I was clueless on the topic to write as my first article until I met a neighbour this morning who didn't make me feel guilty at all with her remarks. To cut the story short, her comments were centered on my passion for travelling with my friends.
As a busy mum of 4 kids, I believe that I owe it to myself to be happy. I am sure, most mothers will agree with me – it is all about timing and juggling your schedule. I am proud with myself with how much I do for my family every day. Therefore, I really don’t have those guilty pangs when I take a few hours every month to go out with my friends or when I take a few days every 2 or 3 months to travel, either alone or with friends.
Travel
It is always good to be away for a while.
I cherish my ‘me time’ pounding the pavement of cluttered Pratunam’s morning market in Bangkok. I enjoy the laidback charm of scenic Ubud in Bali. I also love the retail therapy in noisy Mangga Dua in Jakarta. And to tell the truth, my kids and husband benefit a happier, less-stressed mummy/wife. Or is it the new baju & shoes that they enjoy most?
Most of the times, I travel alone but travelling is more fun if you can find a buddy. In my case, it’s my best friend Connie whom I got to know while working in Standard Chartered Bank. Through the trips we made since 2004, Connie & I developed a real friendship and camaraderie. Now, we both make it a point to travel together at least 3 times a year. Thus far in 2009, we were in Jakarta last March during my birthday and we will be travelling again next Wednesday. We are still negotiating on the date and destination of our third trip this year.
Friends
Life is too short – marriage and children should never be a deterrent to forging friendship.
With work, family matters to attend to and those never-ending bickering of my 4 demanding kids, it can be very difficult to find time to catch up with good friends. But if you don’t regularly check in with them, your friends won’t stay good friends for long. While my family is very important to me, my friends are the ones who keep me sane.
A fabulous way to keep a smile firmly fixed on my face is to gather with my friends. At least once a week, I must have breakfast with my breakfast ‘kaki’ i.e. Connie, Aida & Sharon. It’s not expensive of course as it is always at the Hilton Corner @ Cosway but it’s a great way to catch up with them. Once in a while, I go out with few girlfriends for dinner. For some people, they prefer to be home early after work. But I will never feel too tired to grab a dinner with my good friends in favour of getting home early on Friday to relax. Feeling tired the next day for me is a small price to pay for nurturing friendship. After all, it is not every week – just once a month!
However with Facebook, I’m glad that I found friends from the past – old friends from secondary school in Ipoh and ITM Shah Alam, friends I lost track when they moved overseas, friends from my temporary job, my childhood friends – people from the past who were very special to me, and could well be again! I’m sure that we still have things in common. And for that reason, I’m really looking forward to spending times with my friends - Aida, Liza, Joe, Min, Jas and of course my partner-in-crime; Connie when we travel this year as we have planned.
To all my friends, thanks so much for the friendship - all of you are very special to me. And to Yazid and my four kids; Daniel, Faris, Lia and Sara – thanks for your support, understanding and patience (patience?! eh! terbalik dah ni) – I love you all so much.
As a busy mum of 4 kids, I believe that I owe it to myself to be happy. I am sure, most mothers will agree with me – it is all about timing and juggling your schedule. I am proud with myself with how much I do for my family every day. Therefore, I really don’t have those guilty pangs when I take a few hours every month to go out with my friends or when I take a few days every 2 or 3 months to travel, either alone or with friends.
Travel
It is always good to be away for a while.
I cherish my ‘me time’ pounding the pavement of cluttered Pratunam’s morning market in Bangkok. I enjoy the laidback charm of scenic Ubud in Bali. I also love the retail therapy in noisy Mangga Dua in Jakarta. And to tell the truth, my kids and husband benefit a happier, less-stressed mummy/wife. Or is it the new baju & shoes that they enjoy most?
Most of the times, I travel alone but travelling is more fun if you can find a buddy. In my case, it’s my best friend Connie whom I got to know while working in Standard Chartered Bank. Through the trips we made since 2004, Connie & I developed a real friendship and camaraderie. Now, we both make it a point to travel together at least 3 times a year. Thus far in 2009, we were in Jakarta last March during my birthday and we will be travelling again next Wednesday. We are still negotiating on the date and destination of our third trip this year.
Friends
Life is too short – marriage and children should never be a deterrent to forging friendship.
With work, family matters to attend to and those never-ending bickering of my 4 demanding kids, it can be very difficult to find time to catch up with good friends. But if you don’t regularly check in with them, your friends won’t stay good friends for long. While my family is very important to me, my friends are the ones who keep me sane.
A fabulous way to keep a smile firmly fixed on my face is to gather with my friends. At least once a week, I must have breakfast with my breakfast ‘kaki’ i.e. Connie, Aida & Sharon. It’s not expensive of course as it is always at the Hilton Corner @ Cosway but it’s a great way to catch up with them. Once in a while, I go out with few girlfriends for dinner. For some people, they prefer to be home early after work. But I will never feel too tired to grab a dinner with my good friends in favour of getting home early on Friday to relax. Feeling tired the next day for me is a small price to pay for nurturing friendship. After all, it is not every week – just once a month!
However with Facebook, I’m glad that I found friends from the past – old friends from secondary school in Ipoh and ITM Shah Alam, friends I lost track when they moved overseas, friends from my temporary job, my childhood friends – people from the past who were very special to me, and could well be again! I’m sure that we still have things in common. And for that reason, I’m really looking forward to spending times with my friends - Aida, Liza, Joe, Min, Jas and of course my partner-in-crime; Connie when we travel this year as we have planned.
To all my friends, thanks so much for the friendship - all of you are very special to me. And to Yazid and my four kids; Daniel, Faris, Lia and Sara – thanks for your support, understanding and patience (patience?! eh! terbalik dah ni) – I love you all so much.
