Majlis Kenduri Doa Selamat

Just to inform everyone that my mother-in-law, Sallehah Bt Mat Shukor, will held a Majlis Kenduri Doa Selamat as she will be going for her haj pilgrimage early November. Here are the details:

Venue: Blk 496F Tampines Ave 9
Level 4, house next to lift area
Time: 430pm onwards
Date: 6th November 2010 (Saturday)

All family members, aunties, uncles, cousins, brothers, sisters and relatives are invited for this kenduri.

Kenduri Kesyukuran dan Doa Selamat

Kepada saudara-mara, abang, kakak, makcik, pakcik, adik-beradik semua,
Harap maklum jika tiada apa halangan pada 31hb Julai 2010 (Sabtu), kami sekeluarga akan mengadakan majlis kenduri kesyukuran dan doa selamat. Untuk mengucap syukur kepada Illahi kerana Herman mendapat pekerjaan sebagai seorang pegawai polis.

kami berharap kepada semua untuk menyatakan jika anda dapat hadir untuk majlis ini. Bukan apa, nak take attendance je...pasal catering nak confirm berapa untuk datang pada hari tersebut...kalau tak leh datang takpe, tak jadi marah atau hentak-hentak kepala kat dinding. Tulus ikhlas kami menjemput semua so tak datang, its okay for us.

Latest by next wk 19th Julai (Isnin) to confirm your attendance.

Thank you, terima kasih dan adios!

(Harap maklum. Tarikh majlis kenduri kesyukuran dibrought-forwardkan pada 24hb Julai 2010 Sabtu. Masa 5petang hingga 9mlm di blk 4 Jalan Batu #02-137. Boleh hubungi kami pada talian 93887607 (odah) or 98752494 (herman) untuk keterangan lanjut...kalau nak tag kat facebook or blog pun ok jugak...)

Calling To all......

This is the 1 st time I'm blogging...after soooo many yr of having it as you guys normally know that odah is the 1 that spend time here....well from the pic you ppl should know what i'm going talk about....yup...cycling...

Its been my hobby since I met odah....she the 1 to be blame who make me crazy about it....well now I own 4 bikes and 1 coming soon...most of it is collection as they are not available in Singapore....hahaha crazy rite...spent thousands of dollars on it....

Actually I have a crazy IDEA...its to form a family cycling group among us HMS....well if ade connection yg lain nak join why not...the more the merrier....dont care what bike you own or you can rent a bike at east coast for a day or a night during our riding tour as its a two wheeler with pedals....after our bz life this 1 one the best way to release stress and a gd work out to burn thousand of tone of fats in you...this is also a family bonding session....we can organise to ride once a week or twice a week or worst to worst once a month....

So are you ppl daring enough to take dis challenge??? depend on all of you...tag and inform me if u game for it...

What is it to YOU?

its kind of sad but some people I guess are just born that way or worse they are being brought up that way....we experienced hardship from time to time, its God way of making sure we stay tough and rough. But sometimes something happen very bad and we got to make the right decision..coz a wrong decision can break others while a right decision can probably save your family...but what happens when a dream gets over you?

Everyone has dreams that they wanna fulfill...but sometimes reality sets in and you realise that its more to life than just dreams. To me my family is always placed first, whatever actions I took, the consequences can hit them hard. But some people just dont realise that...its really sad coz its just plain to see that they aint got enough sense and heart in them. You dont need people to tell you that your family is suffering because of you. You dont need years down the road to bear the shame and regret knowing that all the while you have been wrong and YOU are the cause of your family downfall. You dont need all that but unfortunately some people do travel down that road and until they hit smack into a dead-end, they will travel it blindly in the name of SACRIFICE....

its not sacrifice when you hurt the ones you love. Its not sacrifice when you hang your head down in regret later. Its not sacrifice when you know your family in hardship but you dont care. Its not sacrifice when you put yourself first before your family. Its sad and its cruel but life can be hard and unfortunately they never listen until its too late....to me its SELFISHness at its peak and its selfishness that drives people headlong towards disaster and its selfishness that will only bring shame to them...

How do you save these people? These people do not want to be saved, they listen to their friends more (some friends just wanna kill you) but never to their heart and never to their family. These people even when they hit rockbottom will never admit defeat but blame others for their wrongs. They dont care what others say about them, its just mere wind to their ears. I have no respect for these people, only disgust cause after all that is said and done, in the end its their family who suffer the most.....

