Kids and Halal/Haram Isues

As a matter of fact, all the foods that are haram for Muslim are indeed for obvious reasons - such as the nature of the animals, the improper method of slaughtering animals or method of preparations. In short, we only eat everything and anything that is clean, halalun toyyiban.

In English or Malay Language, we say "dirty" or "gross" or "kotor" to translate Arabic word "haraam" when referring to these haraam animals, which in my humble opinion, might be taken as an insult by our non-muslim neighbors. But in Japanese, there was a better term for explaining "haraam" animals which is "kegarawashii" ... instead of "kitanai" (gross/dirty)

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Anak cik F was 7 years old. In the schools all around Canada, it is mandatory to inform the school if your kids have some kind of allergies (or so I was told) as per law requirements or else both the parents and the school may face some kind of civil and criminal liability with harsh penalties.

So one day, some government staffs were making a routine visit and ask the students if any of them have allergies. So anak cik F raised his hand. The teachers and the staff were very surprised because they didnt receive any notice from either cik F or her husband about his allergies.The teachers were nervous as well.


Government staff:  So do you have any allergies?
Anak cik F:  Yeah.
Government staff:  What are your allergies?
Anak cik F:  Im allergic to all haraam foods.

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Last night, Mr Z told me a rather amusing story that took place in the mosque while he was there with his friends for an occasion. There was this tahfiz teacher asking his students aged around 6-7 years old.

Teacher: "Who knows why pig is haraam?"
Students: I know, I know, I know!
Student A: Because the legs of the pig are similar to the leg of the devils! That's why we cant eat pig!
Student B: Because when they slaughter the pigs, they dont read "bismillah"


Teacher: Where did you guys get these ideas?

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Kids really say the darndest things :P

Hikayat Telur Masak Sambal

Alkisah beberapa lama selepas kahwin, mr Z request untuk makan telur sambal yang sedap, macam maknya masak..Ehehe, telur sambal tuh ok lagi.. yang sedap tuh yang tak tahan.. macam maknya masak pulak tuh..Isk isk

Eksperimen pertama:
So goreng2 la telur, tumis bawang besar, tumis sambal, bubuh sos tiram and sos kicap sikit... sedap~ ala-ala telur sweet sour mak (nih belum dapat pengesahan lagi, tapi sendiri perasan :P)

Bila kasi Mr Z, komen beliau,
"ini bukan sambal telur nih. Ini lain."

Eksperimen kedua:
Ni pun dibuat sebab permintaan boss besaq. Rebus telur. Pastu goreng-goreng sikit telur tuh. Kemudian tumis-tumis bawang besaq, putih etc, masukkan telur.

Bila kasi mr Z, komen beliau,
"ini bukan sambal telur pecah. Mak abang buat sambal telur tuh dia pecahkan, bukan rebus"

Eksperimen ketiga:
Atas permintaan mr Z lagi, harap lerrr nak buat sendiri setelah di"condemned" sedemikian rupa :P Kali nih tumis2 bawang, tumis sambal pekat2 ala2 sambal ikan bilis, biar wangiii~ pecahkan telur...

Bila kasi mr Z, komen beliau,
" Telur mak abang buat tuh memang pecah, tapi tak sebiji -sebiji macam nih. Kira macam pecah la..."

Eksperimen keempat belas:
Buat lagi nih, gigih sungguh isteri mithali nih. Kali nih buat tak pecah sebiji2, tapi kacau2 sikit sambil tumis sambal tuh.. wah~ kali nih ok kut. Bau dah sedap :P

Bila kasi mr Z, komen beliau,
"Hmmm, pecah sangat nih. Kuah kering sangat nih."

Eksperimen keduaratuslapanpuluhlima:
Cili blender dengan bawang besar 0.33 biji + bawang putih 1.5 biji + belacan + cili sesedap rasa macam biasa. Tumis2 bawang, tumis cili naik bau, tambah air sikit, masuk garam gula, air asam skettt~ dah ok semua rasa, masuk telur, tunggu kejap, kacau2... Taraaa~

Bila kasi mr Z, komen beliau,
"Hah, sayang masak sedap. Tatau nak puji macamana..."

Owh Tuhan, kena sujud syukur nih..Setelah 13 tahun kahwin, baru dapat resipi rahsia sambal telur air tangan mak mentua..

Kalau nak tau kenapa sampai 13 tahun baru dapat resipi rahsia nih,

1. Saya ngaku saya tak pandai dan tak pernah memasak, sampai lepas Aisyah lahir jer baru giat memasak

2. Saya tak pernah merasa sambal telur mak mentua saya, jadinya macamana nak imagine rasanya, rupa bentuk pun tak pernah tengok... kira blind shot ler ni. Arwah mak mentua saya dah lama meninggal. Alfatihah.. Mana nak cari resipi kan? Tapi kiniii

"Mak, cheq dah pandai masak sambal telur yang Mr Z suka.." *sob *sob

Nak tengok ker rupa sambal telur hikmat tuh? Agak ugly, macam biasa presentation out terus, tapi yang penting rasa dah jadikk~ yesss! yesss!

The long lost recipe of sambal telur mentua

Suatu Hari di Hari Raya (Haji)

The night before Eid, I was biting my lips tight. My husband made it clear that he wasnt gonna be at home till the night of the most celebrated day, which would leave me alone with the kids in this.. cold, mute apartment, just like any other days, just like most of the days. I tried my best to show him that I didnt even care but my heart just kept failing me.

The morning after he had long gone to his lab after eid prayer, I was looking at my kids' faces. They looked as calm and as innocence as they always do. What a quick remedy to a broken heart. I regained my sanity and said words of istighfar few times..What has happened to my heart lately? Why should I reflect my anger and disappointment towards them, my only souls, when it was the other people who break my heart, again and again. "This Eid may not be special for me, it doesnt have to be. But it should be the most memorable days for them, they might not remember the events but i want them to remember how happy they were"

So I played the eid takbir on youtube playlist loudly, and took turn to bathe them and put on new clothes. Allah must have made it easy on me, because I did make kuetiew soup and it turned out to be extra delicious this time. I prayed hard for Him to grant me a peace of mind in this day.. To feel a bit of "celebration". We had an invitation but it doesnt seem to be possible to attend it anyway..

After Zuhr prayer, my husband called me from his office, saying that I could go by taxi if I wanted to. Yes I wanted to go, but no thank you, I wanted to go as a "family". I have a husband and I want him in this special day... But I just dont think he get the idea. This silly-billy-melancholy woman's mind :P Well, he's busy and it wasnt his fault either, but I cant keep myself from hating the fact that I was left alone in this day..

Later on he called to say that he's coming home since he managed to finish his work faster that day.. Wow, what a joy.. The funniest thing was that when he got home, he said
"Ingat abang kejam ker..blablabla..."

Hehe..as if he read my mind :P

So off we went to our friend's house, we arrived a bit late, after 3, luckily the party has just begun. And guess what, after that house, we hopped from one house to another and to another and to another... finally, when it was time to head back, it was already 12.30am... huhu~ bak kata cik F, kat Malaysia pegi rumah sedara pun tak selewat ini..:P Sempat lagi Mr Z mengomel, "haa, puas tak raya hari nih?" hehe..

