Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Free ice-cream

My bos is feeling generous today, he just bought everyone a Cornetto ice-cream and has declared that the tomorrow is a half day :)

Woohoo!!!
Long live Sir JBW!!
(bos I ni pun berangan nak dapat gelaran Datuk dari Queen of England, he's British, in return he calls me Lady Nor.. haha)

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Still in the office..


Can't wait for the holidays.. Next week I plan to stay away from this place.. And I don't plan to check my emails





Gonna get ready for 2010!! New year for new things :)
- new house
- new car
- new baby (target D.O.B 10.10.10)

Wish us luck...

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Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Lunch with a stranger

Miraculously my Tuesday morning meeting ended before 11 today (usually it would drag until almost 1pm).. So I went to the bank at lunch time today.. Yes you guessed it, to transfer RM3000 from Naufal’s savings account to his SSPN account so that I can claim my tax deduction next year… and by the time I am done, I was so hungry. But because I was alone, I didn’t feel like eating at the food court, so I called up my dear Norman to ask him to join me for lunch but he’s caught up with year end work-work-work that he couldn’t quite join me just yet.

So I decided to grab a quick lunch at Modesto’s asy Pizza.. the little stall just at the entrance of Cold Storage in KLCC (don’t know why but I kept thinking of a good slice of pizza since last night… cravings????) At first I was eating alone but then after afew bites a lady sat next to me, I saw that she was carrying her X-mas shopping presents so we started talking about kids. She was probably one of the expat’s wife, and after a while I realized that she was most likely either American or have lived in America.

She confessed that she was initially thinking of getting fast food, either Burger King/McD/KFC but the line was so long that she decided to get something quick (just like me). Then she started talking about how the whole fast food industry is pure evil!!! About how nobody really know about what they’re eating anymore.. the suffering of the commercialized animals… about how people now get cancer, and the source of it may be from all the chemicals that are added into our food… and how more and more people are taking anti-depressants because they are unhappy about themselves, how tired they often feel, how the look… etc.

At one point she was starting to ramble on and on.. but she realized that and soon stopped. She told me how in America some states are banning food with trans-fat because they claim that it is just as deadly as smoking. Now that was news to my ears…

Monday, December 14, 2009

Still not too late!!

It’s coming to the end of 2009, some people are taking advantage of the school holidays and taking time off to go on a holiday while others are busy finishing off their task and targets for 2009.

There’s afew other things that you can do before 31 Dec that could potentially reduce your income tax payment next year. There’s still about 3 weeks to go, so let’s get going:
· Buy books (deduction up to RM1000)
· Go for a medical check up (deduction up to RM500)
· SSPN for your kids (deduction up to RM3000)
· Zakat (no limit)
· Buy a personal computer (deduction up to RM3000, once in every 3 years)
There’s other small deductions too that you can check on your BE form submission.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Mummy... I wanna read!!

Day after day, again and again, I am always amazed at the progress of my son's development. Ever since he went to the playschool I am beginning to see what a toddler is capable of. You would read and be told that a child's mind is like a sponge, the brain is developing and he is absorbing every small detail of the word around him. Regardless of what you think, it's never too early to teach a baby the alphabet, numbers, colors, animal etc..

We have been counting the steps with Naufal, so ever since he started crawling the steps he has been exposed to numbers. And so by one year old he could count 1-20 in English and Malay. Then I started singing the alphabet to him and showed him videos from Sesame Street that I found in youtube that increases his interest to sing along to the alphabet. By 18 months he was singing the whole alphabet and started recognizing simple characters (like X and O)..

In October this year, we started sending him to playschool cause his Tok and Tokki are going on their haj for 45 days. And after two weeks we noticed something remarkable. Once he was humming while he was playing with his cars and I couldn't quite catch what he was singing, but after listening closely to what he was repeating I realized that he was reciting verses from the holy Quran that I know I have not taught him. From then, I started testing him and sure enough he had memorized all the letters of the Arabic alphabet.

We've also noticed other small changes in him, for one he is more confident around his peers, and willingness to try new things.. his new interest: Books.

And I guess he's got the shopping gene from me too.. cause he also enjoys reading catalogs and leaflets that comes through the mail box.. especially those from Toys'R'Us..
Not quite his own library, but rather the books at Kinokuniya (KLCC).. Mummy felt like buying everything, but finally settled for 3 new books.
Naufal enjoying his Thomas and Friends 2010 Annual book, Sesame's Street Pop Up Book and another one with Elmo on the cover. The Disney book mummy bought a few weeks ago at SJMC during one of the follow-up sessions.. Naufal thinks Buzz Lightyear is Norman and mummy is Princess Jasmin :)
More books.. I think I will buy more as gifts for future birthday parties..
So many to choose from.. Felt like I could stay all day at these bookstores...

