Abang and Adik are angels of Encik Kamil and Cik Puan Kamil.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Elsa and Ana

Yesterday Abah saw Elsa playing with Umar’s new chess set and was being very reckless about it.

“Ti… jangan main sepah-sepah. Itu Umar punya… karang hilang kang…..”

She looked up at her father and said, “It’s okay. I am not afraid of Umar…” shrugging her shoulders.

Sungguh lah budak ni. Patut le tak peduli kat abangnya. Bulat mata Abah.

“I am not talking about Umar. I am talking about me. I paid for it, kalau hilang Abah marah… !”

She looked at her Abah again, face in a frown. “But Abah…. This is not yours, this is Umar’s … It’s okay….”

Melawan…..

Kisah Ana pulak…. Last week I think she requested for iced tea from makcik. Makcik however shook her head and said, “Kan tak boleh. Ayah tak bagi minum ais……”

She replied ? “Ayah tak de lak, acik. Tak pe…. Buat aje…..”

Lagi sorang… Keberanian tiada batasan...

Macamana budak berdua nih….

Monday, April 20, 2009

What have you done ?

We moved house 9 months ago and we are still looking around for furniture. We still do not have a coffee table yet, nor a side table. Umar doesn’t even have a bed yet. I hate buying furniture for the sake of buying. I want to fall in love with it first before I contemplate taking it home with me.

Well… in truth, I fell in love many times over, just my pay packet didn’t allow them to come home with me.

We had been busy, Rashdan and I these past few months and therefore furniture hunting activities were shelved momentarily. We can’t any longer though because we had been receiving a lot of visitors quite recently and the non-existence of a coffee table was very much felt. In short, we do not know where to put the coffee (just a figure of speech. There are no coffee granules in my home. Usually orange cordial or tea) for our guests.

Such a lengthy introduction for a very short story I have in mind. Anyway, our renewed vigour to furnish our house reminds me of an incident years ago when Umar was about 5. We had moved to Dan’s parents’ house but sadly we could only take some of our stuffs with us. The rest of it had to find new homes. The washing machine went to my brother, the pot and pans went to my sister. Quite a bit of furniture went to my mom. She has a big house so she could accommodate them.

Anyway, one of the things she got was our coffee and side table set. They have similar detail, being a set, only one is long and the other one is short. Mum put the side table in between her leather librarian chair and the coffee table elsewhere. A few days after we moved, my baby Umar went inside my mom’s house and immediately saw the side table.

He went to it with a frown (I was looking at him), checked it a bit and exclaimed, “Tok ! The table has shrunk !! What have you done ? Dia dah kecik dah !!”

And we burst out laughing.

Funny lah you, Um… !

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Bawang...

Yesterday Elsa had done it again.

I came home to a very messy house. Toys were strewn all over and I counted the kids made 4 play stations. I heard them singing and yelling upstairs, having their bath so I went to the fridge, grabbed my anniversary Twix and ran upstairs.

“Why is the house so messy with your toys ?” I asked, hand on my hips. They stopped whatever they were doing midway.

“After mandi, go down and clean-up ..” I ordered. “And I mean you guys, not Bibik. She didn’t play with those toys, you guys did !” I stood there, looking at them sternly. Elsa frowned, pursed her lips and said, “Kalau Bibik nak buat, apa salahnya ?”

Bibik looked at me and grinned. I should have given them a menacing look, not a stern one.

“No !! You do it !!” I said and promptly left before she could say anything else.

I threw myself on the bed, grabbed a Fiona Walker book and started reading. Remembered the Twix, took one and slowly ate it, savouring every chocolate, biscuit and caramel. I had wanted to wait for Dan and share it with him, but I can’t any longer. I was craving since yesterday, but am thoughtful enough to save the other piece for him.

Enter Elsa. She saw me chewing and demanded to know what exactly it was.

“Bawang …” Said I, not looking at her.

