It's November! I can't believe it. Before I know it the kids have finished their exams. That's such a relief but I'm not sure if I've done a good job "tutoring" them. I can see some improvement in Syasya but Eussuv seems to be getting nowhere. Eussuv is really worrying me since next year is his UPSR. All he wanted to do is play futsal, 'facebooking', or just do anything other than studying!
November also means the upcoming school holidays. There'll be lots of trips to here and there such as to the mall, to friend's house, or any event for that matter. I plan to enroll them into short events just as last year's tahfiz program. I have yet to identify any program though. One thing for sure, a crash course for Eussuv to prepare him for next year's lessons. This one is a must to get him started and perhaps, focused!
There will also be lots of food to be prepared since they will be at home most of the time. This will surely fill up my time and oh .. how tiring. I can already imagine!
Regardless.. that's what life is all about. Regardless, I have to go through it. It is my life, my responsibilities, my job! I have to make the best out of it, try to enjoy it, try to live it up and pray hard that whatever we plan or not plan will turn out well without any disasters!
Let's enjoy the year end and pray that everybody will be happy. InsyaAllah!
Showing posts with label Mom story. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mom story. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Monday, October 17, 2011
I love Mondays!
I love Mondays.. really I do. I know most people hate Mondays because they have to leave the weekends. Because they have to resume work, because they have to start school, because they have to endure another week of work or school. But I love Mondays because all of that! Haha.. I know people will hate me for this.
Ever since I am a stay at home mom or a domestic goddess or whatever you want to call me, I love Mondays. My weekends are always full of activities, things to do, places to go, people to meet. I hardly have my chill out time - meaning - I have no rest. Not that I rests on weekdays but I do allocate some time for me.. some me time be it 10 mins or one hour or more (most likely 1 hour is usually the most I get!) Come Sunday night I kinda get excited knowing that Monday is just a few hours away and I will have my quiet moment soon.
Regardless, though I have my break on weekdays, my work around the house goes on and on. While the working people have their days off, I have none. I only have my "little" chill out time when others are at work or school. The quiet time that I always look forward to, means just hanging around the house doing nothing or watch TV or read a good book (though sometimes I wish I was away somewhere, at the spa or roaming around some beautiful city) But still, on top of that I have this little timer in my head reminding me what to do next.
Today is rather a great Monday. A great start of the week by me being the lawn mower man in the morning (thanks to the powerful Black and Decker technology!) cook later, then driver to the kids to and from school. Last week I was the plumber when the kitchen sink was somehow stuck. Life is great. Life goes on.
And let's pray that this great feelings remain until tonight at least!
Ever since I am a stay at home mom or a domestic goddess or whatever you want to call me, I love Mondays. My weekends are always full of activities, things to do, places to go, people to meet. I hardly have my chill out time - meaning - I have no rest. Not that I rests on weekdays but I do allocate some time for me.. some me time be it 10 mins or one hour or more (most likely 1 hour is usually the most I get!) Come Sunday night I kinda get excited knowing that Monday is just a few hours away and I will have my quiet moment soon.
Regardless, though I have my break on weekdays, my work around the house goes on and on. While the working people have their days off, I have none. I only have my "little" chill out time when others are at work or school. The quiet time that I always look forward to, means just hanging around the house doing nothing or watch TV or read a good book (though sometimes I wish I was away somewhere, at the spa or roaming around some beautiful city) But still, on top of that I have this little timer in my head reminding me what to do next.
Today is rather a great Monday. A great start of the week by me being the lawn mower man in the morning (thanks to the powerful Black and Decker technology!) cook later, then driver to the kids to and from school. Last week I was the plumber when the kitchen sink was somehow stuck. Life is great. Life goes on.
And let's pray that this great feelings remain until tonight at least!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Maid oh maid!
Anybody who hires a domestic helper a.k.a maid, for whatever reason, surely has a story or two to tell. The stories are endless. Good ones, bad ones and horrifying ones! I have four maids so far in the span of 7 years. Let me tell you my stories.
