Monday, July 31, 2006
So the KL weekend came & whizz by as fast as I imagined it would. Quite disappointed as the sale is not as good as I would like it to be. It could be because I did not really cover all the major malls as recommended in the papers. But after going to 1 or 2 major malls, I discovered that most of the shops were more or less the same, offering the same kind of things. It could be my mindset, whenever I see something, I always think first if I could get a better deal back at home and most of the time, I think I could. I did get clothes & sandals from local brand which I deemed worth buying as it was local brand therefore when compared to Singapore, it definitely is a good bargain. I was pretty excited that Mango, Zara & Esprit was on sale with additional further reduction as I saw some stuff are much cheaper than those back home. We went to the much-talked about Bt Bintang strip to malls like Sungai Wang Plaza & Lot 10 but because it was a weekend, & me being the semi-tai-tai who are so used to shop during the weekday mornings, found the crowd too much to jostle with. The traffic jams were bad as they said it would. We decided to take cabs instead of driving around just to save us the heartache of the jam. The kids managed to take the LRT as our hotel was just 2 stops away from Bt Bintang. I also managed to go on my own to check out Bt Bintang thoroughly by train but as soon as I reached town at abt 6pm, the crowd swelled like it was a weekend party and terrified that I would not catch the train back, quickly scanned through the shops and got a nice top to make my trip downtown worthwhile.
The Concorde hotel was nice & comfy, we opted for a family room but got upgraded to a suite instead, so the kids had a whale of a time. The first day we arrived, we were greeted with a first-hand view of the much-talked about street protest against the Israel-Beirut war led by Mr Khairy. I first thought it was s street marathon but as it was just after Friday prayers, we realised that the 1000 over strong protesters mean serious business as confirmed by the news later. We had a nice culturally-induced dinner at Saloma Restaurant where we were entertained by dances & cultural performances while we tucked into the array of local Johor spread. On the whole, I would say it was a good experience. We checked out Suria KLCC, Bt Bintang & 1-Utama at Damansara(only about a quarter as it was one-huge massive mall I tell you) also saw Menara KL which was just within view of our hotel window.Oh we also caught a glimpse of the bride-to-be herself, Ms Siti Nurhaliza who made a promo appearance for Olay at KLCC. Perhaps next time we'll be able to throng the streets during a more comfortable weekday pace...
Thursday, July 27, 2006
I have been dutifully disciplining myself from any splurges the past few weeks all to gear myself up for this weekend..KL Mega sale here I come...
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
We finally got ourselves a new rest-room -must give it a 'regal' name since its still brand new. It took all of 5 days for completion in which all our family members (tiny ones included) endured cold-showers in the morning & evening from our lovely-ole 'tempayan' in my parent's room. Its not too bad for me, quite refreshing actually but after 2 days it was too much for Amirul & Amira who turned 'jumping-monkeys' once the cold-water hit their lithe bodies. So have to take turns to 'rent' nearby bathrooms (luckily my extended family is just around our block) like my grandparents' and big bro's pad who coincidentally is in US during the whole ordeal. So me & my mum got down to our knees and actually washed the whole kitchen as if tomorrow is Hari Raya. It has to be spanking clean to keep up with the new bathroom right ? Now me & my hubby will take a breather before proceeding to renovate our room next. Just the thought of packing up the whole room is causing me dizzy spells. But on the bright side, I look forward to a lovely bright carpet-free room after staring at the same walls and corners for the past 7 years.We still have yet to decide which primary school to send Amirul to. I believe I'm like thousands of parents out there who are jittery about this impending decision. But ultimately when the time comes, I believe it should be be the best for Amirul.
Over the weekend the boys played a very good round of game at the Topper Cup in Sentosa. I wasn't there as I chose to walk around in the comfort of air-con mall with the kids instead :) I think they won all games except the last one which is crucial to proceed to the next round. But an all-round congratulations to the boys and the 'manager' of course for a job well done.
This weekend we are suppose to somewhere since I got 5-days off work. But still undecided. You see we are already having a tad of a problem deciding, add it with other factors like the preference of others...then how? we'll see...
