Real Magic

I visited Izani's class one day and observed how his teacher managed to lure a group of 5-year-olds to sit on a mat around her in a calm and orderly manner by engaging them in a song about goldilocks and the 3 bears. It was really amazing.
So I listened really closely and managed to learn the song by heart.
At home I tried to sing the song to Izani, hoping for the same results.
It didn't work.
I suspect that teachers either have really good skills or have magic powers.
I believe that if there's a real Hogwarts, it's a teacher's college.

Happy Teacher's Day to all the teachers I know!
You are amazing!

Makcik Blogger Gathering, Dubai 2011

Well, the inspiration to re-start blogging came from the makcik blogger gathering we had on New Year's Day.
Lollies was on her way back from Iran (she had driven from Qatar, left her car at my house while she flew to Iran from Dubai) and had arrived that morning, so we decided to gather up all the makcik bloggers that we know are in Dubai for a New Year's Day picnic in Safa Park.
As you can see from the picture above, there were only Lollies, Makcik Melopong, MakNenek and me. Unfortunately Theta and Blabarella couldn't make it :P
We had Nasi Kerabu, assorted baklavas and sweets from Iran, sambal belacan kow-kow, roti beowan (spelling?), puding buih and drinks, all pot luck. The agenda was just to eat, chit chat and have fun :)
Towards the end of the gathering, we makcik-makcik turned into model-model lah pulak, thanks to the coaxing of my husband. *LOL*

I think it was a great and happy start for the New Year :) and hopefully is a reflection of things to come :)

Innalillah

Taufik came home today with an extremely sombre expression on his face.
I should've known something was wrong.
"I have to go to Taif", he said.
My brain started to list down all the rigs I have ever heard him mention, trying to recall if any were in or near Taif.
Thinking there must've been a problem with one of the bits or something, I gave a disappointed "hah???"
He responded in silence.
unusual.
He called one of his colleagues and talked about flight availability.
His tone sounded different. Not pissed. Not business like.
"What happened?" I finally asked.
A few smith staff members decided to drive to Makkah yesterday, he started.
Uh Oh, I thought.
"Dah tu, accident?", I asked, recalling the other time when an inexperienced staff member rolled a brand new truck into the side of the road.
"Hm." he said, very controlled. "Rahim injured, his son in ICU. Rayiz is dead".
I stopped short with whatever I was doing.
"Rayiz???? Serious??", not meaning to disbelief him, but still hoping I could disbelieve.
"Hm" was all he could say.
I rushed over to hug him.
I felt his pain even though he didn't show it.
Rayiz is probably the one reason why he's still sane while working in the Saudi office.
I know how much Rayiz's friendship meant to him.
Throughout iftar, maghrib and isya', I watched him tackle one phone call after another, getting updates and relaying it to the VP and District Manager.
I see the emotions stirring right underneath the stiff exterior. I know it's trying to come out. I know it's being suppressed by more pressing matters. Protocols, procedures, paperwork.
During one rare private moment, I hugged him tight and whispered "you can cry if you want to", and cried on his behalf. He was quiet, but I think I heard a sniffle. It wasn't long before the moment was broken by my kids begging attention and assistance with homework.
After Isya', I helped him choose clothes and put them in a backpack.
He is now on his way to the airport, hoping to catch a flight to Jeddah.
He hopes to be able to see his friend for the last time.
Knowing the regret of not saying goodbye to my own friend, I let him go with an open heart.

Innalillah hi wa inna ilahi ro ji oon.
Al-Fatihah to Rayiz.
May your soul be spared from the tortures in the grave, be saved from the fires of hell and may you be placed among the pious in jannatul firdaus, ya sadiq.

Oh Allah, please protect my husband.

Staying In Love

A few weeks ago someone asked me how I could still be so in love with Taufik even though it's been almost twenty years since we've known each other.
Hm.. sometimes I wonder too. I mean, after knowing someone for so long, and seeing him day in and day out, how is it that I never get bored of him or being with him? (but then, I also wonder why he's not bored with *me*)

Rather than giving you tips because I don't feel I'm qualified, let me just share what I do and how I feel about my husband Taufik. If you see something you can learn from, then, go for it. If not, consider it just entertaining reading (if it doesn't make you puke *lol*).

