Together again

Finally ...al and adik are reunited with their mummy and daddy .....al is happy ...very happy indeed ..in fact, he is so happy that you can practically see his non-stop smile, his happy grin ...and his A-class behaviour ...I am happy for them, despite feeling a bit down and not-needed by the boys ...

but, in reality ...Al still did not forget about me ..he spends his days with mummy and daddy, but will still insist on sleeping in my room at night ...I was so touched by this ....and I really pity him, jane and my brother also understood his dilemma ..having to choose like that ...but i think he just need to re-adjust ... he'll be ok in time ...seeing that mummy is not going away again ....and that is a note to myself as well - I need to readjust as well ....their mummy is here ..and she is here to stay ...so happy that they are together again :-)

Airport Food

If I am to travel, I would always try to get to the airport early ....not because I want to be early  but because I want to avoid the "avoidable" hassles such as traffic jam, long queue at the check in counter and what not ..but if i get in early, i would need to find a nice spot to wait and relax ....most of the time it would be the eatery ....in Kuching airport, i would normally go for either Coffee Beans or Mary Brown (both inside the departure area) ...coz these are the only two eating outlets available ....

(nasi lemak and drink from Mary Brown, a book and my phone ...while waiting for my flight)

During the last trip to Penang, Haslina & I had to transit at KLIA ..and it was during lunch time ...we were both famished! After looking round, we had a quick bite at one of the eateries (next to Burger KING - inside the departure hall) ...the food, as expected was super expensive ....

but i found my fav food there ...an apple danish pastry! Yummy .... and Haslina had this turkey (if i am not mistaken) sandwich in foccacia bread ....looks delicious!

i vaguely remembered, when I was in Schipol Airport a few years back - I had rice & curry meal - coz I was homesick and missing Malaysian food ...hehehehe now I am missing these yummy pastry instead!

future model?

Just found out this weekend that adik loves to pose! Daddy was trying out his new camera, and adik loves being the subject ...he will just smiles or do some actions ...just loves being in front of the camera ...or perhaps he just loves to pose for daddy???

Mummy's back

Jane came back to Kuching last Tuesday ...this time for good ...and as expected, Al was so happy to see her. Al, my dad and I went to the airport to pick her up ..and when I told Al that we were waiting for his mummy, he said "no, no mummy ...no" ...he did not believe that we were actually waiting for Jane ...maybe because he knew his mummy was far away ...we always picked Daddy or Mama Matun from the airport - but not mummy ...

waiting for mummy

It was a touching scene when they finally met...Al saw her and the smile just lit up his face ...he was smiling from ear to ear ...i know he misses his mummy so much ..and the look on his face was priceless ...they were hugging and smiling at each other ..as if other people around them did not exist ...

they cannot be separated ...even when we were having our lunch! Al woke up from his afternoon nap and immediately searching the whole house looking for mummy ...poor boy ...but he is very happy now, and that is something which all of us are happy about ...

calling daddy while waiting for our lunch

highlights of Penang trip

this blog was neglected for a long time ..lack of updates/ postings....coz i was so busy ...(so, what else is new ehh?) ...I went to Penang last week, my second trip this year...to attend a compulsary course ...it was a 5-day course ...i was dreading it so much, that I believed that when I went in, I was completely depressed about the prospects of having to attend the course ...but, I was wrong! The course was fun ..and completely opposite from what I had experienced during my undergraduate days ...or from the rumours that I heard from friends ...

The highlights of the course:

i did the flying fox routine! awesome awesome experience ...

did a physiology test - interesting revelations (LOL)

meeting new friends 

managed to finish my jungle tracking activity

got new ideas and inspirations

No much photos were taken coz cameras are not allowed in the camp...but we were allowed to bring it during our jungle tracking activity ...the scenary was awesome! pretty beaches ...very calming and inviting!

another memorable highlight of the trip: food! I love Penang food ....

definitely want to go to Penang again - the food there are calling out my name! hehehehe ...

Meeting an old friend

I got a text message from Wan Dasuki this morning saying that he is at the Kuching Airport and that he will be checking in for his Pontianak flight at 11.30 ....it was a long time since we last saw him ...so, Haslina, Bemen and I rushed off to KIA to meet him ...it was wonderful to meet up again ...we only had time for a quick lunch and chat!

