HANZKY

We went to Waterbom last Saturday. It was a fun day. A day at a waterpark will always be fun. It was especially special to me because Jehan could swim by herself with her little life saver jacket :).




  At first, she was too scared and would hang on to my life for dear life when we were at the deep side of the pool. I've kept reassuring her that she wouldn't be drown because the life safer would help her float. She still didn't believe me so I had no choice but to step away from her :D. She looked scared for a second but then I convinced her that she can do it. She just needed to be calm and keep on stroking her hand. Then she smiled and looked amazed. After that, she didn't want me to hold her anymore as long as I was within reach. But then she went farther and farther until she told me she was going to the other side of the pool by herself. She didn't want me to follow her and instructed me to stay where I was :D. So I just sit there by the pool looking proud of my little girl.

The one part from Life of Pi that leaves a deeper meaning for me is the part when Pi said Richard Parker actually kept him alive. Because of Richard Parker, Pi had to find away to feed him so he didn't become Richard Parker's dinner. He needed to think and try hard to fish. He needed to make sure the Bengal Tiger was always full. The whole ordeal stimulated him.

Being busy taking care of Richard Parker kept him from thinking too much about his family and the tragic incidents. Tending to his needs kept him going because he didn't want Richard Parker to die. He needed him, he needed the companionship, the thing that kept him alive.

It reminds me again on how helping others, putting others first and thinking less of ourselves help us find meaning and purpose in life. I'm sure every one of us have our own version of Richard Parker in our life.

Today, while waiting for all kind of handymen to come to the office, Nopai and I was somehow engaged in a discussion about religion. I forgot how it ended up there but it did. Long story short, we came to a conclusion that whatever your religion is, it guides you on many fundamental things in life. It shapes your perspective. It builds your character. It gives you pointer on how to navigate things. It helps you through many stages of life. 

From my own experience, I can see how mine forces me to learn about self-discipline and time management through the five mandatory prayers. I learn about the power of delay gratification through the fasting moments. I discover the beauty of sharing through the obligatory zakat. I developed self control through avoiding things that are not allowed. And of course, acknowledging there's the master up there who help brought me and designed my existence led me to a state of true humility.

And those are just some of the general ideas. There are also things that I learn not through religion but in the end realized that it's been suggested all along, such as the importance of reading, the beauty of being modest, the benefit of being grateful and so many other things. If you look further, the teaching also goes into a very detailed suggestions from raising kids to managing money.

Of course, there are times when I fail, but it's nice to have something to bounce back to. True that we can learn all of those from other factors too; family, friends, books, movie, anything. Some have figured it all out effortlessly. Some took quite a while to grasp the idea. Some learned about it the hard way. And some unfortunately are still clueless.

Thanks to Syita, who had been relentlessly begging us to go on an outing trip, we finally took two days off to Bandung for the company's first outing. It was super fun, two days full of laugh with the whole team. I couldn't be happier :).


During the trip:

Seminggu yang lalu ketika bangun tidur Jehan langsung bilang..

"Mommmyyyy aku mau ke Mekah lagi"

....sambil matanya masih kriyep-kriyep. Langsung doong ibunya mengharu biru anaknya pengen ke Mekah lagi. Bukan ke Universal Studio, Sydney, Paris atau London lagi tapi Mekah!. Saya jawab "Iya nanti ya Je kita ke sana lagi". Yang langsung disambut dengan "Kapan mommy? Hari apa???" :D



Beberapa hari kemudian ternyata Jehan masih tetap menagih kapan akan ke Mekah lagi. Daaan....dia langsung packing dong :). Satu backpack Hello Kitty-nya yang berukuran lumayan besar sudah terisi dengan baju-baju yang katanya untuk umrah.

Lalu dua hari lalu sempet ngobrol sama Oki pas lagi berangkat pagi bareng, "Taun depan kita bisa jalan-jalan ke mana yaa", kata saya. Jawabannya..."Pengen Umrah lagi sih". Whoaa ini ternyata sekeluarga lagi kangen sama tanah suci.

I have a special notebook to write all the things that I'm thankful for everyday. Why don't I write it on my blog? Well some of them are very personal. Plus, I like the idea of closing the day, reflecting and writing it old style; with pen and paper (with my Hermes Ulysse notebook to be precise, LOL).

Last Friday was an exception though, it was indeed a happy Friday like I projected in the beginning of the day. I remember I tweeted something like 'Jumat ceria' :D. Here are the things that happened last Friday.

1. I woke up relatively early. I always like it when I wake up early and not have to pray, take a shower and get ready in a flash. When I can take my time like that, I feel like I'm setting a good foundation for the rest of the day.

2. I drove Jehan to school. Since we left early, we had time to stop by at Starbucks. We always love to share our love for Starbucks Iced Grande Latte :).

3. Bouncy hair! I went to Haircode after dropping Jehan to school. There's nothing that can make you feel good instantly as a good bouncy hair.

