A Sad Month

My friend Noria passed away at 12.45am 25th December 2011. She had complication while giving birth which led to postpartum hemorrhage. A major blood loss and her heart was said stopped beating for 20 minutes and was successfully resuscitated before going into the operation room. Her uterus was removed to stop the bleeding, and part of her colon too, due to gangrene. Her baby boy, for the moment is still at the NICU.

May her soul rest in peace and be granted martyrdom. It is indeed a sad month because I lost my grandma and my friend who are dearly to me.

In Loving Memory

Noria binti Idris

1 September 1982 - 25 December 2011

Duitttt

Memandangkan due date semakin hampir, maka perkiraan untuk membeli barang-barang telah disenaraikan. Dan, perbelanjaan bulanan juga dikawal ketat oleh diri sendiri (ahem, selama ni duit suka hati je nak beli apa, tapi sejak kawin ni duit banyak susut huhu). Si Suami sibuk membuat perkiraan barangan yang bakal menelan belanja RM5,000. Saya ada jugakla kan rasa tak puas hati sebab kebanyakan barang-barang yang disenaraikan tu macam tak penting sangat buat masa sekarang.

Rumah saya sekarang dah ada :

1. Sofa set
2. Dining table for 6
3. King size bed
4. TV + meja TV
5. Kipas (ye, rumah tamu kuarters takde kipas, harap B*PH bertindak pantas memang jawabnya tahun depan baru dapat, tu pun belum tentu)
6. Oven kecik
7. Toaster
8. Induction cooker
9. Peti ais

Suami saya berpendapat, perlu menambah barang-barang berikut (I agree with some) estimated arounf RM5,000.

1. Washing machine (yang ni memang crucial dan saya setuju sangattttt)
2. Ampaian (owh ini juga sangat pentinggggg)
3. Katil queen size + mattress untuk bilik tetamu
4. Almari dapur untuk memasak pakai gas (hadiah kawin haritu dapat dapur gas 2 burners hehe)
5. Perabot ruang tamu
6. Baby's bassinet
7. Baby's stroller
8. Water heater
9. Langsir (lagi)
10. Carpet
11. Air-conditioner
12. Some other stuffs

Things that I really need right now estimated almost RM3,500, including things during confinement period, clothes, etc.

Pendapat korang? Apa yang perlu ada dalam rumah for the mean time? Memangla rumah awal-awal ni serba tak cukup tapi husband berkeras nak penuhkan rumah supaya lengkap. Malu katanya orang datang rumah serba takde. Nanti segan orang nak datang rumah. Amboi. Pantang tengok kedai perabot or kedai karpet, mula la kaki dia terpanggil-panggil nak pergi. Korang boleh try to convince my husband and I about what must-haves at home tak? Especially those who confront the same budgeting matters at this stage of life.

Eh, sape-sape dah sign option SB*A ke? Heheh...

Sakit Kaki

Sakitnya kaki hari ni. Semalam tak boleh tidur. Asyik terjaga je. Sebab kaki lenguh sangat. Esok kena start counting baby's movements, starting from 9 am to 9 pm. Nak kerja pun macam tak larat dah hari ni. Tadi check up, berat dah naik 3.7 kg in a month. Huhuhuhu~ 36 weeks kena refer dengan specialist. Nak scan balik, to check if the baby is too big. Nurse ada cakap kemungkinan induced-birth. Dari pagi tunggu pukul 11 lebih baru settle. Tak larat nak tunggu dah.

Maybe esok ada semangat sikit. Tengah fikir alangkah bestnya kalau dapat rendam kaki dalam air suam. Balik karang nak rendam kaki lah. Sambil mintak husband picitkan heheheheheheh~ Mungkin juga akan pulang awal sekiranya kesihatan tidak mengizinkan.

Tok

Nama penuh Tok atau ibu kepada Ayah ialah Aminah binti Awang Mohd. Lahir di Singapura. Dalam IC dinyatakan Che Aminah binti Awang Mohd dan tahun kelahiran ialah 1920. Hakikatnya mengikut bapa saudara yang merupakan anak sulung, Tok lahir lagi awal dari tahun tu. Maklumlah, lahir di Singapura. Dulu-dulu pakai surat beranak kertas yang besar, sampai kena lipat-lipat. Mana ada laminating machine, apatah lagi MyKid. Suat beranak tu pula ditulis oleh pendaftar kelahiran ialaitu anggota polis. Sah-sahla dalam tulisan jawi. Lagi haru time tu pakcik polis selalu salah eja bila tulis nama. Heheheh~

Tok ada 10 orang anak hasil perkahwinan dengan Tok Ki saya, Wan Ismail bin Wan Embong, seorang askar Melayu. Ayah cerita, ibu kepada Wan Ismail ni namanya Wan Mandak. Dulu duduk dalam kepungan istana. Wan Embong Keluar dari istana dan menikah dengan orang kebanyakan. Itu kita cerita lain hari :)

Saya masih teringat lagi, Ayah suka rakam suara kami adik beradik (masa tu baru ada seorang adik - Wan Taqiyyuddin Ahmad, saya berusia lebih kurang 3 tahun lebih) untuk dikirimkan ke kampung. Sampai sekarang Mak Ani (kakak Ayah) masih simpan kaset tersebut. Antara petikan ayat saya ialah "Nihayah nak sukakan hati dia (Tok) dengan dia (the cassette - yeah, BM memang hancus haha). Nihayah suka mengkaler-kalerkan kerrrtas!". We laughed out loud every time we heard that :P. Tu tak masuk lagi perasan bagus, siap nyanyi lagu nasyid kanak-kanak, siap marahkan adik sebab overshadow kakak dia yang gila glemer haha.

Sebab saya ada dua orang Tok, maka panggilan ibu kepada Ayah ini ialah Tok Minah. Ada yang panggil Tok Hiliran (sebab rumah kat Hiliran), ada yang panggil Tok Yang (sebab pelat Hiliran jadi yang hehe), ada yang panggil Tok Su. Tok ada beberapa orang adik beradik yang saya lupa jumlahnya. Yang saya kenal pun, Arwah Tok Chik, adik perempuan tiri beliau yang meninggal hampir 10 tahun yang lalu. 

Dulu masa saya sekolah menengah, saya tinggal di rumah Tok sehinggalah Ayah mendaftarkan saya untuk masuk ke asrama. Masa tu saya form 3. Alkisahnya Tok ni kalau simpan barang memang tak jumpa. Lagi-lagi kunci. Kak Ti (sepupu) pernah cerita "Sape jupe kuci, Tok upoh 10 riya" (Siapa terjumpa kunci, Tok upah 10 ringgit). Barang-barang saya banyak kali hilang. Lepas tu mesti terjumpa Tok simpan dalam almari. Owh, sebab nama tok Aminah Awang Mohd, jadi initialnya ialah AAM. Tok suka jahitkan initial pada barang-barangnya seperti kain batik, seluar dalam, baju kurung, pendek kata benda-benda berasaskan kain/fabrik, mesti ada jahitan initial glemer tu. Paling haru dia pernah jahit AAM tu pada towel saya. Katanya towel tu dia punya. 

Kebiasaan Tok ialah bangun pagi solat sunat around 4.30 in the morning. Paling annoying ialah jam loceng dia berbunyi "KRRRRIIIIIIIINNNNNGGGGGGGG~!!!" nonstop for almost 15 minutes sebab Tok tak berapa dengar. Jadi kita yang terdengar ni kalau rajin, pergi kejutkan Tok atau kalau malas sangat, tunggu jelah Tok bangun hehe. Biasanya lepas Tok padamkan bunyi loceng tu, dia akan switch on her handy radio. Nak dengar dah masuk subuh ke belum. Siaran yang mana tak ingat, tapi biasanya ada lagu dari Orkestra Suraya dari Indonesia tu. Yela, yang nyanyi lagu Selimut Putih tu la. Banyak lagi lagu yang saya tahu tapi tak tahu tajuklah pulak. Rumah Tok dekat dengan masjid dan surau. Jadi pagi-pagi akan kedengaran 3-4 azan serentak. Tok memang tak puas hati kalau kami bagitau dia dah masuk Subuh (sebab dia kurang pendengaran), mesti nak jugak on radio dia. Kadang-kadang dia duk sibuk pusing-pusing tombol radio tu sampai saluran Tamil pun akan termasuk jugak. Hehheheh~

Tok sangat rajin baca Al-Quran dan kebanyakan ayatnya dia dah boleh hafal. Sebenarnya Tok buta sebelah. Dia pernah kena angin ahmar, jadi based on ingatan dia akan baca jugak Al-Quran. Kadang-kadang Mak Ani akan tegur kalau bacaannya salah (Mak Ani memang pandai mengaji). Suka juga dengar Tok baca terjemahan dalam tulisan jawi. Tafsir Al-Quran Tok tebal, dah kuning-kuning kertasnya sebab terlalu lama. So, jangan tegur orang tua kalau bacaan 'wahyu' jadi 'wahi' sebab ejaan dalam jawi 'wau.ha.ya'.  Tu maknanya dia baca kitab lama. Jawi moden ni macam-macam penambahan ada. Sampai kadang-kadang saya tak reti baca :P

Dulu bilik Tok kat rumah atas. Bilik hujung. Katil classic kerangka kayu ada headboard. Gerobok Tok pun kayu. Alah, yang ada cermin kat depan tu. Mana nak dapat dah gerobok kayu macam tu. Kadang-kadang Tok akan panggil kami cucu-cucu ni dan tunjuk barang-barang dalam gerobok kayu dia tu. Bawah katil ada beg besar! Dalam tu ada surat-surat lama, buku-buku latihan, dan nota-nota lama. Tok belajar menulis sendiri dari abangnya. Dia boleh membaca jawi dan rumi. Walaupun Tok menulis rumi tak berapa lancar, dia suka hantar surat kepada anak-anaknya yang tinggal jauh. Owhhhhh... Tok ada mesin jahit yang pusing pakai tangan macam mesin perah tebu tu. Saya pernah guna masa Form 2 sebab cikgu ERT suruh jahit baju kurung Kedah. 8 kali tetas-jahit sebab kat bahagian ketiak tu tak sama. Asyik senget je, dan jahitan tak bertemu. Last-last give up, mintak tolong Teh jahitkan :P.

