Fashion is on!

Remember there is one shop in kadıköy which i love to enter and Would definitely LOVE to BUY the clothing they r selling but CANT becoz of the price?

The shop is called TEKBİR GİYİM..a shop specializing in tesettur clothing (clothing especially to cater people with head cover) They have a variety of clothing ..from overcoat, blouses, outerware,skirts, scarves, piece robe,, suits...all to cater both those with slim bodies as well as *wide* bodies..like me.. :0)

A pamplet from the shop reached me a few weeks ago..i thought i'd share their fashion design with you.. I think this is the most successful tesettur clothing company in turkey since they are exporting their products all over the world..They have a more colorful range of clothing of course..this is just some of the ones in fashion this season..

Enjoy this fashion show!!

*Yawn*

PENATNYAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaa..

i am E.X.H.A.U.S.T.E.D

Besides the fact that halil n ı only get to eat only by 8.30pm (we r fasting today)..and the fact that from morning till just now i was busy doing the total tidying up n cleaning of my home..and yet...there r loads more to do...things to be wiped..things to collect..things to ..clean..etc..etc..etc..and the winter clothing needs to go to the storage closet again..spring n summer clothing to be taken out..all need to be ironed....i havent done that.. i really do mean there r loads more to be done...HELP.

I have been wanting to do these things for ages..kept postponing it..other things to do..bla bla bla.. now that the date for the guests coming to our house is getting nearer.....the pressure to keep the house at least presentable is now on me... this apt cannot be tidy..within 5 minutes..again the same thing..the same mess..i just dunno what to do...*sigh*..i wish i am a tidy person..i wish our family can keep everything tidy and clean all the time..but it is just an impossible hope..

Anyway, we had a phone call from halim an hour ago...he told us to look at the anafen okulları (anafen schools) advertisement in the newspaper. There it was..among the anafen primary schools..one was with the name...*Anafen Sebahattin Zaim İÖ (İlkÖgretim)* (Anafen Sebahattin Zaim Primary school*..yup..they named that school using my dad in law's name n the funny thing of all..no one in the Zaim family knows about it until halim pointed that out..As far as i remember, there is one high school named after him as well..and there is a street too named after him..

This got me thinking.. i mean baba (my dad in law) has done a lot in his life..he has achieved so much..both locally and internationally..and he is leaving and will leave a mark even after he is gone to rahmatullah...he will not die as a guy unremembered. He has the respect of many people..

And me.. who am i? have i done anything worth remembering in my life? I am not a good daughter..nor am i a good mother to my kids..or a good sister to my siblings..as a wife? i dont think i am a good one either....careerwise..except for cooking n cleaning (though my house is never tidy enough)..i have no such thing as a career..i mean the traces of my living will not be evident..my contributions to life is almost nill..Once gone..will i be forgotten? Hopefully not..at least not by love ones...

i was just thinking... wouldnt it be funny if we send baddin to anafen sebahattin zaim ilkögretim...baddin can proudly claim..*this is my school* :0) ..of course that wont be happening..baddin will go to school where hatice is..

time to sleep..i think i mumble nonsensicle now..forgive my mumbling.. another long day of household chores tomorrow..wish me luck!!

P.s- The moving writing at the sidebar (marquee) was accomplished with the help of Queen of the House..
Many many thanks Queen!

Kiraz

What's that???
A little closer please...

much much closer please..

Hmm.....a plump juicy sweet...Kiraz

Halil eating it with relish while watching a sports' programme
and the world cup has not started yet!!

Yes..that is kiraz in turkish and cherry in english. They may not look much to you in the picture, but there are at least..and i repeat..at least 7 kilograms of kiraz there in that wooden box. The source? Halit's cherry orchard.

U see..halit...halil's cousin has this kiraz (cherry) orchard at an agricultural land area in Iznik..almost 2 hours journey from istanbul. He pays someone to nurture and look after it. And every year, the caretaker will call him to tell him to pick up the cherries before they are spoilt. The deal is like this... every year halit will pick up as much cherries as he possibly can..and the leftovers ..the ones halit does not pick ..will be sold..and trust me..every year there are lots of cherries at halit's orchard..And this is not just any ordinary kiraz..i thought napoleon is the best..but halit's one...i think (if i am not mistaken) is *irnik*..the taste is very sweet and delicous....very plummy..watery..and when u put one kiraz in ur mouth and the juice splash inside ur mouth...hmmmmmm..u can only imagine the heavenly feeling of eating the juicy n plum kiraz..

i have always loved kiraz..it is among the fruits i cannot live without when in season. Unfortunately, it is also a very expensive fruit.. Therefore,i can only buy a bit every pazar...restraining myself from eating it too much coz hatice is also a maniac of kiraz..and bless halit and his kiraz orchard..i get the chance to savour the taste of my beloved fruit without limitation..i mean this is fresh kiraz u r talking about..plucked from the tree....the taste is as fresh as one can imagine..totally delicious..last year when my sister was here while halil was doing his military service out of istanbul...yana too fell in love with kiraz..Next to köfte..she has been dreaming of it ever since too..she had the chance of tasting both the napoleon ones and halitz kiraz..even if she is able to find kiraz in malaysia..after eating the ones here the taste of kiraz somewhere else will be bland..that my dearests is a fact..not an opinion.

This talk of kiraz reminds me of a story.. it was i think a month or perhaps two after i first went to malaysia (alone)..we were invited to halit's kiraz orchard... so with the rest of his family n siblings..we all went there..i had never seen kiraz then (i saw some in pazar) but this is...kiraz hanging on the trees.. fresh..calling me with a smile...and to be plucked n eaten just like that..At that time the kids present were already busy eating the kiraz..i was a bit shy...but once i started..hehehehe..i couldnt stop..i think i was busy eating the kiraz for around 20 minutes before i joined the rest of the adults clan who were then plucking the cherries from the trees. U cannot imagine how happy i was then..one kiraz inside the plastic bag..one kiraz inside my mouth...one kiraz inside the plastic bag..one kiraz inside my mouth.. (ni kira orang kampung tak pernah tengok kebun cherry la ni heheheh) and the best part was..i get to do that while climbing trees!! i loveeeeeee climbing tree!! :0)..too much eating kiraz...now the end result.. the good thing about kiraz is that it somehow cleanses the inside part of ur digestive system..but too much eating kiraz???? YUp!! u've guessed it!! toilet upon toilet.. i kept going to the toilet after that...i mean...i must have eaten at least 3 kilograms of kiraz then!! My journey to the toilet even at the orchard was...non countable..!!! i dream of going to that kiraz orchard again.. that was the first n the last time we went..the years after that..we still get the invitation..however, fate was not in our hands..there was one year hatice was sick..then baddin got sick..etc..etc..

