Hellllooooo 2015....

Assalammu'alaikum family, friends, readers and followers of this blog. Alhamdulillah, we are granted another day to welcome another challenge of the unknown future.

So my first entry for 2015 would be filled with overdued reviews and write ups really. I have had pictures and had been hitting myself hard to do them soon..

BabiestoKids - Buckwheat Pillow

Yeah, I bought one around mid last month. The designs were pretty, and I can add "tabs". My baby have out-phased those picking on tabs period so those tabs are more so I can secure them when she is in the stroller because she now enjoys "throwing" everything down for someone to pick it up for her so she can repeat it all over again with a big grin on her face.

Although my baby wasn't very insecure when she sleeps, afterall, she is one kindda baby who can sleep even with the TV blasting, and us laughing loud next to her, but she is the kindda baby who gets annoyed by little sounds of plastic rustling or when someone sneezes or coughs.

This slim pillow makes a good comfort feeling of an arm on her cheeks and chest when something annoys her in her sleep. However, many times, I find her throwing the pillow off her chests and change her sleeping position somehow - which is of course fine!

Sometimes, I think I buy these pillows for my own entertainment. LOL. When I get home after work, I sometimes grab this pillow and start "shuffling" them buckwheat from one end to the other, back and forth, the hustling sound of them buckwheat is just somehow so calming and eases my stress.

And when Baby is not coming for the weekend I grab to smell it or just put it over my shoulders. Crazy, oh yes I am.

Grooving in her sleep, oh yeah...  

Our anniversary @ USS

And so we were told multiple times not to miss the Mummy Ride and the Transformer Ride. Indeed these two became our most worthy wait of up to 80 minutes.

Husband recorded our ride via his SJ4000 harnessed to his chest, you guys can view it here. It is 4D so it may appear a little blurry on some parts. The only thing I hated about that ride was the people behind us, they screamed at everything including the black screen while we were supposingly waiting in the dark.

The Mummy ride was even better! We didnt get to bring anything in though, it was strict as not to allow any loose items on us during the ride including bags, so oh wells. We truly enjoyed it and bought the photo! This time the only thing I hated was the couple who was behind us, both of them just kept nudging us to move forward, the guy with his hands hugging the woman then conveniently swiped our back. Then the woman with her stupid clutch bag swiping my skinny ass. I was getting super annoyed at one point I refuse to budge even though the people ahead of me had moved 5 steps. And guess what? The woman pushed me with her boobs! Damn so irritating and rude!!

Yeah, you guessed it right, it is that couple next to us. 

And as you can see, we were just the few who were enjoying the ride while majority of just hide their faces. Heh!

I would believe we had covered about 90% of all the rides inside minus the really kiddy rides. We took the treasure hunt ride though, and the sesame street one. Haha.

The Jurassic Park ride, the one where we took the raft, I think it should be more wet. I was hoping for water to be poured on our heads. But it didn't happen. We still enjoy it though.

Oh! We also watched Shrek the Movie (4-D) we got sprayed many times! Haha...

So now, enjoy the pictures, well, actually more is in my husband's phone, as I didn't have my phone out during our stay there, all my stuff were in the locker.

It is just coincidental that we celebrated our anniversaries in red. :) And yes, we went on public transport :)

The long wait before we went on our Transformer Ride.

Us before the Sesame Street Ride

We were greeted by snow and them tall people!

Awesome and friendly tall people!

And we are done! That is more than 12 hours out and about... 

Shopping at Zalora

Yeah, nothing very new here. Well it is just my second time shopping, the first time being a fail because I ordered a shoe too small my size and my size was out of stock so I had to return them and got refunded.

My second time shopping I bought Dungarees, and three Zalora Basics Handkerchief Hem tops.
For the first time I shopped on a Non-Muslimah Portal and got the tops to be what they were meant to be. Proper long sleeved (often they say long sleeve, and when I wear them, it became 3/4 sleeve - or MAYBE my hands are just longer than average...), NOT translucent (I always get this..), long bodied (it covers my whole butt and more!), and most importantly, DOESN'T HAVE too wide a neckline or a plunging neckline. Fuuh!

