I'm Getting Older ;D

I was doing something else at my computer.. As usual, every Maal Hijrah, tv will be flooded with Malay dramas. Don't get me wrong, I love Malay dramas but then while the kids watch tv, I usually spend time at my computer, playing games, working on stuff that I can't manage to do when Muhammad is around. I do notice one thing lately.. whenever something interesting happened in the drama, I'll go like "what happened?", "why did she die?" bla bla bla.. I guess it happened so often that I realized how irritating I sound to my kids..

I remember those days when my grandma used to visit us.. and she has this habit of narrating and making her own conclusion of the stories hahaha.. I guess.. I'm getting older and I think I've created my own version of my grandma's habit!

I'm Getting Older ;D

Happy Birthday, Mama!!!

It's my mom's birthday and I'm dedicating this entry to her. Normally I'll sms not because I don't wanna call but I just thought that my mom is an SMS-person, so I think she prefers it that way.

I'm the second in my family and was really stubborn second. But I guess, Allah blessed me with the gift of being the second. I can understand my only daughter, who is the second, perfectly well. It's a very special bond and it was mostly based on my special bond with my mother. 

There was once long time ago that I sensed a hint of regret in her about motherhood and I think I could sense questions in her thought.. So, I think, as a birthday gift, I'd love to let her know some of the beautiful things that I remember when I think of her. My mom, a simple person.. 

My kids enjoy stories about her.. especially when I tell them about her 'doraemon' basket during Qurban at Surau after Aidil Adha prayers. From towels to knife and knife sharpening stone to extra chopping board, drinking water and god knows what else are there in her basket. During outing, there's always be mineral water which she shares with her grandchildren and to my astonishment.. the small bottle never fails to quench their thirst. She hates crowded places but enjoy the company of nature hence the time she spends in her garden.

What she doesn't know that I always find time to sneak in her surau at home to check out her Doa Album because I always remember her copying prayers from Al-Quran as reference and there are volumes of albums with Quranic Verses from eye remedy to verses for broken hearted!

At kampung, she always enjoy the company of her sister, 'Kak Milah', chatting and giggling away while cooking and catching up! What amazes me most is when her slang immediately swopped from 'bandar' to 'Kedah Pekat!' which all of us fail to follow!

After a long hectic journey from 'kampung', the first thing she would do is to do the laundry (???) and immediately prepare meals for us no matter how tired she is. Offer to eat out from my dad will always declined politely without words.

She can sense if something is wrong or kids are not well and can pop up in minutes to make sure that everything is okay. Most of my busy days as a baker is saved from the frozen gravy brought in containers wrapped in newspapers (nowadays she has this cooler bag from hypermarket) during quite frequent visit to my home.

There is a looong list of things that I adore about her.. but I think I'll just stop here.. and let it linger in my heart cause that's where I keep all the good memories about her.. Selamat Hari Lahir, Mama.. Semoga Allah merahmatimu dan dianugerahkan kebahagian di dunia akhirat atas segala kebaikanmu. You've been doing a great job and I just thought you should know that. I wanted to post a picture but I think I'll just respect your privacy! ;D


p/s was thinking of uploading of your FB profile photo!

Happy Birthday, Mama!!!

Down Memory Lane

I don't know why but lately I've been thinking a lot about school. This year was the year that we decided to bake full time and take some time sorting some things out especially my notes and teaching ideas that are scattered all over the place. A few weeks ago, I started decluttering my house and threw all the school related papers / books that I have been postponing to throw. Well, in case you are wondering.. I quit my job as a teacher in government school in 2007; not because of my passion as a teacher but because I was quite frustrated with the system. Without realizing (until I write this) 2011 is my 4th year being an almost full time mom.

Today, I logged in my 'other' Facebook account where my friends are all ex-students. I don't know why I logged in but when I look through their photo album and their status, it just struck me. It triggers all the sweet and not so sweet memories being a teacher. Having to quit was painful.. my life belong to my students. I should be teaching.. maybe not as a government school teacher but I should never leave teaching. In fact, I never really did..

Ever since I quit, I never really quit teaching completely.. I rested 1 whole year before I started having baking classes with my friends and neighbours, the very next year, I went teaching a completely new sets of students; kindergarten which was more rewarding and satisfying. The next year, I was nursing my baby full time and the year after, only I did full time baking at home. Yet, I did English camp, volunteering myself at my kids' school and friends' places, training kindy teachers and start experimenting with Fun English activities with little children along the way.

May this year be a starting point for me as a better teacher.. 2012.. insyaallah.. (i'll keep my plans to myself).

Down Memory Lane

UPSR | Good Luck Anak Ibu!

Percaya tak percaya esok dah exam ya Naufal. Rasa macam Naufal ni kecik je lagi.. alih-alih dah nak masuk remaja. Ibu tahu, memang kali pertama ambil exam.. perasaannya memang mengerikan. Tapi sebenarnyakan Naufal.. perasaan ibu pun ngeri jugak, anak sulung nak ambil exam..

Sebenarnya.. apa yang mampu kita lakukan di saat-saat akhir ialah berdoa dan bertawakal. Jangan sekali berhenti berdoa agar diberikan yang terbaik buat kita. Memang sudah lama kita berusaha.. berikhtiar.. kalau diikutkan UPSR inilah 'summary' apa yang telah dipelajari selama 6 tahun. Tetapi ia hanyalah titik permulaan bagi perjalanan yang masih panjang.

Jangan risau apabila orang mengharapkan kejayaan kita.. kerana mereka semua sayang dan kasihkan kita.. Memang kalau difikirkan saat-saat result akan keluar, terbayang bagaimana orang yang kita kasihi menunggu dan menanti keputusan UPSR itu.. Dengan sebab terlalu memikirkan harapan oranglah kita jadi lagi takut untuk menghadapinya.

Di kala ini, berdoalah agar dapat menjawab soalan dengan tenang, agar apa yang dipelajari ada keberkatannya, agar apa yang dikongsi oleh guru-guru seakan-akan melekat kuat di ingatan. Berdoalah agar Allah mempermudahkan segala urusan dan memberikan waktu yang secukupnya untuk menjawab dengan tenang. Dan yang paling penting.. bertawakallah dengan apa jua keadaan yang akan dihadapi semasa peperiksaan esok; hari yang panas, hujan yang lebat, pemeriksa yang garang, meja yang bergoyang atau apa-apa saja rintangan.

Percayalah.. bahawa segala-gala yang akan dihadapi semasa peperiksaan itu adalah rancangan Allah. Sentiasalah bersangka baik dengan Allah dan percaya bahawa Allah's plan is the best! Dan yang paling penting.. kita hanya mampu merancang.. segala-galanya terletak di tanganNya..

Akhir sekali.. jangan berhenti berdoa.. Bacalah surah Al-Insyirah, semoga dengan keberkatan mukjizat Kalamullah itu, segala-galanya akan dipermudahkan.. Jangan lupa doa Nabi Musa bila berhadapan dengan Firaun (robbishrahli sadri wayassirli amri wahlul uqdatammillisaani yafqahu qauli). Jangan lupa tersenyum kerana senyum itu satu nikmat dari Allah yang mampu menenangkan sesiapa saja yang sedang gundah gulana.Good Luck Naufal.. Doa abah dan buatmu.. yang terbaik.. Semoga dipermudahkan.. amiin amiin ya robbal 'alamiin..

UPSR | Good Luck Anak Ibu!

Percayalah Pasangan Kita Yang Terbaik!

Tajuk simple.. makna begitu mendalam.. Seringkali kita tidak bersyukur dengan pasangan kita walaupun tidak secara terang-terang.. Hati merungut bila ada yang tak kena.. malah ada je yang tak kena.. Sebenarnya percayalah pasangan kita adalah pasangan yang terbaik yang Allah anugerahkan pada kita. Mesti ada sesuatu yang istimewa yang membuatkan kita saling dipasang-pasangkan.

Berdoalah agar kita menjadi pasangan yang bersyukur dengan kehendaknya kerana Allah memang sentiasa memberikan yang terbaik walaupun pada hakikatnya kita tidak nampak apa yang terbaik yang tersirat disebalik yang tersurat. Belajarlah mempercayai taqdir Allah dan anggaplah apa yang 'tak kena' sebagai satu ujian yang mendekatkan diri kita kepadaNya. Percayalah apa yang kita nampak pada orang lain adalah luaran semata-mata yang dalamnya hanya pasangannya yang tahu. Berhentilah meminta pasangan kita menjadi orang lain atau cuba untuk merubahnya menjadi seorang yang ideal seperti yang ada di dalam minda kita. Terimalah pasangan kita seadanya.. kerana insyaallah.. dia juga akan melakukan yang sama.

Berdoalah.. Ya Allah.. semoga kami menjadi pasangan yang terbaik yang dianugerahi kasih sayang dan kebahagiaan yang berpanjangan. Semoga perhubungan ini menjadi perhubungan yang diredhai oleh Mu dan jadikanlah kami pasangan yang bertemu dan berpisah keranaMu.. amiin ammin ya robbal 'alamiin..

Percayalah Pasangan Kita Yang Terbaik!

The Organizing Queen vs The Queen of Clutter!

My Personal Stuff [sigh]

I always enjoy the trips to my sister's house.. The way she puts the ketchup and sauce in a stylish manner never fail to amaze me. The forks and spoons are arranged in a closed container, ready to be used whenever guests coming.. and yes, she does a lot of entertaining. Her kitchen towels are always clean and there's a certain ways to arrange plates. (well, I'm so used to seeing her rearranging the plates after me washing them). Seeing her cleaning her kitchen seems so exciting and light! The good thing is, she never really mind if I were to 'copy' her ideas. In fact, yesterday, I bought the exact container that she stores the fork and spoon.

