Pieces Of Me...

Me and My Baby (5 Months)

2010-05-25T10:51:00.000+08:00

2010-05-12T22:44:00.001+08:00

I am tired of this, please stop it and spare me.

Start one for your kids

2010-05-11T13:48:00.000+08:00

For more info...

LOVE

2010-05-10T01:36:00.000+08:00

Changes..

2010-04-14T12:24:00.004+08:00

I have started going back to office, and I now leave my princess at my aunt's place. Not easy for me lah, at first, especially few days before the actual day. I was sooo down and all. So how has it been for me? Have to wake up earlier coz need to allocate like half and hour more to bathe her and to express milk. Fortunately, she is rather easy in the morning. I will just turn her and call her name a few times, then she will sloooowly try to open her eyes, sometimes, she will "want to cry" then I sing her morning songs and she will look at me with that blur2 look and either give me a tiny smile or a "what-you-doing" look. But she doesn't cry when I proceed to bathe her and dress her, my good little girl :) She has been good. Depending on the time, I would feed her. Well, before I started going to office, I have tried giving her formula milk but she downright refused, at most she will just play2 with the teat. They said to let her reach hunger, until no choice then will drink, but she would cry sooo pitifully, that I couldn't bear to do so. And we started on Similac but I personally do not like its smell (and it would even leave the funny smell lingering in the bottle), so we bought Friso. Smells nice. Didn't work either, so no choice have to tah-pau expressed breastmilk, and since my stash not exactly that huge, I also express twice a day, once in the morning and once at night. Tiring can? Apparently the first day, she didn't really drink much, not even finishing the 3-4oz per feed. This girl very funny, if I give her bottle, she would only finish at most 4oz (rare), even for her size. I have read that some babies can finish alot more. Anyway, even the next day she didn't drink much. So that snowballed and at night, she woke up more to feed. I also told my aunt to slowly let her try formula milk. So on the fourth day there, she finished 2oz (compared to all the other times when she will just push the teat out, and cry) so success. Now just to let her drink one feeding of formula per day and monitor lah, and then next week shall increase to twice a day, and finally, possibly I wouldn't need to express anymore. When my aunt SMS-ed that she finished the whole 2oz she made, I am happy, for obvious reasons, but at the same time, I felt sad... Perhaps the fact that she will not "need" me anymore saddens me. It used to be she cannot do without me. Anyway, I am still going to breastfeed her at night if my supply allows. She does look like she has slightly lost weight, no more comfort feeding bah.

Her schedule also all change. Now she sleeps at 8.30pm, all the way till morning, waking up only for feeds. So meaning, by the time I fetch her and all, I am only left with 1.5-2hrs with her :( Cannot tahan, reach home, I will kiss2 her, hug2 her... Sooo miss her smell.

My Outings with MZ

2010-03-26T23:39:00.001+08:00

I have been going out with my little princess, and am more confident of bringing her out without the hubby. :) Baby Bjorn has been good, only that she has been putting on weight and it won't be long before I can carry her like that for a long period of time. So..... it is time to really utilize the pram that her PPJ bought. Thank you PPJ! Anyways, yesterday for the first time, I drove alone with Zafirah. Went to meet Ifa at IMM to accompany her buy things for Qiara's party. Well, how's the experience? She started crying after 5minutes. I believe coz she was tired and wanted to be held. Plus I wasn't behind to entertain her. I was proud that I didn't panic and managed to drive all the way, with her crying (though I did feel bad for leaving her to cry). Once reached and I picked her up, she stopped immediately. Her eyes were wet... Muka sungguh lah kesian... Then again her Baby Bjorn was being washed (another story which I will blog about in a while) so I was contemplating on using her stroller coz I was afraid she would continue crying. Decided to go ahead with the stroller. She didn't cry, except later on when she wanted to sleep.

Anyways, the Baby Bjorn (BB) story... Haaha, the day before, I also met Ifa to buy stuff for the party... And we went to City Square Mall (I like that place, not crowded and many nice nice shops and eateries) and guess what happened. This girl poo-ed, I had to walk verrrry far to get to the changing room (that place is huge). Once there, I took her out of the BB and saw that the poo had overflowed from the back all the way to the BB and her pants and T-shirt. The thing was, I already changed out of the first top that she was wearing cos she vomitted on it. Soooo how, no more tops. And my bag was small, and I couldn't possibly call Ifa, coz she would have to travel very far, with Danie in the trolley car thingy... I took off her clothes and diaper and practically had to wipe her whole back. Luckily she was quiet and not wailing (this poo overflow thing happened before and at that time, she wailed so loudly) and allowed me to clean her up without any fuss. She just stared while I did all that. And fortunately, she didn't leak from the front and on me, if not, I wouldn't know what to do... I had to let her wear back her previous top and I brought extra pants. The next thing I had to worry about was how to keep the soiled BB. My bag was small, I had no plastic bag big enough for it... I thought, heck ah, just try to squeeze it into my bag. I transferred all the clean stuff into the one pocket there was, and managed to fold the BB (the soiled part inwards) and squeeze that in. I carried the BB strap by hand, coz that couldn't fit in, my bag was already damn full. Next task on the list I have to carry my 7 plus kg bundle of love and walk around. Lucky GG finishing early and was going to join us. So after cleaning up and stuffing all that in the bag before we left the changing room, I looked at her and spoke to her about the whole incident, and she gave me her sweet smile... that made everything worthwhile.

I really have got to put together the blog posts from the other blog together with this one... My life and hers are intertwined so it would be rather tough to blog about her separately..

Okaaay...

2010-03-16T00:39:00.000+08:00

Been feeling somewhat one-kind... Then I opened an email from BabyWeekly and read something that kinda helped a bit. It's like they know how I am feeling...

"Dealing with advice
Norain, many people will give you advice on how to care for your baby; but that doesn't mean you're doing anything wrong, that you are a bad parent or that you have to follow the suggestion. Advice (wanted or unwanted) is only good if it fits the style of parenting that you're comfortable with. You can use your journal as a place to keep all those bits of advice you want to remember...or forget. Write now."

CNY Long Weekend

2010-02-22T13:32:00.000+08:00

Had a very eventful CNY weekend. Basically, it was like a family time weekend. We slept over my in-laws place on Friday night and had family McD's breakfast at WCP, so fun! Of course, Zafirah slept the whole time during breakfast, that is what she does best in the Baby Bjorn, sleep. Then head for Nenek's after that. We met up with Shamsul, Ras, Mardee, Akiff and Ariff at WCP (again) at night. They were nice enough to come all the way there, instead of going to the airport which was too far away for us. Zafirah knocked out straight when we reached home, not having a proper sleep the night before (she wasn't used to sleeping at TJ).

On Sunday, Sadiq and Rauhdah, Irfan and Yani came to see our baby. After which, we went to Yishun and had doa selamat. It was nice. Pak Itam and family came over too, and met our baby for the first time. She slept rather peacefully amidst the noisy atmosphere. Plus, everyone took turn to carry her, so I got to rest for the day. We had dinner the next day at Simpang Bedok the next day, something we seldom do. Coz usually Pak Itam comes over for hari raya when we'll be busy visiting but this time around, we had time for such an outing. It was kecoh, coz like sooo many of us. One and a half looooooong tables were filled up. We headed for Busu's house for maghrib and continued catching up.

Tuesday, we went to my in-laws place again, coz they missed Zafirah. Then me, my mom, and sis had facials done, courtesy of Kak Rozana, who comes every week for my dad's health regime. Ohhh now my weight is back to when I was 8 weeks preggie :)

It really was a nice long weekend, spent with family.

But that wasn't the end of it all. To top off a nice long weekend - I went to office on Wednesday, on my own with Zafirah, and met up all my colleagues, who were having a CNY gathering. My first time bringing Zafirah out away from BPP on my own. She slept all the way in her carrier, and woke up for milk and a short play session. GG came after that to fetch us. We waited in the car for GG to finish work, and then to Taka we headed. Sooo nice, I haven't gone jalan2 just us. And she was looking around here and there at the lights and things around her. Also kept smiling2 and laughing2 at her daddy. Perhaps she is also happy that daddy got to spend time with her like that. I wished we could do that more often.

Now, I am in the midst of doing gubahans for Little Wan. I brought Zafirah to Arab St (second outing alone) to find ribbons and also to Bugis since there was a sale (didn't buy anything though). Ok, gtg and finish the gubahans. Ta-ta.

First Official Day Out

2010-01-30T23:29:00.000+08:00

We went out just now, like really went out, not like hospital visit or clinic visit out, like more than a couple of hours out of the house out... Went to nenek's house and then to my in-law's place. GG has fixed the car seat and so far she has no problems sitting in there, seemed very comfy. Thanks guys for the car seat :)

It was nice being out after sooo long being cooped out at home. I realised I am like so fair now coz like I haven't been out. Next, I want to satisfy my craving for coke. :)

Just for Fun

2010-01-24T22:55:00.000+08:00

Your KUA number is 6

Element: Big Metal
Color: White, Silver
Group: West
Trigram: Chien

How to Tap Your Auspicious Directions
* Try to sleep, eat, work, or be in this sector of your home
* Do as many activities as possible in this sector
* Face this direction when working, eating, or sitting in your living room
* Sleep with the top of your head pointed in this direction
* Enter your home or office from a door that faces these direction

Your Wealth & Success Direction: West
Enhance this direction with metal objects in groups of seven. Swords, knives, metal objects are all suitable for this sector (unless it is a bedroom). Vases, crystals, stones, and earth objects are also wonderful in this location because metal comes from earth, so the more earth elements you have the more successful -- and wealthy -- you can be.

Create a wealth bowl out of porcelain and add gold-colored objects, semi-precious stones, dirt from a wealthy person's house, and faux diamonds to boost your success. White, silver, gray, and gold-colored objects are perfect here. Add lots of shiny objects to attract more success! A front door in this location will bring prosperity to you.

Do everything you can to use this direction to promote your wealth and success! Mountain images like those below are perfect for placing on the wealth and success wall of your home or office because they symbolize the "big earth" element.

Your Health Direction: Northeast
This is an excellent direction for objects such as beautiful vases or porcelain bowls. Add stones in this location. Decorate in purple, beiges, or taupes to improve health. Candles and bright lights are also excellent health energizers for you! If your front door is here, you and your family will be very wealthy.

Your Love Direction: Southwest
The southwest is the direction of love. Lucky for you, this is compounded because this is your personal feng shui direction for love! Boost this sector by decorating in pairs of two's -- two figurines of birds, etc. Add candles to this location to boost the romance potential even further. Another fantastic addition? A beautiful bubbling fountain -- with a light! Great for singles as the fountain brings lots of wonderful yang energy.

Your Growth Direction: Northwest
In personal feng shui, the NW is your growth and wisdom direction. Work in this location to improve your standing, study in this direction, and locate beneficial activities here, such as dining to improve all areas of life. Are you trying to start over from any kind of setback? If so, this is direction to face or be in. Add a windchime here and place a fan to blow on it. This will help you get going. Need to write a lot with your job? The fan will help keep creativity high!

Your Unlucky Directions: SE, E, N, S
Try to avoid the southeast sector and/or direction. To do so can cause arguments and legal problems or some kind of accident. You will receive blame for problems if you occupy this sector too much or if your front door faces this direction.

The east and north can cause accidents, misfortune, and difficulties, such as lawsuits, burglary or fire. If your front door faces this direction, your family may leave you. If you have a business with a front door facing this direction, employees may leave. This is a good location for a kitchen or toilet.

Strenuously avoid the south because it can cause it is the VERY worst direction for you. A front door facing this direction can lead to a loss of children or other close family members. Infertility can also arise, causing the family name to die out. Wealth will also be lost. This is a good location for a kitchen or a toilet.

Weight Tracking :)

2010-01-24T22:36:00.000+08:00

I have lost a further 3kg, which makes my total loss 13kg... How much more to go? Ideally, I would like to lose another 9kg (like hah), but realistically about 6kg would be good... These last few kgs won't be so easy to lose man. So after I am all okay, I shall start to exercise? *ponders* Maybe start back swimming.. What if I forgot what I have learnt?? Better not let GG's effort go to waste. Need to think how to fit in swimming into my schedule...

Just Us

2010-01-15T23:44:00.000+08:00

Our first family photo... taken after my first check-up after the delivery. All's well.
Zafirah slept all the way from home, to the waiting for our turn, to seeing the doctor, to lunch, to shopping for some of her necessities at KKH till home.

New Year

2010-01-08T15:54:00.000+08:00

Well, I think I should merge my baby/preggy's blog into my current blog. I realized that these 2 come together, my life and hers, like most of what I do now will involve her. Will do so soon.

Anyway, this is a new year, and the new year marks a new status for me, for us all, a big change. I am now a mummy. I no longer have to answer just for myself, I have to answer for this precious little girl. I can't just do what I like, as and when I like, I now have to consider my baby. For now, especially now, she depends on me, she feeds off me, literally. At times, I pity GG coz he gets less attention from me now, and he has to do most things himself. Sorry GG, after everything, I will start doing stuff for you. I am so proud of you and how you've handled everything.

Well, I thought being pregnant was the tough part, until I gave birth and have to go through the "confinement". I cannot go out, that's ok actually, most of the time. The dreadful thing is that I have to consume all those jamus and ubat periuks and can't eat and drink whatever I like. It is no wonder why women get post-natal blues. Everytime I had to drink those stuff, my mood goes wayyy down, I feel damn depressed, like really, sometimes I feel like crying, think once I did cry. I have to drink the ubat periuk like after my meals, and as such I dread eating my meals. I have poor appetite now, not feeling like eating much, when after all that feeding my baby, I should be really hungry and all right, but I am eating much less than I normally eat, though I do eat regularly. My breakfast which started off (before the ubat periuks sessions) with milo and 2 slices of bread, at times 3, now has just dropped to a glass of milo. I used to have tea-time and after dinner milo, which has disappeared along with my appetite. I can't finish my lunch, and at times my dinner, if my mum served rice. Noodles are fine, but still nothing compared to what I normally ate previously. There will be this smell of the ubat periuks that turns me off all the time. I vomited like 4-5 times already. My mum said I will get used to it, but no way, my last vomited-out-the-jamu moment was this morning, which shows that I have yet gotten used to all that and I don't think I ever will.

They say the jamus and ubat periuks are good - who will ever know whether they are bad since everyone has been forced to eat them and so no one really dared not to drink them because of what the old people have said. Sigh, I for one, is one of them. So put myself through the torture for the sake of when I get old. My pee has this strong smell (thanks to the ubat periuks and jamus), and my faeces is black!

Other than the horrendous experience with the consumption of the toxic stuffs (which is a major the cause of my depressed moments), I have to put on the (is it called) pilis stuff on the forehead, wear a binder, not drink cold water even though it is damn hot... I had the post-natal massage for a week, started a week after I gave birth. But these are fine, I can do that anytime.

Another cause of feeling down (okay more like cranky), is when the baby is having difficulty falling asleep at night, and you are already very tired, and you do not know what to do... So forgive me if I do not feel like talking much at night because I am tired (especially after 10pm), and I have a long night ahead and all I want to do is to settle my baby and me to bed.

So the only thing stopping me from having another baby - the jamus and ubat periuks. Even as I am writing this, I can imagine the pukey taste of the jamu... Yikes!

As of last Sunday, I have lost 10kg in all :)

Last weddings of the Year

2009-12-14T11:56:00.001+08:00

Finally, we have wrapped up the wedding-going sessions for this year, finishing with Ijal's wedding last Saturday and Azah's on Sunday. Ijal being GG's good friend and Azah being mine. Nice huh... Next big thing on my agenda is to go into labour and give birth :)

It was no joke to be 38 weeks pregnant and being at a wedding the whole day. Fortunately, I have a nice hubby who is willing to massage my aching legs and shoulders and arms (I have no idea what my arms did but they sure ached damn badly) at the end of the day. Sayang GG...

