Spending time with the kids

Taekwondo

This hols, day in day out its about taekwondo. Mia had to take the advantage of the hols to perfect her grading steps and to keep fit, as she plans to go for her grading next February. Nanti bila balik college, she would have problems going for training, so the most she can do is only to train on her own.

Since the training centre is a bit far from home, alang2 dah hantar Mia, I might as well hantar the 3 kids also, although not as often as Mia. Anastassia for the 1st time went for senior class, risau jugak because she wear specs..... and since senior class is a bit rough..... but suprise, suprise.... boleh tahan jugak budak ni.... not as good as Mia, but taklah lembik.... hehe.....

Puteri loves it so much with the increased trainings, but Zaryff would make a big deal out of it..... tapi yg herannya, bila dah kat centre, enjoy sakan pulak si Zaryff ni..... nasib baik dia kecik lagi, if not mesti dah kena tegur with the Sirs.....

Mia and Puteri waiting for food lepas taekwondo... masing-masing dah lapar.....

This picture is funny..... while Mia, Puteri and Zaryff were posing at the parking area, you can see Anastassia in the background, walking up the stairs nak masuk Condo.....

Chess

On Sundays, both Puteri and Zaryff would go for their chess class..... I have yet to meet up with the person who teaches them, maybe next week boleh la kut. But it seems that Zaryff is good at planning a good strategy, a skill that can be developed further, kira ada special bakatla kut. However, dia still kalah bila lawan Puteri..... hehe. The chinese teacher, who drives 50km weekly to give chess lessons is a master at chess it seems, selalu menang competitions. His passion in chess is visible, yela, he gives free lessons tau!!!

Puteri and Zaryff during the last Raya.

Last August - Zaryff won 1st Prize in the Pakaian Beragam Hari Kemerdekaan Competition

Dah lama ceta ni.... tak apa, kan.....

I got a last minute call from Zaryff's teacher, wanting Zaryff to enter the Pakaian Beragam Competition. "When would that be?" I asked the teacher. "Tomorow la, Puan" the teacher said. ALAMAK!!!!

But as to me, the first thing that came to my mind was, how this experience will build Zaryff's self confidence, I said ok ajela... And at 3:30pm duk panic memikirkan how to dress him up.

Zaryff most right, buat catwalk..... hehe, kelakar tengok abang2 prefects tahun 6 dok ajar before the event....

Sorry la gambar2nya tak elok. Zaryff standing in the centre selepas terima hadiah. The man behind him is the headmaster.


My boboy posing before going to school. Actually dia tengah tension sebab pergi sekolah tak pakai baju sekolah and kasut sekolah.... hehe. Hari tu mama dia bekalkan dia semangat, selain dari bekalkan roti dan air.... hehe....

Anastassia's School Trip to Penang

Last week was Anastassia's school trip to Penang.

They started their journey early Tuesday morning, and it got me worried as it was drizzling. Yela, naik bas untuk jalan jauh satu hal.... wet and slipepry roads is another thing. The wheather sort of put the kids in a solemn mood, and I didnt take any pictures because semua orang macam boring jer.....

But I was told that they became hyper the minute they boarded the bus..... hehe...

Actually std 5 students were supposed to go to Malacca. But Anastassia was one of the "privileged ten', a teacher said - 10 std 5 students, all prefects were chosen to join the std 6 girls for a 3-day trip to Penang.....

Anastassia is the second from the right, with her fellow classmates.

Anastassia enjoying the sea breeze with her friends.

The girls getting ready to hit the sack at Grand Continental Hotel in Penang.

Last day of school

Anastassia bidding farewell to a std 6 friend. Tengokla baju putih budak tu, habis kena coreng.... hehe

Anastassia together with some of her good buddies.....

"Anastassia....." I called her.

"You called me, Mama?" she asked.

"Have you done your tuition homework?" I asked, entering the study room.

"Ala, mama.... petang nanti la...." Anastassia merengek.

"La.... tak buat lagi ke..... " I sighed. "UPSR tahun depan tau..." I reminded her.

"Petang nanti, kita janji ok........ kita online ni....." Anastassia looking at me with those hopeful eyes of hers.

Mmm..... my Anastassia will always be the Anastassia that she is...... my hope is that she studies hard and give her all for her UPSR next year. I know she can...... its just whether she wants to or not. So far she has improved later in the year. And I have to make sure that she keeps that momentum.

Before penning off, just want to share here how much Anastassia has helped me at home, now that I'm maidless. She knows what to do, what is expected of her. Thanks kerana ringankan sikit beban mama. It means a lot to me to know that I can depend on you.....

Puteri's School Trip

Puteri had her school trip yesterday. For Pra-sekolah to std 3 students, after taking into account the concerns of parents, the school decided that their trip will be in the city only. (Originally, the trip was supposed to be to Malacca)

Yesterday was the trip for std 1's and std 2's only. The bus left the school compound at about 8:30am and we were supposed to fetch them at 3pm.

The minute we went in the school gate, a loud chanting was heard "Puteri!!!!", "Puteri!!!!", "Puteri!!!!" Apparently, Puteri's friends saw us and was jumping up and down calling her to come over. I can see Puteri blushing from all the attention. (yele, semua budak2 lain and mak2 budak dok toleh tengok Puteri)

They visited the Museum, a yogurt drink factory, among others....

Puteri standing at where she lines up everyday - 2D (2 Delima)

Puteri with her good friend.

Puteri, most left with her classmates.

She was one happy kid that day.................

Bersyukur sangat-sangat.................

Life has been treating me well lately. Syukur Alhamdulillah..........

Last Wednesday was the Hari Anugerah Cemerlang. Puteri was in the highlight and she was beaming ear to ear. (Mak dia pun sama la tu..... hehe) However, what came next was really a suprise. At the end of the ceremony, as usual, the school will anonounce Pelajar Cemerlang 2007 and other Cemerlang Kategories. Memang this is the highlight of the Ceremony la.....

It was a sweet suprise to know that Anastassia won the Anugerah Koko Cemerlang 2007 ..... I didnt even know that she was in the running!

Al in all, Puteri received 3 story books and 3 vouchers worth RM42. Boleh redeemla kat book store nanti. Anastassia pulak dapat certificate and a 12 inch trophy...... punyala besar trophy tu.... hehe (Mia pun ada dapat the same Anugerah and trophy but Mia got it masa std 6)

On Friday, there was another unexpected suprise. Remember in my last entry that I have a short term target for Anastassia? Well, she got called on Friday and its now 80% comfirmed that she's going to meet that target. Tapi ada lagi 20% to work on..... I hope she'll be able to make it.

UPSR results are already out. I was at the school to hear the annoucement. Results sekolah the girls sama macam last year. Although it is still good, we were a bit disappointed as our target of 105 was not met. Yang kelakarnya, last year when Mia received her results, I tak menangis pun, just air mata tu mengenang ajer. But this year, entah kenapa I cried. Sedih tengok girls yg menangis2 atas kejayaaan mereka... dan sedih tengok those yang hampa dan menangis teresak2 keraba sedih .... As usual the reporters were there too..... click sini, click sana.....

Sekolah Zaryff dropped this year to 48 students yg dapat 5A. I hope the school will do something about it to be ready for my Zaryff to take the exam..... hehe.....

I am so happy!!

Finally, exam results are out.

As expected Puteri got no 1 in class and in aliran. Her position in school for all 4 exams (March, May, Aug and Oct 2007), maintained at no 3, the same spot as in last yr. (She's quite dissapointed, and does not want to answer my calls) She is also the top malay student for std 2. Helena tau, dia frust because she aims no 1, tapi her Aug marks yg bawak total marks dia turun.

She's gonna get 3 awards this Wednesday, one for class, one for aliran and also best subject - BM. (bab ni pun dia marah sbb dia nak best subject for Science, tapi she got 88+100+100+99 for science, so yg 88 tu yg bawak turun tu)

Anastassia wont be getting any awards as predicted, but I'm very happy because after TURUN MENJUNAM in May, she's improving a lot. (Anastassia's results la yg paling critical among the 4 kids) Esp in the finals, which she got no 12. Tak apa I tell her, tahun depan ada lagi for her to put herself at the top 5 spot, macam dulu2.