I, on the other hand, always take time to find my things. I just realized a couple of years ago (when I first decided to be a little bit more organized after watching Oprah and Peter Walsh again and again and watched tonnes of Clutter Buster Programme on Metro Channel on Astro) that I'm always the messy one, the procrastinator. Even after numerous attempt to be the domestic goddess, I failed. I come to only one conclusion! I'm a visual person. I need to see things in order to remember. Everything that I organized need to be labelled so that I won't mix up again.

That explains the feeling of disoriented after rearranging and reorganizing my stuff. I always remember where I put stuff before I moved them [sigh] and it's so annoying that it's so frustrating. This time, I hope.. my attempt to get organized will materialize.. I'll just try labelling them.. I don't sound convincing though but honestly.. I'm pretty tired organizing and reorganizing..

The Medicine Section (Hmmm)

p/s will keep you updated with the progress and the strategy ;D

The Organizing Queen vs The Queen of Clutter!

Raya | Raikan Kemenangan Melawan Nafsu dengan Memenuhi Nafsu (makan) huhuhuuuuu

Terngiang-ngiang peringatan dari Imam semasa khutbah Raya Aidilfitri.. Saya tak ingat 'the exact words" tapi lebih kurang macam ni lah ya.

Ingat! Raya merupakan tanda kita merayakan kemenangan kita melawan nafsu sepanjang ramadhan. Janganlah kita makan sampai tak ingat dunia.

Hmmm.. Hari ini raya pertama dan kedua.. kalau disenaraikan makanan yang kami makan rasanya.. kira burn la perjuangan Ramadhan huhuhuuuuu

lemang dan rendang, nasi impit dan kuah kacang, laksa, nasi lemak, bubur lambuk, masak tempoyak ikan patin, sambal tempoyak ikan bilis, ulam, ikan bakar, tart nenas, choc chip, lemang lagi, sampret peanut butter, kuih bakar durian, kuih mazola.. aduiiiiaii!! tak berani nak senarai apa yang dimakan raya ketiga.. itu pun list tu dah di'edit'' hehe..

Patutlah Allah bagi pahala berganda 6 hari puasa sunat di Syawal.. sesungguhnya Kau Maha Mengetahui.. Astaghfirullah..

Raya | Raikan Kemenangan Melawan Nafsu dengan Memenuhi Nafsu (makan) huhuhuuuuu

Kuih Raya | Mungkinkah Saya Tidak Pandai Ambil Peluang?

Hmm.. Cerita pasal kuih raya ni.. semenjak saya mengajar di sekolah dulu, memang saya menjual kuih raya.. Masa tu memang tak menang tangan sebab yang beli kuih tu kawan-kawan guru. Bila saya berhenti.. saya masih lagi menjual.. minta tolong kawan saya tolong ambilkan order. Tahun ini pulak, saya serba salah. Harga kuih raya memang melambung tinggi. Terlalu tinggi sampai saya tidak berani meniaga secara terang-terangan. Bayangkan kuih memcecah RM30. Malah ada yang lebih. Mungkinkah mereka menggunakan bahan-bahan yang mahal seperti mentega tulen, icing sugar brand 'King' atau menggunakan badam atau kekacang lain. Mungkin juga mereka terpaksa upah pekerja untuk melakukan kerja-kerja mencetak biskut dan terpaksa menyewa tempat untuk membuat kuih menjadikan kos mereka lebih tinggi.. disamping komisyen penjual.

Tahun ini, saya sekadar menjual pada kawan-kawan rapat dan 'regular customer'. Kawan-kawan yang biasa beli awal-awal sudah membuat tempahan, ada juga 'regular customer' yang sudah bertukar nombor dan tidak dapat dihubungi.. Di Facebook, cuma letakkan gambar sahaja untuk kawan-kawan yang memang menunggu ketibaan Sampret. Marble Shortbread tahun ini berehat walaupun ramai yang bertanya. Margin Marble Shortbread memang tinggi berbanding sampret tapi saya mengalah.. Saya tidak punya modal dan besar apatah lagi modal masa. Marble Shortbread memang mengambil masa untuk disiapkan..

Saya tertanya-tanya.. mungkinkah saya tidak pandai mengambil peluang berniaga. Kenapa tidak saya tidak 'mark up'kan harga setanding harga orang lain bagi mendapat untung lebih.. apatah lagi bila saya tidak menggaji pekerja. Bukankah lebih senang kerja? Bila berkira-kira, cuba untuk menyesali kebodohan saya kerana tidak pandai mengambil peluang.. saya membuat keputusan bahawa sayalah orang yang paling pandai mengambil peluang. Alhamdulillah.. saya tidak perlu menyesal kerana saya telah pun merebut peluang yang hanya datang sekali dalam hidup anak saya. Saya berbelah bahagi kerana Ramadhan inilah bulan terakhir Muhammad menyusu. 7 Syawal merupakan tarikh akhir Muhammad akan menyusu kerana dia akan genap 2 tahun. Saya tidak perlu memilih antara duit lebih atau menyusu kerana saya tahu apa jawapannya.

Alhamdulillah.. ramadhan telah pun berakhir.. dalam tidak mengambil 'order' seperti tahun-tahun lepas, keuntungannya lebih kurang tahun-tahun lepas dan saya juga bingung memikirkan dari mana keuntungan itu diperolehi.. Mungkinkah ini yang dipanggil keberkatan.. Alhamdulillah.. syukur.. kami sekeluarga juga merasa bertarawikh di surau (walaupun saya terpaksa korbankan beberapa hari bertarawikh sendirian di rumah) dan bertadarus walaupun sedikit tetapi istiqamah bersama keluarga (cuma kami ketinggalan 3 hari yang terakhir kerana kepenatan).. dan belajar untuk berqiamulail sejurus sebelum sahur bersama anak-anak.

Doa kami agar Allah memberi petunjuk dan hidayah kepada kami agar lebih istiqamah dalam beribadah di samping melakukan kerja-kerja duniawi.. amiin.

Kuih Raya | Mungkinkah Saya Tidak Pandai Ambil Peluang?

Terawikh | Yeay Yeay! Makcik Garang Period kot!!!

Sejak dua menjak pergi terawikh kat surau bawak Muhammad ni (2 tahun), sembahyang memang tak boleh khusyuk langsung.. Apa taknya.. bila orang luruskan saf je.. mulalah gelisah.. Ada sekali tu terus kena sound!

"Penuhkan saf depan dulu!!!" [huish garangnyaaaa!!]
"Er.. saya bawak anak ni".

Sejak hari tu, saya terus hafal bunga-bunga corak kat telekung dia.. senang nak elak lain kali hehe.. Seminggu uzur, saya coti, lepas coti, saya pergi balik ke surau.. Rasa macam terbayang-bayang muka makcik garang.. nampak masa majlis Nuzul Quran macam dia, tapi berpakaian biasa tanpa telekung.. ke saya silap orang?

Saya tanya anak saya..
"err.. makcik garang ada tak hari ni?"
"takde"
"ada ke?"
"takde kot"
Pada hakikatnya, kami anak beranak tak tahu sama ada makcik garang dia dan makcik garang saya sama ke tidak sebab kalau masing-masing pakat tunjuk, dah kira mengumpat kan. Tapi mengikut firasat saya, memang sama kot hehe..

Pernah suami menyuruh anak saya pergi mengambil kuih..
"Takpelah.. ada makcik garang".

Hari ni saya ke surau selepas seminggu bercuti.. saya duduk di belakang, saf depan anak-anak perempuan.. sebelah saya seorang ibu yang juga membawa anaknya yang berumur lebih kurang 4 tahun.. Muhammad di kiri saya, dia di kanan saya.. Alamak, semasa tengah sembahyang Muhammad melintas 2-3 kali di depannya.. [Nasiblah kan.. nak buat macam mana]. Selesai sembahyang, dia macam tak kisah je [alhamdulillah].. Rakaat selepasnya.. tiba-tiba anak dia pulak melintas depan saya mengajak Muhammad main [fuuuh.. legaaa.. anak dia pun melintas maknanya selamat la kan, mesti dia pun faham hehe].

Tak lama lepas tu.. tiba-tiba blackout.. Dengar suara-suara kat belakang..
"tu laa.. tak bayar bil letrik la tu" [hahahaha]
"Mana mamaaaa! mamaaaaaa huaaaaa"
"shhh shhh.. mama ada la", sambil mendukung [baiknya budak-budak ni.. tak kenal tapi terus jagakan budak tu]

Selesai 4 rakaat [laa baru 4 rakaat ke?] Bila ustaz bagi tazkirah.. dia menjemput, ibu-ibu masuk ke medan sembahyang utama, minta kaum bapa keluar ke tepi untuk beri ruang.. [Alhamdulillah.. merasa aku tengok ustaz masa dengar ceramah. Alhamdulillah ya Allah.. siap air-con tuuuu].

"Ibu, abah mana"
"Muhammad nak abah ke?" [yeeehhaaaa]
"Ibu, nak abah"
"Nurul, tolong hantar Muhammad kat Abah" [Lega.. boleh la fokus sikit hehe]

Selesai sudah terawikh .. alhamdulillah.. terus terdetik di hati saya
Ya Allah.. terimalah ibadahku, solatku ini.. walaupun aku lalai ya Allah..

Moral of the Story :
Susahnya nak khusyuk sembahyang bila ada anak kecik.. semoga Allah menerima ibadah kita.. kerana kita hanya manusia biasa.. tak lari dari membuat dosa.. Astaghfirullaahal adziim.. Bukan membuka pekung di dada.. tapi sekadar berkongsi cerita agar kita sama-sama berusaha.. Taqabbalallaahu Minkum.. Minna wa minkum taqabbal ya kareem.. amiin..

