A brother's love

Hariz has been admitted to PMC for the past couple of nights due to his asthma, the poor thing. This morning Hady came to visit his little brother and this scene caught my eye.. Hady holding on to Hariz's hand and telling Hariz not to be scared and that he'll be there for Hariz always. He's grown to be such a pleasant boy, my Hady, Mama's so proud of you..

I'm a fishy!

Baby Hariz is down with another asthma attack and he's already a pro with the nebulizer. I really hope he outgrows this.. Kesian tengok dia when he gets an attack.. Mama loves u Sayang!

I keep myself busy busy busy

What a weekend!

Started off with my morning swim and some breakfast at the FAM Char Kuey Teow with Muz and the clan followed by the PJ Karnival Blogger's Hunt @ Jaya 33. Didn't have any expectations, as all the master hunters were there, it was just another hunt to practise on for me. So there we were, me, Ami, Kroll and Rizal, doing a walk hunt in one and a half hours. Now, on a normal day, I would have suffered through the questions, but on Saturday, our thinking caps worked! And to near perfection! We had only one mistake (darn!) and itu pun, so rugi, we saw the answer but were not convinced that it could be the answer only to find out later that it was and cost us the championship! We lost by 1 point! We didn't fight long enough as a team! Arghhhh!!! It's not every day that I get to see my name way up there in Mike Pang's Blog so it certainly felt good that we were announced the runner's up for the hunt!

Whilst waiting for the results, Ami and I took Che Yu (Ami's younger sister) and the two boys out for some Nasi Padang in Kelana Jaya with some Char Kui for desserts, Shazz, the Char Kui I eat on your behalf k? He he he he he..

Come Sunday morning and it was Father's day! Hariz hurriedly came into the room asking me to find his school bag coz he had made a gift for his Papa and wanted so eagerly to give it to him. Happy Father's Day Papa, I hope you like all the gifts that you got this year, I think you do, since you can't seem to put down the iPod at all! Ha ha ha.. Ami and I had a mini celebration @ our neighbourhood Kopitiam, thereafter he sent me to Gardens for me to join my other friends for a photoshop workshop whilst he went to work.

Today's photoshop class was conducted by Wazari Wazir. I've been admiring his work for quite some time, and we were lucky enough to be able to steal a few hours of his busy schedule to help us learn the art of photoshop. There were 5 of us today, Kamal, Aida, Razzak and Fendi including me, though Fendi was more assistant Sifu rather than a student like us.. He he he..

And gosh, did we learn! WW showed us how he processed his work and we took some time to actually catch up with him, but it was amazing! His patience with us (you need A LOT of patience with us!) was great and Fendi helped out wherever he could. To Kamal, Aida and Razzak, practise ptactise practise, 3 hours to do black and white Kamal? He he he.. Tadi depan Wazari, 5 minit dah siap, balik terus semua lupa cam mana nak buat! Ha ha ha..

Anyways, after the class, we had lunch at Madam Kwan's and thereafter Aida and I did what every girls like :) Window shopping yeay! I've suddenly become such a girlie falling in love with one handbag after another and not mentioning shoes, oh shoes (I can imagine the horror on Ami's face when he reads this!), so Zeaty and I have made a date for some 'light' shopping tom evening + a gossip session to kill time, get ready girl!

To finish it all off, here's me wishing one of my oldest friends, Ms Sharifah Farah Syed Abdullah, a happy 32nd birthday today, the 22nd of June 2009, may all your dreams come true old friend! We'll celebrate our birthday's together when we are in Bandung nanti ok Sayang?

That's about it, have a great week ahead everyone!

Flat out!

We ran into a flat tyre this morning, tsk tsk.. So running a bit late for work and school for the kids, but it's good stuff for the kids, they get to see how it's done, they're pretty excited asking lots of questions. Go Papa Go!

Julia Gabriel Learning Centre

My sister Syida asked me to come to BVII today with the kids. There was a small carnival for the children and this was a session hosted by the JG Learning Centre.

Hady's having loads of fun joining in the activities, but Hariz needs a little bit of encouragement to join in though, he's still a pretty shy kid, taking his own time to come out of his shell.

Have to say, the teachers are great with kids, I need to learn more to communicate with my kids better!

The Andaman

We're finally here! And first impression is wow, super duper gorgeous. Am knackered and all I want to do is sleep now, bu will for sure blog about this more later.. Take care everyone!

I'm tired

I really am. As I write this, I suddenly feel an overwhelming sense of exhaustion. Hady's giving me a foot massage, thinks he pities his poor mum at the moment.

I'm looking forward to our family trip tom (HK Disneyland is going to have to wait for another time k babies, Mama has other plans for you), I actually chose a place close enough but far enough from civilization for us. Thanks Idhura (again) for handling all the arrangements for us, I owe you one babe (Shahril, your gf did all the work not you, so please do not take credit for it, and please handle my CRV with much TLC whilst I'm away :p).

I got back home near midnight last night (well, most nights lately), so today I really wasn't up to mark at a hunt held in KL this morning. Since it was a team effort,couldn't pull out and be selfish now could I, I did give it my all, but it wasn't good enough, but its ok, there are more hunts out there for us to participate in.

In the mean time, my girl friends and I are sorting out our girl friend getaway soon, which I'm sooooo looking forward to. It'll just be us 3 girls and the Daddy's will have to be on baby sitting duties to take care of the 6 children we have between the 3 of us.

Ami's a hands on Dad, so it shouldn't be a problem. Not worried, in fact I think they'd have a blast with me away, you know, no need to shower so early, can sit and watch tv all day long without Mama going do your home work do your homework! So I think they'll just do fine. Perhaps the little one will miss Mama's cuddles at night, but Mama will only be away for a bit, boleh ye Sayang?

I haven't packed a thing, don't feel like moving from this couch, but I better get on with it. Laundry needs to be hanged, Hady and Hariz's dinner needs to be prepared, oh Ami's long gone, fell asleep the moment we got home from the hunt and hasn't been up since, poor thing is exhausted too, and heh.. need to *remind* Hady and Hariz - homework homework homework kalau nak ikut Mama esok! Ha ha ha ha..

Oh, besides that, I officially signed on to become my cousins tutor/supervisor for her course elective this semester. She chose to do piano, so will be tutoring her on that, so I have to manage my time even more now. I'll be alright. Tired. But ok.

