Unsuccessful Ploy

I read an article on a mother’s experience with a very inquisitive child. After I read it, I was relieved to know that I am not the only mother who felt like wringing her child’s neck for asking too many questions. I learned that feeling tired with the barrages of questions is actually quite normal. Phew… !!

Is there an article for my son that explains maybe he should write all his questions and politely divide it equally between his parents to answer ? Two days ago he asked me about clouds. As I was ( still am ) suffering from an inflamed tonsil, I just shrugged my shoulders because talking hurts. However ( I promise you this is true ) I did make a mental note to explain it all to him when I am better. However…

Umar : The clouds are made of water Mum, don’t you know ?

I gave him a look that says if you already know it, why did you ask me ? Then he proceeded to tell me authoritatively about the cycle of rain… Why ? Why did you ask me if you already know the answer ? Do you want me to confirm what you know ? Or do you want to check if your mother knows everything ?

Elsa loves eggs. Unlike Umar who abhors it, Elsa loves them. Morning, noon and night, that is her menu of choice. Since she developed this affair with eggs, Dan and I hadn’t had eggs with our nasi goreng, mee bandung or any dish that consists of eggs because she would take them away from our plates.

I have made a few attempts to curb her intake ( cholesterol, don’t you know ? ). The most recent one, I tried the vanity angle. Everytime she kisses me, I would say that she smells of eggs.

Mum : Eee…. Busuknya. Bau tulur….

Elsa : Ye ke ? Bau tulur ke ? Okay, Titi lap okay ?

She wiped her mouth with her baju. Then she tried again with more kisses.

Mum : Eeeuuww….. bau tulur lah… Disgusting Titi….

Elsa : Okay Mummy, Titi pegi basuh mulut okay….

Then she walked to the toilet and washed her mouth ( this will take quite sometime because washing her mouth is coupled with playing with the water… kill 2 birds with one stone as they say ).

Mum : ( after kissing her again ) Bau lah Ti…

Elsa : (sighed) Mummy kiss rambut Titi lah… my hair okay Mum ?

Mum : Urgghh…. Baunya…
I don’t know why she puts up with it. Probably she wants to be known as the best person to kiss ever.

Mum : Titi toksah makan telur lah……

Elsa : Toksah makan tulur ? Tak boleh ke Mum ? Makan ikan goreng saja ?

Mum : Haaa… okaylah. Ikan is good…

Elsa : What about roti canai ?

Mum : That is good choice too… no smell what-so-ever….

I beamed, thinking my ploy had work.

Elsa : I know, I know… Ice cream kan Mum smell so nice…. Titi makan ice cream lah…

Mum : ?????

Elsa : Yes… Titi makan ice-cream… Babah.. pegi ambik ice cream for me…. Mummy bagi..

Mum : Cess….. back fired…

Holiday in KL

Our family spent the night in KL on Saturday. The reason is because my mom and her besan ( Shera’s mom ) went to Ahmad Jais’s concert ( I know…. I know…. ). The concert we predicted would finish late and therefore we decided to wait for her in KL with bedrooms within easy reach. Alasan je…. We took the opportunity to spend time with each other.. and tengok wayang.

Movie of choice ? Mr Bean… He he… I had wanted to watch Chermin, in my bid to support the local industries, but I sensed my family agreed just to humour me… ( never mind, I have Amelia, my cerita hantu buddy to go watch it ) but at the 11th hour changed to Mr Bean…

The first thing I thought when I saw the evergreen En Kacang is how he is not exactly … well immortal. He looked old. And how he uncannily looked like his cartoon character. The cartoonist really captured the essence of Mr Bean.

It was hilarious, some time in a slapstick kind of way, the audience was laughing all the time. The movie we caught was at 9.40 pm and it was full to the brim. Elsa watched it with a permanent smile on her face. She laughed and enjoyed herself until about halfway when the day’s activity was getting to her.

Umar… well…. He was laughing and all but at one point, I could see him cringe. Then I saw him closed his eyes. Then he asked to go home. “ Why ? Aren’t you enjoying yourself ? “ He gave out an embarrassed laugh and said “ Mr Bean is so silly Mum. He keeps making all this mistakes…. I cannot stand it anymore….. “ He he…. Umar dah segan tengok lawak bodoh Mr Bean… Dah tak sanggup nak tengok lagi……. Hai…

Anyway, the next day we brought him to PetroSains. You have no idea how much he bugged us to take him there. So since he good really good marks for his exams, we told him it is his present for scoring 100% in Science, Maths and English.

Let me tell you this, PetroSains is a whole lot of fun and very educational. There were gadgets and experiments to try. There were puzzles to solve and simulations to attempt. It was worth the RM 35 to get the 4 of us in. It was well planned and beautifully done. Dan and I wondered how could they squeeze everything in KLCC. And I have to say this, we had been to Red Earth in Edinburgh, Scotland and it could not rival our PetroSains. On our ride back to Level 4, I actually got quite sentimental because I was so proud. It was well managed.

Umar and Elsa’s birthday party this year will definitely be held there.

Merajuk Tak Bertempat

We were in the car yesterday and Elsa was listening to a song by Rossa. That song somehow really touched my little girl’s heart. While singing this song, she will caress and kiss our faces with utmost tenderness.

“ Sekalang kau pergi nan jauh…. “ * Usap * * Usap *

“ Sekalang kau tinggalkan aku….” * Kiss * * Kiss *

Coincidently, while she was stroking my face, Umar mentioned that his Bahasa Arab paper in Sekolah Agama is 35/50. I was shocked and my arms flailed upwards on its own accord and accidentally knocked my daughter’s hand. Big mistake. In a split second I grabbed her hand and offered my apologies. Too late. She was already heartbroken.

