A visit to "Rumah Cik Maimon".

Do u know this place?

When was the last time u visited this place?

I can't remember when...or whether I have actually step my foot in this place. Oh, just in case you have no idea what place I'm talking about, it's our National Monument (or just like NST's advert, it's 'Rumah Cik Maimon':))

MIL and SIL came early of this month, so Hubby decided to bring them to a historical sight. On their last visit, Hubby brought them to Muzium Negara (which I could not follow coz I got to work), and this time, it's the National Monument.

Being a first-timer there, I would say it's such an impressive statue. No wonder it's a must for tourist to go there...and they maintained the place well with all the fountains, gardens and what not.

Garfield in Malaysia? Well, this cat was dyed with henna. Nice attempt to get some tourist attraction.

While some people took pictures seriously, some do it lightly. For e.g this father-and-son duo...

Aliff was not in the mood to play initially...but after some time, he got restless in the gendong and decided to go for a walk...and of course, very much attracted to the water spots...

And refused to go back...

I guess a visit to historical sights around KL is mostly forgotten by the KLites. Most people opt for shopping complexes, theme parks, balik kampung..or just lepaking at home during weekends/holidays...yelah dengan harga minyak yang mendadak naik ni...

There's something about...

…My Two Boys.

I have been blogging in my head for the last few weeks about the development of Ashraff and Aliff. Constructing sentences in the LRT, before I go to sleep, in the toilet..almost everwhere. Now that I have the time to actually blog, I seemed at lost. I just don’t know where to start.

Emmm…

Naturally, I’ll start with Ashraff.

Ashraff

He is currently 3 years and 10 months old.

As mentioned earlier, he has been sick on and off for the last few months (not a nice opening, I know). Not so much of severe fever, but more of runny nose, then proceed to coughing…and then ended up with mild bronchitis. He wouldn’t cure by its own without the help of antibiotic. Thus, depending on how often he fell sick, sometimes he has to take the next course of antibiotic in the span of two weeks gap. Tell me mothers, is it okay to take antibiotic that often?

As for development wise, he developed quite some skills and knowledge, thanks to the school, books and VCDs. He can count from 1-20, although he misses on few numbers like 13 and 15. I guess if the number is spelt out as “three-teen” or “five-teen” instead of “thirteen” and “fifteen”, I’m sure he’ll not miss those numbers. If the quantity of the object is less than 5, he can tell us the quantity without pointing at each object and count.

As opposed to numbers, Ashraff still has not recognized most of the alphabets. Yup, he’s improving as compared to before attending school, but I still feel he’s lacking in that area (or am I too enthusiast?). He doesn’t show us much interest until recently, where he’ll try to spell some of the words he found in his book. And I guess now he can figure out that when we mentioned “A is for Apple”, he actually have to look at the first letter to tell..and not the letter in between (got what I mean?). And then he will ask something like “S is for apa, Ibu?”…and I’ll have to give him some words as an answer.

Although he hasn’t reaches the age of 4 yet, but some kids I know has able to recognize alphabet well…and some even can read simple words. Ok, am I putting high hope on him should I expect him to read simple words by the end of this year (though I do not say that to him..i’m just keeping my finger crossed in silence)? Or at least spell out his name? Or am I freaking out here? Hahaha…

As for spoken language, I would say Ashraff’s English vocab expands tremendously. He can speak full sentence in English. And sometimes we had a conversation without one word of Malay coming out from his mouth. I’m quite surprise…sebab kalau nak ikutkan we mostly talk in Malay at home. He must have learnt it from school or the VCDs. But the thing I noticed recently is he’ll start changing the name he calls us to “mom” and “dad” everytime he speaks in English. Sekali dengan slang American lagi. Geli babe!

Ashraff also shows us some tremendous interest in animals. First, he loves to watch Animal Planet, his second option after Ceria. And it shall follow with a string of questions yang amatlah mencabar nak jawab. These are few questions that came out of Ashraff’s mouth:-

1. How does a fish sleep?

2. Caterpillar tidur kat mana? Grasshopper pulak? Kalau owl tidur kat dalam lubang kan? Ibu dia jawab,“errr…I guess.” (note to self : check the internet).

