The vacation part 2

Slept really really late last night.........woke up really really late as well hehehehe.........it's been a long time since I had a really really good rest. It's so great not having to do any work for a change. ;) Felt so free as well.....free to do whatever I want......ahhhhh.....freedom..... :) No one to tell me what to do for a change. Bliss!

I had a great time today out in town.....found really cool new stuff at the craft store. Can't wait to use them for my new designs :)

Tomorrow I have an appointment with Dr Suriati at the hospital.....huhuhu.....scaryyyyyy........hope all will be ok tomorrow. She's a really sweet doc.....actually I can't wait to meet her coz she's so nice....but at the same time, kinda scared coz I don't know what's going to happen with the procedure. A bit nervous! Wish me luck!

The vacation part 1

Arrived in KL this afternoon...... :). Got on the 9.00am bus this morning but the bus was late as usual.....so  only around 9.30am did the bus start the journey. Had a really sleepy bus driver this time around. He almost hit the vehicles on the road a few times. I felt like my heart was going to pop whenever that happened. He must have been so tired. Poor guy. But it's dangerous you know. There could have been an accident. I kept reciting  a few doas all the way. Just to keep myself calm and to pray that we will all reach KL safely.

I've got a lot of things to do here while on vacation. Places to visit.....that will help me get inspired and art supplies that I've been wanting to get. There are some things that I can only get here in KL. This trip is actually one of those trips when I will try to get all sorts of things done at one time. Make it worth the trip so to speak hehehe.

Pretty tired now.....am not that well actually. But I had to come to KL anyways even though I don't feel so good. I hope I feel a whole lot better in a few days time before the quilling get together. I've got plans set for tomorrow already. It's one of those places I have not visited for a long long time now. It used to be my  favourite place to go whenever I feel uninspired or down......it will always cheer me up. I wonder if there is any new changes there lately. Can't wait to see! :)

I can't believe I bumped into someone this afternoon at The Curve.....someone I knew from the past.....I'm not sure if he recognized me.....but he did looked at me. I did too....but.....was kinda shy to say Hi. It was so awkward. Funny thing is.....we were actually neighbours! Yup! He was my neighbour in Alor Setar  long long time ago hahahaha.....I'm sure now he is working in KL and is a permanent resident here too. Funny that I should bump into him after all these years.....can't help wonder why it happened......hmmmmm.....wonder what God is trying to tell me this time hehe.... 

By the way......the service at L'OCCITANE, The Curve.....sucks! Big time! I don't think I'll go there anytime soon. :(

Luckily my sister's place has internet connection. I can have access to the net easily here even though the speed is killing me heheheh! As long as I can check my mails...blog....and etc etc.....that's good enough. :) Well....I better stop now and get some rest. Got a big day tomorrow :).

Day of leisure

I was out all day.........first stop was to the post office where I posted my last card order before I go for my vacation. So excited about this vacation hehehe. Lots of agendas, lots of places to visit and people to meet.

Second stop was the shopping mall... :) And all the time I was there at the shopping mall, they played a lot  of old songs that reminded me of someone..... Looks like every day  there will always be something that reminds me of him. His name.....our favourite songs....our favourite things.....all of which will remind me of him....When you like someone so much......they will stay in your heart forever right.......no matter what happens....even if that someone does not like you at all. And that's a fact no one can deny.

Lots to do tonight......bags to pack.....emails to reply......nite nite everyone.....I'm off to settle whatever that needs to be settled before I go for my vacation........ ;)

Happy Birthday to ME!!! :)

Alhamdulillah.....syukur......I woke up this morning with a big smile on my face. Alhamdulillah I'm still alive today. One year older and a lot lot wiser I hope! hehehe! :) Can't believe that I'm already 35 today. A big number no? hahahaha......well....it's just a number....I'm still 17 at heart! hahahaha.....errmmmm a mix I think sometimes....there are times I act like a 17 year old ...and sometimes like 71 years old (so matured and full of wisdom) hahaha..... :D. Hey...balance what??? hahahaha....I can't be acting like a 17 year old all the time....hehehe

