MERDEKA! MERDEKA! MERDEKA!

Selamat Hari Kemerdekaan Yg ke 50 Tahun everyone!

How was your merdeka day? We ( myself & the 3 boys) had a quiet morning and we had merdeka-related activity in the afternoon ( not for lutfil, though).

I am glad that I registered Umar and his 2 cousins (nadia & nabila) for the Merdeka-themed cake decoration activity@ UkS centre yesterday. We had great fun. At least I did, HAHAH.

I teamed up with Umar and Nabila with Nadia. There were 2 other teams ( Uks owner's ckids, and one of another Uks member and her little girl. Umar was so excited that he got to play with the icing, and knife, and other 'tools' needed to get the job done. Once in a while ( or was it most of the time?0, he would lick his ingers, wrist, and get some more icing from the container. He even ate the moon and the star (fondant), that were supposed to be placed on top of the cake.

Luckily, they have many more extras of those, phew!

We finished quite early, but the decoration was far from fancy. very simple, teramat sangat. No wonder other people finished theirs about 30 minutes later, rupa-rupanya they were creative enough to put up other sorts of lip-lap, lip lap for the decoration. And we had our plain bendera. 'kwang, kwang, kwang...

Releks Umar, this is our first attempt, remember? We'll do better the next time we do this..

UKS Charity Activity 25TH AUG 2008

This is the first time i joined the Ummiku Sayang (UkS) charity group for their mission,
the location was the Kajang Hospital ( so, that explains my participation, dekat dengan rumah lah!). The targeted group was the Pediatric Ward of the said hospital. It was great fun to see such a crowd, but of course those kids turned-up with all the bandages, IV lines, arm sling, etc. At first, they looked a bit uncomfortable, what with the 'costumes' and maybe the fact that they are not well ( we were in the ward, remember?!). The moment they got the gift packs, the printed paper merdeka-themed cap, and of course, the big beautiful cake of the same theme, they started smiling and being bubbly again. I managed to capture a few smiles, not only from our little patients, but from the parents as well ( oh, some with the whole family in tow!).

There was also a story telling session (Read Aloud), by Mdm Nita with her 2 beautiful daughters on stage, giving the children an excitement of 'A Walk in the Jungle' and 'Nasi Lemak Ibu'. Hmm...this RA session made me wonder, when will I do mine? My audience is usually my 3 boys, of whom I can act silly with, or put up some hillarious actions ( diaorg gelak, apaaa..). But infront of other kids? Other kids, and THEIR PARENTS? Oh..no no..NO! I think the first thing those parents would do, is to ban their kids from further watching this 'over-acting auntie', next is to cautious their kids from befriending my 3 musketeers, and ..OK! I KNOW I'M EXAGGERATING! I KNOW, I KNOW!! STOP!! back to what i wanted to write, people.

The UkS children were kind enough to hand out a big Get Well Soon card for our little darlings. I am no stranger to wards, nut gov3rm3nt hospital wards? Taking care of sick kids in the hospital wards like I have seen last Saturday, is something else. When I say , that my children checked-in and checked-out from hospitals, i have already made that sound like spending a few nights and days in a good hotel. In fact Umar thought that if not for the IV lines and the process to insert the IV lines, it was a good hotel, no doubt! What with a dedicated doctors, and kind nurses who always check on you.."fever?, no fever?, here's your lunch!, here's your medicine', ooh..no wonder he thinks of hospital wards so positively!

As much as I want to say to the mothers I met that :" I understand how you feel", or 'I've been through this', or "Anak saya pun baru keluar hospital Isnin lepas", I can't. I just can't.

While I always had a spacious room only for my son and me, with a bathroom, mirror, cupboard/wardrobe, a sofa, a chair, a cable TV , lights here and there, newspaper, air-conditioned room, sometimes request for a baby cot, so that I could sleepmon the bed, or ask for another bed if the need arises, good food for the mother and son, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.

The mothers or whoever were taking care of the children in the ward, do not have all this.

I'm not sure of those in first class wards, though? Any such thing as first class wards?

They can't just sleep in private, the children who obviously need lots of rests may not have the proper nap they needed, what with the neighbours crying out loud, they are oblivious to the passers-by, etc,etc,etc. It would have been a good lesson for Umar, too! Plus, it was his 4th birthday on that Saturday, 25th Aug. But I didn't bring him along. Maybe I should, the next time I join this kind of activity.

All in all, i would say that it was a success and I'm glad that I made the effort to be there. Bravos to UkS members who were there, (physically or in spirit), who made great effort to give the children of the Kajang Hospital's Pediatric Ward, a day to remember. Clap, clap, clap..

For more picture of the events, please go to my flickr. Wait, not yet uploaded, soon, InsyaAllah..

Oh yes, Umar was warded again, on the 17th Aug, this time of asthma. He was breathing very heavily started Thursday evening, and I heard a funny sound everytime he exhaled. I brought him to Az-zahrah medical centre, Bangi at 12.00am, and he was giving the gas once and some medication. I plan to bring him to GMC, since they have his records of croup, bronchiolitis, etc, but early Friday morning he had difficulty in breathing, even telling me that "Ibu, Umar penat". He looked vey pale when we were in the car, and looking at my watch , it was 7am on Friday, knowing the traffic, I was just scared that we might not make it on time, since he looked very pale and breathing very slowly, as if he was so tired of taking deep breaths. So, I made my move to Az-Zahrah, about 20 minutes from the house, and he was admitted. We spent 2 nights in the hospital, and since it was near, we took a home leave on Saturday morning to see the 2 little brothers. They were at home with Bibik. My DH was always at the other end of the telephone line, and knowing that i can always call him, however,whenever I wanted to, helped a lot too!

Last Sunday, we had a makan-makan for Umar's birthday. Oh, did I tell you about the Creative Music & Movement class i attended last weeks, with teacher Farra? OOhhoo.. I had a good time. I was the only mother/non-teacher in the class, out of 12 participants. The rests are pricipals/teachers from various kindergarten & enrichment centers. Alamak, berderau darah belajar dengan cikgu-cikgu nih! heheh..

InsyaAllah, will post about them later...

art attack..the beginning

demam-demam pun masih berkarya..

