Wickedly Peachy!

Family holiday..

2012-01-02T13:50:00.002+08:00

I am trying to plan a family get-together for a very long time, tapi sangat la susahnya. What with 7 siblings and weird working hours and commitments, it is next to impossible just to get us all together, even during Raya!

These are my obstacles:

1) Dad is aging and visually impaired due to retinitis pigmentosa so I have to find a proper place that is OKU friendly. He wanted to join us in Kuantan hari tu but Mommy pujuk tak payah ikut. I doubt that he would enjoy water park kan! I felt bad that he couldn't come along..

2) Abe Muttaqi, my ever so matured nephew is studying at a boarding school in Kota Bharu. He is attending a chinese school with weird holidays yang tak serentak dengan other mainstream schools. So susah sangat la kan. Plus, he is sitting for PMR so I must plan a holiday during the first quarter of the year

3) Kak Ninie, my sister has 3 kids, Umar, entering Form 1, Sarah, going to Standard 6 and Uzair, Standard 4. Obviously kids these days are fully occupied. Their weekends are filled with tuition, Cambridge English class and kelas mengaji Quran. Furthermore, Sarah also has UPSR exam by the end of the year. So kena plan baik2 punya.

5) Abe, my elder brother is a pilot with hectic working schedule including weekends. He sometimes misses family dinners and events sebab yang paling kukuh ialah.. "sorry aarr.. saya kena fly.." okay, fine.

6) Having 3 doctors in the family also doesn't help with this planning at all. What makes it worse is one of us is a houseman in Temerloh doing shift work while the other is a Masters student in HUKM. Nak apply cuti amatlah susah sekali!

So silalah imagine kepayahan saya nak plan time and venue for our family holiday.. Haiihh... Someone should pay me to do this mind boggling work of figuring out the perfect place and time for this much awaits holiday!

Hectic!

2012-01-02T12:22:00.001+08:00

What a packed weekend it was. As usual, I was oncall on both long holidays, the Sultan's birthday and Christmas. So I decided to take this time off and spend the entire long weekend wisely.

I don't know why but my daughter and her Papa share this odd tendency of falling sick during holidays. Both of them were unwell on 2 of 3 planned weekend getaways. Seriously, it is really beyond my comprehension. Membazir je spend beratus2 ringgit as at the end of the day, we just stayed in the hotel room and do nothing except watching TV and melayan anak yang fretful or the father yang letih, sakit badan or demam. Luckily, we haven't gotten as far as out of Malaysia coz I cant imagine having to waste thousands of ringgit on a spoiled vacation!

Anyways, we owe Hana a true time in the sun coz she was really in ill health the last time that we went to Kuantan. On top of that, the weather was definitely not on our side as it was raining cats and dogs throughout the day. So bye-bye to the beach and the pool.

Jadi, weekend kali ini haruslah digunakan sebaik2nya untuk bercuti sakan. Well, I might exaggerate a bit as we only stayed in PD for a night. It was almost fully booked the time that I called for reservation 2 weeks before due to long weekend.. Pfffts. Why PD...again? I guess the distance is a major factor here. In an hour we already reached the destination tak payah nak pit stop bagai. Senang and cepat kan!

We chose Grand Lexis previously known as Legend International Water Homes.. ehem, coz me and hubby kononnye baru dapat bonus. If not, do not expect us to go to 5 star resort ya! I booked a deluxe room for the price of RM522 (govt rate super peak season), supposedly equipped with a king bed and a pool. Keeping in mind that we might have to stay indoor since we are still not fully out of monsoon season.

Well, to my delight, the new deluxe room garden view has 2 king beds instead with a more modern design which I love so much! The last time I came with my friends, this place was still under construction. The room amenities were commendable, with its own pantry, complete with microwave and plates, a separate washroom with a walk in wardrobe (very important) so you can wreck and shamble this area with your clothes without compromising the cleanliness of the bedroom.

The room

Hana was super excited! She jumped and ran here and there, asking apetuh apetuh repeated when she sees weird stuffs like the pelampung or the bedside lamp.

Budak girang
(p/s 1st time using this Malay word!)

