Bye 2010, Hello 2011

Alhamdulillah, the year 2010 has been a very memorable one for me.

Call it Feng-shui or coincidence, but my lucky number has always been the number 3, so ala-ala 2+0+1+0 = 3 and in 2010, I celebrated my 33rd birthday and Haidan turned 3.

I also visited 3 countries in 2010: Helsinki to meet Kak Zihan (and my handbag, heheh), Zurich to stay with my Auntie Kodel and Mumbai to visit my best friend Vasantha.

But I guess the highlight of it all is that I achieved 3 great achievements in my life in 2010:
1) I passed my UK driving test first time and got a UK driving licence (special thanks go out to Alan for his time and patience!)
2) Alhamdulillah, I have achieved my engineering chartership from IET and am now an official Chartered Engineer. It has always been my dream to get my Chartership for as long as I can remember and Alhamdulillah, syukur my dream has come true!!!
3) I found out I am pregnant with my second baby and am now about 28 weeks.

I count my blessings every day because 2010 I have been really blessed. I had the best time with family and friends, especially those who came a long way whom I have missed dearly -Elina and Vasantha came to visit as well as visits from Uncle Nasir, Uncle Yusuff and Zoran my brother. Papa & Mummy came early February and Mama was in the UK with no hassles on her visa this time.

It has also been a year that I learnt a lot about friendship. I learnt that there is always 2 sides of a story and that I have to be fair.... and sometimes being fair and standing up for what I think is right may prove unpopular. Miscommunications happen and burning a bridge unnecessarily is something that I cannot do or commit- I'm sorry. I always believe that good friends do not hurt each other intentionally and it is all right to agree to disagree. Yes, it hurts (especially if sometimes I think some public comments are made to attack me), but I'll just take it with a pinch of salt that maybe it is their nature to be that way when they are angry. I'm not the first and definitely won't be the last... and I have accepted that it is who they are and being themselves is what made them special.

2010 has also been a year of challenges - I have been mostly on my own this year as Hubby is travelling more to Dubai for work, sometimes gone as long as 2 weeks at a time. It is also the year when Haidan had his pneumonia- it was the worst week of 2010 for me! But looking back, i am grateful because these challenges have made me stronger and more patient as a person and it made me appreciate those who are dear to me.

I don't know what 2011 will bring but I'll embrace it with what I have learnt from 2010. I hope 2011 will be a year of good health (hopefully stop smoking for good) and get back in shape... I also hope Insyaallah with the arrival of my baby in March, 2011 will bring me much closer to my family - to learn to not take them for granted and try to be the best mom and wife as I can be and not stress myself out to be perfect!

In 2010, my best friend taught me that true friends will tell me when there's shit on my face, instead of smearing it behind my back.... (thank you Vas for being there for me and telling me off when I needed it!)... and that's the best advice ever, which I will carry through 2011. I know I cannot please everyone but I will try my best to be there for my friends and family when they need me, as I have appreciated how much they had been there for me too.

So Happy New Year everyone and may 2011 brings joy, happiness and prosperity to you and family. May all your wishes for 2011 come true :)