My birthday this year is definitely much much better than last's year's. Especially since I'll be going for week long vacation soon! Pretty soon! hehehe! So I'll be continuing the celebration from today till next week....hehehe.....a real long birthday celebration I must say. :)

I didn't get me a birthday cake last year or the year before or the year before that....hahahaha.....but don't know why this year my Mom wanted to get me one. I thought she was getting me a chocolate cake....but instead she bought me an egg-less black forest cake! Yup! No eggs....less sugar and less fat too! Great! Because I can't take eggs at all these days.....if I do I would get a really bad allergy. It's good that it's less sugar and fat....because I'm trying to lose some weight here....hahahaha....so I really appreciate these type of cake. :) It tasted really good considering all the less this and that. I love it coz it's not super sweet. 

I didn't make a birthday card for myself like said I would last year hehehehe.....I got one from my sister during raya......yup, she gave it to me SO EARLY......hahahaha....so advance la you ni Kakak! :D But thank you so much for it....I love it :). So hey.....at least, I got a birthday card this year! Yay! I also got me some gifts.....in other words.....I'm pretty much happy!! Nothing grand....but very happy!!! :)

I'm grateful for all the things that happened......I've gotten more than what I could have wished for actually. I especially am grateful for having good friends. No matter where you are.....I love you all!!! :) Truly....may God bless everyone!

Come Saturday Morning - The Sandpipers

An evergreen song from The Sandpipers :). I love singing this song.....reminds of my childhood days. It has a very calming effect on me every time I listen to it. :)

Have a great weekend everyone! :)

Mosaic plant

Aren't they just so pretty and cute!!?? I adore them so much! I never knew that the mosaic plant actually have flowers! LOL! I don't think my Mom knew it either until we saw them blooming this morning. What a lovely sight to see. The plant has diamond shape leaves and they grow pretty well under the hot sun. When my Mom bought it a while back, it was only just a few of them.....and look at them now! They sure fill up the pot pretty fast. Soon we would have to move some of them into another pot so that it won't get too crowded.

I took a lot of photos of this plant hehehe.....can't help it. :D They look so nice....right now I sure wish I had a digital DSLR camera.....as I know I can take better shots of the plant using that camera compared to my Sony Cybershot. Not sure if the flowers are seasonal though, I need to look it up in the net....but I sure hope it blooms all year round. :)

Insha Allah - Maher Zain

A good friend of mine introduced me to this young artist called Maher Zain recently and I immediately fell in love with his voice and his songs. The messages in his songs are so beautiful and something that I can relate to. He reminds me of Sami Yusuf but Maher has his own style that is quite distinctive. I have a few of his songs that I love listening to and one of the first one I heard was this particular song, "Insha Allah".  Hope everyone else enjoys listening to it as much as I do! :)

Lyrics: Insha ALLAH

Every time you feel like you cannot go on

You feel so lost and that you're so alone

All you see is night and darkness all around

You feel so helpless you can’t see which way to go

Don’t despair and never loose hope

Coz' Allah is always by your side

Insha Allah x3

You’ll find your way

Insha Allah x3

You’ll find your way

Every time you commit one more mistake

You feel you can’t repent

And that it's why too late 

You’re so confused,

Wrong decisions you have made

Haunt your mind and your heart is full of shame

Don’t despair and never loose hope

Coz Allah is always by your side

Insha Allah x3

You’ll find your way

Insha Allah x3

You’ll find your way

Turn to Allah 

He’s never far away

Put your trust in Him, raise your hands and pray

Oooh Ya Allah Guide my steps don’t let me go astray

You’re the only one who could show me the way,

Show me the way x 3

Insha Allah x3

We’ll find our way

Insha Allah x3

We’ll find our way..............

Puasa hari kedua....

Second day of fasting today.....4 more days to go before my puasa 6 is done. I skipped one day yesterday because I wasn't feeling too well. Currently I don't have any cravings.....weird coz I usually do. I was craving for Wahab's Cendol the other day....am thinking of getting some when I go for my other getaway. :)

I'm currently working in slow motion. Due to the fasting I suppose. I'm just not in the mood to do anything much. Doing just online work today. Bloghopping and promoting as usual. Perhaps tonight I'll try to quill a bit. I'm pretty much enjoying my holiday right now....a pretty long holiday hehehe.

