Farewell Sk TPP

Last Friday marked the final day of me ferrying the girls in & out Sk Taman Putra Perdana. It gave me this melancholic impact. Really... You see I had been running the chore ever since the year 2006. That year & the year 2008 was a single shift for me.Year 2007, 2009 & way till 2011 I was doing double shifts, morning & afternoon. Sure it was only a 2.5km drive but to think of the kilometres I traveled! Kindly do the Math for me... :-)

The truth the school was not our 1st choice when I registered Yasmin for year 1. We submitted her name at a smart school in Cyberjaya. It was quite a distance yes then unlike now. But me being me... I want a school that is best for her (well private schools were & still are not up to our budget.. ;-)) At the same time I heard that most Cyberjaya residents in those days didn't really send their kids there. There were less residential areas compared to now & most expats there rather chose a private school in Seri Kembangan. Hence my concern over her potential peers...

Canceled her registration & reregistered her at the nearest school of a Petaling District. The school was doing very well & was quite picky accepting its pupils. Knowing that, I borrowed a friend's address which was quite closed to the school. Our registration was rejected... What gave it away could be the house phone I jotted down. It was clearly not from the same district of the school. The teacher in charged actually gave the number a call merely to confirm that the number was from a resident in TPP & my maid who answered, revealed the answer she needed. I later gave her a call as she requested me to return her call. She was kind of annoyed upon finding out the address I used was from a group of bachelors' house... This teacher practically drove to check on the address! By then I was no longer interested in that school... Hence Yasmin's name listed for SkTPP.

The first few years in that school I could see that the school was struggling to achieve. The first HM was not well. A few years after he passed on (Al-Fatihah...). An acting HM was in charged & later came another HM who was nearing retirement. It was the HM replacing him who made the difference to SkTPP.

What I like most about the school is its utilisation of technology. It has its own homepage. Updated almost daily... Even a full report of its weekly school assembly is posted every Monday. Both for morning & afternoon session. It even has its on FB account with loads of photos uploaded for parents to view. The best of all is this HM is merely a phone call, an sms, an FB msg & even a Whatsapp away. He might not reply immediately but it wouldn't take him more than a week to attend to us parents.

We are moving pretty soon. Hence my transferring the girls to a different school. Wardah I had shifted as early as January since she would be taking UPSR this year. Ironically, as much as I tried not to register Yasmin in SkTPP, it was really this school I prefer Wardah to be this year. The journey is a hinder though. HB was teasing that then I was so wanting the girls to be schooling in Petaling District but now when she could be in a school situated in the heart of Petaling... I want the Sepang District instead...! Hehehe... very funny!

To all teachers of SkTPP, from the bottom of my heart I thank all of you. It was an honour to me & especially to my girls to have a learning experience with such dedicated lots like you. The school will be missed but the memory will be cherished.

Enjoy the pictures....

Balqis making her way out of the school for the final time as a student.

She was smiling away... it was really not a big deal to her ;-)

I insisted her to pose here... & the smile was no force! ;-)

This was taken on her 1st day as a pupil of SkTPP

With a heavy heart I drove off but... I was not done yet. Instructed Wardah to snap photos of my journey back home from school. She gave me a sneer & murmured "You're the weirdest..". Huh! You'll be thanking me when you go through this post a year from now!

And here you go... My route of 6 years & 2 months. I bet I can drive in & out blindfolded!

Now here are photos of Balqis in her new school. She's doing fine there. On her first day the remark was "Tak best langsung...". The next day was "Balqis sukalah sekolah tu..". Hold that feeling Balqis :-)

The first thing I asked her to do was to copy down the time table

... and of course a pose for mama is a must ;-)

Her new class mates

Im here somewhere...

Oh dear! I have totally abandoned this blog. Really... I think the passion in writing is no longer in me. I won't blame FB for this. It's not it. It's just me who finds it more convenient to reach my friends via FB. But again this homepage was created not because I wanted to socialise... It was here because I wanted to cherish the memories I have with my family, my girls especially.

The last I updated was on Yasmin's birthday. That was in March! Wow... to think of the many things that she has achieved this year... I wrote none! Sorry

Yasmin. I've been very busy with my little business. Well you may want to have a peep here .

She has just finished her UPSR & is having a jolly time of post-exam... She's most of the time in front of the computer, FB specifically & that girl now has a new blog - Fearless Girl. She had What a Life! before but decided to change that I think because the blog sounds like mine.. ;-) The blog - My Whole Wide World has long been forgotten which she said it was her kiddie blog. Wow...! It sure is tough being a teenage nowadays!