3. Mana ayah animal tu? Mana ibu dia? Yang kecik tu baby dia ke? Mana Ashraff dia? Aliff dia mana?

4. Kalau owl dia tidur siang ke? Malam dia tak tidur? Animal apa lagi tak tidur malam?

5. Kalau baby dog is puppy, baby wolf apa ibu? (is it a cub?)

6. Coyote dalam Melayu apa ibu?

7. Owl makan apa ibu? Bee makan apa? Macamana bee buat honey ibu?

8. Kat mana nak tengok dinosaur Ibu? Kat zoo ada tak? Dia big ke Ibu? (note to self : buy him Jurassic Park CD).

9. “Kita boleh pegang stingray tak ibu?”
Ibu dengan selambanya jawab, “Boleh!”.
“Mana boleh ibu. Stingray ada poison tau..kalau kena cucuk boleh mati.”
“Opps sorry..ibu lupa…Pandailah Ashraff ni”
Nice going ibu!

10. This is the best so far.
“Ibu, spider minum air apa?”
Ibu sambil berfikir spider minum air ke? menjawab “Air hujan”.
“Hah?! Ye ke ibu?”
Alamak ibu panic! “Kenapa Ashraff? Tak betul ke?”
“Kalau lagu itsy bitsy spider tu, spider takut air hujan..kalau kena rain, it will wash the spider out kan?”
Way to go Ibu! Siapa kata orang yang makan garam dulu akan lebih berpengetahuan? Emmm… I should stick to “Spider tak minum air kot. But Ibu’ll check.” Now I’m wondering, spider minum air tak?

One thing good about the exercise above, I got to find out the answers and at the same time brush up my knowledge in this department. I can’t remember being so inquisitive at this age. Yup, I do ask a lot I remember, but not so much of what I’d categorise as intelligent questions.

Ok everybody, Ashraff finally make friends with some girls in school. Let me see, we got someone by the name of Heidi, Aisya, Aliya, Sara, Amanda. Among the girls, Ashraff likes Aisya. Kalau tanya kenapa. Dia tak jawab. Anyway, I’ve met with Aisya. Cantik budaknya. Fair, long hair and has that Chinese look. Hehehe..

Now my very picky eater, has some favourite dishes as his meal. He loves to eat daging masak kicap..and anything that has ikan bilis. For him, kalau the dish takde rasa pedas, he’ll refuse to eat. Dia kena ada slightly rasa pedas. He told me that he refused to eat at school because “food dia takde cili”. Gee! Even his daging masak kicap, I have to tumis sedikit cili blend first.

Hmmm what else with Ashraff. Gaduh dengan Aliff, tetap. Tak nak share toys with Aliff, tetap. Kalau hitam kata dia maka hitamlah, tetap. Minum susu pakai botol, tetap.

Move on with Aliff…

Aliff

He is currently 1 year 7 months old.

He’s still breastfeeding, but now he has started to drink formula with chocolate favor. He doesn’t take it from bottle, instead he prefers drinking from a cup using a straw. Looks like he’s weaning from bottle very soon.

Now that he has started drinking formula, I’ve reduced my pumping time in the office from twice to once. I’ve also started to think how I can completely wean him from breastfeeding. I want to do it gradually so by the age of 2 he shall officially wean from bf. Ehem…I’m actually planning for a new baby. So far no sign yet. But Mak told me since I’ve pasang niat to bf Aliff till he’s two, so I presumed Allah has granted my wish by not making me pregnant before he’s 2 (of coslah dia belum 2 lagi). You know, there’s a big possibility I have to immediately stop him from bf once I’m pregnant..esp I have experienced the sign of miscarriage while I was pregnant with Aliff last time.

Eh, ni update pasal Aliff ke atau Ibu dia?

Back to Aliff. He’s thriving well. He eats almost anything. He is very adventurous in food tasting. He’ll taste whatever is in front of him, and if he dislikes it, he’ll spit it out. I remember with Ashraff, how he dislikes food so much at Aliff’s age, we have to force him to eat..and once the food is inside he’s mouth, he’ll immediately throw it out. We ended up having to bathe him as he vomitted lots of times. Gosh…those were the days.

Aliff, just like his brother, loves Ultraman. He’ll go “Hayak! Hayak!” all the way, complete with action and what not. Just like Ashraff, he can also follow in the tune of Ultraman’s song..altho his was a “pelat” version.

