:: ady rifqi's 3rd birthday party ::

 

 

Ady Rifqi turns three (3) on 17th June 2014.

 

 

THE PLAN

Few months before his birthday we have decided to throw a birthday celebration for him. He had his first birthday party when he turned one, but we did not have any celebration when he was two except for cake-cutting. I have been wanting to plan, decorate and host my son's party - it's among one of many things in my bucket list and it made me so excited. The first thing I did was asking Ady what theme he would like for his party. He loved Thomas and Friends and have started playing Lego so I asked his preference between the two. I asked the question once in between few days and even rotated either with Thomas or Lego as the first preference because sometimes kids give answer to the first thing they heard. Being Ady he always knows what he wants, and he answered Thomas every single time, so that's it. He will be having a Thomas-themed birthday party.

 

The party was planned to be held on Saturday, 21st June 2014 at our own crib. I have informed closed family members and friends to save the date earlier and one month before the actual date, an invitation was sent to guests through Facebook calendar of event and mobile messages. The colour code was based on Thomas' main colours - red, blue & white. Party checklist was all in my head and since then I started wearing my party planner hat when ever I had the free time. Until the day arrived, together with my husband we completed everything in the checklist:

 

1. Personalisation is important. With a bit of research I came up with a 'branding' for Ady Rifqi's 3rd Birthday Party. Instead of colourful cartoon design I wanted something that is simple and urban so I played with stripes, polka dots and chevron. After getting approval from the other half (it's a team affair, always remember to consult the co-organiser :-D) then only the actual designing and printing works started.

 

2. Designed and printed out our own party labels for the mineral water. It is an advantage that the company I'm working for produces mineral water in small bottles so I bought them and replaced with our own party labels.

 

3. Using the similar design we printed out stickers and printed materials for other party stuff such as garlands, table decorations, party favours, etc.

 

4. A guest book is a must. Instead of buying a ready-made or producing one with coloured papers (which I did for Ady's first birthday) I made a mini photobook via photobook.com.my. The photobook contains Ady's photos since day one and blank pages for guests to write.

 

5. Bookings and orders for cake, desserts, caterer for F&B, clown and photographer. Fila voluntereed to purchase and bring the helium baloons (thank you so much babe!).

 

6. Prepared party favours in goodies bags for the kids. I felt so lucky when I found polka dots paper bags in red and blue at Mydin USJ 1. It was the cutest and the most acceptable design available there. Did candy shopping at their wholesale area too. We had two types of bags. Red bag is for younger kids which contained a tub of mini playdoh and candies (mini chupa chups, mini mentos, mini m&ms and granola bars). Blue bag is for the not-so-young kids which contained a set of colour pencils, customised Thomas colouring sheet, a snack and almost similar candies.

 

7. Designed and printed photo props, but Nor assisted to prepare them on hard papers and sticks (arigato gozaimasu cik Nor!).

 

 

 

 

D-DAY

Hubby and I started arranging furnitures and decorating the corridor since early morning. We turned our dining table to a cake / candy buffet by wrapping it with papers. We placed everything necessary on the table and made paper garlands backdrop. There was a dedicated table for the photo props and guestbook, complete with colourful sharpies and stickers. The caterer arrived early and we had two big round tables for the guests. We ordered roti jala with chicken curry, singapore fried noodle, chicken drummets, nuggets and cordial drink. My mother-in-law voluntereed to prepare teh tarik and my mom brought coconut jelly all the way from Seremban. As for desserts we have the birthday cake, cupcakes, blueberry cheese tarts, mini donuts, 'love letters' and candies.

 

We managed to complete decorating just in time before the scheduled timing, 3:00 pm. Guests started coming followed by clown and photographers. Everything went on according to plan, only that it was such a hot and sunny day. We did not rent any tent so most guests had to mingle and stay inside the house. It was a bit crampy and we really apologise for such inconvenient. The birthday boy on another hand did not take his afternoon nap because he was too excited so he was a bit cranky during the party. He also got very excited accepting gifts which he proudly opened one after another. Note to parents - please accept birthday gifts and keep them in a room during birthday party to avoid similar experience.

 

 

 We had cake cutting, followed by party game led by the clown. The only time Ady happily participated was during dance session because the clown played his favourite tune - Gangnam Style. He danced to that song from beginning to the end.

 

Most guests left home by 6:30 pm. We started packing and cleaning after that. Everybody left except my family members as they spent a night with us (and helped finishing some of the food... haha.)

