Rambling Petang Jumaat - Sekolah

So, September next year Z is due to start his formal education as a Junior Infant. Ni macam ala2 pre-school kat Msia la kot. Tapi kat sini formal preschool masih dekat nursery/montessori @ age of 3 or 4 (depending on their DOB). Junior / Senior Infant plak kat sekolah rendah from age 4/5 for 2 years. Pastu baru masuk derjah satu.

for the last 2-3 weeks nih, fikiran mama sedikit kusut bila teringatkan bab sekolah Z ni.. The question is, will he go to normal school (kita panggil mainstream), or will he go to Special School.

Sejak dari Z baby, mama selalu berperasaan bahawa mainstream school is the best. Z will learn and mix around with typical kids which hopefully will motivate him to go further and also socialising well. Selalunya special kids yang pergi ke mainstream school akan dapat SNA (Special Needs Assistance) macam yang Z dapat sekarang la i.e. cikgu Yvonne. Then diorang juga akan dapat Resource Hours - ni mama tak berapa faham sangat apa, yang mama tahu, diorang akan dapat time off untuk physio or speech therapy, then diorang jugak akan dapat certain hour where they can spend one-to-one dengan cikgu on their problematic subject. For the rest of the time, diorang akan belajar sama dengan budak2 lain. Boleh refer kepada citer GLEE where there's one actress with DS on it. So that's basically how a special kids in a mainstream school.

2-3 minggu lepas, Mairead (Home Teacher) suruh mama pikir and decide where to send Z too, because we should start looking for school now. Mama bagitau la mama punya preference. Dia cakap, memang la kalau mengikut pembacaan, mainstream is a better option, but at the same time dia suruh mama fikirkan masak2 based on Z's best interest. Dia cakap ok jer Z nak pergi mainstream tu, tapi when it comes to SNA and Resource Hour, its not something that you definitely will get in this glooming economic condition in Ireland. Plus she said Special School is not all bad. Dia kata the best special school in ireland is the St Michael House Special school HQ in Ballymun, then another one in Raheny (SMH punya jugak). Most Special School kat sini memang pakai mainstream syllibus pun. Pastu all teachers have experience in special needs plus kat kelas pun memang ada teacher's aide. and for severe case, memang akan tetap di allocate SNA. Sekolah memang ada siap clinic, PT, SLT, OT lengkap. Dia cakap ramai parents yang want to TRY their child in mainstream school, but at the end have to send them to Special School jugak when thing dont go accordingly.

Actually that was my original plan. Nak hantar Z pegi sekolah biasa, then bila dah besar sikit, baru hantar special school. Mama paling risaukan BULLY. yes, that's my main concern actually. Umo 8 tahun kebawah tu InsyaAllah takde lagi kot kes2 buli nih..

Setelah difikir2, now mama rasa macam nak hantar Z ke special school pulak. Most primary school adalah Roman Catholic School (90%). Ada a few jer yang multidenomination. Semua kawan2 melayu mama memang hantar ke Roman school tu la. They only teach religion during subject religion je, and its not mandatory, so kita boleh choose other subject. Tapi diorang mengamalkan ajaran Catholic la.. macam nyanyian, baca doa makan semua tu, sekolah pun selalunya dalam kawasan gereja. Kawan2 mama dah bagitau anak diorang supaya diam jer time nyanyi or baca doa tu. Senang kot nak bagitau bebudak typical 5 tahun, tapi nak bagitau kat Z camno? Nak suruh Z angkat tangan baca doa pun tak lepas lagi.. huhuhu.. (Z boleh angkat tangan baca doa masa umo 1-2 tahun, then puff* they gone now re: autism)

Another thing that bother me is the SNA and resource hour. Based on discussion in DS Ireland forum, memang you have to fight for it. Kalau dapat pun maybe half SNA and 2 hours RH perweek. Ni pun siap kena naik turun pejabat menteri punya kes nih. Kita ni dah la pendatang asing, rasanya tipis sikit la kot nak dapat keutamaan tu.. Once you have been to National School, you are not under St Michael's anymore. Stakat pegi appointment doctor and theraphy tu jer la. But they are not looking after other area, kena deal sendiri with HSE. Macam sekarang Mairead, Yvonne semua under SMH. We have fond a good relationship with them and I dont think we could survive without them.