Tok dah start nampak benda bukan-bukan rasanya dah lama. Nampak budak-budak main api dalam rumah time Maghrib la, pastu dia marah-marah cakap "Kenapa anak Suraya (sepupu saya) main api dalam rumah ni? Jahat betul!". Kitorang pun tak boleh nak verify benda tu makhluk halus ataupun bayangan di mata dia je, tapi memang seram okeh. One more thing, Tok ni macam ada psychic power. Dia pernah cakap yang ada orang nak jumpa adik saya (Ana) kat tingkap. Dia marah-marah sebab katanya adik saya degil bercakap dengan orang lelaki kat tingkap. Rupa-rupanya tak lama lepas tu, betul ada kawan adik saya hantar barang kat tingkap. Wah. Coincidence sungguh!

Kesihatan Tok sangat teruk semenjak 5 tahun kebelakangan ini. Anak-anak semua dah tak kenal. Dulu yang tinggal di rumah Tok ada 3 orang, termasuk makcik (kakak-kakak Ayah) dua orang; Teh dan Mak Ani. Sebelum Teh meninggal, Teh lah yang menguruskan makan-pakai Tok. Tok akan kenal 3 orang je masa tu; Teh, Mak Ani dan Pa (abang sulung Ayah). Teh meninggal pasa 1 Mei 2008, masa tu saya DPA. Yang sebaknya, masa Teh mula-mula meninggal dulu, Tok selalu panggil nama "Tikahhh...Tikah... Mak nak air..." (Atikah ialah nama panggil kepada Teh, nama sebenar Teh ialah Wan Fatimah - Teh tu sebab dia putih la). Lepas beberapa bulan, Mak Ani yang jaga makan-pakai Tok, jadi Tok terbiasa panggil "Ani....Ani..." (Nama penuh Mak Ani ialah Wan Rohani). Sampailah Tok tak ingat apa-apa. Antara cerita paling kelakar, Tok cakap "Nama, Aminah binti Awang Mohd, Sallallahu 'Alaihi Wasallam". Dia tak ingat dah dia tengah cerita pasal diri sendiri, bila last ayat ialah Muhammad, jadi ada tambahan SAW tu. Kitorang bantai gelak tak hengat punya bila dengar cerita tu. Sama lah cerita masa Kak Ti potong kuku Tok "Sape ni? Makcik tak kenal sape yang potong kuku (nada marah)." Selang beberapa minit kemudian "Baiknya doktor tolong potong kuku makcik..." Padahal tengah cakap dengan orang yang sama, dari tadi duk potong kuku dia :)

Tok dah lama jadi pelupa. Dia duk bercerita zaman dia muda-muda dulu kat Singapura. Dia tak bercakap dalam loghat Terengganu dah. Dah pandai cakap luar hehehehe... Pernah sekali dia cerita kat seseorang (tak ingat siapa) yang dia tengah tunggu pengantin lelaki datang ambik dia di rumah. Adik-beradik Ayah bersetuju untuk hire maid jaga Tok. Sebab Mak Ani dan Pa dah tak larat nak angkat Tok. Yelah, masing-masing dah tua. Nak mandikan tu boleh je, bab nak angkat tu yang payah sikit. Dah beberapa kali Tok keluar masuk hospital, sampai katil Tok pun beli yang macam kat hospital tu. Senang nak gantung drip. Sebab badan Tok dah tak dapat menyerap zat, badan Tok makin mengecil. Kurus sangat sampai tinggal tulang. Makanan Tok awal-awal beliau bed-ridden ialah nasik dan nestum. Tapi lama-lama dia dah tak boleh nak kunyah jadi bagi nestum + susu + gula sikit (Tok demand tak nak minum kalau tak manis). 2-3 bulan ni Tok dah tak boleh minum ikut mulut. Masa balik Eidul Adha, Tok makan melalui tiub. Tok gembira kalau ada orang datang borak-borak. Dia akan cerita macam-macam, dari zaman mudanya. Kadang-kadang cerita tu rekaan. Dia setia di katilnya. Sayu juga tengok keadaan dia begitu. Lagi sedih bila lepas mandi, dia menangis sebab sakit bila dipakaikan lampin. Disebabkan bed-ridden, some parts of her body got blisters. Berair. Jadi rasanya part tu yang pedih. Nak tak nak, kena mandikan jugak sebab nanti naik melarat tempat blisters tu kalau tak letak ubat.

Keramaian di rumah Tok mesti meriah. Sebab adik beradik ayah, sepupu-sepupu saya semua akan berkumpul. Riuh habis macam dah lama tak jumpa. Padahal masing-masing duk area KL je. Eidul Adha haritu sempat singgah rumah Tok kejap je sebab beraya kat rumah mertua. Tahun ni paling banyak balik Terengganu. Budak-budak kecil suka berlari kat rumah atas. Lepastu selalu kena marah sebab lantai papan, sebab bising :P. Alaaa...kitorang kecik-kecik dulu pun suka jugak berlari kat atas tu. nanti Tok naik bising-bising baru kitorang berhenti berlari-lari :)

Kelmarin saya pulang bersama suami, Ayah, dan dua adik perempuan (Ana dan Kinah). Mak tak dapat balik sebab kursus cikgu cikgi 3 minggu. Mak asyik tanya je dah bertolak ke belum. Bimbang kot sebab sekarang kan musim hujan area Pantai Timur. Saya pulang ke kampung dengan berbaju t-shirt dan berkain batik. Tak pernah dibuat orang. Semua sepupu-sepupu pun balik kampung. Semua berkumpul di rumah Tok pagi tu. Dalam ramai-ramai tu, saya sorang je yang berkain batik. Terus masuk dapur tolong-tolong mana yang patut. Tak larat sangat, saya duduk kejap.

Pulang ke kampung kali ni solat jemaah. Rasanya jemaah paling ramai tahun ni. Saya pun join sekali. Tak muat pun takpe, rapat-rapat kasi muat. Ayah jadi imam. Hairan jugak sebab tak hujan langsung haritu. Kalau ikut laporan kaji cuaca, patutnya kawasan Pantai Timur hujan sampai malam semalam. Alhamdulillah... Kalau hujan mesti ramai yang sampai lambat. Ramai yang datang, bawak makanan. Saya tak lapar. Dahaga je.

Semalam sebelum pulang, seperti biasa saya menoleh ke katil Tok. Katil Tok kosong. Masih ada cadar biru. Tapi pastinya cadar tu takkan berganti. Dan katil itu kosong buat selama-lamanya.

Sakit Perut

Dah seminggu asyik melepek. Weekend memang takde aktiviti berfaedah langsung sampai husband tegur "Sayang ni weekend tergolek je. Bangun la jom pegi jalan-jalan". The prob is, how was I supposed to get up and walk around when the body refuses to do so? I've been having this stomachache the whole week. Asal makan je, sakit perut, kembung and sebu perut (which ends at the toilet). Sakit perut Allah je tahu. Tergolek-golek tahan sakit. Memang angin baekkkk punya sampai meremang bulu roma tahan sakit.

Cerita kelakar semalam.

Tengah hari my husband cooked for lunch Ayam Masak Kicap and Sup Sayur. Pergh. Dah pandai sekrang dia ni. Refer online recipes. Yela, usually on weekends I'll be the chef but as per lately sakit perut dah seminggu, terbaring jela tunggu orang siap masak :D. Saya makan sikit je sebab sakit perut. Tu pun kena paksa dengan husband suruh makan nasik banyak sikit. Sumbat saje. Dalam otak dah set, lepas ni mesti sakit perut balik. Tunggu punya tunggu kedatangan sakit perut tu, eh tak sakit perut la pulak. Around 4pm, badan rasa tak larat. Lethargic macam kurang gula. Terus mintak nasik lagi. Kali ni makan bertambah okehhhh... Lepak-lepak tengok TV tunggu Asar. Husband suruh siap-siap sebab lepas tu nak ajak pergi jalan-jalan. Boring dah duduk rumah 2 hari tak keluar.

