Playground and kite flying

Umar and Elsa’s 2 weekend on the last day of February was very busy.

Not much happening on Saturday, though. Babah came home late as he had a lunch meeting then for dinner, Mummy expressed desire for any food in Subang Parade because she had a RM 5 voucher from MPH that expired that very day.

Sunday was a novelty. Since ITM’s tennis court aren’t ready yet, the classes had to be cancelled until April. So what do we do, what do we do ?

Mummy instructed Cik Yin to wake up Esya and Anna early. Cik Yin very sceptical as both of them are not early risers but Mummy did not care. Her girls must come with her. At 7.30 am Cik Yin announced that only Esya was raring to go, Anna refused to wake up. Mummy wouldn’t take NO from a 3 year old.

Luckily when she got home (well Tok Mi’s house would always be home), Esya was dressed and Anna baru nak mandi. Quickly bathed her, then off we go to KLCC’s playground !! Yeay !!

Armed with sausage buns (but no drinks !! Yikes !! Lupa.) off we went marching in. The day was beautiful and the kids were excited. We took the long route to the playground from the car park and the babies jumped, ran and skipped all the way, shouting happily.

As the norm when you are given too much choices you just wouldn’t know what to do first so they sampled and checked everything until Mummy and Babah got quite fed up and asked them to play at each set for at least 10 minutes. Can’t blame them really as it rained the night before and most of the slides were wet but luckily there were janitors wiping them dry, but of course they weren’t fast enough for Mummy’s eager children.

Anna takut-takut so Babah had to join in. Don't think he minded... ha ha

We stopped because Ana was thirsty and since Mummy forgot drinks, they quenched their thirst at the very nice water cooler. Umar of course demanded food and therefore Babah took us to A&W. We regret that decision.

First of all, they don’t sell waffles before 11 am. What the … ? Waffles are for breakfast, don’t you know ? Luckily they had pancakes and fortunately Elsa is the nicest girl on earth as she agreed to share with Esya who changed her mind about not eating. Both of them polished off their plate clean. Umar who also ordered pancakes, took a fancy to Mummy’s chicken porridge so Mummy had to share. It was an unfair sharing because Umar ate like 70% of it.

Secondly the service was slooowwww…. Slow to the max. There weren’t many people so Mummy and Babah couldn’t understand their snail pace. It was frustrating. Mummy was eyeing the delicious array of food La Cucuq offered and was tempted to partake their offerings. She succumbed to the cucuq udang’s calling and quaffed them in A&W’s premise.

Before leaving KLCC, Mummy went in search of a pair of blue jeans, required for a gathering next week. Found it and Babah paid for it so yeay !! Ha ha

Abah kena lagi.... Anna nih...

The kids resumed their playing at home where Mummy and Babah gratefully sank their behinds on the very comfy sofa and watched the telly. By 3 pm Anna was asking for her ayah so we sent them home.

Babah stopped for goreng pisang and that was the best decision he ever made as we found kites ! Kites !! Yeay !! We were happy because our last kite might still be inside a drain at the kontinjen polis. As soon as we got home Umar and Elsa started playing with the kites and in the process got the strings tangled. The wind was dismal anyway. Babah then drove us to the park in front of the mosque and the kites flew !! How it flew… it was majestic. Umar and Elsa ran around happily, marveling at their soaring kites.

We wished Anna and Esya were still with us. Babah brought Umar’s football and they played together. Babah asked Umar to take off his shoes. Mummy cautioned Babah that Umar wouldn’t like it very much and was she right. Reminded Mummy of a time when we went to a Jamaican festival in Leicester. It was a nice summer day and we put baby Umar on the grass. He wasn’t happy at it’s ticklish nature and made faces. The same face he made 8 years later in Shah Alam…. Ha ha !!

“It is very tickly lah, Babah…!” He protested, forehead furrowed. Told you, Bah. However since Umar is rather obedient, he did as he was told and soon forgot about the grass and was happy running around with Babah.

Elsa though was happy enough with her kite and had a super-licious time whizzing and zipping around the park with her kite up high.

Lovely.

Hmmm....

I was first made aware of this about a month ago. We were hanging out with Shazmi at KFC sek 13. Umar didn’t want to come but Elsa did.

5 minutes to 11 pm we decided to make a move and I called for Elsa and she promptly abandoned the swings.

“She is very obedient ya ?” Observed Shazmi. “Most kids would whine or ask for more time….” I thought about what he said and found that it is rather true. My children don’t usually put up a fight whenever I asked them to stop from doing something.

Then again 2 weeks after that I went to Kamalia’s house and while Jubei, Ya and myself talked, the kids played upstairs (that is the day I delivered my promised beefy French toasts) and when I hollered for them to come down, they did so immediately.

Sheik and Ya made the same observation Shazmi did. Very obedient children you have, Myra.

Now, was I happy ? Proud ?

This is the reason why Rashdan sighs at my craziness because well… I went crazy obsessing if I am a too strict mom.

Garang ke aku ? Cengei ka ? Why didn’t they make any protest when I cut short their fun ? Selective amnesia, Mummy ?

However…. Whenever I asked them to stop their hour long bath, they always ask for ‘5 more minutes, Mummy’. In fact one of Elsa’s first sentence was that…. So, maybe in order for them to have that extra 5 minutes in the bath, they followed my orders at other times because they didn’t want to push their luck ?

Or they really are thoughtful and obedient…

Ye ke ?

Elsa pun fed up.

I was reading in bed, Elsa was colouring and Umar playing with his cars, one fine day. Suddenly Umar sat up and started talking about an eposide of Avatar that he had seen.

He went on and on and on, describing every little detail and it was getting quiet tedious to hear, even though technically he wasn’t telling it to me. But I could hear it all the same. Anyway, I wasn’t planning to do anything about it but his sister did though.

“Um… my friend already told me that story, Um..” She said and I thought, hmmm…. good excuse. Well done.

Abang ignored her and kept on with his story.

“Um ! I said my friend told me this story already. I know this story !!” She said, harder this time.

Abang didn’t even miss a beat and kept at it like she hadn’t said anything, twice !

“Dah lah, Um. I know the story already…. My friend told me at school !!”

“Takpelah, Ti ! Dengar sajalah. Can’t you just listen to my story ?” Abang finally answered, coupled with a jelingan maut. He paused for a breath then continued on.

Elsa gave an audible and hugely exaggerated sigh and shook her head.

Mummy also shook her head.

Hmmm……

My Imagination

“Mummy… where is U-um ?” Asked my daughter one day. Both of us were upstairs reading and we haven’t seen Umar in a while. I suppose the room was too quiet for us…. He he..

“I don’t know… bawah kot….” I answered, trying to concentrate on my book, the very entertaining A Place Called Here by Cecilia Ahern.

“What is he doing ? Tak dengar apa-apa pun…” She said again.

I sighed.

“Maybe….he is eating ice-cream….” I was trying to get her to look for Umar. I want to read !!!

“Did you see him do it ?” She asked, eyes questioning.

O-oh….

“Errmmm….no… I used my imagination…” Said I, trying to put the blame back to her.

“Ha ha… Like me !!!” She announced happily.

Why did I feel that the table turned on me ?

Hmmm.......

Very funny Elsa

Weeks ago… we were rushing to change to go to Secret Recipe for some impromptu cheese cake. The children curious at the sight of their parents rushing upstairs followed suit.

“Where are we going, Mum ?” Asked Umar.

“Pergi makan cake, nak ?”

Now Babah was only wearing kain pelikat at that time (he had taken off his t-shirt) and Mum in ¾ length pj bottom and a camisole. Now Mummy likes to tease so before Babah puts on a new t-shirt, Mummy quickly grabbed Babah’s hand and gave a cheery “Let’s goo…..”

This is how my children are different.

Umar didn’t bat an eyelid at our state of undress. In his head was only one thing, food. “Makan kat mana Mummy ?”

I didn’t answer as was busy pretending to leave the room. I looked at Elsa’s surprised face. Ha… so there is my source of entertainment. Her mouth was opened in a shock ‘O’, her finger wagged in her attempt to say something. I looked at her expectantly. Babah too.

“But you are naked…” She finally said. “You cannot go out like that…” Surprise turned into dismay.

Babah and Mummy broke into laughter. “You are funny, Mummy….” Said Elsa, not amused.

“Very funny…..” She said. Did I hear a hint of sarcasm there ?

Hmmmm………………

Umar ada audition ?

I came home to a sick child yesterday.

In the morning Umar complained of dizziness but he seemed okay and was not making a fuss, therefore attended school.

But when I got home he complained of dizziness again and his face was flushed. He had a fever. So Mummy placed a cold towel on his forehead, when down to give him the last ubat demam and made him comfortable on her bed.

Enter Titi.

“Ti… I am sick, Ti…” Said the abang.

She glanced at him, then concentrated on the last Ferrero Rocher that I found for her.

“I know….” She said.

“Ti… abang demam… Tak kesian ke ?” I gently tell her.

“He was already sick just now…. I know already…” Eyes rolled.

Hmmm….. ada aje.

Then, “Umar tak mengaji ke ?” She asked.

He he… “So Umar tak pegi sekolah ?”

“Tak lah….” Said I.

“Alah….” Surprise, surprise that came from Umar. “I will miss music week… I have an audition tomorrow !!”

Eh ? For what lah ? “We are singing lagu Michael Jackson….”

Which one ?

“We Are The World…And I so want to sing…..”

Your teacher is lucky you are sick, said the mother of the boy who sings nasally. Very lah sengau nya…. He he…

Umar and Nyang

Last Sunday I took my children, my mom and my grandma to Pasar Tani. It is a treat for my children since they could only go if there is a cancellation of their tennis class.

I didn’t particularly have anything to buy at Pasar Tani. Was just thinking of a leisurely walk with my kids, Umar testing his new Sponge Bob Squarepants brolly, eating copious amount of keropok lekor and ais krim potong.

But then… of course nothing went to plan.

My grandma… Wan to me.. Nyang to my kids…

How can I explain this ?

