Introducing little Azra..............

AZRA

It is an honour for me to introduce to our family and friends our latest bundle of joy...little Azra.

Born on Monday 24 January 2011 at 8.02pm.

Birth weigh at 2.55kg

With mocha skin color just like her big sister Auni and 2 tiny dimples on her cheeks like her sister Aila, we welcome little Azra with open arms as she now completes our little family.

and....a first time, au natural birth for mommy. Ouch.......

Thanks to everyone for their kind thoughts and doa. We love you.....

1..2..3..4 and we all fall down!

Photo: Google lah....

Finally I can log into my computer. At last....after days of being a nurse to the girls and then getting sick myself, thus relying on Ujang to be my nurse...huhuhu. How I wish this fever + flu episode will end soon.

When one got it, the four of us got it too....
1st case - Auni came back from school last Thursday with high fever and flu. She recovered well from her fever but still has a little bit of flu especially in the morning. Perhaps, her sinus is acting up too.

2nd drama - Aila got it on Friday but it took way longer for her to recover because she hates to take her meds or drink water. She likes to scream "Noooooo ubat! Tak mau eat ubat!" all day long though....

3rd person - Daddy's turn. Ujang got his fever and flu early Saturday. We were supposed to attend our cousin Ash's wedding that weekend but all plans goes down the drain.....Luckly, Ujang recovered pretty fast. He had to, I suppose.... just so that he could be our nurse instead.

4th one but not by choice - Yours truly. I hate it!!! It has been so long since I had fever and flu. And for a 8mths plus preggy lady like me to get it now...all I can say is "ARGHHHHH". I know that it would take much longer for me to recover. I am glad that Ujang forced me to lumur the whole body with air asam jawa jugak cause it is the only method that works to get my fever down. If I didn't do it, my temp will go up and down, up and down like a yo-yo.

So now, eventhough we are not 100% fit & healthy but we are getting there.....

During times like these when the house in utter chaos and everyone is either sick or attending to someone who is sick, I realized on a couple of things.....
1. It is hard for us now because we sort of hidup diperantauan and far away from our family members. So gone were the days where I can just rely on my sister or parents to drop by for a helping hand. They live so far away now......huhuhu. I bet many others out there are in the same boat.

2. It is a blessing for Ujang to recover quickly because he is the rock in this family. If he didn't, we would not be able too bounce back like this....Syukur sangat.

3. Having a maid at a time like this would certainly be handy. This coming from me yang tak pernah terfikir about having one all this while.

The big question is: whether having a maid will help to ease the burden or add the burden? Emmmm......I wonder.

Glad, Sad, Mad!!! but grateful too..

Happy Friday, folks.

I am feeling a mixture of emotions today. Glad, sad and mad all at the same time. But thank goodness today is friday. Hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day, InsyaAllah.


I am SUPER GLAD because last night my sister & her family decided on an unplanned & spontaneous trip to our house all the way from Kedah. They arrived last night and my dear sis brought along special treats for the girls. Yummy.....


She baked for them a Barney cake & cupcakes. Delicious... Like Aila would always say "Super job, mak ngah".


Today my parents too are on their way to our place. As Kedahans will be observing a holiday on Sunday due to Sultan Kedah's birthday, both my parents and my sister & family took this opportunity to travel to our little casa during this extended weekend. What a treat. What a pleasure to have a house filled with company. Super duper GLAD...

However, I am SAD because our dear Auni is down with fever & flu after she came back from school yesterday. It wasn't too bad yesterday but her fever is high today. It has been a long while since she has fallen sick. Her track record has been so good so far but now I am worried. Oh dearest, I hope she'll get better soon. Really soon! Immediately! Now.....

Now I am MAD because my Auni will not be able to join in the fun and play with her cousins. Danial is her best cousin. Danilia is too. She always look forward to her cousins' trip to KL. She would always be the lead among them because she is the oldest. She is the life of the party sometimes. I am MAD because today, she is only resting and sleeping because she is sick. I am MAD because she can't flash her big smile when her Atok or Wawan arrived later on. Mad, mad, mad....