 

It was a memorable day for us and I have another checked item in my bucket list, Alhamdulillah. I realised I didn't get the chance to have long conversation with all guests, but hopefully they enjoyed each other's company and the experience. To family members, friends, neighbours and colleagues, we THANK YOU for spending your time with us. As the hosts, we sincerely apologise for any inconvenience occured. On behalf of the birthday boy, we appreciate all the gifts. Ady received Thomas & Friends playset and tableware, Hot Wheels playsets, a huge toy truck with cars, educational toys, building blocks, a lot of clothes and even cash (already deposited into his personal account). We did not expect that but thank you, thank you, thank you everyone.

 

  

Here are some of many beautifully captured moments during the day. I am so satisfied with the outcomes, thanks to mister photographers.

 

 

 

To our lil boy Ady Rifqi, you're growing up too fast baby. You have cherished every single day of our life since day one and our prayers are always with you. May you grow up to be a good muslim and continue to be a good son. No word could ever describe how much you mean to both of us and we promise to take care of you as long as we live. 

 

We love you, baby!

 

 

 

*keywords: thomas party ideas, thomas the tank engine birthday party, children party ideas, kids party ideas, third birthday celebration

 

:: selamat hari raya! ::

It has been many months of silence. Once in a while I dropped by my own blog space, thinking when can I start writing again. I miss blogging. I miss recording wonderful moments of my life in this blog only that it did not happen because I was "too absorbed" in the real world.

Anyhow I hope it is not too late to wish Muslim readers "Selamat Hari Raya" or "Eid Mubarak" and at the same time would like to seek forgiveness for any wrongdoings. This year, for the very first time I celebrated the first day of Syawal away from my parents and sisters as we were celebrating it at my husband's hometown in Kedah. The experience was different from what I normally had. Even the food too. We went to four houses on the first Raya and served with laksa utara, laksa sarawak and rice with side dishes. On the second day we visited husband's relatives in Kangar, Perlis before heading to Padang Besar for a quick shopping spree. I managed to eat some lontong and rice cubes with peanut sauce, and also mandy rice. The food was all good and tasty only that until today I have not eaten the usual Raya food - lemang and rendang. Perhaps that would be a good, concrete reason to look forward to receiving 'open office / open house' invites and eat them without any guilt ^_^

Here are few photos taken throughout the long holiday and a week of Eid celebration:

Pre-Raya pics. We went back to my hometown in Seremban on Friday and Ady had fun playing with his aunties. We went back to Kedah on Sunday and we were lucky this time because the road was clear from heavy traffic. We departed from Seremban at 12 noon and stopped by our house in USJ to replenish our cats' food & water. Our journey to Kedah started at 2pm in which we stopped for short nap at an R&R, did a bit of shopping at Sunway Carnival Seberang Jaya and still managed to reach Sik few minutes after break fasting time, around 8pm.

 

 



1st Syawal selfie with my sweethearts. We were wearing grayish blue outfit this year, bought from PKNS Shah Alam. Hub's and mine is a couple set outfit and we managed to find almost similar colour for lil Ady.

 

 

OTW home on 3rd Syawal we stopped by Taiping Zoo because our boy loves animal. Sadly the day zoo already closed when we arrived. The night safari started at 8pm but we still had a long way to go so we did not wait. Luckily there was a huge crocodile statue and Ady spent most of his time there adoring the gigantic thing. We still owe the little guy a visit to the zoo and KL National Zoo is now top on our to-visit list.

 

After Taiping we stopped by Ipoh. Every year ever since we got married we never miss visiting husband's good ol' friend. It is an annual thing. Thank you Halid, Balqis and the kids Hannah & Iffat for having us again. Too bad we never snap any pic or else we can see how we changed and how the kids grew up every year. Usually we also visit Nor at her hometown house in Ipoh but this year the ritual was broken because she travelled to the south a day earlier. Next year ajelah yer, insyaallah kalau dipanjangkan umur.

 

23 years of friendship and counting. Visited my long time girlfriend, Riza at her house in Bangi on Saturday. We have been friends since we were 10 years old (standard 4) and we have been through numerous experiences together. Glad the friendship remains until today although we do not see each other often. There was no official dress code but apparently we were wearing the same colour theme. Riza has started her own business selling shawl and baju kurung - check out @pumpkeenscollections on Instagram & Facebook. Loving those glittery shawl as what she was wearing (I already own 4 pieces of them, including the emerald green I was wearing in OTW home pics above).

 

 

There goes a week of holiday and celebration. It is now time to get back to reality and absorbed with never ending work responsibilities. Not sure when is the next update but hopefully it would not be as long as before. As I mentioned earlier I miss blogging. I miss doing things I love to do, instead of forcing myself to love things I have to do.

