I survived

Was going through my old blog post from 2009 (here). Just wanted to say (if its not obvious enough already)..I survived..alhamdulillah..

But not a day goes by that I don't imagine what it would be like if he was here.

Al-fatihah my dear son. I miss you.

Sunshine after the rain

It has been a hectic week.

Suami has an event in Perlis and is there for 10 days since last Friday. And during that, things at home are pretty hectic especially in the morning. My mom has to take up another extra role as my designated driver to and from the LRT station on top of sending and picking up CKD from school. Forever greatful for her.

There has been some emotional turmoil as well (not including the emotional turmoil because suami is not around). Some troubles from my family and the passing of suami's favorite aunt.

Al-fatihah mak chak..semoga ditempatkan dikalangan orang-orang yang beriman..

I'm never good at dealing with death. I don't know how to react or maybe I just block it out of my mind. So I spent the day distracting myself with work and other things that I've put on hold (like registering to be a graduate member of BEM!)

And the trouble(s) from this family of mine..sigh..

God, please grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, to be brave enough to change the things I can and to have enough wisdom to know the difference..

It rained cats and dogs that day. As heavy as my heart was crying.

But the sun shone so brightly the next morning as I was getting to work. I have never seen the sun shining so brightly in the city like that..

Source: google

And just as bright as the sunshine, there just might be some good news for me - career wise. Which I guess will only be disclosed when its confirmed. But just the thought of it brought sunshine to my heart and my self-esteem..

Insyaa allah..

May the sun shine brightly in your hearts as well..Happy Weekend!

Tag 2013

For rawkstar mommy..

1. In baseball each player gets a “walk up song” that plays on his way up to the plate. What song would you pick?

Wake Me Up Before You Go Go - WHAM! Hahaha! So old school! I blame my Glee addiction :P

2. What’s the best thing that happened to you last weekend?

Went shopping at H&M with my sister and our girls. Totally went nuts over the kids clothes..But it wasn't entirely because of shopping..more of the bonding with my sis and  CKD with her kakak min. Priceless.

3. If you could have a starring role in any film already made, which movie would you pick?

Any of Angelina Jolie's action movies..but as one of the SATC girls would be just as great! Those SHOESSSS!!!!

4. What actor/actress would you have play you in a movie of your life?

Hmmm...can't think of any now. Drew Barrymore?

5. What is your favorite quote?

"I told you so!" :P

6. What was your first concert?

Peterpan from Indonesia. Fun and scary at the same time..the band was awesome. The crowd? not so much.

7. What Internet website do you visit the most?

Gmail..heh!

8. Which of Snow White’s 7 dwarfs describes you the best and why?

Happy, Doc, Bashful, Dopey, Grumpy, Sneezy and Sleepy...hmm...lately I'm such a mom I guess I'll go for Doc.

9. If you were on death row, what would your last meal be?

Last meal..aiyo..rice?hahahahahahah!

10. What is the background of your computer?

Company logo..yawnn! I used to put CKD's pic on the background of my personal laptop, but I found that it tends to distract me by making me miss my babies so I have changed it to the English countryside because I wanna go there one day.

Everybody's Free (to wear Sunscreen)

Today I drove to work for the first time since I started. Suami was still in JB and it would've taken too much effort to find alternative ways to get myself to the LRT station. So I drove.

Traffic was not so bad for a Monday morning. Last week was even better because of the school holidays, but yeah..its not last week today isn't it?

The thing I miss the most was listening to the morning radio show while driving to work. And listened I did. Found out a few days ago that Lil'Kev was back on air with Red.fm together with JJ for the morning show. So I got to listen in. They were talking about the pranks they used to pull and how they don't do pranks anymore coz it just gets them into trouble. Glad these guys are not on the prank call bandwagon..I hate those prank calls the radio people do.

One point to note, I love the songs these guys choose to air..old school stuffs. But one song or rather speech they aired in particular was 'Everybody's Free (to Wear Sunscreen) by Baz Lurhmann. A song with a speech that I'm gonna share here and let it speak for itself..a good reminder..

Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '99,

Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis or reliable then my own meandering experience.  I will dispense this advice....now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind, you won't understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded, but trust me in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall in a way you can't grasp now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous 
you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future, or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubblegum.

The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind: the kind that blindsides you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts; don't put up with people who are reckless with yours.

Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy.  Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind.  The race is long, and in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive; forget the insults. (if you succeed in doing this, tell me how).

