Orcalion's Journal

All because of washing machines

2012-01-26T15:56:00.001+07:00


Ariq: 2 spoons detergent, 1 cup softener, START

Almost forty years ago, two dedicated men were completing their university studies. They lived away from home, in a simple dorm house called 'Tontowi Jauhary'.

In the dorm house, they studied hard and learned many things from other people that enriched their lives. All the experience they gained throughout their stay have formed certain respect and affection towards the simple dorm house.

That respect and affection, led to the two men to make pact that they were going to add 'Jauhary' in their first sons' names. Jauhari is an Indonesian vocabulary taken from Arabic word, which means 'expert'.

Thirty six years ago, the first man, had his first son. He named his baby 'Achmad Tanjung Jauhari'.

Thirty years ago, the second man, had his first son. He named his baby 'Jauhary Arifin'.

Then, history brought us into this week..

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Rrriinnggg.. (The phone in the living room rang). I quickly ran to answer it. It was a man's voice.

I: Yes..

Man: May I speak with Mrs. Jauhari?

I: Speaking.. (My answer was a little hesitant. My husband's 'Jauhari' part of his name is rarely mentioned by other people. In Indonesia, first and middle names get used far more often than last name.. and last name is not always a surname.. Therefore, I am more often addressed as Mrs. Achmad or Ms. Hutapea (my birth surname).

Man: I'm from Samsung, Ma'am.

I: Alright. Is there anything I can help you with? (I was on alert. An employee of a communication company (competitor of the company my husband is working for) is calling my husband.

Man: I'm calling about your washing machine.

I: Washing machine? (Phew, at least it wasn't a tricky job offer situation. However, still...) My washing machine is not a Samsung product. Are you sure you are calling the right customer?

Man: I believe I am, Ma'am. You are Mrs. Sinta Jauhary, right?

I quickly burst into laughter..

I: Oh, No, I'm not. Would you hold please, I will quickly get her..

Then I ran fast to my sister-in-law's room to get her.

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Yes.. I am Mrs. Achmad Tanjung Jauhari .. and .. she is Mrs. Sinta Jauhary .. and we both live here ..

.. and ..

No.. The pact didn't involve any bethrotal arrangements .. The two only met after Father passed away..

.. so ..

Yes.. fairy tale still exists.. and I'm happy that it does..

Believe it or not.. Washing machines have made a pact not to let me rest..

Companies always want to make their products look and sound LUX.. but, too many LUX-es tend to confuse simple housewife (namely, ME)..

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Rrriinnggg.. (My mobile phone rang). I answered it and it was a man's voice.

I: Yes..

Man: I'm from Electrolux, Ma'am.

I: Oh, yes, you texted me that you couldn't come on Saturday. You said you were coming on Tuesday.

Man: Yes, Ma'am. I'm sorry I couldn't finish the repair sooner. It was raining really hard. (In Indonesia, service technicians ride motorbikes to customers, so heavy rains can definitely mess up their schedule.) Now I have found the part and I can finish the repair today.

I: Part? What part? I thought this is just the routine service?

Man: No, Ma'am. This is not a routine service. You called us last week to service your washing machine. Your husband 'OK-ed' the purchase request for the broken part.

I: My husband? When did you see my husband?

Man: On Tuesday, Ma'am. When I did the checking.

I: Hang on.. (I called for a washing machine service, but my husband was supervising the work? On a Tuesday? Very unlikely! Moreover, I was definitely home on Tuesday -when my husband was at work- waiting for the guy, and he didn't show up!) .. Are you sure you are calling the right customer?

Man: I'm sure I am, Ma'am. You are Mrs. Hutapea, in Cipete, right?

I: (Shaking my head and exhaling heavily) No, I'm not. You have been contacting me about my parents' broken washing machine. Well, I don't live with them anymore.

Man: Oh, OK.. But is it alright if I come today around 11 to finish the repair?

I: Yes, sure. You can come around 11. I'll tell them that you are coming..

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This one was really on me!

This is my fourth year living with Mother, and I still got the washing machines mixed up! Mum's washing machine is Electrolux .. Mother's is Luxindo! (Every year, Mother and I signed up for the quarterly routine service for the Luxindo machine).

I could've prevented this silliness, if I had realized the misunderstanding when the guy texted me on Tuesday..

.. and ..

You are allowed to laugh at me (roll on the floor if you want)..

Nasi Goreng '3 Thoriq'

2011-12-24T22:39:00.002+07:00

Bahan:

5 porsi nasi putih (cukup untuk satu keluarga, satu kali makan)

1/2 Bawang Bombay kecil diiris tipis

7-9 siung bawang merah diiris tipis

3-5 siung bawang putih dicincang halus

3 potong paha atas ayam dipotong kecil

3 batang 'baby carrot' diiris kecil

3 batang 'baby corn' diiris kecil

Segenggam jagung pipil yang sudah direbus/dikukus

3-4 butir telur

Garam dan merica secukupnya

Kecap manis

Cara Membuat:

# panaskan minyak/margarine di wajan

# masukkan bawang bombay, oseng sampai lembut dan harum

# masukkan bawang merah, oseng sebentar, kemudian masukkan bawang putih dan oseng sampai harum, tambahkan sejumput garam sambil diaduk

# masukkan baby corn, baby carrot dan jagung pipil, tambahkan sedikit garam dan merica, oseng sampai lembut

# masukkan daging ayam, masak hingga matang sambil tambahkan garam dan merica secukupnya

# masukkan telur ayam, masak hingga matang

# masukkan nasi, aduk rata sambil dicoba dan tambahkan garam dan merica secukupnya

# kalau bawang putih terasa kurang, boleh ditambah bubuk bawang putih

# setelah bumbu terasa pas, tambahkan kecap manis

# nasi goreng siap dihidangkan, bisa ditambah dengan irisan daun selada, tomat, timun dan telur dadar/ceplok

A Walk of Memory

2011-12-21T08:30:00.000+07:00

It was already late in the afternoon when I was walking on the path along the river. The sky was getting darker and the breeze was getting cooler.

All in a sudden, I remember the times when I was hiking along a pathway up on the mountain, with the rest of the 'Lily' girls.. talking, laughing, singing and cheering out our team yells..

It was nice of the memory to come by at such a nice late afternoon..

Then, as the surrounding went quieter, the sound of the river grew louder. The grass and the flowers were dancing softly to the wind.

The scenery reminded me of the moments before sunset at the camps. Sitting outside the tent, around the cooking fire, waiting for dinner to be ready. Laughing about our silly slips and falls during the day hike. Working out a plan for tomorrow..

I never forget, how good we were as a team. Our team work has become my inspiration. Our achievements have been my life-long motivations..

Nearing the end of the path, I started to hear the sounds of the night creatures. Roots, twigs and leaves started to form the shape of forest beings..

Unformed shadows brought me the memory of nights at the camps. Cramping in the tent, whispering, pointing at each other, giggling, in the dim of the lantern, until we finally fell asleep..

Then, our restful sleep would be paused by the wake up call for the night walk. We would hike on the same path. Walking past the same trees, twigs, leaves, flowers and grass. The only difference was the darkness around us..

Somehow, it was always enough to amplify the effects and results.. One call, and we would stop to wait. One call, and we would catch each other's hand. One call, was all we needed to keep each other safe.. By sunrise, we had become a stronger team..

What a late afternoon walk.. What a great memory.. My memory of 'Lily' girls.. All in a late afternoon walk..

'Lily' was the name of my patrol group in the Scout & Guide Brigade in Junior High School. We went on camps and hikes together, and won several medals as the best patrol.

Our patrol was solid for the whole three years of Junior High School, until the time came for us to go our own ways when we graduated and chose different Senior High Schools.

-20 December 2011-

Harder as Adults

2011-10-03T15:34:00.000+07:00

During school years, I had a best friend. Even though we didn't go to the same school, we kept in touch very well. We both have very open personalities, which was a big help to bridge our distance. We knew each other very well, to the extent that I could deduce his whereabouts and state of minds, almost at all times.

I guess, it was just the way with me, that I could see the changes in people who are close to me. I am not a psychiatrist. I am certainly not a psychic. I am not even a mentalist, although, I can understand how Patrick Jane (The Mentalist) can figure out people and events by observing and analysing things around him.

Having observed and analysing my best friend daily, turned out sharpening my mind in observing other friends. I could see changes that were happening in each of my close friends, and I had no problem in asking if something was bothering them. Most of the time, they had no problem in telling me what the problem was. At the times when the problem was too personal to share, they would tell me that they appreciated my attention.

One obvious thing was, regardless my good intention, to show attention to my friends, I wasn't always able to give any assistance in helping them solving their problems. I was just a teenager, with experience as little as any other, and no expertise whatsoever in human psychiatry. The biggest help I could offer was to listen. Once in a while, I could give a suggestion, but most of the time, it was only listening.

Well, considering, we were all teenagers at that time, having someone, a friend, to listen to us, was more than enough. All teenagers only wanted to be listened to. What happened afterwards, didn't matter as much, as long as, they felt that they were being understood. Therefore, I helped my friends as often as I could.

I remember. A friend asked me, how I could tell that she was feeling sad. I told her that it showed in her eyes. From that moment on, she occasionally came to me and said, "Look into my eyes. What do you think, I'm feeling today?"

Well, it wasn't that hard to do, since she was a good friend, and I saw her everyday at school. Furthermore, this particular friend has expressive eyes. So, I was always successful in getting her to tell me whatever was bothering her.

It wasn't as easy with other friends, but when we see certain people daily and, we interact with them on a regular basis, we will recognise the mood changes, worries, happiness, excitements, etc. Mood changes in friends always give me a little tug, like having butterflies bumping around, in my tummy. When it happens, it is the time, when I usually ask my friend, if something is bothering them, and give them time to decide whether they want to tell me about it.

Well, that was all easy in school years.. What happened afterwards was quite different. Situations change, condition change, and people change.. and that was when I lost most of my comfort..

Throughout high school and university, many things happen in people's lives, and mine is no exception. My best friend and I arrived at a point where we needed to restrict our feelings and only mind each other business on 'when invited/asked' basis. The decision didn't come out of a fight. It came out of the situation when we found the love of our lives.

As we drifted apart, somehow, I also lost a great deal of my confidence in approaching other people. I fear that if people don't like being asked about their problem, they would be angry. If I was the person who has nerves asking about other people's problems, I have to be prepared to suffer the consequences. I don't really think that the change in my friendship completely did this. I believed that simply growing up and becoming an adult also took part in the way I make considerations about other people. As adults, we simply can't interfere with other people's lives, even our close friends, even when we sense something is not right.

I'm still not sure that being adults mean being ignorant, but I'm not a teenager anymore, and what would I do, if I ask a friend if he/she is having a problem, and he/she tells me about it, and it turns out that I can't do anything other than listening? At the same time, I have some concerns about some of my friends, which I would like to ask them personally (I am the kind of person who dislikes finding out about a friend, from another friend).

I also have another worry, now that I am a wife and a mother of three young kids. If it turns out that my friend needs to be listened to for hours, days, weeks, months or even years, how should I deal with that? I care about my friends, but I am aware of my limitations, and I worry about the consequences of my actions.

It feels so hard, to find the right time and the right way to ask a friend, "What is really going on? I don't know how much I can help, but I will listen." Is it because being adult is really that complicated?

I really miss my school years.. being a teenager, who had nothing to fear in showing attention, and all the time in the world to care about my friends..

To all of my dear friends.. if you happen to read this, please know that even though I might need to cut your phone calls short to attend to my kids, I really want to understand how you are feeling. I want to listen and be there for you. I want to see you go through your problems and come out as a better person..

What you haven't been able to do today,

I hope you can do it tomorrow.