Next is the MANDI time, yehhooo. Surely, Papa yang terlebih excited than his anak! 'Swimming' sampai tak ingat dunia using his new powered goggle that I bought for his birthday. The water was freezing cold that after half an hour, Hana was biting and shivering. I quickly put her under the hot shower which she seemed to enjoy the hot drizzle more than the pool -____- Cheh!

Ribena kids!
Note to self: must get Hana a goggle as she insisted on wearing
ours pastu marah bila super sized goggle tak stay kat batang hidung kecik dia -___-

Later that evening, we went to the playground and allowed Hana to let loose for a while before off for makan2 at a near by seafood restaurant.

Sorry, I really couldn't remember the name of the place but it was pricey and not tasty at all. The prawn rasa hanyir and luckily we did not order lobster! Initially, we wanted to go to Teluk Kemang, about 20km away for a taste of real seafood as recommended by Pak Guard Lexis but Hana was too sleepy whereas hubby was not feeling well (see, I think hubby is allergic to vacation!).

By 9.30pm, we headed back to the hotel, initially planned to take another round of ~~skin~~dipping in the pool but way too tired to do so. End of day 1 and we finally hit the sack by 11pm.

P/s Hana always have night terror if she is overtired. That night she woke up twice screaming and crying for no reason. Alhamdulillah, I recite ayat kursi and 3 Qul, hugged her and she slept soundly after that..

Little rugrat

2011-12-14T13:13:00.005+08:00

Assalamualaikum everyone..

This blog was not updated for so long *clear dust from my keyborard*.. As usual, I was busy doing other things like studying and doing locum untuk kumpul duit :p Anyways, a simple update suffice to state that this blog masih berempunya kan..haha..

Hana Khadeeja is reaching 16 months soon. You remember her right? My one and only little girl. She's smart and sassy with increasing vocabulary under her belt. Words that she says so far.. Papa, Mama, Bibik, Kakak, Nak, Dah and Apetuh. Hopefully it will keep on adding soon..

I would say Hana is daddy's girl. She's close to me but definitely more attached to her Papa. Hana just can't let Papa out of her sight or else she starts crying and screaming. But I guess all girls are like that, they are more attracted to opposite sex. Lagi satu, one of her favourite persons also includes her bibik. Sikit2 panggil bibik that I felt a tinge of envy! But who else to blame since more than 50% of the time were spent with her Bibik. Sigh..

Our baby, ikut muka papa or muka mama?
Please vote :p

BTW, she is sick at the moment, contacted the illness from my maid. It is so unusual to see her so lethargic and moody, fretful at night due to her stuffy nose and bouts of cough. She had upper respiratory infection before but it was never this severe. Her fever also seemed unsettling, reaching 39 degrees even at day 5 of illness. Geared with suppository PCM 4 times a day and voren 3 times a day has temporarily reduced the body temperature to 37.5 degrees.

I still think that it is a viral illness though (examination is still normal thus far) and hesitant to start her on antibiotic as Hana will sure vomit lepas makan ubat. But this time around the bug is more virulent and I have a feeling that the culprit is adenovirus. I'm sooo tempted to do respiratory virus screen but it would be a waste of rakyat's money.

So today, I decided to be the bad person, pricked my own child and sent blood investigation just to rule out dengue. I'm really hoping that she recovers soon as I miss my cheerful and happy little girl..

At her uncle's recent graduation day, affectionately known as Ayah Su to us..
3rd doctor in the family

I need to focus.. seriously!

2011-11-21T22:03:00.002+08:00

Assalamualaikum everyone..

Sorry for not updating this blog for a very long time. I've been wanting to write something for ages but instead, I felt guilty.

I've passed my exam recently, MRCPCH Part 2A , and for that, syukur Alhamdulillah yang tak terhingga. The first feeling that I had after discovering the result was totally opposite of euphoria. I was anxious and scared instead for what awaits me next, the clinical exam which will be much3 tougher mentally, physically and knowledge wise. I can't afford to waste any more time in front of the telly or PC as I should be spending my time studying for my exam.

My UIA senior, a young enthusiastic pediatrician told me that I need to spend at least 1 year ahead to prepare as MRCPCH 2B is a totally different game. It is definitely not easy and there is no such thing as luck. No more relaxing weekends, no more sleep during postcall hours, no more lepaking as I will only have one precious opportunity to pass. Mind you, I have to spend RM15k for the exam which will take place in UK and I can't afford to waste more money should I fail.

