Sunday, June 27, 2010

The result is in!

Just a quick update - my kuih was a sold-out, yahoooo! My son & his classmates managed to sell all of them...phewww thank God! Otherwise all my sweats would go down the drain and it might even hinder future prospect of me trying to venture into this kuih selling business ever again...muahahaha. I have passed Kuih Selling 101 with flying colours y'all (ahkak over excited lah pulak). Not bad for a first timer eh?

I would like to thank all parents (although I know they don't read this blog. This one is ala ala victory speech gitu) who bought my kuih bengkang and I really hope that you've enjoyed every bit of it. Thank you, I love you all! Muahhhh...

A swimmer and a kuih seller

I can swim! Yessss after 8 classes I have finally obtained my L license...yehaaaa. Too bad my handsome paparazzi in da house was in the water with me yesterday morning, so no pictures to prove that I could propel myself through the water without having my legs touching the floor of the pool. Credit goes to my super handsome coach (who had to fill in for my instructor who can’t make it yesterday) for coaching me with so much passions and patient...hehehe. I couldn't have done it without you baby XOXO...luv luv luv!

I finally found the secret to swimming – RELAX & DON’T PANIC (a handsome, hunky and smart instructor might do it too hihihi). Just by doing it, I could make the impossible possible. Ahhh...moi the swimmer, I still can’t believe it till today. It’s such a wonderful feeling achieving something that I thought was impossible not long ago. Like I said before - impossible is nothing! All I wanna do now is swim 24/7 hehehe...I’m in love y'all! I’m already persuading my hubby to procure a club’s membership so that I could go swimming ALL the time (remember when you first obtained your driving license and all you wanna do was drive? That's how I feel right now LOL!).

Today, I’ve achieved yet another first. I have become a kuih seller (don’t play play arrrr this madam can concoct sellable kuih you know). 2 trays of my binga tepung @bengkang are being sold at my son’s school as I’m penning this article, in conjunction with the school’s Karnival Keusahawanan. I hope he’d manage to sell all of them. Otherwise, it’d be a solid proof that I’m not meant to sell kuih for a living...hahaha.

My son with his friends at their class’s stall


My kuih on the table (alamak, it doesn't look so enticing in this picture)


I say never let your age be a stumbling block between you and your dream. It is never a factor (except for losing weight, of course!) to make the impossible possible. Just do it!

p/s: The people at Adidas and Nike really know their stuff huh? I loike!

Friday, June 25, 2010

Parenthood

Gosh...these few days I feel soooo darn bored, bored to the power of 1000. If one could die of boredom, I would be the first!

The world of boredom has one again brought me closer to the infamous idiot box aka the television (thank God I have totally lost interest on FB games...pheww!). My new relationship with the TV has introduced me to a new drama series called Parenthood (quite a huge change from watching Desperate Housewives huh?). I find it rather fascinating to watch an almost true depiction (at least by Hollywood definition) of parents’ struggle in facing challenges in bringing up their children.

Any parents would know that it’s not easy to bring up kids. The more you have them the more difficult it gets, the older they get the more challenging it becomes. I have 4 of them, so go figure! Yet I can’t help but think that it was much easier for our parents back then. Computer was a word we never knew existed, internet has not been invented yet, satellite TV was unheard of, telephone was a luxury for the select few, Toy’r’Us was no way near us, going to the cinema was like the event of the year for the family, so on and so forth lah. After primary 6 like it or not you are sent off to a boarding school. Your parents’ success in bringing you up was almost solely measured by the success of enrolling you to a boarding school and thereafter to a university. Once you are in (even though it was against your will) half the job was done for the parents, easy...kacang putih one.

Our parents didn’t have to worry about us being glued to TV the whole day, addicted to the internet before we reach puberty (or before we even know what puberty was for that matter), dating at inappropriate age (did they?), having to buy us stuff because our friends have them, paying for tuitions, swimming lessons, yadda yadda yadda. In retrospect, it was relatively easy growing up in the absence of technology back then. I say our parents are so lucky! OR perhaps my parents were amongst the lucky ones to have an angel like me...wahahahaha (owh, it feels so good to masuk bakul angkat sendiri and I ain’t that heavy to lift hihihi *double perasan*).