I had a really nice mug of coconut water for berbuka.....Pak Ya came over today to cut the grass and he also helped plucked some kelapa pandan from our coconut tree. Yummylicious! It's been a while since I last had any. So refreshing! I also had "cucur udang-less" hehehe.....it's cucur udang...without the udang! LOL! Since I can't take any prawns, so, that's the reason la.....no prawns for the rest of my life. Bummer. I think I've even forgotten how crab taste like. It's been a long long time since I had any. Suddenly I miss those crab balls I used to eat when I was small. I remember those crab balls from one particular place here in Alor Setar where my Dad used to buy for us. They mixed crab meat with shredded carrots.....yummy!!!Hmmmm.....those were the days.....when food tasted so damn good! And so damn cheap too! :) Oh God how I miss it so much!!

Money plant

A couple of days ago, my Mom's friend came over to our house and told me that the money plant my Mom planted at our house is poisonous and can cause cancer! It seems that the plant releases some kinda chemical or whatever it is that is cancerous to us humans and animals.Yikes! I couldn't believe it! I didn't understand how that is possible. She told us that we should just throw the plants away. It seems that most of her Chinese neighbours had already thrown away their money plant. The money plant as you all know is quite a popular plant among the Chinese community as they believe the plant can attract prosperity and wealth into any space....be it at your home or office...anywhere.

My Mom was reluctant to do so because her money plant tree are quite big and growing so nicely....it would be a pity to throw them away just like that. I for one just couldn't believe the story until I find out the facts. I knew I had to do some research about it. So I decided that I should check out if this story is really true. I straight away googled about the money plant. To my surprise, I found out that the money plant is actually really poisonous! BUT! ONLY IF INGESTED! And the whole thing about the plant releasing  chemicals that are cancerous to us if planted indoors or out in our garden is just a ridiculous rumor! I wonder who started all this rumor anyways....and why? 

Thank God we didn't just believe the story and threw away the plants.....phew! Lesson learned.....don't just believe what people tell you.....find out for yourself if the story is really true. Get the facts straight. :)

If you want to know more about this money plant....do visit the link below :).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zamioculcas

All sorted out :)

I had a really good time this morning.....having breakfast at Restaurant Salam with my family and Aunty Noriah. Aunty Noriah belanja makan! Woooohooooo! Thank you so much Aunty! Free food! hahaha.... :D

I used to hate going to Restaurant Salam because the tosei and roti canai served there tasted lousy. The service used to be lousy as well. But surprisingly today it tasted really good! Usually my Mom and I would have our tosei at another place in town....but I don't like going there anymore. Service pretty lousy. Food is good though....but when the service is lousy.....sorry la ya.....we are forced to find a better place to eat in coz I don't want to stress myself unnecessarily over a lousy service hehehe......but I will definitely go and eat at Restaurant Salam again.....roti canai dia sedap sangat-sangat! So soft and fluffy... :) Makes me hungry every time I think about it...LOL! :D Thanks to Aunty Noriah, now we know a good place where we can eat tosei and roti canai hehehe.....it's good that they have improved! :)

I spent a lot of my time today quilling flowers and etc for my giveaway cards and also for my new project. Thank God yesterday I learned something new from my fellow blogger, Asma', about separating the paper strips by it's color. Each color  paper strips placed in separate plastic casing. Gosh! That sure did made a lot of difference! I used to shred them up in all sorts of colors and toss them all in one big box. All jumbled up together.....looking so much like ROJAK! So I had to spend some time today working on organizing the mess I made with the shredded paper so that it looks more neat and in order. Thank God I did that.......coz now, it's super easy to work with all the colors separated like that. Quilling is a breeze now that everything is organized! hehe!