Zaryff's result came out last week. Merosot from no 5 to no 9 in class, and aliran from no 8 to no 18. I lectured him for 2 mins (buat syarat), dia nangis (mengada) sbb tak pernah kene lecture, then mintak hadiah sebab science marks dia improved. Haha.

Mia punya response lagi best.

"Mama, you want to hear the good news first or the bad news first?"

mmm.... well.... no comments but siapla during the hols...... hehe

Mia spent the last 2 weeks of schooling singing for Farewells Gatherings (for 5th formers and year end activities) .... siap menang "Best Performance" pulak tu during School Concert last Friday. Tomorrow pulak ada cheerleading competition.

All in all, I'm happy, walaupun ada yg merosot, tapi to tell u the truth, Anastassia's improvements yg make me smile ......


This morning, I woke up with short-term targets for 2008. Takyah share dulu la.... I hope by April 2008, I can share the happy announcements for both Mia and Anastassia..... If they can achieve it, syukur.... if not, takde rezeki..... janji everyone has tried their best, esp me, in supporting them throughout. (ooo in case u're wondering, this is not academic related)

Helena is out! (ikut style Anastassia kat friendster dia.... :D)

The month of November

November started with the School Concert at the girl's school.

Anastassia acted in an English Drama titled Cinderella Revisited, dia jadi Prince. Pandai jugak budak ni berlakon..... She is also in the Choral Speaking. Unfortunately, Puteri's Choral Speaking in Arabic had been cancelled due to limited time. Frust dia, but then cikgu dia kata masa Anugerah Cemerlang nanti mereka akan perform.....

The concert was a success. Walaupun concert berbayar tapi memang berbaloi la.... everyone had fun. Parents came in droves, with atok and nenek tagging along. On the same day, there was an art demo, whereby 3-4 selected students akan duduk kat bilik Pameran Seni and melukis the whole day. Apa yang dilukis akan dijual and the kids akan dapat hasil jualan tu fully.

Anastassia was chosen to become the artist but due to her involvement with the drama, she only managed to finish one abstrak painting. The painting was later bought by a parent for RM35. Anastassia yg mula2 frust sebab tak dapat join kawan2 dia melukis, merasa a bit excited to receive cash money for a painting that she did. The parent told the teacher that she plans to have it framed.

On Saturday, Anastassia masuk bowling competition..... she has improved a bit but of course tak boleh lawan the pros..... I am now thinking of sending Zaryff and Puteri for basic bowling lessons....

After the bowling tourney, got a call from Sir (Taekwondo) that Puteri can go for grading again this month. What??? 3 gradings in a year is unheard of..... mmm.... is this another Mia in the making..... I asked Sir, tak cepat sangat ke.... esp knowing Sir, who unlike other Sirs, tak suka kasi kids grading cepat2..... Sir kata, Puteri is ready, she's a Super Girl..... (hmm.... macam tu ke...)

On Sunday, as I was packing Zaryff's school bag, I saw a yellow letter addressed to parents. Bertuah betul budak ni, dia simpan aje. Apparently Persatuan Renang Negeri nak buat ujibakat on Saturday - 3 Nov (dah lepas....). Although I have yet to decide whether I would want the kids to join the State Swim training, there's nothing wrong in just participating and see how my kids fare compared to other swimmers right?

After the call I made to comfirm Zaryff and Sabrina's chess class schedule (Zaryff hari2 merengek nak pergi chess class), Helena pikir.... mmm.... boleh ke I handle semua ni???? (Kids boleh handle for sure, esp cuti sekolah ni. )

Hi there!

Wow...... lamanya dah tak update blog ni.... I didnt even have the chance to wish you all Selamat Hari Raya...... and Maaf Zahir Batin....... Its still not too late eh?

So pada semua rakan bloggers. Helena ucapkan Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri, Maaf Zahir Batin jika ada yang terkasar bahasa dan terlepas kata.....


What shud I write? There are many things to share.... from Raya preparations, the Raya itself, how the kids raya sakan, zafry's pool party on the 4th of raya, kids preparing their exams during puasa and after raya....... the results...... our dear angkasawan who just came back yesterday.....

mmm................

I was very very busy during puasa month, hence the loooooonnnnnngg silence. On top of that, I was trying very hard to prepare the kids for the final exams which was held a week before Raya. Kesiannya pulak tengok they all melepek and tak larat nak baca buku after buka puasa. Bila Helena tengok Anastassia lebih cergas selepas sahur, I changed her belajar time after sahur everyday.

However, the mission for the kids to study didnt go as well as planned. Sob... Sob...

Results are out, cant really say much about Anastassia, total marks improved tapi tak tau her position in aliran yet, itu yg critical tu..... Puteri as usual scored highest in every paper...... Zaryff's marks are not that good, his teacher said that since the papers are tough, budak2 tak dapat score.... mmm entahla... or maybe the teacher is just trying to be nice.... nantila tunggu dia dapat no brapa kali ni.

The current topic for the girls sekarang ni adalah school trip. The girls school menang Anugerah Cemerlang Kebangsaan, syukur...... after 3 years of hard work trying to grab that trophy. Zaryf's school also represented the State but since this is their 1st attempt.... ofcourse la tak menang.....

One of the prizes is the hadiah lawatan murid = RM100K. So semua students from Pra-Sekolah to Tahun 6 dapat pergi lawatan....... everything FOC. The kids are looking forward to it.

Zaryff's school was also in the news several times this month, tapi bec of our angkasawan. Zaryff was frustrated as his picture tak terselit kat gambar dalam paper tu..... hehe.... i told him, next time try to stand near your Guru Besar.....

Zaryff turned 8 on October 16, the 4th day of Hari Raya. We had our Open House on that day at the Villa, and petang tu buat a pool party...... The kids had a blast at the pool. And obviously Zaryff enjoyed himself tremendously.....

This weekend there's gonna be a School Concert at the girls school, Puteri will do her Choral Speaking in Arabic.... Anastasia will be in the Choral Speaking in English and she will also take part in an English Drama whereby Anastassia will be the prince, trying to woo Cinderella.

We had a great Raya. Mia came back from college and all the children enjoyed each other's company to the fullest. Takde gaduh2 pun. Walaupun Raya, Mia tetap berkepit with her school books, yela.... exam immediately after Raya.... what to do....

This year was the 1st Raya yang Helena TAK buat apa2 kuih pun..... hehe the kids complained bec they missed my chocolate chip cookies.... tapi what to do, with maid tak ada, keje melambak. And this is also the Raya which we did our shopping last minute!...... We only managed to buy Raya clothes on Thursday..... the day yang malam tu, orang dah nak tgk anak bulan! hehe..... tak pala..... janji semua sempat beli.....


Sorry if my entry kelam kabut...... kepala still serabut lagi ni.....

Musim Sakit

Chicken Pox

I did not share much about the demams yang the whole family kena last week.

It was bad. I was on MC for 4 days. In fact sampai sekarang pun I dont feel quite fit, my body still ache and my throat is still sore. After the batuk and demam for a month in May, it was really frustrating to fall sick again, all because of the dust caused by the renovation at the house.

Whilst I was hit hard because I'm allergic to dust, Anastassia had mild fever and didnt go to school for a day, the same goes to Puteri and Zaryff.

As I thought everyone was getting better, last Thursday I got a call from Puteri's teacher asking me to pick Puteri up from school as she was having red spots on her palm. Since there was a HFM (Hand Foot n Mouth) case a month before in school, they werent taking any chances about Puteri's condition.

Went to the family GP who also found red spots kat tapak kaki and in the mouth. Puteri was suspected to have mild HFM as she was not having fever.

On Friday, Zaryff complained of headaches. Tapi Helena buat tak layan bec the week before dia complain the same thing and tak pergi sekolah and spent 24/7 depan tv and main computer games....... So I insisted Zaryff go to school.