Kami pun menuju ke destinasi yang belum ditentukan lagi. Dalam kereta, tiba-tiba saya sakit perut balik. Baru 100 meter keluar dari rumah. 

"Abang, nak kentut..." tak sempat habis cakap dah terkentut. Kentut baekkkk punya. Selang 2 saat...

"Erk...busuknyaaaa!!! Cepat bukak tingkap!!!" Satu kereta bau kentut busuk. Bukak aircond to the max and bukak tingkap luas-luas. Sambil gelak-gelak my husband said

"Abang tak pernah bau lagi kentut teruk macam ni. Try update kat facebook nak? 'Tadi kentut dalam kereta sampai kena bukak tingkap sebab busuk sangat'. Hahahhahaha..." Keji okeh my husband. Dia yang beria sangat ajak kita keluar. Elehhhhh... dia pun kentut busuk jugak. Takde kentut bau wangi okeh. But seriously, seingat saya, tak pernah lagi kentut busuk macam tu. Bau macam telur busuk. Sah-sah gas sulphur menguasai perut. Eheh. Sihat sekejap perut. Terus ajak husband pergi makan ABC kat Presint Diplomatik :P (plus makan chapatti tak sedap huhu). Ok, perangai memang tak senonoh semenjak mengandung ni: 

1. Duduk/baring je (read : MALAS). 
2. Suka bukak kipas laju-laju. Panas katanya. Sampai husband selsema. Hehe. Awal-awal pregnant toksah cakapla, mengamuk aje time panas. Sampai husband kena bawak jalan-jalan naik kereta sebab kereta ada aircond haha.
3. Selamba kentut tak kira masa. (Ok, ni kat rumah je. Kat luar carik port dulu. Kang pengsan pulak orang lain).

Since keadaan hampir cirit-birit ni dah berlarutan selama seminggu, saya membuat bacaan. Banyak perkara yang boleh menyebabkan diarrhea. Owh, masuk bulan ke tujuh ni, selalu rasa tak selesa. Salah position tidur pun boleh rasa macam tak bernafas. Semalam tidur dalam posisi menyandar. Tak boleh nak baring mengiring sebab sakit pinggang. Funny thing is, sometimes obviously perut senget sebab baby gerak and dia suka terperuk kat satu corner. Bayangkan perut senget sebelah? Movements baby jugak menyebabkan bowel movement yang kerap or what we call changes in bowel movement. That's from what I read. But then, we never know until we ask the O&G.

Husband duk haruk-haruk nak makan Souffle. Ni gara-gara tengok Masterchef banyak sangat la ni. And he's addicted to Gordon Ramsay. He even searched on Youtube on how-to's. You know, how to dice onions, julienne things etc2. Dengan bersungguhnya dia cakap "I'm thinking of changing my career. Abang nak masuk Masterchef la next year". Perghhhh besarnya cita-cita. Takpelah. yang penting, dia asah skill memasak. He's good at keeping the house clean too. Saya takat do the dishes once in a while boleh la. Lama-lama tak larat nak berdiri. Sakit pinggang and sakit tumit. Kalau daun penuh sangat depan rumah, bolehla sapu sikit-sikit.

Saya tengah mempertimbangkan sama ada nak berpantang kat Putrajaya or rumah MIL. Bukan apa, my MIL is being concern sebab takde orang nak jaga saya, yela my mom is still working. Tengok keadaan dulu lah. Segan jugak duduk rumah MIL. Saya ni kan jenis mengada-ngada. Malam-malam nak orang picitkan kaki. Sakit perut nak pergi toilet selalu suruh husband teman (takut terjatuh konon). Hm. Ada lagi sebulan nak fikir ni. :D

Ok, sekian repekan kali ini.

Wrap Up for the Weekend

Owhhhh.... Lamanya tak update! Super busy and I'm not feeling really well. This morning's blood sugar was 1.7mmol/L and after I had breakfast (roti telur and hot Milo), the reading was 5.7mmol/L. Considering it ok, will have to go for 3.00 pm session and the last one at 9.00 pm.

Here's a wrap up for the weekend :

Saturday
Went movie-watching with dearest husband : Puss in Boots 3D at Mid Valley. Cute feline I must say! Arrived at 10.30, we picked up the tickets (twin seats + 3D = RM43) that we've bought online. Before we enter the hall, we went for brunch at Carl's Jr. Had Chili Cheese Fries and Can't-Remember-The-Burger's-name. The movie ended around 1.30pm. Went for prayer and shopped things for the baby at Jusco.

Sementara tunggu order sampai, mari check Facebook dulu :P

*Muka lapar tak pandang kiri kanan*

Uhhhh 96~ Kalau dapat no 69? Hahahhaha~

Chili Cheese Fries with Famous Star burger
(I guess my tongue got super sensitive that the fries tasted too salty)

Om nom nom nom...

Getting ready for 3D action

Errr... 6D perhaps?

Hah, bab shopping for the baby yang nak marah ni. My husband, being excited (as usual) bought things for the baby which cost us RM200. Dia tak ingat langsung kat saya yang baju dah makin hari makin tak muat. Sekarang ni duk ulang baju sama je, which is tak best langsung. Huhuhuhu~ Dia main ambikkkkk je letak-letak semua dalam bakul. Kita ni duk ingatkan dia supaya jangan membazir. Merajuk tau duk beli barang-barang baby tapi tak ingat punnn kat kita ni T____T

Sebakul. Which cost us almost RM300 T___T

Sengihla sebab suka.
Yang kita ni? takde orang tanya pun :(

Hasilnya :

30++ pasang baju baby (mommy pun takde banyak tu)

Swaddle 5 helai
New born pampers (28 keping = RM18. Mahal)

My favourite quote.
Hahahaha~

Millions of jumpers/rompers

Sunday

We're supposed to attend Syazwan's wedding in Setapak but unfortunately I fell sick that day. So, no activity for the whole day because I could only manage to lie down and watch TV.

Monday (Maal Hijrah Public Holiday)

Owh, saya berjaya masak Asam Pedas Ikan Merah (gambar lupa ambik huhu) and Chocolate Pie! :D 

I invited my family for lunch. The menu:

Nasi Putih

Asam Pedas Ikan Merah

Ulam

Sambal Belacan

Terung Goreng Tepung

Tadaaaa~ The meringue was too sweet for me which I end up discarding the meringue heheheh. I'll post the recipe soon ok? :)

Meringue

The crunchy crust and chocolate filling!

A slice for me :)

Our First Wedding Anniversary! :D

It's been a year since we're married! Uuuu~

On Sunday we went for shopping at the Maternity and Children Expo, held in Mid Valley. Saw Zetty's picture on FB, where Awang was pushing a pram full of things that they've bought heheheh~

To date, there are almost 25 pairs of baby's clothers, which most of them are rompers and jumpers. Takde tights because the father forgot to buy. It's ok. Next target would be the bassinet and baby tights.

Lately the baby starts to kick my belly so hard whenever I tried lying down. Sampai terbonjol-bonjol perut tengok baby kicking. I guess since space is getting smaller so the baby refuses and being rebellious about that. Hahahahha~

Will update soon with the pictures :)

Last Night

I woke up in a van, driven by my asleep sister (or somewhat passed-out). My dad was on the passenger's side, trying to control everything. I took the steering, and tried controlling from behind the seat. I couldn't even see the road. At one corner, I lost control because the bend was sharp. The van went onto the divider on the left, sending us flailing in the sky. And then, I saw the ravine. Steep. All I think was about my baby.

I woke up feeling that I've lost my life to that horrid accident. Alhamdulillah it's just a nightmare, after a nightmare (which I forgot what was it all about).

Anniversary in Hijriyah Calendar

13 Dhulhijjah 1431 was the day of our solemnisation date. Dah setahun! In Gregorian calendar it's on 20th November 2010. Anyways, there's a reason why I selected the date.

1. Sebab Hari Tashrik orang diharamkan berpuasa (11, 12 dan 13 Dhulhijjah). So nak tak nak memang takde alasan orang datang kenduri cakap "Saya puasa". Tak boleh diterima. Unless datang dan cakap "Saya diet. Minum air je ye." :P
2. 20th November is a nice number for this year. 20.11.2011 will be our first anniversary! :D
3. Our wedding date was supposed to be on the 26th November 2010, but since not everyone gets to be on leave, Eid is the best day to apply for annual leave, so we got married on 20th November 2010.

Pejam celik dah nak setahun! Wah wah... dalam duk mengalami sindrom mengamuk sepanjang masa ni, memang tak sedar amsa berlalu begitu pantas sekali. My due date is also getting nearer. Speaking of which, 18-20 November ni ada maternity sales kat Midvaller Megamall. Woohooo~!!! Boleh pergi ngabihkan duit kat sana. Nak beli macam-macam ni. Baju, pram + car seat, mittens and booties. Mesti berebut sakan orang time-time cuti sekolah. Sempat lagi cakap dengan husband "Abang, mesti saya tak larat nak jalan time tu. Sewa wheelchair nak?" Fuhhhhhhh semangatttttt :P

Saya sekarang selalu sakit-sakit tumit sebab tumit dan start menampung berat berlebihan dari biasa. Jadi kalau berdiri lama, memang tak pass. Duduk lama-lama dalam kereta pun tak pass. Memang kalah driver. Penat Allah saja yang tahu. Sampai rumah je terus baring. Sekarang solat sendiri boleh lagi nak berdiri, tapi bila nak sujud tu perut dah sangkut. Kalau solat berjemaah tu, imam baca lama sikit, terus dah tak khusyuk sebab tumit dah start rasa sengal-sengal. Jadi, saya solat duduk atas kerusi. Jalan pun terjengket-jengket.