Focus on the good stuff
. I love looking at Taufik. He's very easy on the eyes, especially when he was younger. Even now that he's older, I still look at him as if I'm looking at a superstar heartthrob. I admire his good features and try not to dwell on the less appealing ones (not that he has a lot). I think if you look at person long enough, I'm sure you will be able to see the beauties in the person and appreciate them more.
. I look at him when we talk. I notice that sometimes I forget to look at him when we are having a conversation, perhaps because I'm doing something else. I recently make it a point to really look at him and absorb every little thing he says, not just with his voice, but also with his eyes, with his mouth (smiling? frowning?), the tilt of his head, his gestures. I think it makes me understand him more.
. During gatherings, sometimes I take a peek at him when he's across the room. I like watching him interact with other people, sharing a joke or discussing a serious topic. I give myself bonus points if I catch his eye and we exchange even a little smile or a slight twitch of the eyebrows.
. My most favourite thing to watch is when he's physically working on something. Be it mopping the floor, building me a closet, plumbing, gardening or mowing the lawn .. something about watching his flexing muscles just turns me on :). Sometimes even watching him hold a pen and write seems very appealing.
. I love listening to him chat with the kids. Especially when he's teasing them or sharing a joke. His laughter sounds so happy.
. Even though sometimes I complain about it, I am actually comforted by his snoring at night. Irregardless of whether it's just the sound of his breathing or the all out thunderous snorts, I would rather hear that than silence.
. Even though my husband may not be the sexiest man alive, it doesn't matter, because *I* think he's the sexiest man alive. I don't need other people to think so, just like I don't need other people to think I'm the most beautiful woman on earth as long as my husband thinks I am :)
. I don't know whether it's pheromones or his deodorant or what, but dayummm my man smells good...!

Keep in touch
. Whenever I miss Taufik, I would just open his closet and pick out one of his 'worn but clean' shirts (he has this habit of putting a shirt that he has worn for only one day but is not really dirty yet, back into the closet, to be worn another day), and bury my face in it and inhale. Heavenly.
. I love snuggling up to him just to get sniff.
. We're not the lovey dovey text messaging kinda couple. I would usually send Taufik an sms saying I've reached my destination or home, but mostly I would send him the list of groceries for him to pick up on the way back from the office. He would usually just reply with a short 'Ok'. Occasionally though, I send him a message that would make him reply "Be back in 15 minutes" and he would really be back home in 15 minutes ;)
. I believe in the power of touch, so I try to touch Taufik at every opportunity I can. I mean, who else can I touch but my husband, right? I don't grope him in public, of course. Even just tapping the tips of our toes under the table would satisfy me.
. Whenever I need a hug, I would just hug Taufik. I'd be guaranteed a hug back. :)

Communicate honestly and sincerely
. During the early years of our marriage, I used to be scared of telling Taufik how I really felt, because I was not confident of his love for me. But ever since moving to Saudi and having no one else to talk to but him, that fear slowly eroded away. I am now more honest and forthcoming about my feelings and opinions. I think Taufik appreciates it, because it takes a lot of the guesswork out of loving me :) and I am more satisfied in the relationship because he knows exactly what makes me happy. (Sounds easier said than done, but I keep working on it)
. I tell Taufik I love him, all. the. time. I use to care, but nowadays I don't, whether he says I love you back.

