My Little Mak Nenek

Dear Diary,

Now that Zarra is able to speak fluently, she seems never to stop talking. Sometimes words that come out of her mouth are unbelievable and go beyond her tender age. I sometimes call her Mak Nenek and she’ll pretend to be angry with me. She also likes to sing to herself. Although the lyrics are to her liking but the rhythm is correct.

One incident happened about two weeks ago. She farted and I jokingly asked her, “Bunyi apa tu Zarra?” With a selamba face, she replied, “Takde apa-apa pun.”

She can also be so sweet at times like when she begs to help me with household chores such as putting things away, folding and hanging up clothes. A case in point, after she hit me (when she's angry with me) I will pretend to cry. Straightaway she'll say, "Shh, shh, jangan nangis Mama. Sayang, senyap ye. Sikit je. Takde apa-apa."

When she doesn’t want to do something that I asked her to do, she’ll come up with all kinds of excuses. “Nanti tangan Zarra sakit la.” “Mama buat la.” “Zarra penat la.”

Whatever it is, I’m very thankful for having her in my life…my little princess.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice

Dear Diary,

Imran had wanted to go to the movie ever since Toy Story 3 came out and we had been ignored his pleadings. Not that we didn’t pity him, we just don’t want to make it a routine for him to go to the movie every time there is a cartoon or animation movie at the cinema.

After taking our own sweet time, last month we decided to bring him watch The Sorcerer’s Apprentice instead. At least we adults can enjoy the movie also. A movie directed by Jon Turteltaub, produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and starred by Nicolas Cage (Balthazar Blake), Jay Baruchel (Dave Stutler) and Alfred Molina (Maxim Horvath).

The story revolves around Balthazar who is searching for an apprentice in order to kill an evil sorceress, Morgana and defeat Horvath. Horvath (remember him as the villain in Spiderman 2) on the other hand wants to summon Morgana to life so that he can conquer the world. Both Balthazar and Horvath “friendship” went a long way back where they were apprentices to Merlin (yes, the famous sorcerer Merlin!) together with Veronica. However, Horvath betrayed Merlin because Veronica chose Balthazar over him. Balthazar’s centuries search for an apprentice ended when he met Dave in New York. Dave is a university student who is very into physics. So, the lessons and adventure begin for both Balthazar and Dave.

I personally select this movie partly due to its special effects (I am so not disappointed in this aspect!!!) and Jerry Bruckheimer (who is well known for producing all three CSIs, The Amazing Race, Top Gun, Con Air, Coyote Ugly, Armageddon, among other things). The three of us enjoyed the movie tremendously. Its special effects are superb and so believable. Their technology is very advance. The acting is presentable given that this is Baruchel’s first acting debut. Cage is well Cage….with his charming antics and lovable face. It is just a simple and predictable story (what do you expect from Disney’s movie and rated U) makes better with excellent effects. In my opinion, it is a combination of Harry Potter and The X-Men.

* Reference from Yahoo! Movies and pictures courtesy of Yahoo! Images

Kurma oh Kurma

Dear Diary,

Ramadhan 2010 is here and already inching into its second half. Exactly a year ago, I celebrated the arrival of Ramadhan in Mecca. How time flies. It seems like only a few months ago I was walking to and fro to Masjidil Haram for iftar and terawih. I got to experience Ramadhan in Mecca and it was such a beautiful experience. No words can describe my feelings and experiences being over there.

I also got to observe different people from different countries and their iftar cultures. The Turkish with their cheese and bread (the cheese is super soft), the Africans with their herbal drinks and the Arabs with their dates.

As we all know, breaking fast with dates is a sunnah. There are varieties of dates available in the market nowadays. Which type do you like best? I really like the fresh ones, especially if their ripe. To make it better, cool them in the refrigerator before eating. I ate this kind of dates in Mecca last year while performing umrah during Ramadhan. The dates are so succulent…just pop them in your mouth, you don’t have to chew, they just melt away.

Bedtime Storytelling

Dear Diary,

Finally, I did it!!! I read stories to my children when tucking them in to sleep. Am I a bad mother for starting too late? You see, Imran is already 6 years old. I should have been doing this a very long time ago right. I feel so guilty!

In my defense, what I can say is that I just couldn’t do this when I was working. I arrived home very late every night. The children were already asleep by the time I got home. Since I became full time housewife, I’ve been putting off this one task even though deep down in my heart I want to do it for my children. Excuses, excuses!

