The Journey of The Omar Family

Hey..check this out

2008-08-15T23:59:00.003+08:00

Aaqil mommy graduated again......yeah right..in her dreamland....

Happy Birthday Singapore...

2008-08-09T00:18:00.010+08:00

This morning, the whole schools in Singapore were celebrating the Singapore's 43rd birthday. Aaqil was very excited and he has been practicing singing for this occasion. As for me, i did volunteer myself to help the school. It was fun and lovely occasion seeing the kids singing and dancing patriotically of course. Guess Singapore knows well how to brainwash their kids to love the country.

drowning in sea of red and white heheh

Aaqil n fellow kids...waiting for the arrival of the Minister

Stand up for National Anthem ka ka ka

The most excited permanent resident in Singapore-wearing an old top ..compulsory to be in red and white

I was part of the singers......geezzzz

it was fun day indeed...yehhhhh singaporeeeeeee

obsession with locomotives...

2008-07-21T22:46:00.007+08:00

On mrt from Aljunied to Changi Airport

Yes indeed, he has obsession with all kind of trains. His fav show is Thomas and tank engines and he memorizes thomas's friends more than mommy does. I actually bring him to Changi airport almost every fornightly cos he likes to pretend driving sky train. We normally will take 20 mins mrt ride straight to changi airport, then we will take sky train in between terminals.....up to 20 times sometimes...back and forth ....sigh....But seeing his face which is full with satisfaction....penat pun takper......Is obsession with train could be a disease? haha.....

eeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii so cute......i cannot tahan...

And dat day....I met a cute gal who melted my heart and she sat next to Aaqil, communicating with Aaqil......She is so cute....i dreamt abt her that nite.

Me and Aaqil at Singapore Flyer

2008-07-21T22:14:00.011+08:00

My bro visited me last Sat and he wanted to visit Singapore Flyer. Aaqil and I were having good time inside the capsule with the spectacular view of city.

Too bad Omar was on stanby, maybe 3 of us could visit again nite time. The tix is not cheap..30 bucks per person. Luckily I carried Aaqil cos he was tired and the cashier did not charge him...if not another 21 dollars....phewww!!

The capsule can accomodate up to 28 ppl...but that day....only 6 of us shared the capsule. Very spacious.

Breathtaking view of Singapore Flyer

I am happy that he was not afraid of height and keep looking down....view of Marina

Posing for Mommy's friends....My 4 year old rascal....

Lovely time....

In this pic we just entered the capsule and he looked a bit lost hahaha....

30 mins ride is over....

The "last" kampung in SG- Ubin

2008-05-07T12:23:00.013+08:00

We went for cycling last Sat in Pulau Ubin....Aaqil was sick but he was behaving okay down there. Not so much crankiness...in fact keep asking us to leave the room and go cycling.

This Pulau Ubin is actually like a small village with almost no development. Ppl go there to cycling, hiking and enjoy the kampong scenery.....like running away from the city.

We rented 2 bikes....but the bikes kinda lousy.....Me n aaqil geared up....

This pic was taken on my way back to mainland...so heartpain leaving this kampong..

We had seafood dinner after an hr of cycling.....yum and yum.....

just wanted to pose in this abandoned boat...

perhaps he imagines he was sailing in the boat......Aiyo...

cycling time..took a short break......it was a hot day and he had been sweating profusely.....

enjoying to the fullest....cycling in a very serene kampong....

Rascal in school...

2008-04-18T13:26:00.006+08:00

Aaqil is now in nursery. He will be 4 this coming July. The nursery that he goes is mere 3 mins walk from our home now....He is known as Kadin in school since school call their pupils with first name. I am happy that he goes to school and learn new songs almost everyday. In fact last night he was singing some "mosquitoes song" which goes like this..

"Mosquitoes...mosquitoes...go away..."
Itchy..itchy scratch.....itchy itchy scratch....( hmmm by right mosquitos bite cannot scratch rite)

It was hillarious when he sang that song and me and mom in law burst into our biggest laughter....

According to the teacher, he still like to be solitude..sigh....maybe because he has no siblings and use to play alone...and he chooses his friends....sigh sigh....but overall, thank GOD he is coping well.....

Aaqil and Syafikah, his gf in school...oh no...this girl very fierce one hahaha...

Aaqil lining up for hands and mouth checkup....look so boring ey!

posing for mommy.....

Always excited to be in school...

p/s (All pics were taken with my hp ..thats why quality kinda bad)

Weekend Blast...

2008-04-14T11:31:00.016+08:00

Yet, another trip to Sebana Cove last Sat, running away from city life....We had been lucky, the weather was great, and along the way, we were greeted by many monkeys and wild boars....Aaqil was very excited with the animals....

posing for bapak...

Lots of monkeys following our car actually....maybe looking for food like goreng pisang

View from our room, unfortunately since this place change their management, the service is as not as excellent as before......this place has a marina for boat owners.

Fatty me ...

Promised Aaqil to bring him to see ostrich, that was a huge egg, just freshly laid.....cost 40 RM....

those 10 weeks old ostrich, Aaqil kinda overwhelmed with all these birds....

After our bbq dinner in the hotel, we watched philipino band performing.......they were great except my husband said...all look like hantu......I had fun....

This is my fav singer..she is cute, has big voice and she is friendly...i guess Aaqil likes her too...My pic with her cannot be viewed in here...(biarlah rahsia..), frankly I look double than her..

Reach Sg on Sunday night, decided to stop by Night Safari for an ice cream and nice dinner....watched great performance by Iban tribe....was fantastic...

Aaqil in Night Safri

Its me...alive and kicking!!

2008-03-22T19:08:00.009+08:00

It has been a while and I have been very busy . Aaqil has started his nursery preschool and I have been enjoying my ME time for 4 hrs everyday on weekday.

Nothing much to write, just wanna share some of my family latest pic...we had indian food for breakfast this morning.....we are fans of spicy and rich indian food.

Moi and egg masala thosai....the gravy was superb...

While waiting for his prata...Aaqil tried some paper thosai, bapak fav....the banana leaf make it mouth watering...

starving boys in d morning!!!

Trip to Avillion with Mom...

2008-01-19T15:04:00.000+08:00

Last week, we went for a trip to Avillion PD..brought my mom in law who was fascinated with the nice beach . Hope she had a good time with us. One thing for sure, Aaqil was very happy her grandma tagged along.After checked in, we bring mom touring at the chalet area..to make her happy we book a premium water chalet which can accomodate 4 adults....and the balcony is facing the straits of malacca.....

Aaqil and mom at kereta lembu

the pets ran to us immediately after seeing us holding the bread and long beans...

Mom and peacock....

Aaqil also had chance to bathe a rabbit...so cute ya...wrapping the rabbit like a baby after that....the rabbit has special soap for its fur...

giving pet food with one of the kl-ian gal....also aaqil's age....

At the Avilllion pet cage....we were so engrossed with all the tame animals..evena peacock came to us asking for food....so nice to be close with animals

Before he sped off....this will be a pic of the year.....sort of my first time on jet ski...kesian kan!!

Aaqil resting at the deckchair at our chalet balcony...getting tanned ya my darling...

Aaqil and his grandma at the Kid's cabin....

Last day at Avillion...I guess pic speak for itself. Hope she had a good break this time with us. Frankly, we never brought mom to anywhere due to clash of schedules.

New Year 1429

2008-01-10T09:57:00.001+08:00

Notice the same venue...same food as in my previous post?? Yeah....3 of us went to Delhi Restaurant again....to eat the north indian dishes...and also celebrating the new year 1429H. It was a happy night for me as Omar has been working late and hardly have time for us. I now can remember some names from the menu such as chicken tikka (boneless chicken in tandoori sauce), malai kebab, (boneless chicken in a cream sauce ), panak panir (the spinach cooked with cottage cheese). Last night we had butter nan and butter protha with all these dishes. Later that day, we went for a stroll at Clarke Quay and ended up taking a boat all the way to esplanade...balik mommy sakit kaki....

Happy New Year !!

Aaqil so busy with his nan..and butter chicken dip....Our little familyMommy kekenyangan.....really stuffed myself last night..

We went for a walk at Clarke Quay and stopped by to drink at bar who has a clinique concept..

Happy New Year 2008...

2008-01-04T13:30:00.001+08:00

My mom in law.....happy tak..bakal menantu handsome...

On the night of New Year, I was introduced personally to Thad..my sister in law fiance...He is from Lousiana....and working with an american company here. He is such a warm guy who likes to eat chilies and indian food...So we had the best indian food at North indian cuisine in little india that night..food was extremely delicious.....

My pretty sis in law...

Aaqil 1st attempt to solat...

2007-11-27T14:18:00.000+08:00

Preparing solat ..waiting for Bapak to take ablution...

These pictures are all taken in my mother in law's house in Aljunied, Singapore. I never expected kids learn so fast. Normally, when we both perform solat, he just sat quietly and observed us. Well, of course there were some of bad times where he pulled our "kain". But in Aljunied he started asking for songkok and kain...although his Bapak said...so long you cover your aurat, no need to wear the kain. Alhamdullillah...he keeps asking us to solat together with him now and he can read Al-fatihah quite fluently made me wonder whether i should send him to Islamic taska.....One of my Hong Kong friend who converted, told me her kid now read koran better than her.....since she is still learning the content in English and Chinese. I told her...I am learning in English too...so there is no need to worry if she is slow in Arabic...Understanding is more crucial!

Tahiyyat awal..

Allah-hu- Akbar..(GOD is great)

Semoga anak tunggalku menjadi orang beriman....Ameen...

Oh ye..O...I am amazed by thee...

2007-11-17T19:43:00.000+08:00

I would like to declare that I have new respect for O.

Steve and my husband right before the ceremony....

Last week, he was asked by his chinese ex-colleague, to be his best-man. And the wedding day was just 2 days away. I remembered I was in Giant with him, and he asked me to find a nice suits for him...And I was like..."Whatttt the hell??"

I have known him as a very simple man. He hardly wear fancy clothes and he likes to buy cheap t-shirt in bossini or giordano and mainly in white, coz he hates the sticky feeling when the temperature rises. So when he mentioned that day that he needs a nice suits I was laughing my heart out loud thinking that he was talking rubbish with me....Eventually he told me, that his friend pestered him to be his best man. And of course in chinese ceremony, if the groom wears suit, the best man must be in suit too.

He is the only one here who looked very Chinese....cant see the pony tail though!!

Anyway, after much negotiation with the groom, O has managed to lower his bestman status to brother, meaning that his responsibility is less and he does not have to wear suits. So I gave him funny idea to be a real chinese that day. Wear a cheong sam complete with pony tail. Here are some pictures of my supporting husband. According to him, everybody enjoyed seeing him in the costume and some woman kept tidying up his pony tail. I did not go as I have to look after Aaqil. If not mommy Aaaqil also in hot cheongsam..hahaha

Advising Steve....life as husband and wife is not always bed of roses....

To bride and groom, Steve and Jennifer, Wishing you life happiness with full contentment.

celebrity look alike-muka tak make up...

2007-11-06T17:50:00.000+08:00

tapi seronok..sbb mcm aung san yg manis tuh..hahhaha..perasan sekejap..

Celebrity look alike...kalu gambar muka penuh make up....

2007-11-06T17:44:00.000+08:00

Aaqil tangkap udang...

2007-10-18T16:58:00.000+08:00

Bersungguh Aaqil menjala udang fresh sbb mommy dia suka udang mentega....Pics taken in one seafood restaurant in Indonesia......on 2nd eid.

Lepak-lepak in JB

2007-09-28T06:16:00.000+08:00

Last Tuesday, my wish to eat at Pasar Ramadhan in Malaysia came true. Well, I went to JB only hehehe....to drive further up, memang tak kuasa dan taklarat....I dont know why, this year Ramadhan is quite challenging for me....Rasa lemau ajer badan....Nevertheless...it was a fruitful short trip. We checked in at Puteri Pacific which is in the heart of JB..and the Pasar Ramadhan was just 100 metres away. So, after freshen up, I took a stroll with my 2 boys..ended up we bought some kuih-muih yang takder di Singapore, some ayam percik, air katira and rice with some lauk...Unfortunately, during breakfast, O told me nasik tuh basi.....Luckily 3 of us tak kena food poisoning....so with the kuih and ayam percik and mark and spenser cookies...we broke our fast in the hotel room that day. After prayers, we roamed in JB...mcm scary betul JB nie..mcm kat NY pulak....I did not bring handbag....lengang kangkung and Omar brought his napsack...I think he also brought less that 50 rm....passports and the rest of cash all in safebox...Sungguh notorious JB nie.....Ada one time, I went to window shop baju raya....when I bargained...they said "ala....u orang Sing, duit besar...takkan nak tawar.." I told them...hallo..i mai dari Kedah nu....terpaksalah keluar loghat2 pekat to convince them...Anyway tak beli pun...mahai kalah Singapore...Baiklah I berjimat ..recycle ajer aper2 yg ada.....

Walaupun tak beli aper2 di JB, I had the best sahur from the hotel. They sent it to my room...nasik panas...rendang daging pinang..ayam golek..sambal musslels...dan sayur goreng yg sungguh lazat bersama buah2 yg enak....Alhamdulillah....

Kambing golek yang nampak sungguh sedap di Pasar Ramadhan...tak beli pun.....takut pening cewahhhh...

Sungguh sakan anakku melepak di kedai mamak tunggu teh tariknya.....

2007-09-24T22:55:00.000+08:00

I had a chat with a friend, who is 8000 miles from home....
She is still single and available....
She told me this....

" I can't live without a maid..even one day I will end up being a housewife. "I dah biasa ada maids".

At first I was completely bewildered....In my head.." hey..i was raised by maids too when my mom was teaching at school..but I definately CAN LIVE without maid. In fact, I thank GOD I am among the few who gets the opportunity not to work, clean and cook for the family. Although my cooking can be sucks at times but I always make sure..I have regular meals for them.

On a serious note, Alhamdulillah, I have moved to another apartment. The place is all right I guess...just that I am not used to a bigger space. I hear echos everyday because there is not much furnitures. Aaqil is enjoying his pink bath tub in the master bedroom. He spends almost half an hour every morning inside there. My neighbors are Malays...and 3 units shares one lift which is so much convenient as compared to my older apt. Previously I had to use stairs after taking lift to 14th floor. During that period of moving house, I had my MIL's maid to help me packing and unpacking things as well as doing the cleaning. OMG....I totally cannot stand her cleaning system...tapi bulan puasa kan.....sabar ajer..plus..I am not a type "can you do this can you do that" . At first I thought I can become complacent having her with me. Anyway me and O ended up doing all the major cleaning like toilets scrubbing, mopping the floor, cleaning and disinfecting the kitchen cabinets and etc. She did try to clean the fridge since I smelled the fishy smells from there....but I ended up vomit in front of her...because the smells got worse and worse while she was doing the cleaning.

Moving house is the second worst thing that can happen in life after a family member pass away. I guess that was why my late mom only moved once. Me....10 times maybe and I am only 32.
Back to having maids, I admit that I used to have a silly dream that one day I can be at home and I have a live in maid that can help me with house chores and if she is indonesian..she might know how to massage my head and body. And I might be able to enjoy those beautiful indonesian delicacies like udang balado. I guess I am not that lucky. But the plus point is I know that, if I get into hard times...I can survive. I can do everything myself.

And in Singapore...you can hire part time maid for 10 bucks per hour.
Massage lady for 30-60..

So...I should be fine.....

By the way, O and myself lost some pounds due to fasting and moving house. He is so darn happy today to be able to wear his old levis jeans...Cissss...meluat I tengok.....hahahahhaa

Holy Ramadhan and Food...

2007-09-13T14:16:00.000+08:00

Peace to you!!

I got an article from my dear husband yesterday. He has been consistently reminding me on how to eat right very Ramadhan for the past 6 years we have been together. At first.."naik angin" la jugak..because naturally when we hungry..we tend to get cranky. I remember our first Ramdhan together, O requested only cereal and some warm milk during breakfast and said he would eat later whatever I prepared on the table. He has been like that since every Ramadhan....He eats a lot only during sahur....Alahai..at first...so hard for me to adjust myself..

Anyway..I am not a right person to write abt food and diet actually as my weight now increasingly shooting up due to I dont know why...I blame "sambal belacan" because everytime I prepare this dish..I would have at least 2 plates....Why ahhhh??????