Take the time, and savour every moment
. Maybe it's because we were apart most of the time during our courtship and before Ilham was born, I have learnt to treasure every moment we spend together. If things needs to be ironed out, I try not to drag it for too long and resolve it as soon as possible, so that time is not wasted on arguing over something. With his job, I don't know when he'll be away next, and I don't want to regret not saying what needed to be said when he is away.
. When we were both working (me in PJ and him in KL), I would apply for half-day leave about once a month or so and ask my sister to pick up my kids (or pick up my kids and leave them with my mom or sister), then take the train to KL and have a date with Taufik.
. I don't have the luxury of leaving my kids with anyone in Saudi, so we haven't been on a date for a long time. We can still do activities together in the privacy of our own house, though. It can be simple things, like watching TV or reading together, but I take that opportunity to cuddle up or bermanja ;) (gedik dengan husband sendiri, dapat pahala tau!).
. I also love weekend mornings, when Taufik need not rush off to work and I need not rush the kids to school, and we both could spend a few minutes in bed talking about anything we want.
. I love taking it slow, savouring every moment, every single sound, every single sensation, every single scent ... just breathing and swallowing everything in.

Don't compare, be aware
. Just as no two people are the same, neither are two marriages the same. Things that work for other couples might not work for Taufik and me. I don't expect Taufik to treat me the same way my friends' husbands treat them, because I am not like my friends, and Taufik is not my like friends' husbands. I just have to accept that Taufik loves me in his own unique way, just like I expect him to accept that I love him in my own unique way.
. We've had our share of arguments, outbursts and sulkings (and we probably will always have them), but what I noticed is that, if I remind myself of what the goals of our marriage is, I don't waste my energy on arguing about stuff that does not lead us to that goal, and focus on resolving stuff that would.
. Whenever Taufik does something to hurt my feelings, I try hard to remember that he loves me, and that he doesn't do it out of malice, he's probably just not aware that he's hurting my feelings. I think it has saved me from a lot of resentment.

Hm .. this has been very interesting, writing all of this down.
I hope that it has been as much fun for you reading it, as it was for me writing it :) Hope you didn't puke too much.

p/s Happy Anniversary, Sayang :)

Izani's Itsy Bitsy Spider

At last...
Somehow this video couldnt be uploaded into Yootoob. I kept getting "Uploading failed". I almost gave up totally. Then today I visited salt&vinegar, and discovered vimeo.
Thanx PB!


Enjoy :)

izani spider song from elisa taufik on Vimeo.

Shawls for School

As some of you may or may not know, our friend Nonah is trying to finance her way to school.
She needs to raise at least the registration and first semester fees by November.
You can go read "help me raise my fees" to find out how much she needs and how she's planning to save up for it.

To help her along, I am launching SHAWLS FOR SCHOOL on my Barang-barang Bonda online store.

For each shawl you buy, Nonah's College Fund will get 75% of the profits.

These shawls are divine! They are 100% wool, and are lovingly hand embroidered by kashmiri hands.
They are perfect for the coming fall/winter months, or even worn off the shoulder with your sleeveless spring/summer dress. Exquisite and elegant enough even for a dinner party. It would look stunning against a black dress!
Buy it for yourself, or as a gift.

If you see something else you like on the Barang-barang Bonda store, you could also buy them, because 50% of the store's profits go to Nonah's College Fund as well :)

The store's profit is not much, but I hope it'll be enough to help her along.

Thankyou in advance for your support!

Izani is 3!

Izani turned three today.
I had taken a video to show you how much he has progressed in terms of his speech, but it's taking forever to upload into Yootoob, so I'm just gonna write about his progress.

This boy talks alot.
Sometimes you can understand him, sometimes you can't. I am pretty amazed at his understanding of the applications of certain words and phrases though.
Like he knows how to use 'because'. He knows when to use "You're so mean!" and that it's the opposite of "You're so nice".
The other day he was arguing with his dad and he said "You're so mean!" and Taufik said he won't take him to the pool and he retracted and said "You're so nice, ayah. I want to be your friend".
tee hee.

He has quite a good memory too.
During our vacation in Oman, we played the shopping list game where everybody take turns to recite the shopping list before adding their very own item at the end of the list (thus making the list longer and longer as the game progresses). Izani joined in and he not only understood the rules of the game, but he could remember most of the items on the list, (even the unusual ones, like MountainDew) albeit some not in order.