Pastu kalau masuk Special School, I think Z and me could meet more real friends since we share so much in common. Kawan2 forum mama cakap, selalunya special kids in mainstream dont have that much friends. kalau ada pun among special students jer. tu pun tak ramai, selalu satu kelas tu 1-2 org jer special students sebab each school ada limit how many special students they can have. Masa kelas bawah2 tu, memang ler bebudak tak kisah, kawan tanpa mengenal darjat. But once they understand the differences, susah sikit la kot.. Budak2.. But if Z goes to Special School, everybody is the same. Tak ramai pun satu kelas dalm 10-15 orang jer Mairead cakap. All parents get involved a lot too.. so bukan saje kawan Z, mama pun dapat kawan jugak..

Lagipun Z sangat pasif. He hates loud noise, he hates children running around (ok, we should expect special kids with ADHD in Special School anyway) I think he could benefit more in Special School because of that.

Lepastu sekolah pulak. Kalau pegi mainstream, mama nak hantar Z ke sekolah Caroline. Kita pindah duduk sekampung dengan anti meri n rini. Tapi mama tatau macam mana persediaan sekolah tu terhadap special needs. I am sure they must have some special kids there, cuma adakah diorang ada all the facility. Kalau pegi sekolah khas ni, memang sah2 ler semua facility di cipta khas for special kids. Sekolah dekat Raheny tu siap ada heated swimming pool lagi. Ballymun x de. And then we talking about area we going to live. Sword tu ok sebab dekat rumah kawan2 rapat mama. Apa2 pun senang. Area pun dah familiar. But according to anti Meri, even Caroline yang mix mat saleh tu pun selalu kena ejek oleh budak2 kat taman sebab muka sedikit asian. Bayangkan Z yang memang pure Malay pastu special plak. Sigh.. Area Ballymun tu macam safe sikit, its a 'mature' area. Rumah mahal2 la tapinya.. Area Raheny tu mama mmg tak tau langsung. Tau ler kat mana, cuma tak pernah pegi area situ.

Tapi itu la.. deep down, I am still hoping somehow Z will be in mainstream school. Mama rasa kalau mama hantar Z ke Special School tu macam mama dah give up jer. Rasa bersalah because ideally he should get better opportunity in Mainstream. But then... I have to be realistic too..
ntah la.. tunggu la 4-5 bulan lagi mama betul2 buat research pasal nih..

Kete 'baru' papa

Setelah lebih 10 thn di Ireland, we finally have a car :D

Renault Scenic - auto

Sebelum nih nk p memana jauh sikit mesti naik teksi jer. Kalau nak p lagi jauh, either tumpang org or sewa jer. Sewa kereta for weekend 50-70€ je pun.. Living in city centre nih, mmg x perlu kemana2 sgt.. Everything is here within walking distance. Tak pun naik tram yang berhenti betul2 depan rumah. Opis mama pun 15 mins dari rumah. Sekolah Z mmg depan rumah. Spital papa jauh la, tapi dia commute dgn bas x sampai sejam pun journey. Bas stop depan rumah, then turun pun depan spital. Public transport is very reliable here. Lagipun apartment2 kat city centre nih x come with parking (sbb diorang sub let to office2 surrounding), satu hal plak nk bayo parking.. And they are freaking expensive!

Tapi haritu kan bincang2 nk pindah duduk jauh sikit dari city, so we think its time for us to get a car. Beli kete murah2 cukup la, bukan nk pakai selalu (kat sini kete memang murah pun, especially second hand cars).. Mama suruh papa beli kete kecik sudah, bleh mama tumpang bawak (mama dari dulu takut bwk kete panjang hehe) masa kat msia mama bawak kancil jer, sold it before I came here. So dah lebih 10 thn mama x betul2 drive, skali skala tu ada la, but im not confident especially on Irish road. 

