Khaleef @ Al-Khaleef, Abu Dhabi

spotted in al-ain, abu dhabi.

 

 

your kingdom calls, khaleef. haha.

Khaleef’s Ear Operation : Alhamdulillah Done

no, not an accident, terrible illness or anything too serious, alhamduilllah. just a small problem he’s been having since he was little.

khaleef has always had a problem with his left ear. there’s a perforation (a small hole) in his left eardrum which slightly affects his hearing, and affects his freedom to swim without earplugs or soak in the bathtub. whenever he has a cold and runny nose, there would be discharge coming out of his ear.

as he reached 8 years old (old enough to endure the op), his doc suggested this operation to fix his eardrum.

 

* * *

 

BEFORE

operation was done at medcare hospital. right before being wheeled into the operation theater. khaleef already in deep sleep. the operation took about 2 hours, under the abled hands of egyptian ear doctor dr. naggar who is super awesome.

 

* * *

 

AFTER

‘looks bad with the bandage but actually it’s just an incision behind his left ear to cover a hole in his eardrum. alhamdulillah, surgery went well, khaleef is recovering well and has awesome appetite and sense of humor. first words after he woke up from anaesthesia : “where am i? did I magically appear here?” may Allah continue to protect you my boy!’ – at medcare hospital.

 

with the awesome egyption ear doctor – dr naggar.

 

I’m so glad that we found dr. naggar to take care of khaleef’s ear. he’s great with kids, and I love his calm demeanor and the soft tone in his voice as he speaks. he explains things very clearly. and very comforting too. a doctor should always be comforting! ye lah, nak bercakap dengan orang sakit dan ahli keluarga yang kerisauan kan, mesti lah pandai menenangkan org.

khaleef looks sad over here but really, he’s in high spirit, he’s excited that his ear is fixed, and he’s actually enjoying his stay at the hospital!

 

here’s khaleef enjoying the ‘hospital food’ that looks like a superb dish from an arab or pakistan restaurant! it’s very delicious, really; I could write a whole review on it! haha. black pepper lamb with steamed broccoli, hot veggie soup and fresh steamed rice. with a side dessert of caramel pudding. amik kau! alhamdulillah khaleef has good appetite despite his ear being opened up just few hours earlier!

 

second day – bandage off. ear looks fine. as it’s supposed to be. he said he’s frankenstein because you can see the black stitching clearly at the back of his ear. at the time of writing, his stitch wound is completely gone – as if he didn’t have any operation at all. good job, dr. naggar! a real artwork! haha.

 

* * *

 

khaleef in good spirits before leaving the hospital room. we had a pleasant stay – the medcare hospital staff were all nice and helpful, and the room is so comfy.

 

all the single rooms were full, but alhamdulillah we got this single room at the waiting area with a sliding door – no in-room bathroom but we still got the room all to ourselves, and that’s good enough.

 

mak sleeps here. medcare hospital staff provided fluffy pillows and blankets. comfy enough for mak!

 

our *awesome* view. ooOoo. haha. the medcare hospital is only 2 storeys high, so this is as good as it gets ok. gile best orang yang stay belakang hospital. senang je kalau apa-apa hal.

 

* * *

 

at the time of writing, we had already gone to see dr. naggar for a follow-up, and he said that khaleef’s ear recovered as expected. the stitch healed well. through the microscope he could see NO MORE perforation, and khaleef is expected to be up and about and down and under in the water with no problem; for at least another 3 weeks just to be sure.

alhamdulillah!

Khaleef & Kahfi @ International Day (Happy 42nd National Day, UAE!)

on 2nd december, UAE celebrated its 42nd national day. so the boys’ school continued the merriment along when they had an international day parade last 5th december with everyone, including the teachers coming to school wearing traditional costumes of their country or in UAE abaya and kandoora.

it was one colorful, fantastically festive day!

 

khaleef with his classmates from egypt, sri lanka, the philippines, romania, india and many more; right before the parade. (for ‘malay college kuala kangsar’ boys, if you think khaleef’s sampin looks familiar, it’s because it IS the mckk school sampin – the very original one worn by his father while in school.)

 

the girl in hijab is norissa; the only other malaysian in khaleef’s class. in the fourth picture was after the parade, and they were sitting at the field under the morning sun; but it was nice coz the weather was quite cooling!

 

meanwhile, kahfi was still malu-malu with his classmates. my cheeky 2nd boy seemed so reserved and shy as I enthusiastically asked him to pose with his charming classmate marco from argentina. I didn’t know then that kahfi and marco are really good friends in school. inseparable!

 

my adorable kahfi during the international day parade. his buddies were just SO cute!

 

there were just so many wonderful, interesting costumes. the lovely beauties parading in the colors of UAE flags : red, green, white and black. there’s a few unique ones from egypt, complete with headgears. bling-blings from the indian costumes, frilly dresses and smart-looking sheiks. adorable.

