Amin is 5IVE!!!!! A few weeks ago....

So someone (everyone) noticed that I'm writing a bit too much about fish in this blog, even tho I have another dedicated FISHAN BLOG. Even my last post about a family picnic featured a clip of fishies hehehe...What can i say, I need help!!

So Amin celebrated his birthday last month...it actually happened BEFORE the fishing and the picnic but somehow those stories made it first!! Dont know wot happened hehe

I was always meaning to post some clips and pics from Amin's fifth birthday but I just never got round to it.

Until last night, when i was replaying the "Haapppy Birtthhdayy to You" scene clip for Ihsan from my phone when Amin, who was right next to us, was syncing along to the soundtrack, word for word, sound for sound, cackle for cackle. It was then I realized how important that day was/is to him. I stopped counting when i passed 30 (twice!!?) but he's only had 5, maybe 2 or 3 that he actually remembers!!! hahaha

SO here is the clip. Happy Birthday my son, We Love You. Don't send me and Mommy to an Old Folks home, mmkay???




Here are some random pics from the Party WWWOOOOHOOOOOOOO!!!!

The Cake

Amin explaining the finer points of Ben 10 "arm-crossing-ology" to Maklong

With Auntie Aya, who kind-heartedly "ordered" the cake from the kedai

My lil butterfly Angel (with antennae)

Just hangin' out....

Aisha : "Berapa lama lagiii niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii...??????!!!"
Fatima : Victory to those who patiently wait.



Ciao Gang!!!

ABAH, Sungai tu Laut ke??? @ Kemensah

Peace folks,
One common experience that many kids nowadays (or maybe in the future) may not have the chance to experience is a river picnic outing or "Mandi Sungai"!!!! It is by far one of the most exhilarating, shiverry, goosebump-inducing time of one's life....but under the canopy of the tropical jungle with the warm sunbeams poking through, the cold wet and warm dry seem to meld into a sheer comfort and joy. And the activities, my God, just name it. All you need is a ball, or tire swing or even some pieces of floating wood...and the possibilities are ENDLESS!!
When I was growing up in Seremban, we would drive up Jalan Kolo Pilah, up the mountain to stop by the roadside at Ulu Bendul. Back then it was just a convenient stop by the windy spirally road, now its a commercialized tourist spot with eateries and cement tables and chairs. We used to just park at the lay-by and pick a spot. There weren't too many people picnicking there and you could pretty much pick a spot to lay your tikar and stuff, and be only 5 metres from the cool running stream. The water wasn't too deep but enough to float by if you just lay ur whole body down.


FAST FORWARD TO THE PRESENT : I took the wife and kids up to Kg. Kemensah back in February. Kg Kemensah is just 10 minutes uphill from Zoo Negara. It's such a hidden paradise within the Kelang (and Keramat) Valley which my pal, Shah Brazan, introduced me to. We were scouting for fishan spots (surprise surprise!!) when i discovered there were chalets and picnic spots by the river and small waterfalls. There was also a lively kampung there, so driving up that small uphill road is a bit daunting for first-timers especially when trying to squeeze two vehicles going the opposite directions.



But it's totally worth it. My kids have never experienced Mandi Sungai before so they were confused. The title of this post was something that Amin actually asked me hehehehe. Poor boy, so familiar with Terengganu and Kuantan beaches, he has no idea where all this water comes from.

Feeding the fishies in the clear water


My wife had the foresight to cook and tapaw lots of food like pasta bolognaise (the kids' fave), roti canai and tuna sandwiches. We had a blast!!! Thanks sayang!!

















There was a tire swing which the kids were fighting over whose turn it was to ride. We fed some baby fishes with bread. They came right up and swam over our feet and nibbled on some of my old skin like a fish spa hehehe. At first the kids were afraid of the cold water, but after 15 minutes, they were sungai water babies. After the first water session, we came up for snacks and the kids were famished!!! Here's a vid, check out Ihsan the lil cutie makan roti!!!

Makan roti after crossing the English Channel


After food, we relaxed for 15 minutes before hitting the water again!!! Was such a GREAT TIME, Alhamdulillah. And i hope the kids learnt a few useful things that day, like Rivers start in mountains and flow down into the Sea. When they found out that river water is not salty, they kept "washing" their tongues with it hehehe. Good thing our spot was the uppermost tourist spot so there was little chance of contamination.

Amin doing the most annoying thing one can do on a water-themed outing


All in all, it was a wonderful experience. Give me a shout if you need coordinates. I might post up some Google Map links, if i feel like it :P



Ciao gang, Salaaammm

MAN vs FISH : Skuad Palapes II

Hey peepol,

As some of you may know, I've been posting more here about fishan than family, so me and my fellow fishianados have set up a dedicated blog for all things fishy : guerillafishan.blogspot.com. Check it out when you have the time!!!

But today's post is a family one, although it's about family members going fishan.

Let me introduce you to the latest guerilla recruit to the whole fishan family hehehehe, my eldest nephew....

Shukri @ Kiki @ The Kaka Monyet hehehehe

Here he is with his first ever catch, a nice sized pacuuuu....
It put up quite a good fight, and Kiki loved every second of it!!! Him kissing the fish LOL!


The day's fishan started out a bit slow..there were a few nibbles but nothing to bring up. Then i decided to switch from dedak to isi ayam bait, so the boys could practice casting better cuz isi ayam is more solid and easier to throw farther. We also moved to another spot, and Kiki cut and set the bait, cast and pulled up the Pacu all by himself. Not like when i helped Amin with his catch (see earlier post), Kiki did it all by himself.

After the first one, he was all confident and even picked out his own spot away from me hehehe. Wouldnt you know it, the kid pulled up 2 good-sized Baung. Not bad for his first time eh? But he wasn't satisfied; the initial fight with the relentless Pacu had him longing for MORE ACTION, not the general malaise of the Baung, which gives up wayyy too easily.

Originally, it was his lil bro Zayd who wanted to go fishing. But i guess he was a bit too small for now and couldn't control his casting so much. So he and Amin proceeded on the sidelines with what they call "Project : Meanwhile" Catching baby fishies with my brand new tangguk HAHAHA...these kids read too much, i tells yah.

Here's wot Project : Meanwhile looks like :
The day ended with 3 grown fish, a bottle of baby fishies and Amin wetting his pants from all the excitement....( "Why didnt u tell me u needed to GO!!!???" " U never ASKED!!!??") Grrrrrrr

So yeah, Kiki wanted to go fishing again the next day but as responsible Uncle, i said NO, tomorrow's MY fishan day hehehehe

Laters!!!