But despite it all, I am grateful too. Although we can't control the things that happen to us, there is always, always, always something to be thankful for. Always....

PS: This mommy wishes all family & friends out there a wonderful weekend ahead. Take care, ya.

Aila's 2.5 years of delight....

Aila is 2.5 years old now. It's been a while since I write something solely about her. What a girl she is and what a delight. Of course without a doubt she is a blessing and a gift from Allah. It is an honour for me to be her mommy. Trully...

Aila is a child so full of life. You will see her smiling & bouncing in the morning and still bouncing & jumping before bedtime too. She can be bossy at times. She wants things her own way, which is normal at this stage of her development. She hates sharing sometimes, which makes her sister Auni really furious. She is kind and cheerful, silly and funny all at the same time.

Right now, she likes to boogy and do her silly dance all day. But despite her silliness, you can see that she is going through her terrible twos stage just like any other 2 year old. When she wants something, she wants it NOW. Pronto.... no ifs or buts about it.

What I noticed most about Aila is her language and speech skills is far better than when Auni was at her age. Perhaps because she is the second child, so she picks up things much faster that way. Or perhaps because she noticed that she needs to speak up in order to get what she wants. Or maybe it is just her personality, she is more talkative than her super shy older sister Auni.

Mind you, I am not comparing Aila with other kids her age because each child is different. But being a mother of 2 girls, you can't help but compare some of their skills and progress among each other. Sometimes we tend to do that as parents....or at least I do. If I notice something different about one daughter versus another, I would highlight it to Ujang as part of our observation and understanding. Every child is unique and different, right. So we embrace it and not condemn it.

As I was hanging our wet laundry to dry this morning, Aila came up from behind and said..."Mommy watch out, there's a puddle! Right here. See?"

Or when she said to me one day, "Mommy, Aila don't like butterfly. Scary! I like crocodile!"

As her mommy, I wouldn't change anything about my girl. As long as she is healthy and happy, she can bully me anytime she wants. Ohhhh....wait! Maybe there is one of her bad habbit that I can do without. Currently, she likes to hold on to her bottle all the time and her teeth is slightly jongang daaaa.....

Well Ujang, we better save up cause our little girl may need braces one day!

PS: This mommy predicts that Aila will be more demanding of my time when the new baby comes. Have to prepare myself for lots of drama titled "Jealousy and Sibling Rivalry."

In the mood for a little change...

This is strictly ramblings, folks.

Aaahhhh, today I am in the mood for a little change. Change is a good thing, right. Though at my stage now, I can't change the furniture arrangement in my living room all by myself although I want to. And I can't change the way I look or how I feel at this moment...which is HUGE & FAT! but I am not complaining.

However, what I can do is change the "look" of my humble blog. Ok...ok... I was forced to do so actually. Since I started blogging, I have been using free blog design by Shabby Blogs which I love but this morning I got to know that I need to update my design coding before end of January or else the template will be gone.

So I search Shabbyblogs for old and favourite layout but unfortunately it is no longer there. What?? No choice then, I had to select other designs that I like and came up with this current template. Nothing fancy, though. Unlike other bloggers, I am pretty lazy to design my blog properly. I only cut and paste from free background templates available in the web.

For now, this design will do..... Ohh, I am sure when I am bored later on, I'll make another change. Cause change is a good thing, right. Even if it is as simple as changing the "look" of my humble blog.

If you are in the mood to change your layout, do checkout Shabbyblogs.com.

Till next time.... take care.

How to heal faster after delivery. Tips, please....

The big day is approaching. Delivery is just around the corner if I benchmark this pregnancy with my 2 previous pregnancies. Both Auni and Aila came out screaming the day I turned 36 weeks pregnant. If I use that as my guideline, so that leaves me roughly about 2-3 weeks to go!! Yikes.... not that long now. Allah Maha Mengetahui..... hopefully, when the big day comes, I'll be ready. On second thought, what choice do I have but to be ready, right?

