Our Special Guests

Our good friends Noreen and Daniel were down from Den Haag and came to visit us last weekend and brought Aidan his first birthday present! (thank you guys!!) we've havent seen each other since their Akad Nikah, and ever since then, they got married at the castle (which we missed), and then another ceremony in KL.

Cooked dinner for all 5 of us. had a good one and good conversation after that. we saw their wedding montage, and their wedding photos and did some catching up. we had a good sunday evening guys.. thanks for dropping by!

(Picture of Aidan in his 'garden chair' waiting for her "kak" Noreen and Om Daniel's arrival)

And earlier today, Aidan played with girls! ;) two beautiful girls, Dahlia and Natasha. i invited the girls over (them and their mommys) after not being able to meet up with them since Aidan had the pox. finally we could actually sit down and compare notes whilst enjoying our tiny little tea party.

Had a good day! thanks for coming over guys.. will do it again soon yea?

(Picture of Aidan on his dining chair waiting for the girls to arrive)

Aidan's been smiling a lot lately, especially when he's looking at the camera. a possible model perhaps? if only i can get him to smile to more people other than Hardy and i, instead of some machine! but that's my boy!!!!

Z

Het is Vridag!

It's Friday!!!

Dit is mijn boodschapenlijst. I do my mine every friday cause we do most of our groceries every saturday. i normally plan ahead what to cook over the weekend but no plans as yet for now. perhaps i should try something different. i have put up a poll on my other blog so that you guys can decide for me what i should be doing next week.

Most people ask me how do i find the time to cook and craft with a baby in my care. well we're very fortunate living here with no traffic. no overtime.. we're down south, far from the concrete jungle, far from the Hague and Amsterdam where it's much more busier. people come home from work early. Hardy reaches home at half 5 most of the days. he then takes over taking care of our son whilst i prepare us dinner. we have dinner at 7, sometimes as early as half 6. we then put Aidan to bed ad 8 or 8ish depending on his level or tiredness. sundays are normally my day! or half of it! that's when i try new time consuming dishes. i normally craft when Aidan takes his naps (which is not long). so i try to do as much as i can when he's asleep. time is so precious and most of you would agree how time flies by so fast when you have a kid!
I shall enjoy my weekend..

By the way, try figure out what i wrote on the list!

I should continue with it...

8. Gember

9. CousCous

it can go on and on and on...

Fijn weekend allemaal!

A Postie at PPP

Well, we are now almost a postie at PayPerPost.com (pending approval of this post), the leader in blog ads. We were toying with the idea to join up for quite some time and after looking up their website and seeking some consultation, advices and super encouragement from our SEO-expert-hardworking-friend Adam, we decided to embark on....getting paid by blogging! PPP as they are also known in short, is like a marketplace for companies to connect with bloggers who are willing to blog about a product - for a price. And of course, there are some guidelines and requirements to fulfill. I guess, the words of mouth is still as powerful in the marketing world.

Z was a bit concern if our blog will end up like an ad instead, stating how she wants it to be the same as it is now....well, at least she'll get some dough for doing something that she loves. As for me, I'll try to fill in when possible. Nevertheless, Z appointed me as the link-seeker and template-optimizer, a task that can be time consuming initially.

As Aidan will turn one next month, maybe we'll use the first hard-earned money to get a domain name for him, or, as Z always put it, a child birthday is supposed to be a celebration for the mother, maybe we'll get a domian name for her too.....

H

Let's Sing!

This is what i'm currently singing to Aidan:

1. Sing a Song of Six Pence... a pocket full of rhye...
2. Oooh The Grand Old Duke of York... he had ten thousand men...
3. Ba Ba Black Sheep... have you any wool...
4. Old King Cole... was a very old soul...
5. Incy Weency Spider.. climb up the water spout...

We hear classical music and i put our Baby Einstein series - Baby Bach, Baby Beethoven, Baby Mozart in the car.

This is what Hardy sings to him:

1. Di mana dia... anak kambing saya... anak kambing saya sedang duduk makan ooohh ooohh oooohhhh chan mali chan! oi! oi!! chan mali chan oi! oi!! chan mali chan.. ketipo-o-oongg payong...

2. Lompat sikatak lompat.. lompat la tinggi tinggi... cepat la Aidan cepat.. cepat lah nak tumbuh gigi...

3. Air pasang pagi.. surut pukul lima.. nyonya bangun pagi.. siram pokok bunga...

4. Sep Sep Sep... tom tom tom.. ola oli diberi nama.. saudara saudari cikibum cikibum... (please someone confirm to me this is a girl's song!)

We promise to learn some Dutch nursery rhymes ya Aidan?

Which is your favourite? Aidan loves them all!
Happy 11 Month Aidan!! we love you so sooo much!!

Z

Much on Plate

Quite frankly there's quite a lot going on in my family since last month. the arrival of baby Ferran, then baby Ferran's daddy got the pox, then my dad was unwell, aidan then got it.. and a few days back we heard the news that my uncle got a promotion, and on the way down south to his new job, he met with a terrible accident on the highway. he was badly hurt and fractured. yesterday my sister undergo a thyroidectomy surgery after years and years of hoping it'll be under control...

