We live in unprecedented times. This year, in the wake of COVID-19, Mother’s Day will be commemorated with a difference. Even though we are under a Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO) where restrictions are more relaxed, there is still a damper on where we could go and what we could do.
Spa sessions are out and restaurant reservations for a family eat-out are also off the list. But it doesn’t faze these 8 SuperDads who get creative and passionate in showing how much they love, care and honour the women in their lives and the mother of their children.
Guaranteed to put a smile on your face or a tear in your eye ─ Listen to their heartfelt messages on how they are going to turn Mother’s Day into a most memorable family occasion in the Age of COVID-19.
Wishing all mothers a Happy Mother’s Day
1.Tribute to a Frontliner ─ Hafiz & Dr Fadhilah
[dropcap letter=”H”]afiz is a fund manager in one of the KL firms and his wife is Dr Fadhilah who is a frontliner in the battle against COVID-19 at the Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC). As an anesthesiologist working long and unpredictable hours everyday, and also the mother of six-year-old daughter, Nisha Ermina, Dr Fadhilah is one mother who has a lot on her plate. Hafiz and Dr Fadhilah have been married for eight years.
Hafiz says: “Since we’re staying home this Mother’s Day, I’m planning something relaxing for my wife Fadhilah and with my daughter. As a doctor, she has been working really hard at the hospital and taken extra precautions around us to keep the household safe. Truly, she has been an amazing wife and mother, and deserves something special. In place of her favourite spa session, I will re-create a mini spa at home and for dinner, we will order in her favourite food. For the whole weekend, I’d like to her to rest and chill with our daughter Nisha and that’s the least we can do for her!”
2. Roast Chicken Dinner at Home ─ Bobby & Apple
[dropcap letter=”S”]hipping Consultant Bobby Ong and Warehouse Manager Apple Liew have been married for 18 years. They have three children ─ Ethan, Ewan and Estelle aged 16, 13 and 10.
Bobby says: “Our family will celebrate Mother’s Day this year despite the restraints placed by the CMCO and COVID-19 virus. Just because we can’t dine out at a restaurant, doesn’t mean we can’t have a grand meal to celebrate a day honouring the mother of my children. The first objective of the day is to ensure it will be an effortless day for her without any chores. I have planned to get a whole bird of roast chicken prepared by a restaurant not too far away from our house. We will then feast Western style with bread and potatoes. Dessert will be a cake I have also ordered from her favourite bakery. This is the first Mother’s Day we will be celebrating at home and we hope to make another wonderful memory for the lady of our home.”
3. Hanging Up Her Apron ─ Ramanesh & Caroline
[dropcap letter=”R”]amanesh Keith Nair is a professionally trained hotelier who has been managing hotels for more than 28 years. Currently, he is doing consulting for several hotels in online revenue management and conducting niche training programs for various leading hotels and restaurants in Malaysia. He is married to Caroline for 16 years and together, they have two children ─ Ryan, 16, and Celia who will be 10 in two weeks.
Ramanesh says: “I am blessed with a family that I wouldn’t trade for anything in this world. Our kids are why we work so hard and are practically the reason for our existence. The pillar behind all of this is none other than my wonderful and beautiful wife, Caroline. She has kept our family strong, healthy, happy and well fed all these years and I don’t think anything can be said or done to reciprocate her tireless and unselfish deeds for us this far. We are a very loving family and share everything we do together.
“This Sunday is Mother’s Day. As a way of saying thank you to my wife and the mother of my kids, we intend to make her happy with whatever limited resources we have amidst this lockdown period. For sure, we’ve hung her apron up and will plan a day of relaxation, laughter and most importantly ─ quality family time. We are planning to order in some of her favourite dishes as a surprise as well as making sure all the daily chores are out of her reach. I don’t believe that Mother’s Day should only be celebrated on the day the calendar stipulates. Mothers are the reason for our existence and most of us don’t cherish our mothers until they are no longer around.
“I lost my mother earlier this year and feel that I didn’t do as much for her as I would like to have done while she was alive. So I urge all fathers and sons to take this opportunity to show your mothers and wives how much you love them and what they mean to you throughout your lives and not just on Mother’s Day. God bless all mothers for what they’ve done and I hope we see the light at the end of the tunnel after this pandemic is over. Happy Mother’s Day!”
