Tag overview for: 'around_the_house'

Entries on this site with 'around_the_house'

  • Tsuro Picnic
    Once upon a time, earlier today, Irfan came up with the idea of setting up a mat out in the yard so he and other neighbourhood kids can play board games outdoors. Later, t
  • Betty Was Missing
    A month ago, Betty went out for her daily roams and never came back. The neighbours reported not seeing her. She was gone all throughout Ramadhan. We live close to thick t
  • Yaya loses a Tooth!
    Yaya lost her first baby tooth today! June 18, 2015. She is a little over a month shy of her seventh birthday! * Mouse over the pictures for captions So the wiggly tooth t
  • 82 Months
    82 months of Yaya! * Mouse over the pictures for captions I'm feeling pretty proud of myself in that it's not yet the middle of July (only the end of June) when I'm writin
  • Veronica - Hello and Farewell
    Before we left for Kuala Lumpur and Sitiawan last weekend, Ain was enamoured with another stray kitty who hung around at a roadside stall nearby. She took to Ain very well
  • A Return To the Tenth Floor
    It's the Labour Day/Wesak Day long weekend. We were unsure if we were able to travel 500 klicks plus change to the old house back on the Tenth Floor in Kuala Lumpur . We h
  • Rafe - 39 Months
    And now Adik is 39 months old! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Somehow I am getting more and more delinquent - it is mid-May and I am just now writing this March en
  • 80 Months
    80 months of Yaya! * Mouse over the pictures for captions It is mid-May as I write this and so I will keep the chatter brief. March was another busy month where I had my v
  • Finally TIme for a Breather and a Kitty
    I have not been posting much because life in the last month or so has been very hectic.   First , I was commissioned to proofread a doctorate student's thesis from a neigh
  • Rafe - 38 Months
    Here are Adik's 38-month photos. Mouse over the picture for captions. So, when I mentioned in last month's entry that we were moving to the smaller entry, I really meant i
  • An Unexpected Guest: The Wet Sprocket
    Upon returning home from Pasir Mas to pay our last respects to Irfan's Nyang , we discovered that the house had an unexpected guest. It was a big katak puru that took refu
  • 79 Months
    79 months of Yaya! * Mouse over the pictures for captions February was another crazy busy month. I traveled (without Vin and the kids) 2 out of the 4 weeks of the month. I
  • Irfan Gets a Dendrobium
    Atok and Opah came to visit for a better part of the week to see Irfan's first official day in school. They also spent some time with Irfan, visiting some sights in the ar
  • Rafe's 36 Month Birthday (And he is 3!)
    And so, the boy is now 3 years old! Or as he would say it, "thwee" * Mouse over the pictures for captions To be in line with how I did Yaya's blog entries, this will be th
  • First Entry From The North
    Here we are at the northernmost part of the country, over a hundred klicks away from the nearest population centre which could be called a "city". We live in a kampung, al
  • Halloween 2014 Spooktacular
    So since dressing up in costumes is one of Yaya's favorite things to do, Halloween is something she has been looking forward to for a while. Despite the non-candy-eating c
  • Rafe's 34 Month Birthday
    Two more months until Adik turns 3! He is now at his 34th month! Whee! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Adik's reading skills just seem to keep improving. He is reta
  • 75 Months
    75 months of the girl!   * Mouse over the pictures for captions October has been pretty action packed. We have been back and forth to and from the new gig (Tampa, Florida)
  • Aidiladha at the Tenth Floor
    Another year, another Aidiladha spent in Kuala Lumpur . There was no balik kampung because of insufficient resources. So yesterday we tried to make the best of it. In the
  • A Birthday Once More
    It's Irfan's 12th birthday. We were supposed to set something up for him, like allowing him to invite his friends over. But because of low resources, we had to cancel. But
  • Rafe's 32 Month Birthday
    32 months old now! Only four months (less than that, given the actual date I'm writing this entry) until the boy is three years old! * Mouse over the pictures for captions
  • 73 Months
    73 months old now! Please don't mind the belatedness (and backdated-ness) of the entry. * Mouse over the pictures for captions August was a quiet month again - I worked fr
  • 72 Months (a.k.a the sixth birthday!)