He is somewhat toilet trained.
He only wears diapers for bed and during long journeys (just in case). So far he has been very good at holding it and telling us when he needs to go. Yesterday he even went himself. He climbed up the toilet, sat, did his thing, grabbed the sprayhose thingy, washed himself, climbed down, dried, flushed and ran out quickly from the bathroom. I only heard the flush and saw him running out when I realized that he had done it all on his own.
The other day he had an accident, though. We were at a friend's house in Muscat. I had brought him to the toilet the moment we arrived, but about an hour later the bigger boys came complaining that Izani peed in his pants. Apparently he was playing with a bag of ice. I never knew that affected your bladder somehow. But oh my god the embarassment!!! I wanted to die. I had to wash off Izani and apologized profusely to the lady of the house. :P
He still has the habit of taking off his clothes whenever he wants, though, and now that he's not wearing diapers, it's worse , coz he'd be dangly all over the house. I had bought him tiny underwear (which he correctly calls 'underpants') but he seldom wears them.

I can't wait to send him to school in September. I think he'll love it.


Happy 3rd Birthday Izani!!

Introducing Barang-barang Bonda!

My latest project - an online 'store' where I can sell my latest discoveries in the ladies' markets in Saudi and also anything else I might be able to make in my own house.
Please do visit Barang-barang Bonda.

Note to non-bahasa malaysia readers:
Barang-barang means "things"
Bonda means "mother" , which, as you may know, is what my kids call me.

Wish me luck :)
Comments and suggestions are most most welcomed!

January 20th 2009

I just want to remember this day.

When Barack Hussein Obama was giving his inaugaral speech as the 44th President of the United States of America, I had just finished having dinner of Briyani Rice and Honey Chicken with my family, and was sewing Yan's deep purple tudung munah, which from now on I will refer to as "Tudung Obama".

It's a new day indeed.

Instead of Complaining, Do Something!

The hottest current issue right now seems to be the Palestinian-Israeli issue, even though it is not really a new issue, in fact it's an issue that is older than most of us. It only becomes a renewed and hot issue (to the masses) when there is military action going on.
I know it makes some of you feel helpless and angry, and some of you are wondering "Why are there no one doing something?". Well, here I am to tell you to stop wondering and stop feeling helpless, because you CAN do something.

1. You can contact your local red cross/crescent society or Mercy malaysia or malaysians for peace and see if they are organising an aid mission, and find out how you can help out. Sometimes all they need are people who can help man the phones, or make phone calls, or type up reports, or fill up forms, or pack boxes. Help out with anything you can. No job is too small or too menial.

2. If you can afford it, donate some money so that they can fund their mission. No amount is too small.

3. For the same amount of time it takes to finish a Sudoku Challenge game, you can type up a short email directing your friends to the above websites and encourage them to help out in any way they can. For once, use spam for the good of mankind.

4. You can donate your saliva and tell your friends about the above things while you're chatting at the water cooler, coffee corner, kopitiam, waiting for your nasi ayam/goreng pisang at the roadstall.

5. Now, this last point might be a little a difficult for some of you, especially now that money is a little tight. But if you're willing to sacrifice a portion of your salary on this, instead of buying that new blackberry/iPhone or that LV handbag or that set of blueray discs or forgo that trip to that exotic location or new sports rims for your car, I assure it will be extremely rewarding, not just in this life, but even in the afterlife, InsyaAllah.
For as little as RM1640 (or (RM2210 if you want to include some duit raya), you can sponsor a palestinian orphan who is a refugee in Lebanon.
Your money (less than RM200 per month), will allow the child to go to school and get an education so that he/she can better the lives of his/her family. Your money (which you will receive a receipt for and can be deducted from your tax) will help ease the burden of the mother who has lost her husband and now has to support her children with her measly salary as a house cleaner.
You can even make your niat as zakat if you want, thus fulfilling your obligation as a muslim.
Your letters (because you will treat the child like your own child and write him/her letters) will give him/her hope that his/her lives did not end when his/her home was forcefully taken away. It will show them that someone out there, still remembers them, and still cares for them. In return, the child will write to you, and to have a child call you 'mother' or 'father' even though he/she has never met you, is an indescribable feeling.
Your efforts will not be just for palestinians now, but will be for palestinians of the future.
To do this, you can contact the Malaysian Sociological Research Institute, at msri.sponsorship@gmail.com or call (6)03- 4257 8649 .
You can even tell them you heard it from me, if you want. I dont mind at all.
If you think you can't afford to sponsor a child, do number 3. Forward this email to someone who you think can. Or do number 4, tell people that this program exists.