So the second day Ms S buat open house, and the best part was that we did ours too! After the halaqat which happened to be at my house this week, we invited several people for the first time to our "new" apartment. We have some "ayam masak merah", nasi tomato, rendang daging, kari kambing (sheep tuh kambing kan? orang kasi qurban), bergedil daging, limau dan salad coleslaw.. And I made some kuetiaw soto too (minus the nasi impit).. hehe, my favorites... Punyalah berdoa agar kawan2 boleh makan, maklumla negara macam2... takut tak tertelan rasa Malaysia, sedihnyaa...dahla Im not a good cook.. But Alhamdulillah, semua habis elok-elok walaupun mula-mula ingat tak cukup :((... Malahan, sebenarnya tak sempat buat dessert tapi kawan2 bawak kek jadi 3 biji total (coklat cake, fruit cake and mashmallow cake), mini eclairs satu box, puding karamel cik F,  biscuits, candies, sweets dan coklat berkotak2 (tak sempat bukak malam tuh)...Huhu, sibuk berperang kat dapur punya pasal.. Jazakumullah semua, Alhamdulillah. All thanks to my beloved friends, all praises to Allah.

Siapa sangka, ingatkan bila jamu orang nih, lauk berkurang, tapi peti ais penuh dengan daging qurban.. terharuuu~ dan gembira. Kami tiada siapa-siapa di sini, sahabat jer la yang memeriahkan hari raya kami.

Gambar?
Haih, saya lupa *ketuk kepala*... sibuk berperang kat dapur. Boleh bernafas pun dah cukup baik...Gambar "sheep curry" ada, nanti saya upload..kehehe, special tuh.


Seronok, dah lama tak buat makan-makan.. Rasa macam nak buat lagi..:D Mohon barakahmu utuk majlis mendatang juga ya Allah. Alhamdulillah...Alhamdulillah.. Penat, tapi sangat-sangat-sangat hepi

Nak jemput orang next time ingat nak buat satay..macamana nak buat satay gebu macam Samuri tuh ya? isk isk.. tinggi sungguh cita-cita

First Day of Play School

When she was around 2 years old plus, she recognized all the alphabets and numbers up to 10 already- just like most of the kids around her age. But it seemed to me that she wanted more than that. So when she started counting up to 20 and knew colors just with a one time lesson, I was quite amazed. What struck me as a surprise was, at that time, when she wanted to count more, what she did was counting using ABC after the 10. For instance, when she said that there were around "V" stars in the picture, what she actually mean was that there were actually 32 stars there, 10 + 22 (V is the 22nd alphabet in ABC, right?)

She also knew the shapes, music instruments that I read for her only for one time, "oval", "cone", "curve" in addition to the basic shapes of triangle, circle etc, and "tuba", "clarinet" "xylophone" in addition to "drum", "guitar" etc..And she corrected me that the "alligator" in the TV was actually a "cayman", and the vegetable that I forgot the name- was actually the "snow pea". I guess just like any other moms in the world, sometimes, your kid can really surprised you that you thought for once that she/he is a gifted child or something..hehe :P

At around this age, it seemed that they absorbed more than what we thought was enough for them. Naturally, Aisyah and me were both thrilled with the idea of sending her to school. Anak cik F pun lagi terer, dah tau Alif hingga Ya, siap mengajar "makhraj" yang betul kat Aisyah and Aunty Z nih, kehehe. Comel. So kitorang daftarkan diorang di playschool dekat-dekat sini juga. :)

Teacher was asking about Ayyan
Teacher: How old is he?
Cik F: 5 months
(Interupted by Sufia, cik F's daughter)
Sufia: Afia 3 years old.
Teacher: Oh so you are 3 years old.
Aisyah: (Quietly raised two of her fingers) Two


Heh, perasan muda :P

Ayyan slept half day at school. Adoii, hari pertama kat sekolah pun tido ker?

Muka budak baru bangun. Tak sedar pun orang amik gambar nih.

Gambar di atas hasil kija Aisyah n Aunty Fida nyer..ehehe. Gambar kerja tangan Sufia and Aunty Z lupa amik pulak.. Issk.

By the way, this is Aisyah's artwork at home, after school. I thought I was seeing two guys dancing - but hey, i was just being as imaginative as I could. Or maybe it was just the Martians! :P

The Truth

Kebenaran adakalanya bersifat sungguh subjektif. Kadang-kadang kita rasa kita cakap benda yang benar, tapi di mata orang kita dah cakap benda yang tak benar. Contohnya, Z cakap rumah barunya berbumbung hijau, dekat dengan universiti. Tapi bila Y tengok, dia bagitau X,

"eh,X tau tak. Z tu penipulah. Bumbung dia bukan hijau. Dia cakap hijau. Dahlah jauh pulak tuh daripada universiti."

Jadinya sekarang, siapa yang cakap benar, siapa yang menipu?

Kadang2 dalam hal nih, jangan cepat percaya orang, dan jangan cepat pegi cerita kat orang. Kalau betul, apa yang kita cerita jadi "mengumpat", kalau tak betul akan jadi "menfitnah"

Semenjak kedatangan ke sini, sebenarnya saya dilanda fitnah. Bukan satu, dua, tapi berpuluh2. Not only they twisted my words, they also twisted their own words. As if that werent enough, sometimes they visited this humble blog to twist everything that I write here, from cerita makan-makan, sampai cerita bisnes sampailah cerita pasal cuaca pun diputarbelitkan. Mula-mulanya tuh saya memang marah, bukan mengumpat lagi dah. Dah menfitnah. Siapa yang kena pun mesti tensen.

 

Marah ni marah! Grrr...

Dan dalam keadaan marah tuh, saya dah bertindak di luar karakter. Bila lama-lama, saya fikir. Why should I be bothered? Saya tak buat semua tuh, lantaklah. Perlukah saya bertindak seperti orang tidak berilmu, tidak berakal? Saya mohon kepada Allah sekiranya dibukakan kebenaran atas fitnah tersebut, maka saya tanak sebut lagi tentang apa2 yang mereka fitnah secara spesifik. Biarlah. Dan saya akan maafkan mereka. Saya percaya yang hak tetap akan mengatasi yang batil.

Saya ambil keputusan untuk melupakan semua cerita- cerita tentang saya. Tetapi bab "copy cat" jer la nak kena ulas sikit, sebab itu dah melibatkan kawan lain. What, in the word copycat, that I do not understand? Kalau supplier lain, tempat business lain, dan produk pun lain, where in the world can I insert the word copycat? Let me assume that someone innocently forgot their own words, and incidentally twisted their own words. Saya doakan kejayaan semua orang dalam bisnes. Rezeki Allah bertaburan di muka bumi ini. Man Jadda wa jada.

Alhamdulillah, kebenaran fitnah terbukti. Itu jer yang saya pohon. Dan Alhamdulillah, peristiwa fitnah nih mengajar saya banyak perkara untuk muhasabah diri.
 
- berhati-hati dengan orang yang suka bercerita mengenai orang lain, mereka tidak akan puas dan bersyukur dengan apa yang ada pada diri-sendiri

- berhati-hati tentang orang yang bercerita keburukan jirannya atau rakan sekerja, ibubapa, mentua atau saudara, mereka orang yang tidak tahu menjaga keaiban orang

- berhati-hati tentang orang yang suka bercerita kepada kita mengenai orang yang tidak begitu kita kenali, sebab orang yang diumpat/difitnah sampai bila-bila pun tidak akan berpeluang membela diri, sebab dia taktau pun orang fitnah dia


- fitnah ini membolehkan saya muhasabah diri, sebab saya sering berfikir bahawa saya perlu cakap perkara yang benar, tapi saya lupa, tak semua benda benar perlu dicakap. Lebih baik berdiam diri, sebab mulutlah ramai wanita tercampak ke neraka. Kamu mahu dicampak ke neraka ke, Z?