As I fetched him at 12 noon, I saw him monyok menunggu kat guard house, rupa2nya he was still having his headache. I asked him to break his fast immediately in the car (guilty sesangat la tu) and prepared lunch for him as we reached home. He slept right after.

That night he showed me red spots kat tapak kaki..... but sebab tak banyak, i didnt bring him to the clinic.

On Saturday, more red spots kat tapak kaki, but since tempat lain clear, still did not go to the clinic.

On Sunday morning, his hands and arms and buttocks penuh dgn red spots, and banyak yg membelon macam nak pecah. His spots are different from Puteri's, tapi yg kat tapak kaki tu sama.


Yesterday, after having blood test, Dr kata its chicken pox. And after discussing with Dr, it looks like Puteri pun maybe bukan mild HFM tapi mild chicken pox. (Tapi heran sbb spots dia kat hands, foot and mouth aje. Red spot dia pun hanya red spot, yang mengelembung macam Zaryff cuma ada 2)

But it made sense la. All my kids ada chicken pox vaccination. So IF kena chicken pox pun, it would be mild. Itu yg buat semua confuse tu.

Mia was exposed so many time dengan kawan dia yg kena chicken pox, pernah tidur sebilik masa they were in Trengganu, kawan2 dia yg sebilik (theres 6 of them) semua menyangkit kena chicken pox, except for Mia.

Mia balik last weekend, I hope dia tak menyangkit and I hope Anastassia pun tak menyangkit...


Mia came back for the weekend

I really looked forward to having Mia back. I missed her so much as I didnt got to visit her since puasa started as kita orang semua demam.

The first thing Mia said bila masuk kereta was :

"Mama, malam ni buka kat hotel tak?"

"Ha? Buka kat Hotel?" We would make it a point to open fast at a hotel at least once every year, and with all the kelam kabut I totally forgot that since Mia is in boarding school, this weekend would be the only time we can do it as a family.

Suddenly my handphone rang.

"Helena, this is Alice from ABC123 Hotel"

"Hey Alice, whats up?"

"Just to let you know that we have vouchers for you and you can collect them on Sept 25"

I was already smiling. Due to my line of work, I would always get vouchers from the hotels that I normally frequented and have business with, most of the time the vouchers will be given during puasa month.

"Thanks Alice, your call ni memang betul la good timing" I laughed.

"Ala Helena, bulan puasa kan.... mesti you want to come over for berbuka kan?"

"Alice, is it possible for me to collect the vouchers....... say ....... tomorrow?"

"Alamak, tak boleh la Helena, our GM belum sign lagi"

"Oh yeke..... because my girl balik from asrama this weekend so I was thinking of using the vouchers either today or tomorrow, but maybe tomorrow la kut....."

"Helena, memang tak sempat...... mmm....."

"Ye ke......"

"How many of you Helena?"

"How many of us?"

"Yes, how many of you yang nak datang berbuka?"

"Mmm.....7 kut...... kenapa"

"Make it like this la Helena, vouchers memang confirm tak sempat, but you tell me when you want to come over, it's my treat"

"You're kidding right.....?" Terperanjat Helena because although I always get free makan, but it was always when I was dining with Alice's boss (Alice is still new, in fact I've never met her), but never with my family.

"No, I'll just put you under my account, you'll be my guests....."


We went on Saturday night, the food was fabulous, the best compared to previous years, the spread was never ending, and..... its free!! hehe............

That reminds me, I plan to give a token of appreciation to Alice sometime today.....

The First Week of Ramadhan

Bulan puasa menjengah kembali. Kali ini a bit tiring sebab tak ada maid, furthermore my dad buat renovation - upgrade all the toilets in the house so penatla kena mop and berkemas everyday for 2 whole weeks.

1st day

Zaryff wanted to follow me to Pasar Ramadhan. Dia nak Rangka Ayam Goreng (or whatever u call it), so I bought one and let him carry it. Then I continued cari the dishes for the family yang telah diorder awal2.

Dalam membeli barang2, i stopped and nak mintak Zaryff tolong pegangkan plastic yg ringan2. And punyala terperanjatnya as I saw him munching, with one hand in the plastic bag!!!

"Zaryff! Kenapa Zaryff makan???? Kan Zaryff puasa????"

"Zaryff lapar sangat.... Zaryff lupa......"

"Zaryff, mama nak tanya, Zaryff sengaja makan ke, Zaryff tak sengaja?"

"Zaryff tak sengaja mama....."

"Betul ke? cakap dengan mama betul2."

"Betul mama, Zaryff terlupa...."

" OK kalau terlupa, keluarkan balik apa dalam mulut tu. Jom kita pergi kumur mulut"

I dragged him to the nearby toilet (nasib baik it was very2 clean) Zaryff kumur mulut, siap buang air kecik lagi......

"Dah mama..."

"Come, I need to buy Tau Foo Fah for Puteri"

"Mama....."

"Apa?"

"Zaryff haus...... sebab makan ayam tadi....."

Sigh.............. However, I just told him to be patient, lagi satu jam nak berbuka.......



2nd day

ALL of us demam and batuk2 because of the dust at the house.


3rd & 4th day

Because the dust was so bad at the house, we stayed at the Condo during the weekend.

And that weekend i realized betapa PENTINGnya a microwave especially time bersahur. Argg... Mengada ke Helena? But seriously, to heat the dishes one by one without a microwave is really driving me nuts!

Mmm..... looks like we need to get one for the Condo.


5th day

As usual the kids left for school at 6:40am.

At 7am, got a call from Anastassia from school. "Mama, kita terpijak taik kucing. Kena kasut. Banyak sangat....."

Sigh................


6th day ( yesterday)

Spent the afternoon watching TV with the kids. Watched Jangan Pandang Belakang and CH77's The Sextuplets and the Twins........ Best sangat......

Still busy.....

As I'm still so very busy, do enjoy the pics below.

Puteri and Zaryff having fun at the Taman Basikal during the hols.

Zaryff and Puteri, as usual spent most of their time together during the hols.....

Puteri with her "Kalam al-Jamae'i" group representing the school in a JQAF competition. (That's Choral Speaking in Arabic). Bangga rasanya tengok pelajar2 Tahun 2 berchoral speaking dalam Bahasa Arab. (They got 3rd placing.) Thanks to Pak Lah's brilliant idea to implement JQAF in SK schools. (Puteri is seated no2 from left)

Zaryff practising with his Sir to prepare for his first grading.

Last Monday, Zaryff officially received his Yellow Belt from his Master. He was grinning ear to ear that day.....

Puteri, who made her family and her teachers proud with her August results. Pictured here trying out a new swimming suit.

P/S : Anastassia won 1st place in another Art competition, Puteri won 1st place in a Science Quiz competition, Mia went to Putrajaya (again) to perform infront of VIPs and Zaryff soiled his pants in school again. (arghhhh....)

Update

Its been quite sometime since i blogged......

A lot of things happened. Have been busy at work with some challenging Quality issues, so much so that we had to call in several mat salleh specialists to help us out.

At home, last week was when the August test was held. I had started to get panicky the weekend before the test as Anastassia had barely done any revision, what more she had missed almost a week of class due to the competition that she was preparing for. (Remember that dia merosot teruk in May exam)

I beri semangat pada Anastassia, had a full 2 day back-to-back revision....... Alhamdullillah her results came out good. Puteri, who studied on her own got full marks in all the papers that she got so far. I was astonished when I saw her Science paper, which she got 100. It was a difficult one and some tricky, in fact the second highest got 80 plus only.

Zaryff had fever the week of the exam. Thanks to the "stupid" arrangements that made the std ones kena injection a day before exam day..... Most of the kids demam that week.

Last Saturday, went to see Transformers. Zaryff enjoyed it tremondously..... but if you ask me, tak la best sangat cerita tu.....

OK la... I write properly later. These are just snippets from me......

Zaryff's picture, passport size

I was scanning some photos when I came across Zaryff's picture passport size which was taken when he was 6 yrs old, still in kindy.