I hope this Ramadhan AlMubarak...I can lose some weight..because for my case....i easily get lethargic with my current weight...and nauseaus at times....No medical problems yet...but that is my symptoms lah...

To all, I want to share you this good article...."Heath Guidelines for Fasting"

This article provides useful advice on how to avoid some common problems encountered in Ramadan. If followed, it would enable one to fast comfortably and enjoy fully the spiritual benefits of Ramadan.

During the holy month of Ramadan, our diet should not differ very much from our normal diet and should be as simple as possible. The diet should be such that we maintain our normal weight, neither losing nor gaining. However, if one is over-weight, Ramadan is an ideal time to normalize one's weight.

In view of the long hours of fasting, we should consume slow digesting foods including fibre containing-foods rather than fast-digesting foods. Slow digesting foods last up to 8 hours, while fast-digesting foods last for only 3 to 4 hours.

* Slow-digesting foods are foods that contain grains and seeds like barley, wheat, oats, millet, semolina, beans, lentils, whole meal flour, unpolished rice, etc. (called complex carbohydrates).
* Fast-burning foods are foods that contain sugar, white flour, etc. (called refined carbohydrates).
* Fiber-containing foods are bran-containing foods, whole wheat, grains and seeds, vegetables like green beans, peas, sem (papry), marrow, mealies, spinach, and other herbs like methie, the leaves of beetroot (iron-rich), fruit with skin, dried fruit especially dried apricots, figs and prunes, almonds, etc.

The foods eaten should be well-balanced, containing foods from each food group, i.e. fruits, vegetables, meat/chicken/fish, bread/cereals and dairy products. Fried foods are unhealthy and should be limited. They cause indigestion, heart-burn, and weight problems.

AVOID

* Fried and fatty foods.
* Foods containing too much sugar.
* Over-eating especially during the meal before Dawn (sehri. or suhur)
* Too much tea during the meal before Dawn (sehri. or suhur). Tea makes you pass more urine taking with it valuable mineral salts that your body would need during the day.
* Smoking cigarettes. If you cannot give up smoking, cut down gradually starting a few weeks before Ramadan. Smoking is unhealthy and one should stop completely.

EAT

* Complex carbohydrates during the meal before Dawn (sehri. or suhur) so that the food lasts longer making you less hungry.
* Haleem is an excellent source of protein and is a slow-burning food.
* Dates are excellent source of sugar, fibre, carbohydrates, potassium and magnesium.
* Almonds are rich in protein and fibre with less fat.
* Bananas are a good source of potassium, magnesium and carbohydrates.

DRINK

* As much water or fruit juices as possible between iftar (Breaking fasting) and bedtime so that your body may adjust fluid levels in time.

Common Medical Problems

CONSTIPATION
Constipation can cause piles (haemorroids), fissures (painful cracks in anal canal) and indigestion with a bloated feeling.

Causes: Too much refined foods, too little water and not enough fibre in the diet.
Remedy: Avoid excessive refined foods, increase water intake, use bran in baking, brown flour when making roti.

INDIGESTION AND WIND
Causes: Over-eating. Too much fried and fatty foods, spicy foods, and foods that produce wind e.g. eggs, cabbage, lentils, carbonated drinks like Cola also produce gas.

Remedy: Do not over-eat, drink fruit juices or better still drink water. Avoid fried foods, add ajmor to wind-producing foods.

LETHARGY ('low blood pressure')
Excessive sweating, weakness, tiredness, lack of energy, dizziness, especially on getting up from sitting position, pale appearance and feeling faint are symptoms associated with "low blood pressure". This tends to occur towards the afternoon.

Causes: Too little fluid intake, decreased salt intake.

Remedy: Keep cool, increase fluid and salt intake.

Caution: Low blood pressure should be confirmed by taking a blood
pressure reading when symptoms are present. Persons with high blood pressure may need their medication adjusted during Ramadan. They should consult their
doctor.

HEADACHE
Causes: Caffeine and tobacco-withdrawal, doing too much in one day,
lack of sleep, hunger usually occur as the day goes by and worsens at the end
of the day. When associated with "low blood pressure", the headache can be
quite severe and can also cause nausea before Iftar (Breaking Fasting).

Remedy: Cut down caffeine and tobacco slowly starting a week or two
before Ramadan. Herbal and caffeine-free teas may be substituted. Reorganize
your schedule during the Ramadan so as to have adequate sleep.

LOW BLOOD SUGAR
Weakness, dizziness, tiredness, poor concentration, perspiring easily,
feeling shaky (tremor), unable to perform physical activities, headache,
palpitations are symptoms of low blood sugar.

Causes in non-diabetics: Having too much sugar i.e. refined carbohydrates
especially during the meal before Dawn (sehri or suhur) . The body produces too much insulin causing the blood glucose to drop.

Remedy: Eat something at suhur (sehri) and limit sugar-containing foods and
drinks.

Caution: Diabetics may need to adjust their medication in Ramadan,
consult your doctor.

MUSCLE CRAMPS
Causes: Inadequate intake of calcium, magnesium and potassium foods.

Remedy: Eat foods rich in the above minerals e.g. vegetables, fruit,
dairy products, meat and dates.

Caution: Those on high blood pressure medication and with kidney stone
problems should consult their doctor.

PEPTIC ULCERS, HEART BURN, GASTRITIS AND HIATUS HERNIA
Increased acid levels in the empty stomach in Ramadan aggravate the
above conditions. It presents as a burning feeling in the stomach area under
the ribs and can extend upto the throat. Spicy foods, coffee, and Cola
drinks worsen these conditions.

Medications are available to control acid levels in the stomach. People
with proven peptic ulcers and hiatus hernia should consult their doctor well
before Ramadan.

KIDNEY STONES
Kidney stones may occur in people who have less liquids to drink.
Therefore, it is essential to drink extra liquids so as to prevent stone formation.

JOINT PAINS
Causes: The increased pressure on the knee joints during Salat. In the elderly and those with arthritis this may result in pain, stiffness, swelling and discomfort.

Remedy: Lose weight so that the knees do not have to carry any extra
load. Exercise the lower limbs . Being physically fit allows greater fulfillment,
thus enabling one to be able to perform salat with ease.

From an article by :

Dr. Farouk Haffejee
Islamic Medical Association of South Africa - Durban

My Smoky Chilie Crabs Ala Me...

2007-08-24T10:06:00.001+08:00

It was my first attempt trying to cook chilie crab. I had it before in some local restaurants but a good chilie crab can cost around 35 kg per kg. So, I decided to try it myself. Aaqil and I had this for dinner yesterday....with some herbal chicken soup and keropok melinjau and just a steamed chap chye. Although O is always not around during dinner time due to his workload...we both had a good time at our dining room early last night. Aaqil turned in to bed at 8 pm yesterday and I felt like a good achievement since he had been sleeping later and later in the past. I had my own ME time, chatting with a friend and watched my favourite soap opera till midnight. Being a housewife ...i can say sometimes is a beautiful mess..haha....

Smokieee...smokieee.....mommy....i see fire....Aaqil uttered...

Crab Curry with Pineapple...

2007-08-19T16:26:00.000+08:00

Today is a very wet and gloomy day. To bringten my day and well...actually to make my stomach happy, I decided to have some seafood.....but kampung style.....I made crab curry...here it is not famous at all and when I asked my MIL the other day..she said.."what....where got crab curry..only mamak style have laa.." In Singapore...chilie crab is the most popular....But my late mom always cooked this dish as it is a my dad's favourite dish...

Here is my humble crab curry recipe...Its quite suitable for toddlers too..

600 g of flower crab
half small pineapple...unripe..
fish/seafood curry powder- 4 table spoon
a bit of tamarind juice
1 spoon of plain yoghurt
curry leaves and herba fish curry..
3 shallots-cut
3 cloves of garlic-crushed
a bit ginger
salt and sugar to taste
1 tomato and 2 green chilies
Olive oil -3 spoon

1. Tumis curry leaves and herba until fragrant...Mixed the shallots, garlic and ginger
2. Mix the curry powder with warm water ..add yoghurt inside
3. After the mixture turn yellow and fragrant, mixed the curry powder inside...
4. Wait till it boil..then add tamarind juice and some water..
5. Add tomatoes, green chilies and crabs...
6. Lastly put the pineapple..salt and sugar...and cover it. Simmer for another 10-15 mins...

How I miss my mommy's cooking!!!

Ladang Kambing di Singapura..

2007-08-14T23:41:00.000+08:00

One of our favourite hangout in Singapore believe it or not is Hay Dairies located at Lim Chu Kang. It is a small goat farm and they are producing milk for sale from 1000s of mixed goat breed. According to the Hay Dairies owner, goat's milk is the next best thing to mother's milk. In fact, it is a good substitute to breast feeding infants as it is easily digested and assimilated by a infant's digestive system. I have no comment on that. Me and O find the fresh goat's milk delicious and different...Yalah....asyik makan fresh cow milk...We visit this farm once a month and last weekend we brought my brother who came all the way from Kedah to this place...hahah....He enjoyed feeding the goat and of course Aaqil..so busy feeding and petting those goats....

My bro...working in penang..still single and available...but he is a bit reserved!@

Aaqil feeding baby goat...He used to be afraid but now..he loves goat more than a cat...

Bapak is very natural with animals.....

Check out my Slide Show!

2007-08-09T13:31:00.001+08:00

Breast-stroke from A Breast-milk fan..

2007-08-06T14:30:00.000+08:00

Aaqil has turned 3 years last July. I am super pro breastfeeding mommy so Aaqil is still a breastfed baby..oppsss toddler. I thank GOD for giving me supply and strength to breastfeed Aaqil day and night. I thank GOD for being able to ignore abt what people said in breastfeeding a toddler (budak dah besar katanye).

Disclaimer: This is not a bragging post...Just to encourage mothers that it is POSSIBLE to breastfeed your baby as long as you want.

Caught In Action...

2007-07-15T02:13:00.000+08:00

Aaqil was caught in action this afternoon in our neighborhood playground. He was so excited to see some children running around as there was a Malay wedding reception nearby , suddenly a cute Malay girl walked passed him....

"Alamak..cun la budak nie...cun dari mommy aku lah.mommy aku dah gemok lah...ehhh seganlah tengok lama2..Baik sembunyi muka belakang tiang..."

Seboknya mommy aku nie..belum aper2 dah jeles distract2 orang nak break the ice dengan awek cun nie.....
Aiseh man..dia bolayan lah....sebok main kasut buat aper....Meh aku staring dia lama2...!!!
Main peekaboo nak????? ( Aaqil pi tanya girl tuh muakaka)
Yahoo...abang dia suruh aku salam.....Aku pun salam....siap cium tangan awek cun nie lagi....Apalah tuah hari nie...dah la mommy masak kari ikan kurau sedapppp....kejap lagi boleh dinner....
Cium lagi tangan for the second time...haha....Gue hero la kat Boon Keng!!!
And now..back to reality...balik bawah ketiak Mommyku....!!!

Quickie Getaway to Batam Island...

2007-07-09T01:20:00.001+08:00

It was a cool getaway for 3 of us, although it was supposed to be a work trip for O, experiencing unspoilt beauty of nature, beautiful beach and living in a traditional villa, Bali style. All the stress of living in metropolitan city suddenly gone the moment I stepped into the resort after an hour journey with speed boat. Aaqil quickly adapted to this new land, enjoying every moment. The food was fabulous inside the resort itself. I had my "Nasi Rames" with "cabeeii (their sambal belacan)", Nasi goreng kampong batam style and macam2 lah. By the way, that night, we went for a seafood treat in kelong at the edge of the village, the butter crab was superb. Makan macam like there is no tomorrow for about 150 K rupiah.

Besides that, we just hanging around in the resort. We had good massage, good swim in the beautiful swimming pool, had a good time at the pool bar and had a good walk along the beach.

I would recommend this place, Turi Beach Resort those who wants to run away from the city. I tell you, you will never regret.

luge, skylift and a night with an Oscar...

2007-06-29T17:07:00.000+08:00

Hello from Singapore!!

Dear friends,

How is everybody doing? I have been so lazy updating my blog due to more important things that I have to think about right now. And yes, I have been gaining some weight too. I wonder why this fats are accumulating as I am still breastfeeding and always running like a headless chicken to tame my little rascal.

Father and son love racing????

Yesterday, since O decided to take a day off, we decided to treat ourselves to Sentosa Island. We had the purest excitement when we went for luge and skylift. Its Part go-cart, part-toboggan, gravity ride that's safe for all ages with a unique steering and braking system. We took their hot deal on weekedays, buy 2 rides and one ride free. It was so much fun for us.

Omar overtook me....and won a chequered flag haha

After an exhausting ride, we went to watch a show, Song of the Sea. Songs of the Sea is a multi-sensory spectacular with dramatic effects, engaging music, pyrotechnics and a live cast.

I guess that's all for now. I hope everybody is well. I hope everybody is doing fabulous. Time flies. I am proud that at the age of 32, i never feel old....Again...just joking....!!!

Nostalgia 4 thn di Boston

2007-05-21T15:56:00.000+08:00

Pic courtesy of Angah: Front row left: Ain, Che Lat, Angah, Elin, Niza, ME and Yus

A note to all my friends...I miss you all.....

Hola!

2007-05-10T15:31:00.000+08:00

Dear friends...

Sorry I went missing......We both pick up golf hahahha..Just joking...!!!

Weekend with Butterflies, Snake and Water Dipping..

2007-02-25T14:22:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, I brought Aaqil to visit Butterfly Park and Insects Kingdom in Sentosa Island. It was an amazing experience for Aaqil to see more than 1500 butterflies with over than 50 species. We also witnessed the blossoming of new life at "Pupa House" and it was really fantastic to see how they emerged to a flying butterfly. But we have to watch out Aaqil carefully as he tend to touch those butterflies quite roughly. As a reward for behaving quite well in the park, we let him played in the small fountain outside the park. He was there alone as we both watched him from a distance.

"Wowww..."

After a light lunch, we had a photography session with phyton. I was quite surprised to see Aaqil bravely touch the snake's skin. Well, still early to assume anything..maybe he was just curious. After roaming around at the Merlion's side and watch the flower's festival, suddenly wheather became wet with non-stop drizzling. At first we decided to swim at Palawan beach. As we did not want to dissapoint our little boy, we walked to Vivo City from Sentosa for a dip at the roof's pool. Lots of kids were dipping there and Aaqil had a fabulous fun interacting with new friends.

"Bapak dah penat"

Microwave Cooking...

2007-02-15T23:59:00.000+08:00

It was a lazy day and I decided to cook steam fish and steam emperor-chicken. Jgn terpedaya dengan nama yang canggih..I am very suck at cooking indeed... . What I did? After marinated the wings with emperor chicken powder (yang halallah okay) I potong2 veges (asparagus, brocoli, carrot, pak-choy) and dried mushrooms, then dumped my golden pomfret and mid-joint wings in microwaveable steamer and microwaved each dish for 15 mins. Lastly I boiled the seafood light soy-sauce to be poured on the fish and chicken. For this type of cooking, it was saltless.

Easy-peasy!!! Thanks to the genius microwave's inventor.

Verdict: Both my boys burped :)

Waiting for my update??????

2007-02-13T02:31:00.000+08:00

Please read below....

Singapore vs Malaysia

2007-02-13T01:01:00.000+08:00

Despite the many tussles between Singapore and Malaysia, ok that's only in politics, a game of soccer has always been on the softer side. I was there with free admission tickets witnessing the whole of the Singapore-Malaysia game, with the presense of the 55,000 strong crowd.

With this article, definitely gossips were already flying around my circle of lost friends, who may be already assuming, I have forgotten that I am Malaysian. Well, once again, I will not be elaborating on that, and let them speak their minds.

But you know what, the game was interesting, I think, towards the very end. And that has resulted me in the stadium again when Singapore met Thailand in the first leg finals, to feel the energy level of the 55,000 strong supportive crowd.

As you can see, both of us were wearing red, so let the critics again do the talking. Boring article? Hear me again next time.

Eid-ul-Adha cum Gregorian New Year

2007-01-01T23:11:00.000+08:00

Eid-ul-Adha to all my fellow readers.
As for me and my 2 boys, I guess we had one of the simplest celebration. Since Omar has been working hard lately, 3 of us decided to spent some quality time together..I cooked some simple meal for lunch...Just 3 of us at home. At night we had dinner at Fish and Co at Victoria Street and we ended our day hanging out in Bugis Junction.