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Gen-2.Net Family Day

We went to the beach.. without a CAMERA!!! We have our camcorder with us but my husband was busy taking pictures of the cars.


Naufal saw the swimming pool and wants nothing to do with the activities that was organized by the club. So most of the time I was getting wet in the kiddy pool with him. It surprised me that he was brave to try out everything new. Often I had to chase him to stop him from entering the adult pool.


We got a T-shirt for the event and Norman bought one for Naufal but unfortunately is was an adult XS which Naufal would probably be able to wear when he's 7.. haha.. but when he saw that we were both wearing our shirts, he wanted to have his on too.. So we tried to fit the shirt on him without making it look like it was too big (which it is)... His hair is getting curlier now that it is long. Norman wouldn't cut it cause he says that it looks cuter like this..

2009 Annual Dinner

Oh NO!! I just realised that I have left my iPhone charger at the Hyatt Regency Hotel.. Just called them a moment ago to find out if they have cleaned my room and hope that they have found my charger!! Otherwise I will need to go straight to the Apple store when I get back and get a new charger.. huhu..


Anyway, that's what happens when there's just so many things happening that you are rushing from one place to another and when you finally have time to rest all you want to do is lay down and rest. The last week have been of no exception. After a busy week in the office with poor Naufal and daddy at home recovering for the pink eye (also known as conjunctivitis as my sister highlighted), the weekend begins with my Company's year end dinner. At first we had other plans of departing to Port Dickson that night for the Family Day that was scheduled for the weekend. We have even paid for the resort appartment which we are sharing with another couple. Plus I wasn't sure that I could bring in Naufal for the dinner because some other parents said they have asked the committee and the option was disappointedly rejected.


But in the past annual dinners, we have noticed one staff who always brings his daughter to join so my friends and I decided to bring our little toddlers along. So since there was no dinner plans at PD for the night, we decided to go to the dinner and just resume to PD either that same night or early the next morning. I had rushed to buy an outfit for the dinner the day before, so right after work I rushed home to pick up Naufal and Norman.

We arrived at the Westin Hotel just as everyone was getting food to eat. We didn't manage to register in time, so the door gifts were already distributed. The rumour was that the door gift was going to be an external hard-drive, so when the gift turns out to be an organizer with matching pen alot of people were a teeny-weeny disappointed. However, after a while everyone started to enjoy the latino music and the 10 Million Man-Hour celebration was on its way.

Ladies in blue.. me and Farzaana. She has such beautiful skin, I'm sure it's the envy of most ladies in the office.



Jaja, Iryan, Myra and Yazid



Naufal and his lollipop that Zuka's wife gave him.. he's enjoying the lobby more than the dinner hall. Dancing to the music while wearing one of the decorative hats at the entrance lobby.

More dancing... I couldn't get him in to the hall.

Me and Naufal enjoying a dance together, though I think he's checking out the other girls that night.. haha

At the dinner table..
Everyone was looking forward to the local band, Iryan was performing solo for one of the songs and in the audience Naufal was dancing with Alya.. they look so cute together.

Iryan singing "Hotel California"

Naufal and Alya swinging to the music..

Naufal... Too tired to move

It's getting hot in here!!

After a while, we begin to realize that the lucky draw prizes were not so appealing and Naufal was clearly too sleepy (it is way past his bedtime).. Awin and Faizal also decided to call it a night.. So with Naufal in our arms and Alya in their's, the six of us made our silent exit.

Anyway... Just got a call back from the hotel, they have found my charger.. yooohoo!! So now I have to drive back there to pick it up. Maybe I'll just have lunch at the hotel too since I'm there :) Blessing in disguise.. As you may have guessed I'm working outstation again at the Coating Yard in Kuantan, can't wait to get home tonight...

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Back at work...

Was gone all last week and Monday of this week, but when I returned back there wasn't really that much that I have missed.. haha

Need to plan on the end of year break.. I still have 15 days of unused leave. I think I'll apply for the last week of the year so that I can move and settle down in the new house. The balance leave days can be forwarded to next year. At this time of the year all the expats will take leave anyway and progress will be low as everyone is in holiday mood..