Sleepless Night

tried to sleep but cant...kept tossing and turning in bed...regardless of the noize Siddiq makes when he sleeps.....

im so troubled by thoughts...why? Cause I hate taking risks. Risks that I know will hit me hard someday and risks that can bring jeopardy. Especially if the risk taken is not of my choosing. It only implicates me and the consequences are very dire...

unfortunately people dont realise that. They do it in the name of good and helping others. But at the risk of jeopardising ur own is something not so heroic...if it backfires, it will only bring disastrous results....

how to sleep when the mind wanders about all this? people dont understand, they say I think too much, worry too much. this is not about me....this is about taking a risk that implicates me without my choosing and I dont like that at all.

Is It Just Me?

I realised that there are people out there who are completely hopeless. When I say 'hopeless', I meant a lot of things. Here are the list:
1) hopeless in life
2) hopelessness in themselves
3) hopelessness of others for themselves
A string of incidents in my life taught me alot of things. Not to rely on others and not everything in life will be given to you in a golden platter. Life is hard and life is tough, yes, but how you brave through life, tells people who you are.

If you are the type to wait on others symphaties and have everything handed to you on a silver platter, make your problems disappear without doing anything, you are hopeless in life and on yourself. God does not give you hardship without a reason. Its there to help you learn your mistakes, find yourself and see where you stand. Are you going to cry yourself in a corner and pray you will die when a problem hits you hard? Or are you going to say "Hey I can survive this. I can do this" and walk out as a survivor with your head up? Which one are you?

But to rely on others when the other party is as hopeless as you are, that is even worse. Its like driving to a dead end, you cant go anywhere else. I seen people like that and its kind of sad. The other person just pull you down deeper towards the edge than getting you out of it. In the end, both of them just drag each other down.

I had enough of all these people coz it turns out not only are they hopeless and helpless but also great hypocrites. I guess it probably to hide their 'hopelesness and helplessnes'. They talk of others, pretending to be good and pitiful but underneath it all, lies a very hideous snake, just waiting to bite your head off at the slightest mistake.

I probably sound too preachy but really, just need to let off steam. Coz I am surrounded by these people and I am getting sick of them. So IS IT JUST ME?

Facebook

Hi for anyone or everyone who might be interested in taking a peek at my facebook, its under the username sarazoddiq. However, cant guarantee how long it last anyway...or how long I can keep on checking and updating..I havent even upload any pics yet, so just for fun and keeping in contact with others, guess I try it out.
Enjoy! haha!

Weekend Get-Together

Last weekend, spent a few days at Horizon Hills and Nusa Idaman. Enjoyed myself even the kids had splashing good fun. Enjoyed the barbeque, gossips and endless, mindless jokes made at the expense of others (especially at my bro Ais)! Enjoyed the food, enjoyed the ambience but most of all I enjoyed being in the company of the people I called family. Been a long time since we got this get-together and Herman expressed his regrets not being able to join in due to work commitments.
Once back home, I got body aches and headache, probably will be taking mc if not, will struggle on to work till I cant work no more, haahaha! Well, anyway was checking my e-mail when I came across this weird video clip, a remake of Lady Gaga's Telephone.

Telephone Remake @ Yahoo! Video

This is what happens when you have a bunch of guys stuck out somewhere together. They either go gay or go weird. In this case, I think both happened at once! Enjoy (parental discretion is advised!)

Holiday Blues

Yay, the holidays are here but here I am slogging myself to courses and workshops. My holidays are fully booked till tis Saturday, waaaa!!!

The first three days from Monday to Wednesday, it's for a MSD training programme. It is so damn gruelling. The first day we had to do running, jumping, leaping and all sorts of physical exercise that your kid will enjoy and you will whine about. Today seems a bit more relazed but still grueling. Learning about different techniques of throwing. For those of you who dont know or never realise, there are many ways of throwing an object. The trick is getting your three to six year old to master the techniques....seriously though, the lecturer told us later on that guys are much more superior in all kind of sports due to their natural physique...but in one particular sport, women and men are very much equal. Know what it is?
Anyway, came home everyday with aching back and legs. Tomorrow we gonna learn about catching techniques and other various manipulative skills. It is kind of fun and kind of gives me the exercise that my body yearns for...

The other days till Saturday, my workshop will be at Singapore Poly...an international conference regarding early childhood education...there goes my holidays, all burnt up. And I just got to know even my June holidays gonna get burnt up. The first week of June is for the MSD training program (continuation) and the second and third week will probably be the Integrated curriculum training. 'sigh'....