Today, the world has turned 180 degree. Most of us don’t wanna send the kids off to boarding schools (at least I know I don’t!). It could be because of our own selfishness or simply because we are being over protective, but most likely it’s a combination of both. Success is no longer measured by grades, but at how well-rounded the child grow to be. At the same time we have to worry about all sorts of problems even though our kids have the slightest inclination of misbehaving, all thanks to the borderless world.

The fantastic-4 that have been giving me plenty of headaches (but still love them to bits):

Contestant no. 1 - The Big Burly D


Contestant no. 2 - The Short-tempered One


Contestant no. 3 - The Girly Girl


Contestant no. 4 - The 'lil Missy


Enough said, I think my biggest challenge as a parent has yet to come. My girls are still very young - soon to be 6 and 2 years old. They say parenting girls are harder than boys (which I beg to differ coz I think my parents didn't face any big problems whatsoever bringing me up, but my brothers...hmmmmm). Should I just lock them at home till they turn 30? Now that's a thought I should consider...

I say never take parenting for granted for it is the hardest job in the world. Society will always judge us by how well and how bad your children turn out to be. You are a success when your children succeed, and sadly you are a failure when your children fall short. Sad but true...wallahuwa'lam.

Friday, June 18, 2010

Day 4 – the loooong journey home

Again we started our day late as usual. Had breakfast at the hotel and decided not to do anything before check-out. For the first time ever, I did not ask for late check-out. It has always been my policy to ask for early check-in and late check-out whenever we go for a holiday (we must strive to stretch our money to the max okay). But staying at this hotel makes me opt not to. There was nothing much to look forward to anymore after day 3. We checked out at noon and embarked on our home sweet home journey.

On the way home I decided to buy some keropok lekor. If KT was only a few minutes drive from Awana, I’d have driven back there to get some from Gerai Keropok Lekor 007. But 1.5hours is such a luxury of time for us (if I was driving a Ferrari or at least an X6, I wouldn’t mind the 1.5hrs drive hihihi), hence we decided to get some on the way back. I was told to look for Gerai Keropok Lekor Hassan in orange colour (thanks to tips from Nana Idlan). Unfortunately I heard the instruction wrongly and we went around driving in Kuala Kemaman area looking for the stall. We found it at last (after we have given up and bought keropok from other stall instead) just after we crossed the Pahang borders. Despite the earlier purchase, we stopped to get some from Hassan. The verdict: it’s almost as good as 007 but 007 is still da bomb I tell ya. Next to the stall we found Satar so good (and super cheap too) that we would definitely buy again the next time we’re there.

For lunch we decided to stop at Pak Su Seafood Restaurant at Beserah, Kuantan. It was scorching hot there that I got more sunburn *mega sigh*. Their quality maintained after these years but the place is now infested with flies. I don’t remember having to dine in the company of flies the last time I was there. We even had to change table in order to eat in peace. They should do something about it lah...Pok Su, please look into it!

That’s the end of our 4 days vacation. The verdict: We shouldn't have traveled without the maid ever! Spending 4 days traveling without her has definitely taken all the energy out of me. I definitely need a break and another vacation!

Some of the pictures of the beach captured by my dear hubby. Nice, I loikee!


He woke up very early every morning and walked along the shores alone to watch the sunrise. I was sound asleep :-)


The end.

Day 3 – missions accomplished

The 3rd day started late, as usual. Had breakfast at 10am and thereafter we went straight to the beach. Spent lotsa time at the beach this time that I’m still ‘wearing’ my swimsuit till today. I could still see the line of my swimsuit on me clearly. Sunblocks just doesn’t work on me, it works on other people but not me! Why??? I have officially turned to budak hitam, thanks to my swimming class and this trip...sigh!