I am planning to fast tomorrow...."puasa 6". Was thinking of doing so a few days earlier but with all the guests keep coming to the house for raya.....I couldn't do it yet. So I hope to be able to do it starting tomorrow. As I am still in the fasting mode, I guess it's good to do the "puasa enam" now and not wait till the end of Syawal. Sometimes I forget that it's no longer Ramadhan....and I tend to not eat anything during the day because my brain is telling me that I'm still in the fasting month..hehehe......the weird thing is, I don't feel as hungry as I should be...I guess the body is still adjusting after one month of fasting. Well, we shall see how it goes :).

Selamat Hari Malaysia!!!

Selamat hari Malaysia buat semua rakyat Malaysia!! Hari ni kita cuti!! Yay! hahaha.....Saya memang cuti pun hari ni.....cuti raya sampai akhir bulan September! hahaha.....tapi walaupun cuti, saya masih lagi berkreatif dalam studio. Banyak kerja yang tertunggak yang harus disiapkan.

Hari Malaysia ni sebenarnya untuk memperingatkan kita kepada penggabungan Sabah dan Sarawak ke Semenanjung Malaysia. Dalam erti kata yang lain, ianya memperingatkan kita kepada pembentukan Malaysia la. :). 16 September 1963 merupakan tarikh bersejarah di mana kesemua negeri dalam Tanah Melayu bersatu membentuk Malaysia....negara tercinta.

Cuaca hari ni sangat baik sekali.......hujan sejak semalam menyebabkan udara segar....sejuk dan nyaman saja. Baru sekarang saya nampak cahaya matahari bersinar terang. Sangat sesuai untuk keluar bersiar-siar tapi apa kan daya saya ada tugasan yang belum selesai. Maka saya harus siapkannya juga sebelum boleh melakukan apa-apa aktiviti untuk menghiburkan hati hehehe...

Semoga kita semua rakyat Malaysia memperingati hari yang bersejarah ini dan menghargai hari yang penuh bermakna ini dengan bersyukur kepada Ilahi. Negara kita aman dan makmur sehingga ke hari ini dan bebas  merdeka!  Rakyat bersatu ....negara maju :).

Castles in the air - Don Mclean

What can I say Don Mclean was one amazingly talented artist! I love his voice a lot and his songs are so heartfelt and evergreen. I've been a fan of his since I was small and till now I still am a big fan. One of his other songs, "Vincent" is an all time favourite of mine....but today I just feel like listening to "Castles in the air"...have a listen :). Listen to the lyrics......I love it!

Selamanya - Innuendo

I fell in love with this song the first time I heard it........years ago. I was a big fan of this local band called Innuendo. They were famous back then for their remake of the Carefree's  ballad "Belaian Jiwa". Too bad the band didn't last long in the music industry. Anyways....enjoy the song! :) 

 

Organized!

My studio is finally organized again after so long of being so messed up! I forced myself to clean it up and rearrange and get all the things inside it organized so that its easier again for me to work and move about in it. These few days of holidays gives me the time I need to pull it off. It was high time I did this anyways. I knew that if I don't do something quickly about it, soon it will get worse and worse. I think I have to make it a point to do this at least once a week.

My relatives from KL arrived today.....had a good time with them this afternoon. :) First time for me to meet up with my nephew and niece after so long of not seeing them in person since they were little babies. Gosh how they have grown up to be such cutie pies. :) I watch them grow up through the photos that their mother had uploaded in Facebook.....I am grateful for that....I guess Facebook has helped me and a lot of  other people in that sense. The distance no longer prevents us from knowing the latest updates from our relatives and friends :).

I've been working on the cards for the giveaway. Still a lot more to do. Time....need more time.

Tomorrow is going to be another busy day with family......filled with a lot of activities......hope all will be good :). Insyaallah.....

Macaroni and beef pie

On the second day of Raya....this was what we had for dinner tonight.....macaroni and beef pie! My sister made two of them upon my request. I've been requesting her to make the pie for me for months now. Finally I got my wish today.

