The day after Xmas

I notice that I've been having jam-packed days lately. Oh wells, as long as it's still the holidays, I'm not complaining. It's actually rather good since it takes my mind of the fact that school's starting in a few days time. Yikes!

Today has been one of those activity-filled days. Mid-day, we made our way to Simei for Huda & Chiwok's wedding. Huda is actually my sister's (Diyana) good friend. If you think that I'd be all ackward at the wedding since she's not my relative or close friend, think again! It really felt like a family's event since there were so many familiar faces. For a start, I somehow know all of Diyana's friends and their respective partners.. and they were everywhere! And some of them are not just hi hi bye bye kind of friends, but friends whom I've known since we were still the geeks we were back then in sec school. Friends who came so many days before my engagement & wedding many many days beforehand, friends who went together with me to Buru and also to stalk Peterpan. Hehehe.. Yeah, you get the idea. I know Diyana's friend quite well. And as a bonus, my WHOLe family were there too.... ANNNNDDDDD..... guess who was there as well?

ZAKI! Yup, that's him right there, our dear Zaki. Or, Ikin & me usually calls him our bekas bakal adik ipar tak menjadi. Heheheh.. All the way from KL! It felt really good to see him after so long. How long has it been, really? I believe, the last time I saw him was during my nikah. And it was the first time that he met Ryan in person! Wow! That IS long huh? And I still remember him treating us to supper when me & Ikin were in KL to buy some of my wedding stuffs. Can you believe that I got to know Zaki through Friendster and now he knows my whole family and all of Diyana's geng!

Since our initial plan to visit my cousin Lukman & Rina's newborn baby, Nasyirah Isabella was thwarted when ibu informed as that she had been warded for jaundice, we decided to go........ KARAOKE! Ini betul-betul lepas gian... I've been wanting to karaoke for weeks after weeks after weeks.

This time round, we brought the belangkas couple.. Ikin & Man. Well, the song Cari Jodoh wasn't in our must-sing list since it's no longer fun as we obviously can't dedicate it to Ikin anymore. BORINNGGG! Muahahhahaha...

Then, we made our way to the in-laws BBQ at Yishun. Everything was as expected. LOTS of yummy food, games, fun and laughter.

Yeah... one of my oh-so-not-glamourous photos. Must make sure these kind of pics doesnt fall into the wrongs hands. If any of my kids in school get it, matilah aku... They simply LOOOVEE such pics of chechers!

And the little tot obviously had fun. As free as a bird.. But must promise me that tonite you don't ngigau eh!

*Yaaawwnnn*** Night peeps!

I'm so sleepy that I don't even feel like correcting all of the grammar/spelling mistakes. Sorry yah!

Helloo

Everyday, it's a flurry of activities that although I have a million of things to blog about, I have very limited time (and energy) to blog about them.

So, hang on peeps. Once I've managed to have some breathing space, I'll post something here.

A few more days to 2010!
Can't wait!

Outing

Tired as we were, we decided to make our way to Marina Square to purchase our long-long-time-want-to-buy-but-never-buy sofa bed. Andwe just needed to go out, asyik terperap jer dalam rumah, boleh sakit mental tau.



Ryan reminded us that it was drizzling outside and we should bring our.. opppsss...(salah!).. mak's umbrella.

And as usual, with all the interesting distractions only known to him, it took us much longer to go from Point A to Point B.

But once we were at the shopping malls and he managed to persuade us with his non-verbal (but very noisy) signals to let him roam freely, he was no different from Forrest Gump. Both the parents had a hard time catching up with him!

I believe that there is a paragraph in the Parents' Handbook that states that it is compulsory for them to pose with their kids in front of any cute cartoon posters/figurines/banners etc.. COs that's what we did.

Not that it was easy to make the main model stay put so that we could get a decent shot of him!

We also decided to splurge a little on the little tot at Toys R Us. And of cos, Shahreil menyusahkan the gift-wrapping girls by asking them to wrap the stuffs we bought for Ryan..

I've been wanting to buy this Thomas tent for sooooooo long. At last, I got it! I was much much more excited that Ryan was, for sure. As we (or rather, Shahreil) were busy putting up the tent, I remember fondly how I used to have so much fun in a tent of my own during my childhood. The difference is, mine was constructed out of cardboard boxes by daddy. Not as fanciful as the ones in the market of cos, but it came complete with doors, windows, tunnels and chimneys. And I had so much fun in it!

I'm getting sleepy now, so..I'll cut this entry short by just saying how much these two make me happy.

My Own Happy Family

2009

Things to do List

I am determined to utilise this holiday to the fullest; namely to have as much quality time as possible with my son. And of course, to catch up with the much-neglected (with very valid reasons!) household chores.

On Tuesday, I had two items on my list of things-to-do-before-the-holiday-is-over. First, was to cook burgers for the hubs and second, was to have some fun, creative play time with the little one. So, off I went to NTUC, after making sure that the son had his lunch & nap, hoping that he won't be cranky and difficult in public. Well, that plan went awry as soon as the son saw shelves after shelves of food and insisted that he be given the loaf of bread I had deposited in our trolley to eat! Aiyohhh!! It was downhill from then onwards as he insisted that I carry him and kept going "maman..mamam.." with each being a decibel higher. And there I was still searching high and low for that damn breadcrumbs for my Jamie Oliver burger! I did contemplate of just leaving my trolley behind and just go home, defeated. My son is not that light ok! But thank you, Allah, because He gave me saviours in the form of Man & Farah! Farah found my breadcrumbs in record time. Thanks, babe!