4. Sweet Confections for a Sweet Mum ─ Dato’ Fazley Yaakob & Datin Azrene Ahmad
[dropcap letter=”D”]ato’ Fazley Yaakob is an actor, singer, TV host, motivational speaker and a chef. After winning MasterChef Celebrity Malaysia 2012, he graduated from Le Cordon Bleu Paris and opened his own restaurant. Today Dato’ Fazley is a famous face on the Malaysian food and entertainment scene. He and his wife Datin Azrene have been married since 2006 and have four children together. He once said to Azrene in a much publicized newspaper report: “My dearest wife, you are my soul mate for life, my inspiration always.” For Mother’s Day, this is what he plans.
Fazley says: “I plan to buy her flowers as we always do and on top of that, my wife Azrene loves dessert. This year I am planning with my three boys Fariedz, Fieradz and Firudz, along with their little sister Ellie to prepare something that would allow the children to feel that they are a big part of making the present and presentation to their mum. I’m planning to prepare my new recipe: the Creamy Fruit Salad with Oreo Crumble and Torched Meringue because it’ll be perfect for my sweet-toothed wife. My kids will also be involved in preparing the dessert and hopefully, it’ll be a memory that they will continue to talk about in years to come.”
Here’s How He Does It
For those of you who missed my live with #tiktok last week, here is 1 of the 3 recipes! Share with me ok once you have tried them! Salam #ramadan
Dad having another hilarious TikTok Moment with three out of four of his kids
5. Simple Moments Planned for Mother ─ Daniel & Dominique
[dropcap letter=”F”]or Daniel Chee, 70, who was born in Kuala Lumpur but left for Europe when he was 19, parenthood started very late. He has been married to Dominique, 74, since 1974 ─ that’s 46 years and counting ─ and together, they are settled in Switzerland where they have Katherine, who will be 10 in July. Dominique gave birth to Katherine when she was 64.
Daniel says: “For us being very late parents of our little girl, Katherine, every Mother’s Day is a very special day for the three of us. We normally would take mum and wife to our favorite village restaurant for lunch over the best fried chicken wings in the region and we’d eat it with a special hash brown which can only be found in Switzerland. Of course, we’d also have a plate of green salad with Italian sauce to go along with the meal. An ice cream dessert would be our daughter’s favourite.
“Due to the partial lockdown over COVID-19 in Switzerland, restaurants will only be reopened on May 11. With Mother’s Day being the day before, we will have to activate Plan B, that is, I will instead prepare a BBQ for the family. We hope to enjoy our meal in our covered patio in the garden. It would be very nice since we are in the midst of Spring with flowers blooming everywhere. We are keeping our fingers crossed that it will be a nice sunny day.
Normally, the school will ask the kids to prepare or do something for mother, but this year is an exception due to the fact that all schools are closed because of the lockdown. But our little girl is carrying on having classes via Zoom. She is also having her violin and cello classes online.
“My wife, Dominique gave birth to Katherine when she was at the age of 64 and was the oldest mother in Switzerland. Then a single mother who was 67 gave birth to a pair of twins a couple of months later and beat my wife as being the oldest mother in Switzerland.
“We could have had children earlier but we missed the baby train due to being busy with our careers. I was commuting between San Francisco and Zurich for almost three years before deciding to settle down in Switzerland. When my wife decided to have a baby at around age 50, the doctors in Switzerland said no because she was considered too old to have fertility treatment. But we persevered. We went to Rome to see a professor.
“Both of us are happily retired now in Zurich and enjoy our life with our little daughter. We do a lot of travelling whenever Katherine has her school vacation but this year, all our foreign trips have been cancelled or put on hold until the pandemic is over.
“My wife knows how it feels like to be a mother who is loved and appreciated by her only daughter. Mother’s Day is a very important day for her and we look forward to spending many more Mother’s Day together as a family.”
6. Cakes for his Wife, Mother & Mother-in-Law ─ Fadhliyansah & Nor Farha
[dropcap letter=”F”]adhliyansah Saipul, 30, is a Sabahan who has been living in Kuala Lumpur for almost 16 years. A Military College graduate, he is husband to Accountant Nor Farha Zubair, 30, and a father to two wonderful little princesses ─ Asmaa, 5, and Amnaa, 3. Fadhliyansah is a Financial Planner by profession who is building his own Takaful Agency in Puchong.