Herman just got his driving license and this Saturday, he is drive us around. Rent a car and he seems excited and I am worried for very obvious reasons.

Yesterday Memories

Last Saturday, Shadiq brought over the HMS book and ask us the whats and whos in the book. This started us on the path of memories....

We went through Shadiq's baby pics and how I still remember holding him in my arms, small and cuddly, cooing and bubbling with laughter, tears and smelling of milk and all sorts of baby-smell...now he is the big bro, looking so mature and though the babyish streak is still there, we still adore him as our firstborn baby...he is the darling of the family.
Lil bro is the sweetheart of the family. Going thru his baby pics, we remember most how 'soft' his cries are and how fragile and tender he looked. Apparently he 'shed' off his babyish streak faster than big bro was and he is also much more louder in terms of crying and shouting.

Then we started to go thru the wedding pics...aaahhh how time flies, its already 5 years into our marriage and there is still this long road ahead of us...Herman just turned 31 and he looked so much more older then...we talked about our first date and how we meet, the friends we have and the things we went through together.

Then I pulled out my pics and it got me even more remorseful...how I missed those days, going for practice, making new friends who shared the same interest and passion as me, performing on stage (glory days at Victoria)....now I still got offers and invites to perform but its a big NO from Herman. How I spent so much time at practice that Herman practically declared to everybody his fiancee doesnt need him anymore. Those days are my most memorable and it was really an exciting moment for me..its like something that you wanted so much and never wanted to let go.
My biggest regret was not being able to dance for this show (cant quite remember now) coz I got married and was pregnant with Shadiq then. But I nearly cried when I watched the performance later...even now any performances would set me thinking back of those times. Well, we have our moments right and this is mine.

'sigh' but no point crying for the yesterdays. What is important is now, what I have now and what we are building for the kids....we have our memories, our regrets but that is all in the past and what matters most is the present and what we dont know is the future...

What are your OPTIONS?

Our agent got sick last weekend so postponed to a later date till he got well. Flu and fever season is in so everybody gotten sick nowadays. Anyway, both of us were discussing and we thought about the kidz, who is gonna take care of them and whatever we need to thought of. The plus and minus points of the options we have. So I list a few here.

1) Get a maid. Financially it will be a bit tight with the levy and salary. However there will be somebody to help you with the household things and cooking. Bad is you can never be sure if you will got a good one....sometimes I see things in my centre what some of the maids are doing behind their employer's back and it aint nice at all...

2) Get a car. Herman could drive us to my mum house here if we were staying at Tampines and drive us back if he isnt working. But financially it will be a bit tight so if we are looking for a car, must be cost efficient and easy to maintain.

3) Change job. That is more applicable to me. Somebody ever said to me that I could work in a childcare and look after the kidz at the same time in the childcare centre. More pay and the children are safe with me all the time. Bad thing is there wont be any more school holidays or term breaks, only rely on public holidays and your annual 14-21 days leave. And I love my current work place so 50-50....

4) Get a house nearby my mum or within the same area. Easy and convenient. But it is an 80percent NO cause its expensive and even the agent advised us against it....Unless either one of my neighbour decides to sell their house then we can have another unit...which I very much doubt they wanted to sell...

So here are my options. I am still weighing them at the back of my mind...but until we move and only then can we make the final decision so until then, just looking out at the options....

Location, location,. location!

Been busy the last few days, surverying flats and comparing prices..I cant believe the cost of flats here. Latest we ask about a 5-room flat here costs around $545k! Kalau mati hidup balik pun masih belum habis bayar!

Reason we are looking around for a new house is currently we are using bank loan. U know how banks and interest rates are so switching to hdb loan. The two boys are getting rowdier and their things are piling up especially since big bro started schooling. So they needed a room and my in-laws are staying with us so we are looking for a 4room flat. 5-room if we can afford it coz the 6 bicycles needed space too, cant leave them outside the house. Each bike costs us around $2k-$3k each so not going to take the risk. Menangis air mata darah kalau hilang beb! Even with so many bicycles, Herman is contemplating of getting another one, crazy! Well, at least I know where his money goes!