Once the boy was pacified with the already-paid bread, it got better. However, the things I bought were heavier that I expected and my arms were already sore from carrying Ryan all around NTUC, so I decided, what the heck... and took a cab home. Yes! It cost me $2.80 and the cab driver laughed at me saying that in all his years of driving a cab, mine was the shortest distance ever!

Once home, I decided to paint all our (mine, actually) exhaustion away! Wheeeeee!!!

My artist at work!

The little Picaso!

Today, we made our way to Tampines. Forget about the MRT & bus ride adventure. I decided that 1.5hour of public transport was a bit too daunting for me. Cabbed it again. Yes, Im the cab it queen. We went to Tok Ne's house first since it's pointless to go to my mom's house since most of them were still at work.

Look who were there today!! Ryan's uncles and aunties!!! Weird huh, since there are all so super young. That's Pak Long Audi... (9 years old)

And that's Mak Busu Sofia (2 months old)

It was very heartwarming to see Ryan so loving towards Sofia. He kept coming over to stroke/kiss her. Didnt get any pics of him doing that hough since I was busy making sure that he didn't headbutt her!

Oh... I didnt get any pic of Mak Ngah Su (4 years old)

Yeah... he got extremely young aunties and uncles!

What shall we do, tomorrow, sayang??

I Love You So...

Ryan in his Liverpool jersey(bought by Uncle Halem), which nearly caused his daddy to disown him!

" Do you love me everyday?"

you ask with suprise

"Or does love come and go like passing butterflies?"

I love you as steady

as the moon and the sun,

though some of our days

are not full of fun.

"Like when you feel mad?"

you ask with distress,

"cause I've broken the rules

or made a big mess?"

I love you when you are nice.

I love you cranky, too.

I love you without liking

the naughty things you do.

My 'love you' doesn't change

like the weathers of the days.

It's a certain kind of thing

in many different ways.

-Marianne Richmond' (I Love You So..)

It does get tough sometimes, especially since he has learnt to protest/cry/whine to get what he wants. And boy, he sure does know what he wants!

It's funny to both Shahreil and I sometimes when family and friends keep asking if Ryan ever cries at all, since I have to admit that he is mostly a happy and cheerful boy. Well, he does. Especially at Jelebu where he tends to get clingy as I suspect he gets a little lonely and craves for our attention. And it's funny that even when he's being so difficult we still find him cute and how we think that he looks so adorable when he's crying. (ok, at least 75% of the time... the other 25% I feel like tearing my hair out!)

And I guess I should treasure these moments when all he wants to do is to be with me, before he gets to the age when it's no longer cool to be seen with his mom. (Yikes!)

Ibu loves you, Ryan Iskandar.

We'll go to the playground once you wake up, alright?

Negatif

Maybe I'm getting old.
Maybe I'm no longer hip.
Maybe I just don't get teenagers nowdays.
I can give you one long list of things, but for today I'll just talk about one thing that has been irritating me a little. Or a lot, depending on whether I'm pms-ing or not.

Everyone has some kind of nama manja/timangan/ glamer or whatever you call it. Nobody gets called by their full name, other than during doctor's appointment or interviews or some really formal stuffs. But do you realise that the nama glamer of kids nowdays are NOT glamourous at all. Some of them are downright stooopid and insulting. Why would you want to be called Nina Pantatz? Or IraBeylo? Or AzmiKecikkz? Sedap ke? Suka ke dipanggil beylo? Kalau saya lah yang dipanggil beylo, mengamuk sakan gamaknya tau.. But you yourself choose to be called that? I don't get you lah, kids.

But..
Maybe KRU is right...

Tiap generasi punya citarasa sendiri
Gaya nan terkini irama muda mudi
Fikir cara terbuka jgn pandang negatif saja
Inilah caraku.. biarku dengan jeans biruku..

Korang kalau minat KRU, taulah lagu apa eh.
SO, lantak koranglah nak oi...
But Ryan, I chose a perfectly nice name for you. Don't you go and butcher it up in the future.
Or I will butcher YOU.

P.S:Ibu loves you!

Apa yang aku nampak.

Memandangkan hari ini (dan hari-hari yang sebelumnya selama 2 minggu lepas), aku tiada apa-apa yang hendak dibuat (atau pura-pura tak nampak apa-apa yang patut aku buat) di tempat kerja ini, baik aku berblog sikit.

Minggu lepas, sewaktu aku sibuk beratur di taxi stand nak pergi ke Tampines, aku nampak lah satu kejadian yang sungguh buat aku rasa teramat menyampah sekali. Hari tu, linenya memanglah panjang. Dari jauh aku nampak line tu aku dah menggerutu dalam hati.. tapi aku fikir, sabar..sabar... nanti bertambah kerut kat dahi aku yang dah tak berapa licin ni. Tapi sesungguhnya tak semua orang yang berpikiran macam aku.