Yasmin's latest pic

Wardah is as tall as Yasmin now. Well, we still do share shoes just that recently Wardah has outgrown most of hers. She wears a size 6 now unlike Yasmin & I who are still at 5. Yasmin as a senior in her school now is quite popular amongst friends & teachers. Wardah on the other hand, doesn't mind a bit of her sister getting all the attention because as she put it ..." Kakak siapa.. kalau bukan kakak Wardah..." ;-)

Wardah has always been entertaining us with her ambitious intellection & ideas. The only girl of mine who wants to be an Agung (a royalty) so that she will be invited to Prince Harry's wedding... The other day she was helping stirring the bolognaise I prepared. She was enjoying it at first but later I heard it loud & clear that she would invent a machine to make cooking process easier.. A stirring machine!!

Here's Wardah

Balqis is coping well in year 1. She has slowly built up her self-confidence & no longer the timid girl on the block. Thanks to her 2 elder sisters for the encouragement. She has always wanted to be like her 2 sisters :-)

Our Balqis

Nadeen enjoys school a lot. She is at ease making friends & even has her eyes on a boy in her class! Mention the word "Adam' & she will respond with a shy smile ;-) She is also very witty... The little boss in the family whom everyone adores.

Cunning little Nadeen

I shall make an appoint to update more. I happened to read the older posts. How vivid had I made our life journal... & I wouldn't want it to stop. So check it out people!! Jabishah is back in track ;-)

CNY Break

Gong Xi Fa Chai to my readers. I am in Klang at my PILs'. HB surprisingly is on leave on this festive season. Something very rare ;-)

I kind of looking forward spending the night here. No I mean it! My in-laws are pretty cool. Really! Imagine me at this moment writing this down in front of the TV watching Oprah whilst my MIL is in the kitchen preparing something for tea. She, like me prefers the kitchen to herself when she cooks. Sri does the cleaning only after she is done in the kitchen :-)

HB & Nadeeen are napping. The other girls are with their grandfather playing some games. What else shall I do? Good thing I brought along this NB. At least it gets me occupied.

Frankly I feel restless. Believe it or not I wish I have my sewing machine with me so that I can finish up my tudung orders. My... have I turned to a workaholic or what?

I love what I do now. Took me almost 8 years to discover this. At least I found it! To my readers who are still wondering on what to do.. don't lose hope. I have tried almost everything & only recently landed on this passion.

My SIL came over on Friday to collect some tudungs her MIL & SIL ordered. Since I plan to spend the break in Klang, the girls tagged their aunt to Klang. Not Nadeen though... She stayed with me.

I joined them yesterday after HB came back home from work. The minute I stepped out of the car I was reported that Balqis tripped while attempting to catch some chicks. She has quite a prominent cut on the chin. Cried her heart out of course but my MIL managed to coax to sleep. When I reached her, she just woke up but was all smiling. The fall forgotten :-)



I found Wardah making origami planes. Her attempts failed & needed papa for assistance... Yasmin was no where to be seen. She was at my aunt's house next door petting some fish. It was close to 7pm & none took their shower yet! Enjoying their break definitely...

Ohwww.... the aroma of Pisang Goreng disturbs my intention to write more. Yeah...! I'm a terrible DIL. I really treat myself as a guest here. ;-)

Updates on 2010 School Year

The girls are back schooling... Not sure whether that's a relief to me really. True that now the house is no longer a nursery with shouting & screaming over a TV channel or the Notebook! Phenning! Phenning! Because this year I am on duty in double shifts, morning & afternoon...

Yes, Yasmin is in Year 5 now & she's in the morning session. Wardah remains in the afternoon at Year 4. Now let me give you a brief summation of my daily venture. Early morning I send Yasmin to school. Return home for Wardah & Balqis (I don't expect the 2 to wake as early as 630am). At 10am, out again to fetch Wardah from mengaji. Half past noon, on the move again to send off Wardah to school, fetch Yasmin & Balqis. Quarter to 3pm, drop Yasmin & Balqis for mengaji. 2 hours later, need to fetch them. Nope. That's not the end... Half past 6 is my last round of the day to get Wardah home from school.

If it's for love... I doubt I manage. HB suggested to engage a transport for the girls. I of course refused. I don't work & I have a maid. Do you expect me to be the "Cleopatra" at home whist my girls take the transport which I normally witness is sardined with pupils. No! No!

