Breaking News

With 2012 right round the corner, Farid my eldest son, pleasantly surprised me with his decision to get married. Nak awal tahun pulak tu !!

I was dazed with conflicting ideas regarding his wedding preparations. Mana tidaknya... my Mum with her flamboyant ideas of 'this and that' (in full agreement with my Dad!) ; Faiz pulak nak buat yang simple (which I know would sync with my in-laws) ; Yasmin ada idea-ideanya yang tersendiri for a "Wow" wedding ; Kaled, my anak angkat and wedding planner, with his plans ; Ani, my sister hinting about a trip to Bandung to shop for stuff .... tinggal Firdaus jer yang belum join in to present his ideas!

Ini belum lagi mengambil kira plans pihak 'sebelah sana' - which we have yet to meet for the first time! Baru dok pilih tarikh yang convenient to visit Kartina's Dad in KL and her family in Butterworth.

It's amazing - sehari dua yang lepas, myself and anak-anak sibuk bincang about having a "House Warming" khenduri sempena berpindah ke rumah baru. Now, topik house warming pun dah pegi ntah ke mana dah ! Tenggelam terus!

My 2012 year is definitely starting with full swing in anticipation of the upcoming wedding.

Semoga Allah memberi kesihatan serta kekuatan untuk kami mengendalikan majlis perkahwinan ini sebaik mungkin, insyaAllah.

My Birthday Present

I went to sleep last night with a smile on my face.... and was already awake by 5am this morning... fresh, alert and happy... fondly remembering the ‘surprise gift’ with gladness.

Braun Buffel Shoulder Bag in Lush Green

Life is full of special days -- one right after the other... holidays, weddings, anniversaries, birthdays etc. Along the way, we collect fond memories of the past and remembering the ‘not-so-good’ ones as well.

To Farid, Kartina, Faris, Yasmin and Firdaus who took the time to select, as well as burnt-out their pockets..... Thank You from the bottom of my heart for remembering my birthday and getting me this special gift.

Change Of Address

Adventures, especially into new territory, are scary!

I am feeling nervous about moving to my new house....

This is like a new life-changing event :-
New surroundings...
new neighbors...
plenty of adjustments to be made beyond my comfort zone...
away from what has been familiar and comfortable.

My closest buddies have been slowly injecting new ideas and I must say, my mind feels fresh from the new way I look at things! We need new opportunities to feed the creativity of our souls and we need new adventures for our personal growth. Thanks to them, I have discovered new parts of myself. How great is that?? ( I like !! ).

My three children have totally moved all their belongings to their respective rooms, unpacked and have been staying there for the past few nights. My sister came back over the weekend and have stayed there too. Tinggal myself and Faiz jer yang masih belum berkemas sebab we've been too busy managing and getting other parts of the house ready.

Yasmin asked me, "Mama, when are you going to move all your clothes here?" to which I replied "Ha? what baju? no worries! ... just a phonecall and my bajussssss will be sent over from the boutique at Queensbay to fill up my new wardrobe!" She freaked out!!! muahahahaha... eh! tak! taaak!... Mama melawak jer!

(eemmm... kalau betul betul, tak boleh ke? ok! ok!.. sabaq sat!)



Next...

... am looking forward to do some baking... u know... stuff like pizza, pies, scones, lasagne... for my Dry Kitchen freezer storage. Lapar nanti, just pop it few minutes into the oven and ...




Buat sementara ni, kitorang belum pick a suitable date to have a House Warming Kenduri. No rush actually...

This Sunday (11th), there'll be a "Getting To Know Your Neighbours Get-together Dinner". Looking forward to meet our new neighbours and hope all goes well.

???

I lost my cool today

... and it was terrible!

1433 Hijrah

Salam Maal Hijrah 1433 (Islamic Calendar).

Today, I think about the year that has ended, what my goals were and how far I've come.... my focus on family, friends and the things that are most meaningful to me. Our schedule and rituals are what makes our dreams come to life.

In a summary, one word comes to mind ... Gratitude. Apa itu gratitude? Maksudnya – Appreciative of benefits received. Bersyukur la, kan.

I am grateful for EVERYTHING that has happened in my life. Some might think that is kind of crazy. Everything??? Are you sure???





Yes, why not? Cuba pikir... Isn't there benefits from every situation or circumstance yang telah berlaku? Isn't there a lesson to learn? In every bad situation, we learn something and make new choices. Unhealthy situations teach us how to have more self-love (especially if they hurt).

Human beings learn through pain. So instead of playing the victim or blaming... I am grateful for the challenges. Every challenge, hard time or disaster revealed the extreme value of seeing things or people as what or who they truly are.











Therefore, I am grateful for ALL the events of my life ;
I see the blessings beyond the disaster ;
my progress makes me feel happy ; and
the best part about being happy ...
is sharing that happiness with loved ones and amazing friends.

Kartina's Birthday Celebration

Nabila, Kartina, Yasmin & Ani at Hard Rock Hotel, Penang


Apa yang seronok bila stay at hotels?


?


?


ROOM SERVICE !!


Kalau tak order heavy meals pun, sekurang-kurangnya mesti nak order milkshake ka... chocolate mousse ka...


..... kan??


Presents belum beli lagi ni.. nak beli apa, eh?


off to Gurney Plaza.. shopping with the birthday girl


Haaaaa...!! Girls, ladies, women ... pasti suka yang ini....


