Bismillaah

Satu, dua, tiga...
Begitu cepat nikmat usia ini berlalu,
Berlalu satu fasa, fasa yang lain datang menyapa

Satu, dua, tiga generasi
Datang, pergi, hilang berganti
Akan terus sambung-menyambung
Hingga tiba hari perhimpunan paling agung

Hujung minggu ini abah bermusafir lagi, menyahut seruan menyampaikan pesanan dan berkongsi pengalaman. Moga Allaah terima segala usaha abah dan semua yang ada di PSU, Ameen.

Maryam sudah pandai meniarap, Alhamdulillaah. Sudah lebih seminggu(atau dua minggu?, ibu sudah lupa ;) ). Hajar dan Adam asyik dengan aktiviti bermain seharian. InshaAllaah Isnin esok kami akan berjumpa Dr.Akhavan untuk physical check up tiga beradik ini. Minggu lepas, abah bawa Adam untuk lead test. Kata abah, Adam menangis sedikit sahaja masa doktor cucuk untuk ambil darah. Adam mungkin 'excited' dengan kapas dan plaster yang dilekat di lengannya selepas itu. Bagi Adam, ubat bermakna plaster :) sebab setiap kali dia luka kecil, Adam akan dapat satu plaster.

Cuaca di Los Angeles sudah semakin sejuk, MashaAllaah. Apapun cuacanya, rasanya semua itu nikmat yang patut disyukuri. Alhamdulillaah, ada 'heater,' ada rumah tempat berteduh, dan ada selimut untuk membalut badan. Insaf bila saban hari melihat seorang 'homeless' di luar sana yang tidak punya ini semua.

Bless us all o Allaah.
Ameen

Masjid Omar al-Khattab
tempat abah berjemaah 5 waktu
& kadang kala Hajar, Adam & Maryam berlari-lari di sini

bismillaah


MashaAllaah, sistem pendengaran bayi sudah terbentuk dengan sempurna sebulan sebelum kelahirannya (~minggu ke-36).

Tapi, bayi dikelilingi dengan air pada waktu itu. Mesti pendengarannya penuh dengan bunyi kocakan air di sekelilingnya?

Ibu teringat satu kajian popular seorang (Prof?) Jepun yang menunjukkan molekul-molekul air menjadi indah apabila dikatakan perkara-perkara(perkataan) yang positif kepada mereka.

SubhanAllaah, bayangkan jika bacaan ayat suci al-Quran selalu 'diperdengarkan kepada air ketuban(amniotic fluid)' yang mengelilingi bayi di dalam kandungan...bukankah ia akan menjadi begitu indah?

=)
p/s: ibu terfikirkan perkara-perkara ni masa kelas bila Prof menerangkan tentang Cohclea Implant..

Harini Maryam dah selesai apply passport.InshaAllaah bulan depan dah nak balik Malaysia +) +)

bismillaah

abah musafir, tinggal hajar-adam-maryam & ibu sahaja di los angeles sejak semalam.
alhamdulillaah, hujan turun beberapa hari lepas, dan hari ini & semalam cerah.

Tak rasa, Maryam dah 3 bulan Alhamdulillaah. Rajin senyum, mashaAllaah, menyejukkan hati ibu&abah.

Hajar&Adam tengah dalam proses belajar berkongsi dan menerima diri masing-masing. Kalau kakak menangis, Adam akan pujuk & vice versa, Alhamdulillaah. Kadang-kadang, adalah berebut mainan etc, tp biasanya salah seorang akan mengalah.

Alhamdulillaah, hidup meriah dengan kehadiran anak2 ibu&abah. Celoteh & telatah mereka tiap hari sungguh mengasyikkan, dan seringkali mengingatkan kepada kebesaran Allaah azzawajalla yang menganugerahkan anak-anak ini both sebagai ujian&amanah.

Amanah..itulah yang sering difikirkan. Ibu&abah kena berusaha keras untuk memastikan amanah itu dipikul dengan sepenuh hati agar tanggungjawab terlaksana dan diredhai oleh Allah azzwajalla..permudahkan ya Allaah, ameen

bismillaah

alhamdulillaah, seorang pakcik menghadiahkan kopiah untuk adam. waktu itu kami berada di bookstore Islamic center Vermont. Dia kata hadiah eid, dia nak dapat rewards bersedekah di bulan Ramadhan :)..jazahullaahu khaeer.

itula kopiah yang Adam pakai masa pegi solat eid di Masjid Umar dekat USC(mashaAllaah, padan dengan baju melayu Adam), dan yang Adam selalu pakai masa 'solat' di rumah.

khas utk mak ina dan opah di bidor :)
oh..dan cik adda gak ;)

bismillaah

alhamdulillaah..sudah beberapa kali Hajar dan Adam bangun bersama semasa sahur, ikut ke masjid berbuka puasa, dan berteraweeh.

