Transport Problem Solved

Finally, the dilemma of Dania's transport to school has been resolved. She takes the van to her morning school, which comes at 7.50am. She's the first to be dropped off after school, so by 11.10am she's already back home. For her Kafa school, her ustazah finally "volunteered" herself to pick up and send Dania to and from home. Which was what we wanted and would have asked for if she hadn't suggested the idea herself. The important thing is, Dania doesn't have to take the motorbike to school, which puts my mind to much rest.


How has school been faring so far? So far, so good. Dania's always been excited about school, but she really loves her Kafa school. Maybe it's the uniform, or the teachers or the other students. Maybe it's the fact that her books are all in Jawi and she can't wait to learn how to read them.


Anyhow, school has been good for Dania. Her schedule isn't to tiring, she still has time for an afternoon nap and a nice lunch. She also has time to play with Dina.


So yeah, 2008 has gotten better for Dania. Yeah, Dania!!!

Looking at the Positive

How's 2008 been treating you guys so far?

For me, not so good. For starters, everyone got a cold and we were hacking up phlegm for days. Then Dania started school and we still haven't solved the ever-important question of her transport to school. Seriously, I'm stressing out about this. As a temporary solution, my neighbour's sister has offered to take Dania to school by motorcycle (yikes!) but I would feel so much better if we could find someone with a car or a van, because it's safer. Plus with the raining season still in overdrive, I don't my little girl to get drenched on her way to or back from school.

So I've been calling here and there and so far; nada. Sigh....still the search continues.

Work? Still finding my momentum after a long break. This should take me until February, at least.

But looking on the positive side, I have my beautiful daughters to put a smile on my face. I have to hubby to hold at night and to tell me not to sweat the small stuff. I have my health, a roof over my head and more than enough money to put food on the table. Things could be worst.

But this year, I'm gonna make sure they get better for sure!!

Happy New Year everyone!!!

Sick At Work

Or maybe that should read "of" instead? Hehehhe..

But seriously, my head. Pounding. My nose. Sore. My eyes. Burning up. My throat. Itches like mad.

I really shouldn't have dragged my sorry ass to work today. I haven't had the energy to do anything but stare at Perez Hilton for the whole morning.

God, isn't Perez just entertaining? He laughs me up with every single post he puts up. Thank god I'm not a celebrity.

I can't take this. I'm going down to the surau to try and catch a few winks. This cold medicine is making me woozy. I can hardly open my eyes. How the hell am I going to drive myself home later on?

Second Last Day of 2007

Tomorrow I start work and I am so not in the mood. For starters, I have a cold, courtesy from the girls and my head feels like it's about to explode.

Also, working on the last day of 2007 is just so not right.

I intend to use the day to springclean my desk and drawers. Throw out everything so that 2008 will be a better year for me workwise.

Yep, that should take me exactly 8 hours to accomplish. Heeee, starting 8.30am right until 5.30pm (minus one hour for lunch).

Supplies For Dania's New School

We've enrolled Dania for 2 new schools next year; morning sessions at Tadika Perpaduan and afternoon sessions at Sekolah Kafa Ad-deen. Hopefully she won't feel too tired; the morning sessions only last for 3 hours and gives Dania enough time to have her lunch, take a nap and bathe before heading off to her afternoon sessions. However, everything is still on trial as the last thing I want to do is give my little girl a burnout before she even starts regular school. That's should only happen when she starts work. Heh.

Yesterday ibu and myself took Dania to buy her school uniform. We bought her shoes and socks at Bata and her baju kurung and headgear at Mydin. We had to go to Tesco for the kain which we then took to Giant to get them altered (too long). Hmmm...banyak berjalan, belanja pun banyak. I can't believe how much it costs to buy school uniforms nowadays.

This is what we bought yesterday and what I spent on everything.

Two pairs of white school shoes (Bata) = RM23.99 x 2 = RM47.98
Two pairs of socks = RM6.99 x 2 = RM13.98
1 pack of shoe whitening (3 bottles per pack) = RM5.99
Two mini telekung = RM5.90 x 2 = RM 11.80
Two inner head gear (anak tudung) = RM1.50 x 2 = RM3.00
Two baju kurungs = RM8.50 x 2 = RM17.00
Two kain (green) = RM25.90 x 2 = RM51.80
One pair of Disney sunglasses = RM19.90
Total damage = RM171.45

Yeeeeeshh!!! And this is not including the registration fees, transport fees, books, stationary and all those other stuff I had to pay for at the schools. AICARAMBA!!!

OK, so the sunglasses were a reward for being such a great sport. I remember when I was little, I used to grumble and sulk everytime ibu took us to buy new school uniforms. Hmmm, cukup membosankan.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not grumbling about having to pay for all this stuff. It's just that, buying all that stuff, making sure everything fits Dania well, just hits a nerve and makes me realise that my baby girl is no longer a baby anymore.

How time flies!!

The Assassination of Benazir Bhutto

Yesterday it was confirmed in the news that former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto, had been shot and killed by a suicide bomber. She had been shot in the head and chest and later died from these wounds in the hospital. The suicide bomber had later blown up him(her?)self and killed at least another 20 people.

This is such sad news. Regardless of her political views, it was made clear that she still held most of her countrymen and women's hearts and love. I fear for the aftermath, fearful that the assassination would bring Pakistan to even greater despair.

Al-fatihah to Allahyarhamah Benzair Bhutto and her family.