Make-up makeover at Bobbi Brown. Jom!!?








girlfriend sapa tuuu..?


Habis dah? Jom..


Eh? Belum??


checking out Shu Uemura pulak dah...








... hope you like the gifts, dear ...


psssttt... psssttt... mama not fair!


eh? why not fair pulak?


oohh! ... ok... ok... ni haaa...


... my favourite guys pulak
(asyik letak gambar the girls jer, kan?..hehehe)


Birthday dinner at Seoul Garden













The whole of the next day was spent at the beach and Hard Rock Hotel swimming pool.


getting ready nak naik jetski










Spending time with those we love is a very special gift, what more on a Birthday.

The family spent two days of doing fun with Kartina and she was definitely thrilled! Hope this Birthday was a memorable one.

Life's Blessings

Lots of fun activities recently, Alhamdulillah. Enjoy the photos ...

I have been craving for this apple pie with vanilla ice-cream ...

... eversince I tasted it at Delicious, MidValley.

So... Noraini, Kathy, Yusma and I went to Delicious, Straits Quay, Penang to enjoy a second round of this simply marvellous dessert while also trying out the chicken and steak (I've forgotten their fancy names) on the menu.

chicken

beef steak

Left: Noraini, Yusmayati & Kathy

Lama juga tak dating-dating with my cousin Kak Ju and her grand-daughter Mila sejak Mila hurt her ankle in a bicycle mishap about a month or two ago.

Now, Alhamdulillah, dah sembuh.. and it's time to meet up again.

Kak Ju & family - From left: Kak Ju, her husband Mohd Noor, her son Arif (black tshirt), her nephew Fauzy (blue tshirt), another nephew Syamil (white tshirt), Mila (her grand-daughter), Yasmin and Nabila

With SPM examinations just round the corner, sekolah Nabila telah mengadakan Majlis Solat Hajat for parents, students and teachers recently.

study.. study.. study..

My sister Ani, came back a day before Hari Raya Aidil Adha. Seperti biasanya.. lepas fetching her from the airport, mesti nak pergi makan-makan. Kebetulan, my friend Yusmayati called right at the time we were deciding where to go for lunch. So, we went to Johnny's for steamboat lunch.

oh ya...


sibuk ke.. membuat persiapan dan merayakan Aidil Adha kelmarin tu?


Myself? oohh... myself pun sibuk juga malam sebelum raya tu ...


sibuk...

... gi tengok wayang 10pm show! Shark Night 3D... hahaha...

Sitting from left: my Mum, my Dad, my youngest son Firdaus, my eldest son Farid and his girlfriend Kartina ; my niece Nabila and my sister Ani (front row),
Standing behind them: Yasmin and her boyfriend Faris,
.. and Kaled (not in photo).

Family means too much ...
Friends are too valuable...
And life is too short!
So, enjoy every minute now.
Don't wait for something outside of yourself
to make you happy in the future.
Time spent NOW is precious.
The best of all gifts
is the presence of a happy family
all wrapped up with one another....

Yesterday, my slimming consultant datang ke rumah to take my measurements. 'Cuak' jugak... sebab haven't exactly been behaving myself ...but then again, since when pulak have I been behaving myself when it comes to food!!??

eh!!?? tapiiii.... turun laa!! sikiiiiiiiiiiit !

University Interview and TSA Test

Friday, 28th October 2011
12.10pm - Firdaus attended a university interview at Taylor's College, Subang Jaya.


Saturday, 29th October 2011
12pm - Firdaus sat for the Thinking Skill Assessment (TSA) written test at Sunway College, Subang Jaya.


uihh... anak yang nak interview and exam, mama yang kecut! Faiz relax jaa... siap boleh lena lagi kat dalam kereta at parking lot. So... mama curi-curi pegi mengendap anak mama ni kat mana?

sedang pikir apa tu, adik?

Clearly know where you wish to go...
and you'll naturally make the effort...
that gets you there, insyaAllah.

BBQ

Fun & memorable - two words describing our recent gathering.


Firdaus, Kaled and Ani came back for the weekend in conjunction with Yasmin's 22nd BBQ birthday celebrations. I obliged Min's request who insisted to have a small private party to be with only those closest to her heart.

Her boyfriend, Faris, graduated last week. Congrats Faris! This calls for a double celebration! I ordered Baskin Robbin's ice-cream cake for both to share.

BBQ started early... selepas asar. Alhamdulillah, though weather was not sunny... it was not raining either.. so, it was rather cooling. Perfect !!


I recently bought Amway's portable grill and this was the first time we're trying it. Kali ni kita ada portable grill, portable oven and the usual charcoal grill. Haa... siapa nak yang macamana... help yourselves !

lamb and salmon

Left: Hairi, 'orang kuat' yang wajib hadir for all our BBQs;
Background: one itik angsa stretching her neck to be included in the photo;
Centre: Ani grilling the marinated salmons... nyuummy! ;
Right: "Hello Tina (girlfriend), ada kat mana? Awat tak mai lagi?", Farid.

Kartina

this group 'charcoal grilling' the marinated chicken, sausages and potatoes

Kaled

my parents

Left: Kartina, Kaled, Farid, Faris (standing behind), Hairi

Faris, Yasmin & Nabila

Yasmin & Firdaus

My sister yang sudah kekenyangan; Tina... menung apa tu, dear?

happy faces