Snowy winter..

Salam,

Snow!!! everybody gets excited when it's snowing.. especially for people who rarely get snow like us in Ireland.. I like it when it's snowing although it'll be very cold before the snowfall.. but once it's snowing, it's not so cold anymore.. for me, snow actually makes the coldness well worth it..

It was snowing last night in Limerick.. we didn't realise it until this morning when my dear husband went out to the car.. no wonder it was freezing cold last night.. we had to turn on the electric heater on top of the central heating that was already functioning.. anyway, I love seeing the snow.. the view was magnificent.. everything turned white.. the downside is that we need to 'defrost' our car plus the roads are slippery.. please drive safely people.. also for the pedestrian, be extra careful.. winter is the time when the orthopedics and geriatrics get extra busy.. as people keep falling plus the rising number of road traffic accidents..

Well, lets see some pictures that I took this morning..

The slippery stairs..

The 'frozen' car.. it's actually not as cold as it looks like.. I wore slippers to go out and took this pictures and it wasn't too cold..

Getting ready to drive.. he had to wear gloves coz the steering wheel was ice cold! and we had to 'bath' this car with hot water to get rid of the ice.. see, cars also have to bath early in the morning!;p



That black space was our parking spot last night..

Even the 'lake' in front of our apartment was frozen.. actually there was a swan trying to swim at the time I took this pic.. poor swan.. hopefully the ice will melt soon..

In a way, I'm glad that my parents canceled their flight to come here this winter.. we won't be able to go anywhere in this snowy winter..

Yesterday, we did our last round of shopping before this Christmas.. My husband is working from today up to the new year without any break.. poor him.. hopefully it is not too busy in A&E.. people, go and enjoy the snow.. don't go to the hospital unless there's true emergency please! back to my story, it was crazy packed at the shopping centre yesterday.. the crescent shopping centre probably has more than 700 parking spaces.. and they're all full!! there were people who actually parked in the trolley lane! and we ended up parking at the side of the road.. I felt like it was exactly the same as the raya shopping back in Malaysia.. except it was freezing cold here plus lots of santa around!;) we didn't shop much for ourselves.. we bought a present for my husband's colleague as they're playing the 'Secret Santa'.. We also bought 2 serving bowls, a mini fountain (pottery fountain) and the groceries for 2 weeks' supply.. hopefully they're enough.. I can't stand the crowd and the queue to pay! my kitchen is full for now.. we actually don't have enough space to keep our food supply.. I felt like we're getting ready for world famine or something.. hehe..

I guess that's all for now.. till we meet again in the next post, InsyaAllah..

Happy New Year!!

Salam,

As I'm writing this post,I'm actually at a private clinic, doing a locum job.. gosh,it is so quiet here.. I'm doing this locum job for a friend of mine who should be here but she had to go to Dublin instead.. I must say after nearly 6 months of 'holidays', I was quite worried to do this locum job.. i was worried that I've lost my skills.. plus this is a cardiac centre.. and they did ask me whether my ACLS certificate still valid or not.. do I still remember my ACLS? hope so.. hehe.. but I did some reading to refresh my memory before I started this locum job.. but it was surprisingly quiet yesterday.. my work all day was surfing the internet!! hehe.. to those that i've buzz yesterday, thanks so much for keeping me company;) in a way, Alhamdulillah.. there was no emergency cases that needed my intervention.. ;p

well,this post is intended to wish all of you happy new year 1431H!! I wish that I'm more aware of the Islamic Calender.. to be honest, I forgot about the new year until some people was tagged in the FB yesterday on the do'a for the end of the year and the new year as well.. thank you for those who have reminded me.. I wish we're using the Islamic calendar much more.. so that we won't miss the important dates in the Islamic calender.. or else we're just aware of the 1st or Ramadhan, or the 1st of Syawal.. and more sadly when we missed to appreciate the significance of a date or a month in Islam..

I hope you have a blast new year! let us all start our new resolution(s) beginning this new year.. let us make the Islamic year more significant in our life! till we meet again in the next post,InsyaAllah..

When the husband dominates the TV..