May Allah reward you justly for your efforts.

always be my baby

When your husband tells you "You will always be my baby", it doesn't matter that he's not crooning or strumming a guitar, you still melt.

cair babe...

today ...

She would have been 37.

Does the grief ever end?

Kita beri laluan untuk iklan..

(Click for bigger picture)

Maybe some of you would be interested.
You can also contact my good friend Haslina at haslina@yapeim.net.my for the forms to fill out and details on how payments can be made.

Jazakallah-hu-khairan.

Relationship Realization

After my husband gently crawled over izani to snuggle up to me on my side of the bed, I realized something:
Just as he is my only source of comfort and pleasure, so am I his.

The Tunguska Treatment

My husband has this really bad habit of reacting to my anger instead of addressing it.
Instead of getting understanding and comfort, I would often get scolded for being angry. This of course, makes me all the more angry. Sometimes initially I would be angry at something or someone else, but when he scolds me for getting angry, I would start feeling angry at *him*.
I have told him so many times how this habit of his makes me feel. I feel like he is saying I have no right to be angry. I feel like he is dismissing my feelings. I feel like he is dismissing *me*. I feel unsupported and uncomforted when he's the only person I could turn to for emotional support and comfort. It makes me feel unloved.

When this happened again for the umpteenth time, I decided to give him the cold shoulder. (Coz expressing my anger would only mean I'd get scolded again, so what other choice do I have?).

Every morning we have this ritual we do before he goes to work. I 'salam' (something like shaking his hand) him, kiss his hand, kiss him and give him a hug and we say our "I love you"s.
This morning, the effort came mostly from him. I still salam-ed and kissed his hand (coz I want his forgiveness even if he's not asking for mine), but the kiss was not as passionate (just a peck) and he was doing most of the hugging. I didn't bother replying to his declaration of love, even almost replied "yeah... right". I just turned around and got back to cutting up vegetables for making stock.

As I was chopping the butts off the spring onions, I thought of what he was wearing to work. Coveralls, boots and he had carried his cardboard box of hard hat, nozzles, gauges and what not.
It occurred to me that he's going to the rig. That would take at least an hour or two of driving. I felt kinda guilty. I can't let him drive that long and that far with a heavy heart as a result of my behavior this morning. I don't even know where he's going off to!
I checked that he had not driven past my kitchen window, so I ran to the front door hoping to catch him. Sure enough, I opened the door to find him reversing the car.
I held up my hand, but he thought I was saying goodbye, so he waved back and turned the car to move forward. I held up my hand again, and he finally rolled down the window.

"Where are you going?" I shouted from my front door to him out on the street.
"Manifa", he replied, and put up three fingers, meaning 3 hours drive away.
"Drive carefully!" I said to him.
And he smiled a smile that even I could see from that distance.

I bet he's thinking "Sayang jugak dia kat aku" (She loves me after all).
Ces.
Ya lah.. memang lah sayang. (yes, of course I love him)

I'm still angry though.
*pout*

hectic hari raya

'Hectic' would be an understatement.

