12 years of bliss

29th Dec 2001.
The day the lafaz was said by the one man who has stood by me these 12 years...my husband.
Yesterday marked 12 years of blissful marriage for us. Nah...I can't say ours is the perfect marriage. Just like any other couples, we have our disagreements & our quarrels. Nevertheless, it takes lots of gives & takes...lots of patience...and most importantly, lots of love.
Alhamdullilah...we celebrated our special day simply with our 3 lil angels...not forgetting to spare some quality twosome time just for the 2 of us.
Thank you Ya Rabb for the awesome 12 years together...and many more years to come...insyaAllah! ;))
Not gonna babble much...let these pics do the talking instead. ;))

Autism is not a disability...it is a different kind of ability

My trio have grown up indeed. Ariq & Arisya have been making random calls to us when we are at work. Yup...really random such as "Hello Umi..what are you doing?", "Umi...what time are you coming back?". Such calls last only a few minutes but the warmth & love felt can last for even days! ;))
And Aqil...he's not able to make calls by himself but this boy...is one genius gift. He gets the others to make the calls for him! Hehehe!
Not sure if he's actually observed his siblings and copied them or it just came from him. But with Aqil doing that...it shows that he's no different from Ariq & Arisya. ;)))
However...there is something special abt Aqil's calls. Unlike Ariq's & Arisya's random calls...Aqil's is more transparent abt his feelings.
"I wanna love Mama!"..."Mama, I wanna watch TV." And the heart just melts...
Aqil has no qualms asking for tickles and squeezes and hugs from us..."Can you tickle me?". And he immeadiately apologises when he knew that he has made me sad or angry..."I am sorry Mama"..."I wanna love you".
Maybe it is the age difference...being older Ariq & Arisya are not so transparent abt their feelings. It maybe the condition that Aqil is with...him being himself...just doing and saying what he feels like to. ;))
How I really wish he doesn't have to grow up at times...worried abt him adapting to an adult's life. Ya Rabb...You know best...I seek Your guidance always...amin.

When Umi feels like cooking!

Oh yes! An apt title indeed! Haha! Seriously, being a working mother...the days can be tiring. Hence, I seldom cook especially on weekdays...leaving only the weekends for me to try the recipes I collated frm watching too much of Food Network Asia! Lol!
After all the fun with puff pastry...decided to move on to the other recipes. And since I did some groceries shopping with the husbern earlier today...thus my mind was flashing all the recipes & my hands were grabbing all the stuffs of the racks & shelves...scary huh? Hehehe!
Ok...so the first on the menu was Egg Benedict. Have heard & have seen egg benedicts but I hv nvr tasted one...like seriously. But frm the pics I hv seen...the dish looks appealing. And frm watching the vid frm Sortedfood...it looked sooooo easy! But...reality is...it isnt!
I made some adjustments though...didnt know we hv ran out of ham slices so I didnt grab those during the shopping. But there are beef patties...so used that instead. Spreaded some garlic spread on the wholemeal bread loaf slices & toasted them. Then I baked the beef patties so that my hands will be free to make the hollandaise sauce.
My first attempt at the hollandaise sauce was a flop. The butter cluttered together...aint a smooth sauce like it is supposed to be. Give up? Nope...I tried again. This time I reduced the heat & continuously whisked the eggs + butter + a bit of lemon juice + salt + pepper...and successfully achieved the smooth texture of the hollandaise sauce!
Next was the poached eggs...goodness! I didnt realised it was gonna be tough! My 1st & 2nd tries were smashed with splattered whites...disappointed. But still...I was almost there...so I tried again. This time I used a ladle...to keep the shape of the egg...and alhamdullilah...successful! ;))
And finally the plating...toasted bread - spinach - beef patty - poached egg - hollandaise sauce....yummilicious! *thumbs up*

As mentioned...the mind + head + hands couldnt keep still for today! Lol! As there's rice...thought of trying the Stuffed Pepperz....which I also got the recipe frm Sortedfood...nyehehehe! 