At the same, I'm thinking of an addition to our family. My adorable little girl Hana is reaching 15 months and I think it's about time that she share her toys and books with her sibling (plus I am not getting any younger!). Family planning has to wait until after I pass my exam coz I really cannot take any further distraction. I feel bad enough for not spending enough quality time with my girl and her papa dan I tak sanggup nak rasa serba salah to another human being should I bear another child at this moment in time. Babies will require a lot of attention, what with breast feeding, not enough sleep etc...

So my friend, I'll be closing down this blog temporarily for all the above reasons. I'll try to update once in a while if I have the time. Till then, please2 pray for my success of becoming a pediatrician. See ya and may Allah bless you..

Love,

Maryam

Shopping spree..

2011-10-08T12:45:00.001+08:00

Don't you just love to read? I always love reading since I was a little girl. Thanks to my father who has instilled the passion to read since I was small. My father was the sole breadwinner in the family with 7 kids to support, we were all brought up with just enough food to eat, with a modest house to live in Taman Kajang Jaya and practically no toys to play. Papa was very2 particular when in comes to toys as money was an object. He never bought us one. Never!

But I still remember that he encouraged us to read and despite not enough money, he still brought us to the book store (MPH if I remembered correctly) and told us that we can buy any books that we want and he'll pay for them. TV was only available until 1985 with only 3 channels and limited programmes for kids and most of the time Papa yang conquer layan berita. So our free time were spent with readings books, main masak2 or more adventurous stuffs like panjat bukit or cycling with my brothers.

Nowadays, kids spent their time watching Disney Channel, playing computer games or barbie doll complete with Ken and the playhouse. I am truly amazed if I see youngsters read books in the time of leisure and I wonder how did their parents raise them amidst Facebook, Astro and playstation??

I want my little girl to enjoy reading. I introduced her to picture books since she was 4 months old. At 13months, she'll carry her animal book to me and asked me to flip the pages while making silly animal sounds. That really entertained her!

Anyways, I went to Big Bad Wolf sale yesterday at MAEPS Serdang. I took leave for the sake of going to this much awaited warehouse sale just to avoid big crowds over the weekends. Along with my partner in crime, me and my sister went on Friday around 11am and when we reached the hall, we were surprised by a long queue outside with some people even brought their luggage along. Genius! Why didn't I think of that! As I entered the hall, everyone went berserk! I got myself a box to put in the heavy books. Everything was freaking cheap at 95% off. Paperbacks and hardcovers were sold at RM3 - RM 25 each! Finally, after 3 hours, I settled down with 6 cook books including Jamie Oliver Kitchen, 8 children books, 7 bestseller novels and 1 giant Disney jigsaw puzzle. Everything only cost me RM209! This sale will be on for the next 7 days. Go, if you want cheap quality books!

Lovely voice.. lovely song..

2011-10-04T00:12:00.001+08:00

What's my favorite tune these days? ADELE!!

I just truly deeply love her songs, melancholic and real. She is such a talented young singer songwriter (only 21 years old) with an AMAZING voice and an incredible talent. I realize that after watching tonnes of her videos of her performances, she actually sounded better live than studio recordings!

Listening to her kind of music, I thought that she is a serious kinda gal but I stumbled upon this funny video.

I just cant stop smiling watching this! Adele, a Brit who apparently is a cheeky and hilarious in person, has a big infectious laugh and loves cracking jokes. She's the kinda gal who will be you BFF and will just brightened up you day. I dunno why but she just reminds me of Bridget of Bridget Jones Diary.

Adele, when are you coming to Malaysia???

Growing up..

2011-10-03T21:54:00.000+08:00

Thanks Mama abe for this picture..

Can't wait for this!!

2011-09-28T00:04:00.000+08:00

7-16 October 2011

Big Bad Wolf Book Sale

The Biggest Book Sale in the World!

