From Aku, with love

As I said earlier, all of us must have a saving, especially the young ones. Must do a budget. That's how you know the balance that you have after minus everything in that month. You can check my old post. I mention rm50 for your monthly saving because that's the least you can save every month if you have lots of things need to be paid. If you never withdraw that money, let's say for a 15 year saving. Rm50 X 12 months X 15 years = RM 9000. See ! And that haven't plused the bonus yet. And how about if you save rm100 every month? Rm100 X 12 months  X 15 years = RM 18,000. A lot right ?  As the old saying goes, "sedikit-sedikit lama-lama jadi bukit".

 H : What are you cooking? W : Steamed fish. ( H lifted the steamer lid ). H : Wahhh .... two kerapu. What is inside the small pot? W : The sauce. H : It's not enough for two fish. Need more sauce, bla bla bla.  ( W poured a mug of water into the pot ). H : Why did you add lots of water? W : Make more sauce ler. ( Husband looked at his wife . And the wife also looked at her husband . Then she laughed  seeing her husband's facial expression ). H :  I think, I better leave the kitchen.

I made Nasi Lemak CB before Subuh. My husband has a programme somewhere but no restaurant opens early morning. So, here comes my nasi lemak to save the day.  Spent more time in the garden today because I didn't have to go out to buy breakfast. Last time I said two but actually four plants I need to buy. I think I have more than 90 plants in my garden . Any dead plant , I will replace it with another plant. Oh ya Mr Bee is back. Remember its favourite flower, the  sandpaper vine's purple flowers. Lots of flowers now. And Mrs Red Bromeliad has twins, Alhamdulillah. Another two weeks, I will do the operation to separate them. Do I have extra plastic pots? I will check later. It's time for me to relax. Ba bye. # guess what is CB? Cuti Bersalin. Nasi lemak Cuti Bersalin - wrong. Salah ler.

 W : I accept your strength and your weakness.  H : I accept your strength. W : And my weakness. H : No. My wife has no weakness. ( And the wife cried when she heard that. She knows she has weaknesses ). 

Last Friday night, I had headache. After my husband massaged my head, it was still painful. My husband took me to the polyclinic nearby. The doctor checked my ear using an ear camera ( I don't know what it is called ). She and I looked at her phone screen  together. Alhamdulillah , there's no infection. I just ate a medicine for my headache. Yesterday morning, when I got up, Alhamdulillah, the pain's gone. So what's our project yesterday? My husband took me and my son to Melaka lah. Melaka is always  the best place to go. We went to Al Ikhlas Gadget, Klebang. There's a promotion from 27- 29th September. My son bought a few Hotwheels and one diecast car. I didn't buy. Just gave him suggestions.  After that , we went to a restaurant near the gadget shop. It's "Selera Kampungku" Klebang. We had shellout for our dinner. It's not bad at all. Insya-Allah, we'll come again.  And our last place, of course the mosque. We prayed Maghrib by following ...

 H : Are you ok? W : Headache. Only above my left ear.  H : Let me see. W : Why are you wearing your glasses?  H : I want to check whether that skin is red or not. W : Hello. Are you trying to find lice on my head? H : Ok it's not red. There's no lice.  W : Yes, I'm having headache. Not lice. H : Let me massage your head. W : Thank you.

Total views of my blog until today (September 26) is 25,296. This month, for the first time, my blog reached 2268 views. Banyak tuu. Thank you.  Now, when I click Google, I will see sponsored ads. Sometimes 4 ads. Like this morning , there're 6 ads. It's better no sponsored ads on my blog.  I just want my viewers to enjoy reading my posts or may be learn something from it . Insya-Allah. Easy to understand what I'm trying to say because I use simple English words. Don't be afraid to read English texts ok.  Ba bye! 

I met my late father's cousin, Mak J and Kak N, my old friend at a restaurant this morning. They were having breakfast. Kak N knew about my retirement and the retiree reunion at my house. Someone told her. "Jeng jeng jenggg". But it's  ok. I apologised because I didn't have her phone number. So, I forgot to invite her. And she asked me the reason for my early retirement. I told her the truth. I was very tired. Many things to handle at that time.  I had to sacrifice my teaching career. We didn't have a long conversation. They gave me their phone number and I gave them a miss call. My foods were already packed , so I paid for mine and theirs. My treat ler. They're my akak and my aunty , right.