What do you make of a pen and a paper!
This is what Umar made!
I should have taken photos of his other creations, like fish from newspapers, stingrays, eumbrella, all from paper/newspaper.
He was doing his own 'work' when he put this on his head and announced "Tutup kepala, salji turn"
(sorry, obviously, he had never seen snow before..hehe)

it's not wong, but err..

Hafiz was soo happy that Ayah came back for him

Terlalu suka

Hafiz spent a memorable 5D4N in GMC, Jln Ampang

We were in the car heading towards Bangi, and had my usual chat with Umar.
He likes to look up in the sky, and when he spots an aeroplane, will make a big fuss about it.I think, the fact that our area is quite near to the Sepang KLIA, we always spot aeroplane flying low and that excites him further more.

Being-the-good-and-modern-mom-I-am, I always talk about the real thing, explaining the real situation, would offer some theories (scientific, mine or ancient greek's ;-)) where possible.

Me: "Umar tau tak, kalau helicopter , dia naik terus ke atas, vertically. kalau aeroplane, kan dia naik slowly, at an angle, baru dia naik tnggi ke atas. Landasan dia panjang" (Me thinks: Faham ke Umar ni!?)

Umar: "Ibu, sebab itulah aeroplane tu ada tayar, helicopter tu kan ada kaki, takde tayar!!

Me: ooooooo...

------------------------------------


Umar knows his ABC just by singing it out loud. I noticed that he recognizes A, O and a few numbers like 0 (hehehe..), 1, 3, 4, and 7, 10. For the rest of the numbers, he decided to just ignore them or trying to change the civilization by giving them other values.

Last night , I was SMS-ing DH, and Umar was lying besides me. He insisted to take a look at what i was typing. Thinking maybe that I should then 'test' his alphabets skills, I pointed out to the 'Exit' menu, and pointed to the letter 'E'.

umar: "B" (hmmmm..)

me: Pointing tu the letter 'x". Apa selepas E ni?

Umar: lepas "E", "F" lah.. (tunjuk terer lah pulak, tak pe Ibu should be v e r y p a t i e n t!!!!)

Me: Pointing to 'x' again. Ni apa?

Umar: Oooh..tu huruf yang untuk tulis salah.. ( get it? that's what he gets when he made a mistake in writing, etc, TANDA PANGKAH X !!)

Me: oh Umar!

why the silence?

take this: I'm writing from the Gleneagles Intan Medical Centre, Jalan Ampang!
My last day was on Friday, the 29th June, and the next day, Saturday, I brought Hafiz for his check-up, and he had been having a cough for quite sometime. The doctor asked him to be warded for further blood and urine test.
He was then diagnosed with pneumonia. hmm..poor baby! DH was of course in Sudan, and 2 days later ( Monday), he arrived in KL for his 5 days emergency leave :-)
Hafiz was discharged on Wednesday, 4th July. The bad thing was, all 3 kids ( and the ibu) were not feeling well, down with fever and flu. We took turn to bring Umar and then Lutfil to the pead.
All of them were then on antibiotics and DH then was due for his course in Singapore on Saturday, 7th July.
Umar then suddenly fell sick on Sunday night, and aftre a visit to his regular pead on Monday, 9th July, still had a very high fever, and I think we didn't sleep at all that night ( Sunday and Monday). Tuesday, 10th July, I brought Umar to another pead in GMC, and he was admitted!
So, I spent my days and nights in hospital wards, for the past 2 weeks, well, almost!

I have just paid the telephone bills i was using ( ye lah, menehjut je kena admitted, charger pun tak bwk, so guna telephone bilik hospital lah) , and we'll be going home tonight after Umar got his antibiotics at 6pm.

I have to go, I promised Umar to buy some sweets, and now he's reminding me about it..

Wish us well!

PS: Abang, appointment for Lutfil has been done for tomorrow morning. Pray that he's going to be ok ( err..I mean, hopefully he's not going to be admitted). Not that i don't like the hospital food... ;-)

i'm looking for this book!

I've been looking for this book. The one I have right now is sooo old, i am looking for the newer version. If nay of u have any info of any of the title below, or if u want to let go yours, please let me know!

This is one of my favourite book, ever!

The New Book of Lists: The Original Compendium of Curious Information by David Wallechinsky

Best Book Of Lists Ever! by Geoff Tibballs

People's Almanac Presents the Twentieth Century: History with the Boring Bits Left Out/Revised and Updated by David Wallechinsky

The Disinformation Book Of Lists by Russ Kick

The People's Almanac Presents The Books of Lists, No. 2 by Irving Wallace

PS: i tried amazon, but they don't ship to malaysia, at least, for this order! sob sob..

thanks..

makan-makan, and where 2 party next bithday

Thanks to the friends here in equeue for being here, today, in conjunction with the makan-makan agenda. I was thinking of giving a treat to the officemates, and the Ghazal Restaurant's Nasi Beryani (Wangsa Melawati branch) comes to mind! We had their nasi bryani at least 4 times now , I think, and from the cakap-cakap, commnets and complaints, I'd say that that's what we should be having for lunch, today.
So, from 10am, the secretary, and the office boy and myself was out of the office, went to Giant Taman Permata for the paper cups and plates, and fruits, not forgetting the cordial.
Then we headed to the restaurant, and picked up the nasi bryani and the accompanying dishes. We also had a cake, Chocolate Indulgence ( tak bagus untuk kesihatan betullah menu hari ni) from SRcp.

I'm not sure how many of you know that Petrosains does have a Birthday Party Package for those who would like to have an educational big-bang party, dinosaur and hands-on science experiments included. Wooo hooo..sounds fun!

According to a friend, the party used to be at a cost of RM700, and it caters for 20 childrens and 5 adults. This package includes 1 cake, kids meals from Burger King, also meals from BK for the adults, a 45-minute tour in Petrosains, and it is arranged in such a way that the group will be able to see each show they have at their Science Station. At the end of the tour, somewhere at Station 2, meals are provided, and the kids will have great time with all the hands-on experiments...ohh...umar will loves this, but errkk..no, the last time we went there, (that was 2 weeks ago, he IS STILL afraid of the friendly-singing-TRex..oh boy!
I think our Petrosains visit will be an entry by itself. It's one of the place sthat I love as an outing for me and the whole family..tak tau lah kenapa..