Terawikh | Yeay Yeay! Makcik Garang Period kot!!!

Wakaf Masjid | Saham Akhirat

Beberapa tahun dahulu, saya pernah melintasi seorang lelaki tua yang tersenyum dan baik gayanya.. berkopiah, dihadapannya sebuah tabung besar beisi duit ringgit dan syilling di hadapan bank. Saya terus masuk ke bank tersebut. Saya sungguh tertarik kerana dia langsung tidak meminta, tidak merayu.. hanya sekadar tersenyum.

Sebaik sahaja selesai urusan saya di bank, saya keluar dan terus saya menyeluk poket dan mengeluarkan duit dari dalam poket saya.. Saya kira.. kesemuanya.. kalau tak salah saya dalam RM1.60. Agak malu-malu, saya masukkan ke dalam tabung besar, dan dia menghulurkan sekeping resit.. Cepat-cepat saya ambil dan pergi. Langkah saya terhenti apabila ternampak di resit tersebut tertulis RM2.00. Saya patah balik..

"Duit saya tak cukup RM2", dia terus berkata...
"Eh, takpe takpe.. yang penting ikhlas".

Senyumannya cukup untuk menunjukkan yang memang dia maksudkan apa yang dikatakannya. Entah kenapa, pada hari itu, hati saya berbunga-bunya.. terasa besar RM1.60 saya. Ia terus merubah persepsi saya tentang sedeqah. Sejak hari itu, saya tidak pernah malu untuk menghulurkan syilling-syilling lebihan baki sebagai sedeqah walaupun bunyinya begitu kuat membuktikan bilangannya berbanding dengan helaian kertas. Saya faham.. jika kita menderma RM0.20, nilainya lebih besar daripada RM20.00 jika dilakukan dengan hati yang ikhlas. Mungkinkah di akhirat nanti, nilai RM0.20 saya itu lebih besar pahalanya berbanding duit-duit yang beratus-ratus ribu jika dilakukan semata-mata di hadapan kamera.

Saya selalu terbayang, mungkinkah satu hari nanti, di padang mahsyar, duit-duit syilling yang saya sedeqah seikhlas hati.. akan menyelamatkan saya terutama sekali bila saya sedeqahkan dengan lafaz "Lillaahi Ta'ala". Teringat kata-kata Ustaz pagi tadi.. kita takkan papa kalau bersedeqah.. dan tak salah jika memperuntukkan lebih banyak untuk membeli saham akhirat. Insyaalah.. setiap yang disedeqah ada pulangannya.

Tersentuh saya apabila membaca kata-kata Pengerusi Surau Taman Sutera, Kajang yang menyatakan rasa terharu dengan sokongan dan cuba untuk berterima kasih tetapi sebaliknya mendengar "Saya yang sepatutnya mengucapkan terima kasih kepada surau dan ahli jawatankuasa yang telah menyediakan ruang dan peluang kepada saya untuk menginfa'kan sedikit daripada harta yang ada". Sebak rasa hati ini, walaupun saya tidak melakukan apa-apa buat surau, kerana masih ada yang sudi membantu.

Jadi dengan rasa rendah diri, saya ingin memanjangkan usaha Pengerusi dan Ajk Surau kami, Surau Taman Sutera dan memohon, agar rakan-rakan semua mahupun sesiapa yang tidak dikenali agar sama-sama bergandung, berkongsi apa yang kita mampu.. bagi membina Masjid Taman Sutera, Kajang ini. Semoga Allah merahmatiMu dan membalas setiap kebaikanmu. Amiin.. Jika tidak dari segi sumbangan, kami juga amat berbesar hati, jika berita ini dapat diwar-warkan.. kerana Allah tahu..

Nota :
No akaun bank: 5623 8412 0281 (Akaun Semasa - Maybank)
Nama Akaun : Pembangunan Masjid Taman Sutera

Wakaf Masjid | Saham Akhirat

Puasa + Menyusu = Pengsan

Hari ni puasa memang kronik sikit. Asyik baring dah macam kain buruk. Tempahan cookies langsung tak berusik. Muhammad ni macam tau tau je dia dah nak kena berhenti menyusu raya nanti. Tak habis-habis berkebam. Bila abah dia bawak keluar sekejap, balik lagi dia balas dendam..

Akhirnya hari keenam puasa, akhirnya tewas, beli jugak akhirnya.. Selalu nina akan pastikan makan sekurang-kurangnya 3 biji kurma tapi dah berapa kali tak makan. Bukan apa, nina suka mariamija yang chewy chewy tu tapi dah tak de stok terpaksalah makan yang lembik tu.. Makanya jadila ibu nenen yang lembik huaaaa

Puasa + Menyusu = Pengsan

Benarkah Kita Menyayanginya

Sanggupkah kita berputus asa apabila kita tahu seseorang yang kita sayang masih tidak mahu berubah? Sanggupkah kita tinggalkan mereka kerana kita sudahpun habis sedaya upaya untuk melihat perubahan tapi langsung tidak nampak gaya nak berubah. Adakah kita betul-betul kita menyayangi mereka jika kita tinggalkan mereka dengan pemikiran mereka.

Memang biasa kita dengar hadith yang berbunyi "Tidak beriman seseorang kamu sehinggalah ia
mengasihi kebaikan untuk saudaranya sebagaimana ia mengasihi kebaikan untuk dirinya sendiri". Adakah kita betul-betul beriman jika kita sanggup melihat sahaja jika ada kemungkaran di hadapan kita. Mungkinkah kita takut dibenci jika kita berterusan menegur.. sedangkan.. pada hakikatnya.. tegur secara berterusan itulah tanda kasih kita.

Sanggupkah kita mengambil risiko.. orang tidak lagi mahu menegur atau berkawan atau meninggalkan kita seandainya kita teguran kita itu tidak dapat diterima. Sanggupkah kita sekadar menegur di dalam hati kerana itulah selemah-lemah iman atau perlukah kita berterus terang agar mereka tidak terus hanyut.

Ya Allah .. padamu hamba berserah.. Ihdinassirothol mustaqiim.. la haulawala quwwata illa billaa hil 'aliyyul 'adziim..

Benarkah Kita Menyayanginya

Last Minute Plan untuk Ramadhan

Tahun ni tak taulah kenapa memang kelam kabut semacam. Something happened a few days ago.. tu yang jadi lagi kelam kabut.. Nothing happened yang teruk sampai tak boleh manage tapi membuatkan kami agak 'negatif'.. Alih-alih tak perasan dah nak masuk ramadhan.. Anak yang ingatkan sebenarnya.. Selalunya memang kami menunggu-nunggu.. Alhamdulillah.. bila anak sekolah agama.. cikgu-cikgu lebih cepat meyuntik semangat Ramadhan..

Irfan (5 tahun) cakap cikgu akan bagi angpow kalau puasa penuh. Anak-anak yang lain.. sibuk kata balik 2.30 semasa ramadhan jadi.. mereka pun memang gembira.. Sebaik lepas Raya.. anak yang sulung akan menghadapi UPSR. Ternyata strategi tahun ini memang akan berbeza.

Yang paling beza sekali sudah tentunya.. jualan biskut pada tahun ini lain dari tahun2 sebelumnya. Marble Shortbread tak jual tahun ni. Salah satu sebabnya tentulah bab mencuci dan memasang loyang marble. Kami ada sepuluh loyang marble.. Nak pasang dan basuh tu memanglah ambil masa.. Dengan keadaan Muhammad yang akan berhenti menyusu.. sudah tentunya ibu Muhammad akan lebih emosi. Dengan Naufal yang akan ambil periksa.. kerja-kerja renyah yang selalunya kami lakukan sekeluarga sebagai bisnes keluarga terpaksa kami korbankan terus.

Dalam pada itu.. oven sudah down satu dan microwave sudah rosak.. masih belum sempat dibaiki.. jadi.. hal itu memang akan diambil kira. Nak kata pening tu tidaklah.. marble ni sebenarnya costnya lebih mahal dari sampret dan oaty grated.. jadi modal lebih besar.. walaupun margin keuntungan lebih besar.. rasanya bila buat yg lebih murah.. tak jadi masaalah sebab memang boleh jual volume.

Apa-apa pun.. hari ni = hari mencuci dan mengemas rumah bagi menyambut kedatangan Ramadhan.. Sayu hati ni.. sebab.. memang kami sekeluarga lalai.. lupa dan tidak sedar kedatangan Rejab dan Syaaban.. Fidyah puasa sudah pun dilangsaikan semalam.. membuktikan yang nina tak sempat habis ganti puasa.. Nina dah siap pesan pada anak, kalau ibu sudah tiada.. minta tolong gantikan sebab waris yang sepatutnya gantikan.. bukan suami. Tahun ni, nina mengganti puasa nazar, menyusu ni.. memang sentiasa lapar.. patutnya nina lebih kuat semangat..

Selambat Menyambut Ramadhan semua.. Harapnya kita tidak lalai mengejar dunia.. sehingga lupa bonus bonus yang ALlah sediakan .. sepanjang Ramadhan... Ampunkan kami ya Allah.. kami lalai.. Berilah kami hidayah ya Allah. amiin amiin ya robbal 'alamiin..

Last Minute Plan untuk Ramadhan

Islam | Patutlah Senyum itu Satu Sedeqah!

Hati yang resah mampu terubat dengan satu senyuman.. walaupun senyuman itu dari orang lain. Ramai yang sekadar cakap je senyum itu satu sedeqah.. tapi ramai ke yang sedeqah senyuman?