It's not easy to maintain our marriage. We have been married for 28 years. I am surprised......Alhamdulillah. Lots of things we  faced together whether it's sadness, happiness or may be bitterness. Until now, we always argue even about small things but after that , everything will be ok. Gaduh kejap aje. Why? All because of love.  And when I felt angry, I would remember the good things that my husband did for me. Those good things would soften my heart. Alhamdulillah.  As long as there's love in my heart for him and in my husband's heart for me, Insya-Allah, everything will be ok.

W: I don't cook today. H : May I know whyyy? W : We're going to celebrate your birthday. H : How many times you want to celebrate my birthday this year? W : This is your  birthday in advance. Ok? H : No need to celebrate my next year's birthday today. Where do you want to go?

It's raining somewhere..... Husband was driving his car.  W : Sorry because you have to take me to that shop. It's urgent. H : This car was washed yesterday and it's raining now.  W : Please don't show your regret face to me. H : What? This is not a regret face. This is  a love wife face. Muka sayang bini ok. W : Thank youuuu.

People say when you stay at home, your social life is zero. Not really zero. Certain times, I prefer to be alone.  Or focus on my small family and my mother. But there's time, I want to meet other people and mingle with them. Like my Red Ribbon gang.  When we meet, the memory of our hostel life will come back - having fun,   the "paksa" joining Sunday DC, chatting until midnight, running here and there , hiding from the prefects,  having meals together, protecting each other,.... the experience that I can't get or buy from anywhere.  Very precious. We are like a family. We have been friends for 41 years. And that's the reason for our REUNION - to celebrate our decades of friendship.

When I worked as a teacher, I had to follow the timetable . When to enter that class, when to leave that class, when to go to the next class......and i was disciplined by the rules.  After I retire, my life is more relaxed. I, myself decide what I want to do on that day. No rules I have to follow. All up to me. But after one year, I realise that life after retirement is more challenging. When I worked, the rules or people disciplined me but here at home, I have to discipline myself. Especially for the solat sunat and Quran reading. 

This morning, when my husband didn't wish my birthday for the first time after 28 years of marriage, I felt sad. Sodihla. He really forgot about it. Then my husband sent me a message telling me that he has no extra class today. Only that....sigh. Never mind, I just told him lah. No need to keep it. So I texted him, telling him about my birthday today. But I added , "it's ok if you forget my birthday because it's not that important". I sent that message and straight away, I got a phone call from him. I didn't  say anything. I just answered his salam. He laughed and said that he's going to take me to my favourite restaurant this evening and before he ended the one way communication,  he wished me , " Happy Birthday". And I answered softly, " Thank you". I think ladies are always like this. They want their loved ones to remember their birthday, especially their husband. No celebration is ok but the wish is extremely important. I think so.....

This weekend, we just stay at home. Lots of things to do. Today, we went to my friend's son's wedding.  My friend and I studied in the same class when we were in Standard 5 and 6. I was a new student. Actually, there's only one class for Standard 5 and one class for Standard 6 . My mother transferred me to that primary school for good reasons. Although it's a "kampung" school, I like the teachers and my classmates. That school still exists until today. It's a big school now. Alhamdulillah .   Ok back to the wedding story. I am happy for all my friends who have or going to have daughter or son in laws. Alhamdulillah. Really happy for them. This year and next year, more wedding invitations will be received. Yes! About my old primary school. Nak cerita jugak 🤣 # In 1980, only one student got 5 As. And that was the first time , my school had a 5 A student in Penilaian Darjah 5.  In 1981, there were 25 students in Standard 5 class. Five students, including me ...

Alhamdulillah, we reached our home around 5.30 p.m. yesterday evening (Thursday). Called my mother first to inform her that we had already reached home. Settled everything , I went to see my garden. It's a bit messy. Lots of dried leaves and flowers on the grass. Never mind. I only watered the plants yesterday. This morning, I am going to do the raking part.  Oh ya, last Wednesday (on the way to the hotel), we had lunch at Penarik, Terengganu. It's not in our plan. That place is famous for its "Restoran Celup Tepung". Batter-fried seafood restaurants. You can see the restaurants along the beach. My husband knows it's my favourite so he took me there. Thank youuu. I also love its seaview. Beautiful!  And he bought me three Sabella Queeny. I thought only two. But when we reached home yesterday, I saw three parcels on the floor. Yahoooo.  Thank you again.  I have my own money but when my husband wanted to give me something or  take me somewhere, I just said yes. I ...