Today is the New Year on the Gregorian calender. Well, I am not that excited only hoping that this year (1st Muharram is on 21st Jan) I can lose some weight and be a better mother and wife.

In the evening, we went to one invitation from John Bosco, Omar's client. Could not resist the temptation of eating mutton beriyani but I was quite prepared not to eat much, so I put on my blue cheongsam. Anyway, it did not help much because I still had 2 plates of it. The curry mutton was so tender till Omar who always not a fan of mutton could eat it.

McNair Meet-ups...

2006-12-25T12:10:00.000+08:00

It is always nice to see old friends. I managed to see some ex-URIs when they came to Singapore on Christmas weekend. Bukan main sakan orang Malaysia shopping :D. Besides chatting and socializing, I had a delicious and fulfilling dinner there. So grateful indeed..Unfortunately my rusty mind now cannot recall any of the names they mentioned when I was in Rhode Island 10 years ago. Kinda embarrasing!

DHL Balloon..

2006-12-25T11:43:00.000+08:00

We took Aaqil up there last week and withnessed unforgettable view of cityscape Singapore. This DHL balloon is located at Bugis Junction and it's just 2 stops from our place. Unfortunately, the ticket price is 23 SGD. or else Aaqil and myself will be on board every week. It was nice to be up there and watched Aaqil's priceless expressions. However, I believe that ONLY DO IT if u are not afraid of heights.

Babies Proms 2006-Singapore Symphony Orchestra

2006-12-03T13:27:00.000+08:00

Imagine a world without music? Not only would it be too dull and uninspiring, we would miss out greatly on the many positive, long term influences on the IQ and EQ development of growing children. We were lucky to be invited to attend Babies Prom Orchestra at Victoria Concert Hall. It was a great exposure for Aaqil and we all had fun like we were in La La Land he he...

Sebana Cove

2006-12-03T11:36:00.000+08:00

Last weekend, we tagged Omar for his work trip. Yeah, Sebana Cove again. This time we took a ferry from Tanah Merah. It was much more convenient and less taxing as compared to driving all the way thru Kota Tinggi. We spent most of our time at the Marina in John & Nina's yatch. Nina made us nice pancakes and we did enjoyed ourselves there. Before we left for Singapore, I attended Sofi's wedding at Felda Adela. The food was so unforgettable for the taste buds.

Introducing the 2 of many new miracles of LIFE..!

2006-11-29T12:27:00.000+08:00

Stacie Marie-she is an Indian-Philipines mix

Stacy Marie and YiHun has arrived naturally via their mother's womb both about a month ago. They are 2 healthy babies welcomed to the world by their currently breast-feeding mothers and supportive fathers. Again, a Happy 'Birth'day and enjoy parenthood while it lasts...

Yi-Hun-my neighbor's son

At Stacy's House..

A day in Suntec City.

2006-11-21T16:00:00.000+08:00

For the pass weeks, I have received several email criticizing and comparing the lives of Singaporeans and Malaysians. Well, it can be an interesting read but at the end of the day, an advise from a foreigner to a country myself... if you believed in your religion well, it is not the country which will decide your life, its YOU yourself and with the help of GOD, you will 'live' and 'be happy' anywhere you are on the globe, be the country rich or poor, modern or not... the earth too belongs too GOD remember? To me 'luxurious life' is not the only recipe towards happiness... the sustenance given by GOD is better and far more abiding... anyway, read on when I got involved in another Malaysia-Singapore trade fair...

Last weekend, I was at Suntec City attending the 'Discover Malaysia Tourism Fair 2006', not as a customer but Omar was doing his additional piggy-bank-filling duties as a soundman for the exhibition. Music has always been his passion. At first, I was a bit hesitated to go because I was sure I would be tempted with all good holiday offers but the time is not right yet. But again Omar texted me saying that, girls liked to get to know soundman or 'DJ/EmCee', is that true? He said he just turned down 3 offers from ladies asking to have coffee with him. So I took a train down to meet him, well I hope it was not because of jealousy though but because I wanted to see how good he was managing the sound, music and stuffs. The best moment was when I was invited to dance during the Sarawak culture performances. Sarawak has always been a state that fascinates me. So, basically Aaqil and myself had a great time there and made new friends too in case we will be in Sarawak again one fine day, God willing!

Listening to 'Bapak' collection of music....

'Beheading moment' - Actually I was afraid but acted cool

We all had fun.. Sarawakians are very warm people..Lucky for those who can marry one of them haha

Eid 2006 - Post Report

2006-11-01T00:38:00.000+08:00

(Somehow or rather, at certain times, the blogspot people didn't allow me to upload pictures with several errors, stay tune dear visitors....)

Eve of Eid

Omar knocked off from work early that day, a privilege given by most companies to Muslims in Singapore to prepare for Eid the following day. We planned to have our final breaking-fast session at Al-Falah mosque in Orchard Road. Of course I have to go my separate way in the mosque as they separated the breaking-fast area between men and women. Aaqil decided to tag along with his Bapak at the mens' section. Lontong and fried chicken with fruits as appetizers/desserts were the menu, tempting but the chilli in it reminded me of the toilet so I practised moderation whilst enjoying the meal.

Aaqil after breaking-fast, while volunteers in background clearing leftover foods making way for maghrib prayers...

Like most countries, the mosques in Singapore will provide free meals for breaking-fast and its open to anybody, rich or poor, and some even extended the invitations to non-Muslims to share our religious cultures during that special month. Why we chose Al-Falah? No special reasons exactly, only that since we need to grab some last minute stuff in Orchard area and that was the closest mosque in vincinity and at the same time exposing Aaqil to such an environment where Muslims gather to break-fast and have their prayers together. It was an awesome sight to me as the ladies filled the cordoned section too, joining everybody that marked the final day of Ramadhan. The twice-yearly 'takbir' was heard after our dawn prayers and that marked the end of the soulful Ramdhan.

Eid

It's Morning of Eid and we were preparing ourselves to the airport to catch a late morning flight to Penang. Courtesy of our neighbours, Mr & Mrs Oh and their baby daughter, they joined us at the airport to have a roam around too since it was a public holiday for everybody as well. A 2-family breakfast an McDonalds started our day at the airport upon checking in our lugagges and we still had a little more time at the viewing gallery (where Aaqil enjoyed most) before we were on our way boarding. Perhaps it was a little too early for Aaqil as he dosed off again even before the plane took off waking up just in time when meals were served. He was behaving well until the plane descend, of course, the cabin pressure will affect everybody's ears including his little ones, but the suckling and swallowing action while he breastfed soothed him a lot, leaving the adults with blocked-nose-blowing actions to equalise the ear pressures.

Arriving in Penang 90mins later where dad and my younger siblings awaited and we headed straight for my paternal-grandmother's house visit followed by another one before heading back towards Kulim, my earlier home sweet home. All of us were busy enjoying our own things for most of that 5-day trip. Aaqil with his motor-cycle rides, me with my 'trying to visit as much friends as possible' project while Omar following through without jeopardising his cravings for local festive dishes with additional suppers and unnecessary add-on meals, I believe he brought himself back an additional 2 kgs as well.

Itinenaries weren't planned well this time and we did missed a lot to-do things and added to the KIV list instead. But the rest were well covered. The pictures below will proof the several bike-rides Aaqil had, the friends I got to visit (you know who they are) and the amount of food Omar consumed on every location with the best evening spent with siblings Farid & Najwa at Penang Island and again not forgetting the food.

picture paints a thousand words...
so less words...

do I miss anything?

point me out...

Eid Mubarak

2006-10-21T23:47:00.000+08:00

I would like to wish friends and relatives whereever you are ... Eid Mubarak!!

If you happen to be in Kulim/Penang on the 24th - 28th October 2006, feel free to call me at 04-4844470 or 02-90030207 or SMS to +6590030207, who knows we can arrange something.

To my brother, Firdaus and the unforgettable friends abroad, I miss you guys..Elin,syaf, atah,chelat..etc etc

To my in laws in Singapore & ...

Last but not least to Ayah, Farid and Najwa, my only nephew and sis-in law, can't wait to see you guys!

Sincerely yours,

TheOmarFamily

Aminah Azirah

Omar A Bakar

Kadin Aaqil Omar

Southern-most tip Johor weekend getaway

2006-10-21T01:25:00.000+08:00

Omar got some work errands to run in Sebana Cove while both Aaqil and me managed to hitch his ride for a short getaway. Driving a company sponsored vehicle, we left Singapore via the causeway at 1600hrs. Besides the Hong Leong ATM service nationwide breakdown, the rest of the journey was smooth despite the shortage of cash. It was a smooth and scenic drive passing Kota Tinggi and other small towns and villages. Since it was Ramadhan, we broke our fast whilst passing Desaru in the vehicle itself arriving in Sungai Rengit town around 1930hrs checking in a backpackers-like Tai Hoe Hotel. Aaqil was immediately busy making phone calls to his imaginary on'line' friends.

As a family, we have been practising breaking-fast with a light and easy meal for the tummy and having an actual dinner much later after the prayers. Thus, upon settling down at Tai Hoe, we proceeded to an authentic open-air seafood restaurant to fulfil our years of seafood cravings. Yes we did have a cute little lobster in butter just enough for 2 plus some other side dishes. That was a helluva seafood, though not much. Surprisingly, life in Sg Rengit was a little on the quiet side for most muslim food stalls during Ramadhan, and we did not have as much choices on food as compared to our previous visits to this town, which was accesible by boat then a 17km bicyle ride from the jetty, which we did 3 years ago. But that didn't dampen our spirits and we walked thru every possible roads in the small little but self sufficient town. There's even a Marrybrown now in town for those fast food lovers, but the sight of Burger Ramly always overwrites the former. Activity back in Tai Hoe was just a warming down, though the free wireless access did do some damage to the supposedly non-distracted night, ended with an early 'sahur'.

We needed to leave by 1200hrs the next day our Tai Hoe would forfeit our MYR10.00 deposit and we did adhere to their rules as we were checking in to Sebana Cove next, a well-developed integrated resort some 15km down the road. The 2km drive in from the main road was a serene drive through the golf course, wild monkeys encounters and nature and nature and nature to Omar's liking. The first room given to us was rejected by Omar as it was facing the swimming pool and the second was facing the marina and river and some distant mangroves and that was what he wanted. Swimming pool was next to fulfil Aaqil's request even though we never allow him to dip in longer than 30mins. Full of fun and laughter for him though and we retired back to our room, lazed around waiting for break-fast time. The view from our balcony was almost enough to soothe our eyes.

Sebana Cove, located at the southern-most tip of Johor, was designed to be a quiet stay, although there were some pricy activities like boating through the mangroves for MYR80.00 per person or fireflies tour for MYR30.00 per person. So we decided to head back to Sg Rengit town for dinner which was more favourable for budget constraints travellers like us. Luxurious travellers please stay away from reading our blog as you will find the informations here not useful ;-) A satisfying thai style cheap and delicious dinner and we headed back to Sebana where Aaqil and myself made new friends with families of Sebana staff and we were even invited for coffee to their resident lodgings, the gateway to a cheaper and discounted future stay at Sebana ... hehe ... while Omar did establish some future businesses with the technologically inclined Sebana staff.

From there on, then we learnt of several other nearby towns which were unknown to travellers like us like Sening town, which we managed to locate without getting lost on our way the next day. There, a heaven for food, food bazaars everywhere and we had such a wondeful time window shopping for breaking-fast later on, which led to packing back barbeque quail, malay kueh and specially made drinks you will never see other than during Ramadhan and Aaqil has his first unfair share of chicken rice before break-fast while we watched drooling...

Conclusion... for you reaching Sebana Cove from Singapore, and if you want to avoid the roads, there is a ferry service from Tanah Merah Terminal straight into the rivers of Sebana and someone will pick you up. The other alternative was history, they used to run a ferry service to carry vehicles from Changi Ferry Terminal to Tg Belungkor but that service are now meant for passengers with bicycles only. Maybe the cost of ferrying your vehicle across is too pricy as compared to driving through JB and Kota Tinggi though it will take about 2hours on the road.
Alternatively, you may take a cheap bumboat ride from Changi Point and it will ferry you to Tg Pengelih and you can find lots of taxis waiting to send you anywhere with the options to bargain before boarding.

That's all for now, more updates after Eid in Kedah, for more informations on Sebana Cove and Sg Rengit, just google them!!

other snapshots

Dine out with Anit and Wawa!!!

2006-09-14T23:46:00.000+08:00

After almost 14 years, I met again with Anitt and Wawa. Wawa has the same fate with me..married to Singaporean...so we kinda close now. Always met for food indulgence hehe. Anitt came to Sing for work last week and 3 of us had a chinese food at City Hall Magic Wok. It was Anitt treat.. Timakasih!!!! Anyway masih terbayang "oats prawns yg sedap tuh"!!

Aaqil?? Where was he? I left him with his Bapak in the office for me to have a peaceful chat with my old friends. It was fun meeting, wish to be longer and juicier but Pak Hendra, wawa's husband was there too...so malulah!!!

Newly wed "Fahmi and Hadi and Wives"

2006-09-12T12:40:00.000+08:00

Tahniah dan semoga berkekalan ke anak cucu!!

Fahmy and his doctor wife-Ain
Double Celebration for Mak Ela and family. Thanks for the superb hospitality!!

Short trip to PD and Rembau(Wedding)

2006-09-12T12:20:00.000+08:00

It was one of my best and unforgetable weekend. Both my bro and sis came all the way to Sing and all of us went for a short trip to PD. But our main objective to N9 was to attend our cousins wedding and "eat lah". Kampung food is very delicious. My auntie whom I called Mak Lela was so surprised to see al of us. We were given VIP treatment and the food..walla...I thought I ate almost a quarter of that buffalo...I lost count how many plates I had...Ha..ha..Omar did have fun also...He always wanted to try local delicacies..Unfortunately Aaqil was overwhelmed with his new surrounding and refused to eat. I had to breastfeed him almost every hour.

we booked 3 room apt at Golden Villas Beach Reasort. Quite spacious and cozy

All of them was excited the moment they arrived

My "twin cousin"- Aida Akmal

2006-09-12T12:06:00.000+08:00

We were very close when I was still single. We share almost everything. After almost 2 years, I met her again at her brother's wedding last weekend in Rembau. The food was awesome. Masak kampung la katakan!! Sampai pening kepala makan byk sangat kerbau. Oh ya..masak lemak cili padi tuh sampai I mimpi2.
I felt bad I did not attend her wedding last year as Omar was outstation at that time and Aaqil was still tiny and fragile. I hope she forgive me.
She is now happily married with her old schoolmates. Will miss u and hope to see u again SOON!!

How long more?

2006-09-03T01:05:00.000+08:00

Aaqil with Cheeky Thomas...

2006-08-28T13:22:00.000+08:00

While roaming around Suntec area with Yang that day, I found that Thomas was in town. So I called up the father and son who was already in Marina Square to join the fun. At this moment Aaqil does not understand much about Thomas and his friends all about. He loves the songs as well as some of its catchy musical cartoons. Anyway he did have fun with all the kids and Omar had been watching him.

Mingling with other kids? Naahh!! He was bulliying all the girls....sgh!!
Posing before other kids joined in the big thomas
"I had fun Mommy"!!

"Battery powered figure 8 set"

Aaqil has the toy above at home courtesy from Pakngah who is still in England. He bought it in uk for only 19 pounds. Here it costs 149 sgd. Mommy display it on her favourite Japanese chess. The thomas play table here costs 595 dollars so Mommy uses whatever she has. He he!!!

A Few Good Friends...

2006-08-24T01:10:00.000+08:00

It was a special day for me as I finally met again with Yang after 2 years. She is having 2 days conference at swissotel and she had steal some time to have dinner with me at Siam Kitchen in Suntec City. We had some soft shell crab for appetizers, Omar and I had thai noodless,. Aaqil with his beancurd soup and Yang ordered some kailan and the famous green curry for herself. It was really fulfilling. Unfortunately she could not be long with us as she had to do some homework back in her hotel. I somehow promise her that I will go to BG on second Eid, God willing.

Back in MRSM Perlis, she was one of my closest.

"Frienship doubles your joys and divides your sorrow"

Introduction to Marine Life..