The moment she stepped foot on the market, she wandered off on her own, not caring where we were or what we were doing. To be fair, she did follow me whenever I directed her, but once we turned our back, she would start walking. We couldn’t stop at any stalls in fear that she would wander off. She didn’t have her mobile phone with her, so we were scared of losing her from our sight.

We were waiting for her to buy ikan masin, and while doing that we were playing with Umar and Elsa’s brollies, looking at other stalls, safe in the thought that she was just behind us. I looked over once and she was still there but when I looked the second time, she was gone. Umar and I panicked and started running like headless chickens when we spotted her buying fruit.

I took the fruit from her and off she went again and boy she was fast (at that point my mom had abandoned us in search for nasi kerabu. “you are not buying anything right ?” My mom asked and whoosh ! off she went, leaving me with her mother and my 2 kids. Aduih….), she wove around the human traffic and we lost sight of her again. Umar caught sight of her ahead and started running. “Nyang ! Nyang !” he cried. His face full a mixture of determination and anxiety. He never looked so mature..

He he….

Things calmed down when she got what she wanted. Then my mom came. Umar was complaining how hot the weather was and about his great-grandma. I tried to soothe him as best as I could, considering he had been a good soldier, looking out for his nyang.

“If you don’t want me to cry, Mum you have to buy something Ben 10…” Huh !

Handed my grandma to my mum and Umar took me to the designated stall. “I know where it is, Mum….” Oh pandai. Punya banyak gerai but you can remember where the Ben 10 stall is… cuba kalau aku suruh…. Ha… mula dah…. He he…

Anyway while both of my kids were looking at the toys (so glad they were cheap. RM 7 for an omnitrix… or something like that ), my mum called to say she is walking to the car already. Okay.

As we walked to the car, I being my usual self couldn’t resist a good prank.

“Um !! Where is Nyang ?”

“Aaaahh….not again…” He wailed and started looking around.

“I think we have lost her for good this time…” Said I.

“Never mind lah… let’s go….” I added and walked on. He looked at me strangely, cocking his head to the side. He was quiet.

“Do you want to leave Nyang here ?” I asked. Sometimes this a dangerous game, what if he said yeah, sure… ?

But luckily he said, “No…” and shook his head vigorously.

“Okay I tell you what… why don’t we go home first. The pasar habis pukul 1, we come back at that time when everybody is gone so it is easier to see her… She would be the first person we see….”

“That sounds like a plan….” He said slowly, unconvinced.

“I don’t think anybody wants to kidnap her. People usually kidnap children….” I reasoned.

“Well… yes….. but…. What about the kidnappers who have nothing to do ? They might want to kidnap nyang….”

Kah ! Kah ! Kah ! Kidnappers who have nothing to do….. he he…

Luckily at that time we were already at the stairs leading up to our car and there sat Nyang and Tok Mi.

“There she is ! That’s Nyang !!” He pointed with excitement and relief.

Nyang gelak sakan when I told her the story. Thank you Umar for caring.

Eeeiiii.... !!

Okay, herein lays the problem.

Dan and I plus Anu met up with Nicholas and his girlfriend Ann 2 weekends ago. We of course had to drag our kids to the meeting since it being a weekend. Nicholas and Ann got there first and then we turned up and were properly introduced to Ann whom we met for the first time.

When we sat down, Ann commented on how friendly and sociable my kids are. I winced. Usually children are shy but your kids actually said hi to me ( I don’t remember if those 2 introduced themselves), she marveled. I winced again. And I told her that it isn’t so nice having kids who are not shy at all. If they start get comfortable with you, I cautioned, they will talk non-stop. Luckily that didn’t happen.

It happened last Saturday though when my friendly and sociable kids nipped next door for a birthday party.

On Sunday the afore-mentioned neighbour called me.

Neighbour : Assalammualaikum. (Laughed nervously) I dengar you ada some problem dengan kucing I ye ?

Me : Ha ?

N : Alahai… mintak maaf lah ye… Apa benda yang dia rosakkan kat rumah you ?

M: Eh tak de apa-apa lah….

N : Jangan macam tu… cakap ngan I….

M : Eh… tak de mende lah… Kucing Cik Rosmi, macamana you nak control…. Tak de apa-apa lah…

N : Jangan macam tu…. Apa yang dia orang buat. I kene ajar dia orang sikit… Yang mana satu ?

M : Err…. Yang ada loceng..

N : Dua-dua ada loceng… (lah… ada dua ke ?) Apa yang dia rosak ? I bayar kat you… sorry lah…

M : Tak pe lah Cik Rosmi… kita ni bercakap pasal kucing, you nak control kucing you macam mana…. Tak de benda pun….

N : Betul ni ? Jangan pasal kucing kita tak bertegur sapa pulak…

M : Eh… takde lah…. Don’t worry. We are talking about cats, En. Rosmi… Please don’t worry.

He finally was satisfied that I was really okay with it and we parted still good neighbours.

Aku of course cari anak-anak aku.

“Okay who complained about the cats to our neighbour ?”

“Titi !!”

I looked at her. She as usual said, “Tak….” I waited for Babah to come home. Babah was duly embarrassed.

“Titi cakap apa ?” Asked Babah and as the norm Umar volunteered to tell the story.

“She said that the cats selalu knocked mummy’s pasu down..”

Ha….. aduih lah…

“Dia cakap dengan siapa ?”

“With Syabil’s mum !”

Waaa !!!! Cik Rosmi is Syabil’s uncle who actually lives in the house.

“Ti…. You cannot say that to people lah Ti… complain about their cats like that… Semalam Syabil’s uncle called me…..” I started my lecture Etiquette 101.. no lah 401… dah banyak level dah aku go through dengan budak-budak ni.

“But I only said it once… Sekali tu je saya cakap….” She said in a small voice.

“Ti… you don’t need to say it 3 times lah Ti…..”

Why lah you go and start a conversation with an adult ? Why that topic ? If you were trying to be a polite and gracious guest or even just wanted to fill an uncomfortable lull in the conversation, you can always talk about the weather… not complain about their cats !!

I have to teach my children to make small talks about the weather.

Ann… you definitely do not want a friendly and sociable child (or 2 !) as they could get you into trouble. I will definitely think twice about releasing them to the public next time.

Lawak Umar and Elsa

A few days ago Dan and I were talking about how much we miss England. We were reminiscing, talking about our lives there when Umar said that he would like to go back.

“A-ah, Mummy…. Saya pun dah lama tak pegi….” Said Elsa.

Both Babah and Mummy looked at her. My daughter is really clever, sensitive to the looks thrown at her because she said, “I know…. I was in your tummy at that time, right ? But I can still feel the cold in your tummy, Mummy …I want to go back….”

Alah anak ku Elsa……..

Itu Elsa. Si Umar punya lawak bodoh pulak happened last Saturday night. We were circling the basement parking of CineLeisure, wanting to buy tickets for Pink Panther 2. We don’t normally park indoors, preferring instead to park at the outdoor parking in front of the cinema. However the parking is no more. They have cordoned off the area to……surprise, surprise build another building… making the place more congested… why lah MPPJ not clever ?

Anyway, we circled and circled when Dan decided to try the first floor. We saw a couple of empty lots and Dan quickly drove to it but when we got there Dan didn’t park and drove ahead.

“Alah… tak boleh kan parking kat situ kan, Bah ? Itu untuk orang duduk saja…..” my son said, very much disappointed.

Dan and I exchanged puzzled looks and when it dawned to us what he meant, we burst out laughing.

“Umar …. That is not for orang duduk… that is for handicapped drivers… Itu gambar orang on a wheelchair….!!”

Wa ha ha ha ha !! Sakit perut !!

The Great Race

On Monday we celebrated Arif’s birthday and since Arif loves cheese cake, Ita bought Cheeze Cake from Secret Recipe for his birthday cake.

It was a lovely cake. Babah took two slices.

Last night while waiting for the kids to finish mengaji, Babah asked, “Awak ingat saya teringin apa sekarang ?”

“Cheese cake Arif tu ?”

And he nodded gratefully.

Ustaz balik aje, we rushed off to Secret Recipe at Seksyen 9. While eating, we discussed tomorrow’s menu (I know…. Terrible isn’t it ?) and agreed on fish and chips for tomorrow’s dinner.

Hence the walk to Shah Alam Mall for ingredients. We entered the compounds of the Mall via the bus/taxi stand. Mummy was holding Umar’s hand and Babah was holding Elsa. Mummy started to walk down, to enter the mall via the side entrance near Pelita but Babah was heading towards the back entrance next to the Thai restaurant. Both Mummy and Babah stopped on their tracks when they realized their journey were not in accord.

“Sini lah !’ They both said unison.

“Sini lagi cepat lah…..” Mummy said.

“No !! Sini !!” Babah said, his head pointing towards his way of choice.

So what do we usually do in this situation ? A race, of course.

“I race you then…” said Babah, saying just what Mummy was thinking.

Umar who was used to this kind of thing (and I know he was hoping for it) started whooping and off he went. Babah went off and Mummy started legging it.

However she didn’t take into account the slope. She had forgotten that from that point to the side entrance the road was in gradient and she started regretting it as she lurched forward.

“Umar ! Brake ! Brake !”

Umar who hates losing turned around without stopping his pace. “Hurry up, Mummy ! We have to win !!” Alamak anak ku …

“Umar ! Be careful ! Brake ! Slowly !” She advised.

Umar slowed down for awhile and Mummy managed to grab his hand but then Umar let the wind took him again and before long he was out of Mummy’s sight. Mummy panicked. She hardly ever let her son out of her sight and kicked into gear. When she rounded the corner at the new photo shop she saw a glimpsed of her son in front of the supermarket. However her relief was much sweeter when she realized her husband and daughter was nowhere in sight.

Suddenly she heard Umar shouted, “Ha ! I win ! I win !” jumping up and down ecstatically long before Babah came into view.

“Eleh…. Korang lari…. We didn’t…” Said he who didn’t want to concede defeat.

Who told you not to do that ? Poodah !!

Ha ha !

