Which one...

I have problems in re-uploading the pictures. I'll try it again some other time. But this is the answer:

Ir drinks juice.
Ar doesn't.
Ir put his arm around Ar.
Ar touching his cheek.
Ir in red.
Ar in blue.
Ir in green donut.
Ar in blue donut.
Ar holding red stick.
Ir in yellow, Ar in blue.

MY ENGLISH

Is not good. Sorry if I some time use wrong words, sentences, phrase, grammars… I don’t speak English daily, and I’m improving my ability in this.

“Cross the Wrong Answer”

It was Ibit’s English test.
The instruction was clear. And the example was also clear:
This is a/an orange (the ‘a’ was crossed)

I have explained to Ibit when to use ‘a’ and when to use ‘an’. She understood and she did the test according to the instruction.
But she got an ‘O’. “Teacher said I should have crossed the right answer”. I took a look to her test sheet and saw how her teacher circled the right answer with red pen.
Well, usually, in a multiple choices, the instruction is ‘choose the right answer’ – by crossing the letter in front of it. But this isn’t a multiple choice. There were no letters in front of the choices. And the choices were all the same for all number --- ‘a’ or ‘an’.

So I called the teacher and asked about that, Miss Y insist that Ibit misunderstood the instructions.
“O really?” I asked. I read the instruction and the example slowly and clearly for her. They matched so right. She started to get a doubt and then said, “Ok then. Tell Ibit to bring her test sheet tomorrow, I’ll check it out. I guess I’ll need to tell the whole class to.” And she also said, “Well. This is just a daily test anyway”. Fine. This time is a daily test. What if it happens in a semester exam?

I remember when I was in high school having my final exam, subject Math. I was in physic class. During doing the test, I was wondering. ‘This test is way too easy’. And then, 10 minutes before the time was out, I just realized that I have done the wrong sheet. I worked on the test for biology class, off course they were easy! What can I do in 10 minutes? I’ve been doing it for almost two hours! (Years later I saw in TV Mr. Bean doing math test ‘calculus’ and ‘trigonometry’, and picked the wrong sheet. G, it made me feel so silly). Lucky I got 5. The answer sheet was same for both physic and biology class. I may have done the different sheet, but for the multiple choices, I guess I crossed right for some numbers.

Well. This is a lesson. Be sure to read the instructions clearly.

just another reebok steps

right double step, steptouch L-R
L step R knee (turn 180) - R step L knee (turn 180)
V steps left
diagonal right, diagonal left
R step back L knee (turn 180) - L step back R knee (turn 180)
R step back L knee (turn 180) - L step back R knee (turn 180)
V step right, R step L curl and back
V step left, L step R curl and back
--- left verse---

Whoa!! That's all I can remember. The rest was so complicated, and I could only do it with instructions. Plus a real high hi-impact!
I knew En wouldn't let me look ordinary, so I worked it out. Well, I looked great, but I also suffer great.

I'm fresh when I'm sweat, sweat is great!!

Belajar Scrapbooking

I tried to make these...

And Ibit was interested, and decided to make this for her science homework, describe about starfruit- tree.

which one is Ir - which one is Ar

clue: pictures on the right side of this page

the most beautiful girl in the world

I and Ibit were in Ibit’s bed, talked about this and that, until we got to the part when we talked about our neighbor who has moved couple months ago.

Ibit three years ago

"We can visit them someday", I said.
“Yes, I want to, I want to... But.... will Bim still remember me?”
“Of course he will. How can he forget the most beautiful girl in the neighborhood?”
Ibit punched me and laughed.
“Ibu, you know I’m not beautiful”
I was shocked. Most girl will love to be told they're beautiful.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m black, and black girls are not beautiful”
“What about me ?”
“You’re not either”
“But darling we’re not black, we’re brown”
“We’re dark, that’s just the same”
“Who is beautiful then?”
“Santa?”
Santa is her friend, she has a little lighter skin.
“If you’re not beautiful, what are you?”
“I’m just, ordinary”
“Do you want to be beautiful?”
“No, I dont. I’m glad with what I am. Alhamdulillah I don’t have blemishes on my face”
I smiled.
“That’s because you’re still so young. Sooner or later you’ll have some”
“Really ?”
“Yes”
“That’s fine, I’m still grateful everything on my face works. I can see with my eyes, I can speak with my lips, I can smell with my nose..”
I enfolded her in my arms. I tried so hard not to cry, I don't want her to think I was sad to realize that we are not beautiful. I (pretend to be wise) said,
“You know, there are so many things more important than the look. You are a nice girl, you are kind, caress, and smart. And that what will make people love you”
“Yeah... some girls have it all. They’re beautiful, and kind, and smart... But I'm okay with myself”
I hugged her tighter.
I also never think I was beautiful. But I never feel so comfortable about that like Ibit does. She just made me do. My beautiful angel, the most beautiful girl in the world.