2006-08-21T12:18:00.000+08:00

Wife and husband messaging each other on YM:

Wife: I think Aaqil has interest in Marine Life?
H : So, you have any plans?
Wife: Let's go to Underwater World this Sunday! Can catch dolphins also after that!
H : Give me an itinerary
Wife: Huh, ok! ( dalam hati :this is a lifestyle of a busy man, everything must be pre-planned)

It was a sweet momentos and unforgettable experice as I was looking at Aaqi's facial expression as we entered the spectacular 83-metre long tonnel, filled with fiercest predators and an array of incredible marine animals. I heard that Langkawi and KLCC have better "underwater world tunnel level" by a friend who visited all.

That big stingray in the tunnel system appears 30% smaller than what they actually are!!

The weather unfortunately not friendly at all yesterday and Aaqil was without clothes most of the time. In fact, he was a little bit cranky after we exited underwater world due to hot sun. Bapak was also cranky and sour-faced for not getting enough rest this week due to his demanding jobs. We took a break at Merlion walkway so that Aaqil could play with small fountains and Bapak could light a cigaretts.

At Dolphin Lagoon waiting

Although it was crowded, crampy and sunny, we had a good time be together with charming pink dolphins.The trainers together with this special mammals have demonstrated their natural ability like spy-hopping, wail-walking and vocalisation. Some lucky spectators got their chance to meet-the dophine sessions and touched the dolphins. If not for the jeans I was wearing, I would love to volunteer and get wet so long I can touch this playful creature.

Friendly, tame and playful pink dolphin

Unfortunately, I did not really follow my itinerary so we both end up came back 4 hours late. In fact, to avoid Sunday crowd at Sentosa we walked 500 metres to get to the mainland under a 40 degrees weather. As a result for not having enough rest Omar had a slight fever and he took a day off today. He still sleeping to recover. Hmm..maybe itinerary is very important in everything we plan, I guess. He has a point!!

Baju Raya

2006-08-19T00:37:00.000+08:00

I was amazed by the fact that my good friend Aida will have "10 pasang baju" for this upcoming Raya. I am sure she will look spectacular and I wish I can meet her so I can "pow" some hangbao hahaha. It has been a long time I have more than two pieces of baju kurung, be it "kurung Johor or kebaya". Anyway, I think I am comfortable with baju johor as it is elegant and not so sexy lah. So, yesterday, I smsed my Mom-in law, asking her if she knew anybody that can tailor my baju. Then she replied short and sweet "pass to me". Yabeda badooo!!! I actually totally forgotten that my mom in law is a certified designer and tailor and she teaches tailoring class in some of the community centre all over Singapore. But does she have the time? She is also at the moment a warden in of the girls correctional facilities.

Well, since I will be going back to north this Hari Raya, I thought why not I spend a little bit more for baju. So here I am with some chiffon materials and silks. I will be visiting relatives and friends so kenalah presentable a bit. Being SAHM tak leh sloppy-sloppy haha well if you guys know what I mean. *evil gins*
Back to my MIL, today lunch time, I took a cab to her house with my raya materials. We discussed some design and cutting and she sounded so professional in designing my baju. Bottom line Mak, try to make me look slim and still I can eat a lot lah. So she designed 2 dresses for me and I have to buy some beads in Arab Street later. Thanks Mak!!

As for Aaqil, he had a great time with my MIL's maid. Today for the first time, he said the word "kakak. kakak".
He even followed her to groceries shopping without crying and throwing his temper tantrums at me...Willingly he went!
After that he ate the chicken soup rice kakak made for him. It was a great break for me as me myself relax in the room and after that I had some haircut without have to worry about Aaqil.

Nursing Aaqil beyond 2 years...

2006-07-16T01:20:00.000+08:00

A lot have been asking me how long more will I be breastfeeding Aaqil. And trust me, it is not easy for me to respond without causing offense.

I have found out handling that situation with humor works best for me. When someone asks me, "How long are you going to nurse him?" I'll often respond, "Oh, about fifteen more minutes!" That usually lightens the mood and everyone relaxes a bit. If someone really seems interested, I usually talk about the amazing immunities breastfeeding provides, and the fact that toddlers need those immunities even more. Since they are more mobile, toddlers often touch-and taste-everything in reach and so are exposed to more germs. There is usually a toddler around and when the person contrasts the busy toddler with the infant in arms, I often see a light go on in their minds.

My FIL's wife, as far as I can recall has been hinting me to stop breastfeeding Aaqil months ago. Reason being, she wants Aaqil to be with her without our presence. For the past 2 years, I never gone out with Omar without Aaqil, not sure how the feeling will be like if I ever get the chance again but one thing for sure I know it will be a restless date for both of us thinking what will Aaqil be eating, what is he doing and so forth. Most older generations tend to feed our youngs with unnecessary food, and if we prevent them, they will do it secretly without our knowledge. It might sound that we are being overly strict on Aaqil's diet, but that is the path we have chosen as we know when he grows up, he will have the chance to taste all those junkies. Bottomline, we know he is not under-nutritioned without having those unnecessary food. Like the experts say, we don't have to expose our children with food, they will automatically decide what is delicious and what is not for their taste bud when they can decide. My MIL, on the other hand, feels a little bit uneasy looking at me and Aaqil in his 'monkey position' whenever he is breastfeeding. I never blame her though as she has no experiences at all breastfeeding her 2 children. Anyway she is more concern about the shape of my boobs (yes, disappointingly, for some, the shape is more important than having the best for their child). It's ok Mak, they are already pointing south because I didn't exercise them. Maybe there are creams in the market that can fix them back heh... was told Clarins has one. It costs SGD75 and it will point back to the desired position.

Anyway, maybe most of my readers would think that nursing toddlers is only possible if you are a stay at home mom (SAHM), or have enough milk/big boobs or some would say fanatic about breastfeeding. These perceptions are all wrong in fact. I have friends who are teachers, executives, managers just to name a few who are still nursing their toddlers and some are doing great even tandem nursing their kids. It is amazing thing how this people come forward to motivate and tell us their life stories, on how they managed to maintain their professions while making sure their toddlers at home have sufficient expressed breastmilk (EBM) and nursing directly when they are at home.

On my next posting, I shall touch on the myth of breastfeeding which I now believe it's a myth being passed down by our older generation to 'scare' us on breastfeeding. Stay tune, if I didn't get to your nerves yet!

I am still breastfeeding Aaqil as we both enjoy it. Actually breastmilk tastes like cantelope juice, it is sweet and creamy-like. The reasons why your young ones find it so delicious about. Breastfeeding often calms Aaqil down and helps him to go to bed. If he is sick, I will not have to run here and there, looking for the best pediatrician as I know my milk is the best fluid rather that giving him artificial fluid. It helps him to be better with its rich nutrients and antibodies from me. Best of all it gives him a sense of comfort and closeness with me. Oh, perhaps the best of all my milk is FREE.

This write-up is based solely on my experiences and my personal findings and has no relations to any persons in particular, so the victim is still me.

GOD says,
"The mothers shall give suck to their offspring for two whole years, if the father desires to complete the term. But he shall bear the cost of their food and clothing on equitable terms. No soul shall have a burden laid on it greater than it can bear. No mother shall be Treated unfairly on account of her child. Nor father on account of his child, an heir shall be chargeable in the same way. If they both decide on weaning, by mutual consent, and after due consultation, there is no blame on them. If ye decide on a foster-mother for your offspring, there is no blame on you, provided ye pay (the mother) what ye offered, on equitable terms. But fear God and know that God sees well what ye do. (The Noble Quran, 2:233)"

Why, Zidane?

2006-07-12T17:34:00.000+08:00

World Cup Football has ended. My favourite team, France was defeated by Italy and that was why Aaqil had England jersey on hehe....

Trademarks vs Generic Terms vs Brand Names

2006-07-05T14:29:00.000+08:00

My hands were itching to write something today but my creative part of the brain is slowing me down. Perhaps my menses or just something else. So Omar gave me the idea to this article instead and he charges me $20, although he says it is insultingly cheap. Anyway it is going to be off my usual family topics...

Here it goes...

Have you ever wondered how a popular brand name can replace the actually correct term in our daily conversations or sentences but still being understood by our listeners. Didn't get the picture? Here is one good conversational example, "Don't forget to bring along your colgate and toothbrush to camp." In that conversation, the word colgate refers to toothpaste, no matter what brand of toothpaste you are using, and it is understood in Malaysia and Singapore I guess. Kudos to Colgate for being THE toothpaste, hmmm, they must be smiling, and Darlie please don't frown..... and for Colgate, you won't loose your trademark, so don't worry.

Trademarks? Yes, There are many companies which have lost their trademarks due to this. Let's talk legal just for a moment. As a matter of fact, brands like Aspirin, Escalator and Thermos have lost their trademarks and have become generic terms! Thats worst than being a Colgate, they still have their trademark although we have labelled them as toothpaste. Take for example, thermos, originally a brand name for a new kind of vacuum-insulated bottle for keeping liquids hot or cold, have already became the generic word for vacuum bottle! However trademark rights are generally country-specific, a mark that has become generic in one country might still function and be recognized as a trademark in another. Haha, thats why I'm not a lawyer.

I have compiled a list of brand names which are widely used either in Malaysia or Singapore and have 'officially' replaced the actual nouns in conversations; and widely accepted too, but still maintained their trademarks.

1. Colgate vs toothpaste
Eg: Read above....

2. Cutex vs nail polish
Eg: She puts on red cutex on her fingers.

3. Kiwi vs shoe polish
Eg: Can you please kiwi my black shoes.
I have heard some older generation Malays in SIngapore used the word blackin'
Eg: Kenapa tak belakin boot sampai kilat?

4. Clorox vs bleach
Eg: You need to soak overnight with clorox to remove these stains.

5. Corn Flakes vs cereals / breakfast cereals
This example will sound better in Malay.
Eg: Esok pagi2 semua akan bersarapan corn flakes.

6. Pampers vs diapers
Eg: Please bring along spare pampers for your baby. (Omar is against this one, he hates that brand I think)

7. Xerox vs photostat vs zap vs duplicate
This lingo was more heard in the office.
Eg: Can you please Xerox this document for me? hahaha!

8. Liquid Paper vs Blanco vs correction fluid
Eg: May I borrow your Liquid Paper please / Can you please Blanco your writing mistakes

9. Kotex vs sanitary pad / pad
Eg: Some brands of Kotex really makes me comfortable but some really don't.

10. Sony Walkman vs portable/personal stereos
Funny? Yes, only Sony trademarked them Walkman but if I am using a portable mini Aiwa, they will call it a Walkman too.

Just to name a few...

Try to add more... hmmm ... Palm handheld organisers, Cellophane tapes, etc etc...
So the next time if someone sneezes in front of you, do pass him/her some kleenex!

Project Title: Toilet Training Aaqil

2006-07-04T17:59:00.000+08:00

Disclaimer: This article is written based on my unfinished project experiences. Any constructive remarks or suggestions from positive attitude homo-sapiens are most welcome to enhance my fluctuating motivational level.

Project Title: Toilet Training Aaqil
Subject's Age: 23 months old
Project Completion Date: Subjected to Aaqil's approval
Equipment: A toilet
Confidence Level: Minimal (Almost Zero)
Success rate: 100% in 6 years time

Liquid Waste Progress: Slow
Solid Waste Progress: Very slow
Overall Progress: Extremely slow

Other Issues: Subject becomes highly active when comes in contact with water resulting in time extension requests by subject.

to be continued in the future...............

Cycling with Aaqil/Children

2006-06-30T16:43:00.000+08:00

"Just because I have a kid now, I have to give up cycling?" Omar once questioned himself loud enough for me to hear without the need to eavesdrop. Then he gave me that look again and said to me, "The mother needs a bike! It's going to be a family activity together!" That was how we started.

Omar was an avid cyclist. He made several trips to Malaysia on his bike or even brought along his bike to Indonesia for island-hopping activities. All that happened when me and Aaqil wasn't in his picture yet. And now he has to mild himself down towards non-vigorous bicycle rides knowing he is going to tow his then 21-month-old kid-son on his KONA (thats a huge sacrifice I think) and a wife who thinks that a bicycle is only used for playing at the courtyard or the minor-road side in front of my house in Malaysia. It didn't even cross my mind that I will use a bicycle as a mean of transport that can take us to places. The hunt started with my bike followed by the rear child seat for Aaqil. My bike was an easy find and I have started shifting the derailluers (gears) ever since. Omar was a little particular with the safety aspects of the child carrier but finally we found one financially suitable without sacrificing safety.

Now I realise that cycling is not only a sporty activity. It is also an emotionally and even spiritually healthy activity for the whole family as well. We have cycled to semi-remote places not accessible by public transports and perhaps too great a distant for pedestrians on foot too. Safety? Yes, we have been questioned or being passed remarks by those overly concerned about the safety of Aaqil on a bike. As usual, I am just going to let these people ponder on these topics themselves so I can stick to my bicycling topic.

Not to go harsh on Aaqil, we will take breaks every 30 minutes for him to stretch himself out. Surprisingly, Aaqil is the happiest soul when comes to family cycling. We will always coincide cycling with several other non-cycling activities like picnics, educational visits or just resting while letting him explore on his own foot. Actually, children do make good cycling companions because they are adaptable.

Let me tell you what I've learnt so far at this new activity of mine, plus some self researches from other experts hehe...

1) When you take a child on a ride, make certain you are familiar with the bike route. If you get lost or the route is longer than expected, your child may suffer not only from a diminished experience, but also in more serious ways, such as dehydration or exposure.

2) Children tire quickly in the afternoon. Take advantage of their energy in the morning and start your ride early.

3) Plan on taking a lot of short breaks. Also allow time to stop, get off the bike and explore.

4) Always have water readily available for your child. This is easy if children are in a trailer or on their own bike, but be mindful of a child in a child carrier. Stop often so he or she can drink.

5) A well-timed snack can defuse a squabble or sour temper. Kids tend to misbehave more when they're tired, hungry or thirsty.

6) Carry a Tool Kit and know how to use it.

7) Carry a Small First-Aid Kit. Generally, you'll only need a few bandages, some triple antibiotic cream and encouraging words to soothe a small case of road rash.

8) Make It Fun. Choose an interesting route that goes by parks, rivers, views, or—surprise!—a playground. Most children are interested in what they can see along the route rather than what's at the end of the road or trail.

9) Invite Playmates. Cycling is always more fun when shared. If your child has a friend who is at the same competency on the bike, bring them along.

The most important thing to remember when cycling with children is to avoid overdoing it. You can still cover a lot of miles—it's just going to take longer. Do it as a family, it's fun. Start early, it's very beneficial for your kid. My experiences will be different if I will just buy him a bike later on and let him play on his own without any family participation.

Believers believe beliefs

2006-06-20T17:29:00.000+08:00

I brought myself up into believing western cultures are always believably convincing and copied them blindly. These issues have in several moments questioned my integrity as a Malay Muslim, which are usually shaken by these blind beliefs. These questions were often being shoved aside by our closest of people OR you will be considered as an abnormal person if you raise these issues which most people considered them as petty questions OR they will label you as a fanatic Muslim.

Our family, the 3 of us, practiced open concept thinking, we allow questions to be asked when we practiced certain strange things, for example rules of the house and at the same time we hope our questions will be answered if we encounter or experience strange practices by other people. The motive is simple, for our growing up son to be able to know the reasons on why he can or cannot do or practice certain things. We do not want him to follow blindly what other influential people are practicing; importantly we didn’t want him to do things without knowing the reasons why, even though what he might be doing is a good deed. We do not want him to believe that what his parents do are always right, we want him to question us of our intentions, and so he will be able to understand why he must or must not do certain things.

By now, most of you must have been trying to foresee where I am getting at for this posting. Yesterday was the day it have been 31 years on the Gregorian calendar that I was brought into this world via my mother’s womb. And almost for the pass 29 years, I was made to believe that every year on this date was supposed to be the happiest days of my life.

When my son was brought into this world, I began to question myself. Should I let this western culture of celebrating the DATE of BIRTH into my new family OR should I discard it totally knowing there won’t be any harm in not celebrating it, OR we can still commemorate DATE of BIRTHs by injecting new ways and ideologies to his young and fresh mind instead of the traditional , cakes, candles, boring song, party hats and gifts?