Our last night in Machang. I don't know when will be our next coming back. So happy to meet my in laws, nephews and  niece. We went to their house to visit them. Except my husband's second younger brother. He came here. Alhamdulillah, all of them look healthy. My husband's still feeling tired. It took 12 hours to reach Machang last Saturday. A 12 hour journey. It's very tiring. Insya Allah, tomorrow, we're going to the Grand Puteri Hotel, Kuala Terengganu. Stay there for one night. Let my husband relax first. Then, we'll continue our journey to our home sweet home. May Allah protect us and we reach home safely. Aamiin ya Allah.

 Two places I would like to recommend:- 1. Selera Tepi Sungai Restaurant in Tanah Merah  a.Toilets - many b. Surau - good c. Service - efficient & has drinks delivery robot d. Food - good e. Parking - ok  2. Jangok Mek Ani Pizza Cafe in Bukit Bunga.  a. Pizza - good. A lot of toppings. Very generous. b. Service - a 25 to 30 minute wait for the pizza. The girl at the counter will inform you first before you make an order. So, if you are willing to wait, go ahead. But if you cannot wait, go home ler .

I went to SMO bookstore last night. My husband bought a book. A thick book. The title is "Muhammad : Riwayat hidup berdasarkan sumber terawal" by Martin Lings. It's a translation from the book "Muhammad : His life based on the earliest sources ". The price is RM76.00 but because of the 10% discount, it's RM68.40.  I thought of buying a book but after my husband bought the biography book, I changed my mind. I think I want to read that book first. It's a must read book. 

My family is in Kelantan since Saturday. Yesterday afternoon (September 15), we attended a bekwoh in Pasir Puteh. My husband's cousin's daughter's wedding . It's Majlis Kesyukuran. Oh ya, my husband really enjoyed himself there. He met his aunties and his cousins from my late father in law's side. I was also happy to meet his Mok Su. We performed Hajj in the same year, 2018. I even met her in Mina. My family stayed in Al Fajr Al Badea Hotel 3 in Mecca. Mok Su's hotel was like next to our hotel but it's on a hill. Had to climb stairs to go to her hotel. Her age was 60 something at that time. I salute her because every day, she prayed in Masjidil Haram and did tawaf sunat. Very impressive.  For today's activity, we went to Pasar Senin this morning. My son and I love that place. Lots of things are sold there . Just enjoyed seeing the things and varieties of food. Cuci mata ler. I don't cook here. It's such a waste if I cook. The food is delicious an...

If you have any problems, please don't keep it to yourself. I think my old post had already mentioned about this. Share it with someone that you can trust like your spouse or your parents. So far, they're the best persons to listen to your problem. May be, they don't know how to solve your problem but at least , you'll feel relieved after sharing it with someone. It's like the burden has been taken away from your chest or from your mind.  And don't forget to ask Allah's help to guide you. Take care ok!

 I baked a chocolate cake for my friends, But nobody liked my cake, So I tasted it, Yup it's terrible, And I felt bad. At home, He noticed my sad face, He baked a chocolate cake for me, Asked me to take it to school, Let my friends eat it, Asked me to keep it as a secret. Everybody loved the chocolate cake, Should I feel happy? Yes !  But I also felt guilty. Looking at my friends, I made an announcement, "My husband baked the cake", And what did they say? "We know".

I went to the mosque. I thought we were going to have Surah Yasin reading tonight  but I was wrong..we had berzanji. I was not good at it so I just listened. I admire my Ustazah, whether she read Al Quran or berzanji, to me, her voice is the best. She taught me Al Quran until khatam. Not only me, she also taught my mother, my husband and my son. She came to our house  every weekend to teach us Al Quran. She also taught us tajwid and its translation.  Now , no more lah. She's not strong like before. I asked about her health and she asked me about my mother and my son. I performed Isyak prayer next to my Ustazah. I was touched. Another person who taught me Al Quran was Atuk. He's Kak Mai's (Kak M) father. He taught me when I was in Standard 5 and 6. He also taught my sister. We learned Al Quran at home. I was not scared to read Al Quran because of Atuk. I could read faster because of him.  Thank you to Atuk and Ustazah. May Allah reward them Jannah. Aamiin ya Allah.