Azah's wedding was also a day to meet up with old friends and friends I haven't seen for ages. Azah and I go wayyy back, since primary school. We even went to the same secondary school and uni. The only time we were apart were in JC. Soo.. we do have many friends in common. Anyway, here's wishing the both of them a lifetime of happiness and may your marriage be an everlasting one, insyaAllah. It may not be easy at times, but it is worth it. Ohh, and hurry hurry k ;p

I am a ... Guardian Protector (ISFJ)

2009-12-08T12:38:00.000+08:00

You are observant, cooperative, informative, and attentive. You are greatly concerned with the security of others and you often find assisting the downtrodden or people with disabilities to be satisfying. You also find personal fulfillment in ensuring the safety of others and may be attracted to jobs that enable you to do this as a medical practitioner or insurance agent. You are also quite skilled at executing routines and this enables you to be skillful in jobs that require conservation skills such as a curator or police officer. You are thorough, frugal and you abhor the squandering of material resources.

You are comfortable working alone and you are often uncomfortable being in positions of authority. When you are in positions of authority, you often try to do everything yourself. You have a very strong work ethic and this can lead you to be overworked. The least hedonistic of the role variants, you are willing to complete jobs other role variants manage to avoid, especially if it enables you to help those in need.

You often talk about daily life and every day concerns; however, you are not as sociable as other role variants. You tend to be talkative only among a close circle of friends. Your shyness with strangers can make you seem to be cold even though you are often warm and sympathetic. You are often undervalued as your commitment to security and your economies are often taken for granted.

You value traditional ways of doing things and are not interested in experimentation or speculation. You deeply value family history, heirlooms and property as well as cultural norms and traditions. You firmly believe in the stability offered by credentials, titles, offices, birth and other forms of traditional authority. You dislike situations where the rules are constantly changing.

Famous Protectors include George H.W. Bush, Jimmy Stewart, and Mother Teresa.

It's a BIG Conspiracy...

2009-12-02T18:32:00.001+08:00

You must be wondering what the heck this is all about. Well.... I just found out that M.Nasir is having a performance at the Esplanade (with Siti Nurhaliza - but that's not who I am concerned about) on 1st January 2010. I should be yeay-ing right coz I did tell GG if M.Nasir is coming to perform in Singapore, I want to watch. BUT... I can't coz I will be in confinement, and even if I am not (should baby decide to come out late), I will be like very heavily pregnant (already I am huge now, and at times feel like I can't move) and like probably not in a state to go for such thing (like what if I give birth there?) sooo... urghhh, that's what I am feeling now.

And it doesn't help that Muse (which is also another one of those band which I mentioned to GG that I want to watch if they do come down), will also be coming on 3rd February next year. Again, I will be serving my time. What's this man? I mean, all these concerts that I told GG (just in the past year that we were married) that I definitely have to go for decide to come when I can't go for them.

Sheesh!

Swimming :)

2009-11-23T14:01:00.000+08:00

I've been going swimming with GG for the past few weeks. And I can finally... bring my head out of the water while swimming. That may sound like a funny achievement to brag about, but you must understand, I have poor coordination, and everytime I bring my head out to breathe, my arms and legs stop coordination and I panic, and start to sink. Yes, it is funny, considering that I have a bronze cert during my secondary school days (and I still can't thread water). So, GG has been my "instructor" and so far he has been doing much better than last time (he used to try to teach me how to swim properly but I dunno why, we failed). Perhaps because we go more regularly and this is in a proper pool and not the sea. In the few times that we went, I have improved. Yeay! Then soon I can get my medal eh GG? Next is to aim to swim the whole lap, slowly-slowly lah coz now pregnant cannot exert myself. And then thread water. Go Ain! GG said that we should make swimming our regular hobby / exercise. I loike, but I guess I would have to stop for a while when I give birth. As for now, I am enjoying it, and the fact that being in the water makes me feel so much lighter, and somehow takes away all the aches.

Azah's Hen Sparty and My 1st Baby Shower

2009-11-09T00:07:00.001+08:00

Photos courtesy of Nana (who apparently was fast with this one, hehhe..)
Some for this blog...

10 Secrets To Having A Happy Marriage

2009-11-04T15:03:00.000+08:00

by Joy Lee Tan

It’s easy to fall in love, but it’s a lot harder to sustain love. Here are ten secrets to having a happier marriage. Trust me and try them out. They really do work!

1) Maintain a work life balance

If you are addicted to your job, then you will most likely lose everything that is of value to you just like a drug addict. Without balance you could lose your family, lose perspective at work, do a bad job and ultimately lose your job, your spouse, or both!

Take the necessary time to invest in the things that really matter in your life so that everything else will come into balance. We’re not saying to slack off at work and spend all your time with your family, but you do need to find a balance between the two. Coming home every night after your kids have gone to bed and leaving for the office as they wake up, spells doom.

2) Spouse before kids

Remember that popular rhyme we use to chant in primary school, “Jane and Joe sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G. First comes love, and then comes marriage. Then you get a baby in a carriage.” How apt! Contrary to popular belief, in order to raise secure and happy kids, you need to put your marriage first and your babies second! A strong and loving relationship will help kids be more grounded and secure, as they notice the bond and happiness between their parents.

Children will also learn virtues like patience, kindness, love, and forgiveness by seeing the way parents treat each other. By putting your kids first, you are raising a child who is the center of the family, who will believe his/her needs are more important than anyone else’s. Such kids could easily grow up to be demanding and self-centered.

3) Agree on core parenting principles to avoid conflicts

Most parenting disagreements are about raising children, especially in the context of how and when to discipline kids. In order to present a united front as you discipline your kids, it’s important to discuss your parenting plan in advance. This way your children will not be able to play one parent against another.

4) Fighting is fine. Hating is not!

There is nothing wrong with being mad with your spouse after a heated argument. There is even nothing wrong with strongly disliking them at that moment. However, there is something wrong with harboring those ill feelings to the point of harming your relationship. Following those times of disagreement, help yourself to calm down by reminding yourself of what you love about him/her or why you married your spouse in the first place, and you’ll be surprised at how easily those loving feelings return.

5) Have sex!

A sexless marriage may not necessarily end up in divorce, but it is a marriage with serious issues and might lead to affairs. There are many feelings that occur in a sexless marriage such as feelings of loneliness, lack of confidence and others. While challenging to overcome, it is not insurmountable.

Mums, men are visual creatures, so spend time on your appearance and find ways to seduce your husband. From experience, seducing your man in sexy lingerie as you whisper flattering and suggestive words will heat things up quickly! Dads, exhaustion and sex do not mix. Consider helping with the laundry, buying dinner, and follow it up with a foot rub.

6) Talk for ten minutes everyday

Do you remember when you used to just talk? Most couples don’t talk anymore — unless they have something to communicate, a decision to make, or a task to complete. The most important thing about talking to each other is not communicating; it’s connecting. So take a vow to talk to each other for at least ten minutes everyday.

7) Discuss your finances and spending habits

Statistics indicate that nearly half of all married couples argue over money issues. This speaks loudly of the major reason most couples fight. If one is a tight-wad and the other spends money like it’s going out of fashion, it can’t help but create problems in your marriage. Therefore, talk honestly about spending habits. It’s important to establish spending expectations, set goals and decide on a financial plan for your family.

You don’t need to be right all the time!

Drop the ego. You don’t always have to be right, or your partner wrong. Such behaviour will only impede the opportunity for your conversation to have a win-win result. In the long run, does it really matter who is right? Or is it more important to create an environment where the opinions and beliefs of both spouses are of value?

9) It’s all in the mind

If you expect to get along with your spouse then you will succeed in most instances. Talking respectfully and looking for creative solutions to the problems you face will go a long way in creating a strong and enduring marriage. If you expect to have a ugly showdown, then it will happen. If you expect to resolve a disagreement with mutual respect and love, you will do so as a well balanced couple.

10) Changing the world starts from you!

Perhaps the most important secret to a great marriage is the idea that you can never change your partner, no matter how hard you try. If you spend the same amount of energy simply improving yourself, rather than trying to change your partner, you’ll find that you’ll be happier and that your partner will start responding to you more positively.

Down Again :(

2009-11-02T19:06:00.001+08:00

After 3 months of no flu, cough, fever, I am down again!
It is quite bad, I lost my voice (or more like I sounded like a man) over the weekend, and instead of waking up to pee, I wake up because of the bad cough, and damn itchy throat. And it hurts to cough, luckily the pain is not at the pelvic area / low ab area, which I am sure will hurt even more when I cough. The pain is more in the top of the tummy. I hope baby's not made uncomfortable by my coughing. I even have to control the way I cough so as not to cough too hard.
Then came a thought - has anyone ever given birth due to excessive strong coughings?

10th Year Together :)

2009-10-30T13:50:00.004+08:00

Today marks our 10th year together, a decade long. Whoah, so fast.
It's been tough yet wonderful.
Even after 10 years, we've still got things to learn about each other.
Even after 10 years, we still can make each other angry, sad, laugh and smile...
Even after 10 years, I still want to see you at the end of the day :) even if I am mad at you.
Love you Ubby!
Many-many 10 years more to come, insyaAllah.

Just to Share

2009-10-23T12:56:00.005+08:00

Secret Recipe
10th Anniversary Special Promotion
26th - 31st October 2009
50% off Cake
(not sure if it's just for Diners Club Cardmembers)

More details here.

2009-10-20T13:02:00.002+08:00

Being preggy makes me even more emotional :(
Like last night, I felt the urge to cry all the way home.
I wanted to even though I wasn't supposed to. I didn't but that showed how bad it was.

2009-10-16T15:20:00.002+08:00

My current project - a diaper cake for the soon-to-come Ismail and Rita's baby... :) She's like 37 weeks preggy already, anytime soon.

I now prefer to sit alone and not "socialise". I prefer to do things, like stuff, like clean my room (which somehow is still messy and I just keep on rearranging and clearing and there seem to still be more stuff), do chores, not interact, make stuff (I just baked an orea cheesecake)... How to work like that? I only have 2 more months to work and meet my targets, I know, but somehow I just feel like just doing things at home.

I somehow feel incompetent, or just lousy, never seeming to be good enough at whichever status I am in. I hope I make a good mum.

Dreams

2009-10-16T15:00:00.002+08:00

Oh past two nights, I've been having weird dreams. Can't really remember the first one, but there was a snake in that dream.

Last night, even weirder. There was some singing competition, which I enrolled in (me, who is stage fright) and apparently even those people who was doing the registration (and also some close people) didn't think I could do it and did not call my name for my turn (what does that signify?) Apparently there were many people there (but those I can clearly remember are the YJ guys, dunno why, like Imran, even Ijal was there, Mummy was there too..) What made me feel worse was Jazi ignored me. Well, after that, I ran off (merajuk lah kan) but no one came after me and that made me sad, and depressed. So after a while I went back to the place and no one was there, so slowly walked to the bus stop. There the guys were.. Everyone acted like nothing happened. Hmmm... Weird kan? Did this dream signify all my deepest fears? I dunno...

Finally - Raya Family Photos

2009-10-14T20:59:00.004+08:00

Black for this year. Helps me look smaller, perhaps?
Notice the new addtion to the family photo.

From a different angle.

Siblings photo at Nenek's.

Our first raya together as husband and wife.

Even then, we still do not have a couple2 set of baju, perhaps next year, when we utilise the cloths we gave each other for gubahan.

Jalan Raya [AMP Gang]

2009-10-04T23:59:00.000+08:00

This year, we started out at Anisa's place for lunch. Note, lunch. No longer the early breakfast as we have less houses this year. Seems to be getting lesser and lesser, in a way better since we no longer needed to rush and we can chill longer at each house. Abg Man, the main man, was in Tanzania (like what....?) so we did not go to his place.

So here's the lunch crowd at Anisa's place.
Then we headed to Sally's (oops, Saleha's) house. My lack of photo is due to the fact that my camera is spoilt and I am totally camera-less this year so had to borrow photos from the others. Next, Fazrin's NEW abode. Nice, albeit small. It felt like those loft coz of its high ceiling, unlike normal HDB flats. The high ceiling made the house feel roomier. I do admit, the bedrooms are really small, but overall very nice and cosy.

So the girls at Fazrin's.

My house was next.

The rest went to Ifa's place after that, and we caught up with them at the last house, Kak Ida's house.

More photos can be found on Facebook, uploaded by Fazrin and Kak Ida. There are photos of Danie and Qiara, the latest addition to the group and not surprisingly, they were the main stars in the photos.

It was nice to have the jalan raya as we don't meet that often, roughly twice a year, for iftar and for jalan raya. Let's keep this up, at least. Thanks for making it happen.

Jalan Raya [Crez 2/7ners]

2009-10-03T23:59:00.000+08:00

I've got no photos of the day at all! And I think only Nana had photos (no posed group photos though) coz none of us brought cameras. Dayyymm...

Anyhow, it was supposed to be a no-rush thingy this year. We all wanted to go to Azah's house (pasal aku nak makan masakan Mak "kita") but then her parents were not around, so we had lunch at Kamal's place (first house).

Next was Nurul's place where her mum and GG discovered a common liking - teh tarik :) They had a lengthy conversation about teh tarik and all, while Azah stayed vigil, watching out for Nurul's cats (as usual). Farah joined us! And poor thing, she waited so long for a cab (coz all of them did not want to go to JW area) and she ended up taking the bus and train. Was really happy she could join coz it's been so long since we saw her. (Wished that Nani, Jieja and Az could have joined too..)

My place was next. I had wanted to skip my place but mak sounded so disappointed when I told her before that the girls would not be coming to our house (due to the chillax plan we wanted), and furthermore, we girls only meet one another's parents during our raya outing. We left after maghrib coz mak had a perjumpaan hari raya (she's like more happening than me can?)

To Nan's place to end the whole chillax jalan raya, where most of us stayed all the way till 3plus am (Azah and Ros left) coz the guys wanted to watch soccer. Kamal ended up overnighting there. The girls, as per normal, had a close to 4 hour talk session in Nana's guest room, while Firmansyah slept thru it all. The guys were amazed that we could talk for so long. Well, we're amazed they could watch soccer for so long, and we could only hear their voices at the climax of the games. When we came out, the living room smelled like a man's room (you should know if you have brothers), stinks! They were only there for like 4hrs and mind you, the living room was quite an open space, compared to the guest room. Sorry Nan, next time we shall bring an air freshener along, if they decide to do that again. But they helped finish up most of the food. Well, GG really enjoyed the soccer watching with the guys, apparently. And I enjoyed spending time with the girls :)

Well, next year, it would be my turn to have an extra "handbag" and I am somewhat looking forward to it.

It's amazing that no matter what, no matter how, we still could continue where we left. Love you gals! :)

Jalan Raya

2009-10-02T13:51:00.002+08:00

Ok, this weekend begins the jalan raya galore, with my Crez friends on Saturday and my AMPYC friends on Sunday. Next weekend will be the Bhai people. Kinda excited but at the same time, wondering how am I going to go thru the car journey (which has lately been a painful experience for me). Last night, I went to pick up GG, and the pain came in less than 20 minutes of me driving... How? The racer Ain has to cut back on her racing... :/

And, I realised I haven't put up any raya family photos, reason being that this year we used my bro's camera and he left for Bintan a few days after raya.. Waiting to get the photos from him. Izal, gambar mana??

Nak Ni!

2009-10-01T15:42:00.002+08:00

Nike Heritage Pinnacle Shoulder Club Bag

Was walking around BHG at Lot 1, when I saw this and fell in love... :)

Greetings

2009-09-22T09:57:00.004+08:00

SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDILFITRI
to all my family and muslim friends.

I would like to seek forgiveness should there be any wrongdoings on my part, be it intentional or not. I hope all of you out there are having a great time with all your loved ones. Raya is one of those times where you get to meet up with all your loved ones. Of course, it would be ideal to not meet just during raya, but during other times of the year but as you know, everyone has their own lives and Singapore is not exactly an easy country to be "not busy". Like my Pak Itam and family (from Malaysia), if not the last 2 weddings, we probably get to meet them during raya only. And my granduncles and aunts, and extended family.