Cant afford to get a place here, potong kepala punya harga even though its convenient and we are so much in love with the environment here. We know our neighbours well and even the shopkeepers here are friendly. I dont have to be afraid if the kids run off on their own. Big bro will stop by at the sinseh shop where there is a bench to sit. Small bro will stop by the bicycle shop where he will go around surveying the bicycles there. They dont mind them and even love playing with them.... from the mamak shop who sell briyani to the double storey hawker centre, everybody knows my kids. We know who to go to if you want to go urut, or if you want to berubat pun ada orangnya....everything is within distance, good schools and even my own workplace is a block away.

I wonder if my new neighbourhood will be like that...its so hard to get this kind of kampung atmosphere anymore, 'sigh'. I will really miss this place.
Anyway, we are definitely going to go for Tampines or Pasir Ris area. Probably be getting a car to drive the boys here to my mum's place...The agent will be coming over tomorrow to discuss over the financial matters and whatever thingy but by next month, everything will start to roll in and Insya-Allah by June, we be moving in to our new house.

Shadiq and Writing

Been making a point for Shadiq to do his writing for spelling and ejaan every nite for an hour...the most will be like 2 hours if he is VERY cooperative (or more like in the mood).

He have a lot of excuses when he is writing. Some are like having tummy ache, a sudden itch, frequent peeing, yawnings, drooping eyes and any chance he get to disturb the small bro...Small bro is smart enuf not to disturb the big bro (partly becoz he got caned for disturbing) but still manage to get big bro attention by shouting or playing nearby. Big bro is happy for any kind of distraction...

I made sure that he finished writing at least three to five words at a time, not only improving his alphabet recognition and writing skills, but at least teach him a bit of responsibility to finish his work. I do gave him rewards for every finished work like playing his favourite XBox 360 Ben10 game, watching his favourite cartoons or bringing him out.

Got to go now...big bro is writing and small bro is like trying so hard to get big bro's attention...Siddiq really looks up to his big bro Shadiq and he is also scared of him...proven to cry when Shadiq scold him.

The River Cruise

Yesterday we brought the kidz to the River Cruise. Macam jakun! We were like taking photos, queueing when its not the time yet, behaving like tourists. Herman commented that I could pass off as one, hrumph! Regardless, Shadiq and Siddiq couldn't contain their excitement as we waited for the boat to arrive.

I was like scrambling around looking for a plastic bag just in case one of the kidz vomit....anyway the boat just of course cruise around the Singapore River, under bridges till the Esplanade. There Shadiq gets to meet his 'Giant Waterfall' as he call it or what we are more familiar of as the Merlion, haha!
Oh well, I remember a few years back, one of my K2 student wrote about the Merlion. We were like writing a few short sentences about our favourite places that we liked to go. His sentences run like this : 'I like to see the Merlion. Merlion spits water into the river.' Hahahaha! I did not mark it wrong but the next sentence crack me up: 'I like to spit water too.'

Anyway back to the river cruise. Guess who started to feel nauseous and dizzy? Not the kidz or the daddy but ME! I broke into cold sweat and my stomach started churning throughout the 30mins journey. It got so bad that when we were like out of the boat, I was like so 'mabuk laut' that I had to cover my mouth, worrying that I might hurl my stomach contents at any poor unsuspecting tourists eating nearby. Siddiq was also a bit dizzy I guess. He started to walk around in circles and had that dazed look in his eyes....but we didnt vomit...We survived with sweets.

Anyway I will download the pics later...just bought a couple of terrapins and Shadiq called them Upin and Ipin! Got to clean the tank and bathe the kidz now so toodle-doo!

What's Up?

Been very tired lately..after the school hols, its been a roller-coaster ride since, wow! I am so hoping for my pay increment, the last time I had a pay increment was four years ago so praying hard it might be better this time....sometimes they can be very tight with the money thingy...even when it comes to bonuses....but at least I am grateful that I have enough to eat, a roof over my head and clothes to wear, extras are a blessing and we must always be happy with what we have. Whatever extras are for our children and our own families to share with.

Shadiq been doing a lot of writing..with in between frequent toilet breaks, aching bones, yawnings and doodling with constant 'help' from the small bro. But at least he finished a few pages and his handwriting 'improved'. Don't ask him to spell though, he memorised it today and forgets about it in five minutes time...'sigh', but still make it a point to try though...hope I am not setting a bad example to anyone, I hate using force to teach as it will only put them off studying and learning anything. The more you scold and force, the more stubborn they become and will only retaliate by not doing anything.