Talking about pelat, this boy is pelat babe! Boleh tahan pekat jugak. Sometimes tak faham satu hapah pun yang dia cakap. But he talks a lot. I remember Ashraff having very limited vocab at this age, but Aliff, he can construct sentences at this age. He can even ask “Ibu buat apa?”. And everyone will love him like hell whenever he said “Hi Ibu!” or “Hi Ayah!” with that big cheeky smile on his face. That smile yang sangat mahal as he doesn’t smile a lot. He doesn’t laugh as much and as loud as Ashraff either. Oklah maybe Ashraff is a bit too loud and extreme..be it laughing or crying…hahaha. With Aliff, if he laughs once in a blue moon, it is infectious. Everyone will laugh with him. He has that chubby cheeks yang memang sedap untuk dicium..altho unlike Ashraff, he hates to be kissed. Ashraff is kissable and huggable. Ashraff loves to rub nose with me, something that I did since he was small. With Aliff, he hates it!

Now Aliff, as compared to Ashraff, is pretty hard to teach dual language. Ashraff at this age can use both Malay and English interchangeably. But Aliff, if he associates an object with a word, he refused to associate the same object with another word i.e. another language. He’ll usually follow the first word that we teached him. If it’s Malay, then it’s going to be forever the Malay word. Contoh macam “buku”, is forever going to be “buku” (so far) and mata is always “mata”. We tried to teach him to say “book” or “eyes” but he refused to budge. Dia akan cakap “mata, mata mata” or “buku, buku, buku”je. But if the introductory word is English, so English it is. “Lizard” and “Cat” are some of the words that he’ll say in English. He’ll never say ‘cicak’ or ‘kucing’. So spending most of his times with bibik, u can guess lah bahasa apa yang dia mostly cakap…yup, Malay with Indon slang. Damn!

In this area, I usually seek for Ashraff’s help. I told him to speak English with Aliff. So at times I overheard him speak to Aliff “Talk in English, Aliff. Not “dua”, but “two”.

This may be my instinct as a mother, but maybe Aliff is not of a linguistic person like Ashraff. Instead he is very good with his hands. He can open almost any packaging, no matter how tightly sealed the packaging was. Patience is his virtue. He can sit for hours dismantling stuffs and constructing things. Ashraff has never had that kind of patience. Kalau suruh buat tu semuanya “Ashraff tak pandai bukak. Ashraff kan kecik lagi”. *Roll eyes..roll eyes* But, you see, having kid which is good with his hands at Aliff’s age, lots of stuffs are destroyed. Bedak berterabur, air dalam botol tumpah, minyak masak baru beli sikit lagi nak tumpah..eh banyaklah kejadian yang catatrophic berlaku…hehe…

Now about teeth..hmmm…I can’t tell how many teeth he actually got but what I can see is only 8 teeth. Maybe he has few gigi geraham at the back, but I can’t really see. Asking him to open his small and pouty lips is a major dreadful thing to do. He’ll throw tantrum for sure.

About taking medicine, gosh with Aliff, susahnya nak bagi makan ubat! Ashraff senang sangat! Bukak mulut, terus telan. Takde nangis, takde jerit. With Aliff, susahnya! Menjerit2 macam kena pukul. And he’ll gurgle the medicine, refuse to swallow and sembur balik kat muka kita. Bengang ok! Yang peliknya, bila kita tekan hidung dia, tak jugak dia telan ubat tu. Nasib baiklah dia jarang sakit.

Now about TV time. Just when I thought I’ve passed that The-TV-is-Mine-24/7 stage with Ashraff, Aliff is now entering the same stage. Rasanya baru 6 bulan I berjaya negotiate with Ashraff on TV time. Tiba-tiba sekarang I have to berebut dengan Aliff pulak. There were few times, he was mad when I switched off the DVD player and turned on my program. And I’m expecting that kind of behaviour to be intensified in a few months time. Looks like I could never watch my program with the kids around.

Emmm…I guess that’s all about the boys.

Wow, finally I’ve updated about them. I’m glad.

As for me pal, I’m a very busy woman. Office work is hell! I’ve applied for transfer. Tengoklah kalau ada rezeki, maybe I can be transferred to a lesser busy department. Or at least, a department where I don’t have to deal with external clients. Babe, tak larat melayan kerenah client ni…And oh, guess what, 3 pregnant ladies in this department have now miscarriaged. Yang sedang mencuba pulak, tak melekat2. Must be the stress. I have to do something…kalau boleh, taknaklah stop at 2. I want baby no 3, babe..Hoping for a girl:)

Sports' Day, Old School and such.

