Painting days had begun...
After whole day of cleaning the house and fixing the cracks on the wall and smoothening with putty, it was official time for painting. We began the day by bringing the youngest one for a hair cut. Thereafter, we went to Mr.DIY to buy extra rollers so that the boys could help with painting too. There, my son fell in love with Buzz Lightyear plushie and of course my parents didn't hesitate to buy for him.
After cutting hair and buying the necessities at Mr.DIY, we went for an early lunch. I had nasi lemak (sorry I took the photo after having few bites, so it was really messy plate), our Malaysian's famous dish with rice boiled in coconut milk for its aroma and fragrance, topped with anchovies, peanuts, cucumber and boiled eggs. I added a fried egg, a chicken rendang and some cuttlefish, to be shared with my parents.
My parents each took their own choice of 'chee cheong fun' which was our steamed rice noodle rolls, added other ingredients such as fish ball, meat balls, Taiwan sausage and dried bean curd. The sauce was sweet savoury type, the adding of sesame seeds helped with some crunch and nuttiness. Yums!
Busy painting!
Parents started painting right away once we reached home. They covered the right side of the living hall, the shoes' area as well as the kitchen. We skipped the rooms entirely otherwise it would be so much work. Our rooms are cramped and it is really difficult to move the furniture around to have the wall painted.
Painting...
Painting...
and painting...
They were really exhausted after doing it, and they managed to paint a big chunk of the hall but halfway down. They didn't feel like climbing up ladder to paint to top part yet. That would be another day. I actually had part-time tutoring job that day, so I couldn't help at all. We went out for dinner. Both my brothers' side also came to join us here at this coffee shop.
The next day: Saturday
We went out to another indoor air-conditioned food court for early lunch. My Mum had curry noodles, I ordered clear soup noodles and my Dad felt like eating toast and egg.
After brunch, I sent them to nearby mall, while I went to visit my Aunt. This Saturday, I told my Aunt she didn't need to cook as I would eat with my parents. I went there to do one important tasks, to help her trim her hair before Chinese New Year. And guess what, she insisted to pay me RM20. Thank you, Aunt.🩷
We went home to continue our painting. This time, parents painted to top part of the wall, myself and boys covered the left hand side of the living hall because there are more stuffs there like TV rack and book shelves. Took me some time to shift out those bulky furniture. I considered myself quite strong being able to shift heavy things.🤭
Teamwork really made dream worked. We did it, all the painting. Done and dusted!
My mum said she really didn't feel like going out to eat. She wanted to cook. So I suggested just opened up a can of baked beans and added egg, I would look into that. And she just needed to settle one dish which she had in mind, which was diced carrot and potatoes, garlic and onions and minced pork cooked with soy sauce and oyster sauce.
Our hearty dinner!
Ended the night with some Uno session while my parents were catching up their Chinese drama in the room.
As the night slowly settled in, the house felt different. Not just because the walls were freshly painted, but because the whole place carried the satisfaction of a day well spent together. Such an accomplishment, I praised my parents. Everyone was a little tired but also happy. The simple dinner, the laughter over Uno, and the familiar sound of my parents’ drama playing in the background made everything feel warm and complete. Sometimes it’s not the big celebrations that stay in the heart, but these ordinary days filled with family, teamwork, and small moments of care for one another. 🩷