Monday, November 30, 2009

Smooth Like Cotton


My one and only sister-in-law has a store in Amcorp Mall that sells cotton from UK. Here is a sample of what she is selling.. The store is called "Eyana House of Cotton" on the 3rd floor. The website is www.eyanacottonhouse.blogspot.com

Although the store has been opened for a long time already, I haven't had a chance to step foot into it. But last week when I visited her at home, she showed me some of her cotton goods that she was about to send to her friend who was on her way back to her hometown for Raya Haji.

All this MOR stuff at work is forcing me to look at alternatives, I mean I've always wanted to venture into business but have not been adventurous enough to risk it. I hope that over the years I will be able to find a good idea that would bring in the dough without too much hard work.. maybe I can get Nora to work for me as the head chef in a restaurant/bakery.. she is really good at cooking... or maybe I can be Husna's bos in a pet store... Wait, why does it sound like I want to be everyone's boss??

If only money grows on trees.... haha

Congivitis

Poor Naufal.. He caught the congivitis from me, though I'm not sure who I got it from... Must be from someone I met during the raya haji celebration afew days ago.. This morning even my sister's eyes are red too. So we are all under quarantine until we get better.


This is the first time Naufal and I have congivitis.. Pray for our fast recovery!!

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Thursday, November 26, 2009

3 year anniversary..

Since Naufal's accident I have decided to stay at home and monitor him during the recovery.. Not only that I was feeling under the weather myself and Hari Raya Haji is coming up (I am planning to cook rendang.. haha.. yes, you read it right!!! This non-domesticated engineer is cooking... I have never done it before so I am putting 100% faith on internet recipes)..

Anyway.. today is our 3rd wedding anniversary. Time definitely flies when you're having fun, huh...? Naufal has definitely been a great part of that fun..
We both had the day off.. We took Naufal on the LRT for the first time, and man he was excited.

Later, we celebrated by going out to have dinner at Bora Asmara. It's definitely a nice romantic place to go.. and we also had a live musical group singing to us privately as we ate dinner (we were the only ones in the secluded air-con dining room at the time).

I pray that our marriage will last to celebrate many many more anniversaries.. Hope that we will still be together with many more happy days ahead all the way til the end.

To Norman, I'm sure you know I love you... for it is with this love that I have faith to spend the rest of my life with you..

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Naufal's accident at his playschool

Yesterday turns out to be quite a traumatic day for us.. Imagine getting a phone call from your son's playschool telling you that your one and only son had an accident and the clinic has referred him to a hand or plastic surgeon for stitches!! I felt that my heart had just skipped a beat..

The day began like any other day where we would drop Naufal off to playschool and rush to work in order to avoid the morning traffic. As I arrived at the office I noticed that the floor's air-conditioning was not working right, and so after a few hours of working in the heat and trying to survive what feels like the brink of a coughing spree I decided pack my laptop and work from home.

Before that Norman decided to pick up something from his previous company for his professional membership. So we were running around from KL to Bandar Damansara and back to KL before I am able to head home. So by the time I got home it was past 2pm.

My sisters were just leaving the house to get some lunch and do some grocery shopping. So I sat down and took my laptop out to start scouraging through my emails again. While waiting for my laptop to start up Norman called and asked me why I haven't been answering my phone. I thought that I might have missed some calls while I was driving but when I checked my phone there was no missed calls. Norman told me that the playschool headmaster called to tell us that Naufal had an accident and they took him to the clinics but it turns out that he needed stitches so they are on the way to the hospital. So I called the school up and talked to the teachers. I was so shocked and I know that I need to have someone else with me when I see Naufal, otherwise I might just panic when I see him. So I called my sisters and told them to meet me at the hospital. When we arrived, Naufal just sat on his teacher's lap in silence. His left tiny finger was wrapped but I could still see the blood. As he saw me, he immediately wanted to be hugged, so I took him in my arms while the teachers tried to explain what had happened..

Apparently Naufal was taken in the toilet, one hand was holding the teacher's hand while the other one was at the door. Then one of the other toddler pushes the door and it banged and trapped his little finger between the hinges. He didn't cry out but just said " nak ibu.." like he always does. Not realizing what had just happened, the teacher tugged him to move from the spot but he seems frozen to the spot. When she looked at him, she realized that his finger was stuck. So she rushed to open the door and immediately saw the blood on his nails and skin. They took him to the clinic. Upon further analysis, the doctor cleaned the wound and tried to stop the bleeding. However, due to the severity of the accident he had to refer his to the hospital.

