"you know you've made it big when people you don't know hate you."

"inside some of us is a thin person struggling to get out, but they can usually be sedated with a few pieces of chocolate cake."
- Anonymous

"Weight management has to be an uncompromising, non-negotiable, everyday thing, like brushing your teeth"
Linda Spangle, 100 Days of Weight Loss

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

the woes of being slimmer

today i went to town to go burn some cash with my mum. we hardly ever go out just the two of us in brunei, and even if we do, theres always that nagging feeling that a brother is mengusut at home or worse the hubby who wants the wifey and daughter home because its late. so today was our first ever girly hassle free shopping spree!

gosh. its took us 21 years to do this.

anyhoo, i've been trying to get a maxi dress for myself and petite ppl would know, maxi dresses are uber-difficult to find on our small frame. but today i got a double whammy - i actually found THREE maxi dresses that were just the right length but they were ONE size too big!

ugh. there needs to be more labels that cater to slim and petite ppl! like, its just encouraging ppl to be fat* because theres all these gorgeous clothes in big sizes and at the same time, discouraging ppl like ME to workout and lose weight because all there is left are jeans and tops. not cool, i tell you.

jane norman is nice enough tho. but its not reli my style. i guess i was at the wrong shop at the wrong rack. i did get myself a gorgeous pair of summer wedges and a pair of tan linen pants, at bargain prices too! and i paid for them, not mummy! hee. theres some sort of satisfaction u get when u shop with ur mum but ur using ur own money. mcm.. wow, im independent.

i hope tomoro's shopping trip will be better. going to ashford for the day. PLEASE let there be a maxi dress in my size at a decent price!

is that too much to ask? oh, and maybe a gorgeous pair of gladiator sandals. yes, im well on my way to a summer wardrobe =D

much love,
be'ah xxx

*not fat literally. lol

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Tiga Puluh Hari

going home in 30days!

now i kinda wonder what got into me when i decided to go home so late. my first couple of summer holidays have been really blah. jem was saying i shud be going out, not stay in. its funny, during exams i'll be out every now and then. now i cant even bother going out. maybe i'm saving the going out bit for when my mummy comes. but shes only gonna be here for a week..

then i'll be playing hostess to a bunch of friends, going to portugal.. and after portugal? i dont knw.

but ah well! tis done. altho i havent got the confirmation of my ticket dates from UPP. krg la saya tanya. or esuk. tonight im leaving for londres to meet me mama =D i kenot waiit!

actually theres loads to look forward to in my summer here. but i do miss the boyfren sangat2x.

dugaan bercinta d negeri orang. HAHA.

oh em gee. i'm still hyper. i wonder if my mum will notice that ive dropped 3.5kgs since the last time she saw me. live that is. skyping does not count. everybodeh knows the camera adds pounds.

i just hope i dont add the pounds banar2x when mum is around. coz when u get love+attention+mum's cooking = weight gain.

i'll make her jog with me. mesti nie! supaya kami kana ucap adik-beradik! apakan. make her look younger la, not me look older. actually, some ppl have thought we were sisters psl my mum's reli small. sudah close-up nda tia. harhar. im going off in tangents. this is wat u do when u are jobless.

i hear apip's coming round later. yezzer!

much love,
be'ah

(oh my this is such a random and all-over post)

Saturday, May 24, 2008

lookeee what i got!




its the benetint and gloss duo from Benefit! huhu ive been wanting to get benetint but this was cheaper. plus its handier coz its pocket size.

now u can see me have such gorgeous flush on my cheeks!

oh wait.. i just gave away my secret to naturally flushed cheeks. oh well.

anyhoo, lastnite we had a mini celebration for anisah's birthday coz she left today. it was a good dineer party.. had lamb chops, mashed potatoes, grilled peppers, corn on the cob, steamed broccoli with mushrooms, sticky date pudding, profiteroles, special karipap from brunei (specifically SPHI yg arah mall atu) and even cups made from chocolate that a certain someone thought wasnt edible.

oh me gawd listing all the food down is making me drool. noooooo! dont let this be the downfall of my hard work of exercising!

theres leftovers from lastnite in the fridge. uh-oh. heeelp!

imma go get a tiny bite of date pudding.

much love,
be'ah xxx

Friday, May 23, 2008

bring on the summer!