Selalu kalau pergi beli barang.. geram kalau tengok cashier tu tergedik2 dengan kawan-kawan cashier yang lain tapi bila cakap dengan kita.. terus muka masam macam kita buang masa dia.

Kadang-kadang meluat tengok orang yang bekerja di bahagian info muka masam mencuka.. Kadang-kadang nak sedapkan hati.. nina selalu cakap.. agaknya laki dia marah dia kot pagi tadi tu yang mencuka tu..

Tapi pada hakikatnya.. senyum itu kalau kena pada gayanya akan jadi sedeqah.. Ruginya sapa yang muka masam tu.. Dahlah orang sibuk mengumpat dia.. dia pun runsing juga memikirkan kedut-kedut di muka tu.

Okaylah ya.. sebenarnya tak niat pun nak kutuk orang.. tapi kadang-kadang how i wish people would smile no matter how tired they are. Mungkin itu peringatan untuk diri sendiri.. selalu masam je muka dengan anak-anak bila order tengah tak menang tangan hehe.. Cukup-cukuplah ya.. karang got carried away la pulak ;D

p.s. jangan lupa senyum tawww!!

Islam | Patutlah Senyum itu Satu Sedeqah!

Alhamdulillah.. Sesungguhnya Kau Maha Mendengar, Ya Allah.

Alhamdulillah.. sebenarnya 2 minggu ni risau semacam sebab ada satu masaalah yang rasanya memang tidak dapat dirungkai. Tapi hari ni, alhamdulillah, selesai sudah masaalah tu.. dengan tidak dijangka-jangka.. dengan satu panggilan telefon sahaja.

Nina bersyukur sangat.. sebab walaupun nina tidaklah runsing sampai tak lalu makan, tapi nina perasan bila nina tidur.. nina akan mimpi segala apa yang nina fikirkan.. cerita macam-macam yang berkait dengan apa yang nina fikir pada siangnya. Selalunya.. nina kalau mimpi bukan-bukan tu nina faham la.. sebenarnya ada sesuatu yang merunsingkan walaupun selalu nina tidaklah 'overworry'.

Alhamdulillah.. dan kali ini, bila nina sebut alhamdulillah.. bergetar hati ini tanda syukur dengan nikmat yang Allah berikan apabila masaalah yang dilalui hampir selesai.

Alhamdulillah.. Sesungguhnya Kau Maha Mendengar, Ya Allah.

Journal | ...

Entah kenapa hati tak sedap dari semalam.. Rasa sedih pun ada.. rasa sunyi pun ada.. rasa macam tak sedap hati. Mungkinkah remark - remark orang keliling yang tak sedap didengar. Mungkinkah perasaan yang agak sensitif akhir-akhir ini menunjukkan umur yang makin meningkat ataupun hormon yang sentiasa berubah.

Bila difikirkan.. apa yang orang lain fikir memang tak penting. Bukan salah kita orang lain tak boleh tutup mulut. Mungkinkah hati sakit kerana apa yang dikatakan itu ada benarnya. Ataupun kita yang terlalu ego untuk mengakui hakikatnya.

Days come and go.. Night falls and pass.. time flies..
Along the way.. we meet a long of people.. a lot of strangers.. a lot of acquaintance and friends..
As the passes our lives.. they touch and make an impact..
Sometimes positively and sometimes it's so bad that it changes someone's life completely..
I know how powerful those impact can be in our lives..
I just hope that.. if I ever make any.. even if it's a tiny one..
I just pray that it's a positive one..

I just don't want to be responsible for any changes that I caused.. negatively
nor do I want to be responsible for any damage in a person's feelings..
the way people touch mine a few days ago..

I now release the past.. it's time to let go..
I know.. whatever remark that people do.. whatever smirk that's clearly seen on their faces.. I know that it lies in my hand to channel it into a positive energy..
At least I know it will make me a more compassionate and a more careful person thinking of the pain that it caused me.. and for that.. Alhamdulillah.. Ya Allah.. aku redho..

Journal | ...

Fuuh! Hectic Hectic Week!

Dah dua minggu hidup ni kelam kabut giler.. Sejak NinazCakes Syahr El Fundraising berlangsung.. alhamdulillah.. rezeki mencurah-curah. Tak tahulah sebenarnya siapa yang tolong siapa. Syahr El tolong NinazCakes ke NinazCakes tolong Syahr El. Alhamdulillah.. tak sangka.. sebenarnya kami nak sedeqah mengikut skill saja sebab nak bagi cash memang tak ada.

Betul lah orang kata 'What you give, you get back!' You get back more than you give actually. Sebenarnya.. kami tetapkan sehingga 15 Julai untuk mempercepatkan kutipan wang untuk diberikan untuk Syahr El. Cabaran kali ni boleh tahan la..

1) Tak taulah siapa yang tertumpahkan air dalam oven. Sampai sekarang ni tak berani nak on. Jadi kami bakar pakai 1 oven sahaja. Alhamdulillah.. yang okay oven besar.

2) Ada satu hari tu .. delivery pukul 1 dah settle.. sebabkan ada sorang tu janji pukul 3, kami legar-legar lah.. alih2 terpaksa cancel sebab kereta dia rosak.. isy isy isy.. nak buat camne kan..

3) Air con rosak.. kena baiki RM300 terbang camtu je.. Alhamdulillah.. tak payah tukar the whole compressor.. hehe kalau tak terbang RM500++

4) Ada yang book.. bila reserve.. call tak dapat.. buzz tak jawab.. (lain kali kena mintak payment dulu hehehehe.. siap ada clause : non refundable hehehe) Alhamdulillah ada orang lain yang beli hehehe

5) Masa aircon rosak tu la, tertinggal ice box.. selalu letak dalam icebox. kek tu tak lah cair.. Alhamdulillah.. hari tu delivery semua cepat.. cuma satu je yang cair hehe

4) Disebabkan kami bagi free delivery.. kami groupkan order mengikut kawasan.. Jadi.. masa penghantaran tu memang unpredictable. Alhamdulillah.. pembeli Syahr El's Box of Love begitu memahami.. Next time kami tau lah.. nak limitkan route mana ;D

Okay.. minggu depan yang akan datang ni, nina nak sort gambar pulak.. Gambar punyalah banyak dalam CPU.. yelah .. kita bukan pro kan.. satu gambar kena 2-3 kali shoot. Itu pun ada yang silau la.. yang malap la.. nak adjust pun nina pakai PICASA je. Nantilah.. nina nak share kelebihan Picasa ni! Bagi yang takde basic.. PICASA ni memang excellent! Agar sukar untuk get used to it tapi once you get it, insyaallah senang dan mudah! Yang penting, senang nak trace balik mana gambar yang dah di download.

Okaylah ya.. taknak tulis panjang-panjang.. sebab ni kira warm up dulu sebab dah lama giler tak menulis di blog ni.. Hati tu nak menulis.. tapi kalau dah baking the whole week tu penat la jugak.

Fuuh! Hectic Hectic Week!

I LOVE BLOGHOPPING!

Hari ni.. sambil-sambil ber'facebook', bila nampak gambar kek cantik tu, mulalah klik sana klik sini.. Wah rupa-rupanya ramai orang yang menjual kek dari rumah macam nina.. Makin lama tengok makin cantik design.. Dah la cantik.. bermacam-macam variety kek dan kuih-muih.. Terasa kecik sungguh diri ini hahha..

Silap-silap hari bulan boleh lemah semangat tengok produk orang yang jauh lebih hebat dengan teknik fotografi yang 'first class'. Nina ni kadang-kadang ambil dengan kamera je.. tu yang silau sana silau sini!

Tapi tak boleh patah semangat tau!! Sebenarnya.. bila tengok orang punya.. kita mesti mengobarkan semangat kita! Yelah.. nak meniaga bukan senang tau! Kadang-kadang kita rasa dah cantik.. rupanya ada yang nak lagi cantik.. Kita belum pandai buat, customer dah order dulu.

Lepas tu.. kalau takat produk cantik pun tak jadi tau! Mesti kena ada rupa jugak.. Nina perasan, sesetengah orang tu tak kisah pun bayar lebih.. janji cantik dipandang dan sedap dimakan untuk dihadiahkan untuk orang yang tersayang.

Alhamdulillah.. Allah berikan kekuatan untuk bertahan dan dikurniakan anak-anak yang paling suka kalau nina masak! Apatah lagi sokongan padu sang suami yang tak putus-putus memberi support! Bisnes partner la katakan.. :D Okaylah ya! It's the last day of school holiday.. tengah pikir-pikir.. nak potong rambut budak2 ni ke tidak.. Chow dulu ya!!!

I LOVE BLOGHOPPING!

Memories | Sometimes to Forget is a Blessing.

Lately.. I have been occupied by my school friends in our School Group @ Facebook and no matter how hard I try, I have very little memories of school.. and I mean very very little memories. I wonder if it's because of the aging factor.. or the sleeping in the afternoon while nursing my babies that caused that. After thinking for a while.. I have to conclude that it's a blessing.

I hated school. Being in the group, though entertaining most of the time.. also comes with sad memories. I'm just lucky though.. I'm blessed with the ability to forget all those bad memories. I really don't have to try any harder to remember because I really want to forget those memories.
Sometimes I wonder if things would have been different if I was in a different school or went to that school willingly. Or would it be different in a bad way if I choose to cling to the bad memories.

Earlier last year.. I found classmates from my primary school.. Though I remember bits and pieces of the memories.. I forgot most of it. I can only remember the ones I decided to remember.. those sweet memories but mostly.. I'd say it's gone.