The kiraz halit brought us this year? halil, hatice n i (baddin does not like fruits) devoured a lot of the kiraz..i think only 2 kilograms are left...today we r both fasting (sunat)..so during the day i can only look..but after 8.30pm!! hehehehehe my evil hands will probably cannot stay away from that plum kiraz..

And in turkey as i have discovered..there are two types of cherries.. one is kiraz (sweet cherry) and one is visne (sour cherry).. kiraz is eaten as it is.. but visne is too sour that normally it is made into jams or fruit juice...if u have one day the chance to eat kiraz ..sweet..plumy kiraz..eat it..i think any Malaysians will like this one fruit..at least i do..

Pants cutter

It was Saturday.. A very long day for halil as usual..3 lectures, 3 hours each in 2 places...

He finished the first lecture of the day. Went out from the university, stopped at a traffic light waiting for the green light. Then, he crossed the road and stopped a taxi to go to the other university. As he was entering the taxi, he felt his thigh been blessed by a cooling breeze of the wind. Instinctly, he looked behind ..looking at his pant....and there it was..

His pants CUT from his buttock area till almost his knee area!! While waiting for the light to turn green, somebody must have cut his pants quietly, to get to the pocket where his wallet was. The guy(i am assuming is a guy) had missed the pocket by a centimetre and probably didnt have the time to cut some more. And the whole thing happened within 90 seconds without halil realizing it!!



The guy must have been a professional. Else, he wouldnt have been able to cut so sleekly without halil realizing that his wallet was in danger. Or perhaps halil was too tired at that time?I dunno..Allah must have protected him coz he came out of this unharmed..not a scratch on his skin..with his wallet intact (if not he will have to redo his identity card, driving lessons, credit cards..etc..etc...too much hassle)..The only thing that was gone is his pride.. coz for tht 90 seconds, for those who had looked at him... he was one sexy guy...underwear..thigh for all to see *chuckles* ..
Instead of Spongebob Squarepant with ripped pants...On Saturday, halil was the one with the ripped pants..*hugs*

Theft is like a vogue in istanbul now..For easy money, a lot of people resort to stealing to support their living..with things being so expensive in turkey, high unemployment rate......the crime rate in istanbul is very scary.. any time, u can get shot..knifed...Anything is possible..(Allah korusun).

Just 2 years ago..mahture yenge who lives on the second floor went to muyessa yenge on the third floor for drinking coffee. She left her house just half an hour, and she came home to her house in a mess..totally violated..money, jewellery gone.. The same thing happened with lutfiye teyze as well..All her well stocked jewelleries were gone ..They went happily to a vacation and came home to a home...let us just say afife teyze was so sad that she needed to buy new sets of jewellery..

There is no halal in theft ..but since people r not concerned about the punishment in the life hereafter, .......

May Allah(God) protect us all from harm...Amin...

Let us learn

Have a nice weekend!!!!
I have changed the clip from using youtube to photobucket.. mama sarah n traveler..can u see the video now?





I know some of u r not sure on how to pronounce my daughter's name..it's Nur Hatice..So to illustrate..i will let my own daughter teach u to say her name.. She was still so small at that time..

Yup! u've guessed it..my last entry for this week till sunday night (turkish time)..i will be replying the comments only..(as usual)..

A toy??

I was in the kid's bedroom today when hatice came to me and said..
*anne ben bu buldum*
She said she found it in the bathroom..My heart was beating faster than u could imagine. Saime (the ironing lady) interrupted our conversation by saying that she found that thing inside the washing machine...

You can imagine what that means, right? It means that that thing has been washed by the washing machine and is now very good smelling n very clean....

Well..it is good news if that thing is made of cloth..but it isnt!! Do you know what that is?? It is flash memory..a very tiny minute thing..where u can use to store the memory of ur pc..to be transferred to another pc..where ever you r..or the technical explanation would be..

"Flash memory is a form of non-volatile memory that can be electrically erased and reprogrammed. Unlike EEPROM, it is erased and programmed in blocks consisting of multiple locations (in early flash the entire chip had to be erased at once). Flash memory costs far less than EEPROM and therefore has become the dominant technology wherever a significant amount of non-volatile, solid-state storage is needed. Examples of applications include digital audio players, digital cameras and mobile phones. Flash memory is also used in USB flash drives, which are used for general storage and transfer of data between computers."

That my dear friends n family..is not something u wash!! It belongs to halil..inside containing a lot of his work....it must have been inside his pants that i washed the last time...Heart still terribly fast beating...i turned on the pc to see if it was..is still working..I hold my breath for as long as i could remember...and finally released it with a very very long breath of release.. It is still working Alhamdulillah..or else..halil would kill me..:0)))..

Now..we are the proud owner of a clean n flowery smelling flash memory! Allah was on our side for today...phewww..!! What a daY!!

Shellfish

Oyster

Mussel

Clam

Yup..these are 3 types of shellfish commonly found in the oceans..well at least those r the ones i am familiar of....these three shellfish..they just look the same..

Back to my previous entry..Yup!! U may have guessed it right! It is mussel. The dish is called Midye Dolması (Stuffed mussel)...Turks cook loads of stuffed veggies which they call dolma.. they stuff vine leaves, bell pepper, eggplant and even Zuchinni..It is in the culture....my fav is stuffed vine leaves made by anne..no one can make it the way she did.. i try it too..but i am still not very successful..am not giving up.. even if it takes me my whole life to experiment cooking that nightmarish favourite food of mine! oh yeah...i will NOT give up!! u hear me stuffed vine leaves???!!

This is stuffed vine leaves
The picture is kidnapped from the net. (definitely, Not the one i made).
The one anne made was smaller..shorter n plummer...
No one else cooked it the way anne did..i tried but not successful still...

Back to the midye dolması (stuffed mussel).. i have never cooked it before esp since i am eating it alone..but i have typed the recipe for u all to see in Zaim ladies recipe book
Hopefully u all will get an idea on how it is cooked...

p.s..what is oyster, clam n mussel in malay?