Maid 1 : A spinster who hailed from East Java. She looked more like a man and spoke with a rough voice. She's very hardworking in her own way. She followed her work routine pretty well but if the routine was disrupted, everything else went haywire. Most of the time it was disrupted, thus a lot of work was often unfinished. If I scolded her or even told her nicely of her mistakes, she'd get really angry. Either she would talk back defending herself or say "Allahuakbar, Allahuakbar" then went off to have her wudhuk and sometimes even perform solat sunat to cool herself. The good thing was, the kids like her because they like to play with her. After two years, I terminated her contract because her "talk back" was getting too unbearable!
Maid 2 : A very soft spoken and pretty little thing who seemed to be godsent after the rough Javanese. Came from Bandung and a Sunda. Sunda is known for their softspoken and good heart. She can cook and clean pretty well. Kids love her. She seemed to be perfect for the first year. We really fell for her that we treat her real good. Things started to go wrong when we gave her a handphone. She claimed she has a "paman" living in Malaysia. During this time, my hubby was away working. So there were only me, kids and her. I truly depended on her on many things, and she was often reliable. And perhaps because of this I overlooked many things. Since I was working and needed her help badly, I tolerate all the little things I noticed. Until one day I went home unannounced in the mid day. My heart almost stopped beating when I went into a messy house and nobody in it. Including my two little kids. I was almost histerical. I called her handphone and asked her where she was. Not knowing I was at home, she sweetly told me she's cleaning my room upstairs. I told her off telling her I was at home. I was already screaming then, thinking of my kids with her. After a few on and off the phone because she was scared of my screaming.. she told me she was in Shah Alam in a taxi with my kids! She even let the taxi driver spoke to me. He reassured me that my kids were OK and they were returning home. He claimed that my maid called him to take her to the clinic. But why so far away (about 20km away)? Why not tell me? I could take her myself. We (me and my neighbor) waited for 20 minutes before the taxi arrived in front of my house. That was the longest 20 minutes of my life!! I blew off my top when she reached home but at the same time so grateful that my kids are safe with me again. She claimed she was having stomach pain. She confessed she was pregnant. Since I did not allow her any weekend breaks, I gathered she brought home men (not just one man) while I was not at home or at night when I was sleeping. I also suspected she went to the clinic to have an abortion (with the kids along!!) but the doctor was not in. I sent her back to the agent half an hour after that. Took one week off from work before I found a babysitter near my house.
Maid 3: This one came 3 months after the horrifying experience of Maid 2. I still have the phobia, but I need a helper badly since my hubby was going away again.She lasted for 3 months only since she already showed bad signs since day 1. She claimed my house was haunted. She was very weird in many ways. Her mom was working in another state. She was 30 yrs old and her mom was abt 45. She begged to see her mom almost every weekend. One day I found her ready with her bag to go see her mom. I sent her back to the agent instead before she ran off while I was at work.
Maid 4: The most efficient, longest serving and almost too good to be true. This is my current maid. I took her in after she's being sacked from a millionaire's house. They accused her of stealing an expensive jewelery. My agent believed she didn't take it. I decided to take her anyway because I was desperate, because I believed my agent and because I tawakkal to Allah. Also, at that time I believed they were all the same, either way I will get a bad one! I have lost hope. I don't have any expensive jewelery for her to steal anyway! Still, I was cautious for the first few months. I was very strict on her as well and watched her like a hawk. She turned out the most OK. She knows of her roles and responsibilities, she does her work diligently. I don't have to ask, she will do it. Almost perfect. It's been two years now. I renewed her permit last November for her third year here. I gave her 5 weeks off (way too long) for her to see her family last Hari Raya. Her husband is working here in a restaurant. I brought her see her hubby once in a while. Last few weeks we allowed the husband to stay overnight at our house. I guess we are the most "understanding" employer. Understanding the human needs! Right! And now, serves us right for being so understanding. She is now a few weeks pregnant! She is pregnant!!
My almost perfect maid, pregnant! I know it is her right. It was with her legal hubby. But she has a contract with me.. she's not supposed to get pregnant while working. But who am I to question Allah's plan for me. I can only pray for her health before I send her home. And I can only pray for the best for myself to handle the four brats and a house, and the never ending laundry. I shall brace it all!
Maid oh maid.. to have or not to have! Since I'm not working anymore, the need is not so great, but since the four are growing, there are too much to be done in the house and I need to concentrate more on the kids, I do appreciate some help!