Raya haji baru-baru ni saya pulang ke Terengganu. Ayah dan Mak tak balik kampung. Ayah buat ibadah korban kat China. Satu bahagian lembu RM215. Daging-daging tersebut akan diedarkan kepada saudara baru Islam dan golongan-golongan pelajar Muslim di sana. Kat Malaysia satu bahagian RM400 ++. Ada sampai mencecah RM500.

Duduk kat rumah mak mertua memang terjaga. Kakak-kakak ipar tak bagi sangat masuk dapur sebab licin. Tapi saya pergi jugakla kannn... Potong daging dan tumbuk-tumbuk mana yang patut. Miraculously, masa tumbuk-tumbuk pakai lesung tu, lengan takdela lenguh pulak. Cuma tak tahan duduk atas simen lama-lama je. Kena duduk atas kerusi :D. Malam-malam husband tolong sapukan minyak kat betis dan kaki sebab lenguh-lenguh. Awwww...sweet kan husband saya tu. Walaupun isteri dia ni ratu mengamuk, dia tabah je. Masa reunion degan geng-geng sekolah dia hari tu, kawan-kawan duk sibuk usik pasal kawin lagi satu. Macam kelakar sebab dalam ramai-ramai wife tu anti poligami, saya sorang je yang pro poligami. Tapi husband saya macam serik je nak fikir kawin lagi sorang. Dia pernah cakap "Wife abang yang sorang ni pun abang tak larat nak jaga. Kalau dua? Pengsan gamaknya". Tak taulakalau dia nak ambil hati ke kannnn... :P

Owh, list yang mahu dibeli menjelang Januari 2012:

1. Baby's bath basin (sink kat rumah kecik sangat, tak muat nak mandikan baby huhu)
2. Baby's toiletries (talc, shampoo, hair brush, olive oil, nail clipper, anti-septic cream, etc.)
3. Baby cot (foldable)
4. Diapers! :D
5. Baby's bedding
6. Swaddle
7. Larger clothes for the baby (3-6 months)
8. Kain batik (for the mommy haha)
9. Post-natal set.
10. Milk bottle
11. Breast pump
12. Extra bed downstairs (so that I don't have to go up and down the stairs)
13. Many more!

Hmmmm.... recently I noticed that I'm starting to have stretchmarks! Panicking, siap paksa-paksa husband beli Bio Oil. And he promises to buy it today. Risau ni kang obvious pulak stretchmarks tu. Awal-awal tu tak nampak sebab kat bawah perut. Tiba-tiba bila belek-belek.... eh..??? Apa merah-merah tu? Dahhhh start panic sebab if drastic measures not taken, it'll get worsened by day :((((

Sekian saya saja nak mengisi masa lapang sementara tunggu jam 3 petang untuk BSP :P

Moist Chocolate Cake (No Butter)

Hi. Remember that I posted this? It's actually become a cup cake because I baked them in a muffin tray. Heheh~ It's super easy and I've made these many times before because the ingredients are must-haves in the kitchen. Here goes the recipe.

Moist Chocolate Cake (No Butter)

A little birthday treat for myself.
Made a mini version because I have to watch my sugar intake.

Ingredients

**Cake
2 cups of wheat flour
2 eggs (medium size)
1 1/2 cups of fine sugar (can be reduced - I use only 1 cup)
1/2 cup of sweetened condensed milk
1 cup of cocoa powder (can add another 1/2 cup)
1 1/4 cups of cooking oil / vegetable oil
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp soda bicarbonate
1 tsp of vanilla essence
1 cup of hot coffee (about 2 tsp of instant coffee powder into a cup of hot water)
a pinch of salt

**Topping
1/2 of chocolate bar (any brand would do)
2 tbs of butter
3 tbs of sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp of vanilla essence

or

1 chocolate bar
1 tbs of butter
1/3 cup of fresh milk
1/2 cup of sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp of vanilla essence

How-to's

1. Preheat the oven 175'C, grease the muffin tray/baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, whip the eggs and sugar until fluffy.
3. Sift in the flour, baking powder, soda bicarbonate, salt and the cocoa powder a little at a time into the egg mixture and keep mixing until thoroughly mixed.
4. Pour in the sweetened condensed milk and the oil, keep on mixing.
5. Lastly, pour in the hot coffee and make sure the batter is thoroughly mixed.
6. Pour into the baking pan or muffin tray and bake. For muffin tray, bake at 20 minutes. For an 8-inch baking pan, bake at 40 minutes or until cooked, when you slot in a toothpick or knife, the cake won't stick.
7. For the topping, mix everything together and put on a double boiler or just heat up around 10 seconds on HIGH in a microwave. Ready to serve :D

Putrajaya Is Not That Save Anyway

Yesterday morning, when we're about to go to work, my husband asked me whether I had seen his wallet and hand phone. Since I slept quite early the day before (my arm was sore from the tetanus shot), of course I had not seen them. So he asked me to miss call his hand phone. The weird thing was, his phone was switched off. After tossing and turning every rug and thing around the house, he still couldn't find his belongings. I checked my hand phone and my wallet, they're in my back pack. So, we assumed he misplaced them somewhere. He swore that his hand phone was with him because he texted someone around 9.30pm the night before. Well, the story trailed off there because I was getting late to work.

Later that evening, returning from work, my husband opened the post box and guess what? HE FOUND HIS WALLET, MONEY-LESS, DRENCHED IN RAIN WATER! Luckily all his credit cards, IC, marriage certificate and everything else were in the wallet (the wallet was actually my gift to him on our wedding day). We were horrified that our earlier assumption of that there might be a break-in was true! If the wallet wasn't 'returned', perhaps we could assume that my husband lost it somewhere else. We went to the police station to lodge report. Praise be to Allah, we only lost a sum of money (RM220) and a very old hand phone (which shows desperation of the burglars).

According to the police officer, 90% of the burglaries and break-ins in Putrajaya were done by civil servants' children/teenagers. What a shocking truth. Due to both parents are working, so the children were left without supervision. The most recent story we heard about 7-8 year-old kids were caught for thieving from the neighbours, the officer said even the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development was shaken by the news because the children were referred to the Social Welfare Department. At this stage, usually the parents are left to blame. But then, if the society keep on finger-pointing, blaming someone else, all the hard work goes in vain.

Crime rate shows the social status of a society. In this case, no matter in what social class you are in, it is up to thyself to have either first-class-minded, second-class-minded or even no class at all. Education starts at home. it is important to make sure that our children posses good faith and understanding on religion, for that every action taken shall be rewarded or punished by God. Look at Japan, how civilised they are, even during the tsunami-stricken period, they still queue up to get their supplies/aids from the shop. Kalau kat Malaysia? Baru kalah bola pun dah bakar-bakar bendera, belasah penyokong negeri lain etcetera. Tu belum lagi kena timpa bencana ke apa.

Saya sedih dengan mentaliti masyarakat di Malaysia ni. Sampai bila pun takkan maju kalau pemikiran masih di takuk lama (perhaps takuk tu makin jatuh mcm suhu thermometer : negative - paras beku) :(

28 Years Old :)

Ahhhh~ Last year, on the same date, I wrote this. Saya baru 28 tahun! Another 30 years from now (insha Allah if I live that long), the same date would be my retirement day.

This year, I'm a wife and a mommy-to-be. Time really flies then. Being pregnant makes me prefer to stay at home and watching tv. Sometimes I bake and cook just to fill in ample times. Guinea pigs biasala, my husband and my family heheehh~

Owhhhh...result BSP!!! I took leave on Friday (and still received calls from the office, non-stop) just for the BSP test. For the morning result pre-meal : 5.3 mmol/L. The nurse asked me to have breakfast start fasting at 9 and come again at 11 am. I had chappati and warm water for breakfast. Forget what the nurse said to me the last time, that I could only eat half of a chappati (I was so hungry). I decided not to order paratha since it contains high cholesterol. Then I went in at 11 am, my sugar level was 4.2 mmol/L. Pretty low. I wonder why the pre-meal reading was higher and nobody could answer that.

Then my husband and I decided to have lunch at Black Canyon Alamanda. Being hungry, I ordered the usual, udon in chicken tom yam (our all time favourite) and garden salad, while my husband ordered beef steak. I actually ate 1/3 of my husband's steak (plus the toasts, and the french fries = talking about gluten and starch here. My husband managed to get us tickets for the Real Steel. I was kind of worried that what I ate might spike up the reading later. Thus, we decided for little shopping/walk until it's almost prayer time. Waited for my husband in the car while he went for Friday prayer. Went in at 3pm and the result : 4.6 mmol/L. The nurse asked me to fast by 7 pm and come in at 9 pm. My husband said "Kita pergi awal la. Movie starts at 9.30pm. Plus, sayang kan nak makan popcorn?". Amboiii sedappp dia punya umpan. Fine.