 

one of the best highlights of that day was also the fact that their maklong and cousins were there too witnessing the whole parade! how lucky of them to be in dubai to experience that! after the parade, we found ‘free henna’ station at the reception area, and of course couldn’t miss it! even my niece nuna joined in, and had a cute butterfly ‘painted’ on her hand.

 

* * *

 

I wish my kids had gone to a school full of malaysians just like mak and bapak did, but I also wouldn’t trade their experience at an international school for the world. I hope this would enrich their perception and understanding of the world, build tolerance and acceptance to not just different race and religion, but different countries and customs too.

it’s not just 1malaysia here; it’s 1world.

Khaleef’s First Horse-Riding Training @ Wadi Al-Amardi

bapak treated eldest son khaleef to his first horse-riding training on his birthday. we went to a humble little stable, somewhere in wadi al-amardi for khaleef to pick up a lesson or two in being a good horse-rider.

as we know, islam encourages its followers to follow the sunnah of prophet Muhammad SAW; to follow his practice and his good deeds. and one of the favorites of our beloved Rasulullah (SAW) is horse riding. horses and riding were a big part of the lifestyle of our beloved Prophet Muhammad SAW (peace be upon him); for transportation and sports. who knows khaleef might end up loving this sport and taking it up seriously?

well, for a start, it’s so wonderful that khaleef gets to ride, steer, pat and feed a horse! thanks to mr. khairul for this awesome experience, and hopefully a good start for something more!

 

“thanks bapak for this amazing birthday present!” haha. he wishes! this is ‘leader’, the horse khaleef used during his horse-ride training

 

* * *

 

the stable

 

arriving at the humble stable somewhere in wadi al-amardi, not as huge and spacious as I expected, but turns out to be more intimate and small.

 

younger brothers waited on the side as big bro got the briefing before getting on the horse

 

the instructor, uncle ali prepared khaleef with a safety helmet. uncle ali might look fierce, but he’s really just very enthusiastic with his big booming voice.

 

lesson 1 : balancing

first lesson : balancing. you can’t ride a horse well without a good balance says uncle ali. khaleef did a lot of sitting-down and standing on the horse over and over again. gradually it became harder as khaleef must put his hand on his waist, and then on his head – while continuing to rise up and down.

 

uncle ali had a good exercise as he walked and followed the horse! he took khaleef on ‘leader’ round and round the training ground. first, he held on to the strap as he took khaleef around. after a few rounds, he slowly walked further away from them, and finally he just let khaleef ‘leads’ leader round the training ground.

 

restless! but they actually enjoyed watching the horses in action

 

lesson 2 : steering the horse

after the training on balancing, uncle ali taught khaleef how to lead the horse.

 

khaleef learned :

1. how to use the bridle and strap to steer the horse left or right
2. how to make the horse move or stop
3. and the sounds you can make to tell the horse to move and stop – sort of a clicking of the tongue to the teeth

khaleef definitely enjoyed this lesson more than the lesson on balancing. to balance on a horse, you need strong thigh muscle, and khaleef found it to be too tedious, tiring and sakit! yeap, he even cried because he said it was too much, too painful!

uncle ali the instructor might seem to be so garang and firm; and he does have a loud, rough booming voice; but he was really friendly, funny and kind. he talked to khaleef, pujuk and calmed him down. he immediately stopped the balancing lesson, and started on the horse-steering lesson which khaleef enjoyed more.

thanks cool uncle ali!

 

* * *

 

I love these series of shots. it shows a deeper connection between man and beast, that is unspoken yet pure and sincere. khaleef got to pet a horse so up close, and also gave him some ‘motivational talk’! haha. ‘leader’ is such a gentle, sweet horse and I hope that the next time khaleef comes for more training, ‘leader’ will be there waiting.

 

feeding the horsies

conversation with kahfi. hihi. love this shot!

 

time for the younger brothers to have their moment at the stable. they totally enjoyed feeding fresh crunchy carrots to the obliging horses.

 

* * *

 

taken from ‘muslim equestrians south africa’ website. for more hadith on horses, click here.

 

 

overall, khaleef cried during the balancing lesson, but he totally enjoyed steering the horse. I’m just glad that at the end of the day, he loved riding horses, and wouldn’t mind doing it again – minus the balancing!

happy birthday again, my little baby khaleef. hope you get to meet ‘leader’ again some day!

My 1st Baby Boy Khaleef Turns 8ight

my eldest boy Khaleef Khairul turned 8 years old last 15th november. no hoopla party, no expensive toys, no extravagant celebration.

just us – khaleef baking a chocolate cake with mak, decorating it with his younger brothers, and then we ate together. perfect birthday.

 

birthday boy the future chef?

 

I spread the creamy chocolatey topping (made of melted chocolate bar, butter and milk), and then let them go nuts decorating the chocolate cake. turned out I only have white choc chips and loacker wafer biscuits with me so that’s all they used on the cake. the result – looks like a graveyard to me! haha the wafer biscuits are tombstones!