Her head hung, she repeated, “ Mummy tak sayang Titi…. “

She walked with her Babah and refused to talk to me. Somehow between ordering our food ( we were at ITM Café for my nasi ayam fix ) and waiting for its arrival, Babah managed to upset her further. Instantly she was best friends with Mummy again.

She positioned her body sideways and her head completely turned to her right ( Babah was on her left ) she claimed that Babah tak sayang Titi. When I said he does and even forced Babah to admit it, she said, “ Tak……… Babah tak sayang Titi, “ and shook her head. She then looked at her father and said, “ I don’t think you should sit here Bah… “ rather forlornly.

Dan and I looked at each other, eyes wide, trying very hard not to laugh. My mother had taught me to never laugh at children’s impertinence. They are funny but by laughing, I am encouraging them, she warned. Being the eldest girl of 8, for as long as I could remember, I had always had a baby brother/sister hanging on my waist. Ada aje adik I gelek kat pinggang. I would be talking and teasing and laughing delightedly if they were ever imprudent with their manners. Mummy advised that I will be teaching them that lack of respect and insolence is okay. They would grow up oblivious to their mistakes.

Therefore, I swallowed my smile and told her sternly that she was being rude. The problem is always the ever-present guardian brother. I noticed Umar had stopped drinking and was looking at us. Then, food arrived. Elsa accepted food from her Babah but kept her face turned the other way. The only time she spoke to him was to ask Babah not to look at her.

On the way back to the car, Titi and Umar walked hand in hand. He protectively allowed her to climb in the car first. When Rossa’s song was played again, all was forgotten. She was all smiles and lovey dovey again… Sigh……

Umar bau ikan goreng

Umar had his exams 2 weeks ago. His daily report was not always encouraging especially his Arabic paper. I came home to his “ I didn’t do the last page, Mum,”. When I asked him why he said he didn’t have enough time and the paper was hard.
Of course I asked why he did not concentrate in class, he looked at me and opened his mouth, “ Mum, do you speak Arab ? “ I knew where the conversation is going already but I bravely said no. “ That’s right. I told my teacher my Abah does not speak Arab, my Mummy does not speak Arab and therefore I also do not know how to speak Arab!! “

Benda – benda macam nilah yang memalukan mak bapak……

Elsa…. Hm lagi sorang…. 3 nights ago she refused to let Umar sleep next to her. She kept asking Umar to go elsewhere dengan alasan Umar busuk bau ikan goreng… Yang abang tu tercengang – cengang lah but it worked well for him at the end because Abah and Mummy had no other way but to let him sleep with them.

The next night, I sternly told Titi that Umar did not consume any fried fish that day…. “ Yes but Umar bau mee Mum …. “.

On Saturday we had dinner with my mom and 2 siblings ( Mail and Marlin ). After dinner we walked them to their car and Umar leaned in Tok’s car for more hugs and kisses from Tok Mi. Elsa was at the other side of the car and from there she thought Umar was going with Tok. She made an awful ruckus, ordering Umar to follow her home. Abah’s explanation of the real situation fell on deaf ears and she only quieted down when Umar stomped his way to her.

In the car, I asked Titi why was she was upset. She said because Umar was leaving with Tok.

Mummy : Kenapa Umar tak boleh ikut Tok ke ?

Titi : Mummy, Titi sayang Umar… ha…..

Umar : Kalau Titi sayang Umar, kenapa Titi pok Umar tadi ?

Titi : Titi sayang Umar okay Um……

Umar : Yelah, tapi why did you hit me just now ?

Titi : ( sighed ) Sebab Um naughty… Titi sayang Umar okay…. Sorry Um….

Mummy and Abah looked at each other with a smile on our faces…

Abah : Pandai anak awak main politik ye ……

Mummy : Eii… anak awaklah

U-um and Titi

My children…

Last night we went to book Dan’s new car. We decided not to get the car that will only be delivered to us in August and purchase one that we will actually get next month. We took our little ‘uns with us to show them the car.

Umar and Elsa were excited. Dan opened the passenger door of the showroom car and invited them to enter. Elsa went in after Umar and soon as she stood in the middle of the back seat, she exclaimed “ Much better…. “ and nodded her head in satisfaction. “ This is better than Abah’s old car ? “ I asked and she said, “ Of course Mummy….. “. Hmm….

Dan who is always very concerned about what his children think of him asked for Umar’s approval. “ Am I loser now ? “ and Umar replied “ No Bah… you are great now… “ Kesian Abah. I told Umar that I have always found his Abah a great person. And this little boy of mine said, “ Sure mom… he’s your boyfriend, “ like it is so yucky to have a boyfriend.

After booking the car, we went straight for dinner. We were driving in silence when suddenly Umar gave a loud piercing scream. Titi for some reason had bitten him. I quickly tried to ease the pain while Dan interrogated the would-be piranha. All questions were met by stony silence.

I then tried to approach her. “ Sapa gigit Umar ? “

Titi : Tak de sapa – sapa

That response is very common from her.

Mummy : Titi…. Umar is crying… sapa gigit dia ?

Titi : Umar tak nanis pun…

Budak ni ingat kita orang pekak ke ? How can she try to camouflage the situation ?

Mummy : Titi… do not lie to me. If you decide to lie I will leave you here…..

At that time we were in Glenmarie. You know how Glenmarie is at night……. But the one who panicked was the victim. The accused remained defiant.