Photo: Google lah.

Lately, I have been reading a lot about delivery and the pain that naturally goes with it. You see, I am weak. I admit it right away. Lembik...lembik...lembik!!! The moment I have a little bit of ache or pains, I'll scream the house down. For sure! My coping skills with pain especially during delivery is bad, folks. I am not like those luckly few that can cope well with pain or has high tolerance for pain. Nope, not me.

When I delivered Auni, although at that time I was already 5cm dilated I requested for my doctor to perform an elective C-section instead. Takut punya pasai! It was a first time delivery for me after 6 years of waiting for a child. Not knowing that my recovery process from C-section surgery was even worst than my vaginal birth. It took so long for me to recover fully. Duhhhh...should have thought of that before opting for elective C-section, right. The pain during recovery was a long road, indeed.

I opted for VBAC or vaginal birth after caesarean during my 2nd delivery with Aila. My plan was to cut down on the healing process after delivery. But without prior vaginal birth experience and the fact that the doctor had to use vacumm extraction & episiotomy incision, I still think that my recovery process was longer than most people. Minah lembik, remember....

If I compare myself to my sister, she was up & about much quicker & faster after both of her caesarean deliveries. Macam tak sakit ja nampak..... Some people are lucky that way.

Right now, thinking of the birth and delivery that I'll be going through for this 3rd baby is really scaring me. I am not looking forward for the afterpains or the discomfort of episiotomy afterwards.

The BIG question: How to heal faster after delivery? Any tips?? Please share them with me. Help!!

PS: This mommy knows that she'll have to go thru with it no matter what. The outcome of seeing the new baby is worth all the pain, that's for sure. But thinking of the BIG DAY is giving her the jitters!! Seram sejuk dibuatnya....

Now that's what I call music.....

This is strictly ramblings, folks.

So I bet a few of us watched AJL 25 last night. Ok...ok...maybe not a few but a whole lot of us watched the show aired live on TV3 last night. Though I don't follow the music scene religiously, I would always ensure to watch AJL each year just for the fun of it. Last night's show was good but AJL 23 & 24 were much better, in my opinion lah...


Photo: Google lah..

Before the big show, you read and hear predictions after predictions for the top 3 winners, be it in the newspapers, blogs, FB and etc. but I bet a lot of people were surprised to hear when they announced Ana Rafali's song 'Tolong Ingatkan Aku' won as best song last night. Heck, even Ana herself was shocked by the news when they called her name as the big winner. Banyak tekaan dah jauh tersasar daaaaa...... Kudos to Ana. Such a smart & talented lady. I like the way she briliantly articulate & answer questions regarding her big win on this morning's MHI show. Pandai dia susun kata-kata....

On another note, this AJL was not the same to me without my favourite singer Aizat. Now, he is one talented young man. It is so refreshing to see talented young singers who can compose their own songs & write their own lyrics. Unlike singers in the old days...

'Susun Silang Kata' by Aizat is such a lovely upbeat song which I like. It is such a great song for you to do the silly dance with your kids. At least I did it with Aila this morning and you should see how little Aila golek and gelek to the song. Such fun. Next time, I'll be sure to post Aila's silly dance move so you can see it for yourself - my little superstar in action!


Video courtesy of: Joehahah YouTube.

Till then, I leave you folks with my favourite song of the moment 'Susun Silang Kata' by Aizat. Hopefully this song will put a smile on your face especially on a day like this...a great Monday blues remedy.

Happy Monday everyone.....take care.

How do people choose baby names?

At this moment, I somewhat have a name in mind that I believe would be perfect for our little one (coming soon, InsyaAllah...coming really soon :). It is much easier this time around for me to select a name compared to when I was pregnant with my first child Auni.