BONUS is, the material is so comfortable! Even with a bit of weight at the bottom, I still feel very comfortable in them and they have since become one my favorite pieces in my wardrobe.

And you people know just how fussy I am with my clothes these days. 

Pass down the old clothes

Yeah, with the new year, many of my acquaintances and friends recited they wanna change for the better and start wearing the hijab. Some of them are not very well to do, so had no idea where to start without buying any new clothes. So I gave away my share.

And invited a friend to come over to give her an idea of how one can muslimah-lize her everyday clothes by just adding in a long sleeve inner or add an outer wear and such. I know the feeling, I've been there. With a tight budget, sometimes, everything you pull out can't seem to be Muslimah enough. Not until you see someone who have successfully done so. It happens. And I sometimes think it is Satan whispering and blinding us so we would change our mind about wearing the hijab. Don't let him win... Fight on and try your best.

It is okay, start slow. As your love towards your hijab and the sincerity starts pouring, the ideas will come and soon, your wardrobe will be very Muslimah friendly.

And so Baby M had a playdate yesterday for over an hour.

She is just probably trying to impress the lad by showing her folding skills. ;)

And so my friends, who has a nudge to start wearing the hijab. Here's a shout out to you.

"You can do it!"

Heed not those people who tells you things like, "Ala, step baik uh nak pakai tudung semua, padahal perangai setan"

Let them talk, fact is they are afraid because you are stepping out of the dark zone and walking towards the light. Remember, tutup aurat wajib, ahklak baik boleh diperbaiki dan dibina.. Ikhlaskan hati, bersihkan alami.

I've heard this phrase before, how you dress don't tell how religious you are, but your iman will determine how you dress."

Of course I know people who don't wear the hijab, but masyaAllah, they never missed their prayer calls even by the minute. It is their struggle, don't judge. There must be a reason why.

Hijab is not just a cloth covering your hair and aurat, but more of the cleansing of heart from judging others. Having the hijab on doesn't give you any rights to judge others and look down on them for the struggles they face.

Likewise, doesn't mean someone wears the hijab, she is an expert of Islam. It doesn't work that way. We are all still learning. Don't let the pride override your good intentions. Don't let those praises get into you. MasyaAllah, all these are just a loan from Him. Alhamdulillah, he had bestowed it to us.

And so some people had or will be benefiting from the items I had passed down to them, all I would hope for is that they would continue paying it forward.

As such, let us close the book of 2014, and kick off with a good 2015.

Save the buck

Yeah, finally money talk! I am on a strict mission to save $10K or more by end of this year so I can welcome 2016 without worrying too much.

And I am also praying very hard for my husband's dream to come true. I am looking forward to that moment more than me wanting to be a mother for some reason. Maybe because I know this will definitely allow me to be a mother. LOL.

So how to make this $10K possible? Well let's break it down, save along with me, yes?

To reach the $10K target, I would first take way my tontine share. All that goes to savings, so let's minus of $2K off that total amt, and if I continue for another round, I'd probably get another one this yr so that's a total of $4K off the total amt. That leaves me with $6K to save.

That would mean $500 a month to save. Sounds very possible. On average I just need to put aside about $17 a day into the saving tin, and deposit it at end of month.

Let's do it!!! We can all do it!

Cheers to $10K in the bank at end of 2015!

BUT, I need to bring my parents to travel once... Hmm.. nevermind, will pump in a little more on some days/months.

A message from my eldest niece

I suddenly received this very long message from my eldest niece, I initially thought it was a forwarded message. However, her name wont allow me to assume and not read, so I read along.

She wrote, "Bik Jun... I just read ur blog (got the link from ur insta) and i have to admit i agree 900% with regards to your parenting article! I wish I could comment "yes" to every single part.

I feel as though I'm reading an audio book online (because I imagined ur voice and because I miss you Bik Jun *kissy smiley*) and I've been sitting in the same position for the past 1 hr. That's how great it was reading your blog.

And I'm gonna start my savings plan too. Just like what you had posted: start small even with $1 or small changes.

