Almost Syawal

Believe it or not, it has been close to 18 days I carry this "SuperMom" title. 2 & a half week... Hey, that's an achievement! I asked Wardah the other day whether she preferred having my helper around or otherwise. She answered the latter. Well, that was a surprise. I thought she didn't like me bossing her around. She said, she didn't mind helping me & also added that she loved the togetherness. Hmm... I can't agree more Wardah.

Yasmin on the other hand, answered yes & no. A Yes, so that she is free from the chores I instruct & a No because.... ( she took way too long to come out with one & I make the assumption she prefers my helper home.. hehehe).

OK, I'm coping well with Ramadhan without a help. Though how full my hands are I try my best to cook their favourites. My girls like I mentioned in the earlier post do not take rice for breaking fast. I make an appoint to cook various types of pasta for them. Name it from macaroni to fettuccine or simply yellow noodle. However I can't afford to prepare 2 different types for Yasmin & Wardah who do not really share the same taste buds. Luckily they understand. But I make sure I alternate the menu between the 2 girls' favs. Fattuccine today, yellow noodle the next day. So far, no complaints.

Yasmin has not missed a day fasting but Wardah didn't fast for 2 days in a row as she was down with the flu. HB forbade her to fast. Talk about HB, he is not on duty both on the 1st & 2nd of Syawal... Alhamdulillah. Since our marriage, there was only once he was on duty on the 1st day of Aidilfitri. He had to operate the earliest flight to Kota Kinabalu at 4am (as if there was no non-Muslim to operate such early flight...) His duty ended before 7am & guess what he did? He flew back to KL. That year the girls & I fetched him up at the airport. Later in the evening he flew back to KK.

Back to my girls, early Ramadhan they prepared this countdown calender to Syawal. Every single day after breaking fast one of them will cross out a date. I never did bother about this calender until recently when I realised that... it's almost Syawal!! Almost Syawal! Now I have to make a checklist for all my 4 girls & of course HB too. Hmm....

Notice the calender? That for your information is not a notice board but my refrigerator... I am a fridge magnet freak. Hahaha!

OK, here is a closer shot. See it?

The countdown calender

Envy Me?

By now I'm getting used with this new supermom role. Pure supermom without a helper... But seriously, how can those true supermoms do it? I'm only hanging on until October the 6th. The day my helper is supposed to come back!

OK, I survived another morning on a school day alone with the girls. Not that chaotic really. The only thing was Nadeen & her early morning project... That girl will definitely poo right after she gets up. I prefer not to wake her up until I'm done with her sisters. She & her jolly mood in the morning is normally distracted by this sensational look of relief. Hahaha! Me an expert now managed to clean up in record time this morning. All reached school on time.

Another update of my helper's daughter. She called again informing me that the kanker has attacked the heart. That is difficult to swallow. She is not yet 30 with a 4-year-old son. Praying for her recovery.

HB is away again & should be back tomorrow night. Things were so much easier when he was around. I normally send off Yasmin to school & let him continue his sleep. The other day, when I got home from Yasmin's school & was about to get the other girls ready, I found Wardah & Balqis both showered. Nadeen? In the bathroom. Apparently, she did her business again & that time stained her jumpsuit. Hahaha! HB made a beautiful picture bathing his youngest in the babytub.

I ferried the other 2 girls with happy Nadeen tagging. Suggested him to continue his sleep since he got home quite late the night before. Did he? Once home, I found Blanco whiter & fresh. Someone groomed him! Went upstairs to get Nadeen's bip & discovered all beds were made. After her breakfast, as I was about to put Nadeen's to sleep, I heard the vacuum cleaner roaring. Later in the afternoon as I was almost done with cooking for breaking fast, somebody grabbed a broom & got busy in the kitchen. Late night, I felt a presence of someone at the porch. The same person was chalking the girls' school shoes. During Sahur, right after I was done eating, Nadeen woke up. Rushed upstairs to nurse her & later I found the dining table cleared.

That's my Cancerian HB. Envy me? ;-)

Surviving...

Surviving... yes. My helper called last night updating on her daughter. Well, I guess that's a good sign. I doubt she would bother to call if she had no intention to return. Am I not right? Anyway, according to her the operation went well. Alhamdulillah... Didn't manage to ask for more. The girls fought over the phone. Balqis was upstairs with me helping with the laundry. Once she heard her sisters answered the phone & screamed "Makciiiiik...!", she rushed downstairs & grabbed the phone receiver! She is the closest to my helper. Heard her asking "Makcik sayang Balqis...?" & I'm very sure my helper broke down on the other line!

OK. Now me. I am indeed a supermom! HB had been away since Wednesday & will only be home tomorrow evening. I am so checking my weight after this! Hahaha! So far, so good. It is just Nadeen however. Whenever she is sleepy. nobody can tend to her. Never have I heard her screaming before but she picked that up a couple of days back! Poor girl...

