2013 in Reflection

The last day of 2013....

2013 has been quite kind to me. Alhamdullilah...

We managed to get some traveling done in and out of Malaysia. Marveling in the different cultures and seeing the world :) Love that the children managed to learn new things from our trips and hopefully it will help shape the way they view the world, one day... 

In Sha Allah more trips to come....

Throughout 2013 I see Ryan, Iman and Ranya thrive mentally, emotionally, physically etc They are learning so fast and I hope Lan and I can provide them with good examples that they need. They each have new interest, acquired new skills and is fiercely interested in learning. So my new year resolution is to do my best to play more with them, indulge in loads of creative play and learn session and minimize their usage of smart phones/tablets.

Major accomplishment of 2013 : They only play with the tablets if we have to travel or in need of major distraction (during long majlis or something) I can safely say they play with my tablet about 5-8 times a month and  at the very most around 10 minutes)

We need to work harder on TV time though...Need to MAJORLY supervise the kind of shows Ryan watch on TV. Urrrgghhh the quality of cartoons nowadays is horrible. Too much fighting (Ultraman and the likes of it), stupid gags (Spongebobs) and horrible language ( benci shows like Boyboyboy and Bola Kampung, the aku and kau is one thing, but "bodoh" "tak guna" etc on a CHILDREN SHOW is unacceptable)

I can't control the things they watch in Kindy but we try our best to limit these shows at home. Ryan has been asking for some of these programs but I said NO because I truly don't see any benefits to the kiddies anyway. We try and stick with shows like Sesame Street, Upin & Ipin, Prophet Cartoons (Ryan managed to retell stories of Nabi Yusof and Nabi Nuh already, how awesome is that??) and SOME Disney cartoons like Doc McStuffins (No-no to major princess exposure - this is more Daddy than Mummy :p)

The twins are sleep trained successfully Alhamdullilah.They sleep in their own bed which is adjoined to our bed, two more years until they sleep in their own room.

2014 baby training plans (In Sha Allah) :

1. Ryan to start sleeping in his own room in February 2014 (in sha Allah) I'm kind of nervous.At the moment he's quite excited at the prospect of choosing his night light and bed sheets, but we shall see how this will go.
2. Potty Training & bottle weaning the twins : Hahaha this will be an adventure of its own... not one but TWO little girls, wish me luck. Ryan was off the bottle & diapers around 3.5 years, we're aiming for the same timeline with the twins but decided to start a bit earlier this time around. No harm right? :p

There are some "off moments" and bad decisions made in 2013. I rather not highlight them. Dwelling in negative stuff brings nothing but misery. With all the happenings all around the country and the world, it is best we prepare for the worst but pray and hope for the best. May Allah blessed all of us with an awesome 2014.

But for the time being : Alhamdullilah, Alhamdullilah, Alhamdullilah for the blessing that has been bestowed upon me and my family so far...

Signing off for 2013. See you next year In Sha Allah :)

Love,
Far

Ryan is FOUR

I can't believe my little cheeky cheeks in FOUR... Alhamdullilah :)

My little best friend in the whole entire world. We fight all the time but he "gets" me you know :p

He knows the way to my heart :) Always complimenting me (I'm a sucker for those) and my little gentleman.

He can be a bit stubborn at times, but I love his latest acquired trait where he will after an argument, sit back and reflect his actions and will slowly whisper to an adult around him (Hmmm Ryan buat so and so, Ryan kena cakap sorry-la) He will go to the person he hurt, extend his hand and apologize.

Ryan, 

Mummy hope you'll grow up to be a soleh young man with impeccable manners, be responsible for your actions and please take care of your little sisters. I love you so much my little Imam *hugs*

December = Family Time

December is an extra special month for our family :)

1. Because it's Ryan, Iman and Ranya's birthday month

2. There's a lot of holidays for mummy and daddy

3. School holidays for Ryan

Lan and I usually make a bit more effort in December to take leave to spend time with the kiddies doing family activities. Not that we don't spend time together in other months but since Ryan is on school holidays it is easier to bring him out without interrupting his school activities/timetable. 

So these are some of our December 2013 activities that we managed to cooked up for our little ones:

2 days 1 night trip to Genting Highlands.

We stayed in Awana and later took the kids up for their first cable car ride :) The twins was a tad bit quiet but Ryan enjoyed it very much.