4. Interviewed a candidate for Fashionese Daily Editor. Hiring means we're growing, right? :)

5. Meeting with a Japanese company. Lately, we found ourselves meeting with people from all over the world, even as far as Silicon Valley :-).  It's good that even people outside of Indonesia notice us.

6. Tumpengan. I have decided that I'm now ready for that fancy CEO title :D. This deserves a separate post that I'll do one of these days. Nopai announced this last Wednesday and there's the 'Makan-makan!' request for every congratulation email I received from everyone in the office. So I guess I had no choice :). Plus, Vanya said it's customary to celebrate it with tumpeng when we have just been promoted. So I ordered one from Koko Bogana. Before the lunch, we had a quick doa/wishes for the company. And the food is goood!

7. Pretty candid picture taken by Kila :D. My candid picture usually result in me looking jutek or lagi melongo!. Thank you Kila!

Me? Travel light? I'm actually not sure if I can categorize myself as one. But I was pretty proud of myself when I opened the suitcase as soon as we arrived in our hotel room in KL last week, because I just realized that I actually do travel light.

4 days 3 nights for 2 adults and 2 kids and we didn't even fill all the space. Granted the suitcase is a large one but it's a hard case so that means the opening is in the middle and we can still stack more items even higher.

Not bad, right?



We did bring a carry on, but there was nothing in it but my ipad. Oh and we also bring a foldable duffel bag. Just in case :P
 

Went to Bandung on October 20 with the kids by train! Oki was already there for work since the day before. So he picked us up at the train station, we dropped the bags at the hotel, went swimming for a little bit, then he had to go back to Gedung Sate and we came along. Decided to go to PVJ with Angkot from Gedung Sate. Mesti naik dua kali pula. Tapi nggak papa, the mission is to give the kids the thrill of riding angkot. So off we went. Naik angkot di Bandung pas lagi mendung, jadi terasa banget angin sepoi-sepoi sampe Jehan pun ketiduran :D
Mulai nguap

I'm not one who sweat the small stuff when it comes to relationship. Almost 10 years of marriage and I've never complained if the toilet seat is not down or the fact that he never put the dirty clothes inside the hamper (he put it on top of it, not inside :D). I also never care when Jibran doesn't want to get a haircut. I mean, it's just hair, right?

But when it comes to business, I am the total opposite. To the point where I've wondered myself whether I'm doing the right thing or whether this is healthy or not. When I mean by small stuff; pictures on the blog that don't line up perfectly, pictures that are low quality, comments that are unanswered, typos in the powerpoint presentation, AC/light that don't get turned off when not used, logo that is not properly located and so many other things. The recent launch of Clozette Daily has especially made me realized more and more of how meticulous I can be.

Now I have come to a conclusion that small stuff matters. And paying attention to the small stuff helps me understand the big pictures. I don't believe we can get the big things right if we ignore the little things that often make a big difference. In a recent article I read, it says that everything we do/ignore, no matter how small, will move our business forward or drags the business backwards, which is so true...in every successful company, there are people who never overlook the small stuff.

To close this post, here's my favorite story about Steve Jobs and his attention to detail:

Hari Rabu kemaren, ada 3-way conference di sekolahnya Jibran. Apakah itu? Basically sih pertemuan antara guru-orangtua-murid yang diadakan setiap awal term untuk mengevaluasi pencapaian anak pada term sebelumnya. Menariknya, and this is one of the things that I love about Cikal, si anak juga harus mengevaluasi dirinya sendiri. Jadi harus ceritain menurut dia moment terbaiknya selama term sebelumnya apa aja, yang paling menyenangkan untuk dia pelajaran yang mana, challengenya apa aja, ada nggak yang perlu diimprove dan apa yang akan dilakukan untuk menyikapi kekurangan itu?

Iya, di Cikal memang murid-muridnya diajarkan untuk reflective dalam kesehariannya, anak jadi lebih jujur sama dirinya sendiri dalam proses belajar dan tahu bagaimana mengukur kemampuannya.
Di akhir 3-way conference, ada kertas yang isinya semua yang pembahasan selama conference beserta langkah-langkah yang akan diambil oleh si anak - orang tua - guru pada term berikutnya, trus kita semua harus tanda tangan. So far, I'm really happy with Sekolah Cikal..adem deh hati ini selama Jibran sekolah di sana..and I can say this because I have compared and have done my homework as he has gone to 3 other schools here in Jakarta before, so I know what I'm talking about.

Nah, here comes the proud mommy moment :D. Jangan bayangin kalo momen membanggakannya adalah melihat deretan nilai-nilai bagus karena di Cikal nggak ada yang namanya rapot berisikan angka-angka. They believe that kids are more than just a number dan banyak hal-hal yang tidak bisa dinilai dengan angka. (Jadi inget waktu di sekolah Jibran yang dulu saya pernah protes ke guru dan kepala sekolahnya tentang pelajaran menggambar yang dikasih nilai! Helloo..the kids has their own perspective of the world and their surrounding, don't kill the joy of drawing by giving it a low mark. Anyway, that's a whole other story).