Gotta snap out of this now. Get up Linda! Stop being lazy, time waits for no one, so get a move on it!

Words are the sharpest swords

Nuff Said.

This and That

Last night Ami and I had a rare night out together, been ages since we'd been able to do that, so we caught the movie Wolverine. Ami had watched it with Hady and Hariz on one of the weekends that I was working, and since they couldn't stop talking about it, I decided to watch it myself. Ami treated me to the new Gardens Signature cinema with its twin seats, which I really really liked! Quite convenient that we didn't have to step on people if we needed to go to the loo, which I quite fancied.

Movie was great by my standards, and Hugh Jackman's a** and Ryan Reynolds abs were even better, fantastic even! Plot was simple enough for me to follow, and all that testosterone was making me giggle sheepishly non stop. Nice.

Today started out with some good news, I was one of the 4 winners of this month's trivia of my Company, hehehe.. paid off validating reports written on the company as I knew exactly how many ships the company owned ;)Haven't received my prize yet, so looking forward to that.

At about 11 am, Farni text me asking me out for a gf lunch, which I obliged, she came to my office and we had a lovely time just talking away about everything under the sun, our work, our husbands, our kids, our parents, everything. Thanks for the lunch treat babe, my turn next time yeah?

Along the way she asked me what I was doing this evening, and I couldn't decide between Star Trek (as Ami wanted to watch it yesterday since he had watched Wolverine before)or going back to sleep, as I still felt very tired from my late nights previously. We left it at that. Towards the end of the day, Farni text again saying that Avian, her husband wanted to join in for the movie, so I thought, why not, it's not often I get the night off, so let's go for it. Avian quickly bought the tickets online for us, and within 5 minutes, we were all set to catch a movie, the 4 of us.

So it was the second time Farni and I met for the day, now for dinner. Ha ha ha! We decided on Tony Romas's ribs, yummers, and seperti biasa, we just picked up from where we left in the afternoon and starting talking nonstop again. Talk about girl power, I tell you we never seem to run out of things to say to each other! The boys caught up with each other too, talking more on upcoming movies and about the coming AV fair which I'm looking forward to tag along.

How was Star Trek? Entertaining as well! Different from Wolverine, but was entertained the whole time too, which was great. All in all, I had a great time with the Avian's sans our kids, it would have been impossible to hold a decent conversation with Hady, Hariz, Alyssa and Aryff around!

Thanks to Farni and Avian too for treating us to dinner and the movie, next movie outing is on us, please. You paid for my lunch AND dinner, seriously, my treat next time k? Tomorrow will be another long day at work, just as I was about to leave work for the day today, I received some news that'll make my life for the next month as busy as before, so I'm mentally preparing myself for the onslaught coming tomorrow. Taking it as a challenge, albeit another painful one, but I'll get through it, I have faith in me.

I'm looking over my shoulder to look at Ami who is next to me, burying his head in his files, yet again tonight, and I do hope that I'll be able to match up to his drive and determination to succeed and be good at whatever path I choose in the future. Hariz is asleep and Hady's munching on the Choreo's doughnuts I got him from Big Apple and telling me about his day, he's a grown boy this one.

Ok folks, going to read a few pages from my new book before calling it a night, later peeps..

Catching up on lost time

We made it through another year end, thank god, so our job now is to finish tying up loose ends, before I start on my next yearly project, good luck to me.

Anyways, been trying to find time to catch up on my reading and Lin suggested that I read this book: 'The Time Traveler's Wife'. She called up Times last week to check on the availabilty of the book and BSC had a copy so I suggested dinner @ Chili's to celebrate me getting the book. Nice.

It's been sometime since I've had this book and finally today, I've been able to sit for a few moments (Not long la, I've got screaming babies who want my attention every 2 minutes) to catch up on my reading, and it feels good. Very good.

I love reading, as my mind can wander as much as it wants and I can just take my time to digest and appreciate what the author is trying to convey, so Linda is a happy girl, once again.

Ok, it's getting late and I have to work tom, but I do want to go ahead and read a couple of more pages before I call it a night. Accompanying Ami too, who's still reviewing his files, thought he'd like some conversation tonight, thought I'd continue with how hot Hugh Jackman is and what an a**, he he!

Good night everyone.

A mother is a Gem

It's Sunday, the 10th of May 2009, Mother's Day to be exact.

Well, I personally think it's just another marketing ploy from all you business people out there :) The irony of it all, it's supposedly to be "my" day so to speak, but was working till about 3 am this morning, came back to sleep, woke up at 7 am to a breakfast spread prepared by Ami (thanks Yang) to which I then fell asleep immediately again.

Woke up at 2pm and realised I was late for Daud's (Ami's other half, he he!) housewarming in Shah Alam, so rushed all the way there, and heh.. we were the last guest to arrive... Sorry Daud, didn't mean to be late, I hate being late, but I had a splitting head ache that I needed to sleep off.

Saw Mama at about 4pm and as we were discussing where to have dinner, boss text saying that we had to come back to office at 8 pm tonight. Dinner plans had to be scrapped to early dinner/late tea which was of course, Sushi @ BVII and as I felt soooo guilty for having to leave Hady and Hariz again tonight, bought them some books at MPH.

Went back to take a quick nap and got woken up by Farni's phone call, telling me she'd been at work since 7am that morning and that she was dead tired. Thinks we can so relate to each other, trying to manage a household and earn a living at the same time.. Said our goodbyes after reassuring each other that we could get through all of this, took a quick shower (the office is like a hot oven, panas!) before heading off to Coffee Bean for some much needed caffeiene and after all that, here I am back in office. I'm back here again already?

I do hope Hady and Hariz realise it's not easy to put food on the table for them, all the things Ami and I have to go through, and I truly appreciate what Papa and Mama have done for me, to raise me with much love all this while.. To Mama and my mother in law Ummi, I love you both with all my heart, Mama thanks for everything you've done for me and Ummi, thanks for raising such a wonderful man who is my husband.

Ok, back to work, I don't know what time we can go back today as the accounts are due tom at 0900 hours, we may be camping here overnight. Write again soon..