When come to this, Omar has always been supportive in family management issues and has always played a part in it. He will allow me to decide what we deem best for Aaqil and us, without conflicting with our religion’s beliefs. He does not believe in external intervention when come to raising Aaqil. He believes we can decide for our own family’s GOD given fate. In fact, he was the one who suggested that we should hands-on with Aaqil ourselves since he was 1-minute old so that we could get rid of some traditional believes that were most of the time conflicting with the religion and at the same time gain some experiences with the newborn. Thank GOD, even though at first I thought his ideas were crazy knowing that we have no experiences with infants, but if we didn’t do that, then we will not have the chance to accumulate these experiences ourselves with our own baby. Though, words do get around saying that why was I as a graduate had chosen to nurture my own baby rather then make money for myself by getting into employment? OR why didn’t we just leave these tasks to grandmothers or maids while we enjoy ourselves and make more money? We did ignore these 2 most popular questions and we didn’t regret the path we took. With additional self-researches and advises from those more experienced, GOD showed us the way and our sustenance for our simple-lifed family is enough to nurture Aaqil up. With some practical difficulties, of course, but we managed to pull through.

Back to the topic, Omar and I used to sit and reflect the things that we have blindly followed instead of questioning the motives and intentions. The things that we have done just because our parents were doing and believing in them, and we again, blindly followed just because we didn’t want to hurt their feelings. And some things from the West that we choose to follow as the Westerners have been labeled more superior from us, again without questioning the motives? We admit, Omar and I can’t be too perfect because we aren’t perfect, and the road to perfection is practically unachievable, but working towards it is a pleasure.

The last interesting issue that we brought up was from Omar’s dad himself. When Aaqil suffered a mild flu last week, he believes that the ‘tukar bulan’ & ‘tukar tahun’ is in progress. My question is, is this believe Islamic or not? If it is an Islamic tradition, why is the ‘bulan’ & ‘tahun’ based on the Gregorian calendar and not based on the Islamic calendar? Our verdict? Aaqil got the flu because we exposed him to the rain for too long, so it was our mistake and not the ‘bulan’ or the ‘tahun’. If it wasn't our mistake, then it's just time for Aaqil’s immune system to fight the flu so his bodily defense is ready to fight the next one. If neither, then GOD knows best, our task is to recover him fast rather then bringing in this ‘new’ belief into Aaqil’s and our minds.

Try this, sit among yourselves and openly ask one another the things which we always practice and do without questioning the motives. I bet there are a plenty which we just do not want to admit or face the issues…

GOD knows best… not me… not Omar…

Saying the right things at the wrong time?

2006-06-16T22:35:00.000+08:00

"Ani." Omar called my name when I was engrossed reading a book.
"Yes!" I replied. "But whatever it is don't touch me!" That was my second reminder to him as I was having my ablution on waiting for Asar prayers.
With his puzzled looking face, he looked me straight in the eye for a moment, and when he got back to his senses, he replied, "I've forgotten what I was supposed to say."

I might have missed what he wanted to say, maybe he will if he remembers again, which I bet he will, but I have asked him again several times today but he still couldn't recall what he's supposed to say to me. With that monotonous tone of his, usually he wants to tell me something good or he is wanting me to do him a favour.

Hmmmm, maybe he wants to say he loves me??? Trust me, not in a million years, before and after. He has never uttered those words to me, again, before and after. He is capable of saying the nicest of fabricated words but never "I love you". At the same time, he is also capable of saying the harshest in the most gentle way.

His belief of 'love' is too big a word for human use that humans themselves couldn't give a proper definition for that word, most of the time caused a confusion on my intuition. Most of his facts are true. I am not going through that topic this time round as most of my dear readers will have an emotional conflict with his statements and will later repercussioned to me. But one thing for sure, he believes his actions are always louder than his words, so I have accepted that his actions so far has proofed that he loves me... heh heh.

Ok, back to the topic header. He, at one time, has frequently reminded me to not 'saying the right things at the wrong time'. I remembered at one of our many discussions on a meal when he said, "Ani, you are so capable of saying the right things at the wrong time." Of course at that particular point of time, my left and right cortex were contemplating on what he actually meant. But somehow or rather I begin to understand what it means... literally.

So, where will this topic lead to? Well, it could be meaningless if you don't look beyond its meaning. To me, what I've learnt, saying the right things are not always appropriate if the timing is bad. Its either you wouldn't get your message across or worst it will hurt someone. But for my case, I did make my husband forget what he's supposed to say.

My Orchard Road Outing...

2006-06-09T22:03:00.000+08:00

Last Monday, I had a chance to meet one of my cyber-friend cum asiaparents group member, Haznita and her wonderful son, Danial Wan. Since I have been participating in this group, I have gathered some good knowledges about parenting especially the breastfeeding topic. I met Haznita inside here and since there are not many Malays around, I emailed her and she responded. She is an ex-engineer who gave up her career and big salary to look after his son. For more stories do visit Haznita's website.

As usual, I always enjoy outing and meeting new friends. After a quick breakfast at McDonald's Forum Galleria, we proceeded to Toys 'R' Us. Both kids had so much fun till Aaqil refused to leave. Haznita was looking for Lego Duplo for her son. A little bit indecisive about the price, we both decided to look up at Legoland Takashimaya which is 10 minutes walk from Forum's. Danial was lucky since Haznita has decided to get 1 box of Duplo basic and 1Duplo Aeroplane. I wanted to buy also but Aaqil just got his Thomas train from his uncle (my brother) currently attached in London. So until he got bored with the train, I guess I hold on first. I still had some memories of playing Lego when I was small. But girls will always be girls. I remembered I made bricks into a house and arrange the Lego plants and small flowers hehe. But till now Lego is still an expensive toy but surely it lasts long. So it is worth it to buy plus the kids can learn to be creative. Both of us shared mother's stories and tried to motivate each other to be strong on being SAHM.

I then reached home merely after Asar and we proceed to Lolo and Lola's house (thats in Filipino for grandpa and grandma). Aaqil had a bit of silver fish porridge and I had a bit of rice with fish head curry for an early dinner. Went back before Maghrib. I could not sleep that night knowing that Omar would be home the next day. I fell asleep around 1am finally, wondering how Omar would look like after a month. Yes, he did lose weight and looked more "handsome to me lah" than before hahahah...... lack of food? Nah, he managed to do some work out before coming home... ;-)

Family Cycling Time..

Aaqil was the most excited and still is after Omar came back. He always clings to his dad. Yesterday we went cycling together to eat prata (roti canai) ala Jalan Kayu in Sim's Drive early in the morning. The prata was nice and sweet and crispy, reminded me of one shop in Puchong. Singapore and Malaysia had different taste of prata and of course Malaysia's version is nicer. But this one has a unique taste though...

A month without U...

2006-06-05T00:22:00.000+08:00

I thought at first, I was suffering from depression but I considered it mild. Last week, I had been having bad dreams, anxious feelings, crying for no apparent reason and all symtoms of depression. BUT, after i menstruated, all gone. Gone the days when I was nauseaus, sweat, generally unwell, sad and lazy for no reason. Menstruation itself is a complex process that involving hormones, body and brain.

I think I know why. I should not blame my period. It has been my best friend for almost 20 years. It is because of Aaqil's father not around leh.....Ha Ha..Anyway, he will be back in less than 24 hours woohooo...and what shall I cook on the day he comes home? "kari ikan bawal? Asam pedas? Nasi Lemak ?? Or just "masak minah" *evil grins*

I had taken some "medications" to cure my problems and it worked (Praise to Allah). Well, I have to admit I hate to see a doctor. Normally, if any of us sick, I will search on internet on the info abt the symtoms, home remedy and prescription on the sickness. So when I see the doctor, normally they will repeat what I read on internet:) It is true!!! I will waste money and my time. I have a great book that I read more than 10 times already, The book title is " How to raise a healthy child in spite of doctors" By Dr Robert S Mendelsohn.
Oh ya back to my medication on my "depression", I just browse all the nice photos when we were honey-mooning together in NZ and Australia. Sure, it has brought the happy memory back. Happy person where got sick one? Oh ya besides photos, I went swimming with Aaqil, did a few laps while my MIL 'jaga her cucu'. Exercise does bring the stress level down. I actually did not take any pain killer for my headache and nausea, but I did eat some briyani kambing after being forced by my in laws. Surprisingly, I healed!!! ha ha..

Aaqil was 3 months in my tummy!!! No wonder he likes cows and sheeps..

Swimming session at MIL place...

2006-05-25T22:16:00.000+08:00

This afternoon, I met my MIL outside and we decided to go for swimming session at Geylang East Swimming Complex ,a 5 mins walking distance from her house.This was our second time there. The complex had just been renovated and not many people hanging around. My MIL bought a nice wetsuit for her, muslimah design but she was a bit shy although her tummy is much flatter than mine haha. Anyway, since not many peple around, we kinda conquered the whole pool that meant for parents and kids. Aaqil had so much fun inside the pool. Although he is still in "play play" stage but I saw him try to float byhimself. Maybe he remembered swimming and floating in my tummy. He also tried to submerge on his own many times. Clear sign that he will not end up like me. I only know a little bit of swimming skills after married and only frog style. Ha ha...Better than nothing!!

Since Aaqil looked so tiny in that pool, he attracted many attention and some kids came to us to join Aaqil. Some shared their swimming skills and some told me to exercise his leg. It took me by surprise when a 10 year old boy came to me and ask me to help Aaqil with his leg movement.

3 of us had a really good time though. Deep inside, I told myself, maybe I did not share passion like beauty, shoes, accessories or make up with my MIL, but she is cool in a way that she will support activities that I love to do. I am glad that when my husband is not in town, she is there to be with us, to heal my love-sick for Omar and she will come out with many options to make my time occupied with Aaqil.

After a simple dinner at MIL house, I left with Aaqil by cab. A small tragedy happened. The cab I took collided with a lorry but Alhamdulillah, both of us are safe. But the stupid driver asked us to get out from his cab immediately because the lorry took off. He wanted to chase him. I got the plate number but I am not sure whether to make a complaint or not. He still asked me for 5 bucks and yet, I did not reach my house. I must walked another 10 minutes with a sleepy head baby. Anyway, my MIL was dead worried after I called her to tell what happened. I guess when you are in another country, you will feel a little bit relieved when someone cares about you when tragedy struck.

Tired,
Take care all..

Early participation for small kids..

2006-05-22T14:18:00.000+08:00

I have a great helper who is very enthusiast with household chores. Thank GOD. The best thing is I dont have to pay him at all and he kinda do it very well. Everyday, he helps me wiping my wooden floor and put the dirty clothes in the washing machine. He understood that his mom hates messy place so after playing he will put his own toys in the basket and books on the shelf.

Lately everybody was asking me when can Aaqil have a playmate. Well, how to get pregnant if I am still breastfeeding my 22 months old son exclusively plus my other half is not in town now haha!

Ok back to my topic, the belief that a family unit should have at least one girl is not completely right anymore. It is just the matter of training your kids (even boys) early and make them feel responsible in their own place. I try to make my son believe that he is capable of handling simple chores around the house and deep inside I pray to God when he grows up, he will know how to help his immediate family and later his wife and kids.

The early participation in household chores was deemed more important in their success than any other factor, including IQ. On the other hand, if children did not begin participating in household chores until they were teenagers, the experience seemed to backfire and had a negative effect on their success as young adults.

Aaqil can't really speak yet. He only utters some words and a short phase like "It's hot" or "juice is nice" but one day I hope he can say fluently after giving one household chores this " Mommy believes I can do it" . Just be patient when they are a little bit slow.

A father's love..

2006-05-10T00:35:00.000+08:00

"The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother"

- author unknown -

A day on the farm..

2006-04-04T00:03:00.000+08:00

One of the video that Aaqil likes to watch is "Baby McDonald - A day on the farm" by Baby Einstein. He loves the puppet show and the theme song of course. If I need a 45-min rest to read newspaper or do my own things, I will put the show on. Watching a video or whatever they called education tools for babies, it is known as passive learning (but it is still learning) and I have been waiting for the right time to show him what is a real farm and see and feel the real animals. And God granted my wish last Sunday when my family and my younger sis went for a short getaway to Ostrich Farm at Telok Ramunia, Johor, nearby Desaru.

We first had our lunch at Tebrau Mall, well although the name is so not catchy, but my sister said it was the largest in SEA. I did not had a chance to shop for anything as my better half is on my back. Actually some tops from Elle caught my attention but from outside the boutique, I heard Omar said "Why do you still wanna put on baby's tops? They are meant for babies and not adults..." Anyway I was totally aware of that but window shopping is no harm. Exercising that is!!! Anyway after we had our lunch at Secret Recipe, Omar already signalled me to go, he just cannot stand the shopping complex environment and even though my adrenaline shopping hormone was just about to rise, I decided to leave also since the crowds were building up. Aaqil had some good time at the Jusco indoor playground park. It was so huge but no camera allowed so no pics of Aaqil being bullied by other kids. And the breastfeeding room was excellent. Lots of room and clean. I am so glad that Malaysia now is encouraging breastfeeding. Did I tell you that most government offices in Johor now have one breastfeeding room for the working moms and visitors. My Malaysia, truly asia, I am so proud of being Malaysian.

We straight away headed towards Pengerang using trunk roads. It took us almost 90 mins of driving. Upon reaching, we found an eating place near the seaside. Had 'mee hailam' which was really spicy yet delicious. Aaqil had chinese fried rice and deep inside I was hoping both Omar and him will not get diarrhea. It was just me..because I know I can take most food but not Omar. He has a very sensitive stomach when come to new recipes.

Finally we reached our final true destination. This ostrich farm has more than 300 oastriches. They started with 20 from South africa. Aaqil was frightened at first looking at the strange huge birds which were quite friendly. They had some tamed ostriches and all of us had a chance to touch and give them food. Aaqil was really entertained and me and Omar endlessly talking to him, introduce him to chicken, monkeys, roosters, baby oastriches and other kinds of birds. It was really a great experience too to feel ostrich eggs. We can step on the eggs if we are less than 100 kg and it will not break, on sand of course.

Bottomline, for right now, whatever trips we are planning, are meant to be for Aaqil and the trips planned had to be as educational as possible for that young mind. We do encountered some who didn't believe that the young ones will understand at such an age. Well, I don't know about them but thank GOD, it has worked for Aaqil, for he has pronounced 'Ostrich' as 'Oos-tert'.

Visiting the Love Boat at Punggol Marina

2006-03-25T19:28:00.000+08:00

Omar never once believe in surprises. If he gives me something as a gift, it has never been gift-wrapped. True enough, he will never give me anything on my birthday or my anniversary, if he thinks I deserve something, he will give it anytime he likes, on no occasions, it was hard for me at first, but I am ok with it now. To him, occasional dates have no significance, he even tends to forget his own birthday at times, so I think it's fair.

What is the relation with this blog topic? Yep, this morning he gave Aaqil and myself another of his pre-planned surprises. We left early morning to head down to Punggol Marina Country Club where a client turned friend of his was waiting for us with his wife and boat, both as lovely. John, from America, Nina and their yatch, there must be a name for their lovely yatch. That was the first time I went into a yatch in Singapore after Boston. The marina is smaller than Boston Harbour though, but nice serene view surrounding it.

The weather was not so friendly as it was really hot at 8.30 am when we arrived there. Nina, John's wife is a Philipino who sailed with him for nearly 13 years. Well, I really have high respects for a woman like her. They never had a home on land and their boat is their home. That means she has to give up a lot of woman thingy like shopping. But shopping is nothing as compared to the travels all over the world they've got and the total freedom they earned on the yatch.

Aaqil was uncomfortable at first with the new environment in the boat or maybe John looked a little alien for his eyes. He was cranky and clingy. I was unfortunate too as I already felt sea-sick although that boat was not moving. The water was calm according to John but I still felt giddy and sweat all over. So we both decided to hang out on the deck while John and Omar were inside the cabin discussing about computer issues.

John and Omar later joined us on the deck and we chatted for quite a while. I was curious on how they live their lives. At first I just couldn't figure out how will this couple survive without land, I mean without a proper home built on stilts or concretes, what about their social lives and the questions went on. But upon listening to John and Nina, I believe the word 'proper home' is not something where everyone agrees to. To them, their yatch is their 'proper home', they lived their married life in it and they are both not only happy but have long ago accepted that this is their life. A kind of life where you will be held responsible over what you are going to do and you got no one to point your finger to.

