Category Archives: Parenting, Family and Relationships

Read, in the name of Allah

Posted in Good Things, Parenting, Family and Relationships by

I am happy that my daughter could read. She knows her numbers and alphabets. And she can read the Quran.

My father-in-law passed away recently from the complications of his kidney problems. It was an anticipated death as we knew that his condition had deteriorated and that his prognosis was grave. It was only a matter of time before he succumbed to his illness. He died on a Wednesday evening at 625pm in his own home in the presence of his family members.

We called the ambulance and requested a paramedic to come and confirm his death. A police report was made and the necessary rituals were in order. His death was open-heartedly accepted. His grandchildren also understood that their grandfather was not with them anymore.

While waiting for the Jemaah from the masjid to come, my daughter picked up a Yasin booklet and began to read. It was comforting to see her focus on the words and recite the Yasin independently on the chair. I was beside her reading my Yasin but I could hear every single word being read and it was accurate. Her ability to read not only allows her to learn new knowledge but also portrays comfort to the adults as a 6-year-old kid. She is also doing her bit to help her grandfather go through the Afterlife in the realms of Barzakh.

Indeed kids that read are such a blessing.

Kids enjoying their staycation

Posted in Leisure & Travel, Parenting, Family and Relationships by

My son came back home for the school holidays just a week ago. While I was in Kuching attending a wedding, Mr Husband brought the kids to KL for a staycation. They stayed at Silka Maytower.

The kids enjoyed the pool and they sent me pictures of their adventures at KLCC and Ikea Cheras. Most importantly my son had a wonderful sleep throughout the school holidays. So much so that he missed handing in one of his assignments that carried 6 marks. I was obviously crossed. I had to remind him to finish his coursework before putting his head on the pillow. He is like his father, mata ayam. Easily dozes off when the day becomes dark. He learned his lesson.

I noticed that he is getting taller at an impressive speed. Despite not taking his meals regularly because he prefers to charge his social battery more, he seems to be having growth spurts. Again, I have to tell him to at least take one main meal during the day and at best all main meals. He usually skips dinner but he will have a heartful lunch. I dislike the idea of him having too many snacks in the dorm. His father keeps buying him those packet drinks which are full of sugar as well. I get him Bright Cow milk instead for his skin, teeth and bones. I just hope he drinks it.

He is picking up badminton as his sports choice in the evening. I did not see that coming. He never seemed like he enjoyed it before. Come to think of it, we’ve never exposed it to him. With us, he has only known chess, scrabble and ping-pong. He did join the sepak takraw club at school but they haven’t been practicing much. So his interest waned.

We paid him a short visit today as we were coming back to Melaka from Putrajaya. He was alone in the dorm because his dorm mates are from Seremban, so they tend to sleep in their own homes during the weekend. This leaves him as the only one in that room of 3 students to participate in the gotong royong where they clean their rooms every week. Seems a little unfair but it’s already towards the end of the year to be raising this issue. Plus, I think that it’s good that he gets his movement on the weekend. Maybe if they reshuffle next year (do they?), he would have roommates who could keep him company over the weekend. Anyway, the flu bug has caught up with him as well. He has been having shivers and sniffles. Mr Husband bought him some paracetamol and cough syrup. As usual, the motherly advice is to shower regularly, brush your teeth, wash your face, eat regular meals and drink lots of plain water.

Looking forward to bringing him back in another 2 weeks for his outing bermalam.

KPPN’s Hari Keusahawanan – A commercial exercise

Posted in Parenting, Family and Relationships by

My son just completed his exams recently. He said Biology was challenging which prompted me to encourage him to read and ask more questions. Even then, despite the multiple subjects he had to learn and engage in, alhamdulilah, he still did well. I am sure the other students scored well in their studies as well. I have no qualms over their intellectual ability as these kids are like super Scrub Daddy sponges. Given the right guidance, they could learn anything. In fact, they have a tight and comprehensive timetable to follow. I like that the kids are made to go for exercise in the evening. At least now Ee enjoys playing handball and football.

An example of their timetable

I just hope that alongside their academic growth, other aspects of their youth could be consolidated as well. Meaning that their emotional intelligence, athletic agility, religious observance and soft skills are equally groomed to form them as an all-rounded individual.

