The career woman I never am/was

I just finished my last presentation to the top management. I have this once in a while and I always dread it.. in fear of not knowing the answers to their questions on whatever I was presenting. But this time I think I did quite well. In fact my bosses were all praises after the meeting. Huh! At the 11th hour of my stay in the company, suddenly some people wanted to give me a boost of confidence. Ooopss.. too late! It's OK, I kinda enjoyed it. Should I had many of those presentations, I might not be where I am today. I should have been climbing the ladder. And to climb the ladder, you have to be smart (or pretend to be one), have a good networking around the company (know who's who or be part of the BIG who's who), be VISIBLE - have to be active in all kinds of activties in the company. It's not just enough having a high rating in your appraisal! So, being me, I was never in any of those category. I enjoy my low-profile status as it is, and thus - stuck being where I am today.

I never was or am a climbing-the-corporate-ladder kind of person. Well, maybe I was when I started. So eager and motivated to learn and improve. Somehow things kinda went downhill after I started a family. All energy and time went to my family. Never even regretted it for a moment.

What I regretted is not knowing how to divide my time and family thus neglecting one or the other. Perhaps I will do better in the up-coming new phase of life.

At this moment .. I feel so free and happy...

Work at Home Parent

I must write on this one as to reply to Intan's comment. I do agree that maybe it should be Work-at-home-parent as to indicate it is a parent regardless of mom or dad. Then again, you must know, working at home mean you generate money from home and most likely on-line. In on-line business (this is what I discovered from those eye-popping articles!) you have to find your niche and then your market. True enough being a parent is already a market by itself, but in the cyberworld, it is good to separate the parent function to mom and dad to identify your target market. You have to agree that there must be at least a slight difference in being a mom and dad.. well at least in gender if not roles! So I believe Work-at-home-dad as it is being a male.. will attract a different market altogether in his own unique way..
Another thing, in the information highway, for you to get your information fast and accurate, you have to set your keyword right.

Let's see some statistics, if you search on Google, this is what you get..
1) Work at home mom (WAHM) - 4,190,000 results
2) Work at home dad (WAHD) - 4,510,000 results
3) Work at home parent (WAHP) - 23,400,000 results

There you go. There is such thing as WAHP. They even have their own network. So imagine, you must know how to label yourself or your business and how to be visible in the information forest, and most importantly how to get spotted and thus they buy your products.

Phewwh.. having said that.. what say you all? Aku sure kena big time dengan pakar2 dari USM nih.. especially on gender, roles, functions.. and what not!

Some simple steps (not easy ones though) to start working at home ..

I've been reading a lot of articles on working-at-home, so much that it confuses me.. and so much that I felt that my eyeballs can pop out. And that's only the beginning. Information overload! Actually I have got almost everything, I only have to take that one step and get the ball rolling!

I've got:
1) How do I start
2) How do I generate the income
3) How do I get the traffic to my website
4) How do I market my website
5) How do I protect my website from scams and hackers
6) And zillions of other articles which at the end of the day telling you the same thing over and over again...

And this is what I don't have YET...
1) A product (this is the top of the list of "how do I start") .... duhhhh
2) A website (how can I have this when I don't have the product??)
3) Courage to start... !!!!!

Perhaps when I finally have the product, then I wud have the courage huh..

I do have some products in mind but not sure if they are viable on-line. oh yeah I do have some testing products.. but not sure if I would still have the stock once the website is ready.
And some of the great tips I read is, you are ecouraged to have more than one product and more than one website. Wuahhhhahaha.. I'm doomed..

OK let's get serious. There are many ways to work, you must at least have one product/ service of your own and the rest, you can try your luck on affiliate marketing. What's affiliate marketing? I will cover that in my next entry.

"Biasalah tu..."