This time around, it is a given that our new baby will carry a name with the same initials as her sisters. It is also a given that her first name will be short and simple just like her sisters too. I love short and simple names. A four letter name that starts with the letter A. Easy to remember. Easy to spell. Easy to write.

Way back before I had kids, I always knew that I would want to name my child with a name that is short and simple. I think it has always been my preference that way. Selecting a short and simple name also had to do with me growing up & had to listen to some people pronouncing my name incorrectly. It erks me to no end.....Absolutely hate it.

Photo source: Google lah...

What I didn't know was that Ujang too had his own preference in mind. So a tug of war occurred during the process of finding the perfect name for Auni. At one corner, there's yours truly wanting a short and simple name. And then there's Ujang with his own selection. So in the end, we compromised. I choose the first name & he with the middle name. Hidupkan kena ada kompromi...baru aman dunia, betoi tak?.

So now, each child carries 2 names - the first name is from mommy and the middle name is from daddy. It is common nowadays for a child to have 2 names, right. Some even have 3....or even 4! Yikes...panjangnya. It makes me think of the lovely Nurul Shuhada Nurul Ain sejenak...hehe!

Finding the right name for your child is a personal choice. Choosing it can be such fun or it can be one of the most stressful decisions too. Some people opt for popular names or names with significant meanings or because of family tradision. But whatever the decisions may be, choose it wisely as it will be part of your child for a lifetime.

Just Curious : How do you choose your child's name? Was it easy or do you have to make a long list?? Share em, please....

Click this link and see which name tops the chart for 2010. The most popular baby names among Muslim parents 2010.

For more pregnancy reference, check out BabyCenter.

Till next time, folks. Have a fantastic weekend yaaaa.... Take care.

33 weeks and counting....

Photo source: click here

I went for my biweekly checkup today. When the nurse asked me how far along am I, immediately I said "34wks kot". But in actual fact the scan indicated "32wks and 6days". That's ok. I knew all along that I am pretty bad with numbers. 32wks, 33wks or 34wks.....it doesn't matter. What matters is that the baby is progressing well as she should be. And with that news, I am GLAD. Syukur....

This morning's checkup was my 2nd checkup since moving to this new area. I choose to give birth at An-Nur Specialist Hospital as it is quite nearby from the house. I can sense that my new doctor is a kind and patient doctor which is always a good thing. But the experience of going for checkups at An Nur versus my old ob/gyn is like night and day especially in terms of the waiting period before you can see the doctor.

On my first checkup, I had no choice but the bring along the girls with me. Oh boy, what a big mistake that was. With so many people packed inside the clinic awaiting for their turn, it was really unpractical for mothers to bring their children along during their checkups at this clinic. Strictly from my personal view though. It wasn't easy for me with my girls that day.

But my girls are used to my old ob/gyn's way where they can see the baby each time the doctor scanned on my tummy. They like to be involved in knowing what their little sister is doing. They like to feel included. They get excited each time they hold the scanned printout of the baby. I remember Dr Chang had to print out 2 copies...one for Auni and another for Aila. Unfortunately, without their daddy tagging along this time, mommy will have to go for checkups alone from now on.

So according to the doctor, the progress of my 33wks of pregnancy is so far so good. Physically, I only gained 11.5kg in total. I am at 68.5kg now. The baby weighing at 1.9kg now. People commented that my tummy is not that big. I think it looks just the same as when I was carrying Auni and Aila before although I gained so much weight while carrying Auni that it reached 80kg at the end of my pregnancy. I just don't look in the mirror much nowadays anyway....hehehe.

Emotionally, I am anxious and pretty nervous about the BIG DAY itself. I tend to get easily agitated, short tempered or impatient whichever you want to call it. Yes, my temper is really shooting off the roof nowadays. It is more evident in this pregnancy compared to my previous 2.

Auni said so last night..."Mommy, what are you angry about?". Smart girl. I replied, "YOU!!". Blame it on the hormones, I suppose. Right?