Salam,

As I'm writing this post,my dear husband is watching 'Match of the day' on the TV.. as we didn't subscribe the sports channel, he would catch up with the results of football games later on at night time.. luckily they have the 'Match of the day' - they show highlights of every game including all goals.. he would sleep late to watch the program.. sometimes he fall asleep on the couch.. he is a big fan of Man Utd.. so whenever there's a match oh his fav team, he'll get excited.. football is like the second wife to him!

Actually his interest is not only in football.. he loves sports as a whole.. rugby, ashes/cricket, swimming, tennis, even darts (which I never knew there are big tournaments for that!).. you name it, he knows them all (well, probably not all but most of them anyway).. when we watch 'Question of sports', he usually knows a lot of the answers.. I must say I've learned a lot about sports from him.. the game, the rules, the players.. I think he is getting tired of answering my questions on sports.. especially if he is trying to concentrate on a game.. what else can I do.. I can't just stare at the TV watching a game without knowing anything about the game, can I??;)

Tonight is the final game of the snooker tournament.. so you can guess what are we watching now (Match of the day has just finished).. I haven't got a clue about snooker before.. now I'm starting to know the game.. and they actually make snooker fun to watch.. the players have their own personality (I like to watch their different reactions, it can be very funny sometimes), and they showed interesting clips to watch.. and of course, a lot of input from my dear hubby makes a lot of difference.. now I know what 147 means in snooker!;)

I'm impressed on how much guys know about sport.. me and my sisters are regularly become the victims of bullies by my husband and my brother in laws because of our lack of knowledge in sports.. when they all watched a game together, and we popped out a question about the game, they actually gave us a made up answer! and we ended up being laughed at! hmph.. ;)

The snooker game has just finished.. Ding won!!

Addiction..

Salam,

Silence has been quite apparent lately.. I really don't have anything interesting to write.. but my dear husband kept asking me when will I write in this blog again..

So,today I'll write about my current addiction.. I'm now an addict! opss.. nothing serious.. I'm addicted to baking.. If I'm bored, I'll bake.. If I crave for cake, I'll bake.. If my husband ask for a cake, I'll bake.. my hands are itching to bake again.. I've made 2 cakes this week.. 3 cakes last week.. not included the 8 cakes I made in the previous weeks.. I'm trying to get out of my addiction.. I would have probably bake more cakes this week but I'm running out of flour & eggs in my kitchen.. and I'm restraining myself from buying any more supply in the near future.. I need a baking rehab!

The source of my addiction!

We bought this beautiful Kenwood Chef Premier last month.. I broke my previous mixer when I was trying to make pau.. my husband has been asking for kaya pau.. so while he was at work, I tried making the pau.. but my mixer broke down in the process.. then I planned on using my hand mixer but it 'blew' right after I turned it on! with both of the mixers broken, I kneaded the pau manually ie using my hand! it was a hard work (luckily I managed to get good results ie good pau!).. when my husband came back form work,he found me in a bad mood and the mixers were in the bin! being an understanding and a loving husband, he offered to buy me a new mixer..;) thank you abg!! and a few weeks later, he bought me a Kenwood hand mixer too:) my friends have suggested either Kenwood or Kitchenaid brand for mixers.. to be honest I've never heard of Kitchenaid before.. but it is actually a popular brand.. they're pricey (twice the price of Kenwood mixers) but they're surely beautiful and strong.. and I heard they're hard to find in Malaysia.. but as I'm not a professional baker nor going to be one, I figured the Kenwood mixer is more than enough for me.. popular brand and the price was reasonable (we got 80euro off for the mixer).. I must say I love my new mixer very much!

Well,to be honest the Kenwood mixer didn't come for free.. it was actually a trade - my hubby bought me the mixer,I bought him the Xbox..;) his xbox broke down a few months ago.. as Christmas sale has already begun, we figured it is the best time to buy the things we wanted.. he has been eyeing on the FIFA10 game for a while.. we were planning to buy Xbox 360 and the FIFA10 game only.. but there were special offers for Xbox.. the price of the Xbox with the FIFA10 game was the same as buying Xbox elite 360 plus 3 games (including the FIFA10) and an extra console.. so I got him the Xbox elite instead.. and of course it makes him happy.. he spends most of his time at home playing the Xbox game.. he can spend hours on the game.. and when he is trying to concentrate on his game, I'm banned from going near him coz I like to distract him.. hehe.. but of course, I still do it..;)

The source of his addiction!