Alhamdulillah.. the brain is a powerful organ indeed. Though it can remember many many things, I believe that it's even more powerful if we can forget.. so that we can move on.. I had to erase a lot in order to move on.. Though I can't remember (because I refuse to even try to remember) there are times when there is still a piercing pain in my heart that 'can' bring tears in my eyes and I stopped thinking completely about it.

I'm glad that I decided to move on.. and forget and forgive whoever and whatever things in life that seemed to bother me.. because no matter what... Life Goes on!

Memories | Sometimes to Forget is a Blessing.

Well, looking at the picture above, it definitely shows that we have been avoiding the shop lately.. The day after the picture was taken, I took out a really frozen whole chicken from the freezer which was planned to be cooked 2 weeks ago when my mother in law came. It was procrastinated until this afternoon.

This afternoon, while waiting for the chicken to defrost, I had to fry out filo pastry sheets, rolled and cut and fried with chillies because we were too hungry. I woke up late this morning so we had a very late breakfast. Then it was a very late lunch or err.. should i call it early dinner. Tonite, my son made 'teh tarik' because he wanted to eat biscuit (still hungry?). In the washing machine, hidden my laundry which is going to be hung by my kids tomorrow. By now, you are free to judge me.. whatever judgement you may think reasonable.

I've heard before complaints about other wives who have been labelled 'lazy' because they chose to buy dinner outside or choose to let the maid do the cooking. Also heard poor mommies labelled as bad mommies because their kids lack discipline. Sometimes, kids easily labelled as nuisance simply because they talk loud or at least louder that the rest.

I'm not saying that I don't judge.. I do judge sometimes.. but then, most of the time, when I heard other people judging others.. I do wonder whether they even think of what people judge them. Or do they not care what people think of them as long as they don't hear themselves the judgment.

What I'm saying is that.. before judging people.. perhaps we should take a moment judging ourselves or consider what people judge us. Because whatever we see is only one side of the world.. Maybe we might want to wear his or her shoes for a couple of hours or try to see the whole picture before making any conclusions. Or.. perhaps.. just judge for the better judgement :D

Note : This is a reminder for myself..

Huhuhuuu Tak Tidur Lagi!

Sebenarnya tak komplen pun.. tapi rumah ni dah berpusing dah ni.. kek tak siap deco lagi.. Mata memang mengantuk tahap gaban ni huhuhuuu..

Ni lah penangan hari guru! Nina bersyukur sangat.. Doa siapalah agaknya.. rezeki bertambah melimpah ruah.. Alhamdulillah.. Nina mengantuk tapi nak tidur takut terlajak, nak deco terus takut kek hancus! Yelah.. kalau dah mengantuk dipaksa-paksa tu mulalah weng skit! Entah kenapa.. kek yang nak jamu kawan-kawan agak comot. Siapalah yang letak cheese kat tingkat atas sekali.. habis berbiji-biji cheese dia!

Takpelah kawan-kawan ya.. janji hati ikhlas nak bagi kawan-kawan rasa. Nanti, kalau ada rezeki, nina tambah oven lagi satu ya! Senang sikit nak bakar kek. Ini terpaksa tolak order..

Okaylah ya.. nina baru nak sembahyang isyak! Yelah.. ambil peluang berehat. Lega skit kalau rukuk dan sujud tu.. betul-betulkan postur badan.. Allah maha mengetahui.. sudah tentunya solat itu direka khas sesuai dengan badan kita! Nanti, insyaallah nina tulis lagi yaaa!~!! muah!

Oh ya! Selamat Hari Guru semua!!!

Huhuhuuu Tak Tidur Lagi!

M Besar M kecik.. M untuk M.A.L.A.S!

Entah kenapa.. malas betul nak buat apa-apa pun. Mungkin sebab setengah hari duduk dalam kereta saja. Mula-mula delivery ke Setapak, lepas tu ke Bake with Yen yang tertangguh berbulan-bulan, akhir sekali ke CKE Cheras sebab ambil oven yang tersimbah air. Patutnya bila dah dapat balik oven tu mestilah berkobar-kobar semangat nak membakar tapi tak pulak.

Sebenarnya nina ambil cuti 3 hari, dah tak larat nak membakar, ingatkan nak kira stok dan kemas balik apa yang dah lintang-pukang ni. Tapi tu lah dianya.. 3 hari pergi mengurut pagi.. dah kepenatan. Well, I deserve all the rest in the world.

Satu pesennya nina ni pulak.. bila dah "mind set" tu ada a list of things to do.. Mesti nak ikut aturan tu jugak. Tu yang jadi tertangguh-tangguh tu.. Bila satu terbengkalai.. selagi tak siap yang tu, memang la malas nak buat apa pun.

Sebenarnya panjang list kerja ni:

1) Buat costing n kira stok untuk big delivery next week
2) Cukupkan barang-barang yang tak cukup tu
3) Timbang siap2 ikut bancuhan bila hari kejadian tak la terkial-kial
4) Siapkan ganache untuk esok
5) siapkan lagi cupcake sebab tadi dah salah kira, tak cukup lagi 65 bijik!
6) siapkan kek pisang yang dah kena skodeng pisang sebijik..
7) hias cupcake medium yang tak boleh nak buat lagi sebab ganache tak buat lagi dan ambil masa sebab nak tunggu set dulu
8) buat roti bakar sebab tengah lapar walaupun dah tengah malam..

okeylah ya! good luck untuk diri sendiri.. hah! tunggu apa lagi perempuan! karang tak tidur mak jugak yang susah!!! Mata dah ngantuk.. buang je list tu jauh2, pastu buat ganache dan tidur!! aci? aci la.. sebab yang susah diri sendiri nanti huhuhuuuuuuu

M Besar M kecik.. M untuk M.A.L.A.S!

Hisy! Nak Bawak Kereta tu, Bawak la Betul-betul!

Dah beberapa hari mengikut Azly buat delivery, jadi tension! Selalu tinggal kat rumah, ingat nak ambil angin tapi lagi stress atas jalan. Yang potong kiri, potong kiri! Ramai bawak kereta cara selamat tapi tak kurang yang bawak macam gila!

Antara aksi-aksi menyakitkan hati sepanjang delivery ni:-

1) Lori besar buat U-turn sambil pegang handphone

2) Treller buat U-turn tempat sempiiiitt.. Semua terpaksa brek mengejut

3) Kereta hitam mendajalkan lagi satu kereta hitam, dua-dua kereta kilat, dua-dua bodoh
Yang kereta belakang tu 4 kali cuba nak tukar lane, tapi yang depan tu cepat-cepat ikut taknak bagi poting just before tol.. lepas tol, kereta depan tu bagi jalan, memang silap la kereta belakang tu pi potong, kena himpit saujana mata memandang.

4) Polis pakai handphone semasa memandu. Mungkin boleh kot ek.. sebab tengah slow.

5) Naik motor sambil korek-korek poket, cari handphone, selit kat helmet?????!!!??

6) Yang motor langgar lampu merah tu tak payah nak cakap la.. mengong!

7) Dari lane kiri.. cepat-cepat tukar lane tengah, lepas tu gedek gedek gedek!! Tunggulah betul-betul clear kalau nak slow!

8) Kereta 'Queue jump' baik punya nak masuk simpang 'v' ke kiri, queue pulak tu panjang gilaaaa, kita nak elak dia, ada motor kat belah kanan kereta, terpaksa brake mengejut! saspen gila takut orang hentam belakang!

9) Ada orang nak lintas jalan, kereta belakang himpit.. janganla orang tu melintas..

10) Satu malam tu, ada orang melintas lenggang lenggok.. nasib baiklaaa seluar dia putih..

The end!

Hisy! Nak Bawak Kereta tu, Bawak la Betul-betul!

Toxic People | What if You are the Topic Person?

I can't remember who told me but then that person said, if you want to be successful, you have to eliminate all those toxic people. When I re-started my cake business, I came out with a list of positive friends who have been supporting me and if you ever wonder, I quit baking before because of one single toxic person whom I could not deal with. It was easier to quit what I was doing than dealing with that person. I gave 1 million reasons to my friends about why I quit! Of course another reason that really put me down was when the price started to increase due to the escalating price of petrol. I just couldn't survive anymore and it took bigger capital to do business and I just didn't know how to tell my friends about me trying to increase the price. This was 4 years ago when my NinazCakes Blog was not up yet, neither does the NinazCakes FB Fanpage.

This time around, I know I have to be serious about baking because it is no longer the side income! It's indeed the main income now. Well, both of my husband and I thought that it would be easier with the flexi working hours at home while attending to our 5 kids. Back to toxic people.. somehow it just blurted in my head, WHAT IF I AM THE ONE WHO HAS BEEN INTOXICATING MYSELF AND PEOPLE AROUND ME? I guess partly the answer is yes. I guess whatever happened before when I decided to quit baking changed me. It made me annoyed, defensive and provocative at times when dealing with the very same character customer with the one who caused me to quit!

Now that I know, Alhamdulillah, I'm okay and I really hope to be more positive! tu la.. lain kali jangan lari dari masaalah hehe!

Toxic People | What if You are the Topic Person?

What a Day! What a Gloomy Day!

Entah kenapa hari ni macam tak bersemangat saja. Rumah lintang pukang. Hati gundah gulana. Rasa malas nak buat apa pun. Malam tadi update gambar-gambar, tidur pukul 3 pagi. Bangun macam biasa dan sempat bakar kek untuk order petang tadi. Kalau kek barbie tu berlemuih la meja dengan buttercream.