I had my dinner at 6 something : multiseeds toast + cheese + salad + chicken ham. Even before 9 pm we already arrived at the clinic and got my blood result : 4.9 mmol/L. Ok la kannnn... below 6 mmol/L. I had my popcorn at the movie sampai rasa kering tekak, luckily my husband had thoughtfully bought me a bottle of mineral water. I drank like a thirsty camel and ended up rasa nak terkencing when the movie ended. berlumba-lumba balik rumah sebab both of us rasa nak terbuang air sangat-sangat. Sampai je rumah terus serbu bilik air okeh. Heheheh~

What I learn is, even though the reading is low, I still have to control my diet and drink lots of plain water. It helps, really. Ha, semalam Ayah made Ketupat Sotong. Balik je rumah terus did the dishes until sakit pinggang and sakit tumit. Even drenched in sweat. Nak bakar calory punya pasal hahahah~ For a while duk makan sikit, lama-lama memang perut mengecil la. I feel full easily. Syaratnya ialah, make sure at fruits and vegetables first because they're packed with fiber.

My wish for this year's birthday? Health, happiness and being a better Muslim in every aspect. Eh, wish nak beli rumah jugak hehehehe~

Owh, I made this yesterday : Moist Chocolate Cake (Without Butter). Will post the recipe soon :)

Nyummm nyummm...!
This is Encik Rezalman's plate. I had just a bite.

Eating Moderately

Last Tuesday I went for MGTT in Precinct 9. What is MGTT? It stands for Modified Glucose Tolerance Test. A test which should be done during 28 weeks of pregnancy, and above. But in my case, due to I have gained a lot of weight, I was asked to undergo the MGTT at the 24th week of pregnancy. Anyway, Most people will be required to fast the night before taking MGTT, from 10pm, until the test is done (depends on what time you arrive at the clinic and how many patients are in line :P). I was feeling rather weak that day and I suspected it was due to low Hb. Indeed I was right.

So, I went for the test at 8.30am, had my Hb and urine tested, then off to the lab for glucose test. First, blood sample was taken and then the glucose-drinking part. It was darn sweet to the max! My head felt dizzy not long after that. FYI, after taking the glucose, we area required to fast for another 2 hours until the second blood sample is taken. I just sat there and waited agonisingly for 11am. Met Syuriza there. Had a brief talk before she went back to her office.

Around 11.15am, my name was called. Then the second blood sample was taken. The nurse even asked did I throw up. And guess what? She said the glucose in blood was quite high and I was referred to the doctor. The result was 5.36 mmol/l (before) and 9.16 mmol/l (after). I remembered that the night before bed I ate 2 bananas and 1 glass of Ribena. Bukan apa, takut lapar. Dah lapar kang ngamuk-ngamuk pulak kat klinik kang. Dahla pergi sana sorang-sorang (my husband attended a safety course in Ritz-Carlton). Sudahnya MGTT result was HIGH.

1999 WHO Diabetes criteria - Interpretation of Oral Glucose Tolerance Test

Glucose levels	NORMAL		impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG)		impaired glucose tolerance (IGT)		Diabetes Mellitus (DM)
Venous Plasma	Fasting	2hrs	Fasting	2hrs	Fasting	2hrs	Fasting	2hrs
(mmol/l)	<6.1	<7.8	> 6.1 & <7.0	<7.8	<7.0	>7.8	>7.0	>11.1
(mg/dl)	<110	<140	>110 & <126	<140	<126	>140	>126	>200

Impaired glucose tolerance is often associated with insulin resistance and is often seen in Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome.

Source : wikipedia

SEDIH OK! Memangla during pregnancy I eat a lot. But then, I was really hungry and always end up having heart burns and indigestions. Test gula je dah sampai pukul 11.30am. The nurse cakap kena scan card for afternoon session to see the doctor. Down habis the whole Tuesday. The session ended at 4.30 am. Sehari suntuk habis kat klinik je.

Owh, another bad news, I have to do the BSP, Blood Sugar Profile on the 28th October. 4 kali okeh! First will be before I take breakfast (around 7.30am), then 2 hours after that. Then, after lunch, and the last one after dinner (around 8.30pm, the clinic closes at 9.30pm). Mau tak sedih berpanjangan. rasa nak totally salahkan genetic pulak. I have contradicting issues, which are iron deficiency and high glucose. But then, we'll see on the 28th ok? Saya berdoa *kuat-kuat* supaya takdela confirm gestational diabetes. Gestational Diabetes is caused when the insulin supply is not enough to the digest the sugar in the blood due to hormonal suppression. Yela, dividing 2, for the mom and the baby. Same goes to my iron deficiency. Uhuk.

So hard for me to accept this situation but the nurse said fret not. Jaga pemakanan and eat less carbs. Carbs will turn into sugar to produce energy. Same goes to gluten and simple sugars from the fruits, nuts, honey etc.. Kena makan low Glycemic Index food so that the sugar release into the blood is slow it gives time for the insulin to work. So I already packed up my fridge with bran, yogurt, oranges and low fat milk. I've also stopped drinking EnfaMama for the mean time, and just drink plain low fat milk instead. Udahla jarang exercise, lepas makan, duduk je. Huhuhu~ Antara dugaan yang paling hebat ialah, teringin nak makan macam-macam. Semalam pergi Carrefour, tengok Aunty Anne's Pretzels, teringin sangat. The smell of the baked goods wafting, uuhhhhh~ DUGAANNNNN!. Balik je terus makan wholemeal tortilla wrap dengan salad with chicken balls *sambil membayangkan chocolate eclairs kat Aunty Anne's*. Kenyang, Alhamdulillah...

Since my baby is almost 6 months now, I think it will be a good time to invest in a bicycle and ride them around the neighbourhood. Kan? Dan husband pun duk bising yang dia dah gemuk. Bolehla berbasikal petang-petang hari di kawasan perumahan. Nak baby sihat punya pasal (dan tak nak kena c-section or induced), sekarang kena makan moderately and exercise regularly (light exercise ye, bukan weight lifting or jogging). Semoga berat saya tidak lagi mendadak. Sekarang dah 60kg. Wah wah. Harap-harap not more than 65kg when nearing the due date. Ameen.

Sekian. Kali ini saya tak merepek.

Leftover Cake Pudding

Hmmm... Baru-baru ni buat kek lepastu sebab pakai oven kecik, maka redai tu saya tak reti nak adjust. Akibat redai terlampau dekat dengan api atas, bahagian atas Marble Chocolate Cake saya sedikit hangus. Husband dah siap perli-perli "Sayang, macam mana nak putihkan kek ni ye?". Ces. Takpe. Memandangkan hari ni ada orang nak datang rumah, saya pun gigih buangkan bahagian atas yang hangus tu dan berazam untuk buat leftover cake menjadi puding :D

Yummyyyy! :D

Leftover Cake Pudding
Ingredients :

Pudding
Leftover cake, cut into small pieces
1 can of evaporated milk + 1 - 1 and a half cup of water OR 500ml of fresh milk
4 tbsp of castor sugar OR 4 tbsp of sweetened condensed milk (can be reduced)
2 eggs
2 tbsp of melted butter (I omitted this one)
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tbsp corn flour
a pinch of salt

Custard Sauce
1 can of evaporated milk
1-2 tbsp of castor sugar
2 tbsp custard powder
Mixed fruit cocktail or any fruit of your preference
You can also substitute the sugar with mixed fruit syrup from the fruit cocktail

How-to

1. Preheat the oven at 180C.
2. Make sure to grease the baking pan.
3. Arrange the pieces of cake until the pan is fully covered.
4. In a bowl, mix all ingredients until thorough.
5. Then pour into the cake-filled baking pan, let them soak for half an hour.
6. Bake for 30 minutes or until fully cooked.
7. In a large bowl, mix all the custard sauce ingredient and cook on low heat until the sauce thickens.
8. Best served chilled :)

Bahasa Jiwa Bangsa

Sempena Bulan Bahasa Kebangsaan.

No, I'm not going to write in BM, in fact in mix languages. Sebab? Jangan cakap saya berlagak sebab nak cakap omputih yang kononnya ada kelas pulak.

The truth is, I was taught to converse in Malay AND English since I was small. Wei, sepupu-sepupu ramai lahir kat luar negara + berlainan bangsa, mula-mula memang la depa tak reti cakap BM. Lama-lama sikit balik Malaysia baru la reti cakap BM. Tu pun terkial-kial. So janganlah salahkan saya kalau kadang-kadang saya ni tercakap English (walaupun tak betul haha) because sometimes bila fikir balik, perkataan yang nak diungkapkan tu dah jadi lain bila translate dalam BM. Siot kan?