Adalah mat saleh dua orang ni tengah tunggu taxi jugak... first in the row lagik. Mungkin jugak diorang dah tunggu lama, dan semakin hot dalam hati bila tiap2 teksi yang berderum lalu depan mata semuanya ada penumpang ataupun on call. Mana tak sakit hati wooo... Dan mungkin juga rasa gembira tak terhinggalah bila ada teksi berhenti depan mata dan ada penumpang turun. Aku perasan jugak yang dreber teksi tu dah menurunkan cermin tingkapnya, dalam hati aku berkata, ni gerenti apek nak tukar syif.. Tapi mamat saleh ghairah tu, belum apa-apa dah masuk. Sorang dah duduk yang sorang lagi baru nak masuk bila apek tu baru sempat nak explain yang dia nak tukar syif. Bukannya aku dengar pun dia kata apa, tapi aku rasa2 itulah yang dia kata. Tapi si dua ekor, batu besar ada duduk dalam itu kepala. Berdegil takmo keluar. Apek tu cuba explain lagik, si mamat salah sorang tu dengan muka masam mencuka, terus tutup itu pintu dan apek itu mungkin rasa tercepit dantak tau buat apa, terus drive lah.

Geramnyer aku masa tu. Nilah orang-orang yang nak ikut kepala dia jer. Nasib baik aku ni kecil molek, kalau aku besar sikit mau tak aku seret korang dua tu keluar dari teksi tu. Customer is always right. Podah! Self-centred brats! Sungguh memualkan perangai kamu-kamu itu. Pakaian sikit punya cantik dan aku pasti dompet dorang lebih banyak isi daripada aku punya yang banyak resit jer.. Tapi perangai, takde standardlah wei. Sebab tu orang selalu kata, jangan menilai orang ikut rupa jer. Rupa ok, perangai haprak.

16 November

Today is a special day.
3 celebrations jam-packed into one day, that is the 16th of November.

First: Shahreil's 29th Birthday, though I must tell you that he still acts like a 9 year old sometime. Not that I mind cos that's one of the reason that I fall tergolek2 for him last time. Other than the fact that he's drop dead handsome (hey! It IS his birthday, afterall!!). Hope you like my presents!

2nd: It's our 2nd wedding anniversary, although I feel like we've been together forever! I can't even remember how was life before Shahreil like. Can't wait for the romantic getaway to Avillion this weekend!!

3rd: How can we forget that the little one has turned 15 month today? Happy Birthday darling!!! Hoep you like the presents I bought you from KL. Kalau cantik, ibu yang pilih. Kalau tak cantik, Mak Ngah yang pilih ok??

Technology. Tok.

Technology is pretty amazing, I must say.
Just go to these websites -->

http://www.quranonline.net/quran/media.jsp
I love the fact that there's videos so that while reciting the surahs you can check that all your tajwids are correct. Very much like mengaji-ing infront of Tok Aji (minus the rotan, though I must tell you, I've never been caned by him before... Selamat!)

http://www.quranflash.com/en/quranflash.html
And I couldn't believe my eyes when Shahreil first introduced me to this site. WoW!

Whenever I mengaji, it reminds me of Tok and I sure the sames goes for Ikin and Diyana too.
Those were fond memories.

When I was in the morning session; I'd rush to Tok's house hoping that'd I'd be the first person to arrive. Nak balik first maaahhh.... I'd shower and macam budak baik duduk at the ngaji area, fully aware that the the following things will happen:

Tok: Ti, kau dah makan belum..
Me: Belum, Tok... (suara sedih..)
Tok: Makan dulu sini...
Me: Ok... (macam reluctantly, tapi dalam hati..yabedabedoooo!)

Others will come eventually, hoping that they'd be first in line, but too baaaddd.

When I was in the afternoon session and staying at Tok's house for a few months as my house was undergoing renovations, ngaji time was right after solat subuh. Once we finish solat jemaah (yes! it's solat jemaah every subuh & maghrib at Tok's house), I'd try to creep back into bed like everyone else... but Tok would say,

"Hayati, mari kita mula ngaji,"

and I'd go.. "Haaaaa..." But of course, that was dalam hati. Siapa berani lawan cakap tok oiii!!

But I must say, ngaji with Tok was fun. (or maybe I chose to remember the fun ones..)
Being girls, we rarely got any scolding, and I'd have fun seeing the guys kena marah. Tu ah korang, banyak main!

As I've khatam-ed very early in primary school, the remaining years of ngaji was pretty much focused on correcting my tajwid. Tok would leave me to recite by myself, and once he thought that I had enough, he'd ask me to go back to where I started and testing me on all the tajwids.
Yang mana kena dengung/kenapa kena dengung/ ni berapa harakat and the list goes on. Macam kuiz lah pulak!

I also got to supervise some of the younger ones, and my victim was usually Diyana. I remember being soooo mean to her and poked her with my lidi whenever she was so slow or simply couldn't baca. Geram betul masa tu. Hahahah... But that was terrible of me. Sorry Diyana!

I realise that Tok played a major role in my religious education. From mengaji& tajwid to hafal surah to learning how to ambil wudhu and solat.

Thank you, Tok Aji.
May Allah repay your kindness.

