Aug 31, 2009

Feel Good to Look Good?

Back few days, one of our mommy-blogger friend just reminded us that being a mom does not mean you should stop taking care of your body and looks. If you guys have missed it, you can go over to her blog and have a read here at http://ryanraffael.blogspot.com/2009/08/simple-beauty-tips-for-moms.html. Stephanie did shared a lot and it made me go thinking of my own method in trying to look “sane”.

We have surely have seen the snaps of all those celebrities with a kid or two. Like Angelina Jolie, with her bunch of kids and still she can look amazing at her minimal. I’m sure in our hearts we will say “Alah, dia celebrity. Ada orang nanny the kids while she get her make-up done by her make-up artist”.

Actually that is the way of thinking that we should avoid. Instead, we should get inspired by those females and be a smart good-looking mom. Of course your body dimensions may not be the same as those before giving a birth, but that doesn’t mean you can’t feel good.

See the key to looking good, is feeling good. It is as if when you feel good, you shine. With just a bit of effort but more of mental attitude you sure can be a fashionable and pleasing mom to everyone, be it within or outside the family.

So what should we do?

Step1

Do you ever realize that one factor that attributes most to your looking "tired" is your hairstyle? Eventhough we are wearing headcover/bertudung, that doesn’t mean that we should forsake our “crown” when we are at home.

Don’t give yourself that look of a tired woman(hehehehehe..i confess that I did let this happen to me at most times). Take charge of yourself and the first step in that direction to get that smart look is your hairstyle.

Like me, I have the hair almost similar to “Simba”, but that doesn’t put me off from trying to have a better appearance. I invested a bit on “leave-on” hair moisturiser, put up a bun and at times accessorizing it with little butterfly clips. I did get a few comments from Miya’s papa saying that it may be a little “over” and “bimbo-tic”, but then again it makes me feel good.

Then for those wearing tudung, invest on tudung that makes you feel good and look good. The most important, make sure its comfy because if it is not comfortable to wear, it will result in you having to “betulkan” the tudung all the time. It will then result in you looking like you are fidgeting all the time and therefore portrays that you don’t have that confidence in you.

Step2

Get rid of your ill-fitting jeans and tops. Just discard them. Sell them on your blog or give them away for charity.

Search the net or visit a store to try out new styles that suit your changed personality and make you look trimmer. Find something that compliments the new you. That is the most essential part of your dress to get that WOW looks.

Remember, something that suit you when you were an “anak dara” might be less of a comfort after being a mom. Don’t feel bad if you can’t dress the way you used to, take it as a challenge to have a wardrobe make over. It a path to the new you. A better, strong, confident, happy, pretty, sexy, great looking mom.

Step3

Don’t avoid make up. Many times you will find it difficult to have time for that but go for those essentials to get a fresher look. It helps you to remain confident and look desirable.

Instead, exploit your make up material to give you that natural complexion without any flaw. As for me, I’m a firm believer of 2in1 moisturiser with foundation. It’s easy to apply in the morning and after each time wudu’ and solat. Then with some help from 2 most powerful items; the volumizing mascara and the 3in1 lippy, blusher and eyecolor, you will look like a fresh “mamasita” in less than 3mins.

Don’t believe me, ask the many experts out there…but actually what’s important that you ask yourself if you do feel good.

Step4

The next item might not sound relevant to many moms out there, but hear me well; IT WILL MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD.

You should have a jacket, a blazer or a pantsuit. Yes, it’s your jacket that makes or mars your look of being a hot mom. It will be evenmore rewarding if you are having your own business or on your way up the corporate ladder. It doesn’t matter if you are working at the government sector or the private sector. It doesn’t matter if your are working as an executive or an assistant admin. What matters if that you dress to work to give the look that you should be taken seriously. You don’t dress to work like you are going to a “kenduri”, you dress to tell people off that you are a one smart cookie with 1001 capabilities.

I have 3 different blazer for 3 different occasion. Edmunser navy blue blazer for very formal, a “parkson brand” beige and white strip with lace trim blazer for semi-formal or formal casual, and very cheap black 4 button jacket for casual. Each one with its own duty at different occasion and without fail, each one of them had boosted my confidence.