Skali dia bawak balik kete nih. Sabo jer la.. Takpe la, nama pun family car. Papa kata senang nak pindah, tak perlu hire moving van. Hmm.. Walaupun x besar mana, mama rasa mama tetap x berani drive kot. Tapi kalau dh betul2 pindah luar nanti, terpaksa la jugak mama memberanikan diri agaknya.. huhu

Z tengah test drive

PEMPES

Buy one free one :D

Z is 3 yrs and 5 months now and mama tak rasa he will be diaperless any time soon. Dia baru belajar menapak few steps at one time, rasanya 4-5 bulan jugak kot before he could walk confidently. Selagi tak bleh jalan, mcm mana nak potty train kan.. tu satu bab la, communication lagi. So far nak bagitau dia lapar pun tak lepas lagi, camno nak bagitau bila nak guna toilet.. so mama target, paling kurang setahun setengah lagi kot ber diaper nih.. Hopefully he will be diaperless when he starting school end of next year.. InsyaAllah, be positive :)

Btw, kat sini kalau umo dah 3 tahun and with medical condition, you are entitled for diapers grant from govt. tapi bukan dapat duit, diorang bagi pampes. Kena p collect kat hospital kot. Dah kalau namanya bagi free, pempes nya pun ala kadar jer la.. ada kawan forum mama pernah tunjuk, even the cheapest diaper kat tesco pun lagi baguih quality nya.. For now, mama rasa x perlu la apply kalau dah cenggitu rupanya.. but for parent yang ada anak yg dah besar, and still need diapers, diorang kata berbaloi la. Kalau nak kena beli sendiri sampai anak umo belasan tahun, parah jugak kan..

Kat sini tak banyak sangat choices of brand. Kalau dekat main supermarket tu, memang ada brand pampers jer, kadang2 ada la huggies, tapi mama dh jarang nampak. Pastu brand kedai tu la, tesco ke, spar ke, dunnes ke. Kalau kedai2 murah mcm aldi or lidl tu, ada la jugak brand lain from germany. Dulu mama pernah jugak alternate beli Huggies (kalau pampers x de sale la). murah sikit dari pampers, tapi keras semacam jer. But now huggies cuma ada yg jenis pull up jer. So stick to pampers. Alhamdulillah, selalu jer ada offer Pampers nih. every 1-2 month mesti ada, walaupun x semua jenis on sale, at least dia akan buat jugak offer certain size or type. So kita angkut ler banyak2 bila ada offer tu :D.

Dekat sekolah, cikgu slalu tukar pempes 2 jam sekali (kalau tak poopo). So dalam sehari tu 5 pempes jugak diorang guna kat sekolah tu (kat rumah 5 keping tu bleh tahan 24 hrs dah).. masalahnya tatau ler betul ke tak diorang tukar every 2 hrs tu kan.. pastu plak, walaupun mama kasik brand Pampers (diapers skali bagi satu pack, bukan bekal hari2), banyak occasion yang Z balik rumah pakai pempes jenama lain (yg jauh lebih murah). Tension jugak mama. So, now untuk sekolah mama beli Pampers Simply Dry jer. Murah skit (tapi quality x ler seteruk pampes ntah hape2 yg kadang2 diorang pakaikan tu..). Lagipun cikgu kan rajin tukar pempes.. *juling mata*..

 

So as a result, skali hangkut, memang berjenis2 jugak ler jadinya :D

Pampers Baby-Dry untuk tido malam n keluar

Pampers Active Fit untuk daily use

Pampers Simply Dry untuk sekolah

And Huggies Pull ups pun mama ada spare, ni mama pakaikan kalau Z tengah lasak x mo baring (pakaikan time dia berdiri) or pakaikan sekejap2 sebelum Z mandi or sebelum tukar pampers lain before nk keluar tu.

Sekian saja kisah pampes. ntah hape2, pampes pun nk citer heheheh.. actually mama tgh fe feeling good ni lepas dapat beli pempes buy one free one tu. Rasa macam champion plak bila dapat save a lot of money.. HAHAHHAH. quite sometime jugak tesco last buat sale buy one free one or 50% off. lately diorang suka buat offer buy 2 at certain reduced price jer (which normally will work about 25-33 percent off). So I am very happy with this deal :D

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Cikgu baru lagi

OMG tatau ler berapa kali dah cikgu kelas Z bertukar (cikgu kelas, bukan cikgu khas)

Mama lupa pulak apa nama cikgu baru Z, but first impression I think I could trust her. This is the first time in 6/7 months that I feel ok with his teacher. Tu pun cikgu tu cakap dia maybe temporary jer kat kelas Z sebab cikgu kelas Z (Ciara) tgh holiday. Cikgu baru ni transferred from other branch and she used to teach pre-school class. Kalau cikgu preschool normally they already have degree in child edu. That’s why she looks very professional perhaps.