    And so the girl is now six years old! 72 months old! Hurrah!! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Apparently we are feast or famine type people. After the end of June (
  • The Blasphemous Bookcase at the 10th Floor
    The bookcase was getting messier and messier. So Ain thought it was time for a bookcase cleaning. I helped, but I also took some photos. All these books below were all ove
  • Rafe's 30 Month Birthday
    Adik is two and a half! 30 months old! Happy half birthday, little boy! * Mouse over the pictures for captions As stated in Yaya's  71 month entry , June was a very quiet
  • Rafe's 29 Month Birthday
    Adik is twenty-nine months old! * Mouse over the pictures for captions What can we say about the boy this month? He seems to just be growing up too quickly! Speech status:
  • 68 Months
    68 months now! Five and 2/3 years old! Whee! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Food status: nothing new. She is still eating our homemade bread. I am thinking I shoul
  • Rafe's 26 Month Birthday
    And now the boy is twenty-six months old! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Speech status: as with last month, Adik is very verbal and loves to use his words. Here ar
  • 67 Months
    Another month! 67 months old! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Food status: Yaya has been eating home made bread. Mostly the Cuban Bread (which looks and tastes like
  • Rafe's 25 Month Birthday
    The boy is twenty-five months old now! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Speech status: it is unbelievable how many words the boy can say. He is also formulating his
  • 66 Months
    66 months! Five and a half years old! Whee! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Food status: No real new foods this month. I forgot to report that last month she also t
  • Rafe's 24 Month Birthday (aka Second Birthday)
    And so the boy is now two years old! The big T-W-O! Twenty-four months have passed so quickly! * Mouse over the pictures for captions So I was looking at Yaya's 24 month e
  • Christmas 2013
    So this year we decided to participate in the Christmas tradition. Yaya is old enough now to enjoy it and in fact, she asked for it. So here we go! Our first family Christ
  • 65 Months
    65 months! Five years and five months have passed. * Mouse over pictures for captions Food status: A few new tastes! Yaya tried hot chocolate (during the snow adventures),
  • Dinner with Tsing and Michelle
    Tsing, Michelle and their kids visited us for dinner last night. Having us as one of their regular stops during their vacation never fails to warm my heart. The last time
  • Rafe's 23 Month Birthday
    One more month before the big T-W-O! Whee! * Mouse over the pictures for captions I don't know how we got here, but here we are a month before Adik's second birthday. The
  • 64 Months
    So we are now at 64 months! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Food status: Yaya tried one new food this month! Honey. She finger tasted it. I have hopefully convinced
  • Halloween Shenanigans
    All Hallow's Eve, an event that was eagerly awaited in the Renstrom household - at least by one little girl in particular. And this year, Papa said we could get a pumpkin
  • 13th Anniversary and Raya Haji in KL
    It was Sitiawan's turn for balik kampung Aidiladha this year. But I did not get paid for a work I invoiced so we could not gas up to go anywhere far. So Atok and Opah trav
  • Rafe's 21 Month Birthday
    And the boy is now 21 months old! 3 more months and he's two! Wheee! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Again, I am so very late writing this entry. No need to make ex
  • 62 Months
    Sixty-two months since the girl was born! The hat was a gift from Pak Yope and Wan Yong way back in 2010. * Mouse over the pictures for captions As I mentioned in the sixt
  • Irfan's Eleven
    Irfan's eleven now! It started when we thought about inviting Emma's forthcoming family-in-law for dinner. It just so happened that it was on Irfan's weekend's birthday! S
  • Rafe's 20 Month Birthday
    Our intrepid hero is now 20 months old! Whee! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Where to start? I have left this entry to be written so late that I have to be sure th
  • 61 Months