i finished my exams today. hurraay!!

say sangat hyper. i just organised my room so all my revision notes are safely packed away. some are even in the recycling bin sudah haha atu konfaiden pass. insyaAllah imma rock the exams =D i'm planning to clean the house (specifically the kitchen) tomorrow and maybe do a little bit of shopping in the afternoon. or window shopping. we shall see. hehe. need to get ready for my mum's arrival!

oooh i cant wait. she's also bringing me my slippers from brunei. mcm nda dpt bali sja sini ah? its called saving moneh. anyhoo, i only wore the slippers for a couple of months since i wore heels most of the time in brunei.

gosh i have all the free time in the world now :D time to get cracking on the spring(summer?) cleaning and reorganise everything -wardrobe, books, hutangs aaaand make up a new yoga routine. i need a more dynamic one. watever dynamic means. haha


the summer has come (for me)!

much love,
be'ah xxx

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

A Couple More Days

until my jam-packed-with-activities-and-fun-filled SUMMER HOLIDAYS!

:D oh gosh i cant keep smiling to myself like orang gila. i kind of feel like i'm already on holiday,just because i enjoy reading and researching this last module, philosophy of law. but i dont knw how i'll do when i sit a 3hr paper for it considering i wont have my books with me. i like reading abt the module.. but i dont knw how i'll feel about retaining stuff in my brain and regurgitating it on paper. oh well, insyaAllah i'll do awesome (mau lagi awesome tu, bukan 'just fine' lol). Bismillahi Tawakkaltu 'Alallah.

anyhoo,i'm now about 2weeks ish from my goal weight! *shriek* another thing to be excited about. antah lately i've been feeling very hyper much. no, actually, these past couple of days have been a sort-of roller coaster ride on feelings but more on that later. but i'm excited because i just got off the scales 10minutes ago and i lost 200g!! haha. sekadar plg but i lost those 200g in 3days. is that good or bad? and i've been meaning to ask adib this question but we cant seem to clash on msn. so adib, if ur reading this -

what should my body fat percentage be for my toned muscles to start showing?

coz lately ive been doing a million sit ups and crunches. actually yes i exagerrated. but seriously, ferdie would be proud of me. there i am in the living room on my yoga mat, heaving and puffing red-faced and doing about 100 crunches. this i dont kid. actually, im bad with numbers. haha pokoknya i do 4 sets of different crunches, each 2x15reps. u do the math. but then again, wats the point of toning up if ive still got flab covering it?

but its all exciting to still be progressing. i just hope i dont do a u-turn in portugal. eh no, im more worried of a relapse (of binge eating) during my mum's visit! wat with her cooking nanti. well, im hoping she cooks. haha coz i tink she's expecting me to cook. we'll make a deal lah nanti. but on the topic of weight-loss, she has been supportive of me. she was the one who paid for my gym membership back during the summer and she wud wake me up to go jogging with her and dad to tasek. i love my mum. hmm.. maybe i can bring her jogging. hee we'll see.

the weather has gone back to being chilly now. im having mixed feelings. i had my first ever usrah on sunday! tres interesting i might say. so do i loathe the chillyness of spring/summer? no, i shudnt! hehe kan keluar tia hyperness ku. but i havent been jogging out anyway coz i have exams. and chilly weather makes me cover up so its easier to be a hijabi at this point. see? Allah tolong~ hehe. i've been feeling numb and all sorts since the usrah.. all teary and hugging housemates. mainly because of guilt and i dont really know where to start this huge change.. so i have ruzanna as my partner =) and remember, this aint pressure, its support. we have to believe in each other. yezzer. we can do this!

and thank you to everyone who has been mucho supportive as of late. be it my weight loss or my hijabi transformation (the the words of ezzah haha). anyhoo, i gotta get cracking on the yoga mat. toodles and assalamu'alaikum!

much love,
be'ah xxx

Monday, May 19, 2008

Modern Ta'aruf




tis a joke btw. lol.

much love,
be'ah xxx

Friday, May 16, 2008

Weight Dilemma

what time of the day should we weigh ourselves? in the morning b4 brekkie or after lunch or before tdur? and how often in a week should we weight ourselves to get the most accurate weight?

i have been wondering about this for the past couple of days. the thing is, i have been losing weight but maybe im cheating myself. because i usually weigh myself in the morning, right after i wake up, brush my teeth and take a wee (so water weigh aint included lol).