- fitnah ini juga membersihkan sahabat. Yang malas nak layan fitnah tersebut walaupun mereka tidak kenal kita sangat dan tidak kisah pun benar atau tidak cerita tersebut, itulah sahabat sebenar

- cepat sangat kita ulas berita mengenai orang ternama, berita2 tv dan akhbar, cerita-cerita artis, tanpa kita tahu kebenarannya. Sungguh tidak adil kita berbicara sedangkan mereka tidak diberi peluang membela diri. Entah2 kita pun sedang fitnah mereka.

Hal di atas adalah hasil observation almost 3 dekad, tak ditujukan kepada sesiapa. Fitnah tak best. Kena fitnah lagi tak best. Selepas fitnah, apa? Silaturrahim yang dah koyak tuh macamana nak sambung semula?

 

Tanak ulas lagi. Tiap huruf dan baris nafas kita diperhatikan-Nya dan akan diadili Nya.

Berbalik kepada mukadimah yang tergantung tadi, kalau orang bagitau kita pasal Z yang kita tak penah kenal secara rapat,

"eh,X tau tak. Z tu penipulah. Bumbung dia bukan hijau. Dia cakap hijau. Dahlah jauh pulak tuh daripada universiti."

Siapa yang penipu? Z atau Y atau X? 
Dalam hal ni, kadang-kadang bukan ada sesiapa pun berniat nak menipu. Pada pandangan mata Z, bumbung tuh warna hijau, tapi Y pergi tengok waktu senja so nampak macam biru. 

Manakala rumah Y tepi pagar uni, so memang sangat dekat. Rumah Z pula tentu nampak jauh gila. Tapi bagi Z, dah kira dekat dah sebab sebelum tuh mereka tinggah jauh dalam ladang kelapa sawit...
Lebih baik kalau kita tanya kebenaran kat tuan punya badan sendiri, tanpa kita pula mengadu-domba.

Tapi benda-benda remeh dan subjektif macam nih, lebih baik kita jangan cakap. Paling penting jangan judge orang dan bercerita pulak kat orang lain, sebab silap-silap kita dah menfitnah dan mengaibkan orang. Kebenaran itu subjektif. Cukuplah Allah menjadi saksi.

Aisyah Rifqah and Ayyan Fateh

Sibuknya, cuma sekarang Ayyan dah makin lama sikit tidur, bolehlah update blog. jalan2 blog orang. Kalau tak, jangan harap lerr nak sempat bernafas.

Perkembangan Ayyan

- Dah boleh meniarap dan mengesot
- Kalau kejar kereta control bukan main bersungguh
- Suka senyum. Character agak "cool"
- Sayang "menyayangi" mama, pantang mama bangun lebih 10saat mesti nangis
- Meghap, meghap

Perkembangan Aisyah

- ABC ok
- 123 sampai fifty, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55..pastu tiba-tiba 100 terus kau
- Eja "Aisyah" dan "Ayyan" (hehe, sambil tengok bantal bantalkabu :D)
- Meghap, meghap, pantang mama bangun mesti ikut tepi kaki...issk


Kakak Aisyah dan Adik Ayyan

- She loves him, he loves her
- She always forgives him for everything that he did to her, "tarik rambut" "cakar tangan", because she said "Adik so small~ll, so cute" :P
- She always knows what he wants every time he cries

"Mama, baby's scared!"
"Mama, baby want susu!"
"Mama, baby dont want to mandi. Baby want to sleep!"
"Adikkkkk!!! Dont cry adik. Im comingggg. Im Doctor Aisyahhhh"

Yeah, right. 

- Kakak bersungguh-sungguh buat lawak untuk adik
- Adik bersungguh-sungguh gelak walaupun tak lawak

Sempat ambil rekod sedikit sedutan "lawak pagi Isnin, sebelum mandi"

There might come some times when you both would disagree on certain things. And when that time came, I just want you to remember, how different you both were once. Yet, you are so in love with each other. Dont you think you were so happy together?

Aisyah Rifqah (3 years 5 months)
Ayyan Fateh (5 months)

Punca Ramai Wanita Andartu

Wah...sebenarnya merujuk kepada forum disini. Bukan main hebat lagi para lelaki berhujah, buka thread konon ikhlas nak bercerita siap tulis "Orang perempuan janganlah salahfaham dengan tajuk ini. Ini sekadar mencari punca dan penyelesaiannya,sebab dan akibatnya..."

Memang tertarik juga saya nak baca. Tapi bila baca punya baca, sementelah forum sedemikian hanya dimeriahkan oleh lelaki-lelaki yang "kurang berilmu" (ini dah habis sopan dah tulis nih). Saya tidak tahu berdasarkan apa generalization dibuat. Rata-rata berpendapat

- Andartu adalah golongan wanita bekerjaya yang gilakan harta, pangkat. Sedar-sedar dah andartu.
- Andartu memilih, nak kahwin golongan muda atau berharta sahaja
- Andartu sendiri yang salah sebab belajar tinggi sangat, orang lelaki takut nak dekat. Ego wanita.
- Andartu ramai kurang beragama, kalau dah beragama sudah tentu berusaha mencari jodoh. Asyik kejar dunia jerr... (siap tulis "wanita yang mukmin akan selalu mencari keredaan")


Orang lelaki Melayu, bila bercakap macam "bersabda". Betul sentiasa. Siap keluar hadis dan ayat al-Quran untuk menyokong pendapat sendiri..


Suami saya selalu cakap saya feminist sikit, mana ada saya feminist sikit...Feminist banyak la.. Muahaha...gelak jahat.. Ok berbalik kepada topik asal, saya tak minat nak ulas komen lelaki2 tak berakal kat forum tuh, sebab saya tanak insult lelaki2 berakal di sekeliling saya.


Cuma ini cerita yang boleh dikongsi bersama. Cerita benar, tiada yang tidak benar, melainkan yang benar2 belaka...


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CERITA SATU


- Waktu matrik zaman belasan tahun dulu, selalu saya travel sendirian. Selalunya dalam bas, dalam train, dalam kedai buku (sebab selalu saya pegi kedai buku untuk "membaca" bukan "membeli"), ada juga yang mungkin rabun kanta spek tak cukup power, akan tegur

"Hai, dari tadi saya tengok awak. Awak buat apa sorang2 jer? Blablabla"
Ayat2 biasa.


Lepas tanya asal mana etc, selalu diorang akan tanya belajar kat mana. Selalunya diorang teka saya student UIA, suka hati jer.. So bila saya cakap saya "matrikulasi jepun",reaksi yang diterima lebih kurang selalunya boleh diagak. Tapi satu yang paling funny tak boleh lupa ialah


"Haa, Jepun??!! So nanti awak pegi jepun la?!" (Punya kuat dia tekejut, melampau betul)
"Insya-Allah"
(Sambil pandang kawan sebelah) "Errrr, oklah awak. Err, takper takper" (Gelak gelak dengan kawan sambil garu kepala dan sambil reverse, garu kepala lagi, reverse lagi)


Soalan saya, salah perempuan tu ker dia belajar tinggi? Salah perempuan tu jugak ker kalau lelaki tuh sendiri yang tak pasal2 intimidated?