Umar : Titi, please tell Mummy you bite Umar. Nanti Mummy will leave you here…

Titi : No… I don’t know anything….

Eee…. Kerasnya…..

Umar : Come on Ti, just tell her you gigit and everything will be okay……
Mummy : Well Titi ? Sapa gigit Umar ?

Titi : Titi mummy…. I gigit Umar….

Terus gelak – gelak……. Umar was happy too and laughed.

Mummy : Why did you gigit Umar ?

Titi : I don’t know.

Umar : Dia boring – boring gigit Umar … he he… she is so cute…

Pulak… baru tadi melalak sekarang dah cute ? Then they started to wrestle each other and were soon best friends again….

Mummy : Err…. Nak sambung marah ke Dan ?

Dan : Dah lah…. Nanti you slow talk dengan dia…

Aku jugak…..

Art Studio

More drama today for me. Last night Umar asked for my permission to bring his Art Studio ( alah…. Colouring set yang ada colours of different forms, pencil, magic, water , crayon and yang lagi satu macam crayon tu ). I was a bit skeptical about him being able to fit in his bag but he said it would be of no problem. “ I will move it this way and that way Mum, “. I did not give a reply.

This morning he handed me the now 30 colour pencils. When I asked why he said he is going to bring his Art Studio to school, remember ? I told him that I do not think it is a good idea as the Studio is still in tact and I am sure once he takes it to school, one or even two would be missing.

Besides, Babah added, what will Titi use to write and draw ? She usually lugs it around the house, just in case she has a sudden inspiration for yet another masterpiece. Our statements of course provoked another glassy eyes moment. He understandably became less cheerful. He ate breakfast in silence and just shrugged his shoulders when I asked him what does he want for his bekal.

When I held his hand and took him to the school compound, I saw him tried to open his mouth a few times, but changed his mind. As we were about to pass the gate, he finally had the courage to talk or had finally constructed his thoughts and words correctly. He asked if the Studio belongs to Titi only. I denied it and told him it belongs to both of them. It is meant to be used at home and not in school.

At that, the liquid that made his eyes glassy became a river on his cheeks. Aiyooo… Umar. “ Are you not embarrassed that all your friends can see you cry ? “ It got louder. I tried to soothe him as best as I could but he was just really sad. My heart really went out to him but there is nothing that I can do. We are already in school. When the waterworks finally receded, he took my tudung ( he was hugging me anyway, so my tudung was the nearest to him ) and wiped his tears. He even used the ones near my shoulder area that I had to bent down to allow easy access.

“ Dah Mum…, “ he said. He kissed my hand and offered his face for the customary kiss. He gave me a quivery smile. My son… he is always very brave, always trying to show that he is okay after a fight or tears or whatever.

In the car, I rubbed the tear stained tudung to my face and feel wretched. Even now, I am still savouring the bit where my son was woefully pouring his feelings out.

Umar and his colours

Dan called me a tyrant… Stationery tyrant, that is….. because I could get worked up if Umar came home with 1 pencil short. If he loses his eraser again, I think Dan has to hire a psychiatrist to help me get through it. I don’t know why I am like that, but I just am ( trust me, I have learned some crucial breathing exercise to calm me down. It is harder for a non-screamer like me ).

Umar has gone through 2 boxes of 12 short colour pencils this year. When I gave him the second set, I warned him that under no circumstances would I tolerate the disappearance of even 1 colour. Therefore my first encounter with the said set ( mind you, I did not make it a point to check everyday only when I help him with his homework and have a full view of his stationery ), I was astonished to find there were 13 colours instead of the customary 12. He he…

Then of course, the inevitable ( Dan said inevitable, I said it could be prevented ) happened. He lost the whole box. Aiseh. When I asked what happened, his eyes grew bigger and started to get glassy ( berkaca kata org Melayu sebab dah nak teriak dah ). He looked so much like a wounded puppy that I just sighed and hand him his home colouring set.

Now you have to understand how much Umar loves colours. He so loves rainbow. He said his house would be rainbow coloured with blues and greens and oranges and reds and purples. His car colouring book is filled with rainbow coloured cars. His dream Porsche is in canary yellow. Therefore what can his mother do but buy a majestic 36 colour pencils collection as his home colouring set. He is is very proud of it. However it could be only used at home as home is the only place where mummy could guard it like there is no tomorrow. But when the second box of colours were found missing late at night, mummy had to hand over the brand spanking box of 36 colours for school.

Umar’s eyes went wide when he saw me slipped it into his bag. I had him promised that he will take good care of it. Many, many times. Saturday came and time to do his music theory homework. It was just his luck that his homework required some colouring done. I asked him to fetch his colours. He gulped. And was very slow to retrieve it. It took him a long time to return with the said colours. From his demeanour, I was not shocked to see 6 were missing. I did not lecture but I did pass a sentence, no PS2 for 2 more months ( he is currently under 5 months ban – don’t ask me for what as I couldn’t remember. 2 weeks ago his Babah was playing Ultimate Alliance and found it difficult to fight Mephisto. Umar shouted out instructions but Babah still couldn’t do it – at one point Umar ran to his room in frustration at Babah’s failure to kill Mephisto. We were watching the telly together afterwards when Dan said “ Umar….. macam mana ha nak kalahkan Mephisto ni ? “ and Umar replied while looking at me from the corner of is eyes, “ I could help you Babah but I am banned from playing until May…… “ Memang nak kena budak ni… Bagi jugak tapi for that 1 day only to help Babah advance to the next stage ).