I'm having another stressful Monday night... school night! For some weird reason, school teachers give the most homework on Mondays. Tonight at one point of time I had Omar tugging my shirt screaming.."Mommy..Mommy..Mommy" - he wanted a chocolate biscuit (at 9pm!!), Syasya doing her homework but whining for me to sit besides her, Irsyad asking me to explain to him about "leap year", and Eussuv standing in queue for me because he couldn't understand what he's supposed to do in his Jawi homework. If only I could break into four persons and attend to all of them respectively at the same time. And in the midst of all these ... timely, hubby called. Me, being stressed and longing for some support, blurt out my stress in a stressful voice! And what do I hear from the other end of the line? Another irritated voice saying.. "biasalah tu kan..." to my dismay! For the umpteenth time.. and did I ever learn? No.. I often forget not to keep my stress to myself.. blurt it out in fear that I might go crazy. Yes it is "biasa" to have this scenario in any household, but at least you can divide half of the burden to your other half. It is "biasa" to have this scenario in my household also.. but please... just lend an ear and hear my grouch. And it is "biasa" already that I have this running in my head and I finally get it written down tonight.. sighhh!

Oh dear heart ... have patience..

Mom Weekend

I had a great weekend! It was a weekend full of friends. Just as Intan who enjoyed her circle of friends, so do I. On Friday, I met my dear friend from way back in school and college, now residing in Oman. She's a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM) by choice. Quit her high paying job in sales to take care of her 3 children. She has her complains about being a SAHM but couldn't imagine herself going back to work. I had some good tips from her about quitting my job and staying at home with the kids. Definitely will be in touch with her for more.

Then had a gals gathering with some people from work with my kids in tow! These young gals are one of those who are at the peak of their career, climbing the corporate ladders - quite at a fast pace also. I enjoyed their company as it reminded me of how I was before at their age. So eager, so motivated, very ambitious to climb the corporate ladder! As time went by, I somehow climbed down.. bactracked!! Haha! I hope the gals went ahead .. and keep on climbing..

Another visit was to the kids' friend's house. The kids had fun at the playground and I had a nice time getting to know the parents. Another working mom with 3 boys, and no complain about her boys or being a working mom.. and her boys are so well behaved. How nice!

And lastly, on Sunday, despite a half flat tyre, met up with Sharon and went to Kak Zu's house to visit her. She's recuperating from her miscarriage. It was so sad to hear her story having to terminate her pregnancy at 22 weeks due to malformed foetus. You can see tears in her eyes as she related her experience of seeing the dead foetus who already had complete features of a baby. As I know Kak Zu, she is one strong woman!

The weekend went by too fast. The kids had fun and I had too.. with some thinking. I seem to be doing a lot of thinking these days. Reflecting things and the effects they have or not have on me. It must be some sort of syndrome of soon-to-be stay-at-home status that I'm gonna have soon. Clearly I'm a LITTLE bit sacred! And I seem to see things related to it everywhere I go and all around me. Or maybe it's there before but since I did not it give any thought then I kinda did not notice it. I'm now so tuned to it that I tend to see it everywhere. Yes.. I'm trying to prepare myself, mentally and physically (??) to be a SAHM.. except that.. not so.. should be more of WAHM.

And I'm going to have even a better weekend next week.. we'll see..

Work at Home Mom (WAHM)

Ever since I decided to quit my job, I have done a lot of researches on working from home. I definitely have to do something to earn some money. With the petrol hike and everything else, surely I would need some income other than "supposedly income" from my beloved. I worry so much about the expenses after I have quit my job but my beloved assured me otherwise. But I can't just keep my fingers cross and pray that it would be enough. Planning wise, it should be just enough, no luxuries.. but really you never know what could come up along the way. I fear even to think about it.

So as a step forward, I've been doing a lot of research on WAHM - as it is popularly know on-line. There are thousands of sites covering this topic. I am so overwhelmed by info. And getting confused too. Mostly though, talk about the same ideas, just promoting different products. Yeah, products. That's the number one thing that you must have. And, for the life of me.. I DON'T HAVE ONE!!! I don't even like selling. But I know I need some income, and I know I want to do it on-line. Fortunately, in this cyber age, everything is possible.

These are the things that I can do to generate income on-line:

1) Sell my own product (no i don't have one)

2) Sell other people's products (hmm .. possible)

3) Sell advertising space on your webiste/ blog...

Guess which one would be my choice? Obviously no.3. And possibly no.2 in the near future once I understand what is it all about. I knew about no.3 long time ago and never got around to do. Actually I tried but again, I was overwhelmed by info that I tried once and got confused all over.. (I think I need to fix my brain!!)..