Believe me, these jackets can influence your “feel good factor”. It boost up your confidence by making you feel that you look intelligent, smart, strong and the best part “a mom who is in charge of her life”.

And if you can afford it, get it tailored to your changed dimensions if you find it difficult to get the same from a store, though that shouldn’t be difficult.

Step5

Make use of those accessories to highlight the positive aspects of your anatomy.

If you think you look good in heel, invest in em.

If you think pretty handbags works for your look, buy em.

If you think a wide belt or kimono obi kinda belt helps to hide that after baby tummy, have em.

If you think big sunglasses, bangles, earrings, brooch tudung will boost up your confidence; go collect them to match with your outfits.

A girl gotta indulge in something right?

But be reminded, don’t over spend on em coz those extra cash could come in handy to invest on you child.

Aug 29, 2009

Miya Dapat Baju Raya!!










Aug 24, 2009

Tercipta Sejarah - Mama tarawih gendong Miya.

We reached the new Musollah at Lt Pelham St just in time for the 1st rakaat of the tarawih prayer. So cepat-cepat la mama get into saft and put Miya aside with her books. Miya happily observed the new place, but later grew wary. Then at the end of the 2nd rakaat, Miya suddenly melalak.

Mama tried pujuk and tried putting her down, but she would not let go. Mean while the jemaah continues with the next rakaat.

So what did Mama do? Mama solat lah sambil gendong Miya until the end of the 8th rakaat. Alhamdulillah Mama pernah read once about cara solat sambil dukung anak dalam buku "Solat Perempuan", some info sharing in forum MSK & blog MomyLyna Msk, and youtube.

By end of the jemaah, tangan Mama cukup lenguh. So, witir was done at home.

Then on the way home, Miya tetibe mula meng"hepi-hepi"kan diri. See the pictures, cam takde apa-apa berlaku kan?


Note to self: Next time pegi Musollah bawak sling pouch.

For anyone who might be ragu2 about solat while dukung anak, here are some info:

1- Pergerakan yang sedikit seperti mendukung anak di dalam sembahyang tidak membatalkan sembahyang, sebagaimana pernah dilakukan oleh Rasulullah Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam terhadap Umamah binti Zainab, seperti tercatat dalam hadis Bukhari (no: 494) dan Muslim (no: 543).

2- From website MSK, dated 31st May 2008 (http://mysuperkids.net/pray-with-baby/):


"Mami dulu ada dengar bahwa Rasulullah pernah solat sambil dokong cucu baginda, anak kepada Zainab. tp Mami xtahu macamana cara solat sambil dokong anak. Mami asked around kawan2 yg dah ada baby masa tu, ramai kata tak boleh & susah, sebab:

kingpin dvdrip

  • baby pakai pampers, ada najis.
  • baby lelaki yg belum khatan bawa najis.
sehinggalah Mami dapat Hafiy & Mami akui mmg sukar utk Mami melaksanakan solat. Hafiy suka nangis kalo Mami tinggalkan even sekejap, nak berdokong je. dilema jugakla Mami, cemana nak buat. solat Mami pun jadi hujung2 waktu je sebab nk kene tunggu Mak Tok&Tok Ayah balik kerja (ms cuti maternity), Hafiy tido, etc. kusyuk tak kusyuk toksah cerita, kadang2 jadi ‘asal solat’ aje. semoga Allah mengampuni Mami..

sampailah kita balik Miri & Mami consult dengan Bunda (Kak Evi =sebut Efi). Bunda bagitau Mami cara2 solat sambil sokong Hafiy. masya-Allah memang senang sangat, dan dua sebab TIDAK BOLEH di atas tu memang TIDAK VALID langsung.

alhamdulillah, sejak tu memang Mami solat sambil dokong Hafiy. memang senang dan mudah, even kadang2 Hafiy bukan nak duk diam. tp at least xdela melalak2.