 

Last but not least, do not forget to pray for our Muslim relatives who are fighting for their lives in Gaza Palestine. It is a cruel world out there. May God continues to keep them under His protection and blessings. As Malaysians we also need to pray the same thing for our country. May the souls of those perished in the MH17 tragedy rest in peace.

:: whuzzup? ::

Hello people. It has been months since my last update. I really miss blogging but what stops me from writing is 'time'. In June I was transferred to another unit and life has no longer been the same. Being in a new team requires me to adapt, learn a lot of new stuff and with a major project that we are currently having, time is one of our 'enemy'. Call me workaholic but I couldn't help to think do work every night and day. There was this day in Ramadhan when I stayed up through out the night doing a presentation slide and ended up knocking someone's car bumper on the next day because I felt asleep for a few seconds at the traffic light. I don't need to mention how tiring and challenging it is (since I'm also a wife and a mother) but despite all these, I do love what I am doing and that keeps the whole thing going.

In these few months, I had the opportunity to travel from one state to another, interact with company's management team, observing qualities that are required to become good leader but one moment that truly inspires me was when I had the opportunity to accompany our company's GCEO for lunch. There were only three of us so I took the chance asking him a question; whether he had ever imagined himself to be at the current position. Maybe I should asked better (and more intelligent) question than that but I did not regret asking because his answer was inspiring and a mind opener. He mentioned about the importance of having value and purpose in life and at work; and when believed we are doing the right things on the right path, good things will come inevitably.

Although I didn't update my blog, I was still active in the social media especially Instagram. I just love Instagram-ing photos especially when they are captured moments of my not-so-little-anymore boy and moments that I would love to remember. Below is a small collection of my Instagram @yatoque photos to recap what has been going on in my life during my hiatus from the blogging world since June.

HIGHLIGHTS #01:

- Ady pretending to sleep. Not sure about the pouty long lips but he always does that everytime he pretends sleeping :-P

- My new pairs of killer heels bought from trendyfairy. The one with spikes is a weapon in disguise and I am the first victim, now left with scars on both feet -__-

- "a kiss from a furry friend"

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS #02:

- Ady dancing Gangnam Style in diapers and sunglasses

- Few photos of us in Brisbane and Gold Coast (will blog about this later)

- Me featured in Cosmoderm's ad in few local women magazines. Thank you Cosmoderm!

- Raya gifts from BFF during our annual iftar together

 

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS #03:

- Ady helping Atuk washing his car during a weekend in Seremban

- Food platter Ady sent me for lunch while I was doing office work at our dining table. I was touched.

- Photos of myself while on duty for TM booth at career fair in KL Convention Centre

- Photo of babyAdy captured and printed by sis-in-law. Love the pic!

- Ady helping Papa washing Mama's lil red car :-)

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS #04:

- Few pics of myself as the WonderWoman during our 'superhero' themed annual Group Awards Night held in MMU Cyberjaya

- 17.06.13: Ady turns two!

- Our five kitties (clockwise: Neslo, MiuMiu, Nescafe, Teh Tarik and Milo) having their special weekly dinner

- BFF friendship keychains for each of us. Made these with the girls during our karaoke night-out

 

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS #05:

- With BFF during our girls' nite out at Redbox The Gardens

- Short visit to i-City Shah Alam with family

- 06.06: Our wedding anniversary

- The day when Ady received his first Thomas play set

- The night when we went up to Genting Highlands for a stroll and coffee / hot choc

- The room in Majestic Malacca: my first out station after many years & first time sleeping without my baby

 

***

Selamat Hari Malaysia peeps!

:: picnic at setia city park ::

We did not travel anywhere far during the Chinese New Year long weekend and we purposely did that because we know how bad traffic is during long holidays. In order to occupy time my best friends (except Nor who travelled to Jakarta) suggested us to go out for a picnic at the park. It was such an awesome idea because it is something different. In oversea we used to watch people relaxing and spending time at the park but people hardly do that in Malaysia, I think it is mainly because of the hot weather. We decided to go picnic at Setia City Park which is just besides the Setia City Mall in Setia Alam area. It is a recently developed housing area quite far from the city. Everything is new so the park is still nicely maintained with green grass and playground area. We were lucky because it was sunny and breezy at the same time; a perfect weather for an evening at the park.