Late night rides

Its nearly 0000 hours, and yep, I'm still at work. Been here since 8 plus this morning so that's about 16 hours that I've been here, yet again. Just a quick note as I have to get back to work, but I was wondering, since I didn't drive today, whether I should just take a cab back home tonight. Called Ami at around 11+ and he was already asleep with Hady and Hariz, so I feel quite guilty now if I were to call him later to come pick me up, kesian lah pulak, he'd have to carry both sleeping kids to the car and drive here half awake. Worrying.

So the other alternative is to take a cab, which I'm thinking about, and which I have quite a few reservations about. To which got me thinking, I don't feel safe living in KL anymore? Seriously, I don't. So many horror stories I read every morning in the papers (thanks to Azril's Harian Metro, heh..), that I could actually end up as one of the casualties featured on the front page, tak nak lah pulakkan..

To give Ami credit (and lots of it), I'm sure he'd come here the moment I call him, bless him, but the independent person in me says, give him his rest, go find ur way back home yourself.. Ok, gotta get back to work, things always sorts its way out, eventually, just have to have some faith that I can go back home tonight, er, thinks it's already this morning ;)

Good day everyone..

Friends, Family and Anniversary

Yes I know, I'm terrible at updating. Couldn't sleep tonight and got time off early from work today (is 2030 hours considered early? It is for us!), so thought I'd just update a bit.

Been extremely busy at work, and as usual, I'm trying to juggle my wifey, mummy, daughter, friend duties all at the same time. Phewww.. It ain't easy juggling all that. Eventhough, I'm swamped with work, I do try to make sure that I don't neglect my family and friends, but of course at the cost of zero time for myself and this blog.. Heh.. excuses, excuses, excuses..

Anyways, lets see, what have I been up to? The week before had the Saturday off, so did my errands in the morning and spent the evening at Harie's place in Subang. Harie and I go a lonnnnngggg way back, we were housemates in uni and like Latape, he used to feed me, told ya I had zero culinary skills. So whenever he knew I was around and he had cooked, he'd surely make me join him for dinner. Heh.. Good times.. We survived uni together, travelling when we could, he was a year ahead of me, and it was nice having a housemate like him, always looking out for me back then. He threw a party for both his kids, so of course I had to attend..



The next day, I had a preplanned outdoor wedding shoot with Kamal and Fendi in Klang, so that's where I went bright and early on Sunday morning. This is my first time doing a photo shoot like that, so it wasn't easy, was struggling a bit, and it was hot, I wasn't even sure whether what I did was right.



Got a few shots and I was due back in office that morning, so I rushed back to KL, where we were till late that night. In the meantime, I really wanted to faint from the heat and sheer tiredness of that morning, it isn't easy being a photographer.. I have so much to learn still..

Then came the weekdays, where we'd be putting in hours till midnight nightly, sometimes running to 1 am. Doing 16 hours straight daily really just drains you out, but I can't complain much, other people have it worse than me, I just have to persevere. Worked on labour day itself, the irony of it all..

On Saturday and Sunday, it was a mad dash for me to catch up with friends and family. Had my cousin Gina's engagement in Klang, she looked lovely in pink, congrats sweetie!



Then had my cousin's Fahariah's party in Kg Baru, happy birthday Syaqeel, I hope you had lots of fun on your birthday Sayang! Fahariah and I grew up together, we were deskmates in Secondary School, so we were pretty close back then, dah lah cousins, duduk sebelah2 pulak tu dalam kelas, macam tak de orang lain! Ha ha ha ha ha.. Love ya babes!



Then later that night, it was dinner with my cousin Mat who was down from Perlis. His wife teaches in KL, so he comes back fortnightly to see her, and this time he made me a promise that he'd pop by and see me, so off we went for dinner. Meriah Yeop!



The next day, I had a flash class at the Heritage Hotel in KL, where I was the only lady present (besides the pro model, of course). A bit segan in the beginning, but the other guys made me feel at ease, and boy were they pros! Gave me a few tips here and there and they certainly weren't kedekut with their knowledge, so I gained a lot from attending the class. Thanks Zuhri, looking forward to attend more of your classes.



Which brings me to today, the 4th of May 2009, my 7th year wedding anniversary. I'm not one for public display of affections, and I don't think people would want to read sappy love notes in this blog anyways, so lets keep the mushy stuff away for my own private time. We had nothing planned for today as I knew I'd be working late, but somehow, we were let off early tonight. Lucky me?

Called Ami and asked him where he was, said he was on the way to Bora Asmara to have dinner with his mates so I asked if I could join in.. He said of course and made a u-turn to come pick me up. I love Bora Asmara, the ambience especially. Coincidently, the dinner tonight was to celebrate Ami's collegue's farewell, as it was her last week at the firm.

Bunyi macam some person from the office kan, but his collegue, Fadh, was actually my schoolmate since kindergarten, to Primary School and to Secondary School, yep, I had known her all my life! That's why Ami was more than happy to let me tag along as I knew her personally and he knew I could fit right in. So it also became an anniversary celebration for us, dah alang2 tu kan..

There were about 20 of them at the table when we arrived, all Ami's friends from EY and as soon as we arrived, there were choruses of Happy Anniversary Linda and Ami! I was like eh? Heh.. The wonders of facebook.. Ha ha ha ha ha.. I have most of his friends in my list too, and its pretty convenient that way, eventhough I don't meet up with them often, I would know of their happenings and vice versa, so it's pretty easy for me to hold a conversation with them when we meet up, till the point of saying good bye's, thinks it was harder for me to say good bye as I had so much to catch up with everyone (macam my event ler pulak tadi.. aisey..)..

Food was good, the company was great, all in all, had a nice quiet 7th anniversary, oh and Hady and Hariz tagged along tonight, so yeah, it was a family celebration too.. That's what I've been up to in a nutshell, not sure if I'd have the time to write again soon, I hope I do, till then, take care everyone!

Payback time!

Just a quick note on the happenings of last weekend, since it's still fresh in my head. Anyways, promised myself that I'd spend the weekend with Hady and Hariz. Miss them lots so it's now quality Papa & Mama time!

First up - it was VM's sports day on Saturday morning. Both Hady and Hariz participated and I make it a point to attend all their activities, want them to know that I care whole lot about them, that I'll always be there for them no matter what.



Papa arrived slightly later but just in time for their race, he had to work the whole night before the poor thing, but as I said, we make it a point to be there for them, no matter what..