He looked funny, heran macamana his picture can turn out like that. A bit crossed eye and ala-ala clown pun ada.... hehe.

"Zaryff, kenapa gambar Zaryff kelakar macam ni" I asked, suppressing my laughter.

"Zaryff nak senyum..... Zaryff tak tau macamana nak senyum" Zaryff explained while looking at the photo.

"Zaryff senyumla macam biasa" I said.

"Tapi cameraman tu suruh senyum lama2...... mama ingat tak penat ke mulut Zaryff?"

Hehe..... betul jugakkan.

Below is another picture taken a year later (2007) , for his standard 1 registration.

Alahai boboy mama.....

Zaryff's homework

Zaryff had problems doing his homework last week. He wanted to go to sleep instead. After school it seems that dia asyik main with his bike, and by the time after dinner, dia dah mengantuk and cranky.

"Zaryff nak tidur!!" he shouted.

"No! You do your homework first. Tadi janji macamana?" I was beginning to loose my temper.

"Zaryff nak tidur! Nak tidur! Nak tidur!"

I carried him to the study room, and sat him next to his school bag.

"Ni mama dah bukak kan bag, cari buku mana ada homework, mama tolong." I tried to pujuk dia lagi.

"Taknak!!!!!" he shouted and started to cry loudly.

"Please la, Zaryff... kita buat homework sekejap aje, lepas tu boleh tidur" I bukak the bag besar2 depan dia.

"Zaryff ngantukkkkk!!!!!" his crying became louder and started sobbing.

At this point, he started to cough....

"Zaryff, jangan nak buat batuk pulak" I said.

He continued his crying and coughing.

"Zaryff, jangan buat batuk macam tu, nanti mun........"

"Uwek!!!!!" Zaryff muntah betul2 dalam beg sekolahnya yang FULL of his school books.

Sigh................

Zaryff can really be charming if he wants to.

They just can't be separated ...........

Puteri forever ready to pose.


Puteri won consolation prize in a State Level Arts Competition.

Mia and Anastassia in one of the wet rides in Genting during the last hols.

Mia in her taekwondo outfit in one of the activities that was held in her school.

Big House vs Small House

My mom's house, which has gone through several renovation, can be considered big. The kids have been staying there all their life. I moved in when Mia was about 1 year old. The reason, my mom wanted to take care of the kids and she was very against me leaving the baby (Mia) with the maid alone in our house in KL.

I have a condo that I bought, just for the sake of buying. Dont plan to stay there, dont plan to rent it out. Its just that since I was young, It was my dream to have a condo or apartment which has a pool and secluded, especially no garden to maintain. And it has to be cute and small. And when I saw a newly built Villa, perched on top of a hill with European designs from the entrance to the condo itself, I knew I just had to own a unit. And syukur, the unit that I chose is located in the most beautiful block, best location with easy access to the pool, although not so near, hence giving us a bit of privacy. The clubhouse is also another plus.

Few months ago, me and hubby decided to decorate it, for us to spend time there during weekends. My parents merajuk, (their house sunyi without the kids) whereas i am starting to fall in love with the place, even rushing back to the condo during lunch time.

Spending the time in the condo made me realize the huge difference in staying in a big house and a small house. The environment is different, and there's an impact in family interaction. What made me write this entry is because of a question by Mia, when she called yesterday. She asked "Mama, I'm coming back home on Friday. Nanti kita balik rumah Wan ke, balik kat Villa?"

"Tak sure lagi. Why?"

"Mia nak balik rumah Wan...."

"Kenapa pulak? Mana2 pun tak kisah, kan?"

"Mmmm..." giving the tone that it does matter to her.


All the other kids LOVE staying at the condo. They can't wait for Friday to come and pop up the question. "Mama, are we going back to the villa? Please mama.... say yes...."

Mia in the other hand, prefers my mom's house.


Things that I noticed :

1. In my mom's house, you can get a lot of privacy. Macam when I was sick dulu, I stayed in my room. Selagi I tak keluar and turun bawah, memang tak berdecit dengar suara my kids. Its as if I'm alone in the house.

2. If hubby were to watch tv in the living room, dia tak akan "ter"serempak with the kids, unless he goes to the study room tengok mereka buat homework.

3. The family will only gather as a one big family during lunch and dinner.

4. At the condo, we will able to see each other all the time, unless one of us masuk bedroom or pergi toilet. From the kitchen, I can see the kids doing homework and also see hubby watching tv. Tak dapat nak hide. Well Anastassia selalu lock herself in her room, but still, we can see pintu bilik dia and tau her whereabouts.

5. Family interaction at the condo is more.

6. Its hard to get the kids to concertrate baca buku at the condo. It makes me appreciate having the quietness at the study room in my mom's house. And the small library, which we made last year to separate the elder kids with the smaller kids masa buat homework. (Puteri and esp Zaryff bising masa buat homework, kacau concrntration their sisters)


I guess, Mia at her age, wants more privacy and quiet, and she would get this more at her Wan's place. I guess dia rimas at the condo. Come to think of it, the entire condo is almost as big as my mom's kitchen.....

Siapakah yang patut dipersalahkan?

One of the things that irritates me is to see kids dengan selambanya naik motor. These kids blatantly bawak motor with no helmet and from their sizes, I can bet that some of them are still in their primaries.

Budak2 secondary school, malah SPM leavers pun ramai yg bawak motor especially dalam kawasan Taman Perumahan. And yang Helena sakit hati, they are very aggresive on the road, bawak laju, konar baring and agaknya they think that kepala mereka kepala batu kut. No helmets.

Budak2 perempuan pun sama, ada sekali I honked these 2 teenagers yang bawak motor terhoyong hayang sebab sambil bawak motor tgh dok smsing, budak2 bertudung (no helmet) ni actually gave me tunjuk isyarat lucah pada I. If I was in such in a hurry, I would have followed them home.

Salah siapa?

Pada Helena, salah IBU BAPA. Tak ambil kisah pasal anak dan apa yg dia buat. Dan mereka lupa, perkara2 begini endangers the society. Menbahayakan road users yang lain.

Kenapa bagi motor kat anak kalau takde lesen?

Kalau ye pun ada lesen, bila anak keluar tu, kenapa tak tengok whether they are following the rules? (Assuming budak2 ni still below 20)

I asked a friend, kenapa dia beri kunci motor pada anak lelakinya yg baru Form 1 tu? Senang aje jawabnya.... sebab nak mintak tolong pergi belikan barang kat kedai. Habis tu, apa guna perdana yg parked kat rumah tu? Apa guna kancil kat rumah tu? Adakan ini contoh emak pemalas? Adakah ini contoh emak lepas tangan? bapaknya pun tak reti nak jaga anak? Siap belikan motor utk anak yg umurnya 13 tahun?

Sorry if I'm a bit rough here, but I just dont get it.

Polis ni pun satu. Konon stumped dengan accidents yg meningkat every year. Cant they go to the root cause? Bilakah seseorang itu diperkenalkan pada kenderaan bermotor. Mostly, I would say at 13 la kut, sebab mak bapak bangang dah kasi motor bagai pada anak. And at that young age, the kids will learn to be irrespectful of the law. So benda ni dah embedded in them dari kecil lagi la. So bila dah dapat lesen, apa lagi, who cares about the law right? Thats not what their parents taught them.

Itu baru motor. Family yang senang sikit, belikan kereta. baru 15 tahun dah kasi anak bawak kereta pergi kedai. Hello? Lepas tu accident, pandai pulak bila buat report kata si ayahnya yg bawak. Elokla tu.

Mmm.... sorry tu say la, BODOH sebenarnya parents like these. I dont know what they are trying to prove.


Note : I dont normally use the word bodoh and bangang, but in this case......

A TRIBUTE FOR WORKING MOTHERS WHO DOES NOT HAVE MAIDS.


I've been going maidless a for 2 weeks now. Although I acknowledge that I am lucky to have a maid, but these last 2 weeks made me realize how much.