PS : We usually raced to go to Yamaha Music School every Saturday. From the escalator, Babah said his way via Memory Lane was faster. Mummy said her way via the children clothes shop is. Mummy won the race every time. But to tell you the truth only because she always got Umar and Babah had to drag (or most of the time dukung) Elsa with him.

PS : We don’t do it anymore as Babah hardly ever had Saturday off. Too bad….

Orang kena simen

I always look for the opportunity to tell my children stories from the Malay folklores. You know, si Tanggang, Batu Belah Batu Bertangkup and so on. But this being a very advanced time, my children usually wants proof and therefore after watching Grey’s Anatomy last Tuesday, opportunity to re-tell the story about si Tanggang appeared and I grabbed it.

The said chance was given by the telly and mind you, who wouldn’t believe the telly, the most integral part of our lives, eh ?

Anyway, after a very satisfying Grey’s Anatomy (that McSteamy is sexier than McDreamy… but never fear I have McRashdan at home.. so okaylah….), the telly showed a preview of next week’s episode. There for all and sundry to see was a boy who was encased in what looked like cement, surrounded by baffled doctors/surgeons.

All three of us (Babah, U-um and myself) looked in shock, trying to decipher what we saw. “Is it cement ?” Was one question. “He fell in a hole of a rock ?” and so on.

“What happened, Mummy ?” Asked the very impatient Umar. “Is that cement ?”

“Yeah, probably….” I answered before I got an epiphany (can I say that ?) and changed my story.

“Ohhh…. I think I know what is going on here… That is batu, not cement. I think he is the American version of Si Tanggang….” At his puzzled look, I explained, “Si Tanggang is the story of this poor boy who went across the sea to find work. He wanted to help his poor parents but after he got rich and married a princess he felt ashamed of his poor parents. He started making up stories about how his parents were actually rich but conveniently dead.

One day though the ship that he and his wife were on stopped at his old village. His parents got to know that their Si Tanggang was on it and decided to row a boat to the ship to meet him. They were very excited. The son that they love and miss so much has returned. The mom made lepat pisang which was Tanggang’s favorite food. The old father rowed the boat but when he got there, Si Tanggang pretended that he didn’t know them. He was so embarrassed because their clothes were torn and dirty.

They called him, “Tanggang. Ni mak dan ayah ni. Mari lah…”. He said, “Siapa kau ? Aku tak kenal kau…” His parents were shocked but then they thought maybe because they haven’t seen each other in a long time Tanggang had forgotten how his parents looked like.

So his mother said, “Ini mak, Tanggang… turun lah… Mak nak peluk Tanggang…..” Tanggang got very angry because his wife had heard what his parents said. So he angrily told them, “Tipu ! Mak bapak aku dah mati….” His parents cried when he said that, especially his mom. They were so broken hearted but it was their son, they have to make an attempt again.

His mom tried to climb the ladder to get on the ship. “Tanggang, ni mak bawak lepat pisang kegemaran kau ni… ambik lah…..” She said, one hand holding the ladder the other hand proffering the goodies to him. But Tanggang had other ideas. He quickly said, ‘Aku mana makan lepat pisang… Aku makan Happy Meal saja !!’ and he kicked his mom before she got onboard. The mom fell back in the boat and his father started rowing back to shore.

Tanggang’s mother got up, crying all the while. She was humiliated, angry and sad. She then said, “Anak derhaka ! Tak mengenang budi !!” At this point she got very pissed off she said what all mothers try not to do. She cursed her son. “Aku sumpah kau jadi batu !!” As soon as she said that, the sky clouded, darkened and began to rumble. Suddenly lightning struck and hit Tanggang.

When the smoke was gone everybody gasped. Tanggang had turned into stone. Allah had heard his mother’s cries and granted her wish.

I stopped for dramatic effect.

“I think that boy was rude to his mother….” I suggested.

“Mom….” Umar quivered. “You told me that story already…..” He looked thoughtful. “But… kenapa kepala dia tak jadi batu ? Si Tanggang tu kan his whole body turned into stone….”

Aiseh.

“Well… that is because Allah wants him to tell the story… as a warning to all other children…. So now he can talk and tell naughty children to listen to their mothers if they don’t want to turn into stone like him……”

He heh…

Cerita Mummy yang meleret-leret

We were in the car last week, on the way to who knows where. I cannot remember our destination but I remember it was night time.

“Mummy… have you seen Emot ?” Asked Umar. Pulak….

“No….”

“I haven’t seen him for 2 days…..” He complained.

Hmmm………….

“Emot is your responsibility lah Umar. How would Mummy know where your toy is..” Babah dah start membebel.

“Tak…. Yesterday kan when I sleep with you malam-malam kan (uninvited, okay.. some nights we would find an extra, or 2 extra sleepers on our bed), I took him with me….”

“Well when I made up the bed this morning I didn’t see him…” I offered.

Babah started his lecture (I’ll spare you guys from the agony).

The next night as I was reading in my bedroom, Umar came and draped himself on the sofa next to me.

“Mummy… have you seen the little rascal, Emot ? I haven’t seen him….” He asked worriedly. Little rascal ? You are so cute lah, Um.

“I don’t know lah sayang….” Said I.

“Um… I have lost Kitty a long time… Tak de apa-apa pun….” Said Elsa importantly. Hang memang Elsa…tak sayang Kitty langsung.

“I still have Bathtub ….” She added.

Umar gave a little whine. He then moved to their mattress and shoved his arm under the pillow, gave a little cry, pulled his arms out and waved Emot up high happily.

“I found him !!” He then rubbed his nose on Emot’s nose (?), big smile on his face.

Umar…

PS : Actually the main thing I want to share is Umar's usage of 'little rascal' but I cannot just tell it without giving a trail why it came up... So in that process meleret-leretlah cerita ku. Sorry !

Your husband, Mummy !!

Babah had always worked Saturdays. This is his 4th job and the 4th job that requires Saturday attendance. Bummer. However by 1 pm he would be home and all is well again. Not last Saturday though. Most of his staffs were away for the CNY hols, so Babah worked extra hours to help his remaining staffs.

At 2, Mummy set the table and called her children for lunch.

“Mana Babah, Mummy ?” Asked Umar when he saw the 3 place settings.

“Babah work, kay ? Balik lambat sikit….”

“Mana Babah saya, Mummy ?” Asked Elsa.

Repeat above answer.

We ate. Less than 5 minutes at the table, Elsa asked me, “Do you miss Babah, Mummy ?” She was looking at her food mournfully.

“Yes….” Said I.

“Me, too…” She said, with a foot long pout.

He heh..

5 minutes after that she asked again, “Do you miss Babah, Mummy ?” I sighed my affirmation. “Me, too...” She repeated, playing with her food.

And as I was clearing the dishes, she asked me again and my answer remained the same. She threw herself on the couch and watched the telly, face not happy.

At about 3, she was playing with Umar outside when she ran inside excitedly. “Mummy, Babah is home ! I saw him ! I saw him !”

I smiled at her.

“Mummy ! Quick, your husband is home… Dia dah balik.”

What ? As I looked at her in wonder, she grabbed my hand and pulled me off the couch. “Quick, Mummy ! Follow me !!” She ordered and ran to the door, dragging me with her.

“There ! I told you. There’s your husband !!” She pointed happily at Babah who was still in the car. When Babah got out of his vehicle, Elsa threw herself on her Babah and gave him a fierce hug.


The same thing happened 2 weeks ago when Dan came home late because of a company dinner he had to attend.

“Mummy, mana Babah ?” She asked. My answer that Babah had to work late didn’t go well with her.

“I think…” She whispered, “Babah pegi makan hotel with his friends…”

Forehead furrowed I asked her how does she know this.

“Oh, I use my imagination. I imagine that he is eating at the hotel….”

I sighed and gave a lecture on imagination bordering to lies….

Hmmm…….

Bah, please don’t work extra hours. It is a trial for your daughter.

We go walking

We had a great Monday walk. Not exactly a weekend walk but a holiday walk all the same. It came about when we passed by the lake in the morning and I commented on the nice scenery and the families having picnics.

“Bah… why don’t we come here this afternoon, Bah…We can go jogging…” Umar suggested.

Babah said, “Why don’t we walk here ? Our house is very near… We could walk from our house…”.

The kids were ecstatic. I who love walks (that I get from my years in England) was very much so.

We started from our house at around 6. The kids were running ahead, anticipating the adventure. We walked slowly, pass by the sekolah agama, found a dead cat. Passed by the row of shops and crossed the road to walk next to Sekolah Seksyen 4. By then we had decided to circle Seksyen 4. Passed by the tasik and Mummy showed her children where she, Aunty Esmalina and Aunty Suhaila main longkang when they were eeemmm….. 14… he heh.

Elsa collected sticks, pretending she was an old person, goofing around. Umar talked and talked and talked. At the unused bus stop in front of the lake found another dead cat. We soldiered on. Passed by the Masjid roundabout and walked alongside seksyen 4.

Walked some more and in from of the small lake next to the courthouse, saw a live cat this time. So yeay !! Showed them Aunty Shazleen’s house where Mummy lepaked most of her last 2 years in high school.

Then crossed the road at the pasar, went in for a shortcut to 7-11. Went inside the Seksyen 6 business area and showed the kids where Mummy and Babah used to have their dates…. He he…. Passed by the shop where Cik Shera used to work and where she met their Mamu and in we go inside 7-11.

Bought drinks and retraced our steps halfway through the business centre and when we were about to cross the bridge, saw an itty bitty black kitten meowing mournfully. He looked so pitiful but Babah refused Mummy’s entreaty to bring him home because Babah is allergic. Babah then saw a box, peered inside and saw the kitten’s dead sibling. 3 dead cats and 2 live ones so far.

As we crossed the bridge, Babah called out to us excitedly and pointed to a beautiful bird in the big drain. “Bangau…” said Babah. Eh ? Bangau ? What is bangau in English ? Stork ke ?
Walked again, passing seksyen 6/1D, 6/1C. 6/1B, the pasar and turned right at the junction. Crossed the road again to walk alongside seksyen 4 and then crossed the road after the roundabout.

Babah pointed to another bird with a long beak. I forgot what he called it. I think he said Kingfisher. Or Raja something… We arrived home at 7.15. Just nice.