CUCI

I can't believe that I really made the trip to KL last weekend.

I was initially very hesitant as it was afterall a trip to watch Cuci the Musical. Yes! CUCI. It's not PGL or P.Ramlee the Musical. It's the comedy by the 4 stooges(Hans, Afdlin, Awie & AC). I couldn't imagine how they were going to marry the 2 (totally simple comedy + musical) together. Yes, I did love Cuci the Movie.. I remember laughing so hard till my stomach was hurting when I watched the movie. But a musical? And alllllll the way to KL? Hmmmm.... Now, tell me why I shouldn't be hesitant?

But did I regret my decision? Did I feel like strangling Ikin who dragged me all the way there, away from my husband and son?

No. A huge N.O!

It was one of the best decisions I've made in months!

Firstly, I was good to get away from Singapore, work. responsibilities.

It felt just like old times, me and Ikin going to places together, eating and gossiping non-stop.

And Ikin is obviously the best travelling partner cos she knows and handles everything. My manager mah...

And Cuci... What can I say about the musical other than it was great/ fantastic/excellent/amazing/wonderful and all the other good things that are sewaktu dengannyer. The storyline was pretty much the same as the movie, other than a few tweaking of things here and there. The props were simple, costumes not spectacular (you can't expect them to be wearing bling blings while washing buildings, can you?) But what blew me (and the rest of the audiences, Im sure) away were the casts who were damn right hilarious.

It was actually just a bunch of friends goofing around on the stage, not afraid to make mistakes and ad-lib their way through. Their camaderie was crystal clear throughout the musical. Everyone of them were special in their own way.

Afdlin, my talented talented Afdlin was being his round, nak kena cubit-cubit pipi, adorable eldest brother. AC, was perfect as C'Tan... tall, skinny and witty. And I actually forgot that he was afterall a member of 4U2C! He could sing very well...! Come, let us sing Fiona together... with actions, people!!! Ready? One, two, three... go!

Fiona.... Terciptalah irama cinta ini hanyalah untukmu... Bawalah ku ke alam cintamu... Fiona gadisku... (Slide to the left... both hands up, turn one round..)

Hans, was soooooooo cute as the selenger, frank salah tempat kind of guy. Lurus bendul. Comel!

And Awie... he was like a teddy bear that you wished was on sale after the musical so that you can bring home and cuddle all day long! Hahahha... And of course, when he sang... I wished that he'd start singing Sejati or something. You can never take the Mat Rock out of Awie!

Not forgetting the others who were equally splendid. Harith Iskandar as the bad guy. Ramli Hassan as the daddy. Adibah Noor, and her budak nakal selamba kodok kind of attitude. But when she sang, she's truly a DIVA! And my sweet, sweet, meltingly sweet Vanidah Imran. A true blue wanita melayu terakhir and I got a feeling that she's not the kind who tries to be one cos it is just her nature, not like Sendat or Mak Iti.

To sum it up, I had a wonderful time at the musical. Siapa yang tak tgk... RUGI RUGI RUGI. I just hope that somehow, they'd bring the musical to Singapore.

;-)

I received this sms:

bile saya dudok kat teacher's table, mcm tak caye yg saye nie cekgu. dalah prangai saye kdg2 mcm bdk2. Tsk. When im in this state, i always think of you. Thank you cekgu! :-)

That made my day.

Thank YOU, Hawa.

Your warm smile will brighten up the days of many children, I'm sure.

My Weekend

I still can't believe that I had such an outdoor-sy weekend.
Saturday, at the zoo with Rozi & Azdwan, Yati & Halem.
Sunday was kite flying with the whole crew.
I was initially reluctant to go, wanting to just rot infront of the tv, what with a whole week's worth of exhaustion.
But lucky for me, I didn't give in to my tiredness (or laziness, if I'm being honest to myself) for I hadnt had so much fun for quite some time.
Ryan did too, even if he was still recovering from his sickness. And the fresh air did some good for him, I guess.

Lately I've been more gung-ho in enjoying whatever little time I have for fun & leisure.
It's so easy for me to submit to the mundane life of a working mother with no maid kind of lifestyle. Work-housework-baby-hubby-sleep. And the cycle continues day in day out. To tell you the truth, I'm always exhausted at the end of the day that I do not want anything else but plonk myself onto my wonderful Picket & Rail bed. But I don't want to live life like that! So, I've been doing things that I love, to keep myself alive. I bought dvds to watch. I borrowed a book from the library. ( I haven't read a book ever since I ended my maternity leave and I AM a bookworm!) I hang out with Shahreil's friends on a weeknight. ANYTHING. Give me anything!
I feel better. Yes.

The hols coming and I look forward to filling it with so many activities!
Hoorey!

Papadom

I was dragged by the hubby to JB to catch Afdlin's movie, Papadom.

Sungguh tidak aku menyesal!

I feel this is Afdlin's best work to-date. (and I simply love his Baik Punya Cilok!)

It was so simple but so sincere. It made me laugh, it made me smile and it made me cry.

And its something that all parents can relate to, I guess.

Congrats, Afdlin! I look forward to see more of your movies.

Yang, bila nak tgk Los and Faun?