Recently, Mc Donald's launched its Champions of Play campaign. A campaign to make parents aware how important it is to get outdoor time everyday. It's popularized by the hashtag #MainDiLuarYuk in Twitter. Of course, I was excited to participate. Mainly because I'm a firm believer that kids need to have outdoor experience as much as possible. Kids activities now are so different than my generations, their activities are much more structured and they are more exposed to screen time, thanks to the growing of kids TV show, smartphones and tablets.

And unfortunately though, living in Jakarta doesn't give the kids as much as opportunity to be outdoor, which is a shame because we're after all a tropical country. But as parents, if we care enough, we just have to make the best of what is available, right?. Here's something to choose from..

For mall alternative, you can always go to Car Free Day on the weekends. Ragunan Zoo is also a fun place to be. Or how about Monas? Surprisingly there's so many things to do there. My kids also love to go to the fish market or to Barito to see pets and other animals. Visiting Taman Makam Pahlawan Kalibata is not bad either as kids can feed deers there.  Don't forget that we also have Senayan area that kids can run, play bike or rollerblading there.

Once in a while when you get to go out with family, pick a place where they have outdoor seating area, even if it's small and they can't run around at least it's something different.

I forgot where I got this quote as it's been on my notes for some times. Simple but powerful. 

 

Purr..Kitty Kitty! :-)
I was taking a picture for Inside Her Bag post in Fashionese Daily when he suddenly jumped on top of the bag. I guess he wanted to be in the pictures too. We got him about two weeks ago from..err Kaskus. So I've bought a pet from the web, a car from eBay :D, I also found the house we live in from rumah123.com. I depend on the Internet a little too much.

Milo is a 3 months old male Persian cat. We loved him a lot. In fact, he got to sleep on my bed at the first night he arrived. I didn't have the heart to leave him all alone in the dark downstairs. He slept like Jibran and Jehan when they were still newborn, snuggling on my chest or right next to my arms that I could feel his breating. The second day he was already familiar with the place and started getting comfortable with the surroundings that he jumped around like crazy. I didn't take him to my room to sleep from then on. But he likes coming to my room in the morning, some times accompanying me in the shower :D..or continuing his sleep on my bed.


Now I understand what the quotes 'Curiosity kills the cat' means. Cat is indeed has a VERY curious mind.

It's always nice to be featured on the topic of blogging. Something I have done since more than a decade ago and will continue to do for more decades to come :). Hopefully the story can at least inspire a few people to start blogging.

As you can see from the picture, my answer is pretty long. I love to share my story, especially in writing. And if I'm asked something, I like to answer it in as detail as possible. But I was quite surprised to see that they didn't edit my answer. Not even a little bit. So when I wrote 'please double check' as a request to the reporter to reconfirm the number of bloggers that we have, it also went published. Needless to say I was amazed :o).

When we travel, we are not the type who will explore the hotel we stay in, especially when we visit a new city. The reason being is because we usually leave the hotel early and come back around 9 or 10. Or even midnight. So it's actually a waste to stay in a nice hotel because we never get a chance to use the facility. But when you travel with two kids, you'll be extra tired at the end of the night so a sizable room equipped with a nice fluffy king size bed with crisp white sheet and little things within reach (the tea pot, refrigerator, microwave, utensils) are always appreciated.

In Sydney, we tried a boutique hotel called Blue Hotel in Woolloomooloo. The building is not just like a regular hotel as it's actually a renovated wharf. It's very unique from the outside as well as in the inside. The room is a loft style so it's pretty big. It's nice if you want to stay for longer period as you can have guest in the living room. The view is a small marina, complete with the yachts and Sydney skyline. There's the famous Harry's Cafe de Wheels next to it, so if you're hungry in the middle of the night, you can always step out for a quick bite. The location is not exactly in CBD but it's not too far of a walk because as soon as you passed Botanical Garden next to it, the view of the Opera House will emerge. Taxi is always in line right at the front. And Sydney Hop on Hop off bus also has a stop right there. Transportation is not an issue.

Too bad we cannot say anything regarding its other facilities because the areas we stepped in were only the lobby and the room. Didn't even check out the swimming pool *sigh*.




 
From the front!
 
 
The side :D
   
Views from the room, the loft-style room, the lobby & lounge. 

I wrote this last March and it's been sitting on the draft list. Yes I have more posts in my draft list than I have in the published list.

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We just had a long weekend and instead of being refreshed, I am now even more restless than ever. I couldn't have a good sleep, I couldn't even eat properly. There are two big decisions I need to make within this week so I've been analyzing the whole situation, thinking about what matters the most. About the past, the present, the future.

There are a lot of factors that need to be considered. Especially since this is a business decision, and I'm not the only one who make the call. Plus, there are many people involved that will be impacted by the decision. I know it would be wise to think long term or to play it safe, you know so our heart won't skip a beat and we can always be comfortable.