Race was good, Hady won a gold medal and Hariz won a bronze medal, and since both Ami and I hadn't had breakfast, we decided to have brunch at my all time favourite girlie hang out place, Delicious @ BV II. It was good to be a family again after being apart for quite some time, so I treasured that moment immensely.



After that, I decided to have a hair cut at my hairdresser's in Puchong. Been going to him for 20 years now, and I wouldn't want anyone else to cut my hair. Ami slept in the car whilst waiting for me, penat babe, whilst Hady and Hariz tagged along upstairs.. Why did I need a hair cut? Well because that night was Turkey Night @ Farni & Avian's! We'd been planning a surprise do for Farni as it was her birthday, and it turned out perfect! The Turkey was perfect, kudos to the chef, the company excellent, and we all agreed that it was a perfect night for all of us to de-stress. Thanks to the host, we all had a great time! Who's birthday is next?



The next day, we had brunch at my favourite Char Kuey Teow place in KJ, yes again, best lah! Thereafter, I decided I needed to make it up to my boys and headed to Low Yat to check out the latest toys.. After walking around for a bit, I decided that it was time for them to get a playstation.. So that was what I got them 3. With 2 consoles and 10 games, thinks Papa had the biggest grin amongst them 3!

We had to rush back as my cousin Zul was having a birthday do at his pad in PJ, so balik siap, and of we went to PJ, fuh nasib baik sempat! Happy Birthday to my nephews Aidan & Ariez!



It was there too that Hady felt his tooth coming out so he ran to me and said Mama Mama, my tooth is coming out! Pull it out for me NOW! So tadaaaaa.... I became an instant dentist! Putting that in my resume now "able to extract tooth on the spot when needed".. Heh.. I could see a new tooth coming out too.. He's growing up to fast!



Then, to top it all off, Ajax, Aida, Harfad and Shamsul asked us to follow them to the look out point in Ampang for some dinner and night shooting. What can I say? The view was amazing.. If not for the jerebu, it would have been perfect, with the breeze and all.. And the company, hillarious as usual, mmg pecah perut nak gelak all the time!



So that was my weekend in a nutshell.. Hope Hady and Hariz didn't feel as though their Mama and Papa were ditching them, we're not Sayang, Mama and Papa need to build a future for you both.

Till next time, bye!

Mama's helping hand

As Ami and I work crazy hours at the moment, Hady and Hariz are placed in the care of my mum. Thanks Mama for babysitting them. So in the mornings, we have to go fetch them and send them to school.

And this is what I saw when I arrived.. Hady helping out cleaning Opah's garden! He's a big boy now, and I give him certain chores to do at home since we don't have a maid. Setting the dinner table, picking up the laundry, putting the laundry in the washing machine etc..

Granted my house isn't shiningly clean, as the boys do like to play with their toys everywhere and eat everywhere too, but I wanted to instill in them a sense of responsibility and not having to depend on other people what you can do yourself.

Mama's proud of you Hady, Mama sayang sangat2, may you always have a blessed life..

All about Rezeki

Today we were given a treat by our boss, as it was a birthday a couple of days ago. Many happy returns of the day Puan NCD, may you be blessed always. Her secretary initiated a pool so that we were able to get her a gift. It wasn't that much, a mere token, but when you get 90 people to contribute to it, it came out to quite a lot.

Her secretary, Kak Raffy, than went ahead to get Puan NCD lunch, thinks it was KFC and a hamper from Famous Amos. We hope you like it Puan. Now, in return, today, Puan treated all 90 os us, to a serving of Nasi Beriyani - each! That's delivery boy Azril doing his round distributing the Nasi Beriyani. Thanks babes, siap ada trolley segala!



Now here comes the point of the entry. I used to think rezeki only comes in huge sizes, a house , a car, a big fat raise etc.. But over the years, I've began to appreciate the smaller things in life. To me, rezeki now comes in all shapes and sizes.

Take for example, we all contributed less than RM 5 each for Puan NCD's gift and in return we had an RM 9 meal given to us. Alhamdulillah. Us accountants would calculate the return on investment (old habits die hard), and and we actually made a 70% return on our initial investment. Tak besar tu?

Another example I have is about a month ago, I went to the Mattel Warehouse sale to stock up on birthday gifts. Barbie dolls were cheap, going for RM 10 per doll so I bought more than 20. I didn't want them all, just a few that I could keep for future parties (habis kantoi with all my friends now.. he he), so I asked my collegues, kot ada sape2 want some dolls for their kids or nieces. And whaddya know, 20 dolls were taken with a particular friend grabbing 6 dolls (you know who you are and I know you're reading this ;) ). Anyways I was asked why I never marked up the prices of the dolls, maybe to RM 15 per doll, so that I could make a clean profit of RM 100. Well, bukan niat I pun nak menjual, sekadar nak tolong anyone since I went to the sale and it isn't accessible to everyone, to me it would be good enough to know the recipents of the dolls would be happy!

So I left it at that, and whaddya know.. 2 weeks later I got an sms asking me whether I wanted F1 tix from FNgah and AA, of course I want them! Ha ha ha.. You know what, god is great, instead of that RM 100 that I supposedly could have made, he gave me something else better, two RM 1,200 tickets each, yep you read right, each, for the recent F1 race in Sepang. Nak I kira rate of return on this ke? Thinks you can do the math ;)

There you have it, rezeki comes in all shapes and sizes, my apologies if my explanation doesn't really appeal to everyone, but I do believe that god works in mysterious ways and there's always something waiting for you down the road, and in the mean time, go ahead and enjoy these small pleasures in life that he gives you along the way.. Kita bersyukur diatas segala pemberiannye k?

I know I analyse a lot of things all the time (again, old habits die hard, and WKA is probably nodding his head when he reads this, keh keh keh..), but I like to see things from a different perspective, whether it's right or wrong, well, it's a person's perception kan, but this is my thoughts on this.

In the meantime, I'm about to enjoy my rezeki for today, thanks Puan NCD once again, the smell is so yummylicious, I'm going to have to stop now!

And the winner is..