Bukan mcm cikgu2 kelas Z sekarang. Ciara tu ntah la, mama pun x kenal sangat dia. Tetiba jer tgk dia dah ada dalam kelas Z. Ganti Cikgu Kathy ke apa ntah yg dulu nih. cikgu tu dah berhenti lama, then cuma cikgu Emma sensorang jer jadi main cikgu kelas Z, while being helped by other teachers (rotation). As a result kelas Z sejak 2-3 bulan lepas mmg porak peranda. Cikgu Ciara tu pun baru sebulan jer keje rasanya.. Cikgu Ciara ni la yang mama kasik warning last week sebab tak pujuk Z menangis tu.

Sorang lagi cikgu kelas Z nama Emma. Hmm.. what can I say about cikgu Emma.. Dia tu School’s supervisor. Honestly, dari awal lagi mama menyampah dengan dia. Nampak sangat fake. Papa pun dah pernah Nampak kepalsuan dia. Bukan lah dia marah2 Z or what (at least not to my knowledge), tapi dia jenis yg peramah mulut manis depan parents jer, belakang parents siap jeling2. How can u trust a person like that? Pastu kalau pegi amik Z tu, Nampak jer kita, terus la dia main2 bergurau senda dengan Z. Padehal dari jauh mama dok intai, Z main sorang jer sebelum tu, tak dihiraukan pun.. Ni bukan sekali dua. Memang banyak kali sangat dah. Dengan parents lain pun dia buat. Semalam masa mama dok borak dengan cikgu Yvonne, cikgu Emma lalu. Z dari jauh dah sengih2 sambil flapping his hands happily while looking at cikgu emma tu. Z will do that when he is excited to see the person. Tapi cikgu emma buat tatau jer.. senyum balik pun tak, terus blah mcm Z non existed. Ni kali ke dua mama nampak, but first for Yvonne. Yvonne siap panggil si Emma tu lagi, buat she just left. Mmg Nampak muka Yvonne pun berubah. So rude! Macam ler bisi sangat, padehal dia nak keluar breakfast jer.

Yvonne cakap dia nak pindahkan Z ke kelas lain. Toddler 2^nd stage. Dia cakap bebudak kelas tu besar n matang sikit. And their teacher are better. Dia pun tak suka kelas sekarang nih. Dah apply, hopefully Z will start in March. For the moment kena la bertahan dulu.. Harap2 cikgu baru nih stay lama sikit la kat kelas Z.

Pastu mama bagitau Yvonne yg mama akan keje part time jer lepas nih, so boleh la focus kepada Z’s therapy. Mama harap sangat Z will get 5 days support when he start preschool in Sept. And I hope it will still be Yvonne. Then dia senyum and say, don’t tell Mairead I told you this.. I think Z already being approved for 5 days support in September and highly likely it will be me! Whaaat! YEAY!!! Kalau lah betul, memang mama bersyukur sangat2.. and then she continue, I really want to work with Z. So I have make the proposal to Mairead (Home Teacher / manager for pre schooler in SMH), and they kind of agree with me :) awww.. thank you so much Yvonne. Mama baru jer planning, dia dah 1 step ahead of me. Alhamdulillah, thank you Allah for sending these nice people to me and Z..

* pssst ni rahsia. Better write in Malay. Z kan dah dapat separuh minggu cikgu khas, so sepatutnya dia hanya layak untuk dapat separuh minggu jugak next year. Geran daripada kerajaan adalah 5 hari seminggu cikgu khas untuk setahun, ataupun boleh buat separuh2 selama dua tahun.

Sekarang Z dapat 3 hari (pagi) dengan Yvonne, and dia juga dapat 2 petang with Siobhan (maksudnya dia dah gunakan kesemua geran pun), and tahun depan (Sept 14) Z akan dapat lagi 5 hari! Daripada forum yang mama ikuti, memang takde lagi budak lain di Ireland nih yang dapat kelebihan macam Z!

isn’t that amazing??? And they are still people yang bising2 suruh kitorang balik msia dengan alasan akan lebih mudah urusan kami sekeluarga. Macam ler diorang ada anak special. And macam ler diorang akan tolong. Tanya khabar pun tidak, cakap jer lebih. Yes we are struggling, but for the moment I think this is the best decision for Z. Lepas nih tak tau macam mana lagi, and I don’t say that we will spend the rest of our life here. No. Just not now..