anyhoo, i've signed up in foodfocus.co.uk, which is a great way to keep tabs on what u eat and and calorie intake and exercise and according to its magical calculations, at the rate i am exercising (which i put as light exercise. pasal aku malasss during exam times haha) i shud reach my goal on the 12th of june. EEK! THATS IN 3 WEEKS!

but like i said, i've been weighing myself early morning.. so maybe it'll take slightly longer. what with the portugal trip on the 11th, its definitely not gonna happen on the 12th of june. holidays abroad are when i let myself loose. sure i do my best to portion control, but hey, its only a once-in-a-lifetime trip so im not gonna deprive myself from some porto gelato or something. plus all the touristy walking there will probably burn off the extra calories. basically, my goal will be to maintain my weight saja. not lose. i'd be krazee to try and lose weight while abroad.

as of today, i am exactly one week away from my summer holidays. honestly i'm kind of looking forward to exams.. i dont knw if this means im ready. but i've been reading and reading and reading and i'm feeling more konfaiden and less lost on the topics. plus these last 2 papers are just essay questions, which i prefer over problem questions. problem questions already have a template way of answering so i cant really wriggle my way out by antam-ing. which is what i do best. lol.

so bring on the exams and let me be freeee!

much love,
be'ah xxx

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Hurray For the Gym!

me and my best friend made a deal today. summer we are BOTH going to fitness zone. HURRRAYY!

yea i do go to fitness zone when im in brunei.. but making such a deal just gives me that extra bit of motivation u knw. altho i'd still go to the gym with or without her, a lil' boost doesnt hurt =D anyhoo, its more like 'lets-both-join-the-gym' fullstop and not 'lets-both-join-the-gym-and-workout-together'. because to be frank, i dont think we can work out a time to go to the gym thats good for both of us. i like going mornings so it leaves the rest of the day free for me, knwing i've done 30mins on the treadmill and 2 killer aerobics and yoga class, all by 10am. this friend has work during the day. so enough said.

but that said, i cannot wait to see my gym buddies and gym trainer and see the look on their faces when they see how much weight i've lost! i was going through my medical files just now (out of boredom.. okay, more of a distraction from my revision) and checked my weight. anyhow, august 2006 i weighed 52.9kg! oh em gee! didnt realise i was that heavy =( no wonder i looked so bulat in my visa picture. i think i was in denial then coz i was at that bahagia-baru-beboyfren stage and we were eating out almost every other day. then its the fact that i didnt have skool or any part time job for a good 7mths. now who wudnt be fat?

i did lose weight sometime when i came to UK tho. i was at that lazy stage where i cudnt be bothered to get out of bed and go to the dining hall and cudnt even bother mengantak air panas to cook maggie. i use to keep a tab on my weight by how many notches up or down my belt i do up. i tink i was skinniest around februay-march last year. but yea, if u've read my donut post, thats when i ballooned up again. and i believe, up to 52kgs plus plus. but yea, those were the days when i didnt have a scale handy with me.

then balik brunei, as usual.. spoilt by home-cooking, local food choices and of course, the ever-loving mendulur boyfren of mine. so my weight went to an all time high until i realised that i was verging on overweight. yes, surprisingly after all the weight gain, my BMI was still average, albeit borderline to overweight. so last summer was a reality check for me. i had a digital scale at my disposal (courtesy of my mum for my 18th birthday) and was doing nothing watsover -no job, no picking up lil' brothers from school - pokoknya jobless to the max. so i joined the gym. and boy, did i need the gym!

a couple of friends know how i used to despise sweating. since joining the gym, i thrive on being able to sweat. coz it means im losing weight. true or not, i believed it anyway. plsu my gym buddies were ppl my mom's age (i guess no teenager wud be up at 7 in the gym) and they were doing sit ups and all these yoga poses like nothing! tecabar jua ku tu! me at 20 struggling with push-ups and these aunties doing them without breaking a sweat (pun intended) plus the instructor was ferdie and he's always given me a timing vibe if i cant do the sit ups. so fear of being the loser, i prevailed.