You're my inspiration and role model Bik... When I read your post about getting a degree, and how ppl have always thought that you can't do it, and you proved them wrong. You eventually became a degree holder and I'm really proud of you. Someday, I wanna be like you. I wanna learn things the hard way and have a great determination to succeed. Yes I did cry a bit (of course I hide from Ummi when I cry because it's very awe-inspiring! *lots of smiley*

Sorry for the random long paragraph text, I just feel that you deserve it all. I hope to see you soon Bik! Love you! *kissy smiley + hearts*"

Awwwww... honey bunny sugar plum! I love you so! You know, you deserve it all too, dear! Because a lot of what I wrote, I always had you in my mind. I always want to protect you, your siblings and cousins from doing silly mistakes like I do and still be as successful as (or more than) me!

I had always prayed for the best there is for every single one of you. And as always, no matter how often, even if I see you everyday, I'd still miss you every second. I love you, my children. I really do!

Nothing beats words like these. It warms my heart and brings tears to my eyes because someone out there reads with their hearts.

Remember, a lot of things in this life is worth a good fight. Sometimes, even without the support from the most important person in your life. If it is worthy, insyaAllah, the person will see it in time to come. Some things are just set out for you to fight for it so you gain it with much pride and humility.

As the wise people say, if it is easy, you wont appreciate it. If it is hard, you might give up. If you didn't give up, it must be worth it. If it is worth it, then it is worth a story to tell. Go get it!

One day you would look back, and say "I am so glad I did all that to get to where I am today"

And one day, everyone around you, esp those who thought you won't make it would hold your hand and say "I am so proud of you"

Make those discouraging cheers become your motivational cheers so you would outdo everything and show people especially yourself, that you're better than just that. You are afterall YOU. So You and only You should determine who can step on you and who can kick you so you'd fly.

Until the next entry,
Have an awesome 2015 you all!

Wassalam,
Jun

How to start saving?

Assalammu'alaikum family and friends,

I hope all is well with you. If you haven't realised, I have removed my last two posts for some reason. Do drop me a comment if you want them back on and the purpose, and I might consider re-publishing it again.

So yes, after all the posts about debts incurred and how I cleared debts, let's share some saving plans this time.

So what's first?

Set a target

Set a realistic target, please. How much do you want to save, and by when?

If you are someone who had never succeeded in saving any amount, start small. If you are someone who just can't see kah ching without spending it, create an account without the ATM card, and set an auto ibanking transfer. If you have been saving but just undisplined, reward and punish yourself to keep up with the discipline.

Start small, and increase gradually.

If you are someone who had never saved, try small. $1, $2, $5 a month. Or just 10cents, 20cents, 50cents daily.
I started with just saving my small changes. Amazing how coins accumulates to hundreds when deposited in a month or two. When saving such small amounts are easily achieved, double it up, or raise it a notch, and see the difference.

The above table is an easy start small plan. It is not that big to set aside $31 a month, is it? If you keep the discipline, this small plan will get you over $300 of savings in a year. If you want to be ambitious and save more, here's another plan.

With the above you get over $5K in a year!

Reward and Punish

I am someone who just couldnt help myself but to spend sometimes, and rewarding/punishing myself helps with my savings. I punish myself when I used what was meant to saved by repaying double to the next month on top of the monthly auto transfer. Feel the pinch, and you won't want to use it unnecessarily again.
I reward myself when I didnt touch my savings by simple gestures, like buying a cup of bubble tea, or just by claiming the "never enough" hug from the husband.

Give it a reason

Give your savings a reason. What is it for? A holiday? For renovation? For a furniture? Or for you future children?

When you have a reason, you'd be driven. With a reason, you will have a timeline for the savings too.

Above all....

And above all that, take the first step and start saving. Do it comfortably. Even with $1/day, it is still savings. Give yourself a pat at the back when you made it.

Share with me if you have other technique to keep up with savings. :)

Wassalam,
Jun

How I cleared my debts in 3years

Assalammu'alaikum family and friends.

Following up with my last entry late last night, now with over $15K of outstanding debts, and without a permanent stable job. How did I do it?