Ohhh, and the kuih rayas! I tell you, eating is a different ball game for me this year. I can't seem to stop myself! I mean, I am full or think I am full (coz of my small stomach space now) but I just feel like putting food in me... Damn. Think I am going to put on a lot from now on. Even before raya (like the actual day), I have helped to finish one bottle of mum's kuih tart, and I have never done that before. I love her kuih tarts, but not to the extent of finishing it... It is scary when I stop to think about my eating in the last few days. Lucky my mum loves to bake, so she didn't complain about having to bake another batch of kuih tart :) Love you mak!

How else is raya different for me now that I'm married? For one, I used to not have to be responsible to wake someone up (and could take my time) but not now. And instead of having to prepare clothes for just myself, I have to readjust my preparations to include him/his. Now cannot just think of myself. Then instead of heading straight for Nenek's house with my family, me and GG headed for his parents' house first. And on top of that, 2 additional houses for me (his grandaunt and his aunties/uncles house in Tampines). So, 8 houses in total and a whole load of eating! It is also all new for GG too. He used to stay home the whole day and just go out visiting at night to 2 houses. That was like a lot less houses. I think this whole raya with all the jalan2 is a very different thing for him coz his family doesn't do much of that. He ended the day saying, "Now I feel very family man." And now, GG drives :) Yeay for that, cos it is a hassle driving with baju kurung, ohh and a big tummy. So now four of us squeeze at the back, while the 2 big men sit in front :) Lucky we are small. But, thanks GG for driving the whole day and not complaining, coz I know it must be very tiring for you. And thanks for still massaging my aching legs at the end of the day. Sayang GG.

Yeayness

2009-09-18T13:46:00.000+08:00

2009-09-14T18:29:00.000+08:00

You're the only thing now that makes me smile, amidst all these.

2009-09-11T16:40:00.002+08:00

The fasting month passed by so quickly this year... it's like less than 10 days to Raya. I am in the midst of cleaning my room, but need to rest ever so often coz here and there aching.. :)

Well, lately, I kept thinking about him. Perhaps it's just me getting sentimental, or perhaps it's just that the fasting month and Raya always reminded me of him. There were still first days when I reached Nenek's that I wondered where he was, only to remember that he's no longer around. And when we buka at Nenek's, I always think of him.

In fact, I had this dream, think a month or so ago, that we were gathered at West Coast, and his room looked like it was when we were younger (before the cupboard were changed), and it felt like Raya, everyone was around, and he was there. Just there, watching us.

I feel bad that I don't go to Nenek's as often as I used to. I want to break fast there often coz I know that she's sometimes alone, but circumstances are a bit difficult now. Well, in fact, now it seems that we have more people to make happy and we have to divide time for all sides. It is tough, considering that GG has very tight schedule at night. He has been breaking fast in the office, my poor GG... Furthermore, I can't just go ahead and happy2 do things on my own now without considering the husband. Plus, my "condition" doesn't really allow me to happy2 do whatever I like. Sometimes, I don't even feel good to go out, I just wanna stay at home.

So I hope that I haven't been neglecting people, and I haven't been making people unhappy unknowingly coz I never intended to.

Can't Wait!

2009-09-10T03:08:00.000+08:00

Sep 24th 2009, which is like about in 2 weeks... :)

And Wishing and Hoping...

2009-08-24T13:03:00.004+08:00

Selamat berpuasa dan semoga segala amalan dan ibadah kita di bulan Ramadhan ini diberkati Allah.

My first Ramadhan as a wife and as a preggie woman. So far, for the past 2 days, I have been able to fast as normal, Alhamdulillah... InsyaAllah, I can do the whole month. I have promised the GG though if I do experience any light-headedness and start feeling one kind, ie unwell, I am to break fast. And, boy, I do eat a lot more at sahur than normal...

Since I am at this wishing post, congrats Ros... Aku buat gubahan tau.. :)

How I know... and I Appreciate...

2009-08-20T12:14:00.003+08:00

How I know my GG loves me...

He puts up with my sudden and abrupt changes in mood, well most of it, especially now that I am preggy.

He knows that I need him around at night to make me comfy and so he also reduces his night-time activities and stays home with me.

He tries his best to help out and make things easier for me, though he needs constant reminders and pushes.

He offers to rub my aching back and legs, and claims that now he is a pro.

At times, he takes his own coffee in the morning coz he knows I am not feeling good.

He allows me to tweeze-y his face ;) even though it's painful, just coz it makes me happy.

He tries his best to get me what I want to eat.

I felt that I haven't been doing much for him now, but he still says that I have. Well, perhaps I am. Carrying baby is a 24hr a day, 7days a week and a nine months stint that I am doing. But I do feel horrible sometimes coz I feel like I am not doing enough for him as I am unwell(making him drinks, getting his things, etc)

He wakes up easier nowadays.

He stops complaining about things coz he knows it upsets me.

He irritates me to get reactions from me and is irritated when I don't get irritated.. hmmm...

2009-08-14T13:13:00.001+08:00

Phonecall -> Reminder + Decision -> Tears -> Self-reminder

Congrats Faz and Ekin

2009-08-11T21:42:00.001+08:00

One of the weddings in the 12months list of mine.

2009-08-09T23:54:00.000+08:00

I wanna be strong. Stronger than this.

A Perfect Torture Plan... Evil Laugh

2009-07-30T08:57:00.004+08:00

I always have difficulties waking GG up in the mornings, particularly those mornings that he REALLY have to get up very much earlier to go for his meetings which he cannot be late for. Sometimes, it gets on my nerves, and every night before those mornings, I would tell him nicely to make things easier for me and spare a thought for this person waking him up who is pregnant, and getting agitated brings her heart rate higher, and her heart rate is already much higher than before. And to that, he will agree and comfort me saying, "Okay, don't worry, GG will wake up." And yet, it would still take at LEAST half an hour to get him to sit up, and everytime I wake him up, he will say "Okay, okay nak bangun ni" or "Okay, okay, 5 minutes" and that would go on for the next half an hour or so. And all that just to get him to SIT UP. Then another 10-15minutes before he stand up to have breakfast or go bathe (if he doesn't lie back down).

This morning, after another trying attempt to wake him up, and before he left for work.

Me: GG, Ain nak tulis list of things Ain akan buat to GG next time GG susah nak bangun, then paste it where you can see it to remind you.

(To this, he ignored me and continued getting ready, while I thought of things to do)

Me: Aaahh, Ain tau, I shall shave off your eyebrows, nak? Eyebrows GG kan thick, so if you don't wake up, I shave off your eyebrows eh?

GG: Don't ah..

Me: Eh tapi shave off eyebrows take sakit eh? I know, I shall tweezie your eyebrows, one by one, sakit kan.. (After a split second of thoughts) I shall tie your hands and legs first, and tweezie your eyebrows off *evil laugh*
(GG always gets irritated with my wanting to tweeze off his beard and sideburns. Eversince I got pregnant, I have been very mischievous you know...)

GG: Jangan ah, nanti GG mengamuk...

Me: Tapi Ain dah tie tangan GG.. (smugly)

GG: Then I shout ah..

Me: Oh then I also shall cover your mouth with masking tape!

GG: Damn!

I was left contented that I have a perfect plan with all areas covered, so contented was I that I am blogging about it. Muahaahaha!

Another one bites the dust...

2009-07-27T21:17:00.003+08:00

Over the weekend, Shamsul and Rasidah wedded.

Picture taken on the nikah day.
Congrats Shamsul and Rasidah. Wishing you all the happiness and love in life. Warning: Patience required :), but it will be worth it.

Well, these next few years will be filled with weddings, and people giving births. All of us are at that age that we move into the next stages in life. Weddings to come in the next 12 months (that I can remember) -
Ayu, Fazrin (on National Day weekend), then we break for Puasa and Raya, Ijal, Azah, Kak Ida, Nurul, Tabr... (ROS, KAU BILER? AKU NAK SELITKAN NI.. ;p)

And people giving births, in particular, me.. :)

That's us in our latest stage (the pregnancy stage). We get to sit on the pelamin for this too. How cool is that??

Anyway, it is a new learning experience for us. And you know the thing about how our parents always pray for us, it all began even before we were born, I believe especially for the mums, since the baby is already there even before giving birth and their presence in life could already be felt. You don't even know how he/she looks like but can feel the love for it.

Family Affair

2009-07-18T17:51:00.000+08:00

How apt...

All of us (mainly the cousins), were down with fever and cough after our Sunday gathering at Yishun. Most of us started coming down with fever on Tuesday. I myself was shivering away on Tuesday night with a headache even after covering myself with the comforter and switching off the fan. The thing is, my body wasn't running a temperature on the outside, which was bad coz if I was shivering that way, I prolly was having a fever. Went to the doctor next morning. Later in the day, Mak told me that like almost everybody else was ill too, and I better stay at home. Ah well, I stayed at home like for a week. Not really cos I thought I was having H1N1, more like coz I was too weak to move about much. I slept through the day and woke up just to eat my medicine only to fall asleep again after the medicine took effect. The being sick took away my appetite. My tummy looked smaller then.

Anyway, later the same week, 2 of my cousins were H1N1 positive, and another was admitted earlier coz she was so weak. She did not have H1N1 though, it was just viral fever. I think most of us just had viral fever. Thankfully, all of us are well now.

2009-07-10T12:34:00.002+08:00

I took a step back at took a look at myself. There are things I am happy with and there are certainly things I wished would be different. He has imposed quite sure a number of restrictions in my life and affected most of my decisions in the past and whatever that came out of it. Those are the parts I wished could be different. But that's over now right and I hope that my life to come would be different. In a way, it has.. but I think the main part of it, the core, is still affected but the years of those restraints and non-receiving of recognition, and the this cannot do and that cannot do without any reasoning. So much so that, I know many people believes that I am better than what I can do or what I am but there is still this part of me that is holding me down. Realising is probably a big part but after years it has been ingrained in me, it will probably also take years to get it out of me. I don't think anyone would understand or even get it and I think that there might be some people who think that it is not a big issue, it is just me. Yah, that's the me that is affecting everthing I do, or want to do. That's the me that needs you to understand. That's the me that still sucks.

2009-06-18T14:37:00.003+08:00

We're going Tioman this weekend but Mak and Aisyah can't go. So sad. I mean, how can like that right? This brings back all those feelings that I used to feel before.
It's ok Aisyah, wait we bring you go ok.. like maybe next year so that you can babysit. ;)

2009-06-15T17:05:00.000+08:00

Pregnancy Due Date Countdown at GraphicFest.com

You're Invited

2009-04-09T04:25:00.004+08:00

This was put up on facebook quite some time, taking for granted that some may not have facebook. It's this Friday 8pm till late, so do drop by! Venue: Yatch Club Chalet, Changi.

Married...

2009-03-09T10:07:00.004+08:00

I have yet to write anything wrt to the above, as in a personal take on me, my life and I, and not those "thank yous" type or commentaries on our photos or videos sort of thingies coz that I have done a lot.

It's March already, the number-changing day is on its way. (Thankfully the haircut has in a way made me look younger. Heh.) And at that point in time, I would have been married for 3 months. Sooo... the question that everyone asks "How's married life?", "How's being married?", and one particular question that somehow most aunties will definitely ask. Hmmm.. Aunties won't ask the former questions, they have gone thru that for years. And I don't think it's right for me to answer how's married life, coz I don't think I have enough experience to say much about being married coz it's only been over 2 months or so. But so far so good.

But how have my life and I changed in this 2 months? Well, I have less time to allow myself to get depressed. You know those time alone I had, shutting mysef from the rest of the world, particularly during those time of the month, having evil thoughts and feeling alot anti-social? I don't get much of that lately. There is no room for that, and I think that's good. Feeling anti-social was bad for me. So that's a major thing and I hope it's permanent. My room is no longer a shell to hide in, it has turned into a warm cozy corner. The home atmosphere is slightly more lively and homely. Mum somehow prepares more food on Sundays, and people eat together. I wake up early (ier), with that happy feeling of "Yeay, let's prepare GG breakfast!" Well, there is a need to divide time for both families coz now we not only have our own family, we have our in-laws to spend time with. So weekend priorities are different from when I was single.

There were disagreements but I think the 2 of us handled them better lately coz we know we are married. But I believe it will always be a learning process for both of us. I want to learn how to cook lots of things for him, but I will go full-swing into that when we have our own house.

Actually to think about it, personally I think it's good to actually stay with the parents at the start (just for a short while), for a few reasons. There is only one common space to go to most of them time, and there is no way that to find other rooms to hide. That one room to sleep, to read, to discuss, to rest. So there is no way to lock yourself from the other in another room, or no chance to ignore or be ignored. And you wouldn't let you arguments escalate coz you respect that you are in your parents' house and it wouldn't be nice. So you learn to comfort each other, and you spend time with each other more, it brings you closer. Plus you get closer to the family and learn one another's likes and dislikes. And you don't jump into your own house immediately and realise there's a lot you need to know/do/settle, and end up being stress.

Oh talking about house, we should be signing our Lease of Agreement on 19th March. And wait for like the next 3+ years for it to be ready... Sigh...

Planning early for life coverage

2009-02-20T11:28:00.003+08:00

Thought this article would serve useful for all.

16 February 2009
Quah Chin Chin
Source: The Business Times © Singapore Press Holdings Ltd.

Just why is life insurance so crucial and why is it important to start a policy as early as possible?
Quah Chin Chin lays out the basics.

Buying a life insurance policy is a crucial step in financial planning. Such insurance is a long-term commitment that provides financial coverage to the policyholder or his beneficiary in the event of unforeseen circumstances such as critical illness, permanent disability or premature death.

It can also be used as a vehicle to achieve one's financial goals, including income protection, building a retirement fund or saving up for a child's education.

Life insurance policies fall into various classifications. A whole life policy is one in which the premium - money paid for the coverage - remains level for the entire duration of the policyholder's life.

It provides protection and increases cash value (also known as cash surrender value or surrender value), or the cash amount an insurance company will pay a policyholder when he cancels or surrenders his policy prematurely, or savings.

A term policy, meanwhile, provides protection only and is usually renewable annually, while an endowment policy involves an insured sum that is payable upon maturity of the policy (at the end of a fixed term of 20 years, for example) or on prior death of the policyholder.

There are also investment-linked policies, which, as the name suggests, are tied to investments. Policyholders with 'participating' policies are entitled to profits or losses of an insurance company through the distribution of bonuses, while those holding 'non-participating' policies will earn only the guaranteed cash value stated within his contract and not company dividends.

Needs and goals
Determining which policy to get depends on such factors as one's risk appetite, needs and financial goals, according to financial advisers BT spoke with.

For example, traditional whole life policies would appeal to a risk-averse person, while someone with a higher risk appetite could consider investment-linked policies, said Nick Czolak, Manulife (Singapore) senior vice-president and chief marketing officer. 'We'll show the prospective buyer the options available based on his profile, such as his attitude to risk, investment outlook, his considerations in terms of family, and circumstances,' he explained.

One's objectives also play a part, said Joan Lim, a financial planner at PromiseLand Independent,
an advisory and insurance brokerage firm.

'We'll find out if they have any special objectives; for example, how much money they want to have in the bank if they wish to retire by 40, and make other suggestions for their consideration, such as disability income and extending their term plans,' she said. 'From there, we'll work backwards and come up with a financial roadmap for them.'

Insurance premiums depend on the amount of cover and type of plans. For instance, premium rates for non-participating policies are lower than those for participating policies.

Another important point new policyholders are often advised on is to consider carefully before terminating or surrendering their policy before the tenure is up, as doing so typically results in losses. Early cancellation may incur not only additional fees, but also causes the holder to lose his benefits.

