So Long 2010! Welcome 2011!

Another year has passed. A year which has all in it - the good, the bad and the ugly! All in all I think it has been a very good year, the highlight being our trip to UK which I have not finished blogging about! Will make it a point to complete my Summer Tales.

So long 2010. Looking forward to what 2011 has to offer!

Happy New Year!!

Goodbye

Tomorrow my maid, Cicin, will be going back to her hometown for good.

Having sent back two previous maids before, I was praying to get a good one as I was 7 months pregnant at that time. Rafiq and I instantly had a good vibe about her when she got along with Faiq the first time they met.

She knows her chores without being asked to do so, she took notes when my mother taught her how to cook during my pantang, she never "berkira" when she is at my parents or in-laws house, always lending a hand irregardless of whose child she had to attend to.

She takes care of Syamima like her own child, and Syamima dotes on her.

Tomorrow at 1.30 p.m. she will be leaving us. As I checked her bag, I got sad when I saw her constantly hugging and kissing Syamima. We then apologised to each other and I thanked her for taking care of our household for the past two years. I do hope that she will come back and work with us.

I wonder how Syamima will take her absence. As of now, she is slightly feverish.

I hope the person who replaces her will be as good as her.

Goodbye Cicin. You'll be dearly missed!

The Loss

My Mak Long passed away on 22 November 2010 at about 10.00 p.m. She was 81. Her death came 1 1/2 months after my Pak Long's death. Both of them passed away in the months of Eid, my Pak Long in Syawal and my Mak Long in Zulhijjah.

She had undergone a stomach operation and her health had deteriorated from thereon. I never visited her in the hospital. The last time I saw her was during my Pak Long's tahlil.

Alhamdulillah the funeral went well.

"To Him we belong, to Him is our return. Life in this world is only a sojourn."

Al-fatihah. Semoga roh Mak Long ditempatkan di kalangan golongan orang-orang yang beriman.

Amin.

Boey's Wedding

Photos taken during my cousin's wedding. Masa tuh baru tahu nama penuh dia adalah Izham Hadree.

TASHA'S RECEPTION

BOEY'S RECEPTION

Congratulations Boey & Tasha! Semoga kekal hingga ke anak cucu!

Diwali Weekend

I (supposedly) took leave on Diwali weekend as I had booked a 3-room apartment at Permaisuri Resort PD. However, because I had some work to complete before going off for my 6 weeks QA course in INTAN, I went to the office anyways. The plan was to leave by 12 noon but I ended up having to do work and left at 2 p.m.

Since Rafiq was working, I drove with Cicin and the kids. I left AD at 3 p.m., booked the tennis court at Bandar Tun Razak Sports Complex, set up the Garmin and was all set to go. After some major bimbo moments, I ended up passing the Sungai Besi toll at about 4.30 p.m. (I'm not so keen to share what the bimbo moments were).

We arrived at Permaisuri Resort at about 5.45 p.m. Permaisuri Resort is situated near the army camp and is a fairly new place. It has a huge pool and a private beach. I was very satisfied.

We checked-in and got ready to go to the pool. Since we arrived late, we only managed to spend about an hour there. Oh well, esok masih ada. We got ready for dinner and waited for Rafiq. Rafiq actually came by an express bus and took a cab from Seremban to PD. When he had arrived and freshened up, we left for Pasir Panjang for a seafood dinner. There, I had the best assam pedas EVER! It was so thick with the correct amount of spicyness..gosh, my mouth waters as I'm typing. The only drawback was the service which was very slow. Other than that, the food was decent. We watched tv for a while before calling it a day.

The following day, we spent the morning at the beach and the pool. We even bumped into our family doctor there. What a small world!! We checked out at 12 noon and made our way to aunty Leela's house in Melaka. Rafiq decided to take the kampung and toll-less route to Melaka so we got to see the beautiful tile stairs which is the highlight of the kampung houses in Melaka. We arrived at about 1.30 p.m., ate the Diwali delicacies prepared by aunty Leela and left at about 3.30 p.m.

On our way back, we saw a recently occured accident, involving a Rexton. I think the driver must've been driving fast. Luckily there were no fatalities. The victims were in their Diwali attires and it was sad to see a pregnant woman and a shaken toddler by the road side. The traffic was good and we arrived at DU at about 5.45 p.m. and left for home after Isya'. We were all dead tired but we sure had loads of fun!

It's Been A While

It's been a while since I last updated my blog.

I am currently attending a six weeks course in INTAN.

I expected that I will be able to blog as anything away from the office is good news but it's actually tiring.

Anyhow, will post pictures of my cousin's wedding reception, Faiq's concert and Aidil Adha soon!

Ciao!

RV

Off late I've been eating a lot.

This is the latest eating galore...