Weekend Lepas (lepas)

Last weekend (11/12 Jan) was a bit stressful for mama pasal bab2 cuti / kerja tu.. Although I tried to keep calm as if everything in control, the reality is very daunting. Macam2 yang mama risau, memang sampai naik jerawat 2-3 bijik la! Lepas dah confirm tak nak keje tu, mama ajak papa g shopping untuk release tension. Nak belanja sebelum gaji terakhir kononnya (ada lg 2 bulan pun sebelum last gaji, tapi kononnya dah tak nak spent lagi la lepas tu..)

Spot pertama, henpon papa. Papa dah guna his phone (iphone4) 3 tahun dah. Memang lembab habis, tension mama tengok. So I got him a new phone. Hadiah birthday in advance. Memula nak ambik iphone 5s, takde stock. Iphone 5c pun jadik ler.. (phew save duit mama). We got blue phone. Walaupun mama suka jer colour biru tu, mama sebenarnya rasa phone nih amat tak sesuai dengan papa. I think its so childish. Tapi papa tak kisah, dia kata asal boleh guna dah ler. He dont care about the look. Mama ajak pegi kedai lain pun dia tanak. Sabo jer la. Mama end up beli casing hitam untuk 'cover' phone dia. hehehe.. We use bill pay and eligible for upgrade, so x banyak sangat pun mama kena bayo..

Tinggal kotak jer..

Then pegi carik hadiah untuk Z pulak. Lepas Xmas haritu mama nampak train ni kat few toy shops. Teragak2 nk beli ke tak. Z dah ada 2 train set dah pun. But he doesnt really PLAY with it. Dia suka tengok jer train tu bergerak (remember he is only about 16 months old developmentally). But this new to market set is more for his age I think sebab its interactive, ada button2 bleh tekan. Tapi bila mama pegi balik ke kedai toys haritu, dah out of stock. Popular items katanya.. Ler.. End up mama order je from amazon that weekend. Tu pun out of stock jugak, 3-4 hari baru dispatched. So blom sampai lagi, sabar yer Z. Harini sampai la kot..

Thomas from Fisher Price

Pastu pegi Kildare Village. Naik bas. MasyaAllah suka (peghak) betul Z naik bas. Dah la lama kena beratur sebab ramai orang. Dia punya melintuk liuk nak masuk dalam bas tu! Pastu orang yang beratur depan pun semua dia tolak2. Hahaha.. lawak ler Z ooii.. Bila dah masuk dlm bas pun, mulut bising jer tengok luar. But after 15 mins, terus tido.. Balik pun sama la.. Excited jer lebih hehe

Z dan Bas

Z dan papa yang kebosanan tunggu mama soping

Anyway mama nk carik beg kaler biru. Yes. Biru. Tatau ler kenapa tetiba teringin nk pakai beg biru. Ada jer beg biru kotak2 tu, tapi mama jarang pakai sebab mcm besar sikit, tak sesuai untuk pakai harian.. lagipun mama nih bukan rajin sangat nk jaga beg. Semua lunyai, sebab tu mama malas nak pakai yang mahal2.. btw lepas pusing 1-2 round, ada 3 choice yg mama bekenan, and I end up choosing this one. Paling murah. Nak sep duit katanya.. But its not really blue. Teal/turquoise actually. Takpe I really like it.. Bleh la pakai hari2 nanti.. (rasanya kalau mama tahu mama akan bekerja, mesti mama dah beli yang lain.. hihihi)

Beg baru mama

Oh actually I NOW need a new ‘office’ bag jugak. Beg opis mama dah kemek2 x cantik. Haritu mmg tak carik sebab ingat nk cuti for 2 years kan.. Now dah tak menjadik nih, ‘terpaksa’ la p carik new one.. :). Nanti2 la kita p carik lagi yer.. 

Btw mama takde lah hantu designer bags pun and I don’t mind wearing any brands, as long as I think its look good on me, serve it purpose and affordable.. cukup ler.. BUT I dont wear fake/imitation beg. Kalau x de duit, mama beli jer beg yang kurang berjenama. Mudah, tak perlu la nk pretentious.. Thats just my own opinion.. Peace yo!

Dilema berterusan..

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After I made up my mind last week (of not doing part time), this morning my boss comes up with a better offer. Aiseymen…! Dilema jadinya. I really love doing what I am doing now, but I love Z more. And that’s the reason why I ask for the 15 hr work before. But when my boss told me that I have to work on different area (diff job, diff team, different boss), it totally put me off. So after a lot of thinking (sampai keluar jerawat 3 ketul!!), I told him NO, and I just want to be a SAHM for the 2 years.