The first year

It was horrible. Scouting for jobs, I didnt have much choices but to just accept what comes. I became a despatch rider sending out invoices and letters, I took up the food delivery rider job, I even became a full time babysitter!

All three paid me pea to the nuts! It drove me crazy. I couldn't make ends meet. All my pay was out to pay these debts I have accumulated.

Setting priorities

I set my priorities by the amount of debt. I listed the least amount as first in the list. It was something people don't often do. Letters of sympathy was written and sent out. Of course, it was rather late as I was retrenched some 6months ago at that point when I decided to take myself out of this mess.

The list

Here's my list in accordance and how much I wanted to pay each month.

Diners : $200/month
Car : $303/month
Bike : $292/month

The rest just the minimum fee - about $50-100/month, total of 3 creditors.

How I manage?

Because my part time jobs are often by the hour or by the job, I set a target for each job.
My despatch job gives me $3 for every one way trip and $6 for every two way trip, and pays me forthnightly. I target this salary to pay my bike. I need 50 2-way jobs or 100 1-way jobs to reach this target.

My food delivery job pays me by the hour plus I get a docket for every delivery made. I sometimes run in for a friend who is tired, and could earn a little more, and often volunteered for those secluded areas especially Jurong Island because the customer would often slide in some tips. For this job I get paid once a week, and brought home tips of about $30/week. I used this salary to pay for the car.

Babysitting - it pays so little! It was rewarding though. I get paid $600/month for a 10hr job, 5 days a week. However, when I do this, I could only do so much for my other two part time jobs. So it wasn't really any solution at all. I did this for 6months, and paid for both my car and bike with this pay, and achieve the rest by my part time job somehow.

I don't have a choice!

A proper full time job - Start of Year 1

Alas after 1.5years, I finally secured a job to my professional skills. The flip side? It was 70% pay cut from my previous company. Still, it was better than a mere $600/month babysitting, no?

With a $2000 salary, I bring home $1600. I can now comfortably continue to pay the three main targets that accumulates to $795, leaving me $805 to survive. I set aside $300 for bike fuel and misc. I packed food from home for lunch. With $500 balance, I paid out the other 3 targets at $150/each. It was better than paying just minimum, and the balance $50 I topped up Diners.

Now I pay the following:
Diners : $250
Car: $303/month
Bike: $292/month
HSBC: $150/month
Citibank : $150/month
Courts : $150/month.






Despite seeing such figures, it didnt do much justice to the total amount. Watch...

Warning Letters

All the banks started throwing me red warning letters threatening me to court if I fail to do a full settlement. I am going crazy. I refused to panic, I called up all the agents stated in the letter, and arranged to compile all my debts, my payslip and everything I could to come up with a good installment plan.

I want to stick to my plan. I couldnt do more.

Paying in coins

All banks were more considerate knowingly I can declare myself bankrupt if I wanted to, but instead, I wanted to really pay off my debts. They complied to allow me to pay what I could. All except for Courts.

I am at wits end. I had nothing but my coins. So coins it is. I came through the accounts department door, and handed over a bag full of coins.

"Sorry but this is  all I have, I was retrenched, I had submitted my letters, I have just started my new job with all these other banks chasing me (flashes all red warning letters and handed over my coins)"

The officer kept mumbling and asking me how much was it in my bag, and I said I dunno, but it's all I have.

2hours and some $300 later, they decided to waive the balance and close my account.

*I am not asking you to try, but I had no other choices*

One off, 6 more to go

With additional $150, I snowball it to my priority - Diners

Before doing so, I called them up to get a current outstanding amount. They quoted me $400ish. And I decided to take a little away from the other bank to clear off Diners.

Called them back only to say they need another $100ish more of interest. Oh how now brown cow? I decide to not pay Citibank that month and just get this Diners out the door, and told them I am closing my account.

Two off, 5 more to go

The following month, I decided to priorities Citibank.

Now the amount snowballed. NO celebration for me, I had no time nor luxury to shop or even looked at anything to shop, these debts needs clearing more than anything else.

Citibank : $400
Car: $303/month
Bike: $292/month
HSBC: $150/month

At this point I had another $2K ish left on Citibank and $5k ish on my HSBC.