'Your health status could have changed since you first took out the policy and you may not be able to get a similar level of protection in a new policy, as you'll be required to declare all preexisting conditions and possibly undertake a medical examination,' according to advice from the Life Insurance Association (LIA) of Singapore's website.

For those unable to continue paying premiums on their current policy, the association suggests looking at other options available or reducing the sum insured, which would in turn lower the premiums.

Start young
Given that one is healthiest when young and that cash values build up over the years, it makes sense to start a policy from young.

'The whole idea of insurance is to start as young as possible,' said Patrick Lim, PromiseLand associate director, adding that this is the reason parents are encouraged to buy coverage for their newborns.

Added Ms Lim: 'When people start young, the premiums are at the lowest and they're at the peak of their health.'

Still, for those unsure of what to look out for when buying insurance for the first time, she suggests low premium, high-cover plans and hospitalisation plans to start off.

'Then as they progress in life, they would develop a clearer picture of what they want,' she said. 'This would be helpful for their financial planning; for example, more cover, returns or savings.' And as their priorities shift or when they experience significant changes in their lives - such as getting a pay rise, tying the knot or receiving an inheritance - financial advisers would typically have periodic reviews with them.

These views were shared by Mr Czolak, who nevertheless sounded a note of caution: 'The younger you start, the cheaper it is and the more time you have, but of course, if you can't afford it, don't do it. Weigh your priorities.'

Indeed, being clear about one's goals and knowing what to expect are vital before jumping on the bandwagon. This is especially so in light of the current economic turmoil and the recent collapse of insurance giant American International Group, which had to be rescued with American tax dollars.

In the words of LIA: 'As the prospective customer, you still have to play an active role in determining your own financial needs; your financial adviser can help you make the right decisions but not make the decisions for you.'

:)

2009-02-15T19:10:00.000+08:00

Our Wedding Trailer - Courtesy of Abg Hafiz

2009-02-03T16:33:00.000+08:00

Photos

2009-01-28T15:44:00.003+08:00

More up on multiply.

Wedding Photos

2009-01-15T14:39:00.001+08:00

The unofficial ones are up on my multiply.

Overdue

2009-01-10T02:46:00.000+08:00

Note: This was written before the wedding, just that I had no chance to publish it.

No, it's not that time of the year that I need to reflect back on what has taken place in my past year and make new resolutions for the coming one, it's bigger than that. Well, I am going to have a change in status soon, 27th December 2008, to be exact. No longer can I tick "Single" in registration forms. Not that I have been single all this while, just that I will soon be married. Whoah, big word, bigger responsibilities. No longer shall I be accountable for myself to myself, I need to be accountable to ......my husband (need to get use calling him that) and no doubt we have been together for some time but this time, it's the real thing. No more running into my shell called my room when I need to be alone or want to shut out the world, coz soon I'll have to share my shell with him.

True, we see each other a lot but living together, that's a different ballgame and I think both of us would have to adapt to that. Even after so long, there's so many more things we need to learn and understand about each other and it won't be easy since both of us can be quite stubborn. Am I scared? I sure am. Coz I do want be a good wife, and I am afraid I might suck at it. Just like how sometimes I think I haven't been a good enough grand-daughter, daughter or sister. I know there will be challenges along the way, and I hope that I will be able to deal with those well, we will able to work through those and that our marriage will be strong enough for them, InsyaAllah.

Anyway, I was just thinking through my past 2* years of life and our relationship. We practically grew together, from teenagers to adults, from studying to NS to worklife, from taking 190 to driving back. My 'A' levels, my graduation, my first job, current job, Vio, all those times. And all this while whenever I felt horrible about myself, went through periods of "depression" and lack self-belief, he was there to hold my hands and tell me that everything's going to be fine.

We went through rough times and happy moments. There were really horrible times. There were times we had to be strong for each other and it was very challenging. But there were much more lovely times, really wonderful, when we were just happy. We held each other up when the other one needed it, and of course there were times that we faltered, but we made it through in the end. InsyaAllah our marriage would be just as strong, if not stronger.

OH NO!

2008-12-17T04:08:00.003+08:00

That number there on the right is getting smaller and smaller, and everytime I see that counter, I panic... and no, it's not because I am having doubts or second thoughts... it's coz I feel like there is so many more things to do and not enough time, and then I look through my list of to-dos and realise that most of things are done, and this thing repeats everyday! Hahaha, Ain is just a super-kanchiong person.

Sooo... have I mentioned about my great Sunday? Well, my dearest girlfriends organised for me a "status-change" party (I shall call it that), and it was loads of fun. Arabian Themed, we learnt how to do makeup ala the arabian ladies, picked up a bit of bellydancing (though for me not much coz of my lack of coordination, which I then had to display to the rest), and they brought me to.... where else but ARAB street, where I bumped into more people than I would like to (but then again, duh, that is my hangout place). Even though Kamal's very-slow drive irritated the hell out of me, I had to walk down Arab St with that shimmy2 thing, had to display my lack of psychomotor, I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Laughed alot, at myself, at them, with them. Love you guys... Thanks for everything, and many more fun times to come. Who's next?!

Anyway, I have so many things to do on Thursday, but I am looking forward to it!

The One With H.J's ROM

2008-12-11T02:00:00.002+08:00

Hui Juin had her solemnisation with Peter last Saturday at her place in Edgware Road, the black and white house of theirs. A very cosy and small affair, beautiful setting, interesting food and drinks, delicious cake. They did the "I Do" thingy at the bamboo arch outside the house. It's really very lovely, with the sun set atmosphere. The ring bearer was their dog, Don, which was so well-behaved. I believe there were less than 40 guests. I was "tasked" to make a speech, as her bestest friend (self-proclaimed). ME, the one who is bad with speaking in front of many people, the one with the stage-fright. Haha! I wrote a short thingy, but ended up not reading from there. ;p But I did OK, well at least she teared.

Wishing you all the happiness Mr and Mrs Wong, and my sincerest congratulations, and I am really happy for the two of you. You looked so sweet bitch! (That's my term of endearment for her) I believe they should be having their customary wedding next year, so good luck in preparing for that, coz I believe that will be more of a headache.

SO.... my turn next! And I just had a panic attack yesterday while ferrying my mum around to send the cards to some of the relatives, after buying the curtains for my room. Like the whole morning while at Joo Chiat, my mind was just blank, I was just following her and not really being there, then while waiting for her in the car (while she was delivering the card), it just hit me! The panic thingy... There's so little time, so many things undone (okay not really so many lah since major things booked, just the room - clearing and decorating, berkats - abit more, gubahans, henna, final fitting, etc etc... those stuff) But I just panicked! I didn't know what to do, my mind was just a whirlwind. Anyway, mum told me to not strain myself and ask for help if I need (Coz I think she knows I wouldn't say anything and that I THINK I can do everything myself and I want to do ebverything myself) and that I should rest properly. Sigh.... Thanks mummy! I know you love me, thanks for being so supportive and thanks for all the things you have done for me.

Anyway, I am feeling a bit down (probably the pms and the stress of the clearing up my room, and some other issue) in the midst of this all, I had to sprain my ankle and it so doesn't help in my room-clearing process. Lucky got my sister to also help a bit here and there, and lend me some space in her room. Thanks Gej! ;p I dunno, I think my mind is so pre-occupied, besides spraining my ankle, in the last few days, I broke a cup at Bhai, I unrealisingly beat a *** light, and drove carelessly without realising coz I just zoned out, and it only hit me later. I need some TLC but oh well, everyone has their own things to worry about. I somehow can't wait till Sunday.

Audrey got Married...

2008-12-05T16:58:00.002+08:00

4th December 2008 - Audrey and Wei Qiang got married, finally... It's funny when I think about it. She was attached to Wei Qiang a couple of weeks before me, in the same month and now she got married a couple of weeks before me, this December. A beautiful coincidence..

I was there together with the other jie-meis, which included Yellow (she brought Lizzie and Jachin), in the morning. HA was not able to make it, duty calls of a mother. We ran through the "activities" that the guys would have to go through. Well, I didn't think it was as tough as Yellow's. The guys seemed to have enjoyed doing them. Then we headed down and waited for the Wei Qiang to propose again outside Audre's room. She looked lovely. But Audrey being Audrey, couldn't really act demure and coy, even after many reminders from us. Haha.. But you really looked pretty yesterday!

After the tea ceremony at Aud's, we headed for Wei Qiang's house in Punggol, where Aud changed into a red dress/gown, My fave! I do not have any photos up coz my camera is spoilt. We went to Punggol jetty after that to take some photos but it started raining. So that ended the morning session.

I went back home, fell asleep coz I didn't sleep the night before. Luckily Jazi called my house to wake me up for the dinner, otherwise I will be filled with remorse and guilt all my life. And luckily the solemnistion started later than stipulated in the card. Luckily the evening jam on PIE wasn't that bad. Pheew! Food was good, slideshow was beautiful, and I didn't think Audrey would cry but she did, while making her speech.

Congratulations to the both of you. May your marriage be filled with love, smiles, laughters, and all the good stuff.

Lighten Your Load... Clear Your Stuff!

2008-12-03T03:08:00.002+08:00

Got this article from a friend's blog... I need to do these.

De-cluttering your inner life

Slow down - The first thing to do is slow down. Life is not a race you need to run. There is no finish line or final destination, life is just a journey that continues even after your death. Remember that Freedom and Happiness cannot come where a mad race is being run after a seemingly elusive goal. Dare to slow down your life and step out of the rush to do more and more, possess more and more. Too much activity kills joy, so never mistake frantic activity for genuine progress.

Choose your focus - In life whatever you focus upon grows....this is a fact, so chose to focus upon what you want in life, rather than what you do not want! You are the creator of your life experience and you do it through what you choose to focus on. Many of us can tell with passion what we do not want in life, but do we know what we really want? Be clear about what you want and focus on this. Keep your mind free from all things you don’t want to manifest for by thinking about them and carrying them around, you are actually helping to manifest what you don’t want. This is a powerful truth that can change your life completely should you choose to apply it.

Live for today, fully - Live life with the principle of "just for today ..."

Yesterday is only alive in your own mind; the future is yet to materialize. The past cannot be changed and the future is yet uncertain. Don’t worry about what's not under your control, work with what is. In this moment lies your true power to decide how you want your life to be. If you live in the past or the future, something that’s beyond your control, you lose the Present, the Now, that is in your control! A much better way is to enjoy the now and take positive steps in it ...thus creating a brighter future.

Look inward, not outward - We see the world as we are ....not as it is!!
If you do not like what you see in your world...accept personal responsibility for it and make choices followed by actions to achieve the life you want. Stop seeking happiness and joy externally; you will only have it when you create it within you.
Your external world will change when you change yourself, and not before. Once you accept this responsibility, you will be free from blame and complain.

Count your blessings - This is one of our favorites. All of us have things in our life to be happy about, along with the things you have not to be happy about. As we mentioned above, whatever you choose to focus on grows in your life. So if you count your blessings and look to the sunshine....you do not see the shadows of life. Counting your blessings also makes your blessings grow. Don’t believe us? Well, just try it to see its truth. So make it a habit- write down 10 blessings and each day read them.

Whenever you feel your mood swinging to the negative, just get the blessings out and remind yourself of them with attention. You will be amazed.

Jettison all resentments and blame - Blame, complain and resentments are heavy and will weigh you down more than anything else. If you truly accept responsibility for your life, you spontaneously release all blame and resentments. It’s important for you to see that holding onto some hurt or hatred over what others may have done in the past makes you their slave in the present. Stay away from negative people and those who are chronic moaners and groaners.

Resign as the judge - Every judgement you make is extra weight you carry around inside your head. The easiest and most unconscious thing to do is to walk around judging every moment, event and person who comes into your life experience. The more you judge others, yourself and the world, the heavier you become. And chances are that who you judge doesn’t really care about your judgement, and probably don't even know about it.

So adopt the principle, 'Live and let live'. Make yourself happy and free and let others worry about their happiness.

Take a chill pill - The heart feels heavy when every thought and emotion is taken seriously, as a permanent reality. Moods are like water and it's their nature to flow. The word 'emotion' is defined spiritually as 'energy in motion'. Being in motion it will naturally move, and change. So accept this and do not give permanence to something so temporary. Remember that your true nature is neither thought nor emotion, rather a pure, free and light spirit. Look at every moment of life through its eyes.

De-cluttering your outer life

Take a good look at your external environment- what do you feel about your living area, kitchen, bedroom, office, desk area? Ladies try this challenge- tip out your handbag and see what comes out! Is everything you see what you really need? When was the last time you used it?

Your external environment is a reflection of your inner environment!

If you live a life where you are constantly looking for things, not remembering where you filed documents, not having the things with you when you need them - then this all leads to frustration and clogged mind-space. So not only is your external life cluttered, but the result of this is that your precious mind space is also cluttered trying to fathom it all out.

So do yourself a favor and de-clutter your immediate external environment! And before you start to beat yourself up at the enormity of the task, first count your blessings!
You are privileged to be able to have afforded to buy all this clutter- now you just need to develop the skill of letting go.

Here are -- simple tips on how to get started

First decide which room will be the top priority. No point tackling the whole house at once. We all know the saying "you can only eat an elephant one bite at a time"

Take a long hard look at what you see in the room. Which areas are stagnant and full of clutter? Take a good look at the corners and what's stuffed into closets / drawers Prioritize these first.

Set up a system of plastic boxes- label them a) To throw away (anything broken/irreparable/out of date) b) Charity /Give aways / for sale c) For repair (be ruthless here! Only repair if you will use it again) d) Not in this room (things that belong elsewhere) Then begin - put on your favorite music, open the windows and have fun becoming lighter and free-er.

Group similar items together but before you do this take a look at your items and decide what memories they hold. Do not hold onto things that you feel you ought to but don’t truly like. (e.g. that garish vase that Aunty gave you 10 years ago and you have never liked - now gets donated to charity) Only keep things around you that have positive messages.

Anything you have not used / seen in the past year - gets given away.
Unused things hold stagnant energy and also remind you of things you wanted to do, but never did. If you have a store room of things that never see the light of day until you move house (only to be stored again) then you need to question why you hold on so much.

In Feng Shui terms, energy (Chi) needs to circulate freely around your home - so the main entrance is vital as this is where energy enters your home.
Remove ALL clutter from inside and outside the main door and hallway.
Invest in neat shoe cabinets to hide all those thrown off shoes, remove any dead/dying plants, and invest in bright welcoming lighting.

Wardrobes and clothes need to be cleared at least annually .Categorize the clothes according to use- long dress, tops, bottoms etc. Also color co-ordinate as you hang them. Anything which does not fit you - give away. There are a lot of negative messages each time you look into the closet if you face clothes which are now too tight. Also it's harder to lose weight if you have negative reminders around. So decide to give away and then treat yourself to a new outfit once you have lost the weight!

Tip out your handbag/briefcase….what do you see?
Wallets/purses should be free of clutter; else your money becomes stagnant!
Do you have things in there that are useful (tissues , small note pad, pen , name cards etc..) or is it full of old receipts, parking coupons, half eaten chocolate bars and anything but what you need when you sneeze and rummage to find a tissue!

Piles of paper on desks literally weigh you down and also do not allow a clear space for creativity and progress in your career. Too many personal items on the desk detract from the work focus and also create stagnation. Clear the clutter also on your computer - trash unwanted E-mails, out of date files, and establish clear filing and retrieval systems.

Celebrate as clearing clutter is the best antidepressant there is!
Removing stagnant energy allows a new lightness into your life and along with that comes new opportunities! Your mind is calmer as you know where things are, precious mind space is freed and thus new ideas come in, which you capture by writing them on the notepad that is neatly placed in your handbag/briefcase.

Try it and see - you will soon be radiating peace, calmness and an amazing lightness in your inner and outer life!