But the thing is, even though I was a business student, I have been driven by heart and guts most of the time instead of numbers and facts. I just don't see the fun when everything is too meticulously calculated in the spreadsheet to predict the future. Projection is of course needed. But I don't want it to dominate how a decision is made because after all, it's only a projection. No one knows what the future holds. It's for us to decide.

And sometimes, you just have to take the risk you know. I don't want to be restricted by some data that I know can still be amplified many of times. If you believe it's gonna work and it's within your plan and can be justified by simple logic, you'll find a way to make it work.


So instead of focusing on the numbers, I wandered around these two questions:

What would I do if money is not a problem?

What would I do if I wasn't afraid?

Sheryl Sandberg said question number 2 is the ultimate question she and the people at Facebook, a company that's driven by instinct, often asked themselves.

Why are those two questions important? Simply because those make you set aside all the factors that contribute into your decision making process like worry, fear, money, resources and give room to the important things; what you want the most, what your heart is telling you and what you believe in.

So from now on, that would be the ultimate question I ask when I'm stuck in between several options.

And don't forget that there lies an opportunity cost in every choices we have to make. See which option will bring us to our maximum potential.

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Anyway, so the decision was made and we got to keep the dream alive. Thank you for keeping the faith :)

I'm not talking about kids, mind you :p. I'm talking about the third pillar of Islam. The compulsory charity or known as zakat. Duh serius amat ya!



Karena bulan puasa kemaren sibuk hitung-hitung zakat, jadi kepikiran untuk nulis ini. Urusan zakat ini selalu bikin bingung dan nggak pede, sih. Takut salah hitung (ART perlu dikasih zakat nggak? Apa THR aja cukup? THR enggak bisa dihitung zakat, kan?). Takut kurang dari yang diwajibkan. Takut masih ada yang belum dimasukin ke daftar wajib zakat. Apalagi ada paham yang berbeda kan, ada yang jumlah seluruh tabungannya diwajibkan zakat 2.5%. Ada yang hanya pertambahan pada tahun itu aja yang wajib zakat, bukan dari totalnya. Bingung, deh. Dan karena menghitungnya setahun sekali, kadang suka lupa lagi pas tahun depannya. Jadi setiap tahun memang kaya belajar lagi sih, cari-cari info lagi. Kemaren aja ada beberapa hal baru yang memang saya baru tahu. Mungkin untuk selanjutnya mau coba pakai jasa penghitung zakat, biasanya financial planner punya jasa ini. Pastinya mereka lebih tahu kan, dan juga jadi ada acuan untuk ditanya-tanya.

Selain bingung menghitung, yang bikin bingung juga, mau dikasih ke siapa aja zakatnya? Dulu saya mau tau beres aja sih. Semuanya dikasih ke nyokap biar nyokap yang bagi-bagiin. Orang tua biasanya kan punya daftar yang lebih panjang tuh siapa aja yang berhak dapet bagian. Mereka juga lebih rajin untuk kasih ke orangnya langsung. Tapi lama-lama ngerasa kok kayanya ignorant sekali ya. Lagipula nyokap kan juga manusia, bukan nggak mungkin ada salahnya juga dalam urusan ini. Dan memang sebaiknya kan kalo memberi sesuatu itu langsung aja ke orangnya. Duh trenyuh banget pasti kan ketika yang diberi itu sangat menghargai pemberian kita dan berterima kasih berkali-kali sambil mengucapkan doa untuk kita. Cuma yaa tetep aja bingung siapa aja orang yang berhak, dilihatnya dari mana, carinya di mana? Iya iya banyak sih orang yang hidupnya susah. Tapi nggak kebayang aja kalo harus ke daerah kumuh dan bagi-bagiin, bisa-bisa diserbu orang sekampung, kan?

Jadi setelah itu saya mencoba untuk ngurusin sendiri dan pake sistem 'don't put your eggs in one basket'. Sama lah seperti investasi, sebaiknya jangan di satu instrumen aja, kan. Well this one is an investment too, another kind of investment, jadi treatmentnya kurang lebih sama.

Masih ada sih yang didistribusiin lewat nyokap, lewat ibu mertua. Tapi ada juga yang dititip lewat semacam Dompet Dhuafa dan Rumah Yatim yang tinggal transfer (tetep cari gampangnya!). Ada yang ikutan nyumbang pas kakak ipar lagi ngajak anak-anak yatim piatu buka puasa bersama. Trus ada juga yang ke satu pondok pesantren. Ada yang lewat masjid Al-Ikhlas juga. Enak juga sih kalo lewat masjid yang lebih terorganisir, karena datanya lengkap. Pas serah terima juga kita disuruh baca niat dan doa. Jadi merasa lebih secure aja. Apalagi, yah? Oh paling bagi-bagi rejeki juga sama orang-orang (pemulung, dll) yang ditemuin di jalan. Tapi bukan pemulung jadi-jadian yang jumlahnya tau-tau membludak kalo bulan puasa. Bedainnya gimana? Biasanya sih yang bener pemulung adanya di kompleks-kompleks rumah dan memang lagi kerja, bukan duduk-duduk di pinggir jalan sekeluarga. Trus juga kelihatan pas kita kasih biasanya yang pemulung beneran akan kaget dan menerimanya dengan suka cita. Kalo pemulung jadi-jadian biasanya pas nerima hanya bilang makasih dan tetep dengan memasang muka susah/sedihnya :D. Selain itu, paling kasih lebih ke orang-orang seperti satpam atau tukang parkir atau siapapun yang membantu saya pada saat itu.