Too cute la this little girl in her sweater dress and pearl necklace :) 

Blue Coral Aquarium, KL Tower & Pavillion KL

On the much hyped out date -> 111213: We went to Blue Coral Aquarium for an early celebration of the twins birthday since Lan was away on 121213 (their actual birth date) for a course. Not that it matters to the twins :p

If you're planning to visit Blue Coral check out more info here:Our Visit to Blue Coral Aquarium

But to cut a long story short it was only a 5/10 experience for us as the place is very small and crowded with not much fishes.

So we moved on to Pavillion where Ryan took a ride on the carousel. This cheered him out because he was complaining about the "small sharks" non-stop earlier.

With my "cinta hati". 

I don't get to eat a proper meal, my tudung senget, my sleep interrupted when these 3 is around, but life without them around has little meaning. Alhamdullilah for them, ya Allah. 

 2 weeks short from turning 4, Lan finally gave me the green light to bring Ryan to the cinema . Malas nak rehash his excuses and "reasoning" :p . Anyway the only kid-friendly movie was "Frozen", Ryan and I enjoyed it and he manage to keep still. We're already planning on our next outing to go watch "Walking with the Dinosaurs" end of this month

Check out Ranya coloring her brother's Spiderman book. This little girl love her books and coloring. Shall go get her some new books and her own art supplies

Ryan working on a new project with mummy. I shall post out the finished products soon. So proud of my little man handy work :)

Our December adventure is far from over, can't wait for Project Birthday 2013 which is coming very soon *in sha allah*

Iman & Ranya Turns Two

Dear Iman & Ranya

How time flies... today both of you turn two... feels just like yesterday, when I first set my eyes on you and instantly  fell in love with the two most gorgeous girls I've ever seen in my life :)

You're mummy and daddy's greatest teachers. You thought us to be patient and strong while raising both of you and your big brother. You also helped turned mummy and daddy into better and more efficient team :) If mummy can multitask before, she's even better at it now, having to learn to read two books at once, take 3 different breakfast orders and carry two toddlers on a run etc...

 Iman,

You're the most caring and loving big sister to Ranya,You even address yourself as "kakak".  I love seeing how you always try to console your little sister and help her get into her dresses and get her bottle for her. You're also Ryan's favorite play mate mostly because of your laid back nature. You love Elmo and jumping and you're totally obsessed with Atuk. Out of the 3 of you, you're the closest to Daddy and I can tell (and hope) you'll always be daddy's little girl... May you continue to be the intelligent and responsible young lady that I know you are and I hope you'll grow up true to your name. Love you, Kakak!!

 Ranya,

My spirited, fun loving and manja daughter. You're so cheeky which makes you so cute. I love that "glint" in your eye when you're up to no good. You love "Tinkerbell" and will automatically put your hands on your cheek trying to imitate the Tinkerbell we met in Disneyland :p You LOVE books. Everyday without fail, you'll drag out a book and make me read to you again and again. I do hope you can try and minimize the fighting with Ryan :p Both of you are so alike in terms of bossiness and stubbornness which is why I suspect you don't see eye to eye often. Dedek, Mummy and daddy love you very much and we hope that Allah will bless you with all the happiness in the world.

Alhamdullilah, Thank you Allah for the blessing that is both of you... 

The wonders of playing with dirt...

Maybe it's turning 30 but I've recently acquired an interest in gardening....

I mean I've always love flowers (which girl don't,huh?) but this is the "kinda find me on all fours, digging dirt, trying to avoid worms" kinda love. I find it to be very therapeutic, being able to "berbakti kepada tanah" :p

When stressed out I usually turned to retail therapy which usually results in burning a hole in my pocket and me spending hard earned money on things I want but don't necessary need. With gardening the satisfaction is on a whole new level. I love waking up in the morning seeing my flowers blooming and basking in the sweet smell of roses :)

 Loving the colours : The real eye candy *masya Allah*

My husband should be thankful because in case he ever need to give me emergency flowers he can always run outside and pick this up :p 

Yummy belimbing buluh...sliced this up into your masak lemak or turned it into sambal hitam.

 I've recently graduated to edible plants. Trying my hands in planting red chillies and tomatoes. Wish me luck, if this works it will mean cost saving and clean and organic food :)

I recently burned my fingers after getting splashed with hot oil, after the pain have subsided a bit, I put fresh aloe vera leaves from the garden for cooling effect..Alhamdullilah, felt so much better after that. This plant is also awesome for the hair, arwah nenek used to put it on my hair  :)

A new hobby which can help feed my family, good for health and at the same time makes my house prettier and smell wonderful. What not to like, huh? :p