This one is less tedious but awesomely yummilicious. Sauteed onions + garlic + chillies + ground beef + salt + peppet....mixed this up with steam rice...so that's the filling. 

Then the pepperz or capsicums...cut them into 2 and empty the seeds. Splashed some olive oil and bake the pepperz for 10 mins. After that...fill the pepperz with the rice mix & top them with shredded mozarrella....bake for another 5 mins....tadaa! 

Awesome dishes...best served hot! Can't wait to try more recipes....so weekends come quick! ;))

Puff Pastry

Puff pastry...my new found love apart frm cakes? Hehehe...bought my first pack of puff pastry lasy weekend when I was looking for baking stuffs to make sista cum niece birthday cake. Thought of trying some of the recipes which I hv collated frm Sorted Food....egg cocotes.
Watched the vid & the easy recipe makes it one of the recipes I hv collated. And wow! It was yummilicious especially when eaten piping hot frm the oven! Trust me...coz this is my own review...awesome!
And as usual...when I get all the positive feedbacks & reviews frm my family...that motivates me to make & try out more things.
Hence my nxt attempt with puff pastry was yo make mini tuna puffs. This is cheating actually...I just used spicy chilli tuna flakes as the filling and again...it becomes a family fav! Hehe! But the husbern who didnt really prefer tuna suggested using different fillings. So when I came home to beef korma which MIL cooked...I made some beef korma puffs! Lol! Yup...believe me, that is cheating again! ;))
But the...what the heck...as long as the family love it! Nyehehe!

Well, all these puffs that I have tried are actually filling enuff as a meal...especially the egg cocotes. So I thought of trying something different with the puff pastry.

Thanks to Food Network Asia...I fell in love with baking? Cooking? Hehehe! Kelsey's Essentials featured a very easy to make apple & pear tart. And so that became my 'project' yesterday. But I made apple tartlets instead. Well, recipes are actually abt modifying...here & there to one's taste. Furthermore...quite a number of recipes featured used liquor...which can be omitted actually. 

And happiness again when the family love it...especially the kidz! As a mother...when the kidz eat well...especially what I make...a feeling of satisfaction is felt.

Relapse

Today will be the 4th day that Aqil is puffing ventolin and sabutamol. Yup...his bronchitis had a relapse...
He has started coughing since last week...followed by runny nose. His body was warm but no fever. We gave him meds for flu & fever. Alhamdullilah...there was no fever.
Then came Sunday when his coughing became more frequent...we had then decided that we shall keep him at home to monitor & also to keep away frm his classmates. But that same night...just when it was bedtime, he was coughing badly & his breathing was heavy. It was worrying. Time was 11.20pm...
I had thought that it was indeed necessary to bring him to doc...maybe the next day. But his condition was scary enough that we went that very minute.
It wld be useless to go to a GP coz then we would be refered to the hospital eventually. And so we headed to KKH. Aqil was reluctant...he was cranky & crying & kicking just because he didnt wanna go to the doctor.
The husbern just had to carry even as he was wailing. Luckily the neighbours didnt come out!
And alhamdullilah again coz Aqil started to calm down on the way to hospital. I managed to keep his mind off hospital. Surprisingly, even when we reached A&E...he was quiet & calm.
At the triage...he was ok when the nurse examined him. We were told to head to Room11 coz he was wheezing...as diagnosed by the attending nurse. This means immeadiate treatment to be given.
Different frm at the triage...Aqil was more alert when the doc was examining him. He was kicking his legs...which hit against the doctor's legs. He was drawing in the air...then as the doc was listening to his chest...Aqil actually went "Hey....what are you doing?"
And he started touching the stetoscope that the doc was using.
I was already feeling uneasy...thus I quickly informed the doc of Aqil's condition. And being a doc...he knows what kind of behaviour Aqil will be potraying. Alhamdullilah...the doctor was playing along with him.
And the treatment was surprisingly an easy and smooth one...Aqil was very cooperative. I thought how the doctor had went along with him had actually made him feel relaxed & thus the smooth and easy treatment.
With that also...the doc allowed him to continue the treatment at home after witnessing that he was cooperative during the treatment.
He developed a fever of 39.3C but the doc just instruct us to monitor as he didnt have any fever prior to the visit.
Alhamdullilah...alhamdullilah...he is responding well to the treatment...his fever also didnt worsen.
Me & husbern took first day off for childsick as we had spent almost the whole night at the hospital.
I reported back to work the following day while the husbern took another day to monitor him and also to teach our helper how to give him the puff.
Our boy has indeed grown up...though he was actually sick but this actually carved a smile on our face...alhamdullilah...;))