Picnic is incomplete without food so Rabby made potato salad, Fila brought sandwich and fruits while I brought fried mee hoon and fried sausages. My family who came to visit us also joined our picnic session for awhile. Ady really enjoyed himself that day because he got the entire park to himself and besides running around he was interested watching guys playing skateboards. We only spent around 2 hours at the park but it was meaningful and many times better than spending a day at the shopping mall like we usually do. I am glad that the long public holiday was nicely spent with family and friends.

So, when are we going to repeat this again, girls?
...and specifically to Nor, jom picnic jom! Hehehe.

:: kardashian kollection now in malaysia ::

Who never heard of the Kardashians? I believe they are among most sensational families worldwide and I have become one of the fans who got stuck in front of tv watching their series either Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Kourtney & Khloe take Miami, Kourtney & Kim take New York and even Khloe & Lamar. I was happy knowing that they are collaborating their fashion line with Dorothy Perkins and was even happier for getting the chance attending the Kardashian Kollection Preview Launch Party in Malaysia which was held at Dorothy Perkins Mid Valley yesterday evening.

Went there with no other than my partner-in-crime, Nor but did not stay long. There was not much to be seen from the collection but the items were pretty and reflected the girls. I can immediately imagine Kim wearing the leopard print dress while Kourtney wearing the printed blouse and Khloe donning the printed blazer. What I like the most is their glitter envelope clutch. Glitter is totally in the season right now and you could never go wrong with one. Another thing I noticed about this kollection is the price. Being someone who frequently pay visits to DP, I have to say that Kardashian Kollection is selling at higher price (around half to double) than usual. I guess that should be expected when there is a collaboration with a strong brand because customers not only buy the name but also its exclusivity as the items are limited. From what I read on Twitter (I follow all 3 sisters as well as Rob and Scott) items sold during online preview in the UK were sold out. 

Got the chance to pose with one of the inspiring hijabi-fashionista blogger, Shea (Hi Shea, love reading your blog!)

Anyway the theme was Gold & Glamour so I chose to wear gold accessories on top of the teal and black outfit.

- Cleopatra necklace: Lovisa

- Clutch & Belt: Dorothy Perkins

- Bracelet watch: DKNY

- Dress: Dorothy Perkins

- Pants: Mango

- Heels: Kiss & Tell (worn with my DIY shoe clips)

The Kardashian Kollection is available at selected Dorothy Perkins outlets (One Utama, Mid Valley, Empire, Bangsar, Pavilion, Sunway Pyramid and the Curve) starting today, Friday 09.11.2012 but you can view the items, together with other DP collection on the new Dorothy Perkins Malaysia online shopping site.

:: sushi king rm2 each ::

Hi, I just came back from having a sushi fiesta at Sushi King. Did you know that Sushi King is having the Sushi King Card Bonanza and if you are a member, you can bring up to 5 people to enjoy a plate of sushi (any colour) at only RM2 each. Too bad I just knew about this but if you are staying around Selangor and KL you still have time until tonight.

Anyway, today is Nor's birthday so we went out to Mid Valley for lunch with our bride-to-be-friend Ita who is the Sushi King Card member (this is what we call friends with benefits...lol). We had to queue for 20 - 30 minutes and the moment we sat down at our table, we just grabbed what ever expensive sushis that were moving on the kaiten belt. We ended up eating (only) 16 plates at only RM32, half of the total original price of RM69. Sushi King Card Bonanza is among the best food deal ever existed (not forgetting Kenny Rogers buy-1-free-1 day). Thank you for the treat Ita and hopefully we could tag along with you again in the next offer *wink wink*.

p/s: Happy Birthday to my dear bestie aka. partner-in-crime. Wishing you an everlasting happiness and good health...and thank you for being such a great friend.

:: pretty in pastel ::

On Friday (14.09.2012) two weeks ago, I had a fun time with my usual girlfriends. It was supposed to be a Raya gathering but everybody except Fila knew that it was also a surprise belated birthday celebration for her. Prior to D-day, the three of us (Nor, Rabby and myself) have been exchanging emails on the preparation in concurrent with another set of communication which included Fila. Organising a surprise party was exciting and I almost jumbled up the communication, yet we still managed to keep everything below the wavelength.

The gathering was set to be held at Wondermilk Citta Mall and the theme was 'pretty in pastel'. Nor and I arrived earlier to set up tables and chairs with balloons and our handmade party props while Rabby was in charged to usher the birthday girl. Soon as Fila entered Wondermilk, we gave her a loud "SURPRISE!". Since her birthday was two weeks earlier (30.08.2012), she was a bit confused and asked us "what is the surprise for?" :-P Haha... sorry for the delay Fila, but this kind of delay made you extra surprised right? (ayat kaver line).         