It's been a long time since I last had a homemade macaroni and beef pie. My Mom used to be so good at making this when we were small. I remember how my late father could eat one whole pie all by himself. She always had to make two pies. One for me, my sis and my Mom to eat and another one for my Dad. I don't think I could eat one whole pie all by myself! It's too much! Yup....he sure ate a lot back then. That's why he got so sick. :(

I only ate two slices.....and already my stomach is feeling so tight! I can barely move right now. I can only type....LOL! :D Since we've been fasting for a month.....our stomach can't take in so much of food like it used to before. So....I have to remember to be kind to my stomach....hehehe.

Sesal

Tahun depan....insyaallah kiranya aku masih wujud di dunia ni.....aku rasa aku nak buat perkara yang sama  seperti mana aku buat pada tahun lepas. Aku dah agak dah.....perkara bodoh tu akan berlaku sekali lagi tahun ni.....tapi entah kenapa aku turutkan juga cakap dia......pastu...aku menyesal tak sudah. Seperti mana yang pernah berlaku pada tahun-tahun yang lepas, aku telah jangkakan ianya akan berlaku sekali lagi  pada tahun ini......tapi disebabkan aku nak terapkan sikap positif  aku yang serba baru ini, aku cuba untuk tidak fikir yang bukan-bukan.....dan fikir yang positif saja la.....tiba-tiba....perkara bodoh itu berlaku sekali lagi....adusssss......sedih sangat! Kecewa....kecewa sangat-sangat.... :( Setelah aku merancang semuanya dengan baik......aku sediakan segala yang perlu sehari sebelumnya supaya segalanya akan berjalan dengan lancar keesokkan paginya. Tetapi, dia telah merosakkan rancangan aku yang suci murni itu. 

Yang paling aku geram......sebab perkara bodoh tu sebenarnya dapat dielakkan....tapi entah kenapa....kenapa, kenapa, kenapa??????? Dia buat perkara tu juga......tiap-tiap tahun......macam tu je la perangai dia.....tak faham la aku kenapa dia suka buat camtu di pagi raya. Pada tika dan saat yang paling penting di waktu pagi tu, waktu itulah dia gemar melakukan aktiviti-aktiviti yang patutnya dilakukan pada tika dan waktu yang lain. Tapi, entah kenapa dia suka buat aktiviti-aktiviti itu pada waktu tu juga. Seolah-olah kiranya dia tak buat semua tu pada waktu tu, hidupnya tak sempurna pada hari tu.

Nampaknya hajat aku tak kesampaian. Entah bila nak sampai pun tak tahulah. Rasanya tahun ni....tahun yang terakhir aku berharap......aku dah tak nak berharap lagi. Tahun depan, aku akan buat apa yang aku suka.....malas dah nak jaga hati dia.....hati aku ni sapa nak jaga??? Hancur berkecai akibat sikapnya yang terlalu pentingkan diri sendiri.

Menyesal sangat kerana ikut cakap dia.........ingat dia dah berubah tahun ni....rupa-rupanya.....dia masih seperti dulu......ya Allah....kau tabahkan lah hati hamba Mu ini....... :(

Last day of Ramadhan

Today is the last day of Ramadhan.....I can hardly believe that it's been 30 days already since we all started fasting. And tomorrow all Muslims in Malaysia will be celebrating Eidulfitri. 

I'm still not in the mood to celebrate.....I guess I'm still in the fasting mood hehehe.....or whatever mood there is hehehehe. Anyways....guess I have to wait and see how it goes tomorrow.....perhaps when the time comes the celebrating mood will come.

BUT!!! Even though I'm not so in the celebrating mood.....STILL....I'm SO looking forward to eating satay tomorrow. LOL! Somebody is preparing satay at their house tomorrow and we are invited to eat as much as we like! LOL! :D It's been a while since I had any so.....you can imagine how excited I am about it. hehehehe. Doesn't matter that I can only eat beef satay.....beef satay pun beef satayyyyy laaaaaahhhhh.....hahaha.....even though my favourite satay is chicken satay.....but it's ok.....it's still satay hahaha..

Feeling so lazy right now. Not in the mood to do any ironing. :P And there is much to iron before I go to bed. Better get going now before it's really late. Still got things to prepare before tomorrow. I hope I'm not too sleepy to iron......don't want to iron my hands in the process...hahaha.....