The last time I updated the blog was one month ago. That’s a looong time, isn’t it? Not that I don’t have any juicy stories to update, but I have lost the appetite to blog, mainly due to my tight schedule, both office work and CMOG. Alternately, the boys often fell sick – fever, bad cough and flu. Ashraff has been suffering from runny nose and bad cough which only can be cured by antibiotics every now and then. Aliff, if he’s not strong enough, will follow suit. If u r a parent yourself, you will know how tiring it is to care for the sick. Thus, if you happened to feel that I’m slimmer than the last time you saw me, then this may be the major cause.

Anyway, here are few events that took place since my last entry:-

30th April – Ashraff’s Sports’ Day.

It was his first sports event. He entered 4 games – letak beanbag atas kepala, bawak toys dalam pinggan, masukkan bola dalam bakul and lari dalam gelung. I guess being the first sports’ day and merely entering 4 yrs old, he still could not grasp the concept of sports and its spirit. For him, all that matters is to complete the task as perfect as possible without considering the speed. It was so funny whereby in one event he actually walked and then turn back half-way down the road. I guess he must have hate that event.

There’s also parent-child games. And one game was a blow for me, where I fell down, bringing Ashraff down as well. I had to run carrying Ashraff, and towards the end of the line, I lost my balance. Ashraff was badly hit on his head. It was an embarrassing moment for me. I felt like I was labeled as “The Mom who fell down” the entire day. And guess what? Just to make my day, hubby caught the entire scene on video tape. Geee…

17th – 19th May – Branch’s Family Day.

My former branch had a family day in which we joined in the fun. This time around it was at Sutera Beach Resort, Kuala Terengganu. I simply love the resort. Nice and serene…and I love the swimming pool. It’s as green as the nearby ocean.

The holiday is not so much of relaxing and lazing around holiday, whereby you can put your legs up and read, swim, eat and sleep comfortably. But instead, me and hubby thought we were one of the contestants of Amazing Race. We were running around the hotel, in the room, at the beach, in the restaurant. Apa lagi kalau bukan kejar mamat Aliff. Thank God Ashraff is big enough to stay at one spot (or follow us kejar Aliff).

Ibu masuk sukaneka..bawak bola pingpong dalam sudu...

...while the kids were having fun playing the sand.

A visit to KT also provides me the opportunity to visit my former school, MRSM KT. I did visit it last year but I noticed I did not upload any pix in my blog. Shall do it this time around. KT is far reaching for me, so I wouldn’t know when I shall visit it again. So here it is…after 14 years leaving the school.

23rd May – Abah’s 65th Birthday Celebration

Abah has turned 65 this year! But Alhamdulillah, he’s still strong and steady..and still energetic considering his age. Mak and Abah enjoy their retirement age very much. They just returned from Istanbul, and next month they are going to Langkawi and in July, off to Terengganu. A jet-setter, that’s what they are. Wish me and hubby could be like them in my golden age.

I guess that’s all from me at this moment. Oh yeah, just want to share with you the simple gift I made for Ashraff’s teachers in conjuction with 2008 Teachers’ Day. I was busy fulfilling orders for Teachers’ Day celebration of one Islamic Private School, when Ashraff insisted I did the same for his teacher..and he specifically mentioned which teacher he wanted to give the gift too. So, just like the order I received, I did the same for Ashraff’s teachers…

A personalized paper bag filled with candies.

An update from moi

If u happened to pass by my house and saw a big bird better known as peacock, trust me, you are not hallucinating. What you saw is real! Yup, yup. Our neighbour keeps peacock as pet and when he is not at his house (probably going for a holiday or balik kampung) the cage is left opened so that the birds could find their own food.

But I have to tell you, it is such a troublesome for us. One, the bird makes such a loud noise which irritates our ears especially in the middle of the night. And two, it’s faeces really stinks!!

For the past two weeks (or more), the birds have been making lots of noise. I’m just wondering where the hell did my neighbour went and when is he coming back. Poor animal! They must be starving to death…coz to tell you the truth, I do not have the clue what these peacocks have for meal.

Anyway, it’s been a long while since I post an entry. I’m kinda free but I just lost the appetite to blog, since nothing extraordinary happens in my life lately except the fact that my hubby has returned from China & HK and bought us lots of goodies.