  The props and the belated birthday girl when she was being surprised

Girls will always be girls. We spent almost 30 minutes chatting and taking photos - posing with the props and the cupcakes before we ordered dinner. I brought along photobooth props I made for my unit's raya gathering so it was quite hillarious! It was a truly all-girls affair because for the first time after 15 months Ady did not tag along at our gathering. Sorry baby, next time you'll join us again okay.  

Each of us ordered Wondermilk El Presidente dinner set which consists of burger, fries and drinks for RM22.90. I took the Ultimate Super Burger with a thick beef patty and their Lemon Crush wondercooler for drink. We also ordered a baked potato which was shared between us. Their food was not so bad in taste and portion but to me their cupcakes were a bit too sweet for my liking. They were RM50 for 12 pieces and although the designs were uber cute, they were quite small for a 'maxi'.

Although it was Fila's birthday celebration, she was not the only one receiving gift because Nor, being the kindest girlfriend gave each of us a copy of "Yasmin How You Know?" book which is a compilation of fond memories her friends have about the late Yasmin Ahmad. For awhile, a social gathering became a book club meeting because everybody was indulged with the writings. 

The evening passed by with more giggles, laughters, smiles, photo shots... and a visit to Chatime. It was a fun night out and thank you God for giving me those wonderful ladies as my besties. Till we meet again, girls!        

The birthday girl received a gift coupon from Nor.

My prezzie will reach you soon ye Fila ;-)

So, did we look pretty in pastel?

:-P

 

:: my new favourite store ::

As promised earlier, this is the H&M KL grand opening after-entry. Intended to write this later that night but I was too tired. It's better late than never though, so here the story goes....

After almost 2 hours queuing, Nor and I finally entered H&M's first flagship store in Malaysia at 11:00am. The crowd instantly went crazy and started choosing what they wanted as if the store will be closed forever in a day. Even I was too excited until did not know where to start because there were too many pretty things around me *rambang mata*. The first thing I wanted was the printed blouse which was included in my shopping list and worn by one of the mannequin. Couldn't find it at first so I asked an SA who instructed me to go up another level but couldn't find it there neither so I started looking for other items.

Anyway, H&M Kuala Lumpur is divided into 3 levels: 

- Ground / first floor: ladies department

- Second floor: ladies department (also home for lingerie & sleepwear)

- Third floor: men and kids department

I spent most time at the second floor. Tried my best to only buy items listed in my shopping list but I tell you, being in a store that offers fashionable items from top-to-toe with a shopping list in hand was much harder than going in without anything in mind. Since there were so many people and so many items around, it took me some time searching here and there until I finally found the blazers I wanted. I have been looking for the perfect vibrant coloured blazer since few months back so when the one in H&M fit well on me, I didn't grab one but two! 

After first round of shopping for myself, I then went up to the men and kids department. Crowd in the men department was almost similar to the ladies' but the most peaceful area inside the entire store was definitely the kids'. Now, men has no reason to skip shopping with their girlfriends and spouses because H&M caters items for both simple and stylo guys at affordable price. Even I was excited looking at their cotton long-sleeved working shirts selling at only RM39.90 (or was it RM49.90? too cheap too remember LoL). Kids' section shared almost half of the floor and after snapping a photo of the girls' area I straightaway went to baby boys' section at one end of the floor. Ady already got a number of new tops during Ramadhan so I planned to buy him new pants instead. Moreover, maybe due to the autumn/winter season in the West, most tops were long-sleeved so they are not really practical for Ady although I really like some of them. In the end I left the kids' section with a pair of cobalt blue pants that made me felt in love at the first sight.

Row #01: People queuing before and after us

Row #02: Our first two pics after entering the store

Row #03: Ladies second floor & Boys' section

Row #04: Girls' section & Ladies ground floor

Their accessories are affordable and to-die-for

Nor and I made our very last tour before we decided to pay our stuff. I tried my luck again asking about the printed blouse but sad to know that it was actually sold out. Last night, I have read somewhere that it was already sold out during the VIP opening night and Nor said, she did not see the blouse on the mannequin anymore when she visited the store again yesterday to replace her purchase. Boohoohoo...

Oh by the way, H&M believes in this principe where customers should not stay long in the line so they have 30-days return policy. Some useful tips I learnt through experience and reading:

- Just grab whatever item you like in the store and exchange size or seek for refund within 30 days provided that it is in unworn and unwash condition with original receipt (except earrings, underwear & swimwear).

