Toilet training Leia - seriously

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..

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

*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

So proud of my childhood friends :)

CONGRATS DEAR AZALEA!

It seemed like only yesterday..

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

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

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 :)