Kesannya banyak yah? Padahal sih jumlahnya seadanya :D. Tujuannya sih biar kalau ada yang saya salah kaprah, ternyata orang yang dikasih itu bukan termasuk orang yang berhak menerima zakat, ya nggak fatal-fatal amat jadinya, karena mudah-mudahan yang lain bisa menutupi.

Tahun ini, saya pake kalkulator zakat yang ada di sini. Berguna banget deh, tinggal masukin angka-angka yang diminta, dan dihitungin sama kalkulatornya untuk semua jenis. Dari mulai zakat harta, zakat profesi sampe zakat harta usaha. Saya baru tahu, ternyata untuk zakat profesi, sebenernya yang kena 2.5% itu hanya jumlah uang setelah dipotong kebutuhan rutin, yah?. Dalam rangka mencari aman, saya pilih untuk nggak dipotong kebutuhan rutin, sih. Lagipula udah blur juga lama-lama mana yang penting mana yang kurang penting :D. Ketika keinginan sudah menjadi kebutuhan, judulnya. Lagipula juga karena masih kurang mantep ngitungnya, mendingan dilebih-lebihin dikit lah untuk jaga-jaga, kan.

Trus tahun ini yang baru untuk saya adalah zakat harta usaha. Duarr! Padahal udah punya usaha dari 2009 yaa. Eh tapi kalo tahun lalu bingung juga sih hitung-hitungan asset perusahaannya. Tahun ini karena udah pernah divaluasi, jadi tau deh. Nilai ini dihitung dari uang tunai yang ada di perusahaan, alat produksi, inventori, dll yang dikurangin jumlah hutang dan dikalikan dengan persentase kepemilikan kita di perusahaan tersebut. Alhamdulillah nggak ada hutang :D *penting!*, tapi jumlahnya memang jadi besar. Apalagi sebenernya uangnya nggak ada di kita, kan? Jadi harus dialokasikan dari dana yang lain.Trus tahun ini juga ada hitungan reksadana yang saya nggak terlalu mengikuti kenaikan dan kerugiannya. Jadi harus cek-cek dulu waktu pertama kali beli nilainya berapa dan sekarang udah berapa.

Yah begitulah kurang lebih cerita urusan zakat ini. Mudah-mudahan sih udah di jalan yang bener yah :D. Makanya kadang penasaran sih bagaimana orang lain membagikan zakatnya. Mungkin ada cara-cara lain yang lebih efektif dan efisien?. Maklum lah, masih perlu belajar banyak, nih. Untuk ke depannya, pengennya sih nggak nunggu sampe bulan puasa lagi. Paling enggak setiap tiga bulan sekali dihitung dan dibagikan. Supaya enak nggak punya hutang yang menumpuk. Dan pengennya juga nggak 2.5% lebih sedikit aja...tapi harus bisa paling enggak 5%. Amiiiin!.

It's sad that Ramadhan is almost over.

I have to admit, before Ramadhan started, I didn't embrace its arrival as much as I should. I was instead worrying if I could make it through effortlessly, if I could still be productive throughout the no food and no drinks afternoon. I was panicked I would be attacked by migraine every day and I was afraid if I could open my eyes in the morning from the lack of sleep.

I know, I sounded so childish, right? But of course it didn't mean that I wish it wouldn't come, I just didn't trust my body and mind and gave them enough credit for.

Now that Ramadhan is almost over, I cannot help but feeling sad. Ramadhan is indeed a special moment and I'm so glad that for the past two years I have experienced a different kind of Ramadhan. Not just the absence of food and drinks but a lot of learning that I feel like a whole new person, or dare I say better individual, when it's over. It feels like I have graduated from certain milestone and have my faith renewed. Maybe this is what He means by Idul Fitri as celebrating victory. I'm happy I understand what that victory means, in my own terms.

The first few days were the hardest but then I adjusted easily that it didn't affect me negatively. In fact, I think I was more productive than I have ever been. I attended meetings and events, I did three media interviews, I was a guest for a talkshow in DAAI TV, I had a shooting session for Intel video, I interviewed people, I met three venture capitals (one from Sillicon Valley and two from Japan), I had a two-day training session with Singapore team, created proposals and so many other things. I thought my Ramadhan would be uneventful, turned out it was filled with important moment after moment.