Busy Bee

Hey! I'm back with a duster in my hand, trying to dust the cobwebs off my blog.
It has been weeks of a hectic and whirldwind life for me (and Shahreil)
Sometimes, the both of us would plonked onto the sofa wondering, "Bila nak dapat relek ni?"
Nebermind, nebermind.. hopefully once all the raya preparations and all the crazy raya engaments have finallay died down, we'd have some air to breathe.

Life has been busy on all fronts for me.
Housematters. Woah! Mengemas memanjang ler! Tukang kemas satu, tukang serak ramai. Tu pinjam fav bebel words from my mum. Hehehhe..
It never ends, right? I sometimes wish I have a magic wand to zap all the crazy mess away or sometimes, I'd just sit and stare at the mess thinking that it's all just an illusion. ;-) It works, sometimes. But only sometimes.

Work has been very challenging too. Sometimes I really feel like giving up. Like its not worth my time and effort. Why should I care so much about them when they dont give two hoots about themselves? Yeah, and I miss my 5NAs. They were such angels!!! Now that I get the devils, baru tau rasa.

Love life? What love life? Hehehhe... Ok ok.... bedek ah. Shahreil and me have been trying to squeeze whatever little un-zombie-like time we have with each other for some quality time. Its very difficult for 2 exhausted and drained to the core individuals to be civil to each other, apa lagik nak loving2.

So, that's me up there (minus the very tight corset). I'm the juggler. Walking on a very tight rope of sanity. Holidays, please come soon. I need to clean up the house. I need to cook normal meals for my family. I need to idle. I need to put my feet up the sofa. I need to have some well-deserved sleep. I need the family holiday.

But that said. I can't deny that I'm pretty happy with my life. ;-)

Alhamdulillah, for everything.

Bangun di fajar subuh dengan hati seringan awan
Mensyukuri hari baru penuh sinar kecintaan
Istirahat di terik siang merenungkan puncak getaran cinta
Pulang di kala senja dengan syukur penuh di rongga dada
Kemudian terlena dengan doa bagi yang tercinta dalam sanubari
Dan sebuah nyanyian kesyukuran terpahat di bibir senyuman

-Khalil Gibran-

A day with you

I spent one fantabulous day with Ryan yesterday.
It was so fun especially since he has learnt how to amuse me with his antics.
Pandai dikau amik hati aku ye....

Inikah nikmatnyer menjadi surirumah tangga sepenuh masa ? (hint hint..kenyit kenyit mata..)

It has been one busy Ramadhan. There's the iftar sessions to attend, the yearly last minute baju kurung hunting, the new home decorating and yada yada yada... Endless huh? Not that I'm complaining cos I love every minute of it.

Lucky for me, it's the 1 week break. I so need the break. Although it's ending very very soon, I've still a few more days to enjoy. SO, enjoy I will!

Hmmm... i dont have much to write actually. So, that's it folks.
Good night.

30 years down the road..

Nope! Ryan is not off to some costume party.
He was actually waiting anxiously for the arrival of the King & Queen of the day. TOK & NENEK!!!

It was an iftar cum suprise party for our parents last night. Yup, 30 years! Lama tuh..
I frantically cooked/clean/wash/scrub the whole of yesterday in preparation of the event. Selamat ada Maria Gonzales (my part time nanny cum maid).



And nope, Diyana didn't put up the deco...dia nyibuk posing ajer tu. Biasalah, minah perasan. Macam tulah kan... But how? Ok right? Heheheh... last minute work, kira berjaya lah jugak.





Purple is ibu's favourite colour while blue is ayah's.

So there we were at the end of the night. Oppp.s.. Do you realise that all the kids are dressed in blue and purple as well??? I was actually wearing my yellow dress since I didnt have time to change. (SIbuk oiiii!!!) But for the photos, I just wore the blue top over my dress. Jadilah...

Happy 30th Anniversary to Ayah & Ibu!

We love you much much!!

Puasa

I am getting a breather right now.
Fuyooo.. Manyak penat woo layan itu budak tonet.
Not that I mind lah. I'd love to just hang out with him whole day long. Only if I do not have a million housework to do.

It's the 2nd day of Ramadhan. Everything's been going well, except for the fact that my precious is not well and Ikin is @CGH with some undetectable penyakit. She insists that it's Hans Isaac yang bomohkan dia since he couldn't get her. But yeah, everyone knows that she's delusional. But, that aside, get well soon both of you!

Back to Ramadhan. It's my 2nd puasa as a married woman. Technically, it's really my first as I was still dalam pantang last year and the puasa bug didn't hit me at all. What hit me was the post natal blues, so I ended up cranky and teary the whole of last year's puasa. Urgh. Hate that. This year is so much better (so far). I cooked sahur for the first time in my life. And I'm glad that Aini and Mimi are here or else, it'd be just a quiet affair with me and Shahreil. You guys must know that in Tampines, sahur and buka are absolutely big, noisy, kecoh affairs. And sometimes I just miss those. And planning what to cook for buka is fun too. Steamboat for the first night, nasi goreg tom yam the second, and I plan to cook nasi lemak for tomorrow. Yum Yum.. Fun fun.. I've always loved cooking and now that I have my own kitchen....yabedabedoooooooooo!!!!!!

Selamat Berpuasa, you all.