*I kalau naik that round-oil-shaped ride yang bawak u back to millions year ago era, mesti I terharu, , jantung berdebar-debar dup-dap and I will feel like crying. It is such an emotional experience. It is mainly because of the voice of the narrator (??ye ke), and the background musics, something that really heighten up my spirit. Out of pride? Dunno. Out of fear? naaahh.. mestilah tidak..

Oh ya, that birthday party package is not available during school holiday (as far as I know).
But, it sounds good and if your kids love celebrating their birthdays outside, and they have always had it in McDonald or TGIF, try Petrosains... for a change..

Umar doesn't understand about birthday celebration yet. He knows birthday cake, or the birthday song, but whose is it, where is it, he doesn't care! bertuah I. So far, his birtday had always mean party packs for his friends at the nursery. And no candies..hehe .We only allow raisins, cookies, wafers, cupcakes, pudding, (no sumi jelly, either..bahaya, and I ngeri!), and yogurt drinks. Like Umar always says:" Tak apaa, manis sikit aje.." (yo lah tu!)

Next party pack for Umar's friends is due in August.

..and come the news..

ladies selling kissra

Thanks to grouchiosa for this article. Should we now be proud that we are about to move to one of the expensive cities in the world? Nope! (Are you kidding!)
I am nervous. I have browsed in the intenet, looking for some info for Sudan and surprisingly, one of the issues the expats are concerned about are the expensive prices of the groceries. Imagine a minimum of RM20 for chicken and RM4 for a kilo of onions (it doesn't help that i use a lot of onions, and garlic in my cooking- konon rasa lebih sedap). Luckily, we have not started our kids with fast food ( yet!). If not, the husband will have to spend RM 76 on a KFC single plate (one piece of chicken, fries and soft drink).

Morine, kalau u duduk sana and Angel is her usual self yang go for fancy restaurants every now and then, habis la you...

With US sanction, and EU , too, soon? It's not helping, at all.
Okay, I'll do this. I will definitely have to go to the internet, look for some local main ingredients that are used in local dishes, look for the recipes, and make sure I know how to prepare them. At least tak lah bengong sangat sampai sana. Plus, with the very s l o w connection we'll have there, ....just hope it won't discourage me frm blogging! :-)

This reminds me of someone was given some flax seed from Sudan, and both the guy and his wife do not know what to do with it. After asking around, he was informed that in Sudan or over Africa, they just spread the seed on their bread or rice*

*me: i thought flax seed are also great for bread making? just like what we have in the hi-fibre gardenia bread yang ada raisins, peaches, apricots etc tu , ye tak?

BTW, DH told me that, over there, only the rich eat rice. ..( sedih la dengar..)

Over and over again, to show how expensive things are there, DH will relate how he bought a Conetto ice-cream for RM11 ! okay, now I'm convinced! Looks like Umar and his siblings will stay inside the house all the time! Only tour to the local dry market ( where they have goats, camels, goat's milk, camel's milk, etc) are allowed, no shopping malls for them! hehehe..

No worries! Umar will love looking at live animals at the market, than he will at the malls!

little updates of the little ones..

Last weeks, all three boys; Umar, Hafiz and Lutfil were down with fever.
Hafiz had been coughing for more than week and the Azidoe, and Virtec didn't help at all. Neither Mucosolvent (??) I recently bought a chinese herbs-base medicine, something like an ointment where you just rub a little portion of the liquid on the chest, neck and nose.
I guess, I should be more consistent on applying the medicine on Hafiz, then I will be seeing results in less than a week .. okay, sabar, sabar ..

Umar is in his normal mood, when it's time for school (taska). Almost every afternoon,when I pick him up from school, he would say: "Ibu, esok Umar tak nak pergi sekolah, okay.". I used to asked him why , but he didn't answer. Or sometimes he would say, "Arif buat Umar, or "tadi Arif marah Umar". What should I say? So, I just told him, "Arif tak sengaja kot" or "Umar main elok-elok dengan Arif, nanti dia baiklah dengan Uamr"..

Yesterday, I was driving to Giant Kajang, and as always, Umar would be the chosen one to follow me.

He asked me," Where are we going ?" " I don't want to go to school" (Kita nak pergi mana ni, Ibu? Umar tak nak pergi sekolah..)

Me: To Giant, we need to buy milk, remember? Why don't you want to go to school?
(Kita nak pegi Giant, kan kita nak beli susu)

Umar: The teacher said I don't know how to read, because I'm small.
(Cikgu kata Umar tak pandai baca, sebab Umar kecik lagi..!!)

What I don't understand is (wondering):

1. cikgu kata Umar tak pandai baca sebab Umar kecik or
2. cikgu kata Umar ni tak pandai baca , and THEN umar reasoned that he doesnn't know how to read because he is small

(btw, Umar is 3+ yo, will turn 4 yo this coming August)
I know that other kids could read when they turn 3, or 4 yo. But personally, I don't think that if he doesn't read when he is already 3+ yo, that's a bad sign, like "You are not smart enough".
Plus, I didn't actually sit with him and teach him like ABC, pointing to some cards ( hmm..I'm lazy , I guess) and then proceed to some phonic cards or whatsoever.
That's not my way. But, but, what i usually do with him, is to sit with him and read the book (read: as in pointing to the picture, identifying objects, shapes, colours, making up stories, making up dialogues, explaining to him how some things work, actually tell him the names and functions of stuffs and things, etc- (you know like planets, plants, bugs), answer his questions ( he always relates new things that he sees to the stuffs that you have told him previously and I'd be amazed at how he remembers, and understands and uses his 'database' to question you further about his surroundings!) . He loves books!

So, it's maybe my fault, then. I'm the one who didn't teach him enough. Instead of just singing Ants On The Apples, or ABC, or make up my own songs, or singing songs he learnt from school, maybe I should have a proper 'How-To-Read" lesson with him.

And oh yes, he likes to zikr as well. I remember a few times when we were shopping or at the wet market, (dok sibuk pilih udang), and he would go" Subhanallh, walhamdulillah, etc.."..all the way. Even at clinics. One Atuk-like gentleman, even commented ."Bagusnya dia berzikir, bertuah dapat anak cam dia". hehe..malulah i..