75-95% OFF all Books

1.5 Million Books!!!

Books Books Books

Time : 9:00am – 10:00pm

Location

MAEPS Serdang

Hall A, Maeps Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang

Serdang, Selangor

Organized by Big Bad Wolf Books

bigbadwolfbooks.com

2011-09-25T10:34:00.001+08:00

Hana is officially a walker at 13 months old. She is not yet a pro but is on her way there as she is perfecting her baby steps skill every single second.

Okay dear, good luck to a new bumpy road.. I am literally saying this as I can see her tottering around and frequently falling on her bum after few steps. There were times that she looses her balance, fall forward and hit her forehead sustaining few bruises! She'll cry a lil bit but soon, she's back on her toes again.

Gosh, I am just amazed. Babies just never give up and keep on trying. ' That's it, I'm frustrated and I'm gonna stop learning how to walk!' attitude is just not in their dictionary. Hana, I am just a proud Mama.

Hana on the move

My first gig..

2011-09-08T15:42:00.001+08:00

Hi everyone..
I have not make any entry for quite a while. So many things going on lately that I was a bit overwhelmed. I am not at work today due to health reason but still have to go to the hospital tonight for my calls, can't afford to change with anyone or else I'll end up doing every other day calls!
Anyways, is it too late for me to say Selamat Hari Raya? I guess most importantly is for me to ask for forgiveness from everyone for any wrongdoings.. I am just a human and to err is our nature rite..So Selamat Eidul Fitri everyone and Maaf Zahir dan Batin.
I had quite a long 9 days of Raya leave and it was quite an eventful one. Hana got her first bad diarrhea that she passed watery stool up to 15 times a day! Luckily she enjoyed ORS thus avoiding hospital admission. We also traveled everywhere from my mom's hometown in Yala, Thailand to Pasir Mas, Kelantan but spent most of out time at my hubby's kampung in Besut, Terengganu.
My sister called me few days back asking if I want to go with her and my SIL for Yuna's show next week. I am not really a great fan of her but I respect her for what she does and proud for her great achievement. Do you know that she has signed a record deal from a US company and even performed in front of hip hop legendary Russel Simmons!

These are the details of the show. I think the tickets are still available if you are interested..
Time: 8:30pm.Admission: RM80.Box office: +603 2051 7007.Address: Ground Floor, Tower 2, PETRONAS Twin Towers, KLCC.Venue phone: 03-2051 7007.Hear the songs from her award-winning album and experience her charming stage personality as Malaysia’s very own young singer-songwriter, Yuna, takes to the DFP stage. Ticket price is RM80 and will be on sale on 13 August 2011.

Hana turns 1

2011-08-23T19:23:00.000+08:00

Next project

2011-08-07T23:38:00.000+08:00

My little girl is turning one year young next week. How time flies.. I am thinking of organizing a mini birthday celebration for Hana, inviting only close family members of whom Hana will not develop stranger anxiety to.

Papa and Hana, all dressed up for Iftar
Her favourite thing to do..
"Sape nama Hana Khadeeja angkat tangan.."
and Hana quickly raises her hand (hehe.. comel la babies ni kan)

Since Hana still do not have fondness for any particular cartoon characters, I am contemplating of doing Sesame Street theme for her party (I love their vibrant colors) with menu including an eggless cake for her. Unfortunately the event has to wait until after Raya, that is after abang Umar, her cousin finishes his UPSR exam.

I googled some of the party ideas and gosh, they are all soooo adorable!!!! Just take a look at them yourself. I am sure you want to have those cutesy birthday bash for your little ones as well..

1st birthday party inspirations

First birthday party supplies.
I think they are super cute!

More idea..

Wedding 102

2011-08-03T21:21:00.001+08:00

Hi peeps.. I am really exhausted after my brother's reception last Saturday. It was an enjoyable one especially having our extended family gather together. There were few hiccups though.

First and foremost, the wedding decorator that we hired turned out to be such a disappointment. The dais was a disaster particularly the backdrop. Yes we did not pay that much for it but for 2k, nak post gambar pelamin kat sini pun I tak sanggup. It was horrendous I tell you that we had to improvise and used our curtain as the backdrop instead!