LOVE ME FOR ME

Being put aside? I get used to it.
Disepelekan? Aku sudah biasa dibegitukan.

Some people think I'm a weirdo. Well.... I'm no ordinary girl. People who loves me are those who know the real me.
Banyak yang berpikir aku ini orang aneh. Well... aku bukan perempuan kebanyakan. Orang yang mencintaiku adalah mereka yang tahu, siapa aku.

Identical or Fraternal ??

My twin...

Kembarku...

They had one big placenta. But the doctor said it could be one big placenta for two, or, two placentas that grew too close so they became one. So I assumed my twin is identical. They are so similar in many ways. But they grew became two different persons, and I'm glad about it.

Mereka punya satu plasenta besar. Kata dokter, itu bisa jadi satu plasenta besar buat berdua, atau, dua plasenta yang tumbuh berdekatan sehingga menyatu. Jadi aku asumsikan mereka identik. Mereka sangat mirip di banyak hal. Tapi mereka tumbuh menjadi dua orang yang berbeda, dan aku bersyukur.

I even sometimes misscall them. 'Hey Ir'. And he stood still. When I got close, it's Ar! Their father once pinched Ar because he thought it was Ir who was being naughty. So Ar cried, starred at him and say 'But I'm Ar. I was good'.

Kadang-kadang aku salah panggil. 'Hey IR'. Tapi dia diam saja. Waktu kudekati, ternyata itu Ar!. Bapakny apernah mencubit Ar karena dipikirnya itu Ir yang nakal. Jadi Ar nangis, sambil menatap melas ke Bapaknya dan berkata, 'Tapi aku Ar, aku nggak nakal'.

this is Ar

Ar is much noisy. He's fussy. He sings all day long since he was 2. He learns things so fast. And he cries more often than Ir. He always confuse when he has to decide something (ex: Do you want ice tea or orange juice?; which car do you want?; are you staying at home or go with us?), He's so interested in computer.

Ar itu rame. Dia cerewet. Dia suka bernyanyi sepanjang hari sejak masih 2 tahun. Dia cepat belajar. Dia lebih sering nangis dibanding Ir. Dia selalu bingung kalau harus memilih (co: Kamu mau es teh atau es jeruk?; kamu suka mobil-mobilan yang mana?; kamu mau ikut atau di rumah saja?). Dia suka sekali komputer.

and this is Ir

While Ir is so quite. He doesn't speak a lot, but once he does, you'll be surprise with what he says. He also doesn't sing alot, but I remember once, he sang along to a song on the radio, in the background vocal version. He needs a little more time to understand things, but once he understand, he'll be able to conclude things related to it. He always feel sure about what he choose. And still I can't see in what he's really interested. I mean, he likes cars - but don't every boy do?

Ir anteng banget. Dia nggak banyak bicara, tapi sekali ngomong, mengejutkan. Dia juga gak banyak nyanyi, tapi aku ingat pernah suatu saat dia ngikutin lagu di radio, pake suara dua. Dia butuh waktu lebih lama untuk mengerti, tapi sekali mengerti, dia akan bikin kesimpulan tentang hal-hal yang berkaitan. Dia selalu yakin akan pilihannya. Dan aku belum tahu dia suka apa. DIa suka mobil - tapi kan semua anak laki-laki begitu...

So I think it's no big deal wether they're identical or fraternal. I believe every child is unique.

Jadi kupikir, gak masalah mereka satu atau dua telur. Aku yakin setiap anak itu unik.