Technically I just need to go through 5months to almost clearing Citibank? NOOooo, remember, there are interest and late payment charges which will also snowball and you may take twice the time (if not more) you think you would clear off the debt.

Keep it going 

It was tough. I continued this for almost a year before clearing Citibank to proceed and pay up HSBC.

This time I changed my plan. I decided to participate in tontine. To help me get a lump sum so I can pay extra once a year or so. I also changed my job so I had more time to crochet (I started a small home business)

What is tontine? 

It was basically like a savings plan, but played within a group of as little as 3 to as many as 12. We will ballot names to know the order and we will begin. Eg, 3 person decided to play tontine, namely A, B and C.

Names balloted and it goes with the order C, B and A

If each person decide on $200. At the start, as ballotted C will get the monies, so B and A will fork out $200 each and give it to C, the following month, C and A will fork out $200 each and give it to B, and the following month, C and B fork out $200 each and give it to A.

I had trouble having money in the bank, so I decided this is the only way I can save up, of course, I went to a group that is trustworthy.

Start of Year 2

New year, new job, same momentum.

I am clearing the last bits of Citibank, saving via Tontine and continued on with HSBC.

I cleared the last bill for Citibank sometime mid that of Year 2. By this time I was engaged, the monies I had saved via Tontine saved me a lot on the expenditure.





PLUS, I took another job - tutoring my niece and nephew at a nominal fee of $100/month.

So here's what my financial responsibility look like at this point:

HSBC : $350/month
Tontine: $200/month
Car: $303/month

I overtrade my bike for a lower monthly installment
A downgrade deemed necessary for me with a wedding in tow.

Bike: $183/month

I found a better paying job, and with my business merging through, I could spare another $300/month or so on leisure, BUT, instead of celebrating and shopping, I decide to put this $350 aside for my wedding.

My tontine was for 12months. By that, in December, I will be getting a lump sum of

Tontine: $2,400
Savings: $4,200

Total lump sum in December $6,600

Discipline

Of course discipline to way way way important when it comes to clearing debt, seeing lump sums makes me wanna spend, so I draw it and gave it to my mom or someone else who are more trustworthy than me in terms of spending.

I was keeping stead and constant with paying HSBC, and I tell you that $5K figure seemed to deplete ever so slowly. Still, don't give up, keep paying. Of the $6,600, I saved the $5K for my wedding and the balance $1.6K to divide over what is necessary $1K for car insurance and $600 top up to pay HSBC more.

Budget

Stick to it, no matter how cheapstake it can be. Just stick with it. My wedding budget was at $10K. There is another year to save another $5K and I should be okay. Just stick with it.

(I know I wrote my wedding cost $17K in the end, thanks to kind sponsors. The 7K was raised by doting parents, of which I had fully repaid)

I budget myself so bad, I havent shopped for more than a year at this point. Sticking to needs and not once wants.


Start of Year 3

I used my dowry to pay off HSBC completely so I can start the year debt free. Some balance was used to pay off personal loans from my doting parents. I continued participating in Tontine because it was a pleasure and a pleasant surprise because I often forget when it is my turn to receive them.

Saving

Now that I don't have any debts to pay except for my car loan, I was free to splurge. NO!
Why splurge when you can save. Learn from your mistake, start saving. Deposit into worthy investments. Enjoy watching your money grow. Don't let it deplete.

I invested heavily on my business when I was free from debts, I started living like a human. I get to enjoy travelling without worrying about the banks chasing me. I enjoy little life pleasures like having the luxury to buy a bottle of mineral water when I am thirsty.

Today

Not being a brag, but today, I am debt free for over a year with blooming business of which I have given jobs and opportunities to those who worked alongside me or under my wings.

I am able to breathe much calmer.

My method worked. And I hope you too can get out of the debtful mess (if you are in one) soon.

The little things

Sometimes, it is the little things that make a big difference. Make you little change now. Save more, so you'd be ready when it rains. :)

PS: I had typed this over many distraction, so I apologize if it didn't make sense midway.

Wassalam,
Jun