The answer as provided by lah by referring to her hubby's dictionary..

clam = kepah besar
mussel = kupang
oyster = tiram
cockle = kerang

Thanks lah!

cvndfjjdjsoksas

The previous entry would have indicated how lousy my day this morning was. It was becoz of bla bla bla..bla bla bla..end of story (hehehe my explanation is very enlightening..pls try to understand it...hehehe) Alhamdulillah..i am calm now.

Halil saw how distressed i was over the matter..and suggested that we all go to sahil (seaside) area for a walk...I took a very hot bath..as hot as my body could take (that really helped to cool my temper n my sadness)..prepared our brunch...

We were eating while the tv was on...and there we saw a notice at the bottom part of the tv programme..*somebody with an AB+ type of blood needs immediate blood.Pls call......*. halil asked who in our family has AB+ ..yup.. he was looking at that person..we almost immediately decided that i would donate the blood..we called the person involved..went to that specific hospital..donated the blood..and later we went to baba for a visit..

Hey!! i had a lousy morning..that doesnt mean that i cannot make someone else at least a bit happy right? Besides... just a bit of my blood may not be able to save the person...but at least i can tell myself that i did at least something.

I dunno who was more excited over the blood donation..halil or hatice? hatice was and is curious about the whole process but she was not allowed into the blood donation room..she was quite dissapointed..u see she thinks she wants to be a doctor when she grows up....Allah knows...her life..her choices..halil...well... he recieved loads of blood esp in 1992..but he never donated one..he was excited over the whole process..i have no idea why....but he was..i on the other hand, during my tertiary education years..i donated blood every year (The red crescent society always make blood donation week once a year anyway)....but this would be the first time i ever donate my blood in turkey..that part was exciting..

I was suprised that the guy who was to take my blood simply asked me..what is ur blood type? I mean..every year when ı wanted to donate blood, they will definitely test the blood type first. But the guy today..did none of that. He could not find my blood vein easily which is not a suprise to me (it happens all the time). After the whole thing, he told me..to be careful with my eating coz after donating blood, i may gain weight easily (yeah..sure... as if my weight is not excessive enough right?)..bla bla bla.. he was friendly...and to go out of the blood donating room..to see the couple whose father i am donating the blood to smiling..i think everything was worth it.... i didnt do anything much..but it was enough to warm their hearts..

By the way..remember the biology lesson while we were in high school where for example those with (pls correect me if i am wrong) AB for example can recieved A or B or AB type of blood? Well, in turkey, they do not practise such system.. ıf u need AB..u will have to find AB blood..The same applies to the rest of the blood type..

We went to baba....later..suprise suprise... we actually went to sahil!! i mean..it was already a long day..it was already 4 p.m n halil actually brought us to sahil area (by walking of course)..this is not halil...he is being extremely sweet today..i cant complain... i am happy..the kids r happy..sleeping from exhaustion now...this morning it was really terrible..n Alhamdulillah..i am smiling now..i am lucky to have these 3 sweet people to hug n to hold n to tell them i love them..Allahım ....insyaAllah bize ayrılmasın....

And to top the happiness i feel today...for dinner.. next to lahmacun (a turkish type of pizza) halil bought me this one dish (i told u he is extremely sweet today)..Can u guess what it is? For Mazhab hanafi this thing is makhruh..so i alone finished it up since i am shafiee.....hmmmmmmm.. have u guessed??

Excuse me..

What i will say has nothing to do with my family in malaysia or my love ones in turkey...i am sooooooooo angry and i am basically crying now...pls forgive me on this one entry..

ama...NE TERBİYESİSLAR!!!

one experiment ...that day..

There i was one day..thinking i would experiment a bit with the cooking. Main dish..speghetti..what about the sauce? Suddenly, an idea crossed my mind...*Why dont i cook dhall with minced meat as the sauce?*..yup.. i cooked it (dhall is an indian food with lentil as the main ingredient).

Dinner time... i put the food in his plate. He ate it very difficultly..n slowly...And towards the end of dinner he told me smilingly.....with a twinkle in his eyes.."it is nice to eat pasta with lentil soup!!" The nerve of that man!!! Grrrrrrrr..:0)))

Yup!! i did turn that dhall into lentil soup the next day.. but i guess he was brighter... when i asked him whether he wanted to drink soup for dinner the next day...he said *no thank you*....how did he guess???

The conclusion of it is.....if u wanna eat pasta with dhall as a sauce..dont try it on ur spouse!! Aiseyy..ingat nak pekena..tapi tak jadi!!!

Cheeseeeeeeeee

ahhhhhhh cheeeeeeseeeeeeee.. i think i have mentioned in one of my entries entitled *food* a bit about it.. if i am not mistaken, there are about 130 types of cheese in turkey.

Frankly speaking, i am not too much a fan of cheese. However, türks r...and if have noticed..i am married to one (heheh)..so whether i like it or not... there will be some sort of cheese on the table...in the dishes i cook..and over the years... i get used to it ..

I can count the cheeses i like..I like kaşar peynir...this cheese is a bit like cheddar cheese but much much firmer in structure..my fav is the one by sütaş...i think that is among the best one u can find on the market. (pic? i forgot to snap one ..u can use ur imagination right?)

Beyaz peynir.. or if u translate it..it will be white cheese..

My fav beyaz peynir is the one i buy from pazar..Az yaglı one..beyaz peynir is used in a lot of things... for one..it is somehow a must have for breakfast..the other usage of it is for making börek..used as a filling..u rarely find a turkish family not having beyaz peynir in the fridge..

The other one is tülum peynir..
This is made from goat's milk..so the smell may not be to ur liking.. it has this milky salty taste that if u eat it with simit...it is wonderful indeed. I like to eat it with honey or strawberry jam..

My favourite favourite cheese of all is called dill peynir. I think it is mozarilla in english..


The best type of dill peynir is when u can peel the cheese like the picture below..it is in strands How do u eat it??????
As demonstrated by my hubby...Yup!! This is how u enjoy the cheese... Very unladylike but who cares!! i simply adore it..

Hatice n Schooling

She could not believe her ears when i told her yesterday morning that we were going to look around the school we may be sending her next school season..(after summer this year). She has been waiting for this moment for as long as i remember..i think for at least 2 years, she had been dreaming of going to school..