Balqis is known for her mood swings. But surprisingly, have not cried out for my helper. I told her that Makcik will be home after raya. She didn't argue much but kept on telling me, "Esok hari raya kan..? Balqis suka raya." Hmmm... as if I don't understand why.

Yasmin & Wardah have been a good help. Babysitting & especially watering HB's plants & grass... I'm not very sincere with the plants. Bad, bad me!

Time management is very crucial to a mom handling four children alone. Ooops.. 5! Blanco is doing very well in potty train. None of my girls however was willing to get rid of his stools. Well, someone has to do it... sigh!

This morning, my first time handling all 4 single-handedly on a school day. Not bad really. Nadeen woke up first, followed by Balqis & the elder girls. Decided to get everyone ready & taxied them at one go. Yasmin off to school at 740am, Wardah was next at 745am (her mengaji starts at 8am) & Balqis at 755am (kindi starts at 830am). By 8am, it was just Nadeen & I. After her breakfast & nap, I was done with the laundry & the kitchen was in order. Switched on the TV & managed to watch a Singaporean telemovie I had been wanting to watch, Cages. See.. who said a supermom can't have time to herself. Well, Nadeen was playing on her own most of the time ;-)

Tiring, yes. On top of that, it is Ramadhan. The weather is getting hotter nowadays, right? Am so looking forward for HB to come back.... Now, what shall I get Yasmin & Wardah for sahur...?

My hands are full!

My good friend dikny commented on my previous post..

"wah...u have your hands full now huh..."

Yes, my hands are totally full now. With my 4 girls, a husband & a new pet. To make it more interesting... I have news for you. My helper is back in her hometown!

Friday night, my house phone rang. I answered the phone & there was this man with an Indonesian accent. He mumbled my helper's name & I had no problem at all passing the phone to my helper.

I headed to the kitchen & prepared something for me to snack on. My mango was left unpeeled for I heard this weird sound coming from my helper. She was crying! Oh no! Bad news from home...

Later I found out that her daughter was not well & her siblings requested for my helper to return home earlier. (She was supposed to fly home on the 17th for her son's wedding & also raya). None of those people she talked to really explained to her what was wrong with her daughter. Come on... that pissed me off. If you want to break the news, tell off everything. If not don't mention it.

So, she was left with the news that her daughter was unwell. A severe headache.. That is no headache. Must be serious than that to actually call my helper to return home.

We tried to call her daughter & son-in-law but failed. I can imagine how my poor helper felt that night....

The next morning her son-in-law rang & woke us up. I was still in bed & could hear her crying again downstairs.

After freshing up, I found her still weeping. Her daughter is diagnosed with cancer (she said kanker which I believed was cancer) & had to be operated on Tuesday which is today. How can I not allow her to go home? She has been very good to my family & the girls especially. She is almost family. I discussed with HB & he agreed that she should go home. He changed her flight ticket (of course, needed to pay for the penalty..) to Monday the 8th, a day before the operation.

Lots of ifs came across my mind. It is indeed a gamble for letting her go back together with all her money. We hardly owe her anything. If she decided not to return, she would not lose a thing but out trust. I am praying for her daughter's recovery & also my fate. Will update about her & the daughter...

As for me, Friday is going to be challenging. HB is off duty from Monday & tomorrow evening he's going off. The girls are given a 3 days break due to the UPSR exam. Only on Friday that all of them but Nadeen are schooling. Mind you Yasmin is in the morning session & Wardah, in the afternoon. All need to be sent & fetched. Both Yasmin & Wardah are fasting which means I have to wake up at 430am to prepare sahur. What if Nadeen wakes up? What if Balqis is awake too?

I am now at my PIL's house. Able to rest a bit. The girls were not clinging much to me. They had their grandparents to entertain them. OK. Better get some sleep. I had a nap this afternoon with Nadeen which explains why I am still wide awake now. Will update whenever I can find the time again ;-)

I have a son!

I'm sure by now lots of my readers are aware of me having 4 girls. It might cross your mind that I end up with 4 kids, probably for wanting a boy. Not really actually. I plan to have 4 children unlike HB who was happy with only 2. Of course the best parent wins.... hehehe ;-)

Many suggested me to try another one. A few was even confident that my 5th will be a boy. When I was carrying Nadeen, I had made up my mind that she was going to be my final child. I prayed for a healthy baby & a boy was a bonus.

When Nadeen was born, I cried. Something I didn't do with the other deliveries. Not because I was granted another daughter but the thought of she being my last child.

Anyhow, I now have a son. Hahaha! Jeng... jeng... jeng...