My late grandpa was a Telekom technician. Zaman dulu-dulu kalau dapat pergi sekolah tu memang dah bernasib baik pun. Umur 19 kena kahwin sebab tak nak kena hantar buat railway maut kat Burma. I don't know when did he start working with Telekom (dulu nama lain J&T kot? before being privatised), then after a while he got offered to further his studies in UK. Tinggallah my grandma dan anak-anak 8 orang time tu kalau kat silap. Walaupun my grandparents tidaklah berpendidikan tinggi, (sekarang ni ramai degree holders, and muda-muda dah habis post grad degree), from my observation, my grandpa spoke in English whenever he could. Yela, my cousins yang Chinese tu memang converse in English, apatah lagi my aunties yang belajar overseas tu kan. So, being brought up in a family of mix-marriages and mix-everything, I, too, converse in English (although not perfect). Owh, actually my grandpa was Chinese, adopted by a Malay family. My grandma is Malay, berketurunan Bugis Riau (meaning, Melayu ye. Jangan cakap bukan warganegara pulak). My mom once told me, walaupun my grandpa boleh berbahasa Cina, dia tak pernah converse in Chinese pun dengan anak-anak. Lepak kopitiam dengan his friends, dia akan bagi duit to my mom suruh pegi kedai dengan kakak-kakak (biasanya diorang beli gula tarik hehe). So, my aunties barely has the chance to listen to my grandpa conversing in Chinese. Rugi kan? kalau tau, kecik-kecik boleh belajar hehe. Wah, multilingual gitu :D.

No, saya sebenarnya bukan nak bercerita pasal family. Tetapi mengenai tanggapan. Sejak bekerja di sektor sebelah sini, my English has worsened, terribly. Dulu kalau time group presentation studio je, mestila saya kena tolak kat depan sebab pandai goreng. Wei, pandai goreng tak semestinya pandai English ok. But, at least my English was WAAAYYYYY better than now. Kalau nak ikutkan, lecturers yang mengajar tu ada yang tak betul pun English. Macam perkataan "That's mean" ot "It's mean" (which they tried to have the meaning of "Which means). Well, at least effort. Bukan macam ada sesetengah manusia yang bila dengar orang lain cakap English "Wei, ko tu kan Melayu, tak reti cakap Melayu ke? Nak sangat jadi omputih celup agaknya?" or ayat selalu guna zaman saya sekolah menengah dulu "Semua lagu tu lagha. Dengar nasyid je." (dan berkumandanglah nasyid yang sama setiap hujung minggu sampai naik muak saya dengar). Padahal diri sendiri pun duk terangguk-angguk dengar lagu Backstreet Boys zaman sekolah dulu kannn kannnn. Tak ngaku minat boy band la tu. Haha.

When I was in my secondary years, saya dipandang serong sebab saya berasal dari KL. Kononnya KL tu bandar maksiat, penuh dengan budak-budak tak elok perangai. Hakikatnya, siapa yang lebih 'advance' sekarang? Budak-budak yang satu sekolah dengan saya dulu yang bertudung labuh, berjubah etc., alih-alih bila terjumpa kat universiti, pergh, kalah budak KL. Yang dulunya geng-geng tarbiyyah, dan mereka ni selalu je mengadu pasal saya kat warden, sekarang sama je macam orang lain. Iman tu boleh naik turun setiap hari ye kawan-kawan. Jangan ingat kalau kawan-kawan tu a bit different, means they are bad apples. Certainly wrong.

Owh, saya juga dipandang serong, kononnya berlagak sebab berbahasa Inggeris. Hello, markah Bahasa Melayu saya tak pernah kurang dari A pun (but not necesssarily I am good at speaking in BM too haha). Same goes to my English (walaupun keputusan SPM sangat memeranjatkan haha). Kadang-kadang saya lihat orang Melayu (maaf ye siapa terasa) ni seolah-olah berdengki dengan bangsa sendiri, tapi takde pulak berusaha nak memajukan bangsa ke apa. Betul la orang cakap kalau mix marriage boleh dapat anak cerdik. Mau tak cerdik, sebab cara pemikiran / didikan adalah lain okeh. Saya tak cakap all Malays ni narrow-minded. Dan saya juga tak kata Melayu itu bodoh. Tokoh-tokoh kita ramai yang Melayu, tapi mereka ni takdela narrow or fickle-minded like some of us. It's about mentality. Mudah benar melabel seseorang tanpa mengetahui hal sebenar.

Tapi bila dah bersekolah yang ada satu kaum je, kita nampak semua tu depan mata. Contoh paling hebat "Owhhhh...HARAM budak perempuan lantang bersuara. Ketua MESTI lelaki. Perempuan WAJIB jalan menundukkan pandangan". Kalau seperti berlandaskan nas Hadith / Quran takpelah kan. Ni suka suki je buat hukum sendiri. Semua salah budak perempuan punya salah. Tanggngjawab yang LELAKI mana? Memang tersangat annoying. Paling marah ialah, bila dilabelkan sebagai "overly social" when we are able to converse in English. Itulah mentaliti di sekolah saya dulu. Lepastu bila nak siapkan homework English, boleh pulak tersua-sua carik kita.

Pada hemat saya, menguasai bahasa asing bukan bermaksud kita melupakan asal-usul atau jatidiri. Suka hati orang tu la kalau dia nak menguasai 8 bahasa sekalipun. Yang penting ialah kelebihan yang dapat dicapai apabila fasih berbahasa asing. Senang nak ke mana-mana. Boleh ambil kesempatan dan buat pendapatan sampingan untuk menterjemahkan buku bahasa asing ke Bahasa Malaysia. Vice versa. Takde pulak orang pandang serong kalau boleh berbahasa Arab. Owh, alasan mereka sebab bahasa Arab adalah bahasa Al-Quran. Bukankah Rasulullah menyuruh kita menuntut ilmu dari buaian hingga ke liang lahad? Tak kiralah ilmu apa sekalipun. Mempelajari bahasa juga salah satu cabang ilmu.

Apa pun, dalam bidang saya sekarang ini menuntut penggunaan Bahasa Malaysia secara total. Saya hanya berpeluang untuk menggunakan bahasa lain tatkala berblogging atau percakapan harian. Yang lain-lain, tak ingat. Haih. Kalaulah Bahasa Inggeris saya hebat. Maka perlulah saya membaca lebih lagi buku Bahasa Inggeris.

Sekian repekan kali ini :)

Alhamdulillah, Praise be to Allah The Almighty

Alhamdulillah...

Belanjawan 2012. Tak dapat bising, dapat pun bising.

Some of the highlights from Budget 2012:

1. Exemption of fees in school. In short, free education. Plus, students from standard 1 to form 5, focusing on the lower income family, will be provided RM100 each to lessen the burden. (and there's this person, whom he calls himself a teacher, complains about how free education has been a propaganda since Datuk Seri Hishammuddin's era, how the students and teachers have to pay PTA fees, yuran rumah sukan etc., while he, himself did not listen to the Budget Speech at all. Then, when people bombarded his wall with explanations, he justified that if everything's free, meaning the school will have no fund for extra activities. Duh.... kalau duk mengharapkan semua kerajaan bagi, sampai susah pun tak maju. Side activities other than what is required by the education's system, of course la tak ditanggung. Then you know why some government assisted schools have better infrastructures the government schools, because they have better PTA funds. Dengan anak-anak pun berkira. Ni la Melayu (specifically). Macam mana nak maju neh).
2. Increment based on the new SBPA. I dare not say anything about this because we are still waiting for the new circular :)
3. Half month bonus in December 2011 (I am definitely buying baby's stuffs hehe).

My thought is more on the education, because I am some-what related :P

During my school years, my father refused to accept Skim Pinjaman Buku Teks (I haven't asked him until today why he refused). I think one of the reasons, there were more needy people than we are. Plus, the books' condition were...hmmm... you know, hand-me-downs look like. So, all 5 of us, bought our own text books. Due to the price of text books, we were taught to wrap our books, exercise books included so that they would look tidy and neat, even after repeated errr... usage? (books crammed inside our bulky school bags, dragged our bags, accidentally spilled something on the books, etc.). 

That habit didn't even change during my secondary years. Even when veryone gets free text books, regardless the household income, still, most of the books (I dare say 70%) in good condition. One of the initiative that my teachers took was, the week we were handed the books, we were required to wrap the books, mandatory. If not, our books would be seized and we'd never get our books back.

These days, everything under the education is for free. So, we expect people would stop whining, complaining or even lamenting on fees etc. No more paying for text books, no more fees for sports, no more fees for this and that. Alas, no. People still complain.

I nearly lost my temper with my ex-schoolmate. If he keeps on complaining, why bother being a teacher? I do not understand this kind of mentality and I'm at wits' end with people like this. Even his friends quoted back the Budget Speech, but still, he tried to back himself up by replying the other way round. He even asked about PTA fees, sports fees, etc. Kalau dah malas nak dengar Budget Speech tu jangan berlagak pandai la potpet potpet the unknown. I wonder what did he teach to his students when we have this kind of mentality? I am not finger pointing at everyone in the teaching profession, but particularly this guy. So what are his contributions anyway? AT LEAST read the speech text, then comment. Talking like an idiot doesn't help at all and it makes him look totally ignorant and lame-brained (a list-long of bad words to write but he needs not to be mentioned a few times here).