FYI, Wan is like a brother to us ....lots of good (and bad) memories together ....the last time we met was in KL about 2 years ago ...despite leaving the uni, he still keeps in touch with us ...so, meeting him this afternoon was great!

lunchbox and working lunches

This week is a busy week for me (i have been harping about this for a while already ...i can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but it still a bit further away!) ...i cannot afford to waste valuable time waiting for my orders and eating outside ...so, the shortcut is to bring my own lunchbox ....that is why I made my own oriental tuna pasta dish early this week ....

** pasta cooking nicely in the wok**

Even mum was shocked to see her kitchen-shy daugther cooking something at 7am hahahaha ....I guess it was too much for my mum coz the following day, she already prepared something (fried rice) for my lunchbox  ...hehehehe ...and today I just stopped over at the cafe - on the way to work - to buy my lunch and some kuih (anchiovies fritters and kuih ketayap) ...and Elena also bought that yummy popia for me ...so, a working lunch again today ...and the dateline is looming!!!!!! so, am going to pen off now ...cannot waste my precious time whining here :-)

Al's tornado mood ...

Al is, without a doubt, a very pampered little boy ...he is the eldest grandchild ...my eldest nephew and always treated with love and, dare it say it - overindulgence ...from all of us ...he will be 3 this July ...and nowadays, he is really showing his "strong-will" - but in a rather negative way ...what I mean is that he is always throwing a tantrum when his demands are not met! We (my parents and I) tried to reason with him - and I, myself, are quite worried that this will become his habit ...

he will cry if we do not follow what he says (it is normal, right?) but he will throw things when we say "NO" to his demands ...and the later is getting more frequent now ...anyone has any ideas on how to I deal with this? At the moment, we just ignore him when he is in one of those "tornado" moods ..and to let him cool down on his own ....

Al - crying one morning when I refused to let him go upstairs to watch the DVD (nobody to supervise him upstairs as i was going out to work)

 another sequence shot of him

I know - it is tough being a parent ..or being an appointed surrogate parent like myself - I am not sure what went wrong, and how do I deal with it ...I really really hope that he will be able to reduce his temper tantrums ...but then again, I know, he probably inherits it from any one of us :-)

Al - throwing away the cushions - I cannot remembered what the tantrum was about

Friday's lunch

yeahhhh ...finally!!! We were able to go out for lunch ...and not just having out takeaway lunch in front of the PC because we were too busy ....I texted Bemen at 8am on Friday - to suggest lunch @ Pizza Hut ...hehehe he promptly replied ....it was great ...coz I have been having a working lunch in front of my PC the whole week ....last friday, Dayang also joined us for lunch ...Moi Lina was in Miri, while Elena was in KL ....

I opted for spaghetti bolognese ...(yes, I know I can easily cook this at home - but this is hassle-free and very quick to serve!) ...

Dayang's order of seafood lasagne (somehow I never order this dish coz for me best lasagne are made of beef or chicken!)

and Bemen's pizza ...cheezy lava, with triple chicken topping (if I am not mistaken) ....

and, as usual, posing before the food arrives is A MUST ...hehehehe ....btw, the red punjabi suit was bought in Penang last March ...heheheh

and another angle ...hehehe a "slimmer" angle ....

and our Mr. Slim ....Bemen, was forced by me to smile for the camera :-)

Traffic summon & lunch @Elephant Bistro

two fridays ago, we went for lunch at Elephant Bistro ...Elena's plan, and as she is the one who already know this place, she drove us there ...less than 50mventuring out from our main entrance, we were stopped  by a group of police ...hahaha at first all of us are laughing  and joking when the policemen asked for Elena's license ...it was a relief  as the licence was in order ...then he asked her to press her brake ...we all thought nothing of it ...till he said "kena bagi saman nie...your brake light is not working" ...all 4 of us were speechless ...apparently her 3rd brake light was not functioning ...so she got the summon!

Not a good start to our lunch plan! and the road was pretty congested as well ...so, it took us a while to get there ...but once there, we were ok already ....the food was nice ...lots of selection ...even had bread & butter puddings!