So berdasarkan peristiwa2 similar to the above, selalunya kalau saya nak end conversation dengan stranger lelaki, saya akan cakap, sebenarnya saya cuti sebulan jer ni. Nanti nak kena balik Jepun semula...Muahahaha, sangat berkesan (huh, mr Z tak tau cerita nih, ~sshhh~)

Rata-rata sahabat yang saya kenal yang memang highly educated memang menyanjung tinggi dan begitu menghormati orang yang berpelajaran tinggi, tetapi bukanlah pula itu syarat utama untuk dijadikan calon suami. Apa yang dicari ialah mentaliti yang tinggi. Bersungguh dan berilmu dalam bidang yang mereka ceburi. 


CERITA DUA
Seorang wanita yang di"blind date"kan dengan seorang lelaki, tetapi seawal pertemuan pertama lagi, lelaki itu khusyuk bercerita tentang artis itu dan ini, gosip-gosip terkini, rancangan TV malam tadi... Seumur hidup saya, belum pernah saya dengar lelaki yang begitu eager bercerita tentang artis2 itu dan ini. 


- Soalan saya, salah perempuan tuh ker kalau dia "reject" lelaki yang nak jadi calon suami tapi tak layak jadi bapa yang baik? Zuriat bagaimana yang diinginkan oleh lelaki tersebut? Keluarga yang bagaimana yang mampu dibentuk lelaki tersebut? Perbualan harian suami isteri nanti adakah asyik berkisar kepada hal tepi kain artis dan orang lain?


CERITA TIGA
Seorang gadis yang bercadang menjalinkan rumahtangga dengan seorang lelaki dan telah direstui keluarga si lelaki tadi. Si gadis dengan inesennya sangat gembira dan bersyukur. Tanpa diketahuinya, si lelaki tadi bercinta dengan teman gadis tersebut, dan dibelakang gadis innocent tadi, macam-macam dikutuknya. Katanya si gadis tadi tidak cantik kerana tidak berwajah ala-ala anime seperti gadis korea, jepun...tidak seperti "kekasihnya" sekarang. Setelah lebih setahun, barulah si gadis tersebut mengetahui bahawa dia dipermainkan2. Perhubungan diputuskan, dan si gadis menumpukan perhatian terhadap pelajaran dan aktiviti yang dilakukan sehingga mewakili negara. Barulah si lelaki tadi kecewa. Allah Maha Adil, dipertemukan si gadis yang semakin lama semakin gorgeous ini dengan lelaki dari negara luar yang walaupun bukan Islam ketika itu, tapi memang baik perawakan, tidak bersosial berlebihan, tidak minum2, bijak, malahan lebih baik dan matang dari kebanyakan lelaki Melayu yang pernah saya temui, insya-Allah. Dan Alhamdulillah, mereka telah selamat mendirikan rumahtangga. Semoga bahagia dunia dan akhirat.


- Soalan saya, salah si gadiskah jika wajahnya tidak menepati ciri-ciri tertentu? Perlulah dia ditipu dan dilayan sedemikian? Kata inginkan wanita solehah? Kenapa tak berterus-terang inginkan "wanita bermuka anime yang solehah"? Dan kenapa perlu dipertikaikan wanita2 yang bernikah dengan bangsa luar konon2 "tak cukup ker lelaki melayu, sampai lelaki mat saleh/ bangla/ jepun pun nak kahwin?" Tahukah mereka, by the time lelaki itu memeluk Islam kerana Allah, apa yang lebih baik selain syurga yang dijanjikan untuk mereka? Dan kita sama saja di sisiNya melainkan amal dan iman. 


- Kadang-kadang, lelaki Melayu ini malu jika dikatakan "awek"nya tak cantik mengikut spesifikasi tertentu, tetapi bila si gadis dihampiri orang lain, barulah hebat merayu simpati supaya kembali


- Lelaki Melayu ini sibuk nak "pakej lengkap". Nak isteri cerdik yang solehah...konon. Siap post itu ini dekat facebook n blog, ciri2 wanita sejati, isteri solehah dan lain-lain.. Tak pernah pula saya tengok mereka post tentang "ciri-ciri suami yang nusyuz" atau kisah layanan khalifah Umar terhadap isterinya. Semua nak ambil cerita yang memenangi diri sendiri aja...


Paling bagus bila siap letak hadis "kalau wanita yang baik, dia akan cuba mencari jodoh/keredaan" dan "tak boleh masuk syurga kalau perempuan tu tak kawin. Sebab tak sempurna iman." dan "Nabi tak mengaku umat".


Astagfirullah.


Sila percaya kepada Qada' dan Qadar.


Siapa tau, mereka wanita yang menjaga agama, beribadah dan bekerja siang dan malam. Cuma jodoh tidak ada. Dan siapa tau, jodoh mereka bukan di dunia, bukan dengan kamu, tapi Allah telah simpan jodoh mereka di syurga dengan seorang shuhada' ?

Epel, Epal dan Apple

Sekarang musim buah. Murah rezekimu anak-anakku :) Say "thank you" cepat, ehh, say Alhamdulillah

Baru-baru nih cik F kasi jem apple yang sangat best. Best sebab

1. Homemade. Tak caya tengok label nih ->

Hehe..bukti tuh dia buat sendiri

2. Dah sendiri yang buat, tentula manis elok2 tak macam jem yang beli. Fresh dan terjamin halal.

3. Cik F panjat sendiri pokok epal tuh. Saya kagumm..

4. Bersungguh dia pastikan takder sebijik pun buah jatuh jejak tanah. Saya sangat kagumm.

5. Lepas panjat pokok, orang tuh terus demam 3 hari. Lagila saya sangat-sangat kagumm.

6. Lepas tuh dalam demam2 pun, excited punya pasal, 3 hari berturut2 buat jem epal, jem epal, caramel epal, muffin apple, jem epal, jem epal, caramel epal, muffin epal...sampai ke titisan epal terakhir. Dan sampai hubbynya yang tak banyak komplen pun dah tegur-tegur..hehe. Nasib baik takder pokok epal sendiri, kalau tak, tak habis-habis resipi la dia buat rendang epal, kari epal, epal masak merah, epal masak lemak, nasi epal kukus..

ni jem epal tuh ->

Jem golden epal

Macam tak caya jer sebab macam ada gelatin padahal cuma guna brown sugar + epal. That's it. Boleh komersialkan nih :P Dia buat macam-macam lagi dengan jem epal nih. Saya cuma buat nih ->

Smoothies epal.

Tapi teringat-ringat kek gulung kamu tuh. Kalau letak jem epal nih alangkah sedapnyaa... Mmm...bila la nak buat nih. Resepi jem tuh ada kat internet kut. Nak tulis sini pun sebab tak try sendiri lagi, so takut tersalah kasi :P

By the way, dalam bahasa melayu, epal ker epel?

Bersihkan Rumah

'Fuh, fuh!'
(Sambil tiup-tiup sawang)

Lamanya tak menulis. Sibuk pindah rumah, pastu tukar provider so 10 hari takder internet...(panjang ceritanya) Pastu busy raya pulak. Pastu busy dengan hospital appointments, monthly check-ups etc.

Okeyla, datang bersihkan 'rumah' jer, tak baik tinggal lama-lama, nanti jin bertandang.


Selamat hari raya, maaf zahir batin.