When we got home, Umar whipped up his shirt and looked at his belly.

“I’m a bit thinner kan, Mummy ?” He asked proudly.

Okay lah…..

Opportunity missed

“Mum… yesterday kan something happened..” said my daughter on the way to her school this morning.

“Oh yeah ?” Was my very non-committal reply and what a waste ! I wasn’t listening to her until I heard the word air-cond then, “Uhhh…. I think… it is a MYSTERY !!” She shouted, punching the air.

“What is ?” I asked, suddenly very interested.

“I love mysteries, Mum…” She said with a twinkle in her eyes. “ Because I can…..” he heh.. stumped for words. “Solve ?” I helpfully suggested. She looked at me, not convinced it was the right word, however I think for lack of a better choice, she agreed, albeit wearily. “Yes… solve….” She said, tasting the foreign word.

But the most important factor is, what is the mystery ?

“So.. tell me about the mystery again ?”

“What ?”

“The mystery that you want to solve. About the air-cond ? You said Um pasang air-cond is it, then something happened ?” She looked blank.

“Come on, Ti…just now you said something about the air-cond…..” trying to cajole the memory from her. “Emmm….. “ she said. “Semalam Um pasang air-cond….”

“Then ? The mystery ?”

“Itu sajalah… the room got cold because of the air-cond…” She said.

Aiseh. Either I misheard or she has gone totally forgetful, I have missed a good story. This is a good lesson for me. Listen next time, will you Mummy ? Listen…

Titi's friends

“Mummy… Hakim kan……” Is how my baby girl usually starts when I got home from work. Or sometimes, “Tadi kan at school kan Haiqal……..” Or sometimes other boys’ name would come up.

One day after a story involving yet another boy, I asked her, “There are a lot of boys in your class, kan Ti ?”

“Yes…..” She agreed, nodding her head.

Umar who was nearby and was obviously listening to our conversation helpfully said, “Titi has 3 boyfriends, Mummy !”

I looked at my smiling daughter. My raised eyebrows was answered with a smiling, nodding head, confirming her brother’s little tale.

“How come you have 3 ? That is a bit much…” Said Mummy.

“Because semuanya handsome-handsome, Mum….” Was the reply. But it didn’t come from her. Her abang said that.

He he…. How do you know that, Um ?

Nak ? Nak ?

We have been lepaking with Shazmi 2 weeks in a row now. His wife was doing locum duty at DEMC so to fill his time, he came and lepak with us before picking up Nadia at 11pm.

We were in the car with him last Friday plus Elsa. Umar wanted to watch a very important Ben 10 Alien Force episode, so he decided not to come. Anyway in the car Shazmi asked Elsa her age, the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) of an adult to a child.

“I am six !” She answered.

“No, no…” Said Mummy. “You are still five. You turned 5 last month and you have a whole year to be 5 still….”

“But Mummy, I am in 6 years old class. Teacher put me there !” She protested.

I sighed.

“Sure you are, but since your birthday is at the end of the year, you cannot be 6 yet, okay ?” I explained. I don’t know why I am so anal about it, but I am. Maybe in July I will concede that she is 6… he he…

“But… my file at school said that I am 6 !!”

“Iyelah, but your 5th birthday was not 2 weeks ago, Elsa.” Why can’t I just leave it ?

We were already at our destination. As Babah parked the car and turned off the engine, she angrily said, “Do you want me to show you the file ? It said 6 ! Nak ? Nak ?”

Amboi……. Sakitnya hati ku.

Ana is THREE !! Yeay !

Last Sunday was Ana’s birthday party. Happy Birthday, Mummy’s little girl !!

She came down wearing this. Babah and Mummy was shocked. Shocked ! The tiara, the earrings ! She looked like a meringue ! Luckily she is gorgeous beyond reason, a sack would look couture on her. Ha ha

"Ana tak panas ke ?" Asked the very concerned Babah.



"Ini baju Ana pin-shesh..." She said, muka keras for some reason. Maybe nak maintain lawa. Okaylah, Pin-shesh punya pasal, panas pun panaslah.

Inang-inang Pin-Shesh Ana. Nak minum or anything please ask from the inangs. They are distinguishable by the butterfly head piece. (Sungguh comel, rasa macam nak bawak pi keje....)

Presents opening time. Yang sibuk si Elsa. "Ti, your birthday was not a month ago, okay ?" Warned Mummy. By this time Ana was already out of the now torned Princess gown. I was trying to change her clothes, in front of her Pak Cik, and Aunty Ann and Aunty Nurul but she refused. Suddenly she hugged Mummy and asked to be dressed away from her admirers. "Nanti owang nampak, Mummy...." She said. Malu rupanya. Mummy yang tak tau malu, ek Ana ? Sorry.

Mummy changed her into the birthday dress Mummy bought her.

Time to kemas after, back to reality. Thank you Mamu Jat for taking over sweeping the driveway. He symphatised with his old sister, terbongkok-bongkok menyapu. Tapi older sister bila tengok dia punya pakaian, said "Ko ni Jat, balik-balik je tunjuk spender..." He he... Ijat is a good boy.

Sleep time for the Pin-Shesh. Didn't want the party to be over, she took it to Tok's bed. Tok's very comfortable bed yang Babah punya suka, he bought the same one for his room.

Can... what ?

“Mummy… your next birthday kan I will buy you a car….” Said my son last Thursday.

“Ye ke ? That is nice…”

“I will have 2 bags of money ready. Your car is 10 thousand kan so I will get a bag and put 10 thousand ringgit in the bag… full of money tau…” His face was very animated. Berangan.

“I will get Babah a 10 million car…” cess Babah punya 10 million Mummy punya 10 thousand je ?

“So I will get another bag to put 10 million in it… erm… a heavier bag, with a big ribbon… Then I take the 2 bags full of money and pegi beli kereta for you and Babah…”

“That is nice… but where are you going to get the money ?” I asked.

“Hmm…. That is a good point….” He said thoughtfully. He was quiet.

Then…”Semalam kan Mummy I found a 1 penny (1 sen) coin !” He announced happily.

1 sen….

“Um…. You want to buy Babah a 10 million car kan ? You right now have 1 sen. You still need 9 million 9 hundred and 99 thousand, 9 hundred and 99 ringgit and 99 sen to make 10 million !”

He looked shocked. Tak pegi sekolah ke ?

“Say it again, Mum..”

I repeated.

“Whoa… that’s a lot.”

“Exactly.”

“Where is my duit raya ?” He asked, hand rubbing his chin.

“Your duit raya is only 2 ribu Umar. You still need 9 million 9 hundred and 98 thousand !’

He winced. He heh…

“Then if I want to buy your car ?” He is very persistant….

“Okay, you still need 8 thousand … but what car can you buy with 8 thousand ? This stupid Gen-2 is 65 thousand ….”

“That is a lot, Mum……” He said. Kesian pulak.

“Then Mummy, I cannot get you a car this year. Maybe your next, next birthday or even the one after the next, next…..”

“Umar….” I said gently. “You might afford to buy me a car when you are over 30….”

“That is a long time !”

“Yes it is… You wouldn’t even know if I would still be around then…..”

“Mummy….. people usually die when they are 70 right ?”

“No… people can die anytime, sweetheart… A friend of mine right, her brother died when he was 3…”

“Three !!” He shouted, horrified. “But why ?”

“Cancer….” I answered.

“Does that mean he died?”

“Ermmm… yes….”

“That is so rude. Saying people die as cancel… Like you cancel a tv programme…” He fumed, shaking his head.

I was shocked.

“Cancel ? Not cancel. CANCER.. with an R ….It’s a name of a disease.”

He laughed. “Oh, I thought you said cancel…. Like canceling something….”

He he… aku tergelak sampai sekarang.

Maybe it is funny when you are there.... ha ha

The funny things that came out when my children opened their mouths.

Elsa was hanging at the fence (bergayut bukan kat telefon tapi kat pagar rumah) talking to girl next door. Dan and I were weeding nearby. They were talking and the girl mentioned U-um.

Najwa : Elsa panggil U-um. Amin nak jumpa.

Amin : Elsa, panggil U-um cepat…

Elsa : Hmm…. His name is Umar. You can call him Umar Rashdan, okay ?

He he…..


My little girl is a real burper. No, she doesn’t burp. She belches. It is really embarrassing especially if she does it in public. A loud one is usually followed by a satisfactory grin. We were always reprimanding her, telling her over and over again how rude it was.

So 2 days ago we were having dinner at… well where else (the place where we sometimes bump into the new residents of sek 9) when she gave a loud “BURP!”

“Elsa .. Stop it. How many times must I tell you to stop doing that ?”

“Sorry ! But I can’t help myself, okay ?”

Oh yeah, that was not funny. That was rude….


The funny one came in the wee hours of that very morning. Dan was supposed to fetch his niece and nephew for school as their mother had to send their father to the airport. Umar was of course very excited at the prospect of riding to school with his beloved cousins.

We were very much deep in slumberland when we were rudely woken up by a very loud, “Bah !! We are late for school. Kita kena ambik Hannah and Hakeem !”

Babah jumped from the bed with a loud “What ?” and grabbed his phone.

“Umar ! It’s only 5 lah …” Said Babah as he slumped back on the bed.

Umar gave a startled “Oh !” and said, “Sorry. Carry on…” and he too went back to bed and promptly snored.

Carry on…. He he….

The moon on Monday night was beautiful, so round, so bright.

My children and I of course talked about werewolves.

“Mummy…. Werewolves are half wolf have human, right ?” Asked Umar.

“No lah. That one is like a centaur, half human half horse. The head is human and the butt is horse…” Waaa ha ha haaa…. My children loves it if the posterior is ever mentioned.

“Werewolves are human but wheeeennnn the mooooonnnnnn is fuuullllll woooooooooo …….. they turnnnnnned into WEREWOLVES !”

Waaarrgghhhh ! Screamed the children. I am my father after all.

“So they are shape shifters then ?”

“I don’t know…” Jacob Black is a shape shifter. A gorgeous one at that… he heh… sempat tuh.