“Bawang ?” She asked incredulously. Then, “Let me see this bawang….”, and went around the bed (I was at the other side of the bed). I quickly popped in the last piece, chomping it furiously.

“Let me see…” She demanded.

“Dah habis !” Not satisfied, she leaned near me and smelt my mouth. Damn !

“Mummy…. I think I like this bawang….. It smells so good…..” She said, eyes wide.

“This bawang is yummy, Mummy. I know it. I can tell….”

He he….what can I do ? Grabbed the remaining Twix and gave it to her. She opened the packing, took a bite and closed her eyes.

“I like bawang…” She grinned.

Ha ha…

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Louder, please..

When I came home yesterday, Elsa announced that my presence is required by her teacher at school tomorrow. She explained that she will be singing and we have to watch her do it.

I frowned. A concert on Tuesday ? Very unlikely, so I asked if there is any letter from school. No, she said. There is no letter from her teacher.

I put that at the back of my head, assuming that she had misheard or misunderstood teacher’s instructions. Things though got very serious when Babah is involved. Babah prodded and asked and prodded and Mummy sighed. Elsa, at times under duress, would suddenly loose her vocal chords. She would speak in a volume so low, only a chipmunk on her shoulder could hear.

It was Mummy and Babah’s anniversary yesterday and we had warned them that we might, MIGHT mind you, have dinner a deux. Elsa of course was not happy but Umar was very understanding.

“Ti…. It is their anniversary, Ti. We have to leave them alone to celebrate….” He admonished his sister. Hearing that, Mummy got a bit segan for some reason. Called Babah up and Babah revealed that he had never planned to leave his children anyway, ha ha…

Anyway after dinner, in the car for some reason, Elsa brought up the Mummy-teacher-said-you-must-come-to-school subject again. Babah grew rather concerned and asked, “Ti did you do something at school ? Is teacher angry with you ?”

“No…” The little one said, but after that we could hear the sound of her voice but not the words. She had done it again.

“Elsa…. What did teacher say exactly ?” I asked.

Again, just the sound, but the words failed to reach our ears.

“Elsa… louder !!” Said Babah.

“Teacher kan… cakap kan….” There were more after that but it was indistinguishable. Babah and Mummy looked at each other, feeling totally helpless.

“Elsa…. Please speak louder or Abah will stop by the side of the road …..” He didn’t have the chance to finish because Abang quickly barked orders, “Ti !! Kuat sikit lah !!”

“Teacher cakap kan Mummy kena datang sekolah kan dengar saya nyanyi lagu Syaitan kan tapi tak de surat pun kan…. Saya dah check kan…”

Was it so hard ? “That is all she said ?” I asked and she gave a more ear grabbing “Yes !”

Then, she opened her mouth again, started to say something when Abang Um barked, “That is enough ! Don’t say anything anymore !”

He he……

Monday, April 13, 2009

Elsa’s Lime Tree….

It was rather hot two Saturdays ago, so I ordered iced lime tea for breakfast, as oppose to my usual tipple, warm lime tea. Umar was talking to me about things that he finds embarrassing. It was a very animated conversation and I remembered him saying, “I would be mortified if I walk naked in public….” I was shocked with his usage of mortified and wanted to be sure he was saying it right, so I asked him to repeat.

He didn’t answer, so I looked at him and saw him looking at his sister, eyes narrowed. “Why would you ever be naked in public, Um ?” I asked. He raised his palm at me, asking for a minute and asked, “Ti…. Did you swallow some seeds ?”

Elsa slowly released the straw from her mouth, a slight confused look on her face and said, “No….”. Umar frowned. “I thought I saw you swallowed the seeds…..” He said again. Elsa shrugged her shoulders.

“Mummy… will she be okay even if she swallowed the lime seeds ?” Came the very expected question.

“Well….. I wouldn’t know…. Worse come to worse, she is growing a lime tree in her tummy and when it is grown, we have to chop it down lah….”. Elsa laughed but Umar, again predictably became more apprehensive.