No need to water my plants yesterday and today. Only watered the Sand Paper vine plant . All because  of rain. Alhamdulillah. I made fried rice this morning and I added some petai in it. Ok lah. There're two akaks I forgot to invite for yesterday's reunion. While frying the chicken, I remembered their names. Aiseyman. This is the problem when I don't have their phone number.  Sorryyyy.  Who knows may be we'll have this reunion again next year. Insya-Allah.

Alhamdulillah , ten akaks came to our Reunion today. I would like to express thousands of thanks to Kak T, Kak N, Kak K, Kak Z, Kak F, Kak S,  Kak G, Kak M, Kak Y and Kak TH for coming to my house. I was so happy to meet all of them. Oh ya.  I invited thirteen but three were not well. It's ok. I prayed for their speedy recovery. Aamiin ya Allah.  For this event, I cooked , yup I cooked. Percayalah. It's not catering. I cooked sup tulang, sambal udang petai and kubis goreng. Ok lah. I had already blended the dried chillies earlier and I peeled the onions, garlics and ginger last night. I was a bit nervous, no, no, no, I was nervous. Very nervous. At first. Luckily, my mother was around. She kept praying in the kitchen to make everything easy for me. She also prayed I cooked delicious food for my guests. Alhamdulillah, .....Thank you Makkk.  And I ordered cheese tarts with fruits topping for the dessert. I didn't have time to go to the shop to buy fruits but a few akak...

When you get your salary, make a list for your expenses. Easy to say, make a one month budget la . This is for the young ones. 1. Car installment 2. House loan 3. Bills 4. Parents 5. Kitchen stuff  ( including the wet food ) 6. Children's education (school) 7. Medical Insurance ( + education insurance for children ). 8. Emergency. 9. Personal expenses like clothes, health care 10. Saving - better tabung haji. Every month, your money automatically will be saved in your TH account. Make sure when you want to make the TH saving, you can afford for that amount. For example rm50 per month. Not that much right. Don't touch that money. Let it stay there. That's why it's called SAVING. # zakat pendapatan  # sadaqah ( from your sadaqah subuh) After all the deduction, if you have extra, you can save more in your bank ( or TH ) or you can spend it. Up to you. If there's no extra, duk ontok-ontok ler.

This Saturday, I'm going back to Kelantan, of course lah with my family. Insya-Allah for a few days. But on the same day, it is my neighbour's daughter's wedding ceremony. Habis nak buek camno. My husband had already apologised to our neighbour. I still think it's not enough just to say sorry. So this Friday, my husband and I will go to our neighbour's house. My husband will give angpow to the bride's father and I will give a box of cheese tarts to the  bride's mother. Ok lah. Now, I have a new supplier. Easy for me to order. But ONE DAY,  I repeat ONE DAY , I will learn baking. I can make my own cake, brownies, cheese tart, pavlova, bla bla bla bla.  And my husband said, "Yelah tu. You always said that". Did I?

I watched YouTube about "Anak, tunggu ku di pintu syurga" by Ustaz Ahmad Dusuki Abd  Rani. Ustaz said that if we had a miscarriage, we can still give name to him. We hope he will wait for us in akhirat.  I had a few miscarriages. First, in 1996. I name him Ahmad Adam. Then in 2003, I supposed to have triplets. I name them Ahmad Ishak, Ahmad Yaakub and Ahmad Yusuf. Lastly, in 2010, I name him Ahmad Musa. I did dream once, a few small boys around 2 years old. All of them wore a white jubah and a white kopiah. They were playing with me. Sat on my lap, hugged around my neck from behind. I asked them who they were. Then I woke up from my sleep. I don't know. May be it's  only a dream. Mainan tidur. But if they're really my kids, I just hope I will meet them in Jannah. Aamiin ya Allah.