Last night however, a neighbour called me for car pool arrangements. She apparently is working in double shifts herself ;-) So now my half of my chauffeuring duty is taken away. Thanks a bunch Rita!

Balqis with Nadeen.

This was taken on her first day for mengaji class. No I didn't make that tudung. Used to be Yasmin's. A hand-me-down ;-) She was a bit nervous at first. But Yasmin was around to take care of her. Back from mengaji she confirmed with me whether the mengaji will be on daily basis. Later only I found out, her kindi friends are also her classmates at the mengaji centre.

Yasmin was elected a Class Monitor. I mentioned before that she was quiting as prefects. Frankly, I expected her to be the Assistant Monitor but accroding to her the boy who was nominated lost by 12 votes. Woohoo! Congrats dear... Remember time management is the utmost important.

Wardah is still a school prefect. But she's in blue this year unlike last year in green (it was way easier to get her uniform compared to last year). Came home today & announced she's the AJK for English in her class ;-)

Here comes the long school break...

The break is back but last Saturday was another tight day. HB was home so I didn't really have to do the driving ;-) Not that we had to drive far... Only in the neighbourhood.

In the morning we attended Yasmin & Wardah 's Hari Anugerah Cemerlang at school. As I mentioned before the girls did well in the exams & today was their day. Wardah was rewarded for 2nd in class ( failed in her many attempts to beat DFP. you may read here). Yasmin, even though 4th in class & 5th in Year 4 was acknowledged for her participation in a Eureka competition, representing the district. Academically, she is best in Kemahiran Hidup. That is something I'm very proud of. I never touched on the subject for it is an elective. Hence, it was totally her own effort. Come to think of it I really can't tell what did she really learn in KH this year. Shame on me...!

Now, here are some photos to share.

Notice how my 2 girls react to a cam in front of them... Wardah is really me unlike Yasmin who definitely carries too much of her dad's gene. Hahaha!

Yasmin with her friends. I knew exactly what she was thinking of... "Go play with your toy somewhere else mama!" Hehehe...

Wardah & DFP. They are good friends. Check out what were in her hands & what was in Wardah's... ;-)

Yasmin & Wardah with their trophies & certificates

Later in the evening, we attended Balqis's kindie concert. She looked forward to perform & was asking non-stop for the time. She knew, she had to be in her kindergarten by 545pm.

We left home right after Maghrib. The show was scheduled to start at half past 7. 10 minutes before it began we arrived but the seats were mostly taken. The rain didn't stop others to come way earlier than us. We didn't sit together. Sri with Nadeen, the girls with their friends & I with HB.

If you have been following my blog you might remember Balqis's kindie outdoor concert last year. You may read here. It is no difference this year. Same old stage, same old deco... hehehe.

Balqis has improved a lot in stage this year. Her eye contacts with the audience were excellent. She was smiling all the way. Enjoy the video :-)

That was really entertaining right? Balqis was the one far back on the left. Next she performed a Malay number. It took me quite some time to find her...

Found her! She really was enjoying herself... Great job Balqis!! :-)

Was still smiling off stage ;-)



Singing the National Anthem..



Now a shot with her classmate, Arif. I kidded saying something like the peace sign was blocking Balqis. Might as well put the hand on Balqis's shoulder.


He did exactly that! Hahaha...


Balqis with all the girls, including a neighbour's daughters who tagged along to watch Balqis on stage.

The following day it was Yasmin's & Wardah's turn again. Their Drama Class Year End Production. Since it took me way too long to upload the videos, hope these photos are ample for your viewing...

Wardah in action as an islander. She has need to improve her voice projection but the confidence she showed was marvellous. Bravo!

A group photo with their teacher, Aunty Jamie.


Yasmin was a pirate. Her solo script was quite long to memorise but she managed.

A fighting scene

A group photo with her fellow pirates & sailors

And today is Balqis's 5th birthday. Happy birthday darling. We love you. Will update about it tomorrow...

From Kathmandu With Love

This morning after sending off the elder girls for their mengaji lessons, I as usual stopped at a mini market to grab some fresh vegetables. Opposite the road I saw HB's regular nasi lemak stall & I, as if hypnotized bought one. I'm no fan of nasi lemak really, unlike HB who loves it with ayam masak merah & telur mata kerbau. Seriously, I really had to force myself with the nasi lemak. I rather had toast :-)

Yes, I miss him. It has been 3 days since I last heard of him. They have started the trekking to Annapurna Base Camp. No contacts ever since. He called the day before he left & warned me that he might not be able to contact me for 10 days. Yikes... I hate the feeling for not knowing. The best I can do is pray for his safety & insyaAllah he will pour me with all his experiences once he's back to civilization.