    And so the girl is now sixty one months old! * Mouse over the pictures for captions I debated whether or not to stop the girl's monthly blog entries, given that she is now
  • The Many Yops
    Irfan's Atok and Opah came to visit over the weekend. Here's a picture of the three Yops together. Apart from Atok's car having clutch problems less than 10 klicks from re
  • Selamat Hari Raya 2013
    We wanted to take this opportunity to wish everyone Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Eid Mubarak! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Just a quick one with pictures. We
  • The One with the Actual Birthday and then the Party
    So on Yaya's fifth birthday, we went to the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery in Dayton as her birthday treat. We had originally thought about going to the zoo but the fact th
  • Fun Yaya and Adik pictures from July
    So it seems we took way too many photos in July and there were a few with the kids together that I couldn't fit into either of the "usual" blog entries, and they were too
  • Rafe's 19 Month Birthday
    During the whirlwind that was Ramadan , where Yaya and Papa both had (real) birthdays, Adik sneaked in to being 19 months old! * Mouse over the pictures for captions I was
  • 60 Months (a.k.a. the Fifth Birthday)
    The girl is five years old now! A whole half decade! 60 months! 1826 days! Wheee! Happy birthday, beautiful! * Mouse over the pictures for captions It's been another whirl
  • Rafe's 18 Month Birthday
    Here we are at Adik's 18 month entry! The boy is now 1 and a half years old! * Mouse over the picture for captions Adik is now fully mobile - walking, running, and climbin
  • 59 Months
    One more month till Yaya hits the half decade mark! Woohooo! Note: Mouse over the pictures for captions It has been a busy month of June. We started off at the end of May
  • 58 Months
    Two more months till the big birthday! And how much do you love backdated entries! Woohoo! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Food status: No change. Nothing new passe
  • Rafe's 16 Month Birthday
    After another fast-paced month, Adik is now 16 months old. He seems to have grown so quickly - when I look back at pictures of him as a newborn I can hardly believe it is
  • 57 Months
    The countdown is on to Yaya's fifth birthday! 3 more months! Time passes so quickly - I can't believe how big Yaya has gotten. Where did my little newborn baby go? * Mouse
  • Darkness Falls
    Power outages used to be part of normal, everyday life back when we were growing up in Sitiawan. Not that there were blackouts every night, but perhaps once or twice a mon
  • Rafe's 15 Month Birthday
    Adik is now 15 months old! One and a quarter years old! Since I'm always late with the entries and happily backdating it, I wonder if I should even mention that anymore. A
  • Yaya and Adik's Snowy Adventure
    So it started snowing the evening of March 5, 2013, and we ended up getting a significant amount (about 5 inches accumulation), and it stuck around for a few days before t
  • Rafe's 14 Month Birthday
    And here it is not even a third of the way through March and Adik's 14 month entry is here! As always, thanks to the gods of backdated entries! Adik has at least seven tee
  • 54 Months
    And so Yaya is officially four and a half! 54 months! Where did all the time go? My little baby isn't so little anymore! * Mouse over the pictures for captions Happy New Y
  • The one with the be-earlied pre-Ramadhan party
    So since July 22nd fell on the 3rd day of Ramadan, we decided to move up her party to the week before, on Sunday July 15th. We invited our friends and neighbors to what ha
  • Happy Father's Day!
    Happy Father's Day!! We tried to make it a good one for Vin, his first Father's Day as the father of multiple children. First off let's start with home-made cards: Mama he
  • While Becky was here...
    As you know, Vin's cousin Becky and her family were here for Rafe's birth. Everyone arrived the day before Rafe was born, and everyone except Becky and Aunt Mary (Becky's
  • Rafe's 1 week birthday
    Here's an excuse for gratuitous baby pictures, Rafe's 1 week birthday! I've included pictures of the boy taken over the past week, including some professionally taken ones
  • Birthday Cake Transforms Into...