Next week, there would be a perjumpaan dengan guru for Umar. So, I guess, I would have a chance to ask how he is at school, in his class, does he seem to enjoy his day at school..

Oh yes, I meant to write that Lutfil has one tooth showing up, err..you can hardly see it actually. tapi, when I put my fingers on it, woww..definitely terasa tajam..
I guess Hafiz has a rival now.. berhati-hati ..

oh, i feel gneiss..

granite formation on Pulau Tepur, Langkawi


layers in sandstone

The fact that langkawi given geopark status as reported today is very much welcomed. After the Tg Balau magnificent structural formation is known as one of the Geological Heritage Sites in Malaysia, this recognition is never too late. Geologist/geology students in Malaysia or from South-East Asia, ( if not the world) have long branded Singa Formation and Machincang Formation as a must stop for outcrop lovers.

Geological sites have not only remnants (rocks, rocks and rocks). Take a closer look, and you would see communities of sponges, bivalves ( the humble, oyster, calm-like), gastropods ( that's like your modern looking snail), and yes,humongous lizard, etc. But of course, outcrops like the famous Morrison Fm, A'insa Fm have been in the limelight since years ago. Give a chance to our local 'lipatan and nendatan', kekar, ricih, batu kapur berfosil dan batu pasir berstratifikasi (jenuh nak ingat the 'local' term, are they correct?) to make the headlines.

Next time you are in Langkawi, stop by these formation/geoparks and have your photos taken there. Bear in mind that in the background, you have there, rocks (geologically) that were formed billion years ago. As for the formations in Langkawi, they are one of the oldest, dated back to Cambrian (eg: Machincang Formation is the eldest in Asia). Singa Formation (mudstone, silstone, ), Setul Formation - a limestone , with some secondary sandstone and shale. Another limestone formation is the Chuping Formation, which is also the youngest among the four formations.

For those in Johor, another attraction for geological park, is the Tanjung Balau area. It has a resort nearby, with a small nelayan community. (On a lighter note, 1 minggu di Tg Balau, aktiviti mandi laut di waktu petang itu musti selepas seharian 'berjemur' di atas batu-batan).

For yr reading pleasures: wikipedia, europeangeoparks, Grand Canyon, more Grand canyon! Jurassic-Morrison

oh those days..

I was so glad when Na uploaded a photo in her flickr, of us during our sedimentary field trip in Raub-Mentakab, back in 1998. Thanks to Na, I get to see the pic, since I don't have it in my collection!

..but I'll be back..!

a signboard in surburban chicago

I have tendered my resignation last week, with one month notice, effective 30th May 2007.

My last day at the office would be on the 29th June 2007, if you exclude the Saturday, 30th June. I am preparing a presentation for a project I am working on, mainly busy preparing for the materials and rushing to get it done with the proper v0lumetric calculation ..

It was not easy making the decision to move to Sudan. It wasn't easy either to tender my resignation, even harder to actually tell my bosses and my all dear colleagues that I am leaving. Even so it is for the sake of my family. I had a great time working for this company, surrounded by these warm, ever-friendly, good people. When I first joined this company, I realized that I'm about to work with some of the legends in the 0il & gas industry business. I was nervous when I was introduced to all the very familiar names I have heard over and over again, from former colleagues, even from DH, and in my busy mind, I was having things like: "Oh, so THIS IS so-and-so, or "eh, he's not like what I imagined him to be", or the :"he looks younger than I thought" or the reverse: "hmm..never thought that he looks this old"..heheh..

Being given the opportunity working with the experts, (some with 30-year-experience, with local and global technical expertise and recognition), I would say that I'm lucky. I'm grateful, very, very grateful.

It's funny how the gap between the very expert senior people, compared to the juniors (me included!). When we moved from U0A building , to the legendary Menara Promet in Jln Sultan Ismail, we, the green ones, had so many boxes, of print-outs, maps (isopach/sructure, time map, correlation ), ( and I thought we are in the digital world; paperless la sekarang wooiit!), books, references: journals, all sorts of blletin, etc.

The expert? Needles to say, they have everything inside their brains! They just get up, walked out and then in, to the new office.Talking about mobility here!

I can see my hope of achieving that level of seniority and expertise crash right away when I decided to quit. Not working, means I will loose my seniority, and perhaps by the time I'm ready to get back to work in a few years time, I'll be interviewed by the at-present-internship-students who have just came in this morning. They will be my future bosses, no doubt!

Oh I see them already, better go and ask them if they need anything! *wink*

how do you like africa, maam?

I hope that when i am asked this question in the future, i'll be positively answering it with : "O' I love it very much, can't wait to go back there!". Before I can answer that question, I guess, I have to be there, live there?! Yup! You are right, my friends! In a few months time, I will have a world map poster on the wall, and the tag "YOU ARE HERE"" will be pointing right on Khartoum, Sudan .

I am in between, can't really decide whether I'm excited ( to be able to be with DH ) , nervous and worries after warnings, after warnings, after warnings from everybody ( well, almost!). But, thanks to a few friends who have given me some very sound advices about raising children in such condition, I am,.. well, a bit calm..

* my busy brain is asking these questions: how do i pack my things, what to pack ( DH said, bring almost everything?, huh?, how to buy milk powder that will last for one year? where to get it? where to get it at a cheaper price? diaper supplies? if current maid cannot follow, so how?, is it easy to get a maid there?, stocks of medicine for the children?, what dried food to bring? how about our current house?, what will I do there? will I be okay? will the boys be okay? will I be okay if the boys are not okay?, will DH be okay if I'm not okay?, should I be bringing all my books, take with me as many books as I can, any book shops there?, if I order online, how sure it will reach me? UKS will send to sudan tak? , hehe.. what, what, what...*

in the news

i got the news that a group of employee (4 of them) from my previous company were abducted from their office! *gasp*. This is in one of the African country, where there's a lot of chaos, and marked as red zone. I know one of them, we worked together once, he's of different nationalitiy, though. I hope they will be ok, i really hope they will get all the help they need.

when he talks..