Vikas Malkani & Sally Forrest SoulCentre

2008-12-02T02:10:00.002+08:00

My late grandfather's images kept popping into my head. Duno if it's because D-day is nearer and I wished he was here to witness it. So much I wanted to tell him if I could. I'm sure if he was around, he would be the one ferrying me around to places to get stuff and all and help me with preparations. I wish you were here. But I pray you are in a better place.

I found her!

2008-11-30T05:05:00.003+08:00

I finally found Ras.. Nani, she's on my facebook... Been looking for her like for so long.

Anyway, I have started to distribute the cards already.

2008-11-23T04:09:00.001+08:00

Yeay yeay, ada Hen Party.... *GRIN*

2008-11-21T04:19:00.002+08:00

Ok guess what, I have a 17-yr old boy requesting me as a friend on friendster and I swear I do not know him, like at all. And I looked thru his photos, he's like really young (he looks like those in the age group of my students, and they are young okay), and he has 2063 friends (how can a kid that young really actually know 2063 people) and most of them are GIRLS, and I did see a couple of guys while just browsing thru his friends list and those are prolly his actual friends, but WTH?! I don't know what to say. What is happening to kids nowadays? And some of those girls are young and their photos are like... whaatt... Okay young boy, I do not know you, and I do not add people I do not know at all, especially if they are young boys trying to act cool by having loads of friends, particularly girls in your friends list. I worry for these kids man.

The one about not being able to sleep...

2008-11-11T05:12:00.003+08:00

I can't sleep. It has started again. Too many things going on in my mind, this that, what-ifs, hows... And so I decided to blog/multiply hop.

Found this. My GG, the mafia king. ;p

Oh God, give me the peace of mind to sleep. But if I get to sleep now, I won't be able to wake up tomorrow. Maybe I can get that sleeping pills from Ayim....

The one about clearing out...

2008-11-07T01:26:00.002+08:00

I am starting to clear out my stuff... Need to start already, since I have to overhaul my room, and boy, do I have lots of things to clear... Clothes that I don't need/want/can't fit in anymore, old textbooks, papers, can't bear to throw but I don't have a need for them stuff, and I am not even halfway through.

So I started out with my clothes, 2 boxes, one for discard'em and one for keep'em (which I wouldn't need to wear in the next 1 month so I will have less to pack just before I dismantle my old cupboard). Seriously, the ones I put in my keep'em box, I know when the wardrobe comes, I will still discard a quarter of them but I can't bear to do it now. Hah! I have more in my keep'em box than my discard'em box. Then I kinda stop halfway coz I would need to wear the rest of them. I wanna donate some of my baju kurungs that I can't fit into anymore, but I don't where to, so if you guys have any info on where I can donate baju kurungs, pls share with me...

Next, my sacred drawer full of sentimental things that I have kept for like a decade or more perhaps. I am sentimental man, I value those things people gave me, cards and such. I have like a pile of old cards and letters and notes that I kept from dunno when. I spent more time reading through them than actually throwing out, and I ended up still keeping half of them. It was a heartwarming moment reading through those. Touching giler, cards from one particular kid from this camp that I facilitated when I was in sec 4, v-day/ birthday/ for-fun cards from my lovely girlfriends (eh Nurul, you actually sent me a hari raya card lah long time back, hahaha..), letters from this good friend I made from my OBS Lumut trip, I have a letter from C.H.R.I.S.T.O.P.H.E.R T.A.N lah (dun laugh ok! I wonder if he still remembers me.. sigh.. ) to name some. I really couldn't bear to throw most of them so I just threw out some old hari raya cards, xmas cards. Macam mana mau game? Then my pile of Fandi Ahmad *swoon* posters, cut-outs, articles, notebook, I spent years collecting them, and it was hard to part with them, but well... He still has a soft spot in my heart even thoguh he's no longer playing soccer. ;p (I still have a chance to take it out from the trash bag you know... Damn!)

I still have my textbooks and notes to go thru, and my work stuff, which is the main bulk of the things in my room. Camnerrrr?

Collected my invite print-outs from Talib, and should be done with the cards by this weekend so guys, get ready for a meet-up! I kinda like how my cards turn out, they may not be perfect (senget2 sikit ada) coz it's handmade but they have effort written all over them though they're simple. I loike. I think my wedding theme would be personal touch. Berkat buat sendiri, gubahan pun, cards pun, bedroom deco nanti pun, cupcakes "buat sendiri" by my gals. Nurul said if I can do my pelamin and decor myself, I would have done it. What a sight that would be - imagine, immediately after nikah I would have to rush down to set up the pelamin and all. ;p

This weekend would be spent clearing out my room (as much as I can).

Last thing to settle would be to book our honeymoon. Enough of rambling, I need to sleep.

Us

2008-10-23T03:40:00.002+08:00

I was clearing out My Picture folders and came across this - a very nice and happy photo of me and my siblings. We were accompanying my mum to buy her handphone.

2008-10-23T02:54:00.002+08:00

When I first saw this on display, I fell in love with the gown. Months down the road, I got to wear it. It's like a dream come true.. *Grinz*

The one about Raya...

2008-10-22T03:06:00.000+08:00

I like this year's family photo. Clear and nice, for once.
Anyway, next year there will be like an extra person :)

This year's raya seemed much more tiring, I dunno why. Perhaps it's the age... Perhaps it's the fact that I am also having an extra thing or two at hand. One, the wedding. Two, running for an award. And both have almost the same dateline. Go Ain, you can do it! But I have never been so addicted to mak's kuih tart. I mean I used not to like them, but somehow I helped (along with my sister) finish up like the first batch of kuih tart, and my mum had to make a fresh batch during the month of raya itself. Sorry ma, but I couldn't help it ;p Sedap sangat... Even on the way to work or driving home, I could taste the tart in my mouth and I couldn't wait to get home to lay my hands on them. Hahahah... Ok now I feel like going to the kitchen. Ta!

Article by Singapore's Youngest Millionaire

2008-10-14T17:16:00.002+08:00

Quite often in my line of work, I get asked how to save the first million or how to ever get a million dollar. I think this article or blog post (which was forwarded to me), coming from someone who is one would help. What he wrote made a lot of sense.

Seriously the first step would be to start looking into the way we allocate our money (savings and expenses). If a millionaire doesn't even look into travelling first class and spends frugally, what about us, who are not even one and dreams to be one.

A Blog Posted by Singapore's Youngest Millionaire
By Adam Khoo In Money

Some of you may already know that I travel around the region pretty frequently, having to visit and conduct seminars at my offices in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Suzhou (China). I am in the airport almost every other week so I get to bump into many people who have attended my seminars or have read my books.

Recently, someone came up to me on a plane to KL and looked rather shocked. He asked, 'How come a millionaire like you is travelling economy?' My reply was, 'That's why I am a millionaire.' He still looked pretty confused. This again confirms that greatest lie ever told about wealth (which I wrote about in my latest book 'Secrets of Self Made Millionaires'). Many people have been brainwashed to think that millionaires have to wear Gucci, Hugo Boss, Rolex, and sit on first class in air travel. This is why so many people never become rich because the moment that earn more money, they think that it is only natural that they spend more, putting them back to square one.

The truth is that most self-made millionaires are frugal and only spend on what is necessary and of value. That is why they are able to accumulate and multiply their wealth so much faster. Over the last 7 years, I have saved about 80% of my income while today I save only about 60% (because I have my wife, mother in law, 2 maids, 2 kids, etc. to support). Still, it is way above most people who save 10% of their income (if they are lucky). I refuse to buy a first class ticket or to buy a $300 shirt because I think that it is a complete waste of money. However, I happily pay $1,300 to send my 2-year old daughter to Julia Gabriel Speech and Drama without thinking twice.

When I joined the YEO (Young Entrepreneur's Organization) a few years back (YEO is an exclusive club open to those who are under 40 and make over $1m a year in their own business) I discovered that those who were self-made thought like me. Many of them with net worths well over $5m, travelled economy class and some even drove Toyota's and Nissans (not Audis, Mercs, BMWs).

I noticed that it was only those who never had to work hard to build their own wealth (there were also a few ministers' and tycoons' sons in the club) who spent like there was no tomorrow. Somehow, when you did not have to build everything from scratch, you do not really value money. This is precisely the reason why a family's wealth (no matter how much) rarely lasts past the third generation. Thank God my rich dad (oh no! I sound like Kiyosaki) foresaw this terrible possibility and refused to give me a cent to start my business.

Then some people ask me, 'What is the point in making so much money if you don't enjoy it?' The thing is that I don't really find happiness in buying branded clothes, jewellery or sitting first class. Even if buying something makes me happy it is only for a while, it does not last. Material happiness never lasts, it just give you a quick fix. After a while you feel lousy again and have to buy the next thing which you think will make you happy. I always think that if you need material things to make you happy, then you live a pretty sad and unfulfilled life.

Instead, what make ME happy is when I see my children laughing and playing and learning so fast. What makes me happy is when I see my companies and trainers reaching more and more people every year in so many more countries. What makes me really happy is when I read all the emails about how my books and seminars have touched and inspired someone's life. What makes me really happy is reading all your wonderful posts about how this BLOG is inspiring you. This happiness makes me feel really good for a long time, much much more than what a Rolex would do for me.

I think the point I want to put across is that happiness must come from doing your life's work (be in teaching, building homes, designing, trading, winning tournaments etc.) and the money that comes is only a by-product.

If you hate what you are doing and rely on the money you earn to make you happy by buying stuff, then I think that you are living a life of meaningless.

Salam Aidilfitri

2008-10-02T22:43:00.002+08:00

Saya ingin mengucapkan Selamat Hari Raya kepada semua peminta saya di luar sana... ;p
Seriously... Selamat Hari Raya to all my Muslim friends reading my blog. Especially to those I may not be able to meet in this festive season, I would like to extend my heartiest apology should there be any unintentional and/or unmindful behaviours or words that had been said or done on my part that may have caused any ill-feelings or hurt, even the slightest bit. I believe that apologies shouldn't just be done during hari rayas but then at times we may not be aware that we have done any wrongs towards others so at least this is the time to clean the slate.

Anyways, it was nice when during iftars and gatherings that my friends have offered to help out in my wedding preparations and I really appreciate it. I wouldn't want to impose on all of you, but don't worry if there is a need, I would. Thanks. :) Ros and the gals, korang betul eh nak buatkan wedding cupcakes aku? Thank you eh in advance. Touching giler...

Well, it's back to work proper and I have personal goals to meet and a wedding to prepare for. Go go go! And this is my last quarter before I change status.

Ok peeps, gtg, enjoy your raya and I'll see you guys when we jalan, insyaAllah.

I'm smiling away...

2008-09-27T02:28:00.002+08:00

Finally, the season 5 premiere of GA is out! So happily watching it just now that I didn't realise that it's 2hrs since I sat in front of my laptop... So Friday night is GA night from now on.

PS: Is it me or is he getting more and more good looking...? ;p *Swoons*

It's the 25th today...

2008-09-25T07:40:00.001+08:00

And that means G.A. is out! :)

But from the trailer, seems like my favourite Head of Neurosurgery would get into an accident or something :(

This story depicts love...

2008-09-25T07:05:00.002+08:00

Though some parts and some people are just plain irritating...

Seputih Qaseh Ramadhan.
It's about the love of a mother for her children.
It's about the love of a wife for her husband.
It's about the love of a man for a woman.
Sad that the husband had no balls, that he was such a coward. But perhaps it's love and filial piety for his mum. But to the point that he could actually forego the sacrifice that his wife made for him when she took the rap for him years ago. That he actually did not even meet her in that 12yrs she was in prison, did not even bring her back home. And even at the end, he didn't even asked her for forgiveness at all after what he has put her through. Sad that the mum that he casted aside his wife for and married some disgusting b**** was the one who got the wife in jail and had the wife not taken the rap for him, it would have been him. Luckily though, he managed to pull through in the end to right the situation. He loved his wife, but he was afraid of his mum. (Hmmm... sideline: This reminds me of something)
And the man who helped her through her last days knew that he would never have her love, and yet he loved her still and helped her fulfil her last wish. Yelah kan, drama tu drama, but this is a very touching story, and yes, I teared watching the last episode. I hated the 2 witches in the story, I almost hated the husband, had I not factor in filial piety. I liked how the other guy loved her unconditionally. I didn't like the fake eye lashes though. I watched it on youtube coz I couldn't stand how slow it was showing on tv. Heh.

I can't wait...

2008-09-18T09:23:00.003+08:00

this was how it ended last season...

1 more week!

Oh, and another 3 more months...

New Parents' Top Money Mistakes

2008-09-04T02:11:00.003+08:00

Since many of my friends and people my age are becoming new parents, I thought this article would be useful. (Plus it's part of my job to keep you informed.) However it is US-based, so some of the things mentioned may not apply in our context or figures may vary (I have taken some points out which I feel are such), but in general most of the points make sense. It would also come in handy to me in time to come ;) I hope it helps for you guys. Article is from MSN Money Section.

Anyway, before I forget. Congratulations to Yellow and Hui Ann for having given birth to healthy baby girls. Yellow gave birth to Elizabeth Huang on 22 Aug 2008. Hui Ann gave birth to Isabelle Tang on 09 July 2008. I am so happy for the two of you. Enjoy motherhood and I will take tips from you yah!

A tiny new baby comes home with a mountain of money issues for its overjoyed, overtired parents. Here are the most common ways parents go wrong, and why these financial flubs can be so costly in the long term.

By Karen Hube

To most new parents, getting settled with a new baby means figuring out how to function on three hours of sleep and finding what detergent will best minimize spit-up stains.

Financial issues rarely get the time of day, even though numerous important issues crop up once you have a child. As a result, many new parents put their family's long-term financial security at risk by making rash decisions or avoiding issues altogether.

Here are some of the biggest mistakes that new parents make when it comes to their finances:

Skimping on life insurance
Once you become a parent, having enough life insurance is essential. "If one or both parents dies, you have to make sure your dependents will be provided for," says Lynn Ballou, a financial planner in Lafayette, Calif.

While you may have some life insurance coverage through your employer, "that's usually not enough," Ballou says. "Anyone with a kid these days should at least have a $500,000 policy as a bare-bones minimum," she says. What's more, if you are healthy, group policies are rarely any cheaper for you than an individual policy, and they aren't portable. If you get laid off, you lose your life insurance. "Imagine if you got laid off when you were having medical problems. Getting a new policy would be extremely expensive," Ballou says. "It's much smarter to simply get an individual policy."

How much insurance do you need? Generally people need five times their earnings, plus the total amount of their household debt and enough to cover college tuition for their children, says John Ryan, owner of Ryan Insurance Strategy Consultants in Greenwood Village, Colo.

Don't forget to run the same calculation for a stay-at-home spouse, whose premature death may mean having to hire full-time child care, Ballou adds.

For new parents, most planners recommend term insurance. "It meets most people's needs," and it's the simplest and cheapest kind, says Peg Downey, a financial planner in Silver Spring, Md. A 30-year-old healthy man recently could have gotten a $500,000 term policy from First Penn Pacific Co. for $475 a year, says Ryan, the Colorado insurance consultant. Choose a term that lasts until your dependents are through college and no longer in need of your financial support, Ryan says. And then, be sure your policy has the option to convert to a permanent whole life or variable life policy. That way, if you decide later that you want lifelong coverage, it will be cheaper to convert than to buy a new policy.

Shrugging off disability insurance
Disability insurance is arguably even more important, because it's statistically more likely that you will get injured than die while you're in the workforce. Most employer-sponsored plans will pay you 60% of your salary if you become disabled. As a rule of thumb, if you're earning under $100,000, that's probably enough coverage, Ryan says. "People who earn more usually have the need for a supplemental plan."

Take a realistic look at your family's spending to figure out how much coverage you should have. Get a policy that would enable you to cover expenses and maintain your standard of living if you had to be out of work for a while.