I would like to make it known here how much I respect the many working mothers out there who manage to organize their household with no maid. (Especially working mothers who still have small children at home) From cooking, to washing clothes, hanging clothers, ironing, clearing up the kitchen after every meal, mopping, sweeping AND monitoring the kids with their homework, giving the "soft nudge" to study at least a page per day, giving emotional support and being there for them every time they gaduh among each other, etc...... Itu tak masuk lagi driving them to their tuition classes.


Without a maid, I noticed that .................

1. I could not sit next to my children when they do their homework.

This would create problems especially for Zafry, so instead of spending 1 hour for homework, he'll end up with 2 hours. (asyik dok main dgn ruler and pencil, imagining them to be aeroplanes and rockets) And in the end he becomes cranky sebab its almost bedtime and he gets sleepy and panicky sebab homework tak siap.

Untuk Anastassia pun problem jugak sebab she would curi2 do her drawing.


2. I could not monitor my children punya studies.

Bila dah busy, I could not make them do their revision. Janji siap homework and school bags are packed, kira dah untung sangat. Hanya harap pada tuition aje.

3. I could not create a fun environment in the house.

I would not talk much as I would concerntrate in racing against time to do my house work. The time that I would open my mouth are only to order the kids to do this and that. If I get no response (which normally that is the case), you can hear me shouting.

4. I could not be there 100% for my children.

Although I do listen to their stories and frustation and complaints, I can just do so while I do my ironing, for example. I cant like sit them on my lap and hug them sambil belai rambut mereka as I normally do. The personal touch is lesser.

5. I would loose my temper easily.

With hubby not around most of the time, it is hard. Driving them to tuition, piano classes, art class, etc does take a lot of my time, esp since, the classes I sent to are not near my house. As I only send them to the best places, most of them would be a good 30 mins from home.

Yesterday, Anastassia came back from a 3 day camping trip. I really lost my temper as she told me that she lost the sarung of the sleeping bag, her much loved sentimental value umbrella which she bought in Hong Kong and her syampoo. I counted to 10 to make myself cool down as I can feel I was about to naik hantu. (Masa tu memang dah serabut because a lot of baju tak berlipat and of course belum gosok, have yet to clear the wet swimming suits dari pagi, and dapur tak berkemas)

Mmmm............ please God give me strength.....

I really dont mind, but..................

Since I was in my secondary year, we used to have this makcik who would come membasuh baju and mopping at the house twice a week. After I had Mia and then had a maid, we still retained this makcik, saja2 aje knowing that she needs the monthly dough.

As she got older, we decided she should just basuh baju, especially after she started complaining sakit kaki most of the time. A lot of people wondered why we didnt let her go, esp since it was obvious that with the maid around, we really didnt need her. Akan tetapi, as her husband is sickly, and anak2 tak membantu, infact ada yg drug addict and infact sorang meninggal from AIDS, we knew for a fact that she needed the job. So we kept her.

After I moved to my mom's house from Ampang after Mia was born, I started to give her a lift home, whenever bertembung di tengah jalan. Sometimes, I would send her to the kedai runcit for her to buy groceries. I pity her for having to walk a good 3 km each way. (Our house is not the house dia pergi utk upah membasuh) Dulu2 when her husband was well, her husband would pick her up via motorbike.

After her husband passed away late last year, she stopped working altogether, citing that she wants to balik kampung and furthermore her health is deteriorating. We were happy that finally she can stop working and have her sons support her instead. However to my suprise, last month she came back, asking for her job back. We had no problem with her request, and said ok. Tapi hairan jugak....

During the first two times that she came to work, after she's done, she would use our phone to call her son's hp. And her son would pick her up, apparently dengan muka mencuka. Her son is in his 30s, and nampak sangat makcik ni selalu kena marah dengan anak dia ni. The third time, she came to work, she called her son as usual, but he didnt pick up the phone. As I was at home at that time, I sent her home. The same thing happened the forth time she came to work.

The next time she came to the house, dia mengadu kat my mom, that her son refuses to fetch her anymore. Her son said that dia mengganggu her son nak tidur. My mom read between the lines and told her, "No problem, Helena can send you back. You dont have to ask your son to fetch you anymore" She nodded in relief.

So now, twice a week, I would send her home, on my way to work. Although her house is on the way, but I do have to do a bit of a detour. I have no problem doing this, although this little detours always make me late for work.

I really dont mind helping her out, infact I always did volunteer hantar dia balik for the last 13 years. There are other things that I do for her, tapi tak payah cerita lah. But what disturbs me is the thought that her son is at home, snoring away. Nak kata sakit, sihat walafiat. Nak kata penat kerja shift malam, anak dia is actually not working. So what gives? Her son's wife pun pagi2 keluar babysit anak orang, suami kat rumah melengkar kat rumah. Tak ada rasa bersalah ke emak yang dah tua bertongkat itu dibuat sebegitu? Senang pulak hidup ye, kena tanggung bagai.

Entahla. Infact, everytime I sent the makcik home, I would always see a few guys in their 30s and 40s loiterring and lepakking around kat tepi longkang. Some still in their baju tidur and kain pelikat! Tak pergi kerja ke. Or if nak bersangka baik, I would say maybe mereka kerja shift malam..... but I doubt it.

Mmm............. Like I said, I really dont mind, but.......

TAGGED FOR CHARITY

I was tagged by mamamia & nj. Tagging originally started by Idham.

In the name of charity, Mr.Idham has created a meme to collect at least RM10,000 for the Darul Izzah Orphanage in Bangi. For every person (tagged by someone or self-tagged) who completes the meme, Mr Idham will contribute RM127.

Remember, we need 100 memes by 26th August. Once this tag is done, please leave a comment on his blog to inform him that you have done the tag.

Okay, this is the rule.

If you are tagged, you need to write an entry related to the meme. At the end of your entry you just need to tag as many bloggers as you like. You will then leave a comment in their blog to let them know they have been tagged. And to include this message, "By doing this meme you are contributing rm127 to the Darul Izzah Orphanage".

Then please copy and paste this rule somewhere in your entry.

The meme is about completing at least seventeen out of the following twenty seven sentences.

*These can be copied and pasted to your entry*




I decided to complete all. Here goes....


1. A person is only as good as his intentions and actions.

2. Friendship is always about sincerity.

3. To love is to give your all, though not stupidly.

4. Money makes me smile...... and smile.... and smile..... hey I'm grinning now.... hehe.

5. I miss standing on the weighing machine and see the number 42.

6. My way of saying I care is by being there during the bad times.

7. I try to spread love and happiness by living my life my way and loving it and be happy always.

8. Pick the flowers when you feel like it.

9. To love someone is to love his bad habits too.

10. Beauty is something that most people yearn for.

11. When I was thirteen, what I remember the most was experiencing my 1st year of secondary school, and realizing that...... hey.... boys exist! haha!

12. When I was twenty one, I remember being hopelessly in love with hubby, with admirers wanting to steal me away from him...... hehe.

13. I am most happy when I'm spending quality time with my children.

14. Nothing makes me happier than having the whole family in good health.

15. If I can change one thing, I will change my outlook in life when I was a teenager.

16. If smiles were given a price tag, then I would still be the way I am now. Haha. Yeah, I dont have a smiling face.

17. Wouldn't it be nice if we could just not go to work but still get a paycheck at the end of the month?

18. If you want to be successful in life, then you have to study very hard. (Told this to Anastassia last night)

19. Money is not everything but money is so very very important.

20. The most touching moments I have experienced is when I delivered my 4 babies. I would visualize and remember the overwhelming experience every night before I go to sleep for the next few months after I deliver a child.

21. I smile when ever I think of my children, especially the cute things that they do.

22. When I am happy, I go shopping and raid the stores!

23. If only I don't have to go on a diet, then I would have had a more "meaningful" life. Hehe.

24. The best thing I did yesterday was I became a working mother AND a full time housewife. Very tiring, however very fullfilling.