Pagi tadi dapat panggilan dari kakak, pakcik collapse dan masuk ICU. Mungkin sebab itu ke? Petang tadi call balik, alhamdulillah dah masuk ke wad biasa dan okay. Tolong doakan ya kawan-kawan agar dia kembali sembuh. Tak payah komen doa pun takpe sebab doa seorang sahabat tanpa pengetahuan sahabatnya lebih makbul. Nina pun baru diingatkan oleh seseorang tentang itu. Jadi kalau nina tak komen apa-apa bila ada kematian atau kemalangan, cukuplah hanya Allah yang tahu. ;)

Mungkinkah sebab beberapa hari yang lepas, nina masak marble cheese dan terlupa dalam loyang ada air, nina tutup pintu oven dan tersimbah penuh air ke oven. Tak berani nak 'switch on' balik oven. Tunggu nina call CKE dulu. Risau juga sebab itu lah mata pencarian nina. Kalau rosak, manalah nina nak dapat ganti. Harap-harap semua okay. Alhamdulillah, oven lagi satu tu masih bernyawa. Ingat-ingatkan balik, mungkin Allah nak berikan ilmu baru. Dek oven tu tak berani nak pasang, nina berani la bakar chocolate grated cookies tu masuk dua loyang. Tambah masa sikit dan kalehkan yang atas ke bawah dan vice versa bila dah separuh masa. Alhamdulillah.

Okaylah ya.. nanti nina tulis lagi ya! Thanks for reading! you guys make me wanting to write more! TTFN!

What a Day! What a Gloomy Day!

Macam Mana Nak Create Button

Assalamualaikum semua! Nina baru je add button NinazCakes kat tepi kanan atas blog. Senang kalau kawan-kawan nak letak logo NinazCakes kat Blog depa!

Kalau ada button tu senang sikit! Lebih "catchy". Senang nak copy. Tak ambil space sangat! Nina tulis nota kat sini sebagai peringatan untuk diri sendiri macam mana nak buat button tu! Kalau nak buat macam ni ya!

1) Cari gambar yang sesuai untuk dijadikan button.. Nina pakai logo NinazCakes dari Business Card je. Scan, edit pakai word document, tambah apa yang patut. Kalau pakai Picasa senang sikit. Download Picasa (klik kanan, open in new tab ya! karang hilang pulak blog nina ni hehe), cari gambar apa yang sesuai, make sure je Picasa tu dah terbukak, lepas tu print screen. Carik kat "Screen Captures", crop apa yang patut, save! Yelah.. kalau dah takde background IT tu mulalah buat ikut suka hati!

2) Upload kat Photobucket. Boleh register dulu! Free Saja. Bukan apa, bila dah upload tu boleh la dapatkan code HTML dia. Kalau dari komputer kita memang tak boleh la nak dapatkan code tu :D

3) Nina dapatkan cara-cara nak buat button ni kat sini.. jadi boleh copy dan ikut arahan kat sana. Mana aci ciplak letak kat sini kan! Ini nina ambil dari sana.. lagi faham step by step dia.

4) Pergi ke "Design" kat blog kita dan "Add a Gadget" lepas tu pilih "HTML/Javascript". Lepas tu Copy yang bawah ni, dan betulkan web address, blog title. Ini yang perlu di"copy". Tapi ini image je.. kena pergi link dia dan copy sendiri tawww!

tapi kena copy betul-betul!!! kena isikan web address betul-betul! Nina punya image alih-alih ada pulak tanda /"> kat tepi gambar tu.. jenuh nina terpaksa delete satu-satu nak trouble shoot mana yang silap huhuhuuuu. Pastikan yang berwarna-warni tu je ada tokok tambah. Yang lain tu tak boleh kacau langsung! Lain la kalau dah terrer merrer kan!!!

5) Pergi ke Photobucket balik, pergi ke image yang nak dibuat button tu.. pastikan kalau boleh resize ke 100 je. Kalau besar sangat.. siapa nak tempek button kita :D Click kat "HTML Code", dia akan flash "copied".

6) Pergi balik ke blogger kita balik, dan pastekan "HTML Code" imej tu ke ruangan "http://IMAGE WEB ADDRESS". Save dan voila!!! dah siap pun!!!

Kalau nak grab button Ninazcakes.. "Add a Gadget", pilih "HTML/Javascript", click je kotak kecik bawah icon ninazcakes tu .. paste kat kotak HTML/Javascript korang tu! Thanks in Advance tauuu!!!

Macam Mana Nak Create Button

Buat Isteri-isteri yang Simple Seperti Saya!!!

I don't know why but when i hear this song.. I know this is exactly what my husband feels.. if only i have the for-male version of this song! Thanks for accepting me the way i am!

and I would like to dedicate this song on behalf of all the husbands who find their wives everything even when they feel like they are nothing! Enjoy! Jangan malu-malu ya isteri-isteri.. you know if your husband is like him! :D

Buat Isteri-isteri yang Simple Seperti Saya!!!

Syukur | Harus Disemai dan Dibaja

Pernah juga terdengar rungutan ibu-ibu tentang anak-anak yang tak mahu menjamah makanan yang dimasaknya. Hmm.. sakit hati bila dengar. Sebenarnya Nina ni antara yang bertuah.. sebab masa Nina mula-mula bernikah dulu, memang tak pandai masak langsung. Teringat masa tingkatan 4, mak dan abah pergi haji, nina goreng ikan sampai dah tak rupa ikan. Tension sebab masa tu sepupu temankan di rumah. Takkan nak tunggu depa balik kerja dan tunggu depa masak pulak. Tapi alhamdulillah.. nina bertuah dianugerahkan seorang suami yang menghargai masakan nina walaupun sekadar kicap dan telur mata kerbau.

Yang paling bestnya.. bila suami tak komplen, anak-anak tak berani la nak komplen. Kadang-kadang malu sendiri, macam hari ni, tak sempat nak masak.. memang kami dinner 'scrambled egg' dan roti mayonaise dan sos! Anak-anak memuji-muji sedaplah.. "terima kasih sebab masak sedap sangat!! Ibu memang pandai masak!" Nina pun cakap, "Alhamdulillah.. ibu bersyukur sangat sebab dapat anak-anak yang bersyukur dengan makanan yang ada walalupun makanan tu simple!"

Sebenarnya syukur itu perlu dilatih! Alhamdulillah itu harus dipraktikkan.. Bila dipuji, mesti 'demand' anak cakap Alhamdulillah.. kerana yang cantik itu ciptaan.. yang hebat itu penciptanya.. Bila nina bandingkan dengan lukisan.. Marah tak kalau orang puji-puji lukisan tu tapi buat tak tau je pada korang yang melukis.. Terdiam semua!

Syukur itu satu nikmat. Makanan itu satu nikmat apabila kita bersyukur! Jika anak-anak merungut makanan tak sedap, ibu bapa bertanggungjawab untuk betulkan. Jika pakaian mereka bukan baru dan "handed down" maka ibu bapa mesti ingatkan mereka. Sebagai ibu bapa pula, seharusnya kita juga bersyukur dengan makanan yang ada.. Habiskan makanan dan ajar anak-anak menghargainya. Mana mungkin anak itu akan bersyukur jika ibu bapa sendiri membuang makanannya. Ingatkan mereka bahawa Rasulullah tidak akan berkata apa-apa tentang makanan yang tak sedap. Siapalah kita berbanding dengan Rasul yang maksum.

Naufal, anak sulung nina pernah bercerita.. dalam satu majlis, rasulullah menghabiskan makanan tanpa meninggalkan sedikit pun untuk sahabat-sahabatnya. Bila ditanya.. baginda menjawab tidak sedap jadi baginda menghabiskannya.. (biar orang tak rasa dan tak komplen!).

Jadi kawan-kawan semua! Didik tau anak supaya bersyukur dengan apa yang ada.. Jangan asyik nampak apa yang tak ada dan merungut apa yang memang telah Allah kurniakan di depan mata! Ingatkan anak-anak tentang nikmat deria! Tapi sebelum tu.. kena latih diri sendiri tau! Alhamdulillah.. Allah berikan aku peluang untuk hidup sehari lagi!

Syukur | Harus Disemai dan Dibaja

Class Went Disastrous!

I totally forgotten about the Writing Workshop until my husband reminded 2 days ago. Honestly, it was a bit frustrating for me. The projector couldn't detect my aging laptop and I should have mailed the 'guru media' straight so that he could prepare everything. I forgot to bring my marker, lucky the students lent me theirs.

Well, normally I had back up activities but this time, the back up activity didn't go well either. I have to admit, I could have just ignored the fact that my slides were out in the drain, and I could have used my other activities but I guess, I was just too annoyed that everything went blank.
Things got worse especially when the noises get louder and you just couldn't hear anything they answer and the rest of the students got noisier.

For once in my teaching career, 1 and a half hour was way longer and I couldn't wait for the class to end. I admit defeat that this was the very first time class were out of my control and the most embarrassing part was .. they were not even half the crowd that I handled before. I was frustrated, angry and at one point felt hopeless.

One thing about me that has never changed is the fact that I just cannot teach if I can hear a single whisper.. and I really can hear a single whisper. Sometimes I wonder if it's a gift or a hindrance from teaching. This time, it was an air-conditioned room but the problem when it's fully tiled and has empty wall.. voices seem to be louder that it's really sounds (which made me annoyed even more).

I really pity those who really intend to study and try really hard to focus due to the noise. I pity those who couldn't follow the teaching and the activities because there is a clash between our study styles. The person whom I pity most is definitely the teacher who had to endure the babbling about their future (if this kind of attitude keeps on going on). I think I was a bit harsh when I spoke to them about their attitude. I wanted to convince them badly that 3 months is still enough if they ever intend to get 5As in their UPSR.