Well, about work, I have a not-so-good news which I think and assume will cause me lots of headaches in the future. The bank is under restructuring (again) and this time those in branches are badly affected. Officers in branches are required to do everything! I mean, from entertaining walk-in enquiry about our products until settlement of debt. This involves lots and lots of work including marketing, preparing credit proposal, disbursement, monitoring of loans and credit control. A one-man show. I suffered the same scenario few years back in my old bank and those were the worst two years of my working life. And now, I have to face it again.

I guess I have to take a long leave and do some soul searching. I seriously considering updating my resume and apply for a new job. Any job opening, anyone? Can someone who has almost 8 years of banking experience get out from this industry and enters a completely new industry?

Hmmm…after a long tiring day of work, the only thing that makes me happy is seeing my two boys greeting me everytime I return from work…

That is if they are not up to some good fight or throwing tantrums…

Taking about tantrum, manage to capture a ‘nice’ photo of Aliff in one of his meltdowns in the ever-crowded KLCC. We manage to attract lots of attention..hahaha…

News alert, everybody! I've updated my other window...do check it out!

Look who can doodle now!

Scribble..scribble...This is fun!

Opps...the pen slips. I'm still learning how to hold it properly...just like Abang.

Got it! Doodle, doodle...

More scribbling...scribble, scribble...

Ok, time's up. Time to tear the papers to small pieces. That's the end of my doodling adventure.

An intimate issue

This is something personal...something intimate that at first I don't think I want to blog about it (esp knowing the fact that this blog can be assessed by almost anybody)

But when I re-think about it, I know I have to record it somewhere because it is something significant in my life. Something which I have not encountered for the last two years plus.

It is something called "The Menses"....hehehe...

Yup, I got it last Sunday (30/3/2008 to be exact) after two years. Seriously I was shocked! I was still 90% breastfeeding Aliff. So it was something unexpected. I thought I was pregnant because it feels like it. I was telling hubby the day before that I want to have a pregnancy test. Tengok-tengok the very next day, the direct opposite show up. It's like the first time having it. Thank God, I have the stock in place, or else, I'll be in lot of trouble..hahaha..

But I'm glad it has finally decided to show up. So now, I can plan my next pregnancy..hehehe...
Kalau tak, main agak2 je..hahaha.

Missing him!

Hubby is currently in China. He has been there for almost two weeks. This shall be the longest outstation trip so far, which is about one month.

Or 3 1/2 weeks to be exact.

Oh, when u named it as "week" instead of "month" it sounds and feels better. Sounds shorter and more bearable.

The family misses him. Especially dear Ashraff. At first, he kept on asking "where's Ayah?" And I have to tell him again and again that Ayah is working in China. And then, everytime he hears the clicking sound of the hubby's car, he will ask "Siapa tu?". From the look on his face, he wanted it so much that the answer is "Ayah", thus when the answer is the opposite, he looked dissappointed. In the first few days after Hubby left, Ashraff had problem dozing off. I asked him "Ashraff rindu kat ayah ke?". Dia cakap "A'ah." "Ashraff tak boleh tidur sebab ingat ayah ke?" "A'ah." I almost cried.

You see, Ashraff is closer to his Ayah when I got Aliff. Dia rasa diri dia macam hilang tempat bergantung when Aliff was born, so he turned to Hubby for love and affection. From there on, it's always Ayah this and that. Ayah tidurkan dia. Ayah buat susu dia. Ayah tukar baju dia.

So when Ayah goes outstation, inilah jadinya. Cuma this time around, it's a bit too long. Ashraff pun demam. Maybe sebab kerinduan, maybe jugak sebab the weather. But he's recovering well.

Oh, Hubby might be reading this blog in China, so I don't want to worry him too much, coz I know he misses us as well there. And I'm sure he is counting days to see us. Betol tak, Hubby dearie?

As for myself, I took this chance as a golden opportunity to be independent. To build up the courage and knowledge to take up Hubby's role in his absence. After all, like what Hubby always said, this action is called "Risk Management" - managing risk in your life, coz you can't tell what's going to happen in the future. It feels great whenever I accomplished something that I've never done before - something which I always depend on Hubby or my father to do it. But that does not mean I do not miss Hubby. Obviously, I do. Very much. So don't worry ok hubs?

Ok now, it's time to go back home...so long....

Election '08

Never give a damn about politics. Never care to find out who wins what seat. Never know the importance of an ADUN to represent the people. That is how ignorance I was to the Malaysian politics. But that was before. This year the battle is so interesting that it keeps me awake all night just to see the outcome of Election 2008.

