Zayd

Assalamu'alaikum...

Oh my, it has been two whole years since saya last tulis kat blog ni. Life update: Anak pun dah dua! 😅

So, let's rewind a bit.

Back in 2024, Jan 2, saya buat FET untuk second baby kat Genesis IVF. Alhamdulillah, I gave birth to a healthy baby boy on Monday, Sep 9, bersamaan 6 Rabi’ulawal 1446H. Another son - a little buddy for Nuh, exactly what I had wished for. Kami namakan anak kedua kami, Zayd.

Kenapa Zayd? Ha… that one’s interesting. Sebenarnya kan, nak pilih nama untuk anak kedua lebih susah daripada anak pertama. The struggle is real! 😄

Saya dan En. Suami sebenarnya dah lama ada a shortlist of names, even sebelum Nuh lahir! Dan lepas orang2 sekeliling kami dapat tahu yang saya pregnant lagi, they automatically assumed the next baby’s name would follow the same theme: nama Nabi. Honestly, they weren’t wrong, we thought the same thing too. Pendek, bermakna, mudah disebut, and timeless. And you can never go wrong dgn nama Nabi. Since we started with Nuh, naturally we "climbed the list" to Hud, Salleh… all the way to Muhammad.

One month sebelum due, kami mintak our inner circle to suggest a few names. Between all the suggestions, these survived the cut:

• Musa
• Isa
• Sulaiman
• Uzair
• Khair
• Zayn
• Zayd

Selepas melalui banyak proses perbincangan dan suntingan (and a few cute-but-heated debates 😄), I did something I never thought I would do. I asked ChatGPT for name ideas that matched Nuh. And honestly? It was fun! Unexpectedly helpful, too.

Around that time, doctor saya bagitau yang saya kena buat elective C-section (baby besar, umur pun dah banyak, so normal delivery would be too risky), I might give birth in September, during Rabi’ulawal, bulan kelahiran Rasulullah s.a.w. That stuck with me. With the meaning of Rabi’ulawal in mind, saya dan En. Suami nak satu nama yang ada special connection to Nabi Muhammad s.a.w. Why not just choose "Muhammad"? Nama En. Suami dah ada Mohammad, jadi kami nak nama yang simple dan match dengan nama En. Suami.

And "Zayd" just felt right - the name of the adopted son of Rasulullah s.a.w., and one of the names mentioned in the Qur’an. It felt perfectly aligned, beautifully meaningful.

Today, Zayd is already 1 year and 2 months old. Comel, cheeky, and has the kind of pipi that makes everyone geram nak cubit. Every day, saya dan En. Suami remind ourselves, betapa pemurahnya Allah. Betapa sayangnya Allah kat kami. Allah bagi rezeki anak kat kami pada waktu yang tepat. Alhamdulillah.

Yes, we’re in our 40s, and by the time the boys start sekolah, we’ll be "almost 50 parents"… but honestly, ever since Nuh came into our lives, it feels like my clock started ticking again. I feel alive again. Dan sekarang, these two boys had multiplied the happiness.

Arwah Ayah selalu cakap, "Anak penyeri rumahtangga." Betul. Balik kerja penat macam mana pun, tengok muka dan gelagat anak-anak… hilang semua penat. Kami selalu cakap, kalau Arwah Ayah masih ada, mesti Ayah akan sangat terhibur dengan Nuh dan Zayd.

Sekarang Nuh dah umur 3 tahun 4 bulan. Talkative, cheerful, and extremely obsessed with animals (especially sea creatures and dinosaurs). You name it, and he will make the sound for you. Dan Zayd pulak - banyak mulut, suka ikut apa saja yang Nuh buat atau cakap. Always try to act macam dia dah besar, macam Nuh. Geram sangat! I'm actually witnessing a bff in the making!

Nuh dan Zayd — my two precious boys. My home is wherever you two boys are. Love each other deeply, for you will have each other for life. 🏠

Mama loves you both!😘

p/s: Nuh and Zayd… just like the letters N and Z — made of the same angles, the same lines, only placed differently. Same essence, different personality.💖

MBA and Me

Assalamu'alaikum...

Hello Oktober! 2 weeks ago, on Sep 22, saya terima surat yg paling dinantikan sejak bergelar student Master USM - Surat Pengesahan Konvokesyen. Alhamdulillah, I have officially GRADUATED! 