Right before Ramadhan started, I had what I called a few galau days and nights. I didn't know what happened, but I felt like I needed to learn more about how to be in the state of ikhlas, in every aspects of life. Sometimes, I had my own expectation that I forgot that if I do my best, there's nothing I need to worry about because the master up there will take care the rest of the way. There were also times when I felt unfairly treated but now I know I should have faith that He knows my rights. He knows what I need and what's best for me.

I read book about the prophet Muhammad and how he goes about his daily life. I read so many articles, looking for enlightenment. I came to a conclusion that I have to stay away from any expectation, to steer clear from being greedy, to be more sincere, to not care about credits, rewards and recognition, to make sure my intentions are not mixed, to do things only and only because He is watching me. Not that I did things for all the wrong reasons before, there were just times when I slipped and lost my grasp. Now I just need to constantly remind myself on the bigger picture of things, on how blessed I have been and there really is no need to worry about things I have no control of. I'm happy to say that it's easier like this. I am more focused, more content and it's certainly more peaceful this way. Things are falling into places too and the real prize started coming in.

I feel ashamed for not embracing this holy month wholeheartedly before it started. Would I feel differently if I knew what was coming and the blessing it brings? :'(. Can't never thank Him enough for all the privileges He has given me. Terima kasih ya Allah atas semua curahan rahmatmu :')

Today is the last day at the office. We have a long break for Idul Fitri as we won't be opened until the 27th. Kinda sad to be away from the office for so long. But I, along with the others need it bad. I'm sure we'll be back refreshed and recharged after the holiday.

Err on second thought maybe not that recharged because the helpers are going home, hihi. Lucky me I'm going to Melbourne and Sydney to enjoy some chilly weather :).

Today Amal and I had a meeting with one of my favorite high street brands who wants to do another collaboration with us. It's always nice to have repeat clients, right?

It took us a while to get a cab to get back to the office so what a fashionista to do? Ride a bajaj!


Not long after I arrived at the office, I along with Vanya went to a #bukber event held by an insurance company. We haven't worked together with them yet but we have a good relationship. When we got there, we were surprised that the brand manager has been replaced. And the replacement is someone who has been our ongoing client at her previous job. Of course we were happy :). She also introduces us to a brand that has big potential to be our client. That's the thing with attending event. Sometimes, the benefit itself is not about the talkshow but the network that it can brings.

Funny thing happened when they were giving out doorprizes. There were two sunglasses to be given away and a few perfumes. And guess who got the two Calvin Klein sunglasses? Yep, me and Vanya! LOL.

After that, I went to Pacific Place, waiting for Oki to pick me up.

Happy that today is a productive day as I got many works done too in addition to attending the meeting and the event :)

I turned *gasp* 33 last May. Being someone who's never think birthday is all that important, I didn't have any special plan that day. I brought Nasi Kebuli for everyone in the office, just like last year *nggak kreatif*. And then it was work as usual and I went to the gym next door for 2 hours. I had the most intense exercise to date. What's a better gift to give to myself than a healthy me, right? So that's what I did!.

I went back to the office at 4 and everyone was doing their own thing in front of their computer until I got to my desk and saw a birthday cake lit by 'Don't Ask' candle LOL. Very considerate of them I must say, they know I don't need a reminder of how old I am. And the cake, Oh My God, the cake!. It wasn't just a typical birthday cake but custom made to the #FitNFab theme I'm currently living. Red rice, peas, carrots, grilled chicken and lettuce were on top of the cake. Granted it was fondant, but where's the fun if I still have to eat only healthy food on my birthday, right? So yes, I indulged my self in the yummy cake, and ran like crazy the next day..LOL.

So thank you :). You just made me one happy girl. Always grateful to be surrounded with people like you :).

We did a video for Mommies Daily about Scotch-Brite Pel Microfiber Teleskopik. Who knew being an Inem can be done stylishly now? :P. Jehan watched the video a few times and little did I know she memorized the line at the end of the video and asked me to video her action :)).
Here's her version:

A tortilla is either corn or wheat. But a corn tortilla folded and filled is a taco, whereas a filled wheat tortilla is a burrito. Deep fry a burrito, it's a chimichanga. Toast a tortilla, it's a tostada. Roll it, it's an enchilada.

Since kids are in 'summer' break and they have been away a few times, I have the luxury to tuck under the blanket, turn the lights off and enjoy some movies...with the husband next to me. Here are the latest three...

I Don't Know How She Does It
I first read about the review in Mommies Daily, written by Lita. It's the one  movie where all working mother can totally relate to! A story on how we're always on a run and how hard it can be to juggle both worlds. We might not always sprinting like Sarah Jessica Parker does on the movie, but we do similar kind of multitask, we feel the same amount of guilt, we experience the same level of exhaustiveness. I love the ending where she refused to fly out of town because she already promised her daughter that she will be there during the next snow and make snowman with her. A brave and liberating decision by her. But that's only confirm my thought that there are no such thing as balanced life between career and family. There are trade-offs, but not balance. In the case of this movie, she can choose between meeting a potential client where it can jump up her career, or take a step back so she can fulfill her promise to the most important people in the world? Or maybe I'm just haven't mastered it, yet. This movie also shows us how being busy can make couple feel disconnected and drift them apart. And when someone decent is very appreciative of them and make them feel a little bit special and relaxed, the marriage can easily be doomed.