I've been unlike my usualself yesterday.

I get a lot of friends back home telling me how they'd do anything to be in a foreign land, away from Malaysia. i could understand their frustration, i might be feeling the same way if i were still to be back home. but its all about making do of what you have at the moment.

There's a price to pay when you're in a foreign land. you're far from your family, the people that you love. far from your best friends, and as much as you want to be there with them at these times, you simply cant. but it doesnt mean that they're not thought of, not cared, loved and missed.

Nonetheless, i'm still thankful that we're here. very thankful indeed.

Anyway...


I dont have a picture of him since its all back at home. so i typed his name on google and found one. Congratulations Ayah Chik on the much awaited promotion! we're so proud of you! we know you're strong and will get back on your two bouncy feet in no time. this is one part of your life which you will treassure and be thankful for, cause everything happens for a reason. it will 'all rise' from now on! i'm sure it's tough on all back home now, but at least it pulls everyone together even stronger. we're grateful that you're alive and looking forward to hear your silly jokes again. we want you to know we love you eventhough we're far. Get well soon Your Honour!


And as for my super duper sister, you've been absolutely amazing and strong. twice surgery in 2 months! not only you're the smartest but you've always been the strongest one. you've always been the support in all of us, even when you're down. we dont know what we'd do without you. at least now we're putting the matter behind us, hopefully no more mentioning the word 'thyroid' which i'm sure by now you're sick off it! i am still amazed by your strength and i really admire you for that. glad the surgery went well and those tubes are slowly reducing one by one. glad to know your voice is still the same and you're back to pumping those breasts! now heel well and get back to enjoying motherhood, enjoying Ferran. we love you soooo much and cant wait to see you again! (december in sittard pulak... puhleeassee....) Recover well Fi. love you loads.


To you guys who've been very concerned over Aidan, writing comments, calling and asking us how he's doing, i thank you from the bottom of our hearts. i really do appreciate it. Aidan wants you all to know that he's on the road to recovery, spots are almost gone but as usual, scars will take longer, and hopefully none will stay forever. anyway, he's back jumping and crawling and getting fit for his 1st birthday next month! HOERA!!

(p.s: thanks mus for coming over and dropping off the plane. we've been having fun with it. aidan's often checkin out the stewardess to which his papa named "amber" after a gorgeous salesgirl at NEXT! hehe)

Z

Am I a Stepford?!

We saw the last half hour of the movie Stepford Wife last night. the one with Nicole Kidman and Matthew Broderick. from what i understood, the wives were programmed to be robots and to be the "perfect" wives where they are dressed in perfect dresses, have the perfect bodies, hair was perfect, where everything's rosey, and the language spoken were formally polite (i should think so).

This was what happened just a while ago:

Hardy was in the garden, I was washing the dishes in the kitchen, not far away from him with the door open. Spotted Aidan is sitting quietly on his chair observing his parents.

Hardy: "hey, i can hear music coming from the park! there must be some sort of a concert"
Zaza: "where? which park? the park near our house tu?"
Hardy: "ye"
Zaza: "what's the name of that park eh?"
Hardy: "entah..."

Zaza then politely corrected Hardy in a low voice by saying "tak tahuuuuuu..."

2 mins later...

Aidan still sitting on his chair whilst holding his teether toy, eyeing on a fly flying around...

Zaza: "alamak! lalat ni dah masok la"
Hardy: "amik kan benda tu" (that thing where you kill the flies)
Zaza then passes over that 'thing' to Hardy
"ZAPPPPPPP!"
Hardy: "ha.. mampus dah..."

Zaza then politely corrected Hardy in a low voice by saying "matiiiiiiii..."

Hardy: "mama's becoming a stepford wife dah!"

I laughed to it and so did he, aidan looking at us with a blur face. i later then realised, hey! that was not a compliment! i doubt he meant that i have the perfect body! i doubt he's happy with what i'm wearing (i was wearing my t and my capri pants), my hair is far from Nicole Kidman's. maybe he's telling me that i'm being too perfect? perhaps it was the words that i choose - tak tahu instead of entah. mati instead of mampus.

(i'm laughing whilist typing this!)

Anyway, i've been told and taught never ever to use those two words. i was taught that those words were harsh. i remember my grandmother would give us that stern face if she hears those words.. i've never heard those two words from my parents... but my husband said it is not wrong, and from what he's been used to, it is not harsh as well, except for the second one, perhaps it is a little bit harsh. but it was only to a fly!

So now what do we do? we have a kid and one parent believes A and the other parent believes B. i then asked Hardy, what do we teach Aidan? perhaps we should speak another language? Hardy then quickly said, of course we wont use those words, we will teach him the right words, the polite one = what mama said!

But just curious, to those who are reading this, seriously, are they impolite? harsh words?

My Little Pumpkin's Down

I saw a red spot on his left shoulder and thought, hmm.. maybe not. we were suppose to have guests over that afternoon, mus, rozie and the girls, but the doctor confirmed it was waterpokken earlier that morning. so i had to ring them up to cancell and apologise.