Hajar dan Adam juga perasan yang ibu dan abah tidak makan dan minum sepanjang hari. Hajar akan nampak 'terkejut' bila nampak ibu minum masa berbuka.

Maryam terkena sedikit tempias puasa. Pada umur 2 bulan, beratnya kurang sedikit berbanding abang dan kakak pada usia itu. Alhamdulillaah, walaupun kurang rezekinya tetap ada.

Alhamdulillaah, ramadhan Hajar dan Adam tidak sinonim dengan makan banyak, sedap dan mewah. Ramadhan mereka lebih sinonim kepada trips to masaajid, bacaan Qur'an, dan kurma.

SubhanAllaah, bagi semua perbezaan di setiap tempat.
Alhamdulillaah, bagi segala peluang di setiap saat.

bismillaah

alhamdulillaah semalam sempat singgah ke dua masjid di sini, satu kat Hawthorne dan satu lagi kat San Gabriel Valley. MashaAllaah ramai dan meriah umat Islam meraikan Ramadhan. Hajar dan Adam seronok dapat main di playground dan jumpa other kids. Plus, dapat toys from a generous person yang donated toys untuk kanak-kanak yang ikut parents berterawih. Jazakumullaahu khayr.

Harapnya Hajar, Adam dan Maryam dapat menghayati dan seronok dengar Quran recitation during the teraweeh too! The 3 of them sat quietly thru the entire teraweeh. MashaAllaah.

bismillaah

"puasa!!," tapi tetap makan juga, minum susu juga :)

itulah Hajar dan Adam. ALhamdulillaah mereka seronok dengan pengalaman Ramadhan kali ini, biarpun belum pernah terjaga sewaktu ibu dan abah bersahur. Sudah dua kali Hajar dan Adam ikut ke masjid, merasai kemeriahan beribadah di malam hari. Biar mereka belajar dan tahu bahawa Ramadhan bulan istimewa, biar mereka juga jadi penanti yang setia dan hamba yang menggunakan Ramadhan sepenuhnya.

"Ramadhan bulan orang Islam berpuasa..." sabar abah menerangkan kepada Hajar bila Hajar dengan muka penuh ingin tahu bertanya "Ramadhan?" bila abah menyebutnya. Hajar senyum saja, faham?kurang pasti.

:)

"...and there is no deity worthy of worship except Allaah"

bismillaah

alhamdulillaah, semalam kami berkesempatan ke Islamic Center of Irvine. Dari maghrib sehingga habis terawih, yang diimamkan oleh Shaykh Mishary al-Afasy!! MashaAllaah.

Hajar, Adam, Maryam dan Ibu kena duduk dalam side rooms, prayer hall yang dikhaskan untuk sisters with small children. Alhamdulillaah, the room was very nice and comfortable, not a dingy, cold room..ehe. The sound system was loud and clear, allowing us to follow the recitation clearly despite the sound of excited kids playing and talking.

Hajar did not join the kids group. She just watched the other kids playing and their moms praying, while standing up still and quietly. As for Adam, he also stayed quite, but not still...ehe he quitely joined the play group, grabbed a coloring book and a crayon, and sat beside Ibu coloring the book. Alhamdulillaah the sister and her son who owns the book and crayon happily let Adam played with the book and crayon.

1 juz of qur'an, 20+3 rakaats of teraweeh and witr prayer. Alhamdulillaah!

bismillaah

Ramadhan is the (month) in which was sent down the Qur'an, as a guide to mankind, also clear (signs) for guidance and judgment ... al-Qur'an 2:185

surely Hajar, Adam, and Maryam do not understand what Ramadhan means yet. However, they have heard the words 'Ramadhan' and 'puasa,' inshaAllaah that should be good enough at this point. InshaAllaah they will hear lots of Quran recitation both at home and during the teraweeh prayer at the masajid we will be visiting throughout the month. Last night, abah attended the teraweeh prayer at Masjid Omar near USC, but we didnt joined abah since kids are not allowed in the masjid during prayer. Alhamdulillaah, not all masaajid have the same policy. Islamic center of Southern California on Vermont even offers free childcare between maghrib until after teraweeh, mashaAllaah. A famous Quran reciter, Sh. Mishary is the visiting imam at Islamic center of Irvine, and inshaAllaah tonight we will be heading there :)