The tasks you haven't completed this week,

I hope you can complete it next week.

The goals you haven't achieved this month,

I hope you can achieve it next month.

The successes you haven't reached this year,

I hope you can reach it next year.

Yes, being a teenager can be troublesome, with the mind-splitting and emotionally-challenging self-discovery. However, most of you would agree with me, that the good friends we find during our teenage years, are the ones we keep forever.

If I have a choice, I want to keep being able to ask them how the are right now, and listen to how great they are doing these days, or, listen to them crying their heart out about something that bothers them today..

I wish you all a nice day and a good life.. :-)

Dove Orchids

2011-09-28T02:30:00.004+07:00

Last Saturday, our cook came up to me and passed on Mother's message, that she wanted me to take pictures of the white flowers. Mother had already left for her Saturday Senior Citizen Morning Exercise, so I couldn't ask her more about what kind of pictures she had in mind or borrow her camera.

I quickly grabbed my camera and started shooting at the while flowers outside the window. The cook ran and shouted, "No! Not that flower! Grandma said the little ones, the ones that smell very nice. They just happen to be blooming this morning and they won't stay long. You must take pictures quickly."

Ah.. I understand which flowers she was talking about. I looked behind me.. and there they were, blooming beautifully around the palm tree bark, spreading a fresh fragrance around the front yard.. The little 'Dove Orchids.'

I really had to take as many pictures as possible during the day, because Dove Orchids only bloom for 24 hours, then, it would be over. I took lots of pictures from every angles, hoping that some of them will come out perfect.

After taking the pictures, the boys were up, and I had to catch up with our lives, so the camera had to wait for my next free-time.

On Sunday morning, I took a look at the pictures and I realized that the pictures were good, but the problem with the camera I was using was that the colors did not come out as well as I hoped. I quickly ran to Mother's room and asked to borrow her camera.

Most of the orchids were already closed, only a few were still opened. I tried to take as many pictures as possible, as fast as possible, before they completely withered. Then, I quickly extracted and edited the pictures.

All the flowers are now gone, and the pictures I took might not be the best pictures in the world (since I'm not a professional photographer), but, I'm sure you can see the beauty in those little orchids by looking at my pictures.

Dove Orchids are so beautiful and I can almost smell them while writing this post.

Even this little bee is enjoying the company of the Dove Orchids for the day..

We know you want a better quaff

Family Photo

2011-08-03T15:29:00.005+07:00

As usual, at the beginning of academic year, Ariq and Aza have to submit personal and family photos to their classes.

Our previous photos did not have Kyra in them, so, we decided to have new photos taken with Kyra included! At first, we thought about going to a photo studio, but due to the busy days we are having this weekend, we changed our minds and had the photos taken, in the morning, at home, with Mother as the photographer.

What a challenge!! (Kyra, that is.. not Mother, of course..)

Yes, yes, you guess right... It was nothing like having family photos taken in a photo studio.. Hahaha..

Below are the photos from this morning..

Aza: Look, I can make my fingers pose for the picture!

Ariq: But you won't know when Grandma hits 'click'!

Kyra: Let me down, Mum! I want to see Aza's fingers!

Aza: When will it be over? It's too hot!
Ariq: I'll hide behind Kyra's dress..
Kyra: Oh, come on boys! Get a grip!

Trust me.. it was a challenge.. but also lots of fun!!

-Saturday, 23 July 2011-

New additions to our home..

2011-07-20T14:37:00.010+07:00

When you walk around your home long enough, you will start catching sights of the things you never thought existed around you..

Like this cheerful sunflower..

Then, you will start thinking about what you want to change or add or.. capture with you camera.. and keep the memory for as long as you want..

That is what we do here.. Mother and my husband love to find new plants to grow, and I love watching them grow, observing the creatures residing around the plants, and capturing them all with a camera, I can get a hold of..

These are pictures of some of the new additions in our front and back yards..

The short-lived Morning Glory

The new white flower outside the widow

The new bush of purple flowers

The pretty plant that is having breakfast with a little bee..

A little lizard that quickly became Aza's friend

The lovely white orchids

The beautiful purple orchids

The pretty white plant that is saying 'hi' to the sun

The baby dragonfly

..and..

The giant cricket

My most surprising find was in the pond that was meant to be a fish breeding pond. While the fish is not using the pond, another family is happily occupying it, and it looks like they are building an empire in it..

The frog family

Last but not least, my best find was the little creature hiding among the leaves up on the mango tree, which brought a specific song to me..

HUSH A BYE BABY

Hush a bye baby on the tree top
When the wind blows the cradle will rock
When the bough breaks the cradle will fall
Down will come baby cradle and all..

Sleep tight, little bat

Having this world of nature around me, and being able to enjoy it every day, makes me less jealous of those wild life photographers.. :-P

Have a nice day, Everyone.. :-)

Graphium Agamemnon: My patience is finally paid off..

2011-07-19T12:15:00.000+07:00

A few months ago (or it might be over a year ago).. I saw this beautiful butterfly and I quickly ran to take a picture of it. It was black, with bright green dots and patterns all over its wings.. simple but very beautiful..

After a few runs around the front yard, I decided that the butterfly was far too fast, both for me and my camera! I didn't give up, though.. I loved it and I wouldn't stop until I had its pictures!

I started searching on the internet about this beautiful butterfly. At first, the search didn't come up with anything at all, except some pictures. After a few months, I did another internet search for this black and green butterfly, and my determination was finally yielding a great result!

The beautiful butterfly is GRAPHIUM AGAMEMNON and it is a very active type of butterfly. It is harder to catch by camera compared to other butterflies because it moves around a lot and it flies fast and often high.

Through the search, I also found a blog owner who was a student studying about butterflies and I asked her what I should do to be able to catch a Graphium agamemnon on my camera. She said that I needed to catch it early in the morning when the butterfly was not so fast yet.

I did as she suggested. There were two Graphium agamemnons that were flying around our front yard almost every day, and I ran after them every time I saw them. Soon I realised that my camera was not the best in the world, it wouldn't win any race against the beautiful butterfly I love. I still refused to give up.

Very soon, I never saw any of the Graphium agamemnon again, I almost didn't see any butterflies at all, for a few weeks after that. Then, I found dead butterflies in the bushes near the front porch. I realised that their 'time' has come and I would have to wait for the new ones to come out of their cocoons, although I had no clue of where their cocoons were.

About two months ago, I started seeing butterflies in the front yard again. A large black one (which Ariq managed to take a picture of with my camera), A black with white and purple pattern, a little white one and a brown one... but no Graphium agamemnon..

I know that there are birds around our house, and I'm sure they always eat worms, caterpillars, and maybe even butterflies. If the birds ever came across the Graphium agamemnon caterpillar, I doubt I would ever see one so close to home again. However, deep inside my heart I was still keeping a tiny ray of hope for the sight of the beautiful black and bright green I love so much.

Then, it happened!

One morning, I was walking around the front yard with my camera in one hand, taking pictures of the morning glories, sunflowers, and other blooming plants, and suddenly, it was there, flying around the bushes outside Mother's window.. Graphium agamemnon..!! I believe it was a young one. It was slightly smaller and it didn't move as fast as the two I previously knew.

I quickly readied my camera in my hand and started 'talking' to the butterfly, asking it to stay quietly on the leave. I manage to get a few shots, but those shots are not as good as I expect them to be. I know that my 'hunt' is still on!

Finally, two weeks ago, Mother asked me to document a community gathering at home with her camera. I still had the camera the next morning because I didn't have time to transfer the pictures to the computer yet. Miraculously, the Graphium agamemnon was flying around the front yard. I quickly ran inside the house to fetch Mother's camera.

Once I was back in the front yard, the butterfly was already gone. I quickly hoped it had gone to the back yard, so I quickly rushed there, and there it was! flying around the plants above the fish pond!

I deactivated the digital zoom and maximised the optical zoom. Then, I quickly directed Mother's camera towards the butterfly. I took as many pictures as the camera's speed allowed. Then, I transferred the pictures to the computer.

The pictures may not be perfect, but, considering I am not a professional photographer, the camera was not a professional camera and the Graphium agamemnon was not as young as the first time I saw it and it was moving around fast, just like the first two I knew, well, I consider these pictures are absolutely gorgeous..

After one year of effort and patience, I now have beautiful pictures of a very beautiful Graphium agamemnon.. The black and bright green butterfly that I love so much..

Morning Glory.. Only in the morning..

2011-05-08T07:05:00.001+07:00

They are very pretty, although they only bloom early in the morning a while after the sun rises. Then, they wither...
I love them, despite their short blooming life, because they give me an incentive to appreciate every little beauty by looking ay them in the morning..
Created with PicSay on my GT-S5570

Aza and snake.. again..

2011-02-26T18:11:00.000+07:00

Today was Lazuardi Smart Day.. and the theme was.. 'Let's be Animals' Friends'..
Someone (a higher level student), had an idea to bring her/his pet (a snake and a tarantula) to school..
Aza saw the snake, and as can be guessed, he wanted to have his picture taken with the snake.. :-)
Ariq was also having a good time.. He played the drum on stage.. :-)
A very nice day.. ;-)

New Legs for My Spider

2011-02-12T00:43:00.067+07:00

This post was supposed to be published in February 2011.. I thought I had published it, but the other day, I found out that it was still a draft.. :-P

The same article in Indonesian .. "Kaki Baru untuk Laba-Labaku"

Around the new year, I started spider watching again. This time, it was a little one on the front porch. She built a web between the plants and one of the pillars on the porch.

The little spider was unique. It only had five legs..

I felt sorry for the spider, and wondered how would it survive with only five legs. Suddenly, my husband shouted from inside the house, "Don't worry, the legs would grow back!"

I replied, "Yeah, right! Legs can grow back!"

My husband shouted again, "Spider legs can grow back."

Knowing my husband's taste for making jokes, I just grinned and talked to myself, "Sure sure.. That will be the day.."

For a few days, I watched the spider, making sure that it was still in its web. Until one day, I was so surprised to see that I saw a little white thing coming out of each spot where the legs were.

My husband was not joking! So, I called him at work and told him about that.

He said to me, "I told you. I wasn't joking. Just check on the internet!"

So I did, and I found out that spider legs can grow back as long as it doesn't lose too much fluid in its body. WOW! That is a very interesting fact to learn.. ;-)

I took some pictures of the spider to put here..

Before The Legs Grew Back

Hunting with Five Legs

After The Legs Grew Back

Hunting with Eight Legs

I was really amazed, finding out that spiders can survive with only five legs, although having eight legs, definitely made its life so much better.. (judging from the number of flies it caught after its legs grew back!)

A few days later, the spider was gone. The web was deserted. I guess, since it had all its legs back, the spider wanted to build a bigger and better web. I just couldn't find where the new web was.

I just hoped that the little spider was well and happy.. :-)

Sausage Rolls & Cheese Sticks

2011-01-13T22:22:00.001+07:00

My favourite Australian food.. Sausage Roll.. :-)
Ooo.. I'm sure there are other countries where sausage roll is a common favourite, but it became my favourite when I was living in Australia.
In Australia, sausage roll can be found at any corner and everyone I know can make it! So, I consider it an Australian food.. ;-)
I'm uploading this post using my mobile phone, so the recipe must wait until I can use the computer.. ;-)

13 April 2011

I finally find time to sit down in front of the computer and write down the recipe for the sausage rolls.. ;-)

Here it is..