mudah saja. pertama sekali kena faham kedudukan tangan tidak ada dalam syarat sah (ada 5) atau rukun solat (ada 13). dan juga faham tentang sunat hai’ah (ada 15) & sunah ab’adh (ada 4). kedudukan tangan semasa solat (takbiratul ihram, baca surah, iktidal, etc.) adalah sunat hai’ah, yakni tidak mengapa jika tidak dibuat. manakala sunat ab’adh, jika tertinggal kena buat sujud sahwi.

satu lagi tentang gerakan semasa solat. yg famous (belajar sejak tadika) ialah melebihi 3 kali berturut2 membatalkan solat. however, tersebut tiada dalam dalil & adalah pendapat sesetengah ulamak. malah ada ulamak berpendapat boleh bergerak lebih 3 kali berturut2, tetapi tidak boleh terover. namun berdasarkan riwayat bahawa Rasulullah pernah solat mendokong bayi, membuka pintu dan membunuh haiwan berbisa semasa solat, yg tentunya perlu banyak gerakan. bagi Mami, kita ambil begini – jika tiada keperluan, limitkan kepada 3 kali saja, jika ada keperluan (cth seperti dokong baby) maka tidak mengapa. jadi, jgn bergerak melebihi 3 kali sekiranya tiada keperluan.


cara-cara solat sambil dokong baby:

  • berdiri seperti biasa sambil dokong baby.
  • sebelah tangan pegang baby, sebelah angkat takbir.
  • baca al-fatihah & surah seperti biasa sambil pegang baby. kalo boleh sebelah tangan diletak di tempat biasa.
  • semasa rukuk pegang baby dua2 tangan.
  • masa sujud, sama ada pegang baby sebelah atau letak baby di sisi.
  • jika letak di sisi, sama ada mau teruskan dokong, atau biarkan saja dia lepak2 kat situ.
  • kalo mau dokong, angkat saja & pegang mcm mula2 tadi.
  • ms duduk tahiyat tiada masalah since baby bole diriba terus.
  • baca doa Qunut, kalo bole angkat sebelah tangan & kalo xbole x apa, pegang je baby dua2 tangan.

police academy mission to moscow online

Hafiy sejak bertambah lasak ni memang tak terkawal. tp alhamdulillah, dengan dokong Hafiy, Mami bole concentrate solat (kusyuk) daripada terfikir2 tentang ape jadi kat Hafiy w/o dokong, kot2 terjatuh ke, terantuk ke, etc. & ‘kena’ solat cepat2 sebab Hafiy melalak. even if letak sbelah sejadah pun percubaan2 utk ‘mencederakan diri sendiri’ mmg tak dapat dibendung.

kalo masa solat tu Hafiy tido, Mami akan palingkan muka sekali sekala utk pastikan Hafiy OK.

utk pastikan kesucian, Mami tuka diapers Hafiy sebelum solat. yg keluar2 masa solat tu tak apa, mcm juga vaginal discharge yg keluar, tidak apa. yg penting sebelum solat tu kena pastikan betul2 suci.

alhamdulillah, Mami tak risau2 lagi ‘terpaksa’ solat lewat (& ada kawan Bunda yg jamakkan solat sebab babynya asik nangis) sebab Mami bole solat sambil dokong Hafiy. di samping tu, Mami boleh bawak anak Mami solat sama, dan semoga Allah mudahkan aktiviti ibadah wajib ni utk anak2 Mami since dari kecil dari dah ikut Mami ’solat jemaah’"



Islam tu agama mudah yg mempermudahkan kita beribadat kan? So sapa kata ibu yg ada anak kecil tokleh pegi tarawih berjemaah?

Spring is Near- Makes Miya & Mama Happy.







If I live in a house of spotless beauty with everything in its place,
but have not love, I am a housekeeper - not a homemaker.

If I have time for waxing, polishing, and decorative achievements, but
have not love, my children learn cleanliness - not godliness.

Love leaves the dust in search of a child's laugh.
Love smiles at the tiny fingerprints on a newly cleaned window.

Love wipes away the tears before it wipes up the spilled milk.
Love picks up the child before it picks up the toys.