Just a short review of my findings at 2 am last night.. Do no can percaya or not since I was half asleep whilst testing, but here's what I remember.. he he!

a) Plug and Play
Izzi - Have to put in login and password
WiMax - Auto login when I switch on the computer

Winner - WiMax

b) You tube
Izzi - You gotta be kidding me? Never been able to You tube at home before
WiMax - OMG, the video practically didn't stop!

Winner - Wimax

c) Portability
Izzi - Small and mobile
WiMax - Big modem and non mobile

Winner - Izzi

d) Home access
Izzi - Single Computer
WiMax - Router it baby!

Winner - WiMax

e) Facebook
Izzi - Nak tengok gambar? Jgn harap boleh load
Wimax - Wah, byk gambar2 kawan2 ku sebenarnye yang cantik2 eh?

Winner - WiMax

f) Nickelodeon
Izzi - Sian my babies nak main game online, Mama why is it still loading?
WiMax - Nyeh nyeh nyeh, Mama pulak yang beria2 main Sponge Bob malam tadi sorang2

Winner - WiMax

g) Gtalk, YM, MSN Messenger, FB Chat
Izzi - Sometimes can't connect, and keeps reconnecting, grrr.. not when I'm in
the middle of gossiping!
WiMax - Hik hik.. Gossip away, woo hoo!

Winner - WiMax

Oklah, you can see so far who is leading.. Will I recommend it? Let me have it for a few more days, and give you my opinion on it eh? But so far better lah, haven't tried streamyx before, so wouldn't know if it's better in comparison. Plus I was half asleep whilst giving this ago..

Showdown..

Managed to get back home before 10pm last night, and as soon as we reached home, we noticed that the P1 Wimax booth that had been set up a few days ago infront of our condo was open, so we decided to check it out.

Been hearing alot about this new Wimax service, and since they had a 7-day trial, we signed up for it. They couldn't activate it last night itself, so am anxious to go home to try it out! Still at work unfortunately, duty calls alas, but the prospect of going back to a much faster internet service is keeping me going tonight!

Show down between P1 Wimax and IZZI will be happening in a few hours, so will keep you updated on my findings, ala2 kasik review ler.. He he! Back to work now, lots to finish and so little time..

Latape and his breakfast

Been craving for a great plate of Char Kuey Teow lately, so Ami agreed for breakfast this morning in Kelana Jaya so that I could get a dose of my fav CKT.

Had Nasi Lemak @ Village Park yesterday and actually updated my twitter status on this, to which my friend Latape replied. Latape and I go way back, he was my senior @ Kent Uni and used to cook a mean daging masak kicap that I've had a couple of times, what with me being a first year freshie with zero culinary skills. Thanks for feeding me Tape, kalau tak kebulur kot I dulu kat Kent tu.. Ha ha ha..

Anyways, Latape also loves the food @ Village Park and was absolutely drooling when I told him what I had. The ayam goreng was to die for. He's now in Australia finishing up his PhD (damn proud of you Tape) so mmg lah teringin sgt nak makan Nasi Lemak tu..

Was telling him that I was going for some CKT this morning and his reaction was CKT Kelana Jaya! Omg! We so have the same taste in food! Ha ha ha.. So here it is Tape, the KJ CKT in all its glory, especially for you.. When you come back, we soooo have to breakfast it together over a hot bowl of fresh gossip k? Study hard now!

Sunday Blues

It's Sunday at around 7 plus in the morning. Just finished my laundry and a photo shoot of my in-house model, Ami Akhram, my hubba dubs.

Was out shooting the sun rise at around six plus when he came out to the balcony and just stood in front of me smiling, in other words, nak mintak ambik gambar le tu.. Ha ha ha..

So did an impromptu photo shoot with him there and then, rajin pulak dia nak pose for his wife this morning, thanks sweetheart.

After getting some good shots, he came back inside, whilst I continued my shoot. When I came back inside, this is what I saw. Ami hard at work.

I always wonder where he gets all this energy to work 24/7 and still manage to smile for me all the time.. Amazes me.

Oh, he wants breakfast before he goes to the office, feel like a good dose of Char Kuey Teow this morning can Yang? Been wanting some the whole week!

Gotta go, he's wondering why I'm busy typing non-stop, he he.. You'll know when you open up the blog later.. If you actually do have some spare time later ler.. :)

My first love

... not talking boyfriends here, more, of my first born, Hady Adam. He turned 6 this year and will be going to Primary 1 next year, how time flies. He's the exact carbon copy of me, from his looks to his mannerism. His Papa loves him to bits, so by deduction, since he's exactly like me, that would mean his Papa loves me to bits too (iklan kejap). ;)

Anyways, I did a potraiture of him one weekend when we were home, and I absolutely loved these shots of him.. To Hady, Mama is so proud to be your mum, may you be blessed always, reach for the stars my son, I know you can do it..

Linda and her left overs

Since it's Friday, we get two hours of lunch in the afternoon. Today Min and I decided to Jalan TAR it by bus (dah lama siut tak naik bas kat KL ni) to contribute to the economy (nyeh nyeh nyeh) and have lunch. Well Min contributed this week since I had my fair share last week, and then we were off to lunch.

Went to colliseum for some yummy chinese fried rice and dessert. And as always, I didn't finish up my dish. Thinks I'm so used to having half portions as I take the leftovers from my children whenever they eat. So I love my friends for being my personalised 'DBKL Clean Up Centre' for sharing my food or finishing off my dish most of the time.

Oh but Min, after second thoughts, I think I could have finished off the banana popiah roll with ice cream by myself, sedap lah pulak!

Cabinet Update

Azril and AFaz giving us live updates of the new cabinet line-up, we're getting live updates, as I write this. so cute them both! To the new ministers, congratulations, please discharge your duties honestly and in the best interest of the rakyat!

Baju Abang Sayang

Fairus today commented that i was wearing a 'Baju Abang Sayang'. I was like what? This was a kurung I had for Raya 3 years ago and I found it in my closet today, tried it on and it fitted! Amazing! Hahahahahaha..

Apparently a 'Baju Abang Sayang', is a type of kurung that requires the husband to zip up for the wife, as the zip runs the length of the kurung.

I thought about it and yep, Ami had to zip me up this morning (thanks sweetie), couldn't reach the zipper myself, he he.. Never thought a kurung would be called that, but I really like it, mesra bunyinye gitu, so here's to more Baju Abang Sayang's in the future!