The family minus madam besar


For lunch I insisted that we go to the famed Hai Peng Kopitiam in Kemaman. I’ve read and heard so many reviews about the place that I want to make it a point to dine there at least once. Mission accomplished. However, we got pretty disappointed coz nasi dagang, fried mee hoon and the likes we only served for breakfast. We ended up trying almost all the limited item on the all-day menu. The verdict: we love tuna sandwich the most – spicy & with a kick.

The much talked about Kedai Kopi Hai Peng @Kemaman town


Dear hubby had a tele-conference in the evening (on vacation but still had to spent 3 precious hours for work...hmmmm. But I’m so not complaining!) so the kiddos & I spent the second half of the day just chillin’ at the room coz it was raining heavily outside.

We visited old friends later in the evening and had a lovely dinner at their place. But too bad we reached there after sundown (thanks to the lengthy tele-conference); hence we can’t see the beach just 70m off their beautiful house. Nevertheless we had a great time catching up. Thanks Uya & Deli for your hospitality! Another mission accomplished today...hoorray!

To be continued...

Day 2 – unexpected discovery of a gem

At noon after breakfast at the hotel, we left for Kuala Terengganu. The 135km journey took almost 1.5hours! All thanks to slow moving vehicles (esp. those bearing Pahang plate numbers, I’m not kidding here peeps) and the many traffic lights along the way. I think if I had counted the number of traffic lights along the 135km journey, it’d come up to no less than 50 I tell ya, seriously!

We made a stop at Noor Arfa Batik and had lunch at the lovely restaurant at its compound aptly called Lapar Lapar Kopitiam (I was really hungry coz I only had a soft bun for breakfast). The place is located right at the brink of the Kuala Terengganu River. It was such a nice place that I didn’t mind the slow service. Food was reasonably priced and ambience was superb. I would certainly recommend this place if you don’t mind the slow service.

Lunchie @Lapar Lapar Kopitiam. Nice place, love it!




Next destination was Pasar Payang – a not-to-missed place in K. Terengganu. I never missed this place every time I was in KT. I simply love it, once a kampong girl always a kampong girl huh? On the way back we passed by a road side stall selling keropok lekor. We decided to stop by at the place because there were quite a large number of customers there. The rule of thumb is - you’ll never go wrong when you follow the crowd. We got it spot on this time. The keropok lekor we bought from Gerai Keropok Lekor 007 just off the Kuala Terengganu town is THE BEST I’ve ever had in my entire life. I think I ate almost a kg of the keropok lekor...super yummeh! And that was my dinner that day. It was really GOOOOOOOOD. The next time you are in KT, try to look for this place. It’s certainly worth the effort, I guarantee that. Too bad I didn’t take any picture of the stall, it was raining heavily.

Owh, we ran into old uni friends there too - Nana & Idlan who just came back from Pulau Kapas. Such a small world we live in, isn't it?

To be continued...

Day 1 – the long journey to destination

We left home at bout 9am on Monday morning after I’ve given instructions and various assignments to my maid who was to stay at home with my sister, on what to do during our absence, i.e. in another words I didn’t want her to goyang kaki while we were vacationing (what a mean employer I am huh? hihihi).

We had breakfast at home before we left but merely 5 mins after the journey started (i.e. about 15 mins after breakfast) my boys were already asking for snacks. They claimed that they were ‘hungry’. Now you know why my boys are as big as they are. Other than that, it was a considerably smooth journey with less than expected fights (among the kids I mean) along the way. And thank God for the DVD player, otherwise Nana would have asked “are we there yet?” every 5 minutes...phewww! We reached the destination alive at 2pm. My strategy worked y’all, bravo momma!