Hatice was born in 2001. For her age, we have 2 options..1. We can send her to kindergarden (yuva) where over there she will basically play and probably learn something (less systematic). or 2. We can send her to pre-school (anasınıfı)where learning is more towards the preparation of entering the first grade in the primary school (ilköğretim) -more systematic and structured..

We are thinking of the second option.Hatice being a Zaim n all..the kids in the family go to Coskun Eğitim Kurumları (Coskun Chain of Schools). Safa and Zeynep go to the one in çamlıca while Keremcan goes to the one in Maltepe. I personally prefer the çamlıca one (the view is magnificent there..fresh air..but far).. we wanted to keep our options open...So yesterday, we went to the one nearest to us (maltepe one) to see the options we have..to check out their pre-school (anaokulu) programme.

We found out that the Çamlıca one has no pre-school within the school area. They have moved the Çamlıca coşkun anaokulu to another place...not within the çamlıca Primary school itself. The other option..the maltepe one has the anasınıfı withın the primary school compound .After weighing the pros and cons...and after asking hatice herself...most likely, we will send her there...

It was only yesterday, while we were talking to the people in the maltepe one that i realised...my daughter is growing up.Up to that point...i see her as my little girl. And there we were...yesterday..scouting n analysing the options..i realised...the next time i really look at her...she will no longer be that little girl..she will be a teenager...(though thru a mom's eyes..she will always be my little girl)..

There she was..totally excited...but trying her very best not to show it..and there was baddin too..kept saying *i like the school..i wanna go to this school too*..and we having to tell him..*u will have to wait till the next year for ur time*....

ı wonder how baddin will cope without her *abla* not around at home for one year till he himself starts anasınıf? I bet he will miss her a lot...He has never been without his sister..They are always together....doing things within each other's presence..and hatice... i wonder how she will cope..over there..she will learn 8 hours of english a week....computer..etc...etc...She will go to school using the bus service (most definitely the same bus as keremcan)..her classes will start like the normal school ones from 8.30 am till 4pm..will my daughter be able to endure this type of life? i suppose she has to...coz once she enters the ilkögretim level ..the pace will be much heavier..more things to learn..she better be prepared for that..

Hatice is excited..n so r we..just imagine... my daughter is starting school..

In turkey, the primary school education (ilköğretim) is for 8 years and the Secondary school education (lise) is for 4 years.Then..university...

This 1st june, there will be an interview for hatice at the maltepe Coskun..and after that we will register her there..I pray that we have made the write decision...As for now....we have one very happy n excited daughter.....i think that is a good start..dont u agree?? Please pray that her transation into school life will be smooth..

i will try to snap some photos the next time we go there...

P.s-each coşkun school has swimming pool :0))

One beşiktaş trip

Last Saturday, Safa, merve, hatice, baddin n i went up to Bahçeşehir to meet up with Meşe n halil after their lectures. We had dinner (iskender Kebap) and went home..with the last vapur(boat)..After almost 7 years living in istanbul..n this is the first time i went to beşiktaş by vapur.....hmmm

p.s- merve ya bak..o surata.. siz merveya tanıyorusunuz zaten..*anne sıkıldım*..bla bla bla.. tipik merve hahahahahhaha

photos- snapped not by me..

Happy Birthday Joe!

Snapped in KL twin tower the last time we were to Malaysia

Today..22nd..i just remembered is my elder bro's birthday!! I almost forgot about it.. Joe..or johari he was named..instead of calling him angah ...we call him joe..i suppose my mom never insisted we call him angah (though we call my elder sister along)...so..well.. he is joe to me..

i think among the younger siblings..i am the bravest to *pekena* this one brother of mine..i think it is nobody's fault..but since he is the eldest son..had been away from home most of his teenage life (boarding school..then uni..then working)..has this *garang* image in our eyes..the rest of the younger siblings never dare to come close to him..too much..or chat to him pakai tibai tibai..

Yet... this one brother of mine has a heart of gold...if any of us has money problem..he is the one we all go to (perhaps we go to him too much)..After my parents' house was burnt..whenever he went home, he will go *out* by himself...n then he will come home with...for example..a tv?..a fridge?..he does those kinds of things..

And i myself..when he was still at the uni..i remember one time ..the first time i dared myself to *pekena* my bro..i wrote him a letter asking him to buy*tiffany -new inside* album..he bought it of course..but i was like.........takuttttttttt...scared to write that letter in the first place..it was then i realised..my brother is not a lion after all..

When i was at the uni..when i was broke..at times..instead of asking money from my dad (i dont remember asking money too often from anyone..i worked part time at the uni anyway)...i would ask my bro..if he himself was not broke..he would give me at least RM100 ..and whenever he was in the mood..at times he would just appear without notice to give me plastics n plastics of biscuits...fruit juice...etc..etc..the last time i asked money from him..i think was when i needed money for my thesis..that was the first time i met my then future sis in law in section 1 bangi..have i stopped to pekena my bro? heheheh NOPE!.. even from turkey... i still pekena him...i think so far he had spent hundreds for the cost of sending me Cds...maggie mee and asam mo far ko..And just today..i received an sms from him asking for my adress coz he is sending me those things...again!! (plus marry poppin cd!)..Yes!! my maggie...my asam n my cd will be coming soon!!...*hugs*..what will i do without you!!

Happy Birthday Dear Bro!!

We ur younger siblings r still scared of u..but we do love u...

Malaysian Music

I may be explaining a lot of things about my new life here...the culture..etc..etc..But dont u ever dare doubt that i am totally Malaysian inside..

For the benefit of my family in turkey and those not familiar with the Malay language and culture... This week..let us be entertained by the malaysian Folk music titled *joget berhibur* sang by a malaysian singer *siti nurhaliza*

Take note of the costume and the architecture ..They are a glimpse of a Malay culture...

Enjoy the video clip!! It is located at the side bar...pls take note..Thanks mama rock for poiniting it out..

By the way...*bertepuk tepuk tangan* means *to clap ur hands* ..that is why the people in the videoclip kept clapping their hands...Everyone was having fun n clapping there..

Peas

While i was still living in Malaysia, i never really bothered about peas. To me, they r more for western type food . To me, peas meant canned peas. Fresh peas? Where would u find them in Malaysia? if there are..i was ignorant of it..(dearest friends..are there really fresh peas in Malaysia? do u know?)