25. If I ever write a book, I will give it this title,"My love for my children".

26. One thing I must do before I die is to perform the Hajj.

27. Doing this meme, I feel like I'm doing a small part in making the world a better place to live in.



To help Idham expedite his effort, I would like to tag :

Aku Betul!

Izz Sofead

Ahni

intan

sherrina

Maidless

I feel so tired! My maid left on Tuesday, and i have been doing house chores nonstop.

I am a bit particular on clothes, so I did tonnes of ironing. Saturday was the worst, as I picked up Mia's laundry and have to have it washed and ironed by Sunday petang. It wont be so bad to just concerntrate doing house work, but as I had to also send the kids for tuition, swimming class, art competition, etc, it was very rushing and hectic. I was almost late for an office dinner function on Saturday night!

Friday was the kids Canteen Day. Started our PIBG burger stall as early at 7:30 am. (The whole week tidur lambat buat cards for Gerai Seni) After that I bukak counter teka kacang. Penat jugak nak kira kacang - 1669 nuts altogether! The kids had fun, the canteen day as a success sampaikan kupon kena cetak 3 kali! Obviously profit this year would be much higher than last year.

Saturday - there was another Arts competition for Anastassia and Puteri. Anastassia won 3rd prize, Puteri won 5th prize. It was tiring tunggu results under the hot sun.

Sunday, hubby bought 6 biji durian, asalnya sebab Zaryff nak durian. Tapi bila dah beli, Zaryf nak seulas dua aje. And I was expected to eat the rest of the durian! ALamak! In the family, only me and Mia yg hantu durian, Zaryff pulak baru start suka durian few months back, but not much of an eater.

Cant wait for the last episode of Heroes this Wednesday.

Still not in the mood

I still feel down. Anastassia's results really hit me hard. You might think that I'm over reacting, well my friends think I'm going bonkers for nothing, but i just cant shake the feeling off.

Anastassia risks losing a lot of things at school with this bad result.

I feel bad for Puteri and Zaryff. With the results that they had, I should have jumped for joy, I would have straight away dragged them to the toy store. But I cant. I just couldnt. Semangat ni dah hilang betul. Helena cover line saying that I'll buy them presents this weekend, but dalam hati ni, memang rasa bersalah pada mereka.

Puteri dapat jadi best student. Yes she got no 1 in aliran. Zaryff pulak got no5 in class and suprisingly no8 in aliran. I can see the smile on his face when Mia puji dia "wow, my little brother is not bad. Masa kakak Mia std 1 pun, kakak Mia dapat no8 in aliran. Tapi kakak Mia dapat no1 dalam class..." Zaryff replied "Takpe, mama kata yang penting nombor dalam aliran" Zaryff was beaming ear to ear when his teacher suggested to me that he deserves a present for his good results. (Ai.... lebih-lebih pulak cikgu ni)

Mia pun dapat report card last week. I was not happy with it tapi kasi chan kali ni.
______________________________________________________________

Puteri won her first colouring contest last Saturday. Although it was only a saguhati prize, tapi okla kan. Dapat hamper besar just for saguhati....... (still tak berbukak lagi hamper tu kat rumah.... zaryff dah sebut few times yg dia nak bukak kan)

Anastassia's choir team also won saguhati. OKla jugak sebab peringkat Negeri.

_______________________________________________________________

Zaryff finally pandai buat breast stroke. So now tengah belajar back stroke and butterfly. He is already a pro at free style.

________________________________________________________________

Today is my maid punya last day. Biodata maid baru pulak tak sampai, it seems sekarang tak banyak biodata. Dah ada biodata pun take some time to process. Pengsan Helena, berapa lama takda maid ni!

_______________________________________________________________

Mmmm........ I need something to cheer me up!!!!!

Our children

I'm just not in the mood. There will be a report card day this week and I'm just so not in the mood.

Anastassia did bad. And I mean really really bad. Even Puteri and Zaryff's good results could not light up my spirits. And i took it badly as well. Enough said. Nak cerita pasal benda lainlah.

----------------------------------

I've noticed lately of a trend among parents, though I hope it doesnt become a trend.

A has 4 children. A works while wifey is a housewife. A informed me that his son who is in Form 1 this year, has not been living with them since he was in std 5. A sent his son to his uncle, whose children are all in Uni, in which A said that his uncle (who is a teacher) would be the best person to prepare his son for his UPSR and to discipline his son, compared to him.

B has 6 children. B also works, wife is a housewife. B sent 4 of his children to his parents kat kampung, which is half an hour away. B and wife would balik kampung to visit the children every weekend. Reason is, B is busy with work, wife is busy with 2 smaller one at home, so not enough attention given to the other 4 kids. They've been doing this for almost a year.

C has 5 children. C's mom nak jaga one of her grandkids. So C's son yang no 2 tinggal with grandma for several years now.


I do not want to be critical. But I just dont understand the thinking of somebody else can take better care of your children better than you. Is it an act of lepas tangan? Although I do understand C's dilemma sebab nak jaga hati mak dia.

To me there is no reason to split up adik beradik. Unless money is a big issue, whereby parents are too poor and do not have the means to raise and give proper education to their children.

Snippets during the holidays

Let me share the bits of pieces of what happened during the school hols.


1. Our weekend hideaway

- Hubby suprised us all when on the 1st Saturday during the hols, he brought us to our condo that has been empty since I bought it 3 or 4 years ago. He furnished it all by himself! As he is good at decorating and designing, it was no suprise that everything in it looks so perfect. I love it. The kids love it. Although secretly I think that the TV shouldnt be 29 inches as theres not much distance between the tv and the sofa.

The condo would be our weekend hideaway, as staying with my parents would be the best environment for the kids. Kat condo manala ada study room, so susah the kids nak concerntrate with homework. With the pool and playground kat bawah, I doubt I'll be able to make the kids study if duduk situ. Helena pun entah2 asyik pegi gym aje.... hehe


2. Swimming

Zaryff is a better swimmer now. Helena rasa, anytime now he will be upgraded to the 7 feet pool. This hols, Helena dapat rasa that swimming would be fun for the kids now as Zaryff does not need to play in the childrens pool anymore..

Puteri was ecstatic when I told her this. She immediately asked me to bring them to the pool at the hotel which I am a member. The pool which has slides and stuff is the best pool in our town.

I only managed to bring them there once after the Genting/Cherating trip. Zaryff was really like a water baby. He was swimming underwater most of the time. Puteri was in cloud 9 to have her "twin" play in the big pool with her.

Anastassia outgrew her swimming suit. As I was not in the mood to get her a new one, I asked her to use Mia's old one which was only worn twice. It fit perfectly. The funny thing was that Mia had that swimming suit when she was 6 yrs old!! Haha.... can still visualize chubby Mia masa dulu.


3. A trip to the library

Our state library had some renovation done recently. I heard from my friends that the children's section was really comfy and bright and fun. Their computer room was also fantastic.

Zaryff was excited when he saw the computer room. He begged me to make him a member. I did (along with Puteri) . They spent an hour in the computer room. And boy.... he thanked me nonstop for the next few days. (Gayatnya.... Macamla kat rumah takde computer....hehe) The kids also had fun reading the numerous new books there.

It reminded me that small things that we do for our children, really do have a big impact to them, cometimes without us realizing it.


3. The movies.

Went to see Shrek 3. The kids loved it. I was bored. Mia was more interested in watching Waris Jari Hantu. But didnt manage to as we had no time sampaila sekolah reopens.

I told Mia, she should have went with me bila I ajak on the first Monday of the holidays. But masa tu she declined because she was more interetesd chatting with her friends on the computer and updating her friendster. Last2 terus tak dapat tengok. But I guess she wouldnt have cared much, ai.....dah obsess dengan friendster la katakan..... hehe.


4. Mengaji

A lot of mengaji was done during the hols. Anastassia is now only a few pages away before she can khatam. Puteri is in Juz 16, whilst Zaryff is in Juz 2.