A couple of hours after we checked in we played at the beach under the wonderful weather and then on took a short dip in the pool (that was swamped with people!). I love the beach so much that I found it rather strange to see people prefer the pool than the open sea. [Note: if you are the type that would jump into the pool fully clothed in t-shift and track, this is the place to go. Proper swimming attire is not required there]

For the first time ever, Sophie enjoyed a dip in the sea. During previously trips she has always refused to get into the water and opt to just play with the sand. I love watching her play at the beach and enjoying her ‘swim’ in the shallow sea water. My baby is almost a big girl now, yeay! The dip in the pool was not as fun though. Water was milky and there were way wayyyyy too many human beings there.

Cik Pea playing at the beach


She's too cute to post just one pix


My 3 younger kids playing together. A very rare sight indeed.


Mini me loves the beach too but too scared of the water


To be continued...

Cuti2 Malaysia @Terengganu

Like it or not school holiday is here again and like I’ve said many times before, parents have an obligation to fulfill i.e. taking the kids out on a vacation. Strangely enough even my 20mths old toddler loves staying at a hotel. I guess kids generally enjoy the change of environment once in a while. But unfortunately for my hubby and I, my kids are not exactly budget travelers...sigh! I wonder who to blame for this particular not-so-pocket-friendly development...hehehehehe (please take note that this definitely NOT an admission of guilt okay!)

I just came back from a 4 days 3 nights vacation in Terengganu - Awana Kijal to be exact. In a gist, all I could say is it doesn’t live up to the expectation as a 5-star resort at all, not even a tiny little bit! I’d recommend Tanjung Jara instead - superb place, outstanding service and good food. I have high respect for YTL hospitality.

Day 0 to Travelling without the maid

For this round, due to some unforeseen circumstances we have to leave our maid behind albeit my very heavy heart. To prepare for the worst, I did everything that I foresee would help make the trip stress-free for me with 4 young kids, who by the way can never get along with each other, in tow. Otherwise, like a friend said, I’d need a vacation after a vacation to recover from the first one!

A day before the trip, I bought junk food and snacks (get this) worth over RM250 (I purchased all types of snacks there is and all type of drink there is too. Unbelievable huh?), a Sony portable DVD player (by now I could memorize the dialogues in Toy Story and Shrek by heart) and really thick sleeping bags. Oh get this, I even packed a mini rice cooker too in case my ‘lil girl refuse to eat anything money could buy there. See, I was fully prepared for anything and everything that may come my way...LOL!

To be continued...

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Opps they did it again!

They did it again! But Alhamdulillah they didn’t attack the ship with live ammunition this time. Any sound human being would have expected it lah... There is no way the Israelis would have allowed the ships to enter Gaza, no way Jose! I say it’s only wishful thinking to hope that the aids could reach Gaza safe and sound.

And the best we the rest of the world could do are to condemn their acts. What else could we do? Absolutely nothing! They are immune to any law in this world. I think even if they exterminated the entire Palestinian population, they’d still get away with it scot-free. Killing 8 humanitarian workers on board the first ship was just like swatting bat to them, nothing more, nothing less.

Now why would I say something so mean? It’s bcoz they control the world! Law makers, big corporations, innovators, suppliers, economists and even top people in the entertainment industries are ‘them’. They control the world’s economy; control our perception of the world through movies, news and television; and most importantly they control the 'world police' aka the US of A! Hail to the US!

But don’t get me wrong, not all Jewish are Zionist, it’s unfair to say that of them - it’s like saying all Muslims are terrorists. There were even Jewish on board the aid ships putting their lives on the line for the Palestinians. It’s the Zionist that we must slam, not Jewish in general. Enough said, I don’t want to be whisked away at night by some handsome agents in black...hahaha. I better stop before it's too late. Glokalmama is signing off for now.

p/s: If you don’t see any new posts here by next week, something could have gone wrong somewhere...kwang3x.

Oh, in case you are into boycotting products that support the Zionist either directly or indirectly, here are some of them. However, do take note that I honestly don't know the authenticity of the widespread claim. Boycotting some of them could also affect fellow Muslim's bread and butter. I say think carefully before you act...wallahuwa'lam.