Updates

I know I haven't been updating this blog as religiously as before.
Life has been pretty busy for me. Wait a minute! Not busy, but HECTIC.
I feel as though I'm running here and there and everywhere all the time.
I know this is just temporary, and I can't wait for the day when everything's settled and I can finally sit back, relax and sip a cup of that aromatic tea that I've always loved. *aaaahhhhh* Just the thought of that sends me to a moment of that elusive blissful feeling.

Ryan's turning one in a few days time. I can't wait for the day to come because, first, it's a major milestone in his life. (*muahz* *muahz* *muahz* Ibu loves you, sayang!) and second, I can't wait for what seems like an 'alih bulan/tahun' syndrome to vanish into the thin air! Yup, it has been quite terrible these past few nights with him crying at night and wanting to sleep with my arms around him! We couldn't really pin point to what is causing Ryan to act up like that (rumah baru/panas/gatal2/banyak main/alih bulan/sakit/gangguan?). But I hope it's just an alih bulan thingy lah eh cos if I remember correctly, he almost always acts up a little at night when it's nearing 16th.

This year has been pretty sad, what with the deaths of so many people that i know (personally or otherwise)

It started with Pak Long. And I still get a sick feeling in my stomach whenever I see blue taxis because they always remind me of him and how I used to take a look at all the drivers in blue taxis hoping that it was him.

Michael Jackson tak yah cakap lah eh.

Then it was Yasmin Ahmad. I was terribly sad that such a gem like her is gone forever. I haven't had enough of her work. It feels like she has so much more to give.

And just yesterday, while I did my routine check on artismelayu for hot entertainment gossips, I was presented with the shocking news that Ustaz Asri of Rabbani died of heart attack. I am great fan of Ustaz Ari. It all started when I watched Erra & Yusri's wedding video, which showed them entering the wedding reception area accompanied by Ustaz Asri's reciting some doa as opposed to the usual kompang. It was sssoooooooo syahdu. I dreamt of him coming over and doing the same thing at MY wedding. Hehhehe... And it was such a coincidence that the night before, I searched for his CD which has him reciting the surahs, when Ryan was once again crying in the middle of the night. And I read his blog this morning and when I saw his entry that has his very young son's grinning photo, I nearly teared because that's another child who has just lost his dad.

All these just made me realise how short life is.
Let me leave with something I got off Ustaz Azri's blog:

"Aku adalah pengejar syurga akhirat, bagiku dunia ini adalah tempat mempersiapkan segala sesuatu untuk meraih syurga akhirat; aku yakin bahawa syurga akhirat tidak akan pernah dapat aku raih kecuali aku boleh menikmati syurga dunia terlebih dahulu. Maka rumah dan keluargaku adalah syurga dunia paling indah buatku. Tempat kerja syurga dunia harianku. Tetangga, masyarakat,dan bangsa adalah syurga duniaku yang lebih luas. Ke manapun dan sampai bila-bila pun syurgaku selalu bersamaku."

JELEBU

We're officially Jelebu residents now. Finally.
It was hard work. Not so much the packing cos I practically emptied everything out of drawers after drawers of stuffs into boxes. That part was peanuts. The pening kepala part was the unpacking. The moment I got to be alone in the house after every kind souls had left for the night, it finally sinked in that I would have to unpack every single little 'garbage' that I have. I nearly fainted looking at all those boxes.

Thank god for the ever reliable sis, Ikin who took 1 day leave to help me clear everything up. Well, she is after all my life-long manager. She took leave for my wedding prep, she took 1 week leave (and mc) after I gave birth and yesteday she took 1 day leave to help me. Thanks also to Mak who kindly volunteered to look after Ryan while we were hard at work. And to Kak Mars and Bomi who took Ryan off our hands while we moved house. *phew*

And to all our friends and their respective spouses/gfs/fiancees who had to flex their muscles and carry heavy stuffs on an otherwise lazy Saturday afternoon. What would we have done without you!

And to all of the uncles and aunties who were there with the delicious food to feed the hungry movers.. Thank you.

I wish the Tampinesians were there too, but they were all down with the flu. Rest well. Recover as soon as possible and we'll meet in Jelebu soon.


As for me and Shahreil, we are at another milestone in our relationship. In between all those packing and unpacking I'd stop and think...Wow! Here we are now. It never cross my mind way years ago, we'd be here and doing this. It wasnt that long ago when we were just a pair of teenagers skipping around town (skipping lectures & tutorials too!).
So here we are:

1) Child= checked
2) Car= checked
3) House of our own= checked
4) Cash= still working on it.

Im a satisfied woman!

Ryanisk

Just look at him. Sometimes it amazes me how fast he grows. He does something new every single day. Every day is like an adventure to him and I can never get tired looking at him exploring all the new things life has in store for him.

The sentimental bug hits me every other day and I'll browse through pictures of him fresh out of the oven. As much as I'm glad he's growing happy and healthy, I can't help wishing that he wouldnt grow up as fast as he is doing right now.

Tomorrow my boy will turn 11 months.

Happy Birthday, Ryan.

No words can ever describe how much love I have for you.