    Well, the birthday cake was transformed into digested matter submerged in digestive fluids in our stomachs. However, the box with which the cake was transported was transf
  • The one with the rainy-day party
    So on Sunday July 24th (Vin's birthday! Happy birthday, babe!!!!) we had Yaya's birthday party. As in previous years, we had invited the neighbors and our friends and plan
  • Trick or Treat! ROARRRRR!
    Last year a buzzy bee baby graced us at Halloween. This year, we went with mammalian and feline, an inspiration from the zoo visit at Allie's 26 month birthday, and since
  • After Eight Years, Irfan Reaches Eight
    Irfan's eighth birthday occured when Alya, Vin and Sila were visiting at the Tenth Floor. I was happy they were around for the birthday bash, seeing that they don't usuall
  • Allie's 25 Month Birthday
    And since I was so late with the last two 2-year birthday blogs, here we are, on August 29th. Allie is now 25 months and 1 week old! July and August have just flown by! Ra
  • The one with more birthday cakes
    Finally, on August 1, we had what is becoming our annual backyard cookout and Allie birthday bash right here at home. We timed it so like last year , Vin's baseball team p
  • Avian Visitor at Night
    And so it came to pass that as I was relaxing in the living room as the last glow of the setting sun disappeared, a bird flew into the house. At first it just rested on th
  • Allie's 23 Month Birthday
    And Allie is now another month older. She was 23 months old last Tuesday, and now is not even a month away from her second birthday! How crazy is that? It feels just like
  • Happy Father's Day! (Backdated)
    This is a backdated entry in honor of Father's Day. I managed to pick out some gifts for Vin (seen below) and Allie and Lily got together and sent Vin an e-card. In keepin
  • Irfan's Player Character Saves The Day
    Irfan played his first complete Star Wars Role-Playing Game adventure today, as everyone's favourite intrepid astromech droid Artoo-Detoo. He was awesome at figuring out s
  • Irfan Meets a Cat
    It's not a stray because it seems to be well-fed, not unkempt and has a collar. It's prowling the corridors outside the tenth floor. Naturally, Irfan tries his best to hav
  • Blizzard! And Allie Plays in the Snow
    First big snowfall of 2010 today. We had some snow in December but since Allie had strep and all we decided not to expose her to the cold. But now she is better and we had
  • Trick or Treat!
      So last year , Allie was semi-kitted out for Halloween, but did not go trick or treating. Last night, the girl got dressed up and ran around outside the house, but we di
  • The one with the birthday cake
    Since there has been a demand for cake, here it is!!   * Please mouse over the pictures for captions On Sunday, July 26th, we held a small gathering, a cookout and potluck
  • The one with the birthday crepes
    Two days after Allie's first birthday was Vin's birthday! And since it was his day, he got to pick what he wanted as his birthday treat and he chose crepes. This is my fir
  • Allie's 12 Month (aka First) Birthday
    Can you believe it???? Allie had her very first birthday, and turned a YEAR old last Wednesday, July 22! Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to Al
  • Allie's 11 Month Birthday
    Well, somebody's pleased to be 11 months old!! That's right, the girl was 11 months old last Monday, June 22, 2009. Another fun-filled month has gone by. It seems like I p
  • Allie's 8 Month Birthday
    This past month has also gone by in a whirlwind. I can't believe it, but Allie is now 8 months old (last Sunday, March 22)! She's just continuing to grow and develop befor
  • A Visitor!
    During the time of the big hu-ha (laptop dying + snowfall + sad miserable cold Sila), we had a welcome visitor here in Southwestern Ohio! Unfortunately, the weather being
  • Sequence of Events
    I have a few backlogged blog entries to make, and here is the sequence of events detailing why they were delayed: 1. Thursday January 22, 2009 - Allie's 6-month birthday.