Fadhliyansah says: “May 3 this year was our seventh wedding anniversary. Usually we would be celebrating Mother’s Day by having dinner at our favourite restaurant with our small family. Unfortunately, due to Covid-19 and the CMCO, we won’t be able to do it this year.
“For this Mother’s Day, I am planning something different. The CMCO should not be a barrier for us to celebrate Mother’s Day. I will be ordering my wife’s favourite food from a restaurant that we visited last year and I will give her a very special gift. Also, both of my daughters will be making their own Happy Mother’s Day cards for their mum.
“As we all know, Mother’s Day is about honouring all mothers; not only the mother of my children, but also my own mother who is currently in Tawau, Sabah and my mother-in-law currently in Sepang.
“For them I will be sending their favourite cake and it will be delivered to their doorsteps. Together we can all celebrate and enjoy Mother’s Day at home!”
7. Pasta, Pizzas & an Anklet ─ Jared & Joon Nie
[dropcap letter=”J”]ared Ng is a life planning advisor with Great Eastern. His core business is designing suitable protection and retirement plans for his clients so that they can achieve their financial goals. His biggest satisfaction is when he is able to safeguard and protect a family from financial burdens due to unforeseen circumstances. Jared is married to Joon Nie. They have two children ─ a boy and a girl, aged three and five.
Jared says: “A mother’s role in a family is very wide, from being a co-breadwinner, a wife, a cook, a babysitter and the list goes on. Though we celebrate Mother’s Day only once a year, it doesn’t mean we take mothers for granted on the remaining days.
“This year, our Mother’s Day celebration will be at home, due to CMCO and the ongoing Covid-19. The first thing I am going to do is to hold my wife back from entering the kitchen on that day. She loves baking and cooking, but on Mother’s Day, she will not be cooking. We will be having deliveries of pasta and pizza; just a simple meal for a small family of four. Second, I know she treasures gifts and surprises. I have prepared a small gift for her. Ssshh….don’t tell her yet. It’s an anklet.
“For the kids, they have been assigned to do a DIY Mother’s Day card for their mummy. And for dessert? I have ordered a Royal Almond cake. I know she loves it. As we both love travelling, we really look forward to take a short break after this.
“Happy Mother’s Day to you, Joon Nie. I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation towards your sacrifices in taking care of our children most of the time. I am blessed to have you with me in my life.”
8. Appreciate Her for Who She is ─ JJ & Corey
[dropcap letter=”E”]ven if you are not familiar with his face, you’d know his voice for sure. He’s JJ ─ that voice on Hitz FM Morning Crew radio DJ for 14 years and then on Red FM for another three years. But JJ wasn’t just the voice who talked a lot on radio, he also trained radio announcers and developed shows and content for radio. JJ is a man of many talents ─ he acted in PRamlee the Musical, he gives motivational talks, spoke of Bursa Saham on how to invest, was a TV presenter, event emcee, created FB live shows on Your MC, created Radiooh App that allows anyone to make their own radio shows from their smartphones and now, he is a creative director for an agency. Married for 16 years, he is also husband to Corey and father of two children ─ Jon, 13, and Anne, 10.
JJ says: “How do I intend to celebrate Mother’s Day this Sunday in light of Covid-19 and the CMCO? No different from how I have been celebrating for the past few years. I try to make the day special by putting 100% focus on my amazing wife but I will also be giving her space to do her own thing too. You see, material things are good but it is not needed to make someone feel special. Just the knowledge that someone cares and “sees” you for what you’re doing can do that. So I try to do that all the time for Corey though there are days I come up short.
“I enjoy cooking so I do that as often as I can for her but on her day I will try to focus on the food she likes. I also try to take some weight off her shoulders that she carries as a full time mum (the hardest job in the world). I take up some chores and spend time with the kids, so that she has the space to be her. Mums are people too. So what I’m going to do? I will let her know I see her efforts and tell her how much I appreciate it; let her know again that she means the world to me and that I love her.”
Listen to the Voice of JJ in a Video he made on Being Grateful
Hope you enjoyed that. For more moving moments and stories on parenthood, keep in touch often with Motherhood.com.my.