Julie & Julia
I've heard about this movie from Affi, about 2-3 years ago where we were invited to speak in front of AFS students. (I wonder why it took me so long to watch it). She used this movie as an example of how doing things you're passionate about can take you to somewhere you have never been. And there are many ways to do what you like. When food is your calling, being a chef is not the only option. You can have a culinary blog, you can be a restaurant/recipe reviewer, you can be a host of a culinary TV show, or you can open a restaurant, you can work in F&B and I'm sure there are more profession out there that are related to food. I love this movie. I love Julia character that portrays a very loving, brave, affectionate, warm and humble lady. I feel like I want to hug her. Meryl Streep is amazing and Nora Ephron movie is never disappointing. My favorite quote from this movie: You are the butter to my bread!

One Day
An absolute tear-jerker. I think I cried for more than 10 minutes toward the end of the movie. It's a story about two people who are graduated from the same college but just really learned about each other in their graduation day. Then they developed a strong friendship, with a little fling in between. There are so many twists and turns until they finally realized they belong together and then marry each other, 18 years post graduation. Unfortunately, happy ending is not in order and that's how I'm reminded again to never ever take anything for granted. Everything can changed in a mere hours, even minutes!. I LOVE this movie. It's based on a novel by David Nicholls, so many who have read the book is a bit disappointed. But I haven't read it and had no expectation when I watched it and turned out, I find it beautiful. Aside from the dramatic story, it offers breathtaking scenery of Paris, London and the other side of both countries. I watched it in Blu-Ray so they are even more sharp.  I'm also impressed by the aging process of the characters that have been portrayed perfectly. Oh, and Jim Sturgess is that charming in this movie.

I got this binder to house all of my DVDs. I have one each for Jibran's and Jehan's dvd but don't have one for mine and Oki's. The ones for the kids are in nicer color and built but I couldn't find one like those at the bookstore I went to, so I ended up with this black one. Ugly, right? But worry not because I have another polkadot fabric lying around :D. I cover it front and back and voila, it's looking much prettier :).
 

I'm loving this unfinished wooden stool I found at Le Souq Kemang a while ago. It gives an outdoorsy vibe to my dining area. Something that it badly needs. It can serve as a chair, or as a landing area for my bag and stuff when I get ready for work or just get home.

One of the things to describe me would be; I'm no couch potato :D. Really, I never find myself sitting lazily on my couch flipping channels. In fact, I haven't watched TV in a long time. I do watch dvds and read books from time to time, but it would be close to midnight where there is nothing I can do anyway. If I happen to have my laptop on my lap when I'm at home, that means I'm producing something, not just consuming what's available on the Internet.

It's rare that I can be home all day on the weekends but when that happens, you can bet I'll be decluttering the house, reorganizing things, moving furniture around, cooking and other domestic things. Case in point was last Sunday when I was home the whole day. In addition to playing with the kids, I gave a makeover to Jibran's plain canvas board, I made a cover for my dvd binder, organized the dvds, created a book of organizing project planning worksheet where I listed down things to do or to buy for every room in the house. What else? Ohh, I sorted the kids' clothes and put them in different bag. One to hands down to family, one to hands down to the drivers kid, and a few to keep in the keepsake box. The other night I went home at 7;30, kids were away in Bali and Oki was still in the office. What did I do? I transferred all the spices into the new clear jars I got at Kedaung :D. Things that I could've just asked mbak to do it but I do it myself.

I remember last Lebaran and when I had no helper at home and didn't have Female Daily related things to do and house was under control, what did I do? I launched the Tootsi Kids clothing line.

Whenever we're arranging a vacation, the thought of sitting by the beach doing nothing just enjoying the scenery never entertained me. I just feel like it's such a waste of time. I cannot not doing anything and knowing the world keeps moving and watch it goes by like that.

Heck I have never ever been to a spa. Not even once. That's kind of weird considering I own an online fashion & beauty media. I've only gone to foot reflexology place once in my life. And I rarely go to a hair salon for treatment. It's always either haircut or a quick blow and dry. A really quick one because most of the time, I shampoo my hair at home to save time. I guess I just can't picture myself lying there for a few hours without actually doing something. Besides, ngerasa percuma juga because even if I don't do anything, my mind will never quit! I have one busy mind.

When it's cooling down time after every session with my personal trainer, he would give me a massage and stretch my muscles. He would always say that my muscle is so tense and he needs them to relax so he can massage them properly. And that's always a problem.

