CAROUSELLING OVER HI-TEA

The cousins from all over the globe flew to their nest

Half of us were title holders of Ex-Miss World

We celebrated Yatee's (from Copenhagan) birthday

Syukur chatting up with Maz who hails from Vegas

The good, the bad and the handsome... Pick your choice!

The birthday queen pilling her plate

Thomas and Isa - Compare the size

Yatee looking glam with Datuk I, brother of Datuk K

Another work of art waiting to be discovered

Suck in the tummy and do the lipo

Shell fish to whet your appetite

Fresh dessert to be displayed for the sweet tooth

Mira giving her tightest cuddle to everyone

Meerah wants peace and love all over the world

Cheese....you're on candid camera

Calories and more calories...

Ice cream for me from Mirah

Now it's your turn Mirah....

It's show time for Amirah

Dance preety lady.... dance...

Nana from England (right) and Nani from KL

Mazy with Ros who just touched down from the Carribean

What? Are you sure the bill is $448?

Ferhad's brother, Burn from Sydney looking for brownie

Nana with me

The fourteen of us present at Carousel was enough to give a migraine to the waiters

Look Ma...I can use the chopsticks now, says Teepah from Santiago

Yusuf (from Bahrain) with Rozee from Seoul

Arigato! Isa just flown in from Tokyo with Yus

The Datin Diaries ladies are meeting in Paris for a shopping spree

Daidah had to rush to Auckland after this to close a deal on her new office

Nab (left) from Hawaii making faces at Fizah who just arrived from Dubai

The Lola trio plan to meet at Rio Janeiro in 2009

LOVE BITES

Recipe for a Happy Family

Ingredients:

1 jug of humour

1oog of play together

100g of committment
5 beds of patience 1 Tbsp. of patience

A room of care and concern

1 tbsp. of understanding

1 bowl of prayer

1 tbsp. of forgiveness

3 cups of love, packed

1 cup of kisses

A basin of thoughtfulness, care and concern

Method

Mix throughly and sprinkle with awareness.

Bake in moderate oven of everyday life, using as fuel all the grudges and past unpleasantness. Cool.

Turn out onto platter of cheerfulness.

Garnish with tears and laughter and fond memories.

Add in large helpings of charity and love.

Serve Allah, family and community.

I like the Hawaiian definition of family. "Ohana" is the meaning of family means no one gets left behind or forgotten. The crazy bunch had a reunion with cousins from Kuala Lumpur, England, Sydney and the rest of the globe filling Carrousel Cafe at Royal Plaza with hilariety and gaiety, bursting the walls of the gathered venue with cracks of laughter. Yatee had started the reunion rolling and we touched base with the rest of the cousins for the madcap gathering, with Nani from KL and the rest giving a big surprise appearance to all of us.

A group of fourteen of us from all over the globe were present for the evening outing and it was super fun to see all of us coming as one, with some dragging their spouses. The moment we met for high tea, we hugged and kissed each other because we were very closely bonded and missed the time we used to spend during our teenagehood days. Though the myriad of food sections were there to distract us and pull us from our chair, but we were too engrossed in updating each other with our latest table conversation and news back home.

We used to grow up in the same area, same kampung and spending weekends at Changi and Punggol Beach during our school holidays. I also would not forget the sleepovers at our grandma's house at most weekends where, we girls would roam and strip the forest nearby of jambu, rambutans, kuini, mango and tapioca.

Chair-hopping to maximise face-to-face interaction to everyone around the Madar Round Table was the game we played for the two hours we were there. We ate from each other's plate and exchanged news on our children growing-up antics and holidays photographs. The wide choice of food which, I had difficulty in deciding on what to put on my plate, and the right warm ambience gave a perfect setting for the crowd of cousins to seal the absence in our hearts.

The rest of the evening was spent on group photo-taking and hopping to Hyatt Hotel where Nani and family had been staying. There we were entertained by Superstar Amirah who took centre stage with her song and dance item.

The evening was well spent and the prresence was much appreciated. Our lives are make up of moments shared with family members and friends. Let us always remember to appreciate our family members the way we do so for our friends, acquaintances and relatives. Gratitude is when we are so happy to have our loved ones in our lives and making us feel special and wanted.

For us to want the secret recipe for a happy family life, let us all cover ourselves with a blanket of love for ourselves and our loved ones. If we only have one ingredient, let that ingredient be love and that is the recipe for a happy family life. For us to have love, let us first love ourselves and then love our loved ones. The choice is ours to make and the recipe for a happy family life can be our legacy we leave with our loved ones.

Thanks folks for the love bites over the high-tea errr.... I mean the unromantic version of love bites over the food, folks!