bismillaah

Alhamdulillaah, Maryam is in her 3++ weeks, still adjusting to her 'schedule,' so do Ibu :)..have to follow Maryam's.
Hajar loves playing pretend, singing, and observing! She silently memorizes the zikr that ibu often recites when soothing Maryam, and Hajar will recite the zikr to Maryam whenever Maryam cries.
Adam is at the peak of his curiosity and exploring stage. He loves climbing up to the highest place he could, grabbing anything and experimenting with the items. These past few days, he poured a bottle of chocolate syrup on the flour, a jar of water in the kitchen, and a can of iced tea mix on the carpet. Uhuhu....mashaAllaah its very interesting to watch the kids learn and grow.

abah is busy with his projectS..Alhamdulillaah...coaching, fundraising for alFruqan(well, securing slots during ramadhan for a rep from alFurqan at as many masaajid as possible around the LA county actually), meeting with people, helping some of them, etc etc...sometimes, ibu & the kiddos joined abah during his trips to the nearby areas, but most of the time we just stay at home :)

bismillaah

a gift of breath, a life
given free, with terms and conditions applied
its temporary, for a short time

a gift of breath, a life
through crucial moments between life and death
I thank Allaah, though my thanks will never be enough

for all moms,
thank you for your sacrifices

for all dads,
thank you for your hard works

for all parents,
may Allaah bless you with righteous children
may Allaah reward you tremendously for loving and nurturing us all

Bismillaah

Alhamdulillaah, it has been 2 weeks since we welcomed Maryam to the family. A friend asked for her birth story, so here it is inshaAllaah.

The birth story is very short because Allaah have made the entire process easy, Alhamdulillaah.

Ibu did not remember when the contraction started since the first ones were very light and just like the regular contractions around the late stages of pregnancy. However, after Zuhr ibu noticed the contractions became regular, but they were like once in every hour. Ibu just ignored them since the EDD was still a week away.

After Asr, the contractions became stronger and closer. Ibu did not tell abah right away nor started to time the contractions, but packing things around the house instead ;). Around 600pm, ibu was pretty sure that labor was just around the corner, told abah about it, and searched the web for infor about 'when to go to the hospital' (ngeh :) ) to make sure it was the right time to go to the hospital (didn't want to wait for long in the hospital..lol). Around 7pm, we got the kids ready and off we hit the road (Alhamdulillaah, earlier that day abah's friend lent his car to us. Muslims friends in LA are very great, mashaAllaah)

Alhamdulillaah, it was saturday and the traffic through the downtown LA was smooth. At 730pm we arrived at the hospital. We went to the 8th floor-maternity section, and registered at 737pm. ibu got into the check-up room and was already at 8cm, Alhamdulillaah. Ibu( and the nurse and the doc) were quite surprised myself, and thankful to Allaah of course! Just minutes earlier ibu were still walking from the parking lot and pushing Adam's stroller into the hospital. The nurse quickly transfered ibu to the labor room. Preparation was done quickly, the doctor broke ibu's water, they hooked me up to the monitor, put an IV(hurt so bad), and at 820pm Maryam came into the world, Alhamdulillaah.

During labor, abah, hajar, and Adam had to wait in the waiting room since kids were not allowed into the labor room. ALhamdulillaah they didnt have to wait for long for 'adik' :). After the nurse cleansed Maryam and clean up the room, my LOs were called into the now-clean-and-neat labor room to meet the new member of the family. Abah,hajar, and adam hang around until around 1030-1100pm before they left..only ibu & maryam stayed :(

Ibu & Maryam were in the hospital for two days(for normal VD) ALhamdulillaah everything was great and everyone was happy and healthy.

bismillaah

Alhamdulillaah, Hajar and Adam are sleeping soundly right now after another whole day of learning and exploring the world around them. Abah is not around for about 1 week because abah is travelling to Chicago and Michigan doing some of the things he loves. Hajar will say, 'Abah pegi kereje' whenever ibu asked her where is abah.

Today they got to go outside and played with an old stroller and bubbles at the backyard. They loved watching airplanes passing by on the sky. LAX is just 45 minutes away, and we could see/hear flights passing by up above quite clearly. Alhamdulillaah a'la kulli haal, LA's airway is very busy with commercial airplanes, and added with lots of helicopters and private jets. They make lots of noise too, but the kids were so excited with the sounds.