I left with a lot of input in my mind. For those who think people with yatch are leading an expensive lifestyle or you must be expensive to be one, once again WRONG, please think again. On our way back, Omar asked me what would be the things that I would dream to do in life that others will find abnormal? I am still pondering about it but one thing for sure I hope we will start our true life journey soon... God Willing...

Super Grandparents..

2006-03-22T02:35:00.000+08:00

Aaqil's greatgrandma told me that she was sad for not seeing us for almost 3 weeks. I really felt bad especially when I saw Aaqil reluctantly wanted to 'salam' her. I guess for a toddler to be confident and comfortable in one place, he/she must visit that place regularly. Anyway after we convinced him , he finally agreed to kiss his "Yot" and we took a nice picture together. I told myself, I should not make her wait for Aaqil too long. Aaqil is lucky to have a loving grandma and greatgrandma. Because he is the one and only grandchild to my MIL at the moment. No competition yet.
Nyai (Aaqil's grandma), was preparing Aaqil's favourite dish, chicken soup with rice. She then brought us out for groceries shopping and insisted to pay for everything I took. I took lots of junkies like 2 big tubs ice creams and chocolates. Anyway, thanks Mak!

My mom in law till now still decides to stay single. I pity her but after 4 years, I realized that she is happy the way she is doing now. Maybe her previous marriage experience was too painful too bear. Some people will have to go through unexpected scenarios.

As for Aaqil, he is lucky to have 3 great-grandmothers (2 in MY, 1 in SG), 2 grandmothers (both in SG) and 2 grandfathers (1 in MY, 1 in SG). Don't try to figure out which is which, unless you are willing to spare your analytical time. So failed marriages do provide something extra for Aaqil..

No Make up and Maid Without Make-up!

2006-03-18T00:24:00.000+08:00

There is blessing in disguise why I am married to Omar. He personally thinks make-up is not necessary and I am lazy to make up. The only time I really had a make-over was 4 years ago. Well, it did not make me feel good though as most people don't want to believe the couple in the picture is us. Even my FIL's wife asked me why I put on this couple's picture frame in my living room. Oh my...
I seldom (simple lazy is the word) make up though I have mostly everything on my dressing table. Hey, I use "Bobby Brown" because I think I am "brown and sweet"! Ha ha!

I was advised by my MIL to dress appropriately so as not to be mistaken as a maid to Aaqil. However, some still thought I am a devoted Philipino maid to Aaqil.
If anyone asks me whether I am from Philipines, I just said 'no' and kept quiet. If I am lucky, Aaqil will utters "mama, mama" in front of them and they will feel ashamed of themselves. Action speaks louder than words. Sometimes I just could not understand. Rather than they think I am a maid, why can't they ask whether I am a mom first. Anyway, that does not matter anymore because I really cannot be bothered with these type of people, I just find them ignorantly funny.

Another funny thing that always happen to me when somebody knock on my door. When I open they will be asking for the owner of the house or 'my parents'. Normally they are real estate agent or sales man. Huh...Don't I look like I can attend to them at the door?

Well, I was fore-warned that grooming can make your husband love you more and more. Well again, some uncertainties are best left unanswered. God knows best...

Aaqil on the Drums..

2006-03-11T18:54:00.000+08:00

I saw him banging on plates and pots one day and I thought maybe drumset is a good idea for this habit and hopefully become his learning tools. I find Aaqil entertaines by his new drumset although sometimes the repeating sound he has been making very annoying. But all toys make an annoying sound I guess.

When it comes to music instrument, drum is the easiest to play, just give it a smack. A friend of mine told me it can give a baby sense of order, discipline and equilibrium.

I hope my neighbors will understand his new toy. Just one of them asked me whether we heard any bang sound and loud music at 7-8 am in the morning. Huh!! Who else?? Father and the son.......

Aaqil's Paternal Grandmother and Greatgrandmother...(Re-edited)

2006-03-06T00:11:00.000+08:00

Hot topic nowadays is "Bila la nak kurus?" (that is "When will you/I slim down?" in Malay). I remembered those days when my nikah (wedding solemnization) was just around the corner. I was presurrised by my colleagues and relatives asking me to lose at least 5-8 kg. They had used harsh words and sarcastic remarks to make me realized that my body was "tembam" (plump) during that time. Enough headaches with the hectic wedding plans, I did not want to get a migrane by calculating calories and skip meals. However, I was just an ordinary girl who was excited on becoming somebody's wife. Happy person eats a lot right? So I had never lose my weight till I actually gave birth to my son. I have lost weight now however, due to breastfeeding since Aaqil's birth. Although my weight should only be 47-49 kg, but I am blessed with my weight now. As long as I can fit into size 28 (size 8) jeans, I don't have to starve myself.

Omar has been encouraging me to exercise regularly, he is more to me keeping fit as a result and not exercising just to lose weight. He actually never complaint about my looks and body. However, by him being quiet does not make me feel like I should abandon my agenda to be slimmer. I am amazed by the way my MIL 'jaga badan'. She is 52 now and still look great and active and weighs only 52 kg. Don't talk about my SIL. She resembles Kris Dayanti or model Rachel Hunter. Both are hot hot woman!!

To my dear friends who are now on diet, count me in too. I really envy (I mean good envy) my MIL's small waist!! Let's diet towards healthy mind and body. On top of all, we all should be realistic on our target..Good luck girls!!

Aaqil was 16 days when this pic was taken with his grandma or in javanese "Nyai"

Aaqil's great grandmother or "Yot"..She is now 86

PS: The word 'diet' or 'dieting' literally means 'to eat and drink according to a regulated system, especially so as to lose weight or control a medical condition'. And 'diet' never ever means 'eat less' or 'starve yourself'! A 'healthy diet' simply means 'eating within your means' or rather 'eating what your body needs'. If everybody watches their diets, than their diets are automatically healthy, but we tend to eat beyond our means at times, or worst, all the time. Well, reminding myself too, that is the reality in difference between 'I need' and 'I want'.

2006-02-26T20:37:00.000+08:00

Our Sunday today was occupied by our picnic in Sentosa, and yes Aaqil did have his wonderful time at Palawan Beach, just one of the few beaches in Sentosa. Accompanied by Omar's dad and his wife (auntie), the trip was made more fabulous with Auntie bringing her Chicken Curry delicacy, though without coconut milk to make it sound healthier, but it is still rich in mount-watering taste. Healthy to begin with not until I finished up 2 pieces of chicken together with the skins, well that was the unhealthy part? We were supposed to be expecting some guests from Manila to join our picnic but they later called it off due to their insufficient time as they were rushing for their last minute shoppings for they have to fly off the day after. But no food went to waste, all were taken care off biologically.

Aaqil did help...

We got Aaqil a new float for him to rest himself on the waters but it took us quite some time to convince him that this float is safe. After a few planned distractions and some sand plays, he finally agreed with our theory and belief. Soon, there he was, back to his water crazy mood, alternating with his version of sandcastle buildings.

then... he was convinced!

Did you see his sandcastle?

The crowd started building up after Aaqil's short afternoon nap, people of different walks of life lighting up Palawan Beach, bikinis, trunks, naked babies, I mean real babies. Took a walk with Aaqil to the claimed Southernmost Point of Asia Continent. A suspension bridge linked where we were to that small island where at one point Aaqil stood and watched an Indian romantic couple with the woman in her traditional saree in their utmost passionate mood lying and rolling on the sand. Aaqil must have wondered why didn't his parents allow him to roll on the sand too?

when the bridge swings side-to-side, he does too...

136.01km from equator

Well guys (if you have something to comment about babies and their effects on water/sea spirits, please save your breathe or fingers if you are typing), picnic with baby is fun but it could be not if you didn't equip yourselves with picnic essentials, imagine you were there without diapers? Sounds exaggerating? Well it does happen to people around me.

Here are some tips of mine, might not be fool proof if a tsunami heads your way though, God forbids! And one more thing I need to exaggerate before I begin... 'PICNIC' as in the dictionary means 'A meal eaten outdoors, as on an excursion'. But there are still those who always relate picnics to beaches? Wonder why... anyway, here it goes...

My tips :-

Plan your trip simple, so it's easy to make last minute adjustments, remember, you have a baby with you, too much new sights and sounds will over stimulate the baby, and make them sit too long instead of letting them running around at their own energetic place will understimulate them? So balance up...

- Diapers, all depends on the age of your baby, you'll know how much to bring including spares

- Blankets, they are multi-purpose, you may use it for comfort, shade, warmth, for baby to lie down bla bla bla

- Ziplocs, handy for soiled diapers, dirty clothing, shoes bla bla bla

- Baby wipes, handy for fast baby clean up and other clean ups too

- Tissues, if the mess to clean up is too expensive to use the baby wipes

- Extra clothing for the baby, definite!

- Sun hat, if your baby is ok with something on the head

- Food for the baby, babies might not like your picninc food though and they can't wait till you get home to eat...

- Slings or carriers if you use one, great to have both hands free!

- Plan where will your baby sleep on his picnic nap, if he needs a crib, bring one?

- Stroller can be handy too

- Camera, unless you want no pictures, OR so that your baby has something expensive to play with?

- Importantly, the way you pack your bag, separate babies stuff and other picnic stuff, or you'll confuse yourself, and please DON'T carry 6 big bags just for a 1 day picnic...

For more professional tips, pls visit babycentre.com

tired, bye

2006-02-14T01:22:00.000+08:00

Three of us had a long day today in JB. Omar purposely took leave to accompany me to do my new IC and run some bank errands. We managed to kill 2 birds with one stone. I met up with Aida's sister as she had some stuffs from Aida for me. Aida, thanks so much for the lovely gifts and souveniers and of course the fish.

Ila and Aaqil got along well...

I have not met Ila, Aida's sister for almost a year. She has been great I supposed. Glad to meet her again and we did have a small chat in her room at Hotel Rasa Sayang which was coincidentally near the building where I did my IC.

Omar was a bit pissed off with a few government officials there. He said all were sour faced when he came across them. Not too sure if he look too Singaporean. Didn't our PM encourage to be "berbudi bahasa" when handling with any people? As for me, I had been trying my very best to converse in my sweetest voice as much as possible with them, but the result, they would look back at me sarcastically. I rather keep my mouth shut then, losing my temper to these people are not worth while at all.

We hang around in JB, had so much 'makan-makan' . From roti prata, nasi lemak, ABC, Japanese tako pochi, pretzels, secret recipe and lots of teh tarik. My khaki pants felt tight on the way back. Felt like puking too. I have to really obey what our prophet said . " Eat when you are hungry and stop before u are full".

We went back with KTMB train. Met one JB woman that seeked my help for her to apply for PR status. She lives in Tanjung Pagar and by making one new friend, I will have another place to recci next time. Tanjung Pagar railway area still belongs to Malaysia. Omar has been pastering me to recci there, but I was so scared with the long grass that had not been maintained there. I am sure there are snakes and crawling animals :). Now I can stop by at my new friend's house and Omar can recci the small forest on his own.

2006-02-13T00:40:00.000+08:00

Believe it or not one of our favourite hang out place in Singapore is Chinatown. Yes, typically Chinatown in all over the world is associated with gangsterism, dirty place, crowded and 'no halal food to be found maaa'. I have been to several Chinatown in States, Europe, Australia and NZ and comparing to these, Chinatown Singapore can give you lots of surprise.

I have several reasons why I like Chinatown.

1. I can get the herbal ginseng there for my chicken soup which superbly delicious. Just put the herbs and whole chicken. It is healthy and yummy and my family loves it.
2. There are several halal food restaurants/stalls and frankly, they are not just halal, they are incredibly delicious and they maintain the cleanliness of their places.
3. A place to run away from 'Malays' , and I mean racist Malays who think chinese is a bad race.
4. A place where I can buy cheap stuffs for my house. I can spend 3-4 dollars and bring back one big bag full with household items.
5. Omar and I were born to love Chinese food.
6. There are some historic mosques and temples around as well as religious events.
7. Auction street everywhere.

Having said that, I remember one saying, "To be a perfect person in this world, you must married a Japanese woman ( because they will obey you ), live in France ( one of the beautiful country) and eat Chinese food (because it is damn delicious and healthy) . Oh No, I only eat chinese food but that is good enough!!!

Ain't nobody perfect in this world.

Today we went there again to be a "kay-poh" family for their 15th day Chinese New year Celebration. No, don't get us wrong, we are not celebrating with them, we just want to see the fireworks and the crowds.

Aaqil loves indian food too but this 'luxury food' only can be eaten once a month...

We had a great early dinner at one of the halal indian restaurant called "Taj Indian Food". We ordered Tandoori chicken, fish beriyani, fried brinjals and the indian style potato vegies. It was very fulfilling and we definately will come back. I did not get anything today as most shops were closed for their celebration but yes, I had a great time this weekend, again in Chinatown.

2006-02-11T23:40:00.000+08:00

I have been following Tagalog telenovela 'Sanay Wala Nang Wakas' since 3 months ago. The drama is good for me to kill my time as I really admire Jericho's look. It is typical love drama about a rich guy who fell for a poor gal and they both had twists and turns before they became together. Yes, I know that watching drama is not good so I am taking the opportunity to learn Tagalog language so that I can converse with my FIL's wife. Although she can speak English fluently, I make her laugh whenever i try to utter some simple phrases in Tagalog. Laughter is a good medicine especially for a cancer patient like her. Now we both have more to talk about....... about the prediction of the ending of this telenovela though I already knew the ending which I got from the internet.

'Kuya Bernard had a wrestling session with Aaqil'

Today we had a visitor. Auntie Aida (my FIL wife) nephew from Philippines. A 21 year old boy but very street smart. He is here to work as a Management Trainee in Royal Sporting House. He speaks with an American accent and to my surprise he was telling me about the history of Philippines government until Gloria Arroya made public recently to abolish presidency. I was really impressed with his knowledge about politics and everything. Wish Aaqil can grow up being street smart and not paper smart alone.

After fulfilling dinner..

Omar bought some popiah from 'Qi Ji' for tea time snacks. Auntie Aida and Bernard enjoyed it very much. We had so much to talk until they decided to stay for dinner. We bought mutton soup, mee goreng and fried rice mamak style for dinner. Again this health concious boy enjoyed it.

All of us plan to meet again at Sentosa Island this coming 26th for a picnic. Was wondering, what will I cook?

2006-02-03T01:25:00.000+08:00

Fat and happy!!!

I just weigh myself...I gained 2 kg. I guess the reason being is that I have been eating outside for the whole week since Najwa is around. Although most of the time, she is hooked in front of my notebook chatting with friends, her presence really made me feel less lonely. I have been too obsessed with nurturing aaqil and some of my freelance jobs and with her around, things are getting less stressful than usual.

Anyway, Najwa has been experiencing toilet phobia in Singapore...just like some of my friends that visited me before. Hardly we can find a toilet with water pipe in public toilets here, just like any other countries which muslims are minority as far as I am concern. But our religion has made it simple and convenient for everyone to clean themselves and maintain our hygiene. Using a tissue as a rough object is not wrong. Well, here I will lay down some of the solutions to use the dry toilet.

1. Use wet tissues or baby wipes which we can find everywhere. It also comes in a small packet thus convenient to put in a small handbag
2. Wet the normal tissue you find in the toilet. Wet as much as you can from the sink outside.
3. Use the handicapped toilet. There are sink inside. (The handicaps will hate you for this?)
4. Do your business at home and drink less (and get dehydrated and die under the hot sun?)

I am glad that after some advises, my sister finds my techniques for dry toilets are acceptable to her.

Last but not least : You can't be fussy when you use public toilet and we have to understand the toilet cleaner's predicaments if the toilet is not clean. Just imagine if you are a house owner and your guest made your toilet dirty...How will you feel? So it is our responsibility too to help our public toilet clean be it in Malaysia or anywhere else. And do thank the cleaner if you ever bump to them.

After using a toilet in Chinatown....

CNY with Najwa

2006-01-29T13:27:00.000+08:00

First of all, Gong Xi Fa Chai to my fellow Chinese friends....

Introducing my youngest sister, Najwa...She is 20 years old and in relationship with a skinny guy..She is now in her first year in UTM.

We went downtown to experience the unusual quiet shopping malls and streets. Traditionally, on Chinese New Year Eve, those who celebrate CNY will have their reunion dinner. We were at the Fountain of Wealth in Suntec City Mall. We joined other tourists to circle the fountain wealth. We saw some of them determined in making their wish.

My sister loves the picture above. So I have to put it for the sake of her to show off to her friends who have not been to Singapore :D

Aida, Kakros & Sofi in Sing...