Last but not least, let us be grateful servants of Allah. If we do not like what's given to us, then strive to have things better. Not by sitting on your fat arse and do nothing except complaining.

وَإِذْ تَأَذَّنَ رَبُّكُمْ لَئِن شَكَرْتُمْ لَأَزِيدَنَّكُمْ ۖ وَلَئِن كَفَرْتُمْ إِنَّ عَذَابِي لَشَدِيدٌ

And when your Lord proclaimed: If ye give thanks, I will give you more; but if ye are thankless, lo! My punishment is dire.

(translation by Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall)

Ibraheem : Verse 7

Ok, enough of babbling.

Praise be to Allah for I am still Muslim, I believe in His rewards in the Hereafter :)

Takde Mood

2-3 hari ni bukannya busy sangat pun. Tapi memang takde idea nak tulis apa. Balik rumah, makan, tengok tv, pastu tido. Esok liatnya Subhanallah nak bangun macam nak suruh pegi bajak sawah pakai kerbau. Padahal ofis dengan rumah dekat je, lepastu bukan kena drive, husband hantarkan. Mungkin syndrome M berleluasa (Bukan Malahayati ye. Tetapi MALAS.)

2 malam lepas, husband demam. Kesian dia. Tengah tengok tv kat bawah tu, dia tertidur. Saya pun sentuh dahi, panas. Tuangkan air 100 Plus, kejutkan dia dan bagi dia minum. Kesian dia. Selama ni dia yang duk layan makan minum saya semua. Siap kemas rumah, doing the dishes etc. Pendek kata, urusan rumah dia buat. Saya bangun pagi, bersiap, minum susu yang dia buat lepastu tunggu dia hantarkan ke ofis.

Owh, rumah kami... Heaven! Dah boleh dikatakan 70% kelihatan seperti rumah normal. Abang ipar nak datang esok pagi. Husband kerja pulak. Jadi saya tengah fikirkan menu untuk esok. Yela, dapur tak pernah berasap lagi ni. Setakat guna oven and toaster, tak aci kira ye. Ni specifically untuk acara menumis dan memasak yang berbunyi kuali "cheng cheng chengggg" *bunyi ketukan sudip ke kuali kononnya* yang melibatkan percikan minyak panas sampai ada antara kita bersilat kat dapur.

Walaupun duit bulan ni mmg cukup-cukuppppp untuk makan je, husband dah fikir macam-macam nak beli time dapat gaji nanti. Dia duk excited pasal Belanjawan 2012 (ok, pasal perkataan Belanjawan tu kita bincang kemudian). Adoiiii... baru je nak bernafas fikir health insurance yang tak berbayar lagi (potongan auto-debit via bank account). Anyhow, memandangkan potongan insurance mencecah RM500, maka kami cepat-cepat keluarkan baki dalam account supaya tak kena potong tengah-tengah bulan nanti. Yela, kalau dah potong, nanti nak makan apa? Although we do not deny that we have our secret stash, I'm not fond of the idea of using up all the money. Yela, kalau ada emergency kan susah? At the moment, the urgency is not that bad. Asalkan hutang kereta, bil elektrik, bil air and UniFi dan bayar, it's 80% settled. Except for the health insurance.

Here goes the recent picture of the house :)

The root of all sengkek-ness.
Owh, kami suka lepak atas toto kaler biru tu sambil tengok tv. Ahaks.

Dining table yang mengkopakkan poket itu.

Inilah kaunter yang disebut-sebut tu. Nampak tak pintu tengah-tengah tu?
Transitional area. maybe untuk cooking. tapi bertingkap kecik. ces.

Owhhh...haritu lepas insiden terjatuh tangga, 4 hari kemudian baru pegi scan kat Poliklinik An-Nur P15. Anak ibu dah besar! Siap gerak-gerak dengan ganas sekali.

Olololoooo~

Disebabkan berat badan naik 4kg, maka saya mengambil inisiatif untuk bawak bekal salad ke ofis. Bertahan satu hari sahaja. Semalam tengah hari tak makan (sebab mengantuk). So, bila balik ngamuk-ngamuk lapar. Bila order pizza, saya makan 4 KEPING okehhhh!!! Dulu habis kuat makan 2 keping je. Macam mana nak maintain berat ni? Adoiiii...

Sekian karutan kali ini. :D

Monthly Checkup Lagi

Uhukkkk... berat telah mencapai 58.5 kg! Adehhhhh~ Sudahnya kena minum air glucose. Nurse cakap bimbang sebab from earlier pregnancy berat baru 52kg. Elehhhh...bila jumpa dktor, doktor siap tanya berat asal before pregnant berapa? Saya pun cakapla 54kg. So, doktor cakap, it's normal to gain back my normal weight, but still kena pergi minum air glucose jugak. But, to think back, it means I have gained 10kg since I'm married. Wah wahhhhh... harus menurunkan berat badan ni! Nurse cakap jangan diet. Well, takdela sampai macam tu kannn... In between mesti makan salads n fruits only. Selama ni pun saya makan fruits and salads apa?

Macam tak faham pulak apasal berat naik sampai 4kg dalam masa sebulan ni (sebenarnya more to buat-buat tak faham kannnnn :P). Last week memang outstation, and 2 weeks before that. And our weekdays are filled with makan-makan and open houses. Since this week dah takde orang buat open houses, I guess it's the best time to actually monitor my weight.

Hb rendah lagi... dari haritu 11.1mg, sekarang dah turun 10.4mg balik? Maybe sebab semalam demam. Saya syak sebab makan durian Musang King on Sunday. Well, makan 5 ulas boleh demam ke? Husband dah membebel-bebel sebab makan durian banyak. Selama ni makan 2-3 ulas je lepas tu stop. tapi on Sunday tu macam naik hantu pulak makan durian. isi dia sedap! Ada pahit-pahit. RM80 sebijik woooo!!! Lepas makan durian, makan buah limau bali pulak. Sampai Mak pun cakap "Ok, dah cukup makan. Esok-esok pulak ye..." sebab tengok saya pun dah bersandar takleh nak duduk straight heheheh~ Makan buah takpe kot? :D

Until then :)

p/s : Rumah dah ada sofa and dining table! Makan bulan ini adalah diisytiharkan sengkek. Wajib berjimat untuk beli barang-barang dapur, barang-barang baby and balik kampung on Eidul Adha T____T

Cerita Tak Best

Gigi tersompek tadi. Huhuhuhu~ There goes my tooth. Kisahnya makan sate, lepas tu daging sate tu terlekat celah gigi. Gatal pulak tangan ni cungkil pakai lidi sate. Tak pasal-pasal sompek. Actually, filling gigi dah tercabut, so makanan asyik termasuk kat situ. Nak kena buat root canal, then crowning pulakkkk... Setakat ni dah 2 batang molars affected. Bila dapat tau pregnant ni and the procedures include x-ray, clinic tak bagi buat. So kena tunggu next year baru boleh buat? T____T

Any other options tak? Kalau gigi bertampal yang kaler hitam tu hodoh sangat.

Owh?

Selama ni ingat perut rasa gerak-gerak sebab angin (ye, sebab saya selalu kembung). Rupa-rupanya baby bergerak. Adoiii... maklumla, first time. Semalam perut sampai kena cucuk. Nampak perut tu "toing-toing" 2-3 kali. Baby sangat aktif waktu malam. Wah wah... dah pandai ye. So, nampaknya kena start kira until baby's 10th movement and record the time. Lupa pulak nak tanya nurse how to count the movement. Sebab, baby ni dia gerak suka hati. If dia gerak berpanjangan, so would that be considered as 1 movement? Or kena kira masa dia pulse stop?

I went for a scan at Poliklinik An-Nur P15 yesterday. Dah besar! Nampak kepala and tangan + tulang. I wonder if the skin is still translucent that we could see the bones? And the most worrying part is, the low placement of placenta. The doctor even said, low placenta happens several times during pregnancy. So, placenta praevia would only be considered during the 7th or 8th month. If still the same, then caesarean is the option. Bimbang sangat! Saya berdoa supaya takde complication, anak sihat dan cukup sifat. Tak kisahla gender. Semoga menjadi anak yang soleh/solehah :)

Baju dah tak muat. Kain baju kurung pun confirm tak boleh nak zip. Dah sendat sangat. Nampak gaya kena allocate gaji bulan ni untuk beli baju pejabat. Dulu-dulu memang suka jugak beli baju. Tapi sekarang, macam takde selera. Aiiii... baju owh baju. Perut terasa sendat sentiasa. Cis, dah tak muat undies yang petite size. Takde ke undies yang menarik? Yang saya tengok semua macam granny panties. Urghhhhh :(. Eh, motiffff cakap apsal undies???? :P

Owh, nafsu makan boleh tahan woooo~ Semalam at midnight makan naan butter. Habis! And not forgetting milo too. Minum susu mengharapkan husband buatkan (mengada-ngada haha). Tapi kalau tak minum susu pun dah ada calcium tablets :D. Tapi tu la, kena makan 4 bijik. Setakat ni keguguran rambut adalah bertahap normal. Cuma risau bila gosok gigi, gusi berdarah jugak. Walaupun dah berus 3-4 kali sehari. Will definitely go to the dentist to get my filling fixed. Dah tercabut. Wuhuhuhu~ Terbang lagi duitttt...