Exhaustion

It had been a terrible 1st week back to work.
I guess the reason being, I didn't really get a proper recharge during the supposedly long break.
I ended up being more tired that ever. And it doesn't help that I immediately had to take on the yearly official duty. I used to love doing it, but no this time round. The timing's so off. What with the new house and all.

Talking about the new house, I am starting to think that maybe we'll finally settle down in 2010. Yup. At the rate we are going, I won't be suprised if we take that long to move in. It's EXCRUCIATINGLY slow. It's so frustrating. There's so many things to do, and we have so little time. Argh!

On a brighter note, my dear Adeq has given birth to a cute little princess. (not that I've seen the baby, but Im sure she's as cute as the momma!) I guess the godmothers will have to set a date to visit the little bundle of joy soon!

And how can I not talk about my handsome son? He's getting more and more cheeky each day. Just look at him sticking his tongue out! I feel like biting him all the time!

Oklah, nak tido. Nite!

29

That's a LOT of candles. Yikes!

First birthday as a mommy.

The best birthday present.. My happy family. Though I love the Kate Spade too, I must say. ;-P

Oh wells. I'm suffering from the semesterly back to school depression. So, don't blame me for the lack of pics.

Cranky bitch mode ON.

A year older

Morning everyone!

Here I am blogging in school so early in the morning. I'm actually eagerly waiting for the time to go back home. Counting the seconds, yes I am! What a bummer, spending my 21st birthday in camp. Nak nangis boleh? Apakan daya, tugas itu kan satu tanggungjawab dan amanah yang perlu kita laksanakan sebaik mungkin. Cedebah!

Why am I so perky this morning, since I barely slept last night? Biasalah Yati, takot hantoooooo.. Kwang kwang kwang... Padahal takde apa2 tau. Momok tgk pun agaknyer ketawa, dalam hati dia,"Apa aja minah ni, siapa nak gi kacau engkau. Selubung sana, selubung sini..." Sambil dia mengilai sendiri dalam hati. (kalau mengilai kuat, gerenti aku panjat gate and cabot balik rumah)

Itulah kisahnya, harijadi yang dihabiskan di tempat kerja. Terima kasih bagi yang ingat dan sms/kol/msg di Facebook. Sayang jugak korang ngan aku ye.

Kelmarin bila ibu tgk lilin atas the bday kek, dia terperanjat sendiri... Huh?! Kau dah 29 tahun?!!! Hahahhaha... Tak cayakan? Tok Ne(my granny) lagik kekek, 2 plus plus years ago, she thought I'm in my teens.

Tok Ne: Kesian Yati...muda-muda lagik dah nak kena kahwin.

CIk Niah: Mak! Umur dia dah berapa, apa pulak kesian?

Tok Ne: Brape umur dia?

Cik Niah: 26, mak!

Tok Ne: Laaaa...mak ingat baru 16 tahun.

Aku senyum kambing jer kat situ.

Dah tua rupanyer aku ni eh. 29! Mak oii.. Baru hari tu aku belek magazine, ada pompan ni, umur dia 27 tahun, aku pikir...eh..tuanyer. Then baru teringat.. ALAMAK! Aku lagi tua daripada dia lah! Muahahhahaha...

Sebenarnya sejak 2 tiga tahun lepas, ada jugak terasa tua sikit. Kalau dulu, I didn't grow much emotionally, mentally (or physically!) ever since I was 18..sekrang dah terasa lah sikit. Bila dah kahwin, rasa sikit, bila pregnant rasa sikit, bila dah jadik mummy, rasa banyak wooooo. Marriage and mother begitu mendewasakan.

It feels good that at this age, things are quite settled for me.
A wonderful, handsome, macho, Johnny Depp look-alike for a husband. (ikin mesti muntah skrg)
A healthy, happy, cheeky baby.
A career that keeps me feeling young, energized, satisfied and full of self-worth.
A small, cute little red car.
A small, cute little house.

Alhamdulillah.

Wei...aku dah tulis panjang2, masih 8.10am. Bila nak kul 9 ni!

Tempoyak

Sejak dua tiga minggu ni, saya teramat-amatlah mengidam nak makan tempoyak. Macam terasa-rasa keenakan tempoyak ni di hujung lidah. Kalau dihitung-hitung, dah setahun lebih tak makan tempoyak. Patutlah sampai meliur sekarang ni!

Mula-mula pening jugak lah kepala dok pikiak mana aku nak cari tempoyak. Bukannya ada jual kat supermarket. Kat pasar Geylang pun tak tentu lagi. Selalunya ibu yang buat sendiri kot. Nak suruh ibu buatkan..alahai.. manjalah pulak. Lainlah kalau aku tengah pregnant cucu dia yang nombor dua kan? Mintak aja.. nak bulan? Nak bintang? Suma gerenti dia buatkan.

Pikir punya pikir... haaa... apa susah! Sekarang kan zaman canggih, zaman internet, zaman berteknologi tinggi. Google aja! HAAAAAaaaaaaaaaa.... jangan tak tau, resipi kampung macam ni pun dah make its way to the net you know!

Rupanya senang by two...
Isi durian, cuci and tapis semalaman..
Campur dengan gula and garam sikit.
Kunyit, biar dia lebih kuning lagik..
And tadaaaaaaaaaaaaa...