“So… if you see a werewolf… you have to run right ?” Asked Umar again.

“Yep. Werewolves eat people. But if you run, you cannot escape because they are faster than you. And if you managed to run anyway, but they scratched you first, all the werewolves’ cooties will be transferred to you. Anndd…… the neeexttttt fuuuuulllllll mooooonnnn… wooooooo…..….. yoooouuuu willlll be ONE ! Muahahahaah !!!”

“Mummy ! Stop that !” Said the little one. Ha ha.

“So…. You imagine okay. You turned into a werewolf, then the next day you noticed that your parents are missing. You searched and searched everywhere but you couldn’t find them. Then the very next day if the moon is still full, you turned again and when you woke up the house is very empty because your bibik and your siblings are gone.”

“The very next month your grandparents went missing. Then your cousins…. And you were burping all the time……”

The car was very quiet. Babahnya pun diam…. He he….

“Lepas tu your neighbours and your teachers…. And you realized that when the moon is full, your tummy is also full and all these people went missing at the same time……”

“Mummyy…..” Said my son. I was waiting for his conclusion and I tell you I was not disappointed. He he… tergelak den.

“If I ever become a werewolf kan… I will scratch my parents and my sister so that we can be werewolves together….” He said with a quiver in his voice.

Ha ha !

And this very inconsistent Mummy gets angry whenever her son quavers at the thought of going anywhere dark alone.

Okay…. I will tell him there is no such thing as werewolves tonight. He knows that by the way but I will just drive the message home.

PS: He said a werewolf can be killed by a silver spoon. A spoon ? Why not chopsticks, said Mum, because they are sharper. He he…

Just a case of miscommunication

Elsa took something from 7-11. This episode happened on the day of their birthday party. They went out with their Babah to get ice from 7-11 and when they came home, Babah was enraged.

Apparently Elsa came home with a packet of Sugus (grape flavour by the way) that Dan didn’t pay for. In Elsa’s defense she claimed that she had informed Babah that she wanted the candy and didn’t hear Babah’s order to put it back where she got it from… he he. In the car Dan noticed her munching away and was shocked with the discovery of the Sugus in her hand.

Titi was bewildered, Umar was scared, Mummy was…. No biggie lah… go back to the store and pay. Just a miscommunication.

So the very next day all of us bundled into the car and went to the 7-11. Babah had the offending candy in his hand and Elsa on the other. I of course was up to some mischief or… err…. wanted to teach my children a lesson, to instill good values in them, teach them the perils of stealing ….

The shop was behind us so I was on my knees, hugging my seat as I looked at the shop. I could see Babah and Titi clearly. Umar though kept his body facing front, his face rigid, eyes narrowed.

“Habis lah, Titi…(Titi is a goner..)” said Mummy.

“Umm…. They are waving their hands about, I think they are angry… Itulah Titi ni….”

“O-oh… one of them is talking on the phone… I think he is calling the cops…. She is so gonna spend today in jail….”

“Here comes the police car…. They are drawing out their guns…. Oh man…. Titi had her hands up…..”


But as I was giving my so-called live commentary, I noticed that my son was unusually quiet. His body was ramrod straight, his face set in a stony mask. Then I noticed his fists. His hands were formed into tiny fists.

Dear me… he looked like he was restraining himself from doing something. I’d better shut my trap. Titi and Babah were on the way to the car anyway.

He looked slowly to his side when he heard footsteps. Elsa climbed into the car with an embarrassed grin, looking at me and Um. Um just looked at her but this time with a resigned look on his face.

“What happened, Ti ?” He asked, eyes huge as plates (not saucers because normally they are the size as saucers anyway…)

“Nothing…. He heh…”

“The police ?”

“What po….”

“No… the police gave her a warning lah.. She cannot do it again…. They already put her in their book…. They know where she lives….” Evil Mummy cut in.
“There was no police, Mum….” I have forgotten that she has grown.

“Laa…. Abang yang lagi satu tu polis lah…. Dia tak pakai baju polis je sebab dia detective…”

Titi gulped. He heh…

“Don’t do it again, Ti…” Abang said in a quiet voice. No tears, no high pitch voice but a serious, authorative tone that scared the hell out of his mom.

My son had become a man….

Hmmm…..

PS : Kesinambungan ceritanya ialah kelamrin we had dinner at Subway. Elsa ordered 2
cookies (apart from the sarnies of course) but since her tummy is teensy weensy, she had to take it home. Abang saw Elsa grabbed the cookies and put it in her handbag (don’t ask).

“Mum… is Titi allowed to take the cookies home ?” He asked. He was smiling though but he asked all the same.

He he……

Muka U-um...

This morning for the umpteenth time, my kids bickered.

“Itulah, Ti ! Um dah cakap dah. Itu Um….. pot pet pot pet…”

“Waaarggggggh !!!” That came from Elsa.

“Ti ! Why must you cry ? Um tak marah pun. Um cakap je….. Titi ni suka saja menangis….”

“Then why is your face like that ?”

Abang diam sekejap.

“Okay lah…. Dah, my face is not angry anymore….” Said abang, mengalah.

He he….

PSP

I waved goodbye to my children this morning. I saw Elsa trying her hard to look at me from the car’s window as Babah backed down the driveway, her tudung almost covering her eyes. Somehow that scene reminded me of a conversation I had with her a day before her birthday.

“Mummy….” Said my daughter. It was early morning and as I passed her bed, she stirred so I lay down beside her and gathered her in my arms.

“Hmmm…” My eyes were still closed and I was sure hers were too.

“I can’t wait for my birthday, Mummy….”

“It’s tomorrow, little girl…”

“ When it’s my birthday… kan, when I wake up people will be around me and say ‘Surprise !!’ Then I will say, ‘Thank you for coming to my party…’…” She clasped her hands together, brought it to her chest, eyes fluttered. Berangan sungguh. Sapa lah yang nak datang birthday party pukul 6.30 pagi. I do not want to wake up at 4 am to prepare, either.

“Pastu kan…. I will get a PSP for my present…..”

I sighed.

“You are not getting a PSP, Elsa…”

“Why not ? Aida ada. Dekat kedai ada PSP.”

“Mummy tak de duit lah sayang….”

“Why don’t we ask Aida ? Aida ada satu. I can ask Aida where she got the money, okay ?”

“Aida punya Mummy dia lah belikan. Mummy dia banyak duit, Mummy Elsa tak de duit….”

She went quiet. “What about my duit raya ? You can use my duit raya …”

He he… “Your duit raya dah jadi Sijil Simpanan Premium lah, little girl. Itu untuk Titi nak pergi sekolah nanti, okay ? School is very important, PSP is not. In fact because of PSP you might not be able to go to school. Okay ?”

I can see the disappointment in her face. Kalau ikutkan hati memang aku pegi beli, tapi fikir kan masa depan untuk dia and abang dia, tak payah lah. Game Boy ada, PS2 pun ada. Jadi lah….

Dear Elsa, actually I am very selfish if Mummy ikutkan tak sampai hati Mummy ni. I want to give you everything but then if I do that I would not be thinking how all those will spoil you in the long run.

I want you to be one of the best people in the world and accepting our limitations is one of the traits. Setting your priorities right is another important one too. I do not know what the future would be like but I hope that at least I am in the right path to guide you.

Trust me. Forgive me.

Umar's life style

“Umm…..” Said I yesterday. All of us were already in the room, lights out waiting for sleep to come.

“Huh ?”

“Semalam kan when I was waiting for you at school I saw one guy bawak dia punya pet pegi sekolah…..”

To my kids their stuffed toys are their pets. Umar’s favourite is his giraffe given to him by his uncle Anu and Aunty Sheena for his 4th birthday, Emot. Elsa’s favorite is a cat she calls Kitty and the green teletubby she re-named Bathtub. Apart from that is a stuffed Eiffel Tower called Monsieur Bonjour (he he), a turtle they call Mr Floppy Head and entah sapa-sapa lagi. Umar is very attached to Emot that once when he left him somewhere in KLCC Dan made a desperate dash to get him back… he he…

When he was smaller Umar used to sleep with his favourite cars underneath his pillow and Emot in his arms. Now no more as I think he could feel them at the back of his huge head. Emot and friends are softer, so they stay… ha ha..

“Really ? What pet does he have ?” He asked excitedly.

“A cat… a brown one … but he is sooo huge…. Bigger than Emot…..” Said I.

“Whoa….” Said Elsa. I laughed.

“Best kan Um kalau kita boleh bawak pet pegi sekolah ?” She asked her brother wistfully.

“Don’t be funny lah, Ti. That is not our life style !!” Said Umar.

Aku ingat Dan dah tidur when I felt his body shaking. He he…. Life style apa, Umar ?

Before that we had an argument on whose turn was it to switch off the lights. I asked Titi to do it but after standing on 2 pillows, she still can’t reach it.

Umar grumbled as he got up from bed and switched off the lights.

“I am too small lah, Um..” Said Titi, noticing her brother’s annoyance.

“Okay… next time I am going to hang you on the fan, switch on the fan so that you will fly and slam on the wall. On your way down, you switch off the lights, okay ?”

Dahsyatnya ! Titi laughed.

“Umar if you dah switch on the kipas, then why don’t you just tutup the lampu ?” She asked after a long silence.

He he…..

Put my hand on your shoulder...

Umar is very talkative. VERY. Sometimes I dread driving with him because as soon as the door is closed, he will start.

“Mummy, don’t you know… Sponge Bob kan…..”

“Mummy… semalam kelakar sangat…. Dalam cerita Naruto kan……”

“What is the meaning of senior ? Because tadi …..”

You get the gist of it.

The problem is up until now he still hasn’t properly mastered the art … or more appropriate develop the restrain to not interrupt Mummy and Babah’s conversations. Sometimes when he interrupts we would stop talking to hear his piece. But every so often we realised what a rude thing he was doing and would start a lecture.

So one day in the car, Mummy and Babah were discussing something important when he interrupted. Mummy got upset and told him off because my train of thoughts was broken. Babah too got mad at him.

When we were quiet, our anger expended he slinked back behind me. Nobody made a sound for about 5 minutes when Elsa broke the silence.