2005-12-27T12:22:00.000+08:00

Omar and I brought all of them to Fort Canning Park, the most historical place in Singapore. Aida and Sofi were pretty excited about climbing this hill.

My friend Aida did not expect we would bring her to climb a hill. But she had endured climbing almost 100 small stairs with her demure dress and 2inch high heels.

After breakfast at Yakun Kaya Toast- Singapore style breakfast, we had a nice walk to Clark Quay. The weather was nice and not many people hanging around. So we decided to take a cruise with boat or 'tongkang' to esplanade. It costs only 5 dollars and we had a real great time. Kakros decided not to take the boat with us as she was afraid of vomitting. Anyway, Aida and Sofi had a good time in the boat and I was so happy to see them enjoying themselves.

Aida told me that the view at Boat quay reminded her of Brisbane and "someone". So I decided to bring her to have seafood dinner there. It was her treat. Thanks. We had a nice seafood dinner near the river and the view was so fascinating.

Aaqil was enjoying his meal, rice and beancurd hotplate.....

Fort Canning Park

2005-12-19T23:35:00.000+08:00

Last Sunday, we had a nice eventful day. After a fulfilling breakfast at Long John Silvers, we accidentally found a free museum, the Civil Defence Heritage Museum near the foot of Fort Canning Park, our 2nd destination, the most historical place in Singapore. Initially our plan was to jog and recce this place but we then we ended up like a tourist, taking pics non stop . I hope you enjoy these pictures and if you visit Singapore, please do climb up Fort Canning, it is worth the calories burnt.

At the Civil Defense Heritage Museum, free admission

"strategic British battleground command centre during WW II. Many underground bunkers & cannons are built here..

This could be 'Sang Nila Utama rest place, the founder of Singapore...

Aaqil always prefers outdoors and the green scenery ...

View from the hill...

I notice Aaqil is musically inclined. He was enjoying himself with this toy keyboard. Well, i am going to let him decide which path he charters, guided of course...I remembered when I was small, my late mom had financial difficulties sending me to piano lessons. After which, somehow I realised she also opposed the idea of liking music. Based on researches, kids are using both their left and right cortex when they play piano, exercising their problem solving skills. I am sure every kids are born different though, and telling them to like what you like .... hmmm... I think its inappropriate....

Part 2: Aaqil in Malacca and PD

2005-12-15T00:14:00.000+08:00

Some people said it is a hassle to bring small kids travelling. I beg to differ. With Aaqil, our travel is such a great and fun experience. Aaqil definately was enjoying himself discovering new things, new place and new people around him. The best thing is I don't have to pack much things since he is a breastfed baby.

At the seafood dinner night in Malacca, my friends were discussing on being a SAHM. A friend of mine then said " ...you are a stay at home mom because you are committed and omar can afford for u not to work". Again, I beg to differ. The reason for me to be a SAHM is solely my decision as I wanted to explore motherhood with my own hands. If we plan well, money will never be the barrier for any SAHM. I hope, at least for 2 years I can look after Aaqil myself until he weans off my breastmilk. I strongly believe that my sacrifice of 2 years being a SAHM will be paid off. Back to the seafood, the tempation of "ikan bakar" and variety of seafood were hard to resist. Since we dont have a maid like others (we decided not to), we took turns to eat. That is part and parcel of being parents I guess, till he can sit and eat together on the table with us.

Wahir and family and helper

Look at the damage we had done

The next morning Aaqil woke up with a smile on his face, although he knew the surrounding was different. Me too, as I was expecting a close friend and an old classmate to come to my room. We had a decent breakfast and Aaqil had a swim with his dad.

Thumbs up!!..thanks Auntie Aida..

We then proceed to Wahir's place. The curry mee and porridge were delicious. Thanks to the host for a spectacular hospitability and care. I did have a great time with all the anserians. Though it was short but definately I left Malacca with a sweet memory.

Omar wanted to try the trunk road so we left early to PD. On the way there, we found a nice stall selling banana fritters and chendol. We stopped and ordered so much banana fritters and the seller had fun chatting with us.

"..nice serene place to have a snack...."

The first time I read about Corus Paradise, I thought I will not have a problem there. Apparently, I was wrong. The service was bad and slow. Omar almost lost his mind when he could not find the bell boy with our heavy luggage and other staffs seemed to ignore our problem, since we were not allowed to park at the drop off point and the available parking lot was like 100m away. Maybe they are too popular and the house was full that day. Their tone was never friendly with us. Putting those petty things aside, we looked at the fun things we did....'catching the sunset" and walked around the beach.

Despite the service, the view of the horizon cooled us off...

How bad can our travel be?? No matter how bad we screw up, he will there to cheer us up...

Part 1: Anseri Gathering in Malacca

2005-12-13T02:44:00.000+08:00

I am actually too tired to write for now as I have just arrived Singapore but I hope all of you enjoy these pictures, courtesy of the host, rimaugirl and my camera. Be back for more...Last but not least thanks to all...Fantastic and memorable meeting after so long....

Batch 7 Anseri gals

"Beratnya hati nak meninggalkan mereka sob sob" ..Last pose before I left to PD

Sexy?? Up for grabs!!!

This is how we describe 'muka kekenyangan'

Aida looks so refreshing with her new hair style, Paroe as usual busy and look how Aween maintains her figure..

2005-12-05T00:45:00.000+08:00

I believe in good and evil spirits indeed. Sometimes I ask myself why some Malays close their doors ONLY at dusk (Maghrib) so that the evil spirits will not enter the house? Closing the doors will not prevent the evil from penetrating the house. Then I squeeze my tiny wheeny brain.... trying to find the logic behind it. Maghrib is the shortest prayer time and everybody should be in the house in order to fulfill our responsibility as a Muslim. But why our elderlies created those reasons? Well.. today my topic is not really about the spirits, genie(s) or satans...

The 'good spirits' at the beach, having serious fun with one another...

Last Wednesday my beloved son was hit with vomitting. I consider myself as fortunate because Aaqil hardly gets sick. Normally if he has a slight fever, I will just have to breastfeed him and monitor his temperature. But that fateful day, being alone and helpless, I finally decided to bring him to Children Emergency Dept at KK hospital after a series of vomitting. The queue was long and after some drama, I managed to cut the queue. After being checked by the pediatrician, Aaqil was put on observation for 3 hours and finally his vomitting stopped. It did not end there because after his medication he was hit by diarrhea at home. The next day I was hit by food poisoning after my FIL brought over some mutton beriyani. The smell of indigested beriyani is still haunting me. I guess I will not have beriyani for the next 5 years. My vomitting was so traumatic that I will have to say it was similar to my labor pain.

I believe anybody in my sick position with a sick child will need moral support. Unfortunately, some would choose to criticize rather than giving support. I am sorry to say that in my case they were all known to be women. Instead of helping me or give me some constructive advises, they blamed on our beach trip last weekend as a reason of Aaqil got the vomitting. Our outing was on Sunday and Aaqil was hit on Wednesday. So how could that be? And the best part, some believe there are bad spirits along the beach. Yes I do believe in the existence of spirits. It is everywhere, not just beaches.

Aaqil showing off his underwater skills...

Aaqil will definately get sick sometimes as he grows, I'm thankful to God for giving me the knowledge and strength to go through his entire sick period, but why 'all these women' think baby cannot get sick huh?? My very close relative even asked me to stop breastfeeding when she saw me bringing Aaqil to the toilet every half an hour. What a pity to be ignorant? Didn't they know that breastmilk will shorten the diarrhea? Diarrhea can last up to 7 days but in my case this time, Aaqil's diarrhea stopped after 2 days with my countinuous breastfeeding, thank GOD!

Notice his happy face in the sea? I really hope, actually I knew I am doing the right things. I don't want him to grow up being afraid of the things made up by our old folks. By making him enjoying outdoors, God willing, he will grow up to be independent and appreciates the beautiful GOD-created nature. GOD-created 'nature' which includes forests, mountains, rivers, beaches with sea water, the peaceful and dark nights etc... but all these places/times are often related by people as 'dirty', full with roaming spirits... I wonder why... These roaming spirits are afraid of residential estates that you feel so safe at home??

To all my friends, GOD has created wonderful things on earth and whatever beyond our knowledge, and you want me to fear his creations? Yes, at times I do fear the unseen, ghost etc etc, but my religion teaches me to fear nothing but GOD, and that is what I have to fight for. You believe in HIM, seek protection from HIM, and HE will protect you. But if you believe that the spirits and ghost and etc etc is more powerful than our CREATOR?... you must be joking......!!

E L C

2005-11-25T02:37:00.000+08:00

eArLy LeArNiNg CeNtRe

Just another groceries day at Carrefour and checked out the newly opened ELC, besides their other branch at Paragon. But of course, quality toys do have quality prices, developmental learning toys that is...

with all these toys available for play, Aaqil won't need one at home...

Yeah, he won't need one at home, rather than spending lavishly on unnecessary 'I-want-to-have-it-mommy' toys, I would prefer taking him outdoors and let him learn what he sees and experiences. Furthermore, he is at a stage of dumping his belongings, nothing will last with him, got pretty bored easily. Yes, for now I told him to talk to strangers....

Aaqil interacting with an ever-friendly ELC staff; whom enjoyed entertaining him...

At the end of the day, we both enjoyed ourselves, productively, we are always learning about one another and always will, I hope. For me, observing Aaqil's character changes day by day, and his way of expressing things, give me lots of chances to understand and appreciate his growth and disciplining him will be 'our' next task-of-honour!

Yeah! We made it this far...

Once Upon a Time in MRSM Perlis....

2005-11-25T01:16:00.000+08:00

Having chicken rice on a weekend in Kangar town

(from Left: Yang, Ija, me, Has & Aida)

Our dormitory

Dedicated to my friends...

A friend in need is a friend indeed? Well, some might not agree with that... anyway... It all started on one of the early days in college when an important piece of paper fell down the drain. That paper contained signatures of our senior students in that college. Though it might sound stupid, but 'freshmen' or 'freshies' were required to obtain a number signatures of senior students during our orientation period. Noor Yang and Rosniza went down that drain, despite the 'drainy' smell, to rescue that piece of paper. Yes, that paper belonged to me, who was a stranger to both of them at that time. They found me crying by the drain not knowing how to rescue that poor piece.

That was how it started, we became close and spent most of our times gossiping about arrogant seniors and hoping they would trip and have a stupid fall. Not all negative gossips though, those interesting ones included describing how handsome those senior male students were. And everybody would get excited when we had close encounters with those male seniors, the mosque was located near the male dorms, and our sincerity and faith towards our prayers in the mosque was questionable!

As a 'freshie', we were not supposed to look up whenever a senior male student crossed our path, and greet the female ones with a salam. Those things continued for about a year till those senior students graduate. Well, we had our chances too when we became senior students, 'freshies' came to us for signatures and being greeted them. Thinking of it now, that was extreme disciplinary measures, unsure whether those systems will work now though.

Back to the friendship formation, I later introduced Hasniza into the group, a hometown friend. Noor Yang gained her popularity as a debator, and later introduced Aida, also a debator, to complete the circle. 5 of us became best of friends through our college lives.

Now all of us is leading our own interesting life. I don't wish to write more...as we know our stories well...Just to let all of you know..I was lucky to have all of you as 'True Friends'.

Those were the days : Having maggi in my room 406, Block Anggun, Mrsm Perlis

2005-11-21T01:24:00.000+08:00

"Life won't be interesting without you around..."

We are extremely lucky that our home is within walking distance to Kallang Riverside Park. These park connectors have been built on both sides of Kallang River, it is a heaven for water sports enthusiasts. Today, we had a nice exercising cum nature walk. What a wonderful day it was without having to spend any monies on shopping and expensive meals! Aaqil was entertained and amazed by the scene of canoers and waterskiers and 'dragon-boaters' practising and proudly displaying their skills.

The park is full with trees and palms, of course and that decorated its landscape. I did not put on sports shoes, sports sandals instead, I missed the chance of a full jog.

Aaqil relying on that stroller after he realises how exhausting he is walking non-stop for already 20 minutes...

After dinner wih Bapak, my way of saying thank you...

2005-11-18T02:24:00.000+08:00

My Neighbourhood Babies...

Everytime my neighbour from upstairs passes by my apartment with her baby, I would secretly feel it is time to get a second one. Her baby is so chubby and adorable. Since Aaqil is a toddler now and getting busy 'in his own world' , I am considering for him to have a 'sparring partner'.

But the thoughts come and go...

My mind is still fresh of the trauma of my labor. I was unlucky to be in the delivery suite for almost 22 hours as I went early to the hospital due to false labour pains already contracting every 5 minutes. The hospital did not allow me to go back as I was already in my 42nd week. Normal pregnancy term is 36 weeks to 40 weeks. Well, I am sure if I am in Western countries, it is normal to be at 42nd week, but KK hospital totally opposed active birth, only DOCTORS will make decisions for you. I then fought for natural birth and rejected any forms of induction and drugs. They had to agree on my birth plan and I had to sign a disclaimer. Sure, I signed it happily as the life of me and my unborn child lies in GOD's hands and not theirs!!! My labor was actually what I wanted only that, it was long and painful. I still remembered Omar argued to those doctors that offered me epidural or do anything that could speed up my labor.

After all, I will leave it up to GOD to decide on my 2nd one, since HE decided my first only after 2 years of marriage.

Anyway, today I had a surprise visit from San San and her kid-son Ben. They are my neighbours from upstairs. I was so happy to hold the huggable Ben for the first time. He is 3.5 months old. Aaqil seemed so happy too to see them. He got excited though he was sleepy and tired. Ben, a breastfed baby looks so healthy and already weigh 7kg. I then flipped some pics of Aaqil when he was 3 months. Was wondering whether Aaqil was that size when he was 3 mths. Yes, he was as per pics below. Fat?? He was also developmentally ready to use Bumbo seater, the fact that I can say his head was already strong at that time.

For me this product is an awesome invention...(Aaqil 3 mths old)

His inquisitive looks, aiming for the camera (3 mths old)

Ben was enjoying himself on Aaqil's bumbo seater

Besides Ben, I have another baby that lives next door. We call her Yu Xi and she is 11 months old. Aaqil loves to sneak out of the house to play her toys.

"Yu Xi spent time with Aaqil on his 1st B'day"

I believe that Aaqil will never be lonely in my neighborhood. I normally get very impressed to those who are planning to have 10 kids . One of them is my friend, Pang5. Anyway he is expecting a 3rd one. Congratulations again and fertility not always counts.

Aaqil in Action..

2005-11-13T18:07:00.000+08:00

Aaqil, pls pose for our relatives, mommy's friends and fellow bloggers....wherever you are.....!!!
Aaqil is 16 months old today....How time flies!!...and I am getting old too....Yeah!!

He always insists on self feeding...

Smile for all....

"What could be more important than making our boys into good men? Doesn't the whole human civilization kind of depend on it?"

-A teacher at workshop on the moral development of boys

Complain Letter to Tan Tock Seng Hospital..

2005-11-13T02:16:00.000+08:00

A gentle reminder : Do not mess with a breastfeeding mother when it's time....

Dear Sir/Madame,

I am writing this with diffidence and considerable regrets. It would be discourteous of me not to give clear indications on why I am writing this feedback but it would be impossible for me to do so without seemingly causing offence.

On the 9th November 2005 at 1700hrs, I accompanied my father-in-law and his wife to your A&E Dept as he was having intense giddiness. His wife is a discharged cancer patient of yours and she is not physically healthy, thus that is the reason for why I have to accompany both of them with my 15 month old baby.

Though I was advised by several friends that it is not suitable for babies to be in the hospital for long hours due to many reasons but I have to take this responsibility as my husband was working at that time and no one was available to see my father-in-law to the A&E. He was put on observation for several hours and was later discharged at midnight.

Sir/Madame, this feedback is nothing about complaining long waiting hours but the attitude of one of your attendants working during that time.

I am a breastfeeding mother to my baby, and I do understand there are no nursing rooms in the A&E and I don't have any problems nursing in public. But, that eventful evening, my baby was so active that he tended to skip his nursing times due to the active movements of people in that area and I need to seclude him for a moment to breastfeed. Upon going around and couldn't find a secluded area, I asked one of your friendly cleaners if there is any discreet or secluded area so I can nurse my baby 5 minutes. He allowed me to use the staff pantry, though initially I can see he was hesitant or maybe afraid to allow me to use the staff area. Appreciative of his kindness, I entered the staff pantry to have a quick feed for my baby, and yes I was truly aware that area was out-of-bounds to public, and I decided to leave as soon as my baby had quenched his thirst.