Juadah pagi raya, ketupat, ayam masak merah, kuah kacang, serunding daging, serunding ikan. Nostalgia betul

I made a list of my raya itinerary:-

First raya (Dhahran):
Abg Zaki & Kak Siti (laksa kelantan, nasi briyani)
Abg Azizi & Kak Ita (spaghetti, mee kari, home made banana chips)
Abg Riz & Kak Aida (nasi dagang, satay and ketupat)
Abg Ma'il & Kak Khamsiah (miscellaneous kuih raya and I got to bring home some ketupat bawang that Abg Ma'il woved with his own bare hands)
Abg Mat Shah & Kak Ana (nasi briyani johore, ubi rebus with sambal tumis ikan bilis, pizza)
Abg Affendy & Kak Zaleha (ketupat pulut just like cikgu munah makes, rendang ayam, mee udang power giler)


The only kuih raya I made - rice krispy treats (chocolate and peanut butter) and easy peasy kuih gunting from leftover samosa leaves

Second Raya (Ras Tanura):
Abg Harun & Kak Su (nasi minyak, lontong)
Abg Razali & kak Sue (er.. makan apa ya? i remember very nice kuih raya..)
Abg Zul & Kak Izah (ketupat, rendang, kuah kacang)
Azmi & Gee (mee rebus)
Samsudin & Jo (entah apa I makan pun dah tak ingat .. oh yes, Laksa Johor!)

Third Raya (home & Dhahran):
6 cars from riyadh came to my house for lunch (white rice, fish head curry, fried chicken and assortment of other lauk brought from riyadh)
Abg Bakar & Kak Faridah (nasi goreng kampung, laksa sudan)
Raja Azlan & Kak Zie (I ate tooo much!)
Abg Khairy & Kak Nas (I was so full, I only ate tit bits and kuih raya)

Fourth Raya (today):
Ashok & Kak Aida (yummeh mee bandung and I brought white rice, fish head curry, sambal tumis udang and omelletes as 'support dishes')
I have a dinner invitation from Haji Nawawi and kak Azizah, but I dont think I'll be able to make it.. :P


my tit-bit station - store bought banana chips and mixed nuts


It is no wonder that my tummy hurts.
Looking at the decreasing trend in invitations, I am expecting to do nothing tomorrow. :)

Trying to thread

I have never learnt how to sew. Whatever sewing skills I have, I had picked up from my mom, who taught Home Science and used to sew our Eid clothes. She showed me how to do that criss cross stitch that keeps that flap that form the kurung's collar in place. See, I don't even know the proper terms.

Being an engineer by training though, I love to build things, and I decided to apply that passion into sewing. I took one of Anis's old baju kurung pesak and did some reverse engineering. I drew a diagram to visualize what the seperate pieces of the dress would look like and how it would be constructed. I measured Anis, calculated and wrote down the figures on my diagram and figured out how much material I needed. I brought material, then re-drew the diagram to find out where I should cut the material to minimize wastage.
I put my education to good use after all. It may not be an aeroplane, but it's close enough for me.

So now I'm sewing. By hand.
There were moments while I'm sewing that I look at the clock and think gosh I haven't cooked yet or looked at the basket full of laundry to be washed/folded/ironed or looked at my ignored kids or thought of the cookies I haven't baked for eid or when I get poked for the umpteenth time by the needle, that I think I'm crazy to be doing this.
Sewing by hand!! Just go buy a sewing machine for gawds sakes! but I think about how I've got to get ready and go out and go look for a sewing machine and then read the manual to learn how to use it and how during all that time I could be doing actual sewing, I would tell myself, Fergeddit. I'll just keep on sewing by hand.
I am malas (lazy) but rajin (not lazy) that way.

Body and collar done, sleeves and kekek done. Now need to put them together, then on to constructing the skirt.

Wish me luck and somebody please tell taufik to buy me a sewing machine for my next birthday.
tee hee

"I'm Sorry"

When I visited my friend one day, she kept going on and on about her husband's recent overseas trip. He was presenting a paper in a city which she considered to be very romantic and his co-presenter, a lady, went together with him. She couldn't go because she was working. She said she wasn't worried about his fidelity because the lady is married, and my friend knows the lady quite well. She said she wasn't jealous of the lady spending time with her husband, but she kept saying that she imagined him taking pictures of her and her of him, at places where she wished she could visit herself. And she kept asking me "If you were in my shoes, how would you feel?"
Her husband, who is by nature a man of very little words, just kept a straight face throughout the conversation, only letting out a little smile once in a while when Taufik or I would jokingly tease my friend about her 'jealousy'.
She incessantly brought the subject up, as if unsatisfied and searching for something, a right response perhaps.
If her husband had asked me what a right response would have been, I would have told him to say "I'm Sorry".