Umar is one smart boy (of course, he's my boy! hehe), and he regularly switches from his mischief-kuat ragam-self to very sweet-demure-loving boy in just a second! This morning, he almost made Bibik cried. Of 'terharu'. He was already inside the car when Bibik who was holding baby Lutfil was standing beside the car. I was about to get inside the car when I heard him murmur something to Bibik. Looking out from inside the car, I saw Bibik eyes were red, like she was about to cry! So i asked, what did he said, and Bibik replied: "Tak apa-apa, cuma dia kata: 'Nanti Bibik tolong suap adik makan ya!'" Not in his high-pitch-loud-voice, but so softly, in a very brotherly manner, in a very concerned way as if telling Bibik, please, please take good care of my little brother.

Knowing my eldest baby, he is very loving towards his younger brothers, always in a soft voice, almost a hush, consoling and comforting them when they cry ...and I would sometimes heard him telling the little ones: Hush..hush, jangan nangis, ibu ada, ibu ada.."

Oh Umar..

But wait till you see the other side of him...

Well, the other side of him, is totally ....opposite..you get the picture! heheh..

apa cerita mu?

It was worth it!
It has been what, 9 years, since we last met. My brother Yang and wife, Yang Gemma were warm people,as ever, always try their best to make you feel at home. And they did! In seconds!
M0nah is tall, taller than I am (not that I'm very tall, 1.54m ada la hehe!) and she's one smart lady, that's for sure!

We arrived in Champaign, a day later, after spending the night in the grocery store (shop) in Carbondale. We reached there after midnight and Yang Gemma who was supposedly be sleeping was woken up by our voices and got up and greeted us. The moment we saw her, both Eman and I were crying. One thing we noticed was that she was a lot better thatn we thought she was. Apart from the right arm which is a bit stiff, she manages everything gracefully and efficiently. The next morning, I started my duty as the cook/chef. I know that she likes our Malaysian cooking, well, all 3 love malay cookings, especially the spicy ones. So, I tried my bst to make cucur tepung ( spicy, with anchovies, dried shrimp, onion, fresh prawns, chillies), cekodok, and rendang, sambal tumis, cecah kicap, air asam with tomato ( to be eaten with ikan terubuk bakar. Yang runs an oriental grocery store, so I have all the ingredients I wanted. Whatever you want; from belacan ( shrimp paste), to serai, daun limau, kicap manis, durian, kimchee (no, i don't eat them!), etc. So, I guess I have no excuse not to cook!
I even left some of the recipes for Monah or Yang to try it out. Monah even told me that aftre we left, she prepared rendang ayam for her classmates during her creative class pot luck that they have early this week. Knowing how she's one American girl who eats rice with 'chili boh'.
Oohh.. I should have prepared sambal belacan (lots of it), so they can freeze it! ;-))

We didn;'t actually travel to places like theme parks, or some fancy tourist attractions spots. ( Well, we had our grand toiur in the previous visits, anyway). Apart from going to Chicago ( the Sears Tower from afar this time!) accompanying Yang to get his supply from the distributors in the suburban area, we mainly spent the time in the garden (backyard), or going to the local mall ( Wal-Mart included, ehhe) or Monah's school ( Uni High in Uni of Illinois area). I went to see a play staged by Monah's classmates in their school auditorium, and it was a very enjoyable one.

Emak was especially glad when she had the chance to help both Yang and Yang Gemma in their rose planting activities. They planted roses around the house, just like they did last year.
In the 5-acre land they are occupying, they made a point to have an orchard , up to 100 trees: apples, peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries (yeay! love it), pears, but sadly, no grapes. But they promised to Emak that they will have grapes this time.
The apple trees have the young fruits and it will be ready to be eaten in fall. This is the 2nd time that the trees bear fruits, and the neighbours , relatives and Monah's schoolmates were the lucky ones to be invited to sample the fruits last season!

I am happy that everything goes well for Yang Gemma, especially when she ;s the one who's into gardening. No wonder she looks alright even with her history of strokes and breast cancer. I think her loves gardening, give her a spirit and determination to get up, and be there where she feel happiest. It;s a wonder that she manages to water the plants ( Yang will do the tanam and korek tanah and baja pokok-pokok itu), tend to the trees, pull out the weeds, trim the roses on her own. But as she always says " Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah".

Monah is at school from 8am-4pm. She 's in her final year in high school, and supposed to enrol in one of the Ivy League soon. Since she skipped one year, she has one extra year to be doing something else, and the parents are not rushing her to immediately starts her degree.
She's been busy with exams, and this June, she's scheduled to tour Europe, on an educational trip, Oxford and Cambridge included to have a look in some of their offered courses. Last january, she was also selected to represent her school to go to Washingt0n DC and meet the C0ngressmen, and see the g0verment-thingy-stuffs for real.
I guess,during her extra cuti, she could do with some Islamic educational class? I'll be asking around for classes in KL, if there's any. Requirenments would be with hostels, a few months durations, etc. I'm hoping there is one for her. Perkim, maybe?

Anyway, spending a week there helped us to feel re-united. I didn't talk about her cancer ( can't bring myself to ask her about it!), and didn't mention about why or how-could-you-forget-me, or i-didn't forget-u-but-i-just-couldn't..you know what I mean....

Not until when we were at the Lambert International Airport, St Louis, when I hugged her to say good-bye, we cried and she told me: "All this while when you didn't send me any news, when you just kept quiet, I was hurt" . So, she was..

I thank Allah for making this trip a reality, I thank my beloved husband for giving me this chance to do what I thought I had to do, and my children, of course, and million thanks to Yang, Yang Gemma and Monah for having us there and for making us feel right at home!
Also for giving us the opportunity to show you that we care, that we were sorry, that we love you..

since the last goodbye..

Emak isn't so pleased that I have to cancel my trip to the US. Apart from the fact that
the tickets for myself and Lutfil have been bought, and it's not refundable, (fixed tickets, bought during Matta Fair late last year), maybe she feels more confortable having me to take care of her. Well, my first brother (Abang Pa) and his wife are also going there, but it's not the same as having your own daughter with you, I guess. I just assured her everything will be okay, and having just Abang Pa and wife with her wouldn't be so bad. I don't want her to cancel her trip just because of me not going, do I?