Life in istanbul..Yeah.. i remember the first time i saw the sellers sold fresh peas still in the pod. I even asked the seller what it was and he...looked at me weirdly told me..*bu taze bezelye* (this is fresh peas) .

I found this info on the net...

"Peas are legumes that originated in western Asia; in Switzerland, traces of peas have been found near homesites, where they were probably being eaten during the Bronze Age, over 5,000 years ago. Traveling from Greece to India, the pea arrived in China during the 7th century, where it was named ho tou, or “foreign legume.” Peas were popular during the Middle Ages in Europe, being easy to grow, inexpensive, hearty, and a source of protein."

What about the nutritional benefits?

Well... according to the source...1 cup of raw peas has:

Calories: 117
Protein: 7.8g
Carbohydrate: 21g
Total Fat: 0.58g
Fiber: 7.4g

*Excellent source of: Folate (94mcg), Vitamin A (928 IU), and Vitamin C (58mg)
*Good source of: Zinc (1.8mg)
"Fresh peas should be used immediately and are best when barely steamed or eaten raw."

In turkey, the peas r in season now. Every year, when it is in season, i will buy as much fresh peas as i possibly can, separate the peas from the pod and put them in the deepfreezer...hopefully,they will last till the next peas season. There is so much difference in the taste between the fresh peas and the canned ones. That is why i try to avoid using canned peas whenever possible....

I bought 2 kilograms of fresh peas (in the pod) last pazar. The pictures below will illustrate what happened to the peas...I think this is a great way to spend personal yet beneficial time with ur kids..(not to mention free labour!!)... dont u agree??

Fresh Peas in the Pod

My beloved two helpers:
Hatice n baddin at work.
Faster hatice!!
FaSter baddin!!

The Fresh Peas Successfully Separated from the Pod.

Five Minutes Peas Playing
(with anne's permission)
Hatice was busy eating fresh and plum sweet cherries at that time.

Breastfeeding

I wont insult ur intelligence by trying to insist that to breastfeed ur child at least until the 6th month is important (coz it is)..I mean...come on...who r we kidding, right? a mother's milk vs formula milk..u know which one will win in the sense of the benefits, right?

And as i promised ... lah..I am here to tell u my own experience..about breastfeeding of course..

I remember that day very clearly. There was to be a birthday party at Selim's in the afternoon..Zeynep's birthday.... In the morning, i did the pregnancy test. It was positive.I was pregnant.We kept it a secret until later that night after all the guests had gone. But trust me..i was smiling inside the whole day..

It was from that day...the milk factory started. My breasts started to swell...bla bla bla bla..And on the 6th February 2001..the person the factory was developed for was born. It was a torture for a few days because hatice could not latch to the breast properly. But once she mastered the art...Woah..she was a pro! Never wanting to leave the factory unattended..eager to make use of what Allah had installed for her private use.

5 months old..the whole zaim family was in shocked to receive the news that hatice will get a sibling. And the milk factory?? Yup! The factory is renewed in process..... and the existing user had the advantage of a more fresher and more delicious source of health. 3rd April 2002..The other little user was born into this world. The sister u see was still breastfeeding. And the little brother naturally wanted his mom's factory product! They took turns..one mom breastfeeding both children!! It was..........well..u can imagine right..

I was lucky.. in summer while we were in Sapanca..without even forcing her..she herself stopped breastfeeding... And baddin continued on ...until he was 3 and a half years old!!

Did i not try to make hatice stop breastfeeding after her brother was born? i did..i remember clearly that i put hot red pepper powder on my breasts. When hatice started drinking the milk from the breasts, instead of stopping coz of the pepper..she sucked the milk out even more...with more leisure!! Halil and i tried another method..during at nights, hatice will wake up demanding my milk. Instead of giving her what she wanted, with halil's help we fed her fruity yogurt (ı hold hatice while halil fed her) .That somehow helped to make her stop breastfeeding..or perhaps she realised that her little brother was breastfeeding too..It may not be enough if she share the milk? i dunno...Allah knows..Hatice was easy...

Baddin..of course was another matter. I tried many things. I tried the hot red pepper.. i tried that terrible tasting liquid (bought at a local spice bazaar)..i tried even taking medicine (cant remember the name) to stop the milk flowing (i stopped taking it coz it had totally terrible side effects on me)..i even had my mom sent something from malaysia to help me out to weane baddin from drinking my milk. Nothing helped. In the end, I used nothing...Just the word *no*..lots of crying from baddin (even i when i was alone)...lots of preserverence...and..a happy ending for mother and son..

My conclusion from all of this is...How do u know when to stop breastfeeding? I think when ur instinct tells u so.. do it. There are many ways of course..but what is important is to prepare urself for this process. If u r lucky... the use of terrible tasting things put on ur breasts may stop ur child breastfeeding..What if u have to go thru the stage like i did? The stage where u stop breastfeeding even when ur child is begging u not to? U have to prepare urself for this... Can u stand the crying of ur child? Will u have the courage to say *no* to ur child when ur child is heart wretchedly crying...begging u to give him the milk? day and night...where ur child will cry himself to sleep because his mummy is not feeding him milk from the breast? Can u stand that torture? That feeling that i am a bad mother for doing this to my child? If this is the last resort..then u will have too..n hopefully with the emotional support from ur spouse.

The journey wont be easy..never will..

With baddin..I tried to say *no* many times...that is until that one last time. my mind was made up. But before i said *no*..i gave baddin a warning in advance. For example..i tell him "in two weeks time, i will stop giving milk from my breast to u." Then, i counted each day with baddin..for example i said* 3 more days to go before u stop breastfeeding*...counting the days till that one big day. Kids r intelligent. We should never underestimate that. The crying for milk..the tantrums are all meant to test us mothers coz they know most of us r softhearted. Once they stop breastfeeding, the thought of once ever drinking the milk from ur breasts sounds undesirable to them.


The most important thing is to prepare urself and to give ur child an advanced warning.

I have found this article from www.askdrsears.com .Hopefully for mothers who r trying to weane..his steps may be beneficial to u..