Insha Allah will be going to LDHN and KWSP tomorrow. Dah naik ni baru nak pegi LHDN kannnn... Siot je perangai :P

Mondayyyyyyy

My tummy got bloated last night and guess what? It felt like inflated balloon. I could barely move and ended up lying down in bed for the rest of the day. I suspected it was caused by untimely food consumption. Yela, makan pagi minum susu Anmum je, then later that afternoon baru makan roti canai. The good thing is, being pregnant (for the first time) gives me first-class service by my husband. Miahahahah~

Owh, I am slightly worried because my baby's movement is rare now, or maybe due to I slept for the whole day yesterday while the night before the baby was so active. Ok, will definitely go for a scan and checkup at An-Nur at least tomorrow (I am worried, but trying not to think too much).

Jamuan Hari Raya again. Argh. Even my tummy made a somersault by the word 'Jamuan'. Mogok la tu tak nak makan sebab dah overloaded. Until then :)

Of Being Busy and Clumsy

For the last 5 days (Sunday to Thursday), I had to stay at the hotel and forgot to bring my laptop. We worked like nobody's business. What were we doing? Evaluating tender. There were tonnes of them that we had to work day and night, very late, I mean. 

Yesterday morning, my husband sent me to my parents' house because he had to rush off to Bukit Belimbing in Balakong. Around 10 minutes before 11 am, the house went black out. Imagine Putrajaya having blackout? Many wouldn't believe this but this has happened for several times. I went upstairs to check up on my sister because I had to go to the office for some urgent matter and I need to borrow the car. So I thought I could go to the office around 3 o'clock. Going down the stairs, I missed some steps and stumbled down. It was dark that I thought I placed my foot at the right place but unfortunately I skipped 3 steps and fell down around the corner of the stairs. I tried grabbing anything that could prevent me from falling down all the way, only managed to break the fall with my right knee. 

Worried and scared to death, I called my husband, crying and I didn't know what to do. I lay down and pray that my baby would be just fine. Took my vitamins immediately (I know, funny hehe). Called up Mak and told everything. All that I could remember last night, I was really tired and aching all over. I slept after Maghrib and woke up nearly midnight, feeling very hungry and thirsty. (Owh, there was second time blackout around 2pm the same day, duhhhh).

This morning I noticed my right knee is bruised and my left arm is sore. Alhamdulillah.... the baby is fine. Happily kicking and turning at this moment (talking about the one who loves staying up very late huh? Won't let mommy sleep eh?).

I hope with the 3 days off, I can finally rest well. My body is aching all over! (owh, will tell about the trip to IKEA today some other time hehe).

Until then.

Marmar Carrie Cookies

Dulu-dulu time arwah makcik saya ada, biskut ni antara yang wajib buat. Sebab? Senang dan boleh buat corak suka suki hati ni je. Heheheheh~ 3 tahun lepas saya pernah buat. Senang sangat! Rangup! :D Cadangnya nak buat untuk raya tapi tak jadi la pulakkkk (harapannnn). Saje bagi recipe supaya kawan-kawan yang teringin tu bolehlaaaa try kat rumah :)

Gigih makcik cari heart-shaped cookie cutter satu Putrajaya semata-mata nak kekalkan authenticity of the cookies. Yela, kecik-kecik dulu arwah makcik buat heart shape. Nak buat petak pun ok. Saje mengimbau kenangan lama ;)

INGREDIENTS

Cookies
375g wheat flour
130g corn flour
300g butter
100g powdered sugar (could be lessened)
(trick - just blend the coarse sugar into fine powder)
½ tsp essence of vanilla

a pinch of salt

Topping

1 egg white

100g powdered sugar

1 tbs corn flour

chocolate emulco for garnishing

toothpick

HOW-TO

1. Preheat the oven to 150C
2. Sift together the flours then set them aside.
3. Beat the butter and sugar until fluffy (whitish colour) then add in the vanilla essence.
4. Add in the sifted flour one spoon at a time and until they form a dough.
5. Start working on your soft dough and roll the dough with a rolling pin into a 5mm-thick spread.
6. Cut the spread using the cookie cutter.
7. Take half a teaspoonful of the topping and spread them onto each cookie.
8. Dip a toothpick into the chocolate emulco and start drawing lines (vertical or horizontal or just go crazy)
9. Bake around 25 minutes.

Owh, harus diingatkan bahawa jangan biar lama-lama cookies yang dah letak topping tu kat luar. Bakar je terus. Bukan apa, nanti gula tu kering, lepastu bila bakar dalam oven ended up nampak macam hangus. Oxidised kot? :P

P/s : Tengah carik gambar 3 tahun lepas tu entah ke mana. Nak buat lagi macam malas. Hahahahah~

What Marriage Is All About

After throwing tantrums this morning, finally I get to sip my daily-dosage of Milo (while trying not to be reminded of the tasteless tuna sandwich bought at Petronas). Talking about all-the-time upset stomach, which affected me the most, and also my husband (because I keep on whining how my tummy hurts so bad, tossing and turning on the bed, sleepless nights, migraines etc.). I didn't mean to trouble my husband (elehhh yela tuuuu), but he's the only one I've got at the moment and our lives (me and my baby hehe) are depending on him. Well, dulu-dulu ada Mak and Ayah, but since we've got our own house now, there are only two of us.

My husband drives around minimum 70km per day back and fro to his office in Subang and still have time to run errands like sending the laundry (we still don't have a washing machine and I'm too lazy to hand wash my clothes huhu), clean up the bedroom, ironing my clothes at times, or any other tasks that should have been done by me. Except for the cooking part, I'd rather cook because I'm a picky eater :D. I hope this lasts for eternity (insha Allah), whereas to tell husbands out there, house chores are not meant only for the wives. There's always give and take.

I've heard one of my subordinates told me how her husband asked her to iron the clothes and leaving the house chores all to her. I was devastated. Thinking that I might end up being treated the same way, I've set my mind and prayed so hard that Allah would grant me a suitable husband. You see, for me, if you think the women are doomed to sit in the kitchen and be a home-maker, you are dead wrong. These days women are intelligent. They could be housewives, but they also own a baking/sewing business etc. Even our Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) helped his wives in the kitchen. And the Prophet also said that a husband should provide a helper for the wife if he could afford it. Ni tak, bini buat semua kerja rumah je, baik bela maid kan? No. I am no female chauvinist, but I am just stating the fact.

Marriage has ups and downs. Too much of sweetness, you'll get bored. Too much bitterness, you'll end up being err... suicidal...? Well, truth be told, I am very much surprised how my husband could withstand in coping up with me. Being resilient he is, I am one mean woman when it comes to proving who's right (you know, being defensive - provided that I have all the evidence etc.). It's hard changing myself (so does he, but I know he's being nice... awwww....), but I'm still adapting to being married, soon-to-be a parent, and doing all sorts of things that I've never done before.

It's nice seeing elderly couples walking hand in hand in public (which my parents do hehe) and seeing daddies taking care of the children at the mall (while the mothers busy shopping, I guess that's not an appropriate example haha). I've seen my Abang Chik (my brother in-law - eh biras in English apa ye hehe - he's married to my husband's sister) taking care of his 3 children (who are obviously still small - 6, 4 and 2 years old), bathed them, changing diapers, put them to bed, because my sister in-law was pregnant with the fourth child, and was very tired. In fact, all the children are closer to the father than the mother. How everyone wishes for the same! (eh, ke saya sorang je). You could wish for a handsome husband, or rich husband, but all I've wished for is a husband who would lead me towards Him.

My husband is a romantic person, for I am not. All the garang part, that's me. All the mellow part, that's him. Although we argue at times over petty things, it's always him apologising first (despite that I'm the culprit haha). He sometimes tries to get the romantic side of me by asking me how much I love him. I'll just make up funny faces. There are no words in this world that could describe how much I treasure him and how thankful I am for having him in my life. Harap-harap tak lupa diri bila dah dapat husband baik macam ni. Mak cakap saya garang sangat. Hohohohoo~ I want my children to respect the elderly especially the parents. Yeah I know I haven't been a great child either, but experiencing terrible pregnancy symptoms made me realise it is beyond noble, being a mom who had carried us for 9 months, gave us milk, love, taking care of us when we fell sick etc.

My husband and I have just been married for more than 9 months. Many would ask what do I know about marriage? You see, parents are good examples for us. I take my parents instead, being married for 29 years. How my mom copes up with us all, the 5 children, each with distinctive characteristics (you know, being me hehe). My husband has 10 siblings. His late father was a fish monger, his mother is a housewife. They were not used to lavishness (to be compared to me, I have everything). All his siblings made it to the university, with scholarship. Children copy what they see. The environment they live in is essential in shaping their mentality. Alas, we the parents could only try and give our best, hoping for a positive result.

And I hope I'll be a good example for my children too, insha Allah.

It's a serious entry this time :P