The WAHM concept is not very popular yet in Malaysia. It is coming, but slowly. Overseas, especially in the US, working at home is the trend now. And boy, they make loads of money!! One of the many sites that I visited and rather informative and inspiring is this one here...


There has been many sites and ebooks and what-not available in Malaysia, but mostly these people are young unmarried men. They don't have the MOM responsibility. They can blog their lives away without any nagging over their shoulder. But it's different being a mom and at the same time trying to earn money on the Net. Most WAHM concept in Malaysia (the ones that I've visited) are those with products. I found one nice WAHM site which is listed first on the Google Search and from Malaysia surprisingly and run by a Malay lady .. have a look here .. the only thing is that, this lady was not a mom yet when she developed the site.

For me, as a mom of 4, it'll a great challenge. Challenges in time management for sure, in my skills and surely my patience. I hope God will give me the strength to deal with my patience. And perhaps.. gimme some miracle for my brain becomes "brainier" than ever!! Who knows eh!

So from now onwards, I shall focus on this WAHM concept.. and perhaps will even come up with my own product to sell eventually..

My GEMS

I'm going to introduce to the world, my GEMS, a.k.a my children ...
And they ARE ...

The first one, going to be 10 in July....IRSYAD. He is very much of a firstborn. Follow-the-book kind of person. He's very matured for his age in some things, but still a baby in others. Vain. Very brotherly to his siblings. They all look up to him. A favorite among friends. Top in his class..

The second one, EUSSUV. Will be 8 in October. This is the opposite of Irsyad. The baby of the family despite having two younger siblings. Funny, playful, do-as-you-go kind of person. Very creative. Able to think out of the box..and has the prosperous look (according to my friend Penny..)!

Aisyah.. the only princess in the clan, well guarded by the 3 princes. Also kown as Syasya. Very soft at heart and yet very fiery on the outside. Can scream on top of her lungs if not treated well. Cry easily at any sad scenes on TV. Can even cry if Mommy prentends to cry.. Very sisterly to all brothers, even can act like a BIG sister if needs to. Funnily though, a very shy and quiet girl at school.. (this, totally incomprehensible!!). Endlessly asking for a baby sister (instead of a BOY!).

And last but not least, little Ryan Omar. This is a future star. At a tender age of yet 2, already showing signs of "heroism". Can mimick everybody, roll his eyes pretty good whenever he needs to.. Can play dolls with Syasya, and adversely, a good smack down with abangs!! I can't believe this one grew up so fast!!

They are all wonderful kids, each having their unique characters and specialty.. what else could I possibly ask for??

New Look

I have a new template! How do you like it? I LIKE it! It jives with my blog name. Don't you think so? Well I actually did some research.. and this is what I came up with within a few hours. Not bad for a newbie eh.. These are all piece of cake..nuts... people have been doing it for ages, now only I figured it out! Duhhh...

Happy reading with better view!

Privacy Exposed!

The only reader of my blog (at this point of time) has made her point. So I shall expose myself and my family in this entry. The only thing is that I'm so "duhhhhhh"... as in it's gonna be a boring show of pictures cos I don't even know how to maneuver this damn thing.


There you go.. From left, Ryan Omar (2), Princess Aisyah (a.k.a Syasya 5), Eussuv (the chubby one, 8) and the macho one, Irsyad (8). This is taken last Saturday during their cousin's wedding. Luckily Syasya finally had a smile on her face for the day. She's been sulking from morning because she didn't want to wear the gown. She's very much of a jeans-and t-shirt gal. Very much like Mommy!!

How about Mom and Dad.. hmmm.. that's a bit difficult to expose as they are always the ones taking the pix and REALLY.. couldn't find a decent one to put in here. Will definitely put it up one day. Will try hard. Promise.

Safety Rules

It's safety day in my office today. Listening to the speeches given by the leaders, I thought of writing this. One of the cliches we often hear is "Safety Begins at Home". I for one couldn't agree more. If you are aware of the safety around you, you will subconciously put the safety measures in whatever you do and practice it at home, and everywhere else.