Alhamdulillah, penat lelah selama 4 tahun akhirnya membuahkan hasil. Yes, you read it right, it took me 4 years to complete my Master. Dah sama macam buat degree dulu. 😅

Semuanya bermula pada tahun 2019. Umur saya 35 masa tu. Saya buat keputusan utk sambung study, specifically in MBA sebab saya rasa ada sesuatu yg perlu saya achieve sebelum berumur 40 tahun. I told myself, 

"I will be 40, if panjang umur. Why can't I be 40 and have a Master degree?"

Dan penting utk saya tekankan di sini, masa saya decided utk buat Master tu, both me and my husband were thinking that we should take a break from going through all the hospital appointments, fertility treatments, etc like we had in 2018. So, saya perlu sesuatu utk isi masa lapang dan jugak take my mind away from all this TTC thing. 

Dan Alhamdulillah, Allah bukakan hati saya utk buat MBA. So, post kali ni, saya akan cerita sedikit sebanyak about my MBA journey, subjects, specialisations yg saya buat di USM, Penang. Dan since USM is in Penang, so it is very, very convenient for me.

Alhamdulillah, on Sep 5, 2019, I started my journey in the USM MBA program. Ini ialah "Study Plan" saya. At first saya plan nak habiskan dalam masa 3 tahun, tapi because of unforeseen circumstances, saya postponed 2 semesters (bukan tahun yg sama).

Duration program MBA ni ialah minimum 4 semesters atau 2 tahun dan maksimum 10 semesters atau 5 tahun. Ada beberapa specialisations yg USM offers for MBA program:

1. International Business
2. Service Science Management and Engineering
3. Sustainable Development
4. Governance and Control
5. Business Analytics
6. Digital Leadership

As for me, I decided to go for Service Science Management and Engineering (SSME) since my work involves management and engineering. Specialisation #5 and 6 were the latest additions memandangkan dunia skrg menuju digitalization. Kalau bukan sebab kerja saya sekarang yg lebih kpd management and engineering, I will surely go for one of the new specialisations. So, for every specialisation, there are 4 electives. USM allows the students utk amek any elective subjects without specialisation ataupun ambil lebih drp 4 electives. Tapi, utk saya, cukuplah 4 electives ni. 😄

Sedikit nasihat drp seorang yg dah lalui MBA ni. Firstly, ingat, MBA or other postgraduate programs is not a sprint, it's a marathon. One's mental must be prepared all the time. For me who completed my Bachelor's in 2007, it was a real struggle. To juggle between work, family and study, especially on my third year when I was pregnant with Nuh. Tak terkira berapa kali saya burnout. Assignments, presentations, quizzes, mid-term exams and final exams. Week-by-week. That's why, I felt a sense of fulfilment, a relief, lepas habis saja viva-voce dan final exams. No words can describe how I felt at that time. All I know is, it is finally over. Sep 2019 to Sep 2023. Alhamdulillah. Secondly, please make sure you have a very strong support system - your closest inner circle. You will be challenged mentally. And you need all the help you can get.

Anyway, despite all the emotional rollercoaster that I experienced in the last 4 years, I am grateful for meeting all those people in the program - lecturers and students. So, at the end of my MBA journey, now at 39, I got my MBA, I made new friends and I had a story to tell. What a journey! 😉

Ok, some additional info if you are interested about this program. On Aug 1, 2023, USM Graduate School of Business (GSB), my school, received Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) accreditation. As quoted from The Star and USM, https://www.thestar.com.my/news/education/2023/09/03/usm-business-school-gets-global-nod, 

"Founded in 1916, the AACSB is the longest-serving global accrediting body for business schools, and the largest business education network connecting learners, educators and businesses worldwide.

The AACSB accreditation recognises institutions that have demonstrated a focus on excellence in all areas, including teaching, research, curriculum development, and student learning.

Less than 6% of schools offering business degree programmes globally is accredited.

Based on the ratification for 2023, a total of only 988 institutions across 62 countries and territories have earned the AACSB accreditation in business.

The accreditation is a testament to the GSB’s commitment to delivering excellence and high standards in business education, and is in line with its mission to nurture business leaders with the knowledge and skills needed to drive business sustainability."

So, kalau ada yg berminat utk buat MBA atau any postgraduate programs, saya encourage utk buat di USM. For MBA, feel free to visit USM Graduate School of Business (GSB) at https://gsb.usm.my/programme/master/ for further info. Best of luck! 💋

p/s: Tuntutlah ilmu hingga ke liang lahad.