“Um… Um nak cerita apa, Um ? “

“Takde apa lah....” He answered, sulking.

“Tell me lah, Um. You can tell me….”

“Nothing lah….” He answered. Elsa left it at that.

I don’t know what Babah felt, but Mummy was a might contrite. However he was rather rude, butting in like that. Nasib baik ada Elsa, eh ?

Not so because Elsa sometimes couldn’t take all the jabberings too.

Both of them were colouring and drawing in the kitchen just now. Elsa was doing hers quietly but Umar of course couldn’t stop talking. His mouth worked in parallel with his hand. He went on and on and on when suddenly,

“Can you please shut up, Um ?”

I quickly looked at them and saw Umar looking in shock at his sister. Elsa bravely met his eyes. He gave a slow “Okay….” looked down and slowly resumed his drawing. Elsa was remorseful in an instant. You can see it in her face.

“Tak de lah, Um. I was joking….” Said she, closing the distance between them.

‘Sorry, Um… Sorry, kay ? Main-main saja….” Said she hugging her brother from the side.

Umar looked at her and smiled.

“Sorry kay, Um ? Sorry…” She said again with a laugh. Umar nodded and said okay.

Elsa had her left hand on her brother’s shoulder when she recommenced her colouring as she talked gaily and laughing and trying to cajole Umar into his good mood again. Her hand remained on her brother’s shoulder for a long time.

Hmmmm……………..

Green poison

Remember my story about Umar accusing his aunty Wawa of giving his sister poison ? Well apparently my son is obsessed about his sister being at least 10 feet away with things that he suspected to be poisonous.

For people who know me well enough won’t be surprised that I carry soaps with me. Since I have plenty of hand bags, I have a variety of soaps in each of my ‘active’ bags.

Now in my pink one, I carry leaf soaps, a container with thin sheets of soaps, like paper. Elsa loves to play with it because the container looks like a flip phone. He he…. She would pretend to conclude business deals and yell at people (for some reason) or regale stories to imaginary friends. However if her brother sees her doing it, playtime is over.

“Ti ! That is racun !! Poison !! Don’t play with that !!” He would say (loudly…).

If she refuses to listen he would start an angry tirade that depending on Elsa’s mood, she would either concede defeat with a sigh or ignores him.

Sometimes I noticed him confiscating things that he deems too dangerous for his sister to hold. I have to say I have only noticed his vigilance recently.

We were at Shazmi’s wedding last Friday and since Umar and Dan had a role to play, we were at the hotel very early. After a while of just lounging around at the reception area, Dan asked me to go and sit at our table. We were rather thirsty when we finally sat and Elsa eagerly reached for the beverage offered. Her hand stopped halfway though.

“Mum… the air is green….” She said. Green was the theme of the wedding so naturally the beverage was green too.

“It’s okay. It is just sirap only they coloured it green…” Said I.

She looked skeptical as she took the glass and sniffed it. “It’s not poison ?” She asked with a crinkly nose. So cute.

“Nope….”

“Are you sure, Mummy ?” She asked as she brought the glass to her lips. “Nanti Um marah…..”

He he….. Itu yang dia risau…. Takut abang dia marah……

She took a tentative sip and blinked a few times… waiting for whatever.

“Okay… it’s not poison….!” She said happily then … “Yuck !! Tak sedap !!”

Ha ha….

Rambut Elsa

Elsa’s hair had always been messy. Her face had always been hidden by hair. Sometimes you can see a bit of a nose, or her eyes would be visible beneath the curtain of hair. It is more messy when she wakes up from sleep. It will be so tousled, it will take some time to put it to right again. Up until now, when Mummy and Babah wants to see her exquisite face properly we have to sweep away all the hair aside, unveiling a grinning, happy face when all that is done.

When she was little, all attempts to tie her hair or pull back her hair with Alice bands were futile. She would just yank it out until I saw her obsession with princesses, I started calling the cekaks crowns instead. So she was okay with that.

Then I cut her hair short so she was free of any crowns or getahs. But her hair had grown now and the fringes are in the way as we could hardly ever see her face. It will always be covered with hair.

I bought a new crown for her last month and was happy to see her full face for the first time in months, all hair pulled back neatly. She was not happy though.

“Mummy… I am girl… not a boy lah !!” She said, hands already trying to free some of her fringe.

“Apa hal lak, Ti ?”

“Only boys show this….” She said, pointing at her forehead. “I am a girl, lah…. Girls buat macam ni….” She announced hotly, pulling more hair to cover her forehead.

Oh… patutlah dia suka benar biar fringe terjurai sampai tutup mata. Tak girly rupanya without a fringe. I didn’t know that….

Hmmm……

Cerita Hantu Dalam Baby Monitor

Yesterday we sat down to watch Afterlife, a British drama on BBC Entertainment. It is something like Ghost Whisperer but better and more realistic. Not the ghost part obviously but the normal looking actress wearing normal looking clothes with realistic accommodation and transportation packet. To me a lot of American shows promote too beautiful people with too thin bodies and a lifestyle that doesn’t match their occupation.

Anyway… yesterday’s episode was about a couple with a baby who was haunted by a presence of a man who killed himself because his son drowned on his watch. The e-ek (hantu) of course wanted the couple’s son Tom for himself, to replace his dead son and was attaching himself to the baby. His presence was mainly through the baby monitor where you can hear him singing the lullaby to the baby.

The ending was sad. When the heroine Alison was talking to the wife outside the house (they were moving house that very night because the initially non-believer wife finally had an encounter with the e-ek), the husband left the son in the very bathtub the previous baby drowned in (I don’t know why they just can’t leg it asap), the door closed and the audience was subtly told that the baby had gone with the hantu.

It was really sad. I sighed and looked at my open-mouthed children.

“Mum…. When I was little, I slept with you, kan ? You did not let me sleep alone kan ?” asked my son, all anxious.

“Kenapa pulak ?”

“Well you did not let me sleep alone kan because it is very dangerous for babies to be left alone….”. He answered.

I sighed.

“Umar….. you are already 8. Nothing happened to you so it doesn’t matter whether you slept alone when you were small kan ?”

“Yes… but it still dangerous, Mummy…” He persisted.

“Um… this is just a story, Um. This is not real. Very much like Pokemon and Digimon and Superman are not real. Sebelum tidur baca 3 Qul, kan ? So you have nothing to be worried about….” This is actually an excerpt of my long winded explanation.

We went straight to bed afterwards. The kids and I were talking on my bed before Babah joins us and switches off the light when suddenly Elsa sat on me.

“Mum….” Her face was in earnest. “The hantu took baby Thomas away ke, Mum ?”

“Tak delah… that is just a story….”

“Really ? But the hantu tutup pintu sebab nak ambik baby Thomas kan ?”

“Takde lah…. Bila cerita tu dah habis, the director yelled “CUT!” and the baby Mummy dia ambik lah balik…..”

“Oh… okay….” Relief was all over her face.

Then Babah came in and after a fight with Babah because she wanted to continue with her book ( Mummy…. Lottie sekarang dah nak mandi dah….. he he….. Cerita pasal Lottie anak gajah yang tak nak mandi.. Oh yes… my daughter can already read. I am so proud of her and very grateful to Al-Ikhlas. They promised in 8 months time my daughter could read, but they did it in 6. Thank you, Al- Ikhlas ! ) but Babah wanted to switch off the light. Of course Babah won that argument.

As soon as Babah landed on the bed, I heard a louder than usual “Qul hu wallah hu ahad !!” He he….

When December comes....

Yesterday was not a good day for me. It was filled with innuendos and sarcasm from my itty bitty ones.

It is December and my friends know what December means to us, Umar and Elsa’s birthday party. Being born in December is agony for them. People had birthdays through out the year and their turn seemed a long way ahead. They would start to ask about their birthdays in February because Ana’s birthday is in that month. It doesn’t matter that they just had their party two months before because since it is new year, they start counting anew.

After Ana, then Esya in May. Then Mummy’s and Babah’s and a hoard of Mamus and Ciks through out June and July. But that doesn’t really count because we don’t exactly have a huge party. Jealousy surfaced again in August for Harith’s birthday then in rapid succession as every month after August there will definitely be a party of a cousin or friend.

So come December, they were already giddy with anticipation. Starting 1st December, Umar had been yapping about his birthday and yesterday was the 10th day they had been cleverly dropping hints and inserting birthday stories in our conversations.

Yesterday took Elsa and Babah to DEMC. Babah down with flu and Elsa because she was covered with scabs. It turned out she got it from gardening with me. Doctor prescribed her oral antibiotics and therefore Babah and Mummy (well more Mummy because Babah was unwell and was resenting the fact that Babah picked out a good time to be sick) were dreading the days ahead.

Anyway, when we got home, the sight of the white liquid made Elsa wince and shudder. Surprise, surprise this time she did not make a fuss. Nada ! Not a tear or even a whine ! She made faces sure, but there were no fuss, no tantrum. Both Mummy and Babah were flabbergasted as we were geared up for a fight. You couldn’t imagine the confusion and the relief that quickly followed. Mummy and Babah were praising her like mad, patting her and hugging her. I happily thought the pep talk I gave her before we entered the house what made her all agreeable and obedient. However as usual, when it came to my children I was wrong.

After we cleared the table of all the medicines, I opened the backdoor to hang the clothes to dry. Elsa joined me and since she is always following me around, I did not suspect anything. I was standing on a stool, reaching for the umbrella line, when she started praising herself, “Mummy… I am a good girl. I tak nak nangis pun kan.. ?” I smiled at her and agreed that she is indeed a wonderful girl.

“Saya tak muntah pun, Mummy…I just went ‘Wek, wek’ a bit but no muntah !!” She said triumphantly.

I looked down and smiled at her. Then,

“I am a good girl kan ? So…. Saya nak PSP !!”

I almost fell.

“Eh ? What ?” Asked I.

She grinned sheepishly. “PSP..” She said quickly, in a breath.

I had my hands on my hips when I yelled for her father. No wonder she did not create a fuss while taking her medication. She was hoping for a reward !!