So, last week I finally bought two books (for starters) for them. Imran is over excited. One good thing that came out of this is I don’t have to remind him again and again that it is bedtime already. He voluntarily wants to sleep early just for the sake of me reading to him. It is so easy to please him when he looks adorable pleading me to read to him. Another good thing is I can spend more bonding time with them and teach them moral of each story. I truly hope this will be a continuous activity with my two precious sweethearts.

Taken

Dear Diary,

A few nights ago while waiting for Hubby to come home, I got a chance to watch Taken on HBO. It is a fast paced action movie starring Liam Neeson (Bryan) and Maggie Grace (Kim). This 2009 released movie was directed by Pierre Morel.

The story is about a father, Bryan, who was an ex-soldier, who went to Paris in search of his kidnapped daughter, Kim. Kim went to Paris with her friend Amanda with the intention of touring Europe. There they were two very young naïve girls all alone in a foreign land ready to try everything without thinking about the consequences.

At first, Bryan didn’t give his permission for Kim to go. He had worked in Paris before so he is fully aware of all the dangers that could happen to young girls. However, against his better judgment, he finally gave in. His worst fears become reality when Kim screamed over the phone that somebody has taken Amanda. All these were taking place while Bryan and Kim were talking on the phone. As he expected, his daughter was next to be taken. Imagine hearing everything that happened while your only child was being kidnapped by a group of Albanian mafia.

Bryan only had 96 hours before never to find his daughter again, so the adventure began. He tracked down the mafia but unfortunately his daughter was already been sold to somebody who is involved in a high class prostitution ring. Bryan is a very intelligent, quick thinking and observant man. Though the fighting scenes were a bit violent, there were filmed in swift and tasteful shots.

This movie depicts a father who is willing to do everything in order to save his beloved daughter. Mind you, when I said everything I really mean EVERYTHING including killing ruthlessly, breaking all laws and ignoring fatigue or hunger. What I like about this movie is the no boundary love a father has for his daughter and his willingness to put his life at risk in order to ensure her safety.

One question popped in my mind, are you willing to do what Bryan did in real life? Err, don’t we have to deal with our country’s authorities and the foreign country’s authorities? Not to mention all the bureaucracy involved. Well, in time of desperation we got to do what we have got to do.

*Pictures courtesy of Yahoo! Images

*Reference from http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809834197/details

Fasting for the First Time

Dear Diary,

Alhamdulillah, after a week of Ramadhan and much persuasion, Imran is finally fasting though on a half day basis. This is his first time fasting. Yesterday and today he fasts until 2pm. Yea!!! That’s good enough for me. Not to mention a huge step on his behalf.

A day before Ramadhan, he was very excited to try fasting after I explained to him what puasa is all about and reasons why he should start fasting. What happened next morning was entirely different story. He asked for his glass of milk as usual when it was time for him to go to school. I reasoned with him now that he started fasting he cannot eat or drink anything until he came back from school. My intention is to train him to fast half day during school days and full day during weekends. Then the drama began….Imran started crying and whining. As I didn’t want his day and his fasting experience to start on a wrong foot, I gave in and let him have his milk. For the past one week, there were all sorts of excuses which resulted in Imran not fasting. “Mama, Adam lapar.” “Mama, Adam puasa tapi minum sikit je.” “Mama, Adam muntah sebab perut kosong.” “Mama, Adam makan sikit rasa-rasa je kat sekolah tadi.”

So, you can imagine my joy when he came home from school yesterday and said this when I asked him whether he ate anything in school, “Tak. Adam tak makan apa-apa pun hari ni. Adam puasa.” I pray he will successfully fast (even half day) all throughout Ramadhan, Insya Allah.

Floria Putrajaya, July 2010

Dear Diary,

Last two weeks, we headed to Putrajaya to go see Floria Putrajaya Flower & Garden Festival. It is a yearly event in which flora enthusiasts will have the chance to check out garden exhibitions and landscaping. This year it took place for 9 days from July 10 till July 18 in Lakefront, Presint 2. Admission is free. For more information - http://www.ppj.gov.my/putrajayafloria/floria.html

The exhibition was huge. We only had a chance to visit one section before Zarra started to acting up. She didn’t want to walk anymore and wanted to be carried. To make matters worse, we didn’t bring her pram. Poor Hubby! If only she weighs lighter, it would be possible for us to proceed to the next section….*sigh*. Next year maybe…

The arrangements were beautiful. Some were very artistic. There were also a section for food & beverages stalls and a section for nursery companies to sell all sorts of plants (flowers, fruits and vegetation). If only I am not staying in an apartment, I would be busy choosing and spending.

Enjoy the pictures!!!

Before heading back, we stopped at one of Putrajaya’s bridges and took some more pictures. When it was time to go home, Zarra didn’t want to get in the car….pulak…