- Items worn on a mannequin should be available somewhere near the mannequin itself (not at the upper floor, of course :-P). This was informed by one helpful SA when I was trying my luck for the second time.


- New stocks arrive every week and in fact, not everything you see online are available now. Sports trousers I wanted to buy for hubby will arrive later, according to them but their makeup range will still be unavailable here.

- Queue to fitting room is long. Plan your outfit prior to visit so you could test items outside fitting room which explains my outfit that day. I wore tee and cardie so it was easy for me to try the blazers. Thought of wearing a skirt so it would be easy to try on pants but thinking about the long queue...nahhh, next time.

- You can make your shopping list, do budget or feast your eyes by browsing the products at H&M website.

The queue was still long after we left the store.

So, what's inside my shopping bag?

 

Nothing much actually. Only 5 plain coloured items (am I boring or what?) but it's okayyy, they give me reason to pay the store another visit next week ;-)

p/s: Surprised to find 2 small pouches with bangles inside the paperbag. They really know how to appreciate the early birds eh and H&M is definitely my new favourite store!

:: ceritera raya ::

H-E-L-L-O!

First and foremost, I hope it is not too late for me to wish Selamat Hari Raya and Maaf Zahir Batin to all muslim readers although today is the last day of Syawal. Hope everybody had a great time with family and friends; and also enjoyed the food galore through out the month. It has been weeks and I have been trying to post this entry almost everyday but I just couldn't make it because my life was very occupied lately. Hopefully I can make it this time and eventually write again for this pinky blog. Oh my, time flies really fast because it is already the end of Syawal and yet I haven't share anything about Hari Raya *gasp*. Please forgive me for being such an outdated blogger; so in this post I shall write everything about my Raya celebration since day 1 till today hence expect a long post full of writing and piccas.

Like previous years we spent our first day of Syawal at my home town in Seremban. We have a small family so first Syawal means a lot because that is when everybody gathers around at my grand parents' house which is approximately 20 minutes drive from home. It was a joyous session and I was happy to meet my relatives that day because I only see some of them once a year. Besides gathering at my grand parents' we usually visited other relatives who live in the same kampung but this year we did not go anywhere else. My parents travelled in another car so they continued the tradition while we returned to Seremban and visited hubby's auntie, who served the best soto everrr!

From observation, purple is the most chosen colour for Raya 2012

I have to admit we did not shoot a lot of photos this year and too bad, not even a single family photo with my own parents...gahhh! I also realised there is no photos on food too except a pic of my oreo non-baked cheese cake and even worst, the Instax was left in USJ. Dunno what had happened to me but I promise I shall shoot more photos during Aidiladha later.

We went back to hubby's home town in Sik, Kedah on the second day of Raya and for the first time ever, we had to face sluggish traffic on the way up North. We normally faced massive jam on the way back to KL but it was the other way round this year and caused us 9 hours on the road. Cars got stuck inside all major R&Rs because there were too many people so we had to exit at a toll, stopped at PLUS office for toilet visit and entered the toll again to continue the journey. We had our dinner at Nando's Auto City Penang because nothing good left when we stopped at R&R Sungai Perak. By the way, Auto City which can be seen at left side of the highway going up North is such a happening place because it has varieties of restaurants and also bazaar style area called Shop In D Park where people can shop at night at more than 100 shops. Wish we could have one place like that in Klang Valley because the surrounding looks more comfortable than the Uptown bazaars.

Nothing much happened on the next day except visiting relatives. We stayed at hubby's late grand parents house, a huge wooden kampung style (not gangnam style) house and the best thing about staying there is the cold, minty water. Honestly, the water was damn cold but totally refreshing. It makes you feel hesitated at first but once you splash it over your body, you will want more and more... brrr! On the fourth Raya, everybody who came from KL travelled to Perlis for a Raya visit at one of hubby's auntie. We had lunch; spent almost half a day there before returned to Sik and dropped by at this mamak place named Sickenter. It has been our routine to have meal at Sickenter when we return to Sik because hubby loves their special, tasty mee goreng and as for me, I always go for their roti canai. 

babyAdy enjoying himself

On Thursday, we started our journey back to KL around 4 pm. It has been a tradition for us to stop by at Ipoh on the way back to KL every year so for another year we visited hubby's ex-roomate (Halid and his wife Balqis) and also my BFF (Nor) at her hometown. Ady was very happy because at Halid & Balqis's he enjoyed playing with their daughter Hannah and when we visited Nor, he enjoyed playing with Alvin, Nor's big white kitty. Thank you for entertaining us, friends and hopefully we can still continue the tradition next year. We reached home at 1:30 am and spent rest of the week in USJ before going back to work on Monday. 