Love is present through the trials. Love reprimands, reproves, and is
responsive. Love crawls with the baby, walks with the toddler, runs
with the child, then stands aside to let the youth walk into adulthood.

Love is the key that opens salvation's message to a child's heart.

Before I became a mother I took glory in my house of perfection. Now I
glory in God's perfection of my child. As a mother, there is much I
must teach my child, but the greatest of all is love.

Aug 21, 2009

Ramadhan is Here!!

Aug 20, 2009

Miya's fav movie- BOLT

About kelmarin I realized Miya reti sebut dog. 1st time she said dog was when we were doing flash card. But Miya tak sebut betul-betul. She said "Dih"

2nd time was yesterday at Max Brenner, ada a guy bawa a very big dog (bigger than mama miya!). Miya pointed at the dog and said "Doh".

Then just now, Miya tengok movie Bolt. She pointed at Bolt and said...


"DOG!"


Bangga mama, finally Miya said it right.

Miya @ Max Brenner


Ha..cuba teka Miya dok memandang apa tu?










Yezza.. its this wonderful Italian thick chocolate drink yang kawan papa Miya belanja Miya semalam. Sedap....Nikmat....




Aug 17, 2009

Rezeki Anak- Miya with her new Bike!!









Last week, our neighbor pindah balik Indonesia after completing their masters. They are a family of 4, ada 2 anak dara toddlers. Itu la kawan-kawan Miya kat sini. So when they left, they gave a whole bunch of stuff to us and among it is this fisher price bike. Miya punye la happy coz dia dah lama eying for it.

Aug 16, 2009

Reading To Baby

Recognize Illness

Aug 13, 2009

Beef & Fennel Pie Recipe (Seperti Dijanjikan)




After my little experiment cooking with fennel last night, Alhamdulillah my breastmilk supply got a bit of a boost. It really helped alot coz Miya was fussy the whole night, so sikit2 nak susu.

Actually it is not as powerful as taking edamame (remembered i posted before on this, saying my boob bengkak after eating em), but it is more effective than fenugreek, ice blended soya kurma, lobak putih, dried longan. Maybe my body ni mmg lain skit dr org lain kot. But alhamdulillah now I have additional menu to cook at home. Moreover, fennel ni is cheaper than lobak putih & edamame here. This is a good thing for me coz finally i jumpa vege mat salleh yang cheap, but helpful for breastfeeding mom.

So ni dia, I share my recipe of Beef & Fennel Pie.

INGREDIENTS INTI PIE
* minyak masak
* 1 bwg besar diced
* 1 medium size fennel di hiris halus
* 3 ulas garlic minced
* 1 tspn fennel seed/jintan
* 1 tspn serbuk ketumbar
* 1 egg
* 400g ground beef
* 1 tspn salt/ secukup rasa

INGREDIENTS KULIT PIE
* Frozen puff pastry square

INGREDIENTS PIE GRAVY/SAUCE

* 1cup chicken stock/beef broth
* ½ cup cream
* pinch of Italian herbs
* 2 tspn corn flour
* 1tspn blackpepper
* 1tspn sugar
* salt to taste


DIRECTIONS


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F / 190 degrees C. Lightly grease a baking pie dish & lay frozen puff pastry.




2. Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion, fennel, and garlic. Cook and stir until the fennel is tender, and the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Turn of the heat and let it cool down.

3. Meanwhile, beat the egg in a bowl and stir in the salt, fennel seed and ketumbar seed. Then mix in the ground beef. Add the cooked vegetable mixture, and stir until combined.



3. Curah the inti into the prepared pie dish and cover it with another piece of puff pastry. Seal/ Kelim the sides just like kelim curry puff. Then make tiny holes with knife on top of the pie. This is to avoid the pie from bursting while the into cooks in the oven.




4. Bake in the preheated oven until the pastry has turned golden-brown, about 30 minutes – 1 hour, depends on the type of oven.

5. While the pie is baking, prepare the sauce. Mix all of the ingredient for the sauce in a sauce pan and put over medium heat. Stir until the sauce pekat and then add salt to taste. Then its done.