 

happy birthday my beloved baby boy Khaleef Khairul! cut the cake that we bake together!

 

I’ve had moments when ‘don’t make me a crazy mom!’ becomes the quote of the month; but overall you’ve been a helpful son, a fun brother and just a genuinely nice guy with a big heart.

you have great passion for football, science and history; and I enjoy listening to you talking about dinosaurs, or explaining things that you learned in school. your eyes will shine, your voice gets all high and I just let you sit on my lap while you tell the story – because at EIGHT years old and a big brother to TWO little boys, I need to remind myself all the time that YOU are still my first ever BABY.

mak and bapak love you always!

 

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later that night we did go out for a birthday dinner. when asked ‘what do you wanna eat? anything, just say it. coz it’s your birthday.’ urm. mandi rice. MANDI RICE. memang anak mak yang mandi-rice-freak! love you even more!

Khaleef’s 1st Theater : Roald Dahl’s ‘George’s Marvellous Medicine’

I absolutely LOVE theater, plays and stage performances. since my school days, I’ve been staging plays annually for teachers’ day – as the script writer, or director, or actor – I’m just so in love with performing LIVE in front of anticipating audience. it was such a thrill.

click here to read about my theater craze!

 

I still keep a collection of my theater tickets!

 

staging the plays is just as fun as watching them. been to countless plays at the actors’ studio in dataran merdeka (closed after the devastating KL flood), in bangsar, istana budaya, and many other venues in between. I just LOVE it so much!

and now that I’m a mom, I’m hoping to channel that interest to my boys. starting last week when I took my eldest khaleef to see the staging of roald dahl’s ‘george’s marvellous medicine’ by the birmingham stage company. I was more excited than he was, I’m sure!

it was staged at centerpoint theater, DUCTAC (dubai community theater and arts center) at the mall of emirates.

 

 

fans of the masterful roald dahl should be familiar with the story of ‘george’s marvellous medicine’. a boy named george concocted a medicine for his cranky grandma using all sorts of everyday stuff around his house – shampoo, lipsticks, powder, and even paint! eww! when his grandma drinks the medicine, well, things starts to get pretty weird!

I am a huge fan of roald dahl – his children’s books as well as his stories for adults – always quirky, always witty and funny; and with an unexpected ending! so knowing that it’s gonna be staged as a play really gets me excited – how will they achieve all the visual effects on stage with a wonderfully weird story of george and his marvellous medicine?

 

(pictures are from google)

 

apart from the funny story, wonderful acting and adorable set; what I love about the play roald dahl’s ‘george’s marvellous medicine’ by the birmingham stage company :

• it’s interactive – in the story, the stove broke down and george needed heat to mix the medicine well, so he asked the audience to rub their hands together and channel the heat towards the pot of medicine. khaleef enjoyed this part very much! very good for restless little kids, and get them to move and do all sorts of hand gesture
• personalizing the audience – the character george started out his scene by speaking to the audience. khaleef was immediately hooked. george also kept asking the audience “in?” whenever he picked up some random stuff from the kitchen or bathroom to put in the medicine. nice one! this made the little kids very attentive to the storyline
• george and his family live in a farm. there are chickens, pigs and cows – the whole house, barn and shed done really well to appeal to the younger audience.
• the repetitive song or music in the play was not annoying, thankfully – in fact, khaleef liked it and everyone anticipated something funny will happen when that song went on

 

overall, a fantabulous first experience for khaleef, watching an awesome story like roald dahl’s ‘george’s marvellous medicine’ being staged and performed really well by the birmingham stage company. in fact, it was MY first children’s play. I’ve never seen so many little children in a theater hall before! haha.

kudos to the birmingham stage company! I look forward for more stage plays from them! click here to read the interesting interview with the play’s director, phil clark on time out dubai about this play.

 

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entrance of DUCTAC (dubai community theater and arts center) in the mall of emirates – there’s also a library at the red building

 

where we watch ‘george’s marvellous medicine’ come to life!

 

for mak & khaleef. yay!

 

we got the balcony seats as the seats down below are all sold-out! and this was already the last few days of performances. ingatkan dah tak crowded!

 

but the view was still good, as we got the middle seats. mind you, the cheapest ticket is already quite pricey, so settling with the balcony seats may not be a bad idea. view is still ok! maybe for khaleef’s next few theater and plays we’ll try and get the seats closer to the stage

 

love, love, love the set. adorable, quaint little farm house where magic was about to happen. really well done.

 

 

I can see a lot of MOMS bringing their kids to watch the show, and just a few dads. haha. and there are a few teachers too bringing in their little students in uniform.

really, this is the first time I’m in a theater hall full of little kids. and it was loud with laughter and sounds of ‘yessss!!!’ or ‘nooooo!’ whenever george ask them questions. selalu tengok theater senyap je, and you can’t even whisper without getting angry stares!

 

glad you enjoyed the show, my little khaleef! hopefully this is one of many, many more that you will like!