Buying life insurance for baby
If an insurer tries to peddle you life insurance for your kid, walk away. "You buy life insurance on someone only if their death would create financial hardship," says Marilyn Capelli, a financial planner in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Some salespeople say a lifetime policy on a child is a smart security measure. If your child develops a medical condition later in life, insurance would be very costly. So if you buy a policy for less now, at least you will know he will always be insured. "But it's unlikely a healthy child will develop a problem that will last into adulthood," Capelli says. "And if he did, by then the coverage would probably be small relative to his needs."

Delaying saving for college
Most parents start fretting about tuition when their kids are entering high school - way too late. "The best time to start is when you child is born," says Dennis Gurtz, a financial planner in Bethesda, Md.

Forgetting what's most important: retirement savings
Once you're faced with the monumental task of saving for your child's college tuition, it's easy to shrug off saving for retirement. Big mistake, Ballou says. "Saving for retirement always comes first, college comes second," Ballou says. "You and your child can figure out other ways of getting through school. It would be worse if your child had to support you during your retirement."

Postponing a will
Many parents assume they don't need a will, because they don't have large estates. But if you have a child, a will is essential to designate guardians. "If you and your spouse die prematurely without a will, a court will appoint guardians for your children," says Elizabeth Lewin, co-author of "Family Finance."

Hire an attorney to draft a will (cost: $500 to $1,000) in which you name an executor, who would pay your debts and distribute your assets, and a guardian for your children. "These may be two different people; sister Jane may be a great mom, but she may not be good with money," Lewin says.

Also, name two backups for both child and money issues, advises Ballou. "What if you want your sister to take care of your kids, but for some reason she's not able?"

Overspending on baby costs
The higher your income, the more expensive it is to raise a child. For a child born in 2003 to a family with annual income of more than $65,400 a year, the basic expenses of child-rearing will set you back more than $344,000, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And that's just until age 18.

While a lot of this spending is necessary, some of it isn't. Many seasoned parents admit their most irresponsible spending occurred in their children's earliest years and before they were even born. Who really needs a $500 hand-stitched crib bumper? "New parents think they need everything, want everything to be perfect, and don't know what things cost," says Downey, the Maryland planner.

Before you start setting up a nursery, come up with a spending plan. Accept hand-me-downs, and shop at yard sales and consignment and second-hand shops. Remember that a lot of what you buy will only be used for about a year, sometimes less -- especially baby clothes.

Overlooking tax benefits for parents
As your spending skyrockets, at least you can take some solace in a few tax breaks geared for parents.

Oversimplifying the work vs. stay-at-home question
At a glance, the question of whether one spouse should quit work to care for your new baby seems clear cut: If the spouse earns only enough to cover child care costs, staying at home probably makes sense.

But there are numerous other financial factors to consider. The most commonly overlooked is the costly benefits package provided by your employer. "Benefits are often worth about 35% of your salary," Downey says. Run a comparison of what it will cost to replace the benefits you need if you leave your job. Also, figure in how your other expenses and benefits will change. For example, if you leave your job, you will cut out commuting expenses and the cost of pricey work clothes. If you continue working, however, you may receive a matching 401(k) contribution from your employer.

Selamat Berpuasa...

2008-09-04T02:05:00.003+08:00

Selamat menunaikan ibadah Puasa kepada semua yang membaca.

This would be the last fasting month I am celebrating as a single (as reminded by a dear friend), and at the end of the month, it would mean that I have 3 months more. Seram kan?

Anyway, I have a wedding blog, heh, which I would probably put up later later on.

Okay kengkawan sekalian, soon there would be recall for iftar together ok?

I am a Dreamy Idealist (DI)

2008-08-23T01:50:00.001+08:00

Dreamy Idealists are very cautious and therefore often appear shy and reserved to others. They share their rich emotional life and their passionate convictions with very few people. But one would be very much mistaken to judge them to be cool and reserved. They have a pronounced inner system of values and clear, honourable principles for which they are willing to sacrifice a great deal. Joan of Arc or Sir Galahad would have been good examples of this personality type. Dreamy Idealists are always at great pains to improve the world. They can be very considerate towards others and do a lot to support them and stand up for them. They are interested in their fellow beings, attentive and generous towards them. Once their enthusiasm for an issue or person is aroused, they can become tireless fighters.

For Dreamy Idealists, practical things are not really so important. They only busy themselves with mundane everyday demands when absolutely necessary. They tend to live according to the motto “the genius controls the chaos” - which is normally the case so that they often have a very successful academic career. They are less interested in details; they prefer to look at something as a whole. This means that they still have a good overview even when things start to become hectic. However, as a result, it can occasionally happen that Dreamy Idealists overlook something important. As they are very peace-loving, they tend not to openly show their dissatisfaction or annoyance but to bottle it up. Assertiveness is not one of their strong points; they hate conflicts and competition. Dreamy Idealists prefer to motivate others with their amicable and enthusiastic nature. Whoever has them as superior will never have to complain about not being given enough praise.

As at work, Dreamy Idealists are helpful and loyal friends and partners, persons of integrity. Obligations are absolutely sacred to them. The feelings of others are important to them and they love making other people happy. They are satisfied with just a small circle of friends; their need for social contact is not very marked as they also need a lot of time to themselves. Superfluous small talk is not their thing. If one wishes to be friends with them or have a relationship with them, one would have to share their world of thought and be willing to participate in profound discussions. If you manage that you will be rewarded with an exceptionally intensive, rich partnership. Due to their high demands on themselves and others, this personality type tends however to sometimes overload the relationship with romantic and idealistic ideas to such an extent that the partner feels overtaxed or inferior. Dreamy Idealists do not fall in love head over heels but when they do fall in love they want this to be a great, eternal love.

Adjectives which describe your type
introverted, theoretical, emotional, spontaneous, idealistic, dreamy, effusive, pleasant, reserved, friendly, passionate, loyal, perfectionist, helpful, creative, composed, curious, obstinate, with integrity, willing to make sacrifices, romantic, cautious, shy, peace-loving, vulnerable, sensitive, communicative, imaginative

These subjects could interest you
iterature, philosophy, psychology, music, art (museums), writing, drawing/painting, astrology, spiritual things, meditation, handicrafts, writing, voluntary work

http://www.ipersonic.com/test.html

How Romantic Am I?

2008-08-18T04:01:00.001+08:00

You are the dreamy type who needs a portion of drama and passion to spice up life

Romance definitely flows in your veins, and you usually let it show. An element of romance is a necessary part of most of your relationships. You fantasize about being Juliet, Isolde, or any number of star-crossed heroines in love, and you try to emulate them in your love relationships. Drama is also a significant factor that draws you to your lover - after all, how can there be passion in love without passion on the other end of the spectrum? You oftentimes wonder how to make others see the magic of love and give them a romantic revelation they won't soon forget! You love the maudlin-schmaltz, but not everyone else is as enthused about love as you are. You can have it both ways. You know that romantic gestures, such as a thoughtful gift, a sweet note, or a surprise, can make all the difference in wooing that special someone or in an already-established relationship - those romantic things are potent. The right person for you will appreciate your gestures, and he or she will be certain to try to romance you in all the ways you've dreamed of. But no matter how much you fall for the someone, be careful not to go overboard with the romance.

The Distance...

2008-08-16T07:38:00.004+08:00

Do you own your friends? Do you have the right on your friends?
I believe if you have their best interest at heart, yah you have the right to do something about it or say something... But how far should you go? How far can you go?
To be direct or subtle? Coz sometimes subtle doesn't get through. Perhaps being direct wouldn't get through either but perhaps the impact might be a little bit stronger. Then again, sometimes people just refused to come out of the box to take a clearer look from the top, and they let themselves be trapped in there. For how long? How long can you survive breathing the same air in the closed box over and over again? If you want to remain in the box, then know how much air in there, so you know when you should think about getting out of it..

Do you own other people's feelings or actions? Do you have the right to govern what they do or how they do it? Or even have the right to go around saying things to them without sparing a teeny-weeny thought about how that person would feel? Have a heart. And how far can a person take being confronted at every single thing he/she does or doesn't do? Seriously. Leave it. And some people are not able to voice it out coz somehow in the eyes of the "general public", he/she is an outsider... I am not saying I know everything, just enough to know what's good and what's not. And stop putting droplets of black ink slowly into the barrel of pure whiteness. In my eyes, no person can be "whiter", so pls stop it. Really...

And I have never ever thought that someone could be so cruel (not those war or killing kind of cruel). Torture involved, though not physically. In fact, I think mental and emotional tortures are worse! What's the point of going for all those classes/fuctions/events/whatever-you-call-its, but you don't have a heart? And you look down on people not in the same category as you.

You should know better, shouldn't you, with the help of all those things that you supposedly go for? That applies to you, and you too! Urgghhh, makin teruk pulak!

I don't like seeing people get hurt or hurting, and I try not to hurt as far as I can help it. I have even given in to certain things. But do people actually thought about what I am feeling inside or what I want?

I donno... Shrugs

2008-08-16T07:26:00.004+08:00

Tak patutkan...?

Salah ker...?

Kenapa semakin hari, semakin mencabar...?

Camner pulak nanti...? Err... abih skarang macam mana...?
Nak buat apa?

Ahhhh... tak tau lah!

Okayyyy...

2008-08-15T03:31:00.000+08:00

You entered: Nor'ain
There are 6 letters in your name.
Those 6 letters total to 35
There are 3 vowels and 3 consonants in your name.

Your number is: 8

The characteristics of #8 are: Practical endeavors, status oriented, power-seeking, high-material goals.

The expression or destiny for #8:
Your Expression is represented by the number 8. The 8 Expression is well-equipped in a managerial sense. You have outstanding organizational and administrative capabilities. You have the potential for considerable achievement in business or other powerful positions. You can expect to receive the financial and material rewards. You have the skill and abilities to establish or operate a business with great efficiency. You have good judgment when it comes to money and commercial matters, and you understand how to build and accumulate material wealth. Much of your success (or lack of it) may come due to your ability (or inability) to judge character. With the number 8 Expression, you exercise sound judgment in most of your affairs; you are realistic and practical in your approach to business matters.

The positive 8 Expression produces individuals that are very ambitious and goal-oriented. If the 8 energy is not in excess in your makeup, you will no doubt express these traits to some extent. No one has any more energy that a person with the 8 Expression who has a plan laid and is starting to work. No one has any more self-confidence, either. If you are expressing the positive qualities of 8, you are an outstanding manager because you can plan, initiate, and complete projects; you are very dependable and determined.

As it always happens, there can be too much of a good thing. If you have too much of the 8 energy in your makeup, you may express some of the negative attitudes. A negative 8 can be very rigid and stubborn. Ambition sometimes has a way of becoming over-ambition, and you may express an unreasonable impatience with the lack of progress. If your negative side is showing, you may be too exacting, both of yourself and of others. Sometimes this can even becomes a case of intolerance.

The number 8 is very materialistic and also very desirous of status and power. Neither of these drives are inherently negative unless they are taken to an extreme. You must avoid the tendency to strain after money, material matters, status, or power, to the detriment of the other important factors in your life.

Your Soul Urge number is: 7

A Soul Urge number of 7 means:
With a number 7 Soul Urge you are very fond of reading, and retreating to periods of being alone and away from the disruptions of the outer world. You like to dream and develop you idealistic understandings, to study and analyze, to gain knowledge and wisdom. You may be too laid back and withdrawn to really succeed in the business world, and you will be much more comfortable in circumstances that are tolerant of your reserve, your analytical approach, and your desire to use your mind rather than your physical being.

You are very timid around people that you don't know very well, so much so at times that casual conversation and social situations can be strained. You tend to repress your emotions to the extend that some people have a good bit of difficult understanding you. You tend to be very selective with friends and you don't easily adapt to new environments or to new people very quickly.

The negative traits of the 7 include becoming too much the introvert and isolated from others.

Your Inner Dream number is: 1

An Inner Dream number of 1 means:
You dream of being a leader and one who is in charge. You want to be known for your courage, daring, and original ideas. You seek unconquered heights. People may get a first impression that you are very aggressive and sure of yourself.

Jason Mraz Rawks!

2008-08-06T06:19:00.005+08:00

I went for Singfest last Sunday. What made me decide to go was Jason Mraz. The fact that PCD was going to be there also was a bonus for me to go since I ever told myself that I was going to watch them if they came. And so for once, it happened.

Azah! If u think that Jason Mraz's albums are good, wait till you hear him LIVE. He has moved like many many notches above lah to me after hearing and watching him sing. How good was it? Before, I thought his songs on CDs were good but after hearing him sing LIVE, the albums like don't sound that good anymore. He was GREAT! It's not the same anymore listening to his CDs. Plus my bro said he sounded "girl-girl". I do admit he sounds slight lembut (macam soothing2 gitu) in his CDs, but he is like breath-takingly WHOAH... REally Izal...

Ni gambar untuk kau ok... Not so clear though.. And my Nicole was HOT! Sighhh.... I really wonder how she managed to sing and dance like that all at the same time.

*Contented* I will try upload whatever I have (courtesy of Tabr's sis) on my Multiply soon.

You (seriously) don't know just how much...

2008-08-03T05:05:00.003+08:00

I hold on dearly to your words...
Hopes I have for these words to be lived up to.....
Easier it would be.....

Of a romantic I can be...

I am hurting inside...

You might not remember.
It probably wouldn't have meant anything then.
I still remember...

What You Should Know...

2008-07-31T01:33:00.003+08:00

She expects romance.

OK, you aren't the romantic type, neither am I. You don't need to write love poems, or send her flowers every day. Little things can make a big difference.

Things like actually asking her out on a date, an occasional call from work, complementing her in front of her friends. Here's a quote from a friend of mine, Debbie Anderson...

"Women do a lot of little things and men tend to do one big thing, like surprising her at the last minute for a Hawaii vacation resort but women regard each little thing they do separately and equal, where men seem to think that one big thing covers for all the little things!

You see, that's a big secret....if men could learn to do all the little things they wouldn't need to do the big thing!" Let her know you love her, and you will be plenty romantic enough, but "do" show her that you love her. What she really expects is for you to show her that you love and respect her. That shouldn't be too hard should it?

http://www.everydaybetterliving.com/understanding_women/what_she_expects_anyway2.html

Keeping Romance Alive

2008-07-31T01:18:00.005+08:00

Back in September 2005, when Dennis Morand was wracking his brain for a 25th wedding anniversary gift for his wife, Amy, he considered candy and flowers, then bought ...

A 16-month calendar.

In the square representing Sept 27, 2005 - the Westwood couple's anniversary - he wrote, "I love you."

Then Dennis, 49, inked those same words in every space for the remaining days of 2005 and all of 2006.

Amy, also 49, loved it.

"I will keep this calendar forever," she says, "to remind me that he truly loves me each and every day."

Ain't romance grand?

It can be simple or complicated. It can mean different things to different people. But experts and everyday folks alike agree that couples who have been together for a considerable length of time - ever heard of the seven-year itch? - must find ways to keep romance alive.

"True romance is day-to-day acts of love and kindness that happen for no apparent reason other than the fact that we love and care for someone dearly," says Loveland-based relationships expert David Coleman, known as the Dating Doctor.

Bill Rice gets it. He's no relationship guru, just a 75-year-old guy from Erlanger who's been married to the same woman for 50 years. He calls romance "an essential ingredient in a marriage."

His wife, Julie, 77, has endured a number of surgeries and physical problems.

"Gifts are nice and sweet, and I appreciate all of them," she says. "But just the loving attention I have received (from Bill) through my many difficulties has been overwhelming," Julie says.

For Amy Morand, "loving attention" sometimes means having orange juice.

During the couple's first year of marriage, Dennis made an off-the-cuff promise that he would try to have the drink for her every day.

Twenty-six years later, Amy still gets her OJ.

She likes being surprised, too. Dennis has been known to slip a love note into her luggage when she's away, or even put his thoughts into poetry.

"I'm not saying (an expensive gift) wouldn't be nice, but it's not the ultimate expression of romance, in my opinion," says Amy, a mother of two who works part time as a data collector.