My SIL (Yang Gemma) suffers from stroke and breast cancer (late stage). We first came to know about the stroke, 2 days after Aidilfitri 2003. Yang (my brother, his name is Rosli) was sobbing on the phone, and he related how Yang gemma collapsed at their home and was found by a neighbour. (Yang runs an oriental grocery store in Carbondale, Illinois) was not home, while their only daughter, Monah was at school. She was at first could not move, her speech blurred, and now Alhamdulillah is recovering, and when I last talked to her on the phone, she sounds okay. In 2005, whe was diagnosed with breast cancer, and only Allah knows, how painful it was just to hear the news. She had to go through so much, and Yang too, I know is also suffering.
And what we, the so-called relatives/siblings do? Nothing much!

I have to confess that I wasn’t a good sister when she needed me most, though. No wonder she was (and still is )so upset with me. Thus came the plan to go and see her and make up for the lost time. I owed her so much, you see. She played a big part in my growing up years, not the toddler-junior-school years, but from my teenage (after SPM) years till I became a young woman. (now 33 yrs old, dah veteran..)
But it seems that all the plans that I made and all the nervousness and enthusiasm to come face-to-face with her just dissapreared as DH wouldn’t be able to come home from Khartoum on the weeks that I was supposed to go on the trip. I cannot imagie leaving both Umar and Lutfil just with Bibik, eventhough they can stay at one of my brothers’ houses. So, it’s better not go this time, again, despite all the expenses that have been spent. Mungkin ada hikmah disebaliknya, who knows we could go some other time? Rezeki durian runtuh ke?
To Yang Gemma, maybe you thought that I have forgoten all about you, but, I actually think of you all the time and just wish that I could go and see you. I am not good at words, but you know I love you dearly..

my latest addition on the shelves

Was I glad! I bought myself a book, a great book.
It contains the list of favourite books from 125 writers all around the world, (well mainly Americans and british ;-)).
I would admit that I just love lists. I was given a book called
“The Book Of List”. It was kind of old, and am looking in some websites if they carry the same title , but with newer versions , of course.
It had all sorts of lists, and I’m glad that I have it in my collection.

see if u can guess what he was 'singing'..

amuse me..

Any books by Dr. Seuss, aka Theodor Geisel, are such pleasures to read. It amused me (other adults included), the children, not just mine, but millions of children around the world. This great writer/illustrator, would have been 103 years old today. The funny rhymes and whimsical characters, that were the best ingredients that are the main attraction to the readers. Gosh, I think I enjoyed and cherished his books more than my children do.
Oh , and yes, I do hope (and pray hard) that the 3 kids will grow up as book lovers, and avid readers. Please, please, please…

Oh yes, gaji tak masuk lagi, and I’m already thinking of going to Kinokuniya and getting me new books. That will kill the time, sigh..

stay on your island, don't let me in..

any hunchback?

don't ever ask about the rules..

bila mata dah layu..he was like thinking of something

him: umar tak nak kawan cikgu *****
me: kenapa?
him:cikgu ***** tak bagi umar coklat, dia cubit Umar sebab Umar main panjat pintu, macam ni..( panjat grill tingkap)
mim: kan tu bahaya, sebab tu cikgu cubit , lain kali Umar dengar cakap cikgu, okay? nanti cikgu tak marah lagi..
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(The mention about this particular cikgu always gives me an uneasy feelings. Somehow, of all the teachers there, she is the only one who, I find, not unconfortable to speak with, she avoids eye-contact, no smiles, no “Hi, or Salam” when I drop or pick up my son.
Thank god she is not Umar’s class teacher, but still she was there all the time and I freak everytime I saw her car parked in the porch at the centre. I am thinking of getting him out of the center, cause I feel that if he’s sad/sombre about his teachers, it will do him more harm.
I don’t want anybody, especially his teacher(s), to make him feel bad, and lower his self –esteem. I just don’t feel that it’s right. Teachers (besides parents) should be the ones to direct children to healthy ways of being themselves, bring out the best in every child, nurture them,
educate, guide them as opposed to physically punishing them ( tarik telinga as a punishment for the child yang tarik telinga anak2 lain, cubit perut, etc), as opposed to causing griefs ..
---------------------------------------------------------------
me: umar nak tidur, nak ibu tepuk yea?
him: umar tak kawan ibu, tadi ibu marah.
(Flashback: he , as always would stand on a chair, at our kitchen counter top, one hand in the fish bowl, the other supporting his body because he needs to bend over the counter top in order to do so .
He was just about to move the fish bowl, into the sink after complaining how dirty the water was, and that it needed to be changed. And guess who's the best person he thinks who should do it? No prizes for guessing!)
At that moment, I saw him and warned him that he might have caused
the tiles to be very, very wet and that is a potential hazard (QHSE term!) to everybody. You get the picture; hazard sebab org boleh jatuh, or Hafiz akan memainkan air yg tumpah dengan jarinya dengan girangnya, dan menerbitkan perasaan ingin merasa air itu..)

me: ibu marah sebab nanti bahaya, kalau air tumpah nanti lantai licin..
him : tapi kalau tumpah ke dalam sinki-nya, tak apa.
Sinkinya tu, kan tak tumpah ( he loves the word ‘nya’), kan tak basah.
me: yela, tapi kan berat, sebab tu boleh tumpah, kan?
him: hmm..tapi umar tak kawan ibu, umar kawan ayah aje..
(is he actually missing Ayah, though he never asks about Ayah, but would mention

occasionally like; ‘nanti ayah beli.., or nanti pergi dengan ayah,..etc)

Anyway, yang pentingnya, at the end, we are at peace , kissed him on both cheeks, he did the same to me, and we hugged.
Kesian anak-anakku!

if you say so

sand-sculptures
Nowadays, Umar will be the first to report what his day was like in the taska. We used to prompt him with questions, like ‘what did youn learn’, any new song today, teach ibu how to sing it’, what did u eat for lunch( it’s always, doughnut, doughnut, doughnut!).