Recently, KPPN organised Hari Keusahawan with an 80s theme. Apart from the banner, the only thing that is relevant to the 1980s era is probably the parents. Everything else had a Gen Z vibe. Or is it Gen Alpha now? Hahaha. Still, it was a commendable effort. I feel that teamwork is something that the kids need to work on. Well, even adults undergo the same struggle. I’m not sure how well they interact with each other in class but knowing tweens, they tend to be defiant for no reason yet competitive at the same time.

My daughter enjoyed buying her jellyballs at the stalls. The food was appropriately priced but the coupons somehow finished earlier than expected. It’s either insufficient or the students/parents have immense purchasing power.

I look forward to other events they have at school. We parted ways with Ee after spending roughly 90 minutes there. We don’t want to be caught up in traffic heading towards Melaka. On a final note, it was astonishing to meet a young gentleman, who read my blog there as well. I hope he excels in his studies too.

Be my guest

Posted in Everyday Life, Parenting, Family and Relationships by

Hosting comes naturally for some people. Someone could give a heads up within 15 minutes and the house is ready to welcome them. I do not have the confidence to do that yet. I need at least a week’s notice.

Anyway, my sister came for a short visit recently. So I called her over for lunch. I prepared nasi lemak with sambal bunga kantan, shepherd’s pie and a mini fruit tower. She brought doughnut brownies over. Her family was planning to check into Amverton Heritage at Ayer Keroh. There’s a waterpark in the resort.

I used bunga kantan from my garden for the sambal. I really liked its tangy taste and basically cooked up a sambal based on what I read from recipes online. I had no time to fry chicken so I prepared some nuggets and hard-boiled eggs as protein for the nasi lemak. I lack the nuts and ikan bilis though.

My fruit tower was made up of baby pineapples and strawberries. I wanted to indulge my nephew and niece with nice fruits. If only I had durian.

As for the shepherd pie, I used minced meat from the brand Saudi, ready-made sauce from Leggo and chopped in some carrots for texture. I think I did the mash on top pretty well this time. Placed it in the oven for 20 minutes at 200 degrees just before my sister came.

This is what my sister brought. A cute doughnut brownie box. The brownie was a bit hard but the sprinkles made it edible.

They only spent about 90 minutes at my place as they had to get going. I did realize that there are certain mannerisms that I need to teach my children when it comes to receiving guests at home.

  • when a visitor comes, regardless if you know them or not, they must come out of their rooms and pay respect. meaning salam. Do not wait for me to scream and beckon them out of their rooms.
  • if these guests have children, they should not stay in their room. Instead, to try and entertain these children, pique their interest and go along with it.

I cannot manage adult behaviour but at least I can teach the kids.

Ramah Tamah

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More than 30 years ago, ramah tamah or open houses during festive seasons were uncommon. They were around but mostly organised by public figures or workplaces. For the rest of us, it is mostly just coming up to the house that we’re planning to go and pay a visit. Rarely there was a formality of giving a call first, announcing the arrival and whatnot. Simply because cell phones were not invented yet and to own landlines is a luxury. Instead, it was a culture where, when a guest shows up at your door, you honour them accordingly and serve them food and drinks with anything you have.

Memuliakan tetamu

That’s the word. The great thing about this is that the visits are personalised. You get to give your full attention to those who make time to see you because they want to. Thus, the house is always at its best. Always polished and clean as you never know when someone is coming to say Hi. The not-so-fun part is that you’d end up receiving guests every single day during a festive occasion. In modern times, it can be a hassle because you’re tied up with other commitments – family and job. Hence, we see more people organizing ‘open Houses’ where they can entertain their friends and family in one session. Convenience trumps it all. You still love the idea of meeting everyone but you need your own peace of mind as well.

Datanglah ke rumah

A phrase that is understated nowadays. People are just not sure anymore if it is a sincere invitation or small talk. I do know I rarely say it to others because I don’t want it to happen. Ha ha. I will be ready to receive unexpected visitors once I clean my porch and fix the bathroom at the end of the aisle. Even then I still look forward to entertaining and hosting – not now, one day. Ironically I’ve got all the props, knicks and knacks to make it happen. It’s the energy that I don’t have.

Attending Ramah Tamah

It is almost compulsory that every organisation holds their own Ramah Tamah. My workplace has one too with a different concept every year. This year we are doing it outdoors and although I was not part of the committee, I was keen to contribute. I bought a huge banner that has a picture of a wooden house to be put up as a decoration. The same banner was recycled by my sister for her Ramah Tamah at school. I thought it looked amazing.