anyway, now i try my best to keep up with the exercise. i've been losing more weight, just to tone stuff up and improve my BMI. and endorphins do make you happy -fact. now i cant imagine not doing some sort of exercise. okay, i do have off days once in a while, but i feel lethargic when i dont do anything for a couple of days. i used to be able to just sit in front of the tv and do nothing. now i feel inclined to either walk to town or do yoga or something. which is helpful coz i dont wanna go to the 52kg way everr. and its very inspiring to knw that i've reaped the rewards of working hard. now its 2 more kgs to go before i reach my goal weight. its taking forever at this stage tho, coz apparently its easier to lose excess weight than losing weight - u get me? so since im within the healthy BMI range, its harder. but so far so good. thanx to special k and yoga!

most of u guys prolly think im insane and obsessed trying to lose more weight when i'm not fat or overweight nor do i look fat. but heres the thing. i have these gorgeous pair of levis (that i got from ashford, remember?) and i still need to tone up a bit for them to fit nicely because right now, they're a bit snug, if u get what i mean. i know i got them when i weighed more, but yea, when i sit down, all my tires blop out. i wanna be able to sit down in the jeans without any excess spillage!

anyhoo, that will be the end of my rant for today. i tink im a bit bitter because i didnt sweat as much today from yoga. prolly coz today was cooler than previous days, but still. sweating makes me think i lose weight. its all in the mind too, y'know.

much love,
be'ah xxx

Sunday, May 11, 2008

For Babu

kisses from ALL OF US


























nobody works the pout like we do.


well.. except for this brother. he's in the army. i guess inda macho kalau pouting lol




HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

Love,
Rabe'ah and Brothers

Friday, May 9, 2008

Grigitan

i am halfway there.

where is there?

SUMMER HOLIDAYS BAYBEE!!

and summer holidays equals mummy, oxford visit, artsfest, portugal, kaka amal coming and many many mooorreee!

i just got out of a 2hr ordeal with my property law paper. surprisingly, it wasnt as bad as i expected. i think i can probably get a decent mark from it. at least i'm konfaiden about today's paper despite it being the toughest modules i have ever done in my life..

which is not something i can say about my first paper. obligations II, to put it mildly, was uber-difficult =( i'd be grateful enough if i passed the paper, let alone get a decent mark. it was that hard. oh well, whats done is done. now i have a 10day gap till my next exam..

so its time to party!

haha samseeeng~ nada lah. apip and ilah are hosting a bbq party later for ilah and wani's birthdays. yayy bbq! shud be fun. i need the break! actually i was planning to go shopping.. but then, di mana duit ah? plus after telling ruzanna not to buy the floral shoes if she doesnt need them, who am i to go out and buy stuff i dont need? so thus i am practising what i preach. but then i do need to buy presents for the birthday girls.. hmm.. we'll see.

speaking of birthdays, happy 21st birthday to my best friend, ang navila. wishing u the best in ur exams, amzar and everything in between ;)

i saw alikuchen ystrdy. mcm jumpa superstar rasanya hahaha. i tink i had a berlin relapse. god i miss berlin and aunty noriah's cooking. its all coming back again now, especially after reading adib's latest post. on another totally unrelated issue, i saw my boyfren's nephew last nite on skype. grigitan ku meliat. mcm kan ku gigit. gundul lgi tu. lol buleh anak orang kan ku gigit. haha. i love kids.

as u can see, i'm starting to go off in random tangents. therefore i am hungry. so i gotta gooo get food!

much love,
be'ah xxx


p/s i lost more weight =D yoga and special k, i tell u.



*UPDATE*

yes i had lunch sudah. thanx for asking. :p


aaanywayyy, i just found out who this is...




MY KAZEN!!

hehe thank u for sharing the info. made my day. mwah love u ka. so yea ppl, go to I.A. salon. coz my cousin rocks the commercial. heheh mcm ANTM. apakan? ANTAM KAU RABZ!


yes, im just relieved that i've finished 2 exams, and the toughest ones too. now i can enjoy my weekend before going into intensive revision mode on monday. enjoy the weekend!