It's nice to be home

I got home. My children were awaiting in front of the door. Ibit has cut some paper into small parts and they poured it on me as I walked in. Oh so sweet..
Aku pulang. Anak-anak menunggu di depan Pintu. Ibit gunting-gunting kertas sampe kecil-kecil... lalu mereka sebar ke aku ketika aku masuk. Manis sekali....

'welcome Ibu!'
Selamat datang, Ibu

A week away was so hard for all of us. But now I'm home!
Jauhan seminggu itu berat. Tapi aku sudah di rumah sekarang!

CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE

Wise men say
only fools rush in
but I can't help
falling in love with you

Shall I stay
would that be a sin
if I can't help
falling in love with you

Like a river flows
surely to the sea
darling so it goes
somethings are meant to be

Take my hand
take my whole life too
for I can't help
falling in love with you

Flowers

I've been singing for years. I've got those applauses, and those nice comments. But flowers?

This is my first flower from the audience.

I was singing Julio Iglesias's 'Can't Help Falling in Love'. In the middle of the song, while I was working on my anticlimax, people gave applause.... this guy came over and handed me a bundle of flowers. It's so sweet, made me want to cry. I want to keep it forever, but I think I can't. They are real flowers.

Ladies and gentlemen... please welcome...

HADIRIN SEKALIAN, SAMBUTLAH......

NELSONS!!!




and...





ALICIA KEYS!!





kidding!!
becanda!

They're just my kids and their friends performing on stage about two weeks ago. Why I post something from two weeks ago? Well, I've been thinking how I can make it dramatic. This is my best idea, and still isn't dramatic enough I guess...
cuma anak-anakku yang manggung bersama teman-teman mereka sekitar dua minggu yang lalu. Kenapa aku post sesuatu yang udah dua minggu yang lalu? Aku pingin bikin sesuatu yang dramatis. Jadinya seperti ini, gak terlalu dramatis ya....

I had to promise Ar-Ir 'Hot Wheels' before they agreed to perform (and they got it the morning after). While Ibit would just say yes anytime you ask her to, she loves to perform. But she was so upset, coz her friends 'didn't sing right'. I had to let her hear every mom said that the performance was great, to confince her that nobody realized something wrong.
Aku harus ngiming-imingi Ar-Ir 'Hotwheels' supaya mereka mau tampil. Ibit sih gampang aja, dia suka tampill.Tapi dia agak kecewa karena teman-temanna 'nyanyinya gak bener'. Aku harus membuat dia mendengarkan ibu-ibu berkomentar bahwa pertunjukkannya hebat, supaya dia yakin gak ada yang sadar ada yang salah.


She didn't cry, but still she hummed, 'They sang wrong'.
Dia gak jadi nangis sih, tapi masih nggrundel, "nyanyinya salah"

Well... what can I say?

room sweet room

I like our new paint on tv-room. Especially the stars. I planned to paint the stars using some scotlight poster color. But a friend sugested me to put on some glow-in-the-dark-toys. It doesn't look bright in light. (May be I need a dark blue, not marine blue. Marine should be for ocean-look. But I thought too dark would make our space feels poky) But in the night if I turn out all the light, they really glow, feels like we are underneath the stars..

I know this isn't large enough to be two boys's room.

And this isn't good enough to be a girl's room.

But they are happy with what they just got. They're own rooms.

Those two 'rooms' were supposed to be one room, for my twin, while Ibit 's was some room under. But she wanted 'a room upstairs'. So they shared, and okay with that.

Some day I'll give them what they need: territory and privacy.

wedding pictures

I went to bed at about half an hour after midnight last night. I arranged my pictures of my wedding day, which was happening over eight years ago!
My husband always felt strange that we didn’t have any photos of that day in our house, except the big framed one on our room wall. We have printed two sets, but left one at my parent’s house, and the other one at my in law’s. We didn’t keep one.
So we decided to print one more set for us.
I just realized that we’ve made everybody busy that day. But I hope they were really truly happy for us.
And I hope this happiness will never end....

When you have a boss....

... in this almost-impossible-to-quit-job... you can only do what he says. You may give him advices, but it's up to him to decide, and you to do the decision. Whether you like or not.

Well, it's a good thing anyway. He said it is for my self-development. Maybe he's right. Maybe I was just too selfish to say 'ok'.
I'll do it anyway.