My little pumpkin is down with the pox. But he can still laugh during breakfast! Look!



But as the day went by, more and more seems to appear. he got very clingy, less bubbly, less cheerful, less talkative, less crawling, cant let go of my leg and cant let go of me! i just cant seem to put him down! i cant even go to the loo. he wants to sleep on me and always wants me to carry him. but at certain stage i just had to put him down, he IS 12kg!! but i am trying to be with him at all times to just soothe the pain and comfort him. and this morning he woke up with a temp of 39.2.



My poor Aidan. its heartbreaking. my heart cries when i look at him. but i know i have to be strong for him and keep his mind occupied with my stories, my singings with us playing.. i know it hurts and its itches. i wish i could make the pain dissappear.

His fair skin has turned red with spots, I cant blow his fluffy cheeks, i cant tickle his chubby thighs, scared that it might be painful, i'm struggling to find a spot to kiss his on his once smooth forehead, i cant put my face on his tummy after his change, we cant tickle his body, no more playing "this little piggy"... i kept kissing his cheeks, his tiny hands, his tiny feet and pray it will all go away.

I kept telling him that how mama and papa are so proud of him and that we love him. we understand how he feels and he'll get out of this being stronger and he can fight this and it will be over in no time. nanti dah baik kita gi jalan jalan, we'll take a stroll down the lake to see our ducks, we'll play at the playground, mama will make you some ice cream... i hope he understands and know whats in our hearts...



I hope aidan will be stronger, happier, back to his oldself, bouncy, bubbly, happy and healthy very soon. they say it's gonna take at least 10 days. i'm just counting the days till the spots are all gone.

Z

Honeypot of the Cotswolds

Your trip to the Cotswolds wouldnt be complete if you missed out on the honeypot of the Cotswolds - Bourton on the Water.

Bourton on the Water is one of the many Cotswolds villages around the Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire rergion. it straddles the River Windrush with its series of elegant low bridges beside neat tree shaded greens and tidy stone banks.



Bourton on the Water has been described as the 'Little Venice' of the Cotswolds on the strength of six picturesque bridges across the river. this is one of the most popular tourist spots in the region.



This is the Cotswold tourist venue par excellence, and the town is well adapted to handle the summer invasion, with pubs, coffee shops, ice cream parlours and eateries. even with the invasion, the surprising thing is that the town survives as well as it does and remains as pretty as it is. the architecture is traditional Cotswold -typically stone roofs, gables here and there, mullioned windows, golden brown limestone throughout.

I could imagine the place without any tourists, it would be extremely peaceful and one would have a gracious life living here.





Do bring along your picnic baskets, as well as your mat and find a shady spot where you can just breathe in the air and admire the scenes. (note: watch out for dogs poo). you can even soak your feet in the river whilst having your picnic (warning: water might be extremely cold even in summer!). another option is to enjoy their english tea, muffins and scones in their tea rooms - there's certainly plenty to choose (note: best bet if you're wearing white pants with no picnic mats and scared of dogs).



Their charming shops are lined up for you to find most of the region's best made local products, perfumery, local crafts, souveniers. each shop have their own charm and would definitely appeal to all.



This was my 3rd visit to Bourton on the Water. the first was probably 15 years ago during late autumn coming to winter where our family toured the whole region and visited more than 10 Cotswolds villages. second time was during spring back in uni days and my recent visit, in the summer. this stunning place looks beautiful in every season but to me, Bourton will be in its best in autumn - when the sun is shining hazily and the leaves are brown, yellow and gold.

No wonder it is regularly voted one of the prettiest villages in England. i couldnt agree more, i just cant get enough of it!

Places to visit:
Birdland
Bourton Model Railway
Motoring Museam and Toy Museum
Dragon Maze
Cotswolds Perfumery
Model Village

More on cotswolds click here and here.

Z

Fields of Purple and Lilac

Despite the rain that we had, there were some days that the glorious sun was out. we had to really plan our trip and wait for the weather to be bright and sunny. we took a lovely drive through the english countryside, to the Cotswolds region, to a lavender farm at Snowshill.

I havent been to the part of France that has fields fields of lavender (i envy you Noreen!) but i wish we will get there one day. so far this was the closest. as soon as you get out of the car, you will encounter probably the best smell ever being in a countryside - minus the cow dunk! the plenty shades of purple was simply magnificent! these pictures dont show justice at all to what i'm trying to portray!



Yes, these lavender fields are right in the heart of the Cotswolds! you will discover rows and rows of beautiful lavender, with different species spread over more than 50 acres of land. there's a tea room which you can enjoy your english tea and most english desserts, some even made with lavender! (i didnt know they are edible?! do you?). we choose not to have tea cause it was full and so we roamed around the gift shop instead and bought some of their products instead.



Many believe that lavender has a calming effect that will surely soothe and comfort you. The aroma proved its claims of tranquility (see picture below). he looks calm indeed. oh, and we just had to make fun of him since we had some extra popcorn in the car!



We love you Aidan.

Snowshill Lavender Farm opens 7 days a week from June to September 10am to 5pm. Admission is GBP 2.50 adults, GBP 1.50 children.

Z