6. When the pie is done, cut and pour the sauce on top. Serve panas-pana. Bon appetite!


Okie, since I dah try that Fennel works for me in increasing my breastmilk, I think I will be cooking a lot using this since its cheap. So.... kalau kawan-kawan I out there got some recipes on fennel, do share yek?

Aug 12, 2009

Breastmilk boosters?

Direct quote from Wikipedia:

"A galactogogue is a substance which is used to increase the production of milk in humans and other animals. It may be synthetic, plant-derived, or endogenous.

Most of those discovered have been found to interact with the dopamine system in such a way to increase the production of prolactin endogenously.

Examples include Domperidone & Metoclopramide (synthetic), sweet potato, silymarin, and fenugreek (plant-derived), and prolactin (endogenous)."


Anyway, tonight I plan to cook Beef & Fennel Pie. Let me see if Fennel helps boost up breastmilk too coz a new info I learn today that Fennel is also a galactogogue.

Another direct quote from Wikipedia:




"There are historical anecdotes that fennel is a galactogogue,[16] improving the milk supply of a breastfeeding mother. This use, although not supported by direct evidence, is sometimes justified by the fact that fennel is a source of phytoestrogens, which promote growth of breast tissue.[17] However, normal lactation does not involve growth of breast tissue. There is a single case report of fennel tea ingested by a breastfeeding mother resulting in neurotoxicity for the newborn child.[18]"


I give an update on my little experiment tomorrow ok? If it works I'll share the Beef & Fennel Pie recipe with u all.

Aug 11, 2009

Extended Breastfeeding?



Last week I had a thought “Ada makna ke menyusu anak ku yang dah pass infanthood?”. Then it was being followed up with the little poll I held on my blog titled “How long will you breastfeed your baby?”.



From the poll, it is evident that many of you mommies out there agree that extended breastfeeding is good. But do we really know why we agree to such idea? Do we really have a firm belief on this whole extended breastfeeding mission of ours? As for me, I am still determined to have some factual stuff to back-up my stand.

So I surfed the net and read on a few articles and I found out that I am not alone. Many moms wonder if there are really benefits to nursing a baby past his first birthday....and in the western world most babies are weaned before they turn one. Most Mat/Minah Salleh are surprised to see toddlers and even older children at the breast, though this is commonplace in other parts of the world.

And in Islam, the Quran states that a complete a breastfeeding journey is for the period from birth to the 2 years of age. Furthermore, the Quran did not state that is the maximum age of when the child should be wean off from breastmilk.

So I guess, it is safe to conclude that the natural time of weaning will vary from child to child. In cultures where children are allowed to nurse as long as they want it has been found that natural weaning takes place between three and four years of age. Extended nursing seems to be the human norm.

In the modern world, breastfeeding is only as a means of providing optimal nutrition coupled with immunological protection. However from my reading from many articles and websites of pro-breastfeeding, many believes that breastfeeding provides much more than just nutrition.

In reference to breastfeeding for toddlers, I found out that toddlers really enjoy nursing, they don't nurse for milk alone, toddlers crave for that soothing comfort from breastfeeding. It comforts him/her when he/she is tired, sick or hurt. Nursing is your baby's way of touching base with you as he busily explores his world. Parents often worry that their child will become clingy and dependent if they are nursed for an extended period of time. Providing your little one with this loving and secure base actually helps him to become independent.

Mothers also benefit from extended nursing. You continue to benefit from the hormones of breastfeeding. The "mothering hormone," prolactin, relaxes you, while oxytocin stimulates loving , nurturing behavior. As mothers of nursing toddlers know, this can be very important to your mental health and well-being. Life with a toddler is not always easy! You also benefit from the intimacy that nursing provides. Taking time out of a busy day to cuddle is as important to moms as it is to their babies.

But is that all to breastfeeding a toddler? Is that all what the toddler gets? Is that all a breastfeeding mother gets?

So I did some further reading and I found this article by Kathryn Orlinsky. Have a read of it and I think you’ll get on what I’m thinking here.