Anyway, I sent my children to their class yesterday afternoon. And since the class is in Sek 9, we passed the new party favours shop again and of course it prompted yet another conversation regarding their birthdays. Umar asked me what am I giving him for his birthday and my answer is the same as the years previously, “A party, sweetheart. A party…” He he….

2 hours after that on the way home, we were discussing their new favourite song by Secondhand Serenade. Biasalah, the love theme, the professing of undying love encouraged a lecture from me. “When you are all grown, please choose a nice girl to marry, okay..” Advised Mummy. “Find somebody that can take care of you, yang rajin sembahyang, yang tak garang…. Somebody with a sweet disposition…. And you yourself, must take responsibility of taking care of your family… Be nice, jangan garang-garang…..”

“Oh…. Don’t worry Mummy…” assured my son. “Nanti bila saya ada anak… I will be extra nice to them, Mummy. When it’s their birthday, I will give them a party AND a present !!”

Waduh !! How sarcastic can you be, my son ? I looked at him, expecting him to smile victoriously but I only saw a very serious face. Hmm… maybe he was just being honest, I thought. But when he thought I wasn’t looking, the smile that I so expected was very much there.

Aaarggghhh !!

A tall wedgie loving girl

“Mummy… hari tu kan ada budak kan …. Bagi saya wedgie, Mummy….”

“Eh ?”

“Iya !! Botol…(betul)… dia buat saya ada wedgie…”

I couldn’t imagine a tudung clad or a ketayap wearer giving my daughter a wedgie so I stared at her in disbelief.

“Takde lah…” Said I again.

“Iya…! Ada !!” She insisted.

“Okay, sapa nama dia ??” Asked I, closing my book because I had the insight that the conversation I’m having will be more fun than my book.

“Emm… Saya tak tahulah. She is a new girl. She is 6 years old, but she is new….”

Hmm…. Very shifty, I thought. Last week she told me of a friend who had a pet snake. She informed me that since she only wants a rabbit, not a snake, she doesn’t see the reason why I should refuse her a hoppy bunny. “Mummy nak rabbit ke snake ?” She asked. “Errmm… rabbit ?” I answered even though I already know what her closing argument would be. And as expected she answered triumphantly, “See ? I did not ask for a snake… you don’t want a snake kan, Mummy ? You want a rabbit kan ?”

I am her mother, so I do know how to handle the little one. “So… sapa nak basuh taik dia ?” Her eyes were round and humongous. “Mummy lah….” She answered bravely, finger pointed at me. “No…..” Said I. But then, she is my daughter therefore she also knew how to handle me. ‘Why do you always say no, huh Mummy ?”

Hmmmm…….

Anyway back to my original story.

Her answer when I asked for the girl’s name ? “I don’t know because she is sooo tall… She is this size …(she gestured a point way above her head) and I am only this size..” two palms above one another, showing the size of a pixie. He he…

Hmmm… “So what happened ?” I persisted.

“Dia baru kan… lepas tu saya kata, “Hey… let’s talk …” And lepas tu she gave me a wedgie, Mummy !!”

I burst out laughing. Kalau ikutkan hati nak tergolek atas lantai… but I didn’t. Let’s talk indeed… Ha ha….

Betul ke cerita ko ni Elsa….

Entahlah…

Anak-anak ku lagi

Elsa had had enough after 2 days of scratching her body

“Nyamuk ni suka gigit saya lah, Mummy. He thinks I am food… selalu gigit-gigit saya…” Said Elsa one day. “Wow !! They think you are McDonald’s ?” I teased. She solemnly nodded her head, lips in a pout and replied, “Ha… dia ingat saya burger macam Babah yang ada sayur tu….” He he…. Big Mac….

I was telling them a story before bedtime when she made the complaint. Umar had his head on my shoulder while he listened (and interrupted with his questions and his own versions…weii… susah betul nak bercerita…) and Elsa was busy scratching here and there. Now Umar’s head is huge. So huge in fact that his songkok is bigger than his Babah’s. No kidding. Therefore my shoulder was rightly sore when he drifted to sleep.

I climbed back to my bed and while waiting for sleep to claim me I had to hear Elsa thrashing on her bed until Dan called her.

“What, Bah ? What do you want ?”

“Eleh… buat tanya pulak… mari jelah sini….”

She ran with the speed of light to us and jumped on the bed.

“What do you want me to do, Bah ?” She asked innocently. Apa ke hal nya budak ni ? Pura-pura tak tahu pulak. I grabbed her tiny waist and deposited her next to me, her head neatly landed on my shoulder.

Not a good idea as my shoulder was still burning from Umar’s weight.

‘Ei… kecik… Why are you using my shoulder lah ? Babah invited you here, so you use his shoulder lah…” Said I, trying to be tactful… he he.

“But I want you , Mummy…” She snuggled closer.

Wah… My shoulder doesn’t want anybody.

“But Ti, Babah has strong shoulders. It is very nice and firm…. Very strong…” Said I.

She immediately changed shoulders. “Yes lah Bah… your shoulder is nicer….” She said and Babah gave me a swift kick under the covers….

He he…. Siapa yang tak dapat tidur malam tu sebab kena tidur dengan Elsa yang lasak ? Not me !! Ha ha…..

The next morning as usual after my toilette, I started the process of waking up my children. Even though it is the school holidays, I do not allow my babies to wake up late. I hold dear my parents’ “Early bird gets the worm” adage.

Again as usual, I started with Umat first. Punya lah malas, he rolled to the floor, his back on the tiles as he backstroked out of my room, using his legs and him arms in back-stroking action to propel him, eyes tightly shut all the while. I looked at him in wonder, because I have seen my siblings did that (and I am sure I have done that before) and thinking Dan couldn’t see this because he will blame my keturunan again.

I wasn’t even near my daughter (because I was busy looking at Umar with a feeling of deja-vu) when I heard she said, “Mummy… don’t disturb me okay. I am still sleepy okay because semalam saya tidur lambat… Okay ? So don’t disturb me and try to wake me up….”

And then terus sengap. Aku tak tahu mana nak tengok. Nak cover up Umar sebelum Babah dia nampak and start tut-tuting again ke or check on my daughter if she really was the one who spoke.

Hmmm……..

Elsa tak sayang abang ke ?

Few weeks ago, my sister Ita called me while I was working. It was Tuesday, a Mandarin class day and boy she had a story to tell me.

“Kau tahu aku pegi ambik budak-budak kan… bila aku sampai Umar kat luar rumah tengah nangis and Elsa kat pintu marah-marah….” Said Ita.

“Elsa halau Umar keluar rumah !!” She added.

I don’t know why the phrase terperanjat beruk was coined, but what Ita said was so unexpected I am sure terperanjat beruk was what I felt when I heard that.

Ita said she stumbled upon U-um storming out of the house, crying. When Ita asked him, he said Elsa asked him to leave so he is leaving.

“Emotional gila U-um, La. Dia terus nak keluar rumah. Yang dia pergi dengar cakap Elsa kenapa ?”

Although I laughed, Ita didn’t. She was thinking more in the line of if she didn’t come when she did, where would Umar be ?

When I got home, I rounded my children.

“What happened ?”

Nobody said anything. When I asked Umar why he attempted to leave, he said because Elsa asked him to.

“Elsa… where do you expect Umar to go ? This is his house too. Umar nak pergi mana ? Kalau Umar hilang macam Sharlinie karang macamana ?”

Both of them were quiet. When I tried to prod the reason of the fight, they were incommunicado.

“Please don’t do that ever again Elsa. And Umar pun, stay put. Where did you think you were going to go ?”

I left it at that because there is nothing much that I can say, right ?

Wrong.

A few days after that, abang and adik were having a hushed fight. You know, bickering with furious whispers. I couldn't make out what they were fighting about of course, but then as I was surreptiously watching them, I saw Elsa hand on her hips, nudging her head to the door. Was that another eviction order ?

I had plenty to say after that !!

ELsa bila demam

Elsa bila demam equals fights and cryings. Why ? Because she hates taking her medicines. “Sikit saja, Mummy !! Wa ! Wa !” Or “I do want that colour !! I want yang pink tuh !!” Well.. you get the picture.

Elsa tergolong dalam golongan yang kena marah bila demam. People especially children who are unwell usually get sympathy and extra tender loving care, but Elsa actually got more anger thrown at her while she is sick.

During her recent sickness, she was plagued with high fever. It was worrying. We bathed her constantly and kept her on skimpy, airy and light clothes. We also had to keep cajoling her to take her medication. After awhile cajoling turned to threats. Haii….

The thing was she pretended not to be sick. I suspected she was sick a day before she got any fever. Her voice was screechy and she was listless. “Are you sick, Elsa ?” Asked I. She laughed. “No !! I am not sick !!” She said and ran away.

The next morning I greeted her with a “Panas tak badan ?” and she replied with an angry “Don’t ask me that question !”

By the second day after a night of fighting to get the medicine to her throat, I instinctively reached for her forehead as soon as I opened my eyes. However the little minx caught my hand before I could touch her.

“Don’t touch me there !!” And quickly scrambled up. I was too shocked for words because I thought she was asleep.

“Okay Mummy ? You cannot touch me at all okay Mummy ? You don’t touch me here, here, here… okay Mummy ?” She instructed after successfully putting herself at a safe distance from me.

Tak payah pegang dahi, Elsa… your hands pun cukup panas. Malas to cause her more distress, I shrugged my shoulders and prepared for Subuh, knowing fully well that she will take her medicines no matter what.

When I got out from the bathroom, I saw her lying on my bed and my son who was buttoning his school uniform was by her side, talking urgently to her.

“Ti !! You must makan ubat, okay Ti !!”

“Tak nak…. Tak sedap… I am not sick…..”

“Ti … you have to makan ubat. Kalau tak nanti Titi mati… Titi nak mati ke ?” Asked my son.

“No, Um… I am not sick !!” She insisted.

Umar started to get desperate and when he next spoke, his voice was laced with desperation and tears.

“Ti…. I don’t want you to die… Please makan ubat…… Please, Ti !!” The abang pleaded.