Bottle Tooth Decay

Pernah dengar istilah kat atas? Lebih kurang - kerosakan gigi disebabkan oleh penggunaan botol susu ketika tidor.. saya tengah berjuang sorang-sorang nak stopkan penggunaan botol susu aisyah waktu tidor.. memang penat, bila mr z asik buat de ja vu and the process has to be restarted all over again.

To Mr Z, biarla dia nangis sikit meraung banyak pun, buat tak tau aja, your sweetheart darling sugarpie pretty daughter's permanent teeth will soon grow, if we dont stop her using bedtime bottle, your beautiful lovely most beloved graceful pumpkin sugar plum daughter will grow up to be called jongang takder gigi (<--bahasa lembut sket) .. nanti orang buat drama bersiri pula...ganti halimah jongang..huhu~ tak bermenantu awak nanti :P

Bila google toddler tooth decay treatment etc, result asik keluar kena surgery la, crown la, implant la..tension. No wonder saya nampak beberapa orang budak umur 8,9 tahun dah pakai gigi besi. Pastu try pulak google "rawatan gigi susu rosak" ...haa, kan ada yang lojik sket. Mat saleh nih semua benda nak surgery, even lump yang jadi waktu breastfeeding pun dia suggest surgery..sungguh ngeri

But finally jumpa jugak artikel pasal gigi susu nih:
----------------------------------------------
Source: here
Baby tooth-->

Permanent tooth -->

Try to wean your child from a bottle as early as is practical. Nursing bottle decay is common, and your children need their baby molar teeth for about 10 years. Breast-fed babies also can get nursing bottle decay if, as toddlers, they consistently fall asleep at the breast with milk in their mouths.

And from another site (forgot the link) : Tooth decay are contagious.

---------------
Sites dalam bahasa melayu lebih banyak yang memberikan jawapan tanpa perlu surgery, contohnya sini yang menyatakan bahawa gigi susu akan eventually tanggal, tapi tak perlu dicabut melainkan goyang kerana gigi susu tuh umpama reserve spots untuk gigi kekal. Jika dicabut awal sangat,akan memberi kesan kepada struktur gigi kekal.

Tapi gigi susu perlu dijaga terutamanya gigi geraham. Gigi geraham susu (baby molar teeth) penting at least sehingga umur 10 tahun, dan cavities gigi mempunyai tendency untuk berjangkit ke gigi lain.

Ganbatte, mama! aisyah, korekara no neru toki no miruku wa mou issai yurusenaindakara ne :P papa no gokyiouroku mo onegai itashimasu..tte iuka, gokyouroku shite yo!

Ocicat

What types of cat are you?

Err, I made this quiz and found the result to be this ->


The Ocicat is both playful and devoted. She may spring into action on a whim at any moment, or languidly pass an hour away in the lap of a loved one. The Ocicat is happiest with friends and struggles at being solitary for any period of time. Her exotic, no-fuss coat is a breeze to maintain, and looking her best comes easily. Inquisitive by nature, she gets into trouble from time to time. But any trouble is soon forgotten because she is off on a new adventure in a flash!

I m very, very happy to be among friends but I dont really struggle to keep some time to myself. Other than that, regardless of its percentage of accuracy, I find myself resemble that remark :P


Ocicat? Apa tuh?

Kenora

Hari tu kami ke Kenora, Lake of the Woods.

Pertama kali kami sewa kereta.
Pertama kali kami keluar daripada province Winnipeg.
Pertama kali pegi picnic ramai-ramai.

Cuba meniru gaya ambil gambar artistik macam cik sarah tapi gagal

Konvoi 13 van dan kereta.
Ada 65 orang saudara Islam semuanya.
2 jam setengah drive, baru sampai sana.

Sampai-sampai, suami sibuk bekerja berBBQ di "dapur".

 Yang ni tengah bakar ayam

 Yang ni tengah bakar dapur

Yang ni tengah..err..mm..buka plastik timun?? Oklaa...

Kalau ada events makan-makan atau piknik, memang kaum lelaki yang masak2 dan sediakan semua benda. Kaum ibu cuma jaga anak sahaja. Dan kaum perempuan dan anak-anak makan alas perut dulu once ayam dah bakar. Ini macam kalu, tiap-tiap minggu pegi piknik pun takpa :P

Anak-anak pula biasala..

lari-lari

lari-lari lagi

mandi-mandi

 mandi-mandi lagi

Tapi Aisyah sikit pun tak minat nak terjun air tuh. huhu~ dari mula sampai dia dah request nak main benda nih ->

building Sand Castle

Kebetulan ada yang sama hobi dengan dia :) Si Hamzah nih pun asik berkelek ikut maknya..Maka lagi lerr senang kerja kami :P Tak payah tukar baju mandi diorang

Kalau ada yang perasan, gambar wanita takder dalam entry nih, atau entry mana2 akan datang, kecuali gambar malaysian :p Ini atas menghormati pendapat, budaya dan mazhab rakan2. Ada dari India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Arab (tak ingat mana), Korea, Jepun dan err, of course Malaysia... Kelakar bila ada mat saleh ni tegur dari mana, dan bila kita jawab, dia kelihatan sangat2x kagum sebab kami dari macam-macam negara.. Inilah salah satu keistimewaan persaudaraan dalam Islam :)

Pertama kali bergambar berempat :P

Kenora sungguh cantik. On the way ke sana, berbelas-belas, mungkin juga lebih 20, tasik yang kami lalui. Ada tasik nama "Engineer Lake" dan ada juga "Deception Bay". Kali nih tak sempat naik cruise or hovercraft, tengok ler tahun depan kalau ada rezeki :) Insya-Allah

 Ayyan yang cool

Tinggal di Oversea

Dulu-dulu waktu dapat offer ke Jepun lepas trial spm, saya malu sebenarnya...sebab dalam satu kampung, saya sorang jer ke Jepun. Yang lain banyak ke Jordan, Mekah, Madinah, Syria..n at least kalau ke UK or US, senang sikit nak cerita. Isk isk, ini ke Jepun. Memang banyak lerr persoalan2 kena jawab dari pelbagai orang. Dan banyak juga nasihat-nasihat yang saya terima..jangan lupa solat, jangan minum arak, jangan itu jangan ini, saya terima jer :) Tapi yang tak boleh tahan ialah satu nasihat dari sorang makcik,

"Z, pi sana jangan kaler rambut naa..."

 Baik makcik..ngehehehe...

Sebenarnya waktu ke jepun tuh ramai menjangkakan saya akan ikut sedikit sebanyak cara jepun, malah waktu kenduri kahwin tuh, seseorang yang agak berpengaruh di kawasan tuh dan jarang2 datang kenduri orang (sebab beliau agak uzur), tiba-tiba datang dan request nak jumpa dan berborak dengan bride (saya ler tuh). Bila saya keluar, diorang terkejut,

"Eh, pakai tudung rupanya. Bagus bagus.."

Hmmm..apa lagi ya gossip dibelakang saya sebenarnya...Biarla, Allah lebih mengetahui hati saya. Tak ke mana kalau orang cakap benda tak betul nih, lama-kelamaan terbukti juga. Saya tak pernah berubah.

Waktu tuh tawaran ke oversea agak kompetitif, jadi bila dapat offer, saya memang gembira sebab saya memang dah aim nak main salji. Saya rasa bersyukur sangat, sebab nak harapkan duit sendiri pergi melancong, belum tentu mampu.