At first we went to KJMC but their surgeons were all involved in other operations elsewhere and no one could commit to any time frame. So realizing that help is not within our grasps, I decided to take Naufal to his regular pediatrician at SJMC (now known as SDMC SJ). When we arrived we were set up to meet the plastic surgeon, but after he saw the wound he said that i would be best that a hand surgeon operated on the hand in order to better analyze the degree of the damage. So we were admitted, on the way to the ward we met the doctor who will be doing the operation at the lift and he said that the surgery is planned for 9pm because Naufal has to fast 6 hours from his last meal.
Naufal in my arms as we registered ourselves for admission for tonight's surgery.

Naufal's little finger wrapped to stop the bleeding.



Naufal in his surgery gown.

Keeping Naufal occupied and distracting him from food with his favourite cartoon Thomas the Tank Engine using youtube. Thank good for the speedy wifi at the ward.

That night, the surgery took place at 9pm as planned. Naufal was knocked unconscious by the anesthetic gas within afew minutes. This was the only time he cried because he had to be detached from me. After 30 minutes, his finger was stitched and the operation is over. As soon as we arrived at the ward, we gave him water to drink and he immediately asked for food. Although the nurses had advised us to avoid solid food for fear that he would vomit it out, we gave him KFC nuggets and fries which his uncle bought for him, and Naufal ate it with full appetite. And within afew minutes, he drank his milk and was snoozing away in his mummy's arms. He didn't vomit at all.. we had to wake him up to eat his medicine, but within minutes he slept again like a baby.

The next morning he woke up with a smile as if nothing had happened the night before.. We were discharged by noon and he is well into recovery.


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Monday, November 16, 2009

Unforgettable weeend and the day after...

The past weekend has been full of historical events, one of which I had to miss due to the other two events..

So to begin with, I'd like to congratulate Marcus and Lily for their wedding. May the love they share grow and multiply to last their whole lifetime. So sorry I couldn't join the merry celebration in Miri.

Instead I was sending off my parents to do their haj. It's been 21 years since the first time they both went on their haj back in 1988. My youngest sister was only 5 months at the time. That was also the time when my brother, younger sister and I all had our chicken pox. This time things are quite different, all my siblings are grown up and even the grandchildren are here to wave them goodbye.

As our house is a 5 minits drive from the Tabung Haji Kompleks, Norman drove my parents to the gathering ground. There was so many other groups of people sending off their loved ones too, and as you can imagine this opens a business opportunity to those enterpreuners out there selling many things from haj accessories to kids toys and balloons.





Very appropriate to the occasion, Naufal wanted an aeroplane shaped balloon. I think we need to go on a holiday soon, somewhere which involves a short plane ride preferably as he kept repeating that he wants to go in a plane. The fact that we see planes flying left and right every time we visit our new house also doesn't help. (Yes, the new house is close to the airport)..

Next, we went to the pediatrician's as Naufal has been coughing for the past week. It's getting worse because he nose is running it's own marathon and for the past few nights he would wake up and vomit phlegm. So the doctor gave him some antibiotics and medicine for the cough/sneeze and phlegm. Getting Naufal to take his medicine is turning into a "wrestling" challenge. When he was smaller it didn't seem so difficult but now he is putting up his own fight. We managed to cheat him into drinking one of the clear medicine by adding it into plain drinking water, but when we tried it on the dark coughing syrup he knew immediately what it was. So we had to force him to take it.. any tip from other parents out there on how to trick them into taking their medicine?

Then Sunday was Naufal's first concert. (click on the hyperlink to see the video). Being a two year old and a new member of the playschool, he is still uncomfortable at the thought of being away from his mother, in the presence of his mother. So as soon as he saw me in the audience, all he wanted to do is to cry for me so that I would pick him up.. hehe.. Usually he would be the loudest to sing but I guess he's a bit stage fright. On a brighter note, Naufal won a prize in his first ever lucky draw. And off course, mum and dad were the ones more excited about this.


And then since the teachers are working overtime on a Sunday, the playschool is closed today. So in return mummy is also out of the office for the day. I've washed two rounds of laundry, but then the rain poured its heart out. So I need to wait for it to stop before I put it out. Hope the sun will shine soon..

Friday, November 13, 2009

Too Tired To Sleep...