"Romance is the more personal touch," says Dennis, a computer programmer, "the things that let your spouse know you hear her.

"Sure, I'd love to be able to do grand gestures - flowers every week and romantic getaways. But we also live in the real world where we have budgets."

...one of the most romantic things one spouse can offer another is the gift of time.

"I often hear people moan and groan about getting out and doing something together," Coleman says, "but once out and laughing and sharing, they couldn't be happier that they did."

Patrina and Maurice Hughes have been married 15 years. He's a computer programmer who travels often during the week. She's an office administrator. The Liberty Township couple have no children.

"We still have date night," Patrina says.

But their vision of romance goes deeper. Patrina says it centers on the security she feels in their relationship.

"If I feel secure, then romance is not a problem. The marriage has to be strong enough (for me to) feel secure when he's gone."

A sense of security is something people in long-term relationships feel when they are emotionally connected, says Harville Hendrix, author of "Getting the Love You Want: A Guide for Couples" (Owl Books, $15).

"It's the emotional connection," he says, "that restores romantic passion."

In order for couples to connect emotionally, he says they must:

Amplify their appreciation for each other. It can be as simple as remarking, "There's my guy! (or gal)" when a spouse enters the room.

Eliminate negativity. That is, stop the blame and criticism.

Learn to communicate effectively, that is, "to talk in such a way that your partner will listen, and listen in such a way that you and your partner will talk." In practical terms, that means taking an active interest in what your spouse says, repeating what was said ("Let me see if I understand you"), and validating - even if not agreeing with - your spouse's statements.

Maurice Hughes knows Patrina likes a clean house. So when he makes a mess, he cleans up.

"Those things are not necessarily romantic," he says, "but they're steps that lead to romance, and they break down some of the frustrations that can cause a relationship to never get to the point of romance.

"You only know those things when you communicate."

So, fellas, here's a little conversation starter that some wives might find romantic: Honey, what can I do to help around the house?

"A woman would be in a more romantic mood if she were to come home and see the dishes done, rather than (a box of) candy on the counter," says Dorianne Beagle, 36, of Florence. "Most men don't realize that that is romance."

Beagle didn't believe it herself until hearing it over and over again from women she meets in her role as an independent distributor for Slumber Parties, which sells products to help enhance romance.

That's not to say traditional gestures such as roses aren't appreciated.

"When he surprises me by dropping by my work with flowers or a gift, that's always fun," Patrina Hughes says.

And Dennis Morand won't forget the Friday that Amy stopped by his office. She'd arranged an overnight baby-sitter for their girls, and had booked the couple a hotel room downtown.

"That kind of blew me away," he says.

Romantically challenged spouses can always get help.

......

http://news.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070806/LIFE/108060002/1035

Tips on Keeping Your Romance Alive

Write "I Love You" on the bathroom mirror with a piece of soap.

Fill her car with balloons

Send a card-a-day for a week - or a month.

Leave unexpected love notes on the refrigerator.

Go dancing. This is one of the first things to go once a couple "settles down" and gets married. Yet, it's one of the most fun activities you can share, if both of you enjoy dancing.

Give flowers that match his/her eyes.

The Treasure Hunt - Send your mate on a treasure hunt for a present. Leave stick-on notes on refrigerators, mirrors, or doors leading to the present. Have one last note wrapped inside the present leading straight to you.

Watch the sun rise - or set - together.

Breakfast ... or dinner, in bed.

Frame a favorite poem.

Take an art class together.

Go on a mystery date. Make all the arrangements. Then whisk him/her away for an unexpected day or two.

http://www.robbinsbros.com/anniversary-gifts/keeping-romance-alive.asp

Or is it so difficult to have any of these done for me?

2008-07-22T04:08:00.002+08:00

U mean I haven't updated my blog for THAT long? Heheh...

Anywayz... what's up wif me? Besides the big event coming up in like 5 months, we have started the 3 mornings a week schedule. That plus running around for Project W, on top of my appointments which I have to up, is enough to tire me out. But then again, there is always time for Chai @ Bhai... Hah! Come to think of it, it's like that cafe in "Friends", where they meet like everyday, except we dun have our own couch... ...BUT, we have our own chair! With backrest some more...

Project W comes with sub-project Cards and Faux Cupcakes so... Well, it was a headache brainstorming. Fortunately, whatever that needs to be decided upon at this point has been decided on, and whatever main things that need to be booked has been booked. Now it's more on the acting it out. And I have a dear colleague who is constantly checking on my preps, and pushing me on. In fact, she is more kanchiong about this whole thing than me... "Have you done this, have you done that... you mean you haven't this that..." There was this one time she actually said, "Yah we haven't done anything about that right?", putting ownership in this whole thing. Hahah. But I love you dear. She even volunteered to go exercise with me lah. Anyway, she asked, "Will you change...?" That got me thinking. I don't want to and I don't think I would, in terms of character and personality, but of course there are certain habits and behaviour that I have to and want to change and perhaps improve on. And evertime I get into my blog, that counter on the right is a huge reminder of how long more it is the the big day. Alhamdulillah, so far, so good.

And I finally met up with some of my dear friends whom I have not seen for ages. Really missed hanging out with you guys.

The Extreme...

2008-06-21T06:14:00.005+08:00

It's time for me to do a proper update yah, and after that catch up on my frens' blog. Been a long time since I have sat down and really read thru the days of their lives.

So... I was called to help out at a camp (what I used to do a lot, many years back) coz I think they do not have enough facis. Since I haven't been doing that and I thought it would be nice to have a change of routine (plus I couldn't say no), I thought, what the heck, let's do it. I super-pack my schedule for Monday and Tuesday just so that I could be away for Wednesday and Thursday. With the briefing on Tuesday night itself, I had to stay the night at Guthrie. After my last appointment which ended around 10pm, I rushed down. On the way, I suddenly got to thinking, it was mentioned that there would be cycling and dragon-boating, what if I am not up to it anymore. Seriously, it has been a long while since I did these stuff. Last I remembered going for such adventure camps was probably 6-7yrs back man. Time tu masih fit! Hah! Anyway, that was my fear. Upon reaching Guthrie, we were briefed on the itinerary and I also found out that it was an 'O' Level students camp, not the normal primary school camps that I am used to facilitating. Wokay... I found out - no sleep, packed with walking, cycling, dragonboating, paintball all the way. We then had to go take a look at some of the places that the kids have to go to during the "scavenger hunt". Another fear, it's all in the East, and I know nuts about the walking/cycling routes in that area. Sheeesh. Briefing ended around 5am, I had 1.5hr of sleep before being waken up by the sound of the door. The participants were reporting at 8am.

8.30am - briefing and dividing the kids (actually they are no longer kids lah, but easier to call them that) into groups. The first clue was given, and we made our way there (The Dragonboat Association). Had some team-building actitives, those usual stuff. The boys in my group decided to name ours TJR for reasons I shall not divulge here. After zohor, we had to wait for the rain and lightning to start before being able to dragonboat. All of us were wet and cold and had to squeeze under a narrow shelter. Dragonboat-ing was fun, only I still prefer canoeing/kayaking coz I find that it takes lesser for 2 people to coordinate and synchronise, but then again that's why they pick dragonboat as one of their activities. After the whole thing, with us still semi-wet, we had to start on our "scavenger hunt", which involves walking from Kallang areas, to Kg Arang areas, to Parkway, and East Coast. These kids are good with their direction. I just had to follow them all the way, and perhaps just to remind them to wait up for the slower ones. In fact, I am proud to say that for the hunt itself, and we were the first group almost all the way, until one of the participant slipped and hurt her back and we had to slow down. But the girl didnt give up and still pushed on, even though I can see that it is painful for her, even after I told her that I can call the safety van to pick her up. And the others did not scold her for causing the slowdown. Very commendable.

Had dinner which they had to cook themselves - maggie with eggs and crabstick, afterwhich it was skit session. So far so good. Not tired yet. Cycling started after midnight. There were 12 checkpoints and we were supposed to be done by 6am. First checkpoint - Cafhi Jetty. I haven't even heard of that before. It'a apparently near Changi Fery Terminal. So Changi here we come! I tell you, it was a damn long cycle down to Changi. Luckily I didn't wear a watch coz then I would be keeping tabs of the timing and that would make it feel even longer. Especially on that long Changi Coast Road, beside the runway, it's never-ending! Not so bad though coz it was a smooth and straight road. We were the first group for the first few checkpoints. First checkpoint was tug-of-war, and they won the first 2 rounds. Woohoo, well done! That means, off we go to the next checkpoint further down Changi Beach, and then the Old Changi Hospital (where another group caught up with us coz we took the longer route), Loyang Ave and Pasir Ris Park Swamp Area. During the cycling, there was this girl who wasn't as strong a cyclist as the rest but I admired her perseverence in not giving up. I was too tired to think of it then, and I checked with her occasionally whether she's ok to continue and all the time she said ok, but it was hard for her, especially going uphills. She had to stop and push her bike, and the rest had to wait for her after I shouted from far to stop. At first the guys did mention casually that they didn't like to wait. The thing is after I explained to them the reason, they automatically stopped when they realised that the rest were lagging. One of the boys even explained to her how to adjust the gears so that it would be easier to cycle. By the time we reached Pasir Ris Park, we had been cycling for like 3hrs plus. The kids were tired, so was I man. While they did their activity at that checkpoint I managed to powernap. We still had 7 more checkpoints! Then we received the news that the other 7checkpoints were cancelled, BUT we still have to cycle back to East Coast. With our butts hurting (I speak for all of them), it was dreadful to get on the bikes, seriously. And my problem knee was beginning to show color. The boys wanted to go by a short-cut way through Tampines, Bedok via the main roads. I had no problems following them coz I believe they know the way, and at that point in time, I am sure their first thought would be to get back to the campsite asap, so they wouldn't risk getting lost. I am amazed at how well they knew their way around. The cycle back wasn't that smooth though, having to go thru main roads, uphills and downhills, traffic and all. I was so close to giving up man, but I kept pushing, if they can do it, why can't I? I tell you, my butt and legs hurt like mad, no matter how I adjust my seating position. And I couldn't even cycle straight anymore, my brain wasn't functioning properly. But this is where the power of responsibility and "what's the word-shit, isit..." aiyah, coz these kids were my responsibility and also I had to take care of them and ensure that they get there safely, I pushed on with them. I had half the mind to "fall out". This is where mind over matter takes place. Even when I am that tired, I managed to tell them to watch out for traffic, even when my eyes are being forced to stay open, I watched out for that girl (and she pushed herself all the way without any complaints) and pushed her on, even when I am at the point that I felt like just bothering about myself, I thought of the kids. I am proud of these kids, and at the same time, they allowed me to be proud of myself. We reached EC around 7am. The kids had some rest-time while waiting for the other team to reach. I had my powernap. Paintball filled up the whole late morning to afternoon. The kids had fun even though they were already super tired. Camp ended around 4.30pm.

I had facilitated and attended many camps, and usually in the camps, there was emphasis on teambuilding, communication, endurance, perseverance but I believe that it was during this camp that I got the most. Perhaps because the other camps I was too young to think deeply about such things, or at times it involved younger groups and thus, we as facis were not really pushed as we couldn't push the kids too much.

This entry is a tad too long but I want to let out what I went thru and what I have gotten thru it all.

NOTICE

2008-06-12T03:07:00.000+08:00

Smiling away

2008-05-23T20:02:00.002+08:00

M still in the office, waiting for time to pass by before I leave for my appointment in town. Anyway, managed to catch the season finale of GA. They're back together! I am feeling so warm-hearted now... I'm such a romantic at heart.

Oh I just came back from a kelong vacation over the long weekend. It was superb! Been wanting to blog about it, but it has been in my draft coz I need to add in photos and all the details.

Gtg!

Life Is Wonderful Lyrics - Jason Mraz

2008-05-13T02:21:00.002+08:00

It takes a crane to build a crane
It takes two floors to make a story
It takes an egg to make a hen
It takes a hen to make an egg
There is no end to what I'm saying

It takes a thought to make a word
And it takes some words to make an action
And it takes some work to make it work
It takes some good to make it hurt
It takes some bad for satisfaction

La la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Al la la la la

It takes a night to make it dawn
And it takes a day to make you yawn, brother
It takes some old to make you young
It takes some cold to know the sun
It takes the one to have the other

It takes no time to fall in love
But it takes you years to know what love is
It takes some fears to make you trust
It takes those tears to make it rust
It takes the dust to have it polished

Ha la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la

Is so...

It takes some silence to make sound
It takes a loss before you found it
It takes a road to go nowhere
It takes a toll to make you care
It takes a hole to make a mountain

Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life is meaningful
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la it is so wonderful
It is so beautiful (x8)
It goes full circle
It is beautiful

I know, I know, I'm a bit the slow when it comes to songs and such, I think I am starting to like his songs... Life is wonderful, come to think about it.

Taiwanese Series on the list

2008-05-09T00:27:00.006+08:00

Hah! Been watching taiwanese series for the past week, eversince I stayed at home one Saturday afternoon and managed to catch Hana-Kimi on Channel U, and got hooked on it. Since I usually won't be home to catch it, I went to watch it online, finished the whole series in 2 nights. It was starred by Ella from S.H.E and Wu Chun from Fahrenheit (hahha, macam paham je eh?). Ohh and so that guy in my previous post was him lah (Wu Chun). I loike! Googled him and realised he is actually from Brunei, meaning he should understand Malay kan... Well, it's not often that I fancied guy actors who look boy-ish (I go for George, Patrick, that kind. Heck I didn't even think Brad was cute just coz he had that boy-ish look last time), but I think he's cute. Ah well, actually I liked when he has that stressed look in his show. Looking at some of the photos, I think I prefer him in his shows rather than in posed photos.

Anyway since I am in luuuurve with him, I searched for other shows that he starred in and came across "Tokyo Juliet" (and yes Joanne, I know these are all outdated shows, but what to do, I haven't really stayed in to watch TV you know..) Azah, I think you would like this show, kinda sappy. And I watched that show in 2 nights too (that explains my eye-bag). Comparing Hana-Kimi and Tokyo Juliet, I preferred Hana-Kimi coz it's funny, seriously, plus he was more athletic in that show. Next up for me would be "Romantic Princess" ;p Woohoo!

Oh no, I realised that I am starting to behave like those girlish teenage girls, haha.. Plus GG commented that I am behaving more girlish lately eversince I watch these shows. I even drive like a girl now. NOOOOOO!!!!! Dammit. Nvm, just for now, I'll be back to normal after finishing up my shows. Hehee. Let's just have some of his screen-captures up.

My new love (on TV)

2008-05-04T05:41:00.002+08:00

Cute kan? Anyway, come to think of it, from this angle, he suddenly reminded me of someone.

Whoahlright!

2008-05-03T03:45:00.001+08:00

“My goal is to get Meredith [Ellen Pompeo] and Derek [Patrick Dempsey] together for good and let them try to figure out what it is to be in a relationship in the future.” - Grey’s Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes.

How about that? And there will be a season 5.

My whine-y self...

2008-04-25T15:49:00.003+08:00

I have a fever, a headache, my whole body is aching... It's warm, but if I on the fan, it feels too cold. When I cough, the inner of my head feels like it expands and the pressure gives a me freaking worse headache, as if the whole brain is knocking on the walls of my head. Urghhh... so now i m at home. I just repaired my laptop, which had some corruption, and managed to watch the latest episode of Grey's Anatomy, which wasn't that nice coz Derek is now seeing the nurse!
Ok I am whiney...

Zoe is in Singapore, FYI...

2008-04-21T01:12:00.004+08:00

Zoe was so adorable... Managed to meet up with them before they leave for Bandung tomorrow. Been a long time since we spent time with them.

Tell me how to refuse such a polite request from a sweet little girl when she asked "May I go with you?" as I said bye to her after we sent them home. Cair man... She even held my hand and said "I hold you..." and wanted to bring me along with her. I felt so heavy hearted to go off after she said that. Sayang Zoe...