Kesian aku nengok abang si Elsa ni. However Elsa was not moved at all and was still adamant that she was healthy. Umar gave up and went down for his breakfast weeping silently.

I remember Dan’s sister recounted me a story of Elsa who had some ailment while she was around at her mom’s house. She managed to persuade Elsa to drink her medicine however when she swallowed, it triggered a coughing fit.

Umar was at his sister’s side in an instant.

“Aunty Wawa … did you give my sister racun ?” Asked he in a scandalous tone while helping his sister up and took her away from Aunty Wawa…

He he… …

My nieces

I miss my nieces. Since Umar and Elsa go home after school, I hardly ever see my 2 girls. So 2 nights ago I ajak Babah to bawak Esya and Ana keluar dinner. Ana is always game, she is very rajin that one, but Esya is a different matter. She loves to stay home and usually malas nak keluar. Nak tengok tv lah, nak tidur lah, nanti ayah cari lah…. Ada aje alasan dia. Mummy vows that she will do something to get Esya out of her laziness.

So imagine my surprise when Babah honked the car, both of them came running out of the house.

“Esya ikut ke ? Esya ikut Mummy ke ?” Asked the very excited Mummy.

“Mummy ! Mummy !” Cried Ana happily. Tapi Esya went,

“Is that Abang U-um ?? Abang U-um ! Abang U-um !!” She yelled while frantically looking for her shoes.

“Esya ikut Mummy ke ?” Asked me, still could not quite believe it.

“Abang U-um ! Abang U-um ! I saw abang U-um tadi !! Is that abang U-um ?” She ignored my questions and kept on with her abang U-um.

“Sapa Abang U-um tu, Sya ? Umar ke ?” Asked me in a frown. Abang U-um ? I know Umar liked to use his title whenever it suited him but I never heard anybody calls him that on a permanent basis.

“Ha ! Abang U-um !! Abang U-um !! There he is ! I saw him kat sekolah tadi, Mummy !! Abang U-um ambik hadiah. Is that really Abang U-um !!” She was all-euphoric, yelling and jumping at the same time.

I looked at her questioningly then Kak Idah, my mom’s maid came out.

“Dia rindu tu, Jang ! Kan dah lama tak datang…” Lepas tu Kak Idah pulak menjerit-jerit, “Umar !! Titi !!” and ran to the car, arms waving and trying to get hugs and kisses from my children. Kelakar gilo eeii dia orang ni. Rindu bebenor.

In the car I asked Esya why she called Umar abang U-um. Marlin helpfully answered, “Haii…. Umar kan paksa dia orang panggil dia abang Umar… Dia kan boss….” Umar grinned sheepishly at his parents who just shook their heads. Gila kuasa budak ni.

“Tadi at school saya nampak abang Umar ambik hadiah, Mummy !” Said Esya excitedly.

“Really, baby ?” Said Mummy, stroking her face fondly. “You did not point your finger and say, “Hey !! That’s my cousin !!” out loud ke ?” He he… cheekily planting havoc-inducing ideas to my progeny.

“No !! I did not but I did jumpa dia when dia jalan..” Said Esya.

“A-ah, Mummy. She called me when she was beratur tu pergi class….” Said Umar and then I couldn’t say anything anymore because Esya was busy talking and laughing with Umar. Rindu sangat gamaknya tu.

We had a lovely dinner where Ana refused the orange juice we ordered for her but instead wanted Babah’s ‘ayer gash….’.

When we got to my mom’s house after dinner, Ana looked stricken and worried. She refused to get out of the car.

“Titi sayang Ana…” Said Ana, face unhappy, stabbing her cute finger to her chest repeatedly.

O-oh..

Ana memang sayang Titi. When my kids were with my mom, every late afternoon when I came to pick my children Ana would be distressed because I came to take Titi away. Her trick is usually, “Ana nak tidur, Titi tidur Ana…” and off Ana would go to her room, tugging Titi along and they will baring and Ana would pat her bum as a signal for Titi to do that to her. So Titi pun pok-pok lah Ana’s tooshie, sambil nyanyi-nyanyi. Of course since it was 7 pm, who in the right mind could fall asleep ?

If I tried to tell her that Titi has to go home, Mummy is tired, Mummy nak sembahyang blah, blah, blah.. she would start wailing. Worse if she crossed her arms, lips in a pout and announced importantly “Ana ajuk ni…”

“Titi sayang Ana !!” Said Ana again, face so sad.

“Titi kiss Ana okay ? Titi sayang Ana…” Said kakak Titi pulak.

“Nanti Titi datang rumah Tok, okay ?” Pandai Titi pujuk.


“Titi sayang Ana….” She said again. Sedih hati Mummy tengok tapi Umar dah nak lelap (boys and their 9.30 pm bed time theory). But I cannot see Ana like that. I was about to say, “Okaylah,jom masuk sekejap…” Ana climbed down the car, waved at Titi and run shrieking happily into the house. Cepat betul berubah mood budak ni. Belum ada PMS lagi tuh… he he….

Umar and his mouth

On Sunday we went to Elsa’s concert at Dewan Jubli Perak. It was really, really long from 8 am to 1 pm. The concert could have been good I suppose if it had been better organized. Seriously I had more fun at Umar’s CEC’s concert.

Anyway we were late and went there without breakfast. They did supply one doughnut and 1 karipap per family (please concentrate on the per family part… well actually that is quite good because CEC never thought about the condition of our bellies…. ) but being parents, GOOD parents, we let Umar ate it all, our healthily sized (read fat) boy.

Anyway all the waiting was a revelation. Why ? Because I found out that Umar has a very sassy mouth.

At 9 am Umar had started complaining about his hunger and the failure of the organisers to start the concert made him more anxious. Predictably the concert started late and it started with speeches. The speech given by Adun Bandar Anggerik, a Yaacob Saperi was good though as his was the one I listened to from start to finish.

Then the emcee (there were two, funny enough. One was speaking in English and the other did Arabic translations. Dan and I looked around in vain, trying to locate any Arabs among the guests but we couldn’t find any. There were a few mat sallehs, but no Arabs… so that part was a bit intriguing) announced that they will be closing the drapes because they are going to assemble all the students for the hafazan.

Umar of course was not concentrating but when they closed the drapes he was on alert. “Apa payah tutup curtain tu. Beratur, jalan duduk…” said the all-knowing me.. he heh…

“I think maybe somebody is going naked….” Was Umar’s reply…. Orang keliling was clearly not paying attention either and a few looked at him. Mummy and Babah punya segan tok sah cerita lah and Mummy pun marah lah Umar… he he…

Anyway while waiting for the children to be organized, the emcee and his nasyid friends sang a few songs for us. Hmmmm…. not that I want to be critical but practice, practice and practice okay ?

The concert was seriously very boring and I blame the teachers. They lack imagination and the drive to produce something nice and entertaining. Maybe I am being over critical, I don’t know but as I mentioned earlier, I attended CEC’s concerts for 3 years and theirs were good. Luckily the show was performed by children and their antics was what that saved us from boredom. The kids were cheeky, energetic and funny and oh so adorable. There were a few shy ones too which I found really endearing. Some forgot the routine, which made us laugh, and one boy was really cute. He had forgotten his lines and his teacher had to give him the script. He then recited it beautifully, tapi malu-malu of course.

Apa anak aku kata ? “Luckily he can read kan Mummy ?”

Udah… apa ke halnya Umar ? Mummy gave him the severest of jelings that he went quiet.

There were a few other stuffs he said that wasn’t nice but the most severe one was when they again closed the drapes to arrange the stage for the graduation ceremony. And again the nasyid boys went on stage. The emcee said, “Please allow us to entertain you again..” or something in that manner and my son… waaahh !! My boy said, “Not in a million years …” Masa tu aku dah tak tau nak buat apa dah and just hid behind the papers.

As I mentioned earlier we woke up late. What with nak sembahyang Subuhnya, then preparing the kids, then doing our own toilette plus having to go buy local fruits because the school asked for local fruits donations. To make matters worse, Dan is a punctual being and therefore had this unnecessary need to be there by 8 because the programme stated parents' arrival was to be at that time. So who had time for breakfast ? Defensive ni.... he he

When they closed the drapes again which was around 12, we thought we could get Elsa since she was not graduating.The task fell on Dan and Umar who went backstage to get her. However apparently all students will be getting something so we were asked to wait. So we waited and waited and waited when I noticed my son was missing. I looked around but couldn’t find him. I located Dan who sat at the furthest back, and was informed that Umar was backstage again, trying to get his sister.

Aisehman… My face flamed with embarrassment because I have seen him being insistent. They are not pretty for the mother’s eyes. 2 minutes later, he emerged triumphant from backstage with his sister in hand. “What did you say to the teacher, Umar ?” Asked me as we raced to Kelana Jaya for a much needed nasi padang.

“That I’m hungry and my sister is hungry because we did not have breakfast…” Ceh… cannot jaga your mother’s air muka ka ?

Anak ku Elsa …

Last Friday Dan and I went to Subang Parade to get new tennis shoes from Al-Ikhsan for me. Umar deicided not to come so we went a-trois. Kebetulan it was Halloween and therefore some places were suitably decorated.

“Look, Mummy !! Pumpkin tu ada mata…. Macam Halloween…” Exclaimed my daughter.

“It is Halloween, little girl….” I confirmed.

“Really ?” She said with a skeptical look on her face.

We walked some more and saw a few more Halloween decorations.

“Is it really Halloween, Mum ?” She asked, brows furrowed.

“Iye…..” Yelah… apa lagi nak jawab kan ? However her face still looked disturbed.

I wasn’t that hungry and Dan couldn’t find anything appetizing in Subang Parade, so we went to Khalifah Sek 3 for tosai.

Dan and I were chatting when suddenly Elsa interrupted. “Is it really Halloween today, Mummy ?”

Aiseh… awatnya budaknya ni ?

“Yes it is….” Said I and before I could ask why she added darkly, “Then why isn’t everybody wearing a costume ?”

Mummy and Babah burst out laughing. While I’m writing this, my mind keeps going to her face when she said it, disbelieving with a hint of anger…. He he….