Maid 1 : A spinster who hailed from East Java. She looked more like a man and spoke with a rough voice. She's very hardworking in her own way. She followed her work routine pretty well but if the routine was disrupted, everything else went haywire. Most of the time it was disrupted, thus a lot of work was often unfinished. If I scolded her or even told her nicely of her mistakes, she'd get really angry. Either she would talk back defending herself or say "Allahuakbar, Allahuakbar" then went off to have her wudhuk and sometimes even perform solat sunat to cool herself. The good thing was, the kids like her because they like to play with her. After two years, I terminated her contract because her "talk back" was getting too unbearable!
Maid 2 : A very soft spoken and pretty little thing who seemed to be godsent after the rough Javanese. Came from Bandung and a Sunda. Sunda is known for their softspoken and good heart. She can cook and clean pretty well. Kids love her. She seemed to be perfect for the first year. We really fell for her that we treat her real good. Things started to go wrong when we gave her a handphone. She claimed she has a "paman" living in Malaysia. During this time, my hubby was away working. So there were only me, kids and her. I truly depended on her on many things, and she was often reliable. And perhaps because of this I overlooked many things. Since I was working and needed her help badly, I tolerate all the little things I noticed. Until one day I went home unannounced in the mid day. My heart almost stopped beating when I went into a messy house and nobody in it. Including my two little kids. I was almost histerical. I called her handphone and asked her where she was. Not knowing I was at home, she sweetly told me she's cleaning my room upstairs. I told her off telling her I was at home. I was already screaming then, thinking of my kids with her. After a few on and off the phone because she was scared of my screaming.. she told me she was in Shah Alam in a taxi with my kids! She even let the taxi driver spoke to me. He reassured me that my kids were OK and they were returning home. He claimed that my maid called him to take her to the clinic. But why so far away (about 20km away)? Why not tell me? I could take her myself. We (me and my neighbor) waited for 20 minutes before the taxi arrived in front of my house. That was the longest 20 minutes of my life!! I blew off my top when she reached home but at the same time so grateful that my kids are safe with me again. She claimed she was having stomach pain. She confessed she was pregnant. Since I did not allow her any weekend breaks, I gathered she brought home men (not just one man) while I was not at home or at night when I was sleeping. I also suspected she went to the clinic to have an abortion (with the kids along!!) but the doctor was not in. I sent her back to the agent half an hour after that. Took one week off from work before I found a babysitter near my house.
Maid 3: This one came 3 months after the horrifying experience of Maid 2. I still have the phobia, but I need a helper badly since my hubby was going away again.She lasted for 3 months only since she already showed bad signs since day 1. She claimed my house was haunted. She was very weird in many ways. Her mom was working in another state. She was 30 yrs old and her mom was abt 45. She begged to see her mom almost every weekend. One day I found her ready with her bag to go see her mom. I sent her back to the agent instead before she ran off while I was at work.
Maid 4: The most efficient, longest serving and almost too good to be true. This is my current maid. I took her in after she's being sacked from a millionaire's house. They accused her of stealing an expensive jewelery. My agent believed she didn't take it. I decided to take her anyway because I was desperate, because I believed my agent and because I tawakkal to Allah. Also, at that time I believed they were all the same, either way I will get a bad one! I have lost hope. I don't have any expensive jewelery for her to steal anyway! Still, I was cautious for the first few months. I was very strict on her as well and watched her like a hawk. She turned out the most OK. She knows of her roles and responsibilities, she does her work diligently. I don't have to ask, she will do it. Almost perfect. It's been two years now. I renewed her permit last November for her third year here. I gave her 5 weeks off (way too long) for her to see her family last Hari Raya. Her husband is working here in a restaurant. I brought her see her hubby once in a while. Last few weeks we allowed the husband to stay overnight at our house. I guess we are the most "understanding" employer. Understanding the human needs! Right! And now, serves us right for being so understanding. She is now a few weeks pregnant! She is pregnant!!
My almost perfect maid, pregnant! I know it is her right. It was with her legal hubby. But she has a contract with me.. she's not supposed to get pregnant while working. But who am I to question Allah's plan for me. I can only pray for her health before I send her home. And I can only pray for the best for myself to handle the four brats and a house, and the never ending laundry. I shall brace it all!
Maid oh maid.. to have or not to have! Since I'm not working anymore, the need is not so great, but since the four are growing, there are too much to be done in the house and I need to concentrate more on the kids, I do appreciate some help!