SAUSAGE ROLLS

Ingredients:
1 pack of PUFF PASTRY (4 sheets, 20 cm x 20 cm in size)
250-300 gr. minced meat (can be mixed with corned beef, sausage or minced chicken)
1 pc. of medium size potato
1 pc. of medium size carrot (or 2 pcs. of small size carrots)
1 pc. of small size onion
3 cloves of garlic
1 chicken egg
salt (1/2 - 1 teaspoon flat)
white pepper (to taste)

How to make:
1. Grate or finely chop potato, carrot, onion and garlic. Then mix them together.
2. Add salt and pepper to taste
3. Add the egg. Mix it together with the mixture.
4. Take 1 sheet of puff pastry and cut in half (approximately 10 cm x 20 cm).
5. Spread about 3 spoons of the mixture in the middle of the long way of the puff pastry.
6. Close the puff pastry by joining the two sides and pressing along the edges with a fork. Once this is done, it will look like a 20 cm-long pipe.
7. Cut the pastry into 3 equal rolls. Make 2 cuts on top of each roll using a knife.
8. Apply some milk or egg yolk using a soft brush to the rolls.
9. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees for 10 minutes.
10. Apply some margarine to the oven tray. Put the rolls on the tray and put it in the oven.
11. Bake for 30 - 40 minutes.
12. If you want the outside to be a little crispy, you can change the oven setting to 'grill' for 5 - 10 minutes after the filling is well cooked (it usually takes 20 - 30 minutes for the filling to be well cooked).
13. Sausage rolls are ready to serve.

Notes:
1. You can add other vegetables in the filling: spinach, mushroom, broccoli, etc.

Ariq's First Performance

2010-12-16T09:02:00.001+07:00

I really don't know what to say.. My heart feels like a mug full of hot chamomile tea.. happy, warm and content..

The first time Ariq asked me to enroll him in drum lesson, I wasn't sure if it was going to be a long-term thing. He was only 3 years old then, but he kept asking every week, until I took him seriously and finally started searching for a music course which would accept a child his age.

While Ariq was half way his KG-1, I finally found a music course that was close to home. It was not too expensive and had a reasonable length of sessions for children. Each weekly session was 45-minute long (they aimed for 30-minute learning time, allowing 15 minutes to keep the student/child comfortable and happy). I thought it was good!

At first I was worried about Ariq running around the place (the music course). He would enter each room and try every type of musical instrument he found. To my surprise, the staff said to me to let him be. The place was meant to make children interested and happy in learning music.

My memory of taking music lesson when I was about Ariq's age was that music learning was a 'serious business'. It was about hard work, pride and achievement. For 6 years, I had to come to weekly lesson without ever having any examinations or having any performance/concert because my development was considered 'out of schedule'.

I was just a child and having to do something repeatedly without ever seeing an appraisal or achievement was eventually becoming a burden. After 6 years of what felt to be an unbearable burden, I finally got my chance to 'escape' from my music lesson because I was facing Elementary School Final Exam.. :-(

I still liked playing the piano and guitar after quitting my lesson, but thinking about music lessons would make the hair at the back of my neck stand up! It was a thought that could make me feel more than uncomfortable. That was partly why, I had to take some time to prepare myself to enroll Ariq in his drum lesson. That was also why I was really worried about Ariq wandering around his music course place.. I was so relieved seeing the attitude of the staff at the music course, and I started to feel more comfortable being in the music course place.. :-)

Anyway.. after some time, Ariq was confident enough to ask his drum instructor to show him how to play the piano, the guitar and the violin. His instructor showed him all and Ariq was very happy.

Ariq had been going to the drum lessons for almost a year, when we (my husband and I) made the decision to move to Mother's house. It was impractical for Ariq to keep going to the music course since it would be quite a distance from where we would be living. So, I asked him to be patient until we could find another music course. I was relieved when he agreed..

After one year living in Mother's house, Ariq felt that he was settled at school. He started asking me to start his drum lesson again. So, I started searching for a good place for him, and I found one, which was very close to home.

This time, Ariq was a little older. He was already in Grade 1 of Elementary School. He was excited to start drum lesson again. I was also very happy, taking a one-year break from drum lesson did not make Ariq feel relieved, instead he was really missing his drum practice. I was relieved that drum lesson was not a burden for Ariq. He enjoyed it a lot, and I started to realize that he loved it!

This music school is slightly different from the first one Ariq went to. Here, the lessons are only 30 minutes/session, once a week. It would've been a struggle if Ariq doesn't like his drum lesson, but since he loves it so much, he is always eager to go to every lesson (on rare occasions, we have to rush him when he enjoys playing with Aza too much nearing lesson time, but most of the time, there is never a big problem getting him to).

After the first three months of lessons, I asked Ariq's instructor about how Ariq was doing. The instructor told me that considering that Ariq was still very young, he was doing well. I asked if Ariq needed to start using music books, the instructor said not yet. Ariq's instructor said that, for the time being, Ariq was learning much faster by listening to the beat. All Ariq's teachers at school always say the same thing. It doesn't matter whether Ariq is looking or not, reading or not, paying attention or not, as long as he is listening. He understands and absorbs everything well.

The following six months, Ariq's instructor was aiming for Ariq to be able to count musical rhythm. It was a process of putting logic and feeling into the music, something that would definitely bring Ariq to the 'next level' of playing the drum.

Amazing! Once Ariq could count musical rhythm, he could find the beat of many songs by himself, as long as the song is not too difficult for him to follow by listening. He also became more confident in adding some of his own combinations when he was playing.

Two months ago, before Ariq's aunt (Sinta) departed to Italy, she saw an invitation at the music school's wall for all students of the music school to join the year-end concert and suggested that Ariq be included in the concert. I asked the music school staff about it, and Ariq's instructor agreed to let him perform.

At first, Ariq's instructor planned to play duo with Ariq on stage, but after a couple of week practices and saw Ariq's progress, he decided that Ariq was ready to play solo and he (the instructor) was just going to stand next to Ariq during his performance.

Around the same time, Ariq has been asked a few times at school to play the drum at school events, but he kept refusing. When I asked Ariq about this, he said that he would only perform at school after he's done his first performance with the music school. I guess he was not completely sure about his confidence playing in front of a lot of people without his instructor's presence.. :-)

Last Saturday (11 December 2010), was Ariq's final practice for the concert, at the music school. During that practice, there were a few spots where Ariq was really struggling to keep his timing right. After practice, my husband continued helping Ariq practice at home until Ariq was comfortable and confident playing the song he was going to perform.

Sunday morning, on the day of the concert, Ariq woke up and practiced straight away. He smoothly did his song in one go. I was still nervous, remembering how he was struggling during his final practice at the music school. However, we had to go, and I couldn't waste time worrying..

We arrived at the mall where the concert was held at lunch time, and we were hungry, so we quickly had lunch. Mum, Dad and Aza were meeting us there. My uncle came too. Mother stayed at home because she was still having a bit of cough and didn't want to risk a more serious flu. Kyra stayed home with Mother, as we thought the concert would be much too loud for her tiny ears.. :-)

I was really hoping Mother would come to the concert, because Mother is always very excited about Ariq's progress in playing the drum, but Mother's decision to stay at home was somewhat a relief for both Mother and me, because Kyra would be home with her grandmother, not only with the maid and the nanny...

Anyway.. Mother must come to Ariq's next concert!

Back from lunch, Ariq's instructor was already at the concert area. Ariq was happy and confident of having him at the concert, especially when Ariq saw him testing the drum set on the stage. I guess, for children at Ariq's age, the presence of the people who are parts of his 'world' (in this case, his drum 'world') was everything to him. I could clearly see that Ariq was so proud of himself to have his family and instructor there for him and his performance.

The concert started out with all keyboard and piano performances, then the guitars. After that, it was finally the drum performances and Ariq was the third to go on stage. During the second drum performance, I set up the camera to sit nicely on one of the keyboards off stage, facing the drum, while I was holding Mum's mobile phone, ready to capture the event from a different angle.

I was holding my breath almost all the way throughout Ariq's performance, especially at the spots where Ariq was struggling during his final practice. I was finally exhaled when Ariq completed his performance without any noticeable mistake.. ;-) (He missed one beat at the beginning of the song, but he smoothly corrected it, and played beautifully throughout the rest of the song)..

Beautiful! Extremely beautiful!! Well, for me, it was.. :-)

We often reminded Ariq that he shouldn't come late to his drum lessons, and he has to be disciplined himself in practicing at home, but he pushes himself harder than we do. I'm often worried that he would feel burdened and decide to quit, but it has been about three years since Ariq first started going to drum lessons, and he never looks bored. He always looks more and more enthusiastic..

I'm so happy seeing Ariq doing something that he loves doing. I'm also relieved that my experience does not become the same kind of experience for him.. :-)

Aza and Kyra might have different talents and interests, and I will surely observe them first before helping them decide what they should do outside school. It is always nice to have a special thing that we love and enjoy doing.. like Ariq and his drum practice.. ;-)

Finally, here is the video of Ariq's performance at the concert. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.. ;-)

Note: the concert was held at Depok Town Square, on Sunday, 12th December 2010.

Aza's trip to the tofu factory (pabrik tahu)

2010-10-26T09:18:00.002+07:00

Last Thursday, Aza's class went to a tofu factory as a class excursion. The kids were allowed to bring Rp 5,000.- (US$ 0.50) to buy some tofu. When Aza got home, Mother asked him about his trip to the tofu factory..

Mother: Wow, Aza.. You went to the tofu factory?
Aza: (excitedly) Yes, I did!
Mother: So, how was it?
Aza: (serious look on his face) Well, it was pretty hard..
Mother: (holding back a burst of laughter) Wow! I'm sure it is very hard for me, because I don't know how to make tofu..
Aza: Well, Grandma, it was really quite difficult..
Mother quickly left the room, not to worry Aza further..

The next morning, while having breakfast, Aza was having breakfast with the tofu he bought at the factory. So, I asked him about the trip.
(Aza is 4 years old and sometimes still confused with similar words)

Me: The tofu you bought is nice.
Aza: Is this the tofu I bought?
Me: Yes, this is it. So.. What did the factory look like?
Aza: It was big and there was a lot of 'keledai' (donkey)
Me: Wow, a lot of 'kedelai' (soybean)?
Aza: (grinning) 'ke.. de.. lai..' Yeah.. The soybean was blended, then stirred, then boiled, then made into boxes, then put into plastic bags for us to take home..
(It sounds too simple to be true, but Aza actually got it right!)
Me: Sounds like a lot of work..
Aza: It was!
Me: Well, thank you for bringing some home.
Aza: THREE.. Everyone had exactly three pieces to take home.. Not four, not five, not one and not two.. But exactly THREE!
(Yes, you guessed right.. Aza is in that phase where he loves to show off that he can count properly)

The picture above was of the tofu after being cut into quarters and shallow fried.. ;-)

Lomba Blog Depok - Top 10 -

2010-10-12T23:12:00.002+07:00

Artikel yang sama dalam Bahasa Indonesia

I didn't make it to the TOP 10! But I'm not disappointed at all because through this event, I have met many great bloggers and it means so much more to me than winning the competition.. :-)

However.. Mother made it to the TOP 10! And she is rounding everyone up to vote for her.. well, I AM rounding everyone up to vote for her.. ;-)

Don't vote blindly.. Go to her BLOG

and read her POST that is in the TOP 10..

Then, you can VOTE for her in the competition website.

Mother's post being competed under the group 'IBU RUMAH TANGGA' and her post title is "B.H. Yess." It is shown like this on the voting list:

http://binmas.blogspot.com/2010/02/blog-post.html

By voting for mother's post, you are not only supporting her to win the competition, but also supporting the activities of the Senior Citizens Group 'Dahlia Senja.' Mother always posts activities of the group on the blog. So far, the blog has intrigued the interests of the local government and elderly care support organization. Your visit will spread the interests further and hopefully will bring new and brighter future of elderly care program in our country.