Although he is addicted to his FIFA game and I'm addicted to baking, we still spend some time together.. well, we're addicted to each other as well;D.. he will check on me if I'm out of his sight, and so do I.. people have said to us that we're like playful children in the house.. yes, we do get crazy sometimes.. and I love it!:) it keeps us young and happy,I guess..;)

I better stop now.. till we meet again in the next post, InsyaAllah..

Eidul Adha..

Salam..

I'm hoping it's not too late to wish everyone Eid Mubarak! this Eid has been quite a busy Eid for me.. my dear hubby is working in the night shift this week (12midnight-8am weekdays & 8pm-8am in the weekend).. hence his sleep pattern has gone haywire! poor him..

Because of that,I made the Eid preparations myself.. for the Eid day, I made a moist choc cake, dahlia cookies & pasembor.. as usual, we had our raya potluck session at K.Riza's house.. :) this time, we have invited almost all Malaysian families here in Limerick to join us.. the last time that I saw many of them was last Eidul Fitri.. we had great time catching up with each other.. I was the last to leave her house at 11 pm that nite!

The next day I 'fainted' as if I was working the night shift;p hehe.. we were planning to go to Asyik's & K.Lin's open house in Nenagh.. but we woke up late & K.Riza invited us over for lunch.. so, we went over to her house again!

Yesterday, Fairuz & his family including his parents came over.. as we have been to K riza's house twice, we suggested to have potluck lunch at my house this time.. I made simple chicken rice, dahlia cookies (again.. the ones I made before has finished) and a marble cheese choc cake as requested by Asma' not a long time ago.. my dear hubby also asked for a cake to celebrate his Specialist Reg's birthday.. so I made a cream cheese buttercake too.. I've made 8 cakes in less than 2 weeks!! a zebra cake, 3 x layered cakes (kek lapis), marble cheesecake, moist choc cake, marble cheese choc cake and cream cheese buttercake (don't worry, we just had a slice or two of each cake.. the rest were given away;)..) I think that's enough for now.. will let my mixer rest for a while;) anyway, our lunch went well.. thanks to K.Riza & Ustaz Wan for the unbelievably delicious nasi impit with sayur lodeh & to K.Yana for the yummylicious kuah kacang!! alhamdulillah.. our Eid has been quite happening;)

***

Our Eid has been extra special this year.. my hubby's little sister (who is definitely not little anymore;p) has passed her final exams! Alhamdulillah.. well,of course the news was not so surprising for us as we always knew she would made it.. what makes it extra special is that she has been invited for a prize giving ceremony.. she herself has no idea of what prize or why she was chosen and apparently the university has been secretive of what prize she will be receiving.. I'm sure they're trying to make it a surprise! We're so happy for her.. we're very sorry that we can't be there..

CONGRATULATIONS DR INTAN SAFFURA!
WE'RE VERY PROUD OF YOU!!
LOVE YOU!

***

In this last part of this entry, I'll be focusing on an issue that has been quite concerning recently especially just before this Eid.. It was about the Eid prayer, whether it is sunat or wajib.. apparently there was an online kuliyyah about this issue and somehow people got the impression and made the conclusion that Eid prayer is wajib from the kuliyyah.. I was quite surprised when I heard about this issue.. after reading on these 2 articles, I can't resist myself from writing on this issue..

This is a link in which I read about this issue..
Solat Aidilfitri & AidilAdha

And another post written by Ustaz Irfan..
Adakah ijma ulamak solat eid itu wajib

As a person with not as much knowledge as they have, I'm just presenting the two articles on this issue.. I like the approach & explanations by Ustaz Irfan.. the 2 conclusions that he made are very valid points.. of course discussing about mazhab is definitely out of my league.. I'm still trying to learn myself.. somehow I got the feeling that more people are towards 'holding on to hadiths sahih' regardless of what mazhab they are following.. I'm not saying that it's wrong.. even nowadays we sometimes adapt the practise of other mazhab in certain things.. of course all mazhab are acceptable.. and of course Al-Quran and Hadiths are the two sources we always need to refer to on any issues.. what I'm worried is for most people who has not so much knowledge about hadiths (like me).. we can't just find any sahih hadith and hold on to it (especially when we're not experts in interpreting hadiths) without knowing that there maybe another hadith that is sahih as well but have different approach to the same issue.. then we will start saying one party is right and one party is not.. Alhamdulillah we had the 4 great Imams who had provide us with their teachings.. they have studied Islamic knowledge extensively and has made life as a muslim much easier for us.. of course there are issues that are called khilaf between the mazhabs.. but as Ustaz Irfan said, khilaf issues should be debated as khilaf issues.. it is better to present these issues from the point of view of the 4 mazhabs rather than black and white as if one mazhab is wrong and the other is right.. I hope we all can be rational in this issue.. and I pray may Allah guide us in every step we take.. we, as muslims definitely have to broaden our knowledge in Islam.. just need to be careful in our steps.. Wallahua'lam..