Double Cuti-Cuti Malaysia

Cuti kali ni, we went all out. Its been quite sometime that we went for a holiday as a family. (Last Nov/Dec holidays tak pergi mana, I was drowning in my projects)



First we went to Genting Highlands. It was a first for Anastassia, Puteri and Zaryff. (Mia selalu pergi, most of the time ikut her grandparents-my dad everytime my dad meeting kat Awana)


The kids had a blast! Mia and Anastassia rode all the thrilling rides. (Terasa pulak Helena dah tua, dulu memang gila naik roller coasters, sekarang jangan harap!) Puteri and Zaryff also had a fabulous time at the kiddy rides. Compared to the other holidays that we had, I would say that ALL 4 kids had fun at Genting. Memangla a great family holiday kat situ. We stayed at the Theme Park Hotel, which is really where the outdoor games are located.



The kids also enjoyed the Snow World. Dapatla merasa budak2 tu main snow. It also reminded me how much I hated snow. Hehe. Before balik, Mia wanted to experience the Pontianak Adventure. Since Anastassia takut, Mia suruh I teman. (I hate hantu2 stuff) I said yes sebab taknak Mia miss out anything. Tapi last minute Mia decided not to. Phew!



From Genting, we drove to Cherating. Stayed at Holiday Villa Cherating. The food there was great! And cheap! After having to pay for RM5.50 for a roti canai in Genting, terasa sangat murah kat Cherating. Even kat R&R on the way to Cherating pun, I borong fruits, munchies and junkies sebab terasa murah sangat. Ha! Ha!



Had a relaxing stay at Cherating. Hilangkan penat, after the nonstop activities we had at Genting.


My brain is still on holiday. So I'll make this entry short this time round. But suprise... suprise.... there are pictures!

Challenges with Anastassia

The smile didnt last very long. Although both Puteri and Zaryff dia quite well in their exams, Anastassia did not. Which is not a suprise, really.

I'm really at a loss on how to handle Anastassia. And I'm not just talking about the exam results. She's been difficult to handle. It started last year but became unbearable this year.

Waking her up and getting her up in the morning is a chore. She would start kicking and wailing taknak bangun. The same happens if I wake her from her afternoon sleep for tuition. She would start wailing till I loose my temper.

Her school gives tonnes of homework. She has homework from tuition too. Tapi dia macam couldnt care less nak taknak buat. So I have to force her and duduk depan dia sampai dia habis homework. Ada one time tu, dia tak buat homework (dia tipu Helena kata dah habis). Tengok2 pukul 6:30 am lepas pakai baju sekolah, terkial2 nak buat homework. Padahal we leave for school at 6:40 am. So, apa nak buat. Ponteng la.

Bila Helena pikir balik, maybe she had it too easy before. Dia ni cerdik semacam. Cikgu dia kata dia ni ada photographic memory. From std 1, memang dia aje yg jadi best student. Anugerah punyala banyak dapat, padahal students lain nak dapat 1 anugerah pun is a big deal. And she accomplished all this without having to do a single thing. No effort at all on her side. Tak usik langsung buku dia.
(Pernah Mia menangis sebab sedih and confuse sebab Mia yg berhempas pulas belajar, tapi adiknya yg spend time with tv and reading story books yg dapat 100 memanjang)

But then bila masuk std 4 (and now std 5), obviously syllabus dah banyak. Masalahnya, dia still buat peel dia tu. Tak belajar, tak buat homwork kalau Helena tak leter and terpekik2 mengamuk. Dah lepas kena marah, dia buat kerja. Tapi itu pun sambil lewa aje.

So outcomenya, instead of getting good results, she gets average results aje. I dont mind kalau dia get results macam tu, kalau I nampak dia belajar. Tapi attitude dia yg dia taknak belajar dan berusaha langsung yang buat Helena naik darah!

Few months ago, dia start dengar lagu (with headphone) sambil buat homework. Bila Helena took the headphone away, dia mulala mengantuk and terlentuk. Bila kasi headphone balik, cergas dia dan berkobar2 buat homework sambil enjoy the songs. Helena tak berkenan budak2 belajar sambil dengar lagu. (Tapi pikir balik, some of my friends do that, and they score gila2 jugak.)

What should I do?

1. How to change attitude Anastassia ni?

2. What do you think about students yang belajar sambil dengar lagu? Masuk ke kat kepala apa yang dipelajari?

What made me smile last week

I've had a bad week at the office since last week. In fact I'm still fuming mad.



So, since taknak my blood pressure naik, I want to think only nice stuffs that made me smile.



1. On 16 May, went to school for lunch with the teachers sempena Hari Guru. Was approached by Puteri's English Teacher who told me that Puteri was the only girl in std 2 who got full marks in the English exam. She was beaming ear to ear and also told Puteri's class teacher who walked to our table.

(It looks like Puteri dah ikut jejak Mia and Anastassia, being able to beat the non-malays esp Indians who are obviously more proficient in the language) When Mia first started to achieve this, her English teacher who is an Indian teacher said that this is the 1st time a malay girl scored highest in English, in which Mia did this continuously. A huge accomplishment in a school with only 40% malay students. Syukur Alhamdullillah.



2. I picked Zaryff up from school on Thursday. Bila masuk aje kereta, he handed his Maths exam paper. He got 100 for Maths again! Mmmm the car hasnt moved, tapi dah demand hadiah... hehe. He got 95 for BM, sayang sangat sebab careless semuanya. Tapi takpala. Janji Maths 100... hehe



3. Mia called from college. (Dia mimpi ke apa tu?) She sounded so happy over the phone, which Helena rasa lega sangat-sangat because the last time I saw and talked to her, she was in tears, risaukan exams dia. (Her exams will only be over this Wednesday)



She told me that she followed my advice. And I was very pleased to see semangat berkobar2 tu ada lagi. Risau bila tgk dia macam hilang semangat last week. To me its the effort yang important.


4. Had a great family outing on Sunday. Went to see Spiderman 3 and lepak kat shopping complex makan2 (burp!) until petang. It put a smile on my face to see Zaryff and Puteri getting excited over nothing the whole day. The effect of spiderman on kids! Hehe.


5. Anastassia has been showing me signs that tells me that she wont be little girl much longer. I hope it'll be next year, though..... Dia tak cukup mature lagi tu.... hehe

Permintaan Puteri

Puteri and Zaryff jenguk blog ni yesterday.

"Mama, kenapa mama letak gambar Puteri & Zaryff.... nampak belakang aje?" Puteri asked.

"Mama tak ready lagi nak share pictures..." I said.

"Kenapa mama?" Puteri asked, her eyes getting bigger with curiosity.

"Mama taknak orang kenal kita" I answered dgn style takda mood I tu.

"Kenapa mama?" Puteri asked again.

"Mmmm..." I sighed after realizing that she would keep on bugging me until she's satisfied with the answers.

"Puteri nak mama letak gambar Puteri ke?" I tanya Puteri pulak... konon nak tukar taktik.

"Nak....." she said. "Boleh tak mama? Letak gambar Puteri dengan Zaryff?"

"Tak malu ke nanti semua orang tengok? Nanti semua orang kenal Puteri tau....."

Puteri kept quiet. Then she said " Mama letak ajela gambar yang ada dalam computer Mama tu... Yang Puteri suruh scan sebab cikgu suruh lekat gambar Puteri masa kecik kat buku sekolah tu."

"Itu kan gambar lama" I said.

"Takpela gambar lama, janji muka Puteri masuk dalam cerita mama.... Boleh tak mama?" she asked again.

Mmmm..... oklah Puteri....

This picture was taken when Puteri was around 2 years plus and Zaryff was 1 year old....

Mid Year Exam

All my children will be sitting for their mid year exam today.

"First of all, mama nak minta maaf sebab tak dapat bersama2 dengan anak2 mama mengulangkaji pelajaran. Buat masa ini, mama tak berupaya dan juga mama tak mahu sakit mama menyangkit pada anak2 mama. Mama harap anak2 mama dapat menjawab soalan dengan tenang. Mulakan menjawab dgn doa dan jangan careless, ok?"

"To Mia, dont worry too much about it. I have faith in you. Yang penting Mia berusaha. My heart goes out to you semalam masa mama nak balik. I was really fighting for the tears not to drop. Take care sayang. I love you."