Aku tau ler, bila korang tgk gambar kat atas tu korang pikir... Eeeeeeeeee....amende ni?! Kalau omputih kata, don't judge a book by it's cover.. ni kira macam.. don't judge a lauk by it's rupa.

Lagipun, belum lagik habis resipi aku ni.. Dah tinggalkan semalaman, masukkan mende ni dalam bekas untuk 4-7 hari. Kata orang, makin lama makin ooommpph! Cuma kena selalu bukak bekas tu, kalau tak dia 'meletup' pasal ada banyak gas ke apa ke.. AND simpan kat tempat kering yang ber-room temperature.

Lepas tu, apa lagik. Bedallah!
Tempoyak ni boleh buat macam-macam lauk. Google jerlah kat internet. Tapi so far... aku selalu makan tempoyak udang... Rupa dia macam ni...


Lebih kurang macam kuah lemak cili padi. Tapi kick dia ada up lah sikit. Kalau makan tempoyak udang ni, macam tak ingat donia, tak ingat weighing scale. Jadi, kalau time-time terasa nak ber-diet, baik tak yah masak langsung mende ni sebab kalau dah makan, ber- round round aku tambah.

Apalagik..besok aku nak belilah durian yang dah nak dekat-dekat expire. Biar cepat sikit tempoyak aku siap.

Kind souls

The past week or so has been busy a busy period due to the new house.
So many things, so little time.
Not that we are in a hurry to move, but it'd be good if we can settle everything before the new term starts.

Thankfully, we have family and friends who are ever willing to help us in many different ways.
Shahrul, for instance, who came over to help with the wiring.


And my siblings who travelled all the way from the east to help me scrub the tiles.
Not easy, you know. The travelling time itself would have zapped my energy away!

Abdul Rahman from Bangladesh, Maria from Phillipines and Kusumawati from Jawa Tengah.

Thanks, folks!

Holiday

Holidays here..finally! Expect to see the less cranky Nurhayati. ;-P
Though I must say that it's gonna be a busy busy busy period for me.
Marking will take 2 weeks off my hols, and right after that..band camp. Which effectively means that I have only 1 week of REAL lepak period. Oppss! Don't forget the work review session just now. And the whole day ML Seminar on Thurs...AND the Sahibba (Scrabble, if you do not know) Competion this Saturday. Well...do the Maths. See how 'long' is my June vacation. BUT! No complains. It beats being in the other sectors and NOT have a holiday at all.

Hey! The Jelebu house is about to be complete. Shahreil and I are not sure when we'll finally get to move in since there is still soooooooo many things to do. Painting, for instance. It seems ridiculous paying thousand plus dollars to a professional painter. But time doesnt seem to be on our side. I dunno. .

I am having so much fun being with my darling tonet. (The daddy doesnt like me calling him that) He's getting so clever by the day that it's amazing. He knows when we say lights, fan, clock/tick tock, pillow, button. Amazing kan? So big, so fast. Wow! Before I know it, he'll be having kids of his own.. Oh kay.. That's a bit tooooooo far!

That's all. Will continue blabbering tomorro!
Happy holidays! (to me, at least)

Kekasih Kuseru

The hubby and I have been hooked to the teevee set because of the above drama.
Shahreil said yesterday that it was the first time that he ever had a Malay drama marathon. Susah dapat tuu...

But Kekasihku Seru was really a good horror drama. I bought the DVD out of impulse, actually. Looked at the cover and thought it didn't look like the typical lame Malay horror dramas.. and before I knew it, $24 was out of my wallet. Luckily, it was worth my money. If it had been anywhere near Jangan Pandang Belakang or Jangan Tegur kind of standard, I'd turn into a ghost myself and haunt the DVD uncle for the rest of his life for recommending the drama to me!

It was so good that Shahreil (!) went to rent the 2nd volume of the drama last night. I'm eagerly waiting for night to arrive so that we can continue with our marathon. My fingers itching to just slid the DVD into the player and watch it while Shahreil's out doing some errands. But this was his parting words before he left," If you watch it even a bit, without me... I swear Waris will come tonight and tomorrow night to haunt you. That's my curse..."

Hmmm... I think I'd just wait for him. I wouldnt want Waris come looking for me!

Wastutik

Ibu's house was full of people who were eager to show off their artistic talent last night. Glue, markers of many many colours, construction papers were all over the living room.

See how khusyuk Amira was, mencari ilham..

Yang ini sampai teronggeng-tonggeng....

What were we up to?

Farewell cards for our beloved maid.. Wastutuk a.k.a mbakyu a.k.a nek yu a.k.a kambing.

After 4 years with the family, it's high time that she went back to her own family to have kids of her own to fuss over.

I still am secretly hoping that she'll come back to look after Ryan, but I guess that'd be very selfish of me.

But hey! Look what we made her that night!

First up, the king & queen of the household:

Then, the junior king & queen of the household:

The little pampered prince who will definitely be missed by his Nek yu:

And in descending order, of course...

Ikin the Diva tak jadik.

Diyana the 'aborted' child.

Aini & Suhaimi (eh eh... nyibuk lah si budak ni. Gi main bola sana!)

Mimi

Abang & Muharram

Bye Mbekkkkkkk.......

Jangan malas mandi!