Happy voting!

My New Camera..

2010-10-03T06:47:00.002+07:00

FINALLY!!! I have a new camera.. :-D

It is not the best camera in the world, but for something that is very inexpensive, this camera really has a complete function..

Last Thursday, as I was browsing the internet, I came across a camera advertisement from the brand 'Brica'.

The newest product of Brica had many functions; auto (general photo), daylight, night, program (for manual setting) and UNDERWATER!!

The most appealing factor for us was of course the price.. second, there were five colors we could choose from.. and Ariq and Aza chose the purple one. So, we decided to give it a try, and here are the results..

(left and above are outdoor photos with daylight and macro settings)

(outdoor photo with daylight setting)

(outdoor photo with night setting -this gecko was behind a large painting on the back porch wall)

(left and below are photos with underwater setting)

I haven't mastered all the functions, and I still forget to change the date again everytime I recharge the batteries.. but, for the price I paid -which is less than $70.00-), I'm very happy with this camera..

We are still saving up and planning on getting a camera with long range and better focus, but for now, this Brica camera is perfect for our family use, and we don't have to worry about the kids using it.. ;-)

The only funny thing is.. I have read the manual and turned the box around many times, and I still couldn't find where the camera was made.. so, I can't tell you...

Museum Tour

2010-09-21T17:56:00.007+07:00

"Where do you want to go to this holiday, kids?" I asked my sons with a 'slightly' worried tone.. and I was quite relieved with their answer.. "You promised us to visit the museums! That's where we're going!"

My husband and I were glad that the boys chose the museums for their holiday activity. Amusement parks were surely packed. It would be the same with picnic areas -which are few around Jakarta-.

I quickly discussed with my husband about which museums we should visit. We came up with two well-known museums; The National Museum and The Museum of Jakarta History. We thought Aza would be excited to see the National Museum as there are lots of statues, while Ariq has been curious about The Museum of Jakarta History, as the other name of the museum is Fatahillah Museum.

Fatahillah originally came from Gujarat, India. He became a resident of Jakarta, and he fought against the Dutch soldiers occupying Jakarta. We gave the name to Ariq as his middle name. We hope it would lift his confidence, knowing that he was named after a hero from his hometown.

We were taking Kyra on the trip, so didn't have to worry about her feeding times.. ;-)

We were a little worried about whether Kyra should come inside the museums. I suggested -since I am the one who loves history-, if the museum looked to dusty or scary, Kyra would stay outside with my husband. My husband agreed, so the biggest problem was solved.

We were staying at my parents' home during the last week of holiday. Therefore, it was half the travel time to the museums, compared to if we were staying at home. We departed at 9.00 and arrived at the National Museum about 9.30.

NATIONAL MUSEUM

We entered the museum from the entrance door and went straight to the open area display, then we headed to the main display section. Both sections are the same as the last time I visited -it was about eight years ago-. While I was taking the boys around and explaining things that they were interested in, I saw something familiar.. my husband and Kyra, who were supposed to be waiting at the foyer.

It turned out that the foyer had started to be very hot -being outside-. Moreover, as more cars passing by, the air was not as fresh anymore. My husband didn't stay in the old section of the museum. He took Kyra straight to the museum new section, which was cleaner and better air-conditioned.

These are pictures from the museum's old section:

After the boys had had enough of looking around, asking questions and having their pictures taken, we went to the new section. This was very different from the last time I went. It was completely renovated into a modern-looking building. All the information was displayed both in Indonesian and English, the same with the signs and directions. It was beautiful.

The new section had five floors; floors 1-4 were displays, and floor 5 was office and admin.

On the first floor, we saw various fossils that were found in Indonesia and the hanging posters with information about each fossil. There was also a display stage with pre-historic family mannequins having dinner.. :-)

On the second floor, there were displays of various equipments and vehicles from different eras.

On the third floor, there were displays of various social/cultural structures and an 'Asia' section.

On the fourth floor, there were displays of various ceramic and jewelry from the old kingdoms' royal families.

Unfortunately, on the 2nd and 4th floors, we were not allowed to take pictures. I couldn't see any potential harm, but I was sure the museum had reasons. So we didn't take any pictures on those floors.

A normal visit would take about 3-4 hours around the National Museum. However, since it was a 'children' visit, the fact that Ariq and Aza were still excited after an hour, was a great thing. They would not object staying longer, but lunch time was coming up and most museums in Indonesia close at around 3 p.m. I shifted the boys' interest to lunch, and we were ready to leave the museum in a few minutes.

These are the pictures from the new section:

We had lunch at a seafood place on the way to the Museum of Jakarta History. The place was very busy, but other places are busier -especially fast food outlets-.

After lunch, we quickly continued our trip to the Museum of Jakarta History.

Museum of Jakarta History

This museum is located in the Fatahillah Square, which was the actual 'city square' during the Dutch occupation. The museum was the home of the Governor General, with an underground jail underneath the museum. The guards' hall was located across the museum's backyard.

When we arrived at the museum, it was about half an hour before closing time. There were many people there, and the sky was getting dark -ready to rain-. Being considered a late entry, and coming in with two young boys -which meant the visit would be a quick one-, the attendants gave us a discount on the entrance fee.. Haha..

It was only Rp 200.00 discount -a few cents-, but I found it funny because it wasn't the first time I had a discounted entrance fee at a museum. A few years back, my sister and I visited the Reptile Museum in Canberra. We took the wrong bus and arrived at the museum half an hour before closing time. The attendant suggested us to come back the next day, but we explained that we came from overseas and was only staying a few days. He, then, gave us a discount on the entrance fee.. :-D

Anyway.. we quickly proceed to the upstairs part of the museum, as the attendants suggested. While we were walking up the stairs, Ariq made a comment, "Wow, Mum! These stairs are strong.. They've lasted a long time with so many people walking up and down everyday.."

Every room on the second floor was kept as it was when the museum was still a home of the Governor General. I wanted to take many pictures there, but there were just so many people in the museum, while Aza was asking to go to the bathroom.

The museum was originally built as an office and a house. Therefore, it has many windows and when the windows were open, the air was very refreshing. That was why so many people came to visit the museum nowadays. More than that, the building is an old one with Dutch architecture, which makes it a lovely site to take pictures -even when you are not a big fan of photography-.

After taking Aza to the bathroom, the boys instantly found the old cannon in the backyard, between the museum and the guards' hall. The cannon used to be placed right in the front of the museum, between the two punishment ponds. When the government declared Fatahillah Square a culture reserve and did a major renovation of the site, the cannon was moved to the museum's backyard.

Yes, you read right! There used to be two punishment ponds in front of the museum, but there were not there anymore now. The ponds were about the size of two bathtubs sitting side-by-side with chest-high depth. The current government was probably worried somebody would fall into the empty space by mistake and get injured. In some ways, I was glad the ponds were not there anymore. They always gave me an eerie feeling, whenever I went to the museum..

As the boys requested, I took their pictures with the guards' hall as the background, with the cannon and with the underground jail cell. I never really felt nice seeing the jail, but I thought it was an important point to show the boys, as it was a part of the building and a part of history.

When they had enough for the day -with a promise for a second visit-, we decided to exit the building and took some picture in the Fatahillah Square. There are several other museums around the Fatahillah Square -the area is maintained as culture reserve-, so we will go back there, we just haven't planned it yet.. :-)

When the wind started to blow harder and sky turned darker, we quickly went to the car where my husband was waiting for us with Kyra -Kyra was asleep when we arrived at the museum, and we saw a lot of people at the museum window, so my husband decided to stay in the car with her-.

Phew.. I was glad our first museum visit last year was so much fun that the boys were asking for another trip. Children learn from everything they experience and museums are places where they can learn about things that are not normally present in everyday life.

From the Museum of Jakarta History, we went straight back to my parents' home. Ariq, Aza and Kyra fell asleep right away car. They were exhausted and so were we.

We slept well that night and planning to rest the next day, but... unexpectedly something else happened.. and we had to make another museum visit.. I'll write about it tomorrow.. ;-)

See you later!

Idul Fitri

2010-09-08T14:32:00.000+07:00

picture by: Ariq Fatahillah Ahmad

Selamat Hari Raya Idul Fitri

Mohon Maaf Lahir dan Batin

Achmad/Tanjung, Indri, Ariq, Aza & Dinda/Kyra

Father and Daughter..

2010-09-08T07:52:00.000+07:00

Can you see the resemblance?

Can you go shopping, honey? I'm very busy..

2010-09-05T21:04:00.002+07:00

Yes, Mum.. Sure I can.. I just hope the guys in the supermarket are bigger and taller than me..

Aza is back at school..

2010-09-02T20:38:00.000+07:00

For over 2 weeks Aza had to stay at home, due to a very bad allergy case, coupled by bad flu..

This week, Aza was already feeling better and he was bored at home..

So yesterday he was back at school.. And he was very happy..

The big boy 'Ariq'..

2010-09-01T08:50:00.000+07:00

Ariq is now 7 years old, and I'm starting to notice that he is changing a lot.

A few months ago, he surprised me with his enthusiasm in learning to play Monopoly. I still remember that I didn't handle the game too well, the first time I played it when I was his age.

Ariq is still as energetic as always, but he is far more responsible now, and he is more aware of people and situations around him. With a little hint, he is usually ready to act accordingly. When he senses that I am being tactful with Aza, he will follow my lead. Whenever I need to do some things quickly around the house, he can be relied on to keep Kyra entertained for up to an hour -even longer when he is in the right mood.

Last night he amazed me with his impromptu coloring competition with Aza. Well, it wasn't really a competition, they just happened to like this one picture -in Kid Pix- and decided to color it in their own style. Ariq did it first and came up with this result..

During the time Ariq was coloring his picture, Aza kept complaining that Ariq was taking too long, and that he wanted to color the picture. Ariq responded calmly to Aza to wait until he was done.

As soon as Ariq finished his picture, he left the computer to let Aza start coloring his picture. Aza happily started from scratch -the same picture without any color-. He sat quietly for a few minutes and when he was done, he announced it and asked me to save the result, which was this..

As Ariq was watching Aza coloring this picture, he said to me, "Wow, Mum! Aza's picture is much better than mine!"

I said to Ariq that Aza is better in coloring because coloring is Aza's hobby. I also told Ariq that he was better in other things, like playing computer games and handling electronic appliances.

Ariq was happy with my explanation because he knew it was true. However, even without my comment, Ariq was sincere when he complimented Aza's picture. I saw it as a good thing that, Ariq was happy about Aza's ability without being jealous of it.

Ariq is growing up and soon he will not be a little child anymore. I'm happy that he is more mature now, but sometimes I miss his childish mischief. I hope he is not growing too fast..

Flowery..

2010-08-30T12:00:00.000+07:00

I was only playing around with this picture.. But it came out nice.. :-)

Photo time..

2010-08-13T00:34:00.002+07:00

Dad: I've got you, Aza.. You can't runaway..

Aza: Move your head, Dad.. It's heavy! Haha.. I've got your hand, Kyra!

Kyra: No.. No.. Aza, don't bite my hand! Ariq, move your fingers! I want my face in the picture..

Ariq: Take TWO! Quick, Mum.. Before Kyra cries..

Mum: Hold still, guys! Stop talking! Stop moving! This one has to be perfect..

Dad: Be still, Aza!

Aza: I'm bored.. Glad that Kyra's hand looks nice..

Kyra: Oh no.. He's going to chew on my hand..

Ariq: I've run out of smile here..

Mum: 'click' .. Ugh.. Can we do it one more time?

Everyone: Not a chance!