A tale of two brothers

This is a typical scene in the early morning's at the Ami household. on the left is my first born Hady and on the right is my second born Hariz. I haven't seen them for two days, as both Ami and I are both stuck in the office preparing year end financial statements. I'm a true believer in promoting kindness in any way and this one touched my heart this morning.

I miss them both a whole lot, but alas,duty calls, but Mama promises to make it up to you both soon..

To Hady and Hariz, Mama hopes that you'll be there for each other through good and bad times, the bonds between brother's are a tight one, so lets start with helping each other with shirt buttoning k?

So long, farewell

I'm really really on a roll today! Just a quick update. Was in charge of buying dinner for my friends in office today, still doing our year end closing at the moment. Choice today was KFC so I voluntered to go and Lin & Mazran accompanied me. Orders were for 8 people with dessert, so off we went. But alas, on the way back to office, it poured heavily and we had no choice but to run back in the rain! Halfway, my slippers gave way, so I had to run barefooted the rest of the way back.. Loved these slippers, will definitely miss it, but on the bright side, it's time for another pair of slip ons! So long my faithful slippers, will miss you no doubt.

On a side note, am left with a severe headache now. Tak boleh kena hujan, I can just imagine my mum going 'mandi cepat, i know u and u'll fall sick!'.. Yes mum, will do, as soon as I get home, hopefully before the day is over :(

Lunch is served

I'm on a roll today! Just discovered mobile blogging today so giving it another go. Anyways, these are my lunch buddies Muz on the left and AFaz on the right. Yep. He's my mystery The Sun man :) We're @ our favourite joint @ CM. Happy lunching everyone!

Make someone's day!

Every morning for the past couple of months, there would be The Sun newspaper waiting for me on my table. At first I thought that someone must have left it accidently on my table on the way to the pantry, but when it became a daily event, I became suspicious.

No one ever admitted or acknowledged that it was him/her that had left the paper on my table, though I did eventually find out who it was. Thanks AFaz. He'd pick up the paper as he comes in very early everyday and leave it on my table so that I'd have something to read.

This simple act of kindness is something I look forward to every morning. It's nice that someone would think of you and do a simple deed for you and it's the thought that counts.

So have you made someone smile this morning? If you haven't, go right ahead!

Mobile blogging

Trying to see whether mobile blogging works.

Cheers!

A love of a sister

At Papa's do over the weekend, this particular moment made me remember how much a lot of people really did love Papa.. It was when Mak Chor broke down into tears, sobbing non-stop.

Papa is the 9th child of 11 children, himself being the youngest boy. When his 2 elder brother's passed on, it broke his heart and I think he never did recover from that since Tok passed away when he was little and it was these 2 brother's that raised him. Mak Chor is the eldest, and is herself a great-grandmother which means I'm a granny myself!

Mak Chor, kita maafkanlah segala kesilapannya yang lalu, kita sendiri tak tahu nasib kita bagaimana nanti.. Papa sayang kita semua, mesti dia rindu gelak ketawa kita semua..

The day they stopped the race

Yes, I'm already out of the toilet :) Please refer to my previous post if you don't understand what all this is about. Am ccurrently in bed, typing this out on my phone whilst waiting for the children to finish their homework. It's english grammar today. Quite happy that both of them can read already, though spelling is quite though on them. Ami is @ work, will try to wait up for him, but I am exahusted today, will prob snooze off before he comes in.

Anyways, Papa's do went well, all his remaining siblings were present, including his eldest sister Mak Chor. She broke down when she saw Papa, her youngest brother, lying there helpless.. That made me break down again in front of my Aunts and cousins this time, just couldn't stop crying.

Ami and I had planned to attend the F1 race after the do, which we did, with my sister Syida in tow. Had complimentary Ruby seats from FNgah and AA, thanks u both, really appreciate it.

F1 was something I did on a yearly basis with my dad and I hadn't gone back to the track since the day he fell sick, which was after the F1 race 2 years ago. We'd sometime just go to the track just the both of us, other times with Mama, Syida or Ami in tow. So F1 was OUR thing.

It was good to be back, though I wished Papa was there too, I still remember how he'd grin at the sound of the cars zooming up and down the track.. It was a historic moment, the race got stopped on lap 33 due to the torrential rain, could just imagine him complaining non stop asking the marshall's to start the race. yep, that would be Papa..

I'm lucky to have sooooo many people around me that I can count on.. I count my blessings everyday, ada rezeki dan kasih sayang tu dimana2 kan? Ok, the children have finished their homework so I need to put them to bed. Thinks Ami will still be awhile at work, so will nap it first whilst waiting for him to come back, am tired to the bone.

Have a good day everyone.

It's been two years..

As I'm writing this, I'm sitting in my old toilet at the parental units place with tears running steadily down my cheek. Mum's place is full of family from near and far as today marks the second year ish my dad fell sick with stroke. Didn't want anyone to see me crying, so here I am hiding in the toilet for some privacy.

I miss Papa. I rarely talk about him anymore coz everytime I do the floodgates just open like this and I can't stop crying. Spent twenty years growing up in this house under his watchful eye, all the memories we had together just came flooding back.

At times like these, it's family I need most, and everyone is here.That shows how much we love you, Pa.. Ok, I better stop, before everyone starts looking for me. Just had to let it out.. Pa, I love you so much, I'll always be your little girl, no matter what..

Cobwebs! Get me out of this cobweb!

*Cobwebs everywhere* Sheesh!

I know I know, it's been ages since I've written, and believe me, a lot has happened in the past 2 months that I wanted to share, but alas had gotten a tad too *lazy* to write.. Perhaps it's the fact that I've got all my friends on FB, Gtalk, YM, MSN and twitter that I update them on my happenings regularly that I became lazy to update this blog. But then, when I'd be talking to my friends and going on about stuff, they'd be but Linda you didn't tell me that, er, I didn't? Aiseymen.. who lah did I update then? Tak ingat pulak.. Kekekekekekekeke.. So I thought best I blog again, so I tak le tertinggal sape2 and everybody gets all cerita's in full and not bits and pieces everywhere..

And us usual, Andrew had reminded me quite a few times that I haven't updated my blog, that I should.. So here I am..