The result was outrageous and against the norm. Even the most predictable thing like 100% win for blue-and-white “dacing” people in the state down-under proves to be wrong.

It has to be the worst record ever documented in the history of the “dacing” party. No doubt in the last 5 decades, they have done their level best in taking up the role of the government. But in this 12-th general election, they have taken the wrong tactics in winning the people’s heart. Arrogance has pulled them down. Overexposure in the mainstream media has made the voters, especially urban voters, very angry. Not to mention their policies and decisions that affect the bread-and-butter of the citizens. It reflects the unfairness in Malaysian politics..and err..corruption. Well, let’s not delve into the latter here coz that’s one hot and sensitive issue to discuss.

The ‘dacing’ people has to learn from the cue given by the people and improve from there on. They might have been in their comfort seats all this while, so to learn that what happened is actually resulted from themselves, must be something hard to do. Personally, I would say that the result is derived from “vote of no confidence” to the government, and not because the people has sided the opposition. So if the “dacing” can replant the confidence in its people, I am sure they can make amend the whole situation.

All in all, they are still choosen as the government. I have nothing against it. But now, we have a balanced parliament, with the opposition taken more than 1/3 of the seats. Thus, decision making is not as easy as before. Persidangan pun takdelah macam meeting kawan-kawan. I love the fact that there is a check and balance in Malaysian politics. I hope with this, our rights and say are heard, and anticipates this to be the best for us Malaysian citizens.

If it proves to be wrong, than we could rectify this problem in the 13th General Election.

The Fear in Me

The only time I listen to the radio is in the car. My favourite time of the day is in the morning, on the way to the office and usually we tune in to the Light FM. They will have this section called “Plug the hole”, followed by traffic update, and then the news and some financial tips in “Smart Money”. Later, the radio announcers will come out with a topic for discussion, and listeners got to call in to give their views.

There’s one morning when the announcer listed down some of celebrities’ greatest fears – e.g. Justin Timberlake is scared of snakes and tigers (who doesn’t?) and Carmen Electra is afraid of water (what is she doing starring in Baywatch if she’s scared of water?). Then the announcers opened up the line for callers with a question “What is your greatest fear in life?”

My answer will be “Death”.
Poyonya lah jawapan…semua orang takut mati.
But yeah, I’m indeed scared of the “D” word.
Not so much of me dying and died. But my loved ones’ death - being separated permanently from my loved ones.

There is too much tragedy being reported in the news – accidents involved family members, kids gone missing etc – that makes me thinking “What if I’m in their shoes? What would I feel? How do I cope with that kind of situation?”

Almost everyday, May Abah will send us to work up to the front gate (followed by their prayers). Lately, whenever I saw them bid us farewell, I always have this thought “One day, they’ll leave me for good. Can I leave without them around?” It gives me a shudder everytime I think of it.

For instance, what if Mak is no longer around? Eventhough I’m married, I still very much depended on her…for words of wisdom, for motivation, for hugs and kisses coz no one understands me better than Mak. Ashraff is also fond of his Tok Mak. I still remember when Mak when for Umrah and he asked me to draw Ultraman. Seriously, I’m bad at drawing so the comment I got from Ashraff was “Ibu tak pandai draw Ultraman. Tok Mak je pandai.” Well boy, Tok Mak is not going to be forever with us you know. I guess that’s one of the reasons we want to move to our new house – so that my kids do not depend too much on their grandparents and will be heart-broken once they are gone.

And Abah. Though we always argue (sebab dua-dua panas baran and dua-dua nak menang), I still can’t imagine my life without him. The ever supportive father I've known. The wise one. The leader in the family who navigates the family well. He has that cheeky smile (which Ashraff got it from) which I know I’ll miss seeing once he is no longer around.

And then there is Hubby. He only enters my life 5 years ago, but to be separated permanently from him by way of death, is something unbearable and far-reaching. Living a life of a single parent is full of hardship – financially, emotionally and physically. I can get a glimpse of it whenever Hubby went for work outstation, and even in that temporary situation, I could not stand of not seeing and having him around.

Another one will be my mother-in-law. Although I could not feel her presence everyday (as she lives far away), but it still does not stop me from thinking – what is the impact on my life if she’s not around? Of course, it will affect hubby emotionally and that alone will have indirect impact on me. And then, Hubby being the eldest, and moi the eldest daughter-in-law, I know I have to take up the role of “Kak Long” in the family – handling all the family’s major affair, raya, wedding, kenduri – when MIL is no longer around. That will be one hell of a major task for someone who’s not use to that position.