Tapi bila Mr Z was offered jadi pensyarah, baru saya tahu rupa-rupanya tawaran ke luar negara nih sentiasa terbuka dan sangat banyak, tak seperti waktu lepas spm dulu. Samada melalui belajar atau seminar (conference). Alhamdulillah, kebaikan sambung belajar di luar negara bukan bermaksud "kamu pandai dan akan lebih pandai jika belajar oversea". Tidakkk. Tapi belajar di luar negara memberikan pandangan dan pengalaman yang berbeza, dan melahirkan satu macam semangat yang berkobar-kobar untuk berusaha lebih keras di universiti luar. Dan tambah Mr Z, belajar cara dan teknik dan perkara2 yang baik bagi diaplikasikan untuk mengajar anak-anak Malaysia lepas tamat belajar nanti :) Belajar di luar negara juga adalah alternatif terbaik kalau fasiliti dan kepakaran bidang yang kita nak tuh tak mencukupi di Malaysia..

Adakah belajar di Malaysia tak bagus? Ehh, nanti saya cerita bab best kalau belajar kat Malaysia pulak yer..satu-satu..  :) I just feel the need to express my dissatisfaction towards some people's ungrateful behaviour and their being overreact towards "tinggal oversea"

---------------------------------

Sebenarnya saya baru tahu segelintir pihak yang menklasifikasikan kawan-kawan mengikut hi-class or tak standard. Salah satu ciri-ciri hi-class ialah pernah tinggal di oversea..Oh my, orang macam nih pun ada. Kalau saya bagitau kawan2 saya kat jepun dulu ada orang macamni, mesti diorang ketawa2 sakit perut golek2 sampai muntah.. Ntah hapa2... Stupid, I must say.

Saya serious nih. Ada orang macam nih, tak percaya kan?

Apa yang best datang Kanada, Jepun, Jerman or Australia etc? Apa yang menjadikan mereka lebih baik dari orang yang tak pernah ke oversea? Orang lain rilex jer ke oversea, "golongan hi-class" nih kalut nak semua orang tau dia penah tinggal di Jerman atau Jepun atau Kanada. Ehh, tuh contoh saya amik negara yang saya pergi jer la, amik contoh negara lain nanti orang marah pulak...

Mereka yang sombong nih
- cakap tak pernah nak kalah, indah2 belaka pasal diri diorang
- biasiswa/ gaji mereka la yang paling banyak
- husband mereka la yang paling pandai, orang lain tak dapat punyala kalau apply supervisor/universiti yang sama

husband dia sepupu einstein

- mereka rasa paling tahu semua, sebab mereka banyak pengalaman tinggal di obersea, so hal business orang pun dia lagi tahu, apatah lagi hal tak business orang

- mereka rasa layak bercakap pasal akademik, dan pengetahuan mereka luas boleh bercakap pelbagai bidang dalam akademik, boleh ulas research orang, boleh judge master/ phd orang

- kalau balik purposely tanak guna kereta malaysia, "i dulu kat jerman so i kena pakai kereta jerman" or "kereta jepun la the best, tak kelas la pakai wira, kembara nih" so on (purposely ya, jangan salah faham, sila jangan jual mercedes anda :P)

- mat saleh la yang paling bagus di dunia, mat jepun la yang paling rajin di dunia, orang melayu tak bagus, dengki, tak bersatu-padu, kawan2 melayu i jeles tengok i dapat pegi oversea :P

 

- kalau beli benda mahal, "eh, ni scarf i beli kt US tau, mahal, takder kat malaysia nih" kena emphasize beli kat mana, nak lagi best kena cakap berapa RM (dalam rm, sebab nampak mahal)

- kalau berkumpul purposely cari idea nak cerita pasal kat oversea dulu, walaupun tajuk perbualan tak berkaitan. Lain ler kalau orang tanya.. (again, purposely yer, janganla tanak kongsi cerita dengan saya pulak lepas nih :P)


- orang punya tempat study tak bagus, tak hi-class, "I study kat US.You all takkan dapat buat macam I. Kalau takat study jepun and uk tuh apa sangatla, takder class.." "Korang nih baru study kat malaysia, tak rasa lagi i dulu study kat us..susah tau"

- cipta trademark sendiri, "I study jepun, kitorang yang study jepun nih semua rajin2 dan tepati masa. Orang macam u nih kena ikut cara I"

dan banyak lagi. Owh, get me a bucket please. Nak muntah. Senang cerita, mereka nih sedaya upaya meng"hi-class"kan diri sendiri. Bak kata karam sigh walia pepatah melayu,

"Ular menyusur akar takkan hilang bisanya"

Kalau dah hebat tuh, kita tak perlu "hi-class"kan diri sendiri, orang tau. Kalau kita bagus dalam pelajaran, cemerlang buat paper, tak perlu kecoh2 tampal kat notice board, orang tetap akan nampak dan buat paper kita jadi rujukan..Kalau kita berilmu sehebat yang kita cakap, student kita akan faham betul apa yang kita ajar.

As simple as that.

---------------------

Dahla, tanak ulas banyak2. Allergic dengan perangai manusia2 yang sombong ni.. Kenapala perlu saya berselisih nasib dengan mereka..huhu~ So far harap kawan-kawan tak termasuk golongan ini. Please please please... (Eleh, kata orang, diri sendiri sombong tak? gedegangg~)

Kehidupan di oversea ada pahit manisnya. Cherish every moment of it, kumpul pengalaman dan cerita di luar negara. Jangan kumpul riak. Jangan pula kedekut ilmu sampai berahsia-rahsia. Sederhana. Semua benda kena sederhana.

Ingat ya Z, jangan pandai cakap saja.

p/s: Berapa banyak perkataan "oversea" dalam nih? hehe

No TV Week

Needless to say, watching TV has the pros and cons. But excessive TV time wont do any good... regardless how ever you try to justify it. Aisyah watched way too much cartoons that the rest of the things, our words and her play time, ceases to exist. I felt ashamed and frustrated with myself, I had been a mother to two just recently, but already a horrible failure.

I remember when we were little. Unlike "todays'" kids whom parents allowed them to go for late night outing, my parents made us follow the first rule of playing outdoor - which was to be at home before the dawn. Menggeletar kaki tangan kalau tengah balik rumah, on the way tuh, tiba-tiba azan maghrib. The mildest punishment would be no TV time and late dinner, and late dinner implied the best part of the fish were taken and fried chickens would all be long gone. Owh, just that u know, I have 3 little, selfish, carefree brothers..ngehehe. Of course they were :P

During those days, to be able to get hold of the TV remote controller were such a big reward for us. I mean, father would always have the last word of what to watch, how loud (or how very, extremely slow) the volume would be. We were made to watch the prime news together. And whatever that come after that.. Huhu~ not that we had much choice back then..Owh, there were also another news at 10pm back then... :((

Until one fine night,the moon might have shone directly to my father's heart. After the prime news ended, he gave us the remote controller. "Watch whatever you guys wanted to, I just want to sleep early tonight."

My heart jumped to the sky. I was excited and thrilled with the idea of having that black things with 10 buttons in my hands, well, I guess I wasnt the only one who were excited with that idea. Soon, we found out we (me and my elder sister and my brother) were pushing and shoving one another. Whoever got the remote controller would change it to their favorite tv shows. So 5 seconds it was on my fav tv shows, the next it was some kungfu fighting- the choice of my younger brother, while few seconds later, my sis swiped it from his hand and change the channel to drama minggu ini. Drop it? No way... At that time, for the three of us, it was a between-life-and-death battle. And the fight escalated to calling one another names, and went further to pillow fighting and hair pulling :P No, I musnt give up. If I must, Id fight to my death, said a 9years old me.