“Will she be okay ? When they operate her ?”

“Well… she should be… It just a matter of chopping the tree….. Then they will sew her up again….” Mummy is good at appearing nonchalant.

“That is why I do not like drinking anything with lime. It is the seeds, you know… So dangerous….Blah, blah, blah….” Mummy and Elsa rolled our eyes.

I again ordered the same beverage last Saturday. It is usually iced tea for the kids to share and sharing produces a lot of fights and promises of a scuffle. Maybe that was what motivated Elsa to again grab my drink.

But surprise, surprise (actually not really…) Umar stopped her from reaching for my glass and pushed the glass of iced tea to his sister.

“Ti… drink this…. Don’t drink Mummy punya…..” He said, with a frown and a lot of authority. It was an order.

Bewildered, Elsa took the offered drink and sipped gratefully.
"We still have to see if the tree is growing in you..." He grumbled.

He he……

Friday, April 10, 2009

Abah tak puas hati pasal hal semalam...

We came home to a sassy mouth Elsa yesterday. Boy was she on a roll. Abah was asking for it, really but me, I didn’t say anything at all but got the brunt of her witticsm all the same. Witticism or insolence ? Hmmm ?

Abah came home to find his girls comfortably having a conversation on the bed. He just couldn’t let things go, that one and so the first thing he said was, “Elsa… malam ni kalau sakit perut lagi, gerak Mummy….”

Elsa looked at him and shook her head. “Tak nak….” Abah raised his eyebrows. “Because mothers cook and fathers basuk o-ok…” She added.

We couldn’t say anything, really after that. He he….
This morning we woke up late again. Dan yelled in shock when the sun greeted him as soon as he opened his eyes.

“Oii bangun !! Pukul 7 dah !!” And we scrambled out of our beds.

Don’t know why his phone won’t co-operate again. Mogok gamaknya. I scurried after my children, barking instructions for them to hurry. The kids got ready in record time. As I combed Elsa’s hair, I was muttering about our lateness when Elsa helpfully gave me an advise.

“Mummy, if you want to hurry up, don’t sit too long in the bathroom like this…” and with that she sat on the bed, shoulders hunched, palms opened. It looked suspiciously like how palms look like when its owner was reading a book.

“….lama-lama…” My eyes cannot get off of her.

“You can be ready faster if you don’t sit too long on the ….ermm… bath tub….”

“Oh ?”

“Yes….. I know, Mummy !!”

Babah gelak sakan. Hmmph !

Thursday, April 09, 2009

Ha, Abah....

This morning I woke up with a start and saw the sun was shining high up. “Dan !! Dah pagi !!” I informed my husband, several octaves higher from my normal pitch. On hearing that, my kids also jumped from the beds.

7.26 am the clock told me.

“Kita tak pegi kerja ke ?” Asked my confused husband. Gelak aku… he he…

His next sentence was, “Awak tahu tak Elsa cirit birit malam tadi ? Gerak langsung tak bangun !”

“Haa Mummy. Saya cirit birit….” She said softly.

“Laa…. Ye ke ? I tak sedar pun….”

He he… Sebenarnya aku sedar. But then because Dan sleeps on the children’s side, so the first thing Elsa saw was her Abah, therefore.. well you know the rest. I heard her talking to her dad, and I also heard Abah calling me, but I kept on closing my eyes.

Why must he call me ? Why must I do it if she had specifically called for her Abah ? Why can’t he do it ? She is your daughter too. Why must both of us loose our sleep ? He he…

Anyway, Elsa got up 3 times to go to the loo, poor baby, and each time she sought for her Abah. He he…. What to do, yeah ?

Anyway, to continue my story, I looked at Elsa, gave her a thumbs up and said, “Well done !!” Elsa smiled beautifully at me, nodding her head. Dan of course wasn’t happy.