You might be asking what am I doing still wide awake at 3.38am on a Friday morning!?!? I have no idea myself.. it's been a long day and I am absolutely knackered, I think I'm too tired to sleep. Now don't get me wrong, I have tried.. I was asleep a few hours ago but I just woke up cause my son was weeping for milk (mummy's fresh milk, but that's another topic I shall talk about next time).. and now I can't get back on the sleeping wagon!!

So what have I been up to that makes me super tired?? Well, if you've seen my post in facebook then you'll know that I took the day off to join the crowd at the Macy Warehouse Sale!! And what a sale it has been.. Me and my friend Liz was there from 10am to 6pm (the whole duration of the sale), and we're still thinking of going again. Initially I was thinking that I would be back after lunch and I could hang out with my mum or something, but with all the offers and bargains, it was closing time before we even know it.

As it is a home furnishing store, the sale was a warehouse clearance in order to make room for the new batch of goods. So things were practically given "free" with deals as good as 90% off the retail price. There were also auctions and what I was shocked was the fact that you could still bargain with the cashier to ask for more discounts when you were paying.. :)


The sale is suppose to be 4 days but better deals were made for those serious buyers who turns up on the first day, that's why we took the day off to take advantage of it!!

Being a new house owner, we have so many things to buy for the BIG move. Most of the items I have either bought or already ordered, but there are still some small things to buy to complete the house. So this time I bought (in chronological order) a sofa bed (70% off), 2 Queen size mattresses (one at 50% off and the other at 70%), pillow pads and mattress protectors (at 50% off), 7 cushions (at 50%).. had a short lunch then continued with.. curtains (mixed pattern and sizes, with discounts upto 90%), 15 cushion covers (over 80% off), a towel (50% off), 3 toilet mats (70% off), 4 pillows (50% off), vase (70% off), 10 placemats (60% 0ff), bean bag refills (almost free), flowers (40% off) and 4 packs of dish cloths (50% off)... We also made a little saving as the delivery is free (thanks to facebook).

Here's the sofa bed I bought, it was the one we saw in the leaflet. At the time Liz and I thought that it was the last two units so we bought one each and tried to get the cashier to rush cause here were other people who wanted to buy it too.. Later after lunch we noticed that there were many more just loaded out!!


Thanks to facebook, I managed to get free shipping. Here's the list of first 50 lucky people to get free shipping. Notice my name in the list (the one with the tick as I was the first one who started buying.. hahah)


This is the mattress I bought for the master bedroom, it's 11-inches thick.. we needed a thick mattress to fit in the bed frame..The other mattress I bought was 8-inch thick, that one would be for the guest room.


I went crazy on cushions.. I was undecided on getting one with a striking color or earth tones, cause we haven't quite agreed on the color theme of the living room. So I just went for these, just I also bought more cushion covers so that we can change it to match the curtains.


Notice the pillows and the boxes below it, I needed to get some strappy strong men to help me carry these into the car.. plus, it started raining by the time Liz bought the car to the crime scene, so we had to move them fast..



Taking a break.. good thing the Macy staff gave out drinking water too..


Once I got home at 7pm, I was so tired I went in to have a shower and relax first before getting my big and strong hubby hero to help me move the goods into the house (thanks Sayang..) Perhaps I wouldn't be buying so much if he was there with me, but we both know that everything was worth it..

There is a black and white arm chair that I also like but I don't think I have a place to put it in the new house..


If I do go again, I would like to get another vase and maybe more curtains (if I find something I like)..

And one more announcement for you parents out there, the Pureen Warehouse Sale will be held once again next weekend.. get your stock of baby goodies (I usually stock up on diapers and baby wipes).

Monday, November 9, 2009

What's Cooking Good Looking?

Wasn't sure whether I'm up to it, but after being silent for so long I've decided to start blogging again :)

And why not? There's so many things to say, so many opinions to express, so many tips to share.. and let's not forget the gossips, the laughs, the announcements (particularly of sales and such) and so many more emotions all buckled up like a bubble just about ready to burst!!

Although I must say, the thing that really started the ball rolling was from a conversation we had over lunch last Friday about a dear friend, who happens to be a blogger who knows of a blogger who was friends with another blogger who was.. hmm.. how should I say it.. "interestingly insane".. then the topic moved on to bloggers who makes big bucks, and how that happened. So, we started thinking.. maybe it's not such a bad idea.. So voila! here it is, the birth of a new blog :) I call it "nick nacks with Noris" because the intent is for it to be enjoyed like a snack.. something quick and filling.. sweet, tangy, sour or spicy.. whichever fits the mood.. particularly at lunch time, yummy!!