Am I going to give up on them, NO! Don't worry guys! Teacher Nina will be back! Not that soon.. but as soon as I know what would be the perfect activity for you.. I'll be popping near you!!! :D In the mean time.. just wish me luck!

Class Went Disastrous!

Coretan Ibu..

Entah kenapa, masa anak-anak peluk nina sebelum tidur tadi, hati memang jadi sebak. Lagi-lagi bila anak perempuan nina peluk. Teringat masa dia kecil, memang nina kurang bercakap dengan dia. Bila tukar lampin pun senyap saja, asyik bercakap dengan yang sulung. Bila umur dia 4-5 tahun, baru nina perasan yang kami kurang bercakap.

Yelah.. masa dia lahir, yang sulung tengah ramah bercakap, umur 2 tahun.. Dah lama-lama tu baru la perasan yang nina memang jarang bercakap dengan yang nombor dua dari dalam perut lagi.

Alhamdulillah.. bila dah terperasan ada gap, kami cepat-cepat 'fix that problem'. Memang kekok sebab anak perempuan ni lain sikit, 'meleser' memanjang.. jalan nak pegang tangan. Pastu kena 'giggle-gigle', kena geletek-geletek. Anak sulung tak gitu, bila dengan yang kedua ni memang lain sikit.

Macam mana kami boleh perasan yang kami kurang bercakap.. Nina sedar yang kami lebih suka berutus surat (betulll.. kami ada buku special.. saling tulis surat.. tapi taklah hari-hari).. Anak yang sulung pun ada jugak menyebut.. "jeles tu.. nurul ada buku surat dengan ibu".. tapi nina bagitau dia, "naufal kan selalu teman ibu masak" :D

Dah jadi ibu ni.. terasa macam celebrity pun ada.. bila makan orang ni merajuk nak duduk sebelah.. yang lagi sorang merajuk, nak tidur dengan ibu.. yang lain merajuk sebab asyik orang ni yang temankan masak. Yang tak larat tu bila semua nak masuk kendong.. suruh dukung la.. nak naik atas kaki ala-ala superman la.

Siapa kata menjadi ibu ni senang? Sekarang ni.. bila nak bahagi-bahagikan perhatian pada kelima-lima anak pun pening jugak sebab lain anak, lain kerenahnya.. lain jantina lain ragamnya. Am not complaining.. alhamdulillah dengan anugerah Allah.. cuma takut dengan amanah yang Allah beri.. Semoga nina dapat menjadi ibu yang terbaik buat anak-anak.. amiin..

Coretan Ibu..

Polygamy|Never against the System!

I remember a non muslim student asking me years ago about why Islam made Polygamy legal. I laughed and didn't startle the slightest bit. Well, it's different from my alter ego; the feminist! I smiled and gave him one example and he accepted it.

My example was this..

Imagine if a guy's wife is in a deep coma and this has been going on for 10 years and he is terribly lonely.. Should he divorced the wife in search of a new one? [Err..].. Say .. polygamy is not allowed and he divorced his wife because he believed that she has no hope. So, he remarried to a brand new wife to ease his loneliness.. Then suddenly.. the hospital calls him with a miracle.. the ex-wife has woken up. [erkk...]. Should he divorce his newly wed wife to be with his ex-wife.

My student didn't say and I know it made sense. Though I never really encourage , neither do I offer my husband to marry another one, I'm never against the system because there must be a good reason Allah grants permission to men to marry more than 1.

Though men chuckles whenever the word is mentioned and women quickly become snappy and menopausal (in terms of mood swing and hormonal changes), only some are daring enough for the responsibilities are greater and the tests are way more than being monogamist. And women are not very keen because they know.. they are not very fond of sharing when it comes to men.

A friend of mine did warn me.. about leaving 5 percent of the chances. Well, she said.. in case it happens, it's not that bad because you have already anticipated it. (Been trying and still trying). We never really know what will happen in the future. Though I didn't admit it.. I leave it in the hand of Allah.. and pray for my strength if it ever happens.. Having said that "Abang, jangan nak macam2 ya!!!"

Polygamy|Never against the System!

Help! My Biological Clock Needs Adjustments!!!

It all started when I had a big order for the whole week. Having a nursing toddler requires patience and lots of sacrifices.. One of it is definitely time. I remember that week, I had to wake up 3 a.m in the morning to cater to the order.. But of course I'll sleep early at 10 or 11 p.m.

Normally, I'll start baking at 3-4 a.m. and continue straight till morning. Then, I'll snug with Muhammad during the day. Then I realized when the hectic week was over, I can't seem to sleep properly. With Muhammad being sooo playful during the day, cheeky especially when he knows I'm in the midst of doing something, I realized that I enjoy browsing the net the minute he is asleep causing my body clock to go haywire. I would sleep at 3 o'clock without realizing it was really late.

Now, this is the second week after the hectic week and it's getting worse. Looking at the clock now, it's almost 2 a.m. I'm really sleepy and yet.. I'm quite reluctant to let go of my computer. What I know is.. Muhammad will wake up at 3 a.m for his feeding, then at 5 a.m and the next thing would be me waking up at 6.30 a.m.

I have to admit.. nursing is really not an easy thing to do. But I'm just lucky to be working at home that and I can enjoy both at the same time. Honestly.. it is not that tiring when you enjoy it. The look on his face when he is nursing is priceless. The fact that he will always bug me makes my day (though sometimes when the cake order is at the peak.. it can be stressful ;D but I use it as an excuse to take a break and lay down hehe)

Hopefully I can readjust my sleeping time back to normal.. Maybe I should set the clock earlier and sleep earlier. That means.. Good nite for now!

Help! My Biological Clock Needs Adjustments!!!

Once a Week Konon!

Okay okay.. i have a confession to make. I was planning to update my blog at least once a week.. but then, things have been haywire lately that i have been postponing. One thing for sure, whenever i'm at the computer, muhammad will definitely squeeze trough my arm to get to the *tuut*. I was a bit annoyed at the beginning but then then later, I just though that he is such a patient boy! Normally, when i'm baking, he'll just wait and wait and wait (there are times when the baking is a bit too long, he would come, hold my hand and pull while saying.. nak t****k.. ).

So, I figure, he thinks that the moment i'm in front of the computer, it's definitely my free time. 10 years from now.. or when i'm holding my grandchildren.. i'll just treasure this moment. :D 5 months more to go.. and i'm anxious already about that moment when i just have to stop breastfeeding.

Muhammad, ibu loves you..

Once a Week Konon!

Nak buat Camne kalau dah Dapat Bini Malas!!

Penat tak habis lagi.. seminggu ni 'hectic' sangat! Alhamdulillah tempahan minggu ni berakhir dengan delivery ke Pandan, Kelana Jaya, Selayang dan Wangsa Maju. Jam giler tak tahu cakap la berapa banyak 100+ tonggang dalam kereta. Beli yang besar tu, sambung straw dua minum ramai-ramai. Kami jarang keluar.. jadi bila get stuck in the jam tu.. otak pun macam nak jam hehe

Jadi hari ni memang hari rest nina. Apa taknya.. menunggukan si Muhammad tu habis menyusu la.. kena bangun pukul 3 pagi baru line clear.. kalau selalu siang boleh cover.. lately Muhammad is just sooo playful.. bila dia tengok je mata kita pejam.. buat-buat merajuk! huh! Kau belum tengok ibu kau buat perangai!!

Alkisah bini malas.. nina lah tu! Petang tadi, sempat tolong sikit je Azly cuci loyang tapi takleh tahan dok jeling-jeling rumah sebelah sebab tak tengok lagi baby newborn dia. "Pergi kejap la bang, takleh tahan la.. nak gi tengok baby", balik dari tgk baby ada la tinggal dalam 8 tray dan 12 loyang tak cuci lagi... buat-buat tolong la.. hehe

Masuk je rumah.. terus layan facebook.. dah seminggu intai-intai je wall azly tu dengar laporan (kami punya mutual friends tu mmg ramai la kannn). Azly amik la pulak mop.. mop la saki baki coklat and butter kat lantai tu..

Kalau la orang tengok.. laki dia cuci loyang, dia pi bersembang kat rumah jiran, laki mop lantai, dia layan facebook... laki dia dok kejut anak.. bini tengah kroh kroh lagi.. laki sidai kain kat luar.. bini dok tengok tv kat dalam (sambil menyusu hokay.. pastu maleh nak pakai jubah tudung bagai nak keluar rumah). Mesti orang cakap bini malas kan? Pernah dengar interview sorang kakak ni kat TV9.. "eh saya tak pernah suruh suami .. semua saya sediakan. Kesian la kat dia.." Huhuhuu.. malang la nasib laki aku nih!

Sebelum orang sound kita.. kita sound la diri sendiri.. "Macam mana ni bang.. tadi cuci loyang, na gi rumah kak yana, sekarang ni na layan facebook.. abang mop lantai la pulak!".. Lalu berkatalah sang suami.. "Yang na buat cake tu, abang buat apa? tidur!". Err.. betul jugak la kan..

Anyway.. sebenarnya.. (my personal view).. there's no manual on how to judge a good wife! Kalau tengok gaya nina yang pergi bersembang bila kerja rumah tak siap tu mmg la wife low class.. tapi i guess i'm just lucky! my husband tends to look at the other side of me.. My strengths! Something that only he knows.. Tapi pernah jugak nina berseloroh.. Nina ingat lagi nina share dengan geng bas sekolah.. "Abang kalau dah tak tahan rumah semak bagitau la ya.. tak mo la kena tinggal sebab tension rumah semak" hahahaha.. tapi ada yang jadi.. huhuhuuuu takut!