Coffee Bean's Red Velvet cake.

Taken with Cinnamon French Toast Coffee.

BLISS!

7 Sins of Chocolate

As the name suggests, it is indeed SINFUL!!! And comes with a cute packaging too!!

Here's what made up of the 7 layers. It starts with a layer of smooth chocolate ganache, a layer of chocolate cake, topped up with light and dairy milk chocolate mousse, a dusting of cocoa powder, a sprinkle of crunchy pure cocoa nibs for texture, and couverture pearls resting comfortably over the top!

The chocolates simply melt and linger in your mouth.

Get it from Delectable by Su at The Gardens or Pavillion at RM12.

Get well soon, Sir

Our PM tweeted as follows:

I have been advised by my doctor to avoid all public functions due to chicken pox.

Read more about it here.

Get well soon, sir.

Untold Stories

1. Quarter Final - Final matches of ATP Malaysian Open 2010 at Stadium Putra, Bukit Jalil

2. Kushairil & Lin's Bollywood Wedding at Hotel Singgahsana on 101010

3. IGEM duty from 12-16 October 2010 at KLCC

4. Lunch with UiTM mates at Tiny and Rizal's

5. Sabrina's 11th Birthday at BTHO

Fatigue

Today is Sunday Tennis Day for the Khans followed by lunch cum playtime at Kajang.

Hasilnya....

Anak-anak terbongkang kepenatan....hihi!

My 33rd

Alhamdulillah, last Monday I celebrated my 33rd birthday.

A birthday prayer for myself, which I googled.

Thank you Allah, for giving me another year of life.
Thank you for all the people who remembered me today by sending good wishes.
Thank you for all the experience of this past year;
for times of success which will always be happy memories,
for times of failure which reminded me of my own weakness,
for times of joy when the sun was shining,
for times of sadness which drove me to You.

Forgive me
for the hours I wasted,
for the chances I failed to take,
for the opportunities I missed this past year.
Help me in the days ahead to make this the best year yet,
and through it, with Your blessing and Guidance, to bring good credit to myself,
happiness and pride to my loved ones,
and joy to You.

Amin.

Of Ringtones

Early this week, the Hitz.fm Morning Crew discussed the topic of the ringtones set for your contacts. I am the kind of person who sets ringtones for everyone – my hubby, my family, my circle of friends. It is definitely useful for purposes of identification. The reason of choosing those songs to the group is based on the songs I have on my handphone.

So these are the ringtones set on my handphone :o)

Hubby – Toploader’s Dancing in the Moonlight

Home AD – Faiq singing Mari Mengenal Malaikat

D.U family – Spongebob Squarepants’ final score

Kajang family – Black Eyed Peas’ Mas Que Nada

MGHS friends – Dora The Explorer’s theme

SMDU friends – Maroon 5’s Won’t Go Home Without You

MSM friends – The Simpsons’ theme

UiTM friends – Spongebob Squarepants’ theme

KWP friends – Amazing Race’s Theme

Bosses – Star Wars Imperial March theme

My RnL and DPA friends all have different ring tones which are taken from Sony Ericsson’s tunes selection. My general ringtone is I Dream of Jeannie’s theme and the tune for my sms alert is The Temptations’ Build Me Up Buttercup.

Proud Mom Syndrome

Today is Faiq's kindy open day.

We all went at about 11 a.m.

His teacher said that he has improved a lot. It can be seen from his results. He may not be the best student but he has learned a lot this one year.

I am so proud of him!

Well Done, Faiq Khan!!

Hari Raya and Lantern Festival Celebration at Bintang Damai Kindergarten

Bintang Damai Kindergarten organised a Hari Raya and Lantern Festival celebration on 24 September 2010. Parents were welcomed to bring/donate food so I cooked fried macaroni for the kids. Faiq wore his baju Melayu and since I didn't attend the celebration (it was held on Friday morning) and I sent Faiq quite early, I only got to take a photo of Faiq and Harez.

Later that night, the kids gather again for the Lantern Festival. It was supposed to start at 8 p.m. but working parents arrived after 8.15 p.m. We had some snacks before the teachers requested the children to line up and light their lanterns. I was amazed that there are now battery operated lanterns. Ahhh..the victim of modern technology. I heard Faiq conversing in English with his classmates. Faiq lined up beside Rikshen, and I heard the cutest conversation:

Rikshen: Faiq, you hold my hand so you are my bestfriend.

Faiq: You are my bestfriend too.

As we were about to walk, it started drizzling so what is supposed to be a walk around the taman ended up as a walk around the padang. It started raining very heavily when we finished walking so the teachers had to cancel some activities. We went in the school to allow the children to play before leaving at about 9 p.m.

I had a great time and I bet the other parents and especially the children enjoyed themselves too!