Nite nite everyone.....Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri...Maaf Zahir dan Batin :)

Preparations for Eid

It has been a very very busy day today. From morning till late in the evening. I've only managed to get online around 11pm. So tired and so sleepy....but I still have to check everything online tonight coz tomorrow is going to be another busy day for me....preparing the house for raya is a lot of work :). No internet during the day.....no working.....just spending time cleaning the house and making sure everything is ready for the Eidulfitri celebrations.

My Mom and I was busy preparing gifts for our neighbours today. My neighbours are all Chinese. And they love it when it comes to raya time, when we give them ketupat, rendang or serunding..... kueh and some other goodies from us. All of us here still practice giving our traditional food during our festivals to each other. It's the time of the year when we all get to taste each others traditional food.   

I can't believe that tomorrow is the last day of Ramadhan! Gosh! And on Friday, Muslims in Malaysia will be celebrating Eidulfitri! Wooohoo! Although I'm not really in a raya mood......still.....no matter what....raya is raya.....we must have fun on raya day. :) Will try my best! :D

28th Ramadhan....

Phew! What a day! Another busy day......from morning till evening....non stop action hehehe. But I'm glad that I managed to finish my orders before the Eid and today I get to do other things than just making cards. I was also featured in Utusan Malaysia today regarding my Eidulfitri cards. Really happy about that.....something for me to smile about during these hectic and chaotic week.

I guess I won't be online that much from today onwards. Need to clean up the house before the Eid. Lots to do at home. I can imagine now what are the things I need to do. :I Preparing the house for the Eid is of course at the top of the list.......preparations of gifts for our neighbors on Eid is also one of them, it's something we do every year except this year we will be giving away something a little different that the usual. Lots of gifts to pack!!

My sister is coming back tomorrow too. Yay! My sparring partner will be back! hahaha! LOL! :D

I guess this year,we won't be doing any open house at our home. But of course our home is open for visitors who drops by. It's just that there won't be anything special meal done this year at our house. There will just the usual basic dishes served unlike what we did last year. This year, my Mom is really not up to it since she has just recovered from her illness. She's not really 100% recovered from it so, she just wants to relax on Eid. I'm not too well myself. Sleep deprived for so long. All I want to do is sleep....sleep and sleep. I really need to rest my eyes....it hurts.  

Today is the 28th of Ramadhan......just 2 days left before the Eid. Wow! And before we know it...it's already Eidulfitri! See how fast time flies! Ramadhan just passed me by like the wind. Off it goes bidding us goodbye..... :( 

Card making marathon

Just a quick post for tonight. Feels like something missing if I don't post anything here for one day. :D My fingers are so itchy to type something here.....even if there isn't much to share I still want to write. For starters, for the past few days now, I'm in the card making marathon mode. Making Raya cards, birthday cards and love theme cards. I'm enjoying myself but at the same time I'm hard up for time. Time is moving really really fast and there is no time to waste. Deadline approaching really soon and I'm a little scared if I can't make it on time before the delivery date. Yikes!  Every minute I spent every day is spent for things related to work and it's been great! Loving it! Of course I do spent some time on other things especially now that Raya is approaching real soon......so I've also been doing things related to the Raya celebration. Got lots to prepare at home before Raya comes.

I find that the more I am into this field of work, the more comfortable I am with it. I feel like I have found what I really enjoy doing as a career. It was just a hobby at first to help generate  some income and now.....gosh......it's becoming more clear to me now what I can do for myself. 

My studio currently looks like it's been hit by a tornado! LOL! That's usually the case whenever I'm on a card making marathon hahahaha. Papers scattered everywhere. I even find that my table looks smaller and smaller coz there are lots of things piled up on it. So much so that there is just a small space for me to do my work at the table. I need a bigger studio! LOL! I wish!! Actually I don't need one....I just need to be more organize that's all hehehehe. Whatever the case.....no one is allowed to step in my studio......private area.....just for me and me alone hehehehehe. My territory :D. My world....my island :)

Come September - Natalie Imbruglia

I adore this song so much. I adore Natalie Imbruglia too :). Thought of this song on the 1st day of September. My favourite month of all. :)