“Elsa next time kalau nak pi toilet malam-malam, panggil Mummy kay ?” She shrugged her shoulders while reaching for Kitty. Dan smiled triumphantly. Yeah, right.

“Elsa… who will you call next time when you have cirit birit again ?”

“Babah… “ She said, smiling.

“Itulah awak…. Dia tak sayang awak tuh…” Said the guy who is stuck washing her daughter’s bottom. “Elsa sayang sapa ?” Dan asked.

“Abah lah….” She answered, again smiling happily.

“See ?” Came the smug reply of the guy who needed to find the silver lining, desperately.

“Elsa tak sayang Mummy ke ?” I asked, knowing fully well that I will win no matter what.

“Sayang….” Of course….. There is no doubt about that.

“Tapi kalau saya o-ok Abah kena basuh…” Said she.

He he….. Happynya aku….

Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Elsa's try at the art of hinting

“Mummy…. I want to have something nice tonight, Mummy….” Said my daughter when I came home on Monday.

“Good… Mummy puasa hari ni…. So I am verra hungry !! Kita pegi makan kat Kuting Besar nak ?” Kuting is what baby Umar called udang and since the floating restaurant at the tasik sported a huge neon-lighted picture of udang, Umar calls it Kuting Besar and so it remained until today.

She made a face. “Tak nak lah, Mummy….” Mengeliat-mengeliat atas katil. “If we go to Kuting Besar we eat nasi… Tadi saya dah makan nasi dah…..”

“Alah…. I am soooo hungry sebab puasa…. I would love to eat Kuting Besar….” Said me.

“Alah….. I don’t want to go to Kuting Besar…..” She re-iterated.

Hmm….. In my head, all our favourite restaurants flashed through one by one but nothing seemed to linger longer than the others.

“So… what do you want to eat then ?” I asked. She frowned, chin on her hand and had a good think.

“Saya tak tahu lah….” She finally said.

“Well if you don’t want to eat Kuting Besar, you have to think of another place…. It is too late for me to cook something….” I eyed the juicy plum that I brought upstairs as my buka. Yummm….

“What do YOU feel like eating ?” She finally said. Ya Rabbi !! Sebijik le macam bapak ko nak oii…..

“I told you I want to go to Kuting Besar…. So that is where I want to go….” I reminded her, exasperation around the corner.

“Hmm… tapi tadi saya dah makan nasi…..” Are we going there again ? We are definitely going round and round and round again.

“Okay lah…. Macam ni lah… I will order mee for you, okay ?”

“Kat Kuting Besar ada mee ke ?” She asked, face in bewilderment.

“Ada lah… banyak kali kan kita makan mee kat situ….”

She went quiet, no answer. I know the conversation is not over and by then had a suspicion that she is not telling me all of it. She started to draw imaginary pictures on my duvet. I waited.

Then it came. “Kat situ ada mee tomyam tak ?” She asked, after consulting her notebook (I will tell this story later in my own blog…. Ha ha).

I shook my head. Aduhai anak ku. Kenapa cakap berkias ? Why can’t you just spell out what you want ? Nak pegi Secret Recipe ke ?

Sadly, Abah hates Secret Recipe. So I tell you what, Mummy’s little girl. Next weekend, Abah ada event. We go then, kay ?

Muaaahhh !

Wednesday, April 01, 2009

Archie and Veronica

When I came home yesterday, after the customary greetings and hugs and kisses and brief exchange of the day’s news, I went upstairs to shut myself in the room for a little rest.

But of course, no Mummies in the world were ever left alone so after about 5 minutes I heard the pitter patter of small feet working up the stairs and my baby girl flinging the door open. While chattering, she selected a book from a book shelf in the room, opened it and became quiet.

Bliss. Mummy just needs to rest her eyes, not sleep, just close it for a teensy while. Then I heard a giggle. Opened one eye and saw my little girl reading her Archie’s comic book with a wide smile.

Closed my eyes again.

