Irfan's Raya Haircut

Dear Diary,

Hubby brought the two boys for their raya haircut two weeks before raya. That was Irfan’s second time going to a barber. His first haircut experience (I was not there) at a barbershop was smooth sailing. He sat quietly, didn’t move his head or cry. It was a quick and easy trip.

However, the second time was totally the opposite. He started crying as soon as Hubby placed him on the chair; so, Hubby seated Irfan on his lap. The crying soon changed into wailing when the barber started cutting his hair. Luckily, the barber was swift and skilled in doing his job. He was done before Irfan became out of control.

Phew, Irfan oh Irfan!

Kupohon Restu Ayah Bonda

Dear Diary,

A beautiful raya song that never fails to touch my heart...

KU POHON RESTU AYAH BONDA
by Mamat Exists

Duhai bonda duhai ayahanda
Dengarlah rayuan anakanda
Yang jauh di mata…

Tanpa ku sedari airmata ku mengalir
Terdengar ayat suci seruan takbir
Betapa daku gembira dekat di samping keluarga
Di pagi mulia hari raya

Kan ku sujud di kakimu bila kita bertemu
Kan ku cium tangan mu ku pohon restu
Oh maafkan daku kesalahan diri ku

Walau jauh di mata namun kau tak dapat ku lupa
Doa ku sepanjang masa agar kau bahagia
Ku pohon restu dari mu oh ayah dan ibu
Agar tercapai cita ku membela nasib mu

Kan ku sujud di kakimu bila kita bertemu
Kan ku cium tangan mu ku pohon restu
Oh maafkan daku kesalahan diri ku

Kesalahan diri ku…

* Lyrics taken from www.senikata.com

Sunrise View

Dear Diary,

Good morning everyone! Hope today would be a great one for all of us, Insya Allah.

I've always shared sunset views before. Today, I want to share sunrise views from my balcony.

Niat di hati nak post entry raya tapi terpaksa simpan dulu niat tu sebab semua gambar raya ada dalam kamera adik ipar. Kenalah dapatkan dari dia dulu....Before I can finally post my raya entry, I'll substitute with a few pre-raya posts first.

Moments I Treasure

Dear Diary,

Children are invaluable gifts from Allah. They not only bring joy in a couple’s life but with their existence also come along great responsibility. A monumental responsibility each parent to shoulder in molding their kids into becoming good people. It is not something that can be taken lightly.

It is very endearing to witness moments among your children that speak thousand words. Moments that you as a mother hold dear to your heart. Moments that you wouldn’t want to trade with anything else in this world. Moments that show you must’ve done something right. Moments like I experienced the other day…

 

Imran prepared a cup of instant noodles for himself. He loves instant noodles. So much so that he can eat them and nothing else. It touched my heart seeing he willingly shared his noodles with his siblings without me telling him to do so. Knowing how stingy Imran can be over his possessions, it was moment like this that made my day and made everything worthwhile.

The 3 Stooges

Dear Diary,

My 3 models giving me their own version of free style posing...

Sekarang ni kalau suruh posing, macam-macam style keluar.

Goodbye Ramadhan, Welcome Syawal

Dear Diary,

Ramadhan is coming to an end. This reality leaves me with mixed feelings – sad, longing, worry, etc. Will I have another chance to meet Ramadhan again? Is my ibadah enough or should have I done more? This Ramadhan was spent as modest as possible to avoid wastage. I didn’t step to any Ramadhan bazaar at all. A bit of sad though because I still couldn’t perform terawih at mosque. I only perform my terawih at home. My youngest hero still feels uncomfortable if left with other people. Maybe in a few years time...

In a matter of days, Syawal will arrive with all its glory. Imran is so looking forward to welcoming Syawal. He deserves it. He only missed one day of fasts this year. Itupun ikut sepupu-sepapat bukak posa. What touched my heart was the guilt he felt before and after broke fast earlier that day.

Our raya preparations are almost done, just tying a few loose ends here and there. Nothing grand or luxurious, we try to keep it as minimum as we could. All preparations are focused more on the three kids. We didn’t even buy or make new traditional attires. We’ll just wear the ones that we made during my sister in law’s wedding in April. They are still new and rarely worn. What’s the point of buying new ones if we seldom wear them? It’s not practical.

Insya Allah, we’ll be spending Syawal in Shah Alam and Kota Bharu. Maybe Kuala Lipis too because there’ll be a cousin’s wedding there.

Mudah-mudahan semua urusan diberkati Allah…

Domino's Pizza at Home, Apr 2012

Dear Diary,

One night, the kids felt like eating pizza. I don’t easily give in to their demands but that night I also felt like not having rice for dinner. I called Hubby but he would be home late. Delivery service was the answer. Usually we would opt for Pizza Hut delivery but knowing that I’d order more or less the same items, an idea crossed my mind. Why not try something new? That was when I decided to call Domino’s. It’s been ages since we last ate Domino’s pizza. It would be nice to ubah angin sekali sekala.

I ordered Beef Pepperoni because Imran likes pepperoni toppings and Classic Chicken but I requested all vegetables to be replaced with more chicken slices. For both pizzas, I chose Cheese Burst Double Decker crust which are two crunchy thin crusts with a layer of creamy cheddar cheese sauce in between.