After quite sometimes, he offers to cerita by himself, and he mention mostly about ‘teacher’ and ‘Ariff’. So, here goes:
Umar: T adi ada ‘happy birthday’
Me: oh ye ke. Birthday siapa?
Umar: No answer.
Umar: Tadi sian Umar.
Me: Kenapa sian kat Umar?
Umar: Tadi teacher *** makan umar punya biskut, gula-gula, sian Umar.
Me: teacher tu takde biskut, dia nak rasa sikit kot. Tak apa lah, share lah dengan teacher, ok?
Umar: tapi Ariff tu tak share dengan Umar pun!

*I’m sad to report that we are only left with I fish and the tortoise.

itu ini begitu begini

Neuschwanstein Castle

These few days, I worry more. Nights are filled with
anxiety, tense, and I could’t sleep very well, eventhough the 3 boys didn’t make such fuss in the middle of the night. I make it a point to sleep or at least prepare to sleep by 9pm. At least the kids got into new PJs/diapers by 9pm, finished eating and the humble-mattresses laid down by then. Ibu will be very, very stern should the 2 boys (Umar and Hafiz) are still fighting each other, giggling noisily, throwing pillows at each other, which usually ends up with one of them crying and hurting the other, this time out of revenge.

The other night, I tried to put Umar and Hafiz to sleep at 10pm, they refused and kept playing ( read: switching TV on and off, knocking the table glass with spoon, running up and down the stairs, face down on the mattress and giggle out loud cause they think it’s funny, continued running, and the list goes on..). By the time they were too tired playing, and I was too tired to even open my eyes, Lutfil woken up, and he cried
non-stop, sobbing as if he’d just been shouted at. It didn’t help that he cried and his eyes are closed. Mengigau kena marah ke apa tah..
It took almost 2 hours to make him calm down, and I was just so grateful that Umar and Hafiz didn’t wake up at that particular moments. If not, I would have cried myself, heheh

Oh yes, all this buzz about the new 7 wonders of the world, excite me a bit. Nice to know that some of the architectures happen to be of Islamic
Civilization/remains, perticularly the Timbuktu in Mali, where one of the first university of humankind was establish. Also, the Hagia Sophia, Turkey. Well, it was erected during byzantine empire, became a mosque during Ottoman, and now serving as museum for both Christian and Muslims.
For fantasy reason, I’d vote for the Neuschwanstein Castle, Schwangau, germany, built by the mad king Ludwig. Oh, and how about the The Kremlin and Red Square, Moscow that looks like a fantasy castle as well, and it used to be the resident for the Czars, until the Russian Revolution.
It’s a poor thing that the Hanging Garden of Babylon in Irag was destroyed some years ago. If not, it could have been still selected as one of the 7 wonders of the world. Vote here!

all in a days work

There are many, many things that need to be done. From the official task to the personal mission that become myresponsibility, by default. That includes checking with the travel agent to see that we get the front seating , where bassinet would be possible for the convenience of baby Lutfil during our trip in March. And yes, the maid's visa has to be renewed as well. That means calling the maid agent and see how that could be done..

This is what I learnt today, from Sifu Morine. The below caption is the concept that I should be familiar with, or so, says my sifu, hehe
I think I grasp the whole concept, it's just that I stumbled upon some terminology/technical terms , which mostly depends on which clients you are dealing with.
Well, I just hope my P90 will make them happy, and beaming with smile..

itu macam pun ada??

Alhamdulillah, someone from the office gave us lunch treat at Sha La La restaurant, at Ground Floor of Crown Plaza Hotel. The food was great: ayam percik,
Udang masak lemak, sup daging, pak choy with soy sauce , sambal belacan and lady finger (ocra), and some other condiments. Not forgetting, seri muka and caramel pudding for dessert. On top of that , they have 2 cakes which taste yummeh, but not so good for your health!

What did we do last 2 days? Well, Saturday was just spent with the boys, with Umar always tried really hard to find reasons to fiddle with the fish and the tortoise. For your kind info, out of the 4 fish, 1 has died, I think due to the recent attack of a Martian.
Well, according to a trusted source, it was found with
the tail being torn? ! hurghh..poor fish, may he rests in peace..

Sis in-law (zatul) came Saturday evening, and I have extra helping hand in-terms of looking aftre the boys. At least now, prayer time is peaceful, no giggling at your ears everythime you perform sujud, or someone hanging from your waist or even from your neck, when you are about to stand up. Sometimes even Hafiz will do the actions ahead of you, and then he will look at you and try to see whether he is in the correct position. Imagine when he peeps from his supposedly sujud position! ;-)

Sunday , as usual, early morning it’s off to TTDI we go. Done that and after breakfast at Mosin’s, we were back to Kajang, or Tesco Kajang to be exact. One intersting incident is this: I ended having 3 bags of diapers (Huggies and Drypers- on promo!), and 3 tins of formula for the 3 boys. I was queuing at the cashier waiting for my turn to unload our stuffs. Apart from that we ahd bread, fruits and veggies for Lutfil’s porridge, Umar’s staple food, which comprises of cookies and crackers but no yogurt for that day.
A man of around 40’s and his daughter kept looking at us, and we always got that stares- perhaps from the many diapers, and milk formula that were in our trolleys. I just ignored and finally I understood what his interest was, when I finished unloading the stuffs on the counter. He said” Err..You ada ke bonus link? Boleh saya guna saya punya tak?” Ooo..barulah saya faham . Pakcik tu had been eyeing our stuffs and had been calculating that the amounts equals to lots and lots of bonus link’s points! ..Hmm..ambik lah pakcik..!
Hopefully, I have made his day..:-)

kisah ikan..

Somehow our pet fish died 3 to 4 days after we bought them.
Let see, our weekend trips to TTDI wet market since late last year had seen
many tragic events, err..well, pet you mati is tragic , right?
Amazingly, the 3 fish that were bought early January 2007 still alive and swimming
in the tiny bowl on the dining table. And this, despite of them being stored for God knows how long in the fridge’s chiller, being thrown into the dry parit, being tortured in the sink, being cleanse and soaked with bubbles with hand liquid soap, being scooped into a bowl
and left to breathe in the fresh air(!!), being fed with ..bear with me: cekodok, tissue paper,
newspaper, colour pencil, beras, banana, pau, Tiger milk biscuit, entah apapapa lagi.