What's baking? ❤️

The last entry was in June! Haha! Yup...that's right. With work & studies & what-nots...my mind was somehow taken off blogging...sigh! 

Anyone missed me? Muahahaha! Ok...so how come I am back here again? Well, it's becoz the husbern is watching soccer you see...hence...😜

So...since I am taken off the TV for the night, I might as well catch up with my blogging. Nothing much has taken place actually...just that have been doing some baking recently. 

Baked chocolate cuppies for the colleagues for Teachers' Day few weeks back. Since this is the first year with this sch...and while the number of staffs are still quite small, I thought I'd bake for them as the number is still manageable. 😘 

Well, it ain't the first time I baked for the colleagues but not all the staffs hv tasted my baking...only those in the staff room. So this time round...I personally baked for each and everyone of the staffs including the non-teaching ones! Hehe! Love is in the air! 😘 

And of course the P & VP were included! The feeling I got when the P gave positive feedback abt my cupcake was simply beyond words! And a snapshot with the P appreciating my cuppies was a memorable one! 😘

Then...I baked a brownie cake for my girlfriend. Coincidentally we had class the day after her birthday...hence I thought it'd be nice to bake something for her instead of just buying it! 😜

It was baked in a rush in between after I finished work & before heading for lesson...hence could just come up with a simple brownie cake for her. Glad that she liked it! Hehe! 😘

And yesterday...baked till the wee hours for nephew's belated birthday celebration. Well, thus far...I have been making 'all-nutella' cakes for the family. Hence, the elder sista has actually requested for something not so chocolaty. Since I wanted to do something different from the usual nutella-covered cakes that I have done...I decided to whipped up frosting! Haha! As the exterior wouldn't be anything chocolaty...so I felt it was ok to have the cake a chocolate one. Had thought of making rainbow cake but the younger sista has requested for that for her birthday which will be 2 weeks later, so wouldn't want to have the same type of cake within a short span of time huh? 

Managed to stop over Phoon Huat to look for blue colouring but out of stock. As it was already late, settled for the next best which is purple yam. 

And alhamdullilah....the whole cake was finished! 😘 

Coming up next are sista's & niece's birthday cakes! Weeeee! 😜

Philea

First time we heard or saw something about it was in television...it was recommended as a luxurious resort in Malaysia. Tadaaaa! Haha! And that's when we thought "Hey, let's check it out!" ;)) 

We totally skipped travelling by air this year. Last year, we went to Korea & KL by flight until it cause a phobia in Aqil. If we ever go to the airport, he'd start chanting "I don't wanna take the aeroplane! I don't wanna take the aeroplane!" Yup, even when we were sending the parents & sistaz off to US, Aqil refused to come out of the car! :(( 

And thus the getaway in the 'woods' this June hols! Haha! Actually, as I was packing the luggage...he started chanting "I don't wanna go to the airport! I don't wanna go to the airport!" The same scene as we were leaving for the resort too....yup, that's Aqil! ;)) 

Ok, enough if Aqil for now....back to Philea. Thanks to the clear immigration & my F1 husbern, we reached our destination in about 2hrs! Or maybe 2 hrs 15 mins? Hehehehe! What happened was, after we filled up the tank at Gelang Patah, all I knew was we were already at the Ayer Keroh toll plaza! So can you guess? Lol! 