The flowers that they use were the cheap ones and my flower arrangement was much2 better and kemas than theirs. The wedding favors that that we ordered also was really not worth it. The cupcakes was really2 bite size small that we had to rush over to Giant on the wedding day to buy Ferrero Rocher chocolates as an additional gift. So, as an advise to the b2b, always always meet your wedding decorator in person and discuss clearly the design that you want! There might be misunderstanding when you just communicate via email.

Secondly, our house got broken in on the wedding day it self. In the midst of all the chaos and commotions time bride and her rombongan sampai, some hamba Allah went up to the 1st floor of our house pretended to be one of the guests and stole credit cards, jewellery and cash. We only realized later that night when we found our cousin's purse under the sink inside the washroom. My mom lost some money and 2 rings, my brother's iphone 4 was taken and so did my SIL RM700 and my little niece's bracelet. The next day, my dad said orang surau kata same unfortunate event also happened at other ppl's kenduri in Bangi recently, the culprit brought along 2 kids so that she doesn't appear suspicious! Police report was lodged and we hope that the irresponsible person get caught.

Anyways, enjoy few of the pictures of our DIY project. I might not be blogging for a while though.. Selamat menjalani ibadah puasa and may us all make full use of the holy month Ramadhan...

Fatin & Rasis, the bride and the groom
Note: I did the hand bouquet using pink eustoma and blue hydrangea

Pelamin using our curtain as the backdrop. Turned out quite nice kan..
Note: the flowers kat depan tapak pelamin and atas table belah kanan sume buat sendiri..

Centrepiece..

Main table set up..
Note: decorator yang design though I think this one we can actually DIY

Gorgeous flowers..
Cucuk saja, sangat senang nak buat.
You just have to choose the flowers and the colour

Hana Khadeeja Ahmad pun hasil DIY jugak :p

2011-07-31T22:05:00.001+08:00

Worn out

2011-07-25T22:27:00.001+08:00

I made kerja gile. That was travelling KL-KB-KL in one freaking day and oncall the next morning. Yes, I know I am crazy but I did not have any other choice. My male cousin got married 2 weeks ago in Pontian, Johor and I sadly could not make it as I was on duty the night before (again.. such a boring excuse already!).

The Johor wedding that I missed

So I HAVE to attend his reception which was held at my grandmother's home in Pasir Mas, Kelantan. I couldn't take earlier leave as me and my hubby had to work on Friday and decided to fly back and fro on the same day.

Our flight was at 7.15am and we had to be at the Subang airport the latest at 6.30am. For fear of waking up late, I couldn't sleep well the whole night and kept on checking the clock on my handphone. By 5am I was up and we finally make a move at 6am. I left Hana at home with bibik as I don't think she can handle the short and hectic travelling. I met my sister and my mother at the airport before flying together to KB. By the way, Ferhad (yes, the Hitz FM radio announcer) was in the same flight! P/s.. I always pretend that I don't know them whenever I encounter local celebrities. I don't want to appear jakun and I don't admire them enough to ask for their autographs :p

Anyways, my brother who arrived 1 day earlier picked the whole lot and off we went in search for the best breakfast in the whole Kelantan. I'm embarrassed to say that we had to call my BIL, orang Melaka for recommendation! Well, what can I say, we always eat at home whenever we balik kampung for raya and eating out in KB is something that we never do!

We finally found the recommended eating place and boy, the food was really yummy. Nasi berlauk was full of lauk (they are not cheapskate at all when putting lauk on your nasi), laksam was okay and my nasi tumpang to me was delicious (though my sister said the one at Belanga @ Midvalley was nicer).. The amount that we paid for 6 people was merely RM19! Very cheap. If you happen to drop by Kota Bharu and looking for this place, it is actually along the road towards Kubang Kerian (HUSM), few hundred meters after Bilal Supermarket.

All in all, the wedding reception was great. The food was SUPERB but the catering service was so so. The bride and the groom were like match made in heaven, Hafidz Rizal, a doctor and Khadijah, a medical student in Indonesia, graduating soon. I am sure Hafidz late mom, who was dearly known as Su, is a proud mother.

To cut it all short, after a hectic day, we took the last flight home and we reached Bukit Jelutong at around 12 midnight. I was really tired and had a restless sleep, one of the symptoms of pre-call blues.