Let's see.. one of the things that happened was Singapore, and of course Andrew was there. Eh Sayang.. I'm going to have to rename this blog the chronicles of Linda and Andrew coz I seem to update this blog whenever we go on vacation lah babe.. How? Ha ha ha ha..

So the 3 of us, Doni, Andrew and I decided to visit Najwa in Singapore where she resides.. All I can say was that it was great to be able to get away from it all a bit.. Not that I don't love my kids and Ami, just that I needed some time to myself and this was a good way for me to just get some rest.

As usual, all we did was eat eat eat eat eat eat eat gossip talk talk gossip eat gossip eat eat eat. Best! Was great waking up in the morning and thinking, oh yeay, I don't have to do laundry today or mop the floor or wash the dishes etc.. All I did was wake up, coffee was served (thanks Doni and Najwa) and just had to sit back and relax whilst relaxing in the living room with Andrew.. Nice to have an old friend around and topics jumped from one to another.

Nabs had a nice place in Singapore, enough to fit the 4 of us. Doni and Nabs took the master bedroom, I had the day bed in her study ish and Andrew slept on the couch out in the living room. Andrew drove down from JB so it was easy enough for us to get around, Doni and I had taken the flight down from KL the day earlier.

The highlight of the trip had to be our trip to the bird park! We're so aunty and uncle Andrew and I, strolling along the park taking pictures (he was my only model besides the birds) whilst Najwa and Doni stayed on at Orchard road. Oh, bumped into an old school mate at the bird park, boleh tak? Hi Izan! Of all places.. Ha ha ha.. Thinks I have friends everywhere ler.. And we also won great stuff @ the lucky draw at the park with Andrew winning a Nikon camera. Nasib baik compact je, kot dia menang D90 ke, pengsan I!

Oh, also had drinks with Bee Lian (another school mate, told ya I have friends everywhere) on the first night I was there, went to the esplanade and sat and chatted the night away... As I said, I had no complaints..

It was Ashvin's birthday when we were there, so all four of us called him to wish him. I had forgotten his birthday last year, to the point that he had to call me and go "Linda have you forgotten me, my birthday was a week ago..".. Damn it! I'm quite good with dates, so it was a big boo boo on my side to have forgotten that, so I made it a point NOT TO FORGET IT THIS YEAR, so the night before his birthday I made Najwa, Doni and Andrew to remind me the next to call him.. Ha ha ha.. So Ash sweetheart, Happy birthday, may all your wishes come true..

Having said that.. I had dinner with Doni and Ashvin last night. And we were talking again.. About another trip to Singapore, with Ashvin in tow this time.. How about it dude? We need to paint Singapore red!

To which this reminds me, Andrew, we haven't taken Ash out for his customary birthday dinner, give me a buzz the next time you're back in KL will ya, we gotta take him out :)

Other than that, the kids are doing fine, Hady's such a big boy already, so tall and lanky, just like I was when I was little..Hariz still clings on to me for dear life, and at 4, he's able to read a book from front to back meant for 6 year olds, so I've been busy entertaining questions from him everyday, good lah he has an interest to learn.. Oh, and they've discovered FHM, thanks to their Ayah Ngah.. Ami's quite proud at the fact that his sons are "men".. Huk huk..

Oklah, promise to write again.. Hopefully soon.. Take care everyone..

Black & White

This is my part of my black & white collection that I have.. Enjoy, whilst I hunt for the rest of my pictures (I have a huge suspicion that the two little ones have managed to "rearrange" my folders so that I can't find my other pictures, it's going to take awhile of digging in my lappie to uncover them..)

That thing that you do

Ah.. Finally.. Some time to my self. It's the CNY holidays, happy new year AHYH, and been busy entertaining the kids and getting some house chores done, tapi as usual sempat lagi nak berFB, nyeh nyeh nyeh.. Been having a field day what with the sun shining nice and brightly and a few functions that I've been able to attend to let me practise me photography skills.

For those who don't know me, yes, I'm into photography, and no, I'm not a pro. Quite the beginner but quite enthusiastic though. Am lucky to have a set of wonderful friends who are really into this as well, so I get a lot of support there. People always wonder why I suddenly developed this "interest" in photography.. Well.. Thought I'd share how my interest developed here, today.

I've always loved taking pictures, even when I was younger. I would sneak into my dad's room and take out his camera (sorry dad) and quietly go around taking pictures of everything everywhere. Don't think my dad trusted me with such an expensive piece of equipment, so he hid away from all of us (but I still found it.. ha ha ha..) and thanks to digital photography, after I'd taken a few shots, I'd be able to delete it without him knowing.

I tried out for the school photography society when I was in school, but I didn't make the cut. Man, that disappointment still haunts me till today. I loved taking pictures so much, I wished they'd have given me a chance, but alas, it wasn't meant to be..

Over the years, I've had my fair share of compacts, it's served me well, but it wasn't quite giving me the pictures that I wanted. So last year, I hinted to AAA that I would like a DSLR for my birthday.. Left HUGE hints everywhere, but true to form, he'd just put on a blank face, semi ignoring me and just shrugged his shoulders.

So of course, I was caught by surprise when on the eve of my birthday, after I got home from work, he called me from our room. Thought he wanted to tell me something, but I was in for the shock of my life when there, on our bed was a brand new Canon 450D staring at me (he was paying attention rupan2nye, as I got exactly the one that I wanted, thanks so much Yang)! I was lost for words (ok lah, who would believe Linda would be lost for words kan?), I was practically screaming my lungs out with joy and jumping up and down I swear the neighbours would have thought we had elephants in the house running around. Opps! So here's the first picture I took with the camera, very blur and not nice looking at all..

Over the past hmmm.... 6 months? I've developed an even more deeper love for photography, and my skills have definitely improved by leaps and bounds. It's no longer point and shoot, but thinking what I want to picture to turn out like in my head first before I shoot anything. Still have a longgggggggggg way to go, but I'm definitely willing to learn. So, I've decided, my next few entries will be dedicated to this new found interest of mine. I'd like to share with everyone the nicest shots I think that I've taken via a few categories, i.e. black & white, landscape, weddings etc.. Maybe build up a portfolio so that I could actually take photographs part time and make the pictures pay for themselves (it is a very expensive hobby, do not be fooled).

To my next entry..