Busy at home and in my garden. This Wednesday, I'm going to have a "YB (Yang Bersara / Retiree) Reunion" at my house. Insya-Allah. Twelve "YB" ladies were invited.  I'm looking forward to meeting all of them. Not only me, they're also excited to meet their friends .  So, let's wait for the day. Tik tok Tik tok Tik tok. Berapa banyak Tik tok daa.

We had an early dinner at Secret Recipe restaurant this evening. While waiting for our food, I saw a little girl sitting with a woman. I'm very sure that woman is her mother. Then,  a waitress came with a slice of cake on a plate. She put it on their table. The woman asked the little girl to hold the plate with the cake on it. She wanted to take her photo. Both of them were smiling and laughing. They looked so happy. After that, they ate the cake together.  Then our food came and we started eating. And I noticed  they already had their beverages on the table. The girl, I think it's Boba milk and the woman, fruit juice. While we were eating, daughter and mother left their table. The little girl had a simple birthday celebration. Only she and her mother. And a slice of cake , sharing with her mother. But she's lucky because she has a mother who made her smile and laugh on her birthday. She made her happy. A salute to her mother and "Happy Birthday" to the pretty lit...

My nephew ( my late kak Lang's son) is cutting the grass in my garden. He's not working today. He will start his new job, Insya-Allah next week. Better than his old job. Alhamdulillah. When we pay someone after doing our work, for example cutting out grass , do we have to follow the price that he has already fixed? All depend. If we know his life is not that good, pay extra ler. Although he didn't ask for extra payment. And please don't pay less if he's our relative or family. Ala kita keluarga. Tak payah berkira lah. Just give that person money to buy food .Wow. That's bad. Then next time, don't cut his grass . Let himself do it. Same situation when the person said, all up to us to pay him. Don't take advantage of his kindness. If he doesn't have a good life, he has many children , his wife is not working - pay more lah ok. 

I don't cook this week.  My husband pities me. We just returned  from Kelantan & Terengganu last Sunday. He wants me to relax. But not really relax la. I still need to do the house chores. I also watch Paralympic Games. I think all the athletes are amazing. All of them are " WINNERS".  Not only sports programme, at 3.30 pm (Monday-Wednesday) on TV9,  it's my "Rindu awak 200%" drama. Today was its first episode. Before this, it was "Love you Mr Arrogant" drama.  I never watched those two dramas before. I really enjoy myself at home. Enough about tv programmes. Now, about my garden. Good news! The birds are coming back. Alhamdulillah. When my mother was here, she noticed there's no bird flying in my garden . I told my mother may be they're scared of Mr Cat. But now Mr Cat doesn't dare to come nearer my garden. Hearing my high pitch voice and my hands clapping, enough to make it run away. Sorry!

I went to the mosque last night. I met my masjid friends. They were so happy to see me after how many weeks ( sorry , I don't  remember) I didn't go to the mosque. All of them smiled looking at me. And one of them asked whether I performed umrah. I answered no lah. I told them that I watched Olympic games . And another akak asked me whether I went to Paris. Again, I said no lah. Only on tv . And I told them about my mother. They were worried but I told them she is ok now. I'm also happy to meet my masjid friends. Yup, really happy to meet all of them.  After Maghrib prayer, we learned Sirah. I was so touched. Our Rosulullah (SAW). He's very, very special. Ustaz talked about our Rosulullah (SAW)'s patience. You can read his sirah. You will cry.  Allahumma solli 'ala Sayyidina Muhammad wa'ala aali Sayyidina Muhammad. 

A strong woman, A woman who is unwell, But, She wants people to be happy, She looks healthy to our eyes. A strong woman, A woman who works hard for her family, She knows her husband can do it, She still wants to help, To make her family have a good life. A strong woman, A woman who stays alone at home, Without her husband, Without her children, And I'm impressed, She did all on her own! A strong woman, A woman who faces challenges, She always stands firmly, Sometimes she did shake a bit, But she managed to control her emotion, Patience is her weapon. Men are strong physically, But women, They are more mentally strong. Any objection?

I'm so happy. My nephew returned home safely from China yesterday. Alhamdulillah. He attended a training there. Only he and his team ( eleven of them ) were invited . We're very proud of him, especially his father - my Bang Ngah. He texted me last night telling me that he was in the airport to see his son. I told him that all his worries have gone with the wind. His son is already here, in Malaysia. No need to worry anymore.