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Yesterday Amirul successfully assembled tiny 2-D model cars all by himself. It took him about an hour of full concentration (added bonus that Amira is asleep therefore eliminates any form of distractions)which I considered a mean feat for a 6-yr old as I myself could never sit to assemble mini parts for that amount of time.I dread to think how fast my baby boy have grown.
I saw this and immediately had a 'back-in-time' moment. Felt like I was in the P Ramlee 60s era ala 'Masam-Masam-Manis' movie.
Haircut or rebonding anyone??
Friday, July 14, 2006
I am a bookworm. I have to have at least a book by my bedside table and maybe an extra 2-3 more in case I finished reading that 1 book and need immediate 'back-up' reading material to keep me company. I read before I go to bed, I read in the train, I read in the bus, I read while waiting for anyone or anything. I have to go to the library at least once in 2 weeks to 'replenish' my reading materials. My favourites are 'chick-flicks' from authors like Carole Matthews, Fay Weldon, Sheila O'Flannigan just to name a few. I have a tendency to veer towards the British authors because of their quick wit & hilarious good reads. Whenever I borrow books from the library, I have a series of criteria that I follow :1. The minimum no. of books borrowed would be 3
2. One have got to be a magazine eg InStyle, Bazaar, British Vogue, Australian Women's Weekly that have more reading materials than ads to keep me occupied
3. One book should be small & compact like the Reader's Digest or any light & thin paperback to stash in my 'oh-so-small' tote bag that I may carry any day.
4. Books for the kids - 3 each
So on the average, I always end up lugging about 9-10 books in my oversize tote every trip I make to the library. I always go on a weekday at 10.30am (thanks to my 'semi tai-tai-ing' nature) so I can have free reign of choice & I get to browse in my leisurely time and also when the library will be at it most quite and least crowded. So its only natural that I start getting my kids acquianted to the library at a very young age. So far they are loving their time there. And also thanks to my cousin, I get the luxury of borrowing more than 4-8 books (unlike the regulars) and borrow as much as my bag can fit.So much on the little insights of my book-borrowing-reading habits. Have a good weekend all... I got a feeling that mine would be a busy one.
Monday, July 10, 2006
So The 'Italian Pizza' triumphed over the 'French Croissants' earlier this morning. Although I was very pleased with the results (helped by the fact that I own an Italian jersey), a little part of me feels a wee bit disappointed that Zizou had not exited his last cap in a grand ol' way. Oh well, now I can safely peel down the charts & posters put up by my husband that have been adorning my room wall for the past 1 mth. My husband is already showing signs of early World Cup withdrawal syndrome - staring blankly at the wall from 11pm to 3am. Well, on the bright side there is the Euro 2008 to look forward to...
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
I can't exactly remember the last time I bought myself a music CD. If I was not mistaken, it was a Jazz compilation CD about 2+ years ago before Amira was born. Today I bought myself a Retro compilation CD. I was drawn to it first by its colourful flower-power cover but was quickly hooked by the fact that it has not ONE BUT THREE CDs FOR THE PRICE OF ONE.Of course the song collections play a big part too in breaking my 2-odd years-no-CD drought. It has the likes of Andy Williams (The samsung AD Song), Shirelles, Chubby Checkers and the Drifters - so retro, I so lurve it. Now can't wait to convert the songs & transfer it to my new-phone music player (which by the way I so love as the Nokia 3250 have given me nothing but problems)so I can have new music to keep me company on my way to my 3-days a week work. Yey!!
Over the weekend I bought assesment books for Amirul to prepare him for his primary 1 entry. I try not to be one of those Kiasu parents but I do want him to be at least prepared and not get left behind when he starts school next year. Since school re-opened last Monday we have him follow a daily routine time-table so he will not get too carried away with TV & computers all day long. So weeknights,he will have reading sessions on Monday, English lesson on Tuesday, Writing on Wednesday, Maths on Thursday and Craft sessions like origami, painting & drawing on Friday. So far he's been quite diligent following the time-table apart from some occasional days where he goes out playing and get all tired out by the end of the day. I hope I do not get too worried about him, I mean he can read & write well,loves to count, loves dinosaurs & fossils and his questions & curiousity about the world in general always leave me & my husband stumped.(like why does your nails grow and not your eyelashes ??!!) I also want him to enjoy his childhood immensely..(sigh)... so tough to draw the line isn't it?