That picture on the right, she asked me to take for her. You know what she said, "You wanna take a photo for me?" Cute kan? And now, when I look at the moon, I will be reminded of her "tickle, tickle, tickle... Waa, waa..." Haha, apparently, whenever she looks up at the moon, they will tickle her neck. She is so animated. And she refused to let Jazi kiss her and refused to salam him but she liked to touch his tummy. Hahah! That was funny. See you when you come back from Bandung dear.

Party of the Year

2008-04-17T02:23:00.004+08:00

Date: 11th April 2008
Venue: Aloha Loyang Bungalow 16

This is the behind-the-scene, and the actual event post. Not much photos coz they are all from my camera phone. The rest can be found on http://www.adiwarna07.multiply.com/.

Anyway, we started out around 3plus, setting up the place and all. This is of the guys red-ifying the wall. The effect in the day not as nice as that at night. And Ayim was busy ensuring that the place will get a good dose of music. The third picture shows our outdoor living room. Now for some actual event photos. As one entered the room, one would be awed by the huge "George of the Jungle" poster. And all that climbing to red-ify the wall paid off. Check out the DJ corner. Ohhhh, and the food/dessert area, this was in addition to the BBQ area (of which I had no picture of). And some of the characters I managed to get hold of.

Overall, it was a great event. And it continued to the next morning, where we all woke up to wonderful friends and great BBQ-ed kebabs and coffee, followed by Chai lah. If you can't go to Chai, you bring Chai to you!

Party of the Year - The Cupcakes

2008-04-17T01:57:00.006+08:00

This post shall be solely on my cupcakes making section.

Anyway, I made cupcakes, my first attempt at it, and honestly speaking, I think the cupcakes were nice. I was surprised and proud of myself actually, considering there was no test run and what-nots. But the recipe in the cupcakeblog that Ros recommended in her post is really good. Highly recommended by yours truly. Anyway, I started baking my first batch at 2.30am, and at 4am, I tasted my first home-made cupcake, and my first reaction - "Sedap sak!" Heheh, terus msg GG... ;p Then while waiting for the cupcakes (batch 1) to cool, I got some shut-eye. Woke up to make the second batch. Which turned out slightly nicer looking but less chocolatey, maybe because I used a different type of cocoa.

I tried putting the ready-made icing lah, which has this preservatives smell and taste, so decided not to use it, and therefore I had to make the frosting. Seriously, the cupcakes taste good enough without it, better actually coz the frosting was very the sweet. Anyway, one flaw was that the cupcakes (batch 1) shrink away from the cups, perhaps because I used those plastic-y cups. Decided to make them into minicakes instead. Put the frostings at the chalet itself, and the overall effect - pretty!

Benedict's Farewell Party (10th April 2008)

2008-04-17T01:20:00.004+08:00

Since Ben is leaving, and I had a weird dream about us going for karaoke, we took the opportunity to organise a karaoke outing. Kill two birds with one stone mah. So here are a couple of pictures taken. Hope you enjoyed yourself. And thanks Vincent, for the treat!

And we did a collage for Ben, so that he will be reminded of us. It will be different without him around, perhaps a bit more quiter, and less one person to ask to go for breaks. All the best Ben!

50 Langkah Suami Mithali (Dato ' Dr. Mohd. Fadzilah Kamsah)

2008-04-03T19:03:00.003+08:00

I got this from a friend's email. Very useful (especially for those who are married, or getting married). GG, baca! Ermmm... Sul, kau pun! ;p

1. Pasang niat dan berdoa untuk menjadi suami terbaik. Tanpa berniat dan berdoa anda tidak mungkin jadi suami yang cemerlang. Ramai suami terlupa.

2. Bersyukur kerana mempunyai pasangan hidup. Yakinlah bahawa isteri anda adalah pasangan terbaik yang Tuhan tentukan untuk anda. Ketentuan Tuhan adalah yang terbaik.

3. Suami mithali menjadi kebanggaan isteri. Pastikan anda membentuk sifat positif dan istimewa. Cuba tanya diri apakah sifat atau amalan yang boleh dibanggakan oleh isteri anda.

4. Setiap hari pulang dengan senyum dan bersemangat. Apabila suami tersenyum, isteri dan anak-anak akan bahagia dan rahmat Tuhan akan turun. Senyumlah apabila sampai ke rumah.

5. Pastikan anda ada masa untuk berbual dengan isteri setiap hari. Semua isteri bahagia apabila dapat berbual dengan suami. Berapa minit yang anda luangkan untuk berbual dengan isteri setiap hari?

6. Telefon isteri ataupun hantar SMS sekadar untuk menyatakan yang anda sayang ataupun rindu pada isteri. Isteri anda akan berasa seronok dan bahagia apabila mendapat panggilan ataupun mesej tersebut.

7. Hiburkan hati isteri anda dengan bercerita, buat lawak atau gurauan yang mesra. Setiap gurauan mengubat hati isteri dan mengeratkan hubungan suami isteri.

8. Pastikan anda bergurau senda dengan isteri di dalam kenderaan semasa dalam perjalanan ke tempat kerja ataupun ke mana sahaja. Ramai suami membazir masa dengan membisu semasa di dalam kenderaan.

9. Amalkan makan bersama setiap hari. Berbual mesra dan nasihat menasihati semasa makan. Amalan ini akan menarik hidayat Tuhan dan mengeratkan hubungan. Elakan berbual perkara yang melalaikan semasa makan.

10. Ajak isteri mandi bersama sekali sekala. Bergurau senda semasa mandi bersama adalah sunah yang dapat mengeratkan hubungan suami isteri.

11. Bantu isteri melakukan kerja rumah. Ini adalah sunah yang dapat meringankan beban isteri, mengeratkan kasih sayang dan menbahagiakan pasangan anda.

12. Amalkan mesyuarat keluarga sekerap yang mungkin. Amalan bermesyuarat menarik hidayat Tuhan, mengeratkan hubungan dan menyelesaikan banyak masalah.

13. Pastikan penampilan anda anggun, kemas, bersih, wangi, sihat dan ceria. Ramai suami inginkan isteri yang mengancam, tetapi mengabaikan penampilan diri sendiri. Mana adil?

14. Didik isteri dengan memberi nasihat dan peringatan secara hikmah. Jadikan tindakan dan amalan anda sebagai contoh teladan yang cemerlang. Elakan cakap tak serupa bikin.

15. Berikan nafkah kepada isteri mengikut keperluan keluarga dan kemampuan suami. Ramai suami mengabaikan nafkah kerana isteri bekerja. Ramai suami yang kedekut dan berkira. Ini menyebabkan isteri derita dan rumahtangga terancam.

16. Jadikan penawar hati kepada isteri. Ambil berat keperluan dan kemahuan dan peka kepada emosi dan situasi isteri. Isteri yang bahagia membentuk keluarga sejahtera.

17. Sentiasa taat kepada semua perintah Tuhan dan memastikan keluarga juga patuh kepada Tuhan.

18. Suami mithali sentiasa menyimpan rahsia isteri. Ramai suami secara sengaja ataupun tidak sengaja menceritakan keburukan isteri kepada orang lain. Ini wajib dihentikan.

19. Muliakan keluarga isteri seperti keluarga sendiri. Ada suami yang membeza-bezakan antara keluarganya dan keluarga isteri. Ada suami yang memusuhi keluarga isteri.

20. Bentuk sifat cemburu yang positif. Cemburu tanda beriman, sayang dan endah. Suami yang tidak cemburu adalah dayus. Isteri amat suka apabila suaminya ada sifat cemburu. Dia rasa dihargai.

21. Jadilah suami yang pemaaf. Syurga isteri di bawah tapak kaki suami. Maafkanlah isteri setiap malam sebelum tidur supaya rumahtangga bahagia dan isteri mudah masuk syurga.

22. Tegur kesilapan isteri dengan hikmah dan kasih sayang. Isteri merajuk bukan sebab ditegur, tetapi cara ditegur yang kasar. Apabila suami kasar, isteri jadi takut, bingung, hiba dan memberontak.

23. Gunakan Nabi Muhammad s.a.w. sebagai model. Hidupkan amalan sunah dalam rumahtangga. Sebut nama rasul apabila mendidik dan menasihati keluarga bagi mendapat hikmah.

24. Mendahulukan keperluan isteri daripada orang lain. Ini adalah tertib memberi khidmat. Ramai suami yang melebihkan orang lain daripada isterinya. Elakan kesilapan ini.

25. Suruh isteri dirikan sembahyang dan ibadah lain. Apabila berjauhan, telefon ataupun SMS bagi mengingatkan sembahyang. Wasiatkan isteri untuk sembahyang fardu dan sunat. Buat pesanan ini sehingga suami meninggal dunia.

26. Cintai isteri sepenuh hati. Cintai tanpa syarat, bertambah mengikut usia, penuh kemaafan, memberi tenaga, tidak pernah sensara serta berteraskan iman dan takwa.

27. Sentiasa berubah secara positif. Sebelum cuba ubah isteri dan keluarga, ubah diri dulu. Apabila suami berubah, keluarga akan turut berubah. Apabila suami cemerlang, isteri akan gemilang.. 28. Pamer keprihatian yang tinggi terhadap keluarga. Ramai suami tidak ambil kisah dengan keluarga mereka. Cuba tanya apa lagi khidmat tambahan yang patut berikan kepada keluarga. 29. Pamer kematangan yang tinggi. Orang yang matang tenang, sabar, waras, bijaksana, dapat membuat keputusan dan cekap menyelesaikan masalah.

30. Memuliakan semua perempuan bukan sekadar isterinya. Ramai lelaki cuba hormat wanita tertentu sahaja. Ramai isteri yang kecewa terhadap suami yang menghina atau tidak hormat sebarang wanita termasuk pembantu rumah.

31. Bentuk beberapa sifat wanita yang terpilih dalam diri suami. Nabi Muhammad s.a.w. amat pemalu, pemaaf, peka, endah dan mudah menangis. Sifat wanita yang ada pada lelaki menaikkan martabat lelaki dan lebih disayangi wanita.

32. Mahir dalam menguruskan keluarga. Peka dengan masalah dan karenah ahli keluarga, cekap mencari punca masalah, mencari alternatif penyelesaian dan memilih penyelesaian yang optimum.

33. Membaiki diri secara berterusan. Tingkatkan iman dan takwa, cuci hati dengan sembahyang taubat, istighfar, memaafkan dan minta maaf, berkawan dengan orang yang baik, pendapatan yang berkat dan baiki amalan dan tindakan.

34. Jadi contoh atau model terbaik untuk keluarga. Doa dan usaha supaya setiap perbuatan anda dapat dicontohi dan dibanggakan ahli keluarga. Apakah sifat dan amal anda yang dapat dicontohi oleh ahli keluarga?

35. Jadikan diri anda pendorong dan motivator berkesan untuk keluarga. Sentiasa beri galakan dan belaian. Elak marah, kritik ataupun hina keluarga. Fikir positif dan bersangka baik terhadap keluarga.

36. Tingkatkan ilmu berkenaan agama. Lazimnya, suami yang mendidik keluarga berkenaan agama. Belajarlah ilmu agama dengan niat mendidik diri dan keluarga.

37. Sentiasa menegakkan kebenaran. Tegas menyatakan apa yang buruk dan apa yang baik. Elak mengenepikan kebenaran semata-mata bagi menjaga hati ahli keluarga. Tegakkan kebenaran dengan hikmah.

38. Bertindak tegas dan lemah lembut mengikut situasi. Tegas dalam menyeru ke arah kebaikan. Lemah lembut dalam menegur dan memberi nasihat. Tegas sangat orang memberontak, lembut sangat orang pijak.

39. Latih diri memuji dan menghargai isteri. Ramai suami yang pandai kritik tetapi tidak tahu memuji. Belaian merawat emosi dan fizikal isteri dan membuat dia terasa disayangi. Cari peluang untuk sentiasa memuji.

40. Cari peluang untuk bertindak romantis terhadap isteri. Ini termasuk senyum, lemah lembut, sebut sayang tiga kali sehari, buat sebelum disuruh, sentuhan sayang, pujian dan memberi hadiah.

41. Fahami yang isteri ingin selalu di sisi suami. Suami pula berjauhan dengan isteri sekali sekala. Apabila berjauhan, telefon, SMS ataupun e-mel untuk bertanya khabar, berikan maklumat dan mengubat rindu.

42. Bentuk kerjasama yang mantap dengan isteri. Pamer kesatuan hati dan pendapat kepada anak-anak dan orang lain. Wujudkan kerjasama melalui mesyuarat, berbual, tolak ansur, bermaaf-maafan dan banyak berdoa.

43. Nilai diri daripada kaca mata isteri. Buang sifat dan amalan yang isteri benci. Berusaha keras melakukan perkara yang isteri suka. Apabila isteri bahagia, suami akan bertambah bahagia.

44. Apabila suami melayan isteri seperti mana dia melayan kawan, pasti isteri bahagia. Bayangkan cara anda melayan isteri sebelum kahwin. Ulangi layanan itu sekarang. Pasti hebat kesannya.

45. Suami wajar belajar jadi mengikut setia. Patuhi cadangan, pandangan dan pandapat isteri yang betul. Jangan bangkang perkara yang baik. Kawal macho dengan saksama.

46. Buat undang-undang dalam rumah tangga. Apabila suami marah, isteri mesti senyap. Apabila isteri marah, suami mesti senyap. Ini mengelakkan daripada bergaduh. Orang tidak boleh bergaduh sendirian.

47. Latih gerak batin anda supaya serasi dengan gerak batin isteri. Serasikan gerak batin dengan berdoa, patuh perintah Tuhan, maafkan isteri, bersangka baik dan lakukan perkara baik untuk isteri mengikut sebarang lintasan dalam hati.

48. Pimpin isteri dengan nasihat dan kasih sayang. Pesan selalu dan nasihat sekali-sekala.. Waktu terbaik nasihat adalah semasa rehat, minum petang, waktu bersiar-siar dan semasa hendak tidur.

49. Seimbangkan hidup dengan sempurna. Rajin di tempat kerja, rajin juga di rumah. Peramah dengan kawan, peramah juga dengan isteri. Disiplin di pejabat, disiplin juga di rumah. Sabar dengan orang, sabar juga dengan isteri. Di luar dan di dalam rumah serupa.

50. Urus stress dengan sempurna supaya keluarga tidak terjejas, lakukan riadah, berdiet, hentikan merokok, bercampur dengan orang positif, bermain dengan bayi, tengok ikan di akuarium, menyanyi, sembahyang taubat dan maafkan semua orang.

Thank you...

2008-04-02T02:14:00.002+08:00

I woke up to 10 over smses of birthday wishes, and am still receiving belated wishes. So nice... Thanks for letting me know that I am much remembered and for making the effort to wish me. I really really appreciate it.

And to the guys for taking the time off to surprise me. I was really touched. And GG for being better at keeping the surprise this time round.

All of you made my day. Love you guys. What would I do without all of you people in my life...

2008-03-23T04:56:00.002+08:00

They did warn me... So is this part of it all? Or is it just me once again? I need some TLC. Really.

Anyway, went to Rehan's birthday party, nice food, great people, cute little Rehan. It's nice to see my dear Az in her mum mode, considering how I know her to be like last time (eh Az?) Well, at least having baby birthday parties gives us more reasons to have reunions, ya babes? So Kamal, Nana, when's your turns? And Nurul... kita tunggu kau lama tau, I had to leave pasal mak aku activate aku gi expo. Kau ni pun!

Had a long overdue ex-AMPYC ppl gathering. So many things have happened since our last meet, so exciting. Conrats to the both of you, oh no, 4 of you I should say. InsyaAllah, everything would go well. So happy for you guys, especially for "the" man, who has been like a big bro to us all.

Sayang korang2 semua....