The moment I entered and was about to lift up my blouse, a male attendant barged in and raised his voice asking me what was my doing in there. Of course he did startle me and my baby, but I told him that I have asked permission from one of the staff. To my surprise, his response was that, "He was only A CLEANER!" Now my question is, what did he meant by saying I got permission from only a cleaner? Was working as cleaner in TTSH a low-life job that an attendant was allowed to insult him just like that?

Controlling my disappointments, I told that attendant, I just need to nurse my baby, but I was already ready to leave after given such a treatment, although in the end he gave in and allow me to nurse for 5 minutes and I saw him scolding the cleaner after that. I did apologise to that considerate and thoughtful cleaner for risking his job and allowed me to use the staff pantry.

With all due respect Sir/Madame, it might be my mistake for crossing the staff's boundary, but I have no choice to make, my baby needed to breastfeed and I just need that 5 minutes. But the way I was treated by that attendant and the way he insulted a TTSH cleaner was totally unacceptable.

I was previously so impressed by the positive attitudes of your staff since I have been to the A&E several times noticing the hot drinks served by your nurses to the waiting patients and their relatives but that incident totally changed my perspectives. Nobody was so approachable that eventful evening, but when I found one, he was in returned insulted and in fact scolded, in public, an act of inhumanity.

I am not taking these matters any further, but I hope you can advise your attendants to behave professionally in public eyes to uphold and maintain the service quality of your hospital.
Thank you for taking your precious time in attending to this feedback.

Sincerely,
Aminah Azirah Azmi
(S 7581778 I)

2005-11-10T20:23:00.000+08:00

Eventful Day..

After learning that my FIL was having giddiness and terrible headache since last night, I got myself ready to join them at Tan Tock Seng Hospital today. Aaqil and I arrived there by cab at 4pm and I straight away called my FIL on his mobile asking his whereabouts. Before that, I was told by a friend not to bring Aaqil to the hospital as you never know what are the diseases people are carrying there. I totally have a mix feeling whether to be there or not, initially. At A&E (Accident n Emergency) Department, I met my weak FIL and his wife. His wife whom I called Aunt Aida is a filipino. She is a nice person who can play piano well and likes to entertain me and aaqil with food. Unfortunately, she is not somebody who is strong when it comes to problem. She totally freaked out today fearing that something terrible could happen to my FIL and she has no where else to turn to. Without wasting my time, I helped my FIL with the registration. I saw the fees on the board...I told myself .."waliaauuu so expensive...registration 70 sgd...how about those who does not have money and in emergency" Anyway, my FIL is a civil servant and he definately doesn't have to pay hospital fees, just like in Malaysia.Time showed 5.10pm and I knew I would have to wait real long. Always the typical expectations for semi-government hospital. It is impossible for me to leave a freaked out lady. So with an almost 10 kg hyper-cranky baby, I was trying my best to make Aaqil feel accomodating in the hospital. Aunt Aida had been with my FIL most of the time and I was in the waiting room doing nothing. Every 10 mins I would see an ambulance bringing in a patient. I was having goose bumps most of the time seeing blood and body fractures. As time went by, Aaqil was craving for my milk. He had been lifting up my shirt to get his milk. I looked around...Oh No, I did not see any sign of baby room. Well then, Aaqil's mommy would have to breastfeed in public. But then I decided to ask a malay cleaner lady whether I can use any discreet room for me to nurse for 10 mins. She did offer me her store room. I should not have complained but then it was cramped and strong disinfectant smell came from there made Aaqil so uncomfortable and refused to nurse...So I went out. I was searching for a best seat to breastfeed in public but the crowd made me so uncomfortable with horrible sights of sick patient. There was one group of Tamil gangsters who were involved in a fight and 3 of them were bleeding. Closed one eye, I tried to latch on but Aaqil got so distracted by the noisy environment and keep pulling his head away from my breast that made me so uncomfortable and of course I had already attracted some ppl to ogle me. I am sure they could not see my breast but they kept ogling. I then approached one indonesian looking cleaner who was smiling at me. I told him I need to nurse my son in indonesian dialect. Without any hesitation, he asked me to use an empty pantry room right in the end of one corner. Thanking him, I straight away went there as Aaqil already made so much noise asking for my milk. When I was about to close the pantry sliding door, one big built man suddenly appeared and asked me in a high pitch voice " What are you doing here? Dont you see the signboard saying it is for staff only" . Panicked and totally surprised, I said " I did ask one of the hospital staff. I just need to nurse my son for a few minutes while waiting for my FIL in oberservation. We have been here hours already!!!" I tried to explain to him courteously. He then said, "You were asking a cleaner. He does not know anything". I stared at him, now not because I couldn't breastfeed my son, but because I was furious he insulted 'a cleaner'. At that time he was wearing normal clothes and I did not know what is his position. I told myself, this arrogant bastard will get it. I then carried Aaqil and wanted to leave the room, I stared at him again and he said finally " ok..only 5 minutes" Putting my furious ego aside, I stayed back and nursed Aaqil. Immediately after I was done, I went to look for the nice cleaner-guy (well I am sure he will be blamed by his colleague for letting me to nurse in a staff room).

Fortunately, Omar arrived in the hospital so I can take a breather. I just could not wait to tell Omar what had happened to me. Upon telling Omar, he asked me to point out which one. I finally saw him again, but now with a uniform. He is only a hospital attendant doing general duities. Omar then went near him, bent down his head to have a close look at his name. I was sure that he noticed my conversation with Omar. He did not even bother to approach us and explain so we definately will proceed with the complaint to the hospital.

I may sound telling people that it is troublesome breastfeeding in public but nursing is a beauty art on its own. You can do it perfectly if you are at the right place at the right time.

Aaqil had been cranky and hyperactive. I was exhausted catching him running here and there. He also seemed to be not afraid with strangers. In a way it is good but still I have to teach him on how to behave.

My FIL has been finally discharged from the observation room. Time striked midnight and we took a cab home.

2005-11-06T02:11:00.000+08:00

3rd Syawal Every Year !

3rd Syawal 1422H- Solemnized

I believe I am among the few women in this world who has never and never will receive a flower from their husband. Everytime I see woman happily holding a bouquet of flowers in her hands with her facial expression full of excitement and love, I will look at Omar's face and give him my sour look. Hell, he knows why I do that everytime and he will give me the same answer. " You will never get it till I die". After 4 years of marriage, I am already used to the fact that my husband will never give me any flowers for he says life is NEVER bed of roses, if there is one, then that's not life.

There was one time I got scolded by my aunt for calling his name "Omaqqqqqq". Let me tell you, a Kedahan gal, like me, speaks quite horribly in the ears of other soft spoken tribes perhaps, in kedahan terms they call it 'loqlaq' or rude. Well, something that I cannot change when he refused to be called 'abang, darling, honey, sweetie...and the list goes on..' as he prefers to be called by his own name. So if he does not hear me, I will scream "Omaaaqqqqqqqqqqqqq come here" . Some elderly cannot accept the way we communicate with each other. Besides using 80% english and 20% malay words, they probably think we are friends rather than a husband and a wife.

4th Annivessary-3rd Syawal 1426 H

It takes a strong will to follow him and reside in Singapore. It was not easy at first and I thank God for giving me strength and determination to be his wife.

To my husband: I thank you for your patience all these years.. May this marriage be blessed by God. Aameen!

Our product & Gift from GOD - 15 months old

Eid Mubarak...

2005-11-03T01:24:00.000+08:00

I am taking this opportunity to wish 'Eid Mubarak' to whoever you are wherever you are...

Ramadhan & Bird Flu...?

2005-10-30T23:12:00.000+08:00

Swans? Geese?

Today we had a major change of plan. Initially, we planned to clean the house and make it look neat for the coming Hari Raya though Omar and I believe, the house should look neat and clean everyday. But then we decided to go to Jurong Birdpark and ignoring the bird flu outbreak news.

Excited although at the back of my head I hate to leave my house in a mess, we took public transports to get there. The weather was not really friendly as the heat soared. Arrived at almost 3 pm, we managed to catch "Bird Show". It was amazing how they trained those birds to do things what we thought they couldn't do.

Aaqil seemed to enjoy the show very much. As a mother I am relieved that my son likes animals. I do encourage him to know animals because I remembered the first flash cards I bought for him are about animals.

Jurong Birdpark, also popular for its highest man-made waterfall in the world. For the fanatic bird watchers, this place could be heaven.

Aaqil naturally loves water just like other babies I suppose. So it is not difficult to make him walk on his own with the park surrounded with pools and ponds. Enough to tire him and easy night sleep for him later on.

Conclusion... I believe it is not a good idea for some Malays to do outings during Ramadhan, but to me... what is the difference shopping in the heat of Geylang Serai in one hot afternoon comparing to a serene walk engulfed with nature in its best outfit to soothe our busy souls. Bird flu? Well, we are more confident on the health status of the birds over there which are sterilised and taken care at their best.... comparing to birds roaming around our estates which are not sterilised at all? Anyway, bottomline, if bird flu strucks, you don't have to be in Jurong Bird Park to be infected by one.

2005-10-18T00:10:00.000+08:00

Dedicated to my 'late' Mother whom I called 'Mak'...

Family pic taken on Eid '04,

Back row from left: Firdaus & wife Rodiah, husband Omar & me,

Front row from left: Najwa, Ayah (Dad), Mak (Mom), Farid

Since I got married almost 4 years ago, I was very curious abt the way I was brought up by my mother. It was because I already started 'trying' and I thought of learning from my mom first, then exploring myself through books and internet.

I remembered when I was in Primary 4, my second brother always went to school with my mom in a car, and the best part, my mom was my brother's class teacher. I never got a chance to be with her in school. I was sent away to Convent Primary School in Kulim and I remembered exactly how pissed I was when I felt like my mom spent less time with me as compared to my brothers. And what I hate most, taking 2 buses to reach my school every morning and my brother would have the comfort inside a car with my dearest mom.

Lesson 1: A child will be happy if mother is around for him/her, thus I will make myself as available as possible at home whenever I am needed...

Secondary School: Mak sent me to boarding school after I made her proud in my SRP exams. Why?...Why?....She said, "I want you to learn to be independent!" I remembered I asked her,"Will my younger brother goes to boarding school too?" She then nodded.
But he never went to boarding school after all. His school was 10 mins away from home and it was a better school than MRSM during that time.

Lesson 2: I will let my child decide his/her study path according to his/her level of interest...

As a result, my SPM was not as good as expected. The day I got my result, I saw my mom cried. Maybe her friends' kids got better results than mine. I was sad too though I knew i suck academically. But God is great, with those results, Mara offered me to study in Boston, a place I never had dreamt to go. I remembered I started to become rebellious when I was a teenager and always talk back when my mom advised me.

lesson3: Fully equip yourself when your kid turns teenager. They might give u heart attack! Bottomline, it is your upbringing that will affect most of his characters until he develops his own...

After a few bad relationships and series of datings, finally I found my partner. Mak was so sad when I first introduced my so called bf, She cried and asking me whether I was sure to stay in Singapore. Among things she said "too far, negeri kafir (secular country), how often can we see each other, will u get a job"..and so much questions and I tell u..I almost crack!...But I am sure, I am now married to him because God has given his permission to.

After 2 years, I finally got pregnant in Ramadhan 2003. I started to feel how difficult carrying a baby on my own...I felt love sick for my mom and pestered to Omar to go back to Kedah as much as we can...

A few secrets revealed when I went back to see my mom.

1. I was not a breastfed baby
2. I was taken care by my granny who told my mom that her breastmilk was no longer fresh so she should give me formula milk.
3. My mom felt bad and depressed after giving birth to me because of the strong traditional confinement method and that affected her milk supply too.

Lesson 4, GOD willing, no mater what, I will breastfeed my baby without any intervention from anyone.

As a result of not consuming breastmilk, my IQ is not as good as my siblings, just kidding?. She only realised the importance of breastfeeding only after she had her 2nd child onwards, I was the eldest.

When I was 6 months into pregnancy, I went back again to kedah to see my mom..I always missed her and talking over the phone was not good enough. She gave me some "oil and barut" for my usage and she apologised to me for not being there with me. She had phobia of high rise apartment and I totally understand. Firdaus got a kid earlier than me and my mom looked after my nephew. Well maybe I have grown up and got real. I actually did not feel jealous of the fact that my own mother will not be with me during my labor. In fact, I told myself, lets be proud for not 'susahkan mak'. And I did it, just the 2 of us for labour and post pregnancy, no interventions...

There were times during my confinement days when I felt panicked and I would quickly called my mom and my mom would scold me..." brocoli angin, sawi putih angin, mee sua angin..everything you choose angin and u cooking it!!! " Adehhhh....Nasib baik I did not get postpartum blues....

She is gone now...

I managed to fly back when she was diagnosed with stroke but her brain got already clogged. I was so sad inside for not being there with her all these years, to listen to her, to drive her around....She was 63 then. 1st Dec 2004, she passed away with a smile on her face. I have to accept that God said its time for her to go.... God is merciful.

Now she is gone and I do really miss her. The fact that she has never been to my home in Singapore made me more sad...

To my beloved mom...May your soul be with GOD....!

Aameen...

2005-10-16T04:51:00.000+08:00

Aaqil in Bangkok

View from Baiyoke Sky, the tallest hotel in Thailand

Although the trip to Bangkok was in March '05, I feel like writing it as the journey was the most memorable one, bringing our baby who was 7 months at that time, tagging along Omar for his work trip.

The 2 hours journey inside the flight was pretty smooth as little Aaqil had fun mingling with pretty stewardess and other passengers. At some time he would feel cranky especially when he could not bear the ear preassure on flight and I just have to lift up my nursing top and breastfeed him..So much easier and convenient while travelling.

We arrived in Bangkok at noon and the arranged transport brought us to Baiyoke Sky Hotel. Yeayy..We had a pretty big room and Aaqil seemed so excited. First thing, Chatuchak Market...I was thinking to get my country kitchen stuffs....and some clothing. But upon reaching there by toog-toog (my cap flew off my head on the way here, strong wind, strong speed generated by the toog-toog) I was so tired to browse through thousands of shops there...So ended up with nothing...

2nd day, headed to MBK and Siam Square. I did some window shopping there and we had dessert in HRC Bangkok..

Luncheon at HRC Bangkok

3rd day, swimming time for Aaqil at the hotel pool. We were amazed by the fact that he was not afraid of water and could float by himself. It showed how true that baby started swimming in mommy's belly and that skill will last. After freshening up, we took the train to Sukhumvit and Patpong Market. Had dinner at a restaurant totally opposite the strip club...

Look mommy, I'm swimming..!

I have been to several countries, but I love Thailand...A friend told me that her family will never travel to places like Thailand or Jakarta (tak main negeri2 panas)...But what I am looking forward now is Jakarta and of course to revisit Thailand with little Aaqil. To me Asean countries are exotic in terms of food and treatment.

Hello...It's me!!!

2005-10-16T01:46:00.000+08:00

Greetings from Singapore!!!

Peace to you..!

I finally decided to start blogging to be in par with my 'bloggerholic' friends. You will find out who they are on my link list.

Friends and family called me by many different names such as Minah, Ani, Azirah, Mink, Min....but I actually prefer my first name Aminah....I feel wonderful when people call me that...I was awarded a kid-son and we named him Kadin Aaqil Omar. We nicked him Aaqil and he is such my dear and I thank God for letting me explore this beautiful journey of motherhood.

So basically my journal will be mainly on Aaqil's development, and my experiences as a breastfeeding mother to a 15 month old son to date and parenting issues.
I hope I can share with you wannabe mothers the beauty of becoming a parent and a wife.

Aaqil and me at Boat Quay

Last but not least, I would like to thank my better half for being there for me, for endlessly doing his research on breastfeeding and its benefits (yes, he is more into breastfeeding than me only that he has no mammary glands) and took care of me and Aaqil during my confinement days (no moms and in laws in my case), and also for sacrificing his 2 months income to be with us and everything you have done is greatly appreciated. With all that, I managed to cook my own post-pregnancy internet recipe meals a week after giving birth...

Aaqil practicing his first few steps on the grass