Daily Morning Business that I won't Leave

Kesibukan pagi yang tidak akan kutinggalkan

..... would be:
.....adalah:

1. Preparing my children's breakfast. They only want sandwiches and a glass of milk each. Ibit some times prepares her own when I wake up a little late. She's always been so sweet.
1. Menyiapkan sarapan anak-anakku. Mereka makan roti lapis dan segelas susu. Ibit kadang-kadang bikin sendiri kalau aku telat bangun. Dia memang anak manis.

2. Cook for my children's lunch. Nanny would cook the rice, but I do the vegetables and others. I only do simple cooking.
2. Masak makan siang anak-anakku. Mbak-nya yang masak nasi, tapi tetep aku yang masak sayur dan lauknya. Aku masak yang simpel-simpel aja.

3. Bathe my twins. When I start undress Ar, he would say 'Ir first'. If I undress Ir, he would say 'Ar first'. So I (pretend) leave them and say, 'No body wants to get bath, no body goes to school. I'll just take bath and go to work'. They both will run to me and say 'Bathe me' :D
3. Mandiin kembar. Kalau aku mulai nyopotin baju Ar, dia akan bilang 'Ir dulu'. Kalau aku mau nyopot bajunya Ir, dia akan bilang, 'Ar dulu'. Jadi aku (pura-pura) berlalu dan bilang 'Nggak ada yang mau mandi, nggak ada yang mau sekolah. Ibu mau mandi lalu kerja'. Dua-duanya akan mendekatiku dan bilang 'mandiin...'. :D


...those are the least that I can do, since I leave them morning-to-evening working 5 days a week.
... itu yang paling tidak, bisa kulakukan, karena aku meninggalkan mereka pagi-sampai-sore bekerja 5 hari seminggu.

what do you do to be a woman?

Aku ini cuek urusan merawat tubuh.
Pake hand body misalnya, paling-paling sehabis mandi -- kalau inget.
Pake pelembab muka misalnya, pagi hari -- kalau inget
Bersihin muka, malam hari, kalau inget. Kadang inget tapi kalah ma ngantuk...
Pake make up -- kalau mau ke kondangan.
I'm so careless about my body.
Using body lotion: after bath -- if not forget.
Using face moisturizer: in the morning -- if not forget
Cleaning face: before bed -- if not forget. I sometime remember, but sleepy don't let me to.
Wearing make up: only if I have to go to a party.
...
Aku punya teman, Kulitnya halus seperti kaca. Bersih,hampir tanpa noda. Selalu bermake up, walaupun tipis, tapi lengkap. Aku jarang pake make up, tapi aku tahu dia pake lipstick, eyeshadow, blush on, pensil alis -- tapi tanpa maskara.
Suatu hari kami ada rapat, dari pagi...
Seperti biasa dia tampil cantik anggun mempesona. Sedangkan aku, seperti biasa, natural (baca: No make-up at all).
I have a friend, her skin is so delicate like glass. So clean and spotless. She alway wears make up, thin, but complete. I knoe I don't wear make up that much, but I know she wear lipstick, eyeshadow, blush on, eyebrow pencil, but no mascara
One day we had a meeting together, started in the morning.
As usual she appeared with elegance beauty. While I was so natural (read: no make-up at all)
....
Rapatnya lamaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa banget.
Jam 1 siang waktunya istirahat makan dan sholat. Temanku itu menghilang. Aku makan, sholat, lalu balik ke tempat dudukku. Tidur tengkurep di meja menunggu rapat dilanjutkan, ngantuk you know.
Ruangan mulai ramai lagi. Orang-orang mulai berdatangan. Aku ke kamar mandi, cuci muka, lalu balik ke ruangan lagi. Tak lama, si cantik muncul.
The meeting was soooooooooooooooooo long.
At 13.00, it was time to break. I had lunch, sholat and back to the meeting room. I put my face downward the table and sleep to charge my battery -- I was so sleepy, you know.
The room was starting to get noisy again, people have comeback. So I went to the toilet to wash my face, and back in. Not so long after, the 'beauty' got in.
....
Dengan make up yang sudah diperbaiki, dan senyum yang manis...
With a made-up make up, and a nice smile...

Oh, I wish I could be just like that!
But Still I don't think I could... Ough....