Bismillah

Berinteraksi dengan makhluk Allaah

Alhamdulillaah, Hajar dan Adam berpeluang ke L.A ZOO dan alMadina school's Elephant Ride beberapa minggu lepas dan semalam.

Bismillaah

A friend forwarded this to me...and it makes me smile =)
May Allaah bless our mothers and reward them tremendously in this life and the hereafter..

My Mother Taught Me....

by unknown


1. My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.
"If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning."

2. My mother taught me RELIGION.
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."

3. My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL.
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"

4. My mother taught me LOGIC.
"Because I said so, that's why."

5. My mother taught me MORE LOGIC.
"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the shops with me."

6. My mother taught me FORESIGHT.
"Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."

7. My mother taught me IRONY
"Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about."

8. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.
"Shut your mouth and eat your supper."

9. My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM.
"Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"

10. My mother taught me about STAMINA.
"You'll sit there until all those sprouts are gone."

11. My mother taught me about WEATHER.
"This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."

12. My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE.
"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."

13. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION.
"Stop acting like your father!"

14. My mother taught me about ENVY.
"There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do."

15. My mother taught me WISDOM.
"When you get to be my age, you'll understand."

16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.
"Just wait until we get home."

17. My mother taught me about RECEIVING.
"You are going to get it when you get home!"

18. My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.
"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."

19. My mother taught me ESP.
"Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you are cold?"

20. My mother taught me HUMOUR.
"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."

21. My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT.
"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."

22. My mother taught me GENETICS.
"You're just like your father."

23. My mother taught me about ROOTS.
"Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?"

:And my favorite

24. My mother taught me about JUSTICE.
"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you

Bismillaah

Alhamdulillaah, Hajar and Adam went to Islamic Institute of Orange County!!! where Sheikh Muhammad ibn Faqih serves as the imaam. Abah went to the lecture, Hajar and Adam went to the nursery =)

MashaAllaah, the masjid is very beautiful, but the community is even more beautiful. Lots of people, friendly faces, and we've met a few Malaysians( we've met in an alMaghrib class and several Malaysian events before)

Hajar and Adam were very happy to meet many friends of their ages. They've made friends and got into the playing groups pretty fast, mashaAllaah. Ibu was quite impressed at the progress since at first, ibu was worrying they couldnt make friends easily due to staying at home exclusively =).

Alhamdulillaah, the decision to brave through Los Angeles' super busy freeways on a Friday night really well worth it.

Oh, and these are pictures from our trip to Islamic Center of SoCal, near downtown LA last week.(no pics from the IIOC trip yet)

bismillaah

Ahad lepas, kami pergi ke big Sunday di SC Islamic Center. Hajar dan Adam seronok dapat jalan-jalan keluar, berjumpa kawan, dapat main di play ground, dan join solat jemaah =). Ada ramai orang yang datang untuk menyokong aktiviti Islamic center dengan membeli barangan dan makanan di booths yang ada. Buku-buku di bookstore pun ada diskaun 20%. Alhamdulillaah. Tapi, matahari terik dan cuaca agak panas berbanding biasa.

Alhamdulillaah, sekarang Hajar dalam proses potty training =), Adam belum reti lagi tapi kekadang dia pun nak tiru kakak.

Los Angeles sudah mula terasa bahang musim panas....

Bismillaah

ceria, gembira
senyum dan ketawa

berlari, terjatuh
kulit tercalar dan menangis

dipujuk, diam
dan tenang kembali

proses belajar dan mengenal
membesar dan dewasa

Kids love bubbles


and lots of other things...

Home Made

bismillaah

2 weeks without abah with us, Hajar would ask 'mana abah?' everyday. I am sure Adam was wondering the same thing, too but didnt know how to ask :).

MashaAllaah, It was very cute to see them 'talked' with abah on the phone. They were holding the phone correctly while sharing their stories with abah. Adam would do his baby talks, and we were trying hard to figure out what he was saying. They would pass the phone to ibu once they were done and tired of talking :)

Ibu took them for walks a few times, and during the sunny days, but when Ibu didnt feel like walking away from home, we just spent few minutes outside. Hajar and Adam love running around, enjoying the sunshine and fresh air, and picking up small, wild flowers!