Comfort versus Nutrition By Kathryn Orlinsky

A very common statement about older nurslings is that they nurse mainly for comfort rather than for nutritional needs. Children who only nurse when upset or tired, or who eat a large quantity or variety of other foods often fall into this category. Is this an accurate depiction? To some extent, it is. As one mother suggested, if a child has nursed his fill, then hurts himself and asks to nurse again, this time only long enough to regain his composure, what else can that second nursing be for if not for comfort? Also, how much nutrition can a child get from nursing for a few minutes per day? These are valid questions. Nevertheless, I believe that it belittles human milk, the most nutritious substance in the world, as far as humans are concerned, to speak of it in these terms. Why disparage it this way? We never talk that way about other foods.


How much nutrition do we get from eating any small amounts of food? An older child with a varied diet doesn't need human milk in the same way that I don't need to eat apples. One apple doesn't contribute too many calories to my diet, but it's still a significant nutritional contribution. If I were writing down my diet to make sure that I got the right amount of nutrients and vitamins, I would certainly not omit the apple. It doesn't matter what my emotional state was when I ate the apple either, it is still nutritionally significant. I think of human milk the same way. It may or may not contribute a significant amount of calories and it may not be essential to sustain life, but on the days when a child consumes it, it is nutritionally significant. And that doesn't even include the other health benefits of human milk, such as protection from disease or gastrointestinal discomfort.

Why do we expect more from human milk than from any other food source? If a child doesn't appear to need human milk for survival, we as a society are quick to decide that breastfeeding is now unnecessary and that every effort should be made to wean the child.

We don't say that children should stop eating bananas once bananas are no longer a significant part of their diet. Bananas eaten once in a while are as nutritious as bananas eaten three times a day. In fact, you might even consider the rarely eaten banana to be more important nutritionally. Why do we not see that the same is true of human milk?

I think this whole 'comfort nursing' thing started because people were comparing breastfeeding with sucking on thumbs or pacifiers. In our culture, those things are more commonly used by older children than breastfeeding, and of course, they are sucked on purely for comfort; nothing comes out of them. Our society then assumes that breastfeeding children of the same age are suckling for the same reasons.

My last point is that we assume that children are nursing for comfort because they only ask to nurse when they are upset or tired. What if the reason they are upset in the first place is because they are experiencing low blood sugar or lacking some other nutritional element found in human milk? They don't realize that's what is wrong with them, and neither do we.

Under this scenario, despite what we see--child asks to nurse when she needs to be comforted--the true reason behind the nursing might be nutritional. By the same token, a younger child who gets all of his nutrition from the breast may also be nursing to comfort himself.

I realize that there are differences between nursing one-year-olds and nursing six -year-olds. Their nutritional and emotional needs are very different. However, I strongly feel that it is wrong to arbitrarily establish distinctions between 'comfort nursing' and 'nutritional nursing'. Breastfeeding will always be about both aspects; they cannot be separated.

(from "Keeping Abreast" October/December 1999 issue)


Okie now, from my earlier expression and then followed down to this article, I want to know of what my fellow breastfeeding friends out there thinks? Please leave a comment here and share your 2cents on “benefit of breastfeeding your toddler”. Really appreciate any sort of feed back on why do you think extended breastfeeding is good.

Apa Miya buat last week time mama hiatus?


Mula-mula, Miya drove the jeep to go shopping for some pinky fancy clothes.

Then Miya took the bike, to go chill out with some friends..

Miya had a great time hanging out with lilia & elmo.


Then to cheer mama up, Miya baked choc cake for her.



Mama loved em so much and she almost finished em all..

-

Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor nor am I a lawyer. I am not a scientist nor am I an expert. I am just a wife and a mother, who is putting her thoughts and findings in a blog. All of the posting on this website & my blogs were written by me for educational purposes and as my sentimental library, but are not meant to diagnose nor treat any medical disorders. Any other materials that I may have quote from other published materials are for educational purposes only and not for any other manipulative reasons. Anyway, whatever weird stuff that I published are the real stuff that I believe works for me. Tips and tricks that might work for me. You are free to put it in your head if you thinks its valuable, but if you think its rubbish... Please don't mock me. Do please shut your pie hole.
 
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