Keep your old love letters; throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life.  The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives; some of the most interesting 40 year olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of Calcium.  Be kind to your knees -- you'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't.  Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't.  Maybe you'll divorce at 40; maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary.

Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself too much or berate yourself, either.  Your choices are half chance, so are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body: use it every way you can.  Don't be afraid of it or what other people think of it; it's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance...even if you have no where to do it but in your own living room.

Read the directions (even if you don't follow them).

Do not read beauty magazines; they will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know your parents; you never know when they'll be gone for good.

Be nice to your siblings: they're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but what a precious few should hold on.  Work hard to bridge the gaps and geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard.

Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: prices will rise, politicians will philander, you too will get old; and when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble, and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you.  Maybe you have a trust fund, maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse, but you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you are 40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it.  Advice is a form of nostalgia; dispensing it is a way of wishing the past from the disposal--wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts, and recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen. 

On that note, I just bought myself a new book (realized that Times Bookstore accepts the book vouchers :P) Dear Me, more letters to my 16 year old self) Haven't read it yet so I can't review it.

Dear Me. More Letters To My 16 year old Self

Apparently, this is the 2nd version. The first version seems to have more big names. Will hunt for it soon.

Dear Me. Letters To My 16 year old Self

Seem to get attracted to 'advices' from the future for the past..maybe I'm reflecting on my 'colorful' past..many things that I would've done differently. Maybe I should write my own Dear Me letter and pass them on to my daughters..

Happy Monday guys!

Burden us not with that which we have no ability to bear

Just a little something I'd like to share with everyone. Life is definitely full of challenges and trials and none of us is an exception. But this is something that can serve as both a dua (prayer) and a reminder for us.

Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:286
Source

Which bears the following meaning:

Allah does not charge a soul except [with that within] its capacity. It will have [the consequence of] what [good] it has gained, and it will bear [the consequence of ] what [evil] it has earned. "Our Lord, do not impose blame upon us if we have forgotten or erred. Our Lord, and lay not upon us a burden like which You laid upon those before us. Our Lord, and burden us not with that which we have no ability to bear. And pardon us; and forgive us; and have mercy upon us. You are our protector, so give us victory over the disbelieving people."

So, have patience everybody and remember that you will not be challenged beyond your capacity..You are strong enough to endure this..insyaa Allah.

Take care!

CKD's Little Rosebud Village

My little CKD has a massive imagination. A few months ago I noticed her playing with my collection of Starbucks Bearista Bear magnets that I collected way back when I was still working in Starbucks. Have no idea what stories she was making up because she was telling it in her own language which sounds mostly gibberish to me. Now she doesn't speak gibberish anymore but sound totally like a big small boss.. -

"Okay mama, enough. No more"she says when I'm having some of her juice.
"I taknak! (I don't want!)" when we tell her to go have a bath
"Pigi mandi! (Go shower!)" her way of telling us to go away..don't ask!:P
"MY teacher say put in my bag" to tell me that she brought back a book from school and its in her bag..
"Naiya kacau Keisha!" fibs she tells when she wants her baby sister to leave her alone. Yes, she calls her baby sister Rania - Naiya

Her vocab has improved a lot. And also has some mandarin and spanish thrown into her vocab thanks to Dora the Explorer and Ni Hao Kai Lan.

So anyway, over the weekend, we went to Mothercare in Subang Parade just to window shop at the Christmas Sale that was going on. And little miss CKD discovered the Rosebud Village set. After some negotiations with the little boss, I finally submitted to getting her the Family Doll set comprises of a mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, big sister and a baby.

Rosebud Village Family Dolls

 She instantly associated the doll family to our family with the grandparents being my mom and my FIL (need to get another grandma to include her mak tok!)

Since it was on sale, I managed to get the dolls at RM40 instead of the normal RM60. And as I was paying for the dolls, the salesgirl asked if we already had the dollhouse and she said that it was going at a really cheap price of RM300 (cheap kee????!!!) I politely said no and declined. But she passed me the sale brochure which included all the other sales items anyway.

Rosebud Village Dollhouse

Suami got a hold of the brochure and immediately snapped photos of the dollhouse and sent it to his mother. So I asked him why is he sending the photos to MIL. He explained that she has been wanting to get CKD a toy kitchenette that costs about that price range but he declined because CKD was prone to destroying it. This based on experience when a cousin of his gave us her daughter's kitchenette set and yes..CKD ended up tearing it apart.