But the good thing is, I don't feel stressed out. I do feel that I need a vacation soon but I'm enjoying everything I'm doing. I might have  million things on my to do list but I actually look alright. I don't look like Sarah Jessica Parker in 'I don't know how she does it?'. Even Nopai once commented how she never sees me in panic mode :D.

Maybe I just don't know how to relax? Or maybe I find relaxation in different form than most people do?

Well, whatever it is..I believe that what we do everyday has to be something important, something that will bring us closer towards our goals because we sacrifice a day of our life to do it. The goal can be anything, whether to have a more organized home, to have more money in our piggy bank, to be healthier, etc. And hopefully, that's what I'm doing day in day out.

Got a new haircut last week. I'm planning to let it grow so I just had it trimmed and layered a little bit. So I went to Sugai at One Piece, he is the only one who has cut my hair for the last 3 times I get it cut. I've never been this loyal to a hairdresser before :D. I like how it turned out. It's really a low maintenance kind of cut and made me look, ehm, a bit fresher. Just a bit :p.

I was in Jibran's room yesterday, took a few paper off the canvas board because they were not relevant anymore, such as last academic year calendar, invitation, etc. Then it just crossed my mind how boring this canvas is and immediately thought of a few things I could do to color it up. Decided to cover it with a polkadot fabric that I have in my fabric basket.  I love that the color fits his room perfectly :)

Why you no have my size??

it's B by Brian Atwood, by the way..;(.

It's been five days and I am still sick. At least, the head feels lighter now. It's just the cough that is so persistent. But at least it's a productive cough and that means I'm clearing out mucus and hopefully will get better soon. I was ready to leave the house this morning although feeling kinda feverish, Jehan was also ready with her uniform until I found out that my driver was not back yet. There was no way I could drive all the way to her school and my office :(.

Here's what I've tried so far for my cough:

• A full bottle of Bisolvon Extra
• Aldisa (Dari nyokap, untuk relieve symptomps of common cold, sneezing, nazal congestion, etc). Ini waktu hari kedua aja, sih
• Neuralgin (when the headache becomes unberable)
• Degirol (tablet hisap untuk sakit tenggorokan)
• FG Troches (sama kaya Degirol)
• Imboost Force (to help the immune system)
• Peresan air jeruk panas setiap hari
• Jeruk nipis + kecap
• Eat super spicy food
• As much water as I could handle

And it still doesn't get any better. I met my mom in law yesterday and turned out she too has been coughing for the last 10 days. Oh no!.

Today my mom is giving me another medicine. My mom is a walking pharmacy. She has every medicine imaginable and even owns DOI (Data Obat Indonesia) book. Tsk tsk. But I'm done taking medicine. Sometimes, we just have to let it runs its course.

I'm just going to try out some home remedy today:

• Eat lots of grapes. I remember my mom used to tell me not to eat grapes when I have a cough, ugh that's a myth mom. In fact, grapes act as an expectorant so you want to eat a lot of it.
• Keep taking the lemon drops, replace the soysouce with honey
• Rub my chest, neck, back with Vicks VapoRub or eucalyptus oil.
• Drink hot peppermint tea (no sugar as sugar compromise your immune system)
• Drink more water as it thins out mucus
• Continue to eat spicy food (another natural expectorant)
• Try this breathing technique
• If the cough still persist until later on this afternoon I will add 2 tbs of apple cider vinegar into my lemon + honey mix.

Pheww. Wish me luck!

I believe every kids in this world love Goldfish Crackers. It was Jibran's favorite snack when he was little. Too bad, in here we don't always have it. Sometimes, a few of them would pop up at Ranch Market or Kem Chick. But of course, still considered expensive. I found this recipe from Smitten Kitchen. So we decided to make it on a late Saturday afternoon in our backyard. Kids had fun making it. It's one of the easiest snack you can make. Too bad we don't have fish cookie-cutter to make it look like the real thing. But at least it's much healthier too than the store-bought ones :).

 

Last Friday, Affi and I was invited to speak at Prasetiya Mulya Career Week. It was an honor for us to be in the same flyer with Ligwina Hananto & Alex Sriewijono. Perjuangan sampe ke lokasi itu heboh berat. For a start, it was late Friday afternoon and there was a road construction in Cilandak. It was hellish. So we were already 15 minutes late. We decided to stop at Pondok Indah Mall and ride ojek to the campus. Since Nopai wasn't going to speak, she continued the journey driving Affi's car. So Affi left first with the first ojek we saw, and I was standing under the crossing bridge waiting for another ojek to arrive. After a few minutes, I lost hope and just walked to a nearby gentleman and asked him if the motorcycle parked there was his and if he could take me to Prasetiya Mulya :D. After a few seconds digesting what I said, he finally said yes. What funny was, when I arrived there, the talkshow hasn't even started and only 5 people in class. Nopai arrived 5 minutes later and the talkshow still hasn't started -__-. Tau gitu nggak usah ada yang naik ojek, kan?