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Special K

phew. today was such a hot day. my room feels like a sauna, its that hot. i tink i need to buy a fan. or walk around in miniscule clothes. haha. on second thought, scratch the latter, i dont wanna offend my hsemates by walking around half-naked o_0

on account of my boiling room, i had to go out to do revision. i actually camped outside our backyard to do work. i stayed for under 30mins sja plg. coz the wind was getting chilly. haiya! cold wind and hot sun ah? but it was quite an experience. sitting on top of recycle plastics (which jem helped cut. thank u!) on the grass and wearing my sunnies while reading up on covenants. speaking of which, does anyone actually GET wat covenants are??

anyway, today has been pretty productive and im happy about it. actually, this morning was progressive. but bcoz of that, im kinda slacking off with tonite. but bee's offered to go over some papers together so i hope i'll come round being productive like this morning.

oh yea, today i added new stretches to my yoga workout =) i dont know why but the hot weather just made me wanna do extra sweaty stuff haha. nis walked in on me doing yoga tho. i get self conscious when ppl watch me do yoga alone, so yea. haha i kinda lost my concentration when she came in. boo. lucky i told her about this so she got out of the kitchen as soon as she got her cereal.

my mornings are pretty much routine lately, which works for me since its exam/revision season. i try my best to anyway, coz bangun awal equals murah rezeki, nda ja? so i wake up, (skype with boyfriend if he's free), drink water and eat yogurt, do yoga, mandi then have special K. banar, i swear by special k. its nyaman lagi tu! i mean, i dont know if its working plg coz theres no obvious results but my pants fit better now so that must be it, yea?

okay, first exam paper is lusa. wish me luck and doa for me that i do well, please and thank u.

much love,
be'ah xxx

Friday, May 2, 2008

dancing queen

1. What disappoints you the most?
not doing enough. not enough exercise, not enough revision, not enough sleep, not enough shopping, not enough rasa bersyukur!

okay. saya tarik balik. i am thankful.

2. Where will you go if someone sponsor you a tour ticket?
tour ticket? as in a proper tourrr??

new york, ibiza, morocco, greece, st barths, sri lanka, egypt.

3. What's your favorite thing to do?
yoga (did some today. yayy!), shopping for shoes, going to the spa, reading chicklits, skyping with the one-and-only and talking to my mummy.

4. Do you think money can buy happiness?
to a certain extent, yes.

5. If you can have one dream to come true, what would it be?
be a size zero! haha apakan. no.. i want world peace. huhu beauty pageant jua. inda. i want to die in iman =)

6. Do you believe you can survive without money?
at the moment yes. but ask me agen in 2 weeks time, no. coz by then i'll run out of groceries and bills would prolly arrive. HAHA. kan beluruss.

7. What are you afraid to lose the most?
my faith. na'uzubillah.

8. If you win $1 million, what would you do?
bring my mum to the most exclusive spa, buy my dad a stretch hummer and give my brothers a HUGE gold chain each that says 'KAKA LOVES YOU'. just for the sake of embarrassing them. then with the leftover, saya mau kawin dgn jejaka paling hengsum d dunia.

9. If you meet someone that you love, would you confess to him/her?
the real question is, how do u knw u love that someone?

10. List out 3 good points of the person who tagged you?
apip is a superstarr. she is penyabar, a genius in the kitchen and a coffee connousuier however u spell it.

11. What are the requirements that you wish from the other half?
that he loves me for who i am and doesnt. try. to. make. me. lose. weight. haha. i love u syg.

12. What type of person do you hate the most?
little brothers who wont admit your right. haha.

13. What is your ambition?
to be a tai tai. a yummy mummy. a glamazon. successful. and happy. and most importantly, beriman =)

14. If you can teleport once, where would you go?
brunei lerr.. eh no. maybe singapore. wherever my mum is at the time.

15. What do you think is the most important thing in your life?
My family.

16. If you could undo doing one mistake in the past, what would it be?
take back all the hurtfull stuff ive said abt ppl who are my frens. yg bukan my frens, my opinion still stands. haha.

17. If you have a chance, which part of your character would you like to change?
is my metabolic rate part of my character? oh yes. for jem's sake, to mengeluh less.

18. What music have you been listening to recently?
u wanna be on top? nanananananananananananana~

19. What is your least favourite animal?
squirmy wriggly crawly flying things be it mammals, reptiles dan sewaktu dgnnya.

20. What would you prefer to be - a man or a woman?
man. so i'll age slower and care less about my weight.. (if u fell for this, u reli dont knw me).

I'm tagging jem, cits, nisa, nuar belabih aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand rosiekins.

selamat mencoba!