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Just a MOM?
I got this in my mailbox from a friend last week. Instead of flooding my friends mailbox, I thought I'd share it with my readers instead. Here goes ..
A woman, renewing her driver's license at the County Clerk's office,was asked by the woman recorder to state her occupation.
She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.
"What I mean is, " explained the recorder, "do you have a job or are you just a ...?"
"Of course I have a job," snapped the woman.
"I'm a Mom."
"We don't list 'Mom' as an occupation, 'housewife' covers it," Said the recorder emphatically.
I forgot all about her story until one day I found myself in the same situation, this time at our own Town Hall.
The Clerk was obviously a career woman, poised, efficient, and possessed of a high sounding title like, "Official Interrogator" or "Town Registrar."
"What is your occupation?" she probed..
What made me say it? I do not know. The words simply popped out..
"I'm a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations."
The clerk paused, ball-point pen frozen in mid air and looked up as though she had not heard right.
I repeated the title slowly emphasizing the most significant words.
Then I stared with wonder as my pronouncement was written, in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.
"Might I ask," said the clerk with new interest, "just what you do in your field?"
Coolly, without any trace of fluster in my voice, I heard myself reply,
"I have a continuing program of research, (what mother doesn't)
In the laboratory and in the field, (normally I would have said indoors and out). I'm working for my Masters, (first the Lord and then the whole family)
and already have four credits (all daughters). Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the human ties, (any mother care to disagree?) and I often work 14 hours a day, (24 is more like it). But the job is more challenging than most run-of-the-mill careers and the rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money."
There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk's voice as she
completed the form, stood up, and personally ushered me to the door.
As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants -- ages 13, 7, and 3. Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model, (a 6 month old baby) in the child development program, testing out a new vocal pattern. I felt I had scored a beat on bureaucracy! And I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable to mankind than "just another Mom."
Motherhood!
What a glorious career!
Especially when there's a title on the door.
Does this make grandmothers "Senior Research associates in the field of Child Development and Human Relations"
And great grandmothers "Executive Senior Research Associates?"
I think so!!!
I also think it makes Aunts "Associate Research Assistants."
Well this is totally American but I think is applicable everywhere, just change the department name and titles....
A woman, renewing her driver's license at the County Clerk's office,was asked by the woman recorder to state her occupation.
She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.
"What I mean is, " explained the recorder, "do you have a job or are you just a ...?"
"Of course I have a job," snapped the woman.
"I'm a Mom."
"We don't list 'Mom' as an occupation, 'housewife' covers it," Said the recorder emphatically.
I forgot all about her story until one day I found myself in the same situation, this time at our own Town Hall.
The Clerk was obviously a career woman, poised, efficient, and possessed of a high sounding title like, "Official Interrogator" or "Town Registrar."
"What is your occupation?" she probed..
What made me say it? I do not know. The words simply popped out..
"I'm a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations."
The clerk paused, ball-point pen frozen in mid air and looked up as though she had not heard right.
I repeated the title slowly emphasizing the most significant words.
Then I stared with wonder as my pronouncement was written, in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.
"Might I ask," said the clerk with new interest, "just what you do in your field?"
Coolly, without any trace of fluster in my voice, I heard myself reply,
"I have a continuing program of research, (what mother doesn't)
In the laboratory and in the field, (normally I would have said indoors and out). I'm working for my Masters, (first the Lord and then the whole family)
and already have four credits (all daughters). Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the human ties, (any mother care to disagree?) and I often work 14 hours a day, (24 is more like it). But the job is more challenging than most run-of-the-mill careers and the rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money."
There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk's voice as she
completed the form, stood up, and personally ushered me to the door.
As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants -- ages 13, 7, and 3. Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model, (a 6 month old baby) in the child development program, testing out a new vocal pattern. I felt I had scored a beat on bureaucracy! And I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable to mankind than "just another Mom."
Motherhood!
What a glorious career!
Especially when there's a title on the door.
Does this make grandmothers "Senior Research associates in the field of Child Development and Human Relations"
And great grandmothers "Executive Senior Research Associates?"
I think so!!!
I also think it makes Aunts "Associate Research Assistants."
Well this is totally American but I think is applicable everywhere, just change the department name and titles....
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