Last Saturday on the 28th December 2013 I watched Bahayanya Wanita the theatre which was staged at Panggung Sari Istana Budaya with my husband organised by my cousin-in-law Nadia Monira. It's a comedy and partially musical theatre. The whole show was super funny, light and entertaining yet filled with lots of hidden messages. As I remembered, the full house audience of the show including myself laughed throughout the whole 3-hour show. The casts were Zizan Razak, Umie Aida, Erra Fazira, Erma Fatima, Lana Nordin, Johan As'ari and Nora Danish. All of them did an amazing job entertaining the audience! Zizan had great chemistry with all the other casts so I must say he did a superb job as the main character of the show. 

I have never seen Zizan performed before but he really was so funny with his antics as the main character who struggled to divide his time for his 3 wives who all have different characters and needs as a wife! Both my husband and I couldn't stop laughing throughout the whole show watching his flawless acting and spontaneous jokes. 

The theme was centred around marriage and polygamy but it was presented in a light comical manner. Probably the only part which made me a bit uncomfortable was some of the parts acted out by Johan As'ari as an Ustaz mentioning God's name in vain but in the end I realize there are some messages they were trying to convey to the audience. It is actually a reminder about men who uses religion to make them look good and pick up girls or attract the opposite sex. May God protect us all from bad hypocritical characters and characteristics!

There are about 18 songs performed by the actors and actresses whereby the songs were modified to suit the theme of the story. Gosh, just writing this out made me laugh! They were just a super funny bunch. The show runs from 20th December 2013 till 31st December 2013. (last day is today!)

All in all, as much as there is a high status for women as wives and mothers however, ladies shall always be reminded that our husband deserves the utmost respect no matter how successful we are in this temporary world we live in. An obedient wife and the husband being pleased with the wife is one of the path to paradise. Just as a good man is the one who treats his wife the best.

Just sharing here a few snippets from articles I read online together with its link.

(From Pampering wives and treating them kindly)

The last time I went to Istana Budaya was when I watched Yuna at Istana Budaya this year. Found some old blogposts of mine where I also blogged about my other experiences of watching theatre shows including the ones at Istana Budaya : Broadway's Dreamgirls the Musical , Terima Kasih Cinta & Brickfields Now & Then by Thor. There are some theatres that I went to this past few years that I did not blog about though because time did not permit. 

I still remember that my parents used to bring me to watch theatres and musical since I was 10 years old :) In Malaysia and overseas. Waaaay back before Istana Budaya existed. They liked to bring me to English theatres too. Remember going to Actors Studio below Dataran Merdeka, then Bangsar Shopping Centre. *reminscing*

Do watch and support our local theatre scene!

 

Anis Rahayu and Sasqia, Nadia Monira's friends coincidentally wore orange and green as well! 

Anyways, I wore a lovely mint green top. I like the soft colour of the top, the scallop detailing at the bottom as well as the lace detailing at the sleeves. Normally, a mint green coloured top will be more suitable to be worn during the day but this top is suitable to be worn at night as well. I matched it with the Swan White Tutu Skirt and a white scarf to bring out the colour of the top. 

 

 

 

Outfit details :

Top : Qistina Lacey Scallop Top by Thalassa from Lana Store

Arm Candy : Gift from my mother and late grandmother, Opah

Shawl : Paripari Shawls available at  ILoveTudung.com 

Photographer : @kneok the husband

PEACE & LOVE!

Just sharing this beautiful drawing made exclusively for my beloved daughter by my dear sister Joanna Felicia Read exactly a year ago, 30.12.2012. 60 days after I was warded at the hospital. 

She drew this while I was lying down on my hospital bed being on strict bedrest carrying Jibrael :) Oh, I miss that feeling carrying Jibrael in my belly. I remember it was a beautiful day and many friends from the office came to keep me, my husband and Jibrael company that day. They brought so many food for us and cheered me up playing Cranium!

I was flipping through the pages of the black book where family and friends who visited me, Jibrael and my husband at the hospital scribbled, drew and wrote wonderful things dedicated to Jibrael, me and Jibrael's father. I suddenly felt like taking a picture of this drawing just now and share it on my blog. 