That night, I complained to his Babah and Dan said “ Laa… yang dia tunjuk kat you tu buat apa ? I told him not to…. “ Dan went quiet when he saw my horrified face. “ You guys planned to keep this from me ? You are teaching your son it’s okay to fight the authorities !! “

“ Ala, kids are like that. They lose things. I was going to buy a new set to replace it tapi tak sempat rupanya, “ Dan said calmly. This guy is really missing the point, thought I. “ How do you profess to explain the new, still unbattered box to me ? “

“ By doing homework with him every night until the box look old, that is how… “

Menyesal jugak. If I didn’t make a big deal out of it, memang dah sah – sah terlepas homework duty… he he….

Umar's loose tooth

Umar’s loose tooth is really bothering him and us. Yesterday when he couldn’t enjoy his cookies, he bravely told me that he is having it removed that very day. How, I asked and he said he is going to ask his Babah to do it for him. But, he cautioned, not before dinner. After dinner will suit him very fine.

Babah prepared dinner because he came home early and therefore we know what to expect for dinner; soup and baguettes. Sure enough when he hollered for us to come and get it, there were 2 huge bowls of soup, 2 freshly baked crusty baguettes, a bowl of corn and some chicken toasts.

After dinner as we were cleaning up the table, he asked his Babah to take the tooth out for him. Babah looked at his son in horror and said in no circumstance is he ever going to do that. I suggested tying up his tooth with a thread, tie the other end to a doorknob and then push the door hard and wallah !! The tooth will go with the door. It will be a quite painless tooth extrication affair. I know... I had it done when I was little. My Mami Ela helped me. No big deal.

Umar looked skeptical but was gamed to try. You not scared, I asked because his readiness scared me off my plans for some reason. Yup, he said because he doesn’t want to swallow another tooth. “ It is yucky Mom. My tooth sitting in my tummy, “. I ho hummed after that and the plan was forgotten. Ee… takut pulak.

Anyway, to take his mind off the subject, I asked him about Azwan, if he is still bothering my baby. Umar had a delighted look on his face and said, “ Mum, he decided to be friends with me now. He is not rude to me anymore ! “ Really, I asked. Is it because you have stopped talking ? No, he replied, I talk just as much….

Hmmm……… have you guys seen the Volvo ad on the telly ? Where this guy fetched his daughter from somewhere and deposited her at the back seat, and the daughter all the while talked ? You remember he had to politely wait with the door opened, to wait until his little girl finished talking but she never did ? Well, that happened to us a lot. What did not happen a lot is where the father gave a little smile of amusement listening to his baby’s incessant chatter. We do smile sometimes but then I would say 60% of the time we would escape to our own little head, trying to get some rest.

We do not want to ask/order him to shut up because a lot of people warned us not to do that. It would stunted his brain growth, said one. He must be allowed to say his mind or later on he wouldn’t be able to articulate his thoughts at all, said another. Okay, okay. We are listening to all these advice. Okay, we are letting him talk….. But if he ever become a politician, I will put all the blame on my advisors !!

What is on Umar's shoulder ?

We went to our old house yesterday to get the mail. Dan brought the wrong keys and had to climb the fence to have access to the mailbox. As I was laughing and pointing at him, Abang Hassan from next door came to talk to us.

I like our old neighbourhood. The neighbours are friendly and their kids are good influence to my children. We chatted for awhile before Kak Yam, abang Hassan’s wife joined us.

Our kids go to the same school so we meet quite often. Kak Yam told me that Umar is such a busy boy. I was surprised with the remark and asked what she meant by it. Kak Yam said whenever she saw Umar, he would look like he is in deep thoughts. Sometimes, his forehead will be creased, Kak Yam said that depicts deeper thoughts.

“ You have a smart boy there… “ She said. I asked because his forehead is creased all the time ? Yes she said, because he is always thinking. He looked like he has all the problems in the world on his shoulder. That is good ?

At that, Dan smiled. “ Like mother, like son, “ he said. Hmm….

Into my Memory Box

Yesterday was a totally Italian affair for us. Lunch at Italiannies eating marvelous pastas in carbonara and pomodoro sauces. We had warm rosemary bread and fried calamari. At night we had pizza. And at night to Mummy and Babah had diarrhea for some reason.

Anyway, we went to Italiannies at the Curve and I love the Curve’s weekend bazaar. As we trawled the many stalls, we came about a toy’s stall. Hee…… ada aja. Titi saw the many pink bags and wanted one. I steered her view to the cheaper options of stickers and playing cards.

Umar saw Pokemon’s playing cards and grabbed one. It was only RM3 which I find quite cheap. Elsa was already holding a Disney Princess sticker book. I tried to entice her to take a stack of Pokemon playing cards too but she refused. Okay.

In the car, abang was happy reading and scrutinizing his cards and Elsa was flipping her book. Then I saw her tossed her book away. O-oh. “ Mummy, Titi nak card, “ she said, “ Tadi I kata I nak card, not stickers, “ Amboi, pandainya dia nak belit !!

Babah swung around to look at her. She saw Babah’s face and quickly looked away. Then she pushed on her ‘Repeat’ button. “ Please Titi nak card, “ over and over again. When we reminded her that she was the one who wanted the stickers, she blithely ignored it.

When we got home, everybody was in a sour mood. I tried to escape by running upstairs and talking incoherently. I was hiding in the bathroom feigning stomachache when I actually was just reading a book, I heard Dan hollered my name. I flushed, washed my hand a bit and found Umar and Babah at the computer. Babah had scanned and printed a copy of the cards. I was needed to cut them into shape.

Titi held them for about an hour. Then they ceased to interest her anymore. I pick them up one by one and put them in my miscellaneous box. My memory box. I will give this to her when she complains about her kids…..