I know many men would be shaking their heads right about now.
When I was invited to talk about John Grey's "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" on the now defunct cyberjaya.tv morning show when the book celebrated its 10th anniversary, I had told the hosts (mokciknab, Che' Mi and Che' Kem), that the best thing that a man can say to his female partner to foster good relationship is "I'm Sorry". Che' Kem and Che' Mi almost jumped out of their seats and vehemently dissagreed. "But what if you didn't do anything wrong?" Che' Kem argued.

See. There in lies the difference between men and women.

Men sees "I'm Sorry" as apologizing and admitting fault.
Women, on the other hand, sees "I'm Sorry" as apologizing and assuring feelings.

It doesn't really matter who is at fault, when a woman feels hurt, they need someone to validate that feelings, so that they themselves feel validated. They want to hear "Yes, you have the right to feel that way, and I care for you enough to make you feel better". An "I'm Sorry" (especially if it's from the man that made her feel bad in the first place), does exactly that. (It's either that, or an "I know exactly how you feel!!" from another woman, but wouldn't it be better if it came from the man in question?)

Now, if you have a husband that has not read the book (or this post)(or is just plain blurr), how in the world do you get him to say "I'm Sorry"?
It took me quite a few years to learn to do this : Just ask for it.
Before I learned how to ask, all I did was seethe and pout and feel miserable. Then I picked up the courage to just say, "look, all I wanted to say is my feelings are hurt (or I dont feel loved) by (whatever), and what would make me feel loved now is an I'm Sorry from you".
You'd be suprised as to how quick you'd get that "I'm Sorry".

Try it, and tell me if your relationship doesn't get better :)

Wishing Space

Here's a space, just in case you want to wish me anything today ;)
I'm just humbled to still be alive and still be a practicing muslim.

Famous Ahy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Eversince rotikacangmerah promoted her brother's cookies on her bloglast year, I had been drooling over these cookies. Reading her describe it, (and she does have a way with describing good food), you get the impression that it's the best chocolate chip cookie in the world.

So, when I was back home for the holiday,I decided to order some to bring back to Saudi. 'Some' is an understatement. Ahy said one 'batch' yield about 8 packs, with each pack containing 50 cookies. That's 400 cookies, ladies and gentlemen, and I ordered them ALLLLLLLL.

The very moment Ahy passed me the cookies in IK3A, we (Dory, to be exact) had opened one tupperware right there and then, next to the pine shelves. The aroma that wafted out once the lid was pried open (we were that gelojoh) was a telling preview of the chocolatey goodness we were about to taste.
The moment I bit into one, I had to agree with rotikacangmerah, it was one of the best chocolate chip cookies in the world.
The cookie had crunch, it had the slightly chewy oat bits, and it had the gooey chocolate chip bits. It wasn't too sweet, yet sweet enough, just the way I like it.
My only complain is that they were small, and it made it too easy to eat!!
Ahy had put the cookies in 2 huge tupperwares, and 2 days after I opened the one tupperware, that huge tub was empty!

That was why it took me awhile to put this post up. I had hesitated for a loooong time from breaking the seal of the last remaining tub of cookies. I knew, once I opened it, I (or the kids) would be tempted to eat it. I finally opened it coz it is impossible to tell you about how yummy they are without showing you how yummy they look.
Even Izani couldn't help drooling over the cookies while I was taking pictures. I was so scared that he would jump all over the cookies, but fortunately he did not. He did ask "I want, cooties, please?" over and over again, though.
For his patience, Izani was finally rewarded with some ;)



Ahy is accepting orders for Eid, so if you're interested to try some of these delicious cookies, do give him a call at 012 314 2353 , or email him at farhi_rosley@yahoo.com.
If you cant reach him there, also try emailing f4527_r@yahoo.co.uk