What happened next was like a dream....
...
...
....
My father grabbed the silly box and threw it over the window, with a stunning loud thud sound.

..
..
And he went to sleep, so did us. No one EVER say anything anymore.
..
..
After sometimes, we got over the tragic death of the tv. Without we even realized it, life without that silly box has been a bless in disguise - if i can say that. I managed to go to school without praying that the teachers wont collect our homework or that classes would be canceled, because the three of us would spend the night together doing our homework. While there's always something to talk about every night. I found myself came back from school eager than ever to discuss the new things that I learned at school, and was excited to hear about my sis' or my brother's stories as well. The bond between the siblings grew stronger, and most importantly, all of us did better, if not well, in our exams :P

So after I found out that Aisyah has been turning deaf ears to my words, refused to taking bath or sleep at night or even weekend outings, just because she wanted to watch TV, I guess it is time to limit her fav tv time, and spend more time with her, whether or not we have anything to do at all.

Started from today...let's see how well it will go :)

Birthday Present

So last Sunday, July the 4th, was M.Nasir's birthday...errk, as well as mine :P So yesterday we went for some shopping for the previously promised gift..Saya tak boleh, kalau orang dah janji saya tuntut...tuntut jangan tak tuntut.. especially bab hadiah2 nih..hehe. And we went to buy something..

We were looking for "something in particular" :P It wasnt easy to find "one" that I love, and at the same time meet his approval. That was one of the reasons on why I still use my winter shoes through this hot, sunny summer - other than the difficulty to find my size here :P. Hola! We couldnt find a pair of humble shoes that we both find pretty and comfortable. Those pairs that I think girlish turned out to be "messy" in his eyes, and the ones that he sure were simple and pretty resembled a lot like the my father in law's sandals..

After sometimes, we both found something that I immediately fell in love with, and fulfill the boss' requirements. Oh my, it was simple and beautiful, adequately gorgeous - at least in my eyes. We bought that and off we came home... but, the tak best part was yet to be discovered

I found out on the net...it came much cheaper, much much much much cheaper, than the one that we bought, for the same model. Isk isk, spoilkan mood birthday orang jer. That made me think, lately it seems to me that buying things online could save you a lot of money.. I insisted on it to be returned! Ahaha, hubby kata tak payah, tapi saya sangat terkilan. Alas, this is Canada.. My friend returned something because it was much cheaper the next week due to yearly sale, cause she felt cheated.  I felt cheated too... Harap-harap boleh tukar :((

Sigh~

Ayyan at 2 Months

Huh, tiap2 bulan nak update pasal ayyan fateh, obsessssss... kata orang jepun, "oyabaka".

At 2 months,
- Ayyan tak banyak nangis, tak kena colic cam kakaknya, Alhamdulillah
- Suka senyum. Dalam tidor suka gelak mengekek2 kalau dipangku
- Selalu kalau merengek tuh bersebab. Check diapers or nak susu, etc. Aisyah dulu, dah habis mamanya, mak tok n tok wan gilir2 dok cari sebab nangis tanpa punca... dah memang hobi dia nangis rupanya. 
- Ayyan suka benor borak2
- Kalau orang buat tak tau mesti dia panggil sampai orang pandang
- Kadang2 dia nangis kalau mamanya bizi, dia panggil "mama" , saya tau most kids do that "sounds-like-mama" thingy but I cant help it...saya obsessed :P
- Minggu lepas dah 7,8 kali dia cuba meniarap. Biar betul budak nih. Sabar yer, lagi 2,3 bulan sila meniarap sungguh2.
- Actually dah 2 kali dia dah meniarap (kitorang tak nampak)..huhu~ masuk semalam dah 3 kali.. tak boleh jadi nih.. bahaya betul
- Kaki, tangan dan tengkuk beliau agak well-built. Mama tak risau sangat nak pegang. Badannya agak besar. Arini nak pegi monthly check-up nak tengok berapa kg

Kata sorang kawan kat sini, "Your kids are big, not like you and your husband"..
Hehe, itu namanya pujian dalam kutukan...ahaha, takder tak marah. Saya memang Hobbit sikit. Untuk menyedapkan hati, saya anggap hobbit equals to awet muda...dan..shh, jangan komen ayat nih.

Our family doc cakap, "Your baby is healthy. Hes big, in fact, hes bigger than you, mom "
tiap-tiap kali jumpa. Masuk nih dah 4 kali jumpa, dan dah 4 kali dia sebut. Aminnn. Memang anak-anak mama harapnya besar dari mama, tapi, haish, moga2 dalam appointment arini dia tak sebut lagi... Ngehehe.

Apa yang saya nak buat from now on:
- Dah lama tak study, nak sambung semula study, otak kiri dah stalling
- Diri sendiri dah terabai, asyik pentingkan orang lain, mulai harinih, I want back my life. And regain those 4 years that I lost. Owh, ia tiada kaitan dengan orang lain, ini cuma ayat terhadap diri sendiri..
- Spend dengan anak-anak, buat activities at home semula. Badan dah sihat... sakit belakang jer yang tak hilang-hilang :((
- Bisnes semula
- ...as if my happiness depend solely on these two little persons

 Aisyah cuba tiru gaya adik startle n terkodek-kodek kaki

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This is Ayyan Fateh homevid on How to Babble

Tengah cakap elok2, tiba-tiba papa bangun, terus si Ayyan macam sedih dan start merengek nak nangis. Masya-Allah, tengok balik video nih, baru tersedar. Bayi umur 2 bulan pun dah faham perasaan sedih.

This is Ayyan Fateh homevid on How Not to Turn Over..

Cubaan meniarap yang tak jadi.

And then, this is Aisyahs video on How Not to Skipping Ordinarily

Cubaan melompat yang pelik sekali

Haih, macam-macam...

Shades of Pink

I love pink! And all shades of pink. I think the color does reflect my personality the best. I wear pink (or yellow) for luck!

post-grad in pink!

It was not until I gave birth to my daughter that I had these silly ideas that pink is just so lame and boring and childish, that I decided not to like it anymore. Dont hate me, I have had lots of experiences being treated like a sophomore student so it wasnt totally my fault when I tried too hard to "look matured"? (That was how a friend used to describe me errr...)

So I chose other colors, yellow, red, brown and everything else, trying my best not to dive into shades of pink. Although some colors like black really did not do me justice, I began to love the other bright and pastel colors too, but alas, pink still remains "my color". And I guess it really obvious because I kept receiving gifts in...err.. pink.

Ms Sanae made me choose between the two pairs of Japanese handkerchiefs so when I instinctively took this pair, she smiled and said that, "I knew you'd love the pink-red pair"..Wohoho, what an open book I was :P  Arigatou ne :D

Well, i did say that i opt for this color for luck but Nitz was so funny, she went a step ahead and left some coins in the purses that she gave me. She told me that it was Filipinos' belief that to put some coins in the purse would bring some good luck..adih. So yeay, this is my ang pau raya for this year, i guess.

 I was long looking for a bag with a lot of rooms and compartments to keep all my stuff well organized inside, without being bulky or with the excess weight. I was shopping around when my husband took this one out of the rack and said, "This is pretty. How about this one?"

I took a glance and I saw pink, so trying not to add more pink into my collection, I hesitated. I thought it looked buky and..mmm, cold. But he insisted me to try it on. Hmm, I guess I would just go with the flow, no harm in trying a new bag right? But when I laid my hand on the soft, supple leather, guess what, Im sold!