Elena as usual ...with her tuna sandwiches ...smiling despite the summon :-)

Moi and her Maryland chicken ...

and my chicken ala' kiev ...i was disappointed with the presentation coz i was expecting a dish/presentation that i am used to in the UK ...but, the taste was superb ...i like it very much!!! when i am doing this posting,  realised that i didn't take any pic of Bemen ....(aiyooo ..sorry ...) ..

it was, as usual, a fun outing ....a moment away from the office environment ....in fact, due to traffic jam, we were late reaching the office, and Haslina, Bemen and I were 20 mins late for our meeting!!!!

Happy Mother's Day ...

 (old pic: taken in 1994)

Today is Mother's Day ...a day dedicated to all mothers out there ...as for myself, these are/were some of the wonderful mothers, grandmothers in my life ...

(during our holiday in Scotland, summer of 2002)

my own mum ...always a very important figure in my life ...she is there for me, and for my siblings ..through good and bad times ...always there to feed us, to look after us, to scold us, to encourage us to strive for the best ..she still does! A confession: my mum still makes breakfast and coffee for me everyday ...and ensure that dinner is ready by the time i get home ....but most touching of all, mum was there with me to pick up the pieces, mum was there when I cried ...mum was there to console me ...she encourages me...and Mum, i love you! and to think, we all nearly lost you 20 years ago ...so happy you are ok, and really hope you will always be healthy, happy and  be as you are ....

and then, there were my two grandmothers ...both of them are no longer with us ..but i (and I am sure, the same goes to my brother and sister) still treasure my memories of them ...my maternal grandmother (above) was fun-loving ..always danced (joget!) during parties and festivals, she was the best cook ever!, loved travelling ...but sadly, she passed away before any of us can pamper her, can treat her or take her travelling! She died 10 years ago last Feb ...

my paternal grandmother (above) was more serious ...very strict with us ...but she was very business minded...hardworking as hell ..when my granddad died, she still continued doing farm works at her cocoa and paper plantation ...and refused to stay with us ...a very strong-willed woman, and i really really miss her ...i was in the UK when she died, so I guess I dont have the closure ...

another important lady in my life was my great grandmother ...my mum's grandmother ....she died when I was in Form 3 at the age of 90 something...but she was a very significant figure in my early childhood ...she took care of us when mum was still working! and she was blind at the time ...she goes blind in 1974, after her husband passed away ...people says it was due to her non-stop crying etc ...who know the real reason ...i always remembered her stories ...she always told us bedtime stories ...and entertained us ...she was a very kind hearted lady, always willing to help others ...

I love them all ....I wish I can be strong like them ...and if I can be a third of what they are, I am happy ...

and I also know friends who are great mothers ...who would do anything for their kids ...sacrificing their time, sacrificing themselves ...just so that their kids and families are happy, well taken care of ..and have  bright future ..to all of you: Jane (we'll celebrate together next year!), Liz, Fida, Eat, Haslina, Elena, Reen, Mama Rose, Aunty Lynne ......

Happy Mother's Day!

razed by fire

I read about the printing office in Kuching being razed by fire a week ago ....but i get to see what is left of it this morning when I was driving by ....

Please note: i took the photo while stopping at the traffic light ...so, was not doing any traffic violation :-)

It is kind of sad coz this building has been there for ages ..it is like the part and parcel of that area ...so it was shocking to hear about the unfortunate incidents ...according to newspaper reports, the building itself was 59 years old ...and housed the operations for the National Printing Office ...

another old building going down in history ....now I am wondering what sort of building they will put up on that spot ...emmmm just have to wait and see- but am guessing that it will be one of those modern, contemporary design ...

Craving for dessert

I was really really REALLY craving for dessert ...has been for the last few weeks ...come to think of it, I think it was before my uni-imposed seclusion from the human race three weeks ago ....so, last Saturday, when I was sending my dear sister to the airport, i decided to go and chill and Starbucks ...normally I would just drop her off and then straight away drive back home ...but last Saturday was different, my sister was leaving Kuching @3pm but my brother arrived in Kuching @ 2.40pm ...so, being a designated driver - I have to wait there ...it was worth it coz I got my sweet dessert ...

i had apple crumble ....P/S it was more like an apple pie slice than a crumble ...I have yet to find a really yummy crumble here...but, it was nice ...sweet and yummy!

Another memorable event that happened that Saturday ...my sister nearly missed her flight coz we were busy chatting and eating ...hahahaha ....by the time she was at the boarding lounge, it was empty as all the passengers have already boarded the plane :-)

I am planning to go there again ...SOON! hehehehe ....