I heard her giggle again and these words, “Mum… this book is soooo funny !!”

Really ? Archie is funny to my 5 year old ? Very impressive indeed.

“If you like it so much, we can always go buy some more…” Said I encouragingly. She gave me a 1000 watt smile. What a smile, I tell you. Happy, Mummy closed her eyes again.

Another giggle. Then she got up from the sofa and joined me in bed, giggling and shaking her head. Curious, I made the mistake of asking her what so tickled her funny bones ?

“Budak perempuan tu ada boyfriend….” She said, not shyly but as a matter of factly. You know, just stating a fact that there is this girl in this comic who has a boyfriend. I was expecting some shyness because well you know, she is a little girl, and usually this subject is discussed with some blushes all around. Hell, even us adults sometimes discussed the matter of the hearts with some degree of self-consciousness.

“Oh ?” Was what all I could muster. I made a mistake again by pushing the matter deeper. “Why is that funny ?”

“Because she is kissing her boyfriend. They kiss sama-sama….” She said with a laugh and quickly opened the pages. Ha ? Kissing ? That was what she got from Archie ? That was what she like from it ? I gloated too soon. I groaned inside, wishing I had never asked.

“Let me show you…..” Her face concentrating on the task at hand, eager to show her mummy the picture of 2 cartoon characters kissing, as she put it, sama-sama.

“Ada banyak….” She said again, and giggled. I was torn between satisfying my curiousity and not wanting to know. As I was still deciding which one I wanted, she brandished an opened page in front of me.

“See ? See ? Dia cium sama-sama… Together !!” She said. My eyes focused on a picture of Archie smooching Veronica (why always Ronnie and not Betty ?), pink hearts all over the place.

He heh…. I laughed. It is funny if you think about it. Well…. hmmm….

Anyway, soon after Babah came home and I told him the story. He frowned at the giggling Elsa.

“Ti… jangan buat Abah pening kepala, Ti !! Merepek…” Elsa and I burst out laughing. I don’t know why but we did. My mom did tell me that one of my problems is I find kids a big colossal joke. When I was small, gelek-ing Ijat or Mail on my hips, I was always laughing at their impertinence. Mum would be cross and say, “Jangan gelak.. Marah !! Kecik-kecik memanglah kelakar… karang dah besar terbiasa….” Well… you know the drill. I still haven’t learnt. But thank Allah SWT for Rashdan.

Elsa grabbed the offending comic again and showed Daddy Dearest another scene of Archie and Ronnie’s kissing scene. Abah’s frowned deepened. “Merepek le kau ni…. Jangan buat Abah pening, kay ?” Said he, patting his daughter’s head affectionately.

And Elsa knew how to get into her father’s high regards again. “Tapi kan Bah, Reggie ni naughty kan….?” She said, head nodding knowingly. It worked, as Babah looked at her with respect, “Pandai pun…. Reggie naughty kan ?” He said with a smile.

Elsa was on a roll. “Ha… kan, Bah. Pastu kan Veroroninica (he he…) naughty sikit….kan ?” She purloined that thought from me actually, naughty girl but Babah was smiling even wider. Age old tricks that little girls learnt from the wombs, I suppose.

But, Babah is not that stupid as the very next day, when we went to have dinner at Tony’s in Uptown, Elsa found rows and rows and rows of Archie comics at the local newsagent. She squealed happily but Babah quickly told her off. “No ! Jangan merepek….” He he….

I though couldn’t bear her crestfallen face so suggested maybe we could find Little Archie comics. Archie and his gang were little in that particularly titled comics so probably there are no inappropriate scenes. Plus there are Sabrina The Teenage Witch and Casper The Friendly Ghost in Little Archie.

However, fate was not with Elsa. We couldn’t locate any Little Archie and she went home empty handed.

I had to hide that particular Archie comic and check the rest that I have in keeping. Babah wants them to be rated PG.

Ha ha…