out of Leia's reach. When i told him dat if d pic was erased i could draw him a new one, he said "Luqman nak daddy tulis". I know he will be devasted if d pic was erased bcoz everytime he looked at his pic on d mini doodle board, it reminded him of his daddy.

Pritha Argadiredja in KL

2010-01-20T14:23:00.006+08:00

Last nite we went to Royale Bintang Hotel @ The Curve to meet my cousin in law who came from Jakarta. She's working with N*stle Jakarta and is in KL on business matters from 18/01 - 20/01. Since she works for N*stle, she gave us some free Nestum, Milo n KitKat chocs and not to forget she also brought 'abon' (beef floss) which my dad asked to pass to us. Yeay! It was nice meeting a relative from Indo n it made me miss them a lot, especially my dad. Wish we could go there again dis May for my Mbah Ti's birthday *wink*