And as we approached the resort...it was a nice feel. The spaciousness of the resort reception area greeted us with a feeling of splendor! As the husbern was settling the check-in, we were served with welcoming drinks...which we were very thankful for after the 2hrs ride. 

Soon, we were taken for a buggy ride to our room or rather lil cottage! Hehe! Yup, Philea Resort & Spa is a log resort. The first log resort in Asia! The resort comes in 3 different types of 'rooms' or accommodation...the Pavilion Rooms, the Philea Suite & the Royal Villa. The Royal Villa comes with a private pool but that costs almost RM4K! Nyehehehe! 

We took the Philea Suite which cost abt RM700 per night on weekdays. On weekends, it costs abt RM200 more. 

But we were glad we chose weekdays, apart from the savings on costs...we had the pool to ourselves! Haha! 

For those who love nature, this is an awesome place to chill. Love the woody feel from the surroundings and the loggy rooms/suites/villas. And the fixtures they chose simply adds on to the feel. Even the bathroom makes you feel like sleeping in the bath tub! Lol! 

The rustic feel of the whole suite was simply awesome! 

There's a man-made waterfall at the pool area which a nice feel as we were in the pool. The sight full of greeneries & the sound of water from the waterfall was recuperating indeed! Hehe! 

And the pool ain't made with tiles as what we usually see but instead they used pebbles! Yup...for the walls & bottom of the pool...pebbles! 

The package we took was inclusive of daily breakfast at the Nusantara. And we had dinners at the resort too...namely Cravo Cravo & Bayu Cabana. Splendid service & the food was not bad! But it is on the steep side though we thought it complemen the service that they gave! *applause*

Awesome place for a short familu getaway! Maybe next time we can try the Royal Villa! Can we Dear Husbern? ❤❤❤

Arisya turns 8! ❤

Had a pool party at Civil Service Club @ Bukit Batok 3 days ago as an advance celebration for the lil babe who turns 8 this year. The celebration was held in advance as the grandparents & aunties are flying off to the United States. And a pool party it was coz the lil babe requested for it..."I want same as Abang"...she said. 

As usual, close family members were there to join in the celebration especially the sistaz of coz! ❤ Nothing much was prepared beforehand coz we had settled for BBQ! Haha! Just marinated the food and prepared some sandwiches. Oh yes, we ordered satay too just to satisfy the tummies! Lol! Thank you so much to all the family members who came and made it such a beautiful day for my lil babe. 

And today itself, Arisya Badriya officially turns 8! There will be another activity planned for the kidz tmrw. But today, being Arisya's birthday...Umi (ME!) decided to personally bake a birthday cake for my girl! 

First time ever baking a birthday cake! Had no idea how it was gonna turn out...but I guess it turned out well! Haha! Couldn't really run away from nutella & chocolate coz that's what the kidz love. And since I bake for them, of coz it has to be accustomed to their taste! 

Hence I made a moist chocolate cake for the centre and rainbow cuppies to be placed all around it! Haha! Then I made some pink frosting with orange flavor just for the lil babe. Well, pink is always associated with girls right? Hehe! 

As I was writing her name on the cake...she remarked "Umi, can you make a heart shape?" Hehehe...and tadaa! The heart shape on the cake just at the corner of her name! 

It took almost the whole day to bake the birthday cake! Haha! Nah...3 hrs to be exact! But it was worth it coz she ate 2 cuppies immeadiately after we finished singing the birthday song! Haha! In fact, she had one while I was still in the midst of making the cake! Had to stop her and tell her to be patient...hehe! And she said "Tmrw, I want to eat some more!" ❤

Happy birthday Arisya Badriya! ❤