Aiman pulak

Conversation I had with Umar this morning as I walked him to school.

Umar : Mummy, Aiman kan kat sekolah agama kan is very naughty lah Mummy.

Mummy : Naughty macam mana ?

Umar : He likes to ejek me, calling me names. He said I have bad teeth and I have a girlfriend.

Mummy : Do you have a girlfriend ?

Umar : ( Sighed and rolled his eyes ) No Mum. Dia saja - saja cakap macam tu. I want to tumbuk dia Mum.

Mummy : What ? No ! Never do that. Umar dah tumbuk dia ke ?

Umar : No tapi dia tumbuk Umar.

Mummy : What ? What did your Ustazah do ?

Umar : She was not in class yet at that time. Aiman duduk belakang sekali.

Mummy : And then what happened ?

Umar : I asked Tariq to help me and Tariq pushed Aiman away.

Is there something wrong with my son ? Why does he rub people the wrong way ? Azwan in morning school and Aiman in agama school. I told Dan probably because he talks too much and orang pun naik boring. Dan said because they are jealous of his good looks. I think he is darn handsome because he is my son but I don't think other people share my view.

I just wonder if he started it....

I will call the Ustazah.

Umar’s Predicament

Monday night, we had dinner with Dan’s parents at a restaurant in Shah Alam. My baby Umar was drinking plain water when he made a strangled sound. I looked at him and saw the clear water was tainted with blood. Umar opened his mouth and I saw his tongue was marred with more blood and there was a gap where his loose tooth used to be. Immediately I asked, “ Where is your tooth ? “ He couldn’t articulate a response as he tasted blood and a bit panicky. Dan and I rushed him to the sink and as he spitted and sputtered, there was no sign of the offending molar.

He had swallowed it with his water.

Being a real squeamish person, he was of course feeling quite nauseated with the idea of the tooth in his tummy. Being also told by many many people of his good looks, was very concerned about how he looked.

“ I am not smiling, “ he announced. “ I look funny… “. His Atuk laughed.

He was so upset he slept halfway through the meal. I suppose he thought he wouldn’t have to think of the incident in his head if he slept.

Elsa was having a field day. She kept asking us to show our teeth to check their presence. When satisfied that every tooth was accounted for, she will nod her head and said,” Goooddd……., “ When she came to Umar, she will just shook her head…. He he…

“ I want the tooth Mum…., “ He said, lips jutting out. Kata orang Penang “ dah chom dah….. “ When I asked what for, he said he wanted the money tooth fairy owes him. No tooth, no money. Hai…. Malas dah nak explain about tooth fairy. If he understood the reality of Santa Claus, why is it so hard to comprehend about tooth fairy ? I suspect because of the presence of cold, hard cash.

However, he was worried and I was worried. Worried about the presence of the molar in his tummy. I cooked up a thousand scenarios in my head and he was all queasy about it, both of slept fitfully that night.

Tell me, should I be worried ?

Weekends with my kids 3 ( ye ke ? )

On Saturday I withdrew some money from the ATM to pay for Umar’s piano lessons. As usual, 1 wants to slot in the card, the other wants the grab the money and then fought for the receipt.

The notes came out in fifties and Umar said he wanted one. I asked him what he wanted it for and he said just for keeps. I gave him RM1 instead and mula le muncung. Boleh gantung baju !!

Yesterday we went to KLCC sebab Tok Mi needed new shoes. When Dan’s mom heard we were going, she gave RM100 to Umar. “ Beli lah barang. Nak makan ke.. “ pesan Umar’s Wan. Umar menyengih gila and told me under no circumstances are we using the money to buy food. “ I want to buy something that is going to make me happy Mummy, “ said he. “ Oh really ? “ I replied, “ What will make you happy ? “ “ Something special that is exciting, “.

I suggested using the money for lunch at Chillies ( his favourite restaurant ) and he said he is still full and do not require anymore sustenance. Sombong betul. Anyway I told him that yesterday rugi aje dia muncung sebab tak dapat duit RM50 as today he was given RM100. Do you know what my son said ?

“ But Mom, I really want 4 Million, “

“ What do you want 4 Million for, “ asked his horrified Mummy.

“ I want to buy thousands of toys. Imagine how happy I would be !! “ Kebahagiaan di ukur dengan jumlah mainan.

Anyway, after he trawled Isetan for hours looking for the ultimate excitement that promises happiness, he declared he was hungry and needed Chillies after all. Sebab Tok Mi nya ada sekali tak boleh le menyekeh. Bawak jugak lah.

As usual we had to wait for a table. To pass time, we had a quick look at the TGV and discussed future possible movies. Spiderman came top of the list. After eating, we walked out of the restaurant and I was holding Elsa’s hand. She suddenly said to me, “ Tengok wayang ke ? “ I said wayang ? “ Ha… tengok Spiderman kan Mom ? “ Udah. “ No lah Titi, Spiderman belum siap lagi, “ I said. “ Tu.. ? “ She said pointing at the poster.

“ Oh gambar je dah siap. Wayangnya belum siap…. “ She looked at me, forehead creased. “ Okay, “ she finally said and sighed. “ Tapi nanti tengok tau… “ and Tok Mi laughed. “ Nati kita ajak Mamu Jat pegi okay ? “ “ Haa…… “ she said happily.

Hai…….

My Darling Titi

Waahhh….. sejuk hati emak yang ini pagi ni.