:: special iftar sessions ::

Ramadhan is getting closer to the end. Only a day left before celebrating Syawal and many have left for their hometown since two days ago. I am still in the office though. As usual we will be celebrating the first Eid in Seremban and then travel all the way up North on the second day. Before we all start talking about our Hari Raya celebration, I would like to share about special iftar sessions I had this year and they all happened in the last weekend.

The first session was on Saturday and it was an invitation by Cosmoderm for their Duit Raya contest winners, fans and bloggers at Bukit Jalil Golf Club. The theme was green and yellow so I just wore my yellow maxi dress with mint green cardie to match the requirement. The event was simple and I got the chance to mingle around with new people and meeting other Cosmoderm bloggers like elya shazleen, amoi heaxa and lyda rosli. We all brought home goodie bags which include product samples and also sambal jawa goreng. Will share about sambal jawa goreng next time because it taste really good and big thanks to Nana for inviting us to the event. 

lydarosli - me - elyashazlen - amoiheaxa

On the next day was another memorable iftar and it was a session with my besties. Rabby suggested us to buy Hadramawt buffet iftar from Groupon at only RM30 per person and we did considering the price and the fact that we never dine at any arabian restaurant together. Rynn did not join us this year because she already bought the same coupon with her colleagues, so we shall see you in Raya potluck ya?

Anyway, I want to skip telling about our (confusing) journey but still want to highlight why must Yemeni restaurants named their restaurant Hadramawt and in Jalan Ampang itself there are Hadramawt and Wadi Hadramawt! I know it is a place in Yemen but don't they have any other cities or places to be named of? :-/ Ok since I am in a rush now, I also have to skip telling about our bad parking experience at the restaurant and go straight to the food and fun time we had. Overall rating, the food was not so bad but they are incomparable to Saba and Al-Rawsha (but we may come again for the delicious goat cheese samosa).

As usual, one eating place is never enough for us and we later got our dose of coffee / chocolate at Starbucks in Great Eastern Mall. Ady was very happy because he was able to walk around the mall in freedom. He even took away Nor's 'santa bag', took out her gift and due to that we started the gift exchange session. Giving and receiving gifts is so exciting. This year each of us received a shawl from Nor; and face mist as well as lipstick from Fila. Love each of them and thank you so much girls!

What they got from me:

Dorothy Perkins's skinny belt plus a handmade hair clip for Rabby's daughter

The weekend does not stop there. Monday was a special day because it was my beloved husband's birthday and it called for a celebration. We went out in the afternoon and later I surprised him with an iftar at the highest restaurant in KL city, on top of the KL Tower.

I have went to KL Tower many times for work and events but never with hubby so it was a memorable moment for our small family. The food was scrumptious and the ambience was very relaxing. Ady really enjoyed the food and he was the first one to start and last eating. We think Ady loves buffet because he could taste different kind of food. After eating we then went to KLCC and brought home 5 new tops for Ady. 

So that's it. I have to rush home to pack and prepare because we are going back to Seremban tonight. Let us cherish our last days of Ramadhan and with His blessing, hopefully able to meet the next Ramadhan. Insyaallah.

Selamat menyambut Hari Raya Aidilfitri dan Maaf Zahir Batin to all. 

:: one happy weekend ::

Weekend is hours away. Before it arrives I wanted to share about the previous weekend. We started our Saturday with a wedding at Titiwangsa. Not the Titiwangsa lake, but Jalan Titiwangsa somewhere around there. It was my ex-hommie's wedding - Julie or better known as Opet to us with her partner, Aie. The bride and groom looked fab in their white songket. Besides the tasty main dishes and cendol, they also served putu piring which is my favourite kuih. I guess this is the first ever wedding that served putu piring and I like that brilliant idea. Welcome to married life, sweet couple. We are happy for you and wishing you an everlasting love.  

Ady couldn't stop staring at the bride and groom

We did not know where to go after the wedding so I suggested us to drop by at Mid Valley for the Maybank Treatpoints Fair. It is an annual event for Maybank card members where we could redeem our points for items and get extra bonus points for spending. We used to go to the fair but never redeem anything because I was so stingy but that day I intended to utilise some of the points. The crowd was huge. We did not know what to get at first but hubby then suggested on getting garment steamer. We looked at two brands but finally settled with one by Faber instead of Phillips because Faber's came with adjustable hanger rod, which is really convenient. We even tested the item on the Poplook's chiffon maxi dress that I was wearing. The result was convincing until another lady who helped me ironing my dress took one steamer home too. There goes 47,600 of my treatpoints. 