HOW TO WEAN

The key to healthy weaning is doing it gradually. Remember, you are helping your child into a new stage of development, not forcing him into it. This is not the time for you and your husband to go on a week-long vacation to the Bajamas. Weaning by desertion is traumatic and may backfire. The following are suggestions for gradually weaning your child:

• Start by skipping a least favorite feeding, such as in the middle of the day. Instead, engage in a fun activity together, such as reading a book or playing a game. Nap and night nursings are favorite feedings and will probably be the last to go.
• Minimize situations that induce breastfeeding, such as sitting in a rocking chair or cradling baby. If you put baby in a familiar breastfeeding setting, he will want to breastfeed.
• Use the "don't offer, don't refuse" method. Don't go out of your way to remind her to nurse. However, if your child persists, or her behavior deteriorates, this may indicate that breastfeeding is still a need rather than a want. Watch your child and trust your intuition.
• Become a moving target. Don't sit down in one place for any length of time. But, remember, weaning means releasing, not rejecting. Breastfeeding helps the child venture from the known to the unknown. If you don't let your child make brief pit stops, he may insist on lengthy feedings when he finally gets you to sit down. Checking into homebase and refueling reassures him that it's okay to explore his environment, and gives him the emotional boost to venture out. Rejecting this need could developmentally cripple your child.
• Keep baby busy. Nothing triggers the desire to breastfeed like boredom. Sing songs, read books, or go on an outing together.
• Set limits. Putting limits on nursing, such as: "We only nurse when Mr. Sun goes down and when Mr. Sun comes up" does not make you a bad parent.
• Don't wean baby from you to an object, such as a stuffed animal or blanket. Ideally, you want to wean baby from your breast to an alternative source of emotional nourishment. This is when dad should begin to take on a more involved role in comforting. As dad's role in baby's life becomes bigger, nursing will be less important.
• Expect breastfeeding to increase during times of illness. These are times when your child needs comfort and an immune system boost.

Life is a series of weanings for a child: weaning from your womb, your breast, your bed, and your home. The pace at which children wean go from oneness to separateness is different for every child, and this should be respected. In our experience, the most secure, independent, and happy children are those who have not been weaned before their time.

Good luck!!

P.s..u dont need a breast surgery to have big boobs while breastfeeding!! :0)))

Tongue tied????

This was videod using the pc camera years ago..i cant remember exactly but baddin sure did not know how to talk at that time..If u can understand a word they are saying...please translate..i am clueless! But look at those tongues..i'd say that they r not tongue tied huh?

And to entertain u this weekend..i have added the song *hips dont lie* by shakira.. some of u may not like it...well.. i do (so for this blog) ..that is all that matters heheheheh..i think this song is so raw...there is such a life in it that i find it sexy..i would love to put the videoclip here..but if i do...my kids upon seeing the videoclip..(focussing on shakira) they will shout..

"Anne...çıplak kadın!!! Kapat onu kapat!!"
(Anne...naked woman!!! turn it off..turn it off!!"

Have a nice Weekend! See u on Monday!

Thank You Funda!

This is the copy of an email i sent to my sister in law (Funda) last night...

Today we went to carrefour (where else? heheh) ..not to go shopping...just to walk around...to release my stress.. i asked halil whether we can go to techno coz i wanna check out the prices of the laptop there..when we were there, i noticed that halil kept making a tour around the area where the printers are. He was looking at the printers without trying not to show it too much.. It was then i made a decision..

Remember ur printer? the one u just bought from technoSA?on the way home..in the car..i had decided on this.. u see..after months of saving i have saved around 200YTL... it was meant for a handycam...but after today..after seeing halil in technoSA..i think i have changed my mind..i know halil.. he wont buy the printer ..he will give excuses even when he needs it.....

This is where i need to ask a favour from you and selim...before the price of the printer (like the one u bought 3 in 1 function) go higher..is it possible if i give you the money in cash..can u n selim buy it on my behalf? i would go and buy it myself..but i dont think i can carry it home with 2 kids n hatice definitely cannot keep it a secret...i am thinking of (if u agree) ..of asking you to buy it on my behalf..and then keep it at ur house till father's day...if i need a reason to give this printer to him..let it be a gift for father's day...a printer-a scanner and a photocopier..for a price of less than 200YTL is a real bargain indeed... i dont want halil to know of this..the handycam can wait...i will try to save some more after this..for the handycam....but i think a printer 3 in 1 is what halil needs..besides... we will save a lot of money rather than sending those old pictures for scanning at the fujifilm shop..they charge so expensively...

what is ur opinion on this? can u help? even if the printer price has changed..i think i can still cover the cost of the printer in cash...

urs sincerely
ur sister next apartment

And the reply i received was this...(exactly as written by Funda)

my dear simah,

of course we can do it.If we can manage tomorrow, tomorrow.Otherwise, early next week. If u (/us+u) buy it in cash, it may be even cheaper.but if halil wants to make a suprise till june 18th???
love,
f. :)))

This is what happened today...

I went to pazar as usual. Today after all is thursday. I came home. Immediately, i went to Funda's apt to gave her the money. She was not home. Therefore, i left the money to the babysitter and sent funda a sms about the money. About one hour (maybe an hour and a half) later...ding dong... the bell rang. It was funda. I opened the door...there she was with the printer in one hand. I cannot describe my feelings at the time...I learnt that upon reading my sms, she went home, took the money and straight away went to technoSA in Suadiye to buy the printer.

Today her schedule is full esp since they are going to Saros tomorrow. So many things to prepare...etc..etc..and Yet... there she was...taking some time to buy the printer ...and on her own too!! She knows saime is here today..i mean instead of going alone...she could have told me to come along..Such a sweet person isnt she?

And around 7.30pm ..i gave halil the suprise. His first response was.."i am going to return it to the shop".. he asked...why am i wasting money like this...etc...etc..lectures upon lectures..

U see he was feeling guilty to recieve such a thing..200YTL is not a small amount for us..and i had been saving like about a year... halil is such a sweet guy.. he wont buy anything like that for himself even if he needs it. If he buy anything expensive, he will feel guilty later..and i ..after seeing him while he was looking at the printers at TechnoSa in carrefour yesterday.....i'd do anything to make him happy..

Thus... i wrote that email to Funda...for help..secretly...

I knew he would scold me for buying it...ı could guess what he would say...he would try to reject it....After all our minds are alike...we understand each other's thoughts without even saying it.... He is after all my hayatım...I was right..he did all of those things i guessed he would...


And Yup! we have a 3 in 1 printer at home now..Thanks to funda..my partner in crime!!!!


And tem... consider this printer as my gift to u for father's day...ur birthday...n whatever days that would be for this year... i am broke! :0)

Seni Seviyorum

Tell me .....Wouldnt u do everything within ur power for the ones u love??