Elsa selalu boring sebab abang dia lepas sekolah pagi pegi sekolah agama pulak. So when Aida came home from her kindergarten, Elsa is usually whisked to Aida’s house to play. So it was our duty to pick her up after work at Bukit Jelutong. Dan was the first one to lose it. He told his mom to not let Elsa go there anymore as Bukit Jelutong is really far away, plus the traffic and the many traffic lights, it could be murderous to somebody who just extricated himself from KL jam. It was really an added misery.

If it was my turn to fetch her, I will have to use the NKVE until Bukit Jelutong. I flipped when I was told to pick her up while driving on the Federal Highway. I especially did not want to pass the stadium/Giant area as there was Singapore vs Malaysia match scheduled that day.

The traffic was horrendous. To add salt to the wound, it was my mengaji night. When I got to Aida’s house, Yaya ( Dan’s sister ) opened the door. She informed me Elsa was having her dinner. I told Yaya to please not allow Elsa to come anymore as it is quite far for us and I do not want to burden her. She laughed and said it is because Elsa usually throws a tantrum if she is not allowed to. Elsa kan….

She was eating when I approached her. I told her very sternly that she is not to visit anymore. She has to wait for her abang to come home. Menyesal jugak because I hardly ever get upset and raise my voice. But I did that day and you know, dia terus tak jadi makan. When she was offered more food, she shook her head to decline. She quietly climbed down the chair and took my hand.

This morning, Dan’s mom called me up. She said that she is going to KL and wants to send Elsa to Yaya’s house . I said okay and was wondering where the conversation is going to when she asked me to talk to Elsa and tell her it is okay to go. Apparently from yesterday they have been wanting to take her there but she refused. She said “ Mummy tak bagi ”.

I laughed and agreed to talk to her. I assured her that it is okay to go. Elsa passed the phone to her Wan and Dan’s mom told me she totally refused to go. “ Untung kau… Patuh betul anak kau “.

Ye ke ? Terima kasih…..

Teaching Umar

My father had always taught us to be independent. Not so independent that you do not anybody else, just enough to try things on your own first and beg for help when necessary.... he he. He had this ask the police task that he developed. He will stop in front of a policeman or police station and forced us to ask for directions. It doesn't matter if we already knew the way but we have to stand up to our fears.

So of course, any sort of torture that I had as a kid, I do not want my own little goats ( kid kan... anak kambing dak ? he he ) to miss. As it turned out my opportunity came last week. Saturdays Umar has piano lessons and being me, he usually did his homework 1 hour before class. When we opened his theory book though, something looked amiss but we couldn’t figured it out yet. As we leafed through the pages, we saw all the book’s stickers were pasted all over the volume, at all the wrong places. We both looked at Titi as we were sure she was the perpetrator. Tak mengaku tu…

Anyway, I had to make Umar share the blame, as it is his book and therefore his responsibility. I told him that I will buy him a new book but he has to do all the explaining to his teacher. He looked terrified but I told him Mummy couldn’t bail him out all the time. There are things that he just has to handle on his own.

Discreetly, I called his piano teacher up. She is a sweet lady, very soft spoken and I am sure she will not kick up a fuss. I requested her to do just so. She was very, very doubtful, but I pleaded for her understanding that I have to teach my son about responsibility and that things are not rosy all the time. He has to accept his mistakes and take it like a man ( or woman or boy or girl whatever ). Throughout his journey in life, 60% of the people he meet could be nasty.

So we went there, I bought the book and since we were early, he did the 3 pages that he was supposed to do. As I watched him, I was trying to imagine the words he will use, as seriously, I couldn’t articulate any explaining in my head with his very little collection of vocabs.

Anyway, as we were waiting, Deva a chatty 8 year old with huge vocabs came along and sat near him and as usual started to prattle on.

Deva : Umar I am going on a holiday to Bali. Do you want to come with me ?

Umar : Where is that ?

Deva : In Indonesia.

Umar : I have been to Jakarta. What is there in Bali ?

Deva : There is a nice swimming pool there Umar. Do you want to come ?

Umar : Is it like the pool in my club ?

Deva : Where is your club ?

Umar : Bukit Kiara.

Deva : Where is that ? Is it near my house in Bukit Jelutong ?

Umar : No.. It is further than that ….

Further ? He used the word further ? I was impressed as I am sure at that age I would have used farer instead of further.

Anyway, then the teacher opened her class door to let a student out and to get Umar in. I didn’t think that he will say it right there and then, but as soon as he saw her, he got up and handed her the new book.

Umar : Teacher, this is my new theory book.

Teacher ( segan – segan lah sebab I was there. Bukannya senang berlakon ) : What happened to your book ?

Umar : My baby sister ( looked at Elsa who in turn looked guilty) messed up my book and I can’t use it anymore.

Teacher : What is wrong with the book ?

Umar : She kan… took out all the stickers and she ……. ( mencari perkataan untuk lekat until I mentioned the word pasted, then glued ) glued the stickers all over the book.

Teacher : Why did you leave the book where she can take it ?

Umar : I didn’t !! I put it on my mother’s bookshelf and she went and took it.

The teacher at this point looked lost and I knew I could only take it this far. So I assured the teacher it would not happen again and that I will pick Umar up in 30 minutes time.

All in all, I applauded Umar for his bravery and for his choice of word. Messed up…. Good one. I was further ( note the word further ) impressed with his vocab when in the car on the way home, he asked me if the song we were listening to was jazz. I said no, it was just a pop song with a little bit of saxophone used. I told him not all songs with saxophone or clarinet is jazz.