Alhamdulillaah, 2 weeks went by very quickly. Abah has completed his jaulah murabbi for this round. InshaAllaah more to come, and hopefully Hajar and Adam will learn to appreciate this experience.

bismillaah

Alhamdulillaah a'la kulli haal, hajar n adam kena cucuk vaksin lagi. Nak buat selected vaccination tak habis study lagi pros dan cons nya. jadi, ikut arahan state of california saja. sekarang hajar dan adam bawah cdhp, child development & health program(klu x silap). Dua-duanya 'very loud', bak kata para nurses dan doctors.

Lepas dari klinik, bawa Hajar dan Adam jalan-jalan di luar sikit untuk hilangkan 'sedih' kena cucuk.
Alhamdulillaah, tak demam dan moga Allaah berikan kesihatan dan kekuatan rohani dan fizikal kepada Hajar dan Adam, dan semua umat Islam..Ameen.

bismillaah


Alhamdulillaah, dah dua minggu ni(hari Ahad) Hajar dan Adam dapat join Sunday School(Nursery) di Islamic Center of Southern California kat Vermont Avenue & 4th street. Minggu first tu naik zipcar, tp yg baru-baru ni kitorang try naik metro, bas panjang dan besar, kadang-kadang nampak macam lrt train.

Hajar dan Adam tentunya seronok dapat jalan-jalan, jumpa kawan, dan dapat main di playground. Hajar dapat main tricycle dan Adam seronok main papan(plastik?) gelongsor. MashaAllaah, cuaca di LA pun cerah.

Alhamdulillaah, yang paling penting, Hajar dan Adam dapat menyaksikan sendiri kemeriahan komuniti Muslim berkumpul bersama, dan belajar bahawa masjid tu sebagai pusat komuniti melakukan pelbagai macam aktiviti, bukan terhad kepada solat jemaah sahaja.

MashaAllaah, komuniti Muslim di sini sedang berusaha untuk membeli bangunan bersebelahan Islamic center yang akan dilelong. Asalnya bangunan tu pusat pameran Chevrolet, tapi sekarang dah ditutup. Jadi, sekiranya berjaya membeli bangunan tersebut, Islamic center akan dikembangkan lagi inshaAllaah. Banyak perancangan yang diorang buat, May Allaah facilitate it, Allaahumma ameen.

bismillaah

fajr
Hajar dan Adam bangun
main sampai pagi
mandi
main lagi
sarapan
main lagi
kalau penat Adam qailullaah
kalau penat Hajar duduk berehat-rehat saja

zuhr
kadang-kadang ikut 'Allaahuakbar', rukuk dan sujud
kadang-kadang ikut dari awal sampai tengah
kadang-kadang terus bermain saja
makan tengahari
main lagi

sambil bermain, belajar
sambil belajar, bermain
sambil bermain, membesar
sambil membesar, memerhati

anak-anak kecil cepat menangkap dan mengingat
dari ABCs, 1,2,3 sampailah Allaahuakbar, bismillaah, alhamdulillaah dan I look I see
apa saja yang didengarinya, akan sentiasa disebut-sebut kemudian
dan Hajar dan Adam, terus berlari...

bismillaah

Alhamdulillaah, Hajar dan Adam ke muktamar, jumpa banyak kawan, antaranya rumaisa dan muhsin. Tapi Hajar dan Adam aak kekok untuk bergaul dengan ramai orang yang asing.A'la kulli haal, Hajar dan Adam gembira dapat travelling bersama ibu dan abah untuk menghadiri majlis ilmu nun di Houston, Texas.

Hari ini, Hajar dan Adam pergi ke klinik lagi untuk mendengar keputusan pemeriksaan darah dan x-ray Adam tempoh hari. Hampir tiga jam menunggu di klinik, tapi doktor tak bercakap banyak mengenai keputusan tersebut disebabkan keputusan x-ray dari hospital belum dihantar lagi. Doktor cuma cakap diorang 'terpaksa' offer treatment, tapi kami boleh tolak sebab Adam dah dapat BCG di Malaysia.

Balik dari klinik, Hajar tercari-cari 'pakcik' yang datang singgah ke L.A dalam tour mereka keliling negeri2 sebelah west ini selepas menghadiri muktamar. Ada satu rombongan dari Minnesota dan mereka singgah selama 2 hari di sini.Jazakumullaahu khaeer kerana sudi menjadi tetamu kami. Hajar dan Adam dalam segan-segan mendekati pakcik-pakcik. Hari ini, mereka bertolak ke San Diego, dan pastinya Hajar tercari-cari "pakcik yan dah 'ilan'".