Till the next checkup, hope that everything will progress as accordingly. Smooth sailing.....insyaAllah.

Let's rewind, shall we......

All along the month of December 2010, my brain keep thinking of the stories that I want to share in this blog but can't. Let's admit it....when you start a blog, no matter whether you are a daily blogger or a once-a-while blogger like me, your brain will most likely think in such a way that every event that happened can lead to a potential story. Some people post entries out of no particular story at all....but it works!

So now, I am in my rewind mode! Please bare with me cause this can be long winded, indeed......


It all started end November 2010 when we took a quick trip back to our small town to oversee a group of movers at our old house. I call it our "Small Town Moving Day!" The movers from Amove Resources took almost one whole day to pack and move out all our belongings before making their trip to KL that night.

On the same day too, we got a call from a lady asking us whether we wanted to rent out our house because she & her family are looking for a place in the same neighbourhood. She must have noticed the big yellow truck parked in front of the house. Though honestly, we were unprepared to rent out our house as yet or so soon for that matter, we ended up renting the place to her anyway.

After much discussions went back and forth between landlord & tenants, thanks to the help of my sister & brother-in-law, our old house is now in the care of our tenants Kak Nor & her family. We can only pray that Kak Nor will take good care of our house....as I sure miss my kitchen cabinets and all! Sob...sob....sob...


We only made an overnight trip back to our small town. Imagine the rush to get things done. But the girls really enjoyed the trip as we stayed at my sister's place and they got the chance to play with their best cousins - Danial & Danilia. Even my parents dropped by from Alor Setar to join the crowd. The more the merrier, kan....especially when my sister cooked delicious lauk-lauk for lunch even though I know that she hates to cook for large group of people nowadays. Big thanks, sis. Much appreciated. When you come to my place, kita order saja.......


Our "Big City Moving Day" finally arrived. Thank goodness the movers did such a great job that day. They unpacked all the big items and placed them accordingly to where I want them to be. Easy breezy. The hard work came soon after they left us with all the smaller items such as clothings, toys, kitchen stuffs etc...etc...that we need to organized ourselves. That was the hard part of moving.

But Ujang of course pulled through. He was determined to get things organized within 2 weeks and he did it. Superb job, my dearie. He came through for us all. Of course with yours truly unable to lift heavy objects/things or be of much help except to point her finger here and there along with a long list of instructions! I like....


Things went on as normal after the big move. We like living in Bangi. We like the area, the community, the ease of finding good places to eat and that everything that we need is within a short distance from the house. So far so good. The only bummer is the fact that I was at home with the girls without the ability to log in to the net for the whole month. If TM or the 2 other useless broadband that we had was able to rectify my dilemma, things would be SUPER DUPER!!

Ok..ok...I shall stop about the internet dilemma already. I know I am repeating myself again and again. Can't help it, I suppose. I'm angry!!!!!

In a nutshell, so many memories and so many good things occurred to us since we moved. As December being a month of school holidays, a lot of our family members and friends from far away were able to drop by at our new place. What can I say other than mi casa es su casa. Most welcome, anytime....

Auni's First Day of School

Folks, I am back. December went by without us having any internet connection even though we had subscribed to 2 broadband services...both turn out to be useless in this area. Now, even when my internet dilemma still pending......(note to TM : please laaa do your work!!!! How long do we have to suffer for your lack of service niiiiiii), I am glad that I got the opportunity to pen this down coz today is an important day for my darling Auni.

It's her 1st day of school. Brand new school in this town that we've recently moved to. She woke up early and got ready without much fuss. I guess because she's used to it kot. Her last day in her old school was last October. With 2 months of rest...or holidaying, she looks like she's ready to face the day this morning.

So baby, hope you had a great day at school today....and many more to come. We love you!

PS: This mommy survived 1 month without logging into the web...but nearly lost her mind though.....