prize presentation day @ SJKT Prai Penang

sunday was a very proud day for me - both my kids did very well in their mid term exams.

some lovely pictures (taken again thru my hp as ran out of camera battery!)

sunday special

after many months of no real cooking, managed to cook a near proper meal (as in complete meal) last sunday.
shakthi's favorite tomato rice with a new chicken recipe - chicken briyani (thanks to love2cook!) & of course the usual cucumber salad (gave the pineapple a miss as couldnt find any at the market!)

so, here are the pictures.........





well what can i say, it was second helpings for all including doduku!

so many things, don't know where to start!!

it's that type of situation again, getting on my nerves, so many things to do and yet nothing seems to be moving! again, the house is in shambles, kids' timetable hardly ever followed, and my doduku is really trying my patience!! sometimes, i suspect, god made me have her just to test my tolerance level.

ok, back to the small kutty diary of mine, do another list - hopefully can follow till all tasks completed!

Mmmmmmmmmm...........

2010 has arrived and been almost ..... oh gosh, 4 months now. It started with news of death, within the family and among friends; almost every week in Jan, in fact. January was indeed very morbid. Feb dull, March uninteresting either & April flew just like that. And now it's May. I have stopped writing, practically in everything, blog, diary, even my daily calendar. Fb occasionally. My mind has gone mush, my spirit without any fortitude, not really focused & yet have so many things waiting at hand. The hardest part is getting a grip on myself. The house is in a mess (without the weekly maid), work is not getting less & Ms Exhaustion Extreme is my closest companion nowadays. When is this phase gonna pass?!

Adios 2009!

2009 was a trying year, at least for me; the birth of my youngest daughter (after a gap of nearly 6 years) being one of the primary reasons. The demands on motherhood took me to a totally different paradigm - it was indeed trying and straining on me, mentally, emotionally & physically the most.

My eldest struggled with his school work without my coaching & encouragement. But the most affected, I think, is my second one. After 6 years of being the youngest, she was not ready to receive someone who, very obviously stole the limelight and attention from her. A bright & carefree student, never getting anything but 100% in all her subjects & the first in most competitions, the student with the most prizes during her last 3 years in the school, her marks suddenly dropped. Not only that, she started whimpering & complaining & becoming clingy to us, unlike her usual bold and independant self.

She once told that ever since the baby was born, her amma & appa doesn't love her anymore. I was slightly hurt and felt guilty hearing that. Have I not been giving each one of them enough attention? Have I been a bad mother? Or worse, have I totally neglected her?

I suppose all mothers do go thru this guilty pang when it comes to showing love & attention to their children. Sigh! It never seems to be enough.

The year also brought a lot of lessons, some painful and others enlightening. Some difficult to digest even now after months. No regrets, though, as I learnt never to judge a book by its cover, even how well you had read the book. Trust became a major issue for me. People do not seem to have respect for the word trust. Betrayal is more easily executed without any sense of fear, guilt or regret. Sometimes, I wonder whether I'm light years back trying to still uphold these virtues.

The one ray of happiness are my children. Oh!, How much joy I get just from seeing them, while sleeping, playing, eating their favorite food etc. Esp. the little one, she's such a joy! Always ever smiling, sweet one moment & cheeky the other. She seems to complete the whole family. Even as I write, I could hear her laughter, full of glee and youth! Everyone seems to just brighten up upon seeing her. Thank you, God for giving us this joy, we will always cherish this treasure.

2009 has changed me more than any of the other years. Though the year brought more heartaches than pleasant moments, I do no regret them for I believe I have become mature & strong by virtue of these trials & tribulations.

And I welcome 2010 with more zest and pray it beholds a better year with good health and lots of happiness for everyone.

the little cottage

last weekend back home at appa's house for deepavali was one of the most relaxing time that i've had in the last few years. time to reminiscence the good old carefree days, minus the kiddos. my youth suddenly came back to me - the feeling was indeed awesome to say the least.

memories of the last deepavali i spent with my childhood friends. remembered all of them coming to my house at the boh road house. we went to the taman opposite the road to house. sha, sarina, loges, geetha & nicholas. can't actually remember what we talked, probably something not so significant but the feeling of togetherness was great (at least for me). friendship is so beautiful..........

thinking of these sweet memories of yesteryears suddenly gave me this strong burst of energy within me; which as quick as it came evaporated immediately upon seeing my darling doduku crawling towards me, grinning away, with her little bouncy curls swaying here and there - aahhh, back to reality and diapers and milk bottles ad screaming at the kids.

wonder how many of my other friends are sharing the same emotion like me

as different as sun and moon

my two daughters are as different as the sun and moon.

one has straight hair and the other curly (Grand Aunt Ponni from seremban calls it 'ribbon hair'). the older sis has inherited the paternal grandfather's rather short nose and the younger one sharp (probably from her appa or my side). the elder one has eyes as round and as big as the moon while her sister's an exact replica of mine.

both however were bestowed with my long eye lashes.

it's such a joy seeing them growing. i can't help but compare one with the other (though sometimes, my memory does play tricks with me - can't recall whether it was the brother's or elder sister's antics the kutti takes after)

hope they grow up best buddies, though with the 6 year gap, it won't be easy....