It was beautiful. It was all that I was looking for. I love it. Yesss..I want I want.

It was B. Makowsky Toulousse Shopper. Mine is in Hibiscus color.

Compared to other brand names, it is relatively very new in the ladies industries and came in much cheaper prices than those famous names, coach lv etc. But alas, Im not into names. But guess what, I fell in love with almost all B. Makowsky designs that Im thinking of having the bag in white or turquoise as well :P You can check them out here

Ini adalah "hadiah bersalin", dari mr Z

Sebut pasal pink, mestila kena sebut baju pink juga.. The latest pink tops from my closet would be -->

:)
Perasan tak? Baju pink tuh..Baju nursing t-shirt muslimah dari mymuslimart. I love~e it. Very comfortable and modest. Check them out at mymuslimart.com, not much left.. or add our facebook "sales mymuslimart"

Nak buat kek pink la harini.. Ceria-ceriakan hati sendiri

After the Birth

I pride myself and pat my own shoulder for being strong enough to face the delivery and the physical and emotional changes alone.. when other friends told me that they think I was really strong that I can sit on the floor as early as 3,4 days after the operation, I thought to myself, "yes, i did it. i overcame all the physical and emotional challenges. I survived :P"

But the sadness and guilty and anger and hundreds other feelings still haunt me once a while, again and again and again and again. I thought me being alone was the reason i ve been sad and depressed, and i thought that the backpain that has been bothering me everytime i did some simple chores were the reason ive been angry, and i thought that being unable to look after aisyah properly, and give her undivided attention as i did before the birth of her brother, was the reason for me to have this guilty feeling...

And I wanted more than what my husband can give me, I wanted some warm and loving words, undivided attention, care, and deep inside my heart, i wanted him to be by my side and understand my feeling. I wanted him to be a mind reader, which was ridiculous. And I got frustrated when he was anything but that. And the de ja vu of the mixed feelings will start all over again.. in the end of the day, I would find myself all alone with the feelings of guilt, angry, frustrated, tired and everything overwhelming me.

I thought I was going crazy, and I cant take it anymore. I believed that this is not some post-partum blues. No one in my family have this depression, not that i know. All the women in our family are strong and brilliant, they are everything but weak - mom, sis, aunts, grandmas... I didnt remember any one of them cried or consulted to the doc for being depressed...But as the negative feelings started to taking over my sanity, I knew I had to do something.. And these things are not like you can tell it straight to your husband or friends' faces. You can tell your husband, "Im not well, I have back pain and I need to rest for some time". He'd understand that, but you cant simply tell him "Im depressed, I need some warm words from you. Say something, anything, make me myself again". What would he do?

So I did some research by myself, and found out hundreds thousands sources in the net pointing out the "depression after caeserean birth".. and am glad that i wasnt alone. I thought Im being selfish and that moms giving c-section birth would not suffer from emotional depression, but I was wrong. And Im glad that I was wrong :P Ok, so im not crazy, and it isnt that Allah has neglected my prayer or anything, like someone said. It is ok to admit that you are weak, but just be careful, you dont want to be hit on your faces or being cursed "stupid" "tak malu" "insane"... You just need to talk to the right person, perhaps "a woman that is dear to you" like ur mom or sis or besties :P

Here are some of the things I found on the net... hehe, looked like "the net" is the "woman that is dear to me" now, how sad. Huh~ I just miss my girlfriends, they are all over the world but canada...

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While it isn’t talked about much, Caesarean Depression DOES exist. Some women feel as though they have failed, and feel extremely "let down" by the process of having a Caesarean instead of a vaginal birth. Some women actually experience nightmares or anxiety attacks. This type of depression can last for weeks or years.

source: here

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When I held my daughter in my arm's for the first time, I was overwhelmed with emotions that I had never before experienced. All at once I was consumed with love, warmth and the overwhelming need to protect and nurture her. While these feelings stayed with me, I also began to feel emotions that I was completely unprepared for.

I expected to experience the post partum "blues", but the feelings that ran through me went much further than that. I was suddenly angry, sad, guilty, and resentful about everything surrounding my Caesarean Section. Instead of looking back at the birth of my daughter with happiness, I felt as though I had deprived myself and my daughter of a vaginal birth. I often found myself in tears, unable to explain these feelings to anyone.

Days, weeks and months went by and the feelings remained. My life continued on as normal, but I was constantly plagued by feelings of "what if." What if I had eaten healthier during my pregnancy? What if I had waited a little bit longer before agreeing to the Caesarean? It wasn't until I began talking with other woman who had undergone Caesareans that I began to realize that those feelings were normal.

Anger & Resentment:
It´s perfectly normal to feel angry after the fact. You may be angry at yourself, angry at your doctor, or angry at the nurses. You may resent the fact that the chain of events occurred like they did. You may resent your doctor for performing the procedure, or the nurses for being there.


Disappointment and Sadness:
It´s perfectly normal to feel disappointed about having a caesarean. You may feel as though you failed because you were unable to have a vaginal birth. You may feel disappointed and sad because you didn't get to experience pushing, or watching the baby's head crown.

Guilt:
Guilt is a common emotion after having a Caesarean. You may feel as though you must have done something wrong during pregnancy or labor to end up needing a Caesarean. You may feel guilty because you couldn't control the circumstances surrounding your Caesarean.

Regret:
It is common to feel regret about having a Caesarean. You may regret not being able to labor a little bit longer. If you feel as though your Caesarean was unnecessary, you may regret not having said no, or asking more questions.

Inadequacy:
Feelings of inadequacy after having a Caesarean are normal. You may feel inadequate as a mother, or as a woman since you were unable to delivery vaginally.


It took quite some time for many of these feelings to fade away. Some of them I still feel, and each day I try to improve my take on the entire situation. It is important to remember that these feelings are normal. These emotions coupled with post partum "blues" can leave you feeling emotionally drained. Depending on the circumstances surrounding your Caesarean, you may experience different levels of these emotions.


If you feel as though you are overwhelmed by these feelings, or if you begin to experience any of the symptoms of post partum depression it is important to contact your doctor. In some cases Caesarean Depression can develop. While not widely discussed, Caesarean Depression exists and should be treated.

sources: here 

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Now, I just need to know how to overcome and control these emotions. Aint I glad that Im not losing my sanity? pheww~

Boomerang Life

She said, "It's good that we came here you know, if you were in your country and I in mine, we would have never met each other in the first place"

So we bid each other good bye. And saying good bye has never been easy for me. And the next day, they would be home in their own sunny country.

We were nobody in this foreign land. And we've been supporting each other in every possible way. Kokoro no sasagiai. We were overwhelmed by their cozy and warm words and the abundance of love and support.

There were so many things we've learned from them. MANY. And one of them is the fact that no matter how hard you try to mingle with the others, they would be nice to you because they ARE indeed very nice people. Because they wanted to be nice. And it has nothing to do with you. It is His bless and His Mercy that you have the chance to get to know these kind people.

"You are like a sister to me. We'll meet again one day." And I found a strong confidence in her words.
"Insya-Allah", I answered. Still very surprised by everything, thinking that she would be around for sometimes. Even planned some picnic together...

It's a boomerang life. We travel thousand kilometres away from home, but still we would always come back to where we belong.

Alas, friends come and friends go. But true friends stay in your heart forever.
"Yes, we'll meet again. Im sure." I said.