We were in for a surprise because both pizzas were absolutely awesome. I especially liked Classic Chicken. Both were gone in half an hour!

Add-ons to our orders were Crazy Chicken Crunchies and a bottle of Pepsi.

Website: www.dominos.com.my

MJ Cafe & Restaurant, Jaya 33, Apr 2012

Dear Diary,

Digital Mall situated in the forever busy and congested section 14 PJ is a one stop center for digital equipment very much likes the famous Low Yat in KL. One evening we accompanied Hubby there. Being my first time at the mall, I marveled at the amount of tools that can be found there. Pricewise, I can’t comment much.

While waiting for Hubby’s friend’s printer to be fixed, we decided to kill time by having dinner. We wanted to dine at nearby Secret Recipe but there was no water supply at the outlet so they just serve cakes. Then, we crossed over to Jaya 33.

Jaya 33 is an ultra modern office building with tenants like Jaya Grocer, Coffee Bean and Subway. We walked around the place for a while before choosing MJ Café & Restaurant to have dinner.

Cantonese Fried Rice (no veggie) - yummy

Beef Lasagna - yummy

Fettuccine Sausage - yummy

Claypot Loh Shi Fun - yummy

Lamb Chop

Drinks: Honey Lemon - nice, Iced Milo - nice, Cham (Hot) - bitter, Lemon Tea

Desserts: Lemon Meringue Tart - yummy , Mango Snowy, Apple Crumble with Vanilla Ice Cream

Location: Lot PG-12, Jaya 33, Jalan Semangat, Seksyen 13, 46100 PJ. Contact numbers: 019 – 221 5678, 012 – 295 2728, 012 – 639 8830

Pizza Hut Section 7, Shah Alam, Apr 2012

Dear Diary,

We like sales and discounted items and love even more so free stuffs. It was like too good to be true when upon arrival at Pizza Hut Section 7 Shah Alam we saw this Kids Eat Free Every Day poster. Very smart marketing strategy, I’d say. For each adult order, we get one meal for a child. The kid’s meal is served with beverage.

Pasta (Aromatic Thai) - Yummy!

Pasta (Seafood Marinara)

Pizza Pepperoni Delight (with crispy crust) - Yummy!

We ordered Meal 4 that consists of 2 Pasta Perfetto (we chose Aromatic Thai and Seafood Marinara), 1 Regular Pan Pizza (we chose Pepperoni Delight), 4 Soup of the Day, 4 pieces Garlic Breadstix and 1 pitcher of Pepsi.

We added Smoked Deli Wings and Assam Boi drink.

Kidz Bolognese

Kidz Chicken Pineapple Pizza

For our orders, Imran and Zarra got to eat Kidz Bolognese and Kidz Chicken Pineapple Pizza with Soy Milk for free.

Kids being kids, they ate as fast as they could and headed straight to the playground. Well, as long as their tummies are full, this Mummy is not complaining.

Address: No. 1, Lot PT1147, Jalan Plumbum 2 7/2, Seksyen 7, 40100 Shah Alam, Selangor. Website: www.pizzahut.com.my

Kenny Rogers Roasters Berjaya Times Square, Apr 2012

Dear Diary,

A family outing on an April weekend brought us to Berjaya Times Square, Kuala Lumpur. Hubby and his friend released their stresses with a few rounds of bowling. Yours truly on the other hand walked around the mall with the kids. It’s a good form of “informal” exercise when you window shop. We stopped at all shops and places that attracted our attentions.

A bit weary from all the bowling and walking, we had dinner at Kenny Rogers before calling it a day. The outlet in Times Square has friendly staffs.

Country Style Soup

Kenny's Roast Lamb

Kenny’s Quarter Meal (Black Pepper sauce)

Kenny’s Special Chicken

Vanilla & Chocolate Muffins, Extra Black Pepper Sauce, Café Mocha, Orange Juice, Mango Juice

Ps: Do the chickens look smaller or is it only my imagination?

Location: 3^rd Floor, Berjaya Times Square (nearby GSC). Telephone number: 03 – 2144 1409. Website: www.krr.com.my

Restoran Juaadahs, Shah Alam, Apr 2012

Dear Diary,

One of my teeth has been bugging me for quite some time. Before the pain becomes unbearable, I decided to see a dentist. So, an appointment was set on one fine April morning. After I was done at the dentist, we went for grocery shopping before picking up Imran from school in the afternoon.

Since we were out the whole morning, obviously I took a leave from cooking. After every errand was settled, our food hunt started. Initially, our choice for lunch was Homst in Section 13 Shah Alam but looking how packed the place was, we continued searching for another place.

That was when we noticed another Chinese Muslim restaurant just a few doors away from Homst. Its name is Restoran Juaadahs. We gave it a try. The restaurant is clean and the employees provided good service. The foods were also not bad.

Chinese Fried Rice (no veggie) - yummy

Bihun Tom Yam - yummy

Black Pepper Chicken Rice Set Dish - can do

Crab Meat Fried Rice

Address: No 11A, Jalan Boling Padang H 13/H, Section 13, 40100 Shah Alam, Selangor.