For your information (though I'm sure you are not really interested to know)..I had quite a bad call yesterday. I got stucked in red zone in ED from 8am and unfortunately the very ill baby passed away after 4 hours of resuscitation. There was also another case of non accidental injury (intracranial bleed) luckily did not require intubation.

I am really really worn out today after an eventful weekend and desperately need to qada' my sleep. Good nite everyone. I'll upload the piccas later..

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz..

Wedding 101

2011-07-15T08:33:00.004+08:00

My elder brother is getting married today after Asr prayer. So last night, me and my sister Kak Ninie went all out to prepare 3 hantarans for his bride. Initially, we wanted to give 9 dulang hantaran but finally decided to give 3 today for the nikah and will bring another 9 tomorrow during the reception.

We opted for pink theme and after purchasing all the wanted fresh flowers at Floristika, we began the operasi menggubah. It initially turned out disastrous and we could imagine our brother yelled "KENAPA TAK SURUH PRO JE YANG BUAT!!"

Fragrance au naturale for the toilet :p

So, after much thought, attempts, cucuk and un'cucuk', we finally managed to pull out these gorgeous hantaran using China white rose, pink carnation and purple eustoma. Don't you find them sweet? Heheheh.. sorry, I'm blowing my own trumpet here :p

Mas kahwin

Gelang instead of the usual ring

Duit hantaran

Excused my bad picca, I was only using my camera phone..

Demm..

2011-07-01T19:58:00.001+08:00

I am supposed to attend macarons baking class tomorrow. Unfortunately I got a call this afternoon that the class is cancelled as the chef fall sick. I was so looking forward to learn how to make macarons for a long time since it is quite expensive and I would rather make it my own. So I am pretty sad that it got postponed to a later date.

On the other hand, I have lots of things to do tomorrow. The list includes catching up with sleep (priority number uno), shop for a car seat for my colleague's newborn baby and to redeem our dinner voucher from Legend KL which will expire in 2 weeks' time.

I'll be oncall on Sunday (so not looking forward to this!) and will not be able to make it for my ex-school mate's wedding in Bukit Jelutong itself..

Anyways, hope you'll have a great weekend ahead!

Ps To Faizal Azwandy, selamat melalui alam perkahwinan...

Mommy, I love you..

2011-06-30T20:43:00.001+08:00

I watched this vlog which made me laugh and cry at the same time. I guess, our ego is too big that we forget to say thank you or I love you to the person who cares for us the most. Our mom.
As a human being, she is obviously not perfect. But then, I guess there be will no one else in this world that will love you unconditionally but your mother.

She will call me when I am are sick and ask how I am doing. She will try to cook for me even when she is not feeling well. She will definitely wake up in the middle of the night to pray when I am nearing my exam. She will kept quiet even if I say hurtful things to her. She will never raise her voice and more importantly, she will not judge me.

To my most wonderful Mommy..

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

and

I LOVE YOU

Islam is cool..

2011-06-30T20:19:00.000+08:00

A hearty meal..

2011-06-30T19:28:00.004+08:00

I ganti puasa yesterday and baked this for Iftar. It was really delicious, I'm telling ya. Well, you can confirm with my anak-anak buah, Umar, Uzair and Sarah as they gobbled up everything in split second (to the extend that their Umi takde can nak makan!).

This is my version of making a simple Creamy Baked Macaroni.

1) Cook 1 packet of pasta of your choice until al dante

2) In a big pot, saute 1 whole bombay onion and after that add 500gm of minced meat. Lower the heat and cover the pot

3) After 30 minutes or once the meat is tender, add in 1 whole of diced fresh tomato and 1 can of button mushroom. Cook for another 10 minutes

4) Add in 1 can of instant spaghetti sauce

5) Add oregano and fresh thyme to the gravy. Seasoned with salt and pepper

6) For the cream sauce (whatever you call it), put 4 table spoons of butter in a pan and wait until it melt.

7) Then add 4 table spoon of flour and stir with a balloon whisk to make roux.

8) Subsequently, put in 4 cups of fresh milk.

9) Once it is thicken, add in 4 slices of cheddar cheese and season with salt

10) Put the macaroni into an oven proof casserole dish. Cover the macaroni with the creamy sauce and sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese on top. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cheese has melt.

p/s I prefer an aluminium foil dish as my oven is small and cannot handle a heavy container.