And then there is my two angels – Ashraff and Aliff. What if Allah decided to take them away from me? Meaning which, I witness the day when they were born till the day they die. Omigod! People will usually express their sympathy whenever a baby is still born, or died few hours after birth. Yup, memang sedih. But for me, it will be more depressing should your child err..died..when they are bigger. The longer they are in our lives, the harder it is to be separated from them. A lot more good memories with them.

I don’t know. Maybe I think too much about something that you can’t measure presently. Something that won’t take you anywhere. But hey, am I the only one? Have you given a thought about this?

Their individual soul

I've been drafting this post everyday for the last one week. Can't find time to do it one shot. Apart from that, I've somesort of mental blogging with lots and lots of things I want to blog about...if and only if I got the time.

Anyway, after reading my previous post, I really think it’s fair for me to blog about my two tykes individually (can't get enough of them), so that as I look back at this entry in the years to come, I would know their development as at this date. Those previous phases that shall pass and never could be re-visited. So, here goes…

Ashraff

What I would like to remember about him as at todate is his schooling days and the effect on him as a person. You see, Ashraff’s day care giver is his grandparents and our maid, and he’s confined in a familiar surrounding all the time, which is our house. He doesn’t have a schedule to begin with. He can wake up anytime he wants, sleep and eat whenever and whatever he wants, demand unnecessary stuff and most of the times succeeded because either Tok Mak or Tok Abah will get it for him. His life was never regulated. It’s him and only his words count. Pretty hard to bend “his rule”, especially with the short temperament that he got.

Thus, going to school every day was not a smooth journey to start with. The first two days was okay, just as per my previous entry. But after that, it was tough to make him go to school, and it wasn’t me who has to bear it everyday. It was my mother and father (and my maid).

Not every grandparent has the strong heart to do so, especially when grandchildren are concerned. But alhamdulillah, in this situation, Mak was different. She’ll make sure Ashraff goes to school everyday. Nangis pun nangislah. She’ll still force him to go.

Due to tahap mogok yang agak kritikal, Ashraff refused to cooperate in class. How did we find out? From Ashraff himself. He told us, “Semua orang nyanyi, Ashraff sorang je tak nyanyi.” And everytime we asked him what song or what alphabet/number he learns in school, he’ll give us the same answer everyday – “tak tahu.” And as told earlier, Ashraff kept on refraining himself from peeing in school.

I am worried that this situation will continue, so all I could do is pray. And alhamdulillah, my prayer was answered when after more than one week of crying, he suddenly change to a better person. He is eager and excited to go to school. He’ll wake up on his own and ever willing to change to his school uniform. He has started doing his ‘business’ at school so he now wears no diaper to school.

He has started to sing to us all the songs he learns at school together with the action. He now knows how to differentiate between a boy and a girl, and knows what every colour at the traffic light means. Something which we never have the time to teach him before.

At times there was a sudden gush of “saya” dan “awak” when he was talking to Aliff. It sounds weird and funny, but I guess that indicates the way he communicates with his friends at school. I know that his social skills improves when he starts mentioning some of his friends’ names – John, Girish, Haziq and Farhan – when he talks about school.
“Takde girl ke?”
“Ashraff kan boy. Ashraff kawan dengan boy je lah,” he answered nonchalantly.

I also noticed some positive change in the discipline department. It is easier to negotiate with him now. He suits well with the “Time-Out” method, whereby if he makes one mistake or refuse to follow instruction, I’ll ask him to stand at one corner until he feels sorry for what he did. I tried that before with him but it didn’t work out. He also knows how to keep his toys back to where it belongs if we asked him to. And also make sure that his shoes are put at its designated area whenever he takes it off. Takdelah buat kepala degil dia macam dulu.

He also shows sudden sign of empathy. Like the other day, I fell down right in the middle of a crowd in Danga Bay, Johor. Sakit dan malu. But it was all wiped away when Ashraff asked me “Are you okay?” It caught me at suprise and I almost cried. Sebelum ni, dia akan buat dek je when I’m in pain. Then, I can see that he asked similar question to Aliff whenever he sees Aliff in pain.