Mum: Ah, well.. At least I have the four of you in one nice picture now.. ;-)

The awaited wedding.. at last.. :-)

2010-08-10T10:39:00.005+07:00

After all the hectic days following Sinta and Joe's unique engagement ceremony.. (which felt almost like living without breathing for days..)

Finally, the bride came home two weeks before the wedding and the groom came home one week after her.

Thanks to the confident management skill of the bride and grooms parents' and the high expertise of everyone involved (family and friends who were in the wedding committee), Sinta and Joe's wedding successfully took place on Friday, 30th of July 2010.

Our home was brilliantly turned into a spacious and beautiful hall for the wedding ceremony. The ceremony went well and not much off from the scheduled time (despite the very bad traffic near home that morning).

After the ceremony, The newly-wedded couple, Mr. and Mrs. Jauhary Arifin, were greeting all the guests with a happy smile.

Sinta and Joe were wearing semi-traditional Javanese outfit for their wedding day. Sinta designed the dress herself (after she was home) and the dressmaker successfully made it in one week! (I can't think of anyone else who ever had their wedding dress made in one week).

The wedding ceremony was quite simple and straight forward and early lunch was served afterwards.

Wedding procession was followed by the wedding reception on the Saturday noon, 31st of July 2010, at the reception hall (Gedung Serbaguna Senayan).

For this occasion, Sinta had chosen for both of them to wear 'Solo-Basahan', a traditional Javanese outfit that is always worn by the Javanese royal family in their weddings. This outfit, with several layers of cloths covering waist down and a thick black velvet top with gold embroidery, shows grandeur. The accessories (the groom's crown and the bride's head ornaments) are made of gold-colored material, but in a real royal wedding, they will be made of real gold.

Everyone (the wedding committee and family) has been ready at the reception hall for a few hours, so, the procession started on time and everyone (family and guests) was having a great time.

Oh.. It has been a few years since our own wedding.. but, we couldn't resist the temptation to have our picture taken and have it displayed here.

We -and all other family members- were wearing simple traditional outfit. The men's outfit was completely traditional, while the women's outfit was semi-traditional.

This picture was taken in the dressing room, after the reception, before we changed back into our everyday clothing.

The whole wedding procession was really nice, and was definitely worth waiting for..

Congratulation on your wedding, Sinta & Joe..

All our best wishes for the future throughout your married life..

A new skill..

2010-08-10T00:23:00.001+07:00

I woke up at midnight and wondered why Kyra hadn't 'screamed' for milk..
Well..
Apparently, she has learned a new skill to overcome her hunger and thirst.. :-P
Don't you know that your mother is a light sleeper and a nocturn, honey? She is often still up when you are already fast asleep.. Feeding you is never a problem, sweetheart.. ;-)
Having said that..
Please take your thumb out of your mouth, before it becomes a habit!

Flavored gloves..

2010-07-30T16:18:00.002+07:00

A Baby's Dream..

2010-07-27T14:46:00.001+07:00

Sleep little baby.. Sleep..
Don't you worry about the future yet..
Just dream about the stars..
And place your future around them..
Sleep little baby.. Sleep..
Don't you worry about the world yet..
Just dream about Mum and Dad..
As their love will protect you inside the little world called family..
Sleep little baby.. Sleep..
Don't you worry about life yet..
Just dream about butterflies..
And imagine you are as light and free and colourful as they are..
27.07.2010

Just in time for picture taking.. :-)

2010-07-24T22:08:00.000+07:00

No special occasion.. Just happen to be the right people at the right time.. Mother just canceled her plan to go somewhere at the last minute.. and Kyra just finished her afternoon bath.. and I had my mobile phone in hand, ready to sound 'click'.. ;-)

Being (over) creative on the mobile phone..

2010-07-24T21:38:00.002+07:00

I'm still at the stage of being a 'photographic mother' whenever I see Kyra up and smiling.. Once I manage to capture a 'perfect' picture of her -meaning she is not closing her eyes or suddenly crying- I edit the picture on my mobile phone and send the picture to Mum and Mother.. :-)

This evening.. Aza caught me editing Kyra's picture and this is what happened...

This is the original photo that I took of Kyra..

This is the picture after I edited it..

This is the picture after Aza made his 'additional' editing..

Hhhmmmppphhhh.... Creativity can really mean two different things for me and Aza.. :-P

Little girl's self defense 101

2010-07-22T21:54:00.002+07:00

Never underestimate the 'inner-power' of a little girl over her big brothers..
This is how Kyra shoo-ed her brothers to bed when she was ready for her beauty sleep..
Believe it or not, 5 minutes later, the three of them were already fast asleep..
It's now time for my beauty sleep.. Good Night, Everyone.. :-)

A new masked hero

2010-07-16T15:57:00.002+07:00

Aza came into the bedroom, carrying his paper sword (I personally thought it was a handheld fan) and put himself on a stance. I quickly caught his action with my mobile phone's camera.

Then, I started playing around with the 'edit' function in the mobile phone's photo gallery.. I found the 'clip-art' for hat and eye-mask and it fit pretty well on Aza's face.. ;-)

:-D

Toy for Kyra

2010-07-16T14:12:00.001+07:00

Of course Ariq's intention is well..

.. but ..

Ariq still doesn't understand that Kyra should be playing with DOLLS and FLOWERS.. NOT GUNS or RIFLES!!!

Tough, huh?!

2010-06-27T16:06:00.001+07:00

Aza: I'm a big boy, and you're a little girl..

Kyra: Yeah.. That's why when you cry, Mum tells you to be quiet.. And when I cry, Mum picks me up and feeds me..

Aza: ....!!!!

2010-06-21T20:31:00.001+07:00

Aza: Look, Sis.. I can touch my ear and drink my milk at the same time.. Hee hee..

Kyra: Yeah.. So..???

I'm small and cute, but.. He's big and strong.. You know!

2010-06-15T08:03:00.002+07:00

So.. Don't mess with me, unless you want to face my big brother.. !

Deep talk..

2010-06-15T07:28:00.002+07:00

Kyra: I'm so upset.. I'm so GRRRRR.. you know?!

Ariq: Ah, you'll be fine, little sister.. Just take a look at me, and you will start laughing again.. :-)

Definitely not my genes.. :-P

2010-06-14T14:39:00.001+07:00

(left to right: big knife, Christmas tree and keris)

Aza suddenly asked me if he could use Kyra's nail scissors (it is the little scissors to cut baby's nails, not the clipper thing). First I said 'NO', but then I realized that if I kept doing that, he would only be more curious and he would start trying to get the scissors when I wasn't looking.

So, I told him he could use the scissors as long as he doesn't take it away. He agreed to use it to cut a piece of paper while sitting on the floor near me..

After a couple of minutes (if not a few seconds), I was really surprised when he showed me these three objects.. (I am very sure that he did not have any kind of writing tools with him).. I asked him how he drew the objects, and he confidently answered, "I didn't draw them.. I just cut them! A big knife, a 'keris' (Javanese traditional knife) and a coconut tree like in 'Home Alone' movie." .. I'm very sure he meant Christmas tree from the movie ;-)

WOW!

Have any of you seen a silhouette artist? I mean, the people who can cut a piece of black paper while looking at you facing sideways and the piece of paper would come out to be a silhouette image of you? Well, I have seen one while he was working and I think it was amazing how a person can do such thing..

Aza could actually visualize the things he wants to make from the paper and cut them into shape without drawing them on the paper first.. WOW!

I was speechless.. completely speechless.. until he asked me, "Mum, can I show these to the fish in the pond?"

I shook my head and replied, "Well, you shouldn't. If the fish swallow them, they will die."

Aza asked again, "But I can just put it on the ground next to the pond."

I tried to answer as calm as possible not to disappoint him, "If you put it on the ground, the fish cannot see them, because fish can only see the things that are in the water.. But if you put the shapes in the water, the shapes will be wet and ruined and if the fish swallow them, they will die."

Aza finally gave up and just asked me to trim his nails and let me have the nail cutter back.. but I don't feel that it was the point in the whole thing anymore.. :-)

One last thing.. please don't ever ask me to cut shapes directly from a piece of paper! I can assure you I can never achieve the shape I'm meant to have.. ;-) If this is a talent Aza inherits.. it is definitely from me! It is definitely not my genes.. :-)

The end of my absence..

2010-06-12T23:38:00.007+07:00

"Have a lot of rests and increase your food intake!" That's the line the doctor always said to me for the final trimester of my pregnancy period.

The baby was fine.. the heart rate was strong, the umbilical cord was neatly positioned on top of the baby, and the baby was already head down. However, the baby's weight, though steadily increasing, was not increasing as much as it should.

My mind could not go anywhere else but towards the baby I was carrying.. I was a little worried, but trying not to let my worrying take away my nutrition.. :-) I tried to stay calm and relaxed, I only did things that I found exciting and fun.. I tried to eat healthy food and had a lot of rests (a little too much, maybe)..

I could not write any stories or poems.. I could not even put words together into this journal.. My mind was too focused on my little baby.. although at so many times, when I found myself a little over-worried, I could almost hear the baby whispered to me, "Don't worry, Mum.. I'm fine.." Every time it happened, I took a deep breath and assured myself that everything was fine.. my baby was fine.. :-)

On the 39th week the doctor said, "Is there any possibility that we miscalculated your ETD? Your baby's weight looks like -2 weeks.."

I replied, "Could be, Doc.. Is the baby alright?"

The doctor answered confidently, "Oh yes, the baby is fine.. The baby's heart rate is strong, and it is active. All the vital organs look fine too.. It's just the baby looks very slim for its age.. We'll wait and see next week. Have a lot of rests and increase your intake."

I replied, "I don't know how much more I can increase my intake, Doc.. I eat until I can't see food anymore.. I have put on 20kgs as it is.."

The doctor smiled, "Everything looks fine.. Don't worry.. We'll check the baby again next week."

On the 40th week, the doctor said, "Your water is still clear, a lot and intact. Let's give the baby as much time as possible to give it a chance to put on as much weight as possible."

On the 41st week, Monday, 17th May 2010 at dawn.. I felt the contraction. Still mild, but not false ones anymore.. I asked my husband to take me to my parents' house (the hospital was near my parents' house) before morning rush hour started. We left right away. My husband got ready for work at my parents' and the same thing with me, before we went to the hospital.

My husband and my parents stayed with me during the observation session. When the midwife told us that there was an 'opening' already, my husband quickly arranged for a paternal leave from work.

What I thought would be a midday birth, turned out to be a whole day wait at the hospital.. :-) The opening stayed the same until the 5 pm that afternoon! The doctor let me decide whether to wait or be induced. I decided to be induced before I lost more strength, because I could not sleep between contractions. At 7 pm, after dinner and a shower, I was moved into the delivery theater and the midwife started the drip on me. My husband left to have dinner while my parents stayed with me.

For almost half an hour being on the drip, the contraction and the baby's movements were still happening at different times. I was preparing myself to face a few hours of increasing contraction strength. Nearly 7.30 pm, around the time when the midwife came to increase the drip, I felt the contraction and the baby's movements were becoming synchronized. The midwife left to report to the doctor, she told me she would come back at 8.00 pm for the next check and to increase the drip again. My parents' turn to have dinner as my husband was back.

After the midwife left, I was just talking to my husband (in-between breaths and contractions).. Closing to 8.00 pm, I felt the contractions were escalating, and suddenly, my breathing could not contain the situation anymore. My water broke, and I told my husband to call for the midwife. He called the midwife and then called my parents on the phone. The midwife quickly called the doctor who, at that time, was in the middle of practice hours. The doctor quickly came into the theater.

Quickly, the nurses/midwives prepped me, but before the doctor could put on her coat, before the grandmother entered the theater, the baby had already decided that it was her time to come out.. :-) So, she did! A beautiful baby girl.. She was little (2,410 gr and 47 cm), but her cry was loud, her heartbeat was strong and her kicks were firm.. All my worries just disappeared once I heard her cry and felt her kicks as I was holding her.