Nak buat Camne kalau dah Dapat Bini Malas!!

Popiah! Popiah!!

Orang lain sibuk belajar Macaron, kita sibuk pulak belajar popiah! Sebenarnya memang lama dah teringin nak belajar buat popiah basah! Bukan apa, popiah ni memang favourite food keluarga kami terutama sekali ayahanda Arif! Bulan ini sebenarnya sengaja nina ambil kelas untuk 'take a break' dan nak release tension. Kalau orang lain pergi Spa untuk massage, for me, nothing is more therapeutic than a good baking class session. Best tau kelas ni.. sakit perut sebab asyik gelak je. Dapat pulak yang datang tu memang gila-gila, satu kaki je dengan Kak Pau! Yang bestnya, siap hands-on buat kulit! Silap la tak ambil gambar bloopers! Ada yang berlubang-lubang, bentuk anak bulan, bujur, tebal sampai terkoyak! Kalau nak belajar pergi kat laman web Citra Klasik ya! Banyak lagi kelas lain! Insyaallah.. bila nina ada budget lagi, nina nak pergi lagi! Dah lama teringin nak belajar buat frozen.. senang nak makan petang!

Tengok sifu siap posing lagi dengan popiah!

Close up skit! boleh tahan ke??? Balik berebut-rebut anak-anak nina makan!


Geng kali ni.. Kak Syarifah (mimi), kak azizah (azipopiah), Kiptiah (dekat saja dr Sg. Jelok), Nieyta (all the way from Nilai), Sharifah Hamidah (comfirm sangkut jem on the way ke kl sebab lambat habis hehe), me (taukeh ninazcakes), Lilies (taukeh kiosk in the making) dan Kak Minah (juara angkat popiah! Hehe). Thanks guys! I really had fun! Walaupun tak kenal sesiapa pun mula-mula tu tapi korang memang rock! Err.. tiada di dalam gambar : Kak Pau (sebab tolong ambil gambar kikikik)! Rasanya betul dah nama2 ni.. takut tersilap label la pulak.. Kalau silap tolong ingatkan aku ya!!!

ps.. boleh tempah edible image yeehaaa!!

Popiah! Popiah!!

Giving up?

There was a time not long ago when I realised that it was easier to give up than to face the problem that was bothering me. I was frustrated, angry and most of the time avoid even thinking about it until I decided to give it a last shot before really giving up.

It was one of the worst moment when the people whom you thought you could count on were not there. Actually, I do have a list of people who I know I can always turn to if I ever needed help. It's not really a real list but just a mental list that I find comfort whenever I'm stuck somewhere. I guess, knowing that you have someone there gives me strength. I think that time (when I was about to give up) was a time that I felt completely lost. My dreams at night were the same repeated dreams over and over again. It was that time when I thought I was better awake when I sleep and yet I was better sleeping when I was awake. I wanted to give up so bad but I just couldn't.

I started praying istikharah.. I started seeking for help mentally (it was just like a rehearsal in my mind) but never blurted it out. It was just so comforting to do that. One day, out of a blue, a friend called me and brought us to see her friend. That friend took us to another friend. Of course it was never planned that way but somehow I met someone who offered us help; the most precious consultation and inside stories of the things that we have been searching for to be our inspiration. There were times when we were driving, we just made one impulsive decision to go somewhere and most of the time became an opportunity to meet really wonderful inspiring people who were more than happy to offer us strength and help. Alhamdulillah..

Sometimes, without intention, we accidentally blurted something that was supposed to be our secret but ended up having all sorts of support from friends who are not really close friends who became closer because of their faith in us and the courage that they give us and we are grateful Alhamdulillah.. We believe that those help from strangers and acquaintance and not-so-close friends came from Allah. Life is just full of surprises.

There are times that I wanted to cry just to let go of the heavy painful chest that I carry and there are times that I think, if I can face this (obstacle), I can face whatever obstacle that I have after this. When I look around me.. I could see that there are people who are in worse condition than us that whatever we are facing currently seem so trivial. Not that we find comfort when looking at other people's bigger problems, but looking at them makes us stronger in a way; knowing that they never really give up to face their bigger problem.

For those people who have been behind us.. you know how you have touched our lives. Even a smile works wonders. Your encouragement and soothing words really helped us through those times. We have not yet reached there but we know.. we have a 'new' mental list of people (some strangers remained strangers but our prayers are with you while some friends become closer friends) that we can turned to. Thanks for your ears for listening and the time you spent for us. May Allah bestow upon you His blessings and rahmah for He knows.

Giving up?

Err.. pandang kali pertama punya cerita!

Tak taulah korang macam mana tapi kadang-kadang bila berjumpa orang.. ada yang senang mesra ada yang terlebih mesra tapi kadang-kadang dan jarang-jarang kita berjumpa orang yang terus kita tak suka. Dulu tengok drama je.. Bila bawak calon menantu.. terus mencemuh bakal mak mertua. Gabra je anak lelaki. Tapi memang ada setengah orang tu, bila kita jumpa.. memang ada rasa tak boleh nak "kelik"! Ada tak? Mesti ada punya.

Alkisah nina berjumpa seseorang. Memang terang tang tang dia tak suka nina. Boleh buat tak tau je. Tak taulah kenapa. Kalau dulu nina memang senang "affected" dengan sikap orang yang tak mesra ni. Tapi sekarang nina pun tak kisah. Cuma yang nina perasan ada sesetengah orang yang tak suka dengan kita, kita pun mesti rasa yang sama (mutual gitew, suka sama suka atau dalam kes sini tak suka sama tak suka hehe). Nina ada seorang kawan tu yang bila dia sedar orang tu tak suka dia, dia akan cuba ambil hati sampai orang tu tersuka dengan dia tapi nina tak. Nina kalau orang tak suka tu, nina tak la cuba bagi suka. Elak-elak tu kadang-kadang tengok macam mana reaksi orang tu.

Berbalik pada cerita tadi. Ada sesetengah orang ambil masa untuk jadi mesra. Ada orang pulak akan perati boleh buat kawan ke tidak (dia pun tak tau ada orang perati dia jugak hehe). Ada pulak yang mesra gila tapi lama-lama.. buat tak kenal pun ada. Bila orang tak suka.. nina akur.. "wavelength" tak sama. Korang macam mana?

Err.. pandang kali pertama punya cerita!

New Look!

Assalamualaikum and good day!

I really can't remember when i started this blog but what i know is i did it just for fun. Somehow, it is fun for me to write and i just love getting response from you guys.. When i started.. i really didn't know anything about blogging or HTML or template or etc etc etc.. Anyway.. i've got friends who showed me beautiful beautiful templates to choose from but i guess my blog reflects who i really am.. simple. You'll notice there are changes in the layout and i intend to change more. Hopefully, you guys will stay with me. Also, i serve Nuffnang now.. hopefully, as a motivation for me to go on writing (not a demotivation for you to read hehe). I'll try to update my blogpost every week.. :D (hope i can keep my promise!) Maybe i should reduce the number of fb-ing as i need to focus on a few new things hehe...

One favour please.. if you find anything glary... please do let me know.. or any suggestions that can help me improve this blog.. i'd really love to hear them! zillion thanks in advance!

I'm starting this year, with a very positive mind; trying to shake off any negative vibes leftovers from last year and i'm strengthening the strengths in me. May 2011 be the best year ever for all of us.. amiin... ;D

New Look!

Will You Still be My Friend if I have Nothing to Offer?

Ever since i quite my job, one thing that i have been missing is the presence of friends around me. I'm definitely a people person. I remember in college, whenever I came back late and everyone had already had their lunch and dinner, I would insist they gather to accompany me. I just couldn't eat alone. Now that my hubby is joining me, working from home, things are quite better. Part of our bugdet adjustment this year, we mainly skip our regular breakfast outside and have our nescafe together.. My son said that we are both happy when we drink nescafe together.

There are a lot of things that I miss in my life.. My gatherings, my mini-meet-up with my bestfriend, my outings with families, as well as trips to Kampung. Not that i'm complaining, but life is very much different now; well, i'd say better in some ways. However, i can't help but wonder one thing.. my friends.

I remember a long lost friend who contacted me.. saying how much she misses me. I was flattered until she told me she needed a guarantor for her loan. I paid another friend with my service and was surprised with the long list of endless service. Until one day, i realised that she didn't need my service nor my friendship. A friend asked me a favour and i realized that she asked me to do it because she couldn't get that kind of pricing unless she gets a friend doing it. Then, once it's over, it's really over.. Another friend was extra nice until she knows for sure that the help that she needs was beyond my capabilities.

I no longer can drive anywhere i want whenever i want as we are extra careful with the budget nowadays. 2 regular outing per week might cause me another full tank for the month as well as my monthly family dinner budget. Skipping a trip to the movie may help us pay the Astro bill (which i insist should not be part of the budget adjustment as it's like a homeschool to me). Entertainment for the family has been replaced with trips to the playground and trips to the grocery has been merged with trips to school or cake deliveries.

Things have not been that bad actually. But, I sacrificed my working time because I insist on nursing my baby full time. Hubby works free lance to save his health from stress. It had happened before and I just love it that I'm mentally prepared for anything. That means adjusting our budget and sacrificing some of the not-so-important things. We still have oreo cheese cakes, pasta and other luxurious favourite food.. only the place in different; at the comfort of our home AND we are HAPPY!

I been wondering; if there will be a time that we really out of budget.. When my sedeqah will only be my smile and knowledge and time.. will you still be my friend?

Will You Still be My Friend if I have Nothing to Offer?