Having a conversation with him is a lot of fun. He can argue with you now. And he can asked you lots and lots of questions yang cukup menguji kepintaran ku sebagai seorang dewasa. He amazes me with his knowledge and also his extensive vocabulary, both Malay and English. Gone were the days when we have to force him to sleep. Now he can just doze off anytime he wants to…with ease. I guess going to school tires him down.

One thing about Ashraff that I noticed, he is good when it comes to music. He appreciates music. He can catch the rhythm of a song in flash, and later memorize its lyrics, be it in English, Malay or Japanese (ni kes lagu Ultraman, Shuriken School, Ninja Boy etc). At one time, he took his piggy bank full of coins, and jiggled that thing to a familiar rhythm. I volunteered to become the singer, so both of us became a mother & son duo for the night. I don’t know whether this is good or not, but I definitely oppose to the notion of him becoming a singer.

Ashraff is a big boy already..and he seems to grow and mature overnight. I guess sending him to school really helps to discipline and teach him to become independent. Then again, he still acts as any 3 1/2 year old will do. He still throws tantrums occasionally. He still fights with Aliff. And he still could not share some of his toys. He is also still on bottle. I still have no idea how to wean him. But as at now, it is not a major concern.

Now I have to deal with another toddler in the making..and his name is Aliff.

Aliff

Oh where do I start? Too many things to update. I think I better do it in point form.

• Tantrums, tantrums, tantrums. My 15 month old boy can definitely express his dissatisfaction by whining, screaming dan menghempaskan badannya ke lantai seperti ikan atas darat. I’m still finding ways on how to handle his tantrums. The “Distraction Tactic” which works well with Ashraff, does not work effectively with Aliff. He is very focus, I may say. If he wants that thing, it’s only that and nothing else.




• At the age of 15 month, Aliff knows how to hold pencil/pen perfectly like any adults do. I think he must have got it from his brother. And just like Ashraff, he also loves to scribble, and I’m trying to make sure he does that only on paper.




• He can also dance to any tune, but his dance is funny. It’s more of like marching, rather than dancing.




• His vocabulary is wide, compared to his brother at this age. The thing about Aliff he loves to imitate the word that comes out from anyone’s mouth, esp his brother’s. And dia jenis main hentam je. So he’s quite “pelat”. Unlike him, Ashraff is a perfectionist. If he can’t utter the word perfectly, he’ll not say it at all. So that’s why he’s slower when it comes to talking, but when he does, it was perfect. Some of Aliff’s vocab as at todate:-

Cat
Dog
Bird
Ball
Bu – Ibu
Bibik
Abah – Tok Abah
Nak –Hendak
Nanak – Tak nak (Ashraff dulu mat salleh sikit sebab dia cakap “No”)
Chuchu – susu (bottle/breastfeed)
Bukak
Tutup
Amik – Ambik
Abang
Pyman – Spiderman
Donald Duck (perfect! But got mix up with Mickey Mouse)
Shek – Shrek
Onkey – Donkey
Wabbit – Rabbit
Car
Tetit – Sakit
Akut – Takut
Banak – Banyak
Num – Minum
Atuh – Jatuh
Tekan – (suruh kita tekan suis bukak lampu)
Baby
Bayee – Barney

I think banyak lagi but tu je yang I can recall as at now.

• He hates formula. So I still have to pump in the office. My BM is running low, so he has to be supplemented. My maid uses a cup and straw to make him drink formula. He’ll take a little.




• Gigi? I tak tahu berapa batang yang dah ada. It’s pretty hard to see how much teeth he’s got with his small pouting lips. And he refused to let us open his mouth to see his teeth. But from a quick glimpse, I think he has about 8 teeth. Pretty slow in this department, I think.




• He’s still a restless sleeper. He’ll wake up few times at night. Thank God I’m breastfeeding, so I don’t really mind at all. Cuma when he’s teething, he’ll become more restless, and will wake up almost every hour. Menguji kesabaran di situ.




• So far, alhamdulillah, dia payah nak menjangkit bila the whole house sakit, and shall recover fast should he’s sick. Ashraff pun dulu macam tu jugak. Seldom sakit masa kecik, but now, almost every two weeks selsema. I think if you don’t build the antibody when you’re smaller (i.e sakit will build antibody), you’re bound to kerap sakit as u gets bigger. I hope Aliff has stronger antibody.

Ok, hubby is here. Gotta go. Till my next post, taaa....