We named her 'Adinda Shafia Kirana'. Adinda (Indonesian) means little sister, Shafia (Arabic) means cooling/soothing, and Kirana (Indonesian) means beautiful.

The pediatrician was puzzled on why Kyra was healthy yet so little. However, since she was doing fine, the pediatrician decided she could go home on the 2nd day (Wednesday). My doctor decided the same thing. After being visited by Ariq and Aza on Tuesday night, once they left, I felt very lonely in the hospital room.. So, when I received the news that we could go home, I asked my husband to check us out, and he gladly did (he really wanted his time with his baby daughter without the limits of visiting hours, etc. :-P ..)

Kyra is now four weeks old (almost one month old). She feeds well and has nicely put some weight on. I am very happy about it. We will see the pediatrician again next Friday, and I hope he is also happy with her development.

Now that my mind is free of over-worrying (no one can blame me for worrying a little every now and then, though..), I decided to end my absence in this virtual world by writing this post. I don't know how often I can write for now, as I am still going through changes and enjoying my precious time of early nursing period when Kyra and I are almost 'an item', but I still enjoy writing and blogging.. I just have to take it easy for a while (I took several breaks in writing this post)..

Anyway, it feels really nice to be writing again.. and it is really nice to be among all of you again.. :-)

See you later.. :-)

This is Kyra, 2 weeks old.

(The picture on the top of the post is Kyra, 1 day old)

Only in Indonesia..

2010-05-11T10:43:00.003+07:00

A sequel???

Not really..

A sweet girl in Moscow (namely my sister-in-law, Sinta) just suggested to put together all the photos of the animals in Taman Safari that are indigenous to Indonesia.. So, here I am writing a post about it..

This is not going to be a scientific report, because I am neither a veterinary or an animal scientist.. I just like watching and learning (a little thing here and there) about various animals because I think they are fascinating.. :-)

Anyway.. here are the animals that are indigenous to Indonesia..

ANOA -indigenous to the island of Sulawesi (Celebes)-

Anoa is currently endangered and protected as the population has decreased a lot. At the end of April and early May, 2 Anoa babies were born in Taman Safari. These babies are now living in Taman Safari compound with their families..

CENDRAWASIH -indigenous to the island of Papua-
-I am trying to put the video here... Please be patient.. Thank you..-
Cendrawasih is currently endangered and protected. People love the beautiful colors of Cendrawasih and many people would pay a high price for the captured ones, either alive or dead (embalmed and decorated in a glass display).

SUMATRAN TIGER -indigeneous to the island of Sumatra-

Sumatran Tiger is currently in the brink of extinction as only a handful left in the wild.

ORANG UTAN -indigenous to parts of Indonesia-

Orangutan is currently protected. Orangutan is a type of big ape which is very shy and gentle.

KANCIL -indigeneous to South East Asia-

Even though Kancil is not an animal indigenous to Indonesia only, I still think that it is quite unique to mention here, as even in South East Asia, it is becoming quite difficult to see it in the wild. Kancil looks cute and mischievous. In local fables it is pictured as a naughty vegetable thief. As far as I know, in most South East Asian countries Kancil has the same name.

If you are interested in finding out more about these fabulous animals, you should be able to find more information about them on the internet. I will try to add some links here in the future ;-)

Thank you for reading this post :-)

Another successful family day...

2010-05-06T17:55:00.016+07:00

It wasn't really planned.. It was only Aza's words every now and then, because this plan kept getting cancelled.. "I haven't been to the Safari Park (Taman Safari). The last time we were going, there was a long traffic jam on the toll road and we had to turn back!"

Aza has been very patient about this, so, we were really thinking about the perfect time to take the boys to the Safari Park.

Safari Park is an open-range zoo, where the animals are free to walk around their compounds, while visitors have to remain in the cars. In tame animal compounds, visitors can slightly open the car windows to give carrots to the animals (for the animals that include carrots as they normal food -otherwise, a sign will be put up, not to feed carrots to the animals-).

In the wild animal compounds, car windows must always be locked and cars must not stop at all! If the car is broken during the tour, we have to sound the horn three times to notify the park staff.

From Tuesday to Thursday, Ariq did not have school because Grade 6 students were having National Exams. Therefore, my husband applied for one day leave on Wednesday (at the last minute). The leave application turned out to be still pending, but nothing urgent came up, so, we could go ahead with the plan..

On Wednesday morning, amazingly, the boys woke up early and had breakfast right away. Once everyone was ready, we got in the car and started our journey to the Safari Park.. :-)

It was a nice morning.. the sky was clear but the air was not too hot.. perfect for outing..

The toll road were clear, although we finally had to face a traffic jam anyway, going through a famous local market on the way to the park (Cianjur market).

We decided to have lunch just a little bit before the market, at this new restaurant that has kids playground. The kids had lunch and fun there.. ;-)

This restaurant is a local enterprise, where they grow cows (in a separate farm, of course) for milk, yoghurt and sausages. The company is called 'Cimory'.

After lunch, we continued our journey to the Safari Park. There we saw all the animals..

... and .. we fed some of them with carrots ..

Some animals were having their own lunch feast when we went through their compound..

And here are photos of animals that I had to take with car windows closed and the car kept slowly moving (the sign says 'Don't Stop')..

The following is the ANOA family, animal indigenous to Sulawesi, Indonesia. Far to the back, there are the mother and two babies who were born in April and May 2010 (yep, they were only about 1 month old). The father is showing a protective stance, watching all the cars passing by..

I wish I could get a closer shots at them, but, I was using my mobile phone and using the zoom would only degrade the picture quality... :-(

At the recreation part of the park, Ariq and Aza were having a great time riding a camel and ponies..

Aza also asked for a photograph with a baby orangutan (I really need to take this photo to a shop to have it colour-fixed and enlarged)..

Aza also asked for a photograph with the baby tiger, but my husband shudder at the thought of Aza being considered a fresh-lunch for the baby tiger.. and I thought his worry was not unreasonable.. :-)

So, we said NO.. gladly, Aza was happy enough being allowed to stand next to the baby tiger photo area, watching other visitors having their photos taken.. -gladly, there were no other little kids having their pictures taken with the baby tiger, otherwise, it would be a very hard job to keep saying NO to Aza-.

Finally, it was time for us to go home.. As soon as we were in the car, Aza found his peace of the day in the middle of the traffic jam... -we adjusted his position after a few minutes-.. ;-)

It was really another great family day out.. :-)

Little king's man..

2010-04-28T18:12:00.001+07:00

Mother came back from Solo (Surakarta, Central Java) last night.. She was away for 5 days on a family visit trip..

Welcoming Mother back at home, of course, Ariq and Aza who were asking about her every day were very happy..

Surely Aza, being very excited, enjoyed his presents/souvenirs so much.. Now Aza can pretend to be a soldier on a horse, carrying a mighty sword.. Just like in the old tales.. ;-)

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

Healthy house inspection..

2010-04-28T11:16:00.001+07:00

It is always a lot of fun whenever Ariq's classmates come to visit our home..

Today, the class is here again with the teachers on their science period, to do an 'inspection' of a healthy house.. ;-)

Well, gladly the visit was in the morning, when the house was in its best appearance, haha.. Plus, the kids much prefered to run around the backyard.. so, the condition of the inside was very well preserved until the end of the visit.. :-)

When everyone had completed their worksheet, noting their observation of the requirements of a healthy house, then it was morning snack time..

I thought I did better than the last time in serving the snack -during the last visit, I ran out of food much too soon-.. It turned out that although I did slightly better this time, but still.. I should have put more of the macaroni and cheese, because the kids came back for 2nd and 3rd servings!! WOW! Everything, -cartoon milk, macaroni and cheese, sandwiches and waffers- were gone by the end of the visit, which made me a very happy host.. :-)

The thing that I noted the most was the way the kids behaved.. It was only one year since the last visit, but they have grown so much in terms of manner.. the way they asked about things they needed to find out about, the way they take turns in taking their food, communicating with each other, and mostly.. how they only tiptoed and had a peek when checking the bedrooms.. (last year, they ended up jumping up and down the bed!), hahaha... :-D

It is amazing watching and observing how children grow.. :-) This is really a great day.. :-)

http://spaceforsharing.blogspot.com

Ariq's birthday..

2010-04-27T09:03:00.001+07:00

It was Ariq's birthday on the 19th of April..

But, guess who was having a blast??? Well.. this little brother, of course! Hahaha...

Ariq asked my parents to come over on his birthday and bring a cake, since it was a school day (the grandparents were initially thinking about taking him out for lunch or dinner)..

When mum asked Ariq what cake he wanted, his answer was, "Oh, any choice will be nice, but.. it might be better to have Aza's favorite." -Aza's favorite, by the way, is strawberry cheese cake, with fresh-whole strawberries on top of the cake-.

On the same day, in the art and craft subject at school, Ariq's class had their party hats returned from grading.. so, yeah.. Aza had his favorite cake and a cute hat! Oh, he also had the honor of blowing the birthday candles for the second time.. ;-)

Our family has never been big on birthdays.. It looks like Ariq and Aza like it the same way.. we usually just have a family dinner (either at home with a special menu, or out in one of our favorite restaurants), and buy a cake to share at home.. Birthdays are usually lovely though, because we would all be relaxed -even the birthday boy is allowed to blow the candles wearing pyjamas- .. :-D

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

The boys' busy afternoon

2010-04-23T17:45:00.001+07:00

Ariq came home at 2 pm, bringing home 2 books from the school's book festival;

'The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian'

and

'Pirates of Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest'.

Aza and I were reading the books, while Ariq was listening to the story and playing his game on the computer..

Then, Aza asked Ariq to print a picture of Lich King sword.. After that, they went to the minimarket to buy play-do, with which Ariq made a tank

and Aza made a Ninja Turtle eye mask.. ;-)

When they had enough, they went outside and played with the waterhose.. Quickly the nanny caught up with them and gave them their afternoon shower..

After having a serving of milk each (Ariq, chocolate.. Aza, natural),

now the boys are happily sitting with me in the study.. Ariq is back with his game, and Aza successfully 'forged' his own Lich King sword from scratch..

A very nice way to start my weekend.. :-)

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

Dry season is here..

2010-04-23T16:38:00.002+07:00

The sky is bright and clear all day..
The air is getting hotter and drier..

This yellow flower is the last one in the backyard..

And I found fruits of the little red flower (Soka) bush..

Dry season is finally here..

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

Hostile takeover!

2010-04-08T22:21:00.001+07:00

Ariq: Can I sleep in your bed until mum and dad come in?

Aza: Nope. Last night you were too lazy to move and I couldn't sleep well..

Ariq: So?

Aza: Alright.. I'll sleep next to you on mum and dad's mattress..

Ariq: And where will they sleep then?

Aza: Don't know.. But I know you can't sleep alone.. Haha.. So just be quiet and go to sleep..

Nope.. I'm not typing the names the wrong way around.. Ariq is 7 years old and Aza is 3.5 years old.. And, Aza is the one who has been sleeping in his own bed at his own will.. But he will do almost anything for Ariq.. ;-)

And, yess.. We're squeezing tight tonight.. Just consider it a family camp night (we just watched 'Narnia - Prince Caspian' before bedtime)..

Night night, boys.. Sweet dream.. :-)

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

Sword making instructions by smithy Aza..