We were on our way to get supper. Everyone of us was in the car. As HB was taking a left turn, he discovered a white movement in the middle of the road. (continue reading... this is not a ghost story!) He almost hit it when he realised that it was a kitten. He pulled over & carried the kitten to a safety place. There was a playground nearby & that was where he headed with the kitten in his hand. Once he was sure that the kitten would be okay, he crossed the road toward us. As he was entering the car, we heard a meowing sound. The kitten followed HB. He tried to get away from it but he was still tailed.

That was when I made an abrupt decision by saying...

"Let's bring it home. It must be hungry..."

The girls went...

"Really mama? Betul ni?"

For the record, my girls had been persuading me to allow them getting a cat. Their grandma used to own quite a number of mixed persian cats & the girls had been wanting to own one. My answer was forever a firm NO. I didn't know what made me fell for this kitten. It was dark at night when we bumped into it. I couldn't even tell how it looked like except for the colour white. Perhaps witnessing it tailing HB softened my heart.

HB named it Blanco for his white fur. Blanco means white in Spanish (HB is into Spanish nowadays). We agreed.

We took him to see the vet the next day. One healthy kitten according to the vet. It did cross my mind that Blanco could belong to someone. But the vet confirmed to us that it was a stray cat. Not sure of his breed though. Probably a normal Domestic Short Hair. And... Blanco is a 2 months old male. A MALE! Everyone, meet my son, Blanco ;-)

Of Roti John & My Homemade Food

Yasmin & Wardah started fasting last Ramadhan & this year they seem to be so cool about not eating & drinking. I remember a week before Ramadhan, I was nagging about them taking such a long time to finish their meal & Wardah went...

"Yeah! Yeah! Lagi satu minggu nak puasa. Tak payah makan...!"

Can you believe that? They sometimes take more than half an hour to finish up their meal. I can't remember the last time the words "Cepat makan..!' not uttered at the dining table.

Come Ramadhan, they of course have preferences on food. I don't mind cooking their favourites even though most of the time I have to prepare 2 different foods for both of my girls.

Yasmin dislikes noodle & bee hoon. She prefers spaghetti & fettuccine. On the other hand, Wardah loves noodle, yellow noodle to be exact.

Yasmin does not take spicy foods but it is okay for Wardah.

Yasmin is crazy over my cookies, cakes, muffins, cupcakes, whereas Wardah eats simply because I bake them.

Can you see the difference? ;-) However, they share one thing in common. The choice of food for breaking fast purchased at Pasar Ramadhan. They both share the love for .... Roti John!

Seriously, what is so great about Roti John? And who came out with the idea of naming the food Roti John......??

This is the Roti John.

Basically it is omelette sandwich. Minced beef or chicken is mixed together with beaten eggs & onions. A bread like baguette is dipped into the mixture & pan fried. It is served with lettuce, cucumber, mayonnaise & chilly/tomato sauce.

The other day I made another roti of their favourite, Roti Jala (have a peep in my kitchen) & forbade Roti John on my dining table. Hehehe... But I'm so making that roti one of these days & the girls better opt mine to the ones at Pasar Ramadhan!

Ninth month!

Yes, Nadeen is already nine months. She will celebrate her 1st birthday real soon. Now, how should I decorate it... hmm. ;-)

Remember I touched on her biting business? That's the sacrifice I have to make of course. I am wiser now. True that my milk is MOD - milk on demand. She can have it whenever she pleases but not when she is in a playful mood. Arrrgh! Painful I tell you. Well... am I brave or what?

Do you know what caused her biting? Her 2 front teeth?

Not exactly. This picture explains why...

Check out those front teeth! Hahaha! And more to come.... Ouch!

She is now more independent playing on her own but prefers her sisters around. The noise they make is slightly better than the zoo ;-) Nadeen's legs are stronger now. She is able to stand with support. An expert crawler too.

Food wise, still loving Farley's Rusks. Not really a fan of blended chicken/fish porridge. She prefers plain porridge though. An enthusiastic eater especially food that is not meant for her. She cries out for the foods on the dining table. Normally, she gets the taste of rice or fruits.

Well... the other day I found Nadeen standing at the edge of her playpen. She sounded happier than usual. And in the same room was also Kakak Balqis holding on to a bowl. She was snacking on Mamee Monster & shared hers with her baby sister!!! No wonder Nadeen was excited...

Poor Balqis. I kind of overreacted by screaming. A very spontaneous act by yours truly. Those who know me should understand... ;-) But come on! Mamee Monster...! Which even the elder girls seldom munch on. I guess she gave her only a small tiny bit. I did not find anything in her mouth. Phew!

The girls have been told that they cannot feed Nadeen but I understood well how Balqis felt. She pitied her sister & Nadeen I'm sure was crying out for a bite in her own language. That's nothing to be proud of... her 1st taste of junk food at such a tender age of 9 months?? Sorry Nadeen...

I can't resist uploading this picture ;-)

POSTSCRIPT

Nadeen gave this pose before bed. She did this over & over again until she got tired & dozed off ;-)