  • Ashley and Her Parents Come for a Visit
    Teik Sing, Michelle and adorable little Ashley took some time to come over for dinner with us on Friday. They fly back home next Saturday. Clear skies, guys. Check out the
  • Lines of Communications
    Commemorating Sila's birthday on the 29th, we have here a series of screencaptures taken from Skype on Atok Irfan & Alya's computer in Sitiawan The proliferation of the in
  • Moments of Transitions
    In anticipation of Irfan's schooling days, we bought a new desk for him, which came by pretty cheap at Carrefour. After hauling the furniture, allowing it to percolate for
  • December Musings
    Here we are, December again. There was snow on the ground last week, and it has since melted. However, as I write this entry, it has begun to snow again. Winter has arrive
  • Hair! The Sequel
    So, I finally did it! a) I got a haircut b) I left Allie at home with Vin for the first time. Oh my. It was more than a little nerve-wracking. Vin had expressed milk in th
  • Musings on The Chicken
    It's been months now since we last saw the chicken . I wonder whatever happened to it? Aside from having made it into the blog, and becoming one of the entry header pictur
  • Happy Halloween!
    Although today is Halloween, for some reason, our town decided to do Beggars Night last night. So we filled our candy bowl and awaited the trick or treaters. Of which ther
  • Allie's 3 Month Birthday
    Yesterday, Allie passed her first quarter-year mark. She turned three months old! Wheeeee! Of course this means pictures! You know the drill - there will be baby pictures
  • A Time of Reunion 2: The Sequel
    Last year, we had a gathering up here at the Tenth Floor. This year we found some time to coordinate another, but this time it was after Aidilfitri. So it doubled as an Ai
  • Allie's 2 Month Birthday
    We can't hardly believe it, but time has flown and last Monday, Allie was 2 months old! Here's what she did on her 2 month birthday: * Mouse over pictures for captions She
  • Six Years Old Today
    It's September 21st again and once more it's time for Irfan's birthday. Wearing his Iron Man t-shirt a gift from Ayah Cik, he greeted the arrival of his cousin Aiman (as w
  • In Ike's Path
    You've all heard about Ike and the devastation it wreaked in Texas and other places. Well, Ike came through here last Sunday. It was very strange - bright sunny day, and h
  • A Conjunctivitis Onslaught
    Well, it's not really an onslaught, but Irfan's right eye seem to be suffering from viral conjunctivitis. He's home from school today with a note from the doctor, and seem
  • Irfan Moves Pieces Around The Board
    Irfan's Cik Emma got a free chessboard after a trip to the PC Fair at KLCC . So I spent a short while teaching Irfan to play chess, showing him how the various pieces move
  • Communications As If It's Science Fiction
    Earlier today (well, about 5 minutes ago) Hisham, Ain and Irfan talked with Sila, Vin, Atok Irfan and Opah Irfan for almost an hour with one of those new-fangled tee vee p
  • Nursery - Part 1
    So to while away the time until the baby arrives, how about a look at the nursery? It's almost finished - but here's a view of it from the beginning until what it looks li
  • Springtime, Finally!
    YAYYYYYY! I think the snow is over (knock wood)! The daffodils finally bloomed, and our party-crashing lilacs (or hyacinths?) have crashed the party again! Check them out:
  • GRRRRRRRR SNOW GRRRRRRRR BLIZZARD - Follow up
    So those of you who romanticize snow, and think it's cool and stuff, sure it looks pretty until you realize that in order to get out of the house you have to shovel the en
  • GRRRRRRRR SNOW GRRRRRRRR BLIZZARD
    OK, people! What is the deal? It is freaking March 8th, 30 miles north of Kentucky, and what do we have? A foot of snow on the ground! Blizzard conditions! WTF???? Look at
  • Guess Who's Back In Town?
    What the title says....