Guess? What I Bought

Yesterday we took the kids out for a day at the mall. I know, I know, we could have chosen better places to take the kids but it was raining most of the day and the mall is just as nice as ever. We decided to take the kids to KLCC, seeing how we hardly head over to KL nowadays. The mall was decorated up nicely, with a giant Christmas tree in the center court. The kids took pictures with the make-believe snowmen (nicknamed Mr. Snowman and Buddy by Dania) and counted all the snowballs on the tree. We had lunch at the food court. We took in the sights and the sounds of the mall and had a blast.


And I bought something. Just a little "Raja Haji-Christmas" present for myself. I didn't expect to spend as much as I did (don't ask me how much) but I am really happy with my purchase. It's not often that I indulge myself with little pleasures of life.


Wanna know what I bought? Check this out. Pretty nice, huh? This is slightly different from the one I bought; mine had white rims instead of pink. I had my sights on a different watch earlier but hubby thought this one was nicer (and more expensive!). But like they say, you only live once. I mean, what's the point of working if you're not going to enjoy the fruits of your labor once in a while.

Hehehehe...I feel like a kid who sneak down and saw Santa putting presents under the tree. I love my new watch!!

And My Butt is Now As Wide As a...I Don't Want to Think About It

We're here in Melaka at my in-laws for Raya Haji. Crap, which reminds me..

SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDILADHA, EVERYONE!!!

OK, now that we have the season greetings out of the way, here's a quick rundown of what we did today.

Eat.


Eat some more.

More eating.

Don't disturb me, can't you see I'm eating.

You get the picture.



Tons of food, and I mean tons. Of course, when you have a hundred mouths to feed, having tons of food to satisfy everyone's stomach is necessary. We had laksa, nasi briyani, fried bihun, ketupat, lontong, peanut sauce and various types of desserts. We took down a cow which was shared by everyone. Hmmmm, sup tulang lembu asli. Sedapnya!!!

Again I forgot to bring my camera so that's why I'm using pictures I found on the net to illustriate how much I ate and how I really need to exercise after this holiday season. Taebo, here I come!!

I Am Legend

Just came back from seeing a movie with hubby. Initially we wanted to Enchanted (actually HUBBY wanted to see this...heee) but in the end I bought us tickets to see I Am Legend. I wouldn't say I'm a big fan of Will Smith but I've enjoyed his movies so far. Yes, even Men In Black II.

What can I say about the movie? For starters, it shouldn't have been rated "U". For goodness sake, it's damn scary. Seriously. Not scary ghosts, but scary like flesh eating, zombies with extra crazy strength kind of scary. There were parts of the movies where I either had my hands covering my eyes or my ears.
But of course, there were some dumb parents who brought their small kids along. There was one couple who even brought their baby along, who of course started crying once all the screaming and shouting in the movie started. We were already half way through the movie when the mother FINALLY decided to take her baby outside. Itupun lepas dah kena shhhh by the rest of the audience (moi, included!!).

Even though the movie freaked me out (zombies, in my honest opinion, are only suppose to walk sloooowwwlly, not run like Ben Johnson on steroids), I would totally watch it again. The storyline was so-so but Will Smith really carried this movie excellently. The emotions he showed, being the only person alive in NY, really made me believe that this man was all alone and was trying everything in his power to stay sane (making conversations with mannequins) so he could continue his mission to find a cure for the deadly virus. The scenes showing an empty NY were amazing. And, ok, I'll say it, the zombies, although looked very CGI at times, were freakishly scary. Another plus for the movie.

So how you might ask, were hubby and I able to go see a movie on a Sunday night? Because the kids have been shipped to Melaka. Sigh...the house seems so empty. Can't wait until Wednesday night until we're reunited again.

Recap of Our Penang Trip

So we're back from Penang. All in all we had a great time. It rained most of the time but luckily it drizzled instead of poured. The kids had fun swimming in the pool and I even found time (and the courage!!) to do some parasailing. Heeeeee....bestnya!!

The first two nights we stayed at the Northam Hotel. Hubby had booked us for a Junior Suite, which was huge. Even had its own living room. Plus 2 TVs which was perfect coz the kids totally refused to watch anything else BUT the Disney Channel. It also had a jacuzzi which I regret to inform was not utilised because when you have two insects who demand you take them swimming, out to eat, sightseeing EVERY SECOND OF THE DAY, by the time you get back to the hotel, you just want to crawl into your king sized bed and sleep.

The hotel was nice but due to the weather, the kids didn't get to use the swimming pool as much as they would have wanted too. I myself am still kicking myself for not trying out their spa. RM60 for a facial is not a bad deal.

For our third night in Penang, we stayed at Park Royal Hotel, Batu Feringgi. Many thanks to ayah for the free voucher! Luckily the weather was nice the entire time we were there so the kids practically lived in the swimming pool. We got upgraded to a Deluxe Seaview room which gave us a double bed and a single bed for the kids. Yeah, no more of my kids' feet in my face in the middle of the night. The room was much smaller compared to the one we got in Northam but the buffet breakfast and the facilities made up for the lack of the room. It was here that I took a dare from hubby and did parasailing. How I wish I had my camera when I got up there!! The view from above was divine. The sea was so blue and the sand look so white, I kept saying Subhanallah, subhanallah again and again. Those 3 minutes in the air really made me appreciate Allah's creation.

All in all, we had a great time in Penang. We didn't get to do as much sightseeing as we would have wanted to due to the weather, but insya'allah, there's always next year. I fact, we've already booked our next holiday in January for Karambunai, Sabah. Heeeee...can't wait!!

ps; Sorry, no pictures. I left my camera at home (knocks head against wall). :(