Till we meet again in the next post,insyaAllah..

Life Goes On

Salam..

As you may have noticed, Ina has been the one updating this blog since my last entry sometime in September.. Indeed, much has happened since then.. In fact, much were of great significance that they mark dates and book memories..

Since my own last entry, we had an almost-three-week break in Malaysia, which in that period there, I bought myself a digital SLR camera.. A D90 more specifically.. Of course, within that three weeks as well, I lost the lens hood of the camera! Silly me.. But, it was a bargain and I enjoyed my new toy more every day..

While back there as well, we spent time in Pangkor Island with my family, in Ulu Yam with Ina's family.. To be honest, I never saw Ina's dad having so much fun in the river.. It was almost as if there was nothing bothering him.. Maybe I am wrong, but that was what I saw that day..

Within that break as well, I had made it clear that I wanted to spend some time with my grand-dad.. I had a twinge that Tok had gone down so much since I saw him last year.. He was not as energetic, his memory was bad.. But he still rode his motorcycle daily.. Indeed, I had a bad feeling..

I was not far off.. Tok died in Ipoh Hospital on 7th of November.. Needless to say, I was already back in Limerick, working.. I received a phone call from mom on Saturday 6th, telling me that Tok was very unwell.. He had been suffering with fever and abdominal pain since Wednesday/Thursday.. Pakcik Fakhri brought him to hospital and within the next 12 hours, he declined rapidly.. Mom had told me that all had agreed that he was for conservative treatment only.. He died the next day.. And I received the phone call 30 minutes into my 12-hour-long Saturday shift.. (I thank Rachel and Jason who gave me some time off that day to gather myself)

Last weekend, I received a call from Donald Grant, an old friend of Tok's.. He was Tok's boss at the time British was in Tanah Melayu, some time in 1940's.. They had quite some experience together - Tok leading his boss running away from the Japanese was the story that pops up every time! Also, Mr Grant's son, Roger, was born in Batu Gajah and my grandma had looked after him for a while as a baby..

May he rest in peace, among the people of Jannah..

Ina also had a new toy - a mega mixer! Yup, the one I call 'Transformers'.. It is a Kenwood mixer but has multiple attachment outputs that you can actually attach different other things.. Of course, each attachment is sold separately, like Transformers' gadgets! Hehe..

Well.. I have babbled a lot this time.. I should stop.. Till later..

Salam..

Life is a rollercoaster..

Salam,

Sometimes I wonder what's life going to bring to me in the future.. or what will I bring to my life.. where will I be in 5, 10 or 15 years time.. sometimes there are to many of 'what if' questions.. is it a good thing? probably.. sometimes..

We may be too scared to face the truth.. to face the future.. we may have so many doubts in taking each step.. but I guess in the end, we need to have a little faith.. stay brave & strong and take every challenge coming at you.. and believe that He has the very best plan laid for you..

We may not get everything that we wanted.. we may lose the very best thing that we owned.. we may not reached our goals.. we may be tested in every step we take.. should we stopped? should we continue? should we take a break & take time to ponder upon ourselves? there is no definite answer.. when we need some signal or a little direction,we have Him to ask to..

What if we want something so much.. just one thing.. and we keep asking again & again for it.. and without this one thing,we just can't go on.. should we stop asking? should we passed on and forget about it.. what if we can't? what if there is no way that our wish can be granted?

"Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate (from the truth) after You have guided us, and grant us mercy from You. Truly, You are the Bestower,"

"Our Lord! Give us in this world that which is good and in the Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire!"