All the fish that we bought on every Sunday, would die either the next Wednesday or at least on Friday. So, Umar would have reason to insist that Ayah bought another fish, and well, why not, a pair of them only costs as low as RM2.
Looking back, and after all the investigation that have been done, I concluded, that the fish did not die of natural causes, neither of old age ( hehe), or of critical illness
(remember, they hav been fed with all the nutritious food!!).
They have actually: committed suicide! Yes, the fish had committed suicide!! Period.

faces I love

The faces I love not in particular order. The DH is the leader of the boys, and we have Umar, hafiz and Lutfil. Well at times, looking at their faces ( the boys, I mean) would vanish all sorrow.

i'm feeling blue

Tonight, after much posponing and delays, DH will finally fly to Khartoum. He 's been waiting for the order to go there, much awaited task , I guess. Me ( and the children, too, I'm sure) are happy that he's get to be on a big project, newly challenging exposure and the good things about it. We know very well that whatever he does, he does it for our best.
We'll be missing him a lot, in fact I have already missed him.
Can't wait for him to come back in next month, which he has to, because myself, baby Lutfil and emak will be going to the USA this coming March. Sigh..even the 4 days of CNY holidays can't take away the blues..

if only i knew..

It has been ages since I last watched a movie at a cinema. The last movie I watched was Star Wars: The Phantom Menace. I don’t even remember when that was?! Or was it the James Bond: Goldeneye, first one featuring Pierce Brosnan as the 007 secret agent.
Now that going out literally means taking the whole household out, emptying the house, filling the up to the maximum, from the front to the back seat, to the car trunk, watching movies will be at number 13.
That’s why I try my best to catch movies that’s shown over the 6 free cahnnels in M’sia. Oh yes we have no Astro!! Well, it’s just a personal preference.
I actually talk about mvies because I happened to be reading a book titled The Amityville Horror Conspiracy, and I am at chapetr 2. I can’t wait to finish, but I am also reading reading v e r y slowly at certain sentences, in order to absorb and to feel the emotion and suspense in the book. You can more find infos on the matter at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Amityville_Horror.

When I laid my eyes and hands on the book, some of the questions that popped up in my mind:
Oh, am I the last person on earth to know that all the ghostly, mysterious, haunting events that has been made into movies for so many times from 1977-2005 was actually a hoax? Say it again, a HOAX?
Err…everybody else who does not know about this hoax?
How did it all begin? I will know once I finish reading the book .
The controversy started even before the first movie was out. It seemed that the public still believed the story. Also maybe tha fact that the investigation has not been made public , not until some 20 years later?
Check this out for synopsis of the book.

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

apa yang kau lihat

The above picture was taken from this website. It is considered one of the best pictures of the year 2005. Look closely, the camels are the little white lines in the picture. The black you see is just the shadows! The guy, George Steinmetz, did that by piloting a motorized paraglider, across the world's desets. This experimental aircraft provides him with a unique physical perspective over remote places that are inaccessible by conventional aircraft.

Okay, you did great , Sir. Thanks to you and your passion, you gave us (sedentary people, ehhem) something to wonder and be curious about...

Talking about sedentary lifestyle, a few of my friends have gotten themselves personal trainers at the nearby gyms. The husband won't be so supportive of this. Well, I'll resolve to the eat less, walk more method. My garden...this should be a good start for some work out. Can't seem to find much time to spend outside the house, actually. Lutfil will be crying when he knows I'm around-but-he doesn't see me. And being so small ( erk..7 mo, small lah kan??!), I don't fancy to put him in the stroller while I do my garden work. That would be an easy excuse for Umar and Hafiz to fight each other, on who gets to push the stoller around, and I'll be yelling ..you get the picture!

Oh yes, this weekend husband promised( well, I take it as a promise) me , that I could go to my favourite boutique in TTDI to buy my stuffs. We usually go to TTDI on weekends, since both Umar and Hafiz are attending some classes at one of the centre there. Last year, it was only Hafiz, and I got to go to the boutique everytime we were there, cause husband can handle Hafiz while I did my shopping. But now, since has to handle 2 boys at a time ( I'll never bring them inside the shop for the fear they'll run around and knock things off), I'll have to wait for the suitable time. This coming Sunday, we have decided to only bring Umar to his class, and Hafiz will stay at home. I can't wait, hopefully I would find something that I love, and my size!!

That would be a perfect weekend!Well, it is a muslimah boutique, so you can't get a way from abaya ( very trendy ones), scarves, office wears- suits, long dress and long skirts.

Now, where's the money..gulp!!

Yang lepas yang akan datang

I'm not sure whether me having my breakfast set from Subway almost every morning from Mon-Fri will see my weight goes up or down or stay the way it is now. Well, it's not really a pretty number like 45kg, or anywhere below 50kg, so let's not put it down here, eh.

Anyway, I do try to eat less rice, that I can do easily, since I'm not really a rice person.

But having your brekkie from subway meaning having the white coffee too, which was not that good, if u know what I mean. I managed to not-having coffe or anything with caffein for quite sometimes. Instead I stuck to my Tea-Mix from Herbalife (I love the tangy taste) and my herbal tea from NR. Hmm..I should go back to fruits and salad and juice.

I feel so much relief for having done with the visa application for my US trip this coming March. It was so exhausted with all the paper, documents, supporting documents, strict requirements of the photos, ec, etc. I felt soo nervous just thinking of applying the visa. Now that it is done, and we got (me, mom and my baby) ours, one burden on my shoulder has been lifted.

Photography has always been my subject of interest. I used to be occupied with photography,

loved taking pictures of just anything and bought myself an SLR camera, way back in the year 2001. Now that it's digital era, I have only managed to buy me a A620 Canon, good enough for the lazy me. I hardly us it anyway. But , I would love to start taking phtos again, having browsed all the fantastic photos from the http://flickr.com/photos/. They r awesome, magnificent, arrghh..breathtakingly beautiful..oh di mana ilhamku..

I should start now, yes now!! Oh, if u have time, do peek into this my-latest fav flickr page:

http://flickr.com/photos/ozbandit. Above is one of my fav- this is my new desktop wallpaper:

No promise, this time..

My 2007 resolution..to keep a blog, post something every day, every other day, or if time do not permit, well, maybe at least once a month...
I should feel good enough after every pay day to be able to write something , right? Right.
okay, I should!!