Enjoy!

I can stand now!!!

2011-06-21T20:58:00.000+08:00

This place sucks!

2011-06-21T20:55:00.002+08:00

[50% Off] 3-Course Dining with KL Skyline View for 2 people at Look Out Point Western Food for RM45 instead of RM89.20 (only RM22.50 per person)

Looking at the deal above, the price is about the same as eating at Chilli's for 2 persons but for 50% less! This place was even featured in The Star. Quoted from Kwong Fei Look for this restaurant if you are looking for cheaper and tastier food. – Jan 20, 2010 As person who cannot see things go on sale, I quickly grabbed this groupon and has since been looking forward to go to this place.

Me and Mr hubby finally could find time to go out for a dinner at Look Out Point Shah Alam last week. I thought it was located somewhere around i-city, my expectation would be that it is probably be near Jakel Seksyen 7. Unfortunately, our GPS system broke down, so after few u-turns and pusing2, we eventually located this eating place; it is in fact located inside the I-city itself, and the parking cost 10 bloody bucks!! We were too cheapskate to pay for the expensive parking fee (that's why we bought groupon!!) and decided to park about 500 metres away, near durian stalls.

Besides Look Out Point, there are actually few other restaurants in i-city including KFC, a nasi arab shop and a must have kedai mamak to name a few. The first turn off point when we stepped into the restaurant was that it was gloomy with lots of empty tables and chairs. My hubby was like, "Betul ke tempat ni? You were singing praises for this place tapi macam takde orang je,".. I was a bit defensive saying that I'm sure groupsmore won't just simply advertise suka2 hati and will probably selectively choose restaurants with good reputation.

We handed in our groupon, my hubby chose sirloin steak and I picked lamb chop with cheese sausage. The deal also included wild mushroom soup and fresh salad.

First and foremost, the food was so NOT tasty!!! The steak was actually a piece of very thin meat, not at all juicy or tender. I think mine was probably Ayamas cheese sausage that you can just buy from any hypermarket. The fries tasted weird. I think they just heat up the fries and the salad was just plain cucumber + carrots dip in thousand island dressing. One of the waiters was without shame, just melepak at one of the empty tables around us smoking and puffing away! We were terribly disappointed and vow never to come to this place again.

Sirloin steak supposedly priced RM51.60!
Kemonla, we were definitely cheated!

Cheese Sausage Lamb Chop actual worth RM45.60!
Let me tell ya, it is so NOT worth it!

Garden salad

Disheartened, we decided to stop by at a durian stall in front of I-city for a taste of my favourite fruit. Very cheap as they sold the king of fruits for a mere RM10 for 3 biji! At least we went home somehow feeling contented!

Much much more fulfilling

Note to self: be more cautious in purchasing any groupons in the future..

Hearyee.. hearyee..

2011-06-19T21:55:00.005+08:00

I am planning to organise a group cooking class at Bayan Indah in October. I am still torned between the two themes below.

If you need any further information on the place or how the classes are run, please visit Bayan Indah's main website.

Anyone interested to join me for this fascinating cooking adventure? You can either drop me an emaiI, text me or simply leave me a note on my FB wall. I will proly need your feedback before the end of fasting month. TQ!!!!

Theme #1: Designed to Impress

Time 09:30AM to 02:00PM, RM 300 per person

Originally offered as a Christmas menu, this class has now by request, been reincarnated as a special occasion dinner. Be forewarned, however, that this is not a class for the faint-hearted, as we do cover a lot of ground. You’ll bone and stuff a leg of lamb, make a sponge cake and meringue for the Baked Alaska and several side dishes. However, when you reproduce this menu at home, you’ll find that many of the dishes can, in fact, be made several hours or days ahead, leaving you cool and collected when your guests troop in …

Salmon canapés with pear & watercress salad
Boned roast lamb with herb crust & apricot stuffing
Homemade orange mint sauce
Potato gratin (sliced potatoes baked with cream)
Paper-wrapped baked vegetables with fresh herbs
Baked Alaska (meringue covered ice cream cake)

Please note that this class is meant for the more accomplished home cooks with some experience in preparing sizable family meals. Students working in pairs make the whole menu. Everyone gets to take a baked Alaska home.