But this dollhouse we knew was going to be different. And so MIL replied saying its a go to get CKD the dollhouse and she'll reimburse us for it.

When suami told me so, I got even more excited than CKD! LOL! Because the dollhouse is originally RM699 and was only going for RM300 and it was beautiful! I immediately called the Mothercare outlet in BSC and booked a set because the one and only set in Subang Parade was already booked. They said I could come and pick it up Sunday morning because I had class til late on Saturday.

However, my class somehow ended early that night and when suami picked me up from class together with the girls, I said why don't we just go and pick up CKD's dollhouse straightaway. I could sense suami was just as excited coz he was so eager to get home and assemble it and didn't even allow me to help!

With the parents excited, you can just imagine how excited CKD was seeing her father putting the dollhouse together!

With all seriousness!

We also managed to grab a dining set that was going for RM60 (from RM105) when we paid for the dollhouse so CKD was ecstatic getting her dolls to sit down and eat.. kept on calling us "Mama! Sit down eat!"

Dining Set

That night, she slept with her dolls. It was the only way we managed to get her to go to bed.

Making sure the dolls are sleeping next to her

So from now onwards, I'll be collecting these Rosebud Village items to complete the house furniture and maybe when there's a sale at mothercare, maybe we'll proceed to other Rosebud Village items like the farms and hospital and school *faints!*

I have started a VERY expensive hobby and toyset for my CKD but seeing how she appreciate it (she's still not bored of the dollhouse even after playing with it day and night for the past few days! The longest so far! She'd normally start to terrorize her toys after a few hours of playing with it!) makes it all worth it. And honestly, I'm even more excited to get them for her because they are so cute and well made! Would've gotten them for myself but that would have been useless wouldn't it? ;)

So the rest of the Rosebud Village Dollhouse furniture that will be on the list are

Top from left: TV room set, Bathroom set, Kitchen set
Bottom from left: Figurine set, Kids Bedroom set, Main Bedroom set (got it!)

Can I make a wish list for her birthday next year?*hint hint*

Review: Richard Branson - Losing My Virginity

I have always been a fan of Richard Branson (read: Hollywood Bug). And recently, my choice of reading materials have changed from general fiction or chic lit to autobiographies or true account or motivational (sudah tua!) So my current read is Richard Branson's 'Losing My Virginity - The Autobiography'

A lot of people in my office that saw the title of the book gave me a funny look, because they didn't know who Richard Branson is..wth right???

But anyway..I can't seem to put the book down and always end up missing my train stop when I'm reading it (the only time I get to read is when I'm commuting to/from work) Its funny, personal and most definitely inspiring. He has been at the bottom of the wheel for many times in his career but has always persevered and took the risk to push harder. Obviously he's succeeded..

The thing about him that I discovered from the book is that he works crazy hard and a fair man in running his business, believing in taking care of his employees first, followed by the customers and then the stakeholder - which makes a lot of sense actually. He gets his inspiration and ideas from the surroundings, always wanting to provide what's missing or lacking in the current scene, wanting to make the world a better place. He sees the niche in the business and takes action upon it. Something I lack..taking action.

But most importantly, I think the secret to his success are the people that surrounds him, mostly his parents. They've been his biggest supporter right from the very beginning. If I were ever able to do the a piece on the success of Richard Branson, I would start by interviewing his parents. They've put up with all his adventures and pulled him out from his mishaps. Supporting him all the way.

I wish to one day be as supportive to my children as the Bransons were to Richard. Hopefully they'll be as successful as he is one day..

Most of the parts in the book that would make me laugh are usually of conversation or statements that Richard's father made..a excerpt from the book

More than anything, I marvelled at the sense of humour of the man who had seen it all! One fantastic example of this was early one morning on his birthday; we'd all just woken up and were quite grumpy after a night in the tent but Dad was beaming. We were all intrigued until he said: 'If I was Catholic I'd be doing penance today. I had the most wonderful dream. It involved a girl.'

'Did you misbehave with her?' I asked.

Quick as a flash Dad replied: 'I don't know what you mean. Well I behaved. She was outrageously naughty!' And this from a man in his eighties!

I haven't fully finished the book, on the last 2 chapter of it. Secretly delaying the book hoping there is more because I enjoyed it too much. Don't know if I would enjoy his other books as much as I've enjoyed this one, but maybe I'll give it a try after I've finished reading my Big Bad Wolf purchases! (made some delightful 'damages'!)