2010-04-08T18:05:00.001+07:00

The great sword expert and maker, Aza, finally agreed to reveal his secret to making 'Lich King' sword.. ;-)

1. Make a sketch of the sword

2. Cut the sketch

3. Shape the sword using colourful blocks

4. Modify the sword according to the intended model

5. Have the finished version of the sword checked by a 'World of Warcraft' player/fan

6. 'Lich King' sword is ready for use

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

Unique Engagement..

2010-04-07T10:43:00.011+07:00

Busy weeks.. now followed by tired week.. pheewww... :-P

The 'butterfly sign' was all right.. the guests came as planned. Joe's family came and met ours last Friday morning, and now it means.. Sinta is officially engaged to Joe!

In Indonesia, the romantic moment of "Would you marry me?" and "Yes", cannot be considered an official engagement, until the family of the future groom comes to the home of the bride to follow up on the 'personal engagement'.

Once the representative of the future groom's family (can be the father or an appointed spokesperson) expresses the intention of proposing for the girl to be wedded to the guy, and a representative of the future bride's family (can also be the father or an appointed spokesperson) provides an answer based on the future bride's answer (which usually is a 'yes').. Then, the engagement becomes official and the two families can start preparing for the wedding ceremony.. :-)

Sooo... CONGRATULATIONS!!! :-)

Anyway.. It was a very unique engagement ceremony, since neither of the couple was here.. Sinta was still in Moscow, Russia (doing her Master degree), and Joe was still in Verona, Italy (doing his PhD).

During the engagement ceremony they appeared only on the TV screen which was connected to the laptop. We used Yahoo Messenger for the video chat (Skype doesn't have video conference chat) and Skype for the voice chat (voice chat quality of Yahoo Messenger was not as good as that of Skype).

Love is a mystery.. we only know it when we have found it.. The process of getting to know each other between Joe and Sinta was not long. They met each other face to face once around last August, then they followed up via the internet..

They met again once around the New Year in Moscow and they decided they were going to get married. After that, most probably, they are going to settle down in Italy for some time.. :-)

The little sister is getting married.. and flying away with the love of her life.. it always sounds strange in every family.. at the same time, it is one of the happiest moments too.. :-)

Here are pictures of the event:

Ahmad (My husband-as family rep), Mother, Joe's mum, Joe's dad (as family rep)

Joe's mum, Fiki (Joe's brother) and Tia (Joe's sister)

Shahliah (Dani's wife), Mother and Me..
Mother and her two daughters-in-law (a son-in-law coming right up very soon.. hehehe...)

The cousins, chatting with Sinta and Joe (left and right top of screen) after the official engagement ceremony

Congratulations again, Sinta and Joe.. wishing you both a blessed future together.. ;-)

Not just yet..

2010-03-23T18:23:00.001+07:00

Here is Aza in the morning..

Ugh.. Dad took over my bed.. But I'm not ready to wake up yet.. So, the floor it is.. Zzzzz...

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

The big butterfly is flying inside the house..

2010-03-23T18:13:00.000+07:00

When a butterfly is found inside the house, people say that a a guest from far away is coming..

When the butterfly is a big one, people say that the guest is someone that the home dwellers love/respect..

I'm not a big fan of superstition, but it is a nice thought that a guest is coming for a visit..

Now, let's wait and see, who will the guest be :-)

(There were actually two butterflies inside the house.. Does it mean there will be more than one guest?)

http://orcalion.blogspot.com

Late night creativity..

2010-03-23T09:14:00.003+07:00

I guess Aza is really ready for school now.. Playing at home just doesn't satisfy him anymore.. and, his energy is just too much to be used up in a day.. :-)

Aza has been the last to go to sleep. He doesn't make much problem, it's just I cannot sleep before he enters the bedroom, because I'm worried he might lose track of time (Aza doesn't read the clock well yet).

Last night, he was using Kid Pix (he hasn't used this program for some time) and he knocked on the bedroom door to get me to save his work.. and it was around 9.30 p.m.

This is what he drew last night..

I'm really, really tempted on letting him sleep by himself in the study, because now, he doesn't sleep on our bed anyway.. he sleeps in our bedroom, but on his own bed.. :-)

.. and .. the Tauren is down..!

2010-03-23T09:04:00.005+07:00

The best thing with dad being home is that the boys can have a common opponent!

And the best victory for them is when they manage to defeat the Tauren together.. Hahahaha...

(Yess.. I live with these three 'World of Warcraft' fans!)

Ariq's new plane

2010-03-18T08:02:00.002+07:00

Craft project is always the best cure when Ariq is bored..

I bought this cut-and-glue plane for Aza to cut and Ariq to glue.. But when Ariq found the craft set, he just started doing it until he finished it..

Ariq was a little bored the past few days.. Gladly, putting this plane (and fixing Aza's sword) was finally brightening him up.. :-)

Ariq.. The Super Brother..

2010-03-17T18:08:00.002+07:00

Why is Ariq Aza's number one hero?

Because Ariq is good at fixing Aza's broken toys..

Just like this sword.. ;-)

Thank you, Ariq.. :-)

Satria Mandala Museum (Armed Forces Museum)

2010-03-12T10:33:00.008+07:00

I definitely recommend this museum to parents with children who are interested in armed forces..

Satria Mandala (Armed Forces) Museum is located on Jl. Gatot Subroto kav. 14-16, Jakarta Selatan 12710. It is quite easy to reach from any parts of Jakarta, and the parking area is spacious.

The entry fees are inexpensive, even if you want to take the whole extended family members (nephews, nieces, cousins, etc.).. ;-)

The galleries are wide and the collections are of good range. All the weapons are displayed inside, while the tanks and planes are outside.

The museum might not look fancy, but children will have a GREAT TIME there (and you will too), because.. all the original collections are safely put in glass boxes, and replicas are put as displays and children can touch them!

Leave it to the power of children's imagination, very soon you will be drawn into the past.. the time when Indonesia was fighting for independence.. ;-)

The only thing that parents need to keep in mind is that there is no eating place in the museum complex, apart from a few regular hawkers settled under the shaded area in the parking lot. There were mie ayam (chicken noodle), ketoprak (vermicelli, rice cake, bean sprouts and tofu in peanut sauce), siomay (dimsum in peanut sauce) and drinks.

While the food and drink are OK for snacks, they might not be filling enough as 'real' lunch. So, you might have to set the visit to allow sometime between the end of the visit and the time you need to get to your chosen place for lunch..

Ariq and Aza really love this museum. They keep asking for another visit! Below are pictures from our first visit last November..

Don't mess with me! I know your 'switch'!

2010-03-09T11:08:00.005+07:00

Scene 1

Ariq (provoking Aza about toys): Mine is better, yours is not as good as mine!

Aza (half-crying, pointing his finger at Ariq): If you keep hassling me, I will go to Cipete right now! And you can miss me all you can!

-Cipete is where my parents live. Aza sometimes stays there for a few days when he is bored at home.-

Ariq (stopped giggling): No! You're not going anywhere! Let's watch DVD.. your pick!

Then, they sat down on the couch watching DVD.. Gladly, one boy on one couch (otherwise, peace would only be a 5-minute thing!)

Scene 2

Aza (running to me in the study, after slamming the study door behind him): Mum, lock the door please.. Don't let Ariq in! Let's play on the computer and leave Ariq out!

Ariq (outside the study, crying and shouting): Mum! Open the door! I don't want to be here alone!

I (in an attempt for negotiation): Ariq, please have a moment! Watch a DVD or play with your Play Station! Let's have a quiet hour for a change..

Ariq (banging the door): Mum! Let me in!

I (looking at Aza): Can I let him in?

Aza (taking a deep breath then looking back to the computer screen): OK..

I (unlocking the door for Ariq): Can't you just give in for once, Ariq? You're lucky your brother decides to let you in!

Ariq (coming into the study and sitting on the floor, whining).

Aza (looking at Ariq, pointing a finger): You can come in with one condition! YOU HAVE TO PLAY WITH ME!

Ariq (nodding and walking towards Aza).

They finally sat down and played together for about an hour.. :-)

Scene 3

I was praying and Aza was following me, on a separate prayer mat next to me. Ariq, who was supposed to be having a shower came and had the 'tickle' to hassle Aza.

Ariq: Move over! I want to use the mat!

Aza: I've had it first! I was the one who put it on the floor!

Ariq (tapping Aza's head to get him to bow down and leave): Come on! Quickly finish your prayer! I want to use the mat too..

Aza (getting annoyed): Don't touch my head! Go on! Why don't you try hitting your own head to the floor while praying.. You'll know how hurtful it can be?!

Ariq (provoking Aza): My fists are just as strong as the floor!

I finally broke my prayer, at the same time Mother arrived at my side!

I: Ariq! You are supposed to be having a shower, and you're not supposed to be rough with your brother! If he is hurt, I feel hurt too!

Mother: If you are hurt, your mum and I are sad.. If your brother is hurt, your mum and I are sad too! A big brother is supposed to watch out for his little brother! Your brother loves you a lot! Go on now, into the bathroom! Quit hassling your brother and have a shower!

Aza: Ariq! Shower! Now! Here is your towel.. and your clean clothing (the nanny actually prepared the clothing near the bathroom, but Ariq wouldn't have noticed it if Aza hadn't pointed it out to him)! If you are naughty, I will stay in Cipete!

Mother: See, Ariq! Your brother even prepared your towel and clothing for you.. He loves you a lot!

-After a few minutes-

Ariq (drying himself with the towel Aza gave him): I like Aza.. and I love him a lot.. because he is very nice, Grandma.. I love everybody in the world.. I only don't love one person (his finger pointing at me)..

Mother (hiding giggles): Your mother should be first on your love list.. but for now, you should always keep in mind to take care of your little brother.. Big brothers are meant to love and protect their little brothers, not to hurt them!

Aza (climbing the window iron bars): Ariq, let's go.. but if you hassle me again, I'll go to Cipete!

Hmm.. Aza might be little.. but he got the right idea! The last time he stayed in Cipete for one week, Ariq was practically begging him to come home.. :-P

Now, with a little 'leverage' from me or Mother, he knows how to 'corner' Ariq!

It might be a couple of more years until they can fully understand their brotherly bond and restrain their thoughts about hassling each other all the time.. ;-)

Gecko family watch..

2010-02-27T20:03:00.005+07:00

I haven't really done any animal watch around the house lately, since my spider was gone.. However, the other day, I just thought about looking through the back of the big painting in the back terrace to take pictures of the geckos.

There have always been two geckos there, but when I lifted the painting, I found THREE! The new one was still quite small, only slightly bigger than a normal 'cicak' -a little lizard-.

I was very happy because I managed to get good shots at them...

Anyway.. here are the pictures..

I managed to capture the three geckos on my mobile phone screen, but the little one (you can see the tail on the right) was afraid of the flash and tried to get away..

This big red gecko was looking at me as I was taking its picture, but it turned aside at the sound of 'click'..

This green one is the biggest (and looks the meanest), I don't like being too close, so I was just happy to take a shot of its back.. sorry..

Why the change??

2010-02-25T11:58:00.002+07:00

If any of you notice the change in my writing style.. you might be wondering what has happened to me..

Well.. development, I hope!

The first time native English speaking teacher system was introduced in Indonesia, the teacher I had in my English course was an English lady and my course place was British oriented, so, I learned English the British way..

Moreover, during that time (when I was growing up), the books that were popularly read by teenagers were the series written by English writers, one of the famous ones was Enid Blyton (my sister and I pretty much grew up with her stories)..

However, as time went by, more and more books from the US come into Indonesia, along with the TV shows and movies. This certainly changed the English learning trend in Indonesia.

In case of school curriculum, the difference was not visible, but in the case of everyday use, there was a big difference, as American expressions and slang were becoming more and more familiar with Indonesian youth.