An example class can be seen onhttps://picasaweb.google.com/114969232263335544031/DesignedToImpress2April2011#

...OR...

Theme #2: Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme ….

Time 09:30AM to 01:30PM, RM 250 per person

Discover the fantastic flavours of fresh tarragon, basil, dill, thyme and rosemary … and I guarantee that you’ll never settle for dried herbs ever again.

Roast leg of lamb with rosemary & garlic
Tarragon chicken with cream sauce
Pan-fried fish fillets with dill or chive butter
Tomato and basil pasta sauce
Pesto (for pasta)
Coleslaw with dill

Students working in pairs make two main course recipes and one side dish or pasta. Please indicate choice at time of booking.

To see a Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme class in action, please click on https://picasaweb.google.com/bayanindah/ParsleySageRosemaryAndThyme23Oct?feat=directlink

It's dessert time!

2011-06-18T16:42:00.073+08:00

I spent the day today with 3 old friends and 14 new acquantainces at Bayan Indah for my first ever baking class. This culinary retreat was fabulous, cosy and not a typical Malay home with its open space concept. We were welcomed by a jovial Rohani Jelani cum cikgu of the day and was served with a mug of coffee and orange sponge cake at the reception room.

Garden of herbs.. Nice right..

Very cozy place.. I love the open concept!

The first thing that Rohani did was to go through a few important steps in the recipe, briefed us on the dos and the donts and after that demonstrated to us on how to separate egg white and yolk, how to beat the egg, why brown sugar and not regular white granulated one and within a few minutes, the cake batter was ready! Rohani made it looked soooo easy!

The guru showing us the how-to-do..

There were basically a selection of 4 cakes but each pair can only choose 2 to bake and bring home. The ingredients were pre-measured and was put nicely at everyone's station along with our very cute apron.

My partner in crime

Me and my partner, Hanani baked strawberry layer cake and toffee banana cake. The baking part was pretty easy but the preparing the garnishing and decorating an otherwise plain sponge cake with lemon curd, toffee and etc was leceh and time consuming. I would definitely do it at home if I have an extra helping hand.

Before..

Tadaaa..
might appear a bit sloppy but it sure taste DELISH!

Rohani and few of her assistance were there all the time and entertained each and every questions and doubts we had and demonstrated to us whenever we appeared clueless. We started baking at 10am and finished everything at around 2pm! It was quite tiring actually especially with the hot whether and having to stand most of the time.

Bushra, my ex-uni/room mate for 7 years!

Anyways, we still had fun learning new stuff while meeting up with old buddies amidst our busy schedule. Bushra and Azida, future radiologists working in UMMC while Tasha and Asra just came back from Australia for their post graduate study. We had a nice chat over lunch while enjoying the view of Bayan Indah before heading home at 3pm.

Camwhoring session is a must!

Asra and Tasha preparing mango cheese cake..

I told Rohani to expect another email from us after Raya. We will definitely return for more of her cooking class!

So long Bayan Indah
We sure will return to this sanctuary soon

Have a nice weekend ladies (err.. and gents)

Love em to bits!

2011-06-17T18:16:00.003+08:00

I am sure when it comes to wedding decoration, Nas Great Ideas, Flora etc, Kerja Kahwin and Wedding by Sher are among the big names in the industry.

But I am just in love with Chenta Weddings by Indipop. Their wedding concept is so original, one of a kind and modern. I heart how they play with colours and showcase something new each time. A breath of fresh air amongst the abundance of butik pengantin / planner I tell ya.

Why la I never heard of them 3 years ago when I was planning for my reception? Tensi! I wish I can get married all over again and have my wedding decorated by them.

But then again, when money is not an object, I guess everyone (including me.. dah kahwin beranak satu, sudah, jangan berangan!) would definitely hire them. Definitely will consider booking them for my still single sister and youngest brother's wedding later.

CW will be a force to be reckoned with and I am pretty sure that in a year or two, they will be fully booked to the brink that ppl with budget seciput like us just cannot afford them anymore :(
Anyways, just check out the pics below. You'll be amazed.

Drool..

Very nice colour palette

Just lovely

So sweeeeetttt..