Jibrael is loved by many and I am so blessed :)

Makes me happy to read all the things my dearest friends and family wrote inside all of the 5 black books filled with words and drawings. Touched my heart deeply to know that my daughter left a big mark in the lives of many through her brief visit in this world. Her visit in this world means the world to me. 

I am truly blessed to be a mother to a child in heaven :)

All praises to the Creator. 

I just found out today that the husband has to leave to London again for work tomorrow. The FOURTH time this past few months!!! He's been so busy with work and still is at the office this very moment (yes, it is normal for lawyers to work till midnight and beyond). Whatever it is, putting my feelings aside, I am pretty sure that Jibrael is very proud of her father and smiling from up above looking down on us :)

Alhamdulillah.

PEACE & LOVE!

Beautiful models, beautiful set up!

Scroll down to the bottom to see more pictures and videos of the event taken by the amateur moi. Yes, me. I know the pictures are not as clear as my recent photos because the photos were taken from my previous camera but I think the effect suits the Hauntingly Beautiful theme even more :) The event was unique, elegant and quite haunting. 

When I arrived, Cho told me she gave me the best seat in the house. I thought she was joking but it turns out that I sat next to the official photographers and videographer. Thank you Cho! It was a very organized and artistically curated event, everyone was assigned their seats (I was one of the front liners on duty to usher guests to their seats too) and the set-up was very unique which allowed the models to walk in front of all the guests around the whole room.

My beloved Wan terchinta and I. My mother.

Aida Ishak, Ruzana Ibrahim, Hasanah Hilmi, Nina, Farahana Azmin & Alia Alizar.

The talented designer with the models.

Beloved sister my Hasanah Hilmi and Ruzana Ibrahim. 

We were classmates since Standard 1 when we were 7 years old. 

Blessed to have friends who stick around through thick and thin, good times and bad times.

This show marks yet another milestone for Pu3. As Cho's cousin, I've watched her talent shine through from Pu3's beginning to now. It also means a lot to me that she has ventured into this territory because she really does have the talent. When I wanted to get married, the first person I went to to discuss my wedding dresses was with Cho. Her ideas and sketches were very good. Not only could she understand what I wanted, she made it better. I believed in her talent then, even though she was a little nervous to do mine as I was the first person to ask Pu3 to do all my four of my bridal dresses 3 and a half years ago with Cho doing two, and Enda Cho (my aunt Raja Noora Ashikin) doing the other two. Some photos of 2 of my bridal dresses are available on this blog (see Wedding portrait and  wedding photos). I recently wore my akad nikah top again in GAYA Pu3 for Mira's Wedding too.  

 Cuzzies : Cho, me, Putri Faralisa Sofia Adril and Putri Zaralisa Adril. 

Min was supposed to be in this picture too but couldn't find her 

even though we sat next to each other during the show.

Fasha Sandha, Ibu Putra Rayfal and Mama Putri Jibrael.

Cousins & cousins-in-law : Alia Alizar, Putri Zaralisa, Nadya Danish & Putri Faralisa

My parents, my aunties and cousins.

Cousins. Lop Ramelle, Tengku Azura, Lop Nazrain and then fiance now wifey, Nadia Monira :)

With the talented designer of Pu3 Designs. Heartiest congratulations. I'm so proud of you cuz. To see how you've grown with Pu3 and as a person personally since we were little kids. A fashion designer, fashion business owner, a wife, daughter and a mother to 2 year old Alriz. Look at you! Love you very much Cho. May the Creator protect you in this world and After always. May He bring you closer to Him, contentment and His Love always. 

Oh, and thank you for making this maroon dress for me years ago Cho. :) Luckily I can still fit into it this year. Hehe!

Mama Jibrael and Mummy Rayqal, Nora Danish

My date that night. My husband Abdullah Khubayb. Mi amore. 

My bestfriend. Abah Jibrael.  :)

Mia Suraya my cousin, the girl who persuaded me to make my blog public in 2010. 

The one who just got married this month and just left for honeymooning in Paris yesterday 

the day after the photoshoot with ARNADIA by GAYA!

With beautiful fashion lovers Alia Alizar, Aida Ishak, Nina, 

Hasanah Hilmi, Farahana Azmin, Maria Muna, Adila Long, Ezzan Zalilah, 

Malisa, Eryana & Ruzana Ibrahim.