When I graduated from high school, I went to Australia to do my university study and in Australia, both British and American English is accepted in academic are, as long as one method is applied consistently throughout a certain essay/thesis. Since I always tried to write my essays in as simple language as possible, I did not have too many problems regarding language method. Plus, I was an overseas student, which meant, as long as my sentences made sense in terms of topic discussion of the essay, little grammatical errors would not cause me to lose marks.

After graduating from the university, I worked for an Australian institution for about four years, so I did not feel any difficulty regarding my English use either..

I started to feel the difference when I started writing my blog in English.. I tried to do part-time writing jobs, and most clients asked for American English.. which I was not very comfortable writing in, because I would not know whether I was making a mistake or not, and they said I made a lot of grammatical mistakes!

Ouch!

Last week, I received an offer for an online grammar check software. I decided to try it, and I actually think it is a good software.. When I was about to download it, the software asked me if I was going to download the British or American version..

I hesitated for a moment..

Which one should I use? What will happen to me if I consistently change my style to American English? Would it be a problem for me?

I have been trying to be consistent in using British English until now, but I have to admit that people and the world around me have been doing things differently, and I often feel that I can't move on without some adjustments..

Moreover, I have started confusing myself too at times because automated spell checks keep throwing me off my balance!

Will I lose out because I change my style? I hope not.. and really, I don't think so..

I would like to think of this as an enrichment process for my English skills, and a step further in pursuing bigger opportunities in the future..

Will I completely forget British style English? I don't think so either.. people don't easily forget the things they grew up with.. :-)

So.. here I am.. getting my little finger used to hitting the 'Z' instead of the 'S' .. and .. not forgetting to put 'a', 'an' or 'the' before a noun.. -this is just a start- ..

Let's see how this works out.. ;-)

Expressions in artworks..

2010-02-23T21:44:00.005+07:00

The best thing about Ariq.. is that he never gives up!

He did not stop being creative even when he was feeling very uncomfortable (before and during the first few days after he had his tonsils operation)..

This was the artwork he did four days before the operation.. At that time, his tonsils were swollen and the fish bone was stuck on the right one..

These are the artworks he did on the day after his operation.. He was still feeling very sleepy from the painkiller and his throat was still feeling 'funny'..

These are the ones he did two days after the operation.. He strongly refused soft food at this stage (except noodle soup) and he was quite grumpy when he was hungry, because he couldn't wait to start being active again..

Finally, this is the one he did four days after the operation (after he had his first 'normal meal').. He was feeling very happy about the great meal, but his throat was having its first 'real' adjustment to solid food.. so, he was having quite a mixed feeling..

Somehow I think, Ariq's artworks always do a good job expressing his feelings and moods.. :-)

I found more of Aza's work on my computer..

2010-02-22T19:27:00.005+07:00

I kept reminding Aza to close all the applications and games he plays with every time he is done with them, but somehow, he keeps leaving his arts open..

Maybe.. just maybe.. he has been doing it on purpose (without realising it). Maybe.. he is not sure of how to save his works and leaves them open for me or Ariq to save them for him?? Clever boy!

Now, every time I walk back to the computer, I always find something interesting on the screen, so I save them..

Aza's art works are really getting better every time..

I found these ones during last week..

These are the two I found today (the purple one only had a few square shapes when I found it, then Aza worked back on it with Ariq when I asked him about it)..

I hope he keeps making more cute art works..

Aza was having two busy weeks..

2010-02-22T14:39:00.009+07:00

The week before Ariq had the operation, Aza asked if he could stay with my parents.. well, to be exact, he refused going home after visiting his grandparents that Sunday night..

At first we were not sure if he was serious. Dad thought he just didn't want to turn his movie 'Monster House' off, but mum thought he looked confident and sure about staying over, so we decided to let him stay after promising not to ask to go home the same night.

To all of our surprise, he stayed the whole week! ONE FULL WEEK!

WOW!

The most amazing part was, he called home every day -twice a day, at least- and asked to speak especially with Ariq. They would talk and laugh on the phone about things that only they knew about.. I always giggled listening to them because I thought they were cute.. :-P

After a week, we met at the hospital, because my parents were having routine checks and I was going to have routine pregnancy check. Aza didn't stay long though, he was hungry and he decided to leave with my parents while I was still waiting to see my doctor.

The next day, Aza stayed in Ariq's hospital room, while waiting for the scheduled tonsil operation, and again, he asked my husband to take him back to my parents' house around lunch time..

The next day, Monday, Aza decided to come home with us and Ariq. He said to my parents that they would make plans again for next stay-over..

At times like those, we felt like he was older and more mature than his real age.. which was only 3.5 years old!

Aza has been home for one week now, and today, he is finally back to his routines for meals and naps.. Apart from the fact that Ariq was resting at home all week last week, Aza was also having some adjustments. The whole week he was staying with my parents, he was having a great time with his cousin, Irfan -my sister's son- who has a very different daily routines..

Aza hasn't gone to school yet, so he usually takes a nap between 11 a.m. and 2.00 p.m. and goes to bed at night at around 8.00 - 8.30 p.m., while Irfan has gone to school and takes a nap between 1.30 p.m. and 4.30 p.m. and goes to bed at night around 10.00 p.m. (my sister works, so Irfan likes to wait up for his mum to catch up with her before going to bed).

The different routines did not really cause any problem since Aza does not go to school yet, except that he always asks Ariq to help him with every problem he found while playing games on the laptop or computer! Sometimes Aza asks me for help, but of course, Ariq could help him much better than me.. :-P

So, my husband and I thought that Aza should be adjusted back to his old routine, so that Ariq wouldn't have too much problem when he goes back to school..

We slowly did this, not to make it hard on Aza.. Thanks to Ariq's great cooperation in following our requests to gradually adjust Aza, the process worked well.. Last night, Aza finally fell into deep sleep around 9.30 p.m. about half-an-hour after Ariq.. ;-)

I'm glad that the boys are sleeping on time again now, but I'm also glad about the time they were having the late nights.. they were really getting along very well.. doing arts and crafts in bed together.. no fighting.. no yelling.. just having great times together..

Nothing more that a mum can ask for.. and here are the pictures they came up with during those nights..

As today is the beginning of a new week, it marks the end of Aza's busy two weeks.. He took a nap at 11.00 today, and now (7.25 p.m.) he is almost ready for bed.. which means, it is almost bedtime for me too.. ;-)

Chicken with sweet soy sauce, pleeeaaaseee....

2010-02-22T09:51:00.003+07:00

Ariq is starting school again today.. That is why I can write in my blog again.. ;-)

Since the day after the operation, Ariq has been complaining about the food.. all the soft food he had to eat during the healing process (the first few days after the operation)..

Ariq doesn't like porridge.. He likes eating his rice with chicken or fish, then he has his vegetable soup separately.. So, the first couple of days, when he could only have oatmeal porridge and soft pudding were a complete suffering for him!

From the second day after the operation, Ariq has started asking for rice and chicken with sweet soy sauce (his favourite dish).. I had to hide from him every time I had my meal so that he wouldn't be tempted.. but once, he found me when I was having lunch and he begged me for a little taste.. so, I gave him about five tiny bits of rice in a spoonful of clear soup.

He chewed on the rice slowly while closing his eyes, as if it was the first time he ever ate! Then he looked at me, "Thanks, Mum! That was very delicious.."

I quickly asked him, "Does your throat hurt?"

Ariq shook his head, "No. Not at all."

I was battling inside, whether to let him eat some 'normal' food, or keep asking him to be patient until the post-operation check up. I finally calmed myself down and asked him to wait.

Ariq is not a picky-eater, as a matter of fact, for a child his age, he eats healthy and I have previously received some thanks from other mothers at school because their children started asking for vegetables because they saw the food Ariq brought from home.. (Ariq often brings stir-fry broccoli, vegetable soup, chicken in sweet soy sauce or fried fish to school).

Ariq is not a big fan of soft-drink or fast food either.. for drinks, he always prefers fruit juice or fruit-flavoured tea, or.. milk (his all-time favourite drink), while for food, he prefers chicken noodle or spaghetti (bolognese or cream sauce). He still likes fried chicken (like KFC, etc.), but most of the time, he leaves the skin/flour and eats the meat with steam rice instead of fries (in Indonesia, fast food outlets offer steam rice and fries as side dishes).

So, when he is healthy, it is not that hard to get Ariq to eat, but once he is sick -with something related to throat or stomach- it would then be a challenge to get him to eat!

After the tonsil operation, it was exceptionally difficult to get Ariq to eat because he really needed to start very slowly on eating.. it wasn't only a challenge for Ariq's patience, but also everyone else's at home..

I kept praying that everything was well when we had to see the doctor on the post-operation check-up, so that Ariq could start eating something more solid, as he really needed the energy to get him 'up and running' again.. :-)

So finally, last Thursday was his post-operation check up.

*You would seriously laugh if you had seen him in the doctor's room that afternoon*

The doctor smiled to Ariq as he was entering the room, "Come in, Ariq. You are not afraid of doctors anymore, are you? Please have a seat on the treatment chair."

Ariq sat on the treatment chair and the doctor started examining his throat.

The doctor asked Ariq, "What have you been eating, Ariq?"

Ariq quickly went sullen and looked at me! And I exhaled..

The doctor turned to me, "Has he been eating normal food or still soft food?"

I answered honestly, "He doesn't like soft food, but I'm not confident enough to let him eat normal food yet.. I think he lacks of energy.."

The doctor smiled and asked, "Does he feel any pain?"

I shook my head, "He said not all, except some tingling."

The doctor laughed, "It looks like his throat is fine. He can start eating normal food."

Suddenly Ariq stood up, holding the doctor's table, "Really? I can eat normal food?"

The doctor looked at Ariq and gave him a confident nod, "Yes, you can."

Ariq asked the doctor again, to be sure, "I can eat chicken?"

The doctor laughed again, looking at Ariq's excited expression, "Yes, you can! You can eat anything you like now.. except snacks like chips, etc. .. and while it has been raining, you should hold off the ice cream too."

Ariq looked at the doctor for a few seconds but then replied, "OK. No problem."

The doctor looked at me for assurance.

I replied calmly, "Ariq is not a big fan of snacks and ice cream anyway, Doc. It won't be too hard for him to stay away from those things.. It would be harder for him to stay away from his chicken and fish.."

The doctor nodded, "Good! Then he should be fine and better very soon.."

The nurse was giggling when Ariq asked her as we were walking out of the doctor's room, "I really can eat chicken now?"

The nurse nodded with a big smile, "Yes, Ariq.. You can eat chicken and everything else.. just no snacks or ice cream for a while, OK!"

Then, Ariq was jumping up and down with excitement, with his fist on his side, "Yes.. Yes.. Yes.."

My husband arrived as we were waiting for the payment to go through, and Ariq quickly asked us to have a dine-out. He couldn't wait for his first 'NORMAL MEAL'!!

For dinner that night, Ariq chose grill chicken in sweet soy sauce in 'Chicken Story' (his favourite outlet).. I had to remind him to eat slowly and take a sip of his lemongrass ice tea in-between bites. At the end of dinner Ariq said to me that it was a great meal and he asked me to order take away for his breakfast! Hahaha..

I just love him and his appetite!

Ariq has started to eat well again now, and I can't wait to see him gain weight in a week or two. He still feels some tingling in his throat, but he loves the fact that he can eat normal again and that compensates the tiny pain..

I also still need to remind him to drink water every so often.. but he has been cooperative about this..

Some of my friends at times tell me about how worried they are whenever their picky-eater children get sick, because getting them to eat when they are healthy is already quite a challenge..

Well, now I can also say that feeding a healthy-eater child when he is sick is also quite a challenge.. :-)

I guess we all want our children to stay healthy and eat healthy.. ;-)