Later in the afternoon we received a postcard. A greeting from Nepal. HB obviously posted that before he left for Pokhara. The girls were really thrilled. It slipped my mind that HB promised to send the girls a postcard but he remembered. It shows that he misses us too ;-)

Balqis can now read simple words. She is now at 4B in the Ladybird Keyword Series. Keeps repeating the first 2 lines from the postcard. "Hello to my Amirahs. Papa is in Kath... Apa mama? Kathhh...man..du.." Asked me to help her read over & over again... Later in the evening I found a piece of small paper pasted on the wall of the study written - I love you papa. Ohwww... I assume she was replying to her dad's postcard which almost put me in tears.

Yasmin & Wardah are most of the time occupied with FB games now that the exams are over. Oh did I tell you Wardah won the first place for a story telling competition in school? She was so proud of it (always wanted to be like Kak Yasmin) & I know deep inside she can't wait to tell HB.

Nadeen is getting cheekier day by day. She's picking up words slowly from her sisters. When asked about papa... she would simply answer "Byyee...". :-)

Me? To avoid thinking of him most of the time, I surrender myself to sewing. It really can put my mind off him. Last week I uploaded a few photos in my FB album. Received a very good response from my FB friends & have been sewing tudung & tudung & more tudungs. Hence I have to postpone the construction of my blogshop for a while.

To my readers who are interested to get tudungs from me but not my FB friends, post me your email add & I get back to you :-) Now that I have a mannequin & products... what I really want now is the cloth label for my tudungs. Anyone here has any contacts to share?

I shall update on HB next week. Have a good weekend :-)

Our Eid This Year

Now here's an update on our Aidilfitri this year. HB, Alhamdulillah was on leave for 4 days despite his decision not to apply for raya leaves. His reason was merely to make it fair to the other colleagues. You see ever since I'm married to him, he has always been around with us on the first day of raya. There was once though when he had to operate the 4am flight to Kota Kinabalu on the 1st of Syawal. His duty ended before 8am hence decided to fly back to KL to be with us on raya morning. Sent him off to the airport later that evening to continue his duty.

Aidilfitri this year was not tiring for him. He started his leave 2 days before Syawal. Unlike the years before which ends on the eve. He had his ample rest.

As usual we were in Klang. I managed to arrange the girls' Saturday schedule so that we were free a day before Syawal. The plan was to shoot early to Klang & help my MIL with things. Instead we reached Klang around 2pm.

I felt bad but my PILs were cool about it. In fact this year I hardly gave a helping hand. I was busy finishing up my last minute beadings. But Sri was around to help her.

Did I tell you that I slept at 2am to complete sewing those beads? I chose to retire & continue to sew in the morning.

The first thing HB asked when he woke up was about the beading. His concern over my unfinished attire surprised me. You see he is not a man with sweet words. Ever since I started sewing, his best comment was merely, "OKlah...". That goes the same to my cooking so I am kind ofused to his limited praising vocabs.

I was not sure whether he was aware of what he was saying. It was something like " I'd help if I can but I really don't know how to sew those beads. Kalau siap cantik ni...". Trust me those encouraging words made me going until
2am.

In my previous post I shared how the baju turned out. And here are some pictures of us on Aidilfitri this year.

Raya banner this year made by Yasmin, Wardah & their little uncle Ajib

The girls one by one on raya morning with HB in the spirit of Syawal.

Balqis

Wardah

Yasmin

Nadeen

Nadeen with her sisters seeking for forgiveness from atuk Klang, the beauty of Aidilfitri

She appreciates duit raya this year. But only the various colours of packets not the cash though ;-)

Nadeen with Kakak Balqis. Balqis is thrilled getting the chance to be on the chair & someone younger below.

Wardah & her way asking for forgiveness from sis Yasmin.

With their mom

The girls with bibik Sri

A family pic

In our boria attire ;-)

After visited HB's eldest aunt, we made a move to my grandmother's place in Rembau. Chengkau to be exact.

In front of my grandmother's house

A solo pose by Nadeen

The 5 of us again

This is my dad's kampung somewhere after Kota or Koto as how the Negeris address it.

Nadeen was really enjoying her kampung getaway :-)