Siddiq is into home renovation. He will take out anything within his reach and placed them somewhere else within his own convenience. So sometimes things got misplaced or hidden beneath cupboards, pails and even in the insides of shoes. Like there was once Herman wore his shoe and he shouted out in pain. Coz a toy was in it and he placed his unsuspecting foot into it. So if anybody need any home improvement, please apply here. But I will not be responsible for any damages or lost properties that will happen, hahaha!

Siddiq is also learning his spelling and unlike his brother, he is able to spell satu, dua and tiga.....but then he is just mouthing the words or more like singing it. Poor big bro had to write and spell and memorise.....but sometimes he can just be so plain lazy!

Characteristics of a Muslim Husband

A good friend of mine sent me this a few weeks back via e-mail but I only manage to read it today. Enjoy!

No one ever thinks about the characteristics of a Muslim husband. It is always what a wife should do for the husband...and the list never ends; home management, tutoring, ferrying the kids, caring, cooking, cleaning, washing, working, you name it, she is doing it. so what about the brothers?
Our beloved Prophet SAW was not like this. So,why the men of this ummah? It is quite interesting. so I thought I'd share it with you !!! What a Muslim husband should be like...
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1. Dress up for your wife, look clean and smell good. When was the last time you went shopping for designer pyjamas? Just like the husband wants his wife to look nice for him, she also wants her husband to dress up for her too. Remember that the Prophet (PBUH) would always start with Miswak when returning home and always loved the sweetest smells.
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2. Use the best names for your wife. Call your wife by the most beloved names to her, and avoid using names that hurt their feelings.
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3. Don't treat her like a fly. We never think about a fly in our daily lives until it 'bugs' us. Similarly, a wife will do well all day - which brings no attention from the husband - until she does something to 'bug' him.. Don't treat her like this; recognize all the good that she does and focus on that.
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4. If you see wrong from your wife, try being silent and do not comment!
This is one of the ways the Prophet (PBUH) used when he would see something inappropriate from his wives (R.A). It's a technique that few Muslim men have mastered.
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5. Smile at your wife whenever you see her and embrace her often. Smiling is Sadaqah and your wife is not exempt from the Muslim Ummah. Imagine life with her constantly seeing you smiling.Remember also those Ahadith when the Prophet (PBUH) would kiss his wife before leaving for Salaah, even when he was fasting.
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6. Thank her for all that she does for you. Then thank her again! Take for example a dinner at your house. She makes the food, cleans the home, and a dozen other tasks to prepare. And sometimes the only acknowledgment she receives is that there needed to be more salt in the soup. Don't let that be; thank her!
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7. Ask her to write down the last ten things you did for her that made her happy. Then go and do them again. It may be hard to recognize what gives your wife pleasure. You don't have to play a guessing game, ask her and work on repeating those times in your life.
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8. Don't belittle her desires. Comfort her. Sometimes the men may look down upon the requests of their wives. The Prophet (PBUH) set the example for us in an incident when Safiyyah (R.A) was crying because, as she said, he had put her on a slow camel. He wiped her tears, comforted her, and brought her the camel.
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9. Be humorous and play games with your wife. Look at how the Prophet (PBUH) would race with his wife Aisha (R.A) in the desert. When was the last time we did something like that?

10. Always remember the words of Allah's Messenger (PBUH): 'The best of you are those who treat their families the best. And I am the best amongst you to my family.' Try to be the best!
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In conclusion: Never forget to make Doa to Allah - ta'ala to make your marriage successful. And Allah ta'ala knows best!

The New Year

Everything seems to be getting back on track...im back to work, 'playing' thru the hours with the kids at school, kept reviewing the lesson plans and 'entertaining' the newbie parents at school.

Shadiq in K1 now and already I'm panicking...he got English and Malay spelling next week, juz got the list today. Its five words per day, each word around 3 to 5 letters. And already I am stressing myself whether I should push him to pass everything or let everything slide as per normal, letting him progress at his own pace...Herman flipped over the spelling list, saying its too early and whatever complains....I bought a few exercise books, made him write and spell the words until he groans in frustration....then it got me thinking, "Why am I so kanciong? Let him try and if he doesnt get it, its okay. He will get there someday." I close the books and told him to play....'sigh' Baru K1 I already kanciong like what and me being a preschool teacher should know better, what a role model. Just gonna make him write and spell a few words at a time, he will get there someday.

Siddiq is really into exploring. Exploring includes opening cupboards and throwing out its contents, digging out the pots and pans in the kitchen, anything within his reach will have its contents spilled out or put in his mouth.