  • Irfan: Five Years After the Day
    Tonight was Irfan's 5th birthday, as can be noted via the photo of his cake below. See? It's in the shape of the number five. Five. Five candles, ah ah ah. But yeah, Ain n
  • Dog Days of Summer
    August has been a gruelling month in Southwestern Ohio. We might have seen a lot of rain in the Pacific Northwest when we visited, but from when we got home to this past M
  • Sneak Attack Irfan
    Here we have in the living room a pile of pillows of various shapes and sizes. You might think it's harmless and drop your guard as you unwittingly walk by this scene in t
  • A Time of Reunion
    We don't get together that much these days, but when we do the survivors of the ACS Sitiawan, SPM 1990 batch, create one hell of a ruckus when we sit around the table talk
  • Spring Flowers
    Spring is springing!! Even though it's a high of 40F (5C) today, and there looks to be little granules of snow falling from the sky (no accumulation so far tonight) and th
  • 10 Reasons not to go outside
    After about a week of rain and snow flurries and overcast skies (luckily it wasn't too too cold so no snow stuck), Friday was a sunny day. Cold and windy, but the sun was
  • Rabies anybody?
    While Abah and Mak were visiting with us last year, Abah took an avid interest in the wildlife around here. Here's a squirrel eating from the container of seeds Vin puts o
  • In a galaxy far, far away... Eid Mubarak!
    Eid Mubarak and Selamat Hari Raya to everyone! This year, for the first time, Mak and Abah came to spend raya with us, so we had a nice quiet celebration, just the 4 of us
  • In a galaxy far, far away... Part I
    After Yope, Yong, Emma, Irfan, Wan Ngah and Aji sent Abah and Mak to KLIA, they embarked on a long, arduous journey where finally they landed in the Cincinnati/Northern Ke
  • Hair!
    OK, so I didn't actually go see the musical Hair while I was in New York City on Saturday, but here's some news on hair: I cut mine!! Here's a picture of me from this past
  • Exactly Four Years Ago Today...
    ... Irfan Shafiq was born just before 5 p.m. in the maternity ward at Kuala Lumpur Hospital. He caused his mother to be stuck at the hospital for almost 12 hours before fi
  • Damage Report
    As much as I'm extremely happy there's roof over our heads (and ten floors plus change beneath us), I am very much zonked out by the accumulating damages in our house for
  • Today The Light Switch...
    ... Tomorrow the world!!! Earlier today Irfan realised that he has a new super power: the ability to reach any high switch on the wall with his hands (albeit on tippy toes
  • Afternoon Storms
    For the last month or so, the late afternoons, before the onset of dusk, is usually time for heavy rainstorms. They're so heavy that sometimes, the hills in front of the a
  • There's A Dragon In The House
    Half past ten post meridian equals no sunlight or its dim red afterglow outdoors. Thus if lights are out indoors, it's dark. Last night we were about to go to sleep when I
  • The Amazing Hisham and Son Balancing Team
  • The Library
    At the end of last summer, we finally finished our library project. We turned the front room from a room where the books were stacked on the floor to having books sorted o
  • Spectral Visitors And Other Matters
    Irfan's Cik Su F is here until tomorrow, and she's sleeping in the room next to ours. Some time last night, I was told she woke Emma up, trembling with absolute fear. It s
  • Home Sweet Home, After A Fashion
    We're back on the tenth floor of this apartment building. The tiles on the bathroom floor are coming apart. The extra room still reeks of termite poison . We have the smal
  • Irfan Cuts His Cake and Eats It Too
    "I want to eat the Happy Birthday Cake!" Irfan begged for hours after seeing the number three-shaped vanilla cake with the Tigger-esque toon on it. He wasn't getting it un
  • Henna
    Malay weddings aren't complete without henna . Malay culture isn't the only one to include henna in its rites and rituals. Henna is an ancient tradition practised by many
  • Arise, New Graphics Tablet!
    The other cool stuff I bought the same day I bought the table is this Wacom Graphire 3 graphics tablet. In fact, I've been wanting it for many years now that when I finall
  • Tales of the Prototype and the Table
    Last week, we printed out some of the prototype pages for the first ever Hishgraphics e-book. To be honest, prior to this I do have a fair amount of doubts about the proje
  • Picture of a Second Birthday
    Last September, Irfan celebrated his second birthday by eviscerating a cake as seen in the attached image. This year perhaps we'll celebrate his third by watching Firefly.

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