Hatice and Baddin

This is my normal shouts in the morning..

Scene 1

"Hatice..baddin...kahvaltı ye"
(Hatice..baddin eat ur breakfast)

They would respond..
"tamam anne"
(ok anne)

half an hour later...

"Hatice..baddin...kahvaltı ye"
(Hatice..baddin eat ur breakfast)

They would again respond..
"tamam anne"
(ok anne)

The next half an hour ...

"Hatice..baddin...kahvaltı ye"
(Hatice..baddin eat ur breakfast)

They would again respond..
"tamam anne"
(ok anne)

This will continue until...let us just say.....until i say...
"çocuklar..öglen yemek 5 dakika sonra"
(kids, ur lunch will be served 5 minutes later)

THAT is when they esp baddin will start to gobble their breakfast...n on my unlucky days...the breakfast is left as it was...

Scene 2

ı would say..
"Hatice..comb ur hair please" (in English)

she would say..
"tamam anne"
(ok mom)

That will be repeated every half an hour until i threaten to have her hair cut as short as baddin.. and she seems to think that u need only brush ur hair OnCE a day despite the fact that i insist that a healthy hair should be combed as often as possible.. And this is the girl who will one day...i assume will want to put on make up...wear pretty clothes..etc..etc..u know the lot..girls..*sigh*

Scene 3

There we r....at night time..3 people in one room...hatice lying on her own bed.. i will be hugging baddin on his bed..bedtime stories already read by the dad...night light on..All the Qulls..fatihah n surah kursi all read together by the 3 of us.. ..all ready to sleep and baddin will say..

"anne..ben acıktım"
(i am hungry)

i will tell him to go to his dad in the living room or study room to ask for food.
he will come back to the bed 2 minutes later...hug me and he will say..

"anne..ben susadım"
(i am thirsty)

Again..i will tell him to go to the dad to ask for water...not just any water...my son drinks only cold water from the fridge (or with ice)

And then..in the end..he will come to bed..hug me.. demanding that i sing him children's rhymes...after loads of tossing n turning...Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

This happens every night..that if the kids will go to sleep, halil will make it a point to have cold water n something to eat for baddin's pre bed eating habbit right next to him....

Eating before sleeping..........hmmmmmmmm...it is definitely genetically transfered...*simah looking at.......* hehehe

announcement

DEarest friends n family...

Ever since the last 2 days i have been recieving at least 50 annoying spam comments..the same comments again n again. Therefore, i have no choice but to activate the word verification for comments. I dont like to do this either..but i have no choice.. Sorry for the inconveniences..

Happy Belated Teacher's day!!!

Sebelum aku kena kutuk ngan mona lagi..Hey! aku tulis happy teacher's day kat gengmahsuri.blog la...lupa lak nak ucap kat sini...

so ...

Selamat hari Guru..
Happy Belated Teacher's Day

kepada semua kawan kawan aku cikgu cikgi TESL terutamanya dan semua guru guru sedunia..
Selamat menjalani hidup sebagai guru.. woooooooooo besar pahala korang oooooo pahala jadi cikgu boleh bawak mati...!!..Aku jugak yg dok buat dosa..pahala tak tambah pon.. (kalu aku mati jgn lupa sedekah fatihah no?) dan doa doakan la semoga aku sedar diri...anytime bole mati..amal ibadat tambah tambahkan.. (tu pesanan utk korang jugak la hehe)

Forgive my ignorance...
Happy Teacher's Day
to u all....

MEsti korang dapat hadiah banyak dari students...korang dapat apa yek=?=

The handphone

This happened a few weeks back.. Meşe (my sis in law) came to our house. It was thursday. I bought my son a new handphone toy. The moment he saw her hala..he wanted to show her his new toy. Alas, he misplaced it somewhere and couldnt remember where it was. Hala tried to look for it. And there she saw..something on the table.


She called baddin and said..

"buldum" (i found it).... and baddin's reply was..
"o benim değil" (it is not mine)

Of course it is not baddin's...it is mine!! My beloved handphone...Hey!! no one say that adults cannot like cute stickers, right?

So the moral of the story is...

1. Things may not be what they seem
2. Adults can be childish. it is not a sin.
3. I love my handphone even though it is the simplest of all (all u can do with it is send sms, call someone and set the alarm)

P.s - If the front of my handphone is like this... u can imagine the back side of it..
All stickers are gifts from baddin and hatice...Voluntarily given :0)

Announcement

In response to syikin's request (in the comment section)....i have written the specific recipe for *how to make the turkish pasta the turgutlular way*... If the rest of you are interested to learn, pls go to

Zaim Ladies Recipe Book (click here)

or the link is at the side bar of this blog. Have fun trying!! and Syikin..masa nak potong tu...sabar sabar je la yea...penat ooooooooo.. tapi bila makan nanti..i tell u..memang berbaloi penat lelah tu..

Doğum Gunu Kutlu Olsun

I am 80 today..

And i am still talking..Alhamdulillah

From Hatice for dede

From Baddin for dede

The food

The food

Nice Yıllar baba!
everyone kissing his hand and wishing him well wishes

The grandchildren performing

Wonderful show kids!!
Thanks Safa!

Tonight (15th ) saw baba saying hello to the age of 80. Yes. It is his birthday today. As usual, everyone got together. The order of the night was like this..

-Hatice n baddin gave the drawings they made for their dede
-Everyone ate the food (open bufe - food contributed by all the ladies in the family)
-The kids (elo n baddin) gave their dede the gifts from the whole family
-All kids in line kissed their dede's hands and said *happy birthday* (in turkish) one by one
-All adults in line kissed baba's hands with birthday wishes
-All kids performed a song (masterminded by Safa).
-Tea and cake - dessert time..

We all think baba had a great time..and the kids' performance was wonderful!! Thanks Safa for training the rest of the kids!

Nice Yıllar Baba!! May Allah bless you always!

Turgutlular

It had been ages since i last visited yenge and yenge though they live the levels just below me.. i dunno..i do not have any excuse for that..i just find things to do at home...