L-R : Aida Ishak, DAhlia Nadirah, Hasanah Hilmi, Zaireen Azman,

 Erin Adlina, Eryana & Ruzana Ibrahim.

Malaysia's supermodel, the humble Tengku Azura.

My aunty, the proud mummy of the designer for the show, Raja Noora Ashikin. 

The one who designed and made my 2 wedding dresses 3 years ago.

Yeop Rizal brought us cousins, my parents and aunties for a very late dinner at Carlos Pavilion after the show and the food was delicious! I remember it's been a long while since I ate that much at that time. Thank you for treating us Yeop!

All in all it was a good night. I enjoyed the fashion show where Cho expressed her artistic creativity through her beautiful fashion pieces. I enjoyed the music and the beautiful set up. I enjoyed meeting family, relatives and friends at the intimate, private and cosy fashion showcase. And at the end of it, I enjoyed the food. Alhamdulillah.

Hello Friday (favorite day)! :)

Wow, it has really been a year. Time really passes. And everything really does pass. A lot of things happened this past year. Good things, shocking things and unexpected things. Everything as God has already planned it. The things I talked about in  Expect the Unexpected II  happened around this time last year.

But to look at it in one perspective, the ordeals strengthen not only myself but my family in ways that we did not even realize or could ever imagine. This too is a hidden blessing by God.

Everything that has happened has opened my eyes and showed me that everything (should) start and end with family. I remember before everything that had happened last year, I was one of those people who did not prioritise family. I prioritised work above everything else including my own health and family. Until one day I ended up in the hospital for a long time, with my work and health being taken away from me just like that. God is great. Being in the hospital opened up my eyes in so many ways. One of it was how my mother was the exact opposite of me. I realize that my mother had always prioritised family more than anything else in the world. My mother had to sacrifice her career, passion and interest to take care of the family when we were young to raise us and bring us up. My mother would always put her family first. Last year, during my Beautifully Traumatic Experience, my mother put on hold everything else just to take care of me in the hospital. I only put on hold work and everything else for 6 months for my daughter, being in the hospital and after that, confinement but my mother has done this for many many years. She was there at the hospital every day to accompany me and to bring me food. When my dad was admitted in another hospital at the same time, she also had to look after him.

My mother was very worried about the thought of losing me and Jibrael, her first grandchild. As the doctor said, it was 50-50 for the both of us at that time being in the hospital as I chose to fight for Jibrael's life despite all the risks that the doctors made us aware of. Our family then suffered another test when my dad was hospitalized. I couldn't imagine how my mother felt at that time and I couldn't imagine being in her shoes. All praises to the One who gives us the tests. God tests whom He loves. He tests those whom He wants to be closer to Him and always be reminded of Him and His Greatness. We have no power as all power belongs to the Almighty Allah.

Last year I said it, and this year I am saying it again. Alhamdulillah another year has passed. All praises to the Almighty for the countless gifts that He has showered us with. If we were to try and count the blessings and gifts that He has given to us, we would not be able to count them because there's just too many.

To my mother Wan,

This year on 14th January 2013, you became a grandmother to your first granddaughter. All praises to the Creator that she is a child in heaven. Arwah Opah (my late grandmother) used to tell me stories of your eldest sister, my aunt, who went to heaven when she was a baby just like Jibrael. Probably she's looking after Jibrael right now. They are in a happy beautiful place beyond our limited imagination while we are in this world. They are waiting for us there, insyaAllah. May our purpose in life be to be in that lovely place that they are in, the beautiful eternal life in Jannah.

Wan,

Your sacrifices can never be repaid by me. Never. I may not be the best of daughters, but please know that I love you very much and will always forever do. Forgive me for all my wrongdoings in the past as my way to heaven lies under your feet. May God reward you excessively for all your kindness, sacrifices, dedication and love towards your family. If I can even have half of your dedication and strength as a mother, I know that insyallah I'll be following the path of being a good mother. Just like you.

Thank you for everything. Happy Birthday.

PEACE & LOVE!

~All pictures in this post were taken by my beloved father at my birthplace London, England~