He then said, “ Mum, rock and roll kan… they use the element of rock… “ Element ? I looked at him, rather impressed when he again put my head back to reality where he is actually 6 and very much a baby. He said, “ But I couldn’t hear the rocks. How do they play the rocks ? “

Hmmm…. Guna batu rupanya rock and roll…… nasib baik dia tak kata the rock is rolled down the hill to make a sound….

Kawin

Yesterday we went to stock up our larder at Tesco. As usual, both of them wanted to ride inside the cart. As usual when Dan and I left them in the cart for a quick grab of grocery, they started their acting.

" ( mock wailing ) Please don't leave me !! Mummy !! Babah !! Please don't leave us !! Wa......! " As usual some people will stop to look and stare, thinking they are for real.... Hmm....

When we got home as Dan and I were putting our shopping away, Umar told me to hurry up. He wanted to watch me play Sonic. I told him to go up into his room first and I will be with him shortly.

After a few minutes, I noticed that he was still in the kitchen, waiting patiently for me.

Mummy : Umar pergilah naik atas dulu.

Umar : It's okay Mum. I will wait for you.

Mummy : Tak pe lah. It is better if you go up first and prepare for bed or something.

Umar : No mummy. I want to wait for you.

Mummy : Why ?

Umar : I like you Mummy, that is why.

Mummy : ( smiled ) That is a very nice thing to say Umar. Thank you. But I have to do other stuffs first and it might take awhile.

Umar : It's okay. I will just watch you Mum. I just want to be with you. Is that okay ?

Dan looked at me as my eyes went misty. I hugged him.

Mummy : You will make a fine husband one day, sweety. I am sure of it...

Later that night, as we were waiting for sleep to come, he said,

Umar : Harith kan dah darjah 5 kan Mum. So lepas ni dia kawin kan...

Abah yang tengah pakai baju berhenti untuk tengok dia.

Mummy : What ?

Umar : Lepas habis semua darjah - darjah kan, kawin lah !! Harith dah darjah 5 so lepas ni kawin. Umar lambat lagi sebab baru darjah satu...

Mummy : Ermm.... lepas darjah - darjah semua is big school like Mamu Jat. Tapi lepas tu is doctor's school if you are lucky.

Umar : Lepas tu baru kawin ?

Mummy : Ermm... well I don't mind if you want to kawin while in doctor's school, but not before.....

Umar : Okay.... ( and blushed )

Mummy : Do you have a girlfriend Umar ? ( my sisters memang tak bagi langsung I tanya that question because he will usually cry, but I just can't help but to satisfy my curiousity ).

Umar : Mummy !!!

He he...

We watched the telly some more and he suddenly informed me in a very authoritative voice that mummy penguins will vomit food into their babies mouth to feed them. No suckling of breasts for milk for the penguins. I asked him how does he know this.

His reply ? " Mummy !! Darjah satu kan .. ? "

Wow.. the answer to everything nowadays...

Anyway, Titi on hearing that, said " Mummy, I want blah blah blah builceemm..... "

Mummy : You want brylcream ?

Abah : Nak buat apa Ti ?

Titi : Ha... builceemmmm nak tengok...

Mummy : Brylcream ? For your hair ?

Titi : Ha ? No hair Mum.... Buiceeemmm....

Mummy : Cakap betul - betul Ti ...

Titi : (Sighed) Happy Feet Mum.... ada builceemmm......

Mummy and Abah : Oh penguin........

Titi : Ha.... pengceemmmmm

Hai.....

Umar and Titi

Last week, Umar was coughing and was feeling under the weather. When Dan’s mom went to him to prepare for ugama school, Titi was sitting next to her brother who was lying down in bed. When she saw her Wan, she said “ Umar demam Wan,” . Dan’s mom checked his temperature and eventhough he was not hot agreed that he looked unwell.

“ Yelah, tak payah sekolah lah, “ said she.

A few moments after that someone rang the bell and Elsa quickly got up. She ran to the stairs and yelled “ Bibik !! Umar deman. Umar tak pi school !! Okay ? “ thinking it was Umar's ride to sekolah ugama and ran back to her brother. Dan’s mom said she sat with her brother the whole day and were very good to each other. He he…

I have noticed that Titi is quite concern about her brother. Once Umar bumped his hand on the car and said “ Ouch ! “ Titi on hearing that went to her brother and asked “ Umar sakit ke ? Where Umar ? “ And when Umar showed it to her, she looked at it, nodded her head and said, “ Okay, “. I have seen it happened a few times. Only I just wonder, what was she looking for actually ? I mean was she expecting blood ? If there were any, what would she do ?

Dan’s mom said that she couldn’t scold any of them. If she ever dares to, the other one won’t speak to her too. She said, both of them would give her the evil look whole day.

Well, brother/sisterhood is what happened, I suppose.

*********************************************************

Umar and Titi loves to sing. One of our favourite past times is cranking up the radio and have a good sing-along. Titi is a creature of habit and loves to sing to the same selection of songs everytime. Torn, being my favourite song would be the first order of the day and the second and the third before she even concede belching to other songs.

One day, they were in the car with their uncle Kamal and his kids when the radio played Torn. Abang Kamal was amazed that Umar and Elsa knew the song and sang happily. Abang Kamal said, " I tanya dia orang how come you guys know this song and Umar said this is my mummy's favourite song, "

I sadly replied, " Not anymore Abang Kamal. They killed the song for me. Dengar suara Natalie Imbruglia nanyi lagu lain pun I nak termuntah, ".

So now, I am trying to introduce new songs to them. I succeeded making them like Beyonce's Irreplaceable and 1 day as we were " To the left, to the left, everything you owned in the box to the left.... " when we get to the chorus, Umar for some reason raised his voice an octave higher and for the first time ever, I heard him sing instead of " You must not know bout me... You must not know bout me...." he sang " You must not bother me.... You must not bother me..... " Ha ha ha.....