:: ady's 1st birthday bash ::

Warning: This entry contains more photos than text

Before I have a kid I wondered why parents spent so much for their child's first birthday whereas the child is still very young to understand. Now when I am in that shoe I know the feeling and how excited it is to commemorate our child's one-year milestone. I have planned to organise a party for Ady's first birthday since three months back. I proposed the venue to hubby and he agreed so I booked the place exactly two months before the date. We are lucky this year because 17th of June falls on Sunday so the event could be done exactly on Ady's birthday. The party was held in A&W 3K Subang because it is near our home. Moreover, when I was a kid I have always dream of having a party at A&W because the bear mascot will be there celebrating the party together. I remember the excitement when the bear made his appearance so it will be a fun event for everybody.

It was not a huge celebration so we only invited close family members and friends. The party was supposed to start at 3:00 pm but we waited until majority of guests arrived to kick it off. While waiting, some guests wrote their birthday wishes for the birthday boy in the guest book that I have prepared. It was a last minute idea actually. I thought it would be memorable to have a guest book on Ady's first birthday so he will know who attended his first ever birthday and read the wishes when he is older later. At the same time, we also went around and snapped photos of the birthday boy with the guests using my Instax to be given as door gift.

:: our bersih day ::

Ever since attached to the current Unit I am handling now, April is never the same as before. No doubt, April would be the busiest month through out the year (and among the happiest too when everything is over). I was very busy in the office and too tired when reached home, hence explains my silence in the blogging world. It is already end of April and this is only the second post of the month. At this point, there is too much to tell. What I was up to, what Ady was up to, blablabla... whoa where should I start?

Rather than telling outdated flashback stories, allow me to break the silence with an update of what I was doing yesterday instead. As we Malaysians are aware of, 28th April 2012 is the Bersih 3.0 rally day. I don't want to explain what Bersih is but if you are above 18 and label yourself a Malaysian but never heard of this Bersih thingy, that is simply weird. Anyway, while thousands of people chose to be on the road showing their protest, my friends and I chose to be chilling at Sunway Pyramid for a day out. The initial plan was eating at Yellow Cab pizza in Dang Wangi area wearing yellow (seriously, no joke). We were totally forgotten about this Bersih 3.0 until hubby reminded me. It was funny though thinking about how we might get arrested for wearing Bersih's theme colour while we were innocent and happy on our way to eat pizza. Of course that did not happen although I still wore yellow. Not sure why I am so crazy about yellow lately but I also made my baby wearing yellow too. I like wearing matching outfit with him and this is our combo for yesterday:

"boria"

We arrived Sunway Pyramid with Rabby who came with us at almost 3:00 pm. We had to substitute Yellow Cab to Papa John but on our way to the restaurant we stopped by at the Padini Concept Store because they were having a major 4-day sale starting yesterday. Everything in the PCS was discounted from 50% to 70%. Not sure whether the same sale occur at all other PCS but it is worth a visit if you are looking for shoes, working attire, casual outfits and accessories. 

Outing with BFF is always more to hanging out chatting while eating. Window shopping is only a 'sideline' and to prove that we only went to five stores through out entire 7 hours we spent together as most of the time were spent in Papa John and Starbucks. Rabby said we might have getting older because we easily got tired of walking. Sad but true. Back in univ days we could visit every floor in a shopping mall from one end to another without taking any break. Imagine how our outings going to be in the next 10 years? No need to go to shopping mall maybe? :-/

We took quite a number of pictures and even got warned for taking photos inside a store. Nor and I even brought our Instax. Oh, actually the outing is also celebrating...errr can I call it our "success", Nor? Not only she paid for our food, Nor was kind enough to give us a black Topshop kohl eyeliner each that came together with a special note and a slot for an Instax group photo. So shweeeeet. Thank you so much, dear!

All in all, it was a fun day for all of us. Food was great at Papa John but still have to adapt with their style (love the jalapenos though). Starbucks never fail to impress with their drinks. Good shopping bargains (bought a cardie & yellow wedges each priced less than RM100) and obviously, good company thanks to my lovely besties. We did not set any specific theme for the outing actually but everybody came in a maxi skirt / dress without telling. Talk about synchronised thinking eh.

Last but not least, I shall leave this post with a collection of photos. 

28.04.12 - This is our version of Bersih Day.

Love + Friendship

Bonding + Happiness

.The.End.