Little Hand

IMG_9551v1
Originally uploaded by lindasham

Just a test post from my flickr to my blog to see whether this works. This is one of my favourite pictures, I love doing potraiture and catching "moments" and this is one of them.. Will hopefully share more of my pictures in the future and the story behing them, being happy or sad. A picture is worth a thousand words (er, did I get that right?) :)

Flickr

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

So the year begins..

It's been awhile since my last entry. Been meaning to write, but couldn't really find the time, though everytime something interesting happened from my last entry, I'd always go "Hey, that'd be an interesting thing to write in my blog". Tapi dah tak ingat dah apa dia (yes, I tend to forget things easily, especially midway in conversations, - Welcome to the world that is Linda). And since AHYH actually commented on my FB that I haven't updated my blog in awhile (wah, got following already is it me? nyeh nyeh nyeh), I'm dedicating this post to him - how are you sweets? Come back to KL soon will ya, we need to do coffee!

What's happened since my last entry? Went to Paris and came back - in one piece! It was freezingly cold! As I'd been to Paris many many times whilst I was a student in Kent, I kinda knew my way around, so it was easy getting from place to place. Didn't really shop, didn't shop even, main intention was just to have a rest and do a bit of sight seeing, and that was exactly what I did.

Christmas Day in Paris

The highlight of my stay was meeting up and staying with NAZ1. NAZ1 and I were classmates in Uni and we met each other at Kent for the first time 12 years ago. Since then, we've been good friends and she'd be my friend to cry on (literally), I could just pick up the phone and start crying and I wouldn't have to say a word and she'd understand me completely and vice versa. We don't go out with each other often, hardly even, as between us, we have 5 boys to take care of but it's always good to hear her voice on the other end of the line. Now that she lives in Paris, I accumulated everything I wanted to tell her and told her everything at one go, mana tak havoc gelak2 macam nak rak masa kat sana.. Thanks sweetie, for Paris, for Kent, for everything (including your ikan sadin, beras, telur and segala that we all bedal masa kat sana.. heh..)..

Last day in Paris.. Baby Iskandar, NAZ1 and I. You have no idea how much i miss you babe ...

The day after I came back from Paris, I immediately went back to KB to pick up the babies. MIL took them back to KB early December and I was suppose to pick them up during Christmas, and out-of-the-blue Paris happened, so it got postponed to the New Year's. Made it back in time to KL to get them ready for school i.e. it was already Sunday the day before the first day of school and they still didn't have uniforms.. Heh.. Typical Linda to leave everything to the last minute!

So it's been a week since they started the first day of school for year 2009. It's their third year in V*llamaria, and HadyAdam fitted in immediately. HarizAzlan, is actually a very shy little baby. He tends to keep his head bowed down if he doesn't know you, but after he warms up, he'll be ok. Still clings on to me everytime I drop him off to school every morning though.. Started them with Agama School in the evenings as well this year. Thought it'd keep them busy and minimise their bickering with each other. HadyAdam wasn't too happy at first, but as soon as he saw his classroom, I didn't see him again till it was time to pick him up from school at about 5 that evening. HarizAzlan went everywhere HadyAdam went, so thinks they'll be alright.

Today, I actually fell asleep whilst watching Bolt in 3D with AAA and the kiddies. Just realised that I'd been running around non-stop for the past week and only managed to catch a breather today. My day usually starts around 5 am, need to prepare breakfast (nowadays its waffles, pancakes or french toasts), prepare the kiddies food for their midday school break, then it's ironing everyone's clothes, then waking everyone up (now that needs a whole lot of energy and patience!), getting everyone ready, sending the kids to school first (HarizAzlan now insists that I send him to class even), sending AAA to work then only do I go to work, and this needs to be done by 8 am cause that's when my office working hour starts. It's our quarter closing as well now, so been working till midnight with the team (great team by the way), and after work I need to pick up AAA from work first (yes, it's the busy period for him too) then the kids then only do I go home. By that time, it's normally nearly one a.m., and sometimes I do laundry first before going to sleep. And the same routine follows the next day and so on. Yikes! No wonder I could hardly open my eyes today..

Which brings me to my next point. I thought of "slowing" it down a bit this year, not trying to do 5 million things at once like I always do, but doesn't look like that's going to happen. Seems like there's always something to do. I've got wedding invites one after another till June, and I usually try to fulfill these to the best I can, and to kick start things, I'd like to wish congrats to AdLim - I'll see you at your reception next week.

Also happening next week, my first hunt for the year! I love hunting, I love the rush I get everytime I solve a question, especially those mind-boggling ones, and I certainly am looking forward to this! I usually go hunting with my close friend WKA and his team and yeah, this is how we usually spend our weekends, and I love it to bits, the challenge of it all.. Though kekadang tu time tak boleh jawab, we all always go "what on earth are we doing here? bangun pagi2 nak jawab soalan ntah apa2 ni.." he he! Sometimes the hunt is held as an overnight hunt, so we usually take the oppurtunity for it to be a nice short break for us as well.

The usual suspects - my hunting buddies on the weekends..

Other than that, the other major thing that's in hot discussion now is my annual holiday with THEGANG. We've been doing this ever since the 5 of us became friends on the first day we started work at THEFIRM, 8 years ago. We usually do beach holidays, but last year we thought we'd be different and go up the hills. This year however, it looks like we're heading to the beach again! The Legendary Island has been chosen for our 4D 3N trip this year and Andaman, here we come! Biggest issue as always is trying to find a suitable time that everybody can go. AHYH now resides in JB and NAB is moving to Singapore next week, as such we hardly get to see each other anymore, not like the days in THEFIRM where there'd always be lunch, dinner or coffee every other day.. So, we make it a point to make sure everybody is available for the trip and it's usually filled with laughter and laughter and more laughter.

High up in the hills last year with THEGANG

Gosh, thinks I've written quite a bit today! Got lots of kiddies-related-errands to do tommorrow (how do I stop doing 5 million things at once again?) morning, and am spending the evening with NAB and ASH for the last time before NAB moves on to Singapore. Keep that spare bed for me will ya? Planning on visiting you soon too (Linda, stop making plans already!). And dinner will be with the LUNCHPEOPLE. Bad enough we have lunch everyday together in office, now it's dinner too? He he he.. Ok peeps, that's all for now.. Till my next entry (AHYH, remind me to update this blog will ya?), Au revoir..