Safety at home is the most important thing especially if you have kids. You have to know the safety rules at all levels while raising your children, from the day they were born, until they can think of the safety rules themselves. I think we Malaysians don't really emphasize this "Safety Begins at Home"... i.e that's why we have too many home accidents. Thank God, so far I have not encountered any major accidents at home. Though lots of little trips, and "tersepit" fingers and toes! All my kids have their little fingers "tersepit" at the car door at least once! Yup.. me .. bad mom!! Luckily again.. they are soft ones... but bad enough to keep them screaming in pain for a good 10 mins.. and a blue black on their little fingers for a few days.. no broken bones..

You have to ensure safety in all corners of the house. It will tire you to think of all the things to keep your child safe. If you can't cover all, you must intravene when you see any dangerous act. I sreamed at the top of my lungs if I have to !! I teach my kids what is dangerous and what is not. So you can hear my kids say.. "eh bahaya tu! ("that's dangerous")... heheh...

There's also safety against crimes. Sadly, Malaysia has become such an unsafe country. The price that you have to pay for development! This the safety that I fear as it is most likely unforseen. How do you ensure that you are safe against the robbers? Yes we do take measures at home but we never know. I fear for the safety of my children the most. I had a close call of 2 of them being taken away without my knowledge last year when my ungrateful maid took them away. Thankfully, they were returned to me safely. I cringed at the thought of any of them taken away from. Na'uzubillah.

Other than taking the safety measures, the best that we can do is PRAY. Never forget to pray for your safety against disasters and evils..

"People-person"

Not sure if there is such phrase, "people-person", but I use it quite often. I like to say that my children are very much of a people person. They love being with people, rather than just themselves. They like it best when they are with their cousins! Well, I guess that's only normal with all the kids. They got excited when there are guests in my house, doesn't matter if it's family or friends. They even welcome MY friends! And they would ask me, "so who's coming to our house this weekend?"..

But not necessarily they like crowded places. At least 3 of them, are kinda afraid of shopping malls. LOL! Really! They are afraid of clowns, lion dance, loud speakers, live concerts .. whatever happenings in shopping malls. In a way, it is good since I know for sure that they will stick by me in crowded places. And thankfully also, they don't throw tantrums in public as well. Except my last baby.. the way I see it, this one is a bit different, a bit daring. He's coming to 2 in July. He has shown some "interests" in running around in shopping malls and get out of his stroller! And has the tendency to show tantrums if not "treated" well in public.. hmmmmhhhh...

They are also considered one of the loud ones. They TALK to people. They can be themselves with anybody (especially close family members). There ARE kids who go tongue tied with people other than their parents and siblings no doubt! I'm quite glad they are not the quiet ones as they would be introverts. I know of introvert because I am one. You get to enjoy life more if you are extrovert (I think) because you are more daring to explore, go further and more sociable.

Perhaps I should describe each of their characters in future entries...

Holidays... and now back to school again ...

The kids are back to school again after 2 weeks of "freedom"! And this time around, I think they had the holidays of their lives. No, we did not go jet setting anywhere, it was just a trip with other family members (uncles, aunties and cousins) that made their holidays. We took a 7-hr drive up north to attend a wedding of my husband's nephew. It was a way long of a journey.. and surprisingly a nice one too. Not much hassle from the kids (as they are watching the videos or playing PSP). I especially enjoyed the nice view of paddy fields and all the greens.

For every holiday that we took I always have this great fear of:
1) The hotel that we book did not have our registration
2) The hotel is not up to our expectation
3) Anything happens to our car
4) Anybody got sick
5) Somebody flared his temper for any reason.. and there goes the holiday..

So far, no. 1 happens once, no. 2 once or twice, no.5 quite a number of times (or everytime) ...

And for this time around, it's number 3!! Luckily nobody got hurt!! The tyre burst while I was driving down the hill... fortunately we have quite a stable car that I didn't even notice any difference... somebody at the toll pointed out the flat tyre to us. Stopped the car after the toll booth. And my poor hubby had to use up ALL his energy to change the tyre. And it was raining. No doubt, some tempers fly, some ego dented. But frankly, the most important thing was that we were all OK.. things cud have been worse (I don't even want to write here what could possibly happened if the car went skidded!!)... and fortunately.. during this "ordeal".. the kids were at their best behavior.. imagine that! I was so grateful for them for being such wonderful kids.

Now, the usual routine is back. School, homework, school.. not easy being kids these days.

Next.. I shall talk about the "people-person" of my kids.....