Anyway, after many times being scolded by Muyessa Yenge..finally last week i told the kids that we all r going to visit their Nene (that's what they call the 2 yenges)..Level 3 yenge.......ringggggggggg......no answer.....she was out..ok...level 2...ringgggggg..........yup!! Mahture yenge was there...there she was with a spatula in one hand... she was cooking...And guess what she told me? The Turgutlar are preparing fresh pasta next door!!..I chatted 5 minutes with yenge in the kitchen n excused myself to go next door...hey!! they were preparing fresh pasta!! i have never seen anyone prepare fresh pasta...except of course if it was my mom..and that was like what? at least 20 years ago!!!! And this is Fresh Turkish Pasta we are talking about!!

My excitement was like up to the limit..!! I wanted to snap photos..but halil was at work..i did not have his handphone to snap snap the turgutlular in actions..i went home to find the camera...no film!! but u know what? my luck..i found one new roll of film..but great!! no one around at that time know how to put the film on!!!!! Can u imagine my frustration??? And Sweet Yenge said..There's my camera..it has film inside.. u can use it.. Gladly i accepted her offer and snap snap..(Deep inside i was afraid to use it..the camera looks very expensive..what if i break it?).. i snapped the photos (i used around only 15 snaps).....quickly sent it to the photo shop. ..bought and asked the lady at the photoshop to put a new roll of film inside..and immediately gave back Yenge her camera (She was shocked that i gave back her camera so soon) ..Yup..dearests..These photos dont come cheap....Looking at halil and smile."Yeah..yeah tem...dont lecture!!".....but i am really really glad that i did get snap these pictures..it is a memory worth remembering...So here are the processes in pictures as to how a typical home made turkish pasta is made...

4 kg of flour
20 eggs
1 litre of milk
into a dough like this

Mahture yenge of istanbul
rolling the dough with an oklava
a typical turkish rolling pin
(this is just a pose hehe)

The dough is rolled over into these thin round shapes
*half dried before being cut off by knife*

Hatice and i menyebuk kejap

Mahture Yenge of Turgutlu with her Mom at work

The fresh pasta before being dried up
and eatennnnnnn

The end product
ı cup pasta to be boiled with 2 cups water.
Add thinly sliced tomatoes...
Yum YUm YUM!!
Eline Sağlik size!!
Nefis Olmuş!!

****Ok...Break time for history lesson*****
Turgutlar..i meant those from turgutlu...Mahture Yenge's 2 elder brothers and families..live in Turgutlu..somewhere near izmir..her elder sister lives in izmir town itself..

One of her brother's son and daughter are working in istanbul..and where do they live? Yup..inside Zaim Apartment..in front of Mahture Yenge!! hehehe (Well..i told u there are lots of our family in the Zaim Apt)..Anyway...the mom,the dad and the grandma came to visit...and they decided to prepare fresh pasta..right on that very day i decided to go yenge visiting ...my luck!

The Zaimlar were originally from Macedonia..They sold their lands..houses in macedonia and came to Turkey. They were the generation of halil's dad's dad...They were in 2 big groups..one group went to izmir and the land nearby (ie Turgutlu) ..while the other came to the Fatih area in istanbul (European side)..Upon coming to Turkey, they had to register a surname..The istanbul group registered their surname as Zaim but the izmir group..they were not so lucky...The person at the izmir's registration office did not accept Zaim as a surname...Therefore, they had no choice but to take another name as a surname..and they decided upon Özyurek..

Why the surname Zaim? Everything goes back to the history...in Macedonia..in the Ottoman Empire, Owners of lands are called Zaim..and our family ancestor(referring to my Zaim family) was one of them. In the peace time, they farm and train soldiers (and those soldiers farm for the land owners)..In the wartime, all of them fought in the war. Hence, the decision use the name Zaim as a surname for those coming to turkey.

Anyway, back to Mahture Yenge... Mahture Yenge married her late husband (my dad in law's brother) named Mustafa...and the funny part is... her brother's name is Mustafa who is married to a woman named Mahture!! so there we have the Mustafa*Mahture of istanbul and Mustafa*Mahture of turgutlu!!! In the old times particularly when Mustafa amca was alive, i wonder how they differentiate each other!!*chuckles*..i am sure if i ask them..there will be stories of confusion on the names..!!..So Mahture Yenge after she got married... from Mahture Özyurek became Mahture Zaim..a name she neednt change at all if the registrar in izmir had accepted the name Zaim as a surname.. To conclude all..Yup..Zaim and Özyurek are basically one family..

And the pasta...Home made pasta...no preservatives..no flavouring..made after that very very long hardwork of rolling, cutting...especially cutting.....and a few days of drying...and shared with the rest of the family..Allah Razı olsun...Eline sağlik size....

Turkish ilahi Song in video Clip

If u had entered this blog a few hours ago..u would be able to catch tarkan singing dudu..if u want the song, i can email it to you..

This new song....The singer in this video clip is Erkan Mutlu...he is among the famous ilahi singers (lagu nasyid) in Turkey. ..i think it was videoed outside one of the mosques in turkey..

This is one of my hubby's favourite singer..since he is so sad about the fener match last night..i thought i'd cheer him up by putting this video clip here.

Take note of the builing architecture and the musical instruments..They are definitely Turkish specials!


P.s
- Thanks mama Sarah for the -how to instructions!!-
- My dear bro joe..if u wanna add videoclip to ur blog..go to youtube.com and register there..U will know what to do next.
- Tem when i showed the videoclip to hatice, she said.."ah anne..o babamim sesi o".. She is right!! no wonder u like erken mutlu so much *chuckles*.

Galatasaray yeah!!

Just look at their expressions

Football talk

Yes!

Be careful with the ball!!

Happy Happy Galatasaray fans!

Last night saw a twist of event for the football fans..In the two matches of the turkish league..Fenerbahce who had almost a sure win...did not end up as top of the league..instead..Galatasaray won! U see, baba's house was a house divided last night... The Zaim women (except özlem-fener and ı-i dont support any team)..are galatasaray fans while the men (except kerim) are fenerbahce die hard fans!! Happy mother's day to you ladies.. a perfect gift to end that special day, huh?!! And the husbands? hehehehehe sad..angry...frustrated....u name it!!!

This reminded me of a story halil once told me..

He said, in vilages, whenever there are big football matches, the women would read Quran and pray a lot that their husband's favourite team would win because if not the husbands would come home (usually they watch this matches at kahvehane*coffeehouses) in very very terrrible mood!!

hmmmmmmm the impact of football hehehehe

and Yup...Totally sad fener fans and Totally suprised and happy galata fans...