"To Anastassia, please give your all for this exam. Remember what I said, the results will determine a lot of important things. Things that you want, things that matters, things that you dream of. Its just at your fingertips, waiting for you to grab it. A change in attitude will be the best Mothers Day gift for me."

"To Puteri, best of luck for your exam. You have prepared well, do tackle the tricky questions carefully and no careless mistakes, okay?"

"To Zafry, try to understand the importance of exams. My wish is for you to read the questions properly, jangan gopoh. I know you can do it. Pay attention and try to be less playfull this week, ye?"

___________________________________________



Last night, I was rearranging Zaryff's school bag, when something caught my eye.

Written on the cover on one of his school exercise book, under Perkara is Al - Crok An.

Minggu Sakit

The last 2 weeks have been really difficult for me. It was frustrating, and it was depressing. Hubby being away for almost the entire time did not make it any easier.

I'm still weak. My reflexes are slow, I cant seem to analyze issues rationally, and I'm actually in a daze most of the time. Yesterday, as I was picking up the girls from school, I got honked again. Made a turn without realizing that there's a car zooming past me. Nasib baik takde apa2. It dawned to me that I've been driving dangerously these few days, due to my slow reflexes.

Yesterday, about noon, I felt dizzy and a bit lightheaded. As I was contemplating whether I should go home, I got a call from my maid, telling me that Zaryff is not back from school. Its already 2pm, and dia selalu tiba rumah at 1:30pm. I called the van driver that was supposed to pick him up. Rupa2nya Zaryff did not get on the van. Apparently the van driver tried to contact me, but I tak perasan my hp ringing in my bag.

Dengan rasa yg nak pitam tu, I drove to his school which is 1/2 an hour away. Macam2 bermain dalam hati I, dia kena kidnapped ke.... dia naik salah van ke.... Yin's face terbayang2 jugak kat kepala I.

After parking, I ran to the school. Masa tu tengah drizzling. So tak weird sangatla kalau orang tgk I berlari2 anak. (or was it 100 metres dash) As I entered the gate, I saw Zaryff's standing just near it, looking worried and with a red nose. I sighed in relief. Cepat2 I hugged him.

"Zaryff, what happened?" I asked.

"Tadi kasut Zaryff hilang, lama Zaryff cari tak jumpa2" Zaryff tried to explain.

"Kenapa bukak kasut?"

"Masa kelas agama, Zaryff pergi surau... Zaryff lama cari kasut, pastu bila dah jumpa, tengok2 van dah pergi"

"Jumpa tak kasut tu?"

"Jumpa, mama. Kasut tu bawah beg kawan Zaryff...."

"Laaa...... Zaryff nangis ke tadi?"

"Ha'ah.... sebab tak jumpa kasut...."

"Nangis tak bila tgk van dah tak ada?"

"Tak..... sebab Zaryff tahu mama mesti datang"


It just dawned to me that I lupa nak ajar Zaryff pakai public phone.... so that he can call me should any thing like this happened.

___________________________________________________________________


All my kids LOVE to read. Memang bookstores and library yg entah apa2 kat my area ni is their favourite place to hang out. However, since Zaryff tak lancar sangat membaca, he is seldom frustrated with himself. (Ability Zaryff membaca at std 1 equals his sisters membaca at 5 years old. Kakak-kakaknya at 5 yrs semua dah boleh baca papers)

So it was a nice suprise to see him pick up the paper last Sunday and saw him reading. (Since masuk sekolah ni, nampak vast improvement in him) I was reading my Readers Digest and I saw him pegang Pancaindera (Mingguan Malaysia). Suddenly he said :

"Suami saya gila-kan isteri orang" and then looked at the cartoon characters in the DCCK column.

Dalam hati Helena, kenapalah, dia baca that page.... maybe sebab ada kartun kut.....

"Suami saya gilakan isteri orang" he repeated it again, this time much louder.

I buat tak tau, I pura2 tengah concerntrate baca my Readers Digest.

Then Puteri came in the room. "Zaryff baca apa tu?" she asked.

"Suami saya gilakan isteri orang" Zaryff told Puteri.

"Suami saya gilakan isteri orang?" Puteri asked and then terdiam.

"Ha'ah...... apa maknanya kakak? Zaryff asked.


Mmmmm..... this is interesting.....


"Maknanya.... ada suami tu gilakan ada isteri tu..." Puteri said confidently.

"Oh....." Zaryff said deep in thought.

"Kesiankan orang tu...... dah jadi gila....." Zaryff said.

"Ha'ah" Puteri said absent mindedly. (Puteri dah start colouring, dah lost interest in Zaryff)

"Kalau dah gila, mesti jumpa doctor kan..... kena makan ubat...." Zaryff said, slowly.

"Ha'ah" Puteri said again, her eyes still glued on her colouring paper.


Haha...... nak tergelak Helena.....

Sweet Mia is home again

I was sick for the last 2 weeks. And still is, actually..... tak fully recover lagi. However, what made it bearable was Mia's presence in the house. Yes! Mia was back for several days.

Mia's visit to her Sekolah Menengah School

Anastassia entered a colouring competition which was held in the school which most of Mia's ex-primary school friends goes to. (Mia would go to this school if tak dapat offer SBP) On the same day, the school also held its Canteen Day.

Since I planned to wait for Anastassia, I asked Mia to come along. After getting several SMSes from her friends, asking her to come to the school, Mia decided to tag along.

As she entered the school gate, Mia said "I feel funny.... what if Mia tak jumpa orang yang Mia kenal?"

The minute she finished that sentence, suddenly we heard someone shrieking and a group of girls rushed to her, hugging her... hehe.... she spoke too soon. I left her as I saw more girls rushing and running towards her. I dont want to be caught in a stampede. Haha.

After an hour, the results were announced. (Anastassia coloured beautifully) And it was time to head back home. I saw Mia under a tent with her friends and signalled to her that its time to go home. She came over to me, begging to let her stay for another hour. During the conversation, another Indian friend saw her and hugged her from behind, both of them jumping up and down, and they started to chatter nonstop, oblivious to my stares.

As I was starting to get another of my headaches, I just told Mia that we NEED to get back home. It took us another half an hour before I finally succeeded in dragging her out of the school.

My Mia had a great schooling experience in her primary years. She made several good friends there, and I hope they will be life long friends.

SBP Competition peringkat Kebangsaan

There was a competition held at Mia's college for SBP schools peringkat Kebangsaan. Mia wanted to go and see for experience sake, Helena pulak as usual memang menyibuk dalam bab2 begini. I brought Anastassia along, nak kasi semangat kat dia suruh belajar kuat2.

The tops SBPs were there, the competition was great. But the atmosphere was what made me go down MY memory lane. Yes, Helena terkenang zaman MRSM dulu, how I wish I could go back and relive the sweet memories again.

I was sitting right in front of the Alam Shah boys. Their semangat college, their semangat keluargaan and their naughtiness and cheekiness reminded me of the good old times. Whatmore when I see Mia's collegemates membalas dgn semangat college mereka, I was reminded further of the sweetness of college life. (MCKK, and other colleges tak ramai participants, so they were very2 well behaved)

Sighh.... I am really envious of Mia, how I wish I could be in her shoes.

The next morning, (we came back after 1am) I woke Zaryff up, and I said to him. "You know Zaryff.... if Zaryff tak masuk MCKK pun tak apa..... Sekolah Alam Shah pun cool jugak......"

My dad overheard and jeling ... hehe (my dad was in MCKK since he was 9 years old until Form 6)

Zaryff just said "Zaryff suka sekolah kakak Mia" And everyone laughed. Menggatal ke anak bujang I ni..... suka all girls school?

But sebenarnya, bukan senang nak masuk SBP and MRSM. 5As bukan tiketnya, active dalam koko pun bukan tiketnya. Because there are thousands with 5As and impressive koko achievements. So how do I ensure that all my kids dapat masuk SBP? I dont know. I really dont know.