But today, after discussing with other managers and also HR, my boss told me that I could work 15hr perweek on my current position - because they just approved budget for a new staff and (half) me! He said he wont give up on me, they still want to use my experience/expertise even only for 15 hrs per week. Wow! Macam mana nih. And even better, I could work half day (4 half day per week) if I want to which is good in term of my work distribution. The best part is, Z could be in creche/playschool in the morning and Yvonne will be there 3 morning, so only Thursday morning jer Z will be alone in creche. Tgh hari mama balik keje boleh ambik Z. I got extra income, and I don’t have to worry finding a new crèche (walaupun I don’t like their service, but it was better than sending Z to new crèche I suppose (due to his anxiety)..) or even a new home (we are planning to move a bit further from town, because its cheaper).

So how?? I have until Friday to give the answer..

Z will be in school in the morning at least until June (July-Aug cuti sekolah) then Sept he will start preschool. That will be every morning. Apa mama nak buat di rumah tiap2 pagi kalau tak kerja? Although I have plan to do a lot of thing with Z (setting up Z’s homework, blab la bla), but I think after a few month, I might get fed up. Otak berkarat! Or maybe I can be like those goddess mom/wife (in my dream)..

Hmmm… but.. July/Aug is school holiday. Cikgu Yvonne pun cuti. So Z will still be in crèche ‘alone’ in the morning if I work. I hate to think that he was there alone. Sigh.. macam mana nih.. And I actually already planted in my mind that I dont have to go to work for the next 2 years. And I kinda like the idea of being a full time housewife and spending a lot of time with Z.

But.. macam rugi jer kalau mama tolak. With those extra money, mama can buy a lot of therapy/learning aids for Z. Semalam mama dok survey2 specialneeds items, mama macam risau jugak sebenarnya thinking that we couldn’t afford those in next 2 years.. Memang ler papa could afford us, but nak spend more tu tak boleh la. Basic private therapy n supplements tu insyaAllah boleh cover.. tapi nak spend extra for all those equipments & gadget agak payah kot.. Stem cell lagi..

But again, after I make some calculation, money wise yes there’s some extra money left, but not that much considering we still have to pay for creche. Is it enough to justify with the time that I lost? Memang le kerja pagi jer, but then balik keje of course penat. Nak kemas2.. nak masak2 lagi.. so how much time left for Z? We might have the best equipment, tapi kalau tak digunakan dengan persistence.. no result. Tu belum masuk bab stress kerja lagi. Pastu cuti pun kurang (keje half time, cuti pun tinggal half jer la) Kalau Z punya appointment pagi, dah kena ambik cuti. Nak balik Msia lagi.. Nak pegi holiday lagi. N paling risau kalau Z unwell, pastu cuti dah habis. Camno?

Or maybe if I work 2 full day per week could work out better? I’ll have 3 extra full day with Z no? Z will still be alone in creche 2 afternoon per week, but I think having 3 days in a row is worth much more than having 4 afternoon + 1 full day? What happen when Z start pre-school in September then? Z will have to go to school 5 mornings, will giraffe accept if we oly send him 2 full days + 3 half days? Kena find out lah. if not, maybe we should move him to other school then.. 

This is not just about me. This is about what I could provide the best for Z. Win some, lose some.. Arggghh.. nanti balik discuss dgn papa dan menteri2 pasola semula la.. 

Afternoon Update: Bumped to my previous manager on her way out just now, she told me she heard the news from my manager, and she is delighted with my decision and will support it all the way.. :). 

Thank you D. I knew it was you! 

When my manager said he approves the 15hr work after discussion with 'other managers', I get it straight away that it must be my previous boss yang approved it. Eventhough D is not my manager anymore, her position is still higher than my current manager (she is the vice CFO and one of the most important person in our institution). She also thinks it is better if I accept the 15 hr offer. She has a special needs son as well, and for her, work is the only thing that make her feels insane. Otherwise everything is just about her son. She hopes the new arrangement will work well for me n Z. 