Now whenever he whines, I will sing the song he so eleoquently sang " You must not bother me..... "

Buli Lagi

Who is this Azwan ? Yesterday Umar told us, his horrified parents, that Azwan pulled his hair. Umar was, for some reason, on all fours on the floor, when Azwan crept behind him and pulled his hair.

“What did you do ?” Enquired his Babah.

“I called him crazy,” he replied, paused for dramatic effect and continued, “and he didn’t even care !! He didn’t care that I called him crazy.”

“Your teacher tak nampak ke ?”

“Nope,”

“You didn’t tell her ??”

“Nope,”

What to do ? Should we ignore it and take it as childish pranks and behaviour ? Could the matter get worse ? His teacher is quite unresponsive, from my point of view. I have spoken to her on a few occasions and she sort of like… well … unresponsive. Like she doesn’t want to hear from parents.

Dan said he is going to see her tomorrow. I so want to see this Azwan. Nampaknya, there will be one parent tercangak-cangak mengintai esok. Hmmm………..

Cerita Elsa

Yesterday Umar went fishing with his Atuk so Babah and Mummy took Elsa to The Times book sale in PJ. Sampai - sampai memang Mummy hilang dari pandangan pi cari buku so Babah had to take Elsa. She chose a book and then she saw rows and rows of CDs. Babah memang malas nak beli CD but just to humour her, allowed her to look at them.

She of course made a selection. Babah kata, Elsa you can only have 1 item. You have to choose between your book or your CD. Elsa looked at him and said " It's okay Babah. I can have 2, ". No, Babah said, you can only have 1. So choose." She looked at her father, and said very firmly, " It's okay. Titi can take 2," and quickly left. He he.....

We went to fill up on petrol last night. Since we have only 1 Mesra Card and so many cars to be won, we had to fill petrol together... Anyway, Titi followed her mammy. Babah went to pay, fill petrol in his car and while it is doing that, ran to mammy's car and filled hers. It was raining heavily and when everything is done, we started our slow journey back home. Halfway, mammy realised that the car is quiet and she couldn't see her precious baby. " Titi !! " No answer. Mammy dah panic gila sebab hujan lebat gila and takut nak toleh belakang. " Titi !! " Suddenly she heard a forceful " What Mum ? What did you do that for ? Titi here lah !! " Eh eh, marah pulak si kecik ni. Orang dok risau kat dia.

Abang is really lembut Titi. Obedient. Now since dia dah tinggi, malam-malam it is his duty to switch off the lights and lock the bedroom door. He did this without any complains. He knows and understands his ailments ( tendency to batuk which could lead to lelah - dah lama dah tak lelah tapi takut so we always take precautionary steps ) and pandai berpantang. Dia boleh kemas bilik and knows that mummy and babah tak suka bilik bersepah. Tapi Titi yang perempuan susah suruh kutip toys. Semuanya tak boleh, I don't know and I cannot. Abang jugak yang selalu susun kasut dia whenever we returned home ( to Titi's credit sometimes dia nak jugak susun. Dulu, well she was sweet... She will susun her kasut dalam kasut babah or mummy dia. Bila nak pegi keje selalu kena keluarkan kasut Titi from our shoes. Tapi sekarang apa kena entah ).

Maybe I have forgotten and blinded by what I don't know, tapi rasa - rasanya Umar tak bagi problem macam ni. I have always remembered him being obedient. Of course adalah benda yang dia buat that is naughty but most of the time rasanya baik aje.... Ye ke ? Kesian kat abang sebab selalu kena mengalah.

Yang kelakarnya, these 3 dragons kalah dengan kambing kecik nih.... Macam mana ? Hmm.....

Buli

Umar : Mum just now kan kat sekolah pagi somebody was rude to me.

Mum : Rude macam mana ?

Umar : I saw ada air tumpah so I told teacher about it. Azwan rudely told me ' Teacher dah tahulah ! '

Mum : What did you do then ?

Umar : I just went back to my place. I just told the teacher that is all.

Mum : What is his name ?

Umar : Azwan. Dia kecik je Mum but a very rude boy. Masa nak balik kan ustazah suruh beratur kan and then he queue behind me and then he pushed me and I fell down.

Mum : What ? What did you then ?

Umar : Umar just bangun and jalan terus.

Mum : Did you tell the teacher about it ?

Umar : (hesitated) Yes I did.

Mum : What did the teacher say ?

Umar : Nothing.

Mum : You want me to talk to your teacher for you ?

Umar : (looked embarrassed) No mum. I can handle it. Should have I said something to him ?

Mum : Well you could have told him there is no need for him to speak in that tone. But you should never push him back. All you can do is tell your teacher about it quickly.

When I told Dan about it, Dan was very upset and grilled Umar again. Dan advised not to go near that boy if not necessary.

I am worried because Umar usually will cry if he feels he is wronged. That is all. He doesn't hit ( except his sister ) and doesn't get angry, just withdrew and cry. Can he take care of himself ? I asked him if this Azwan fellow is rude to his other mates and he said no. Just to him.

With the rampant bullying cases reported lately, I do not feel good. I know they are 7, but there is no minimum age is there to be a bully ? You can become one as young as 1 if you so wish to. What can I do ? Put him in a self-defense class ? Nanti dia yang jadi bully nya, bukan di buli. And sometimes when you thought you could defend yourself, that is most dangereous as you underestimate your foe.

I hope I am over-reacting as I usually do. Hmmm...........