Before we finish our conversation, D give a pat on my back and say, 'next time if you have problem, you know you can always come to me directly ;)'. It does make me in tears actually. The truth is, only people in similar path with you could really understand your situation. I really admire her. Hopefully I can be as succesfull as her one day :) I am not a kiss ass type of staff, and I just want to do it the right way, thats why I didnt go through her. Plus I do have options, I know my entitlements, so whatever the decision is I am okay with it.. :) But this time, maybe the decision is a YES to the 15hr work.. 

Its amazing how people perception could change. My relationship with D didnt start well AT ALL in the beginning. Will story about that in future. But it does teach me that people could change. Our perception on people always being deceived until we know them personally.. Thank you Allah for this opportunity..

(Well I also know that it might be hell working on 2 days per week, sure ada aje yang tak puas hati with this arrangement. keje 3 hari seminggu dulu pun macam nak pecah kepala. But it is what it is.. If it doesnt break you, it suppose to make you stronger right?)

Spain I: Granada (AlHambra)

*Late Entry (22-26 Nov 2013) - Citer 2 bulan lepas baru nak masuk blog. Mama update Granada dulu, nanti bila sempat mama update Malaga pulak ;)

Btw mama dah lama kepingin nak ke AlHambra, akhirnya tercapai jugak impian itu :)

Z di depan La Alhambra entrance

Booked flights and hotels 3 weeks earlier, yang lain2 tak sempat pun mama nak buat research n planning. Selalu kalau pegi travel tu, mesti mama dah siap2 kan semua itinerary, this time memang busy teramat. Hentam jer la.. Lagipun x plan nk jalan banyak tempat, just nak relax n most important is the Alhambra itself.

Flight from Dublin pukul 11.30am (Friday), keluar rumah around 9.30am, planning baik punya, supaya tak rushing di aiport. Sekali beg excess! Mama beli utk check in 15kg jer, tapi bawak 21.5kg (next entry on what we packed up for our travel). dah satu hal kena punggah kat situ. Cabin luggage bawak 1 jer sebab konon2 dah cukup ler kot. padehal boleh bawak 3. So memang tak muat di situ, end up we have to pay 100€ extra. Damn you Ryanair! Next time kena beli yang 20kg la.. (mama beli extra beg on our way back, so terselamat di situ)

There's no direct flight from Dublin to Granada, so we had to stop in Malaga. Ambik bus ke Malaga city, then another bus to Granada. Seharian perjalanan jugak la.. But it was worth it! Pukul 6 baru sampai Granada, so stay n explore the hotel jer la.. Z was fine during the journey. Naik flight pun relax jer.. Mama risau jugak sebab last naik flight was Nov last year. Takut dia panic ke apa. But Alhamdulillah, Z dah besar.. He really enjoyed the journey. Nak duduk sendiri and he was fine with the seatbelt (either in the flights, taxis or buses), tak perlu diriba mcm dulu dah :)

Alhambra Palace Hotel

Di Granada we stayed at Alhambra Palace Hotel. Mahal sikit, but really worth it. Only few meters from the Alhambra Complex. Mama pun tak sure whether it used to be part of the AlHambra or not. But all the decorations are very similar. Peninggalan sejarah Islam di Andalusia :). Sangat membanggakan.. (dalam masa yang sama, sedih jugak sebab Andalusia dah jatuh ke tangan Christian kan..)

Bilik biasa2 jer, maybe sebab mama ambik standard room jer kot (tak mampu nk ambik suite kat sini..). But all the decorations surrounding are amazing. Oh bilik air in our room pun sangat cantik sebenarnya.. And I do fancy their restaurant a lot!

The Hotel's restaurant

Sabtu tu memang diperuntukan khas untuk visit Alhambra. Tu pun dah rugi paginya, sebab mama boleh terlupa bawak credit card!! Mama dah book ticket online, tapi kena collect dekat Alhambra using the same credit card. Nak tak nak, kena la beratur beli semula. punya la lama beratur, dekat 2 jam kot. Haish rugi betul.. Nasib baik ler tiketnya tak mahal sangat.. Dapat tiket dah dekat tengah hari dah, so we went back to hotel, makan2 dulu. Pukul 2 baru masuk Alhambra.

Ahad pagi sempat la ambik bas hop on hop off, buat quick sightseeing aroung Granada City. Then check out, terus ke Malaga pulak (next entry). Some of the photos taken in La Alhambra. These photos doesnt really do justice. Mama upload sikit jer and malas nk crop betul2. In real life, MasyaAllah.. There's no word could describe how beautiful this place are..